Fred Upton

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. 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. 2130.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, though I wish to close.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from Maryland (Mrs. Morella), a cosponsor of the bill.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, may I ask how much time the four of us have remaining.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2130) to amend the Controlled Substances Act to add gamma hydroxybutyric acid and ketamine to the schedules of controlled substances, to provide for a national awareness campaign, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2130. I particularly want to appreciate the good work of the gentleman from Virginia (Chairman Bliley) and the gentleman from Florida (Chairman Bilirakis), both of whom would be here except for subcommittee hearings going on. I thank my colleagues, all of the Michigan delegation, and in particular, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Stupak) who serves with me on the Committee on Commerce, for his diligent work on this effort, and the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee) for her fine efforts, and obviously the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell) as well. I also want to compliment Senator Abraham, who has introduced similar legislation in the Senate, as well as Chairman Hatch, chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary in the Senate, as he has apparently indicated that they want to move fairly quickly in the Senate with hearings and action over there very soon, perhaps as early as next week. Mr. Speaker, I was a relatively new chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations in the Committee on Commerce this last year. There were two stories in Michigan that prevailed in a major way last January. One was the terrible cold and snow. The high temperature I think in my part of the State was about 20 below for about 1\1/2\ weeks. The other story was a very sad story about two teenage women from the district of the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell) who went to a party and, sadly, someone allegedly laced their soft drinks with a date-rape drug called GHB or GBL. One of those women died. It was a nightmare, a nightmare that no family wants to experience or get that phone call. I did not know very much about date rape drugs, and I thought, as the new chairman of the subcommittee, that we ought to have a look at it. We called a number of witnesses. In fact, we heard from a victim from this area, the Washington-Virginia-Maryland area, a woman who at the age of 14 or 15 had had her soft drink laced with this same type of drug. She was a serious victim of sexual assault. She, thank goodness, lived, but it was an experience that no family wants to experience. Mr. Speaker, we heard in August from the Kansas City TV station, where they thought that perhaps as many as 6,000 or 7,000 cases of date rape drugs had happened in the greater Kansas City area, and they were very interested in watching this legislation move forward. I heard from a mom in Ohio whose daughter's bottled water had been laced with this stuff and she was on life support, the daughter. As we found out a little bit about this drug, we found that it was odorless, colorless, tasteless, and it is virtually available on every college campus across the country. We found out that on the Internet, virtually anyone with a credit card could get this stuff for as little as $20 overnight. Mr. Speaker, this is a nightmare that needs to end. We found out that because of a number of loopholes in a number of States, these drugs were actually legal. They were legitimate. We found out that those States would try as hard as they may to try and ban some of these drugs. With a simple change in the chemical balance of these drugs, it could be made from GHB to GBL to who knows what, and the circumstance would be the same. Mr. Speaker, this legislation that I introduced, along with my colleagues, the gentlemen from Michigan, Mr. Stupak and Mr. Dingell, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Bliley), and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis), closes the door on these drugs. It makes them a Schedule I. It will take it, I hope, off the Internet. It will make sure that on college campuses, in high schools across the country, that there will be a force that the law enforcement agencies will have where they can take this stuff off the street and save families from the nightmares that they would otherwise have. We heard testimony that perhaps as many as 90 kids have died in the last couple of years because of these drugs, and certainly thousands and thousands of cases of abuse across the country. In many cases, when these kids, women, are brought to the ER rooms, the hospital has no idea what might have struck these kids because it is natural, in many cases. In many cases these drugs are a naturally-produced substance with a relatively short half-life, and without knowing specifically what to look for in this stuff, the ER room misses it and perhaps that child dies. Mr. Speaker, I would urge my colleagues to support this legislation. