Union Calendar No. 460

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 2086

[Report No. 104–847]

A BILL

To increase the overall economy and efficiency of

flexibility plans.ance programs in accordance with approved localamounts available under certain Federal assistments and private, nonprofit organizations to useuse of Federal funding, by enabling local governGovernment operations and enable more efficient

SEPTEMBER 26, 1996

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Commitordered to be printed tee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and
IB

Union Calendar No. 460

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 2086

[Report No. 104–847]

To increase the overall economy and efficiency of Government operations

and enable more efficient use of Federal funding, by enabling local

governments and private, nonprofit organizations to use amounts available under certain Federal assistance programs in accordance with approved local flexibility plans.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JULY 20, 1995

Mr. SHAYS (for himself and Mr. CLINGER) introduced the following bill; which

was referred to the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight

SEPTEMBER 26, 1996

Additional sponsors: Mr. DAVIS, Mr. CALVERT, Mr. CUNNINGHAM, Mr.

BLUTE, and Mr. BEREUTER

Deleted sponsor: Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas (added September 29, 1995;

deleted May 9, 1996)

SEPTEMBER 26, 1996

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on July 20, 1995]

A BILL

To increase the overall economy and efficiency of Government

operations and enable more efficient use of Federal fund-
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ing, by enabling local governments and private, nonprofit

organizations to use amounts available under certain

Federal assistance programs in accordance with approved

local flexibility plans.

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.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Local Empowerment

5 and Flexibility Act of 1996’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress finds that—

8 (1) many Federal programs have addressed the

9 Nation’s problems by providing categorical financial

10 assistance with detailed requirements relating to the

11 use of funds;

12 (2) although Federal financial assistance has

13 been directed at critical national needs, some inflexi14 ble program requirements impede the effective delivery

15 of services;

16 (3) State, local, and tribal governments and pri17 vate, nonprofit organizations are dealing with in18 creasingly complex problems that require the delivery

19 of services in many different ways;

20 (4) the Nation’s communities are diverse, and

21 national needs often require different solutions in dif22 ferent communities;
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1 (5) many recipients of Federal financial assist2 ance have innovative planning and public involve3 ment strategies for providing services which, if given

4 sufficient flexibility to integrate Federal financial as5 sistance from multiple programs or with State, local,

6 tribal, or private, nonprofit programs, could be used

7 to maximize the effectiveness and efficiency of Federal

8 financial assistance; and

9 (6) it is more important than ever to—

10 (A) promote more effective and efficient de11 livery of government services to meet the needs of

12 individuals, families, and communities;

13 (B) respond flexibly to national needs in the

14 Nation’s diverse communities;

15 (C) reduce the barriers between programs

16 that impede the ability of State, local, and tribal

17 governments and private, nonprofit organiza18 tions to effectively deliver services, and meet na19 tional as well as community objectives;

20 (D) coordinate the delivery of programs and

21 services by administering agencies; and

22 (E) allow State, local, and tribal govern23 ments and private, nonprofit organizations to be

24 innovative in creating solutions to address na-
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1 tional policy goals in ways that recognize the di2 versity of our Nation’s communities.

3 SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

4 The purposes of this Act are to—

5 (1) ensure the more efficient use of Federal,

6 State, local, and tribal resources through program

7 flexibility and coordination;

8 (2) place emphasis in Federal programs on

9 achieving Federal policy goals;

10 (3) remove Federal impediments to local service

11 delivery;

12 (4) enable State, local, and tribal governments

13 and private, nonprofit organizations to adapt pro14 grams of Federal financial assistance to the particu15 lar circumstances of their communities, by—

16 (A) integrating appropriate Federal finan17 cial assistance programs into flexibility or co18 ordination plans that increase the effectiveness

19 and efficiency of those programs in their commu20 nities;

21 (B) simplifying procedures across Federal

22 programs to avoid needless duplication, overlap,

23 and cost; and
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1 (C) authorizing Federal officials to waive

2 some program requirements when necessary to

3 enhance the delivery of services; and

4 (5) encourage State, local, and tribal govern5 ments and private, nonprofit organizations to work

6 together to build stronger cooperative partnerships to

7 address critical needs and problems.

8 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

9 For purposes of this Act:

10 (1) APPROVED FLEXIBILITY OR COORDINATION

11 PLAN.—The term ‘‘approved flexibility or coordina12 tion plan’’ means a flexibility or coordination plan

13 (or part of such a plan) that is approved by the Com14 munity Empowerment Board under section 8, and for

15 which the President certifies that approval under sec16 tion 8(g).

17 (2) BOARD.—The term ‘‘Board’’ means the Com18 munity Empowerment Board established under sec19 tion 6.

20 (3) COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—The

21 term ‘‘community advisory committee’’ means such a

22 committee established or designated by an eligible ap23 plicant in accordance with section 10.

24 (4) COVERED FEDERAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

25 PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘covered Federal financial as-
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1 sistance program’’ means an eligible Federal finan2 cial assistance program that is included in a flexibil3 ity or coordination plan of an eligible applicant.

4 (5) ELIGIBLE APPLICANT.—The term ‘‘eligible

5 applicant’’ means—

6 (A) a State, local, or tribal government, or

7 qualified organization that is eligible to receive

8 financial assistance under 1 or more eligible

9 Federal financial assistance programs; or

10 (B) a qualified consortium.

