[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 26 (Thursday, February 9, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2399-S2420]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. McCAIN (for himself and Mr. Inouye:)
  S. 377. A bill to amend a provision of part A of title IX of the 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, relating to Indian 
education, to provide a technical amendment, and for other purposes; to 
the Committee on Indian Affairs.


      the indian education title technical correction act of 1995

 Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I introduce a bill to make a 
technical correction to the Indian title in the Improving America's 
Schools Act. I am pleased that Senator Daniel Inouye, vice chairman of 
the Committee on Indian Affairs, has joined me as a cosponsor of this 
measure.
  The technical corrections bill would correct a minor oversight in 
language which could have major ramifications in the education of 
American Indian and Alaska Native children. The law currently states 
that in order for a school to be eligible for an Indian Education Act 
formula grant, it must have 10 eligible students and have 25 percent of 
its student population eligible for the program. This language 
unnecessarily restricts a schools eligibility for grant funding by 
requiring schools to meet both criteria. I have been informed that the 
intent of the conferees was to include the word ``or'' rather than 
``and'' thereby creating the potential for American Indians and Alaska 
Natives to have a greater opportunity to benefit from the Improving 
America's Schools Act. This amendment is intended to correct this 
oversight and fulfill the true intent of the act, to improve schools 
for all Americans, including Indians and Alaska Natives.
  Mr. President, time is of the essence with regard to this 
legislation. I understand that the Department of Education is currently 
drafting regulations to implement the new provisions of the Indian 
Education Act. Unless this technical oversight is not immediately 
fixed, the existing language will result in the disqualification of 
many schools serving American Indians and Alaska Natives through the 
promulgation of regulation which do not accurately reflect the intent 
of Congress. Therefore, I hope that the Senate will act quickly on this 
amendment in order to prevent unnecessary hardships for the many 
American Indian and Alaska Native students which stand to benefit from 
this act.
  I ask unanimous consent that the full text of the bill be printed in 
the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                 S. 377

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

     SECTION 1. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.

       Section 9112(a)(1)(A) of the Elementary and Secondary 
     Education Act of 1965 (as added by section 101 of the 
     Improving America's Schools Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-382)) 
     is amended by striking ``and'' and inserting ``or''.

 Mr. INOUYE. Mr. President, even though technical correction 
bills are ordinarily not drafted until late each session of Congress, I 
cosponsor a bill, introduced by the chairman of the Committee on Indian 
Affairs, Senator John McCain of Arizona, to make a one word technical 
correction to the Indian title in the Improving America's Schools Act. 
I do so because the Department of Education is now drafting regulations 
to implement new provisions of the Indian Education Act, and unless 
corrected promptly, the program for Indian children will be limited in 
ways that the 103d Congress did not intend.
  Let me provide a context for the technical correction to Public Law 
103-382 that would be accomplished by enactment of this bill. Among 
other things, the Indian Education Act provides for formula grants to 
schools to enable them to operate small supplemental programs for 
Indian children. In its version of the reauthorization, the House of 
Representatives would have required that a school have 20 Indian 
children or that the Indian children make up 25 percent of the student 
body of the school. The Senate, on the other hand, would have required 
a minimum of 10 children or that they make up 25 percent of the student 
body of the 
[[Page S2400]]  school. Conferees agreed upon the Senate version: 10 
students or 25 percent of the school's enrollment.
  Mr. President, the issue before the conferees was only whether a 
minimum of 10 or 20 Indian children would be required for eligibility. 
The conjunction ``or'' was not ever an issue, and that it was not is 
testified to by the side-by-sides prepared for the Senate and House 
conferees. But, the final document prepared by the Senate Legislative 
Counsel substituted the word ``and'' for ``or.'' And that final 
document was enacted into law.
  What this bill would do is correct the technical error. I have 
consulted conferees and their notes verify that the word ``or'' was in 
both House and Senate versions of the bill. The effect of the bill I am 
introducing would be to restore language intended by both the House and 
Senate.
  Mr. President, if this bill should not be enacted, hundreds of 
classrooms with Indian children would lose the supplemental programs, 
all because of a drafting error. In reauthorizing the Indian Education 
Act, this was emphatically not the result intended by the Congress, and 
I hope that I may count on my colleagues to support enactment of this 
technical corrections bill.
                                 ______

      By Mr. GORTON (for himself and Mrs. Murray):
  S. 378. A bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to exchange 
certain lands of the Columbia Basin Federal reclamation project, 
Washington, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources.


              THE BOISE CASCADE LAND EXCHANGE ACT OF 1995

 Mr. GORTON. Mr. President, today, together with Senator 
Murray, I introduce a bill to authorize a land exchange between the 
Bureau of Reclamation and the Boise Cascade Corp. Unfortunately for its 
proponents, this legislation has been introduced during both the 102d 
and 103d Congress. This year, Senator Murray and I will work to pass 
this legislation and finally get it signed into law.
  Boise Cascade's plywood and sawmill operations in Kettle Falls, WA 
are adjacent to 26 acres of land owned by the Bureau of Reclamation. 
The Bureau land provides a buffer between scenic Lake Roosevelt and 
Boise Cascade's operations. The National Park Service, which manages 
the Bureau's land, historically has issued a special-use permit 
allowing Boise Cascade to operate along the edge of the land. However, 
the Park Service has indicated that it may not reissue the permit when 
it expires in 1995, and has stated conclusively that the permit will 
not be reissued upon expiration in 2000. Consequently, passage of this 
legislation this year is crucial.
  Without a special use permit, Boise Cascade would not be able to 
continue its operations at Kettle Falls. Thus, 350 mill jobs would be 
lost and the community would be devastated. To prevent such a 
catastrophe, Boise Cascade has proposed exchanging 138 acres of land it 
owns for 6 of the 26 acres it needs to continue operating. The 138 
acres is primarily wildlife habitat located along Lake Roosevelt and 
the Colville River, and would be conveyed to the Bureau of Reclamation 
upon passage of this legislation.
  This land exchange is supported by the Bureau of Reclamation, the 
Park Service, and Boise Cascade. In addition, a local citizen's group 
concerned with Columbia River water quality issues has negotiated a 
series of mitigation measures with Boise Cascade, and has given its 
full support to the land exchange.
  Mr. President, this exchange make good sense and will avoid a 
potentially severe problem. Last year the Energy Committee reported out 
of committee the exact legislation that I am introducing today. I urge 
the committee to promptly review this legislation, and I will work with 
them on this issue. I thank my colleagues for their 
consideration.
  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I want to say a few words about an 
important bill for Washington State. Today, I join my colleague, the 
senior Senator from Washington [Mr. Gorton] introducing legislation to 
authorize a land exchange between Boise Cascade Corp. and the Bureau of 
Reclamation.
  Boise Cascade operates a sawmill adjacent to the Lake Roosevelt 
National Recreation Area near Kettle Falls, WA. The land located 
between the mill and the lake is owned by the Bureau of Reclamation. 
However, it is managed by the National Park Service under its authority 
over the Lake Roosevelt unit. Unfortunately, the proximity of the mill 
to the recreation area has led to concerns within the Park Service 
about potential effects of Boise operation on the public.
  Mr. President, Boise Cascade has been a stellar corporate citizen in 
this area. The company has absolutely no desire to adversely affect the 
recreation area. In fact, given their druthers, they'd like to enhance 
the area. That's why this bill is so important.
  If we enact this bill, we will ensure Boise's ability to continue its 
mill operation. In addition, we will add significant benefit to Lake 
Roosevelt. That's because this bill seeks to implement a land exchange 
that will add 132 acres to the national recreation area. Here's how it 
works: Boise Cascade owns 138 acres along the lake near the Colville 
River. This land provides excellent wildlife forage habitat. The Bureau 
owns 26 acres between the mill and the lake. In exchange for 6 of these 
acres, Boise will deed its 138 to the Government for incorporation into 
the recreation area.
  Mr. President, this is a great deal for the taxpayers and the 
citizens of Kettle Falls: 138 acres for just 6. There are 350 jobs at 
the Boise mill. Needless to say, it's the major employer in that area. 
The terms of this exchange have been mutually agreed to by the 
agencies, the company, the local citizens, and conservation groups 
concerned with protecting the lake. It's good for the community, and 
it's good for the resource. I hope all my colleagues will recognize 
this, and support our efforts to move the bill toward passage.
                                 ______

      By Mr. FEINGOLD (for himself and Mr. Simon):
  S. 380. A bill to provide for public access to information regarding 
the availability of insurance, and for other purposes; to the Committee 
on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.


         THE ANTI-REDLINING IN INSURANCE DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1995

  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, today I am pleased to reintroduce 
legislation that I originally introduced in the Senate last year, the 
Anti-Redlining in Insurance Disclosure Act of 1995. Although the House 
of Representatives was able to pass a more limited disclosure bill 
during the 103d Congress, I was disappointed that the Senate was unable 
to address what I see as not only a critically important civil rights 
issue, but also an issue essential to any hopes of revitalizing the 
struggling economies of our inner cities.
  In recent years, this Nation has made tremendous strides in fighting 
various forms of discrimination, particularly in terms of employment 
and educational opportunities. Unfortunately, the progress we have made 
in combating these forms of discrimination has not lessened the need to 
exercise the same level of persistence in extinguishing equally 
offensive, less subtle forms of racism and bigotry.
  The term redlining actually evolved from the practice of particular 
individuals in the banking industry using maps with red lines drawn 
around certain neighborhoods. These individuals would then instruct 
their loan officers to avoid offering their financial services to 
residents of these redlined neighborhoods. These red lines typically 
encircled low-income and minority communities, resulting in the 
unavailability of the financial services necessary to purchase a home, 
a business, or an automobile. But even as Congress identified and moved 
to curb these discriminatory practices in the banking industry, a 
disturbing and growing level of discrimination was emerging from the 
insurance industry that would continue to deny certain individuals the 
opportunity to own their own home or start a small business.
  Home ownership is an aspiration that transcends the artificial 
boundaries of race and income in America. As anyone who has secured 
their first home loan can attest, there is an extraordinary feeling of 
prestige and sense of self-worth that accompanies home ownership. But 
for those individuals that reside in the economically depressed inner-
city neighborhoods of Milwaukee, Chicago, and other such cities, these 
feelings of pride and accomplishment are even further intensified. It 
is 
[[Page S2401]]  tragic that redlining practices exist, and unless the 
Federal Government takes forceful action we will continue to send the 
wrong message to those who seek to stabilize and stimulate these inner-
city economies. We must expose and eliminate these appalling redlining 
practices that prevent hard-working, fully qualified individuals from 
pursuing their dream, and their right, to obtain a home or business 
loan.
  Though it may seem obvious to some, we must recognize that any 
serious effort to rebuild the economies of these inner-city communities 
must have minority home and small business ownership as their 
cornerstones. There are many well-motivated individuals in these 
communities that are committed to economic revitalization--whether it 
is purchasing a home for their family or starting a small business and 
creating jobs. It is heartening that there are both Democrats and 
Republicans, conservatives and liberals who recognize the need to 
revitalize our inner cities, and yet it seems fruitless to discuss 
ideas such as enterprise zones and community development block grants 
without addressing a glaring problem that prevents an otherwise 
qualified individual from owning their own home or business.
  Several years ago Congress reacted to reports and studies that an 
element of the financial services industry was preventing residents of 
minority and low-income communities from obtaining home loans. In 
response, Congress passed the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act [HMDA] which 
required banks and thrifts to report their lending practices using a 
set level of criteria. This legislation, which contrary to dire 
predictions has had a nominal impact on the vitality and prosperity of 
the lending industry, has provided Federal and State regulators in the 
mortgage financing field with detailed information to identify mortgage 
redlining. This critical piece of legislation was passed for precisely 
the reason of enhancing the power of State and Federal authorities to 
determine if banks and other lending institutions were discriminating 
in their lending practices. But as effective as disclosure requirements 
have been in exposing these abuses in the banking industry, it is 
clearly not enough.
  Property insurance, as we all know, is almost a prerequisite to 
obtaining a home loan. This was best illustrated by Judge Frank 
Easterbrook of the U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in that 
court's ruling that redlining practices are illegal and a violation of 
the Fair Housing Act. Speaking for a unanimous court, Judge Easterbrook 
observed that ``lenders require their borrowers to secure property 
insurance. No insurance, no loan; no loan, no house; lack of insurance 
thus makes housing unavailable.'' Judge Easterbrook's remarks 
underscore the need to place people of all racial and ethnic 
backgrounds on a level playing field when it comes to the opportunity 
to purchase insurance. In short, denying an individual access to 
affordable and adequate property insurance is essentially denying that 
individual access to home ownership.
  The key question, of course, is do redlining practices exist? 
Countless new reports and studies indicate that there is a prevalent 
and growing level of discriminatory underwriting in the insurance 
industry. Studies such as the 1979 report of the Illinois, Indiana, 
Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin Advisory Committees to the 
U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and
 the recent study on home insurance in 14 cities released by the 
community advocacy group ACORN have pointed out that insurance 
redlining practices are widespread in America. These reports highlight 
the fallacies in the contention that lack of adequate insurance in many 
of these communities is due to economics and statistically based risk 
assessment. In addition, there is substantial anecdotal evidence that 
suggests individuals residing in minority and low-income communities 
are systematically denied affordable or adequate homeowners insurance.

  I was shocked and outraged when I first saw the extensive media 
reports of the statements made by a district sales manager of a large 
insurance company which serves the city of Milwaukee. The sales manager 
was recorded saying to his insurance agents:

       Very honestly, I think you write too many blacks * * *. You 
     gotta sell good, solid, premium paying white people * * *. 
     They own their homes, the white works * * *. Very honestly, 
     black people will buy anything that looks good right now * * 
     * but when it comes to pay for it next time * * * you're not 
     going to get your money out of them * * *. The only way 
     you're going to correct your persistency is get away from 
     blacks.

  This policy of denying affordable insurance to minorities was also 
illustrated when the manager showed one agent how to accomplish this 
goal by stating that

       * * * if a black wants insurance, you don't have to say, 
     just tell them, because based on this kind of policy, the 
     company will only allow me to accept an annual premium. Do it 
     that way.

  Mr. President, Milwaukee, WI is truly a wonderful city. It has 
midwestern charm, a strong work ethic and like many other of our 
Nation's urban communities, a large inner-city population that is 
struggling to become economically vibrant and prosperous. But what 
redlining practices do is deny those who are playing by the rules the 
opportunity to own their own home or business. Again, there are those 
who will assert that insurance is less available in these areas because 
of risk-assessment and other economic principles. But according to a 
study by the Missouri insurance department, data comparing low-income 
minority areas with low-income white areas in St. Louis and Kansas City 
showed that low-income minorities on average paid higher premiums for 
homeowners insurance than white homeowners of similar means for 
comparable coverage. On top of this, actual losses were lower in the 
minority areas. Clearly the problem of discrimination exists and is 
widespread. The question now is what can we do about it.
  Redlining practices are illegal. This was established by Judge 
Easterbrook and the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in NAACP versus 
American Family Insurance, when the court ruled that the Fair Housing 
Act also applies to the underwriting of homeowners insurance. The 
problem is with the inability of some regulators
 and the unwillingness of others to enforce the law. In powerful 
testimony before several congressional committees, it has been stated 
over and over that to enforce the law greater disclosure of crucial 
information is needed from the insurance industry. Assistant Secretary 
Roberta Achtenberg, head of the Department of Housing and Urban 
Development's Division of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity testified 
to this, as did Deval Patrick, assistant attorney general for civil 
rights. It was also expressed by numerous State insurance commissioners 
including those from Texas, California, and Missouri, as well as 
several civil rights and community groups.

  As clear as the problem of insurance redlining has become, so has the 
solution. Public disclosure can serve multiple purposes in combating 
insurance discrimination by allowing for an accurate assessment of the 
extent and nature of the problem, as well as assisting Federal and 
State regulators who are charged with enforcing the antidiscrimination 
laws that currently exist. The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act has been 
effective, but passing disclosure laws that only apply to banks and 
thrifts is like throwing out a life preserver with rope that is several 
feet short. We must go further, and pursue disclosure regulations that 
will provide Federal and State insurance regulators the same tools that 
Federal and State banking regulators have, and allow them to detect and 
expose any incidence of discrimination in the availability of 
homeowners insurance.
  The bill I am introducing today, the Anti-Redlining in Insurance 
Disclosure Act, would require insurance companies to disclose 
information regarding where they write property insurance and is 
closely patterned after the requirements in the Home Mortgage 
Disclosure Act. The bill would require the Secretary of Housing and 
Urban Development to establish requirements for insurers to compile and 
submit policy information annually. The information that the bill 
requires to be disclosed must be reported along census tract lines, and 
must include the number and types of policies written, the race of the 
applicants, whether the applicant was accepted or rejected and the loss 
data for the specified area. This information would be collected in the 
50 largest metropolitan statistical areas 
[[Page S2402]]  [MSA's] and an additional 100 MSA's based on geographic 
diversity and size of MSA populations. These disclosure requirements 
are almost identical to those recommended by the General Accounting 
Office in their investigation of this issue last year. Providing this 
extensive and detailed information will enable regulators to analyze 
and compare the availability, affordability, and quality of insurance 
coverage for property, casualty, and homeowners insurance.
  Insurance redlining is a national phenomena that demands a Federal 
response. In the insurance industry, enforcement by State officials of 
existing antidiscrimination statutes has proven to be difficult for one 
principal reason; though many
 State insurance commissioners have been forceful and aggressive in 
exposing and sanctioning appropriate parties, other State insurance 
commissioner offices lack the necessary resources to collect and 
compile data information adequately. In many markets this data is 
simply unavailable. And critical to this effort is the need to collect 
claims and other loss data which is central to determining if the 
unavailability of adequate and affordable insurance is due to sound 
economic underwriting principles, or to reprehensible factors such as 
the race and ethnic background of the applicant.

  Last year, the efforts of Representatives Cardiss Collins, and Joseph 
Kennedy resulted in the House of Representatives passing a disclosure 
bill similar to the bill I have introduced today. My colleague from 
Wisconsin, Representative Tom Barrett, has also been actively involved 
with the insurance redlining issue. Just last year, Representative 
Barrett chaired a field hearing in Milwaukee where first-hand testimony 
was given about the extent of these discrimination abuses in Milwaukee 
and other cities plagued by similar problems.
  In addition, it is my understanding that due to the leadership of 
Secretary Cisneros and Assistant Secretary Achtenberg, HUD is 
considering the promulgation of disclosure requirements similar to the 
reporting requirements in the bill I have introduced today. Although 
some have suggested that HUD lacks the necessary authority to pass such 
regulations, it is important to note that HUD has been identified by a 
Federal court in Ohio as legally authorized to enforce the Fair Housing 
Act as it relates to homeowners insurance. This was affirmed in 
Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company versus Cisneros, when the U.S. 
District Court upheld HUD's regulatory authority, noting that HUD's 
contention that it had been delegated authority under the Fair Housing 
Act was ``reasonable and entitled to substantial deference.'' I look 
forward to monitoring the development of HUD's actions, and will 
certainly lend my support and assistance to their efforts to curb 
redlining practices.
  Mr. President, Voltaire once said that ``Prejudices are what fools 
use for reason.'' It is clearly one thing to underwrite insurance 
policies based on sound economic factors and principles--it is another 
thing to deny adequate or affordable insurance based on an individual's 
race or ethnic background. We should be very proud of the civil rights 
accomplishments our society has made in the last 30 years. But as many 
potential homeowners in my State and across the country have 
discovered, too many individuals in the insurance industry have used 
their prejudices to determine the economic and social future of 
communities that are on the brink of collapse. Passing this legislation 
would represent marked progress in the pathway to offering all of our 
citizens, regardless of racial or ethnic background, equal access to 
social justice and economic opportunity.
  I would like to conclude, Mr. President, by asking unanimous consent 
that several items be printed in the Record. These items include the 
text of the bill, a letter I received from several organizations 
supporting the legislation, a letter that I, Senator Simon, and several 
member of the House sent to Roberta Achtenberg, Assistant Secretary for 
Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity as well as a response I received 
from that Department, and finally, two editorials from the Houston Post 
and the Dallas Morning News on the issue of insurance redlining.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:
                                 S. 380

       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 ``Anti-
     Redlining in Insurance Disclosure Act of 1995''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings and purposes.
Sec. 3. Establishment of general requirements to submit information.
Sec. 4. Reporting of noncommercial insurance information.
Sec. 5. Study of commercial insurance for residential properties and 
              small businesses.
Sec. 6. Reporting of rural insurance information.
Sec. 7. Waiver of reporting requirements.
Sec. 8. Reporting by private mortgage insurers.
Sec. 9. Use of data contractor and statistical agents.
Sec. 10. Submission of information to Secretary and maintenance of 
              information.
Sec. 11. Compilation of aggregate information.
Sec. 12. Availability and access system.
Sec. 13. Designations.
Sec. 14. Improved methods and reporting on basis of other areas.
Sec. 15. Annual reporting period.
Sec. 16. Disclosures by insurers to applicants and policyholders.
Sec. 17. Enforcement.
Sec. 18. Reports.
Sec. 19. Task force on agency appointments.
Sec. 20. Studies.
Sec. 21. Exemption and relation to State laws.
Sec. 22. Regulations.
Sec. 23. Definitions.
Sec. 24. Effective date.
     SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

       (a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
       (1) there are disparities in insurance coverage provided by 
     some insurers between areas of different incomes and racial 
     composition;
       (2) such disparities in affordability and availability of 
     insurance severely limit the ability of qualified consumers 
     to obtain credit for home and business purchases; and
       (3) the lack of affordable and adequate commercial 
     insurance for small businesses severely curtails the 
     establishment and growth of such businesses.
       (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
       (1) to establish a nationwide database for determining the 
     availability, affordability, and adequacy of insurance 
     coverage for consumers and small businesses;
       (2) to facilitate the enforcement of Federal and State laws 
     that prohibit illegally discriminatory insurance practices; 
     and
       (3) to determine whether the extent and characteristics of 
     insurance availability, affordability, and coverage require 
     public officials to take any actions--
       (A) to remedy redlining or other illegally or unfairly 
     discriminatory insurance practices; or
       (B) regarding areas underserved by insurers.
       (c) Construction.--Nothing in this Act is intended to, nor 
     shall it be construed to, encourage unsound underwriting 
     practices.

     SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF GENERAL REQUIREMENTS TO SUBMIT 
                   INFORMATION.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary shall, by regulation, 
     establish requirements for insurers to compile and submit 
     information to the Secretary for each annual reporting 
     period, in accordance with this Act.
       (b) Consultation.--In establishing the requirements for the 
     submission of information under this Act, the Secretary shall 
     consult with Federal agencies having appropriate expertise, 
     the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, State 
     insurance regulators, statistical agents, representatives of 
     small businesses, representatives of insurance agents 
     (including minority insurance agents), representatives of 
     property and casualty insurers, and community, consumer, and 
     civil rights organizations, as appropriate.

     SEC. 4. REPORTING OF NONCOMMERCIAL INSURANCE INFORMATION.

       (a) In General.--The requirements established pursuant to 
     section 3 to carry out this section shall--
       (1) be designed to ensure that information is submitted and 
     compiled under this section as may be necessary to permit 
     analysis and comparison of--
       (A) the availability and affordability of insurance 
     coverage and the quality or type of insurance coverage, by 
     MSA and the applicable region, race, and gender of 
     policyholders; and
       (B) the location of the principal place of business of 
     insurance agents and the race of such agents, and the 
     location of the principal place of business of insurance 
     agents terminated and the race of such agents, by MSA and 
     applicable region; and
       (2) specify the data elements required to be reported under 
     this section and require uniformity in the definitions of the 
     data elements.
     [[Page S2403]]   (b) Designated Insurers.--
       (1) Aggregate information.--The regulations issued under 
     section 3 shall require that each designated insurer for a 
     designated line of insurance under section 13(c)(1) compile 
     and submit to the Secretary, for each annual reporting 
     period--
       (A) the total number of policies issued in such line, total 
     exposures covered by such policies, and total amount of 
     premiums for such policies, by designated line and by 
     designated MSA and applicable region in which the insured 
     risk is located;
       (B) the total number of cancellations and nonrenewals 
     (expressed in terms of policies or exposures, as determined 
     by the Secretary), by designated line and by designated MSA 
     and applicable region in which the insured risk is located;
       (C) the total number and racial characteristics of--
       (i) licensed agents of such insurer selling insurance in 
     the designated line, by designated MSA and applicable region 
     in which the agent's principal place of business is located; 
     and
       (ii) such agents who were terminated by the insurer, by 
     designated MSA and applicable region in which the agent's 
     principal place of business was located; and
       (D) for such designated line of insurance, information that 
     will enable the Secretary to assess the aggregate loss 
     experience for the insurer, by designated MSA and applicable 
     region in which the insured risk is located.
       (2) Specification of information for itemized disclosure.--
       (A) In general.--The regulations issued under section 3 
     regarding annual reporting requirements for designated 
     insurers for a designated line of insurance under section 
     13(c)(1) shall, with respect to policies issued under the 
     designated line or exposure units covered by such policies, 
     as determined by the Secretary--
       (i) specify the data elements that shall be submitted;
       (ii) provide for the submission of information on an 
     individual insurer basis;
       (iii) provide for the submission of the information with 
     the least burden on insurers, particularly small insurers, 
     and insurance agents;
       (iv) take into account existing statistical reporting 
     systems in the insurance industry;
       (v) require reporting by MSA and applicable region in which 
     the insured risk is located;
       (vi) provide for the submission of information that 
     identifies the designated line and subline or coverage type;
       (vii) provide for the submission of information that 
     distinguishes policies written in a residual market from 
     policies written in the voluntary market;
       (viii) specify--

       (I) whether information shall be submitted on the basis of 
     policy or exposure unit; and
       (II) whether information, when submitted, shall be 
     aggregated by like policyholders with like policies, except 
     that the Secretary shall not permit such aggregation if it 
     will adversely affect the accuracy of the information 
     reported;
       (ix) provide for the submission of information regarding 
     the number of cancellations and nonrenewals of policies under 
     the designated line by MSA and applicable region in which the 
     insured risk is located, by race and gender of the 
     policyholder (if known to the insurer), and by whether the 
     policy was issued in a voluntary or residual market; and
       (x) provide for the submission of information on the racial 
     characteristics and gender of policyholders at the level of 
     detail comparable to that required by the Home Mortgage 
     Disclosure Act of 1975 (and the regulations issued 
     thereunder).
       (B) Rules regarding obtaining racial information.--With 
     respect to the information specified in subparagraph (A)(x), 
     applicants for, and policyholders of, insurance may be asked 
     their racial characteristics only in writing. Any such 
     written question shall clearly indicate that a response to 
     the question is voluntary on the part of the applicant or 
     policyholder, but encouraged, and that the information is 
     being requested by the Federal Government to monitor the 
     availability and affordability of insurance. If an applicant 
     for, or policyholder of, insurance declines to provide such 
     information, the agent or insurer for such insurance may 
     provide such information.
       (3) Rule for reporting by designated insurers.--A 
     designated insurer for a designated line shall submit--
       (A) information required under subparagraphs (A), (B), and 
     (D) of paragraph (1) and information required pursuant to 
     paragraph (2), for risks insured under such line that are 
     located within each designated MSA, any part of which is 
     located in a State for which the insurer is designated; and
       (B) information required under paragraph (1)(C) for agents 
     within such designated MSA's.
       (c) Nondesignated Insurers.--The regulations issued under 
     section 3 shall require each insurer that issues an insurance 
     policy in a designated line of insurance under section 
     13(c)(1) that covers an insured risk located in a designated 
     MSA and which is not a designated insurer for the line in any 
     State in which any part of such MSA is located, to compile 
     and submit to the Secretary, for each annual reporting 
     period--
       (1) the total number of policies issued in such line;
       (2) the total exposures covered by such policies; and
       (3) the total amount of premiums for such policies;
     by designated MSA and applicable region in which the insured 
     risk is located.

     SEC. 5. STUDY OF COMMERCIAL INSURANCE FOR RESIDENTIAL 
                   PROPERTIES AND SMALL BUSINESSES.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary shall conduct a study to 
     determine the availability, affordability, and quality or 
     types of commercial insurance coverage for residential 
     properties and small businesses, in urban areas.
       (b) Submission of Information.--To acquire information for 
     the study under this section, the Secretary shall, by 
     regulation, establish requirements for insurers providing 
     commercial insurance for residential properties and small 
     businesses to compile and submit to the Secretary on an 
     annual basis information regarding such insurance, as 
     follows:
       (1) MSA's.--The Secretary shall carry out the study only 
     with respect to the 25 MSA's having the largest populations, 
     as determined by the Secretary and specified in the 
     regulations under this section.
       (2) Insurers.--For each of the MSA's specified pursuant to 
     paragraph (1), the Secretary shall designate the insurers 
     required to submit the information. The Secretary shall 
     designate a sufficient number of insurers to provide a 
     representative sample of the insurers providing such 
     insurance in each such MSA.
       (3) Lines of insurance.--The Secretary shall require the 
     submission of information regarding such lines, sublines, or 
     coverage types of commercial insurance as the Secretary 
     determines are necessary or important with respect to 
     establishing, operating, or maintaining residential 
     properties and each type of small business selected under 
     paragraph (4), and shall require submission of such 
     information by such lines, sublines, or coverage types.
       (4) Small businesses.--For purposes of paragraph (3), the 
     Secretary shall determine the types of businesses that are 
     typical of small businesses and shall select a representative 
     sample of such types.
       (5) Data elements.--The Secretary shall identify the data 
     elements required to be submitted.
       (6) Submission by location.--The Secretary shall require 
     the information to be submitted by designated MSA and 
     applicable region in which the insured risk is located.
       (7) Submission by insurer.--The Secretary shall require the 
     submission of information on an individual insurer basis and 
     shall specify whether information, when submitted, shall be 
     aggregated by like policies, except that the Secretary shall 
     not permit such aggregation if it will adversely affect the 
     accuracy of the information reported.
       (8) Sunset.--The Secretary shall require the submission of 
     information under this section only for each of the first 5 
     annual reporting periods beginning more than 3 years after 
     the date of enactment of this Act.
       (c) Considerations.--In establishing the requirements for 
     submission of information under this section, the Secretary 
     shall--
       (1) take into consideration the administrative, paperwork, 
     and other burdens on insurers and insurance agents involved 
     in complying with the requirements of this section;
       (2) minimize the burdens imposed by such requirements with 
     respect to such insurers and agents; and
       (3) take into consideration existing statistical reporting 
     systems in the insurance industry.
       (d) Report.--Not later than 6 months after the expiration 
     of the fifth of the 5 annual reporting periods referred to in 
     subsection (b)(8), the Secretary shall submit a report to the 
     Congress describing the information submitted under the study 
     conducted under this section and any findings of the 
     Secretary from the study regarding disparities in the 
     availability, affordability, and quality or types of 
     commercial insurance coverage for residential properties and 
     small businesses, in urban areas.

     SEC. 6. REPORTING OF RURAL INSURANCE INFORMATION.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary shall, by regulation, 
     establish requirements for insurers to annually compile and 
     submit to the Secretary information concerning the 
     availability, affordability, and quality or type of insurance 
     in designated rural areas in the lines designated under 
     section 13(c)(1).
       (b) Content.--The regulations under this section shall 
     provide that--
       (1) the information to be compiled and submitted under this 
     section by designated insurers and insurers that are not 
     designated insurers shall be of such types, data elements, 
     and specificity that is as identical as possible to the 
     types, data elements, and specificity of information required 
     under this Act of designated and nondesignated insurers, 
     respectively, for designated MSA's and shall be subject to 
     the provisions of section 4(b)(2)(B); and
       (2) the information compiled and submitted under this 
     section shall be compiled and submitted on the basis of each 
     5-digit zip code in which the insured risks are located, 
     rather than on the basis of designated MSA and applicable 
     region (as otherwise required in this Act).
       (c) Designation of Rural Areas.--For purposes of this 
     section, the term ``designated rural area'' means the 
     following:
       (1) First 5 years.--With respect to the first 5 annual 
     reporting periods to which the reporting requirements under 
     this section 
     [[Page S2404]]  apply, any of the 50 rural areas designated 
     by the Secretary and specified in regulations issued pursuant 
     to section 22, which shall not be amended or revised after 
     issuance. The Secretary shall (to the extent possible) 
     designate one rural area under this paragraph in each State 
     of the United States.
       (2) After first 5 years.--With respect to annual reporting 
     periods thereafter, a rural area for which a designation made 
     by the Secretary under this paragraph is in effect, pursuant 
     to the following requirements:
       (A) The designations shall be made for each of the 
     successive 5-year periods at the time provided in 
     subparagraph (C), and the first such period shall be the 5-
     year period beginning upon the commencement of the sixth 
     annual reporting period to which the reporting requirements 
     under this Act apply.
       (B) The Secretary shall designate 50 rural areas as 
     designated rural areas for each such 5-year period and shall 
     designate such rural areas based upon the information and 
     recommendations made in the report under section 18(b) 
     relating to the period.
       (C) The Secretary shall make the designation of rural areas 
     for an ensuing 5-year period by regulations issued--
       (i) not later than 12 months before the commencement of the 
     5-year period; and
       (ii) not later than 6 months after the submission to the 
     Secretary of the report under section 18(b) relating to such 
     period.
       (D) The designations of rural areas for a 5-year period 
     shall take effect upon the commencement of the first annual 
     reporting period of the 5-year period beginning not less than 
     12 months after the issuance of the regulations making such 
     designations, and shall remain in effect until the expiration 
     of the 5-year period.

     Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the 
     designation of a rural area shall remain in effect until a 
     succeeding designation of rural areas under paragraph (2) 
     takes effect.

     SEC. 7. WAIVER OF REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

       (a) Waiver for States Collecting Equivalent Information.--
       (1) Authority.--Subject to the requirements under this 
     section, the Secretary shall provide, by regulation, for the 
     waiver of the applicability of the provisions of sections 4, 
     5, and 6 for each insurer transacting business within a State 
     referred to in paragraph (2), but only with respect to 
     information required to be submitted under such sections that 
     relates to agents or insured risks located in the State.
       (2) Requirements.--The Secretary may make a waiver pursuant 
     to paragraph (1) only with respect to a State that the 
     Secretary determines has in effect a law or other requirement 
     that--
       (A) requires insurers to submit to the State information 
     that is the same as or equivalent to the information that is 
     required to be submitted to the Secretary pursuant to 
     sections 4, 5, and 6;
       (B) provides for adequate enforcement of such law or other 
     requirements;
       (C) provides for the same annual reporting period used by 
     the Secretary under this Act and for submission of the 
     information to the Secretary in a timely fashion, as 
     determined by the Secretary; and
       (D) provides that, to the extent statistical agents are 
     permitted to submit information to the State on behalf of 
     insurers, such agents are subject to the same or equivalent 
     requirements as provided under section 9(b).
       (3) Duration.--A waiver pursuant to paragraph (1) may 
     remain in effect only during the period for which the State 
     law or other requirement under paragraph (2) remains in 
     effect.
       (b) Multiple-State MSA's.--In the case of any designated 
     MSA that contains area within--
       (1) any State for which a waiver has been made pursuant to 
     subsection (a); and
       (2) any State for which such a waiver has not been made;

     the provisions of this Act requiring submission of 
     information to the Secretary regarding such MSA shall be 
     considered to apply only to the portion of such MSA that is 
     located within the State for which such a waiver has not been 
     made.
       (c) Authority for Secretary To Obtain Information Directly 
     From Insurers.--If the State for which a waiver has been made 
     pursuant to subsection (a) does not submit to the Secretary 
     the information required under subsection (a)(2)(A) or 
     submits information that is not complete, the Secretary shall 
     require the insurers transacting business within the State to 
     submit such information directly to the Secretary.

     SEC. 8. REPORTING BY PRIVATE MORTGAGE INSURERS.

       (a) HMDA Reporting.--On an annual basis, the Federal 
     Financial Institutions Examination Council (hereafter in this 
     section referred to as the ``Council'') shall determine the 
     extent to which each insurer providing private mortgage 
     insurance is making available to the public and submitting to 
     the appropriate agency information regarding such insurance 
     that is equivalent to the information regarding mortgages 
     required to be reported under the Home Mortgage Disclosure 
     Act of 1975.
       (b) Reporting Under This Act.--
       (1) Certification of noncompliance.--If, for any annual 
     period referred to in subsection (a), the Council determines 
     that any insurer providing private mortgage insurance is not 
     making available to the public or submitting the information 
     referred to in subsection (a) or that the information made 
     available or submitted is not equivalent information as 
     described in subsection (a), then the Council shall notify 
     the insurer of such noncompliance. If, after the expiration 
     of a reasonable period of time, the insurer has not remedied 
     such noncompliance to the satisfaction of the Council, then 
     the Council shall immediately certify such noncompliance to 
     the Secretary.
       (2) Requirement.--Upon the receipt of a certification under 
     paragraph (1), the Secretary shall, by regulation, require 
     such insurer to submit to the Secretary information regarding 
     such insurance that complies with the provisions of section 4 
     that are applicable to such insurance. Such regulations shall 
     be issued not later than 6 months after receipt of such 
     certification and shall apply to the first succeeding annual 
     reporting period beginning not less than 6 months after 
     issuance of such regulations and to each annual reporting 
     period thereafter.

     SEC. 9. USE OF DATA CONTRACTOR AND STATISTICAL AGENTS.

       (a) Data Collection Contractor.--The Secretary may contract 
     with a data collection contractor to collect the information 
     required to be maintained and submitted under sections 4, 5, 
     6, 7, and 8(b), if the contractor agrees to collect the 
     information pursuant to the terms and conditions of such 
     sections and this Act and the regulations issued thereunder. 
     Information submitted to such contractor shall be available 
     to the public to the same extent as if the information were 
     submitted directly to the Secretary.
       (b) Use of Statistical Agents.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary shall provide, by 
     regulation, that insurers may submit any information required 
     under sections 4, 5, 6, and 8(b) through statistical agents 
     acting on behalf of more than one insurer.
       (2) Protections.--The regulations issued under this 
     subsection shall permit submission of information through a 
     statistical agent only if the Secretary determines that--
       (A) the statistical agent has adequate procedures to 
     protect the integrity of the information submitted;
       (B) the statistical agent has a statistical plan and format 
     for submitting the information that meets the requirements of 
     this Act;
       (C) the statistical agent has procedures in place that 
     ensure that information reported under the statistical plan 
     in connection with reporting under this Act and submitted to 
     the Secretary is not subject to any adjustment by the 
     statistical agent or an insurer for reasons other than 
     technical accuracy and conformance to the statistical plan;
       (D) the information of an insurer is not subject to review 
     by any other insurer before being made available to the 
     public; and
       (E) acceptance of the information through the statistical 
     agent will not adversely affect the accuracy of the 
     information reported.
       (3) Discontinuance of acceptance of information.--The 
     Secretary may discontinue accepting information reported 
     through a statistical agent pursuant to this subsection if 
     the Secretary determines that the requirements for such 
     reporting are no longer met or that continued acceptance of 
     such information is contrary to the goal of ensuring the 
     accuracy of the information reported.
       (4) GAO audits.--The Comptroller General of the United 
     States shall, at the request of the Secretary, audit 
     information collection and submission performed under this 
     subsection by data collection contractors or statistical 
     agents to ensure that the integrity of the information 
     collected and submitted is protected. In determining whether 
     to request an audit of a statistical agent, the Secretary 
     shall consider the sufficiency (for purposes of this Act) of 
     audits of the statistical agent conducted in connection with 
     State insurance regulation.
       (5) Liability.--Notwithstanding any use of a statistical 
     agent as authorized under this subsection, an insurer using 
     such an agent shall be responsible for compliance with the 
     requirements under this Act.

     SEC. 10. SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION TO SECRETARY AND 
                   MAINTENANCE OF INFORMATION.

       (a) Period of Maintenance.--Each insurer required by this 
     Act to compile and submit information to the Secretary shall 
     maintain such information for the 3-year period beginning 
     upon the conclusion of the annual reporting period to which 
     such information relates. The Secretary shall maintain any 
     information submitted to the Secretary for such period as the 
     Secretary considers appropriate and feasible to carry out the 
     purposes of this Act and to allow for historical analysis and 
     comparison of the information.
       (b) Submission.--The Secretary shall issue regulations 
     prescribing a standard schedule (taking into consideration 
     the provisions of section 12(a)), format, and method for 
     submitting information under this Act to the Secretary. The 
     format and method of submitting the information shall 
     facilitate and encourage the submission in a form readable by 
     a computer. Any insurer submitting information to the 
     Secretary may submit in writing to the Secretary any 
     additional information or explanations that the insurer 
     considers relevant to the decision by the insurer to sell 
     insurance.

     SEC. 11. COMPILATION OF AGGREGATE INFORMATION.

       (a) Insurance Information.--For each annual reporting 
     period, the Secretary shall--

[[Page S2405]]

       (1) compile, for each designated MSA, by designated line 
     (and if such information is submitted, by subline or coverage 
     type)--
       (A) information submitted under sections 4, 5, 7, and 8(b) 
     and loss ratios (if the submission of loss information is 
     required), aggregated by applicable region for all insurers 
     submitting such information; and
       (B) such information and loss ratios (if the submission of 
     loss information is required), aggregated by applicable 
     region for each such insurer; and
       (2) produce tables based on information submitted under 
     sections 4, 5, 7, and 8(b) for each designated MSA, by 
     insurer and for all insurers, by designated line (and if such 
     information is submitted, by subline or coverage type), 
     indicating--
       (A) insurance underwriting patterns aggregated for the 
     applicable regions within the MSA, grouped according to 
     location, age of property, income level, and racial 
     characteristics of neighborhoods; and
       (B) loss ratios based on the information obtained pursuant 
     to sections 4, 5, 7, and 8(b) (if the submission of loss 
     information is required), aggregated for the applicable 
     regions within the MSA, grouped according to location, age of 
     property, income level, and racial characteristics of 
     neighborhoods.
       (b) Agent Information.--For each annual reporting period 
     and for each designated MSA, the Secretary shall compile, by 
     designated line, the information submitted under section 
     4(b)(1)(C)--
       (1) by designated insurer by applicable region;
       (2) by designated insurer aggregated for the applicable 
     regions within the designated MSA, grouped according to 
     location, age of property, income level, and racial 
     characteristics; and
       (3) for all designated insurers that have submitted such 
     information for the designated MSA, aggregated for the 
     applicable regions within the designated MSA, grouped 
     according to location, age of property, income level, and 
     racial characteristics.
       (c) Rural Insurance Information.--For each annual reporting 
     period, the Secretary shall--
       (1) compile for each applicable 5-digit zip code, by 
     designated line (and if such information is submitted, by 
     subline or coverage type)--
       (A) information regarding insurance in rural areas 
     submitted under sections 6 and 7 and loss ratios, for all 
     insurers for which such information is submitted; and
       (B) such information and loss ratios, for each such 
     insurer; and
       (2) produce tables for each 5-digit zip code based on 
     information regarding insurance in rural areas submitted 
     under sections 6 and 7, by insurer and for all such insurers 
     for which information is submitted under such sections, by 
     designated line (and if such information is submitted, by 
     subline or coverage type), indicating--
       (A) insurance underwriting patterns, aggregated by zip 
     codes, grouped according to location, age of property, income 
     level, and racial characteristics of neighborhoods (where 
     such demographic information is available); and
       (B) loss ratios, based on the information obtained pursuant 
     to sections 6 and 7, aggregated by zip codes, grouped 
     according to location, age of property, income level, and 
     racial characteristics of neighborhoods (where such 
     demographic information is available).

