United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1993
Directs the Secretary of Defense to issue a commendation to each individual who was exposed to mustard agents in testing during World War II while serving in the armed forces. Requires the Secretary to: (1) notify each individual so exposed of possible health effects; and (2) make available to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs any information regarding such exposure.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1993
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to include, as a home health service, nutritional counseling provided by or under the supervision of a registered dietitian.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1993
Amends Federal law to extend certain retirement-related provisions of the Civil Service Retirement System for Federal law enforcement officers to: (1) revenue officers in the Internal Revenue Service; (2) customs inspectors and canine enforcement officers in the U.S. Customs Service; and (3) inspectors in the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
United States · United States Congress · 22 February 1993
Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit (until the Attorney General certifies that a national instant criminal background check system (System) is established pursuant to this Act) any licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer from selling, delivering, or transferring a handgun to an unlicensed individual unless: (1) after the most recent proposal of such transfer by the individual, the transferor has received a statement of eligibility from the individual, verified the identity of such individual, provided notice of the contents, and transmitted a copy of the statement to the chief law enforcement officer (chief) of the place of residence of the individual within one day after the individual furnishes the statement; and five business days have elapsed from the date the transferor furnished notice of the contents of the statement to the chief, during which period the transferor has not received information from the chief that receipt or possession of the handgun by the individual would be in violation of Federal, State, or local law or has received notice from the chief that the chief has no information indicating that such receipt or possession would violate such law; (2) the individual has presented to the transferor a statement from the chief, issued in the past ten days, stating that the individual requires a handgun because of a threat to such individual or such individual's family; (3) the individual has presented to the transferor a permit to possess a handgun that has been issued in the past five years by the State in which the transfer is to take place under a State law which requires law enforcement verification of the individual's legal qualification to possess a handgun; (4) State law requires that an authorized government official verifies that the information available to such official does not indicate that possession of a handgun by the purchaser would be unlawful, with exceptions; (5) the Secretary of the Treasury has approved the transfer under provisions of the Internal Revenue Code; or (6) the Secretary has certified, on application of the transferor, that compliance with the notice requirement is impracticable for specified reasons. Directs the Attorney General to: (1) establish the System; (2) expedite the upgrading and indexing of State criminal history records in the Federal criminal records system maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the development of hardware and software systems to link State criminal history check systems into the System, and the current revitalization initiatives by the FBI for technologically advanced fingerprint and criminal records identification; and (3) ensure the privacy and security of System information. Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize the use of justice system improvement formula grants for the improvement of State record systems and the sharing with the Attorney General of specified records for the purpose of implementing this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Amendments to Fair Credit Reporting Act Title II: Credit Repair Organizations Title I: Amendments to Fair Credit Reporting Act - Consumer Reporting Reform Act of 1993 - Amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act (the Act) to specify that the term "credit transaction which is not initiated by the consumer" does not include use of a consumer report (CR) by a person with which the consumer has an account for purposes of reviewing or collecting the account. Allows the furnishing of a CR for: (1) a legitimate business need in connection with a business transaction that is initiated by the consumer; and (2) employment purposes only if certain disclosures are made, the consumer consents, and the information will not be used in violation of any Federal or State equal employment opportunity law or regulation. Prohibits: (1) using or obtaining information from a CR unless it is obtained for an authorized purpose and the purpose is certified under certain provisions of the Act; (2) a consumer reporting agency (CRA) from prohibiting a CR user from disclosing the CR to the consumer if adverse action against the consumer is contemplated; and (3) the furnishing of a CR for use in direct marketing not initiated by the consumer. Requires CRAs to maintain a notification system, including a toll-free telephone number, which permits any consumer to elect to be excluded from lists provided in connection with solicitations of credit not initiated by the consumer. Removes exceptions to prohibitions on reporting obsolete information. (Current law prohibits reporting information which is over a specified number of years old, except for credit transactions, life insurance, or employment involving amounts over specified limits.) Regulates the beginning of the seven-year reporting period for certain types of information. Requires CRAs to: (1) include information received that an account was closed by a consumer in good standing when when closed by the consumer with no outstanding balance; and (2) notify regular information suppliers of the suppliers' responsibilities under the Act. Prohibits a person who procures a CR from reselling the information unless the identity of the end user and the purpose is disclosed to the CRA. Requires a CRA to: (1) disclose to a consumer all information in the consumer's file, certain information about the recipients of a CR, the permissible purpose for which each recipient procured a CR, a record of inquiries in the last six months that identified the consumer in connection with a credit transaction which was not initiated by the consumer, and, with any such disclosures, a summary of the consumer's rights under the Act; and (2) unless the dispute is frivolous or irrelevant to reinvestigate disputed information free of charge or delete the item from the file, to notify the information furnisher, to delete inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable information, and to notify the consumer of the results of the reinvestigation. Regulates charges by CRAs for certain disclosures. Requires any person who takes an adverse action with respect to a consumer in connection with a transaction initiated by the consumer or an employment determination to notify the consumer, disclose the identity of the CRA furnishing the report, advise the consumer of certain rights, and give certain information on any credit scoring system or other predictor of credit wothiness