cooperation in environmental education activities; and coordinates and tracks EPA environmental efforts.

APPALACHIAN REGIONAL COMMISSION (23.001-23.011)

The Appalachian Regional Commission is a Federal-State governmental agency concerned with the economic, physical, and social development of the 13-State Appalachian region, which includes parts of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and all of West Virginia. The comprehensive goals of the Commission are to provide the people of Appalachia with the health and skills they need to compete for opportunities and to develop a self-sustaining economy and environment capable of supporting a population with rising incomes and standards of living and increasing employment opportunities. To accomplish this task, the Commission has concentrated on areas of development in which there remain great needs throughout the region: community development and housing, education, the environment, health and child development, industrial development and management, tourism, and transportation.

OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT (OPM) (27.001-27.013)

Administers a merit system for Federal employment, which includes recruiting, examining, training, and promoting people on the basis of their knowledge and skills, regardless of their race, religion, sex, political influence, or other nonmerit factors. OPM's role is to ensure that the Federal government provides an array of personnel services to applicants and employees. Through a range of programs designed to develop and encourage the effectiveness of the Government employee, OPM supports Government program managers in their personnel management responsibilities and provides benefits to employees and to retired employees and their survivors.

COMMISSION ON CIVIL RIGHTS (CCR) (29.001)

Collects and studies information on discrimination or denials of equal protection of the laws because of race, color, religion, sex, age, disability or, national origin, or in the administration of justice in such areas as voting rights, enforcement of Federal civil rights laws, and equality of opportunity in education, employment, and housing. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION (EEOC) (30.00130.011)

Eliminates discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age or disability in hiring, promotion, firing, wages, testing, training, apprenticeship, and all other conditions of employment. The Commission also promotes voluntary action programs by employers, unions, and community organizations to make equal employment opportunity an actuality. EEOC also has oversight responsibility for all compliance and enforcement activities relating to equal employment opportunity among Federal employees and applicants, including discrimination against individuals with disabilities.

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (FCC) (32.001)

Regulates interstate and foreign communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable. It is responsible for the orderly development and operation of broadcast services and the provision of rapid, efficient nationwide and worldwide telephone and telegraph services at reasonable rates. Its responsibilities also include the use of communications for promoting safety of life and property and for strengthening the national defense.

FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION (FMC) (33.001)

Regulates the waterborne foreign and domestic offshore commerce of the United States, assures that United States international trade is open to all nations on fair and equitable terms, and protects against unauthorized, concerted activity in the waterborne commerce of the United States. This is accomplished through maintaining surveillance over steamship conferences and common carriers by water; assuring that only the rates on file with the Commission are charged; conducting analysis and appropriate disposition of agreements between persons subject to the Shipping Act of 1984 and the Shipping Act, 1916; guaranteeing equal treatment to shippers, carriers, and other persons subject to the shipping statutes; and ensuring that adequate levels of financial responsibility are maintained for indemnification of passengers. FEDERAL MEDIATION AND CONCILIATION SERVICE (FMCS) (34.001) Assists labor and management in resolving disputes bargaining contract negotiation through voluntary mediation and arbitration services; provides training to unions and management in cooperative processes to improve long-term relationship under the Labor-Management Cooperation Act of 1978, including Federal sector partnership training authorized by Executive Order 12871; provides alternative dispute resolution services and training to government agencies, including the facilitation of regulatory

negotiations under Administrative Dispute Resolution and Negotiated Rulemaking Acts of 1990; awards competitive grants to joint labor-management committees to encourage innovative approaches to cooperative efforts.

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION (FTC) (36.001)

Maintains competitive enterprise as the keystone of the American economic system. Although the duties of the Commission are many and varied, the foundation of public policy underlying all these duties is essentially the same: to prevent the free enterprise system from being fettered by monopoly or restraints on trade or corrupted by unfair or deceptive trade practices. In brief, the Commission is charged with keeping competition both free and fair.

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION (GSA) (39.002-39.009) Establishes policy and provides for the Government an economical and efficient system for the management of its property including construction and operation of buildings, procurement and distribution of supplies, utilization and disposal of property, transportation, and travel management, and management of Governmentwide information technology solutions and network services. GSA is organized much like a large corporation doing business in a number of different fields. It consists of operating services and supporting staff offices, with functions carried out at three levels of organization: The Central office, regional offices, and field activities. (See Appendix IV of the Catalog for a listing of these offices.) Various publications and catalogs published by GSA include: 1) The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance published jointly by GSA and the Office of Management and Budget; and 2) the Consumer Information Catalog which lists selected Federal publications of interest to consumers. GSA also administers the Federal Information Centers (FCIC) which are focal points for Information about the Federal government's services, programs, and regulations.

