[edit] Education

• Educational Training

According to Senator Dodd's website, he is "a leading force in the Senate for increasing access to, and the amount of, the Pell Grant, as well as other funding for low-income students to attend school." He also supports loan forgiveness programs for students involved in public service careers after graduation.

In October 2009, Senator Dodd introduced a resolution designating Oct. 22nd as "Lights on Afterschool" Day and celebrating the important role afterschool programs play in youth development. This day is celebrated each October. According to Dodd (as quoted on his website): “(Afterschool) programs engage students in their communities and keep our children safe, paving the way for success in their educational endeavors. I am proud to join countless parents, students, teachers and communities in celebrating afterschool programs nationwide.”

Senator Dodd has also supported Head Start early childhood programs for many years, working to successfully reauthorize the program in 2007. This work has garnered him the recognition of national Head Start "Senator of the Decade."

• Educational Funding

Senator Dodd, according to the official statements on his webpage, believes in reforming No Child Left Behind so that underperforming schools are not punished with cuts in funding.

In February 2009, Sen. Dodd sponsored the ACTION Act (AmeriCorps: Together Improving Our Nation Act), which would make improvements in the educational awards for citizens engaged in national service, as well as the Summer Service Act, to make educational awards available to primarily low-income youth engaged in summer community service.

In June 2009, Sen. Dodd, along with Congressman Vernon Ehlers (R-MI), introduced the Standards to Provide Educational Achievement for Kids (SPEAK) Act. As a part of this act, NAGB, or the National Assessment Governing Board, would adopt voluntary standards for K-12 science and math education, and the American Standards Incentive Fund would be created to reward states who adopted these standards with funding. This bill parallels other efforts to establish common standards in math and language arts. According to Sen. Dodd, as quoted on his webpage: "“Core standards in math and science would provide an important step in ensuring that all American students are given the same opportunity to learn no matter where they reside... (I) look forward to passing the SPEAK Act to provide states with the incentives and resources needed to implement voluntary academic standards."

• Teaching Evolution/Intelligent Design
  • Nothing posted to date

[edit] Energy

• Clean Coal Technology
  • During consideration of the Renewable Fuels, Consumer Protection, and Energy Efficiency Act of 2007 (H.R. 6) in the Senate, two competing amendments regarding coal-to-liquid fuels were proposed. S. Amdt. 1628 would have provided a minimum standard in the amount of coal-to-liquid fuels to be used in "covered fuels" (aviation fuel, motor vehicle fuel, home heating oil, and boiler fuel) beginning in 2016. While the amendment mandated the clean coal fuel to emit 20% less life-cycle greenhouse gases than gasoline, opponents objected to the comparison of coal to liquid fuel as similar to gasoline. They argued that liquid fuels derived from coal are more similar to diesel-based fuel, and emit up to 150% more greenhouse gases than petroleum-based diesel fuel. S. Amdt. 1628 failed passage with a vote of 39-55. Senator Dodd did not vote on this amendment.
  • The competing amendment, Amdt. 1614, would have provided up to $10 billion worth of loans for projects that reduce carbon dioxide emissions from coal gasification (or other transformation processes) by at least 75% and ensure that greenhouse gas emissions are at least 20% below the conventional baseline. Challengers criticized the 75% sequestration requirement as too high and voiced concern that the loan money would end up disbursed to other projects (read the debate). S. Amdt. 1614 also was rejected, with a final tally of 33-61. Senator Dodd did not vote on this amendment.
• Fuel Economy Standards and Transportation

Sen. Dodd supports public funding of transportation systems, not only to limit congestion but also to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. On 08/05/09, at a Housing, Transportation, and Community Development Subcommittee hearing, Sen. Dodd advocated for federal funding of transit systems: "Transit is part of the solution to a wide variety of problems: skyrocketing energy costs, dangerous greenhouse gas emissions, frustrating traffic congestion, unsustainable land use policy, and even our current high unemployment rate are just some of them." in July 2009, he joined forces with others in the Connecticut delegation to advocate for prioritized funding for high-speed New England rail lines.

• • See discussion of H.R. 6 under the Renewable Energy section.
• Nuclear Power
  • Template:Vote-EnergyDeptAppropriations2010Senate
• Renewable Energy
  • See stimulus discussion under Innovation section.