used. Subjects any person (currently, any CRA or user of information) to civil liability for willful or negligent noncompliance with the Act. Sets forth: (1) duties of furnishers of information to CRAs, including a prohibition on furnishing information which the furnisher has reasonable cause to believe is incomplete or inaccurate; and (2) provisions regarding investigative consumer reports. Increases criminal penalties for obtaining information under false pretenses. Authorizes State civil actions to enforce the Act, subject to a specified limitation. Requires each CRA which compiles and maintains consumer reports nationwide to maintain a toll-free telephone number. Title II: Credit Repair Organizations - Amends the Consumer Credit Protection Act to provide that specified provisions of that Act may be cited as the Credit Repair Organizations Act. Prohibits: (1) advising any consumer to make an untrue or misleading statement, or to alter the consumer's identification to prevent the display of the consumer's credit record; (2) other fraud or deception; and (3) a credit repair organization (CRO) from charging or receiving valuable consideration for any service before such service is fully performed. Specifies a statement which a CRO must provide to consumers before an agreement is executed regarding the consumer, the CRO, and related rights, powers, and obligations. Requires written, signed contracts covering specified matters in order for a CRO to provide services. Allows a consumer to cancel a contract with a CRO within three business days of making the contract. Declares void any consumer waiver of any protection under this title. Makes an attempt to obtain a waiver a violation of this title. Voids any contract not in compliance with this title. Provides for civil liability for failing to comply with this title, including allowing punitive damages and class actions. Requires enforcement of this title under the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA) by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Makes: (1) a violation of this title an unfair or deceptive act or practice in violation of specified provisions of the FTCA; and (2) all functions and powers of the FTC available for enforcement of this title. Allows State enforcement through Federal or State courts.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 1993
Gift of Life Congressional Medal Act of 1993 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to design and strike a bronze medal in commemoration of organ donors and their families. Declares that any organ donor, or donor's family, is eligible for the medal. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to arrange for medal presentation to eligible individuals through a qualified organ procurement organization. Declares the medals to be national medals. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to enter into an agreement with the entity operating the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network with respect to the solicitation of donations to offset expenditures relating to medal issuance.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 1993
Unremunerated Work Act of 1993 - Directs the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics to: (1) conduct time use surveys of unremunerated work performed in the United States (including household, agricultural, and volunteer work and work related to child care and other care services, food production, and family businesses); and (2) calculate the monetary value of such unremunerated work, separately for men and women, and include such value in statistics used to determine the gross national product.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 1993
Gang Prevention and Youth Recreation Act of 1993 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the Secretary) to make grants to not more than ten selected cities to assist them to establish and operate teen resource and education centers to provide education, employment, recreation, social, and cultural awareness assistance to at-risk youth. Authorizes the Secretary to make such grants to a city if it applies and agrees to operate at least two such centers. Requires such centers to offer for at-risk youth: (1) educational assistance, including information on institutions of higher education, assistance with financial aid applications and scholarship search, and preparatory courses for high school equivalency and college entrance examinations; (2) employment and skills training, including hiring teen peer counselors to provide basic job skills training, job referral services, and job banks; (3) recreational opportunities, such as sports teams, neighborhood gardening and food distribution, creative activities and arts, and reading programs; (4) social skills development, including hiring adult counselors and providing support groups for counseling on social and personal issues; and (5) cultural awareness programs, such as classes in the history and culture of various cultural groups and productions of plays, stories, and artwork reflecting the cultural heritage of such youth. Requires such centers to provide financial assistance to college graduates who work full-time at the center to assist them to repay part of their student loan debt. Sets forth grant selection, allocation, and reporting requirements. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 1993
Job and Life Skills Improvement Act of 1993 - Amends the Job Training Partnership Act to authorize the Secretary of Labor to establish a national program of Job and Life Skills Improvement grants to eligible entities to pay the Federal share of providing comprehensive services to youth and young adults in high poverty urban and rural areas. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: School-Based or School-Linked Health and Social Services Center Grants Title II: State and Local Coordinated Youth Services Grants Subtitle A: Local Consortia Grants Subtitle B: Statewide Youth Services Center Grants Subtitle C: Provisions Relating to Both Local and Statewide Grant Programs Title III: Implementation Provisions Title IV: Federal Coordinated Youth Services Initiatives Comprehensive Services for Youth Act of 1993 - Title I: School-Based or School-Linked Health and Social Services Center Grants - Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) (the Secretary), acting through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (the Administrator), to award grants to eligible local community partnerships to coordinate and deliver comprehensive education, health, and social services to children or youth in school-based, school-linked, or community-based locations. Requires partnership use of grant funds for coordination and delivery of specified core services at a school-based, school-linked, or community-based location or locations accessible to and used by at-risk children, youth, and their families. Gives priority to grant applicants whose comprehensive services plan demonstrates: (1) continuity of access to core services on a year-round basis or beyond traditional school or service hours, either on site or through a backup referral system of community-based providers; and (2) the offer of services beyond the in-school population, including core services to out-of-school youth, to the extent practicable. Authorizes the Secretary, acting through the Administration, to award planning grants to eligible entities that agree to establish a local community partnership to deliver comprehensive services. Title II: State and Local Coordinated Youth Services Grants - Subtitle A: Local Consortia Grants - Authorizes the Secretary, acting through the Administrator, to award grants to eligible consortia to coordinate and deliver comprehensive core education, health, and social services to at-risk youth through an integrated service delivery network directed by a consortium. Requires such consortia membership to include specified types of local representatives. Requires specified financial or organizational commitments by consortium members. Subtitle B: Statewide Youth Services Center Grants - Authorizes the Secretary, acting through the Administrator, to award grants to eligible States to provide for coordination and delivery of comprehensive education, health, and social services to at-risk youth through the award of State grants to local community partnerships or consortia. Subtitle C: Provisions Relating to Both Local and Statewide Grant Programs - Sets forth requirements for applications and use of grant funds for a consortium or State entity awarded a grant under subtitle A or B. Requires coordination and delivery of the core services through a system of school-based, school-linked, or community-based youth centers to serve in-school and out-of-school youth and their families. Requires coordination and co-location of existing core services in a broader system of health and social services centers accessible to in-school or out-of-school youth (including adolescent parents and runaway and homeless youth), as well as coordination of core services with alternative education and job training and placement opportunities for them. Authorizes the Secretary, acting through the Administrator, to award planning grants to consortia or States. Title III: Implementation Provisions - Makes ineligible for title I funds any community that: (1) is currently receiving State funds to deliver co-located education, health, and social services; or (2) will receive funding from a State funded under subtitle B of title II. Allows such a currently funded community partnership to form a consortium to seek funding for an expanded citywide or countywide youth services network under subtitle A of title II. Requires a local consortium operating in a locality receiving State funding for delivery of such co-located services to include participation from the entities receiving such State funding. Makes eligible for continued funding, at the completion of its five-year grant period under title I, a partnership that has expanded into a citywide or countywide consortium (as described under subtitle A of title II) or has become part of a statewide network (as described under subtitle B of title II). Directs the Secretary to: (1) disseminate information on programs under this Act as well as successful and model programs and to provide technical assistance; and (2) collaborate with the Departments of Education and Labor and the Commission on National and Community Service in such efforts. Authorizes appropriations. Title IV: Federal Coordinated Youth Services Initiatives - Directs the Secretary, acting through the Administrator, to establish and administer a special projects of national significance program to award direct grants to public and nonprofit private entities to fund model programs to integrate health and social services, including HIV prevention, provided to special populations of youth at risk. Allows such special projects to include projects targeting youth who are: (1) runaway, homeless, or street youth; (2) immigrants or migrants; (3) in the juvenile justice system; (4) in foster care; (5) in gangs; (6) with a history of substance abuse; (7) with HIV disease; (8) adolescent parents; and (9) Native American. Amends the Augustus F. Hawkins Human Resources Reauthorization Act of 1990 to direct the Federal Council on Children, Youth, and Families to: (1) identify program regulations or practices that impede coordination and collaboration; and (2) develop recommendations for creating jointly funded programs, unified assessments, application procedures, confidentiality regulations that facilitate information-sharing, and pertinent legislative action.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 1993
Neighborhood Infrastructure Improvement and Inner City Job Creation Act - Directs the Secretary of Labor to make grants to eligible administrative entities for programs to provide employment opportunities to unemployed individuals through payments for labor and related costs associated with repair and renovation of essential community facilities. Gives grant priority to administratve entities that assure giving priority to low-skilled workers as program participants. Requires that eligible participants have been unemployed for at least 15 weeks and have sought employment during that period. Makes secondary school-age individuals (16 to 20 years old) eligible only if they have not attended a secondary school at any time during the previous six months. Gives priority to individuals who have exhausted or are not eligible for unemployment insurance benefits, particularly those who have been unemployed for the longest periods. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 1993
Group Health Plan Nondiscrimination Act of 1993 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to provide that certain retroactive cancellations or reductions of benefits under group health plans constitute discrimination which interferes with rights protected under ERISA. Prohibits any group health plan from discriminating among diseases or medical conditions with respect to levels of lifetime benefit coverage provided to similarly situated participants and beneficiaries under the plan, with specified limitations relating to collective bargaining or special exemption procedures. Requires group health plans to issue notices of any material change in plan terms to each participant and spouse beneficiary. Prohibits the change from taking effect until 60 days after such issuance. Sets forth special requirements for such notices from self-insured group health plans. Revises civil enforcement provisions to make any person who violates the prohibition provisions against interference with rights of any participant or beneficiary under a group health plan liable to such participant or beneficiary for actual damages. Precludes punitive damages, except that, where the violation constitutes willful, fraudulent, or malicious conduct, bad faith, or gross negligence, each such person may, in the court's discretion, be liable for limited exemplary damages. Provides for award of attorney's fees and other legal costs to plaintiffs who prevail or substantially prevail.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 1993
Medicare EKG Payment Restoration Act of 1993 - Amends part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: (1) reestablish separate payment for the interpretation of electrocardiograms (EKGs) that are ordered or performed during an office visit to or consultation with a physician; and (2) set forth special rules governing the payment for EKG interpretation services in order to ensure budget-neutrality.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 1993
Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require institutions of higher education to disclose gender participation rates and program support expenditures in college athletic programs to prospective students and, upon request, to the public. Directs the Secretary of Education to compile and publish annual reports of such data reported to the Secretary by the institutions.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 1993
