In the Senate of the United States,

July 17, 1996.

Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R. 497) entitled ‘‘An Act to create the National

Gambling Impact and Policy Commission’’, do pass with the

following

AMENDMENT:

Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Gambling Im3 pact Study Commission Act’’.

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

5 The Congress finds that—

6 (1) the most recent Federal study of gambling in

7 the United States was completed in 1976;

8 (2) legalization of gambling has increased sub9 stantially over the past 20 years, and State, local,

10 and Native American tribal governments have estab-
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1 lished gambling as a source of jobs and additional

2 revenue;

3 (3) the growth of various forms of gambling, in4 cluding electronic gambling and gambling over the

5 Internet, could affect interstate and international

6 matters under the jurisdiction of the Federal Govern7 ment;

8 (4) questions have been raised regarding the so9 cial and economic impacts of gambling, and Federal,

10 State, local, and Native American tribal governments

11 lack recent, comprehensive information regarding

12 those impacts; and

13 (5) a Federal commission should be established to

14 conduct a comprehensive study of the social and eco15 nomic impacts of gambling in the United States.

16 SEC. 3. NATIONAL GAMBLING IMPACT STUDY COMMISSION.

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION.—There is estab18 lished a commission to be known as the National Gambling

19 Impact Study Commission (hereinafter referred to in this

20 Act as ‘‘the Commission’’). The Commission shall—

21 (1) be composed of 9 members appointed in ac22 cordance with subsection (b); and

23 (2) conduct its business in accordance with the

24 provisions of this Act.

25 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—
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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioners shall be

2 appointed for the life of the Commission as follows:

3 (A) 3 shall be appointed by the President of

4 the United States.

5 (B) 3 shall be appointed by the Speaker of

6 the House of Representatives.

7 (C) 3 shall be appointed by the Majority

8 Leader of the Senate.

9 (2) PERSONS ELIGIBLE.—The members of the

10 Commission shall be individuals who have knowledge

11 or expertise, whether by experience or training, in

12 matters to be studied by the Commission under sec13 tion 4. The members may be from the public or pri14 vate sector, and may include Federal, State, local, or

15 Native American tribal officers or employees, members

16 of academia, non-profit organizations, or industry, or

17 other interested individuals.

18 (3) CONSULTATION REQUIRED.—The President,

19 the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the

20 Majority Leader of the Senate shall consult among

21 themselves prior to the appointment of the members of

22 the Commission in order to achieve, to the maximum

23 extent possible, fair and equitable representation of

24 various points of view with respect to the matters to

25 be studied by the Commission under section 4.
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1 (4) COMPLETION OF APPOINTMENTS; VACAN2 CIES.—The President, the Speaker of the House of

3 Representatives, and the Majority Leader of the Sen4 ate shall conduct the consultation required under

5 paragraph (3) and shall each make their respective

6 appointments not later than 60 days after the date of

7 enactment of this Act. Any vacancy that occurs dur8 ing the life of the Commission shall not affect the

9 powers of the Commission, and shall be filled in the

10 same manner as the original appointment not later

11 than 60 days after the vacancy occurs.

12 (5) OPERATION OF THE COMMISSION.—

13 (A) CHAIRMANSHIP.—The President, the

14 Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the

15 Majority Leader of the Senate shall jointly des16 ignate one member as the Chairman of the Com17 mission. In the event of a disagreement among

18 the appointing authorities, the Chairman shall

19 be determined by a majority vote of the appoint20 ing authorities. The determination of which

21 member shall be Chairman shall be made not

22 later than 15 days after the appointment of the

23 last member of the Commission, but in no case

24 later than 75 days after the date of enactment of

25 this Act.
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1 (B) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall

2 meet at the call of the Chairman. The initial

3 meeting of the Commission shall be conducted

4 not later than 30 days after the appointment of

5 the last member of the Commission, or not later

6 than 30 days after the date on which appro7 priated funds are available for the Commission,

8 whichever is later.

