109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2985

AN ACT

Making appropriations for the Legislative Branch for the 

fiscal year ending September 30, 2006, and for other 

purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 That the following sums are appropriated, out of any 

2 money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for the 

3 Legislative Branch for the fiscal year ending September 

4 30, 2006, and for other purposes, namely: 

5 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

6 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

7 For salaries and expenses of the House of Represent8 atives, $1,092,407,000, as follows: 

9 HOUSE LEADERSHIP OFFICES

10 For salaries and expenses, as authorized by law, 

11 $19,844,000, including: Office of the Speaker, 

12 $2,788,000, including $25,000 for official expenses of the 

13 Speaker; Office of the Majority Floor Leader, $2,089,000, 

14 including $10,000 for official expenses of the Majority 

15 Leader; Office of the Minority Floor Leader, $2,928,000, 

16 including $10,000 for official expenses of the Minority 

17 Leader; Office of the Majority Whip, including the Chief 

18 Deputy Majority Whip, $1,797,000, including $5,000 for 

19 official expenses of the Majority Whip; Office of the Mi20 nority Whip, including the Chief Deputy Minority Whip, 

21 $1,345,000, including $5,000 for official expenses of the 

22 Minority Whip; Speaker’s Office for Legislative Floor Ac23 tivities, $482,000; Republican Steering Committee, 

24 $906,000; Republican Conference, $1,548,000; Repub25 lican Policy Committee, $307,000; Democratic Steering 
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1 and Policy Committee, $1,945,000; Democratic Caucus, 

2 $816,000; nine minority employees, $1,445,000; training 

3 and program development—majority, $290,000; training 

4 and program development—minority, $290,000; Cloak5 room Personnel—majority, $434,000; and Cloakroom 

6 Personnel—minority, $434,000.

7 MEMBERS’ REPRESENTATIONAL ALLOWANCES

8 INCLUDING MEMBERS’ CLERK HIRE, OFFICIAL

9 EXPENSES OF MEMBERS, AND OFFICIAL MAIL

10 For Members’ representational allowances, including 

11 Members’ clerk hire, official expenses, and official mail, 

12 $538,109,000.

13 COMMITTEE EMPLOYEES

14 STANDING COMMITTEES, SPECIAL AND SELECT

15 For salaries and expenses of standing committees, 

16 special and select, authorized by House resolutions, 

17 $117,913,000: Provided, That such amount shall remain 

18 available for such salaries and expenses until December 

19 31, 2006. 

20 COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

21 For salaries and expenses of the Committee on Ap22 propriations, $25,668,000, including studies and examina23 tions of executive agencies and temporary personal serv24 ices for such committee, to be expended in accordance with 

25 section 202(b) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 
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1 1946 and to be available for reimbursement to agencies 

2 for services performed: Provided, That such amount shall 

3 remain available for such salaries and expenses until De4 cember 31, 2006. 

5 SALARIES, OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES

6 For compensation and expenses of officers and em7 ployees, as authorized by law, $167,749,000, including: 

8 for salaries and expenses of the Office of the Clerk, includ9 ing not more than $13,000, of which not more than 

10 $10,000 is for the Family Room, for official representa11 tion and reception expenses, $21,911,000; for salaries and 

12 expenses of the Office of the Sergeant at Arms, including 

13 the position of Superintendent of Garages, and including 

14 not more than $3,000 for official representation and re15 ception expenses, $6,284,000; for salaries and expenses of 

16 the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer, 

17 $116,971,000, of which $3,306,000 shall remain available 

18 until expended; for salaries and expenses of the Office of 

19 the Inspector General, $3,991,000; for salaries and ex20 penses of the Office of Emergency Planning, Preparedness 

21 and Operations, $5,000,000, to remain available until ex22 pended; for salaries and expenses of the Office of General 

23 Counsel, $962,000; for the Office of the Chaplain, 

24 $161,000; for salaries and expenses of the Office of the 

25 Parliamentarian, including the Parliamentarian and 
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1 $2,000 for preparing the Digest of Rules, $1,767,000; for 

2 salaries and expenses of the Office of the Law Revision 

3 Counsel of the House, $2,453,000; for salaries and ex4 penses of the Office of the Legislative Counsel of the 

5 House, $6,963,000; for salaries and expenses of the Office 

6 of Interparliamentary Affairs, $720,000; for other author7 ized employees, $161,000; and for salaries and expenses 

8 of the Office of the Historian, $405,000. 

9 ALLOWANCES AND EXPENSES

10 For allowances and expenses as authorized by House 

11 resolution or law, $223,124,000, including: supplies, mate12 rials, administrative costs and Federal tort claims, 

13 $4,179,000; official mail for committees, leadership of14 fices, and administrative offices of the House, $410,000; 

15 Government contributions for health, retirement, Social 

16 Security, and other applicable employee benefits, 

17 $214,422,000; supplies, materials, and other costs relating 

18 to the House portion of expenses for the Capitol Visitor 

19 Center, $3,410,000, to remain available until expended; 

20 and miscellaneous items including purchase, exchange, 

21 maintenance, repair and operation of House motor vehi22 cles, interparliamentary receptions, and gratuities to heirs 

23 of deceased employees of the House, $703,000. 
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1 CHILD CARE CENTER

2 For salaries and expenses of the House of Represent3 atives Child Care Center, such amounts as are deposited 

4 in the account established by section 312(d)(1) of the Leg5 islative Branch Appropriations Act, 1992 (2 U.S.C. 2112), 

6 subject to the level specified in the budget of the Center, 

7 as submitted to the Committee on Appropriations of the 

8 House of Representatives. 

9 ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS

10 SEC. 101. (a) REQUIRING AMOUNTS REMAINING IN

11 MEMBERS’ REPRESENTATIONAL ALLOWANCES TO BE

12 USED FOR DEFICIT REDUCTION OR TO REDUCE THE

13 FEDERAL DEBT.—Notwithstanding any other provision of 

14 law, any amounts appropriated under this Act for 

15 ‘‘HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES—SALARIES AND

16 EXPENSES—MEMBERS’ REPRESENTATIONAL ALLOW17 ANCES’’ shall be available only for fiscal year 2006. Any 

18 amount remaining after all payments are made under such 

19 allowances for fiscal year 2006 shall be deposited in the 

20 Treasury and used for deficit reduction (or, if there is no 

21 Federal budget deficit after all such payments have been 

22 made, for reducing the Federal debt, in such manner as 

23 the Secretary of the Treasury considers appropriate). 
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1 (b) REGULATIONS.—The Committee on House Ad2 ministration of the House of Representatives shall have 

3 authority to prescribe regulations to carry out this section. 

4 (c) DEFINITION.—As used in this section, the term 

5 ‘‘Member of the House of Representatives’’ means a Rep6 resentative in, or a Delegate or Resident Commissioner 

7 to, the Congress. 

8 JOINT ITEMS 

9 For Joint Committees, as follows: 

10 JOINT ECONOMIC COMMITTEE

11 For salaries and expenses of the Joint Economic 

12 Committee, $4,276,000, to be disbursed by the Secretary 

13 of the Senate. 

