[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 17790]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                          NATIONAL PRIORITIES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to discuss the fiscal year 2000 budget. 
Adoption of the budget is the most important job that Congress 
performs. Like a sound business or well-run household, our budget 
establishes our priorities for the next year.
  The news of our income for the next year looks amazingly good. The 
President's Office of Management and Budget is estimating a $99 billion 
surplus, including Social Security monies. However, without Social 
Security, we have a deficit. If we protect Social Security incomes, the 
surplus drops to $5 billion.
  OMB's 10-year projection of $1 trillion surplus may be a dangerous 
phantom. There is a surplus only if we include Social Security funds. 
Without Social Security funds, we will have a deficit.
  The available surplus is much smaller than what we think. When all of 
the figures are calculated in a responsible manner, our surplus is more 
like $112 billion, hardly enough to afford the almost $800 billion 10-
year tax cut package that the Republicans are considering.
  Two of this administration's enormous accomplishments are the 
substantial reduction of a deficit and a buoyant economy. In good 
economic times, a wise family makes certain that the essentials for a 
decent household is that the soundness of the physical foundations are 
in tact, a good roof, a good basement, sound plumbing and wiring, 
adequate nutrition, basic health care, excellent schools, a healthy 
neighborhood, adequate infrastructure, transportation, clean air and 
clean water.

                              {time}  1945

  This is what we all want for our families. What a business aspires to 
have is a sound basis of operation, and that is what we want for our 
Nation.
  Congress' work is to look at our income of hard-earned tax money and 
use this money to provide a decent and functioning Nation; a Nation 
which we all can be proud of, a Nation of well-educated people, well 
housed, well fed, healthy, with a decent regard for themselves and for 
each other and the common good. We must have serious priorities for the 
serious business of being a sound Nation.
  Now, the majority cuts taxes for the rich and ignores problems that 
are screaming for attention. We must pay down our debts to lower our 
interest rates, but we must also respond to our housing problems. We 
have over 5.5 million households that are in substandard housing. In my 
district alone, the waiting list for housing assistance opened for 1 
day in May of 1997, and 15,000 applicants stood in line for a waiting 
list running up to 5 years. In my county of Alameda, the wait list has 
been closed since 1991. Taking care of our housing stock should be one 
of our national priorities.
  Over 43 million do not have health coverage. In California, among 
working families of employed single adults with children, 55 percent 
have no insurance. The number of uninsured children has increased by 25 
percent during these amazing economic times. About 8 million 
Californians are not covered at all. Prescription drugs are being 
priced out of the reach of seniors, and I fully support the President's 
plan to address this need. Provision of essential prescriptions should 
be one of our national priorities.
  There will be more students. Our classrooms are crowded. A record 
52.7 million children are enrolled in elementary and secondary schools, 
and this number will climb to 54.3 million by 2008. We do not train our 
teachers sufficiently, and we do not pay our teachers sufficiently. We 
do not have enough teachers. We do not have enough counselors. We do 
not have enough school buildings, and much of what we have is aging and 
must be rehabilitated. Most of our schools are not connected to the 
Internet. The Republican tax bill is silent on these issues and all of 
these needs. These educational needs must be one of our national 
priorities for attention.
  Almost 70 percent of this tax freedom bill, as it is called, goes to 
reduce taxes of the wealthiest 10 percent of the people, with incomes 
over $204,000 a year. Only 9 percent of this bill goes toward reducing 
the taxes of about 70 percent of our people.
  There is hunger in our cities and there is hunger in many of our 
rural areas. The Washington Post reported that our military personnel 
and their families depend upon second and third jobs, food stamps, and 
cast-away furniture in order to feed and house their families. 
Eliminating hunger should be a national priority. Providing adequate 
wages for working people should be a national priority.
  This is our chance to do what is right. This is our chance. Our 
rivers can be cleaned, our air can be improved. This is our chance to 
take care of the physical conditions of our environs; a program to 
continue our Superfund and brown fields cleanup, reforestation, and 
preservation of endangered species.
  We have important and essential work to do together to recognize that 
the priorities of our country should be putting people first. It should 
ensure that we make our country strong, physically, socially and 
economically.

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