Directs the Secretary of Education to make a grant to Jackson State University in Jackson, Mississippi, to establish the Margaret Walker Alexander National African-American Research Center on its campus in recognition of, and to commemorate, the literary contributions of Margaret Walker Alexander. Requires the application for the grant to ensure that the Center will serve as a national center for the study, research, and teaching of African-American literature and history, and as a repository for papers and memorabilia relating to the lives of individuals noted for their work in African-American literature and history. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 1993
Repeals provisions of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 that restrict the types of scholarships and fellowship grants that may be excluded from gross income for income tax purposes. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an income tax deduction for interest on a qualified educational loan incurred to pay the educational expenses of the taxpayer, spouse, or dependent.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 1993
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States should: (1) continue to send immediate fuel and humanitarian assistance to help Armenia and its economy and continue to withhold all U.S. assistance to Azerbaijan until Azerbaijan lifts its blockade and other uses of force against Armenia and Nagorno Karabagh; (2) promote a lasting and equitable resolution to the conflict within the United Nations and the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe; (3) promote the full participation of the representatives of Nagorno Karabagh in all negotiations concerning this conflict; (4) encourage Turkey to play a neutral role in helping to promote an equitable resolution to this crisis; and (5) condemn the continuing blockade of Armenia and Karabagh and demand the immediate lifting of the blockade and the opening of corridors to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian goods to Armenia.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 1993
Prescription Drug Prices Review Board Act of 1993 - Establishes in the Food and Drug Administration the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board which shall have the power to decrease the length of term of a prescription drug patent if, after notice and a hearing, it is found that the drug's price is excessive. Defines the term excessive price. Allows the Board to require the recapture of tax benefits provided to the patentee of an excessively priced drug.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Copyright Office Title II: Copyright Royalty Tribunal Title III: General Provisions Copyright Reform Act of 1993 - Title I: Copyright Office - Amends Federal copyright law to provide that nothing in such law limits any rights under State law with respect to perfecting security interests. Authorizes a copyright owner, in the case of a work consisting of sounds, images, or both, the first fixation of which is made simultaneously with its transmission, to institute an infringement action either before or after such fixation takes place if he serves notice upon the infringer between ten and 30 days before the fixation and identifies the work and specific time and source of its first transmission. (Current law requires a work to be registered before an infringement action may be brought.) Repeals a provision which requires registration as a prerequisite to certain remedies for infringement. Converts the Register of Copyrights from a Librarian of Congress appointee to a presidential appointee. Title II: Copyright Royalty Tribunal - Replaces the Copyright Royalty Tribunal with copyright arbitration royalty panels to oversee the adjustment of copyright royalty rates and payments and to distribute royalty fees in the event a controversy over distribution exists. Sets forth provisions concerning panel membership and arbitration proceedings. Requires the Register of Copyrights to: (1) adopt a panel decision unless the decision is arbitrary; and (2) set a royalty fee or distribute fees if it rejects the decision. Provides for judicial review of Register decisions concerning panel determinations. Authorizes owners or users of copyrighted works to petition for adjustments of compulsory license rates by copyright arbitration royalty panels. Sets forth requirements for proceedings concerning cable television, phonorecords, coin-operated phonorecord players, noncommercial broadcasting, and digital audio recording. Repeals specified provisions concerning compulsory licenses and limitations on exclusive rights for coin-operated phonorecord players. Revises requirements concerning compulsory licenses for public broadcasting. Title III: General Provisions - Sets forth effective dates for the amendments made by this Act. Retains existing royalty rates and determinations concerning the proportionate division of compulsory license fees among copyright claimants until modified by voluntary agreement or pursuant to the amendments made by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 1993
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to remove charitable contributions of appreciated capital gain property as an item of tax preference for purposes of the alternative minimum tax.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Child Support Enforcement Amendments Title II: Bankruptcy Amendments Relating to Child Support, Alimony, and Property Settlement Agreements Child Support Economic Security Act of 1993 - Title I: Child Support Enforcement Amendments - Amends the Social Security Act to provide that, in order to satisfy Federal grant eligibility criteria, a State plan for child and spousal support must provide for the designation of a single, separate, organizational unit at the State level to administer the plan under uniform State rules. Requires a State to have in effect specified statutory procedures. Mandates that State absent parent locator programs include response deadlines for information requests from other States. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to issue regulations establishing standards and procedures governing the processing by States of cases involving the enforcement of child support obligations against parents in other States, including a deadline by which prosecutions must commence. Increases the amount the Secretary shall pay quarterly to each State for the operation of a State plan for child and spousal support. Repeals the mandate for Federal incentive payments to the States for cost-effective enforcement of child support payments. Makes a prerequisite for approval of any State plan that it have in effect a law identical to the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act. Establishes the Commission on Child Support Guidelines. Title II: Bankruptcy Amendments Relating to Child Support, Alimony, and Property Settlement Agreements - Amends Federal bankruptcy law to declare that the filing of a petition in bankruptcy does not operate as an automatic stay of actions for establishment of paternity or concerning certain debts for child and spousal support and maintenance. Includes among priority claims and expenses those for certain child and spousal support and maintenance. Precludes a trustee in bankruptcy from avoiding a transfer if it was a bona fide payment of a debt for child or spousal support, maintenance, or alimony. Amends the guidelines for what constitutes the property of the bankrupt estate of either a family farmer or an individual with regular annual income. Declares, for such debtors, that the court shall confirm a bankruptcy plan if the debtor has paid all allowable claims arising after the order for relief for debts for child and spousal support, maintenance, or alimony. Permits representatives of child support creditors to appear in court without charge and without meeting any special local court rule requirement for attorney appearances in any judicial bankruptcy proceeding if such representatives file information detailing the child support debt, status, and other characteristics.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 1993
