United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1991
Women's Equal Opportunity Act of 1991 - Title I: Federal Civil Rights Remedies - Subtitle A: Federal Remedies for Sexual Harassment in the Workplace - Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to allow monetary penalties, to specified maximums, for intentional unlawful employment practices relating to harassment on the basis of sex. Allows a person alleging employment discrimination through sexual harassment to seek temporary or preliminary injunctive relief: (1) without regard to any period of time following the filing of a charge; and (2) without obtaining a right-to-sue letter from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Sets forth criteria for obtaining such relief. Requires courts to expedite proceedings under these provisions. Mandates technical assistance concerning sexual harassment law to employers with fewer than a specified number of employees. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle B: Expansion of Other Federal Civil Rights - Amends Federal law relating to equal rights under the law and the making and enforcing of contracts to declare that: (1) the rights protected are protected against impairment by non-governmental discrimination as well as against impairment under color of State law; and (2) the provisions afford the same protection against discrimination in the performance, breach, modification, or termination of a contract, or in the setting of the terms or conditions thereof, as they do in the making and enforcement of the contract. Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to declare that, for provisions relating to time limits for filing charges, an unlawful employment practice occurs with regard to a seniority system: (1) when it is adopted, an individual becomes subject to it, or a person is injured by its application; and (2) if the system is alleged to have been adopted for an intentionally discriminatory purpose, whether or not that purpose is apparent on the system's face. Applies title VII (Equal Employment Opportunity) of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to the Congress, with enforcement as determined by each House of the Congress. Title II: Domestic and Street Crime Violence Against Women - Subtitle A: Safety on College and University Campuses - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to add sexual assault or any other abusive sexual conduct to the list of offenses regarding which certain institutions are required to collect and disclose statistics. Requires each institution to report the statistics to parents or guardians of students as well as to other groups specified by current law. Subtitle B: Stronger Penalties for Federal Sex Offenses - Amends the Federal criminal code to make murder a Class A felony, mandating the death sentence, when done in the course of certain sex offenses, sexual assault, or child molestation, or when the defendant has previously been convicted of sexual assault or child molestation, subject to specified mitigating factors. Requires instructing the jury not to: (1) consider the race, color, religion, national origin, or sex of the defendant or any victim; and (2) recommend a death sentence unless it concludes that it would recommend such sentence rergardless of such factors. Requires each juror to sign a certification to such effect. Bars carrying out a death sentence on a woman while she is pregnant. Prohibits requiring any employee of, or a person under contract to provide services to, a State corrections department or the Federal Bureau of Prisons to attend or participate in any execution. Amends Federal criminal code provisions relating to sexual abuse to double the maximum imprisonment for violation of such provisions after a prior conviction under Federal or State law for such an offense. Adds to such provisions a special definition of "sexual act" applicable to individuals under the age of 16. Amends the Controlled Substances Act to provide for increased penalties for distribution of a controlled substance to a woman while she is pregnant. Subtitle C: Enhanced Compensation and Restitution for Victims of Sex Crimes - Pornography Victims' Compensation Act of 1991 - Creates a cause of action against a producer, distributor, exhibitor, or seller of sexually explicit material by a victim of a rape, sexual assault, act of sexual abuse, sexual murder, or other sexual crime, or by the estate, guardian, or survivors of any such victim. Conditions the recovery of damages on proof by a preponderance of the evidence that: (1) the victim was a victim of such an act; (2) the material is obscene, constitutes child pornography, or in the case of sex crimes, is sexually explicit and violent, and was a proximate cause of the offense; (3) the defendant is a producer or distributor of the material exhibited or sold it to the sexual offender and should have known that the material was sexually explicit; and (4) the sale or transport affects interstate or foreign commerce. Sets forth criteria by which the finder of fact may reasonably infer that such material was a proximate cause of the offense, including unusual similarities between the acts described and the actual offense, testimony of the offender, and testimony of experts who have examined such material which incited the commission of the offense. Authorizes the award of damages for economic loss, compensation for pain and suffering, reasonable attorney's fees, and costs to prevailing plaintiffs. Sets a statute of limitations of six years from the date the right of action first accrued or, in the case of a legal disability, not later than three years after the termination of such disability. Amends the Federal criminal code to allow an order of certain types of restitution in cases involving provisions relating to sexual abuse or sexual exploitation of children. Subtitle D: Reform of Procedure and Evidentiary Requirements in Sex Offense and Other Cases - Amends the Federal Rules of Evidence to allow evidence of similar offenses in criminal or civil sexual assault and child molestation cases. Amends