Union Calendar No. 419

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 2145

[Report No. 104–693, Part I]

A BILL

To reauthorize and make reforms to programs augional Development Act of 1965. velopment Act of 1965 and the Appalachian Re- thorized by the Public Works and Economic DeSEPTEMBER 6, 1996The Committee on Banking and Financial Services disprinted House on the State of the Union and ordered to be charged; committed to the Committee of the Whole
IB

Union Calendar No. 419

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 2145

[Report No. 104–693, Part I]

To reauthorize and make reforms to programs authorized by the Public

Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 and the Appalachian

Regional Development Act of 1965.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JULY 31, 1995

Mr. GILCHREST (for himself, Mr. SHUSTER, Mr. MINETA, Mr. WISE, and Mr.

WICKER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Banking and Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently

determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

JULY 18, 1996

Reported from the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

JULY 18, 1996

Referral to the Committee on Banking and Financial Services extended for

a period ending not later than September 6, 1996

SEPTEMBER 6, 1996

Additional sponsor: Mr. NEY

SEPTEMBER 6, 1996

The Committee on Banking and Financial Services discharged; committed to

the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed
2

•HR 2145 RH

A BILL

To reauthorize and make reforms to programs authorized

by the Public Works and Economic Development Act

of 1965 and the Appalachian Regional Development Act

of 1965.

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; EFFECTIVE DATE.

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

5 ‘‘Economic Development Partnership Act of 1995’’.

6 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Except as otherwise ex7 pressly provided, this Act and the amendments made by

8 this Act shall take effect on October 1, 1995.

9 TITLE I—PUBLIC WORKS AND

10 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

11 SEC. 101. REAUTHORIZATION OF PUBLIC WORKS AND ECO12 NOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 1965.

13 The Public Works and Economic Development Act of

14 1965 (40 U.S.C. 3131 et seq.) is amended by striking all

15 after the first section and inserting the following:

16 ‘‘SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND DECLARATION.

17 ‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—

18 ‘‘(1) the maintenance of the national economy

19 at a high level is vital to the best interests of the

20 United States, but that some of our regions, coun21 ties, and communities are suffering substantial and
3

•HR 2145 RH

1 persistent unemployment and underemployment that

2 cause hardship to many individuals and their fami3 lies, and waste invaluable human resources;

4 ‘‘(2) to overcome this problem the Federal Gov5 ernment, in cooperation with the States, should help

6 areas and regions of substantial and persistent un7 employment and underemployment to take effective

8 steps in planning and financing their public works

9 and economic development;

10 ‘‘(3) Federal financial assistance, including

11 grants for public works and development facilities to

12 communities, industries, enterprises, and individuals

13 in areas needing development should enable such

14 areas to help themselves achieve lasting improve15 ment and enhance the domestic prosperity by the es16 tablishment of stable and diversified local economies

17 and improved local conditions, if such assistance is

18 preceded by and consistent with sound, long-range

19 economic planning; and

20 ‘‘(4) under the provisions of this Act, new em21 ployment opportunities should be created by develop22 ing and expanding new and existing public works

23 and other facilities and resources rather than by

24 merely transferring jobs from one area of the United

25 States to another.
4

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(b) DECLARATION.—Congress declares that, in fur2 therance of maintaining the national economy at a high

3 level—

4 ‘‘(1) the assistance authorized by this Act

5 should be made available to both rural and urban

6 areas;

7 ‘‘(2) such assistance should be made available

8 for planning for economic development prior to the

9 actual occurrences of economic distress in order to

10 avoid such condition; and

11 ‘‘(3) such assistance should be used for long12 term economic rehabilitation in areas where long13 term economic deterioration has occurred or is tak14 ing place.

15 ‘‘TITLE I—ECONOMIC DEVELOP16 MENT REGIONAL COMMIS17 SIONS

18 ‘‘SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF REGIONAL COMMISSIONS.

19 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established for each

20 region established by section 105 an Economic Develop21 ment Regional Commission (hereinafter in this Act re22 ferred to as a ‘Regional Commission’).

23 ‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.—

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each Regional Commission

25 shall be composed of 1 Federal member and 1 State
5

•HR 2145 RH

1 member from each participating State in the region

2 represented by the Regional Commission.

3 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL COCHAIRPERSON.—The Federal

4 member of each Regional Commission shall be the

5 Secretary of Commerce (hereinafter in this Act re6 ferred to as the ‘Secretary’). The Secretary shall

7 serve as the Federal Cochairperson of each Regional

8 Commission.

9 ‘‘(3) STATE MEMBERS.—

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each State member of

11 a Regional Commission shall be the chief execu12 tive officer of the State. The State members of

13 a Regional Commission shall elect a Cochairper14 son from among such State members for a term

15 of not less than 1 year.

16 ‘‘(B) ALTERNATES.—Each State member

17 of a Regional Commission may have a single al18 ternate, appointed by the Chief Executive Offi19 cer from among members of the Chief Execu20 tive Officer’s cabinet or the Chief Executive Of21 ficer’s personal staff. An alternate shall vote in

22 the event of the absence, death, disability, re23 moval, or resignation of the State representa24 tive for which he or she is an alternate. A State

25 alternate shall not be counted toward the estab-
6

•HR 2145 RH

1 lishment of a quorum of the Commission in any

2 instance in which a quorum of the State mem3 bers is required to be present.

4 ‘‘(c) DECISIONMAKING.—

5 ‘‘(1) VOTING.—Decisions by a Regional Com6 mission shall require an affirmative vote of the Sec7 retary (or the Secretary’s designee) and of the ma8 jority of the State members.

9 ‘‘(2) QUORUM.—No decision of a Regional

10 Commission involving Commission policy, developing

11 investment strategies, or allocating funds among

12 States may be made without the Secretary (or the

13 Secretary’s designee) and a quorum of the State

14 members present. For purposes of this Act, the Sec15 retary (or the Secretary’s designee) and a majority

16 of the State members shall constitute a quorum.

17 ‘‘SEC. 102. COOPERATION OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.

18 ‘‘Each Federal department and agency, in accordance

19 with applicable laws and within the limits of available

20 funds, shall cooperate with each Regional Commission in

21 order to assist the Regional Commission in carrying out

22 the functions of the Regional Commission.

23 ‘‘SEC. 103. ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.

24 ‘‘(a) PAYMENT BY STATES.—Fifty percent of the ad25 ministrative expenses of a Regional Commission (other
7

•HR 2145 RH

1 than the expenses of the Secretary) shall be paid by the

2 States in the region represented by the Regional Commis3 sion and the remaining 50 percent of such expenses shall

4 be paid by the Federal Government. The expenses of the

5 Secretary and the Secretary’s staff shall be paid solely by

6 the Federal Government.

7 ‘‘(b) DETERMINATION OF STATE SHARE.—The share

8 of the administrative expenses to be paid by each State

9 shall be determined by the Regional Commission. The Sec10 retary shall not participate or vote in such determination.

11 ‘‘(c) DELINQUENT PAYMENTS.—No assistance au12 thorized by this Act shall be furnished to any State or

13 to any political subdivision or resident of a State, nor shall

14 the State member of a Regional Commission participate

15 or vote in any determination by the Regional Commission,

16 while such State is delinquent in the payment of such

17 State’s share of the administrative expenses of the Re18 gional Commission.

19 ‘‘SEC. 104. ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS.

20 ‘‘To carry out its duties under this Act, consistent

21 with regulations issued by the Secretary, a Regional Com22 mission may take any of the following actions:

23 ‘‘(1) Adopt, amend, and repeal bylaws and rules

24 governing the conduct of the Regional Commission’s

25 business and the performance of its functions.
8

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(2) Appoint and fix the pay of an executive di2 rector and such other personnel as may be necessary

3 to enable the Regional Commission to carry out its

4 functions; except that the compensation for any indi5 vidual so appointed shall not exceed the rate of basic

6 pay for level V of the Executive Schedule and no

7 member, officer, or employee of the Regional Com8 mission, other than the Secretary, employees of the

9 Secretary, and any Federal employees detailed under

10 paragraph (3), shall be deemed a Federal employee

11 for any purpose.

12 ‘‘(3) Request the head of a Federal department

13 or agency to detail to temporary duty with the Re14 gional Commission such personnel within the admin15 istrative jurisdiction of such head as the Regional

16 Commission may need for carrying out its functions,

17 and each such detail shall be without loss of senior18 ity, pay, or other employee status.

19 ‘‘(4) Arrange for the services of personnel from

20 any State or local government or any subdivision or

21 agency thereof, or any intergovernmental agency.

22 ‘‘(5) Make arrangements, including contracts,

23 with any participating State government for inclu24 sion in a suitable retirement and employee benefits

25 system of such of its personnel as may not be eligi-
9

•HR 2145 RH

1 ble for, or continue in, another governmental retire2 ment or employee benefit system, or otherwise pro3 vide for such coverage of its personnel. The Director

4 of the Office of Personnel Management is authorized

5 to contract with a Regional Commission for contin6 ued coverage of any Regional Commission employee

7 who, on a date in the 6-month period ending on the

8 date of Regional Commission employment, was a

9 Federal employee, in the retirement program and

10 other employee benefit programs of the Federal Gov11 ernment.

12 ‘‘(6) Accept, use, and dispose of gifts or dona13 tions of services or property, real, personal, or

14 mixed, tangible or intangible.

15 ‘‘(7) Subject to the requirements of the Federal

16 Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949,

17 enter into and perform such contracts, leases, coop18 erative agreements, or other transactions as may be

19 necessary in carrying out the Regional Commission’s

20 functions and on such terms as the Regional Com21 mission may deem appropriate, with any depart22 ment, agency, or instrumentality of the United

23 States, or with any person, firm, association, or cor24 poration.
10

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(8) Take such other actions and incur such

2 other expenses as may be necessary and appropriate.

3 ‘‘SEC. 105. ESTABLISHMENT OF REGIONS.

