[Senate Report 111-234]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 486
111th Congress
2d Session SENATE Report
111-234
_______________________________________________________________________
MULTINATIONAL SPECIES CONSERVATION FUNDS SEMIPOSTAL STAMP ACT OF 2010
__________
R E P O R T
of the
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND
GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
[to accompany H.R. 1454]
TO PROVIDE FOR THE ISSUANCE OF A MULTINATIONAL SPECIES CONSERVATION
FUNDS SEMIPOSTAL STAMP
July 27, 2010.--Ordered to be printed
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, Connecticut, Chairman
CARL LEVIN, Michigan SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine
DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii TOM COBURN, Oklahoma
THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware SCOTT P. BROWN, Massachusetts
MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas JOHN McCAIN, Arizona
MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio
CLAIRE McCASKILL, Missouri JOHN ENSIGN, Nevada
JON TESTER, Montana LINDSEY GRAHAM, South Carolina
ROLAND W. BURRIS, Illinois
EDWARD E. KAUFMAN, Delaware
Michael L. Alexander, Staff Director
Kevin J. Landy, Chief Counsel
Kristine V. Lam, Professional Staff Member
Brandon L. Milhorn, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel
Jennifer L. Tarr, Minority Counsel
Trina Driessnack Tyrer, Chief Clerk
Calendar No. 486
111th Congress
SENATE
Report
2d Session 111-234
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MULTINATIONAL SPECIES CONSERVATION FUNDS SEMIPOSTAL STAMP ACT OF 2010
_______
July 27, 2010.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Lieberman, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1454]
The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (H.R. 1454) to provide
for the issuance of a Multinational Species Conservation Funds
Semipostal Stamp, having considered the same, reports favorably
thereon with an amendment and recommends that the bill, as
amended, do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
I. Purpose and Summary..............................................1
II. Background and Need for the Legislation..........................2
III. Legislative History..............................................3
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis......................................3
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................4
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................4
VII. Changes to Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............5
I. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY
H.R. 1454 would require the United States Postal Service to
issue a Multinational Species Conservation Funds Semipostal
Stamp. The Multinational Species Conservation Funds is a small
program administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. It
supports conservation efforts benefiting tigers, rhinoceroses,
Asian and African elephants, marine turtles and great apes.
Semipostals are stamps bearing a surcharge above typical postal
rates. Members of the public may voluntarily purchase
semipostals as a means of donating to the cause promoted by the
stamp. Directing funds raised from the sale of this semipostal
to the Multinational Species Conservation Funds is an effective
way to increase financial support for the Funds' important work
without having to increase its annual appropriations.
II. BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR THE LEGISLATION
Since 1998, the U.S. Postal Service (``the Postal Service''
or ``USPS'') has issued several ``semipostal'' stamps--stamps
purchasers may use to mail a first class letter, but for which
they voluntarily pay a surcharge over the usual first-class
rates as a means to donate to the cause commemorated by the
stamp. Since that time, all of the semipostals issued have been
done so at the direction of Congress.\1\ A variety of causes
have benefited from the sale of these stamps, including breast
cancer research,\2\ domestic violence prevention programs,\3\
and assistance to the families of rescue workers killed or
disabled in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.\4\
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\1\In 2000, Congress gave the Postal Service authority to issue
semipostals pursuant to the Semipostal Authorization Act (P.L. 106-
253). However, the Postal Service has not yet issued a semipostal
pursuant to the Act because it had decided not to approve new
semipostals while any other semipostals are in circulation. Such stamps
have been on sale continuously since the initial enactment of the Stamp
Out Breast Cancer Act (P.L. 105-41).
\2\Stamp Out Breast Cancer Act (P.L. 105-41).
\3\Stamp Out Domestic Violence Act of 2001 (P.L. 107-67).
\4\The 9/11 Heroes Stamp Act of 2001 (P.L. 107-67).
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The Committee agrees with the House of Representatives that
the Multinational Species Conservation Funds (``MSCF'' or ``the
Funds'') is equally deserving of a semipostal stamp. Congress
created the MSCF in 1999 to recognize an unprecedented
international decline of certain species and to help save some
of the world's fastest disappearing animals in their natural
habitats.\5\ The MSCF currently benefits tigers, six species of
rhinoceroses, Asian and African elephants, marine turtles, and
great apes, and has generated tremendous amounts of interest
among interest groups such as the World Conservation Society
and citizens. The Funds supports conservation efforts
benefiting these species, often in conjunction with efforts
under the Convention of International Trade in Endangered
Species (CITES), to which the United States is a party. The
MSCF provides funding in the form of cost-sharing grants for
species and habitat conservation as well as law enforcement.
Additionally, the Funds offer technical assistance for
conserving species under the MSCF. These efforts also benefit
from funding and in-kind support provided by partners and
collaborators. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
which runs the program, $75 million was provided by partners
and collaborators for efforts under the MSCF from Fiscal Year
2004 to Fiscal Year 2009. This is nearly double the amount
appropriated for these efforts during the same period.
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\5\The MSCF was created as part of Title I of the Department of the
Interior and Relation Agencies Appropriations Act (16 U.S.C. 4246)
which was later incorporated into Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency
Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1999 (P.L. 105-277).
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Despite the success and popularity of the MSCF programs,
annual appropriations for the MSCF have never exceeded $10
million. Demand for grant funding, however, remains high, and
applications under the different MSCF programs far exceed
available funding. In addition, proponents of MSCF programs
note that each federal dollar invested in the MSCF routinely
leverages three or four times the amount in non-federal
matching contributions and increases overall financial support
for wildlife conservation. The issuance of a semipostal stamp
benefiting the MSCF would be an effective way to increase
financial support for wildlife conservation without affecting
appropriations for other programs outside the MSCF.
III. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
On December 7, 2009, the House of Representatives passed
H.R. 1454, sponsored by Representative Henry E. Brown, Jr. and
154 co-sponsors, by voice vote. The bill was received in the
Senate on December 9, 2009, and referred to the Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, where it was
subsequently referred to the Subcommittee on Federal Financial
Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and
International Security (FFM), which has jurisdiction over
matters relating to the U.S. Postal Service.
Having been polled out of the Subcommittee, the full
Committee considered the bill on April 28, 2010. Senator
Carper, Chairman of the FFM Subcommittee, offered an amendment
in the nature of a substitute to address concerns of the Postal
Service. The substitute amendment makes the MSCF semipostal
stamp consistent with requirements under the Semipostal
Authorization Act (39 U.S.C. Sec. 14) by lowering the rate of
the semipostal from ``no less than 25%'' to ``no less than
15%'' above the rate of a first class stamp and mandating that
the MSCF semipostal be sold at an amount that is evenly
divisible by 5. Additionally, the substitute amendment lowers
the authorization period for the MSCF semipostal stamp from
five years to two years and eliminates the requirement in the
original bill that the images of the flagship multinational
species be depicted on the semipostal. The Committee adopted
the substitute amendment by voice vote, but the April 28, 2010,
meeting adjourned before the Committee had a chance to vote on
reporting the bill. Members present for the voice vote on the
substitute amendment were Senators Lieberman, Akaka, Carper,
Pryor, Kaufman, Collins, and Graham. The Committee met again on
May 17, 2010 and reported the bill, as amended, by voice vote
with a recorded ``no'' for Senators Akaka and Burris.\6\
Additional Senators present were Lieberman, Carper, Pryor,
Landrieu, Collins, Brown, Voinovich, and Graham.
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\6\During debate over this bill, Senator Akaka stated that while he
supports the MSCF and funding for the program, he opposed the bill
because he believes that the Postal Service, not Congress, should
determine the issuance of semipostals through the process it
established as a result of enactment of the Semipostal Authorization
Act in 2000.
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IV. SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1. Short title
Section 1 designates the name of the act as the
``Multinational Species Conservation Funds Semipostal Stamp Act
of 2010.''
Section 2. Multinational Species Conservation Funds Semipostal Stamp
Section 2 directs the U.S. Postal Service to issue a
Multinational Species Conservation Funds Semipostal Stamp which
would be available for voluntary purchase on the part of postal
patrons for a period of two years after the enactment of this
bill. In keeping with the requirements of the Semipostal
Authorization Act (39 U.S.C. Sec. 14), Section 2 sets the rate
of the semipostal at a cost equal to the rate of a first class
stamp, plus a differential of no less than 15%. It also
requires the rate to be evenly divisible by 5.
The Section also directs the transfer of all amounts
available from the sale of the stamp twice yearly to the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service and directs the Fish and Wildlife
Service to divide the proceeds equally for operations among the
African Elephant Conservation Fund, the Asian Elephant
Conservation Fund, the Great Ape Conservation Fund, the Marine
Turtle Conservation Fund, the Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation
Fund, and other international wildlife conservation funds
authorized by Congress after the date of the enactment of the
Act. These funds are not to be considered as an offset in the
level of appropriations or other federal funding.
V. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT
Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has
considered the regulatory impact of this bill. The
Congressional Budget Office states that the bill contains no
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the
Unfunded Mandate Reform Act and would impose no costs on state,
local, or tribal governments, or private entities. The
enactment of this legislation will not have significant
regulatory impact.
VI. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE
May 26, 2010.
Hon. Joseph I. Lieberman,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S.
Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1454, the
Multinational Species Conservation Funds Semipostal Stamp Act
of 2010.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark
Grabowicz.
Sincerely,
Douglas W. Elmendorf.
Enclosure.
H.R. 1454--Multinational Species Conservation Funds Semipostal Stamp
Act of 2010
CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 1454 would have no
significant discretionary cost to the federal government.
Because the act would affect direct spending, pay-as-you-go
procedures would apply, but CBO estimates that those effects
would not be significant. H.R. 1454 would not affect revenues.
H.R. 1454 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal
governments.
H.R. 1454 would direct the United States Postal Service to
issue a special postage stamp for first-class mail that would
cost participating customers at least 15 percent more than the
regular rate. Any amounts collected from the special stamp
(called a semipostal), after accounting for the Postal
Service's administrative costs, would be transferred to the
United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) for expenditure
on programs to support endangered species. The Postal Service
would have 12 months after enactment to make the semipostal
available to the public, and the program would terminate no
sooner than two years after that.
Payments of amounts above the regular first-class postage
rate (currently 44 cents) would be treated as offsetting
collections (that is, a credit against spending) of the Postal
Service. Based on sales of other semipostals in recent years,
we expect that the increase in offsetting collections would
total less than $1 million annually. Payments of those funds to
the USFWS would be outlays of the Postal Service and offsetting
collections to the USFWS, which would spend those amounts
mostly in the same year. CBO estimates that the net change in
outlays of the Postal Service (which is off-budget) and the
USFWS (which is on-budget) would not be significant in any
year.
On June 23, 2009, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R.
1454 as ordered reported by the House Committee on Natural
Resources on June 10, 2009. The two versions of the legislation
are similar, and the estimated costs are the same.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Mark Grabowicz.
The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
VII. CHANGES TO EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED
If enacted, this bill would make no changes to existing
law.