[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 16]
[Senate]
[Pages 21707-21712]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   AMENDING THE CONTINUING RESOLUTION

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa.
  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, I thought the CR--the continuing 
resolution, as it is known around this place--was going to be laid down 
tonight. I guess it will not be laid down until tomorrow. But I will be 
offering an amendment the first thing in the morning on behalf of 
myself and a number of other cosponsors: Mr. Kohl, Mr. Jeffords, Mr. 
Levin, Mr. Bingaman, Mrs. Clinton, Ms. Stabenow, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. 
Lautenberg, Mr. Rockefeller, Mr. Akaka, Mr. Pryor, Mr. Carper, and Ms. 
Cantwell. I think by tomorrow morning there are going to be a lot more 
on this list.
  It is basically a very simple amendment. All it says is:

       Notwithstanding section 101 of this joint resolution, 
     amounts are provided for making payments under the 
     ``Community Services Block Grant Act'' at a rate not less 
     than the amounts made available for such Act in fiscal year 
     2005.

  Well, what that means is that this amendment, then, will continue the 
community services block grants at last year's level.
  Now, you might say: Well, wait a minute. Isn't that what a continuing 
resolution does, it continues everything at last year's level?
  Well, we have a continuing resolution the likes of which I have never 
seen. I have not seen it in the last 10 years. I have asked my staff to 
go back 20 years or so to see if we had something like it.
  Here is what the House has done. They have sent us a continuing 
resolution that continues funding either at last year's level or at the 
House budget level, whichever is lower--whichever is lower. Now, what 
you will find out in there is that there are cuts in education, cuts to 
a whole lot of things. But most of those cuts do not take effect until 
next year. Education money goes out next summer. So for the continuing 
resolution, from now until--what?--November 18, I think it is, or 
something like that--a couple months--they will not be hit. But there 
will be a 50-percent cut in the Community Services Block Grants, which 
means by Saturday they will be cut 50 percent--right now.
  Now, the occupant of the Chair, a former distinguished Governor of 
Virginia, I know he knows about the community services block grants. 
They do a lot in his State, as they do in our States: the Low Income 
Home Energy Assistance Program, housing, Head Start, transportation for 
the elderly, job search, all kinds of things, even helping low-income 
people apply for the earned income tax credit. There are a whole host 
of things done by Community Services Block Grants. It will be cut 50 
percent, not next year, Saturday, Sunday. It will be a 50-percent cut 
immediately.
  Now, I am going to read it into the Record this evening. I am sorry I 
have to keep the distinguished Senator in the chair for a little while 
tonight, but I think it is important for people to understand what we 
are doing here.
  If this were just affecting programs like education next year--we are 
going to fix that by November, granted. But this is now. This happens 
now. The poorest of the poor in our country are going to get hit 
Saturday, Sunday,

[[Page 21708]]

