IIA

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 5243

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

OCTOBER 7 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 12), 1994

Received

OCTOBER 8 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 12), 1994

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works

AN ACT

To amend the Public Works and Economic Development

Act of 1965 to reauthorize economic development programs, 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,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘Economic Development Reauthorization Act of 1994’’.

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for

7 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

Sec. 2. Direct and supplementary grants.

Sec. 3. Grants for public works facilities.

Sec. 4. Repeal of financial assistance for sewer facilities.

Sec. 5. Relationship of overall economic development plan to public works and

development facility loans.

Sec. 6. Elimination of overall economic development program.
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Sec. 7. Redevelopment area loan program.

Sec. 8. Technical assistance, research, and information.

Sec. 9. Business outreach center demonstration project.

Sec. 10. Office of Strategic Economic Development Planning and Policy.

Sec. 11. Office of Economic Development Information.

Sec. 12. Authorization of appropriations for technical assistance, research, and

information.

Sec. 13. Redevelopment areas.

Sec. 14. Annual review.

Sec. 15. Economic development districts.

Sec. 16. Equity between rural and urban areas.

Sec. 17. Applications for assistance.

Sec. 18. Performance evaluations of grant recipients.

Sec. 19. Transfer of funds.

Sec. 20. Extension of benefits.

Sec. 21. Supervision of Regional Counsels.

Sec. 22. Purpose.

Sec. 23. Definition of eligible recipient.

Sec. 24. Base closings and realignments.

Sec. 25. Outreach to communities adversely affected by closures and

realignments of military installations.

Sec. 26. Treatment of revolving loan funds.

Sec. 27. Sale of financial instruments in revolving loan funds.

Sec. 28. Competitive communities pilot program.

Sec. 29. Special economic development and adjustment assistance.

Sec. 30. Compliance with Buy American Act.

Sec. 31. Regulatory relief.

1 SEC. 2. DIRECT AND SUPPLEMENTARY GRANTS.

2 (a) GRANTS.—Section 101(a) of the Public Works

3 and Economic Development Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C.

4 3131(a)) is amended—

5 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by

6 striking ‘‘representing any redevelopment area or

7 part thereof’’ and inserting ‘‘acting in cooperation

8 with an official of a local government’’; and

9 (2) in paragraph (1)—

10 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph

11 (A), by striking ‘‘acquisition, construction’’ and

12 inserting ‘‘acquisition, design, engineering, con13 struction’’;
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1 (B) by striking subparagraph (C) and in2 serting the following new subparagraph:

3 ‘‘(C) the area for which the project is to be

4 undertaken has an approved overall economic

5 development plan as provided in section 402

6 and such project is consistent with such plan;

7 and’’; and

8 (C) in subparagraph (D)—

9 (i) by striking ‘‘so designated under

10 section 401(a)(6),’’ and inserting ‘‘de11 scribed in section 401(a)(7),’’; and

12 (ii) by striking ‘‘area.’’ and inserting

13 ‘‘area; and’’.

14 (b) CONSIDERATIONS FOR SUPPLEMENTARY

15 GRANTS.—Section 101(c) of such Act is amended—

16 (1) in the second and third sentences, by strik17 ing ‘‘designated as such under section 401(a)(6) of

18 this Act.’’ and inserting ‘‘described in section

19 401(a)(7).’’; and

20 (2) in the last sentence—

21 (A) by striking ‘‘the area, the’’ and insert22 ing ‘‘the area and the’’; and

23 (B) by striking ‘‘, and the amount of such’’

24 and all that follows and inserting a period.
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1 SEC. 3. GRANTS FOR PUBLIC WORKS FACILITIES.

2 Section 105 of the Public Works and Economic De3 velopment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3135) is amended to

4 read as follows:

5 ‘‘SEC. 105. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

6 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out

7 this title $195,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1995

8 through 1997. Such sums shall remain available until ex9 pended. Not less than 15 percent and not more than 35

10 percent of the amounts appropriated for any of fiscal years

11 1995 through 1997 under this section shall be expended

12 in redevelopment areas described in section 401(a)(7).’’.

13 SEC. 4. REPEAL OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR SEWER

14 FACILITIES.

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title I of the Public Works and

16 Economic Development Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3131–

17 3137) is amended—

18 (1) by repealing section 106;

19 (2) by redesignating section 107 as section 104;

20 and

21 (3) by moving such section 104 to appear after

22 section 103.

23 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 211(b)(3)

24 of the Appalachian Regional Development Act of 1965 (40

25 U.S.C. App. 211(b)(3)) is amended in the last sentence

26 by striking ‘‘Notwithstanding’’ and all that follows
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1 through ‘‘education-related’’ and inserting ‘‘An education2 related’’.

3 SEC. 5. RELATIONSHIP OF OVERALL ECONOMIC DEVELOP4 MENT PLAN TO PUBLIC WORKS AND DEVEL5 OPMENT FACILITY LOANS.

6 Section 201(a) of the Public Works and Economic

7 Development Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3141(a)) is amend8 ed—

9 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by

10 striking ‘‘representing any redevelopment area there11 of’’ and inserting ‘‘acting in cooperation with an of12 ficial of a local government’’; and

13 (2) by striking paragraph (5) and inserting the

14 following new paragraph:

15 ‘‘(5) such area has an approved overall eco16 nomic development plan as provided in section 402

17 and the project for which financial assistance is

18 sought is consistent with such plan.’’.

