John Warner

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate resume legislative session.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I introduce a bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow penalty-free distributions from qualified retirement programs of individuals residing in Presidentially declared disaster areas. I and so many of my colleagues have been visiting our States and working with our Governors and State legislators, city councilpersons and mayors particularly with regard to the devastation of floods we have seen as a consequence of the most recent hurricane. I looked into the faces of these suffering people. And one of them-- this was not my idea--one of them came to me with the simplest type of request. I thought it merited the attention of the Senate. I put it into this bill that I now introduce in the Senate. Despite an individual's or family's best efforts to plan for the future, sometimes the unexpected strikes--hurricanes and natural disasters. When that happens, people need all the tools available to rebuild their lives, the lives of their families, and to become an integral part of those communities. One community, Franklin, VA, which is in the central part of the State, in the old rural part of the State, dependent largely on agriculture, which has flat land--I say to my distinguished colleague, Senator Helms, how badly his State was hit by the same storm--had 18 inches of rain in less than 2 hours. There is no large riverbed there or drainage ditches. And as a result, the water rose in this town up to the second level of the stores and the houses. It went into a railyard and toppled enormous freight cars, particularly tank cars with petroleum. And suddenly this whole community was awash in foul water of 8 to 10 to 12 feet some places in height. There was no place for the water to run off, except gradually over this flat territory. These people need to rebuild their lives and their homes. Families are faced with repairing and replacing damaged property and lost property. Many are forced to draw on savings, including their retirement accounts, to meet expenses. However, if they choose to tap upon their retirement plans or accounts, they are saddled with a 10- percent additional Federal tax for early distribution. That was put in the law for good reason--to deter people from going into these plans where they had some tax benefits. But let's stop to think: That may be the only recourse to financial salvation in the wake of an act of God Almighty. They need help. Taxpayers coping with these disasters should not have to face the burden of a Federal tax penalty. This bill is very simple. It waives the 10 percent additional tax levied on early distributions from qualified retirement plans or retirement accounts for residents of federally declared disaster areas--that means the President of the United States has declared that county a disaster area--designated after July 31, 1999. It is my intention that these distributions will be used for the repair or replacement of property destroyed or damaged by an unforeseen natural disaster or for emergency expenses arising from such a tragic event. The taxpayer must be a resident of an area declared eligible. I point that out: a resident of an area eligible by the President for Federal disaster assistance, and the distribution must be taken within 1 year of the disaster declaration. The current Tax Code waives the 10-percent penalty for distribution for certain medical expenses, health insurance premiums for the unemployed, higher education expenses, and the purchase of a first home. In my view, eliminating this additional tax for individuals and families suffering from the effects of unforeseen natural disasters makes plain common sense. How grateful all of us are for our constituents coming to the great city of Washington, DC, and supplying us with ideas which probably are before us every day but somehow we overlook them. Tropical Storm Dennis and Hurricane Floyd have had a devastating effect on my State. People in Southside and Tidewater, VA, are attempting to rebuild their lives and to recover some of what they lost. We should remove any disincentive, any roadblock that may hinder rebuilding and recovery.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I introduce a bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow penalty-free distributions from qualified retirement programs of individuals residing in Presidentially declared disaster areas. I and so many of my colleagues have been visiting our States and working with our Governors and State legislators, city councilpersons and mayors particularly with regard to the devastation of floods we have seen as a consequence of the most recent hurricane. I looked into the faces of these suffering people. And one of them-- this was not my idea--one of them came to me with the simplest type of request. I thought it merited the attention of the Senate. I put it into this bill that I now introduce in the Senate. Despite an individual's or family's best efforts to plan for the future, sometimes the unexpected strikes--hurricanes and natural disasters. When that happens, people need all the tools available to rebuild their lives, the lives of their families, and to become an integral part of those communities. One community, Franklin, VA, which is in the central part of the State, in the old rural part of the State, dependent largely on agriculture, which has flat land--I say to my distinguished colleague, Senator Helms, how badly his State was hit by the same storm--had 18 inches of rain in less than 2 hours. There is no large riverbed there or drainage ditches. And as a result, the water rose in this town up to the second level of the stores and the houses. It went into a railyard and toppled enormous freight cars, particularly tank cars with petroleum. And suddenly this whole community was awash in foul water of 8 to 10 to 12 feet some places in height. There was no place for the water to run off, except gradually over this flat territory. These people need to rebuild their lives and their homes. Families are faced with repairing and replacing