Chris Smith

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Beauprez), who along with the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Hefley) worked very, very hard for the Fitzsimons Hospital, and I am very grateful for their help. (Mr. BEAUPREZ asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to my good friend, the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Gibbons). (Mr. GIBBONS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne).

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Tiberi), and thank the gentleman for his work on the Columbus, Ohio project which has advance planning funds to the tune of $9 million in this bill.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons).

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, first of all, I thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans). Again, we have collaborated on a bill working with the subcommittee chairman, the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons), and the ranking member, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Rodriguez), and we have produced an extraordinarily good piece of legislation. We worked with the other body, and I want to thank Senator Arlen Specter, the chairman, and the ranking member, Senator Graham. There was give and take, obviously. We began working on this very comprehensive product last spring. Again, this is a combination of a number of bills rolled and packaged into one bill. Project Shad was mentioned earlier by my colleague from California, and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Rodriguez) mentioned it as well. This bill is not everything we would like. The next time I find a bill on this floor that is will be the first time. We did pass over to the other body the full money for the Columbus project, and we got back advance planning funding from the other body. While it is not everything we wanted, it certainly will ensure that that project goes forward. The $9 million is not chump change and will be sufficient to get the job done. I want to assure my colleagues we have done our due diligence. This is a very good piece of veterans legislation. I want to thank our staff, Pat Ryan; John Bradley, who is the staff director for the subcommittee; Kingston Smith, our deputy chief counsel; Jeannie McNally; Mary McDermott; Peter Dickinson; Steve Kirkland; Bernie Dotson; Summer Larson; Kathleen Greve; Delores Dunn; Paige McManus; Devon Seibert; and Veronica Crowe. As my colleague mentioned, we have had great cooperation with our friends on the other side of the aisle. Again, this is a quintessential bipartisan piece of legislation, something that this entire body can be proud of, and it will advance the ball significantly when it comes to veterans health care as well as the construction project. Let me also remind my colleagues that we have passed over to the other body H.R. 11 and another bill that I sponsored and a bill that the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Moran) sponsored in the last Congress, and they never came back. They listed a number of projects that should have but did not get funded and were not authorized. Now, finally in this Congress, under the great leadership of the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons), we have gotten that product back from the Senate, and it will go to President Bush for his signature. This is a great day for veterans. Again, I thank all of my colleagues for their cooperation and leadership. Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record a joint explanatory statement. Explanatory Statement on S. 1156, as Amended, Veterans Health Care, Capital Asset, and Business Improvement Act of 2003 S. 1156, as amended, the Veterans Health Care, Capital Asset, and Business Improvement Act of 2003 (``Compromise Agreement'') reflects a negotiated agreement reached by the Senate and House of Representatives Committees on Veterans' Affairs concerning provisions in a number of bills considered by the House and Senate during the 1st session of the 108th Congress. The measures considered in this compromise are: S. 1156, as amended, as reported by the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs on November 10, 2003; S. 1815 introduced on November 4, 2003 (``Senate Bill''); H.R. 2357, as amended, passed the House on July 21, 2003; H.R. 2433, as amended, passed the House on September 10, 2003; H.R. 1720, as amended, passed the House on October 29, 2003; H.R. 3260, as introduced in the House on October 8, 2003; and H.R. 3387, as introduced in the House on October 29, 2003 (``House Bill''). The House and Senate Committees on Veterans' Affairs have prepared the following explanation of the Compromise Agreement. Differences between the provisions contained in the Compromise Agreement and the related provisions of the Senate bill and the House bills are noted, except for clerical corrections, conforming changes made necessary by the Compromise Agreement, and minor drafting, technical, and clarifying changes.