Monday, because of the wording of that continuing resolution, with a 
50-percent cut, including victims of Hurricane Katrina, children all 
across the country.
  We just had the mayor of Baton Rouge here the other day, Kip Holden. 
He was up here asking for more money for community services block 
grants. When he found out from my staff what the continuing resolution 
did in cutting it 50 percent, he couldn't believe it. He said they have 
been invaluable in assisting Katrina evacuees, getting things done that 
FEMA could not. He was up here pleading for more funding for community 
services block grants. He said it was beyond belief that Congress would 
be cutting this program at a time when it is most urgently needed. But 
that is exactly what the Congress will do if it passes this CR.
  Once again, we are 1 day from the end of the fiscal year. Like an 
irresponsible schoolchild, the Congress has not completed its homework. 
It has finished 2 of the 11 appropriations bills. Why do we find 
ourselves once again in this sorry state of disarray? Consider the 
Labor-Health and Human Services appropriations bill, which is the bill 
that funds community services block grants. Under the very capable 
leadership of our distinguished chairman, Senator Arlen Specter, our 
subcommittee did its job in a timely, orderly manner. We passed the 
Senate Labor-Health and Human Services-Education appropriations bill 
2\1/2\ months ago, July 14. But once it left our committee, it seemed 
to disappear into a black hole. It hasn't been brought up on the floor. 
It is not even scheduled to be brought up on the floor. This is the 
bill that funds the community services block grants.
  We didn't cut it. It was bipartisan. Republicans and Democrats on the 
subcommittee and on the full Committee on Appropriations voted to 
continue the funding for community services block grants at last year's 
level. Here we are, 1 day away from yet another end-of-fiscal-year 
train wreck.
  Like actual train wrecks, this one will have real human casualties 
and victims, real hardship. This has not been done before. I know no 
one is here. There are no more votes tonight. Senators have all gone 
home. But I will be back on this floor tomorrow. We get 30 minutes 
tomorrow morning, 30 minutes to do something to protect the poorest of 
the poor, those who have no one to fight for them, those who rely upon 
our community service agencies out there to help them get through a 
tough time, to provide the Low Income Heating Energy Assistance 
Program. Even in Virginia, as well as Iowa, up in the northern part of 
the country, cold weather is starting to set in. It is in the 30s at 
night. Pretty soon it will get down to freezing, in October and 
November. We are going to need to get LIHEAP money out to these people. 
How are we going to do it when we have cut funding 50 percent? We are 
not supposed to speak about the other body here, but what could have 
been on their minds in doing something like this?
  Now we are going to bring this up tomorrow. I assume the leadership 
is going to want us to rubberstamp it, a continuing resolution that 
will mandate drastic cuts to these vital services for the poorest of 
the poor, rubberstamp it, get it out of here, 30 minutes of debate 
tomorrow. We will talk about it. We will rubberstamp it, and we will 
get on our planes and go home. We are comfortable. We are going to be 
able to afford heat. We will be able to afford food for our families. 
We don't have anything to worry about. We make a lot of money around 
here. Eighty percent of this place is filled with millionaires. That is 
fine. We are comfortable.
  Think about those who are not so comfortable. We are going to see 
devastating cuts. I mentioned serving victims of Hurricane Katrina. One 
hundred seventy-one thousand people, estimated not by me but by those 
involved with the evacuees, 171,000 people are being served under the 
community services block grants right now. It is 50 percent, this 
weekend--not next year, now--a 50-percent cut now. I don't know if 
people understand this. Poor people are going to suffer.
  For the record, in fiscal year 2005, the CSBG was funded at $637 
million, $636.6 million, to be accurate. The House provided $320 
million for next year. Therefore, under this continuing resolution, 
which says you either take last year's level or the House level, 
whichever is less, that is what you do. Well, the House level is $320 
million, a 50-percent cut.
  I have a chart that shows the funding levels for community services 
block grants. In each of the last 3 years, it has been cut. The last 
time it was raised was in the fiscal year from 2001 to 2002 to $650 
million. Ever since then, in fiscal years 2003, 2004, and 2005, it was 
cut from 650 to 645 to 642 to 636.6. Now they want to cut it in half. 
What is interesting about this chart is they want to cut it to 320 
million. That is the level it was at in 1986. That is how much we 
provided in 1986 for the community services block grants.
  I ask unanimous consent that this chart be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

          COMMUNITY SERVICES BLOCK GRANT APPROPRIATIONS HISTORY
                              [In millions]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
FY 2005........................................................   $636.6
FY 2004........................................................    642.0
FY 2003........................................................    645.8
FY 2002........................................................    650.0
FY 2001........................................................    600.0
FY 2000........................................................    527.7
FY 1999........................................................    500.0
FY 1998........................................................    489.7
FY 1997........................................................    489.6
FY 1996........................................................    389.6
FY 1995........................................................    389.6
FY 1994........................................................    385.5
FY 1993........................................................    372.0
FY 1992........................................................    360.0
FY 1991........................................................    349.4
FY 1990........................................................    323.0
FY 1989........................................................    318.6
FY 1988........................................................    325.5
FY 1987........................................................    335.0
FY 1986........................................................    320.6
FY 1985........................................................    335.0
FY 1984........................................................    316.8
FY 1983........................................................    341.7
FY 1981........................................................    394.3
------------------------------------------------------------------------