     SEC. 12. AVAILABILITY AND ACCESS SYSTEM.

       (a) Availability to Public.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary shall maintain and make 
     available to the public, in accordance with the requirements 
     of this section, any information submitted to the Secretary 
     under this Act and any information compiled by the Secretary 
     under this Act.
       (2) Timing.--The Secretary shall make such information 
     publicly available on a timetable determined by the 
     Secretary, but not later than 9 months after the conclusion 
     of the annual reporting period to which the information 
     relates, except that such information shall not be made 
     available to the public until it is available in its entirety 
     unless not all the information required to be reported is 
     available by such date.
       (b) Public Access System.--
       (1) Implementation.--The Secretary shall implement a system 
     to facilitate access to any information required to be made 
     available to the public under this Act.
       (2) Bases of availability.--The system shall provide access 
     in the following manners:
       (A) Access to itemized information.--To information 
     submitted under sections 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8(b) on the basis of 
     the insurer submitting the information, on the basis of 
     designated MSA and applicable region (or in the case of rural 
     information submitted under section 6 or 7, on the basis of 
     5-digit zip code), and on any other basis the Secretary 
     considers feasible and appropriate.
       (B) Access to aggregate information.--To aggregate 
     information compiled under section 11, on the basis of--
       (i) the insurer submitting the information;
       (ii) designated MSA and applicable region (or in the case 
     of rural information submitted under section 6 or 7, on the 
     basis of 5-digit zip code); and
       (iii) any other basis the Secretary considers feasible and 
     appropriate.
       (3) Method.--The access system shall include a toll-free 
     telephone number that can be used by the public to request 
     such information and the address at which a written request 
     for such information may be submitted.
       (4) Form.--The Secretary shall, by regulation, establish 
     the forms in which such information may be furnished by the 
     Secretary. Such forms shall include written statements, forms 
     readable by widely used personal computers, and, if feasible, 
     on-line access for personal computers. The Secretary shall 
     provide the information available under this section in any 
     such form requested by the person requesting the information, 
     except that the Secretary may charge a fee for providing such 
     information, which may not exceed the amount, determined by 
     the Secretary, that is equal to the cost of reproducing the 
     information.
       (5) Analysis software.--The Secretary shall make available 
     to the public software that can be used on a personal 
     computer to analyze the information provided under this 
     section. The software shall be capable of analyzing the 
     information by insurer, designated line, race, gender, MSA, 
     and applicable region. It shall also contain data compiled by 
     the Secretary for each MSA and applicable region on income 
     levels, age of property, and racial characteristics that can 
     be used to evaluate the information provided under this Act 
     by insurers. The software and any accompanying data shall be 
     made available to the public without charge, except for an 
     amount, determined by the Secretary, which shall not exceed 
     the actual cost of reproducing the software and the 
     accompanying data.
       (c) Protections Regarding Loss Information.--
       (1) Prohibition of disclosure of loss information.--
     Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the 
     Secretary may not make available to the public or otherwise 
     disclose any information submitted under this Act regarding 
     the amount or number of claims paid by any insurer, the 
     amount of losses of any insurer, or the loss experience for 
     any insurer, except--
       (A) in the form of a loss ratio (expressing the 
     relationship of claims paid to premiums) made available or 
     disclosed in compliance with the provisions of paragraph (2); 
     or
       (B) as provided in paragraph (3).
       (2) Protection of identity of insurer.--In making available 
     to the public or otherwise disclosing a loss ratio for an 
     insurer--
       (A) the Secretary may not identify the insurer to which the 
     loss ratio relates; and
       (B) the Secretary may disclose the loss ratio only in a 
     manner that does not allow any party to determine the 
     identity of the specific insurer to which the loss ratio 
     relates, except parties having access to information under 
     paragraph (3).
       (3) Confidentiality of information disclosed to 
     governmental agencies.--The Secretary may make information 
     referred to in paragraph (1) and the identity of the specific 
     insurer to which such information relates available to any 
     Federal entity and any State agency responsible for 
     regulating insurance in a State and may otherwise disclose 
     such information to any such entity or agency, but only to 
     the extent such entity or agency agrees not to make any such 
     information available or disclose such information to any 
     other person.

     SEC. 13. DESIGNATIONS.

       (a) Designation of MSA's.--For purposes of this Act, the 
     term ``designated MSA'' means the following MSA's:
       (1) First 5 years.--With respect to the first 5 annual 
     reporting periods to which the reporting requirements under 
     this Act apply (pursuant to section 24), any of the 150 MSA's 
     selected as follows:
       (A) The Secretary shall select the 50 MSA's having the 
     largest populations, as determined by the Secretary and 
     specified in regulations issued pursuant to section 22, which 
     shall not be amended or revised after issuance.
       (B) The Secretary shall select 100 additional MSA's, on a 
     basis that provides for--
       (i) geographic diversity among the designated MSA's under 
     this paragraph; and
       (ii) diversity in size of the populations among such MSA's.
       (2) After first 5 years.--With respect to annual reporting 
     periods thereafter, an MSA for which a designation under this 
     paragraph is in effect, pursuant to the following 
     requirements:
       (A) The designations shall be made for each of the 
     successive 5-year periods at the time provided in 
     subparagraph (C), and the first such period shall be the 5-
     year period beginning upon the commencement of the sixth 
     annual reporting period to which the reporting requirements 
     under this Act apply.
       (B) The Secretary shall designate not less than 150 MSA's 
     as designated MSA's for each such 5-year period and shall 
     designate such MSA's based upon the information and 
     recommendations made in the report under section 18(b) 
     relating to the period.
       (C) The Secretary shall make the designation of MSA's for 
     an ensuing 5-year period by regulations issued--
       (i) not later than 12 months before the commencement of the 
     5-year period; and
       (ii) not later than 6 months after the submission to the 
     Secretary of the report under section 20(b) relating to such 
     period.
       (D) The designations of MSA's for a 5-year period shall 
     take effect upon the commencement of the first annual 
     reporting period of the 5-year period beginning not less than 
     12 months after the issuance of the regulations making such 
     designations, and shall remain in effect until the expiration 
     of the 5-year period.

     [[Page S2406]] Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
     section, the designation of an MSA shall remain in effect 
     until a succeeding designation of MSA's under paragraph (2) 
     takes effect.
       (b) Designation of Insurers.--The Secretary shall 
     designate, for each designated line and each State, insurers 
     doing business in the lines as designated insurers in the 
     State for purposes of this Act, subject to the following 
     requirements:
       (1) Highest aggregate premium volume.--
       (A) General rule.--For each State, the Secretary shall 
     designate, for each designated line, each of the insurers and 
     insurer groups included in the class established under this 
     paragraph for the State.
       (B) Determination.--In each State, the Secretary shall rank 
     the insurers and insurer groups in each designated line from 
     the insurer or group having the largest aggregate premium 
     volume in the State for such line to the insurer or group 
     having the smallest such aggregate premium volume and shall 
     include in the class for the State only--
       (i) the insurer or group of the highest rank;
       (ii) each insurer or group of successively lower rank if 
     the inclusion of such insurer or group in the class does not 
     result in the sum of such aggregate premium volumes for 
     insurers and groups in the class exceeding 80 percent of the 
     total aggregate premium volume in the State for the line; and
       (iii) the first such successively lower ranked insurer or 
     insurer group whose inclusion in the class results in such 
     sum exceeding 80 percent of the total aggregate premium 
     volume in the State for the line.
       (2) Minimum aggregate premium volume.--For each State, the 
     Secretary shall designate, for each designated line, each 
     insurer and insurer group not designated pursuant to 
     paragraph (1) whose premium volume in the State for the 
     designated line exceeds 1 percent of the total aggregate 
     premium volume in the State for the line.
       (3) FAIR plans and joint underwriting associations.--For 
     each State, the Secretary shall designate, for each 
     designated line--
       (A) each statewide plan under part A of title XII of the 
     National Housing Act to assure fair access to insurance 
     requirements; and
       (B) each joint underwriting association;
     that provides insurance under such line.
       (4) Duration.--The Secretary shall designate insurers under 
     this subsection once every 5 years. Each insurer designated 
     shall be a designated insurer for each of the first 5 
     successive annual reporting periods commencing after such 
     designation.
       (c) Designation of Lines of Insurance.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary shall, by regulation, 
     designate homeowners, dwelling fire, and allied lines of 
     insurance as designated lines for purposes of this Act, and 
     shall distinguish the coverage types in such lines by the 
     perils covered and by market or replacement value. For 
     purposes of this Act, homeowners insurance shall not include 
     any renters coverage or coverage for the personal property of 
     a condominium owner.
       (2) Report.--At any time the Secretary determines that any 
     line of insurance not described in paragraph (1) should be a 
     designated line because disparities in coverage provided 
     under such line exist among geographic areas having different 
     income levels or racial composition, the Secretary shall 
     submit a report recommending designating such line of 
     insurance as a designated line for purposes of this Act to 
     the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the 
     House of Representatives and the appropriate committees of 
     the Senate.
       (3) Duration.--
       (A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B), 
     the Secretary shall make the designations under this 
     subsection once every 5 years, by regulation, and each line 
     and subline or coverage type designated under such 
     regulations shall be designated for each of the first 5 
     successive annual reporting periods occurring after issuance 
     of the regulations.
       (B) Alteration.--During any 5-year period referred to in 
     subparagraph (A) in which designations are in effect, the 
     Secretary may amend or revise the designated lines, sublines, 
     and coverage types only by regulation and only in accordance 
     with the requirements of this subsection. Such regulations 
     amending or revising designations shall apply only to annual 
     reporting periods beginning after the expiration of the 6-
     month period beginning on the date of issuance of the 
     regulations.
       (d) Timing of Designations.--The Secretary shall make the 
     designations required by subsections (b)(4) and (c)(3)(A) and 
     notify interested parties during the 6-month period ending 6 
     months before the commencement of the first annual reporting 
     period to which such designations apply.
       (e) Obtaining Information.--The Secretary may require 
     insurers to submit to the Secretary such information as the 
     Secretary considers necessary to make designations 
     specifically required under this Act. The Secretary may not 
     require insurers to submit any information under this 
     subsection that relates to any line of insurance not 
     specifically authorized to be designated pursuant to this Act 
     or that is to be used solely for the purpose of a report 
     under subsection (c)(2).

     SEC. 14. IMPROVED METHODS AND REPORTING ON BASIS OF OTHER 
                   AREAS.

       (a) Development of Improved Methods.--The Secretary shall 
     develop, or assist in the improvement of, methods of matching 
     addresses and applicable regions to facilitate compliance by 
     insurers, in as economical a manner as possible, with the 
     requirements of this Act. The Secretary shall allow insurers, 
     or statistical agents acting on behalf of insurers, to match 
     addresses and applicable regions through the use of 9-digit 
     zip codes if the Secretary determines that such use will 
     substantially reduce the cost and burden to insurers of such 
     matching without significant adverse impact on the 
     reliability of the matching.
       (b) Address Conversion Software.--The Secretary shall make 
     available, to any insurer required to provide information to 
     the Secretary under this Act, computer software that can be 
     used to convert addresses to applicable regions within 
     designated MSA's. The software shall be made available in 
     forms that provide such conversion for designated MSA's on a 
     nationwide basis and on a State-by-State basis. The software 
     shall be made available not later than 6 months before the 
     first annual reporting period to which the reporting 
     requirements under this Act apply (pursuant to section 26) 
     and shall be updated annually. The software shall be made 
     available without charge, except for an amount, determined by 
     the Secretary, which shall not exceed the actual cost of 
     reproducing the software.
       (c) Convertibility.--
       (1) Authority.--The Secretary may, by regulation, provide 
     for insurers to comply with the requirements under sections 
     4, 5, and 8(b) by reporting the information required under 
     such sections on the basis of geographical location other 
     than MSA and applicable region, but only if the Secretary 
     determines that information reported on such other basis is 
     convertible to the basis of MSA and applicable region and 
     such conversion does not affect the accuracy of the 
     information.
       (2) Limitation.--With respect to any information submitted 
     on the basis of geographical location other than designated 
     MSA and applicable region pursuant to paragraph (1), the 
     Secretary may disclose the information only on the basis of 
     designated MSA and applicable region.

     SEC. 15. ANNUAL REPORTING PERIOD.

       (a) In General.--For purposes of this Act, the annual 
     reporting periods shall be the 12-month periods commencing in 
     each calendar year on the same day, which shall be selected 
     under subsection (b) by the Secretary.
       (b) Selection.--Not later than the expiration of the 6-
     month period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, 
     the Secretary shall, by regulation, select a day of the year 
     upon which all annual reporting periods shall commence. In 
     determining such day, the Secretary shall consider the 
     reporting periods used for purposes of State and other 
     insurance statistical reporting systems, in order to minimize 
     the burdens on insurers.

     SEC. 16. DISCLOSURES BY INSURERS TO APPLICANTS AND 
                   POLICYHOLDERS.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary shall, by regulation, 
     require the following disclosures:
       (1) Applicants.--Each insurer that, through the insurer, or 
     an agent or broker, declines a written application or written 
     request to issue an insurance policy under a designated line 
     shall provide to the applicant at the time of such 
     declination, through such insurer, agent, or broker, one of 
     the following:
       (A) A written explanation of the specific reasons for the 
     declination.
       (B) Written notice that--
       (i) the applicant may submit to the insurer, agent, or 
     broker, within 90 days of such notice, a written request for 
     a written explanation of the reasons for the declination; and
       (ii) pursuant to such a request, an explanation shall be 
     provided to the applicant within 21 days after receipt of 
     such request.
       (2) Provision of explanation.--If an insurer, agent, or 
     broker making a declination receives a written request 
     referred to in paragraph (1)(B) within such 90-day period, 
     the insurer, agent, or broker shall provide a written 
     explanation referred to in such subparagraph within such 21-
     day period.
       (3) Policyholders.--Each insurer that cancels or refuses to 
     renew an insurance policy under a designated line shall 
     provide to the policyholder, in writing and within an 
     appropriate period of time as determined by the Secretary, 
     the reasons for canceling or refusing to renew the policy.
       (b) Model Acts.--In issuing regulations under subsection 
     (a), the Secretary shall consider relevant portions of model 
     acts developed by the National Association of Insurance 
     Commissioners.
       (c) Preemption.--Subsection (a) shall not be construed to 
     annul, alter, or effect, or exempt any insurer, agent, or 
     broker subject to the provisions of subsection (a) from 
     complying with any laws or requirements of any State with 
     respect to notifying insurance applicants or policyholders of 
     the reasons for declination or cancellation of, or refusal to 
     renew insurance, except to the extent that such laws or 
     requirements are inconsistent with subsection (a) (or the 
     regulations issued thereunder) and then only to the extent of 
     such inconsistency. The Secretary is authorized to determine 
     whether such inconsistencies exist and to resolve issues 
     regarding such inconsistencies. The Secretary may not provide 
     that any State law or requirement is inconsistent with 
     subsection (a) if it imposes requirements equivalent to the 
     requirements under such subsection or requirements that are 
     more stringent or comprehensive, in the determination of the 
     Secretary.

[[Page S2407]]

       (d) Immunity.--In issuing regulations under subsection (a), 
     the Secretary shall specifically consider the necessity of 
     providing insurers, agents, and brokers with immunity solely 
     for the act of conveying or communicating the reasons for a 
     declination or cancellation of, or refusal to renew insurance 
     on behalf of a principal making such decision. The Secretary 
     may provide for immunity under the regulations issued under 
     subsection (a) if the Secretary determines that such a 
     provision is necessary and in the public interest, except 
     that the Secretary may not provide immunity for any conduct 
     that is negligent, reckless, or willful.
       (e) Enforcement.--The Secretary may authorize the States to 
     enforce the requirements under regulations issued under 
     subsection (a).

     SEC. 17. ENFORCEMENT.

       (a) Civil Penalties.--Any insurer who is determined by the 
     Secretary, after providing opportunity for a hearing on the 
     record, to have violated any requirement pursuant to this Act 
     shall be subject to a civil penalty of not to exceed $5,000 
     for each day during which such violation continues.
       (b) Injunction.--The Secretary may bring an action in an 
     appropriate United States district court for appropriate 
     declaratory and injunctive relief against any insurer who 
     violates the requirements referred to in subsection (a).
       (c) Insurer Liability.--An insurer shall be responsible 
     under subsections (a) and (b) for any violation of a 
     statistical agent acting on behalf of the insurer.

     SEC. 18. REPORTS.

       (a) Annual Report.--The Secretary shall annually report to 
     the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the 
     House of Representatives and the appropriate committees of 
     the Senate on the implementation of this Act and shall make 
     recommendations to such committees on such additional 
     legislation as the Secretary deems appropriate to carry out 
     this Act. The Secretary shall include in each annual report a 
     description of any complaints or problems resulting from the 
     implementation of this Act, of which the Secretary has 
     knowledge, made by (or on behalf of) insurance policyholders 
     that concern the disclosure of information regarding 
     policyholders and any recommendations for addressing such 
     problems. Each report shall specifically address whether 
     granting property and casualty insurance powers to other 
     financial intermediaries would significantly reduce redlining 
     and other discriminatory insurance practices and the 
     Secretary shall consult with the appropriate financial 
     institution regulators regarding such issues in preparing the 
     report.
       (b) GAO Reports.--
       (1) In general.--The Comptroller General of the United 
     States shall submit a report under this subsection to the 
     Secretary and the Congress for each 5-year period referred to 
     in sections 6(c)(2) and 13(a)(2), which contains information 
     to be used by the Secretary in implementing this Act during 
     such period.
       (2) Timing.--The report under this subsection for each such 
     5-year period shall be submitted not later than 18 months 
     before the commencement of the period to which the report 
     relates.
       (3) Contents.--A report under this subsection shall include 
     the following information:
       (A) An analysis of the adequacy of the implementation of 
     this Act and any recommendations of the Comptroller General 
     for improving the implementation.
       (B) The costs to the Federal Government, insurers, and 
     consumers of implementing and complying with this Act.
       (C) Any beneficial or harmful effects resulting from the 
     requirements of this Act.
       (D) An analysis of whether, considering the purposes of 
     this Act, insurers are required by this Act (or by 
     implementing regulations) to submit appropriate information.
       (E) An analysis of whether sufficient evidence exists of 
     patterns of disparities in the availability, affordability, 
     and quality or type of insurance coverage to warrant 
     continued applicability of the requirements of this Act.
       (F) An analysis of whether the group of designated MSA's in 
     effect at the time of the report are appropriate for purposes 
     of this Act.
       (G) Specific recommendations, for use by the Secretary in 
     designating MSA's for the 5-year period for which the report 
     is made, with regard to--
       (i) the characteristics of MSA's that should be included in 
     the group of designated MSA's;
       (ii) the number of MSA's that should be included in the 
     group;
       (iii) the number of MSA's having each particular 
     characteristic that should be included in the group; and
       (iv) the characteristics of MSA's, and number of MSA's 
     having each such characteristic, that should be removed from 
     the group of designated MSA's in effect at the time of the 
     report.
       (H) With respect only to the first report required under 
     this subsection, recommendations of whether the study 
     conducted under section 5 should be continued beyond the date 
     in section 5(b)(8) and, if so, whether the requirements 
     regarding the submission of information under the study 
     should be expanded or changed with respect to insurers, 
     MSA's, lines, sublines or coverage types of insurance, and 
     types of small businesses, or whether the study should be 
     allowed to terminate under law.
       (I) An analysis of whether the group of designated rural 
     areas in effect at the time of the report are appropriate for 
     purposes of this Act.
       (J) Specific recommendations, for use by the Secretary in 
     designating rural areas for purposes of section 6 for the 5-
     year period for which the report is made, with regard to--
       (i) the characteristics of rural areas that should be 
     included in the group of designated rural areas under such 
     section;
       (ii) the number of rural areas having each particular 
     characteristic that should be included in the group; and
       (iii) the characteristics of rural areas, and number of 
     rural areas having each such characteristic, that should be 
     removed from the group of designated rural areas in effect at 
     the time of the report.
       (K) Any other information or recommendations relating to 
     the requirements or implementation of this Act that the 
     Comptroller General considers appropriate.
       (4) Consultation.--In preparing each report under this 
     subsection, the Comptroller General shall consult with 
     Federal agencies having appropriate expertise, the National 
     Association of Insurance Commissioners, State insurance 
     regulators, statistical agents, representatives of small 
     businesses, representatives of insurance agents (including 
     minority insurance agents) and property and casualty 
     insurers, and community, consumer, and civil rights 
     organizations.
     SEC. 19. TASK FORCE ON AGENCY APPOINTMENTS.

       (a) Establishment.--Not later than 90 days after the date 
     of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish a 
     task force on insurance agency appointments (hereafter in 
     this section referred to as the ``Task Force''). The Task 
     Force shall--
       (1) consist of representatives of appropriate Federal 
     agencies, property and casualty insurance agents, including 
     specifically minority insurance agents, property and casualty 
     insurers, State insurance regulators, and community, 
     consumer, and civil rights organizations;
       (2) have a significant representation from minority 
     insurance agents; and
       (3) be chaired by the Secretary or the Secretary's 
     designee.
       (b) Function.-- The Task Force shall--
       (1) review the problems inner-city and minority agents may 
     have in receiving appointments to represent property and 
     casualty insurers and consider the effects such problems have 
     on the availability, affordability, and quality or type of 
     insurance, especially in underserved areas;
       (2) review the practices of insurers in terminating agents 
     and consider the effects such practices have on the 
     availability, affordability, and quality or type of 
     insurance, especially in underserved areas; and
       (3) recommend solutions to improve the ability of inner-
     city and minority insurance agents to market property and 
     casualty insurance products, including steps property and 
     casualty insurers should take to increase their appointments 
     of such agents.
       (c) Report and Termination.--The Task Force shall report to 
     the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the 
     House of Representatives and the appropriate committees of 
     the Senate its findings under paragraphs (1) and (2) of 
     subsection (b) and its recommendations under paragraph (3) of 
     subsection (b) not later than 2 years after the date of 
     enactment of this Act. The Task Force shall terminate on the 
     date on which the report is submitted to the committees.

