United States · United States Congress · 6 January 1981
Prevention, Identification, and Treatment of Elder Abuse Act of 1981 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish an office known as the National Center on Elder Abuse to: (1) compile an annual summary of recently conducted research on elder abuse; (2) develop and maintain an information clearinghouse on all programs for the prevention and treatment of such abuse; (3) compile training materials for personnel engaged in elder abuse prevention; (4) provide technical assistance for the planning and implementing of programs relating to the problems of elder abuse; and (5) investigate the causes and national incidence of elder abuse. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to or enter into contracts with public agencies or nonprofit organizations for demonstration projects designed to prevent and treat elder abuse. Sets forth the terms and conditions for such grants. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States for the development and implementation of elder abuse prevention and treatment programs. Requires such States to have in effect a State elder abuse law with mandatory reporting provisions. Sets forth other requirements for eligibility. Prohibits the use of assistance for construction of facilities. Directs the Secretary to establish criteria to achieve equitable distribution of assistance among the States. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Declares it the public policy of the United States to prohibit the manufacture, sale, and use of leg-hold and steel-jaw traps in the United States and abroad. Prohibits the shipment in interstate or foreign commerce of fur or leather products from animals trapped in a State or foreign country which has not banned such traps. Requires the Secretary of Commerce to publish a list of States and foreign countries which have not banned such traps. Sets forth penalties for violations of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Anti-Inflation Tax Act of 1981 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require annual cost of living adjustments, based on the Consumer Price Index, to individual income tax rates, the personal tax exemption, withholding requirements, and minimum income tax return amounts.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Cash Discount Act - Title I: Cash Discounts - Amends the Truth in Lending Act to stipulate that any discount (currently, discounts up to five percent) offered by sellers from the "regular price" to induce payment by cash or other means not involving open-end credit plans or credit cards shall not constitute a finance charge. Voids any rule of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System promulgated under the current provision. Title II: Ban on Credit Card Surcharges - Extends the termination of the prohibition against credit card surcharges from February 27, 1981, to February 27, 1983.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Nondiscrimination in Insurance Act - Prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin in the consideration of applications for, or the granting of, insurance policies and the terms of such policies. Permits insurers who regularly provide insurance solely to persons of a single religious affiliation to continue to do so. Grants to State or local governments having insurance discrimination laws the primary opportunity to enforce this Act. Permits an aggrieved person to file a civil action in State or Federal court against an insurer, if a State or local authority which has received notice of a complaint fails to act within 60 days or with respect to those authorities not having insurance discrimination laws. Authorizes the Attorney General to bring a civil action in district court when there is reasonable cause to believe that a person or group is engaged in a pattern or practice of resistance to the rights granted by this Act and that such denial raises an issue of general public importance.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Amends the Omnibus Crime Control Act of 1970 to revise and increase the mandatory penalties for using or carrying a firearm during commission of a Federal felony. Defines such offense as using a firearm to commit a felony over which the district courts have exclusive jurisdiction or carrying a firearm during such a felony involving violence. Deletes the requirement that the firearm be carried "illegally." Increases the additional penalty imposed for such offense from one to ten years' imprisonment to five to ten years' imprisonment for a first offender and from two to 25 years to ten years to life imprisonment for a second or subsequent offender. Extends to first offenders the directions, currently applicable only to second offenders, that the court not suspend any sentence or grant probation and that the additional sentence not run concurrently with any term of imprisonment imposed for the offense itself. Makes a first offender ineligible for parole for five years and a second or subsequent offender ineligible for ten years. Expresses the sense of Congress that the executive prosecute vigorously such offenses.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Unemployment Compensation Reinsurance Act of 1981 - Increases the Federal unemployment tax by two-tenths of a percent to (3.4 percent) after any calendar year for which the net balance of the reinsurance account established by this Act is less than the prescribed maximum balance. Amends title IX of the Social Security Act to establish within the Unemployment Trust Fund a reinsurance account to be funded through the employment security administration account according to a specified formula. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to utilize funds in the reinsurance account to reimburse a State for a specified percentage of the State's excess regular unemployment compensation costs plus the State's share of payments for extended unemployment benefits, for any year during which the rate of regular insured unemployment in the State equals or exceeds: (1) 4.5 percent; or (2) the average rate in such State for the previous seven years by 25 percent. Provides that the national rate during such year also must equal or exceed: (1) 4.5 percent; or (2) 125 percent of the national rate for the preceding year. Permits a State to credit payments (in lieu of contributions) made into a State unemployment compensation fund against future payments required for such excess compensation costs. Authorizes appropriations for the reinsurance account as repayable advances. Makes technical amendments to the Social Security Act to provide for funding out of revenues received from the increase in the Federal unemployment tax. Requires reimbursement of a State's share of payments for extended unemployment benefits for calendar years 1975 through 1980. Cancels repayable advances made to the extended unemployment compensation account for: (1) the Government's share of payments to States for extended benefits during such years; and (2) emergency compensation under the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Act of 1974.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individual taxpayers a refundable income tax credit for the purchase of new passenger automobiles after December 31, 1980, and before January 1, 1982, which were manufactured by companies whose average fuel economy rating for passenger automobiles in model year 1979 equals or exceeds 120 percent of their rating for model year 1974. Establishes the amount of such credit as $500.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Young Families Homeownership Opportunity Act of 1981 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individuals who are saving for their first home a nonrefundable income tax credit for 20 percent of the cash contributions made during the taxable year to an individual housing account. Limits the amount of such credit to $1,000 for any taxable year and $3,000 during a lifetime. Sets forth requirements for the establishment of an individual housing account. Imposes penalties for distributions made from an individual housing account which are not used in connection with the purchase of a principal residence. Exempts interest earned on an individual housing account from income taxation. Requires the trustee of an individual housing account to make such reports regarding the maintenance of an individual housing account as the Secretary of the Treasury may require. Prohibits contributions to an individual housing account in excess of prescribed limits and imposes a tax on such excess contributions.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Sunset Act of 1981 - Title I: Reauthorization of Government Programs - Sets forth a ten-year schedule for reauthorization of all Federal programs according to budget function and subfunction as set forth in the Budget of the United States Government for fiscal year 1979. Sets forth the procedure in the House of Representatives and the Senate for the consideration of any bill, resolution, or amendment which authorizes new budget authority. States that it is not in order for either House to consider any legislation which authorizes the enactment of new budget authority for a program for a period of more than ten years, for an indefinite period, or for any fiscal year beginning after the next reauthorization date applicable to such program. Provides that before the Congress can appropriate funds for any program, after its first reauthorization date, there must be a specific authorization in law to support the appropriation. Requires the committees of the Senate and House of Representatives to schedule and conduct a sunset review of programs to be reauthorized. Requires that the report accompanying such reauthorizations contain specified information and be completed during the Congress in which the program is scheduled for reauthorization. Exempts from the requirements of this Act specified programs such as interest on Federal debts, health care services, general retirement and disability payments, as well as litigation activities which have as their objectives the protection and implementation of civil rights guaranteed by the Constitution, and specified retirement pay and benefits. Allows the reauthorization schedule set forth in this Act to be changed by concurrent resolution of the two House of Congress and sets forth the procedure for such change. Requires all legislation and other matters related to changes in the dates for programs under this Act to be referred to the committee with legislative jurisdiction over any program affected by the proposal and, sequentially, to the Committee on Rules in the House Representatives and to the Committee on Rules and Administration in the Senate. Requires such committees to report any concurrent resolution or bill referred to it by a committee of legislative jurisdiction within 30 days, with a statement on