  Mr. HARKIN. We are saying to the poorest in our country: We are going 
to take you back to 1986.
  I have a modest proposal. Why don't we take our Tax Code and move it 
back to 1986? Whatever people were paying in taxes, we will move 
everything back to then. How would the most comfortable in our society, 
the wealthiest, the richest, like that? I rather doubt that that would 
be something you would ever accomplish around here. Yet for the poorest 
people in our country, we can take them back to 1986.
  I have been here 30 years. I have never seen anything like this: 
170,000 victims of Hurricane Katrina; in Texas, 72,000 evacuees have 
been served by this program; in Louisiana, more than 43,000 hurricane 
victims. Almost all the community action agencies in the impacted area 
were up and running by the second day after the storm. They were 
finding shelter, feeding people, clothing people, getting them medical 
attention. Now they are helping victims find employment. Community 
action agencies have been actively working with faith-based 
organizations all across the gulf coast to provide relief services. I 
mentioned what the mayor of Baton Rouge said. He was up here wanting to 
get more money for community services block grants. What does he get 
hit in the face with? Not only are you not getting more, they are 
cutting you in half. He couldn't believe it.
  Nationwide, this cut would eliminate or disrupt essential services 
for some 6.5 million low-income people, including nearly 2 million 
children. A majority of rural outreach centers will be closed, denying 
entire rural communities access to services. Many of the one-stop 
neighborhood centers in suburban and urban areas would also be shut 
down.
  Here is a chart that gives you an idea of what this 50-percent cut 
means. I mentioned 6.5 million people, 2 million kids. Communities will 
lose 21 million CSBG-supported volunteers. These are the volunteers the 
CSBG people pull together to do things. These are volunteers who want 
to, for example, volunteer their time to drive some elderly, low-income 
people to a community

[[Page 21709]]

