II

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 88

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 SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JANUARY 4, 1995

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

referred to the Committee on Governmental Affairs

A BILL

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.

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 1995’’.
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

2 The Congress finds that—

3 (1) historically, Federal programs have ad4 dressed the Nation’s problems by providing categor5 ical financial assistance with detailed requirements

6 relating to the use of funds;

7 (2) while the assistance described in paragraph

8 (1) has been directed at critical problems, some pro9 gram requirements may inadvertently impede the ef10 fective delivery of services;

11 (3) the Nation’s local governments and private,

12 nonprofit organizations are dealing with increasingly

13 complex problems which require the delivery of many

14 kinds of services;

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

16 different needs are present in different communities;

17 (5) it is more important than ever to provide

18 programs that—

19 (A) promote more effective and efficient

20 local delivery of services to meet the full range

21 of needs of individuals, families, and society;

22 (B) respond flexibly to the diverse needs of

23 the Nation’s communities;

24 (C) reduce the barriers between programs

25 that impede local governments’ ability to effec26 tively deliver services; and
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1 (D) empower local governments and pri2 vate, nonprofit organizations to be innovative in

3 creating programs that meet the unique needs

4 of their communities while continuing to ad5 dress national policy goals; and

6 (6) many communities have innovative planning

7 and community involvement strategies for providing

8 services, but Federal, State, and local regulations

9 often hamper full implementation of local plans.

10 SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

11 The purposes of this Act are to—

12 (1) enable more efficient use of Federal, State,

13 and local resources;

14 (2) place less emphasis in Federal service pro15 grams on measuring resources and procedures and

16 more emphasis on achieving Federal, State, and

17 local policy goals;

18 (3) enable local governments and private, non19 profit organizations to adapt programs of Federal fi20 nancial assistance to the particular needs of their

21 communities, by—

22 (A) drawing upon appropriations available

23 from more than one Federal program; and
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1 (B) integrating programs and program

2 funds across existing Federal financial assist3 ance categories; and

4 (4) enable local governments and private, non5 profit organizations to work together and build

6 stronger cooperative partnerships to address critical

7 service problems.

8 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

9 For purposes of this Act—

10 (1) the term ‘‘approved local flexibility plan’’

11 means a local flexibility plan that combines funds

12 from Federal, State, local government or private

13 sources to address the service needs of a community

14 (or any part of such a plan) that is approved by the

15 Flexibility Council under section 5;

16 (2) the term ‘‘community advisory committee’’

17 means such a committee established by a local gov18 ernment under section 9;

19 (3) the term ‘‘Flexibility Council’’ means the

20 council composed of the—

21 (A) Assistant to the President for Domes22 tic Policy;

23 (B) Assistant to the President for Eco24 nomic Policy;

25 (C) Secretary of the Treasury;
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1 (D) Attorney General;

2 (E) Secretary of the Interior;

3 (F) Secretary of Agriculture;

4 (G) Secretary of Commerce;

5 (H) Secretary of Labor;

6 (I) Secretary of Health and Human Serv7 ices;

8 (J) Secretary of Housing and Urban De9 velopment;

10 (K) Secretary of Transportation;

11 (L) Secretary of Education;

12 (M) Secretary of Energy;

13 (N) Secretary of Veterans Affairs;

14 (O) Secretary of Defense;

15 (P) Director of Federal Emergency Man16 agement Agency;

17 (Q) Administrator of the Environmental

18 Protection Agency;

19 (R) Director of National Drug Control

20 Policy;

21 (S) Administrator of the Small Business

22 Administration;

23 (T) Director of the Office of Management

24 and Budget; and
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1 (U) Chair of the Council of Economic Ad2 visers.

