Alfonse D’Amato

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, it is indeed a pleasure to be with you today.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senator from California, Senator Boxer, be added as an original cosponsor.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I thank Senator Chafee for his support and leadership and, again, the leaders of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Stevens, and the ranking minority member from West Virginia, Senator Byrd, for their leadership, for their compassion in understanding and finding the resources to make this extension available. Senator Byrd has always demonstrated a great compassion and concern for senior citizens in particular, and they are the ones who would be most victimized if we were not to continue this action. I yield the floor. Several Senators addressed the Chair.

Mr. D'AMATO. Certainly.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, let me simply say, I am just going to look at one statistic again and put it in terms of not just saying 18 percent of all of those are over the age of 85. We are talking about 90,000 people, seniors--90,000. Many of them, again, are disabled. Many of them have problems with the language. All of them are here in this country legally. Let us understand that. Let us understand that three- quarters of those people, better than 65,000, are women. Are we really going to say to grandmothers, grandparents, to the elderly, to the frailest of the frail, ``No more will we meet even your minimum needs''? That is not what this country is about. That is certainly not what I intended nor do I think any Members intended when we voted for the reform of the welfare system. I voted for that. I think we did the right thing. I think we can make this bill a much better bill by not only continuing this program now, but then we will argue, and it will give us an opportunity for those to come forward and have a fuller discourse in the future. But certainly, certainly, we should not terminate it now. Again, I want to thank the chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Stevens, and the ranking member, Senator Byrd, for their understanding and their support of this legislative correction. It is a correction. It is one. And there is nothing wrong with saying we can do it better, we erred at this point in time. I did. Let me tell you, I was concerned that there were many people who were taking advantage of the system. There were those who said and pledged, ``Yeah. We'll take care of our elderly, our relatives,'' and instead of doing that, they gamed the system and put them right into SSI. Well, that is wrong. We should see to it that that does not take place. But for us now to say, with one fell swoop all of them will be disadvantaged who are presently receiving, that is something that I would not in good conscience support. I yield the floor.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, for the purpose of technical adjustment, I ask unanimous consent that the clerk instead report No. 145 in place of amendment No. 166 and that that be the pending amendment.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. D'AMATO. That is correct. What we are doing is providing the Congress, as well as these people, an additional 6 weeks from August 22. A good number of these people during this period of time will be qualified as citizens, understanding, if you look at the age category of them, many of these people are elderly, there was never an impetus. It is very difficult. They have language barriers, disabilities, problems in communication and transportation. The immigration offices are swamped with those people who are attempting and who are eligible for citizenship. When you look at this, if close to 20 percent are over 85, we are talking about almost 100,000, and most of them women, who are over the age of 85, who may have disabilities, who may have language problems just trying to qualify them for citizenship. In some cases, they will not have to take the ordinary test. But how do we get them that information? How do we get them there in time? It cannot be done between now and August 22. New York City Mayor Giuliani is engaged in an outreach program to contact many of these elderly immigrants and give them an opportunity to qualify for full citizenship; therefore, they would not have to be concerned with the cut off in benefits. So for all of those reasons, this additional time will also give us and our colleagues an opportunity--as well as the administration--to examine what the program will be in the fullness of time after October 1.

