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(1) subject to paragraph (2), exempt agricultural
commodities and products, medicines, and medical
products from any unilateral economic sanction im-
posed on a foreign government; and
(2) apply the sanction to the commodities, prod-
ucts, or medicines if the application is necessary—
(A) for health or safety reasons; or
(B) due to a domestic shortage of the com-
modities, products, or medicines.
SEC. 342. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING CAPITAL
GAINS TAX FAIRNESS FOR FAMILY FARMERS.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) one of the most popular provisions included
in the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 permits many
families to exclude from Federal income taxes up to
$500,000 of gain from the sale of their principal resi-
dences;
(2) under current law, family farmers are not
able to take full advantage of this $500,000 capital
gains exclusion that families living in urban or sub-
urban areas enjoy on the sale of their homes;
(3) for most urban and suburban residents, their
homes are their major financial asset and as a result
such families, who have owned their homes through
many years of appreciation, can often benefit from a
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HCON 68 EAS1S
large portion of this new $500,000 capital gains ex-
clusion;
(4) most family farmers plow any profits they
make back into the whole farm rather than into the
house which holds little or no value;
(5) unfortunately, farm families receive little
benefit from this capital gains exclusion because the
Internal Revenue Service separates the value of their
homes from the value of the land the homes sit on;
(6) we should recognize in our tax laws the
unique character and role of our farm families and
their important contributions to our economy, and
allow them to benefit more fully from the capital
gains tax exclusion that urban and suburban home-
owners already enjoy; and
(7) we should expand the $500,000 capital gains
tax exclusion to cover sales of the farmhouse and the
surrounding farmland over their lifetimes.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the levels in this resolution assume that if we pass
tax relief measures in accordance with the assumptions in
the budget resolution, we should ensure that such legislation
removes the disparity between farm families and their
urban and suburban counterparts with respect to the new
$500,000 capital gains tax exclusion for principal residence
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HCON 68 EAS1S
sales by expanding it to cover gains from the sale of farm-
land along with the sale of the farmhouse.
SEC. 343. BUDGETING FOR THE DEFENSE SCIENCE AND
TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM.
It is the sense of the Senate that the budgetary levels
for National Defense (function 050) for fiscal years 2000
through 2008 assume funding for the Defense Science and
Technology Program that is consistent with section 214 of
the Strom Thurmond National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 1999, which expresses a sense of the Congress
that for each of those fiscal years it should be an objective
of the Secretary of Defense to increase the budget request
for the Defense Science and Technology Program by at least
2 percent over inflation.
SEC. 344. SENSE OF THE SENATE CONCERNING FUNDING
FOR THE URBAN PARKS AND RECREATION
RECOVERY (UPARR) PROGRAM.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) every analysis of national recreation issues
in the last 3 decades has identified the importance of
close-to-home recreation opportunities, particularly
for residents in densely-populated urban areas;
(2) the Land and Water Conservation Fund
grants program under the Land and Water Conserva-
tion Fund Act of 1965 (16 U.S.C. 460l–4 et seq.) was
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HCON 68 EAS1S
established partly to address the pressing needs of
urban areas;
(3) the National Urban Recreation Study of
1978 and the President’s Commission on Americans
Outdoors of 1987 revealed that critical urban recre-
ation resources were not being addressed;
(4) older city park structures and infrastructures
worth billions of dollars are at risk because govern-
ment incentives favored the development of new areas
over the revitalization of existing resources, ranging
from downtown parks established in the 19th century
to neighborhood playgrounds and sports centers built
from the 1920’s to the 1950’s;
(5) the Urban Parks and Recreation Recovery
(UPARR) program, established under the Urban Park
and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2501
et seq.), authorized $725,000,000 to provide matching
grants and technical assistance to economically dis-
tressed urban communities;
(6) the purposes of the UPARR program is to
provide direct Federal assistance to urban localities
for rehabilitation of critically needed recreation facili-
ties, and to encourage local planning and a commit-
ment to continuing operation and maintenance of
recreation programs, sites, and facilities; and
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HCON 68 EAS1S
(7) funding for UPARR is supported by a wide
range of organizations, including the National Asso-
ciation of Police Athletic Leagues, the Sporting Goods
Manufacturers Association, the Conference of Mayors,
and Major League Baseball.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the levels in this resolution and legislation enacted
pursuant to this resolution assume that Congress considers
the UPARR program to be a high priority, and should ap-
propriate such amounts as are necessary to carry out the
Urban Parks and Recreation Recovery (UPARR) program
established under the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery
Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.).
