Daniel Inouye

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. It does not mandate a timetable for ending our involvement in Iraq but provides a new way ahead which will ensure better protection for our forces and a greater chance for the Iraqis to succeed. This is a good, balanced package. It includes the best from each of our bills. It funds the critical needs of our military and provides a way ahead for our forces in Iraq. I urge all my colleagues to support this conference agreement. I thank the Chair.

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I wish to speak against this amendment. This amendment will increase the work of the inspector general because of its mandatory nature, but it will not add any additional results. Secondly, it provides that audits be posted on the Web within 60 days without any safeguards for proprietary information that may be gathered as a result of the audit, and it provides no protections under existing information privacy laws. Then there is the word ``conference,'' which I think is too broad and has implications for existing and future educational activities, which is the major part of the underlying bill. For this reason, and many others, I am opposed to it. I yield back my remaining time.

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources be authorized to hold a hearing during the session of the Senate on Monday, April 23, 2007, at 3 p.m., in room SD-366 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. The purpose of the hearing is to receive testimony on S. 1115, a bill to promote the efficient use of oil, natural gas, and electricity, reduce oil consumption, and heighten energy efficiency standards for consumer products and industrial equipment, and for other purposes.

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs be authorized to meet on Monday, April 23, 2007, at 2:30 p.m. for a hearing titled ``Protecting College Campuses: Best Practices.''

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, on behalf of the distinguished chairman of the Energy Committee, I ask unanimous consent to withdraw the pending amendment.

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I am pleased to send to the desk a managers' package, which I described earlier, from the Commerce Committee.