Mr. D'AMATO. I ask that amendment No. 166 be called up and that Senator Feinstein's name be added as an original cosponsor.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Reid amendment be laid aside.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, on behalf of myself, Senator Chafee, Senator DeWine, Senator Feinstein, and Senator Specter, I call up this amendment because, notwithstanding the attempt--and I appreciate it--by the Appropriations Committee initially to deal with a very vexing problem, the problem of immigrants and the problem of legal immigrants and the problem really dealing with legal immigrants, most of whom are, a good percentage are disabled and who are elderly who would otherwise be cut off August 22, notwithstanding that they came into the country legally, that they are currently receiving benefits, that if these benefits were to be cut off in some States, they would be faced with little, if any, help. In other States, the burden would be a tremendous one on some of the local municipalities and the States. This amendment would continue the existing funding of those legal immigrants--let's understand, we are talking about people who came into this country legally; we are talking about people who obeyed the law; we are talking about, for most cases, senior citizens, elderly, and disabled--to continue their SSI benefits. Mr. President, it seems to me that this is a prudent way in which to handle what could otherwise be a very disastrous problem for 500,000 people, most of whom are elderly, in this country. That is a half- million people. That is a lot of people who would be facing tremendous hardship, many who have no one in a position to be of any kind of assistance. For others, without their SSI payments and cut off from food stamps, their families would be in perilous situations even attempting to give them modest help. Let me say that I am deeply appreciative of the leadership that has been displayed by the Senate majority leader, the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and our distinguished colleague from West Virginia, in attempting to deal with this problem in a way that will give us additional time. Again, we are not talking about people who came into this country illegally, people who are trying to take advantage of the system. We are taking an opportunity to give the Congress of the United States and the President sufficient time to work out a program that will see to it that the system is not abused but, by the same token, see to it that people are not disadvantaged as a result of the significant work of the Congress in bringing about workfare as opposed to welfare. Let me say what the situation is in terms of New York. In New York, we are talking about 80,000 legal immigrants who now would be facing termination of benefits--80,000. Again, Mr. President, the vast number who are senior citizens, many of them have tremendous language barriers, many of them have been in this country for a number of years, some not long enough to qualify for Social Security benefits, all of them here legally. Mr. President, 70,000 of these people are in the city of New York. What an incredible impact that would be to the city, to the State, and to other communities. As I look around, I see my colleagues from California, who have the same kind of problem. I see my colleague from Rhode Island. It is a tremendous problem that would be created. That was never our intent in terms of reforming the welfare system. Ours was to create an opportunity for workfare, not a system that entraps people. Ours says to those who are capable of going out and holding a job or getting into a job training program that you just cannot take advantage of the system. But I do not believe it was one in which we envisioned just cutting off those people who cannot do for themselves. We are a compassionate country. We are a country which is ready and recognizes the need to help those citizens who cannot do for themselves. So, let me say this. The Social Security Administration estimates that SSI recipients who received notices of possible termination of benefits are made up of--let me just give you an idea who these half a million people are: 72 percent are women; 41 percent are over the age of 75; 18 percent are over the age of 85. Are we going to say to those people, 18 percent over the age of 85, ``go out and get a job''? What are we going to do?

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I understand that there may be somebody in opposition. But at this point, I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, so that the Record properly reflects the cosponsors, in addition to myself, they are Senator Chafee, Senator DeWine, Senator Specter, Senator Feinstein, Senator Kohl, Senator Moynihan, and Senator Kennedy as well.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Senator Graham of Florida, Senator Wyden, and Senator Lautenberg be added as cosponsors.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, make no mistake about it, I support the provisions that have broken the chain of welfare dependency, welfare that became a narcotic, and it trapped people. I think that our reform of the welfare system was good, intended and long overdue. However, there have been some unintended consequences that are devastating. I do not believe we ever wanted to take 500,000 basically senior citizens and say that ``you're going to be cut off,'' senior citizens who are here in this country legally, receiving SSI benefits, who abided by the rules, and now simply terminate them. Let me give you a profile of these legal immigrants who received their notice of termination. Seventy-two percent of them are women. They are over the age of 65. Forty-one percent of them are over the age of 75. And almost 20 percent, or close to 100,000, are over the age of 85. Are we really going to say that we are going to take close to these senior citizens, the vast bulk of them women, who have infirmities, who have problems with the language, and say, ``Come August 22, you are off the roll notwithstanding that you came here legally, notwithstanding that you met all of the requirements''? What our amendment does is simply say we are giving, to October 1, the continuation of assistance. And, hopefully, many of these people who have these infirmities will be able to qualify as citizens. It will give us additional time to deal with what otherwise would be a catastrophe for many of these people. Mr. President, young, able-bodied recipients should be required to report to a job. They should be challenged. There should not be an automatic pass to welfare assistance. But certainly not the aged, the infirmed, those who need help. We are a country of compassion. That is why I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, which is sensible.