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Chabot) be recognized to control half of my time, or 10 minutes.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2130, the Hillory J. Farias Date Rape Drug Prevention Act of 1999. I introduced this legislation with my colleagues Mr. Bliley, the Chairman of the Commerce Committee, and Mr. Stupak and Ms. Jackson-Lee, who have been real leaders in the fight to control date rape drugs. As you may know, Mr. Speaker, this legislation is the product of an Oversight and investigations Subcommittee hearing I held earlier this year that focused on the abuse of ``date rape'' drugs, the law enforcement challenges in battling their abuse, and the administrative procedures involved in scheduling the drugs under the Controlled Substances Act. I held that hearing after reading about two young Michigan women whose drinks were laced with GHB at a party they were attending. Both fell into a coma, and sadly, one died. Since that hearing, I have read far too many other stories of young women in Michigan and across the nation being given GHB and similar drugs, such as GBL, a precursor to GHB, and ketamine, a fast-acting anesthetic used in veterinary medicine. Simply put, these drugs are killing our young people. Those who survive ingesting these drugs are too often dealing with the painful consequences of rape or other sexual abuse. The abuse of ``date rape'' drugs, principally GHB, ketamine, and GBL, has substantially increased in recent years and continues to grow. The Drug Enforcement Administration, the DEA, has documented over 4,000 overdoses and law-enforcement encounters with GHB and 32 GHB-related deaths. At least 20 States have scheduled GHB under state drug control statutes, and law enforcement officials continue to see an increased presence of the drug in sexual assault, driving under the influence (DWI), and overdose cases involving teenagers. With respect to ketamine, from 1992 through 1998 the DEA has documented more than 560 incidents of the sale and/or use of ketamine in our nation's junior highs, high schools, and college campuses. This abuse has to stop. By passing this bill today, we are taking a significant step forward in getting these products out of the hands of sexual predators and protecting our nation's youth. Following the recommendations of the DEA, H.R. 2130 would amend the Controlled Substances Act to make GHB a Schedule I drug, the DEA's most intensively regulated category of drugs. In addition, H.R. 2130 places ketamine in Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act and lists GBL, the primary precursor used in the production of GHB, as List I chemical. H.R. 2130 would thus provide law enforcement officers and prosecutors with tough new tools to prosecute those who would use these drugs for criminal purposes or otherwise abuse them. In addition, it would control chemicals being increasingly used to produce a ``GHB effect,'' and would strike at the very source of many of these illegal substances--chemicals ordered over the Internet and shipped by mail. At the same time, it protects the legitimate medical use of these substances. I know that many of you have heard from narcolepsy researchers and patients who are concerned that by placing GHB in Schedule I, we will disrupt promising clinical trials testing this drug as a treatment for a particularly severe form of narcolepsy. I want to assure everyone that this concern was addressed when the bill was in committee. It was amended to place GHB which is being used in an FDA- approved clinical trial in Schedule III, but with Schedule I penalties for its misuse. Further, should the FDA approve GHB as a treatment for narcolepsy, the prescription form will be in Schedule III, but only for the prescribed use. Again, Schedule I penalties would apply. An individual with a prescription for a GHB product who is passing the drug around at a party will be committing a crime punishable by the severest penalties under the Controlled Substances Act. This bill attacks date rape drug abuse by educating young people, law enforcement officers, educators, and medical personnel about the dangers of these drugs and the penalties for their abuse. It would further assist law enforcement officers by providing for the development of a forensic field test to detect the presence of GHB and related substances. Finally, it provides for an annual report on incidence of date-rape drug abuse so that we can ensure that the steps we are taking with this bill and in other areas are working to protect our young people and discourage the use of these substances.