health center. These are good people, many of them church based, who 
volunteer their time to drive people to a meal site for a senior 
citizen meal. They volunteer their time to take low-income kids to a 
Head Start Program, for example. They are volunteers doing good things, 
but they need someone to pull it together, organize it, manage it, and 
get the transportation. That is what CSBG does. So we are going to cut 
it by 50 percent.
  These volunteers are going to say: I would like to volunteer my time 
to drive these elderly, but you don't have any vehicle for me. Who is 
setting up the time? Who is making sure they are going to be there when 
I get there? No one. As a result, we are going to lose all these 
wonderful volunteers.
  Private food banks all over the Nation rely on space, refrigerators, 
and transportation supported by CSBG. Think about all of the food banks 
all over America that are already being stressed to the limit. They are 
supported by the community services block grants. Now we are going to 
cut them in half. What happens to the space, what happens to the 
refrigerators, the transportation? Several million Americans will lose 
nutritional services and emergency food--not next year; this is not 
prospective. This is next week. The Low Income Home Energy Assistance 
Program is administered by CSBG. This cut will reduce staff in half, 
while home heating costs are expected to rise 50 to 70 percent. Cold 
weather is coming. Heating costs are going up. Cut CSBG.
  That is something we can be proud of right? We can be proud of what 
we are doing here. What a shame.
  These cuts are callous, ill advised, and they are cruel. This is 
cruel. I have no other way to say it. They are cruel. It couldn't come 
at a worse time. We know the rate of poverty is going up. Winter is 
coming on. We have had a couple of disasters, Rita and Katrina. What we 
are saying is, guess what, we are going to pull the rug out from 
underneath you. We are going to hurt you a little bit more. Maybe the 
House didn't know what they were doing. Maybe they didn't know this was 
in there. I don't know. What my amendment does is, it simply continues 
the level at last year's level. It ought to be increased by all rights. 
We know the number of Americans living in poverty has increased in each 
of the last 4 years. The purchasing power of community services block 
grants continues to decline. Each year, about 1 million more people 
qualify for community services block grant services. There is not any 
money to meet their needs right now. As bad as this is, the picture I 
am painting, right now community service agencies provide services to 
only 1 in 5 people in poverty; with $636 million, 1 in 5 are served. 
Now we are going to take that down even more.
  I don't understand why the majority party in this Congress again and 
again proposes to slash programs from those who have the least in our 
society while adamantly insisting that tax cuts for the most fortunate 
are untouchable and sacrosanct. We can't touch them.
  We all recognize that after 4 years of tax cuts, war and emergency 
spending, budget deficits are out of control. We all know this must be 
addressed, including with appropriate spending cuts. But what I don't 
understand is why we are asking the poor to bear the lion's share of 
the burden when it comes cutting the funding. Why are they on the front 
line? Why are they being cut this weekend? I object to repeated efforts 
by the majority party in this Congress to try to balance the budget on 
the backs of the poor. Even before Katrina struck, the majority party 
was already planning to slash food stamps by $3 billion and Medicaid by 
$10 billion. Katrina stopped that.
  But who is the target of spending cuts? The poor, those who rely on 
Federal programs for health, education, disability, and veterans 
benefits.
  Last week, a group of House Republicans launched what they call 
Operation Offset. They insist that all of the tax cuts of the last 4 
years are off limits and untouchable, including the huge tax cuts for 
the most privileged and wealthy people in our society. Instead, 
Operation Offset would pay for Katrina recovery by slashing programs 
for the least fortunate among us, including deep cuts in Medicare, cuts 
in Medicaid, cuts to the School Lunch Program, cuts to the Children's 
Health Insurance Program, cuts in college aid, needy students, and on 
and on.
  In short, with the leadership in this Congress, tax reductions for 
the rich are sacred and cannot be touched, while programs for the poor 
are fair game for deep cuts. I object. I object to this. I believe the 
clear majority of Americans reject this approach also. It offends their 
sense of fairness and equity.
  This has to stop, and this is the place to stop it on this continuing 
resolution. We have to stop this one. This is so unconscionable. I 
don't know how anyone could ever feel good about this or feel we have 
done our job.
  It is unconscionable, it is drastic, and it is cruel to cut the 
community services block grants in this manner.
  I know what people are going to say tomorrow. They are going to come 
out here and say: Well, the House passed the continuing resolution and 
they have gone home. If my amendment is adopted, why, it has to go back 
to the House and they went home, and we will be accused of shutting 
down the Government.
  Mr. President, I am sorry. The House of Representatives can come back 
on Palm Sunday. On Palm Sunday, they can come back to vote on the Terri 
Schiavo situation. Regardless of what you think about it, right or 
wrong, I am saying, if they can call the House back for that, if they 
can do that, they can call the House back to protect the poorest in our 
society from the cuts in the CSBG. We can pass it in the Senate, call 
the House back, and they can vote on it. We would not be shutting the 
Government down. If the House does not want to come back, they will be 
shutting the Government down. We are supposed to put a knife in the 
backs of the poorest in our country because the House did this? They 
can come back. We ought to force them to come back. We ought to force 
them to do what is right.
  It is up to us in this body to have the correct response. We have to 
seize this opportunity and correct the misplaced priorities of the last 
5 years and correct this one.
  Last week, September 15, President Bush in New Orleans said:

       We have a duty to confront poverty with bold action.

  Let me repeat that. You may not have gotten it the first time. 
President Bush said on September 15:

       We have a duty to confront poverty with bold action.

  OK, so what we are going to do is pass a continuing resolution that 
cuts community services block grants by 50 percent--starting this 
weekend--that service the poor in our country. They are going to cut it 
by 50 percent. I guess that is pretty bold action. I guess they are 
going to confront poverty with bold action; yes, they are going to make 
more poor people. We have a duty to confront poverty with bold action.
  I wonder if the President knows this. I wonder if anyone around the 
President has told him what the House did. I wonder if he is saying: 
Yes, that is the thing to do. Is the President okaying this? Has he 
sent word to the House that this is perfectly fine with him, that this 
comports with what he said last week?
  I would like to hear from the President on this one. I would like to 
hear if he supports cutting community services block grants by 50 
percent.
  I would like to quote from a letter I recently received from a number 
of faith-based groups urging Congress to drop plans on the budget 
reconciliation to cut CSBG. I want to talk about it because it is 
appropriate to this. The group said the budget:

     continues to ask our Nation's working poor to pay the cost of 
     a prosperity in which they may never share. It is clear that 
     programs, such as Medicaid and the Food Stamp Program that 
     are slated for cuts by Congress, will, in fact, have greater 
     burdens placed on them as a result of Hurricane Katrina. 
     These programs represent the deep and abiding commitment of 
     the Nation to care for the least among us.