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of this Act,

5 there are established 8 regions of the United States as

6 follows:

7 ‘‘(1) REGION I.—Region I shall be composed of

8 the States of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky,

9 Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and

10 Tennessee.

11 ‘‘(2) REGION II.—Region II shall be composed

12 of the States of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico,

13 Oklahoma, and Texas.

14 ‘‘(3) REGION III.—Region III shall be composed

15 of the States of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Min16 nesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin.

17 ‘‘(4) REGION IV.—Region IV shall be composed

18 of the States of Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri,

19 Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota,

20 Utah, and Wyoming.

21 ‘‘(5) REGION V.—Region V shall be composed

22 of the State of California.

23 ‘‘(6) REGION VI.—Region VI shall be composed

24 of the States of Alaska, Arizona, Hawaii, Idaho, Ne25 vada, Oregon, and Washington and American
11

•HR 2145 RH

1 Samoa, Guam, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia,

2 and the Northern Mariana Islands.

3 ‘‘(7) REGION VII.—Region VII shall be com4 posed of the States of Delaware, Maryland, New

5 Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West

6 Virginia and the District of Columbia.

7 ‘‘(8) REGION VIII.—Region VIII shall be com8 posed of the States of Connecticut, Maine, Massa9 chusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Ver10 mont and Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

11 ‘‘(b) PARTICIPATION NOT REQUIRED.—No State

12 shall be required to participate in any program under this

13 Act.

14 ‘‘TITLE II—GRANTS FOR PUBLIC

15 WORKS AND DEVELOPMENT

16 FACILITIES

17 ‘‘SEC. 201. DIRECT AND SUPPLEMENTARY GRANTS.

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Upon the application of any eli19 gible recipient, a Regional Commission may—

20 ‘‘(1) make direct grants for the acquisition or

21 development of land and improvements for public

22 works, public service, or development facility usage,

23 and the acquisition, design and engineering, con24 struction, rehabilitation, alteration, expansion, or im25 provement of such facilities, including related ma-
12

•HR 2145 RH

1 chinery and equipment, within an area described in

2 section 502(a), if the Regional Commission finds

3 that—

4 ‘‘(A) the project for which financial assist5 ance is sought will directly or indirectly—

6 ‘‘(i) tend to improve the opportunities,

7 in the area where such project is or will be

8 located, for the successful establishment or

9 expansion of industrial or commercial

10 plants or facilities;

11 ‘‘(ii) otherwise assist in the creation

12 of additional long-term employment oppor13 tunities for such area; or

14 ‘‘(iii) primarily benefit the long-term

15 unemployed and members of low-income

16 families;

17 ‘‘(B) the project for which a grant is re18 quested will fulfill a pressing need of the area,

19 or part thereof, in which it is, or will be, lo20 cated;

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

22 undertaken has an approved investment strat23 egy as provided by section 503 and such project

24 is consistent with such strategy; and
13

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(D) in the case of an area described in

2 section 502(a)(4), the project to be undertaken

3 will provide immediate useful work to unem4 ployed and underemployed persons in that area;

5 and

6 ‘‘(2) make supplementary grants in order to en7 able the States and other entities within areas de8 scribed in section 502(a) to take maximum advan9 tage of designated Federal grant-in-aid programs (as

10 defined in subsection (c)(4)), direct grants-in-aid au11 thorized under this section, and Federal grant-in-aid

12 programs authorized by the Watershed Protection

13 and Flood Prevention Act (68 Stat. 666), and the

14 11 watersheds authorized by the Flood Control Act

15 of December 22, 1944 (58 Stat. 887), for which

16 they are eligible but for which, because of their eco17 nomic situation, they cannot supply the required

18 matching share.

19 ‘‘(b) COST SHARING.—Subject to subsection (c), the

20 amount of any direct grant under this subsection for any

21 project shall not exceed 50 percent of the cost of such

22 project.

23 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO SUPPLE24 MENTARY GRANTS.—

25 ‘‘(1) AMOUNT OF SUPPLEMENTARY GRANTS.—
14

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided by

2 subparagraph (B), the amount of any supple3 mentary grant under this section for any

4 project shall not exceed the applicable percent5 age established by regulations promulgated by

6 the Secretary, but in no event shall the non7 Federal share of the aggregate cost of any such

8 project (including assumptions of debt) be less

9 than 20 percent of such cost.

10 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.—Notwithstanding sub11 paragraph (A)—

12 ‘‘(i) in the case of a grant to an In13 dian tribe, a Regional Commission may re14 duce the non-Federal share below the per15 centage specified in subparagraph (A) or

16 may waive the non-Federal share;

17 ‘‘(ii) in the case of any State or a po18 litical subdivision of the State which the

19 Regional Commission determines has ex20 hausted its effective taxing and borrowing

21 capacity, the Regional Commission shall

22 reduce the non-Federal share below the

23 percentage specified in subparagraph (A)

24 or shall waive the non-Federal share in the
15

•HR 2145 RH

1 case of such a grant for a project in an

2 area described in section 502(a)(4); and

3 ‘‘(iii) in case of any community devel4 opment corporation which the Regional

5 Commission determines has exhausted its

6 effective borrowing capacity, the Regional

7 Commission may reduce the non-Federal

8 share below the percentage specified in

9 subparagraph (A) or waive the non-Federal

10 share in the case of such a grant for a

11 project in an area described in section

12 502(a)(4).

13 ‘‘(2) FORM OF SUPPLEMENTARY GRANTS.—

14 Supplementary grants shall be made by a Regional

15 Commission, in accordance with such regulations as

16 the Secretary may prescribe, by increasing the

17 amounts of direct grants authorized under this sec18 tion or by the payment of funds appropriated under

19 this Act to the heads of the departments, agencies,

20 and instrumentalities of the Federal Government re21 sponsible for the administration of the applicable

22 Federal programs.

23 ‘‘(3) FEDERAL SHARE LIMITATIONS SPECIFIED

24 IN OTHER LAWS.—Notwithstanding any requirement

25 as to the amount or sources of non-Federal funds
16

•HR 2145 RH

1 that may otherwise be applicable to the Federal pro2 gram involved, funds provided under this subsection

3 shall be used for the sole purpose of increasing the

4 Federal contribution to specific projects in areas de5 scribed in section 502(a) under such programs above

6 the fixed maximum portion of the cost of such

7 project otherwise authorized by the applicable law.

8 ‘‘(4) DESIGNATED FEDERAL GRANT-IN-AID

9 PROGRAMS DEFINED.—In this subsection, the term

10 ‘designated Federal grant-in-aid programs’ means

11 such existing or future Federal grant-in-aid pro12 grams assisting in the construction or equipping of

13 facilities as the Secretary may, in furtherance of the

14 purposes of this Act, designate as eligible for alloca15 tion of funds under this section.

16 ‘‘(5) CONSIDERATION OF RELATIVE NEED IN

17 DETERMINING AMOUNT.—In determining the

18 amount of any supplementary grant available to any

19 project under this section, a Regional Commission

20 shall take into consideration the relative needs of the

21 area and the nature of the projects to be assisted.

22 ‘‘(d) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe

23 rules, regulations, and procedures to carry out this section

24 which will assure that adequate consideration is given to

25 the relative needs of eligible areas. In prescribing such
17

•HR 2145 RH

1 rules, regulations, and procedures the Secretary shall con2 sider among other relevant factors—

3 ‘‘(1) the severity of the rates of unemployment

4 in the eligible areas and the duration of such unem5 ployment; and

6 ‘‘(2) the income levels of families and the extent

7 of underemployment in eligible areas.

8 ‘‘(e) REVIEW AND COMMENT UPON PROJECTS BY

9 LOCAL GOVERNMENTAL AUTHORITIES.—The Secretary

10 shall prescribe regulations which will assure that appro11 priate local governmental authorities have been given a

12 reasonable opportunity to review and comment upon pro13 posed projects under this section.

14 ‘‘SEC. 202. CONSTRUCTION COST INCREASES.

15 ‘‘In any case where a grant (including a supplemental

16 grant) has been made by a Regional Commission under

17 this title for a project and after such grant has been made

18 but before completion of the project, the cost of such

19 project based upon the designs and specifications which

20 were the basis of the grant has been increased because

21 of increases in costs, the amount of such grant may be

22 increased by an amount equal to the percentage increase,

23 as determined by the Regional Commission, in such costs,

24 but in no event shall the percentage of the Federal share
18

•HR 2145 RH

1 of such project exceed that originally provided for in such

2 grant.

3 ‘‘SEC. 203. USE OF FUNDS IN PROJECTS CONSTRUCTED

4 UNDER PROJECTED COST.

5 ‘‘In any case where a grant (including a supplemental

6 grant) has been made by a Regional Commission under

7 this title for a project, and after such grant has been made

8 but before completion of the project, the cost of such

9 project based upon the designs and specifications which

10 were the basis of the grant has decreased because of de11 creases in costs, such underrun funds may be used to im12 prove the project either directly or indirectly as deter13 mined by the Regional Commission.

14 ‘‘SEC. 204. CHANGED PROJECT CIRCUMSTANCES.

15 ‘‘In any case where a grant (including a supplemental

16 grant) has been made by a Regional Commission under

17 this title for a project, and after such grant has been made

18 but before completion of the project, the purpose or scope

19 of such project based upon the designs and specifications

20 which were the basis of the grant has changed, the Re21 gional Commission may approve the use of grant funds

22 on such changed project if the Regional Commission deter23 mines that such changed project meets the requirements

24 of this title and that such changes are necessary to en25 hance economic development in the area.
19

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘TITLE III—SPECIAL ECONOMIC

2 DEVELOPMENT AND ADJUST3 MENT ASSISTANCE

4 ‘‘SEC. 301. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.

5 ‘‘The purpose of this title to provide special economic

6 development and adjustment assistance programs to help

7 State and local areas meet special needs arising from ac8 tual or threatened severe unemployment arising from eco9 nomic dislocation, including unemployment arising from

10 actions of the Federal Government and from compliance

11 with environmental requirements which remove economic

12 activities from a locality, and economic adjustment prob13 lems resulting from severe changes in economic conditions

14 (including long-term economic deterioration), and to en15 courage cooperative intergovernmental action to prevent

16 or solve economic adjustment problems. Nothing in this

17 title is intended to replace the efforts of the economic ad18 justment program of the Department of Defense.

