[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12577]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY

  (Ms. WOOLSEY asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, the strength of our economy is built on the 
honesty, integrity and transparency of our financial institutions. Over 
the years, weakened Federal regulation of accounting practices has 
allowed corporate greed to run rampant and has led to the failure of 
some of our largest businesses. When these businesses fail, thousands 
of employees lose their jobs and pensions while corporate executives 
become rich. These captains of industry do not stay with a sinking 
ship, they jump off first, and they jump off with all the treasure.
  This is not a simple problem of a few bad apples; the problems are 
systemic, and we need major changes in our country's accounting 
practices of our corporations.
  What is important to remember is that when corporations fail, workers 
lose their jobs, families hit hard times and children suffer. There 
must be a zero tolerance for corporate corruption.

                          ____________________