14 JOINT COMMITTEE ON TAXATION

15 For salaries and expenses of the Joint Committee on 

16 Taxation, $8,781,000, to be disbursed by the Chief Ad17 ministrative Officer of the House of Representatives. 

18 For other joint items, as follows: 

19 OFFICE OF THE ATTENDING PHYSICIAN

20 For medical supplies, equipment, and contingent ex21 penses of the emergency rooms, and for the Attending 

22 Physician and his assistants, including: (1) an allowance 

23 of $2,175 per month to the Attending Physician; (2) an 

24 allowance of $725 per month each to four medical officers 

25 while on duty in the Office of the Attending Physician; 
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1 (3) an allowance of $725 per month to two assistants and 

2 $580 per month each not to exceed 11 assistants on the 

3 basis heretofore provided for such assistants; and (4) 

4 $1,834,000 for reimbursement to the Department of the 

5 Navy for expenses incurred for staff and equipment as6 signed to the Office of the Attending Physician, which 

7 shall be advanced and credited to the applicable appropria8 tion or appropriations from which such salaries, allow9 ances, and other expenses are payable and shall be avail10 able for all the purposes thereof, $2,545,000, to be dis11 bursed by the Chief Administrative Officer of the House 

12 of Representatives. 

13 CAPITOL GUIDE SERVICE AND SPECIAL SERVICES

14 OFFICE

15 For salaries and expenses of the Capitol Guide Serv16 ice and Special Services Office, $4,268,000, to be dis17 bursed by the Secretary of the Senate: Provided, That no 

18 part of such amount may be used to employ more than 

19 58 individuals: Provided further, That the Capitol Guide 

20 Board is authorized, during emergencies, to employ not 

21 more than two additional individuals for not more than 

22 120 days each, and not more than 10 additional individ23 uals for not more than 6 months each, for the Capitol 

24 Guide Service. 
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1 STATEMENTS OF APPROPRIATIONS

2 For the preparation, under the direction of the Com3 mittees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House 

4 of Representatives, of the statements for the first session 

5 of the 109th Congress, showing appropriations made, in6 definite appropriations, and contracts authorized, together 

7 with a chronological history of the regular appropriations 

8 bills as required by law, $30,000, to be paid to the persons 

9 designated by the chairmen of such committees to super10 vise the work. 

11 CAPITOL POLICE 

12 SALARIES

13 For salaries of employees of the Capitol Police, in14 cluding overtime, hazardous duty pay differential, and 

15 Government contributions for health, retirement, social se16 curity, professional liability insurance, and other applica17 ble employee benefits, $210,350,000, to be disbursed by 

18 the Chief of the Capitol Police or his designee. 

19 GENERAL EXPENSES

20 For necessary expenses of the Capitol Police, includ21 ing motor vehicles, communications and other equipment, 

22 security equipment and installation, uniforms, weapons, 

23 supplies, materials, training, medical services, forensic 

24 services, stenographic services, personal and professional 

25 services, the employee assistance program, the awards pro26 gram, postage, communication services, travel advances, 
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1 relocation of instructor and liaison personnel for the Fed2 eral Law Enforcement Training Center, and not more 

3 than $5,000 to be expended on the certification of the 

4 Chief of the Capitol Police in connection with official rep5 resentation and reception expenses, $29,345,000, to be 

6 disbursed by the Chief of the Capitol Police or his des7 ignee: Provided, That, notwithstanding any other provision 

8 of law, the cost of basic training for the Capitol Police 

9 at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center for fis10 cal year 2006 shall be paid by the Secretary of Homeland 

11 Security from funds available to the Department of Home12 land Security. 

13 ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS

14 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 

15 SEC. 1001. TRANSFER AUTHORITY.—Amounts ap16 propriated for fiscal year 2006 for the Capitol Police may 

17 be transferred between the headings ‘‘SALARIES’’ and 

18 ‘‘GENERAL EXPENSES’’ upon the approval of the Commit19 tees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 

20 Representatives. 

21 SEC. 1002. (a) The United States Capitol Police may 

22 not operate a mounted horse unit during fiscal year 2006 

23 or any succeeding fiscal year. 

24 (b) Not later than 60 days after the date of the enact25 ment of this Act, the Chief of the Capitol Police shall 
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1 transfer to the Chief of the United States Park Police the 

2 horses, equipment, and supplies of the Capitol Police 

3 mounted horse unit which remain in the possession of the 

4 Capitol Police as of such date. 

5 SEC. 1003. (a) Section 103(h)(1)(A)(i)(I) of the Eth6 ics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 

7 103(h)(1)(A)(i)(I)) is amended by inserting ‘‘United 

8 States Capitol Police,’’ after ‘‘Architect of the Capitol,’’. 

9 (b) The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 

10 apply with respect to reports filed under the Ethics in 

11 Government Act of 1978 for calendar year 2005 and each 

12 succeeding calendar year. 

13 SEC. 1004. Section 1003 of the Legislative Branch 

14 Appropriations Act, 2004 (Public Law 108–83; 117 Stat. 

15 1021), is hereby repealed, and each provision of law 

16 amended by such section is hereby restored as if such sec17 tion had not been enacted into law. 

18 SEC. 1005. (a) During fiscal year 2006 and each suc19 ceeding fiscal year, the United States Capitol Police may 

20 not carry out any reprogramming, transfer, or use of 

21 funds described in subsection (b) unless—

22 (1) the Chief of the Capitol Police submits a re23 quest for the reprogramming, transfer, or use of 

24 funds to the Committees on Appropriations of the 

25 House of Representatives and Senate on or before 
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1 August 1 of the respective year, unless both such 

2 Committees agree to accept the request at a later 

3 date because of extraordinary and emergency cir4 cumstances cited by the Chief; 

5 (2) the request contains clearly stated and de6 tailed documentation presenting justification for the 

7 reprogramming, transfer, or use of funds; 

8 (3) the request contains a declaration that, as 

9 of the date of the request, none of the funds in10 cluded in the request have been obligated, and none 

11 will be obligated, until both Committees have ap12 proved the request; and 

13 (4) both Committees approve the request. 

14 (b) A reprogramming, transfer, or use of funds de15 scribed in this subsection is any reprogramming or trans16 fer of funds, or use of unobligated balances, under 

17 which—

18 (1) the amount to be shifted to or from any ob19 ject class, approved budget, or program involved 

20 under the request, or the aggregate amount to be 

21 shifted to or from any object class, approved budget, 

22 or program involved during the fiscal year taking 

23 into account the amount contained in the request, is 

24 in excess of $250,000 or 10 percent, whichever is 
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1 less, of the object class, approved budget, or pro2 gram; 

3 (2) the reprogramming, transfer, or use of 

4 funds would result in a major change to the pro5 gram or item which is different than that presented 

6 to and approved by the Committees on Appropria7 tions of the House of Representatives and Senate; or 

8 (3) the funds involved were earmarked by either 

9 of the Committees for a specific activity which is dif10 ferent than the activity proposed under the request, 

11 without regard to whether the amount provided in 

12 the earmark is less than, equal to, or greater than 

13 the amount required to carry out the activity. 

