United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2000
Information Technology Act of 2000 - Authorizes the Secretaries of Education and Labor, acting jointly, to make grants to eligible partnerships (made up of an institution of higher education and a private organization such as a certified training provider) to pay the Federal share (50 percent) of establishing and carrying out information technology training programs for minorities, women, older individuals, veterans, Native Americans, dislocated workers and former program participants who have not received certification. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to make grants to appropriate organizations for awarding bonuses to teachers who achieve information technology certification. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2001 through 2005.
United States · United States Congress · 30 March 2000
International HIV-AIDS Partnership Prevention Act of 2000 - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to direct the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (AID) to: (1) establish and carry out, through a grant program, HIV-AIDS education, prevention, treatment, and research programs in foreign countries, including programs to build community capacity to slow the spread of the epidemic; and (2) take all appropriate steps to enhance cooperative efforts among foreign countries and to assist in fostering human rights with respect to the establishment of such programs. Authorizes the Administrator of AID to establish HIV-AIDS Technical Support Centers in any country mission of the AID in order to provide technical assistance to recipients of assistance under this Act. Authorizes appropriations (earmarking amounts for AIDS vaccine research and development).
United States · United States Congress · 28 March 2000
America's Better Classroom Act of 2000 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish a limited credit for qualified public school modernization bonds (qualified school construction bonds and qualified zone academy bonds). Amends the General Education Provisions Act to provide for the application of certain labor standards to projects financed under this Act. Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to establish provisions concerning employment and training activities related to the construction or reconstruction of public school facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2000
Fisheries Recovery Act of 2000 - Amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson Act) regarding avoiding and minimizing bycatch and bycatch mortality. Modifies the definition of "essential fish habitat" to include nonmanaged fish. Requires a fishery management plan to close an area to a gear or practice that may affect such habitat unless the Regional Fishery Management Council determines that closure is not necessary and the Secretary of Commerce finds that the gear or practice will have a minimal adverse impact on habitat and minimal bycatch. Requires a Federal agency to which the Secretary has recommended habitat conservation measures to ensure that its action is not likely to adversely modify or impair habitat. Requires that conservation organization representatives be included on Councils. Removes references to international agreements from provisions relating to rebuilding overfished fisheries. Directs the Secretary, during preparation of a highly migratory species plan or amendment, to take into account (currently, to minimize, to the extent practicable) any disadvantage to U.S. fishermen in relation to foreign competitors. Amends the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act of 1975 to modify the composition of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas. (Sec. 7) Amends the Magnuson Act to mandate observers on commercial fishing vessels to collect data necessary for the conservation and management of the fishery. Requires a permit and fees regarding: (1) a vessel fishing in the exclusive economic zone or special areas or for anadromous species of Continental Shelf fishery resources; (2) the operator of such a vessel; or (3) the first U.S. processor to receive the fish. (Sec. 8) Modifies: (1) the definition of "overfishing" and "overfished" to include jeopardizing the ecological integrity and sustainability of marine ecosystems; (2) conservation and management measure requirements; and (3) fishery management plan requirements to add ecosystem considerations. Requires each: (1) fishery management plan to have a fishery impact statement; and (2) Council established under the International Convention for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas to prepare a Fisheries Ecosystem Plan for each major marine ecosystem in its jurisdiction. (Sec. 9) Modifies requirements regarding the contents of fishery management plans and rebuilding overfished fisheries. (Sec. 10) Defines "precautionary approach" as exercising additional caution in favor of conservation when information is absent, uncertain, unreliable, or inadequate. Applies that approach to conservation and management measures. (Sec. 11) Authorizes appropriations to carry out the Magnuson Act.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 2000
Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Act of 2000 - Amends the matching grant program for law enforcement armor vests under the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to direct that the matching portion equal 50 percent if: (1) such grant is to a unit of local government with fewer than 100,000 residents; (2) the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance determines that the quantity of vests to be purchased with such grant is reasonable; and (3) such portion does not cause such grant to violate certain maximum amount requirements. Directs that: (1) funds available be awarded, without regard to specified "preferential consideration" provisions, to each qualifying unit of local government with fewer than 100,000 residents; and (2) any remaining funds available be awarded to other qualifying applicants. Provides that if an application is submitted in conjunction with a transaction for the purchase of armor vests, grant amounts may not be used to fund any portion of that purchase unless, before the application is submitted, the applicant: (1) receives clear and conspicuous notice that receipt of the grant amounts requested in the application is uncertain; and (2) expressly assumes the obligation to carry out the transaction regardless of whether such amounts are received. Redefines "armor vest" to include body armor which has been tested through a specified voluntary compliance testing program, and found to meet or exceed the requirements of NIJ Standard 0115.00, or any subsequent revision of such standard. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2000
Virgin Islands and Guam Constitutional Self-Government Act of 2000 Amends Federal law regarding the Virgin Islands and Guam to provide that: (1) no constitution shall be deemed approved by Congress by the lapse of a specified deadline, but Congress must approve it before it can be submitted to the voters; and (2) establishment of local constitutional self-government does not preclude or prejudice further future exercise of the right of self-determination regarding the ultimate political status of either such territory.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2000
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act Amendments of 2000 - Amends the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act to expand the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation's authority to accept and administer private gifts within the Departments of Commerce and the Interior. (Sec. 3) Increases the Foundation's Board of Directors from 15 to 25 members, including the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere. (Sec. 4) Authorizes the Foundation to have its principal offices in Washington, D.C. (as currently provided), or in the bordering counties of Maryland or Virginia. Sets forth conditions for the Foundation to: (1) acquire and convey property, including agency approval; and (2) invest and deposit Federal funds. Revises provisions relating to agency approval of acquisitions of property and of conveyances and grants. Sets forth limitations relating to the Foundation's: (1) reconveyance of real property; and (2) expenditures for printing services or capital equipment. (Sec. 5) Authorizes appropriations for FY 2001 through 2006 for the Departments of Commerce and the Interior to carry out activities under the Act (conservation or management of fish, wildlife, plants, and other natural resources). Authorizes the Foundation to accept funds from a Federal agency under any other Federal law to further its conservation and management activities. Sets forth matching funds requirements. Prohibits Foundation grants from being used for litigation expenses or for lobbying Congress. Declares that nothing in this Act authorizes the Foundation to perform any function for which authority is provided to the National Park Foundation by specified Federal law.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2000
Civil Rights for International Travelers Act - Prohibits U.S. Customs Service inspectors or other officials from subjecting travelers to detentions and searches based on race, religion, gender, national origin, or sexual orientation of the traveler, except when acting upon specific information that a particular traveler suspected of engaging in specific illegal activity is described by one or more of such characteristics. Requires all Customs Service inspectors and other similar officials to undergo periodic training on the procedures for detention and searches of travelers, with particular emphasis on the prohibition against profiling of travelers based on such characteristics. Directs the Commissioner of the Customs Service to study and report annually to Congress on detentions and searches of travelers by the Service during the previous year, including the number of searches of travelers, their race, gender, and national origin, the type of searches conducted (including but not limited to pat down searches and intrusive nonroutine searches), and their results. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2000
Recognizes the historic significance of the centennial of the raising of the American flag over the U.S. Territory of American Samoa. Acknowledges 100 years of American Samoa's loyalty and service to the United States. Reaffirms a commitment to U.S. citizens and nationals of America Samoa for improved self-governance, economic development, and the expansion of domestic commerce.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2000
Coral Reef Conservation and Restoration Partnership Act of 2000 - Establishes the Coral Reef Task Force to, among other things: (1) coordinate all Federal activities related to coral reefs; (2) coordinate national policies, programs, and priorities for the conservation and protection of U.S. coral reefs and reef ecosystems; (3) coordinate coral reef research programs; (4) promote actions for the conservation and sustainable use of coral reef resources worldwide; and (5) recommend solutions to reduce unsustainable fishing practices on coral reefs worldwide. Requires the Task Force to publish and report to Congress on a national coral reef action strategy. Directs the Task Force to submit a coordinated U.S. coral reef mapping, monitoring, and assessment program to Congress. Grants the Secretary of Commerce exclusive authority in the Federal Government for managing the fishery resources of coral reef ecosystems. Requires the Secretary, subject to the availability of appropriations, to provide grants for coral reef conservation projects to State or local governments with jurisdiction over coral reefs and educational institutions or nonprofit organizations with expertise in coral reef conservation. Sets forth requirements for eligible projects, including matching fund requirements. Authorizes the Secretary, subject to the availability of appropriations, to conduct activities to conserve coral reefs and coral reef ecosystems. Authorizes and allocates appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2000
Reserve Employer Tax Credit Act of 2000 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide: (1) employers a business tax credit for a portion of compensation that was not paid with respect to members of the military reserves who were absent from work on qualified reserve duty; (2) a comparable credit for participating self-employed individuals; and (3) for the deduction of certain expenses paid or incurred by members of a Reserve component of the armed forces.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2000
Commends: (1) the Government of the Republic of South Africa for its quick response and assistance to the Mozambican people; (2) the Government of the United Kingdom for announcing debt cancellation for Mozambique so that financial resources may be dedicated to the national relief and recovery effort; and (3) the Administration for its growing involvement and leadership in coordinating America's disaster assistance package to Mozambique. Urges the U.S. Government to take the lead in coordinating international efforts to help Mozambique salvage what remains of this year's food crops and to provide seeds for rural agricultural growers. Calls for the international community to: (1) continue to provide emergency relief, airlift capacity, and other disaster assistance to Mozambique for the next 90 days;(2) take all necessary steps to locate and demarcate areas that may now harbor semi-boyant plastic land mines transported to new locations by the flooding in Mozambique; (3) develop a coordinated response to the Government of Mozambique's request for recovery and reconstruction assistance for buildings and transportation infrastructure; and (4) assist the nations of southern Africa to increase their capacity to respond to national emergencies and natural disasters.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 2000
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) upon approval of the accession of China to the World Trade Organization (WTO), the United States representative to the WTO should request that the WTO General Council consider Taiwan's accession to the WTO as its next order of business; and (2) the United States should be prepared to counter any effort by any WTO member country, upon China's accession, to block Taiwan's.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2000
