[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7165 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7165

To amend the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 to authorize regional and 
      concurrent compacts under that Act, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 26, 2008

Mr. Payne (for himself and Mr. Crenshaw) introduced the following bill; 
         which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 to authorize regional and 
      concurrent compacts under that Act, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Millennium Challenge Compact 
Improvement Act (MCIA)''.

SEC. 2. MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE COMPACT.

    (a) Duration of Compacts.--Section 609 of the Millennium Challenge 
Act of 2003 (22 U.S.C. 7708) is amended--
            (1) by striking subsection (j); and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (i) the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(j) Duration of Compact.--
            ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (2), 
        the duration of a Compact shall not exceed 5 years.
            ``(2) Exception.--The duration of a Compact (including a 
        regional Compact) may exceed 5 years if the Board--
                    ``(A) determines that the Compact includes a 
                project that cannot be completed in 5 years or less; 
                and
                    ``(B) approves a duration for the Compact of not 
                more than 10 years.
            ``(3) Advance notification.--Not later than 15 days before 
        the Board approves a duration for a Compact that exceeds 5 
        years pursuant to subparagraph (2), the Board, acting through 
        the Chief Executive Officer, shall submit to the appropriate 
        congressional committees an advance notification of such 
        approval, including a detailed explanation for the 
        determination and approval.''.
    (b) Concurrent and Subsequent Compacts.--Section 609 of such Act 
(22 U.S.C. 7708) is amended--
            (1) by striking subsection (k); and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (j) (as amended by 
        subsection (a)) the following new subsection:
    ``(k) Concurrent and Subsequent Compacts.--
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to the requirements of paragraph 
        (2), and in accordance with the requirements of this title, an 
        eligible country and the United States--
                    ``(A) may enter into and have in effect more than 
                one Compact at any given time; and
                    ``(B) may enter into subsequent Compacts after the 
                expiration of existing Compacts.
            ``(2) Requirements.--
                    ``(A) Concurrent compacts.--An eligible country and 
                the United States may enter into a concurrent Compact 
                (including a regional Compact) only if the Board 
                determines that the country is making considerable and 
                demonstrable progress in implementing the terms of its 
                existing Compact and supplementary agreements thereto.
                    ``(B) Subsequent compacts.--An eligible country and 
                the United States may enter into a subsequent Compact 
                only if the Board determines that the country has 
                substantially met the objectives of prior Compacts 
                between the country and the United States and 
                supplementary agreements thereto, or the Board 
                determines that the eligible country has demonstrated 
                sufficient capacity to perform successfully on a 
                subsequent Compact.''.
    (c) Applicability.--The amendments made by subsections (a) and (b) 
apply with respect to Compacts entered into between the United States 
and an eligible country under the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 
before, on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.
    (d) Conforming Amendment.--Section 613(b)(2)(A) of such Act (22 
U.S.C. 7712(b)(2)(A)) is amended by striking ``the'' before ``Compact'' 
and inserting ``any''.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF REGIONAL ASSISTANCE.

    (a) Assistance.--Section 605(a) of the Millennium Challenge Act of 
2003 (22 U.S.C. 7704(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following 
new sentence: ``The assistance contemplated by this subsection may be 
provided through a Compact with a country individually and/or through a 
Compact with two or more countries in the same geographic region 
collectively.''.
    (b) Eligible Entities.--Section 605(c) of such Act (22 U.S.C. 
7704(c)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``or'' at the end;
            (2) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; or''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(4) an entity, structure, or other arrangement 
        established by two or more eligible countries in connection 
        with a regional Compact.''.
    (c) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Compact.--Section 609(a) of such Act (22 U.S.C. 
        7708(a)) is amended by inserting after ``only if the country'' 
        the following: ``(or countries, in the case of a regional 
        Compact)''.
            (2) Assistance for development of compact.--Section 609(g) 
        of such Act (22 U.S.C. 7708(g)) is amended--
                    (A) by inserting after ``eligible country'' the 
                following: ``(or countries, in the case of a regional 
                compact)''; and
                    (B) by inserting at the end before the period the 
                following: ``(or countries, as appropriate)''.
            (3) Suspension and termination of assistance.--Section 611 
        of such Act (22 U.S.C. 7710) is amended--
                    (A) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as 
                subsections (d) and (e), respectively; and
                    (B) by inserting after subsection (b) the following 
                new subsection:
    ``(c) Regional Compacts.--In the case of a regional compact, the 
Chief Executive Officer may--
            ``(1) after consultation with the Board, suspend or 
        terminate assistance in whole or in part to one or more 
        countries, as appropriate, based on a determination consistent 
        with subsection (a); and
            ``(2) reinstate assistance for a country or countries, as 
        appropriate, based on a determination consistent with 
        subsection (b).''.
                                 <all>