United States · United States Congress · 6 November 1985
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should: (1) forever desist from congratulating the Soviet Union on the anniversary of the Communists' seizure of power; and (2) annually express, on November 7, our solidarity with the people and countries under Soviet domination, and our hope for their imminent freedom and national integrity.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 1985
Declares that: (1) the people around the world desire a world free from the threat of war; (2) it is the hope of all citizens that the President and General Secretary Gorbachev will reach an arms control agreement which significantly cuts nuclear stockpiles and halts the arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union; and (3) in order to express this hope, all citizens are invited to light candles from dusk to dawn on November 19 and 20, 1985, while the President and Gorbachev meet in summit.
United States · United States Congress · 31 October 1985
Maritime Agreements Act of 1985 - Authorizes the President to negotiate a maritime agreement with a U.S. trading partner whenever: (1) an opportunity exists to promote free, fair, and open competition in international ocean shipping services; (2) it is necessary to protect national security interests; (3) a trading partner imposes restrictive trade barriers or unfair trade practices on the U.S. ocean shipping service industry; or (4) it furthers certain other purposes. Directs the President to negotiate a maritime agreement: (1) within two years, with a trading partner whose waterborne trade with the United States equals or exceeds one percent of the total U.S. foreign waterborne trade and where less than one-third of that trade is carried by U.S. documented vessels; or (2) with a lesser trading partner whenever that trading partner requests a maritime agreement. Sets forth certain essential provisions that must be contained in such agreement. Prohibits the United States from restricting a U.S. documented vessel from participating in the U.S. share of a trade that is the subject of a maritime agreement as long as the vessel complies with other U.S. laws. Provides sanctions if a trading partner whose waterborne trade equals or exceeds one percent of the total U.S. waterborne trade refuses to accept the essential conditions that must be contained in a maritime agreement.
United States · United States Congress · 31 October 1985
Civil Service Supplemental Retirement System Act of 1985 - Title I: Civil Service Supplemental Retirement System - Establishes a Civil Service Supplemental Retirement Plan for Federal employees, postal employees, and Members of Congress who began service after December 31, 1983. Sets forth provisions for the benefit plan including: (1) eligibility for an annuity after five years of creditable service; (2) entitlements to retirement based on age and years of service; (3) the formulas for computing an annuity; (4) survivor election reductions; and (5) funding. Sets forth provisions for mandatory retirement for air traffic controllers, law enforcement officers, and firefighters. Establishes a Thrift Savings Plan under which participants may contribute up to 10 percent of their annual basic pay. Requires employing agencies to contribute the lesser of: (1) 50 percent of amounts contributed by the employee; or (2) three percent of such employee's basic pay. Provides for the payment of benefits, lump sum or annuity, at the employee's separation from service. Establishes in the Treasury the Thrift Savings Fund for the deposit and accounting of amounts under the Plan. Prescribes how money in such Fund shall be invested. Describes survivor annuities under the supplemental retirement plan. Describes disability benefits for employees who have completed five years of creditable service. Sets forth general and administrative provisions. Directs the Office of Personnel Management to pay all benefits payable under the benefit plan and administer provisions not specifically assigned to another entity. Directs the Office to adjudicate all claims under provisions it administers. Provides for annual cost-of-living adjustments in basic pensions based upon an increase in the Consumer Price Index. Provides for withholding of State income taxes from retirement annuities. Declares that basic annuities, survivor annuities, and disability benefits are exempt from legal process (i.e. levy, attachment, garnishment) unless otherwise provided by Federal law. Establishes in the executive branch the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board to be responsible for policies and regulations for, and review of, the investment and management of the Thrift Savings Fund. Directs the Board to establish an Employee Thrift Advisory Council to advise the Board on matters relating to investment policies for the Fund. Directs the Board to appoint an Executive Director to carry out its policies, invest and manage the fund, and administer provisions of the Thrift Savings Plan. Title II: Amendments to Chapter 83 of Title 5, United States Code - Provides for civil service retirement for certain employees excluded from the supplemental retirement plan. Title III: Miscellaneous Provisions - Amends the Federal Employees' Retirement Contribution Temporary Adjustment Act of 1983 to extend its provisions until January 1, 1987. Allows employees covered under such Act to elect participation in the supplemental retirement plan. Title IV: Effective Dates - Declares this Act in effect on January 1, 1987, with specified exceptions.