19 ‘‘SEC. 302. GRANTS BY REGIONAL COMMISSIONS.

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A Regional Commission is au21 thorized to make grants directly to any eligible recipient

22 in an area which the Regional Commission determines, in

23 accordance with criteria to be established by the Secretary

24 by regulation—
20

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(1) has experienced, or may reasonably be

2 foreseen to be about to experience, a special need to

3 meet an expected rise in unemployment, or other

4 economic adjustment problems (including those

5 caused by any action or decision of the Federal Gov6 ernment); or

7 ‘‘(2) has demonstrated long-term economic de8 terioration.

9 ‘‘(b) PURPOSES.—Amounts from grants under sub10 section (a) shall be used by an eligible recipient to carry

11 out or develop an investment strategy which—

12 ‘‘(1) meets the requirements of section 503; and

13 ‘‘(2) is approved by the Regional Commission.

14 ‘‘(c) TYPES OF ASSISTANCE.—In carrying out an in15 vestment strategy using amounts from grants under sub16 section (a), an eligible recipient may provide assistance for

17 any of the following:

18 ‘‘(1) Public facilities.

19 ‘‘(2) Public services.

20 ‘‘(3) Business development.

21 ‘‘(4) Planning.

22 ‘‘(5) Research and technical assistance.

23 ‘‘(6) Administrative expenses.

24 ‘‘(7) Training.

25 ‘‘(8) Relocation of individuals and businesses.
21

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(9) Other assistance which demonstrably fur2 thers the economic adjustment objectives of this

3 title.

4 ‘‘(d) DIRECT EXPENDITURE OR REDISTRIBUTION BY

5 RECIPIENT.—Amounts from grants under subsection (a)

6 may be used in direct expenditures by the eligible recipient

7 or through redistribution by the eligible recipient to public

8 and private entities in grants, loans, loan guarantees, pay9 ments to reduce interest on loan guarantees, or other ap10 propriate assistance, but no grant shall be made by an

11 eligible recipient to a private profit-making entity.

12 ‘‘(e) COORDINATION.—A Regional Commission to the

13 extent practicable shall coordinate the activities relating

14 to the requirements for investment strategies and making

15 grants and loans under this title with other Federal pro16 grams, States, economic development districts, and other

17 appropriate planning and development organizations.

18 ‘‘(f) BASE CLOSINGS AND REALIGNMENTS.—

19 ‘‘(1) LOCATION OF PROJECTS.—In any case in

20 which a Regional Commission determines a need for

21 assistance under subsection (a) due to the closure or

22 realignment of a military installation, the Regional

23 Commission may make such assistance available for

24 projects to be carried out on the military installation
22

•HR 2145 RH

1 and for projects to be carried out in communities ad2 versely affected by the closure or realignment.

3 ‘‘(2) INTEREST IN PROPERTY.—Notwithstand4 ing any other provision of law, a Regional Commis5 sion may provide to an eligible recipient any assist6 ance available under this Act for a project to be car7 ried out on a military installation that is closed or

8 scheduled for closure or realignment without requir9 ing that the eligible recipient have title to the prop10 erty or a leasehold interest in the property for any

11 specified term.

12 ‘‘SEC. 303. ANNUAL REPORTS BY RECIPIENT.

13 ‘‘Each eligible recipient which receives assistance

14 under this title from a Regional Commission shall annu15 ally during the period such assistance continue to make

16 a full and complete report to the Regional Commission,

17 in such manner as the Regional Commission shall pre18 scribe, and such report shall contain an evaluation of the

19 effectiveness of the economic assistance provided under

20 this title in meeting the need it was designed to alleviate

21 and the purposes of this title.

22 ‘‘SEC. 304. SALE OF FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS IN REVOLV23 ING LOAN FUNDS.

24 ‘‘Any loan, loan guarantee, equity, or other financial

25 instrument in the portfolio of a revolving loan fund, in-
23

•HR 2145 RH

1 cluding any financial instrument made available using

2 amounts from a grant made before the effective date of

3 the Economic Development Partnership Act of 1995, may

4 be sold, encumbered, or pledged at the discretion of the

5 grantee of the Fund, to a third party provided that the

6 net proceeds of the transaction—

7 ‘‘(1) shall be deposited into the Fund and may

8 only be used for activities which are consistent with

9 the purposes of this title; and

10 ‘‘(2) shall be subject to the financial manage11 ment, accounting, reporting, and auditing standards

12 which were originally applicable to the grant.

13 ‘‘SEC. 305. TREATMENT OF REVOLVING LOAN FUNDS.

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Amounts from grants made

15 under this title which are used by an eligible recipient to

16 establish a revolving loan fund shall not be treated, except

17 as provided by subsection (b), as amounts derived from

18 Federal funds for the purposes of any Federal law after

19 such amounts are loaned from the fund to a borrower and

20 repaid to the fund.

21 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTIONS.—Amounts described in subsection

22 (a) which are loaned from a revolving loan fund to a bor23 rower and repaid to the fund—

24 ‘‘(1) may only be used for activities which are

25 consistent with the purposes of this title; and
24

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(2) shall be subject to the financial manage2 ment, accounting, reporting, and auditing standards

3 which were originally applicable to the grant.

4 ‘‘(c) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 30 days after

5 the effective date of the Economic Development Partner6 ship Act of 1995, the Secretary shall issue regulations to

7 carry out subsection (a).

8 ‘‘(d) PUBLIC REVIEW AND COMMENT.—Before issu9 ing any final guidelines or administrative manuals govern10 ing the operation of revolving loan funds established using

11 amounts from grants under this title, the Secretary shall

12 provide reasonable opportunity for public review of and

13 comment on such guidelines and administrative manuals.

14 ‘‘(e) APPLICABILITY TO PAST GRANTS.—The re15 quirements of this section applicable to amounts from

16 grants made under this title shall also apply to amounts

17 from grants made, before the effective date of the Eco18 nomic Development Partnership Act of 1995, under title

19 I of this Act, as in effect on the day before such effective

20 date.
25

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘TITLE IV—TECHNICAL ASSIST2 ANCE, RESEARCH, AND IN3 FORMATION

4 ‘‘SEC. 401. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out its duties under

6 this Act, a Regional Commission may provide technical as7 sistance which would be useful in alleviating or preventing

8 conditions of excessive unemployment or underemploy9 ment to areas which the Regional Commission finds have

10 substantial need for such assistance. Such assistance shall

11 include project planning and feasibility studies, manage12 ment and operational assistance, establishment of business

13 outreach centers, and studies evaluating the needs of, and

14 development potentialities for, economic growth of such

15 areas.

16 ‘‘(b) PROCEDURES AND TERMS.—

17 ‘‘(1) MANNER OF PROVIDING ASSISTANCE.—As18 sistance may be provided by a Regional Commission

19 through—

20 ‘‘(A) members of the Regional Commis21 sion’s staff;

22 ‘‘(B) the payment of funds authorized for

23 this section to departments or agencies of the

24 Federal Government;
26

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(C) the employment of private individ2 uals, partnerships, firms, corporations, or suit3 able institutions under contracts entered into

4 for such purposes; or

5 ‘‘(D) grants-in-aid to appropriate public or

6 private nonprofit State, area, district, or local

7 organizations.

8 ‘‘(2) REPAYMENT TERMS.—A Regional Com9 mission, in its discretion, may require the repayment

10 of assistance provided under this subsection and pre11 scribe the terms and conditions of such repayment.

12 ‘‘(c) GRANTS COVERING ADMINISTRATIVE EX13 PENSES.—

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A Regional Commission

15 may make grants to defray not to exceed 75 percent

16 of the administrative expenses of organizations

17 which the Regional Commission determines to be

18 qualified to receive grants-in-aid under subsections

19 (a) and (b); except that in the case of a grant under

20 this subsection to an Indian tribe, the Regional

21 Commission is authorized to defray up to 100 per22 cent of such expenses.

23 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION OF NON-FEDERAL

24 SHARE.—In determining the amount of the non-Fed25 eral share of such costs or expenses, a Regional
27

•HR 2145 RH

1 Commission shall give due consideration to all con2 tributions both in cash and in kind, fairly evaluated,

3 including contributions of space, equipment, and

4 services.

5 ‘‘(3) USE OF GRANTS WITH PLANNING

6 GRANTS.—Where practicable, grants-in-aid author7 ized under this subsection shall be used in conjunc8 tion with other available planning grants to assure

9 adequate and effective planning and economical use

10 of funds.

11 ‘‘(d) AVAILABILITY OF TECHNICAL INFORMATION;

12 FEDERAL PROCUREMENT.—A Regional Commission shall

13 aid areas described in section 502(a) and other areas by

14 furnishing to interested individuals, communities, indus15 tries, and enterprises within such areas any assistance,

16 technical information, market research, or other forms of

17 assistance, information, or advice which would be useful

18 in alleviating or preventing conditions of excessive unem19 ployment or underemployment within such areas. The Re20 gional Commission may furnish the procurement divisions

21 of the various departments, agencies, and other instru22 mentalities of the Federal Government with a list contain23 ing the names and addresses of business firms which are

24 located in areas described in section 502(a) and which are

25 desirous of obtaining Government contracts for the fur-
28

•HR 2145 RH

1 nishing of supplies or services, and designating the sup2 plies and services such firms are engaged in providing.

3 ‘‘SEC. 402. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLANNING.

4 ‘‘(a) DIRECT GRANTS.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A Regional Commission

6 may, upon application of any State, or city, or other

7 political subdivision of a State, or sub-State plan8 ning and development organization (including an

9 area described in section 502(a) or an economic de10 velopment district), make direct grants to such

11 State, city, or other political subdivision, or organi12 zation to pay up to 80 percent of the cost for eco13 nomic development planning.

14 ‘‘(2) PLANNING PROJECTS SPECIFICALLY IN15 CLUDED.—The planning for cities, other political

16 subdivisions, and sub-State planning and develop17 ment organizations (including areas described in sec18 tion 502(a) and economic development districts) as19 sisted under this section shall include systematic ef20 forts to reduce unemployment and increase incomes.