     SEC. 20. STUDIES.

       (a) Study of Insurance Prescreening.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary shall conduct a study to 
     determine the feasibility and utility of requiring insurers 
     to report information with respect to the characteristics of 
     applicants for insurance and reasons for rejection of 
     applicants. The study shall examine the extent to which--
       (A) oral applications or representations are used by 
     insurers and agents in making determinations regarding 
     whether or not to insure a prospective insured;
       (B) written applications are used by insurers and agents in 
     making determinations regarding whether or not to insure a 
     prospective insured;
       (C) written applications are submitted after the insurer or 
     agent has already made a determination to provide insurance 
     to a prospective insured or has determined that the 
     prospective insured is eligible for insurance; and
       (D) prospective insured persons are discouraged from 
     submitting applications for insurance based, in whole or in 
     part, on--
       (i) the location of the risk to be insured;
       (ii) the racial characteristics of the prospective insured;
       (iii) the racial composition of the neighborhood in which 
     the risk to be insured is located; and
       (iv) in the case of residential property insurance, the age 
     and value of the risk to be insured.
       (2) Report.--The Secretary shall report the results of the 
     study under paragraph (1) to the Committee on Banking, 
     Finance and Urban Affairs of the House of Representatives and 
     the appropriate committees of the Senate, not later than 2 
     years after the date of enactment of this Act. The report 
     shall include recommendations of the Secretary--
       (A) with respect to requiring insurers to report on the 
     disposition of oral and written applications for insurance; 
     and
     [[Page S2408]]   (B) for any legislation that the Secretary 
     considers appropriate regarding the issues described in the 
     report.
       (b) Study of Insurer Actions To Meet Insurance Needs of 
     Certain Neighborhoods.--The Secretary shall conduct a study 
     of various practices, actions, and methods undertaken by 
     insurers to meet the property and casualty insurance needs of 
     residents of low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, minority 
     neighborhoods, and small businesses located in such 
     neighborhoods. The Secretary shall report the results of the 
     study, including any recommendations, to the Committee on 
     Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the House of 
     Representatives and the appropriate committees of the Senate, 
     not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this 
     Act.
       (c) Study of Disparate Claims Treatment.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary shall conduct a study to 
     determine whether, and the extent to which, insurers engage 
     in disparate treatment in handling claims of policyholders 
     under designated lines of insurance based on the race, 
     gender, and income level of the policyholder, and on the 
     racial characteristics and income levels of the area in which 
     the insured risk is located. In conducting the study, the 
     Secretary shall specifically consider whether residents of 
     low-income neighborhoods or areas and minority neighborhoods 
     or areas are more likely than residents of other areas to 
     have their claims contested or their insurance coverage 
     canceled.
       (2) Report.--The Secretary shall submit a report on the 
     results of the study to the Committee on Banking, Finance and 
     Urban Affairs of the House of Representatives and the 
     appropriate committees of the Senate, not later than 2 years 
     after the date of enactment of this Act.
       (d) Study of Rating Territories.--The Secretary shall 
     conduct a study to determine whether the practice in the 
     insurance industry of basing insurance premium amounts on the 
     territory in which the insured risk is located has a 
     disparate impact on the availability, affordability, or 
     quality of insurance by race, gender, or type of 
     neighborhood. The Secretary shall submit a report on the 
     results of the study to the Committee on Banking, Finance and 
     Urban Affairs of the House of Representatives and the 
     appropriate committees of the Senate, not later than 12 
     months after the date of enactment of this Act.
       (e) Study of Insurer Reinvestment Requirements.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary shall conduct a study to 
     determine the feasibility of requiring insurers to reinvest 
     in communities and neighborhoods from which they collect 
     premiums for insurance and whether, and the extent to which, 
     community reinvestment requirements for insurers should be 
     established that are comparable to the community reinvestment 
     requirements applicable to depository institutions. The 
     Secretary shall consult with representatives of insurers and 
     consumer, community, and civil rights organizations regarding 
     the results of the study and any recommendations to be made 
     based on the results of the study.
       (2) Report.--The Secretary shall report the results of the 
     study, including any such recommendations, to the Committee 
     on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs of the House of 
     Representatives and the appropriate committees of the Senate, 
     not later than 6 months after the conclusion of the first 
     annual reporting period to which the reporting requirements 
     under this Act apply (pursuant to section 26).

     SEC. 21. EXEMPTION AND RELATION TO STATE LAWS.

       (a) Exemption for United States Programs.--Reporting shall 
     not be required under this Act with respect to insurance 
     provided by any program underwritten or administered by the 
     United States.
       (b) Relation to State Laws.--This Act does not annul, 
     alter, or affect, or exempt the obligation of any insurer 
     subject to this Act to comply with the laws of any State or 
     subdivision thereof with respect to public disclosure, 
     submission of information, and recordkeeping.

     SEC. 22. REGULATIONS.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary shall issue any regulations 
     required under this Act and any other regulations that may be 
     necessary to carry out this Act. The regulations shall be 
     issued through rulemaking in accordance with the procedures 
     under section 553 of title 5, United States Code, for 
     substantive rules. Except as otherwise provided in this Act, 
     such final regulations shall be issued not later than the 
     expiration of the 18-month period beginning on the date of 
     enactment of this Act.
       (b) Burdens.--In prescribing such regulations, the 
     Secretary shall take into consideration the administrative, 
     paperwork, and other burdens on insurance agents, including 
     independent insurance agents, involved in complying with the 
     requirements of this Act and shall minimize the burdens 
     imposed by such requirements with respect to such agents.

     SEC. 23. DEFINITIONS.

       For purposes of this Act, the following definitions shall 
     apply:
       (1) Agent.--The term ``agent'' means, with respect to an 
     insurer, an agent licensed by a State who sells property and 
     casualty insurance. The term includes agents who are 
     employees of the insurer, agents who are independent 
     contractors working exclusively for the insurer, and agents 
     who are independent contractors appointed to represent the 
     insurer on a nonexclusive basis.
       (2) Applicable region.--The term ``applicable region'' 
     means, with respect to a designated MSA--
       (A) for any county located within the MSA that has a 
     population of more than 30,000, the applicable census tract 
     within the county; or
       (B) for any county located within the MSA that has a 
     population of 30,000 or less, the applicable county.
       (3) Commercial insurance.--The term ``commercial 
     insurance'' means any line of property and casualty 
     insurance, except homeowner's, dwelling fire, allied lines, 
     and other personal lines of insurance.
       (4) Designated insurer.--The term ``designated insurer'' 
     means, with respect to a designated line, an insurer 
     designated for a State by the Secretary under section 13(b) 
     as a designated insurer for such line or any insurer that is 
     part of an insurer group selected under such section.
       (5) Designated investment.--The term ``designated 
     investment'' means making or purchasing a loan for the 
     purchase of commercial real estate, making or purchasing a 
     mortgage loan for the purchase of a 1- to 4-family dwelling, 
     making or purchasing a commercial or industrial loan.
       (6) Designated line.--The term ``designated line'' means a 
     line of insurance or bid, performance, and payment bonds 
     designated by the Secretary under section 13(c).
       (7) Exposures.--The term ``exposures'' means, with respect 
     to an insurance policy, an expression of an exposure unit 
     covered under the policy compared to the duration of the 
     policy (pursuant to standards established by the Secretary 
     for uniform reporting of exposures).
       (8) Exposure units.--The term ``exposure units'' means a 
     dwelling covered under an insurance policy for homeowners, 
     dwelling fire, or allied lines coverage.
       (9) Insurance.--The term ``insurance'' means property and 
     casualty insurance. Such term includes primary insurance, 
     surplus lines insurance, and any other arrangement for the 
     shifting and distributing of risks that is determined to be 
     insurance under the law of any State in which the insurer or 
     insurer group engages in an insurance business.
       (10) Insurer.--Except with respect to section 8, the term 
     ``insurer'' means any corporation, association, society, 
     order, firm, company, mutual, partnership, individual, 
     aggregation of individuals, or any other legal entity that is 
     authorized to transact the business of property or casualty 
     insurance in any State or that is engaged in a property or 
     casualty insurance business. The term includes any certified 
     foreign direct insurer, but does not include an individual or 
     entity which represents an insurer as agent solely for the 
     purpose of selling or which represents a consumer as a broker 
     solely for the purpose of buying insurance.
       (11) Issued.--The term ``issued'' means, with respect to an 
     insurance policy, newly issued or renewed.
       (12) Joint underwriting association.--The term ``joint 
     underwriting association'' means an unincorporated 
     association of insurers established to provide a particular 
     form of insurance to the public.
       (13) Mortgage insurance.--The term ``mortgage insurance'' 
     means insurance against the nonpayment of, or default on, a 
     mortgage or loan for residential or commercial property.
       (14) MSA.--The term ``MSA'' means a Metropolitan 
     Statistical Area or a Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area.
       (15) Private mortgage insurance.--The term ``private 
     mortgage insurance'' means mortgage insurance other than 
     mortgage insurance made available under the National Housing 
     Act, title 38 of the United States Code, or title V of the 
     Housing Act of 1949.
       (16) Property and casualty insurance.--The term ``property 
     and casualty insurance'' means insurance against loss of or 
     damage to property, insurance against loss of income or extra 
     expense incurred because of loss of, or damage to, property, 
     and insurance against third party liability claims caused by 
     negligence or imposed by statute or contract. Such term does 
     not include workers' compensation, professional liability, or 
     title insurance.
       (17) Residual market.--The term ``residual market'' means 
     an assigned risk plan, joint underwriting association, or any 
     similar mechanism designed to make insurance available to 
     those unable to obtain it in the voluntary market. The term 
     includes each statewide plan under part A of title XII of the 
     National Housing Act to assure fair access to insurance 
     requirements.
       (18) Rural area.--The term ``rural area'' means any area 
     that--
       (A) has a population of 10,000 or more;
       (B) has a continuous boundary; and
       (C) contains only areas that are rural areas, as such term 
     is defined in section 520 of the Housing Act of 1949 (except 
     that clause (3)(B) of such section 520 shall not apply for 
     purposes of this Act).
       (19) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of Housing and Urban Development.
       (20) State.--The term ``State'' means any State, the 
     District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the 
     Northern Mariana Islands, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, 
     and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.
     [[Page S2409]] SEC. 24. EFFECTIVE DATE.

       The requirements of this Act relating to reporting of 
     information by insurers shall take effect with respect to the 
     first annual reporting period that begins not less than 3 
     years after the date of enactment of this Act.
                                                                    ____

                                Congress of the United States,

                                 Washington, DC, October 28, 1994.
     Assistant Secretary Roberta Achtenberg,
     Division of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, Department of 
         Housing and Urban Development,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Secretary Achtenberg: We understand you have recently 
     received a letter from the ranking Republican member of the 
     House Subcommittee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and 
     Competitiveness, regarding the Department of Housing and 
     Urban Development's (HUD) advance notice of proposed 
     rulemaking (ANPR) on discrimination in property insurance. We 
     are writing to inform you that we take a different view from 
     this letter and we would like to encourage you to proceed as 
     scheduled with the ANPR.
       We are concerned with several of the letter's assertions, 
     particularly the contentions that insurance underwriting is 
     unrelated to the Fair Housing Act and that HUD is not the 
     proper agency to oversee a federal data collection effort. We 
     respectfully disagree with these notions, as do the federal 
     courts.
       Insurance redlining abuses are widespread and well 
     documented. In addition to the countless studies and reports 
     that have verified discriminatory underwriting practices, 
     field hearings such as the recent Chicago hearing sponsored 
     by HUD's Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Division and the 
     hearings in House and Senate committees have clearly 
     demonstrated that property and other lines of insurance have 
     become unaffordable or unavailable in many minority and low-
     income communities. Such discriminatory practices are not 
     confined to one insurance company, one community or one 
     state--redlining is a national phenomena that requires an 
     appropriate federal response.
       Redlining practices are illegal. This was established in 
     NAACP v. American Family Insurance when the Seventh Circuit 
     Court of Appeals ruled unanimously that the underwriting of 
     homeowners insurance falls under the umbrella of the Fair 
     Housing Act. Judge Frank Easterbrook, speaking for a 
     unanimous Court, stated that ``lenders require their 
     borrowers to secure property insurance. No insurance, no 
     loan; no loan, no house; lack of insurance thus makes housing 
     unavailable.'' As you know, HUD has also been identified by a 
     federal court in Ohio as legally authorized to enforce the 
     Fair Housing Act as it relates to homeowners insurance. This 
     was affirmed in Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company v. 
     Cisneros, when the U.S. District Court upheld HUD's 
     regulatory authority, noting that HUD's contention that it 
     had been delegated authority under the Fair Housing Act was 
     ``reasonable and entitled to substantial deference''.
       It is also clear that greater disclosure is a key element 
     in combating redlining. The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act 
     (HMDA) has provided federal and state regulators in the 
     mortgage financing field with detailed information to 
     identify mortgage redlining. As you know, this legislation 
     has been effective and has had little, if any, adverse impact 
     on the vitality and prosperity of the banking industry. This 
     critical piece of legislation was passed for precisely the 
     reason of enhancing the power of state and federal 
     authorities to determine if banks and other lending 
     institutions were discriminating in their lending practices. 
     As needed and effective as that legislation is, we know that 
     it is difficult, if not impossible as noted by the Seventh 
     Circuit Court of Appeals, to obtain a home loan without the 
     necessary insurance. Thus, seeking this sort of disclosure 
     only from the lending industry is like throwing out a life 
     preserver with a rope that is several feet short. We must go 
     further.
       In the insurance industry, enforcement by state officials 
     of existing anti-discrimination statutes has proven to be 
     difficult for one principal reason; though many state 
     insurance commissioners have been forceful and aggressive in 
     exposing and sanctioning appropriate parties, other state 
     insurance commissioner offices lack the necessary resources 
     to collect and compile data information adequately. In many 
     markets this data is simply unavailable. And critical to this 
     effort is the need to collect claims and other loss data 
     which is central to determining if the unavailability of 
     adequate insurance is due to sound economic underwriting 
     principles, or to reprehensible factors such as the race and 
     income status of the applicant.
       In powerful testimony before several Congressional 
     committees, it has been stated over and over that to enforce 
     the law greater disclosure of crucial information is needed 
     from the insurance industry. This was included in your 
     testimony, Secretary Achtenberg, as well as the testimony of 
     Deval Patrick, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. 
     It was also expressed by a number of state insurance 
     commissioners from across the country.
       The letter you received also expressed concerns about the 
     possibility that HUD may promulgate data reporting 
     requirements stronger than those contained in H.R. 1188, the 
     Anti-Redlining in Insurance Disclosure Act. These reporting 
     requirements, such as the collection of claims and loss data, 
     including a large number of Metropolitan Statistical Areas 
     (MSAs), and collecting this data by census tract as opposed 
     to zip codes, have all been recommended by the General 
     Accounting Office, numerous consumer and civil rights groups 
     and various state insurance
      commissioners. We join these voices in urging you to adopt 
     these strong reporting requirements.
       Finally, we would like to commend you, Secretary 
     Achtenberg, as well as Secretary Cisneros and other officials 
     in the Clinton Administration for your forceful stand against 
     discriminatory redlining practices. Although it is 
     disappointing that Congress was unable to pass anti-redlining 
     legislation this year, we are heartened by the 
     Administration's willingness to initiate efforts to curtail 
     and root out discrimination in the insurance marketplace. We 
     look forward to following your progress and invite you to 
     contact us if we can be of any future assistance.
           Sincerely,
     Russell Feingold,
     Paul Simon,
       Senators.
     Joseph P. Kennedy II,
     Thomas Barrett,
     Cleo Fields,
     Henry B. Gonzalez,
     Lucille Roybal-Allard,
     Esteban Edward Torres,
       Representatives.
                                                                    ____

                                        U.S. Department of Housing


                                        and Urban Development,

                                Washington, DC, December 20, 1994.
     Hon. Russell D. Feingold
     U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Feingold: Thank you for your letter of October 
     28, 1994, expressing your concerns and constructive 
     recommendations on the issues of insurance redlining and 
     discrimination. Let me assure you that the Department of 
     Housing and Urban Development (HUD or the Department) is 
     proceeding as scheduled with the promulgation of a regulation 
     applying the Fair Housing Act (the Act) to property 
     insurance. A similar letter has been sent to Senator Paul 
     Simon, Congressman Joseph P. Kennedy II, Congressman Henry B. 
     Gonzalez, Congressman Thomas Barrett, Congressman Cleo 
     Fields, Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard and Congressman 
     Esteban Edward Torres.
       Clearly, the Department shares your view that HUD has 
     authority, and indeed the responsibility, to enforce the Act 
     (Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, as amended) in 
     the area of property insurance. Several Administrations, 
     beginning with a HUD General Counsel opinion in 1978, have 
     concluded that the Act prohibits discrimination in the 
     provision of property or hazard insurance. All the court 
     decisions that have addressed this issue, with one exception 
     which was decided prior to the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 
     1988, have drawn this same conclusion. Because HUD is the 
     primary Title VIII law enforcement agency, and the only 
     agency with authority to promulgate regulations under that 
     Act, the Department will fulfill its obligation to issue 
     rules applying the Act to property insurance.
       As you know, in 1989 HUD issued regulations implementing 
     the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988. In these 
     regulations, the Department determined that the Act prohibits 
     ``refusing to provide . . . property or hazard insurance . . 
     . or providing such . . . insurance differently because of 
     race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or 
     national origin'' (24 C.F.R. Section 100.70(a)(4). HUD 
     intends to go beyond this general prohibition and provide 
     more detailed guidance regarding the types of practices and 
     circumstances under which violations of the Act occur.
       The Department also shares your viewpoint on the value of 
     greater disclosure of crucial information. The Department was 
     also disappointed that Congress was unable to pass anti-
     redlining legislation this year. HUD looks forward to working 
     with you to achieve this objective in the next session of 
     Congress.
       Your contributions to the public meetings that HUD held 
     during the past few months were most helpful in shaping the 
     Department's thoughts on how HUD should approach the 
     regulation. The hearings you have held on insurance 
     discrimination generated substantial information that will be 
     tremendously beneficial to HUD's rulemaking process. Your 
     specific recommendations on the rule and the public attention 
     that you have stimulated have assisted HUD and many others in 
     cities throughout the country who are attempting to resolve 
     these serious problems.
       Any further detailed recommendations or general 
     observations you could share with the Department would be 
     greatly appreciated.
       Thank you for your interest in the Department's programs 
     and for the guidance you have provided HUD and your concerted 
     efforts to combat the national problems of insurance 
     redlining and discrimination.
           Sincerely,
                                             William J. Gilmartin,
     Assistant Secretary.
                                                                    ____

                                                 February 8, 1995.
     Hon. Russ Feingold,
     U.S. Senate,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Feingold: We write to offer our endorsement of 
     the ``Anti-Redlining in Insurance Disclosure Act of 1995.'' 
     This legislation represents a critical first step towards 
     [[Page S2410]]  addressing the serious problem of unfair 
     discrimination and redlining in the provision of homeowners 
     insurance in a simple yet effective way--through the power of 
     sunshine.
       Hearings in both the House of Representatives and the 
     Senate last year as well as numerous studies and lawsuits 
     have shown that residents of low-income, predominantly 
     minority areas have a harder time obtaining insurance 
     coverage for their homes. Most recently, the National 
     Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) released the 
     results of its study of homeowners insurance in more than 40 
     urban areas in 20 states. In its report, the NAIC concluded 
     that ``[t]here is considerable evidence that residents of 
     urban communities, particularly residents of low-income and 
     minority neighborhoods, face greater difficulty in obtaining 
     high-quality homeowners insurance through the voluntary 
     market than residents of other areas.''
       Availability and affordability problems for these 
     communities contributes to and furthers urban decay and 
     disinvestment. The lack of affordable insurance is a material 
     deterrent to homeownership and economic development in low 
     income and minority communities. Without insurance, people 
     simply cannot buy homes. And without high-quality insurance, 
     homeowners in these areas are forced to cover much of their 
     loss out of their own pockets--losses they had hoped 
     insurance would cover.
       The legislation provides the tools to better understand the 
     extent of the problem and help develop solutions by simply 
     requiring insurers to begin to make public information as to 
     where and at what price they write insurance. It also would 
     collect data on insurer losses which is extremely important 
     data in assessing the underlying causes for these problems. 
     The data collected by this legislation will go a long way to 
     shedding light on the debate over insurance redlining and 
     will be a valuable tool for enforcement of civil rights laws 
     at the state and federal level.
       Your legislation incorporates 4 key elements that are 
     essential to advancing fair and equal access to insurance:
       First, the bill calls for the collection of data on the 
     cost and type of insurance policies written by the census 
     tract (or zip + 4's) where the policy is issued. Only census 
     tracts provide the kind of relevant demographic data needed 
     to gauge the extent of disparities created by insurance 
     redlining on minority and low-income neighborhoods. The Home 
     Mortgage Disclosure Act requires banks to report loan 
     information on a census tract basis, and this standard should 
     apply to the insurance industry as well.
       Second, the bill includes the collection of data on 
     insurance losses and claims. While insurers claim disparities 
     in prices between different neighborhoods are solely based on 
     loss experience, evidence suggests the opposite. Data 
     analyzed by the Missouri Department of Insurance, for 
     example, indicated that residents of minority neighborhoods 
     pay more in premiums, but incur fewer losses, than residents 
     of comparable white neighborhoods. Only through the 
     collection of loss data can we conclusively resolve the 
     debate about whether these disparities are due to risk or 
     prejudice.
       Third, the bill would collect this data in 150 Metropolitan 
     Statistical Areas (MSA's). The NAIC data suggest that 
     availability and affordability problems are widespread across 
     the nation. In order to obtain information on all of those 
     areas that may be experiencing such problems, data needs to 
     be collected from as many MSAs as possible. Furthermore, the 
     data will be invaluable as a civil rights enforcement tool, 
     and that tool should be available to the greatest number of 
     communities and citizens.
       Fourth, the bill provides for the reporting of the race and 
     gender by policyholders on a voluntary basis. Such data has 
     been collected under HMDA and other federal, state and 
     private entities for years and is essential to assist efforts 
     to enforce state and federal laws prohibiting discrimination 
     in the provision of insurance.
       We are eager to work with you to obtain passage of the 
     ``Anti-Redlining in Insurance Disclosure Act of 1995,'' and 
     commend you for your leadership on this important issue.
           Sincerely,
       Alliance to End Childhood Lead Poisoning.
       American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
       American Planning Association.
       Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now 
     (ACORN).
       Center for Community Change.
       Consumer Federation of America's Insurance Group.
       Consumers Union.
       Jesuit Conference, USA, Office of Social Ministries.
       National Council of La Raza.
       National Fair Housing Alliance.
       National Neighborhood Coalition.
       NETWORK: A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby.
       United Methodist Church, General Board of Church and 
     Society.
       United States Public Interest Research Group (US PIRG).
                                                                    ____


