Paul Sarbanes

Mr. SARBANES

Mr. SARBANES. If the Senator would yield on that point.

Mr. SARBANES. I was here for a good part of it.

Mr. SARBANES. I think you are misstating Senator Byrd's position.

Mr. SARBANES. Will the Senator yield for a question?

Mr. SARBANES. I think the Senator from New Mexico was here for all of it.

Mr. SARBANES. Will the Senator yield?

Mr. SARBANES. I cannot claim that. And I respect the Senator from New Mexico for that. But I was here for a good part of the time. Does that qualify me to ask the Senator a question?

Mr. SARBANES

Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, I would like to commend the chairman of the Budget Committee for addressing the issue of Federal employee pay with the senior Senator from Virginia and me today. The House-passed fiscal year 2002 budget resolution contains important provisions to ensure parity between the pay raises granted to civilian Federal employees and those provided to members of the armed services. Disparate treatment of civilian and military pay goes against longstanding policy of parity for all those who have chosen to serve our Nation--whether that service is with the civilian workforce or in the armed services. In fact, a comparison of military and civilian pay increases by the Congressional Research Service finds that in 17 of these last 20 years military and civilian pay increases have been identical.

Mr. SARBANES. I thank the chairman, and the distinguished Senator from Virginia for their interest and support. I am sure we all agree that a talented Federal and military workforce is crucial to getting the work of the American people done skillfully and efficiently. In many instances, Federal civilian and military employees work side-by- side doing the important work of the Nation, and Congress has recognized that we should not undermine the morale of these dedicated public servants by failing to bring them in line with military personnel. Continuing pay parity is one way to ensure the Federal Government is able to attract and retain qualified public servants.

Mr. SARBANES

Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, this week, from April 1-7, we are celebrating the 43rd anniversary of ``National Library Week.'' As a strong and vigorous supporter of Federal initiatives to strengthen and protect libraries, I am pleased to take this opportunity to draw my colleagues' attention to this important occasion and to take a few moments to reflect on the significance of libraries to our nation. When the free public library came into its own in this country in the 19th century, it was, from the beginning, a unique institution because of its commitment to the same principle of free and open exchange of ideas as the Constitution itself. Libraries have always been an integral part of all that our country embodies: freedom of information, an educated citizenry, and an open and enlightened society. They are the only public agencies in which the services rendered are intended for, and available to, every segment of our society. It has been my longstanding view that libraries play an indispensable role in our communities. From modest beginnings in the mid-19th century, today's libraries provide well-stocked reference centers and wide-ranging loan services based on a system of branches, often further supplemented by traveling libraries serving outlying districts. Libraries promote the reading of books among adults, adolescents, and children and provide the access and resources to allow citizens to obtain reliable information on a vast array of topics. Libraries gain even further significance in this age of rapid technological advancement where they are called upon to provide not only books and periodicals, but many other valuable resources as well. In today's society, libraries provide audio-visual materials, computer services, internet access terminals, facilities for community lectures and performances, tapes, records, videocassettes, and works of art for exhibit and loan to the public. In addition, special facilities libraries provide services for older Americans, people with disabilities, and hospitalized citizens. Of course, libraries are not merely passive repositories of materials. They are engines of learning--the place where a spark is often struck for disadvantaged citizens who for whatever reason have not had exposure to the vast stores of knowledge available. I have the greatest respect for those individuals who are members of the library community and work so hard to ensure that our citizens and communities continue to enjoy the tremendous rewards available through our library system and work to provide additional funding to help keep libraries open. My own State of Maryland has 24 public library systems providing a full range of library services to all Maryland citizens and a long tradition of open and unrestricted sharing of resources. This policy has been enhanced by the State Library Network which provides interlibrary loans to the State's public, academic, special libraries and school library media centers. The Network receives strong support from the State Library Resource Center at the Enoch Pratt Free Library, the Regional Library Resource Centers in Western, Southern, and Eastern Shore counties, and a Statewide database of holdings totaling 178 libraries. The State Library Resource Center alone gives Marylanders free access to approximately 2 million books and bound magazines, over 1 million U.S. Government documents, 600,000 documents in microform, 11,000 periodicals, 90,000 maps, 20,000 Maryland State documents, and over 19,000 videos and films. The result of this unique joint State-County resource sharing is an extraordinary level of library services available to the citizens of Maryland. Marylanders have responded to this outstanding service with 54.7 percent of the State's population registered as library patrons. Additionally, the total holdings of catalogued and uncatalogued book volumes, video and audio recordings, periodicals, electronic formats, and serial volumes have increased by 1 million from 1998 to 2000 to total over 16.5 million in library resources. I have had a close working relationship with members of the Maryland Library Association and others involved in the library community throughout the State, and I am very pleased to join with them and citizens throughout the nation in this week's celebration of ``National Library Week.'' I look forward to a continued close association with those who enable libraries to provide the unique and vital services available to all Americans.