Senator Dodd supports the development of renewable energy technologies to address the issue of climate change. According to the Senator's website, he "believes that we must act aggressively to combat climate change, which poses a serious threat to our nation’s economy, environment, and national security. Senator Dodd believes that a key component of tackling this challenge is to move our country towards the use of cleaner, renewable forms of energy such as wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, and fuel cells."

On 9/14/09, Sen. Dodd announced with Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-CT) that the state of Connecticut would receive over $11 million dollars to develop "green jobs" and energy efficiency programs. As posted on the Senator's website, “Today, we are reminded yet again that protecting our environment and creating jobs are not mutually exclusive – in fact, with the right investments, they can go hand in hand. This important funding will not only create hundreds of jobs for the people of Connecticut, but will help preserve our environment for future generations,” said Dodd.

• • After a lengthy debate in June of 2007, the Senate passed the Renewable Fuels, Consumer Protection, and Energy Efficiency Act of 2007 (H.R. 6), which seeks to increase America’s energy independence through the development of renewable fuels and the fostering of energy efficiency. The legislation would mandate the use of 36 billion gallons of renewable fuels by 2022, require an increase in the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards to 35 mpg by 2020, and establish a carbon capture and storage research program. Senator Dodd voted for the final version of H.R. 6, which passed with a vote of 65-27.
    
    In the face of a veto threat from President Bush, the House passed the Senate version of H.R. 6 with amendments by a vote of 235-181 on December 6, 2007.The final Senate rendering of the bill, which passed with a vote of 86-8, still included language raising CAFE standards to 35 mpg by 2020. Senator Dodd did not vote on the revised version of this bill. The final version of the bill passed in the House with a vote of 314-100 and was signed into law by President Bush on December 19, 2007.
    ** During debate of the Renewable Fuels, Consumer Protection, and Energy Efficiency Act of 2007 (H.R. 6), the Senate also passed S. Amdt. 1693. This amendment would revise the Clean Air Act to provide short-term and long-term studies on the effects of the increased use of renewable fuels on the environment. It also allows the administrator of the study to create regulations that would mitigate any negative effects on air quality that did occur as a result of the increased use of these fuels. The amendment passed with a vote of 58-34. Senator Dodd did not vote on S. Amdt. 1693. The amendment, however, did not make into the final version of H.R. 6, which was passed by the Senate on December 13, 2007.

[edit] Environment

• After the House failed to pass S. 22 under suspension of the rules (which requires 2/3 to vote for a provision, but does not allow any amendments), the Senate called an unrelated bill, (HR 146), to carry the omnibus land bill. The bill is a combination of over 150 public land bills and will designate over 2 million acres of land as wilderness, improve the management of currently protected land, establish new water projects, and more. Swapping the original legislation in HR 146 for the land bill was designed to make finalizing the bill in the House easy.
  
  When HR 146 was brought to the Senate, Sen. Coburn (R-OK) introduced several amendments, though only one passed:
  • Amendment 682: to make it less likely that casual stone collectors would run afoul of the criminal restrictions on taking paleontological fossils from federal land (passed)
  • Amendment 679: to strike provisions that would block renewable-energy development on public land
  • Amendment 680: to bar new construction in national parks until the Interior secretary certifies that current sites are up to date
  • Amendment 675: to stop federal officials from using the power of eminent domain to take land from citizens. Critics say this amendment was unnecessary as eminent domain would not be used in any lands included in the bill.
  • Amendment 683: to eliminate what Coburn considers to be "frivolous" projects and
  • Amendment 677: to require an annual report on the total size and cost of federal property.

The bill passed the Senate by a vote of 77-20 on March 19, 2009. Senator Dodd voted for this bill. It passed the House on March 25 and was signed into law by President Obama on March 30, 2009.

• On January 15, 2009, the Senate passed the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (S. 22). The bill is a combination of over 150 public land bills and will designate over 2 million acres of land as wilderness, improve the management of currently protected land, establish new water projects, and more. The Senate voted 73 to 21 to pass S. 22. Senator Dodd voted for this bill. The bill then moved to the House where it failed passage on March 11, 2009.

[edit] Arctic National WIldlife Refuge

In a 2001 press release, Senator Dodd said that It is absolutely wrong to try to plunder the priceless natural treasure that is the Alaskan wilderness."

