Legislation on Foreign Relations Through ...

(A) one or more individuals appointed by the United States Government,

(B) one or more individuals appointed by the government of the beneficiary country, and

(i) environmental nongovernmental organizations of the beneficiary country,

(ii) child survival and child development nongovernmental organizations of the beneficiary country,

(iii) local community development nongovernmental organizations of the beneficiary country, and

(iv) scientific or academic organizations or institutions of the beneficiary country.

A majority of the members of the administering body shall be individuals described in subparagraph (C).

(3) RESPONSIBILITIES.-The administering body

(A) shall receive proposals for grant assistance from eligible grant recipients (as determined under subsection (e)) and make grants to eligible grant recipients in accordance with the priorities agreed upon in the Americas Framework Agreement, consistent with subsection (d);

(B) shall be responsible for the management of the program and oversight of grant activities funded from resources of the Americas Fund;

(C) shall be subject, on an annual basis, to an audit of financial statements conducted in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards by an independent auditor;

(D) shall be required to grant to representatives of the United States General Accounting Office such access to books and records associated with operations of the Americas Fund as the Comptroller General of the United States may request;

(E) shall present an annual program for review each year by the Enterprise for the Americas Board; and

(F) shall submit a report each year on the activities that it undertook during the previous year to the Chair of the Enterprise for the Americas Board and to the government of the beneficiary country.

(d) ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES.-Grants from an Americas Fund shall be used for

(1) activities that link the conservation and sustainable use of natural resources with local community development; and (2) child survival and other child development activities. (e) GRANT RECIPIENTS.-Grants made from an Americas Fund shall be made to

(1) nongovernmental environmental, conservation, child survival and child development, development, and indigenous peoples organizations of the beneficiary country;

(2) other appropriate local or regional entities; and

(3) in exceptional circumstances, the government of the beneficiary country.

(f) REVIEW OF LARGER GRANTS.-Any grant of more than $100,000 from an Americas Fund shall be subject to veto by the

Government of the United States or the government of the beneficiary country.

(g) ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA.—In the event that a country ceases to meet the eligibility requirements set forth in section 703(a), as determined by the President pursuant to section 703(b), then grants from the Americas Fund for that country may only be made to nongovernmental organizations until such time as the President determines that such country meets the eligibility requirements set forth in section 703(a).

SEC. 709.1158 ENTERPRISE FOR THE AMERICAS BOARD.

For purposes of this part, the Enterprise for the Americas Board

shall

(1) advise the Secretary of State on the negotiations of Americas Framework Agreements;

(2) ensure, in consultation with

(A) the government of the beneficiary country,

(B) nongovernmental organizations of the beneficiary country,

(D) environmental, scientific, child survival and child development, and academic leaders of the beneficiary country, and

(E) environmental, scientific, child survival and child development, and academic leaders of the region (as appropriate),

that a suitable administering body is identified for each Americas Fund; and

(3) review the programs, operations, and fiscal audits of each administering body.

SEC. 710.1159 ANNUAL REPORTS TO THE CONGRESS.

The annual reports submitted pursuant to section 614 of the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 (7 U.S.Č. 1738mm) shall include a description of each Americas Framework Agreement and a description of any grants that have been extended by administering bodies pursuant to an Americas Framework Agreement.

1158 22 U.S.C. 2430h. 1159 22 U.S.C. 2430i.

PART V-DEBT REDUCTION FOR DEVELOPING
COUNTRIES WITH TROPICAL FORESTS 1160, 1161

SEC. 801.1162 SHORT TITLE.

This part may be cited as the "Tropical Forest Conservation Act of 1998".

1160 Sec. 1 of Public Law 105-214 (112 Stat. 885) added part V. An earlier part V, relating to Indochina Postwar Reconstruction, was repealed by sec. 413 of the International Security Assistance and Arms Export Control Act of 1976 (Public Law 94-329; 90 Stat. 761). For complete text of regulations governing determinations, authorizations, etc., and remaining funds under part V, see page 634. An earlier part VI, relating to assistance to the Middle East, had been added by the FA Act of 1974, and was repealed by sec. 12(b)(4) of the International Security Assistance Act of 1978 (Public Law 95-384; 92 Stat. 737).

1161 Title II of the Kenneth M. Ludden Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2002 (Public Law 107-115; 115 Stat. 2133), provided the following:

"DEBT RESTRUCTURING

"For the cost, as defined in section 502 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, of modifying loans and loan guarantees, as the President may determine, for which funds have been appropriated or otherwise made available for programs within the International Affairs Budget Function 150, including the cost of selling, reducing, or canceling amounts owed to the United States as a result of concessional loans made to eligible countries, pursuant to parts IV and V of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, and of modifying concessional credit agreements with least developed countries, as authorized under section 411 of the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954, as amended, and concessional loans, guarantees and credit agreements, as authorized under section 572 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1989 (Public Law 100-461), and of canceling amounts owed, as a result of loans or guarantees made pursuant to the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945, by countries that are eligible for debt reduction pursuant to title V of H.R. 3425 as enacted into law by section 1000(a)(5) of Public Law 106-113, $229,000,000, to remain available until expended: Provided, That not less than $5,000,000 of the funds appropriated under this heading shall be made available to carry out the provisions of part V of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, and up to $20,000,000 of unobligated balances of funds available under this heading from prior year appropriations acts should be made available to carry out such provisions: Provided further, That funds appropriated or otherwise made available under this heading in this Act may be used by the Secretary of the Treasury to pay to the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HİPC) Trust Fund administered by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development amounts for the benefit of countries that are eligible for debt reduction pursuant to title V of H.R. 3425 as enacted into law by section 1000(a)(5) of Public Law 106–113: Provided further, That amounts paid to the HIPC Trust Fund may be used only to fund debt reduction under the enhanced HIPC initiative by

