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Q: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Early Education Employee Benefit Act 
of 2002''.

SEC. 2. AUTHORITY TO MAKE GRANTS.

    The Secretary of Health and Human Services may make grants on a 
competitive basis, and payable during a period of not less than 2 years 
and not more than 5 years, to eligible States and political 
subdivisions of States--
            (1) to establish innovative partnerships with private 
        partners to reduce the cost incurred by employees and union 
        members to obtain early education (including child care, 
        preschool, and other early childhood programs), or
            (2) to assist private partners to pay part of the cost of 
        acquiring, building, and renovating physical premises to be 
        used as new early education facilities.

SEC. 3. ELIGIBILITY OF STATES AND POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS OF STATES TO 
              RECEIVE GRANTS.

    To be eligible to receive a grant under section 2, a State or a 
political subdivision of a State shall submit to the Secretary an 
application at such time, in such form, and containing such information 
as the Secretary may require by rule, including--
            (1) the agency designated by the State, or the political 
        subdivision of a State, to serve as the lead agency that will 
        administer such grant,
            (2) a description of the program such applicant intends to 
        carry out with such grant,
            (3) a description of the source, and increasing annual 
        amount, of the funds such applicant will use to pay the non-
        Federal share of the cost to carry out such program during a 
        period not less than 2 years and not more than 5 years, and
            (4) an agreement that such State or such political 
        subdivision--
                    (A) will contribute (from non-Federal funds) to 
                carry out such program, an amount equal to 50 percent 
                of the amount of such grant,
                    (B) will not require a private partner to offer on-
                site early education as a condition for participation 
                in an Early Education Benefit Agreement, and
                    (C) will use such grant to supplement, not 
                supplant, spending by such State, such political 
                subdivision, and private partners to improve access to 
                and enhance the quality of early education.

SEC. 4. SELECTION OF APPLICANTS TO RECEIVE GRANTS.

    In making grants under this Act, the Secretary shall give priority 
to eligible applicants that--
            (1) are, in the judgment of the Secretary, most likely to 
        increase the number of employees and members who receive an 
        Early Education Benefit through their employers and unions,
            (2) propose innovative public-private partnerships that 
        will carry out early education programs that are likely to be 
        replicated,
            (3) are likely to be sustainable beyond the period during 
        which such grant is expended,
            (4) are developed in consultation with child care resource 
        and referral agencies and networks, and with employers and 
        unions,
            (5) demonstrate the intention and ability to provide--
                    (A) with funds to be expended for the use described 
                in section 5(1), Early Education Benefits through Early 
                Education Benefit Agreements to a significant number of 
                employees of private employers with fewer than 50 
                employees, or
                    (B) with funds to be expended for the use described 
                in section 5(2), Early Education Start-up Grants to 
                private employers with fewer than 50 employees, and
                    (6) have experience working on early childhood 
                issues and working in partnership with the business 
                community, or have an agreement to implement the 
                program funded by a grant made under section 2 through 
                a nonprofit entity with such experience.

SEC. 5. USES OF FUNDS.

    A recipient of a grant made under section 2 shall use such grant--
            (1) to enter into Early Education Benefit Agreements to 
        provide Early Education Benefits, or
            (2) to provide funds to private partners to establish new 
        early education facilities,
except that not more than 5 percent of such grant may be used to pay 
administrative costs incurred by such recipient to carry out this Act, 
including providing outreach to private partners.

SEC. 6. EARLY EDUCATION BENEFIT AGREEMENTS.