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE (GPO) (40.001-40.002)

Executes orders for printing and binding placed by Congress and the departments and establishments of the Federal government. It furnishes blank paper, inks, and similar supplies to all governmental activities on order. It prepares catalogs and distributes and sells Government publications. GPO invites bids from commercial suppliers on a wide variety of printing and binding services, awards and administers contracts, and maintains liaison between ordering agencies and contractors. GPO sells through mail orders and Government bookstores approximately 10,000 publications that originate in various Government agencies, and administers the depository library program through which selected Government publications are made available in libraries throughout the country.

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS (42.001-42.009)

Under the organic law, the Library's first responsibility is service to Congress. One department, the Congressional Research Service, functions exclusively for the legislative branch of the Government. As the Library has developed, its range of service has come to include the entire governmental establishment in all its branches and the public at large, so that it has become a national library for the United States. The Library's extensive collections are universal in scope. They include books and pamphlets on every subject and in a multitude of languages. Among them are the most comprehensive collections of Chinese, Japanese, and Russian language books outside Asia and the Soviet Union; volumes relating to science and legal materials, outstanding for American and foreign law; the world's largest collection of published aeronautical literature; and the most extensive collection in the western hemisphere of books printed before 1501 A.D. The manuscript collections relate to manifold aspects of American history and civilization and include the personal papers of most of the Presidents from George Washington through Calvin Coolidge. The music collections contain volumes and pieces (manuscript and published) from classic works to the newest popular compositions. Other materials available for research include maps and views; photographic records from the daguerreotype to the latest news photo; recordings, including folksongs and other music, speeches, and poetry readings; prints, drawings, and posters; government documents, newspapers, and periodicals from all over the world; and motion pictures, microforms, and audio and video tapes. Admission to the various research facilities of the Library is free. No introduction or credentials are required for persons over high school age who wish to read in the general reading rooms; however, certain collections, like those of the Manuscript, Rare Book and Special Collections, Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Divisions, can be used only by those with a serious purpose for doing so. The Library is also responsible for copyrights, which are registered by the Copyright Office. All copyrightable works, whether published or unpublished, are subject to a system of statutory protection that gives the copyright owner certain exclusive rights, including the right to reproduce the copyrighted work and distribute it to the public by sale, rental, lease, or lending. Works of authorship include books, periodicals, and other literary works, musical compositions, song lyrics, dramas and dramatic musical compositions, pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works pantomimes

and choreographic works, motion pictures and other audiovisual works, and sound recordings. The Library extends its service through an interlibrary loan system; the photoduplication, at reasonable cost, subject to conditions of law, copyright, and deposit of books, manuscripts, maps, and newspapers, and prints in its collections; the sale of sound recordings, which are released by its Recording Laboratory; the exchange of duplicates with other institutions; the sale of printed catalog cards and magnetic tapes, and the publication in book format or microform of cumulative catalogs, which make available the results of the expert bibliographical and cataloging work of its technical personnel; a centralized acquisitions program whereby the Library of Congress acquires material published all over the world, catalogs it promptly, and distributes cataloging information in machine readable form as well as other means to the Nation's libraries; a cooperative catalog program, whereby the cataloging of data by name authority and bibliographic records, prepared by other libraries becomes part of the Library of Congress data base and distribute them through the MARC Distribution Service; a cataloging-in-publication program in cooperation with American publishers for printing and cataloging information in current books; the National Serials Data Program, a national center that maintains a record of serial titles to which Inter- national Standard Serial Numbers have been assigned and serves, with this file, as the United States Register; and the development of general schemes of classification (Library of Congress and Dewey Decimal), subject headings, and cataloging, embracing the entire field of printed matter. The American Folklife Center in the Library of Congress, has a coordinative function both in and outside the Federal establishment to carry out appropriate programs to support, preserve, and present American folklife through such activities as the collection and mainte- nance of archives, scholarly research, field projects, performances, exhibitions, festivals, workshops, publications, and audiovisual presen- tations. The Center for the Book was established in the Library of Congress to provide a program for investigating the transmission of human knowledge and to heighten public interest in the role of books and printing in the diffusion of knowledge. Drawing on the resources of the Library of Congress, the Center works closely with other organiza- tions to explore important issues in the book and educational commu- nities, to encourage reading, and to encourage research about books and about reading. Its goal is to serve as a useful catalyst by bringing together authors, publishers, librarians, booksellers, educators, scholars, and readers to discuss common concerns and work toward the solution of common problems. The Library provides technical information related to the preservation and restoration of library and archival material. A series of leaflets on various preservation and conservation topics has been prepared by the Preservation Office. Information and publica- tions are available from the National Preservation Program Office, Library of Congress. A free national library program of braillle and recorded materials for blind and physically handicapped persons is administered by the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS), Library of Congress. With the cooperation of authors and publishers who grant permission to use copyrighted works, NLS selects and produces full-length books and magazines in braille on recorded disc and cassette. Reading material are distributed to a cooperating network of regional and subregional (local) libraries where they are circulated to eligible borrowers. Reading material and playback machines are sent to borrowers and returned to libraries by postage-free mail. Established by an act of Congress in 1931 to serve blind adults, the program was expanded in 1952 to include children, in 1962 to provide music materials, and again in 1966 to include individuals with other physical impairments that prevent the reading of standard print. Information and publications are available from the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handi- capped, Library of Congress, Washington, DC 20542. NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION (NASA) (43.001-43.002)

