before the senate committee at 9:30 on c-span3. you can follow the hearing live at c-span.org and listen on a -- on the c-span radio app. tax day is less than two weeks away. today, the irs commissioner will talk about how his agency could be impacted by federal budget cuts. we will have live coverage from the national press club at 1:00 p.m. eastern. you can also watch it live on c-span.org and listen on the c-span radio app. ♪ >> c-span where history unfolds daily. in 1979, c-span was created as a public service by america's cable-television companies and it is brought to you today by your cable or satellite

provider. ♪ >> all month we're featuring our student cam winners in c-span's video documentary top edition -- video documentary competition for middle and high school students. this year, students told us the most urgent issue for the new president and congress. our second prize high school winners are 10th graders from silver spring, maryland. amanda rutledge, amy krimm, and kiran kochar mccable are students at montgomery blair high school. they believe child labor in the tobacco industry is an urgent issue in their documentary titled, "sprouting in the fields." take a look. >> the people's stomach ache hit me. my mom was going to take me to the emergency room because i was feeling really bad. >> we feel dizzy, suffocated from the sun, tired, and weak.

>> child labor is defined by the international world labor organization as work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their dignity. and that is harmful to physical and mental development. while many agree that labor is harmful to the health of children, many migrant or immigrant families are forced to send their children into the work force for the additional income. the loose regulations of the tobacco industry create jobs for many undocumented workers. while children working with tobacco can suffer serious health consequences and educational drawbacks, many families have farming heritage or simply do not have enough money to support themselves. because of the duality of this issue, the new president and congress must address child labor in the tobacco industry in

2017. ♪ >> the farming and agriculture industry is one of the most dangerous in america. the tobacco industry is particularly hazardous because workers are exposed to nicotine, a poisonous compound that occurs naturally in tobacco plants. this exposure to toxic chemicals causes many laborers to suffer acute nicotine poisoning, commonly known as green leaf sickness. we called representative cicilline of rhode island who has previously introduced legislation on this issue. mr. cicilline: they are working in very hot conditions and do things like harvesting tobacco plants as well as applying toxic pesticides, and as a result of this, children were experiencing

very serious health consequences. nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, dizziness, light-headedness, sleeplessness while working on tobacco farms. >> nicotine is a both liquid and fall soluble so when workers go into a wet field covered with morning dew they're absorbing more nicotine into the system than usual. these toxins are absorbed and not only have short-term effects such as rashes and wheezing, but also can cause changes in heart rate and difficulty breathing, which can lead to death. we called dr. thomas archery, a director at the center for worker health, to discuss the severity of the health implications for child laborers. >> children aren't just small adults. they're children. so all their systems are developing. so if your neurological system is developing at that point and you're exposed to neurotoxins that can have greater effects.

>> education is a necessary tool in order to succeed. the u.n. secretary general ban ki-moon stressed the importance of education in september of 2016. >> education is a human right. >> by working on farms instead of being in school, children are risking their opportunities. when visiting reid mackie, he explained how children's education is affected by them working in the tobacco industry. >> you show up in school after a weekend of working and you're completely exhausted and you got, you know, full day of schoolwork ahead of you. it's just very challenging. we think that two out of three children in agriculture in these migrant communities, we believe that two out of three drop out of school. the numbers, the federal data is really bad. >> according to the global partnership for education, children that are in school for

even one additional year have the potential to increase their earnings in the long run by 10%. delegate alfonso lopez from virginia also spoke about the effects working on tobacco farms has. >> it's the sort of hard choices we're having to make or these kids and families are having to make that are making money, helping support their family or attending school. >> education is significantly impacted when children are working on tobacco farms. while there are many people that believe child labor in the tobacco industry should be banned, there are still many who believe it is necessary. we visited chris middleton's family farm, to discuss his experience working there as a teenager. >> i think more teenagers should experience the same sort of thing.

>> families with tobacco heritage have a different approach to this issue compared to migrant or immigrant families. due to the loose regulations of the tobacco industry, many undocumented children are able to find jobs out on the fields. >> in the most extreme poverty we will see the highest impact on the child labor sectors. >> the work maybe dangerous but according to poverty, most child labor is due to the imperial need to survive. alexandra hall of "the washington post" spoke about her experiences writing an article detailing the reasons why child labor in regards to tobacco is such an accessible industry for immigrants. >> latino families, undocumented families, immigrant families do this work because not a lot of other people will do this work. >> child labor in the tobacco industry is an issue that is rarely spoken about and often not given the attention it deserves. children working in tobacco

fields deal with serious and -- serious health and educational complications that stay with them for life and keep them in the cycle of poverty. >> i don't think the solution is to say, ok, those people can't work these jobs. it's that you have to legitimize them. >> regulations in addition to adding tobacco to the list of hazardous industries must be put in place to protect laborers, especially those as delicate as children. because of the many layers of this issue, the new congress and president must address child labor in the tobacco industry in 2017. >> watch all of the prize-winning documentaries in this year's student cam competition. visit studentcam.org. ♪ >> at an event on sesame -- on capitol hill, julia, sesame

street's new character who is autistic -- and mike doyle of pennsylvania, cochairs of the congressional autism caucus. holly robinson pete moderated this event. it is an hour and 10 minutes. >> my name is jasmine. i am seven years old. i stay in my bedroom with my little sister, she is six. my sister has her own room. she has autism. she can't talk. she can't talk. we all get ready for school together. some things are really hard for her, like brushing her teeth. and brushing her hair. it takes all three o