Reps. Miller, McCarthy Statement on President Signing Bill to Keep America’s Children and Communities Safe

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

WASHINGTON, DC -- U.S. Reps. George Miller (D-CA) and Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY) issued the following statement today after President George W. Bush signed the Protecting Our Children Comes First Act, legislation to reauthorize and fund federal missing and exploited children programs, including the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). The bill was authored by U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson (D-TX), the founder and chair of the Congressional Missing and Exploited Children's Caucus. Miller is the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee and McCarthy is the chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Healthy Families and Communities, which has jurisdiction over the legislation.

“One of the top priorities for this Congress has been to serve and protect the best interests of America’s children. Each year, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, with the help of law enforcement officers and federal agencies, helps recover missing and exploited children and spearheads efforts to battle the exploitation of children on the internet. This law will provide the program with the tools needed to continue this critical work and help make our neighborhoods and communities safer places for children and their families. Congressman Lampson, a longtime advocate for improving child safety, deserves great credit for helping get this bipartisan legislation to the President’s desk, and we thank him for his leadership in bringing attention to this issue over the years. Nothing matters more than keeping our children out of harm’s way, and this law is a fundamental part of our efforts to do just that.”

For more information on The Protecting Our Children Comes First Act (H.R. 2517), click here.

###

FOR PRESS INQUIRIES
Contact: Aaron Albright / Rachel Racusen
2181 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
202-226-0853