[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 3]
[Senate]
[Pages 3888-3890]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




            AMERICA'S SMALL BUSINESS TAX RELIEF ACT OF 2015

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will 
resume consideration of H.R. 636, which the clerk will report.
  The bill clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 636) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 
     1986 to permanently extend increased expensing limitations, 
     and for other purposes.

  Pending:

       Thune/Nelson amendment No. 3464, in the nature of a 
     substitute.
       Thune (for Gardner) amendment No. 3460 (to amendment No. 
     3464), to require the FAA Administrator to consider the 
     operational history of a person before authorizing the person 
     to operate certain unmanned aircraft systems.
       Nelson (for Bennet) amendment No. 3524 (to amendment No. 
     3464), to improve air service for families and pregnant 
     women.
       Cantwell amendment No. 3490 (to amendment No. 3464), to 
     extend protections against physical assault to air carrier 
     customer service representatives.

  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, this week the Senate is continuing its 
consideration of the reauthorization of the Federal Aviation 
Administration and bringing important improvements in terms of aviation 
infrastructure and public safety. I am glad the Senate voted--
notwithstanding the impression I think people get from the outside that 
all we do is bicker and we don't actually solve any problems. I am glad 
the Senate has worked in a bipartisan way to move this legislation 
forward. We have a lot of heavy lifting left to do on this legislation 
this week, and none of these issues is easy, but it is important we do 
everything we can to demonstrate to the American people that our 
interests are their interests in moving bipartisan solutions forward 
for their benefit.


                  National Crime Victims' Rights Week

  Mr. President, I wish to just take a moment and point out that this 
week is also a very important week because it is National Crime 
Victims' Rights Week.
  Too often crime victims in our country aren't treated with the 
fairness and respect they deserve. So often it seems as though we focus 
our attention on those who commit the crime and not nearly enough on 
those who are victims of crime they had no part in instigating but 
perhaps happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. When we 
don't show the proper respect for victims of crime, it can lead to 
distrust in our communities between law enforcement and the public, and 
it can make our country a more dangerous place.
  The fact is, our law enforcement professionals work best with 
community cooperation. Frequently, the community can be the eyes and 
the ears for law enforcement and help give them information they need 
in order to prevent crime from occurring in the first place or to make 
a show of force to in fact deter the commission of a crime.
  When I was Texas attorney general, I had the privilege of overseeing 
our State's Crime Victims' Compensation Fund. This is an idea which 
said we ought to take the fines and the penalties from people who 
commit crimes and then use those funds to make grants to the victims of 
crime and the people who attempt to help them heal and recover from the 
consequences. Time and time again, I saw that when we don't support the 
victims of crime, they and their families aren't the only ones who 
suffer. It can also impede law enforcement efforts when they feel this 
disjuncture or disconnection between the victims and the law 
enforcement professionals. So it is important for many reasons--out of 
basic fairness and compassion but also in the interests of law 
enforcement, generally, to make sure we do everything we can to keep 
law enforcement and the victims of crime on the same page and the 
communities in which they reside.
  We need to continually look for ways to improve our support for crime 
victims. One way we can do this is by continuing assistance to State 
and local governments in a variety of ways. We recently had a hearing 
on the intersection of mental illness and law enforcement. 
Unfortunately, in our society today--because of the 
deinstitutionalization of people with mental illness, with no safety 
net to take its place--many people who suffer from mental illness are 
residing in our jails, filling our emergency rooms, or simply living on 
our streets. So we need to redirect more than just the 1 percent of 
funds currently directed by the Federal Government to State and local 
law enforcement for support and training. We need to redirect more of 
that in a targeted fashion to deal with this crisis in mental illness.
  Here is an anecdote. Recently, I had the chance to meet with some 
members of the Major County Sheriffs' Association. The sheriff of Bexar 
County, TX, a friend of mine, said: How would you like to meet the 
largest mental health provider in the United States? I said: Well, 
sure. Who is that? She said: Meet the sheriff of Los Angeles County.
  This made a deep impression on me, and it tells me we still have a 
lot to do.
  Another example of where the Federal Government can play an 
appropriate support role for local and State law enforcement--and I am 
not suggesting the Federal Government take over State and local law 
enforcement, far from it. Rather, the Federal Government should 
recognize and support the important role that local and State law 
enforcement play and provide that support, where possible, here at the 
Federal level.
  Nowhere else have I found that more important recently than our 
efforts to try to audit and test the massive nationwide rape kit 
backlog. It has been estimated there are 400,000 rape kits collected 
from the forensic evidence from sexual assaults that remain untested. 
We know these rape kits contain vital DNA evidence that can put 
criminals behind bars, exonerate the falsely accused, and help detect 
those who commit crimes serially--not just

