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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled
Sec. 101. Section 1 of the Act of May 13, 1954 (33 U.S.C. 981), is amended by striking "subject to the direction and supervision of the Secretary" and inserting in lieu thereof "within the Department".
Sec. 102. (a)Section 2 of the Act of May 13, 1954 (33 U.S.C. 982), is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 2. "Management of Corporation; Chief Operating Officer; Advisory Board"
"(c)(1) The Chief Operating Officer shall, without regard to the laws governing compensation in title 5, United States Code, receive an annual rate of basic pay not to exceed the maximum rate of basic pay for the Senior Executive Service under section 5382 of title 5, United States Code, including any applicable locality-based comparability payment that may be authorized under section 5304(h)(2)(C) of such title. The Chief Operating Officer may receive an additional amount up to the equivalent of fifty percent of such basic pay. Any additional payment shall be awarded by the Secretary, based upon his or her evaluation of the Chief Operating Officer's annual performance pursuant to the annual agreement and reports and audits of Corporation performance as required under the Government Corporation Control Act".
(2) The additional payment provided under the second sentence of paragraph (1) of this subsection may not cause the Chief Operating Officer's aggregate compensation at the end of a calendar year to equal or exceed the amount of the President's salary under 3 U.S.C. 102.
(3) Limitations on the compensation of Department of Transportation employees or Federal government employees in any Act of Congress enacted after the date of enactment of this sentence shall not apply to the Chief Operating Officer or employees of the Corporation, except where the provision of law establishing such limitation specifically amends or limits the applicability of this sentence.
(e) There is hereby established the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation Advisory Board to advise the Secretary and the Chief Operating Officer on general policies of the Corporation, including its policies in connection with design and construction of facilities and the establishment of rules of measurement for vessels and cargo and rates of charges or tolls, and on such additional matters as the Secretary or Chief Operating Officer may from time to time put to it. The Board shall meet at the call of the Chief Operating Officer.
(f)The Board shall consist of five members appointed by the Secretary for staggered five-year terms. The term of each member shall begin when the term of the predecessor of that individual ends. An individual appointed to fill a vacancy occurring before the expiration of the term for which the predecessor of that individual was appointed, shall be appointed for the remainder of that term. Not more than three of the Board's members may belong to the same political party.
(g)The members of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation Advisory Board in place on the effective date of this section shall remain on the Board until March 25, 1998. The Secretary in appointing new members shall ensure that the terms of the new members are for descending terms of years so as not to coincide with the term of the first new appointee set at five years.
(h)Members of the Advisory Board shall receive necessary traveling expenses while going to and coming from meetings.
Sec. 103. Section 3 of the Act of May 13, 1954 (33 U.S.C. 983), is amended by inserting a new subsection (c) following subsection (b) to read as follows:
PERSONNEL FLEXIBILITIES; GENERAL Sec. 201. Section 4 of the Act of May 13, 1954 (33 U.S.C. 984), is amended by striking the language of paragraph (a)(7) and substituting "may appoint and fix the compensation of employees as provided in section 14 of this Act".
Sec. 202. The Act of May 13, 1954 (33 U.S.C. 981, et seq.), is amended by adding the following after section 13:
Sec. 14. Personnel of the Corporation
(a) In General.--The Corporation, except as otherwise specified by this Act, may, through the Chief Operating Officer, appoint and fix the compensation, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of Chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code, of such officers and employees as may be necessary for the conduct of its business, define their authority and duties, and delegate to them such of the powers vested in the Corporation as the Chief Operating Officer may determine, provided, that--
(2)"officers and employees of the Corporation are officers and employees of the United States as defined by sections 2104 and 2105, title 5, United States Code".
(b)Effect of Personnel Flexibilities.--(1) Any flexibilities provided by sections 15 through 17 of this Act shall be exercised in a manner consistent with the following provisions of title 5, United States Code:
(B) "provisions relating to preference eligibles";
(C) "section 5307, relating to the aggregate limitation on pay"; and
(D) "chapter 71, relating to labor-management relations, except to the extent provided by subsection (c) of this section".