14 SEC. 1006. (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE.—There 

15 is established in the United States Capitol Police the Of16 fice of the Inspector General (hereafter in this section re17 ferred to as the ‘‘Office’’), headed by the Inspector Gen18 eral of the United States Capitol Police (hereafter in this 

19 section referred to as the ‘‘Inspector General’’). 

20 (b) INSPECTOR GENERAL.—

21 (1) APPOINTMENT.—The Inspector General 

22 shall be appointed by the Capitol Police Board, in 

23 consultation with and subject to the approval of the 

24 Speaker of the House of Representatives and the 

25 President pro tempore of the Senate, acting jointly, 
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1 and shall be appointed without regard to political af2 filiation and solely on the basis of integrity and dem3 onstrated ability in accounting, auditing, financial 

4 analysis, law, management analysis, public adminis5 tration, or investigations. 

6 (2) TERM OF SERVICE.—The Inspector General 

7 shall serve for a term of 5 years, and an individual 

8 serving as Inspector General may be reappointed for 

9 not more than 2 additional terms. 

10 (3) REMOVAL.—The Inspector General may be 

11 removed from office prior to the expiration of his 

12 term only by the unanimous vote of all of the mem13 bers of the Capitol Police Board, and the Board 

14 shall communicate the reasons for any such removal 

15 to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and 

16 President pro tempore of the Senate. 

17 (4) SALARY.—The Inspector General shall be 

18 paid at an annual rate equal to $1,000 less than the 

19 annual rate of pay in effect for the Chief of the Cap20 itol Police. 

21 (5) DEADLINE.—The Capitol Police Board shall 

22 appoint the first Inspector General under this sec23 tion not later than 180 days after the date of the 

24 enactment of this Act. 

25 (c) DUTIES.—
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1 (1) APPLICABILITY OF DUTIES OF INSPECTOR

2 GENERAL OF EXECUTIVE BRANCH ESTABLISH3 MENT.—The Inspector General shall carry out the 

4 same duties and responsibilities with respect to the 

5 United States Capitol Police as an Inspector General 

6 of an establishment carries out with respect to an 

7 establishment under section 4 of the Inspector Gen8 eral Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 4), under the same 

9 terms and conditions which apply under such sec10 tion. 

11 (2) SEMIANNUAL REPORTS.—The Inspector 

12 General shall prepare and submit semiannual re13 ports summarizing the activities of the Office in the 

14 same manner, and in accordance with the same 

15 deadlines, terms, and conditions, as an Inspector 

16 General of an establishment under section 5 of the 

17 Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 5). 

18 For purposes of applying section 5 of such Act to 

19 the Inspector General, the Capitol Police Board shall 

20 be considered the head of the establishment, except 

21 that the Inspector General shall transmit to the 

22 Chief of the Capitol Police a copy of any report sub23 mitted to the Board pursuant to this paragraph. 

24 (3) INVESTIGATIONS OF COMPLAINTS OF EM25 PLOYEES AND MEMBERS.—
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1 (A) AUTHORITY.—The Inspector General 

2 may receive and investigate complaints or infor3 mation from an employee or member of the 

4 Capitol Police concerning the possible existence 

5 of an activity constituting a violation of law, 

6 rules, or regulations, or mismanagement, gross 

7 waste of funds, abuse of authority, or a sub8 stantial and specific danger to the public health 

9 and safety, including complaints or information 

10 the investigation of which is under the jurisdic11 tion of the Internal Affairs Division of the Cap12 itol Police as of the date of the enactment of 

13 this Act. 

14 (B) NONDISCLOSURE.—The Inspector 

15 General shall not, after receipt of a complaint 

16 or information from an employee or member, 

17 disclose the identity of the employee or member 

18 without the consent of the employee or member, 

19 unless the Inspector General determines such 

20 disclosure is unavoidable during the course of 

21 the investigation. 

22 (C) PROHIBITING RETALIATION.—An em23 ployee or member of the Capitol Police who has 

24 authority to take, direct others to take, rec25 ommend, or approve any personnel action, shall 
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1 not, with respect to such authority, take or 

2 threaten to take any action against any em3 ployee or member as a reprisal for making a 

4 complaint or disclosing information to the In5 spector General, unless the complaint was made 

6 or the information disclosed with the knowledge 

7 that it was false or with willful disregard for its 

8 truth or falsity. 

9 (4) INDEPENDENCE IN CARRYING OUT DU10 TIES.—Neither the Capitol Police Board, the Chief 

11 of the Capitol Police, nor any other member or em12 ployee of the Capitol Police may prevent or prohibit 

13 the Inspector General from carrying out any of the 

14 duties or responsibilities assigned to the Inspector 

15 General under this section. 

16 (d) POWERS.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General may 

18 exercise the same authorities with respect to the 

19 United States Capitol Police as an Inspector General 

20 of an establishment may exercise with respect to an 

21 establishment under section 6(a) of the Inspector 

22 General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 6(a)), other 

23 than paragraphs (7) and (8) of such section. 

24 (2) STAFF.—
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General 

2 may appoint and fix the pay of such personnel 

3 as the Inspector General considers appropriate. 

4 Such personnel may be appointed without re5 gard to the provisions of title 5, United States 

6 Code, regarding appointments in the competi7 tive service, and may be paid without regard to 

8 the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III 

9 of chapter 53 of such title relating to classifica10 tion and General Schedule pay rates, except 

11 that no personnel of the Office (other than the 

12 Inspector General) may be paid at an annual 

13 rate greater than $500 less than the annual 

14 rate of pay of the Inspector General under sub15 section (b)(4). 

16 (B) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—The 

17 Inspector General may procure temporary and 

18 intermittent services under section 3109 of title 

19 5, United States Code, at rates not to exceed 

20 the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic 

21 pay for level IV of the Executive Schedule 

22 under section 5315 of such title. 

23 (C) INDEPENDENCE IN APPOINTING

24 STAFF.—No individual may carry out any of 

25 the duties or responsibilities of the Office unless 
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1 the individual is appointed by the Inspector 

2 General, or provides services procured by the 

3 Inspector General, pursuant to this paragraph. 

4 Nothing in this subparagraph may be construed 

5 to prohibit the Inspector General from entering 

6 into a contract or other arrangement for the 

7 provision of services under this section. 

8 (D) APPLICABILITY OF CAPITOL POLICE

9 PERSONNEL RULES.—None of the regulations 

10 governing the appointment and pay of employ11 ees of the Capitol Police shall apply with re12 spect to the appointment and compensation of 

13 the personnel of the Office, except to the extent 

14 agreed to by the Inspector General. Nothing in 

15 the previous sentence may be construed to af16 fect subparagraphs (A) through (C). 

17 (3) EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES.—The Chief of 

18 the Capitol Police shall provide the Office with ap19 propriate and adequate office space, together with 

20 such equipment, supplies, and communications facili21 ties and services as may be necessary for the oper22 ation of the Office, and shall provide necessary 

23 maintenance services for such office space and the 

24 equipment and facilities located therein. 

25 (e) TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS.—
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1 (1) TRANSFER.—To the extent that any office 

2 or entity in the Capitol Police prior to the appoint3 ment of the first Inspector General under this sec4 tion carried out any of the duties and responsibilities 

5 assigned to the Inspector General under this section, 

6 the functions of such office or entity shall be trans7 ferred to the Office upon the appointment of the 

8 first Inspector General under this section. 

