[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 13]
[Senate]
[Pages 18048-18050]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. CORNYN (for himself and Mr. Manchin):
  S. 2268. A bill to award a Congressional Gold Medal to the United 
States Army Dust Off crews of the Vietnam War, collectively, in 
recognition of their extraordinary heroism and life-saving actions in 
Vietnam; to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 2268

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Dust Off Crews of the 
     Vietnam War Congressional Gold Medal Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       The Congress finds that--
       (1) a United States Army Dust Off crewman is a helicopter 
     crew member who served honorably in the Vietnam War aboard a 
     helicopter air ambulance under the radio call sign ``Dust 
     Off'';
       (2) Dust Off crews performed aeromedical evacuation for 
     United States, Vietnamese, and allied forces inside South 
     Vietnam from May 1962 through March 1973.
       (3) nearing the end of World War II, the United States Army 
     began using helicopters for medical evacuation and years 
     later, during the Korean War, these helicopter air ambulances 
     were responsible for transporting 17,700 United States 
     casualties;
       (4) during the Vietnam War, with the use of helicopter air 
     ambulances, United States Army Dust Off crews pioneered the 
     concept of dedicated and rapid medical evacuation and rescued 
     almost 900,000 United States, South Vietnamese, and other 
     allied sick and wounded, as well as wounded enemy forces;
       (5) helicopters proved to be a revolutionary tool to assist 
     those injured on the battlefield;
       (6) highly skilled and intrepid, Dust Off crews were able 
     to operate the helicopters and land them on almost any 
     terrain in nearly any weather to pick up wounded, after which 
     the Dust Off crews could provide care to these patients while 
     transporting them to ready medical facilities;
       (7) the vital work of the Dust Off crews required 
     consistent combat exposure and often proved to be the 
     difference between life and death for wounded personnel;
       (8) the revolutionary concept of a dedicated combat life-
     saving system was cultivated and refined by United States 
     Army Dust Off crews during 11 years of intense conflict in 
     and above the jungles of South Vietnam;
       (9) innovative and resourceful Dust Off crews in Vietnam 
     were responsible for taking the new concept of helicopter 
     medical evacuation, born just a few years earlier, and 
     revolutionizing it to meet and surpass the previously 
     unattainable goal of delivering a battlefield casualty to an 
     operating table within the vaunted ``golden hour'';
       (10) some Dust Off units in Vietnam operated so efficiently 
     that they were able to deliver a patient to a waiting medical 
     facility on an average of 33 minutes from the receipt of the 
     mission, which saved the lives of countless personnel in 
     Vietnam, and this legacy continues for modern-day Dust Off 
     crews;
       (11) the inherent danger of being a member of a Dust Off 
     crew in Vietnam meant that there was a 1 in 3 chance of being 
     wounded or killed;
       (12) many battles during the Vietnam War raged at night, 
     and members of the Dust Off crews often found themselves 
     searching for a landing zone in complete darkness, in bad 
     weather, over mountainous terrain, and all while being the 
     target of intense enemy fire as they attempted to rescue the 
     wounded, which caused Dust Off crews to suffer a rate of 
     aircraft loss that was more than 3 times that of all other 
     types of combat helicopter missions in Vietnam;
       (13) the 54th Medical Detachment typified the constant 
     heroism displayed by Dust Off crews in Vietnam, over the span 
     of a 10-month tour, with only 3 flyable helicopters and 40 
     soldiers in the unit, evacuating 21,435

[[Page 18049]]

