Congressional Report 104-875 States ACORN and ACORN Housing Corp (AHC) Illegally Used Public Funding for Partisan Political Activity (Pages 77-78)

8/14/2019 Congressional Report 104-875 States ACORN and ACORN Housing Corp (AHC) Illegally Used Public Funding for Par

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U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON :

1

39006

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES" !104TH CONGRESS2d Session REPORT

1997

104875

Union Calendar No. 478

REPORT ON THE ACTIVITIES

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC AND

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

DURING THE

104TH CONGRESS

JANUARY 2, 1997.Committed to the Committee of the Whole House onthe State of the Union and ordered to be printed


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(II)

COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC AND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

One Hundred Fourth Congress

WILLIAM (BILL) GOODLING, Pennsylvania, Chairman

THOMAS E. PETRI, Wisconsin WILLIAM L. CLAY, MissouriMARGE ROUKEMA, New Jersey GEORGE MILLER, CaliforniaSTEVE GUNDERSON, Wisconsin DALE E. KILDEE, MichiganHARRIS W. FAWELL, Illinois PAT WILLIAMS, MontanaCASS BALLENGER, North Carolina MATTHEW G. MARTINEZ, CaliforniaBILL BARRETT, Nebraska MAJOR R. OWENS, New York

RANDY DUKE CUNNINGHAM, California THOMAS C. SAWYER, OhioPETER HOEKSTRA, Michigan DONALD M. PAYNE, New JerseyHOWARD P. BUCK MCKEON, California PATSY T. MINK, HawaiiMICHAEL N. CASTLE, Delaware ROBERT E. ANDREWS, New JerseyJAN MEYERS, Kansas JACK REED, Rhode IslandSAM JOHNSON, Texas TIM ROEMER, IndianaJAMES M. TALENT, Missouri ELIOT L. ENGEL, New York 3

JAMES C. GREENWOOD, Pennsylvania XAVIER BECERRA, CaliforniaY. TIM HUTCHINSON, Arkansas ROBERT C. SCOTT, VirginiaJOE KNOLLENBERG, Michigan GENE GREEN, TexasFRANK RIGGS, California LYNN C. WOOLSEY, CaliforniaLINDSEY O. GRAHAM, South Carolina CARLOS A. ROMERO-BARCELO, PuertoDAVE WELDON, Florida RicoDAVID FUNDERBURK, North Carolina MEL REYNOLDS, Illinois1

MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana CHAKA FATTAH, Pennsylvania 2

DAVID M. MCINTOSH, Indiana EARL BLUMENAUER, Oregon 4

CHARLES NORWOOD, Georgia

1Resigned October 1, 1995.2

Appointed October 11, 1995.3Resigned April 22, 1996.4Appointed June 5, 1996.


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STANDING SUBCOMMITTEES

SUBCOMMITTEE ON EMPLOYER-EMPLOYEE RELATIONS

HARRIS W. FAWELL, Illinois, Chairman

THOMAS E. PETRI, WisconsinMARGE ROUKEMA, New JerseyJAMES M. TALENT, MissouriJAN MEYERS, KansasJOE KNOLLENBERG, Michigan

DAVE WELDON, FloridaLINDSEY O. GRAHAM, South Carolina

MATTHEW G. MARTINEZ, CaliforniaDALE E. KILDEE, MichiganPAT WILLIAMS, Montana 4

MAJOR R. OWENS, New YorkTHOMAS C. SAWYER, Ohio

DONALD M. PAYNE, New JerseyMEL REYNOLDS, Illinois 1

CHAKA FATTAH, Pennsylvania 5

SUBCOMMITTEE ON WORKFORCE PROTECTIONS

CASS BALLENGER, North Carolina, Chairman

Y. TIM HUTCHINSON, ArkansasLINDSEY O. GRAHAM, South CarolinaDAVID FUNDERBURK, North CarolinaCHARLIE NORWOOD, GeorgiaHARRIS W. FAWELL, IllinoisBILL BARRETT, NebraskaPETER HOEKSTRA, MichiganJAMES C. GREENWOOD, Pennsylvania

MAJOR R. OWENS, New YorkGEORGE MILLER, CaliforniaMATTHEW MARTINEZ, California 4

PATSY T. MINK, HawaiiROBERT E. ANDREWS, New JerseyELIOT L. ENGEL, New York 3

LYNN C. WOOLSEY, CaliforniaCARLOS ROMERO-BARCELO, Puerto Rico

SUBCOMMITTEE ON EARLY CHILDHOOD, YOUTH AND FAMILIESRANDY DUKE CUNNINGHAM, California, Chairman

WILLIAM F. GOODLING, PennsylvaniaSTEVE GUNDERSON, WisconsinMICHAEL N. CASTLE, DelawareSAM JOHNSON, TexasJAMES C. GREENWOOD, PennsylvaniaFRANK RIGGS, CaliforniaDAVE WELDON, FloridaMARK E. SOUDER, IndianaDAVID M. MCINTOSH, Indiana

DALE E. KILDEE, MichiganGEORGE MILLER, CaliforniaPAT WILLIAMS, Montana 5

DONALD M. PAYNE, New JerseyPATSY T. MINK, HawaiiELIOT L. ENGEL, New York 3

ROBERT C. SCOTT, VirginiaCARLOS ROMERO-BARCELO, Puerto RicoCHAKA FATTAH, Pennsylvania 4

EARL BLUMENAUER, Oregon 4


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IV

SUBCOMMITTEE ON O VERSIGHT AND INVESTIGATIONS

PETER HOEKSTRA, Michigan, Chairman

BILL BARRETT, NebraskaCASS BALLENGER, North CarolinaRANDY DUKE CUNNINGHAM, CaliforniaHOWARD P. BUCK MCKEON, CaliforniaMICHAEL N. CASTLE, DelawareDAVE WELDON, FloridaWILLIAM F. GOODLING, PennsylvaniaHARRIS W. FAWELL, Illinois

THOMAS C. SAWYER, OhioMATTHEW G. MARTINEZ, California 5

JACK REED, Rhode IslandTIM ROEMER, IndianaROBERT C. SCOTT, VirginiaGENE GREEN, TexasMEL REYNOLDS, Illinois 1

CHAKA FATTAH, Pennsylvania 2

EARL BLUMENAUER, Oregon 4

SUBCOMMITTEE ON POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, TRAINING AND LIFE-LONGLEARNING

HOWARD P. BUCK MCKEON, California, Chairman

STEVE GUNDERSON, WisconsinDAVID M. MCINTOSH, IndianaWILLIAM F. GOODLING, PennsylvaniaTHOMAS E. PETRI, WisconsinMARGE ROUKEMA, New JerseyFRANK RIGGS, CaliforniaDAVID FUNDERBURK, North CarolinaMARK E. SOUDER, Indiana

PAT WILLIAMS, MontanaROBERT E. ANDREWS, New JerseyJACK REED, Rhode IslandTIM ROEMER, Indiana XAVIER BECERRA, CaliforniaGENE GREEN, TexasLYNN C. WOOLSEY, California

1Resigned October 1, 1995.2Appointed October 11, 1995.3Resigned April 22, 1996.4Appointed June 12, 1996.5Resigned June 12, 1996.


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Letter of Transmittal

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC

AND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES,Washington, DC, January 2, 1997.

Hon. ROBIN H. CARLE,Clerk of the House of Representatives,Washington, DC.

DEAR MS. CARLE: Pursuant to rule XI, clause 1, paragraph (d) ofthe Rules of the U.S. House of Representatives, I am hereby trans-mitting the Activities Report of the Committee on Economic andEducational Opportunities for the 104th Congress.

This report summarizes the activities of the Committee and itssubcommittees with respect to its legislative and oversight respon-sibilities.

This report has not been officially adopted by the Committee onEconomic and Educational Opportunities or any subcommitteethereof and may not therefore necessarily reflect the views of itsmembers.

Sincerely,BILL GOODLING, Chairman.


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INTRODUCTION

The Rules of the Committee on Economic and Educational Op-portunities for the 104th Congress provide for referral of all mat-ters under the Committees jurisdiction to a subcommittee. Fivestanding subcommittees with specified jurisdiction are establishedby the Rules.

The jurisdiction of the Committee on Economic and EducationalOpportunities as set forth in rule X of the Rules of the House ofRepresentatives is as follows:

EXTRACT FROM RULEX, RULES OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

RULE X

ESTABLISHMENT AND JURISDICTION OF STANDING COMMITTEES

THE COMMITTEES AND THEIR JURISDICTION

1. There shall be in the House the following standing commit-tees, each of which shall have the jurisdiction and related functionsassigned to it by this clause and clauses 2, 3, and 4; and all bills,resolutions, and other matters relating to subjects within the juris-diction of any standing committee as listed in this clause shall (inaccordance with and subject to clause 5) be referred to such com-mittees, as follows:

* * * * * * *(f) Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities.(1) Child labor.(2) Columbia Institution for the Deaf, Dumb, and Blind; Howard

University; Freedmens Hospital.(3) Convict labor and the entry of goods made by convicts into

interstate commerce.(4) Food programs for children in schools.(5) Labor standards and statistics.(6) Measures relating to education or labor generally.(7) Mediation and arbitration of labor disputes.(8) Regulation or prevention of importation of foreign laborers

under contract.(9) United States Employees Compensation Commission.(10) Vocational rehabilitation.

