Read Senator Lugar's statement on the death of Pope John Paul II

Numbers & Notables
***March 2005***

Dear Friends:

As always, thank you for subscribing to the Lugar Letter and for following my events here in Washington.

During the past month, I met with Thomas (Trey) Dunn, III of Jay County and Brittany Lechner of Daviess County and their families in our Washington, D.C. Senate office. Trey and Brittany were the boy and girl winners of the 2004-2005 Dick Lugar/Indiana Farm Bureau/Farm Bureau Insurance Companies Youth Essay Contest for 8th grade students. This year's essay contest theme was "The Perfect Pizza Begins on Hoosier Farms." Trey and Brittany were challenged to plan a healthy pizza meal with products grown on or originating from Indiana farms and to address the versatility and diversity of Hoosier agricultural products in an essay contest.

I was especially excited to visit with these remarkable young Hoosiers and proud of the way they represented Indiana.

As you have opportunities, please stay in touch.

Sincerely,

Richard G. Lugar United States Senator

Lugar Introduces Renewable Fuels Bill
Legislation Promotes the Use of Ethanol

On March 17, Senator Lugar, joined by a bi-partisan group of 19 Senators, introduced the Fuels Security Act of 2005. This legislation would more than double the production and use of domestic renewable fuels including ethanol, biodiesel and fuels produced from cellulosic biomass.

“This legislation would play a vital role in increasing America’s security because renewable fuels are a key component to energy independence for our country,” Lugar said. “Ethanol and biodiesel are premier, high performance fuels that have tremendous environmental benefits. This increase in production would significantly improve rural economies not only in my home state of Indiana, but also in all 50 states and around the world. In addition, it will spur investment in valuable infrastructure which is critical to the viability of a national renewable fuels system.”

Specifically, this bill would require the use of 4 billion gallons of renewable fuels per year in 2006 increasing to 8 billion gallons per year by 2012. Thereafter the requirements may be increased based on the nation’s production and use of these fuels, as well as consideration of our economy and environment. It also encourages Federal agencies to use ethanol and biodiesel in their fleet vehicles. In 2004 more than 185 billion gallons of transportation fuel was consumed in the U.S.

As former chairman of the Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee, Lugar initiated a biofuels research program to help decrease U.S. dependency on foreign oil. He co-authored “The New Petroleum” in Foreign Affairs with former CIA Director James Woolsey extolling the need to accelerate the use of ethanol, especially that derived from cellulose, in a time of relatively low fuel prices. He authored and passed the Biomass Research and Development Act of 2000, which remains the nation’s premier legislation guiding renewable fuels research. Lugar also has co-authored and supported legislation to dramatically increase the use of renewable fuels in all U.S. vehicles.

Lugar is also a member of the Ethanol Across America Advisory Committee. Ethanol Across America is a non-profit, non-partisan education campaign of the Clean Fuels Foundation and is engaged in a wide variety of education and outreach activities in support of ethanol.

Read “The New Petroleum” by Senator Dick Lugar and former CIA Director James Woolsey.

New Lugar Disarmament Initiative Approved

In March, the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee unanimously approved the Lugar Disarmament Initiative, introduced by Chairman Dick Lugar.

The amendment was the major new initiative added to the Foreign Affairs Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 2006 and 2007. The committee approved the over all $34 billion bill for operations of the State Department and Foreign Assistance by a vote of 18-0.

The Lugar Disarmament Initiative is modeled on the original Nunn-Lugar Act of 1991. “The purpose is to provide the Department of State with a focused response to the threat posed by vulnerable stockpiles of conventional weapons around the world that could be used by terrorists to attack us at home and abroad. In addition to the direct threats these weapons pose, it is clear that proliferation of these systems prove to be major obstacles to peace, reconstruction and economic development in regions suffering from conflict and instability,” Lugar said.

“In August, I visited Albania, Ukraine and Georgia. Each of these countries has large stockpiles of tactical missile systems, MANPADS and other conventional arms and has requested U.S. assistance in destroying them. Large, insecure stockpiles also exist throughout South America, Africa and Asia.

“This legislation is intended to develop a response that is commensurate with the threat. Today neither the policy nor the implementation exists at the appropriate level,” Lugar continued. “It is time the United States got busy removing these threats. This legislation is the first step in the right direction and identifies $20 million in the Nonproliferation, Antiterrorism, and Disarmament Account for these purposes,” Lugar said.

