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form Federal accounting system that is consistent
with generally accepted accounting principles.
(B) The Commission should be appointed on a
nonpartisan basis, and should be composed of public
and private experts in the fields of finance, economics,
accounting, and other related professions.
(C) The Commission should report to the Presi-
dent and the Congress by August 1, 1995, on its rec-
ommendations, and should include in its report a de-
tailed plan for implementing such recommendations.
SEC. 306. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS THAT 90 PERCENT OF
THE BENEFITS OF ANY TAX CUTS MUST GO
TO THE MIDDLE CLASS.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) the incomes of middle-class families have
stagnated since the early 1980’s, with family incomes
growing more slowly between 1979 and 1989 than in
any other business cycle since World War II; and
(2) according to the Department of the Treasury,
in 1996, approximately 90 percent of American fami-
lies will have incomes less than $100,000.
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of the Con-
gress that if the 1996 Concurrent Budget Resolution in-
cludes any cut in taxes, approximately 90 percent of the
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benefits of these tax cuts must go to working families with
incomes less than $100,000.
SEC. 307. BIPARTISAN COMMISSION ON THE SOLVENCY OF
MEDICARE.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
(1) the Health Insurance for the Aged Act, which
created the medicare program, was enacted on July
30, 1965, and, therefore, the medicare program will
celebrate its 30-year anniversary on July 30, 1995;
(2) on April 3, 1995, the Trustees of medicare
submitted their 1995 Annual Report on the Status of
the Medicare Program to the Congress;
(3) the Trustees of medicare have concluded that
‘‘the medicare program is clearly unsustainable in its
present form’’;
(4) the Trustees of medicare have concluded that
‘‘the Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, which pays in-
patient hospital expenses, will be able to pay benefits
for only about 7 years and is severely out of financial
balance in the long range’’;
(5) the Public Trustees of medicare have con-
cluded that ‘‘the Supplementary Medical Insurance
Trust Fund shows a rate of growth of costs which is
clearly unsustainable’’;
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(6) the Trustees of medicare have recommended
‘‘legislation to reestablish the Quadrennial Advisory
Council that will help lead to effective solutions to the
problems of the program’’;
(7) the Bipartisan Commission on Entitlement
and Tax Reform concluded that, absent long-term
changes in medicare, projected medicare outlays will
increase from about 4 percent of the payroll tax base
today to over 15 percent of the payroll tax base by
the year 2030;
(8) the Bipartisan Commission on Entitlement
and Tax Reform recommended, by a vote of 30 to 1,
that spending and revenues available for medicare
must be brought into long-term balance;
(9) the Public Trustees of medicare have con-
cluded that ‘‘We had hoped for several years that com-
prehensive health reform would include meaningful
medicare reforms. However, with the results of the last
Congress, it is now clear that medicare reform needs
to be addressed urgently as a distinct legislative ini-
tiative’’; and
(10) the Public Trustees of medicare ‘‘strongly
recommend that the crisis presented by the financial
condition of the medicare trust funds be urgently ad-
dressed on a comprehensive basis, including a review
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of the programs’s financing methods, benefit provi-
sions, and delivery mechanisms.’’.
(b) SENSE OF THE CONGRESS.—It is the sense of the
Congress that—
(1) a special bipartisan commission should be es-
tablished immediately to make recommendations con-
cerning the most appropriate response to the short-
term solvency and long-term sustainability issues fac-
ing medicare;
(2) the commission should report to Congress its
recommendations on the appropriate response to the
short-term solvency of medicare by July 10, 1995, in
order that the committees of jurisdiction may consider
those recommendations in fashioning an appropriate
congressional response; and
(3) the commission should report its rec-
ommendations to respond to the Public Trustees’ call
to make medicare’s financial condition sustainable
over the long term to Congress by February 1, 1996.
SEC. 308. SENSE OF THE SENATE ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF
AGRICULTURE SAVINGS.
It is the sense of the Senate that, in response to the
reconciliation instructions in section 105 of this resolution,
the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and For-
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estry should provide that no more than 20 percent of the
savings be achieved in commodity programs.
SEC. 309. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS REGARDING PROTEC-
TION OF CHILDREN’S HEALTH.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) Today’s children and the next generation are
the prime beneficiaries of the benefits of attaining a
balanced Federal budget. Without a balanced budget,
today’s children must bear the increasing burden of
the Federal debt. Continued deficit spending would
doom future generations to slower economic growth
and lower living standards.
(2) The health of children is essential to the fu-
ture economic and social well-being of the Nation.
(3) Medicaid covers one in four children and one
in three births. Nearly 60 percent of children covered
by medicaid are from working families.
(4) While children represent one-half of all peo-
ple eligible for medicaid, they account for less than 25
percent of medicaid expenditures.
(5) Medicaid provides a broad range of services
essential for the health of a significant portion of the
Nation’s children with disabilities.
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of the Con-
gress that—
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(1) the health care needs of low-income pregnant
women and children should be a top priority;
(2) careful study must be made of the impact of
medicaid reform proposals on children’s health and
on vital sources of care including children’s hospitals
and community and migrant health centers; and
(3) medicaid reform legislation which would
allow greater State flexibility in the delivery of care
and in the control of the rate of growth in costs of the
program should also encourage States to place a pri-
ority on coverage for pregnant women and children.