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise to pay tribute to my father, Mr. Armand D'Amato, Sr. of Island Park, NY. He is being honored on May 8, 1997 for his role as the founder of the Island Park Chamber of Commerce, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this month. I would like to take this opportunity to commend my father for his lifelong commitment to making his community a richer, more prosperous and safer place to live. One of Armand D'Amato's most im-portant and lasting contributions to his community was the founding of the Island Park Chamber of Commerce in 1947. The chamber was, and remains today, a vital tool in developing the economic potential of Island Park. As a small businessman and the first president of the chamber of commerce, serving in that position for 9 years, dad recognized that economic prosperity should not be taken for granted and that only through vigilance and hard work is a community's economic well-being safeguarded. Armand D'Amato was born in Newark, NJ, the second of nine children born to Italian immigrants who traveled to America from Avalino, Italy while still teenagers. As a child, he rarely heard English spoken in his home. It was not until he attended elementary school at the age of 5 that he began to learn English. At a time when Italian immigrants in America were subjected to unfair discrimination, the obstacles dad encountered as a child taught him valuable lessons about the realities and hardships of life, and instilled in him a determination to succeed. After earning his bachelor's degree from Montclair State Teachers College and his master's from New York University, Dad served his country overseas during World War II. He and my mother, Antoinette, settled in Island Park in 1945. Since that time, he has been energetically involved in the public life of Island Park. Armand D'Amato's dedication to his community did not stop with the founding of the Island Park Chamber of Commerce. He was also instrumental in founding the American Alliance to Combat Crime and Violence, an organization sponsored by the Island Park Chamber of Commerce dedicated to making Island Park a safer place to live and raise a family. He also founded the Island Park Taxpayer Association in 1953, the Tri-Community Council of Island Park in 1954 and served as district governor of the Nassau County Lion's Club in 1963. During the 1970's and 1980's, dad served as director of business research at the nassau County Department of Commerce and Industry and organized the Business Resource Center at Nassau Community College. My father's vigorous commitment to public service and the values he has instilled in his family are reflected by the career paths chosen by his two sons. My brother, Armand D'Amato, Jr., served in the New York State Assembly for fourteen years. And my own career in public service was certainly inspired by his active involvement in the community. Armand D'Amato has worked his entire life to make Island Park a better place to live. His dedication and commitment to the concept of community service has had an immeasurable impact on the lives of the citizens of Island Park. My father personifies the spirit of community leadership to which others should aspire, and I am proud to join in honoring him.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I am just going to be a few seconds. Twenty-five years ago, a young man came to the Senate. He, indeed, has enriched the Senate with his leadership, with his integrity, and with his very presence. The fact of the matter is, he is the son of Italian immigrants and comes from the great State of New Mexico. It is Senator Pete Domenici's 65th birthday. Senator Domenici, happy birthday. [Applause.]

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise in support of the amendment offered by Senator Grams and Senator Johnson. I am pleased to be a cosponsor. Mr. President, the Congress is moving swiftly to provide emergency assistance to the victims of the winter flooding in Minnesota, and North and South Dakota. The Supplemental is an appropriate and compassionate response by the administration and the Congress to the suffering of our fellow citizens. Mr. President, this amendment addresses some of the important regulatory steps that can be taken to expedite overall efforts by communities, families, homeowners, farmers, and small businesses to recover from the devastation of the floods. This amendment would authorize the Federal financial regulators to make temporary exceptions to various Federal laws in order to maximize the availability of credit in these flood afflicted areas and expedite its delivery. The amendment will complement measures already instituted by some of the regulators to deal with financial stress in the flooded area. For example, the Federal Reserve Board has indicated that it may be appropriate for lenders to ease credit terms and restructure debts in certain cases. It is similar to legislation approved by Congress in 1992 and 1993. Mr. President, I commend Senator Grams and Senator Johnson for developing this amendment and urge support for this helpful addition to overall flood relief efforts.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I introduce legislation that will provide a new tax incentive for qualifying owners of national historic landmark houses that will encourage the preservation and public accessibility to these houses. It is designed to prevent private owners of historical properties from being forced to sell because of concern over the financial burden of Federal estate taxes. Under current law, the value of historical property is included in determining the taxable estate of a decedent. This raises serious concerns to families that are maintaining and opening to the public these architectural historical homes. They are sharing these treasures with our Nation. To force the operation of these privately funded museum properties to end, due to fear over future estate tax burdens that will be thrust on their descendants is depriving our citizens the opportunity to enjoy the architectural wonders of these homes. Tourists in many States will be denied the opportunity to visit these homes and experience the heritage of these historical sites. Mr. President, I propose that an estate tax exemption be provided for qualified historical properties. The number of historical homes that will qualify is modest since this legislation requires private, taxable ownership and national historical landmark status, as well as a willingness on the part of the owner to operate the premises as a museum subject to strict requirements. While the legislation has minimal effects on Federal revenues it plays a major role in