United States · United States Congress · 19 October 1999
Express the sense of Congress that: (1) prayers and invocations at public school sporting events are constitutional under the First Amendment; and (2) the Supreme Court should uphold the constitutionality of such practices.
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 1999
Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman- Hollings Act) to require a sequestration to reduce the amount of discretionary outlays in the current policy baseline for the budget year of the affected congressional session to a level equal to total non-social security receipts. Provides that, if: (1) after June 30, any discretionary appropriation is enacted that would cause total non-social security outlays to exceed total non- social security receipts (after taking into account a sequestration), the discretionary spending limits shall be reduced by the amount of the excess; and (2) after Congress adjourns to end the session for a budget year but before July 1 of that fiscal year, an appropriation for that fiscal year is enacted that would cause such outlays to exceed such receipts, there shall be a sequestration to eliminate the excess. Applies this Act beginning with FY 2000.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1999
Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to provide that if the United States initiates a retaliation list (list of products of a foreign country that has failed to comply with the report of the panel or Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization (WTO)), or the United States Trade Representative (USTR) takes specified trade action against the goods of a foreign country because of its failure to implement the recommendation made pursuant to a dispute settlement proceeding under the WTO, the USTR shall periodically revise the list or action to affect the other goods of the country. Declares that the USTR is not required to revise the retaliation list or the action with respect to a country, if: (1) the USTR determines that implementation of the recommendation by the country is imminent; or (2) the USTR together with the petitioner involved in the initial unfair trade investigation (or if no petition was filed, the affected U.S. industry) agree that it is unnecessary to revise the retaliation list.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1999
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Brooklyn Museum of Art should not receive Federal funds unless it closes its exhibit featuring works of a sacrilegious nature.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 1999
Methamphetamine Anti-Proliferation Act of 1999 - Directs the United States Sentencing Commission (the Commission) to review and amend the Federal sentencing guidelines with respect to any offense relating to the manufacture, importation, exportation, or trafficking in amphetamine (including an attempt or conspiracy to do any of the foregoing) in violation of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act (CSIEA), or the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act (MDLEA) to provide for increased penalties comparable to the base offense level for methamphetamine. Directs the Commission to: (1) ensure that the sentencing guidelines for such offenses reflect their heinous nature, the need for aggressive law enforcement, and the extreme dangers associated with unlawful activity involving amphetamines; and (2) promulgate amendments pursuant to this Act in accordance with the procedure set forth in the Sentencing Act of 1987, as though the authority of that Act had not expired. (Sec. 3) Amends the CSA to prohibit advertisements for the sale of drug paraphernalia and of schedule I controlled substances. (Sec. 4) Provides for mandatory restitution for CSA and CSIEA violations. Expands provisions regarding restitution for cleanup of clandestine laboratory sites to cover offenses involving, and reimbursement for costs incurred for the cleanup associated with, the manufacture of amphetamine (currently, limited to methamphetamine), and to include reimbursement to States and local governments, as well as to the United States. Amends the Federal judicial code to provide for the deposit of sums from a reimbursement order into the Department of Justice (DOJ) Assets Forfeiture Fund. (Sec. 5) Amends the Federal criminal code (the code) to: (1) prohibit and set penalties for teaching or demonstrating the manufacture of a controlled substance, or distributing information pertaining to such manufacture or use, with intent that it be used for or to further activity that constitutes a Federal crime, or knowing that the recipient intends to use it for or to further such activity; and (2) allow the delay of issuance of a warrant to search and seize property that constitutes evidence of a Federal criminal offense pursuant to the standards, terms, and conditions set forth in the code, unless otherwise expressly provided by statute. (Sec. 7) Directs the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to carry out specified programs (advanced mobile clandestine laboratory training teams, basic clandestine laboratory certification training, and clandestine laboratory recertification and awareness training) with respect to the law enforcement personnel of States and localities determined by the Administrator to have significant levels of methamphetamine- or amphetamine-related crime or projected by the Administrator to have the potential for such levels of crime in the future. Limits the duration of any such program to three years. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 8) Requires the Director of National Drug Control Policy to use amounts available under this section to combat the trafficking of methamphetamine and amphetamine in areas designated by the Director as high intensity drug trafficking areas. Requires the Director to provide funds for: (1) employing additional Federal law enforcement personnel, or facilitating the employment of additional State and local law enforcement personnel; and (2) such other activities that the Director considers appropriate. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the Director to apportion amounts appropriated for a fiscal year pursuant to such authorization of appropriations for activities under this section among and within areas designated as high intensity drug trafficking areas based on: (1) the number of methamphetamine and amphetamine manufacturing facilities discovered by law enforcement officials in the previous fiscal year; (2) the number of methamphetamine and amphetamine prosecutions in the previous fiscal year; (3) the number of methamphetamine and amphetamine arrests in the previous fiscal year; (4) the amounts of methamphetamine, amphetamine, or listed chemicals seized in the previous fiscal year; and (5) intelligence and predictive data from the DEA and the Department of Health and Human Services showing patterns and trends in abuse, trafficking, and transportation in methamphetamine, amphetamine, and listed chemicals. Requires the Director, before apportioning any funds under this section to a high intensity drug trafficking area, to certify that the law enforcement entities responsible for clandestine methamphetamine and amphetamine laboratory seizures in that area are providing laboratory seizure data to the national clandestine laboratory database at the El Paso Intelligence Center. Sets limits on administrative costs. (Sec. 9) Authorizes the DEA to: (1) assist State and local law enforcement in small and mid-sized communities in all phases of investigations related to such manufacturing and trafficking; (2) staff additional regional enforcement and mobile enforcement teams related to such manufacturing and trafficking; (3) establish additional resident offices and posts of duty to assist State and local law enforcement in rural areas in combating such manufacturing and trafficking; and (4) provide the Special Operations Division of the DEA with additional agents and staff to collect, evaluate, interpret, and disseminate critical intelligence targeting the command and control operations of major amphetamine and methamphetamine manufacturing and trafficking organizations. Authorizes the Administrator to establish in the DEA not more than 50 full-time positions, including not more than 31 special agent positions, and to appoint personnel to such positions. