[Senate Report 109-140]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



109th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                    109-140
_______________________________________________________________________

                                     

                                                       Calendar No. 221


         EXTENDING THE SPECIAL POSTAGE STAMP FOR BREAST CANCER

                               __________

                              R E P O R T

                                 of the

                   COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND

                          GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                          UNITED STATES SENATE

                              to accompany

                                 S. 37

         EXTENDING THE SPECIAL POSTAGE STAMP FOR BREAST CANCER




               September 26, 2005.--Ordered to be printed
        COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                   SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine, Chairman
TED STEVENS, Alaska                  JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, Connecticut
GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio            CARL LEVIN, Michigan
NORM COLEMAN, Minnesota              DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii
TOM COBURN, Oklahoma                 THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware
LINCOLN D. CHAFEE, Rhode Island      MARK DAYTON, Minnesota
ROBERT F. BENNETT, Utah              FRANK LAUTENBERG, New Jersey
PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico         MARK PRYOR, Arkansas
JOHN W. WARNER, Virginia

           Michael D. Bopp, Staff Director and Chief Counsel
                  Ann C. Fisher, Deputy Staff Director
      Joyce A. Rechtschaffen, Minority Staff Director and Counsel
          Jason M. Yanussi, Minority Professional Staff Member
                      Trina D. Tyrer, Chief Clerk


                                                       Calendar No. 221
109th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                    109-140

======================================================================



 
         EXTENDING THE SPECIAL POSTAGE STAMP FOR BREAST CANCER

                                _______
                                

               September 26, 2005.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Collins, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
                    Affairs, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                          [To accompany S. 37]

    The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs, to whom was referred the bill (S. 37) to extend the 
special postage stamp for breast cancer research for 2 years, 
having considered the same reports favorably thereon without 
amendments and recommends that the bill do pass.

                         I. Purpose and Summary

    S. 37 reauthorizes the Stamp Out Breast Cancer Act (P.L. 
105-41) through December 31, 2007. This special postage stamp 
for first-class mail was designed specifically to raise funds 
for breast cancer research efforts. The price of this stamp is 
45 cents, 8 cents above the regular rate of 37 cents.

