HR 1141 PP
36030, and 62 Federal Register 3742 (1997) until October
1, 1999, or until there is a negotiated agreement on the
rule.
SEC. 2306. Of the $2,200,000 appropriated in Public
Law 105–276 in accordance with H.R. Conference Report
No. 105–769 to meet sewer infrastructure needs associated
with the 2002 Winter Olympic Games shall be awarded to
Wasatch County, UT, for both water and sewer.
SEC. 2307. For the remainder of fiscal year 1999, no
funds may be used by the Department of the Interior to
implement Secretarial Order 3208, issued January 5, 1999,
regarding the ‘‘Reorganization of the Office of the Special
Trustee for American Indians’’. Fiscal year 1999 funds ap-
propriated for purposes of reforming trust funds manage-
ment practices shall continue to be administered as if the
Order had not been issued.
SEC. 2308. EXTENSION OF AIRPORT IMPROVEMENT
PROGRAM. (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Sec-
tion 48103 of title 49, United States Code, as amended by
section 110(b)(1) of title I of division C of the Omnibus
Consolidated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations
Act, 1999 (Public Law 105–277), is amended by striking
‘‘$1,205,000,000’’ and all that follows through ‘‘October 1,
1998’’and inserting ‘‘$1,607,000,000 for the 8-month period
beginning October 1, 1998.’’.
HR 1141 PP
(b) OBLIGATIONAL AUTHORITY.—Section 47104(c) of
title 49, United States Code, as amended by section
110(b)(2) of title I of division C of the Omnibus Consoli-
dated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act,
1999 (Public Law 105–277), is amended by striking
‘‘March 31, 1999’’ and inserting ‘‘May 31, 1999’’.
(c) LIQUIDATION OF CONTRACT AUTHORIZATION.—
The Department of Transportation and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act, 1999, as enacted in section 101(g) of
Public Law 105–277, is amended as follows: Under the
heading ‘‘Grants-in-Aid for Airports, (Liquidation of Con-
tract Authorization), (Airport and Airway Trust Fund)’’,
delete the last proviso, and insert the following in lieu there-
of: ‘‘: Provided further, That not more than $1,300,000,000
of funds limited under this heading may be obligated before
the enactment of a bill extending contract authorization for
the Grants-in-Aid for airports program beyond May 31,
1999.’’.
SEC. 2309. (a) Section (a) of section 149, division C
of Pubic Law 105–277 is amended by striking ‘‘April 1,
1999’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘September 30, 1999’’.
(b) Section (b) of section 149, division C of Public Law
105–277 is amended by striking ‘‘April 1, 1999’’ each time
it appears and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘September 30,
1999’’.
HR 1141 PP
SEC. 2310. (a) Section 339(b)(3) of the Consolidated
Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1989(b)(3) is
amended—
(1) by striking the comma and the remainder of
paragraph (3) following the comma; and
(2) by inserting a period after ‘‘(1)’’.
(b) Section 353(c)(3)(C) of the Consolidated Farm and
Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 2001(c)(3)(C)) is amend-
ed by striking ‘‘100 percent’’ and inserting ‘‘110 percent’’.
SEC. 2311. PROHIBITION ON TREATING ANY FUNDS
RECOVERED FROM TOBACCO COMPANIES AS AN OVERPAY-
MENT FOR PURPOSES OF MEDICAID. (a) AMENDMENT TO
SOCIAL SECURITY ACT.—Section 1903(d)(3) of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396b(d)(3)) is amended—
(1) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(3)’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(B)(i) Subparagraph (A) and paragraph (2)(B)
shall not apply to any amount recovered or paid to
a State as part of the comprehensive settlement of No-
vember 1998 between manufacturers of tobacco prod-
ucts, as defined in section 5702(d) of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986, and State Attorneys General,
or as part of any individual State settlement or judg-
ment reached in litigation initiated or pursued by a
State against one or more such manufacturers.
HR 1141 PP
‘‘(ii) Except as provided in subsection (i)(19), a
State may use amounts recovered or paid to the State
as part of a comprehensive or individual settlement,
or a judgment, described in clause (i) for any expend-
itures determined appropriate by the State.’’.