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in the Senate amendment to the bill (H.R. 2297) to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve benefits under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the Senate amendment to H.R. 2297 reflects an agreement with the other body on comparable House and Senate bills. The Veterans Benefits Act of 2003 includes almost all of the provisions that were contained in the bill when the House originally considered it, as well as several other worthwhile provisions contained in S. 1136, which the Senate passed on October 31. Mr. Speaker, the Chairman of our Subcommittee on Benefits, the distinguished gentleman from South Carolina, will describe several of those important provisions, some seven titles in all, approximately 40 provisions, and I will yield to him in just a moment to do so. But let me briefly touch on the benefits this bill contains and who will be affected by it. Mr. Speaker, many surviving spouses of veterans who die of a service- related cause will qualify for restoration of benefits taken away when they remarry. Former prisoners of war will find it easier to qualify for veterans benefits that they so richly deserve. Disabled veterans who own businesses will find it easier to sell their goods and services to the Federal Government. The surviving children of those killed in the line of duty will now receive a college-assisted payment that is 13 percent higher than the current benefit. Reservists who want to use the VA home loan program will now be charged a lower fee. Mr. Speaker, following on the heels of our historic enactment of legislation to provide concurrent receipt benefits to over 250,000 severely disabled military retirees, this bill is a further testament to Congress' commitment to aiding those who serve our country in the Armed Forces. There are many other important provisions in this measure, and I do urge my colleagues to review them. And, again, my good friend and colleague, as well as the ranking member, will be going into further detail. I would especially like to congratulate the Chair and Ranking Member of our Subcommittee on Benefits, the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Brown) and the gentleman from Maine (Mr. Michaud) for holding hearings this year on a variety of important issues affecting veterans. I am pleased that their efforts on the subcommittee pulled together in truly bipartisan fashion all of these disparate elements into this omnibus bill to advance the needs of our veterans. And, again, I always like to thank, because we work hand in glove, my good friend and colleague, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans), for his work on this legislation as well. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Brown), the distinguished chairman of our Subcommittee on Benefits.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Filner) for his kind remarks and also point out that he has been indefatigable in fighting for the Filipino veterans, and thank the gentleman for his hard work, which has been incorporated in this bill. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite).

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I thank our colleagues on the other side of the aisle, all of the staff who have worked for days, weeks and months on this legislation through the hearing process. There are seven titles and close to 40 provisions in this bill. It is a very comprehensive omnibus bill, and so many Members made a difference in its content. I would like to say we break a lot of new ground in this legislation, including the legislation dealing with veterans' businesses so that set-asides, sole source procurements, and the benefits accruing thereon will go to veterans themselves. In the past, veterans have gotten so little of the Federal procurement dollars--only 0.13 of 1 percent-- which is unconscionable. This legislation now gives discretionary authority government-wide so we can again facilitate these important businesses. Let me also point out that provision, just like the whole bill which is backed by virtually every veteran service organization in the country--that particular provision--on veterans' businesses has 36 military and veterans organizations backing it from a broad spectrum. From the largest Hispanic organization to the Black Veterans for Social Justice, we have a good cross-spectrum of people backing this provision because our veterans who have served so ably and are disabled are absolutely deserving of this legislation. I thank the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Renzi) for his leadership on this particular provision. He actually introduced the bill which is incorporated here in our final product. Mr. Renzi has been a champion of veterans benefits, and I thank him. Mr. Speaker, I also thank Senator Rockefeller, who was instrumental in encouraging a strong text for this provision. I also thank our counterparts in the Senate, Senator Graham and the chairman of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, Senator Specter, for their work on this legislation and their spirit of cooperation. Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record a joint explanatory statement describing all of the provisions including the compromise agreement that we have reached with the other body. Explanatory Statement on Senate Amendment to House Bill, H.R. 2297, as Amended H.R. 2297, as amended, the Veterans Benefits Act of 2003, reflects a Compromise Agreement reached by the House and Senate Committees on Veterans' Affairs (``the Committees'') on the following bills considered in the House and Senate during the 108th Congress: H.R. 1257; H.R. 1460, as amended; H.R. 2297, as amended (``House Bill''); and S. 1132, as amended (``Senate Bill''). H.R. 1257 passed the House on May 22, 2003; H.R. 1460, as amended, passed the House on June 24, 2003; H.R. 2297, as amended, passed the House on October 8, 2003; S. 1132, as amended, passed the Senate on October 31, 2003. The House and Senate Committees on Veterans' Affairs have prepared the following explanation of H.R. 2297, as amended (``Compromise Agreement''). Differences between the provisions contained in the Compromise Agreement and the related provisions of H.R. 1257, H.R. 1460, as amended, H.R. 2297, as amended, and S. 1132, as amended, are noted in this document, except for clerical corrections, conforming changes made necessary by the Compromise Agreement, and minor drafting, technical, and clarifying changes.