Museum and Library Services Technical and Conforming Amendments of 1997

Summary: Museum and Library Services Technical and Conforming Amendments of 1997 - Amends the Museum and Library Services Act to authorize the Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services to appoint and compensate technical and professional Institute employees without regard to Federal civil service law, provided that the number of such employees does not exceed one-fifth of the number of the Institute's full-time regular or professional employees and their compensation does not exceed a specified level. 
Covers special libraries under the Act, if the States in which they are located determine they should be considered libraries. 
Revises provisions, including the formula for reservation of funds, for:  (1) grants for services to Indian tribes; and (2) national leadership grants or contracts. 
Revises the formula for maintenance of effort by States.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Museum and Library Services 
Technical and Conforming Amendments of 1997''.

SEC. 2. APPOINTMENT OF EMPLOYEES.

    Section 206 of the Museum and Library Services Act (20 U.S.C. 9105 
et seq.) is amended--
        (1) by redesignating subsection (b) as subsection (c); and
        (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the following:
    ``(b) Appointment and Compensation of Technical and Professional 
Employees.--
        ``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Director may 
    appoint without regard to the provisions of title 5, United States 
    Code, governing the appointment in the competitive service and may 
    compensate without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 or 
    subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title (relating to the 
    classification and General Schedule pay rates), such technical and 
    professional employees as the Director determines to be necessary 
    to carry out the duties of the Institute.
        ``(2) Number and compensation.--The number of employees 
    appointed and compensated under paragraph (1) shall not exceed \1/
    5\ of the number of full-time regular or professional employees of 
    the Institute. The rate of basic compensation for the employees 
    appointed and compensated under paragraph (1) may not exceed the 
    rate prescribed for level GS-15 of the General Schedule under 
    section 5332 of title 5.''.

SEC. 3. SPECIAL LIBRARIES.

    Section 213(2)(E) of the Museum and Library Services Act (20 U.S.C. 
9122(2)(E)) is amended--
        (1) by inserting ``or other special library'' after ``a private 
    library''; and
        (2) by inserting ``or special'' after ``such private''.

SEC. 4. RESERVATIONS.

    Section 221(a)(1) of the Museum and Library Services Act (20 U.S.C. 
9131(a)(1)) is amended--
        (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``1\1/2\ percent'' and 
    inserting ``1.75 percent''; and
        (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``4 percent'' and 
    inserting ``3.75 percent''.

SEC. 5. MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.

    The second sentence of section 223(c)(1)(A)(i) of the Museum and 
Library Services Act (20 U.S.C. 9133(c)(1)(A)(i)) is amended to read as 
follows: ``The amount of the reduction in the allotment for any fiscal 
year shall be equal to the allotment multiplied by a fraction--

                    ``(I) the numerator of which is the result obtained 
                by subtracting the level of such State expenditures for 
                the fiscal year for which the determination is made, 
                from the average of the total level of such State 
                expenditures for the 3 fiscal years preceding the 
                fiscal year for which the determination is made; and
                    ``(II) the denominator of which is the average of 
                the total level of such State expenditures for the 3 
                fiscal years preceding the fiscal year for which the 
                determination is made.''.

SEC. 6. SERVICE TO INDIAN TRIBES.

    Section 261 of the Museum and Library Services Act (20 U.S.C. 9161) 
is amended--
        (1) in the section heading, by striking ``INDIAN TRIBES'' and 
    inserting ``NATIVE AMERICANS''; and
        (2) by striking ``to organizations'' and all that follows 
    through ``such organizations'' and inserting ``to Indian tribes and 
    to organizations that primarily serve and represent Native 
    Hawaiians (as the term is defined in section 9212 of the Native 
    Hawaiian Education Act (20 U.S.C. 7912) to enable such tribes and 
    organizations''.

SEC. 7. NATIONAL LEADERSHIP GRANTS OR CONTRACTS.

    Section 262 of the Museum and Library Services Act (20 U.S.C. 9162) 
is amended--
        (1) in the section heading, by striking ``NATIONAL LEADERSHIP 
    GRANTS OR CONTRACTS'' and inserting ``NATIONAL LEADERSHIP GRANTS, 
    CONTRACTS, OR COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS'';
        (2) in subsection (a)--
            (A) by striking ``program awarding national leadership 
        grants or contracts'' and inserting ``program of awarding 
        grants or entering into contracts or cooperative agreements''; 
        and
            (B) by striking ``Such grants or contracts'' and inserting 
        ``Such grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements'';
        (3) in subsection (b)--
            (A) in the section heading, by striking ``(b) Grants or 
        Contracts'' and inserting ``(b) Grants, Contracts, or 
        Cooperative Agreements''; and
            (B) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``or cooperative 
        agreements,'' after ``contracts''; and
            (C) in paragraph (2), by striking ``Grants and contracts'' 
        and inserting ``Grants, contracts, and cooperative 
        agreements''.

SEC. 8. CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERROR.

    Section 262(a)(3) of the Museum and Library Services Act (20 U.S.C. 
9162(a)(3)) is amended by striking ``preservation of digitization'' and 
inserting ``preserving or digitization''.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.