preserving extraordinarily important properties. This bill is an opportunity for the Government to encourage preservation of history. Historical homes help preserve the themes of our common heritage and highlight the unique pattern of each community. They contribute to the perpetuation of the historical fabric of our national life. They are a source of a community's pride in accomplishment and beauty. Section 1(b)(7) of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 states that: Although the major burdens of historic preservation have been borne and major efforts initiated by private agencies and individuals, and both should continue to play a vital role, it is nevertheless necessary and appropriate for the Federal Government to accelerate its historic preservation programs and activities to get maximum encouragement to agencies and individuals undertaking preservation by private means, and to assist State and local governments and the National Trust Historic Preservation in the United States to expand and accelerate their historical preservation programs and activities. That is what this legislation does. It encourages private citizens to preserve historical properties rather than sell or develop them despite their desire to do so. Winston Churchill recognized the importance of preserving historical properties when in 1943 he said ``We shape our buildings, and afterwards our buildings shape us''. Mr President, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in cosponsoring this important legislation. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the complete text of the bill be placed in the Record.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I introduce legislation that will provide a new tax incentive for qualifying owners of national historic landmark houses that will encourage the preservation and public accessibility to these houses. It is designed to prevent private owners of historical properties from being forced to sell because of concern over the financial burden of Federal estate taxes. Under current law, the value of historical property is included in determining the taxable estate of a decedent. This raises serious concerns to families that are maintaining and opening to the public these architectural historical homes. They are sharing these treasures with our Nation. To force the operation of these privately funded museum properties to end, due to fear over future estate tax burdens that will be thrust on their descendants is depriving our citizens the opportunity to enjoy the architectural wonders of these homes. Tourists in many States will be denied the opportunity to visit these homes and experience the heritage of these historical sites. Mr. President, I propose that an estate tax exemption be provided for qualified historical properties. The number of historical homes that will qualify is modest since this legislation requires private, taxable ownership and national historical landmark status, as well as a willingness on the part of the owner to operate the premises as a museum subject to strict requirements. While the legislation has minimal effects on Federal revenues it plays a major role in preserving extraordinarily important properties. This bill is an opportunity for the Government to encourage preservation of history. Historical homes help preserve the themes of our common heritage and highlight the unique pattern of each community. They contribute to the perpetuation of the historical fabric of our national life. They are a source of a community's pride in accomplishment and beauty. Section 1(b)(7) of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 states that: Although the major burdens of historic preservation have been borne and major efforts initiated by private agencies and individuals, and both should continue to play a vital role, it is nevertheless necessary and appropriate for the Federal Government to accelerate its historic preservation programs and activities to get maximum encouragement to agencies and individuals undertaking preservation by private means, and to assist State and local governments and the National Trust Historic Preservation in the United States to expand and accelerate their historical preservation programs and activities. That is what this legislation does. It encourages private citizens to preserve historical properties rather than sell or develop them despite their desire to do so. Winston Churchill recognized the importance of preserving historical properties when in 1943 he said ``We shape our buildings, and afterwards our buildings shape us''. Mr President, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in cosponsoring this important legislation. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the complete text of the bill be placed in the Record.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. My office has been in touch with the French Embassy and has been assured of their cooperation repeatedly. I told them I was going to come to the floor today. We called them. We were assured by the Ambassador's secretary, oh, yes, we are going to get you this information. This is not a great secret. This Justice Ministry report again goes back to 1995. The quotes that I have given you come from this report in terms of the attitude of the museums. So whether it is ``Cliffs at Etretat'' or whatever artwork it is that has been stolen and taken illegally, it is time now for a proper accounting. That is what we seek. We will continue to pursue this matter. I hope that the French Ambassador and the French Government would begin to work with us in accommodating justice. I thank my friends. I yield the floor. Mr. KERRY addressed the Chair.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, when the Banking Committee began the inquiry into Swiss banks, we had no idea where the trail would lead. We know that the Nazis had looted personal belongings of millions from all over Europe--gold, personal matters, bank accounts. But we really did not know how much help--I say ``help''--that the Nazis had in disposing of this loot. We are beginning to get some idea. Now we have a better idea. We know that Swiss banks facilitated the looting of gold from all over Europe. We know that the accounts of great numbers of Holocaust victims were never returned by Swiss banks to their heirs. But we also know that our Nation had similar problems. Other nations had similar problems and participated. France was one of them. I am shocked to see a December 1995 report which I am holding here from the French Ministry of Justice. Mr. President, this report details an audit of some of France's most prestigious museums and explains how these museums for over 50 years managed to hide their ownership of almost 2,000 