3 (4) the term ‘‘covered Federal financial assist4 ance program’’ means an eligible Federal financial

5 assistance program that is included in a local flexi6 bility plan of a local government;

7 (5) the term ‘‘eligible Federal financial assist8 ance program’’—

9 (A) means a Federal program under which

10 financial assistance is available, directly or indi11 rectly, to a local government or a qualified or12 ganization to carry out the specified program;

13 and

14 (B) does not include a Federal program

15 under which financial assistance is provided by

16 the Federal Government directly to a bene17 ficiary of that financial assistance or to a State

18 as a direct payment to an individual;

19 (6) the term ‘‘eligible local government’’ means

20 a local government that is eligible to receive finan21 cial assistance under 1 or more covered Federal pro22 grams;

23 (7) the term ‘‘local flexibility plan’’ means a

24 comprehensive plan for the integration and adminis25 tration by a local government of financial assistance
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1 provided by the Federal Government under 2 or

2 more eligible Federal financial assistance programs;

3 (8) the term ‘‘local government’’ means a sub4 division of a State that is a unit of general local gov5 ernment (as defined under section 6501 of title 31,

6 United States Code);

7 (9) the term ‘‘priority funding’’ means giving

8 higher priority (including by the assignment of extra

9 points, if applicable) to applications for Federal fi10 nancial assistance submitted by a local government

11 having an approved local flexibility program, by—

12 (A) a person located in the jurisdiction of

13 such a government; or

14 (B) a qualified organization eligible for as15 sistance under a covered Federal financial as16 sistance program included in such a plan;

17 (10) the term ‘‘qualified organization’’ means a

18 private, nonprofit organization described in section

19 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that

20 is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of the

21 Internal Revenue Code of 1986; and

22 (11) the term ‘‘State’’ means the 50 States, the

23 District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa,

24 Guam, and the Virgin Islands.
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1 SEC. 5. PROVISION OF FEDERAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE IN

2 ACCORDANCE WITH APPROVED LOCAL

3 FLEXIBILITY PLAN.

4 (a) PAYMENTS TO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.—Notwith5 standing any other provision of law, amounts available to

6 a local government or a qualified organization under a cov7 ered Federal financial assistance program included in an

8 approved local flexibility plan shall be provided to and

9 used by the local government or organization in accord10 ance with the approved local flexibility plan.

11 (b) ELIGIBILITY FOR BENEFITS.—An individual or

12 family that is eligible for benefits or services under a cov13 ered Federal financial assistance program included in an

14 approved local flexibility plan may receive those benefits

15 only in accordance with the approved local flexibility plan.

16 SEC. 6. APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL OF LOCAL FLEXIBIL17 ITY PLAN.

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—A local government may submit

19 to the Flexibility Council in accordance with this section

20 an application for approval of a local flexibility plan.

21 (b) CONTENTS OF APPLICATION.—An application

22 submitted under this section shall include—

23 (1)(A) a proposed local flexibility plan that

24 complies with subsection (c); or

25 (B) a strategic plan submitted in application

26 for designation as an enterprise community or an
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1 empowerment zone under section 1391 of the Inter2 nal Revenue Code of 1986;

3 (2) certification by the chief executive of the

4 local government, and such additional assurances as

5 may be required by the Flexibility Council, that—

6 (A) the local government has the ability

7 and authority to implement the proposed plan,

8 directly or through contractual or other ar9 rangements, throughout the geographic area in

10 which the proposed plan is intended to apply;

11 and

12 (B) amounts are available from non-Fed13 eral sources to pay the non-Federal share of all

14 covered Federal financial assistance programs

15 included in the proposed plan; and

16 (3) any comments on the proposed plan submit17 ted under subsection (d) by the Governor of the

18 State in which the local government is located;

19 (4) public comments on the plan including the

20 transcript of at least 1 public hearing and comments

21 of the appropriate community advisory committee

22 established under section 9; and

23 (5) other relevant information the Flexibility

24 Council may require to approve the proposed plan.
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1 (c) CONTENTS OF PLAN.—A local flexibility plan sub2 mitted by a local government under this section shall

3 include—

4 (1) the geographic area to which the plan ap5 plies and the rationale for defining the area;

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

8 factors, who shall receive services and benefits under

9 the plan;