(2) The exercise of any authorities provided by this Act shall be subject to subsections (b) and (c) of section 1104 of title 5, United States Code, as though such authorities were delegated to the Corporation under subsection (a)(2) of such section 1104. The Corporation shall provide the Office of Personnel Management with any information the Office requires in carrying out its responsibilities under this paragraph.
(c) Written Agreements Governing Personnel Flexibilities.--(1) Employees within a unit to which a labor organization is accorded exclusive recognition under chapter 71 of title 5, United States Code, shall not be subject to any flexibility provided by sections 15 through 17 of this Act unless the exclusive representative and the Corporation have entered into a written agreement which specifically provides for the exercise of that flexibility.
(2) The written agreements referred to in paragraph (1) of this subsection may not be imposed by the Federal Services Impasses Panel under section 7119 of title 5, United States Code.
(d) Limits on Prior Approval by the Office of Personnel Management.--(1) The Corporation may exercise any of the flexibilities provided by sections 15, 16(a) and (b), and 17 of this Act without prior approval of the Office of Personnel Management.
(2) The Corporation may exercise the flexibilities described in subsections 16(c)-(e) of this Act only after a specific plan for implementation of those flexibilities is submitted to and approved by the Director of the Office of Personnel Management.
(e) Demonstration Projects Under Chapter 47 of Title 5 U.S.C.--(1)The exercise of any flexibilities under sections 15 through 17 of this Act does not affect the authority of the Corporation to implement a demonstration project, subject to chapter 47 of title 5, United States Code, and as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection.
(2)(A) In applying section 4701(a)(1) of such title 5 to a demonstration project referred to in paragraph (1) of this subsection, subparagraph (A) of such section 4701(a)(1) shall be disregarded.
(B) "In applying section 4703 of such title 5 to a project described in paragraph (1) of this subsection",
(ii) subsection (b)(3) shall be disregarded;
(iii) in subsection (b)(4), 180 days shall be deemed to be 30 days;
(iv) subsection (b)(6) shall be deemed to state: provide each House of the Congress with the final version of the plan;
(v) subsection (c)(1) shall be deemed to state: subchapter V of chapter 63 or subpart G of part III of this title; and
(vi) subsection (d) shall be disregarded, and
(vii) subsection (f) shall be disregarded and, in lieu thereof, subsection (c) of this section shall apply as though the demonstration project were a flexibility authorized by sections 15 through 17 of this Act."
Sec. 15. Performance management
(a) Establishment of Performance Management System.--The Corporation shall establish a performance management system that--
(1) maintains individual accountability by--
(B) making periodic determinations of whether each employee meets or does not meet the employee's established retention standards; and
(C) with respect to any employee whose performance does not meet established retention standards,
(ii) taking one or more of the following actions:
(II) an action under chapter 43 or chapter 75 of title 5, United States Code; or
(III) any other appropriate action to resolve the performance problem; and
(2) strengthens its effectiveness by providing for--
(A) establishing goals or objectives for individual, group, or organizational performance (or any combination thereof), consistent with the annual performance agreement described in section 2(c) of this Act and the Corporation's performance planning procedures, including those established under the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993, and communicating such goals or objectives to employees;
(B) using such goals and objectives to make performance distinctions among employees or groups of employees; and
(C) using performance assessments as a basis for granting employee awards, adjusting an employee's rate of basic pay, and other appropriate personnel actions, in accordance with applicable provisions of law and regulation. For purposes of this subparagraph, 'performance assessment' means a determination of whether or not retention standards established under paragraph (1)(A) of this subsection are met, and any additional performance determination made on the basis of performance goals and objectives established under subparagraph (A) of this paragraph. For purposes of title 5, United States Code, 'unacceptable performance' with respect to an employee of the Corporation means performance of the employee which fails to meet a retention standard established under paragraph (1)(A) of this subsection.
(b) Personnel Awards Program.-- (1) The Corporation shall establish an awards program designed to provide incentives for and recognition of organizational, group, and individual achievements by providing for granting awards to employees who, as individuals or members of a group, contribute to meeting the performance goals and objectives established under this section by such means as a superior individual or group accomplishment, a documented productivity gain, or sustained superior performance.
