Ted Stevens

Mr. STEVENS

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, we have a list of amendments that we believe are going to be presented to the Senate, about 20 amendments. It was our hope that we will get some of these presented this afternoon and debated at our leisure and voted on tomorrow. I hoped that we might have votes today, but that is not possible. I urge Members to let us know if they intend to bring any amendments to the floor this afternoon. There are a series that have been suggested that, I believe, could be worked out and would be acceptable to the managers of the bill on both sides. We hope that we can find some business to accomplish this afternoon on this bill. It is a very important bill, one that should not be delayed if it is possible to move forward. I urge Members to contact us if they intend to offer amendments today. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the privilege of the floor be granted to the appropriations staff as listed on the request that I send to the desk.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, this bill covers several subcommittees. It is just easier to do it that way.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, it is my privilege to present to the Senate S. 672, which provides emergency supplemental appropriations for numerous natural disasters and defense overseas contingencies. This is my first opportunity to come before the Senate as chairman of the Appropriations Committee, and I am very proud that this first bill from our committee focuses on assisting our fellow citizens in need. I am humbled to be here with my good friend from West Virginia, the distinguished former majority leader, minority leader, chairman of our Appropriations Committee, and now the ranking member of the Appropriations Committee. I can think of no one I have studied under longer than Senator Byrd. It is a privilege to be here to present this bill with him today. Our committee reported this bill on Wednesday, and the report has been available since last Thursday for Members. Many of our colleagues will comment later on the terrible events which precipitated this disaster relief bill. They represent the States involved, and I will leave it to them to comment on the specific situations in their own States. Our committee worked to target spending in this bill to the agencies and accounts that are responding to these crises now. The $5.5 billion provided for emergency relief exceeds the President's request by $2.5 billion. Some of these funds will not be spent this fiscal year. We sought to use the best estimates we could, but in many cases it will be weeks or months until a final assessment of damages can be made in these disaster areas. As has been widely reported, there are some controversial measures in this bill. I do thank all my colleagues on the Appropriations Committee for their cooperation during the markup last week. One clear conclusion we reached was that not all the funds in this bill will be directed to the most recent disasters. We have witnessed a steady increase in the Presidential disaster recommendations, which have radically increased disaster relief costs. In addition, the President has waived the matching requirement on many of the programs involved, adding to the Federal costs for these disasters. We cannot and will not try to solve this problem on this bill, but it is something I believe must be addressed by Congress. There ought to be a clear understanding and a clear yardstick for disasters, regardless of the area involved. All new spending in this bill is offset by corresponding rescissions or budget authority or canceling spending authority. This is sort of complicated. For budget scoring purposes, the disaster-related spending will be treated as an emergency. Those outlays will not count against this year's budget limits. Part of this difference relates to how CBO scores appropriations bills. The Congressional Budget Office has a unique approach. When we appropriated funds for military personnel in September, the Congressional Budget Office scored those outlays--the money would actually be spent under the authorizations that were previously given by Congress--they were scored at 98 percent. Yet, when we rescind those same funds in this bill, the Congressional Budget Office process credits the committee with only 25 percent of the outlays as savings to offset the money spent. It is the same dollar, but we only get a portion of the credit. The moneys have already been spent; that is the problem. The bias of the CBO process makes offsetting outlays a daunting task this late in the fiscal year. Our committee did not recommend general cuts against agencies to offset these disaster funds, and I urged Members not to propose reductions against the operating accounts of agencies. The disaster relief funds proposed in the bill are not targeted or earmarked for any region of the country. Again, I ask our colleagues to follow the suggestions the Appropriations Committee made and hold to this practice during the consideration of this bill. The needs of all persons and communities impacted by these crises are real and pressing. Mr. President, some of these disasters occurred last year, some this year. I do not believe we should--and I will oppose attempts to--tie the