Vaccines for the New Millennium Act of 2000 - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to restate as the goal for the protection of children from immunizable diseases the universal protection of all children from such diseases by December 31, 2009. (Sec. 4) Authorizes appropriations for FY 2001 and 2002 for U.S. contributions to: (1) the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations; and (2) the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative. Requires the President to include in a required report for such fiscal years information on the effectiveness of the above Global Alliance in meeting its immunization and research and development goals. (Sec. 5) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide a business tax credit of 30 percent of qualified vaccine research expenses for a taxable year. Includes as appropriate vaccine research research with respect to malaria, tuberculosis, HIV, or any infectious disease which causes over one million deaths annually. Prohibits such credit from being taken into account when determining the current credit allowed for increasing research expenditures. Prohibits the credit for any research conducted outside the United States. Expresses the sense of Congress that if such credit is allowed, then the corporation receiving such credit should certify to the Secretary of the Treasury that, within one year after that vaccine is licensed, such corporation will develop a good faith plan to maximize international access to high quality and affordable vaccines. Directs the Institute of Medicine to conduct a study of the effectiveness of such credit in stimulating vaccine research, and to report study results to Congress. (Sec. 6) Provides a lifesaving vaccine sale credit equal to the amount of qualified vaccine sales for a taxable year. Defines a lifesaving vaccine as one which is approved by the Food and Drug Administration and used for malaria, tuberculosis, HIV, or any infectious disease which causes over one million deaths annually. Provides total credit limits for 2002 through 2010 (zero credit after 2011). Provides credit limit allocation and authorized carryover. (Sec. 7) Establishes in the Treasury the Lifesaving Vaccine Purchase Fund for purchases of eligible vaccines defined earlier under this Act for distribution to developing countries. Limits to $100 million Fund expenditures in a fiscal year. Appropriates funds for the Fund. (Sec. 8) States that the President should enter into negotiations with officials of foreign governments and other interested parties for the establishment of an international vaccine purchase fund that would: (1) accept contributions from governments of developed countries; (2) use such contributions to purchase and distribute eligible vaccines in developing countries; and (3) be a significant market incentive for private sector vaccine research. Requires an annual report from the President to Congress. (Sec. 9) Establishes the Lifesaving Vaccine Advisory Commission to: (1) review the progress of national and international efforts to develop eligible vaccines; (2) examine the merits of innovative vaccine research financing that combines public subsidies with private sector research and development efforts; and (3) develop consensus among industry and public health advocates on policy recommendations for ways in which the Federal Government can further advance public-private partnerships in vaccine research and development. Requires a final report from the Commission to the President and Congress. (Sec. 10) Expresses the sense of Congress that flexible or differential pricing for vaccines which provide lower prices for the poorest countries is one of several valid strategies to accelerate the introduction of vaccines in developing countries.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2000
Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to add certain inscription information to the markers on graves in the National Cemetery of the Pacific containing the remains of unknown casualties that died in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2000
Telework Tax Incentive Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit of up to $500 annually for "qualified teleworking expenses." Defines such expenses.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2000
Recognizes the right of the Austrian people to express their political views through a democratic election, but reaffirms the right and obligation of the U.S. House of Representatives to express its opposition to the anti-democratic, racist, and xenophobic views that have been expressed by Joerg Haider and other leaders of the FPO and to state its opposition to the party's participation in the Austrian Government. Condemns the insulting, racist, and xenophobic statements which have been made over many years by Haider and other leaders of the party. Expresses regret and dismay that the FPO will play a major role in the new Austrian Government. Commends the leaders of the European Union (EU), the 14 other member states of the EU, Canada, Norway, and other countries which have expressed their serious concerns regarding the participation of the FPO in such Government. Calls upon: (1) the President, the Secretary of State, and other U.S. Government officials and agencies to emphasize to Austrian Government officials the concern about the inclusion of any party in the Austrian Government, including the FPO, that has been associated with xenophobic, racist policies, and statements supportive of Nazi-era programs; (2) Members of Congress to use any meetings with ministers and other political leaders of that Government to express concern for Austria's continued adherence to democratic standards and full respect for human rights; and (3) the Secretary of State to continue to scrutinize the policies of the new Austrian Government and to be prepared to take additional measures if circumstances so warrant.
United States · United States Congress · 29 February 2000
Truthfulness, Responsibility, and Accountability in Contracting Act - Prohibits any Federal agency from making a decision to privatize, outsource, contract out, or contract for the performance of a function currently performed by such agency or to conduct a study to convert a function from Federal to contractor performance. Authorizes any agency to apply to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget for a waiver of such prohibition with respect to a particular function. Authorizes the Director to grant such waiver when: (1) necessary for the preservation of national security; (2) critical for the provision of patient care; or (3) necessary to prevent extraordinary economic harm. Requires waiver requests to be published in the Federal Register. Provides additional exceptions for functions with respect to which a labor organization is accorded exclusive recognition. (Sec. 5) Requires each agency to: (1) establish a centralized reporting system that allows it to generate periodic reports on its contracting efforts during the preceding and current fiscal years; and (2) generate and annually submit to the Director such reports. Requires each agency to report to specified congressional committees on the number of Federal employee positions and positions held by non-Federal employees under a contract between such agency and an individual or entity that has been subject to public-private competition. Requires such reports to be made available through the Internet. (Sec. 6) Requires, after the termination of the contracting prohibition, any decision by an agency to privatize, outsource, or contract out for the performance of a function to be based on the results of a public-private competition process that: (1) formally compares the costs of Federal employee performance of such function with the costs of performance by a contractor; (2) employs the most efficient organizational process; and (3) is conducted in consultation or through bargaining with the exclusive representative of the Federal employees performing the function, if applicable. (Sec. 7) Requires an agency to either conduct a new public-private competition or convert a function to performance by Federal employees if a report indicates that: (1) contracting out costs exceed costs of performance by Federal employees; or (2) contracting out fails to meet quality control standards. (Sec. 8) Directs the Secretary of Labor to conduct a survey of the wages and quantifiable benefits provided by contractors to non-Federal personnel working under contract and to report survey results to specified congressional committees. Requires the Director to review the survey and report findings. (Sec. 9) Requires the Comptroller General to report on compliance by Federal agencies with requirements of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 29 February 2000
Condemns the repressive anti-Baha'i policies and actions of the Government of Iran. Continues to hold such Government responsible for upholding the rights of all its nationals in a manner consistent with Iran's obligations under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and other international agreements guaranteeing the civil and political rights of its citizens. Expresses concern that individual Baha'is continue to suffer from severely repressive and discriminatory government actions, including executions and death sentences, solely on account of their religion. Urges the Government of Iran to: (1) permit Baha'i students to attend and Baha'i faculty to teach at Iranian universities, return property confiscated from the Baha'i Open University (OU), free imprisoned faculty members of OU, and permit OU to continue to function; (2) implement fully the conclusions and recommendations on the emancipation of the Iranian Baha'i community made by the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on Religious Intolerance, Professor Abdelfattah Amor, in his March 1996 report to the UN Commission of Human Rights; and (3) extend to the Baha'i community the rights guaranteed by UDHR and the international covenants of human rights. Calls upon the President to continue to: (1) assert the U.S. Government's concern regarding Iran's violations of the rights of its citizens, including members of the Baha'i community, along with expressions of its concern regarding the Iranian Government's support for international terrorism and its efforts to acquire weapons of mass destruction; (2) emphasize that the United States regards the Iranian Government's human rights practices, particularly its treatment of such community and other religious minorities, as a significant factor in the development of the U.S. Government's relations with the Government of Iran; (3) emphasize the need for the UN Special Representative for Human Rights to be granted permission to enter Iran; (4) urge the Iranian Government to emancipate the Baha'i community by granting rights guaranteed by UDHR and the international covenants on human rights; and (5) encourage other governments to continue to appeal to the Iranian Government, and to cooperate with other governments and international organizations, including the UN, in efforts to protect the religious rights of the Baha'is and other minorities through joint appeals and other appropriate actions.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2000
2002 Winter Olympic Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue five dollar gold coins and one dollar silver coins emblematic of the participation of American athletes in the 2002 Olympic Winter Games. Mandates that coin design be selected by the Secretary after consultation with: (1) the Commission of Fine Arts; (2) the United States Olympic Committee; and (3) Olympic Properties of the United States-Salt Lake 2002 (created and owned by the Salt Lake Organizing Committee). States that all surcharges from the coin sales ($35 for a $5 coin and $10 for a $1 coin) shall be distributed by the Secretary to: (1) Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the Olympic Winter Games of 2002; and (2) the United States Olympic Committee.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2000
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue five-dollar gold coins, one-dollar silver coins, and half-dollar clad coins emblematic of the inspirational life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Mandates prompt payment of all surcharges received from the coin sales to the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Legacy Fund of the Library of Congress for the purpose of securing the personal papers of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., for the Library of Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2000
Child Care Facilities Financing Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award competitive grants to eligible intermediaries to deposit into child care revolving funds for technical and financial assistance to eligible recipients to pay the Federal matching share of costs of acquisition, construction, or improvement of center-based or home-based child care facilities or equipment, or for the improvement of related management and business practices. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2000
Authorizes presentation of a gold medal on behalf of Congress to former President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy Reagan. Authorizes specified sums to be charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund for medal costs. Mandates that sale proceeds from duplicate bronze medals be deposited into such Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2000
Keep Our Promise to America's Military Retirees Act - Includes as an employee, for purposes of Federal provisions authorizing enrollment under the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program: (1) a member of the armed forces who began service before June 7, 1956, and retired after a minimum of 20 years of such service or by reason of a service-connected disability; and (2) the surviving widow or widower of such member. Directs the Secretary of Defense to enter into an agreement with the Office of Personnel Management to provide FEHB coverage to the following eligible beneficiaries: (1) a member or former member entitled to military retired or retainer pay; (2) an unremarried former spouse who was married to a member for at least 20 years, during which such member performed at least 20 years of retirement-creditable military service; (3) a dependent of a deceased qualifying member or former member; (4) a dependent of a living member or former member; and (5) a family member of such member. Repeals a provision prohibiting coverage under the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services for persons entitled to hospital insurance benefits under part A of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Act.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2000
Recognizes the 50th anniversary of the Korean War, and expresses the gratitude of the American people for the service of members of the armed forces during such War.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 1999
Expresses the sense of the Congress that a portion of the budget surplus should be used to fulfill the moral and legal responsibilities of the United States by ensuring proper payment and management of all federally held tribal trust fund accounts and individual Indian money accounts.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that a renewed formal dialog should begin between the leadership of the People's Republic of China and the Dalai Lama or his representatives.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1999
