[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1664 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        H.R.1664

                       One Hundred Sixth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE FIRST SESSION

         Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday,
   the sixth day of January, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine


                                 An Act


 
Providing emergency authority for guarantees of loans to qualified steel 
 and iron ore companies and to qualified oil and gas companies, and for 
                             other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, That the following sums 
are appropriated, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise 
appropriated, for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1999, and for 
other purposes, namely:

                               CHAPTER 1

    Sec. 101. Emergency Steel Loan Guarantee Program. (a) Short 
Title.--This chapter may be cited as the ``Emergency Steel Loan 
Guarantee Act of 1999''.
    (b) Congressional Findings.--Congress finds that--
        (1) the United States steel industry has been severely harmed 
    by a record surge of more than 40,000,000 tons of steel imports 
    into the United States in 1998, caused by the world financial 
    crisis;
        (2) this surge in imports resulted in the loss of more than 
    10,000 steel worker jobs in 1998, and was the imminent cause of 
    three bankruptcies by medium-sized steel companies, Acme Steel, 
    Laclede Steel, and Geneva Steel;
        (3) the crisis also forced almost all United States steel 
    companies into--
            (A) reduced volume, lower prices, and financial losses; and
            (B) an inability to obtain credit for continued 
        operations and reinvestment in facilities;
        (4) the crisis also has affected the willingness of private 
    banks and investment institutions to make loans to the United 
    States steel industry for continued operation and reinvestment in 
    facilities;
        (5) these steel bankruptcies, job losses, and financial losses 
    are also having serious negative effects on the tax base of cities, 
    counties, and States, and on the essential health, education, and 
    municipal services that these government entities provide to their 
    citizens; and
        (6) a strong steel industry is necessary to the adequate 
    defense preparedness of the United States in order to have 
    sufficient steel available to build the ships, tanks, planes, and 
    armaments necessary for the national defense.
    (c) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
        (1) Board.--The term ``Board'' means the Loan Guarantee Board 
    established under subsection (e).
        (2) Program.--The term ``Program'' means the Emergency Steel 
    Guarantee Loan Program established under subsection (d).
        (3) Qualified steel company.--The term ``qualified steel 
    company'' means any company that--
            (A) is incorporated under the laws of any State;
            (B) is engaged in the production and manufacture of a 
        product defined by the American Iron and Steel Institute as a 
        basic steel mill product, including ingots, slab and billets, 
        plates, flat-rolled steel, sections and structural products, 
        bars, rail type products, pipe and tube, and wire rod; and
            (C) has experienced layoffs, production losses, or 
        financial losses since the beginning of the steel import 
        crisis, in January 1998 or that operates substantial assets of 
        a company that meets these qualifications.
    (d) Establishment of Emergency Steel Guarantee Loan Program.--There 
is established the Emergency Steel Guarantee Loan Program, to be 
administered by the Board, the purpose of which is to provide loan 
guarantees to qualified steel companies in accordance with this 
section.
    (e) Loan Guarantee Board Membership.--There is 
established a Loan Guarantee Board, which shall be composed of--
        (1) the Secretary of Commerce;
        (2) the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal 
    Reserve System, who shall serve as Chairman of the Board; and
        (3) the Chairman of the Securities and Exchange 
    Commission.
    (f) Loan Guarantee Program.--
        (1) Authority.--The Program may guarantee loans provided to 
    qualified steel companies by private banking and investment 
    institutions in accordance with the procedures, rules, and 
    regulations established by the Board.
        (2) Total guarantee limit.--The aggregate amount of loans 
    guaranteed and outstanding at any one time under this section may 
    not exceed $1,000,000,000.
        (3) Individual guarantee limit.--The aggregate amount of loans 
    guaranteed under this section with respect to a single qualified 
    steel company may not exceed $250,000,000.
        (4) Timelines.--The Board shall approve or deny each 
    application for a guarantee under this section as soon as possible 
    after receipt of such application.
        (5) Additional costs.--For the additional cost of the loans 
    guaranteed under this subsection, including the costs of modifying 
