the Capitol (and any special purpose entity created
pursuant to the plan) shall be deemed a Federal
agency within the meaning of section 3 of the Fed-
eral Financing Bank Act of 1973 (12 U.S.C. 2282).
(3) Execution and delivery by the Architect of
the Capitol (or by any special purpose entity created
pursuant to the plan) of multiple-year agreements,
contracts, leases, guaranties, instruments of indebt-
edness, or such other documentation as may be nec-
essary or desirable to facilitate, support, or act as
collateral for the project or to provide goods or serv-
ices to or for the benefit of the project.
(c) USE OF GIFTS.—Gifts received pursuant to sec-
tion 5 of this Act shall be used to reduce, discharge, or
provide collateral for any indebtedness incurred in connec-
tion with the project (whether incurred prior or subse-
quent to the receipt of such gift) until such indebtedness
(including any accrued but unpaid interest thereon) has
been repaid in full.
SEC. 4. CONSTRUCTION.
(a) BUILDING CODES.—The project shall meet design
standards applicable under nationally recognized building
codes, as determined by the Architect of the Capitol. Dur-
ing construction, the Architect shall conduct periodic in-
spections for the purpose of assuring that such standards
are being met.
(c) APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN LAWS.—The project
shall not be subject to any Federal or State law (including
laws of the District of Columbia) relating to taxes, build-
ing codes, permits, or inspections.
SEC. 5. GIFTS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of carrying out
the project, the Architect of the Capitol may solicit, re-
ceive, accept, hold, and dispose of gifts or donations of
services or property.
(b) DEPOSIT OF RECEIPTS.—Subsequent to the re-
payment of all indebtedness and subject to the provisions
of the plan approved pursuant to section 3, the Architect
of the Capitol shall deposit into the account established
by section 6(a) all monetary gifts received under sub-
section (a) and all proceeds from the disposition of non-
monetary gifts received under subsection (a).
(c) TREATMENT UNDER TAX LAWS.—Any gift ac-
cepted in accordance with the plan approved pursuant to
section 3 shall be considered a gift to the United States
for the purposes of income, estate, and gift tax laws of
the United States.
SEC. 6. ACCOUNT IN THE TREASURY.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the
Treasury of the United States a separate account entitled
‘‘Architect of the Capitol, Capitol Buildings and Grounds,
Capitol Visitor Center, Gifts and Donations’’ which shall
consist of amounts deposited into the account by the Ar-
chitect of the Capitol under section 5(b) and amounts
credited to the account pursuant to this section.
(b) AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.—Funds in the ac-
count established by subsection (a) shall be available to
the Architect of the Capitol for carrying out the project
in such amounts as are specified in appropriations Acts.
Such funds shall not be subject to any fiscal year limita-
tion.
(c) REPORTING OF TRANSACTIONS.—Receipts, obli-
gations, and expenditures of funds in the account estab-
lished by subsection (a) shall be reported in annual esti-
mates submitted to Congress by the Architect of the Cap-
itol for the operation and maintenance of the Capitol
Buildings and Grounds.
(d) INVESTMENT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Treas-
ury shall invest such portion of the account estab-
lished by subsection (a) as is not, in the judgment
of the Secretary, required to meet current withdraw-
als. Such investments may be made only in interest-
bearing obligations of the United States. For such
purpose, such obligations may be acquired—
(A) on original issue at the issue price; or
(B) by purchase of outstanding obligations
at the market price.
(2) SALE OF OBLIGATIONS.—Any obligation ac-
quired by the account may be sold at the market
price.
(3) INTEREST
ON
CERTAIN
PROCEEDS.—The
interest on, and the proceeds from the sale or re-
demption of, any obligations held in the account
shall be credited to and form part of the account.
SEC. 7. AUTHORITY TO CONTRACT.
To assure that only the most responsible, experi-
enced, and qualified parties are utilized to carry out the
project, notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
Architect of the Capitol may establish competitive proce-
dures for such work by the use of prequalification stand-
ards and may award contracts on the basis of contractor
qualifications as well as price. Such procedures and con-
tract awards shall be final and conclusive upon all officers
of the government.
SEC. 8. SPECIAL COMMITTEE OF UNITED STATES CAPITOL
PRESERVATION COMMISSION.
(a) DELEGATION
OF
FUNCTIONS.—The United
States Capitol Preservation Commission is authorized to
delegate to the Special Committee appointed pursuant to
the amendment made by subsection (b) the functions of
the Commission under this Act.
(b) ESTABLISHMENT.—Section 801 of the Arizona-
Idaho Conservation Act of 1988 (40 U.S.C. 188a) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(f) SPECIAL COMMITTEE.—
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Commission is au-
thorized to establish a Special Committee consisting
of 3 members as follows:
‘‘(A) One Member of the House of Rep-
resentatives to be appointed by the Commission.
‘‘(B) One Member of the Senate to be ap-
pointed by the Commission.
‘‘(C) One Member of the House of Rep-
resentatives or the Senate or 1 knowledgeable
and experienced private citizen to be appointed
by the 2 members appointed pursuant to sub-
paragraphs (A) and (B).
‘‘(2) CHAIRMAN; 
FUNCTIONS.—The Special
Committee established pursuant to paragraph (1)
shall elect its own chairperson and shall provide the
Architect of the Capitol with all necessary oversight
and direction in the exercise of the authority granted
to the Architect under the Capitol Visitor Center
Authorization Act of 1996.’’.
SEC. 9. REPEAL.
The provisions of title III of the National Visitor Cen-
ter Facilities Act of 1968 (82 Stat. 43) shall be super-
seded and repealed to the extent that such provisions are
inconsistent with the provisions of the plan approved pur-
suant to section 3.
Æ