[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Pages 12257-12280]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. LEAHY:
  S. 2783. A bill entitled the ``21st Century Law Enforcement and 
Public Safety Act''; to the Committee on the Judiciary.


         the 21st century law enforcement and public safety act

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, as ranking member of the Senate Committee 
on the Judiciary, I am pleased to introduce at the request of the 
Administration ``The 21st Century Law Enforcement and Public Safety 
Act.'' This bill reflects the continuing aggressive approach of this 
Administration and this Department of Justice, under the leadership of 
Attorney General Janet Reno, to keep the both the violent and property 
crime rates in this country going down.
  Under the Attorney General's leadership and the programs established 
by the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, the 
nation's serious crime rate has declined for eight straight years. We 
are seeing the lowest recorded rates in many years. Murder rates have 
fallen to their lowest levels in three decades. Even juvenile crime 
rates have also been falling. According to the FBI's latest crime 
statistics release, on May 7, 2000, in just the last year, there has 
been a seven percent decline in reported serious violent and property 
crime from 1998 totals. Both murder and robbery registered eight 
percent drops, while forcible rape and aggravated assault figures each 
declined by seven percent from 1998. This is cause for commendation for 
the Attorney General and our Federal, State and local law enforcement 
officers, to whom all Americans owe an enormous thanks for a job well 
done.
  This Administration has not rested on its laurels, however. Instead, 
the Administration has crafted the bill I introduce on their behalf 
today. It contains a number of good ideas to which the Judiciary 
Committee and the Congress should pay attention. Unfortunately, the 
Committee and the Congress has spent more time on symbolic issues, such 
as a proposed amendments to the Constitution to protect the flag and 
crime victims than to other concrete steps we could take to combat 
crime and school violence. Indeed, the majority in Congress has stalled 
any conference action on the Hatch-Leahy juvenile justice legislation, 
S. 254, which passed the Senate by a substantial majority in May, 1999.
  The Administration's bill contains five titles focusing on various 
aspects of crime. Title I contains proposals for supporting local law 
enforcement and promoting crime-fighting technologies, including 
expanding the purpose of COPS grants by funding an increase in the 
number of prosecutors as well as police; authorizing grants to improve 
the technology used for investigations in underserved rural areas--less 
than 25,000 people; and extending the Leahy-Campbell Bulletproof Vest 
Partnership Grant Act.
  Title II contains many proposals for breaking the cycle of drugs and 
violence. Title III would promote investigative and prosecutorial tools 
for fighting terrorism and international crime. Title IV would 
reauthorize certain VAWA programs and provide other assistance to 
victims of crime and consumer fraud. In addition, this title contains 
important proposals to prevent and punish abuse and neglect of the 
elderly and other residents in nursing homes and health care facilities 
and environmental crimes. The last title would strengthen federal 
criminal laws to combat white collar crime, including in correction 
facilities and involving the theft of government property.
  While I have concerns with certain parts of the bill, such as 
proposals for increases in mandatory minimum penalties, a new death 
penalty provision and broad administrative subpoena authority, I 
support many other parts, such as the Extension of Bulletproof Vest 
Partnership Grant Act to assist law enforcement in Vermont and across 
the nation obtain bulletproof vests and stay safe on the job.
  Again, I commend the Attorney General and the Administration for this 
important legislation and their efforts to keep Americans safe from 
crime.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mrs. FEINSTEIN:
  S. 2784. A bill entitled ``Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains 
National Monument Act of 2000''; to the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources.


   santa rosa and san jacinto mountains national monument act of 2000

 Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I am pleased to introduce this 
bill today to designate the Santa Rosa/San Jacinto mountain range in 
southern California as a National Monument. This bill was introduced by 
Congresswoman Mary Bono earlier in the year. An almost identical 
version of this bill was passed out of the House Resources Committee 
earlier in the week.
  The Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains contain nationally 
significant biological, cultural, recreational, geological, 
educational, and scientific values. This includes magnificent vistas, 
unique wildlife and mountains which rise from the desert floor to an 
elevation of almost eleven thousand feet. These mountains provide a 
picturesque backdrop for Coachella Valley communities and support a 
wide array of recreational opportunities.
  The bill designates this environmentally sensitive area as a monument 
and instructs the Department of Interior and the Forest Service to 
craft a management plan. The bill protects the rights of individual 
land owners, Native American tribes, and all lands outside the monument 
boundary. It protects the environment and preserves property rights. 
The bill has bipartisan support and supported by most of the local 
community.
  This bill is quite timely. Three hundred and fifty-five thousand 
acres of the Sequoia National Forest were designated a national 
monument by President Clinton on April 15. Over the

[[Page 12258]]

sixty-day period preceding the designation, many members of the 
affected community expressed significant opposition to the monument 
designation. I came to believe that when possible, Congress is in the 
best position to decide monument and other land use designations and 
can best ensure that stakeholders affected by such a designation have 
ample opportunity to provide input, influence the process and 
understand the designation.
  I believe this bill is the proper way to protect this majestic 
national resource.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. BIDEN (for himself, Mr. Hatch, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Abraham, Mr. 
        Kennedy, Mr. Specter, Mr. Kohl, Mr. Roth, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. 
        Jeffords, Mr. Torricelli, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Schumer, Mr. DeWine, 
        Mrs. Murray, Mr. Ashcroft, Ms. Landrieu, Mr. Murkowski, Mr. 
        Lautenberg, Mr. Santorum, Mr. Reid, Ms. Collins, Mr. Reed, Mrs. 
        Hutchison, Mr. Dodd, Mr. L. Chafee, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Allard, Mr. 
        Robb, Mr. Wellstone, Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. Daschle, Mr. Bryan, Ms. 
        Mikulski, Mr. Smith of Oregon, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. 
        Lieberman, Mr. Levin, Mr. Byrd, Mr. Cleland, Mr. Dorgan, Mr. 
        Edwards, Mr. Hollings, Mr. Breaux, Mr. Kerrey, Mr. Harkin, Mr. 
        Bayh, Mr. Graham, and Mr. Baucus):
  S. 2787. A bill to reauthorize the Federal programs to prevent 
violence against women, and for other purposes; to the Committee on the 
Judiciary.


                 the violence against women act of 2000

  Mr. BIDEN. Mr. President, I am pleased to introduce today, with 
Senator Hatch, the Violence Against Women Act of 2000. And I thank 
Senator Hatch, the principal cosponsor of the original Act, for working 
with me over the past year to produce a bipartisan, streamlined bill 
that we are confident will enjoy the support of Senators from both 
sides of the aisle. Indeed, we already have a total of 50 cosponsors--
many of them Republicans--as original cosponsors of this legislation.
  The enactment of the Violence Against Women Act in 1994--bipartisan 
legislation cosponsored by 67 Senators from both parties--signaled the 
beginning of a national and historic commitment to the women and 
children in this country victimized by family violence and sexual 
assault.
  The legislation changed our laws, strengthened criminal penalties, 
facilitated enforcement of protection orders from state to state, and 
committed $1.6 billion over six years to police, prosecutors, battered 
women shelters, a national domestic violence hotline, and other 
measures designed to crack down on batterers and offer the support and 
services that victims need in order to leave their abusers.
  And this federal commitment has paid off: the latest Department of 
Justice statistics show that overall, violence against women by 
intimate partners is down, falling 21% from 1993 (just prior to the 
enactment of the original Act) to 1998.
  The programs contained in the original Act were authorized only 
through fiscal year 2000. So unless Congress acts, programs to run the 
battered women's shelters, the national domestic violence hotline, the 
STOP grants to help law enforcement and prosecutors combat domestic 
violence and to provide victims services, grants to address domestic 
violence in rural communities--all of these will expire this year. 
These programs are popular, and more importantly, ladies and gentlemen, 
the Violence Against Women Act is working.
  And it's not just me calling for this law to be reauthorized.
  It's police chiefs in every state. It's Attorneys General. Sheriffs. 
District attorneys. The American Bar Association. Women's groups. 
Nurses. Battered women's shelters. Family Court judges.
  States, counties, cities, and towns across the country are creating a 
seamless network of services for victims of violence against women--
from law enforcement to legal services, from medical care and crisis 
counseling, to shelters and support groups.
  The Violence Against Women Act has made, and is making, a real 
difference in the lives of millions of women and children by providing 
much needed funds at the local level to--and let me just give you a few 
examples:
  Give police officers more specialized training both to deal swiftly 
and surely with abusers and to become more sensitive toward victims, as 
well as to provide them with better evidence-gathering and information-
sharing equipment and skills;
  Train prosecutors and judges on the unique aspects of cases involving 
violence against women;
  Hire victim advocates and counselors and provide an array of 
services, including 24-hour hotlines, emergency transportation, medical 
services, and specialized programs to reach victims of violence against 
women from all walks of life; and
  Open new and expand existing shelters for victims of violence against 
women and their children.
  The Violence Against Women Act funds 1,031 shelters and 82 safe 
houses in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. But 
tens of thousands of women and children are still turned away every 
year.
  Together--at the federal, state, and local levels--we have been 
steadily moving forward, step by step, along the road to ending this 
violence once and for all. But there is more that we can do, and more 
that we must do.
  The Biden-Hatch Violence Against Women Act of 2000 would accomplish 
three basic things:
  First, the bill would reauthorize through Fiscal Year 2005 the key 
programs included in the original Violence Against Women Act. These 
include the STOP grants, the Pro-Arrest grants, Rural Domestic Violence 
and Child Abuse Enforcement Grants, the National Domestic Violence 
Hotline, and rape prevention and education programs.
  This also means reauthorizing the court-appointed special advocate 
program (CASA), and other programs in the Victims of Child Abuse Act.
  Second, the bill would extend the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund 
through Fiscal Year 2005. Funding for the trust fund expires this year. 
This dedicated funding source--paid for by the savings generated by 
reducing the federal workforce by more than 300,000 employees--provides 
all the grant money for additional police officers, prosecutors, and 
battered women shelters. It is these funds that provide the specialized 
domestic violence training for law enforcement and prosecutors.
  The Trust Fund is the source of funding for all the victim services, 
including counseling, legal services, nursing and hospital services, 
especially designed for victims of domestic violence and sexual 
assault.
  Of course, the Trust Fund's significance extends beyond the Violence 
Against Women Act. The trust fund has provided the funds for a host of 
successful law enforcement initiatives, ranging from drug courts; the 
weed and seed programs that exist in every state to drive drugs from 
our cities; and funding for prisons, the FBI, the Drug Enforcement 
Agency, and Boys and Girls clubs. And the list goes on.
  In order to replicate the successes we have achieved under the 
original Violence Against Women Act, and in order to continue to pursue 
these other important law enforcement programs, it is imperative that 
we: (1) extend the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund for an additional 
five years, and (2) that we fully fund the Trust Fund.
  Third, the Violence Against Women Act of 2000 makes some targeted 
improvements that our experience with the original Act has shown to be 
necessary. Let me give you just a few examples.
  Civil Legal Assistance Grants: Our bill would create a separate grant 
program to help victims of domestic violence, stalking, and sexual 
assault who need legal assistance because of that violence, to obtain 
access to legal services at little to no cost.
  This provision would also establish a database of legal assistance 
providers to be maintained and used by the National Domestic Violence 
Hotline, so

[[Page 12259]]

that victims who call the hotline can be directed to a legal service 
provider immediately.
  Improving Full Faith & Credit Enforcement of Protection Orders: My 
bill would help states and tribal courts improve interstate enforcement 
of civil protection orders, as required by the original Violence 
Against Women Act. The program would prioritize the development and 
enhancement of data collection and sharing systems to promote tracking 
and enforcement of protection orders across the nation.
  Transitional Housing: The bill would also authorize the Department of 
Health and Human Services to make grants to provide short-term housing 
assistance and short-term support services to individuals and their 
dependents who are homeless or in need of transitional housing or other 
housing assistance as a result of fleeing a situation of domestic 
violence, and for whom emergency shelter services are unavailable or 
insufficient.
  Safe Havens for Children: The bill would authorize a new two-year 
pilot grant program to be administered by the Department of Justice 
aimed at reducing the opportunity for domestic violence to occur during 
the transfer of children for visitation purposes by expanding the 
availability of supervised visitation for victims of domestic violence, 
sexual assault, and child abuse. We all know that women are at greatest 
risk of assault at the time when children are transferred between 
parents.
  I also would like to take this opportunity to point out that the 
Supreme Court's recent decision in United States v. Morrison, 120 S. 
Ct. 1740 (2000), invalidated a single provision of the original Act, 
the ``civil rights remedy'' that permitted a victim of gender-motivated 
violence to sue her attacker in federal court. No other provision in 
the original Act--or, for that matter, in the Violence Against Women 
Act of 2000--is affected by the Supreme Court's decision.
  Finally, I would like to comment on where we are and how we got here.
  The bill Senator Hatch and I are introducing today is a streamlined 
version of S. 51, the legislation I originally introduced at the 
beginning of the 106th Congress.
  Since I first introduced S. 51, I have consulted extensively with 
Senator Hatch and with many other individuals, inside and outside of 
the Senate, and on both sides of the aisle, in an effort to narrow the 
legislation to produce a bill that every Senator, regardless of party, 
can enthusiastically support.
  In the course of that effort, I agreed to drop a number of items that 
quite frankly, I think were worth doing, and made other concessions. I 
did that because I believe it is critical, in the waning days of this 
legislative session, to achieve a strong bipartisan consensus on the 
essential elements that must be included in this bill. I am convinced 
that we have reached that consensus, and that the bill we now propose 
reflects the priorities of a substantial majority of Senators.
  For far too long, law enforcement, prosecutors, the courts, and the 
community at large treated domestic abuse as a ``private family 
matter,'' looking the other way when women suffered abuse at the hands 
of their supposed loved ones. Thanks in part to the original Act, 
violence against women is no longer a private matter, and the time when 
a woman has to suffer in silence because the criminal who is 
victimizing her happens to be her husband or boyfriend has passed.
  The bill I introduce today will renew the commitment we made as a 
nation in 1994 to combat family violence, sexual assault, and stalking. 
I urge all of you to support it.
  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. 2787

       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 ``Violence 
     Against Women Act of 2000''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Definitions.
Sec. 3. Accountability and oversight.

TITLE I--STRENGTHENING LAW ENFORCEMENT TO REDUCE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

Sec. 101. Full faith and credit enforcement of protection orders.
Sec. 102. Role of courts.
Sec. 103. Reauthorization of STOP grants.
Sec. 104. Reauthorization of grants to encourage arrest policies.
Sec. 105. Reauthorization of rural domestic violence and child abuse 
              enforcement grants.
Sec. 106. National stalker and domestic violence reduction.
Sec. 107. Amendments to domestic violence and stalking offenses.
Sec. 108. Grants to reduce violent crimes against women on campus.

        TITLE II--STRENGTHENING SERVICES TO VICTIMS OF VIOLENCE

Sec. 201. Legal assistance for victims.
Sec. 202. Shelter services for battered women and children.
Sec. 203. Transitional housing assistance for victims of domestic 
              violence.
Sec. 204. National domestic violence hotline.
Sec. 205. Federal victims counselors.
Sec. 206. Study of State laws regarding insurance discrimination 
              against victims of violence against women.
Sec. 207. Study of workplace effects from violence against women.
Sec. 208. Study of unemployment compensation for victims of violence 
              against women.
Sec. 209. Enhancing protections for older women from domestic violence 
              and sexual assault.

        TITLE III--LIMITING THE EFFECTS OF VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN

Sec. 301. Safe havens for children pilot program.
Sec. 302. Reauthorization of runaway and homeless youth grants.
Sec. 303. Reauthorization of victims of child abuse programs.
Sec. 304. Report on effects of parental kidnapping laws in domestic 
              violence cases.

   TITLE IV--STRENGTHENING EDUCATION AND TRAINING TO COMBAT VIOLENCE 
                             AGAINST WOMEN

Sec. 401. Education and training in appropriate responses to violence 
              against women.
Sec. 402. Rape prevention and education.
Sec. 403. Education and training to end violence against and abuse of 
              women with disabilities.
Sec. 404. Community initiatives.
Sec. 405. Development of research agenda identified by the Violence 
              Against Women Act of 1994.

                   TITLE V--BATTERED IMMIGRANT WOMEN

Sec. 501. Short title.
Sec. 502. Findings and purposes.
Sec. 503. Improved access to immigration protections of the Violence 
              Against Women Act of 1994 for battered immigrant women.
Sec. 504. Improved access to cancellation of removal and suspension of 
              deportation under the Violence Against Women Act of 1994.
Sec. 505. Offering equal access to immigration protections of the 
              Violence Against Women Act of 1994 for all qualified 
              battered immigrant self-petitioners.
Sec. 506. Restoring immigration protections under the Violence Against 
              Women Act of 1994.
Sec. 507. Remedying problems with implementation of the immigration 
              provisions of the Violence Against Women Act of 1994.
Sec. 508. Technical correction to qualified alien definition for 
              battered immigrants.
Sec. 509. Access to Cuban Adjustment Act for battered immigrant spouses 
              and children.
Sec. 510. Access to the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American 
              Relief Act for battered spouses and children.
Sec. 511. Access to the Haitian Refugee Fairness Act of 1998 for 
              battered spouses and children.
Sec. 512. Access to services and legal representation for battered 
              immigrants.

       TITLE VI--EXTENSION OF VIOLENT CRIME REDUCTION TRUST FUND

Sec. 601. Extension of Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act--
       (1) the term ``domestic violence'' has the meaning given 
     the term in section 2003 of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
     Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796gg-2); 
     and
       (2) the term ``sexual assault'' has the meaning given the 
     term in section 2003 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control 
     and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796gg-2).

[[Page 12260]]



     SEC. 3. ACCOUNTABILITY AND OVERSIGHT.

       (a) Report by Grant Recipients.--The Attorney General or 
     Secretary of Health and Human Services, as applicable, shall 
     require grantees under any program authorized or reauthorized 
     by this Act or an amendment made by this Act to report on the 
     effectiveness of the activities carried out with amounts made 
     available to carry out that program, including number of 
     persons served, if applicable, numbers of persons seeking 
     services who could not be served and such other information 
     as the Attorney General or Secretary may prescribe.
       (b) Report to Congress.--The Attorney General or Secretary 
     of Health and Human Services, as applicable, shall report 
     annually to the Committees on the Judiciary of the House of 
     Representatives and the Senate on the grant programs 
     described in subsection (a), including the information 
     contained in any report under that subsection.

TITLE I--STRENGTHENING LAW ENFORCEMENT TO REDUCE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

     SEC. 101. FULL FAITH AND CREDIT ENFORCEMENT OF PROTECTION 
                   ORDERS.

       (a) In General.--Part U of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
     Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796hh et 
     seq.) is amended--
       (1) in the heading, by adding ``AND ENFORCEMENT OF 
     PROTECTION ORDERS'' at the end;
       (2) in section 2101(b)--
       (A) in paragraph (6), by inserting ``(including juvenile 
     courts)'' after ``courts''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(7) To provide technical assistance and computer and 
     other equipment to police departments, prosecutors, courts, 
     and tribal jurisdictions to facilitate the widespread 
     enforcement of protection orders, including interstate 
     enforcement, enforcement between States and tribal 
     jurisdictions, and enforcement between tribal 
     jurisdictions.''; and
       (3) in section 2102--
       (A) in subsection (b)--
       (i) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (ii) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``, including the enforcement of protection 
     orders from other States and jurisdictions (including tribal 
     jurisdictions);''; and
       (iii) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) have established cooperative agreements or can 
     demonstrate effective ongoing collaborative arrangements with 
     neighboring jurisdictions to facilitate the enforcement of 
     protection orders from other States and jurisdictions 
     (including tribal jurisdictions); and
       ``(4) will give priority to using the grant to develop and 
     install data collection and communication systems, including 
     computerized systems, and training on how to use these 
     systems effectively to link police, prosecutors, courts, and 
     tribal jurisdictions for the purpose of identifying and 
     tracking protection orders and violations of protection 
     orders, in those jurisdictions where such systems do not 
     exist or are not fully effective.''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(c) Dissemination of Information.--The Attorney General 
     shall annually compile and broadly disseminate (including 
     through electronic publication) information about successful 
     data collection and communication systems that meet the 
     purposes described in this section. Such dissemination shall 
     target States, State and local courts, Indian tribal 
     governments, and units of local government.''.
       (b) Protection Orders.--
       (1) Filing costs.--Section 2006 of part T of title I of the 
     Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 
     3796gg-5) is amended--
       (A) in the heading, by striking ``filing'' and inserting 
     ``and protection orders'' after ``charges'';
       (B) in subsection (a)--
       (i) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following:
       ``(1) certifies that its laws, policies, and practices do 
     not require, in connection with the prosecution of any 
     misdemeanor or felony domestic violence offense, or in 
     connection with the filing, issuance, registration, or 
     service of a protection order, or a petition for a protection 
     order, to protect a victim of domestic violence, stalking, or 
     sexual assault, that the victim bear the costs associated 
     with the filing of criminal charges against the offender, or 
     the costs associated with the filing, issuance, registration, 
     or service of a warrant, protection order, petition for a 
     protection order, or witness subpoena, whether issued inside 
     or outside the State, tribal, or local jurisdiction; or''; 
     and
       (ii) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ``2 years'' and 
     inserting ``2 years after the date of enactment of the 
     Violence Against Women Act of 2000''; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(c) Definition.--In this section, the term `protection 
     order' has the meaning given the term in section 2266 of 
     title 18, United States Code.''.
       (2) Eligibility for grants to encourage arrest policies.--
     Section 2101 of part U of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
     Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796hh) is 
     amended--
       (A) in subsection (c), by striking paragraph (4) and 
     inserting the following:
       ``(4) certify that their laws, policies, and practices do 
     not require, in connection with the prosecution of any 
     misdemeanor or felony domestic violence offense, or in 
     connection with the filing, issuance, registration, or 
     service of a protection order, or a petition for a protection 
     order, to protect a victim of domestic violence, stalking, or 
     sexual assault, that the victim bear the costs associated 
     with the filing of criminal charges against the offender, or 
     the costs associated with the filing, issuance, registration, 
     or service of a warrant, protection order, petition for a 
     protection order, or witness subpoena, whether issued inside 
     or outside the State, tribal, or local jurisdiction.''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(d) Definition.--In this section, the term `protection 
     order' has the meaning given the term in section 2266 of 
     title 18, United States Code.''.
       (3) Application for grants to encourage arrest policies.--
     Section 2102(a)(1)(B) of part U of title I of the Omnibus 
     Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796hh-
     1(a)(1)(B)) is amended by inserting before the semicolon the 
     following: ``or, in the case of the condition set forth in 
     subsection 2101(c)(4), the expiration of the 2-year period 
     beginning on the date of enactment of the Violence Against 
     Women Act of 2000''.
       (4) Registration for protection orders.--Section 2265 of 
     title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 
     the following:
       ``(d) Registration.--
       ``(1) In general.--A State or Indian tribe according full 
     faith and credit to an order by a court of another State or 
     Indian tribe shall not notify the party against whom a 
     protection order has been issued that the protection order 
     has been registered or filed in that enforcing State or 
     tribal jurisdiction unless requested to do so by the party 
     protected under such order.
       ``(2) No prior registration or filing required.--Any 
     protection order that is otherwise consistent with this 
     section shall be accorded full faith and credit, 
     notwithstanding any requirement that the order be registered 
     or filed in the enforcing State or tribal jurisdiction.
       ``(e) Notice.--A protection order that is otherwise 
     consistent with this section shall be accorded full faith and 
     credit and enforced notwithstanding the failure to provide 
     notice to the party against whom the order is made of its 
     registration or filing in the enforcing State or Indian 
     tribe.
       ``(f) Tribal Court Jurisdiction.--For purposes of this 
     section, a tribal court shall have full civil jurisdiction 
     over domestic relations actions, including authority to 
     enforce its orders through civil contempt proceedings, 
     exclusion of violators from Indian lands, and other 
     appropriate mechanisms, in matters arising within the 
     authority of the tribe and in which at least 1 of the parties 
     is an Indian.''.
       (c) Technical Amendment.--The table of contents for title I 
     of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 
     U.S.C. 3711 et seq.) is amended in the item relating to part 
     U, by adding ``and Enforcement of Protection Orders'' at the 
     end.