              [From the Dallas Morning News, Jan. 9, 1995]

        Insurance Reform; The Important Thing is to Get it Done

       Call it redlining. Call it lack of availability. Call it 
     what you want to call it. The fact remains that too many 
     risk-worthy Texans are unable to obtain automobile and 
     homeowners insurance at the best rates.
       The problem is real, and it is serious. Not even the 
     insurance industry denies that a problem exists, though it 
     vehemently disputes accusations that it denies insurance to 
     consumers because of where they live, their skin color or 
     other factors unrelated to risk.
       Nonetheless, compelling evidence compiled by the Texas 
     Insurance Department indicates that a disproportionate number 
     of the Texans unable to obtain affordable insurance are 
     racial or ethnic minorities living in lower-income 
     neighborhoods.
       The insurance industry may resent the charges of unfair 
     discrimination being hurled by consumer groups, state 
     regulators and some state legislators. However, it is 
     impossible to ignore that most victims of what may be 
     charitably called flaws in the marketplace are neither white 
     nor wealthy.
       The issue has come to a head because Texas Insurance 
     Commissioner Rebecca Lightsey, an appointee of Democratic 
     Gov. Ann Richards, must decide whether to enact new anti-
     discrimination rules before her term expires Feb. 1. 
     Republican Gov.-elect George W. Bush wants her to wait so 
     that the issue may be addressed by his nominee to the post, 
     Elton Bomer.
       Mr. Bush's request is reasonable. It would be decent of Ms. 
     Lightsey to comply.
       But more important than protocol or deference to an 
     incoming governor is attention to the issue. Denying 
     insurance abets poverty. It is immoral. It is unfair. It 
     makes no economic sense.
       In such areas as Oak Cliff and South Dallas, there are many 
     automobiles and homes worth insuring. No insurer should have 
     to provide preferred or standard-rate insurance to a consumer 
     who constitutes a bad risk. But neither should he deny it 
     because of inappropriate or prejudicial notions of 
     insurability.
       There are two acceptable courses. Ms. Lightsey can enact 
     the rules, in which case Mr. Bush could refine them later as 
     he sees fit. Or she can let Mr. Bush handle it.
       If Ms. Lightsey acts, she should do so because the problem 
     should not fester a moment longer. There should be no 
     implication that Mr. Bush would not act; his good record of 
     support for civil and equal rights indicates quite the 
     contrary.
                                                                    ____

                 [From the Houston Post, Jan. 19, 1995]

            Outgoing Texas Insurance Regulator Unintimidated

       Despite criticism, outgoing Texas Insurance Commissioner 
     Rebecca Lightsey has courageously promulgated rules to stop 
     neighborhood ``redlining'' and other discrimination against 
     automobile and property insurance buyers.
       The decision was ripe for making on her watch and she made 
     it, undaunted by sniping from the insurance industry and new 
     Republican Gov. George Bush's camp that she was 
     inappropriately acting on her way out.
       The insurance industry has been fighting to block 
     antidiscrimination rules for two years or more. And Bush, who 
     had campaign backing from insurance industry leaders, urged 
     Lightsey to let Bush's new commissioner, former state Rep. 
     Elton Bomer, decide whether such rules should be adopted. 
     There appeared a strong likelihood that if Lightsey had 
     acquiesced, we'd have no rules.
       Lightsey, an interim appointee of Democratic Gov. Ann 
     Richards, succeeded J. Robert Hunter, another Richards 
     appointee. Hunter resigned after Bush defeated Richards. 
     Lightsey's term ends Feb. 1.
       An attorney, former Texas Consumer Association executive 
     director and an aide to Gov. Richards, Lightsey has more 
     insurance regulatory experience than Bomer.
       As a Richards staff attorney, she worked on insurance 
     matters, including development of a comprehensive insurance 
     regulation reform law in 1991. She earlier dealt with 
     insurance matters for the consumer association.
       Before succeeding Hunter, Lightsey also was executive 
     director of the Texas Insurance Purchasing Alliance. It was 
     created by the Legislature to make health insurance more 
     obtainable for small employers.
       The non-discrimination rules she adopted--after holding a 
     Jan. 4 public hearing that Bush wanted canceled--were not 
     hastily written. They were developed by the Texas Department 
     of Insurance after about 18 months of studies and earlier 
     hearings under Hunter and the three-member State Board of 
     Insurance that preceded him. The rules are modified 
     replacements for similar 1993 rules the board adopted, which 
     the insurance industry got a court to throw out.
       Although the insurance industry claims the rules are not 
     needed because discrimination is already against state and 
     federal laws, studies by the insurance department and the 
     Office of Public Insurance Counsel indicate discrimination is 
     occurring. It is keeping poor people, particularly in 
     minority neighborhoods, from obtaining house and car 
     insurance or forcing them to pay higher rates. This should 
     not be allowed.
       The new rules will prohibit:
       Consideration of insurance customers' race, color, religion 
     or national origin. Discrimination based on geographic 
     location, disability, sex or age also will be banned unless 
     companies show they cause extra risk.
       Use of underwriting guidelines (secret policies as to who 
     will be insured) not directly related to the risk of extra 
     losses and claims.
       Charging of higher rates or denial of coverage to those 
     wanting only the minimum amount of car insurance to satisfy 
     state law.
       Consumers can sue for triple damages if the rules are 
     broken.
       [[Page S2411]] None of these rules is unreasonable. If the 
     industry is not violating them, it should have no cause for 
     alarm. If it is, such practices should be stopped.
       There was no good reason to put off the rules' adoption so 
     the Bush administration could go over the same ground and 
     give the industry more time to fight them.
       Lightsey has ordered the rules to go into effect June 1. 
     This gives the Legislature--or Bomer and Bush, who have 
     indicated they don't even know much about the rules--time to 
     review and possibly cancel them.
       If the rules are killed, however, those responsible had 
     better be able to show good cause.
                                 ______

      By Mr. HELMS (for himself, Mr. Dole, Mr. Mack, Mr. Coverdell, Mr. 
        Graham, Mr. D'Amato, Mr. Hatch, Mr. Gramm, Mr. Thurmond, Mr. 
        Faircloth, Mr. Gregg, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Hollings, and Ms. Snowe):
  S. 381. A bill to strengthen international sanctions against the 
Castro government in Cuba, to develop a plan to support a transition 
government leading to a democratically elected government in Cuba, and 
for other purposes; ordered held at the desk.


            the cuban liberty and democratic solidarity act

  Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, the day following the 1994 elections, I met 
with reporters in Raleigh to discuss in some detail the priorities I 
intended to pursue as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations 
Committee. High on my list of priorities was to do everything possible 
as chairman to help bring freedom and democracy to Cuba.
  Fidel Castro's brutal and cruel Communist dictatorship has persecuted 
the Cuban people for 36 years. He is the world's longest-reigning 
tyrant.
  That is why I am introducing today a bill titled the ``Cuban Liberty 
and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act'' as my first piece of 
legislation as chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee.
  Let me be clear: Whether Castro leaves Cuba in a vertical position or 
a horizontal position is up to him and the Cuban people. But he must--
and will--leave Cuba.
  There are some voices murmuring that the United States should lift 
the embargo and begin doing business with Castro. I categorically 
reject such suggestions, because for 36 years, both Republican and 
Democratic Presidents have maintained a consistent, bipartisan policy 
of isolating Castro's dictatorship.
  There must be no retreat in that policy today. If anything, with the 
collapse of the U.S.S.R.--and the end of Soviet subsidies to Cuba--the 
embargo is finally having the effect on Castro that has been intended 
all along. Why should the United States let up the pressure now? It's 
time to tighten the screws--not loosen them. We have an obligation--to 
our principles and to the Cuban people--to elevate the pressure on 
Castro until the Cuban people are free.
  The bi-partisan Cuba policy has led the American people to stand 
together in support of restoring freedom to Cuba. As for the 
legislation I am offering today, it incorporates and builds upon the 
significant work of the two distinguished Senators from Florida, Connie 
Mack and Bob Graham, and of three distinguished Members of the House of 
Representatives: Lincoln Diaz-Balart, Bob Menendez, and Ileana Ros-
Lehtinen.
  The Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity Act:
  Strengthens international sanctions against the Castro regime by 
prohibiting sugar imports from countries that purchase sugar from Cuba 
and then sell that sugar in the United States by instructing our 
representatives to the international financial institutions to vote 
against loans to Cuba and to require the United States to withhold our 
contribution to those same institutions if they ignore our objections 
and aid the Castro regime, by urging the President to seek an 
international embargo against Cuba at the United Nations, and by 
prohibiting loans or other financing by a United States person to a 
foreign person or entity who purchases an American property confiscated 
by the Cuban Government.
  Reaffirms the 1992 Cuban Democracy Act;
  Revitalizes our broadcasting programs to Cuba by mandating the 
conversion of television Marti to ultra-high frequency [UHF] 
broadcasting.
  Cuts off foreign aid to any independent State of the Former Soviet 
Union that aids Castro, especially if that aid goes for the operation 
of military and intelligence facilities in Cuba which threaten the 
United States;
  Encourages free and fair elections in Cuba after Castro is gone, and 
authorizes programs to promote free market and private enterprise 
development; and
  Help U.S. citizens and U.S. companies whose property was confiscated 
by Castro. The bill denies entry into the United States of anyone who 
confiscates or benefits from confiscated American property; and it 
allows a U.S. citizen with a confiscated property claim to go into a 
U.S. court to seek compensation from a person or entity which is being 
unjustly enriched by the use of that confiscated property.
  The Cuban people are industrious and innovative. Where they live and 
work in freedom, they have prospered. My hope is that this bill will 
hasten an end to the brutal Castro dictatorship and make Cuba free and 
prosperous. Libertad Para Cuba.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill and 
additional material be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:
                                 S. 381

       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 ``Cuban 
     Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1995''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Purposes.
Sec. 4. Definitions.

   TITLE I--STRENGTHENING INTERNATIONAL SANCTIONS AGAINST THE CASTRO 
                               GOVERNMENT

Sec. 101. Statement of policy.
Sec. 102. Enforcement of the economic embargo of Cuba.
Sec. 103. Prohibition against indirect financing of Cuba.
Sec. 104. United States opposition to Cuban membership in international 
              financial institutions.
Sec. 105. United States opposition to readmission of the Government of 
              Cuba to the Organization of American States.
Sec. 106. Assistance by the independent states of the former Soviet 
              Union for the Government of Cuba.
Sec. 107. Television broadcasting to Cuba.
Sec. 108. Reports on commerce with, and assistance to, Cuba from other 
              foreign countries.
Sec. 109. Importation sanction against certain Cuban trading partners.

           TITLE II--SUPPORT FOR A FREE AND INDEPENDENT CUBA

Sec. 201. Policy toward a transition government and a democratically 
              elected government in Cuba.
Sec. 202. Authorization of assistance for the Cuban people.
Sec. 203. Implementation; reports to Congress.
Sec. 204. Termination of the economic embargo of Cuba.
Sec. 205. Requirements for a transition government.
Sec. 206. Requirements for a democratically elected government.

        TITLE III--PROTECTION OF AMERICAN PROPERTY RIGHTS ABROAD

Sec. 301. Exclusion from the United States of aliens who have 
              confiscated property claimed by United States persons.
Sec. 302. Liability for trafficking in confiscated property claimed by 
              United States persons.
Sec. 303. Determination of claims to confiscated property.
     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       The Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) The economy of Cuba has experienced a decline of 
     approximately 60 percent in the last 5 years as a result of--
       (A) the reduction in its subsidization by the former Soviet 
     Union;
       (B) 36 years of Communist tyranny and economic 
     mismanagement by the Castro government;
       (C) the precipitous decline in trade between Cuba and the 
     countries of the former Soviet bloc; and
       (D) the policy of the Russian Government and the countries 
     of the former Soviet bloc to conduct economic relations with 
     Cuba predominantly on commercial terms.
       (2) At the same time, the welfare and health of the Cuban 
     people have substantially deteriorated as a result of Cuba's 
     economic decline and the refusal of the Castro 
     [[Page S2412]]  regime to permit free and fair democratic 
     elections in Cuba or to adopt any economic or political 
     reforms that would lead to democracy, a market economy, or an 
     economic recovery.
       (3) The repression of the Cuban people, including a ban on 
     free and fair democratic elections and the continuing 
     violation of fundamental human rights, has isolated the Cuban 
     regime as the only nondemocratic government in the Western 
     Hemisphere.
       (4) As long as no such economic or political reforms are 
     adopted by the Cuban government, the economic condition of 
     the country and the welfare of the Cuban people will not 
     improve in any significant way.
       (5) Fidel Castro has defined democratic pluralism as 
     ``pluralistic garbage'' and has made clear that he has no 
     intention of permitting free and fair democratic elections in 
     Cuba or otherwise tolerating the democratization of Cuban 
     society.
       (6) The Castro government, in an attempt to retain absolute 
     political power, continues to utilize, as it has from its 
     inception, torture in various forms (including psychiatric 
     abuse), execution, exile, confiscation, political 
     imprisonment, and other forms of terror and repression as 
     most recently demonstrated by the massacre of more than 70 
     Cuban men, women, and children attempting to flee Cuba.
       (7) The Castro government holds hostage in Cuba innocent 
     Cubans whose relatives have escaped the country.
       (8) The Castro government has threatened international 
     peace and security by engaging in acts of armed subversion 
     and terrorism, such as the training and arming of groups 
     dedicated to international violence.
       (9) The Government of Cuba engages in illegal international 
     narcotics trade and harbors fugitives from justice in the 
     United States.
       (10) The totalitarian nature of the Castro regime has 
     deprived the Cuban people of any peaceful means to improve 
     their condition and has led thousands of Cuban citizens to 
     risk or lose their lives in dangerous attempts to escape from 
     Cuba to freedom.
       (11) Attempts to escape from Cuba and courageous acts of 
     defiance of the Castro regime by Cuban pro-democracy and 
     human rights groups have ensured the international 
     community's continued awareness of, and concern for, the 
     plight of Cuba.
       (12) The Cuban people deserve to be assisted in a decisive 
     manner in order to end the tyranny that has oppressed them 
     for 36 years.
       (13) Radio Marti and Television Marti have both been 
     effective vehicles for providing the people of Cuba with news 
     and information and have helped to bolster the morale of the 
     Cubans living under tyranny.
       (14) The consistent policy of the United States towards 
     Cuba since the beginning of the Castro regime, carried out by 
     both Democratic and Republican administrations, has sought to 
     keep faith with the people of Cuba, and has been effective in 
     isolating the totalitarian Castro regime.

     SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

       The purposes of this Act are--
       (1) to strengthen international sanctions against the 
     Castro government;
       (2) to encourage the holding of free and fair democratic 
     elections in Cuba, conducted under the supervision of 
     internationally recognized observers;
       (3) to provide a policy framework for United States support 
     to the Cuban people in response to the formation of a 
     transition government or a democratically elected government 
     in Cuba; and
       (4) to protect the rights of United States persons who own 
     claims to confiscated property abroad.

     SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

       As used in this Act--
       (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
     ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee 
     on International Relations and the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the 
     Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the Senate.
       (2) Confiscated.--The term ``confiscated'' refers to the 
     nationalization, expropriation, or other seizure of ownership 
     or control of property by governmental authority--
       (A) without adequate and effective compensation or in 
     violation of the law of the place where the property was 
     situated when the confiscation occurred; and
       (B) without the claim to the property having been settled 
     pursuant to an international claims settlement agreement.
       (3) Cuban government.--The term ``Cuban government'' 
     includes the government of any political subdivision, agency, 
     or instrumentality of the Government of Cuba.
       (4) Democratically elected government in cuba.--The term 
     ``democratically elected government in Cuba'' means a 
     government described in section 206.
       (5) Economic embargo of cuba.--The term ``economic embargo 
     of Cuba'' refers to the economic embargo imposed against Cuba 
     pursuant to section 620(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 
     1961 (22 U.S.C. 2370(a)), section 5(b) of the Trading With 
     the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. App. 5(b)), the International 
     Emergency Economic Powers Act, and the Export Administration 
     Act of 1979.
       (6) Property.--The term ``property'' means--
       (A) any property, right, or interest, including any 
     leasehold interest,
       (B) debts owed by a foreign government or by any enterprise 
     which has been confiscated by a foreign government; and
       (C) debts which are a charge on property confiscated by a 
     foreign government.
       (7) Traffics.--The term ``traffics'' means selling, 
     transfering, distributing, dispensing, or otherwise disposing 
     of property, or purchasing, receiving, possessing, obtaining 
     control of, managing, or using property.
       (8) Transition government in cuba.--The term ``transition 
     government in Cuba'' means a government described in section 
     205.
       (9) United states person.--The term ``United States 
     person'' means
       (A) any United States citizen, including, in the context of 
     claims to confiscated property, any person who becomes a 
     United States citizen after the property was confiscated but 
     before final resolution of the claim to that property; and
       (B) any corporation, trust, partnership, or other juridical 
     entity 50 percent or more beneficially owned by United States 
     citizens.
   TITLE I--STRENGTHENING INTERNATIONAL SANCTIONS AGAINST THE CASTRO 
                               GOVERNMENT

     SEC. 101. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

       It is the sense of the Congress that--
       (1) the acts of the Castro government, including its 
     massive, systematic, and extraordinary violations of human 
     rights, are a threat to international peace;
       (2) the President should advocate, and should instruct the 
     United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations 
     to propose and seek within the Security Council a mandatory 
     international embargo against the totalitarian government of 
     Cuba pursuant to chapter VII of the Charter of the United 
     Nations, which is similar to consultations conducted by 
     United States representatives with respect to Haiti; and
       (3) any resumption of efforts by any independent state of 
     the former Soviet Union to make operational the nuclear 
     facility at Cienfuegos, Cuba, will have a detrimental impact 
     on United States assistance to such state.

     SEC. 102. ENFORCEMENT OF THE ECONOMIC EMBARGO OF CUBA.

       (a) Policy.--(1) The Congress hereby reaffirms section 
     1704(a) of the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992, which states the 
     President should encourage foreign countries to restrict 
     trade and credit relations with Cuba.
       (2) The Congress further urges the President to take 
     immediate steps to apply the sanctions described in section 
     1704(b)(1) of such Act against countries assisting Cuba.
       (b) Diplomatic Efforts.--The Secretary of State should 
     ensure that United States diplomatic personnel abroad 
     understand and, in their contacts with foreign officials 
     are--
       (1) communicating the reasons for the United States 
     economic embargo of Cuba; and
       (2) urging foreign governments to cooperate more 
     effectively with the embargo.
       (c) Existing Regulations.--The President shall instruct the 
     Secretary of the Treasury and the Attorney General to enforce 
     fully the Cuban Assets Control Regulations in part 515 of 
     title 31, Code of Federal Regulations.
       (d) Violations of Restrictions on Travel to Cuba.--The 
     penalties provided for in section 16 of the Trading with the 
     Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. App. 16) shall apply to all violations 
     of the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (part 515 of title 
     31, Code of Federal Regulations) involving transactions 
     incident to travel to and within Cuba, notwithstanding 
     section 16(b)(2) (the first place it appears) and section 
     16(b)(3) and (4) of such Act.

     SEC. 103. PROHIBITION AGAINST INDIRECT FINANCING OF CUBA.

       (a) Prohibition.--Effective upon the date of enactment of 
     this Act, it is unlawful for any United States person, 
     including any officer, director, or agent thereof and 
     including any officer or employee of a United States agency, 
     knowingly to extend any loan, credit, or other financing to a 
     foreign person that traffics in any property confiscated by 
     the Cuban government the claim to which is owned by a United 
     States person.
       (b) Termination of Prohibition.--The prohibition of 
     subsection (a) shall cease to apply on the date of 
     termination of the economic embargo of Cuba.
       (c) Penalties.--Violations of subsection (a) shall be 
     punishable by the same penalties as are applicable to similar 
     violations of the Cuban Assets Control Regulations in part 
     515 of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations.
       (d) Definitions.--As used in this section--
       (1) the term ``foreign person'' means (A) an alien, and (B) 
     any corporation, trust, partnership, or other juridical 
     entity that is not 50 percent or more beneficially owned by 
     United States citizens; and
       (2) the term ``United States agency'' has the same meaning 
     given to the term ``agency'' in section 551(1) of title 5, 
     United States Code.

