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‘‘(2) to avoid agreements that—
‘‘(A) lessen the effectiveness of domestic and
international disciplines on unfair trade, espe-
cially dumping and subsidies; or
‘‘(B) lessen the effectiveness of domestic and
international safeguard provisions, in order to
ensure that United States workers, agricultural
producers, and firms can compete fully on fair
terms and enjoy the benefits of reciprocal trade
concessions; and
‘‘(3) to address and remedy market distortions
that lead to dumping and subsidization, including
overcapacity, cartelization, and market-access bar-
riers.’’.
WAIVER OF LICENSING AND CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
SEC. 528. WAIVER OF LICENSING AND CERTIFICATION
REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO CERTAIN HEALTH PRO-
FESSIONALS.—(a) IN
GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any
other provision of law, an eligible health professional may
provide health-related services under the medicare, med-
icaid, or SCHIP program under title XVIII, XIX, or XXI
of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq., 1396
et seq., and 1397 et seq.) and under Indian Health Service
programs, regardless of the licensing or certification laws
of the State in which such services are being provided, dur-
ing the 90-day period that begins on the date on which eligi-
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bility is determined by the State licensing board of the State
in which such professional will provide health-related serv-
ices under this subsection.
(b) ELIGIBLE HEALTH PROFESSIONAL.—To be eligible
to provide health-related services in a State during the pe-
riod referred to in subsection (a) without State licensure
or certification, a health professional shall—
(1) be a physician, nurse, dentist, pharmacist,
mental health professional, or allied health profession,
or any other professional determined appropriate by
the Secretary of Health and Human Services;
(2) have a valid license from, or be certified in,
at least one of the States affected by Hurricane
Katrina, as described in subsection (d), and not be af-
firmatively barred from practicing in that State;
(3) have been evacuated from Louisiana or Mis-
sissippi as a result of Hurricane Katrina; and
(4) have applied, prior to March 31, 2006, for a
license or certification in the State in which such pro-
fessional will provide the health-related services under
subsection (a) without State licensure or certification.
(c) EVIDENCE OF LICENSURE.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—A State may develop a proc-
ess to verify the licensing credentials of a health pro-
fessional to which this section applies if the profes-
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sional has no official evidence of licensure in his or
her possession.
(2) FRAUD.—An individual who wilfully pro-
vides any false or misleading information to a Fed-
eral, State, or local official for purposes of being cov-
ered under the provisions of this section shall, in ad-
dition to any State penalties that may apply, be sub-
ject to a fine, as determined appropriate by the Attor-
ney General in accordance with title 18, United
States Code.
(d) STATES DESCRIBED.—The States described in this
subsection are Louisiana and Mississippi.
(e) LIMITATION.—A health professional may only elect
to utilize the provisions of this section for a single 90-day
period.
(f) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section
shall be construed as altering or affecting any procedures
adopted by State health professional licensing or certifi-
cation boards relating to waivers of licensing and certifi-
cation requirements for health professionals affected by
Hurricane Katrina.
(g) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘health-re-
lated services’’, as such term is applied to health profes-
sional under this section, means services provided by a
health professional that are consistent with the scope of
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practice of the professional in the State in which such pro-
fessional is seeking licensure or certification.
DISASTER RELIEF
SEC. 529. SMALL BUSINESS, HOMEOWNERS, AND
RENTERS DISASTER RELIEF.—(a) DISASTER LOANS.—
Section 7(b) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(b))
is amended by inserting immediately after paragraph (3)
the following:
‘‘(4) 
DISASTER
LOANS
AFTER
HURRICANE
KATRINA.—
‘‘(A) ADDITIONAL LOAN AUTHORITY.—
‘‘(i) LOANS TO SMALL BUSINESSES.—
In addition to any other loan authorized by
this subsection, the Administrator may
make such loans under this subsection (ei-
ther directly or in cooperation with banks
or other lending institutions through agree-
ments to participate on an immediate or
deferred basis) as the Administrator deter-
mines appropriate to a small business con-
cern or small agricultural cooperative that
demonstrates a direct adverse economic im-
pact caused by Hurricane Katrina, based
on such criteria as the Administrator may
set by rule, regulation, or order.
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‘‘(ii) LOANS TO NONPROFITS.—In ad-
dition to any other loan authorized by this
subsection, the Administrator may make
such loans under this subsection (either di-
rectly or in cooperation with banks or other
lending institutions through agreements to
participate on an immediate or deferred
basis) as the Administrator determines ap-
propriate to a non-profit organization for
purposes of repairing damage caused by
Hurricane Katrina or performing other
hurricane relief services in a damaged area.
‘‘(B) INCREASED LOAN CAPS.—
‘‘(i) AGGREGATE LOAN AMOUNTS.—Ex-
cept as provided in clause (ii), the aggregate
loan amount outstanding and committed to
a qualified borrower in a damaged area
under this paragraph may not exceed
$10,000,000.
‘‘(ii) WAIVER
AUTHORITY.—The Ad-
ministrator may, at the discretion of the
Administrator, waive the aggregate loan
amount established under clause (i).
‘‘(C) DEFERMENT OF DISASTER LOAN PAY-
MENTS.—
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‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—Notwithstanding
any other provision of law, payments of
principal and interest on a loan to a quali-
fied borrower located in a damaged area
made under this subsection before, on, or
after the date of enactment of this para-
graph shall be deferred, and no interest
shall accrue with respect to such loan, dur-
ing the time period described in clause (ii).
‘‘(ii) TIME PERIOD.—The time period
for purposes of clause (i) shall be 1 year
from the later of the date of enactment of
this paragraph or the date of issuance of a
loan described in clause (i), but may be ex-
tended to 2 years from such date, at the dis-
cretion of the Administrator.
‘‘(iii) RESUMPTION OF PAYMENTS.—At
the end of the time period described in
clause (ii), the payment of periodic install-
ments of principal and interest shall be re-
quired with respect to such loan, in the
same manner and subject to the same terms
and conditions as would otherwise be appli-
cable to any other loan made under this
subsection.