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on H.R. 2297.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I rise with my colleagues today in support of one of the most courageous men of peace on the planet today, an advocate for freedom, Dr. Oscar Biscet. A long-time human rights activist and pro-life doctor in Cuba, Dr. Biscet had already spent some 3 years, unjustly, 3 years in Castro's gulag for speaking out against the death penalty in Cuba and for calling for the release of all political prisoners. After his release, Mr. Speaker, in the fall of 2002, he remained undaunted by his oppressors, Castro and the brutal thugs who run his regime, and continued to attempt to peacefully organize human rights' supporters. Dr. Biscet was redetained with 16 other dissidents after they attempted to simply meet in a home in Havana to discuss human rights last September. Just think about that, my colleagues, just simply meeting, gathering together, and in come the thugs to take you away. When police prevented him from entering that home, Dr. Biscet and others, just like Dr. Martin Luther King, sat down in the street and protested, uttering slogans like ``long live human rights,'' and ``freedom for political prisoners.'' For that, he received a draconian 25-year prison sentence in April. That was during the same time when there was a massive crackdown that Amnesty International pointed out, reminiscent of what happened during the early years of Castro's brutal regime when massive numbers of people were arrested and given long prison sentences, many of those, 75 of them, some of the bravest and brightest in Cuba today: Independent journalists and democracy activists, who now themselves languishing in prison. Mr. Speaker, while reports of Dr. Biscet's actions in prison continue to be heroic, and the word does get out, this is a man of conscience, a man of courage, the reports of his mistreatment, however, have been equally horrific. He is heroic; the mistreatment is horrific. For months, we know that he has endured solitary confinement for refusing to wear the prisoner's uniform. He has lived with insufficient light, and now no light at all, no running water and no bed. His benign and peaceful protest on November 11 on behalf of the cruel treatment of another prisoner, even though he is suffering so much, Mr. Speaker, he speaks out and tries to lend a hand to other prisoners who are being mistreated, for that he was moved to a punishment cell, as my colleagues have pointed out, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Lincoln Diaz-Balart), who spoke so eloquently a moment ago, to a cell known as the dungeon. This man, this peaceful man, this Martin Luther King of Cuba is now languishing in a dungeon, a small confined area with no light. He has been put into a prison cell, this dungeon, with a man who on 12 different occasions has committed assault. I remember during the years of Nicolae Ceausescu, the brutal thug in Romania, what he used to do. He would put people who committed crimes in with peaceful activists, political prisoners, and political prisoners of conscience with the hope and the thought that these men of violence would commit violence against these peaceful activists, and God forbid that that happens. We will continue to speak out, and, hopefully, nothing will happen as a result of this emplacement of this thug in with Dr. Biscet. Let me just point out to my colleagues that in the spring Dr. Biscet, and this just shows the heart of this great man, stated ``I am innocent of the charges for which I was condemned, which is why I will maintain my ideological position. A true man cannot betray himself, so I can only appeal to the living God and pray to our Lord. And he is not neutral and never abandons his flock.'' What a faith. Here is a man crying out from prison, praying to God above, asking that he not be forgotten in a way that is reminiscent of our Lord when he said, why have I been abandoned? Well, in this case he is saying despite his ordeal that God will not abandon him. Mr. Speaker, we cannot abandon him, and that is why we are speaking out and speaking out so strongly tonight. We cannot allow this prisoner of conscience, and there are hundreds, as the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Lincoln Diaz-Balart) said so ably earlier, hundreds who live likewise in Castro's gulag. His wife, Elsa Morejon, has said his crimes are honoring the universal declaration of human rights: Opposing abortion and the death penalty and organizing civil rights movements through nonviolent civil disobedience to reclaim the rights of fellow Cubans that he believes are being violated. For that, 25 years being mistreated and being treated in a way that we would not even treat our animals. Let me just conclude, Mr. Speaker. After months of brutal treatment, his health is very poor. We have to speak out. There are Members who take to the floor here and say we need to have an expansion of travel and trade and the like. Well, not until these individuals, starting with Dr. Biscet, are released. Otherwise, the blame and the crime of complicity rests at your doorstep.