     SEC. 104. UNITED STATES OPPOSITION TO CUBAN MEMBERSHIP IN 
                   INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS.

       (a) Continued Opposition to Cuban Membership in 
     International Financial Institutions.--(1) Except as provided 
     in paragraph (2), the Secretary of the Treasury shall 
     instruct the United States executive director of each 
     international financial institution to vote against the 
     admission of Cuba as a member of such institution until Cuba 
     holds free and fair, democratic elections, conducted under 
     the supervision of internationally recognized observers.
       (2) During the period that a transition government in Cuba 
     is in power, the President 
     [[Page S2413]]  shall take steps to support the processing of 
     Cuba's application for membership in any international 
     financial institution, subject to the membership taking 
     effect after a democratically elected government in Cuba is 
     in power.
       (b) Reduction in United States Payments to International 
     Financial Institutions.--If any international financial 
     institution approves a loan or other assistance to Cuba over 
     the opposition of the United States, then the Secretary of 
     the Treasury shall withhold from payment to such institution 
     an amount equal to the amount of the loan or other 
     assistance, with respect to each of the following types of 
     payment:
       (1) The paid-in portion of the increase in capital stock of 
     the institution.
       (2) The callable portion of the increase in capital stock 
     of the institution.
       (c) Definition.--For purposes of this section, the term 
     ``international financial institution'' means the 
     International Monetary Fund, the International Bank for 
     Reconstruction and Development, the International Development 
     Association, the International Finance Corporation, the 
     Multilateral Investment Guaranty Agency, and the Inter-
     American Development Bank.

     SEC. 105. UNITED STATES OPPOSITION TO READMISSION OF THE 
                   GOVERNMENT OF CUBA TO THE ORGANIZATION OF 
                   AMERICAN STATES.

       The President should instruct the United States Permanent 
     Representative to the Organization of American States to vote 
     against the readmission of the Government of Cuba to 
     membership in the Organization until the President determines 
     under section 203(c) that a democratically elected government 
     in Cuba is in power.
     SEC. 106. ASSISTANCE BY THE INDEPENDENT STATES OF THE FORMER 
                   SOVIET UNION OF THE GOVERNMENT OF CUBA.

       (a) Reporting Requirement.--Not later than 90 days after 
     the date of enactment of this Act, the President shall submit 
     to the appropriate congressional committees a report 
     detailing progress towards the withdrawal of personnel of any 
     independent state of the former Soviet Union (within the 
     meaning of section 3 of the FREEDOM Support Act (22 U.S.C. 
     5801)), including advisers, technicians, and military 
     personnel, from the Cienfuegos nuclear facility in Cuba.
       (b) Criteria for Assistance.--Section 498A(a)(11) of the 
     Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2295a(a)(1)) is 
     amended by striking ``of military facilities'' and inserting 
     ``military and intelligence facilities, including the 
     military and intelligence facilities at Lourdes and 
     Cienfuegos,''.
       (c) Ineligibility for Assistance.--(1) Section 498A(b) of 
     that Act (22 U.S.C. 2295a(b)) is amended--
       (A) by striking ``or'' at the end of paragraph (4);
       (B) by redesignating paragraph (5) as paragraph (6); and
       (C) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following:
       ``(5) for the government of any independent state effective 
     30 days after the President has determined and certified to 
     the appropriate congressional committees (and Congress has 
     not enacted legislation disapproving the determination within 
     the 30-day period) that such government is providing 
     assistance for, or engaging in nonmarket based trade (as 
     defined in section 498B(k)(3)) with, the Government of Cuba; 
     or''.
       (2) Subsection (k) of section 498B of that Act (22 U.S.C. 
     2295b(k)), is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) Nonmarket based trade.--As used in section 
     498A(b)(5), the term `nonmarket based trade' includes 
     exports, imports, exchanges, or other arrangements that are 
     provided for goods and services (including oil and other 
     petroleum products) on terms more favorable than those 
     generally available in applicable markets or for comparable 
     commodities, including--
       ``(A) exports to the Government of Cuba on terms that 
     involve a grant, concessional price, guarantee, insurance, or 
     subsidy;
       ``(B) imports from the Government of Cuba at preferential 
     tariff rates; and
       ``(C) exchange arrangements that include advance delivery 
     of commodities, arrangements in which the Government of Cuba 
     is not held accountable for unfulfilled exchange contracts, 
     and arrangements under which Cuba does not pay appropriate 
     transportation, insurance, or finance costs.''.
       (d) Facilities at Lourdes, Cuba.--(1) The Congress 
     expresses its strong disapproval of the extension by Russia 
     of credits equivalent to $200,000,000 in support of the 
     intelligence facility at Lourdes, Cuba, in November 1994.
       (2) Section 498A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 
     U.S.C. 2295a) is amended by adding at the end the following 
     new subsection:
       ``(d) Reduction in Assistance for Support of Military and 
     Intelligence Facilities in Cuba.--(1) Notwithstanding any 
     other provision of law, the President shall withhold from 
     assistance allocated for an independent state of the former 
     Soviet Union under this chapter an amount equal to the sum of 
     assistance and credits, if any, provided by such state in 
     support of military and intelligence facilities in Cuba, such 
     as the intelligence facility at Lourdes, Cuba.
       ``(2) Nothing in this subsection may be construed to apply 
     to--
       ``(A) assistance provided under the Soviet Nuclear Threat 
     Reduction Act of 1991 (title II of Public Law 102-228) or the 
     Cooperative Threat Reduction Act of 1993 (title XII of Public 
     Law 103-160); or
       ``(B) assistance to meet urgent humanitarian needs under 
     section 498(1), including disaster assistance described in 
     subsection (c)(3) of this section.''.

     SEC. 107. TELEVISION BROADCASTING TO CUBA.

       (a) Conversion to UHF.--The Director of the United States 
     Information Agency shall implement a conversion of television 
     broadcasting to Cuba under the Television Marti Service to 
     ultra high frequency (UHF) broadcasting.
       (b) Periodic Reports.--Not later than 45 days after the 
     date of enactment of this Act, and every three months 
     thereafter until the conversion described in subsection (a) 
     is fully implemented, the Director shall submit a report to 
     the appropriate congressional committees on the progress made 
     in carrying out subsection (a).

     SEC. 108. REPORTS ON COMMERCE WITH, AND ASSISTANCE TO, CUBA 
                   FROM OTHER FOREIGN COUNTRIES.

       (a) Reports Required.--Not later than 90 days after the 
     date of enactment of this Act, and every year thereafter, the 
     President shall submit a report to the appropriate 
     congressional committees on commerce with, and assistance to, 
     Cuba from other foreign countries during the preceding 12-
     month period.
       (b) Contents of Reports.--Each report required by 
     subsection (a) shall, for the period covered by the report, 
     contain--
       (1) a description of all bilateral assistance provided to 
     Cuba by other foreign countries, including humanitarian 
     assistance;
       (2) a description of Cuba's commerce with foreign 
     countries, including an identification of Cuba's trading 
     partners and the extent of such trade;
       (3) a description of the joint ventures completed, or under 
     consideration, by foreign nationals and business firms 
     involving facilities in Cuba, including an identification of 
     the location of the facilities involved and a description of 
     the terms of agreement of the joint ventures and the names of 
     the parties that are involved;
       (4) a determination as to whether or not any of the 
     facilities described in paragraph (3) is the subject of a 
     claim against Cuba by a United States person;
       (5) a determination of the amount of Cuban debt owed to 
     each foreign country, including the amount of debt exchanged, 
     forgiven, or reduced under the terms of each investment or 
     operation in Cuba involving foreign nationals or businesses; 
     and
       (6) a description of the steps taken to assure that raw 
     materials and semifinished or finished goods produced by 
     facilities in Cuba involving foreign nationals or businesses 
     do not enter the United States market, either directly or 
     through third countries or parties.

     SEC. 109. IMPORTATION SANCTION AGAINST CERTAIN CUBAN TRADING 
                   PARTNERS.

       (a) Sanction.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, 
     sugars, syrups, and molasses, that are the product of a 
     country that the President determines has imported sugar, 
     syrup, or molasses that is the product of Cuba, shall not be 
     entered, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, into 
     the customs territory of the United States, unless the 
     condition set forth in subsection (b) is met.
       (b) Condition for Removal of Sanction.--The sanction set 
     forth in subsection (a) shall cease to apply to a country if 
     the country certifies to the President that the country will 
     not import sugar, syrup, or molasses that is the product of 
     Cuba until free and fair elections, conducted under the 
     supervision of internationally recognized observers, are held 
     in Cuba. Such certification shall cease to be effective if 
     the President makes a subsequent determination under 
     subsection (a) with respect to that country.
       (c) Reports to Congress.--The President shall report to the 
     appropriate congressional committees all determinations made 
     under subsection (a) and all certifications made under 
     subsection (b).
       (d) Reallocation of Sugar Quotas.--During any period in 
     which a sanction under subsection (a) is in effect with 
     respect to a country, the President may reallocate to other 
     countries the quota of sugars, syrups, and molasses allocated 
     to that country, before the prohibition went into effect, 
     under chapter 17 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the 
     United States.
           TITLE II--SUPPORT FOR A FREE AND INDEPENDENT CUBA

     SEC. 201. POLICY TOWARD A TRANSITION GOVERNMENT AND A 
                   DEMOCRATICALLY ELECTED GOVERNMENT IN CUBA.

       It is the policy of the United States--
       (1) to support the self-determination of the Cuban people;
       (2) to facilitate a peaceful transition to representative 
     democracy and a free market economy in Cuba;
       (3) to be impartial toward any individual or entity in the 
     selection by the Cuban people of their future government;
       (4) to enter into negotiations with a democratically 
     elected government in Cuba regarding the status of the United 
     States Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay;
       (5) to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba, and support 
     the reintegration of Cuba into entities of the Inter-American 
     System, when the President determines that there exists a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba;
       (6) to remove the economic embargo of Cuba when the 
     President determines that 
     [[Page S2414]]  there exists a democratically elected 
     government in Cuba; and
       (7) to pursue a mutually beneficial trading relationship 
     with a democratic Cuba.

     SEC. 202. AUTHORIZATION OF ASSISTANCE FOR THE CUBAN PEOPLE.

       (a) Authorization.--
       (1) In general.--The President may provide assistance under 
     this section for the Cuban people after a transition 
     government, or a democratically elected government, is in 
     power in Cuba, as determined under section 203 (a) and (c).
       (2) Effect on other laws.--
       (A) Superseding other laws.--Subject to subparagraph (B), 
     assistance may be provided under this section notwithstanding 
     any other provision of law.
       (B) Determination required regarding property taken from 
     united states persons.--Subparagraph (A) shall not apply to 
     section 620(a)(2) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 
     U.S.C. 2370(a)(2)).
       (b) Response Plan.--
       (1) Development of plan.--The President shall develop a 
     plan detailing the manner in which the United States would 
     provide and implement support for the Cuban people in 
     response to the formation of--
       (A) a transition government in Cuba; and
       (B) a democratically elected government in Cuba.
       (2) Types of assistance.--Support for the Cuban people 
     under the plan described in paragraph (1) shall include the 
     following types of assistance:
       (A) Transition government.--Assistance under the plan to a 
     transition government in Cuba shall be limited to such food, 
     medicine, medical supplies and equipment, and other 
     assistance as may be necessary to meet emergency humanitarian 
     needs of the Cuban people.
       (B) Democratically elected government.--Assistance under 
     the plan for a democratically elected government in Cuba 
     shall consist of assistance to promote free market 
     development, private enterprise, and a mutually beneficial 
     trade relationship between the United States and Cuba. Such 
     assistance should include--
       (i) financing, guarantees, and other assistance provided by 
     the Export-Import Bank of the United States;
       (ii) insurance, guarantees, and other assistance provided 
     by the Overseas Private Investment Corporation for investment 
     projects in Cuba;
       (iii) assistance provided by the Trade and Development 
     Agency;
       (iv) international narcotics control assistance provided 
     under chapter 8 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 
     1961; and
       (v) Peace Corps activities.
       (c) Caribbean Basin Initiative.--(1) The President shall 
     determine, as part of the plan developed under subsection 
     (b), whether or not to designate Cuba as a beneficiary 
     country under section 212 of the Caribbean Basin Economic 
     Recovery Act.
       (2) Any designation of Cuba as a beneficiary country under 
     section 212 of such Act may only be made after a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba is in power. Such 
     designation may be made notwithstanding any other provision 
     of law.
       (3) The table contained in section 212(b) of the Caribbean 
     Basin Economic Recovery Act (19 U.S.C. 2702(b)) is amended by 
     inserting ``Cuba'' between ``Costa Rica'' and ``Dominica''.
       (d) Trade Agreements.--Notwithstanding any other provision 
     of law, the President, upon transmittal to Congress of a 
     determination under section 203(c) that a democratically 
     elected government in Cuba is in power, should--
       (1) take the steps necessary to extend nondiscriminatory 
     trade treatment (most-favored-nation status) to the products 
     of Cuba; and
       (2) take such other steps as will encourage renewed 
     investment in Cuba.
       (e) Communication With the Cuban People.--The President 
     should take the necessary steps to communicate to the Cuban 
     people the plan developed under this section.
       (f) Report to Congress.--Not later than 180 days after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall 
     transmit to the appropriate congressional committees a report 
     describing in detail the plan developed under this section.

     SEC. 203. IMPLEMENTATION; REPORTS TO CONGRESS.

       (a) Implementation With Respect to Transition Government.--
     Upon making a determination that a transition government in 
     Cuba is in power, the President shall transmit that 
     determination to the appropriate congressional committees and 
     should, subject to the availability of appropriations, 
     commence the provision of assistance to such transition 
     government under the plan developed under section 202(b).
       (b) Reports to Congress.--(1) The President shall transmit 
     to the appropriate congressional committees a report setting 
     forth the strategy for providing assistance described in 
     section 202(b)(2)(A) to the transition government in Cuba 
     under the plan of assistance developed under section 202(b), 
     the types of such assistance, and the extent to which such 
     assistance has been distributed in accordance with the plan.
       (2) The President shall transmit the report not later than 
     90 days after making the determination referred to in 
     paragraph (1), except that the President shall transmit the 
     report in preliminary form not later than 15 days after 
     making that determination.
       (c) Implementation With Respect to Democratically Elected 
     Government.--The President shall, upon determining that a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba is in power, 
     transmit that determination to the appropriate congressional 
     committees and should, subject to the availability of 
     appropriations, commence the provision of assistance to such 
     democratically elected government under the plan developed 
     under section 202(b)(2)(B).
       (d) Annual Reports to Congress.--Not later than 60 days 
     after the end of each fiscal year, the President shall 
     transmit to the appropriate congressional committees a report 
     on the assistance provided under the plan developed under 
     section 202(b), including a description of each type of 
     assistance, the amounts expended for such assistance, and a 
     description of the assistance to be provided under the plan 
     in the current fiscal year.

     SEC. 204. TERMINATION OF THE ECONOMIC EMBARGO OF CUBA.

       (a) Termination.--Upon the effective date of this section--
       (1) section 620(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
     (22 U.S.C. 2370(a)) is repealed;
       (2) section 620(f) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
     (22 U.S.C. 2370(f)) is amended by striking ``Republic of 
     Cuba'';
       (3) the prohibitions on transactions described in part 515 
     of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations, shall cease to 
     apply; and
       (4) the President shall take such other steps as may be 
     necessary to rescind any other regulations in effect under 
     the economic embargo of Cuba.
       (b) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect upon 
     transmittal to Congress of a determination under section 
     203(c) that a democratically elected government in Cuba is in 
     power.

     SEC. 205. REQUIREMENTS FOR A TRANSITION GOVERNMENT.

       For purposes of this Act, a transition government in Cuba 
     is a government in Cuba that--
       (1) is demonstrably in transition from communist 
     totalitarian dictatorship to representative democracy;
       (2) has released all political prisoners and allowed for 
     investigations of Cuban prisons by appropriate international 
     human rights organizations;
       (3) has dissolved the present Department of State Security 
     in the Cuban Ministry of the Interior, including the 
     Committees for the Defense of the Revolution and the Rapid 
     Response Brigades;
       (4) has publicly committed itself to, and is making 
     demonstrable progress in--
       (A) establishing an independent judiciary;
       (B) respecting internationally recognized human rights and 
     basic freedoms as set forth in the Universal Declaration of 
     Human Rights, to which Cuba is a signatory nation;
       (C) effectively guaranteeing the rights of free speech and 
     freedom of the press;
       (D) permitting the reinstatement of citizenship to Cuban-
     born nationals returning to Cuba;
       (E) organizing free and fair elections for a new 
     government--
       (i) to be held within 1 year after the transition 
     government assumes power;
       (ii) with the participation of multiple independent 
     political parties that have full access to the media on an 
     equal basis, including (in the case of radio, television, or 
     other telecommunications media) in terms of allotments of 
     time for such access and the times of day such allotments are 
     given; and
       (iii) to be conducted under the supervision of 
     internationally recognized observers, such as the 
     Organization of American States, the United Nations, and 
     other elections monitors;
       (F) assuring the right to private property;
       (G) taking appropriate steps to return to United States 
     citizens and entities property taken by the Government of 
     Cuba from such citizens and entities on or after January 1, 
     1959, or to provide equitable compensation to such citizens 
     and entities for such property;
       (H) having a currency that is fully convertible 
     domestically and internationally;
       (I) granting permits to privately owned telecommunications 
     and media companies to operate in Cuba; and
       (J) allowing the establishment of an independent labor 
     movement and of independent social, economic, and political 
     associations;
       (5) does not include Fidel Castro or Raul Castro;
       (6) has given adequate assurances that it will allow the 
     speedy and efficient distribution of assistance to the Cuban 
     people; and
       (7) permits the deployment throughout Cuba of independent 
     and unfettered international human rights monitors.

     SEC. 206. REQUIREMENTS FOR A DEMOCRATICALLY ELECTED 
                   GOVERNMENT.

       For purposes of this Act, a democratically elected 
     government in Cuba, in addition to continuing to comply with 
     the requirements of section 205, is a government in Cuba 
     which--
       (1) results from free and fair elections--
       (A) conducted under the supervision of internationally 
     recognized observers;
       (B) in which opposition parties were permitted ample time 
     to organize and campaign for such elections, and in which all 
     candidates in the elections were permitted full access to the 
     media;
       (2) is showing respect for the basic civil liberties and 
     human rights of the citizens of Cuba;
       (3) has established an independent judiciary;
     [[Page S2415]]   (4) is substantially moving toward a market-
     oriented economic system based on the right to own and enjoy 
     property;
       (5) is committed to making constitutional changes that 
     would ensure regular free and fair elections that meet the 
     requirements of paragraph (2); and
       (6) has returned to United States citizens, and entities 
     which are 50 percent or more beneficially owned by United 
     States citizens, property taken by the Government of Cuba 
     from such citizens and entities on or after January 1, 1959, 
     or provided full compensation in accordance with 
     international law standards and practice to such citizens and 
     entities for such property.
        TITLE III--PROTECTION OF AMERICAN PROPERTY RIGHTS ABROAD

     SEC. 301. EXCLUSION FROM THE UNITED STATES OF ALIENS WHO HAVE 
                   CONFISCATED PROPERTY CLAIMED BY UNITED STATES 
                   PERSONS.

       (a) Additional Grounds for Exclusion.--Section 212(a)(9) of 
     the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)) is 
     amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(D) Aliens who have confiscated american property abroad 
     and related persons.--(i) Any alien who--
       ``(I) has confiscated, or has directed or overseen the 
     confiscation of, property the claim to which is owned by a 
     United States person, or converts or has converted for 
     personal gain confiscated property, the claim to which is 
     owned by a United States person;
       ``(II) traffics in confiscated property, the claim to which 
     is owned by a United States person;
       ``(III) is a corporate officer, principal, or shareholder 
     of an entity which the Secretary of State determines or is 
     informed by competent authority has been involved in the 
     confiscation, trafficking in, or subsequent unauthorized use 
     or benefit from confiscated property, the claim to which is 
     owned by a United States person, or
       ``(IV) is a spouse or dependent of a person described in 
     subclause (I),
     is excludable.
       ``(ii) The validity of claims under this subparagraph shall 
     be established in accordance with section 303 of the Cuban 
     Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1995.
       ``(iii) For purposes of this subparagraph, the terms 
     `confiscated', `traffics', and `United States person' have 
     the same meanings given to such terms under section 4 of the 
     Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 
     1995.''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) 
     shall apply to individuals seeking to enter the United States 
     on or after the date of enactment of this Act.
     SEC. 302. LIABILITY FOR TRAFFICKING IN CONFISCATED PROPERTY 
                   CLAIMED BY UNITED STATES PERSONS.