11 (6) ELIGIBLE FEDERAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

12 PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘eligible Federal financial as13 sistance program’’—

14 (A) except as provided in subparagraph

15 (C), means a domestic assistance program (as

16 defined under section 6101(4) of title 31, United

17 States Code) under which financial assistance is

18 available, directly or indirectly, to eligible appli19 cants;

20 (B) includes any component of a program

21 described in subparagraph (C), under which fi22 nancial assistance is provided to pay adminis23 trative costs if the level of Federal funding for

24 those costs is, by statute or regulation, estab-
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1 lished separately from the level of Federal fund2 ing for benefits provided under the program; and

3 (C) except as provided in subparagraph

4 (B), does not include a program carried out with

5 direct spending (as defined in section 250(c)(8)

6 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit

7 Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 900(c)(8)).

8 (7) FLEXIBILITY OR COORDINATION PLAN.—The

9 term ‘‘flexibility or coordination plan’’ means a com10 prehensive plan for the integration and administra11 tion by an eligible applicant of financial assistance

12 provided by the Federal Government under 2 or more

13 eligible Federal financial assistance programs, that—

14 (A) combines funds from Federal, State,

15 local, or tribal government or private sources to

16 address the service needs of a community; or

17 (B) is a strategic plan submitted in an ap18 plication for designation as an enterprise com19 munity or an empowerment zone under section

20 1391 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26

21 U.S.C. 1391).

22 (8) LOCAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘‘local gov23 ernment’’ means—

24 (A) a political subdivision of a State that

25 is a unit of general local government (as defined
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1 under section 6501 of title 31, United States

2 Code);

3 (B) any combination of political subdivi4 sions described in subparagraph (A) that sub5 mits an application to the Board; or

6 (C) a local education agency (as defined

7 under section 14101(18) of the Elementary and

8 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C.

9 8801(18)).

10 (9) PRIORITY FUNDING.—The term ‘‘priority

11 funding’’ means giving higher priority (including by

12 the assignment of extra points, if applicable) to appli13 cations for Federal financial assistance submitted by

14 an eligible applicant pursuant to this Act.

15 (10) QUALIFIED CONSORTIUM.—The term

16 ‘‘qualified consortium’’ means a group that—

17 (A) is composed of any combination of

18 eligible applicants described in paragraph

19 (5)(A); and

20 (B) includes not less than 3 eligible ap21 plicants described in paragraph (5)(A) that

22 provide services under eligible Federal fi23 nancial assistance programs in not less

24 than 3 of the following areas:

25 (i) Education.
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1 (ii) Head Start.

2 (iii) Child care.

3 (iv) Family support and preser4 vation.

5 (v) Maternal and child health.

6 (vi) Job training.

7 (vii) Housing.

8 (viii) Nutrition.

9 (ix) Juvenile justice.

10 (x) Drug abuse prevention and

11 treatment.

12 (xi) Community and economic de13 velopment.

14 (11) QUALIFIED ORGANIZATION.—The term

15 ‘‘qualified organization’’ means a private, nonprofit

16 organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the In17 ternal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3))

18 that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of

19 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C.

20 501(a)).

21 (12) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of

22 the 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico,

23 American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Is24 lands, and the Virgin Islands.
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1 (13) STATE LEGISLATIVE OFFICIAL.—The term

2 ‘‘State legislative official’’ means—

3 (A) the majority leader of a chamber of a

4 State legislature; and

5 (B) the minority leader of a chamber of a

6 State legislature.

7 (14) TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘‘tribal

8 government’’ means the governing entity of an Indian

9 tribe, as that term is defined in the Federally Recog10 nized Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 479a).

11 SEC. 5. PROVISION OF FEDERAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE IN

12 ACCORDANCE WITH APPROVED FLEXIBILITY

13 OR COORDINATION PLAN.

14 Notwithstanding any other law, amounts available to

15 an eligible applicant under a covered Federal financial as16 sistance program included in an approved flexibility or co17 ordination plan shall be paid and administered in the man18 ner specified in the approved flexibility or coordination

19 plan.

20 SEC. 6. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT

21 BOARD.

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is established a Community

23 Empowerment Board, which shall consist of—

24 (1) the Secretary of Housing and Urban Devel25 opment,
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1 (2) the Secretary of Health and Human Serv2 ices,

3 (3) the Secretary of Agriculture,

4 (4) the Secretary of Transportation,

5 (5) the Secretary of Education,

6 (6) the Secretary of Commerce,

7 (7) the Secretary of Labor,

8 (8) the Secretary of the Treasury,

9 (9) the Attorney General,

10 (10) the Secretary of the Interior,

11 (11) the Secretary of Energy,

12 (12) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs,

13 (13) the Secretary of Defense,

14 (14) the Director of the Federal Emergency Man15 agement Agency,

16 (15) the Administrator of the Environmental

17 Protection Agency,

18 (16) the Director of National Drug Control Pol19 icy,

20 (17) the Administrator of the Small Business

21 Administration,

22 (18) the Director of the Office of Management

23 and Budget, and

24 (19) the Administrator of General Services.
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1 (b) CHAIR.—The President shall designate the Chair

2 of the Board from among its members.

