Charlie Bass' Capitol Link
Linking Granite Staters to the Nation’s Capitol

Vol. 7 No. 23 - Week of September 22, 2006

WEEKLY SPOTLIGHT

HOUSE PASSES THE FEDERAL ELECTION INTEGRITY ACT

 

This week, the House voted to approve H.R. 4844, the Federal Election Integrity Act by a vote of 229 to 196.  The bill intends to address election fraud concerns by requiring all voters to provide qualified government-issued photo IDs at the polls. It would also establish a provisional ballot system for all contested voters who are unable to comply with the requirements at the time of voting. Although I certainly support preventing voter fraud, the proposed legislation posed too many logistical and procedural questions that were unsatisfactorily answered by the time the vote was put to before the full House.

I was pleased to work with the New Hampshire Attorney General's Office and the Secretary of State’s Office while considering the impacts on our state and ultimately was unable to support this well intended legislation.

I particularly was concerned that the bill effectively nationalized our voting system under an “one-size-fits-all approach.” For New Hampshire, this would mean that our same-day voting registration system would have to be drastically altered to comply with both the identification requirements and the provisional ballots.

Future efforts must be protective of New Hampshire’s role in setting election laws and should guarantee also ensure that every eligible resident has the opportunity to participate in our democratic process.

 

“ Future efforts must be protective of New Hampshire’s role in setting election laws and should guarantee also ensure that every eligible resident has the opportunity to participate in our democratic process. ”

WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS

HOUSE PASSES IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT AND BORDER SECURITY BILLS

 

The House also passed support three immigration bills that would strengthening our enforcement capacity and toughen our border security laws, including:  the Border Tunnel Prevention Act (H.R. 4830), the Community Protection Act (H.R. 6094), and the Immigration Law Enforcement Act (H.R. 6095). Most of the provisions in these three bills had already been passed by the House in other existing legislation, but none have received any final action in the Senate.

In particular, the measures would reaffirm the authority of state and local law enforcement to enforce immigration laws, end "catch and release" practices, enact significant criminal penalties regarding the construction of unauthorized tunnels across an international border, and expedite the removal of certain criminal aliens.  In each case, I have supported these measures numerous times and believe they are vital to our national security.

SEEKING LOCAL YOUNG ENVIROMENTAL LEADERS

 

I am looking for outstanding examples of local environmental leadership from Granite State K- 12 students. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is now accepting nomination for the 2006 President’s Environmental Youth Award.

This award has been presented annually since 1971 to honor students in kindergarten through 12th grade who develop projects that help protect local environments and promote local environmental awareness in their communities. I encourage all students in New Hampshire who have been active in promoting a cleaner environment to apply. I also hope that students, parents, and educators who are aware of someone doing this community service will encourage them to apply.

Please download an application for this year’s award or be in touch with my Concord office at 226-0249 for more information. Examples of the past winners and other information can be found on the EPA's Environmental Education website.

EXPANDING HOPE THROUGH ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FOR THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

 

This week, the House Energy and Commerce Committee marked up a very important piece of health legislation, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Reauthorization Act. The NIH is unquestionably among the world’s premier institutions dedicated to fostering fundamental creative discoveries, innovative research strategies, and their applications as a basis to advance significantly our capacity to protect and improve health.

As a member of this committee, I was pleased that we were able to move forward and report this initiative that will help lead to breakthroughs and advancements in treatments, prevention and care to the full House for floor consideration.  The bill would make structural and administrative changes to the NIH in order to ensure that scientists and doctors are able to explore new opportunities that may lead to new understanding of and cures for many diseases.

The NIH budget would increase by 5% annually for fiscal years 2007 through 2009, and we would establish a "common fund" to cross subsidize research that involves multiple NIH institutes or centers. In addition, the legislation would establish a review board to examine the structure of NIH and would require the agency to implement an electronic system to track research grants that will result in better transparency.

During the mark up for this bill, I was also pleased to support an amendment that would have required the NIH to directly fund research into the connection between breast cancer and the environment.  As a leading advocate for finding a cure for breast - and all other cancers - and a strong proponent for environmental health, I was saddened to see this amendment defeated.  Nevertheless, I am encouraged that the overall legislation will have a tremendously positive impact on research throughout the medical community, and I look forward to supporting this bill when it comes before the full House.

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