[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 13930]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                CORPORATE ACCOUNTABILITY AND THE ECONOMY

  (Ms. SOLIS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Ms. SOLIS. Mr. Speaker, each weekend when I go home to my district, 
the issue I hear the most about is with respect to the economy. 
President Bush has told the American public that our economy is 
fundamentally sound. I question that terminology. I question it because 
in my own district, one of the largest cities that I represent, the 
city of El Monte, we have upwards of 9 percent unemployment. In the 
city of South El Monte, it goes beyond. It is 11 percent. People are 
wondering what is happening to them there. In Baldwin Park, 
unemployment rates are 8.2 percent. In South El Monte again, it is 11 
percent. And it is not just about the unemployed. It is about jobs and 
it is about the potential for these people to have a place to stay, to 
live, to raise their families.
  Each day brings more layoffs and each week brings new news that yet 
another corporate scandal is upon us. The collapse of WorldCom has 
serious implications for not only those that work for that company but 
also the many people and organizations who invested millions in that 
company. The California Public Employees Retirement System, CALPERS, 
which provides retirement and health benefit services to 1.3 million 
public employees and nearly 2,500 employers, has estimated a loss at 
$433 million because of the collapse of WorldCom.
  It is time for President Bush and the Republican majority in the 
House to stand up for workers and provide restitution to the employees 
who lost their life savings and their pension funds.

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