Elijah Cummings

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. I want to thank the gentleman for his leadership in this area, and I certainly want to thank my two colleagues with us this evening. As I was listening to the discussion, I could not help but think about a program in my district where Morgan State University works with an elementary school. They have about 40 students that work with elementary school students, mainly concentrating on the areas of science and math. So these young children are exposed to these Morgan State University college students, and they become interested after school in science and math; and they are doing extremely well. I really believe that we have to teach the children's strengths. I always think about the story of Steven Spielberg when he was a little boy. Apparently his mother did not have very much money, but she got him a camera because he had told her he was interested in a camera. So he got a little simple camera, and he began to take pictures and make little slides and then movies, and the next thing you know, look where he is. But she saw where his strength was and she went there. As I was listening to the things that the gentlewoman was saying, she is so right, because just a few weeks ago I was sitting in a meeting with hospitals from Maryland, and they were sitting there talking about how they needed to go outside the country to get nurses. Yet I have young people who are in my district who, if they were exposed at an early age and given some encouragement and nourishment and taken into the hospitals or whatever, might very well be the nurses that they are looking for. Yet they are going beyond the borders of our community trying to find nurses. So we are fortunate, and I pointed out to them, that we have another project, Johns Hopkins Hospital, which has been ranked number one in the country, has a program with a high school, Dunbar High School, where they actually bring in young high school students into the hospital working with doctors, learning about various professions in the medical field. That program has been going on for 20 years, and a lot of those students are now going into the medical profession. Why? Because they were exposed to something. Why else? Because they had an opportunity. So the President said today at the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, many of us have the intellect, but not all of us get the opportunities. So I do appreciate what the gentlewoman has said as well as the gentleman from North Carolina.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Because if we lay down and play dead, our children die, and it is as simple as that. You are right, we cannot afford to lay down and play dead, because we have so many people who are depending on us. When you asked that question, when you made that statement, rather, you wondered how many of us would be here if we did not have the teachers that were involved in our lives and the education. I can tell you, I know I would not be here. Someone once said that every successful child, if you look at the history of any successful child, you will realize that there was at least one cheerleader for that child standing on the sidelines rooting them on. And, guess what? In many instances they were teachers standing on that sideline, but not only standing on the sideline, but getting on the field and holding hands and nurturing and encouraging and running with them and telling them what they could do. So that is what it is all about. I am so glad that the gentleman did take this time to dedicate to it. There are so many subjects we could have been talking about, but here we are talking about the field of education. One quick other thing. When we talk about exposing our children to opportunities and exposing them to the kinds of things that they need, just a few weeks ago in our district, in the 7th Congressional District of Maryland, which is basically Baltimore City, what we did was we got a few computers, five computers, I think it was, from EPA, and we presented them to an elementary school. I am going to tell you, the kids, you would have thought we had given them $1 million. But in talking to the principal of the school, she said you know what our biggest problem is? She said our biggest problem is that the children do not want to go home. They stay in the computer room. She said something else that really touched me. She said, you know, we used to have an attendance problems with our little boys. She says now our attendance situation is something like 99 percent for our boys. Why? Because, again, they are teaching to their strengths. They are teaching to their strengths, and that makes a difference. It is not only that you expose children to various opportunities, but you also need to know what direction are they going in. Some of them may want to be an artist, some may want to be a doctor, some may want to be a lawyer. But it is those teachers, I am telling you, that see it early on, and they can make a lot of judgment calls early on and begin to guide those children in the right direction.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I would like to thank the chairman, the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh), and the ranking member, the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fattah), of the Subcommittee on Postal Service of the Committee on Government Reform for their support in bringing this bill to the floor today. I believe that persons who have made meaningful contributions to society should not only be recognized but memorialized. The naming of a postal building in one's honor is truly a salute to the accomplishments and public service of an individual. H.R. 4447 designates the United States Postal Service building located at 919 West 34th Street, Baltimore, Maryland, as the Samuel H. Lacy, Sr. Post Office Building. I am pleased to be able to speak today about my constituent, Mr. Lacy, a true trailblazer and hometown hero in Baltimore's African- American community, this country, and the world. Mr. Lacy has served since 1944 to the present in one of the greatest African-American institutions in the world, the Baltimore Afro-American Newspaper. The Afro, as it is called, is one of the oldest black-owned and operated weekly newspapers in the country. During World War II, the Afro and other black press documented the heroism of our soldiers, sailors and airmen; valor that the majority press largely ignored. Then, during the Red Scares of the 1950s, newspapers like the Afro were forced to struggle against both financial pressure and attacks by the agents of the McCarthy era. The black press exposed the brutal face of Jim Crow and the fundamental