I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2730
To allow postal patrons to contribute to funding for emergency food relief
within the United States through the voluntary purchase of certain
specially issued United States postage stamps.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
AUGUST 5, 1999
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas (for herself, Mrs. ROUKEMA, Mrs. EMERSON, Mr.
GREEN of Texas, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. KENNEDY of Rhode Island, Mrs.
MEEK of Florida, Ms. Brown of Florida, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. HALL of Ohio,
and Mr. LANTOS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Government Reform
A BILL
To allow postal patrons to contribute to funding for emer-
gency food relief within the United States through the
voluntary purchase of certain specially issued United
States postage stamps.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘George Thomas ‘Mick-
ey’ Leland Hunger Relief Stamp Act of 1999’’.
SEC. 2. SPECIAL POSTAGE STAMPS FOR EMERGENCY FOOD
RELIEF WITHIN THE UNITED STATES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 4 of title 39, United
States Code, is amended by inserting after section 414 the
following:
‘‘§ 414a. Special postage stamps for emergency food
relief within the United States
‘‘(a) In order to afford the public a convenient way
to contribute to emergency food relief within the United
States, the Postal Service shall establish a special rate of
postage for first-class mail under this section.
‘‘(b) The rate of postage established under this
section—
‘‘(1) shall be equal to the regular first-class rate
of postage, plus a differential of not to exceed 25
percent;
‘‘(2) shall be set by the Governors in accord-
ance with such procedures as the Governors shall by
regulation prescribe (in lieu of the procedures under
chapter 36); and
‘‘(3) shall be offered as an alternative to the
regular first-class rate of postage.
The use of the special rate of postage established under
this section shall be voluntary on the part of postal pa-
trons.
‘‘(c)(1) Of the amounts becoming available for emer-
gency food relief within the United States pursuant to this
section, the Postal Service shall pay—
‘‘(A) 50 percent to the Department of Agri-
culture, for purposes of the Emergency Food Assist-
ance Program; and
‘‘(B) 50 percent to the Agency for International
Development, for purposes of the Africa Food Secu-
rity Initiative.
Payments under this paragraph to an agency shall be
made under such arrangements as the Postal Service shall
by mutual agreement with such agency establish in order
to carry out the purposes of this section, except that,
under those arrangements, payments to that agency shall
be made at least twice a year.
‘‘(2) For purposes of this section, the term ‘amounts
becoming available for emergency food relief within the
United States pursuant to this section’ means—
‘‘(A) the total amounts received by the Postal
Service that it would not have received but for the
enactment of this section, reduced by
‘‘(B) an amount sufficient to cover reasonable
costs incurred by the Postal Service in carrying out
this section, including those attributable to the
printing, sale, and distribution of stamps under this
section,
as determined by the Postal Service under regulations that
it shall prescribe.
‘‘(d) It is the sense of the Congress that nothing in
this section should—
‘‘(1) directly or indirectly cause a net decrease
in total funds received by the Department of Agri-
culture, the Agency for International Development,
or any other agency of the Government (or any com-
ponent or program thereof) below the level that
would otherwise have been received but for the en-
actment of this section; or
‘‘(2) affect regular first-class rates of postage
or any other regular rates of postage.
‘‘(e) Special postage stamps under this section shall
be made available to the public beginning on such date
as the Postal Service shall by regulation prescribe, but in
no event later than 12 months after the date of the enact-
ment of this section.
‘‘(f) The Postmaster General shall include in each re-
port rendered under section 2402 with respect to any pe-
riod during any portion of which this section is in effect
information concerning the operation of this section, ex-
cept that, at a minimum, each shall include—