II

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2870

To allow postal patrons to invest in vanishing wildlife protection programs

through the voluntary purchase of specially issued postage stamps.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JULY 14, 2000

Mr. JEFFORDS introduced the following bill; which was read twice and

referred to the Committee on Governmental Affairs

A BILL

To allow postal patrons to invest in vanishing wildlife protection programs through the voluntary purchase of specially issued postage stamps.

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 ‘‘Vanishing Wildlife

5 Stamp Act of 2000’’.

6 SEC. 2. SPECIAL POSTAGE STAMPS RELATING TO VAN7 ISHING WILDLIFE PROTECTION.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 4 of title 39, United

9 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 414 the

10 following:
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1 ‘‘§ 414a. Special postage stamps relating to funding

2 vanishing wildlife protection programs

3 ‘‘(a) In order to afford the public a convenient way

4 to invest in vanishing wildlife protection programs, the

5 Postal Service shall establish a special rate of postage for

6 first-class mail under this section.

7 ‘‘(b) The rate of postage established under this

8 section—

9 ‘‘(1) shall be no more than 25 percent higher

10 than the rate that would otherwise apply;

11 ‘‘(2) may be established without regard to any

12 procedures under chapter 36 of title 39, United

13 States Code, and notwithstanding any other provi14 sion of law; and

15 ‘‘(3) shall be offered as an alternative to the

16 regular first class rate of postage.

17 ‘‘(c) The use of the rate of postage established under

18 this section shall be voluntary on the part of postal pa19 trons.

20 ‘‘(d)(1) Amounts becoming available from public in21 vestment in wildlife protection programs shall be paid by

22 the Postal Service to the Department of Interior Multilat23 eral Species Conservation Fund. Payments under this sec24 tion shall be made under such arrangements as the Postal

25 Service shall, by mutual agreement with the Department

26 of Interior, establish in order to carry out the purposes
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1 of this section, except that under those arrangements, pay2 ments to the Department of Interior shall be made at least

3 twice a year.

4 ‘‘(2) For purposes of this section, the term ‘amounts

5 becoming available from public investment in vanishing

6 wildlife protection programs’ means—

7 ‘‘(A) the total amount of revenues received by

8 the Postal Service that it would not have received

9 but for the enactment of this section; reduced by

10 ‘‘(B) an amount sufficient to cover reasonable

11 costs incurred by the Postal Service in carrying out

12 this section, including costs attributable to the print13 ing, sale, and distribution of stamps under this sec14 tion,

15 as determined by the Postal Service under regulations that

16 it shall prescribe.

17 ‘‘(e) It is the sense of Congress that nothing in this

18 section should—

19 ‘‘(1) directly or indirectly cause a net decrease

20 in total funds received by the Department of Interior

21 or any other agency of the Government (or any com22 ponent or program thereof) below the level that

23 would otherwise have been received but for the en24 actment of this section; or
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1 ‘‘(2) affect regular first-class rates of postage

2 or any other regular rates of postage.

3 ‘‘(f) Special postage stamps under this section shall

4 be made available to the public beginning on such date

5 as the Postal Service shall by regulation prescribe, but not

6 later than 12 months after the date of the enactment of

7 this section.

8 ‘‘(g) The Postmaster General shall include in each

9 report rendered under section 2402 with respect to any

10 period during any portion of which this section is in effect,

11 information concerning the operation of this section, ex12 cept that, at a minimum, each report shall include—

13 ‘‘(1) the total amount described in subsection

14 (d)(2)(A) which was received by the Postal Service

15 during the period covered by such report; and

16 ‘‘(2) of the amount under paragraph (1), how

17 much (in the aggregate and by category) was re18 quired for the purposes described in subsection

19 (d)(2)(B).

20 ‘‘(h) This section shall cease to be effective at the

21 end of the 2-year period beginning on the date on which

22 special postage stamps under this section are first made

23 available to the public.’’.

24 (b) REPORT BY THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF

25 THE UNITED STATES.—Not later than 3 months (but no
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1 earlier than 6 months) before the end of the 2-year period

2 referred to in section 414a(h) of title 39, United States

3 Code (as amended by subsection (a)), the Comptroller

4 General of the United States shall submit to the Congress

5 a report on the operation of such section. Such report shall

6 include—

7 (1) an evaluation of the effectiveness and the

8 appropriateness of the authority provided by such

9 section as a means of fund-raising; and

10 (2) a description of the monetary and other re11 sources required of the Postal Service in carrying

12 out such section.

13 (c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

14 (1) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections

15 for chapter 4 of title 39, United States Code, is

16 amended by striking the item relating to section 414

17 and inserting the following:

‘‘414. Special postage stamps relating to breast cancer.

‘‘414a. Special postage stamps relating to funding vanishing wildlife protection

programs.’’.

18 (2) SECTION HEADING.—The heading for sec19 tion 414 of title 39, United States Code, is amended

20 to read as follows:

21 ‘‘§ 414. Special postage stamps relating to breast

22 cancer’’.

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