SEC. 345. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON SOCIAL PROMOTION.
It is the sense of the Senate that the assumptions un-
derlying the functional totals in this resolution assume that
funds will be provided for legislation—
(1) to provide remedial educational and other
instructional interventions to assist public elementary
and secondary school students in meeting achievement
levels; and
(2) to terminate practices which advance stu-
dents from one grade to the next who do not meet
State achievement standards in the core academic
curriculum.
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SEC. 346. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON WOMEN AND SOCIAL
SECURITY REFORM.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) without Social Security benefits, the elderly
poverty rate among women would have been 52.2 per-
cent, and among widows would have been 60.6 per-
cent;
(2) women tend to live longer and tend to have
lower lifetime earnings than men do;
(3) during their working years, women earn an
average of 70 cents for every dollar men earn; and
(4) women spend an average of 11.5 years out of
their careers to care for their families, and are more
likely to work part-time than full-time.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the levels in this resolution assume that—
(1) women face unique obstacles in ensuring re-
tirement security and survivor and disability sta-
bility;
(2) Social Security plays an essential role in
guaranteeing inflation-protected financial stability
for women throughout their old age;
(3) the Congress and the Administration should
act, as part of Social Security reform, to ensure that
widows and other poor elderly women receive more
adequate benefits that reduce their poverty rates and
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HCON 68 EAS1S
that women, under whatever approach is taken to re-
form Social Security, should receive no lesser a share
of overall federally-funded retirement benefits than
they receive today; and
(4) the sacrifice that women make to care for
their family should be recognized during reform of So-
cial Security and that women should not be penalized
by taking an average of 11.5 years out of their careers
to care for their family.
SEC. 347. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS REGARDING SOUTH KO-
REA’S INTERNATIONAL TRADE PRACTICES ON
PORK AND BEEF.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) Asia is the largest regional export market for
America’s farmers and ranchers, traditionally pur-
chasing approximately 40 percent of all United States
agricultural exports;
(2) the Department of Agriculture forecasts that
over the next year American agricultural exports to
Asian countries will decline by several billion dollars
due to the Asian financial crisis;
(3) the United States is the producer of the safest
agricultural products from farm to table, customizing
goods to meet the needs of customers worldwide, and
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HCON 68 EAS1S
has established the image and reputation as the
world’s best provider of agricultural products;
(4) American farmers and ranchers, and more
specifically, American pork and beef producers, are
dependent on secure, open, and competitive Asian ex-
port markets for their product;
(5) United States pork and beef producers not
only have faced the adverse effects of depreciated and
unstable currencies and lowered demand due to the
Asian financial crisis, but also have been confronted
with South Korea’s pork subsidies and its failure to
keep commitments on market access for beef;
(6) it is the policy of the United States to pro-
hibit South Korea from using United States and
International Monetary Fund assistance to subsidize
targeted industries and compete unfairly for market
share against United States products;
(7) the South Korean Government has been sub-
sidizing its pork exports to Japan, resulting in a 973
percent increase in its exports to Japan since 1992,
and a 71 percent increase in the last year;
(8) pork already comprises 70 percent of South
Korea’s agriculture exports to Japan, yet the South
Korean Government has announced plans to invest
100,000,000,000 won in its agricultural sector in
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HCON 68 EAS1S
order to flood the Japanese market with even more
South Korean pork;
(9) the South Korean Ministry of Agriculture
and 
Fisheries 
reportedly 
has 
earmarked
25,000,000,000 won for loans to Korea’s pork proc-
essors in order for them to purchase more Korean
pork and to increase exports to Japan;
(10) any export subsidies on pork, including
those on exports from South Korea to Japan, would
violate South Korea’s international trade agreements
and may be actionable under the World Trade Orga-
nization;
(11) South Korea’s subsidies are hindering
United States pork and beef producers from capturing
their full potential in the Japanese market, which is
the largest export market for United States pork and
beef, importing nearly $700,000,000 of United States
pork and over $1,500,000,000 of United States beef
last year alone;
(12) under the United States-Korea 1993 Record
of Understanding on Market Access for Beef, which
was negotiated pursuant to a 1989 GATT Panel deci-
sion against Korea, South Korea was allowed to delay
full liberalization of its beef market (in an exception
to WTO rules) if it would agree to import increasing
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HCON 68 EAS1S
minimum quantities of beef each year until the year
2001;
(13) South Korea fell woefully short of its beef
market access commitment for 1998; and
(14) United States pork and beef producers are
not able to compete fairly with Korean livestock pro-
ducers, who have a high cost of production, because
South Korea has violated trade agreements and im-
plemented protectionist policies.