unfairness of segregation. Before Selma and Birmingham, they helped to provide the social and intellectual foundations for protests in the movement toward civil rights. In the words of ``Soldiers Without Swords,'' Stanley Nelson's 1998 documentary for PBS, the black press ``gave a voice to the voiceless.'' They gave us the news we needed to know when no one else would declare the truth about our lives. For families like my own, new to Baltimore from the fields of South Carolina, the Afro-American Newspaper offered us the vision of a powerful business owned and controlled by black men and women of intellect, education, and courage. Samuel Lacy is a part of that legacy. He has been a renowned sportswriter and editor for the Baltimore Afro-American Newspaper since 1944. He has worked for 60 years, over half a century, in journalism, working with radio, television, and the print media. And as the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh) said, he is still working at 96. As a sportswriter, he conducted interviews with many great sports figures. However, his unique position as an African-American writer provided for insightful behind-the-scenes stories about Jackie Robinson and other great black sportsmen, unfortunately, because they were often relegated to the same segregated accommodations. Lacy's earnest prose during these times played an important part in the effort to desegregate major league baseball. His contributions led to his induction into the writers' wing of the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998. He also served as a sports commentator for WBAL TV in Baltimore and a sports and managing editor for the Washington Tribune, even covering six Olympic games, including Los Angeles. To this day, at the age of 96, he continues to write a weekly column for the Afro. Mohammed Ali, the greatest boxer of all times, once said that, and I quote, ``Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.'' Samuel Lacy, as a man and as a member of the African-American press, has paid his rent over and over and over again. As such, I urge my colleagues to support this postal naming bill that salutes a person from my district who has spent his life giving service to others and giving life to life. Just this weekend, I was with Mr. Lacy at a funeral of John Oliver, Sr., the editor of the Afro-American, who had served for over 47 years. When Mr. Lacy got up to speak, he talked about how Mr. Oliver had contributed so much to the lives of others. What he did not say and would have been appropriate at that moment to say was that he and Mr. Oliver and many others provided a newspaper so that young boys and girls of African-American descent could look up to them and know that they were going somewhere, that they presented an image, that they presented a business, a family-owned business, that they presented a legacy by which many of us could follow. Again, I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh) so much for bringing this bill to the floor. I want to thank the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Burton), who was very instrumental, and certainly the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman), the ranking member, and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fattah), the ranking member of the subcommittee. I know for a fact that Mr. Lacy is looking on, and I know that this act today will not only touch his life but will touch the lives of his family and his friends. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Johns Hopkins Hospital located in my district in Baltimore, Maryland for its recently announced number one ranking among the Nation's hospitals. Treating nearly 600,000 patients per year, Johns Hopkins Medicine has been recognized for more than a century as a leading center for patient care, medical research, and teaching. The institution, which includes a hospital and health system and the School of Medicine, is noted for its excellent faculty and staff covering every aspect of medicine, its two world class medical campuses, and multiple outreach programs for regional, national and international patient activities. The flagship of this institution, Johns Hopkins Hospital, is a 1,025- bed facility and encompasses renowned centers such as the Brady Urological Institute, the Wilmer Eye Institute, the Johns Hopkins Comprehensive Cancer Center, and the Johns Hopkins Children's Center. For the 10th straight year, the hospital has placed first on the annual U.S. News and World Report magazine hospital ranking. The rankings are based on three factors: reputation, mortality, and aspects of treatment such as technology and nursing care. Among 17 medical specialties evaluated, Hopkins ranked in the top 10 in 16 of them, including number one in ear, nose, throat, gynecological services, urology, and eye care. Further, 41 Johns Hopkins Hospital doctors were recognized in an American Health Magazine survey as among the best in the United States, more than any other medical center in the Nation. Most significant to me, however, is Hopkins' commitment to Baltimore and the worldwide community. This institution has a sense of obligation and social responsibility that finds its foundation in instructions by its founder and benefactor. Over a century ago, the Baltimore merchant Johns Hopkins wrote to his trustees, and I quote, ``The indigent of this city and its environs, without regard to sex, age or color, shall be received into this hospital.'' In recent years, Hopkins has followed this commitment with the incorporation of the historic East Baltimore Community Action Coalition, better known as HEBCAC. It is a coalition formed among Baltimore City, the State of Maryland, Hopkins and the neighborhood to improve housing, attract new business, and offer social services to the 47,500 residents of East Baltimore, 43 percent of whom live in poverty. HEBCAC was part of the city's successful bid to become a Federal empowerment zone and secure $34 million from the Federal Government for physical rehabilitation of the neighborhood. After more than a year of working closely with the East Baltimore community to identify their health concerns, Johns Hopkins also committed $4.5 million over a period of 5 years to establish an Urban Health Institute to tackle the vexing health problems that plague the community. The Institute brings together a wide range of Hopkins health experts, community leaders, business leaders, clergy and State and local agencies to forge a partnership that will first identify the most pressing health issues and then develop the best methods, including research, education and community outreach to address these problems. Health priorities identified by the