  I could not have said it better. As we look for ways to assist the 
least among

[[Page 21710]]

us, we should not hesitate to ask the most among us to help share some 
of the burden. We need to restore this funding.
  I said I was going to give an example of who is hit by this. I have 
two other letters. One is from Ozark Action, West Plains, MO; Ozark 
Community Action Partnership:

       The result of a Continuing Resolution as proposed, which 
     would be the reduction of CSBG funds by 50 percent, Ozarks 
     Action, Inc., located in rural southern Missouri (Douglas, 
     Howell, Ozark, Oregon, Texas and Wright counties), would be 
     faced with reducing its current staffing levels by 50 
     percent. As a result many of the services to low-income 
     families would become unattainable.
       Currently we have staff located in 10 communities on a full 
     time basis in each of these six counties. The reduction would 
     mean that 5 [full time employees] would be reduced. The issue 
     then becomes which of the six counties no longer will be 
     served or will have significantly reduced services.
       In addition to serving the resident low-income population 
     in this high poverty service area, these ten staff carry out 
     the function of providing services to those individuals that 
     have come to the area as a result of the two devastating 
     hurricanes (Rita and Katrina). . . .
       CSBG staff also conducts LIHEAP services for both the 
     Energy Assistance program as well as providing the emergency 
     energy services.

  I did not mention that. Sometimes low-income people, especially 
elderly, get caught with the first or second cold snap. They have not 
thought ahead, and maybe they don't have enough oil in the tank. They 
need some help right away. They don't have credit, and they don't have 
money. The community services block grants provide for that, to get 
them enough fuel oil, heating oil--whatever it might be--to get them 
through that snap. They say:

       This in and of itself will put a large burden on the State 
     to provide adequate service to those in need of energy 
     assistance.

  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that this letter from Ozark 
Action, Inc., be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:


                                           Ozark Action, Inc.,

                                                  West Plains, MO.
       The result of a Continuing Resolution as proposed, which 
     would be the reduction of CSBG funds by 50%, Ozarks Action, 
     Inc., located in rural Southern Missouri (Douglas, Howell, 
     Ozark, Oregon, Texas and Wright counties), would be faced 
     with reducing its current staffing levels by 50%. As a result 
     many of the services to low-income families would be 
     unattainable.
       Currently we have staff located in 10 communities on a full 
     time basis in these six counties. The reduction would mean 
     that about 5 fte's would be reduced. The issue then becomes 
     which of the six counties no longer will be served or will 
     have significantly reduced services.
       In addition to serving the resident low-income population 
     in this high poverty service area, these ten staff carry out 
     the function of providing services to those individuals that 
     have come to the area as a result of the two devastating 
     Hurricanes (Rita and Katrina). In Howell County, which has 
     seen approximately 15 to 20 evacuee families, Ozark Action is 
     operating as the clearing house and information hub for needs 
     and services. This service would no longer be available with 
     such steep reductions as a result of staff cost. Just in this 
     past five days we have had three additional families move to 
     the area and we believe that as families decided to move 
     further north after deciding that returning home will not be 
     an option or limited option in the future, we will see 
     another wave of individuals moving to the area.
       CSBG staff also conducts LIHEAP services for both the 
     Energy Assistance program as well as providing the emergency 
     energy services. This in and of itself will put a large 
     burden on the state to provide adequate service and coverage 
     for those in need of energy assistance.
       Additionally, one of the remaining staff conducts Earn 
     Income Tax credit returns from the period of January 1 
     through April 30th. This would have a major impact on those 
     who receive EITC and will reduce the available income that 
     these individuals receive through the EITC program.
       CSBG Funds are used also, in a variety of ways, to support 
     other agency programs where their own funding is inadequate. 
     All such support would of necessity cease.
           Sincerely;
                                                     Bryan Adcock,
                                          Executive Director, OAI.

  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, I have another letter from East Missouri 
Action, again outlining what is going to happen here:

       In the event that a continuing resolution is passed which 
     would effectively fund CSBG at the FY-06 House appropriations 
     level--

A cut of 50 percent--

     serious cuts in services provided to low-income families in 
     Southwest Missouri would occur. . . .
       In-home visits will no longer be a priority. This will 
     require more volunteers for clients who are home bound. Other 
     catalytic activities such as life skills training workshops 
     will be scaled back if not totally eliminated.
       [East Missouri Action Agency] serves as the point of 
     service for most other helping organizations in seven of our 
     eight counties. . . . Families will be referred to other 
     helping agency with little or no follow-up . . . we will not 
     have the staff to effectively work with them.