(b) SENSE OF THE CONGRESS.—It is the sense of the
Congress that the Congress—
(1) believes strongly that while a stable global
marketplace is in the best interest of America’s farm-
ers and ranchers, the United States should seek a mu-
tually beneficial relationship without hindering the
competitiveness of American agriculture;
(2) calls on South Korea to abide by its trade
commitments;
(3) calls on the Secretary of the Treasury to in-
struct the United States Executive Director of the
International Monetary Fund to promote vigorously
policies that encourage the opening of markets for beef
and pork products by requiring South Korea to abide
by its existing international trade commitments and
to reduce trade barriers, tariffs, and export subsidies;
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HCON 68 EAS1S
(4) calls on the President and the Secretaries of
Treasury and Agriculture to monitor and report to
Congress that resources will not be used to stabilize
the South Korean market at the expense of United
States agricultural goods or services; and
(5) requests the United States Trade Representa-
tive and the United States Department of Agriculture
to pursue the settlement of disputes with the Govern-
ment of South Korea on its failure to abide by its
international trade commitments on beef market ac-
cess, to consider whether Korea’s reported plans for
subsidizing its pork industry would violate any of its
international trade commitments, and to determine
what impact Korea’s subsidy plans would have on
United States agricultural interests, especially in
Japan.
SEC. 348. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING SUPPORT
FOR STATE AND LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) as national crime rates are beginning to fall
as a result of State and local efforts, with Federal
support, it is important for the Federal Government
to continue its support for State and local law en-
forcement;
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HCON 68 EAS1S
(2) Federal support is crucial to the provision of
critical crime fighting programs;
(3) Federal support is also essential to the provi-
sion of critical crime fighting services and the effec-
tive administration of justice in the States, such as
State and local crime laboratories and medical exam-
iners’ offices;
(4) current needs exceed the capacity of State
and local crime laboratories to process their forensic
examinations, resulting in tremendous backlogs that
prevent the swift administration of justice and im-
pede fundamental individual rights, such as the right
to a speedy trial and to exculpatory evidence;
(5) last year, Congress passed the Crime Identi-
fication Technology Act of 1998, which authorizes
$250,000,000 each year for 5 years to assist State and
local law enforcement agencies in developing and in-
tegrating their anticrime technology systems, and in
upgrading their forensic laboratories and information
and communications infrastructures upon which these
crime fighting systems rely; and
(6) the Federal Government must continue efforts
to significantly reduce crime by maintaining Federal
funding for State and local law enforcement, and
wisely targeting these resources.
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HCON 68 EAS1S
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the provisions of this resolution assume that—
(1) the amounts made available for fiscal year
2000 to assist State and local law enforcement efforts
should be comparable to or greater than amounts
made available for that purpose for fiscal year 1999;
(2) the amounts made available for fiscal year
2000 for crime technology programs should be used to
further the purposes of the program under section 102
of the Crime Identification Technology Act of 1998
(42 U.S.C. 14601); and
(3) Congress should consider legislation that spe-
cifically addresses the backlogs in State and local
crime laboratories and medical examiners’ offices.
