[House Report 104-244]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



104th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 1st Session                                                    104-244
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             PROVIDING FOR THE CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 1670,
 
                 FEDERAL ACQUISITION REFORM ACT OF 1995

                                _______


 September 12, 1995.--Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be 
                                printed

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   Mr. McInnis, from the Committee on Rules, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                       [To accompany H. Res. 219]

    The Committee on Rules, having had under consideration 
House Resolution 219, by a nonrecord vote, report the same to 
the House with the recommendation that the resolution be 
adopted.

               BRIEF SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS OF RESOLUTION

    The resolution provides for the consideration of H.R. 1670, 
the ``Federal Acquisition Reform Act of 1995'' under an open 
rule. The rule provides one hour of general debate divided 
equally between the chairman and ranking minority member of the 
Committee on Government Reform and Oversight.
    The rule waives points of order against consideration of 
the bill for failure to comply with section 302(f) (prohibiting 
spending in excess of a committee's allocation of new 
entitlement authority); and 308(a) (requiring an explanation of 
new entitlement authority in committee report) of the Budget 
Act.
    The rule also makes in order the amendment in the nature of 
a substitute recommended by the Committee on Government Reform 
and Oversight as an original bill for the purpose of amendment. 
The rule provides that the bill be considered by title rather 
than by section, and provides that the first two sections and 
each title be considered as read.
    The rule waives points of order against the committee 
amendment in the nature of a substitute for failure to comply 
with clause 5(a) of rule 21 (prohibiting appropriations in a 
legislative bill); and section 302(f) (prohibiting spending in 
excess of a committee's allocation of new entitlement 
authority) of the Budget Act.
    The rule accords priority in recognition to Members who 
have preprinted their amendments in the Congressional Record. 
The rule also allows the Chair to postpone votes in the 
Committee of the Whole and reduce votes to five minutes, if 
those votes follow a fifteen-minute vote.
    Finally, the rule provides for one motion to recommit, with 
or without instructions.

       SECTIONS OF H.R. 1670 WHICH ARE SUBJECT TO POINTS OF ORDER

Section 412

    The section provides for the selection and appointment of 
judges for the new Defense and Civilian Boards of Contract 
Appeals. Subsection (c) provides that compensation for the 
Chairmen and the Board judges shall be determined under 5 
U.S.C. 5372a. Section 5372a of title 5 sets forth the levels of 
pay for administrative law judges. (Requires a waiver of 
sections 302(f) and 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act.)

Section 424

    The section provides for the bid protest resolution 
authority of the Defense and Civilian Boards. Subsection (i) 
provides the Boards' authority to declare a successful 
protestor to be entitled to its protest costs. Subsection 
(i)(2) requires that payments made by an agency to a protestor 
either pursuant to a settlement agreement or a Board decision 
be made from the judgment fund established by 31 U.S.C. 1304. 
The agency must reimburse the judgment fund out of the agency's 
funds available for procurement. (Requires a waiver of clause 
5(a) of rule XXI.)

Section 441

    The section provides for the transfer and allocation of 
personnel, assets and unexpended balance of appropriations, 
authorizations, allocations, and other funds of the existing 
agency boards of contract appeals and the GAO bid protest 
section to the two new Boards. (Requires a waiver of clause 
5(a) of rule XXI.)

Section 444

    The section provides that any reference to the current 
Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA) be treated as 
referring to the new Defense Board and that any reference to a 
current agency board of contract appeals other than the ASBCA 
be treated as referring to the Civilian Board. (Requires a 
waiver of Sections 302(f) and 308(a) of the Congressional 
Budget Act.)

Section 445

    The section provides for the necessary conforming 
amendments to title 5, title 10, the Federal Property and 
Administrative Services Act, and the Office of Federal 
Procurement Policy Act. Subsection (a) provides for a 
conforming amendment to 5 U.S.C. 5372a concerning the 
compensation of judges. (Requires a waiver of Sections 302(f) 
and 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act.)

                                 
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