H. Con. Res. 84—41
(13) research sponsored by the National Institutes of Health
contributed to the development of a new, cost-saving cure for
peptic ulcers.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
this Resolution assumes that—
(1) appropriations for the National Institutes of Health
should be increased by 100 percent over the next 5 fiscal
years; and
(2) appropriations for the National Institutes of Health
should be increased by $2,000,000,000 in fiscal year 1998 over
the amount appropriated in fiscal year 1997.
SEC. 325. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING CERTAIN ELDERLY
LEGAL ALIENS.
It is the sense of the Senate that the provisions of this resolu-
tion assume that—
(1) the Committee on Finance will include in its rec-
ommendations to the Committee on the Budget of the Senate
changes in laws within the jurisdiction of the Committee on
Finance that allow certain elderly, legal immigrants who will
cease to receive benefits under the supplemental security
income program as a result of the Personal Responsibility and
Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (Public Law 104–
193; 110 Stat. 2105) to continue to receive benefits during
a redetermination or reapplication period to determine if such
aliens would qualify for such benefits on the basis of being
disabled; and
(2) the Committee on Finance in developing these rec-
ommendations should offset the additional cost of this proposal
out of other programs within the jurisdiction of the Committee
on Finance.
SEC. 326. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING RETROACTIVE TAXES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) in general, the practice of increasing a tax retroactively
is fundamentally unfair to taxpayers; and
(2) retroactive taxation is disruptive to families and small
business in their ability to plan and budget.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
the levels in this budget resolution assume that—
(1) except for closing tax loopholes, no revenues should
be generated from any retroactively increased tax; and
(2) the Congress and the President should work together
to ensure that any revenue generating proposal contained
within reconciliation legislation pursuant to this concurrent
resolution proposal, except those proposals closing tax loopholes,
should take effect prospectively.
SEC. 327. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON SOCIAL SECURITY AND
BALANCING THE BUDGET.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) this budget resolution is projected to balance the unified
budget of the United States in fiscal year 2002;
(2) section 13301 of the Budget Enforcement Act of 1990
requires that the deficit be computed without counting the
annual surpluses of the Social Security Trust Funds; and
(3) if the deficit were calculated according to the require-
ments of section 13301, this budget resolution would be
H. Con. Res. 84—42
projected to result in a deficit of $108,700,000,000 in fiscal
year 2002.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
the assumptions underlying this budget resolution assume that
after balancing the unified Federal budget, the Congress should
continue efforts to reduce the on-budget deficit, so that the Federal
budget will be balanced without counting Social Security surpluses.
SEC. 328. SENSE OF THE SENATE SUPPORTING SUFFICIENT FUNDING
FOR VETERANS PROGRAMS AND BENEFITS.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) veterans and their families represent approximately
27 percent of the United States population;
(2) more than 20 million of our 26 million living veterans
served during wartime, sacrificing their freedom so that we
may have ours; and
(3) veterans have earned the benefits promised to them.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that—
(1) the assumptions underlying this Budget Resolution
assume that the 602(b) allocation to the Department of Veter-
ans Affairs will be sufficient in fiscal year 1998 to fully fund
all discretionary veterans programs, including medical care;
and
(2) funds collected from legislation to improve the Depart-
ment of Veterans Affairs’ ability to collect and retain reimburse-
ment from third-party payers ought to be used to supplement,
not supplant, an adequate appropriation for medical care.
SEC. 329. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON FAMILY VIOLENCE OPTION
CLARIFYING AMENDMENT.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds the following:
(1) Domestic violence is the leading cause of physical injury
to women. The Department of Justice estimates that over
1,000,000 violent crimes against women are committed by
intimate partners annually.
(2) Domestic violence dramatically affects the victim’s abil-
ity to participate in the workforce. A University of Minnesota
survey reported that 1⁄4 of battered women surveyed had lost
a job partly because of being abused and that over 1⁄2 of these
women had been harassed by their abuser at work.
(3) Domestic violence is often intensified as women seek
to gain economic independence through attending school or
training programs. Batterers have been reported to prevent
women from attending these programs or sabotage their efforts
at self-improvement.
(4) Nationwide surveys of service providers prepared by
the Taylor Institute of Chicago, Illinois, document, for the first
time, the interrelationship between domestic violence and wel-
fare by showing that from 34 percent to 65 percent of AFDC
recipients are current or past victims of domestic violence.
(5) Over 1⁄2 of the women surveyed stayed with their
batterers because they lacked the resources to support them-
selves and their children. The surveys also found that the
availability of economic support is a critical factor in poor
women’s ability to leave abusive situations that threaten them
and their children.
(6) The restructuring of the welfare programs may impact
the availability of the economic support and the safety net
H. Con. Res. 84—43
necessary to enable poor women to flee abuse without risking
homelessness and starvation for their families.