each of its recommendations. Makes provisions for any proposed change which has been reported by a committee before June 1, 1982. Title II: Program Inventory - Directs the Comptroller General and the Director of the Congressional Budget Office, in cooperation with the Director of the Congressional Research Service, to prepare an inventory of Federal programs. Declares that the purpose of such program inventory is to advise and assist Congress in carrying out reauthorization and reexamination requirements and to link such reauthorization and review process with the budget process. Requires the Comptroller General to submit such program inventory to each House of Congress no later than January 1, 1982. Sets forth the contents of the inventory program, including the type of authorization provided for such programs' new budget authority and the manner in which related program areas may be grouped for evaluation and review. Permits the Congressional committees, the Congressional Budget Office, and the Congressional Research Service to review the program inventory and to suggest revisions. Requires that the program inventory be revised at the end of each session of Congress, and that such revisions be reported to each House. Requires that periodic reports tabulate the progress of Congressional action on bills and resolutions authorizing budget authority for programs in the inventory. Requires the Comptroller General and the Director of the Congressional Budget Office to submit periodic reports to the Congress on the adequacy of the functional and subfunctional categories for grouping programs of like missions or objectives. Title III: Program Reexamination - Requires each committee of the Senate and the House of Representatives to reexamine selected programs or groups of programs over which it has jurisdiction. Sets forth procedures for such review, and criteria for selection of program areas for evaluation. Directs each committee to consult with the appropriate committees of either the House of Representatives or the Senate in order to achieve coordination of program reevaluation. Directs each Committee to inform itself of the related activities of or available assistance from the General Accounting Office, the Congressional Budget Office, the Congressional Research Service, the Office of Technology Assessment, and other appropriate instrumentalities in the executive and judicial branches. Requires each committee to deliver a report on the reexamination to the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the House at the date specified in the funding resolution first reported by such committee in 1983 and thereafter for the first session of each Congress. Allows two or more committees which have legislative jurisdiction over the same programs or portions of the same programs to examine such programs jointly and submit a joint report. Stipulates that such report: (1) contain the findings, recommendations, and justifications of the program; and (2) include specified information including, but not limited to, an assessment of the cost-effectiveness of the program and an identification of any trends, developments, and emerging conditions which are likely to affect the nature and extent of the problems or needs which the program is intended to address. Requires each executive department or agency which is responsible for a program selected for reexamination to submit a report to the Office of Management and Budget and to the appropriate committees of the Congress on its findings, recommendations, and justifications of specified aspects of the program. Title IV: Tax Expenditures - Requires the Director of the Congressional Budget Office, after consultation with the Joint Committee on Taxation of the Congress, to prepare an inventory of tax expenditure provisions and to submit a report on such inventory to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House and the Senate Finance Committee. Defines the term "tax expenditure provision" as any provision of Federal law which allows a special exclusion, exemption, or deduction in determining liability for any tax or which provides a special credit against any tax, a preferential rate of tax, or a deferral of tax liability. Specifies the contents of the report, which include an estimate of the revenue loss from each tax provision. Requires the Director to: (1) submit a revised inventory to each House of Congress by December 1, 1982; (2) revise the inventory after the close of each session of Congress and report such revisions to Congress; and (3) periodically report on Congressional action on bills and resolutions which create or affect tax provisions. Directs the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Finance to prepare a reauthorization schedule for all tax provisions similar to the schedule set out for Federal programs in title I of this Act. Requires Congress to take final action on the reauthorization schedule for tax provisions before the end of the 97th Congress. Provides that each tax expenditure provision shall expire unless it is reauthorized by a law enacted during the Congress in which it is scheduled for review. Sets forth procedures and restrictions for the consideration of bills reauthorizing tax provisions, which are similar to the restrictions and procedures governing bills authorizing new budget authority for Federal programs as described in title I. Requires that the report accompanying a reauthorization bill include specified information. Permits