United States · United States Congress · 31 October 1985
Anti-Terrorism Trade Preference Act of 1985 - Directs the Secretary of State to identify and publish the name of each country that repeatedly supports acts of international terrorism. Requires the Secretary to provide the Congress with a list of such countries annually. Imposes the following sanctions on countries identified as supporting international terrorism: (1) termination, withdrawal, or suspension of any treaty that relates to most-favored-nation treatment of such country; (2) denial of most-favored-nation treatment and imposition of column 2 tariff rates on imports from such countries; (3) non-application of the Generalized System of Preferences on imports from such countries; and (4) non-application of the provisions of the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act with respect to the products of such countries. Authorizes the President to waive such sanctions if it would be in the best interests of the United States. Directs the President to notify the Congress 30 days before any such waiver takes effect.
United States · United States Congress · 31 October 1985
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the Postmaster General should issue a stamp, before October 1, 1986, commemorating the 100th Congress; and (2) the U.S. Postal Service should conduct a public competition for the design of the stamp.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 1985
Authorizes the Francis Scott Key Park Foundation to establish a memorial on Federal land in the District of Columbia or its environs to honor Francis Scott Key, the author of the words to our national anthem. Subjects the selected site, design, and plans for the memorial to the approval of the National Commission of Fine Arts and the National Capital Planning Commission. Provides that only non-Federal funds may be used to establish the memorial and that these must be sufficient before construction begins. Terminates the authority provided by this Act if construction does not begin within five years.
United States · United States Congress · 28 October 1985
Amends part A (Hospital Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to update the figures used in determining the inpatient hospital deductible, extended care services coinsurance amount, and monthly premium. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an additional excise tax on cigarettes. Deposits revenues raised by the additional tax into the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 28 October 1985
Amends part A (Hospital Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to revise the method of determining the inpatient hospital deductible, extended care services coinsurance amount, and monthly premium. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an additional excise tax on cigarettes. Deposits revenues raised by the additional tax into the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 28 October 1985
Reaffirms congressional support for the Medicare Program and for the right of all Medicare beneficiaries to receive accurate and timely information regarding their benefits. Urges the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) convene a group of program participants to draft a simple statement of the rights and responsibilities of Medicare patients; and (2) transmit copies of the statement to all Members of Congress and hospitals and physicians participating in the program; and (3) urge participating hospitals to distribute copies of the statement to Medicare beneficiaries upon their hospitalization and to their families upon request.
United States · United States Congress · 24 October 1985
National Commission on Classified Information and Security Clearance Procedures - Establishes the National Commission on Classified Information and Security Clearance Procedures to investigate: (1) standards and procedures used by Federal authorities to issue security clearances and classify information; (2) procedures used to ensure that persons with a security clearance continue to meet required standards; (3) the extent to which current standards and procedures cause the classification of more information than required by national security; and (4) the dangers to national security by the growth in the number of persons holding security clearances. Directs the Commission to recommend to each branch of the Federal Government uniform standards and procedures for issuing security clearances, classifying documents, and ensuring that a security clearance continues to meet required standards. Makes provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act inapplicable to the Commission. Requires the Commission to make a final report to the President, the Congress, and the Supreme Court not later than one year after appropriations are first made for the Commission. Allows the restriction of public access to Commission documents. Terminates the Commission 30 days after submission of the final report.