funds of agencies responsible for providing relief to the impacted regions. There is still much unknown about these disasters, as I said before. I do not believe we should second-guess, nor should we micromanage from Congress, relief efforts at this stage. Once more precise recovery plans are developed, we will have an opportunity in the fiscal year 1998 bills, which will be presented later this year, to address some additional specific needs. The bill also includes $1.8 billion for defense contingency operations. Earlier this year, I went with a delegation of Senators to Bosnia and to Southwest Asia to review United States military operations there. We returned disturbed by the lack of concern about the costs of the operations by our regional commanders. My staff and I have been working since January with the comptroller at the Department of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff to establish procedures and controls to help control and monitor spending for overseas deployments. This committee report before the Senate reduced the funds requested for overseas operations by $100 million. Already, to his great credit, Secretary Cohen has reduced unneeded units in both Bosnia and southwest Asia, and I believe more savings will be achieved during this fiscal year. In the case of unforeseen emergencies, our bill includes an additional $100 million in reprogramming authority for the Department of Defense. In the past, the administration has increased spending on these overseas operations without any consultation with Congress. The commanders in the field discussed with the Senators I was with and myself, in January, in Bosnia, in Kuwait, in Saudi Arabia, and in connection with the Bosnia operation in both Hungary and Italy, commitments of 20 to 30 years for procurement for these overseas deployments. They did so without the slightest concern or hesitation about the costs involved. I believe that is a process that should stop. Spending on contingencies does not mean giving military commanders a blank check to commit us to expenditures far into the years to come for deployments which have never been approved by Congress. In fiscal year 1998, we will take specific steps to ensure fiscal concerns are addressed on all peacekeeping operations. The Department of Defense now refers to missions such as Bosnia and Southwest Asia as, ``operations other than war.'' Unfortunately, some spending practices of the Department, and particularly the regional commanders, assume wartime needs and are driven by wartime needs. I want to assure the Senate and the Department that our committee will tirelessly work to ensure that any of our forces deployed in the field have everything they need to fight and win and maintain their safety in any conflict. Their deployment, however, cannot be without the participation of Congress. Ultimately we are called upon to pay the bill for such deployments. We have had some disagreements with regard to this bill. I do not think there has been any question, however, that all concerned wanted to report this bill to the Senate as quickly as possible to meet the needs that I have spoken about. I hope the bill marks the commencement of a long and fruitful partnership among all members of the Appropriations Committee serving during this Congress. I do believe that this bill can be completed by tomorrow evening, or Wednesday at the latest. It will, of course, be our practice to await the passage of the bill in the House before we take final action on this bill. And I do hope all Senators will help us work toward the goal of being prepared to send the bill to conference as soon as the House has sent us their appropriations bill for these disasters. Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote, and I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I send an amendment to the desk and ask for its immediate consideration.

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

Mr. STEVENS

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

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, today I am introducing legislation that would authorize the minting of silver $1 coins and gold $5 coins in commemoration of the bicentennial of the Library of Congress. The year 2000 will mark this important event for the Congress and the Nation. Over the past two centuries, the U.S. Congress has built its library into America's library and the greatest repository of recorded knowledge and creativity in the history of the World. Proceeds from the coin will help the library support bicentennial programs, educational outreach, and other activities including programs with schools and libraries across the Nation. The Library of Congress' bicentennial merits a U.S. commemorative coin. The library is an institution that has an enduring effect on the Nation's culture and history. As vice chairman of the Joint Committee on the Library, I am pleased to offer this legislation and I welcome and encourage my colleagues to join as cosponsors.