[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4061 Referred in Senate (RFS)]
2d Session
H. R. 4061
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 15, 2004
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to provide assistance for
orphans and other vulnerable children in developing countries.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Assistance for Orphans and Other
Vulnerable Children in Developing Countries Act of 2004''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1)(A) According to estimates by the United Nations
Children's Fund (UNICEF), there are more than 132,000,000
children in the world under the age of three.
(B) Of these children, 4,000,000 will die in their first
month of life and another 7,000,000 will die each year before
reaching the age of five. Thus an average of 30,000 children
under the age of three die each day.
(2) According to a report developed by the United Nations
Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), UNICEF, and the United
States Agency for International Development, in 2001 there were
more than 110,000,000 orphans living in sub-Saharan Africa,
Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean.
(3) Assessments carried out by the International Labor
Organization (ILO) to investigate the situation of children who
are working found that orphans are much more likely than non-
orphans to be working in commercial agriculture, the domestic
service industry, prostitution, as street vendors, or in
industries that violate internationally recognized rights of
children.
(4) Infants who are poor and malnourished are more likely
to contract respiratory infections, diarrhea, measles, and
other preventable diseases, and are less likely to receive
needed health care.
(5) According to UNAIDS and UNICEF, by the end of 2001
there were an estimated 14,000,000 children under the age of 15
who had lost one or both parents to AIDS.
(6) As the number of HIV cases increases in sub-Saharan
Africa and the Caribbean, as well as in Eastern Europe and
Asia, the death rate from AIDS among adults in those regions is
expected to increase. By 2010 the total number of children in
those regions who will lose one or both parents to AIDS is
expected to be approximately 30,000,000.
(7) One-third of children born from an HIV-infected mother
develop HIV/AIDS. Few of these children have access to HIV/AIDS
medications.
(8) Globally, more than 11,800,000 young people ages 15 to
24 were living with HIV/AIDS in 2001, and each day another
6,000 young people became infected with HIV. New estimates
indicate that more than 70 percent of new HIV cases among this
age group in sub-Saharan Africa are young women and girls.
(9) As their parents fall progressively sick from HIV/AIDS,
children generally must take on an increasing number of
responsibilities. Girls take responsibility for more household
chores, often drop out of school, and care for their parents.
(10)(A) Without an adequate diet, individuals infected with
HIV often die at an earlier age. Individuals with HIV become
increasingly weak and fatigued, do not respond to drug
treatment, and are prone to other illnesses such as
malnutrition and tuberculosis (TB).
(B) Hunger can also cause previously HIV-negative people to
engage in high-risk survival strategies that increase their
chances of becoming infected with HIV.
(11) Extreme poverty and hunger coupled with the loss of
one or both parents as a result of AIDS can force children from
their families to a life on the streets, where the risk of HIV
infection is extremely high.
(12)(A) A considerable number of United States and
indigenous private voluntary organizations, including faith-
based organizations, provide assistance to orphans and other
vulnerable children in developing countries, especially
children affected by HIV/AIDS.
(B) Many of these organizations have submitted applications
for grants from the United States Agency for International
Development in order to provide increased levels of assistance
for orphans and other vulnerable children in developing
countries but in most cases the Agency has not approved the
applications.
(13)(A) Section 403(b) of the United States Leadership
Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003 (Public
Law 108-25) establishes the requirement that for fiscal years
2006 through 2008, not less than 10 percent of amounts
appropriated for HIV/AIDS assistance for each such fiscal year
shall be expended for assistance for orphans and other
vulnerable children affected by HIV/AIDS.
(B) Further, section 403(b) of Public Law 108-25 requires
that at least 50 percent of such amounts shall be provided
through non-profit, nongovernmental organizations, including
faith-based organizations, that implement programs on the
community level.
(14)(A) It is essential that the United States Government
adopt a comprehensive approach for the provision of assistance
to orphans and other vulnerable children in developing
countries.
(B) This comprehensive approach should ensure that
important services, such as basic care, treatment for those
children with HIV/AIDS, mental health and related services for
those children affected by HIV/AIDS, school food programs,
increased educational opportunities and employment training and
related services, and the protection and promotion of
inheritance rights, are made more accessible.