  I ask unanimous consent that this letter from the East Missouri 
Action Agency also be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                   EAST MISSOURI ACTION AGENCY, INC.

  Bollinger, Cape Girardeau, Iron, Madison, Perry, St. Francois, Ste. 
                    Genevieve, & Washington Counties


      impact of continuing resolution at house fy06 funding level

       In the event that a continuing resolution is passed which 
     would effectively fund CSBG at the FY-06 House appropriations 
     level, serious cuts in services currently provided to low-
     income families of Southeast Missouri would occur.
       1. Working with families and individuals in one-on-one case 
     management fashion to help them achieve self-sufficiency and 
     providing projects to assist them in this effort will have to 
     be eliminated. The remaining resources will have to be 
     expended doing only emergency services.
       2. EMAA serves as the point of service for most other 
     helping organizations in seven of our eight counties. EMAA 
     serves as the clearinghouse and screener for emergency 
     services throughout the county. There will be no time for 
     discussion of the underlying causes of the emergency 
     situation with these families. Families will be referred to 
     the other helping agency with little or no follow-up. 
     Partnerships with these other organizations will be in 
     jeopardy because we will not have the staff to effectively 
     work with them.
       3. As just recently seen with Hurricane Katrina, EMAA was 
     one of hundreds of CAAs which mobilized relief efforts even 
     before several of the national charitable organizations and 
     the Federal Government itself mobilized. CAAs have always had 
     the flexibility to rise to the need in these situations, 
     however, with this cut, that ability is gone.
       4. Community Change projects such as, resource development, 
     poverty awareness & education, housing development, community 
     gardening, emergency service coordination networks, 
     leadership development, childcare development, and other 
     projects to improve the community at large will be greatly 
     scaled back due to the lack of funding.
       5. In-home visits will no longer be a priority. This will 
     require more volunteers for clients who are home bound. Other 
     catalytic activities such as life skills training workshops 
     will be scaled back if not totally eliminated. If we do not 
     receive a special grant for income tax assistance, we may 
     have to discontinue the VITA income tax assistance project 
     which leveraged $1.4 million in our eight county area for 
     2004. If we do not provide this free income tax assistance 
     for the low income families in Southeast Missouri, for-profit 
     vendors will, which will reduce the benefit to the families 
     even more.

  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, people say, What do community services 
block grants do? Here are some of their activities: Parenting education 
to 175,000 Head Start families, helping people be good parents; 
transportation for elderly Americans to medical appointments, which I 
mentioned earlier, such as the community health centers; home ownership 
counseling for the low income, how they might be able to afford and pay 
for their own home; mentoring and counseling for at-risk youth; in-home 
chore services for homebound elderly. Think about that. Domestic 
violence services. I mentioned refrigerators and transportation 
services for food banks; transitional housing for homeless families. 
You wonder what happens to homeless families? Community service action 
agencies find them transitional housing and especially now with winter 
coming on. Lead inspection programs, screening homes for lead-based 
paint, and we know how devastating that is on low-income children. Food 
stamp outreach, going out to make sure low-income people know they are 
eligible for food stamps, that they do not have to go hungry.
  Community services block grant networks, let me talk about who these 
people are. Their local networks were made up of 1,090 local eligible 
entities, of which 88 percent were Community Action Agencies.