10 (3)(A) specific goals and measurable perform11 ance criteria, a description of how the plan is ex12 pected 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

16 of the impact of the plan on participants, the com17 munity, and program costs;

18 (4) the eligible Federal financial assistance pro19 grams to be included in the plan as covered Federal

20 financial assistance programs and the specific bene21 fits that shall be provided under the plan under such

22 programs, including—

23 (A) criteria for determining eligibility for

24 benefits under the plan;

25 (B) the services available;
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1 (C) the amounts and form (such as cash,

2 in-kind contributions, or financial instruments)

3 of nonservice benefits; and

4 (D) any other descriptive information the

5 Flexibility Council considers necessary to ap6 prove the plan;

7 (5) except for the requirements under section

8 8(b)(3), any Federal statutory or regulatory require9 ment applicable under a covered Federal financial

10 assistance program included in the plan, the waiver

11 of which is necessary to implement the plan;

12 (6) fiscal control and related accountability pro13 cedures applicable under the plan;

14 (7) a description of the sources of all non-Fed15 eral funds that are required to carry out covered

16 Federal financial assistance programs included in

17 the plan;

18 (8) written consent from each qualified organi19 zation for which consent is required under section

20 6(b)(2); and

21 (9) other relevant information the Flexibility

22 Council may require to approve the plan.

23 (d) PROCEDURE FOR APPLYING.—(1) To apply for

24 approval of a local flexibility plan, a local government shall

25 submit an application in accordance with this section to
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1 the Governor of the State in which the local government

2 is located.

3 (2) A Governor who receives an application from a

4 local government under paragraph (1) may, by no later

5 than 30 days after the date of that receipt—

6 (A) prepare comments on the proposed local

7 flexibility plan included in the application;

8 (B) describe any State laws which are necessary

9 to waive for successful implementation of a local

10 plan; and

11 (C) submit the application and comments to the

12 Flexibility Council.

13 (3) If a Governor fails to act within 30 days after

14 receiving an application under paragraph (2), the applica15 ble local government may submit the application to the

16 Flexibility Council.

17 SEC. 7. REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF LOCAL FLEXIBILITY

18 PLANS.

19 (a) REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS.—Upon receipt of an

20 application for approval of a local flexibility plan under

21 this Act, the Flexibility Council shall—

22 (1) approve or disapprove all or part of the plan

23 within 45 days after receipt of the application;
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1 (2) notify the applicant in writing of that ap2 proval or disapproval by not later than 15 days after

3 the date of that approval or disapproval; and

4 (3) in the case of any disapproval of a plan, in5 clude a written justification of the reasons for dis6 approval in the notice of disapproval sent to the

7 applicant.

8 (b) APPROVAL.—(1) The Flexibility Council may ap9 prove a local flexibility plan for which an application is

10 submitted under this Act, or any part of such a plan, if

11 a majority of members of the Council determines that—

12 (A) the plan or part shall improve the effective13 ness and efficiency of providing benefits under cov14 ered Federal programs included in the plan by re15 ducing administrative inflexibility, duplication, and

16 unnecessary expenditures;

17 (B) the applicant local government has ade18 quately considered, and the plan or part of the plan

19 appropriately addresses, any effect that administra20 tion of each covered Federal program under the plan

21 or part of the plan shall have on administration of

22 the other covered Federal programs under that plan

23 or part of the plan;

24 (C) the applicant local government has or is de25 veloping data bases, planning, and evaluation proc-
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1 esses that are adequate for implementing the plan or

2 part of the plan;

3 (D) the plan shall more effectively achieve Fed4 eral financial assistance goals at the local level and

5 shall better meet the needs of local citizens;

6 (E) implementation of the plan or part of the

7 plan shall adequately achieve the purposes of this

8 Act and of each covered Federal financial assistance

9 program under the plan or part of the plan;

10 (F) the plan and the application for approval of

11 the plan comply with the requirements of this Act;

12 (G) the plan or part of the plan is adequate to

13 ensure that individuals and families that receive ben14 efits under covered Federal financial assistance pro15 grams included in the plan or part shall continue to