(11) Wages and hours of labor.(12) Welfare of miners.(13) Work incentive programs.In addition to its legislative jurisdiction under the preceding pro-

visions of this paragraph (and its general oversight function underclause 2(b)(1)), the committee shall have the special oversight func-


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tion provided for in clause 3(c) with respect to domestic educational

programs and institutions, and programs of student assistance,which are within the jurisdiction of other committees.


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Union Calendar No. 478

104TH CONGRESS REPORT" !HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES2d Session 104875

REPORT OF THE ACTIVITIES OF THE COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC AND

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES DURING THE 104TH CONGRESS

JANUARY 2, 1997.Committed to the Committee of the Whole on the State of theUnion and ordered to be printed

Mr. GOODLING, from the Committee on Economic and EducationalOpportunities, submitted the following

R E P O R T

SUMMARY

A total of 437 bills and resolutions were referred to the Commit-tee in the 104th Congress. A total of 28 public laws resulted on is-sues within the Committees jurisdiction. Two bills referred to theCommittee were vetoed. The Full Committee and its five sub-committees conducted 116 days of hearings on legislation underconsideration and on oversight and administration of laws withinthe jurisdiction of the Committee. The Full Committee held 14 ofthese hearings. Finally, the Full Committee and its subcommitteeheld a total of 33 days of markup sessions in the consideration oflegislation with 21 of these being Full Commitee markup sessions.

FULL COMMITTEE ACTIVITIES

With Republicans given the opportunity to lead the House ofRepresentatives and, as such the Committee on Economic and Edu-cational Opportunities, for the first time in 40 years, the Membersof the Committee began the process of reforming the maze of hun-dreds of programs and laws that are well intentioned, but often in-

effective in truly helping improve education for children and youth,human services for disadvantaged citizens, and the workplace foremployees and employers. During the 104th Congress, the Commit-tee on Economic and Educational Opportunities focused on the fol-lowing:


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I. SUMMARY OFACTIVITIES

A. WELFARE REFORM

The Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities hada major role in the creation and eventual enactment of the historicwelfare reform legislation achieved by the 104th Congress. Workingtogether with the Committees on Ways and Means and Agriculture,the Committee helped to shape welfare reforms that (1) allowStates flexibility to operate effective welfare systems; (2) emphasizework and personal responsibility as antidotes to long-term welfaredependence; (3) increase funding for child care to enable poor fami-lies to escape welfare and consolidate a former jumble of federalchild care programs; (4) streamline child nutrition programs andtarget funding to the most needy families; (5) establish strong newmeasures to enforce child support obligations and to combat wel-fare fraud and abuse; (6) save taxpayer money; and (7) eliminatebenefits to illegal aliens and give priority for benefits to citizens.

The path to reforming welfare was not an easy one. H.R. 4, intro-duced as part of the Republican Contract with America, was thesubject of four hearings by the Committee. Subsequently, on Feb-ruary 22 and 23, 1995, the Committee amended and approved H.R.999, which included those parts of H.R. 4, and changes thereto,which were within the Committees jurisdiction, specifically, por-tions of the bill dealing with work requirements for welfare recipi-ents, child care programs, programs on child protection, child nutri-tion programs, and restrictions on benefits for non-citizens underprograms within the Committees jurisdiction.

A principle aim of the reforms in H.R. 999 was the simplificationand consolidation of numerous federal programs that have grownup in the area of social services, and thereby reduce the burden of

paperwork, red tape, and complication for both beneficiaries andservice providers. The goal was to allow more of the funds to beused for actual services rather than being soaked up by the costsof delivering those services. In the area of child nutrition, the billnot only consolidated programs and reduced paperwork, it alsogave States the freedom and opportunity to find new approaches toincrease the percentage of low income children that benefit fromthese programs. For example, less than 50 percent of those eligiblefor free or low priced school lunches actually participate in this, thelargest of the child nutrition programs. The bill also included in-creased funding for the child nutrition programs of 4.5 percent peryear over the next 5 years.

H.R. 999 was incorporated into H.R. 4 which passed the Houseof Representatives on March 24, 1995 and, after further changes,was approved by the Senate on September 19, 1995. Final legisla-

tion was approved on December 21, 1995 by the House of Rep-resentatives, and approved by the Senate on December 22, 1995.President Clinton vetoed H.R. 4, as well as the budget bill whichincluded most of the text of H.R. 4.

Pursuant to the Budget Resolution for fiscal year 1997, on June12, 1996 the Committee amended and approved an unnumberedcommittee print containing those parts of welfare reform within theCommittees jurisdiction. The Committees submission was incor-porated into H.R. 3734, the Welfare and Medicaid Reform Act of


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1996, prior to consideration by the House of Representatives. H.R.3734 was approved by the House of Representatives on July 18,1996 and by the Senate on July 23, 1996. The Committee partici-pated actively in the deliberations of the bill by the House of Rep-resentatives as well as during the House and Senate Conference onH.R. 3734. The conference agreement was approved by the Houseon July 31, 1996 and by the Senate on August 1, 1996. PresidentClinton signed the bill into law as Public Law 104193 on August22, 1996.

Further descriptions of the Committees activities related to wel-fare, including Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Program (JOBS),child welfare and child care, can be found in the Postsecondary,Education, Training and Life-Long Learning and the Early Child-hood, Youth and Families sections of this report.

B. THE CONGRESSIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY ACTIn large part because of the efforts of the Members of the Com-

mittee, the Congressional Accountability Act (CAA) was the veryfirst measure passed by the Republican-led 104th Congress. Thismeasure was signed into law as P.L. 1041 by President Clintonon January 23, 1995. Passage of the legislation marked the cul-mination of a long effort by Republican Members of the Committeeto extend workplace laws to the Congress with enforcement in thecourts, including trials by juries.

The CAA effectively extends 11 workplace laws to the House andthe Senate. All but two of the laws (the Federal Labor-Manage-ment Relations Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Act)were applied to Congress on January 23, 1996:

1. Fair Labor Standards Act of 19382. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

3. Americans with Disabilities Act of 19904. Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 19675. Titles I and V of the Family and Medical Leave Act of

19936. Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (will apply in

January 1997)7. Chapter 71 (relating to Federal service labor-management

relations) of title 5, United States Code (applied in October1996)

8. Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 19889. Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act10. Rehabilitation Act of 197311. Chapter 43 (relating to veterans employment and reem-

ployment) of title 38, United States Code.The Congress had been brought under some of these laws in thepast, but employees have never had the right to trial in court.

C. IMMIGRATION REFORM

The Committee also had significant involvement in the develop-ment of the comprehensive immigration reform legislation that wasenacted into law as part of the omnibus appropriations bill. TheCommittee held a hearing on the issue of immigration reform inSan Diego, California on February 22, 1996, and heard about theimpact of both legal and illegal immigration from a preeminent


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slate of witnesses led by the Governor of California, Pete Wilson.Testimony was also received concerning the impact of comprehen-sive immigration reform legislationH.R. 2202, Immigration in theNational Interest Act of 1995upon public benefits programs, andeducation and employment-related laws under the jurisdiction ofthe Committee.

With respect to employment issues, the legislation recognizedthat one of the primary inducements to illegal immigration is theavailability of U.S. jobs and that this nation will never be able tofully control its borders with law enforcement strategies alone. Theimmigration reform legislation also recognized, however, the prac-tical constraints on employers in policing the attempts of immi-grants to illegally secure employment. The immigration reform billresolves this tension by including needed reforms in the worksite

verification process and authorizing a workable pilot telephone ver-ification system to allow employers to readily document which ap-plicants for employment are legally authorized to work.

The legislation also recognizes the importance of education-relat-ed benefits to legal immigrants. Under the bill, legal immigrantswill continue to be eligible to apply for and receive benefits underthe National School Lunch Act, the Child Nutrition Act, the HeadStart Act, the Job Training Partnership Act, and the Higher Edu-cation Act of 1965, and participate in programs funded under theElementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.

The immigration reform legislationultimately enacted as partof H.R. 3610, the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations legislationfor fiscal year 1997 (Public Law 104208)tackles the problemscaused by illegal immigration and fosters the sense of responsibil-ity that we hope will be felt by all newcomers to our great nation.

The immigration reform accomplished by the Republican Congressbrings this nation back to the point where we can welcome thehope and creativity that new voices can offer us while feeling se-cure that the wonderful opportunities that life here presents willcontinue to be available for generations to come.

D. STRIKER REPLACEMENT

On March 8, 1995, President Clinton issued Executive Order No.12954, which prohibited employers with federal contracts in excessof $100,000 from hiring permanent replacements for striking work-ers. That same day, legislation (H.R. 1176) was introduced byChairman Goodling and other Republican Members of the Commit-tee to render the Executive Order null and void.

The Committee held a hearing on H.R. 1176 and Executive Order12954 on April 5, 1995. The hearing focused on both the policy im-

plications of a ban on striker replacement workers and on the le-gality, from a constitutional perspective, of the Executive Order.The Committee considered and reported H.R. 1176 on June 27,

1995. Although the full House did not consider H.R. 1176 sepa-rately, a provision precluding funding for the Executive Order wasincluded in the Labor, HHS appropriations bill (H.R. 2127) whichwas passed by the House on August 4, 1995. Further legislative ac-tion became unnecessary when, on February 2, 1996, the U.S.Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia invalidated the Exec-


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utive Order, and a subsequent Administration petition for a rehear-ing was denied.