damaged property and lost property. Many are forced to draw on savings, including their retirement accounts, to meet expenses. However, if they choose to tap upon their retirement plans or accounts, they are saddled with a 10- percent additional Federal tax for early distribution. That was put in the law for good reason--to deter people from going into these plans where they had some tax benefits. But let's stop to think: That may be the only recourse to financial salvation in the wake of an act of God Almighty. They need help. Taxpayers coping with these disasters should not have to face the burden of a Federal tax penalty. This bill is very simple. It waives the 10 percent additional tax levied on early distributions from qualified retirement plans or retirement accounts for residents of federally declared disaster areas--that means the President of the United States has declared that county a disaster area--designated after July 31, 1999. It is my intention that these distributions will be used for the repair or replacement of property destroyed or damaged by an unforeseen natural disaster or for emergency expenses arising from such a tragic event. The taxpayer must be a resident of an area declared eligible. I point that out: a resident of an area eligible by the President for Federal disaster assistance, and the distribution must be taken within 1 year of the disaster declaration. The current Tax Code waives the 10-percent penalty for distribution for certain medical expenses, health insurance premiums for the unemployed, higher education expenses, and the purchase of a first home. In my view, eliminating this additional tax for individuals and families suffering from the effects of unforeseen natural disasters makes plain common sense. How grateful all of us are for our constituents coming to the great city of Washington, DC, and supplying us with ideas which probably are before us every day but somehow we overlook them. Tropical Storm Dennis and Hurricane Floyd have had a devastating effect on my State. People in Southside and Tidewater, VA, are attempting to rebuild their lives and to recover some of what they lost. We should remove any disincentive, any roadblock that may hinder rebuilding and recovery.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to consideration of Calendar No. 291, S. 1567.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the bill be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 292, S. 1595.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 294, H.R. 560.

Mr. WARNER

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

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the amendment be agreed to, the committee amendment, as amended, be agreed to, the bill be read the third time and passed, the title amendment be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until the hour of 9 a.m. Tuesday, October 12. I further ask unanimous consent that on Tuesday, immediately following the prayer, the Journal of the proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed to have expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and the Senate then resume executive session to resume consideration of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, for the information of all Senators, the Senate will resume consideration of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, October 12. On Tuesday, there will be approximately 6 hours of debate remaining on the treaty. Therefore, that debate will consume the day until 4:30 p.m., at which time the Senate will resume consideration of the conference report to accompany the Agriculture appropriations bill. Cloture was filed on the conference report on Thursday with a vote scheduled to occur at 5:30 on Tuesday. It is expected that the vote on the CTBT will occur on Wednesday, at some point following the adoption of the Agriculture Appropriations conference report. Therefore, the next rollcall vote will occur at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, October 12. Mr. President, in addition, as a reminder, the two amendments in order to the CTBT must be filed at the desk by 9:45 a.m. on Tuesday, October 12.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I now ask unanimous consent that the Senate turn to the remarks of the distinguished Senator from West Virginia and thereafter stand in adjournment under the order.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I thank my colleague for those kind remarks. I return the same.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that S. 1593 be discharged from the Rules Committee and placed on the calendar.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Thank you Senator Specter for your support of YLI. star schools grants

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I have a second degree amendment to Senator DeWine's amendment on higher education, amendment No. 1847. Senator Specter, Senator Harkin and my other distinguished colleagues on the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education Subcommittee certainly have your work cut out in crafting S. 1650, the Labor-HHS appropriations bill. The subcommittee was faced with a difficult task of appropriating limited funds to hundreds of programs. I commend the subcommittee for its hard work and for its dedication to education funding. This bill provides $37.6 billion for the Department of Education. This amount is more than $2 billion above fiscal year 1999 levels and $537 million above the Administration's request. Of this $37.6 billion, the committee bill provides over $139.5 million for the fund for the improvement of education. This amount is $500,000 over fiscal year 1999 appropriations. These funds are provided to support significant programs and projects to improve the quality of education, help students meet high academic standards and contribute to the achievement of educational goals. During the appropriations process, Senator Specter, I submitted a letter requesting that the subcommittee provide $1.5 million in funds for an innovative educational program known as the Youth Leadership Initiative (``YLI'') at the University