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, today I am introducing legislation that would authorize the minting of silver $1 coins and gold $5 coins in commemoration of the bicentennial of the Library of Congress. The year 2000 will mark this important event for the Congress and the Nation. Over the past two centuries, the U.S. Congress has built its library into America's library and the greatest repository of recorded knowledge and creativity in the history of the World. Proceeds from the coin will help the library support bicentennial programs, educational outreach, and other activities including programs with schools and libraries across the Nation. The Library of Congress' bicentennial merits a U.S. commemorative coin. The library is an institution that has an enduring effect on the Nation's culture and history. As vice chairman of the Joint Committee on the Library, I am pleased to offer this legislation and I welcome and encourage my colleagues to join as cosponsors.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, there are times when I listen to the remarks of another Senator that I realize the statement being made is most significant. That was my feeling recently as I sat next to the junior Senator from Massachusetts. Senator John Kerry spoke to the national meeting of AIPAC--The America-Israel Political Action Committee--here in Washington, DC. This was a bipartisan meeting of AIPAC members from throughout our Nation. In a strong worded presentation, Senator Kerry made an appeal for the United States to be a true friend of Israel. I, particularly, agreed with my friend as he forcefully said: As a democracy, Israel has both the burden and the glory of a vigorous public square. We as Americans must be the truest and best kind of ally--both forthright enough to say what we think--and steadfast enough to stay the course during the hard passages as well as the easy ones. Herzl's famous words--``If you will it, it is no dream''-- signify the promise and the greatest power of Israel--and the hope, after half a century, that a fair and secure peace is finally within reach. For our part, we must leave here more committed than ever to support Israel in the exacting, essential, and sometimes tense search for that dream. I think its fair to say that the ashes of Holocaust victims were scattered on the wind. But that wind also carries on it their prayers and purpose--above mountains and sea, across hundreds or thousands of miles, so that the pain of history is redeemed in the land of Israel. It is a sacred place--for them, for their people who live there, and for all the world. So let us now resolve again that the day will never come for Israel when the redemption is put at risk--when any of us would ever have to repeat Schindler's cry and say: We could have done more. Mr. President, the days seem to be disappearing when a Senator compliments another Senator who sits on the other side of this aisle by making the Senate aware of a significant accomplishment of a colleague. For myself, I would like to restore that tradition. Senator Kerry's statement was one of the best I have heard. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Senator Kerry's speech to AIPAC be printed in the Record. It is one, I believe, all Members of Congress and many citizens of this great Nation of ours should read, contemplate, and discuss.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I have been involved with the chemical weapons debate and negotiations for a convention like this since its beginning. During the Reagan administration, at the suggestion of Ambassador John Tower, former Senator John Tower, I spent a month in Geneva during an August recess auditing the beginnings of the negotiations that led up to this Chemical Weapons Convention. John Tower even loaned me his home in Geneva to live in during that period. He and I agreed that negotiating a satisfactory chemical weapons treaty was an objective that had to be achieved, because we shared the feeling that the world was becoming a very dangerous place to live in because of chemical and biological warfare developments. We felt the United States needed to show leadership in reducing some of the dangers whenever possible. This convention before the Senate could be improved. The START treaties could have been improved. However, under those treaties, the United States and Russia will significantly reduce their numbers of nuclear warheads and reduce the risk of nuclear war. The Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty could have been improved. Yet, today we no longer have Russian and NATO forces bristling with tanks, cannons, and fighter aircraft facing each other across the border in numbers that reminded many of Armageddon. The Chemical Weapons Convention does move the world toward a goal of bringing order and accountability to the production and transportation of weapons of mass destruction. This is a convention that has required the negotiating concurrence of 74 countries. I will never forget sitting around those rooms in Geneva while we waited for the representatives of the various countries to state their positions. To require this convention to be perfect asks the impossible. To expect it to be an effective tool in controlling chemical weapons is reasonable. This convention does provide an inspection regime that will allow our inspectors to monitor potential chemical weapons production and transportation more effectively than without the convention. And protections are built into the convention so that U.S. companies producing chemicals are not going to have their manufacturing