Conducts research to solve problems of flight within and outside Earth atmosphere. Develops, constructs, tests, and operates aeronautical and space vehicles. Conducts activities required for the exploration of space with manned and unmanned vehicles; arranges for the most effective utilization of the scientific and engineering resources of the United States with other nations engaged in aeronautical and space activities for peaceful purposes.

NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION (NCUA) (44.001-44.002) The National Credit Union Administration Board is responsible for chartering, insuring, supervising, and examining Federal credit unions and administering the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund. The Board also manages the Central Liquidity Facility, a mixed-ownership Government corporation whose purpose is to supply emergency loans to member credit unions.

NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS (NEA) (45.024 - 45.025) The National Endowment for the Arts is a public agency dedicated to supporting excellence in the arts, both new and established bringing the arts to all Americans, and providing leadership in arts education. The National Endowment for the Arts is the largest annual funder of the arts in the United States. An independent federal agency, the National Endowment for the Arts is the official arts organization of the

United States government. The National Endowment for the Arts awards more than $100 million annually investing in every state which in turn generates more than $700 million in additional support. The Arts Endowment has played a transformative and sustaining role in the development of regional theater, opera, dance, orchestras, museums, and other arts both contemporary and traditional that Americans now enjoy.

NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES (NEH) (45.129 45.169)

Promotes and supports the production and dissemination of knowledge in the humanities. The term "humanities" includes, but is not limited to, the study of the following: language, both modern and classical; linguistics; literature; history; jurisprudence; philosophy; archaeology; comparative religion; ethics; the history, criticism, and theory of the arts; and those aspects of the social sciences that employ historical or philosophical approaches. The Endowment makes grants to individuals, groups, or institutions (schools, colleges, universities, museums, public television stations, libraries, public agencies, and nonprofit private groups) to increase understanding and appreciation of the humanities.

FEDERAL COUNCIL ON THE ARTS AND THE HUMANITIES (45.201) Coordinates the activities of the two Endowments and related programs of other Federal agencies.

INSTITUTE OF MUSEUM AND LIBRARY SERVICES (45.301-45.313) The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation's 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums. Its mission is to grow and sustain a "Nation of Learners" because lifelong learning is essential to a democratic society and individual success. Through its grant making, convenings, research, and publications, the Institute empowers museums and libraries nationwide to provide leadership and services to enhance learning in families and communities, sustain cultural heritage, build twenty-first-century skills, and increase civic participation. IMLS supports adult education and literacy through a number of competitive and state grants and programs, such as Museums for America grants, State Library programs, Native American/ Native Hawaiian Library Services, National Leadership Grants, 21st Century Museum Professionals, the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program, and the Partnership for a Nation of Learners program.

NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD (NLRB) (46.001)

Administers the Nation's principal law, the National Labor Relations Act. The NLRB is vested with the power to prevent or remedy unfair labor practices and to safeguard employees' rights to organize and determine through elections whether to have unions as their bargaining representatives.

NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION (NSF) (47.041-47.081)

Promotes the progress of science and engineering through the support of research and education programs. Its major emphasis is on high quality, science-driven basic research, the search for improved understanding of the fundamental laws of nature upon which our future well-being as a Nation depends. The National Science Foundation also supports applied research in several areas. Its educational programs are aimed at ensuring increasing understanding of science and engineering at all educational levels and at training an adequate supply of scientists and engineers to meet our country's needs.

RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD (57.001)

Administers comprehensive retirement-survivor and unemployment-sickness benefit programs for the Nation's railroad workers and their families, under the Railroad Retirement and Railroad Unemployment Insurance Acts. The Board participates in. the administration of the Social Security Act and the Health Insurance for the Aged Act insofar as they affect railroad retirement beneficiaries.

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION (SEC) (58.001)

Administers Federal securities laws that seek to provide for investors; to ensure that securities markets are fair and honest; and, when necessary, to provide the means to enforce securities laws through sanctions.

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (SBA) (59.006-59.046, 59.049-59.055, 59.070)

Aids, counsels, assists, and protects the interests of small business; ensures that small business concerns receive a fair proportion of Government purchases, contracts, and subcontracts, as well as of the sales of Government property; makes loans to small business concerns, State and local development companies, and the victims of floods or other catastrophes, or certain types of economic injury; and licenses, regulates, and makes loans to small business investment companies.

NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART (NGA) (68.001)

The National Gallery's collections embrace every major school of western European

art from the 13th century to the present and of American art from colonial days to the present. A professor-in-residence position is filled annually by a distinguished scholar in the field of art history; graduate and postgraduate research is conducted under a fellowship program; programs for children and the general public are conducted daily; and Extension Programs produces and distributes education resources for loan throughout the world; audiovisual materials include films, slide teaching programs, videocassettes, videodiscs, and CD-ROMS.

OVERSEAS PRIVATE INVESTMENT CORPORATION (OPIC) (70.00270.003)

Offers United States investors assistance in finding investment opportunities, insurance, and loans and loan guaranties to help finance their projects in developing countries. It encourages investment projects that will help the social and economic development of these countries.

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION (NRC) (77.006-77.008)

Licenses and regulates the civilian uses of nuclear energy to protect the public health and safety and the environment. It does this by licensing persons and companies to build and operate nuclear reactors and other facilities and to own and use nuclear materials. The NCR makes rules and sets standards for these types of licenses. The NRC also carefully inspects the activities of the persons and companies licensed to ensure that they do not violate the safety rules of the Commission.

COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION (CFTC) (78.004) Promotes healthy economic growth, protects the rights of customers, and ensures fairness and integrity in the marketplace through regulation of futures trading. To this end it also engages in the analysis of economic issues affected by or affecting futures trading.

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY (DOE) (81.003-81.126)

DOE is major government enterprise. If included among the Nation's Fortune 500 firms, it would rank in the top 50. Its $16.5 billion appropriation comprises close to 3 percent of total Federal discretionary spending DOE Funds the largest environmental cleanup in history, and research and development that supports the Nation's defense and its energy and economic security. DOE employs over 11,000 Federal employees and about 108,000 contract employees. DOE owns and manages over 50 major installations located on 2.4 million acres in 35 States and is the fourth largest Federal landowner in the United States. DOE is an energy policy, supply, and technology enterprise. It invests in developing a secure, clean, and sustainable energy system. It helps the Nation meet its environmental challenges by administering the largest pollution prevention and efficiency program in the world, with partners from every sector of the economy. It enhances the Nation's energy security by increasing the diversity of energy, and fuel choices and sources; bringing renewable energy sources into the market, strengthening domestic production of oil and gas, maintaining the U.S. nuclear energy option, and increasing the efficiency with which we use energy and generate electricity. The Department also maintains the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and operates five Power Marketing Administrations that sell and distribute over $3 billion of electric power generated at Federal hydroelectric plants. DOE is a national security enterprise. It is a key player in the Administration's furtherance of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and its overall goal of reducing the global danger from nuclear weapons. It ensures the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile without underground testing. At the same time, it manages and safely dismantles excess nuclear materials, and ensures the security of vital departmental nuclear assets. It provides policy and technical assistance to curb global proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, emphasizing U.S. nonproliferation, arms control, and nuclear safety objectives in the states of the former Soviet union and worldwide. Further, it develops and ensures the safety and reliability of nuclear reactor plants to power U.S. Navy warships. DOE is an environmental remediation enterprise. It cleans up the 50-year environmental legacy left at the industrial complexes where nuclear weapons were designed and manufactured. It manages the problems associated with the large quantities of various types of radioactive wastes, surplus nuclear materials, and spent nuclear fuels that remain at the sites of the Nation's nuclear weapons facilities and at nuclear energy research and development sites. In addition, it must address the growing inventory of spent nuclear fuel from commercial nuclear reactors that is awaiting disposal. These wastes must be dealt with responsibly to ensure the safety and health of the public. DOE is a science and technology enterprise. At the center of all we do are our 27 laboratories, our additional scientific user facilities, and our researchers at the Nation's universities. These form the backbone of U.S. scientific leadership by conducting and facilitating breakthrough research in energy sciences and technology, high energy physics, global climate change, genomics, superconducting materials, accelerator technologies, environmental sciences, and super-computing in support of DOE's mission. The laboratories, described as the crown jewels of the Nation's science establishment, and the Department's funding of research at universities have resulted in 66 Nobel prize winners, including three in 1996.

