Congressional Record—Senate S1866
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S1866 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE March 31, 2014 Clearly, we have a lot of work to do, management. The Paul Simon Water dreds of millions of people this luxury but this important legislation will help for the Poor Act of 2005, a bill which I is not close to a reality. While we have us be smarter about community-based strongly supported, was the first major made progress in bringing clean water care that will keep people out of the legislation enacted to make access to and sanitation to millions across the emergency rooms and out of our jails, clean water and sanitation a U.S. for- world, there is still much work to be keeping them from becoming the men- eign policy priority. Each year, as done. tal health clinics of last resort. chairman of the Appropriations Sub- f As Chris Imhoff, an official with the committee on the Department of State GUN SHOW LOOPHOLE Washington State Department of So- and Foreign Operations, I have in- cial and Health Services, remarked: cluded increasing amounts of funding Mr. LEVIN Mr. President, on March It’s exciting for a community when some- to implement the Paul Simon Act. 14, 2014, a popular teacher named thing like this happens. It helps us not We should reflect on the legacy of the Michelle Wilcox got into an argument. strand people with psychiatric emergencies late Senator Simon and take a moment People get into arguments all the time. in emergency rooms, which is a good thing. to recognize and appreciate his con- It is part of life. But this argument That is why this legislation is taking tributions to making clean water a de- ended, as all too many do around our us in the right direction. So again, I velopment priority. His work is carried Nation, in tragedy: suddenly, the man thank the Senators from Michigan and on through the programs and policies with whom Ms. Wilcox had been argu- Missouri for their leadership on this of the legislation that bears his name. ing pulled out a firearm, chased after legislation. It is so important we got it On World Water Day, we should also her, shot her, and left her body in a passed, and, hopefully, now it will recognize the indispensable work that grassy patch near a preschool. move towards the President’s desk and has been done by governments, NGO’s, In this case, as in so many others, implementation. and private companies to provide ac- the presence of a gun turned an ordi- f cess to clean water and sanitation. I nary altercation into a horrific mur- have visited Haiti three times in recent der. Had a firearm not been present, MORNING BUSINESS years to inspect the work of rebuilding Ms. Wilcox might have been able to Ms. CANTWELL. I ask unanimous crucial infrastructure, shattered by the walk away that fateful morning—frus- consent that the Senate proceed to a earthquake. My wife Marcelle worked trated, angry, but alive. Instead, she period of morning business with Sen- for many years as a registered nurse. was murdered, her husband of 12 years ators permitted to speak for up to 10 In 2012 she saw, firsthand, some of now awaits trial, and their child has minutes each. these vital clean water and sanitation lost its mother. A momentary bad deci- The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without initiatives. A nonprofit organization, sion ended one life and has irrevocably objection, it is so ordered. Pure Water for the World, based in changed so many more. f Rutland, VT, implements a sustainable We may not know if anything could model for clean water programs in de- have prevented this tragedy, but we do WORLD WATER DAY veloping countries by building low-cost know that this grim scene repeats Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, March 21 water filtration systems, installing la- itself all around our Nation, almost was the 21st anniversary of World trines to improve sanitation, and pro- every day. Statistics compiled by the Water Day. On this day, we call atten- viding hygiene education in local com- Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence tion to the centrality of water in our munities. show an indisputable correlation be- lives and communities, and we recog- We must also realize how much work tween domestic violence incidents and nize the vital work that must continue is still left to do in this area of devel- firearms: that, for instance, abused to ensure that every person has access opment, and understand that to tackle women are ‘‘five times more likely to to clean water and sanitation. 21st century problems we need innova- be killed by their abuser if the abuser The acute challenges in improving tive solutions. The release of the U.S. owns a firearm.’’ Other statistics indi- access to clean water and sanitation in Agency for International Develop- cate that domestic violence assaults developing countries are well known. ment’s new water strategy last year involving a gun are ‘‘23 times more Nearly 800 million people lack clean was an important step, especially with likely to result in death’’ than those water and more than 2 billion people its focus on sustainability and en- involving other weapons, and that over are without basic sanitation. In a hanced monitoring and evaluation of ‘‘two-thirds of spouse and ex-spouse world of increasing water scarcity and projects. homicide victims in a 28-year span climate unpredictability, the risks as- I will continue to support USAID’s were killed with firearms.’’ And in 2011, sociated with an unstable water supply work to carry out its mission and the almost two-thirds of women killed with will only intensify. A wide assortment strategic objectives in the water strat- guns were killed by their intimate of global health and development chal- egy. More than $365 million was in- partners. lenges can be traced directly, or indi- cluded for WASH programs in the 2014 These sad figures show the impor- rectly, to a lack of access to clean omnibus appropriations bill that was tance of keeping firearms out of the water and integrated water resource signed into law on January 17. Con- hands of domestic abusers. But all too management. gress should also pass the Water for the often, our Nation’s system to prevent In recent years, the depth and perva- World Act, which would give USAID such dangerous individuals from get- siveness of these problems have gained additional tools to address these crit- ting guns fails. It failed in the case of increasing attention. In 2000, the U.S. ical issues. Christen Naujoks, a student at the Uni- signed the Millennium Development Lastly, I want to highlight the theme versity of North Carolina. For a brief Goals, one of which seeks to halve the of this year’s World Water Day, which time in 2004, Ms. Naujoks dated an- number of people without access to is ‘‘water and energy.’’ The links be- other student, John Peck, before end- clean water and basic sanitation by tween water and energy cannot be ig- ing the relationship. Mr. Peck had pre- 2015. This attention has also led to the nored. Nearly eight percent of all glob- viously been convicted of sexually as- formation of international partner- al energy is used to transport, pump, saulting another woman, and as a re- ships such as Water and Sanitation for and treat water for a variety of con- sult was legally prohibited from pur- All in 2012, of which the United States sumers, while energy generation and chasing a gun. This didn’t stop him, is an active member. As projections transmission also requires massive however, from exploiting a loophole in stand now, the MDG clean water target water resources. With more than a bil- current law that allows individuals to has already been met while there is lion people also lacking access to elec- purchase guns from private sellers’ still a long way to go in reaching the tricity, we need to address both these without undergoing a background sanitation goal by 2015. issues together. check. Mr. Peck bought an assault rifle The United States has long been a World Water Day reminds us how for- from a private seller, and on June 4, leader in supporting efforts to improve tunate we are in the United States to 2004, murdered Ms. Naujoks by shoot- global access to water, sanitation, and be able to turn on a faucet and have ing her 11 times in front of her apart- hygiene (WASH) and water resource clean water, because for many hun- ment building. Three days later, Mr. VerDate Mar 15 2010 03:18 Apr 01, 2014 Jkt 039060 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 4637 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G31MR6.048 S31MRPT1 smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with SENATE March 31, 2014 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S1867 Peck committed suicide during a police participating in the ice dancing trained within their grasp. As one Olympic fig- shootout. in metro Detroit in one of three rinks: ure skater so aptly put it, ‘‘To be able There is legislation pending before the Detroit Skating Club, Novi Ice to come up here and feel stiff and white the Senate that, if enacted, could pre- Arena, and Arctic Edge in Canton, as a ghost but stare fear in the face is vent future convicted domestic abusers which is where the Gold and Silver what I’m all about.’’ That’s the true from evading background checks to Medal teams trained. This reflects the Olympic spirit we tune in to watch, buy murder weapons. These bills could level of coaching and talent that re- and that is a fitting way to describe be the critical difference in preventing sides in Michigan.