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 10) Amends the Federal judicial code to make sums in the DOJ Assets Forfeiture Fund available for payment for costs incurred by or on behalf of: (1) DOJ in connection with the removal, for purposes of Federal forfeiture and disposition, of any hazardous substance or pollutant or contaminant associated with the illegal manufacture of amphetamine or methamphetamine; and (2) a State or local government in connection with such removal in any case in which such State or local government has assisted in a Federal prosecution relating to amphetamine or methamphetamine, to the extent such costs exceed equitable sharing payments made to such State or local government. Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to make funds under the drug control and system improvement (Byrne) grant program available to remove any hazardous substance or pollutant or contaminant associated with the illegal manufacture of amphetamine or methamphetamine. Requires that any sums made available from the DOJ Assets Forfeiture Fund for purposes of this section in a fiscal year supplement and not supplant any other amounts made available to DOJ from other sources. (Sec. 11) Requires the head of each Federal department, agency, and establishment to place anti-drug messages on appropriate Internet websites controlled by such department, agency, or establishment which messages shall, where appropriate, contain an electronic hyperlink to the Internet website, if any, of the Office of National Drug Control Policy. (Sec. 12) Revises CSA mail order provisions to: (1) require that each regulated person who engages in an export transaction (currently, limited to each regulated person who engages in a transaction with a non-regulated person) submit a monthly report of each such transaction to the Attorney General; and (2) make specified exemptions from such reporting requirement, such as for certain distributions of sample packages of drug products and distributions of drug products pursuant to a valid prescription. Authorizes the Attorney General to revoke any such exemptions if drug products distributed by the regulated person are being used in violation of CSA requirements, subject to specified provisions concerning notification and the right to an expedited hearing. (Sec. 13) Amends the CSA to prohibit and set penalties for the theft of anhydrous ammonia, or the transportation of stolen anhydrous ammonia across State lines, knowing, intending, or having reasonable cause to believe that such ammonia will be used to manufacture a controlled substance in violation of the Act. Requires the DEA Administrator to seek to enter into an agreement with Iowa State University to permit the University to expand its current research into the development of inert agents that, when added to anhydrous ammonia, eliminate its usefulness as an ingredient in methamphetamine production. Authorizes such agreement to provide for the provision to such University of $500,000, on a reimbursable basis, for such activities. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 14) Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to submit to designated congressional committees annual reports on the problems caused by methamphetamine consumption in rural areas, suburban areas, and small, mid-size, and large cities. (Sec. 15) Amends the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to authorize the Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to make grants to and enter into contracts and cooperative agreements with public and nonprofit private entities to enable such entities to carry out: (1) school-based programs concerning the dangers of abuse of and addiction to methamphetamine and other illicit drugs, using methods that are effective and science-based, including initiatives that give students the responsibility to create their own anti-drug abuse education programs for their schools; and (2) community-based abuse and addiction prevention programs relating to methamphetamine and other illicit drugs that are effective and science-based. Sets forth provisions regarding permissible grant uses, priorities in making grants, program evaluation, and reporting requirements. Authorizes appropriations for expansion of abuse prevention efforts and for practitioner registration requirements. (Sec. 16) Amends the PHSA to authorize the Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse to make grants or enter into cooperative agreements to expand the current and on-going interdisciplinary research and clinical trials with treatment centers of the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network relating to methamphetamine abuse and addiction and other biomedical, behavioral, and social issues related to methamphetamine abuse and addiction. Sets forth provisions regarding permissible uses of grant funds and dissemination of research results. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 17) Directs the Secretary to study and report to the Senate and House Judiciary Committees on the development of medications for the treatment of addiction to amphetamine and methamphetamine. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 18) Amends the CSA to waive registration requirements for practitioners who dispense schedule IV or V narcotic drugs or combinations thereof for maintenance or detoxification treatment if the practitioner submits to the Secretary a notification of intent to begin such dispensation that contains certifications by the practitioner that: (1) the practitioner is a physician licensed under State law, has demonstrable training or experience and the ability to treat and manage opiate-dependent patients, and has the demonstrated capacity to refer the patients for appropriate counseling and ancillary services; and (2) the total number of such patients at any one time will not exceed 20, with exceptions. Sets forth additional conditions, including that the drugs or combinations: (1) have been approved for use in maintenance or detoxification treatment; and (2) have not been the subject of an adverse determination. Requires the Secretary to provide to the Attorney General requested information contained in required notifications as the Attorney General may request. Authorizes the Attorney General to consider a practitioner who violates requirements of this section to have committed an act that renders the registration to be inconsistent with the public interest. Directs that, during the three-year period beginning upon enactment of this Act: (1) the Secretary make determinations regarding the effectiveness, increased availability, and adverse consequences for public health, of treatments provided under the waivers; and (2) the Attorney General make determinations regarding the extent to which there have been violations of numerical limitations established and regarding whether waivers have increased the extent to which narcotic drugs in schedule IV or V or combinations are being dispensed or possessed in violation of this Act. Sets forth provisions regarding publication by the Secretary or Attorney General in the Federal Register of decisions. Prohibits a State from precluding a practitioner from dispensing narcotic drugs in schedule IV or V, or combinations of such drugs, to patients for maintenance or detoxification treatment during the three-year period unless, before the expiration of such period, the State enacts a law prohibiting a practitioner from dispensing such drugs. (Sec. 19) Directs the Commission to amend the Federal sentencing guidelines to increase the base offense level, with respect to any offense relating to the manufacture, attempt to manufacture, or conspiracy to manufacture amphetamine or methamphetamine in violation of the CSA, CSIEA, or MDLEA, by specified amounts if the offense created a substantial risk of harm to human life or the environment, or to the life of a minor or incompetent. (Sec. 20) Amends the CSA to include methamphetamine paraphernalia within provisions applicable to "drug paraphernalia."
