III 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. CON. RES. 36 

Expressing support for the goal of ensuring that all Holocaust victims live 

with dignity, comfort, and security in their remaining years, and urging 

the Federal Republic of Germany to reaffirm its commitment to that 

goal through a financial commitment to comprehensively address the 

unique health and welfare needs of vulnerable Holocaust victims, including home care and other medically prescribed needs. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 21, 2016 

Mr. NELSON (for himself and Ms. COLLINS) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Expressing support for the goal of ensuring that all Holocaust victims live with dignity, comfort, and security 

in their remaining years, and urging the Federal Republic of Germany to reaffirm its commitment to that goal 

through a financial commitment to comprehensively address the unique health and welfare needs of vulnerable 

Holocaust victims, including home care and other medically prescribed needs. 

Whereas the annihilation of 6,000,000 Jews during the Holocaust and the murder of millions of others by the Nazi 

German state constitutes one of the most tragic and heinous crimes in human history; 


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•SCON 36 IS 

Whereas hundreds of thousands of Jews survived persecution 

by the Nazi regime despite being imprisoned, subjected to 

slave labor, moved into ghettos, forced to live in hiding 

or under false identity or curfew, or required to wear the 

‘‘yellow star’’; 

Whereas in fear of the oncoming Nazi Einsatzgruppen, or 

‘‘Nazi Killing Squads’’, and the likelihood of extermination, hundreds of thousands of Jewish Nazi victims 

fled for their lives; 

Whereas whatever type of persecution suffered by Jews during the Holocaust, the common thread that binds Holocaust victims is that they were targeted for extermination 

and they lived with a constant fear for their lives and the 

lives of their loved ones; 

Whereas Holocaust victims immigrated to the United States 

from Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, and the 

former Soviet Union between 1933 and the date of adoption of this resolution; 

Whereas it is estimated that there are at least 100,000 Holocaust victims living in the United States and approximately 500,000 Holocaust victims living around the 

world, including child survivors of the Holocaust; 

Whereas tens of thousands of Holocaust victims are at least 

80 years old, and the number of surviving Holocaust victims is diminishing; 

Whereas at least 50 percent of Holocaust victims alive today 

will pass away within the next decade, and those living 

victims are becoming frailer and have increasing health 

and welfare needs; 

Whereas Holocaust victims throughout the world continue to 

suffer from permanent physical and psychological injuries 


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and disabilities and live with the emotional scars of a systematic genocide against the Jewish people; 

Whereas many of the emotional and psychological scars of 

Holocaust victims are exacerbated in the old age of the 

Holocaust victims; 

Whereas the past haunts and overwhelms many aspects of 

the lives of Holocaust victims when their health fails 

them; 

Whereas Holocaust victims suffer particular trauma when 

their emotional and physical circumstances force them to 

leave the security of their homes and enter institutional 

or other group living residential facilities; 

Whereas tens of thousands of Holocaust victims live in poverty and cannot afford, and do not receive, sufficient 

medical care, home care, mental health care, medicine, 

food, transportation, and other vital life-sustaining services that allow individuals to live their final years with 

comfort and dignity; 

Whereas Holocaust victims often lack family support networks and require social worker-supported case management in order to manage their daily lives and access government-funded services; 

Whereas in response to a letter sent by Members of Congress 

to the Minister of Finance of Germany in December 

2015 relating to increased funding for Holocaust victims, 

German officials acknowledged that ‘‘recent experience 

has shown that the care financed by the German Government to date is insufficient’’ and that ‘‘it is imperative 

to expand these assistance measures quickly given the advanced age of many of the affected persons’’; 


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Whereas German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer acknowledged, 

in 1951, the responsibility of Germany to provide moral 

and financial compensation to Holocaust victims worldwide; 

Whereas every successive German Chancellor has reaffirmed 

that acknowledgment, including Chancellor Angela 

Merkel, who, in 2007, reaffirmed that ‘‘only by fully accepting its enduring responsibility for this most appalling 

period and for the cruelest crimes in its history, can Germany shape the future’’; and 

Whereas Congress believes it is the moral and historical responsibility of Germany to comprehensively, permanently, 

and urgently provide resources for the medical, mental 

health, and long-term care needs of all Holocaust victims: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 

2 concurring), That Congress— 

3 (1) acknowledges the financial and moral com4 mitment of the Federal Republic of Germany during 

5 the 7 decades prior to the date of adoption of this 

6 resolution to provide a measure of justice for Holo7 caust victims; 

8 (2) supports the goal of ensuring that all Holo9 caust victims in the United States and around the 

10 world are able to live with dignity, comfort, and se11 curity in their remaining years; 

12 (3) applauds the nonprofit organizations and 

13 agencies that work tirelessly to honor and assist 


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1 Holocaust victims in the communities of the non2 profit organizations and agencies; 

3 (4) acknowledges the ongoing process of nego4 tiations between the Federal Republic of Germany 

5 and the Conference on Jewish Material Claims 

6 Against Germany (referred to in this resolution as 

7 the ‘‘Claims Conference’’) in order to secure funding 

8 for Holocaust victims and for vital social services 

9 provided through nonprofit organizations and agen10 cies around the world; 

11 (5) acknowledges that the Federal Republic of 

12 Germany and the Claims Conference have estab13 lished a new high-level working group that will de14 velop proposals for extensive assistance for homecare 

15 and other social welfare needs of Holocaust victims; 

16 (6) urges the working group described in para17 graph (5) to recognize the imperative to immediately 

18 and fully fund medical, mental health, and long-term 

19 care needs of surviving Holocaust victims, with full 

20 transparency and accountability, to ensure all funds 

21 for Holocaust victims from the Federal Republic of 

22 Germany are administered efficiently, fairly, and 

23 without delay; and 


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1 (7) urges the Federal Republic of Germany to 

2 reaffirm its commitment to fulfill its moral responsi3 bility to Holocaust victims by— 

4 (A) ensuring that each Holocaust victim 

5 receives all of the prescribed medical care, home 

6 care, mental health care, and other vital serv7 ices necessary to live in dignity; and 

8 (B) providing, without delay, additional fi9 nancial resources to address the unique needs 

10 of Holocaust victims. 

Æ 


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