[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1285 Introduced in Senate (IS)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1285

            To reform the postal laws of the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 18, 2003

  Mr. Carper introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
           referred to the Committee on Governmental Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
            To reform the postal laws of the United States.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Postal 
Accountability and Enhancement Act''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
                 TITLE I--DEFINITIONS; POSTAL SERVICES

Sec. 101. Definitions.
Sec. 102. Postal services.
                    TITLE II--MODERN RATE REGULATION

Sec. 201. Provisions relating to market-dominant products.
Sec. 202. Provisions relating to competitive products.
Sec. 203. Provisions relating to experimental and new products.
Sec. 204. Reporting requirements and related provisions.
Sec. 205. Complaints; appellate review and enforcement.
Sec. 206. Clerical amendment.
                  TITLE III--MODERN SERVICE STANDARDS

Sec. 301. Establishment of modern service standards.
Sec. 302. Postal service plan.
Sec. 303. Postal Network Modernization Commission.
Sec. 304. Closure and consolidation of facilities.
Sec. 305. Congressional consideration of commission report.
Sec. 306. Nonappealability to Postal Regulatory Commission.
           TITLE IV--PROVISIONS RELATING TO FAIR COMPETITION

Sec. 401. Postal Service Competitive Products Fund.
Sec. 402. Assumed Federal income tax on competitive products income.
Sec. 403. Unfair competition prohibited.
Sec. 404. Suits by and against the Postal Service.
Sec. 405. International postal arrangements.
Sec. 406. Change-of-address order involving a commercial mail receiving 

                            agency.
Sec. 407. Exception for competitive products.
                      TITLE V--GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 501. Qualification requirements for Governors.
Sec. 502. Obligations.
Sec. 503. Private carriage of letters.
Sec. 504. Rulemaking authority.
Sec. 505. Noninterference with collective bargaining agreements, etc.
Sec. 506. Bonus authority.
                TITLE VI--ENHANCED REGULATORY COMMISSION

Sec. 601. Reorganization and modification of certain provisions.
Sec. 602. Authority for Postal Regulatory Commission to issue 
                            subpoenas.
Sec. 603. Appropriations for the Postal Regulatory Commission.
Sec. 604. Redesignation of the Postal Rate Commission.
                     TITLE VII--INSPECTORS GENERAL

Sec. 701. Inspector General of the Postal Regulatory Commission.
Sec. 702. Inspector General of the United States Postal Service to be 
                            appointed by the President.
                        TITLE VIII--EVALUATIONS

Sec. 801. Definition.
Sec. 802. Assessments of ratemaking, classification, and other 
                            provisions.
Sec. 803. Study on equal application of laws to competitive products.
Sec. 804. Greater diversity in Postal Service executive and 
                            administrative schedule management 
                            positions.
Sec. 805. Contracts with women, minorities, and small businesses.
Sec. 806. Rates for periodicals.
Sec. 807. Assessment of certain rate deficiencies.
      TITLE IX--MISCELLANEOUS; TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS

Sec. 901. Employment of postal police officers.
Sec. 902. Date of postmark to be treated as date of appeal in 
                            connection with the closing or 
                            consolidation of post offices.
Sec. 903. Provisions relating to benefits under chapter 81 of title 5, 
                            United States Code, for officers and 
                            employees of the former Post Office 
                            Department.
Sec. 904. Obsolete provisions.
Sec. 905. Expanded contracting authority.
Sec. 906. Investments.
Sec. 907. Repeal of section 5403.
Sec. 908. Technical and conforming amendments.

                 TITLE I--DEFINITIONS; POSTAL SERVICES

SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS.

    Section 102 of title 39, United States Code, is amended by striking 
``and'' at the end of paragraph (3), by striking the period at the end 
of paragraph (4) and inserting a semicolon, and by adding at the end 
the following:
            ``(5) `postal service' refers to the physical delivery of 
        letters, printed matter, or packages weighing up to 70 pounds, 
        including physical acceptance, collection, sorting, 
        transportation, or other services ancillary thereto;
            ``(6) `product' means a postal service with a distinct cost 
        or market characteristic for which a rate is applied;
            ``(7) `rates', as used with respect to products, includes 
        fees for postal services;
            ``(8) `market-dominant product' or `product in the market-
        dominant category of mail' means a product subject to 
        subchapter I of chapter 36; and
            ``(9) `competitive product' or `product in the competitive 
        category of mail' means a product subject to subchapter II of 
        chapter 36; and
            ``(10) `year', as used in chapter 36 (other than 
        subchapters I and VI thereof), means a fiscal year.''.

SEC. 102. POSTAL SERVICES.

    (a) In General.--Section 404 of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by striking paragraph (6) and by 
        redesignating paragraphs (7) through (9) as paragraphs (6) 
        through (8), respectively; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Nothing in this title shall be considered to permit or 
require that the Postal Service provide any special nonpostal or 
similar services.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--(1) Section 1402(b)(1)(B)(ii) of the 
Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (98 Stat. 2170; 42 U.S.C. 
10601(b)(1)(B)(ii)) is amended by striking ``404(a)(8)'' and inserting 
``404(a)(7)''.
    (2) Section 2003(b)(1) of title 39, United States Code, is amended 
by striking ``and nonpostal''.

                    TITLE II--MODERN RATE REGULATION

SEC. 201. PROVISIONS RELATING TO MARKET-DOMINANT PRODUCTS.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended by striking sections 3621, 3622, and 3623 and inserting the 
following:
``Sec. 3621. Applicability; definitions
    ``(a) Applicability.--This subchapter shall apply with respect to--
            ``(1)(A) single piece first-class letters (both domestic 
        and international);
            ``(B) single piece first-class cards (both domestic and 
        international);
            ``(C) single piece parcels (both domestic and 
        international); and
            ``(D) special services;
            ``(2) all first-class mail not included under paragraph 
        (1);
            ``(3) periodicals;
            ``(4) standard mail (except for parcel post);
            ``(5) media mail;
            ``(6) library mail; and
            ``(7) bound printed matter, subject to any changes the 
Postal Regulatory Commission may make under section 3642.
    ``(b) Rule of Construction.--Mail matter referred to in subsection 
(a) shall, for purposes of this subchapter, be considered to have the 
meaning given to such mail matter under the mail classification 
schedule.
``Sec. 3622. Modern rate regulation
    ``(a) Authority Generally.--The Postal Regulatory Commission shall, 
within 24 months after the date of the enactment of this section, by 
regulation establish (and may from time to time thereafter by 
regulation revise) a modern system for regulating rates and classes for 
market-dominant products.
    ``(b) Objectives.--Such system shall be designed to achieve the 
following objectives:
            ``(1) To reduce the administrative burden of the ratemaking 
        process.
            ``(2) To create predictability and stability in rates.
            ``(3) To maximize incentives to reduce costs and increase 
        efficiency.
            ``(4) To enhance mail security and deter terrorism by 
        promoting secure, sender-identified mail.
            ``(5) To allow the Postal Service pricing flexibility, 
        including the ability to use pricing to promote intelligent 
        mail and encourage increased mail volume during nonpeak 
        periods.
            ``(6) To assure adequate revenues, including retained 
        earnings, to maintain financial stability and meet the service 
        standards established under section 3691.
    ``(c) Factors.--In establishing or revising such system, the Postal 
Regulatory Commission shall take into account--
            ``(1) the establishment and maintenance of a fair and 
        equitable schedule for rates and classification system;
            ``(2) the value of the mail service actually provided each 
        class or type of mail service to both the sender and the 
        recipient, including but not limited to the collection, mode of 
        transportation, and priority of delivery;
            ``(3) the direct and indirect postal costs attributable to 
        each class or type of mail service plus that portion of all 
        other costs of the Postal Service reasonably assignable to such 
        class or type;
            ``(4) the effect of rate increases upon the general public, 
        business mail users, and enterprises in the private sector of 
        the economy engaged in the delivery of mail matter other than 
        letters;
            ``(5) the available alternative means of sending and 
        receiving letters and other mail matter at reasonable costs;
            ``(6) the degree of preparation of mail for delivery into 
        the postal system performed by the mailer and its effect upon 
        reducing costs to the Postal Service;
            ``(7) simplicity of structure for the entire schedule and 
        simple, identifiable relationships between the rates or fees 
        charged the various classes of mail for postal services;
            ``(8) the relative value to the people of the kinds of mail 
        matter entered into the postal system and the desirability and 
        justification for special classifications and services of mail;
            ``(9) the importance of providing classifications with 
        extremely high degrees of reliability and speed of delivery and 
        of providing those that do not require high degrees of 
        reliability and speed of delivery;
            ``(10) the desirability of special classifications from the 
        point of view of both the user and of the Postal Service;
            ``(11) the educational, cultural, scientific, and 
        informational value to the recipient of mail matter; and
            ``(12) the policies of this title as well as such other 
        factors as the Commission deems appropriate.
    ``(d) Allowable Provisions.--The system for regulating rates and 
classes for market-dominant products may include--
            ``(1) price caps, revenue targets, or other form of 
        incentive regulation;
            ``(2) cost-of-service regulation; or
            ``(3) such other form of regulation as the Commission 
        considers appropriate to achieve, consistent with subsection 
        (c), the objectives of subsection (b).
    ``(e) Requirements.--The system for regulating rates and classes 
for market-dominant products shall--
            ``(1) establish a schedule whereby rates, when necessary, 
        would increase at regular intervals by predictable amounts; and
            ``(2) establish procedures whereby rates may be increased 
        on a expedited basis when an unexpected decline in revenue or 
        increase in costs threatens the ability of the Postal Service 
        to maintain service at the standards established by the Postal 
        Regulatory Commission under section 3691.
    ``(f) Transition Rule.--Until regulations under this section first 
take effect, rates and classes for market-dominant products shall 
remain subject to modification in accordance with the provisions of 
this chapter and section 407, as such provisions were last in effect 
before the date of the enactment of this section.
``Sec. 3623. Service agreements for market-dominant products
    ``(a) In General.--
            ``(1) Authority.--The Postal Service may enter into service 
        agreements with mailers that provide for the provision of 
        postal services under terms and conditions that differ from 
        those that would apply under the otherwise applicable market-
        dominant mail classification.
            ``(2) Agreements.--An agreement under this section may 
        involve--
                    ``(A) performance by the contracting mail user of 
                mail preparation, processing, transportation, or other 
                functions that reduce costs to the Postal Service;
                    ``(B) performance by the Postal Service of 
                additional mail preparation, processing, 
                transportation, or other functions that increase costs 
                to the Postal Service; or
                    ``(C) other terms and conditions that meet the 
                requirements of subsections (b) and (c).
    ``(b) Requirements.--A service agreement under this section may 
only be entered into if the agreement will benefit the contracting 
mailer, the Postal Service, and mailers who are not parties to the 
agreement and if each of the following conditions is met:
            ``(1) The total revenue generated under the agreement--
                    ``(A) will cover all costs attributable to the 
                Postal Service; and
                    ``(B) will result in a greater contribution to the 
                institutional costs of the Postal Service than would 
                have been granted had the agreement not been entered 
                into.
            ``(2) Rates and fees for other mailers will not increase as 
        a result of the agreement.
            ``(3) The agreement pertains exclusively to products in the 
        market-dominant category of mail.
            ``(4) The agreement will not preclude or materially hinder 
        similarly situated mail users from entering into agreements 
        with the Postal Service on the same, or substantially the same, 
        terms, and the Postal Service remains willing and able to enter 
        into such.
    ``(c) Limitations.--A service agreement under this section shall--
            ``(1) be for a term of not to exceed 3 years; and
            ``(2) provide that such agreement shall be subject to the 
        cancellation authority of the Commission under section 3662.
    ``(d) Notice Requirements.--
            ``(1) In general.--At least 30 days before a service 
        agreement under this section is to take effect, the Postal 
        Service shall file with the Postal Regulatory Commission and 
        publish in the Federal Register the following:
                    ``(A) With respect to each condition under 
                subsection (b), information in sufficient detail to 
                demonstrate the bases for the Postal Service's view 
                that such condition would be met.
                    ``(B) A description of the type of mail the 
                agreement involves.
                    ``(C) The mail preparation, processing, 
                transportation, administration, or other additional 
                functions, if any, the mail user is to perform under 
                the agreement.
                    ``(D) The services or benefits the Postal Service 
                is to perform under the agreement.
                    ``(E) The rates and fees payable by the mail user 
                during the term of the agreement.
            ``(2) Agreements less than national in scope.--In the case 
        of a service agreement under this section that is less than 
        national in scope, the information described under paragraph 
        (1) shall also be published by the Postal Service in a manner 
        designed to afford reasonable notice to persons within any 
        geographic area to which such agreement (or any amendment 
        thereto) pertains.
    ``(e) Equal Treatment Required.--If the Postal Service enters into 
a negotiated service agreement with a mailer under this section, the 
Postal Service shall make such agreement available to other mailers on 
the same terms and conditions.
    ``(f) Complaints.--Any person who believes that a service agreement 
under this section is not (or, in the case of a proposed agreement or a 
proposed amendment to a service agreement under this section, would not 
be) in conformance with the requirements of this section and 
regulations thereunder, or who aggrieved by a decision of the Postal 
Service not to enter into an agreement under this section, may file a 
complaint with the Postal Regulatory Commission in accordance with 
section 3662.
    ``(g) Postal Regulatory Commission Role.--
            ``(1) Regulations.--The Postal Regulatory Commission may 
        promulgate such regulations regarding service agreements as the 
        Commission determines necessary to implement the requirements 
        of this section.
            ``(2) Review.--The Postal Regulatory Commission may review 
        any agreement or proposed agreement under this section and may 
        suspend, cancel, or prevent such agreement if the Commission 
        finds that the agreement does not meet the requirements of this 
        section or the regulations thereunder.
    ``(h) Interpretation.--The determination of whether the revenue 
generated under the agreement meets the requirements of (b)(1)(B) shall 
be based on the actual contribution of the mail involved, not on the 
average contribution made by the mail classification most similar to 
the services performed under the agreement.
    ``(i) Rate Discounts.--In the administration of this section, the 
Postal Regulatory Commission shall not permit rate discounts for 
additional mail preparation, processing, transportation, or other 
functions that exceed the costs avoided by the Postal Service by virtue 
of the additional functions performed by the mailer. Such discounts are 
allowable only if the Commission has, after notice and opportunity for 
a public hearing and comment, determined that such discounts are 
reasonable and equitable and are necessary to enable the Postal 
Service, under best practices of honest, efficient, and economical 
management, to maintain and continue the development of postal services 
of the kind and quality adapted to the needs of the United States 
consistent with the service standards established under section 
3691.''.
    (b) Repealed Sections.--Sections 3624, 3625, and 3628 of title 39, 
United States Code, are repealed.
    (c) Redesignation.--Chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code (as 
in effect after the amendment made by section 601, but before the 
amendment made by section 202) is amended by striking the heading for 
subchapter II and inserting the following:

   ``SUBCHAPTER I--PROVISIONS RELATING TO MARKET-DOMINANT PRODUCTS''.

SEC. 202. PROVISIONS RELATING TO COMPETITIVE PRODUCTS.

    Chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code, is amended by inserting 
after section 3629 the following:

      ``SUBCHAPTER II--PROVISIONS RELATING TO COMPETITIVE PRODUCTS

``Sec. 3631. Applicability; definitions and updates
    ``(a) Applicability.--This subchapter shall apply with respect to--
            ``(1) priority mail;
            ``(2) expedited mail;
            ``(3) mailgrams;
            ``(4) international mail; and
            ``(5) parcel post,
subject to subsection (d) and any changes the Postal Regulatory 
Commission may make under section 3642.
    ``(b) Definition.--For purposes of this subchapter, the term `costs 
attributable', as used with respect to a product, means the direct and 
indirect postal costs attributable to such product.
    ``(c) Rule of Construction.--Mail matter referred to in subsection 
(a) shall, for purposes of this subchapter, be considered to have the 
meaning given to such mail matter under the mail classification 
schedule.
    ``(d) Limitation.--Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
section, nothing in this subchapter shall be considered to apply with 
respect to any product then currently in the market-dominant category 
of mail.
``Sec. 3632. Action of the Governors
    ``(a) Authority To Establish Rates and Classes.--The Governors, 
with the written concurrence of a majority of all of the Governors then 
holding office, shall establish rates and classes for products in the 
competitive category of mail in accordance with the requirements of 
this subchapter and regulations promulgated under section 3633.
    ``(b) Procedures.--
            ``(1) In general.--Rates and classes shall be established 
        in writing, complete with a statement of explanation and 
        justification, and the date as of which each such rate or class 
        takes effect.
            ``(2) Publication.--The Governors shall cause each rate and 
        class decision under this section and the record of the 
        Governors' proceedings in connection with such decision to be 
        published in the Federal Register by such date before the 
        effective date of any new rates or classes as the Governors 
        consider appropriate.
    ``(c) Transition Rule.--Until regulations under section 3633 first 
take effect, rates and classes for competitive products shall remain 
subject to modification in accordance with the provisions of this 
chapter and section 407, as such provisions were as last in effect 
before the date of the enactment of this section.
``Sec. 3633. Provisions applicable to rates for competitive products
    ``The Postal Regulatory Commission shall, within 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this section, promulgate (and may from time to 
time thereafter revise) regulations--
            ``(1) to prohibit the subsidization of competitive products 
        by market-dominant products;
            ``(2) to ensure that each competitive product covers its 
        costs attributable; and
            ``(3) to ensure that all competitive products collectively 
        cover their share of the institutional costs of the Postal 
        Service.''.