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 1999
Budget Responsibility and Efficiency Act - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (CBA) to revise the Federal and congressional budget processes by establishing a two-year budgeting and appropriations cycle and timetable. Defines the budget biennium as the two consecutive fiscal years beginning on October 1 of any odd-numbered year. Sets forth a special timetable for any first session that begins in any year immediately following a leap year and during which the term of a President begins (except one who starts a second successive term). (Sec. 2) Devotes the first session of any Congress to the budget resolution and to appropriations decisions, retaining current deadlines in most cases. Changes certain deadlines to conform to the biennial scheme. Devotes each second session to authorization activity, subject to specified deadlines. (Sec. 4) Sets forth revised pay-as-you-go provisions for the Senate to conform with the biennial framework. (Sec. 5) Conforms provisions governing the President's budget to the biennial framework. (Sec. 6) Requires all Acts making regular appropriations for the support of the Government to be enacted for a biennium and to specify the amount of appropriations provided for each fiscal year in that period. (Sec. 7) Amends CBA to provide that it shall not be in order in the House or the Senate to consider any bill, joint resolution, amendment, motion, or conference report that authorizes appropriations for a period of less than two fiscal years, unless the program, project, or activity for which the appropriations are authorized will require no further appropriations and will be completed or terminated after the appropriations have been expended. (Sec. 8) Changes to a biennial basis specified requirements for certain Government strategic and performance plans, performance reports in budget submissions, and program performance reports. Requires congressional committee reviews of such plans and reports. (Sec. 9) Provides that it shall not be in order in the House or the Senate in any odd-numbered year to consider any regular bill providing new budget authority or a limitation on obligations under the jurisdiction of any Appropriations subcommittee for only the first fiscal year of a biennium unless the program, project, or activity for which such authority or limitation is provided will require no additional authority beyond one year and will be completed or terminated after the amount provided has been expended.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 1999
Urges the President to: (1) seek a global consensus supporting a permanent international ban on tariffs on electronic commerce, including a ban on special, multiple, and discriminatory taxation of electronic commerce and the Internet; (2) instruct the U.S. delegation to the November 1999 World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial meeting in Seattle, Washington, to seek to make permanent the moratorium on tariffs on electronic transmissions adopted by the WTO in May 1998; (3) seek adoption by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development of an international ban on special, multiple, and discriminatory taxation of electronic commerce and the Internet; and (4) oppose any proposal by any country, the United Nations, or any other multilateral organization to establish a "bit tax" on electronic transmissions.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 1999
Federalism Preservation Act of 1999 - Directs the head of each Federal agency to ensure that each agency activity carried out by the agency is carried out in accordance with all the provisions of Executive Order 12612 (as in effect on October 26, 1987). Provides that Executive Order 13132, issued August 4, 1999, shall have no force or effect.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 1999
Keep Our Promise to America's Military Retirees Act - Amends Federal employee provisions to include the following as an employee, for purposes of authorized 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 who is also entitled to hospital insurance benefits under part A of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act; (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 who is entitled to Medicare hospital insurance benefits; 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 · 27 September 1999
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow businesses a limited reclamation credit of 20 percent of the basis of each qualified reclamation property placed in service during the taxable year. Defines qualified reclamation property as, among other things, qualified recycling property or qualified remanufacturing property.
United States · United States Congress · 23 September 1999
Urges the Department of Education, States, and local educational agencies to work together to ensure that at least 95 percent of all funds appropriated for elementary and secondary education programs administered by the Department of Education is spent to improve the academic achievement of children in classrooms.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 1999
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the U.S. Government should: (1) request that the new Government of Panama, under the leadership of President Mireya Moscoso, nullify the lease agreements for the Balboa and the Cristobal port facilities on each end of the Panama Canal and initiate a new bidding process that is both transparent and fair; (2) request that the new Government of Panama investigate charges of corruption related to the granting of the Panama Canal port leases by the previous Balladares administration; and (3) negotiate security arrangements with the Government of Panama that will protect the canal and ensure the territorial integrity of the Republic of Panama.
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 1999
Youth Financial Education Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to establish a new part L, Promoting Youth Financial Literacy, under title X (Programs of National Significance). Authorizes the Secretary of Education to provide grants to State educational agencies (SEAs) to develop and integrate youth financial education programs for students in elementary and secondary schools. Sets forth requirements for State plans and for allocation of grants to States. Requires States to use grants to: (1) provide funds to local educational agencies (LEAs) and public schools to carry out financial education programs for students in kindergarten through grade 12 based on the concept of achieving financial literacy through the teaching of personal financial management skills and the basic principles involved with earning, spending, saving, and investing; (2) carry out professional development programs to prepare teachers and administrators for financial education; and (3) monitor and evaluate programs. Directs the Secretary to make a grant to or contract with an entity with substantial financial education experience for a national clearinghouse for instructional materials and information on model financial education programs and best practices. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop performance measures for the part L programs of State grants and of the clearinghouse; and (2) report to the Congress annually on the implementation of part L programs. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 1999
Waives all points of order against the consideration of the conference report on H.R. 2490 (Treasury Department, U.S. Postal Service, Executive Office of the President, and certain independent agencies appropriations).