9 (2) NO REDUCTION IN PAY OR BENEFITS.—The 

10 transfer of the functions of an office or entity to the 

11 Office under paragraph (1) may not result in a re12 duction in the pay or benefits of any employee of the 

13 office or entity, except to the extent required under 

14 subsection (d)(2)(A).

15 SEC. 1007. (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 

16 days after the last day of each semiannual period, the 

17 Chief of the Capitol Police shall submit to Congress, with 

18 respect to that period, a detailed, itemized report of the 

19 disbursements for the operations of the United States 

20 Capitol Police. 

21 (b) CONTENTS.—The report required by subsection 

22 (a) shall include—

23 (1) the name of each person or entity who re24 ceives a payment from the Capitol Police; 
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1 (2) the cost of any item furnished to the Cap2 itol Police; 

3 (3) a description of any service rendered to the 

4 Capitol Police, together with service dates; 

5 (4) a statement of all amounts appropriated to, 

6 or received or expended by, the Capitol Police and 

7 any unexpended balances of such amounts for any 

8 open fiscal year; and 

9 (5) such additional information as may be re10 quired by regulation of the Committee on House Ad11 ministration of the House of Representatives or the 

12 Committee on Rules and Administration of the Sen13 ate. 

14 (c) PRINTING.—Each report under this section shall 

15 be printed as a House document. 

16 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply with 

17 respect to the semiannual periods of October 1 through 

18 March 31 and April 1 through September 30 of each year, 

19 beginning with the semiannual period in which this section 

20 is enacted. 

21 OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE 

22 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

23 For salaries and expenses of the Office of Compli24 ance, as authorized by section 305 of the Congressional 

25 Accountability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1385), $3,112,000, 
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1 of which $780,000 shall remain available until September 

2 30, 2007: Provided, That the Executive Director of the 

3 Office of Compliance may, within the limits of available 

4 appropriations, dispose of surplus or obsolete personal 

5 property by interagency transfer, donation, or discarding: 

6 Provided further, That not more than $500 may be ex7 pended on the certification of the Executive Director of 

8 the Office of Compliance in connection with official rep9 resentation and reception expenses. 

10 CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE 

11 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

12 For salaries and expenses necessary for operation of 

13 the Congressional Budget Office, including not more than 

14 $3,000 to be expended on the certification of the Director 

15 of the Congressional Budget Office in connection with offi16 cial representation and reception expenses, $35,450,000.

17 ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISION

18 SEC. 1100. (a) PERMITTING WAIVER OF CLAIMS FOR

19 OVERPAYMENT OF PAY AND ALLOWANCES.—Section 

20 5584(g) of title 5, United States Code, is amended—

21 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

22 (5); 

23 (2) by striking the period at the end of para24 graph (6) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
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1 (3) by inserting immediately after paragraph 

2 (6) the following new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(7) the Congressional Budget Office.’’. 

4 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

5 this section shall apply with respect to fiscal year 2006 

6 and each succeeding fiscal year. 

7 ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL 

8 GENERAL ADMINISTRATION

9 For salaries for the Architect of the Capitol, and 

10 other personal services, at rates of pay provided by law; 

11 for surveys and studies in connection with activities under 

12 the care of the Architect of the Capitol; for all necessary 

13 expenses for the general and administrative support of the 

14 operations under the Architect of the Capitol including the 

15 Botanic Garden; electrical substations of the Capitol, Sen16 ate and House office buildings, and other facilities under 

17 the jurisdiction of the Architect of the Capitol; including 

18 furnishings and office equipment; including not more than 

19 $5,000 for official reception and representation expenses, 

20 to be expended as the Architect of the Capitol may ap21 prove; for purchase or exchange, maintenance, and oper22 ation of a passenger motor vehicle, $77,002,000, of which 

23 $350,000 shall remain available until September 30, 2008. 
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1 CAPITOL BUILDING

2 For all necessary expenses for maintenance, care, and 

3 operation of the Capitol, $22,097,000, of which 

4 $6,580,000 shall remain available until September 30, 

5 2008. 

6 CAPITOL GROUNDS

7 For all necessary expenses for care and improvement 

8 of grounds surrounding the Capitol, the Senate and House 

9 office buildings, and the Capitol Power Plant, $7,723,000, 

10 of which $740,000 shall remain available until September 

11 30, 2008. 

12 HOUSE OFFICE BUILDINGS

13 For all necessary expenses for the maintenance, care 

14 and operation of the House office buildings, $59,616,000, 

15 of which $20,922,000 shall remain available until Sep16 tember 30, 2008. 

17 CAPITOL POWER PLANT

18 For all necessary expenses for the maintenance, care 

19 and operation of the Capitol Power Plant; lighting, heat20 ing, power (including the purchase of electrical energy) 

21 and water and sewer services for the Capitol, Senate and 

22 House office buildings, Library of Congress buildings, and 

23 the grounds about the same, Botanic Garden, Senate ga24 rage, and air conditioning refrigeration not supplied from 

25 plants in any of such buildings; heating the Government 
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1 Printing Office and Washington City Post Office, and 

2 heating and chilled water for air conditioning for the Su3 preme Court Building, the Union Station complex, the 

4 Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building and the 

5 Folger Shakespeare Library, expenses for which shall be 

6 advanced or reimbursed upon request of the Architect of 

7 the Capitol and amounts so received shall be deposited 

8 into the Treasury to the credit of this appropriation, 

9 $58,585,000, of which $1,592,000 shall remain available 

10 until September 30, 2008: Provided, That not more than 

11 $6,600,000 of the funds credited or to be reimbursed to 

12 this appropriation as herein provided shall be available for 

13 obligation during fiscal year 2006. 

14 LIBRARY BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS

15 For all necessary expenses for the mechanical and 

16 structural maintenance, care and operation of the Library 

17 buildings and grounds, $31,318,000, of which $6,325,000 

18 shall remain available until September 30, 2008. 

19 CAPITOL POLICE BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS

20 For all necessary expenses for the maintenance, care 

21 and operation of buildings and grounds of the United 

22 States Capitol Police, $16,830,000, of which $5,500,000 

23 shall remain available until September 30, 2008. 
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1 BOTANIC GARDEN

2 For all necessary expenses for the maintenance, care 

3 and operation of the Botanic Garden and the nurseries, 

4 buildings, grounds, and collections; and purchase and ex5 change, maintenance, repair, and operation of a passenger 

6 motor vehicle; all under the direction of the Joint Com7 mittee on the Library, $7,211,000: Provided, That this ap8 propriation shall not be available for construction of the 

9 National Garden: Provided further, That of the amount 

10 made available under this heading, the Architect may obli11 gate and expend such sums as may be necessary for the 

12 maintenance, care, and operation of the National Garden 

13 established under section 307E of the Legislative Branch 

14 Appropriations Act, 1989 (2 U.S.C. 2146), upon vouchers 

15 approved by the Architect or a duly authorized designee. 

