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LIBERALS AND conservatives have learned from the drug war’s failures. More jail time may result in less crime, but the costs can be too high. Harsh punishments often catch street-corner dealers, not drug kingpins. The drug war’s foremost legacy is a skyrocketing prison population; the number of drug offenders in federal prisons has increased 21 times since 1980.
Spurred by this alarming reality, the U.S. Sentencing Commission unanimously voted last week to give nearly 50,000 inmates the chance to reduce their drug sentences. This came after an April decision to lower sentencing guidelines, the advisory rules given to judges, by an average of one to two years for drug-related crimes.
July 23, 2014
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Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5076, the Enhancing Services for Runaway and Homeless Victims of Youth Trafficking Act of 2014. I am honored to have joined my colleagues, Mr. Heck and Mr. Kline, and appreciate their leadership on this important issue.
Our bill makes an important change in the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act so that victims of trafficking can be better served. We know that trafficking and youth homelessness often affect similar populations. Young people that have run away or are homeless are particularly vulnerable to sexual exploitation and trafficking, and programs targeted towards runaway and homeless youth should be simultaneously equipped to support victims of trafficking when there is such an overlap.
Issues:Civil RightsCrimeJudiciary
July 23, 2014
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Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, Friday, July 25th, marks the 40th anniversary of the Legal Services Corporation, which was established by Congress in 1974, with bipartisan support, including that of President Richard Nixon. LSC is a private, nonprofit corporation, funded by Congress. Its mission is to ensure equal access to justice under the law for all Americans by providing civil legal assistance to those who otherwise would be unable to afford it. LSC funds 134 local legal aid programs, with nearly 800 offices serving every state and U.S. territory.
I have long been a supporter of legal assistance for low income Americans and of the LSC dating back to the 1970s, when I led the effort to establish the LSC funded Virginia Peninsula Legal Aid Center, Inc. So I know from first-hand experience that LSC-funded legal aid programs make a critical difference to low income Americans by assisting with their most basic civil legal needs.
Issues:Civil RightsJudiciary
July 23, 2014
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Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5135, the Human Trafficking Prevention, Intervention, and Recovery Act of 2014. This bill is vital to identifying best practices and effective strategies to deter individuals from committing trafficking offenses and to prevent children from becoming victims, and it, therefore, enjoys bipartisan support in the House.
This bill will encourage Federal, State, and local governments to work together as an Interagency Task Force to investigate and enforce the existing laws. This task force will emphasize prosecution of the purchasers of sex with children as child rapists. These purchasers are usually referred to as ``johns'' who pay for sex with children, but insofar as children cannot consent to sex, the johns are legally committing rape and should be prosecuted as rapists.
July 23, 2014
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Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4983, the Strengthening Transparency in Higher Education Act. It is critical that prospective students have access to information on institutions that they may be interested in attending, and the bill before us would provide the platform for these students to gather this information.
This information is essential to ensuring that students will be able to make an informed decision on which institution to attend.
Issues:Education
Coastal Virginians don’t need us to educate them about sea-level rise and recurrent flooding. They see with their own eyes how often severe flooding occurs in their region and they know that the number and intensity of these floods has increased when comparing past decades to today. That’s why they are coming together in a bipartisan, locally driven effort to work on this issue as a unified Hampton Roads community.
And that’s why we, as bipartisan members of Virginia’s congressional delegation, are part of that effort. Like the constituents we represent, we have different views on many national issues. But we are Virginians first, and our constituents have the right to expect us to find common ground on issues of importance to Virginia.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the United States Sentencing Commission voted unanimously to apply a reduction in the sentencing guideline levels applicable to most federal drug inmates retroactively. Unless Congress disapproves the amendment, beginning November 1, 2014, eligible inmates can ask courts to reduce their sentences. Courts will review a number of individualized factors, including public safety, in consideration of whether to grant these reductions.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a joint letter, U.S. Senators Mark Warner, Tim Kaine and U.S. Congressmen Bobby Scott, Randy Forbes, Scott Rigell and Rob Wittman urged Secretary of the Air Force Deborah James to consider Virginia’s Joint Base Langley-Eustis as a location for the future Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center (AFIMSC). Locating the new facility there would help minimize the impact of 742 positions being eliminated at Langley-Eustis as part of the Air Force’s consolidation plans announced this week.
“Virginia is more connected to the military than any other state,” the members wrote. “We believe the existing infrastructure, military-friendly environment, and close proximity to major commands and other Service installations, make it an ideal location for this headquarters.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. – A bipartisan group of House members today introduced legislation that would strengthen support for youth who are victims of sex trafficking. The proposed bills would improve identification and assessment of child sex trafficking victims and enhance existing support for runaway and homeless youth.
Issues:Civil RightsCrimeEducation
July 9, 2014
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Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. As our Nation continues to recover from the Great Recession, we must continue to prepare our Nation's workers for the jobs of the future.
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act will make long-needed improvements in workforce investment programs and services, including many that will benefit those who are often left behind. The legislation contains an enhanced definition of ``individuals with barriers to employment'' that explicitly includes workers over the age of 55 as well as the long-term unemployed. This means State and local workforce plans must include goals and strategies for serving these and other disenfranchised groups.
Issues:Economy and JobsEducation