SEC. 349. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON MERGER ENFORCE-
MENT BY DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
(1) the Antitrust Division of the Department of
Justice is charged with the civil and criminal enforce-
ment of the antitrust laws, including review of cor-
porate mergers likely to reduce competition in par-
ticular markets, with a goal to promote and protect
the competitive process;
(2) the Antitrust Division requests a 16 percent
increase in funding for fiscal year 2000;
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HCON 68 EAS1S
(3) justification for such an increase is based, in
part, on increasingly numerous and complex merger
filings pursuant to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust
Improvements Act of 1976;
(4) the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improve-
ments Act of 1976 sets value thresholds which trigger
the requirement for filing premerger notification;
(5) the number of merger filings under the Hart-
Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976,
which the Department, in conjunction with the Fed-
eral Trade Commission, is required to review, in-
creased by 38 percent in fiscal year 1998;
(6) the Department expects the number of merger
filings to increase in fiscal years 1999 and 2000;
(7) the value thresholds, which relate to both the
size of the companies involved and the size of the
transaction, under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust
Improvements Act of 1976 have not been adjusted
since passage of that Act.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the Antitrust Division needs adequate resources
and that the levels in this resolution assume the Division
will have such adequate resources, including necessary in-
creases in funding, notwithstanding any report language
to the contrary, to enable it to meet its statutory require-
133
HCON 68 EAS1S
ments, including those related to reviewing and inves-
tigating increasingly numerous and complex mergers, but
that Congress should pursue consideration of modest, budget
neutral, adjustments to the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust
Improvements Act of 1976 to account for inflation in the
value thresholds of the Act, and in so doing, ensure that
the Antitrust Division’s resources are focused on matters
and transactions most deserving of the Division’s attention.
SEC. 350. SENSE OF THE SENATE TO CREATE A TASK FORCE
TO PURSUE THE CREATION OF A NATURAL
DISASTER RESERVE FUND.
(a) It is the sense of the Senate that a task force be
created for the purpose of studying the possibility of cre-
ating a reserve fund for natural disasters. The task force
should be composed of three Senators appointed by the Ma-
jority Leader, and two Senators appointed by the Minority
Leader. The task force should also be composed of three
members appointed by the Speaker of the House, and two
members appointed by the Minority Leader in the House.
(b) It is the sense of the Senate that the task force make
a report to the appropriate committees in Congress within
90 days of being convened. The report should be available
for the purposes of consideration during comprehensive
overhaul of budget procedures.
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HCON 68 EAS1S
SEC. 351. SENSE OF THE SENATE CONCERNING FEDERAL
TAX RELIEF.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate makes the following find-
ings:
(1) The Congressional Budget Office has reported
that payroll taxes will exceed income taxes for 74 per-
cent of all taxpayers in 1999.
(2) The Federal Government will collect nearly
$50,000,000,000 in income taxes this year through its
practice of taxing the income Americans sacrifice to
the Government in the form of Social Security pay-
roll taxes.
(3) American taxpayers are currently shoul-
dering the heaviest tax burden since 1944.
(4) According to the nonpartisan Tax Founda-
tion, the median dual-income family sacrificed a
record 37.6 percent of its income to the Government
in 1997.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the assumptions underlying the functional totals
in this resolution assume that a significant portion of the
tax relief will be devoted to working families who are dou-
ble-taxed by—
(1) providing taxpayers with an above-the-line
income tax deduction for the Social Security payroll
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HCON 68 EAS1S
taxes they pay so that they no longer pay income
taxes on such payroll taxes, and/or
(2) gradually reducing the lowest marginal in-
come tax rate from 15 percent to 10 percent, and/or
(3) other tax reductions that do not reduce the
tax revenue devoted to the Social Security Trust
Fund.
SEC. 352. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON ELIMINATING THE
MARRIAGE 
PENALTY 
AND 
ACROSS-THE-
BOARD INCOME TAX RATE CUTS.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) the institution of marriage is the cornerstone
of the family and civil society;
(2) strengthening of the marriage commitment
and the family is an indispensable step in the re-
newal of America’s culture;
(3) the Federal income tax punishes marriage by
imposing a greater tax burden on married couples
then on their single counterparts;
(4) America’s tax code should give each married
couple the choice to be treated as one economic unit,
regardless of which spouse earns the income; and
(5) all American taxpayers are responsible for
any budget surplus and deserve broad-based tax relief
136
HCON 68 EAS1S
after the Social Security Trust Fund has been pro-
tected.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the levels in this resolution assume that Congress
should eliminate the marriage penalty in a manner that
treats all married couples equally, regardless of which
spouse earns the income.
