United States · United States Congress · 1 May 1986
Education and Training for American Competitiveness Act - Title I: Education for American Competitiveness - Authorizes appropriations to carry out this title for FY 1987 and each succeeding year. Makes available 80 percent of such funds for subtitle A and 20 percent for subtitle B. Subtitle A: Education and Training to Strengthen the Competitiveness of Domestic Industry - Directs the Secretary of Education (the Secretary for purposes of this title) to make grants to State educational agencies (SEAs) for programs to improve the education and skills of our current and future workers in those areas that will enhance their productivity and competitiveness. Allots subtitle A funds among States on the basis of relative numbers of unemployed individuals and of adults without high school degrees. Sets forth requirements for submission, contents, and approval of State plans under this subtitle. Encourages States to coordinate services under this subtitle with those provided under the Training for Industrial Competitiveness provisions added by this Act to the Job Training Partnership Act. Allows funds under this subtitle to be used for programs of literacy training, vocational training services, and elementary and secondary education in mathematics, science, or foreign languages. Makes such literacy training available to unemployed or underemployed individuals, displaced workers, illiterate adults, and illiterate out-of-school youth. Make such vocational training services available to: (1) workers who have been or who are about to be adversely affected by foreign competition; (2) unemployed or underemployed individuals, for employment in new, expanding, or export-related industries or businesses; (3) current employees, in order to make their existing industries and business more competitive; and (4) individuals in order to assist their entry into or advancement in high technology occupations or to meet the technological demands of other industries or businesses. Provides that such elementary or secondary level instruction in mathematics, science, or foreign languages be through programs to: (1) meet needs not being met under the Education for Economic Security Act (through activities such as education partnerships with business, industry, and labor, interdisciplinary programs, and after-school and summer advanced or supplementary programs); (2) begin preparation for advanced courses and careers in mathematics, science, engineering, and technology; and (3) develop the specific technological and foreign language skills required by local industries and businesses. Sets forth eligible service providers under this subtitle. Limits administrative costs under this subtitle. Subtitle B: Postsecondary Education Programs to Improve Instruction in Mathematics, Science, and Foreign Languages - Directs the Secretary to make grants to institutions of higher education for: (1) summer language institutes and science and mathematics workshops; and/or (2) special equipment acquisition and workshops. Provides for competitive selection of grant recipients. Limits the amounts of grant awards. Sets forth grant application requirements. Requires the institution, or consortium of such institutions, to assure that it will obtain at least one-half of the cost of the programs with non-Federal funds. Provides that the grants for summer institutes (either here or abroad) for intensive training in foreign languages and cultures shall be for: (1) secondary and postsecondary school students (with stipends provided); (2) language teachers and faculty (with stipends provided) to improve their language proficiency and pedagogical techniques; and (3) American international business persons, on a cost reimbursement basis, to improve their effectiveness in doing business abroad. Provides that the grants for intensive workshops for preservice and inservice mathematics and science teachers and faculty shall be to demonstrate the most recent developments in science, mathematics, and technology, and their application to improve our economic development, especially in export and foreign trade businesses and industries. Encourages the involvement of State and local governments, labor, business, and industry in planning for such workshops. Provides that the equipment grants shall be for: (1) the purchase of laboratory and other special equipment suitable for use in providing undergraduate classroom instruction in mathematics and/or science; and (2) workshops for secondary and vocational school teachers and postsecondary institution faculty on the use of such equipment. Title II: Training for Industrial Competitiveness - Authorizes appropriations to carry out this title for FY 1987 and succeeding fiscal years, to fund programs added by this Act to the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA). Allocates such funds as follows: (1) 60 percent for trade-impacted worker assistance programs; (2) 20 percent for joint labor-management training programs; (3) nine percent for demonstration programs (for FY 1987 and 1988 only); (4) ten percent for State job bank systems (for FY 1987 and 1988 only); and (5) one percent for certain studies under this Act. Reallocates such funds after the FY 1987 and 1988 limited purposes are completed. Amends title IV (Federally Administered Programs) of the JTPA to add a new part H: Training for Industrial Competitiveness. Directs the Secretary of Labor (the Secretary, for purposes of this title) to: (1) provide training and employment assistance to trade-impacted workers; (2) provide financial and technical assistance to labor-management committees; and (3) establish demonstration programs to improve worker adjustment to changing world markets. Sets forth requirements for trade-impacted worker assistance programs. Directs the Secretary to provide, on a competitive basis, financial assistance to eligible public or private nonprofit programs for training and employment assistance to eligible workers in industries that the Secretary determines have been adversely affected by international trade. Allows eligible individuals to be provided with: (1) intensive job search assistance; (2) basic skills training and other educational assistance; (3) job training; (4) job development; (5) training in job skills for which demand exceeds supply; (6) supportive services, including commuting assistance and financial and personal counseling; (7) pre-layoff assistance; and (8) relocation assistance. Authorizes subsistence stipends if the enrolled individual is not currently receiving unemployment compensation or trade readjustment assistance. Requires that such services shall: (1) be in addition to, and coordinated with, those provided under title III (Employment and Training Assistance for Dislocated Workers) of JTPA; and (2) supplement and not supplant any other federally-assisted training assistance or services. Includes specified considerations under criteria for determining if an industry has been adversely affected by