3 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The Board shall—

4 (1) receive, review, and approve or disapprove

5 flexibility or coordination plans in accordance with

6 section 8;

7 (2) establish interagency teams to provide train8 ing and technical assistance to eligible applicants,

9 comprised of representatives of the agencies that ad10 minister eligible Federal financial assistance pro11 grams;

12 (3) monitor the progress of development and im13 plementation of flexibility or coordination plans;

14 (4) review regulations governing, and identify

15 more efficient operation and coordination of, eligible

16 Federal financial assistance programs in the areas

17 of—

18 (A) education;

19 (B) Head Start;

20 (C) child care;

21 (D) family support and preservation;

22 (E) maternal and child health;

23 (F) job training;

24 (G) housing;

25 (H) nutrition;
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1 (I) juvenile justice;

2 (J) drug abuse prevention and treatment;

3 and

4 (K) community and economic development;

5 (5) coordinate and assist Federal agencies in

6 eliminating, revising, and coordinating regulations

7 under eligible Federal financial assistance programs;

8 (6) coordinate and assist Federal agencies in cre9 ating a uniform application to be used to apply for

10 assistance under eligible Federal financial assistance

11 programs in the areas listed in paragraph (4);

12 (7) coordinate and assist Federal agencies in cre13 ating a release form to be used to obtain consent from

14 beneficiaries under eligible Federal financial assist15 ance programs to facilitate, where appropriate and

16 otherwise lawful, the sharing of information across

17 such programs;

18 (8) coordinate and assist agencies in creating a

19 system under which an eligible applicant may use one

20 proposal to apply for funding under multiple eligible

21 Federal financial assistance programs; and

22 (9) evaluate current performance standards and

23 evaluation criteria for eligible Federal financial as24 sistance programs, and make specific recommenda25 tions to agencies regarding how to revise such stand-
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1 ards and criteria in order to establish specific and

2 measurable performance and outcome measures upon

3 which program success and success of approved flexi4 bility or coordination plans may be judged and future

5 funding decisions may be made.

6 (d) FLEXIBILITY COUNCILS.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Chair of the Board may

8 appoint a Flexibility Council to review any applica9 tion for approval of a flexibility or coordination plan.

10 The Flexibility Council shall consist of 5, 7, or 9

11 members of the Board, and shall include the Board

12 members representing the departments most affected

13 by the flexibility or coordination plan for which the

14 council is appointed. The Flexibility Council shall re15 view the plan under section 8 and make recommenda16 tions to the Board regarding approval or disapproval

17 of all or part of the plan.

18 (2) AUTHORITY TO APPROVE PLANS.—The Board

19 may delegate to a Flexibility Council the authority of

20 the Board under section 8 to approve or disapprove

21 the flexibility or coordination plan for which it is ap22 pointed, if the application for approval of the plan—

23 (A) does not contain a request for a waiver

24 under section 8; or
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1 (B) only contains requests for waivers

2 under section 8 for which alternative measures

3 are not required under section 8(d)(5).

4 (e) GUIDANCE AND OTHER MATERIALS.—The Board

5 shall—

6 (1) issue guidance to implement this Act within

7 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act; and

8 (2) issue other subsequent materials that may as9 sist eligible applicants in the development and imple10 mentation of flexibility or coordination plans.

11 SEC. 7. APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL OF FLEXIBILITY OR

12 COORDINATION PLAN.

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—An eligible applicant may submit

14 to the Board in accordance with this section an application

15 for approval of a flexibility or coordination plan.

16 (b) CONTENTS OF APPLICATION.—An application sub17 mitted under this section shall include—

18 (1) a proposed flexibility or coordination plan

19 that complies with subsection (c);

20 (2) written certification by the chief executive of

21 the applicant, or in the case of a qualified consortium

22 by the chief executive officer of each eligible applicant

23 that is a member of the consortium, and such addi24 tional assurances as may be required by the Board,

25 that—
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1 (A) the applicant has the ability, authority,

2 and resources to implement the proposed plan,

3 throughout the geographic area in which the pro4 posed plan is intended to apply; and

5 (B) amounts are available from non-Federal

6 sources to pay the non-Federal share of all cov7 ered Federal financial assistance programs in8 cluded in the proposed plan;

9 (3) all comments on the proposed plan submitted

10 under subsection (d) by a Governor or State legisla11 tive official of a State or a chief executive of a local

12 or tribal government that would be directly affected

13 by implementation of the proposed plan, and the ap14 plicant’s responses to those comments;

15 (4) public comments on the proposed plan, in16 cluding the transcript of at least 1 public hearing and

17 comments of the appropriate community advisory

18 committee designated or established under section 10

19 for the plan; and

20 (5) other relevant information the Board deter21 mines, after consultation with the applicant, to be

22 necessary to approve the proposed plan.

23 (c) CONTENTS OF PLAN.—A flexibility or coordination

24 plan submitted under this section shall include—

25 (1) a brief description of the plan;
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1 (2) the geographic area to which the plan would

2 apply and the rationale for selecting the area;

3 (3) the agencies and organizations that will col4 laborate to provide services and benefits under the

5 plan;

6 (4) the particular groups of individuals, by serv7 ice needs, economic circumstances, or other defining

8 factors, who would receive services and benefits under

9 the plan;

10 (5)(A) general goals and measurable performance

11 criteria, and a description of how the plan is expected

12 to attain those goals and criteria;

13 (B) a description of how performance shall be

14 measured; and

15 (C) a system for the comprehensive evaluation of

16 the impact of the plan on the community in the geo17 graphic area covered by the plan, and of program

18 costs, that shall include—

19 (i) a list of goals to improve the community

20 and the lives of its citizens;

21 (ii) a list of goals identified by the State in

22 which the plan is to be implemented, except that

23 if no such goals have been established by the

24 State the plan may propose the goals; and

25 (iii) a description of how the plan will—
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1 (I) attain the goals listed under clause