"(1) the Inter-American Development Bank;

"(2) the African Development Fund;

"(3) the African Development Bank; and

"(4) the Central American Bank for Economic Integration:

"Provided further, That funds may not be paid to the HIPC Trust Fund for the benefit of any country if the Secretary of State has credible evidence that the government of such country is engaged in a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally recognized human rights or in military or civil conflict that undermines its ability to develop and implement measures to alleviate poverty and to devote adequate human and financial resources to that end: Provided further, That on the basis of final appropriations, the Secretary of the Treasury shall consult with the Committees on Appropriations concerning which countries and international financial institutions are expected to benefit from a United States contribution to the HIPC Trust Fund during the fiscal year: Provided further, That the Secretary of the Treasury shall inform the Committees on Appropriations not less than 15 days in advance of the signature of an agreement by the United States to make payments to the HIPC Trust Fund of amounts for such countries and institutions: Provided further, That the Secretary of the Treasury may disburse funds designated for debt reduction through the HIPC Trust Fund only for the benefit of countries that

"(a) have committed, for a period of 24 months, not to accept new market-rate loans from the international financial institution receiving debt repayment as a result of such disbursement, other than loans made by such institution to export-oriented commercial projects that generate foreign exchange which are generally referred to as 'enclave' loans; and

"(b) have documented and demonstrated their commitment to redirect their budgetary resources from international debt repayments to programs to alleviate poverty and promote economic growth that are additional to or expand upon those previously available for such

purposes:

"Provided further, That any limitation of subsection (e) of section 411 of the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 shall not apply to funds appropriated under this heading: Provided further, That none of the funds made available under this heading in this or any other appropriations Acts shall be made available for Sudan or Burma unless the Sec

SEC. 802.1163 FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

(a) FINDINGS.-The Congress finds the following:

(1) It is the established policy of the United States to support and seek protection of tropical forests around the world.

(2) Tropical forests provide a wide range of benefits to humankind by

(A) harboring a major share of the Earth's biological and terrestrial resources, which are the basis for developing pharmaceutical products and revitalizing agricultural

crops;

(B) playing a critical role as carbon sinks in reducing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, thus moderating potential global climate change; and

(3) International negotiations and assistance programs to conserve forest resources have proliferated over the past decade, but the rapid rate of tropical deforestation continues unabated.

(4) Developing countries with urgent needs for investment and capital for development have allocated a significant amount of their forests to logging concessions.

(5) Poverty and economic pressures on the populations of developing countries have, over time, resulted in clearing of vast areas of forest for conversion to agriculture, which is often unsustainable in the poor soils underlying tropical forests.

(6) Debt reduction can reduce economic pressures on developing countries and result in increased protection for tropical forests.

(7) Finding economic benefits to local communities from sustainable uses of tropical forests is critical to the protection of tropical forests.

(b) PURPOSES.-The purposes of this part are

(1) to recognize the values received by United States citizens from protection of tropical forests;

(2) to facilitate greater protection of tropical forests (and to give priority to protecting tropical forests with the highest levels of biodiversity and under the most severe threat) by providing for the alleviation of debt in countries where tropical forests are located, thus allowing the use of additional resources to protect these critical resources and reduce economic pressures that have led to deforestation;

(3) to ensure that resources freed from debt in such countries are targeted to protection of tropical forests and their associated values; and

(4) to rechannel existing resources to facilitate the protection of tropical forests.

retary of Treasury determines and notifies the Committees on Appropriations that a democratically elected government has taken office.".

1162 22 U.S.C. 2151 note.

1163 22 U.S.C. 2431.

SEC. 803.1164 DEFINITIONS.

As used in this part:

(1) ADMINISTERING BODY.-The term "administering body" means the entity provided for in section 809(c).

(2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES.-The term "appropriate congressional committees" means

(A) the Committee on International Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives; and

(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate.

(3) BENEFICIARY COUNTRY.-The term "beneficiary country" means an eligible country with respect to which the authority of section 806(a)(1), section 807(a)(1), or paragraph (1) or (2) of section 808(a) is exercised.

(4) BOARD.-The term "Board" means the board referred to in section 811.

(5) DEVELOPING COUNTRY WITH A TROPICAL FOREST.—The term "developing country with a tropical forest" means

(A)(i) a country that has a per capita income of $725 or less in 1994 United States dollars (commonly referred to as "low-income country"), as determined and adjusted on an annual basis by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development in its World Development Report; or

(ii) a country that has a per capita income of more than $725 but less than $8,956 in 1994 United States dollars (commonly referred to as "middle-income country"), as determined and adjusted on an annual basis by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development in its World Development Report; and

(B) a country that contains at least one tropical forest that is globally outstanding in terms of its biological diversity or represents one of the larger intact blocks of tropical forests left, on a regional, continental, or global scale. (6) ELIGIBLE COUNTRY.-The term "eligible country" means a country designated by the President in accordance with section 805.

(7) TROPICAL FOREST AGREEMENT.-The term "Tropical Forest Agreement" or "Agreement" means a Tropical Forest Agreement provided for in section 809.

(8) TROPICAL FOREST FACILITY.-The term "Tropical Forest Facility" or "Facility" means the Tropical Forest Facility established in the Department of the Treasury by section 804.

(9) TROPICAL FOREST FUND.-The term "Tropical Forest Fund" or "Fund" means a Tropical Forest Fund provided for in section 810.

SEC. 804.1165 ESTABLISHMENT OF THE FACILITY.

There is established in the Department of the Treasury an entity to be known as the "Tropical Forest Facility" for the purpose of pro

1164 22 U.S.C. 2431a. 1165 22 U.S.C. 2431b.

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