SPRINGFIELD - The Illinois Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) is offering tips to keep trick-or-treaters and their escorts safe during Halloween.

"Illinois' law enforcement officers want to make sure the only scares during Halloween season are the make-believe kind," said Illinois FOP President Chris Southwood. "By following some simple but effective safety tips, kids and their parents can have a safe and enjoyable trick-or-treating experience."

The FOP offers the following Halloween safety tips:

• Children should only go trick-or-treating with a responsible adult. Be sure to follow all local ordinances regarding trick-or-treating times, ages, and areas.

• If you can't accompany your younger children as they trick-or-treat, make sure at least one, and preferably more, responsible adults go with them. Set a curfew for the children and make sure they understand how important it is to arrive back home on time.

• Instruct children that they should never go into a stranger's house or car unless their parents or other trusted adults are with them and say it's OK. They should never go anywhere with stranger, and if a stranger tries to make them go somewhere they should scream as loudly as possible and run to safety as quickly as they can.

• Make sure kids know how to safely cross streets - look in both directions, and only use crosswalks or well-lit street corners. Tell them to not cut through back alleys and fields and to stay in well-lit areas with lots of people around.

• Know the route your children will take while trick-or-treating if you are not going with them. Have them check in at set times, either by phone or by stopping back by your residence.

• Make sure your children have costumes that are fire retardant, contain reflective strips or material, do not obstruct their vision or movement, and that any props that depict knives or other sharp objects are made of a dull, flexible material. Have at least one flashlight per group of trick-or-treaters. Try and make each child's costume unique in some way so they can be easily spotted.

• Serve your children a filling meal before they trick-or-treat so they won't be tempted to eat the treats before they get back home. Carefully examine all of the treats before you let your children handle or consume them.

• Several days before trick-or-treating, check the local and state sex offender websites to see if there are any sex offenders living in your area. If there are, make sure your children avoid those homes.

• Remind children that it is wrong to vandalize property or hurt animals.

• To lessen the chance of allergic reactions, try any makeup products on a small area of a child's arm several days before trick-or-treating to see if they have any reaction.

• If you cannot accompany them, having the children carry a cell phone lets them keep in touch and the phones also contain a GPS chip to help locate lost children.

• Drivers, don't use a cell phone or text while driving and do not drive if you are impaired. Pay close attention while driving, especially at crosswalks, intersections, the side of the road, and by parked cars. Drive below the posted speed limit in residential areas, do not pass vehicles that have stopped in the road, and pull off the road in a safe spot and turn on your emergency flashers when picking up or dropping off children.

The Fraternal Order of Police, founded in 1915, is the largest organization of sworn law enforcement officers in the United States. With a proud tradition of officers representing officers, the FOP is the most respected and most recognized police organization in the country. The Illinois FOP, chartered in 1963, is the second largest State Lodge, proudly representing more than 32,000 active duty and retired police officers - more than 10 percent of all FOP members nationwide. Visit www.ilfop.org for more information.

AMES, IOWA -- Multiple organizations have joined forces for the 3rd Annual Gingerbread Run/Walk for Adoption, a statewide walk to celebrate adoption in Iowa.

The 5K will kick off National Adoption Month in November.

Hundreds of people touched by adoption are expected to hit the pavement again this year for the 3^rd annual Gingerbread Run/Walk for Adoption on Sunday, November 1, 2015, at 1:30 p.m. at Ada Hayden Park in Ames.

The goal of the family-friendly event is to celebrate adoptive parents and birth parents who make an adoption plan, as well as individuals who are adopted or waiting to be adopted.

In Iowa, there are nearly 900 kids legally eligible for adoption from foster care and more foster parents and respite caregivers are needed.

"There are countless families in our state impacted by domestic and international adoption as well as foster care. This day is about celebrating and recognizing them," said the executive director of The National Center for Adoption, Diana Lang Baltimore, Ph.D.

Proceeds will be used to promote adoption as a positive option in our state.

Families and individuals can register for the Gingerbread Run/Walk for Adoption online at www.racesonline.com by using the keywords: "Adoption Ames"

In addition, the Gingerbread Walk for Adoption will be held in Des Moines on Saturday, November 7, at 10 a.m.

Families and individuals can register online at www.racesonline.com by using the keywords: "Adoption Des Moines"

Participants must register by October 18 to ensure an accurate-sized long-sleeved shirt and to avoid paying a "late fee."

AMP-Achieving Maximum Potential, Youth and Shelter Services, Inc., Iowa KidsNet, The National Center for Adoption, Wicked Soundz D.J. Service, Adoption Advocates of Iowa, Lutheran Family Services, and Adoption Associates of Iowa. are among the sponsors of this year's Gingerbread Run/Walk for Adoption.

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Video can be found here.

Judiciary Committee Field Hearing to Discuss the Ongoing Fight against Meth

I'm hosting a Senate Judiciary Committee field hearing in Des Moines to discuss the ongoing fight against methamphetamine in Iowa.