21 ‘‘(3) PLANNING PROCESS.—The planning shall

22 be a continuous process involving public officials and

23 private citizens in analyzing local economies, defin24 ing development goals, determining project opportu-
29

•HR 2145 RH

1 nities, and formulating and implementing a develop2 ment program.

3 ‘‘(4) COORDINATION OF ASSISTANCE UNDER

4 SECTION 401(c).—The assistance available under this

5 section may be provided in addition to assistance

6 available under section 401(c) but shall not supplant

7 such assistance.

8 ‘‘(b) COMPLIANCE WITH REVIEW PROCEDURE.—The

9 planning assistance authorized under this title shall be

10 used in conjunction with any other available Federal plan11 ning assistance to assure adequate and effective planning

12 and economical use of funds.

13 ‘‘TITLE V—ELIGIBILITY AND

14 INVESTMENT STRATEGIES

15 ‘‘PART A—ELIGIBILITY

16 ‘‘SEC. 501. ELIGIBLE RECIPIENT DEFINED.

17 ‘‘In this Act, the term ‘eligible recipient’ means an

18 area described in section 502(a), an economic development

19 district designated under section 510, an Indian tribe, a

20 State, a city or other political subdivision of a State, or

21 a consortium of such political subdivisions, or a public or

22 private nonprofit organization or association acting in co23 operation with officials of such political subdivisions.
30

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘SEC. 502. AREA ELIGIBILITY.

2 ‘‘(a) CERTIFICATION.—In order to be eligible for as3 sistance under title II, an applicant seeking assistance to

4 undertake a project in an area shall certify, as part of

5 an application for such assistance, that the area on the

6 date of submission of such application meets 1 or more

7 of the following criteria:

8 ‘‘(1) The area has a per capita income of 80

9 percent or less of the national average.

10 ‘‘(2) The area has an unemployment rate 1 per11 cent above the national average percentage for the

12 most recent 24-month period for which statistics are

13 available.

14 ‘‘(3) The area has experienced or is about to

15 experience a sudden economic dislocation resulting

16 in job loss that is significant both in terms of the

17 number of jobs eliminated and the effect upon the

18 employment rate of the area.

19 ‘‘(4) The area is a community or neighborhood

20 (defined without regard to political or other subdivi21 sions or boundaries) which the Secretary determines

22 has one or more of the following conditions:

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

24 persons.

25 ‘‘(B) Rural areas having substantial out26 migration.
31

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(C) Substantial unemployment.

2 ‘‘(b) DOCUMENTATION.—A certification made under

3 subsection (a) shall be supported by Federal data, when

4 available, and in other cases by data available through the

5 State government. Such documentation shall be accepted

6 by a Regional Commission unless it is determined to be

7 inaccurate. The most recent statistics available shall be

8 used.

9 ‘‘(c) SPECIAL RULE.—An area which a Regional

10 Commission determines has 1 or more of the conditions

11 described in subsection (a)(4)—

12 ‘‘(1) shall not be subject to the requirements of

13 subparagraphs (A) and (C) of section 201(a)(1); and

14 ‘‘(2) shall not be eligible to meet the require15 ments of section 510(a)(1)(B).

16 ‘‘(d) PRIOR DESIGNATIONS.—Any designation of a

17 redevelopment area made before the effective date of the

18 Economic Development Partnership Act of 1995 shall not

19 be effective after such effective date.

20 ‘‘SEC. 503. INVESTMENT STRATEGY.

21 ‘‘A Regional Commission may provide assistance

22 under titles II and III to an applicant for a project only

23 if the applicant submits to the Regional Commission, as

24 part of an application for such assistance, and the Re-
32

•HR 2145 RH

1 gional Commission approves an investment strategy

2 which—

3 ‘‘(1) identifies the economic development prob4 lems to be addressed using such assistance;

5 ‘‘(2) identifies past, present, and projected fu6 ture economic development investments in the area

7 receiving such assistance and public and private par8 ticipants and sources of funding for such invest9 ments;

10 ‘‘(3) sets forth a strategy for addressing the

11 economic problems identified pursuant to paragraph

12 (1) and describes how the strategy will solve such

13 problems;

14 ‘‘(4) provides a description of the project nec15 essary to implement the strategy, estimates of costs,

16 and timetables; and

17 ‘‘(5) provides a summary of public and private

18 resources expected to be available for the project.

19 ‘‘SEC. 504. APPROVAL OF PROJECTS.

20 ‘‘Only applications for grants or other assistance

21 under this Act for specific projects shall be approved which

22 are certified by the State member of the Regional Com23 mission representing such applicant and determined by

24 the Secretary—
33

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(1) to be included in a State investment strat2 egy approved by the Regional Commission;

3 ‘‘(2) to have adequate assurance that the

4 project will be properly administered, operated, and

5 maintained; and

6 ‘‘(3) to otherwise meet the requirements for as7 sistance under this Act.

8 ‘‘PART B—ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS

9 ‘‘SEC. 510. DESIGNATION OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

10 DISTRICTS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

11 CENTERS.

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In order that economic develop13 ment projects of broader geographic significance may be

14 planned and carried out, a Regional Commission may—

15 ‘‘(1) designate appropriate ‘economic develop16 ment districts’ within the United States with the

17 concurrence of the States in which such districts will

18 be wholly or partially located, if—

19 ‘‘(A) the proposed district is of sufficient

20 size or population, and contains sufficient re21 sources, to foster economic development on a

22 scale involving more than a single area de23 scribed in section 502(a);

24 ‘‘(B) the proposed district contains at least

25 1 area described in section 502(a);
34

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(C) the proposed district contains 1 or

2 more areas described in section 502(a) or eco3 nomic development centers identified in an ap4 proved district investment strategy as having

5 sufficient size and potential to foster the eco6 nomic growth activities necessary to alleviate

7 the distress of the areas described in section

8 502(a) within the district; and

9 ‘‘(D) the proposed district has a district

10 investment strategy which includes adequate

11 land use and transportation planning and con12 tains a specific program for district cooperation,

13 self-help, and public investment and is approved

14 by the State or States affected and by the Re15 gional Commission;

16 ‘‘(2) designate as ‘economic development cen17 ters’, in accordance with such regulations as the

18 Secretary shall prescribe, such areas as the Regional

19 Commission may deem appropriate, if—

20 ‘‘(A) the proposed center has been identi21 fied and included in an approved district invest22 ment strategy and recommended by the State

23 or States affected for such special designation;

24 ‘‘(B) the proposed center is geographically

25 and economically so related to the district that
35

•HR 2145 RH

1 its economic growth may reasonably be expected

2 to contribute significantly to the alleviation of

3 distress in the areas described in section 502(a)

4 of the district; and

5 ‘‘(C) the proposed center does not have a

6 population in excess of 250,000 according to

7 the most recent Federal census.

8 ‘‘(3) provide financial assistance in accordance

9 with the criteria of this Act, except as may be herein

10 otherwise provided, for projects in economic develop11 ment centers designated under subsection (a)(2),

12 if—

13 ‘‘(A) the project will further the objectives

14 of the investment strategy of the district in

15 which it is to be located:

16 ‘‘(B) the project will enhance the economic

17 growth potential of the district or result in ad18 ditional long-term employment opportunities

19 commensurate with the amount of Federal fi20 nancial assistance requested; and

21 ‘‘(C) the amount of Federal financial as22 sistance requested is reasonably related to the

23 size, population, and economic needs of the dis24 trict;
36

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(4) subject to the 20 percent non-Federal

2 share required for any project by section 201(c), in3 crease the amount of grant assistance authorized by

4 section 201 for projects within areas described in

5 section 502(a), by an amount not to exceed 10 per6 cent of the aggregate cost of any such project, in ac7 cordance with such regulations as the Secretary

8 shall prescribe if—

9 ‘‘(A) the area described in section 502(a)

10 is situated within a designated economic devel11 opment district and is actively participating in

12 the economic development activities of the dis13 trict; and

14 ‘‘(B) the project is consistent with an ap15 proved investment strategy.

16 ‘‘(b) AUTHORITIES.—In designating economic devel17 opment districts and approving district investment strate18 gies under subsection (a), a Regional Commission may,

19 under regulations prescribed by the Secretary—

20 ‘‘(1) invite the several States to draw up pro21 posed district boundaries and to identify potential

22 economic development centers;

23 ‘‘(2) cooperate with the several States—
37

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(A) in sponsoring and assisting district

2 economic planning and development groups;

3 and

4 ‘‘(B) in assisting such district groups to

5 formulate district investment strategies; and

6 ‘‘(3) encourage participation by appropriate

7 local governmental authorities in such economic de8 velopment districts.

9 ‘‘(c) TERMINATION OR MODIFICATION OF DESIGNA10 TIONS.—The Secretary shall by regulation prescribe

11 standards for the termination or modification of economic

12 development districts and economic development centers

13 designated under the authority of this section.

14 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act, the following defini15 tions apply:

16 ‘‘(1) ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT.—The

17 term ‘economic development district’ refers to any

18 area within the United States composed of cooperat19 ing areas described in section 502(a) and, where ap20 propriate, designated economic development centers

21 and neighboring counties or communities, which has

22 been designated by a Regional Commission as an

23 economic development district. Such term includes

24 any economic development district designated by the

25 Secretary under section 403 of this Act, as in effect
38

•HR 2145 RH

1 on the day before the effective date of the Economic

2 Development Partnership Act of 1995.

3 ‘‘(2) ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CENTER.—The

4 term ‘economic development center’ refers to any

5 area within the United States which has been identi6 fied as an economic development center in an ap7 proved investment strategy and which has been des8 ignated by a Regional Commission as eligible for fi9 nancial assistance under this Act in accordance with

10 the provisions of this section.

11 ‘‘(3) LOCAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘local

12 government’ means any city, county, town, parish,

13 village, or other general-purpose political subdivision

14 of a State.