E. NUTRITION ACTIVITIES

1. Welfare reform

During the 104th Congress, the Committee on Economic andEducational Opportunities helped initiate major changes to federalchild nutrition programs and the Special Supplemental NutritionProgram for Women, Infants and Children.

On February 1, 1995, the Committee held a hearing titled Nu-trition, the Local Perspective. Local providers were invited to tes-tify on existing federal nutrition programs and how their ability toprovide nutrition services to beneficiaries was impeded by burden-some, restrictive federal regulations. It was clear from this hearing

and past hearings on child nutrition programs that the current pro-grams were in need of reform. Paperwork requirements and restric-tive regulations prevented providers from preparing and servingnutritious meals which children would eat.

As a result, H.R. 999, the Welfare Reform Consolidation Act of1995 (as considered by the Committee) included two flexible Stateblock grants designed to replace existing nutrition programs, toease the burden on State and local providers and, at the sametime, to ensure the nutritional needs of low income individualswere met.

The first block grant focused on school-based nutrition programs,such as school lunch and school breakfast. It provided funds to op-erate these programs as well as summer feeding programs and pro-grams to schools which provided nutrition services to children inbefore and after-school child care. In this way, schools would no

longer be required to fill out separate applications and meet a vari-ety of conflicting regulations in order to serve the same childrenunder a variety of programs designed to meet their nutritionalneeds.

The second block grant, the Family Nutrition Block Grant, wasdesigned to meet the nutritional needs of low income children andpregnant mothers, provide meals and supplements to children inchild care and to provide for the operation of a summer food pro-gram to meet the needs of children when they were not in school.This program was focused on meeting the needs of families with in-comes below 185 percent of poverty. Eighty percent of availableprogram dollars were to be used for a program to provide food as-sistance to pregnant, postpartum and breastfeeding women, and in-fants and children (WIC) found to be at nutritional risk.

H.R. 999, the Welfare Reform Consolidation Act of 1995, which

included both block grants, was reported by the Committee on Eco-nomic and Educational Opportunities on February 23, 1995. H.R.999 was eventually merged with H.R. 4, the Personal Responsibil-ity Act, and sent to the President on December 29, 1995, and sub-sequently vetoed.

During the House-Senate Conference on the nutrition provisionscontained in the welfare bill, a decision was made to allow up toseven States to receive block grant funds for school lunch andschool breakfast programs. States applying for such funds would be


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required to serve the same or greater proportion of poor and lowincome students. In addition, conferees agreed to make majorstreamlining and paperwork changes to the current child nutritionprograms and to provide greater flexibility to States and local pro-

viders. The bulk of the savings attributable to changes in child nu-trition programs was derived from the implementation of a meanstest for children in family day care homes receiving benefits underthe Child and Adult Care Food Program.

The Budget Reconciliation bill for fiscal year 1997, H.R. 3734, theWelfare and Medicaid Reform Act of 1996, as reported from theCommittee on June 12, 1996, contained a modified version of thislegislation. The block grant provisions were eliminated, and severalchanges were made to strengthen streamlining, paperwork reduc-tion and flexibility provisions. This legislation was signed into law

by the President on August 22, 1996, and is now P.L. 104193.2. H.R. 2066, The Healthy Meals for Children Act

On May 1, 1996, the Committee on Economic and EducationalOpportunities reported H.R. 2066, The Healthy Meals for Children

Act. The purpose of this legislation was to amend the NationalSchool Lunch Act to provide more flexibility to local schools in dem-onstrating they have met the Dietary Guideline requirements ofthe National School Lunch Act.

Final regulations were issued by the Department of Agricultureto establish the new Dietary Guidelines-based nutrition criteriaand the menu-planning requirements for implementing them wereissued June 13, 1995. Unfortunately, these regulations did not pro-

vide schools with the menu-planning flexibility that Congresssought in the 1994 amendments. Schools which desired to comply

with the Guidelines by using another nutritionally sound approach,such as their existing food-based menu system or their own mealpattern revisions were required to get a waiver from the State.While retaining the requirement that school meals comply with theDietary Guidelines, H.R. 2066 permits schools to use any reason-able approach to achieve this goal. This change will allow schoolsto prepare meals which are not only healthy and nutritious, butwhich students will eat.

H.R. 2066 passed the House of Representatives on May 14, 1996,by voice vote, and the Senate on May 16, 1996, by voice vote. Thebill was signed into law by the President on May 29, 1996. It isPublic Law 104119.

3. H.R. 2428, The Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act

H.R. 2428, The Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act,

was introduced by Representative Pat Danner and the late Rep-resentative Bill Emerson to encourage the donation of food and gro-cery products to non-profit organizations for distribution to needyindividuals by giving the Model Good Samaritan Food Donation Actthe full force and effect of law.

A hearing on H.R. 2428 was held by the Subcommittee on Post-secondary Education, Training and Life-Long Learning on May 31,1996. Representative Pat Danner and several organizations, whichaccepted and distributed donated foods, testified at this hearing.


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Representative Bill Emerson was unable to testify because of ill-ness and submitted his testimony.

On June 26, 1996, the Economic and Educational OpportunitiesCommittee considered H.R. 2428 and ordered it reported, asamended, by voice vote. H.R. 2428 was considered by the House ofRepresentatives and passed by voice vote on July 12, 1996. TheSenate amended and considered this legislation on August 2, 1996,and returned it to the House of Representatives for further consid-eration. The bill, as amended by the Senate, was considered andpassed by the House of Representatives by unanimous consent onSeptember 5, 1996. It was signed into law by the President on Oc-tober 1, 1996, and is known as Public Law 104-210.

This legislation was originally enacted as a Sense of the Con-gress Resolution in the National and Community Service Act of

1990. The Good Samaritan Food Donation Act, at that time, wasto serve as a model law which States were encouraged to adopt.The purpose of the Good Samaritan Food Donation Act was to pro-tect those who donate food in good faith from civil or criminal li-ability should those consuming such donated food later become sickor die. It did not, and does not, provide such protections in casesof gross negligence or intentional harm. This bill also paid tributeto Bill Emersons lifelong efforts to alleviate hunger in America.

F. SCHOOL REFORM

What works in public education?

During the 104th Congress the House Committee on Economicand Educational Opportunities held several hearings on educationreform. Full Committee hearings were held on January 12, 1995,

and January 31, 1996. Their purpose was to confirm the need foreducation reform, to learn what type of reforms were needed, andto identify reform practices that have been proven effective.

Witnesses at the January 12, 1995, hearing provided Memberswith national, State, and local perspectives on what is the appro-priate federal role in educational policy. The panel of witnesses in-cluded Richard Riley, Secretary of Education, Governor TommyThompson of Wisconsin, and Mayor Bret Schundler of Jersey City,New Jersey. The overriding sentiment from the hearing was thatthe federal government should encourage innovation and excellencein education. According to the panel, this can be accomplished bydriving decisions to localities and giving States and localities great-er flexibility to design and implement creative approaches to im-proving the quality of education.

The purpose of the January 31, 1996, hearing was to learn what

works in public education. Members heard about a variety of localschool reform initiatives being implemented throughout the coun-try. While the structure and substance of reforms differed, the netresult was the same: student achievement and parental satisfactionincreased.

Further discussion on school reform can be found in the Sub-committee on Early Childhood, Youth and Families and Sub-committee on Oversight and Investigations sections of this report.


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Focusing on local control: Repeal of National Education Standardsand Improvement Council

On February 24, 1995, Chairman Bill Goodling introduced H.R.1045 which repealed the National Education Standards and Im-provement Council (NESIC) created by the Goals 2000: Educate

America Act of 1994. NESIC was a Presidentially appointed councilwith the mission of reviewing and certifying national educationstandards and State education standards that are voluntarily sub-mitted to it. Because decisions about educating children are pri-marily decided at the local level by parents, teachers and students,NESIC, commonly referred to as a national school board by itscritics, generated great controversy about continued local control ofeducation.

On May 10, 1995, H.R. 1045 was ordered reported by the Com-

mittee on Economic and Educational Opportunities by a voice voteand no Committee report was filed. On May 15, 1995, H.R. 1045passed the House of Representatives by voice vote under Suspen-sion of the Rules. The Senate never took action on H.R. 1045, how-ever NESIC was subsequently repealed by amendments made inPublic Law 104134, the Balanced Budget Downpayment Act II en-acted on April 26, 1996.

Education technology

The Economic and Educational Opportunities Committee, rec-ognizing the importance of gathering information on technologyuses in the classroom, held a joint hearing on October 12, 1995with the House Science Committee. The hearing, entitled Edu-cation Technology in the 21st Century, focused on the impact oftechnology in elementary and secondary school classrooms today

and what to expect in the classrooms of the 21st Century.

G. NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTSNATIONAL ENDOWMENTFOR THE HUMANITIES

While authorization for the National Endowment for the Arts(NEA) expired at the end of fiscal year 1993, funding has continuedto be appropriated on a yearly basis since that time. However, noauthorizing legislation has been enacted primarily because of con-troversy surrounding a number of works funded by the NEA.

On May 3, 1995, Chairman Bill Goodling introduced H.R. 1557,a bill to authorize the NEA and the National Endowment for Hu-manities (NEH) for three additional years with a phase-out effec-tive as of September 30, 1998. The bill provided for the continu-ation of the Institute of Museum Services, but with no phase-out.