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 1999
Requires Congress, in addressing issues of information technology and electronic commerce policy, to: (1) focus on a broad spectrum of issues essential to the evolution and strength of the American information technology industry; (2) ensure that it plays an enabling and not inhibiting role in supporting the movement of industry and people into the Information Age; (3) incorporate a principle of minimal and predictable government regulation; and (4) refrain from actions that would enshrine or favor specific technologies or standards.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 1999
Expresses the sense of Congress that making concessions to terrorists is deplorable and that President Clinton should not have offered or granted clemency to the FALN (Armed Forces of National Liberation) terrorists.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1999
Home Page Tax Repeal Act - Repeals a provision of the 1998 Supplemental Appropriations and Rescissions Act which ratified that a portion of the fee charged for registration or renewal of an Internet second-level domain name be used for the preservation and enhancement of the Internet intellectual structure under a cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation. States that such provision is not repealed to the extent of its application to amounts, collected pursuant to the authority of such provision, that have been obligated for expenditure before the date of the enactment of this Act. Treats each person who registered (or renewed the registration of) an Internet second-level domain name with Network Solutions, Inc. after September 13, 1995, and before April 1, 1998, and who paid a fee to Network Solutions, Inc. for such registration (or renewal) which has not been refunded, as having made a payment against the tax imposed by chapter 1 (Normal Taxes and Surtaxes) of the Internal Revenue Code for such person's first taxable year beginning after December 31, 1998, equal to 30 percent of the amount of such fee.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1999
Shivwits Plateau National Conservation Area Establishment Act - Title I: Shivwits Plateau National Conservation Area - Establishes the Shivwits Plateau National Conservation Area in Arizona. (Sec. 103) Requires the administration of the conservation area to be exercised by the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Land Management. Prohibits the Secretary from using the National Park Service or the Fish and Wildlife Service to administer the Conservation Area or to include the area as a unit of the National Park System or the National Wildlife Refuge System, except by express congressional authorization. Requires the Secretary to prepare a management plan for administration and use of the conservation area. Establishes the Shivwits Plateau National Conservation Area Advisory Committee to advise on the preparation and implementation of the management plan. (Sec. 104) Provides that the designation of the conservation area shall not be construed to alter the existing authorized uses or rights to use Federal lands included in the area. Treats a land use as an existing land use if it was authorized as of January 1, 1999, was a historical or traditional use, or was a right of use as of such date. Permits hunting, trapping, and fishing on conservation area lands and waters. Authorizes grazing within the area to the same extent as was permitted during calendar year 1998. Guarantees grazing permit holders the right to create new improvements for grazing operations. Permits aircraft and helicopter overflights of lands and landings within the area to the same extent as was permitted during calendar year 1998. (Sec. 105) Describes procedures for the acquisition of State or private lands within the conservation area. (Sec. 106) Requires the Secretary to assess the oil, gas, coal, and other mineral potential on Federal lands in the conservation area in order to expand the data base with respect to the mineral potential of the lands. Subjects the mineral assessment program to review and approval by the Arizona State Department of Mines and Mineral Resources. Bars the Secretary from making, modifying, or extending any mineral withdrawal authorized by law within the conservation area after January 1, 1999, until the assessment, consultation with, and review by, the State are completed. Permits the removal of minerals from the conservation area after completion of such requirements. (Sec. 107) Requires the Secretary, subject to the availability of funds, to carry out ecological resources restoration projects within the conservation area. Prohibits such projects from adversely affecting grazing allotments for more than three years unless an extension has been agreed upon by the permittee. Requires the Secretary, to the extent that a project affects such an allotment, to provide alternative allotments within the same grazing district to affected permittees so that the total number of animal unit months is unaltered. Sets forth provisions regarding control of plant growth and road maintenance and improvement within the conservation area. (Sec. 110) Directs the Secretary to conduct a survey of the conservation area, noting all sites of archaeological, historical, or scientific interest. Makes survey results publicly available. (Sec. 111) Authorizes appropriations to carry out this title. Title II: Land Restoration and Conveyances - Requires the Secretary of the Interior, to the extent possible, to implement the recommendations contained in the April 1999 report of the Sonoran Institute regarding the Arizona Strip-Southern Utah Restoration Area. Authorizes the Secretaries of Agriculture and the Interior, as a demonstration project, to apply all or a part of the revenues received for timber and other resources removed from lands designated as such restoration area under stewardship end-result contracts as an offset against the costs of stewardship services. Requires the Secretaries to designate an independent scientific review panel to review and approve all projects under this section. Terminates the authority to conduct projects seven years after this Act's enactment date. (Sec. 202) Directs the Secretary of the Interior to convey, without consideration, all U.S. right, title, and interest in and to specified lands to Colorado City, Arizona, Fredonia, Arizona, Mohave County, Arizona, and the Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians. (Sec. 203) Authorizes appropriations to carry out this title.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1999
Prohibits the United States from operating a U.S. consulate in Jerusalem unless it is under the supervision of the U.S. Ambassador to Israel. Requires any official U.S. Government document which lists countries and their capital cities to identify Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Declares that, for purposes of registration of birth, certification of nationality, or issuance of a passport of a U.S. citizen born in the city of Jerusalem, the Secretary of State shall, upon the citizen's request, record the place of birth as Israel.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1999