community that the institute is expected to address include substance abuse, violence, sexually transmitted diseases, HIV/AIDS, cardiovascular disease, pulmonary disease, environmental health, the elderly, and family maternal and child health services. In my stead as a Member of this body, my focus is to create a livable community in my district of Baltimore as well as throughout the Nation. I believe that all Americans, regardless of race, ethnicity and social economic status, deserve livable communities where they feel safe, where their children can obtain a quality education, and where they have access to quality health care. All must share equitably in this American dream. Johns Hopkins is truly making an effort to ensure that Baltimoreans and persons around the world are able to realize this dream by providing the kind of patient care that will allow them to live fruitful and productive lives. The hospital's commitment to medical excellence and to serving this community are deserving of recognition; and today, I salute Johns Hopkins Hospital for these efforts. Congratulations to Johns Hopkins for being named the number one among hospitals and certainly a premier servant to our Nation's patients.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, whereas the leaders of America's Revolutionary War ascribed honor, gallantry and patriotism to the performance of military duty reserved for free white men to garner independence, freedom, liberty and equality from the British Crown; Whereas Crispus Attucks, a black slave, was the first to die while confronting British soldiers in the Boston Massacre; 5,000 of those who fought during the Revolutionary War were black; Whereas the military heritage of African Americans is as long as the history of a black presence in North America; black participation--in military actions--has not received extensive popular support nor has such participation been undertaken without difficulty; Whereas in 1917, when America entered World War I, Dr. Joel Spingarn, then-chairman of the Executive Committee of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and Dr. W.E.B. Dubois, editor of the Crisis magazine pressured the War Department to establish a training camp that resulted in the commissioning of more than 1,300 black officers; Whereas today, the NAACP notes significant improvement in the status of African Americans serving in the defense of the Nation; substantial portions of America's working population are directly or indirectly employed by the Department of Defense as uniformed military personnel, Federal employees, or Department of Defense contractors/sub-contractors and African Americans compose significant percentages of this work force; these statistics represent employment, training, and educational opportunities for African American youth; Whereas July 12, 2000, the Silver Anniversary of the Armed Services and Veterans Affairs Military Awards Dinner marks the untiring efforts of the NAACP to ensure equal opportunity in the Department of Defense through a national recognition program to award individuals within the Department of Defense who have made significant contributions to promoting equal opportunity and civil rights; Whereas the NAACP does not hesitate to confront the Defense Department whenever issues involving civil rights are in question; the national awards program testifies to the efforts of the Department of Defense and the Uniformed Services to stay the course and improve upon the Department of Defense and the Uniformed Services to become introspective and as equal opportunity-related issues emerge, to remain vigilant and keenly aware of the civil rights implications. Be it Resolved finally That this NAACP national recognition program continue to culminate in an awards banquet and ceremony with pageantry commensurate with the high honor and dignity bestowed upon the award recipients.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, today I pay tribute to the Juneteenth National Museum, located in my home district of Baltimore, MD., and in observance of the National Juneteenth Celebration. On June 17-18, 2000, the Juneteenth National Museum held its 12th annual ``Juneteenth'' celebration commemorating the Emancipation Proclamation. Juneteenth is generally celebrated on June 19, which is considered as the day of emancipation from slavery of African-Americans in Texas. It was this day in 1866 that Union Major General Gordon Granger read General Order #3 to the people of Galveston, Texas, informing them of their new status as free men. Since then, Juneteenth was celebrated in Texas, and quickly spread to other southern states, such as Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and eventually the rest of the country. In addition to a festival, the celebration included the purchase of lands or ``emancipation grounds'' by freed slaves in honor of the celebration. On January 1, 1980, under the provisions of House Bill No. 1016, the 66th Congress of the United States declared June 19th ``Emancipation Day in Texas,'' making Juneteenth a legal state holiday. Juneteenth is an important event in Baltimore that celebrates American history and historical figures. The annual occurrence of Juneteenth attracts people from across the state to downtown Baltimore in observance of this event. Among the various festivities, the celebration included lectures on important historical figures and events, spoken word readings, and food venues that satisfied every taste imaginable. There were shopping opportunities for antique buffs, and a vast array of arts and crafts available for purchase. Attendees were able to tour the Underground Railroad site, the Mother Seton House, the Hampton National Park, Auburn Cemetery, and Historic East Baltimore on one of the Juneteenth van tours. Festivalgoers were also able to see slave artifacts and collect the Juneteenth commerative plates by Terra Treasures. Stamp collectors appreciated the first Juneteenth Post Office cachet. Further, the Juneteenth festival also featured a Sweet Potato Pie contest, folklore and street dance, a Musical Craft Show, Double Dutch rope, and an Islamic Exhibit. Lastly, the festival would not be complete without the sounds of gospel and jazz. The attendees celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Negro National Anthem ``Lift Every Voice and Sing'' and the winner of the Billie Holiday Blues Contest graced all with moving hymns. The Juneteenth Festival has grown to be a vitally important part of not only Baltimore, but African-American culture as well. True to tradition, this year's celebration proved to be as exciting as ever. I congratulate Juneteenth National Museum on a successful Juneteenth celebration!