    (a) Eligibility.--To be eligible to receive funds to be used for 
the purpose specified in section 5(1) from a grant made under section 
2, a private partner, or consortia of private partners, shall enter 
into an Early Education Benefit Agreement with the recipient of such 
grant that includes the following:
            (1) An assurance that such private partner, or such 
        consortia, will pay not less than--
                    (A) \1/3\ of the cost of such Early Education 
                Benefit, or
                    (B) \1/5\ of such cost if such private partner, or 
                such consortia, creates a new early education facility 
                that--
                            (i) serves children less than 2 years of 
                        age or children with disabilities, or
                            (ii) is available during nontraditional 
                        work hours.
            (2) An assurance that such private partner, or such 
        consortia, shall offer such Early Education Benefit on a 
        priority basis to such employees or such members who have lower 
        incomes if such Early Education Benefit is not offered to all 
        such employees or all such members.
            (3) An assurance that if such private partner, or such 
        consortia, requires that such Early Education Benefit received 
        by an employee or member be expended at a limited number of 
        sites where early education (including child care, preschool, 
        and other early childhood programs) is provided, then 
there shall be at least 1 provider of early education (including child 
care, preschool, and other early childhood programs) for which such 
Early Education Benefit may be expended, that is--
                    (A) located at or near the residence or place of 
                employment of such employee or such member, and
                    (B) accredited by the National Association for the 
                Education of Young Children or the National Association 
                for Family Child Care, or taking steps to obtain such 
                accreditation.
            (4) An assurance that early education paid for in whole or 
        in part by such Early Education Benefit will be provided by a 
        provider that is licensed or regulated by the State.
            (5) A detailed description of--
                    (i) the nature of the Early Education Benefit to be 
                provided,
                    (ii) the respective financial contributions of such 
                private partner, or such consortia, and such grant 
                recipient, and the procedures by which such 
                contributions will be made,
                    (iii) the number of employees or members expected 
                to receive the Early Education Benefit provided under 
                such Agreement, and
                    (iv) the estimated total cost of such Benefit to 
                such private partner (or such consortia), such grant 
                recipient, and such employees or such members.
    (b) Selection of Private Partners To Enter Into Early Education 
Benefit Agreements.--In selecting private partners with which to enter 
into Early Education Benefit Agreements, a recipient of a grant made 
under section 2 shall give priority to--
            (1) private partners that will make larger financial 
        contributions to the Early Education Benefit,
            (2) private partners with fewer employees or members,
            (3) private partners that will make an Early Education 
        Benefit available to employees and members on a sliding scale 
        inversely proportional to their level of earned income, and
            (4) private partners that have a history of personnel 
        policies and practices that enable their employees or their 
        members to balance work commitments with family obligations.

SEC. 7. EARLY EDUCATION START-UP GRANTS.

    (a) Eligibility To Receive Funds.--To be eligible to receive funds 
for the use specified in section 5(2) from a grant made under section 
2, a private partner shall agree--
            (1) to subsidize attendance at the proposed new early 
        education facility for children of lower-paid employees or 
        members, and
            (2) to pay not less than \1/3\ of the cost of acquiring, 
        building, and renovating physical premises to be used as such 
        facility.
    (b) Selection of Private Partners To Receive Funds.--In providing 
funds to private partners from a grant received for the use specified 
in section 5(2), a recipient of a grant made under section 2 shall give 
priority to--
            (1) private partners that will create a facility to provide 
        early education that--
                    (A) serves children less than 2 years of age or 
                children with disabilities, or
                    (B) is available during nontraditional hours during 
                which their parents are employed,
            (2) private partners that will operate such a facility that 
        is accredited, has a low ratio of children to adults, or 
        demonstrates other facts that show such facility offers an 
        early education program of high quality,
            (3) private partners that will pay with nongovernmental 
        funds a larger share of the cost of the use for which the Early 
        Education Start-up Grant funds will be expended,
            (4) private partners that have fewer employees or members, 
        and
            (5) private partners that have a history of personnel 
        policies and practices that enable their employees or members 
        to balance work commitments with family obligations.

SEC. 8. REPORTS.