SEC. 203. PROVISIONS RELATING TO EXPERIMENTAL AND NEW PRODUCTS.

    Subchapter III of chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:

 ``SUBCHAPTER III--PROVISIONS RELATING TO EXPERIMENTAL AND NEW PRODUCTS

``Sec. 3641. Market tests of experimental products
    ``(a) Authority.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Postal Service may conduct market 
        tests of experimental products in accordance with this section.
            ``(2) Provisions waived.--A product shall not, while it is 
        being tested under this section, be subject to the requirements 
        of sections 3622, 3633, or 3642, or regulations promulgated 
        under those sections.
    ``(b) Conditions.--A product may not be tested under this section 
unless it satisfies each of the following:
            ``(1) Significantly different product.--The product is, 
        from the viewpoint of the mail users, significantly different 
        from all products offered by the Postal Service within the 2-
        year period preceding the start of the test.
            ``(2) Market disruption.--The introduction or continued 
        offering of the product will not create an unfair or otherwise 
        inappropriate competitive advantage for the Postal Service or 
        any mailer, particularly in regard to small business concerns 
        (as defined under subsection (h)).
            ``(3) Correct categorization.--The Postal Service 
        identifies the product, for the purpose of a test under this 
        section, as either market dominant or competitive, consistent 
        with the criteria under section 3642(b)(1). Costs and revenues 
        attributable to a product identified as competitive shall be 
        included in any determination under section 3633(3)(relating to 
        provisions applicable to competitive products collectively).
    ``(c) Notice.--
            ``(1) In general.--At least 30 days before initiating a 
        market test under this section, the Postal Service shall file 
        with the Postal Regulatory Commission and publish in the 
        Federal Register a notice--
                    ``(A) setting out the basis for the Postal 
                Service's determination that the market test is covered 
                by this section; and
                    ``(B) describing the nature and scope of the market 
                test.
            ``(2) Safeguards.--For a competitive experimental product, 
        the provisions of section 504(g) shall be available with 
        respect to any information required to be filed under paragraph 
        (1) to the same extent and in the same manner as in the case of 
        any matter described in section 504(g)(1). Nothing in paragraph 
        (1) shall be considered to permit or require the publication of 
        any information as to which confidential treatment is accorded 
        under the preceding sentence (subject to the same exception as 
        set forth in section 504(g)(3)).
    ``(d) Duration.--
            ``(1) In general.--A market test of a product under this 
        section may be conducted over a period of not to exceed 24 
        months.
            ``(2) Extension authority.--If necessary in order to 
        determine the feasibility or desirability of a product being 
tested under this section, the Postal Regulatory Commission may, upon 
written application of the Postal Service (filed not later than 60 days 
before the date as of which the testing of such product would otherwise 
be scheduled to terminate under paragraph (1)), extend the testing of 
such product for not to exceed an additional 12 months.
    ``(e) Dollar-Amount Limitation.--
            ``(1) In general.--A product may only be tested under this 
        section if the total revenues that are anticipated, or in fact 
        received, by the Postal Service from such product do not exceed 
        $10,000,000 in any year, subject to paragraph (2) and 
        subsection (g).
            ``(2) Exemption authority.--The Postal Regulatory 
        Commission may, upon written application of the Postal Service, 
        exempt the market test from the limit in paragraph (1) if the 
        total revenues that are anticipated, or in fact received, by 
        the Postal Service from such product do not exceed $50,000,000 
        in any year, subject to subsection (g). In reviewing an 
        application under this paragraph, the Postal Regulatory 
        Commission shall approve such application if it determines 
        that--
                    ``(A) the product is likely to benefit the public 
                and meet an expected demand;
                    ``(B) the product is likely to contribute to the 
                financial stability of the Postal Service; and
                    ``(C) the product is not likely to result in unfair 
                or otherwise inappropriate competition.
    ``(f) Cancellation.--If the Postal Regulatory Commission at any 
time determines that a market test under this section fails, with 
respect to any particular product, to meet one or more of the 
requirements of this section, it may order the cancellation of the test 
involved or take such other action as it considers appropriate. A 
determination under this subsection shall be made in accordance with 
such procedures as the Commission shall by regulation prescribe.
    ``(g) Adjustment for Inflation.--For purposes of each year 
following the year in which occurs the deadline for the Postal 
Service's first report to the Postal Regulatory Commission under 
section 3652(a), each dollar amount contained in this section shall be 
adjusted by the change in the Consumer Price Index for such year (as 
determined under regulations of the Commission).
    ``(h) Definition of a Small Business Concern.--The criteria used in 
defining small business concerns or otherwise categorizing business 
concerns as small business concerns shall, for purposes of this 
section, be established by the Postal Regulatory Commission in 
conformance with the requirements of section 3 of the Small Business 
Act.
    ``(i) Effective Date.--Market tests under this subchapter may be 
conducted in any year beginning with the first year in which occurs the 
deadline for the Postal Service's first report to the Postal Regulatory 
Commission under section 3652(a).
``Sec. 3642. New products and transfers of products between the market-
              dominant and competitive categories of mail
    ``(a) In General.--Upon request of the Postal Service or users of 
the mails, or upon its own initiative, the Postal Regulatory Commission 
may change the list of market-dominant products under section 3621 and 
the list of competitive products under section 3631 by adding new 
products to the lists, removing products from the lists, or 
transferring products between the lists.
    ``(b) Criteria.--All determinations by the Postal Regulatory 
Commission under subsection (a) shall be made in accordance with the 
following criteria:
            ``(1) The market-dominant category of products shall 
        consist of each product in the sale of which the Postal Service 
        exercises sufficient market power that it can effectively set 
        the price of such product substantially above costs, raise 
        prices significantly, decrease quality, or decrease output, 
        without risk of losing business to other firms offering similar 
        products. The competitive category of products shall consist of 
        all other products.
            ``(2) Exclusion of products covered by postal monopoly.--A 
        product covered by the postal monopoly shall not be subject to 
        transfer under this section from the market-dominant category 
        of mail. For purposes of the preceding sentence, the term 
        `product covered by the postal monopoly' means any product the 
        conveyance or transmission of which is reserved to the United 
        States under section 1696 of title 18, subject to the same 
        exception as set forth in the last sentence of section 
        409(e)(1).
            ``(3) Additional considerations.--In making any decision 
        under this section, due regard shall be given to--
                    ``(A) the availability and nature of enterprises in 
                the private sector engaged in the delivery of the 
                product involved;
                    ``(B) the views of those who use the product 
                involved on the appropriateness of the proposed action; 
                and
                    ``(C) the likely impact of the proposed action on 
                small business concerns (within the meaning of section 
                3641(h)).
    ``(c) Transfers of Subclasses and Other Subordinate Units 
Allowable.--Nothing in this title shall be considered to prevent 
transfers under this section from being made by reason of the fact that 
they would involve only some (but not all) of the subclasses or other 
subordinate units of the class of mail or type of postal service 
involved (without regard to satisfaction of minimum quantity 
requirements standing alone).
    ``(d) Notification and Publication Requirements.--
            ``(1) Notification requirement.--The Postal Service shall, 
        whenever it requests to add a product or transfer a product to 
        a different category, file with the Postal Regulatory 
        Commission and publish in the Federal Register a notice setting 
        out the basis for its determination that the product satisfies 
        the criteria under subsection (b) and, in the case of a request 
        to add a product or transfer a product to the competitive 
        category of mail, that the product meets the regulations 
        promulgated by the Postal Regulatory Commission pursuant to 
        section 3633. The provisions of section 504(g) shall be 
available with respect to any information required to be filed.
            ``(2) Publication requirement.--The Postal Regulatory 
        Commission shall, whenever it changes the list of products in 
        the market-dominant or competitive category of mail, prescribe 
        new lists of products. The revised lists shall indicate how and 
        when any previous lists (including the lists under sections 
        3621 and 3631) are superseded, and shall be published in the 
        Federal Register.
    ``(e) Prohibition.--Except as provided in section 3641, no product 
that involves the physical delivery of letters, printed matter, or 
packages may be offered by the Postal Service unless it has been 
assigned to the market-dominant or competitive category of mail (as 
appropriate) either--
            ``(1) under this subchapter; or
            ``(2) by or under any other provision of law.''.

SEC. 204. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND RELATED PROVISIONS.

    (a) Redesignation.--Chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code (as 
in effect before the amendment made by subsection (b)) is amended by 
striking the heading for subchapter IV and inserting the following:

  ``SUBCHAPTER V--POSTAL SERVICES, COMPLAINTS, AND JUDICIAL REVIEW''.

    (b) Reports and Compliance.--Chapter 36 of title 39, United States 
Code, is amended by inserting after subchapter III the following:

     ``SUBCHAPTER IV--REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND RELATED PROVISIONS

``Sec. 3651. Annual reports by the Commission
    ``(a) In General.--The Postal Regulatory Commission shall submit an 
annual report to the President and the Congress concerning the 
operations of the Commission under this title, including the extent to 
which regulations are achieving the objectives under sections 3622, 
3633, and 3691.
    ``(b) Information From Postal Service.--The Postal Service shall 
provide the Postal Regulatory Commission with such information as may, 
in the judgment of the Commission, be necessary in order for the 
Commission to prepare its reports under this section.
``Sec. 3652. Annual reports to the Commission
    ``(a) Costs, Revenues, Rates, and Service.--Except as provided in 
subsection (c), the Postal Service shall, no later than 90 days after 
the end of each year, prepare and submit to the Postal Regulatory 
Commission a report (together with such nonpublic annex thereto as the 
Commission may require under subsection (e))--
            ``(1) which shall analyze costs, revenues, rates, and 
        quality of service in sufficient detail to demonstrate that all 
        products during such year complied with all applicable 
        requirements of this title; and
            ``(2) which shall, for each market-dominant product 
        provided in such year, provide--
                    ``(A) market information, including mail volumes; 
                and
                    ``(B) measures of the service afforded by the 
                Postal Service in connection with such product, 
                including--
                            ``(i) the level of service (described in 
                        terms of speed of delivery and reliability) 
                        provided; and
                            ``(ii) the degree of customer satisfaction 
                        with the service provided.
Before submitting a report under this subsection (including any annex 
thereto and the information required under subsection (b)), the Postal 
Service shall have the information contained in such report (and annex) 
audited by the Inspector General. The results of any such audit shall 
be submitted along with the report to which it pertains.
    ``(b) Information Relating to Workshare Discounts.
            ``(1) In general.--The Postal Service shall include, in 
        each report under subsection (a), the following information 
        with respect to each market-dominant product for which a 
        workshare discount was in effect during the period covered by 
        such report:
                    ``(A) The per-item cost avoided by the Postal 
                Service by virtue of such discount.
                    ``(B) The percentage of such per-item cost avoided 
                that the per-item workshare discount represents.
                    ``(C) The per-item contribution made to 
                institutional costs.
            ``(2) Workshare discount defined.--For purposes of this 
        subsection, the term `workshare discount' refers to presorting, 
        barcoding, dropshipping, and other similar discounts, as 
        further defined under regulations which the Postal Regulatory 
        Commission shall prescribe.
    ``(c) Service Agreements and Market Tests.--In carrying out 
subsections (a) and (b) with respect to service agreements (including 
service agreements entered into under section 3623) and experimental 
products offered through market tests under section 3641 in a year, the 
Postal Service--
            ``(1) may report summary data on the costs, revenues, and 
        quality of service by service agreement and market test; and
            ``(2) shall report such data as the Postal Regulatory 
        Commission requires.
    ``(d) Supporting Matter.--The Postal Regulatory Commission shall 
have access, in accordance with such regulations as the Commission 
shall prescribe, to the working papers and any other supporting matter 
of the Postal Service and the Inspector General in connection with any 
information submitted under this section.
    ``(e) Content and Form of Reports.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Postal Regulatory Commission shall, 
        by regulation, prescribe the content and form of the public 
        reports (and any nonpublic annex and supporting matter relating 
        thereto) to be provided by the Postal Service under this 
        section. In carrying out this subsection, the Commission shall 
        give due consideration to--
                    ``(A) providing the public with adequate 
                information to assess the lawfulness of rates charged;
                    ``(B) avoiding unnecessary or unwarranted 
                administrative effort and expense on the part of the 
                Postal Service; and
                    ``(C) protecting the confidentiality of 
                commercially sensitive information.
            ``(2) Revised requirements.--The Commission may, on its own 
        motion or on request of an interested party, initiate 
        proceedings (to be conducted in accordance with regulations 
        that the Commission shall prescribe) to improve the quality, 
        accuracy, or completeness of Postal Service data required by 
        the Commission under this subsection whenever it shall appear 
        that--
                    ``(A) the attribution of costs or revenues to 
                products has become significantly inaccurate or can be 
                significantly improved;
                    ``(B) the quality of service data has become 
                significantly inaccurate or can be significantly 
                improved; or
                    ``(C) such revisions are, in the judgment of the 
                Commission, otherwise necessitated by the public 
                interest.
    ``(f) Confidential Information.--
            ``(1) In general.--If the Postal Service determines that 
        any document or portion of a document, or other matter, which 
        it provides to the Postal Regulatory Commission in a nonpublic 
        annex under this section or pursuant to subsection (d) contains 
        information which is described in section 410(c) of this title, 
        or exempt from public disclosure under section 552(b) of title 
        5, the Postal Service shall, at the time of providing such 
        matter to the Commission, notify the Commission of its 
        determination, in writing, and describe with particularity the 
        documents (or portions of documents) or other matter for which 
        confidentiality is sought and the reasons therefor.
            ``(2) Treatment.--Any information or other matter described 
        in paragraph (1) to which the Commission gains access under 
        this section shall be subject to paragraphs (2) and (3) of 
        section 504(g) in the same way as if the Commission had 
        received notification with respect to such matter under section 
        504(g)(1).
    ``(g) Other Reports.--The Postal Service shall submit to the Postal 
Regulatory Commission, together with any other submission that the 
Postal Service is required to make under this section in a year, copies 
of its then most recent--
            ``(1) comprehensive statement under section 2401(e);
            ``(2) strategic plan under section 2802;
            ``(3) performance plan under section 2803; and
            ``(4) program performance reports under section 2804.
``Sec. 3653. Annual determination of compliance
    ``(a) Opportunity for Public Comment.--After receiving the reports 
required under section 3652 for any year, the Postal Regulatory 
Commission shall promptly provide an opportunity for comment on such 
reports by users of the mails, affected parties, and an officer of the 
Commission who shall be required to represent the interests of the 
general public.
    ``(b) Determination of Compliance or Noncompliance.--Not later than 
90 days after receiving the submissions required under section 3652 
with respect to a year, the Postal Regulatory Commission shall make a 
written determination as to--
            ``(1) whether any rates or fees in effect during such year 
        (for products individually or collectively) were not in 
        compliance with applicable provisions of this chapter (or 
        regulations promulgated thereunder); or
            ``(2) whether any service standards in effect during such 
        year were not met.
If, with respect to a year, no instance of noncompliance is found under 
this subsection to have occurred in such year, the written 
determination shall be to that effect.
    ``(c) If Any Noncompliance Is Found.--If, for a year, a timely 
written determination of noncompliance is made under subsection (b), 
the Postal Regulatory Commission shall take appropriate action in 
accordance with section 3662.
    ``(d) Rebuttable Presumption.--A timely written determination 
described in the last sentence of subsection (b) shall, for purposes of 
any proceeding under section 3662, create a rebuttable presumption of 
compliance by the Postal Service (with regard to the matters described 
in paragraphs (1) through (3) of subsection (b)) during the year to 
which such determination relates.''.

SEC. 205. COMPLAINTS; APPELLATE REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT.

    Chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code, is amended by striking 
sections 3662 and 3663 and inserting the following:
``Sec. 3662. Rate and service complaints
    ``(a) In General.--Interested persons (including an officer of the 
Postal Regulatory Commission representing the interests of the general 
public) who believe the Postal Service is not operating in conformance 
with the requirements of chapter 1, 4, or 6, or this chapter (or 
regulations promulgated under any of those chapters) may lodge a 
complaint with the Postal Regulatory Commission in such form and manner 
as the Commission may prescribe.
    ``(b) Prompt Response Required.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Postal Regulatory Commission shall, 
        within 90 days after receiving a complaint under subsection 
        (a), either--
                    ``(A) begin proceedings on such complaint; or
                    ``(B) issue an order dismissing the complaint 
                (together with a statement of the reasons therefor).
            ``(2) Treatment of complaints not timely acted on.--For 
        purposes of section 3663, any complaint under subsection (a) on 
        which the Commission fails to act in the time and manner 
        required by paragraph (1) shall be treated in the same way as 
        if it had been dismissed pursuant to an order issued by the 
        Commission on the last day allowable for the issuance of such 
        order under paragraph (1).
    ``(c) Action Required If Complaint Found To Be Justified.--If the 
Postal Regulatory Commission finds the complaint to be justified, it 
shall order that the Postal Service take such action as the Commission 
considers appropriate in order to achieve compliance with the 
applicable requirements and to remedy the effects of any noncompliance. 
Such action may include ordering unlawful rates to be adjusted to 
lawful levels, ordering the cancellation of market tests, ordering the 
Postal Service to discontinue providing loss-making products, and 
requiring the Postal Service to make up for revenue shortfalls in 
competitive products.
    ``(d) Authority To Order Fines in Cases of Deliberate 
Noncompliance.--In addition, in cases of deliberate noncompliance by 
the Postal Service with the requirements of this title, the Postal 
Regulatory Commission may order, based on the nature, circumstances, 
extent, and seriousness of the noncompliance, a fine (in the amount 
specified by the Commission in its order) for each incidence of 
noncompliance. Fines resulting from the provision of competitive 
products shall be paid out of the Competitive Products Fund established 
in section 2011. All receipts from fines imposed under this subsection 
shall be deposited in the general fund of the Treasury of the United 
States.
``Sec. 3663. Appellate review
    ``A person adversely affected or aggrieved by a final order or 
decision of the Postal Regulatory Commission may, within 30 days after 
such order or decision becomes final, institute proceedings for review 
thereof by filing a petition in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the District of Columbia. The court shall review the order or decision 
in accordance with section 706 of title 5, and chapter 158 and section 
2112 of title 28, on the basis of the record before the Commission.
``Sec. 3664. Enforcement of orders
    ``The several district courts have jurisdiction specifically to 
enforce, and to enjoin and restrain the Postal Service from violating, 
any order issued by the Postal Regulatory Commission.''.

SEC. 206. CLERICAL AMENDMENT.

    Chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code, is amended by striking 
the heading and analysis for such chapter and inserting the following:

           ``CHAPTER 36--POSTAL RATES, CLASSES, AND SERVICES

    ``SUBCHAPTER I--PROVISIONS RELATING TO MARKET-DOMINANT PRODUCTS

``Sec.
``3621. Applicability; definitions.
``3622. Modern rate regulation.
``3623. Service agreements for market-dominant products.
``[3624. Repealed.]
``[3625. Repealed.]
``3626. Reduced Rates.
``3627. Adjusting free rates.
``[3628. Repealed.]
``3629. Reduced rates for voter registration purposes.
      ``SUBCHAPTER II--PROVISIONS RELATING TO COMPETITIVE PRODUCTS

``3631. Applicability; definitions and updates.
``3632. Action of the Governors.
``3633. Provisions applicable to rates for competitive products.
``3634. Assumed Federal income tax on competitive products.
 ``SUBCHAPTER III--PROVISIONS RELATING TO EXPERIMENTAL AND NEW PRODUCTS

``3641. Market tests of experimental products.
``3642. New products and transfers of products between the market-
                            dominant and competitive categories of 
                            mail.
     ``SUBCHAPTER IV--REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND RELATED PROVISIONS

``3651. Annual reports by the Commission.
``3652. Annual reports to the Commission.
``3653. Annual determination of compliance.
    ``SUBCHAPTER V--POSTAL SERVICES, COMPLAINTS, AND JUDICIAL REVIEW

``3661. Postal Services.
``3662. Rate and service complaints.
``3663. Appellate review.
``3664. Enforcement of orders.
                        ``SUBCHAPTER VI--GENERAL

``3681. Reimbursement.
``3682. Size and weight limits.
``3683. Uniform rates for books; films, other materials.
``3684. Limitations.
``3685. Filing of information relating to periodical publications.
``3686. Change-of-address order involving a commercial mail receiving 
                            agency.
``3687. Bonus authority.
               ``SUBCHAPTER VII--MODERN SERVICE STANDARDS

``3691. Establishment of modern service standards.''.

                  TITLE III--MODERN SERVICE STANDARDS

SEC. 301. ESTABLISHMENT OF MODERN SERVICE STANDARDS.

    Chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code, as amended by this Act, 
is further amended by adding at the end the following:

               ``SUBCHAPTER VII--MODERN SERVICE STANDARDS

``Sec. 3691. Establishment of modern service standards
    ``(a) Authority Generally.--The Postal Regulatory Commission shall, 
within 24 months after the date of the enactment of this section, by 
regulation establish (and may from time to time thereafter by 
regulation revise) a set of service standards for market-dominant 
products consistent with sections 101 (a) and (b) and 403.
    ``(b) Objectives.--Such standards shall be designed to achieve the 
following objectives:
            ``(1) To increase the value of postal services to both 
        senders and recipients.
            ``(2) To provide a benchmark for Postal Service performance 
        goals.
            ``(3) To guarantee Postal Service customers delivery speed 
        and frequency consistent with reasonable rates.
    ``(c) Factors.--In establishing or revising such standards, the 
Postal Regulatory Commission shall take into account--
            ``(1) any service standards previously established by the 
        Postal Service;
            ``(2) the actual level of service Postal Service customers 
        receive;
            ``(3) customer satisfaction with Postal Service 
        performance;
            ``(4) mail volume and revenues projected for future years;
            ``(5) the projected growth in the number of addresses the 
        Postal Service will be required to serve in future years;
            ``(6) the current and projected future cost of serving 
        Postal Service customers; and
            ``(7) the policies of this title as well as such other 
        factors as the Commission determines appropriate.''.

SEC. 302. POSTAL SERVICE PLAN.

    (a) In General.--Within 1 year after the establishment of the 
service standards under section 3691 of title 39, United States Code, 
as added by this Act, the Postal Service shall, in consultation with 
the Postal Regulatory Commission, develop and submit to Congress a plan 
for meeting those standards.
    (b) Content.--The plan under this section shall--
            (1) establish performance goals;
            (2) describe any changes to the Postal Service's 
        processing, transportation, delivery, and retail networks 
        necessary to allow the Postal Service to meet the performance 
        goals; and
            (3) describe any changes to planning and performance 
        management documents previously submitted to Congress to 
        reflect new performance goals.
    (c) Recommendations.--The Postal Service plan shall include a list 
of any processing and retail facilities that can be closed or 
consolidated without hindering the Postal Service's ability to meet 
established service standards. The recommendations shall be consistent 
with the provisions in section 101(b) of title 39, United States Code 
prohibiting the closing of post offices, including post offices in 
rural areas and small towns, solely because they are not self-
sustaining or operate at a deficit.
    (d) Alternate Retail Options.--The Postal Service plan shall 
include, to the extent possible, plans to provide postal services by 
other means, including--
            (1) vending machines;
            (2) the Internet;
            (3) Postal Service employees on delivery routes; and
            (4) retail facilities in which overhead costs are shared 
        with private businesses and other government agencies.
    (e) Reemployment Assistance and Retirement Benefits.--The Postal 
Service plan shall include--
            (1) a plan under which reemployment assistance shall be 
        afforded to employees displaced as a result of the automation 
        or privatization of any of its functions or the closing and 
        consolidation of any of its facilities; and
            (2) a plan, developed in consultation with the Office of 
        Personnel Management, to offer early retirement benefits.
    (f) Inspector General Report.--
            (1) In general.--Before submitting the plan under this 
        section to Congress, the Postal Service shall submit the plan 
        to the Inspector General of the United States Postal Service in 
        a timely manner to carry out this subsection.
            (2) Report.--The Inspector General shall prepare a report 
        describing the extent to which the Postal Service plan--
                    (A) is consistent with the continuing obligations 
                of the Postal Service under title 39, United States 
                Code; and
                    (B) provides for the Postal Service to meet the 
                service standards established under section 3691.
            (3) Submission of report.--The Postal Service shall submit 
        the report of the Inspector General under this subsection with 
        the plan submitted to Congress under subsection (a).
    (g) Recommended Facility Closings and Consolidations.--The list of 
recommended facility closings and consolidations, including the 
criteria used for selection, justifications for each recommendation, 
and any comments received from affected communities, shall be 
transmitted to the Postal Network Modernization Commission at the same 
time the Postal Service plan is transmitted to Congress.
    (h) Continuing Responsibilities.--Nothing in this section shall 
affect the responsibilities of the Postal Service under section 404(b) 
of title 39, United States Code, with respect to any postal facility by 
reason of that facility being recommended for closing or consolidation 
under this section.

SEC. 303. POSTAL NETWORK MODERNIZATION COMMISSION.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established an independent commission 
to be known as the ``Postal Network Modernization Commission''.
    (b) Duties.--The Commission shall carry out the duties specified in 
this title.
    (c) Appointment.--
            (1) In general.--
                    (A) Composition.--The Commission shall be composed 
                of 8 members appointed by the President, by and with 
                the advice and consent of the Senate.
                    (B) Limitation on political party membership.--No 
                more than 4 members of the Commission at any time shall 
                be from the same political party.
                    (C) Employee representation.--One member of the 
                Commission shall be chosen from among persons nominated 
                for such office with the unanimous concurrence of all 
                organizations representing postmasters and all employee 
                organizations described under section 1004(b) of title 
                39, United States Code.
                    (D) Union representation.--One member of the 
                Commission shall be chosen from among persons nominated 
                for such office with the unanimous concurrence of all 
                labor organizations described in section 206(a)(1) of 
                title 39, United States Code.
            (2) Chairman.--At the time the President nominates 
        individuals for appointment to the Commission, the President 
        shall designate one such individual who shall serve as Chairman 
        of the Commission.
    (d) Meetings.--
            (1) Open meetings.--Each meeting of the Commission shall be 
        open to the public.
            (2) Proceedings, information, and deliberations.--All of 
        the proceedings, information, and deliberation of the 
        Commission shall be open, upon request, to the following:
                    (A) Committee on governmental affairs.--The 
                Chairman and the ranking minority party member of the 
                Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Senate, or 
                such other members of the Committee designated by such 
                Chairman or ranking minority party member.
                    (B) Committee on government reform.--The Chairman 
                and the ranking minority party member of the Committee 
                on Government Reform of the House of Representatives, 
                or such other members of the Committee designated by 
                such Chairman or ranking minority party member.
                    (C) Committees on appropriations.--The Chairmen and 
                ranking minority party members of the Subcommittees on 
                Transportation, Treasury, and General Government of the 
                Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the 
                House of Representatives, or such other members of the 
                Subcommittees designated by such Chairmen or ranking 
                minority party members.
    (e) Vacancies.--A vacancy in the Commission shall be filled in the 
same manner as the original appointment.
    (f) Pay and Travel Expenses.--
            (1) In general.--
                    (A) Pay.--Each member, other than the Chairman, 
                shall be paid at a rate equal to the daily equivalent 
                of the minimum annual rate of basic pay payable for 
                level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 
                of title 5, United States Code, for each day (including 
                travel time) during which the member is engaged in the 
                actual performance of duties vested in the Commission.
                    (B) Pay for chairman.--The Chairman shall be paid 
                for each day referred to in subparagraph (A) at a rate 
                equal to the daily equivalent of the minimum annual 
                rate of basic pay payable for level III of the 
                Executive Schedule under section 5314 of title 5, 
United States Code.
            (2) Travel expenses.--Members shall receive travel 
        expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in 
        accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of title 5, United 
        States Code.
    (g) Director of Staff.--
            (1) Appointment.--The Commission shall, without regard to 
        section 5311(b) of title 5, United States Code, appoint a 
        Director who was not employed by the Postal Service during the 
        1-year period preceding the date of such appointment.
            (2) Pay.--The Director shall be paid at the rate of basic 
        pay payable for level IV of the Executive Schedule under 
        section 5315 of title 5, United States Code.
    (h) Staff.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), the 
        Director, with the approval of the Commission, may appoint and 
        fix the pay of additional personnel.
            (2) Conditions of appointments.--The Director may make such 
        appointments without regard to the provisions of title 5, 
        United States Code, governing appointments in the competitive 
        service, and any personnel so appointed may be paid without 
        regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of 
        chapter 53 of that title relating to classification and General 
        Schedule pay rates, except that an individual so appointed may 
        not receive pay in excess of the highest annual rate of basic 
        pay payable for a position classified at above GS-15 of the 
        General Schedule.
            (3) Details.--
                    (A) In general.--Not more than \1/3\ of the 
                personnel employed by or detailed to the Commission may 
                be on detail from the Postal Service.
                    (B) Analysts.--Not more than \1/3\ of the 
                professional analysts of the Commission staff may be 
                persons detailed from the Postal Service to the 
                Commission.
                    (C) Limitations.--A person may not be detailed from 
                the Postal Service to the Commission if that person 
                participated personally and substantially in any matter 
                within the Postal Service concerning the preparation of 
                recommendations for closures or consolidations of 
                postal facilities. No employee of the Postal Service 
                may--
                            (i) prepare any report concerning the 
                        effectiveness, fitness, or efficiency of the 
                        performance on the staff of the Commission of 
                        any person detailed from the Postal Service to 
                        that staff;
                            (ii) review the preparation of such a 
                        report; or
                            (iii) approve or disapprove such a report.
            (4) Detail upon request.--Upon request of the Director, the 
        head of any Federal department or agency may detail any of the 
        personnel of that department or agency to the Commission to 
        assist the Commission in carrying out its duties under this 
        part.
            (5) Comptroller general assistance.--The Comptroller 
        General of the United States shall provide assistance, 
        including the detailing of employees, to the Commission in 
        accordance with an agreement entered into with the Commission.
            (6) Limitation on number of staff.--There may not be more 
        than 15 persons on the staff at any one time.
    (i) Other Authority.--
            (1) Experts and consultants.--The Commission may procure by 
        contract, to the extent funds are available, the temporary of 
        intermittent services of experts or consultants under section 
        3109 of title 5, United States Code.
            (2) Lease of space.--The Commission may lease space and 
        acquire personal property to the extent funds are available.
    (j) Funding.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the 
Commission such funds as are necessary to carry out its duties under 
this part. Such funds shall remain available until expended.
    (k) Review of Postal Service Recommendations.--
            (1) In general.--After receiving the recommendations from 
        the Postal Service under section 302, the Commission shall 
        conduct public hearings on the recommendations. All testimony 
        before the Commission at a public hearing conducted under this 
        paragraph shall be presented under oath. The hearings shall 
        solicit views from Postal Service customers and employees and 
        community leaders and government officials in the communities 
        affected by the Postal Service's recommendations.
            (2) Report.--
                    (A) Transmission.--The Commission shall, no later 
                than 1 year following receipt of the Postal Service's 
                recommendations under section 302, transmit to the 
                President a report containing the Commission's findings 
                and conclusions based on a review and analysis of the 
                recommendations made by the Postal Service, together 
                with the Commission's recommendations for closures and 
                consolidations.
                    (B) Changes in recommendations.--In making its 
                recommendations, the Commission may make changes in any 
                of the recommendations made by the Postal Service if 
                the Commission determines that the Postal Service's 
                recommended closings and consolidations would not allow 
                them to meet the service standards established by the 
                Postal Regulatory Commission under section 301.
            (3) Explanation.--The Commission shall explain and justify 
        in its report submitted to the President under paragraph (2) 
        any recommendation made by the Commission that is different 
        from the recommendations made by the Postal Service under 
        section 302. The Commission shall transmit a copy of such 
        report to the Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Senate, 
        Committee on Government Reform of the House of Representatives 
        and the Subcommittees on Transportation, Treasury, and General 
        Government of the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate 
        and the House of Representatives on the same date on which it 
        transmits its recommendations to the President under paragraph 
        (2).
            (4) Provision of information.--After transmitting its 
        recommendations, the Commission shall promptly provide, upon 
        request, to any member of Congress information used by the 
        Commission in making its recommendations.
            (5) Comptroller general.--The Comptroller General of the 
        United States shall--
                    (A) assist the Commission, to the extent requested, 
                in the Commission's review and analysis of the 
                recommendations made by the Postal Service under 
                section 302; and
                    (B) not later than 30 days following receipt of the 
                Postal Service's recommendations, transmit to Congress 
                and the Commission a detailed analysis of the Postal 
                Service's recommendations.
    (l) Review by the President.--
            (1) Report.--The President shall, no later than 14 days 
        following receipt of the Commission's recommendations, transmit 
        to the Commission and to Congress a report containing the 
        President's approval or disapproval of the Commission's 
        recommendations.
            (2) Approval.--If the President approves all the 
        recommendations, the President shall transmit a copy of such 
        recommendations to Congress, together with a certification of 
        such approval.
            (3) Disapproval.--If the President disapproves the 
        recommendations of the Commission, in whole or in part, the 
        President shall transmit to the Commission and the Congress the 
        reasons for that disapproval. The Commission shall then 
        transmit to the President, within 30 days, a revised list of 
        recommendations.
            (4) Approval after revisions.--If the President approves 
        all of the revised recommendations of the Commission 
        transmitted to the President under paragraph (3), the President 
        shall transmit a copy of such revised recommendations to 
        Congress, together with a certification of such approval.

