[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 68 (Tuesday, May 5, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5164-S5166]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           TEXT OF AMENDMENTS

  SA 1042. Mr. COBURN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to 
amendment SA 1040 proposed by Mr. Reed (for himself and Mr. Bond) to 
the amendment SA 1018 submitted by Mr. Dodd (for himself and Mr. 
Shelby) to the bill S. 896, to prevent mortgage foreclosures and 
enhance mortgage credit availability; as follows:

       At the end, add the following:

     SEC. __. FEDERAL REAL PROPERTY DISPOSAL PILOT PROGRAM.

       (a) In General.--Chapter 5 of subtitle I of title 40, 
     United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
     following:

         ``SUBCHAPTER VII--EXPEDITED DISPOSAL OF REAL PROPERTY

     ``Sec. 621. Definitions

       ``In this subchapter:
       ``(1) Director.--The term `Director' means the Director of 
     the Office of Management and Budget.
       ``(2) Expedited disposal of a real property.--The term 
     `expedited disposal of a real property' means a demolition of 
     real property or a sale of real property for cash that is 
     conducted under the requirements of section 545.
       ``(3) Landholding agency.--The term `landholding agency' 
     means a landholding agency as defined under section 501(i)(3) 
     of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 
     11411(i)(3)).
       ``(4) Real property.--
       ``(A) In general.--The term `real property' means--
       ``(i) a parcel of real property under the administrative 
     jurisdiction of the Federal Government that is--

       ``(I) excess;
       ``(II) surplus;
       ``(III) underperforming; or
       ``(IV) otherwise not meeting the needs of the Federal 
     Government, as determined by the Director; and

       ``(ii) a building or other structure located on real 
     property described under clause (i).
       ``(B) Exclusion.--The term `real property' excludes any 
     parcel of real property or building or other structure 
     located on such real property that is to be closed or 
     realigned under the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act 
     of 1990 (part A of title XXIX of Public Law 101-510; 10 
     U.S.C. 2687 note).

[[Page S5165]]

       ``(5) Representative of the homeless.--The term 
     `representative of the homeless' means a representative of 
     the homeless as defined under section 501(i)(4) of the 
     McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 
     11411(i)(4)).

     ``Sec. 622. Pilot program

       ``(a) The Director of the Office of Management and Budget 
     shall conduct a pilot program, to be known as the `Federal 
     Real Property Disposal Pilot Program', under which real 
     property that is not meeting Federal Government needs may be 
     disposed of in accordance with this subchapter.
       ``(b) The Federal Real Property Disposal Pilot Program 
     shall terminate 5 years after the date of the enactment of 
     this subchapter.

     ``Sec. 623. Selection of real properties

       ``(a) Agencies shall recommend candidate disposition real 
     properties to the Director for participation in the pilot 
     program established under section 622.
       ``(b) The Director, with the concurrence of the head of the 
     executive agency concerned and consistent with the criteria 
     established in this subchapter, may then select such 
     candidate real properties for participation in the pilot 
     program and notify the recommending agency accordingly.
       ``(c) The Director shall ensure that all real properties 
     selected for disposition under this section are listed on a 
     website that shall--
       ``(1) be updated routinely; and
       ``(2) include the functionality to allow members of the 
     public, at their option, to receive such updates through 
     electronic mail.
       ``(d) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall 
     ensure that efforts are taken to inform representatives of 
     the homeless about--
       ``(1) the pilot program established under section 622; and
       ``(2) the website under subsection (c).
       ``(e) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 
     shall--
       ``(1) make available to the public upon request all 
     information (other than valuation information), regardless of 
     format, in the possession of the Department of Housing and 
     Urban Development relating to the properties listed on the 
     website under subsection (c), including environmental 
     assessment data; and
       ``(2) maintain a current list of agency contacts for making 
     referrals to inquiries for information relating to specific 
     properties.

     ``Sec. 624. Suitability determination

       ``(a) After the Director selects the candidate real 
     properties that may participate in the pilot program under 
     section 623, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 
     shall determine whether each such real property is suitable 
     for use to assist the homeless.
       ``(b) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall 
     base the suitability determination required under subsection 
     (a)--
       ``(1) on the suitability criteria identified by the 
     Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under section 
     501(a) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 
     U.S.C. 11411(a));
       ``(2) for real properties located within a Federal 
     installation, campus, or compound, on whether such property 
     can easily be transported to an off-site location; and
       ``(3) for real properties where the predominant use is 
     other than housing, on whether the size of the real property 
     is equal to or greater than 100,000 square feet.
       ``(c) Immediately after a determination of suitability is 
     made under this section, the Director shall publish, on the 
     website described in section 623(c) the following 
     information:
       ``(1) The address of each such real property.
       ``(2) The result of the suitability determination required 
     under subsection (a) for each such real property.
       ``(3) The date on which the suitability determination was 
     made.