National Wildlife Refuge System Management and Policy Act of 1993 - Amends the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 to prohibit the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) from initiating or permitting a new use of a refuge or expanding, renewing, or extending an existing use unless it is determined that it is compatible with the purposes of the System and the refuge. Allows existing uses of such refuge system lands that have been determined compatible under this Act, or the Refuge Recreation Act, to continue under specified conditions. Terminates such use and revokes permits for it within five years after the enactment of this Act unless the Secretary determines that such use is compatible. Directs the Secretary, acting through the Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, to establish a formal process for governing determinations of compatibility of an existing or proposed new use in a refuge with the purposes of the System and the refuge. Requires the head of each Federal agency that has, with respect to a refuge, an equivalent or secondary jurisdiction with the Department of the Interior, or conducts activities within any refuge, to ensure that any actions authorized, funded, or carried out will not impair the resources of the refuge or be incompatible with system or refuge purposes, unless the action is specifically authorized by law or necessary for national security. Directs the Secretary to: (1) prepare (and revise every ten years) a comprehensive plan for the System; and (2) prepare (and revise every 15 years) a comprehensive conservation plan for each refuge or ecologically related complex of refuges in the System, except those in Alaska. Authorizes appropriations. Grants the Secretary emergency power to suspend any activity in any range in the National Wildlife Refuge System that constitutes an imminent danger to the health and safety of any wildlife population, refuge, or to public health and safety.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 1993
Toxic Cleanup Equity and Acceleration Act of 1993 - Amends the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) to absolve municipalities or other persons of liability (other than to the President) for claims of contribution or other response costs for the generation, transportation, or arrangement for the transportation, treatment, or disposal of municipal solid waste or sewage sludge. Authorizes eligible persons (defined as persons against whom administrative or judicial actions are brought, or to whom notice is given of potential liability, for activities involving municipal solid waste or sewage sludge) to settle their liability with the President. Requires final settlements to: (1) allocate to all activities for the management of municipal solid waste or sewage sludge a combined maximum of four percent of total response costs for the facility; (2) require eligible persons to pay only equitable shares of the maximum percentage; (3) limit payments based on inability to pay, litigative risks, and other equitable factors; (4) permit in-kind services with regard to response actions in lieu of cash contributions; (5) limit a publicly owned treatment works' payments if it has promoted the reuse of sewage sludge through land application; and (6) be reached even if a person is liable under other CERCLA provisions. Authorizes the President to provide a covenant not to sue to persons who have entered into settlements. Absolves such persons of liability for contributions or other response costs for matters addressed in settlements. Reduces others' potential liability by the amount of a settlement, but bars discharging potentially responsible parties unless the settlement so provides. Applies settlement provisions to municipalities or treatment works who engage in municipal solid waste or sewage sludge management activities occurring 36 months after this Act's enactment date only if the eligible person is a: (1) municipality and a qualified household hazardous waste collection program has been operating while such waste was collected and disposed; or (2) treatment works in compliance with the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. Makes this Act retroactively effective to all actions commenced before this Act's effective date unless a final court judgment or approval of a settlement agreement has been granted.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 1993
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to remove charitable contributions of appreciated capital gain property as an item of tax preference for purposes of the alternative minimum tax.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 1993
Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the corporate income tax exclusion of contributions to the capital of the taxpayer. Includes as a qualifying contribution any amount of money or property received by a regulated public utility which provides water or sewage disposal services that: (1) is a contribution in aid of construction; (2) meets certain expenditure requirements; and (3) is not included in the taxpayer's rate base. Excludes amounts paid as service charges for starting or stopping services. Determines the depreciation deduction for such property by using the straight line method and provides for a 25-year recovery period.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 1993
Amends the National Labor Relations Act to exclude shipboard supervisory personnel from selection as employer representatives, if such personnel are licensed by the U.S. Coast Guard and represented by a labor organization. Provides that picketing or other economic activity undertaken by a labor organization on behalf of such licensed shipboard supervisory personnel shall not be considered a prohibited restraint or coercion.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 1993
Western Hemisphere Environmental Cooperation Act of 1993 - Directs the Administrator of the Agency for International Development (AID) to establish a Western Hemisphere Biodiversity Cooperation Program within AID to assist (including by purchase of commercial debts of foreign countries) in the establishment and strengthening of biodiversity management organizations to protect biological diversity and to enhance the economic value of the biological resources of Latin America and the Caribbean. Directs the Administrator of AID to establish a program of Western Hemisphere Biodiversity Cooperation Grants to be awarded to such organizations. Requires the President to direct an appropriate Federal entity to study the feasibility of establishing a Western Hemisphere Environmental Partnership to promote hemispheric technological cooperation on environmental problems.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 1993
Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal criminal code to impose civil or criminal penalties upon persons who intentionally prevent other individuals from entering or exiting a medical facility. Permits aggrieved individuals to obtain appropriate relief through civil actions.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 1993