    (a) Reports by Grantees.--The Secretary shall issue rules that 
require each recipient of a grant made under section 2 to submit 
annually to the Secretary a report that includes the following 
information for the fiscal year for which such report is submitted:
            (1) The number of Early Education Benefit Agreements 
        participated in and Start-Up Grants made.
            (2) Information about the private partners, including the 
        industry of which they are a part and their size.
            (3) Information about the number of employees who are both 
        offered and are receiving Early Education Benefits as a result 
        of such grant,including the number and average incomes of 
        employees who are receiving Early Education Benefits and the 
        number of employees who were offered and declined Early 
        Education Benefits.
            (4) Information about the amount of private spending on 
        Early Education Benefits and on the investment in new early 
        education facilities leveraged by the grants.
            (5) If appropriate and available, information about whether 
        and at what level private partners have continued to provide 
        Early Education Benefits after the conclusion of the grantee's 
        participation in an Early Education Benefit Agreement.
    (b) Reports by the Secretary.--The Secretary shall submit to the 
Congress biennially a report that includes the following information 
for the period of 2 fiscal years for which such report is submitted:
            (1) Summaries of the reports received under subsection (a) 
        by the Secretary for such period.
            (2) A description of the implementation of this Act, and 
        its impact on employees' access to early education programs for 
        their children, during such period.

SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act:
            (1) Child.--The term ``child'' means an individual who is 
        less that 6 years of age.
            (2) Early Education Benefit.--The term ``Early Education 
        Benefit'' means assistance, in cash or in kind, to pay any part 
        of the cost incurred by employees and union members to obtain 
        early education (including child care, preschool, and other 
        early childhood programs) for their children.
            (3) Early Education Benefit Agreement.--The term ``Early 
        Education Benefit Agreement'' means a contract under which a 
        recipient of a grant under section 2 and a private partner that 
        receives from such recipient funds provided for the use 
        described in section 5(1) agree to provide jointly an Early 
        Education Benefit for children of the members or employees of 
        such private partner.
            (4) Private Partner.--The term ``private partner'' means a 
        private employer, labor union, and consortia of employers or 
        labor unions.
            (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Health and Human Services.

SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act such 
sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 2003 through 2007.