Congress to prescribe technical rules necessary to mitigate adverse effects which might result for taxpayers who rely on a certain tax provision. Title V: Miscellaneous - Amends the Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 to permit the committees of Congress to obtain from the agencies of the Government estimates or requests for appropriations, or requests for increases in an item of any such estimate or request, and recommendations as to how the revenue needs of the Government should be met. Sets forth administrative procedures and requirements. Directs the President, with the cooperation of the head of each appropriate agency, to submit to the Congress a "Regulatory Duplication and Conflicts Report" for all programs scheduled for reauthorization in the next Congress. Requires that each such report identify duplicative or conflicting rules and regulations promulgated by executive departments, independent agencies, and State and local governments and contain recommendations which address such conflicts or duplications. Directs the chairmen of the House and Senate committees having jurisdiction over a program scheduled for reauthorization during a Congress, to introduce a bill constituting a reauthorization within 15 days of the beginning of the second session of that Congress. Declares that it shall be in order to discharge a committee from consideration of such a bill if the committee fails to report the bill by a specified date. Makes it the duty of the Committees on Governmental Affairs and on Rules and Administration of the Senate and the Committees on Government Operations and Rules of the House of Representatives to review the operation of the procedures established by this Act and to submit a report every five years beginning December 31, 1988. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1992.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Authorizes the President, subject to specified conditions, to negotiate agreements with foreign governments limiting imports of automobiles, trucks, and their parts. Restricts such authorization and such agreements to a specified period of time. Requires consultation with the private sector. Prohibits treating actions taken pursuant to such agreements as violations of U.S. laws.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 1980
Honors Raoul Wallenberg for his work in Hungary during World War II. Expresses the sense of Congress that the U.S. delegation to the Madrid meeting of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe should urge the consideration of the Wallenberg case. Requests the State Department to discover the whereabouts of Raoul Wallenberg from the Soviet Union and secure his return to Sweden.
United States · United States Congress · 5 September 1980
Authorizes the President to negotiate agreements with foreign governments limiting exports of automobiles and trucks to the United States. Terminates such authority and any agreements pursuant to such authority on July 1, 1985. States that action taken pursuant to such agreements shall not be treated as violating U.S. laws.
United States · United States Congress · 4 September 1980
Establishes the United States Holocaust Memorial Council which shall: (1) provide and encourage appropriate ways for the Nation to observe the Days of Remembrance to commemorate the holocaust; (2) plan, erect, and oversee the operation of a memorial museum to the victims of the holocaust; and (3) develop a plan for carrying out the recommendations of the report submitted to the President on September 27, 1979, by the President's Commission on the Holocaust. Authorizes the Council to receive public land in the District of Columbia on which it may erect the memorial. Terminates the Council's authority to construct a memorial if the erection of the memorial has not commenced within five years of enactment of this Act and sufficient funds to ensure completion of the memorial have not been certified to be available. Authorizes appropriations to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 26 August 1980
Extends from 50 years to 80 years the period for repayment of revenue bonds issued by the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (the Corporation) to the Secretary of the Treasury. Directs the Corporation and the Secretary to make all revenue bonds outstanding on the effective date of this Act payable in equal annual amounts over the remainder of the 80 year period established by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 22 August 1980
Amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to require as a condition for the receipt of Federal assistance for a proposed State energy conservation plan under this Act that a State permit right turns after stopping at a minimum of 70 percent of the red stoplights in such State.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 1980
Expresses the sense of Congress that the President should convey congressional concern about the deprivation of the rights of Christians by the Soviet Union, particularly the Pentecostals living in the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. Directs the President to report to Congress on the prospects for religious freedom in the Soviet Union.
United States · United States Congress · 20 August 1980
Declares that the people of Poland should be allowed to settle their own affairs, including the formation of independent trade unions and the right to strike, without foreign interference.