(C) This comprehensive approach should also ensure that
government agencies and the private sector coordinate efforts
to prevent and eliminate duplication of efforts and waste.
(15) As a result of the numerous United States Government
programs under which assistance is specifically authorized or
otherwise available for orphans and vulnerable children in
developing countries, the United States Agency for
International Development will be required to develop
innovative methods for the conduct and monitoring of these
programs, including through the collection, analysis, and
reporting of information on the programs and the extent to
which such programs provide assistance directly and indirectly
to such children.
SEC. 3. PURPOSE.
The primary purpose of this Act, and the amendments made by this
Act, is to provide assistance to orphans and other vulnerable children,
especially such children affected by HIV/AIDS, and in particular, for
such children in countries heavily affected by HIV/AIDS. To the maximum
extent practicable, such assistance shall be provided for the direct
benefit to such orphaned and vulnerable children.
SEC. 4. ASSISTANCE FOR ORPHANS AND OTHER VULNERABLE CHILDREN IN
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES.
Title V of chapter 2 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of
1961 (22 U.S.C. 2201) is amended to read as follows:
``TITLE V--ASSISTANCE FOR ORPHANS AND OTHER VULNERABLE CHILDREN
``SEC. 241. FINDINGS; DECLARATION OF POLICY.
``(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
``(1) By 2010, HIV/AIDS will orphan more than 25,000,000
children worldwide.
``(2) Ongoing conflicts and civil wars in developing
countries are adversely affecting children in these countries,
the vast majority of whom currently do not receive humanitarian
assistance or other support from the United States Government.
``(3) The United States Government currently administers
assistance programs for orphans and other vulnerable children
in developing countries. When requested by the Committee on
International Relations of the House of Representatives to
provide information on the overall number of orphans and other
vulnerable children receiving assistance from the United States
Agency for International Development in fiscal year 2002, the
Agency was only able to report on its HIV/AIDS assistance
program, under which the Agency provided assistance to 462,000
such orphans and other vulnerable children.
``(4) The United States Government should increase its
efforts to provide assistance for orphans and other vulnerable
children in developing countries, especially those children
affected by HIV/AIDS or conflict.
``(5) The United States Agency for International
Development should establish improved capacity to deliver
assistance to orphans and other vulnerable children in
developing countries through partnerships with private
voluntary organizations, including faith-based organizations.
``(6) Further, the United States Agency for International
Development should be the primary United States Government
agency responsible for identifying and assisting orphans and
other vulnerable children in developing countries.
``(b) Declaration of Policy.--Congress, recognizing that prompt and
appropriate action by the United States to assist orphans and other
vulnerable children in developing countries is an important expression
of the humanitarian concern and tradition of the people of the United
States, affirms the willingness of the United States to assist such
orphans and other vulnerable children--
``(1) by providing assistance for the purpose of improving
the health, nutritional, shelter, educational, economic, and
psychological status of orphans and other vulnerable children
in such countries; and
``(2) by providing humanitarian and protection assistance
to such orphans and other vulnerable children affected by
conflict or civil strife.
``SEC. 242. ASSISTANCE TO PROVIDE BASIC CARE.
``(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
``(1) The need for individuals and local organizations in
developing countries to assist households headed by children is
necessary due to the increase in the number of such households.
Millions of children in these types of households lack basic
care, such as access to food and shelter.
``(2) Although families and extended families serve as the
primary providers of care for these children, when these family
care networks break down, and when communities are responsible
for raising orphans, these children are cared for in a rich and
nurturing environment and remain connected to the traditions
and rituals of families and the community.
``(3) As the number of these children increases, the
ability of communities to provide basic care for such children
is limited. Assistance to support the provision of such basic
care is therefore necessary in and of itself and also to
facilitate the provision of other types of assistance for such
children under this title.
``(b) Assistance.--
``(1) In general.--The President is authorized to provide
assistance for programs in developing countries to provide
basic care for orphans and other vulnerable children.