(2) Notwithstanding section 4502(b) of title 5, United States Code, the Corporation may grant a cash award in an amount not exceeding $25,000, with the approval of the Chief Operating Officer.
(c) Application of Certain Provisions of Title 5 U.S.C. to Corporation personnel.--(1) In applying sections 4303(b)(1)(A) and 7513(b)(1) of title 5, United States Code, to employees of the Corporation, '30 days' may be deemed to be '15 days'.
(2) "Notwithstanding the second sentence of section 5335(c) of title 5, United States Code, an employee of the Corporation shall not have a right to appeal the denial of a periodic step increase under such section 5335 to the Merit Systems Protection Board."
(a) Broad-banded Classification System.--(1) The Corporation may, subject to criteria to be prescribed by the Office of Personnel Management, establish one or more broad-banded systems covering all or any portion of its workforce. For purposes of this subsection, "broad-banded system" means a system for grouping positions for pay, job evaluation, and other purposes that is different from the system established under chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code, as a result of combining grades and related ranges of rates of pay in one or more occupational series. The Office may require the Corporation to submit to the Office such information relating to its broad-banded systems as the Office may require. Except to the extent provided in subsections (d) and (e), laws and regulations pertaining to General Schedule employees (other than chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code) shall continue to apply to employees under a broad-banded system.
(2) The criteria to be prescribed by the Office of Personnel Management shall, at a minimum--
(A) ensure that the structure of any broad-banded system maintains, through linkage to the General Schedule, the principle of equal pay for substantially equal work;
(B) establish the minimum and maximum number of grades that may be combined into pay bands;
(C) establish requirements for adjusting the pay of an employee within a pay band;
(D) establish requirements for setting the pay of a supervisory employee whose position is in a pay band or who supervises employees whose positions are in pay bands; and
(E) establish requirements and methodologies for setting the pay of an employee upon conversion to a broad-banded system, initial appointment, change of position or type of appointment (including promotion, demotion, transfer, reassignment, reinstatement, placement in another pay band, or movement to a different geographic location), and movement between a broad-banded system and another pay system.
(b) Alternative Pay Flexibility.--(1) The Corporation may determine that, with respect to its employees who remain subject to chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code, rather than being under a broad-banded system established under subsection (a), the General Schedule does not have 10 fixed rates of pay for each grade. On and after the date such a determination is made, an employee who is otherwise subject to subchapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, and who is promoted or transferred to a position in a higher grade, shall be entitled to basic pay at a rate determined under criteria prescribed by the Office of Personnel Management.
(2) In lieu of periodic step-increases under section 5335 of title 5, United States Code, such employees who meet retention standards established under section 15(a)(1)(A) of this Act shall be entitled to performance increases under criteria prescribed by the Office. A performance increase shall be equal to one-ninth of the difference between the minimum and maximum rates of pay for the applicable grade of the General Schedule. In lieu of additional step-increases under section 5336 of title 5, such employees shall be eligible for exceptional performance increases under criteria prescribed by the Office. An exceptional performance increase shall be equal to any amount up to, but not in excess of, a performance increase.
(c) Alternative Job Evaluation Systems.--(1) With the approval of the Office of Personnel Management in accordance with section 14(d)(2) of this Act, the Corporation may establish one or more alternative job evaluation systems that include any positions or groups of positions that the Corporation determines, for reasons of effective administration--
(A) should not be classified under chapter 51 of title 5, United States Code, or paid under the General Schedule;
(B) should not be classified or paid under subchapter IV of chapter 53 of such title 5; or
(C) should not be paid under section 5376 of such title 5.
(2)(A) An alternative job evaluation system established under this subsection that includes positions described in subparagraph (A) or (B), or both, of paragraph (1) of this subsection may not provide a rate of basic pay for any employee in excess of the maximum rate of pay under the General Schedule.
(B) An alternative job evaluation system established under this subsection that includes positions described in subparagraph (C) of paragraph (1) of this subsection may not provide a rate of basic pay for any employee in excess of the annual rate of basic pay of the Chief Operating Officer under the first sentence of section 2(d) of this Act.
