97 STAT. 14 PUBLIC LAW 98-8 —MAR. 24, 1983 REDUCING AND STABIUZING INTEREST RATES It is the sense of the Congress that the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve and the Federal Open Market Committee with due regard for controlling inflation so as not to have an opposite effect of driving interest rates upward should continue such actions as are necessary to achieve and maintain a level of interest rates low enough to generate significant economic growth and thereby reduce the current intolerable level of unemployment as they have since the Committee on Appropriations on April 26, 1982 obtained an investigation of the Federal Reserve System by the General Ac- counting Office. MAINTAINING AND PROTECTING PUBLIC INVESTMENT FEDERAL BUILDINGS In order to assist in reducing the backlog of needed maintenance and repair of Federal buildings across the Nation, $125,000,000 for payment to the "Federal Buildings Fund", General Services Admin- istration, to remain available until expended, which shall be availa- ble under the subactivity "Alterations and repairs" for projects which do not require prospectuses. 96 Stat. 2097. 23 USC 104 note. 96 Stat. 2098. 23 USC 104 note. Effective date. REBUILDING AMERICA S HIGHWAYS To accelerate the construction and reconstruction of the Nation's highways and to improve safety on the Nation's highways, which will result in productive jobs, an additional amount of $33,000,000, to remain available until expended, to demonstrate methods to acceler- ate the widening of existing highways: Provided, That nothing in this Act shall be construed to modify the policy for purchases set forth in Public Law 97-424: Provided further. That, notwithstanding any other provision of law, the total of all obligations for Federal-aid highways and Highway safety construction programs for fiscal year 1983 shall not exceed $12,375,000,000: Provided further. That this limitation shall be administered in accordance with section 104 of Public Law 97-424. TO SPEED UP IMPROVEMENT OF MASS TRANSPORTATION To accelerate the construction, modernization and improvement of urban mass transportation systems, to increase the mobility of the urban work force which will result in productive jobs, an additional amount of $132,650,000, to remain available until expended. The Congress disapproves the proposed deferral of budget authority in the amount of $229,000,000 for the Mass Transportation Capital Fund (deferral numbered D83-59), as set forth in the Presi- dent's special message which was transmitted to the Congress on February 1, 1983. This disapproval shall be effective on the date of enactment of this Act and the amount of the proposed deferral disapproved herein shall be made available for obligation. REBUILDING RAILROAD INFRASTRUCTURE To provide for labor-intensive capital improvements, the Secre- tary of Transportation shall make capital grants to the National
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