international trade. Sets forth requirements for joint labor-management training programs. Directs the Secretary to award, on a competitive basis, grants to labor-management committees to provide not more than one-half of the cost of programs of training, retraining, and education for eligible workers. Sets forth grant eligibility requirements for labor-management committees and program eligibility requirements for workers. Allows committees to use grant funds to provide the following services to eligible workers: (1) early warning adjustment services in the event of mass layoffs or plant closings (including personal and financial counseling, referral to community services, career counseling, job search assistance, job development, retraining, and relocation assistance); (2) aptitude testing and career counseling; (3) on-the-job training; (4) institutional training; (5) tuition assistance; (6) upgrading of skills; and (7) education, including basic skills, literacy training, and more advanced education. Sets forth requirements for cooperative agreements for such committees. Sets forth requirements for demonstration programs. Directs the Secretary, within six months after enactment of this Act, to establish programs to demonstrate the feasibility of providing worker retraining payments to workers who: (1) are or were employed in an industry determined to have been adversely affected by international trade; and (2) meet specified criteria for dislocated workers. Limits such payments to $4,000 each, to enable such workers to purchase their own job search, education, training, and retraining services from certified providers. Sets forth program evaluation requirements. Directs the Secretary to report to the Congress on such programs. Adds to JTPA new provisions for State job bank systems. Directs the Secretary to make funds from this Act available through the U.S. Employment Service for the development and implementation of computerized job bank systems in each State, for purposes such as: (1) identification of, and referral to, job openings; (2) information on occupational supply and demand; and (3) use by career information, including school counseling, programs. Encourages compatibility of such systems with other systems used in employment and training program administration. Requires special consideration to be given to the advice of State occupational coordinating committees and other users of such systems. Directs the Secretary, within six months after enactment of this Act, to commence a study of the feasibility of providing portability for pensions and health benefits for dislocated workers. Requires such study to also evaluate the benefits of providing early retirement benefits without penalty for older dislocated workers. Requires a report of such study to be submitted to the Congress within 18 months after enactment of this Act. Includes among the data which the Secretary is required to maintain under JTPA data on the mass layoffs or closings that are caused by or substantially related to international trade. Directs the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to conduct a study to identify the countries that fail to recognize and enforce, and the foreign producers that fail to comply with, basic labor rights. Requires an annual report of such study to be submitted to the Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 1986
Medicare Adult Day Care Amendments of 1986 - Amends part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for the establishment of adult day care programs providing certain health services to chronically-impaired adults in a group setting outside their homes for up to 100 days on a less than 24-hour basis. Requires providers of such services to have a multidisciplinary group of health care personnel conduct a written assessment of the status of each chronically-impaired adult before the adult's admission to the program and thereafter periodically develop a coordinate an individualized treatment plan for, and with the cooperation of, the adult. Defines a "chronically-impaired adult" as an individual 18 years of age or older who has a physical, emotional, or mental impairment which, but for the provision of adult day care, would require the provision of care in a hospital, skilled nursing, or intermediate care facility. Makes deductibles inapplicable to adult day care, requiring only the payment of a specified coinsurance amount. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to issue regulations regarding adult day care programs. Requires the Secretary to adopt the standards established by the National Institute of Adult Day Care as the minimum standards for qualifying as a provider of such care.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 1986
Requires each blender who distributes alcohol-blended gasoline to certain purchasers to determine and certify the type and percentage of alcohol and the percentage of cosolvents in such gasoline. Requires each distributor who receives such certified gasoline and distributes it to certain persons to certify the type and percentage of alcohol and cosolvent in the gasoline according to specified guidelines. Requires each gasoline retailer of alcohol-blended gasoline to conspicuously display the type and percentage of alcohol and cosolvent to ultimate purchasers at the point of sale. Grants the Federal Trade Commission investigative and enforcement powers to implement this Act. Requires the Environmental Protection Agency to: (1) conduct field tests determining alcohol type and percentage (including the percentage of cosolvents) in gasoline; and (2) notify the Federal Trade Commission of any failures to post such information. Requires the Federal Trade Commission to promulgate rules for the uniform display and certification of alcohol and cosolvent content in alcohol-blended gasoline. Provides that a violation of this Act shall be considered an unfair or deceptive act affecting commerce within the meaning of the Federal Trade Commission Act.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 1986
Declares that the House of Representatives urges: (1) the Soviet Union to share with the international scientific community information about the Chernobyl accident and to open the nuclear site for international inspection; (2) the establishment of an international emergency alert system; (3) the International Atomic Energy Agency to establish safety standards for nuclear power plants; and (4) the United States and other member nations of the Agency to implement standards by directing the Agency to establish an international emergency response force. Encourages the formation of an international commission to examine the causes of the Chernobyl accident.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 1986
Ballistic Knife Prohibition Act of 1986 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit the possession, manufacture, sale, importation, and mailing of ballistic knives (knives with a detachable blade that is propelled by a spring-operated mechanism).