16 receive benefits that meet the needs intended to be

17 met under the program; and

18 (H) the local government has—

19 (i) waived the corresponding local laws nec20 essary for implementation of the plan; and

21 (ii) sought any necessary waivers from the

22 State.

23 (2) The Flexibility Council may not approve any part

24 of a local flexibility plan if—
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1 (A) implementation of that part would result in

2 any increase in the total amount of obligations or

3 outlays of discretionary appropriations or direct

4 spending under covered Federal financial assistance

5 programs included in that part, over the amounts of

6 such obligations and outlays that would occur under

7 those programs without implementation of the part;

8 or

9 (B) in the case of a plan or part that applies

10 to assistance to a qualified organization under an el11 igible Federal financial assistance program, the

12 qualified organization does not consent in writing to

13 the receipt of that assistance in accordance with the

14 plan.

15 (3) The Flexibility Council shall disapprove a part of

16 a local flexibility plan if a majority of the Council dis17 approves that part of the plan based on a failure of the

18 part to comply with paragraph (1).

19 (4) In approving any part of a local flexibility plan,

20 the Flexibility Council shall specify the period during

21 which the part is effective. An approved local flexibility

22 plan shall not be effective after the date of the termination

23 of effectiveness of this Act under section 13.

24 (5) Disapproval by the Flexibility Council of any part

25 of a local flexibility plan submitted by a local government
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1 under this Act shall not affect the eligibility of a local gov2 ernment, a qualified organization, or any individual for

3 benefits under any Federal program.

4 (c) MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING.—(1) The

5 Flexibility Council may not approve a part of a local flexi6 bility plan unless each local government and each qualified

7 organization that would receive financial assistance under

8 the plan enters into a memorandum of understanding

9 under this subsection with the Flexibility Council.

10 (2) A memorandum of understanding under this sub11 section shall specify all understandings that have been

12 reached by the Flexibility Council, the local government,

13 and each qualified organization that is subject to a local

14 flexibility plan, regarding the approval and implementa15 tion of all parts of a local flexibility plan that are the sub16 ject of the memorandum, including understandings with

17 respect to—

18 (A) all requirements under covered Federal fi19 nancial assistance programs that are to be waived by

20 the Flexibility Council under section 8(b);

21 (B)(i) the total amount of Federal funds that

22 shall be provided as benefits under or used to ad23 minister covered Federal financial assistance pro24 grams included in those parts; or
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1 (ii) a mechanism for determining that amount,

2 including specification of the total amount of Fed3 eral funds that shall be provided or used under each

4 covered Federal financial assistance program in5 cluded in those parts;

6 (C) the sources of all non-Federal funds that

7 shall be provided as benefits under or used to ad8 minister those parts;

9 (D) measurable performance criteria that shall

10 be used during the term of those parts to determine

11 the extent to which the goals and performance levels

12 of the parts are achieved; and

13 (E) the data to be collected to make that deter14 mination.

15 (d) LIMITATION ON CONFIDENTIALITY REQUIRE16 MENTS.—The Flexibility Council may not, as a condition

17 of approval of any part of a local flexibility plan or with

18 respect to the implementation of any part of an approved

19 local flexibility plan, establish any confidentiality require20 ment that would—

21 (1) impede the exchange of information needed

22 for the design or provision of benefits under the

23 parts; or

24 (2) conflict with law.
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1 SEC. 8. IMPLEMENTATION OF APPROVED LOCAL FLEXIBIL2 ITY PLANS; WAIVER OF REQUIREMENTS.

3 (a) PAYMENTS AND ADMINISTRATION IN ACCORD4 ANCE WITH PLAN.—Notwithstanding any other law, any

5 benefit that is provided under a covered Federal financial

6 assistance program included in an approved local flexibil7 ity plan shall be paid and administered in the manner

8 specified in the approved local flexibility plan.