H.R. 1557, as amended by a Committee substitute, was approvedby the Economic and Educational Opportunities Committee on May10, 1995. Though no further action took place in the House of Rep-resentatives or the Senate, the fiscal year 1996 Interior Appropria-tions bill, H.R. 1977, reduced funding levels for the NEA and NEHapproximately 40 percent to levels near the authorizing bills pro-posed funding levels.

The three year phase-out would have returned control of arts andhumanities programs to the State and local level, provided for the


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orderly transition of arts and humanities funding back to the pri-vate sector, and would have helped reduce deficit spending.

II. MEETINGS HELD BY THE FULL COMMITTEE

104th Congress, First Session

January 5, 1995Committee organizational meeting.January 11, 1995Oversight hearing on the proper federal role

in education policy.January 12, 1995Oversight hearing on the proper federal role

in education policy.January 18, 1995Hearing on H.R. 4, Personal Responsibility

Act of 1995.February 1, 1995Oversight hearing on the Contract with

America: Nutrition, the local perspective.February 7, 1995Committee budget request and oversight plan

for the 104th Congress.February 22, 1995Mark-up of H.R. 999, Welfare Reform Con-

solidation Act of 1995.February 23, 1995Mark-up of H.R. 999, Welfare Reform Con-

solidation Act of 1995.March 15, 1995Mark-up of H.R. 849, Age Discrimination in

Employment Amendments of 1995.April 5, 1995Hearing on H.R. 1176, to nullify Executive Order

12954, prohibiting federal contracts with companies that hire per-manent replacements for striking workers.

May 10, 1995Mark-up of H.R. 1045, to amend goals 2000,NESIC.

Mark-up of H.R. 1557, Arts, Humanities, and Human Services

Act.May 11, 1995Hearing on H.R. 743, Teamwork for ManagersAct of 1995.

May 24, 1995Mark-up of H.R. 1617, Workforce and Career De-velopment Act of 1996.

June 7, 1995Hearing on Departmental Reorganization.June 8, 1995Mark-up of H.R. 1720, Privatization Act of 1995.June 14, 1995Mark-up of H.R. 1176, to nullify Executive Order

12954, prohibiting federal contracts with companies that hire per-manent replacements for striking workers.

June 22, 1995Mark-up of H.R. 1715, respecting the relation-ship between workers compensation benefits and the benefitsavailable under the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural WorkerProtection Act.

Mark-up of H.R. 743, Teamwork for Employees and Managers

Act.June 29, 1995Hearing on Departmental Reorganization.July 20, 1995Mark-up of H.R. 1594, regarding Pension Protec-

tion Act (ETI).Mark-up of H.R. 1225, Court Reporter Fair Labor Amendments

of 1995.Mark-up of H.R. 1114, to authorize minors who are under the

child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 andwho are under 18 years of age to load materials into balers and


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compactors that meet appropriate American National StandardsInstitute design safety standards.

July 25, 1995Hearing on Departmental Reorganization.September 28, 1995Mark-up of instructions contained in the

Concurrent Resolution on the Budget Resolution for FY 1996.October 12, 1995Joint hearing on technology in the 21st cen-

tury, held with the Committee on Science.

104th Congress, Second Session

January 31, 1996Oversight hearing on what works in publiceducation.

February 7, 1996Hearing on H.R. 2497, to amend the NationalLabor Relations Act.

February 22, 1996Field hearing on H.R. 2202, Immigration in

the National Interest Act of 1995, held in San Diego, California.March 6, 1996Mark-up of H.R. 995, ERISA Targeted HealthInsurance Reform Act of 1995.

Consideration of Resolutions regarding the Congressional Ac-countability Act; Committee instructed Chairman to seek adoptionof the Resolutions by the House.

March 14, 1996Mark-up of H.R. 2570, Older AmericansAmendments of 1996.

Mark-up of H.R. 3049, to amend section 1505 of the Higher Edu-cation Act of 1965 to provide for the continuity of the Board ofTrustees of the Institute of American Indian and Alaska NativeCulture and Arts Development.

Mark-up of H.R. 3055, to amend section 326 of the Higher Edu-cation Act of 1965 to permit continued participation by HistoricallyBlack Graduate Professional Schools in the grant program author-

ized by that section.March 21, 1996Mark-up of H.R. 1227, to amend the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 relating to the payment of wages to employeeswho use employer owned vehicles.

Mark-up of H.R. 2531, to amend the Fair Labor Standards Actof 1938 to clarify the exemption for houseparents from the mini-mum wage and maximum hours requirements of that Act, and forother purposes.

April 12, 1996Joint field hearing on salting, held in OverlandPark, Kansas, with the Committee on Small Business.

May 1, 1996Mark-up of H.R. 2066, Healthy Meals for Chil-dren Act.

Mark-up of H.R. 3269, Impact Aid Technical Amendments Actof 1996.

May 30, 1996Mark-up of H.R. 3268, IDEA Improvement Act

of 1996.June 12, 1996Consideration of Welfare Reform CommitteePrint

June 26, 1996Mark-up of H.R. 2391, Working Families Flexi-bility Act of 1996.

Mark-up of H.R. 2428, Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Do-nation Act.

July 24, 1996Mark-up of H.R. 123, English LanguageEmpowerment Act of 1996.


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August 1, 1996Mark-up of H.R. 3863, Student Debt ReductionAct of 1996.

Mark-up of H.R. 3876, Juvenile Crime Control and DelinquencyPrevention Act of 1996.

Mark-up of H.Res. 470, Expressing the Sense of the Congressthat the Department of Education should play a more active rolein monitoring and enforcing compliance with the provisions of theHigher Education Act of 1965 related to campus crime.

August 2, 1996Continue Mark-up of H.R. 3876, JuvenileCrime Control and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1996.

III. LEGISLATIVEACTIVITIES

A. LEGISLATION ENACTED INTO LAW

P.L. 10426 (H.R. 1225), Court Reporter Fair Labor Amend-ments of 1995.

P.L. 10449 (H.R. 1715), respecting the relationship betweenworkers compensation benefits and the benefits available underthe Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.

P.L. 104141 (H.R. 3055), to amend section 326 of the HigherEducation Act of 1965 to permit continued participation by Histori-cally Black Graduate Professional Schools in the grant program au-thorized by that section.

P.L. 104149 (H.R. 2066), Healthy Meals for Children Act.P.L. 104174 (H.R. 1114), to authorize minors who are under the

child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 andwho are under 18 years of age to load materials into balers andcompactors that meet appropriate American National StandardsInstitute design safety standards.

P.L. 104191 (H.R. 3103), Health Insurance Portability and Ac-countability Act of 1996.P.L. 104195 (H.R. 3269), Impact Aid Technical Amendments

Act of 1996.P.L. 104210 (H.R. 2428), Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food

Donation Bill.P.L. 104272 (H.R. 4167), Professional Boxing Safety Act of

1996.P.L. 104331 (H.R. 3452), Presidential and Executive Office Ac-

countability Act.

B. LEGISLATION ENACTED AS PART OF ANOTHER MEASURE

H.R. 1, Congressional Accountability Act of 1995. Provisions ofthe bill were included in S. 2 and enacted as P.L. 1041.

H.R. 4, Personal Responsibility Act of 1995. Provisions of the

bill were included in H.R. 3734 and enacted as P.L. 104193.H.R. 849, Age Discrimination in Employment Amendments,was included in H.R. 3610 and enacted as P.L. 104208.

H.R. 995, ERISA Targeted Health Insurance Reform Act of1995. Provisions of the bill were included in H.R. 3103 and en-acted as P.L. 104191.

H.R. 999, Welfare Reform Consolidation Act of 1995. Incor-porated into H.R. 4 and provisions of the bill were included in H.R.3734 and enacted as P.L. 104193.


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H.R. 1227, Employee Commuting Flexibility Act, was includedin H.R. 3448 and enacted as P.L. 104188.

H.R. 1617, Workforce and Career Development Act of 1996.Provisions of the bill were included in H.R. 3610 and enacted asP.L. 104208.

H.R. 1720, Privatization Act of 1995. Provisions of the bill wereincluded in H.R. 3610 and enacted as P.L. 104208.

H.R. 2202, Immigration in the National Interest Act of 1995,was included in H.R. 3610 and enacted as P.L. 104208.

H.R. 2396, Congressional Award Act Amendments of 1995, wasincluded in H.R. 3610 and enacted as P.L. 104208.

H.R. 3160, Health Coverage Availability and Affordability Act of1996. Provisions of the bill were included in H.R. 3103 and en-acted as P.L. 104191.

H.R. 3286, Adoption Promotion and Stability Act of 1996. Pro-visions of the bill were included in H.R. 3448 and enacted as P.L.104188.

H.R. 3803, George Bush School of Government and Public Serv-ice Act, was included in H.R. 4036 and enacted as P.L. 104319.

H.R. 3829, Welfare Reform Reconciliation Act of 1996, consid-ered as original text of H.R. 3734 and enacted as P.L. 104193.

H.R. 4282, to amend the National Defense Authorization Act forFY 93 to make a technical correction relating the provision of DODassistance to local educational agencies, was included in H.R. 3610and enacted as P.L. 104208.