Senators Domenici (R-NM), Hagel (R-NE), Biden (D-DE), Boxer (D-CA) and Obama (D-IL) cosponsored the initiative.

Since Lugar and former Sen. Sam Nunn (D-GA) authored the program in 1991, Nunn-Lugar has deactivated 6,564 nuclear warheads in the former Soviet Union. It has employed more than 58,000 former weapons scientists in peaceful work. Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan are nuclear free as a result of the program. Lugar also passed legislation to use the program outside the former Soviet Union. Last October Albania became the first such cooperative effort, to secure and destroy chemical weapons there.

Lugar Urges Protection of Indiana “Do-Not-Call” Law

On March 14, Senator Lugar sent a letter to the Federal Communications Commission to express opposition to the petition filed by the Consumer Bankers Association (CBA) with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on November 19, 2004. This petition asks the Commission to issue a declaratory ruling preempting sections of Indiana’s Telephone Privacy law.

“Indiana’s Do-Not-Call program is the most utilized consumer protection law in the history of the state, and our constituents are contacting us on a daily basis to express their dismay that their rights under this law might be abrogated,” wrote Lugar and in a joint letter with Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) to the FCC.

The CBA’s petition specifically requests that the FCC preempt Indiana’s laws to the extent that they prohibit telemarketing calls to persons and entities with which the caller has an established business relationship.

Under federal rules established in the fall of 2003, such a relationship is renewed and calls can be made for 18 months after routine transactions such as using a credit card or paying a bill. Indiana’s law, however, provides greater privacy protections and allows consumers to largely chose which businesses are permitted to solicit them by phone.

Indiana “Do-Not-Call” provisions also protect against solicitations from a company who received an inquiry from a consumer up to three months ago and from telemarketers who know the consumer personally.

The Indiana General Assembly passed state Telephone Privacy law in 2001, with enforcement beginning in January 2002. Currently, more than 3.6 million Hoosiers, or 59% of all residents, enjoy its protections.

“We urge the Commission to move at a deliberate and measured pace as it considers the interests not only of the people of Indiana, but of all Americans who are currently afforded greater protections than those provided at the federal level,” wrote Lugar and Bayh.

Preemption of Indiana’s law is likely to have a similar impact on the residents of thirty-five other states who currently benefit from similar state-initiated protections.

Legislative Update

Lugar Co-sponsors Alzheimer’s Breakthrough Act

On March 10, Senator Lugar co-sponsored the Ronald Reagan Alzheimer’s Breakthrough Act. This bill would support research on how to prevent the disease, how to care for people who have Alzheimer’s and promote initiatives to support those who are caregivers.

“Alzheimer’s is a very unpredictable and troubling disease,” Lugar said. “While currently there is no cure, significant advances recently have been made toward finding one. This bill seeks to provide more help to caregivers and increase public education about prevention.”

The Alzheimer’s Breakthrough Act would double funds for Alzheimer’s research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The bill also calls for a National Alzheimer’s Summit to look at priorities for moving research forward and would provide tax credits for families caring for a loved one with a chronic condition like Alzheimer’s.

Lugar Celebrates “Read Across America Day”

Senator Lugar joined in acknowledging the National Education Association’s Read Across America Day on Wednesday, March 2. NEA’s Read Across America is an annual reading awareness program that encourages children across the nation to celebrate reading while marking the national commemoration of Dr. Seuss’s birthday.

“The ability to read is of utmost importance in an individual's life,” Lugar said. “In fact, if I could offer but one helpful hint to young Hoosiers hoping to better their odds for success in life, I would simply note the importance of thoughtful reading.”

Lugar is currently working on an education website that will explore issues faced by parents, teachers and students. The purpose of EducateIndiana is to share constructive ideas about education and offer students, parents, teachers and administrators education tools that can be used both inside and outside the classroom.

If you have ideas for content, please contact educateindiana@lugar.senate.gov.

Lugar Co-sponsors Great Lakes Restoration Act

Senator Lugar co-sponsored the Great Lakes Environmental Restoration Act, which would fund one project in each of the Great Lake states per year. The bill stipulates that these projects result in tangible improvements in the Great Lakes watershed and address at least one of the priority issues identified by the Great Lakes Environmental Restoration Advisory Board created by the bill.