Trident II (D-5) Missile Production Termination Act - Prohibits funds appropriated to the Department of Defense for fiscal years after 1993 from being obligated or expended for production of additional Trident II (D-5) missiles. Allows amounts appropriated to the Department to be expended for such missile only to complete production of those missiles commenced with funds appropriated before FY 1994.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 1993
Amends part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to limit the late enrollment penalty to a ten percent increase in the monthly part B premium due over a period equal to twice the number of years that the part B beneficiary could have been but was not enrolled under part B.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 1993
Preventing Our Kids From Inhaling Deadly Smoke (PRO-KIDS) Act of 1993 - Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to issue guidelines for enforcing a nonsmoking policy at each Federal agency that prohibits, at a minimum, smoking in each portion of a Federal building that is not ventilated separately. Directs the heads of Federal agencies, the Director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, and specified entities of the legislative branch to adopt nonsmoking policies that meet the guideline requirements. Authorizes Federal agencies to petition for a waiver from the general requirements if extenuating circumstances prevent enforcement and such agencies make a good-faith effort to enforce an alternative policy. Requires Federal agencies in which a labor organization is recognized as a bargaining unit to ensure implementation of the requirements that affect work areas predominantly occupied by employees represented by such organization. Exempts such work areas from the policy if a collective bargaining agreement exists that includes provisions relating to smoking privileges that are in violation of this Act. Terminates such exemption on the earlier of the first expiration date of the agreement or one year after the issuance of the guidelines. Requires the Administrator to establish an outreach program on the dangers of environmental tobacco smoke. Directs the Administrator to establish an Environmental Tobacco Smoke Advisory Office. Requires each person who uses Federal funds to provide children's services to establish and enforce a nonsmoking policy that: (1) prohibits smoking in each portion of the facility used in connection with children's services; and (2) provides for the posting of signs stating that smoking is not permitted. Authorizes persons who make a good-faith effort to enforce a policy that meets such requirements to petition their funding agency for a waiver from the general requirements. Sets forth conditions for granting waivers. Provides for special waivers for persons who provide children's services pursuant to certain collective bargaining agreements. Prescribes civil penalties for violations of this Act. Exempts specified individuals from this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 1993
TITLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Requiring Employers to Provide Health Insurance Coverage for Pregnant Women and Children Title II: Provision of Health Insurance for Pregnant Women and Children Through State Children and Pregnant Women Health Plans Title III: Health Insurance Reform for Small Employers Children and Pregnant Women Health Insurance Act of 1993 - Title I: Requiring Employers to Provide Health Insurance Coverage for Pregnant Women and Children - (Secs. 101 and 102) Amends the Social Security Act to require employers either to enroll their employees and family members in a qualified employer health plan or to provide information to the State in which they reside for enrollment instead in the new universal State health insurance plan (the State plan) created by this Act. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose: (1) a premium tax on employers who fail to enroll their employees and family members in a qualified employer health plan, as well as on such employees; and (2) an excise tax on employers who fail to provide to the applicable State information for enrollment under the State plan. Phases in implementation of enrollment requirements and tax payments over four years. Allows a qualified employer health plan to be either private or self-insured, depending upon the employer's size. Outlines requirements for qualified employer health plan premiums and cost-sharing, including limitations on the amount that may be charged for premiums. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) develop standards to certify a qualified employer health plan; (2) establish procedures for the periodic review and recertification of plans; and (3) terminate the certification of any such plan that no longer meets such requirements. Requires employers to provide their employees and family members with a health benefit package that at least mirrors the services mandated under the State plan. Outlines plan requirements respecting: (1) treatment of employee families; (2) period of coverage; (3) health plan cards; (4) limits on pre-existing condition exclusions and coverage standards for required health services; (5) limits on cost-sharing; (6) payment rates; (7) coordination and portability of health insurance coverage; (8) notification of premium subsidies for low-income individuals and other disclosures for consumers; (9) expense accounting; (10) grievance procedures; (11) certain physician incentive plans; (12) enrollee financial protection; and (13) use of uniform claims forms. Title II: Provision of Health Insurance for Pregnant Women and Children Through State Children and Pregnant Women Health Plans - (Sec. 201) Amends the Social Security Act to require each State to establish a health insurance plan (the State plan) for pregnant women and children and other lawful State residents who have not been enrolled or covered under a qualified employer or Federal health plan. Requires each State also to establish a program under which low-income individuals enrolled in any such health plan may apply for assistance to limit or eliminate their financial obligations for premiums, deductibles, and co-payments. Provides that if a State fails to establish a mandated plan, the Secretary shall establish one for it, and the State shall be liable for part of the start-up costs. Requires the State plan to provide specified: (1) preventive care services, including routine immunizations and prenatal care; (2) major medical services; (3) extended medical services, including mental health services; (4) outreach services to link low-income enrolled individuals with such health services; and (5) social services (but only at the State's option). Directs the Secretary to establish standards for such health services. Prohibits a State from imposing any limitation on their number, duration, or scope. Allows individuals covered under the State plan to choose any qualified plan provider or practitioner. Incorporates the use of Medicare (title XVIII of the Social Security Act) or similar payment rates for reimbursing providers for required health services. Requires each State to establish adequate payment rates for outreach and social services. Sets: (1) the maximum annual deductible and co-payment amount for major medical services and extended medical services; and (2) an overall annual limit on cost-sharing for such services. Applies in the same manner to State plans qualified employer health plan requirements for the treatment of family members, coverage period, health plan cards, and