``(2) Activities supported.--Assistance provided under
paragraph (1) should be used--
``(A) to support individuals and local
organizations, including teachers, social workers, and
representatives from religious institutions and
nongovernmental organizations, to mobilize their own
resources through the strengthening of community care
coalitions, networks, or support groups to provide
basic care for orphans and other vulnerable children,
including day care, food assistance, protection
assistance, and home visits;
``(B) to increase the capacity of the community
care groups described in subparagraph (A) to meet on a
regular basis to identify orphans and other vulnerable
children and to facilitate the provision of services;
and
``(C) to ensure that the activities of community
care groups described in subparagraph (A) include
appropriate monitoring and supervision components.
``(3) Definition.--In this subsection, the term `protection
assistance' means all appropriate measures to promote the
physical and psychological security of an individual, provide
equal access to basic services for the individual, and
safeguard the legal and human rights and dignity of the
individual.
``SEC. 243. ASSISTANCE TO PROVIDE TREATMENT TO ORPHANS AND OTHER
VULNERABLE CHILDREN WITH HIV/AIDS.
``(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
``(1) Approximately 2,500,000 children under the age of 15
worldwide have HIV/AIDS. Every day another 2,000 children under
the age of 15 are infected with HIV.
``(2) In 2002, approximately 2,500,000 children were at
risk for infection with HIV through mother-to-child
transmission, which includes transmission at any point during
pregnancy, labor, delivery, or breastfeeding.
``(3) To date, more than 4,000,000 children worldwide are
estimated to have died from AIDS, primarily contracted through
mother-to-child transmission. Every year, approximately 700,000
babies are infected with HIV, of which the majority are living
in Africa.
``(4) In southern Africa HIV/AIDS is now the leading cause
of death among young children, accounting for almost half of
such deaths.
``(5) Research has shown conclusively that initiation in a
timely manner of antiretroviral therapy for infants or young
children with HIV/AIDS can preserve or restore their immune
functions, promote normal growth and development, and prolong
life.
``(6) Few international development programs specifically
target the treatment of children with HIV/AIDS in developing
countries. Reasons for this include the perceived low priority
of pediatric treatment, a lack of pediatric health care
professionals, lack of expertise and experience in pediatric
drug dosing and monitoring, the perceived complexity of
pediatric treatment, and mistaken beliefs regarding the risks
and benefits of pediatric treatment.
``(b) Assistance.--
``(1) In general.--The President is authorized to provide
assistance for the treatment of orphans and other vulnerable
children with HIV/AIDS in developing countries.
``(2) Activities supported.--Assistance provided under
paragraph (1) should be used to carry out the following
activities:
``(A) The treatment of orphans and other vulnerable
children with HIV/AIDS through the provision of
pharmaceuticals, including high-quality, low-cost
antiretrovirals and other therapies, including
generically manufactured pharmaceuticals where
appropriate.
``(B)(i) The recruitment and training of
individuals to provide the treatment described in
subparagraph (A), including the recruitment and
training of appropriate support personnel.
``(ii) Such training should include appropriate
methodologies relating to initial diagnosis,
appropriate dosages of pharmaceuticals, monitoring,
medication adherence techniques, treatment for any
complications resulting from such pharmaceuticals, and
psychosocial support for vulnerable children and their
caregivers.
``(C) Activities of medical laboratories relating
to the treatment described in subparagraph (A),
including assistance for the purchase of necessary
equipment.
``SEC. 244. ASSISTANCE TO PROVIDE PSYCHOSOCIAL SUPPORT TO ORPHANS AND
OTHER VULNERABLE CHILDREN AFFECTED BY HIV/AIDS.
``(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
``(1) Many children who are orphaned as a result of AIDS
blame themselves for the death of a parent and many children
are separated from siblings, sometimes for life.
``(2) The trauma that results from the loss of a parent as
a result of AIDS can trigger behavior problems of aggression or
emotional withdrawal and negatively affect a child's
performance in school and the child's social relations.
``(3) Children living in families affected by HIV/AIDS are
often stigmatized, teased, and ostracized by peers.
