[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 781 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 781

   To require a preference for Federal contractors that hire welfare 
  recipients, to authorize appropriations for job access and reverse 
commute grants, to allow the Secretary of Health and Human Services to 
    provide guarantees of State loans to welfare recipients, making 
   appropriations for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
   Administration, and to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to 
              restore certain business-related deductions.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 23, 1999

 Mr. Andrews introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees on 
Transportation and Infrastructure, Ways and Means, and Commerce, for a 
 period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To require a preference for Federal contractors that hire welfare 
  recipients, to authorize appropriations for job access and reverse 
commute grants, to allow the Secretary of Health and Human Services to 
    provide guarantees of State loans to welfare recipients, making 
   appropriations for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
   Administration, and to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to 
              restore certain business-related deductions.

    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 ``Job Access and Work Incentives 
Act''.

    TITLE I--PREFERENCE FOR CONTRACTORS THAT HIRE WELFARE RECIPIENTS

SEC. 101. PREFERENCE FOR CONTRACTORS THAT HIRE WELFARE RECIPIENTS.

    (a) Preference.--In awarding a contract covered by this section, 
the head of a department or agency of the Federal Government shall give 
preference to an entity that agrees to hire welfare recipients for jobs 
created to carry out the contract.
    (b) Evaluation.--To carry out subsection (a), the head of a 
department or agency shall develop a system under which, in the 
evaluation of an offer from an entity for a contract, the preference 
given to the entity will be greater as the number of welfare recipients 
that the offeror agrees to hire increases.
    (c) Exceptions.--The requirement of subsection (a) shall not apply 
in the evaluation of offers for a contract if--
            (1) the Secretary of Defense determines that the subsection 
        should not apply for national security reasons; or
            (2) the head of the department or agency determines that no 
        entry-level jobs are expected to be created to carry out the 
        contract.
    (d) Covered Contracts.--This section applies to any contract in an 
amount in excess of $500,000 entered into after the date of the 
enactment of this Act by a department or agency of the Federal 
Government using competitive procedures.
    (e) Welfare Recipient.--The term ``welfare recipient'' means a 
recipient of assistance under a State program funded under part A of 
title IV of the Social Security Act.

            TITLE II--JOB ACCESS AND REVERSE COMMUTE GRANTS

SEC. 201. JOB ACCESS AND REVERSE COMMUTE GRANTS.

    Section 3037(l)(1) of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st 
Century (49 U.S.C. 5309 note; 112 Stat. 391) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (A) by striking clauses (ii) through 
        (v) and inserting the following:
                            ``(ii) $500,000,000 for fiscal year 2000;
                            ``(iii) $500,000,000 for fiscal year 2001;
                            ``(iv) $500,000,000 for fiscal year 2002;
                            ``(v) $500,000,000 for fiscal year 2003; 
                        and
                            ``(vi) $500,000,000 for fiscal year 
                        2004.'';
            (2) in subparagraph (B) by striking ``this section'' and 
        all that follows through the period at the end and inserting 
        ``this section $10,000,000 for fiscal year 1999.''; and
            (3) in subparagraph (C) by striking ``this section'' and 
        all that follows through the period at the end and inserting 
        ``this section $100,000,000 for fiscal year 1999.''.

  TITLE III--GUARANTEES OF LOANS MADE BY STATES TO CURRENT OR RECENT 
                           WELFARE RECIPIENTS

SEC. 301. GUARANTEES OF LOANS MADE BY STATES TO CURRENT OR RECENT 
              WELFARE RECIPIENTS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services may 
provide loan guarantees to States in accordance with this section.
    (b) Limitation on Annual Amount of Loan Guarantees.--The total 
dollar amount of loan guarantees that may be provided under this 
section in a fiscal year shall not exceed $50,000,000.
    (c) Limitation on Annual Amount of Loan Guarantees per State.--The 
total dollar amount of loan guarantees that may be provided to a State 
under this section in a fiscal year is the amount that bears the same 
ratio to $50,000,000 as the total dollar amount payable to the State 
under section 403(a)(1) of the Social Security Act for the fiscal year 
(determined without regard to any penalty imposed under section 409 of 
such Act) bears to the total dollar amount payable to all States under 
such section 403(a)(1) for the fiscal year (as so determined).
    (d) Loans That May Be Guaranteed.--The Secretary of Health and 
Human Services may provide a loan guarantee under this section with 
respect to a loan if--
            (1) the loan is made by a State;
            (2) the borrower is a recipient of assistance under a State 
        program funded under part A of title IV of the Social Security 
        Act;
            (3) the principal amount of the loan is not less than $20 
        and not more than $5,000; and
            (4) the loan bears interest at an annual rate that does not 
        exceed the rate at which interest is payable annually on bonds 
        most recently issued by the smallest political subdivision of 
        the State in which the borrower resides that has borrowing 
        authority.
    (e) Definition of State.--In this section, the term ``State'' has 
the meaning given such term in section 419(5) of the Social Security 
Act.
    (f) Regulations.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 
prescribe such regulations as may be necessary to carry out this 
section.

          TITLE IV--SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES

SEC. 401. APPROPRIATIONS FOR PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE 
              AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION.

    For carrying out titles V and XIX of the Public Health Service Act 
with respect to substance abuse and mental health services, there is 
appropriated, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise 
appropriated, $2,730,000,000 for fiscal year 2000.

                   TITLE V--RESTORATION OF DEDUCTIONS

SEC. 501. RESTORATION OF DEDUCTION FOR BUSINESS MEALS AND ENTERTAINMENT 
              AND FOR TRAVEL EXPENSES OF SPOUSES AND OTHERS 
              ACCOMPANYING THE TAXPAYER ON BUSINESS.

    (a) Restoration of Deduction for Business Meals and 
Entertainment.--
            (1) In general.--Subsection (n) of section 274 of the 
        Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to only 50 percent of 
        meal and entertainment expenses allowed as deduction) is hereby 
        repealed.
            (2) Effective date.--The amendment made by this subsection 
        shall apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 1999.
    (b) Repeal of Special Limitation on Deduction for Travel Expenses 
of Spouses, Etc.--
            (1) In general.--Subsection (m) of section 274 of such Code 
        is amended by striking paragraph (3).
            (2) Effective date.--The amendment made by this subsection 
        shall apply to amounts paid or incurred after December 31, 
        1999.
                                 <all>