2 (ii);

3 (II) measure performance;

4 (III) collect and maintain data;

5 (IV) identify specific subgroups of in6 dividuals within the geographic area cov7 ered by the plan; and

8 (V) measure the impact of the plan on

9 those subgroups;

10 (6) the eligible Federal financial assistance pro11 grams included in the plan as covered Federal finan12 cial assistance programs and the specific benefits to

13 be provided under the plan under such programs, in14 cluding—

15 (A) criteria for determining eligibility for

16 benefits under the plan;

17 (B) the services to be made available or ac18 tivities to be undertaken;

19 (C) the amounts and form (such as cash, in20 kind contributions, or financial instruments) of

21 nonservice benefits; and

22 (D) any other descriptive information the

23 Board considers necessary to approve the plan;

24 (7) any Federal statutory or regulatory require25 ment applicable under a covered Federal financial as-
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1 sistance program included in the plan, the waiver of

2 which is necessary to implement the plan, and jus3 tification for the waiver, except that if the applicant

4 is uncertain whether a waiver or waivers are required

5 the applicant may request that the Board make such

6 a determination after the application is accepted for

7 consideration;

8 (8) any State, local, or tribal statutory, regu9 latory, or other requirement, the waiver of which is

10 necessary to implement the plan, and indicia of com11 mitments by the relevant State, local, or tribal gov12 ernments to grant such waivers;

13 (9) fiscal control and related accountability pro14 cedures applicable under the plan;

15 (10) a description of the sources of all non-Fed16 eral funds that are required to carry out covered Fed17 eral financial assistance programs included in the

18 plan, and indicia of commitments to provide those

19 funds;

20 (11) written certification from each State, local,

21 or tribal government for which certification is re22 quired under subsection (b)(2);

23 (12) the estimated duration of any additional

24 planning, training, or system development period

25 that is required between approval of the plan and im-
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1 plementation of any waivers approved by the Board;

2 and

3 (13) other relevant information the Board may

4 require to approve the plan.

5 (d) PROCEDURE FOR APPLYING.—

6 (1) SUBMISSION TO AFFECTED STATE AND LOCAL

7 GOVERNMENTS.—An eligible applicant that is not a

8 State shall, at least 60 days before submitting an ap9 plication for approval of a proposed flexibility or co10 ordination plan to the Board, submit the plan to—

11 (A) the Governor and each State legislative

12 official of each State that the applicant considers

13 to be directly affected by the plan;

14 (B) the chief State school officer of each

15 State that the applicant considers to be directly

16 affected by the plan, if the constitution of the

17 State—

18 (i) provides for the election of such an

19 official by the voters in the State; and

20 (ii) vests primary authority over edu21 cation programs of the State in such an of22 ficer; and

23 (C) each tribal government that the appli24 cant considers to be directly affected by the plan.
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1 (2) ACTION BY AFFECTED GOVERNMENT.—Each

2 person that receives an application submitted under

3 paragraph (1) may, by no later than 60 days after

4 the date of that receipt—

5 (A) prepare comments on the proposed flexi6 bility or coordination plan included in the ap7 plication, including a statement of approval or

8 disapproval of all or any part of the plan;

9 (B) describe and make commitments to

10 waive any State or local laws or other require11 ments that are necessary for successful imple12 mentation of the proposed plan;

13 (C) describe and make commitments to pro14 vide any financial and technical support that is

15 necessary for successful implementation of the

16 proposed plan; and

17 (D) submit the comments and commitments

18 to the eligible applicant.

19 (3) SUBMITTAL TO BOARD.—If the Governor or

20 a State legislative official of a State or the chief exec21 utive officer of a local government—

22 (A) fails to act within 60 days after receiv23 ing an application under paragraph (1);
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1 (B) does not make and submit to the eligible

2 applicant the commitments referred to in para3 graph (2)(A) and (B); or

4 (C) disagrees with all or part of the pro5 posed flexibility or coordination plan;

6 the eligible applicant may submit the application to

7 the Board if the application is amended as necessary

8 for the successful implementation of the proposed plan

9 without cooperation of the State or local government,

10 including by adding a discussion regarding the abil11 ity of the proposed flexibility or coordination plan to

12 meet plan goals and satisfy performance criteria in

13 the absence of statutory and regulatory waivers and

14 financial and technical support from the State or

15 local government.

16 (e) TREATMENT AS APPLICATION FOR COVERED FED17 ERAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.—Notwithstand18 ing any other provision of law, an application for approval

19 under this Act of a flexibility or coordination plan—

20 (1) shall be considered by each affected agency as

21 an application for assistance under each covered Fed22 eral financial assistance program included in the

23 plan; and

24 (2) shall be given priority consideration for

25 funding under that program.
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1 SEC. 8. REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF FLEXIBILITY OR CO2 ORDINATION PLANS AND WAIVER REQUESTS.