(b) PROHIBITION ON PAYMENT FOR ADMINISTRATIVE
EXPENSES INCURRED
IN PURSUING TOBACCO LITIGA-
TION.—Section 1903(i) of the Social Security Act (42
U.S.C. 1396b(i)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (18), by striking the period
and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (18) the fol-
lowing new paragraph:
‘‘(19) with respect to any amount expended on
administrative costs to initiate or pursue litigation
described in subsection (d)(3)(B).’’.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section and the amend-
ments made by this section shall apply to amounts paid
to a State prior to, on, or after the date of enactment of
this Act.
SEC. 2312. EXTENSION OF AVIATION INSURANCE PRO-
GRAM. Section 44310 of title 49, United States Code, is
amended by striking ‘‘March 31, 1999.’’ and inserting
‘‘May 31, 1999.’’.
HR 1141 PP
SEC. 2313. TITLE 49 RECODIFICATION CORRECTION.
Effective December 31, 1998, section 4(k) of the Act of July
5, 1994 (Public Law 103–272, 108 Stat. 1370), as amended
by section 7(a)(3)(D) of the Act of October 31, 1994 (Public
Law 103–429, 108 Stat. 4329), is repealed.
SEC. 2314. Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, the taking of a Cook Inlet beluga whale under the ex-
emption provided in section 101(b) of the Marine Mammal
Protection Act (16 U.S.C. 1371(a)) between the date of the
enactment of this Act and October 1, 2000 shall be consid-
ered a violation of such Act unless such taking occurs pursu-
ant to a cooperative agreement between the National Marine
Fisheries Service and Cook Inlet Marine Mammal Council.
SEC. 2315. Funds provided in the Department of Com-
merce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agen-
cies Appropriations Act, 1999 (Public Law 105–277, divi-
sion A, section 101(b)) for the construction of correctional
facility in Barrow, Alaska shall be made available to the
North Slope Borough.
SEC. 2316. LIABILITY
OF CERTAIN NATURAL GAS
PRODUCERS. The Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 (15
U.S.C. 3301 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
HR 1141 PP
‘‘SEC. 603. LIABILITY OF CERTAIN NATURAL GAS PRO-
DUCERS.
‘‘If the Commission orders any refund of any rate or
charge made, demanded, or received for reimbursement of
State ad valorem taxes in connection with the sale of nat-
ural gas before 1989, the refund shall be ordered to be made
without interest or penalty of any kind.’’.
SEC. 2317. Section 328 of the Department of the Inte-
rior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999 (Public
Law 105–277, division A, section 1(e), title III) is amended
by striking ‘‘none of the funds in this Act’’ and inserting
‘‘none of the funds provided in this Act to the Indian Health
Service or Bureau of Indian Affairs’’.
SEC. 2318. (a) LOAN DEFICIENCY PAYMENTS
FOR
CLUB WHEAT PRODUCERS.—In making loan deficiency
payments available under section 135 of the Agricultural
Market Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7235) to producers of club
wheat, the Secretary of Agriculture may not assess a pre-
mium adjustment on the amount that would otherwise be
computed for club wheat under the section to reflect the pre-
mium that is paid for club wheat to ensure its availability
to create a blended specialty product known as western
white wheat.
(b) RETROACTIVE APPLICATION.—As soon as prac-
ticable after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec-
retary of Agriculture shall make a payment to each pro-
HR 1141 PP
ducer of club wheat that received a discounted loan defi-
ciency payment under section 135 of the Agricultural Mar-
ket Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7235) before that date as a
result of the assessment of a premium adjustment against
club wheat. The amount of the payment for a producer shall
be equal to the difference between—
(1) the loan deficiency payment that would have
been made to the producer in the absence of the pre-
mium adjustment; and
(2) the loan deficiency payment actually received
by the producer.
(c) FUNDING SOURCE.—The Secretary shall use funds
available to provide marketing assistance loans and loan
deficiency payments under subtitle C of the Agricultural
Market Transition Act (7 U.S.C. 7231 et seq.) to make the
payments required by subsection (b).