S. 1267, Congressional Award Act Amendments of 1995, wasincluded in H.R. 3610 and enacted as P.L. 104208.

S. 1972, Older Americans Indian Technical Amendments Act,was included in H.R. 3610 and enacted as P.L. 104208.

C. BILLS NOT REFERRED TO COMMITTEE AND ENACTED INTO PUBLICLAW CONTAINING PROVISIONS OR BILLS UNDER THE JURISDICTION

OF THE COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC AND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNI-TIES

H.R. 3230, National Defense Authorization Act for FY 97, in-cludes Impact Aid provisions and enacted as P.L. 104201.

H.R. 3448, Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996, includesH.R. 1227, ERISA amendments, and adoption provisions of H.R.3286 under Section 1808 and enacted as P.L. 104188.

H.R. 3610, making appropriations for the Department of Defensefor the fiscal year ending September 30, 1997, and for other pur-poses (Omnibus FY 97 Appropriations Bill). This bill includes im-pact aid, labor and needs based federal education programs provi-sions along with provisions from the following bills and was en-

acted as P.L. 104208: H.R. 849, H.R. 1617 (museum and libraryservices), H.R. 1720 (Sallie Mae and Connie Lee), H.R. 2202, S.1972, H.R. 4282, H.R. 2396, and S. 1267.

H.R. 3734, Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of1996. This bill includes welfare provisions from the following billsand was enacted as P.L. 104193: H.R. 999, H.R. 4 and H.R. 3829.

H.R. 4036, to strengthen the protection of internationally recog-nized human rights, includes H.R. 3803 and enacted as P.L. 104319.


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S. 2, to make certain laws applicable to the legislative branch ofthe Federal Government, includes provisions of H.R. 1 and enactedas P.L. 1041.

S. 377, to amend a provision of part A of title IX of the Elemen-tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, relating to Indian edu-cation, to provide a technical amendment, includes secondary edu-cation provisions and enacted as P.L. 1045.

S. 919, to modify and reauthorize the Child Abuse Preventionand Treatment Act, and for other purposes. This bill is under the

jurisdiction of the Committee and was held at the desk before beingenacted as P.L. 104235.

S. 1124/H.R. 1530, National Defense Authorization Act for FY96, includes Impact Aid provisions and enacted as P.L. 104106.

S. 2183, to make technical corrections to the Personal Respon-

sibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996. This billmakes technical corrections to welfare provisions under the juris-diction of the Committee and was enacted as P.L. 104327.

D. LEGISLATION PASSED THE HOUSE

H.R. 1, Congressional Accountability Act of 1995.H.R. 4, Personal Responsibility Act of 1995.H.R. 123, Bill Emerson English Language Empowerment Act of

1996.H.R. 743, Teamwork for Employers and Managers Act of 1995.H.R. 849, Age Discrimination in Employment Amendments of

1995.H.R. 1045, To amend Goals 2000: Educate America Act to elimi-

nate the National Education Standards and Improvement Council.H.R. 1114, to authorize minors who are under the child labor

provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and who areunder 18 years of age to load materials into balers and compactorsthat meet appropriate American National Standards Institute de-sign safety standards.

H.R. 1225, Court Reporter Fair Labor Amendments of 1995.H.R. 1227, to amend the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 relating to

the payment of wages to employees who use employer owned vehi-cles.

H.R. 1594, to place restrictions on the promotion by the Depart-ment of Labor and other Federal agencies and instrumentalities ofeconomically targeted investments in connection with employeebenefit plans.

H.R. 1617, Workforce and Career Development Act of 1996.H.R. 1715, respecting the relationship between workers com-

pensation benefits and the benefits available under the Migrant

and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.H.R. 1720, Privatization Act of 1995.H.R. 2066, Healthy Meals for Children Act.H.R. 2092, Private Security Officer Quality Assurance Act of

1995.H.R. 2202, Immigration in the National Interest Act of 1995.H.R. 2391, Working Families Flexibility Act of 1996.H.R. 2428, to encourage the donation of food and grocery prod-

ucts to nonprofit organizations for distribution to needy individuals


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14

by giving the Model Good Samaritan Food Donation Act the fullforce and effect of law.

H.R. 3049, to amend section 1505 of the Higher Education Actof 1965 to provide for the continuity of the Board of Trustees of theInstitute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and ArtsDevelopment.

H.R. 3055, to amend section 326 of the Higher Education Act of1965 to permit continued participation by Historically Black Grad-uate Professional Schools in the grant program authorized by thatsection.

H.R. 3103, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Actof 1996.

H.R. 3268, IDEA Improvement Act of 1996.H.R. 3269, Impact Aid Technical Amendments Act of 1996.

H.R. 3286, Adoption Promotion and Stability Act of 1996.H.R. 3452, Presidential and Executive Office AccountabilityAct.

H.R. 3803, George Bush School of Government and Public Serv-ice Act.

H.R. 3863, Student Debt Reduction Act of 1996.H.R. 4134, to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to au-

thorize States to deny public education benefits to aliens not law-fully present in the United States who are not enrolled in publicschools during the period beginning September, 1, 1996, and end-ing July 1, 1997.

H.R. 4167, Professional Boxing Safety Act of 1996.H.R. 4282, to amend the National Defense Authorization Act for

FY 93 to make a technical correction relating to the provision ofthe Department of Defense Assistance to local educational agen-

cies.H.Con.Res. 123, to provide for the provisional approval of regula-tions applicable to certain covered employing offices and coveredemployees and to be issued by the Office of Compliance before Jan-uary 23, 1996.

H.Con.Res. 207, approving certain regulations to implement pro-visions of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 relating tolabor-management relations with respect to covered employees,other than employees of the House of Representatives and employ-ees of the Senate, and for other purposes.

H.Res. 311, to provide for the provisional approval of regulationsapplicable to the House of Representatives and employees of theHouse of Representatives and to be issued by the Office of Compli-ance before January 23, 1996.

H.Res. 470, expressing the sense of the Congress that the De-

partment of Education should play a more active role in monitoringand enforcing compliance with the provisions of the Higher Edu-cation Act of 1965 relating to crime.

H.Res. 504, approving certain regulations to implement provi-sions of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 relating tolabor-management relations with respect to employing offices andcovered employees of the House of Representatives, and for otherpurposes.

S. 1972, Older Americans Indian Technical Amendments Act.


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E. LEGISLATION PASSED THE HOUSE IN ANOTHER MEASURE

H.R. 1, Congressional Accountability Act of 1995. Provisions ofthe bill passed the House in S. 2.

H.R. 4, Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of1995. Provisions of the bill passed the House in H.R. 2491.


H.R. 5, ERISA Targeted Health Insurance Reform Act of 1995.Provisions of the bill passed the House in H.R. 3103.

H.R. 999, Welfare Reform Consolidation Act of 1995, passed theHouse in H.R. 4.

H.R. 1157, Welfare Transformation Act of 1995, passed theHouse in H.R. 4.

H.R. 1214, Personal Responsibility Act of 1995, passed the

House as original text of H.R. 4.H.R. 1227, to amend the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 relating to

the payment of wages to employees who use employer owned vehi-cles, passed the House in H.R. 3448.

H.R. 1617, Workforce and Career Development Act of 1996,passed the House in S. 1972.

H.R. 1720, Privatization Act of 1995, passed the House in H.R.1617.

H.R. 1720, Privatization Act of 1995, passed the House in S.1972.

H.R. 2332, Consolidated and Reformed Education, Employment,and Rehabilitation Systems Act or CAREERS Act. Provisions ofthe bill passed the House in H.R. 1617.

H.R. 2517, Seven-Year Balanced Budget Reconciliation Act of1995, passed the House as text of H.R. 2491.

H.R. 3160, Health Coverage Availability and Affordability Act of1996. Provisions of the bill passed the House in H.R. 3103.

H.R. 3803, George Bush School of Government and Public Serv-ice Act, passed the House in H.R. 4036.

H.R. 3829, Welfare Reform Reconciliation Act of 1996, passedthe House as original text of H.R. 3734.

H.R. 3863, Student Debt Reduction Act of 1996, passed theHouse in S. 1972.

H.R. 3898, English Language Empowerment Act of 1996. Provi-sions of the bill passed the House in H.R. 123.

F. LEGISLATION WITH FILED REPORTS

H.R. 123 (H.Rept. 104723), Bill Emerson English LanguageEmpowerment Act of 1996.

H.R. 743 (H.Rept. 104248), Teamwork for Employers and Man-agers Act of 1995.H.R. 995 (H.Rept. 104498, Pt. 1), ERISA Targeted Health In-

surance Reform Act of 1995.H.R. 999 (H.Rept. 10475, Pt. 1), Welfare Reform Consolidation

Act of 1995.H.R. 1114 (H.Rept. 104278), to authorize minors who are under

the child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938and who are under 18 years of age to load materials into balers


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16

and compactors that meet appropriate American National Stand-ards Institute design safety standards.

H.R. 1176 (H.Rept. 104163), to nullify an executive order thatprohibits Federal contracts with companies that hire permanent re-placements for striking employees.

H.R. 1225 (H.Rept. 104219), Court Reporter Fair LaborAmendments of 1995.

H.R. 1227 (H.Rept. 104585), to amend the Portal-to-Portal Actof 1947 relating to the payment of wages to employees who use em-ployer owned vehicles.

H.R. 1557 (H.Rept. 104170), Arts, Humanities, and MuseumServices Amendments of 1995.