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 1986
Requests the Governor of each State (including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin Islands) to designate two residents for naturalization as citizens in an appropriate ceremony on Ellis Island on July 3 or 4, 1986. Waives specified naturalization sites provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act for such ceremony. States that this Act authorizes no additional funds for expenses associated with such naturalization ceremony.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 1986
Declares that the House of Representatives: (1) condemns the Soviet Union's failure to provide notification and information about the nuclear accident at Chernobyl; and (2) calls upon the Soviet Union to permit outside nuclear experts to assist with the accident and to allow the international press corps to cover the situation.
United States · United States Congress · 23 April 1986
Provides that any cost-of-living adjustment in military retirement and survivor benefit programs provided by law to take effect during FY 1987 shall be made in accordance with such law and not subject to any reduction, suspension, or contrary presidential order. Defines "military retirement and survivor benefit programs."
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 1986
Youth Suicide Prevention Act - Directs the Secretary of Education to establish a grants program to assist local educational agencies and private nonprofit organizations to establish and operate youth suicide prevention programs. Sets forth program requirements. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1987 through 1989.
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 1986
Omnibus Debt Collection and Credit Management Act of 1986 - Title I: Establishment of Treasury Department Oversight - Requires the appointment of an Under Secretary of the Treasury for Debt Collection and Credit Management to: (1) supervise the development of, approve, and review the debt collection and credit management system of each Federal agency; (2) evaluate the effectiveness and value of disposing of the Government's loan and delinquent debt portfolio to private sources; (3) require each Federal agency to submit records on its debt status and collection efforts; and (4) provide an annual summary of the activities conducted under this Act to specified congressional committees. Requires the head of each Federal agency to submit for the Under Secretary's approval a comprehensive debt collection and credit management plan. Lists the contents of such a plan, including requirements for: (1) procedures for screening credit applicants; (2) loan origination and application fees to defray costs; and (3) payment schedules comparable to schedules used in private credit transactions. Title II: Improved Debt Collection Practices - Requires each executive and legislative agency to enter into a contract for the collection of indebtedness owed the United States that is delinquent by more than three months. Requires the contractor to report on its debt collection of indebtedness owed the United States that is delinquent by more than three months. Requires the contractor to report on its debt collection efforts at least biannually. Directs an agency to sell such debts which have not been collected within one year after being referred to a contractor, unless: (1) the contractor certifies that the debt is about to be collected; or (2) litigation to collect the debt has been initiated and not concluded. Requires an agency to disclose to consumer reporting agencies information concerning any debt exceeding $100 which is delinquent by more than 31 days. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require (current law authorizes) the Secretary of the Treasury, upon written request, to disclose the address of a taxpayer for use by a Federal agency in collecting a debt owed the Government. Authorizes the U.S. Attorney General to make contracts retaining private counsel to furnish legal services in U.S. debt collection cases. Directs the Attorney General to obtain at least four such contracts with private individuals or firms in each district in which such a contract is made. Lists contract provision requirements. Authorizes executive and legislative agencies to refer debt claims to such counsel who shall be considered to be a debt collector under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Provides that no counterclaim filed in any debt collection action brought on behalf of the United States by such counsel who shall be considered to be a counterclaim filed in any debt collection action brought on behalf of the United States by such counsel shall be valid unless served directly on the U.S. Attorney General or the U.S. attorney for the appropriate judicial district. Requires each executive agency, in accordance with standards prescribed by the Attorney General, to establish a unit for the conduct of litigation to collect delinquent debts owed to the United States. Directs the Attorney General to report to the Under Secretary quarterly on the status of litigation conducted by such units. Provides that no State law setting an earlier deadline than Federal law shall apply to the time limitation for filing suit for collection of a debt owed to the United States. Prohibits any legislative or executive agency from providing any Government funds to any person identified to be delinquent in the payment of the debt to the United States, unless: (1) the person demonstrates that the debt is no longer delinquent; or (2) satisfactory arrangements for payment of the debt have been made. Prohibits any court from granting any injunction against the collection of a debt owed to the United States pending final judgment on any review of such collection. Directs the Comptroller General to: (1) audit and report to each House of the Congress on the implementation of this title by executive and legislative agencies; and (2) report to each House annually on the status of debts owed to the United States. Title III: Budgetary Incentives for Improved Debt Collection and Credit Management - Expresses the intent and commitment of the Congress to promote implementation of this Act by: (1) conducting annual oversight hearings on such implementation and on the Under Secretary's report on activities under this Act; (2) permitting funds collected on delinquent debt as a result of such implementation to be returned to the program from which they are derived or used to offset reductions under the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act); (3) requiring that each direct and guaranteed loan program obtain ten percent of its budget authority from debt collection; and (4) requiring each Federal agency to submit a report on such implementation with its annual appropriations request.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 1986