       (a) Civil Remedy.--(1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2) 
     and (3), any person or government that traffics in property 
     confiscated by a foreign government shall be liable to the 
     United States person who owns the claim to the confiscated 
     property for money damages in an amount which is the greater 
     of--
       (A) the amount certified by the Foreign Claims Settlement 
     Commission under title V of the International Claims 
     Settlement Act of 1949, plus interest at the commercially 
     recognized normal rate;
       (B) the amount determined under section 303(a)(2); or
       (C) the fair market value of that property, calculated as 
     being the then current value of the property, or the value of 
     the property when confiscated plus interest at the 
     commercially recognized normal rate, whichever is greater.
       (2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), any person or 
     government that traffics in confiscated property after having 
     received (A) notice of a claim to ownership of the property 
     by the United States person who owns the claim to the 
     confiscated property, and (B) a copy of this section, shall 
     be liable to such United States person for money damages in 
     an amount which is treble the amount specified in paragraph 
     (1).
       (3)(A) Actions may be brought under paragraph (1) with 
     respect to property confiscated before, on, or after the date 
     of enactment of this Act.
       (B) In the case of property confiscated before the date of 
     enactment of this Act, no United States person may bring an 
     action under this section unless such person acquired 
     ownership of the claim to the confiscated property before 
     such date.
       (C) In the case of property confiscated on or after the 
     date of enactment of this Act, in order to maintain the 
     action, the United States person who is the plaintiff must 
     demonstrate to the court that the plaintiff has taken 
     reasonable steps to exhaust all available local remedies.
       (b) Jurisdiction.--Chapter 85 of title 28, United States 
     Code, is amended by inserting after section 1331 the 
     following new section:

     ``Sec. 1331a. Civil actions involving confiscated property

       ``The district courts shall have exclusive jurisdiction, 
     without regard to the amount in controversy, of any action 
     brought under section 302 of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic 
     Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1995.''.
       (c) Waiver of Sovereign Immunity.--Section 1605 of title 
     28, United States Code, is amended--
       (1) by striking ``or'' at the end of paragraph (5);
       (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (6) and 
     inserting ``; or''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(7) in which the action is brought with respect to 
     confiscated property under section 302 of the Cuban Liberty 
     and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1995.''.

     SEC. 303. DETERMINATION OF CLAIMS TO CONFISCATED PROPERTY.

       (a) Evidence of Ownership.--For purposes of this Act, 
     conclusive evidence of ownership by the United States person 
     of a claim to confiscated property is established--
       (1) when the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission certifies 
     the claim under title V of the International Claims 
     Settlement Act of 1949, as amended by subsection (b); or
       (2) when the claim has been determined to be valid by a 
     court or administrative agency of the country in which the 
     property was confiscated.
       (b) Amendment of the International Claims Settlement Act of 
     1949.--Title V of the International Claims Settlement Act of 
     1949 is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     section:


                          ``ADDITIONAL CLAIMS

       ``Sec. 514. Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
     title, a United States national may bring a claim to the 
     Commission for determination and certification under this 
     title of the amount and validity of a claim resulting from 
     actions taken by the Government of Cuba described in section 
     503(a), whether or not the United States national qualified 
     as a United States national at the time of the Cuban 
     government action, except that, in the case of property 
     confiscated after the date of enactment of this section, the 
     claimant must be a United States national at the time of the 
     confiscation.''.
       (c) Conforming Repeal.--Section 510 of the International 
     Claims Settlement Act of 1949 (22 U.S.C. 1643i) is repealed.
                                                                    ____

                      Section-by-Section Analysis

              Section 1. Short Title and Table of Contents

                          Section 2. Findings

       Details findings regarding Cuba, including the decline of 
     the Cuban economy, the substantial deterioration of the 
     health and welfare of the Cuban people, Castro's refusal to 
     adopt any economic or political reforms, and the continuing 
     repression of the Cuban people.

                          Section 3. Purposes

       States general purposes of the Act, including strengthening 
     international sanctions against the Castro government, 
     encouraging the holding of free and fair elections, providing 
     a policy framework for U.S. support to a transition 
     government and a democratically-elected government in Cuba, 
     and protecting the rights of U.S. persons who own claims to 
     confiscated property abroad.

                         Section 4. Definitions

       Defines terms used in this Act.


   title i: strengthening international sanctions against the castro 
                               government

                    Section 101. Statement of Policy

       Expresses the sense of Congress that (1) the acts of the 
     Castro government, including human rights violations, are a 
     threat to international peace, (2) the President should 
     instruct the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United 
     Nations to seek, in the Security Council, an international 
     embargo against the Castro dictatorship (similar to 
     consultations conducted with respect to Haiti), and (3) there 
     will be a detrimental impact on United States assistance to 
     any independent state of the former Soviet Union which 
     resumes efforts to make operational the nuclear facility at 
     Cienfuegos, Cuba.

        Section 102. Enforcement of the Economic Embargo of Cuba

       (a) Reaffirms the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 [section 
     1704(a)], which states that the President should encourage 
     foreign countries to restrict trade and credit relations with 
     Cuba, and urges the President to take immediate steps to 
     apply sanctions described in section 1704(b)(1) of such Act 
     against countries assisting Cuba.
       (b) Calls on the Secretary of State to direct U.S. 
     diplomatic personnel to communicate to foreign officials the 
     reasons for the U.S. economic embargo on Cuba and to urge 
     foreign governments to cooperate more effectively with the 
     embargo.
       (c) Requires the President to instruct the Secretary of the 
     Treasury and Attorney General to fully enforce the Cuban 
     Assets Control Regulations.
       (d) Subjects to criminal penalties under the Trading with 
     the Enemy Act persons violating travel restrictions imposed 
     by the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (part 515 of title 
     31, Code of Federal Regulations). Penalties include fines 
     and/or imprisonment of a person or official of a corporation.

      Section 103. Prohibition Against Indirect Financing of Cuba

       (a) Prohibits any loans, credits, or other financing from a 
     U.S. person or agency to a foreign person who knowingly 
     purchases a U.S. property confiscated by the Cuban 
     government.
       (b) Terminates this prohibition on the date of termination 
     of the economic embargo of Cuba.
       (c) Makes violations of this provision punishable by the 
     same penalties that are applicable to similar violations of 
     the Cuban Assets Control Regulations.

     Section 104. United States Opposition to Cuban Membership in 
                  International Financial Institutions

       (a) Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the 
     U.S. executive director of 
     [[Page S2416]]  each international financial institution to 
     vote against the admission of Cuba as a member until Cuba has 
     held free and fair internationally supervised elections.
       (b) Directs the President to take steps during the period 
     that a transition government is in power in Cuba to support 
     the processing of Cuba's application for membership in any 
     international financial institution, to take effect after a 
     democratically-elected government is in power in Cuba.
       (c) Requires the United States to withhold payment to any 
     international financial institution that approves a loan or 
     other assistance to Cuba in an amount equal to the amount of 
     the loan or assistance provided to Cuba.

  Section 105. United States Opposition to Readmission of Cuba to the 
                 Organization of American States (OAS)

       States that the President should instruct the U.S. 
     Permanent Representative to the OAS to vote against the 
     readmission of Cuba to membership in the OAS until a 
     democratically-elected government exits in Cuba.

Section 106. Assistance by the Independent States of the Former Soviet 
                    Union for the Government of Cuba

       (a) Requires the President to submit to Congress a report 
     detailing progress towards the withdrawal of personnel of any 
     independent state of the former Soviet Union [including 
     advisers, technicians, and military personnel] from the 
     Cienfuegos nuclear facility in Cuba.
       (b) Amends the criteria for providing U.S. assistance to 
     the independent states of the former Soviet Union to specify 
     that the President shall take into account the extent to 
     which a state is
      acting to close military and intelligence facilities in 
     Cuba, including the military and intelligence facilities 
     at Lourdes and Cienfuegos. [Section 498(a)(11) of the 
     Foreign Assistance Act currently does not mention 
     intelligence facilities or specify the facilities at 
     Lourdes and Cienfuegos].
       (c) Prohibits the President from providing assistance for 
     the government of any independent state that the President 
     has determined and certified to Congress is providing 
     assistance for, or engaging in nonmarket based trade with, 
     the Government of Cuba. Nonmarket based trade includes 
     exports, imports, exchanges, or other arrangements that are 
     provided for goods and services on terms more favorable than 
     those generally available in applicable markets or for 
     comparable commodities.
       (d) Express strong disapproval by Congress for $200,000,000 
     in credits from Russia to Cuba in support of the intelligence 
     facility at Lourdes, Cuba, and requires the President to 
     withhold assistance to any state of the former Soviet Union 
     in an amount equal to the sum of such state's assistance and 
     credits for military and intelligence facilities in Cuba. 
     Funding for Nunn-Lugar denuclearization programs and 
     humanitarian assistance is exempt.

             Section 107. Television Broadcasting to Cuba.

       Instructs the Director of USIA to implement the conversion 
     of Television Marti to Ultra-High Frequency (UHF) 
     broadcasting, and to submit quarterly reports to Congress on 
     progress made in carrying out the conversion until it is 
     fully implemented.

   Section 108. Reports on Commerce with and Assistance to Cuba from 
                           Foreign Countries

       Directs the President to submit an annual report to 
     Congress on assistance to and commerce with Cuba from foreign 
     countries. Each report shall contain: (1) a description of 
     all bilateral assistance, including humanitarian assistance; 
     (2) identification of Cuba's trading partners and the extent 
     of such trade; (3) a description of joint ventures completed 
     or under consideration by foreign nationals and business 
     firms involving facilities in Cuba; (4) a determination as to 
     whether any facilities are claimed by a U.S. person; (5) a 
     determination of the amount of Cuban debt owed to each 
     foreign country and business, including the amount of debt 
     exchanged, forgiven, or reduced; and (6) steps taken to 
     assure that raw materials and semi-finished or finished goods 
     produced by facilities in Cuba involving foreign nationals or 
     businesses are not entering the U.S. market.

    Section 109. Importation Sanction Against Certain Cuban Trading 
                                Partners

       (a) Prohibits importation into the United States of any 
     sugars, syrups, or molasses that are the product of a country 
     that the President determines has imported sugar, syrup, or 
     molasses from Cuba. The intent of this section is to prevent 
     indirect support of the Cuban sugar industry through 
     countries that buy
      Cuban sugar for either domestic consumption or reprocessing 
     for export and sell their own or the reprocessed sugar to 
     the United States.
       (b) Provides for the removal of the sanction in subsection 
     (a) if the country certifies to the President that the 
     country will not import sugar, syrup, or molasses that is the 
     product of Cuba until free and fair elections are held in 
     Cuba. Such a certification would cease to apply if the 
     President makes a subsequent certification under subsection 
     (a).
       (c) Instructs the President to report to Congress all 
     determinations in subsections (a) and (b).
       (d) Allows the President to reallocate to other countries 
     the quota of sugars, syrups, and molasses allocated to a 
     country subject to sanction under subsection (a).


           title ii: support for a free and independent cuba

       Section 201. Policy Toward a Transition Government and a 
                   Democratically-Elected Government

       States that U.S. policy is to: (1) support the self-
     determination of the Cuban people; (2) facilitate a peaceful 
     transition to representative democracy and a free market 
     economy in Cuba; and (3) be impartial toward any individual 
     or entity in the selection by the Cuban people of their 
     future government. Once the President has determined that a 
     democratically-elected government exists in Cuba, the U.S. 
     policy shall be to: (4) enter into negotiations regarding the 
     status of the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo; (5) restore 
     diplomatic recognition and support the reintegration of Cuba 
     into entities of the Inter-American System; (6) remove the 
     economic embargo; and (7) pursue a mutually beneficial 
     trading relationship.

     Section 202. Authorization of Assistance for the Cuban People

       (a) Authorizes the President to provide assistance for the 
     Cuban people after a transition government or a 
     democratically-elected government is in power in Cuba, as 
     determined under section 203. Assistance may be provided 
     under this section notwithstanding any other provision of 
     law, except that no assistance may be given until the 
     President determines that a transition or democratically 
     elected Cuban government has ``taken appropriate steps 
     according to international law standards'' to return or 
     compensate for property taken from US citizens and entities 
     on or after January 1, 1959 [section 620(a)(2) of the Foreign 
     Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2379(a)(2))].
       (b)(1) Directs the President to develop a plan detailing 
     the manner in which the United States would provide 
     assistance to the Cuban people in response to the formation 
     of a transition and a democratically-elected government in 
     Cuba.
       (2) Limits assistance to a transition government to such 
     food, medicine, medical supplies and equipment, and other 
     assistance as may be necessary to meet the humanitarian needs 
     of the Cuban people.
       (3) Specifies that assistance under the plan for a 
     democratically-elected government shall consist of assistance 
     to promote free market development, private enterprise, and 
     mutually beneficial trade; such assistance should include 
     assistance provided by the Export-Import Bank, the Overseas 
     Private Investment Corporation, and the Trade and Development 
     Agency, international narcotics control assistance, and Peace 
     Corps activities.
       (c) Requires the President to determine as part of the 
     assistance plan whether to designate Cuba as a beneficiary 
     country under section 212 of the Caribbean Basic Economic 
     Recovery Act once a democratically-elected government is in 
     power in Cuba.
       (d) Authorizes the President, upon determining that a 
     democratically-elected government is in power in Cuba, to 
     extend most-favored-nation (MFN) status to Cuba and to 
     otherwise encourage renewed investment in Cuba, 
     notwithstanding any other provision of law.
       (e) Directs the President to take the necessary steps to 
     communicate this plan to the Cuban people.
       (f) Requires the President to transmit to Congress, not 
     later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act, a 
     detailed report on the plan developed under this section.

            Section 203. Implementation; Reports to Congress

       (a) Authorizes the President to begin assistance to Cuba 
     upon transmittal to Congress of a determination that a 
     transition government is in power in Cuba.
       (b) Requires the President to transmit to Congress a 
     preliminary report, within 15 days of such a determination, 
     setting forth the strategy and implementation of assistance, 
     followed by a full report not later than 90 days after making 
     the determination.
       (c) Authorizes the President to begin assistance to Cuba 
     upon transmittal to Congress of a determination that a 
     democratically-elected government is in power in Cuba.
       (d) Requires an annual report, within 60 days of the end of 
     each fiscal year, on the assistance to be provided under the 
     plan developed under section 202(b) and the assistance to be 
     provided in the current fiscal year.

        Section 204. Termination of the Economic Embargo on Cuba

       Terminates the economic embargo on Cuba upon transmittal to 
     Congress of a presidential determination that a 
     democratically-elected government is in power in Cuba.

         Section 205. Requirements for a Transition Government
       Defines a transition government in Cuba as one which (1) is 
     demonstrably in transition from communist totalitarian 
     dictatorship to democracy; (2) has released all political 
     prisoners; (3) has dissolved the present Department of State 
     Security in the Cuban Ministry of the Interior; and (4) also 
     ``makes public commitments'' to (A) establishing an 
     independent judiciary, (B) respecting internationally 
     recognized human rights and basic freedoms, (C) guaranteeing 
     the rights of free speech and freedom of the press,
      (D) permitting the reinstatement of citizenship to Cuban-
     born nationals returning to Cuba, (E) organizing free and 
     fair elections for a new government, (F) assuring the 
     right to private property, (G) taking appropriate steps 
     either to return to U.S. citizens property taken by the 
     government of Cuba on or after January 1, 1959 or to 
     provide equitable 
     [[Page S2417]]  compensation to U.S. citizens for such 
     property, (H) having a currency that is fully convertible 
     domestically and internationally, (I) granting permits to 
     privately-owned telecommunications and media companies to 
     operate in Cuba, and (J) allowing the establishment of an 
     independent labor movement and of independent social, 
     economic, and political associations. Other provisions 
     include that the transition government: (5) does not include 
     Fidel Castro or Raul Castro; (6) has given adequate 
     assurances that it will allow the speedy and efficient 
     distribution of assistance to the Cuban people; and (7) 
     permits the deployment throughout Cuba of independent and 
     unfettered international human rights monitors.

   Section 206. Requirements for a Democratically-Elected Government

       Defines a democratic government in Cuba as one which, in 
     addition to the requirements in section 205, (1) is the 
     product of free and fair elections in which opposition 
     parties had sufficient time to organize and were permitted 
     full access to media; (2) is showing respect for basic civil 
     liberties and human rights; (3) has established an 
     independent judiciary; (4) is moving toward a market-oriented 
     economic system based on the right to own and enjoy property; 
     (5) is committed to making constitutional changes that would 
     ensure regular free and fair elections; and (6) has returned 
     to U.S. citizens, and entities which are 50 percent or more 
     beneficially-owned by U.S. citizens, property taken by the 
     Government of Cuba from such citizens and entities on or 
     after January 1, 1959, or provides full compensation in 
     accordance with international law standards.


        TITLE III: PROTECTION OF AMERICAN PROPERTY RIGHTS ABROAD

   Section 301. Exclusion from the United States of Aliens Who Have 
         Confiscated Property Claimed by United States Persons

       Denies entry into the United States to any alien (including 
     a spouse or dependent of that person) who has confiscated, 
     has directed, or has overseen the confiscation, of U.S. 
     property abroad. This provision is applicable to corporate 
     officers, principals, or shareholders of an entity that has 
     been involved in the confiscation, purchase, or receipt of a 
     confiscated property.

Section 302. Liability for Trafficking in Confiscated Property Claimed 
                        by United States Persons

       (a) Holds any person or government which traffics in 
     property confiscated by a foreign government liable for money 
     damages to the U.S. claimant of the confiscated property. 
     Treble damages are authorized in cases where the person or 
     government trafficking in confiscated property has received 
     notice of a U.S. person's claim of ownership. If property was 
     confiscated before the date of enactment of this Act, no U.S. 
     person may bring an action unless such person acquired 
     ownership of the claim to the confiscated property before 
     such date. If a property is confiscated on or after the date 
     of enactment of this Act, the U.S. person who is the 
     plaintiff must demonstrate to the court that the plaintiff 
     has taken reasonable steps to exhaust all available local 
     remedies.
       (b) Gives Federal district courts exclusive jurisdiction 
     over any actions brought under this section.
       (c) Waives sovereign immunity for any actions brought under 
     this section.

      Section 303. Determination of Claims to Confiscated Property

       (a) Provides that conclusive evidence of ownership by a 
     U.S. person to confiscated property is established when the 
     Foreign Claims Settlement Commission certifies the claim or 
     when the claim has been determined valid by a court or 
     administrative agency in the country in which the property 
     was confiscated.
       (b) Amends the International Claims Settlement Act to allow 
     a U.S. national to bring a claim to the Commission for 
     determination and certification of the amount and validity of 
     a claim against the Cuban government of confiscation of 
     property.
                                 ______

      By Mr. DASCHLE (for himself, Mr. Pressler, Mr. Campbell, Mr. 
        Simon, Mr. Pell, and Mr. Dorgan):
  S. 382. A bill to establish a Wounded Knee National Tribal Park, and 
for other purposes; to the Committee on Indian Affairs.


    the wounded knee national tribal park establishment act of 1995

  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, today I am joining with my colleague from 
South Dakota, Senator Pressler, and Senators Campbell, Simon, Pell, and 
Dorgan to introduce legislation that would establish the Wounded Knee 
National Tribal Park in the State of South Dakota. The purpose of this 
effort is to acknowledge the armed struggle between the Plains Indians 
and the U.S. Army that culminated in the death of over 300 Lakota Sioux 
men, women, and children at Wounded Knee, SD, on December 29, 1890.
  There is no question about the historical significance of the Wounded 
Knee tragedy. Wounded Knee not only signaled an end to a chapter in 
American history often referred to as the ``Indian Wars'' but it also 
marked a change in national policy that once forced Indian tribes to 
locate on smaller and smaller reservations.
  History books show that on December 15, 1890, Federal agents, 
concerned about the potential ramifications of a spiritual movement 
among the Sioux Indians, attempted to arrest Chief Sitting Bull. When 
one of his followers shot at the agents, they returned gunfire, 
mortally wounding Sitting Bull.
  Sitting Bull's half-brother, Chief Big Foot, took in Sitting Bull's 
followers. The band fled from the Bad Lands toward the Pine Ridge 
Indian Reservation. The U.S. Army intercepted the party and accepted an 
unconditional surrender from Chief Big Foot. The entire band was 
escorted to a military camp at Wounded Knee Creek.
  At Wounded Knee, a single gunshot was fired. It is not known to this 
day whether the shot was fired by a member of the Sioux Tribe or the 
U.S. Army. What is known is that the gunshot led to a largely one-side 
volley of bullets leaving approximately 350 to 370 Sioux men, women, 
and children dead or wounded. The U.S. Army suffered 60 casualties, 
many of whom reportedly were hit by bullets fired by their comrades.
  These are the tragic facts of what is known as the Wounded Knee 
Massacre. One hundred years later, in 1990, the 101st Congress passed 
Senate Concurrent Resolution 153, which acknowledged the carnage at 
Wounded Knee and expressed ``congressional support for the 
establishment of a suitable and appropriate memorial to those who were 
tragically slain at Wounded Knee.''
    
    
  The bill we are introducing today gives substance to the sentiment 
expressed by the resolution.
  Mr. President, considerable time and thought has been given to the 
Wounded Knee memorial project by descendants of the victims and 
survivors of the Wounded Knee tragedy, by the Oglala Sioux and the 
Cheyenne River Sioux tribal governments, and by Members of Congress, 
the State of South Dakota, and the Department of the Interior.
  The effort to establish a memorial goes back even further than 1990. 
Since 1950, Wounded Knee has been studied six times by the National 
Park Service and has been identified as a prime candidate for addition 
to the National Park System. Since 1987, the Lakota Tribes of South 
Dakota have been working with the National Park Service to plan for the 
preservation of Wounded Knee.
  In Congress, the Senate Indian Affairs Committee held hearings on 
proposals to establish a
 Wounded Knee Memorial and Historic Site on September 25, 1990 in 
Washington, and on April 30, 1991 at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation 
in South Dakota.

