[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 711 Referred in House (RFH)]

  2d Session
                                 S. 711


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 27, 2000

                 Referred to the Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
 To allow for the investment of joint Federal and State funds from the 
 civil settlement of damages from the Exxon Valdez oil spill, 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.

    (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law and subject to the 
provisions of subsections (e) and (g), upon the joint motion of the 
United States and the State of Alaska and the issuance of an 
appropriate order by the United States District Court for the District 
of Alaska, the joint trust funds, or any portion thereof, including any 
interest accrued thereon, previously received or to be received by the 
United States and the State of Alaska pursuant to the Agreement and 
Consent Decree issued in United States v. Exxon Corporation, et al. 
(No. A91-082 CIV) and State of Alaska v. Exxon Corporation, et al. (No. 
A91-083 CIV) (hereafter referred to as the ``Consent Decree''), may be 
deposited in--
            (1) the Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration 
        Fund (hereafter referred to as the ``Fund'') established in 
        title I of the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies 
        Appropriations Act, 1992 (Public Law 102-154, 43 U.S.C. 1474b);
            (2) accounts outside the United States Treasury (hereafter 
        referred to as ``outside accounts''); or
            (3) both.
Any funds deposited in an outside account may be invested only in 
income-producing obligations and other instruments or securities that 
have been determined unanimously by the Federal and State natural 
resource trustees for the Exxon Valdez oil spill (``trustees'') to have 
a high degree of reliability and security.
    (b) Joint trust funds deposited in the Fund or an outside account 
that have been approved unanimously by the Trustees for expenditure by 
or through a State or Federal agency shall be transferred promptly from 
the Fund or the outside account to the State of Alaska or United States 
upon the joint request of the governments.
    (c) The transfer of joint trust funds outside the Court Registry 
shall not affect the supervisory jurisdiction of the District Court 
under the Consent Decree or the Memorandum of Agreement and Consent 
Decree in United States v. State of Alaska (No. A91-081-CIV) over all 
expenditures of the joint trust funds.
    (d) Nothing herein shall affect the requirement of section 207 of 
the Dire Emergency Supplemental Appropriations and Transfers for Relief 
From the Effects of Natural Disasters, for Other Urgent Needs, and for 
the Incremental Cost of ``Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm'' Act of 
1992 (Public Law 102-229, 42 U.S.C. 1474b note) that amounts received 
by the United States and designated by the trustees for the expenditure 
by or through a Federal agency must be deposited into the Fund.
    (e) All remaining settlement funds are eligible for the investment 
authority granted under subsection (a) of this act so long as they are 
managed and allocated consistent with the Resolution of the Trustees 
adopted March 1, 1999, concerning the Restoration Reserve, as follows:
            (1) $55 million of the funds remaining on October 1, 2002, 
        and the associated earnings thereafter shall be managed and 
        allocated for habitat protection programs including small 
        parcel habitat acquisitions. Such sums shall be reduced by--
                    (A) the amount of any payments made after the date 
                of enactment of this Act from the Joint Trust Funds 
                pursuant to an agreement between the Trustee Council 
                and Koniag, Inc. which includes those lands which are 
                presently subject to the Koniag Non-Development 
                Easement, including, but not limited to, the 
                continuation or modification of such Easement; and
                    (B) payments in excess of $6.32 million for any 
                habitat acquisition or protection from the joint trust 
                funds after the date of enactment of this Act and prior 
                to October 1, 2002, other than payments for which the 
                Council is currently obligated through purchase 
                agreements with the Kodiak Island Borough, Afognak 
                Joint Venture and the Eyak Corporation.
            (2) All other funds remaining on October 1, 2002, and the 
        associated earnings shall be used to fund a program, consisting 
        of--
                    (A) marine research, including applied fisheries 
                research;
                    (B) monitoring; and
                    (C) restoration, other than habitat acquisition, 
                which may include community and economic restoration 
                projects and facilities (including projects proposed by 
                the communities of the EVOS Region or the fishing 
                industry), consistent with the Consent Decree.
    (f) The Federal trustees and the State trustees, to the extent 
authorized by State law, are authorized to issue grants as needed to 
implement this program.
    (g) The authority provided in this Act shall expire on September 
30, 2002, unless by September 30, 2001, the Trustees have submitted to 
the Congress a report recommending a structure the Trustees believe 
would be most effective and appropriate for the administration and 
expenditure of remaining funds and interest received. Upon the 
expiration of the authorities granted in this Act all monies in the 
Fund or outside accounts shall be returned to the Court Registry or 
other account permitted by law.

            Passed the Senate November 19, 1999.

            Attest:

                                                    GARY SISCO,

                                                             Secretary.