processes compromised, and, obviously, we do not amend the Constitution of the United States by approving this convention. For me, this convention enhances the security of our forces deployed abroad, as well as throughout our whole Nation. The Joint Chiefs of Staff support the Chemical Weapons Convention. Generals Colin Powell and Norman Schwarzkopf support the convention. Former Secretary of State Jim Baker and former National Security Adviser Brent Scowcroft support this convention. Former CIA Directors, Jim Woolsey, Stansfield Turner, and John Deutch, support this convention. I could go on and on with the list, Mr. President. But, to me, it is not the former or present officials that should have an impact on this Senate. It is the men and women in uniform. They are in harm's way. They know now that many of their predecessors who served us in the Persian Gulf war, men and women there in uniform, were exposed to some type of a chemical weapon in Iraq. It is for them that I speak, because I think, universally, they are now worried about what this Congress is going to do, or not do, in trying to find some process of protecting them against chemical and biological warfare. In its essence, I believe that the United States has a responsibility for world leadership. This leadership is more graphically demonstrated in this legislative body than anywhere I know, because passage of the resolution of ratification will show our leadership in the effort to contain chemical weapons, just as Senate support for START I showed the United States' commitment to nuclear weapons reduction. I encourage the Senate to vote in favor of this resolution of ratification and support the Chemical Weapons Convention as it was presented to us. I ask unanimous consent that two articles from today's papers be printed in the record. One article is by Samuel Berger, in the Washington Times, entitled ``The CWC Imperative''; the other is by Gen. Thomas McInerney and Stanley Weiss, in the Hill newspaper.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, it is not an easy position for me to be opposed to friends with whom I normally stand shoulder to shoulder. But I believe we must be motivated by what we believe is in the best interest of the country as a whole. I believe if we took a poll of men and women in uniform today, they would say that the No. 1 threat they fear is chemical and biological warfare. I say that we must lead the world in addressing the consequences of production and use of these weapons of mass destruction, just as we led the world in dealing with the consequences of the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Voting for the Chemical Weapons Convention resolution of ratification will make the world a safer place. Thank you, Mr. President.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I move to lay it on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. Amendment No. 42

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Madam President, I believe we need to have this balanced budget amendment adopted by the Senate. As I see what is happening now in terms of the controllable expenditures of the United States, I see that next year we will spend about as much money for interest on the national debt as we will to maintain our defenses. There is pressure on us across the whole spectrum for control of expenses. We need a Coast Guard. We need the National Park Service. We need the FBI. Think of all of the controllable expenses in the departments that we fund. Every year we have to say cut more, cut more. Why? Because the interest continues to mount on the national debt, until we get it in balance. So, if for no other reason than that, I believe the Senate should pass this amendment so that we can get a handle on the interest we must pay on the national debt. It continues to go up because the deficit continues to go up. That must be controlled, Madam President. I am proud to join my friend, Judiciary Chairman Hatch of Utah, in supporting this amendment. Mr. HATCH addressed the Chair.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I have a second bill pertaining to amateur sports I would like to present to the Senate today. This will create a recurring Olympic Commemorative Coins Program in the United States to provide valuable souvenirs to amateur sports enthusiasts, and a new source of revenue to the United States Olympic Committee, the USOC. These are sort of companion bills. The second bill would require the Secretary of the Treasury to consult with the USOC and the Citizens Commemorative Coin Advisory Committee on the design of a $1 silver coin which would commemorate each summer and winter Olympic games held outside the United States. Only 500,000 of such coins would be minted. Under the bill, a new commemorative coin would be issued every 2 years. The summer and winter Olympics are now staggered, so that, as we all know, now there is an Olympic games every 2 years. Each coin would carry a surcharge of $10 and that money would be transferred by the Secretary of the Treasury to the USOC. The Secretary of Treasury would be required to include in the sale price of each coin an additional amount to pay for the costs of the program. If the coins sell as they have in the past, and these have been very successful programs in the past, the