Railroad Competition and Service Improvement Act of 1999 - Amends Federal transportation law to declare as primary objectives for U.S. rail transportation policy: (1) ensuring effective competition among rail carriers at origin and destination; (2) maintaining reasonable rates in the absence of such competition; (3) maintaining consistent and efficient rail transportation service to shippers, including the timely provision of railcars requested by them; and (4) ensuring that smaller carload and intermodal shippers are not precluded from accessing rail systems due to volume requirements. (Sec. 5) Requires a rail carrier, upon a shipper's request, to establish a rail transportation rate and provide service requested by the shipper between any two points on the carrier's system where traffic originates, terminates, or may reasonably be interchanged. Authorizes the shipper to challenge the reasonableness of the rate established. Requires the Surface Transportation Board to then determine the reasonableness of the rate so challenged without regard to whether: (1) the rate established is for only part of a movement between an origin and a destination; (2) the shipper has made arrangements for transportation for any other part of such movement; or (3) the shipper currently has a contract with a rail carrier for any part of the rail traffic at issue, provided that the rate prescribed by the Board shall not apply to transportation covered by such contract. (Sec. 6) Prohibits the Board from imposing fees in excess of $1,000 for certain administrative services collected from an eligible facility in connection with rail maximum rate complaints. Prohibits a rail carrier from charging a rate for shipments from or to an eligible facility which results in a revenue-to-variable cost percentage (using system average costs) for transportation service to which the rate applies that is greater than 180 percent. Requires a rail carrier to accept all requests for grain service from an eligible facility up to a maximum of 110 percent of the grain carloads shipped from or to the facility in the preceding calendar year. Authorizes an eligible facility to request that an alternative rail carrier provide such service using the tracks of the original carrier if such carrier does not initiate service within a specified time. Requires the alternative carrier to compensate the other carrier for use of its tracks. (Sec. 7) Changes from discretionary to mandatory the authority of the Board to require terminal facilities (including main-line tracks for a reasonable distance outside of a terminal) owned by a rail carrier providing rail transportation to be used by another rail carrier if the Board finds that use to be practicable and in the public interest without substantially impairing the carrier's ability to handle its own business. Declares that the Board, in making such determination, shall not require evidence of anticompetitive conduct by the rail carrier from which access is being sought. Makes similar changes to require rail carriers to enter into reciprocal switching agreements where such agreements are necessary to provide competitive rail service. (Sec. 8) Prohibits the Board from considering evidence of product or geographic competition when making market dominance determinations in rail rate proceedings. (Sec. 9) Amends U.S. rail transportation policy to repeal the mandate that the Board determine adequate revenues for rail carriers. (Sec. 10) Directs the Secretary of Transportation to require, by regulation, each rail carrier to submit a monthly report containing certain information, including its on-time performance, car availability deadline performance, average train speed, average terminal dwell time, the number of its cars loaded (by major commodity group), and other aspects of its performance as a rail carrier. Requires the Secretary to make such report available to the Board, Congress, and to the public.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1999
Policyholder Disaster Protection Act of 1999 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for the creation of disaster protection funds by property and casualty insurance companies for the payment of policyholders' claims arising from certain catastrophic events.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1999
Small Business Remediation Act of 1999 - Provides that the maximum level of remediation for a dry cleaning solvent in the soil, surface water, groundwater, and other environmental media (other than for water used as a drinking water source) that may be required of a dry cleaner shall be equal to: (1) the soil screening level for inhalation for such solvent determined in accordance with the Soil Screening Guidance Document (Guidance Document) developed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); or (2) the generic soil screening level for inhalation for such solvent as set forth in the Guidance Document until such maximum level is determined for a facility. Requires the applicable requirements for dry cleaning solvents under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 to be the remediation standards set forth in this Act. Authorizes the EPA Administrator to change such standards in accordance with any revised Guidance Document if necessary to protect health or the environment.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1999
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) all Americans, and above all women, should take an active role in the fight against breast cancer by using all the means available to them; (2) the role played by national and community organizations and health care providers in promoting awareness of the importance of regular clinical and self-examinations, regular mammograms, and biopsies (when appropriate), and in providing information, support, and access to services, should be recognized and applauded; and (3) the Federal Government has a responsibility, among other things, to continue to fund research so that the causes of, and improved treatment for, breast cancer may be discovered.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1999
Constitutional Amendment - Grants each individual who is a victim of a crime for which the defendant can be imprisoned for a period longer than one year, or any other crime that involves violence, the following rights: (1) to reasonable notice of, and to not be excluded from, any public proceedings relating to the crime; (2) to be heard, if present, and to submit a statement at all public proceedings to determine a conditional release from custody, an acceptance of a negotiated plea, or a sentence and at a non-public parole proceeding to the extent such rights are afforded to the convicted offender; (3) to reasonable notice of, and an opportunity to submit a statement concerning, any proposed pardon or commutation of sentence; (4) to reasonable notice of a release or escape from custody relating to the crime; (5) to consideration of the interest of the victim that any trial be free from unreasonable delay; (6) to an order of restitution from the convicted offender; (7) to consideration for the safety of the victim in determining any conditional release from custody relating to the crime; and (8) to reasonable notice of the rights established by this amendment. (Sec. 2) Grants the victim or the victim's lawful representative standing to assert such rights. Provides that nothing in this amendment shall: (1) provide grounds to stay or continue any trial, reopen any proceeding, or invalidate any ruling, except with respect to conditional release or restitution or to provide rights guaranteed by this amendment in future proceedings, without staying or continuing a trial; and (2) give rise to or authorize the creation of a claim for damages against the United States, a State, a political subdivision, or a public officer or employee. (Sec. 3) Empowers the Congress to enforce this amendment by appropriate legislation. Allows exceptions to the rights established by this amendment only when necessary to achieve a compelling interest. (Sec. 4) Makes: (1) the right to a restitution order established by this amendment inapplicable to crimes committed before its effective date; and (2) the rights and immunities established by this amendment applicable in Federal and State proceedings, including military proceedings to the extent that the Congress may provide by law, juvenile justice proceedings, and proceedings in the District of Columbia and any commonwealth, territory, or possession of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1999
Urges the Administration to protect U.S. sovereignty by aggressively opposing the global "bit tax" on all data sent through the Internet, as proposed in the Human Development Report 1999 published by the United Nations Development Programme.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1999
Separation of Powers Restoration Act - Repeals the War Powers Resolution. Terminates after 90 days all powers and authorities of the President and any other Federal officer or employee or executive agency from a declaration of national emergency. States that, to the extend that any Act of Congress grants to the President or any other executive officer or employee the power to declare a national emergency, such power is divested to Congress alone. Directs the President to include with each presidential order a statement of the specific statutory or constitutional authority for such action. States, with exceptions, that a presidential order neither constitutes nor has the force of law and is limited in application and effect to the executive branch. Authorizes both Houses of Congress, a Senator or Representative, certain State and local officials, and certain aggrieved persons to bring an action to challenge the validity of any presidential order which exceeds the power granted to the President by the relevant authorizing statute or the Constitution.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 1999