[edit] Climate Change

• With a vote of 51-42 the Senate rejected S. Amdt 1094 to the Water Resources Development Act of 2007 (H.R. 1495). This amendment would have required the Army Corp of Engineers to account for the long-term and short-term effects of global climate change in all feasibility studies or reevaluation reports. Supporters of S. Amdt. 1094 focused especially on the dangers associated with increased hurricane intensity and rising sea levels. Opponents criticized the amendment as being too expensive to implement and refuted any relationship between hurricane intensity and global warming (read the floor debate). Senator Dodd voted for this amendment.

[edit] Health

• See stimulus discussion under Innovation section.

Senator Dodd is a senior member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

• Health Legislation
  • According to an August 2, 2008 news article from The New York Times, Sen. Dodd, along with Sen. Reed, introduced a bill, named Sunscreen Labeling Protection Act of 2008 (S.3425), that requires finalization of F.D.A. regulations on sunscreen labelling and efficacy. The new rules would require sunscreen manufacturers to test products against longer-wavelength ultraviolet A rays and display rating for UVA protection, in addition to the conventional SPF rating for UVB protection. The bill would allow the F.D.A. a 180-day period following enactment of the bill to make their rules final, outside of which the proposed rule would take effect. Sen Dodd remarked, "It sounds like an industry reluctant to have a standard set because that may open the doors to insisting upon more accurate labels on certain other products as well."

• • After being vetoed twice by President Bush in 2007, the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) (H.R. 2) bill was reintroduced in the 111th Congress on January 13, 2009. SCHIP provides a subsidy for children’s insurance for families that cannot afford private insurance yet earn too much to qualify for Medicaid. The cost of the program is funded by an increase in cigarette taxes of 62 cents per pack. After the House of Representatives passed the bill on January 14, the Senate voted 66-32 to pass it on January 29, 2009. Senator Dodd voted for this bill. It was signed into law by President Obama on February 4, 2009.
  • On August 2, 2007, the Senate passed the final version of the “Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007” (H.R. 976) with a vote of 68-31. This bill would have increased funding for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) by $50 billion dollars over five years. Opponents saw the bill as too costly and were critical of the funding methods for the program, including a cigarette tax increase (read the floor debate). Senator Dodd voted for this legislation. On October 3, 2007, President Bush vetoed H.R. 976, citing that the bill moved too many children towards federally funded healthcare. The House attempted to override the President’s veto, but the measure failed to pass with a vote count of 273-156. On December 29, 2007, President Bush signed the Medicare, Medicaid, SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (S. 2499) which extends funding for SCHIP through March of 2009, but does not significantly expand the program.
  • The Senate passed the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2007 (H.R. 493) with a vote of 95-0. After the House passed the bill in April 2007, Senator Coburn placed a hold on the bill because he wanted to clarify language to allow for "business necessity exemptions." The bill passed by the Senate was amended to reflect changes Senator Coburn wanted. After passage in the House, President Bush signed GINA into law on May 21, 2008.
  • On July 15, 2008, both Houses of Congress voted to override President Bush’s veto of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (H.R. 6331), a bill to put off an almost 11% cut of payments to doctors who care for Medicare patients. The legislation offset putting off the payment cuts for doctors by reducing reimbursements to insurance companies that include Medicare patients in their managed-care programs.[1]. The Senate voted 70 to 26 in favor of a veto override. Senator Dodd voted for this legislation.
  • As part of the fall 2009 debate about healthcare reform, Senator Dodd supported the push by women to reform maternal health benefits, issuing the following statement (October 8th, 2009): "Health care for everyone means health care for everyone – and I won’t stand for a system that continues to discriminate simply because you’re a woman. A system where women who have been victimized by domestic violence are charged more because they are victims. A system where women are charged more than men for the same insurance. Those who stand for the status quo, stand for this continued inequality."
  • In 2009, Sen. Dodd co-introduced the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act with (the late) Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA); this act allows the Food and Drug Administration to take regulatory steps to help prevent youth smoking. The act became law in June 2009. In Sept. 2009, he announced that a resulting federal ban on candy and fruit-flavored cigarettes had begun, promoting the benefits of this new regulation with the following statement: "“Each year, 15,000 Connecticut children try cigarettes for the first time. This federal ban will put an end to the tobacco companies’ devious targeting of kids with cigarette flavors like chocolate, strawberry, and lime. It’s a major step towards ensuring that fewer kids try and become addicted to cigarettes in the future.”

• • In Sept. 2009, Sen. Dodd was a co-author of the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act of 2009, which passed the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and will move to the full Senate and House of Representatives. This Act would restore funding for thousands of people living with HIV/AIDS, as funding for the Ryan White CARE Act had dropped upon reauthorization in 2006.