     ``Sec. 625. Unsuitable real property

       ``(a) If a real property is determined unsuitable under 
     section 624, such real property may not be disposed of or 
     otherwise used for any other purpose for at least 20 days 
     after such determination was made.
       ``(b)(1) Not later than 20 days after a real property has 
     been determined unsuitable under section 624 and before 
     disposal of the real property in accordance with subsection 
     (d), any representative of the homeless may appeal to the 
     Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for a secondary 
     review of such determination.
       ``(2) Not later than 20 days after a real property has been 
     determined unsuitable under subsection (b)(3) of section 624, 
     the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall deem 
     such real property suitable notwithstanding the requirements 
     of that subsection if a representative of the homeless has 
     produced clear and convincing evidence that such property can 
     be utilized for the benefit of the homeless. Any 
     determination under this paragraph shall be committed to the 
     unreviewable discretion of the Secretary of Housing and Urban 
     Development.
       ``(c) Not later than 20 days after the receipt of any 
     appeal under subsection (b), the Secretary of Housing and 
     Urban Development shall respond to such appeal and shall make 
     a final suitability determination regarding the real 
     property.
       ``(d)(1) If at the end of the 20-day period required under 
     subsection (a), no appeal for review of a determination of 
     unsuitability is received by the Secretary of Housing and 
     Urban Development, such real property shall be disposed of in 
     accordance with section 627.
       ``(2) If after conducting a secondary review of a 
     determination of unsuitability under subsection (b), the 
     Secretary of Housing and Urban Development determines that 
     the real property remains unsuitable under subsection (c), 
     such real property shall be disposed of in accordance with 
     section 627.
       ``(3) If after conducting a secondary review of a 
     determination of unsuitability under subsection (b), the 
     Secretary of Housing and Urban Development determines that 
     the real property is suitable under subsection (c), such real 
     property shall be treated as suitable property for purposes 
     of section 626.

     ``Sec. 626. Suitable real property

       ``(a)(1) If a real property is determined suitable under 
     section 624 or upon a secondary review under section 625(d), 
     any representative of the homeless shall have not more than 
     90 days after such determination to submit an application to 
     the Secretary of Health and Human Services for the transfer 
     of the real property to that representative. If an 
     application cannot be completed within the 90-day period due 
     to non-material factors, the Secretary of Health and Human 
     Services, with the concurrence of the appropriate landholding 
     agency, may grant reasonable extensions.
       ``(2) If at the end of the time period described under 
     paragraph (1), no representative of the homeless has 
     submitted an application, such real property shall be 
     disposed of in accordance with section 627.
       ``(b)(1) Not later than 20 days after the receipt of any 
     application under subsection (a)(1), the Secretary of Health 
     and Human Services shall assess such application and 
     determine whether to approve or deny the request for the 
     transfer of the real property to such applicant.
       ``(2) If the application of a representative of the 
     homeless is denied by the Secretary of Health and Human 
     Services under paragraph (1), such real property shall be 
     disposed of in accordance with section 627.
       ``(3) If the application of a representative of the 
     homeless is approved by the Secretary of Health and Human 
     Services under paragraph (1), such real property shall be 
     made promptly available to that representative by permit or 
     lease, or by deed, as a public health use under subsections 
     (a) through (d) of section 550.

     ``Sec. 627. Expedited disposal requirements

       ``(a) Real property sold under the pilot program 
     established under this subchapter shall be sold at not less 
     than the fair market value, as determined by the Director in 
     consultation with the head of the executive agency. Costs 
     associated with such disposal may not exceed the fair market 
     value of the property unless the Director approves incurring 
     such costs.
       ``(b) A real property may be sold under the pilot program 
     established under this subchapter only if the property will 
     generate monetary proceeds to the Federal Government, as 
     provided in subsection (a). A disposal of real property under 
     the pilot program may not include any exchange, trade, 
     transfer, acquisition of like-kind property, or other non-
     cash transaction as part of the disposal.
       ``(c) Nothing in this subchapter shall be construed as 
     terminating or in any way limiting authorities that are 
     otherwise available to agencies under other provisions of law 
     to dispose of Federal real property, except as provided in 
     subsection (d).
       ``(d) Any expedited disposal of a real property conducted 
     under this subchapter shall not be subject to--
       ``(1) subchapter IV of this chapter;
       ``(2) sections 550 and 553 of this title;
       ``(3) section 501 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance 
     Act (42 U.S.C. 11411);
       ``(4) any other provision of law authorizing the no-cost 
     conveyance of real property owned by the Federal Government; 
     or
       ``(5) any congressional notification requirement other than 
     that in section 545.

