Disabled Veterans Fairness Act

Mr. President, today I am joined by Senator Landrieu in introducing the Telework Enhancement Act of 2007. This legislation will build on the existing Federal telework program to ensure maximum participation in the program among those in the Federal workforce. This measure will improve the cost-efficiency of the Federal Government and will also serve to reduce traffic congestion and thereby save fuel and greenhouse gas emissions. It will also enhance efforts by the Federal Government with respect to continuity of operations, COOP, provide employee incentives to attract and retain highly skilled Federal personnel, and provide a model for the private sector.

In 2000, the key legislation affecting telework in the Federal Government was signed into law as part of that year's highway bill. The enacted provision provided that ``each executive agency . . . establish a policy under which eligible employees of the agency may participate in telecommuting to the maximum extent possible without diminished employee performance.'' The measure was intended to apply to 25 percent of the Federal workforce, and to an additional 25 percent of the workforce each year thereafter.

The objective of that measure, as outlined in the bill's conference report, was to ``reduce traffic congestion'' and to allow Federal employees to telework to the maximum extent possible. The Report also made clear that each Federal agency was to establish telework criteria, and remove any ``managerial, logistical, organizational, or other barriers to full implementation and successful functioning of the policy. . . and provide for adequate administrative, human resources, technical, and logistical support for carrying out the policy.''

The lead agencies that have carried out this telework mandate are Office of Personnel Management, OPM, and the General Services Administration, GSA. Together these agencies formed a common Web site www.telework.gov to facilitate the advancement of the program, which has had a degree of success. As of 2004, of the 1.7 million Federal employees in the 82 agencies, 752,337 had been deemed eligible for telework, which was an increase from 521,542 in 2001. But despite a very loose definition of ``telework,'' which only requires that an employee work from home 1 day per week to be considered a ``teleworker,'' 140,694, or 19 percent of those eligible, were deemed as having teleworked in 2004. Critics argue that this low percentage of teleworkers comparable to the much larger pool of telework-eligible employees can be attributed to insufficient employee education, program coordination, and workforce culture issues.

While OPM and GSA should be commended for the strides they have made in implementing the Federal telework program, there are several enhancements to the program that can be made legislatively to facilitate the original goal of maximizing telework among eligible Federal employees.

The bill we introduce today would, among other things: invert the telework eligibility presumption to make all Federal employees eligible unless expressly determined otherwise; revise the definition of ``telework'' to be an arrangement where the employee regularly works at an alternate site at least 2 business days per week in order to reduce his/her commute, the current definition only requires 1 day; require that each agency designate a full-time Telework Managing Officer, TMO, within the agency's chief administrative office, or comparable agency office, to oversee the respective agency's telework program; require that the TMO coordinate the telework policy for the agency or office, serve as the liaison between employees and managers, and keep employees informed of their telework eligibility; require the TMO to work to expand the agency's telework program, oversee the COOP program, and develop a telework performance and accountability system; require the TMO to submit a report to the head of the agency annually with an analysis of measures in place to carry out the telework policy; and require the Government Accountability

Office, GAO, to evaluate each agency's telework policy, and publish a report that rates each policy and the level of employee participation.

The events of September 11, 2001, the anthrax attacks that occurred shortly thereafter, and the recent severe weather experienced across the country have focused our attention on the importance of energy independence, as well as our need to be prepared in the event of a disaster. This legislation would be a step toward achieving these broader national strategic objectives, and I urge my colleagues to support it.

I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, today I am introducing the Pediatric Research Improvement Act, legislation to reauthorize the Pediatric Rule and extend it permanently. I believe that doing so is critically important to ensure that the drugs designed for children are safe and effective for children. This legislation will result in better health outcomes for our children, grandchildren, and many generations of children to come.

In 1998, the FDA issued a regulation called the pediatric rule, which allowed the agency to require companies to perform pediatric clinical trials on medications used by children. It is important to note that this requirement does not slow the drug approval process. If a drug is not likely to be used in the pediatric population, it is not subject to this testing. Companies can also apply for a deferral, so that they can perform necessary tests after a drug has been approved and is being used in the adult population.

In October 2002, a U.S. District Court found that the FDA had exceeded its statutory authority when it promulgated the Pediatric Rule, and that Congress needed to explicitly award the FDA the power to require these clinical trials.

In response, I worked with my colleagues in Congress to pass the Pediatric Research Equity Act, legislation that codified the Pediatric Rule, and which was signed into law on December 3, 2003.

Since 2003, over 100 drugs have been evaluated under PREA--and since 1998, more than 1,000 drugs have fallen under the authority of the pediatric rule. The legislation has successfully resulted in increased pediatric evaluations. We've been able to collect data on drugs commonly used in children--like azithromycin, an antibiotic used to treat bronchitis, pneumonia, and other respiratory infections--as well as drugs that may not be so commonly used, but that help keep children alive, like emtriva, one of the newer drugs we have to treat AIDS.