United States · United States Congress · 24 October 1985
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the United States: (1) should not sell advanced weapons to Jordan; (2) should ensure that Israel retains its qualitative military edge in the Middle East; and (3) should focus its efforts on bringing Jordan into direct peace negotiations with Israel.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 1985
Retirement Income Policy Act of 1985 - Sets forth national retirement income policy goals. Title I: Amendments to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 - Subtitle A: Participation Requirements - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to add definitions which distinguish between "retirement plans" and "nonretirement savings plans." Defines a retirement plan as a pension plan which meets the retirement income requirements established by this Act. Defines a nonretirement savings plan as any pension plan which is not a retirement plan as defined in this Act. Prohibits conversion of a retirement plan to a nonretirement savings plan. Sets forth retirement income requirements for retirement plans. Permits retirement plans to distribute the accrued benefits to the participant upon the participant's disability or death or separation from service, under certain conditions. Prohibits such distribution upon separation from service unless: (1) the participant is at least 59 1/2 years old; or (2) (if the participant is younger than 59 1/2 years old) the distribution is in one of the described retirement income forms. Requires that retirement plan distributions commence by: (1) the end of the plan year in which the employee: (1) attains age 70 1/2; or (2) the end of a later plan year in which an employee (who is not an owner-employee) retires. Sets forth the following descriptions of permissible "retirement income forms" for distributions upon separation from service to participants under 59 1/2 years old: (1) an annuity for the life of the participant; (2) a qualified joint and survivor annuity; or (3) a level distribution over life expectancy (which may be adjusted annually to account for certain changes). Allows such distribution forms to be adjusted periodically to allow for supplemental benefits prior to the receipt of Social Security benefits, provided such supplemental benefits do not exceed the amount of anticipated Social Security benefits. Permits retirement plans to transfer, upon separation from service, the accrued benefit of the plan participant directly to an individual retirement annuity, or another retirement plan. Revises pension plan participation and vesting provisions to add plan coverage requirements applicable to employers. Requires each employer who maintains a pension plan for an employee in the the employer's relevant work force to provide that each such employee who is under the Social Security contribution and benefit base is eligible to participate in a retirement plan maintained by the employer. Sets forth special rules in the case of allowable subdivisions of the relevant work force. Allows an employer to meet such coverage requirements by maintaining one or more retirement plans. Sets forth a special rule for contributory plans. Eliminates the three-year rule under minimum participation standards. Requires, as a prerequisite for the employer's maintenance of a nonretirement savings plan covering an employee, the employer to maintain at least one retirement plan covering that employee and accruing benefits at specified levels. Subtitle B: Limitations on Contributions and Benefits - Allows a qualified pension plan to include a cash or deferred arrangement (CODA) only if such plan is a retirement plan and if the CODA meets certain requirements. Requires the CODA to provide that the covered employee may elect to have the employer make payments: (1) as contributions to a trust under the plan on behalf of the employee; or (2) to the employee directly in cash. Requires the CODA to provide that the employee has a nonforfeitable right to the employee's accrued benefit derived from employer contributions made to the trust pursuant to the employee's election. Requires that specified CODA discrimination standards be applied to the relationship between deferral percentages of highly compensated employees and other eligible employees. Requires that such CODA requirements be met by each allowable subdivision. Limits the maximum amount of covered compensation. Provides that the amount of a participant's compensation for any year which may be taken into account under a pension plan for purposes of determining benefits and contributions may not exceed 500 percent of the Social Security contribution and benefit base. Sets forth a special rule for self-employed individuals. Subtitle C: Vesting Standards - Revises minimum vesting standards to require the full vesting of any participant who has completed the following years of service: (1) five, in the case of retirement plans; (2) one, in the case of nonretirement savings plans; and (3) ten, in the case of multiemployer plans. Subtitle D: Pension Integration - Sets forth rules against discriminatory treatment of qualified pension plan participants. Revises rules governing integration of retirement plans, with title II (Old Age, Survivors' and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act and other Federal or State retirement programs. Subtitle E: Coverage and Portability - Provides that certain early distributions from a retirement plan which are not made in a retirement income form must be transferred directly to an individual retirement account or individual retirement annuity designated by the participant (or, if such designation is not made within a specified time, selected by the plan administrator). Provides that specified provisions relating to cash-outs of survivor annuities shall apply only to distributions made as transfers meeting the requirements for early distributions set forth under this Act. Prohibits distributed benefits from being treated as other than nonforfeitable solely because such distribution is made as permitted under such survivor annuity cash-out provisions. Subtitle F: Effective Date and Related Rules - Set forth effective dates for amendments made by this title. Sets forth a special rule for such effective dates in the case of plans maintained pursuant to collective bargaining agreements. Makes technical amendments. Title II: Amendments to the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 - Subtitle A: Participation Requirements - Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to make revisions similar to the revisions made to ERISA under title I, subtitle A of this Act. Specifies that maintenance of adequate retirement plan coverage is a requirement for qualification of pension, profit-sharing, and stock bonus plans under IRC. Subtitle B: Limitations on Contributions and Benefits - Permits employees to make qualified voluntary employee contributions only to a retirement plan. Provides that certain contributions to employees' annuities are deductible. Amends IRC provisions relating to cash or deferred arrangements (CODAs) to require that employers with allowable subdivisions meet specified nondiscrimination rules separately in each allowable subdivision. Makes conforming amendments. Amends IRC provisions relating to special rules for individual retirement plans to reduce the amount of deductible contributions an individual may make to an individual retirement account or annuity (IRAs) in a taxable year by the amount of: (1) any employer contributions made to a CODA on behalf of that individual in any plan year ending in that taxable year; and (2) any qualified voluntary employee contributions for that taxable year. Revises IRC provisions relating to limitations on benefits and contributions under qualified plans to coordinate such limitations with the Social Security wage base according to specified formulas. Makes the limitation on benefits under defined benefit plans the lessor of: (1) 100 percent of compensation; or (2) 200 percent of the Social Security wage base. Makes the limitation on contributions to a defined contribution plan is the lesser of: (1) 20 percent of compensation; or (2) 50 percent of the Social Security wage base. Provides that one-half of the after-tax employee contributions are to be as an annual addition. Adds special limitations on qualified contributions to CODAs and nonretirement savings plans under the overall defined contribution limit. Limits the amount of a plan participant's or self-employed individual's compensation that may be taken into account for determining benefits and contributions to no more than 500 percent of the Social Security contribution and benefit base. Limits payments by employers pursuant to qualified CODAs by disallowing contributions and other additions with respect to a participant to the extent they include payments made by the employer for any year to a trust under the plan pursuant to a CODA in excess of 25 percent of the Social Security contribution and benefit base. Limits contributions and other additions with respect to a participant, in the case of a nonretirement savings plan by disallowing any annual addition which is greater than the lesser of: (1) 25 percent of the Social Security contribution and benefit base; or (2) ten percent of the participant's compensation. Provides that a specified rule relating to a limitation in cases of a defined benefit plan and a defined contribution plan for the same employee is applicable only in the event that at least one of such plans is a top-heavy plan. Makes conforming amendments relating to the taxation of annuity income. Subtitle C: Vesting Standards - Amends IRC provisions relating to minimum vesting standards to make revisions similar to the revisions made to ERISA under title I, subtitle C of this Act. Subtitle D: Pension Integration - Amends IRC provisions relating to integration of retirement plans with title II (OASDI) of the Social Security Act and other Federal and State retirement plans to make revisions similar to some of the revisions made to ERISA under title I, subtitle D of this Act. Subtitle E: Distributions - Repeals the ten-year forward average and capital gains treatment of lump-sum distributions. Raises the rate of the additional tax on early distributions from IRAs. Subtitle F: Coverage and Portability - Amends IRC provisions relating to restrictions on certain mandatory distributions to make revisions similar to some revisions made to ERISA under title I, subtitle F of this Act. Sets forth special rules for simplified employee plans (SEPs). Permits a salary reduction arrangement which is elected by an employee under an SEP. Sets forth provisions for the treatment of such salary reduction arrangements. Imposes fiduciary duties with respect to SEPs. Prohibits integration of SEPs with Social Security provisions. Limits to 500 percent of the Social Security contribution and benefit base the total compensation considered for purposes of establishing uniform contributions to an SEP. Subtitle G: Effective Date - Sets forth effective dates for amendments made by this title. Sets forth an effective date for application of such amendments to IRAs. Sets forth a special rule for such effective date in the case of plans maintained pursuant to collective bargaining agreements.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 1985
