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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: DECEMBER 13, 2002
CONTACT: LINDA MACIAS/PAUL TODD (202) 225-6161

Baca Receives 100 Percent Rating from National Civil Rights Organization


WASHINGTON, D.C. - Representative Joe Baca (D-Rialto) received a perfect score from the influential Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR), one of the nation's largest and oldest coalitions of organizations devoted to protecting the civil and human rights of all people. The Conference released its congressional scorecard yesterday, which rates Members of Congress based on their votes on bills that positively affect civil and human rights.

"I am honored that the Conference distinguished me as being committed to protecting civil and human rights," Baca said. "I will continue to fight to make sure that the poor, the needy, and the underserved and underrepresented have a voice in government."

The Conference rates Members of Congress on votes of high importance to civil and human rights in a variety of areas including bankruptcy, education, faith-based initiatives, budget, tax cuts, racial profiling, immigration, election reform, welfare, and labor rights.

One of the most important votes that LCCR considered in scoring Members of Congress was the motion made by Baca to restore food stamp benefits to legal permanent residents (the Baca Motion to Instruct Conferees on the Farm Security Act, H.R. 2646). The motion instructed House and Senate Conferees on the farm bill to include language making children, legal immigrants, refugees, and persons with disabilities eligible to receive food stamps. Some of the other votes that LCCR scored include:

  • The Waxman Amendment to H.R. 5005, the Homeland Security Act. The amendment would have eliminated language in the bill that would deny Homeland Security Department workers union rights and civil service protections. Baca voted YES on the amendment.

  • The Owens Motion to H.R. 1, the No Child Left Behind Act. The motion would have restored $2 Billion in funding to H.R. 1, the No Child Left Behind Act, for school restoration, renovation, and construction. Republicans in the House refused to allow an amendment to the bill on the House floor restoring the funds. Baca voted YES on the motion.

  • H.R. 3129, the Customs Border Security Act. The bill, which was defeated by the entire Congress, would have exempted Customs Service, which has a long history of racial profiling, from liability for engaging in illegal searches. Baca voted NO on passage of the bill.

"My voting record on civil and human reflects my dedication to bringing fairness, justice, and equal opportunity back to the people," Baca said. "While others in the Congress talk about equality out of one side of their mouths and cling to past racial and social divides out of the other, I believe that all people deserve an equal voice for the betterment of their lives and the lives of their families."

"Politicians come and go, but equality and justice are here to stay."

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