of Virginia. I am thankful for the subcommittee's consideration of my request and am grateful that the subcommittee recognized the importance of YLI by including report language on this invaluable educational program. The goal of YLI is to work with America's middle and high school students to prepare them for a lifetime of political participation. YLI seeks to transform the way students view their role in our democracy, develop their trust in and awareness of our system, and instill in our students the core values of good citizenship and democracy. To achieve its goal, YLI teaches students in the functional components of America's political process. Among other things, YLI students will learn how to run student-forged mock campaigns, organize political events, conduct election analysis, and hold mock elections. Senator Specter, these lessons need to be taught and are of paramount importance. In 1998, voter participation during the mid-term Congressional elections was the lowest since 1942. Almost every survey of public opinion shows growing disinterest in the American electoral process, and disinterest is strongest among our young people. Thomas Jefferson once warned Americans about the ramifications of such disinterest in our political system, stating, ``Lethargy is the forerunner of death to other public liberty.'' America's form of government is uniquely dependent upon the active participation of its citizens. Therefore, if voter participation continues to decrease, then our democracy will suffer. By combining academic excellence with hands-on civic activity, YLI will help turn our schools and communities into hotbeds for the rejuvenation of our democracy. Since its launch last spring, YLI has attracted national attention for its unique approach to teaching our young people about democracy. In a pilot program currently in progress in several Virginia communities, thousands of students in hundreds of classrooms are experiencing the wonders of this pioneering program. Students and teachers have participated in YLI training sessions and members of the inaugural class of youth leaders are already hard at work organizing public debates between actual legislative candidates which they will host in the coming weeks. On Tuesday, October 26, 1999, nearly 35,000 middle and high school students will be eligible to participate in the largest internet ballot ever conducted. On this day, YLI students will be voting on-line using a secure, encrypted state-of-the-art ``cyber-ballot'' that is specifically tailored to each student's voting precinct. These achievements are only the beginning. YLI is a national crusade. This year's pilot program in Virginia is laying the foundation for next year's expansion throughout Virginia. Plans are already underway to make this program available to every middle and high school in the United States soon after the 2000 elections. YLI already has the financial support of the Commonwealth of Virginia and many of America's leading corporations, foundations and individuals. YLI is a model public-private partnership that will make available to all Americans students a program which will increase participation in our democracy for future generations. Senator Specter, a small investment today will pay dividends for many generations to come. Again, I say to the Senator from Pennsylvania, I certainly understand the difficult task facing your subcommittee in crafting a bipartisan, fiscally responsible appropriations bill. I know you recognize the importance of YLI and that's why report language was included in the Committee's report. I ask my distinguished colleague, however, to ensure that YLI receives the requested funding in the eventual bill that emerges from conference.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until the hour of 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, October 7. I further ask consent that on Thursday, immediately following the prayer, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and the Senate then resume debate on the pending Abraham amendment to S. 1650, the Labor-HHS Appropriations bill.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I now ask unanimous consent that the Senate stand in adjournment under the previous order.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. I simply say to my good friend and colleague that I addressed many of the issues he has addressed in the last few minutes in a press conference today that I think covers the work of the Armed Services Committee. We are trying to do a very thorough job. We have had 10 hours of hearings in the last 48 hours. We will go into lengthy hearings again tomorrow morning. I thank my friend for his views.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I rise to address the issue of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty and to apprise the Senate of information presented at hearings of the Armed Services Committee over the last two days. The committee today conducted the second of its series of three hearings this week on the CTBT. Yesterday morning, the Armed Services Committee heard classified testimony from career professionals, technical experts with decades of experience, from the Department of Energy laboratories and the CIA. At that hearing, the committee received new information having to do with the Russian nuclear stockpile, our ability to verify compliance with the CTBT, as well as DOE lab assessments of the U.S. nuclear stockpile. Much of what the committee heard during that hearing was new information--information developed over the past 18 months--and therefore was not available to the Congress and the President when the CTBT was signed in 1996. Since 1997, when the intelligence community released its last estimate on our ability to monitor the CTBT, new information has led the intelligence community--on its own initiative-- to conclude that a new, updated estimate is needed. I have been informed that this new estimate will be completed late this year or early next year. This morning, the Armed Services Committee heard from the Secretary of Defense, William Cohen, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Shelton. This afternoon, we heard from Dr. James Schlesinger, former Secretary of Defense and Energy and former Director of Central Intelligence, and General Shalikashvili, former Chairman of the JCS. Their testimony is available on the Committee's web page. In today's hearing, I highlighted my serious concerns with the CTBT in three areas: 1. We will not be able to adequately and confidently verify compliance with the treaty. 