Medicare Fair Hospital Deductible Act - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to change the date by which the Secretary of Health and Human Services must determine the inpatient hospital deductible for the year. Limits the increase in such deductible to no more than the cost-of-living increase reflected in benefit payments under title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Act. Provides that the extended care coinsurance amount for any spell of illness in any year shall equal one-twelfth of the inpatient hospital deductible for illnesses beginning in such year.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 1986
Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to eliminate the requirement that there be at least a three-percent rise in the Consumer Price Index before a cost-of-living adjustment of benefits is made.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 1986
Designates the building known as the United States Attorney's Building for the Southern District of New York as the Silvio James Mollo Federal Building.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 1986
Liner Development Act of 1986 - Amends the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 to authorize persons who qualify to enter into operating-differential subsidy contracts with the Secretary of Transportation. Authorizes any person currently under contract with the Secretary to have such contract amended to provide for the payment of such an operating-differential subsidy (ODS). Makes an owner or operator of a qualified vessel (certain liners) eligible to receive ODS payment if such vessel is operating in international trade on the date of enactment of this Act. Authorizes certain other vessel owners or operators to file for an amended contract under this Act. Requires the Secretary, when entering into a contract or an amended contract under this Act, to provide that: (1) the contract vessel shall be manned exclusively by U.S. citizens; (2) such vessel shall be offered for enrollment in a sealift readiness program approved by the Secretary of Defense; and (3) the construction plan of vessels constructed after the enactment of this Act is reviewed by the Secretary of the Navy for possible equipment modification for purposes of national defense. Terminates each ODS contract and contract amendments 15 years after enactment of this Act, with possible 15-year renewals. Allows each such contract or amended contract to be further amended or rescinded only upon the mutual consent of the Secretary and the contractor. Requires liner vessels receiving ODS payments under this Act to operate only in international trade or in accordance with the Merchant Marine Act, 1936. Prohibits any liner vessel receiving ODS payments under this Act from also receiving payments under the Merchant Marine Act, 1936. Outlines administrative provisions concerning such contracts and contract amendments. Requires the Secretary to employ a wage index, revised at least every two years, for the purpose of calculating ODS payments. Requires the Secretary to make such ODS payments on a monthly basis. Provides that the computation of ODS payments shall be determined by the numbers and ratings of U.S. officers and crews on qualified vessels. Prohibits any person who has entered into an ODS contract or contract amendment from directly or indirectly competing in international trade with any U.S.-built, U.S.-flag liner vessel which operated on an essential trade route, or service area to such route, in 1984, unless certain conditions are met. Allows such competition to occur if a rationalization agreement (a cooperative working arrangement using pooling or allocation of earnings, losses, or traffic) has been drawn up between such vessels. Provides for review and enforcement of such rationalization agreements by the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC). Allows persons who have entered into ODS contracts or other such contracts under the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 to file complaints with the FMC. Requires the FMC to establish an Arbitration Board to hear such complaints within 15 days after receiving such complaint. Outlines administrative procedures relating to the hearing and decision process of the Arbitration Board of the FMC. Establishes, three years after the enactment of this Act, the Maritime Policy Review Board. Requires such Board, within one year after its appointment, to report to the Congress on whether to continue provisions of this Act relating to rationalization agreements and complaint procedures. Authorizes the FMC to investigate and, if necessary, issue remedial orders proscribing any activity or practice by any person, foreign or domestic, or by any foreign government, which the Commission considers to be contrary to the purposes of this Act. Outlines civil penalties for any person failing to comply with remedial orders. Amends the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 to include the purposes of this Act within such Act's declaration of policy and purposes. Provides for the waiver of certain restrictions (regarding transportation of Government cargoes) against vessels built or rebuilt outside the United States or documented under any foreign registry from operation in a specific trade route if every person operating a U.S.-flag liner vessel on such trade route agrees to waive such restrictions. Makes funds authorized or appropriated under the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 for the operation of liner vessels available to satisfy obligations under this Act. Authorizes certain persons operating steam-powered U.S.-flag vessels for a specified period to apply to the Secretary for a grant to repower such vessel with a diesel engine. Provides for resale to the Secretary of such vessels for their insurance value when the vessel reaches 25 years of age. Authorizes appropriations. Requires any vessel of which the Secretary has custody or title on the effective date of this Act to be made available for charter in seaworthy condition.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 1986