Mr. SARBANES

Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, tomorrow, March 29, 2001, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority will celebrate the 25th Anniversary of passenger service on the Metrorail system. I want to take this opportunity to congratulate WMATA on this important occasion and to recognize the extraordinary contribution Metro has made to this region and to our Nation. For the past quarter century, the Washington Metro system has served as a shining example of a public investment in the Washington Metropolitan area's future. It provides a unified and coordinated transportation system for the region, enhances mobility for the millions of residents, visitors and the federal workforce in the region, promotes orderly growth and development of the region, enhances our environment, and preserves the beauty and dignity of our Nation's Capital. It is also an example of an unparalleled partnership that spans every level of government from city to state to federal. Since passenger service first began in 1976, Metrorail has grown from a 4.6 mile, five station, 22,000 passenger service to a comprehensive 103-mile, 83 station, and 600,000 passenger system serving the entire metropolitan region, and with even more service and stations on a fast track toward completion. Today, the Metro system is the second busiest rapid transit operation in the country, carrying nearly one-fifth of the region's daily commuters traveling to the metropolitan core and taking more than 270,000 vehicles off the roads every day. It is also one of the finest, cleanest, safest and most reliable transportation systems in the Nation. Reaching this important milestone has not been an easy task, by any measure. It took extraordinary vision and perseverance to build the 103 mile subway system over the past twenty five years and, as the Washington Post has recently underscored in two articles about the Metro system, it will require an equal or even greater commitment to address the challenges that lie ahead. I ask unanimous consent that the text of the first of these articles be included in the Record immediately following my statement. The great communities throughout the world are the ones that have worked to preserve and enhance their historic and natural resources; provide good transportation systems for citizens to move to their places of employment and to public facilities freely; and invest in neighborhoods and local business districts. These are among the things that contribute to the livability of our communities and enrich the lives of our citizens. I submit that the Metro system and the regional cooperation which it has helped foster has helped make this region a community in which we can all be proud. This week's celebration is a tribute to everyone involved in the continuing intergovernmental effort to provide mass transit to the people of the Washington Metropolitan area--those local, State and federal officials who had the vision to begin this project 25 years ago and who have worked so steadfastly over the years to support the system. This foresight has been well rewarded and I join in celebrating this special occasion.

Mr. SARBANES

Mr. SARBANES. That is not true. Does the Senator have any time?

Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, I want to get campaign finance reform, but I am not going to be bum-rushed down a path where you forgo all analytical abilities. This severability issue is an important issue. In 1974, we passed campaign finance legislation and the Supreme Court threw out a number of very important provisions in that legislation and totally changed the scheme. Much of what we are suffering today is a consequence of that Court's decision. Now we are being told you can't have nonseverability; you have to stick with this thing through thick or thin. I am told, suppose the Court throws out a minor provision. You want the whole bill to go down? The answer to that is no. But then the question is, Suppose the Court throws out a major provision. Suppose the Court throws out a major provision. Do you want the whole bill to go down there? The Senator from Minnesota has made an exceedingly good-faith effort because he has included the provision if the Court throws out this amendment, the rest of the bill will stand. I do not understand these arguments on the constitutionality, given that provision of the Senator's amendment.