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of words in opposition to the amendment. Mr. Chairman, as I sit here and I listen to the discussion, it just reminds me of why we need to study. My good friend, the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Gilchrest), who I have the utmost respect for, and I know that this is a major, major issue for him, has stated a number of things just now. I do respect what he has said. He has talked quite extensively about the Corps of Engineers. But one of the things that he said just a moment ago is that the Corps does a good job. It is one of the last things he said. The fact is that the Corps should be allowed to continue its work with regard to this matter. I think the gentlemen from Maryland, Mr. Cardin and Mr. Hoyer, laid it out quite succinctly. While this may be an issue, and the issue arises out of the district of the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Gilchrest), it affects all of us in one way or another. That is why we all joined together not very long ago asking for the study, so we could move forward in a way that was very careful, in a way that we felt was prudent. Of course, our good friend, the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Gilchrest), joined us on that occasion. We want to thank him for doing that. But there is something that is very important to all of us. That is, and we agree with the gentleman on the point that we want our tax dollars to be spent in a cost-efficient and effective manner, a cost- efficient and effective manner. We are talking about $100,000 here. We are talking about a study. We are not talking about the end result, we are talking about a study. We have been going back and forth here about what the study may show. The gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Gilchrest) just spent the majority of the time that he just spent talking about the end result as far as the sludge material, where it would go. We are not at that point right now. I just think, in fairness to all of us from the State of Maryland, that we should be allowed to proceed with the study that all of us asked for. Some people may have changed their minds since then, Mr. Chairman, but the fact is that we have asked for this. I think we should proceed so that whatever we do, it is based upon some good, sound knowledge. I do not think that one day the Corps of Engineers are some of the worst people in the world and the next day they do good work. The fact is that I think we have all depended on them throughout these United States, and we have relied on them extensively. I would hope that we would let this study proceed.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the gentleman for yielding me this time, and I rise to strongly oppose the gentleman's amendment to strike the funding to straighten the S-turn in the Tolchester Channel leading to the Port of Baltimore. The straightening of the Tolchester S-turn is critical to maintaining navigational safety and economic viability of the Port of Baltimore. Nearly 8,000 Baltimore City residents are directly employed by port businesses and as many as 30,000 additional city residents have jobs related to port activities. The S-turn poses a serious problem with regard to safety risks, as my colleagues on this side stated a little bit earlier. Ships often have to change course five times within 3 miles to navigate the turn. With vessels nearly a thousand feet in length, it is difficult to safely navigate the channel, particularly in poor weather conditions. The straightening of the turn has been recommended and supported by the State of Maryland, the Maryland Port Administration, the Fifth U.S. Coast Guard District, and the Maryland Pilots Association. And speaking of the Maryland Pilots Association, in a letter dated April 26, 2000, written by Captain Michael Watson to Colonel Berwick of the Army Corps of Engineers, and I quote this because this is a very interesting statement and it goes to that whole issue of safety, and we are talking about the pilots who are out there every day, it says: ``Tolchester Channel was originally designed to utilize deep water in order to minimize dredging costs and allow for increases in vessel loads. This resulted in the creation of the S-turn at the northern end of the channel. As vessel size has increased, the S-turn has become more difficult and groundings have resulted. Subsequent modifications and additional buoys have addressed the problem, but only in part. Pilots,'' and I emphasize pilots, ``continue to report close calls and near misses, especially during periods of reduced visibility during winter ice. A straightened channel will have many advantages, increasing navigational safety, reducing the protection for maritime accidents, and thereby helping to protect the Chesapeake Bay environment.'' With that, Mr. Chairman, I oppose the amendment.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment that has been designated No. 33.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I first want to thank the chairman and the ranking member for their support. I have offered this amendment to increase funding for the NASA University Research Centers, better known as URCs, at 14 minority institutions by $2.8 million. URCs are funded through NASA's Science Aeronautics and Technology Division. The amendment is offset by deducting the same amount from the Human Space Flight account. The URC program has expanded the Nation's base for aerospace research, increased participation by faculty and students at historically black colleges and universities and other minority universities in mainstream research, and increased the production of disadvantaged students with advanced degrees in NASA-related fields. Furthermore, each research unit has developed a broad-based competitive research capability in areas related to NASA's strategic enterprises while contributing to support the Agency's scientific and technical human resource requirements. Under this amendment, each URC would be eligible to receive up to $1.2 million per year, an increase of $200,000, to support activities and operations in the subaccounts from which they are funded. I hope the chair and the ranking member will work with me to ensure that this is stated in any report language. This is a great investment in our students, and I urge support of this amendment. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to work with my colleagues to bring forth such an important amendment to increase funding for Housing Opportunities for People with Aids (HOPWA). For individuals with AIDS and other HIV-related illnesses, adequate and safe housing can be the difference between a person's opportunity to live life with self-respect and dignity and being relegated to a life of poor, unhealthy and safe conditions often leading to homelessness and possibly death. At any given time, \1/3\ to one-half of those living with HIV-related illnesses are either homeless or in imminent danger of losing housing. And 60% of these persons will face a housing crisis at some time during their illness due to discrimination and increased medical expenses. Moreover, as their health declines, persons with HIV-related illnesses may lack the ability to work or at least to earn up to their full potential, leaving them vulnerable to either not being able to find appropriate housing or losing their housing. Sadly, this problem disproportionately impacts low-income communities where homelessness is often a paycheck away. And the CDC has estimated, in past studies, that HIV infection rates are 24% among the homeless, and in some urban areas as high as 50%. HOPWA is the only, federal housing program designed to address his crisis. 90% of HOPWA funds are distributed by HUD to cities and states that are hardest hit with the AIDS pandemic. These jurisdictions then determine how best to utilize the funding to meet locally-determined housing needs and services for persons living with HIV-related illnesses, such as short-term housing, rental assistance, home care services, and community residences. In 1998, HUD estimated that for each additional $1 million in HOPWA funding, an additional 269 individuals and families living with HIV and AIDS would have access to vital housing and housing-related services. Moreover, HOPWA funding has been demonstrated to reduce emergency health care expenses by $47,000 per person. Consequently, increased HOPWA funding is critical. As the number of AIDS cases continues to rise, the ability for localities to address increased housing needs must keep pace. Without significant increases, we will continue to fight a losing battle that no other federal program can combat. While Section 8 housing waiting lists swell, other programs prove more politically popular than those addressing AIDS, and persons with HIV/AIDS are discriminated against, housing opportunities created specifically for these individuals are crucial. As such, I urge my colleagues to support the Nadler-Shays-Crowley- Horn-Cummings-Foley HOPWA amendment to increase FY 2001 funding by $18 million to level of $250 million.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise today to congratulate a remarkable woman, Melva Jones, who was recently chosen as one of only ten people nationally to receive the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Community Health Leader award. The award is considered the nation's highest honor for community health leadership and includes a $100,000 grant to help further her work. Ms. Jones is the director of the Mattie B. Uzzle Outreach Center in Baltimore, which provides street outreach to help people with substance abuse problems get treatment, counseling, food, clothing, and emergency funds. The center, which is located in a neighborhood with one of the state's highest substance abuse rates, also offers housing, job referrals, free testing for HIV, and community education programs on drug-related issues. Ms. Jones, who is a native of my district in Baltimore, gave up a lucrative nursing administration career to help found the center in 1994 after watching drug abuse transform a once-thriving neighborhood into streets of boarded up houses. The center is a ``neighbor'' to residents in this community and has steered more than 2,500 people into drug treatment programs since its inception. It also boasts a forty- five percent recovery rate, which is 10 percent higher than the national average. With her hands-on approach, Ms. Jones has been instrumental to the success of the program. A visible force in the neighborhood every day, she serves as a welcome sight to a community that is all too familiar with the horrors of drug addition up close. With a reputation for persistence and tough love, she makes regular rounds to find people in need and coax them into treatment. Mr. Speaker, Melva Jones has demonstrated true leadership by addressing one of the most difficult problems in our community and it comes as no surprise that she was selected for this distinguished award. Although much more needs to be accomplished in the fight against substance abuse, in Baltimore and across the United States, it is a comfort to know that there are people like Ms. Jones on the street, working every day.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, it is my honor to recognize and join in the celebration of the Make-A-Wish Foundation's 20th Anniversary. In its twentieth year, the Make-A-Wish Foundation is a non-profit organization that fulfills the wishes of children fighting life- threatening illnesses. This organization provides once in a lifetime experiences to children, under the age of 18, who may not have the rest of their lives to seek opportunity. Born out of a wish made by a seven- year-old fighting Leukemia in Arizona, the Make-A-Wish Foundation has grown to 80 chapters in the United States and 20 international affiliates on five continents and is the largest wish granting foundation in the world. In its twenty years of existence, the Make-A- Wish Foundation has granted wishes to over 66,000 children worldwide. The Make-A-Wish Foundation of the Mid-Atlantic, Inc., in particular, helps to serve children in my district as well as other children throughout the entire state of Maryland. The Make-A-Wish Foundation has granted wishes to children as simple as trips to Disney World and other amusement parks to meeting their favorite entertainer or role model. One young man from my district had his wish fulfilled when he met South African leader and political figure Nelson Mandela. He remarked that there was no better way to learn about blacks and whites living together in peace than to learn firsthand about the life of someone so oppressed yet as unbroken as Mr. Mandela. The Make-A-Wish Foundation gives children that are fighting life- threatening illnesses a positive break from a world of doctors, hospitals and medicine. I salute the Make-A-Wish Foundation's volunteers and supporters who work to make wishes come true not only in Baltimore City and Baltimore County, but literally all over the world. Congratulations on 20 years of making wishes come true.