coordination and portability of health care coverage. Creates in the Treasury the Federal Children and Pregnant Women Health Insurance Trust Fund (the Fund) to receive the funds generated from the premium and excise taxes as well as other specified revenues dedicated to the support of the State plan. Details the assistance to be provided to low-income individuals and the application process to obtain it. Provides for State demonstration projects to: (1) improve the delivery and quality of health care services under new title XXII; and (2) increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the methods for paying for such services. Title III: Health Insurance Reform for Small Employers - (Sec. 302) Amends the Social Security Act to require health insurance plans provided by small employers (small employer plans) to meet the standards established below in order to be issued, avoid loss of their qualified status, and escape disqualification from State plan administration. (Sec. 301) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an excise tax (50 percent of all gross health plan premiums received during the taxable year) on the issuer of a small employer plan which fails to meet such standard, with specified exceptions. Directs the Secretary to request the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) to develop specific standards to implement the requirements which small employer plans must meet if the State has not established a regulatory program for applying such standards to such plans (program). Provides that if NAIC fails to develop such standards or the Secretary finds that they do not implement such requirements, the Secretary must develop them. Subjects programs to periodic review by the Secretary for determining compliance with such NAIC standards. Requires any carrier which offers a small employer plan to register with the applicable State regulatory authority. Requires such carriers to offer the same plans to all small employers within their individual service areas. Details separate requirements with respect to the treatment of health maintenance organizations. Requires a minimum 12-month term for any small employer plan, guaranteed renewable (with specified exceptions) for additional minimum 12-month terms. Declares that no small employer plans may discriminate on the basis of health status, claims experience, receipt of health care, medical history, or lack of evidence of insurability. Requires the premiums for all small employer plans of the same entity to be: (1) based on a single cohesive rating system applied consistently for all employer groups and designed not to differentiate groups by health or risk status; and (2) actuarially certified each year. Requires small employer plan premiums within a block of business to be community-rated for a given geographical area. Sets limits on premium reference rate variations among blocks of business. States that, with respect to premiums for small employer plans with similar coverage, a small employer plan carrier may establish blocks of business only on the basis of specified criteria. Prohibits the issuance of any small employer plan unless it: (1) provides for a minimum benefit package mirroring the health services required under title II of this Act; (2) does not impose cost-sharing in excess of allowable limits; and (3) includes only such additional items and services as the carrier can demonstrate will facilitate appropriate hospital discharges or avoid unnecessary hospitalization.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 1993
Requires the U.S. Postal Service to issue a commemorative stamp to honor Dr. Alice Stokes Paul (one of the key leaders of the American suffrage movement).
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 1993
Authorizes the American Battle Monuments Commission to establish a memorial on Federal land in the District of Columbia or its environs to honor World War II veterans and to commemorate U.S. participation in that war. Establishes the World War II Memorial Advisory Board to promote the establishment of the memorial, encourage the donation of private contributions for it, and advise the Commission on the site and design for the memorial. Establishes a fund in the Treasury which shall be made available to the Commission for the expenses of establishing the memorial.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Improvements in Customs Enforcement Title II: National Customs Automation Program Title III: Miscellaneous Amendments to the Tariff Act of 1930 Title IV: Miscellaneous Provisions and Consequential and Conforming Amendments to Other Laws Customs Modernization and Informed Compliance Act - Title I: Improvements in Customs Enforcement - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 (the Act) to revise customs procedures with respect to: (1) electronic transmission of forged, altered, or false data to the United States Customs Service with regard to the entry of imported merchandise; (2) penalties for failure to declare imported controlled substances; (3) examination and detention of imported merchandise; (4) certain recordkeeping requirements; (5) examination of books and witnesses; (6) review of protests by the Customs Service; (7) a repeal of a provision relating to the reliquidation on account of fraud; (8) penalties relating to manifests, false drawback or refund claims, and for fraud, gross negligence, and negligence; (9) unlawful unlading or transshipment; (10) public access to Customs Service interpretive rulings and decisions; and (11) seizure of imported merchandise. Title II: National Customs Automation Program - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury (Secretary) to establish the National Customs Automation Program which shall be an automated and electronic system for the processing of commercial imports. (Sec. 201) Provides for electronic data transmission relating to: (1) remote location filing; (2) effective date of rates of duty on imported merchandise; (3) merchandise manifests; (4) imported merchandise invoices; (5) entry and release of imported merchandise; (6) admissibility in administrative and judicial proceedings of electronically transmitted information; (7) appraisement and liquidations of imported merchandise; (8) the payment of duties; (9) abandonment and damage to imported merchandise; (10) protests of Customs Service decisions; (11) refunds and errors; (12) bonds and other security; and (13) customhouse brokers. (Sec. 202) Requires a refund (drawback) of duties (less one per cent of such duties) on articles produced in the United States with imported merchandise that have been destroyed under Customs Service supervision, provided such articles have not been used prior to such destruction. (Sec. 214) Sets forth provisions with respect to customs officers' immunity in regard to the appraisement of or collection of duties on imported merchandise. Title III: Miscellaneous Amendments to the Tariff Act of 1930 - Amends the Act to authorize the Secretary to disregard the difference, but not less than $20 (currently ten dollars), between the total estimated duties deposited with respect to imported merchandise and the total amount actually due on such merchandise. Increases specified ceiling amounts of duty-free gifts and articles. (Sec. 302) Requires masters of vessels that have visited a hovering vessel or received merchandise while outside the U.S. territorial sea to report their arrival to the nearest customs facility. Provides for the electronic transmission of vessel documentation to the Customs Service. (Sec. 303) Requires specified kinds of vessels to