    the loans as defined in section 502 of the Congressional Budget Act 
    of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 661a), there is appropriated $140,000,000 to 
    remain available until expended.
    (g) Requirements for Loan Guarantees.--A loan guarantee may be 
issued under this section upon application to the Board by a qualified 
steel company pursuant to an agreement to provide a loan to that 
qualified steel company by a private bank or investment company, if the 
Board determines that--
        (1) credit is not otherwise available to that company under 
    reasonable terms or conditions sufficient to meet its financing 
    needs, as reflected in the financial and business plans of that 
    company;
        (2) the prospective earning power of that company, together 
    with the character and value of the security pledged, furnish 
    reasonable assurance of repayment of the loan to be guaranteed in 
    accordance with its terms;
        (3) the loan to be guaranteed bears interest at a rate 
    determined by the Board to be reasonable, taking into account the 
    current average yield on outstanding obligations of the United 
    States with remaining periods of maturity comparable to the 
    maturity of such loan;
        (4) the company has agreed to an audit by the General 
    Accounting Office prior to the issuance of the loan guarantee and 
    annually thereafter while any such guaranteed loan is outstanding; 
    and
        (5) in the case of a purchaser of substantial assets of a 
    qualified steel company, the qualified steel company establishes 
    that it is unable to reorganize itself.
    (h) Terms and Conditions of Loan Guarantees.--
        (1) Loan duration.--All loans guaranteed under this section 
    shall be payable in full not later than December 31, 2005, and the 
    terms and conditions of each such loan shall provide that the loan 
    may not be amended, or any provision thereof waived, without the 
    consent of the Board.
        (2) Loan security.--Any commitment to issue a loan guarantee 
    under this section shall contain such affirmative and negative 
    covenants and other protective provisions that the Board determines 
    are appropriate. The Board shall require security for the loans to 
    be guaranteed under this section at the time at which the 
    commitment is made.
        (3) Fees.--A qualified steel company receiving a guarantee 
    under this section shall pay a fee to the Department of the 
    Treasury to cover costs of the program, but in no event shall such 
    fee exceed an amount equal to 0.5 percent of the outstanding 
    principal balance of the guaranteed loan.
        (4) Guarantee level.--No loan guarantee may be provided under 
    this section if the guarantee exceeds 85 percent of the amount of 
    principal of the loan.
    (i) Reports to Congress.--The Secretary of Commerce shall submit to 
Congress a full report of the activities of the Board under this 
section during each of fiscal years 1999 and 2000, and annually 
thereafter, during such period as any loan guaranteed under this 
section is outstanding.
    (j) Salaries and Administrative Expenses.--For necessary expenses 
to administer the Program, $5,000,000 is appropriated to the Department 
of Commerce, to remain available until expended, which may be 
transferred to the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Trade 
Development of the International Trade Administration.
    (k) Termination of Guarantee Authority.--The authority of the Board 
to make commitments to guarantee any loan under this section shall 
terminate on December 31, 2001.
    (l) Regulatory Action.--The Board shall issue such final 
procedures, rules, and regulations as may be necessary to carry out 
this section not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of 
this Act.
    (m) Iron Ore Companies.--
        (1) In general.--Subject to the requirements of this 
    subsection, an iron ore company incorporated under the laws of any 
    State shall be treated as a qualified steel company for purposes of 
    the Program.
        (2) Total guarantee limit for iron ore company.--Of the 
    aggregate amount of loans authorized to be guaranteed and 
    outstanding at any one time under subsection (f)(2), an amount not 
    to exceed $30,000,000 shall be loans with respect to iron ore 
    companies.


                federal administrative and travel expenses

                              (rescissions)

    Sec. 102. (a) Of the funds available in the nondefense category to 
the agencies of the Federal Government, $145,000,000 are hereby 
rescinded: Provided, That rescissions pursuant to this subsection shall 
be taken only from administrative and travel accounts: Provided 
further, That rescissions shall be taken on a pro rata basis from funds 
available to every Federal agency, department, and office in the 
executive branch, including the Office of the President.
    (b) Within 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall submit to the 
Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the 
Senate a listing of the amounts by account of the reductions made 
pursuant to the provisions of subsection (a) of this section.