[[Page 21711]]

  The local agencies use CSBG funding for their core operations 
developing and for developing and coordinating programs to fight 
poverty in 99 percent of the counties in the United States.
  Who are the participants? Who are served? Twenty-two percent of all 
persons in poverty--I said about 1 out of 5; we are going to make it 
even lower than that--more than 15 million individuals who were members 
of almost 6 million low-income families.
  Data provided by 4 million families show that more than 2.7 million 
had incomes at or below the poverty guideline. Think about this. Of 
these, 1.1 million families were ``severely poor'' with incomes below 
50 percent of the poverty guideline. That means for a family of 4, we 
are talking about less than $7,000, probably $7,500 a year; 1.1 million 
families with less than $7,000 a year. That is who is being served by 
the community services block grant.
  Another 1.6 million families had incomes between 50 percent and 100 
percent of the poverty guideline; almost 1.7 million working poor 
families who relied on wages or unemployment insurance and collectively 
made up 44 percent of all program participants; nearly 430,000 families 
were TANF, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families; twenty-two percent 
of TANF monthly caseloads are CSBG clients; and about 1.4 million 
families are headed by single mothers.
  These program serve more than 3.7 million children in poverty, 1.8 
million adults who had never completed high school, 1.1 million people 
who were disabled, 3 million who lack health care.
  That is who is served. I just mentioned all the programs that serve 
these people.
  In my own State of Iowa, northwest Iowa, northeast Iowa, southwest 
Iowa, they are talking about how much they are going to have to cut 
back. In a five-county area in northwest Iowa, services at seven 
outreach centers which assist over 10,000 each year, have been scaled 
back. This is a 50-percent cut. This is not phony stuff. This is real. 
In a seven-county area in northeast Iowa, the Community Action Agencies 
already had to reduce office and staff hours in eight family service 
offices due to reductions in CSBG funding over the last 2 years. With a 
50-percent reduction in CSBG, the family services staff will likely be 
reduced from 16 full and part-time individuals to 7 individuals 
employed less than 40 hours a week. That is to serve a seven-county 
area in northeast Iowa.
  In Iowa, this is the time of the year temperatures are starting to 
drop and food supplies are running short as gardens stop producing. I 
think I just picked the last tomato off my tomato plant last week.
  Without staff to take and process applications and provide 
assistance, the LIHEAP program year starts October 1. That is what, 
Saturday? That is Saturday. The LIHEAP program year starts October 1, 
Saturday.
  In northeast Iowa, the CAA there faces an inability to ensure that 
those in poverty will continue to receive home heating assistance and 
food assistance. If CSBG is reduced--this is southeast Iowa--by 50 
percent, the agency will have to reduce staff and close one very rural 
outreach center. That will mean clients who need emergency assistance 
for food, utilities, disconnect notices would have to drive about 45 
miles to apply for assistance. These are people who probably do not 
even have transportation. They do not own cars.
  The centers--I am reading here from the report--are terribly busy 
with the increase in the number of families coming to the outreach 
centers because they have been evicted, about to become homeless, have 
a disconnect notice from their utilities or their utilities have 
already been disconnected.
  President Bush, September 15, 2005:

       We have a duty to confront poverty with bold action.