Taxpayer's Defense Act - Amends Federal provisions concerning discretionary congressional review of agency rules to prohibit a rule that establishes or increases a tax, however denominated, from taking effect before the enactment of a bill specifically authorizing the rule. Exempts a rule promulgated under the Internal Revenue Code. Requires an agency promulgating such a rule to submit to each House of Congress a report containing the text of the part of the rule that establishes or increases a tax, and an explanation of the rule. Outlines procedures for House and Senate consideration of the bill authorizing the rule to take effect.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 1999
Sound Scientific Practices Act - Requires the Secretary of Labor, upon determining that a standard should be promulgated under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, to appoint a panel of individuals (in lieu of an advisory committee, as currently) to review and report on: (1) the scientific and economic data which form the basis for such standard; and (2) the relevance of the data to industries and workers which would be affected by such standard. Requires such panel to: (1) be broadly representative and balanced; and (2) include persons with expertise in scientific and economic analysis and persons with expertise relevant to any industry which would be subject to such standard. Provides that persons with substantial and relevant expertise shall not be excluded from a panel merely because they represent entities which may have potential interest in a standard under consideration if that interest is fully disclosed to the Secretary. Prohibits any peer reviewer representing such entity from being included on any panel considering a standard affecting a single entity only.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 1999
Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States should: (1) commend the people of Taiwan for having established a democracy and for repeatedly reaffirming dedication to democratic ideals; (2) recognize Taiwan's independence if the people of Taiwan opt for such status through a democratic mechanism, including a plebiscite; and (3) immediately adopt a "One China, One Taiwan Policy" which reflects the reality that Taiwan and China are two separate nations.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 1999
Medicare Glaucoma Detection Act of 1999 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for coverage of glaucoma detection tests for certain eligible individuals under Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance).
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 1999
Realistic Tests for Realistic Threats National Security Act of 1999 - Requires the Director of the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization of the Department of Defense to: (1) conduct, no later than September 30, 2001, at least one intercept test of the Navy Theater-Wide defense system and the Theater High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system against target missiles with velocities of not less than the maximum velocity of the Taepo Dong I missile of North Korea; (2) take immediate steps to modify plans for managing the development of such systems to meet such deadline. Urges the Director, in order to improve the likelihood that the tests are successful, to review changes in the configuration of the systems to: (1) increase the speed of their interceptor missiles to well in excess of three kilometers-per-second; and (2) allow such missiles to receive and use targeting data provided by a variety of external sensors.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 1999
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Strengthening the Farm Safety Net Title II: Improving Program Efficiencies Title III: Administration Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 1999 - Title I: Strengthening the Farm Safety Net - Amends the Federal Crop Insurance Act to revise the crop insurance premium schedule for additional coverage, including elimination of the separate coverage-based premium criteria. Requires plans to disclose premium amounts paid by the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation. (Sec. 102) Establishes a premium schedule for other insurance plans based upon a percentage of the total premium used to define loss ratio and certain dollar amounts to be paid by the Corporation. (Sec. 103) States that if the Corporation uses actual production history to determine insurable yields for a commodity, a producer may elect to exclude certain years of production history depending upon whether the producer has a ten or five year consecutive production history. (Sec. 104) Directs the Corporation to periodically review crop insurance plan rating methodologies. (Sec. 105) Repeals authority for the cost of production risk protection and the assigned yield for new producer pilot programs. Authorizes the Corporation to offer pilot programs: (1) on a regional, State, or national basis; and (2) on a three-year, renewable, basis. Provides for the expedited consideration of certain limited-scope pilot programs. Directs the Corporation to conduct one or more livestock (cattle, sheep, swine, goats, poultry) pilot programs, including the use of futures and options contracts and insurance plans. Sets forth specified fiscal year expenditure caps. Authorizes the use of Corporation insurance fund amounts for such programs. (Sec. 106) Authorizes the Corporation to provide a cost of production price election under a production cost-based insurance plan. (Sec. 107) Authorizes the Corporation to provide performance-based discounts to producers of a commodity with good insurance or production experience relative to other producers in the same area. (Sec. 108) Directs the Corporation to offer an alternative risk protection coverage that indemnifies on an area yield and loss basis and provides, on a uniform national basis, a higher combination of yield and price protection. (Sec. 109) Authorizes cooperatives and other nonprofit trade associations to pay catastrophic insurance fees. (Sec. 110) Provides, with respect to prevented planting coverage, that: (1) a producer may elect out of coverage, with a corresponding premium reduction; (2) the Corporation shall offer an equal percentage of coverage for each commodity; and (3) substitute commodity planting shall be permitted, under specified conditions. (Sec. 112) Amends the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 to authorize noninsured crop disaster assistance to producers in certain declared disaster areas. (Sec. 113) Makes noninsured crop disaster assistance available only to persons with adjusted gross incomes of two million dollars or less. Title II: Improving Program Efficiencies - Amends the Federal Crop Insurance Act to prohibit issuance of more than one insurance policy on the same acreage during a crop year unless such coverage is limited to catastrophic risk protection insurance, with an exception for areas with customary double-cropping practices. (Sec. 202) Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to improve program compliance and integrity through development of plans to: (1) reconcile producer information received by the Corporation and the Farm Service Agency (FSA); and (2) use FSA field infrastructure to identify and eliminate waste and fraud. Provides for related Corporation consultation with State FSA committees. (Sec. 203) Authorizes the Corporation to impose specified fines and program disqualifications upon an agent, producer, loss adjuster, insurance provider, or other person for willful and intentional false information provided with respect to an insurance plan or policy. (Sec. 204) Provides for protection of confidential information, including application of specified (confidentiality) penalties under the Food Security Act of 1985. Title III: Administration - Amends the Federal Crop Insurance Act to revise the composition of the Corporation Board of Directors. (Sec. 302) Directs the Corporation to reimburse applicants for research, development, and maintenance costs for insurance policies that are approved and offered for producer sale. (Sec. 303) Directs the Corporation to contract with qualified parties to research and develop insurance policies for underserved commodities, including specialty crops Prohibits the Corporation from conducting its own policy research and development. (Sec. 304) Provides specified funding for research and development on specialty crops and under-served communities and authorizes appropriations for reimbursement for research development and maintenance costs. (Sec. 305) Authorizes an approved insurance provider, university, or trade association or cooperative, or other person to submit a policy or plan for Board approval. States that if the Board does not approve or disapprove an application within 120 days it shall be deemed approved. (Sec. 306) Directs the Corporation to contract for rating insurance plans.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 1999