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding and for her leadership in so many very, very important issues. Again, the issue that we address today is probably one of the most important. As I reflected on my statement this evening about the upcoming Million Moms March to be held on such an important day, Mother's Day, and focus on such a pressing issue, common sense gun safety legislation, I knew that this momentous occasion deserved profound but heartfelt words. As I searched my soul for those words, I realized that they had already been written over two centuries ago and could be found within one of the documents that is sitting right on my desk, the Constitution of the United States of America, for the Constitution's preamble states, ``We the people of the United States in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.'' Let me repeat the key phrase that is critical to this issue: ``We the people of the United States in order to ensure domestic tranquility . . . do ordain and establish this Constitution.'' Many of the opponents of common sense gun safety legislation would interpret this phrase along with the second amendment to mean that our Constitution provides for unregulated access and use of guns by individual citizens in order to protect themselves, their families and their communities. And may I add for recreational use. On Sunday, Mother's Day, our Nation's mothers will respectfully disagree. In 1999 in one single year, 4,025 children and teens were killed by gunfire, one every 2 hours, nearly 12 every day. 1,262 children committed suicide using a firearm, more than three every day. 306 died from an accidental shooting. I ask the opponents of gun safety legislation, is this domestic tranquility? Nearly three times as many children under 10 died last year from gunfire as the number of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. Is this domestic tranquility? And American children under 15 are 12 times more likely to die from gunfire than children in 25 other industrialized countries combined. I ask the question is this domestic tranquility? Sadly, many of our neighborhoods and schoolgrounds have become war zones where our children will soon be forced to wear protective gear to protect them from the piercing sting of a bullet, and, ultimately, death. Again, I ask the opponents of gun safety, is this domestic tranquility? Is this what our Constitution allows? I submit that the framers of the Constitution created a document that serves as the foundation of our democratic society, yes, lending certain freedoms. However, it is also meant to guarantee certain protections, including domestic tranquility. As lawmakers, it is our duty to pass legislation that breathes life into this constitutional ideal. This means that our Nation's mothers should be guaranteed the right to raise their children in a tranquil environment free from the fear that their child could be killed by gunfire in their own home, in a friend's home, or on the school playground or simply walking to a neighborhood store. This means common sense gun safety legislation that would make guns childproof and theftproof and would require increased background checks in order to close loopholes through which criminals gain access to guns. And so, this evening, the profound heartfelt words that I leave with you, Mr. Speaker, are as such, on Sunday, our Nation's mothers will send us a signal that we have an obligation to uphold the ideals of the Constitution of the United States of America by ensuring that their children are afforded a world of domestic tranquility. Mr. Speaker, it is our duty to breathe life into these words and protect the lives of our children, for our children are the living messages we send to a future we will never see. Let us rid their lives of gun war zones and replace them with tranquil homes, schools and communities by passing common-sense gun safety legislation. Our time is running out, one child dead in the past 2 hours, 12 dead today.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, we are here today to debate consensus legislation that would provide long-term care insurance as a benefit package for Federal employees. I do pause again to thank the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Burton), the chairman of our committee, and the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman), our ranking member, and certainly the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Scarborough), the chairman of the subcommittee, and all the members of our committee for making this happen. During the 105th Congress, several bills were introduced in the House and Senate that would establish a long-term care insurance benefit for Federal employees. A little over a year ago on, January 6, 1999, I introduced H.R. 110, the Federal Employees Group Long-term Care Insurance Act of 1999. H.R. 110 is the Federal employee portion of the administration's four- pronged initiative to help families who need long-term care insurance. It provided a framework for implementing a long-term care program. It authorized the Office of Personnel Management to purchase group insurance policies from qualified private sector contractors, thereby making long-term care insurance more available to Federal employees, Federal retirees, and family families at more affordable group rates. The gentlewoman from Maryland (Mrs. Morella) introduced long-term care legislation which provided a framework similar to that proposed in H.R. 110, but extended coverage to active military personnel retirees and their families. The gentleman from Florida (Chairman Scarborough) introduced H.R. 602, which was previously introduced by the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mica), the former chairman