  I hope someone in the bowels of the White House is listening to a 
little bit of my remarks. They do not have to buy it all. I hope they 
listen to a little bit of it. I hope that something will click up in 
one of those heads in the White House and say: Wait a minute. Is Harkin 
right? Could this possibly be happening? He must be wrong. He is just 
up there doing his thing. But just in case, we better check on it. I 
hope somebody at the White House is saying, maybe we ought to check on 
this.
  When they check, they will find out I am right. What the House has 
sent us will cut it 50 percent starting Saturday, and it will have 
these effects. One may say, Oh, no, it will not, but it will.
  That is why I have not come out on the floor to bemoan the CR for the 
cuts in education because we are going to fix that. The money for 
education does not go out until next summer. We have time to take care 
of that. The other cuts that are in the CR, we can take care of that. I 
would not go on like this if it was just education because we are going 
to have time to fix it later on. That is not what I am talking about. I 
am talking about something that is right now, needs the money now, the 
money goes out now, not next year--now, October 1. October 1, they will 
be cut 50 percent just like that. There is no carryover money. There is 
not a lot of money sitting someplace that they can carry over.
  We have already cut this program, as I said, in each of the last 3 
years. This Senate--well, I should say the Appropriations Committee, I 
cannot say the Senate, the Appropriations Committee passed it at last 
year's level, bipartisan, Republicans and Democrats.
  I hope someone in the White House may have picked up on this. I hope 
they are going to check it, and I hope one of them will say: We cannot 
leave our boss hanging out there. Our boss said this and our boss meant 
it.
  I believe he did mean it. But he probably does not know.
  The President is busy. I am not faulting him for that. He probably 
does not know what the House did.
  I would like to believe that if this person in the White House who 
may have listened to this or picked up on it and checked out and found 
out that that is exactly what the CR does, the continuing resolution 
does, they will get to someone higher up the food chain to get to the 
President to let him know about this, and maybe the President will get 
on the phone and he will call the leadership and say: You have to do 
this. You have to adopt this amendment. You cannot leave me hanging out 
there having said this and then turn around and expect me to sign a 
continuing resolution that cuts the poorest of the poor.
  That is what we would be saying. He said that last week. Now he is 
going to get something and he has to sign it. I would hope the 
President might get on the phone or at least have his Chief of Staff or 
somebody do it and tell them we have to fix this. If it means the House 
of Representatives comes back on Friday afternoon or Friday evening or 
Saturday morning to fix it, so be it.
  So they are going to be a little uncomfortable--oh, my goodness. I 
assume some Congressmen have probably gotten on a plane, and they went 
someplace, they have gone home. My goodness, they will have to get on 
an airplane--not at their expense. The Government will pay for it. They 
do not have to pay anything for it. They have to go to an airport, get 
on an airplane, fly back to Washington, put on a suit and tie and go 
back to the House floor and correct this. I know it is a terrible 
burden. It is a terrible thing to ask of someone making $160,000 a 
year, or whatever we make around here now.
  Well, I jest, tongue in cheek. It is not too much to ask. They should 
do it, and the President should tell them to do it. Come back here and 
fix this. Do not leave him hanging out there having said that last 
week.
  Heaven forbid that we should have the House come back and work on a 
Friday. My, my, work on a Friday? Whoever heard of such a thing? The 
working poor work on Friday. Or maybe they have to come back Saturday 
and fix it, Saturday morning or Friday night. Poor people work at 
night. They are working two jobs.
  No, I am sorry, I do not mind making Members of the House 
uncomfortable if they have to get on a plane or come back to the House 
and fix this. That is a small price to pay to make sure that we live up 
to what the President said a week ago. This is not even bold action. 
This is continuing to do what we have

[[Page 21712]]

been doing in the last year. It is not too much to ask. It is time that 
we made the comfortable a little bit uncomfortable so we can give some 
comfort to those who are uncomfortable.
  We will be voting on this tomorrow. I hope that Senators will not be 
swayed by this, ``Well, we cannot do this because the House has gone 
home.'' Well, let us comfort the uncomfortable. Let us tell the poorest 
of the poor we are not going to leave them in the lurch, we are not 
going to cut them by 50 percent, and let us have them come back and fix 
this tomorrow night. They can do it.
  I appreciate the indulgence of the occupant of the chair for allowing 
me to talk about my amendment because I will not have much time in the 
morning. I only have 30 minutes. Some other people may want to talk. I 
know no one is here. I hope some people may be watching and taking heed 
of this. I will be back tomorrow morning, in a more succinct manner, 
obviously, to lay out this case on why we have to adopt an amendment to 
keep the community services block grants at last year's level.
  I yield the floor and I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the order for the 
quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The Senator from Illinois is recognized.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, it is my understanding that the Senator 
from Iowa, Senator Harkin, has come to the floor to offer an amendment 
that makes reference to the community services block grant funding and 
the possibility that if we pass a continuing resolution without 
adequately funding this program, communities all across America will be 
denied some basic funds they need.
  I have made a point, as I travel around my State of Illinois, of 
asking village presidents and mayors and leaders how this money is 
used. It turns out to be money that is essential for many programs. It 
is one of the most unusual programs in that there is such a wide 
variety of things that are done with these dollars by communities, from 
afterschool programs for children at risk to programs for senior 
citizens that are essential for their well-being.
  I am sorry I wasn't here earlier to join with Senator Harkin, but I 
come to the floor in support of his effort. America can do better. We 
can make certain that we fund these essential programs so that the 
vulnerable across America are not left behind. If we focus on this, as 
we should have before Hurricane Katrina--and we will in the future--it 
is going to be a stronger nation.
  I want to make sure my voice is added to that of Senator Harkin in 
support of this valuable program.
  Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will please call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the order for the 
quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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