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Franks), my good friend and colleague.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, we have no further requests for speakers, and I yield back the balance of our time.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me time. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 427, which recognizes the courageous leadership of the Unified Buddhist Church in Vietnam and stresses the urgent need for the government of the Republic of Vietnam to respect religious freedom and basic human rights. I thank the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Loretta Sanchez) for offering it today. Mr. Speaker, Vietnam's oppression of religious liberty, which is well documented in the State Department Reports on Human Rights and Religious Freedom, as well as by credible human rights organizations, continues to deteriorate. This is a regime with clear non-ambiguous policies designed to control and to repress religion. At its Seventh plenum in January 2003, the Communist Party's Central Committee stepped up its persecution of religious groups issuing a resolution which calls for the establishment of cells of Communist party members within each of Vietnam's six approved religions in order to foil ``hostile forces.'' Persecution of Buddhists highlighted in this resolution has been particularly harsh. Many leading clergy of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam have been imprisoned including the church's Patriarch, the Most Venerable Thich Huyen Quang, who is now 85 years old and has been detained for the past 21 years. The government has continually attempted to control the selection of new clergy for the Unified Buddhist Church, restricting the travel of and intimidating monks attending selection meetings. We know that other groups suffer severe religious persecution as well, including the Christian Montagnards in the Central Highlands, Catholics and members of indigenous Vietnamese religions. One particular case, Mr. Speaker, that has been disturbing, one of many, is that of Father Ly, an outspoken critic of the regime who is currently serving a 10-year sentence for calling on the government for the return of confiscated church properties and respect for religious freedom. Amazingly, his nephews, Nguyen Vu Viet and Nguyen Truc Cuong, and his niece, Nguyen Thi Hoa, recently received prison sentences after a sham trial, after being found guilty of dubious charges of ``abusing democracy.'' Next week, Mr. Speaker, the Vietnamese government has the chance to set the record straight when their appeal will be heard. They should be released. They have to be released along with Father Ly. And I think this Congress, the House and the Senate, needs to be watching very carefully if our relationship is to progress. We have to see significant and sustained progress on these cases and, of course, those with regards to the Unified Buddhist Church. Mr. Speaker, this Congress has not been lax in trying to raise these issues, as I know my good friend and colleague Mr. Leach knows because he has worked so strongly in this area. ``I offered The Vietnam Human Rights Act'' as an amendment to the State Department bill, which is now pending before the House and Senate. Similar legislation has already passed the House before and hopefully the session, the Vietnam Human Rights Act will become law. This legislation sets up a number of criteria that would seek to move the ball forward with regard to human rights, and in particular, the area of religious freedom. Again, it is a good resolution that has been offered today and it deserves the honest support of this body.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, torture remains a cruel weapon of choice for antidemocratic, dictatorial regimes around the globe. It is used to silence opposition leaders and to suffocate political dissent. Today, torture is commonplace and, sadly, systematic. In many countries around the globe, including the People's Republic of China, Cuba, and many countries in Africa, the Middle East, it is used to extract confessions. It is used to humiliate, to punish. It is used to crush people's souls and hearts and their bodies and to break them while they are in captivity. Torturers themselves, it turns out and is no surprise to any of us, are sadistic and cruel beyond imagination. Mr. Speaker, even torturing a single, carefully targeted individual can have a multiplier effect, sending a message of fear throughout the entire community and even across generations. For example, the paralyzing effect of torture is painfully clear in Turkmenistan where countless people have been tortured, killed and disappeared in the wake of last year's November 25 attack on President Niyazov's motorcade. We see it throughout China, especially regarding people who are part of the Falun Gong. Hundreds of them have been tortured to death simply because of their expression of their conscience in that religious expression. We see it with the Buddhists and others. We see it with the Catholics in the underground church in China where, again, these individuals are routinely and through incredible harshness tortured. I point out to my colleagues that even after a dictatorial regime has fallen, as it has in Iraq, the impact of torture can be felt for years. Leaders are broken and lost. There