     patients in 8,644 missions while being airborne for 4,832 
     hours;
       (14) collectively, the members of the 54th Medical 
     Detachment earned 78 awards for valor, including 1 Medal of 
     Honor, 1 Distinguished Service Cross, 14 Silver Star Medals, 
     26 Distinguished Flying Crosses, 2 Bronze Star Medals for 
     valor, 4 Air Medals for valor, 4 Soldier's Medals, and 26 
     Purple Heart Medals;
       (15) the 54th Medical Detachment displayed heroism on a 
     daily basis and set the standard for all Dust Off crews in 
     Vietnam;
       (16) 5 members of the 54th Medical Detachment are in the 
     Dust Off Hall of Fame, 3 are in the Army Aviation Hall of 
     Fame, and 1 is the only United States Army aviator in the 
     National Aviation Hall of Fame;
       (17) Dust Off crew members are among the most highly 
     decorated soldiers in American military history;
       (18) in early 1964, Major Charles L. Kelly was the 
     Commanding Officer of the 57th Medical Detachment (Helicopter 
     Ambulance), Provisional, in Soc Trang, South Vietnam;
       (19) Major Kelly helped to forge the Dust Off call-sign 
     into history as one of the most welcomed phrases to be heard 
     over the radio by wounded soldiers in perilous and dire 
     situations;
       (20) in 1964, Major Kelly was killed in action as he 
     gallantly maneuvered his aircraft to save a wounded American 
     soldier and several Vietnamese soldiers and boldly replied, 
     after being warned to stay away from the landing zone due to 
     the ferocity of enemy fire, ``When I have your wounded.'';
       (21) General William Westmoreland, Commander, Military 
     Assistance Command, Vietnam (1964-1968), singled out Major 
     Kelly as an example of ``the greatness of the human spirit'' 
     and highlighted his famous reply as an inspiration to all in 
     combat;
       (22) General Creighton Abrams, Westmoreland's successor 
     (1968-1972), and former Chief of Staff of the United States 
     Army, highlighted the heroism of Dust Off crews, ``A special 
     word about the Dust Offs . . . Courage above and beyond the 
     call of duty was sort of routine to them. It was a daily 
     thing, part of the way they lived. That's the great part, and 
     it meant so much to every last man who served there. Whether 
     he ever got hurt or not, he knew Dust Off was there.'';
       (23) Dust Off crews possessed unique skills and traits that 
     made them highly successful in aeromedical evacuation in 
     Vietnam, including indomitable courage, extraordinary 
     aviation skill and sound judgment under fire, high-level 
     medical expertise, and an unequaled dedication to the 
     preservation of human life;
       (24) members of the United States Armed Forces on the 
     ground in Vietnam had their confidence and battlefield 
     prowess reinforced knowing that there were heroic Dust Off 
     crews just a few minutes from the fight, which was 
     instrumental to their well-being, willingness to fight, and 
     morale;
       (25) military families in the United States knew that their 
     loved ones would receive the quickest and best possible care 
     in the event of a war-time injury, thanks to the Dust Off 
     crews;
       (26) the willingness of Dust Off crews to also risk their 
     lives to save helpless civilians left an immeasurably 
     positive impression on the people of Vietnam and exemplified 
     the finest American ideals of compassion and humanity; and
       (27) Dust Off crews from the Vietnam War hailed from every 
     State in the United States and represented numerous ethnic, 
     religious, and cultural backgrounds.

     SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

       (a) Presentation Authorized.--The Speaker of the House of 
     Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate 
     shall make appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on 
     behalf of Congress, of a single gold medal of appropriate 
     design in honor of the Dust Off crews of the Vietnam War, 
     collectively, in recognition of their heroic military 
     service, which saved countless lives and contributed directly 
     to the defense of our country.
       (b) Design and Striking.--For the purposes of the award 
     referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury 
     shall strike the gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, 
     and inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary, in 
     consultation with the Secretary of Defense.
       (c) Smithsonian Institution.--
       (1) In general.--Following the award of the gold medal in 
     honor of the Dust Off Crews of the Vietnam War, the gold 
     medal shall be given to the Smithsonian Institution, where it 
     will be available for display as appropriate and available 
     for research.
       (2) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that 
     the Smithsonian Institution should also make the gold medal 
     awarded pursuant to this Act available for display elsewhere, 
     particularly at appropriate locations associated with the 
     Vietnam War, and that preference should be given to locations 
     affiliated with the Smithsonian Institution.

     SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

       The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of 
     the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 under such 
     regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at a price 
     sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor, 
     materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses, and 
     the cost of the gold medal.

     SEC. 5. NATIONAL MEDALS.

       The medal struck pursuant to this Act is a national medal 
     for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. DURBIN (for himself, Mr. Reed, Ms. Warren, and Mr. 
        Blumenthal):
  S. 2272. A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 regarding 
proprietary institutions of higher education in order to protect 
students and taxpayers; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 
and Pensions.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 2272

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Our Students and 
     Taxpayers Act of 2015'' or ``POST Act of 2015''.