Credit Cost Reduction Act of 1999 - Amends the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to: (1) exclude from the definition of "communication" any actions taken pursuant to Federal or State rules of civil procedure, or a nonjudicial foreclosure; and (2) permit collection activities and communications during the 30 days following initial notice to the consumer about a debt collection unless the consumer requests cessation of such activities. Extends to any series of class actions arising out of the same violations by the same debt collector the current limit on the total amount of the debt collector's liability for additional damages that can be awarded to a plaintiff in the case of a successful class action to enforce liability of a noncompliant debt collector. Disallows recovery to the consumer of attorney's fees accruing after the consumer's refusal of such debt collector's settlement offer, if the amount of the final judgment awarded to the consumer is less than such offer. Shields a debt collector from liability in the case of good faith compliance with Federal or State rules of civil procedure. Exempts from certain debt collection disclosure requirements those mortgage servicers for which delinquent debt collection is secondary to the servicing of federally related mortgage loans secured by a first lien. Requires such mortgage servicers to furnish the debtor with certain validation statements prior to debt acceleration.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 1999
Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 for the construction of a U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, Israel. Prohibits the United States from operating a U.S. consulate in Jerusalem unless it is under the supervision of the U.S. Ambassador to Israel. Requires any official U.S. Government document which lists countries and their capital cities to identify Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Declares that, for purposes of registration of birth, certification of nationality, or issuance of a passport of a U.S. citizen born in the city of Jerusalem, the Secretary of State shall, upon the citizen's request, record the place of birth as Israel.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 1999
Sets forth the rule (open) for the consideration of H.R. 2490 (Treasury Department, U.S. Postal Service, Executive Office of the President, and certain Independent Agencies appropriations).
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 1999
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Federal Government should not directly invest any contributions made to the social security trust funds in private financial markets.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1999
Fairness in Securities Transactions Act - Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to reduce (from one three-hundredth of one percent to one five-hundredth of one percent) the transaction fees designed to recover the costs to the Government of securities markets oversight and enforcement. Provides that if insufficient fees are collected for the budget authority of the Securities and Exchange Commission as provided by an appropriations Act, such Act may provide for a fee increase, with all such increases deposited and credited as offsetting collections to the pertinent appropriations account. Requires that ten percent of all such fees be deposited and credited as offsetting collections to the pertinent appropriations account.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1999
Internet Freedom and Broadband Deployment Act of 1999 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to define "high speed data service" as a service capable of transmitting electronic information at a rate generally not less than 384 kilobits per second in at least one direction. Prohibits the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and each State, except as expressly provided in this Act, from regulating the rates, charges, terms or conditions for, or entry into the provision of, any high speed data service or Internet access service, or to regulate the facilities used in the provision of such service. Prohibits the FCC from requiring an incumbent (established) local exchange carrier to: (1) provide unbundled access to any network elements used in the provision of any high speed data service, other than those elements described in FCC regulations; or (2) offer for resale at wholesale rates any high speed data service. States that nothing in this Act shall: (1) limit or affect the authority of any State to regulate voice telephone exchange services; (2) affect the ability of the FCC to retain or modify the exemption from interstate access charges for enhanced service providers; or (3) prohibit the FCC from modifying the regulation concerning the number of networks subject to its unbundling requirement. Requires each incumbent local exchange carrier to provide: (1) Internet users with the ability to subscribe to and have access to any Internet service provider that interconnects with such carrier's high speed data service; (2) any Internet service provider with the right to acquire necessary facilities and services to facilitate such interconnection; and (3) any Internet service provider with the ability to collocate equipment in order to achieve such interconnection. Includes high speed data service or Internet access service within the definition of "incidental interLATA services" permitted for a Bell operating company (BOC). States that, until the date a BOC is authorized to offer interLATA services originating in an in-region State, such BOC offering any high speed data service or Internet access service may not, in such State, bill or collect for interLATA voice telecommunications service obtained by means of such high speed data or Internet access service provided by such company.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1999
Declares that Congress: (1) calls upon the Office of National Drug Control Policy to report to Congress on the progress made by the Government of Mexico in undertaking specified measures to fight drug trafficking; (2) considers these matters to be of paramount importance to the bilateral relationship between the United States and the United Mexican States; (3) calls upon the Government of Mexico to immediately return excess Huey helicopters to the U.S. Government if it no longer wants custody of this drug fighting equipment so that they might be used by other countries; (4) will consider these matters at the beginning of the second session of the 106th Congress and review whether the Government of Mexico has made substantial progress in these matters; (5) calls upon the Office of National Drug Control Policy to submit to Congress a plan to promptly redistribute the returned Huey helicopters to other drug fighting countries cooperating with the United States on counternarcotics efforts; and (6) calls upon the U.S. Government to intensify efforts to secure a maritime agreement with the Government of Mexico to facilitate greater counternarcotics cooperation.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1999
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the Internal Revenue Service, as we know it, must be abolished, and the Internal Revenue Code must be replaced with a new, simple, and fair tax system that reduces taxes and applies a single, low rate to all Americans; and (2) the President should submit to Congress a comprehensive proposal to reform the Internal Revenue Code by April 1, 2000.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1999