(3) An alternative job evaluation system established under this subsection shall be implemented in such a way as to ensure the maintenance of the principle of equal pay for substantially equal work.
(4) Except as otherwise provided under this section, employees under an alternative job evaluation system shall continue to be subject to the laws and regulations covering employees under the pay system that would otherwise apply to them. If the alternative job evaluation system combines employees from different pay systems into a single pay system, the plan described in section 14(d)(2) shall address the applicability of the laws and regulations for the different pay systems.
(d) Certain Variations from Title 5 U.S.C.--With the approval of the Office of Personnel Management in accordance with section 14(d)(2) of this Act, the Corporation may, with respect to employees who are covered by a broad-banded system established under subsection (a) of this section or an alternative job evaluation system established under subsection (c) of this section, provide for variations from the provisions of subchapter VI of chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code.
(e) "Certain Variations from sections 5753 and 5754 of Title 5 U.S.C.--With the approval of the Office of Personnel Management in accordance with section 14(d)(2) of this Act, the Corporation may, with respect to its employees, provide for variations from the provisions of sections 5753 and 5754 of title 5, United States Code."
Sec. 17. Staffing flexibilities
(a) Permanent Appointments of Employees in the Corporation.--(1) Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, an employee of Corporation may be selected for a permanent appointment in the competitive service in the Corporation through internal competitive promotion procedures when the following conditions are met:
(A) the employee has completed, in the competitive service, 2 years of current continuous service under a term appointment or any combination of term appointments;
(B) such term appointment or appointments were made under competitive procedures prescribed for permanent appointments;
(C) the employee's performance under such term appointment or appointments met established retention standards; and
(D) the vacancy announcement for the term appointment from which the conversion is made stated that there was a potential for subsequent conversion to a permanent appointment.
(2) An appointment under this subsection may be made only to a position in the same line of work as a position to which the employee received a term appointment under competitive procedures.
(b) Category Rating Systems.--(1) Notwithstanding subchapter I of chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code, the Corporation may establish category rating systems for evaluating job applicants for positions in the competitive service, under which qualified candidates are divided into two or more quality categories on the basis of relative degrees of merit, rather than assigned individual numerical ratings. Each applicant who meets the minimum qualification requirements for the position to be filled shall be assigned to an appropriate category based on an evaluation of the applicant's knowledge, skills, and abilities relative to those needed for successful performance in the job to be filled.
(2) Within each quality category established under paragraph (1) of this subsection, preference eligibles shall be listed ahead of individuals who are not preference eligibles. For other than scientific and professional positions at or higher than GS-9 (or equivalent), preference eligibles who have a compensable service-connected disability of 10 percent or more, and who meet the minimum qualification standards, shall be listed in the highest quality category.
(3) An appointing authority may select any applicant from the highest quality category or, if fewer than three candidates have been assigned to the highest quality category, from a merged category consisting of the highest and second highest quality categories. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, the appointing authority may not pass over a preference eligible in the same or higher category from which selection is made, unless the requirements of section 3317(b) or 3318(b) of title 5, United States Code, as applicable, are satisfied.
(c) Employee Details.--The Chief Operating Officer of the Corporation may detail employees among the offices of the Corporation without regard to the 120-day limitation in section 3341(b) of title 5, United States Code.
(d) Probationary Periods.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law or regulation, the Corporation may establish a probationary period under section 3321 of title 5, United States Code, of up to 3 years for positions where the Corporation determines that the nature of the work is such that a shorter period is insufficient to demonstrate complete proficiency in the position.
(e) Limitations on Staffing Flexibility.--Notwithstanding the preceding subsections of this section, no provision of this section exempts the Corporation from--
(1) any employment priorities established under direction of the President for the placement of surplus or displaced employees; or
(2) "its obligations under any court order or decree relating to the employment practices of the Corporation or the Department of Transportation."
ACQUISITIONS Sec. 301. The Act of May 13, 1954 (33 U.S.C. 981, et seq.), is amended by adding the following after section 17 (as added by this Act):
Sec. 18. Acquisitions
(a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this section, the Corporation shall abide by all applicable federal procurement laws and regulation when procuring property and services.