                             II. Background

    Breast cancer is considered the most commonly diagnosed 
cancer among women in every major ethnic group in the United 
States. About three million women in the U.S. are living with 
breast cancer, one million of whom have yet to be diagnosed. 
Annually, nearly $7 billion is spent on the treatment of breast 
cancer. In the past five years alone, the federal government 
has spent about $3 billion on breast cancer research.\1\ To 
supplement these federal dollars, Congress passed legislation 
creating the Breast Cancer Research Semipostal (BCRS) to 
increase public awareness of the disease and allow the public 
to participate directly in raising funds for such research. 
Since its first issuance in July of 1998 through May 31, 2005, 
the BCRS has raised a total of $43.9 million.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ U.S. Government Accountability Office, Breast Cancer Research 
Stamp: Effective Fund-Raiser, but Better Reporting and Cost-Recovery 
Criteria Needed, GAO-03-1021 (September 2003), 1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The BCRS is widely supported by groups, such as the 
American Cancer Society and the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 
Foundation, and the general public, as evidenced by strong 
annual sales of the stamp. The Committee also recognizes that 
with 68 cosponsors, the BCRS and S. 37 has widespread Senate 
support. The Committee recommends the bill pass, even though it 
has previously considered legislation which would remove the 
legislative branch from the process of issuing semipostal 
stamps, because of the importance of the cause, as well as the 
considerable support for the bill.
    In 2000, when the Committee considered legislation 
reauthorizing the BCRS, it also considered the broader issue of 
semipostal stamps. At that time, the BCRS had already 
experienced three years of highly successful sales. However, as 
a result of the BCRS's success, Members of Congress had 
introduced numerous bills for the issuance of semipostals to 
raise funds for such issues as AIDS research and education, 
Alzheimer's disease research, prostate cancer awareness, and 
World War II Memorial funding, to name a few. However, postal 
rules at the time prohibited the Postal Service from issuing 
semipostal stamps. For this reason, the Committee approved the 
Semipostal Authorization Act, granting the Postal Service the 
authority to design a fair process by which to offer specially 
priced semipostal stamps for voluntary purchase by the public 
so long as they are of public interest and appropriate. The 
intent of this Act was to take the legislative branch out of 
the process of issuing semipostal stamps in the same spirit 
that commemorative stamps are the purview of the Postal 
Service.
    The Postal Service has expressed concern that the 
popularity of the BCRS does not necessarily portend the success 
of future semipostals, whether mandated by Congress or 
initiated by the Postal Service, and that future semipostals 
might generate only modest amounts of revenue while still 
requiring substantial postal expenditures. Ongoing work by the 
U.S. Government Accountability Office appears to support this 
concern. As of August 2003, the Postal Service has not issued 
any semipostals of its own choosing under the authority of the 
Semipostal Authorization Act and has no plans to do so until 
the sales periods for congressionally mandated semipostals have 
ended.\2\ The Committee finds this position consistent with the 
discretion afforded the Postal Service under the Semipostal 
Authorization Act.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \2\ GAO-03-1021, 32.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The Stamp Out Breast Cancer Act provides that the Postal 
Service is to deduct from the surcharge revenue its reasonable 
costs incurred in carrying out the act. After deducting its 
reasonable costs, the Postal Service is to remit the remaining 
proceeds from the BCRS surcharge revenue to the National 
Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of Defense (DOD) 
for breast cancer research. Seventy percent of the net proceeds 
go to NIH, with the remaining 30 percent going to DOD's medical 
research program.
    In a 2003 report, GAO pointed out that neither the NIH or 
DOD are subject to the same statutory reporting requirements as 
agencies that are to receive funds generated by semipostals 
issued under the Semipostal Authorization Act.\3\ Agencies that 
receive funds from semipostals issued under the Semipostal 
Authorization Act are required to submit annual reports to 
Congress that include: (1) the total amount of funds received 
during the year; (2) an accounting of how the funds were 
allocated or otherwise used; and (3) a description of any 
significant advances or accomplishments made during the year 
that were funded, in whole or in part, out of amounts received. 
Considering this, GAO has recommended that Congress consider 
establishing annual reporting requirements for NIH and DOD 
similar to those required of any agency that was to receive 
funds generated from semipostals issued under the Semipostal 
Authorization Act. The Committee agrees with GAO's 
recommendation. Whether a semipostal is congressionally 
mandated, or selected by the Postmaster General, the federal 
agencies benefitting from sale of the stamp should be subject 
to the same reporting requirements.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \3\ Ibid, 34.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

                        III. Legislative History

    S. 37 was introduced on January 24, 2005 by Senator Dianne 
Feinstein, for herself and Senator Hutchison. It currently has 
68 cosponsors. The bill was referred to the Committee 
onHomeland Security and Governmental Affairs. On June 22, 2005, the 
Committee considered the bill and by voice vote ordered it reported 
favorably without amendment. Present were Senators Collins, Voinovich, 
Coleman, Chafee, Bennett, Coburn, Lieberman, Levin, Akaka, Carper, 
Lautenberg and Pryor.

                    IV. Section-by-Section Analysis

    Section 1. Extends the issuance of the Breast Cancer 
Research Stamp an additional two years.

                     V. Regulatory Impact Statement

    Paragraph 11(b)(1) of rule XXVI of Standing Rules of the 
Senate requires that each report accompanying a bill evaluate 
``the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out 
this bill.''
    Enactment of this legislation will have no significant 
regulatory impact. S. 37 contains no intergovernmental or 
private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates 
Reform Act and would impose no costs on the budgets of state, 
local, or tribal governments.

             VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                     Washington, DC, June 29, 2005.
Hon. Susan M. Collins,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Madam Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 37, a bill to extend 
the special postage stamp for breast cancer research for two 
years.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark 
Grabowicz.
            Sincerely,
                                      Elizabeth M. Robinson
                               (For Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director).
    Enclosure.

S. 37--A bill to extend the special postage stamp for breast cancer 
        research for two years

    Summary: The Stamp Out Breast Cancer Act (Public Law 105-
41) authorized a special postage stamp for first-class mail. 
The price of this stamp is 45 cents, 8 cents above the regular 
rate of 37 cents, and the authority to issue this stamp expires 
on December 31, 2005. After accounting for the Postal Service's 
administrative costs, amounts above the regular postal rate 
collected from sales of the special stamp are transferred to 
the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of 
Defense (DoD) to spend on breast cancer research efforts. S. 37 
would extend this program until December 31, 2007.
    Over the 2006-2015 period, CBO estimates that enacting S. 
37 would have no net effect on direct spending, and would not 
affect either revenues or discretionary spending. S. 37 
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as 
defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would 
not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments.
    Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated 
budgetary impact of S. 37 is shown in the following table. The 
costs of this legislation fall within budget functions 050 
(national defense), 370 (commerce and housing credit), and 550 
(health).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                          By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
                                           ---------------------------------------------------------------------
                                             2006   2007   2008   2009   2010   2011   2012   2013   2014   2015
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                           CHANGES IN DIRECT SPENDING

                                               OFF-BUDGET EFFECTS

Impact on the Postal Service:
    Estimated Budget Authority............     -3      0      3      0      0      0      0      0      0      0
    Estimated Outlays.....................     -3      0      3      0      0      0      0      0      0      0

                                                ON-BUDGET EFFECTS

Impact on NIH and DoD:
    Estimated Budget Authority............     -1     -3      0      3      1      0      0      0      0      0
    Estimated Outlays.....................     -1     -3      0      3      1      0      0      0      0      0

                                              UNIFIED BUDGET EFFECT

Total:
    Estimated Budget Authority............     -4     -3      3      3      1      0      0      0      0      0
    Estimated Outlays.....................     -4     -3      3      3      1      0      0      0      0      0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Basis of estimate: Based on sales of the special breast 
cancer stamp in recent years, CBO estimates that enacting S. 37 
would generate collections above the regular postage rate of 
roughly $5 million in each of fiscal years 2006 and 2007 and 
about $2 million in 2008. After covering its administrative 
costs (about $1 million over this period), the Postal Service 
would transfer those collections to NIH and DoD in May and 
November of each year. Thus, the net impact on the Postal 
Service over the 2006-2008 period would be zero. Spending and 
collections of the Postal Service are classified as ``off-
budget.''
    We estimate that enacting S. 37 would increase NIH and DoD 
collections (from Postal Service Transfers) by about $1 million 
in 2006, $6 million in 2007, and $4 million in 2008. Spending 
of these collections by those two agencies would lag behind the 
amounts collected by several months. We estimate research 
spending would be $1 million in fiscal year 2006, $3 million a 
year in 2007, $4 million in 2008, $2 million in 2009, and about 
$1 million in 2010. Thus, the net unified budget impact of the 
proposal (including on-budget and off-budget effects) would be 
zero over the 2006-2010 period, with no effect after 2010.
    Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: S. 37 contains 
no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in 
UMRA and would not affect the budgets of state, local, or 
tribal governments.
    Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Mark Grabowicz. Impact 
on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Sarah Puro. Impact on 
the Private Sector: Alicia Handy.
    Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                      VII. Changes to Existing Law

    In compliance with subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by 
the bill S. 37, as ordered reported, are shown as follows 
(existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black 
brackets, new matter is printed in italic, existing law in 
which no change is proposed is shown in roman):

                        TITLE 39. POSTAL SERVICE

                            PART I. GENERAL

                      CHAPTER 4. GENERAL AUTHORITY


Sec. 414. Special postage stamps

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


    (h) This section shall cease to be effective after December 
31, [2005] 2007.

                                  
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