3 (a) FLEXIBILITY OR COORDINATION PLANS ACCEPTED

4 FOR REVIEW.—The Board shall review at least the first 50

5 applications submitted under section 7(a) each year. The

6 Board—

7 (1) shall give priority consideration to applica8 tions that—

9 (A) are submitted from communities that

10 applied for designation as an enterprise commu11 nity or an empowerment zone under section

12 1391 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;

13 (B) coordinate covered Federal financial as14 sistance programs in at least 3 of the areas of—

15 (i) education;

16 (ii) Head Start;

17 (iii) child care;

18 (iv) family support and preservation;

19 (v) maternal and child health;

20 (vi) job training;

21 (vii) housing;

22 (viii) nutrition;

23 (ix) juvenile justice;

24 (x) drug abuse prevention and treat25 ment; and
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1 (xi) community and economic develop2 ment; or

3 (C) are reviewable by a Flexibility Council

4 under section 6(d); and

5 (2) may develop criteria to govern the factors to

6 be applied in determining which additional applica7 tions it reviews after the first 50 each year.

8 (b) REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS.—Upon acceptance of

9 an application for review under this section, the Board

10 shall—

11 (1) notify the applicant of the Board’s accept12 ance of the application for review and the procedures

13 for consultation with the applicant during the review

14 process;

15 (2) by a majority vote, approve or disapprove all

16 or part of the plan within 120 days after accepting

17 the plan for review, except that the Board may extend

18 this period by another 60 days if—

19 (A) the Board determines through consulta20 tion with affected Federal agencies that a waiver

21 of 1 or more Federal statutory or regulatory re22 quirements is necessary to implement the plan;

23 (B) the Board determines that additional

24 information or clarification is needed from the
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1 applicant to make a decision regarding the ap2 plication; or

3 (C) the applicant requests additional time

4 to strengthen its application because of informa5 tion that it has obtained from the Board;

6 (3) notify the applicant in writing of that ap7 proval or disapproval by not later than 15 days after

8 the date of that approval or disapproval of certifi9 cation by the President under subsection (g); and

10 (4) in the case of any disapproval of a plan, in11 clude a written justification of the reasons for dis12 approval in the notice of disapproval sent to the ap13 plicant.

14 (c) APPROVAL OF PLANS.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board may approve a

16 flexibility or coordination plan for which an applica17 tion is submitted by an eligible applicant under this

18 Act, or any part of such a plan, if the Board deter19 mines that—

20 (A) the plan or part will improve the effec21 tiveness and efficiency of providing benefits

22 under covered Federal financial assistance pro23 grams included in the plan or part by reducing

24 administrative inflexibility, duplication, and

25 unnecessary expenditures;
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1 (B) the plan or part does not result in a

2 qualitative reduction in services or benefits pro3 vided to individuals and families that receive

4 benefits under covered Federal financial assist5 ance programs under the plan or part;

6 (C) the eligible applicant has adequately

7 considered, and the plan or part appropriately

8 addresses, any effect that administration of each

9 covered Federal financial assistance program

10 under the plan or part will have on administra11 tion of the other covered Federal financial assist12 ance programs under the plan or part;

13 (D) the eligible applicant has or is develop14 ing data bases, planning, and evaluation proc15 esses for determining whether implementing the

16 plan or part includes the specific goals, measur17 able performance criteria, comprehensive evalua18 tion system, and other matters required under

19 section 7(c)(5);

20 (E) the plan or part will more effectively

21 achieve the general goals of each covered Federal

22 financial assistance program under the plan or

23 part at the State, local, and tribal level and will

24 better meet the needs of State, local, and tribal

25 citizens;
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1 (F) implementation of the plan or part will

2 achieve the purposes of this Act and of each cov3 ered Federal financial assistance program under

4 the plan or part;

5 (G) the plan or part and the application for

6 approval of the plan comply with the require7 ments of this Act;

8 (H) the eligible applicant has—

9 (i) waived the requirements of its own

10 laws and regulations the waiver of which is

11 necessary for implementation of the plan or

12 part; and

13 (ii) obtained commitments for any ad14 ditional necessary waivers from other State,

15 local, or tribal governments;

16 (I) Federal funds made available under the

17 plan or part will not supplant non-Federal

18 funds for existing services and activities that

19 promote the goals of the plan or part; and

20 (J) none of the Federal or non-Federal

21 funds used under the plan or part will be used—

22 (i) to pay the non-Federal share of ac23 tivities under programs that are not covered

24 Federal financial assistance programs

25 under the plan or part; or
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1 (ii) to meet maintenance of effort re2 quirements of such an activity.

3 (2) LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY TO APPROVE

4 CERTAIN PARTS OF PLANS.—The Board may not ap5 prove a part of a flexibility or coordination plan—

6 (A) if implementation of that part would

7 result in any increase in the total amount of ob8 ligations or outlays of discretionary appropria9 tions or direct spending under covered Federal

10 financial assistance programs included in that

11 part, over the amounts of such obligations and

12 outlays that would occur under those programs

13 without implementation of that part; or

14 (B) in the case of a part that applies to as15 sistance to a qualified organization under an eli16 gible Federal financial assistance program, if the

17 qualified organization does not consent in writ18 ing to the receipt of that assistance in accord19 ance with the part.

20 (3) REQUIREMENT TO DISAPPROVE PART.—The

21 Board shall disapprove a part of a flexibility or co22 ordination plan if the Board determines that the part

23 fails to comply with paragraph (1).

24 (4) SPECIFICATION OF PERIOD OF EFFECTIVE25 NESS.—
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—In approving any part

2 of a flexibility or coordination plan, the Board

3 shall specify the period during which the part is

4 effective, which—

5 (i) may not begin before the date the

6 President certifies approval of the plan

7 under subsection (g); and

8 (ii) in no case shall be greater than the

9 5-year period beginning on the date of that

10 certification.

