[Pages S1605-S1607]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

By Mr. REED (for himself and Mr. Whitehouse):
S. 1508. A bill to amend the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation
and Management Act to add Rhode Island to the Mid-Atlantic Fishery
Management Council, and for other purposes; to the Committee on
Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Mr. REED. Madam President, today I am introducing the Rhode Island
Fishermen's Fairness Act along with my colleague Senator Whitehouse. I
am also pleased that my colleague Representative Magaziner will be
introducing a companion measure in the House of Representatives.
Our legislation will give Rhode Island a voice and voting
representation on the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, MAFMC,
which manages some of the most important fish stocks for our State's
commercial fishing industry--chief among them squid. Indeed, the
National Marine Fisheries Service reported that Rhode Island led
Atlantic States in the harvest of squid in 2022, bringing in 31.5
million pounds and helping make Point Judith, RI, one of the most
productive and valuable commercial fishing ports in the United States.
For years now, Rhode Island's landings of stocks managed by the MAFMC
have outpaced the landings of those managed by the New England Fishery
Management Council, where Rhode Island is represented. Moreover, Rhode
Island has a larger stake in the Mid-Atlantic fishery than many of the
States that currently hold seats on the MAFMC.
Because so much is at stake for our State in every decision the MAFMC
makes, our bill would expand the MAFMC by two seats in order to ensure
that Rhode Island will have the minimum number of seats guaranteed to
other States on the council. It will allow Rhode Island to continue to
have representation on the New England Fishery Management Council,
where it still has significant interests.
This proposal is not unprecedented. In fact, it is modeled on a
provision of the 1996 Sustainable Fisheries Act that added North
Carolina to the MAFMC in 1996 while allowing it to retain its
membership on the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council. Moreover,
it will join States like Florida

[[Page S1606]]

and Washington which all have representation on more than one fisheries
management council.
This is a commonsense proposal and one that my colleagues and I will
be working to advance either on its own or as part of the
reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act.
______

By Mr. KAINE (for himself and Mr. Warner):
S. 1523. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow
rehabilitation expenditures for public school buildings to qualify for
rehabilitation credit; to the Committee on Finance.
Mr. KAINE. Madam President, today I want to discuss legislation I am
introducing, the School Infrastructure Modernization Act, with my
colleague Senator Warner.
To claim the Federal tax credit for historic preservation, a building
renovation must be for a different purpose than that for which the
building was previously used, a requirement known as the prior use
rule. This bill waives that requirement for renovations of K-12 public
school buildings. This will make it easier to restore historic-but-
dilapidated school buildings across the country so our children have
safe, modern spaces in which to learn.
As a Richmond City Council member and later mayor, I faced challenges
familiar to many municipalities--overcrowded schools, aging buildings,
and limited dollars in the budget. But in one particular case, I and a
group of local stakeholders identified a creative solution. On one
hand, we had an overcrowded Thomas Jefferson High School with in-zone
and magnet students. On the other hand, we had a closed Maggie Walker
High School that needed renovations. We put together a financing
package that made use of Federal and State historic tax credits to
renovate Maggie Walker High School and satisfied the prior use rule by
consolidating the magnet program from Thomas Jefferson into a new
Maggie Walker Governor's School for Government and International
Studies. Today, some 30 years later, this is one of America's highest
performing public high schools. Without the Federal historic tax
credit, this would have been too expensive to make happen.
This bill will make it easier to do similar projects around the
country. More modern school buildings will bolster the quality of
public education, and carrying out these projects will generate private
sector infrastructure investment and jobs. In Virginia alone, according
to a 2021 study, more than 1,000 K-12 schools are at least 50 years
old, representing more than half of all the K-12 schools in the
Commonwealth.
I encourage my colleagues to support this commonsense incentive that
is good for education, good for infrastructure, and good for jobs.
______

By Mr. THUNE (for himself and Ms. Klobuchar):
S. 1539. A bill to amend the Federal Crop Insurance Act and the
Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 to make the
native sod provisions applicable to the United States and to modify
those provisions, and for other purposes; to the Committee on
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
Mr. THUNE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of
the bill be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be
printed in the Record, as follows:

S. 1539

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``American Prairie
Conservation Act''.

SEC. 2. CROP PRODUCTION ON NATIVE SOD.

(a) Federal Crop Insurance.--Section 508(o) of the Federal
Crop Insurance Act (7 U.S.C. 1508(o)) is amended by striking
paragraph (3) and inserting the following:
``(3) Native sod conversion certification.--
``(A) Certification.--As a condition on the receipt of
benefits under this subtitle, a producer that has tilled
native sod acreage for the production of an insurable crop as
described in paragraph (2)(A) shall certify to the Secretary
that acreage using--
``(i) an acreage report form of the Farm Service Agency
(FSA-578 or any successor form); and
``(ii) 1 or more maps.
``(B) Corrections.--Beginning on the date on which a
producer submits a certification under subparagraph (A), as
soon as practicable after the producer discovers a change in
tilled native sod acreage described in that subparagraph, the
producer shall submit to the Secretary any appropriate
corrections to a form or map described in clause (i) or (ii)
of that subparagraph.
``(C) Annual reports.--Not later than January 1, 2024, and
each January 1 thereafter through January 1, 2028, the
Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the
House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture,
Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report that describes
the tilled native sod acreage that has been certified under
subparagraph (A) in each county and State as of the date of
submission of the report.''.
(b) Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance.--Section 196(a)(4)
of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996
(7 U.S.C. 7333(a)(4)) is amended by striking subparagraph (C)
and inserting the following:
``(C) Native sod conversion certification.--
``(i) Certification.--As a condition on the receipt of
benefits under this section, a producer that has tilled
native sod acreage for the production of an insurable crop as
described in subparagraph (B)(i) shall certify to the
Secretary that acreage using--