(7) In recognition of this finding, the Committee on the
Budget of the Senate in considering the 1997 Resolution on
the budget of the United States unanimously adopted a sense
of the Congress amendment concerning domestic violence and
Federal assistance. Subsequently, Congress adopted the family
violence option amendment as part of the Personal Responsibil-
ity and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996.
(8) The family violence option gives States the flexibility
to grant temporary waivers from time limits and work require-
ments for domestic violence victims who would suffer extreme
hardship from the application of these provisions. These waivers
were not intended to be included as part of the permanent
20 percent hardship exemption.
(9) The Department of Health and Human Services has
been slow to issue regulations regarding this provision. As
a result, States are hesitant to fully implement the family
violence option fearing that it will interfere with the 20 percent
hardship exemption.
(10) Currently 15 States have opted to include the family
violence option in their welfare plans, and 13 other States
have included some type of domestic violence provisions in
their plans.
(b) SENSE
OF SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
the provisions of this resolution assume that—
(1) States should not be subject to any numerical limits
in granting domestic violence good cause waivers under section
402(a)(7)(A)(iii) 
of 
the 
Social 
Security 
Act 
(42 
U.S.C.
602(a)(7)(A)(iii)) to individuals receiving assistance, for all
requirements where compliance with such requirements would
make it more difficult for individuals receiving assistance to
escape domestic violence; and
(2) any individual who is granted a domestic violence good
cause waiver by a State shall not be included in the States’
20 percent hardship exemption under section 408(a)(7) of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 608(a)(7)).
SEC. 330. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING ASSISTANCE TO AMTRAK.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) Amtrak is in a financial crisis, with growing and
substantial debt obligations approaching $2,000,000,000;
(2) Amtrak has not been authorized since 1994;
(3) the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation favorably reported legislation to reform Amtrak
during the last two Congresses, but no legislation was enacted;
(4) the Finance Committee favorably reported legislation
in the last Congress that created a dedicated trust fund for
Amtrak, but no legislation was enacted;
(5) in 1997 Amtrak testified before the Congress that it
cannot survive beyond 1998 without comprehensive legislative
reforms and a dedicated source of capital funding; and
(6) Congress is obligated to invest Federal tax dollars
responsibly and to reduce waste and inefficiency in Federal
programs, including Amtrak.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
the provisions of this resolution assume that—
H. Con. Res. 84—44
(1) legislative reform is urgently needed to address
Amtrak’s financial and operational problems;
(2) Congress should allocate additional Federal dollars to
Amtrak in conjunction with reforms requested by Amtrak to
address its precarious financial situation; and
(3) the distribution of money from any new fund to finance
an intercity rail passenger fund should be implemented in
conjunction with legislation to reauthorize and reform the
National Rail Passenger Corporation.
SEC. 331. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING THE PROTECTION OF
CHILDREN’S HEALTH.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate makes the following findings:
(1) Today’s children and the next generation of children
are the prime beneficiaries of a balanced Federal budget. With-
out a balanced budget, today’s children will bear the increasing
burden of the Federal debt. Continued deficit spending would
doom future generations to slower economic growth, higher
taxes, and lower living standards.
(2) The health of children is essential to the future economic
and social well-being of the Nation.
(3) The Medicaid Program provides health coverage for
over 17,000,000 children, or 1 out of every 4 children.
(4) While children represent 1⁄2 of all individuals eligible
for Medicaid, children account for less than 25 percent of
expenditures under the Medicaid Program.
(5) Disproportionate share hospital (DSH) funding under
the Medicaid Program has allowed States to provide health
care services to thousands of uninsured pregnant women and
children. DSH funding under the Medicaid Program is critical
for these populations.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
the provisions of this resolution assume that the health care needs
of low-income pregnant women and children should be a top priority.
Careful study must be made of the impact of Medicaid dispropor-
tionate share hospital (DSH) reform proposals on children’s health
and on vital sources of care, including children’s hospitals. Any
restrictions on DSH funding under the Medicaid Program should
not harm State Medicaid coverage of children and pregnant women.
SEC. 332. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON DEPOSITING ALL FEDERAL
GASOLINE TAXES INTO THE HIGHWAY TRUST FUND.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate makes the following findings:
(1) Since 1956, Federal gasoline excise tax revenues have
generally been deposited in the Highway Trust Fund and
reserved for transportation uses.
(2) In 1993, Congress and the President enacted the first
permanent increase in the Federal gasoline excise tax which
was dedicated to general revenues, not the Highway Trust
Fund.
(3) Over the next five years, approximately $7,000,000,000
per year in Federal gasoline excise tax revenues will be depos-
ited in the general fund of the Treasury, rather than the
Highway Trust Fund.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Senate that
the provisions in this resolution assume that Congress should in