11 (B) EFFECTIVENESS AFTER TERMINATION

12 OF THIS ACT.—An approved flexibility or coordi13 nation plan (or part of a plan) shall be effective

14 for the period of time specified by the Board, re15 gardless of whether that time extends beyond the

16 date of the termination of the effectiveness of this

17 Act under section 14.

18 (C) EFFECTIVE PERIOD SHORTER THAN

19 PROPOSED.—The Board may specify an effective

20 period for an approved flexibility or coordina21 tion plan (or part of a plan) that is shorter than

22 a period proposed by the eligible applicant for

23 the plan.

24 (d) WAIVERS OF FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the limitations in

2 paragraphs (2), (3), (4), (5), and (6), the Board may

3 waive any statutory or regulatory requirement of a

4 covered Federal financial assistance program included

5 in an approved flexibility or coordination plan, and

6 any procedural, administrative, or reporting require7 ment of a statute or regulation generally applicable

8 to eligible Federal financial assistance programs, if

9 that waiver is reasonably necessary for implementa10 tion of the plan.

11 (2) EFFECTIVE PERIOD OF WAIVER.—A waiver

12 under this subsection shall terminate on the earlier

13 of—

14 (A) the expiration of a period that shall be

15 specified by the Board in making the waiver,

16 and that may not exceed the 5-year period begin17 ning on the effective date of the waiver; or

18 (B) any date on which the flexibility or co19 ordination plan for which the waiver is granted

20 ceases to be effective.

21 (3) REQUIREMENTS THAT MAY NOT BE

22 WAIVED.—The Board may not waive under this sub23 section—

24 (A) any requirement that enforces any con25 stitutional right;
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1 (B) any requirement under—

2 (i) title VI of the Civil Rights Act of

3 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.);

4 (ii) section 504 of the Rehabilitation

5 Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701 et seq.);

6 (iii) title IX of the Education Amend7 ments of 1972 (86 Stat. 373 et seq.);

8 (iv) the Age Discrimination Act of

9 1975 (42 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.);

10 (v) the Americans with Disabilities Act

11 of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.);

12 (vi) the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C.

13 3601 et seq.); or

14 (vii) the Individuals With Disabilities

15 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.); or

16 (C) any requirement that enforces any other

17 civil right or nondiscrimination provision, in18 cluding any right under—

19 (i) title VII of the Civil Rights Act of

20 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.);

21 (ii) the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (29

22 U.S.C. 206(d)); or

23 (iii) the Age Discrimination in Em24 ployment Act of 1967 (29 U.S.C. 621 et

25 seq.).
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1 (4) WAIVERS THAT MAY NOT BE GRANTED.—The

2 Board may not waive under this subsection a require3 ment if—

4 (A) the waiver would—

5 (i) diminish national labor relations

6 or labor standards;

7 (ii) diminish national environmental

8 standards;

9 (iii) diminish educational equality or

10 opportunity;

11 (iv) create a threat to public health or

12 safety;

13 (v) diminish financial management re14 quirements or impair the Federal Govern15 ment’s position regarding loans or loan

16 guarantees;

17 (vi) diminish occupational health or

18 safety;

19 (vii) diminish banking or financial

20 service standards; or

21 (viii) impair pensions; or

22 (B) the waiver pertains to taxation.

23 (5) WAIVERS FOR WHICH ALTERNATIVE MEAS24 URES REQUIRED.—
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Board may not

2 waive any procedural, administrative, or report3 ing requirement described in subparagraph (B)

4 unless the approved flexibility and coordination

5 plan for which the waiver is made contains, and

6 the eligible applicant for the plan commits to

7 undertake, alternative measures to replace the re8 quirement to be waived.

9 (B) REQUIREMENTS DESCRIBED.—Sub10 paragraph (A) refers to the following require11 ments:

12 (i) Any procedural, administrative, or

13 reporting requirement in any statute or reg14 ulation that establishes or enforces labor re15 lations or labor standards.

16 (ii) Any procedural, administrative, or

17 reporting requirement in any statute or reg18 ulation that establishes or enforces environ19 mental standards.

20 (iii) Any procedural, administrative,

21 or reporting requirement in any statute or

22 regulation that establishes or enforces edu23 cational equality or opportunity.
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1 (iv) Any procedural, administrative, or

2 reporting requirement in any statute or reg3 ulation that protects public health or safety.

4 (C) FINDING BY THE BOARD.—The Board

5 may not waive any requirement described in

6 subparagraph (B) unless the Board determines

7 that the alternative measures contained in the

8 plan with respect to the waiver will maintain or

9 advance national goals, standards, or protections

10 as effectively as the waived requirement.

11 (6) STATE, LOCAL, OR TRIBAL AUTHORITY.—

12 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to grant the

13 Board or any eligible applicant authority to waive or

14 otherwise preempt—

15 (A) any State, local, or tribal law or regu16 lation; or

17 (B) any State plan for the use of Federal fi18 nancial assistance.

19 (7) NOTICE OF REQUESTED WAIVERS.—Prior to

20 submitting an application to the Board, eligible ap21 plicants shall provide notice of all waivers of Federal,

22 State, and local laws and regulations that are re23 quested. Notice shall be provided to the community or

24 communities deemed by the eligible applicant to be

25 affected by the waivers via publication in a news-
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1 paper of general circulation. Whenever possible, notice

2 of the requested waivers shall be provided as part of

3 the notice for the public hearing.