Indian Health Care Improvement Act Amendments of 2000 - Amends the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (the Act) to require funding authorized for programs under title I (Indian health, human resources, and development) of the Act to be allocated by service area under a formula developed in consultation with Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations. Empowers the Director of the Indian Health Service (IHS) with the administration of Indian health professions scholarships. Requires all recipients of such scholarships awarded after 2001 to meet the active duty service obligation (service with the IHS or related service for Indians) within the service area from which the scholarship was awarded. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make funds available to Indian tribes and tribal organizations to assist such entities in educating Indians to serve as health professionals in Indian communities, as long as such Indians are enrolled or accepted for enrollment in a course of study in one of the health professions contemplated by the Act. Requires a written contractual agreement from such recipients to provide service in an Indian health program in the same service area where the entity providing the scholarship is located. Provides Indian health scholarship recipients a preference for IHS employment or authorizes employment by a program of an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or urban Indian organization, or other HHS agencies, as available. Adds Indian tribes and tribal organizations as participants in the Community Health Representative Program under the Act, which provides for the training and use of Indians as community health representatives (currently, as community health paraprofessionals). Allows participants completing a term of education under the Indian Health Service Loan Repayment Program to be employed within an Indian urban organization. Discontinues the annual authorization of appropriations for the Indian Health Scholarship and Loan Repayment Recovery Fund. Authorizes the Secretary to reimburse health professionals seeking positions with Indian tribes, tribal organizations, or urban Indian organizations (currently, only those seeking employment with the IHS) for certain recruitment evaluation expenses. Limits to three years demonstration programs to enable Indian tribes, tribal organizations (current law), and urban Indian organizations to recruit, place, and retain Indian health professionals. Requires health professionals from urban Indian organizations to be given an equal opportunity to participate in a demonstration program to enable Indian health professionals to pursue advanced training or research in needed areas of study. Discontinues the annual authorization of appropriations for the Indian Nursing Program. Requires the Secretary to award grants to community colleges for programs which provide education in a health profession for individuals who desire to practice such profession in the IHS or a tribal health program (currently, only on an Indian reservation or tribal clinic). Provides a funding priority for tribally controlled colleges in service areas where they exist. Authorizes the Secretary to pay a retention bonus to any health professional (currently, physician or nurse) employed by or assigned to, and serving in, Indian tribes, tribal organizations, or urban Indian organizations (currently, only in the IHS) who meet specified requirements. Directs the Secretary to develop and operate a National Community Health Aide Program based on the current Community Health Aide Program for Alaska. Authorizes the Secretary to fund pilot programs for tribes and tribal organizations to address the chronic shortages of health professionals. Deems scholarships provided under title I of the Act as "qualified scholarships" and therefore excluded from gross income for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code. Makes a certain prohibition on the Secretary removing a member of the National Health Service Corps from an Indian health program applicable to health programs operated by urban Indian organizations as well. Requires all service areas served by programs operated by the IHS, tribes, tribal organizations, or urban Indian organizations to be designated as Health Professional Shortage areas under the Public Health Service Act. Authorizes appropriations through FY 2012 to carry out title I of the Act. Provides additional authorized uses for funds appropriated under the authority of provisions regarding the Indian Health Care Improvement Fund. Authorizes such funds to be allocated to Indian tribes or tribal organizations. Requires funds provided through the Indian Catastrophic Health Emergency Fund to be administered by service area offices based upon priorities determined by the Indian tribes and tribal organizations within each area. Increases the cost level required to qualify for payments from the Fund. Requires the Secretary to continue to fund through FY 2012 each model diabetes project in existence on the date of enactment of this Act. Directs the Secretary to include funding to establish dialysis programs. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into arrangements with Indian tribes or tribal organizations for the delivery of long-term care and similar services to Indians on a shared- services basis. Directs the Secretary to make funding available for research to further the performance of the health service responsibilities of the IHS, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations and to coordinate the activities of other agencies within HHS to address such research needs. Directs the Secretary to provide mammography and other cancer screening through Indian tribes or tribal organizations (currently, only through the IHS). Requires the Secretary to pay certain patient travel costs through Indian tribes and tribal organizations (currently, only through the IHS). Revises provisions regarding epidemiology centers. Directs the Secretary to provide funding to Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations (currently, Indian tribes) to develop comprehensive school health education programs for children from preschool through grade 12 in schools (currently, schools on reservations) for the benefit of Indian and urban Indian children. Includes urban Indian preadolescent and adolescent youth within a program for innovative mental and physical disease prevention and health promotion and treatment. Authorizes the Secretary to make funding available to Indian tribes and tribal organizations for the prevention, control, and elimination of communicable and infectious diseases. Authorizes the Secretary, acting through the IHS, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations, to provide funding for other health care services and programs not otherwise described in the Act, including hospice care and assisted living, long-term health care, home- and community-based services, public health functions, and traditional health care practices. Directs the Secretary, acting through the IHS, Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations, to provide funding to monitor and improve the quality of health care for Indian women of all ages through the planning and delivery of programs administered by the IHS. (Currently, an Office of Indian Women's Health Care has such monitoring duty.) Revises provisions regarding nuclear resource development health hazards to direct the Secretary and the IHS to conduct studies and ongoing monitoring programs to determine trends in health hazards to Indian miners and to Indians on or near Indian reservations and in Indian communities as a result of environmental hazards which may result in chronic or life-threatening health problems. Extends through FY 2012 the designation of Arizona as a contract health service delivery area for purposes of providing health care services to members of federally recognized Arizona Indian tribes. Authorizes the Secretary to fund a program using the California Rural Indian Health Board as a contract care intermediary to improve the accessibility of health services to California Indians. Allows certain counties in California that are currently excluded from the contract health services delivery area to be included in such area if funding is provided by the IHS for such services in those counties. Requires the IHS to provide funds for health care programs and facilities operated by Indian tribes and tribal organizations under funding agreements entered into under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDEA) on the same basis as such funds are provided to programs and facilities operated directly by the IHS. Exempts from State licensing requirements health care professionals employed by Indian tribes and tribal organizations to carry out the above funding agreements if such individuals are licensed in any other State. Allows elderly or disabled Indians receiving emergency medical care or services from a non-IHS provider or in a non-IHS facility 30 days to notify the IHS of such treatment or admission. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations for title II (health services) of the Act. Prohibits the closure of any hospital, outpatient health care, inpatient service, or special care facility operated by the IHS if the Secretary has not submitted to Congress at least one year prior to such proposed closure an evaluation of the impact of such closure. Directs the Secretary to establish a health care facility priority system. Directs the Secretary, beginning in the year 2000, to annually transmit to the President a report setting forth the needs of the IHS and all Indian tribes and tribal organizations for inpatient, outpatient, and specialized care facilities. Directs the Secretary to consult and cooperate with Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations in developing innovative approaches to address unmet needs for the construction of health facilities. Provides authority for the Secretary to use specified appropriated funds for providing sanitation facilities and related services to Indian tribes and tribal organizations. Requires the Secretary to: (1) enter into inter-agency agreements with appropriate Federal agencies to provide financial assistance for safe water supply and sanitary sewage disposal facilities under the Act; and (2) establish standards applicable to the planning, design, and construction of water supply and sanitary sewage and solid waste disposal facilities funded under the Act. Makes the Indian family, community, or tribe primarily responsible for establishing, collecting, and using reasonable user fees for operating and maintaining sanitation facilities. Revises the defined water sanitation deficiency levels for facilities serving an Indian individual or community. Exempts construction or renovation of facilities constructed or renovated by funds made available under title III (facilities) of the Act from the Davis-Bacon Act. Authorizes the Secretary to accept any major expansion (currently, only renovation or modernization) by an Indian tribe of any IHS facility or any other Indian health facility operated pursuant to a funding agreement entered into under ISDEA.Revises grant eligibility requirements with respect to the construction, expansion, or modernization of ambulatory care facilities. Authorizes all Federal agencies to transfer land and improvements to the IHS at no cost for the provision of health care services. Makes certain provisions that authorize leases with Indian tribes applicable to tribal organizations as well. Considers such leases as operating leases for purposes of scoring under the Budget Enforcement Act of 1990. Establishes in the Treasury the Health Care Facilities Loan Fund to provide Indian tribes and tribal organizations direct loans, or guarantees for loans, for construction of health care facilities and related facilities and staff quarters. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes Indian tribes and tribal organizations (currently, only Indian tribes) providing health care services pursuant to a funding agreement under the ISDEA to lease permanent structures for providing health care services without obtaining advance approval in appropriations Acts. Directs the Secretary to establish joint venture demonstration projects under which an Indian tribe or tribal organization shall expend tribal, private, or other available funds for the acquisition or construction of a health care facility for a minimum of ten years under a no-cost lease, in exchange for agreement by the IHS to provide the equipment, supplies, and staffing for such facility. Makes an Indian tribe or tribal organization liable for noncompletion of such a project. Adds Alaska Native lands to the definition of "Indian lands" for purposes of giving priority to locating Bureau of Indian Affairs and IHS facilities on such lands. Requires an annual report from the Secretary to the President identifying the backlog of maintenance and repair work required at both IHS and tribal health care facilities. Authorizes an Indian tribe or tribal organization which operates a hospital or other health care facility and the federally owned quarters associated therewith pursuant to a funding agreement under the ISDEA to establish the rental rates charged, and to notify the Secretary of its election to exercise such authority. Requires rental occupants to be notified at least 60 days in advance of a change in rental rates by an Indian tribe or tribal organization. Authorizes such tribe or organization to collect rents directly from Federal employees occupying such quarters, under specified conditions and procedures. Authorizes the Secretary to accept from any source funds for the construction of Indian health care facilities, and to enter into funding agreements with other Federal entities for such purposes. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations for title III of the Act. Requires the Secretary, in making payments to IHS service units for services rendered to Indians eligible for benefits under title XIX (Medicaid), to ensure that each such unit receives 100 (currently 80) percent of the amounts to which such facilities are entitled under the Medicaid provisions.Directs the Secretary to make grants to, or enter into funding agreements with, Indian tribes (currently, only tribal organizations) for establishing and administering programs on or near Indian reservations and trust areas and Alaska Native villages to assist Indians to enroll and apply for Medicare, Medicaid, and child health assistance under XXI (Children's Health Insurance) of the Social Security Act. Requires the Secretary to make grants or enter into contracts with urban Indian organizations for the provision of such assistance to urban Indians. Makes permanent (currently a demonstration project) a program under which an Indian tribe or tribal organization may directly bill and receive reimbursement for health care services provided for which payment is made under Medicare, Medicaid, a State's children's insurance health plan approved under title XXI (Children's Health Insurance) of the Social Security Act, or from any other third-party payor. Applies to urban Indian organizations a certain right to recovery of expenses incurred by the United States, Indian tribes, or tribal organizations in providing health services. Provides for the enforcement of such right of recovery. Authorizes tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations to use funding from the Secretary under this Act to purchase managed care coverage for IHS beneficiaries. Directs the Secretary to examine, and report to Congress on, the feasibility of entering into or expanding existing arrangements for the sharing of medical facilities and services between the IHS and the Department of Veterans Affairs and other appropriate Federal agencies. Authorizes the IHS Director to enter into agreements with other Federal agencies to assist in achieving parity in health services for Indians. Makes the IHS and programs operated by Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations the payor of last resort for services provided to persons eligible for services from these programs, notwithstanding contradicting Federal, State, or local law, unless such law explicitly provides otherwise. Makes such entities eligible to receive payment or reimbursement for services provided by such entities from any federally funded health care program, unless there is an explicit prohibition on such payments in the applicable authorizing statute. Authorizes the IHS service unit in Tuba City, Arizona, to enter into a demonstration project with Arizona under which the IHS would provide certain Medicaid services to IHS/Medicaid eligibles in return for payment from the State. Entitles an Indian tribe or tribal organization carrying out programs under the ISDEA, or an urban Indian organization carrying out programs under title V of the Act, to purchase Federal health and life insurance for the employees of such tribe or organization. Requires certain consultation with Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations prior to the adoption of any policy or regulation by the Health Care Financing Administration. Authorizes the IHS, an Indian tribe, or tribal organization to apply for a waiver of certain Medicare, Medicaid, or Children's Health Insurance sanctions. Excludes from the definition of "remuneration," for purposes of specified provisions of the Social Security Act, certain exchanges of value between or among the IHS, Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations related to the provision of health care services. Prohibits any Indian eligible for services under Medicare, Medicaid, or Children's Health Insurance of the Social Security Act from being charged a deductible or other payment for any service provided by or through the IHS, an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or urban Indian organization. Excludes certain income and property from the estate, for purposes of eligibility for services or implementing estate recovery rights under Medicare, Medicaid, or Children's Health Insurance. Prohibits a parent from being responsible for reimbursing the Federal Government or a State for the cost of medical services provided to a child through the IHS, an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or urban Indian organization. Provides such entities with a right of recovery from all private and public health plans for the reasonable costs of delivering health services to Indians entitled to receive services. Requires States entering into agreements with one or more managed care organizations to provide services under Medicaid or Children's Health Insurance to enter into such an agreement with the IHS, an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or urban Indian organization that can provide services to Indians who may be eligible or required to enroll in such a managed care plan. Authorizes the Secretary to treat the Navajo Nation as a State, for purposes of Medicaid, to provide services to Indians living within the boundaries of the Navajo Nation. Directs the Health Care Financing Administration to establish and fund a National Indian Technical Advisory Group and an Indian Medicaid Advisory Committee. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations for title IV (access to health services) of the Act. Authorizes the Secretary, through the IHS, to contract with, or make grants to, an urban Indian organization that provides or arranges for the provision of health care services to urban Indians in more than one urban center. Changes from quarterly to semiannually certain reporting requirements of urban Indian organizations receiving or expending funds pursuant to a grant or contract with respect to health care services provided to urban Indians. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to contractors or other recipients for the lease, purchase, renovation, construction, or expansion of facilities in order to assist them in complying with licensure or certification requirements. Authorizes the Secretary, acting through the IHS or the Health Resources and Services Administration, to provide loans to such entities from the Urban Indian Health Care Facilities Revolving Loan Fund (established herein) for the construction, renovation, expansion, or purchase of health care facilities. Redesignates the Branch of Urban Health Programs as the Office of Urban Indian Health. Includes among office responsibilities the provision of technical assistance to urban Indian organizations. Treats the Tulsa Clinic demonstration project as a permanent program within the IHS direct care program and as a service unit in the allocation of resources and coordination of Indian health care. Requires grants or contracts made or entered into by the Secretary for the administration of urban Indian alcohol programs to become effective no later than September 30, 2001.Directs the Secretary to ensure that the IHS, the Health Care Financing Administration, and other operating and staff divisions of HHS consult with urban Indian organizations prior to taking any action, or approving Federal financial assistance for any action, that may affect urban Indians or urban Indian organizations. Deems an urban Indian organization that has entered into a contract or received a grant pursuant to title V (health services for urban Indians) of the Act to be part of the Public Health Service while carrying out such contract or grant for purposes of coverage under the Federal Tort Claims Act. Directs the Secretary to make payments for the construction and operation of at least two residential alcohol treatment centers in each State where there reside urban Indian youth with a need for alcohol and substance abuse treatment services and at which there is a significant shortage of such services. Directs the Secretary to permit an urban Indian organization that has entered into a contract or received a grant under title V of the Act to use existing facilities and equipment and other personal property owned by the Federal Government, including that determined to be excess to the needs of the IHS or the General Services Administration. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to those urban Indian organizations that have entered into a contract or grant under title V of the Act for the provision of services for the prevention, treatment, and control of complications resulting from, diabetes among urban Indians. Authorizes the Secretary, through the IHS, to enter into contracts with, and make grants to, urban Indian organizations for the use of Indians trained as health service providers through the Community Health Representatives Program in the provision of health care, health promotion, and disease prevention services to urban Indians. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations for title V and VI (organizational improvements) of the Act. Directs the Secretary, acting through the IHS, Indian tribes, and tribal and urban Indian organizations, to encourage Indian tribes and tribal organizations to participate in developing area-wide plans for Indian Behavioral Health Services, including plans for treating substance abuse, mental illness, and dysfunctional and self-destructive behavior (suicide, child abuse, and family violence) among Indians. Requires the establishment of a national clearinghouse for such plans and related information. Authorizes technical assistance to Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations to develop community behavioral health plans. Directs the Secretary, acting through the IHS and Indian tribes and tribal organizations, to provide a program of comprehensive behavioral health, prevention, treatment, and aftercare for Indian tribes. Requires the development of criteria for the certification of behavioral health service providers and accreditation of service facilities providing such care. Directs (currently, authorizes) the Secretary to make funds available to urban Indian organizations to develop and implement a comprehensive behavioral health program (currently, an alcohol and substance abuse program) of prevention, intervention, treatment, and relapse prevention services that specifically address the spiritual, cultural, historical, social, and child care needs of Indian women, regardless of age. (Currently, such funding is available only to Indian tribes and tribal organizations.) Includes behavioral health services within a current program for acute detoxification and treatment for Indian youth. Authorizes the Secretary to provide specified intermediate behavioral health services to Indian children and adolescents. Requires Indian tribes or tribal organizations (currently, only the Secretary) to develop and implement within each IHS service unit community- based rehabilitation and follow-up services for Indian youth who are having significant behavioral health problems and require long-term treatment, community reintegration, and monitoring after their return to their home community. Provides for the inclusion of family members of such youth in their treatment. Directs the Secretary, acting through the IHS, Indian tribes, and tribal and urban Indian organizations, to provide programs and services to prevent and treat the abuse of multiple forms of substances, including alcohol, drugs, inhalants, and tobacco, among Indian youth residing in Indian communities, on Indian reservations, and in urban areas and to provide appropriate mental health services to address the incidence of mental illness among such youth. Directs the Secretary, acting through the IHS and Indian tribes and tribal organizations, to provide, in each IHS service area, not less than one inpatient mental health care facility for Indians with behavioral health problems. Requires the Secretary to develop and implement (or provide funding to enable Indian tribes and tribal organizations to implement) programs of behavioral health (currently, alcohol and substance abuse) community leadership training and education. Directs the Secretary, acting through Indian tribes and tribal and urban Indian organizations, to establish and operate fetal alcohol disorders programs in order to meet specified health status objectives. (Currently, the Secretary is authorized to make grants to Indian tribes and tribal organizations to establish such programs.) Redesignates a task force established for such purposes as the Fetal Alcohol Disorders Task Force. Includes urban Indian organizations as entities eligible for funding from the Secretary for such programs. Directs the Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the IHS, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations, to establish programs involving treatment for both victims and perpetrators of child sexual abuse. Directs the Secretary to provide funding to Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations, or make appropriate contracts or grants, for research on the incidence and prevalence of behavioral health problems among Indians served by the IHS or such tribes or organizations. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations for title VII (behavioral health programs) of the Act. Requires the President to include in required annual reports to Congress reports on various programs established under this Act. Requires regulations implementing amendments to the Act to be negotiated by a rulemaking committee made up of representatives of the Federal Government, Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations. Directs the Secretary to prepare and submit to Congress a plan explaining the manner and schedule by which the Secretary will implement provisions of the Act, as amended by this Act. Directs the Secretary to provide services and benefits for Indians in Montana in a manner consistent with the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in McNabb for McNabb v. Bowen. Directs the IHS to provide health care services during a moratorium period in which certain service eligibility criteria are being developed. Establishes the National Bipartisan Indian Health Care Entitlement Commission to: (1) establish a Study Committee to study the extent of Indian health services needs; (2) review and analyze the Study Committee's report; and (3) make recommendations to Congress for providing health services for Indians as an entitlement. Authorizes appropriations for the Commission. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations under title VIII (miscellaneous) of the Act.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1999
Genetically Engineered Food Right to Know Act - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA), Federal Meat Inspection Act (FMIA), and the Poultry Products Inspection Act (PPIA) to deem a food misbranded if it contains or was produced with a genetically engineered material unless its labeling contains statements meeting specified requirements. Excludes, in all three Acts, food: (1) served in restaurants; or (2) prepared primarily in a retail establishment, ready for human consumption, but not offered for sale for immediate consumption in the establishment. Excludes, for the FDCA, a medical food as defined in the Orphan Drug Act. Subjects violators to civil monetary penalties. Exempts from the penalties: (1) any person (recipient) who establishes a guaranty or undertaking signed by the person (residing in the United States) from whom the recipient in good faith received the food to the effect that the food does not contain or was not produced with a genetically engineered material; and (2) for the FDCA, an agricultural producer of a food that does not contain and was not produced with a genetically engineered material if the food becomes contaminated with a genetically engineered material (including by mingling the two), so long as the contamination was neither intentional nor negligent.