During my 99 county meetings I often hear from constituents and law enforcement officials about how severe the meth problem is in Iowa.

Some state and federal laws have helped to limit meth production in our state.

But, now Mexican drug cartels are apparently stepping in to eliminate the gains we've made in the fight against meth.

This hearing is designed to learn about current trends concerning meth use and distribution in Iowa, bring awareness to the issue, and find out if there are ways the federal government can help address the problem.

At the hearing, we'll hear from witnesses on the front lines in the battle against meth abuse.

In addition, to help us gain a full understanding of the problem, Iowans can submit written testimony for the hearing record.

Prepared Floor Statement of Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa

Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee, United States Senate

EB-5 Regional Center Investment Program Targeted Employment Areas

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Mr. President,

I want to talk today about an immigration program, known as the EB-5 Regional Center Investment Program, and the serious concerns I have about continuing this program without reforms.  The program was just extended in the continuing resolution to keep the government funded, but I want to talk about the changes that need to be made before, and if, it is extended again.

The EB-5 program was created by Congress in 1990.  A foreign national can invest one million dollars in a new commercial enterprise that creates 10 full-time jobs, and in turn, receive lawful permanent residence and then citizenship.  The required investment amount is only $500,000 if the investment is made in a "Targeted Employment Area," defined to be a rural area or an area with high unemployment.

The EB-5 Regional Center Program allows investors to pool their investments for a project.  And, they can meet the job creation requirement by providing evidence of indirect jobs.

In previous speeches on the floor, I have talked about the national security and integrity issues associated with the program.  I have detailed the risks and expressed concern about the lack of oversight by the administration.

Today, I want to focus on one particular abuse of the program and how it's not fulfilling the intent of the law.

Perhaps the greatest violation of Congressional intent that has evolved over the years is the manner in which so much of the investment money coming into Targeted Employment Areas has been directed towards lavish building projects in well-to-do urban areas.

Four -star hotels and commercial office buildings are being built with foreign investment dollars in affluent urban neighborhoods rather than high unemployment and rural areas, which Congress intended to benefit.

This has been done by "gerrymandering" the boundaries of the Targeted Employment Area to include, at one end, the affluent census tract in which the building project is located, and at the other end, perhaps many miles away, a census tract with high unemployment.

One of the most notorious examples of this gerrymandering to push the boundaries is the Hudson Yards project, a group of luxury apartment buildings and office towers in mid-town Manhattan.

Even the Wall Street Journal, which never met a business project it didn't like, reported on how this program has been abused.

The Wall Street Journal explained how the Hudson Yards project qualifies for the lower investment threshold, despite the affluent mid-town location of the project, because the boundaries of the Targeted Employment Area were manipulated to include a public housing project in upper Manhattan.

Another project that flies in the face of congressional intent is located in lower Manhattan near Wall Street.  As the New York Times reports, the Battery Maritime Building has been classified as being located in a Targeted Employment Area based on a gerrymandered area that "snakes up through the Lower East Side, skirting the wealthy enclaves of Battery Park City and TriBeCa, and then jumps across the East River to annex the Farragut Houses project in Brooklyn."

In other words, the developers did everything they could to include the Farragut Houses project --- which is a public housing community - to come in at the lower investment level.

The New York Times went on to say that, "the small census tract that contains the Farragut Houses has become a go-to area for developers seeking to use the visa program: its unemployed residents have been counted toward three projects already."

Watchdog.org, a national watchdog group that has followed abuses of the program closely for years, has also identified another problematic gerrymandered Targeted Employment Area.  They reported that a 21-story residential building project that included trendy restaurants and shops was built with foreign investments, despite its location in an upscale neighborhood with 0.8 percent unemployment.

These are just a few examples.  Yet, they point to the clear problem with this program.  When it was created by Congress, we set two different investment levels, and clearly tried to steer this foreign capital to high unemployment and rural areas.  That's not happening.

The Wall Street Journal reports that at least 80 percent of program money is going to projects that wouldn't qualify as being in Targeted Employment Areas without "some form of gerrymandering."  Meanwhile, the Journal adds, people wanting to raise money for projects in rural areas and low-income parts of cities say they find it increasingly hard to compete.

Even the Washington Post has become fed up with the way in which the intent of Congress has been violated.  In a September 6 editorial, after discussing the program's numerous economic and integrity failings and suggesting that the program lapse, the Post writes: "The EB-5 program is supposed to favor distressed economic areas, but the definition of a needy zone has been stretched to include nearly the whole country, including hot downtown real estate markets."

I ask unanimous consent to include the articles I referenced in my remarks.

Let me end by saying again that the program is in need of reform.  In June, Senator Leahy and I introduced S. 1501, a bill that would substantially reform the program by improving program oversight, addressing national security vulnerabilities, and restoring the program to its original intent.

I hope my colleagues will take an opportunity to understand how the program is being used and abused, and review the proposal that Senator Leahy and I have put out.

I yield the floor.