USOC could receive a total of about $5 million for each Olympic games, in other words every 2 years. This would go a long way toward supporting our amateur athletes and carrying out our responsibilities of the Amateur Sports Act of 1978. In years when the Olympics are held inside the United States, the Secretary of the Treasury would be required to develop an expanded multicoin program to commemorate our Olympic Games. This program, designed by the Secretary, with the USOC and the Coins Committee, could provide 4 or 5 different gold, silver or other coins in numbers larger than the 500,000 for the games that are held outside the United States. These would be of special interest to travelers who would come to the United States for the Olympic games. My bill also provides discretion with respect to the surcharge in each coin. This would make it possible for U.S. athletes and the USOC to receive an even greater benefit from each coin. In the first 2 months after the new Olympic Coins Program begins, the Secretary of Treasury would be prohibited from issuing other commemorative coins. In other words, we would like to have one period, every 2 years, of 2 months in which the USOC's coins, the Olympic coins, would be the only coins available. The Amateur Sports Act made the USOC, as I said before, the central coordinating body for amateur sports in the United States. It does give the USOC the duty to not only select and train athletes to represent the United States at international competitions, but to encourage athletic activities through a grassroots sports program. I believe that the USOC carries out the Amateur Sports Act well, in view of the fact it does not receive support from Federal appropriations. As I said before, the act does not authorize such appropriations. I repeat, Mr. President, unless we find a source of revenue for the USOC, we are going to have a situation where it cannot carry out the responsibilities that were given it by Congress in 1978. Last year, the Senate Commerce Committee began a review of the Amateur Sports Act. During our first two hearings, we determined additional revenues are needed to provide greater grassroots sports opportunities in our country. Toward this end, the bill I am introducing would require at least 25 percent of the revenues received by the USOC under the coins program would be used solely for promoting grassroots sports opportunities, and it would require USOC to use at least 25 percent of the revenues to promote and encourage physical fitness and public participation in amateur athletic activities; to assist organizations and persons concerned with sports in the development of special amateur athletic programs for amateurs in our country; and it would also foster the development of amateur athletic facilities for use by amateur athletes, as well as assist in making existing amateur athletic facilities available and to modernize them, Mr. President, which is necessary for their use by amateur athletes now in this country. I look forward on this bill to working with the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. I believe this bill will be sent to that committee. It is important legislation to be enacted in this Congress. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I have a second bill pertaining to amateur sports I would like to present to the Senate today. This will create a recurring Olympic Commemorative Coins Program in the United States to provide valuable souvenirs to amateur sports enthusiasts, and a new source of revenue to the United States Olympic Committee, the USOC. These are sort of companion bills. The second bill would require the Secretary of the Treasury to consult with the USOC and the Citizens Commemorative Coin Advisory Committee on the design of a $1 silver coin which would commemorate each summer and winter Olympic games held outside the United States. Only 500,000 of such coins would be minted. Under the bill, a new commemorative coin would be issued every 2 years. The summer and winter Olympics are now staggered, so that, as we all know, now there is an Olympic games every 2 years. Each coin would carry a surcharge of $10 and that money would be transferred by the Secretary of the Treasury to the USOC. The Secretary of Treasury would be required to include in the sale price of each coin an additional amount to pay for the costs of the program. If the coins sell as they have in the past, and these have been very successful programs in the past, the USOC could receive a total of about $5 million for each Olympic games, in other words every 2 years. This would go a long way toward supporting our amateur athletes and carrying out our responsibilities of the Amateur Sports Act of 1978. In years when the Olympics are held inside the United States, the Secretary of the Treasury would be required to develop an expanded multicoin program to commemorate our Olympic Games. This program, designed by the Secretary, with the USOC and the Coins Committee, could provide 4 or 5 different gold, silver or other coins in numbers larger than the 500,000 for the games that are held outside the United States. These would be of special interest to travelers who would come to the United States for the Olympic games. My bill also provides discretion with respect to the surcharge in each