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1999
Authorizes the American Battle Monuments Commission to place within the Vietnam Veterans Memorial a plaque to honor those Vietnam veterans who died after service in the Vietnam War, but as a direct result of such service, and whose names are not otherwise eligible for placement on the Memorial wall.
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1999
Children's Health Research and Prevention Amendments of 1999 - Title I: Revision and Extension of Programs - Subtitle A: Pediatric Research Initiative - Pediatric Research Initiative Act of 1999 - Amends the Public Health Service Act (the Act) to mandate establishment, in the National Institutes of Health (NIH), of a Pediatric Research Initiative. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) (Secretary) to make available within the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development enhanced support for extramural activities relating to the training and career development of pediatric researchers. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle B: Other Programs - Extends through FY 2003 programs under the Act for: (1) immunizations; (2) screenings, referrals, and education regarding lead poisoning; and (3) the prevention and control of injuries, including traumatic brain injury. Title II: Children's Health Research and Prevention Activities - Subtitle A: Early Detection, Diagnosis, and Treatment Regarding Hearing Loss in Infants - Newborn and Infant Hearing Screening and Intervention Act of 1999 - Mandates grants or cooperative agreements to: (1) develop statewide newborn and infant hearing screening, evaluation, and intervention programs and systems; and (2) provide technical assistance to State agencies to complement an intramural program and to conduct applied research related to newborn and infant hearing screening, evaluation, and intervention programs and systems. Requires NIH to continue a program of research and development on the efficacy of new screening techniques and technology. Mandates Federal coordination and collaboration with State and local agencies, consumer groups, national medical, health, and education specialty organizations, deaf or hard-of-hearing individuals and their families, qualified professional personnel, and related commercial industries. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle B: Autism - Chapter 1: Surveillance and Research Regarding Prevalence and Pattern of Autism - Autism Statistics, Surveillance, Research, and Epidemiology Act of 1999 (ASSURE) - Authorizes grants and cooperative agreements for the collection, analysis, and reporting of data on autism and pervasive developmental disabilities. Mandates establishment, through grants or cooperative agreements, of three to five centers of excellence in autism and pervasive developmental disabilities epidemiology to collect and analyze autism information. Requires that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP) serve as the coordinating agency for autism and pervasive development disabilities surveillance through the establishment of a clearinghouse for data generated from the monitoring programs created under this chapter. Mandates establishment of an Advisory Committee for Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disabilities Epidemiology Research. Authorizes appropriations. Chapter 2: Expansion, Intensification, and Coordination of Activities of Department of Health and Human Services With Respect to Autism - Advancement in Pediatric Autism Research Act of 1999 - Directs the NIH Director to expand, intensify, and coordinate the activities of NIH with respect to autism. Requires such Director, among other things, to make awards of grants or contracts to public or nonprofit entities for centers of excellence regarding research on autism. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes the Secretary to make awards of grants and cooperative agreements for the collection, analysis, and reporting of data on autism and pervasive developmental disabilities. Directs the Secretary to establish no less than three regional centers of excellence in autism and pervasive developmental disabilities epidemiology to collect and analyze information on the number, incidence, correlates, and causes of autism and related developmental disabilities. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish a clearinghouse within the CDCP for the collection and storage of such data; and (2) coordinate the Federal response to requests for assistance regarding potential or alleged autism or developmental disability clusters. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the Secretary to establish a program to provide information and education on autism to health professionals and the general public. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to establish an Autism Coordinating Committee to coordinate HHS efforts concerning autism. Subtitle C: Poison Control Center Enhancement and Awareness - Poison Control Center Enhancement and Awareness Act - Directs the Secretary to provide coordination and assistance to regional poison control centers for the establishment of a nationwide toll-free telephone number to be used to access such centers. Authorizes appropriations. Mandates a national media campaign to educate the public about poison prevention and the availability of local poison control resources and to conduct advertising campaigns concerning the nationwide toll-free number. Authorizes appropriations. Mandates grants for certified regional poison control centers to achieve financial stability and to prevent, and provide treatment recommendations for, poisoning. Mandates other grant uses. Sets forth center certification requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle D: Birth Defects Prevention Activities - Chapter 1: Folic Acid - Folic Acid Promotion and Birth Defects Prevention Act of 1999 - Directs the Secretary to carry out a program, directly or through grants or contracts, for professional and public education and training, research, and epidemiological activities regarding folic acid and birth defects. Authorizes appropriations. Chapter 2: National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities - Establishes a National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities to: (1) collect, analyze, and make available date on birth defects; (2) conduct applied epidemiological research on prevention of such defects; and (3) provide birth defect prevention information and education to the public. Transfers to such Center all activities, budgets, and personnel of the National Center for Environmental Health that relate to birth defects, folic acid, cerebral palsy, mental retardation, child development, newborn screening, autism, fragile X syndrome, fetal alcohol syndrome, pediatric genetics, and disability prevention. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle E: Safe Motherhood Monitoring and Prevention Research - Safe Motherhood Monitoring and Prevention Research Act - Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) establish a national monitoring and surveillance program to identify and promote the investigation of deaths and severe complications that occur during pregnancy; (2) expand the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System to provide surveillance and collect data in each State; and (3) expand the Maternal and Child Health Epidemiology Program to provide technical support, financial assistance, or the time-limited assignment of senior epidemiologists to maternal and child health programs in each State. Authorizes appropriations. Permits the Secretary to carry out specified activities to promote safe motherhood. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle F: Pregnant Mothers and Infants Health Promotion - Pregnant Mothers and Infants Health Protection Act - Requires the Secretary to: (1) collect, analyze, and make available data on prenatal smoking and alcohol and illegal drug usage; (2) conduct applied epidemiological research on the prevention of prenatal and postnatal smoking and alcohol and illegal drug usage; (3) support, conduct, and evaluate the effectiveness of educational and cessation programs; and (4) provide information and education to the public on the prevention and implications of prenatal and postnatal smoking and alcohol and illegal drug usage. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle G: Utilization of Preventive Health Services - Directs the Secretary to make grants to public or nonprofit entities to establish and operate regional centers for identifying particular populations of patients and to facilitate the appropriate utilization of preventive health services by such patients. Requires the Secretary to give priority to various populations of infants, young children, and their mothers. Requires the evaluation of strategies developed through grant funding. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle H: Research and Development Regarding Fragile X - Fragile X Research Breakthrough Act of 1999 - Requires the Director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to: (1) expand, intensify, and coordinate the Institute's activities respecting research on the mental retardation disease known as fragile X; and (2) make grants to, and enter into contracts with, public or private nonprofit entities for the development and operation of at least three centers for fragile X research. Requires each center to conduct basic and clinical research, which may include clinical trials of new or improved diagnostic methods and drugs or other treatment approaches. Allows such centers to use grant funds to provide fees to individuals serving as subjects in clinical trials. Requires the Director to provide for the coordination of the centers' activities, including the exchange of information. Requires each center to use the facilities of a single institution, or be formed from a consortium of cooperating institutions. Allows support to be provided to a center for up to five years, with authorized extensions. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the Secretary to enter into contracts with qualified health professionals who agree to conduct fragile X research in return for repayment (up to $35,000 for each year of service) of such health professionals' educational loans. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle I: Children and Epilepsy - Directs the Secretary, through grants to or contracts with public or nonprofit private entities, to develop and implement public health surveillance, education, research, and intervention strategies to improve the lives of persons with epilepsy, with a particular emphasis on children. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to State and local governments for carrying out demonstration projects to improve access to health and other services regarding seizures to encourage early detection and treatment in children and others residing in medically underserved areas. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle J: Asthma Treatment Services for Children - Children's Asthma Relief Act of 1999 - Directs the Secretary to award grants to eligible entities to establish an asthma treatment grants program providing comprehensive asthma services for children and other individuals. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to encourage States to implement plans to carry out activities to assist children with asthma in accordance with the guidelines of the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (Institute). Provides that if a State child health plan under title XXI (Children's Health Insurance) of the Social Security Act provides for such activities to the Secretary's satisfaction, the Secretary shall make a grant to assist the State in carrying them out. Sets forth certain matching funds requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Act to include, within the preventive health and health services block grant, any system for reducing asthma and asthma-related illnesses, especially with regard to children, through urban cockroach pest management in public facilities through a combination of biological, cultural, physical, and chemical tools that minimizes economic, health, and environmental risks. Requires the Institute Director to: (1) identify all Federal programs carrying out asthma-related activities; (2) develop a Federal plan for responding to asthma; and (3) submit recommendations to Congress on ways to strengthen and improve Federal coordination of such activities. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the CDCP Director to: (1) conduct local asthma surveillance activities to collect data on the prevalence and severity of asthma and the quality of asthma management; and (2) compile and publish annually data on the prevalence of children suffering from asthma in each State and the childhood mortality rate associated with asthma nationally and in each State. Subtitle K: Juvenile Arthritis and Related Conditions - Requires the Directors of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases and the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases to expand and intensify their respective programs of research and related activities concerning juvenile arthritis and related conditions. Requires the NIH Director, through a grant, cooperative agreement, or contract, to establish an information resource center on arthritis and related conditions. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle L: Childhood Skeletal Malignancies - Directs the Secretary to: (1) study environmental and other risk factors for childhood skeletal cancers; (2) carry out projects to improve outcomes among children with such cancers and related secondary conditions; and (3) ensure that such activities are coordinated with other Public Health Service activities focused on childhood cancers and limb loss. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle M: Reducing Burden of Diabetes Among Children and Youth - Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop a system to collect data on juvenile diabetes, including its incidence and prevalence, and to establish a national database for such data; (2) conduct or support long-term epidemiological studies concerning juvenile diabetes; (3) implement a national public health effort to address type 2 diabetes in youth; (4) support regional clinical centers for the cure of juvenile diabetes; and (5) implement a national effort to develop a vaccine for type 1 diabetes. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle N: Miscellaneous Provisions - Requires the NIH Director to report to Congress concerning research activities with respect to rare diseases in children.
