F. Sensenbrenner

Mr. SENSENBRENNER

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Just to get back on track, Mr. Speaker, let me say that what H.R. 2054 does is that it says that at the general election in November of this year, the residents of Wendover, Utah, and West Wendover, Nevada, will vote on a plan of merger, a marriage contract, if you will. If the voters in both communities support this procedure, then the next step is to have the Utah and Nevada legislatures consider whether or not the State lines should be adjusted so that Wendover, Utah, would be put into the State of Nevada. Nevada has got a provision in its State constitution that delineates the boundaries of the State. Should both States approve it, there would have to be an amendment proposed by the two sections of the State legislature and approved by the voters of the State of Nevada in the general election of 2006. Should that all happen, then the State boundary would be adjusted, because the consent of Congress would be given in advance under these procedures through the enactment of H.R. 2054. And should that happen, this will be the first time since 1863 that a State boundary was changed for a reason other than the fact that the river constituting the boundary between two States has changed course. In 1863, during the Civil War, as we all know, the Congress admitted West Virginia as a State, carving the loyalist counties of the Commonwealth of Virginia out of that Commonwealth and establishing them as a separate State. So what we are doing here is setting in motion something that might not have happened in our country for 140 years. So even though this bill is noncontroversial, it is somewhat precedent-setting, and it is precedent-setting in that in fact the Congress is giving the say to the people of these two communities on whether or not they want the State line adjusted. If either of the communities says, no way, we do not want to have that, then this whole issue is moot and everybody who wants to talk about this issue will forever hold their peace. With that, I urge the passage of this bill. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2054) to give the consent of Congress to an agreement or compact between Utah and Nevada regarding a change in the boundaries of those States, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2054, as amended.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2054 gives congressional consent for the States of Utah and Nevada to enact a compact modifying the boundary between the two States. Last November, along with the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen) and the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Gibbons), I had the opportunity to visit the towns of Wendover and West Wendover. Though a line drawn down the main street separates the two towns and States, they continue to share a common culture. Economically, however, they stand in stark contrast to one another. Wendover, Utah, was established in 1907 and grew from a sleepy railroad supply station to a bustling community during the 1940s, when it acted as an Air Force training base for B-29 bomber crews, including the crew of the Enola Gay. Once having a population of nearly 20,000, today Wendover's population has declined to only 1,500 residents, most of them living in adverse economic conditions and dilapidated housing. On the other side of the State line, literally a stone's throw away, conditions are vastly different. West Wendover, Nevada's beginning stems from a local Wendover resident realizing by opening a gas station on the town's western edge, he could legally operate gaming devices on his property. Many years later his recipe for success has been copied by many, resulting in a prosperous town which has a vibrant community life as well as a profitable gaming industry. For the same reasons West Wendover has thrived, namely the ability to have legalized gaming and a more attractive Tax Code for its residents, Wendover has stalled. Further growth and development of the Utah portion will be forever hindered by those finding the economic climate of Nevada to be more advantageous for living and conducting business. Passing H.R. 2054 is the first step to fixing the Wendover problem. Allowing these two communities to unite will pave the way for an economic jumpstart for Wendover and will result in additional mutual benefits to both towns. For example, administrative services that are currently performed on both sides of the border on a separate basis could be consolidated, resulting in more efficient government and distribution of services, ultimately resulting in savings to both Wendovers. By simply allowing the border of a State to be slightly shifted, the people of these communities can work toward unification, politically and economically. During the field briefing we conducted, residents of both Wendover and West Wendover were unified behind one message which was heard time and time again. That message was: ``Let us be heard.'' Through an amendment adopted by the Committee on the Judiciary, we have done that and made any congressional approval of this measure contingent upon the passage of a local referendum on the issue of merging the two towns. H.R. 2054 will truly allow the residents of the communities to be heard by allowing them to determine the outcome of their potential union. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take from the Speaker's table the Senate bill (S. 2431) to amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to ensure that chaplains killed in the line of duty receive public safety officer death benefits, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2621, the bill under consideration.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2621, the Consumer Product Protection Act of 2002, would prohibit any person from knowingly stamping, printing, placing, or inserting any writing in or on any consumer product prior to its sale without the consent of the manufacturer, distributor, or retailer of such product. Under current law, tampering with a product's packaging is not illegal, as long as it does not cause the labeling to be false or misleading or endanger the health or safety of consumers. Consumer protection laws, therefore, fail to address conduct which, although it does not adulterate the actual product or alter its labeling, is still harmful to business and consumers. Product tampering transforms businesses' desirable products into vehicles for undesirable messages. Businesses should be able to control the messages associated with their products, and persons who interfere with those products and harm the image of their company should be prosecuted. Recent product tampering cases have shown that adults and children across the country have been subjected to violent, racist, gory, or otherwise offensive materials placed between layers of packaging. Leaflets have been found that attack African Americans, praise the Holocaust, and encourage the killing of immigrants. This legislation will appropriately punish those who knowingly insert these materials into product containers by making it a criminal act. Just one company, Kraft Foods, estimates that they have received nearly 100 complaints in the last 5 years, but also believe many more cases have gone unreported. The manufacturers have concluded, after investigation, that many of these materials are placed in the packaging once the products have left their control. Often, the products are tampered with while in retail stores or are bought, tampered with, and later returned. Parents can monitor their children's television shows, the music they listen to, and the books they read; but they cannot be expected to anticipate that offensive materials may be found in a cereal box. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Hart), the author of this bill.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3297) to amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to ensure that chaplains killed in the line of duty receive public safety officer death benefits, as amended.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2068) to revise, codify, and enact without substantive change certain general and permanent laws, related to public buildings, property, and works, as title 40, United States Code, ``Public Buildings, Property, and Works,'' as amended.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H.R. 1877, the bill currently under consideration.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Gekas).