A: Early Education Employee Benefit Act of 2002 - Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make competitive matching grants to States and local governments to: (1) enter Early Education Benefit Agreements with private partners to provide part of the cost of Early Education Benefits, which reduce costs incurred by employees and union members to obtain early education (including child care, preschool, and other early childhood programs); or (2) make Early Education Start-Up Grants to assist private partners to pay part of the cost of acquiring, building, and renovating physical premises to be used as new early education facilities, if such partners subsidize attendance at those facilities for children of lower-paid employees or union members.
****
Q: SECTION 1. ELIMINATION OF QUOTA AND PRICE SUPPORT PROGRAMS FOR PEANUTS.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
Secretary of Agriculture and the Commodity Credit Corporation may not 
provide loans, purchases, payments, or other operations or take any 
other action to support the price, or adjust or control the production, 
of peanuts by using the funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation or 
under the authority of any law.
    (b) Marketing Quotas.--
            (1) In general.--Part VI of subtitle B of title III of the 
        Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 (7 U.S.C. 1357 et seq.) is 
        repealed.
            (2) Conforming amendments.--
                    (A) Definitions.--Section 301(b) of the Act (7 
                U.S.C. 1301(b)) is amended--
                            (i) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking 
                        ``corn, rice, and peanuts'' and inserting 
                        ``corn and rice'';
                            (ii) in paragraph (6), by striking 
                        subparagraph (C);
                            (iii) in paragraph (10)(A)--
                                    (I) by striking ``wheat, and 
                                peanuts'' and inserting ``and wheat''; 
                                and
                                    (II) by striking ``; 20 per centum 
                                in the case of wheat; and 15 per centum 
                                in the case of peanuts'' and inserting 
                                ``; and 20 percent in the case of 
                                wheat'';
                            (iv) in paragraph (13)--
                                    (I) by striking subparagraphs (B) 
                                and (C); and
                                    (II) in subparagraph (G), by 
                                striking ``or peanuts'' both places it 
                                appears; and
                            (v) in paragraph (16)(A), by striking 
                        ``rice, and peanuts'' and inserting ``and 
                        rice''.
                    (B) Administrative provisions.--Section 361 of the 
                Act (7 U.S.C. 1361) is amended by striking 
                ``peanuts,''.
                    (C) Adjustment of quotas.--Section 371 of the Act 
                (7 U.S.C. 1371) is amended--
                            (i) in the first sentence of subsection 
                        (a), by striking ``peanuts,''; and
                            (ii) in the first sentence of subsection 
                        (b), by striking ``peanuts''.
                    (D) Reports and records.--Section 373 of the Act (7 
                U.S.C. 1373) is amended--
                            (i) in subsection (a), by striking the 
                        first sentence and inserting the following new 
                        sentence: ``This subsection shall apply to 
                        warehousemen, processors, and common carriers 
                        of corn, wheat, cotton, rice, or tobacco, and 
                        all ginners of cotton, all persons engaged in 
                        the business of purchasing corn, wheat, cotton, 
                        rice, or tobacco from producers, and all 
                        persons engaged in the business of redrying, 
                        prizing, or stemming tobacco for producers.''; 
                        and
                            (ii) in subsection (b), by striking 
                        ``peanuts,''.
                    (E) Regulations.--Section 375(a) of the Act (7 
                U.S.C. 1375(a)) is amended by striking ``peanuts,''.
                    (F) Eminent domain.--The first sentence of section 
                378(c) of the Act (7 U.S.C. 1378(c)) is amended by 
                striking ``cotton, tobacco, and peanuts,'' and 
                inserting ``cotton and tobacco,''.
    (c) Price Support Program.--
            (1) Permanent price support.--Section 101(b) of the 
        Agricultural Act of 1949 (7 U.S.C. 1441 et seq.) is amended by 
        striking ``and peanuts''.
            (2) Temporary price support.--Sections 108, 108A, and 108B 
        of the Act (7 U.S.C. 1445c through 1445c-3) are repealed.
            (3) Conforming amendments.--
                    (A) Section 301 of the Act (7 U.S.C. 1447) is 
                amended by inserting after ``nonbasic agricultural 
                commodity'' the following: ``(other than peanuts)''.
                    (B) Section 408(c) of the Act (7 U.S.C. 1428(c)) is 
                amended by striking ``peanuts,''.
                    (C) Section 5(a) of the Commodity Credit 
                Corporation Charter Act (15 U.S.C. 714c(a)) is amended 
                by inserting after ``agricultural commodities'' the 
                following: ``(other than peanuts)''.
    (c) Liability.--A provision of this section or an amendment made by 
this section shall not affect the liability of any person under any 
provision of law as in effect before the application of the provision 
of this section or the amendment in accordance with subsection (d).
    (d) Application.--This section and the amendments made by this 
section shall apply beginning with the 1996 crop of peanuts.

A: Amends the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 and the Agricultural Act of 1949 to repeal respective peanut quota and price support programs.
****
Q: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Independent Ethics Commission Act of 
2007''.

SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF INDEPENDENT ETHICS COMMISSION.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established an independent ethics 
commission within the House of Representatives to be known as the 
Independent Ethics Committee (in this Act referred to as the 
``Commission'').
    (b) Membership and Terms of Office.--(1) The Commission shall 
consist of 9 commissioners, 4 appointed by the Speaker and 4 by the 
minority leader of the House, and one selected by the affirmative vote 
of two-thirds of the 8 appointed commissioners for a term of 5 years. 
No commissioner may serve for more than 5 years.
    (2) Commissioners shall be appointed for terms of 5 years, except 
that of the commissioners first appointed, 2 appointed by the Speaker 
and 2 by the minority leader shall be for 3-year terms and 2 appointed 
by the Speaker and 2 by the minority leader shall be for 4-year terms 
as designated by the Speaker and the minority leader at the time of 
appointment.
    (c) Qualifications.--Only former Federal judges shall be eligible 
for appointment to the Commission.
            (1) Disqualifications for appointments.--
                    (A) Lobbying.--No individual who has been a 
                lobbyist registered under the Lobbying Disclosure Act 
                of 1995 or engages in, or is otherwise employed in, 
                lobbying of the Congress or who is an agent of a 
                foreign principal registered under the Foreign Agents 
                Registration Act within the 4-year period immediately 
                preceding appointment shall be eligible for appointment 
                to, or service on, the Commission.
                    (B) Incompatible office.--No member of the 
                Commission appointed under subsection (b) may be a 
                Member of the House of Representatives or Senator.
            (2) Vacancies.--A vacancy on the Commission shall be filled 
        in the manner in which the original appointment was made.
    (d) Compensation.--Members shall each be entitled to receive the 
daily equivalent of the maximum annual rate of basic pay in effect for 
Level III of the Executive Schedule for each day (including travel 
time) during which they are engaged in the actual performance of duties 
vested in the Commission.
    (e) Quorum.--A majority of the members of the Commission shall 
constitute a quorum.
    (f) Meetings.--The Commission shall meet at the call a majority of 
its members.

