[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4437 Engrossed in House (EH)]


  2d Session

                               H. R. 4437

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

  To grant to the United States Postal Service the authority to issue 
                  semipostals, and for other purposes.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4437

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
  To grant to the United States Postal Service the authority to issue 
                  semipostals, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Semipostal Authorization Act''.

SEC. 2. AUTHORITY TO ISSUE SEMIPOSTALS.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 4 of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 416. Authority to issue semipostals
    ``(a) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
            ``(1) the term `semipostal' means a postage stamp which is 
        issued and sold by the Postal Service, at a premium, in order 
        to help provide funding for a cause described in subsection 
        (b); and
            ``(2) the term `agency' means an Executive agency within 
        the meaning of section 105 of title 5.
    ``(b) Discretionary Authority.--The Postal Service is hereby 
authorized to issue and sell semipostals under this section in order to 
advance such causes as the Postal Service considers to be in the 
national public interest and appropriate.
    ``(c) Rate of Postage.--The rate of postage on a semipostal issued 
under this section shall be established by the Governors, in accordance 
with such procedures as they shall by regulation prescribe (in lieu of 
the procedures under chapter 36), except that--
            ``(1) the rate established for a semipostal under this 
        section shall be equal to the rate of postage that would 
        otherwise regularly apply, plus a differential of not to exceed 
        25 percent; and
            ``(2) no regular rates of postage or fees for postal 
        services under chapter 36 shall be any different from what they 
        otherwise would have been if this section had not been enacted.
The use of any semipostal issued under this section shall be voluntary 
on the part of postal patrons.
    ``(d) Amounts Becoming Available.--
            ``(1) In general.--The amounts becoming available from the 
        sale of a semipostal under this section shall be transferred to 
        the appropriate agency or agencies under such arrangements as 
        the Postal Service shall by mutual agreement with each such 
        agency establish.
            ``(2) Identification of appropriate causes and agencies.--
        Decisions concerning the identification of appropriate causes 
        and agencies to receive amounts becoming available from the 
        sale of a semipostal under this section shall be made in 
        accordance with applicable regulations under subsection (e).
            ``(3) Determination of amounts.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The amounts becoming available 
                from the sale of a semipostal under this section shall 
                be determined in a manner similar to that provided for 
                under section 414(c)(2) (as in effect on July 1, 2000).
                    ``(B) Administrative costs.--Regulations under 
                subsection (e) shall specifically address how the costs 
                incurred by the Postal Service in carrying out this 
                section shall be computed, recovered, and kept to a 
                minimum.
            ``(4) Other funding not to be affected.--Amounts which have 
        or may become available from the sale of a semipostal under 
        this section shall not be taken into account in any decision 
        relating to the level of appropriations or other Federal 
        funding to be furnished to an agency in any year.
            ``(5) Recovery of costs.--Before transferring to an agency 
        in accordance with paragraph (1) any amounts becoming available 
        from the sale of a semipostal over any period, the Postal 
        Service shall ensure that it has recovered the full costs 
        incurred by the Postal Service in connection with such 
        semipostal through the end of such period.
    ``(e) Regulations.--
            ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in subsection (c), 
        the Postal Service shall prescribe any regulations necessary to 
        carry out this section, including provisions relating to--
                    ``(A) which office or other authority within the 
                Postal Service shall be responsible for making the 
                decisions described in subsection (d)(2);
                    ``(B) what criteria and procedures shall be applied 
                in making those decisions; and
                    ``(C) what limitations shall apply, if any, 
                relating to the issuance of semipostals (such as 
                whether more than one semipostal may be offered for 
                sale at the same time).
            ``(2) Notice and comment.--Before any regulation is issued 
        under this section, a copy of the proposed regulation shall be 
        published in the Federal Register, and an opportunity shall be 
        provided for interested parties to present written and, where 
        practicable, oral comment. All regulations necessary to carry 
        out this section shall be issued not later than 30 days before 
        the date on which semipostals are first made available to the 
        public under this section.
    ``(f) Annual Reports.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Postmaster General shall include in 
        each report rendered under section 2402, with respect to any 
        period during any portion of which this section is in effect, 
        information concerning the operation of any program established 
        under this section.
            ``(2) Specific requirement.--If any semipostal ceases to be 
        offered during the period covered by such a report, the 
        information contained in that report shall also include--
                    ``(A) the commencement and termination dates for 
                the sale of such semipostal;
                    ``(B) the total amount that became available from 
                the sale of such semipostal; and
                    ``(C) of that total amount, how much was applied 
                toward administrative costs.
        For each year before the year in which a semipostal ceases to 
        be offered, any report under this subsection shall include, 
        with respect to that semipostal (for the year covered by such 
        report), the information described in subparagraphs (B) and 
        (C).
    ``(g) Termination.--This section shall cease to be effective at the 
end of the 10-year period beginning on the date on which semipostals 
are first made available to the public under this section.''.
    (b) Reports by Agencies.--Each agency that receives any funding in 
a year under section 416 of title 39, United States Code (as amended by 
this section) shall submit a written report under this subsection, with 
respect to such year, to the congressional committees with jurisdiction 
over the United States Postal Service. Each such report shall include--
            (1) the total amount of funding received by such agency 
        under such section 416 during the year;
            (2) an accounting of how any funds received by such agency 
        under such section 416 were allocated or otherwise used by such 
        agency in such year; and
            (3) a description of any significant advances or 
        accomplishments in such year that were funded, in whole or in 
        part, out of amounts received by such agency under such section 
        416.
    (c) Reports by the General Accounting Office.--
            (1) Interim report.--The General Accounting Office shall 
        submit to the President and each House of Congress an interim 
        report on the operation of the program established under 
        section 416 of title 39, United States Code (as amended by this 
        section) not later than 4 years after semipostals are first 
        made available to the public under such section.
            (2) Final report.--The General Accounting Office shall 
        transmit to the President and each House of Congress a final 
        report on the operation of the program established under such 
        section 416, not later than 6 months before the date on which 
        it is scheduled to expire. The final report shall contain a 
        detailed statement of the findings and conclusions of the 
        General Accounting Office, together with any recommendations it 
        considers appropriate.
    (d) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for chapter 4 of 
title 39, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
following:

``416. Authority to issue semipostals.''.
    (e) Effective Date.--The program under section 416 of title 39, 
United States Code (as amended by this section) shall be established 
within 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY TO ISSUE SEMIPOSTALS FOR BREAST CANCER 
              RESEARCH.

    (a) In General.--Section 414(g) of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:
    ``(g) This section shall cease to be effective after July 29, 2002, 
or the end of the 2-year period beginning on the date of the enactment 
of the Semipostal Authorization Act, whichever is later.''.
    (b) Reporting Requirement.--No later than 3 months and no earlier 
than 6 months before the date as of which section 414 of title 39, 
United States Code (as amended by this section) is scheduled to expire, 
the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the 
Congress a report on the operation of such section. Such report shall 
be in addition to the report required by section 2(b) of Public Law 
105-41, and shall address at least the same matters as were required to 
be included in that earlier report.

            Passed the House of Representatives July 17, 2000.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.