15 ‘‘(e) PARTS OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS

16 NOT WITHIN AREAS DESCRIBED IN SECTION 502(a).—

17 A Regional Commission is authorized to provide the finan18 cial assistance which is available to an area described in

19 section 502(a) under this Act to those parts of an eco20 nomic development district which are not within an area

21 described in section 502(a), when such assistance will be

22 of a substantial direct benefit to an area described in sec23 tion 502(a) within such district. Such financial assistance

24 shall be provided in the same manner and to the same

25 extent as is provided in this Act for an area described in
39

•HR 2145 RH

1 section 502(a); except that nothing in this subsection shall

2 be construed to permit such parts to receive the increase

3 in the amount of grant assistance authorized subsection

4 (a)(4).

5 ‘‘TITLE VI—ADMINISTRATION

6 ‘‘PART A—GENERAL PROVISIONS

7 ‘‘SEC. 601. APPOINTMENT OF UNDER SECRETARY.

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry out

9 the Secretary’s duties under this Act acting through an

10 Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development

11 to be appointed by the President by and with the advice

12 and consent of the Senate .

13 ‘‘(b) AMENDMENT TO TITLE 5, U.S.C.—Section

14 5314 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by insert15 ing ‘Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Develop16 ment,’ after ‘Under Secretary of Commerce,’.

17 ‘‘SEC. 602. OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.

18 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall estab19 lish an Office of Economic Development (hereinafter in

20 this section referred to as the ‘Office’) within the Depart21 ment of Commerce.

22 ‘‘(b) FUNCTIONS.—The head of the Office shall be

23 the Under Secretary of Commerce for Economic Develop24 ment who shall assist the Secretary in carrying out the
40

•HR 2145 RH

1 Secretary’s duties under this Act, including the issuance

2 of rules, regulations, and policies.

3 ‘‘(c) CLEARINGHOUSE.—It shall be a duty of the

4 Under Secretary in administering the Office—

5 ‘‘(1) to serve as a central information clearing6 house on matters relating to economic development,

7 economic adjustment, disaster recovery, and defense

8 conversion programs and activities of the Federal

9 and State governments, including political subdivi10 sions of the States; and

11 ‘‘(2) to help potential and actual applicants for

12 economic development, economic adjustment, disas13 ter recovery, and defense conversion assistance

14 under Federal, State, and local laws in locating and

15 applying for such assistance, including financial and

16 technical assistance.

17 ‘‘SEC. 603. CONSULTATION WITH OTHER PERSONS AND

18 AGENCIES.

19 ‘‘(a) CONSULTATION ON PROBLEMS RELATING TO

20 EMPLOYMENT.—The Secretary is authorized from time to

21 time to call together and confer with any persons, includ22 ing representatives of labor, management, agriculture, and

23 government, who can assist in meeting the problems of

24 area and regional unemployment or underemployment.
41

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(b) CONSULTATION ON ADMINISTRATION OF ACT.—

2 The Secretary may make provisions for such consultation

3 with interested departments and agencies as the Secretary

4 may deem appropriate in the performance of the functions

5 vested in the Secretary by this Act.

6 ‘‘SEC. 604. ADMINISTRATION, OPERATION, AND MAINTE7 NANCE.

8 ‘‘No Federal assistance shall be approved under this

9 Act unless the Secretary is satisfied that the project for

10 which Federal assistance is granted will be properly and

11 efficiently administered, operated, and maintained.

12 ‘‘SEC. 605. AUTHORITY TO ESTABLISH INDEPENDENT AGEN13 CY IN EVENT DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE IS

14 ABOLISHED.

15 ‘‘In the event that the Department of Commerce is

16 abolished by a law enacted after the effective date of the

17 Economic Development Partnership Act of 1995, the

18 President is authorized to establish an independent agency

19 to carry out the duties of the Secretary under this Act.

20 ‘‘SEC. 606. TREATMENT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EM21 PLOYEES.

22 ‘‘In considering applications for employment at Re23 gional Commissions or in the Office of Economic Develop24 ment, preference shall be given to current Economic De25 velopment Administration employees.
42

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘PART B—ABOLISHMENT OF ECONOMIC

2 DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION

3 ‘‘SEC. 610. ABOLISHMENT.

4 ‘‘The Economic Development Administration of the

5 Department of Commerce is abolished.

6 ‘‘SEC. 611. CONCLUSION OF BUSINESS.

7 ‘‘The Secretary shall provide for the conclusion of any

8 outstanding affairs of the Economic Development Admin9 istration, including matters affecting the disposition of

10 personnel.

11 ‘‘SEC. 612. SAVINGS PROVISIONS.

12 ‘‘(a) EXISTING RIGHTS, DUTIES, AND OBLIGATIONS

13 NOT AFFECTED.—This part shall not be construed as af14 fecting the validity of any right, duty, or obligation of the

15 United States or any other person arising under or pursu16 ant to any contract, loan, or other instrument or agree17 ment which was in effect on the day before the effective

18 date of this part.

19 ‘‘(b) CONTINUATION OF SUITS.—No action or other

20 proceeding commenced by or against any officer or em21 ployee of the Economic Development Administration shall

22 abate by reason of the enactment of this part; except that

23 the Secretary shall be substituted for such officer or em24 ployee as a party to any such action or proceeding.
43

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘SEC. 613. AMENDMENT TO TITLE 5, U.S.C.

2 ‘‘Section 5316 of title 5, United States Code, is

3 amended by striking ‘Administrator for Economic Devel4 opment.’.

5 ‘‘TITLE VII—MISCELLANEOUS

6 ‘‘SEC. 701. POWERS OF SECRETARY.

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In performing the Secretary’s

8 duties under this Act, the Secretary is authorized to—

9 ‘‘(1) adopt, alter, and use a seal, which shall be

10 judicially noticed;

11 ‘‘(2) subject to the civil-service and classifica12 tion laws, select, employ, appoint, and fix the com13 pensation of such personnel as may be necessary to

14 carry out the provisions of this Act;

15 ‘‘(3) hold such hearings, sit and act at such

16 times and places, and take such testimony, as the

17 Secretary may deem advisable;

18 ‘‘(4) request directly from any executive depart19 ment, bureau, agency, board, commission, office,

20 independent establishment, or instrumentality infor21 mation, suggestions, estimates, and statistics needed

22 to carry out the purposes of this Act; and each de23 partment, bureau, agency, board, commission, office,

24 establishment, or instrumentality is authorized to

25 furnish such information, suggestions, estimates,

26 and statistics directly to the Secretary;
44

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(5) under regulations prescribed by the Sec2 retary, assign or sell at public or private sale, or oth3 erwise dispose of for cash or credit, in the Sec4 retary’s discretion and upon such terms and condi5 tions and for such consideration as the Secretary de6 termines to be reasonable, any evidence of debt, con7 tract, claim, personal property, or security assigned

8 to or held by the Secretary in connection with assist9 ance extended under this Act, and collect or com10 promise all obligations assigned to or held by the

11 Secretary in connection with such assistance until

12 such time as such obligations may be referred to the

13 Attorney General for suit or collection;

14 ‘‘(6) deal with, complete, renovate, improve,

15 modernize, insure, rent, or sell for cash or credit,

16 upon such terms and conditions and for such consid17 eration as the Secretary determines to be reasonable,

18 any real or personal property conveyed to, or other19 wise acquired by the Secretary in connection with

20 assistance extended under this Act;

21 ‘‘(7) pursue to final collection, by way of com22 promise or other administrative action, prior to ref23 erence to the Attorney General, all claims against

24 third parties assigned to the Secretary in connection

25 with assistance extended this Act;
45

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(8) acquire, in any lawful manner and in ac2 cordance with the requirements of the Federal Prop3 erty and Administrative Services Act of 1949, any

4 property (real, personal, or mixed, tangible or intan5 gible), whenever necessary or appropriate to the con6 duct of the activities authorized under this Act;

7 ‘‘(9) in addition to any powers, functions, privi8 leges, and immunities otherwise vested in the Sec9 retary, take any action, including the procurement of

10 the services of attorneys by contract, determined by

11 the Secretary to be necessary or desirable in making,

12 purchasing, servicing, compromising, modifying, liq13 uidating, or otherwise administratively dealing with

14 assets held in connection with financial assistance

15 extended under this Act;

16 ‘‘(10) employ experts and consultants or organi17 zations as authorized by section 3109 of title 5,

18 United States Code, compensate individuals so em19 ployed at rates not in excess of $100 per diem, in20 cluding travel time, and allow them, while away from

21 their homes or regular places of business, travel ex22 penses (including per diem in lieu of subsistence) as

23 authorized by section 5703 of title 5, United States

24 Code, for persons in the Government service em25 ployed intermittently, while so employed, except that
46

•HR 2145 RH

1 contracts for such employment may be renewed an2 nually;

3 ‘‘(11) sue and be sued in any court of record

4 of a State having general jurisdiction or in any Unit5 ed States district court, and jurisdiction is conferred

6 upon such district court to determine such con7 troversies without regard to the amount in con8 troversy; but no attachment, injunction, garnish9 ment, or other similar process, mesne or final, shall

10 be issued against the Secretary or the Secretary’s

11 property;

12 ‘‘(12) make discretionary grants, pursuant to

13 authorities otherwise available to a Regional Com14 mission under this Act and without regard to the re15 quirements of section 504, to implement significant

16 regional initiatives, to take advantage of special de17 velopment opportunities, or to respond to emergency

18 economic distress in the region from the funds with19 held from distribution to the Regional Commissions;

20 except that the aggregate amount of such discre21 tionary grants in any fiscal year may not exceed 10

22 percent of the amounts appropriated under title VIII

23 for such fiscal year; and
47

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(13) establish such rules, regulations, and pro2 cedures as the Secretary considers appropriate in

3 carrying out the provisions of this Act.

4 ‘‘(b) DEFICIENCY JUDGMENTS.—The authority

5 under subsection (a)(7) to pursue claims shall include the

6 authority to obtain deficiency judgments or otherwise in

7 the case of mortgages assigned to the Secretary.

8 ‘‘(c) INAPPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN OTHER RE9 QUIREMENTS.—Section 3709 of the Revised Statutes of

10 the United States shall not apply to any contract of haz11 ard insurance or to any purchase or contract for services

12 or supplies on account of property obtained by the Sec13 retary as a result of assistance extended under this Act

14 if the premium for the insurance or the amount of the

15 insurance does not exceed $1,000.

