[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 20 Engrossed Amendment Senate (EAS)]

103d CONGRESS

  1st Session

                                H. R. 20

_______________________________________________________________________

                               AMENDMENT
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

                  In the Senate of the United States,

                              July 20 (legislative day, June 30), 1993.
      Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R. 
20) entitled ``An Act to amend title 5, United States Code, to restore 
to Federal civilian employees their right to participate voluntarily, 
as private citizens, in the political processes of the Nation, to 
protect such employees from improper political solicitations, and for 
other purposes'', do pass with the following

                               AMENDMENT:

            Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:

That this Act may be cited as the ``Hatch Act Reform Amendments of 
1993''.

SEC. 2. POLITICAL ACTIVITIES.

    (a) Subchapter III of chapter 73 of title 5, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:

                 ``SUBCHAPTER III--POLITICAL ACTIVITIES

``Sec. 7321. Political participation
    ``It is the policy of the Congress that employees should be 
encouraged to exercise fully, freely, and without fear of penalty or 
reprisal, and to the extent not expressly prohibited by law, their 
right to participate or to refrain from participating in the political 
processes of the Nation.
``Sec. 7322. Definitions
    ``For the purpose of this subchapter--
            ``(1) `employee' means any individual, other than the 
        President and the Vice President, employed or holding office 
        in--
                    ``(A) an Executive agency other than the General 
                Accounting Office;
                    ``(B) a position within the competitive service 
                which is not in an Executive agency; or
                    ``(C) the government of the District of Columbia, 
                other than the Mayor or a member of the City Council or 
                the Recorder of Deeds;
        but does not include a member of the uniformed services;
            ``(2) `partisan political office' means any office for 
        which any candidate is nominated or elected as representing a 
        party any of whose candidates for Presidential elector received 
        votes in the last preceding election at which Presidential 
        electors were selected, but shall exclude any office or 
        position within a political party or affiliated organization; 
        and
            ``(3) `political contribution'--
                    ``(A) means any gift, subscription, loan, advance, 
                or deposit of money or anything of value, made for any 
                political purpose;
                    ``(B) includes any contract, promise, or agreement, 
                express or implied, whether or not legally enforceable, 
                to make a contribution for any political purpose;
                    ``(C) includes any payment by any person, other 
                than a candidate or a political party or affiliated 
                organization, of compensation for the personal services 
                of another person which are rendered to any candidate 
                or political party or affiliated organization without 
                charge for any political purpose; and
                    ``(D) includes the provision of personal services 
                for any political purpose.
``Sec. 7323. Political activity authorized; prohibitions
    ``(a) Subject to the provisions of subsection (b), an employee may 
take an active part in political management or in political campaigns, 
except an employee may not--
            ``(1) use his official authority or influence for the 
        purpose of interfering with or affecting the result of an 
        election;
            ``(2) knowingly solicit, accept, or receive a political 
        contribution from any person, unless such person is--
                    ``(A) a member of the same Federal labor 
                organization as defined under section 7103(4) of this 
                title or a Federal employee organization which as of 
                the date of enactment of the Hatch Act Reform 
                Amendments of 1993 had a multicandidate political 
                committee (as defined under section 315(a)(4) of the 
                Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 
                441a(a)(4)));
                    ``(B) not a subordinate employee; and
                    ``(C) the solicitation is for a contribution to the 
                multicandidate political committee (as defined under 
                section 315(a)(4) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 
                of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(4))) of such Federal labor 
                organization as defined under section 7103(4) of this 
                title or a Federal employee organization which as of 
                the date of the enactment of the Hatch Act Reform 
                Amendments of 1993 had a multicandidate political 
                committee (as defined under section 315(a)(4) of the 
                Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 
                441a(a)(4))); or
            ``(3) run for the nomination or as a candidate for election 
        to a partisan political office; or
            ``(4) knowingly solicit or discourage the participation in 
        any political activity of any person who--
                    ``(A) has an application for any compensation, 
                grant, contract, ruling, license, permit, or 
                certificate pending before the employing office of such 
                employee; or
                    ``(B) is the subject of or a participant in an 
                ongoing audit, investigation, or enforcement action 