     SEC. 2. 85/15 RULE.

       (a) In General.--Section 102(b) of the Higher Education Act 
     of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002(b)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1)--
       (A) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (B) in subparagraph (E), by striking the period and 
     inserting ``; and''; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(F) meets the requirements of paragraph (2).'';
       (2) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); and
       (3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
       ``(2) Revenue sources.--
       ``(A) In general.--In order to qualify as a proprietary 
     institution of higher education under this subsection, an 
     institution shall derive not less than 15 percent of the 
     institution's revenues from sources other than Federal funds, 
     as calculated in accordance with subparagraphs (B) and (C).
       ``(B) Federal funds.--In this paragraph, the term `Federal 
     funds' means any Federal financial assistance provided, under 
     this Act or any other Federal law, through a grant, contract, 
     subsidy, loan, guarantee, insurance, or other means to a 
     proprietary institution, including Federal financial 
     assistance that is disbursed or delivered to an institution 
     or on behalf of a student or to a student to be used to 
     attend the institution, except that such term shall not 
     include any monthly housing stipend provided under the Post-
     9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Program under chapter 33 
     of title 38, United States Code.
       ``(C) Implementation of non-federal revenue requirement.--
     In making calculations under subparagraph (A), an institution 
     of higher education shall--
       ``(i) use the cash basis of accounting;
       ``(ii) consider as revenue only those funds generated by 
     the institution from--

       ``(I) tuition, fees, and other institutional charges for 
     students enrolled in programs eligible for assistance under 
     title IV;
       ``(II) activities conducted by the institution that are 
     necessary for the education and training of the institution's 
     students, if such activities are--

       ``(aa) conducted on campus or at a facility under the 
     control of the institution;
       ``(bb) performed under the supervision of a member of the 
     institution's faculty; and
       ``(cc) required to be performed by all students in a 
     specific educational program at the institution; and

       ``(III) a contractual arrangement with a Federal agency for 
     the purpose of providing job training to low-income 
     individuals who are in need of such training;

       ``(iii) presume that any Federal funds that are disbursed 
     or delivered to an institution on behalf of a student or 
     directly to a student will be used to pay the student's 
     tuition, fees, or other institutional charges, regardless of 
     whether the institution credits such funds to the student's 
     account or pays such funds directly to the student, except to 
     the extent that the student's tuition, fees, or other 
     institutional charges are satisfied by--

       ``(I) grant funds provided by an outside source that--

       ``(aa) has no affiliation with the institution; and
       ``(bb) shares no employees with the institution; and

       ``(II) institutional scholarships described in clause (v);

       ``(iv) include no loans made by an institution of higher 
     education as revenue to the school, except for payments made 
     by students on such loans;
       ``(v) include a scholarship provided by the institution--

       ``(I) only if the scholarship is in the form of monetary 
     aid based upon the academic achievements or financial need of 
     students, disbursed to qualified student recipients during 
     each fiscal year from an established restricted account; and

[[Page 18050]]

       ``(II) only to the extent that funds in that account 
     represent designated funds, or income earned on such funds, 
     from an outside source that--

       ``(aa) has no affiliation with the institution; and
       ``(bb) shares no employees with the institution; and
       ``(vi) exclude from revenues--

       ``(I) the amount of funds the institution received under 
     part C of title IV, unless the institution used those funds 
     to pay a student's institutional charges;
       ``(II) the amount of funds the institution received under 
     subpart 4 of part A of title IV;
       ``(III) the amount of funds provided by the institution as 
     matching funds for any Federal program;
       ``(IV) the amount of Federal funds provided to the 
     institution to pay institutional charges for a student that 
     were refunded or returned; and
       ``(V) the amount charged for books, supplies, and 
     equipment, unless the institution includes that amount as 
     tuition, fees, or other institutional charges.