     SEC. 102. ROLE OF COURTS.

       (a) Courts as Eligible STOP Subgrantees.--Part T of title I 
     of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 
     U.S.C. 3796gg et seq.) is amended--
       (1) in section 2001--
       (A) in subsection (a), by striking ``Indian tribal 
     governments,'' and inserting ``State and local courts 
     (including juvenile courts), Indian tribal governments, 
     tribal courts,''; and
       (B) in subsection (b)--
       (i) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``, judges, other court 
     personnel,'' after ``law enforcement officers'';
       (ii) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``, judges, other court 
     personnel,'' after ``law enforcement officers''; and
       (iii) in paragraph (3), by inserting ``, court,'' after 
     ``police''; and
       (2) in section 2002--
       (A) in subsection (a), by inserting ``State and local 
     courts (including juvenile courts),'' after ``States,'' the 
     second place it appears;
       (B) in subsection (c), by striking paragraph (3) and 
     inserting the following:
       ``(3) of the amount granted--
       ``(A) not less than 25 percent shall be allocated to police 
     and not less than 25 percent shall be allocated to 
     prosecutors;
       ``(B) not less than 30 percent shall be allocated to victim 
     services; and
       ``(C) not less than 5 percent shall be allocated for State 
     and local courts (including juvenile courts); and''; and
       (C) in subsection (d)(1), by inserting ``court,'' after 
     ``law enforcement,''.
       (b) Eligible Grantees; Use of Grants for Education.--
     Section 2101 of part U of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
     Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796hh) is 
     amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ``State and local 
     courts (including juvenile courts), tribal courts,'' after 
     ``Indian tribal governments,'';
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) by inserting ``State and local courts (including 
     juvenile courts),'' after ``Indian tribal governments'';

[[Page 12261]]

       (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ``policies and'' and 
     inserting ``policies, educational programs, and'';
       (C) in paragraph (3), by inserting ``parole and probation 
     officers,'' after ``prosecutors,''; and
       (D) in paragraph (4), by inserting ``parole and probation 
     officers,'' after ``prosecutors,'';
       (3) in subsection (c), by inserting ``State and local 
     courts (including juvenile courts),'' after ``Indian tribal 
     governments''; and
       (4) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(e) Allotment for Indian Tribes.--Not less than 5 percent 
     of the total amount made available for grants under this 
     section for each fiscal year shall be available for grants to 
     Indian tribal governments.''.

     SEC. 103. REAUTHORIZATION OF STOP GRANTS.

       (a) Reauthorization.--Section 1001(a) of title I of the 
     Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 
     3793(a)) is amended by striking paragraph (18) and inserting 
     the following:
       ``(18) There is authorized to be appropriated from the 
     Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund established under section 
     310001 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act 
     of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to carry out part T $185,000,000 
     for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.''.
       (b) Grant Purposes.--Part T of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
     Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796gg et 
     seq.) is amended--
       (1) in section 2001--
       (A) in subsection (b)--
       (i) in paragraph (5), by striking ``racial, cultural, 
     ethnic, and language minorities'' and inserting ``underserved 
     populations'';
       (ii) in paragraph (6), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (iii) in paragraph (7), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; and''; and
       (iv) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(8) supporting formal and informal statewide, 
     multidisciplinary efforts, to the extent not supported by 
     State funds, to coordinate the response of State law 
     enforcement agencies, prosecutors, courts, victim services 
     agencies, and other State agencies and departments, to 
     violent crimes against women, including the crimes of sexual 
     assault and domestic violence.''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(c) State Coalition Grants.--
       ``(1) Purpose.--The Attorney General shall award grants to 
     each State domestic violence coalition and sexual assault 
     coalition for the purposes of coordinating State victim 
     services activities, and collaborating and coordinating with 
     Federal, State, and local entities engaged in violence 
     against women activities.
       ``(2) Grants to state coalitions.--The Attorney General 
     shall award grants to--
       ``(A) each State domestic violence coalition, as determined 
     by the Secretary of Health and Human Services through the 
     Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (42 U.S.C. 10410 
     et seq.); and
       ``(B) each State sexual assault coalition, as determined by 
     the Center for Injury Prevention and Control of the Centers 
     for Disease Control and Prevention under the Public Health 
     Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280b et seq.).
       ``(3) Eligibility for other grants.--Receipt of an award 
     under this subsection by each State domestic violence and 
     sexual assault coalition shall not preclude the coalition 
     from receiving additional grants under this part to carry out 
     the purposes described in subsection (b).'';
       (2) in section 2002(b)--
       (A) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs 
     (4) and (5), respectively;
       (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ``4 percent'' and 
     inserting ``5 percent'';
       (C) in paragraph (4), as redesignated, by striking 
     ``$500,000'' and inserting ``$600,000''; and
       (D) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
       ``(2) 2.5 percent shall be available for grants for State 
     domestic violence coalitions under section 2001(c), with the 
     coalition for each State, the coalition for the District of 
     Columbia, the coalition for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 
     and the coalition for the combined Territories of the United 
     States, each receiving an amount equal to \1/53\ of the total 
     amount made available under this paragraph for each fiscal 
     year;
       ``(3) 2.5 percent shall be available for grants for State 
     sexual assault coalitions under section 2001(c), with the 
     coalition for each State, the coalition for the District of 
     Columbia, the coalition for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 
     and the coalition for the combined Territories of the United 
     States, each receiving an amount equal to \1/53\ of the total 
     amount made available under this paragraph for each fiscal 
     year;'';
       (3) in section 2003--
       (A) in paragraph (7), by striking ``geographic location'' 
     and all that follows through ``physical disabilities'' and 
     inserting ``race, ethnicity, age, disability, religion, 
     alienage status, language barriers, geographic location 
     (including rural isolation), and any other populations 
     determined to be underserved''; and
       (B) in paragraph (8), by striking ``assisting domestic 
     violence or sexual assault victims through the legal 
     process'' and inserting ``providing assistance for victims 
     seeking necessary support services as a consequence of 
     domestic violence or sexual assault''; and
       (4) in section 2004(b)(3), by inserting ``, and the 
     membership of persons served in any underserved population'' 
     before the semicolon.

     SEC. 104. REAUTHORIZATION OF GRANTS TO ENCOURAGE ARREST 
                   POLICIES.

       Section 1001(a) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and 
     Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3793(a)) is amended by 
     striking paragraph (19) and inserting the following:
       ``(19) There is authorized to be appropriated from the 
     Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund established under section 
     310001 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act 
     of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to carry out part U $65,000,000 for 
     each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.''.

     SEC. 105. REAUTHORIZATION OF RURAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND 
                   CHILD ABUSE ENFORCEMENT GRANTS.

       (a) Reauthorization.--Section 40295(c) of the Violence 
     Against Women Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 13971(c)) is amended--
       (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following:
       ``(1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated 
     from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund established under 
     section 310001 to carry out this section $40,000,000 for each 
     of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) Allotment for indian tribes.--Not less than 5 percent 
     of the total amount made available to carry out this section 
     for each fiscal year shall be available for grants to Indian 
     tribal governments.''.

     SEC. 106. NATIONAL STALKER AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE REDUCTION.

       (a) Reauthorization.--Section 40603 of the Violence Against 
     Women Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14032) is amended to read as 
     follows:

     ``SEC. 40603. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       ``There is authorized to be appropriated from the Violent 
     Crime Reduction Trust Fund established under section 310001 
     to carry out this subtitle $3,000,000 for each of fiscal 
     years 2001 through 2005.''.
       (b) Technical Amendment.--Section 40602(a) of the Violence 
     Against Women Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14031 note) is amended 
     by inserting ``and implement'' after ``improve''.

     SEC. 107. AMENDMENTS TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND STALKING 
                   OFFENSES.

       (a) Interstate Domestic Violence.--Section 2261 of title 
     18, United States Code, is amended by striking subsection (a) 
     and inserting the following:
       ``(a) Offenses.--
       ``(1) Travel or conduct of offender.--A person who travels 
     in interstate or foreign commerce or enters or leaves Indian 
     country with the intent to kill, injure, harass, or 
     intimidate a spouse or intimate partner, and who, in the 
     course of or as a result of such travel, commits or attempts 
     to commit a crime of violence against that spouse or intimate 
     partner, shall be punished as provided in subsection (b).
       ``(2) Causing travel of victim.--A person who causes a 
     spouse or intimate partner to travel in interstate or foreign 
     commerce or to enter or leave Indian country by force, 
     coercion, duress, or fraud, and who, in the course of, as a 
     result of, or to facilitate such conduct or travel, commits 
     or attempts to commit a crime of violence against that spouse 
     or intimate partner, shall be punished as provided in 
     subsection (b).''.
       (b) Interstate Stalking.--Section 2261A of title 18, United 
     States Code, is amended to read as follows:

     ``Sec. 2261A. Interstate stalking

       ``Whoever--
       ``(1) with the intent to kill, injure, harass, or 
     intimidate another person, engages within the special 
     maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States in 
     conduct that places that person in reasonable fear of the 
     death of, or serious bodily injury (as defined in section 
     2266) to, that person or a member of the immediate family (as 
     defined in section 115) of that person; or
       ``(2) with the intent to kill, injure, harass, or 
     intimidate another person, travels in interstate or foreign 
     commerce, or enters or leaves Indian country, and, in the 
     course of or as a result of such travel, engages in conduct 
     that places that person in reasonable fear of the death of, 
     or serious bodily injury (as defined in section 2266) to, 
     that person or a member of the immediate family (as defined 
     in section 115) of that person,

     shall be punished as provided in section 2261(b).''.
       (c) Interstate Violation of Protection Order.--Section 2262 
     of title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking 
     subsection (a) and inserting the following:
       ``(a) Offenses.--
       ``(1) Travel or conduct of offender.--A person who travels 
     in interstate or foreign commerce, or enters or leaves Indian 
     country, with the intent to engage in conduct that violates 
     the portion of a protection order that prohibits or provides 
     protection against violence, threats, or harassment against, 
     contact or communication with, or physical proximity to, 
     another person, or that would violate such a portion of a 
     protection order in the jurisdiction in which the order was 
     issued, and subsequently engages in such conduct, shall be 
     punished as provided in subsection (b).

[[Page 12262]]

       ``(2) Causing travel of victim.--A person who causes 
     another person to travel in interstate or foreign commerce or 
     to enter or leave Indian country by force, coercion, duress, 
     or fraud, and in the course of, as a result of, or to 
     facilitate such conduct or travel engages in conduct that 
     violates the portion of a protection order that prohibits or 
     provides protection against violence, threats, or harassment 
     against, contact or communication with, or physical proximity 
     to, another person, or that would violate such a portion of a 
     protection order in the jurisdiction in which the order was 
     issued, shall be punished as provided in subsection (b).''.
       (d) Definitions.--Section 2266 of title 18, United States 
     Code, is amended to read as follows:

     ``Sec. 2266. Definitions

       ``In this chapter:
       ``(1) Bodily injury.--The term `bodily injury' means any 
     act, except one done in self-defense, that results in 
     physical injury or sexual abuse.
       ``(2) Enter or leave indian country.--The term `enter or 
     leave Indian country' includes leaving the jurisdiction of 1 
     tribal government and entering the jurisdiction of another 
     tribal government.
       ``(3) Indian country.--The term `Indian country' has the 
     meaning stated in section 1151 of this title.
       ``(4) Protection order.--The term `protection order' 
     includes any injunction or other order issued for the purpose 
     of preventing violent or threatening acts or harassment 
     against, or contact or communication with or physical 
     proximity to, another person, including any temporary or 
     final order issued by a civil and criminal court (other than 
     a support or child custody order issued pursuant to State 
     divorce and child custody laws) whether obtained by filing an 
     independent action or as a pendente lite order in another 
     proceeding so long as any civil order was issued in response 
     to a complaint, petition, or motion filed by or on behalf of 
     a person seeking protection.
       ``(5) Serious bodily injury.--The term `serious bodily 
     injury' has the meaning stated in section 2119(2).
       ``(6) Spouse or intimate partner.--The term `spouse or 
     intimate partner' includes--
       ``(A) a spouse, a former spouse, a person who shares a 
     child in common with the abuser, and a person who cohabits or 
     has cohabited with the abuser as a spouse; and
       ``(B) any other person similarly situated to a spouse who 
     is protected by the domestic or family violence laws of the 
     State or tribal jurisdiction in which the injury occurred or 
     where the victim resides.
       ``(7) State.--The term `State' includes a State of the 
     United States, the District of Columbia, a commonwealth, 
     territory, or possession of the United States.
       ``(8) Travel in interstate or foreign commerce.--The term 
     `travel in interstate or foreign commerce' does not include 
     travel from 1 State to another by an individual who is a 
     member of an Indian tribe and who remains at all times in the 
     territory of the Indian tribe of which the individual is a 
     member.''.

     SEC. 108. GRANTS TO REDUCE VIOLENT CRIMES AGAINST WOMEN ON 
                   CAMPUS.

       Section 826 of the Higher Education Amendments of 1998 (20 
     U.S.C. 1152) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (f)(1), by inserting ``by a person with 
     whom the victim has engaged in a social relationship of a 
     romantic or intimate nature,'' after ``cohabited with the 
     victim,''; and
       (2) in subsection (g), by striking ``fiscal year 1999 and 
     such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding 
     fiscal years'' and inserting ``each of fiscal years 2001 
     through 2005''.

        TITLE II--STRENGTHENING SERVICES TO VICTIMS OF VIOLENCE

     SEC. 201. LEGAL ASSISTANCE FOR VICTIMS.

       (a) In General.--The purpose of this section is to enable 
     the Attorney General to award grants to increase the 
     availability of legal assistance necessary to provide 
     effective aid to victims of domestic violence, stalking, or 
     sexual assault who are seeking relief in legal matters 
     arising as a consequence of that abuse or violence, at 
     minimal or no cost to the victims.
       (b) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Domestic violence.--The term ``domestic violence'' has 
     the meaning given the term in section 2003 of title I of the 
     Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 
     3796gg-2).
       (2) Legal assistance for victims.--The term ``legal 
     assistance'' includes assistance to victims of domestic 
     violence, stalking, and sexual assault in family, criminal, 
     immigration, administrative, or housing matters, protection 
     or stay away order proceedings, and other similar matters. No 
     funds made available under this section may be used to 
     provide financial assistance in support of any litigation 
     described in paragraph (14) of section 504 of Public Law 104-
     134.
       (3) Sexual assault.--The term ``sexual assault'' has the 
     meaning given the term in section 2003 of title I of the 
     Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 
     3796gg-2).
       (c) Legal Assistance for Victims Grants.--The Attorney 
     General may award grants under this subsection to private 
     nonprofit entities, Indian tribal governments, and publicly 
     funded organizations not acting in a governmental capacity 
     such as law schools, and which shall be used--
       (1) to implement, expand, and establish cooperative efforts 
     and projects between domestic violence and sexual assault 
     victim services organizations and legal assistance providers 
     to provide legal assistance for victims of domestic violence, 
     stalking, and sexual assault;
       (2) to implement, expand, and establish efforts and 
     projects to provide legal assistance for victims of domestic 
     violence, stalking, and sexual assault by organizations with 
     a demonstrated history of providing direct legal or advocacy 
     services on behalf of these victims; and
       (3) to provide training, technical assistance, and data 
     collection to improve the capacity of grantees and other 
     entities to offer legal assistance to victims of domestic 
     violence, stalking, and sexual assault.
       (d) Grant To Establish Database of Programs That Provide 
     Legal Assistance to Victims.--
       (1) In general.--The Attorney General may make a grant to 
     establish, operate, and maintain a national computer database 
     of programs and organizations that provide legal assistance 
     to victims of domestic violence, stalking, and sexual 
     assault.
       (2) Database requirements.--A database established with a 
     grant under this subsection shall be--
       (A) designed to facilitate the referral of persons to 
     programs and organizations that provide legal assistance to 
     victims of domestic violence, stalking, and sexual assault; 
     and
       (B) operated in coordination with--
       (i) the national domestic violence hotline established 
     under section 316 of the Family Violence Prevention and 
     Services Act; and
       (ii) any comparable national sexual assault hotline or 
     other similar resource.
       (e) Evaluation.--The Attorney General may evaluate the 
     grants funded under this section through contracts or other 
     arrangements with entities expert on domestic violence, 
     stalking, and sexual assault, and on evaluation research.
       (f) Authorization of Appropriations.--
       (1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated 
     from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund established under 
     section 310001 of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
     Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to carry out this 
     section $35,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 
     2005.
       (2) Allocation of funds.--Of the amount made available 
     under this subsection in each fiscal year, not less than 5 
     percent shall be used for grants for programs that assist 
     victims of domestic violence, stalking, and sexual assault on 
     lands within the jurisdiction of an Indian tribe.
       (3) Nonsupplantation.--Amounts made available under this 
     section shall be used to supplement and not supplant other 
     Federal, State, and local funds expended to further the 
     purpose of this section.

     SEC. 202. SHELTER SERVICES FOR BATTERED WOMEN AND CHILDREN.

       (a) State Shelter Grants.--Section 303(a)(2)(C) of the 
     Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (42 U.S.C. 
     10402(a)(2)(C)) is amended by striking ``populations 
     underserved because of ethnic, racial, cultural, language 
     diversity or geographic isolation'' and inserting 
     ``populations underserved because of race, ethnicity, age, 
     disability, religion, alienage status, geographic location 
     (including rural isolation), or language barriers, and any 
     other populations determined by the Secretary to be 
     underserved''.
       (b) State Minimum; Reallotment.--Section 304 of the Family 
     Violence Prevention and Services Act (42 U.S.C. 10403) is 
     amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``for grants to States 
     for any fiscal year'' and all that follows and inserting the 
     following: ``and available for grants to States under this 
     subsection for any fiscal year--
       ``(1) Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin 
     Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 
     and the combined Freely Associated States shall each be 
     allotted not less than \1/8\ of 1 percent of the amounts 
     available for grants under section 303(a) for the fiscal year 
     for which the allotment is made; and
       ``(2) each State shall be allotted for payment in a grant 
     authorized under section 303(a), $600,000, with the remaining 
     funds to be allotted to each State in an amount that bears 
     the same ratio to such remaining funds as the population of 
     such State bears to the population of all States.'';
       (2) in subsection (c), in the first sentence, by inserting 
     ``and available'' before ``for grants''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(e) In subsection (a)(2), the term ``State'' does not 
     include any jurisdiction specified in subsection (a)(1).''.
       (c) Secretarial Responsibilities.--Section 305(a) of the 
     Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (42 U.S.C. 
     10404(a)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``an employee'' and inserting ``1 or more 
     employees'';

[[Page 12263]]

       (2) by striking ``of this title.'' and inserting ``of this 
     title, including carrying out evaluation and monitoring under 
     this title.''; and
       (3) by striking ``The individual'' and inserting ``Any 
     individual''.
       (d) Resource Centers.--Section 308 of the Family Violence 
     Prevention and Services Act (42 U.S.C. 10407) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)(2), by inserting ``on providing 
     information, training, and technical assistance'' after 
     ``focusing''; and
       (2) in subsection (c), by adding at the end the following:
       ``(8) Providing technical assistance and training to local 
     entities carrying out domestic violence programs that provide 
     shelter, related assistance, or transitional housing 
     assistance.
       ``(9) Improving access to services, information, and 
     training, concerning family violence, within Indian tribes 
     and Indian tribal agencies.
       ``(10) Providing technical assistance and training to 
     appropriate entities to improve access to services, 
     information, and training concerning family violence 
     occurring in underserved populations.''.
       (e) Conforming Amendment.--Section 309(6) of the Family 
     Violence Prevention and Services Act (42 U.S.C. 10408(6)) is 
     amended by striking ``the Virgin Islands, the Northern 
     Mariana Islands, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific 
     Islands'' and inserting ``the United States Virgin Islands, 
     the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the 
     combined Freely Associated States''.
       (f) Reauthorization.--Section 310 of the Family Violence 
     Prevention and Services Act (42 U.S.C. 10409) is amended--
       (1) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:
       ``(a) In General.--
       ``(1) Authorization of appropriations.--There are 
     authorized to be appropriated to carry out this title 
     $175,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.
       ``(2) Source of funds.--Amounts made available under 
     paragraph (1) may be appropriated from the Violent Crime 
     Reduction Trust Fund established under section 310001 of the 
     Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 
     U.S.C. 14211).'';
       (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``under subsection 
     303(a)'' and inserting ``under section 303(a)'';
       (3) in subsection (c), by inserting ``not more than the 
     lesser of $7,500,000 or'' before ``5''; and
       (4) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(f) Evaluation, Monitoring, and Administration.--Of the 
     amounts appropriated under subsection (a) for each fiscal 
     year, not more than 1 percent shall be used by the Secretary 
     for evaluation, monitoring, and administrative costs under 
     this title.''.
       (g) State Domestic Violence Coalition Grant Activities.--
     Section 311 of the Family Violence Prevention and Services 
     Act (42 U.S.C. 10410) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)(4), by striking ``underserved racial, 
     ethnic or language-minority populations'' and inserting 
     ``underserved populations described in section 
     303(a)(2)(C)''; and
       (2) in subsection (c), by striking ``the U.S. Virgin 
     Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Trust 
     Territory of the Pacific Islands'' and inserting ``the United 
     States Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands, and the Freely Associated States''.

     SEC. 203. TRANSITIONAL HOUSING ASSISTANCE FOR VICTIMS OF 
                   DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.

       Title III of the Family Violence Prevention and Services 
     Act (42 U.S.C. 10401 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 
     the following new section:

     ``SEC. 319. TRANSITIONAL HOUSING ASSISTANCE.

       ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall award grants under 
     this section to carry out programs to provide assistance to 
     individuals, and their dependents--
       ``(1) who are homeless or in need of transitional housing 
     or other housing assistance, as a result of fleeing a 
     situation of domestic violence; and
       ``(2) for whom emergency shelter services are unavailable 
     or insufficient.
       ``(b) Assistance Described.--Assistance provided under this 
     section may include--
       ``(1) short-term housing assistance, including rental or 
     utilities payments assistance and assistance with related 
     expenses, such as payment of security deposits and other 
     costs incidental to relocation to transitional housing, in 
     cases in which assistance described in this paragraph is 
     necessary to prevent homelessness because an individual or 
     dependent is fleeing a situation of domestic violence; and
       ``(2) short-term support services, including payment of 
     expenses and costs associated with transportation and job 
     training referrals, child care, counseling, transitional 
     housing identification and placement, and related services.
       ``(c) Term of Assistance.--An individual or dependent 
     assisted under this section may not receive assistance under 
     this section for a total of more than 12 months.
       ``(d) Reports.--
       ``(1) Report to secretary.--
       ``(A) In general.--An entity that receives a grant under 
     this section shall annually prepare and submit to the 
     Secretary a report describing the number of individuals and 
     dependents assisted, and the types of housing assistance and 
     support services provided, under this section.
       ``(B) Contents.--Each report shall include information on--
       ``(i) the purpose and amount of housing assistance provided 
     to each individual or dependent assisted under this section;
       ``(ii) the number of months each individual or dependent 
     received the assistance;
       ``(iii) the number of individuals and dependents who were 
     eligible to receive the assistance, and to whom the entity 
     could not provide the assistance solely due to a lack of 
     available housing; and
       ``(iv) the type of support services provided to each 
     individual or dependent assisted under this section.
       ``(2) Report to congress.--The Secretary shall annually 
     prepare and submit to the Committee on the Judiciary of the 
     House of Representatives and the Committee on the Judiciary 
     of the Senate a report that contains a compilation of the 
     information contained in reports submitted under paragraph 
     (1).
       ``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are 
     authorized to be appropriated from the Violent Crime 
     Reduction Trust Fund established under section 310001 of the 
     Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 
     U.S.C. 14211) to carry out this section--
       ``(1) $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 
     2003; and
       ``(2) $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004 and 
     2005.''.

     SEC. 204. NATIONAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HOTLINE.

       (a) Reauthorization.--Section 316(f) of the Family Violence 
     Prevention and Services Act (42 U.S.C. 10416(f)) is amended 
     by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following:
       ``(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
     from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund established under 
     section 310001 of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
     Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to carry out this 
     section $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 
     2005.''.
       (b) Report Requirement.--Section 316 of the Family Violence 
     Prevention and Services Act (42 U.S.C. 10416) is amended--
       (1) by redesignating subsection (f) as subsection (g); and
       (2) by inserting after subsection (e) the following:
       ``(f) Report by Grant Recipient.--
       ``(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
     of enactment of the Violence Against Women Act of 2000, each 
     recipient of a grant under this section shall prepare and 
     submit to the Secretary a report that contains--
       ``(A) an evaluation of the effectiveness of the activities 
     carried out by the recipient with amounts received under this 
     section; and
       ``(B) such other information as the Secretary may 
     prescribe.
       ``(2) Notice and public comment.--The Secretary shall--
       ``(A) publish in the Federal Register a copy of the report 
     submitted by the recipient under this subsection; and
       ``(B) allow not less than 90 days for notice of and 
     opportunity for public comment on the published report.''.

     SEC. 205. FEDERAL VICTIMS COUNSELORS.

       Section 40114 of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
     Enforcement Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-322; 108 Stat. 1910) 
     is amended by striking ``(such as District of Columbia)--'' 
     and all that follows and inserting ``(such as District of 
     Columbia), $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 
     2005.''.

     SEC. 206. STUDY OF STATE LAWS REGARDING INSURANCE 
                   DISCRIMINATION AGAINST VICTIMS OF VIOLENCE 
                   AGAINST WOMEN.

       (a) In General.--The Attorney General shall conduct a 
     national study to identify State laws that address 
     discrimination against victims of domestic violence and 
     sexual assault related to issuance or administration of 
     insurance policies.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall submit to 
     Congress a report on the findings and recommendations of the 
     study required by subsection (a).

     SEC. 207. STUDY OF WORKPLACE EFFECTS FROM VIOLENCE AGAINST 
                   WOMEN.

       The Attorney General shall--
       (1) conduct a national survey of plans, programs, and 
     practices developed to assist employers and employees on 
     appropriate responses in the workplace related to victims of 
     domestic violence, stalking, or sexual assault; and
       (2) not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of 
     this Act, submit to Congress a report describing the results 
     of that survey, which report shall include the 
     recommendations of the Attorney General to assist employers 
     and employees affected in the workplace by incidents of 
     domestic violence, stalking, and sexual assault.

     SEC. 208. STUDY OF UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION FOR VICTIMS OF 
                   VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN.

       The Secretary of Labor, in consultation with the Attorney 
     General, shall--
       (1) conduct a national study to identify State laws that 
     address the separation from employment of an employee due to 
     circumstances directly resulting from the experience of 
     domestic violence by the employee

[[Page 12264]]

     and circumstances governing that receipt (or nonreceipt) by 
     the employee of unemployment compensation based on such 
     separation; and
       (2) not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
     this Act, submit to Congress a report describing the results 
     of that study, together with any recommendations based on 
     that study.

     SEC. 209. ENHANCING PROTECTIONS FOR OLDER WOMEN FROM DOMESTIC 
                   VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT.

       (a) Definition.--In this section, the term ``older 
     individual'' has the meaning given the term in section 102 of 
     the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3002).
       (b) Protections for Older Individuals From Domestic 
     Violence and Sexual Assault in Pro-Arrest Grants.--Section 
     2101(b) of part U of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and 
     Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796hh et seq.) is 
     amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(8) To develop or strengthen policies and training for 
     police, prosecutors, and the judiciary in recognizing, 
     investigating, and prosecuting instances of domestic violence 
     and sexual assault against older individuals (as is defined 
     in section 102 of the Older Americans Act of 1965) (42 U.S.C. 
     3002)).''.
       (c) Protections for Older Individuals From Domestic 
     Violence and Sexual Assault in STOP Grants.--Part T of title 
     I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 
     (42 U.S.C. 3796gg et seq.) is amended--
       (1) in section 2001(b)--
       (A) in paragraph (7) (as amended by section 103(b) of this 
     Act), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (B) in paragraph (8) (as added by section 103(b) of this 
     Act), by striking the period at the end and inserting ``; 
     and''; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(9) developing, enlarging, or strengthening programs to 
     assist law enforcement, prosecutors, courts, and others to 
     address the needs and circumstances of older women who are 
     victims of domestic violence or sexual assault, including 
     recognizing, investigating, and prosecuting instances of such 
     violence or assault and targeting outreach and support and 
     counseling services to such older individuals.''; and
       (2) in section 2003(7) (as amended by section 103(b) of 
     this Act), by inserting after ``any other populations 
     determined to be underserved'' the following: ``, and the 
     needs of older individuals (as defined in section 102 of the 
     Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3002)) who are victims 
     of family violence''.
       (d) Enhancing Services for Older Individuals in Shelters.--
     Section 303(a)(2)(C) of the Family Violence Prevention and 
     Services Act (42 U.S.C. 10402(a)(2)(C)) (as amended by 
     section 202(a)(1) of this Act) is amended by inserting after 
     ``any other populations determined by the Secretary to be 
     underserved'' the following: ``, and the needs of older 
     individuals (as defined in section 102 of the Older Americans 
     Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3002)) who are victims of family 
     violence''.

        TITLE III--LIMITING THE EFFECTS OF VIOLENCE ON CHILDREN

     SEC. 301. SAFE HAVENS FOR CHILDREN PILOT PROGRAM.

       (a) In General.--The Attorney General may award grants to 
     States, units of local government, and Indian tribal 
     governments that propose to enter into or expand the scope of 
     existing contracts and cooperative agreements with public or 
     private nonprofit entities to provide supervised visitation 
     and safe visitation exchange of children by and between 
     parents in situations involving domestic violence, child 
     abuse, or sexual assault.
       (b) Considerations.--In awarding grants under subsection 
     (a), the Attorney General shall take into account--
       (1) the number of families to be served by the proposed 
     visitation programs and services;
       (2) the extent to which the proposed supervised visitation 
     programs and services serve underserved populations (as 
     defined in section 2003 of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
     Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796gg-2));
       (3) with respect to an applicant for a contract or 
     cooperative agreement, the extent to which the applicant 
     demonstrates cooperation and collaboration with nonprofit, 
     nongovernmental entities in the local community served, 
     including the State domestic violence coalition, State sexual 
     assault coalition, local shelters, and programs for domestic 
     violence and sexual assault victims; and
       (4) the extent to which the applicant demonstrates 
     coordination and collaboration with State and local court 
     systems, including mechanisms for communication and referral.
       (c) Applicant Requirements.--The Attorney General shall 
     award grants for contracts and cooperative agreements to 
     applicants that--
       (1) demonstrate expertise in the area of family violence, 
     including the areas of domestic violence or sexual assault, 
     as appropriate;
       (2) ensure that any fees charged to individuals for use of 
     programs and services are based on the income of those 
     individuals, unless otherwise provided by court order;
       (3) demonstrate that adequate security measures, including 
     adequate facilities, procedures, and personnel capable of 
     preventing violence, are in place for the operation of 
     supervised visitation programs and services or safe 
     visitation exchange; and
       (4) prescribe standards by which the supervised visitation 
     or safe visitation exchange will occur.
       (d) Reporting.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the last day 
     of the first fiscal year commencing on or after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, and not later than 180 days after the 
     last day of each fiscal year thereafter, the Attorney General 
     shall submit to Congress a report that includes information 
     concerning--
       (A) the number of--
       (i) individuals served and the number of individuals turned 
     away from visitation programs and services and safe 
     visitation exchange (categorized by State);
       (ii) the number of individuals from underserved populations 
     served and turned away from services; and
       (iii) the type of problems that underlie the need for 
     supervised visitation or safe visitation exchange, such as 
     domestic violence, child abuse, sexual assault, other 
     physical abuse, or a combination of such factors;
       (B) the numbers of supervised visitations or safe 
     visitation exchanges ordered under this section during 
     custody determinations under a separation or divorce decree 
     or protection order, through child protection services or 
     other social services agencies, or by any other order of a 
     civil, criminal, juvenile, or family court;
       (C) the process by which children or abused partners are 
     protected during visitations, temporary custody transfers, 
     and other activities for which supervised visitation is 
     established under this section;
       (D) safety and security problems occurring during the 
     reporting period during supervised visitation under this 
     section, including the number of parental abduction cases; 
     and
       (E) the number of parental abduction cases in a judicial 
     district using supervised visitation programs and services 
     under this section, both as identified in criminal 
     prosecution and custody violations.
       (2) Guidelines.--The Attorney General shall establish 
     guidelines for the collection and reporting of data under 
     this subsection.
       (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust 
     Fund established under section 310001 of the Violent Crime 
     Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to 
     carry out this section $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
     2001 and 2002.
       (f) Allotment for Indian Tribes.--Not less than 5 percent 
     of the total amount made available for each fiscal year to 
     carry out this section shall be available for grants to 
     Indian tribal governments.

     SEC. 302. REAUTHORIZATION OF RUNAWAY AND HOMELESS YOUTH 
                   GRANTS.

       Section 388(a) of the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (42 
     U.S.C. 5751(a)) is amended by striking paragraph (4) and 
     inserting the following:
       ``(4) Part e.--There is authorized to be appropriated from 
     the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund established under 
     section 310001 of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
     Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to carry out part E 
     $22,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.''.

     SEC. 303. REAUTHORIZATION OF VICTIMS OF CHILD ABUSE PROGRAMS.

       (a) Court-Appointed Special Advocate Program.--Section 218 
     of the Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 13014) 
     is amended by striking subsection (a) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(a) Authorization.--There is authorized to be 
     appropriated from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund 
     established under section 310001 of the Violent Crime Control 
     and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to carry 
     out this subtitle $12,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 
     through 2005.''.
       (b) Child Abuse Training Programs for Judicial Personnel 
     and Practitioners.--Section 224 of the Victims of Child Abuse 
     Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 13024) is amended by striking 
     subsection (a) and inserting the following:
       ``(a) Authorization.--There is authorized to be 
     appropriated from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund 
     established under section 310001 of the Violent Crime Control 
     and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to carry 
     out this subtitle $2,300,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 
     through 2005.''.
       (c) Grants for Televised Testimony.--Section 1001(a) of 
     title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 
     1968 (42 U.S.C. 3793(a)) is amended by striking paragraph (7) 
     and inserting the following:
       ``(7) There is authorized to be appropriated from the 
     Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund established under section 
     310001 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act 
     of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to carry out part N $1,000,000 for 
     each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.''.
       (d) Dissemination of Information.--The Attorney General 
     shall--
       (1) annually compile and disseminate information (including 
     through electronic publication) about the use of amounts 
     expended

[[Page 12265]]

     and the projects funded under section 218(a) of the Victims 
     of Child Abuse Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 13014(a)), section 
     224(a) of the Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
     13024(a)), and section 1007(a)(7) of title I of the Omnibus 
     Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 
     3793(a)(7)), including any evaluations of the projects and 
     information to enable replication and adoption of the 
     strategies identified in the projects; and
       (2) focus dissemination of the information described in 
     paragraph (1) toward community-based programs, including 
     domestic violence and sexual assault programs.

     SEC. 304. REPORT ON EFFECTS OF PARENTAL KIDNAPPING LAWS IN 
                   DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CASES.

       (a) In General.--The Attorney General shall--
       (1) conduct a study of Federal and State laws relating to 
     child custody, including custody provisions in protection 
     orders, the Parental Kidnaping Prevention Act of 1980, and 
     the amendments made by that Act, and the effect of those laws 
     on child custody cases in which domestic violence is a 
     factor; and
       (2) submit to Congress a report describing the results of 
     that study, including the effects of implementing or applying 
     model State laws, and the recommendations of the Attorney 
     General to reduce the incidence or pattern of violence 
     against women or of sexual assault of the child.
       (b) Sufficiency of Defenses.--In carrying out subsection 
     (a) with respect to the Parental Kidnaping Prevention Act of 
     1980, and the amendments made by that Act, the Attorney 
     General shall examine the sufficiency of defenses to parental 
     abduction charges available in cases involving domestic 
     violence, and the burdens and risks encountered by victims of 
     domestic violence arising from jurisdictional requirements of 
     that Act and the amendments made by that Act.
       (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated to carry out this section $200,000 for 
     fiscal year 2001.
       (d) Condition for Custody Determination.--Section 
     1738A(c)(2)(C)(ii) of title 28, United States Code, is 
     amended by striking ``he'' and inserting ``the child, a 
     sibling, or parent of the child''.

   TITLE IV--STRENGTHENING EDUCATION AND TRAINING TO COMBAT VIOLENCE 
                             AGAINST WOMEN

     SEC. 401. EDUCATION AND TRAINING IN APPROPRIATE RESPONSES TO 
                   VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN.

       (a) Authority.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services, 
     in consultation with the Attorney General, may award grants 
     in accordance with this section to public and private 
     nonprofit entities that, in the determination of the 
     Secretary, have--
       (1) nationally recognized expertise in the areas of 
     domestic violence and sexual assault; and
       (2) a record of commitment and quality responses to reduce 
     domestic violence and sexual assault.
       (b) Purpose.--Grants under this section may be used for the 
     purposes of developing, testing, presenting, and 
     disseminating model programs to provide education and 
     training in appropriate and effective responses to victims of 
     domestic violence and sexual assault (including, as 
     appropriate, the effects of domestic violence on children) 
     for individuals (other than law enforcement officers and 
     prosecutors) who are likely to come into contact with such 
     victims during the course of their employment, including--
       (1) caseworkers, supervisors, administrators, 
     administrative law judges, and other individuals 
     administering Federal and State benefits programs, such as 
     child welfare and child protective services, Temporary 
     Assistance to Needy Families, social security disability, 
     child support, medicaid, unemployment, workers' compensation, 
     and similar programs; and
       (2) medical and health care professionals, including mental 
     and behavioral health professionals such as psychologists, 
     psychiatrists, social workers, therapists, counselors, and 
     others.
       (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust 
     Fund established under section 310001 of the Violent Crime 
     Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to 
     carry out this section $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
     2001 through 2003.

     SEC. 402. RAPE PREVENTION AND EDUCATION.

       (a) In General.--Part J of title III of the Public Health 
     Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280b et seq.) is amended by inserting 
     after section 393A the following:

     ``SEC. 393B. USE OF ALLOTMENTS FOR RAPE PREVENTION EDUCATION.

       ``(a) Permitted Use.--The Secretary, acting through the 
     National Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the 
     Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shall award 
     targeted grants to States to be used for rape prevention and 
     education programs conducted by rape crisis centers, State 
     sexual assault coalitions, and other public and private 
     nonprofit entities for--
       ``(1) educational seminars;
       ``(2) the operation of hotlines;
       ``(3) training programs for professionals;
       ``(4) the preparation of informational material;
       ``(5) education and training programs for students and 
     campus personnel designed to reduce the incidence of sexual 
     assault at colleges and universities;
       ``(6) education to increase awareness about drugs used to 
     facilitate rapes or sexual assaults; and
       ``(7) other efforts to increase awareness of the facts 
     about, or to help prevent, sexual assault, including efforts 
     to increase awareness in underserved communities and 
     awareness among individuals with disabilities (as defined in 
     section 3 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 
     U.S.C. 12102)).
       ``(b) Collection and Dissemination of Information on Sexual 
     Assault.--The Secretary shall, through the National Resource 
     Center on Sexual Assault established under the National 
     Center for Injury Prevention and Control at the Centers for 
     Disease Control and Prevention, provide resource information, 
     policy, training, and technical assistance to Federal, State, 
     local, and Indian tribal agencies, as well as to State sexual 
     assault coalitions and local sexual assault programs and to 
     other professionals and interested parties on issues relating 
     to sexual assault, including maintenance of a central 
     resource library in order to collect, prepare, analyze, and 
     disseminate information and statistics and analyses thereof 
     relating to the incidence and prevention of sexual assault.
       ``(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--
       ``(1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated 
     from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund established under 
     section 310001 of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
     Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to carry out this 
     section, $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 
     2005.
       ``(2) National resource center allotment.--Of the total 
     amount made available under this subsection in each fiscal 
     year, not more than the greater of $1,000,000 or 2 percent of 
     such amount shall be available for allotment under subsection 
     (b).
       ``(d) Limitations.--
       ``(1) Supplement not supplant.--Amounts provided to States 
     under this section shall be used to supplement and not 
     supplant other Federal, State, and local public funds 
     expended to provide services of the type described in 
     subsection (a).
       ``(2) Studies.--A State may not use more than 2 percent of 
     the amount received by the State under this section for each 
     fiscal year for surveillance studies or prevalence studies.
       ``(3) Administration.--A State may not use more than 5 
     percent of the amount received by the State under this 
     section for each fiscal year for administrative expenses.''.
       (b) Repeal.--Section 40151 of the Violence Against Women 
     Act of 1994 (108 Stat. 1920), and the amendment made by such 
     section, is repealed.

     SEC. 403. EDUCATION AND TRAINING TO END VIOLENCE AGAINST AND 
                   ABUSE OF WOMEN WITH DISABILITIES.

       (a) In General.--The Attorney General, in consultation with 
     the Secretary of Health and Human Services, may award grants 
     to States and nongovernmental private entities to provide 
     education and technical assistance for the purpose of 
     providing training, consultation, and information on domestic 
     violence, stalking, and sexual assault against women who are 
     individuals with disabilities (as defined in section 3 of the 
     Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102)).
       (b) Priorities.--In awarding grants under this section, the 
     Attorney General shall give priority to applications designed 
     to provide education and technical assistance on--
       (1) the nature, definition, and characteristics of domestic 
     violence, stalking, and sexual assault experienced by women 
     who are individuals with disabilities;
       (2) outreach activities to ensure that women who are 
     individuals with disabilities who are victims of domestic 
     violence, stalking, and sexual assault receive appropriate 
     assistance;
       (3) the requirements of shelters and victim services 
     organizations under Federal anti-discrimination laws, 
     including the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and 
     section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; and
       (4) cost-effective ways that shelters and victim services 
     may accommodate the needs of individuals with disabilities in 
     accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
       (c) Uses of Grants.--Each recipient of a grant under this 
     section shall provide information and training to 
     organizations and programs that provide services to 
     individuals with disabilities, including independent living 
     centers, disability-related service organizations, and 
     domestic violence programs providing shelter or related 
     assistance.
       (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust 
     Fund established under section 310001 of the Violent Crime 
     Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) to 
     carry out this section $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
     2001 through 2005.

     SEC. 404. COMMUNITY INITIATIVES.

       Section 318 of the Family Violence Prevention and Services 
     Act (42 U.S.C. 10418) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (b)(2)--
       (A) in subparagraph (G), by striking ``and'' at the end;

[[Page 12266]]

       (B) by redesignating subparagraph (H) as subparagraph (I); 
     and
       (C) by inserting after subparagraph (G) the following:
       ``(H) groups that provide services to individuals with 
     disabilities;''; and
       (2) by striking subsection (h) and inserting the following:
       ``(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are 
     authorized to be appropriated from the Violent Crime 
     Reduction Trust Fund established under section 310001 of the 
     Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 
     U.S.C. 14211) to carry out this section $5,000,000 for each 
     of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.''.

     SEC. 405. DEVELOPMENT OF RESEARCH AGENDA IDENTIFIED BY THE 
                   VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT OF 1994.

       (a) In General.--The Attorney General shall--
       (1) direct the National Institute of Justice, in 
     consultation and coordination with the Bureau of Justice 
     Statistics and the National Academy of Sciences, through its 
     National Research Council, to develop a research agenda based 
     on the recommendations contained in the report entitled 
     ``Understanding Violence Against Women'' of the National 
     Academy of Sciences ; and
       (2) not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
     this Act, in consultation with the Secretary of the 
     Department of Health and Human Services, submit to Congress a 
     report which shall include--
       (A) a description of the research agenda developed under 
     paragraph (1) and a plan to implement that agenda;
       (B) recommendations for priorities in carrying out that 
     agenda to most effectively advance knowledge about and means 
     by which to prevent or reduce violence against women.
       (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust 
     Fund established under section 31001 of the Violent Crime 
     Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) 
     such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.

                   TITLE V--BATTERED IMMIGRANT WOMEN

     SEC. 501. SHORT TITLE.

       This title may be cited as the ``Battered Immigrant Women 
     Protection Act of 2000''.

     SEC. 502. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

       (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
       (1) the goal of the immigration protections for battered 
     immigrants included in the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 
     was to remove immigration laws as a barrier that kept 
     battered immigrant women and children locked in abusive 
     relationships;
       (2) providing battered immigrant women and children who 
     were experiencing domestic violence at home with protection 
     against deportation allows them to obtain protection orders 
     against their abusers and frees them to cooperate with law 
     enforcement and prosecutors in criminal cases brought against 
     their abusers and the abusers of their children without 
     fearing that the abuser will retaliate by withdrawing or 
     threatening withdrawal of access to an immigration benefit 
     under the abuser's control; and
       (3) there are several groups of battered immigrant women 
     and children who do not have access to the immigration 
     protections of the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 which 
     means that their abusers are virtually immune from 
     prosecution because their victims can be deported as a result 
     of action by their abusers and the Immigration and 
     Naturalization Service cannot offer them protection no matter 
     how compelling their case under existing law.
       (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this title are--
       (1) to remove barriers to criminal prosecutions of persons 
     who commit acts of battery or extreme cruelty against 
     immigrant women and children; and
       (2) to offer protection against domestic violence occurring 
     in family and intimate relationships that are covered in 
     State and tribal protection orders, domestic violence, and 
     family law statutes.

     SEC. 503. IMPROVED ACCESS TO IMMIGRATION PROTECTIONS OF THE 
                   VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT OF 1994 FOR BATTERED 
                   IMMIGRANT WOMEN.