Liner Development Act of 1986 - Amends title VI of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 to authorize and direct the Secretary of Transportation to enter into operating-differential subsidy (ODS) contracts with certain U.S. citizens who qualify for such subsidies under provisions of this Act for the operation of qualified vessels in the international trade. Authorizes and directs the Secretary to amend existing ODS contracts to reflect changes brought about by this Act. Outlines: (1) administrative provisions regarding such ODS contracts; and (2) eligibility requirements for those U.S. citizens wishing to enter into such ODS contracts. Requires amendments in existing ODS contracts to reflect the increased wage-differential payments permitted in such contracts as provided by this Act. Specifies certain Federal laws which shall not apply to ODS contracts as amended. Provides that no amendment to an existing ODS contract shall be construed as a termination of any contract entered into under the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 or a release of any obligation of the United States under such contract. Limits U.S. liability for costs under certain amended ODS contracts to wage-differential costs. Defines such qualified vessels entitled to be operated under new and amended ODS contracts as certain kinds of liner vessels. Sets forth the terms and restrictions for new and amended ODS contracts, including: (1) the monthly payment of ODSs to contractors upon their verification of such amounts; (2) the determination of the amount of ODS to be paid to be based upon the numbers and ratings of U.S. officers and crews abroad such vessels; and (3) the requirement that all vessels under such contracts be manned by U.S. citizens and able to be converted into auxiliary naval vessels in time of war or national emergency. Provides for termination of ODS contracts after 15 years, with possible renewals for additional 15-year periods. Provides that all such ODS contracts or amended contracts can only be further amended or rescinded upon the mutual agreement of the Secretary and the contractor involved. Outlines: (1) application procedures for entering into ODS contracts; and (2) procedures amending existing ODS contracts to bring them into conformity with contract changes in wage-differential payments made under this Act. Outlines terms and restrictions concerning the payment of subsidies by the Secretary to a contractor under an ODS contract. Limits, with exceptions, the amount of ODS payable annually to each contractor. Bases the amount of ODS payments to a contractor on the actual number of ship-years of operation by such contractor during that year. Outlines alternatives for operators of smaller liner vessels (those operators with fewer than ten qualified vessels) who may receive smaller ODS payments due to the increase in ODS payments to large liner operators brought about by this Act. Allows such smaller operators, as part of such alternatives, to: (1) continue to receive their present ODS payments for an extended period of time; (2) receive a large, additional lump-sum ODS payment; and (3) if they so choose, sell their liners to the U.S. Government for placement in the Ready Reserve Fleet. Declares that there should be authorized and appropriated such sums as necessary to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 1986
Liner Development Act of 1986 - Amends the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 to direct the Secretary of Transportation to enter into operating-differential subsidy (ODS) contracts with certain U.S. citizens for the operation of qualified vessels in the international trade. Authorizes and directs the Secretary to amend existing ODS contracts to reflect changes brought about by this Act. Outlines administrative provisions regarding such ODS contracts. Outlines: (1) eligibility requirements for ODS contracts with the Secretary; and (2) procedures for entering into such contracts, requiring any operator to apply within 120 days after enactment of this Act. Directs the Secretary to award and enter into an ODS contract with a qualified applicant within 270 days after enactment of this Act. Outlines procedures for amending existing ODS contracts to reflect the changes brought about by this Act. Requires any operator wishing to amend its contract to notify the Secretary of such intention within one year after enactment of this Act. Prohibits any such amendments from taking effect prior to 270 days after enactment of this Act. Sets forth the terms and restrictions for new ODS contracts and amendments to existing contracts; including: (1) monthly payment of ODS by the Secretary upon contractor verification of such amounts; (2) the determination of ODS payments based upon the numbers and ratings of U.S. officers and crews aboard such vessels; and (3) the requirement that, all such vessels be manned by U.S. citizens and be able to be converted into naval auxiliary vessels in time of war or national emergency. Provides for the payment of a prorated ODS if there is an insufficient amount of total ODS funds. Provides that all ODS contracts and amended contracts under this Act can only be further amended or rescinded upon the mutual agreement of the Secretary and the contractor involved. Provides for the termination of such contracts 15 years after the enactment of this Act, with possible renewals for additional 15-year periods. Defines "qualified vessels" to mean certain liner vessels. Limits, with exceptions, the amount of ODS payable annually to each contractor. Gives priority in the awarding of ODS contracts to operators who in 1985 operated fewer than ten qualified vessels, such priority ending when the operator achieves 12 qualified vessels under contract. Bases the amount of all ODS payments made to contractors under this Act on the actual number of ship-years of operation by a contractor during that year. Gives the Secretary of Transportation (currently the Secretary of Commerce) authority to allow an operator receiving ODS payments to construct, reconstruct, or acquire vessels in a foreign shipyard, under certain conditions. Ratifies all action taken by the Secretary of Transportation with respect to ODS contracts entered into before February 1, 1986, for liner vessels. Directs the Secretary to refrain from further actions regarding the operation of liner vessels until the operators requesting such action conform their ODS contracts to the changes made under this Act. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 1986