in the 105th Congress. Though H.R. 602 provided a framework which allowed numerous insurance companies to sell long-term insurance policies to Federal employees, it further extended coverage to children, including adopted children, stepchildren, and stepparents. To his credit, the gentleman from Florida (Chairman Scarborough) introduced a true bipartisan consensus long-term care bill that reflects the hard work of this subcommittee over the past year and a half on this issue. Hours of research and collaboration with the administration, the insurance industry, and employee organizations have resulted in the introduction of H.R. 4040, the Long-Term Care Security Act. H.R. 4040 includes elements of all of the previously mentioned bills and adds a provision for spousal parity negotiated by ranking minority member, the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman). I am pleased that the framework proposed in H.R. 110, allowing OPM to contract with a single carrier or consortia to provide long-term care insurance to Federal employees and permitting OPM to negotiate premiums and benefits on behalf of Federal employees, is adopted in H.R. 4040. This employer group model will allow Federal employees to realize from 15- to 20-percent in premium savings. And I emphasize that, 15 to 20 percent. Due to the gentlewoman from Maryland (Mrs. Morella), coverage has been extended to the uniformed services in the bill. Blended families can thank the gentleman from Florida (Chairman Scarborough) for having the foresight to extend coverage to adopted children, stepchildren and stepparents. To ensure the financial solvency of the marital unit, the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman), the ranking member, negotiated a provision in the act that would provide the spouses of Federal employees with the same, if not very similar, underwriting standards as at-work Federal employees. The enhanced underwriting for spouses would protect the assets of the couple by making it easier for spouses to qualify for participation in the program. During the Subcommittee on Civil Service markup, the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman) offered an amendment that further improved the bill by including a section that provides that OPM furnish employees information on the average cost of nursing home care to the percentage of individuals who failed to maintain their coverage, the need for inflation protection and a summary of how long-term care premiums can be raised. I was pleased to support his amendment, which was unanimously agreed to. Private long-term care insurance provides one of the few available mechanisms for individuals to protect themselves against the catastrophic costs of long-term care. In addition, it provides alternatives to the type of care we receive when we need assistance with our personal care and other activities of daily living. Whether enrollees choose the type of care that will allow them to ``age in place,'' which will allow them to stay at home with their loved ones, community-based care, or nursing home care, they will be protected when they need it the most. I am pleased to be a part of this effort to bring long-term care insurance to Federal employees. Again I commend all the Members for their contribution to this bipartisan effort. In the end, civil servants who work diligently for the citizenry of this great country will benefit. As we take this action today, I am reminded of the discussion that took place in a hearing in Jacksonville, Florida, when we saw numerous people come forward and talk about the problems that they were experiencing not only taking care of their children but taking care of their parents. I know that their hearts must be glad today. At the minimum, the implementation of a long-term care benefit program by the Federal Government will challenge Federal employees to think about how they are going to finance and live out their elder years, something we should all be thinking about. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege to yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman), the ranking member of the Committee on Government Reform and one who has really played a very instrumental role in bringing us to where we are today. In introducing him, I also thank him for all that he has done to put this on the front burner and to bring us to where we are today.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I just wanted to take a moment to, again, emphasize that sometimes I think we need to take a look at what we do and put it in some historical perspective, and it is no question that what we are doing here today will affect Federal employees and their families for years to come and will affect generations actually yet unborn, because it will allow those Federal employees who have parents where they are now trying to help their parents and help their children to be able to afford to help their parents and take good care of their children. It does have some real long-term effect, but the fact is, as the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), who said it best when he said that it is truly a bipartisan effort, all of us coming together, addressing the things that we have in common, and what we have in common is lifting our people and making their lives better. Mr. Speaker, again, I want to thank the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Scarborough), thank all of the staff. I want to thank Ms. Tania Shand on behalf of my staff who has worked very, very hard on bringing this legislation to us today. Mr. Speaker, with that, I urge all the Members of the House to support this legislation. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Maine (Mr. Allen), who is also a member of the Subcommittee on Civil Service and one who has worked very hard on this legislation and has constantly done everything that he can to uplift the lives of our Federal employees.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer). He has certainly been a mentor to me, particularly with regard to the issues affecting Federal employees and has consistently been at the forefront of the fight to make sure that their rights and privileges are upheld and expanded.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to how much time we have?