       (a) Intended Spouse Defined.--Section 101(a) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)) is amended 
     by adding at the end the following:
       ``(50) The term `intended spouse' means any alien who meets 
     the criteria set forth in section 
     204(a)(1)(A)(iii)(II)(aa)(BB), 204(a)(1)(B)(ii)(II)(aa)(BB), 
     or 240A(b)(2)(A)(i)(III).''.
       (b) Immediate Relative Status for Self-Petitioners Married 
     to U.S. Citizens.--
       (1) Self-petitioning spouses.--
       (A) Battery or cruelty to alien or alien's child.--Section 
     204(a)(1)(A)(iii) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
     U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(A)(iii)) is amended to read as follows:
       ``(iii)(I) An alien who is described in subclause (II) may 
     file a petition with the Attorney General under this clause 
     for classification of the alien (and any child of the alien) 
     if the alien demonstrates to the Attorney General that--
       ``(aa) the marriage or the intent to marry the United 
     States citizen was entered into in good faith by the alien; 
     and
       ``(bb) during the marriage or relationship intended by the 
     alien to be legally a marriage, the alien or a child of the 
     alien has been battered or has been the subject of extreme 
     cruelty perpetrated by the alien's spouse or intended spouse.
       ``(II) For purposes of subclause (I), an alien described in 
     this subclause is an alien--
       ``(aa)(AA) who is the spouse of a citizen of the United 
     States;
       ``(BB) who believed that he or she had married a citizen of 
     the United States and with whom a marriage ceremony was 
     actually performed and who otherwise meets any applicable 
     requirements under this Act to establish the existence of and 
     bona fides of a marriage, but whose marriage is not 
     legitimate solely because of the bigamy of such citizen of 
     the United States; or
       ``(CC) who was a bona fide spouse of a United States 
     citizen within the past 2 years and--
       ``(aaa) whose spouse died within the past 2 years;
       ``(bbb) whose spouse lost or renounced citizenship status 
     related to an incident of domestic violence; or
       ``(ccc) who demonstrates a connection between the legal 
     termination of the marriage and battering or extreme cruelty 
     by the United States citizen spouse;
       ``(bb) who is a person of good moral character;
       ``(cc) who is eligible to be classified as an immediate 
     relative under section 201(b)(2)(A)(i) or who would have been 
     so classified but for the bigamy of the citizen of the United 
     States that the alien intended to marry; and
       ``(dd) who has resided with the alien's spouse or intended 
     spouse.''.
       (2) Self-petitioning children.--Section 204(a)(1)(A)(iv) of 
     the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1154(a)(1)(A)(iv)) is amended to read as follows:
       ``(iv) An alien who is the child of a citizen of the United 
     States, or who was a child of a United States citizen parent 
     who lost or renounced citizenship status related to an 
     incident of domestic violence, and who is a person of good 
     moral character, who is eligible to be classified as an 
     immediate relative under section 201(b)(2)(A)(i), and who 
     resides, or has resided in the past, with the citizen parent 
     may file a petition with the Attorney General under this 
     subparagraph for classification of the alien (and any child 
     of the alien) under such section if the alien demonstrates to 
     the Attorney General that the alien has been battered by or 
     has been the subject of extreme cruelty perpetrated by the 
     alien's citizen parent. For purposes of this clause, 
     residence includes any period of visitation.''.
       (3) Filing of petitions.--Section 204(a)(1)(A) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154 (a)(1)(A)(iv)) 
     is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(v) An alien who is the spouse, intended spouse, or child 
     of a United States citizen living abroad and who is eligible 
     to file a petition under clause (iii) or (iv) shall file such 
     petition with the Attorney General under the procedures that 
     apply to self-petitioners under clauses (iii) or (iv).''.
       (c) Second Preference Immigration Status for Self-
     Petitioners Married to Lawful Permanent Residents.--
       (1) Self-petitioning spouses.--Section 204(a)(1)(B)(ii) of 
     the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1154(a)(1)(B)(ii)) is amended to read as follows:
       ``(ii)(I) An alien who is described in subclause (II) may 
     file a petition with the Attorney General under this clause 
     for classification of the alien (and any child of the alien) 
     if such a child has not been classified under clause (iii) of 
     section 203(a)(2)(A) and if the alien demonstrates to the 
     Attorney General that--
       ``(aa) the marriage or the intent to marry the lawful 
     permanent resident was entered into in good faith by the 
     alien; and
       ``(bb) during the marriage or relationship intended by the 
     alien to be legally a marriage, the alien or a child of the 
     alien has been battered or has been the subject of extreme 
     cruelty perpetrated by the alien's spouse or intended spouse.
       ``(II) For purposes of subclause (I), an alien described in 
     this paragraph is an alien--
       ``(aa)(AA) who is the spouse of a lawful permanent resident 
     of the United States; or
       ``(BB) who believed that he or she had married a lawful 
     permanent resident of the United States and with whom a 
     marriage ceremony was actually performed and who otherwise 
     meets any applicable requirements under this Act to establish 
     the existence of and bona fides of a marriage, but whose 
     marriage is not legitimate solely because of the bigamy of 
     such lawful permanent resident of the United States; or
       ``(CC) who was a bona fide spouse of a lawful permanent 
     resident within the past 2 years and--
       ``(aaa) whose spouse lost status due to an incident of 
     domestic violence; or
       ``(bbb) who demonstrates a connection between the legal 
     termination of the marriage and battering or extreme cruelty 
     by the lawful permanent resident spouse;
       ``(bb) who is a person of good moral character;
       ``(cc) who is eligible to be classified as a spouse of an 
     alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence under section 
     203(a)(2)(A)

[[Page 12267]]

     or who would have been so classified but for the bigamy of 
     the lawful permanent resident of the United States that the 
     alien intended to marry; and
       ``(dd) who has resided with the alien's spouse or intended 
     spouse.''.
       (3) Self-petitioning children.--Section 204(a)(1)(B)(iii) 
     of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1154(a)(1)(B)(iii)) is amended to read as follows:
       ``(iii) An alien who is the child of an alien lawfully 
     admitted for permanent residence, or who was the child of a 
     lawful permanent resident who lost lawful permanent resident 
     status due to an incident of domestic violence, and who is a 
     person of good moral character, who is eligible for 
     classification under section 203(a)(2)(A), and who resides, 
     or has resided in the past, with the alien's permanent 
     resident alien parent may file a petition with the Attorney 
     General under this subparagraph for classification of the 
     alien (and any child of the alien) under such section if the 
     alien demonstrates to the Attorney General that the alien has 
     been battered by or has been the subject of extreme cruelty 
     perpetrated by the alien's permanent resident parent. For 
     purposes of this clause, residence includes any period of 
     visitation.''.
       (4) Filing of petitions.--Section 204(a)(1)(B) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(B)) is 
     amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(iv) An alien who is the spouse, intended spouse, or 
     child of a lawful permanent resident living abroad is 
     eligible to file a petition under clause (ii) or (iii) shall 
     file such petition with the Attorney General under the 
     procedures that apply to self-petitioners under clauses (ii) 
     or (iii).''.
       (d) Good Moral Character Determinations for Self-
     Petitioners and Treatment of Child Self-Petitioners and 
     Petitions Including Derivative Children Attaining 21 Years of 
     Age.--Section 204(a)(1) of the Immigration and Nationality 
     Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)) is amended--
       (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (C) through (H) as 
     subparagraphs (E) through (J), respectively;
       (2) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:
       ``(C) Notwithstanding section 101(f), an act or conviction 
     that is waivable with respect to the petitioner for purposes 
     of a determination of the petitioner's admissibility under 
     section 212(a) or deportability under section 237(a) shall 
     not bar the Attorney General from finding the petitioner to 
     be of good moral character under subparagraph (A)(iii), 
     (A)(iv), (B)(ii), or (B)(iii) if the Attorney General finds 
     that the act or conviction was connected to the alien's 
     having been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty.
       ``(D)(i)(I) Any child who attains 21 years of age who has 
     filed a petition under clause (iv) of section 204(a)(1)(A) 
     that was filed or approved before the date on which the child 
     attained 21 years of age shall be considered (if the child 
     has not been admitted or approved for lawful permanent 
     residence by the date the child attained 21 years of age) a 
     petitioner for preference status under paragraph (1), (2), or 
     (3) of section 203(a), whichever paragraph is applicable, 
     with the same priority date assigned to the self-petition 
     filed under clause (iv) of section 204(a)(1)(A). No new 
     petition shall be required to be filed.
       ``(II) Any individual described in subclause (I) is 
     eligible for deferred action and work authorization.
       ``(III) Any derivative child who attains 21 years of age 
     who is included in a petition described in clause (ii) that 
     was filed or approved before the date on which the child 
     attained 21 years of age shall be considered (if the child 
     has not been admitted or approved for lawful permanent 
     residence by the date the child attained 21 years of age) a 
     petitioner for preference status under paragraph (1), (2), or 
     (3) of section 203(a), whichever paragraph is applicable, 
     with the same priority date as that assigned to the 
     petitioner in any petition described in clause (ii). No new 
     petition shall be required to be filed.
       ``(IV) Any individual described in subclause (III) and any 
     derivative child of a petition described in clause (ii) is 
     eligible for deferred action and work authorization.
       ``(ii) The petition referred to in clause (i)(III) is a 
     petition filed by an alien under subparagraph (A)(iii), 
     (A)(iv), (B)(ii) or (B)(iii) in which the child is included 
     as a derivative beneficiary.''; and
       (3) in subparagraph (J) (as so redesignated), by inserting 
     ``or in making determinations under subparagraphs (C) and 
     (D),'' after ``subparagraph (B),''.
       (e) Access to Naturalization for Divorced Victims of 
     Abuse.--Section 319(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
     (8 U.S.C. 1430(a)) is amended--
       (1) by inserting ``, or any person who obtained status as a 
     lawful permanent resident by reason of his or her status as a 
     spouse or child of a United States citizen who battered him 
     or her or subjected him or her to extreme cruelty,'' after 
     ``United States'' the first place such term appears; and
       (2) by inserting ``(except in the case of a person who has 
     been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by a United 
     States citizen spouse or parent)'' after ``has been living in 
     marital union with the citizen spouse''.

     SEC. 504. IMPROVED ACCESS TO CANCELLATION OF REMOVAL AND 
                   SUSPENSION OF DEPORTATION UNDER THE VIOLENCE 
                   AGAINST WOMEN ACT OF 1994.

       (a) Cancellation of Removal and Adjustment of Status for 
     Certain Nonpermanent Residents.--Section 240A(b)(2) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229b(b)(2)) is 
     amended to read as follows:
       ``(2) Special rule for battered spouse or child.--
       ``(A) Authority.--The Attorney General may cancel removal 
     of, and adjust to the status of an alien lawfully admitted 
     for permanent residence, an alien who is inadmissible or 
     deportable from the United States if the alien demonstrates 
     that--
       ``(i)(I) the alien has been battered or subjected to 
     extreme cruelty by a spouse or parent who is or was a United 
     States citizen (or is the parent of a child of a United 
     States citizen and the child has been battered or subjected 
     to extreme cruelty by such citizen parent);
       ``(II) the alien has been battered or subjected to extreme 
     cruelty by a spouse or parent who is or was a lawful 
     permanent resident (or is the parent of a child of an alien 
     who is or was a lawful permanent resident and the child has 
     been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by such 
     permanent resident parent); or
       ``(III) the alien has been battered or subjected to extreme 
     cruelty by a United States citizen or lawful permanent 
     resident whom the alien intended to marry, but whose marriage 
     is not legitimate because of that United States citizen's or 
     lawful permanent resident's bigamy;
       ``(ii) the alien has been physically present in the United 
     States for a continuous period of not less than 3 years 
     immediately preceding the date of such application, and the 
     issuance of a charging document for removal proceedings shall 
     not toll the 3-year period of continuous physical presence in 
     the United States;
       ``(iii) the alien has been a person of good moral character 
     during such period, subject to the provisions of subparagraph 
     (C);
       ``(iv) the alien is not inadmissible under paragraph (2) or 
     (3) of section 212(a), is not deportable under paragraphs 
     (1)(G) or (2) through (4) of section 237(a) (except in a case 
     described in section 237(a)(7) where the Attorney General 
     exercises discretion to grant a waiver), and has not been 
     convicted of an aggravated felony; and
       ``(v) the removal would result in extreme hardship to the 
     alien, the alien's child, or the alien's parent.
       ``(B) Physical presence.--Notwithstanding subsection 
     (d)(2), for purposes of subparagraph (A)(i)(II) or for 
     purposes of section 244(a)(3) (as in effect before the title 
     III-A effective date in section 309 of the Illegal 
     Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996), 
     an alien shall not be considered to have failed to maintain 
     continuous physical presence by reason of an absence if the 
     alien demonstrates a connection between the absence and the 
     battering or extreme cruelty perpetrated against the alien. 
     No absence or portion of an absence connected to the 
     battering or extreme cruelty shall count toward the 90-day or 
     180-day limits established in subsection (d)(2). If any 
     absence or aggregate absences exceed 180 days, the absences 
     or portions of the absences will not be considered to break 
     the period of continuous presence. Any such period of time 
     excluded from the 180-day limit shall be excluded in 
     computing the time during which the alien has been physically 
     present for purposes of the 3-year requirement set forth in 
     section 240A(b)(2)(B) and section 244(a)(3) (as in effect 
     before the title III-A effective date in section 309 of the 
     Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act 
     of 1996).
       ``(C) Good moral character.--Notwithstanding section 
     101(f), an act or conviction that would be waivable with 
     respect to the alien for purposes of a determination of the 
     alien's admissibility under section 212(a) or is waivable 
     with respect to the alien for purposes of the alien's 
     deportability under section 237(a) shall not bar the Attorney 
     General from finding the alien to be of good moral character 
     under subparagraph (A)(i)(III) or section 244(a)(3) (as in 
     effect before the title III-A effective date in section 309 
     of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant 
     Responsibility Act of 1996), if the Attorney General finds 
     that the act or conviction was connected to the alien's 
     having been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty and 
     determines that a waiver would be or is otherwise warranted.
       ``(D) Credible evidence considered.--In acting on 
     applications under this paragraph, the Attorney General shall 
     consider any credible evidence relevant to the application. 
     The determination of what evidence is credible and the weight 
     to be given that evidence shall be within the sole discretion 
     of the Attorney General.''.
       (b) Children of Battered Aliens and Parents of Battered 
     Alien Children.--Section 240A(b) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229b(b)) is amended by adding at 
     the end the following:
       ``(4) Children of battered aliens and parents of battered 
     alien children.--
       ``(A) In general.--The Attorney General shall grant parole 
     under section 212(d)(5) to any alien who is a--

[[Page 12268]]

       ``(i) child of an alien granted relief under section 
     240A(b)(2) or 244(a)(3) (as in effect before the title III-A 
     effective date in section 309 of the Illegal Immigration 
     Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996); or
       ``(ii) parent of a child alien granted relief under section 
     240A(b)(2) or 244(a)(3) (as in effect before the title III-A 
     effective date in section 309 of the Illegal Immigration 
     Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996).
       ``(B) Duration of parole.--The grant of parole shall extend 
     from the time of the grant of relief under section 240A(b)(2) 
     or section 244(a)(3) (as in effect before the title III-A 
     effective date in section 309 of the Illegal Immigration 
     Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996) to the time 
     the application for adjustment of status filed by aliens 
     covered under this paragraph has been finally adjudicated. 
     Applications for adjustment of status filed by aliens covered 
     under this paragraph shall be treated as if they were 
     applications filed under section 204(a)(1) (A)(iii), (A)(iv), 
     (B)(ii), or (B)(iii) for purposes of section 245 (a) and (c). 
     Failure by the alien granted relief under section 240A(b)(2) 
     or section 244(a)(3) (as in effect before the title III-A 
     effective date in section 309 of the Illegal Immigration 
     Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996) to exercise 
     due diligence in filing a visa petition on behalf of an alien 
     described in clause (i) or (ii) may result in revocation of 
     parole.''.
       (c) Effective Date.--Any individual who becomes eligible 
     for relief by reason of the enactment of the amendments made 
     by subsections (a) and (b), shall be eligible to file a 
     motion to reopen pursuant to section 240(c)(6)(C)(iv). The 
     amendments made by subsections (a) and (b) shall take effect 
     as if included in the enactment of section 304 of the Illegal 
     Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 
     (Public Law 104-208; 110 Stat. 587). Such portions of the 
     amendments made by subsection (b) that relate to section 
     244(a)(3) (as in effect before the title III-A effective date 
     in section 309 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and 
     Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996) shall take effect as if 
     included in subtitle G of title IV of the Violent Crime 
     Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-322; 
     108 Stat. 1953 et seq.).

     SEC. 505. OFFERING EQUAL ACCESS TO IMMIGRATION PROTECTIONS OF 
                   THE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT OF 1994 FOR ALL 
                   QUALIFIED BATTERED IMMIGRANT SELF-PETITIONERS.

       (a) Eliminating Connection Between Battery and Unlawful 
     Entry.--Section 212(a)(6)(A)(ii) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(6)(A)(ii)) is amended--
       (1) by striking subclause (I) and inserting the following:

        ``(I) the alien qualifies for classification under 
     subparagraph (A)(iii), (A)(iv), (B)(ii), or (B)(iii) of 
     section 204(a)(i); and'';

       (2) in subclause (II), by striking ``, and'' and inserting 
     a period; and
       (3) by striking subclause (III).
       (b) Eliminating Connection Between Battery and Violation of 
     the Terms of an Immigrant Visa.--Section 
     212(a)(9)(B)(iii)(IV) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
     (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(9)(B)(iii)(IV)) is amended by striking 
     ``who would be described in paragraph (6)(A)(ii)'' and all 
     that follows before the period and inserting ``who is 
     described in paragraph (6)(A)(ii)''.
       (c) Battered Immigrant Waiver.--Section 212(a)(9)(C)(ii) of 
     the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1182(a)(9)(C)(ii)) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following: ``The Attorney General in the Attorney General's 
     discretion may waive the provisions of section 
     212(a)(9)(C)(i) in the case of an alien to whom the Attorney 
     General has granted classification under clause (iii), (iv), 
     (v), or (vi) of section 204(a)(1)(A), or classification under 
     clause (ii), (iii), or (iv) of section 204(a)(1)(B), in any 
     case in which there is a connection between--
       ``(1) the aliens having been battered or subjected to 
     extreme cruelty; and
       ``(2) the alien's--
       ``(A) removal;
       ``(B) departure from the United States;
       ``(C) reentry or reentries into the United States; or
       ``(D) attempted reentry into the United States.
       (d) Domestic Violence Victim Waiver.--
       (1) Waiver for victims of domestic violence.--Section 
     237(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1227(a)) is amended by inserting at the end the following:
       ``(7) Waiver for victims of domestic violence.--
       ``(A) In general.--The Attorney General is not limited by 
     the criminal court record and may waive the application of 
     paragraph (2)(E)(i) (with respect to crimes of domestic 
     violence and crimes of stalking) and (ii) in the case of an 
     alien who has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty 
     and who is not and was not the primary perpetrator of 
     violence in the relationship--
       ``(i) upon a determination that--

       ``(I) the alien was acting is self-defense;
       ``(II) the alien was found to have violated a protection 
     order intended to protect the alien; or
       ``(III) the alien committed, was arrested for, was 
     convicted of, or pled guilty to committing a crime--

       ``(aa) that did not result in serious bodily injury; and
       ``(bb) where there was a connection between the crime and 
     the alien's having been battered or subjected to extreme 
     cruelty.
       ``(B) Credible evidence considered.--In acting on 
     applications under this paragraph, the Attorney General shall 
     consider any credible evidence relevant to the application. 
     The determination of what evidence is credible and the weight 
     to be given that evidence shall be within the sole discretion 
     of the Attorney General.''.
       (2) Conforming amendment.--Section 240A(b)(1)(C) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229b(b)(1)(C)) is 
     amended by inserting ``(except in a case described in section 
     237(a)(7) where the Attorney General exercises discretion to 
     grant a waiver)'' after ``237(a)(3)''.
       (e) Misrepresentation Waivers for Battered Spouses of 
     United States Citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents.--
       (1) Waiver of inadmissibility.--Section 212(i)(1) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(i)(1)) is 
     amended by inserting before the period at the end the 
     following: ``or, in the case of an alien granted 
     classification under clause (iii) or (iv) of section 
     204(a)(1)(A) or clause (ii) or (iii) of section 204(a)(1)(B), 
     or who would otherwise qualify for relief under section 
     240A(b)(2) or under section 244(a)(3) (as in effect before 
     the title III-A effective date in section 309 of the Illegal 
     Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996), 
     the alien demonstrates extreme hardship to the alien or the 
     alien's United States citizen, lawful permanent resident, or 
     qualified alien parent or child''.
       (2) Waiver of deportability.--Section 237(a)(1)(H) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(1)(H)) is 
     amended--
       (A) in clause (i), by inserting ``(I)'' after ``(i)'';
       (B) by redesignating clause (ii) as subclause (II); and
       (C) by adding after clause (i) the following:
       ``(ii) is an alien who qualifies for classification under 
     clause (iii) or (iv) of section 204(a)(1)(A) or clause (ii) 
     or (iii) of section 204(a)(1)(B), or who qualifies for relief 
     under section 240A(b)(2) or under section 244(a)(3) (as in 
     effect before the title III-A effective date in section 309 
     of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant 
     Responsibility Act of 1996).''.
       (f) Battered Immigrant Waiver.--Section 212(g)(1) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(g)(1)) is 
     amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (2) in subparagraph (B), by adding ``or'' at the end; and
       (3) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:
       ``(C) qualifies for classification under clause (iii) or 
     (iv) of section 204(a)(1)(A) or classification under clause 
     (ii) or (iii) of section 204(a)(1)(B), relief under section 
     240A(b)(2), or relief under section 244(a)(3) (as in effect 
     before the title III-A effective date in section 309 of the 
     Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act 
     of 1996);''.
       (g) Waivers for VAWA Eligible Battered Immigrants.--Section 
     212(h)(1) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1182(h)(1)) is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``and'' and inserting 
     ``or'';
       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(C) the alien qualifies for classification under clause 
     (iii) or (iv) of section 204(a)(1)(A), classification under 
     clause (ii) or (iii) of section 204(a)(1)(B), relief under 
     section 240A(b)(2) or relief under section 244(a)(3) (as in 
     effect before the title III-A effective date in section 309 
     of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant 
     Responsibility Act of 1996); and''.
       (h) Public Charge.--Section 212 of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182) is amended by adding at the 
     end the following:
       ``(p) In determining whether an alien described in 
     subsection (a)(4)(C)(i) is inadmissible under subsection 
     (a)(4) or ineligible to receive an immigrant visa or 
     otherwise to adjust to the status of permanent resident by 
     reason of subsection (a)(4), the consular officer or the 
     Attorney General shall not consider any benefits the alien 
     may have received that were authorized under section 501 of 
     the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility 
     Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1641(c)).''.
       (i) Report.--Not later than 6 months after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall submit a 
     report to the Committees on the Judiciary of the Senate and 
     the House of Representatives covering, with respect to the 
     fiscal year 1997 and each fiscal year thereafter--
       (1) the policy and procedures of the Immigration and 
     Naturalization Service under which an alien who has been 
     battered or subjected to extreme cruelty who is eligible for 
     suspension of deportation or cancellation of removal can 
     request to be placed, and be placed, in deportation or 
     removal proceedings so that such alien may apply for 
     suspension of deportation or cancellation of removal;

[[Page 12269]]

       (2) the number of requests filed at each district office 
     under this policy;
       (3) the number of these requests granted reported 
     separately for each district; and
       (4) the average length of time at each Immigration and 
     Naturalization office between the date that an alien who has 
     been subject to battering or extreme cruelty eligible for 
     suspension of deportation or cancellation of removal requests 
     to be placed in deportation or removal proceedings and the 
     date that the immigrant appears before an immigration judge 
     to file an application for suspension of deportation or 
     cancellation of removal.