SEC. 304. CLOSURE AND CONSOLIDATION OF FACILITIES.

    (a) In General.--Subject to subsection (b), the Postal Service 
shall--
            (1) close all postal facilities recommended by the 
        Commission in such report transmitted to the Congress by the 
        President under section 303(l);
            (2) consolidate all postal facilities recommended for 
        consolidation by the Commission in such report;
            (3) initiate all such closures and consolidations no later 
        than 1 year after the date on which the President transmits a 
        report to Congress under section 303(l) containing the 
        recommendations for such closures or consolidations; and
            (4) complete all such closures and consolidations no later 
        than the end of the 2-year period beginning on the date on 
        which the President transmits the report under section 303(l) 
        containing the recommendations for such closures and 
        consolidations.
    (b) Congressional Disapproval.--
            (1) In general.--The Postal Service may not carry out any 
        closure or consolidation recommended by the Commission in a 
        report transmitted from the President under section 303(l) if a 
        joint resolution is enacted, in accordance with section 305, 
        disapproving such recommendations of the Commission before the 
        earlier of--
                    (A) the end of the 45-day period beginning on the 
                date on which the President transmits such report; or
                    (B) the adjournment of the Congress sine die for 
                the session during which such report is transmitted.
            (2) Days of session.--For purposes of paragraph (1) and 
        subsections (a) and (c) of section 305, the days on which 
        either House of Congress is not in session because of an 
        adjournment of more than 3 days to a day certain shall be 
        excluded in the computation of a period.

SEC. 305. CONGRESSIONAL CONSIDERATION OF COMMISSION REPORT.

    (a) Terms of the Resolution.--For purposes of this title, the term 
``joint resolution'' means only a joint resolution which is introduced 
within the 10-day period beginning on the date on which the President 
transmits the report to the Congress under section 303(l), and--
            (1) which does not have a preamble;
            (2) the matter after the resolving clause of which is as 
        follows: ``That Congress disapproves the recommendations of the 
        Postal Facility Closure and Consolidation Commission as 
        submitted by the President on ------'', the blank space being 
        filled in with the appropriate date; and
            (3) the title of which is as follows: ``Joint resolution 
        disapproving the recommendations of the Postal Facility Closure 
        and Consolidation Commission.''.
    (b) Referral.--A resolution described in subsection (a) that is 
introduced in the House of Representatives shall be referred to the 
Committee on Government Reform of the House of Representatives. A 
resolution described in subsection (a) introduced in the Senate shall 
be referred to the Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Senate.
    (c) Discharge.--If the committee to which a resolution described in 
subsection (a) is referred has not reported such resolution (or an 
identical resolution) by the end of the 20-day period beginning on the 
date on which the President transmits the report to the Congress under 
section 303(l), such committee shall be, at the end of such period, 
discharged from further consideration of such resolution, and such 
resolution shall be placed on the appropriate calendar of the House 
involved.
    (d) Consideration.--
            (1) In general.--On or after the third day after the date 
        on which the committee to which such a resolution is referred 
        has reported, or has been discharged (under subsection (c)) 
        from further consideration of, such a resolution, it is in 
        order (even though a previous motion to the same effect has 
        been disagreed to) for any Member of the respective House to 
        move to proceed to the consideration of the resolution. A 
        Member may make the motion only on the day after the calendar 
        day on which the Member announces to the House concerned the 
        Member's intention to make the motion, except that, in the case 
        of the House of Representatives, the motion may be made without 
        such prior announcement if the motion is made by direction of 
        the committee to which the resolution was referred. All points 
        of order against the resolution (and against consideration of 
        the resolution) are waived. The motion is highly privileged in 
        the House of Representatives and is privileged in the Senate 
        and is not debatable. The motion is not subject to amendment, 
        or to a motion to postpone, or to a motion to proceed to the 
        consideration of other business. A motion to reconsider the 
        vote by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to shall not 
        be in order. If a motion to proceed to the consideration of the 
        resolution is agreed to, the respective House shall immediately 
        proceed to consideration of the joint resolution without 
        intervening motion, order, or other business, and the 
        resolution shall remain the unfinished business of the 
        respective House until disposed of.
            (2) Debate.--Debate on the resolution, and on all debatable 
        motions and appeals in connection therewith, shall be limited 
        to not more than 2 hours, which shall be divided equally 
        between those favoring and those opposing the resolution. An 
        amendment to the resolution is not in order. A motion further 
        to limit debate is in order and not debatable. A motion to 
        postpone, or a motion to proceed to the consideration of other 
        business, or a motion to recommit the resolution is not in 
        order. A motion to reconsider the vote by which the resolution 
        is agreed to or disagreed to is not in order.
            (3) Vote on final passage.--Immediately following the 
        conclusion of the debate on a resolution described in 
        subsection (a) and a single quorum call at the conclusion of 
        the debate if requested in accordance with the rules of the 
        appropriate House, the vote on final passage of the resolution 
        shall occur.
            (4) Appeals.--Appeals from the decisions of the Chair 
        relating to the application of the rules of the Senate or the 
House of Representatives, as the case may be, to the procedure relating 
to a resolution described in subsection (a) shall be decided without 
debate.
    (e) Consideration by Other House.--
            (1) In general.--If, before the passage by one House of a 
        resolution of that House described in subsection (a), that 
        House receives from the other House a resolution described in 
        subsection (a), then the following procedures shall apply:
                    (A) The resolution of the other House shall not be 
                referred to a committee and may not be considered in 
                the House receiving it except in the case of final 
                passage as provided in subparagraph (B)(ii).
                    (B) With respect to a resolution described in 
                subsection (a) of the House receiving the resolution--
                            (i) the procedure in that House shall be 
                        the same as if no resolution had been received 
                        from the other House; but
                            (ii) the vote on final passage shall be on 
                        the resolution of the other House.
            (2) Disposition of a resolution.--Upon disposition of the 
        resolution received from the other House, it shall no longer be 
        in order to consider the resolution that originated in the 
        receiving House.
    (f) Rules of the Senate and House.--This section is enacted by 
Congress--
            (1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of the Senate 
        and House of Representatives, respectively, and as such it is 
        deemed a part of the rules of each House, respectively, but 
        applicable only with respect to the procedure to be followed in 
        that House in the case of a resolution described in subsection 
        (a), and it supersedes other rules only to the extent that it 
        is inconsistent with such rules; and
            (2) with full recognition of the constitutional right of 
        either House to change the rules (so far as relating to the 
        procedure of that House) at any time, in the same manner, and 
        to the same extent as in the case of any other rule of that 
        House.

SEC. 306. NONAPPEALIBILITY TO THE POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION.

    The closing or consolidation of any post office or other postal 
facility under this title may not be appealed to the Postal Regulatory 
Commission under the provisions of title 39, United States Code, 
including section 404(b)(5) of that title.

           TITLE IV--PROVISIONS RELATING TO FAIR COMPETITION

SEC. 401. POSTAL SERVICE COMPETITIVE PRODUCTS FUND.

    (a) Provisions Relating to Postal Service Competitive Products Fund 
and Related Matters.--
            (1) In general.--Chapter 20 of title 39, United States 
        Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 2011. Provisions relating to competitive products
    ``(a) There is established in the Treasury of the United States a 
revolving fund, to be called the Postal Service Competitive Products 
Fund, which shall be available to the Postal Service without fiscal 
year limitation for the payment of--
            ``(1) costs attributable to competitive products; and
            ``(2) all other costs incurred by the Postal Service, to 
        the extent allocable to competitive products.
For purposes of this subsection, the term `costs attributable' has the 
meaning given such term by section 3631.
    ``(b) There shall be deposited in the Competitive Products Fund, 
subject to withdrawal by the Postal Service--
            ``(1) revenues from competitive products;
            ``(2) amounts received from obligations issued by the 
        Postal Service under subsection (e);
            ``(3) interest and dividends earned on investments of the 
        Competitive Products Fund; and
            ``(4) any other receipts of the Postal Service (including 
        from the sale of assets), to the extent allocable to 
        competitive products.
    ``(c) If the Postal Service determines that the moneys of the 
Competitive Products Fund are in excess of current needs, it may invest 
such amounts as it considers appropriate in--
            ``(1) obligations of, or obligations guaranteed by, the 
        Government of the United States; and
            ``(2) in accordance with regulations which the Secretary of 
        the Treasury shall prescribe (by not later than 12 months after 
        the date of enactment of the Postal Accountability and 
        Enhancement Act), such other obligations or securities as it 
        considers appropriate, with the exception of obligations of or 
        securities in any business entity subject to Postal Service 
        regulations other than those regulations applying to the 
        mailing public generally.
    ``(d) The Postal Service may, in its sole discretion, provide that 
moneys of the Competitive Products Fund be deposited in a Federal 
Reserve bank or a depository for public funds.
    ``(e)(1) Subject to the limitations specified in section 2005(a), 
the Postal Service is authorized to borrow money and to issue and sell 
such obligations as it determines necessary to provide for competitive 
products and deposit such amounts in the Competitive Products Fund, 
except that the Postal Service may pledge only assets related to the 
provision of competitive products (as determined under subsection (h) 
or, for purposes of any period before accounting practices and 
principles under subsection (h) have been established and applied, the 
best information available from the Postal Service, including the 
audited statements required by section 2008(e)), and the revenues and 
receipts from such products, for the payment of the principal of or 
interest on such obligations, for the purchase or redemption thereof, 
and for other purposes incidental thereto, including creation of 
reserve, sinking, and other funds which may be similarly pledged and 
used, to such extent and in such manner as the Postal Service 
determines necessary or desirable.
    ``(2) The Postal Service may enter into binding covenants with the 
holders of such obligations, and with the trustee, if any, under any 
agreement entered into in connection with the issuance thereof with 
respect to--
            ``(A) the establishment of reserve, sinking, and other 
        funds;
            ``(B) application and use of revenues and receipts of the 
        Competitive Products Fund;
            ``(C) stipulations concerning the subsequent issuance of 
        obligations or the execution of leases or lease purchases 
        relating to properties of the Postal Service; and
            ``(D) such other matters as the Postal Service considers 
        necessary or desirable to enhance the marketability of such 
        obligations.
    ``(3) Obligations issued by the Postal Service under this 
subsection--
            ``(A) may not be purchased by the Secretary of the 
        Treasury;
            ``(B) shall not be exempt either as to principal or 
        interest from any taxation now or hereafter imposed by any 
        State or local taxing authority;
            ``(C) shall not be obligations of, nor shall payment of the 
        principal thereof or interest thereon be guaranteed by, the 
        Government of the United States, and the obligations shall so 
        plainly state; and
            ``(D) notwithstanding the provisions of the Federal 
        Financing Bank Act of 1973 or any other provision of law 
        (except as specifically provided by reference to this 
        subparagraph in a law enacted after this subparagraph takes 
        effect), shall not be eligible for purchase by, commitment to 
        purchase by, or sale or issuance to, the Federal Financing 
        Bank.
    ``(4)(A) This paragraph applies with respect to the period 
beginning on the date of the enactment of this paragraph and ending at 
the close of the 5-year period which begins on the date on which the 
Postal Service makes its submission under subsection (h)(1).
    ``(B) During the period described in subparagraph (A), nothing in 
subparagraph (A) or (D) of paragraph (3) or the last sentence of 
section 2006(b) shall, with respect to any obligations sought to be 
issued by the Postal Service under this subsection, be considered to 
affect such obligations' eligibility for purchase by, commitment to 
purchase by, or sale or issuance to, the Federal Financing Bank.
    ``(C) The Federal Financing Bank may elect to purchase such 
obligations under such terms, including rates of interest, as the Bank 
and the Postal Service may agree, but at a rate of yield no less than 
the prevailing yield on outstanding marketable securities of comparable 
maturity issued by entities with the same credit rating as the rating 
then most recently obtained by the Postal Service under subparagraph 
(D), as determined by the Bank.
    ``(D) In order to be eligible to borrow under this paragraph, the 
Postal Service shall first obtain a credit rating from a nationally 
recognized credit rating organization. Such rating--
            ``(i) shall be determined taking into account only those 
        assets and activities of the Postal Service which are described 
        in section 3634(a)(2) (relating to the Postal Service's assumed 
        taxable income from competitive products); and
            ``(ii) may, before final rules of the Postal Regulatory 
        Commission under subsection (h) are issued (or deemed to have 
        been issued), be based on the best information available from 
        the Postal Service, including the audited statements required 
        by section 2008(e).
    ``(f) The receipts and disbursements of the Competitive Products 
Fund shall be accorded the same budgetary treatment as is accorded to 
receipts and disbursements of the Postal Service Fund under section 
2009a.
    ``(g) A judgment against the Postal Service or the Government of 
the United States (or settlement of a claim) shall, to the extent that 
it arises out of activities of the Postal Service in the provision of 
competitive products, be paid out of the Competitive Products Fund.
    ``(h)(1) The Postal Service, in consultation with an independent, 
certified public accounting firm and such other advisors as it 
considers appropriate, shall develop recommendations regarding--
            ``(A) the accounting practices and principles that should 
        be followed by the Postal Service with the objectives of 
        identifying the capital and operating costs incurred by the 
        Postal Service in providing competitive products, and 
        preventing the cross-subsidization of such products by market-
        dominant products; and
            ``(B) the substantive and procedural rules that should be 
        followed in determining the Postal Service's assumed Federal 
        income tax on competitive products income for any year (within 
        the meaning of section 3634).
Such recommendations shall be submitted to the Postal Regulatory 
Commission no earlier than 6 months, and no later than 12 months, after 
the effective date of this section.
    ``(2)(A) Upon receiving the recommendations of the Postal Service 
under paragraph (1), the Commission shall give interested parties, 
including the Postal Service, users of the mails, and an officer of the 
Commission who shall be required to represent the interests of the 
general public, an opportunity to present their views on those 
recommendations through submission of written data, views, or arguments 
with or without opportunity for oral presentation, or in such other 
manner as the Commission considers appropriate.
    ``(B) After due consideration of the views and other information 
received under subparagraph (A), the Commission shall by rule--
            ``(i) provide for the establishment and application of the 
        accounting practices and principles which shall be followed by 
        the Postal Service;
            ``(ii) provide for the establishment and application of the 
        substantive and procedural rules described in paragraph (1)(B); 
        and
            ``(iii) provide for the submission by the Postal Service to 
        the Postal Regulatory Commission of annual and other periodic 
        reports setting forth such information as the Commission may 
        require.
Final rules under this subparagraph shall be issued not later than 12 
months after the date on which the Postal Service makes its submission 
to the Commission under paragraph (1) (or by such later date as the 
Commission and the Postal Service may agree to). If final rules are not 
issued by the Commission by the deadline under the preceding sentence, 
the recommendations submitted by the Postal Service under paragraph (1) 
shall be treated as the final rules. The Commission is authorized to 
promulgate regulations revising such rules.
    ``(C) Reports described in subparagraph (B)(iii) shall be submitted 
at such time and in such form, and shall include such information, as 
the Commission by rule requires. The Commission may, on its own motion 
or on request of an interested party, initiate proceedings (to be 
conducted in accordance with such rules as the Commission shall 
prescribe) to improve the quality, accuracy, or completeness of Postal 
Service data under such subparagraph whenever it shall appear that--
            ``(i) the quality of the information furnished in those 
        reports has become significantly inaccurate or can be 
        significantly improved; or
            ``(ii) such revisions are, in the judgment of the 
        Commission, otherwise necessitated by the public interest.
    ``(D) A copy of each report described in subparagraph (B)(iii) 
shall also be transmitted by the Postal Service to the Secretary of the 
Treasury and the Inspector General of the United States Postal Service.
    ``(i) The Postal Service shall render an annual report to the 
Secretary of the Treasury concerning the operation of the Competitive 
Products Fund, in which it shall address such matters as risk 
limitations, reserve balances, allocation or distribution of moneys, 
liquidity requirements, and measures to safeguard against losses. A 
copy of its then most recent report under this subsection shall be 
included with any other submission that it is required to make to the 
Postal Regulatory Commission under section 3652(g).''.
            (2) Clerical amendment.--The analysis for chapter 20 of 
        title 39, United States Code, is amended by adding after the 
        item relating to section 2010 the following:

``2011. Provisions relating to competitive products.''.
    (b) Technical and Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Definition.--Section 2001 of title 39, United States 
        Code, is amended by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph 
        (1), by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3), and by 
        inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
            ``(2) `Competitive Products Fund' means the Postal Service 
        Competitive Products Fund established by section 2011; and''.
            (2) Capital of the postal service.--Section 2002(b) of 
        title 39, United States Code, is amended by striking ``Fund,'' 
        and inserting ``Fund and the balance in the Competitive 
        Products Fund,''.
            (3) Postal service fund.--
                    (A) Purposes for which available.--Section 2003(a) 
                of title 39, United States Code, is amended by striking 
                ``title.'' and inserting ``title (other than any of the 
                purposes, functions, or powers for which the 
                Competitive Products Fund is available).''.
                    (B) Deposits.--Section 2003(b) of title 39, United 
                States Code, is amended by striking ``There'' and 
                inserting ``Except as otherwise provided in section 
                2011, there''.
            (4) Relationship between the treasury and the postal 
        service.--Section 2006 of title 39, United States Code, is 
        amended--
                    (A) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the 
                following: ``Nothing in this chapter shall be 
                considered to permit or require the Secretary of the 
                Treasury to purchase any obligations of the Postal 
                Service other than those issued under section 2005.''; 
                and
                    (B) in subsection (c), by inserting ``under section 
                2005'' before ``shall be obligations''.