``(4) Children living in families affected by HIV/AIDS who
are most vulnerable are those children in households headed by
children. In these households, trained community volunteers can
play a major role through home visits.
``(5) In many African countries, religious leaders are
mobilizing individuals and local organizations within the
community to identify and respond to the psychosocial needs of
those children affected by AIDS.
``(b) Assistance.--The President is authorized to provide
assistance for programs in developing countries to provide culturally
appropriate mental health services and psychosocial support for orphans
and other vulnerable children, and their caregivers.
``SEC. 245. ASSISTANCE FOR SCHOOL FOOD PROGRAMS.
``(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
``(1) In 2004, it is estimated that 125,000,000 children
worldwide do not attend school, in part because of hunger and
malnutrition, and the vast majority of these children are young
girls.
``(2) School food programs, including take-home rations, in
developing countries provide strong incentives for parents to
send their children to school and ensure that they continue
with their education. School food programs may reduce short-
term hunger, improve cognitive functions, and enhance learning,
behavior, and achievement.
``(3) In 2004, more than 8,000,000 children in sub-Saharan
Africa are underweight compared to 1994. Malnutrition enhances
the risk that orphans and other vulnerable children will be at
risk for illness and infections, especially if these children
are also infected with HIV.
``(4) Healthy members of families affected by HIV/AIDS in
developing countries often leave the workforce to care for
those family members with HIV/AIDS, which compounds the problem
of access to food for the family. Food consumption has been
shown to drop by as much as 40 percent in these families.
``(5)(A) Although a number of organizations seek to meet
the needs of children who are orphaned or vulnerable as a
result of HIV/AIDS, immediate and extended families continue to
be the primary providers of care and support for these
children, and they need direct assistance urgently.
``(B) According to a survey by the United States Agency for
International Development, orphans and other vulnerable
children relied on relatives for food support 74 percent of the
time and on friends for food support 19 percent of the time.
``(b) Assistance.--
``(1) In general.--The President is authorized to provide
assistance for school food programs for orphans and vulnerable
children in developing countries, especially in such countries
heavily affected by HIV/AIDS.
``(2) Activities supported.--Assistance provided under
paragraph (1) should be used to purchase local or regional
foodstuffs, where appropriate, for school food programs.
``SEC. 246. ASSISTANCE TO INCREASE EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES AND
PROVIDE EMPLOYMENT TRAINING.
``(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
``(1) The lack of financial resources in families affected
by HIV/AIDS prevents many orphans and other vulnerable children
in developing countries from attending school because of the
requirement to pay school fees and other costs of education.
``(2) Such children, in particular young girls, are often
forced to miss school in order to serve as caregivers to
relatives with HIV/AIDS or assume adult responsibilities for
providing for the family. Younger children who lose a parent
also lose the opportunity to learn skills that they will need
to support themselves as they grow older.
``(3) According to the International Labor Organization
(ILO), approximately 250,000,000 children and adolescents ages
5 to 14 in developing countries are working part-time and
approximately 120,000,000 children and adolescents ages 5 to 14
in developing countries are working full-time.
``(4) In many regions of Africa and other developing
countries, non-formal education plays an important role to
provide children who are unable to attend school with the
employment and related life skills training such children need
to survive.
``(5) Many organizations in Africa, including faith-based
organizations, provide employment and related life skills
training for older children to better prepare them to serve as
caregivers for younger siblings.
``(6) Organizations that provide non-formal education can
assist the thousands of children in developing countries who
are not currently being assisted by families or communities and
are struggling to survive.
``(b) Assistance.--
``(1) Education assistance.--The President is authorized to
provide assistance for programs in developing countries to
decrease barriers to public primary school enrollment by
eliminating school fees and other costs of education,
especially in developing countries heavily affected by HIV/
AIDS. Amounts made available to carry out this paragraph--
``(A) are authorized to be made available to the
President for assistance or contributions to
nongovernmental organizations and international
organizations to achieve the purposes of this
paragraph; and
``(B) shall not be used to pay school fees.
``(2) Employment training assistance.--The President is
authorized to provide assistance for programs in developing
countries to provide employment training and related services
for orphans and other vulnerable children who are of legal
working age, especially for programs in developing countries
heavily affected by HIV/AIDS.