SEC. 3. DUTIES OF COMMISSION.

    (a) Duties.--The Commission is authorized--
            (1) to receive, monitor, and oversee financial disclosure 
        and other reports filed by Members of the House and officers 
        and employees of the House under the Ethics in Government Act 
        of 1978, and reports filed by registered lobbyists under the 
        Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995;
            (2) to investigate any alleged violation, by a Member, 
        officer, or employee of the House of Representatives, of any 
        rule or other standard of conduct applicable to the conduct of 
        such Member, officer, or employee under House rules in the 
        performance of his duties or the discharge of his 
        responsibilities;
            (3) to present a case of probable ethics violations to the 
        Committee on Standards of Official Conduct of the House of 
        Representatives;
            (4) to make recommendations to the Committee on Standards 
        of Official Conduct of the House of Representatives that it 
        report to the appropriate Federal or State authorities any 
        substantial evidence of a violation by a Member, officer, or 
        employee of the House of Representatives of any law applicable 
        to the performance of his duties or the discharge of his 
        responsibilities, which may have been disclosed in an 
        investigation by the Office;
            (5) to provide information and informal guidance to 
        Members, officers and employees of the House of Representatives 
        regarding any rules and other standards of conduct applicable 
        to such individuals in their official capacities, and develop 
        and carry out periodic educational briefings for Members, 
        officers, and employees of the House of Representatives on 
        those laws, rules, regulations, or other standards; and
            (6) to give consideration to the request of any Member, 
        officer, or employee of the House of Representatives for a 
        formal advisory opinion or other formal ruling, subject to the 
        review of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct of the 
        House of Representatives, as applicable, with respect to the 
        general propriety of any current or proposed conduct of such 
        Member, officer, or employee and, with appropriate deletions to 
        assure the privacy of the individual concerned, to publish such 
        opinion for the guidance of other Members, officers, and 
        employees of the House of Representatives.

SEC. 4. POWERS OF COMMISSION.

    (a) Hearings and Evidence.--The Commission may for the purpose of 
carrying out this Act--
            (1) hold such hearings and sit and act at such times and 
        places, take such testimony, receive such evidence, administer 
        such oaths; and
            (2) subject to subsection (b), require, by subpoena or 
        otherwise, the attendance and testimony of such witnesses and 
        the production of such books, records, correspondence, 
        memoranda, papers, and documents, as the Commission may 
        determine advisable.
    (b) Subpoenas.--A subpoena may be issued only with a majority of 
the Commission.
    (c) Obtaining Information.--Upon request of the Commission, the 
head of any agency or instrumentality of the Government shall furnish 
information deemed necessary by the Commission to enable it to carry 
out its duties.
    (d) Referrals to the Department of Justice.--Whenever the 
Commission has reason to believe that a violation of the Lobbying 
Disclosure Act of 1995 may have occurred, that matter may be referred 
to the Department of Justice for it to investigate.
    (e) General Audits.--The Commission shall have the authority to 
conduct general audits of filings under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 
1995.