16 CAPITOL VISITOR CENTER

17 For an additional amount for the Capitol Visitor Cen18 ter project, $36,900,000, to remain available until ex19 pended: Provided, That the Architect of the Capitol may 

20 not obligate any of the funds which are made available 

21 for the Capitol Visitor Center project without an obliga22 tion plan approved by the Committees on Appropriations 

23 of the Senate and House of Representatives. 
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•HR 2985 EH 

1 ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS

2 SEC. 1201. (a) Section 108 of the Legislative Branch 

3 Appropriations Act, 1991 (2 U.S.C. 1849), is amended—

4 (1) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘8 positions’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘10 positions’’; and 

6 (2) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘4 positions’’ 

7 and inserting ‘‘2 positions’’. 

8 (b) The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 

9 apply with respect to pay periods beginning on or after 

10 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

11 SEC. 1202. (a) Section 905 of the 2002 Supplemental 

12 Appropriations Act for Further Recovery From and Re13 sponse To Terrorist Attacks on the United States (2 

14 U.S.C. 1819) is amended—

15 (1) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub16 section (e); and 

17 (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol18 lowing new subsection: 

19 ‘‘(d) In the case of a building or facility acquired 

20 through purchase pursuant to subsection (a), the Archi21 tect of the Capitol may enter into or assume a lease with 

22 another person for the use of any portion of the building 

23 or facility that the Architect of the Capitol determines is 

24 not required to be used to carry out the purposes of this 

25 section, subject to the approval of the entity which ap-
28

•HR 2985 EH 

1 proved the acquisition of such building or facility under 

2 subsection (b).’’. 

3 (b) The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 

4 apply with respect to leases entered into on or after the 

5 date of the enactment of this Act. 

6 SEC. 1203. (a) There is hereby established the Cap7 itol Visitor Center Governing Board (hereafter in this sec8 tion referred to as the ‘‘Governing Board’’), consisting of 

9 each of the following individuals: 

10 (1) The Speaker of the House of Representa11 tives, or the Speaker’s designee. 

12 (2) The minority leader of the House of Rep13 resentatives, or the minority leader’s designee. 

14 (3) The majority leader of the Senate, or the 

15 majority leader’s designee. 

16 (4) The minority leader of the Senate, or the 

17 minority leader’s designee. 

18 (5) The chairman of the Committee on House 

19 Administration of the House of Representatives, who 

20 shall serve as co-chairman of the Governing Board. 

21 (6) The ranking minority member of the Com22 mittee on House Administration of the House of 

23 Representatives. 
29

•HR 2985 EH 

1 (7) The chairman of the Committee on Rules 

2 and Administration of the Senate, who shall serve as 

3 co-chairman of the Governing Board. 

4 (8) The ranking minority member of the Com5 mittee on Rules and Administration of the Senate. 

6 (b) The Governing Board shall be responsible for es7 tablishing the policies which govern the operations of the 

8 Capitol Visitor Center, consistent with applicable law. 

9 (c) This section shall apply with respect to fiscal year 

10 2006 and each succeeding fiscal year.

11 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 

12 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

13 (INCLUDING RESCISSION)

14 For necessary expenses of the Library of Congress 

15 not otherwise provided for, including development and 

16 maintenance of the Library’s catalogs; custody and custo17 dial care of the Library buildings; special clothing; clean18 ing, laundering and repair of uniforms; preservation of 

19 motion pictures in the custody of the Library; operation 

20 and maintenance of the American Folklife Center in the 

21 Library; preparation and distribution of catalog records 

22 and other publications of the Library; hire or purchase 

23 of one passenger motor vehicle; and expenses of the Li24 brary of Congress Trust Fund Board not properly charge25 able to the income of any trust fund held by the Board, 

26 $388,144,000, of which not more than $6,000,000 shall 
30

•HR 2985 EH 

1 be derived from collections credited to this appropriation 

2 during fiscal year 2006, and shall remain available until 

3 expended, under the Act of June 28, 1902 (chapter 1301; 

4 32 Stat. 480; 2 U.S.C. 150) and not more than $350,000 

5 shall be derived from collections during fiscal year 2006 

6 and shall remain available until expended for the develop7 ment and maintenance of an international legal informa8 tion database and activities related thereto: Provided,

9 That the Library of Congress may not obligate or expend 

10 any funds derived from collections under the Act of June 

11 28, 1902, in excess of the amount authorized for obliga12 tion or expenditure in appropriations Acts: Provided fur13 ther, That the total amount available for obligation shall 

14 be reduced by the amount by which collections are less 

15 than $6,350,000: Provided further, That of the total 

16 amount appropriated, $13,972,000 shall remain available 

17 until expended for the partial acquisition of books, periodi18 cals, newspapers, and all other materials including sub19 scriptions for bibliographic services for the Library, in20 cluding $40,000 to be available solely for the purchase, 

21 when specifically approved by the Librarian, of special and 

22 unique materials for additions to the collections: Provided 

23 further, That of the total amount appropriated, not more 

24 than $12,000 may be expended, on the certification of the 

25 Librarian of Congress, in connection with official rep-
31

•HR 2985 EH 

1 resentation and reception expenses for the Overseas Field 

2 Offices: Provided further, That of the total amount appro3 priated, $500,000 shall remain available until expended, 

4 and shall be transferred to the Abraham Lincoln Bicenten5 nial Commission for carrying out the purposes of Public 

6 Law 106–173, of which $10,000 may be used for official 

7 representation and reception expenses of the Abraham 

8 Lincoln Bicentennial Commission: Provided further, That 

9 of the total amount appropriated, $11,078,000 shall re10 main available until expended for partial support of the 

11 National Audio-Visual Conservation Center: Provided fur12 ther, That of the amounts made available under this head13 ing in chapter 9 of division A of the Miscellaneous Appro14 priations Act, 2001 (Public Law 106–554; 114 Stat. 

15 2763A–194), $15,500,000 is rescinded. 

16 COPYRIGHT OFFICE

17 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

18 For necessary expenses of the Copyright Office, 

19 $58,601,000, of which not more than $30,481,000, to re20 main available until expended, shall be derived from collec21 tions credited to this appropriation during fiscal year 2006 

22 under section 708(d) of title 17, United States Code: Pro23 vided, That the Copyright Office may not obligate or ex24 pend any funds derived from collections under such sec25 tion, in excess of the amount authorized for obligation or 
32

•HR 2985 EH 

1 expenditure in appropriations Acts: Provided further, That 

2 not more than $5,465,000 shall be derived from collections 

3 during fiscal year 2006 under sections 111(d)(2), 

4 119(b)(2), 802(h), 1005, and 1316 of such title: Provided 

5 further, That the total amount available for obligation 

6 shall be reduced by the amount by which collections are 

7 less than $35,946,000: Provided further, That not more 

8 than $100,000 of the amount appropriated is available for 

9 the maintenance of an ‘‘International Copyright Institute’’ 

10 in the Copyright Office of the Library of Congress for the 

11 purpose of training nationals of developing countries in 

12 intellectual property laws and policies: Provided further,

13 That not more than $4,250 may be expended, on the cer14 tification of the Librarian of Congress, in connection with 

15 official representation and reception expenses for activities 

16 of the International Copyright Institute and for copyright 

17 delegations, visitors, and seminars: Provided further, That 

18 notwithstanding any provision of chapter 8 of title 17, 

19 United States Code, any amounts made available under 

20 this heading which are attributable to royalty fees and 

21 payments received by the Copyright Office pursuant to 

22 sections 111, 119, and chapter 10 of such title may be 

23 used for the costs incurred in the administration of the 

24 Copyright Royalty Judges program. 
33

•HR 2985 EH 

1 CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE

2 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

3 For necessary expenses to carry out the provisions 

4 of section 203 of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 

5 1946 (2 U.S.C. 166) and to revise and extend the Anno6 tated Constitution of the United States of America, 

7 $99,952,000: Provided, That no part of such amount may 

8 be used to pay any salary or expense in connection with 

9 any publication, or preparation of material therefor (ex10 cept the Digest of Public General Bills), to be issued by 

11 the Library of Congress unless such publication has ob12 tained prior approval of either the Committee on House 

13 Administration of the House of Representatives or the 

14 Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate. 