SEC. 2319. GLACIER BAY. (a) DUNGENESS CRAB
FISHERMEN.—Section 123(b) of the Department of the Inte-
rior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999 (sec-
tion 101(e) of division A of Public Law 105–277) is
amended—
(1) in paragraph (1)—
(A) by striking ‘‘February 1, 1999’’ and in-
serting ‘‘June 1, 1999’’; and
HR 1141 PP
(B) by striking ‘‘1996’’ and inserting
‘‘1998’’; and
(2) by striking ‘‘the period January 1, 1999,
through December 31, 2004, based on the individual’s
net earnings from the Dungeness crab fishery during
the period January 1, 1991, through December 31,
1996’’ and inserting ‘‘for the period beginning Janu-
ary 1, 1999 that is equivalent in length to the period
established by such individual under paragraph (1),
based on the individual’s net earnings from the Dun-
geness crab fishery during such established period’’.
(b) OTHERS AFFECTED BY FISHERY CLOSURES AND
RESTRICTIONS.—Section 123 of the Department of the Inte-
rior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999 (sec-
tion 101(e) of division A of Public Law 105–277), as
amended, is amended further by redesignating subsection
(c) as subsection (d) and inserting immediately after sub-
section (b) the following new subsection:
‘‘(c) OTHERS AFFECTED BY FISHERY CLOSURES AND
RESTRICTIONS.—The Secretary of the Interior is authorized
to provide such funds as are necessary for a program devel-
oped with the concurrence of the State of Alaska to fairly
compensate United States fish processors, fishing vessel crew
members, communities, and others negatively affected by re-
strictions on fishing in Glacier Bay National Park. For the
100
HR 1141 PP
purpose of receiving compensation under the program re-
quired by this subsection, a potential recipient shall provide
a sworn and notarized affidavit to establish the extent of
such negative effect.’’.
(c) IMPLEMENTATION.—Section 123 of the Department
of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act,
1999 (section 101(e) of division A of Public Law 105–277),
as amended, is amended further by inserting at the end the
following new subsection:
‘‘(e) IMPLEMENTATION AND EFFECTIVE DATE.—The
Secretary of the Interior shall publish an interim final rule
for the federal implementation of subsection (a) and shall
provide an opportunity for public comment on such interim
final rule. The effective date of the prohibitions in para-
graphs (2) through (5) of section (a) shall be 60 days after
the publication in the Federal Register of a final rule for
the federal implementation of subsection (a). In the event
that any individual eligible for compensation under sub-
section (b) has not received full compensation by June 15,
1999, the Secretary shall provide partial compensation on
such date to such individual and shall expeditiously provide
full compensation thereafter.’’.
(d) Of the funds provided under the heading ‘‘National
Park Service, Construction’’ in Public Law 105–277,
101
HR 1141 PP
$3,000,000 shall not be available for obligation until Octo-
ber 1, 1999.
SEC. 2320. WHITE RIVER SCHOOL DISTRICT #47–1.
From any unobligated funds that are available to the Sec-
retary of Education to carry out section 306(a)(1) of the
Department of Education Appropriations Act, 1996, the
Secretary shall provide not more than $239,000, under such
terms and conditions as the Secretary determines appro-
priate, to the White River School District #47–1, White
River, South Dakota, to be used to repair damage caused
by water infiltration at the White River High School, which
shall remain available until expended.
SEC. 2321. (a) The treatment provided to firefighters
under section 628(f) of the Treasury and General Govern-
ment Appropriations Act, 1999 (as included in section
101(h) of division A of the Omnibus Consolidated and
Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1999 (Public
Law 105–277)) shall be provided to any firefighter who—
(1) on the effective date of section 5545b of title
5, United States Code—
(A) was subject to such section; and
(B) had a regular tour of duty that aver-
aged more than 60 hours per week; and
(2) before December 31, 1999, is involuntarily
moved without a break in service from the regular
102
HR 1141 PP
tour of duty under paragraph (1) to a regular tour
of duty that—
(A) averages 60 hours or less per week; and
(B) does not include a basic 40-hour work-
week.
(b) Subsection (a) shall apply to firefighters described
under that subsection as of the effective date of section 5545b
of title 5, United States Code.