19 SEC. 6. ELIMINATION OF OVERALL ECONOMIC DEVELOP20 MENT PROGRAM.

21 Section 202(b) of the Public Works and Economic

22 Development Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3142(b)) is amend23 ed—

24 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘Such finan25 cial assistance shall not be extended’’ and inserting
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1 ‘‘The applicant for such financial assistance shall in2 clude, in the application of the applicant for such as3 sistance, an assurance that the assistance will not be

4 used’’; and

5 (2) in paragraph (10), by striking ‘‘there shall

6 be submitted to and approval of the Secretary an

7 overall program for the economic development of the

8 area and’’ and inserting ‘‘the applicant shall submit

9 to the Secretary under section 402, and obtain ap10 proval of, an overall economic development plan and

11 there is’’.

12 SEC. 7. REDEVELOPMENT AREA LOAN PROGRAM.

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 204(a) of the Public

14 Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 (42

15 U.S.C. 3144(a)) is amended by striking the last two sen16 tences.

17 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

18 (1) Section 2 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to

19 amend the Public Works and Economic Development

20 Act of 1965 to extend the authorizations for title I

21 through IV through fiscal year 1971’’, approved

22 July 6, 1970 (42 U.S.C. 3162 note) is repealed.

23 (2) Section 6 of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to

24 amend the Public Works and Economic Development

25 Act of 1965 to extend the authorizations for a one-
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1 year period’’, approved June 18, 1973 (42 U.S.C.

2 3162 note) is amended—

3 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘(a)’’;

4 and

5 (B) by striking subsection (b).

6 SEC. 8. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, RESEARCH, AND INFOR7 MATION.

8 Section 301(a)(1) of the Public Works and Economic

9 Development Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3151(a)(1)) is

10 amended by striking ‘‘areas which he has designated as

11 redevelopment areas under this Act,’’ and inserting ‘‘rede12 velopment areas,’’.

13 SEC. 9. BUSINESS OUTREACH CENTER DEMONSTRATION

14 PROJECT.

15 Section 303 of the Public Works and Economic De16 velopment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3152) is amended to

17 read as follows:

18 ‘‘SEC. 303. BUSINESS OUTREACH CENTER DEMONSTRATION

19 PROJECT.

20 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION.—As used in this section, the term

21 ‘isolated small business’ means a small business that is

22 unable to effectively access small business services pro23 vided by a Federal, State, or local government due to lin24 guistic, cultural, or geographic barriers, as determined by

25 the Secretary.
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1 ‘‘(b) DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.—Using funds made

2 available under this title, the Secretary shall conduct a

3 demonstration project in each of fiscal years 1995 through

4 1997 for the purpose of demonstrating methods of assist5 ing isolated small businesses to access small business serv6 ices provided by Federal, State, and local governments.

7 ‘‘(c) ESTABLISHMENT OF CENTERS.—In conducting

8 the demonstration project under this section, the Sec9 retary shall establish 3 business outreach centers. At least

10 1 of the centers shall be located in a rural area.

11 ‘‘(d) DUTIES OF CENTERS.—Each business outreach

12 center established under this section shall—

13 ‘‘(1) provide a one-stop clearinghouse to assist

14 isolated small businesses in accessing small business

15 services provided by Federal, State, and local gov16 ernments; and

17 ‘‘(2) improve efficiency in the delivery of such

18 services.

19 ‘‘(e) SERVICES TO BE PROVIDED.—Each business

20 outreach center established under this section shall pro21 vide each of the following services:

22 ‘‘(1) Outreach to isolated small businesses.

23 ‘‘(2) Assessment of the need of isolated small

24 businesses for assistance services.
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1 ‘‘(3) Referral of isolated small businesses to

2 small business assistance agencies.

3 ‘‘(4) Preparation of materials required by iso4 lated small businesses for participation in small

5 business assistance programs.

6 ‘‘(5) Case management to ensure follow-up and

7 quality control of business services.

8 ‘‘(6) Coordination of networking among isolated

9 small businesses.

10 ‘‘(7) Quality control of small business assist11 ance services.’’.

12 SEC. 10. OFFICE OF STRATEGIC ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

13 PLANNING AND POLICY.

14 Title III of the Public Works and Economic Develop15 ment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3151–3153) is amended by

16 adding at the end the following new section:

17 ‘‘SEC. 305. OFFICE OF STRATEGIC ECONOMIC DEVELOP18 MENT PLANNING AND POLICY.

19 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall estab20 lish in the Economic Development Administration an Of21 fice of Strategic Economic Development Planning and Pol22 icy (referred to in this section as the ‘Office’).

23 ‘‘(b) DIRECTOR.—The Office shall be headed by a Di24 rector, who shall be appointed by the Secretary and who
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1 shall report to the Assistant Secretary for Economic De2 velopment.

3 ‘‘(c) DUTIES.—The duties of the Director are as fol4 lows:

5 ‘‘(1) RESEARCH, EVALUATION, AND DEM6 ONSTRATION PROJECTS.—The Director shall support

7 research, evaluation, and demonstration projects to

8 study and assess best practices in economic develop9 ment and to examine trends and changes in eco10 nomic conditions that affect regional development.

11 The Director shall conduct a study of innovative eco12 nomic development financing tools, including loan

13 guarantees, rural development investment zones, and

14 other measures, that may be employed to further

15 economic development of States, regions, and local16 ities.

17 ‘‘(2) POLICY DEVELOPMENT.—The Director

18 shall develop and submit to the Secretary rec19 ommendations on both short- and long-term policies

20 regarding economic development issues and pro21 grams, to help foster the diffusion of innovative, best

22 practices in economic development throughout the

23 Department of Commerce.

24 ‘‘(3) INFORMATION AND COORDINATION.—The

25 Director shall establish procedures to ensure that
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1 the Economic Development Administration assumes

2 a central role in developing and promoting means of

3 greater coordination among States, regions, and

4 local communities in the design and implementation

5 of Federal economic development programs, and to

6 foster coordination among Federal economic develop7 ment programs, to reduce duplication and frag8 mentation of Federal economic development efforts.