SEC. 402. ASSUMED FEDERAL INCOME TAX ON COMPETITIVE PRODUCTS INCOME.

    Subchapter II of chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code, as 
amended by section 202, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 3634. Assumed Federal income tax on competitive products income
    ``(a) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
            ``(1) the term `assumed Federal income tax on competitive 
        products income' means the net income tax that would be imposed 
        by chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 on the Postal 
        Service's assumed taxable income from competitive products for 
        the year; and
            ``(2) the term `assumed taxable income from competitive 
        products', with respect to a year, refers to the amount 
        representing what would be the taxable income of a corporation 
        under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 for the year, if--
                    ``(A) the only activities of such corporation were 
                the activities of the Postal Service allocable under 
                section 2011(h) to competitive products; and
                    ``(B) the only assets held by such corporation were 
                the assets of the Postal Service allocable under 
                section 2011(h) to such activities.
    ``(b) Computation and Transfer Requirements.--The Postal Service 
shall, for each year beginning with the year in which occurs the 
deadline for the Postal Service's first report to the Postal Regulatory 
Commission under section 3652(a)--
            ``(1) compute its assumed Federal income tax on competitive 
        products income for such year; and
            ``(2) transfer from the Competitive Products Fund to the 
        Postal Service Fund the amount of that assumed tax.
    ``(c) Deadline for Transfers.--Any transfer required to be made 
under this section for a year shall be due on or before the January 
15th next occurring after the close of such year.''.

SEC. 403. UNFAIR COMPETITION PROHIBITED.

    (a) Specific Limitations.--Chapter 4 of title 39, United States 
Code, is amended by adding after section 404 the following:
``Sec. 404a. Specific limitations
    ``(a) Except as specifically authorized by law, the Postal Service 
may not:
            ``(1) establish any rule or regulation (including any 
        standard) the effect of which is to preclude competition or 
        establish the terms of competition unless the Postal Service 
        demonstrates that the regulation does not create an unfair 
competitive advantage for itself or any entity funded (in whole or in 
part) by the Postal Service;
            ``(2) compel the disclosure, transfer, or licensing of 
        intellectual property to any third party (such as patents, 
        copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, and proprietary 
        information); or
            ``(3) obtain information from a person that provides (or 
        seeks to provide) any product, and then offer any product or 
        service that uses or is based in whole or in part on such 
        information, without the consent of the person providing that 
        information, unless substantially the same information is 
        obtained (or obtainable) from an independent source or is 
        otherwise obtained (or obtainable).
    ``(b) The Postal Regulatory Commission shall prescribe regulations 
to carry out this section.
    ``(c) Any party (including an officer of the Commission 
representing the interests of the general public) who believes that the 
Postal Service has violated this section may bring a complaint in 
accordance with section 3662.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) General powers.--Section 401 of title 39, United States 
        Code, is amended by striking ``The'' and inserting ``Subject to 
        the provisions of section 404a, the''.
            (2) Specific powers.--Section 404(a) of title 39, United 
        States Code, is amended by striking ``Without'' and inserting 
        ``Subject to the provisions of section 404a, but otherwise 
        without''.
    (c) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 4 of title 39, 
United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to 
section 404 the following:

``404a. Specific limitations.''.

SEC. 404. SUITS BY AND AGAINST THE POSTAL SERVICE.

    (a) In General.--Section 409 of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended by striking subsections (d) and (e) and inserting the 
following:
    ``(d)(1) For purposes of the provisions of law cited in paragraphs 
(2)(A) and (2)(B), respectively, the Postal Service--
            ``(A) shall be considered to be a `person', as used in the 
        provisions of law involved; and
            ``(B) shall not be immune under any other doctrine of 
        sovereign immunity from suit in Federal court by any person for 
        any violation of any of those provisions of law by any officer 
        or employee of the Postal Service.
    ``(2) This subsection applies with respect to--
            ``(A) the Act of July 5, 1946 (commonly referred to as the 
        `Trademark Act of 1946' (15 U.S.C. 1051 and following)); and
            ``(B) the provisions of section 5 of the Federal Trade 
        Commission Act to the extent that such section 5 applies to 
        unfair or deceptive acts or practices.
    ``(e)(1) To the extent that the Postal Service, or other Federal 
agency acting on behalf of or in concert with the Postal Service, 
engages in conduct with respect to any product which is not reserved to 
the United States under section 1696 of title 18, the Postal Service or 
other Federal agency (as the case may be)--
            ``(A) shall not be immune under any doctrine of sovereign 
        immunity from suit in Federal court by any person for any 
        violation of Federal law by such agency or any officer or 
        employee thereof; and
            ``(B) shall be considered to be a person (as defined in 
        subsection (a) of the first section of the Clayton Act) for 
        purposes of--
                    ``(i) the antitrust laws (as defined in such 
                subsection); and
                    ``(ii) section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission 
                Act to the extent that such section 5 applies to unfair 
                methods of competition.
For purposes of the preceding sentence, any private carriage of mail 
allowable by virtue of section 601 shall not be considered a service 
reserved to the United States under section 1696 of title 18.
    ``(2) No damages, interest on damages, costs or attorney's fees may 
be recovered under the antitrust laws (as so defined) from the Postal 
Service or any officer or employee thereof acting in an official 
capacity for any conduct with respect to a product in the market-
dominant category of mail.
    ``(3) This subsection shall not apply with respect to conduct 
occurring before the date of the enactment of this subsection.
    ``(f) To the extent that the Postal Service engages in conduct with 
respect to the provision of competitive products, it shall be 
considered a person for the purposes of the Federal bankruptcy laws.
    ``(g)(1) Each building constructed or altered by the Postal Service 
shall be constructed or altered, to the maximum extent feasible as 
determined by the Postal Service, in compliance with one of the 
nationally recognized model building codes and with other applicable 
nationally recognized codes.
    ``(2) Each building constructed or altered by the Postal Service 
shall be constructed or altered only after consideration of all 
requirements (other than procedural requirements) of zoning laws, land 
use laws, and applicable environmental laws of a State or subdivision 
of a State which would apply to the building if it were not a building 
constructed or altered by an establishment of the Government of the 
United States.
    ``(3) For purposes of meeting the requirements of paragraphs (1) 
and (2) with respect to a building, the Postal Service shall--
            ``(A) in preparing plans for the building, consult with 
        appropriate officials of the State or political subdivision, or 
        both, in which the building will be located;
            ``(B) upon request, submit such plans in a timely manner to 
        such officials for review by such officials for a reasonable 
        period of time not exceeding 30 days; and
            ``(C) permit inspection by such officials during 
        construction or alteration of the building, in accordance with 
        the customary schedule of inspections for construction or 
        alteration of buildings in the locality, if such officials 
        provide to the Postal Service--
                    ``(i) a copy of such schedule before construction 
                of the building is begun; and
                    ``(ii) reasonable notice of their intention to 
                conduct any inspection before conducting such 
                inspection.
Nothing in this subsection shall impose an obligation on any State or 
political subdivision to take any action under the preceding sentence, 
nor shall anything in this subsection require the Postal Service or any 
of its contractors to pay for any action taken by a State or political 
subdivision to carry out this subsection (including reviewing plans, 
carrying out on-site inspections, issuing building permits, and making 
recommendations).
    ``(4) Appropriate officials of a State or a political subdivision 
of a State may make recommendations to the Postal Service concerning 
measures necessary to meet the requirements of paragraphs (1) and (2). 
Such officials may also make recommendations to the Postal Service 
concerning measures which should be taken in the construction or 
alteration of the building to take into account local conditions. The 
Postal Service shall give due consideration to any such 
recommendations.
    ``(5) In addition to consulting with local and State officials 
under paragraph (3), the Postal Service shall establish procedures for 
soliciting, assessing, and incorporating local community input on real 
property and land use decisions.
    ``(6) For purposes of this subsection, the term `State' includes 
the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and a 
territory or possession of the United States.
    ``(h)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, legal 
representation may not be furnished by the Department of Justice to the 
Postal Service in any action, suit, or proceeding arising, in whole or 
in part, under any of the following:
            ``(A) Subsection (d) or (e) of this section.
            ``(B) Subsection (f) or (g) of section 504 (relating to 
        administrative subpoenas by the Postal Regulatory Commission).
            ``(C) Section 3663 (relating to appellate review).
The Postal Service may, by contract or otherwise, employ attorneys to 
obtain any legal representation that it is precluded from obtaining 
from the Department of Justice under this paragraph.
    ``(2) In any circumstance not covered by paragraph (1), the 
Department of Justice shall, under section 411, furnish the Postal 
Service such legal representation as it may require, except that, with 
the prior consent of the Attorney General, the Postal Service may, in 
any such circumstance, employ attorneys by contract or otherwise to 
conduct litigation brought by or against the Postal Service or its 
officers or employees in matters affecting the Postal Service.
    ``(3)(A) In any action, suit, or proceeding in a court of the 
United States arising in whole or in part under any of the provisions 
of law referred to in subparagraph (B) or (C) of paragraph (1), and to 
which the Commission is not otherwise a party, the Commission shall be 
permitted to appear as a party on its own motion and as of right.
    ``(B) The Department of Justice shall, under such terms and 
conditions as the Commission and the Attorney General shall consider 
appropriate, furnish the Commission such legal representation as it may 
require in connection with any such action, suit, or proceeding, except 
that, with the prior consent of the Attorney General, the Commission 
may employ attorneys by contract or otherwise for that purpose.
    ``(i) A judgment against the Government of the United States 
arising out of activities of the Postal Service shall be paid by the 
Postal Service out of any funds available to the Postal Service, 
subject to the restriction specified in section 2011(g).''.
    (b) Technical Amendment.--Section 409(a) of title 39, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ``Except as provided in section 3628 of 
this title,'' and inserting ``Except as otherwise provided in this 
title,''.

SEC. 405. INTERNATIONAL POSTAL ARRANGEMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 407 of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 407. International postal arrangements
    ``(a) It is the policy of the United States--
            ``(1) to promote and encourage communications between 
        peoples by efficient operation of international postal services 
        and other international delivery services for cultural, social, 
        and economic purposes;
            ``(2) to promote and encourage unrestricted and undistorted 
        competition in the provision of international postal services 
        and other international delivery services, except where 
        provision of such services by private companies may be 
        prohibited by law of the United States;
            ``(3) to promote and encourage a clear distinction between 
        governmental and operational responsibilities with respect to 
        the provision of international postal services and other 
        international delivery services by the Government of the United 
        States and by intergovernmental organizations of which the 
        United States is a member; and
            ``(4) to participate in multilateral and bilateral 
        agreements with other countries to accomplish these objectives.
    ``(b)(1) The Secretary of State shall be responsible for 
formulation, coordination, and oversight of foreign policy related to 
international postal services and other international delivery 
services, and shall have the power to conclude treaties, conventions 
and amendments related to international postal services and other 
international delivery services, except that the Secretary may not 
conclude any treaty, convention, or other international agreement 
(including those regulating international postal services) if such 
treaty, convention, or agreement would, with respect to any competitive 
product, grant an undue or unreasonable preference to the Postal 
Service, a private provider of international postal or delivery 
services, or any other person.
    ``(2) In carrying out the responsibilities specified in paragraph 
(1), the Secretary of State shall exercise primary authority for the 
conduct of foreign policy with respect to international postal services 
and international delivery services, including the determination of 
United States positions and the conduct of United States participation 
in negotiations with foreign governments and international bodies. In 
exercising this authority, the Secretary--
            ``(A) shall coordinate with other agencies as appropriate, 
        and in particular, shall give full consideration to the 
        authority vested by law or Executive order in the Postal 
        Regulatory Commission, the Department of Commerce, the 
        Department of Transportation, and the Office of the United 
        States Trade Representative in this area;
            ``(B) shall maintain continuing liaison with other 
        executive branch agencies concerned with postal and delivery 
        services;
            ``(C) shall maintain continuing liaison with the Committee 
        on Government Reform of the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Senate;
            ``(D) shall maintain appropriate liaison with both 
        representatives of the Postal Service and representatives of 
        users and private providers of international postal services 
        and other international delivery services to keep informed of 
        their interests and problems, and to provide such assistance as 
        may be needed to ensure that matters of concern are promptly 
        considered by the Department of State or (if applicable, and to 
the extent practicable) other executive branch agencies; and
            ``(E) shall assist in arranging meetings of such public 
        sector advisory groups as may be established to advise the 
        Department of State and other executive branch agencies in 
        connection with international postal services and international 
        delivery services.
    ``(3) The Secretary of State shall establish an advisory committee 
(within the meaning of the Federal Advisory Committee Act) to perform 
such functions as the Secretary considers appropriate in connection 
with carrying out subparagraphs (A) through (D) of paragraph (2).
    ``(c)(1) Before concluding any treaty, convention, or amendment 
that establishes a rate or classification for a product subject to 
subchapter I of chapter 36, the Secretary of State shall request the 
Postal Regulatory Commission to submit a decision on whether such rate 
or classification is consistent with the standards and criteria 
established by the Commission under section 3622.
    ``(2) The Secretary shall ensure that each treaty, convention, or 
amendment concluded under subsection (b) is consistent with a decision 
of the Commission adopted under paragraph (1), except if, or to the 
extent, the Secretary determines, by written order, that considerations 
of foreign policy or national security require modification of the 
Commission's decision.
    ``(d) Nothing in this section shall be considered to prevent the 
Postal Service from entering into such commercial or operational 
contracts related to providing international postal services and other 
international delivery services as it deems appropriate, except that--
            ``(1) any such contract made with an agency of a foreign 
        government (whether under authority of this subsection or 
        otherwise) shall be solely contractual in nature and may not 
        purport to be international law; and
            ``(2) a copy of each such contract between the Postal 
        Service and an agency of a foreign government shall be 
        transmitted to the Secretary of State and the Postal Regulatory 
        Commission not later than the effective date of such contract.
    ``(e)(1) With respect to shipments of international mail that are 
competitive products within the meaning of section 3631 that are 
exported or imported by the Postal Service, the Customs Service and 
other appropriate Federal agencies shall apply the customs laws of the 
United States and all other laws relating to the importation or 
exportation of such shipments in the same manner to both shipments by 
the Postal Service and similar shipments by private companies.
    ``(2) For purposes of this subsection, the term `private company' 
means a private company substantially owned or controlled by persons 
who are citizens of the United States.
    ``(3) In exercising the authority pursuant to subsection (b) to 
conclude new treaties, conventions and amendments related to 
international postal services and to renegotiate such treaties, 
conventions and amendments, the Secretary of State shall, to the 
maximum extent practicable, take such measures as are within the 
Secretary's control to encourage the governments of other countries to 
make available to the Postal Service and private companies a range of 
nondiscriminatory customs procedures that will fully meet the needs of 
all types of American shippers. The Secretary of State shall consult 
with the United States Trade Representative and the Commissioner of 
Customs in carrying out this paragraph.
    ``(4) The provisions of this subsection shall take effect 6 months 
after the date of the enactment of this subsection or such earlier date 
as the Customs Service may determine in writing.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--Notwithstanding any provision of the amendment 
made by subsection (a), the authority of the United States Postal 
Service to establish the rates of postage or other charges on mail 
matter conveyed between the United States and other countries shall 
remain available to the Postal Service until--
            (1) with respect to market-dominant products, the date as 
        of which the regulations promulgated under section 3622 of 
        title 39, United States Code (as amended by section 201(a)) 
        take effect; and
            (2) with respect to competitive products, the date as of 
        which the regulations promulgated under section 3633 of title 
        39, United States Code (as amended by section 202) take effect.

SEC. 406. CHANGE-OF-ADDRESS ORDER INVOLVING A COMMERCIAL MAIL RECEIVING 
              AGENCY.