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

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I appreciate the comments of the gentlewoman. Mr. Speaker, I also want to thank the staff from the committees from the get-go to make sure that we drafted and crafted a bill that would muster the test that all of us want with the appropriate end result.

Mr. UPTON. I yield to the gentlewoman from Texas.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, again I wanted to thank my colleagues. This bill would not have happened without the great work done on both sides of the aisle, and in particular, the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee) who came to our committee and testified and her work in the previous Congress, as well. This morning, I met with a number of students in my district on a college campus. I know we have done some very good things here. The awareness level is up. Whereas, a year or two ago, I do not think that awareness level was there. But now, in fact, warnings are posted in a lot of dorms and many campuses across the country. The word is out, particularly among college women, that they have to be careful and they need to go to parties with a friend and they need to make sure that whatever they are drinking, a soft drink or whatever it might be, it needs to be watched carefully. There is an awareness, too, by parents warning their daughters in particular as they go off to school, particularly now as this school year has started off, to be careful. This is a nightmare. It needs to end. This bill does that in a very strong and bipartisan way that deserves enactment into law. I appreciate everyone's support, everyone's statements today.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. UPTON

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

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Chairman, our peaches ought to be treated the same as peaches from other States no matter where they are.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Chairman, again, I appreciate the comments of the chairman. I also want to commend our fellow Michigander on the Committee on Agriculture, who asked some pretty tough questions and asked us to deliver a better peach price with Gus Schumacher, representative of the USDA. Mr. Chairman, I yield briefly to my friend and colleague, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Smith) who helped carry the ball in the committee.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Chairman, I am here today on behalf of peach growers in my State who may lose their farms, their livelihoods, unfortunately, because of a bureaucratic mistake. Last January, much of the Michigan peach crop was devastated by a cold snap when temperatures plummeted to 15 degrees below 0. That was the high for a number of days. We knew then that the entire peach crop was going to be gone, literally dead on the branches, would not recover in the spring. But when the farmers turned to USDA for help, there was even more bad news. The Risk Management Agency miscalculated our farmers' reimbursements providing them, yes, with relief but well below the amount that they deserved, expected, and what they need, in fact, to recover. In fact, we learned later on that when the disaster payments went out this summer, the same peaches in other States under this program were getting nearly twice as much per bushel. That is not right. Now, there is some good news. The USDA admitted that they had made a mistake and, in fact, they wanted to make amends and they recalculated with a new formula to determine what the disaster payment really ought to be. But, unfortunately, those new payments will not affect the disaster program for peaches until next year, which means that this year our farmers are out. What this amendment would have done is it would have provided a retroactive payment to Michigan peach farmers based on the correct information because we would feel that it is not fair to make peach farmers pay a price for an error by USDA. Now, because a point of order could have been made against this amendment, I will ask unanimous consent to withdraw it. But I would like to note that I am working with the Committee on Appropriations members and they have given me a pretty good assurance that they plan to include this language as part of the agriculture appropriations conference report. I have discussed it with a number of folks at the Department of Agriculture, including the Secretary of Agriculture earlier today, and they know of the problems that we have and would like to work with us to make sure that our peach farmers, in fact, are not discriminated against. Mr. Chairman, I have talked to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Combest), chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, and I yield to him.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to withdraw my amendment.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, it is with a heavy heart that I rise today to pay tribute to a wonderful young woman, Evelyn Prince, who was tragically taken from us last week. Many of us here in the House of Representatives had the opportunity to meet Evelyn when she served with great pride and enthusiasm as a Congressional Page. I was honored to say she was ``our page'' from back home in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The head of the Kalamazoo Close Up Program, Gerhard Fuerst, where Evelyn served as President from 1997-1999, described her simply as a ``sheer joy.'' He encouraged her to continue setting and meeting her own great expectations of herself, including participation in the Page program. He shared with me recently an article she wrote upon returning from Washington, DC. In the article, Evelyn encourages and challenges fellow students, as she so loved to do, to get involved in ``observing the inner works of government'' and to ``have fun while learning!'' After she completed the Page program, Evelyn traveled to Wolfsburg, Germany. There she was staying with a family as an exchange student as part of the Youth for Understanding program. It is there, too, that she met with the harsh fate of an automobile accident she did not survive. Evelyn is remembered today as a talented and spirited 17-year-old. She was a dedicated student, earning straight-As and looking forward to attending college next year. But while she was focused on excelling at school, it is as a loyal friend and loving daughter and sister that she will be so sorely missed. Evelyn's family shared her sense of adventure and her dreams for the future. Their lives were enriched immeasurably by her presence and are undoubtedly altered immeasurably by her absence. With a young person as talented, exuberant and ambitious the sky was the limit. Sadly, we will never know how far she could have soared with a long life. But we thank God for the contributions she made, the people she inspired and the happiness she created in her all too short life. I close with a poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay: My candle burns at both ends: It will not last the night; But, ah, my foes, and oh, my friends, It gives a lovely light. Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues here in Congress to join me in extending our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Evelyn Prince. All members of the Congressional family send our thoughts and prayers especially to Evelyn's parents, DeeAnn and Charles ``Skip'' Prince, and her sister Lauren. Evelyn was indeed a rising star whose lovely light still shines on the many people she touched.