9 ‘‘(d) FEDERAL COORDINATING COUNCIL FOR ECO10 NOMIC DEVELOPMENT.—

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is established a Fed12 eral Coordinating Council for Economic Develop13 ment (referred to in this subsection as the ‘Coun14 cil’).

15 ‘‘(2) COMPOSITION OF THE COUNCIL.—

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Council shall be

17 composed of representatives from Federal agen18 cies, appointed by the heads of the agencies, in19 volved in matters that affect regional economic

20 development. The Secretary shall determine the

21 Federal agencies that are involved in matters

22 that affect regional economic development.

23 ‘‘(B) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy in the

24 Council shall not affect the powers of the Coun-
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1 cil, but shall be filled in the same manner as

2 the original appointment.

3 ‘‘(3) DUTIES.—The Council shall assist the

4 Secretary in providing a unifying framework for eco5 nomic development efforts and shall develop a gov6 ernmentwide strategic plan for economic develop7 ment. The Council shall work to improve coordina8 tion of Federal economic development efforts to

9 eliminate duplication and to direct Federal resources

10 to improve economic conditions.

11 ‘‘(4) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—The members of the

12 Council shall not receive compensation for service on

13 the Council but shall be allowed travel expenses, in14 cluding per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates au15 thorized for employees of agencies under subchapter

16 I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while

17 away from the homes or regular places of business

18 of the members in the performance of services for

19 the Council.

20 ‘‘(5) FACILITIES, SUPPLIES, AND PERSON21 NEL.—

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Upon the request of

23 the Council, the Secretary shall provide to the

24 Council any facilities, supplies, and personnel

25 necessary for the Council to carry out the re-
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1 sponsibilities of the Council under this sub2 section.

3 ‘‘(B) DETAILS.—In the case of a detail of

4 a Federal Government employee under para5 graph (1), the employee may be detailed to the

6 Council without reimbursement. The detail shall

7 be without interruption or loss of civil service

8 status or privilege.

9 ‘‘(6) HEARINGS.—The Council may hold such

10 hearings, sit and act at such times and places, take

11 such testimony, and receive such evidence as the

12 Council considers advisable to carry out this sub13 section.

14 ‘‘(7) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGEN15 CIES.—The Council may secure directly from any

16 Federal department or agency such information as

17 the Council considers necessary to carry out this

18 subsection. Upon request of the Council, the head of

19 such department or agency shall furnish such infor20 mation to the Council.

21 ‘‘(8) POSTAL SERVICES.—The Council may use

22 the United States mails in the same manner and

23 under the same conditions as other departments and

24 agencies of the Federal Government.
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1 ‘‘(9) TERMINATION.—The Council shall termi2 nate 1 year after the date of the establishment of

3 the Council.’’.

4 SEC. 11. OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INFORMA5 TION.

6 Title III of the Public Works and Economic Develop7 ment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3151–3153) (as amended

8 by section 10) is further amended by adding at the end

9 the following new section:

10 ‘‘SEC. 306. OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INFORMA11 TION.

12 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall estab13 lish an Office of Economic Development Information (re14 ferred to in this section as the ‘Office’) within the Office

15 of Strategic Economic Development Planning and Policy.

16 ‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Office shall—

17 ‘‘(1) serve as a central information clearing18 house on matters relating to economic development,

19 economic adjustment, disaster recovery, industrial

20 retention, and defense reinvestment programs and

21 activities of the Federal and State governments, in22 cluding political subdivisions of the States; and

23 ‘‘(2) help potential and actual applicants for

24 economic development, economic adjustment, disas25 ter recovery, industrial retention, and defense rein-
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1 vestment assistance under Federal, State, and local

2 laws in locating and applying for such assistance, in3 cluding financial and technical assistance.

4 ‘‘(c) INFORMATION DATA BASES.—

5 ‘‘(1) USES.—The Office shall develop informa6 tion data bases for use by Federal departments and

7 agencies, State and local governmental agencies,

8 public and private entities, and individuals to assist

9 such agencies, entities, and individuals in the proc10 ess of identifying and applying for assistance and re11 sources under economic development, economic

12 adjustment, disaster recovery, industrial retention,

13 and defense reinvestment programs and activities of

14 the Federal, State, and local governments.

15 ‘‘(2) SPECIFIC KINDS OF INFORMATION RE16 QUIRED TO BE INCLUDED.—The data bases shall in17 clude each of the following kinds of information:

18 ‘‘(A) A comprehensive compilation of all

19 relevant information concerning available eco20 nomic development, economic adjustment, disas21 ter recovery, industrial retention, and defense

22 reinvestment programs of the Federal Govern23 ment, including key contact personnel, descrip24 tions of the application process, eligibility re25 quirements and criteria, selection and followup
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1 procedures, and other such relevant informa2 tion.

3 ‘‘(B) A compilation of major State and

4 local governmental economic development, eco5 nomic adjustment, disaster recovery, industrial

6 retention, and defense reinvestment assistance

7 programs, including lists of appropriate offices,

8 officers, and contact personnel connected with,

9 or involved in, such programs.

10 ‘‘(C) A compilation of relevant and avail11 able economic data and trends, including infor12 mation about the national, regional, and local

13 impacts of trade agreements, defense spending

14 and downsizing, technological change, and other

15 sources of substantial economic dislocation.

16 ‘‘(D) A compilation of case studies and

17 best practices in economic development, adjust18 ment, and reinvestment.

19 ‘‘(E) A compilation of technology utiliza20 tion programs, assistance, and resources.

21 ‘‘(F) A compilation of published works

22 (books, reports, articles, videos, and tapes), and

23 selected texts of such works, related to all fac24 ets of economic development, economic adjust25 ment, and defense reinvestment.
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1 ‘‘(G) A compilation of information on case

2 studies on early warning and intervention ef3 forts.