“During my tenure in the Senate, I have supported funds for many worthwhile efforts aimed at preserving the natural beauty and vibrancy of our Great Lakes,” Lugar said. “I support ongoing research efforts that help us understand more about what needs to be done to reduce harmful pollutants, address low water levels and preserve marine life throughout the system. I will continue to join with my Senate colleagues from Great Lakes states to support funding to continue several federal programs that focus on environmental protection of the Lakes.”

If enacted, the bill would authorize $600 million per year for the program through 2013. Senator Lugar co-sponsored similar legislation in the 108th Congress.

Lugar Leads with Health Legislation

Senator Lugar introduced legislation on March 16 that would strengthen the scientific base of health promotion information in this country. The bill, Health Promotion FIRST (Funding Integrated Research, Synthesis and Training) Act, is designed to help Americans stay healthy.

The Health Promotion FIRST Act would build the foundation for a stable coordinated strategy to develop the basic and applied science of health promotion, synthesize research results and disseminate findings to researchers, practitioners and policy makers.

“This legislation can offer us the chance help Americans live a healthier life,” said Lugar, a long-time runner. “Information is a key in living a healthy lifestyle. This bill will allow for additional research, collection, and dissemination of critical information, so individuals, as well as scientists and policy makers, will have the best information upon which to build their health promotion activities.”

Lugar Re-introduces Bill to Limit Amateur Sports Liability

Senator Lugar joined fellow Hoosier Rep. Mark Souder in re-introducing the Nonprofit Athletic Organization Protection Act of 2005. This bill would limit the liability of non-profit, volunteer organizations that organize sports events and leagues.

Groups such as the Boys and Girls Club, the National Council of Youth Sports, the National Federation of State High School Associations, and others exist largely to establish rules in order to minimize the risk of injury children face while participating in sports. However, regardless of how well these organizations perform their work, participants still risk injury.

Lawsuits may be maintained if the rule-maker was grossly negligent or engaged in criminal or reckless misconduct.

Lugar Introduces Resolution to Designate “Holocaust Commemoration Week”

U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Dick Lugar introduced a resolution designating the week of May 1, 2005, as “Holocaust Commemoration Week.”

This legislation would commemorate the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II and the liberation of the concentration camps. It would encourage Americans to commemorate the anniversary through reflection, acts of caring and education about the consequences of the Holocaust.

“The Holocaust is a horrific reminder to the world of the dangers inherent in racism and prejudice,” said Lugar. “I hope this resolution will help promote a sensitivity for diversity and tolerance and an awareness that will prevent similar injustices from happening again.”

“Holocaust Commemoration Week” coincides with Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day, on May 6, 2005.

Lugar Pays Tribute to International Women’s Day

Senator Lugar joined in acknowledging International Women’s Day on March 8. In recognition of the inequalities facing women, Lugar co-sponsored a resolution declaring today International Women’s Day and introduced the Protection of Vulnerable Populations During Humanitarian Emergencies Act of 2005.

“On this day we acknowledge the inequities continuing to face women around the globe. In many places in the world, discrimination continues to deny women and girls full political and economic equality. The lives and health of women and girls continue to be endangered by violence that is directed at them simply because they are female,” said Lugar.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee supported Lugar’s bill as an amendment to the Foreign Affairs Authorization Act for fiscal years 2006 and 2007. The authorization bill was approved 8-0.

As a part of Lifetime Television’s 4th Annual “Stop Violence Against Women Week,” Lugar also co-hosted a special event to commemorate International Women’s Day with Senator Joe Biden (D-DE) and Hillary Clinton (D-NY).

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Hearing on the EU Arms Embargo on China

On March 16 the Senate Foreign Relations Committee met to examine the European Union’s arms embargo against the People’s Republic of China. This embargo was imposed, along with a similar one by the United States, in 1989 in response to the brutal crackdown on peaceful demonstrators in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. But now European officials have indicated that the E.U. plans to lift its embargo.

“As I have said before, this is a mistake,” Lugar said. “President Bush, on his recent European trip, has personally expressed his ‘deep concern’ about these plans. Republicans and Democrats in Congress share this view. Rarely have Congress and the President, Republicans and Democrats, been so united against a proposal made by our European friends”

Senator Lugar favors engaging China in ways that open China’s markets to agricultural and other goods, help China assume a responsible place in world affairs and in the region, aid the fight against terrorism, improve the lives of its people, and promote religious freedom and democracy. Lifting the arms embargo advances none of these goals.