H.R. 1594 (H.Rept. 104238), to place restrictions on the pro-motion by the Departments of Labor and other Federal agencies

and instrumentalities of economically targeted investments in con-nection with employee benefit plans.H.R. 1617 (H.Rept. 104152), Workforce and Career Develop-

ment Act of 1996.H.R. 1720 (H.Rept. 104153), Privatization Act of 1995.H.R. 2066 (H.Rept. 104561), Healthy Meals for Children Act.H.R. 2391 (H.Rept. 104670), Working Families Flexibility Act

of 1996.H.R. 2428 (H.Rept. 104661), to encourage the donation of food

and grocery products to nonprofit organizations for distribution toneedy individuals by giving the Model Good Samaritan Food Dona-tion Act the full force and effect of law.

H.R. 2531 (H.Rept. 104592), to amend the Fair Labor StandardsAct of 1938 to clarify the exemption for houseparents from the min-imum wage and maximum hours requirements of that Act, and for

other purposes.H.R. 2570 (H.Rept. 104539), Older Americans Amendments of

1995.H.R. 3049 (H.Rept. 104505), to amend section 1505 of the High-

er Education Act of 1965 to provide for the continuity of the Boardof Trustees of the Institute of American Indian and Alaska NativeCulture and Arts Development.

H.R. 3055 (H.Rept. 104504), to amend section 326 of the HigherEducation Act of 1965 to permit continued participation by Histori-cally Black Graduate Professional Schools in the grant program au-thorized by that section.

H.R. 3268 (H.Rept. 104614), IDEA Improvement Act of 1996.H.R. 3269 (H.Rept. 104560), Impact Aid Technical Amend-

ments Act of 1996.H.R. 3863 (H.Rept. 104775), Student Debt Reduction Act of

1996.H.R. 3876 (H.Rept. 104783), Juvenile Crime Control and Delin-

quency Prevention Act of 1996.H.Con.Res. 470 (H.Rept. 104776), expressing the sense of the

Congress that the Department of Education should play a more ac-tive role in monitoring and enforcing compliance with the provi-sions of the Higher Education Act of 1965 related to campus crime.


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G. BILLS NOT REFERRED TO COMMITTEE THAT PASSED THE HOUSECONTAINING PROVISIONS OR BILLS UNDER THE JURISDICTION OF

THE COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC AND EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES

H.R. 1530, to authorize appropriations for FY 96 for military ac-tivities of the Department of Defense, to prescribe military person-nel strengths for FY 96, includes Impact Aid provisions (sec. 394).

H.R. 2491, Balance Budget Act of 1995, includes welfare re-form, student aid and ERISA provisions along with provisions fromthe following bills: H.R. 4, and H.R. 2517.

H.R. 3230, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 1997 formilitary activities of the Department of Defense, to prescribe mili-tary personnel strengths for fiscal year 1997, and for other pur-poses, includes Impact Aid provisions.

H.R. 3448, Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996, includes

H.R. 1227, ERISA amendments, and adoption provisions of H.R.3286 under Section 1808.

H.R. 3610, making appropriations for the Department of Defensefor the fiscal year ending September 30, 1997, and for other pur-poses (Omnibus FY 97 Appropriations Bill), includes impact aidprovisions.

H.R. 3734, Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Rec-onciliation Act of 1996, includes welfare reform provisions fromH.R. 999, H.R. 4 and H.R. 3829.

H.R. 4036, to strengthen the protection of internationally recog-nized human rights, includes H.R. 3803.

H.Con.Res. 108, to correct technical errors in the enrollment ofthe bill H.R. 1594, includes technical correction to ETI provisions.

S. 2, to make certain laws applicable to the legislative branch ofthe Federal Government, includes provisions of H.R. 1.

S. 377, to amend a provision of part A, of title IX of the Elemen-tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, relating to Indian edu-cation, to provide a technical amendment, and for other purposes,includes secondary education provisions.

S. 919, to modify and reauthorize the Child Abuse and Preven-tion Treatment Act, and for other purposes. This bill under the ju-risdiction of the Committee was held at the Desk before passingthe House.

S. 1124, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year1996, includes Impact Aid provisions.

S. 2183, to make technical corrections to the Personal Respon-sibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, includestechnical correction to welfare provisions.

H.Res. 400, approving regulations to implement provisions of the

Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (P.L. 1041) with respectto employing offices and covered employees of the House of Rep-resentatives.

H.Res. 401, directing the Office of Compliance to provide edu-cational assistance to employing offices of the House of Representa-tives regarding compliance with the Congressional Accountability

Act of 1995 (P.L. 1041) and requiring employing offices of theHouse of Representatives to obtain prior approval of the chairmanand ranking minority party member of the Committee on House


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Oversight of the House of Representatives of the amount of anysettlement payments made under such Act.

S.Con.Res. 51, to provide for the approval of final regulationsthat are applicable to employing offices that are not employing of-fices of the House of Representatives or the Senate, and to coveredemployees who are not employees of the House of Representativesor the Senate, and that were issued by the Office of Compliance onJanuary 22, 1996, and for other purposes.

H. LEGISLATION ORDERED REPORTED FROM FULL COMMITTEE

H.R. 123, Bill Emerson English Language Empowerment Act of1996.

H.R. 743, Teamwork for Employers and Managers Act of 1995.H.R. 849, Age Discrimination in Employment Amendments of

1995.H.R. 995, ERISA Targeted Health Insurance Reform Act of

1995.H.R. 999, Welfare Reform Consolidation Act of 1995.H.R. 1114, to authorize minors who are under the child labor

provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and who areunder 18 years of age to load materials into balers and compactorsthat meet appropriate American National Standards Institute de-sign safety standards.

H.R. 1176, to nullify an executive order that prohibits Federalcontracts with companies that hire permanent replacements forstriking employees.

H.R. 1225, Court Reporter Fair Labor Amendments of 1995.H.R. 1227, to amend the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 relating to

the payment of wages to employees who use employer owned vehi-cles.

H.R. 1557, Arts, Humanities, and Museum Services Amend-ments of 1995.H.R. 1594, to place restrictions on the promotion by the Depart-

ment of Labor and other Federal agencies and instrumentalities ofeconomically targeted investments in connection with employeebenefit plans.

H.R. 1617, Workforce and Career Development Act of 1996.H.R. 1715, respecting the relationship between workers com-

pensation benefits and the benefits available under the Migrantand Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.

H.R. 1720, Privatization Act of 1995.H.R. 2066, Healthy Meals for Children Act.H.R. 2391, Working Families Flexibility Act of 1996.H.R. 2428, to encourage the donation of food and grocery prod-

ucts to nonprofit organizations for distribution to needy individuals

by giving the Model Good Samaritan Food Donation Act the fullforce and effect of law.H.R. 2570, Older Americans Amendments of 1995.H.R. 3049, to amend section 1505 of the Higher Education Act

of 1965 to provide for the continuity if the Board of Trustees of theInstitute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and ArtsDevelopment.

H.R. 3055, to amend section 326 of the higher Education Act of1965 to permit continued participation by Historically Black Grad-


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uate Professional Schools it he grant program authorized by thatsection.

H.R. 3268, IDEA Improvement Act of 1996.H.R. 3269, Impact Aid Technical Amendments Act of 1996.H.R. 3863, Student Debt Reduction Act of 1996.H.R. 3876, Juvenile Crime control and Delinquency Prevention

Act of 1996.H.Con.Res. 470, expressing the sense of the Congress that the

Department of Education should play a more active role in mon-itoring and enforcing compliance with the provisions of the HigherEducation Act of 1965 related to campus crime.

I. LEGISLATION VETOED

H.R. 4, Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of

1995.H.R. 743, Teamwork for Employees and Managers Act of 1995.

LEGISLATION CONSIDERED AT FULL COMMITTEE AND NOT REPORTEDFROM SUBCOMMITTEE

A. LEGISLATION ENACTED INTO LAW

P.L. 10449 (H.R. 1715), respecting the relationship betweenworkers compensation benefits and the benefits available underthe Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.

P.L. 104141 (H.R. 3055), to amend section 326 of the HigherEducation Act of 1965 to permit continued participation by Histori-cally Black Graduate Professional Schools in the grant program au-thorized by that section.

P.L. 104272 (H.R. 4167), Professional Boxing Safety Act of

1996.P.L. 104331 (H.R. 3452), Presidential and Executive Office Ac-

countability Act.

B. LEGISLATION ENACTED AS PART OF ANOTHER MEASURE

H.R. 1, Congressional Accountability Act of 1995. Provisions ofthe bill were included in S. 2 and enacted as P.L. 1041.

H.R. 4, Personal Responsibility Act of 1995. Provisions of thebill were included in H.R. 3734 and enacted as P.L. 104193.

H.R. 999, Welfare Reform Consolidation Act of 1995. Incor-porated into H.R. 4 and provisions of the bill were included in H.R.3734 and enacted as P.L. 104193.

H.R. 1720, Privatization Act of 1995. Provisions of the bill wereincluded in H.R. 3610 and enacted as P.L. 104208.

H.R. 2202, Immigration in the National Interest Act of 1995,was included in H.R. 3610 and enacted as P.L. 104208.H.R. 3829, Welfare Reform Reconciliation Act of 1996, consid-

ered as original text of H.R. 3734 and enacted as P.L. 104193.H.R. 4282, to amend the National Defense Authorization Act for

FY 93 to make a technical correction relating the provision of DODassistance to local educational agencies, was included in H.R. 3610and enacted as P.L. 104208.