15 BOOKS FOR THE BLIND AND PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPED

16 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

17 For salaries and expenses to carry out the Act of 

18 March 3, 1931 (chapter 400; 46 Stat. 1487; 2 U.S.C. 

19 135a), $54,049,000, of which $15,831,000 shall remain 

20 available until expended. 

21 ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS

22 SEC. 1301. INCENTIVE AWARDS PROGRAM.—Of the 

23 amounts appropriated to the Library of Congress in this 

24 Act, not more than $5,000 may be expended, on the cer25 tification of the Librarian of Congress, in connection with 
34

•HR 2985 EH 

1 official representation and reception expenses for the in2 centive awards program. 

3 SEC. 1302. REIMBURSABLE AND REVOLVING FUND

4 ACTIVITIES. (a) IN GENERAL.—For fiscal year 2006, the 

5 obligational authority of the Library of Congress for the 

6 activities described in subsection (b) may not exceed 

7 $109,943,000. 

8 (b) ACTIVITIES.—The activities referred to in sub9 section (a) are reimbursable and revolving fund activities 

10 that are funded from sources other than appropriations 

11 to the Library in appropriations Acts for the legislative 

12 branch. 

13 (c) TRANSFER OF FUNDS.—During fiscal year 2006, 

14 the Librarian of Congress may temporarily transfer funds 

15 appropriated in this Act, under the heading ‘‘LIBRARY 

16 OF CONGRESS’’ under the subheading ‘‘SALARIES AND

17 EXPENSES’’ to the revolving fund for the FEDLINK Pro18 gram and the Federal Research Program established 

19 under section 103 of the Library of Congress Fiscal Oper20 ations Improvement Act of 2000 (Public Law 106–481; 

21 2 U.S.C. 182c): Provided, That the total amount of such 

22 transfers may not exceed $1,900,000: Provided further,

23 That the appropriate revolving fund account shall reim24 burse the Library for any amounts transferred to it before 
35

•HR 2985 EH 

1 the period of availability of the Library appropriation ex2 pires. 

3 SEC. 1303. UNITED STATES DIPLOMATIC FACILI4 TIES.—Funds made available for the Library of Congress 

5 under this Act are available for transfer to the Depart6 ment of State as remittance for a fee charged by the De7 partment for fiscal year 2006 for the maintenance, up8 grade, or construction of United States diplomatic facili9 ties only to the extent that the amount of the fee so 

10 charged is equal to or less than the unreimbursed value 

11 of the services provided during fiscal year 2006 to the Li12 brary of Congress on State Department diplomatic facili13 ties. 

14 SEC. 1304. (a) Section 208 of the Legislative Branch 

15 Appropriations Act, 1996 (Public Law 104–53; 109 Stat. 

16 532), is hereby repealed. 

17 (b) The amendment made by this section shall take 

18 effect on the date of the enactment of this Act or October 

19 1, 2005, whichever occurs earlier. 

20 GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 

21 CONGRESSIONAL PRINTING AND BINDING

22 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 

23 For authorized printing and binding for the Congress 

24 and the distribution of Congressional information in any 

25 format; printing and binding for the Architect of the Cap-
36

•HR 2985 EH 

1 itol; expenses necessary for preparing the semimonthly 

2 and session index to the Congressional Record, as author3 ized by law (section 902 of title 44, United States Code); 

4 printing and binding of Government publications author5 ized by law to be distributed to Members of Congress; and 

6 printing, binding, and distribution of Government publica7 tions authorized by law to be distributed without charge 

8 to the recipient, $88,090,000 (reduced by $5,400,000): 

9 Provided, That this appropriation shall not be available 

10 for paper copies of the permanent edition of the Congres11 sional Record for individual Representatives, Resident 

12 Commissioners or Delegates authorized under section 906 

13 of title 44, United States Code: Provided further, That this 

14 appropriation shall be available for the payment of obliga15 tions incurred under the appropriations for similar pur16 poses for preceding fiscal years: Provided further, That 

17 notwithstanding the 2-year limitation under section 718 

18 of title 44, United States Code, none of the funds appro19 priated or made available under this Act or any other Act 

20 for printing and binding and related services provided to 

21 Congress under chapter 7 of title 44, United States Code, 

22 may be expended to print a document, report, or publica23 tion after the 27-month period beginning on the date that 

24 such document, report, or publication is authorized by 

25 Congress to be printed, unless Congress reauthorizes such 
37

•HR 2985 EH 

1 printing in accordance with section 718 of title 44, United 

2 States Code: Provided further, That any unobligated or 

3 unexpended balances in this account or accounts for simi4 lar purposes for preceding fiscal years may be transferred 

5 to the Government Printing Office revolving fund for car6 rying out the purposes of this heading, subject to the ap7 proval of the Committees on Appropriations of the House 

8 of Representatives and Senate. 

9 OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF DOCUMENTS

10 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

11 (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS) 

12 For expenses of the Office of Superintendent of Doc13 uments necessary to provide for the cataloging and index14 ing of Government publications and their distribution to 

15 the public, Members of Congress, other Government agen16 cies, and designated depository and international exchange 

17 libraries as authorized by law, $33,337,000: Provided, 

18 That amounts of not more than $2,000,000 from current 

19 year appropriations are authorized for producing and dis20 seminating Congressional serial sets and other related 

21 publications for fiscal years 2004 and 2005 to depository 

22 and other designated libraries: Provided further, That any 

23 unobligated or unexpended balances in this account or ac24 counts for similar purposes for preceding fiscal years may 

25 be transferred to the Government Printing Office revolv-
38

•HR 2985 EH 

1 ing fund for carrying out the purposes of this heading, 

2 subject to the approval of the Committees on Appropria3 tions of the House of Representatives and Senate. 