the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure to modify the number of peremptory challenges available to specified parties when the offense charged is punishable by imprisonment for more than one year. Amends the Federal Criminal Code to: (1) prohibit peremptory jury challenges on the basis of race, color, or any other classification that could not lawfully be used by a prosecutor; and (2) give the prosecutor the same right as the defense attorney to challenge the exercise of peremptory challenges on this ground, with the court applying the same standards and granting the same relief. Enacts rules, to be known as the Rules of Professional Conduct for Lawyers in Federal Practice, and includes them as an appendix to provisions of the U.S. Code relating to the judiciary and judicial procedure. Applies the rules to proceedings before a U.S. court or a Federal agency that carries out adjudicatory or quasi-adjudicatory functions. Includes rules relating to: (1) various types of litigation abuses (including conduct to increase litigation expenses or with no substantial purpose other than to distress another person); (2) expediting litigation (including not attempting to delay or prolong proceedings for specified reasons); and (3) a duty to prevent the commission of a crime (including allowing or requiring disclosure of information). Declares that: (1) it is the sense of the Congress that, in determining child custody, credible evidence of physical abuse of a spouse should create a statutory presumption that it is detrimental to the child to be placed in the custody of the abusive spouse; and (2) this paragraph is not intended to encourage States to prohibit supervised visitation. Requires a protective order issued by a court of a State to have the same full faith and credit in a court in another State as in a court of the issuing State. Amends the Federal Criminal Code to require that a person charged with an offense under provisions relating to sexual abuse be tested for the human immunodeficiency virus: (1) before release pending trial; and (2) six months and twelve months after the initial test. Requires results to be provided to the judicial officer or court and disclosed only to the victim, the attorney for the Government, and the person tested. Requires the U.S. Sentencing Commission to enhance the sentence guidelines if the offender had reason to know that he was infected, except where the offender did not engage or attempt to engage in conduct creating a risk of transmission. Amends the Victims' Rights and Restitution Act of 1990 to require a Governmental department or agency to pay for up to two tests for a sexual assault victim in the twelve months following the assault and a counseling session regarding the tests and the risk of transmission as the result of the assault. Subtitle E: National Task Force on Violence Against Women - Establishes the National Task Force on Violence Against Women to develop a uniform Federal, State, and local law enforcement strategy aimed at protecting women against violent crimes, punishing persons who commit such crimes, and enhancing the rights of the victims. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle F: Prevention of Sexual Assault - Amends the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 to establish a program of grants to States to assist States in supporting rape prevention and education programs. Requires: (1) a minimum percentage of the money to be used for programs targeted for junior high school and high school students; and (2) the State to pay the full cost of forensic medical examinations of sexual assault victims. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle G: Domestic Violence Prevention Act of 1991 - Domestic Violence Prevention Act of 1991 - Amends the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act to add increasing public awareness as a purpose of State demonstration grants. Authorizes grants for public information campaigns regarding domestic violence. Requires a State grant recipient to establish a Commission on Domestic Violence. Requires a specified minimum percentage of funds for demonstration grants for prevention of, and provision of immediate shelter and other assistance to, victims of family violence and their dependents be used for rural areas. Limits law enforcement training grants to private nonprofit organizations that have certain experience. Authorizes appropriations to carry out the Act. Title III: Employment Opportunities - Subtitle A: Glass Ceiling Commission - Glass Ceiling Act of 1991 - Establishes the Glass Ceiling Commission to conduct a study and prepare recommendations conerning: (1) eliminating artificial barriers to the advancement of women and minorities; and (2) increasing opportunities and developmental experiences of women and minorities to foster advancement of women and minorities to executive management and senior decisionmaking positions in business. Establishes the National Award for Diversity and Excellence in American Executive Management, to be evidenced by a medal with its design approved by the Commission. Directs the President, after receiving recommendations from the Commission, to annually present the award to businesses that meet specified qualifications. Allows a recipient business to use the award in its advertising if the business agrees to help other U.S. businesses improve with respect to the promotion of opportunities and developmental experiences of women and minorities regarding executive management and senior decisionmaking positions. Authorizes appropriations. Terminates the Commission and the authority to make awards four years after enactment of this subtitle. Subtitle B: Opportunities in Apprenticeship - Opportunities in Apprenticeship Act of 1991 - Directs the Secretary of Labor to establish in the Department of Labor an outreach and education program to expand the opportunities for women and minorities in apprenticeship programs registered with the Department under the National Apprenticeship Act (registered apprenticeship programs). Directs the Secretary to: (1) identify and develop model preapprenticeship and apprenticeship programs that promote training and employment opportunities for women and minorities, and disseminate information relating to the programs; and (2) provide technical assistance to organizations, institutions, groups, and individuals to promote outreach to, and recruitment of, women and minorities for registered apprenticeship programs. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) award grants for the Federal share of outreach and recruitment to increase the participation of women and minorities in registered apprenticeship programs; and (2) establish a program of grants to sponsors of registered apprenticeship programs to pay the Federal share of providing preapprenticeship training to women and minorities. Directs the Secretary to conduct a study of, and report to the appropriate committees of the Congress on, the participation of women and minorities in registered apprenticeship programs. Authorizes appropriations to carry out this subtitle. Subtitle C: Opportunities for Alternative Work Arrangements - Declares that it is the sense of the Congress that: (1) the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has made commendable efforts to develop alternative work arrangements through flexible scheduling and job sharing; and (2) OPM should continue efforts to develop and expand alternative work arrangements.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1991
Amends the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS) to include under such coverage otherwise eligible persons who are also entitled to Medicare benefits. Prohibits a benefit from being paid under CHAMPUS to the extent that it is also a covered benefit for such individual under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1991
State Thrift Deposit Insurance Premium Act of 1991 - Amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act to direct the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to determine and apportion among the States the cumulative cost of Federal assistance provided to State-chartered savings associations for case resolutions. Declares as "high risk" any State whose share of State resolution costs exceeds twice its share of 1980 State deposits. Mandates that each high risk State pay to the Savings Association Insurance Fund (SAIF) prescribed premiums reflecting such risk. Sets forth insurance termination procedures if a State fails to pay the required premium. Requires depositor notification of such insurance termination. Mandates that the premium paid by high-risk States into the SAIF shall be available to pay the thrift resolution costs incurred by the FSLIC Resolution Fund or the Resolution Trust Corporation, as appropriate.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 1991
International Voluntary Family Planning Assistance Act of 1991 - Authorizes appropriations for international population planning assistance. Earmarks a specified amount of such funds for the United Nations Population Fund if: (1) the Fund maintains such funds in a separate account, without commingling; (2) none of the funds are made available for China; and (3) any agreement to obligate such funds expressly states that the full amount granted by the agreement will be refunded to the United States if U.S. funds are used for family planning in China or abortions in any country. Requires a specified amount of population planning assistance to be used to increase family planning service delivery in countries with large population growth. Prohibits any funds appropriated under this Act from being used for abortions.
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 1991
Mobility Assistance Act of 1991 - Redesignates the Urban Mass Transportation Administration of the Department of Transportation as the Federal Public Transportation Administration. Amends the Urban Mass Transportation Act of 1964 to increase from 8.64 percent to ten percent the amount allocated from block grants for mass transportation projects in urban areas with a population of less than 200,000. Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to make grants and loans to eligible entities in urbanized and non-urbanized areas for special mobility assistance transportation projects to meet the needs of the elderly and handicapped. Declares that nothing shall prohibit the leasing of vehicles to local public bodies or agencies to meet the special needs of elderly and disabled passengers. Authorizes the Secretary, based upon a specified formula, to increase the Federal share for construction costs associated with public transportation projects in non-urbanized areas. Limits Mass Transit Account Block Grants for public transportation construction projects in non-urbanized areas. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes the apportionment of such funds for State Initiative Block Grants based upon a specified formula to determine entitlement. Prohibits the Federal share for construction projects under this program from exceeding: (1) 80 percent of construction costs; or (2) 50 percent of operating costs for the payment of operating subsidies.
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 1991
Fair Budget Treatment for Dairy Farmers Act of 1991 - Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949, as amended by the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 and the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990, to repeal the 1992 milk assessment provision (milk price support reduction).
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permanently extend the period during which qualified mortgage bonds and mortgage credit certificates may be issued.
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 1991
Constitutional Amendment - Prohibits Federal expenditures from exceeding revenues for any fiscal year and from exceeding 19 percent of the gross national product for the last calendar year ending before the beginning of such fiscal year. Provides for a suspension of such prohibitions for any fiscal year for which three-fifths of the House of the Congress provides, by rollcall vote, for a specific excess of outlays over estimated revenues.