coin. This would make it possible for U.S. athletes and the USOC to receive an even greater benefit from each coin. In the first 2 months after the new Olympic Coins Program begins, the Secretary of Treasury would be prohibited from issuing other commemorative coins. In other words, we would like to have one period, every 2 years, of 2 months in which the USOC's coins, the Olympic coins, would be the only coins available. The Amateur Sports Act made the USOC, as I said before, the central coordinating body for amateur sports in the United States. It does give the USOC the duty to not only select and train athletes to represent the United States at international competitions, but to encourage athletic activities through a grassroots sports program. I believe that the USOC carries out the Amateur Sports Act well, in view of the fact it does not receive support from Federal appropriations. As I said before, the act does not authorize such appropriations. I repeat, Mr. President, unless we find a source of revenue for the USOC, we are going to have a situation where it cannot carry out the responsibilities that were given it by Congress in 1978. Last year, the Senate Commerce Committee began a review of the Amateur Sports Act. During our first two hearings, we determined additional revenues are needed to provide greater grassroots sports opportunities in our country. Toward this end, the bill I am introducing would require at least 25 percent of the revenues received by the USOC under the coins program would be used solely for promoting grassroots sports opportunities, and it would require USOC to use at least 25 percent of the revenues to promote and encourage physical fitness and public participation in amateur athletic activities; to assist organizations and persons concerned with sports in the development of special amateur athletic programs for amateurs in our country; and it would also foster the development of amateur athletic facilities for use by amateur athletes, as well as assist in making existing amateur athletic facilities available and to modernize them, Mr. President, which is necessary for their use by amateur athletes now in this country. I look forward on this bill to working with the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. I believe this bill will be sent to that committee. It is important legislation to be enacted in this Congress. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, today I bring to the Senate the United States Olympic Checkoff Act. This bill would provide significant--and needed--new funding for our Nation's amateur athletic movement. This will present a way for Americans to show support for the United States Olympic Committee, the USOC, and for our amateur athletes. Simply by checking a box on their tax returns, American taxpayers could designate a dollar from their refunds to go to the USOC, or they could enclose a contribution to the USOC when they mail their tax forms. This concept is similar to the existing Presidential checkoff. It is different though, in that this deduction for the Olympic Committee would come from the taxpayers' own money, their refunds or their contributions, and not from the money destined for the Federal Treasury. The Amateur Sports Act of 1978 made the USOC the central coordinating body for amateur sports in the United States. The responsibilities of the act, that is the responsibilities given by the act to the USOC, include training and selecting athletes to represent the United States at international competitions and, equally important, encouraging athletic activities for all amateur athletes in the United States through grassroots sports opportunities. What the Amateur Sports Act does not do is authorize Federal funding of the USOC. In almost every other nation in the world, Olympic and amateur sports receive substantial government funding. That is not true in our country. The USOC's primary means of raising money to support U.S. athletes and to carry out the purposes of the act is through charging sponsors a fee to use the words ``Olympics'' or ``Olympiad,'' and to display the Olympic symbol of five interlocking rings. Sponsors' fees do not come close to providing the funds necessary to train our growing legions of athletes. Our athletes at the grassroots level are not getting a fair chance to be competitive with their counterparts from nations that provide funding from government sources. My bill would create a new trust fund in the Treasury called the United States Olympic Trust Fund. The amounts voluntarily contributed by Americans would be deposited into the trust fund. At least once quarterly, the Secretary of Treasury would distribute the amounts in the trust fund to the USOC, after deducting reasonable administrative costs. I look forward to working with the Senate Finance Committee and all of the Senate and the House to achieve enactment of this valuable legislation in this Congress. I hope this bill will be welcomed by all Americans who believe in the importance of our country's athletic programs. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. STEVENS. I thank the Chair. (The remarks of Mr. Stevens pertaining to the introduction of S. 281 and S. 282 are located in today's Record under ``Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions.'')

