12 2 STA T .5 1 89CON C UR R E NT RESO L UT I ONS —J UNE 5 , 2 0 08 (B)ris i ngfo r ecl os u rer at es can accelerate d ro p sin h o m e prices , affecting all homeo w ners
and ( C ) home mortgage default and foreclosure rates increase ris k for lenders, further restricting the a v aila b ilit y of credit, which can in turn slow economic growth; and ( 3 ) the rise in foreclosures is not only a crisis for subprime borrowers, but a larger problem for communities as a whole, and considering the multi - layered effects of increasing fore- closures, the Congress should consider steps to address this comple x problem .SEC.520 .SE N SE OFTH E CON GR ESS REG A R DI NG THE NEED TO M AIN - TAIN AND BU I L DU P ON EFFORTS TO FIGHT HUNGER. I t is the sense of the Congress that — ( 1 )3 5 .5 million A mericans (1 2 . 6 million of them children) are food insecure—uncertain of having, or unable to ac q uire, enough food, and that 11.1 million Americans are hungry because of lack of food; (2) despite the critical contributions of the D epartment of Agriculture nutrition programs (particularly the food stamp program), which significantly reduced payment error rates while providing help to partially mitigate the effects of rising poverty and unemployment, significant need remains, even among families that receive food stamps; (3) nearly 25 million people, including more than nine million children and nearly three million seniors, sought emer- gency food assistance from food pantries, soup kitchens, shel- ters, and local charities last year; ( 4 ) additional resources are needed to ensure that nutrition assistance keeps up with inflation and rising food prices; and (5) Department of Agriculture programs that help us fight hunger should be maintained and the Congress should continue to sei z e opportunities to reach Americans in need and to fight hunger. SEC. 52 1 . SENSE OF THE CONGRESS REGARDING THE IMPORTANCE OF CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT. It is the sense of the Congress that— (1) additional legislative action is needed to ensure that S tates have the necessary resources to collect all child support that is owed to families and to allow them to pass 1 0 0 percent of support on to families without financial penalty; and (2) when 100 percent of child support payments are passed to the child, rather than administrative expenses, program integrity is improved and child support participation increases. SEC. 522. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS ON THE INNO V ATION AGENDA AND AMERICA COMPETES ACT. It is the sense of the Congress that— (1) the Congress should provide sufficient funding so that our N ation may continue to be the world leader in education, innovation and economic growth; (2) last year, Congress passed and the P resident signed the America C OM P ET ES Act, bipartisan legislation designed to ensure that American students, teachers, businesses, and workers are prepared to continue leading the world in innova- tion, research, and technology well into the future;
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