9 (b) WAIVER OF REQUIREMENTS.—(1) Notwithstand10 ing any other law and subject to paragraphs (2) and (3),

11 the Flexibility Council may waive any requirement applica12 ble under Federal law to the administration of, or provi13 sion of benefits under, any covered Federal assistance pro14 gram included in an approved local flexibility plan, if that

15 waiver is—

16 (A) reasonably necessary for the implementa17 tion of the plan; and

18 (B) approved by a majority of members of the

19 Flexibility Council.

20 (2) The Flexibility Council may not waive a require21 ment under this subsection unless the Council finds that

22 waiver of the requirement shall not result in a qualitative

23 reduction in services or benefits for any individual or fam24 ily that is eligible for benefits under a covered Federal fi25 nancial assistance program.
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1 (3) The Flexibility Council may not waive any re2 quirement under this subsection—

3 (A) that enforces any constitutional or statu4 tory right of an individual, including any right

5 under—

6 (i) title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

7 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.);

8 (ii) section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of

9 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701 et seq.);

10 (iii) title IX of the Education Amendments

11 of 1972 (86 Stat. 373 et seq.);

12 (iv) the Age Discrimination Act of 1975

13 (42 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.); or

14 (v) the Americans with Disabilities Act of

15 1990;

16 (B) for payment of a non-Federal share of

17 funding of an activity under a covered Federal fi18 nancial assistance program; or

19 (C) for grants received on a maintenance of ef20 fort basis.

21 (c) SPECIAL ASSISTANCE.—To the extent permitted

22 by law, the head of each Federal agency shall seek to pro23 vide special assistance to a local government or qualified

24 organization to support implementation of an approved
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1 local flexibility plan, including expedited processing, prior2 ity funding, and technical assistance.

3 (d) EVALUATION AND TERMINATION.—(1) A local

4 government, in accordance with regulations issued by the

5 Flexibility Council, shall—

6 (A) submit such reports on and cooperate in

7 such audits of the implementation of its approved

8 local flexibility plan; and

9 (B) periodically evaluate the effect implementa10 tion of the plan has had on—

11 (i) individuals who receive benefits under

12 the plan;

13 (ii) communities in which those individuals

14 live; and

15 (iii) costs of administering covered Federal

16 financial assistance programs included in the

17 plan.

18 (2) No later than 90 days after the end of the 1-

19 year period beginning on the date of the approval by the

20 Flexibility Council of an approved local flexibility plan of

21 a local government, and annually thereafter, the local gov22 ernment shall submit to the Flexibility Council a report

23 on the principal activities and achievements under the plan

24 during the period covered by the report, comparing those
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1 achievements to the goals and performance criteria in2 cluded in the plan under section 6(c)(3).

3 (3)(A) The Flexibility Council may terminate the ef4 fectiveness of an approved local flexibility plan, if the

5 Flexibility Council, after consultation with the head of

6 each Federal agency responsible for administering a cov7 ered Federal financial assistance program included in

8 such, determines—

9 (i) that the goals and performance criteria in10 cluded in the plan under section 6(c)(3) have not

11 been met; and

12 (ii) after considering any experiences gained in

13 implementation of the plan, that those goals and cri14 teria are sound.

15 (B) In terminating the effectiveness of an approved

16 local flexibility plan under this paragraph, the Flexibility

17 Council shall allow a reasonable period of time for appro18 priate Federal, State, and local agencies and qualified or19 ganizations to resume administration of Federal programs

20 that are covered Federal financial assistance programs in21 cluded in the plan.

22 (e) FINAL REPORT; EXTENSION OF PLANS.—(1) No

23 later than 45 days after the end of the effective period

24 of an approved local flexibility plan of a local government,

25 or at any time that the local government determines that
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1 the plan has demonstrated its worth, the local government

2 shall submit to the Flexibility Council a final report on

3 its implementation of the plan, including a full evaluation

4 of the successes and shortcomings of the plan and the ef5 fects of that implementation on individuals who receive

6 benefits under those programs.