is a profound lack of trust in public institutions, in the police and in courts. Unless we find a way to understand and to heal the legacy of torture people will be unable to work with each other to rebuild their nation. Individuals who are tortured, who carry around both psychologically and in their person that legacy, very often suffer post-traumatic stress disorder, one of the worst expressions or manifestations or legacies of that torture. Unless we are able to heal or provide or facilitate that healing, these people are literally walking time bombs, and we will find it hard both in these countries and the emigre community to build institutions that will not fail. I think many Members will be surprised to learn that in the United States there are an estimated 500,000 torture survivors, most of whom came to the United States as refugees. Worldwide, while it is impossible to count the actual number, Amnesty International has documented torture in 150 countries. So we know the number is in the millions. The Torture Victims Relief Reauthorization Act before the body today provides $20 million to the Department of Health and Human Services to assist treatment programs in the United States for fiscal 2004 and $25 million for fiscal year 2005. Mr. Speaker, in spite of these numbers, and this is an increase over the previous year's, the number of survivors seeking treatment in U.S. centers funded through this legislation has steadily increased. The word is getting out that one can go to these centers and get treatment, and the process, very often a lifelong process of healing, can begin. We found, or there has been a finding I should say, that when the centers first opened there were about 935 people who were helped in 1999 as a result of the legislation we passed then. That jumped to 1,550 clients served in 2000 to 2,579 in 2001. We now know that there are some 3,664 clients that have gotten services at a cost of about $3,500 per client in fiscal year 2002. With the additional funding that we contemplate that this bill would authorize, it is estimated that U.S. centers would have the capacity and the ability to serve an additional 2,800 survivors per year. Torture treatment centers provide a range of services, Mr. Speaker, including medical exams, lab tests, psychological and psychiatric screening evaluations, psychiatric medication, individual, group and family therapy, and crisis counseling. In addition, the network of treatment centers already in the U.S., and we know this, needs to be expanded; and I would point out to my colleagues there are a number of large cities with large emigre communities with torture victims who are not being served in places like Miami, New Orleans, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, Cleveland, St. Louis, Kansas City, Salt Lake City, and Seattle. Hopefully, as a result of this reauthorization and the subsequent appropriations, money will be made available to craft or to establish those centers that are so vitally needed in those cities. The Torture Victims Relief Reauthorization Act also authorizes $11 million in U.S. funds for the Agency for International Development to support foreign treatment centers in 2004 and $12 million in fiscal year 2005. This is a modest increase from the $10 million we first authorized in 1999; and, of course, the need is much more than that, but at least this is an attempt to try to meet some of that need. USAID's Victims of Torture Fund, I would point out to my colleagues, administers treatment programs in 26 countries in Latin America, Africa, Asia, the Near East, and in Europe. Last year, the fund supported approximately 45 treatment programs. Nongovernmental organizations that receive this funding provide a direct service to survivors, to their families and communities. They strengthen the capacity of country-based institutions to deliver services to survivors and increase the level of knowledge and understanding about the needs of torture victims. These treatment centers can also gather forensic evidence that can be used to improve the capability of those documenting and seeking redress from the practice of torture. To help meet the needs of victims around the globe, I would remind my colleagues that the U.N. established a fund back in 1981, and before we passed our first act, the United States' contribution to that fund was only in the hundreds of thousands. We have now pushed that number to $5 million, and this legislation would increase it to $7 million; and hopefully that, too, will be part of the fix to help mitigate the suffering endured by torture victims. This is a good bill. I hope my colleagues will support it. I want to thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos), my good friend and colleague and the ranking member of the committee, who is the chief cosponsor and has worked with us hand in glove in crafting this legislation. I especially want to thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde), our good friend and colleague, the chairman of our committee, for his leadership on this very unrecognized and very below- most-people's-radar-screens issue. They often say torture victims, what are we talking about, and yet they are in our midst. They are suffering. They need help. This legislation provides at least some help. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1813) to amend the Torture Victims Relief Act of 1998 to authorize appropriations to provide assistance for domestic and foreign centers and programs for the treatment of victims of torture, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. 