9 (C) QUORUM; VOTING; RULES.—A majority

10 of the members of the Commission shall con11 stitute a quorum to conduct business, but the

12 Commission may establish a lesser quorum for

13 conducting hearings scheduled by the Commis14 sion. Each member of the Commission shall have

15 one vote, and the vote of each member shall be

16 accorded the same weight. The Commission may

17 establish by majority vote any other rules for the

18 conduct of the Commission’s business, if such

19 rules are not inconsistent with this Act or other

20 applicable law.

21 SEC. 4. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.

22 (a) STUDY.—

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be the duty of the

24 Commission to conduct a comprehensive legal and
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1 factual study of the social and economic impacts of

2 gambling in the United States on—

3 (A) Federal, State, local, and Native Amer4 ican tribal governments; and

5 (B) communities and social institutions

6 generally, including individuals, families, and

7 businesses within such communities and institu8 tions.

9 (2) MATTERS TO BE STUDIED.—The matters

10 studied by the Commission under paragraph (1) shall

11 at a minimum include—

12 (A) a review of existing Federal, State,

13 local, and Native American tribal government

14 policies and practices with respect to the legal15 ization or prohibition of gambling, including a

16 review of the costs of such policies and practices;

17 (B) an assessment of the relationship be18 tween gambling and levels of crime, and of exist19 ing enforcement and regulatory practices that

20 are intended to address any such relationship;

21 (C) an assessment of pathological or prob22 lem gambling, including its impact on individ23 uals, families, businesses, social institutions, and

24 the economy;
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1 (D) an assessment of the impacts of gam2 bling on individuals, families, businesses, social

3 institutions, and the economy generally, includ4 ing the role of advertising in promoting gam5 bling and the impact of gambling on depressed

6 economic areas;

7 (E) an assessment of the extent to which

8 gambling provides revenues to State, local, and

9 Native American tribal governments, and the ex10 tent to which possible alternative revenue sources

11 may exist for such governments; and

12 (F) an assessment of the interstate and

13 international effects of gambling by electronic

14 means, including the use of interactive tech15 nologies and the Internet.

16 (b) REPORT.—No later than 2 years after the date on

17 which the Commission first meets, the Commission shall

18 submit to the President, the Congress, State Governors, and

19 Native American tribal governments a comprehensive re20 port of the Commission’s findings and conclusions, together

21 with any recommendations of the Commission. Such report

22 shall include a summary of the reports submitted to the

23 Commission by the Advisory Commission on Intergovern24 mental Relations and National Research Council under sec-
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1 tion 7, as well as a summary of any other material relied

2 on by the Commission in the preparation of its report.

3 SEC. 5. POWERS OF THE COMMISSION.

4 (a) HEARINGS.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may hold

6 such hearings, sit and act at such times and places,

7 administer such oaths, take such testimony, and re8 ceive such evidence as the Commission considers ad9 visable to carry out its duties under section 4.

10 (2) WITNESS EXPENSES.—Witnesses requested to

11 appear before the Commission shall be paid the same

12 fees as are paid to witnesses under section 1821 of

13 title 28, United States Code. The per diem and mile14 age allowances for witnesses shall be paid from funds

15 appropriated to the Commission.

16 (b) SUBPOENAS.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—If a person fails to supply in18 formation requested by the Commission, the Commis19 sion may by majority vote require by subpoena the

20 production of any written or recorded information,

21 document, report, answer, record, account, paper,

22 computer file, or other data or documentary evidence

23 necessary to carry out its duties under section 4. The

24 Commission shall transmit to the Attorney General a

25 confidential, written notice at least 10 days in ad-
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1 vance of the issuance of any such subpoena. A sub2 poena under this paragraph may require the produc3 tion of materials from any place within the United

4 States.

5 (2) INTERROGATORIES.—The Commission may,

6 with respect only to information necessary to under7 stand any materials obtained through a subpoena

8 under paragraph (1), issue a subpoena requiring the

9 person producing such materials to answer, either

10 through a sworn deposition or through written an11 swers provided under oath (at the election of the per12 son upon whom the subpoena is served), to interrog13 atories from the Commission regarding such informa14 tion. A complete recording or transcription shall be

15 made of any deposition made under this paragraph.