• • As of October 13th, 2009, Senator Dodd will be working to merge healthcare reform bills: one from his Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, which approved the Affordable Health Choices Act this summer, and one from the Senate Finance committee, which approved their bill on Oct. 13th. Sen. Dodd responded to the passage of the Senate Finance Committee's bill: "“Today, we are another unprecedented step closer to providing every American with the quality, affordable health care."

• • Sen. Dodd worked with Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) to introduce the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Management Act, which will encourage and enable schools to develop action plans to prevent exposure of sensitive students to allergens like peanuts and to respond to allergic reactions. This bill was included in the Food Safety Modernization Act, which was approved by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions in mid-November 2009. Sen. Dodd's daughter suffers from a severe peanut allergy. According to Sen. Dodd, "For many families, including my own, there is no more important food safety issue than food allergies. And I will continue to work toward passage of this critical legislation to help alleviate one of the biggest worries faced by millions of parents" (The Hill).

• Embryonic Stem Cell Research
  • In April of 2007, Congress passed the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2007 (S. 5), which would have overturned President Bush's ban on the use of federal funding for research on embryonic stem cell lines created after August 9, 2001. Senator Dodd did not vote on the legislation. The bill passed the House of Representatives with a vote of 247-176 and the Senate with a vote of 63-34. President Bush vetoed both this legislation and an identical bill that was passed by Congress in 2006.
• Non-Embryonic Stem Cell Research
  • In December 2005, Congress passed the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act of 2005 (H.R. 2520), which President Bush signed on December 20, 2005. The law "creates a new Federal program to collect and store cord blood, and expands the current bone marrow registry program to also include cord blood." Senator Dodd voted for this bill. The legislation passed the House of Representatives with a vote of 431-1 and passed the Senate by unanimous consent.

[edit] Innovation

• Stimulus
  • On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (H.R. 1). This stimulus bill contains over $30 billion for energy initiatives including the Smart Grid Investment Program and advanced battery systems; $20 billion in tax incentives for renewable energy for both businesses and homes; over $8 billion for augmenting energy efficiency in federal buildings and housing programs; and $7 billion to extend broadband service to underserved communities. The Act also gives the National Science Foundation $3 billion for research; the National Institutes of Health over $10 billion for research and renovations; NASA $1 billion, a portion of which to employ more scientists; and the Department Of Energy’s Office of Science $1.6 billion for energy research. Finally, it provides $19 billion for a modernized Health Information Technology (HIT) system; $87 billion to help fund Medicaid programs; $1 billion for health prevention programs; subsidies for temporary insurance; and $19 billion for clean water and environmental restoration programs. For a more complete listing of the bill’s provisions, click here.
    
    H.R. 1 passed the House of Representatives on February 13th and the Senate by a vote of 60-38 on February 13th. Senator Dodd voted for this bill.
• COMPETES Act
  • On August 9, 2007, President Bush signed the America Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education, and Science (COMPETES) Act (H.R. 2272) into law. The law authorizes the increased funding of the National Science Foundation putting it on track to double funding over the next seven years, increased funding for the National Institute of Standards and Technology and competitive grants for teachers and schools with the goal of strengthening the quality of education in science, math, and critical foreign languages. The bill was passed with unanimous consent in the Senate and was agreed to by a vote of 367-57 by the House after being reconciled in a conference committee. Senator Dodd voted for this legislation. The America COMPETES Act was not fully funded in 2008.

[edit] Research and Research Management

• Funding
  • See stimulus discussion under Innovation section.

[edit] Technology

• See stimulus discussion under Innovation section.
• In the summer of 2008, the Senate met to consider the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 (H.R. 6304), which would give retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies that wiretapped customers’ phones for the Bush administration shortly after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The legislation also allows the warrantless wiretapping of American citizens for up to 7 days before obtaining court approval. The Senate passed the bill with a vote of 69 to 28, and the legislation was signed by President Bush on July 7, 2008. Senator Dodd voted against this legislation.
• On January 29, 2009, the Senate passed the DTV Delay Act (S. 352). The bill will postpone the digital television transition date from February 17, 2009 to June 12, 2009 and extend the coupon program to allow Americans to be better prepared for the switch. It was passed with unanimous consent by all Senators. The bill then passed in the House on February 4, 2009 and was signed into law (P.L. 111-4) by President Obama on February 11, 2009 .