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should: (1) declare a national emergency with respect to acts of terrorism directed against U.S. citizens and property; (2) investigate and determine the extent of assets held in the United States by organizations responsible for such terrorism; and (3) prohibit transactions involving such assets in accordance with the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 1985
Depository Institution Examination Improvement Act of 1985 - Redesignates the Financial Institution Examination Council as the Depository Institutions Examination Council. Requires the Council to devise a Federal examiner classification system and, for each of 12 districts approximating the districts of the Federal depository institutions regulatory agencies (regulatory agencies), a regional pay scale in order to provide Federal examiners with compensation and benefits commensurate with private sector accountants and auditors who perform similar functions in such districts. Directs each regulatory agency and each regional bank, branch, or office of such agency to assign and pay examiners accordingly. Directs the Council to prescribe methods of determining travel allowances and pay rates for temporary assignments of examiners. Exempts from Federal laws and regulations applicable to Government employees the officers and employees of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Home Loan Bank Board, the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance Corporation, and the National Credit Union Administration. Exempts such entities, the Council, Federal reserve banks, and Federal Home Loan Banks from Federal laws and regulations providing for budget and appropriation review and provides that certain assessments received by such entities shall not be considered Government funds or appropriated money. Subjects such entities and banks to audit by the Comptroller General. Repeals authority of the Secretary of the Treasury over the Comptroller of the Currency and staff. Authorizes each regulatory agency to establish procedures for transferring employees affected by this Act out of the civil service and for providing fair and equitable compensation and reimbursement to such employees for any resulting loss of benefits. Directs the Council to: (1) develop a proposal for consolidating all Federal examiner training programs in one school to be established and conducted by the Council; and (2) report to specified congressional committees on its findings, legislative recommendations, and the savings to the regulatory agencies that would result from such consolidation. Requires the Council to: (1) study the feasibility of establishing a graduate degree program in financial management analysis for officers and employees of the regulatory agencies and the State depository institutions supervisory agencies (State agencies); and (2) report to specified congressional committees on its findings, legislative recommendations, the cost of establishing and conducting the program, and on the approval or disapproval by each regulatory agency of the Council's proposal for such program. Requires the Council to establish minimum requirements for examinations of depository institutions by State agencies in order for such an examination to be acceptable for purposes of Federal law. Directs the Council: (1) at least annually, to request each State agency which examines institutions subject to Federal examination to allow the Council to review its examination methods; (2) to notify a State agency if its examination methods do not satisfy such minimum requirements and allow the agency not more than three years to cure any deficiency; and (3) notify each Federal regulatory agency if a State agency refuses to allow a review of its examination methods or fails to remedy any deficiency in its methods. Prohibits any Federal regulatory agency or any regional bank, branch, or other office of such Federal agency to rely on any report of examination by a State agency for which such a notice has been received to fulfill an examination requirement under Federal law. Requires the Council to establish a State examiner certification program and to evaluate State examiners for certification at the request of a State agency.
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 1985
Amends Federal bankruptcy provisions to extend partial immunity from an automatic stay or a court injunction of foreclosure, possession, or disposition proceedings to: (1) creditors with preferred ship mortgages or mortgages on certain fishery facilities; and (2) lessors or conditional vendors of vessels as defined in the Merchant Marine Marine Act of 1936. Requires full payment in cash of all sums owed, plus applicable interest, to cure a default on preferred mortgages, mortgages, security agreements, leases, or conditional sales contracts on certain vessels.