SEC. 310. SENSE OF THE SENATE THAT LOBBYING EX-
PENSES SHOULD REMAIN NONDEDUCTIBLE.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that ordinary Amer-
icans generally are not allowed to deduct the costs of com-
municating with their elected representatives.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that lobbying expenses should not be tax deductible.
SEC. 311. EXPATRIATE TAXES.
It is the sense of the Senate that—
(1) Congress should revise the Internal Revenue
Code to ensure that very wealthy individuals are not
able to reduce or avoid their United States income, es-
tate, or gift tax liability by relinquishing their Unit-
ed States citizenship; and
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(2) the increased revenues resulting from the re-
vision should be used to reduce the deficit.
SEC. 312. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING LOSSES OF
TRUST FUNDS DUE TO FRAUD AND ABUSE IN
THE MEDICARE PROGRAM.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—
(1) the General Accounting Office estimates that
as much as $100,000,000,000 are wasted each year in
the health care system due to fraud and abuse;
(2) outlays for the medicare program under title
XVIII of the Social Security Act during fiscal year
1994 were $161,100,000,000, and the General Ac-
counting Office estimates that up to 10 percent of
those outlays were wasted because of fraud and abuse;
(3) medicare beneficiaries incur higher out-of-
pocket costs and copayments due to inflated billings
resulting from fraudulent and abusive practices per-
petrated against the medicare program; and
(4) funds lost because of fraud and abuse are
contributing to the financial crises of the Federal
Hospital Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Sup-
plementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund, as identi-
fied by the Boards of Trustees of such trust funds in
their 1995 annual reports.
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(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that as the Committee on Finance of the Senate and,
if established, the Bipartisan Commission on the Solvency
of Medicare recommended under section 307, address the
long-term solvency of the medicare program under title
XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.),
high priority should be given to proposals which identify,
eliminate, and recover funds expended from the Federal
Hospital Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Supple-
mentary Medical Insurance Trust Fund due to fraud and
abuse in such program. In addition, the Senate assumes
that funds recovered from enhanced anti-fraud and abuse
efforts be used to fund health care anti-fraud and abuse en-
forcement efforts, reimbursements to the Federal Hospital
Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Supplementary
Medical Insurance Trust Fund for losses due to fraud and
abuse, and deficit reduction.
SEC. 313. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS REGARDING FULL
FUNDING FOR DECADE OF THE BRAIN RE-
SEARCH.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) long-term health care costs associated with
diseases and disorders of the brain have a substantial
impact on Federal expenditures for medicaid and
medicare, and on the earning potential of the Nation;
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(2) to highlight the impact of brain diseases and
disorders on the economy and well being of the Nation
the Congress has declared the 1990’s the Decade of the
Brain;
(3) meaningful research has been initiated as
part of the Decade of the Brain;
(4) if fully funded this research could provide
important new medical breakthroughs; and
(5) these breakthroughs could result in a signifi-
cant reduction in costs to the Federal Government.
(b) SENSE OF THE CONGRESS.—It is the sense of the
Congress that in furtherance of the goals of the Decade of
the Brain the appropriate committees should seek to ensure
that full funding is provided for research on brain diseases
and disorders in each of the fiscal years to which this resolu-
tion applies.
SEC. 314. CONSIDERATION OF THE INDEPENDENT BUDGET
FOR VETERANS AFFAIRS, FISCAL YEAR 1996.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds as follows:
(1) Whereas over 26,000,000 veterans are eligible
for veterans health care;
(2) Whereas the Veterans Health Administration
of the Department of Veterans Affairs operates the
largest Federal medical care delivery system in the
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United States, providing for the medical care needs of
our Nation’s veterans;
(3) Whereas the veterans’ service organizations
have provided a plan, known as the Independent
Budget for Veterans Affairs, to reform the veterans’
health care delivery system to adapt it to the modern
health care environment and improve its ability to
meet the health care needs of veterans in a cost-effec-
tive manner;
(4) Whereas current budget proposals assume a
change in the definition of service-connected veterans;
(5) Whereas proposals contained within the
Independent Budget may provide improved service to
veterans;
(6) Whereas current budget proposals may not
have fully considered the measures proposed by the
veterans’ service organizations in the Independent
Budget.
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Congress
that the reforms and proposals contained within the Inde-
pendent Budget for Veterans Affairs, Fiscal Year 1996
should be given careful consideration in an effort to ensure
the Nation’s commitment to its veterans.
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SEC. 315. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING THE COSTS
OF THE NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION
ACT OF 1993.
It is the sense of the Senate that within the assump-
tions under budget function 800 funds will be spent for re-
imbursement to the States for the costs of implementing the
National Voter Registration Act of 1993.
SEC. 316. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING PRESI-
DENTIAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN FUND.
It is the sense of the Senate that the assumptions un-
derlying function 800 include the following: That payments
to presidential campaigns from the Presidential Election
Campaign Fund, as authorized by the Federal Election
Campaign Act of 1974, should not be used to pay for or
augment damage awards or settlements arising from a civil
or criminal action, or the threat thereof, related to sexual
harassment.
SEC. 317. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING FUNDS TO DE-
FEND AGAINST SEXUAL HARASSMENT.
It is the sense of Congress that no Member of Congress
or the Executive Branch may use campaign funds or pri-
vately donated funds to defend against sexual harassment
lawsuits.