SEC. 353. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON IMPORTANCE OF
FUNDING FOR EMBASSY SECURITY.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) Enhancing security at United States diplo-
matic missions overseas is essential to protect United
States Government personnel serving on the front
lines of our national defense;
(2) 80 percent of United States diplomatic mis-
sions do not meet current security standards;
(3) the Accountability Review Boards on the
Embassy Bombings in Nairobi and Dar Es Salaam
recommended that the Department of State spend
$1,400,000,000 annually on embassy security over
each of the next 10 years;
(4) the amount of spending recommended for em-
bassy security by the Accountability Review Boards is
approximately 36 percent of the operating budget re-
137
HCON 68 EAS1S
quested for the Department of State in fiscal year
2000; and
(5) the funding requirements necessary to im-
prove security for United States diplomatic missions
and personnel abroad cannot be borne within the cur-
rent budgetary resources of the Department of State.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the budgetary levels in this budget resolution as-
sume that as the Congress contemplates changes in the Con-
gressional Budget Act of 1974 to reflect projected on-budget
surpluses, provisions similar to those set forth in section
314(b) of that Act should be considered to ensure adequate
funding for enhancements to the security of United States
diplomatic missions.
SEC. 354. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON FUNDING FOR AFTER
SCHOOL EDUCATION.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds the following:
(1) The demand for after school education is very
high. In fiscal year 1998 the Department of Edu-
cation’s after school grant program was the most com-
petitive in the Department’s history. Nearly 2,000
school districts applied for over $540,000,000.
(2) After school programs help to fight juvenile
crime. Law enforcement statistics show that youth
who are ages 12 through 17 are most at risk of com-
138
HCON 68 EAS1S
mitting violent acts and being victims of violent acts
between 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. After school pro-
grams have been shown to reduce juvenile crime,
sometimes by up to 75 percent according to the Na-
tional Association of Police Athletic and Activity
Leagues.
(3) After school programs can improve edu-
cational achievement. They ensure children have safe
and positive learning environments in the after school
hours. In the Sacramento START after school pro-
gram 75 percent of the students showed an increase
in their grades.
(4) After school programs have widespread sup-
port. Over 90 percent of the American people support
such programs. Over 450 of the Nation’s leading po-
lice chiefs, sheriffs, and prosecutors, along with presi-
dents of the Fraternal Order of Police, and the Inter-
national Union of Police Associations support govern-
ment funding of after school programs. And many of
our Nation’s governors endorse increasing the number
of after school programs through a Federal of State
partnership.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the levels in this resolution assume that Congress
139
HCON 68 EAS1S
will provide $600,000,000 for the President’s after school
initiative in fiscal year 2000.
SEC. 355. SENSE OF THE SENATE CONCERNING RECOVERY
OF FUNDS BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IN
TOBACCO-RELATED LITIGATION.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the
‘‘Federal Tobacco Recovery and Medicare Prescription
Drug Benefit Resolution of 1999’’.
(b) FINDINGS.—The Senate makes the following find-
ings:
(1) The President, in his January 19, 1999
State of the Union address—
(A) announced that the Department of Jus-
tice would develop a litigation plan for the Fed-
eral Government against the tobacco industry;
(B) indicated that any funds recovered
through such litigation would be used to
strengthen the medicare program under title
XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
1395 et seq.); and
(C) urged Congress to pass legislation to in-
clude a prescription drug benefit in the medicare
program.
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HCON 68 EAS1S
(2) The traditional medicare program does not
include most outpatient prescription drugs as part of
its benefit package.
(3) Prescription drugs are a central element in
improving quality of life and in routine health main-
tenance.
(4) Prescription drugs are a key component to
early health care intervention strategies for the elder-
ly.
(5) Eighty percent of retired individuals take at
least 1 prescription drug every day.
(6) Individuals 65 years of age or older represent
12 percent of the population of the United States but
consume more than 1⁄3 of all prescription drugs con-
sumed in the United States.
(7) Exclusive of health care-related premiums,
prescription drugs account for almost 1⁄3 of the health
care costs and expenditures of elderly individuals.
(8) Approximately 10 percent of all medicare
beneficiaries account for nearly 50 percent of all pre-
scription drug spending by the elderly.
(9) Research and development on new genera-
tions of pharmaceuticals represent new opportunities
for healthier, longer lives for our Nation’s elderly.
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HCON 68 EAS1S
(10) Prescription drugs are among the key tools
in every health care professional’s medical arsenal to
help combat and prevent the onset, recurrence, or de-
bilitating effects of illness and disease.
(11) While possible Federal litigation against to-
bacco companies will take time to develop, Congress
should continue to work to address the immediate
need among the elderly for access to affordable pre-
scription drugs.
(12) Treatment of tobacco-related illness is esti-
mated to cost the medicare program approximately
$10,000,000,000 every year.
