November 15, 2002 - PCOL Exclusive: House of Representatives adjourns without passing Peace Corps Bill
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November 15, 2002 - PCOL Exclusive: House of Representatives adjourns without passing Peace Corps Bill
House of Representatives adjourns without passing Peace Corps Bill
Read and comment on this exclusive story from our correspondents who have been following the Peace Corps bill in Congress on the status of passage of the bill in the House of Representatives. Unfortunately, the House adjourned without passing the Peace Corps bill. We will keep the RPCV community informed here in Breaking News of the status of the bill in the new Congress which meets in January. Read the story at:
House of Representatives adjourns without passing Peace Corps Bill*
* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.
House of Representatives adjourns without passing Peace Corps Bill
The last chance to pass the Peace Corps bill this legislative session was the evening of November 14 before the House of Representatives adjourned this year as the lame duck session finished.
Senator Dodd's compromise bill (S 2667) which was passed in the Senate on October 16, had been sent to the House for consideration. Many people including RPCVs, members of Congress, and staff worked hard on getting a compromise bill onto the Unanimous Consent list offered by Majority Leader Armey. However, despite support from the Senate, RPCV Members of the House, the Bush Administration, and the Peace Corps, the Majority party objected to the bill which kept it from being included on the list.
Returned Volunteers must now regroup. The House International Relations Committee staff is working on a draft bill for the next Congress. In all likelihood, hearings will be held on the issue which will give RPCVs an opportunity to express their views on what should be included in the Peace Corps Reauthorization.
Everyone is disappointed with the outcome, but look forward to working on this issue next year.
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This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Peace Corps - Congress
PCOL1422
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Regroup is right and start asking yourself why this bill is not good. We keep saying it and it will be reiterated. Two Volunteers at every site should be in the bill and legislation. There are many Congress persons who feel the safety issue is a huge concern with this bill. There is also a major problem with attrition at Peace Corps. These issues are not addressed in this bill on purpose. Many members know the folks back home aren't going to take it anymore. They are hearing the complaints. Personally, I told my Congressman directly to him and his wife, that I did not vote for him because he has not had hearings regarding Peace Corps policy on Safety and Attrition. Dodd and Farr and the other house members who are RPCV's and the NPCA should start paying attention to the real politik regarding Peace Corps. We love your efforts and support much of the bill if you had these provisions and helped our needs. I hope Marty Meehan speaks on the issue of Safety in the next session. It is vital to the future of the program.