       ``(D) Report to congress.--Not later than July 1, 2016, and 
     by July 1 of each succeeding year, the Secretary shall submit 
     to the authorizing committees a report that contains, for 
     each proprietary institution of higher education that 
     receives assistance under title IV and as provided in the 
     audited financial statements submitted to the Secretary by 
     each institution pursuant to the requirements of section 
     487(c)--
       ``(i) the amount and percentage of such institution's 
     revenues received from Federal funds; and
       ``(ii) the amount and percentage of such institution's 
     revenues received from other sources.''.
       (b) Repeal of Existing Requirements.--Section 487 of the 
     Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) by striking paragraph (24);
       (B) by redesignating paragraphs (25) through (29) as 
     paragraphs (24) through (28), respectively;
       (C) in paragraph (24)(A)(ii) (as redesignated by 
     subparagraph (B)), by striking ``subsection (e)'' and 
     inserting ``subsection (d)''; and
       (D) in paragraph (26) (as redesignated by subparagraph 
     (B)), by striking ``subsection (h)'' and inserting 
     ``subsection (g)'';
       (2) by striking subsection (d);
       (3) by redesignating subsections (e) through (j) as 
     subsections (d) through (i), respectively;
       (4) in subsection (f)(1) (as redesignated by paragraph 
     (3)), by striking ``subsection (e)(2)'' and inserting 
     ``subsection (d)(2)''; and
       (5) in subsection (g)(1) (as redesignated by paragraph 
     (3)), by striking ``subsection (a)(27)'' in the matter 
     preceding subparagraph (A) and inserting ``subsection 
     (a)(26)''.
       (c) Conforming Amendments.--The Higher Education Act of 
     1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) is amended--
       (1) in section 152 (20 U.S.C. 1019a)--
       (A) in subsection (a)(1)(A), by striking ``subsections 
     (a)(27) and (h) of section 487'' and inserting ``subsections 
     (a)(26) and (g) of section 487''; and
       (B) in subsection (b)(1)(B)(i)(I), by striking ``section 
     487(e)'' and inserting ``section 487(d)'';
       (2) in section 153(c)(3) (20 U.S.C. 1019b(c)(3)), by 
     striking ``section 487(a)(25)'' each place the term appears 
     and inserting ``section 487(a)(24)'';
       (3) in section 496(c)(3)(A) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)(3)(A)), by 
     striking ``section 487(f)'' and inserting ``section 487(e)''; 
     and
       (4) in section 498(k)(1) (20 U.S.C. 1099c(k)(1)), by 
     striking ``section 487(f)'' and inserting ``section 487(e)''.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mrs. FISCHER (for herself, Mr. Booker, Mr. Daines, and Mr. 
        Peters):
  S. 2276. A bill to amend title 49, United States Code, to provide 
enhanced safety in pipeline transportation, and for other purposes; to 
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
  Mr. DAINES. Mr. President, I rise today along with my colleagues 
Senators Fischer, Booker, and Peters to introduce the Securing 
America's Future Energy: Protecting our Infrastructure of Pipelines and 
Enhancing Safety, SAFE PIPES, Act, reauthorizing the Pipeline and 
Hazardous Material Safety Administration, PHMSA. Safe and secure 
pipeline infrastructure is critical to our nation, and is especially 
important to Montanans--for economic opportunity and environmental 
protection.
  We had a great bipartisan group of Senators working on this 
legislation. I would like to thank Senator Fischer for traveling to 
Billings, Montana to chair the first in a series of hearings on 
pipeline safety and coordinating efforts to write this important 
legislation. Additionally, I thank Senators Booker and Peters for their 
work drafting this legislation.
  In Montana, we have some of the country's most pristine wild spaces 
along with an abundance on natural resources. Montana produces 
approximately 30 million barrels of crude oil, 63 billion cubic feet of 
natural gas, and 42 million short tons of coal annually. We export 60 
percent of this energy. The oil and gas industries support the 
employment of over 43,000 Montanans. Likewise, Montana's unspoiled 
mountains and streams is the main motivator for many visiting Montana. 
The tourism industry supports the employment of over 53,000 Montanans.
  It is needless to say, but it is imperative that both jobs are 
protected. This legislation does just that, by improving pipeline 
inspection report turnaround times, increasing focus on pipeline river 
crossings, helping fill vacant inspector positions, facilitating 
communications between PHMSA and State agencies, and enabling PHMSA to 
conduct safety research with industry experts.
  I look forward to continue my work, along with my colleagues, on 
enhancing pipeline safety, protecting our economic and environmental 
resources, and shepherding this legislation across the finish line.

                          ____________________