[[Page 3889]]

once but over and over and over again until they are ultimately caught. 
As we know, many communities at the local level simply do not have the 
resources or expertise to test these rape kits in a timely fashion, so 
that is an area where we can help. That means that while evidence is 
collecting dust on a shelf for years, criminals will remain loose--
unless we continue to act--and make it impossible for the victims of 
these crimes to find closure. I will give just one example.
  Last year Houston had a backlog of thousands of rape kits going back 
into the 1980s. Fortunately, due to resources provided by the Federal 
Government under the Debbie Smith Act, and with the determination of 
the local leadership, Mayor Annise Parker, the city of Houston, began 
to work with the State of Texas and the Federal Government to eliminate 
Houston's rape kit backlog. So far they have tested thousands of rape 
kits, resulting in 850 CODIS matches. That is the DNA check system run 
by the FBI, where when people have been arrested for offenses in the 
past, their DNA information is recorded in this data base and then can 
be matched against that collected in a rape kit or other forensic 
evidence. So just as a result of the city of Houston undertaking this 
massive effort--again, with the cooperation of the State and Federal 
Government--to eliminate its rape kit backlog, they have gotten 850 
hits in the CODIS system. In other words, by testing the evidence they 
already had, Houston officials have been able to identify hundreds of 
people who are perpetrators of crime--because the DNA evidence does not 
lie--and to place them at the scene of a crime. Again, as we find out, 
sadly, people who commit sexual assaults frequently don't do it just 
once in their life. Many of them do it serially or until they get 
caught, looking for victims of opportunity--sometimes even children. It 
is terrible.
  Fortunately, with the tools and resources provided by the Debbie 
Smith Act and something called the SAFER Act, Houston will complete the 
testing of all backlogged rape kits this year. This is important 
because in the past, testing of these rape kits was viewed as mainly a 
way of just confirming the identity of the assailant using DNA 
evidence, but frequently the identity of the assailant is not an issue 
in these cases, and it is expensive to test rape kits. Frequently, the 
assailant is known and the question is one of consent or nonconsent. 
What we have found is by testing more rape kits--even where the issue 
of identity is not in question--we can literally tie these defendants 
in criminal cases to other sexual assaults in a way that is a pretty 
powerful and pretty revolutionary way.
  I am proud of the work Houston and the State of Texas are doing, 
working with the Federal Government, to end the rape kit backlog, but 
it is going to take a lot more work from us on an ongoing and long-term 
basis because, first, one of the things we need to do, which Congress 
has already required, is an audit to make sure we know where all of 
these rape kits are--whether they are sitting in an evidence locker or 
whether they are still sitting in a police station in an investigation 
locker. We need to make sure there is an audit done so we can get our 
arms around the size and scope of the problem. Then we need to redirect 
more of the resources the Federal Government has already appropriated 
money for under the Debbie Smith Act to actually test these rape kits. 
This is very important because we need the survivors of sexual assault 
to know we continue to stand with them in their fight.
  Thank goodness for brave women such as Debbie Smith and so many 
others whom I have met along the way who I think demonstrate not only 
their own courage but also give other people courage to stand up for 
their own rights when they are, through no fault of their own, victims 
of sexual assault.
  The Crime Victims' Rights Week is more than just about this crime of 
sexual assault. It is about respect for all victims of crime. That is 
why I am proud to be working with the senior Senator from Vermont, Mr. 
Leahy, and Congressman Ted Poe of Houston, TX, on the Justice for All 
Reauthorization Act. This is comprehensive legislation to increase 
rights and protections for crime victims across the country. It will 
reauthorize the landmark Justice for All Act signed into law by 
President George W. Bush in 2004.
  As part of the reauthorization, it will also increase the collection 
of compensation and restitution for crime victims, it will protect the 
housing rights of domestic violence victims, and it will strengthen the 
