105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1585
AN ACT
To allow postal patrons to contribute to funding for breast
cancer research through the voluntary purchase of cer-
tain specially issued United States postage stamps, and
for other purposes.
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 ‘‘Stamp Out Breast
Cancer Act’’.
SEC. 2. SPECIAL POSTAGE STAMPS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 4 of title 39, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the follow-
ing:
‘‘§ 414. Special postage stamps
‘‘(a) In order to afford the public a convenient way
to contribute to funding for breast cancer research, 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 sec-
tion—
‘‘(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 breast
cancer research pursuant to this section, the Postal Serv-
ice shall pay—
‘‘(A) 70 percent to the National Institutes of
Health, and
‘‘(B) the remainder to the Department of De-
fense.
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 such agency shall
be made at least twice a year.
‘‘(2) For purposes of this section, the term ‘amounts
becoming available for breast cancer research 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 National Institutes of
Health, the Department of Defense, or any other
agency of the Government (or any component or
program thereof) below the level that would other-
wise have been received but for the enactment 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—
‘‘(1) the total amount described in subsection
(c)(2)(A) which was received by the Postal Service
during the period covered by such report; and
‘‘(2) of the amount under paragraph (1), how
much (in the aggregate and by category) was re-
quired for the purposes described in subsection
(c)(2)(B).
‘‘(g) This section shall cease to be effective at the
end of the 2-year period beginning on the date on which
special postage stamps under this section are first made
available to the public.’’.
(b) REPORT BY THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF
THE UNITED STATES.—No later than 3 months (but no
earlier than 6 months) before the end of the 2-year period
referred to in section 414(g) of title 39, United States
Code (as amended by subsection (a)), the Comptroller
General of the United States shall submit to the Congress
a report on the operation of such section. Such report shall
include—
(1) an evaluation of the effectiveness and the
appropriateness of the authority provided by such
section as a means of fund-raising; and
(2) a description of the monetary and other re-
sources required of the Postal Service in carrying
out such section.
(c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections
for chapter 4 of title 39, United States Code, is amended
by adding at the end the following:
‘‘414. Special postage stamps.’’.
Passed the House of Representatives July 22, 1997.
Attest:
Clerk.