16 (3) CERTIFICATION.—Each person who submits

17 materials or information to the Commission pursuant

18 to a subpoena issued under paragraph (1) or (2) shall

19 certify to the Commission the authenticity and com20 pleteness of all materials or information submitted.

21 The provisions of section 1001 of title 18, United

22 States Code, shall apply to any false statements made

23 with respect to the certification required under this

24 paragraph.
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1 (4) TREATMENT OF SUBPOENAS.—Any subpoena

2 issued by the Commission under paragraph (1) or (2)

3 shall comply with the requirements for subpoenas is4 sued by a United States district court under the Fed5 eral Rules of Civil Procedure.

6 (5) FAILURE TO OBEY A SUBPOENA.—If a person

7 refuses to obey a subpoena issued by the Commission

8 under paragraph (1) or (2), the Commission may

9 apply to a United States district court for an order

10 requiring that person to comply with such subpoena.

11 The application may be made within the judicial dis12 trict in which that person is found, resides, or trans13 acts business. Any failure to obey the order of the

14 court may be punished by the court as civil contempt.

15 (c) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.—The

16 Commission may secure directly from any Federal depart17 ment or agency such information as the Commission con18 siders necessary to carry out its duties under section 4.

19 Upon the request of the Commission, the head of such de20 partment or agency may furnish such information to the

21 Commission.

22 (d) INFORMATION TO BE KEPT CONFIDENTIAL.—The

23 Commission shall be considered an agency of the Federal

24 Government for purposes of section 1905 of title 18, United

25 States Code, and any individual employed by an individ-
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1 ual, entity, or organization under contract to the Commis2 sion under section 7 shall be considered an employee of the

3 Commission for the purposes of section 1905 of title 18,

4 United States Code. Information obtained by the Commis5 sion, other than information available to the public, shall

6 not be disclosed to any person in any manner, except—

7 (1) to Commission employees or employees of

8 any individual, entity, or organization under con9 tract to the Commission under section 7 for the pur10 pose of receiving, reviewing, or processing such infor11 mation;

12 (2) upon court order; or

13 (3) when publicly released by the Commission in

14 an aggregate or summary form that does not directly

15 or indirectly disclose—

16 (A) the identity of any person or business

17 entity; or

18 (B) any information which could not be re19 leased under section 1905 of title 18, United

20 States Code.

21 SEC. 6. COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS.

22 (a) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.—Each member of

23 the Commission who is not an officer or employee of the

24 Federal Government, or whose compensation is not pre25 cluded by a State, local, or Native American tribal govern-
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1 ment position, shall be compensated at a rate equal to the

2 daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed

3 for Level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315

4 of title 5, United States Code, for each day (including travel

5 time) during which such member is engaged in the perform6 ance of the duties of the Commission. All members of the

7 Commission who are officers or employees of the United

8 States shall serve without compensation in addition to that

9 received for their services as officers or employees of the

10 United States.

11 (b) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—The members of the Commis12 sion shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem

13 in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for employees of

14 agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United

15 States Code, while away from their homes or regular places

16 of business in the performance of service for the Commis17 sion.

18 (c) STAFF.—

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Chairman of the Com20 mission may, without regard to the civil service laws

21 and regulations, appoint and terminate an executive

22 director and such other additional personnel as may

23 be necessary to enable the Commission to perform its

24 duties. The employment and termination of an execu-
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1 tive director shall be subject to confirmation by a ma2 jority of the members of the Commission.

3 (2) COMPENSATION.—The executive director shall

4 be compensated at a rate not to exceed the rate pay5 able for level V of the Executive Schedule under sec6 tion 5316 of title 5, United States Code. The Chair7 man may fix the compensation of other personnel

8 without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and

9 subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, United States

10 Code, relating to classification of positions and Gen11 eral Schedule pay rates, except that the rate of pay

12 for such personnel may not exceed the rate payable for

13 level V of the Executive Schedule under section 5316

14 of such title.