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, today I bring to the Senate the United States Olympic Checkoff Act. This bill would provide significant--and needed--new funding for our Nation's amateur athletic movement. This will present a way for Americans to show support for the United States Olympic Committee, the USOC, and for our amateur athletes. Simply by checking a box on their tax returns, American taxpayers could designate a dollar from their refunds to go to the USOC, or they could enclose a contribution to the USOC when they mail their tax forms. This concept is similar to the existing Presidential checkoff. It is different though, in that this deduction for the Olympic Committee would come from the taxpayers' own money, their refunds or their contributions, and not from the money destined for the Federal Treasury. The Amateur Sports Act of 1978 made the USOC the central coordinating body for amateur sports in the United States. The responsibilities of the act, that is the responsibilities given by the act to the USOC, include training and selecting athletes to represent the United States at international competitions and, equally important, encouraging athletic activities for all amateur athletes in the United States through grassroots sports opportunities. What the Amateur Sports Act does not do is authorize Federal funding of the USOC. In almost every other nation in the world, Olympic and amateur sports receive substantial government funding. That is not true in our country. The USOC's primary means of raising money to support U.S. athletes and to carry out the purposes of the act is through charging sponsors a fee to use the words ``Olympics'' or ``Olympiad,'' and to display the Olympic symbol of five interlocking rings. Sponsors' fees do not come close to providing the funds necessary to train our growing legions of athletes. Our athletes at the grassroots level are not getting a fair chance to be competitive with their counterparts from nations that provide funding from government sources. My bill would create a new trust fund in the Treasury called the United States Olympic Trust Fund. The amounts voluntarily contributed by Americans would be deposited into the trust fund. At least once quarterly, the Secretary of Treasury would distribute the amounts in the trust fund to the USOC, after deducting reasonable administrative costs. I look forward to working with the Senate Finance Committee and all of the Senate and the House to achieve enactment of this valuable legislation in this Congress. I hope this bill will be welcomed by all Americans who believe in the importance of our country's athletic programs. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, our Nation lost one of the genuine heroes of World War II, a man who went on to a distinguished second career in Alaska, when Maj. Gen. Conrad F. ``Nick'' Necrason died this last month. He was the recipient of the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit, and the Distinguished Flying Cross. He also received our State of Alaska's highest military award, the Legion of Merit. He began his career at West Point. After his 1936 graduation, he went on to flying school, earning his wings in the Army Air Corps the next year. When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, General Necrason was flying to Pearl Harbor as part of a bomber squadron. He loved to tell the story of how he had to land on a golf course during the battle--the attack of the Japanese on Hawaii. During World War II, General Necrason flew 360 air combat hours, and was recognized for developing low-level bombing techniques. He flew a whole variety of aircraft, most notably P-38 fighters and B-17 bombers. In 1943, he was wounded in action over Burma. A few years later, he flew bombers during the Korean conflict. General Necrason came to Alaska at an exciting time, just as statehood dawned, and was commander of the Alaskan Air Command at Elmendorf Air Force Base from 1958 to 1961. After retirement in 1965, he became Alaska's Adjutant General and commander of the National Guard, serving from 1967 through 1972, and again from 1974 to 1982. During those years, he effected a successful restructuring of the Alaska Army National Guard and the Alaska Air National Guard. He brought the great workhorses of the air, C-130's, into service in Alaska, expanded our Eskimo scout contingent by establishing training programs for women, and led the guard in helping Alaska and Alaskans through floods and other natural disasters. While many describe him as a soldier's soldier, Nick Necrason was equally as well-liked and at home in the civilian community. He was known for his skill at bridge and at poker, and with his wife, Myrle, who survives him, as a gracious host, welcoming people from all parts of our State and our world to their home. General Necrason's heroism during combat, his distinguished peacetime career, and his contributions to Alaska will not be forgotten. We extend our deepest sympathy to his wife Myrle, daughters Ginger and Sandy, and his grandchildren. Thank you, Mr. President.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President. I submit, for printing in the Record, the rules of the Committee on Appropriations, which were adopted at the organizational meeting of our Committee on January 28. Under the provisions of paragraph 2 of rule XXVI of the standing rules of the Senate, the rules of each committee shall be printed in the Congressional Record not later than March 1 of the first year of each Congress. I ask unanimous consent that the rules be printed in the Record.