The Department is also an investor in the Nation's most precious resource - its youth

by supporting science and mathematics education in our schools through grants, educational programs, and fellowships. DOE is global enterprise. The outcome of our work is thetechnology that stimulates the private market for the expansion of clean energy to meet national and global energy requirements of almost 500 quadrillion Btu's by the year 2010 - a staggering 36 percent increase over 1995. Overseas energy market needs include coal, nuclear power, oil and gas exploration, energy efficiency, and renewable energy technologies that are available for export now or that will soon be available for the international marketplace. DOE supports the export of U.S. energy services and technologies by assisting the nations in Asia, South America, Eastern Europe, an Africa, and the states of the former Soviet Union in developing private markets for environmentally responsible, sustainable energy. These alliances support U.S. competitiveness in a global economy of growing energy infrastructure requirements and create jobs in the U.S. at all skill levels.

HARRY S TRUMAN SCHOLARSHIP FOUNDATION (85.001)

Awards college scholarships of up to $5 thousand annually for 4 years to persons who demonstrate outstanding potential for and who are preparing to pursue a career in public service.

CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS FELLOWSHIP FOUNDATION (85.100)
Established by Congress in 1992 to award fellowships to encourage and support
research, study, and labor designed to produce new discoveries in all fields of
endeavor for the benefit of mankind.

BARRY GOLDWATER SCHOLARSHIP AND EXCELLENCE IN
EDUCATION FOUNDATION (85.200)

Established in 1983 to honor former Senator Barry Goldwater through the operation of an education scholarship program, financed by a permanent trust fund endowment, designed to encourage outstanding students to pursue careers in mathematics, the natural sciences, and engineering.

THE WOODROW WILSON INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR SCHOLARS (85.300)

Established by Congress in 1968 to honor the legacy and ideals of Woodrow Wilson by promoting research and dialogue on issues that link the world of scholarship and the world of public affairs. The Center achieves this mission through sustaining a community of scholars in Washington, and through sponsoring a regular program of meetings on the humanities and international affairs. The Center welcomes scholars of every nationality and from a wide variety of backgrounds including government, the corporate world, the professions, and academe.

THE MORRIS K. UDALL SCHOLARSHIP AND EXCELLENCE IN NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY FOUNDATION (85.400 - 85.402) Scholarships, internships, and fellowships are financed by a permanent trust fund endowment. Programs are designed to develop increased opportunities for Americans to prepare for and pursue careers related to the environment and for Native Americans and Alaska Natives to pursue careers in health care and tribal public policy.

JAMES MADISON MEMORIAL FELLOWSHIP FOUNDATION (85.500) Fellowships are awarded that seek to strengthen secondary school teaching of the principles, framing, and development of the U.S. Constitution. The program works to contribute to a deeper understanding of American government and to foster in both teachers and students the spirit of civic participation that inspired the Nation's founders.