4 GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE REVOLVING FUND

5 For payment to the Government Printing Office Re6 volving Fund, $1,200,000 for workforce retraining. The 

7 Government Printing Office may make such expenditures, 

8 within the limits of funds available and in accord with the 

9 law, and to make such contracts and commitments without 

10 regard to fiscal year limitations as provided by section 

11 9104 of title 31, United States Code, as may be necessary 

12 in carrying out the programs and purposes set forth in 

13 the budget for the current fiscal year for the Government 

14 Printing Office revolving fund: Provided, That not more 

15 than $5,000 may be expended on the certification of the 

16 Public Printer in connection with official representation 

17 and reception expenses: Provided further, That the revolv18 ing fund shall be available for the hire or purchase of not 

19 more than 12 passenger motor vehicles: Provided further, 

20 That expenditures in connection with travel expenses of 

21 the advisory councils to the Public Printer shall be deemed 

22 necessary to carry out the provisions of title 44, United 

23 States Code: Provided further, That the revolving fund 

24 shall be available for temporary or intermittent services 

25 under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, but 
39

•HR 2985 EH 

1 at rates for individuals not more than the daily equivalent 

2 of the annual rate of basic pay for level V of the Executive 

3 Schedule under section 5316 of such title: Provided fur4 ther, That the revolving fund and the funds provided 

5 under the headings ‘‘OFFICE OF SUPERINTENDENT OF

6 DOCUMENTS’’ and ‘‘SALARIES AND EXPENSES’’ together 

7 may not be available for the full-time equivalent employ8 ment of more than 2,621 workyears (or such other number 

9 of workyears as the Public Printer may request, subject 

10 to the approval of the Committees on Appropriations of 

11 the House of Representatives and Senate): Provided fur12 ther, That activities financed through the revolving fund 

13 may provide information in any format: Provided further, 

14 That not more than $10,000 may be expended from the 

15 revolving fund in support of the activities of the Benjamin 

16 Franklin Tercentenary Commission established by Public 

17 Law 107–202. 

18 GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE 

19 SALARIES AND EXPENSES

20 For necessary expenses of the Government Account21 ability Office, including not more than $12,500 to be ex22 pended on the certification of the Comptroller General of 

23 the United States in connection with official representa24 tion and reception expenses; temporary or intermittent 

25 services under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States 
40

•HR 2985 EH 

1 Code, but at rates for individuals not more than the daily 

2 equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay for level IV of 

3 the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of such title; 

4 hire of one passenger motor vehicle; advance payments in 

5 foreign countries in accordance with section 3324 of title 

6 31, United States Code; benefits comparable to those pay7 able under sections 901(5), (6), and (8) of the Foreign 

8 Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4081(5), (6), and (8)); 

9 and under regulations prescribed by the Comptroller Gen10 eral of the United States, rental of living quarters in for11 eign countries, $482,395,000: Provided, That not more 

12 than $5,104,000 of payments received under section 782 

13 of title 31, United States Code, shall be available for use 

14 in fiscal year 2006: Provided further, That not more than 

15 $2,061,000 of reimbursements received under section 

16 9105 of title 31, United States Code, shall be available 

17 for use in fiscal year 2006: Provided further, That this 

18 appropriation and appropriations for administrative ex19 penses of any other department or agency which is a mem20 ber of the National Intergovernmental Audit Forum or a 

21 Regional Intergovernmental Audit Forum shall be avail22 able to finance an appropriate share of either Forum’s 

23 costs as determined by the respective Forum, including 

24 necessary travel expenses of non-Federal participants: 

25 Provided further, That payments hereunder to the Forum 
41

•HR 2985 EH 

1 may be credited as reimbursements to any appropriation 

2 from which costs involved are initially financed. 

3 PAYMENT TO THE OPEN WORLD LEADERSHIP CENTER

4 TRUST FUND

5 For a payment to the Open World Leadership Center 

6 Trust Fund for financing activities of the Open World 

7 Leadership Center under section 313 of the Legislative 

8 Branch Appropriations Act, 2001 (2 U.S.C. 1151), 

9 $14,000,000. 

10 TITLE II—GENERAL PROVISIONS 

11 SEC. 201. MAINTENANCE AND CARE OF PRIVATE

12 VEHICLES.—No part of the funds appropriated in this Act 

13 shall be used for the maintenance or care of private vehi14 cles, except for emergency assistance and cleaning as may 

15 be provided under regulations relating to parking facilities 

16 for the House of Representatives issued by the Committee 

17 on House Administration and for the Senate issued by the 

18 Committee on Rules and Administration. 

19 SEC. 202. FISCAL YEAR LIMITATION.—No part of 

20 the funds appropriated in this Act shall remain available 

21 for obligation beyond fiscal year 2006 unless expressly so 

22 provided in this Act. 

23 SEC. 203. RATES OF COMPENSATION AND DESIGNA24 TION.—Whenever in this Act any office or position not 

25 specifically established by the Legislative Pay Act of 1929 
42

•HR 2985 EH 

1 (46 Stat. 32 et seq.) is appropriated for or the rate of 

2 compensation or designation of any office or position ap3 propriated for is different from that specifically estab4 lished by such Act, the rate of compensation and the des5 ignation in this Act shall be the permanent law with re6 spect thereto: Provided, That the provisions in this Act 

7 for the various items of official expenses of Members, offi8 cers, and committees of the Senate and House of Rep9 resentatives, and clerk hire for Senators and Members of 

10 the House of Representatives shall be the permanent law 

11 with respect thereto. 

12 SEC. 204. CONSULTING SERVICES.—The expenditure 

13 of any appropriation under this Act for any consulting 

14 service through procurement contract, under section 3109 

15 of title 5, United States Code, shall be limited to those 

16 contracts where such expenditures are a matter of public 

17 record and available for public inspection, except where 

18 otherwise provided under existing law, or under existing 

19 Executive order issued under existing law. 

20 SEC. 205. AWARDS AND SETTLEMENTS.—Such sums 

21 as may be necessary are appropriated to the account de22 scribed in subsection (a) of section 415 of the Congres23 sional Accountability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1415(a)) to 

24 pay awards and settlements as authorized under such sub25 section. 
43

•HR 2985 EH 

1 SEC. 206. COSTS OF LBFMC.—Amounts available 

2 for administrative expenses of any legislative branch entity 

3 which participates in the Legislative Branch Financial 

4 Managers Council (LBFMC) established by charter on 

5 March 26, 1996, shall be available to finance an appro6 priate share of LBFMC costs as determined by the 

7 LBFMC, except that the total LBFMC costs to be shared 

8 among all participating legislative branch entities (in such 

9 allocations among the entities as the entities may deter10 mine) may not exceed $2,000. 

11 SEC. 207. LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE.—The Archi12 tect of the Capitol, in consultation with the District of Co13 lumbia, is authorized to maintain and improve the land14 scape features, excluding streets and sidewalks, in the ir15 regular shaped grassy areas bounded by Washington Ave16 nue, SW on the northeast, Second Street SW on the west, 

17 Square 582 on the south, and the beginning of the I–395 

18 tunnel on the southeast. 