SEC. 5. INVESTIGATIONS AND INTERACTION WITH THE HOUSE COMMITTEE ON 
              STANDARDS OF OFFICIAL CONDUCT.

    (a) Notification.--Whenever the Commission determines that there 
are sufficient grounds to conduct an investigation--
            (1) the Commission shall notify the Committee on Standards 
        of Official Conduct of this determination;
            (2) the applicable committee may overrule the determination 
        of the Commission if, within 10 legislative days--
                    (A) the committee by an affirmative, roll-call vote 
                of two-thirds of the full committee votes to overrule 
                the determination of the Commission;
                    (B) the committee issues a public report detailing 
                its reasoning for overruling the Commission;
                    (C) the vote of each member of the committee on 
                such roll-call vote is included in the report;
                    (D) dissenting members are allowed to issue their 
                own report detailing their reasons for disagreeing with 
                the majority vote; and
                    (E) if the committee votes to overrule the 
                determination of the Commission pursuant to 
                subparagraph (B), the Commission may publish and make 
                available to the general public a report detailing the 
                reasons that the Commission concluded there were 
                sufficient grounds to conduct an investigation.
    (b) Conducting Investigations.--(1) If the Commission determines 
that there are sufficient grounds to conduct an investigation and his 
determination is not overruled under subsection (a)(5), the Commission 
shall conduct an investigation to determine if probable cause exists 
that a violation occurred.
    (2) As part of an investigation, the Commission may--
            (A) administer oaths;
            (B) issue subpoenas;
            (C) compel the attendance of witnesses and the production 
        of papers, books, accounts, documents, and testimony; and
            (D) take the deposition of witnesses.
    (3) If a person disobeys or refuses to comply with a subpoena, or 
if a witness refuses to testify to a matter, he may be held in contempt 
of Congress.
    (c) Presentation of Case to House Committee on Standards of 
Official Conduct.--(1) If the Commission determines, upon conclusion of 
an investigation, that probable cause exists that an ethics violation 
has occurred, the Commission shall notify the Committee on Standards of 
Official Conduct of the House of Representatives of this determination.
    (2) The committee may overrule the determination of the Commission 
if, within 10 legislative days--
            (A) the committee by an affirmative, roll-call vote of two-
        thirds of the full committee votes to overrule the 
        determination of the Commission;
            (B) the committee issues a public report detailing its 
        reasoning for overruling the Commission;
            (C) the vote of each member of the committee on such roll-
        call vote is included in the report; and
            (D) dissenting members are allowed to issue their own 
        report detailing their reasons for disagreeing with the 
        majority vote.
    (3) If the committee votes to overrule the determination of the 
Commission pursuant to paragraph (2), the Commission may publish and 
make available to the general public a report detailing the reasons 
that he concluded there were sufficient grounds to present such case to 
the committee.
    (4)(A) If the Commission determines there is probable cause that an 
ethics violation has occurred and the Commission's determination is not 
overruled, the Commission shall present the case and evidence to the 
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct of the House of 
Representatives to hear and make a determination pursuant to its rules.
    (B) The committee shall vote upon whether the individual who is the 
subject of the investigation has violated any rules or other standards 
of conduct applicable to that individual in his official capacity. Such 
votes shall be a roll-call vote of the full committee, a quorum being 
present. The committee shall issue a public report which shall include 
the vote of each member of the committee on such roll-call vote. 
Dissenting members may issue their own report detailing their own 
reasons for disagreeing with the majority vote.
    (d) Sanctions.--Whenever the Committee on Standards of Official 
Conduct of the House of Representatives finds that an ethics violation 
has occurred the Commission shall recommend appropriate sanctions to 
the committee and whether a matter should be referred to the Department 
of Justice for investigation.

SEC. 6. PROCEDURAL RULES.