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I commend the gentleman from Florida (Chairman Scarborough) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman), the gentleman from Maine (Mr. Allen), the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mica) and the gentlewoman from Maryland (Mrs. Morella) for working diligently to bring this bipartisan bill to fruition. And another one of our Members, the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton), has worked so hard on this legislation. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3\1/2\ minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from Washington, D.C. (Ms. Norton).

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee) for yielding, and I want to thank her for all that she does every day, everything that she does to put a face on this crisis. I think so often, I think the philosopher Camus said that a lot of times when we get so caught up in statistics, we forget that there are real people behind those statistics. Certainly, the ones that I will cite in a minute or two are quite frightening. But the gentlewoman and I and many others who have visited Africa know that these statistics have real faces behind them. Madam Speaker, I rise today to address one of the most challenging and life-threatening public health issues facing the global community: HIV infection and AIDS. This disease is now the world's deadliest with over 40 million persons infected worldwide. And significantly, our President recently declared AIDS as a national security threat. Not surprisingly, this pandemic affects the most vulnerable citizens of our global community; in fact, nearly 95 percent of infected persons live in developing countries with, sub-Saharan Africa being hit harder than any other region. Let me mention some startling statistics. New HIV infections in Africa have numbered more than 1.4 million each year since 1991. That is an average of more than 3,800 new HIV/AIDS infections per day in sub-Saharan Africa. 23.3 million adults and children are infected with the HIV virus in the region which has about 10 percent of the world's population, but nearly 70 percent of the worldwide total of infected people. Life expectancy in these nations has been reduced by disease to between 22 and 40 years. In several sub-Saharan nations, more than one in four pregnant women is infected with HIV/AIDS, and in many sub-Saharan nations one quarter of all children have already been orphaned by AIDS, 13 million children, the equivalent of all the children enrolled in our public school system. As leaders of this great Nation, we have a responsibility to take the lead in efforts to overcome this AIDS pandemic. But in order to effectively combat the disease, we must come to a full understanding of two key issues. As Martin Luther King, Sr., said, ``[w]e cannot lead where we do not go, and we cannot teach what we do not know.'' First, we must understand what accounts for this devastating spread of this disease on the African continent. Just to name a few: lack of quality health care, poverty, lack of education, armed conflict, lack of jobs, and limited government assistance are all factors. Second, we must come to an understanding that all sectors and all spheres of society have to be involved as equal partners in combatting this crisis. The health sector cannot meet this challenge on its own, nor can one government or one nation. So it is imperative that we have a collective global effort to increase international AIDS spending in Africa and to improve the health care infrastructures of African countries.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. McInnis) for yielding. Second, we must come to an understanding that all sectors and all spheres of society have to be involved as equal persons in combatting this crisis. The health sector cannot meet this challenge on its own, nor can one government or one nation. So it is imperative that we have a collective global effort to increase international AIDS spending in Africa. This collective effort must also make vaccine research and development a priority and secure access to treatment for infected individuals. We must encourage pharmaceutical companies to reduce the percentage of spending on marketing and advertising and instead reduce drug prices and increase expenditures on patient assistance programs. Passage of H.R. 3519, the World Bank AIDS Marshall Trust Act, would be an important step towards these goals. This legislation calls for the governments of key nations, the private sector, and nongovernmental entities to partner in the creation of a Marshall Fund to eliminate AIDS. The fund would provide $1 billion over 5 years for research, prevention, and treatment. I thank the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee) and the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Leach) for having the foresight to introduce this measure. When the history of our time is written, it will record the collective efforts of societies responding to a threat that has put in the balance the future of whole nations. Future generations will judge us on the adequacy of our response. One of my mentors, the Reverend Jeremiah Wright of Chicago, has stated many times, ``In my time and in my space, I will make a difference with God's grace.'' And so, Madam Speaker, I urge support of H.R. 3519 for this is our space, and this is our time; and we must make a difference with God's grace. With that, I yield back; and I thank the gentleman from Colorado for yielding.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, yesterday, April 12, I was unavoidably detained on official business and not present for rollcall vote Nos. 119-122. Had I been present, I would have voted as follows: ``nay'' on rollcall vote No. 119; ``aye'' on rollcall vote No. 120; ``aye'' on rollcall vote No. 121; and ``aye'' on rollcall vote No. 122.