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 1985
Amends Federal bankruptcy provisions to extend partial immunity from an automatic stay or a court injunction of foreclosure, possession, or disposition proceedings to: (1) creditors with preferred ship mortgages or mortgages on certain fishery facilities; and (2) lessors or conditional vendors of vessels as defined in the Merchant Marine Act of 1936. Requires full payment in cash of all sums owed, plus applicable interest, to cure a default on preferred mortgages, mortgages, security agreements, leases, or conditional sales contracts on certain aircraft equipment and vessels.
United States · United States Congress · 10 October 1985
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the Government of Poland should comply with basic human rights agreements to which it is a signatory, including the Helsinki accords, and initiate a policy of National Reconciliation; (2) the prosecution of those responsible for the death of Father Jerzy Popieluszko should be supported by Poland; (3) human rights monitoring committees in Poland should be supported; (4) the free flow of information on the activities of such committees can improve human rights policies in Poland and the continued improvement of human rights there would better relations between the United States and Poland; and (5) the President should convey Congress' concerns to Polish officials and to U.S. allies.
United States · United States Congress · 9 October 1985
Amends the Surface Transportation Assistance Act of 1982 to revise the standard used to determine the Federal share of the cost to complete a route withdrawn (upon State request) from the Interstate System. States that such Federal share shall be determined by the Secretary of Transportation based on construction cost increases for the period beginning January 1, 1986, and ending on the approval date of each substitute project.
United States · United States Congress · 9 October 1985
Deems a named former Federal employee to have filed a timely application for a disability retirement annuity. Requires the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, upon a determination of entitlement to such annuity, to certify the aggregate amount such individual would have received had she not been misinformed as to eligibility by a U.S. Customs Service personnel officer. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to pay her such amount.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 1985
Establishes uniform regional poll closing times for presidential elections as follows: (1) 9:00 p.m., eastern standard time, for polling places in the eastern, central, and mountain time zones; and (2) 10:00 p.m., eastern standard time, for polling places in the Pacific time zone.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 1985
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should raise with the Soviet Union, at the November 1985 summit in Geneva, Switzerland, the matter of Poland's suppression of speech and political activity, and that by so doing the President raises and defends the principles of human rights as embodied in the Helsinki Accords.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 1985
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to authorize the President to enter into agreements establishing reciprocal arrangements between Medicare programs and the program of any foreign country providing similar services to individuals either directly or by insurance payments. Requires that any such agreement specify: (1) the nature and extent of payment to be made to, or on behalf of, the individuals entitled to benefits; (2) limitations on the nature and duration of health services and on entitlement of individuals to benefits on a reciprocal basis; and (3) the methods by which the cost of providing health services on a reciprocal basis shall be shared by the United States and the foreign country. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make rules and regulations and establish procedures necessary to implement and administer such agreements. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into interim arrangements with any hospital in a foreign country which is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospitals or such other hospitals as the Secretary finds meet specified health and safety standards.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 1985
Recognizes the 20th anniversary of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and the important role that the legislation has played in the Nation's development. Reaffirms the historic partnership between the Federal Government and the colleges and universities toward the development of human resources required for an increasingly complex and technological society.