``SEC. 247. ASSISTANCE TO PROTECT AND PROMOTE INHERITANCE RIGHTS.
``(a) Finding.--Congress finds that orphans and other vulnerable
children in developing countries, particularly children who are
orphaned as a result of AIDS, are routinely denied their inheritance or
encounter difficulties in claiming the land and other property which
they have inherited.
``(b) Assistance.--The President is authorized to provide
assistance in support of programs in developing countries to protect
and promote the inheritance rights of orphans and other vulnerable
children, particularly young girls and children who are orphaned as a
result of AIDS.
``SEC. 248. ADMINISTRATION OF ASSISTANCE.
``(a) Office for Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children.--
``(1) Establishment.--There is established within the
United States Agency for International Development an Office
for Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children (hereafter in this
title referred to as the `Office'), which shall be headed by a
Director who shall be appointed by the Administrator of the
Agency.
``(2) Duties.--The Office shall be responsible for carrying
out this title.
``(b) Approval of Applications.--Subject to the requirements of
subsection (e), the Director of the Office shall be responsible for
reviewing or approving all applications submitted to the United States
Agency for International Development for assistance under this title,
including applications submitted to field missions of the Agency.
``(c) Priority.--In providing assistance under this title, priority
should be given to assistance for developing countries in which the
rate of HIV infection, as reported in the most recent epidemiological
data for that country compiled by the United Nations Joint Programme on
HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), is at least 5 percent among women attending prenatal
clinics or more than 15 percent among individuals in groups with high-
risk behavior.
``(d) Form of Assistance.--Assistance under this title shall be
provided in the form of--
``(1) grants, cooperative agreements, or contracts;
``(2) contributions to international organizations; or
``(3) assistance to the governments of developing
countries.
``(e) Coordination.--The provision of assistance under this title
for children who are orphaned as a result of HIV/AIDS, or are children
with HIV/AIDS, shall be undertaken in accordance with section 104A of
this Act and assistance relating to HIV/AIDS authorized under the
United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria
Act of 2003 (Public Law 108-25), including section 102 of such Act
concerning the coordination of HIV/AIDS programs.
``(f) Other Assistance.--
``(1) Review or approval of other usaid assistance.--The
Director of the Office shall be responsible for reviewing or
approving--
``(A) each component of the annual plan of a
mission, bureau, or other office of the United States
Agency for International Development as the component
relates to assistance for orphans or other vulnerable
children in developing countries; and
``(B) each program, project, or activity relating
to such assistance.
``(2) Coordination of all U.S. government assistance.--The
Director of the Office shall be responsible for ensuring
coordination of all United States Government programs to
provide assistance for orphans and other vulnerable children in
developing countries.
``SEC. 249. MONITORING SYSTEM.
``(a) Establishment.--In order to maximize the sustainable
development impact of assistance authorized under this title, the
President shall establish a monitoring system that meets the
requirements of subsection (b).
``(b) Requirements.--The requirements referred to in subsection (a)
are the following:
``(1) The monitoring system establishes performance goals
for the assistance and expresses such goals in an objective and
quantifiable form, to the extent feasible.
``(2) The monitoring system establishes performance
indicators to be used in measuring or assessing the achievement
of the performance goals described in paragraph (1).
``(3) The monitoring system provides a basis for
recommendations for adjustments to the assistance to enhance
the impact of the assistance.
``SEC. 250. REPORT.
``(a) Report.--Not later than December 31, 2005, and each December
31 thereafter, the President shall transmit to Congress a report that
contains a detailed description of the implementation of this title for
the previous fiscal year.
``(b) Contents.--The report shall contain the following
information:
``(1) For each grant, cooperative agreement, contract,
contribution, or other form of assistance awarded or entered
into under this title--
``(A) the amount of the grant, cooperative
agreement, contract, contribution, or other form of
assistance, the name of each recipient and each
developing country with respect to which projects or
activities under the grant, cooperative agreement,
contract, contribution, or other form of assistance
were carried out, and the approximate number of orphans
and other vulnerable children who received direct or
indirect assistance under the projects or activities;
and
``(B) the results of the monitoring system with
respect to the grant, cooperative agreement, contract,
contribution, or other form of assistance.