7 (2) The Flexibility Council may extend the effective

8 period of an approved local flexibility plan for such period

9 as may be appropriate, based on the report of a local gov10 ernment under paragraph (1).

11 SEC. 9. COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEES.

12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—A local government that ap13 plies for approval of a local flexibility plan under this Act

14 shall establish a community advisory committee in accord15 ance with this section.

16 (b) FUNCTIONS.—A community advisory committee

17 shall advise a local government in the development and

18 implementation of its local flexibility plan, including advice

19 with respect to—

20 (1) conducting public hearings; and

21 (2) reviewing and commenting on all commu22 nity policies, programs, and actions under the plan

23 which affect low income individuals and families,

24 with the purpose of ensuring maximum coordination
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1 and responsiveness of the plan in providing benefits

2 under the plan to those individuals and families.

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

4 advisory committee shall—

5 (1) consist of—

6 (A) persons with leadership experience in

7 the private and voluntary sectors;

8 (B) local elected officials;

9 (C) representatives of participating quali10 fied organizations; and

11 (D) the general public; and

12 (2) include individuals and representatives of

13 community organizations who shall help to enhance

14 the leadership role of the local government in devel15 oping a local flexibility plan.

16 (d) OPPORTUNITY FOR REVIEW AND COMMENT BY

17 COMMITTEE.—Before submitting an application for ap18 proval of a final proposed local flexibility plan, a local gov19 ernment shall submit the final proposed plan for review

20 and comment by a community advisory committee estab21 lished by the local government.

22 (e) COMMITTEE REVIEW OF REPORTS.—Before sub23 mitting annual or final reports on an approved Federal

24 assistance plan, a local government or private nonprofit
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1 organization shall submit the report for review and com2 ment to the community advisory committee.

3 SEC. 10. TECHNICAL AND OTHER ASSISTANCE.

4 (a) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—(1) The Flexibility

5 Council may provide, or direct that the head of a Federal

6 agency provide, technical assistance to a local government

7 or qualified organization in developing information nec8 essary for the design or implementation of a local flexibil9 ity plan.

10 (2) Assistance may be provided under this subsection

11 if a local government makes a request that includes, in

12 accordance with requirements established by the Flexibil13 ity Council—

14 (A) a description of the local flexibility plan the

15 local government proposes to develop;

16 (B) a description of the groups of individuals to

17 whom benefits shall be provided under covered Fed18 eral assistance programs included in the plan; and

19 (C) such assurances as the Flexibility Council

20 may require that—

21 (i) in the development of the application to

22 be submitted under this title for approval of the

23 plan, the local government shall provide ade24 quate opportunities to participate to—
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1 (I) individuals and families that shall

2 receive benefits under covered Federal fi3 nancial assistance programs included in

4 the plan; and

5 (II) governmental agencies that ad6 minister those programs; and

7 (ii) the plan shall be developed after con8 sidering fully—

9 (I) needs expressed by those individ10 uals and families;

11 (II) community priorities; and

12 (III) available governmental resources

13 in the geographic area to which the plan

14 shall apply.

15 (b) DETAILS TO COUNCIL.—At the request of the

16 Flexibility Council and with the approval of an agency

17 head who is a member of the Council, agency staff may

18 be detailed to the Flexibility Council on a nonreimbursable

19 basis.

20 SEC. 11. FLEXIBILITY COUNCIL.

21 (a) FUNCTIONS.—The Flexibility Council shall—

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

23 local flexibility plans for which approval is sought

24 under this Act;
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1 (2) upon request from an applicant for such ap2 proval, direct the head of an agency that administers

3 a covered Federal financial assistance program

4 under which substantial Federal financial assistance

5 would be provided under the plan to provide tech6 nical assistance to the applicant;

7 (3) monitor the progress of development and

8 implementation of local flexibility plans;

9 (4) perform such other functions as are as10 signed to the Flexibility Council by this Act; and

11 (5) issue regulations to implement this Act

12 within 180 days after the date of its enactment.