Mr. INOUYE. I ask unanimous consent the reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, technological innovation is the lifeblood of U.S. economic growth and well-being. To achieve growth and success, the United States must continue to support the two critical components necessary during the early stages of the innovation ecosystem: education and basic research. A pipeline of well-educated secondary school students feeds into the college ranks, which in turn feeds into the graduate schools. Graduate students engage in challenging and cutting edge research led by principal investigators that often are funded by Federal grants. Many times the students and scientists will make a breakthrough discovery of innovation and attempt to commercialize it. If successful, they will have created the next great generation, great American company that sells the next great product, employing thousands of people and driving this economy's economic growth further. The United States has the luxury of claiming many of the world's top scientific minds. These leading scientists either emigrate to the United States because we provide some of the best facilities and resources or they are home grown, having excelled through the U.S. educational system to reach the top echelons of their respective disciplines. However, this premier standing we have enjoyed in the past is in serious jeopardy. As a result, many believe our economic prosperity is at risk. Today the Senate has a unique opportunity to respond to the Nation's defining economic challenge in the 21st century, and that is how to remain strong and competitive in the face of the emerging challenges from India, China, and the rest of the world. We have examined the expert reports and today the Senate is considering S. 761, the America COMPETES Act. S. 761 is a bipartisan product of several committees including: the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee; the Energy Committee; and the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. As chairman of the Commerce Committee, which was instrumental in developing Divisions A and D of the bill, I encourage my colleagues to support S. 761. Many point out that the United States' declining scientific prowess is palpable. They cite, for example, the country's dismal proficiency scores: less than one-third of U.S. fourth-graders performed at or above a level deemed ``proficient'' and about one-fifth of eighth- graders lacked the competency to perform basic math computations. U.S. 15-year-olds ranked 22 out of 28 Organization for Economic Co-Operation Development, OECD, countries tested in mathematics. This is a troubling statistic. In math and science education our country is losing ground to the likes of Germany, China, and Japan. In the United States, only 32 percent graduate with college degrees in science and engineering, while 36 percent of German undergraduates receive degrees in science and engineering. In China it is 59 percent, and in Japan, 66 percent of undergraduates receive science and engineering degrees. In 2004, China graduated over 600,000 engineers; India, 350,000; and the United States, less than 70,000. These statistics are alarming and will have dire consequences as the U.S. talent pipeline begins to dry up. To respond, the America COMPETES Act emphasizes science, education, and technology as the keystones of a comprehensive American competitiveness agenda. We considered programs in several agencies. Within the Department of Commerce, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, NIST, is charged with promoting U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology. The bill would continue NIST on a 10-year doubling path and promote high-risk, high-reward research within the agency. Also within the Department of Commerce. the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA, conducts significant basic atmospheric and oceanographic research, including climate change research. Its management decisions and operational programs rely on a strong scientific and technical underpinning. Some have argued that the ocean truly is the last frontier on Earth, and ocean research and technology may have broad impacts on improving health and understanding our environment. Toward this end, our committee included modest provisions on NOAA research and education, which we hope to strengthen during the course of debate on S. 761. The bill also includes the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in the administration's competitiveness agenda. Like the oceans, space captivates the minds of our young people and can help attract them into a lifelong study of science. America COMPETES continues the Senate's commitment to doubling the funding of the National Science Foundation. The Foundation is the Nation's premier investment in undirected, basic science. The bulk of its funding is distributed as competitive grants. The bill includes provisions to ensure all States, including small States like Hawaii, can share in important research funding. After all, good ideas know no boundaries. In order to be strong, we will need the ideas and leadership of researchers and entrepreneurs in every corner of the Nation. I was pleased to work with my colleagues on the HELP Committee to develop the NSF education provisions. I am proud to have included programs to encourage women to have careers in science, technology, mathematics, and engineering. In recent years, we have passed legislation affecting interagency research in nanotechnology, information technology, computer security, climate change, oceans and human health, earthquake research, wind research, and aeronautics research. The America COMPETES Act provides for a Science Summit to encourage interactivity and knowledge sharing between science, scientists, and industry. I would like to end by noting that technology and innovation pervade many policy problems that the Commerce Committee and the Congress face. Changes in telecommunications policy are being driven by innovation. In particular, low broadband penetration is cited as a factor in the loss of competitiveness in many U.S. regions. Also, our transportation infrastructure would benefit from increased investment and deployment of new technologies, such as investment in technologies that can increase energy independence. To succeed in a whole host of arenas, we need scientific discoveries and a technologically savvy workforce. If enacted, the America COMPETES Act can provide the first step for this country to get back into the global race. Many countries are looking to overtake us to claim technological and economic superiority. While we continue to lead, we cannot take this lead for granted. I fully support what we are trying to accomplish with the America COMPETES Act and I look forward to working with my colleagues towards its final passage. Mr. President, working with Senators Stevens, Hutchison, other committee members, and members of other committees, we have developed a small package of amendments to the Commerce Committee sections of the bill. We took an expansive view of American competitiveness and wanted to ensure that the research agencies in our Government and jurisdiction could fully participate in interagency programs to address innovation and competitiveness. This amendment is just the provisions regarding the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to align them with those addressing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. I hope we can agree to even stronger provisions to promote ocean education. The oceans, like outer space, hold such a lure for young people and can draw them into a lifelong study in key fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. These students may someday invent products that keep our Nation economically competitive. The amendment also strikes a provision related to the sale of standard reference materials by the National Institute of Standards and Technology that could have resulted in a million dollars of direct spending. With this amendment, the bill contains no direct spending. The amendment adjusts the authorization levels for the National Science Foundation, so that the increase will not fluctuate but will be a consistent 15 percent annually. As amended, the fiscal year 2008 level for NSF is $300 million over the President's requested level, reflecting the $302 million in new education programs authorized in the bill. In addition, the amendment changes the authorized funding level for NSF's education and human resources programs to $1.05 billion in fiscal year 2008, and for the experimental program for competitive research, to $125 million in fiscal year 2008. These programs would grow annually from fiscal year 2009 to fiscal year 2011 at the same rate that NSF overall funding grows. Finally, there are a series of technical changes to the bill that, first, add mathematics and engineering and technology in the Science Summit in section 1101; second, change the goal for increasing participation in two NSF fellowship and traineeship programs to a 4- year goal, matching the pendency of the authorizations in the bill; and third, on behalf of Senator Hutchison, we make a clarifying change to section 4006 regarding NSF priorities. Mr. President, I appreciate all of my colleagues' help in improving the Commerce Committee section and look forward to adopting this modest agreement and amendment so that we can begin to debate S. 761 in earnest. I yield the floor.

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I agree wholeheartedly with my friend. We should not take the Chinese goal lightly. They mean business.

Mr. INOUYE. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. INOUYE. Will the Senator yield?

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I commend my colleague, Senator Alexander, for his broad and very intricate history of the bipartisanship. If all of us in this body followed this process on all major legislation, this would be a historic session, and I hope it is so. This will be one of the first I can look back to and say we tried and we succeeded. And I think we are going to succeed. I thank the Senator from Tennessee very much.