United States · United States Congress · 20 August 1980
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the President should express to the Soviet Government U.S. concern for the fate of Raoul Wallenberg; and (2) the U.S. delegation to the Madrid meeting of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe should urge the consideration of the Wallenberg case.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1980
Sports Violence Act of 1980 - Amends the Federal criminal code to establish a maximum penalty of one year's imprisonment and/or a $5,000 fine for any player in a professional sports event who knowingly uses excessive physical force and causes risk of significant bodily injury to another person involved in such event.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1980
Housing Survival Act of 1980 - Amends the Depository Institutions Deregulation Act of 1980 to repeal provisions establishing the Depository Institutions Deregulation Committee. Prescribes maximum interest rates for savings and loan accounts of O.25 percent of the maximum rates for bank accounts. Terminates all authority to set maximum interest rates on June 30, 1987 (currently, March 31, 1986). Directs the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Board Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Federal Home Loan Bank Board to report to Congress regarding the ability of the housing industry to withstand the removal of the interest rate differential. Amends the Federal Reserve Act, the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, and the Federal Home Loan Bank Act to require the respective Boards to limit interest rates or dividends on time and savings deposits to no more than the market rate of interest (the rate comparable to U.S. Treasury securities of similar maturity).
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1980
Expresses the sense of Congress that the President should convey congressional concern about the deprivation of the rights of Protestant Christians by the Soviet Union, particularly the Pentecostals living in the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. Directs the President to report to Congress on the prospects for religious freedom in the Soviet Union.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1980
Nuclear Safety Research, Development, and Demonstration Act of 1980 - Directs the Secretary of Energy to establish a research, development, and demonstration program for instituting practical improvements in the safety of nuclear powerplants during the next five years. Sets forth the goals of such program, including: (1) the development of cost-effective improvements in the generic design and operation of nuclear powerplants; (2) the identification of aptitude, training, and manning levels which are necessary to assure reliable operator performance; and (3) the analysis of nuclear powerplant fuels, components, and subsystems which offer significant improvements in plant safety. Directs the Secretary to coordinate such activities with those of other Government agencies, foreign governments, and industry. Requires the Secretary to: (1) make recommendations to minimize the complexity of nuclear powerplant systems and operations; (2) use federally owned research facilities and personnel, to the extent feasible; and (3) fully disseminate information concerning projects and activities conducted under this Act. Directs the Secretary to prepare an annual comprehensive program management plan for the conduct of such activities.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 1980
Reaffirms congressional support for full implementation of the Helsinki Final Act. Expresses the sense of Congress that human rights concerns should be given serious attention at the Madrid meeting to review such Act. Declares that any new measures should be balanced among all sections of the Final Act. Directs the U.S. delegation to seek another review meeting within two years.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1980
Condemns Soviet persecution of Vladimir Kislik. Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the President should request that Kislik be permitted to emigrate from the Soviet Union; and (2) if not permitted to emigrate, the matter should be placed on the agenda of the next Biennial Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1980
National Ground water Environmental Research Act of 1980 - Title I: Ground Water Research and Planning - Directs the President to establish a Commission on Ground Water Research to develop guidelines and coordinate research by the States on identification of major freshwater aquifers in the United States and the extent of ground water pollution. Directs the Commission to make grants to States to conduct the freshwater aquifer research program. Requires the Commission to develop a comprehensive research plan for the prevention of ground water pollution. Authorizes the Commission to provide Federal, State, and local governments with technical advice on the protection of ground water from pollution. Directs the Commission to submit to Congress an annual report with recommendations for legislation on the protection of ground water from pollution. Title II: Institute for Research on Drinking Water Technology - Establishes an Institute for Research on Drinking Water Technology to conduct research and development on purification of drinking water. Stipulates that the Institute shall not conduct research on the health effects of drinking water. Sets forth the authorities of the Institute. Establishes an initial board of directors composed of Federal, State, and local officials and private water supply utilities officials appointed by the President. Authorizes the Institute to: (1) make research and development grants to institutions of higher education; (2) work with other agencies, institutions, and States in carrying out its functions under this title; and (3) assess and collect voluntary contributions from participating water supply agencies. Prohibits the Institute from engaging in