A resolution designating January 2007 as "National Stalking Awareness Month".

Mr. President, I rise today with my good friend from Maine, Senator Collins, to submit a Resolution Marking January as National Stalking Awareness Month. I introduce today's measure because I want to renew our Nation's resolve to fight stalking and to promote public awareness about the newest stalking tool, technology.

Imagine that you are a young wife--estranged from your husband. A court has ordered him to stay away from you, but he shows up everywhere you go. You see him while driving on the road, in the parking lot at work, at a nearby table in restaurants, and at your friends' homes. Although you haven't spoken to him in months, he always knows exactly where you are.

Last year, the Seattle police received such a report from Sherri Peak, whose estranged husband seemed to know her every move. Detectives believed that Robert Peak was stalking his wife, and they brought Sherri's car into the city shop to scan for tracking devices. After several hours of futile searching, one officer popped off the dashboard cover and spotted a global positioning system (GPS) and a cell phone embedded in the car. Then police checked the victim's home computer and found spyware that allowed her husband to hack into her e-mail. Sherri Peak was indeed being stalked--via technology.

The Peak case illustrates a disturbing criminal trend and the dark side of technology. The devices we use to surf the Internet, e-mail one another, download music, and find our way in unfamiliar towns have also equipped stalkers with powerful tools. While ``conventional'' stalkers follow a victim from home to work or place countless phone calls to their homes, technology-empowered stalkers use GPS to track victims and computer programs to trace every Web site victims visit and every e- mail they send or receive. Stalkers can harass or threaten their victims (or urge others to do so) via e-mail or Web sites set up to harm the victim.

The potential impact of these tactics is staggering. National statistics show that 1 in 12 women and 1 in 45 men will be stalked during their lifetime. The average duration of stalking is 2 years, and more often than not it is accompanied by physical violence. In one study, 3 of 4 women murdered by their intimate partners had been stalked by that partner before they were killed.

Although all 50 States and the Federal Government have stalking laws, many were drafted before the widespread use of e-mail, the Internet, chat rooms, Web sites, social networking sites, GPS, cell phones, and tiny hand-

held video and digital cameras. Last year Congress tightened the Federal stalking law to take into account these potential stalking tools and techniques. Although some States are following suit, I urge state legislators to continually assess the power of their stalking laws to prohibit and appropriately punish acts of stalking with current or even future technology.

January is National Stalking Awareness Month--the perfect opportunity for parents, lawmakers and community leaders to carefully review State and local laws on stalking and insist that laws keep pace with technology and protect our families. Valuable information on stalking can be found at the Stalking Resource Center (www.ncvc.org/src). We are indebted to the Center's expertise and leadership on this issue. For immediate and confidential assistance, I also urge people to contact the National Crime Victim Helpline at 1-800-FYI-CALL.

I often watch my grandchildren learn with ever more speed to deftly manipulate technology, everything from making digital movies, downloading music, to surfing the Internet. It is clearly a brave, new world. And one that each of us should embrace, learn and celebrate. But with new rights, always come new responsibilities. Through vigilance, both citizens and officials can combat stalking via technology. Just as parents and teens are starting to learn how to protect their privacy while on-line, we can all learn how to detect high-tech stalking and what to do if it occurs.

Before closing, I would like to thank Senator Collins for her commitment to this issue; it is always a pleasure to work with her.

S. Res. 24

Whereas an estimated 1,006,970 women and 370,990 men are

stalked annually in the United States and, in the majority of

such cases, the person is stalked by someone who is not a

stranger;

Whereas 81 percent of women who are stalked by an intimate

partner are also physically assaulted by that partner, and 76

percent of women who are killed by an intimate partner were

also stalked by that intimate partner;

Whereas 26 percent of stalking victims lose time from work

as a result of their victimization, and 7 percent never

return to work;

Whereas stalking victims are forced to take drastic

measures to protect themselves, such as relocating, changing

their addresses, changing their identities, changing jobs,

and obtaining protection orders;

Whereas stalking is a crime that cuts across race, culture,

gender, age, sexual orientation, physical and mental ability,

and economic status;

Whereas stalking is a crime under Federal law and under the

laws of all 50 States and the District of Columbia;