(c) The Office of Personnel Management may prescribe
regulations necessary to implement this section.
SEC. 2322. SENSE OF THE SENATE: EXPRESSING THE
SENSE OF THE SENATE THAT A PENDING SALE OF WHEAT
AND OTHER AGRICULTURAL COMMODITIES TO IRAN BE AP-
PROVED. (a) The Senate finds:
(1) That an export license is pending for the sale
of United States wheat and other agricultural com-
modities to the nation of Iran.
(2) That this sale of agricultural commodities
would increase United States agricultural exports by
about $500,000,000, at a time when agricultural ex-
ports have fallen dramatically.
(3) That sanctions on food are counterproductive
to the interest of United States farmers and to the
people who would be fed by these agricultural exports.
103
HR 1141 PP
(b) Now therefore, it is the sense of the Senate that
the pending license for this sale of United States wheat and
other agricultural commodities to Iran be approved by the
administration.
SEC. 2323. PROHIBITION. (a) Notwithstanding any
other provision of law, prior to eight months after Congress
receives the report of the National Gambling Impact Study
Commission, the Secretary of the Interior shall not—
(1) promulgate as final regulations, or in any
way implement, the proposed regulations published on
January 22, 1998, at 63 Fed. Reg. 3289; or
(2) issue a notice of proposed rulemaking for, or
promulgate, or in any way implement, any similar
regulations to provide for procedures for gaming ac-
tivities under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25
U.S.C. 2701 et seq.), in any case in which a State as-
serts a defense of sovereign immunity to a lawsuit
brought by an Indian tribe in a Federal court under
section 11(d)(7) of that Act (25 U.S.C. 2710(d)(7)) to
compel the State to participate in compact negotia-
tions for class III gaming (as that term is defined in
section 4(8) of that Act (25 U.S.C. 2703(8))).
(3) approve class III gaming on Indian lands by
any means other than a Tribal-State compact entered
into between a State and a tribe.
104
HR 1141 PP
(b) DEFINITIONS.—
(1) The terms ‘‘class III gaming’’, ‘‘Secretary’’,
‘‘Indian lands’’, and ‘‘Tribal-State compact’’ shall
have the same meaning for the purposes of this section
as those terms have under the Indian Gaming Regu-
latory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.).
(2) The ‘‘report of the National Gambling Im-
pact Study Commission’’ is the report described in
section 4(b) of Public Law 104–169 (18 U.S.C. sec.
1955 note).
SEC. 2324. FINDINGS AND SENSE OF SENATE RE-
GARDING
SEQUENTIAL
BILLING
POLICY
FOR
HOME
HEALTH PAYMENTS UNDER THE MEDICARE PROGRAM. (a)
FINDINGS.—The Senate finds the following:
(1) Section 4611 of the Balanced Budget Act of
1997 included a provision that transfers financial re-
sponsibility for certain home health visits under the
medicare program under title XVIII of the Social Se-
curity Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) from part A to
part B of such program.
(2) The sole intent of the transfer described in
paragraph (1) was to extend the solvency of the Fed-
eral Hospital Insurance Trust Fund under section
1817 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1395i).
105
HR 1141 PP
(3) The transfer described in paragraph (1) was
supposed to be ‘‘seamless’’ so as not to disrupt the
provision of home health services under the medicare
program.
(4) The Health Care Financing Administration
has imposed a sequential billing policy that prohibits
home health agencies under the medicare program
from submitting claims for reimbursement for home
health services provided to a beneficiary unless all
claims for reimbursement for home health services
that were previously provided to such beneficiary have
been completely resolved.
(5) The Health Care Financing Administration
has also expanded medical reviews of claims for reim-
bursement submitted by home health agencies, result-
ing in a significant slowdown nationwide in the proc-
essing of such claims.
(6) The sequential billing policy described in
paragraph (4), coupled with the slowdown in claims
processing described in paragraph (5), has substan-
tially increased the cash flow problems of home health
agencies because payments are often delayed by at
least 3 months.
106
HR 1141 PP
(7) The vast majority of home health agencies
under the medicare program are small businesses that
cannot operate with significant cash flow problems.