Liner Development Act of 1986 - Amends title VI of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 to authorize and direct the Secretary of Transportation to enter into operating-differential subsidy (ODS) contracts with certain U.S. citizens who qualify for such subsidies under provisions of this Act for the operation of qualified vessels in the international trade. Authorizes and directs the Secretary to amend existing ODS contracts to reflect changes brought about by this Act. Outlines: (1) administrative provisions regarding such ODS contracts; and (2) eligibility requirements for those U.S. citizens wishing to enter into such ODS contracts. Requires amendments in existing ODS contracts to reflect the increased wage-differential payments permitted in such contracts as provided by this Act. Specifies certain Federal laws which shall not apply to ODS contracts as amended. Provides that no amendment to an existing ODS contract shall be construed as a termination of any contract entered into under the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 or a release of any obligation of the United States under such contract. Limits U.S. liability for costs under certain amended ODS contracts to wage-differential costs. Defines such qualified vessels entitled to be operated under new and amended ODS contracts as certain kinds of liner vessels. Sets forth the terms and restrictions for new and amended ODS contracts, including: (1) the monthly payment of ODSs to contractors upon their verification of such amounts; (2) the determination of the amount of ODS to be paid to be based upon the numbers and ratings of U.S. officers and crews aboard such vessels; and (3) the requirement that all vessels under such contracts be manned by U.S. citizens and able to be converted into auxiliary naval vessels in time of war or national emergency. Provides for termination of ODS contracts after 15 years, with possible renewals for additional 15-year periods. Provides that all such ODS contracts or amended contracts can only be further amended or rescinded upon the mutual agreement of the Secretary and the contractor involved. Outlines: (1) application procedures for entering into ODS contracts; and (2) procedures amending existing ODS contracts to bring them into conformity with contract changes in wage-differential payments made under this Act. Outlines terms and restrictions concerning the payment of subsidies by the Secretary to a contractor under an ODS contract. Limits, with exceptions, the amount of ODS payable annually to each contractor. Bases the amount of ODS payments to a contractor on the actual number of ship-years of operation by such contractor during that year. Declares that there should be authorized and appropriated such sums as necessary to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 1986
Expresses the sense of the Congress that, in light of specified international human rights agreements, the Soviet Union should approve the exit visa applications of Doctor Naum Meiman and his wife, Inna Kitrosskaya, and arrange for them to go to the country of their choice. Urges the President to: (1) protest the Soviet Government's refusal to consider the exit visa applications of Dr. Meiman and his wife; (2) call upon all other signatory nations of the Helsinki Accords to join in such protest; and (3) instruct the U.S. delegation to the meeting of experts on human contacts organized under the auspices of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, to be held in Bern, Switzerland, to pursue this matter.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 1986
Acid Deposition Control Act of 1986 - Title I: Stationary Sources - Amends the Clean Air Act to require States to develop and submit to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) an emissions limitation compliance schedule for sulfur dioxide and oxides of nitrogen from fossil-fuel-fired electric utility steam generating units. Requires a two-phase reduction in such emissions, the first to be achieved by 1993, the second by 1997. Requires each State to develop and submit to the Administrator a plan to achieve emissions reductions from other fossil-fuel-fired steam generating units by 1977. Directs the Administrator to conduct and update a comprehensive annual inventory of emissions of sulfur dioxide and oxides of nitrogen from stationary sources, identifying achievable reductions which could be made by 1997. Requires States to submit to the Administrator for approval a plan for achieving such reductions. Grants States discretion in their choice of compliance measures. Requires the Administrator to report to the Congress by July 1, 1993, on phase I reductions and the feasibility of meeting phase II reductions. States that phase II reductions will not take effect if the Congress enacts legislation to that effect. Sets forth emissions rates a State without an approved reductions plan must follow. Authorizes the Administrator to impose a fee on the generation and importation of electric energy between December 31, 1988, and December 31, 1996, to subsidize the interest on qualified pollution control debt incurred by the utility. Establishes civil penalties for fee violations. Establishes in the Treasury the Acid Deposition Control Fund to receive such fees and provide interest subsidy payments for pollution control systems meeting specified standards. Revises the standards for nitrogen oxides emissions for new electric utility steam generating units which burn bituminous or subbituminous coal and for certain fossil-fuel-fired steam generating units. Requires certain smelters to be in