report to the nearest Customs Service facility within 24 hours (or other period of time as provided) after arrival to a U.S. port. (Sec. 305) Exempts from entry and clearance requirements certain passenger vessels on excursion from the U.S. Virgin Islands to the British Virgin Islands and returning, U.S. documented vessels with recreational endorsement, or (as under current law) undocumented U.S. pleasure vessels not engaged in trade, except such vessels must comply upon arrival with specified customs reporting requirements and navigation laws and must not have visited any hovering vessel. (Sec. 306) Prohibits merchandise, passengers, or baggage from being unladen from any vessel required to make entry or vehicle required to report its arrival until such entry or report of arrival is made and a permit for unlading has been issued by the Customs Service. Authorizes the issuance of such permits through electronic data transmission. (Sec. 309) Reduces from one year to six months the length of time merchandise may remain in customs custody with fees unpaid before it may be treated as unclaimed. (Sec. 312) Authorizes the Secretary to prescribe regulations for the declaration and entry of merchandise whose value does not exceed a designated amount, but not more than $2,500 (currently not greater than $1,250), or when different commercial facilitation and risk considerations that may vary for different classes or kinds of merchandise or different classes of transactions may dictate. (Sec. 313) Reduces from one year to 90 days the minimum length of time after forfeiture the Secretary must wait before selling at public auction any seized imported merchandise with a counterfeit mark. (Sec.314) Authorizes the Customs Service to order the destruction or other appropriate disposition of vessels, vehicles, aircraft, merchandise, or baggage that has been seized under the customs laws if it determines that the expense of keeping such items is disportionate to their value (currently applies only to items of less than $1,000 in value). (Sec. 315) Authorizes the use of funds from the Customs Forfeiture Fund for the payment of: (1) certain transfer and storage charges and expenses; and (2) claims against Customs Service employees. (Sec. 316) Requires actions for fraud, gross negligence, and negligence, false drawback, or refund claims with respect to imported merchandise to be instituted within five years after the alleged violation or discovery of such fraud. (Sec. 318) Authorizes the Secretary to settle, for no more than $50,000 in each case, claims for personal injury, death, or damage to, or loss of, privately owned property caused by an investigative or law enforcement officer of the Customs Service. (Sec. 319) Provides for the use of private collection agencies to recover money owed the United States under customs laws. Title IV: Miscellaneous Provisions and Consequential and Conforming Amendments to Other Laws - Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to exempt from such Schedule articles which are returned within 45 days after being exported from the United States as undeliverable and which have not left the custody of the carrier or foreign customs service. (Sec. 401) Declares that certain railway locomotives and railway freight cars on which no duty is owed are not subject to the entry or release requirements for imported merchandise under the Tariff Act of 1930. States that instruments of international trade, such as containers, lift vans, rail cars and locomotives, truck cabs and trailers, etc., are exempt from formal entry procedures, but must be accounted for when imported to and exported from the United States through the manifesting procedures required for international carriers. (Sec. 402) Amends the Internal Revenue Code and other specified Federal law with respect to: (1) certain expenditures from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund; and (2) coastwise trade vessels and U.S. vessels visiting foreign ports. (Sec. 403) Amends Federal law to grant the Court of International Trade exclusive jurisdiction of any civil action for review of decisions of the Customs Service that deny, suspend, or revoke accreditation of private customs laboratories. Bars the commencement of such actions unless brought within 60 days of such decisions. (Sec. 404) Requires U.S. and foreign vessels to obtain clearance from the Customs Service before proceeding from a U.S. port for: (1) a foreign port; (2) another U.S. port (for foreign vessels only), or (for U.S. vessels only) another U.S. port if the vessel has bonded or foreign merchandise for which entry has not been made; or (3) outside the U.S. territorial sea to visit a hovering vessel or to receive merchandise. (Sec. 408) Repeals specified provisions of Federal law. (Sec. 409) Requires the Commissioner of Customs to report to the Congress each fiscal year after FY 1992 on the collection of duties imposed under the antidumping and countervailing duty laws. Amends the Customs and Trade Act of 1990 to require the Commissioner of Customs to: (1) devise a methodology for estimating the level of compliance with the U.S. customs laws; and (2) evaluate the extent to which such compliance was obtained during the 12-month period preceding the 60th day before each fiscal year 1993 through 1995.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 1993
Liveable Wage Act of 1993 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to: (1) increase the minimum wage to $5.50 an hour in 1994; and (2) provide that the minimum wage rate will be increased by indexing to the cost of living, in the same manner as benefits are indexed under specified provisions of the Social Security Act, for 1995 and thereafter.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 1993
Ted Weiss Memorial Health Care Fraud and Abuse Commission Act of 1993 - Establishes the Ted Weiss Memorial Commission on Health Care Fraud and Abuse to investigate the nature, magnitude, and cost of health care fraud and abuse and develop methods for its prevention, detection, prosecution, and litigation. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 1993
Marine Mammal Capture, Export, and Public Display Protection Act of 1993 - Amends the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) to require, instead of the penalty applicable under the AWA for a violation regarding a marine mammal, that a person be liable for a civil or criminal penalty under specified provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 (MMPA). Mandates review and, if appropriate, modifications to AWA standards regarding the care and habitat of marine mammals in captivity. Amends the MMPA to direct the Secretaries of Commerce and Agriculture to jointly establish a system for tracking marine mammals taken in waters under U.S. jurisdiction or imported. Makes it unlawful to take any marine mammal before establishment of the system. Makes it unlawful to export a marine mammal without a permit under this Act. Requires regulations under the MMPA for exporting as well as for taking and importing marine mammals. Authorizes issuance of export permits under the same requirements as taking and importing permits. Allows issuance of an export permit only: (1) to maintain or improve the health and well-being of the mammal; and (2) if the permit prohibits use of the mammal for any other purpose. Modifies scientific research permit requirements regarding issuance, takings involving surgical procedures, lethal takings, release requirements, permanent marking of released mammals, and permit effective periods.
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