19 SEC. 208. LIMITATION ON TRANSFERS.—None of the 

20 funds made available in this Act may be transferred to 

21 any department, agency, or instrumentality of the United 

22 States Government, except pursuant to a transfer made 

23 by, or transfer authority provided in, this Act or any other 

24 appropriation Act. 
44

•HR 2985 EH 

1 SEC. 209. COMPENSATION LIMITATION.—None of 

2 the funds contained in this Act or any other Act may be 

3 used to pay the salary of any officer or employee of the 

4 legislative branch during fiscal year 2006 or any suc5 ceeding fiscal year to the extent that the aggregate 

6 amount of compensation paid to the employee during the 

7 year (including base salary, performance awards and other 

8 bonus payments, and incentive payments, but excluding 

9 the value of any in-kind benefits and payments) exceeds 

10 the annual rate of pay for a Member of the House of Rep11 resentatives or a Senator. 

12 TITLE III—CONTINUITY IN REPRESENTATION 

13 SEC. 301. Section 26 of the Revised Statutes of the 

14 United States (2 U.S.C. 8) is amended—

15 (1) by striking ‘‘The time’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) 

16 IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection (b), 

17 the time’’; and 

18 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub19 section: 

20 ‘‘(b) SPECIAL RULES IN EXTRAORDINARY CIR21 CUMSTANCES.—

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In extraordinary cir23 cumstances, the executive authority of any State in 

24 which a vacancy exists in its representation in the 
45

•HR 2985 EH 

1 House of Representatives shall issue a writ of elec2 tion to fill such vacancy by special election. 

3 ‘‘(2) TIMING OF SPECIAL ELECTION.—A special 

4 election held under this subsection to fill a vacancy 

5 shall take place not later than 49 days after the 

6 Speaker of the House of Representatives announces 

7 that the vacancy exists, unless, during the 75-day 

8 period which begins on the date of the announce9 ment of the vacancy—

10 ‘‘(A) a regularly scheduled general election 

11 for the office involved is to be held; or 

12 ‘‘(B) another special election for the office 

13 involved is to be held, pursuant to a writ for a 

14 special election issued by the chief executive of 

15 the State prior to the date of the announcement 

16 of the vacancy. 

17 ‘‘(3) NOMINATIONS BY PARTIES.—If a special 

18 election is to be held under this subsection, the de19 termination of the candidates who will run in such 

20 election shall be made—

21 ‘‘(A) by nominations made not later than 

22 10 days after the Speaker announces that the 

23 vacancy exists by the political parties of the 

24 State that are authorized by State law to nomi25 nate candidates for the election; or 
46

•HR 2985 EH 

1 ‘‘(B) by any other method the State con2 siders appropriate, including holding primary 

3 elections, that will ensure that the State will 

4 hold the special election within the deadline re5 quired under paragraph (2). 

6 ‘‘(4) EXTRAORDINARY CIRCUMSTANCES.—

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In this subsection, 

8 ‘extraordinary circumstances’ occur when the 

9 Speaker of the House of Representatives an10 nounces that vacancies in the representation 

11 from the States in the House exceed 100. 

12 ‘‘(B) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—If any action is 

13 brought for declaratory or injunctive relief to 

14 challenge an announcement made under sub15 paragraph (A), the following rules shall apply: 

16 ‘‘(i) Not later than 2 days after the 

17 announcement, the action shall be filed in 

18 the United States District Court having ju19 risdiction in the district of the Member of 

20 the House of Representatives whose seat 

21 has been announced to be vacant and shall 

22 be heard by a 3-judge court convened pur23 suant to section 2284 of title 28, United 

24 States Code. 
47

•HR 2985 EH 

1 ‘‘(ii) A copy of the complaint shall be 

2 delivered promptly to the Clerk of the 

3 House of Representatives. 

4 ‘‘(iii) A final decision in the action 

5 shall be made within 3 days of the filing 

6 of such action and shall not be reviewable. 

7 ‘‘(iv) The executive authority of the 

8 State that contains the district of the 

9 Member of the House of Representatives 

10 whose seat has been announced to be va11 cant shall have the right to intervene either 

12 in support of or opposition to the position 

13 of a party to the case regarding the an14 nouncement of such vacancy. 

15 ‘‘(5) PROTECTING ABILITY OF ABSENT MILI16 TARY AND OVERSEAS VOTERS TO PARTICIPATE IN

17 SPECIAL ELECTIONS.—

18 ‘‘(A) DEADLINE FOR TRANSMITTAL OF AB19 SENTEE BALLOTS.—In conducting a special 

20 election held under this subsection to fill a va21 cancy in its representation, the State shall en22 sure to the greatest extent practicable (includ23 ing through the use of electronic means) that 

24 absentee ballots for the election are transmitted 

25 to absent uniformed services voters and over-
48

•HR 2985 EH 

1 seas voters (as such terms are defined in the 

2 Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Vot3 ing Act) not later than 15 days after the 

4 Speaker of the House of Representatives an5 nounces that the vacancy exists. 

6 ‘‘(B) PERIOD FOR BALLOT TRANSIT

7 TIME.—Notwithstanding the deadlines referred 

8 to in paragraphs (2) and (3), in the case of an 

9 individual who is an absent uniformed services 

10 voter or an overseas voter (as such terms are 

11 defined in the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens 

12 Absentee Voting Act), a State shall accept and 

13 process any otherwise valid ballot or other elec14 tion material from the voter so long as the bal15 lot or other material is received by the appro16 priate State election official not later than 45 

17 days after the State transmits the ballot or 

18 other material to the voter. 

19 ‘‘(6) APPLICATION TO DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

20 AND TERRITORIES.—This subsection shall apply—

21 ‘‘(A) to a Delegate or Resident Commis22 sioner to the Congress in the same manner as 

23 it applies to a Member of the House of Rep24 resentatives; and 
49

•HR 2985 EH 

1 ‘‘(B) to the District of Columbia, the Com2 monwealth of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, 

3 Guam, and the United States Virgin Islands in 

4 the same manner as it applies to a State, ex5 cept that a vacancy in the representation from 

6 any such jurisdiction in the House shall not be 

7 taken into account by the Speaker in deter8 mining whether vacancies in the representation 

9 from the States in the House exceed 100 for 

10 purposes of paragraph (4)(A). 

11 ‘‘(7) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION REGARDING FED12 ERAL ELECTION LAWS.—Nothing in this subsection 

13 may be construed to affect the application to special 

14 elections under this subsection of any Federal law 

15 governing the administration of elections for Federal 

16 office (including any law providing for the enforce17 ment of any such law), including, but not limited to, 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘(A) The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42 

20 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.), as amended. 

21 ‘‘(B) The Voting Accessibility for the El22 derly and Handicapped Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ee 

23 et seq.), as amended. 
50

•HR 2985 EH 

1 ‘‘(C) The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens 

2 Absentee Voting Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff et seq.), 

3 as amended. 

4 ‘‘(D) The National Voter Registration Act 

5 of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 1973gg et seq.), as amend6 ed. 

7 ‘‘(E) The Americans With Disabilities Act 

8 of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), as amended. 

9 ‘‘(F) The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 

10 U.S.C. 701 et seq.), as amended. 

11 ‘‘(G) The Help America Vote Act of 2002 

12 (42 U.S.C. 15301 et seq.), as amended.’’. 

13 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Legislative Branch Ap14 propriations Act, 2006’’.

Passed the House of Representatives June 22, 2005. 

Attest:

Clerk. 
109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2985

AN ACT

Making appropriations for the Legislative Branch 

and for other purposes. for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2006,