                being carried out by the employing office of such 
                employee.
    ``(b)(1) An employee of the Federal Election Commission (except one 
appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the 
Senate), may not request or receive from, or give to, an employee, a 
Member of Congress, or an officer of a uniformed service a political 
contribution.
    ``(2)(A) No employee described under subparagraph (B) (except one 
appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the 
Senate), may take an active part in political management or political 
campaigns.
    ``(B) The provisions of subparagraph (A) shall apply to--
            ``(i) an employee of--
                    ``(I) the Federal Election Commission;
                    ``(II) the Federal Bureau of Investigation;
                    ``(III) the Secret Service;
                    ``(IV) the Central Intelligence Agency;
                    ``(V) the National Security Council;
                    ``(VI) the National Security Agency;
                    ``(VII) the Defense Intelligence Agency;
                    ``(VIII) the Merit Systems Protection Board;
                    ``(IX) the Office of Special Counsel;
                    ``(X) the Office of Criminal Investigation of the 
                Internal Revenue Service;
                    ``(XI) the Office of Investigative Programs of the 
                United States Customs Service; or
                    ``(XII) the Office of Law Enforcement of the Bureau 
                of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms; or
            ``(ii) a person employed in a position described under 
        section 3132(a)(4), 5372, or 5372a of title 5, United States 
        Code.
    ``(3) No employee of the Criminal Division of the Department of 
Justice (except one appointed by the President, by and with the advice 
and consent of the Senate), may take an active part in political 
management or political campaigns.
    ``(4) For purposes of this subsection, the term `active part in 
political management or in a political campaign' means those acts of 
political management or political campaigning which were prohibited for 
employees of the competitive service before July 19, 1940, by 
determinations of the Civil Service Commission under the rules 
prescribed by the President.
    ``(c) An employee retains the right to vote as he chooses and to 
express his opinion on political subjects and candidates.
``Sec. 7324. Political activities on duty; prohibition
    ``(a) An employee may not engage in political activity--
            ``(1) while the employee is on duty;
            ``(2) in any room or building occupied in the discharge of 
        official duties by an individual employed or holding office in 
        the Government of the United States or any agency or 
        instrumentality thereof;
            ``(3) while wearing a uniform or official insignia 
        identifying the office or position of the employee; or
            ``(4) using any vehicle owned or leased by the Government 
        of the United States or any agency or instrumentality thereof.
    ``(b)(1) An employee described in paragraph (2) of this subsection 
may engage in political activity otherwise prohibited by subsection (a) 
if the costs associated with that political activity are not paid for 
by money derived from the Treasury of the United States.
    ``(2) Paragraph (1) applies to an employee--
            ``(A) the duties and responsibilities of whose position 
        continue outside normal duty hours and while away from the 
        normal duty post; and
            ``(B) who is--
                    ``(i) an employee paid from an appropriation for 
                the Executive Office of the President; or
                    ``(ii) an employee appointed by the President, by 
                and with the advice and consent of the Senate, whose 
                position is located within the United States, who 
                determines policies to be pursued by the United States 
                in relations with foreign powers or in the nationwide 
                administration of Federal laws.
``Sec. 7325. Political activity permitted; employees residing in 
              certain municipalities
    ``The Office of Personnel Management may prescribe regulations 
permitting employees, without regard to the prohibitions in paragraphs 
(2) and (3) of section 7323(a) of this title, to take an active part in 
political management and political campaigns involving the municipality 
or other political subdivision in which they reside, to the extent the 
Office considers it to be in their domestic interest, when--
            ``(1) the municipality or political subdivision is in 
        Maryland or Virginia and in the immediate vicinity of the 
        District of Columbia, or is a municipality in which the 
        majority of voters are employed by the Government of the United 
        States; and
            ``(2) the Office determines that because of special or 
        unusual circumstances which exist in the municipality or 
        political subdivision it is in the domestic interest of the 
        employees and individuals to permit that political 
        participation.
``Sec. 7326. Penalties
    ``An employee or individual who violates section 7323 or 7324 of 
this title shall be removed from his position, and funds appropriated 
for the position from which removed thereafter may not be used to pay 
the employee or individual. However, if the Merit System Protection 
Board finds by unanimous vote that the violation does not warrant 
removal, a penalty of not less than 30 days' suspension without pay 
shall be imposed by direction of the Board.''.
    (b)(1) Section 3302(2) of title 5, United States Code, is amended 
by striking out ``7203, 7321, and 7322'' and inserting in lieu thereof 
``and 7203''.
    (2) The table of sections for subchapter III of chapter 73 of title 
5, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:

                 ``SUBCHAPTER III--POLITICAL ACTIVITIES

 ``7321. Political participation.
 ``7322. Definitions.
 ``7323. Political activity authorized; prohibitions.
 ``7324. Political activities on duty; prohibition.
 ``7325. Political activity permitted; employees residing in certain 
                            municipalities.
 ``7326. Penalties.''.

SEC. 3. AMENDMENT TO CHAPTER 12 OF TITLE 5, UNITED STATES CODE.

    Section 1216(c) of title 5, United States Code, is amended to read 
as follows:
    ``(c) If the Special Counsel receives an allegation concerning any 
matter under paragraph (1), (3), (4), or (5) of subsection (a), the 
Special Counsel may investigate and seek corrective action under 
section 1214 and disciplinary action under section 1215 in the same way 
as if a prohibited personnel practice were involved.''.

SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 18, UNITED STATES CODE.

    (a) Section 602 of title 18, United States Code, relating to 
solicitation of political contributions, is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``(a)'' before ``It'';
            (2) in paragraph (4) by striking out all that follows 
        ``Treasury of the United States'' and inserting in lieu thereof 
        a semicolon and ``to knowingly solicit any contribution within 
        the meaning of section 301(8) of the Federal Election Campaign 
        Act of 1971 from any other such officer, employee, or person. 
        Any person who violates this section shall be fined under this 
        title or imprisoned not more than 3 years, or both.''; and
            (3) by adding at the end thereof the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(b) The prohibition in subsection (a) shall not apply to any 
activity of an employee (as defined in section 7322(1) of title 5) or 
any individual employed in or under the United States Postal Service or 
the Postal Rate Commission, unless that activity is prohibited by 
section 7323 or 7324 of such title.''.
    (b) Section 603 of title 18, United States Code, relating to making 
political contributions, is amended by adding at the end thereof the 
following new subsection:
    ``(c) The prohibition in subsection (a) shall not apply to any 
activity of an employee (as defined in section 7322(1) of title 5) or 
any individual employed in or under the United States Postal Service or 
the Postal Rate Commission, unless that activity is prohibited by 
section 7323 or 7324 of such title.''.
    (c)(1) Chapter 29 of title 18, United States Code, relating to 
elections and political activities is amended by adding at the end 
thereof the following new section:
``Sec. 610. Coercion of political activity
    ``It shall be unlawful for any person to intimidate, threaten, 
command, or coerce, or attempt to intimidate, threaten, command, or 
coerce, any employee of the Federal Government as defined in section 
7322(1) of title 5, United States Code, to engage in, or not to engage 
in, any political activity, including, but not limited to, voting or 
refusing to vote for any candidate or measure in any election, making 
or refusing to make any political contribution, or working or refusing 
to work on behalf of any candidate. Any person who violates this 
section shall be fined not more than $5,000 or imprisoned not more than 
three years, or both.''.
    (2) The table of sections for chapter 29 of title 18, United States 
Code, is amended by adding at the end thereof the following:

``610. Coercion of political activity.''.