    (a) Redesignation.--Chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code (as 
in effect before the amendment made by section 204(a)) is amended by 
striking the heading for subchapter V and inserting the following:

                      ``SUBCHAPTER VI--GENERAL''.

    (b) Change-of-Address Order Involving a Commercial Mail Receiving 
Agency.--Subchapter VI of chapter 36 of title 39, United States Code 
(as so redesignated by subsection (a)) is amended by adding at the end 
the following:
``Sec. 3686. Change-of-address order involving a commercial mail 
              receiving agency
    ``(a) For the purpose of this section, the term `commercial mail 
receiving agency' or `CMRA' means a private business that acts as the 
mail receiving agent for specific clients.
    ``(b) Upon termination of an agency relationship between an 
addressee and a commercial mail receiving agency--
            ``(1) the addressee or, if authorized to do so, the CMRA 
        may file a change-of-address order with the Postal Service with 
        respect to such addressee;
            ``(2) a change-of-address order so filed shall, to the 
        extent practicable, be given full force and effect; and
            ``(3) any mail for the addressee that is delivered to the 
        CMRA after the filing of an appropriate order under this 
        subsection shall be subject to subsection (c).
    ``(c) Mail described in subsection (b)(3) shall, if marked for 
forwarding and remailed by the CMRA, be forwarded by the Postal Service 
in the same manner as, and subject to the same terms and conditions 
(including limitations on the period of time for which a change-of-
address order shall be given effect) as apply to, mail forwarded 
directly by the Postal Service to the addressee.''.

SEC. 407. EXCEPTION FOR COMPETITIVE PRODUCTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 403(c) of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended by striking ``user.'' and inserting ``user, except that this 
subsection shall not apply to competitive products.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply with respect to services, classifications, rates, and fees, to 
the extent provided or applicable (as the case may be) on or after the 
date as of which the regulations promulgated under section 3633 of 
title 39, United States Code (as amended by section 202) take effect.

                      TITLE V--GENERAL PROVISIONS

SEC. 501. QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR GOVERNORS.

    (a) In General.--Section 202(a) of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended by striking ``(a)'' and inserting ``(a)(1)'' and by striking 
the fourth sentence and inserting the following: ``The Governors shall 
represent the public interest generally, and at least 4 of the 
Governors shall be chosen solely on the basis of their demonstrated 
ability in managing organizations or corporations (in either the public 
or private sector) of substantial size; for purposes of this sentence, 
an organization or corporation shall be considered to be of substantial 
size if it employs at least 50,000 employees. The Governors shall not 
be representatives of specific interests using the Postal Service, and 
may be removed only for cause.''.
    (b) Consultation Requirement.--Section 202(a) of title 39, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(2) In selecting the individuals described in paragraph (1) for 
nomination for appointment to the position of Governor, the President 
should consult with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the 
minority leader of the House of Representatives, the majority leader of 
the Senate, and the minority leader of the Senate.''.
    (c) Restriction.--Section 202(b) of title 39, United States Code, 
is amended by striking ``(b)'' and inserting ``(b)(1)'', and by adding 
at the end the following:
    ``(2)(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, in 
the case of the office of the Governor the term of which is the first 
one scheduled to expire at least 4 months after the date of the 
enactment of this paragraph--
            ``(i) such office may not, in the case of any person 
        commencing service after that expiration date, be filled by any 
        person other than an individual chosen from among persons 
        nominated for such office with the unanimous concurrence of all 
        labor organizations described in section 206(a)(1); and
            ``(ii) instead of the term that would otherwise apply under 
        the first sentence of paragraph (1), the term of any person so 
        appointed to such office shall be 3 years.
    ``(B) Except as provided in subparagraph (A), an appointment under 
this paragraph shall be made in conformance with all provisions of this 
section that would otherwise apply.''.
    (d) Applicability.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall not 
affect the appointment or tenure of any person serving as a Governor of 
the Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service pursuant to 
an appointment made before the date of the enactment of this Act, or, 
except as provided in the amendment made by subsection (c), any 
nomination made before that date; however, when any such office becomes 
vacant, the appointment of any person to fill that office shall be made 
in accordance with such amendment. The requirement set forth in the 
fourth sentence of section 202(a)(1) of title 39, United States Code 
(as amended by subsection (a)) shall be met beginning not later than 9 
years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 502. OBLIGATIONS.

    (a) Purposes for Which Obligations May Be Issued.--The first 
sentence of section 2005(a)(1) of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended by striking ``title.'' and inserting ``title, other than any of 
the purposes for which the corresponding authority is available to the 
Postal Service under section 2011.''.
    (b) Increase Relating to Obligations Issued for Capital 
Improvements.--The third sentence of section 2005(a)(1) of title 39, 
United States Code, is amended by striking ``$2,000,000,000'' and 
inserting ``$3,000,000,000''.
    (c) Increase in Maximum Outstanding Obligations Allowable.--
Paragraph (2) of section 2005(a) of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (B); and
            (2) by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting the 
        following:
            ``(C) $15,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1992 through 
        2002; and
            ``(D) $25,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2003 and each fiscal 
        year thereafter.''.
    (d) Limitations on Obligations Outstanding.--
            (1) In general.--Subsection (a) of section 2005 of title 
        39, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
        following:
    ``(3) For purposes of applying the respective limitations under 
this subsection, the aggregate amount of obligations issued by the 
Postal Service which are outstanding as of any one time, and the net 
increase in the amount of obligations outstanding issued by the Postal 
Service for the purpose of capital improvements or for the purpose of 
defraying operating expenses of the Postal Service in any fiscal year, 
shall be determined by aggregating the relevant obligations issued by 
the Postal Service under this section with the relevant obligations 
issued by the Postal Service under section 2011.''.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--The second sentence of section 
        2005(a)(1) of title 39, United States Code, is amended by 
        striking ``any such obligations'' and inserting ``obligations 
        issued by the Postal Service which may be''.
    (e) Amounts Which May Be Pledged, etc.--
            (1) Obligations to which provisions apply.--The first 
        sentence of section 2005(b) of title 39, United States Code, is 
        amended by striking ``such obligations,'' and inserting 
        ``obligations issued by the Postal Service under this 
        section,''.
            (2) Assets, revenues, and receipts to which provisions 
        apply.--Subsection (b) of section 2005 of title 39, United 
        States Code, is amended by striking ``(b)'' and inserting 
        ``(b)(1)'', and by adding at the end the following:
    ``(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section--
            ``(A) the authority to pledge assets of the Postal Service 
        under this subsection shall be available only to the extent 
        that such assets are not related to the provision of 
        competitive products (as determined under section 2011(h) or, 
        for purposes of any period before accounting practices and 
        principles under section 2011(h) have been established and 
        applied, the best information available from the Postal 
        Service, including the audited statements required by section 
        2008(e)); and
            ``(B) any authority under this subsection relating to the 
        pledging or other use of revenues or receipts of the Postal 
        Service shall be available only to the extent that they are not 
        revenues or receipts of the Competitive Products Fund.''.

SEC. 503. PRIVATE CARRIAGE OF LETTERS.

    (a) In General.--Section 601 of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended by striking subsection (b) and inserting the following:
    ``(b) A letter may also be carried out of the mails when--
            ``(1) the amount paid for the private carriage of the 
        letter is at least the amount equal to 6 times the rate then 
        currently charged for the 1st ounce of a single-piece first 
        class letter;
            ``(2) the letter weighs at least 12\1/2\ ounces; or
            ``(3) such carriage is within the scope of services 
        described by regulations of the United States Postal Service 
        (as in effect on July 1, 2001) that purport to permit private 
        carriage by suspension of the operation of this section (as 
        then in effect).
    ``(c) Any regulations necessary to carry out this section shall be 
promulgated by the Postal Regulatory Commission.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date as 
of which the regulations promulgated under section 3633 of title 39, 
United States Code (as amended by section 202) take effect.

SEC. 504. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.

    Paragraph (2) of section 401 of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:
            ``(2) to adopt, amend, and repeal such rules and 
        regulations, not inconsistent with this title, as may be 
        necessary in the execution of its functions under this title 
        and such other functions as may be assigned to the Postal 
        Service under any provisions of law outside of this title;''.

SEC. 505. NONINTERFERENCE WITH COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS, ETC.

    (a) Noninterference With Collective Bargaining Agreements.--Nothing 
in this Act or any amendment made by this Act shall restrict, expand, 
or otherwise affect any of the rights, privileges, or benefits of 
either employees of or labor organizations representing employees of 
the United States Postal Service under chapter 12 of title 39, United 
States Code, the National Labor Relations Act, any handbook or manual 
affecting employee labor relations within the United States Postal 
Service, or any collective bargaining agreement.
    (b) Free Mailing Privileges Continue Unchanged.--Nothing in this 
Act or any amendment made by this Act shall affect any free mailing 
privileges accorded under section 3217 or sections 3403 through 3406 of 
title 39, United States Code.

SEC. 506. BONUS AUTHORITY.

    Title 39, United States Code, is amended by adding after section 
3686 (as added by section 406(b)) the following:
``Sec. 3687. Bonus authority
    ``(a) In General.--The Postal Service may establish one or more 
programs to provide bonuses or other rewards to officers and employees 
of the Postal Service to achieve the objectives of this chapter.
    ``(b) Waiver of Limitation on Compensation.--
            ``(1) In general.--Under any such program, the Postal 
        Service may award a bonus or other reward in excess of the 
        limitation set forth in the last sentence of section 1003(a), 
        if such program has been approved under paragraph (2).
            ``(2) Approval process.--If the Postal Service wishes to 
        have the authority, under any program described in subsection 
        (a), to award bonuses or other rewards in excess of the 
        limitation referred to in paragraph (1)--
                    ``(A) the Postal Service shall make an appropriate 
                request to the Postal Regulatory Commission, in such 
                form and manner as the Commission requires; and
                    ``(B) the Postal Regulatory Commission shall 
                approve any such request if it finds that the program 
                is likely to achieve the objectives of this chapter.
            ``(3) Revocation authority.--If the Postal Regulatory 
        Commission finds that a program previously approved under 
        paragraph (2) is not achieving the objectives of this chapter, 
        the Commission may revoke or suspend the authority of the 
        Postal Service to continue such program until such time as 
        appropriate corrective measures have, in the judgment of the 
        Commission, been taken.
    ``(c) Reporting Requirement Relating to Bonuses or Other Rewards.--
Included in its comprehensive statement under section 2401(e) for any 
period shall be--
            ``(1) the name of each person receiving a bonus or other 
        reward during such period which would not have been allowable 
        but for the provisions of subsection (a)(2);
            ``(2) the amount of the bonus or other reward; and
            ``(3) the amount by which the limitation referred to in 
        subsection (a)(2) was exceeded as a result of such bonus or 
        other reward.''.

                TITLE VI--ENHANCED REGULATORY COMMISSION

SEC. 601. REORGANIZATION AND MODIFICATION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS 
              RELATING TO THE POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION.

    (a) Transfer and Redesignation.--Title 39, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) by inserting after chapter 4 the following:

               ``CHAPTER 5--POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION

``Sec.
``501. Establishment.
``502. Commissioners.
``503. Rules; regulations; procedures.
``504. Administration.
``Sec. 501. Establishment
    ``The Postal Regulatory Commission is an independent establishment 
of the executive branch of the Government of the United States.
``Sec. 502. Commissioners
    ``(a) The Postal Regulatory Commission is composed of 5 
Commissioners, appointed by the President, by and with the advice and 
consent of the Senate. The Commissioners shall be chosen solely on the 
basis of their technical qualifications, professional standing, and 
demonstrated expertise in economics, accounting, law, or public 
administration, and may be removed by the President only for cause. 
Each individual appointed to the Commission shall have the 
qualifications and expertise necessary to carry out the enhanced 
responsibilities accorded Commissioners under the Postal Accountability 
and Enhancement Act. Not more than 3 of the Commissioners may be 
adherents of the same political party.
    ``(b) No Commissioner shall be financially interested in any 
enterprise in the private sector of the economy engaged in the delivery 
of mail matter.
    ``(c) A Commissioner may continue to serve after the expiration of 
his term until his successor has qualified, except that a Commissioner 
may not so continue to serve for more than 1 year after the date upon 
which his term otherwise would expire under subsection (f).
    ``(d) One of the Commissioners shall be designated as Chairman by, 
and shall serve in the position of Chairman at the pleasure of, the 
President.
    ``(e) The Commissioners shall by majority vote designate a Vice 
Chairman of the Commission. The Vice Chairman shall act as Chairman of 
the Commission in the absence of the Chairman.
    ``(f) The Commissioners shall serve for terms of 6 years.'';
            (2) by striking, in subchapter I of chapter 36 (as in 
        effect before the amendment made by section 201(c)), the 
        heading for such subchapter I and all that follows through 
        section 3602; and
            (3) by redesignating sections 3603 and 3604 as sections 503 
        and 504, respectively, and transferring such sections to the 
        end of chapter 5 (as inserted by paragraph (1)).
    (b) Applicability.--The amendment made by subsection (a)(1) shall 
not affect the appointment or tenure of any person serving as a 
Commissioner on the Postal Regulatory Commission (as so redesignated by 
section 604) pursuant to an appointment made before the date of the 
enactment of this Act or any nomination made before that date, but, 
when any such office becomes vacant, the appointment of any person to 
fill that office shall be made in accordance with such amendment.
    (c) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for part I of title 39, 
United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to 
chapter 4 the following:

    ``5. Postal Regulatory Commission.............                501''

SEC. 602. AUTHORITY FOR POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION TO ISSUE 
              SUBPOENAS.

    Section 504 of title 39, United States Code (as so redesignated by 
section 601) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(f)(1) Any Commissioner of the Postal Regulatory Commission, any 
administrative law judge appointed by the Commission under section 3105 
of title 5, and any employee of the Commission designated by the 
Commission may administer oaths, examine witnesses, take depositions, 
and receive evidence.
    ``(2) The Chairman of the Commission, any Commissioner designated 
by the Chairman, and any administrative law judge appointed by the 
Commission under section 3105 of title 5 may, with respect to any 
proceeding conducted by the Commission under this title--
            ``(A) issue subpoenas requiring the attendance and 
        presentation of testimony by, or the production of documentary 
        or other evidence in the possession of, any covered person; and
            ``(B) order the taking of depositions and responses to 
        written interrogatories by a covered person.
The written concurrence of a majority of the Commissioners then holding 
office shall, with respect to each subpoena under subparagraph (A), be 
required in advance of its issuance.
    ``(3) In the case of contumacy or failure to obey a subpoena issued 
under this subsection, upon application by the Commission, the district 
court of the United States for the district in which the person to whom 
the subpoena is addressed resides or is served may issue an order 
requiring such person to appear at any designated place to testify or 
produce documentary or other evidence. Any failure to obey the order of 
the court may be punished by the court as a contempt thereof.
    ``(4) For purposes of this subsection, the term `covered person' 
means an officer, employee, agent, or contractor of the Postal Service.
    ``(g)(1) If the Postal Service determines that any document or 
other matter it provides to the Postal Regulatory Commission pursuant 
to a subpoena issued under subsection (f), or otherwise at the request 
of the Commission in connection with any proceeding or other purpose 
under this title, contains information which is described in section 
410(c) of this title, or exempt from public disclosure under section 
552(b) of title 5, the Postal Service shall, at the time of providing 
such matter to the Commission, notify the Commission, in writing, of 
its determination (and the reasons therefor).
    ``(2) No officer or employee of the Commission may, with respect to 
any information as to which the Commission has been notified under 
paragraph (1)--
            ``(A) use such information for purposes other than the 
        purposes for which it is supplied; or
            ``(B) permit anyone who is not an officer or employee of 
        the Commission to have access to any such information.
    ``(3) Paragraph (2) shall not prevent information from being 
furnished under any process of discovery established under this title 
in connection with a proceeding under this title. The Commission shall, 
by regulations based on rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil 
Procedure, establish procedures for ensuring appropriate 
confidentiality for any information furnished under the preceding 
sentence.''.

SEC. 603. APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION.