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTE FELLOWSHIP FOUNDATION (85.601) The Smithsonian Institution is an independent trust instrumentality of the United States which comprises the worlds largest museum and research complex. The Smithsonian includes 19 museums and galleries, the National Zoo, and research facilities in several States and the Republic of Panama. It holds more than 136 million artifacts and specimens in its trust for the American people. The Smithsonian is dedicated to public education, national service, and scholarship in the arts, science, history, and culture. The Smithsonian Institution was created by an act of Congress on August 10, 1846 (20 U.S.C. 41 et seq.), to carry out the terms of the will of British scientist James Smithson (1765;1829), who in 1826 had bequeathed his entire estate to the United States ¿to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for increase and diffusion of knowledge among men.¿ On July 1, 1836, Congress accepted the legacy and pledged the faith of the United States to the charitable trust. In September 1838, Smithson¿s legacy, which amounted to more than 100,000 gold sovereigns, was delivered to the mint at Philadelphia, Congress vested responsibility for administering the trust in the Secretary of the Smithsonian and the Smithsonian Board of Regents, composed of the Chief Justice, the Vice President, three Members of the Senate, three Members of the House of Representatives, and nine citizen members appointed by joint resolution of Congress.

PENSION BENEFIT GUARANTY CORPORATION (PBGC) (86.001)

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation guarantees payment of nonforfeitable pension benefits in covered, private-sector-defined benefit pension plans. Title IV of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.) provides for coverage of most private-sector-defined benefit pension plans that provide a benefit based on factors such as age, years of service, and average or highest salary. The Corporation administers two benefit insurance programs separately covering single-employer and multi-employer plans. Nearly 40 million workers participate in more than 112,000 covered plans. Single-Employer Insurance: Under the single-employer program, the Corporation guarantees payment of a covered plan's basic benefits if that plan terminates without sufficient assets to pay those guaranteed benefits. Multi-employer Insurance: Under Title IV of the Act, as originally enacted, the Corporation guaranteed nonforfeitable benefits for multiemployer plans in a similar fashion as for single-employer plans. However, the payment of guaranteed benefits was at the agency's discretion under the provisions of the law that remained in force until August 1, 1980. The Multi-employer Pension Plan Amendments Act of 1980 (29 U.S.C. 1001) revised the law applicable to multiemployer pension plans by changing the insurable event from plan termination to plan insolvency. In accordance with the Act, the Corporation provides financial assistance to plans that are unable to pay basic benefits. The plans are obligated to repay such assistance. The act also made employers withdrawing from a plan liable to the plan for a portion of its unfunded vested benefits. Premium Collections: All defined benefit pension plans covered by Title IV of Employee Retirement Income Security Act are required to pay premiums under prescribed rates to the Corporation. ARCHITECTURAL AND TRANSPORTATION BARRIERS COMPLIANCE BOARD (ATBCB) (88.001)

Ensures compliance to Federal laws requiring accessibility for physically handicapped persons in certain federally funded buildings and facilities throughout the Nation. This includes setting guidelines and requirements for accessibility standards prescribed by Federal agencies, providing technical assistance to organizations agencies and individuals requesting help in solving accessible design and construction problems, and conducting research to determine appropriate specifications for accessibility.

NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION (NARA) (89.001-89.005)

Establishes policies and procedures for managing the records of the United States Government. NARA assists Federal agencies in adequately documenting their activities, administering their records management programs, scheduling their records, and retiring their noncurrent records to Federal Records Centers. The mission of the National Archives and Records Administration is to ensure, for the Citizen and the public servant, for the President and the Congress and the Courts, ready access to essential evidence. Managing the Presidential Libraries system, assisting the National Historical Publications and Records Commission in its grant program for State and local records and edited publications of prominent Americans, and publishing the laws, regulations, Presidential, and other public documents are also key functions of the National Archives and Records Administration. DENALI COMMISSION (90.100)

Created by Congress in 1998, the Denali Commission is the Federal government and the State of Alaska working together to assist the most remote of American citizens to help themselves move closer to economic self-sufficiency, while preserving ancient cultural values and new opportunities to people living in American's last frontier. With the creation of the Denali Commission, Congress acknowledged the need for increased inter-agency cooperation and focus on these remote communities. This Federal-State partnership is intended to promote rural development, provide power generation and transmission facilities, modern communication systems, water and sewer systems and other infrastructure needs.

DELTA REGIONAL AUTHORITY (90.200-90.202)

To assist the eight-state, 240-county Mississippi Delta region in obtaining the transportation and basic public infrastructure, skills training, and opportunities for economic development essential to strong local economies. The DRA was created as a Federal-State partnership. DRA will focus on: basic public infrastructure in distressed counties and isolated area of distress; transportation infrastructure facilitating the economic development of the region; business development; and job training or employment-related education.