lobbying activities. Sets forth the criteria for the operation of the Institute, including: (1) a location at or near a related laboratory or university; (2) establishment of a program for visiting researchers, postdoctoral fellows, and other scholars; and (3) the requirement that the bulk of the Institute's programs be conducted directly by the Institute and not be contract. Directs the Institute to: (1) develop new drinking water treatment and monitoring technologies; (2) improve existing drinking water treatment and monitoring technologies; (3) cooperate with research programs conducted under Title I of this Act and by participating water supply agencies; (4) publish archival and review articles; and (5) publish an annual progress report. Directs the Institute to establish a technology transfer program with water supply agencies. Requires the Institute to publish the results of a formal evaluation of such program.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1980
Research and Development Authorization Estimates Act - Amends the Presidential Science and Technology Advisory Organization Act to require the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to advise the President and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget every other fiscal year in preparing an estimate of the appropriate funding levels for research and development for each Federal department, agency and instrumentality for at least that and the following fiscal years. Requires the Director of the National Science Foundation to identify and describe situations and conditions which warrant special attention within the next four years, rather than the next five years as is now required, including the significant effects of current and projected trends in science and technology on the requirements of the Nation and existing and projected scientific and technological resources. Requires the director to consult with the Federal Coordinating Council for Science, Engineering, and Technology concerning programs and responsibilities relating to the problems, constraints, and opportunities so identified, and to recommend legislation which will contribute to the resolution of such problems. Requires the Office of Science and Technology Policy to study on a continuing basis the impact of inflation on the conduct of federally-supported research and development. Amends the National Science Foundation Act of 1950 to require the Foundation to annually submit to Congress an analysis of all Federal research and development funding by function.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1980
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide homebuilders with an income tax credit for the construction of residences which incorporate a passive solar energy system. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury, after consultation with the Secretaries of Energy and Housing and Urban Development, to prescribe regulations setting forth a solar construction credit table for purposes of determining the amount of the credit for which the incorporator of the solar energy system is eligible. Limits the dollar amount of such credit to $2,000 for calendar years prior to 1986 and phases out the amount of the credit by $500 decrements until 1989 when such credit terminates. Defines "passive solar energy system" as a system which contains a solar collection area, an absorber, a storage mass, a heat distribution method, and heat regulation devices. Requires such system to be installed in a new residence after September 30, 1980 and before January 1, 1989.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1980
Expresses the sense of Congress that the present level of the trade deficit with Japan is intolerable and threatens the future of trade between our nations. Urges Japan to cooperate in correcting such deficit.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 1980
Saturday Mail Delivery Act of 1980 - Requires the Postal Service to maintain the frequency of mail delivery service in effect on June 1, 1980 (six days each week).
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 1980
Expresses the sense of Congress regarding the domestic automotive and truck industry. Declares it to be a goal of the United States to achieve technological superiority in the world automobile and truck industry. Advocates changes in economic, fiscal, and import policies in order to create adequate capital and produce a more favorable climate for the domestic automobile and truck industry.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 1980
Expresses the sense of Congress that the imposition of any withholding tax on interest and dividend payments would be detrimental to the American economy.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 1980
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individual taxpayers a refundable income tax credit for the purchase of domestically manufactured fuel-efficient passenger automobiles acquired after June 12, 1980, and before January 1, 1988. Limits the amount of such credit to the lesser of ten percent of the cost of such automobile or $1,000. Limits the applicability of the credit to one automobile in a taxable year, and denies the credit to a taxpayer who has claimed such credit in any of the two immediately preceding taxable years. Permits a full ten percent investment tax credit for fuel-efficient automobiles without regard to the useful life of such automobiles.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1980
Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to revise the eligibility requirements for adjustment assistance for workers to make workers eligible for such assistance if: (1) their firms' sales or production threaten to decrease absolutely; or (2) their firms provide essential parts or services to articles adversely affected by increased imports.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1980