works of art--1,955 works of art, to be precise, art that was looted from the victims of the Holocaust and deposited with these museums during the war, some of them sold on the so-called black market by the Nazis, who stripped Europe, who stripped individuals as they came through with their killing machine and sold the art or deposited it with these museums that knew they were not the true owners who were selling it to them. Curator after curator cared more about the so-called, to use their words, sanctity of their collections, the museum's collections than for justice of the family from which art work was stolen. This is unconscionable for the museum to be saying, and I quote the museum in Versailles, the curator said, ``Each and every one of these works has its proper place in our collections.'' Do not disturb them. It does not matter that they were stolen. It does not matter that it was their property. The report also quotes a curator from the Musee d'Orsay as having said that a painting held in his collection by Gustave Courbet, the great painting of the Cliffs at Etretat After a Storm--and here is a photograph of that painting; it is one of the great masterpieces of the world--is one of the masterpieces that we would have to buy at a great price if we did not already have it. Well, they may have it, but who does it rightfully belong to? Are we saying that the great art museums of the world, and particularly in France, have a right to keep this stolen art work? Mr. President, this painting sits today in the Musee d'Orsay and the simple matter is that it does not belong to that museum. This painting, along with thousands of others and with other art objects in the French museums, should be immediately turned over to an independent authority to quickly establish its rightful ownership. The French Government has established a commission to study the problem but the true owners should not have to put up with the delays that go along with commissions like this. It has been 50 years, as the report states. The French museums have made little or no attempt to find either the heirs or the owners of these art works. These works have appeared in exhibits numerous times, have been in possession of the most prominent art museums in the world. The process of returning these works of art must be put in the hands of a party that can search for true owners and do so without a worry whether or not they fit neatly into museum collections. After more than 50 years, it is time for justice. And just as we seek that proper accounting from the Swiss bankers, it is time that French museums do the same. Mr. President, almost 3 weeks ago, I wrote to the French Ambassador, a letter dated April 8, which I will submit for the Record and ask unanimous consent that it be printed.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, yesterday I received a very important and a very encouraging letter from Ambassador Thomas Borer. Ambassador Borer is the special representative that the Swiss have appointed to handle the very perplexing and very troublesome question as it relates to the assets of Holocaust victims during and after World War II, particularly those as they related to the accounts that were opened in Swiss banks. Let me read this letter. It is a short one, but a very important one. It is from the Embassy of Switzerland, addressed to Senator D'Amato as chairman of the Banking Committee, Washington, DC: Dear Mr. Chairman: I am referring to your letter of March 20, 1997 and my reply of March 27, 1997 regarding the question of publishing the names of dormant account holders from the Holocaust era. Please find enclosed [a] copy of the letter of the Chairman of the Swiss Bankers Association to the Chairman of the Swiss Federal Banking Commission dated April 28, 1997. In this letter the SBA expresses its unequivocal support for this idea. I am going to place this letter in the Record. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the letter be printed in the Record.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, let me tell you what this is about. I did write to Ambassador Borer. I spoke to him on March 20. And I indicated to the Ambassador that I thought that it was awfully important that the Swiss Bankers Association, that the Swiss Government do something to demonstrate tangibly an effort of good faith, that would be very important, that there are many accounts--we do not know exactly how many; but certainly they go into the hundreds, and they may go into more--that have been dormant since 1945, that it made little sense to wait years until the Swiss completed their investigation for the release of these names, that even if it took legislation--and I explained to him that it had been advised to me that there was a good possibility that it might not even take legislation--that the names of these accounts--those are dormant accounts that were opened prior to 1945 and that have been dormant since that point in time --that the need for secrecy certainly no longer existed, but that there was a need to connect the families and the heirs today who might have claim to those accounts, to their heirs, to their families. It is not just a question of money. It is a question of doing what is right, because unfortunately for 50-plus years people have been denied, heirs have been denied. They have had to go through a tortuous process, that in many cases it is just impossible to ascertain what moneys may or may not have been left to them, and that by the publication of the names in some registry, in some total form--something that is being done in many countries, in many States in our country where there is a dormant account, the names of the people are actually published so that people who may have claims can come forth. I wrote to him, and I will just quote you part. I am writing to you to impress upon you the need for the passage of legislation which would allow for the publication of names of dormant accounts presently held in Swiss banks. I feel that this change would go a long way towards solving this enormously difficult and complicated problem and would equally be seen as a productive step which I am sure would be warmly received. I am pleased to tell you that the Ambassador reported to me yesterday, yesterday morning, that the Swiss Bankers Association unequivocally supports the concept of public disclosure of the names of the account holders in this very special and limited situation of the dormant accounts now being investigated as it relates to the Holocaust and those dormant assets. I believe, Mr. President, that this is important. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the letter from me to Ambassador Borer and a letter from the Swiss Bankers Association be printed in the Record.