But unless we act to reauthorize this legislation now, the pediatric rule is set to sunset on September 30 of this year, placing in jeopardy the ability of the agency to require these safeguards for our children.

In order to address this, I am introducing the Pediatric Research Improvement Act to remove the sunset for the pediatric rule, so that we will never again be in danger of losing the authority to make sure that the drugs designed for children are safe for children.

In addition to making the rule permanent, this reauthorization would do the following:

Improves Coordination between Pediatric Specialists and Others at the FDA. In order to improve coordination with the pediatric exclusivity provisions of the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act (BPCA), PRIA would expand an internal FDA committee to review all issues of pediatric-related labeling and assessments. Doing so ensures that a drug that falls under PRIA or BPCA is reviewed not only by experts for that particular drug, but those with pediatric expertise.

Streamlines the process for obtaining pediatric data on already- marketed drugs. If a company chooses not to pursue pediatric exclusivity for an already marketed drug under the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act, the Secretary has the authority to require the submission of pediatric data for the drug. This authority has never been utilized, in part due to the lengthy administrative process required. PRIA would streamline this administrative process and help get essential data on drugs for which it is vitally needed, while preserving the ability of companies to have a fair review of the agency's decisions.

Increases Data about the Use and Applicability of PRIA. PRIA would require two reports--one from the Institute of Medicine and one from the GAO--that would allow us to have better data on the number and ways in which the pediatric rule is used, and evaluate its contributions to ensuring overall pediatric drug safety.

This legislation is supported by the American Academy of Pediatrics, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Ambulatory Pediatric Association, American Pediatric Society, Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs, and the Society for Pediatric Research.

I look forward to working with my colleagues in Congress to pass this vital piece of legislation as quickly as possible, and help to ensure that our pediatricians and other health professionals have the tools they need to provide safe and effective treatment to our Nation's children.

Mr. President, I have spoken many times about one of our Nation's greatest public servants, the late Senator Paul Simon. He was an honorable man who devoted his life to working for the public good.

In the months before his untimely death, Senator Simon returned to Washington to talk to his former colleagues about the need to strengthen our Nation's international understanding and our ability to remain a world leader in the 21st century. His desire to promote peace and security through mutual understanding and sensitivity to the rest of the world was borne out of the tragic events of September 11, 2001.

Senator Simon struggled with the question of how America could lead when so few of our citizens have the proper knowledge and understanding of the world beyond our borders. He knew that America's security, global competitiveness, and diplomatic efforts in working towards a peaceful society rest on our young people's global competence and ability to appreciate languages and cultural and social realities beyond what they may have experienced in the United States. He envisioned a United States populated by a generation of Americans with a greater knowledge and understanding of the world--a generation of our Nation's future leaders that have been abroad and have a personal connection to another part of the world.

Senator Simon's tireless efforts led to Congress's establishment of the Abraham Lincoln Study Abroad Commission. I was honored to serve on this bipartisan Commission, and it was a privilege for me to introduce legislation last year that brought Senator Simon's dream one step closer to reality. The bill, based on the Commission's recommendations, would have established a study abroad program for undergraduate students that would help build global awareness and international understanding.

I am once again proud to stand here today and introduce legislation that embodies Senator Simon's vision. The bill has been renamed the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act so that all future generations will remember Senator Simon's commitment to international education.

The goal of this legislation remains the same: to encourage and support the experience of studying abroad in developing countries--in countries whose people, culture, language, government, and religion might be very different from ours. This bill aims to have at least 1 million undergraduate students study abroad annually within 10 years and to expand study abroad opportunities for students who are currently underrepresented.

The Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act would establish study abroad as a national priority and provide the catalyst for the education community to commit to making study abroad an institutional priority.

This legislation would create an independent public-private entity, the Senator Paul Simon Foundation, that would award grants to carry out the goal of making study abroad in high-quality programs in diverse locations around the world the routine, rather than the exception, for college students. Students who were previously unable to study abroad due to financial constraints would be eligible for grants. Grants also would provide colleges, universities and nongovernmental institutions with the financial incentive to develop programs that make it easier for college students to study abroad.

The future of our country depends on having globally literate citizens--those who are able to look at other points of view and incorporate those ideas into their thinking and manner of interacting with others. I have shared this

Paul Simon quote before, and I will do so again because it is the most poignant example of Paul's vision in his own words:

A nation cannot drift into greatness. We must dream, and we

must be willing to make small sacrifices to achieve those

dreams. This major national initiative can lift our vision

and responsiveness to the rest of the world.