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Identity Theft Prevention Act of 2007 with my colleagues Senator Stevens and Senator Pryor to protect Americans from identity theft. The recent breaches of security that led to the loss of sensitive personal information remind all of us how vulnerable we are to thieves stealing our identity for criminal purposes. Identity theft is a growing threat to our personal security that must be met with new tactics and new laws in the information age. We in the Congress and every consumer in America have seen the evolution of identity theft. The moment of greatest awareness was in February 2005 when ChoicePoint notified more than 145,000 people that their personal data had been accessed by unauthorized persons who used some of the information for identity theft. ChoicePoint was required to make these contacts under the California notification law, but this incident had nationwide effects. Since then, a number of data brokers, banks, universities and other entities that hold personal information have notified individuals that their personal information may have been compromised. The last major breach was made public in January 2007, when T.J. Maxx announced it had discovered a breach in the security of its customer payment data. As a result of hacker activity starting in 2005, information on more than 45 million credit and debit cards had been stolen. The need to address this problem is long overdue. Every business that collects and stores sensitive personal information must ensure that the information is safeguarded. If a security breach occurs and the information could be used for identity theft, every affected consumer needs to be notified as soon as possible so they can best protect themselves and their families. The Identity Theft Prevention Act provides the Federal Trade Commission new enforcement tools to ensure businesses that hold a consumer's sensitive personal information use vigorous safeguards to prevent breaches from happening. The Act also requires businesses to appropriately notify consumers if their information is improperly released and could lead to identity theft. In addition, the Identity Theft Prevention Act provides consumers the ability to place a security freeze on their credit reports, so if they choose, they can eliminate the worry and the impact of an identity thief opening new lines of credit from stolen information. Americans have demanded better protection for their sensitive personal information, and it is imperative that we respond to these demands effectively and expeditiously. I look forward to working with the other Members of the Senate to move this legislation forward.

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Identity Theft Prevention Act of 2007 with my colleagues Senator Stevens and Senator Pryor to protect Americans from identity theft. The recent breaches of security that led to the loss of sensitive personal information remind all of us how vulnerable we are to thieves stealing our identity for criminal purposes. Identity theft is a growing threat to our personal security that must be met with new tactics and new laws in the information age. We in the Congress and every consumer in America have seen the evolution of identity theft. The moment of greatest awareness was in February 2005 when ChoicePoint notified more than 145,000 people that their personal data had been accessed by unauthorized persons who used some of the information for identity theft. ChoicePoint was required to make these contacts under the California notification law, but this incident had nationwide effects. Since then, a number of data brokers, banks, universities and other entities that hold personal information have notified individuals that their personal information may have been compromised. The last major breach was made public in January 2007, when T.J. Maxx announced it had discovered a breach in the security of its customer payment data. As a result of hacker activity starting in 2005, information on more than 45 million credit and debit cards had been stolen. The need to address this problem is long overdue. Every business that collects and stores sensitive personal information must ensure that the information is safeguarded. If a security breach occurs and the information could be used for identity theft, every affected consumer needs to be notified as soon as possible so they can best protect themselves and their families. The Identity Theft Prevention Act provides the Federal Trade Commission new enforcement tools to ensure businesses that hold a consumer's sensitive personal information use vigorous safeguards to prevent breaches from happening. The Act also requires businesses to appropriately notify consumers if their information is improperly released and could lead to identity theft. In addition, the Identity Theft Prevention Act provides consumers the ability to place a security freeze on their credit reports, so if they choose, they can eliminate the worry and the impact of an identity thief opening new lines of credit from stolen information. Americans have demanded better protection for their sensitive personal information, and it is imperative that we respond to these demands effectively and expeditiously. I look forward to working with the other Members of the Senate to move this legislation forward.