     SEC. 506. RESTORING IMMIGRATION PROTECTIONS UNDER THE 
                   VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT OF 1994.

       (a) Removing Barriers to Adjustment of Status for Victims 
     of Domestic Violence.--
       (1) Immigration amendments.--Section 245 of the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1255) is amended--
       (A) in subsection (a), by inserting ``or the status of any 
     other alien having an approved petition for classification 
     under subparagraph (A)(iii), (A)(iv), (B)(ii), or (B)(iii) of 
     section 204(a)(1) or'' after ``into the United States.''; and
       (B) in subsection (c), by striking ``Subsection (a) shall 
     not be applicable to'' and inserting the following: ``Other 
     than an alien having an approved petition for classification 
     under subparagraph (A)(iii), (A)(iv), (A)(v), (A)(vi), 
     (B)(ii), (B)(iii), or B(iv) of section 204(a)(1), subsection 
     (a) shall not be applicable to''.
       (2) Effective date.--The amendments made by paragraph (1) 
     shall apply to applications for adjustment of status pending 
     on or made on or after January 14, 1998.
       (b) Removing Barriers to Cancellation of Removal and 
     Suspension of Deportation for Victims of Domestic Violence.--
       (1) Not treating service of notice as terminating 
     continuous period.--Section 240A(d)(1) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229b(d)(1)) is amended by striking 
     ``when the alien is served a notice to appear under section 
     239(a) or'' and inserting ``(A) except in the case of an 
     alien who applies for cancellation of removal under 
     subsection (b)(2) when the alien is served a notice to appear 
     under section 239(a), or (B)''.
       (2) Exemption from annual limitation on cancellation of 
     removal for battered spouse or child.--Section 240A(e)(3) of 
     the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229b(e)(3)) is 
     amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(C) Aliens in removal proceedings who applied for 
     cancellation of removal under subsection (b)(2).''.
       (3) Effective date.--The amendments made by paragraphs (1) 
     and (2) shall take effect as if included in the enactment of 
     section 304 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant 
     Responsibility Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-208; 110 Stat. 
     587).
       (4) Modification of certain transition rules for battered 
     spouse or child.--Section 309(c)(5)(C) of the Illegal 
     Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 
     (8 U.S.C. 1101 note) is amended--
       (A) by striking the subparagraph heading and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(C) Special rule for certain aliens granted temporary 
     protection from deportation and for battered spouses and 
     children.--''; and
       (B) in clause (i)--
       (i) in subclause (IV), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (ii) in subclause (V), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; or''; and
       (iii) by adding at the end the following:

       ``(VI) is an alien who was issued an order to show cause or 
     was in deportation proceedings before April 1, 1997, and who 
     applied for suspension of deportation under section 244(a)(3) 
     of the Immigration and Nationality Act (as in effect before 
     the date of the enactment of this Act).''.

       (5) Effective date.--The amendments made by paragraph (4) 
     shall take effect as if included in the enactment of section 
     309 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant 
     Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1101 note).
       (c) Eliminating Time Limitations on Motions To Reopen 
     Removal and Deportation Proceedings for Victims of Domestic 
     Violence.--
       (1) Removal proceedings.--
       (A) In general.--Section 240(c)(6)(C) of the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1229a(c)(6)(C)) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following:
       ``(iv) Special rule for battered spouses and children.--
     There is no time limit on the filing of a motion to reopen, 
     and the deadline specified in subsection (b)(5)(C) for filing 
     such a motion does not apply--

       ``(I) if the basis for the motion is to apply for relief 
     under clause (iii) or (iv) of section 204(a)(1)(A), clause 
     (ii) or (iii) of section 204(a)(1)(B), or section 240A(b)(2); 
     and
       ``(II) if the motion is accompanied by a cancellation of 
     removal application to be filed with the Attorney General or 
     by a copy of the self-petition that has been or will be filed 
     with the Immigration and Naturalization Service upon the 
     granting of the motion to reopen.''.

       (B) Effective date.--The amendment made by subparagraph (A) 
     shall take effect as if included in the enactment of section 
     304 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant 
     Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1229-1229c).
       (2) Deportation proceedings.--
       (A) In general.--Notwithstanding any limitation imposed by 
     law on motions to reopen or rescind deportation proceedings 
     under the Immigration and Nationality Act (as in effect 
     before the title III-A effective date in section 309 of the 
     Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act 
     of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1101 note)), there is no time limit on the 
     filing of a motion to reopen such proceedings, and the 
     deadline specified in section 242B(c)(3) of the Immigration 
     and Nationality Act (as so in effect) (8 U.S.C. 1252b(c)(3)) 
     does not apply--
       (i) if the basis of the motion is to apply for relief under 
     clause (iii) or (iv) of section 204(a)(1)(A) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(A)), 
     clause (ii) or (iii) of section 204(a)(1)(B) of such Act (8 
     U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(B)), or section 244(a)(3) of such Act (as 
     so in effect) (8 U.S.C. 1254(a)(3)); and
       (ii) if the motion is accompanied by a suspension of 
     deportation application to be filed with the Attorney General 
     or by a copy of the self-petition that will be filed with the 
     Immigration and Naturalization Service upon the granting of 
     the motion to reopen.
       (B) Applicability.--Subparagraph (A) shall apply to motions 
     filed by aliens who--
       (i) are, or were, in deportation proceedings under the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (as in effect before the 
     title III-A effective date in section 309 of the Illegal 
     Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 
     (8 U.S.C. 1101 note)); and
       (ii) have become eligible to apply for relief under clause 
     (iii) or (iv) of section 204(a)(1)(A) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(A)), clause (ii) or 
     (iii) of section 204(a)(1)(B) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1154(a)(1)(B)), or section 244(a)(3) of such Act (as in 
     effect before the title III-A effective date in section 309 
     of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant 
     Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1101 note)) as a result 
     of the amendments made by--

       (I) subtitle G of title IV of the Violent Crime Control and 
     Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-322; 108 Stat. 
     1953 et seq.); or
       (II) this title.

     SEC. 507. REMEDYING PROBLEMS WITH IMPLEMENTATION OF THE 
                   IMMIGRATION PROVISIONS OF THE VIOLENCE AGAINST 
                   WOMEN ACT OF 1994.

       (a) Effect of Changes in Abusers' Citizenship Status on 
     Self-Petition.--
       (1) Reclassification.--Section 204(a)(1)(A) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(A)) (as 
     amended by section 503(b)(3) of this title) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following:
       ``(vi) For the purposes of any petition filed under clause 
     (iii) or (iv), the denaturalization, loss or renunciation of 
     citizenship, death of the abuser, divorce, or changes to the 
     abuser's citizenship status after filing of the petition 
     shall not adversely affect the approval of the petition, and 
     for approved petitions shall not preclude the classification 
     of the eligible self-petitioning spouse or child as an 
     immediate relative or affect the alien's ability to adjust 
     status under subsections (a) and (c) of section 245 or obtain 
     status as a lawful permanent resident based on the approved 
     self-petition under such clauses.''.
       (2) Loss of status.--Section 204(a)(1)(B) of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(1)(B)) (as 
     amended by section 503(c)(4) of this title) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following:
       ``(v)(I) For the purposes of any petition filed or approved 
     under clause (ii) or (iii), divorce, or the loss of lawful 
     permanent resident status by a spouse or parent after the 
     filing of a petition under that clause shall not adversely 
     affect approval of the petition, and, for an approved 
     petition, shall not affect the alien's ability to adjust 
     status under subsections (a) and (c) of section 245 or obtain 
     status as a lawful permanent resident based on an approved 
     self-petition under clause (ii) or (iii).
       ``(II) Upon the lawful permanent resident spouse or parent 
     becoming or establishing the existence of United States 
     citizenship through naturalization, acquisition of 
     citizenship, or other means, any petition filed with the 
     Immigration and Naturalization Service and pending or 
     approved under clause (ii) or (iii) on behalf of an alien who 
     has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty shall be 
     deemed reclassified as a petition filed under subparagraph 
     (A) even if the acquisition of citizenship occurs after 
     divorce or termination of parental rights.''.
       (3) Definition of immediate relatives.--Section 
     201(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
     U.S.C. 1154(b)(2)(A)(i)) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following: ``For purposes of this clause, an alien who has 
     filed a petition under clause (iii) or (iv) of section 
     204(a)(1)(A) of this Act remains an immediate relative in the 
     event that the United States citizen spouse or parent loses 
     United States citizenship on account of the abuse.''.
       (b) Allowing Remarriage of Battered Immigrants.--Section 
     204(h) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1154(h)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 
     ``Remarriage of an alien whose petition was

[[Page 12270]]

     approved under section 204(a)(1)(B)(ii) or 204(a)(1)(A)(iii) 
     or marriage of an alien described in section 204(a)(1)(A) 
     (iv) or (vi) or 204(a)(1)(B)(iii) shall not be the basis for 
     revocation of a petition approval under section 205.''.

     SEC. 508. TECHNICAL CORRECTION TO QUALIFIED ALIEN DEFINITION 
                   FOR BATTERED IMMIGRANTS.

       Section 431(c)(1)(B)(iii) of the Personal Responsibility 
     and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 
     1641(c)(1)(B)(iii)) is amended to read as follows:
       ``(iii) suspension of deportation under section 244(a)(3) 
     of the Immigration and Nationality Act (as in effect before 
     the title III-A effective date in section 309 of the Illegal 
     Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 
     1996).''.

     SEC. 509. ACCESS TO CUBAN ADJUSTMENT ACT FOR BATTERED 
                   IMMIGRANT SPOUSES AND CHILDREN.

       (a) In General.--The last sentence of the first section of 
     Public Law 89-732 (November 2, 1966; 8 U.S.C. 1255 note) is 
     amended by striking the period at the end and inserting the 
     following: ``, except that such spouse or child who has been 
     battered or subjected to extreme cruelty may adjust to 
     permanent resident status under this Act without 
     demonstrating that he or she is residing with the Cuban 
     spouse or parent in the United States. In acting on 
     applications under this section with respect to spouses or 
     children who have been battered or subjected to extreme 
     cruelty, the Attorney General shall apply the provisions of 
     section 204(a)(1)(H).''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) 
     shall be effective as if included in subtitle G of title IV 
     of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 
     (Public Law 103-322; 108 Stat. 1953 et seq.).

     SEC. 510. ACCESS TO THE NICARAGUAN ADJUSTMENT AND CENTRAL 
                   AMERICAN RELIEF ACT FOR BATTERED SPOUSES AND 
                   CHILDREN.

       Section 309(c)(5)(C) of the Illegal Immigration and Reform 
     and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (division C of 
     Public Law 104-208; 8 U.S.C. 1101 note) is amended--
       (1) in clause (i)--
       (A) by striking ``For purposes'' and inserting ``Subject to 
     clauses (ii), (iii), and (iv), for purposes'';
       (B) by striking ``or'' at the end of subclause (IV);
       (C) by striking the period at the end of subclause (V) and 
     inserting ``; or''; and
       (D) by adding at the end the following:

       ``(VI) is at the time of filing of an application under 
     subclause (I), (II), (V), or (VI) the spouse or child of an 
     individual described in subclause (I), (II), or (V) and the 
     spouse, child, or child of the spouse has been battered or 
     subjected to extreme cruelty by the individual described in 
     subclause (I), (II), or (V).''; and

       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(iii) Consideration of petitions.--In acting on a 
     petition filed under subclause (VI) or (VII) of clause (i) 
     the provisions set forth in section 204(a)(1)(H) shall apply.
       ``(iv) Residence with spouse or parent not required.--For 
     purposes of the application of subclauses (VI) and (VII) of 
     clause (i), a spouse or child shall not be required to 
     demonstrate that he or she is residing with the spouse or 
     parent in the United States.''.

     SEC. 511. ACCESS TO THE HAITIAN REFUGEE FAIRNESS ACT OF 1998 
                   FOR BATTERED SPOUSES AND CHILDREN.

       (a) In General.--Section 902(d)(1)(B) of the Haitian 
     Refugee Immigration Fairness Act of 1998 (division A of 
     section 101(h) of Public Law 105-277; 112 Stat. 2681-538) is 
     amended to read as follows:
       ``(B)(i) the alien is the spouse or child of an alien whose 
     status is adjusted to that of an alien lawfully admitted for 
     permanent residence under subsection (a);
       ``(ii) at the time of filing or the application for 
     adjustment under subsection (a) or this subsection the alien 
     is the spouse or child of an alien whose status is adjusted 
     to that of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence 
     under subsection (a) and the spouse, child, or child of the 
     spouse has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by 
     the individual described in subsection (a); and
       ``(iii) in acting on applications under this section with 
     respect to spouses or children who have been battered or 
     subjected to extreme cruelty, the Attorney General shall 
     apply the provisions of section 204(a)(1)(H).''.
       (b) Residence With Spouse or Parent Not Required.--Section 
     902(d) of such Act is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``The status'' and 
     inserting ``Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), the status''; 
     and
       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) Residence with spouse or parent not required.--A 
     spouse, or child may adjust to permanent resident status 
     under paragraph (1) without demonstrating that he or she is 
     residing with the spouse or parent in the United States.''.

     SEC. 512. ACCESS TO SERVICES AND LEGAL REPRESENTATION FOR 
                   BATTERED IMMIGRANTS.

       (a) Law Enforcement and Prosecution Grants.--Section 
     2001(b) of part T of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and 
     Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796gg(b)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``, immigration and 
     asylum officers, immigration judges,'' after ``law 
     enforcement officers'';
       (2) in paragraph (8) (as amended by section 209(c) of this 
     Act), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (3) in paragraph (9) (as added by section 209(c) of this 
     Act), by striking the period at the end and inserting ``; 
     and''; and
       (4) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(10) providing assistance to victims of domestic violence 
     and sexual assault in immigration matters.''.
       (b) Grants To Encourage Arrests.--Section 2101(b)(5) of 
     part U of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
     Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796hh(b)(5)) is amended by 
     inserting before the period the following: ``, including 
     strengthening assistance to domestic violence victims in 
     immigration matters''.
       (c) Rural Domestic Violence and Child Abuse Enforcement 
     Grants.--Section 40295(a)(2) of the Violent Crime Control and 
     Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-322; 108 Stat. 
     1953; 42 U.S.C. 13971(a)(2)) is amended to read as follows:
       ``(2) to provide treatment, counseling, and assistance to 
     victims of domestic violence and child abuse, including in 
     immigration matters; and''.
       (d) Campus Domestic Violence Grants.--Section 826(b)(5) of 
     the Higher Education Amendments of 1998 (Public Law 105-244; 
     20 U.S.C. 1152) is amended by inserting before the period at 
     the end the following: ``, including assistance to victims in 
     immigration matters''.

       TITLE VI--EXTENSION OF VIOLENT CRIME REDUCTION TRUST FUND

     SEC. 601. EXTENSION OF VIOLENT CRIME REDUCTION TRUST FUND.

       (a) In General.--Section 310001(b) of the Violent Crime 
     Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211) is 
     amended by striking paragraphs (1) through (5) and inserting 
     the following:
       ``(1) for fiscal year 2001, $6,025,000,000;
       ``(2) for fiscal year 2002, $6,169,000,000;
       ``(3) for fiscal year 2003, $6,316,000,000;
       ``(4) for fiscal year 2004, $6,458,000,000; and
       ``(5) for fiscal year 2005, $6,616,000,000.''.
       (b) Discretionary Limits.--Title XXXI of the Violent Crime 
     Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14211 et 
     seq.) is amended by inserting after section 310001 the 
     following:

     ``SEC. 310002. DISCRETIONARY LIMITS.

       ``For the purposes of allocations made for the 
     discretionary category under section 302(a) of the 
     Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 633(a)), the term 
     `discretionary spending limit' means--
       ``(1) with respect to fiscal year 2001--
       ``(A) for the discretionary category, amounts of budget 
     authority and outlays necessary to adjust the discretionary 
     spending limits to reflect the changes in subparagraph (B) as 
     determined by the Chairman of the Committee on the Budget of 
     the House of Representatives and the Chairman of the 
     Committee on the Budget of the Senate; and
       ``(B) for the violent crime reduction category, 
     $6,025,000,000 in new budget authority and $5,718,000,000 in 
     outlays;
       ``(2) with respect to fiscal year 2002--
       ``(A) for the discretionary category, amounts of budget 
     authority and outlays necessary to adjust the discretionary 
     spending limits to reflect the changes in subparagraph (B) as 
     determined by the Chairman of the Committee on the Budget of 
     the House of Representatives and the Chairman of the 
     Committee on the Budget of the Senate; and
       ``(B) for the violent crime reduction category, 
     $6,169,000,000 in new budget authority and $6,020,000,000 in 
     outlays;
       ``(3) with respect to fiscal year 2003--
       ``(A) for the discretionary category, amounts of budget 
     authority and outlays necessary to adjust the discretionary 
     spending limits to reflect the changes in subparagraph (B) as 
     determined by the Chairman of the Committee on the Budget of 
     the House of Representatives and the Chairman of the 
     Committee on the Budget of the Senate; and
       ``(B) for the violent crime reduction category, 
     $6,316,000,000 in new budget authority and $6,161,000,000 in 
     outlays;
       ``(4) with respect to fiscal year 2004--
       ``(A) for the discretionary category, amounts of budget 
     authority and outlays necessary to adjust the discretionary 
     spending limits to reflect the changes in subparagraph (B) as 
     determined by the Chairman of the Committee on the Budget of 
     the House of Representatives and the Chairman of the 
     Committee on the Budget of the Senate; and
       ``(B) for the violent crime reduction category, 
     $6,459,000,000 in new budget authority and $6,303,000,000 in 
     outlays; and
       ``(5) with respect to fiscal year 2005--
       ``(A) for the discretionary category, amounts of budget 
     authority and outlays necessary to adjust the discretionary 
     spending limits to reflect the changes in subparagraph (B) as 
     determined by the Chairman of the Committee on the Budget of 
     the House of Representatives and the Chairman of the 
     Committee on the Budget of the Senate; and
       ``(B) for the violent crime reduction category, $6,616,000 
     in new budget authority and $6,452,000,000 in outlays;


[[Page 12271]]


     as adjusted in accordance with section 251(b) of the Balanced 
     Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 
     901(b)) and section 314 of the Congressional Budget Act of 
     1974.''.

  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I rise today with my colleague and friend, 
Senator Joseph Biden, to introduce one of the most significant pieces 
of legislation that the Senate will consider this year, the Violence 
Against Women Act of 2000. This historic bill reauthorizes the Violence 
Against Women Act programs that would otherwise expire at the end of 
this fiscal year. This new bill is the result of bipartisan cooperation 
over the last year and combines the best provisions of S. 245, the 
Violence Against Women Act of 1999, which I introduced last year, and 
of S. 51, Senator Biden's Violence Against Women Act II.
  Six years ago, recognizing the importance and need to protect the 
women and children in this country from domestic violence, stalking, 
and sexual assault, senators from both parties supported the original 
Violence Against Women Act in 1994. This legislation has made a 
critical difference in the lives of countless families in my state of 
Utah and across the country.
  The Violence Against Women Act strengthened our laws, empowered law 
enforcement, facilitated access to protective orders, established and 
funded both battered women shelters and a national domestic violence 
hotline, and most importantly led to the overall protection of 
America's women and children.
  Well, we must ask ourselves, ``Was it worth it? Did our efforts made 
a difference?'' I stand here today to answer those questions with a 
resounding ``yes.''
  The most recent Department of Justice statistics show that violence 
against women by intimate partners is down 21 percent across the board 
from just before the original bill's enactment. The Department of 
Justice has prosecuted hundreds of cases involving interstate domestic 
violence, interstate stalking, and interstate violations of protection 
orders. Through funding provided by the Act, the Department of Health 
and Human Services has provided grant funds to shelter more than 
300,000 women and their dependents each year, while the National 
Domestic Violence Hotline has responded to approximately 500,000 calls. 
In all, the original Violence Against Women Act provided $1.6 billion 
in grant funds supporting the work of law enforcement officials, 
prosecutors, the courts, victim advocates, and intervention and 
prevention programs to address domestic violence at all levels.
  Although the Violence Against Women Act has been widely successful, 
domestic violence continues to plague our homes, our communities, and 
our country. The national statistics are sobering:
  Nearly one-third of women murdered each year are killed by their 
intimate partners.
  Violence by intimates accounts for over 20 percent of all violent 
crime against women.
  Approximately one million women are stalked each year.
  Women were raped and sexually assaulted 307,000 times in 1998 alone.
  Thus, I believe we should ask ourselves today, ``Should we continue 
and strengthen our efforts to combat violence against women?'' Once 
again, I stand here today to answer this question with a resounding 
``yes.'' We must continue our efforts to protect our women and children 
from the devastating effects of domestic violence, stalking, and sexual 
assault.
  The Violence Against Women Act of 2000 will reauthorize through 
fiscal year 2005 the grant programs that will enable the federal, 
state, and local governments to persist in their efforts to prosecute 
offenders and provide vital services to the victims of domestic 
violence. I would like to point out that the recent Supreme Court case 
United States v. Morrison, 120 S. Ct. 1740 (2000), simply invalidated 
the ``civil remedy'' provision, which allowed a victim of gender-
motivated violence to sue her attacker in federal court. The case did 
not affect the ability of Congress to reauthorize the Violence Against 
Women Act, nor did the case affect any other aspect of the Act.
  There are several new, important, and worthwhile programs in this 
bill. One in particular, the transitional housing program, had its 
inception in my own state of Utah. Dedicated professionals in my State, 
working in the field, brought to my attention the fact that shelters 
often fail to provide adequate help to persons escaping the horror of 
domestic violence. In states like Utah, the spread-out location and the 
few number of shelters makes it difficult to serve the entire 
population in need of refuge from domestic violence. Furthermore, 
shelters are often inadequate for anything more than a few weeks. The 
transitional housing program remedies the situation by allowing some 
supplemental and short term housing for persons escaping domestic 
violence.
  It is absolutely imperative that we achieve strong, bipartisan 
support for this bill. We are approaching the end of our legislative 
session--we need to take the politics out of the process and 
reauthorize this Act. Senator Biden and I have worked long and hard on 
this--we are confident that our bill represents not only the interests 
of both Republicans and Democrats, but that it truly represents the 
interests of the American family. I intend to move this bill through 
the Senate Judiciary Committee promptly and intend to do all I can to 
ensure it becomes law this year.
  Finally, I would conclude by expressing my gratitude to Senator Biden 
for his tireless efforts to get this legislation written and passed. No 
one in the Senate has a longer and greater history of dedication to 
combating violence against women.
  I would also like to express my appreciation to Senator Spencer 
Abraham from Michigan. He has given much of his time and attention to 
this bill, particularly on the immigration provisions. I am grateful 
for his efforts.
  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I support the Violence Against Women Act of 
2000 (VAWA II). As we head into the 21st century, violence against 
women continues to affect millions of women and children in this 
country. Whether you live in a big city or a rural town, domestic 
violence can be found anywhere.
  I witnessed the devastating effects of domestic violence early on in 
my career, when I was the Vermont State's Attorney for Chittenden 
County. In those days, long before the passage of the Violence Against 
Women Act (VAWA), there were not support programs and services in place 
to assist victims of these types of crimes. Today, because of the hard 
work and dedication of those in Vermont and around the country who work 
on these problems every day, an increasing number of women and children 
are seeking services through domestic violence programs and at shelters 
around the nation.
  Since the passage of VAWA in 1994, I have been privileged to work 
with groups such as the Vermont Network Against Domestic Violence and 
Sexual Assault and the Vermont Center for Crime Victim Services who 
have worked to help put a stop to violence against women and provided 
assistance to those who have fallen victim to it. I am proud today to 
support the Violence Against Women Act of 2000, a Federal initiative 
designed to continue the success of VAWA by reauthorizing Federal 
programs to prevent violence against women.
  Six years ago, VAWA passed Congress as part of the Violent Crime 
Control and Law Enforcement Act. That Act combined tough law 
enforcement strategies with safeguards and services for victims of 
domestic violence and sexual assault. I am proud to say that Vermont 
was the first State in the country to apply for and receive funding 
through VAWA. Since VAWA was enacted, Vermont has received almost $7 
million in VAWA funds.
  This funding has enabled Vermont to develop specialized prosecution 
units and child advocacy centers throughout the state. Lori Hayes, 
Executive Director of the Vermont Center for Crime Victim Services, and 
Marty Levin, Coordinator of the Vermont Network Against Domestic 
Violence and Sexual Assault, have been especially instrumental in 
coordinating VAWA grants