forensic sciences to swiftly put criminals behind bars and to improve 
the integrity of the forensic testing.
  Frequently, we know that both the expertise and the equipment used by 
local governments and law enforcement are sometimes pretty spotty. In 
order to maintain the integrity of this important and powerful type of 
evidence, it is very importants we provide some guidance--perhaps best 
practices--for forensic sciences. We have the ability to do that 
because of the resources of the Federal Government; again, not to 
commander or mandate but basically to help local and State governments 
improve their forensic sciences and their testing.
  This legislation will also improve access to legal and health care 
resources for all victims and will ensure that we are efficiently 
providing direct services for crime victims on a national basis. This 
legislation is supported by more than 130 different law enforcement and 
victim advocacy organizations nationwide, including the Rape, Abuse, 
and Incest National Network--the so-called RAINN organization--the 
National District Attorneys Association, the National Center for 
Victims of Crime, the International Union of Police Organizations, the 
National Network to End Domestic Violence, and the National 
Organization for Women. It is a pretty broad spectrum of organizations 
along the political or ideological spectrum, and they are all unified 
in supporting this important bill.
  This Chamber has done what it takes to help victims in the past, and 
we should continue to build on the legacy of legislation like the 
Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, a law that is already making a 
clear difference in the lives of victims across the country.
  One of the best moments in this Chamber last year was when we passed 
the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act by a vote of 99 to 0. It was 
a rare and welcomed coming together of all Members, from all different 
parts of the country, all across the ideological spectrum, to enact the 
most important assistance for victims of human trafficking that we have 
done in basically 25 years, providing for something as basic as shelter 
for victims of human trafficking, when many of them had nowhere to live 
or to turn.
  One of the important pieces of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking 
Act was something called the HERO Program. This was primarily inserted 
into the legislation at the request of the Senator from Illinois, Mr. 
Mark Kirk, a veteran of the U.S. Navy himself.
  Just yesterday, the Army Times ran a story on a program that was 
permanently authorized under the bill known as HERO, which trains 
veterans to work alongside Federal law enforcement officials to go 
after child predators--in other words, using some of the expertise the 
veterans acquired in their training and their service in the military 
to help victims of child pornography and the predation, unfortunately, 
that happens too often on the most innocent.
  So far, according to this article, the program has already trained 
about 80 different veterans with plans to train 40 more this year, 
giving many of these veterans--some of whom have been seriously injured 
during the course of their military service--a real purpose in life. 
Indeed, in the Army Times story I mentioned just a moment ago, there 
are some heartrending, touching stories about how, even for people who 
suffered very traumatic injuries during their military service, this 
gives them a new sense of purpose and focus, and it is very, very 
encouraging.
  I had the chance to see the HERO program in action last year in San 
Antonio, and it is protecting our children and taking criminals off the 
street. It is pretty clear that when we set our

[[Page 3890]]

minds to it, we can make a difference in the lives of crime victims. We 
proved that with the passage of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking 
Act, and we can do it again.
  I encourage all of our colleagues to consider supporting the Justice 
for All Reauthorization Act. This is a bicameral, bipartisan proposal 
that would help victims get the support they need and they deserve.
  As advocates and survivors across the country use this week to 
highlight the needs of millions of crime victims, let's also remember 
that we have a responsibility and an opportunity to do something about 
it right here in this Chamber.
  Mr. President, I don't see anyone interested in recognition, so I 
suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. NELSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.