JAPAN US FRIENDSHIP COMMISSION (90.300)

The Japan-United States Friendship Act of 1975 established the Japan-United States Friendship Trust Fund and created the Japan-United States Friendship Commission to make grants for the promotion of scholarly, cultural, and artistic activities between Japan and the United States. The Commission is authorized to make expenditures from the fund in an amount not to exceed 5 percent annually of the fund's original principal to pay Commission expenses and make grants to support Japanese studies

in American universities, policy oriented research, faculty and other professional exchanges, public affairs programs, and other cultural and educational activities primarily in the United States.

UNITED STATES INSTITUTE OF PEACE (91.001-91.002)

The United States Institute of Peace was established as an independent, Federal, nonprofit corporation by act of October 19, 1984 (22 U.S.C. 4603). It was established to strengthen the Nation's capacity to promote international peace and the peaceful resolution of conflicts among the peoples and nations of the world. The purpose of the Institute is to develop and disseminate knowledge about the peaceful resolution of international conflict. To accomplish this the Institute has set the following goals: To provide creative practical insights through research, education, and training on negotiation, mediation, and other skills to those actively engaged in resolving international conflicts; to expand the body of knowledge about the nature and processes of peace, war, and international conflict management; and to disseminate information to the public about these subjects. Among the Institute's instruments are grants, fellowships, a library, and in-house projects. The grants program provides financial support to nonprofit organizations, including private colleges and universities; official public institutions, including public schools, colleges, universities, libraries, and Federal, State, and local agencies; and individuals, whether or not they are associated with nonprofit or official public institutions. The Jennings Randolph Program for International Peace offers senior fellowships annually to practitioners or scholars in the U.S. and around the world who join the Institute for about ten months to work on projects concerning the sources and nature of international conflict and ways of managing conflict and sustaining peace. The program also awards Peace Scholar Dissertation Fellowships annually to outstanding doctoral students enrolled in an accredited university in the U.S. who are researching or writing a dissertation that promises to contribute knowledge relevant to the formulation of policy on international peace and conflict issues. The Jeannette Rankin Library Program is developing four main components on international peacemaking: a specialized research library; a network with and support for other libraries, both specialized and public; an oral history resource; and bibliographic as well as other data bases. Institute-directed projects under the Education and Public Information Program include an educational TV program and cassette programs on such topics as U.S.-Soviet summitry and a National Peace Essay Contest for high school students. The in-house Research and Studies is completing a broad, systematic examination of peace and conflict management theories and features workshops and seminars. Institute publications include biennial report to Congress and the President; a newsletter, The Untied States Institute of Peace Journal; and short issue papers, in brief. For more information please visit the Institute's web sit at www.usip.org.

CORPORATION FOR NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE (CNCS) (94.002-94.016)

The Corporation for National Service is a federal agency working in partnership with state and local governments and non-profit organizations. The Corporation administers the AmeriCorps national service program, which includes national and state grant programs, AmeriCorps*VISTA and the AmeriCorps*National Civilian Community Corps; the National Senior Service Corps (Foster Grandparents, Senior Companions and the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program); and the Learn and Serve America service-learning program. The Corporation's mission is to engage Americans of all backgrounds in community-based service. This service addresses the nation's education, public safety, human and environmental needs to achieve direct and demonstrable results. In doing so, the Corporation fosters civic responsibility, encourages community teamwork, and provides educational opportunity for those who make a substantial commitment to service. SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION (SSA) (96.001-96.020) On March 31, 1995, the Social Security Administration (SSA) became an independent agency. SSA administers a national program of contributory social insurance. Employees, employers, and the self-employed pay contributions which are pooled in special trust funds. When earnings cease or are reduced because the worker retires, dies, or becomes disabled, monthly cash benefits are paid to replace part of the earnings the family has lost. Part of the workers contribution goes into a separate hospital insurance trust fund. This fund helps disabled workers, retirees, and their dependents with their hospital bills. They may also elect to receive assistance with medical expenses. This is done by the workers paying a percentage of supplementary medical insurance premiums. The Federal government pays the balance. Together, these two programs are often referred to as "Medicare." Medicare protection is also provided, under certain conditions, to Railroad Retirement beneficiaries based on a disability. The principal functions of SSA include, but are not limited to; research and recommendations oriented to the problems of poverty; health care for the aged, blind, and disabled; long-range planning, design, and development of SSA administrative plans; data processing systems used in establishing and maintaining records essential to its' various programs; statistical measurement and systematic evaluation of its' programs; policy guidance for the administration of the OASDI and SSI programs;