[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 1]
[House]
[Pages 841-842]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



   SPEAKING ON BEHALF OF THE 11,000 MEN AND WOMEN IN UNIFORM ON FOOD 
                                 STAMPS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Jones) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. JONES of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, I am on the floor tonight 
because we have approximately 11,000 men and women in uniform that are 
willing to die for this country on food stamps. Yes, Madam Speaker, we 
have passed legislation that will help increase their salaries, but 
still we have men and women in uniform on food stamps.
  Members can see what I have before me is a Marine. He represents not 
only the Marine Corps, but every man and woman in uniform. Standing on 
his feet is his daughter Megan, who is 2 years old, and in his arms is 
a baby girl named Bridget.
  I think about Megan and Bridget and all the children that are 
children of men and women in uniform, and the fact that when this 
Marine is deployed to go overseas to Bosnia for 6 months, there is no 
guarantee that he is going to come back. There is no guarantee that any 
of our men and women in uniform who are sent into harm's way will for 
sure come back.
  I look at that little girl's face, and I am thinking, as she is 
looking at the

[[Page 842]]

camera when this photograph was made, how tragic it would be if the 
father did not come back. But almost as tragic is the fact that we have 
approximately 11,000 men and women in uniform that are on food stamps.

                              {time}  1900

  These are men and women, like this Marine, that are willing to die 
for this country when called upon. And yet we can't find $59 million 
over a 10-year period of time to give men and women in uniform on food 
stamps a $500 tax credit. Madam Speaker, I think that is a shame. I 
think that is unacceptable.
  Last year in the tax bill, we as a Congress passed tax credits for 
the steel industry, the timber industry, and for the electric industry. 
There are other tax credits that we as a Congress passed. Of course, 
the President vetoed the bill.
  I am calling on my colleagues in the House tonight, both Democrat and 
Republican, to join me in saying to the leadership, both Republican and 
Democrat, this year we are going to pass some type of legislation. Mine 
just happens to be the only one; it is H.R. 1055. It is called the 
Military Family Food Stamp Tax Credit Act.
  Madam Speaker, you went on the bill today. I thank you for that. I 
can tell you and my colleagues in this body that it is unacceptable 
that men and women in uniform are on food stamps. We need to do 
everything that we can to say to them that we are going to work and try 
to make sure that no one that serves this great Nation is on food 
stamps.
  Madam Speaker, I am planning on coming down about one night every 
week and bring this to the attention of my colleagues; we have 
legislation that we can do something about men and women on food 
stamps.
  Real quickly, Madam Speaker, as I end my time, from 1982 to 1990, our 
United States Army and Marine Corps forces were deployed 17 times. From 
1990 to 1999, they had been deployed 149 times. Can you think about how 
many times men and women in uniform were called away from their family 
and their children?
  Madam Speaker, I thank you for being one of the Members who have 
joined us in supporting this legislation.

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