                               CHAPTER 2

    Sec. 201. Petroleum Development Management. (a) Short Title.--This 
chapter may be cited as the ``Emergency Oil and Gas Guaranteed Loan 
Program Act''.
    (b) Findings.--Congress finds that--
        (1) consumption of foreign oil in the United States is 
    estimated to equal 56 percent of all oil consumed, and that 
    percentage could reach 68 percent by 2010 if current prices 
    prevail;
        (2) the number of oil and gas rigs operating in the United 
    States is at its lowest since 1944, when records of this tally 
    began;
        (3) if prices do not increase soon, the United States could 
    lose at least half its marginal wells, which in aggregate produce 
    as much oil as the United States imports from Saudi Arabia;
        (4) oil and gas prices are unlikely to increase for at least 
    several years;
        (5) declining production, well abandonment, and greatly reduced 
    exploration and development are shrinking the domestic oil and gas 
    industry;
        (6) the world's richest oil producing regions in the Middle 
    East are experiencing increasingly greater political instability;
        (7) United Nations policy may make Iraq the swing oil producing 
    nation, thereby granting Saddam Hussein tremendous power;
        (8) reliance on foreign oil for more than 60 percent of our 
    daily oil and gas consumption is a national security threat;
        (9) the level of United States oil security is directly related 
    to the level of domestic production of oil, natural gas liquids, 
    and natural gas; and
        (10) a national security policy should be developed that 
    ensures that adequate supplies of oil are available at all times 
    free of the threat of embargo or other foreign hostile acts.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
        (1) Board.--The term ``Board'' means the Loan Guarantee Board 
    established by subsection (e).
        (2) Program.--The term ``Program'' means the Emergency Oil and 
    Gas Guaranteed Loan Program established by subsection (d).
        (3) Qualified oil and gas company.--The term ``qualified oil 
    and gas company'' means a company that--
            (A) is--
                (i) an independent oil and gas company (within the 
            meaning of section 57(a)(2)(B)(i) of the Internal Revenue 
            Code of 1986); or
                (ii) a small business concern under section 3 of the 
            Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632) (or a company based in 
            Alaska, including an Alaska Native Corporation created 
            pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 
            U.S.C. 1601 et seq.)) that is an oil field service company 
            whose main business is providing tools, products, 
            personnel, and technical solutions on a contractual basis 
            to exploration and production operators that drill, 
            complete wells, and produce, transport, refine, and sell 
            hydrocarbons and their byproducts as the main commercial 
            business of the concern or company; and
            (B) has experienced layoffs, production losses, or 
        financial losses since the beginning of the oil import crisis, 
        after January 1, 1997.
    (d) Emergency Oil and Gas Guaranteed Loan Program.--
        (1) In general.--There is established the Emergency Oil and Gas 
    Guaranteed Loan Program, the purpose of which shall be to provide 
    loan guarantees to qualified oil and gas companies in accordance 
    with this section.
        (2) Loan guarantee board.--There is established to administer 
    the Program a Loan Guarantee Board, to be composed of--
            (A) the Secretary of Commerce;
            (B) the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal 
        Reserve System, who shall serve as Chairman of the Board; and
            (C) the Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
    (e) Authority.--
        (1) In general.--The Program may guarantee loans provided to 
    qualified oil and gas companies by private banking and investment 
    institutions in accordance with procedures, rules, and regulations 
    established by the Board.
        (2) Total guarantee limit.--The aggregate amount of loans 
    guaranteed and outstanding at any one time under this section shall 
    not exceed $500,000,000.
        (3) Individual guarantee limit.--The aggregate amount of loans 
    guaranteed under this section with respect to a single qualified 
    oil and gas company shall not exceed $10,000,000.
        (4) Expeditious action on applications.--The Board shall 
    approve or deny an application for a guarantee under this section 
    as soon as practicable after receipt of an application.
        (5) Additional costs.--For the additional cost of the loans 
