and now they're a shell of what they once were. >> narrator: at the portland newspaper the "oregonian," reporters also began to focus on the impact of meth on the people of oregon. >> it's huge. it affects not merely the users but it's the leading cause of property crime. it's the leading reason why children are removed from their homes and sent into foster care. it's very hard to go to any part of oregon and not experience the effects of methamphetamine on ordinary people. >> narrator: in 2002, the "oregonian's" editors decided to go after the story behind the story-- how and why did the meth epidemic get so out of control? reporter steve suo was assigned to the investigation. >> we gathered about a million different types of records-- possession arrests, emergency room admissions, identity theft arrests. and all of them really pointed in the same direction. >> narrator: suo transformed his data into maps. the darker a state's color, the higher its percentage of addicts. the maps told a chilling story. in 1992, only oregon had enough addicts to be shaded black. by 1997, the number of

and we clearly have such an emergency in my home state of oregon, so it is very welcome news for oregonians that we have this opportunity to have a full bench, to have all justices on deck, and it's my view that mr. simon is an outstanding nominee and i have absolutely no reservations that he will be a superior judge. i strongly urge all my colleagues to join me in supporting an exceptional individual, a person who is fair, a person who is thoughtful, who brings years and years of expertise and a host of very important legal assignments, and i'm especially grateful that he is a resident of my hometown where he has distinguished himself with extraordinary volunteering for a whole host of causes that are important, especially the future of our children. mr. president, with that, i yield the floor and i would note the absence of -- oh, i see the distinguished chairman of the finance committee here, so let me just yield the floor at this time. a senator: mr. president, i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the presiding officer: wit

good cause that comes across my desk at home seems to have michael simon's name on it urging that oregonians participate and volunteer their time. and we are especially proud of his work on behalf of children. his work with the classroom law project, his work at the waverly children's home where he's past head of the board of directors, these kinds of positions are ones where you make a difference. these kinds of positions where you are on the board of director, waverly home, where you are part of the children's law project, means on an ongoing basis, you have a chance to teach not just right and wrong to young people, but you have a chance to give them the kind of background about the rule of law and the rights and responsibilities that we want to instill in our children. and that's why we are very proud to bring to the attention of the senate his work with oregon's youngsters. and, finally, i want to stress the nee immediacy of the need oe senate to confirm michael simon today. this seat has been vacant for 664 days. it is just one of 36 judicial emergencies. as it stands, there are nearly

plant bringing new economic activity to the klamath reservation and creating and saving jobs for oregonians furthermore, the e.d.a. can continue to help our timber businesses and other similar businesses plan for the future. it can help companies project contracts that are likely to come down the road and how they can tailor their business mod toll grow accordingly. e.d.a. investments are a proven path to retaining or creating new private-sector job opportunities and helping small businesses diversify or expand. in fact, from 19 -- excuse me, from 2005 to 2010, e.d.a. projects led directly to the creation of more than 300,000 jobs. and this doesn't even count the many thousand more jobs that were created by those seven private dplars for every public dollar. without question, the e.d.a. represent an efficient and cost-effective way to help distressed regions overcome challenges they are facing and build a new foundation for job growth in our communities. i urge my colleagues to pass this bill and to put our country back on the path to creating jobs. thank you, madam president. the presiding

i think the reason that oregonians are concerned about this -- and we've heard about it in the senate finance committee -- is the a.m.t. is essentially a separate tax system with its own tax rates and deduction rules which are less generous than regular rates and regular rules. this sort of contributes to the tax filing nightmare. the only way you can tell if you owe the alternative minimum tax is by filling out the forms or by being audited by the alternative revenue service. if it turns out you should have paid and you didn't, you owe back taxes plus any interest and penalty the i.r.s. wants to dole out. my request is: how in the world, i would ask my good friend, how in the world is a typical taxpayer going to be able to make sense out of something like that, which i will tell you lots of accountants tell me they can't even sort through? mr. coats: the senator from oregon is exactly right. i took three tax courses in law school. i can't do my taxes with any assurance that i'm doing it right because the code has become so incredibly complicated. and the alternative minimum tax adds