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 the bill that is under consideration.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 1 minute to thank my friends and colleagues for their very strong statements and their passion on this issue. The gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cardin), who is the ranking Democrat on the Helsinki Commission, we work together. There is no division. There is no air between our shoulders as we promote human rights in general and the elimination, or a zero tolerance policy towards torture within the OSCE. There are 55 countries that make up the OSCE. At the parliamentary assemblies and with bilateral meetings and with country visits, we bring this issue up. We bring it up with the heads of state, we go to gulags, like the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf), who is also a member of our commission, and we do all that we can to stop torture in the first place. But as this bill seeks to do, there are victims, they number in the millions, and their needs are not being cared for in many instances, especially overseas. The lucky ones make it here as emigres and as asylum seekers, and we have to make sure that both domestically and internationally, we try to mitigate that enormous pain and the nightmares they carry with them. As we know from our hearings and from our site visits from talking to these victims, maybe they cannot be cured fully and completely, but the pain can be eliminated to a great extent, and they can develop coping mechanisms and the like in order to deal with it and live a more normal life despite the fact that they have suffered so horrifically. So I want to thank my friends and colleagues. And again, the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos), who knows this personally, who is a Holocaust survivor and is always out front on human rights. It is always great to work as a teammate with him. And, again, I thank the gentleman from Maryland for his kinds words, as well as my friend and colleague from Minnesota, I want to thank her as well.

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support this important bill, the Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities Prevention Act, which will bolster our Federal Government's efforts to prevent unborn babies from developing birth defects and help these special children after birth. Specifically, this piece of legislation contains two provisions that are especially important to our work helping those who suffer from autism and spina bifida, which combined affect more than 1.5 million Americans and their families. This bill will codify our Government's support for a National Spina Bifida Program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Last year, thanks to widespread support of many in this Chamber, we were able to secure initial funding to establish this program. And this year, members of the Congressional Spina Bifida Caucus--which I cochair along with my friend Congressman Stupak--are working hard to continue to grow and develop the program. The National Program is working to prevent cases of spina bifida by spreading the word to all women of child-bearing age that daily consumption of .4 milligrams of folic acid supplements can reduce their baby's chance of developing spina bifida by 75 percent. The program is working with the National Institutes of Health and other agencies to develop new therapies for people born with spina bifida. Additionally, it is helping better educate doctors and nurses on how they should best care of these patients, and working to reach patients and clinicians what they must do to prevent and treat various secondary health problems to which people with spina bifida are particularly susceptible. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues in Congress, officials at the CDC, and the hardworking advocates with the National Spina Bifida Program to help all those living with spina bifida. Secondly, S. 286 contains a very important provision addressing an ongoing autism surveillance project I authored several years ago and which was incorporated as title I of the Children's Health Act. Right now, the CDC, in conjunction with state health departments and other research entities, is conducting autism surveillance in more than 15 States, including New Jersey. The rate of diagnosis of new autism patients is at least 1 in every 250 people, and may be even higher in some regions. In order for us to obtain an accurate picture of the Nation's autism epidemic, it is absolutely imperative that health officials have the ability to gather the data they need. The provision in S. 286 will help ensure that the Departments of Health and Human Services and Education will work together to gather this much-needed data from education records, which are estimated to be the source of more than 40 percent of the data in need. Without this coordination by health and education officials, we will never obtain an accurate picture of the autism epidemic because in order to achieve optimum results, we need to know more about this disorder, what causes it, and what we can do to prevent it. This data being collected is indispensable and will help us improve life for all with autism. I would like to thank all of my colleagues who helped bring this bill to the floor today, and I look forward to continuing to work together so we can have healthier, happier babies and families.