    guaranteed under this subsection, including the costs of modifying 
    the loans as defined in section 502 of the Congressional Budget Act 
    of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 661a), there is appropriated $122,500,000 to 
    remain available until expended.
    (f) Requirements for Loan Guarantees.--The Board may issue a loan 
guarantee on application by a qualified oil and gas company under an 
agreement by a private bank or investment company to provide a loan to 
the qualified oil and gas company, if the Board determines that--
        (1) credit is not otherwise available to the company under 
    reasonable terms or conditions sufficient to meet its financing 
    needs, as reflected in the financial and business plans of the 
    company;
        (2) the prospective earning power of the company, together with 
    the character and value of the security pledged, provide a 
    reasonable assurance of repayment of the loan to be guaranteed in 
    accordance with its terms;
        (3) the loan to be guaranteed bears interest at a rate 
    determined by the Board to be reasonable, taking into account the 
    current average yield on outstanding obligations of the United 
    States with remaining periods of maturity comparable to the 
    maturity of the loan; and
        (4) the company has agreed to an audit by the General 
    Accounting Office before issuance of the loan guarantee and 
    annually while the guaranteed loan is outstanding.
    (g) Terms and Conditions of Loan Guarantees.--
        (1) Loan duration.--All loans guaranteed under this 
    section shall be repayable in full not later than December 31, 
    2010, and the terms and conditions of each such loan shall provide 
    that the loan agreement may not be amended, or any provision of the 
    loan agreement waived, without the consent of the Board.
        (2) Loan security.--A commitment to issue a loan guarantee 
    under this section shall contain such affirmative and negative 
    covenants and other protective provisions as the Board determines 
    are appropriate. The Board shall require security for the loans to 
    be guaranteed under this section at the time at which the 
    commitment is made.
        (3) Fees.--A qualified oil and gas company receiving a loan 
    guarantee under this section shall pay a fee to the Department of 
    the Treasury to cover costs of the program, but in no event shall 
    such fee exceed an amount equal to 0.5 percent of the outstanding 
    principal balance of the guaranteed loan.
        (4) Guarantee level.--No loan guarantee may be provided under 
    this section if the guarantee exceeds 85 percent of the amount of 
    principal of the loan.
    (h) Reports.--During fiscal year 1999 and each fiscal year 
thereafter until each guaranteed loan has been repaid in full, the 
Secretary of Commerce shall submit to Congress a report on the 
activities of the Board.
    (i) Salaries and Administrative Expenses.--For necessary expenses 
to administer the Program, $2,500,000 is appropriated to the Department 
of Commerce, to remain available until expended, which may be 
transferred to the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Trade 
Development of the International Trade Administration.
    (j) Termination of Guarantee Authority.--The authority of the Board 
to make commitments to guarantee any loan under this section shall 
terminate on December 31, 2001.
    (k) Regulatory Action.--Not later than 60 days after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Board shall issue such final procedures, 
rules, and regulations as are necessary to carry out this section.


                federal administrative and travel expenses

                              (rescissions)

    Sec. 202. (a) Of the funds available in the nondefense category to 
the agencies of the Federal Government, $125,000,000 are hereby 
rescinded: Provided, That rescissions pursuant to this subsection shall 
be taken only from administrative and travel accounts: Provided 
further, That rescissions shall be taken on a pro rata basis from funds 
available to every Federal agency, department, and office in the 
executive branch, including the Office of the President.
    (b) Within 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall submit to the 
Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the 
Senate a listing of the amounts by account of the reductions made 
pursuant to the provisions of subsection (a) of this section.

                               CHAPTER 3

                           GENERAL PROVISIONS

    Sec. 301. No part of any appropriation contained in the Act shall 
remain available for obligation beyond the current fiscal year unless 
expressly so provided herein.
    This Act may be cited as the ``Emergency Steel Loan Guarantee and 
Emergency Oil and Gas Guaranteed Loan Act of 1999''.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.