16 ‘‘(d) POWERS OF CONVEYANCE AND EXECUTION.—

17 The power to convey and to execute, in the name of the

18 Secretary, deeds of conveyance, deeds of release, assign19 ments and satisfactions of mortgages, and any other writ20 ten instrument relating to real or personal property or any

21 interest therein acquired by the Secretary pursuant to the

22 provisions of this Act may be exercised by the Secretary,

23 or by any officer or agent appointed by the Secretary for

24 such purpose, without the execution of any express delega25 tion of power or power of attorney.
48

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘SEC. 702. ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.

2 The Secretary shall establish a formula for the equi3 table allocation among the Regional Commissions of

4 amounts appropriated to carry out this Act.

5 ‘‘SEC. 703. PERFORMANCE MEASURES.

6 ‘‘The Secretary shall establish performance measures

7 for grants and other assistance provided under this Act.

8 Such performance measures shall be used to evaluate

9 project proposals and conduct evaluations of projects re10 ceiving such assistance.

11 ‘‘SEC. 704. MAINTENANCE OF STANDARDS.

12 ‘‘The Secretary shall continue to implement and en13 force the provisions of section 712 of this Act, as in effect

14 on the day before the effective date of the Economic Devel15 opment Partnership Act of 1995.

16 ‘‘SEC. 705. TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS.

17 ‘‘The functions, powers, duties, and authorities and

18 the assets, funds, contracts, loans, liabilities, commit19 ments, authorizations, allocations, and records which are

20 vested in or authorized to be transferred to the Secretary

21 of the Treasury under section 29(b) of the Area Redevel22 opment Act, and all functions, powers, duties, and authori23 ties under section 29(c) of such Act are hereby vested in

24 the Secretary.
49

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘SEC. 706. DEFINITION OF STATE.

2 ‘‘In this Act, the terms ‘State’, ‘States’, and ‘United

3 States’ include the several States and each of the other

4 political entities included in a region established by section

5 105.

6 ‘‘SEC. 707. ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.

7 ‘‘The Secretary shall transmit a comprehensive and

8 detailed annual report to Congress of the Secretary’s and

9 each Regional Commission’s operations under this Act for

10 each fiscal year beginning with the fiscal year ending Sep11 tember 30, 1996. Such report shall be printed and shall

12 be transmitted to Congress not later than April 1 of the

13 year following the fiscal year with respect to which such

14 report is made.

15 ‘‘SEC. 708. USE OF OTHER FACILITIES.

16 ‘‘(a) DELEGATION OF FUNCTIONS TO OTHER FED17 ERAL DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES.—The Secretary

18 may delegate to the heads of other departments and agen19 cies of the Federal Government any of the Secretary’s

20 functions, powers, and duties under this Act as the Sec21 retary may deem appropriate, and to authorize the redele22 gation of such functions, powers, and duties by the heads

23 of such departments and agencies.

24 ‘‘(b) DEPARTMENT AND AGENCY EXECUTION OF

25 DELEGATED AUTHORITY.—Departments and agencies of

26 the Federal Government shall exercise their powers, du-
50

•HR 2145 RH

1 ties, and functions in such manner as will assist in carry2 ing out the objectives of this Act.

3 ‘‘(c) TRANSFER BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS.—Funds

4 authorized to be appropriated under this Act may be

5 transferred between departments and agencies of the Gov6 ernment, if such funds are used for the purposes for which

7 they are specifically authorized and appropriated.

8 ‘‘(d) FUNDS TRANSFERRED FROM OTHER DEPART9 MENTS AND AGENCIES.—In order to carry out the objec10 tives of this Act, the Secretary may accept transfers of

11 funds from other departments and agencies of the Federal

12 Government if the funds are used for the purposes for

13 which (and in accordance with the terms under which) the

14 funds are specifically authorized and appropriated. Such

15 transferred funds shall remain available until expended,

16 and may be transferred to and merged with the appropria17 tions under the heading ‘salaries and expenses’ by the Sec18 retary to the extent necessary to administer the program.

19 ‘‘SEC. 709. PENALTIES.

20 ‘‘(a) FALSE STATEMENTS; SECURITY OVER21 VALUATION.—Whoever makes any statement knowing it

22 to be false, or whoever willfully overvalues any security,

23 for the purpose of obtaining for such person or for any

24 applicant any financial assistance under this Act or any

25 extension of such assistance by renewal, deferment or ac-
51

•HR 2145 RH

1 tion, or otherwise, or the acceptance, release, or substi2 tution of security for such assistance, or for the purpose

3 of influencing in any way the action of the Secretary or

4 a Regional Commission or for the purpose of obtaining

5 money, property, or anything of value, under this Act,

6 shall be fined under title 18, United States Code, impris7 oned for not more than 5 years, or both.

8 ‘‘(b) EMBEZZLEMENT AND FRAUD-RELATED

9 CRIMES.—Whoever, being connected in any capacity with

10 the Secretary or a Regional Commission, in the adminis11 tration of this Act—

12 ‘‘(1) embezzles, abstracts, purloins, or willfully

13 misapplies any moneys, funds, securities, or other

14 things of value, whether belonging to such person or

15 pledged or otherwise entrusted to such person;

16 ‘‘(2) with intent to defraud the Secretary or a

17 Regional Commission or any other body politic or

18 corporate, or any individual, or to deceive any offi19 cer, auditor, or examiner, makes any false entry in

20 any book, report, or statement of or to the Secretary

21 or a Regional Commission, or without being duly au22 thorized draws any orders or issues, puts forth, or

23 assigns any note, debenture, bond, or other obliga24 tion, or draft, bill of exchange, mortgage, judgment,

25 or decree thereof;
52

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(3) with intent to defraud participates or

2 shares in or receives directly or indirectly any

3 money, profit, property, or benefit through any

4 transaction, loan, grant, commission, contract, or

5 any other act of the Secretary or a Regional Com6 mission; or

7 ‘‘(4) gives any unauthorized information con8 cerning any future action of plan of the Secretary or

9 a Regional Commission which might affect the value

10 of securities, or having such knowledge invests or

11 speculates, directly or indirectly, in the securities or

12 property of any company or corporation receiving

13 loans, grants, or other assistance from the Secretary

14 or a Regional Commission,

15 shall be fined under title 18, United States Code, impris16 oned for not more than 5 years, or both.

17 ‘‘SEC. 710. EMPLOYMENT OF EXPEDITERS AND ADMINIS18 TRATIVE EMPLOYEES.

19 ‘‘No financial assistance shall be extended by a Re20 gional Commission under this Act to any business enter21 prise unless the owners, partners, or officers of such busi22 ness enterprise—

23 ‘‘(1) certify to the Regional Commission the

24 names of any attorneys, agents, and other persons

25 engaged by or on behalf of such business enterprise
53

•HR 2145 RH

1 for the purpose of expediting applications made to

2 the Regional Commission for assistance of any sort,

3 under this Act, and the fees paid or to be paid to

4 any such person; and

5 ‘‘(2) execute an agreement binding such busi6 ness enterprise, for a period of 2 years after such

7 assistance is rendered by the Regional Commission

8 to such business enterprise, to refrain from employ9 ing, tendering any office or employment to, or re10 taining for professional services, any person who, on

11 the date such assistance or any part thereof was

12 rendered, or within the 1-year period ending on such

13 date, shall have served as an officer, attorney, agent,

14 or employee, occupying a position or engaging in ac15 tivities which the Regional Commission determines

16 involves discretion with respect to the granting of

17 assistance under this Act.

18 ‘‘SEC. 711. PERSONAL FINANCIAL INTERESTS.

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Except as permitted by sub20 section (b), no State member or alternate and no officer

21 or employee of a Regional Commission shall participate

22 personally and substantially as member, alternate, officer,

23 or employee, through decision, approval, disapproval, rec24 ommendation, the rendering of advice, investigation, or

25 otherwise, in any proceeding, application, request for a
54

•HR 2145 RH

1 ruling or other determination, contract, claim, con2 troversy, or other particular matter in which, to the indi3 vidual’s knowledge, the individual, the individual’s spouse,

4 minor child, partner, organization (other than a State or

5 political subdivision thereof) in which the individual is

6 serving as officer, director, trustee, partner, or employee,

7 or any person or organization with whom the individual

8 is serving as officer, director, trustee, partner, or em9 ployee, or any person or organization with whom the indi10 vidual is negotiating or has any arrangement concerning

11 prospective employment, has a financial interest. Any indi12 vidual who shall violate the provisions of this subsection

13 shall be fined under title 18, United States Code, impris14 oned for not more than 2 years, or both.

15 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply if

16 the State member, alternate, officer, or employee first ad17 vises the Regional Commission of the nature and cir18 cumstances of the proceeding, application, request for a

19 ruling or other determination, contract, claim, con20 troversy, or other particular matter and makes full disclo21 sure of the financial interest and receives in advance a

22 written determination made by the Regional Commission

23 that the interest is not so substantial as to be deemed like24 ly to affect the integrity of the services which the Regional
55

•HR 2145 RH

1 Commission may expect from such State member, alter2 nate, officer, or employee.

3 ‘‘(c) SALARIES.—No State member or alternate of a

4 Regional Commission shall receive any salary, or any con5 tribution to or supplementation of salary for the individ6 ual’s services on the Regional Commission from any

7 source other than the State of the individual. No individ8 ual detailed to serve the Regional Commission under au9 thority of section 104 shall receive any salary or any con10 tribution to or supplementation of salary for the individ11 ual’s services on the Regional Commission from any

12 source other than the State, local, or intergovernmental

13 department or agency from which he was detailed or from

14 the Regional Commission. Any individual who shall violate

15 the provisions of this subsection shall be fined under title

16 18, United States Code, imprisoned for not more than 1

17 year, or both.