    (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--Subsection (d) of section 504 
of title 39, United States Code (as so redesignated by section 601) is 
amended to read as follows:
    ``(d) There are authorized to be appropriated, out of the Postal 
Service Fund, such sums as may be necessary for the Postal Regulatory 
Commission. In requesting an appropriation under this subsection for a 
fiscal year, the Commission shall prepare and submit to the Congress 
under section 2009 a budget of the Commission's expenses, including 
expenses for facilities, supplies, compensation, and employee 
benefits.''.
    (b) Budget Program.--
            (1) In general.--The next to last sentence of section 2009 
        of title 39, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 
        ``The budget program shall also include separate statements of 
        the amounts which (1) the Postal Service requests to be 
        appropriated under subsections (b) and (c) of section 2401, (2) 
        the Office of Inspector General of the United States Postal 
        Service requests to be appropriated, out of the Postal Service 
        Fund, under section 8G(f) of the Inspector General Act of 1978, 
        and (3) the Postal Regulatory Commission requests to be 
        appropriated, out of the Postal Service Fund, under section 
        504(d) of this title.''.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--Section 2003(e)(1) of title 39, 
        United States Code, is amended by striking the first sentence 
        and inserting the following: ``The Fund shall be available for 
        the payment of (A) all expenses incurred by the Postal Service 
        in carrying out its functions as provided by law, subject to 
        the same limitation as set forth in the parenthetical matter 
        under subsection (a); (B) all expenses of the Postal Regulatory 
        Commission, subject to the availability of amounts appropriated 
        pursuant to section 504(d); and (C) all expenses of the Office 
        of Inspector General, subject to the availability of amounts 
        appropriated pursuant to section 8G(f) of the Inspector General 
        Act of 1978.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--
            (1) In general.--The amendments made by this section shall 
        apply with respect to fiscal years beginning on or after 
        October 1, 2002.
            (2) Savings provision.--The provisions of title 39, United 
        States Code, that are amended by this section shall, for 
        purposes of any fiscal year before the first fiscal year to 
        which the amendments made by this section apply, continue to 
        apply in the same way as if this section had never been 
        enacted.

SEC. 604. REDESIGNATION OF THE POSTAL RATE COMMISSION.

    (a) Amendments to Title 39, United States Code.--Title 39, United 
States Code, is amended in sections 404, 503-504 (as so redesignated by 
section 601), 1001, 1002, by striking ``Postal Rate Commission'' each 
place it appears and inserting ``Postal Regulatory Commission'';
    (b) Amendments to Title 5, United States Code.--Title 5, United 
States Code, is amended in sections 104(1), 306(f), 2104(b), 3371(3), 
5314 (in the item relating to Chairman, Postal Rate Commission), 5315 
(in the item relating to Members, Postal Rate Commission), 
5514(a)(5)(B), 7342(a)(1)(A), 7511(a)(1)(B)(ii), 8402(c)(1), 
8423(b)(1)(B), and 8474(c)(4) by striking ``Postal Rate Commission'' 
and inserting ``Postal Regulatory Commission''.
    (c) Amendment to the Ethics in Government Act of 1978.--Section 
101(f)(6) of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is 
amended by striking ``Postal Rate Commission'' and inserting ``Postal 
Regulatory Commission''.
    (d) Amendment to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.--Section 501(b) of 
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 791(b)) is amended by 
striking ``Postal Rate Office'' and inserting ``Postal Regulatory 
Commission''.
    (e) Amendment to Title 44, United States Code.--Section 3502(5) of 
title 44, United States Code, is amended by striking ``Postal Rate 
Commission'' and inserting ``Postal Regulatory Commission''.
    (f) Other References.--Whenever a reference is made in any 
provision of law (other than this Act or a provision of law amended by 
this Act), regulation, rule, document, or other record of the United 
States to the Postal Rate Commission, such reference shall be 
considered a reference to the Postal Regulatory Commission.

                     TITLE VII--INSPECTORS GENERAL

SEC. 701. INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION.

    (a) In General.--Paragraph (2) of section 8G(a) of the Inspector 
General Act of 1978 is amended by inserting ``the Postal Regulatory 
Commission,'' after ``the United States International Trade 
Commission,''.
    (b) Administration.--Section 504 of title 39, United States Code 
(as so redesignated by section 601) is amended by adding after 
subsection (g) (as added by section 602) the following:
    ``(h)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this title or of 
the Inspector General Act of 1978, the authority to select, appoint, 
and employ officers and employees of the Office of Inspector General of 
the Postal Regulatory Commission, and to obtain any temporary or 
intermittent services of experts or consultants (or an organization of 
experts or consultants) for such Office, shall reside with the 
Inspector General of the Postal Regulatory Commission.
    ``(2) Except as provided in paragraph (1), any exercise of 
authority under this subsection shall, to the extent practicable, be in 
conformance with the applicable laws and regulations that govern 
selections, appointments and employment, and the obtaining of any such 
temporary or intermittent services, within the Postal Regulatory 
Commission.''.
    (c) Deadline.--No later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act--
            (1) the first Inspector General of the Postal Regulatory 
        Commission shall be appointed; and
            (2) the Office of Inspector General of the Postal 
        Regulatory Commission shall be established.

SEC. 702. INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE TO BE 
              APPOINTED BY THE PRESIDENT.

    (a) Definitional Amendments to the Inspector General Act of 1978.--
Section 11 of the Inspector General Act of 1978 is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) by striking ``and'' before ``the chief 
                executive officer of the Resolution Trust 
                Corporation'';
                    (B) by striking ``and'' before ``the Chairperson of 
                the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation''; and
                    (C) by inserting ``the Postmaster General;'' after 
                ``Social Security Administration;''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2)--
                    (A) by striking ``or'' before ``the Veterans' 
                Administration''; and
                    (B) by inserting ``the United States Postal 
                Service,'' after ``Social Security Administration,''.
    (b) Special Provisions Concerning the United States Postal 
Service.--The Inspector General Act of 1978 is amended--
            (1) by redesignating sections 8G (as amended by section 
        701(a)), 8H, and 8I as sections 8H through 8J, respectively; 
        and
            (2) by inserting after section 8F the following:

    ``special provisions concerning the united states postal service

    ``Sec. 8G. (a) Notwithstanding the last two sentences of section 
3(a), the Inspector General of the United States Postal Service shall 
report to and be under the general supervision of the Postmaster 
General, but shall not report to, or be subject to supervision by, any 
other officer or employee of the United States Postal Service or its 
Board of Governors. No such officer or employee (including the 
Postmaster General) or member of such Board shall prevent or prohibit 
the Inspector General from initiating, carrying out, or completing any 
audit or investigation, or from issuing any subpoena during the course 
of any audit or investigation.
    ``(b) In carrying out the duties and responsibilities specified in 
this Act, the Inspector General of the United States Postal Service 
shall have oversight responsibility for all activities of the Postal 
Inspection Service, including any internal investigation performed by 
the Postal Inspection Service. The Chief Postal Inspector shall 
promptly report the significant activities being carried out by the 
Postal Inspection Service to such Inspector General.
    ``(c) Any report required to be transmitted by the Postmaster 
General to the appropriate committees or subcommittees of the Congress 
under section 5(d) shall also be transmitted, within the 7-day period 
specified under such section, to the Committee on Government Reform of 
the House of Representatives and the Committee on Governmental Affairs 
of the Senate.
    ``(d) Notwithstanding any provision of paragraph (7) or (8) of 
section 6(a), the Inspector General of the United States Postal Service 
may select, appoint, and employ such officers and employees as may be 
necessary for carrying out the functions, powers and duties of the 
Office of Inspector General and to obtain the temporary or intermittent 
services of experts or consultants or an organization of experts or 
consultants, subject to the applicable laws and regulations that govern 
such selections, appointments, and employment, and the obtaining of 
such services, within the United States Postal Service.
    ``(e) Nothing in this Act shall restrict, eliminate, or otherwise 
adversely affect any of the rights, privileges, or benefits of 
employees of the United States Postal Service, or labor organizations 
representing employees of the United States Postal Service, under 
chapter 12 of title 39, United States Code, the National Labor 
Relations Act, any handbook or manual affecting employee labor 
relations with the United States Postal Service, or any collective 
bargaining agreement.
    ``(f) There are authorized to be appropriated, out of the Postal 
Service Fund, such sums as may be necessary for the Office of Inspector 
General of the United States Postal Service.
    ``(g) As used in this section, `Board of Governors' and `Board' 
each has the meaning given it by section 102 of title 39, United States 
Code.''.
    (c) Audits of the Postal Service.--
            (1) Audits.--Subsection (e) of section 2008 of title 39, 
        United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
    ``(e)(1) At least once each year beginning with the fiscal year 
commencing after the date of the enactment of the Postal Accountability 
and Enhancement Act, the financial statements of the Postal Service 
(including those used in determining and establishing postal rates) 
shall be audited by the Inspector General or by an independent external 
auditor selected by the Inspector General.
    ``(2) Audits under this section shall be conducted in accordance 
with applicable generally accepted government auditing standards.
    ``(3) Upon completion of the audit required by this subsection, the 
person who audits the statement shall submit a report on the audit to 
the Postmaster General.''.
            (2) Results of inspector general's audit to be included in 
        annual report.--Section 2402 of title 39, United States Code, 
        is amended by inserting after the first sentence the following: 
        ``Each report under this section shall include, for the most 
        recent fiscal year for which a report under section 2008(e) is 
        available (unless previously transmitted under the following 
        sentence), a copy of such report.''.
            (3) Coordination provisions.--Section 2008(d) of title 39, 
        United States Code, is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``(d) Nothing'' and inserting 
                ``(d)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), 
                nothing''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(2) An audit or report under paragraph (1) may not be obtained 
without the prior written approval of the Inspector General.''.
            (4) Savings provision.--For purposes of any fiscal year 
        preceding the first fiscal year commencing after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the provisions of title 39, United 
        States Code, shall be applied as if the amendments made by this 
        subsection had never been enacted.
    (d) Reports.--Section 3013 of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended by striking ``Postmaster General'' each place it appears and 
inserting ``Chief Postal Inspector''.
    (e) Technical and Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Relating to the inspector general act of 1978.--(A) 
        Subsection (a) of section 8H of the Inspector General Act of 
        1978 (as amended by section 701(a) and redesignated by 
        subsection (b) of this section) is further amended--
                    (i) in paragraph (2) by striking ``the Postal 
                Regulatory Commission, and the United States Postal 
                Service;'' and inserting ``and the Postal Regulatory 
                Commission;'' and
                    (ii) in paragraph (4) by striking ``except that'' 
                and all that follows through ``Code);'' and inserting 
                ``except that, with respect to the National Science 
                Foundation, such term means the National Science 
                Board;''.
            (B)(i) Subsection (f) of section 8H of such Act (as so 
        redesignated) is repealed.
            (ii) Subsection (c) of section 8H of such Act (as so 
        redesignated) is amended by striking ``Except as provided under 
        subsection (f) of this section, the'' and inserting ``The''.
            (C) Section 8J of such Act (as so redesignated) is 
        amended--
                    (i) by striking all after ``8D,'' and before ``of 
                this Act'' and inserting ``8E, 8F, 8G, or 8I''; and
                    (ii) by striking ``8G(a)'' and inserting ``8H(a)''.
            (2) Relating to title 39, united states code.--(A) 
        Subsection (e) of section 202 of title 39, United States Code, 
        is repealed.
            (B) Paragraph (4) of section 102 of such title 39 (as 
        amended by section 101) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(4) `Inspector General' means the Inspector General of 
        the United States Postal Service, appointed under section 3(a) 
        of the Inspector General Act of 1978;''.
            (C) The first sentence of section 1003(a) of such title 39 
        is amended by striking ``chapters 2 and 12 of this title, 
        section 8G of the Inspector General Act of 1978, or other 
        provision of law,'' and inserting ``chapter 2 or 12 of this 
        title, subsection (b) or (c) of section 1003 of this title, or 
        any other provision of law,''.
            (D) Section 1003(b) of such title 39 is amended by striking 
        ``respective'' and inserting ``other''.
            (E) Section 1003(c) of such title 39 is amended by striking 
        ``included'' and inserting ``includes''.
            (3) Relating to the federal property and administrative 
        services act of 1949.--Section 304C(b)(1) of the Federal 
        Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 
        254d(b)(1)) is amended by striking ``8G'' and inserting ``8H''.
            (4) Relating to the energy policy act of 1992.--Section 
        160(a) of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 8262f(a)) is 
        amended (in the matter before paragraph (1)) by striking all 
        that follows ``(5 U.S.C. App.)'' and before ``shall--''.
    (f) Effective Date; Eligibility of Prior Inspector General.--
            (1) Effective date.--
                    (A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph 
                (B) or subsection (c), this section and the amendments 
                made by this section shall take effect on the date of 
                the enactment of this Act.
                    (B) Special rules.--
                            (i) In general.--If the position of 
                        Inspector General of the United States Postal 
                        Service is occupied on the date of enactment of 
                        this Act (other than by an individual serving 
                        due to a vacancy arising in that position 
                        before the expiration of his or her 
                        predecessor's term), then, for purposes of the 
                        period beginning on such date of enactment and 
                        ending on January 5, 2004, or, if earlier, the 
                        date on which such individual ceases to serve 
                        in that position, title 39, United States Code, 
                        and the Inspector General Act of 1978 shall be 
                        applied as if the amendments made by this 
                        section had not been enacted, except--
                                    (I) for those made by subsections 
                                (c) and (d); and
                                    (II) as provided in clause (ii).
                            (ii) Authorization of appropriations.--
                                    (I) In general.--Notwithstanding 
                                any other provision of this paragraph, 
                                subsection (f) of section 8G of the 
                                Inspector General Act of 1978 (as 
                                amended by this section) shall be 
                                effective for purposes of fiscal years 
                                beginning on or after October 1, 2002.
                                    (II) Savings provision.--For 
                                purposes of the fiscal year ending on 
                                September 30, 2002, funding for the 
                                Office of Inspector General of the 
                                United States Postal Service shall be 
                                made available in the same manner as if 
                                this Act had never been enacted.
            (2) Eligibility of prior inspector general.--Nothing in 
        this Act shall prevent any individual who has served as 
        Inspector General of the United States Postal Service at any 
        time before the date of the enactment of this Act from being 
        appointed to that position pursuant to the amendments made by 
        this section.

                        TITLE VIII--EVALUATIONS

SEC. 801. DEFINITION.

    For purposes of this title, the term ``Board of Governors'' has the 
meaning given such term by section 102 of title 39, United States Code.

SEC. 802. ASSESSMENTS OF RATEMAKING, CLASSIFICATION, AND OTHER 
              PROVISIONS.

    (a) In General.--The Postal Regulatory Commission shall, at least 
every 5 years, submit a report to the President and the Congress 
concerning--
            (1) the operation of the amendments made by the Postal 
        Accountability and Enhancement Act; and
            (2) recommendations for any legislation or other measures 
        necessary to improve the effectiveness or efficiency of the 
        postal laws of the United States.
    (b) Postal Service Views.--A report under this section shall be 
submitted only after reasonable opportunity has been afforded to the 
Postal Service to review such report and to submit written comments 
thereon. Any comments timely received from the Postal Service under the 
preceding sentence shall be attached to the report submitted under 
subsection (a).
    (c) Specific Information Required.--The Postal Regulatory 
Commission shall include, as part of at least its first report under 
subsection (a), the following:
            (1) Cost-coverage requirement relating to competitive 
        products collectively.--With respect to section 3633 of title 
        39, United States Code (as amended by this Act)--
                    (A) a description of how such section has operated; 
                and
                    (B) recommendations as to whether or not such 
                section should remain in effect and, if so, any 
                suggestions as to how it might be improved.
            (2) Competitive products fund.--With respect to the Postal 
        Service Competitive Products Fund (under section 2011 of title 
        39, United States Code, as amended by section 401), in 
        consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury--
                    (A) a description of how such Fund has operated;
                    (B) any suggestions as to how the operation of such 
                Fund might be improved; and
                    (C) a description and assessment of alternative 
                accounting or financing mechanisms that might be used 
                to achieve the objectives of such Fund.
            (3) Assumed federal income tax on competitive products 
        fund.--With respect to section 3634 of title 39, United States 
        Code (as amended by this Act), in consultation with the 
        Secretary of the Treasury--
                    (A) a description of how such section has operated; 
                and
                    (B) recommendations as to whether or not such 
                section should remain in effect and, if so, any 
                suggestions as to how it might be improved.

SEC. 803. STUDY ON EQUAL APPLICATION OF LAWS TO COMPETITIVE PRODUCTS.

    (a) In General.--The Federal Trade Commission shall prepare and 
submit to the President and Congress, within 1 year after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, a comprehensive report identifying Federal 
and State laws that apply differently to products of the United States 
Postal Service in the competitive category of mail (within the meaning 
of section 102 of title 39, United States Code, as amended by section 
101) and similar products provided by private companies.
    (b) Recommendations.--The Federal Trade Commission shall include 
such recommendations as it considers appropriate for bringing such 
legal discrimination to an end.
    (c) Consultation.--In preparing its report, the Federal Trade 
Commission shall consult with the United States Postal Service, the 
Postal Regulatory Commission, other Federal agencies, mailers, private 
companies that provide delivery services, and the general public, and 
shall append to such report any written comments received under this 
subsection.

SEC. 804. GREATER DIVERSITY IN POSTAL SERVICE EXECUTIVE AND 
              ADMINISTRATIVE SCHEDULE MANAGEMENT POSITIONS.