(13) In 1998, 50 States reached a settlement
with the tobacco industry for tobacco-related illness in
the amount of $206,000,000,000.
(14) Recoveries from possible Federal tobacco-re-
lated litigation, if successful, will likely be comparable
to or exceed the dollar amount recovered by the States
under the 1998 settlement.
(15) In the event Federal tobacco-related litiga-
tion is valid, undertaken and is successful, funds re-
covered under such litigation should first be used for
the purpose of strengthening the Federal Hospital In-
surance Trust Fund and second to finance a medicare
prescription drug benefit.
142
HCON 68 EAS1S
(16) The scope of any medicare prescription
drug benefit should be as comprehensive as possible,
with drugs used in fighting tobacco-related illnesses
given a first priority.
(17) Most Americans want the medicare program
to cover the costs of prescription drugs.
(c) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the assumptions underlying the functional totals
in this resolution assume that funds recovered under any
tobacco-related litigation commenced by the Federal Gov-
ernment should be used first for the purpose of strength-
ening the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund and sec-
ond to fund a medicare prescription drug benefit.
SEC. 356. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON OFFSETTING INAPPRO-
PRIATE EMERGENCY SPENDING.
It is the sense of the Senate that the levels in this reso-
lution assume that—
(1) some emergency expenditures made at the
end of the One Hundred Fifth Congress for fiscal year
1999 were inappropriately deemed as emergencies;
(2) Congress and the President should identify
these inappropriate expenditures and fully pay for
these expenditures during the fiscal year in which
they will be incurred; and
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HCON 68 EAS1S
(3) Congress should only apply the emergency
designation for occurrences that meet the criteria set
forth in the Congressional Budget Act.
SEC. 357. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS ON THE PRESI-
DENT’S FISCAL YEAR 2000 BUDGET PROPOSAL
TO TAX ASSOCIATION INVESTMENT INCOME.
(a) The Congress finds that:
(1) The President’s fiscal year 2000 Federal
budget proposal to impose a tax on the interest, divi-
dends, capital gains, rents, and royalties in excess of
$10,000 of trade associations and professional soci-
eties exempt under section 501(c)(6) of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986 represents an unjust and un-
necessary penalty on legitimate association activities.
(2) At a time when the Government is projecting
on-budget surpluses of more than $800,000,000,000
over the next 10 years, the President proposes to in-
crease the tax burden on trade and professional asso-
ciations by $1,440,000,000 over the next 5 years.
(3) The President’s association tax increase pro-
posal will impose a tremendous burden on thousands
of small and mid-sized trade associations and profes-
sional societies.
(4) Under the President’s association tax in-
crease proposal, most associations with annual oper-
144
HCON 68 EAS1S
ating budgets of as low as $200,000 or more will be
taxed on investment income and as many as 70,000
associations nationwide could be affected by this pro-
posal.
(5) Associations rely on this targeted investment
income to carry out tax-exempt status related activi-
ties, such as training individuals to adapt to the
changing workplace, improving industry safety, pro-
viding statistical data, and providing community
services.
(6) Keeping investment income free from tax en-
courages associations to maintain modest surplus
funds that cushion against economic and fiscal
downturns.
(7) Corporations can increase prices to cover in-
creased costs, while small and medium sized local, re-
gional, and State-based associations do not have such
an option, and thus increased costs imposed by the
President’s association tax increase would reduce re-
sources available for the important standard setting,
educational training, and professionalism training
performed by associations.