(b) Additional Authorities. -- When procuring property or services, the Corporation may use any of the following authorities, consistent with guidance provided by the Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy pursuant to subsection (c) of this section:
(1) Two-phase Selection Procedures.--(A) The Corporation may conduct a competition, which shall be considered to be a competitive procedure for purposes of this or any other Act, in which--
(i) sources submit basic information, such as the offeror's qualifications, the proposed conceptual approach, costs likely to be associated with the proposed conceptual approach, past performance information, and such additional information requested by the contracting officer in the first phase; and
(ii) a limited number of sources are selected to participate in a competition in the second phase in accordance with section 2305 of title 10, United States Code, or sections 303A and 303B of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 253a and 253b), as applicable.
(B) Prior to the first-phase competition, a notice shall be published in accordance with section 18 of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 416) and sections 8(e), (f) and (g) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(e), (f), and (g)), except that, in lieu of section 18(b) of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act and section 8(f) of the Small Business Act, the notice need only include --
(i) a general description of the scope or purpose of the procurement that is sufficient for sources to make an informed business decision whether to participate in the procurement;
(ii) a description of the basis on which sources will be selected to submit offers in the second phase; and
(iii) any additional information the contracting officer determines is appropriate.
(C) Only those sources selected in the first-phase competition shall be eligible to compete in the second phase, which may include a single procurement or multiple procurements within the general scope for the purpose stated in the notice.
(D) The number of sources selected to compete in the second phase shall be limited to that number of sources as the contracting officer determines is appropriate and in the best interest of the government.
(2) Application of Simplified Procedures to Commercial Items.-- Whenever the Corporation anticipates that commercial items will be offered, the Corporation may acquire commercial items by using the special simplified procedures for purchases of commercial items set forth in the Federal Acquisition Regulation without regard to any dollar limitations or expiration date of the test of such procedures set forth in section 4202 of the Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996.
(3) Exemption from Wait Period When Using Detailed Synopsis.-- Consistent with international agreements, if the notice published by the Secretary of Commerce pursuant to section 18 of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 416) and sections 8(e), (f), and (g) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(e), (f), and (g)) states that it is intended to serve as the solicitation and includes a description of the item(s) to be acquired along with information necessary for the offeror to prepare an offer, the Corporation may treat the notice as the solicitation. Under such circumstances, the wait period set forth in section 18(a)(3)(A) and section 8(e)(3)(A) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637 (e)(3)(A)) shall not apply.
(4) Modular Contracting for Information Technology.--(A) In implementing section 5202 of the Clinger-Cohen Act, the Corporation's need for an information technology system may be satisfied in successive acquisitions of modules, each of which must be useful in itself or in combination with other completed modules without the completion of subsequent modules.
(B) After award of the initial module, the Corporation may award a contract for an additional module by one of the following procedures, subject to the requirements in paragraphs (C), (D), and (E), or by any other procedure authorized by law:
(i) Make an award on a sole-source basis to a contractor who was awarded a contract for an earlier module on the basis of either full and open competition or a competition conducted pursuant to subparagraph; or
(ii) Make an award on the basis of adequate competition between a contractor who was awarded a contract for an earlier module on the basis of either full and open competition or a competition conducted pursuant to this subparagraph and at least one offeror that has previously participated in competitions for either the initial module or any subsequent follow-on module and is expected to be competitive based on that participation.
(C) The Corporation may exercise the authority provided in paragraph (B) to award a contract for a module only if the solicitation for the initial module included--
(i) a general description of the entire system of information technology to be acquired that was sufficient to put potential offerors on notice of the general scope of future modules and to enable them to make an informed business judgment whether to submit a bid or a proposal for the initial module; and
(ii) a statement that the head of the corporation reserves the right to award subsequent modules pursuant to the authority provided in paragraph (B).
(D)(i) Except as provided in subparagraph (ii), the Corporation shall publish a notice stating the Corporation's intent to award a contract pursuant to the authority provided in paragraph (B)(i) or (B)(ii) in the Commerce Business Daily not less than 30 days prior to the issuance of a solicitation for the contract. The notice shall contain the information required by Section 18(b) of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 416(b)), with the exception of the statement required by clause (4) of such section, and shall invite persons who believe that the proposed procurement approach is not in the best interest of the government to submit information supporting that view.