[[Page 12272]]

in Vermont. Their hard work has brought Vermont grant funding for 
encouraging arrest policies as well as for combating rural domestic 
violence and child abuse. These grants have made a real difference in 
the lives of those who suffer from violence and abuse. Reauthorization 
of these vital programs in VAWA II will continue to build on these 
successes.
  We have tolerated violence against women for far too long and this 
bill continues to move us toward reducing violence against women by 
strengthening law enforcement through the extension of STOP grants, 
which encourage a multi-disciplinary approach to improving the criminal 
justice system's response to violence against women. With support from 
STOP grants, law enforcement, prosecution, courts, victim advocates and 
service providers work together to ensure victim safety and offender 
accountability.
  The beneficial effects of STOP grants are evident throughout Vermont. 
From the Windham County Domestic Violence Unit to the Rutland County 
Women's Network and Shelter, STOP grants have resulted in enhanced 
victim advocacy services, increased safety for women and children, and 
increased accountability of perpetrators. The Northwest Unit for 
Special Investigations in St. Albans, Vermont, has established a multi-
disciplinary approach to the investigation of adult sexual assault and 
domestic violence cases with the help of STOP funds. By linking victims 
with advocacy programs at the time of the initial report, the Unit 
finds that more victims get needed services and support and thus find 
it easier to participate in the investigation and subsequent 
prosecution. The State's Attorney's Office, which has designated a 
prosecutor to participate in the Unit, has implemented a new protocol 
for the prosecution of domestic violence cases. The protocol and multi-
disciplinary approach are credited with an 80 percent conviction rate 
in domestic violence and sexual assault cases.
  Passing VAWA II will continue grants which strengthen pro-arrest 
policies and enforcement of protection orders. In a rural state like 
Vermont, law enforcement agencies greatly benefit from cooperative, 
inter-agency efforts to combat and solve significant problems. Last 
year, approximately $850,000 of this funding supported Vermont efforts 
to encourage arrest policies.
  Vermont will also benefit from the extension of Rural Domestic 
Violence and Child Victimization Enforcement Grants under VAWA II. 
These grants are designed to make victim services more accessible to 
women and children living in rural areas. I worked hard to see this 
funding included in the original VAWA in 1994, and I am proud that its 
success has merited an increased authorization for funding in VAWA II. 
Rural Domestic Violence and Child Victimization Enforcement Grants have 
been utilized by the Vermont Network Against Domestic Violence and 
Sexual Assault, the Vermont Attorney General's Office, and the Vermont 
Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services to increase community 
awareness, to develop cooperative relationships between state child 
protection agencies and domestic violence programs, to expand existing 
multi disciplinary task forces to include allied professional groups, 
and to create local multi-use supervised visitation centers.
  This bill will also reauthorize the National Stalker and Domestic 
Violence Reduction Grant. This important grant program assists in the 
improvement of local, state and national crime databases for tracking 
stalking and domestic violence.
  As we work to prevent violence against women, we must not forget 
those who have already fallen victim to it. This bill recognizes that 
combating violence against women includes assistance measures as well 
as preventive ones, providing assistance to victims of domestic and 
sexual violence in a number of ways.
  The National Domestic Violence Hotline, which has already assisted 
over 180,000 callers, will be able to continue its crucial operation. 
Much like the state hotline that the Vermont Network Against Domestic 
Violence and Sexual Assault helped to establish in Vermont, the 
National Hotline reaches victims who otherwise have nowhere to turn.
  I am particularly pleased to see that VAWA II will also authorize a 
new grant program for civil legal assistance. In the past, funding for 
legal services for victims of domestic violence was dependent on a set-
aside in the STOP grant appropriation. This separate grant 
authorization will allow victims of violence, stalking and sexual 
assault, who would otherwise be unable to afford professional legal 
representation, to obtain access to trained attorneys and advocacy 
services. These grants would support training, technical assistance and 
support for cooperative efforts between victim advocacy groups and 
legal assistance providers.
  As enacted, the Violence Against Women Act has funded programs that 
provide shelter to battered women and children. I am pleased to see 
that VAWA II expands this funding, so that facilities such as the Women 
Helping Battered Women Shelter in Burlington, Vermont, will continue to 
be able to serve victims in their most vulnerable time in need of 
shelter.
  In addition to this funding, I am excited to see the addition of a 
provision for transitional housing assistance in VAWA II. This grant 
for short-term housing assistance and support services for homeless 
families who have fled from domestic violence environments was one of 
the biggest priorities for my State and I am pleased to see its 
inclusion in this legislation.
  Despite the overwhelming benefits of this legislation, I do think 
there are some problems with this bill and it is my hope that we can 
work to fix them. For example, this legislation does not go far enough 
in providing the comprehensive housing assistance that state and 
victim's coalitions need in combating this problem. In Vermont, the 
availability of affordable housing is at an all time low. Providing 
victims of domestic violence with a safe place to reside after a 
terrifying experience should be a priority. I would like to see 
additional support for groups that addresses the need for funding for 
underserved populations. I had proposed a more extensive program of 
transitional housing assistance than we were able to keep in the bill. 
It is my hope that we can continue to work to expand these transitional 
living opportunities in the coming weeks as Congress takes up this 
bill.
  Another area of concern that I wish to see addressed in this bill is 
the absence of a redefinition of ``domestic violence'' to include 
``dating relationships'' in its provisions and grants. As written, VAWA 
II amends the definition of ``domestic violence'' for grants to reduce 
violence against women on campus to include dating relationships. I 
would like to see this definition amended to include all women. The 
Bureau of Justice Statistics report indicates that more than four in 
every 10 incidents of domestic violence involves non-married persons, 
and further, that the highest rate of domestic violence occurs among 
young people aged 16-24. Yet, VAWA, as currently enacted, does not 
authorize prosecution of their offenders. We cannot ignore this 
increasingly at risk segment of the population.
  I was also pleased to see a new provision in VAWA II that would 
enhance protections for older women from domestic violence and sexual 
assault. Last year I introduced the Seniors Safety Act which would 
enhance penalties for crimes against seniors. This provision in VAWA II 
is an important complement to that legislation and I am glad to see we 
have been able to generate wide support.
  The bill is also designed to help young victims of crime through 
funding for the establishment of safe and supervised visitation centers 
for children in order to reduce the opportunity for domestic violence. 
Grants will also be extended to continue funding agencies serving 
homeless youth who have been or who are at risk of abuse and to 
continue funding for victims of child abuse, including money for 
advocates, training for judicial personnel and televised testimony.

[[Page 12273]]

  Many of the most successful services for victims start at the local 
level, such as Vermont's model hotline on domestic violence and sexual 
assault. The Violence Against Women Act II recognizes these local 
successes and continues grant funding of community demonstration 
projects for the intervention and prevention of domestic violence.
  When VAWA passed Congress, it was one of the first comprehensive 
Federal efforts to combat violence against women and to assist the 
victims of such violence. Today's bill gives us an opportunity to 
continue funding these successful programs, to improve victim services, 
and to strengthen these laws so that violence against women is 
eliminated. I am proud to be an original cosponsor of this legislation 
and hope we can work together to ensure the swift passage of the 
Violence Against Women Act of 2000.
  Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. President, I am proud to rise today as an original 
cosponsor of the Violence Against Women Act of 2000, and I urge my 
colleagues to join with us in this effort to ensure the safety and 
protection of women and families.
  The 1994 Violence Against Women Act has been crucial in reducing 
violence perpetrated against women and families across America. VAWA 
'94 increased resources for training and law enforcement, and bolstered 
prosecution of child abuse, sexual assault, and domestic violence 
cases. States have changed the way they treat crimes of violence 
against women; 24 states and the District of Columbia now mandate 
arrest for most domestic violence offenses. States are lifting some of 
the costs to women associated with violence, and as a result of VAWA, 
all have some provision for covering the cost of a forensic rape exam.
  And notably, VAWA '94 provided much-needed support for shelters and 
crisis centers, and created a National Domestic Violence Hotline.
  Yet, despite the advances made as a result of the original Violence 
Against Women Act, violence against women remains a critical problem in 
our country. Recent studies show 307,000 incidents of rape and sexual 
assaults were perpetrated in 1998 alone. Over one million women are 
stalked annually. Violence by intimates accounts for 20% of all violent 
crimes against women.
  It is essential that we reauthorize VAWA now, so that we can continue 
the initiatives that have made a difference, and so that we can further 
protect women and children from violence.
  VAWA 2000 combines a variety of law-enforcement initiatives with 
support and prevention programs, in an effort to eradicate both the 
causes and effects of violence against women and families. The bill 
would ensure that those who regularly interact with victims of domestic 
violence--the courts, police, and social service providers--receive 
excellent training in reversing the destructive effects of domestic 
violence. As too many families are turned away in time of great need, 
VAWA 2000 offers increased funding to expand shelter services for 
families escaping violence. And in addition to providing emergency 
shelter, VAWA reauthorization provides for short-term and transitional 
housing, providing women and families real alternatives to returning to 
abusive homes.
  Finally, VAWA '94 enabled immigrant victims of domestic violence to 
gain lawful permanent residence in the U.S. without the knowledge, 
participation, or cooperation of their abusive citizen or permanent 
resident spouses. Although the spirit and intent of this law was to 
facilitate the prosecution of abusers, and to allow women and children 
to safely escape violence and rebuild their lives, unintended legal 
barriers have prevented the full protection of VAWA '94 from taking 
effect. VAWA 2000 cures this fault, and continues the spirit and work 
that began with the bi-partisan passage of VAWA '94.
  Mr. President, it is essential that these programs be reauthorized, 
so that we may stop the cycles of violence and poverty that result from 
domestic violence. I urge my colleagues to support VAWA 2000, and I 
look forward to working with the members of the Judiciary Committee in 
bringing this important legislation to the floor as soon as possible.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. COCHRAN:
  S. 2788. A bill to establish a strategic planning team to develop a 
plan for the dissemination of research on reading; to the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.


       the reading research dissemination and implementation act

  Mr. COCHRAN. Madam President, today I am introducing a bill to 
establish the Reading Research Dissemination and Implementation Plan, 
an initiative which follows up on the important work of the National 
Reading Panel.
  Three years ago I discovered that the National Institute of Child 
Health and Human Services had completed a thorough study of factors and 
conditions that affect the learning of reading in children. Since 
reading is such a basic and necessary first step in the process of 
education, nothing is more important to a child's educational 
development than learning to read.
  I was honored to chair the recent hearing of the Appropriations 
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, which 
accepted the National Writing Panel's report titled, ``An Evidence-
Based Assessment of the Scientific Research Literature on Reading and 
Its Implications for Reading Instruction.'' The report has been 
distributed to Congress, universities, schools, education 
administrators, and libraries. At the hearing, Dr. Donald Langenberg, 
Chairman of the panel, stated, ``There is a recent report entitled 
Teaching Reading Is Rocket Science. . . . that is a gross 
understatement.''
  It is time to ensure that the panel's findings are disseminated in a 
manner that will result in the implementation of the best practices for 
the effective teaching of reading.
  This bill directs the National Reading Panel, the National Institute 
for Child Health and Human Development and the Department of Education 
to devise a strategic plan to include the findings in teacher 
preparation course work, professional development for current teachers, 
textbooks, and other instructional materials. The legislation further 
instructs that the plan be submitted to the Secretary of Education by 
December 31, 2000, and that the Secretary immediately take actions to 
implement it.
  The research report, ``Relations Between Policy and Practice: A 
Commentary,'' written in 1990 by D. K. Cohen and D. L. Ball states, 
``It costs state legislators and bureaucrats relatively little to 
fashion a new instructional policy. If instructional changes are to be 
made, [teachers] must make them. Teachers construct their practices 
gradually. Teaching is . . . a way of knowing, of seeing, and of 
being.''
  Over the last several years, reading assessments have continued to 
show that nearly half of our nation's fourth graders do not read at 
grade level. Research and study on literacy over the last few decades 
has shown that children who have difficulty reading are more likely to 
suffer poor self esteem, fail to achieve in other subjects, become 
trouble makers in school and eventually criminals in jail. The research 
also shows that once a child is nine years old, remediation becomes 
more difficult. We need to move quickly to take advantage of what is 
known to predict and prevent reading difficulties, help those children 
who are having difficulty, and begin teaching for successful reading 
instruction.
  We know that successfully mastering reading at an early age makes 
success in life more likely. It is my purpose and hope in introducing 
this legislation that the classrooms of today's preschoolers, 
kindergartners, and early grades will begin to benefit from the 
intelligence we have about how our brains connect and decode the 
complicated processes needed for reading.
  This legislation will engage researchers, policy makers, teachers and 
parents in a focused mission. A mission to ensure that children acquire 
the most essential skill for future success: reading. I invite other 
Senators to join me in supporting this important effort.
  I ask unanimous consent the text of the bill be printed in the Record 
immediately following my remarks.

[[Page 12274]]

  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                S. 2788

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

     SECTION 1. READING RESEARCH DISSEMINATION AND IMPLEMENTATION 
                   PLAN.

       (a) Short Title.--This section may be cited as the 
     ``Reading Research Dissemination and Implementation Act''.
       (b) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) The National Reading Panel was convened to assess the 
     status of research-based knowledge in the area of reading 
     development and instruction and to evaluate the effectiveness 
     of various approaches to teaching children to learn to read.
       (2) On April 13, 2000, the National Reading Panel issued 
     its report, ``Teaching Children to Read: An Evidence-Based 
     Assessment of the Scientific Research Literature on Reading 
     and its Implications for Reading Instruction''.
       (3) The National Reading Panel was to assess the extent to 
     which instructional approaches found to be effective are 
     ready for application in the classroom, and to develop a 
     strategy for rapidly disseminating the information on those 
     approaches to schools to facilitate effective reading 
     instruction in the schools.
       (4) The National Reading Panel has completed its assessment 
     of the objective research-based knowledge in the area of 
     reading development and reading instruction and has 
     identified several instructional strategies that have been 
     clearly documented by research to be effective for teaching 
     the range of reading skills to children of varying reading 
     abilities.
       (5) The National Institute of Child Health and Human 
     Development has developed an initial dissemination strategy 
     to provide all Members of Congress, all colleges of 
     education, all State departments of education, and all public 
     libraries in the Nation with copies of the National Reading 
     Panel's report.
       (6) A dissemination of findings, although helpful, does not 
     typically lead to systematic and genuine implementation of 
     the critical research findings that inform teacher 
     preparation practices, classroom instructional practices, and 
     educational policies.
       (7) To ensure that research findings on effective reading 
     instructional approaches are fully implemented for the 
     improvement of the education of our Nation's children, a 
     strategic plan for the dissemination and implementation of 
     the findings is necessary.
       (c) Establishment of Strategic Planning Team.--The 
     Assistant Secretary of Education for Educational Research and 
     Improvement and the Director of the National Institute of 
     Child Health and Human Development of the Department of 
     Health and Human Services shall jointly convene a strategic 
     planning team to develop the plan required under subsection 
     (d). The team shall be composed of the following:
       (1) The Chairman of the National Reading Panel.
       (2) Persons jointly appointed by the convening officials 
     from among persons who are representative of each of the 
     following:
       (A) The National Institute of Child Health and Human 
     Development.
       (B) The Department of Education.
       (C) Teacher professional organizations.
       (D) Parents.
       (E) Presidents of institutions of higher education.
       (F) The teacher education colleges or departments within 
     institutions of higher education.
       (G) Private businesses.
       (H) Public libraries.
       (I) State boards of education.
       (J) State directors of special education.
       (K) The Governors of States.
       (L) Publishers of reading textbooks.
       (d) Plan.--The Strategic Planning Team shall develop and, 
     not later than December 31, 2000, submit to the Secretary of 
     Education a plan--
       (1) to determine--
       (A) the extent to which current teacher preparation for 
     both preservice and inservice training incorporates the 
     findings of the National Reading Panel; and
       (B) how any barriers to the incorporation of those findings 
     can be changed in order to integrate the findings into 
     programs to educate and certify teachers;
       (2) to identify the deficiencies in instructional 
     materials, including textbooks and supplementary materials, 
     and to determine how materials might be designed to correct 
     the deficiencies in ways that reflect the findings of the 
     National Reading Panel;
       (3) to determine whether there are any barriers in Federal 
     and State policies that would preclude appropriate adoption 
     of the National Reading Panel findings; and
       (4) to identify specific strategies for collaboration among 
     businesses, public schools, teacher education programs, 
     university and college administrators, and teacher-parent 
     collaborations to guide and ensure that evidence-based 
     instructional practices are implemented in teacher 
     preparation, classroom instruction, and Federal and State 
     policies.
       (e) Implementation of Plan.--Upon receiving the plan under 
     subsection (d), the Secretary of Education shall immediately 
     take the actions necessary to implement the plan.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. COCHRAN:
  S. 2789. A bill to amend the Congressional Award Act to establish a 
Congressional Recognition for Excellence in Arts Education Board; to 
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.


       CONGRESSIONAL RECOGNITION FOR EXCELLENCE IN ARTS EDUCATION

  Mr. COCHRAN. Madam President, today I am introducing legislation 
which would establish the Congressional Recognition for Excellence in 
Arts Education awards to schools.
  The 1997 National Assessment of Educational Progress Arts Report Card 
was the first ever assessment of the effects of specific arts 
instruction and the level of fine arts skills in American students. It 
showed that arts instruction improved competency and literacy; and 
without it, very few students were able to create or perform at an 
advanced or adequate level. The evidence of the positive effects of 
arts education on overall scholastic achievement is an incentive for 
students, parents and schools to insist upon arts courses being a part 
of every school's curriculum.
  In 1997, The College Board reported that high school students with 
four or more years of arts instruction scored over 100 points higher on 
the Scholastic Aptitude Test than students with no arts instruction. In 
a 1999 report titled, ``Gaining the Arts Advantage: Lessons From School 
Districts that Value Arts Education'' it was said that, ``the presence 
and quality of arts education in public schools today require an 
exceptional degree of involvement by influential segments of the 
community which value the arts in the total affairs of the school 
district: in governance, funding, and program delivery.''
  It is clear from these and other studies that students who have the 
opportunity to be involved in music, art, theater and dance instruction 
at school, truly have an advantage. As part of the effort to improve 
education, we need to encourage arts education in our schools. One way 
to do that, I think, is to recognize those schools that are offering 
this advantage.
  Therefore, the legislation I am introducing would create a 
Congressional board and a citizens' advisory board which will establish 
an award for schools demonstrating excellence in arts education 
curriculum. The legislation also encourages the boards to establish 
individual student awards in the future.
  This bill sends a clear message of support and appreciation to those 
teachers in our schools who dedicate their lives to the teaching of 
music, art, theater and dance; and to those school administrators who 
support comprehensive arts programs. I invite other Senators to join me 
in cosponsoring this bill. I look forward to its consideration and 
adoption by the Senate in the near future.
  I ask unanimous consent that the bill be printed in the Record, as 
follows:
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record.

                                S. 2789

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

     SECTION 1. CONGRESSIONAL RECOGNITION FOR EXCELLENCE IN ARTS 
                   EDUCATION.

       (a) In General.--The Congressional Award Act (2 U.S.C. 801-
     808) is amended by adding at the end the following:

 ``TITLE II--CONGRESSIONAL RECOGNITION FOR EXCELLENCE IN ARTS EDUCATION

     ``SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.

       ``This title may be cited as the `Congressional Recognition 
     for Excellence in Arts Education Act'.

     ``SEC. 202. FINDINGS.

       ``Congress makes the following findings:
       ``(1) Arts literacy is a fundamental purpose of schooling 
     for all students.
       ``(2) Arts education stimulates, develops, and refines many 
     cognitive and creative skills, critical thinking and 
     nimbleness in judgment, creativity and imagination, 
     cooperative decisionmaking, leadership, high-level literacy 
     and communication, and the capacity for problem-posing and 
     problem-solving.

[[Page 12275]]

       ``(3) Arts education contributes significantly to the 
     creation of flexible, adaptable, and knowledgeable workers 
     who will be needed in the 21st century economy.
       ``(4) Arts education improves teaching and learning.
       ``(5) Where parents and families, artists, arts 
     organizations, businesses, local civic and cultural leaders, 
     and institutions are actively engaged in instructional 
     programs, arts education is more successful.
       ``(6) Effective teachers of the arts should be encouraged 
     to continue to learn and grow in mastery of their art form as 
     well as in their teaching competence.
       ``(7) The 1999 study, entitled `Gaining the Arts Advantage: 
     Lessons from School Districts that Value Arts Education', 
     found that the literacy, education, programs, learning and 
     growth described in paragraphs (1) through (6) contribute to 
     successful districtwide arts education.
       ``(8) Despite all of the literacy, education, programs, 
     learning and growth findings described in paragraphs (1) 
     through (6), the 1997 National Assessment of Educational 
     Progress reported that students lack sufficient opportunity 
     for participatory learning in the arts.
       ``(9) The Arts Education Partnership, a coalition of 
     national and State education, arts, business, and civic 
     groups has demonstrated its effectiveness in addressing the 
     purposes described in section 205(a) and the capacity and 
     credibility to administer arts education programs of national 
     significance.

     ``SEC. 203. DEFINITIONS.

       ``In this title:
       ``(1) Arts education partnership.--The term `Arts Education 
     Partnership' (formerly known as the Goals 2000 Arts Education 
     Partnership) is a private, nonprofit coalition of education, 
     arts, business, philanthropic, and government organizations 
     that--
       ``(A) demonstrates and promotes the essential role of arts 
     education in enabling all students to succeed in school, 
     life, and work; and
       ``(B) was formed in 1995 through a cooperative agreement 
     among--
       ``(i) the National Endowment for the Arts;
       ``(ii) the Department of Education;
       ``(iii) the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies; and
       ``(iv) the Council of Chief State School Officers.
       ``(2) Board.--The term `Board' means the Congressional 
     Recognition for Excellence in Arts Education Awards Board 
     established under section 204.
       ``(3) Elementary school; secondary school.--The terms 
     `elementary school' and `secondary school' mean--
       ``(A) a public or private elementary school or secondary 
     school (as the case may be), as defined in section 14101 of 
     the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     8801); or
       ``(B) a bureau funded school as defined in section 1146 of 
     the Education Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2026).
       ``(4) State.--The term `State' means each of the several 
     States of the United States, the District of Columbia, the 
     Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United 
     States Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the 
     Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau.