                               ZIKA VIRUS

  Mr. NELSON. Mr. President, the Zika virus is getting very serious. 
Today one of the officials at the Centers for Disease Control said that 
``this is scarier than we initially thought.'' As to a pregnant woman 
who is infected with the Zika virus, it may not only cause the fetus to 
be deformed with a much smaller head, but they are finding other birth 
defects as well as premature births. Normal, otherwise healthy people 
who become infected with the virus usually have relatively mild flu-
like symptoms, but there are devastating consequences when the virus is 
contracted by a woman who is pregnant. Today the CDC said: ``Most of 
what we've learned is not reassuring.'' They also said: ``Everything we 
look at with this virus seems to be a bit scarier than we initially 
thought.'' That is coming straight from the experts at CDC.
  When you look at where this virus is, unfortunately, there are more 
people in my State of Florida who have the virus than in any other 
State in the country. Nationwide, there are multiples of hundreds who 
have the virus. In the State of Florida, we have identified just under 
100 people who have the virus. Thankfully, of those who were infected 
in Florida, none of them contracted it in Florida; they contracted the 
virus someplace else.
  There is a vast amount of traveling that goes on between Florida and 
Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico is one source where the virus is coming from. 
When that mosquito bites you, it transmits the virus, and that mosquito 
is quite prevalent in Puerto Rico. So the island is having its own 
trauma with the Zika virus manifesting there, but there is also a 
source in other countries throughout Central America, the Caribbean, 
and Latin America.
  What do we need to do? Well, one little bit of good news I can give 
you is that the bill we passed in the Senate before the Easter recess 
is now in the House, and it will be taken up by the House tomorrow. 
They should pass it and send it to the President's desk for signature. 
What that bill does is give financial incentive to the drug companies 
by adding Zika as a virus to the list of tropical diseases for which 
the drug companies have a financial incentive to go and find a cure or 
a vaccine. This bill is complicated as far as what the financial 
incentives will be. I could explain that, but for purposes of 
discussion here, I just wanted to share that little bit of good news. 
We are going to have that bill in law, and we want to unleash the 
creative potential of our pharmaceutical industry to go and find a cure 
or vaccine that will take care of it.
  The other side of it is what the CDC is saying is scarier than we 
thought, and that is the fact that it is having such devastating 
societal and medical consequences for a woman who is pregnant and gets 
the virus. We can imagine the trauma to that family with a deformed 
child being born as a result of the virus. We can imagine the expense 
to society of a child who is severely handicapped. As a result, we are 
talking about major effort.
  There is something else we can do about it; that is, the President's 
budgetary request has $1.9 billion specifically targeted for helping to 
do the research on the Zika virus. It is my hope, and I know I have the 
cooperation and, indeed, the considerable help and energy of my 
colleague from Florida, Senator Rubio, in wanting to seek this and to 
get successfully in the appropriations bill for the Department of HHS 
the $1.9 billion to continue the research and all of the ancillary 
expenses that are coming as a result of it.
  Down the road, we will find a vaccine. Down the road, we will be able 
to manage this problem. But, in the meantime, there is a great deal of 
trauma, some extraordinary heartbreak to some families, which should 
be, again, the warning: If you are pregnant, do not go anywhere 
exposing the skin to a mosquito bite, particularly in those regions 
with that variety of mosquito that carries the Zika virus.
  So I hope by this time tomorrow night, we will say one hallelujah 
that the House bill has passed, the Senate bill has passed the House, 
and it is on the way to the President's desk for signature. Then, let's 
take up this issue in the appropriations bill when it hits the floor in 
another few weeks.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Coats). The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. NELSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

                          ____________________