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1999
CT-43A Federal Employee Settlement Act - Directs the Secretary of the Air Force to pay $2 million to the specified beneficiary of each of the 14 Federal civilian officers and employees killed in the crash of a United States Air Force CT-43A aircraft on April 3, 1996, near Dubrovnik, Croatia. Provides that acceptance of such payment constitutes full settlement of all claims by that person against the United States arising from the death. Prohibits any representative of a beneficiary from receiving more than ten percent of a payment for services rendered in connection with the beneficiary's claim.
United States · United States Congress · 9 November 1999
Fairness for the Military Reserve Act of 1999 - Authorizes armed forces reserve and National Guard personnel traveling to perform annual training duty outside the continental United States to travel on a space-required basis between the member's home and place of duty if there is no available road or rail transportation. Directs the Secretary of Defense to prescribe regulations to allow the following persons to receive transportation on Department of Defense (DOD) aircraft on a space-available basis under the same terms and conditions that apply to members of the armed forces entitled to retired pay: (1) members of the Selected Reserve in good standing; (2) a former reserve member under 60 years of age who would be eligible for retired pay except for being under such age; and (3) dependents of the above. Limits the required identification for such travel. Directs the Secretary to prescribe regulations authorizing a reserve member traveling to inactive duty training at least 50 miles from home to be eligible for billeting (housing) in DOD facilities on the same basis as active-duty personnel traveling under orders away from such member's duty station. Requires proof of the reason for such travel. Increases the maximum number of reserve retirement points that may be credited in a year for reserve service from 75 to 90 for years during and subsequent to the date of enactment of the Reserve Component Equity Act of 1999. Authorizes the Secretary of the military department concerned to provide civil legal services to reserve personnel (and their dependents) not otherwise entitled to such services, but only during a period following a release from active duty under a call or order to such duty for more than 29 days under a mobilization authority that is not in excess of twice the length of the duty period served.
United States · United States Congress · 8 November 1999
Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 1999 - Directs the Secretary of State (the Secretary), as part of the annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, to include information to address the status of trafficking in persons, including: (1) a list of foreign countries that are countries of origin, transit, or destination for a significant number of victims of "severe forms of trafficking" (defined as sex trafficking in which either a commercial sex act or any act or event contributing to such act is effected or induced by force, coercion, fraud, or deception, or in which the person induced to perform such act has not attained age 18, and the purchase, sale, recruitment, harboring, transportation, transfer, or receipt of a person for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, or slavery, or slavery-like practices which is effected by force, coercion, fraud, or deception); (2) a description of the nature and extent of severe forms of trafficking in persons in each country (descriptive information); (3) an assessment of the efforts by such governments to combat severe forms of trafficking (assessment information); and (4) descriptive information and, where appropriate, assessment information, on a country-by-country basis. (Sec 5) Requires the President to establish an Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking, chaired by the Secretary. Authorizes the Secretary to establish within the Department of State an Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking, which shall assist the Task Force and be administered by a Director. Directs the Task Force to: (1) coordinate the implementation of this Act; (2) measure and evaluate progress of the United States and other countries in trafficking prevention, protection of and provision of assistance to trafficking victims, and prosecution and enforcement against traffickers; (3) expand interagency procedures to collect and organize data (and respect the confidentiality of trafficking victims); (4) engage in efforts to facilitate cooperation among countries of origin, transit, and destination; (5) examine the role of the international "sex tourism" industry in the trafficking of women and children and in the sexual exploitation of women and children around the world; and (6) make recommendations on appropriate measures to combat this industry. (Sec. 6) Directs the President: (1) acting through the Administrator of the Agency for International Development (AID) and the heads of other appropriate agencies, to establish and carry out initiatives to enhance economic opportunity for potential victims of trafficking as a method to deter trafficking; (2) acting through the Secretaries of Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS) and State, and through the Attorney General, to establish and carry out programs to increase public awareness, particularly among potential victims, of the dangers of trafficking and the protections that are available for victims; and (3) to consult with appropriate nongovernmental organizations with respect to the establishment and conduct of initiatives under this section. (Sec. 7) Requires the Secretary and the Administrator to establish and carry out programs and initiatives in foreign countries to assist in the safe integration, reintegration, or resettlement of victims of trafficking and their children and to take appropriate steps to enhance cooperative efforts among foreign countries, including countries of origin of victims, to assist in such integration, reintegration, or resettlement. Directs the Attorney General, the Secretaries of HHS and Labor, and the Board of Directors of the Legal Services Corporation, subject to the availability of appropriations, to expand existing services to provide assistance to victims of severe forms of trafficking in persons within the United States, without regard to such victims' immigration status. Makes such victims eligible, without regard to their immigration status, for any benefits that are otherwise available under the Crime Victims Fund. Authorizes the Attorney General to make grants to States, U.S. territories and possessions, Indian tribes, units of local government, and nongovernmental victims' service organizations to develop, expand, or strengthen victim service programs for trafficking victims, subject to specified conditions. Provides trafficking victims a civil right of action for violations of Federal criminal code (the code) provisions (established by section 12 of this Act) regarding trafficking into slavery-like conditions or sex trafficking of children by force, fraud, or coercion. Directs the Attorney General and the Secretary to promulgate regulations for law enforcement personnel, immigration officials, and State Department officials to provide that: (1) victims of severe forms of trafficking, while in Federal custody, shall be housed in appropriate shelter, receive prompt medical care, food, and other assistance, and be provided protection if a victim's safety is at risk; (2) such victims shall not be jailed, fined, or otherwise penalized due to having been trafficked, and shall have access to legal assistance, information about their rights, and translation services; (3) Federal law enforcement officials shall act to ensure an alien's continued presence in the United States if, after an assessment, it is determined that such alien is a victim of trafficking or a material witness; and (4) appropriate personnel of the Departments of State and Justice shall be trained in identifying such victims and providing for their protection. Amends the code to make funds derived from the sale of assets seized from and forfeited by trafficking available for victims assistance programs under this Act. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to allow the Attorney General to: (1) grant non-immigrant visas to certain victims of severe forms of trafficking who are in the United States and who would face a significant possibility of retribution or other harm if they were removed from the United States; and (2) adjust to lawful permanent resident status the status of victims who have been in the United States continuously for three years since admission, who have remained of good moral character, who have not unreasonably refused to assist in trafficking investigations or prosecutions, and who would face a significant possibility of retribution or other harm if removed from the United States. (Sec. 8) Establishes minimum standards applicable to countries that have a significant trafficking problem. Urges such countries to prohibit severe forms of trafficking in persons, to punish such acts, and to make serious and sustained efforts to eliminate such trafficking. (Sec. 9) Authorizes the Secretary and the Director of AID to provide assistance to foreign countries for programs and activities designed to meet the minimum international standards for the elimination of trafficking. (Sec. 10) Declares that it is U.S. policy to withhold non-humanitarian foreign assistance to countries which do not meet the minimum standards. Requires the Secretary to report annually to specified congressional committees regarding the status of severe forms of trafficking in persons, including a list of any countries that do not meet applicable minimum standards. Permits interim reports. Requires the President, for FY 2002 and subsequent fiscal years, for each country that fails to meet the standards, to make one of the following determinations: (1) to withhold U.S. non-humanitarian assistance; (2) to not provide funding for participation of employees of such country's governments in educational and cultural exchange programs; (3) to instruct the U.S. executive director of each multilateral development bank and the International Monetary Fund to vote against non-humanitarian assistance to such country; (4) that such country has come into compliance with the minimum standards; or (5) that the provision of non-humanitarian assistance to a country not meeting minimum standards is in the U.S. national interest. (Sec. 11) Authorizes: (1) the Secretary to compile and publish a list of foreign persons who play a significant role in a severe form of trafficking in persons, directly or indirectly in the United States, who materially support such persons, or who are owned or controlled by such persons; and (2) the President to impose sanctions under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, including the freezing of assets located in the United States. Directs the President, upon exercising such authority, to report to specified congressional committees: (1) identifying publicly the foreign persons that the President determines are appropriate for sanctions; and (2) detailing publicly the sanctions imposed. Permits non-disclosure of persons on the list for intelligence and law enforcement reasons, and requires that Congress be notified of such exclusions on an annual basis. Excludes significant traffickers, and those who knowingly assist them, from entry into the United States. (Sec. 12) Amends the code to: (1) double the current maximum penalties for peonage, enticement into slavery, and sale into involuntary servitude to 20 years imprisonment; and (2) add the possibility of life imprisonment for such violations resulting in death or involving kidnaping, aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill. Prohibits, and sets penalties for: (1) trafficking into involuntary servitude, peonage, or slavery-like conditions; (2) sex trafficking of children by force, fraud, or coercion; and (3) unlawfully possessing or destroying the identification or immigration documents of another in the course of a trafficking violation or in an attempt to impair a trafficking investigation or restrict a victim's movement. Requires that convicted traffickers provide full restitution to their victims. Directs courts to order the forfeiture to the United States of any of the trafficker's property that was used for or derived from violations of these laws. Makes victims of these crimes eligible for the Federal witness protection program. Directs the United States Sentencing Commission to review, and if appropriate amend, the sentencing guidelines to ensure that they are sufficiently stringent with respect to such trafficking offenses. Amends the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act to add the new trafficking offenses to the list of covered activities. (Sec. 13) Authorizes appropriations to carry out this Act for: (1) the Interagency Task Force; (2) the Secretary of HHS; (3) the Secretary; (4) the Attorney General; (5) the President (for foreign victim assistance and assistance to foreign countries to meet the minimum standards); and (6) the Secretary of Labor.