15 (3) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.—Any

16 Federal Government employee, with the approval of

17 the head of the appropriate Federal agency, may be

18 detailed to the Commission without reimbursement,

19 and such detail shall be without interruption or loss

20 of civil service status, benefits, or privilege.

21 (d) PROCUREMENT OF TEMPORARY AND INTERMIT22 TENT SERVICES.—The Chairman of the Commission may

23 procure temporary and intermittent services under section

24 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, at rates for individ25 uals not to exceed the daily equivalent of the annual rate
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1 of basic pay prescribed for Level V of the Executive Schedule

2 under section 5316 of such title.

3 SEC. 7. CONTRACTS FOR RESEARCH.

4 (a) ADVISORY COMMISSION ON INTERGOVERNMENTAL

5 RELATIONS.—

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out its duties

7 under section 4, the Commission shall contract with

8 the Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Rela9 tions for—

10 (A) a thorough review and cataloging of all

11 applicable Federal, State, local, and Native

12 American tribal laws, regulations, and ordi13 nances that pertain to gambling in the United

14 States; and

15 (B) assistance in conducting the studies re16 quired by the Commission under section 4(a),

17 and in particular the review and assessments re18 quired in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (E) of

19 paragraph (2) of such section.

20 (2) REPORT REQUIRED.—The contract entered

21 into under paragraph (1) shall require that the Advi22 sory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations sub23 mit a report to the Commission detailing the results

24 of its efforts under the contract no later than 15
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1 months after the date upon which the Commission

2 first meets.

3 (b) NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out its duties

5 under section 4, the Commission shall contract with

6 the National Research Council of the National Acad7 emy of Sciences for assistance in conducting the stud8 ies required by the Commission under section 4(a),

9 and in particular the assessment required under sub10 paragraph (C) of paragraph (2) of such section.

11 (2) REPORT REQUIRED.—The contract entered

12 into under paragraph (1) shall require that the Na13 tional Research Council submit a report to the Com14 mission detailing the results of its efforts under the

15 contract no later than 15 months after the date upon

16 which the Commission first meets.

17 (c) OTHER ORGANIZATIONS.—Nothing in this section

18 shall be construed to limit the ability of the Commission

19 to enter into contracts with other entities or organizations

20 for research necessary to carry out the Commission’s duties

21 under section 4.

22 SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.

23 For the purposes of this Act:

24 (1) GAMBLING.—The term ‘‘gambling’’ means

25 any legalized form of wagering or betting conducted
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1 in a casino, on a riverboat, on an Indian reservation,

2 or at any other location under the jurisdiction of the

3 United States. Such term includes any casino game,

4 parimutuel betting, sports-related betting, lottery,

5 pull-tab game, slot machine, any type of video gam6 ing, computerized wagering or betting activities (in7 cluding any such activity conducted over the

8 Internet), and philanthropic or charitable gaming ac9 tivities.

10 (2) NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—

11 The term ‘‘Native American tribal government’’

12 means an Indian tribe, as defined under section 4(5)

13 of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988 (25

14 U.S.C. 2703(5)).

15 (3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of the

16 several States of the United States, the District of Co17 lumbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin

18 Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Common19 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

20 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro22 priated to the Commission, the Advisory Commission on

23 Intergovernmental Relations, and the National Academy of

24 Sciences such sums as may be necessary to carry out the
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1 purposes of this Act. Any sums appropriated shall remain

2 available, without fiscal year limitation, until expended.

3 (b) LIMITATION.—No payment may be made under

4 section 6 or 7 of this Act except to the extent provided for

5 in advance in an appropriation Act.

6 SEC. 10. TERMINATION OF THE COMMISSION.

7 The Commission shall terminate 60 days after the

8 Commission submits the report required under section 4(b).

Attest:

Secretary.
104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 497

AMENDMENT