I ask my colleagues to join with me and with Senator Coleman in support of this legislation and to see to it that Senator Paul Simon's dream of building a stronger and more culturally aware nation is realized.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, stroke is a devastating disease that affects young and old, women and men, regardless of their race or ethnic background. The physical, emotional, and financial toll of stroke on individuals and their families is enormous.

Fortunately, we have achieved major advances in the prevention and treatment of stroke in recent years that have reduced the high toll of death and disability. The Nation's investment in research through the National Institutes of Health has led to many of

these advances, and it's tragic that so many stroke patients do not yet have access to these advances.

That's why Senator Cochran and I have introduced the bipartisan Stroke Treatment and Ongoing Prevention Act in Congress, to help bring what we've learned in the laboratory to the bedside of the patient more quickly. Both Houses of Congress know the importance of this issue, and identical legislation has been introduced in the House of Representatives. This bill is intended to become a national commitment to end the suffering from stroke. It will also be a promise that every American can lead a better and healthier life.

Mr. President, it's a privilege to join my colleagues in reintroducing the Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution. Our strong commitment to equal rights for men and women should be clearly reflected in the Nation's founding document.

The ERA is essential to guarantee that the freedoms protected by our Constitution apply equally to men and women. From the beginning of our history as a Nation, women have had to wage a constant, long and difficult battle to win the same basic rights granted to men. That battle goes on today, since discrimination still continues in many ways.

Despite passage of the Equal Pay Act and the Civil Rights Act in the 1960s, discrimination against women continues to permeate the workforce and many areas of the economy. Today, women earn about 77 cents for each dollar earned by men, and the gap is even greater for women of color. In 2004, African American women earned only 67 percent of the earnings of white men, and Hispanic women earned only 56 percent.

Women with college and professional degrees have achieved advances in a number of professional and managerial occupations in recent years. Yet more than 60 percent of working women are still clustered in a narrow range of traditionally female, traditionally low-paying occupations, and female-headed households continue to dominate the bottom rungs of the economic ladder.

A stronger effort is clearly needed to finally live up to our commitment of full equality. The Equal Rights Amendment alone cannot remedy all discrimination, but it will clearly strengthen the ongoing efforts of women across the country to obtain equal treatment.

We know from the failed ratification experiences of the past that amending the Constitution to include the ERA will not be easy to achieve. But its extraordinary significance requires us to continue the battle to finally see it approved by Congress and ratified by the States. The women of America deserve no less.

I ask unanimous consent that the text of the resolution be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, today I am pleased to introduce the ``Public Buildings Cost Reduction Act of 2007.'' I am joined by my Environment and Public Works Committee colleagues Senators Inhofe, Lautenberg, Alexander, Cardin, Lieberman, Clinton, and Klobuchar. This bill will reduce air pollution and save taxpayer money by accelerating the use of cost-effective technologies that reduce energy use in public buildings.

The goal of this legislation is to have the government lead by example. This bill will help to ensure less polluting and more cost- effective General Services Administration, or GSA, buildings. Under this legislation, the GSA, which is the Nation's largest public real estate organization, must establish a program to speed the use of cost- effective and energy-efficient technology and other actions, called ``cost-effective technologies and practices'', in its buildings. GSA also must assure that a manager is named who is responsible for accelerating the use of cost-effective technologies and practices for each GSA building.

In addition, the GSA must review current and available highly- efficient lighting within 90 days, and complete a plan within 6 months for installing highly-efficient lighting in GSA buildings. Within 1 year after enactment, GSA must issue a detailed timetable to replace all existing inefficient lighting in GSA buildings as quickly as feasible, within 5 years, using available funds.

A second provision in the bill requires GSA to complete a broader plan that will: (1) achieve a 20-percent reduction in operating costs at GSA facilities to the maximum extent feasible within 5 years after enactment through the application of cost-effective, highly efficient technologies and practices, using available funds; (2) describe the current and needed funding for these programs and any issues that may inhibit their implementation; (3) recommend uniform standards for federal agencies for highly efficient technologies; and (4) recommend ways to allow federal agencies to keep their savings from using efficient technologies and practices, to use them for additional investments and other purposes.

The bill also creates an EPA grant program to help local governments make their buildings more efficient. This $20 million per year matching grant program at EPA will help local governments renovate their buildings to make them more cost-effective and energy efficient. The grant program will require a 40 percent match from the local government, and will require grantees to show they will cut utility bills by 40 percent through renovations of a building or buildings that use highly efficient technologies and practices. Further, EPA will have to verify the efficiency and savings and issue guidelines for the program. Grants of up to $1 million will be allowed. In addition, the bill requires reports to Congress on progress under the program, savings achieved, and recommendations.

I ask unanimous consent that the text of my bill be printed in the Record.