4 ‘‘(3) POINTS OF PUBLIC ACCESS.—

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Office shall es6 tablish several means to ensure easy access by

7 the public and others to such data bases, and

8 to ensure that the data bases be as accessible,

9 user-friendly, culturally neutral, and affordable

10 as possible.

11 ‘‘(B) MEANS OF ACCESS.—Access to the

12 data services of the Office shall include each of

13 the following means:

14 ‘‘(i) A toll-free nationwide telephone

15 number to provide direct phone access to

16 the public.

17 ‘‘(ii) On-line electronic access through

18 existing computer network services and

19 publicly available computer data base ac20 cess facilities, such as at repository librar21 ies and by direct call-in via modem.

22 ‘‘(iii) Printed manuals and orientation

23 materials.

24 ‘‘(iv) Periodic orientation workshops

25 available to the public.
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1 ‘‘(v) On-call information specialists to

2 address special problems requiring person3 to-person assistance.

4 ‘‘(d) INTERAGENCY COORDINATION.—The Secretary

5 shall enter into such agreements and understandings as

6 may be necessary with other Federal departments and

7 agencies to coordinate the accomplishment of the objec8 tives of this section.’’.

9 SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR TECH10 NICAL ASSISTANCE, RESEARCH, AND INFOR11 MATION.

12 Title III of the Public Works and Economic Develop13 ment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3151–3153) (as amended

14 by section 11) is further amended by adding at the end

15 the following new section:

16 ‘‘SEC. 307. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

17 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out

18 this title $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1995

19 through 1997. Such sums shall remain available until ex20 pended.’’.

21 SEC. 13. REDEVELOPMENT AREAS.

22 Section 401 of the Public Works and Economic De23 velopment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3161) is amended to

24 read as follows:
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1 ‘‘SEC. 401. AREA ELIGIBILITY.

2 ‘‘(a) CERTIFICATION.—An applicant seeking assist3 ance under title I or II to undertake a project for an area

4 shall certify, as part of an application for such assistance,

5 that the area on the date of submission of such application

6 meets 1 or more of the following criteria:

7 ‘‘(1) The per capita income of the area is

8 80 percent or less of the per capita income of the

9 United States.

10 ‘‘(2) The average rate of unemployment in the

11 area (seasonally adjusted), as determined by the

12 Secretary of Labor for the most recent 24-month pe13 riod for which statistics are available, minus the na14 tional average rate of unemployment (seasonally ad15 justed), as so determined, is equal to or exceeds 1

16 percent.

17 ‘‘(3) The average rate of unemployment in the

18 area (seasonally adjusted), as determined by the

19 Secretary of Labor for the most recent 12-month pe20 riod for which statistics are available, minus the na21 tional average rate of unemployment (seasonally ad22 justed), as so determined, is equal to or exceeds 2

23 percent.

24 ‘‘(4) The area has experienced or is about to

25 experience a sudden economic dislocation resulting

26 in job loss that is significant both in terms of the
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1 number of jobs eliminated and the effect on the rate

2 of unemployment in the area (if information on such

3 rate is available), as such rate is determined by the

4 Secretary of Labor.

5 ‘‘(5) The population growth rate of the United

6 States, as determined by the Secretary of Commerce

7 for an appropriate period, minus the population

8 growth rate of the area, as so determined, is equal

9 to or exceeds 3 percent.

10 ‘‘(6) The area has experienced a decline in total

11 employment that is equal to or exceeds 2 percent

12 over the most recent 5-year period for which statis13 tics are available, as such employment is determined

14 by the Secretary of Labor, acting through the Com15 missioner of Labor Statistics.

16 ‘‘(7) The area is a community or neighborhood

17 (defined without regard to political or other subdivi18 sions or boundaries) that the Secretary determines

19 has 1 or more of the following conditions:

20 ‘‘(A) A large concentration of low-income

21 persons.

22 ‘‘(B) A rural or urban area having sub23 stantial outmigration or substantial economic

24 deterioration and unemployment.

25 ‘‘(C) Substantial unemployment.
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1 ‘‘(b) DOCUMENTATION.—

2 ‘‘(1) DATA AND STATISTICS.—A certification

3 made under subsection (a) shall be supported by

4 Federal data, if available, and in other cases by data

5 available through the appropriate State government.

6 The applicant shall use the most recent statistics

7 available to support the certification.

8 ‘‘(2) ACCEPTANCE OF DATA.—The Secretary

9 shall accept the data unless the Secretary deter10 mines that the data are inaccurate.

11 ‘‘(c) SPECIAL RULE.—With respect to a redevelop12 ment area described in subsection (a)(7)—

13 ‘‘(1) the project to be carried out in the area

14 shall not be subject to section 101(a)(1)(A);

15 ‘‘(2) the area shall not be subject to section

16 101(a)(1)(C); and

17 ‘‘(3) the area shall not be considered to be a re18 development area for purposes of section

19 403(a)(1)(B).

20 ‘‘(d) PRIOR DESIGNATION.—Any designation of a re21 development area for the purposes of this Act that was

22 made before the date of enactment of the Economic Devel23 opment Reauthorization Act of 1994 shall not be effective

24 after such date.
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1 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION.—As used in this Act, the term ‘re2 development area’ means an area that is the subject of

3 a certification that is—

4 ‘‘(1) described in subsection (a); and

5 ‘‘(2) submitted by an applicant as part of an

6 application for assistance—

7 ‘‘(A) that is described in subsection (a);

8 and

9 ‘‘(B) for which the applicant obtains the

10 approval of the Secretary.’’.