Mr. SARBANES

Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, I rise today in recognition of Women's History Month. This time has been appropriately designated to reflect upon the important contributions and heroic sacrifices that women have made to our Nation and consider the challenges they continue to face. Throughout our history, women have been at the forefront of every important movement for a better and more just society, and they have been the foundation of our families. In Maryland, we are proud to honor those women who have given so much to improve our lives. Their achievements illustrate their courage and tenacity in conquering overwhelming obstacles. They include Margaret Brent, who became America's first woman lawyer and landholder, and Harriet Tubman, who risked her own life to lead hundreds of slaves to freedom through the Underground Railroad. Dr. Helen Taussig, another great Marylander, developed the first successful medical procedure to save ``blue babies'' by repairing heart birth defects. Her efforts laid the groundwork for modern heart surgery. We are all indebted to Mary Elizabeth Garrett and Martha Carey Thomas who donated money to create Johns Hopkins Medical School on the condition that women be admitted. And jazz music would not be complete without the unforgettable voice of jazz singer Billie Holiday who also hailed from Baltimore City. Their accomplishments and talent provide inspiration not only to Marylanders, but to people all over the globe. A woman who illustrates the commitment of the women of Maryland is my good friend and colleague from Maryland, Senator Barbara Mikulski. Senator Mikulski, who has served longer than any other woman currently in the Senate, played a key role in establishing this month. In 1981, she cosponsored a resolution establishing National Women's History Week, a predecessor to Women's History Month. Today, I wish to honor her dedication and service to the people of Maryland and this Nation. While we recognize famous women, it is important that we acknowledge the contributions of others who daily touch our lives. It is our favorite teacher who gave us the confidence and knowledge to know that we were capable of success. It is the single mother or grandmother who toiled at a low-paying job for years to guarantee that the next generation in her family received better education and career opportunities. It is the professional women who volunteer the little spare time they have to read to children or speak to student groups, inspiring young people to aim for goals beyond what they may have otherwise imagined. And the stay-at-home mothers who devote enormous time to chauffeur their children and others from activity to activity, knowing that these many hobbies stimulate a child's interest and desire to learn. These modern day heroines, giving of their time, knowledge, and expertise must not be taken for granted. Women have made great strides in overcoming historic adversity and bias but they still face many obstacles. Unequal pay, poverty, inadequate access to healthcare and violent crime are among the challenges that continue to disproportionately affect women. Working women earn 74 cents to every dollar earned by men. What is more troubling is that the more education a woman has, the wider the wage gap. According to a recent Census Bureau report, the average American woman loses approximately $523,000 in wages and benefits over a lifetime because of wage inequality. Families with a female head of household have the highest poverty rate and comprise the majority of poor families. Women continue to be under-represented in high-paying professions and lag significantly behind men in enrollment in science programs. Increasing the number of women in these fields begins with encouraging girls' interest and awareness in school. As our population ages, we must also address the special challenges of older women. Women live an average of 6 years longer than men. Consequently, their reduced pay is even more detrimental given their increased life expectancy as they are forced to live on less money for a longer period of time. In addition, more women over age 65 tend to live alone at a time when illness and accidents due to decreased mobility are more likely. For these women, it is imperative that we guarantee that Social Security and Medicare remain solvent for future generations. I believe we should use this month as an opportunity to reflect not only on the achievements and challenges of American women, but to recognize those of women internationally. We know that a variety of ills hinder the potential of women in many parts of the world--labor practices that oppress women and girls, the rapid spread of HIV and AIDS, and limited or nonexistent suffrage rights. We must broaden access to education, the political process, and reproductive health globally so that girls and women everywhere can maximize their options. To have a credible voice in the international arena, the United States must lead by example, showing that American women enjoy these rights fully. While obstacles remain, women have achieved impressive progress. This good news includes a decline in the poverty rate for single women and an increase in those holding advanced degrees. Recent figures show women received approximately 45 percent of law and 42 percent of medical degrees awarded in this country. This is a dramatic improvement from a few decades ago and should continue as more and more women enter professional programs. In my home State of Maryland, as in the Nation, women are a guiding force and a major presence in our national business sector. From 1987 to 1999, the number of women-owned firms in the United States grew by 103 percent. Women were responsible for 80 percent of the total enrollment growth at Maryland colleges and universities throughout the last two decades. I am pleased to report that during my service in Congress, I have strongly supported efforts to address women's issues and correct gender discrimination and inequality. In the present session, I have cosponsored the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would provide more effective remedies to victims of wage discrimination on the basis of sex. Along with many of my colleagues, I have supported the Equity in Prescription Insurance and Contraceptive Coverage Act, which would prohibit health insurance plans from excluding or restricting benefits for FDA-approved prescription contraception if the plan covers other prescription drugs. In order to build a national repository of the contributions of women to our Nation's history, I cosponsored legislation to establish a National Museum of Women's History Advisory Committee. I am proud of these efforts and I will continue my commitment to bring fuller equality to all women. Indeed, women have made great progress. I think it is appropriate to point out the accomplishments of women in history, but it is also important to educate present and future generations about gender discrimination so that we do not repeat past mistakes. We all look forward to a day when these conditions will be distant and unimaginable. We are closer to that day than we were yesterday, but we still have some distance to travel. I am confident that the women of America will lead this journey and continue to exemplify and advocate for those values and ideals which are at the heart of a decent, caring, and fair society.