  In May 1991, at the request of the Lakota Sioux and with the support 
of the Secretary of the Interior, the National Park Service began to 
explore management alternatives for the Wounded Knee site. The process 
included strong public participation from the Oglala Sioux Tribe, the 
Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, and the Wounded Knee Survivors Association.
  Those hearings enabled all the parties involved to discover much 
common ground and strengthened our shared resolve to move forward with 
the establishment of the Wounded Knee National Tribal Park.
  The step we are taking today is not an end, but a beginning.
  Many issues remain to be addressed, including land acquisition for 
the Wounded Knee National Park, design of the memorial, and management 
of the National Tribal Park. I welcome debate on these and other 
matters, and look forward to participation in the debate.
  By passing this legislation, we will clear the way for resolution of 
those issues. More important, we will preserve for future generations 
an important chapter from the text of America's past.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:
                                 S. 382

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,
      [[Page S2418]] SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Wounded Knee National Tribal 
     Park Establishment Act of 1995''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

       (a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
       (1) in December of 1890, approximately 350 to 375 Sioux 
     men, women, and children under the leadership of Chief Big 
     Foot journeyed from the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation to 
     the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation at the invitation of Chief 
     Red Cloud to help make peace between the non-Indians and 
     Indians;
       (2) the journey of Chief Big Foot and his band of 
     Minneconjou Sioux occurred during the Ghost Dance Religion 
     period when extreme hostility existed between Sioux Indians 
     and non-Indians residing near the Sioux reservations, and the 
     United States Army assumed control of the Sioux reservations;
       (3) Chief Big Foot and his band were intercepted on the 
     Pine Ridge Indian Reservation at Porcupine Butte by Major 
     Whitside, surrendered unconditionally under a white flag of 
     truce, and were escorted to Wounded Knee Creek, where Colonel 
     Forsyth assumed command;
       (4) on December 29, 1890, an incident occurred in which 
     soldiers under the command of General Forsyth killed and 
     wounded over 300 members of the band of Chief Big Foot, most 
     all of whom were unarmed and entitled to protection of their 
     rights to property, person, and life under Federal law;
       (5) the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre is a historically 
     significant event because the event marks the last military 
     encounter of the Indian wars period of the 19th century;
       (6) in S. Con. Res. 153 (101st Cong., 2d Sess.), Congress 
     apologized to the Sioux people for the 1890 Massacre;
       (7)(A) paragraph (2) of such concurrent resolution provides 
     that Congress ``expresses its support for the establishment 
     of a suitable and appropriate Memorial to those who were so 
     tragically slain at Wounded Knee which could inform the 
     American public of the historic significance of the events at 
     Wounded Knee and accurately portray the heroic and courageous 
     campaign waged by the Sioux people to preserve and protect 
     their lands and their way of life during this period''; and
       (B) paragraph (3) of such concurrent resolution provides 
     that Congress ``expresses its commitment to acknowledge and 
     learn from our history, including the Wounded Knee Massacre, 
     in order to provide a proper foundation for building an ever 
     more humane, enlightened, and just society for the future'';
       (8) the Wounded Knee Massacre site, and sites relating to 
     the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre and Ghost Dance Religion on 
     the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation and Pine Ridge Indian 
     Reservation, are nationally significant cultural and historic 
     sites that must be protected through the designation of the 
     sites as a national tribal park; and
       (9) the Wounded Knee Massacre is a nationally significant 
     event that must be memorialized by establishing suitable and 
     appropriate memorials to the Indian victims of the Massacre, 
     located on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation and Pine 
     Ridge Indian Reservation.
       (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are to--
       (1) establish the Wounded Knee National Tribal Park 
     consisting of--
       (A) sites relating to the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre and 
     Ghost Dance Religion located on the Cheyenne River Indian 
     Reservation; and
       (B) the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre Site and sites relating 
     to the Massacre and Ghost Dance Religion located on the Pine 
     Ridge Indian Reservation;
       (2) establish suitable and appropriate national monuments 
     within both units of the Wounded Knee National Tribal Park to 
     memorialize the Indian victims of the 1890 Wounded Knee 
     Massacre; and
       (3) authorize feasibility studies to--
       (A) establish the route of Chief Big Foot from the Cheyenne 
     River Indian Reservation to Wounded Knee as a national 
     historic trail; and
       (B) establish a visitor information and orientation center 
     on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation.

     SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

       As used in this Act:
       (1) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Wounded 
     Knee National Tribal Park Advisory Commission established 
     under section 8(a).
       (2) North unit.--The term ``North Unit'' means the area of 
     the Park comprised of the sites referred to in section 
     2(b)(1)(A).
       (3) Park.--The term ``Park'' means the Wounded Knee 
     National Tribal Park established under section 4.
       (4) Real property.--For the purposes of this Act, the term 
     ``real property'' includes lands, and all mineral rights, 
     water rights, easements, permanent structures, and fixtures 
     on such lands.
       (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of the Interior.
       (6) South unit.--The term ``South Unit'' means the area of 
     the Park comprised of the sites referred to in section 
     2(b)(1)(B).

     SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF WOUNDED KNEE NATIONAL TRIBAL PARK.

       (a) Establishment.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish a national 
     tribal park to be known as the ``Wounded Knee National Tribal 
     Park'', as generally described in the third alternative of 
     the report completed by the National Park Service entitled 
     ``Draft Study of Alternatives, Environmental Assessment, 
     Wounded Knee, South Dakota,'' and dated January 1993, and as 
     more particularly described in this Act.
       (2) Area included in park.--The Wounded Knee National 
     Tribal Park shall consist of--
       (A) a North Unit that may include--
       (i) such sites relating to the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre 
     and Ghost Dance Religion, including the campsite of Chief Big 
     Foot at Deep Creek, as the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, in 
     consultation with the Director of the National Park Service, 
     considers necessary to include in such unit;
       (ii) a cultural center and museum complex;
       (iii) projects described in section 9(b)(2); and
       (iv) a suitable and appropriate national monument to 
     memorialize Chief Big Foot and his band of Minneconjou Sioux; 
     and
       (B) a South Unit that may include--
       (i) the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre site, as generally 
     described in the 1990 boundaries studies authorized by the 
     National Park Service, and such other sites relating to the 
     1890 Wounded Knee Massacre and Ghost Dance Religion as the 
     Oglala Sioux Tribe, in consultation with the Director of the 
     National Park Service, considers necessary to include in such 
     Unit;
       (ii) a cultural center and museum complex at or near the 
     Wounded Knee Massacre site;
       (iii) projects described in section 9(b)(2); and
       (iv) a suitable and appropriate national monument to 
     memorialize the Sioux Indians involved in the 1890 Wounded 
     Knee Massacre.
       (b) Cooperative Agreements.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary shall enter into a 
     cooperative agreement with each of the Cheyenne River Sioux 
     Tribe with respect to the North Unity, and Oglala Sioux Tribe 
     with respect to the South Unit to carry out planning, design, 
     construction, operation, maintenance, and replacement 
     activities, as appropriate, for the units.
       (2) Requirements for cooperative agreements.--A cooperative 
     agreement entered into under paragraph (1) shall set forth, 
     in a manner acceptable to the Secretary--
       (A)(i) the responsibilities of the parties referred to in 
     paragraph (1) with respect to the North Unit and the South 
     Unit; and
       (ii) the manner in which contracts to carry out such 
     activities will be administered;
       (B) the procedures and requirements for the approval and 
     acceptance of the design of, and construction of the North 
     Unit and South Unit;
       (C) such Federal management policies described in the 
     publication entitled ``Management Policies, U.S. Department 
     of the Interior, National Park Service, 1988'' as the 
     Secretary considers necessary to qualify both units of the 
     Park for affiliation;
       (D) a general management plan for each unit of the Park 
     that shall include plans--
       (i) to protect and preserve the religious sanctity of the 
     Wounded Knee Massacre site and other religious sites located 
     within each unit;
       (ii) to restore the Wounded Knee Massacre site, and other 
     important historic sites located within the units, to the 
     original condition of the sites at the time of the Massacre, 
     including the removal of all buildings and structures that 
     have no historical significance;
       (iii) for the enactment of tribal zoning ordinances to 
     protect areas surrounding each unit from commercial 
     development and exploitation;
       (iv) for the implementation of a continuing program of 
     public involvement, interpretation, and visitor education 
     concerning Lakota Sioux history and culture within each unit;
       (v) to protect, interpret, and preserve important 
     archaological and paleontological sites within each unit;
       (vi) for visitor use facilities, and the training and 
     employing of tribal members within each unit, as provided in 
     subsection (e); and
       (vii) to waive or require entrance fees at the Wounded Knee 
     Massacre site; and
       (E) the role and responsibilities of the Advisory 
     Commission established under section 8(a) in relation to both 
     units.
       (c) Title.--
       (1) Property acquired for the north unit.--Title to all 
     real property acquired for the North Unit of the Wounded Knee 
     National Tribal Park shall be held in trust by the United 
     States for the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe.
       (2) Property acquired for the south unit.--Title to all 
     real property acquired in the South Unit of the Wounded Knee 
     National Tribal Park shall be held in trust by the United 
     States for the Oglala Sioux Tribe.
       (d) Technical Assistance.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary may provide technical 
     assistance to the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and Oglala Sioux 
     Tribe for carrying out the activities described in subsection 
     (b)(1).
       (2) Training.--In addition to providing the assistance 
     described in paragraph (1), the Secretary may train and 
     employ members of the tribes concerning the operation and 
     maintenance of both units, including training in--
       (A) the provision of public services, management of visitor 
     use facilities, interpretation and visitor education on Sioux 
     history and culture, and artifact curation at both units; and
       (B) the interpretation, management, protection, and 
     preservation of other historical and natural properties at 
     both units.
       (e) Application of the Indian Self-Determination Act.--
     Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the activities 
     described in subsection (b)(1) shall be subject to the 
     Indian 
     [[Page S2419]]  Self-Determination Act (25 U.S.C. 450f et 
     seq.).

     SEC. 5. ACQUISITION OF LANDS FOR WOUNDED KNEE NATIONAL TRIBAL 
                   PARK.

       (a) In General.--The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and Oglala 
     Sioux Tribe may acquire by purchase from a willing seller, by 
     gift or devise, by exchange, or in other manner--
       (1) surface and subsurface rights to any tract of fee-
     patented or trust land; or
       (2) easements that cover such lands,

     that those tribes, in consultation with the Secretary, 
     consider necessary for inclusion in the North Unit or the 
     South Unit of the Wounded Knee National Tribal Park.
       (b) Financial Assistance.--The Secretary may provide 
     financial assistance to the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and 
     the Oglala Sioux Tribe to acquire land and any interest in 
     land or other real property that is necessary for a unit of 
     the Park.

     SEC. 6. MANAGEMENT.

       (a) Management of North Unit.--
       (1) In general.--The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, or a 
     designated agency or authority of that tribe, shall operate, 
     maintain, and manage the North Unit pursuant to the terms and 
     conditions contained in a cooperative agreement between the 
     Secretary and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe entered into by 
     the Secretary and the tribe pursuant to section 4(b).
       (2) Exclusion.--The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe shall have 
     no jurisdiction or authority over the South Unit.
       (b) Management of South Unit.--
       (1) In general.--The Oglala Sioux Tribe, or a designated 
     agency or authority of such tribe, shall operate, maintain, 
     and manage the South Unit pursuant to the terms and 
     conditions contained in a cooperative agreement between the 
     Secretary and the Oglala Sioux Tribe entered into by the 
     Secretary and the tribe pursuant to section 4(b).
       (2) Exclusion.--The Oglala Sioux Tribe shall have no 
     jurisdiction or authority over the North Unit.

     SEC. 7. PLANNING AND DESIGN OF NATIONAL MONUMENTS; 
                   FEASIBILITY STUDIES.

       (a) Monuments.--
       (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
     national monuments on the North Unit and South Unit 
     authorized by subparagraphs (A)(iv) and (B)(iv) of section 
     4(a)(2) shall be planned, designed, and constructed by the 
     Secretary, after consultation with an advisory committee that 
     the Secretary shall appoint in consultation with--
       (A) the Wounded Knee Survivors Association of the Cheyenne 
     River Indian Reservation;
       (B) the Wounded Knee Survivors Association of the Pine 
     Ridge Indian Reservation; and
       (C) direct descendants of the band of Minneconjou Sioux of 
     Chief Big Foot.
       (2) Authority of the cheyenne river sioux tribal council 
     and the oglala sioux tribal council.--(A) The Cheyenne River 
     Sioux Tribal Council and the Oglala Sioux Tribal Council 
     shall have no authority to plan and design the monuments 
     referred to in paragraph (1).
       (B) The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Council and the Oglala 
     Sioux Tribal Council shall have the authority to enter into 
     contracts for the construction, operation, maintenance, and 
     replacement of the monuments under the Indian Self-
     Determination Act (25 U.S.C. 450f et seq.).
       (b) Feasibility Studies.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary shall complete feasibility 
     studies to--
       (A) establish and mark the route taken by Chief Big Foot 
     and his band from the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation to 
     Wounded Knee as a national historic trail; and
       (B) establish a visitor information and orientation center 
     on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation.
       (2) Report.--Not later than 1 year after funds are 
     initially made available to the Secretary for a feasibility 
     study conducted under this subsection, the Secretary shall 
     complete the study and submit a report that contains the 
     findings of the study to Congress.

     SEC. 8. WOUNDED KNEE NATIONAL TRIBAL PARK ADVISORY 
                   COMMISSION.

       (a) In General.--There is established within the Department 
     of the Interior the Wounded Knee National Tribal Park 
     Advisory Commission. The Commission shall advise regularly 
     the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and Oglala Sioux Tribe, or any 
     designated agency or authority of either tribe, concerning 
     the management and administration of the North Unit and South 
     Unit.
       (b) Role and Responsibilities.--The role and 
     responsibilities of the Commission shall be defined in the 
     cooperative agreements that the Secretary shall enter into 
     with the Cheyenne Sioux Tribe and Oglala Sioux Tribe under 
     section 4(b). The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and Oglala Sioux 
     Tribe, or any designated agency or authority of either such 
     tribe, shall consult with the Commission not less frequently 
     than 4 times each year.
       (c) Period of Operation.--The Commission shall exist for 
     such time as either the North Unit or the South Unit is in 
     existence.
       (d) Membership.--The Secretary shall appoint 17 members of 
     the Commission. In addition, the Director of the National 
     Park Service or a designee of the Director shall serve as an 
     ex-officio member of the Commission. The Secretary shall 
     appoint the members of the Commission after consulting with, 
     and soliciting a recommendation from each of the following:
       (1) The Chairman of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe.
       (2) The President of the Oglala Sioux Tribe.
       (3) The Chairman of the Wounded Knee Community Council on 
     the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
       (4) The Chairman of the Wounded Knee Subcommunity Council 
     on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
       (5) The Chairman of the White Clay Community Council on the 
     Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
       (6) The Chairman of District No. 3 on the Cheyenne River 
     Indian Reservation.
       (7) The Chairman of Red Scaffold Community on the Cheyenne 
     River Indian Reservation.
       (8) The Chairman of Cherry Creek Community on the Cheyenne 
     River Reservation.
       (9) The Chairman of Bridger Community on the Cheyenne River 
     Reservation.
       (10) The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Oglala 
     Sioux Parks and Recreation Authority.
       (11) The President of the Wounded Knee Survivors 
     Association of the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation.
       (12) The President of the Wounded Knee Survivors 
     Association of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
       (13) The Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.
       (14)(i) The Governor of the State of South Dakota and the 
     historic preservation officer of such State.
       (ii) The Governor of the State of Nebraska and the historic 
     preservation officer of such State.
       (e) Chair.--The offices of Chairman and Vice Chairman of 
     the Commission shall be rotated between the Chairman of the 
     Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe (or a designated representative of 
     the Chairman) and the President of the Oglala Sioux Tribe (or 
     a designated representative of the President) on a year-to-
     year basis. If both the Chairman and Vice Chairman are absent 
     from any meeting, the members of the Commission who are 
     present at the meeting shall select a member who is present 
     to serve in the place of the Chairman for the meeting.
       (f) Meetings.--The Commission shall meet at the call of the 
     Chairman or a majority of its members. In a manner consistent 
     with the public meeting requirements of the Federal Advisory 
     Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.), the Commission shall from time 
     to time meet with persons concerned with Park issues relating 
     to the North Unit or South Unit. The Commission shall record 
     all minutes and resolutions of the Commission and make such 
     records available to the public upon request.
       (g) Administrative Director.--
       (1) In general.--The Secretary, in consultation with the 
     Commission, shall employ an Administrative Director for the 
     Commission and define the duties of the Administrative 
     Director. The Administrative Director shall be paid at a rate 
     not to exceed the annual rate of basic pay payable for grade 
     GS-12 of the General Schedule under subchapter IV of chapter 
     53 of title 5, United States Code, without regard to--
       (A) the provisions of title 5, United States Code, 
     governing appointments in the competitive service; and
       (B) the provisions of chapter 51, and subchapter III of 
     chapter 52 of that title relating to classification and 
     General Schedule pay rates.
       (2) Office.--The office and staff of the Administrative 
     Director shall be located at such location as the Secretary 
     considers appropriate.
       (h) Support Services.--The Administrator of General 
     Services shall provide to the Commission, on a 
     nonreimbursable basis, such administrative support services 
     as the Commission, in consultation with the Secretary, may 
     request.
       (i) Expenses.--Members of the Commission who are not 
     otherwise employed by the Federal Government, while away from 
     their homes or regular places of business in the performance 
     of services for the Commission, shall be allowed travel and 
     all other related expenses, including per diem in lieu of 
     subsistence, in the same manner as persons employed 
     intermittently in Government service are allowed expenses 
     under section 5703 of title 5, United States Code.
       (j) Applicability of Federal Advisory Act.--Except with 
     respect to any requirement for reissuance of a charter, and 
     except as otherwise provided in this Act, the provisions of 
     the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall 
     apply to the Commission established under this Act.

     SEC. 9. FUNDRAISER AGREEMENTS WITH NONPROFIT CORPORATIONS.

       (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
     law, the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and the Oglala Sioux 
     Tribe, or a designated agency or authority of either tribe, 
     may, with the approval of the Secretary, enter into an 
     agreement with a nonprofit corporation to raise funds from 
     private sources to be used in lieu of, or supplement, any 
     Federal funds made available by appropriations pursuant to 
     the authorization under section 11.
       (b) New Projects.--The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and the 
     Oglala Sioux Tribe, or a designated agency or authority of 
     either tribe, shall have the power and authority to enter 
     into a separate agreement with a nonprofit corporation to--
     [[Page S2420]]   (1) raise funds from private sources to pay 
     for all obligations, costs, and fees for professional 
     services contracted, incurred, or assumed by the tribe, or a 
     designated agency or authority of the tribe, that are 
     related, directly or indirectly, to the development or 
     establishment of the Park; and
       (2) raise funds from private sources to plan, design, 
     construct, operate, maintain, and replace--
       (A) an international amphitheater dedicated to the 
     Indigenous Peoples of the Americas to be located at or near 
     the Wounded Knee Massacre site, which, if constructed, shall 
     become the permanent home of the Francis Jansen sculpture; 
     and
       (B) any other project that the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe 
     or the Oglala Sioux Tribe may, in consultation with the 
     Secretary, choose to include within the North Unit or South 
     Unit.

     SEC. 10. DUTIES OF OTHER FEDERAL ENTITIES.

       The appropriate official of any Federal entity that 
     conducts or supports activities that directly affect the Park 
     shall consult with the Secretary and the Cheyenne River Sioux 
     Tribe and the Oglala Sioux Tribe with respect to such 
     activities to minimize any adverse effects on the Park.

     SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
     necessary to carry out this Act.

     SEC. 12. RULE OF STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.

       Nothing contained in this Act is intended to abrogate, 
     modify, or impair any rights or claims of the Cheyenne River 
     Sioux Tribe or Oglala Sioux Tribe, that are based on any 
     treaty, Executive order, agreement, Act of Congress, or other 
     legal basis.

  Mr. PRESSLER. Mr. President, I am pleased to join my colleague from 
South Dakota, Senator Daschle, as well as Senators Campbell, Simon, 
Pell, and Dorgan in introducing legislation to establish the Wounded 
Knee National Tribal Park in the State of South Dakota. The purpose of 
our legislation is to acknowledge, preserve and protect the 
historically significant sites of the Wounded Knee tragedy of 1890. 
National recognition of this area is long overdue.
  The legislation we are introducing today is the product of our 
cumulative efforts over the past several sessions of Congress to 
properly recognize the Wounded Knee tragedy. Indeed, Wounded Knee has 
been the subject of Senate consideration for a number of years. Let me 
highlight some of this activity:
  During the 101st Congress, the Senate Select Committee on Indian 
Affairs held hearings to discuss the historical significance of Wounded 
Knee. Also during the 101st Congress, the Senate adopted Senate 
Concurrent Resolution 153, recognizing the 100th anniversary of the 
Wounded Knee Massacre. This resolution, which I cosponsored, also 
expressed support for the establishment of a suitable and appropriate 
memorial to those who were slain at Wounded Knee in 1890.
  Late in the 102d Congress and again in the 103d Congress, Senator 
Daschle and I introduced legislation (S. 3213 and S. 278) to establish 
the Chief Big Foot National Memorial Park and the Wounded Knee National 
Memorial.
  During the 103d Congress, the Senate Energy Committee's Subcommittee 
on Public Lands, National Parks and Forests held a hearing on S. 278 
(July 29, 1993).
  In addition to this congressional activity, the National Park Service 
has studied the historical significance of Wounded Knee six times since 
1950. The Park Service consistently has reaffirmed it as a nationally 
significant area. In fact, our bill is in part based on one of the 
proposed alternatives mentioned in a January 1993 NPS report on Wounded 
Knee.
  Mr. President, I hope the Senate will agree during this 104th 
Congress to ensure the protection and preservation of the historical 
sites at the Wounded Knee tragedy. I look forward to working with my 
colleagues, members of the Cheyenne River and Oglala Sioux Tribes, the 
Governor of South Dakota, the National Park Service, and other 
organizations to move this legislation forward. Above all, we must 
ensure this legislation is implemented with proper consultation with 
the Indian communities. It is imperative that Indian perspectives be 
included in developing the memorials' interpretive sites.
  Enactment of our legislation will promote a greater understanding of 
the events associated with the Wounded Knee tragedy. In addition, 
appreciation of Indian culture, heritage, and history will be enhanced 
through establishment of these memorials.


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