Women make up 51 percent of the population, yet only 12 percent of the Members of Congress are women. Last year, in the wake of the Columbine tragedy, Congress voted down proposals to require background checks for sales at gun shows-where three out of four of the weapons used at Columbine were bought. A series of bills that would strengthen regulations against selling tobacco to minors are now stalled in congressional committees. Women are the fastest growing group in the U.S. in filing bankruptcy. The House and Senate have both passed bankruptcy reform bills that make it more difficult for women to collect child support.
Children are more vulnerable to the effects of pesticides than adults are.
Bills that would require schools to adopt safer pest control methods are stalled in the agriculture committees, where the members receive far more contributions, on average, from the pesticide industry, than their colleagues. In the Senate, Agriculture Committee members received nearly six times the average received by other senators over six years. On May 14, the Senate voted 48-47 on S.Amdt. No.344, in favor of background checks at gun shows that must be completed within 24 hours. The Dingell amendment, H.Amdt.215, would impose a 24-hour time for background checks at gun shows.