(8) There are many other elements under the
medicare program relating to home health agencies,
such as the interim payment system under section
1861(v)(1)(L) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(v)(1)(L)),
that are creating financial problems for home health
agencies, thereby forcing more than 2,200 home health
agencies nationwide to close since the date of enact-
ment of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997.
(b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the Sen-
ate that the Health Care Financing Administration
should—
(1) evaluate and monitor the use of the sequen-
tial billing policy (as described in subsection (a)(4))
in making payments to home health agencies under
the medicare program under title XVIII of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.);
(2) ensure that—
(A) contract fiscal intermediaries under the
medicare program are timely in their random
medical review of claims for reimbursement sub-
mitted by home health agencies; and
107
HR 1141 PP
(B) such intermediaries adhere to Health
Care Financing Administration instructions
that limit the number of claims for reimburse-
ment held for such review for any particular
home health agency to no more than 10 percent
of the total number of claims submitted by the
agency; and
(3) ensure that such intermediaries are consid-
ering and implementing constructive alternatives,
such as expedited reviews of claims for reimburse-
ment, for home health agencies with no history of bill-
ing problems who have cash flow problems due to ran-
dom medical reviews and sequential billing.
SEC. 2325. A payment of $800,000 from the total
amount of $1,000,000 for construction of the Pike’s Peak
Summit House, as specified in Conference Report 105–337,
accompanying the Department of the Interior and Related
Agencies Appropriations Act for fiscal year 1998, Public
Law 105–83, and payments of $2,000,000 for the Borough
of Ketchikan to participate in a study of the feasibility and
dynamics of manufacturing veneer products in Southeast
Alaska and $200,000 for construction of the Pike’s Peak
Summit House, as specified in Conference Report 105–825
accompanying the Department of the Interior and Related
Agencies Appropriations Act for fiscal year 1999 (as con-
108
HR 1141 PP
tained in division A, section 101(e) of the Omnibus Consoli-
dated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act,
1999 (Public Law 105–277)), shall be paid in lump sum
and shall be considered direct payments, for the purposes
of all applicable law except that these direct grants may
not be used for lobbying activities.
SEC. 2326. Section 617 of the Department of Com-
merce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agen-
cies Appropriations Act, 1999 (as added by section 101(b)
of division A of the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency
Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1999 (Public Law 105–
277)) is amended—
(1) by striking subsection (a) and inserting in
lieu thereof the following:
‘‘(a) None of the funds made available in this Act or
any other Act hereafter enacted may be used to issue or
renew a fishing permit or authorization for any fishing ves-
sel of the United States greater than 165 feet in registered
length, of more than 750 gross registered tons, or that has
an engine or engines capable of producing a total of more
than 3,000 shaft horsepower as specified in the permit ap-
plication required under part 648.4(a)(5) of title 50, Code
of Federal Regulations, part 648.12 of title 50, Code of Fed-
eral Regulations, and the authorization required under part
648.80(d)(2) of title 50, Code of Federal Regulations, to en-
109
HR 1141 PP
gage in fishing for Atlantic mackerel or herring (or both)
under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and
Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.), unless the re-
gional fishery management council of jurisdiction rec-
ommends after October 21, 1998, and the Secretary of Com-
merce approves, conservation and management measures in
accordance with such Act to allow such vessel to engage in
fishing for Atlantic mackerel or herring (or both).’’; and
(2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘subsection
(a)(1)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)’’.
SEC. 2327. The Corps of Engineers is directed to repro-
gram $800,000 of the funds made available to that agency
in fiscal year 1999 for the operation of the Pick-Sloan
project to perform the preliminary work needed to transfer
Federal lands to the tribes and State of South Dakota, and
to provide the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe and Cheyenne
River Sioux Tribe with funds to begin protecting invaluable
Indian cultural sites, under the Cheyenne River Sioux
Tribe, Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, and State of South Dakota
Terrestrial Wildlife Habitat Restoration Act.
SEC. 2328. GLACIER BAY. No funds may be expended
by the Secretary of the Interior to implement closures or
other restrictions of subsistence or commercial fishing or
subsistence gathering in Glacier Bay National Park, except
the closure of Dungeness crab fisheries under section 123(b)