Mr. SARBANES

Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. SARBANES

Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, today I would like to recognize the contributions of a man who helped pave the way for the American space flight program. Seventy-five years ago, on a cool morning in Auburn, MA, Dr. Goddard and his small group of students and assistants huddled around a nine-pound, awkward looking structure and began the first of many, now familiar countdowns. Seconds later the small vehicle rose forty-one feet into the air and fell to the ground amid the cheers of those below. The age of modern rocketry was begun. Today, Doctor Goddard is recognized around the world as the father of modern rocket propulsion. Goddard's dreams began, like thousands of other young children, with stories from his childhood. He was born in 1882, in Worcester, MA, as the only child of a bookkeeper. In 1899, at age 17, young Robert dozed off in a cherry tree after having read H.G. Wells' War of the Worlds. He dreamt he had ascended to Mars in a machine driven by centrifugal force. When he awoke he devoted his life to making his dream of spaceflight a reality. His aspiration of devising a system for propelling men away from the Earth led him to pursue an education in physics. In 1908, he earned his Bachelor's of Science degree from Worcester Polytechnic Institute. He went on to receive his Master's in Physics from Clark University in 1910 and his doctorate in 1911. His early efforts in rocket propulsion mathematically explored various ideas including solar power, electric ion propulsion, and explosive firing from a large cannon as narrated in Jules Verne's classic 1865 novel From the Earth to the Moon. His work eventually rejected all of these ideas as for lack of efficiency or power. In 1914, Doctor Goddard patented a system for using liquid propellant to lift rockets into the cosmos. That same year he also received a patent for a multiple stage system. Goddard devoted his life to the ideas and concepts of rocket propulsion that he first demonstrated in 1926. Forty-three years later these two patents were put into practice to propel Neil Armstrong and his fellow astronauts to their historic moon landing in 1969. From 1920 to 1929 his work was sponsored primarily by the Smithsonian Institution. During this period, Goddard wrote four unsolicited reports in which he revealed his visions of space exploration. He foretold of manned vehicles exploring the moon and the planets, solar power, ion propulsion, and even journeys to other star systems. Goddard requested that these reports be kept confidential because these lofty concepts were completely unacceptable to the scientific community of the 1920s. In 1932, in a letter to H.G. Wells, Goddard wrote, ``[A]iming at the stars, both literally and figuratively, is a problem to occupy generations, so that no matter how much progress one makes, there is always the thrill of just beginning. . . .'' His visionary ideas were the spark that ignited the passions of hundreds of young men and women to transform his idealistic dreams into reality. But he wasn't just a dreamer. His practical solutions led to 214 total patents. In the early 1920s, Goddard began a series of rocket tests of which the 1926 launch was the hallmark. One of the key theories proven by Goddard's experimentation was that a rocket will function in the vacuum of space. Before Goddard's meticulous tests, it was widely believed in the scientific community that rockets moved by pushing against the air. Goddard proved that rockets functioned on the reaction principle and that they would perform in a vacuum. On this foundation, the path was laid for scientists and engineers to build on Doctor Goddard's work and lead the United States to the forefront of the space race. At his namesake, the Goddard Space Flight Center, in Greenbelt, MD, the tremendous NASA scientists and engineers recently celebrated forty years of continuing Dr. Goddard's legacy of discovery and exploration. So, on this day, we should remember the efforts of this courageous visionary and his successors as the finest example of American perseverance and ingenuity. Without Robert Goddard's enterprise, our race to the stars would have faltered. His historic launch is truly one of the great mileposts on the road to the modern space age.