Urges the President to negotiate with Japan concerning: (1) a temporary restraint in automobile exports to the United States; (2) an equitable relationship between domestic and foreign sales prices; and (3) trade barriers affecting U.S. products.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1980
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an additional excise tax on imported automobiles manufactured in a foreign country, when imports of such automobiles account for more than ten percent of the new automobiles sold in the United States for the most recent 12-month period for which data are available. Imposes such tax in each case also on parts or accessories sold in connection with such sale. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to determine for each quarter such tax in an amount equivalent to the nontariff barrier for the same quarter imposed by the foreign country of manufacture on United States automobiles exported to such country. Defines "nontariff barrier" as any practice or procedure of a country which unreasonably burdens, restricts, or discriminates against United States automobiles in such country's automobile market. Includes commodity taxes, inspection or testing procedures, product approval requirements, and road or other excise taxes. Authorizes the President to waive such excise tax for any quarter (up to four consecutive quarters at a stretch) with respect to automobiles manufactured by any person if it is determined that such person is making a good faith effort to ameliorate the imbalance in automobile trade between the United States and the country in which such person is located: (1) by limiting exports of automobiles to the United States; or (2) by manufacturing automobiles in the United States. Specifies circumstances under which such waiver may be extended. Grants the Congress a veto over any such Presidential waiver by way of a disapproval resolution. Describes the procedure for exercising such veto. Requires the appropriation of amounts equivalent to such excise taxes into the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1980
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that neither the Secretary of Transportation nor the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall take any actions which would reduce public air service into Washington National Airport.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1980
Extends the congratulations of the Congress to the Order of the Sons of Italy in America for their 75th anniversary. Proclaims Sunday, June 22, 1980, as "National Italian-American Day."
United States · United States Congress · 4 June 1980
Authorizes the President to present a gold-plated medal, on behalf of the Congress, to those athletes selected through the Olympic trial process to be members of the United States Summer Olympic Team of 1980. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to cause to be stricken 650 such medals with suitable emblems. Declares that such medals are national medals and that funds to carry out this Act shall be made available under the Amateur Sports Act of 1978.
United States · United States Congress · 30 May 1980
Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Research and Development Act - Directs the Secretary of Energy to prepare a comprehensive program management plan of research, development, and demonstration of ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) systems. Directs the President to submit to Congress annually the most recent revision of the plan giving justification for any changes. Directs the Secretary to initiate research or accelerate existing research in areas in which the lack of knowledge limits development of OTEC in order to achieve the purposes of this Act. Authorizes the Secretary to initiate a program to design, construct, and operate well instrumental OTEC facilities of sufficient size to demonstrate the technical feasibility of utilizing the various forms of OTEC to displace nonrenewable fuels. Directs the Secretary to conduct evaluations, arrange for tests, and disseminate information to support such design efforts. Provides for the competitive selection of at least two independent parallel pilot demonstration projects. Establishes goals for the demonstration program which shall include: (1) the demonstration of OTEC technical feasibility through multiple pilot demonstration plants with a combined capacity of at least 50 megawatts of electrical capacity or energy product equivalent by 1987; (2) the delivery of baseload electricity to utilities located on land or the production of commercially attractive quantities of energy products; and (3) the continuous operation of each pilot demonstration facility for a sufficient period of time to collect and analyze system performance and reliability data. Directs the Secretary to prepare a comprehensive technology application and market development plan that will permit the realization of the national goal set forth in this Act of 2,500 megawatts of electrical capacity or energy product equivalent from OTEC systems by 2000. Directs the Secretary to set priorities consistent with several criteria including: (1) the realization of competitive energy costs for OTEC; (2) private cost-sharing; and (3) the promotion of OTEC in areas vulnerable to interruptions in the supply of fossil fuel. Establishes the OTEC Advisory Committee to advise and report to the Secretary. Requires the Committee to meet at least four times annually until the demonstration goals are met. Authorizes appropriations for operating expenses for fiscal year 1982. Authorizes appropriations for the conceptual and preliminary design of demonstration plants with a combined capacity of at least 50 megawatts electrical or energy product equivalent.
United States · United States Congress · 29 May 1980
Extends the congratulations of the House of Representatives to members of the 1980 handicapped Olympic team and recognizes specified organizations for their efforts in producing the second winter Olympics for the physically handicapped.
![Official portrait of Rep. Blanchard, James [D-MI-18]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/b000538_200.jpg)