11 SEC. 14. ANNUAL REVIEW.

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 402 of the Public Works

13 and Economic Development Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3162)

14 is amended to read as follows:

15 ‘‘SEC. 402. OVERALL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN AND

16 INVESTMENT STRATEGY.

17 ‘‘(a) OVERALL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN AND

18 INVESTMENT STRATEGY.—The Secretary may provide as19 sistance under title I or II to an applicant for a project

20 to be undertaken in an area only if the applicant has pre21 pared and submitted to the Secretary, and obtained ap22 proval of, an overall economic development plan or an in23 vestment strategy. Such an overall economic development

24 plan or investment strategy shall—
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1 ‘‘(1) identify the economic development prob2 lems to be addressed using such assistance;

3 ‘‘(2) identify past, present, and projected fur4 ther economic development investments in such area

5 and public and private participants and sources of

6 funding for such investments; and

7 ‘‘(3) set forth a strategy for addressing the eco8 nomic development problems identified pursuant to

9 paragraph (1) and describe how the strategy will

10 solve such problems.

11 ‘‘(b) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—In submitting

12 an application for assistance under title I or II, an appli13 cant shall describe how the proposed project implements

14 the plan or strategy, provide estimates of costs and time15 tables for completion for the project, and provide a sum16 mary of public and private resources expected to be avail17 able for the project.

18 ‘‘(c) EXISTING PLANS AND INVESTMENT STRATE19 GIES.—To the maximum extent practicable, the Secretary

20 shall approve under subsection (a) overall economic devel21 opment plans, and overall economic development pro22 grams, that were approved by the Secretary under this

23 Act before the date of enactment of the Economic Devel24 opment Reauthorization Act of 1994 and that substan25 tially meet the requirements of this section.
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1 ‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—As used in this Act, the term

2 ‘economic development plan’ includes—

3 ‘‘(1) a plan or program described in subsection

4 (c) and submitted for approval under subsection (a);

5 and

6 ‘‘(2) an investment strategy submitted for ap7 proval under subsection (a) in lieu of such a plan.’’.

8 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

9 (1) TRADE ACT OF 1974.—Section 273(c)(2) of

10 the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2373(c)(2)) is

11 amended—

12 (A) by striking ‘‘overall economic develop13 ment program’’ and inserting ‘‘overall economic

14 development plan or investment strategy’’; and

15 (B) by striking ‘‘section 202(b)(10)’’ and

16 inserting ‘‘section 402’’.

17 (2) COMMUNITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACT

18 OF 1981.—Section 626(b)(1) of the Community Eco19 nomic Development Act of 1981 (42 U.S.C.

20 9815(b)(1)) is amended—

21 (A) by striking ‘‘Publc’’ and inserting

22 ‘‘Public’’;

23 (B) by striking ‘‘overall economic develop24 ment program’’ and inserting ‘‘overall economic

25 development plan or investment strategy’’; and
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1 (C) by striking ‘‘section 202(b)(10)’’ and

2 inserting ‘‘section 402’’.

3 SEC. 15. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS.

4 (a) RELATIONSHIP TO OVERALL ECONOMIC DEVEL5 OPMENT PLANS.—Section 403 of the Public Works and

6 Economic Development Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3171) is

7 amended—

8 (1) in subsections (a)(1)(C), (a)(1)(D),

9 (a)(2)(A), (a)(3)(A), (a)(4)(B), (e), and (i) by strik10 ing ‘‘overall economic development program’’ and in11 serting ‘‘overall economic development plan’’;

12 (2) in subsection (a)(1)(D), by striking ‘‘pro13 gram’’ the second place the term appears and insert14 ing ‘‘plan’’; and

15 (3) in subsections (b) and (b)(2)(B), by striking

16 ‘‘overall economic development programs’’ and in17 serting ‘‘overall economic development plans’’.

18 (b) RELATIONSHIP TO REDEVELOPMENT AREA.—

19 Section 403(a)(4) of such Act is amended by striking

20 ‘‘(designated under section 401)’’.

21 (c) ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT DE22 FINED.—Section 403(d) of such Act is amended by adding

23 at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘Such term in24 cludes any economic development district designated by

25 the Secretary under this section before the date of enact-
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1 ment of the Economic Development Reauthorization Act

2 of 1994, unless the Secretary terminates the designa3 tion.’’.

4 (d) FUNDING.—Section 403 of such Act is amend5 ed—

6 (1) by striking subsection (g) and inserting the

7 following new subsection:

8 ‘‘(g) Amounts authorized to be appropriated under

9 other sections of this Act shall be available for purposes

10 of carrying out paragraphs (3) and (4) of subsection (a).’’;

11 (2) by striking subsection (h); and

12 (3) by redesignating subsections (i) and (j) as

13 subsections (h) and (i), respectively.

14 SEC. 16. EQUITY BETWEEN RURAL AND URBAN AREAS.

15 Title IV of the Public Works and Economic Develop16 ment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3161 et seq.) is amended

17 by adding at the end the following new part:

18 ‘‘PART E—EQUITY BETWEEN RURAL AND URBAN

19 AREAS

20 ‘‘SEC. 406. ALLOCATIONS BASED ON THE LEVEL OF ECO21 NOMIC DISTRESS OF AN AREA.

22 ‘‘Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment

23 of the Economic Development Reauthorization Act of

24 1994, the Secretary shall issue and implement regulations

25 containing criteria and procedures to prioritize allocations
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1 of Federal assistance made under this Act, so that, not2 withstanding any other provision of this Act, the level of

3 economic distress of an area, not a preference for a geo4 graphic area or a specific type of economic distress, is the

5 primary factor considered by the Secretary in determining

6 whether the area receives an allocation of Federal assist7 ance under this Act.’’.

8 SEC. 17. APPLICATIONS FOR ASSISTANCE.

9 (a) EXPEDITED PROCESSING.—Title VI of the Public

10 Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 (42

11 U.S.C. 3201–3204) is amended by adding at the end the

12 following new section:

13 ‘‘SEC. 605. EXPEDITED PROCESSING OF APPLICATIONS.