Mr. SARBANES

Mr. SARBANES. I don't think it does. I would have to doublecheck and let the Senator know.

Mr. SARBANES. That is right. First of all, let me make very clear, the number of institutions engaged in these kinds of practices is limited. They are the worst of the bunch. The responsible people in the industry do not want these people engaged in these kinds of practices. But, unfortunately, there are people who are really engaged in essentially what is a ripoff. And there are some existing protections against some practices that are provided in the law, in the Truth in Lending Act at the Federal level and in State fraud statutes, so that the victims can bring suit and obtain a remedy with respect to the way they have been exploited by a loan. All this amendment says if those kinds of business enterprises which have engaged in this practice declare bankruptcy, they then cannot use the bankruptcy proceeding to, in effect, erase those claims--in other words, take what is a dirty asset, or a dirty loan, into bankruptcy and bring it out on the other side as a clean loan where you then say to the consumer: It's too bad, you just can't get any recourse because this loan has gone through the bankruptcy process. So this would maintain the consumer's rights that he had going into the bankruptcy on the other side. It does not add to those rights. Those rights are defined by existing law--Federal and State--so it would not substantively expand the recourse, but procedurally it would maintain the existing remedies.

Mr. SARBANES. They declare bankruptcy and then they sell these loan portfolios or the servicing rights to the loans, often in the course of the bankruptcy proceedings. If you allow that to happen, then you have an incentive for these companies to use the bankruptcy proceeding as a way of cleaning up their loans. So they go into bankruptcy, they use the bankruptcy proceeding to sell them off to somebody, but the victim has no recourse. We are saying if it goes in as a predatory fraudulent loan, the person who has been victimized ought not to lose his remedy because they can wash it through the bankruptcy proceeding.

Mr. SARBANES. Certainly.

Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, I rise to speak in favor of the amendment offered just a short while ago by my very able colleague from New York, Senator Schumer, which I cosponsored. I thank Senator Schumer for his leadership on this amendment which seeks to ensure--there is some ambiguity--that the claims and defenses that would have existed with respect to a predatory loan will survive at sale or loan and passage through a bankruptcy proceeding. Last year, just to illustrate the dimensions of this problem, the New York Times and ABC News broke a story about a company called First Alliance Corporation. First Alliance was a predator mortgage lender which engaged in deceptive and fraudulent practices. Like many predatory lenders, First Alliance targeted elderly homeowners, many of whom were ill, for the hard sell. In fact, First Alliance developed a script for its lending staff called ``The Track,'' which detailed a set of tricks that could be used to distract and deceive trusting homeowners. Indeed, according to press accounts, a California appeals court found that First Alliance ``trained its employees to use various methods, including deception, to sell its services.'' This guidebook to deception is only part of the story. Loan officers did not disclose, as required by the Truth in Lending Act, the true costs of the loan. Even where the documents told the true story, the loan officers would lie to the customer about the meaning of the documents. This is not an idle or empty accusation. This is not speculation. One customer of First Alliance taped her conversation with a loan officer to play for her husband later on because she had become so confused by the transaction. So we know these violations occur. Over time, a number of State attorneys general started investigating First Alliance, and a growing number of victims of these practices brought suit. Under the Truth in Lending Act and State fraud and other statutes, the victims have the right to seek redress that makes them whole and in some cases to collect damages. Under threat from many such lawsuits, First Alliance declared bankruptcy. In other words, the company that had engaged in these practices, which was now being called to account for those practices by the State attorneys general and by those people victimized--utilizing the Truth in Lending Act, and State fraud and other statutes--that company declared bankruptcy. Other subprime predatory lenders engaging in similar practices have sought the protection of bankruptcy courts as the suits have piled up. A number of these firms have sold their loan portfolios, or the servicing rights to their loans, in their bankruptcy proceedings. What this amendment would do is it would ensure that the claims that rest against these deceptive and fraudulent loans would survive the bankruptcy process. It is arguable that that is what existing law provides, but it is not altogether clear. This seeks to make that crystal clear. The amendment is necessary because some are now advancing the argument that going through bankruptcy is essentially equivalent to laundering the loan; in other words, what was dirty going into the bankruptcy proceeding comes out clean. But of course what that means is that innocent homeowners who sought a loan, homeowners who were tricked and lied to, homeowners who have legitimate claims to relief under existing law, might end up without a remedy and might end up losing their homes. Indeed, one could argue that the current ambiguity encourages these lenders to go into bankruptcy. If bankruptcy results in these loans being laundered--cleaned up--then those loans, those assets, become more valuable after bankruptcy than they were before. If you can pass them through that process and, in effect, block out the victims from seeking the remedies to which existing law entitles them, then the asset is more valuable if it passes through the bankruptcy proceeding. Obviously, anyone stopping to think about this, even for a moment, would conclude that this is wrong. If a consumer has a legitimate claim because a loan was made without complying with the law, that consumer should be able to pursue the claim regardless of whether the company that made the loan went through bankruptcy or not. Indeed, one of the arguments that was used earlier today in the debate, in opposing the amendment that was offered by Senator Durbin, was that remedies against predatory, fraudulent, and unfair loans already exist in the law today. That argument was used to say that the Durbin amendment was not necessary. The fact of the matter is, if we want to ensure that such protections do in fact exist and that they are not wiped out by the bankruptcy proceeding, we need to adopt this amendment. Let me make one final point. This amendment does not create any new causes of action or create liability where none currently exists. All it does is, it simply maintains the same claim against the loan on both sides of the bankruptcy process. So it precludes using the bankruptcy process to wipe out these claims and remedies that are available to the consumer because the lender has engaged in predatory and fraudulent practices. I am very frank to say to you I think it is a small but significant step to providing victims of predatory lending the opportunity to obtain a measure of relief with respect to the exploitation that has been practiced upon them. I urge the adoption of the amendment which Senator Schumer offered just a short while ago and which is pending at the desk along with, as I understand it, a number of other amendments which will be voted upon later in our proceedings. Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mr. SARBANES. I want to speak with respect to an amendment that was offered a short while ago and is still pending before the body.

Mr. SARBANES. Potentially.

Mr. SARBANES. Any purchaser of such loans would have to be on guard because they would not be able to take them free and clear because the claims would stay with the loan.

Mr. SARBANES. I thank the Senator. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.