Fair Care for the Uninsured Act of 1999 - Title I: Refundable Credit for Health Insurance Coverage - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an individual a tax credit in an amount equal to the amount paid for qualified health insurance, subject to stated limitations. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to make payments to the provider of an individual's qualified health insurance equal to such individual's qualified health insurance credit advance amount (the Secretary's estimate of the amount of credit allowable) with respect to such provider. Title II: Study of Safety-Net Health Insurance Programs for the Medically Uninsurable - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide for a study on the current state of all existing State safety-net health insurance programs.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1999
Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1999 - Repeals the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935. Prescribes procedural guidelines for both Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and State access to records of a holding company (including subsidiaries, associates and affiliates) of a public utility or natural gas company. Precludes such State access to any person that is a holding company solely by reason of ownership of one or more qualifying facilities under the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act. Instructs FERC to promulgate a final rule to exempt specified holding companies from such access requirements. Requires FERC to exempt any person or transaction from such access requirements if it finds that regulation of such person or transaction is irrelevant to the jurisdictional rates of a public utility or natural gas company. Retains the jurisdiction of FERC and State commissions to determine whether a public utility company or natural gas company may recover in rates any costs of affiliate transactions. Declares this Act inapplicable to: (1) the United States; (2) a State or its political subdivision; and (3) a foreign governmental authority not operating in the United States. Grants FERC certain Federal Power Act enforcement powers. Transfers from the Securities and Exchange Commission to FERC all books and records that relate primarily to the functions vested in FERC by this Act. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Federal Power Act to repeal its conflict of jurisdiction guidelines.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1999
American Values Tax Savings Plan for the 21st Century - Title I: Marriage Penalty Relief - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that the standard deduction for married individuals shall be twice the deduction for unmarried individuals. Eliminates the marriage penalty in individual income tax rates. Title II: Phaseout of Estate and Gift Taxes - Provides for the phaseout of the estate and gift taxes. Title III: Phaseout of Alternative Minimum Tax for All Taxpayers - Provides for the phaseout of the alternative minimum tax. Title IV: Reduction in Individual Capital Gain Tax Rates - Reduces individual capital gain tax rates. Title V: Increased Incentives for Retirement Savings - Increases and indexes the IRA contribution limit. Increases the income limitation applicable to conversions. Title VI: Incentives for Health Insurance Coverage - Provides for the deduction of 100 percent of the health insurance costs of the self-employed. Permits the carryover of unused benefits from cafeteria and flexible spending arrangements. Title VII: Incentives for Education - Excludes from gross income education distributions from qualified State tuition plans. Expands such plans to include eligible educational institutions. Title VIII: Repeal of Telephone Excise Tax - Provides for the phaseout of the telephone excise tax. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Federal Communications Commission E-rate discount program for schools and libraries should be terminated. Title IX: Extension of Expiring Provisions - Provides extensions for the: (1) credit for increasing research activities; (2) work opportunity credit; and (3) subpart F exemption for active income financing. Title X: Pay-Go Reform - Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to set forth pay-as-you-go provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1999
Academic Achievement for All Act (Straight A's Act) - Allows States flexibility in combining and using use specified Federal elementary and secondary education formula program funds for State education priorities and programs, in exchange for being held accountable for meeting, in a five- year period, certain performance goals which they propose. (Sec. 3) Allows a State to opt to enter into such a performance agreement with the Secretary of Education, under which provisions of law relating to specified eligible programs shall not apply to the State, with certain exceptions. Includes under the terms of such agreements requirements relating to: (1) use of such funds to improve student achievement; (2) an accountability system; (3) performance goals and measures, and student achievement data; (4) fiscal responsibilities; (5) civil rights; (6) private school student and staff participation; (7) State financial participation; and (8) annual reports. (Sec. 4) Lists such eligible programs, under various provisions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), the Department of Education Appropriations Act of 1999, the Goals 2000: Educate America Act, the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act of 1998, and the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act. (Sec. 5) Sets forth requirements relating to: (1) within-State distribution of funds; (2) local participation; and (3) a set-aside for State administrative expenditures. (Sec. 8) Requires performance reviews at the end of the five-year period. Requires reductions of State administrative funds for States that have made little or no progress. Allows States that have met at least 80 percent of their performance goals to apply for renewal of performance agreements for an additional five-year period. (Sec. 10) Directs the Secretary annually to set aside sufficient funds from the Fund for the Improvement of Education under ESEA to grant achievement gap reduction rewards to States. Requires a performance reward to equal at least five percent of funds allocated to the State during the first year of the performance agreement for programs included in the agreement. Makes a State eligible to receive a reward if, over the five-year term of the performance agreement, it reduces by at least 25 percent the difference between the percentage of highest and lowest performing groups of students that meet the State's definition of proficient, with such reduction occurring in at least: (1) two content areas, one of which must be mathematics or reading; and (2) one grade level.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1999
Independent Medical Review Act of 1999 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to require group health plans and health insurance issuers to provide for independent review of adverse coverage determinations. Requires group health plan claims procedures to include procedures for a fair, de novo determination of medical necessity by the independent review organization without regard to the definition used by the plan, as well as notifications to participants or beneficiaries of their rights to: (1) appeal adverse determinations to utilization review agents of the plan; (2) appeal adverse determinations of such utilization review agents to independent review organizations (with procedures for such appeal); and (3) obtain immediate review by an independent review organization in cases of life-threatening conditions (with procedures for obtaining such review). Sets forth requirements for: (1) procedures for appeals of adverse decisions to the plan's utilization review agent; (2) the independent review process; and (3) certification of independent review organizations by the Secretary of Labor. Treats the independent review organization's determination as the final decision of the plan, but allows a court to vacate or modify such determination under certain circumstances.
![Official portrait of Rep. Sessions, Pete [R-TX-17]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/115_rp_tx_32_sessions_pete_200.jpg)