13 (b) REPORTS.—No less than 18 months after the

14 date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter,

15 the Flexibility Council shall submit a report on the 5 Fed16 eral regulations that are most frequently waived by the

17 Flexibility Council for local governments with approved

18 local flexibility plans to the President and the Congress.

19 The President shall review the report and determine

20 whether to amend or terminate such Federal regulations.

21 SEC. 12. REPORT.

22 No later than 54 months after the date of the enact23 ment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United

24 States shall submit to the Congress, a report that—
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1 (1) describes the extent to which local govern2 ments have established and implemented approved

3 local flexibility plans;

4 (2) evaluates the effectiveness of covered Fed5 eral assistance programs included in approved local

6 flexibility plans; and

7 (3) includes recommendations with respect to

8 local flexibility.

9 SEC. 13. CONDITIONAL TERMINATION.

10 This Act is repealed on the date that is 5 years after

11 the date of the enactment of this Act unless extended by

12 the Congress through the enactment of the resolution de13 scribed under section 14.

14 SEC. 14. JOINT RESOLUTION FOR THE CONTINUATION AND

15 EXPANSION OF LOCAL FLEXIBILITY PRO16 GRAMS.

17 (a) DESCRIPTION OF RESOLUTION.—A resolution re18 ferred to under section 13 is a joint resolution the matter

19 after the resolving clause is as follows: ‘‘That Congress

20 approves the application of local flexibility plans to all

21 local governments in the United States in accordance with

22 the Local Empowerment and Flexibility Act of 1995, and

23 that—
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1 ‘‘(1) if the provisions of such Act have not been

2 repealed under section 13 of such Act, such provi3 sions shall remain in effect; and

4 ‘‘(2) if the repeal under section 13 of such Act

5 has taken effect, the provisions of such Act shall be

6 effective as though such provisions had not been re7 pealed.’’.

8 (b) INTRODUCTION.—No later than 30 days after the

9 transmittal by the Comptroller General of the United

10 States to the Congress of the report required in section

11 12, a resolution as described under subsection (a) shall

12 be introduced in the Senate by the chairman of the Com13 mittee on Governmental Affairs, or by a Member or Mem14 bers of the Senate designated by such chairman, and shall

15 be introduced in the House of Representatives by the

16 Chairman of the Committee on Government Operations,

17 or by a Member or Members of the House of Representa18 tives designated by such chairman.

19 (c) REFERRAL.—A resolution as described under sub20 section (a) shall be referred to the Committee on Govern21 mental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Gov22 ernment Operations of the House of Representatives. The

23 committee shall make its recommendations to the Senate

24 or House of Representatives within 30 calendar days of

25 the date of such resolution’s introduction.
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1 (d) DISCHARGE FROM COMMITTEE.—If the commit2 tee to which a resolution is referred has not reported such

3 resolution at the end of 30 calendar days after its intro4 duction, that committee shall be deemed to be discharged

5 from further consideration of such resolution and such

6 resolution shall be placed on the appropriate calendar of

7 the House involved.

8 (e) VOTE ON FINAL PASSAGE.—When the committee

9 has reported or has been deemed to be discharged from

10 further consideration of a resolution described under sub11 section (a), it is at any time thereafter in order for any

12 Member of the respective House to move to proceed to

13 the consideration of the resolution.

14 (f) RULES OF THE SENATE AND HOUSE.—This sec15 tion is enacted by Congress—

16 (1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of

17 the Senate and House of Representatives, respec18 tively, and as such it is deemed a part of the rules

19 of each House, respectively, but applicable only with

20 respect to the procedure to be followed in that

21 House in the case of a resolution described in sub22 section (a), and it supersedes other rules only to the

23 extent that it is inconsistent with such rules; and

24 (2) with full recognition of the constitutional

25 right of either House to change the rules (so far as
30

•S 88 IS

1 relating to the procedure of that House) at any time,

2 in the same manner, and to the same extent as in

3 the case of any other rule of that House.

Æ

S 88 IS——2

S 88 IS——3