``(I) an acreage report form of the Farm Service Agency
(FSA-578 or any successor form); and
``(II) 1 or more maps.

``(ii) Corrections.--Beginning on the date on which a
producer submits a certification under clause (i), as soon as
practicable after the producer discovers a change in tilled
native sod acreage described in that clause, the producer
shall submit to the Secretary any appropriate corrections to
a form or map described in subclause (I) or (II) of that
clause.
``(iii) Annual reports.--Not later than January 1, 2024,
and each January 1 thereafter through January 1, 2028, the
Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the
House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture,
Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a report that describes
the tilled native sod acreage that has been certified under
clause (i) in each county and State as of the date of
submission of the report.''.
______

By Ms. COLLINS (for herself, Mr. Coons, Mr. Wicker, and Mr.
Durbin):
S. 1547. A bill to amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to
implement policies to end preventable maternal, newborn, and child
deaths globally; to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Ms. COLLINS. Madam President, I rise today to introduce the Reach
Every Mother and Child Act of 2023, known as the Reach Act. This
bipartisan legislation would strengthen the United States' efforts to
end preventable deaths of mothers, newborns, and young children in
developing countries by 2030. I want to thank Senator Coons for his
partnership on this important bill, and I also appreciate the
cosponsorship of Senator Durbin and Senator Wicker.
Senator Coons and I have led efforts to ensure robust funding for the
U.S. Agency for International Development's maternal and child health
programming. These programs have been the backbone of the United
States'' commitment to helping to end preventable child and maternal
deaths globally.
Due in part to American leadership and generosity, many lives have
already been saved. While progress has been made in reducing maternal
mortality rates, recent data suggest that these improvements are
slowing. Far too many mothers, newborns, and young children under the
age 5 continue to succumb to disease and malnutrition that could easily
be prevented.
Nearly 300,000 women die annually from causes related to pregnancy
and childbirth, with 99 percent of maternal deaths occurring in
developing nations. In addition, a significant proportion of the deaths
of children under the age of 5 occur in the first 28 days after birth,
with newborns accounting for nearly 50 percent of all under 5 deaths.
In 2021, 5 million children under the age of 5 died from mainly
preventable and treatable diseases.
The Reach Act aims to help these mothers and children with simple,
proven, costeffective interventions that we know will help them
survive. A concentrated effort could end preventable maternal and child
deaths worldwide by the year 2030, but continued U.S. leadership and
support from the international community are critical to achieve this
goal.
To advance this cause, our bill would require the implementation of a
strategy focused on bringing to scale the highest impact, evidence-
based interventions, with a focus on country and

[[Page S1607]]

community ownership. These interventions would be specific to each
country's needs and include support for the most vulnerable
populations. We do not have to guess what interventions will work--the
reality is that thousands of children die each day of conditions we
know how to treat.
These lifesaving interventions include clean birthing practices,
vaccines, nutritional supplements, handwashing with soap, and other
basic needs that remain elusive for far too many women and children in
developing countries. This must change.
Our bill would require the establishment of a Maternal and Child
Survival Coordinator at 1USAID who would focus on implementing the 5-
year strategy and verifying that the most effective interventions are
being scaled up in key countries. The Coordinator would identify and
promote the most effective interventions to end preventable maternal
and child deaths globally, which would improve the efficiency of the
programs operating across several Agencies.
To promote transparency and greater accountability, our bill would
also require detailed public reporting on progress toward implementing
the strategy.
The Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations
recently heard testimony from USAID Administrator Samantha Power.
During that hearing, asked Administrator Power about the Reach Act and
emphasized the critical reforms needed to increase the success and
impact of USAID's maternal and child survival programs.
Administrator Power testified to sharing the goals that motivate this
important legislation.
She agreed about the importance of resourcing key U.S. investments,
scaling them up, and getting them to mothers and children living in
remote areas.
Other bipartisan initiatives, such as the successful President's
Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, which was started by
President George W. Bush, demonstrate that results-driven interventions
can turn the tide for global health challenges. Applying lessons
learned from past initiatives, our bill would provide the focus and
tools necessary to accelerate progress toward ending preventable
maternal and child deaths.
I urge my colleagues to join Senator Coons, Senator Durbin, Senator
Wicker, and me in supporting this legislation that will save the lives
of mothers and children around the world.

____________________