I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 3295
To provide for the payment of compensation to the families of the Federal
employees who were killed in the crash of a United States Air Force
CT–43A aircraft on April 3, 1996, near Dubrovnik, Croatia, carrying
Secretary of Commerce Ronald H. Brown and 34 others.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
NOVEMBER 10, 1999
Mr. FARR of California (for himself, Mr. GEKAS, Mr. FORBES, Mr. FRANK
of Massachusetts, Ms. NORTON, Mr. SHAYS, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr.
PAYNE, Mr. GILCHREST, Mr. KENNEDY of Rhode Island, Mr. RAHALL,
Mr. GILMAN, Mrs. MEEK of Florida, Mr. THOMPSON of California, Ms.
PELOSI, Mr. KING, Mr. WYNN, Mrs. CHRISTENSEN, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE
JOHNSON of Texas, Ms. MILLENDER-MCDONALD, Mrs. MALONEY of New
York, Mr. RANGEL, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. WAXMAN, Mr.
JACKSON of Illinois, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. STARK, Ms. WATERS, Mr.
TIERNEY, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. SISISKY, and Mr.
MCDERMOTT) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To provide for the payment of compensation to the families
of the Federal employees who were killed in the crash
of a United States Air Force CT–43A aircraft on April
3, 1996, near Dubrovnik, Croatia, carrying Secretary
of Commerce Ronald H. Brown and 34 others.
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 ‘‘CT–43A Federal Em-
ployee Settlement Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) On April 3, 1996, Secretary of Commerce
Ronald H. Brown embarked on a mission to Croatia
to build trade ties and provide economic assistance
to the former Yugoslavia as part of the United
States commitment to bring lasting peace to Bosnia-
Herzegovina and Croatia. Accompanying Secretary
Brown were numerous United States Government
officials and high-ranking representatives of United
States infrastructure and economic development in-
terests.
(2) The Department of Defense provided Sec-
retary Brown and his party a United States Air
Force CT–43A aircraft and crew for transport pur-
poses.
(3) On April 3, 1996, the aircraft carrying Sec-
retary Brown and his party crashed into a moun-
tainside near Dubrovnik, Croatia, while attempting
an instrument approach into the Cilipi Airport (serv-
ing Dubrovnik).
(4) The crash resulted in the death of all 35
persons aboard, as well as the loss of the aircraft
and personal effects of the crew and passengers.
(5) The Air Force investigation into the crash
concluded that the accident was caused by a failure
of command, aircrew error, and an improperly de-
signed instrument approach procedure.
SEC. 3. COMPENSATION FOR FAMILIES OF FEDERAL CIVIL-
IAN EMPLOYEES.
(a) REQUIREMENT TO MAKE PAYMENTS.—The Sec-
retary of the Air Force shall pay, from amounts available
to the Air Force for the payment of claims, the amount
of $2,000,000 to the specified beneficiary of each of the
14 Federal civilian officers and employees killed in the
crash of a United States Air Force CT–43A aircraft on
April 3, 1996, near Dubrovnik, Croatia.
(b) DEADLINE.—The Secretary shall make each pay-
ment required by subsection (a) not later than 90 days
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(c) SPECIFIED BENEFICIARIES.—For the purposes of
this section, the specified beneficiary of a Federal civilian
officer or employee described in subsection (a) is deter-
mined in the manner specified in section 5582(b) of title
5, United States Code. If in the case of any such officer
or employee there is more than one such beneficiary, the
payment required by subsection (a) shall be paid in equal
shares to those beneficiaries.
(d) RELATIONSHIP
TO OTHER PAYMENTS.—The
amount payable under this section with respect to the
death of a Federal civilian officer or employee shall be re-
duced by any amount (other than a statutory death gra-
tuity for burial benefits) previously determined to be pay-
able by the United States (under section 127 or chapter
163 of title 10, United States Code, or any other provision
of law for administrative settlement of claims) by reason
of the death of that officer or employee .
(e) FULL SETTLEMENT OF CLAIMS.—Acceptance by
a specified beneficiary of a payment under this section
constitutes full settlement of all claims by that person
against the United States arising from the death of the
officer or employee with respect to whom the payment is
made.
(f) CONSTRUCTION.—The payment of an amount
under this section may not be considered to constitute a
statement of legal liability on the part of the United States
or otherwise as evidence of any material fact in any judi-
cial proceeding or investigation arising from the accident
described in subsection (a).
(g) LIMITATION
ON ATTORNEY FEES.—Notwith-
standing any contract, no representative of a beneficiary