United States · United States Congress · 8 November 1999
Health Care Fairness Act of 1999 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish the National Center for Research on Minority Health and Health Disparities to conduct and support basic and clinical research, training, and disseminate information regarding minority health. Directs the Administrator of the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research to conduct and support research on minority health disparities. Directs the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a comprehensive study of the Department of Health and Human Services' data collection and reporting systems and practices required under any of the programs or activities of the Department relating to the collection of data on race or ethnicity. Authorizes awards of grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements to public and nonprofit private entities for the purpose of carrying out research and demonstration projects to develop curricula to reduce disparity in health care outcomes, including curricula for cultural competency in graduate medical education. Requires a national media campaign to inform the public of the programs and activities of the Office for Civil Rights, Department of Health and Human Services. Sets forth provisions concerning: (1) other minority health initiatives and programs; (2) reporting requirements; and (3) authorizations of appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 8 November 1999
Veterans' Right to Know Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to: (1) provide information concerning eligibility for Department benefits and health care services and application requirements when a veteran or his or her dependent first applies for any such benefit; and (2) prepare an annual plan for the conduct of outreach activities to provide such veterans and dependents with such information.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 1999
Duty to Assist Veterans Act of 1999 - Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, with respect to any veterans' benefits claim filed on or after July 14, 1999, to assist such claimant in developing information pertinent to a decision on the claim, including by informing the claimant of any medical or lay evidence needed and by providing a medical examination to determine the current disability of the veteran concerned.
United States · United States Congress · 27 October 1999
Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to direct the U.S. Executive Directors at specified international financial institutions to use the U.S. vote to oppose the provision of assistance to Indonesia until the President reports to Congress: (1) an estimate of the amount of material damage done to public and private property in East Timor by militia forces and the Indonesian armed forces; and (2) that the Indonesian Government has contributed to the rebuilding and reconstruction of East Timor in an amount equal to the total estimated material damages there. Prohibits U.S. assistance for the Government of Indonesia until the President makes such report to Congress. Provides for waiver of such requirements for humanitarian assistance for the Indonesian people.
United States · United States Congress · 27 October 1999
Comprehensive Antitrafficking in Persons Act of 1999 - Directs the President to establish an Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking, chaired by the Secretary of State (the Secretary). Authorizes the Secretary to establish within the Department of State an Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking, which shall provide assistance to the Task Force and be administered by a Director. Directs the Task Force to carry out the following activities: (1) coordinate implementation of this Act; (2) measure and evaluate the progress of the United States and countries around the world in the areas of trafficking prevention, protection and assistance to trafficking victims, and prosecution and enforcement against traffickers; (3) expand interagency procedures to collect and organize data; and (4) engage in efforts to facilitate cooperation among countries of origin, transit, and destination. (Sec. 5) Requires the President, acting through: (1) the United States Agency for International Development (AID) and the heads of other appropriate agencies, to establish and carry out initiatives to enhance economic opportunity for potential victims of trafficking as a method to deter trafficking; and (2) the Attorney General and the Secretaries of State, Labor, and Health and Human Services (HHS), to establish and carry out programs to increase public awareness, particularly among potential victims, of the dangers of trafficking and the protections that are available for its victims. (Sec. 6) Directs the Secretary and the Administrator of AID to: (1) establish and carry out programs and initiatives in foreign countries to assist in the safe reintegration of victims of trafficking and their children; and (2) take all appropriate steps to enhance cooperative efforts among foreign countries to assist in the appropriate reintegration of stateless victims of trafficking with respect to the establishment and conduct of programs and initiatives. Requires the Attorney General, the Secretaries of HHS and Labor, and the Board of Directors of the Legal Services Corporation to expand existing services to provide assistance to victims of trafficking within the United States, without regard to their immigration status. Makes victims of trafficking in the United States eligible, without regard to their immigration status, for any benefits that are otherwise available under the Crime Victims Fund. Authorizes the Attorney General to make grants to States, U.S. territories and possessions, Indian tribes, local governments, and nonprofit, nongovernmental victims' service organizations to develop, expand, or strengthen victim service programs for trafficking victims. Requires an eligible governmental unit or organization, to receive a grant, to certify that its laws, policies, and practices do not punish or deny services to trafficking victims on account of the nature of their employment or services performed in connection with such trafficking. Sets forth provisions regarding fund allocation and the Federal share. Authorizes individuals who are victims of Federal criminal code (the code) violations regarding trafficking and criminal exploitation of workers to bring a civil action in U.S. district court. Directs the Attorney General and the Secretary to promulgate regulations for law enforcement personnel, immigration officials, and Department of State officials to implement the following: (1) trafficking victims, while in Federal custody, shall be housed in appropriate shelter as quickly as possible; receive prompt medical care, food, and other assistance; and be provided protection if a victim's safety is at risk or if there is danger of additional harm by recapture of the victim by a trafficker; (2) Federal law enforcement officials should act, to ensure an alien individual's continued presence in the United States, if after an assessment it is determined that such individual is a trafficking victim or a material witness, in order to effectuate prosecution of those responsible and to further U.S. humanitarian interests; and (3) appropriate Department of State and Department of Justice personnel shall be trained in identifying victims of trafficking and in providing for their protection. Makes funding available. (Sec. 7) Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to establish a new non-immigrant classification for an alien (and the alien's spouse, children, and parents if accompanying or following to join the alien) who the Attorney General determines: (1) possesses material information concerning criminal or other unlawful activity; (2) is willing to supply or has supplied such information to Federal or State law enforcement officials; (3) would be helpful, were the alien to remain in the United States, to a properly authorized Federal or State investigation or prosecution of the criminal or other unlawful activity; and (4) has suffered significant physical or mental abuse as a result of the criminal or other unlawful activity. Amends the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to provide that: (1) the number of aliens admitted in a fiscal year under such classification may not exceed 1,000; (2) no alien may be admitted into the United States as such a non-immigrant more than five years after the date of the enactment of such provision; (3) the period of authorized admission of an alien as such a non-immigrant may not exceed three years (which can not be extended by the Attorney General); and (4) as a condition for admission and continued stay in lawful status the non-immigrant may not be convicted of a criminal offense punishable by a term of imprisonment of one year or more after the date of admission, the non-immigrant must have executed a form that waives the right to contest (other than on the basis of an application for withholding removal) any action for removal of the alien instituted before the alien obtains lawful permanent resident status, and the non-immigrant shall abide by any other condition or restriction imposed by the Attorney General. Prohibits a change of non-immigrant classification for such aliens. Amends the INA to authorize the Attorney General to adjust the status of such an alien to one lawfully admitted for permanent residence if, in the Attorney General's opinion, the alien's continued presence in the United States is justified on humanitarian grounds or is otherwise in the national interest, and the alien meets other specified conditions. (Sec. 8) Allows the President to impose specified measures against any foreign country that has made little or no progress on reducing trafficking, implementing any necessary anti-trafficking laws, enforcing anti-trafficking laws, or protecting and assisting trafficking victims. Authorizes the President to: (1) deny U.S. Government assistance, with exceptions; (2) instruct the U.S. Executive Director to specified international financial institutions to use the voice and vote of the United States to oppose any loan or financial or technical assistance to the country by such institution; (3) prohibit the transfer of defense articles, services, or design and construction services under the Arms Export Control Act to the country or any national; (4) prohibit or substantially restrict exports to the country of goods, technology and services, and suspend existing licenses for the transfer to that person of items the export of which is controlled under the Export Administration Act of 1979 or the Export Administration Regulations; and (5) exercise certain authorities under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Authorizes the Secretary to make a determination of those persons who are trafficking in the United States or its territories and possessions and, if such a determination is made, publish the list in the Federal Register. Directs the President to report to Congress on measures applied under this section and the reasons for their application. (Sec. 9) Amends the code to double the term of imprisonment for specified slavery-related offenses. Provides for enhanced penalties where death results if the violation includes kidnaping (or an attempt to kidnap), aggravated sexual abuse (or an attempt to commit such abuse), or an attempt to kill. Prohibits, and sets penalties for: (1) specified actions with respect to the trafficking and criminal exploitation of workers, including knowingly benefitting from the labor or services of a person held to a condition of involuntary servitude or peonage; and (2) destruction, concealment, and unlawful possession of documents in furtherance of trafficking, criminal worker exploitation, involuntary servitude, or peonage. Directs the court to order restitution for offenses under this section. Sets forth provisions regarding proof of a condition of involuntary servitude or peonage, punishment of attempts to violate specified provisions of this Act, and forfeiture to the United States. Directs the United States Sentencing Commission to review and, if appropriate, amend the sentencing guidelines and policy statements applicable to persons convicted of offenses involving the trafficking of persons. (Sec. 10) Directs the Secretary, as part of the annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, to include specified information to address the status of international trafficking in persons. (Sec. 11) Authorizes appropriations for the Interagency Task Force, and to the Secretary of HHS, the Secretary, the Attorney General, the President, and the Secretary of Labor, for FY 2001-2002 to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 1999
Condemns the use of children as soldiers by governmental and nongovernmental armed forces worldwide. Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the United States should not oppose efforts to negotiate an optional international agreement to raise the international minimum age for military service to age 18; (2) the Secretary of State should address this issue in the next session of the United Nations working group relating to child soldiers before this process is abandoned by the international community; and (3) the President and the Congress should work together to enact a law that establishes a fund for the rehabilitation and reintegration into society of child soldiers.