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I am a proud Democrat. Ted Stevens is a proud Republican. People have said, how can you two ever get together? Well, as the leader has indicated, we call each other brothers. I know this is a violation of our party rules, but I have contributed to Ted's campaign, and he has contributed to my campaign. Last election was one of the most negative and partisan ones that I have ever experienced. The issue was Iraq, as it is today. Ted Stevens came up to me and said: You know, this election is sending a bad message to the fellows and the women in Iraq. We should send another message. So he proposed that we do our very best to pass the Defense appropriations bill in a timely fashion unanimously. The record will show that the subcommittee came out and voted unanimously for the Defense appropriations bill. The full committee responded by unanimously voting for it, and the Senate, for the first time in history, voted 100 to 0. That is bipartisanship, Mr. President. We have demonstrated that it can be done, and it has been done many times. We have many things in common, but I think more things uncommon. He represents glaciers; I represent coconut trees. But we do have many things in common. We fought in World War II--he in China with the Flying Tigers, and I was in Europe fighting the Germans. We represented territories. So we came in as new Members of the Senate, and he and I have received the crown of being ``pork men of the year.'' We are No. 1 in add-ons in the United States Senate. Mr. President, I am proud to call Ted Stevens my brother. I hope we can continue this brothership for as long as we are here. We have just given him a new title: the Strom Thurmond of the Arctic Circle. (Applause.)

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I rise today to announce the introduction, by request, of the Next Generation Air Transportation System Financing Reform Act of 2007, the Bush administration's proposal for the Federal Aviation Administration, (FAA), reauthorization. As chairman of the Commerce Committee, I, along with vice chairman Stevens, introduce this bill out of courtesy to the Bush administration. They have outlined an aggressive proposal for the FAA reauthorization and while I cannot support all portions of this bill, I believe our colleagues should have an opportunity to consider the ideas outlined. While I commend the Department of Transportation and the FAA for their work on the proposal, I have great concerns with some of the provisions. Specifically, I am troubled by the proposal to dramatically increase the general aviation fuel tax and substantially cut the Airport Improvement Program, AIP, funding level. The Commerce Committee has jurisdiction over the FAA and I will work with Senator Jay Rockefeller, the chairman of the Aviation Subcommittee, and Senator Trent Lott, the ranking member of the subcommittee, along with other members of the committee, to craft a bipartisan bill that we can bring before the full Senate. It is important that we act quickly, as the current aviation tax structure expires at the end of the fiscal year. Therefore, we must present our committee and this body with a bill that not only solves funding issues for our Nation's air system, but also puts us on a course to fully modernize our aviation system to safely and efficiently handle the increase in air traffic that is expected. In the coming weeks, we will be back here with a bill that I believe will gain the support of the majority of the Commerce Committee and the support of the Senate.

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. I agree that air transport safety of our citizens in Iraq and in Afghanistan is an important issue and I endorse your comments on this matter. We should work to take the steps needed to ensure the safety of our civilian contractors. Geothermal Energy Research Funding

Mr. INOUYE. I believe that I recently read about this issue in the press. I am concerned as well that the lack of regulation and oversight of these charter aircraft put our citizens at risk.

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, today I wish to recognize the University of Hawaii at Manoa's College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, CTAHR, as they commemorate their upcoming centennial. I am pleased to join them in their celebration of a significant milestone that salutes their illustrious achievements in the past, and serves as an enduring foundation for many more in their future. CTAHR was established as a land-grant institution in 1907, and at the time, it was known as the College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts. This nascent institution of higher education was dedicated to research, academic instruction, and community outreach. The first students that enrolled during the college's inaugural academic year received instruction in agriculture, household economics, science, and engineering, all of which are still offered to students by the University of Hawaii. Faculty members and students identified the necessity for a curriculum that focused on subtropical climates in order to assist Hawaii's farmers. Their initiative and perseverance subsequently led to the development of a tropical agriculture curriculum, a legacy that over the last century lent itself to CTAHR's name, and benefited people in Hawaii, the Pacific region, and around the world. CTAHR's successes are numerous, and those in agriculture range from laying the basis of the macadamia nut industry world-wide, to cultivating Hawaii's robust anthurium cut-flower crop, and developing a seed corn crop export utilizing Hawaii's year-round growing season that was valued at $70 million during the 2005-2006 crop year. In addition, their accomplishments include researching remedies to the environmental problems caused by invasive species such as fruit flies, termites, and the papaya ringspot virus. Originally, these pests were eliminated using toxic pesticides that inflicted damaged Hawaii's precious and beautiful environment. CTAHR's research and development led to nationally honored alternative nontoxic treatments used by farmers and residents. This dedication to the health and well-being of Hawaii's residents extends beyond the laboratory and is demonstrated in their community outreach. In the 1920's CTAHR's Chair in the Home Economics Department was correct and prescient, when she advocated against the reliance on processed foods, and was essential in the nutritional assessment of readily available tropical and sub-tropical fruits and vegetables. World War II starkly highlighted Hawaii's precarious sustainability situation when ships once used to shuttle goods between the islands were serving our country in a wartime capacity. CTAHR stepped in to increase food production, analyze potable water, and help residents adapt to shortages and blackout conditions. Their outreach continues today, and it is exemplified by the 1991 establishment of ``The Center on the Family.'' This Center bolsters Hawaii's families by gathering information on everything from child development to elder care using an interdisciplinary approach of research, education, and service. All of the information they compile is available to families, public servants, service providers, educators, and students via the award-winning online database maintained by the center. None of these outstanding distinctions could have been reached if CTAHR did not promote and sustain their tradition of academic excellence. The element fundamental to all of their accolades since their beginning in 1907, and that continues to be at the heart of CTAHR's success is their commitment to meet the highest standards of their federally mandated charge to conduct academic instruction. I would like to thank Dean Andrew G. Hashimoto and his predecessors for their wisdom and leadership over the last 100 years. It is with great hope, and my best wishes for CTAHR to carry on their established legacy of achievement in all their future endeavors.