SEC. 5. AMENDMENTS TO THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT OF 1965.

    Section 6 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973d) is 
amended by striking out ``the provisions of section 9 of the Act of 
August 2, 1939, as amended (5 U.S.C. 118i), prohibiting partisan 
political activity'' and by inserting in lieu thereof ``the provisions 
of subchapter III of chapter 73 of title 5, United States Code, 
relating to political activities''.

SEC. 6. AMENDMENTS RELATING TO APPLICATION OF CHAPTER 15 OF TITLE 5, 
              UNITED STATES CODE.

    Section 675(e) of the Community Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 
9904(e)) is repealed.

SEC. 7. APPLICABILITY TO POSTAL EMPLOYEES.

    The amendments made by this Act (except for the amendments made by 
section 8), and any regulations thereunder, shall apply with respect to 
employees of the United States Postal Service and the Postal Rate 
Commission, pursuant to sections 410(b) and 3604(e) of title 39, United 
States Code.

SEC. 8. POLITICAL RECOMMENDATIONS.

    (a) Section 3303 of title 5, United States Code, is amended to read 
as follows:
``Sec. 3303. Political recommendations
    ``(a) For the purposes of this section--
            ``(1) `agency' means--
                    ``(A) an Executive agency; and
                    ``(B) an agency in the legislative branch with 
                positions in the competitive service;
            ``(2) `applicant' means an individual who has applied for 
        appointment to be an employee;
            ``(3) `employee' means an employee of an agency who is--
                    ``(A) in the competitive service;
                    ``(B) a career appointee in the Senior Executive 
                Service or an employee under a similar appointment in a 
                similar executive service; or
                    ``(C) in the excepted service other than--
                            ``(i) an employee who is appointed by the 
                        President; or
                            ``(ii) an employee whose position has been 
                        determined to be of a confidential, policy-
                        determining, policy-making, or policy-
                        advocating character; and
            ``(4) `personnel action' means any action described under 
        clauses (i) through (x) of section 2302(a)(2)(A).
    ``(b) Except as provided under subsection (f), each personnel 
action with respect to an employee or applicant shall be taken without 
regard to any recommendation or statement, oral or written, with 
respect to any employee or applicant who requests or is under 
consideration for such personnel action, made by--
            ``(1) any Member of Congress or congressional employee;
            ``(2) any elected official of the government of any State 
        (including the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of 
        Puerto Rico), county, city, or other subdivision thereof;
            ``(3) any official of a political party; or
            ``(4) any other individual or organization making such 
        recommendation or statement on the basis of the party 
        affiliation of the employee or applicant.
    ``(c) Except as provided under subsection (f), a person or 
organization referred to under subsection (b) (1) through (4) is 
prohibited from making or transmitting to any officer or employee of an 
agency, any recommendation or statement, oral or written, with respect 
to any employee or applicant who requests or is under consideration for 
any personnel action in such agency. Except as provided under 
subsection (f), the agency, or any officer or employee of the agency--
            ``(1) shall not solicit, request, consider, or accept any 
        such recommendation or statement; and
            ``(2) shall return any such written recommendation or 
        statement, appropriately marked as in violation of this 
        section, to the person or organization transmitting the same.
    ``(d) Except as provided under subsection (f), an employee or 
applicant who requests or is under consideration for a personnel action 
in an agency is prohibited from requesting or soliciting from a person 
or organization referred to under subsection (b) (1) through (4) a 
recommendation or statement.
    ``(e) Under regulations prescribed by the Office of Personnel 
Management, the head of each agency shall ensure that employees and 
applicants are given notice of the provisions of this section.
    ``(f) An agency, or any authorized officer or employee of an 
agency, may solicit, accept, and consider, and any other individual or 
organization may furnish or transmit to the agency or such authorized 
officer or employee, any statement with respect to an employee or 
applicant who requests or is under consideration for a personnel 
action, if--
            ``(1) the statement is furnished pursuant to a request or 
        requirement of the agency and consists solely of an evaluation 
        of the work performance, ability, aptitude, and general 
        qualifications of the employee or applicant;
            ``(2) the statement relates solely to the character and 
        residence of the employee or applicant;
            ``(3) the statement is furnished pursuant to a request made 
        by an authorized representative of the Government of the United 
        States solely in order to determine whether the employee or 
        applicant meets suitability or security standards;
            ``(4) the statement is furnished by a former employer of 
        the employee or applicant pursuant to a request of an agency, 
        and consists solely of an evaluation of the work performance, 
        ability, aptitude, and general qualifications of such employee 
        or applicant during employment with such former employer; or
            ``(5) the statement is furnished pursuant to a provision of 
        law or regulation authorizing consideration of such statement 
        with respect to a specific position or category of positions.
    ``(g) An agency shall take any action it determines necessary and 
proper under subchapter I or II of chapter 75 to enforce the provisions 
of this section.
    ``(h) The provisions of this section shall not affect the right of 
any employee to petition Congress as authorized by section 7211.''.
    (b) The table of sections for chapter 33 of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended by amending the item relating to section 3303 to read 
as follows:

``3303. Political recommendations.''.
    (c) Section 2302(b)(2) of title 5, United States Code, is amended 
to read as follows:
            ``(2) solicit or consider any recommendation or statement, 
        oral or written, with respect to any individual who requests or 
        is under consideration for any personnel action except as 
        provided under section 3303(f);''.

SEC. 9. GARNISHMENT OF FEDERAL EMPLOYEES' PAY.

    (a) Subchapter II of chapter 55 of title 5, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end thereof the following new section:
``Sec. 5520a. Garnishment of pay
    ``(a) For purposes of this section--
            ``(1) `agency' means each agency of the Federal Government, 
        including--
                    ``(A) an executive agency, except for the General 
                Accounting Office;
                    ``(B) the United States Postal Service and the 
                Postal Rate Commission;
                    ``(C) any agency of the judicial branch of the 
                Government; and
                    ``(D) any agency of the legislative branch of the 
                Government, including the General Accounting Office, 
                each office of a Member of Congress, a committee of the 
                Congress, or other office of the Congress;
            ``(2) `employee' means an employee of an agency (including 
        a Member of Congress as defined under section 2106);
            ``(3) `legal process' means any writ, order, summons, or 
        other similar process in the nature of garnishment, that--
                    ``(A) is issued by a court of competent 
                jurisdiction within any State, territory, or possession 
                of the United States, or an authorized official 
                pursuant to an order of such a court or pursuant to 
                State or local law; and
                    ``(B) orders the employing agency of such employee 
                to withhold an amount from the pay of such employee, 
                and make a payment of such withholding to another 
                person, for a specifically described satisfaction of a 
                legal debt of the employee, or recovery of attorney's 
                fees, interest, or court costs; and
            ``(4) `pay' means--
                    ``(A) basic pay, premium pay paid under subchapter 
                V, any payment received under subchapter VI, VII, or 
                VIII, severance and back pay paid under subchapter IX, 
                sick pay, incentive pay, and any other compensation 
                paid or payable for personal services, whether such 
                compensation is denominated as wages, salary, 
                commission, bonus pay or otherwise; and
                    ``(B) does not include awards for making 
                suggestions.
    ``(b) Subject to the provisions of this section and the provisions 
of section 303 of the Consumer Credit Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1673) 
pay from an agency to an employee is subject to legal process in the 
same manner and to the same extent as if the agency were a private 
person.
    ``(c)(1) Service of legal process to which an agency is subject 
under this section may be accomplished by certified or registered mail, 
return receipt requested, or by personal service, upon--
            ``(A) the appropriate agent designated for receipt of such 
        service of process pursuant to the regulations issued under 
        this section; or
            ``(B) the head of such agency, if no agent has been so 
        designated.
    ``(2) Such legal process shall be accompanied by sufficient 
information to permit prompt identification of the employee and the 
payments involved.
    ``(d) Whenever any person, who is designated by law or regulation 
to accept service of process to which an agency is subject under this 
section, is effectively served with any such process or with 
interrogatories, such person shall respond thereto within thirty days 
(or within such longer period as may be prescribed by applicable State 
law) after the date effective service thereof is made, and shall, as 
soon as possible but not later than fifteen days after the date 
effective service is made, send written notice that such process has 
been so served (together with a copy thereof) to the affected employee 
at his or her duty station or last-known home address.
    ``(e) No employee whose duties include responding to 
interrogatories pursuant to requirements imposed by this section shall 
be subject to any disciplinary action or civil or criminal liability or 