18 ‘‘(d) NONAPPLICABILITY TO FEDERAL OFFICIALS.—

19 Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the

20 Secretary (or the Secretary’s designee on a Regional Com21 mission) and any Federal officers or employees detailed

22 to duty with a Regional Commission pursuant to section

23 104 shall not be subject to such provisions but shall re24 main subject to sections 202 through 209 of title 18, Unit25 ed States Code.
56

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(e) AUTHORITY TO RESCIND CERTAIN AGREE2 MENTS.—A Regional Commission may, in the Regional

3 Commission’s discretion, declare void and rescind any

4 agreement to extend financial assistance under this Act

5 entered into by the Regional Commission in relation to

6 which the Regional Commission finds that there has been

7 a violation of subsection (a) or (c) of this section or any

8 of the provisions of sections 202 through 209 of title 18,

9 United States Code.

10 ‘‘SEC. 712. MAINTENANCE OF RECORDS OF APPROVED AP11 PLICATIONS FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE;

12 PUBLIC INSPECTION.

13 ‘‘(a) MAINTENANCE OF RECORD REQUIRED.—The

14 Secretary shall maintain as a permanent part of the

15 records of the Department of Commerce a list of applica16 tions approved for financial assistance under this Act,

17 which shall be kept available for public inspection during

18 the regular business hours of the Department of Com19 merce.

20 ‘‘(b) POSTING TO LIST.—The following information

21 shall be posted in such list as soon as each application

22 is approved:

23 ‘‘(1) The name of the applicant and, in the case

24 of corporate applications, the names of the officers

25 and directors thereof.
57

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(2) The amount and duration of the financial

2 assistance for which application is made.

3 ‘‘(3) The purposes for which the proceeds of the

4 financial assistance are to be used.

5 ‘‘SEC. 713. RECORDS AND AUDIT.

6 ‘‘(a) RECORDKEEPING AND DISCLOSURE REQUIRE7 MENTS.—Each recipient of assistance under this Act shall

8 keep such records as the Secretary shall prescribe, includ9 ing records which fully disclose the amount and the dis10 position by such recipient of the proceeds of such assist11 ance, the total cost of the project or undertaking in con12 nection with which such assistance is given or used, and

13 the amount and nature of that portion of the cost of the

14 project or undertaking supplied by other sources, and such

15 other records as will facilitate an effective audit.

16 ‘‘(b) ACCESS TO BOOKS FOR EXAMINATION AND

17 AUDIT.—The Secretary and the Comptroller General of

18 the United States, or any of their duly authorized rep19 resentatives, shall have access for the purpose of audit and

20 examination to any books, documents, papers, and records

21 of the recipient that are pertinent to assistance received

22 under this Act.
58

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘SEC. 714. PROHIBITION AGAINST A STATUTORY CON2 STRUCTION WHICH MIGHT CAUSE DIMINU3 TION IN OTHER FEDERAL ASSISTANCE.

4 ‘‘All financial and technical assistance authorized

5 under this Act shall be in addition to any Federal assist6 ance previously authorized, and no provision of this Act

7 shall be construed as authorizing or permitting any reduc8 tion or diminution in the proportional amount of Federal

9 assistance to which any State or other entity eligible under

10 this Act would otherwise be entitled under the provisions

11 of any other Act.

12 ‘‘SEC. 715. ACCEPTANCE OF APPLICANTS’ CERTIFICATIONS.

13 ‘‘A Regional Commission may accept, when deemed

14 appropriate, the applicants’ certifications to meet the re15 quirements of this Act.

16 ‘‘TITLE VIII—FUNDING

17 ‘‘SEC. 801. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

18 ‘‘There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out

19 this Act $340,000,000 per fiscal year for each of fiscal

20 years 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2000. Such sums shall

21 remain available until expended.

22 ‘‘SEC. 802. DEFENSE CONVERSION ACTIVITIES.

23 ‘‘In addition to the appropriations authorized by sec24 tion 801, there are authorized to be appropriated to carry

25 out this Act such sums as may be necessary to provide

26 assistance for defense conversion activities. Such funding
59

•HR 2145 RH

1 may include pilot projects for privatization and economic

2 development activities for closed or realigned military in3 stallations. Such sums shall remain available until ex4 pended.’’.

5 TITLE II—APPALACHIAN

6 REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT

7 SEC. 201. AMENDMENT OF APPALACHIAN REGIONAL DE8 VELOPMENT ACT OF 1965.

9 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in

10 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms

11 of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi12 sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a

13 section or other provision of the Appalachian Regional De14 velopment Act of 1965 (40 U.S.C. App. 1 et seq.).

15 SEC. 202. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

16 Section 2 (40 U.S.C. App. 2) is amended by adding

17 at the end the following:

18 ‘‘(c) 1995 FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.—The Congress

19 further finds and declares that, while substantial progress

20 has been made in fulfilling many of the objectives of this

21 Act, rapidly changing national and global economies over

22 the past decade have created new problems and challenges

23 for rural areas throughout the Nation and especially for

24 the Appalachian region. It is, therefore, also the purpose

25 of this Act to assist the region in providing the infrastruc-
60

•HR 2145 RH

1 ture necessary for economic and human resource develop2 ment, in developing its industry, in building entrepreneur3 ial communities, in generating a diversified regional econ4 omy, and in making its industrial and commercial re5 sources more competitive in national and world markets.

6 It is further the purpose of this Act to provide a frame7 work for coordinating Federal, State, and local initiatives

8 to respond to the economic competitive challenge through

9 improving the skills of the region’s workforce, adapting

10 and applying new technologies for the region’s businesses,

11 and improving the access of the region’s businesses to the

12 technical and financial resources necessary to their devel13 opment. Finally, it is the purpose of this Act to address

14 the needs of severely and persistently distressed and un15 derdeveloped areas of the region so as to provide a fairer

16 opportunity for the people of the region to share the qual17 ity of life generally enjoyed by citizens across this

18 Nation.’’.

19 SEC. 203. MEETINGS.

20 (a) ANNUAL MEETING REQUIREMENT.—Section

21 101(a) (40 U.S.C. App. 101(a)) is amended by adding at

22 the end the following: ‘‘The Commission shall conduct at

23 least one meeting each year with the Federal Cochairman

24 and at least a majority of the State members present.’’.
61

•HR 2145 RH

1 (b) ADDITIONAL MEETINGS BY ELECTRONIC

2 MEANS.—Section 101 (40 U.S.C. App. 101) is amended—

3 (1) in subsection (a), as amended by subsection

4 (a) of this section, by adding at the end the follow5 ing: ‘‘The Commission may conduct such additional

6 meetings by electronic means as the Commission

7 considers advisable, including meetings to decide

8 matters requiring an affirmative vote.’’; and

9 (2) in subsection (c) by striking ‘‘to be present’’

10 at the end of the fourth sentence.

11 (c) DECISIONS REQUIRING A QUORUM.—Section

12 101(b) (40 U.S.C. App. 101(b)) is amended by striking

13 the third sentence and inserting the following: ‘‘No deci14 sion involving Commission policy, approval of State, re15 gional, or subregional development plans or implementing

16 investment programs, any modification or revision of the

17 Appalachian Regional Commission Code, any allocation of

18 funds among the State, or any designation of a distressed

19 county or an economically competitive county may be

20 made without a quorum of State members.’’.

21 SEC. 204. AUTHORIZATIONS FOR ADMINISTRATIVE EX22 PENSES.

23 Section 105(b) (40 U.S.C. App. 105(b)) is amended

24 to read as follows:

25 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—
62

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be

2 appropriated to carry out this section $3,645,000

3 per fiscal year for each of fiscal years 1996 through

4 2000. Such sums shall remain available until ex5 pended.

6 ‘‘(2) EXPENSES OF FEDERAL COCHAIRMAN.—

7 Of the amounts appropriated pursuant to paragraph

8 (1), not to exceed $1,245,000 per fiscal year for

9 each of fiscal years 1996 through 2000 shall be

10 available for expenses of the Federal Cochairman,

11 the Federal Cochairman’s alternate, and the Federal

12 Cochairman’s staff.’’.

13 SEC. 205. ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS OF COMMISSION.

14 (a) AUTHORITY TO LEASE.—Section 106(7) (40

15 U.S.C. App. 106(7)) is amended—

16 (1) by inserting ‘‘subject to the requirements of

17 the Federal Property and Administrative Services

18 Act of 1949,’’ after ‘‘(7)’’;

19 (2) by striking ‘‘notwithstanding any other pro20 vision of law,’’; and

21 (3) by striking ‘‘1982’’ and inserting ‘‘2000’’.

22 (b) AUTHORITY TO MAINTAIN TEMPORARY OF23 FICE.—Section 106(8) (40 U.S.C. App. 106(8)) is amend24 ed by inserting ‘‘subject to the requirements of the Fed-
63

•HR 2145 RH

1 eral Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949,’’

2 after ‘‘(8)’’.

3 SEC. 206. HIGHWAY SYSTEM.

4 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section

5 201(g) (40 U.S.C. App. 201(g)) is amended to read as

6 follows:

7 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

8 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section

9 $90,000,000 per fiscal year for each of fiscal years 1996

10 through 2000. Such sums shall remain available until ex11 pended.’’.

12 (b) COST SHARING.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 201(h)(1) (40

14 U.S.C. App. 201(h)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘70

15 per centum’’ and inserting ‘‘80 percent’’.

16 (2) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by

17 paragraph (1) shall apply to projects approved after

18 March 31, 1979.

19 SEC. 207. COST SHARING OF DEMONSTRATION HEALTH

20 PROJECTS.

21 (a) OPERATION COSTS.—Section 202(c) (40 U.S.C.

22 App. 202(c)) is amended in the first sentence by striking

23 ‘‘100 per centum of the costs thereof’’ and all that follows

24 through the period at the end of the second sentence and

25 inserting ‘‘50 percent of the costs thereof (or 80 percent
64

•HR 2145 RH

1 of such costs in the case of a project to be carried out

2 in a county for which a distressed county designation is

3 in effect under section 226).’’.

4 (b) COST SHARING.—Section 202 (40 U.S.C. App.