14 ‘‘(a) GUIDELINES.—Not later than 60 days after the

15 date of enactment of this section, the Assistant Secretary

16 for Economic Development shall—

17 ‘‘(1) develop and publish in the Federal Reg18 ister guidelines that establish procedures to expedite

19 the processing of applications for assistance under

20 this Act; and

21 ‘‘(2) transmit to the Committee on Public

22 Works and Transportation of the House of Rep23 resentatives and the Committee on Environment and

24 Public Works of the Senate a report containing such

25 guidelines.
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1 ‘‘(b) CONTENTS.—Guidelines to be developed and

2 published under subsection (a) shall, at a minimum, pro3 vide for—

4 ‘‘(1) increased reliance on self-certification by

5 applicants for such assistance to establish compli6 ance with other Federal laws;

7 ‘‘(2) greater use of uniform application forms

8 and procedures;

9 ‘‘(3) delegation of decisionmaking authority to

10 regional offices of the Economic Development Ad11 ministration; and

12 ‘‘(4) reduction in the time and number of re13 views conducted by offices of the Department of

14 Commerce other than the Economic Development

15 Administration.’’.

16 (b) UNIFORM APPLICATION FORM.—Title VI of such

17 Act (as amended by subsection (a)) is further amended

18 by adding at the end the following new section:

19 ‘‘SEC. 606. UNIFORM APPLICATION FORM.

20 ‘‘(a) DEVELOPMENT.—The Secretary shall, in co21 operation with the heads of appropriate Federal depart22 ments and agencies, develop a general, simplified applica23 tion form for grant assistance under this Act that may

24 be used by all Federal departments and agencies that pro25 vide grant assistance.
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1 ‘‘(b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the

2 date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall

3 transmit to Congress a report on use of the form devel4 oped pursuant to subsection (a) by Federal departments

5 and agencies.’’.

6 SEC. 18. PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS OF GRANT RECIPI7 ENTS.

8 Title VI of the Public Works and Economic Develop9 ment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3201–3204) (as amended

10 by subsections (a) and (b) of section 17) is further amend11 ed by adding at the end the following new section:

12 ‘‘SEC. 607. PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS OF GRANT RE13 CIPIENTS.

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—At least once every 2 years, the

15 Secretary shall conduct an evaluation of each university

16 center receiving assistance under title III (referred to in

17 this section as a ‘university center’) and economic develop18 ment district receiving grant assistance under this Act to

19 assess the performance and contribution toward job cre20 ation of the recipient.

21 ‘‘(b) CRITERIA.—

22 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es23 tablish criteria for use in conducting evaluations

24 under subsection (a).
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1 ‘‘(2) CRITERIA FOR UNIVERSITY CENTERS.—

2 The criteria for evaluation of a university center

3 shall, at a minimum, provide for an assessment of

4 the contribution of the center to providing technical

5 assistance, conducting applied research, and dissemi6 nating results of the activities of the center.

7 ‘‘(3) CRITERIA FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

8 DISTRICTS.—The criteria for evaluation of an eco9 nomic development district shall, at a minimum, pro10 vide for an assessment of management standards, fi11 nancial accountability, and program performance.

12 ‘‘(c) PEER REVIEW.—In conducting an evaluation of

13 a university center under subsection (a), the Secretary

14 shall provide for the participation in the evaluation of at

15 least 1 other university center on a cost-reimbursement

16 basis.’’.

17 SEC. 19. TRANSFER OF FUNDS.

18 Section 708 of the Public Works and Economic De19 velopment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3218) is amended by

20 adding at the end the following new subsection:

21 ‘‘(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the

22 Secretary may accept such transfers of funds from other

23 departments and agencies of the Federal Government as

24 the Secretary determines to be appropriate and use such

25 funds to carry out objectives of this Act, if the Secretary
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1 uses the funds to carry out objectives for which (and in

2 accordance with the terms under which) the funds are spe3 cifically authorized and appropriated. Not more than 5

4 percent of such funds may be transferred to the account

5 relating to salaries and expenses of the Economic Develop6 ment Administration.’’.

7 SEC. 20. EXTENSION OF BENEFITS.

8 Section 715 of the Public Works and Economic De9 velopment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3225) is amended by

10 striking ‘‘such areas as may be designated as ‘redevelop11 ment areas’ or ‘economic development centers’ under the

12 authority of section 401 or 403 of this Act:’’ and inserting

13 ‘‘redevelopment areas and such areas as may be des14 ignated as ‘economic development centers’ under section

15 403:’’.

16 SEC. 21. SUPERVISION OF REGIONAL COUNSELS.

17 Title VII of the Public Works and Economic Develop18 ment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3211–3226) is amended by

19 adding at the end the following new section:

20 ‘‘SEC. 717. SUPERVISION OF REGIONAL COUNSELS.

21 ‘‘The Secretary shall take such actions as may be

22 necessary to ensure that individuals serving as Regional

23 Counsels of the Economic Development Administration re24 port directly to their respective Regional Directors, except

25 that the General Counsel shall have authority to make de-
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1 terminations relating to the technical legal ability of the

2 individuals.’’.

3 SEC. 22. PURPOSE.

4 The first sentence of section 901 of the Public Works

5 and Economic Development Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3241)

6 is amended by striking ‘‘It is the purpose of this title’’

7 and inserting ‘‘The purposes of title I and of this title

8 are’’.

9 SEC. 23. DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE RECIPIENT.

10 Section 902 of the Public Works and Economic De11 velopment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3242) is amended to

12 read as follows:

13 ‘‘SEC. 902. DEFINITION.