4 (e) MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING REQUIRED.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board may not approve

6 any part of a flexibility or coordination plan unless

7 each eligible applicant that would receive Federal fi8 nancial assistance administered under the plan enters

9 into a memorandum of understanding under this sub10 section with the Board.

11 (2) CONTENTS.—A memorandum of understand12 ing under this subsection shall specify all understand13 ings that have been reached among the Board, Federal

14 agencies that administer covered Federal financial as15 sistance programs under the flexibility or coordina16 tion plan, and approved applicants that are subject

17 to the plan, regarding the approval and implementa18 tion of all approved parts of the plan. The memoran19 dum shall include understandings with respect to—

20 (A) all requirements under covered Federal

21 financial assistance programs that are to be

22 waived under subsection (d);

23 (B) all State, local, or tribal statutory and

24 regulatory requirements that are to be waived;
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1 (C)(i) the total amount of Federal funds

2 that will be provided as benefits under or used

3 to administer covered Federal financial assist4 ance programs included in those parts; or

5 (ii) a mechanism for determining that

6 amount, including specification of the total

7 amount of Federal funds that will be provided or

8 used under each covered Federal financial assist9 ance program included in those parts;

10 (D) the amounts and sources of all non-Fed11 eral funds and technical support that will be

12 provided as benefits under or used to administer

13 those parts; and

14 (E) measurable performance criteria that

15 will be used during the effective period of those

16 parts to determine the extent to which the goals

17 and performance levels of the parts are achieved,

18 and the data to be collected to make that deter19 mination.

20 (f) LIMITATION ON CONFIDENTIALITY REQUIRE21 MENTS.—The Board may not, as a condition of approval

22 of any part of a flexibility or coordination plan or with

23 respect to the implementation of an approved flexibility or

24 coordination plan, establish any confidentiality require25 ment that would—
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1 (1) impede the exchange of information needed

2 for the design or provision of benefits under the plan;

3 or

4 (2) conflict with any law related to confidential5 ity.

6 (g) CERTIFICATION BY PRESIDENT REQUIRED.—

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—A decision by the Board to

8 approve or disapprove a flexibility or coordination

9 plan under this section, or to terminate the effective10 ness of such a plan under section 9, shall not be effec11 tive until the end of the 60-day period beginning on

12 the date the President certifies that the approval or

13 disapproval is in accordance with this Act.

14 (2) TIME FOR CERTIFICATION.—The President

15 shall make a certification for purposes of paragraph

16 (1) regarding a decision of the Board, or issue a writ17 ten finding that the certification may not be made,

18 within 15 days after the date of the decision by the

19 Board.

20 SEC. 9. IMPLEMENTATION OF APPROVED FLEXIBILITY OR

21 COORDINATION PLANS.

22 (a) SPECIAL ASSISTANCE.—To the extent permitted by

23 law, the head of each Federal agency shall seek to provide

24 special assistance to an eligible applicant to support imple25 mentation of an approved flexibility or coordination plan,
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1 including expedited processing, priority funding, and tech2 nical assistance.

3 (b) EVALUATION AND TERMINATION.—

4 (1) REPORTS AND EVALUATIONS BY APPROVED

5 APPLICANTS, GENERALLY.—An eligible applicant for

6 an approved flexibility or coordination plan, in ac7 cordance with guidance issued by the Board, shall—

8 (A) submit any reports on and cooperate in

9 any audits of the implementation of the plan;

10 and

11 (B) periodically evaluate the effect imple12 mentation of the plan has had on—

13 (i) individuals who receive benefits

14 under the plan, including the specific sub15 groups identified in the plan under section

16 7(c)(5)(C)(iii)(IV);

17 (ii) communities in which those indi18 viduals live; and

19 (iii) costs of administering and provid20 ing assistance under covered Federal finan21 cial assistance programs included in the

22 plan.

23 (2) INITIAL 1-YEAR REPORT.—No later than 90

24 days after the end of the 1-year period beginning on

25 the date of the approval by the Board of an approved
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1 flexibility or coordination plan of an eligible appli2 cant, and annually thereafter, the eligible applicant

3 shall submit to the Board a report on the principal

4 activities and achievements under the plan during the

5 period covered by the report, comparing those achieve6 ments to the goals and performance criteria included

7 in the plan under section 7(c)(5).

8 (3) TERMINATION OF PLAN BY BOARD.—

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Board may termi10 nate the effectiveness of an approved flexibility

11 or coordination plan if, after consultation with

12 the eligible applicant and the head of each Fed13 eral agency responsible for administering a cov14 ered Federal financial assistance program in15 cluded in the plan, the Board determines that—

16 (i) the goals and performance criteria

17 included in the plan under section 7(c)(5)

18 have not been met, and those goals and cri19 teria are sound;

20 (ii) the goals and performance criteria

21 included in the plan under section 7(c)(5)

22 are not sound, and the plan would not meet

23 goals and criteria that are sound;
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1 (iii) the eligible applicant for the plan

2 is unable to meet its commitments under

3 this Act; or

4 (iv) there has been fraud or abuse in5 volving Federal funds under the plan.

6 (B) TRANSITION PERIOD.—In terminating

7 an approved flexibility or coordination plan

8 under this paragraph, the Board shall allow a

9 reasonable period of time for appropriate Fed10 eral agencies and eligible applicants to resume

11 administration of Federal programs that are

12 covered Federal financial assistance programs

13 included in the plan.

