IV 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 1472 
Supporting international health and education grant programs related to 
autism spectrum disorders. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 22, 2008 
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. DOYLE, Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN, Mr. 
CONYERS, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. BURTON of Indiana, Ms. BORDALLO, Mr. 
MORAN of Virginia, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, Mrs. MALONEY of New 
York, 
Mr. 
MCGOVERN, 
Mr. 
FORTENBERRY, 
Mr. 
WOLF, 
Mr. 
FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. PAYNE, and Mr. FORTUN˜O) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
RESOLUTION 
Supporting international health and education grant 
programs related to autism spectrum disorders. 
Whereas the occurrence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) 
in the United States has increased during the past dec-
ade from an estimated one in 500 to an estimated one 
in 150, according to data released by the Centers for Dis-
ease Control and Prevention (CDC) in February 2007; 
Whereas autism is a complex neurological disorder that af-
fects an individual in the areas of social interaction and 
communication and, in some cases, the individual may 
both experience biomedical problems and exhibit aggres-
sive or self-injurious behavior; 
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•HRES 1472 IH 
Whereas autism is a spectrum disorder that affects each indi-
vidual differently and to varying degrees of severity, and 
people with autism process and respond to information in 
unique ways; 
Whereas the increased number of children diagnosed with au-
tism is a growing and urgent concern for families, 
healthcare professionals, and educators, as the health and 
education systems struggle to respond to the needs of 
this population in a comprehensive manner; 
Whereas in a November 2007 report on the identification, 
evaluation, and management of children with autism, the 
American Academy of Pediatrics recommended that all 
children should be screened for autism twice before they 
reach the age of two, even if they have no symptoms, due 
to ‘‘evidence that early intensive intervention may result 
in substantially better outcomes’’; 
Whereas in the United States, significant efforts are being 
pursued to expand early diagnosis and the provision of 
intensive and appropriate educational services to children 
before age five that can provide children with significant 
functional improvements; 
Whereas the prevalence of autism in developing countries is 
growing rapidly, including, for example, an estimated 
2,500,000 people with an autism spectrum disorder in 
China, and an estimated 2,000,000 such persons in 
India; 
Whereas health systems in most developing countries are par-
ticularly ill-equipped to diagnose and treat autism, in-
cluding early screening, and the education systems lack 
trained instructors and specialized services to address the 
needs of both autistic children and adults; 
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•HRES 1472 IH 
Whereas there is also a critical need for services for adults 
with autism, including job training; and 
Whereas United States expertise in autism could significantly 
assist children and adults with autism and their families 
in developing countries for relatively low costs: Now, 
therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) encourages the Administrator of the United 
States Agency for International Development (in 
this Resolution referred to as the ‘‘Adminstrator’’) 
to establish and administer a health and education 
grant program to be known as the ‘‘Global Autism 
Assistance Program’’ to— 
(A) support activities by nongovernmental 
organizations and other service providers, in-
cluding advocacy groups, focused on autism in 
developing countries; and 
(B) establish a ‘‘teach the teachers’’ pro-
gram to train health and education profes-
sionals working with children and adults with 
autism in developing countries; 
(2) further encourages the Administrator, in 
consultation with knowledgeable autism organiza-
tions such as the World Autism Organization, the 
Autism Society of America, and Autism Speaks, to 
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•HRES 1472 IH 
designate not fewer than two regions in developing 
countries that are determined to— 
(A) require assistance in addressing au-
tism; and 
(B) have sufficient familiarity with issues 
related to autism to make an effective use of 
the Global Autism Assistance Program; 
(3) further encourages the Administrator to se-
lect and award a grant to a nongovernmental organi-
zation (in this Resolution referred to as ‘‘imple-
menting nongovernmental organization’’) with expe-
rience in autism-related issues to implement the 
Global Autism Assistance Program through selection 
and awarding of grants to local service providers and 
advocacy groups focused on autism within the des-
ignated regions; 
(4) encourages the implementing nongovern-
mental organization to establish a screening board to 
be known as the ‘‘Project Advisory Board’’, includ-
ing at least seven voting members who are members 
of autism advocacy groups, professionals working 
with autism, or experts otherwise associated with the 
autism community, and at least two parents from 
different families of individuals with autism, one 
medical professional working with individuals with 
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•HRES 1472 IH 
autism, one teacher of individuals with autism, and 
one individual who has autism, to review grant ap-
plications from local service providers or advocacy 
groups for content and appropriateness, and efforts 
should be made to ensure objectivity and balance on 
the part of those serving on the Project Advisory 
Board, to reduce the potential for conflicts of inter-
est, to ensure a broad spectrum of viewpoints, and 
to include individuals with experience working in the 
developing world; 
(5) encourages the Project Advisory Board to 
award grants for projects or programs that pro-
vide— 
(A) public service announcements and 
other public media to educate the public about 
the signs of autism so that children with autism 
can be diagnosed and treated at the earliest 
stages; 
(B) resources for families, such as online 
web resource centers in local languages, dis-
semination of materials to parents of newly di-
agnosed children such as information contained 
in the Center for Disease Control and Preven-
tion’s publication entitled ‘‘Learn the Signs, 
Act Early’’, and dissemination of educational 
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•HRES 1472 IH 
aids and guides to help parents with their autis-
tic children’s development; 
(C) funding for schools or other edu-
cational institutions, focusing on teachers of the 
youngest students, and including the distribu-
tion of specialized equipment and informational 
materials; and 
(D) funding for health clinics and medical 
centers with proven records in addressing au-
tism to support their diagnostic and treatment 
efforts, including assistance with operating ex-
penses, personnel, facilities, related supplies, 
the development of autism assessment testing, 
and acquisition of specialized equipment includ-
ing augmentative communication devices; and 
(6) further encourages the implementing non-
governmental organization, acting on behalf of the 
Administrator, in consultation with the Project Advi-
sory Board, to establish a program, to be known as 
the ‘‘Teach the Teachers Program’’, to— 
(A) identify health and education profes-
sionals to receive specialized training for teach-
ing and working with youth with autism, in-
cluding training conducted in two- or three-day 
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•HRES 1472 IH 
workshops at locations within one of the two re-
gions designated by the Administrator; and 
(B) conduct training through two- or 
three-day biomedical conferences in the two des-
ignated regions, including bringing medical and 
psychological specialists from the United States 
to train and educate parents and health profes-
sionals who deal with autism, including training 
related to biomedical interventions that can af-
fect autism, how nutrition and various meta-
bolic issues can impact behavior, the role of ap-
plied behavioral analysis, and various occupa-
tional and speech therapies in fighting autism. 
Æ 
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