14 ‘‘As used in this title, the term ‘eligible recipient’

15 means a redevelopment area, an economic development

16 district, an Indian tribe, a State, a city or other political

17 subdivision of a State, a consortium of such political sub18 divisions, a public or private nonprofit organization, or a

19 public or private nonprofit association.’’.

20 SEC. 24. BASE CLOSINGS AND REALIGNMENTS.

21 Section 903 of the Public Works and Economic De22 velopment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3243) is amended—

23 (1) in the matter following subparagraph (B) of

24 subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘unemployment com25 pensation (in accordance with subsection (d) of this
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1 section), rent supplements, mortgage payment as2 sistance, research,’’ and inserting ‘‘administrative

3 expenses, industrial retention,’’; and

4 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub5 section:

6 ‘‘(e)(1) In any case in which the Secretary determines

7 that a need exists for assistance under subsection (a) due

8 to the closure or realignment of a military installation, or

9 for an industrial, a community, or a workforce adjustment

10 due to a reduction in amounts made available under or

11 termination of a defense contract, the Secretary may make

12 such assistance available to an eligible recipient for a

13 project to be carried out on the military installation, for

14 a project to be carried out in a community adversely af15 fected by the closure or realignment, or for defense conver16 sion activities.

17 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the

18 Secretary may provide to an eligible recipient any assist19 ance available under this title for a project to be carried

20 out on a military installation that is closed or scheduled

21 for closure or realignment, or for defense conversion ac22 tivities, without requiring that the eligible recipient have

23 title to the property on which the installation is located

24 or the activities will be carried out, or a leasehold interest

25 in the property, for any specified term.’’.
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1 SEC. 25. OUTREACH TO COMMUNITIES ADVERSELY AF2 FECTED BY CLOSURES AND REALIGNMENTS

3 OF MILITARY INSTALLATIONS.

4 Title IX of the Public Works and Economic Develop5 ment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3241–3245) is amended—

6 (1) by redesignating section 905 as section 909;

7 and

8 (2) by inserting after section 904 the following

9 new section:

10 ‘‘SEC. 905. OUTREACH TO COMMUNITIES ADVERSELY AF11 FECTED BY CLOSURES AND REALIGNMENTS

12 OF MILITARY INSTALLATIONS.

13 ‘‘(a) DESIGNATION OF AGENCY REPRESENTA14 TIVES.—The Assistant Secretary for Economic Develop15 ment shall designate for each State in which communities

16 are adversely affected by closures and realignments of

17 military installations, an individual to serve as a rep18 resentative of the Economic Development Administration.

19 Such individual may be the State Economic Development

20 Agency Representative or another qualified individual.

21 ‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Individuals appointed as

22 agency representatives under subsection (a) shall provide

23 outreach and technical assistance, to communities ad24 versely affected by closures and realignments of military

25 installations, on obtaining assistance from the Economic

26 Development Administration.’’.
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1 SEC. 26. TREATMENT OF REVOLVING LOAN FUNDS.

2 Title IX of the Public Works and Economic Develop3 ment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3241–3245) (as amended

4 by section 25) is further amended by inserting after sec5 tion 905 the following new section:

6 ‘‘SEC. 906. TREATMENT OF REVOLVING LOAN FUNDS.

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—An amount made available

8 through a grant made under this title that is used by an

9 eligible recipient to establish a revolving loan fund shall

10 not be treated, except as provided by subsection (b), as

11 an amount derived from Federal funds for the purposes

12 of any Federal law after such amount is loaned from the

13 fund to a borrower and repaid to the fund.

14 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTIONS.—An amount described in sub15 section (a) that is loaned from a revolving loan fund to

16 a borrower and repaid to the fund—

17 ‘‘(1) may be used only for a project that is con18 sistent with the purposes of this title; and

19 ‘‘(2) shall be subject to the financial manage20 ment, accounting, reporting, and auditing require21 ments that were originally applicable to such amount

22 on the date on which the Secretary made the

23 amount available to the recipient through a grant

24 described in subsection (a).
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1 ‘‘(c) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 30 days after

2 the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall

3 issue regulations to carry out subsection (a).

4 ‘‘(d) PUBLIC REVIEW AND COMMENT.—Before issu5 ing any final guidelines or administrative manuals govern6 ing the operation of revolving loan funds established using

7 amounts from grants made under this title, the Secretary

8 shall provide reasonable opportunity for public review of

9 and comment on such guidelines and administrative

10 manuals.’’.

11 SEC. 27. SALE OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS IN REVOLVING

12 LOAN FUNDS.

13 Title IX of the Public Works and Economic Develop14 ment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3241–3245) (as amended

15 by section 26) is further amended by inserting after sec16 tion 906 the following new section:

17 ‘‘SEC. 907. SALE OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS IN REVOLV18 ING LOAN FUNDS.

19 ‘‘Any loan, loan guarantee, or other financial instru20 ment in the portfolio of a revolving loan fund described

21 in section 906 may be sold, at the discretion of the grant

22 recipient that established the fund, to a third party. The

23 proceeds of the sale—
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1 ‘‘(1) shall be deposited in the fund and only

2 used for projects that are consistent with the pur3 poses of this title; and

4 ‘‘(2) shall be subject to the financial manage5 ment, accounting, reporting, and auditing require6 ments that were originally applicable to the financial

7 instrument on the date on which the financial in8 strument was entered into.’’.

9 SEC. 28. COMPETITIVE COMMUNITIES PILOT PROGRAM.

10 Title IX of the Public Works and Economic Develop11 ment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3241–3245) (as amended

12 by section 27) is further amended by inserting after sec13 tion 907 the following new section:

14 ‘‘SEC. 908. COMPETITIVE COMMUNITIES PILOT PROGRAM.