    (a) Study.--The Board of Governors shall study and, within 1 year 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, submit to the President 
and Congress a report concerning the extent to which women and 
minorities are represented in supervisory and management positions 
within the United States Postal Service. Any data included in the 
report shall be presented in the aggregate and by pay level.
    (b) Performance Evaluations.--The United States Postal Service 
shall, as soon as practicable, take such measures as may be necessary 
to ensure that, for purposes of conducting performance appraisals of 
supervisory or managerial employees, appropriate consideration shall be 
given to meeting affirmative action goals, achieving equal employment 
opportunity requirements, and implementation of plans designed to 
achieve greater diversity in the workforce.

SEC. 805. CONTRACTS WITH WOMEN, MINORITIES, AND SMALL BUSINESSES.

    The Board of Governors shall study and, within 1 year after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, submit to the President and the 
Congress a report concerning the number and value of contracts and 
subcontracts the Postal Service has entered into with women, 
minorities, and small businesses.

SEC. 806. RATES FOR PERIODICALS.

    (a) In General.--The United States Postal Service, acting jointly 
with the Postal Regulatory Commission and the General Accounting 
Office, shall study and submit to the President and Congress a report 
concerning--
            (1) the quality, accuracy, and completeness of the 
        information used by the Postal Service in determining the 
        direct and indirect postal costs attributable to periodicals; 
        and
            (2) any opportunities that might exist for improving 
        efficiencies in the collection, handling, transportation, or 
        delivery of periodicals by the Postal Service, including any 
        pricing incentives for mailers that might be appropriate.
    (b) Recommendations.--The report shall include recommendations for 
any administrative action or legislation that might be appropriate.

SEC. 807. ASSESSMENT OF CERTAIN RATE DEFICIENCIES.

    (a) In General.--Within 12 months after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Office of Inspector General of the United States 
Postal Service shall study and submit to the President, the Congress, 
and the United States Postal Service, a report concerning the 
administration of section 3626(k) of title 39, United States Code.
    (b) Specific Requirements.--The study and report shall specifically 
address the adequacy and fairness of the process by which assessments 
under section 3626(k) of title 39, United States Code, are determined 
and appealable, including--
            (1) whether the Postal Regulatory Commission or any other 
        body outside the Postal Service should be assigned a role; and
            (2) whether a statute of limitations should be established 
        for the commencement of proceedings by the Postal Service 
        thereunder.

      TITLE IX--MISCELLANEOUS; TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS

SEC. 901. EMPLOYMENT OF POSTAL POLICE OFFICERS.

    Section 404 of title 39, United States Code, as amended by sections 
102 and 908(f), is further amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(f)(1) The Postal Service may employ guards for all buildings and 
areas owned or occupied by the Postal Service or under the charge and 
control of the Postal Service, and such guards shall have, with respect 
to such property, the powers of special policemen provided by the first 
section of the Act cited in paragraph (2), and, as to such property, 
the Postmaster General (or his designee) may take any action that the 
Administrator of General Services (or his designee) may take under 
section 2 or 3 of such Act, attaching thereto penalties under the 
authority and within the limits provided in section 4 of such Act.
    ``(2) The Act cited in this paragraph is the Act of June 1, 1948 
(62 Stat. 281), commonly known as the `Protection of Public Property 
Act'.''.

SEC. 902. DATE OF POSTMARK TO BE TREATED AS DATE OF APPEAL IN 
              CONNECTION WITH THE CLOSING OR CONSOLIDATION OF POST 
              OFFICES.

    (a) In General.--Section 404(b) of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(6) For purposes of paragraph (5), any appeal received by the 
Commission shall--
            ``(A) if sent to the Commission through the mails, be 
        considered to have been received on the date of the Postal 
        Service postmark on the envelope or other cover in which such 
        appeal is mailed; or
            ``(B) if otherwise lawfully delivered to the Commission, be 
        considered to have been received on the date determined based 
        on any appropriate documentation or other indicia (as 
        determined under regulations of the Commission).''.
    (b) Effective Date.--This section and the amendments made by this 
section shall apply with respect to any determination to close or 
consolidate a post office which is first made available, in accordance 
with paragraph (3) of section 404(b) of title 39, United States Code, 
after the end of the 3-month period beginning on the date of the 
enactment of this Act.

SEC. 903. PROVISIONS RELATING TO BENEFITS UNDER CHAPTER 81 OF TITLE 5, 
              UNITED STATES CODE, FOR OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES OF THE 
              FORMER POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT.

    (a) In General.--Section 8 of the Postal Reorganization Act (39 
U.S.C. 1001 note) is amended by inserting ``(a)'' after ``8.'' and by 
adding at the end the following:
    ``(b) For purposes of chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, 
the Postal Service shall, with respect to any individual receiving 
benefits under such chapter as an officer or employee of the former 
Post Office Department, have the same authorities and responsibilities 
as it has with respect to an officer or employee of the Postal Service 
receiving such benefits.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--This section and the amendments made by this 
section shall take effect on October 1, 2001.

SEC. 904. OBSOLETE PROVISIONS.

    (a) Repeal.--
            (1) In general.--Chapter 52 of title 39, United States 
        Code, is repealed.
            (2) Conforming amendments.--(A) Section 5005(a) of title 
        39, United States Code, is amended--
                    (i) by striking paragraph (1), and by redesignating 
                paragraphs (2) through (4) as paragraphs (1) through 
                (3), respectively; and
                    (ii) in paragraph (3) (as so designated by clause 
                (i)) by striking ``(as defined in section 5201(6) of 
                this title)''.
            (B) Section 5005(b) of such title 39 is amended by striking 
        ``(a)(4)'' each place it appears and inserting ``(a)(3)''.
            (C) Section 5005(c) of such title 39 is amended by striking 
        ``by carrier or person under subsection (a)(1) of this section, 
        by contract under subsection (a)(4) of this section, or'' and 
        inserting ``by contract under subsection (a)(3) of this section 
        or''.
    (b) Eliminating Restriction on Length of Contracts.--(1) Section 
5005(b)(1) of title 39, United States Code, is amended by striking 
``(or where the Postal Service determines that special conditions or 
the use of special equipment warrants, not in excess of 6 years)'' and 
inserting ``(or such length of time as may be determined by the Postal 
Service to be advisable or appropriate)''.
    (2) Section 5402(c) of such title 39 is amended by striking ``for a 
period of not more than 4 years''.
    (3) Section 5605 of such title 39 is amended by striking ``for 
periods of not in excess of 4 years''.
    (c) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for part V of title 39, 
United States Code, is amended by repealing the item relating to 
chapter 52.

SEC. 905. EXPANDED CONTRACTING AUTHORITY.

    (a) Amendment to Title 39, United States Code.--
            (1) Contracts with air carriers.--Subsection (d) of section 
        5402 of title 39, United States Code, is amended to read as 
        follows:
    ``(d)(1) The Postal Service may contract with any air carrier for 
the transportation of mail by aircraft in interstate air 
transportation, including the rates therefor, either through 
negotiations or competitive bidding.
    ``(2) Notwithstanding subsections (a) through (c), the Postal 
Service may contract with any air carrier or foreign air carrier for 
the transportation of mail by aircraft in foreign air transportation, 
including the rates therefor, either through negotiations or 
competitive bidding, except that--
            ``(A) any such contract may be awarded only to (i) an air 
        carrier holding a certificate required by section 41101 of 
        title 49 or an exemption therefrom issued by the Secretary of 
        Transportation, (ii) a foreign air carrier holding a permit 
        required by section 41301 of title 49 or an exemption therefrom 
        issued by the Secretary of Transportation, or (iii) a 
        combination of such air carriers or foreign air carriers (or 
        both);
            ``(B) mail transported under any such contract shall not be 
        subject to any duty-to-carry requirement imposed by any 
        provision of subtitle VII of title 49 or by any certificate, 
        permit, or corresponding exemption authority issued by the 
        Secretary of Transportation under that subtitle;
            ``(C) every contract that the Postal Service awards to a 
        foreign air carrier under this paragraph shall be subject to 
        the continuing requirement that air carriers shall be afforded 
        the same opportunity to carry the mail of the country to and 
        from which the mail is transported and the flag country of the 
        foreign air carrier, if different, as the Postal Service has 
        afforded the foreign air carrier; and
            ``(D) the Postmaster General shall consult with the 
        Secretary of Defense concerning actions that affect the 
        carriage of military mail transported in foreign air 
        transportation.
    ``(3) Paragraph (2) shall not be interpreted as suspending or 
otherwise diminishing the authority of the Secretary of Transportation 
under section 41310 of title 49.''.
            (2) Definitions.--Subsection (e) of section 5402 of title 
        39, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
    ``(e) For purposes of this section, the terms `air carrier', `air 
transportation', `foreign air carrier', `foreign air transportation', 
`interstate air transportation', and `mail' shall have the meanings 
given such terms in section 40102 of title 49.''.
    (b) Amendments to Title 49, United States Code.--
            (1) Authority of postal service to provide for interstate 
        air transportation of mail.--Section 41901(a) of title 49, 
        United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
    ``(a) Title 39.--The United States Postal Service may provide for 
the transportation of mail by aircraft in air transportation under this 
chapter and under chapter 54 of title 39.''.
            (2) Schedules for certain transportation of mail.--Section 
        41902(b)(1) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by 
        inserting before the semicolon at the end the following: 
        ``(other than foreign air transportation of mail)''.
            (3) Prices for foreign transportation of mail.--Section 
        41907 of title 49, United States Code, is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``(a) Limitations.--''; and
                    (B) by striking subsection (b).
            (4) Conforming amendments.--Sections 41107, 41901(b)(1), 
        41902(a), 41903(a), and 41903(b) of title 49, United States 
        Code, are amended by striking ``in foreign air transportation 
        or''.

SEC. 906. INVESTMENTS.

    Subsection (c) of section 2003 of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) by striking ``(c) If'' and inserting ``(c)(1) Except as 
        provided in paragraph (2), if''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(2)(A) Nothing in this section shall be considered to authorize 
any investment in any obligations or securities of a commercial entity.
    ``(B) For purposes of this paragraph, the term `commercial entity' 
means any corporation, company, association, partnership, joint stock 
company, firm, society, or other similar entity, as further defined 
under regulations prescribed by the Postal Regulatory Commission.''.

SEC. 907. REPEAL OF SECTION 5403.

    (a) In General.--Section 5403 of title 39, United States Code, is 
repealed.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 54 of title 39, 
United States Code, is amended by repealing the item relating to 
section 5403.

SEC. 908. TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Reduced Rates.--Section 3626 of title 39, United States Code, 
is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) by striking all before paragraph (4) and 
                inserting the following:
    ``(a)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, rates of 
postage for a class of mail or kind of mailer under former section 
4358, 4452(b), 4452(c), 4554(b), or 4554(c) of this title shall be 
established in accordance with section 3622.
    ``(2) For the purpose of this subsection, the term `regular-rate 
category' means any class of mail or kind of mailer, other than a class 
or kind referred to in section 2401(c).''; and
                    (B) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through (7) as 
                paragraphs (3) through (6), respectively;
            (2) in subsection (g) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(3) For purposes of this section and former section 4358(a) 
through (c) of this title, those copies of an issue of a publication 
entered within the county in which it is published, but distributed 
outside such county on postal carrier routes originating in the county 
of publication, shall be treated as if they were distributed within the 
county of publication.
    ``(4)(A) In the case of an issue of a publication, any number of 
copies of which are mailed at the rates of postage for a class of mail 
or kind of mailer under former section 4358(a) through (c) of this 
title, any copies of such issue which are distributed outside the 
county of publication (excluding any copies subject to paragraph (3)) 
shall be subject to rates of postage provided for under this paragraph.
    ``(B) The rates of postage applicable to mail under this paragraph 
shall be established in accordance with section 3622.
    ``(C) This paragraph shall not apply with respect to an issue of a 
publication unless the total paid circulation of such issue outside the 
county of publication (not counting recipients of copies subject to 
paragraph (3)) is less than 5,000.'';
            (3) in subsection (j)(1)(D)--
                    (A) by striking ``and'' at the end of subclause 
                (I); and
                    (B) by adding after subclause (II) the following:
                    ``(III) clause (i) shall not apply to space 
                advertising in mail matter that otherwise qualifies for 
                rates under former section 4452(b) or 4452(c) of this 
                title, and satisfies the content requirements 
                established by the Postal Service for periodical 
                publications.''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(n) In the administration of this section, matter that satisfies 
the circulation standards for requester publications shall not be 
excluded from being mailed at the rates for mail under former section 
4358 solely because such matter is designed primarily for free 
circulation or for circulation at nominal rates, or fails to meet the 
requirements of former section 4354(a)(5).''.
    (b) Reimbursement.--Section 3681 of title 39, United States Code, 
is amended by striking ``section 3628'' and inserting ``sections 3662 
through 3664''.
    (c) Size and Weight Limits.--Section 3682 of title 39, United 
States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 3682. Size and weight limits
    ``The Postal Service may establish size and weight limitations for 
mail matter in the market-dominant category of mail consistent with 
regulations the Postal Regulatory Commission may prescribe under 
section 3622. The Postal Service may establish size and weight 
limitations for mail matter in the competitive category of mail 
consistent with its authority under section 3632.''.
    (d) Revenue Foregone, etc.--Title 39, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) in section 503 (as so redesignated by section 601) by 
        striking ``this chapter.'' and inserting ``this title.''; and
            (2) in section 2401(d) by inserting ``(as last in effect 
        before enactment of the Postal Accountability and Enhancement 
        Act)'' after ``3626(a)'' and after ``3626(a)(3)(B)(ii)''.
    (e) Appropriations and Reporting Requirements.--
            (1) Appropriations.--Subsection (e) of section 2401 of 
        title 39, United States Code, is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``Committee on Post Office and 
                Civil Service'' each place it appears and inserting 
                ``Committee on Government Reform''; and
                    (B) by striking ``Not later than March 15 of each 
                year,'' and inserting ``Each year,''.
            (2) Reporting requirements.--Sections 2803(a) and 2804(a) 
        of title 39, United States Code, are amended by striking 
        ``2401(g)'' and inserting ``2401(e)''.
    (f) Authority To Fix Rates and Classes Generally; Requirement 
Relating to Letters Sealed Against Inspection.--Section 404 of title 
39, United States Code (as amended by section 102) is further amended 
by redesignating subsections (b) and (c) as subsections (d) and (e), 
respectively, and by inserting after subsection (a) the following:
    ``(b) Except as otherwise provided, the Governors are authorized to 
establish reasonable and equitable classes of mail and reasonable and 
equitable rates of postage and fees for postal services in accordance 
with the provisions of chapter 36. Postal rates and fees shall be 
reasonable and equitable and sufficient to enable the Postal Service, 
under best practices of honest, efficient, and economical management, 
to maintain and continue the development of postal services of the kind 
and quality adapted to the needs of the United States.
    ``(c) The Postal Service shall maintain one or more classes of mail 
for the transmission of letters sealed against inspection. The rate for 
each such class shall be uniform throughout the United States, its 
territories, and possessions. One such class shall provide for the most 
expeditious handling and transportation afforded mail matter by the 
Postal Service. No letter of such a class of domestic origin shall be 
opened except under authority of a search warrant authorized by law, or 
by an officer or employee of the Postal Service for the sole purpose of 
determining an address at which the letter can be delivered, or 
pursuant to the authorization of the addressee.''.
    (g) Limitations.--Section 3684 of title 39, United States Code, is 
amended by striking all that follows ``any provision'' and inserting 
``of this title.''.
    (h) Miscellaneous.--Title 39, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in section 410(b), by moving the left margin of 
        paragraph (10) 2 ems to the left;
            (2) in section 1005(d)(2)--
                    (A) by striking ``subsection (g) of section 
                5532,''; and
                    (B) by striking ``8344,'' and inserting ``8344'';
            (3) in the analysis for part III, by striking the item 
        relating to chapter 28 and inserting the following:

``28. Strategic Planning and Performance Management............ 2801'';
            (4) in subsections (h)(2) and (i)(2) of section 3001, by 
        moving the left margin of subparagraph (C) of each 2 ems to the 
        left;
            (5) in section 3005(a)--
                    (A) in the matter before paragraph (1), by striking 
                all that follows ``nonmailable'' and precedes ``(h),'' 
                and inserting ``under section 3001(d),''; and
                    (B) in the sentence following paragraph (3), by 
                striking all that follows ``nonmailable'' and precedes 
                ``(h),'' and inserting ``under such section 3001(d),'';
            (6) in section 3210(a)(6)(C), by striking the matter after 
        ``if such mass mailing'' and before ``than 60 days'' and 
        inserting ``is postmarked fewer'';
            (7) in section 3626(a), by moving the left margin of 
        paragraphs (3), (5), and (6) (as so redesignated by subsection 
        (a)(1)(B), and including each subparagraph thereunder (if any)) 
        2 ems to the left;
            (8) by striking the heading for section 3627 and inserting 
        the following:
``Sec. 3627. Adjusting free rates'';
            and
            (9) in section 5402(g)(1), by moving the left margin of 
        subparagraph (D) (including each clause thereunder) 2 ems to 
        the left.
                                 <all>