``(2) For each grant, cooperative agreement, contract,
contribution, or other form of assistance awarded or entered
into under any provision of law other than this title for
assistance for orphans and other vulnerable children in
developing countries, the information described in paragraph
(1)(A).
``(3) Of the total amounts of assistance made available in
each such fiscal year for orphans and other vulnerable
children, the percentage of assistance provided in support of
orphans or other vulnerable children affected by HIV/AIDS.
``(4) Any other appropriate information relating to the
needs of orphans and other vulnerable children in developing
countries that could be addressed through the provision of
assistance under this title or under any other provision of
law.
``SEC. 251. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS.
``(a) Authorization of Appropriation.--
``(1) In general.--Of the amounts made available to carry
out the provisions of law described in paragraph (2), there are
authorized to be appropriated to the President to carry out
this title such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal
years 2005 and 2006.
``(2) Provisions of law.--The provisions of law referred to
in paragraph (1) are the following:
``(A) The United States Leadership Against HIV/
AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003 (Public Law
108-25) and the amendments made by that Act.
``(B) Any other provision of law under which
assistance is authorized for orphans and other
vulnerable children in developing countries.
``(b) Additional Provisions.--
``(1) Availability.--Amounts appropriated pursuant to the
authorization of appropriations under subsection (a) are
authorized to remain available until expended and are in
addition to amounts otherwise available for such purposes.
``(2) Minimum funding requirement.--Not less than 60
percent of amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorization
of appropriations under subsection (a) for a fiscal year (other
than amounts made available for assistance to eliminate school
fees and other costs of education pursuant to section 246)
shall be provided through United States or indigenous private
voluntary organizations that implement programs on the
community level. Amounts provided by for-profit entities to
not-for-profit entities from assistance under this title shall
not be considered for purposes of satisfying the requirement of
this paragraph.
``(3) Assistance under other provisions of law.--
``(A) In general.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, amounts made available for assistance
for orphans or other vulnerable children in developing
countries under any provision of law other than this
title may be provided to further the purposes of this
title.
``(B) Report.--To the extent assistance described
in subparagraph (A) is provided in accordance with such
subparagraph, the President shall include, as part of
the report required under section 250, a detailed
description of such assistance and, to the extent
applicable, the information required by subsection
(b)(1)(A) of such section with respect to such
assistance.
``(4) Administrative expenses.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, amounts made available for assistance for
orphans or other vulnerable children in developing countries
under this title, or under any provision of law other than this
title, may be made available for administrative expenses
incurred in carrying out this title for a fiscal year in an
amount not to exceed 7 percent of amounts made available for
such fiscal year for such purpose under this title, or under
such other provision of law, as the case may be.
``SEC. 252. DEFINITIONS.
``In this title:
``(1) AIDS.--The term `AIDS' has the meaning given the term
in section 104A(g)(1) of this Act.
``(2) Children.--The term `children' means persons who have
not attained the age of 18.
``(3) HIV.--The term `HIV' has the meaning given the term
in section 104A(g)(2) of this Act.
``(4) HIV/AIDS.--The term `HIV/AIDS' has the meaning given
the term in section 104A(g)(3) of this Act.
``(5) Orphan.--The term `orphan' means a child deprived by
death of one or both parents.
``(6) Psychosocial support.--The term `psychosocial
support' includes care that addresses the ongoing psychological
and social problems that affect individuals, their partners,
families, and caregivers in order to alleviate suffering,
strengthen social ties and integration, provide emotional
support, and promote coping strategies.
``(7) Vulnerable children.--The term `vulnerable children'
includes children who are neglected, destitute, abandoned,
homeless, disabled, suffering from malnutrition, are sexually
exploited or abused, or are displaced or otherwise adversely
affected by armed conflict.''.
Passed the House of Representatives June 14, 2004.
Attest:
JEFF TRANDAHL,
Clerk.