[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1248 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

103d CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1248

  To transfer to the Secretary of Transportation the functions of the 
                    Interstate Commerce Commission.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                July 15 (legislative day, June 30), 1993

 Mr. Danforth (for himself, Mr. Brown, and Mr. Chafee), introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                 Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To transfer to the Secretary of Transportation the functions of the 
                    Interstate Commerce Commission.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Interstate Commerce Efficiency and 
Safety Improvement Act of 1993''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to promote fiscal responsibility by 
transferring the functions of the Interstate Commerce Commission to the 
Department of Transportation and to advance safety on the highways of 
the United States by consolidating the regulation of motor carrier 
safety in the Department of Transportation.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act, the term--
            (1) ``Commission'' means the Interstate Commerce 
        Commission;
            (2) ``function'' means a function, power, or duty; and
            (3) ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Transportation.

SEC. 4. TRANSFER OF AUTHORITY TO SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION.

    (a) In General.--There are transferred to the Secretary, effective 
October 1, 1993, all functions of the Commission.
    (b) Authority of Office of Management and Budget.--The Director of 
the Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with the 
Commission and the Secretary, may make such determinations as may be 
necessary with regard to the functions transferred by this Act, and to 
make such additional incidental dispositions of assets, liabilities, 
contracts, property, and records, as may be necessary to carry out the 
provisions of this Act. The unobligated funds of the Commission shall 
not be transferred to the Department of Transportation in order to 
carry out the transfer of functions under this Act, and the number of 
fulltime employee positions within the Department of Transportation 
shall not be increased as a result of such transfer of functions.
    (c) Joint Planning for Transfer.--The Chairman of the Commission 
and the Secretary shall, beginning as soon as practicable after the 
date of enactment of this Act, jointly plan for the orderly transfer of 
functions under this Act.
    (d) Interim Use of Interstate Commerce Commission Personnel.--Prior 
to October 1, 1993, and with the consent of the Commission, the 
Secretary may use the services of officers, employees, and other 
personnel of the Commission under such terms and conditions as will 
reasonably facilitate the orderly transfer of functions under this Act.

SEC. 5. SAVINGS PROVISIONS.

    (a) In General.--All orders, determinations, rules, regulations, 
permits, contracts, certificates, licenses, and privileges--
            (1) which have been issued, made, granted, or allowed to 
        become effective by any agency or official thereof, or by a 
        court of competent jurisdiction, in the performance of any 
        function which is transferred by this Act to the Secretary from 
        the Commission; and
            (2) which are in effect immediately before the transfer of 
        functions by this Act,
shall continue in effect according to their terms until modified, 
terminated, superseded, set aside, or revoked in accordance with law by 
the Secretary or any other duly authorized official, by any court of 
competent jurisdiction, or by operation of law.
    (b) Continuation of Proceedings.--The transfer of functions by this 
Act shall not affect any proceedings, including rulemaking proceedings, 
or any application for any license, permit, or certificate, pending 
before the Commission immediately before the transfer takes effect. 
Such proceedings and applications shall be continued at the Department 
of Transportation. Orders shall be issued in such proceedings, and 
appeals shall be taken therefrom, as if this Act had not been enacted; 
and orders issued in any such proceedings shall continue in effect 
until modified, terminated, superseded, or revoked by the Secretary of 
Transportation, by a court of competent jurisdiction, or by operation 
of law. Nothing in this subsection shall be deemed to prohibit the 
discontinuance or modification of any such proceeding under the same 
terms and conditions and to the same extent that such proceeding could 
have been discontinued or modified if this Act had not been enacted.
    (c) Effect on Pending Civil Actions.--Except as provided in 
subsection (e)--
            (1) the transfer of any function under this Act shall not 
        affect any civil action relating to such function which is 
        commenced prior to the date the transfer takes effect; and
            (2) in all such actions, proceedings shall be had, appeals 
        taken, and judgments rendered, in the same manner and effect as 
        if this Act had not been enacted.
    (d) Nonabatement of Actions.--No action or other proceeding 
commenced by or against any officer in that officer's official capacity 
as an officer of the Commission shall abate by reason of the transfer 
of any function under this Act. No cause of action by or against the 
Commission, or by or against any officer thereof in that officer's 
official capacity, shall abate by reason of the transfer of any 
function under this Act.
    (e) Judicial Administrative Provision.--If immediately before the 
transfer of functions by this Act the Commission or any officer thereof 
in that officer's official capacity is a party to an action relating to 
a function transfer by this Act, then such action shall be continued 
with the Secretary or other appropriate official of the Department of 
Transportation substituted or added as a party.
    (f) References.--With respect to any function transferred by this 
Act and performed on or after the effective date of the transfer, 
reference in any Federal law to the Interstate Commerce Commission or 
the Commission (insofar as such term refers to the Interstate Commerce 
Commission), or to any officer or office thereof, shall be deemed to 
refer to the Department of Transportation, or other official or 
component of the Department of Transportation in which such function 
vests.
    (g) Exercise of Functions by Secretary.--In the exercise of any 
function transferred by this Act, the Secretary shall have the same 
authority as that vested in the Commission with respect to such 
function immediately preceding its transfer, and actions of the 
Secretary shall have the same force and effect as when exercised by the 
Commission. Orders and actions of the Secretary in the exercise of the 
functions transferred under this Act shall be subject to judicial 
review to the same extent and in the same manner as if such orders and 
actions had been by the Commission in the exercise of such functions 
immediately preceding their transfer. Any statutory requirements 
relating to notice, hearings, actions upon the record, or 
administrative review that apply to any functions transferred by this 
Act shall apply to the exercise of such functions by the Secretary.

SEC. 6. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

    No later than March 31, 1994, the Secretary shall submit to the 
appropriate committees of Congress a report on the functions 
transferred from the Commission to the Department of Transportation 
under this Act. The report shall include--
            (1) an assessment of benefits compared to costs associated 
        with each of these functions, both with respect to persons 
        affected directly and to the public generally;
            (2) recommendations for the elimination of functions 
        identified as redundant, or substantially the same as functions 
        or services which are performed by the Department of 
        Transportation or other public or private organizations prior 
        to the transfer of functions under this Act; and
            (3) recommendations to modify or eliminate those functions 
        that do not provide substantial economic or safety benefits to 
        the general public.

SEC. 7. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Executive Level Pay Rates.--(1) Section 5314 of title 5, United 
States Code, is amended by striking ``Chairman, Interstate Commerce 
Commission.''.
    (2) Section 5315 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by 
striking ``Members, Interstate Commerce Commission.''.
    (b) Termination of Commission.--Sections 10301 through 10308 of 
title 49, United States Code, are repealed.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
become effective on October 1, 1993.

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