    (a) Majority Approval.--No report or recommendation relating to the 
official conduct of a Member, officer, or employee of the House of 
Representatives shall be made by the Commission, and no investigation 
of such conduct shall be undertaken by the Commission, unless approved 
by the affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the Commission.
    (b) Investigations.--Except in the case of an investigation 
undertaken by the Commission on its own initiative, the Commission may 
undertake an investigation relating to the official conduct of an 
individual Member, officer, or employee of the House of Representatives 
only--
            (1) upon receipt of a complaint, in writing and under oath, 
        made by or submitted to a Member of the House of 
        Representatives and transmitted to the Commission by such 
        Member, or
            (2) upon receipt of a complaint from the chairman of the 
        Committee on Standards of Official Conduct of the House of 
        Representatives, in writing and under oath, made by that 
        committee.
    (c) Prohibition of Certain Investigations.--No investigation shall 
be undertaken by the Commission of any alleged violation of a law, 
rule, regulation, or standard of conduct not in effect at the time of 
the alleged violation.
    (d) Disclosure.--No information or testimony received, or the 
contents of a complaint or the fact of its filing, shall be publicly 
disclosed by any member of the Commission or staff of the Commission 
unless specifically authorized in each instance by a vote of the 
Commission.

SEC. 7. STAFF OF COMMISSION.

    The Commission may appoint and fix the compensation of such staff 
as the Commission considers necessary to perform its duties. The 
Commission shall be appointed jointly by the Speaker and minority 
leader and shall be paid at a rate not to exceed the rate of basic pay 
payable for Level III of the Executive Schedule.

SEC. 8. AMENDMENTS TO THE RULES OF THE HOUSE TO CHANGE THE DUTIES OF 
              THE COMMITTEE ON STANDARDS OF OFFICIAL CONDUCT.

    (a) House Rules Amendments.--Clause 3 of rule XI of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives is amended as follows:
            (1) In paragraph (a), strike subparagraphs (1), (2), and 
        (3), and redesignate subparagraphs (4), (5), and (6), as 
        subparagraphs (1), (2), and (3), respectively.
            (2)(A) Paragraph (b)(1) is amended by striking ``(A)'', by 
        striking ``a resolution, report, recommendation, or'' and 
        inserting ``an'', and by striking ``, or, except as provided in 
        subparagraph (2), undertake an investigation'', and by striking 
        subdivision (B).
            (B) Paragraph (b) is further amended by striking 
        subparagraphs (2), (3), (4), and (5) and by redesignating 
        subparagraphs (6) and (7) as subparagraphs (2) and (3), 
        respectively.
            (3) Strike paragraphs (j) (k), (l), (m), (n), (o), (p), and 
        (q).
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--Section 803 of the Ethics Reform Act of 
1989 (2 U.S.C. 29d) is amended by striking subsections (c) and (d).

SEC. 9. ACTION ON COMMISSION RECOMMENDATIONS.

    (a) Printing of Reports in Congressional Record.--Upon receipt by 
the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct of the House of 
Representatives of any report of the Commission, the Speaker of the 
House of Representatives shall have the report printed in the 
Congressional Record.
    (b) House Consideration of Independent Ethics Commission 
Recommendations.--Within 14 calendar days after a report referred to in 
subsection (a) is printed in the Congressional Record, that portion of 
the report recommending action by the House of Representatives 
respecting any alleged violation, by a Member, officer, or employee of 
the House of Representatives, of any law, rule, regulation, or other 
standard of conduct applicable to the conduct of such Member, officer, 
or employee in the performance of his duties or the discharge of his 
responsibilities shall be introduced (by request) in the House by the 
Speaker of the House, for himself and the minority leader of the House 
in the form of a resolution. This resolution shall constitute a 
question of privilege under rule IX of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives. Any Member favoring the resolution may call it up as a 
question of privilege but only on the third day after the calendar date 
upon which such Member announces to the House his intention to do so.

SEC. 10. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    This Act shall take effect upon the date of its enactment, except 
that sections 3, 4, and 8 shall not take effect immediately prior to 
noon January 3, 2009.

A:
Independent Ethics Commission Act of 2007 - Establishes within the House of Representatives an Independent Ethics Commission composed only of former federal judges.
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