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C. LEGISLATION PASSED THE HOUSE

H.R. 1, Congressional Accountability Act of 1995.H.R. 4, Personal Responsibility Act of 1995.H.R. 1045, To amend Goals 2000: Educate America Act to elimi-

nate the National Education Standards and Improvement Council.H.R. 1715, respecting the relationship between workers com-

pensation benefits and the benefits available under the Migrantand Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.

H.R. 1720, Privatization Act of 1995.H.R. 2202, Immigration in the National Interest Act of 1995.H.R. 3049, to amend section 1505 of the Higher Education Act

of 1965 to provide for the continuity of the Board of Trustees of theInstitute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and ArtsDevelopment.

H.R. 3055, to amend section 326 of the Higher Education Act of1965 to permit continued participation by Historically Black Grad-uate Professional Schools in the grant program authorized by thatsection.

H.R. 3452, Presidential and Executive Office AccountabilityAct.

H.R. 3863, Student Debt Reduction Act of 1996.H.R. 4134, to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to au-

thorize States to deny public education benefits to aliens not law-fully present in the United States who are not enrolled in publicschools during the period beginning September, 1, 1996, and end-ing July 1, 1997.

H.R. 4167, Professional Boxing Safety Act of 1996.H.R. 4282, to amend the National Defense Authorization Act for

FY 93 to make a technical correction relating to the provision of

the Department of Defense Assistance to local educational agen-cies.H.Con.Res. 123, to provide for the provisional approval of regula-

tions applicable to certain covered employing offices and coveredemployees and to be issued by the Office of Compliance before Jan-uary 23, 1996.

H.Con.Res. 207, approving certain regulations to implement pro-visions of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 relating tolabor-management relations with respect to covered employees,other than employees of the House of Representatives and employ-ees of the Senate, and for other purposes.

H.Res. 311, to provide for the provisional approval of regulationsapplicable to the House of Representatives and employees of theHouse of Representatives and to be issued by the Office of Compli-ance before January 23, 1996.

H.Res. 470, expressing the sense of the Congress that the De-partment of Education should play a more active role in monitoringand enforcing compliance with the provisions of the Higher Edu-cation Act of 1965 relating to crime.

H.Res. 504, approving certain regulations to implement provi-sions of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 relating tolabor-management relations with respect to employing offices andcovered employees of the House of Representatives, and for otherpurposes.


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D. LEGISLATION PASSED THE HOUSE IN ANOTHER MEASURE

H.R. 1, Congressional Accountability Act of 1995. Provisions ofthe bill passed the House in S. 2.



H.R. 999, Welfare Reform Consolidation Act of 1995, passed theHouse in H.R. 4.

H.R. 1157, Welfare Transformation Act of 1995, passed theHouse in H.R. 4.

H.R. 1214, Personal Responsibility Act of 1995, passed theHouse as original text of H.R. 4.

H.R. 1720, Privatization Act of 1995, passed the House in S.

1972.H.R. 1720, Privatization Act of 1995, passed the House in H.R.1617.

H.R. 2517, Seven-Year Balanced Budget Reconciliation Act of1995, passed the House as text of H.R. 2491.

H.R. 3829, Welfare Reform Reconciliation Act of 1996, passedthe House as original text of H.R. 3734.

H.R. 3863, Student Debt Reduction Act of 1996, passed theHouse in S. 1972.

E. LEGISLATION WITH FILED REPORTS

H.R. 999 (H.Rept. 10475, Pt. 1), Welfare Reform ConsolidationAct of 1995.

H.R. 1176 (H.Rept. 104163), to nullify an executive order thatprohibits Federal contracts with companies that hire permanent re-

placements for striking employees.H.R. 1557 (H.Rept. 104170), Arts, Humanities, and MuseumServices Amendments of 1995.

H.R. 1720 (H.Rept. 104153), Privatization Act of 1995.H.R. 3049 (H.Rept. 104505), to amend section 1505 of the High-

er Education Act of 1965 to provide for the continuity of the Boardof Trustees of the Institute of American Indian and Alaska NativeCulture and Arts Development.

H.R. 3055 (H.Rept. 104504), to amend section 326 of the higherEducation Act of 1965 to permit continued participation by Histori-cally Black Graduate Professional Schools in the grant program au-thorized by that section.

H.R. 3863 (H.Rept. 104775), Student Debt Reduction Act of1996.

H.Con.Res. 470 (H.Rept. 104776), expressing the sense of theCongress that the Department of Education should play a more ac-tive role in monitoring and enforcing compliance with the provi-sions of the Higher Education Act of 1965 related to campus crime.

F. LEGISLATION ORDERED REPORTED FROM FULL COMMITTEE

H.R. 999, Welfare Reform Consolidation Act of 1995.H.R. 1176, to nullify an executive order that prohibits Federal

contracts with companies that hire permanent replacements forstriking employees.


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H.R. 1557, Arts, Humanities, and Museum Services Amend-ments of 1995.

H.R. 1715, respecting the relationship between workers com-pensation benefits and the benefits available under the Migrantand Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.

H.R. 1720, Privatization Act of 1995.H.R. 3049, to amend section 1505 of the Higher Education Act

of 1965 to provide for the continuity of the Board of Trustees of theInstitute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and ArtsDevelopment.

H.R. 3055, to amend section 326 of the higher Education Act of1965 to permit continued participation by Historically Black Grad-uate Professional Schools in the grant program authorized by thatsection.

H.R. 3863, Student Debt Reduction Act of 1996.H. Con. Res. 470, expressing the sense of the Congress that theDepartment of Education should play a more active role in mon-itoring and enforcing compliance with the provisions of the HigherEducation Act of 1965 related to campus crime.

G. LEGISLATION VETOED

H.R. 4, Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of1995.

H. STATISTICS ON BILLS CONSIDERED AT FULL COMMITTEE AND NOTREPORTED FROM SUBCOMMITTEE

Total Number of Bills Considered at Full Committee and Not Reported fromSubcommittee ..................................................................................................... 48

Total Number of Bills Ordered Reported from Full Committee ........................ 9

Total Number of Filed Reports on Bills ............................................................... 8Total Number of Bills Passed the House ............................................................. 18Total Number of Bills Passed the House in Another Measure .......................... 11Total Number of Bills Enacted into Law ............................................................. 4Total Number of Bills Enacted as Part of Another Measure ............................. 7Total Number of Bills Vetoed ............................................................................... 1

V. COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC AND EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIESSTATISTICS

Total Number of Bills and Resolutions Referred ................................................ 437Total Number of Hearings .................................................................................... 14

Field ................................................................................................................. 2Joint with Other Committees ........................................................................ 2

Total Number of Full Committee Mark-Up Sessions ......................................... 21Total Number of Bills Ordered Reported from Full Committee ........................ 26Total Number of Filed Reports on Bills ............................................................... 25Total Number of Bills Passed the House ............................................................. 37

Total Number of Bills Passed the House in Another Measure .......................... 20Total Number of Bills Enacted into Law ............................................................. 10Total Number of Bills Enacted as Part of Another Measure ............................. 18Total Number of Bills Vetoed ............................................................................... 2


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SUBCOMMITTEE ON EMPLOYER-EMPLOYEE RELATIONS

I. SUMMARY OFACTIVITIES

A. ERISA TARGETED HEALTH INSURANCE REFORM

In the 104th Congress, the Committee initiated the legislativedebate leading to the enactment of incremental health insurancereform.

On February 14, 1995, the Subcommittee on Employer-EmployeeRelations set the stage for ERISA-based insurance reform by hold-ing hearings on The ERISA Title I Framework: A 20-year SuccessStory. On February 21, 1995, the ERISA Targeted Health Insur-ance Reform Act of 1995 (H.R.995) was introduced by Representa-tives Fawell, Goodling, Armey, and other Members. This bipartisanlegislation was cosponsored by 51 Members of the House of Rep-resentatives. Legislation addressing reforms in the individualhealth insurance market, the Targeted Individual Health Insur-ance Reform Act of 1995, was introduced on the same date. DuringSubcommittee hearings on the two bills, held on March 10 andMarch 28, 1995, witnesses testified that the preservation and ex-pansion of ERISA and its preemption framework would be a criti-cal step on the road to significant health insurance reform.

On March 6, 1996, the Committee adopted an amendment in thenature of a substitute to H.R. 995 offered by Chairman Fawell andordered the bill reported. The ERISA Targeted Health InsuranceReform Act of 1996 was reported to the House on March 25, 1996(H. Rept. 104498). The Committee bill served as the genesis forthe ERISA-based reforms contained in the Health Coverage Avail-ability and Affordability Act, H.R. 3103, as passed by the House onMarch 28, 1996.