United States · United States Congress · 25 October 1999
College Student Credit Card Protection Act - Amends the Truth in Lending Act to limit the total credit extended under a credit card account to a full time, traditional-aged college student (unless the student's parent or guardian assumes joint liability) to the greater of: (1) 20 percent of the students' most recent annual gross income; or (2) the product of $500 and the number of years since the account was opened (but not more than $2,000). Provides that "traditional-aged" is to be determined by the educational institution involved. Prohibits increasing the credit limit on an account for which a parent or guardian has assumed joint liability without the parent's or guardian's approval of such increase. Prohibits a creditor from opening a credit card account for any full time, traditional-aged college student who has no annual gross income and already has a credit card account under an open end consumer credit plan. Requires that mandated disclosures in any open end consumer credit application and solicitation be in a typeface at least as large as the largest typeface otherwise used in the application or solicitation.
United States · United States Congress · 25 October 1999
Providing Reliable Officers, Technology, Education, Community Prosecutors, and Training In Our Neighborhoods Act of 1999 or PROTECTION Act - Modifies provisions of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (the Act) regarding public safety and community policing ("cops on the beat" program, COPS) to authorize the Attorney General to use funding under COPS grants to: (1) increase prosecutor presence and to enhance law enforcement access to new technologies; (2) pay overtime to existing career law enforcement officers to the extent that such overtime is devoted to community policing efforts; and (3) promote higher education among in-service State and local law enforcement officers by reimbursing them for the costs associated with seeking a college or graduate school education. Includes among permitted additional grant projects: (1) specialized integrity and ethics training; (2) innovative proactive crime control and prevention programs involving school officials and religiously-affiliated organizations; (3) school-based partnerships between local law enforcement agencies and local school systems by using school resource officers who operate in and around elementary and secondary schools (current law) to serve as a law enforcement liaison with other Federal, State, and local law enforcement and regulatory agencies and to combat gang membership and criminal activity, firearms and explosives-related incidents, illegal use and possession of alcohol, and the illegal possession, use, and distribution of drugs; and (4) innovative programs that bring together a community's sheriff, police chief, and elderly residents to address the public safety concerns of older citizens. Authorizes the Attorney General to use up to five percent of appropriated funds for technical assistance and training to States, local governments, Indian tribal governments, and other public and private entities. Requires the technical assistance provided by the Attorney General to include the establishment and operation of regional community policing institutes training centers or facilities. Permits the functions of the centers or facilities to include instruction and seminars for specified individuals, including representatives of police labor and management organizations and community residents. Repeals provisions of the Act regarding: (1) termination of grants for hiring officers; and (2) preferential consideration of applications for certain grants. Allows grants to be used to assist: (1) police departments in employing specified professional, scientific, and technological advancements; and (2) State, local, or tribal prosecutors' offices in implementation of community-based prosecution programs that build on local community policing efforts. Reserves specified funds for units of local government with a population of less than 50,000. Authorizes the Attorney General to use no more than 50 percent of grant renewal funds to award grants targeted specifically for retention of police officers to grantees in good standing, with preference to those that demonstrate financial hardship or severe budget constraint that impacts the entire local budget and may result in the termination of employment for officers. Redefines: (1) "career law enforcement officer" to include sheriffs' deputies charged with supervising offenders who are released into the community but also engaged in local community policing efforts; and (2) "school resource officer" to mean a career law enforcement officer deployed in community-oriented policing and assigned to work in collaboration with schools and community-based organizations (as under current law) to engage in specified activities, including serving as a law enforcement liaison with other Federal, State, and local law enforcement and regulatory agencies to address and document crime and disorder problems, training students in conflict resolution and crime awareness, and assisting school administrators with the preparation of an annual report on the number of students expelled per year for bringing a weapon, firearm, or explosive to school. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 1999
Coral Reef Protection Act of 1999 - Declares that it is U.S. policy to conserve coral reefs and coral reef ecosystems. (Sec. 6) Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to provide: (1) financial assistance for projects that provide for the restoration or conservation of coral reefs or coral reef ecosystems; and (2) technical assistance to any State or Federal agency with coral reef jurisdiction. (Sec. 7) Authorizes: (1) the conducting of activities that conserve coral reefs or coral reef ecosystems or that further public awareness and education; and (2) joint projects with any Federal, State, or local authority or financial assistance to any person for such activities. (Sec. 8) Prohibits a vessel that is otherwise qualified to be documented as a vessel of the United States from being documented if the owner has abandoned any vessel on a reef subject to U.S. jurisdiction and the vessel remains on the reef or was removed using funds under this Act or any other Act having environmental protection as its purpose, unless the owner has reimbursed the United States for the environmental damage and removal expenses. (Sec. 9) Makes any person who injures or creates a threat of injury to any coral, coral reef, or coral reef ecosystem jointly and severally liable to the United States for response costs and damages, related seizure, forfeiture, or storage costs, and related interests. Provides for vessel liability in rem and for related maritime liens on vessels. Declares that specified provisions relating to limitations on the liability of vessel owners, masters, and others do not limit the liability of any person or vessel under this title (sic). Authorizes the Secretary to undertake or authorize all necessary actions to prevent or minimize injury (or threat of injury) to any coral, coral reef, or coral reef ecosystem. Authorizes the Attorney General to commence a civil action against any person or vessel that may be liable under this section. Sets forth defenses and a time limit for commencing actions. (Sec. 10) Authorizes the Secretary to enter into an agreement with a foundation under which the foundation may use amounts available to carry out this section to build and support public-private partnerships that support research, management, or education regarding coral reef and reef ecosystem conservation and furthering this Act's purposes. (Sec. 11) Authorizes appropriations to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 14 October 1999
Directs the Secretary of Commerce: (1) acting through the National Marine Fisheries Service, to study the practice of shark finning in U.S. waters of the Central and Western Pacific Ocean and the effects that practice is having on shark populations in the Pacific Ocean; and (2) to report on such study to Congress, including recommendations on how to best manage shark fisheries in such waters.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 1999
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the Federal Government has a responsibility to continue to increase diabetes research funding, endeavor to raise awareness of the importance of the early detection and proper treatment, and consider ways to improve access to, and the quality of, health care services for diagnosing and treating diabetes; (2) all Americans should take an active role in fighting diabetes by using all the means available; and (3) national and community organizations and health care providers should endeavor to promote awareness of diabetes and its complications, and encourage early detection.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 1999
National Amusement Park Ride Safety Act of 1999 - Amends the Consumer Product Safety Act to include amusement rides that are permanently fixed to a site in the definition of "consumer product" (thereby giving the Consumer Product Safety Commission jurisdiction over such amusement rides). Authorizes appropriations to carry out the Act as amended by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 1999
Declares that Congress: (1) recognizes the importance of achieving a successful decennial census; (2) encourages State and local governments, community leaders, and all other parties involved to work to ensure a successful census; (3) reaffirms the spirit of cooperation that exists between Congress and the Bureau of the Census; and (4) asserts this public partnership between Congress and the Bureau to promote the decennial census.
![Official portrait of Del. Faleomavaega, Eni F. H. [D-AS-At Large]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/f000010_200.jpg)