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Metcalf).

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 184) expressing the sense of Congress regarding the importance of ``family friendly'' programming on television.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and insert extraneous material in the Record.

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the resolution before us today is also a statement on behalf of the Members of this body that we expect better television programming than perhaps what is being offered today to our children and our families to survive the ratings battle. The broadcast networks do spend a considerable amount of time trying to develop sound, family- friendly programming that consumers will watch. Unfortunately, all too often this type of programming does not receive the high ratings necessary to keep those series on the air. This is unfortunate, but the networks should not give up hope or stop trying to improve the quality of their TV offerings. I am pleased that the House today has an opportunity to consider H. Con. Res. 184. I am hopeful that the other body will soon offer a companion resolution. I would also like to acknowledge the leadership of the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Portman) for bringing this issue to the attention of the Committee on Commerce. I am also hopeful that the Committee on Commerce members will have an opportunity to consider the impact of media outlets on the culture of the Nation in the near future. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Portman).

Mr. UPTON

Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce H.R. 2840, Children's Asthma Relief Act of 1999, legislation providing a comprehensive, community-based response to the increasingly serious incidence of childhood asthma. I am pleased that my colleague, Henry Waxman, is the original cosponsor of this bill. Chronic asthma is a serious and growing health problem confronting our nation, and particularly our nation's children. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 6.4 percent of our population report having asthma--a dramatic 75-percent increase over the last two decades. Childhood asthma has increased even more dramatically--over 160 percent since 1980--and is the most common childhood chronic disease. It is particularly prevalent among the urban poor, in all likelihood because of lack of access to health care and the high number of allergens in the environment. Asthma deaths have tripled over the past two decades, despite improvements in clinical treatment. In my own state, 5.7 percent of the population, or 542,300 Michiganders suffer from asthma. The legislation we are introducing today will help us marshal and coordinate our resources to much more effectively wage war against this significant threat to our nation's health. First, the bill creates a $50 million program within the Maternal and Child Health Block Grant program to assist communities in areas with a high prevalence of childhood asthma and a lack of access to medical care to establish treatment centers. In addition to providing medical care on site and in various areas of the community through ``breathmobiles,'' the centers will also provide education to parents, children, health providers and others on recognizing the signs and symptons of asthma, provide medications, and provide training in the use of these medications. The centers will also provide other services, such as smoking cessation programs and home modifications to reduce exposure to allergens. In order to be eligible to receive grants under this program, applicants will be required to demonstrate that they will coordinate the services they are offering with other federal, state and local programs that may be serving these children and their families. Further, grantees are required to demonstrate that they are getting results and making progress in improving the health status of children in the program. The bill encourages coordination of services in several other ways. First, it establishes a $5 million matching grant program to encourage states to incorporate asthma prevention and treatment services in their state Child Health Insurance Programs. Second, it makes reducing the prevalence of asthma and asthma-related illnesses among urban populations an explicitly allowable activity under the Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant program. Third, it requires the director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, acting through the National Asthma Education Prevention Program Coordinating Committee, to identify all federal programs that carry out asthma- related activities and develop, in consultation with these agencies and voluntary health organizations, a federal plan for responding to asthma. Finally, it requires the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to conduct surveillance activities that will help us get a better handle on the prevalence and severity of asthma and the quality of asthma management. With these provisions in place, I am convinced that we can significantly advance our efforts to reduce the prevalence and severity of asthma in communities across the nation. I encourage you to sign on as a cosponsor and work with Representative Waxman and me for the passage of this law.