(ii) Notice is not required pursuant to subparagraph (i) if the contractor referred to in paragraph (B) performed on a module that contained cost, schedule, and performance goals and the contractor met those goals.
(E) The basis for award shall be documented. However, a justification pursuant to section 2304(f) of title 10, United States Code, or section 303(f) of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 253(f)) or section 8(h) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(h)) is not required.
(F) The Corporation may prescribe simplified source selection procedures for the acquisition of modules, other than the initial module, that are not to be acquired on a sole source basis.
(5) Streamlined Acquisition of Services from Small Businesses.--(A) Whenever the Corporation is acquiring services that do not meet the definition of 'commercial item' set forth in section 4(12) of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act, 41 U.S.C. 403(12), the Corporation may use the special simplified procedures applicable to procurements below the simplified acquisition threshold as set forth in the Federal Acquisition Regulation if--
(i) the procurement is in an amount not greater than $1,000,000;
(ii) the procurement is conducted as a small business set-aside pursuant to section 15(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(a)); and
(iii) supply items are expected to constitute less than 20 percent of the total value of the contract.
(B) The authority set forth in this paragraph--
(i) may not be used to make an award on a sole source basis; and
(ii) does not apply to the procurement of construction.
(c) Implementation. -- The head of the Corporation, in consultation with the Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy, shall develop regulations to implement the authorities set forth in this section. As part of the consultation, the Administrator shall provide written guidance to the Corporation, which shall be designed to ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, consistent implementation of these authorities by other performance-based organizations with the same authorities. The head of the Corporation shall publish regulations in accordance with section 22 of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 418b).
(d) Provisions Not Affected. -- "Nothing in this section shall be construed to waive civil rights or labor standards laws applicable to federal contracts."
(a) in subsection (a), by striking both paragraphs designated "(13)" and inserting the following after paragraph (12):
(13) shall accept such amounts as may be transferred to the Corporation under section 9505(c)(1) of title 26, except that such amounts shall be available only for the purpose of operating and maintaining those works which the Corporation is obligated to operate and maintain under subsection (a) of section 983 of this title;
(14) may enter into agreements with other Federal, state, local and Canadian agencies to provide goods and services within the scope of their mission, (except that no Federal agency may purchase goods and services under contracts entered into or administered by the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation using any authority provided by section 18(b) of this Act unless the purchase is approved in advance by the senior procurement official responsible for purchasing by the ordering agency) and the Corporation shall include overhead, allocated direct costs, modernization, and system enhancements as costs to be factored into the prices it charges agencies for such goods and services;
(15) may procure the services of experts and consultants when necessary in the conduct of its activities;
(16) may accept services from the Department of Transportation provided they are agreed to in advance by the Chief Operating Officer and the appropriate Departmental officer; and
(17) "is subject to only those regulations, orders, and other directives of the Department of Transportation that the Secretary specifically makes applicable to it after the date of enactment of this paragraph."; and
(b) by striking subsection (b) substituting the following:
(b) The Corporation may retain and use, without fiscal year limitation, its revenues and receipts from whatever source, including the annual base payment from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund and interest from its emergency cash reserves, in performing its activities, including modernization, purchasing capital equipment, and handling inventory, except as specifically provided in paragraph (a)(12) of this section.".
Sec. 402. Section 5 of the Act of May 13, 1954 (33 U.S.C. 985), is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 5. Financing
(a) In General.--To finance its activities, the Corporation may issue revenue bonds payable from corporate revenue to the Secretary of the Treasury subject to approval of the Secretary of the Treasury. The total face value of all bonds so issued shall not be greater than $3,200,000. Not more than fifty per centum of the bonds may be issued during any one year. Such bonds shall be in such forms and denominations and be subject to such terms and conditions as may be prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury.