     ``Sec. 628. Special rules for deposit and use of proceeds 
       from disposal of real property

       ``(a) Agencies that conduct the disposal of real properties 
     under this subchapter shall be reimbursed from the proceeds, 
     if any, from such disposal for the administrative expenses 
     associated with such disposal. Such amounts shall be credited 
     as offsetting collections to the account that incurred such 
     expenses, to remain available until expended.
       ``(b)(1) After payment of such administrative costs, the 
     balance of the proceeds shall be distributed as follows:
       ``(A) 80 percent shall be deposited into the Treasury as 
     miscellaneous receipts.
       ``(B) 20 percent shall be deposited into the account of the 
     agency that owned the real property and initiated the 
     disposal action.
       ``(2) Funds deposited under paragraph (1)(B) shall remain 
     available until expended for the period of the pilot program, 
     for activities related to Federal real property capital 
     improvements and disposal activities. Upon termination of the 
     pilot program, any unobligated amounts shall be transferred 
     to the general fund of the Treasury.

     ``Sec. 629. Limitation on number of permissible cash sales

       ``The total number of cash sales of real properties to be 
     disposed of under this subchapter over the 5-year term of the 
     Federal Real Property Disposal Pilot Program shall not exceed 
     750.

     ``Sec. 630. Government Accountability Office study

       ``(a) Not later than 36 months after the date of enactment 
     of this subchapter, the

[[Page S5166]]

     Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 
     Congress and make publicly available a study of the 
     effectiveness of the pilot program.
       ``(b) The study described under subsection (a) shall 
     include at a minimum--
       ``(1) recommendations for permanent reforms to statutes 
     governing real property disposals and no cost conveyances; 
     and
       ``(2) recommendations for improving the permanent process 
     by which Federal properties are made available for use by the 
     homeless.''.
       (b) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--The table of 
     sections for chapter 5 of subtitle I of title 40, United 
     States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating 
     to section 611 the following:

          ``subchapter vii--expedited disposal of real property

``Sec. 621. Definitions.
``Sec. 622. Pilot program.
``Sec. 623. Selection of real properties.
``Sec. 624. Suitability determination.
``Sec. 625. Unsuitable real property.
``Sec. 626. Suitable real property.
``Sec. 627. Expedited disposal requirements.
``Sec. 628. Special rules for deposit and use of proceeds from disposal 
              of real property.
``Sec. 629. Limitation on number of permissible cash sales.
``Sec. 630. Government Accountability Office study.''.
                                 ______
                                 
  SA 1043. Mr. ENSIGN (for himself, Mr. Pryor, Mrs. Boxer, and Ms. 
Snowe) submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 
1038 proposed by Mrs. Boxer (for herself and Mr. Reid) to the amendment 
SA 1018 submitted by Mr. Dodd (for himself and Mr. Shelby) to the bill 
S. 896, to prevent mortgage foreclosures and enhance mortgage credit 
availability as follows:

       On page 1, strike line 6 and all that follows through page 
     6 line 5, and insert the following:
       (a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the 
     ``Public-Private Investment Program Improvement and Oversight 
     Act of 2009''.
       (b) Public-Private Investment Program.--
       (1) In general.--Any program established by the Federal 
     Government to create a public-private investment fund shall--
       (A) in consultation with the Special Inspector General of 
     the Trouble Asset Relief Program (in this section referred to 
     as the ``Special Inspector General''), impose strict conflict 
     of interest rules on managers of public-private investment 
     funds to ensure that securities bought by the funds are 
     purchased in arms-length transactions, that fiduciary duties 
     to public and private investors in the fund are not violated, 
     and that there is full disclosure of relevant facts and 
     financial interests (which conflict of interest rules shall 
     be implemented by the manager of a public-private investment 
     fund prior to such fund receiving Federal Government 
     financing);
       (B) require each public-private investment fund to make a 
     quarterly report to the Secretary of the Treasury (in this 
     section referred to as the ``Secretary'') that discloses the 
     10 largest positions of such fund (which reports shall be 
     publicly disclosed at such time as the Secretary of the 
     Treasury determines that such disclosure will not harm the 
     ongoing business operations of the fund);
       (C) allow the Special Inspector General access to all books 
     and records of a public-private investment fund, including 
     all records of financial transactions in machine readable 
     form, and the confidentiality of all such information shall 
     be maintained by the Special Inspector General;
       (D) require each manager of a public-private investment 
     fund to retain all books, documents, and records relating to 
     such public-private investment fund, including electronic 
     messages;
       (E) require each manager of a public-private investment 
     fund to acknowledge, in writing, a fiduciary duty to both the 
     public and private investors in such fund;
       (F) require each manager of a public-private investment 
     fund to develop a robust ethics policy that includes methods 
     to ensure compliance with such policy;
       (G) require strict investor screening procedures for 
     public-private investment funds; and
       (H) require each manager of a public-private investment 
     fund to identify for the Secretary each investor that, 
     individually or together with its affiliates, directly or 
     indirectly holds equity interests in the fund acquired as a 
     result of--
       (i) any investment by such investor or any of its 
     affiliates in a vehicle formed for the purpose of directly or 
     indirectly investing in the fund; or
       (ii) any other investment decision by such investor or any 
     of its affiliates to directly or indirectly invest in the 
     fund that, in the aggregate, equal at least 10 percent of the 
     equity interests in such fund.
       (2) Interaction between public-private investment funds and 
     the term-asset backed securities loan facility.--The 
     Secretary shall consult with the Special Inspector General 
     and shall issue regulations governing the interaction of the 
     Public-Private Investment Program, the Term-Asset Backed 
     Securities Loan Facility, and other similar public-private 
     investment programs. Such regulations shall address concerns 
     regarding the potential for excessive leverage that could 
     result from interactions between such programs.
       (3) Report.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the 
     establishment of a program described in paragraph (1), the 
     Special Inspector General shall submit a report to Congress 
     on the implementation of this section.
       (c) Additional Appropriations for the Special Inspector 
     General.--
       (1) In general.--Of amounts made available under section 
     115(a) of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 
     (Public Law 110-343), $15,000,000 shall be made available to 
     the Special Inspector General, which shall be in addition to 
     amounts otherwise made available to the Special Inspector 
     General.
       (2) Priorities.--In utilizing funds made available under 
     this section, the Special Inspector General shall prioritize 
     the performance of audits or investigations of recipients of 
     non-recourse Federal loans made under the Public Private 
     Investment Program established by the Secretary of the 
     Treasury or the Term Asset Loan Facility established by the 
     Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (including 
     any successor thereto or any other similar program 
     established by the Secretary or the Board), to the extent 
     that such priority is consistent with other aspects of the 
     mission of the Special Inspector General. Such audits or 
     investigations shall determine the existence of any collusion 
     between the loan recipient and the seller or originator of 
     the asset used as loan collateral, or any other conflict of 
     interest that may have led the loan recipient to deliberately 
     overstate the value of the asset used as loan collateral.
       (d) Rule of Construction.--Notwithstanding any other 
     provision of law, nothing in this section shall be construed 
     to apply to any activity of the Federal Deposit Insurance 
     Corporation in connection with insured depository 
     institutions, as described in section 13(c)(2)(B) of the 
     Federal Deposit Insurance Act.
       (e) Definition.--In this section, the term ``public-private 
     investment fund'' means a financial vehicle that is--
       (1) established by the Federal Government to purchase pools 
     of loans, securities, or assets from a financial institution 
     described in section 101(a)(1) of the Emergency Economic 
     Stabilization Act of 2008 (12 U.S.C. 5211(a)(1)); and
       (2) funded by a combination of cash or equity from private 
     investors and funds provided by the Secretary of the Treasury 
     or the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
       (f) Offset of Costs of Program Changes.--Notwithstanding 
     the amendment made by section 202(b) of this Act, paragraph 
     (3) of section 115(a) of the Emergency Economic Stabilization 
     Act of 2008 (12 U.S.C. 5225) is amended by inserting ``, as 
     such amount is reduced by $2,331,000,000,'' after 
     ``$700,000,000,000''.

                          ____________________