15 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION.—As used in this section, the term

16 ‘eligible intermediary recipient’ means—

17 ‘‘(1) a redevelopment area or an economic de18 velopment district established under title IV;

19 ‘‘(2) an Indian tribe;

20 ‘‘(3) a public-private entity sponsored by a

21 State or other political subdivision of a State, or by

22 a community division of a State;

23 ‘‘(4) a community development corporation;

24 ‘‘(5) a public or private not-for-profit corpora25 tion; and
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1 ‘‘(6) a consortium of recipients described in any

2 of paragraphs (1) through (5);

3 that demonstrates the financial expertise, ability, and legal

4 authority to provide the investment for a transaction, as

5 well as the ability to develop and implement an overall eco6 nomic development plan as provided in section 402.

7 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM.—The Secretary may establish a com8 petitive communities pilot program and, in carrying out

9 the program, may make grants, loans, or loan guarantees

10 directly to or for the benefit of any eligible recipients (in11 cluding eligible intermediary recipients) for the purpose of

12 investing in identified business transactions that will cre13 ate opportunities for long-term employment in economi14 cally distressed communities.

15 ‘‘(c) APPLICATIONS.—To be eligible to receive finan16 cial assistance under this section, a person or an entity

17 shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time,

18 in such manner, and containing such information as the

19 Secretary may require.

20 ‘‘(d) PANEL OF EXPERTS.—The Secretary shall es21 tablish a panel of experts to review applications submitted

22 to the Secretary under subsection (c). The panel shall con23 sist of 7 members as follows:

24 ‘‘(1) The Secretary (or the designee of the Sec25 retary).
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1 ‘‘(2) The Assistant Secretary for Economic De2 velopment.

3 ‘‘(3) 1 Regional Director of the Economic De4 velopment Administration, appointed by the Sec5 retary.

6 ‘‘(4) 1 State Economic Development Represent7 ative, appointed by the Secretary.

8 ‘‘(5) 3 private citizens with economic develop9 ment and business expertise, appointed by the Sec10 retary.

11 ‘‘(e) CRITERIA FOR SELECTION.—The Secretary

12 shall select recipients to receive financial assistance under

13 this section, based on the quality of the applications sub14 mitted and the extent to which the applications describe

15 activities to encompass investment initiatives that promote

16 public and private sector partnerships to advance the com17 petitiveness of the economy of local communities through

18 the creation of long-term sustainable employment opportu19 nities.

20 ‘‘(f) DEADLINES.—

21 ‘‘(1) ACTION ON APPLICATIONS.—In the case of

22 each application submitted under subsection (c) that

23 is received by a deadline established and published

24 in the Federal Register, the Secretary shall approve
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1 or disapprove the application on or before the 60th

2 day after the deadline.

3 ‘‘(2) USE OF ASSISTANCE.—Any agreement re4 lating to an amount of financial assistance under

5 this section that is entered into by the Secretary and

6 an eligible recipient under the program shall require

7 that the eligible recipient provide assistance to busi8 nesses using the amount on or before the 90th day

9 after the date of receipt of such amount or shall re10 turn any remaining portion of such amount to the

11 Secretary for subsequent awards under the pro12 gram.’’.

13 SEC. 29. SPECIAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND ADJUST14 MENT ASSISTANCE.

15 Section 909 of the Public Works and Economic De16 velopment Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3245) (as redesignated

17 by section 25(1)) is amended to read as follows:

18 ‘‘SEC. 909. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be ap20 propriated to carry out this title $50,000,000 for each of

21 fiscal years 1995 through 1997. Such sums shall remain

22 available until expended.

23 ‘‘(b) ADDITIONAL AMOUNTS.—In addition to the ap24 propriations authorized by subsection (a), there are au25 thorized to be appropriated to carry out this title
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1 $120,000,000 for fiscal year 1995, and such sums as may

2 be necessary for each of fiscal years 1996 and 1997, to

3 provide assistance for activities related to closures and

4 realignments of military installations and for defense con5 version activities and to provide assistance in the case of

6 a natural disaster. Such sums shall remain available until

7 expended.

8 ‘‘(c) SET-ASIDE FOR COMPETITIVE COMMUNITIES

9 PILOT PROGRAM.—Of the amounts appropriated under

10 subsections (a) and (b), not more than $40,000,000 shall

11 be available for fiscal year 1995 to carry out section 908,

12 of which not more than $15,000,000 shall be available

13 from amounts appropriated under subsection (a) and not

14 more than $25,000,000 shall be available from amounts

15 appropriated under subsection (b).’’.

16 SEC. 30. COMPLIANCE WITH BUY AMERICAN ACT.

17 None of the funds made available under this title, or

18 any amendment made by this title, may be expended to

19 acquire articles, materials, or supplies, or to procure serv20 ices, in violation of the applicable provisions of sections

21 2 through 4 of title III of the Act of March 3, 1933 (com22 monly known as the ‘‘Buy American Act’’) (41 U.S.C.

23 10a–10b–1).
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1 SEC. 31. REGULATORY RELIEF.

2 The Assistant Secretary for Economic Development,

3 acting on a petition from an entity impacted adversely by

4 a Federal regulation on a matter of economic development

5 described in the Public Works and Economic Development

6 Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3121 et seq.), shall notify the offi7 cer who is the head of the department or agency that is8 sued and administers the regulation and suggest that the

9 officer waive regulations that interfere with economic de10 velopment. Nothing in this section shall be construed to

11 preempt the authority of the head of a department or

12 agency to waive regulations. Nothing in this section shall

13 be construed to affect the ability of the Assistant Sec14 retary for Economic Development to carry out the duties

15 of the Assistant Secretary, as otherwise provided by law.

Passed the House of Representatives October 7,

1994.

Attest: DONNALD K. ANDERSON,

Clerk.

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