14 (C) EFFECTIVENESS OF DECISION TO TER15 MINATE.—A decision by the Board to terminate

16 the effectiveness of a flexibility or coordination

17 plan shall take effect as provided in section 8(g).

18 (4) REVOCATION OF WAIVER AUTHORIZED.—The

19 Board may revoke a waiver under section 8(d) if the

20 Board finds that the eligible applicant—

21 (A) fails to comply with the requirements of

22 the plan;

23 (B) fails to make acceptable progress to24 wards achieving the goals and performance cri-
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1 teria included in the plan under section 7(c)(5);

2 or

3 (C) fails to use funds in accordance with the

4 plan.

5 (c) FINAL REPORT; EXTENSION OF PLAN.—

6 (1) FINAL REPORT.—No later than 60 days be7 fore the end of the effective period of an approved

8 flexibility or coordination plan, the approved appli9 cant shall submit to the Board a final report on its

10 implementation of the plan, including a full evalua11 tion of the successes and shortcomings of the plan and

12 the effects of that implementation on individuals who

13 receive benefits under covered Federal financial assist14 ance programs under the plan.

15 (2) EXTENSION OF EFFECTIVE PERIOD OF

16 PLAN.—The Board may extend the effective period of

17 an approved flexibility or coordination plan for up to

18 5 years, based on the report of an approved applicant

19 under paragraph (1).

20 SEC. 10. COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEES.

21 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—An eligible applicant that ap22 plies for approval of a flexibility or coordination plan

23 under this Act shall—
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1 (1) designate an existing organization that meets

2 the requirements of subsection (c) to be a community

3 advisory committee for purposes of this section; or

4 (2) establish a community advisory committee in

5 accordance with this section.

6 (b) FUNCTIONS.—A community advisory committee

7 shall advise an eligible applicant in the development and

8 implementation of its flexibility or coordination plan, in9 cluding with respect to—

10 (1) conducting public hearings; and

11 (2) reviewing and commenting on all community

12 policies, programs, and actions under the plan that

13 affect low-income individuals and families, with the

14 purpose of ensuring maximum coordination and re15 sponsiveness of the plan in providing benefits under

16 the plan to those individuals and families.

17 (c) MEMBERSHIP.—The membership of a community

18 advisory committee shall—

19 (1) consist of—

20 (A) persons with leadership experience in

21 the private and voluntary sectors;

22 (B) local elected officials;

23 (C) representatives of participating quali24 fied organizations; and

25 (D) the general public; and
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1 (2) include individuals and representatives of

2 community organizations who will help to enhance

3 the leadership role of the eligible applicant in develop4 ing a flexibility or coordination plan.

5 (d) OPPORTUNITY FOR REVIEW AND COMMENT BY

6 COMMITTEE.—Before submitting an application for ap7 proval of a final proposed flexibility or coordination plan,

8 an eligible applicant shall submit the final proposed plan

9 for review and comment by the community advisory com10 mittee designated or established under this section.

11 (e) COMMITTEE REVIEW OF REPORTS.—Before sub12 mitting any annual or final report on an approved Federal

13 assistance plan, an approved applicant shall submit the re14 port for review and comment to the community advisory

15 committee.

16 SEC. 11. TECHNICAL AND OTHER ASSISTANCE.

17 (a) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Board may pro18 vide, or direct the head of a Federal agency to provide, tech19 nical assistance to an eligible applicant in developing infor20 mation necessary for the design or implementation of a

21 flexibility or coordination plan, if the eligible applicant

22 submits a request that includes, in accordance with require23 ments established by the Board—

24 (1) a description of the flexibility or coordina25 tion plan the eligible applicant proposes to develop;
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1 (2) a description of the groups of individuals to

2 whom benefits will be provided under covered Federal

3 financial assistance programs included in the plan;

4 and

5 (3) such assurances as the Board may require

6 that—

7 (A) in the development of the application to

8 be submitted under this Act for approval of the

9 plan, the eligible applicant will provide adequate

10 opportunities to participate to—

11 (i) individuals and families that will

12 receive benefits under covered Federal finan13 cial assistance programs included in the

14 plan; and

15 (ii) governmental agencies that admin16 ister those programs; and

17 (B) the plan will be developed after consid18 ering fully—

19 (i) the needs expressed by those indi20 viduals and families;

21 (ii) community priorities; and

22 (iii) available governmental resources

23 in the geographic area to which the plan

24 shall apply.
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1 (b) DETAILS AND ASSIGNMENTS TO BOARD.—At the

2 request of the Board and with the approval of a Federal

3 agency head who is a member of the Board, staff of the

4 agency may be detailed or assigned to the Board on a non5 reimbursable basis.

6 SEC. 12. REPORTS BY BOARD.

7 No less than 18 months after the date of the enactment

8 of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Board shall submit

9 a report to the President and the Congress on the Federal

10 laws or regulations that are most frequently waived under

11 section 8(d) with respect to approved flexibility or coordina12 tion plans.

13 SEC. 13. REPEAL.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—This Act is repealed on September

15 30, 2001.

16 (b) CONTINUED APPLICATION WITH RESPECT TO

17 PLANS IN EFFECT.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), this

18 Act, as in effect immediately before the date specified in

19 subsection (a), shall continue to apply to any approved

20 flexibility or coordination plan in effect immediately before

21 that date, and any waivers granted under section 8(d) with

22 respect to such a plan shall continue in effect, until the end

23 of the 6-month period beginning on the date of termination

24 of effectiveness of the plan or waiver, respectively, in accord25 ance with this Act.