     ``SEC. 204. ESTABLISHMENT OF BOARD.

       ``There is established within the legislative branch of the 
     Federal Government a Congressional Recognition for Excellence 
     in Arts Education Awards Board. The Board shall be 
     responsible for administering the awards program described in 
     section 205.

     ``SEC. 205. BOARD DUTIES.

       ``(a) Awards Program Established.--The Board shall 
     establish and administer an awards program to be known as the 
     `Congressional Recognition for Excellence in Arts Education 
     Awards Program'. The purpose of the program shall be to--
       ``(1) celebrate the positive impact and public benefits of 
     the arts;
       ``(2) encourage all elementary schools and secondary 
     schools to integrate the arts into the school curriculum;
       ``(3) spotlight the most compelling evidence of the 
     relationship between the arts and student learning;
       ``(4) demonstrate how community involvement in the creation 
     and implementation of arts policies enriches the schools;
       ``(5) recognize school administrators and faculty who 
     provide quality arts education to students;
       ``(6) acknowledge schools that provide professional 
     development opportunities for their teachers;
       ``(7) create opportunities for students to experience the 
     relationship between early participation in the arts and 
     developing the life skills necessary for future personal and 
     professional success;
       ``(8) increase, encourage, and ensure comprehensive, 
     sequential arts learning for all students; and
       ``(9) expand student access to arts education in schools in 
     every community.
       ``(b) Duties.--
       ``(1) School awards.--The Board shall--
       ``(A) make annual awards to elementary schools and 
     secondary schools in the States in accordance with criteria 
     established under subparagraph (B), which awards--
       ``(i) shall be of such design and materials as the Board 
     may determine, including a well-designed certificate or a 
     work of art, designed for the awards event by an appropriate 
     artist; and
       ``(ii) shall be reflective of the dignity of Congress;
       ``(B) establish criteria required for a school to receive 
     the award, and establish such procedures as may be necessary 
     to verify that the school meets the criteria, which criteria 
     shall include criteria requiring--
       ``(i) that the school provides comprehensive, sequential 
     arts learning and integrates the arts throughout the 
     curriculum; and
       ``(ii) 3 of the following:

       ``(I) that the community serving the school is actively 
     involved in shaping and implementing the arts policies and 
     programs of the school;
       ``(II) that the school principal supports the policy of 
     arts education for all students;
       ``(III) that arts teachers in the school are encouraged to 
     learn and grow in mastery of their art form as well as in 
     their teaching competence;
       ``(IV) that the school actively encourages the use of arts 
     assessment techniques for improving student, teacher, and 
     administrative performance; and
       ``(V) that school leaders engage the total school community 
     in arts activities that create a climate of support for arts 
     education; and

       ``(C) include, in the procedures necessary for verification 
     that a school meets the criteria described in subparagraph 
     (B), written evidence of the specific criteria, and 
     supporting documentation, that includes--
       ``(i) 3 letters of support for the school from community 
     members, which may include a letter from--

       ``(I) the school's Parent Teacher Association (PTA);
       ``(II) community leaders, such as elected or appointed 
     officials; and
       ``(III) arts organizations or institutions in the community 
     that partner with the school; and

       ``(ii) the completed application for the award signed by 
     the principal or other education leader such as a school 
     district arts coordinator, school board member, or school 
     superintendent;
       ``(D) determine appropriate methods for disseminating 
     information about the program and make application forms 
     available to schools, which methods may include--
       ``(i) the Arts Education Partnership web site and 
     publications;
       ``(ii) the Department of Education Community Update 
     newsletter;
       ``(iii) websites and publications of the Arts Education 
     Partnership steering committee members;
       ``(iv) press releases, public service announcements and 
     other media opportunities; and
       ``(v) direct communication by postal mail, or electronic 
     means;
       ``(E) delineate such roles as the Board considers to be 
     appropriate for the Director in administering the program, 
     and set forth in the bylaws of the Board the duties, salary, 
     and benefits of the Director;
       ``(F) raise funds for the operation of the program;
       ``(G) determine, and inform Congress regarding, the 
     national readiness for interdisciplinary individual student 
     awards described in paragraph (2), on the basis of the 
     framework established in the 1997 National Assessment of 
     Educational Progress and such other criteria as the Board 
     determines appropriate; and
       ``(H) take such other actions as may be appropriate for the 
     administration of the Congressional Recognition for 
     Excellence in Arts Education Awards Program.
       ``(2) Student awards.--
       ``(A) In general.--At such time as the Board determines 
     appropriate, the Board--
       ``(i) shall make annual awards to elementary school and 
     secondary school students for individual interdisciplinary 
     arts achievement; and
       ``(ii) establish criteria for the making of the awards.
       ``(B) Award model.--The Board may use as a model for the 
     awards the Congressional Award Program and the President's 
     Physical Fitness Award Program.
       ``(c) Presentation.--The Board shall arrange for the 
     presentation of awards under this section to the recipients 
     and shall provide for participation by Members of Congress in 
     such presentation, when appropriate.
       ``(d) Date of Announcement.--The Board shall determine an 
     appropriate date or dates for announcement of the awards 
     under this section, which date shall coincide with a National 
     Arts Education Month or a similarly designated day, week or 
     month, if such designation exists.
       ``(e) Report.--
       ``(1) In general.--The Board shall prepare and submit an 
     annual report to Congress not later than March 1 of each year 
     summarizing the activities of the Congressional Recognition 
     for Excellence in Arts Education Awards Program during the 
     previous year and making appropriate recommendations for the 
     program. Any minority views and recommendations of members of 
     the Board shall be included in such reports.

[[Page 12276]]

       ``(2) Contents.--The annual report shall contain the 
     following:
       ``(A) Specific information regarding the methods used to 
     raise funds for the Congressional Recognition for Excellence 
     in Arts Education Awards Program and a list of the sources of 
     all money raised by the Board.
       ``(B) Detailed information regarding the expenditures made 
     by the Board, including the percentage of funds that are used 
     for administrative expenses.
       ``(C) A description of the programs formulated by the 
     Director under section 207(b)(1), including an explanation of 
     the operation of such programs and a list of the sponsors of 
     the programs.
       ``(D) A detailed list of the administrative expenditures 
     made by the Board, including the amounts expended for 
     salaries, travel expenses, and reimbursed expenses.
       ``(E) A list of schools given awards under the program, and 
     the city, town, or county, and State in which the school is 
     located.
       ``(F) An evaluation of the state of arts education in 
     schools, which may include anecdotal evidence of the effect 
     of the Congressional Recognition for Excellence in Arts 
     Education Awards Program on individual school curriculum.
       ``(G) On the basis of the findings described in section 202 
     and the purposes of the Congressional Recognition for 
     Excellence in Arts Education Awards Program described in 
     section 205(a), a recommendation regarding the national 
     readiness to make individual student awards under subsection 
     (b)(2).

     ``SEC. 206. COMPOSITION OF BOARD; ADVISORY BOARD.

       ``(a) Composition.--
       ``(1) In general.--The Board shall consist of 9 members as 
     follows:
       ``(A) 2 Members of the Senate appointed by the Majority 
     Leader of the Senate.
       ``(B) 2 Members of the Senate appointed by the Minority 
     Leader of the Senate.
       ``(C) 2 Members of the House of Representatives appointed 
     by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
       ``(D) 2 Members of the House of Representatives appointed 
     by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives.
       ``(E) The Director of the Board, who shall serve as a 
     nonvoting member.
       ``(2) Advisory board.--There is established an Advisory 
     Board to assist and advise the Board with respect to its 
     duties under this title, that shall consist of 15 members 
     appointed--
       ``(A) in the case of the initial such members of the 
     Advisory Board, by the leaders of the Senate and House of 
     Representatives making the appointments under paragraph (1), 
     from among representatives of the Arts Education Partnership 
     selected from recommendations received from the Arts 
     Education Partnership steering committee; and
       ``(B) in the case of any other such members of the Advisory 
     Board, by the Board, from among representatives of the Arts 
     Education Partnership selected from recommendations received 
     from the Arts Education Partnership steering committee.
       ``(3) Special rule for advisory board.--In making 
     appointments to the Advisory Board, the individuals and 
     entity making the appointments under paragraph (2) shall 
     consider recommendations submitted by any interested party, 
     including any member of the Board.
       ``(4) Interest.--
       ``(A) In general.--Members of Congress appointed to the 
     Board shall have an interest in 1 of the purposes described 
     in section 205(a).
       ``(B) Diversity.--Representatives of the Arts Education 
     Partnership appointed to the Advisory Board shall represent 
     the diversity of that organization's membership, so that 
     artistic and education professionals are represented in the 
     membership of the Board, including at least 1 representative 
     who teaches in each of the following disciplines:
       ``(i) Music.
       ``(ii) Theater.
       ``(iii) Visual Arts.
       ``(iv) Dance.
       ``(b) Terms.--
       ``(1) Board.--Members of the Board shall serve for terms of 
     6 years, except that of the members first appointed--
       ``(A) 1 Member of the House of Representatives and 1 Member 
     of the Senate shall serve for terms of 2 years;
       ``(B) 1 Member of the House of Representatives and 1 Member 
     of the Senate shall serve for terms of 4 years; and
       ``(C) 2 Members of the House of Representatives and 2 
     Members of the Senate shall serve for terms of 6 years,
     as determined by lot when all such members have been 
     appointed.
       ``(2) Advisory board.--Members of the Advisory Board shall 
     serve for terms of 6 years, except that of the members first 
     appointed, 3 shall serve for terms of 2 years, 4 shall serve 
     for terms of 4 years, and 8 shall serve for terms of 6 years, 
     as determined by lot when all such members have been 
     appointed.
       ``(c) Vacancy.--
       ``(1) In general.--Any vacancy in the membership of the 
     Board or Advisory Board shall be filled in the same manner in 
     which the original appointment was made.
       ``(2) Term.--Any member appointed to fill a vacancy 
     occurring before the expiration of the term for which the 
     member's predecessor was appointed shall be appointed only 
     for the remainder of such term.
       ``(3) Extension.--Any appointed member of the Board or 
     Advisory Board may continue to serve after the expiration of 
     the member's term until the member's successor has taken 
     office.
       ``(4) Special rule.--Vacancies in the membership of the 
     Board shall not affect the Board's power to function if there 
     remain sufficient members of the Board to constitute a quorum 
     under subsection (d).
       ``(d) Quorum.--A majority of the members of the Board shall 
     constitute a quorum.
       ``(e) Compensation.--Members of the Board and Advisory 
     Board shall serve without pay but may be compensated for 
     reasonable travel expenses incurred by the members in the 
     performance of their duties as members of the Board.
       ``(f) Meetings.--The Board shall meet annually at the call 
     of the Chairperson and at such other times as the Chairperson 
     may determine to be appropriate. The Chairperson shall call a 
     meeting of the Board whenever \1/3\ of the members of the 
     Board submit written requests for such a meeting.
       ``(g) Officers.--The Chairperson and the Vice Chairperson 
     of the Board shall be elected from among the members of the 
     Board, by a majority vote of the members of the Board, for 
     such terms as the Board determines. The Vice Chairperson 
     shall perform the duties of the Chairperson in the absence of 
     the Chairperson.
       ``(h) Committees.--
       ``(1) In general.--The Board may appoint such committees, 
     and assign to the committees such functions, as may be 
     appropriate to assist the Board in carrying out its duties 
     under this title. Members of such committees may include the 
     members of the Board, the Advisory Board, or such other 
     qualified individuals as the Board may select.
       ``(2) Special rule.--Any employee or officer of the Federal 
     Government may serve as a member of a committee created by 
     the Board, but may not receive compensation for services 
     performed for such a committee.
       ``(i) Bylaws and Other Requirements.--The Board shall 
     establish such bylaws and other requirements as may be 
     appropriate to enable the Board to carry out the Board's 
     duties under this title.

     ``SEC. 207. ADMINISTRATION.

       ``(a) In General.--In the administration of the 
     Congressional Recognition for Excellence in Arts Education 
     Awards Program, the Board shall be assisted by a Director, 
     who shall be the principal executive of the program and who 
     shall supervise the affairs of the Board. The Director shall 
     be nominated by the Arts Education Partnership steering 
     committee and appointed by a majority vote of the Board.
       ``(b) Director's Responsibilities.--The Director shall, in 
     consultation with the Board--
       ``(1) formulate programs to carry out the policies of the 
     Congressional Recognition for Excellence in Arts Education 
     Awards Program;
       ``(2) establish such divisions within the Congressional 
     Recognition for Excellence in Arts Education Awards Program 
     as may be appropriate; and
       ``(3) employ and provide for the compensation of such 
     personnel as may be necessary to carry out the Congressional 
     Recognition for Excellence in Arts Education Awards Program, 
     subject to such policies as the Board shall prescribe under 
     its bylaws.
       ``(c) Application.--Each school or student desiring an 
     award under this title shall submit an application to the 
     Board at such time, in such manner and accompanied by such 
     information as the Board may require.

     ``SEC. 208. LIMITATIONS.

       ``(a) In General.--Subject to such limitations as may be 
     provided for under this section, the Board may take such 
     actions and make such expenditures as may be necessary to 
     carry out the Congressional Recognition for Excellence in 
     Arts Education Awards Program, except that the Board shall 
     carry out its functions and make expenditures with only such 
     resources as are available to the Board from the 
     Congressional Recognition for Excellence in Arts Education 
     Awards Trust Fund pursuant to section 210(e).
       ``(b) Contracts.--The Board may enter into such contracts 
     as may be appropriate to carry out the business of the Board, 
     but the Board may not enter into any contract which will 
     obligate the Board to expend an amount greater than the 
     amount available to the Board for the purpose of such 
     contract during the fiscal year in which the expenditure is 
     made.
       ``(c) Gifts.--The Board may seek and accept, from sources 
     other than the Federal Government, funds and other resources 
     to carry out the Board's activities. The Board may not accept 
     any funds or other resources that are--
       ``(1) donated with a restriction on their use unless such 
     restriction merely provides that such funds or other 
     resources be used in furtherance of the Congressional 
     Recognition for Excellence in Arts Education Awards Program; 
     or
       ``(2) donated subject to the condition that the identity of 
     the donor of the funds or resources shall remain anonymous.
       ``(d) Volunteers.--The Board may accept and utilize the 
     services of voluntary, uncompensated personnel.

[[Page 12277]]

       ``(e) Real or Personal Property.--The Board may lease (or 
     otherwise hold), acquire, or dispose of real or personal 
     property necessary for, or relating to, the duties of the 
     Board.
       ``(f) Prohibitions.--The Board shall have no power--
       ``(1) to issue bonds, notes, debentures, or other similar 
     obligations creating long-term indebtedness;
       ``(2) to issue any share of stock or to declare or pay any 
     dividends; or
       ``(3) to provide for any part of the income or assets of 
     the Board to inure to the benefit of any director, officer, 
     or employee of the Board except as reasonable compensation 
     for services or reimbursement for expenses.

     ``SEC. 209. AUDITS.

       ``The financial records of the Board may be audited by the 
     Comptroller General of the United States at such times as the 
     Comptroller General may determine to be appropriate. The 
     Comptroller General, or any duly authorized representative of 
     the Comptroller General, shall have access for the purpose of 
     audit to any books, documents, papers, and records of the 
     Board (or any agent of the Board) which, in the opinion of 
     the Comptroller General, may be pertinent to the 
     Congressional Recognition for Excellence in Arts Education 
     Awards Program.

     ``SEC. 210. TERMINATION.

       ``The Board shall terminate 6 years after the date of 
     enactment of this title. The Board shall set forth, in its 
     bylaws, the procedures for dissolution to be followed by the 
     Board.

     ``SEC. 211. TRUST FUND.

       ``(a) Establishment of Fund.--There is established in the 
     Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known as the 
     `Congressional Recognition for Excellence in Arts Education 
     Awards Trust Fund'. The fund shall consist of amounts donated 
     to the Board under section 208(c) and amounts credited to the 
     fund under subsection (d).
       ``(b) Investment of Fund Assets.--
       ``(1) In general.--It shall be the duty of the Secretary of 
     the Treasury to invest in full the amounts in the fund. Such 
     investments may be made only in interest-bearing obligations 
     of the United States or in obligations guaranteed as to both 
     principal and interest by the United States. For such 
     purpose, such obligations may be acquired on original issue 
     at the issue price or by purchase of outstanding obligations 
     at the marketplace.
       ``(2) Special rule.--The purposes for which obligations of 
     the United States may be issued under the Second Liberty Bond 
     Act are hereby extended to authorize the issuance at par of 
     special obligations exclusively to the fund. Such special 
     obligations shall bear interest at a rate equal to the 
     average rate of interest, computed as to the end of the 
     calendar month next preceding the date of such issue, borne 
     by all marketable interest-bearing obligations of the United 
     States then forming a part of the public debt, except that 
     when such average rate is not a multiple of \1/8\ of 1 
     percent, the rate of interest of such special obligations 
     shall be the multiple of \1/8\ of 1 percent next lower than 
     such average rate. Such special obligations shall be issued 
     only if the Secretary determines that the purchase of other 
     interest-bearing obligations of the United States, or of 
     obligations guaranteed as to both principal and interest by 
     the United States on original issue or at the market price, 
     is not in the public interest.
       ``(c) Authority To Sell Obligations.--Any obligation 
     acquired by the fund (except special obligations issued 
     exclusively to the fund) may be sold by the Secretary of the 
     Treasury at the market price, and such special obligations 
     may be redeemed at par plus accrued interest.
       ``(d) Proceeds From Certain Transactions Credited to 
     Fund.--The interest on, and the proceeds from the sale or 
     redemption of, any obligations held in the fund shall be 
     credited to and form a part of the fund.
       ``(e) Expenditures From Trust Fund.--The Secretary of the 
     Treasury is authorized to pay to the Board from the interest 
     and earnings of the fund such sums as the Board determines 
     are necessary and appropriate to enable the Board to carry 
     out this title.''
       (b) Conforming Amendments.--The Congressional Award Act (2 
     U.S.C. 801-808) is amended--
       (1) by inserting after section 1 the following:

               ``TITLE I--CONGRESSIONAL AWARD PROGRAM'',

       (2) by redesignating sections 2 through 9 as sections 101 
     through 108, respectively,
       (3) in section 101 (as so redesignated)--
       (A) by striking ``Act'' and inserting ``title'', and
       (B) by striking ``section 3'' and inserting ``section 
     102'',
       (4) in section 102(e) (as so redesignated)--
       (A) by striking ``section 5(g)(1)'' and inserting ``section 
     104(g)(1)'', and
       (B) by striking ``section 7(g)(1)'' and inserting ``section 
     106(g)(1)'', and
       (5) in section 103(i), by striking ``section 7'' and 
     inserting ``section 106''.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. FITZGERALD:
  S. 2790. A bill instituting a Federal fuels tax holiday; to the 
Committee on Finance.


                the federal fuel tax relief act of 2000

  Mr. FITZGERALD. Mr. President, I was in the city of Chicago to 
announce the introduction of a bill today called the Federal Fuel Tax 
Relief Act of 2000. I was standing in Chicago on La Salle Street, in 
what is known as the Loop, the premier business district in downtown 
Chicago. I was at a gas station there. Behind me you could see the 
prices at the pump that that particular gas station in Chicago was 
advertising. Those gas prices were well over $2 a gallon. In fact, I 
think the price for the premium blend of fuel was up over $2.30 a 
gallon.
  Right now, we are in the midst of a very serious crisis in my part of 
the country with respect to gas prices. Prices throughout Illinois are 
at record highs. They are at record highs in Michigan, in Ohio, in 
other parts of the Midwest.
  I am afraid if we do not bring down the cost of gas at the pumps, we 
are going to be seeing shock waves throughout our entire Nation's 
economy. The bill I am introducing today is S. 2790. What it would do 
is bring immediate relief by lowering the cost of gas nationwide for 90 
days by temporarily rolling back the 18.3-cent-per-gallon Federal gas 
tax.
  In the last couple of weeks, anybody who has been following the news 
anywhere in this country has seen nothing but nonstop coverage about 
the escalating price, the rising price of gasoline. The response at the 
State level and at the Federal level, amongst public officials, has 
been to find somebody to blame. Is it the OPEC nations? Is it the oil 
industry? Is it the administration? But no one is taking any action to 
actually bring down prices. We can argue about culpability later. What 
we need to do now is to lower prices at the pump or we are going to see 
losses of jobs and losses of economic productivity.
  We will see senior citizens who cannot even afford to drive to the 
pharmacy to buy the pharmaceuticals, for which they already are having 
a hard time paying. We are going to see college students who cannot 
afford to make the commute to their community colleges. We need to have 
a long-term plan to increase productivity of oil in this country to 
lessen our dependence on foreign sources of oil. There are a number of 
measures that have been introduced in recent weeks in the Congress. The 
administration last week sent over recommendations on what our long-
term solution should be for this energy crunch.
  But in the meantime, there are countless families all across the 
country that may have to cancel summer vacations, families that have 
worked hard all year, but now all of a sudden, when it comes time for 
them to have a couple of weeks off to take their families on a 
vacation, they can't afford the cost of the vacation because the price 
of gasoline has gone up so much.
  There will be many who will criticize my proposal. There will be many 
who come up with arguments against it. Certainly many will bring up the 
point that the proceeds from the motor fuels tax goes into our Federal 
highway trust fund. This legislation would hold harmless the highway 
trust fund. It would require the Federal Government to make up any loss 
to the highway trust fund by taking money from the on-budget or non-
Social Security surplus and indemnify that road fund. We all want to 
make sure we continue to improve and repair our roads in this country.
  But the fact remains, the only instrument that the Federal and State 
governments have to directly affect the price of gasoline at the pump 
is to lower the motor fuels tax. My State, I hope, is going to do its 
part. A couple of weeks back, I pointed out that Illinois has amongst 
the highest gas taxes in the country. In fact, in addition to a motor 
fuel tax that is 19 cents a gallon, the State of Illinois has a sales 
tax on motor fuel that is assessed on top of the Federal motor fuels 
tax. In other words, Illinois has what we would call a tax on a tax. 
That sales tax on gasoline in Illinois is a percentage tax, so, as the 
selling price of gasoline has gone from $1 to over $2 in Illinois, the 
State's take on its sales tax has been