(b) It is the sense of Congress that the functional totals
in this concurrent resolution on the budget assume that
Congress shall reject the President’s proposed tax increase
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HCON 68 EAS1S
on investment income of associations as defined under sec-
tion 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
SEC. 358. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING FUNDING
FOR COUNTER-NARCOTICS INITIATIVES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) from 1985–1992, the Federal Government’s
drug control budget was balanced among education,
treatment, law enforcement, and international supply
reduction activities and this resulted in a 13-percent
reduction in total drug use from 1988 to 1991;
(2) since 1992, overall drug use among teens
aged 12 to 17 rose by 70 percent, cocaine and mari-
juana use by high school seniors rose 80 percent, and
heroin use by high school seniors rose 100 percent;
(3) during this same period, the Federal invest-
ment in reducing the flow of drugs outside our bor-
ders declined both in real dollars and as a proportion
of the Federal drug control budget;
(4) while the Federal Government works with
State and local governments and numerous private
organizations to reduce the demand for illegal drugs,
seize drugs, and break down drug trafficking organi-
zations within our borders, only the Federal Govern-
ment can seize and destroy drugs outside of our bor-
ders;
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(5) in an effort to restore Federal international
eradication and interdiction efforts, in 1998, Congress
passed the Western Hemisphere Drug Elimination
Act which authorized an additional $2,600,000,000
over 3 years for international interdiction, eradi-
cation, and alternative development activities;
(6) Congress appropriated over $800,000,000 in
fiscal year 1999 for anti-drug activities authorized in
the Western Hemisphere Drug Elimination Act; and
(7) the proposed Drug Free Century Act would
build upon many of the initiatives authorized in the
Western Hemisphere Drug Elimination Act, includ-
ing additional funding for the Department of Defense
for counter-drug intelligence and related activities.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the provisions of this resolution assume that—
(1) funding for Federal drug control activities
should be at a level higher than that proposed in the
President’s budget request for fiscal year 2000; and
(2) funding for Federal drug control activities
should allow for investments in programs authorized
in the Western Hemisphere Drug Elimination Act
and in the proposed Drug Free Century Act.
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SEC. 359. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON MODERNIZING AMER-
ICA’S SCHOOLS.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds the following:
(1) The General Accounting Office has performed
a comprehensive survey of the Nation’s public elemen-
tary and secondary school facilities and has found se-
vere levels of disrepair in all areas of the United
States.
(2) The General Accounting Office has concluded
that more than 14,000,000 children attend schools in
need of extensive repair or replacement; 7,000,000
children attend schools with life safety code violations;
and 12,000,000 children attend schools with leaky
roofs.
(3) The General Accounting Office has found
that the problem of crumbling schools transcends de-
mographic and geographic boundaries. At 38 percent
of urban schools, 30 percent of rural schools, and 29
percent of suburban schools, at least 1 building is in
need of extensive repair or should be completely re-
placed.
(4) The condition of school facilities has a direct
effect on the safety of students and teachers and on
the ability of students to learn. Academic research has
provided a direct correlation between the condition of
school facilities and student achievement. At George-
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town University, researchers have found the test scores
of students assigned to schools in poor condition can
be expected to fall 10.9 percentage points below the
test scores of students in buildings in excellent condi-
tion. Similar studies have demonstrated up to a 20
percent improvement in test scores when students
were moved from a poor facility to a new facility.
(5) The General Accounting Office has found
most schools are not prepared to incorporate modern
technology in the classroom. 46 percent of schools lack
adequate electrical wiring to support the full-scale use
of technology. More than a third of schools lack the
requisite electrical power. 56 percent of schools have
insufficient phone lines for modems.
(6) The Department of Education has reported
that elementary and secondary school enrollment, al-
ready at a record high level, will continue to grow
over the next 10 years, and that in order to accommo-
date this growth, the United States will need to build
an additional 6,000 schools.
(7) The General Accounting Office has deter-
mined that the cost of bringing schools up to good,
overall condition to be $112,000,000,000, not includ-
ing the cost of modernizing schools to accommodate
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technology, or the cost of building additional facilities
needed to meet record enrollment levels.
(8) Schools run by the Bureau of Indian Affairs
(BIA) for Native American children are also in dire
need of repair and renovation. The General Account-
ing Office has reported that the cost of total inventory
repairs needed for BIA facilities is $754,000,000. The
December 1997 report by the Comptroller General of
the United States states that, ‘‘Compared with other
schools nationally, BIA schools are generally in poor-
er physical condition, have more unsatisfactory envi-
ronmental factors, more often lack key facilities re-
quirements for education reform, and are less able to
support computer and communications technology.
(9) State and local financing mechanisms have
proven inadequate to meet the challenges facing to-
day’s aging school facilities. Large numbers of local
educational agencies have difficulties securing financ-
ing for school facility improvement.
(10) The Federal Government has provided re-
sources for school construction in the past. For exam-
ple, between 1933 and 1939, the Federal Government
assisted in 70 percent of all new school construction.