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1985
Federal Government Easy Access Act - Requires Federal agency correspondence outside the executive branch to include the name, phone number, and mailing address of individuals to whom responses and inquiries may be made.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 1985
National Higher Education and Economic Development Act of 1985 - Allows an eligible institution (as defined under specified provisions of the Higher Education Act of 1965) or consortium of institutions to apply for assistance under this Act to support one or more of the following: (1) planning and research (including applied research) to solve local economic development problems and to compliment local initiatives to promote growth and improve productivity; (2) resource exchange to encourage the exchange of faculty, government, and business experts to support economic development; and (3) special projects for economic or national economic development issues, are innovative in approach, and hold promise of application beyond the area served. Includes among such special projects which may be supported: (1) applying technology research to manufacturing aspects of mature industries in a region or State; (2) designing and developing university-based technical assistance centers to provide an integrated program of education, research, and technology transfer to business and industry; (3) projects to support entrepreneurship training and technical assistance; and (4) projects to develop new approaches or compliment efforts to explore, expand, and foster opportunities for international business and trade. Authorizes the Secretary of Education (the Secretary) to make a limited number of grants (in addition to the other assistance for allowable activities under this Act) to identify and disseminate effective models and techniques which use partnerships of postsecondary education institutions and others involved in economic development to support lasting economic improvement. Limits the maximum amount of any planning and research and/or resource exchange grant to a single eligible institution (but not to a consortium) under this Act. Sets forth conditions for eligibility for planning and research, resource exchange, or special project grants under this Act. Requires the eligible institution (or consortium of such institutions) to demonstrate in its application that the program to be supported will involve active participation and commitment of resources and personnel by one or more of the following organizations: (1) local and State governments; (2) business or industry; (3) labor unions or union representatives; or (4) nonprofit organizations concerned with economic development in the area to be served. Sets forth other application requirements, including applicant descriptions of: (1) how the plan fits into the overall economic development and/or redevelopment plan for the area to be served, contributes to long-term economic growth and employment opportunities, and furthers the goals of the postsecondary education institutions; and (2) the consultation and, if appropriate, coordination with other Federal and State economic development efforts such as the Job Training Partnership Act and Department of Commerce programs. Authorizes the Secretary to waive a certain matching contribution for the applicant and other participating organizations requirement with respect to an eligible institution that demonstrates a unique hardship that precludes compliance with such requirement. Sets forth provisions for selection of grant recipients. Directs the Secretary to designate a peer review panel of experts in the field of higher education and economic development to review applications and make recommendations for funding to the Secretary. Requires the Secretary, in selecting the panel, to consult with other appropriate Cabinet-level officials and non-Federal organizations to ensure that the panel will be geographically balanced and composed of representatives from public and private higher education, labor, business, and State and local government who have expertise in the area of economic development. Allows grants under this Act to be made on a multiyear basis, but prohibits any institution, individually or as a participant in a combination of such institutions, from receiving such a grant for more than five years. Requires the Secretary, in making awards for activities under planning and research and/or resource sharing grants, to give special consideration to applications which: (1) propose to serve an area with an unemployment rate one percent above the national rate or an area which has experienced or is about to experience sudden economic dislocation resulting in significant job loss in terms of numbers of jobs eliminated and effect upon the area's employment rate; (2) is submitted by a consortia of postsecondary education institutions (including four- and two-year or public and private postsecondary education institutions), and provide a regional geographic approach to solving economic development problems; (3) develops approaches which promote economic diversification for rural areas; and (4) involves in the participation of the proposed activities several of the other types of organizations described under eligibility provisions. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1986 through 1990 for grants under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1985