compliance with the applicable emissions reduction standard by January 2, 1988, without extension or delay. Title II: Control of Emission from Mobile Sources - Sets oxides of nitrogen emission standards for motor vehicles for model years 1988, 1989, and beyond. Modifies hydrocarbon standards for trucks after model year 1989. Directs the Administrator to regulate sulfur in diesel fuel for 1989 and beyond. Requires either the use of onboard hydrocarbon control technology or the use of gasoline vapor recovery of hydrocarbon emissions emanating from fueling motor vehicles. Title III: International Cooperation - Expresses the concern of the Congress over transboundary pollution between the United States and Mexico and directs the Secretary of State and the Administrator to conclude an agreement within three months of enactment. Requires such an agreement to cover specified copper smelters. Requires the Secretary and the Administrator to report to the Congress within six months on negotiating such agreement. Requires EPA to perform atmospheric field experiments to determine the effects of sulfur dioxide emissions, before and after pollution controls, of the Nacozaria smelter, Mexico, on specified western States. Directs the Secretary to establish an international agency, or utilize an existing agency, to report on the effects of transboundary air pollution from copper smelters on public health and welfare in the United States and in Mexico.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 1986
Prohibits the issuance of a letter of offer with respect to specified proposed sales of Sidewinder, Stinger, and Harpoon missiles and services to Saudi Arabia, as described in the April 8, 1986, certifications from the President to the Congress under the Arms Export Control Act.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 1986
Establishes the Insurance Availability Crisis Commission of 1986 to: (1) coordinate the intergovernmental examination of the tort law system and its relationship with insurance availability and cost; (2) bring representatives of industry, government, and consumers together to perform an examination of the issue of insurance availability; (3) make recommendations for reform of the tort system and insurance industry practices; and (4) raise funds to cover the costs of the Commission's activities. Directs the Commission to report its findings and recommendations to the President, the Congress, and the executive officer of each State. Provides for the Commission's termination upon the transmission of such report. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 1986
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the Attorney General should examine all available evidence regarding the activities of Kurt Waldheim during the Second World War to determine whether he is ineligible to receive a visa and must be excluded from admission into the United States under provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 1986
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the Secretary of Agriculture should take immediate steps to investigate alternative animal identification procedures in lieu of hot-iron cheek branding.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1986
Task Force on Elder Abuse Act of 1985 - Establishes a Task Force on Elder Abuse to assess the nature and extent of public and private efforts needed to report, monitor, and redress elder abuse. Sets forth provisions regarding the membership, pay, and meetings of the Task Force. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to designate a Task Force Chairman responsible for appointing an Executive Director and staff members for the Task Force. Enumerates the powers of the Task Force. Directs the Task Force to transmit an interim report and, within nine months of its first meeting, a final report to the President and the Congress. Requires executive departments and agencies affected by the final report to submit recommendations to the President regarding the implementation of that report. Terminates the Task Force 30 days after its final report. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1987.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1986
Minimum Wage Equity Act of 1986 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to provide for specified annual increases in the minimum wage beginning January 1, 1987. Provides, beginning January 1, 1990, for annual indexing of the minimum wage to 50 percent of the average hourly rate in the private sector.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 1986
Non-Smokers' Protection Act of 1986 - Establishes the policy of the United States to provide an environment free from tobacco smoke to the maximum extent practicable in Government buildings. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the Surgeon General, to promulgate regulations to carry out such policy. Requires such regulations, at a minimum, to provide that smoking be prohibited in buildings or building sections occupied by the Government. Authorizes the Secretary to exempt certain limited areas from such restriction and grants precedence to the rights of nonsmokers in any dispute. Requires the posting of signs where smoking is permitted in a building. Directs the Secretary to solicit comments from labor organizations prior to promulgating regulations. Prohibits such regulations from superseding those that provide more stringent restrictions on smoking. Declares that nothing in this Act prevents more stringent regulations from being promulgated.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 1986
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to make additional immigrant visas available to aliens of a country whose modified average number of U.S. entry visas during 1956 through 1965 exceeded FY 1984 levels. Allocates such additional visas under the current preference category system. Allocates any remaining unused visas: (1) first, to such preference categories without regard to numerical limits; and (2) second, to nonpreference aliens not to exceed 5,000 per fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1986