(11) The Federal Government can support ele-
mentary and secondary school facilities without inter-
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fering in issues of local control, and should help com-
munities leverage additional funds for the improve-
ment of elementary and secondary school facilities.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the budgetary levels in this budget resolution as-
sume that Congress will enact measures to assist school dis-
tricts in modernizing their facilities, including—
(1) legislation to allow States and school dis-
tricts to issue at least $24,800,000,000 worth of zero-
interest bonds to rebuild and modernize our Nation’s
schools, and to provide Federal income tax credits to
the purchasers of those bonds in lieu of interest pay-
ments; and
(2) appropriate funding for the Education Infra-
structure Act of 1994 during the period 2000 through
2004, which would provide grants to local school dis-
tricts for the repair, renovation and construction of
public school facilities.
SEC. 360. SENSE OF THE SENATE CONCERNING FUNDING
FOR THE LAND AND WATER CONSERVATION
FUND.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) amounts in the land and water conservation
fund finance the primary Federal program for ac-
quiring land for conservation and recreation and for
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supporting State and local efforts for conservation
and recreation;
(2) 
Congress 
has 
appropriated 
only
$10,000,000,000 out of the more than $21,000,000,000
covered into the fund from revenues payable to the
United States under the Outer Continental Shelf
Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq.); and
(3) 38 Senators cosigned 2 letters to the Chair-
man and Ranking Member of the Committee on the
Budget urging that the land and water conservation
fund be fully funded.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the levels in this resolution and legislation enacted
pursuant to this resolution assume that Congress should ap-
propriate $200,000,000 for fiscal year 2000 to provide fi-
nancial assistance to the States under section 6 of the Land
and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (16 U.S.C 460l–
8), in addition to such amounts as are made available for
Federal land acquisition under that Act for fiscal year
2000.
SEC. 361. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING SUPPORT
FOR FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL LAW EN-
FORCEMENT AND FOR THE VIOLENT CRIME
REDUCTION TRUST FUND.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
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(1) our Federal, State and local law enforcement
officers provide essential services that preserve and
protect our freedom and safety, and with the support
of Federal assistance such as the Local Law Enforce-
ment Block Grant Program, the Juvenile Account-
ability Incentive Block Grant Program, the COPS
Program, and the Byrne Grant Program, State and
local law enforcement officers have succeeded in reduc-
ing the national scourge of violent crime, illustrated
by a violent crime rate that has dropped in each of
the past four years;
(2) assistance, such as the Violent Offender In-
carceration/Truth in Sentencing Incentive Grants,
provided to State corrections systems to encourage
truth in sentencing laws for violent offenders has re-
sulted in longer time served by violent criminals and
safer streets for law abiding people across the Nation;
(3) through a comprehensive effort by State and
local law enforcement to attack violence against
women, in concert with the efforts of dedicated volun-
teers and professionals who provide victim services,
shelter, counseling and advocacy to battered women
and their children, important strides have been made
against the national scourge of violence against
women;
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(4) despite recent gains, the violent crime rate
remains high by historical standards;
(5) Federal efforts to investigate and prosecute
international terrorism and complex interstate and
international crime are vital aspects of a national
anticrime strategy, and should be maintained;
(6) the recent gains by Federal, State and local
law enforcement in the fight against violent crime
and violence against women are fragile, and contin-
ued financial commitment from the Federal Govern-
ment for funding and financial assistance is required
to sustain and build upon these gains; and
(7) the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund, en-
acted as a part of the Violent Crime Control and Law
Enforcement Act of 1994, funds the Violent Crime
Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, the Vio-
lence 
against 
Women 
Act 
of 
1994, 
and 
the
Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of
1996, without adding to the Federal budget deficit.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the provisions and the functional totals underlying
this resolution assume that the Federal Government’s com-
mitment to fund Federal law enforcement programs and
programs to assist State and local efforts to combat violent
crime shall be maintained, and that funding for the Violent
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Crime Reduction Trust Fund shall continue to at least fis-
cal year 2005.
SEC. 362. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING SOCIAL SECU-
RITY NOTCH BABIES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) the Social Security Amendments of 1977
(Public Law 95–216) substantially altered the way
Social Security benefits are computed;
(2) those amendments resulted in disparate bene-
fits depending upon the year in which a worker be-
comes eligible for benefits; and
(3) those individuals born between the years
1917 and 1926, and who are commonly referred to as
‘‘notch babies’’ receive benefits that are lower than
those retirees who were born before or after those
years.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the Congress should reevaluate the benefits of work-
ers who attain age 65 after 1981 and before 1992.
Attest:
Secretary.