The provisions in the conference report (H. Rept. 104736) relat-ing to portability and health insurance accessibility are structuredin a manner similar to those in the House passed bill and theERISA Targeted Health Insurance Reform legislation originally re-ported by the Committee. Under the newly enacted portability pro-tections, employees can no longer be told that their plan will notcover them because of a preexisting medical condition when theyare continuously insured. The employees of small employers can nolonger be told that their health coverage has been canceled by aninsurer because of a costly illness. Small employers can no longerbe told by insurers that health insurance is not available to theiremployees because of the risks of their jobs or their previous claimsexperience. In sum, employees will no longer have to fear, whenthey leave their job or take a new job, that they or their familymembers will lose access to health insurance coverage because of

a preexisting medical condition.Of particular note is the ERISA-based structure of the final legis-lation (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of1996, P.L. 104191). The key components of the group-to-groupportability provisionsrestrictions on preexisting-condition exclu-sions, special enrollment rules and nondiscrimination on the basisof an individuals health statusare made applicable to grouphealth plans and to health insurance issuers offering grouphealth insurance coverage in connection with a group health plan


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under a new Part 7 of ERISA Title I. Identical provisions undersections 2701 and 2702 of the Public Health Service Act are madeapplicable only to group health plans which are non-federal govern-mental plans and to health insurance issuers in connection withgroup health plans (but not to group health plans covered underERISA, even if such a group health plan is a multiple employerwelfare arrangement). Identical provisions under sections 98019803 of the Internal Revenue Code are made applicable only togroup health plans (including church plans) and not to health in-surance issuers. Section 104 of the Act ensures coordination bymeans of an interagency memorandum of understanding (MOU)which requires that regulations, rulings and interpretations issuedby the different agencies on the same subject matter must be ad-ministered so as to have the same effect at all times. Likewise acoordinated enforcement strategy must be maintained under theMOU to prevent duplicative enforcement and to assign priorities inenforcement. For example, the Committee expects that any infor-mation relating to a potential violation of the Act by a health in-surance issuer which comes to the attention of the Department ofLabor or the Internal Revenue Service will be transmitted to theDepartment of Health and Human Services (HHS) for a determina-tion under section 2722(a)(2) as to whether a state has failed tosubstantially enforce the particular provision of the Act (amendingthe Public Health Service Act) as it relates to the health insuranceissuer. Only if the state involved has failed to substantially enforcethe federal law with respect to the provision violated will the Sec-retary of HHS invoke the federal enforcement provisions under sec-tion 2722(b).

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, undersection 704 of ERISA and section 2723 of the Public Health Service

Act, also reinforces the broad preemption framework with respectto employee benefit plans (i.e. group health plans) which character-izes ERISA section 514. In particular, the new provisions of section701 of ERISA and section 2701 of the Public Health Service Act asthey relate to health insurance coverage offered by a health insur-ance issuer in connection with a group health plan supersede anyprovision of state law relating to the preexisting condition rulesunder such sections, except to the extent that such state law spe-cifically provides for one of the exceptions listed under paragraph(b)(2). Therefore, in general, the above referenced portability/pre-existing condition rules and certification/notice requirements willapply on a uniform basis to all group health plans and relatedhealth insurance coverage, if any. The only exception to this gen-eral rule occurs with respect to health insurance coverage offeredby a health insurance issuer in a state which specifically provides

for one or more of the exceptions listed in paragraph (b)(2).The Committee also takes note that by omitting from the con-ference report the ERISA small business pooling provisions in-cluded under Subtitle C of the House bill, this Congress has missedan important opportunity to extend more affordable coverage to themillions of employees and their dependents who today do not havehealth insurance coverage. These provisions would have built uponthe ERISA cornerstone of this nations employee benefits law toallow employers, particularly small employers, to achieve econo-


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the workplace of today is simply not the same as the workplacethat was prevalent in the America of the 1930s when the NationalLabor Relations Act (NLRA) was enacted. Employers and employ-ees in nonunion workplaces who want to work together to confrontand address the numerous issues that arise in any employment re-lationship (e.g. safety and health concerns, efficiency/productivityissues, scheduling, benefits, etc.) were finding their cooperationthwarted by broad interpretations of labor laws a half century old.The Subcommittee believes that federal labor law should facilitatethe desire of employees and employers to create mechanisms in theworkplacebe they formal or informal, permanent or temporaryto foster an exchange of concerns, problems, suggestions and solu-tions to make the employment experience more satisfying and pro-ductive for all parties.

The Subcommittee heard from many employers and business

owners that they have either suspended or decided against initiat-ing any employer-employee involvement or cooperative manage-ment programs because of a concern about how the National LaborRelations Board and the courts would judge the legality of suchprograms. Employees who have enjoyed having a voice in how theirworkplaces are operated and structured have also indicated thatthey are concerned that legal questions surrounding the legality ofemployer-employee cooperation will force them back into a situa-tion where, in their words, they will have to check their brains atthe door.

This nations labor law must be relevant to the employer-em-ployee relationships of the twenty-first century. The Subcommitteefelt strongly that the amendments to the NLRA contemplated bythe TEAM Act were crucial and that the bill would pose no threatto the well-protected right of employees to select representatives of

their own choosing to act as their exclusive bargaining agent. Evenwith the changes to the NLRA proposed in H.R. 743, an employeeinvolvement structure may not engage in collective bargaining normay it act as the exclusive representative of employees. The prohi-bitions in the NLRA outlawing interference with employees at-tempts to form a union and preventing employers from avoidingbargaining obligations by directly dealing with employees remainunaffected by the TEAM Act.

Although H.R. 743 was unfortunately vetoed by President Clin-ton after passage by both the House and the Senate, the Sub-committee remains committed to the legislation as it makes clearthat employers can work together with their employees to confrontand solve the myriad problems and issues that arise in a work-place. To allow otherwise would stand in the way of cutting edgehuman resource management that offers business the opportunityto make an investment in the human potential of the Americanworkforce that will yield untold dividends for this nation.

D. ADEA PUBLIC SAFETY EXEMPTION

Another issue to which the Subcommittee on Employer-EmployeeRelations devoted early attention was the restoration of the publicsafety exemption to the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of1967 (ADEA). Chairman Fawell introduced legislation (H.R. 849) torestore this exemption, which expired on December 31, 1993. The


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legislation would allow police and fire departments and correctionalinstitutions to utilize maximum hiring ages and early retirementages as an element of their overall personnel policies. The restora-tion of the public safety exemption was sought by management andlabor alike in the public safety arena.

Although the Subcommittee believes strongly that the use of anage requirement as a qualification for employment is rarely justi-fied, the public safety arena presents one of the very limited excep-tions where the need to perform at peak physical and mental condi-tioning is critical and the natural effects of the aging process can-not be discounted. Police and firefighters have the safety and well-being of not only their fellow officers, but the general public aswell, in their hands, and the Subcommittee simply was not pre-pared to tolerate the risk presented by the possibility of sudden in-capacitation or slowed reflexes.

The Subcommittee held a hearing on the need for the public safe-ty exemption under the ADEA, and the testimony of firefightingand law enforcement organizations and local government was com-pelling. A representative of the International Association of Fire-fighters testified that the most important reason that public safetyoccupations are an exception to the general rule against age-basedemployment criteria is simply that human lives are at stake. Boththe firefighters and police officers presented persuasive testimonythat state and local governments must ensure a physically fit andfully qualified workforce and that there are no adequate physicaltests available to enable them to do so without the use of age cri-teria.

H.R. 849, which enjoyed overwhelming bipartisan support, wasone of the first pieces of legislation considered by the Committeeon Economic and Educational Opportunities and, by voice vote,

passed the House of Representatives on March 28, 1995. The Sub-committee was gratified that the Congress took the critical stepsnecessary to ensure that H.R. 849 was finally enacted by includingthe legislation in the omnibus appropriations bill, P.L. 104208,signed by President Clinton. The public safety exemption under the

ADEA drew the proper balance between protecting the employmentrights of older Americans and protecting the safety needs of all

Americans, and gave police and fire departments the necessaryflexibility to establish personnel policies that are suited to the de-mands of public safety occupations.

E. THE WORKER RIGHT TO KNOW ACT

The Worker Right to Know Act, H.R. 3580, was introduced byChairman Harris Fawell on June 5, 1996. The Act implements andstrengthens workers rights, created by the U.S. Supreme Courts

1988 decision in Beck v. Communications Workers of America, toobject to the payment of union dues or fees for any activities notrelated to collective bargaining, contract administration or griev-ance adjustment necessary to performing the duties of exclusiverepresentation.

The Act would require unions to disclose to its memberships ex-actly where funds were going, and amends the Labor-ManagementReporting and Disclosure Act to give all employees paying dues toa union greater access to the unions financial records.


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In light of the serious undermining of workers right to know,and have a say in, where their hard-earned dollars are sent, theSubcommittee on Employer-Employee Relations held two hearingsin Washington, DC, in April and June 1996, to examine in detailthe effects of this unfairness and to fashion an effective responsewhich would uphold the rights of workers.

The Subcommittees two hearings on H.R. 3580held April 18and June 19, 1996 (both hearings contained in Serial No. 10466)demonstrated a strong need for legislation protecting workersrights. Eighteen witnesses testimony, including eight current orformer union members, created a compelling case for the appro-priateness of simply asking workers for their permission beforespending their money.

Witnesses direct experience confirmed that rank-and-file unionmembers are having their dues taken by union leadership and

spent on political activities with which many members disagree.Testimony showed that most workers are unaware that they havea right to a refund on that portion of dues used for purposes unre-lated to legitimate union functions, and that those who are awareof this rightand seek to exercise itoften face union delay andintimidation, and may become outcasts within the

Documents

Congressional Report 104-875 States ACORN and ACORN Housing Corp (AHC) Illegally Used Public Funding for Partisan Political Activity (Pages 77-78)