IV

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 85

To express the sense of Congress that the President should exercise the

temporary waiver authority that an emergency exists under the Merchant

Marine Act, 1936 and justifying the waiver of cargo preference rates

in transporting the $1,600,000,000 in bilateral assistance to Russia

as agreed to in the ‘‘Vancouver Package’’ between President Clinton

and President Yeltsin of the Russian Federation.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

APRIL 22, 1993

Mr. BARRETT of Nebraska submitted the following concurrent resolution;

which was referred to the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

To express the sense of Congress that the President should

exercise the temporary waiver authority that an emergency exists under the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 and

justifying the waiver of cargo preference rates in transporting the $1,600,000,000 in bilateral assistance to

Russia as agreed to in the ‘‘Vancouver Package’’ between

President Clinton and President Yeltsin of the Russian

Federation.

Whereas the recently formed independent states of the former

Soviet Union are struggling to put in place the institutions of democratic government and free market economies;
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HCON 85 IH

Whereas the Congress in the Freedom Support Act, enacted

into law in the 102d Congress, found that failure to meet

the opportunities, presented by the recent developments

in the independent states of the former Soviet Union to

make a transition to a peaceful and stable international

order, ‘‘could threaten United States national security interests and jeopardize substantial savings in United

States defense that these developments have made possible’’;

Whereas the independent states of the former Soviet Union,

especially Russia, need to import agricultural commodities and other products for the health and sustenance of

their respective populations and the well-being of the animals in their livestock sector;

Whereas the lack of importation of these agricultural commodities and other products may threaten the stability of

the elected governments of these newly independent

states, especially Russia, and their future as democratic

governments;

Whereas the President of the United States and the President of the Russian Federation announced a bilateral aid

package for Russia (referred to as the Vancouver Package) in Vancouver, British Columbia, on April 3, 1993,

in the amount of $1,600,000,000;

Whereas the President has announced that the food aid assistance to Russia by the United States will take the

form of donations and concessional sales of food aid

under the Food For Progress Act and section 416 of the

Agricultural Act of 1949; and

Whereas problems have arisen with respect to the

$1,600,000,000 in bilateral assistance to Russia that are
3

HCON 85 IH

best illustrated by the food aid provided to Russia under

the Food for Progress Act and section 416 of the Agriculture Act of 1949 in that such aid will be subject to

substantial diminution in volume and value if the cargo

preference rate provisions of the Merchant Marine Act,

1936, apply to such food aid, inasmuch as up to onethird of the amount of food aid to Russia may be spent

on the cost of shipping, and this one-third reduction in

the Vancouver Package food aid poses possible dire consequences for the democratic republics in the former Soviet Union, especially Russia, with a resulting emergency

situation threatening the stability of the Government of

Russia or a possible budget emergency in the United

States Government if approximately $250,000,000 must

be added to the fiscal years 1993–1994 budget deficits to

fix this problem: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That the Congress declares that the Presi3 dent should exercise the temporary waiver authority grant4 ed in section 901(b) and 901b of the Merchant Marine

5 Act, 1936 (46 U.S.C. App. 1241(b), 1241(f)) so that the

6 $1,600,000,000 in bilateral assistance to Russia, referred

7 to as the Vancouver Package, may be effected without en8 dangering the stability of the Government or the economy

9 of Russia and without adding to the United States budget

10 deficit.

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