Social Security Budget and Administrative Reorganization Act of 1985 - Title I: Establishment of the Social Security Administration - Amends title VII (Administration) of the Social Security Act to establish as an independent executive agency a Social Security Administration, headed by a Social Security Board. Provides that it shall be the duty of the Administration to administer the programs established by titles II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) and XVI (Supplemental Security Income) of the Social Security Act. Requires the Board to study and make recommendations as to the most effective methods of providing economic security through social insurance and as to legislation and matters of administrative policy. Establishes in the Administration: (1) a Commissioner of Social Security; (2) a Deputy Commissioner of Social Security; (3) a General Counsel; (4) an Inspector General; and (5) an Office of the Beneficiary Ombudsman, to be headed by a Beneficiary Ombudsman who shall represent the interests of beneficiaries under the Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance program and the Supplemental Security Income Program within the Administration. Requires the annual report of the Board to include a description of the activities of the Beneficiary Ombudsman. Requires the Board to make annual budgetary recommendations relating to the Administration. Requires that appropriations requests by the Administration for staffing and personnel be based upon a comprehensive workforce plan as established by the Board. Provides for the apportionment of administrative costs. Requires the annual report of the Board to include a section reflecting the use of budget authority provided to the Administration. Requires that authority for automated data processing procurement and facilities construction be provided in the form of contract authority covering the total cost of such acquisitions. Makes amounts needed for the liquidation of contract authority so provided available from the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund to the extent that such amounts are not needed to meet current obligations for benefit payments. Requires the Board and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management to implement demonstration projects relating to personnel matters. Directs the Board and the Administrator of General Services to implement such projects relating to delegations from the Administrator. Specifies the authorities which are to be delegated to the Board from the Administrator and the Director. Requires the Comptroller General to report to specified congressional committees concerning such projects, including an evaluation of the Board's readiness to assume full and permanent authority. Requires the Board to cause a seal of office to be made and judicial notice taken thereof. Provides for the transfer to the Administration of all functions carried out by the Secretary of Health and Human Services with respect to the programs and activities to be carried out by the Administration under this Act. Abolishes the position of Commissioner of Social Security in the Department of Health and Human Services. Sets forth effective date and transitional rule provisions. Title II: Conforming Amendments and Rules of Construction - Requires the Secretary and the Board to report to Congress within 120 days after the beginning of each regular session on their administration under this Act. Requires the Secretary to study and make recommendations on the most effective methods of providing economic security and on the administrative policy for the programs which he or she administers. Directs the Board to appoint, quadrennially, an Advisory Council on the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program and an Advisory Council on Health and Supplementary Medical Insurance to review the relation of the trust funds supporting the Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance program and the Medicare program and the long-term commitments of those programs. Requires each council to submit a report to the Board for transmittal to the Congress and the Board of Trustees of each Trust Fund. Sets forth the effective dates of this title. Title III: Budgetary Treatment of Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance Program - Provides for off-budget treatment of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund beginning with FY 1987.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 1985
Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to exempt senior citizens and handicapped individuals from paying fees for obtaining firewood for personal use from National Forest System lands.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 1985
National Adoption Information Clearinghouse Act of 1985 - Amends title X (Population Research and Voluntary Family Planning Programs) of the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a National Adoption Information Clearinghouse to: (1) collect and synthesize data and information concerning all aspects of infant adoption and adoption of children with special needs; (2) compile, maintain, and revise directories of information; and (3) disseminate information regarding adoption.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 1985
Expresses the concern of the House of Representatives over the pending Supplementary Extradition Treaty between the United States and the United Kingdom because of the treaty's: (1) effort to destroy the traditional "political offense" exception to extradition; and (2) retroactivity. Declares that the House of Representatives believes that changes in extradition law should be accomplished through legislation, not treaty, and that the House opposes renegotiation of existing extradition treaties on a country-by-country basis. Expresses the concern of the House that the system of justice in Northern Ireland would not give due process to persons extradited back under terms of the Supplementary Treaty. Urges the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to end its consideration of such treaty.
United States · United States Congress · 23 September 1985
Bicentennial of the Constitution Coins and Medals Act - Title I: Bicentennial of the United States Constitution Commemorative Coins - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue a specified number of five dollar gold coins and one dollar silver coins emblematic of the Bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution. Sets forth certain features of such coins and provides for their sale and issuance. Terminates the minting of such coins after December 31, 1987. Requires the Secretary to deposit in the Treasury all surcharges received from sale of such coins, to be used to reduce the national debt. Title II: Bicentennial of the United States Constitution Commemorative Medals - Directs the Secretary to strike and deliver to the Commission on the Bicentennial of the United States Constitution a specified number of gold, silver, and bronze medals commemorating the Bicentennial. Authorizes the Commission to dispose of such medals at a premium. Terminates the striking of such medals after December 31, 1987.