Whereas rapid advancements in technology have made cyber-

surveillance the new frontier in stalking;

Whereas there are national organizations, local victim

service organizations, prosecutors' offices, and police

departments that stand ready to assist stalking victims and

who are working diligently to craft competent, thorough, and

innovative responses to stalking; and

Whereas there is a need to enhance the criminal justice

system's response to stalking, including through aggressive

investigation and prosecution: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That--

(1) the Senate designates January 2007 as ``National

Stalking Awareness Month'';

(2) it is the sense of the Senate that--

(A) National Stalking Awareness Month provides an

opportunity to educate the people of the United States about

stalking;

(B) the people of the United States should applaud the

efforts of the many victim service providers, such as police,

prosecutors, national and community organizations, and

private sector supporters, for their efforts in promoting

awareness about stalking; and

(C) policymakers, criminal justice officials, victim

service and human service agencies, nonprofit organizations,

and others should recognize the need to increase awareness of

stalking and availability of services for stalking victims;

and

(3) the Senate urges national and community organizations,

businesses, and the media to promote, through observation of

National Stalking Awareness Month, awareness of the crime of

stalking.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Armed Services be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, January 25, 2007, at 9:30 a.m., in open session to receive testimony on the current situation in Iraq on the Administration's recently announced strategy for continued United States assistance to the Iraqi Government and for an increased United States mlitary presence in Iraq.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on January 25, 2007, at 9:30 a.m., to vote on committee organizational matters for the 110th Congress; immediately following the executive session the committee will meet to conduct a hearing on ``Examining the Billing, Marketing, and Disclosure Practices of the Credit Card Industry, and Their Impact on Consumers.''

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources be authorized to hold a hearing during the session of the Senate on Thursday, January 25, 2007, at 9:30 a.m. in room SD-366 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

The purpose of the hearing is to receive testimony on oil and gas resources on the Outer Continental Shelf and areas available for leasing in the Gulf of Mexico.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Foreign Relations be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, January 25, 2007, at 9:15 a.m. to hold a hearing on Iraq.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Foreign Relations be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, January 25, 2007, at 2:30 p.m. to hold a hearing on Iraq.

Mr. President, I would like to announce that the Committee on Indian Affairs will meet on Thursday, January 25, 2007, at 9:30 a.m. in room 485 of the Russell Senate Office Building to conduct a business meeting to consider changes to the committee rules and a funding resolution for the committee budget for the 110th Congress.

Those wishing additional information may contact the Indian Affairs Committee at 224-2251.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be authorized to meet to conduct a markup on Thursday, January 25, 2007, at 10 a.m. in Dirksen room 226.

Agenda

I. Committee Organization

Committee Rules for the 110th Congress; Subcommittees for the 110th Congress; Funding Resolution for the 110th Congress.

II. Nominations

Lisa Godbey Wood to be U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of Georgia; Philip S. Gutierrez to be U.S. District Judge for the Central District of California; Valerie L. Baker to be U.S. District Judge for the Central District of California; Lawrence Joseph O'Neill to be U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of California; and Gregory Kent Frizzell to be U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Oklahoma.

III. Bills

S. 188, To Revise the Short Title of the Voting Rights Act Reauthorization and Amendments Act of 2006, Salazar.

S. 214, To Amend Chapter 35 of Title 28, To Preserve the Independence of U.S. Attorneys, Feinstein.

IV. Resolutions

S. Res. 21, Recognizing the Uncommon Valor of Wesley Autry, Clinton, Schumer.

S. Res. 24, Designating January as ``National Stalking Awareness Month'', Biden.

S. Res. 29, Expressing the Sense of the Senate Regarding Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Stabenow, Leahy, Kennedy, Biden, Kohl, Feinstein, Feingold, Schumer, Durbin, Cardin, Whitehouse, Specter.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Select Committee on Intelligence be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on January 25, 2007, at 2:30 p.m. to hold a hearing.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce and the District of Columbia be authorized to meet on Thursday, January 25, 2007, at 2:30 p.m. for a hearing entitled, ``Lost in Translation: A Review of the Federal Government's Efforts to Develop a Foreign Language Strategy.''

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to Calendar No. 14, S. Res. 24.

I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating thereto be printed in the Record, without further intervening action or debate.