penalty for, or on account of, any disclosure of information made by 
such employee in connection with the carrying out of any of such 
employee's duties which pertain directly or indirectly to the answering 
of any such interrogatory.
    ``(f) Agencies affected by legal process under this section shall 
not be required to vary their normal pay and disbursement cycles in 
order to comply with any such legal process.
    ``(g) Neither the United States, an agency, nor any disbursing 
officer shall be liable with respect to any payment made from payments 
due or payable to an employee pursuant to legal process regular on its 
face, provided such payment is made in accordance with this section and 
the regulations issued to carry out this section. In determining the 
amount of any payment due from, or payable by, an agency to an 
employee, there shall be excluded those amounts which would be excluded 
under section 462(g) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 662(g)).
    ``(h)(1) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (2), if an agency 
is served under this section with more than one legal process with 
respect to the same payments due or payable to an employee, then such 
payments shall be available, subject to section 303 of the Consumer 
Credit Protection Act (15 U.S.C. 1673), to satisfy such processes in 
priority based on the time of service, with any such process being 
satisfied out of such amounts as remain after satisfaction of all such 
processes which have been previously served.
    ``(2) A legal process to which an agency is subject under sections 
459, 461, and 462 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 659, 661, and 
662) for the enforcement of the employee's legal obligation to provide 
child support or make alimony payments, shall have priority over any 
legal process to which an agency is subject under this section.
    ``(i) The provisions of this section shall not modify or supersede 
the provisions of sections 459, 461, and 462 of the Social Security Act 
(42 U.S.C. 659, 661, and 662) concerning legal process brought for the 
enforcement of an individual's legal obligations to provide child 
support or make alimony payments.
    ``(j)(1) Regulations implementing the provisions of this section 
shall be promulgated--
            ``(A) by the President or his designee for each executive 
        agency, except with regard to employees of the United States 
        Postal Service, the President or, at his discretion, the 
        Postmaster General shall promulgate such regulations;
            ``(B) jointly by the President pro tempore of the Senate 
        and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, or their 
        designee, for the legislative branch of the Government; and
            ``(C) by the Chief Justice of the United States or his 
        designee for the judicial branch of the Government.
    ``(2) Such regulations shall provide that an agency's 
administrative costs in executing a garnishment action may be added to 
the garnishment, and that the agency may retain costs recovered as 
offsetting collections.
    ``(k)(1) No later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 
this Act, the Secretaries of the Executive departments concerned shall 
promulgate regulations to carry out the purposes of this section with 
regard to members of the uniformed services.
    ``(2) Such regulations shall include provisions for--
            ``(A) the involuntary allotment of the pay of a member of 
        the uniformed services for indebtedness owed a third party as 
        determined by the final judgment of a court of competent 
        jurisdiction, and as further determined by competent military 
        or executive authority, as appropriate, to be in compliance 
        with the procedural requirements of the Soldiers' and Sailors' 
        Civil Relief Act of 1940 (50 App. U.S.C. 501 et seq.); and
            ``(B) consideration for the absence of a member of the 
        uniformed service from an appearance in a judicial proceeding 
        resulting from the exigencies of military duty.
    ``(3) The Secretaries of the Executive departments concerned shall 
promulgate regulations under this subsection that are, as far as 
practicable, uniform for all of the uniformed services. The Secretary 
of Defense shall consult with the Secretary of Transportation with 
regard to the promulgation of such regulations that might affect 
members of the Coast Guard when the Coast Guard is operating as a 
service in the Navy.''.
    (b)(1) The table of chapters for chapter 55 of title 5, United 
States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
5520 the following:

``5520a. Garnishment of pay.''.
    (2) Section 410(b) of title 39, United States Code, is amended--
            (A) by redesignating the second paragraph (9) (relating to 
        the Inspector General Act of 1978) as paragraph (10); and
            (B) by adding at the end thereof the following new 
        paragraph:
            ``(11) section 5520a of title 5.''.

SEC. 10. SENSE OF THE SENATE RELATING TO FEDERAL EMPLOYEE SOLICITATION 
              OF FUNDS AND CANDIDACIES.

    It is the sense of the Senate that Federal employees should not be 
authorized to--
            (1) solicit political contributions from the general 
        public; or
            (2) run for the nomination or as a candidate for a local 
        partisan political office, except as expressly provided under 
        current law.

SEC. 11. SENSE OF THE SENATE RELATING TO ASSISTANCE TO NICARAGUA.

    (a) Findings.--The Senate finds the following:
            (1) On May 23, 1993, an explosion in Managua, Nicaragua 
        exposed a cache of weapons, including 19 surface-to-air 
        missiles, hundreds of AK-47 assault rifles, machine guns, 
        rocket propelled grenades, tons of ammunition and explosives.
            (2) Investigations of the explosions have uncovered 310 
        passports from 21 different countries, including seven United 
        States passports.
            (3) Documents in the possession of those apprehended in 
        connection with the February 26, 1993, bombing of the World 
        Trade Center have been traced to Nicaragua.
            (4) The acquisition and storage of these weapons and 
        documents could not have been accomplished without the 
        knowledge and cooperation of the Sandinista National Liberation 
        Front and ministries of the Government of Nicaragua under its 
        control.
            (5) The Sandinista National Liberation Front has a history 
        of subversion and links to international terrorism.
            (6) The recent discovery demonstrates the inability of the 
        legitimate Government of Nicaragua to control all of its 
        ministries.
            (7) This lack of authority makes uncertain the ability of 
        the Government of Nicaragua to prevent the export of terrorism 
        by the Sandinista National Liberation Front.
    (b) Sense of Senate.--It is the sense of the Senate that--
            (1) no further United States foreign assistance to 
        Nicaragua should be obligated pending investigation by an 
        appropriate international body, with the participation of 
        United States Federal agencies, of the Sandinista National 
        Liberation Front; and
            (2) such investigation should focus on the relationship of 
        the Sandinista National Liberation Front to acts of terrorism 
        which threaten to undermine the security of the United States 
        and the political stability and economic prosperity of the 
        Western Hemisphere.

SEC. 12. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    (a) The amendments made by this Act shall take effect 120 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, except that the authority 
to prescribe regulations granted under section 7325 of title 5, United 
States Code (as added by section 2 of this Act), shall take effect on 
the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (b) Any repeal or amendment made by this Act of any provision of 
law shall not release or extinguish any penalty, forfeiture, or 
liability incurred under that provision, and that provision shall be 
treated as remaining in force for the purpose of sustaining any proper 
proceeding or action for the enforcement of that penalty, forfeiture, 
or liability.
    (c) No provision of this Act shall affect any proceedings with 
respect to which the charges were filed on or before the effective date 
of the amendments made by this Act. Orders shall be issued in such 
proceedings and appeals shall be taken therefrom as if this Act had not 
been enacted.

            Attest:






                                                             Secretary.

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