5 202) is amended by adding at the end the following:

6 ‘‘(f) MAXIMUM COMMISSION CONTRIBUTION AFTER

7 SEPTEMBER 30, 1995.—After September 30, 1995, not

8 more than 50 percent of any project cost eligible for finan9 cial assistance under this section may be provided from

10 funds appropriated to carry out this Act; except that such

11 maximum Commission contribution may be increased to

12 80 percent, or to the percentage of the maximum Federal

13 contribution authorized by this section, whichever is less,

14 for a project to be carried out in a county for which a

15 distressed county designation is in effect under section

16 226.’’.

17 SEC. 208. REPEAL OF LAND STABILIZATION, CONSERVA18 TION, AND EROSION CONTROL PROGRAM.

19 Section 203 (40 U.S.C. App. 203) is repealed.

20 SEC. 209. REPEAL OF TIMBER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.

21 Section 204 (40 U.S.C. App. 204) is repealed.

22 SEC. 210. REPEAL OF MINING AREA RESTORATION PRO23 GRAM.

24 Section 205 (40 U.S.C. App. 205) is repealed.
65

•HR 2145 RH

1 SEC. 211. REPEAL OF WATER RESOURCE SURVEY.

2 Section 206 (40 U.S.C. App. 206) is repealed.

3 SEC. 212. COST SHARING OF HOUSING PROJECTS.

4 (a) LOANS.—Section 207(b) (40 U.S.C. App. 207(b))

5 is amended by striking ‘‘80 per centum’’ and inserting ‘‘50

6 percent (or 80 percent in the case of a project to be carried

7 out in a county for which a distressed county designation

8 is in effect under section 226)’’.

9 (b) GRANTS.—Section 207(c)(1) (40 U.S.C.

10 207(c)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘80 per centum’’ and

11 inserting ‘‘50 percent (or 80 percent in the case of a

12 project to be carried out in a county for which a distressed

13 county designation is in effect under section 226)’’.

14 SEC. 213. REPEAL OF AIRPORT SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS

15 PROGRAM.

16 Section 208 (40 U.S.C. App. 208) is repealed.

17 SEC. 214. COST SHARING OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND

18 EDUCATION DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.

19 (a) OPERATION COSTS.—Section 211(b)(3) (40

20 U.S.C. App. 211(b)(3)) is amended in the first sentence

21 by striking ‘‘100 per centum of the costs thereof’’ and all

22 that follows through the period at the end of the second

23 sentence and inserting ‘‘50 percent of the costs thereof

24 (or 80 percent of such costs in the case of a project to

25 be carried out in a county for which a distressed county

26 designation is in effect under section 226).’’
66

•HR 2145 RH

1 (b) COST SHARING.—Section 211 (40 U.S.C. App.

2 211) is amended by adding at the end the following:

3 ‘‘(c) MAXIMUM COMMISSION CONTRIBUTION AFTER

4 SEPTEMBER 30, 1995.—After September 30, 1995, not

5 more than 50 percent of any project cost eligible for finan6 cial assistance under this section may be provided from

7 funds appropriated to carry out this Act; except that such

8 maximum Commission contribution may be increased to

9 80 percent, or to the percentage of the maximum Federal

10 contribution authorized by this section, whichever is less,

11 for a project to be carried out in a county for which a

12 distressed county designation is in effect under section

13 226.’’.

14 SEC. 215. SEWAGE TREATMENT WORKS PROGRAM.

15 Section 212 (40 U.S.C. App. 212) is repealed.

16 SEC. 216. REPEAL OF AMENDMENTS TO HOUSING ACT OF

17 1954.

18 Section 213 (40 U.S.C. App. 213) is repealed.

19 SEC. 217. SUPPLEMENTS TO FEDERAL GRANT-IN-AID PRO20 GRAMS.

21 (a) AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.—The first sentence

22 of section 214(a) (40 U.S.C. App. 214(a)) is amended by

23 striking ‘‘the President is authorized to provide funds to

24 the Federal Cochairman to be used’’ and inserting ‘‘the
67

•HR 2145 RH

1 Federal Cochairman may use amounts made available to

2 carry out this section’’.

3 (b) COST SHARING.—Section 214(b) (40 U.S.C. App.

4 214(b)) is amended—

5 (1) by striking ‘‘(b)’’ and inserting ‘‘(b)(1)’’;

6 and

7 (2) by adding at the end the following:

8 ‘‘(2) After September 30, 1995, not more than 50

9 percent of any project cost eligible for financial assistance

10 under this section may be provided from funds appro11 priated to carry out this Act; except that such maximum

12 Commission contribution may be increased to 80 percent

13 for a project to be carried out in a county for which a

14 distressed county designation is in effect under section

15 226.’’.

16 (c) FEDERAL GRANT-IN-AID PROGRAMS DEFINED.—

17 The first sentence of section 214(c) (40 U.S.C. App.

18 214(c)) is amended by striking ‘‘on or before December

19 31, 1980,’’.

20 (d) LIMITATION ON COVERED ROAD PROJECTS.—

21 The second sentence of section 214(c) is amended by in22 serting ‘‘authorized by title 23, United States Code’’ after

23 ‘‘road construction’’.
68

•HR 2145 RH

1 SEC. 218. PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT CRITERIA.

2 (a) CONSIDERATIONS.—Section 224(a) (40 U.S.C.

3 App. 224(a)) is amended by inserting before the semicolon

4 at the end of paragraph (1) the following: ‘‘or in a severely

5 and persistently distressed and underdeveloped county or

6 area’’.

7 (b) OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS.—Section 224(a) is

8 further amended—

9 (1) by striking the period at the end of para10 graph (5) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

11 (2) by adding at the end the following:

12 ‘‘(6) the extent to which the project design pro13 vides for detailed outcome measurements by which

14 grant expenditures may be justified.’’.

15 (c) REMOVAL OF LIMITATIONS.—Section 224(b) (40

16 U.S.C. App. 224(b)) is amended to read as follows:

17 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—No financial assistance made

18 available under this Act may be used to assist establish19 ments relocating from one area to another.’’.

20 SEC. 219. DISTRESSED AND ECONOMICALLY COMPETITIVE

21 COUNTIES.

22 Part C of title II (40 U.S.C. App. 221–225) is

23 amended by adding at the end the following:
69

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘SEC. 226. DISTRESSED AND ECONOMICALLY COMPETITIVE

2 COUNTIES.

3 ‘‘(a) DESIGNATIONS.—Not later than 90 days after

4 the effective date of the Economic Development Partner5 ship Act of 1995, and annually thereafter, the Commis6 sion, in accordance with such criteria as the Commission

7 may establish, shall—

8 ‘‘(1) designate as ‘distressed counties’ those

9 counties in the region that are the most severely and

10 persistently distressed and underdeveloped; and

11 ‘‘(2) designate as ‘economically competitive

12 counties’ those counties in the region which have at13 tained substantial economic parity with the rest of

14 the Nation.

15 ‘‘(b) PERIOD OF EFFECTIVENESS.—In making an16 nual designations under subsection (a), the Commission

17 may discontinue an existing designation at the discretion

18 of the Commission; except that any designation of a dis19 tressed county shall remain in effect for the 3-year period

20 beginning on the date of the designation.

21 ‘‘(d) FUNDING PROHIBITION FOR PROJECTS LO22 CATED IN ECONOMICALLY COMPETITIVE COUNTIES.—

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided by

24 paragraph (2), no funds may be provided under this

25 Act for a project located in a county for which an
70

•HR 2145 RH

1 economically competitive county designation is in ef2 fect under this section.

3 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—The prohibition established

4 by paragraph (1) shall not apply to—

5 ‘‘(1) projects on the Appalachian development

6 highway system authorized by section 201;

7 ‘‘(2) local development district administrative

8 projects authorized by section 302(a)(1); or

9 ‘‘(3) discretionary grants authorized by section

10 302(a).’’.

11 SEC. 220. GRANTS FOR ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES AND

12 COMMISSION PROJECTS.

13 (a) AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.—Section 302(a) (40

14 U.S.C. App. 302(a)) is amended—

15 (1) by striking ‘‘The President’’ and inserting

16 ‘‘The Commission’’; and

17 (2) in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) by striking

18 ‘‘to the Commission’’ each place it appears.

19 (b) COST SHARING.—Section 302(a) is further

20 amended—

21 (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘75 per cen22 tum’’ and inserting ‘‘50 percent’’; and

23 (2) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘After

24 September 30, 1995, not more than 50 percent of

25 the cost of any activity eligible for financial assist-
71

•HR 2145 RH

1 ance under this section may be provided from funds

2 appropriated to carry out this Act (or 80 percent of

3 such costs in the case of a project to be carried out

4 in a county for which a distressed county designa5 tion is in effect under section 226); except that dis6 cretionary grants by the Commission to implement

7 significant regional initiatives, to take advantage of

8 special development opportunities, or to respond to

9 emergency economic distress in the region may be

10 made without regard to such percentage limitations.

11 The aggregate amount of discretionary grants re12 ferred to in the preceding sentence in any fiscal year

13 shall not exceed 10 percent of the amounts appro14 priated under section 401 for such fiscal year.’’.

15 (c) REPEALS.—Section 302 (40 U.S.C. App. 302) is

16 amended—

17 (1) by striking paragraphs (3) and (4) of sub18 section (b);

19 (2) by striking subsection (d); and

20 (3) by striking subsection (e).

21 SEC. 221. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR GEN22 ERAL PROGRAM.

23 Section 401 (40 U.S.C. App. 401) is amended to read

24 as follows:
72

•HR 2145 RH

1 ‘‘SEC. 401. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

2 ‘‘In addition to the appropriations authorized by sec3 tion 105 for administrative expenses and by section 201(g)

4 for the Appalachian development highway system and

5 local access roads, there is authorized to be appropriated

6 to the Commission to carry out this Act $88,355,000 per

7 fiscal year for each of fiscal years 1996 through 2000.

8 Such sums shall remain available until expended.’’.

9 SEC. 222. EXTENSION OF TERMINATION DATE.

10 Section 405 (40 U.S.C. App. 405) is amended by

11 striking ‘‘1982’’ and inserting ‘‘2000’’.