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I would like to associate myself with the comments of my colleague from New Mexico. I have also met with the Governor of American Samoa regarding his concerns on proposed changes to the minimum wage law as it applies to American Samoa. In addition, I have met with the distinguished delegate from American Samoa, Eni Faleomavaega, who has been working with his colleagues in the House, Chairmen Obey and Miller, on this matter and he has their assurances that they will continue to work with him as this bill is considered in the conference committee. I have joined the delegate on a letter to the HELP Committee urging continuation of the current FLSA policy of having Special Industry Committees periodically determine the rate of increase in the territorial minimum wage.

Mr. INOUYE. I also thank the chairman and manager for his understanding and cooperation on this matter.

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. We thank you, the leader. Native Hawaiian programs and institutions continue to be under attack in the courts. Hence, there is an urgency to act and to clarify that the status of Native Hawaiians is a political question best left to the political arena, namely the Congress, to resolve.

Mr. INOUYE

Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, I would like to commend the Army leadership for selecting the first woman and nurse to serve as the Acting Army Surgeon General. Today, MG Gale S. Pollock, a nurse, is in charge of the Army Medical Department and leading the way in improving organizational efficiencies and streamlining the care of our wounded warriors. Major General Pollock was born in Kearny, NJ, and entered the Army Nurse Corps in 1976 after earning her BSN from the Walter Reed Institute of Nursing through the University of Maryland. She also completed a master of business administration from Boston University, a master in health care administration from Baylor University, and a master in national security and strategy from the National Defense University. Major General Pollock also attended the U.S. Army Nurse Anesthesia Program and is a certified registered nurse anesthetist, CRNA, and a fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives. Major General Pollock's military education includes Senior Service College at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, the U.S. Air Force War College, the Interagency Institute for Federal Health Care Executives, the Military Health System CAPSTONE program, the Principles of Advanced Nurse Administrators, and the NATO staff officer course. On March 20, 2007, Major General Pollock, Chief of the Army Nurse Corps, was officially named Commander of the U.S. Army Medical Command and the Acting Army Surgeon General. Her previous military assignments include, Commander, Pacific Regional Medical Command and Tripler Army Medical Center, Honolulu, HI; Special Assistant to the Surgeon General for Information Management and Health Policy; Commander, Martin Army Community Hospital, Fort Benning, GA; Commander, U.S. Army Medical Department Activity, Fort Drum, NY; Staff Officer, Strategic Initiatives Command Group for the Army Surgeon General; Department of Defense, DoD, Healthcare Advisor to the Congressional Commission on Servicemembers and Veterans Transition Assistance; Health Fitness Advisor at the National Defense University; Senior Policy Analyst in Health Affairs, DoD; and Chief, Anesthesia Nursing Service at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, DC. Major General Pollock brings extensive leadership, education, and experience to her new position as the Acting Army Surgeon General. As an Army nurse and woman, I applaud her many accomplishments which have brought her to the highest level of rank and responsibility in military medicine.