2. CTBT will preclude the United States from taking needed measures to ensure the safety and reliability of our stockpile. 3. The administration has overstated the effectiveness of the CTBT in lessening proliferation. Regarding the safety of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, today's witnesses highlighted the fact that only half of the nuclear weapons in the U.S. stockpile today have all the modern safety features that have been developed and should be included on these weapon systems. We will not be able to retrofit these safety features in our weapons in the absence of nuclear testing. These are weapons that are stored at various locations around the world; weapons that rest in missile tubes literally feet away from the bunks of our submarine crews; weapons that are regularly moved across roads and through airfields around the world. Regarding the reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, Secretary Cohen and General Shelton acknowledged that it could be ten years or more before we will know whether the Stockpile Stewardship Program-- computer simulation tools--needed to replace nuclear testing will work. Secretary Schlesinger clarified that, if we substitute computer simulation for actual nuclear testing, the most we can hope for is that these computer tools will slow the decline--due to aging--in our confidence in the stockpile. Will we ever be able to replace nuclear testing? Regarding proliferation, Secretary Schlesinger highlighted the fact that the diminishing confidence in our stockpile, which is inevitable if we were to ratify CTBT, may actually drive some non-nuclear countries to reconsider their need to develop nuclear weapons to compensate for the diminished credibility of the U.S. deterrent force. This declining confidence in the U.S. stockpile is a fact of science that has been progressing since the United States stopped nuclear testing in 1992. Our nuclear weapons are experiencing the natural consequences of aging. Dr. Schlesinger stated it clearly when he asked: ``Do we want a world that lacks confidence in the U.S. deterrent or not?'' Regarding verification, this morning Secretary Cohen confirmed that the United States will not be able to detect low yield nuclear testing which can be carried out in violation of the treaty. In addition, we exposed the fallacy of the administration's claim that CTBT will provide us with important on-site inspection rights. We would need to get the approval of 30 nations before we could conduct any on-site inspections. That will be very difficult, to say the least. Although I believe all of our witnesses have conducted themselves very professionally, I heard nothing at either of our hearings that changes my view of the CTBT. I am deeply concerned that the administration is over-selling the benefits of this treaty while downplaying its many adverse long-term consequences. My bottom line is this: reasonable people can disagree on the impact of the CTBT for U.S. national security. As long as there is a reasonable doubt about whether the CTBT is in the U.S. national interest, then we should not ratify it. Mr. President, tomorrow morning the Armed Services Committee will conduct the third of its CTBT hearings. We will hear from the DOE lab directors and others responsible for overseeing the stockpile. We will also hear from former officials and other technical experts with years of experience in developing, testing and maintaining our nuclear weapons. I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record material presented at today's hearing, including a letter to me dated October 5, 1999, from former Chairman of the JCS, John W. Vessey, USA-Ret; a letter to the Senate leaders from six former Secretaries of Defense and a letter from other former Government officials.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, is the parliamentary situation such that the Senator from Virginia can make a unanimous consent request on a matter not related to the bill?

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, as in executive session, I ask unanimous consent that the nomination of Gregory A. Baer, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, vice Richard Scott Carnell, be discharged from the Committee on Finance and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. For the information of all Senators, the Senate will resume consideration of the Labor-HHS Appropriations bill at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday. The pending amendment is the Abraham amendment regarding the needle exchange programs. It is hoped this amendment and the few remaining amendments can be debated and disposed of in a timely fashion so that action on the bill can be completed by tomorrow. I encourage continued cooperation from those Senators who have amendments remaining on the list so that time agreements can be made for their consideration. Rollcall votes will occur throughout the day. As usual, Senators will be notified as votes are scheduled. Following completion of the Labor-HHS Appropriations bill, it is the intention of the leader to resume debate on the Agriculture Appropriations conference report. The Senate may also consider any other conference reports available for action.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, Senator Dodd and I would like to congratulate the Naval Submarine Force on its 100th anniversary and on all the accomplishments it has achieved during that time. On a personal note, I wish to acknowledge the contributions of the Submarine Force Senior Leadership since its inception, many of whom I am proud to have known and worked closely with over the years. And for the next 100 years, may our Submarine Force run silent, run deep.