Such obligations shall have maturities agreed upon by the Corporation and the Secretary of the Treasury, not in excess of fifty years. Such bonds shall bear interest at a rate determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, taking into consideration current yields on outstanding marketable obligations of the United States of comparable maturities. Such obligations may be redeemable at the option of the Corporation before maturity in such manner as may be stipulated in such obligations, but the obligations thus redeemed shall not be refinanced by the Corporation. The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to purchase any obligations of the Corporation to be issued hereunder and for such purpose the Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to use as a public debt transaction the proceeds from the sale of any securities issued under chapter 31 of title 31, United States Code, and the purposes for which securities may be issued under chapter 31 of title 31 are extended to include any purchases of the Corporation's obligations hereunder.
(b) Annual Base Payment.--Beginning in fiscal year 1998, or concurrent with implementation of the performance agreement, whichever is later in time, and in each fiscal year thereafter, the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to the Corporation from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund a dollar amount equal to the number representing the five year average of United States international tonnage, in metric tons, moved through the Seaway, multiplied by a factor of 1.076, and adjusted for inflation by the percentage difference between the Consumer Price Index for all urban consumers (CPI-U) for the first quarter of calendar year 1996, and the CPI-U for the first quarter of the calendar year in which an annual payment is determined, subject to the following:
(c) Use of Payment.--The Chief Operating Officer is authorized to use the annual payments from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund to carry out the mission of the Corporation and shall consider, among other factors, the operational and capital needs of the Corporation, and other revenues available to the Corporation.
(d) Use of Emergency Cash Reserves.--The Chief Operating Officer is authorized to use the Corporation's emergency cash reserves to:
(1) finance costs associated with unanticipated events that could threaten the safe and uninterrupted use of the Seaway;
(2) finance capital expenses; and
(3) finance other necessary costs when the Chief Operating Officer determines that annual payments from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund, and other available revenue, are insufficient to meet other necessary expenses of the Corporation.
(e) Deposit of Emergency Cash Reserves and Other Revenues.--The Corporation may deposit funds from the Corporation's emergency cash reserves and other revenues in the Treasury's Minority Bank Deposit Program, except that the aggregate amount of the funds deposited shall not exceed the aggregate amount of the Corporation's deposits under that program on June 30, 1996.
(f) Investment of Cash Reserves.--Upon the request of the Corporation, the Secretary of the Treasury shall invest the Corporation's cash reserves in public debt securities with maturities suitable to the needs of the Corporation, as determined by the Corporation, and bearing interest at rates determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, taking into consideration current market yields on outstanding marketable obligations of the United States of comparable maturities, provided that no portion of the amounts transferred to the Corporation under subsection (b) of this section shall be used to purchase such public debt securities."
Sec. 502. Section 4 of the Act of May 13, 1954 (33 U.S.C. 984), is amended by substituting "Chief Operating Officer" for "Administrator" in paragraph (a)(8).
Sec. 503. Section 8 of the Act of May 13, 1954 (33 U.S.C. 987), is amended by substituting "Chief Operating Officer" for "Administrator" in subsection (a).
Sec. 504. Section 5315 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by deleting "Administrator of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation".
Sec. 505. Section 1132 of P.L. 99-662 (33 U.S.C. 2309) is amended by substituting "Chief Operating Officer" for "Administrator" in paragraph (b)(3)(E).
Sec. 506. Section 110 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking subsections (a) and (b) and substituting the following:
"The Chief Operating Officer of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation appointed under section 2 of the Act of May 13, 1954 (33 U.S.C. 982), reports directly to the Secretary of Transportation."
Sec. 507. This Act shall take effect on October 1, 1997, except that the authority of the Secretary to appoint the Chief Operating Officer shall take effect on the date of enactment; provided, however that the amendments made by section 402(b) (financing) shall take effect only after the amendments made by section 102(b) (performance agreement) have been implemented.
(a) by striking "Annual and special reports" in the section heading and substituting "Report"; and
(b) by inserting a new paragraph (a) to read as follows:
"(a) Not later than five years after the effective date of this section, the Secretary of Transportation shall provide to the President and the Congress a report on the operation and effectiveness of the provisions of this Act and the costs associated therewith. As part of the report, the Secretary shall include any recommendations for legislation the Secretary deems necessary or appropriate as a result of his or her analysis of the operation and effectiveness of the Act and the costs associated therewith."