[[Page 12278]]

increasing dramatically. It has doubled its take under that sales tax.
  The Governor of Illinois and legislative leaders recently called a 
special session of our Illinois General Assembly, which will be 
convening in 2 days, to temporarily roll back or repeal that Illinois 
sales tax on gasoline. If they enact that legislation, that should take 
10 cents off the price of every gallon of gas sold in Illinois. But the 
prices will still be too high. We need further relief. My State is not 
the only State that is suffering. States across the country, and 
particularly in the hard-hit Midwest, need relief.
  Like you, Mr. President, and my other colleagues in the Senate, all 
of us are in virtually constant contact with our constituents. We have 
an endless stream of letters, of faxes, of e-mails, of calls to our 
offices on a daily basis. We travel up and down our States. We march in 
parades. We are constantly talking to the constituents, whether it is 
in the grocery store, as I was doing over the weekend, or in parades 
that I was in recently. The No. 1 single issue that I have been hearing 
about is we have to do something to bring down prices at the pump.
  Let me share a few of the letters my office has received on this 
issue. I am going to try to just go through a few of them because we 
have gotten literally thousands. I think, to some of the people in 
Washington, the pain people are feeling out in the Midwest and around 
the country about the rising cost of gas sounds like some kind of 
theoretical abstraction. But I have to tell you, for real people who 
are trying to drive to work, who may have a long way to drive to work 
or get to school, or senior citizens on fixed incomes, or folks in 
lower income brackets--they are having a very tough time. I have had 
many people tell me they have canceled weekend vacations and they are 
planning to cancel summer vacations.
  Let me read parts of a few of these letters. This one is from a 
resident of Springfield, IL, who is a part-time driver for a senior 
services van service that runs vans for senior citizens to and from a 
senior citizens center. He says that the escalating gas prices are 
really hurting the transportation budget at the center. If we have to 
shut down the van service, it would be a tremendous loss for the 
seniors.
  This one from a senior citizen in southern Illinois says that now we 
cannot afford to drive to the pharmacy to purchase the drugs that we 
already cannot afford.
  A person from Rantoul, IL, says that gas prices in Illinois are too 
high. It costs me more than $87 a week to drive to and from work now 
that the prices have skyrocketed. I cannot afford this for much longer.
  A small business owner in the Chicago suburbs--small businesses are 
suffering. He says: I have had small business men and women in my 
office saying they have lost money for several months in a row and 
could have to shut down if this keeps up. The current fuel prices are 
killing my small business.
  I am a small business owner who employs 20 people from McHenry County 
and 10 people from Lake County. This increase in fuel is killing my 
profit line. If this does not stop, I do not know how much longer we 
can survive.
  This is an interesting letter from a community college administrator 
in central Illinois. This person pointed out that, unlike many 
colleges, his school is a commuter college and students drive anywhere 
from 20 to 60 miles. That is 40 to 120 miles round trip to attend 
college. Most of the students are trying to better themselves by 
working part time and going to school. Now with gasoline prices 
soaring, they are being forced to drop out.
  This individual from Danville, IL, after a lengthy letter explaining 
how, for his job, he had to drive, at the end he said if the prices 
raise much higher, he will have to dip into his son's and daughter's 
education fund just so he can keep driving back and forth to work.
  I have another letter from a community college student. He is from 
Sherman, IL. He describes in his letter how he turned down State full-
time universities because of the cost and because he wanted to attend 
his community college. It would be more affordable.
  Now that he has started at his community college and is having to dig 
deep into his pocket just to pay for the price of gas to get to and 
from college, he is getting squeezed. He has a 30-mile distance to go 
just to get to his school. He said: Just to let you know, I am not a 
freeloader. I am currently holding down three jobs and working through 
the summer. I do not expect you to work a miracle, but maybe submit 
some form of legislation that would reduce the price or give a break to 
students furthering their education.
  A husband from western Illinois has to commute 100 miles a day to 
work. That is how it is in rural parts of the country, as the Presiding 
Officer knows in his largely rural State. The wife has to drive 55 
miles to work, and then the kids have to go 15 miles for their various 
athletic events and the like.
  He says: We are probably more fortunate than most people, but if this 
keeps up, it will be hard to commute into work every day, and there is 
no public transportation or opportunity to car pool in our downstate 
Illinois region. We barely have highways.
  Finally, another letter from a retired senior citizen on fixed income 
said: It is extremely hard to get along with gasoline prices so high. I 
have curtailed driving to a bare minimum, only to the doctor, shopping, 
church, and as a volunteer to a community radio station where I 
broadcast a show every Saturday.
  I think we need to take action. It is time for Washington and 
Congress to stop playing the blame game. We can argue about who is 
culpable later. I support the Federal Trade Commission investigation. 
We need to find out if anybody has been colluding in the oil industry 
or anywhere else to fix prices, and if they have been, they ought to go 
to jail for a very long time.
  That investigation is going to take a while. It is going to take a 
while to put pressure on OPEC nations to loosen the taps and to 
increase production. It is going to take a while until we get 
incentives in the system for the small oil well drillers in the United 
States to boost their production.
  Once that is boosted, we could be getting as many as 500,000 more 
barrels of oil a day. We probably have to take a look at what kind of 
tax laws we have to give people incentives to keep drilling even when 
the price of oil is low, but we need to give people relief now.
  It is a compassionate move. It makes sense. Our country, the most 
prosperous country in the world, can afford to give some relief to 
taxpayers and consumers, and if we do not give that relief, we will 
probably pay for it later because there is going to be a slowdown in 
economic activity. It may start in the Midwest, but it is eventually 
going to send shock waves all across the country, and this country 
could go into a long slump because of it.
  I hope to get many Senators and Members of this body as cosponsors of 
this legislation. We had a test vote earlier in the year, in April, on 
temporarily lowering the Federal gas tax. At that time, the measure 
received only 43 votes. It needed over 50 to pass. That was 2 months 
ago, and in the intervening time, oil prices have continued to 
skyrocket. The price which was only theoretical 2 months ago is now 
real. It is upon us. We need to take action.
  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. 2790

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Fuel Tax Relief Act 
     of 2000''.

     SEC. 2. TEMPORARY REDUCTION IN FUEL TAXES ON GASOLINE, DIESEL 
                   FUEL, KEROSENE, AND SPECIAL FUELS TO ZERO.

       (a) In General.--Section 4081 of the Internal Revenue Code 
     of 1986 (relating to imposition of tax on gasoline, diesel 
     fuel, and kerosene) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new subsection:
       ``(f) Temporary Reduction in Taxes on Gasoline, Diesel 
     Fuel, Kerosene, and Special Fuels.--
       ``(1) In general.--During the applicable period, each rate 
     of tax referred to in paragraph (2) shall be reduced to zero.

[[Page 12279]]

       ``(2) Rates of tax.--The rates of tax referred to in this 
     paragraph are the rates of tax otherwise applicable under--
       ``(A) clauses (i) and (iii) of subsection (a)(2)(A) 
     (relating to gasoline, diesel fuel, and kerosene), and
       ``(B) paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of section 4041(a) 
     (relating to diesel fuel and special fuels) and section 
     4041(m) (relating to certain alcohol fuels) with respect to 
     fuel sold for use or used in a highway vehicle.
       ``(3) Special reduction rules.--In the case of a reduction 
     under paragraph (1)--
       ``(A) subsection (c) shall be applied without regard to 
     paragraph (6) thereof,
       ``(B) section 40(e)(1) shall be applied without regard to 
     subparagraph (B) thereof,
       ``(C) section 4041(d)(1) shall be applied by disregarding 
     `if tax is imposed by subsection (a)(1) or (2) on such sale 
     or use', and
       ``(D) section 6427(b) shall be applied without regard to 
     paragraph (2) thereof.
       ``(4) Protecting social security trust fund.--If the 
     Secretary, after consultation with the Director of the Office 
     of Management and Budget, determines that such reduction 
     would result in an aggregate reduction in revenues to the 
     Treasury exceeding the Federal on-budget surplus during the 
     remainder of the applicable period, the Secretary shall 
     modify such reduction such that each rate of tax referred to 
     in paragraph (2) is reduced in a pro rata manner and such 
     aggregate reduction does not exceed such surplus.
       ``(5) Maintenance of trust fund deposits.--In determining 
     the amounts to be appropriated to the Highway Trust Fund 
     under section 9503 an amount equal to the reduction in 
     revenues to the Treasury by reason of this subsection shall 
     be treated as taxes received in the Treasury under this 
     section.
       ``(6) Applicable period.--For purposes of this subsection, 
     the term `applicable period' means a 90-day period beginning 
     on the date of the enactment of the Federal Fuel Tax Relief 
     Act of 2000.''
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 3. FLOOR STOCK REFUNDS.

       (a) In General.--If--
       (1) before the tax reduction date, tax has been imposed 
     under section 4081 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 on 
     any liquid, and
       (2) on such date such liquid is held by a dealer and has 
     not been used and is intended for sale,
     there shall be credited or refunded (without interest) to the 
     person who paid such tax (hereafter in this section referred 
     to as the ``taxpayer'') an amount equal to the excess of the 
     tax paid by the taxpayer over the amount of such tax which 
     would be imposed on such liquid had the taxable event 
     occurred on the tax reduction date.
       (b) Time for Filing Claims.--No credit or refund shall be 
     allowed or made under this section unless--
       (1) claim therefor is filed with the Secretary of the 
     Treasury before the date which is 6 months after the tax 
     reduction date, and
       (2) in any case where liquid is held by a dealer (other 
     than the taxpayer) on the tax reduction date--
       (A) the dealer submits a request for refund or credit to 
     the taxpayer before the date which is 3 months after the tax 
     reduction date, and
       (B) the taxpayer has repaid or agreed to repay the amount 
     so claimed to such dealer or has obtained the written consent 
     of such dealer to the allowance of the credit or the making 
     of the refund.
       (c) Exception for Fuel Held in Retail Stocks.--No credit or 
     refund shall be allowed under this section with respect to 
     any liquid in retail stocks held at the place where intended 
     to be sold at retail.
       (d) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
       (1) the terms ``dealer'' and ``held by a dealer'' have the 
     respective meanings given to such terms by section 6412 of 
     such Code; except that the term ``dealer'' includes a 
     producer, and
       (2) the term ``tax reduction date'' means the date of the 
     enactment of this Act.
       (e) Certain Rules To Apply.--Rules similar to the rules of 
     subsections (b) and (c) of section 6412 of such Code shall 
     apply for purposes of this section.

     SEC. 4. FLOOR STOCKS TAX.

       (a) Imposition of Tax.--In the case of any liquid on which 
     tax would have been imposed under section 4081 of the 
     Internal Revenue Code of 1986 during the applicable period 
     but for the amendments made by this Act, and which is held on 
     the floor stocks tax date by any person, there is hereby 
     imposed a floor stocks tax in an amount equal to the tax 
     which would be imposed on such liquid had the taxable event 
     occurred on the floor stocks tax date.
       (b) Liability for Tax and Method of Payment.--
       (1) Liability for tax.--A person holding a liquid on the 
     floor stocks tax date to which the tax imposed by subsection 
     (a) applies shall be liable for such tax.
       (2) Method of payment.--The tax imposed by subsection (a) 
     shall be paid in such manner as the Secretary of the Treasury 
     shall prescribe.
       (3) Time for payment.--The tax imposed by subsection (a) 
     shall be paid on or before the date which is 6 months after 
     the floor stocks tax date.
       (c) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
       (1) Held by a person.--A liquid shall be considered as 
     ``held by a person'' if title thereto has passed to such 
     person (whether or not delivery to the person has been made).
       (2) Floor stocks tax date.--The term ``floor stocks tax 
     date'' means the date which is 90 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act.
       (3) Applicable period.--The term ``applicable period'' 
     means a 90-day period beginning on the date of the enactment 
     of this Act.
       (d) Exception for Exempt Uses.--The tax imposed by 
     subsection (a) shall not apply to any liquid held by any 
     person exclusively for any use to the extent a credit or 
     refund of the tax imposed by section 4081 of such Code is 
     allowable for such use.
       (e) Exception for Fuel Held in Vehicle Tank.--No tax shall 
     be imposed by subsection (a) on any liquid held in the tank 
     of a motor vehicle.
       (f) Exception for Certain Amounts of Fuel.--
       (1) In general.--No tax shall be imposed by subsection 
     (a)--
       (A) on gasoline (as defined in section 4083 of such Code) 
     held on the floor stocks tax date by any person if the 
     aggregate amount of gasoline held by such person on such date 
     does not exceed 4,000 gallons, and
       (B) on diesel fuel or kerosene (as so defined) held on such 
     date by any person if the aggregate amount of diesel fuel or 
     kerosene held by such person on such date does not exceed 
     2,000 gallons.
     The preceding sentence shall apply only if such person 
     submits to the Secretary (at the time and in the manner 
     required by the Secretary) such information as the Secretary 
     shall require for purposes of this paragraph.
       (2) Exempt fuel.--For purposes of paragraph (1), there 
     shall not be taken into account fuel held by any person which 
     is exempt from the tax imposed by subsection (a) by reason of 
     subsection (d) or (e).
       (3) Controlled groups.--For purposes of this subsection--
       (A) Corporations.--
       (i) In general.--All persons treated as a controlled group 
     shall be treated as 1 person.
       (ii) Controlled group.--The term ``controlled group'' has 
     the meaning given to such term by subsection (a) of section 
     1563 of such Code; except that for such purposes the phrase 
     ``more than 50 percent'' shall be substituted for the phrase 
     ``at least 80 percent'' each place it appears in such 
     subsection.
       (B) Nonincorporated persons under common control.--Under 
     regulations prescribed by the Secretary, principles similar 
     to the principles of subparagraph (A) shall apply to a group 
     of persons under common control where 1 or more of such 
     persons is not a corporation.
       (g) Other Law Applicable.--All provisions of law, including 
     penalties, applicable with respect to the taxes imposed by 
     section 4081 of such Code shall, insofar as applicable and 
     not inconsistent with the provisions of this subsection, 
     apply with respect to the floor stock taxes imposed by 
     subsection (a) to the same extent as if such taxes were 
     imposed by such section 4081.

     SEC. 5. BENEFITS OF TAX REDUCTION SHOULD BE PASSED ON TO 
                   CONSUMERS.

       (a) Passthrough to Consumers.--
       (1) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
       (A) consumers immediately receive the benefit of the 
     reduction in taxes under this Act, and
       (B) transportation motor fuels producers and other dealers 
     take such actions as necessary to reduce transportation motor 
     fuels prices to reflect such reduction, including immediate 
     credits to customer accounts representing tax refunds allowed 
     as credits against excise tax deposit payments under the 
     floor stocks refund provisions of this Act.
       (2) Study.--
       (A) In general.--The Comptroller General of the United 
     States shall conduct a study of the reduction of taxes under 
     this Act to determine whether there has been a passthrough of 
     such reduction.
       (B) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 
     States shall report to the Committee on Finance of the Senate 
     and the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 
     Representatives the results of the study conducted under 
     subparagraph (A).
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mrs. HUTCHISON:
  S. 2791. A bill instituting a Federal fuels tax suspension; to the 
Committee on Finance.


              the federal fuels tax suspension act of 2000

  Mrs. HUTCHISON. 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:

[[Page 12280]]



                                S. 2791

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Fuels Tax Suspension 
     Act of 2000''.

     SEC. 2. TEMPORARY REDUCTION IN FUEL TAXES ON GASOLINE, DIESEL 
                   FUEL, KEROSENE, AND SPECIAL FUELS TO ZERO.

       (a) In General.--Section 4081 of the Internal Revenue Code 
     of 1986 (relating to imposition of tax on gasoline, diesel 
     fuel, and kerosene) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new subsection:
       ``(f) Temporary Reduction in Taxes on Gasoline, Diesel 
     Fuel, Kerosene, and Special Fuels.--
       ``(1) In general.--During the applicable period, each rate 
     of tax referred to in paragraph (2) shall be reduced to zero.
       ``(2) Rates of tax.--The rates of tax referred to in this 
     paragraph are the rates of tax otherwise applicable under--
       ``(A) clauses (i) and (iii) of subsection (a)(2)(A) 
     (relating to gasoline, diesel fuel, and kerosene), and
       ``(B) paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of section 4041(a) 
     (relating to diesel fuel and special fuels) and section 
     4041(m) (relating to certain alcohol fuels) with respect to 
     fuel sold for use or used in a highway vehicle.
       ``(3) Special reduction rules.--In the case of a reduction 
     under paragraph (1)--
       ``(A) subsection (c) shall be applied without regard to 
     paragraph (6) thereof,
       ``(B) section 40(e)(1) shall be applied without regard to 
     subparagraph (B) thereof,
       ``(C) section 4041(d)(1) shall be applied by disregarding 
     `if tax is imposed by subsection (a)(1) or (2) on such sale 
     or use', and
       ``(D) section 6427(b) shall be applied without regard to 
     paragraph (2) thereof.
       ``(4) Protecting social security trust fund.--If the 
     Secretary, after consultation with the Director of the Office 
     of Management and Budget, determines that such reduction 
     would result in an aggregate reduction in revenues to the 
     Treasury exceeding the Federal on-budget surplus during the 
     remainder of the applicable period, the Secretary shall 
     modify such reduction such that each rate of tax referred to 
     in paragraph (2) is reduced in a pro rata manner and such 
     aggregate reduction does not exceed such surplus.
       ``(5) Maintenance of trust fund deposits.--In determining 
     the amounts to be appropriated to the Highway Trust Fund 
     under section 9503 an amount equal to the reduction in 
     revenues to the Treasury by reason of this subsection shall 
     be treated as taxes received in the Treasury under this 
     section.
       ``(6) Applicable period.--For purposes of this subsection, 
     the term `applicable period' means the period beginning after 
     June 25, 2000, and ending before September 5, 2000.''
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 3. FLOOR STOCK REFUNDS.

       (a) In General.--If--
       (1) before the tax reduction date, tax has been imposed 
     under section 4081 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 on 
     any liquid, and
       (2) on such date such liquid is held by a dealer and has 
     not been used and is intended for sale,
     there shall be credited or refunded (without interest) to the 
     person who paid such tax (hereafter in this section referred 
     to as the ``taxpayer'') an amount equal to the excess of the 
     tax paid by the taxpayer over the amount of such tax which 
     would be imposed on such liquid had the taxable event 
     occurred on the tax reduction date.
       (b) Time for Filing Claims.--No credit or refund shall be 
     allowed or made under this section unless--
       (1) claim therefor is filed with the Secretary of the 
     Treasury before the date which is 6 months after the tax 
     reduction date, and
       (2) in any case where liquid is held by a dealer (other 
     than the taxpayer) on the tax reduction date--
       (A) the dealer submits a request for refund or credit to 
     the taxpayer before the date which is 3 months after the tax 
     reduction date, and
       (B) the taxpayer has repaid or agreed to repay the amount 
     so claimed to such dealer or has obtained the written consent 
     of such dealer to the allowance of the credit or the making 
     of the refund.
       (c) Exception for Fuel Held in Retail Stocks.--No credit or 
     refund shall be allowed under this section with respect to 
     any liquid in retail stocks held at the place where intended 
     to be sold at retail.
       (d) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
       (1) the terms ``dealer'' and ``held by a dealer'' have the 
     respective meanings given to such terms by section 6412 of 
     such Code; except that the term ``dealer'' includes a 
     producer, and
       (2) the term ``tax reduction date'' means June 26, 2000.
       (e) Certain Rules To Apply.--Rules similar to the rules of 
     subsections (b) and (c) of section 6412 of such Code shall 
     apply for purposes of this section.

     SEC. 4. FLOOR STOCKS TAX.

       (a) Imposition of Tax.--In the case of any liquid on which 
     tax would have been imposed under section 4081 of the 
     Internal Revenue Code of 1986 during the applicable period 
     but for the amendments made by this Act, and which is held on 
     the floor stocks tax date by any person, there is hereby 
     imposed a floor stocks tax in an amount equal to the tax 
     which would be imposed on such liquid had the taxable event 
     occurred on the floor stocks tax date.
       (b) Liability for Tax and Method of Payment.--
       (1) Liability for tax.--A person holding a liquid on the 
     floor stocks tax date to which the tax imposed by subsection 
     (a) applies shall be liable for such tax.
       (2) Method of payment.--The tax imposed by subsection (a) 
     shall be paid in such manner as the Secretary of the Treasury 
     shall prescribe.
       (3) Time for payment.--The tax imposed by subsection (a) 
     shall be paid on or before the date which is 6 months after 
     the floor stocks tax date.
       (c) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
       (1) Held by a person.--A liquid shall be considered as 
     ``held by a person'' if title thereto has passed to such 
     person (whether or not delivery to the person has been made).
       (2) Floor stocks tax date.--The term ``floor stocks tax 
     date'' means September 5, 2000.
       (3) Applicable period.--The term ``applicable period'' 
     means the period beginning after June 25, 2000, and ending 
     before September 5, 2000.
       (d) Exception for Exempt Uses.--The tax imposed by 
     subsection (a) shall not apply to any liquid held by any 
     person exclusively for any use to the extent a credit or 
     refund of the tax imposed by section 4081 of such Code is 
     allowable for such use.
       (e) Exception for Fuel Held in Vehicle Tank.--No tax shall 
     be imposed by subsection (a) on any liquid held in the tank 
     of a motor vehicle.
       (f) Exception for Certain Amounts of Fuel.--
       (1) In general.--No tax shall be imposed by subsection 
     (a)--
       (A) on gasoline (as defined in section 4083 of such Code) 
     held on the floor stocks tax date by any person if the 
     aggregate amount of gasoline held by such person on such date 
     does not exceed 4,000 gallons, and
       (B) on diesel fuel or kerosene (as so defined) held on such 
     date by any person if the aggregate amount of diesel fuel or 
     kerosene held by such person on such date does not exceed 
     2,000 gallons.
     The preceding sentence shall apply only if such person 
     submits to the Secretary (at the time and in the manner 
     required by the Secretary) such information as the Secretary 
     shall require for purposes of this paragraph.
       (2) Exempt fuel.--For purposes of paragraph (1), there 
     shall not be taken into account fuel held by any person which 
     is exempt from the tax imposed by subsection (a) by reason of 
     subsection (d) or (e).
       (3) Controlled groups.--For purposes of this subsection--
       (A) Corporations.--
       (i) In general.--All persons treated as a controlled group 
     shall be treated as 1 person.
       (ii) Controlled group.--The term ``controlled group'' has 
     the meaning given to such term by subsection (a) of section 
     1563 of such Code; except that for such purposes the phrase 
     ``more than 50 percent'' shall be substituted for the phrase 
     ``at least 80 percent'' each place it appears in such 
     subsection.
       (B) Nonincorporated persons under common control.--Under 
     regulations prescribed by the Secretary, principles similar 
     to the principles of subparagraph (A) shall apply to a group 
     of persons under common control where 1 or more of such 
     persons is not a corporation.
       (g) Other Law Applicable.--All provisions of law, including 
     penalties, applicable with respect to the taxes imposed by 
     section 4081 of such Code shall, insofar as applicable and 
     not inconsistent with the provisions of this subsection, 
     apply with respect to the floor stock taxes imposed by 
     subsection (a) to the same extent as if such taxes were 
     imposed by such section 4081.

     SEC. 5. BENEFITS OF TAX REDUCTION SHOULD BE PASSED ON TO 
                   CONSUMERS.

       (a) Passthrough to Consumers.--
       (1) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
       (A) consumers immediately receive the benefit of the 
     reduction in taxes under this Act, and
       (B) transportation motor fuels producers and other dealers 
     take such actions as necessary to reduce transportation motor 
     fuels prices to reflect such reduction, including immediate 
     credits to customer accounts representing tax refunds allowed 
     as credits against excise tax deposit payments under the 
     floor stocks refund provisions of this Act.
       (2) Study.--
       (A) In general.--The Comptroller General of the United 
     States shall conduct a study of the reduction of taxes under 
     this Act to determine whether there has been a passthrough of 
     such reduction.
       (B) Report.--Not later than September 30, 2000, the 
     Comptroller General of the United States shall report to the 
     Committee on Finance of the Senate and the Committee on


     Ways and Means of the House of Representatives the results of 
     the study conducted under subparagraph (A).

                          ____________________