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith), the chairman of the Subcommittee on Crime.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Mrs. Johnson), the author of the bill.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1877, the Child Sex Crimes Wiretapping Act of 2002, will help protect our children from the growing threat of sexual predators by assisting law enforcement officers in thwarting those predators who are intent on sexually abusing children. To do so, the bill amends title 18, United States Code, section 2516 to authorize the interception of wire, oral, or electronic communications in the investigation of: (1) the selling and buying of a child for sexual exploitation under title 18, United States Code, section 2251A; (2) child pornography under title 18, United States Code, section 2252A; (3) the coercion and enticement to engage in prostitution or other illegal sexual activity under title 18, United States Code, section 2422; and (4) the transportation of a minor or traveling to meet a minor with intent to engage in a sexual act with the minor under title 18, United States Code, section 2423. Technology has precipitated a significant increase in sexual exploitation crimes against children. In fact, child pornography was nearly extinct until the increased use of the Internet provided a new medium where the viewers, producers and traders are virtually anonymous. The Internet provided these depraved individuals with new access to their victims. In 2000, a U.S. Customs Service representative testified before the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security of the Committee on Judiciary that the Customs Service had seen a dramatic rise in child exploitation investigations. During fiscal year 1999, these types of investigations increased 36 percent, and in 2000 the number rose an alarming 81 percent. Additionally, the growth of international travel has helped sexual predators to exploit children throughout the world. According to a 2002 Congressional Research Service report, trafficking in people, especially women and children, for prostitution and forced labor is one of the fastest growing areas of international criminal activity. According to that report, under conservative estimates the scope of the problem involves more than 700,000 victims per year worldwide. We must do more to prevent children and women from being forced into prostitution, the sex tourism industry, and other sexually exploitative criminal markets. The goal of H.R. 1877 is to provide law enforcement with the tools necessary to prevent the ultimate harm these depraved individuals plan for the innocent children they target. Wiretaps are key to stopping those crimes before the predators can physically harm children. I urge my colleagues to support the bill. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of the time. Mr. Speaker, we have heard an impassioned plea about civil rights. This is about civil rights for children. It is about protecting minors who cannot protect themselves from the sexual exploitation over the Internet. There are some in this House that do not believe that wiretaps are proper at any time. I respect that position, even though I disagree with it. But I think we ought to make it clear in the legislative history of this bill that under the law, law enforcement is authorized to use a wiretap to intercept wire or electronic communications that may provide evidence of a crime under 18 U.S.C. section 2516, and that no wiretap, regardless of the crime that is being investigated, can legally be done in this country without a court order. So that provides the protection against unmitigated, unrestrained surveillance by wiretaps of citizens by law enforcement. This is a good bill. It is a bill that has bipartisan support. It is a bill that plugs a loophole in our present laws, and it ought to become the law of the United States of America. The House can do so by suspending the rules in just a few minutes, and I urge my colleagues to support this motion.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, this bill is a matter of simple equity. That is to give the United States citizens who are the victims of the al Qaeda strike in East Africa in 1998 the same rights to get funds from the special master as those who are the victims of the al Qaeda strikes on September 11 in New York City and at the Pentagon. Now, perhaps the al Qaeda strikes in East Africa went under the radar screen with most Americans as well as many Members of Congress. But those two embassy properties, one in Nairobi, Kenya, and the other in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, are just as much the sovereign territory of the United States of America as the land on which the World Trade Center rested and the land on which the Pentagon rests today. So passing this bill will mean that we do not have different strokes for different folks depending upon whether the people were killed by al Qaeda in East Africa or whether they were in New York City or in Northern Virginia. So, as a matter of equity, as a matter of fairness, and as a matter of preventing different strokes from happening for different folks, I would urge the passage of this bill. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Blunt), the distinguished deputy majority whip.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 3375, the bill currently under consideration.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3375 would allow U.S. citizens who were victims of the bombings of United States embassies in East Africa on August 7, 1998, or their surviving family, to receive the same compensation as the victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks. The September 11 Victim Compensation Fund Act of 2001 created a compensation program administered by the Attorney General, through a Special Master, for people killed or injured as a result of the September 11 terrorist attacks. On August 7, 1998, agents of Osama bin Laden orchestrated near simultaneous vehicular bombings of the United States embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar Es Salaam Tanzania. Twelve American Government employees and family members were killed and several others were injured as a result of these bombings. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3375, the Embassy Employee Compensation Act, directs the Attorney General to provide compensation for those American government employees and family members through the Special Master appointed to administer the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund of 2001. The bill would authorize payments under the same standards for payments that are applied to people receiving payment under the September 11 fund. In the case of a deceased individual, the bill would allow relatives of that individual to be compensated under the same standards as well. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3375 is a matter of fairness and equity. It allows victims of the bombings of the U.S. embassies access to the same compensation system available to those killed or injured during the September 11 attacks in the United States by agents of Osama bin Laden. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3375) to provide compensation for the United States citizens who were victims of the bombings of United States embassies in East Africa on August 7, 1998, on the same basis as compensation is provided to victims of the terrorist-related aircraft crashes on September 11, 2001.