Effective Schools and Even Start Act - Requires each State receiving an allotment under a certain provision of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act of 1981 after enactment of this Act to use a specified portion of such allotment to: (1) plan for, and review proposed changes in, effective schools programs; (2) implement and support effective schools programs; (3) obtain technical assistance and consultant services with respect to effective schools programs from qualified nonprofit educational organizations; (4) design, develop, and publish educational materials on effective schools programs; (5) develop and implement data collection and analysis systems concerning effective schools programs; (6) promote State and local educational agency awareness of effective schools information; (7) conduct evaluations of effective schools programs; and/or (8) otherwise identify and disseminate information concerning exemplary effective schools programs. Requires the Secretary of Education (the Secretary) to provide assistance in order to inform State educational agencies of the requirements of this Act and to help such agencies comply with such requirements. Requires the Secretary to make grants from specified funds appropriated pursuant to the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act of 1981 and the Adult Education Act to provide a program of adult literacy training which includes involving parents and children together in an effort to enhance the likelihood of educational achievement. Sets forth the elements to be included in such program. Defines an eligible program participant as a parent or child (aged three to seven) from a family: (1) that includes a parent who is eligible for participation in an adult basic education program under the Adult Education Act; and (2) that resides with a child (aged three to seven) in a certain type of school attendance area. Declares that any agency that operates an adult basic education program and serves an area which has an especially high concentration of children from low-income families is eligible to apply for a grant under the Even Start program. Sets forth the requirements for a grant application. Requires that two-thirds of the applications selected for final review shall be from urban areas and one-third shall be from rural areas. Provides for the creation of a review panel to make the final selection of grant recipients. Requires any State educational agency required to use funds for an effective school program to amend its application under a specified section of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act of 1981 to reflect the activities to be conducted with such funds. Requires such a State educational agency and an Even Start program applicant who has been selected to receive funding to enter into a program agreement with the Secretary. Sets forth the information to be included in such agreements. Requires the Secretary to analyze the effective schools programs conducted pursuant to this Act and report to the Congress on such programs by September 30, 1989. Requires the Secretary to provide for annual evaluations of the effectiveness of Even Start programs in providing specified services. Requires the results of the evaluations to be submitted to the national diffusion network for possible dissemination.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 1986
Liability Risk Retention Act of 1986 - Amends the Product Liability Risk Retention Act of 1981 to exempt risk retention groups and purchasing groups (businesses which organize to purchase personal risk and liability insurance on a group basis) from State laws which prohibit, regulate, or otherwise discriminate against such groups. Requires such groups' members to be similarly situated with respect to their exposure to the risk of liability. Permits risk retention groups which are not chartered, licensed, or certified as liability insurance companies by any State to continue to provide insurance to cover product liability or completed operations liability as defined before the enactment of this Act. Requires risk retention groups to comply with State trade practices laws. Allows the insurance commissioner of any State in which a risk retention group is doing business to examine the group's financial condition if the commissioner of the jurisdiction in which the group is charted has not begun such an examination. Subjects such groups to State no-fault automobile insurance requirements. Limits the authority to provide insurance under such Act to liability insurance. Requires a specified notice on all risk retention group policies. Retitles such Act the Liability Risk Retention Act of 1986.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 1986
Community Services Programs Amendments of 1986 - Amends the Head Start Act to authorize appropriations for FY 1987 through 1990 to carry out the Head Start program. Amends the Follow Through Act to authorize appropriations for FY 1987 through 1990 to carry out the Follow Through program. Amends the Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 1981 to: (1) rename specified provisions as the "Dependent Care Programs Act"; and (2) authorize appropriations for FY 1987 through 1990 to make allotments to States for such dependent care programs. Amends the Community Services Block Grant Act (the Act) to authorize appropriations for FY 1987 through 1990 for grants to States to ameliorate poverty. Requires compliance evaluations to include identification of the impact the use of such funds has on children, homeless families, and the elderly poor. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide for use of community services block grants under the Act for specified programs of the Community Economic Development Act of 1981. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1987 through 1990 for community food and nutrition programs under the Act.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 1986
Amends the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 1981 to authorize home energy grants for FY 1987 through 1989. Deems the full amount of home energy assistance payments, regardless of whether made directly to a household or indirectly for its benefit, to be heating or cooling expenses for purposes of the excess shelter expense deduction under the Food Stamp Act of 1977.
![Official portrait of Rep. Biaggi, Mario [D-NY-19]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/b000432_200.jpg)