United States · United States Congress · 19 February 1991
Older Americans' Freedom to Work Act of 1991 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to remove the limitation on the amount of outside income which beneficiaries who have attained retirement age may earn without incurring a reduction in benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1991
Persian Gulf War Veterans Benefits Act of 1991 - Title I: General Veterans Benefits - Amends Federal veterans' benefits provisions to include the Persian Gulf War under the definition of "period of war" for purposes of eligibility for various veterans' benefits for war veterans, their spouses, and their dependents. Authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide standby inpatient hospital care and medical services to those veterans authorized to receive hospital, nursing home, or domiciliary care and medical treatment within the Department of Veterans Affairs. Authorizes the Secretary to furnish counseling services in any Department facility to any veteran: (1) who is a former prisoner of war; and (2) while in active military service in a theater of combat operations during a period in which hostilities occurred in such theater. Makes veterans who serve on active duty during the Persian Gulf War for at least 90 days eligible for dental benefits provided to veterans through the Department. Makes veterans of the Persian Gulf War suffering from war-related psychosis within two years of the end of such War eligible for treatment through the Department for a service-connected disability. Presumes such psychosis to be service-connected for purposes of eligibility for such treatment). Makes veterans of any war (currently, specified wars and conflicts) eligible for payment for certain drugs and medicine required as a result of being permanently housebound or in need of regular aid and attendance. Bases the payment of dependency and indemnity compensation to surviving spouses on the age of the surviving spouse, with the amount decreasing as the age increases. States that such amounts shall be based on the pay grades of veterans dying between January 1, 1957, and the last day of the month in which the Persian Gulf War ends if such is larger than the amount provided when based solely upon the age of the surviving spouse. Increases from $50,000 to $75,000 the amount of life insurance available to veterans under the Servicemen's Group Life Insurance and the Veterans' Group Life Insurance programs. Makes Persian Gulf War veterans eligible for such increased coverage. Title II: Veterans Education Benefits - Increases the monthly stipend available to members of the all-volunteer active-duty armed forces and the Selected Reserve for educational assistance provided under the Montgomery GI Bill armed forces and veterans' educational assistance programs. Increases such stipend annually by the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for such year. Directs the Secretary of the military department concerned, and the Secretary of Transportation with respect to the Coast Guard when it is not operating as a service of the Navy, to provide educational assistance to members of the Selected Reserve who: (1) during the Persian Gulf War, served on active duty for more than 180 days of continuous service; and (2) were discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable. States that such educational assistance may be provided for a program of education beyond the baccalaureate degree level. States that, in the case of a member of the Reserve called to active duty in connection with the Persian Gulf War: (1) the period of such active duty may not be considered in determining the expiration date for eligibility for educational assistance benefits provided under the Montgomery GI Bill; and (2) the member may not be considered to have been separated from the Reserve, for purposes of commencement of the delimiting period for the use of such benefits. Provides that, in the case of an active-duty or Reserve member student who fails to complete a course of study under the armed forces or veterans' educational assistance programs due to being called to active duty in connection with the Persian Gulf War, both the amount of educational assistance received and the time spent pursuing that course of study will not be counted against such student for purposes of general entitlement under such educational assistance program. Restores the full amount available to such student veteran program. Restores the full amount available to such student veteran as if the interrupted course had not been taken. States that such exclusion shall apply to members of the Selected Reserve pursuing courses of study (and similarly interrupted) under the armed forces educational assistance program. Title III: Veterans Housing Programs - Entitles each veteran who served on active duty in the Persian Gulf War for 90 days or more to guaranteed veterans' housing loans provided through the Department. Authorizes the Secretary to provide direct loans for housing purposes to the following veterans: (1) any active-duty or reserve member who meets applicable credit requirements and is unable to obtain a loan from a private lender at the interest rate authorized for guaranteed home loans because of the possibility of service in connection with the Persian Gulf War; and (2) any veteran who applies for such loan within one year after returning from at least 90 days of continual service in the Persian Gulf or within one year after being released from hospitalization incident to such service, is discharged under conditions other than dishonorable, cannot obtain a reasonable loan from a private lender, and meets applicable credit requirements. Title IV: Military Personnel Benefits - Requires the Secretary of Defense to ensure that the Secretaries of the military departments provide appropriate benefits explanations to reserve members who were called to active duty in connection with the Persian Gulf War and are released from such active duty upon completion of their required service period. Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to detail Department personnel at each principal site at which such reserve members are released from such duty for preseparation counseling. Directs the Secretary of Defense to prescribe regulations to allow reserve personnel ordered to active duty in connection with the Persian Gulf War to use commissary and exchange stores during the 180-day period following their release from such duty to the same extent as for active-duty members of the armed forces. Entitles reserve members called to active duty in connection with the Persian Gulf War to certain transitional health care benefits after release from such active duty until: (1) 60 days after release from such active duty; or (2) the date such member is covered by a health plan sponsored by a private employer. Title V: Internal Revenue Matters - States that, for purposes of applying the internal revenue laws with respect to the tax liability of individuals performing military service in the Persian Gulf, the period of such services, as well as 60 days thereafter, shall be disregarded in determining whether certain required acts were performed within the required time period as prescribed under the Internal Revenue Code. Includes those hospitalized for injuries attributable to Persian Gulf services under those eligible for such extension. Includes spouses of such personnel, as well as persons in a missing status under such provision. Amends the Internal Revenue Code relating to the permissible time period before the gain from the sale of a principal residence is recognized for tax purposes to extend such period in the case of a reserve member performing active duty in the armed forces to one year after such member is released from such active duty. Amends the Internal Revenue Code relating to the exceptions to the ten-percent additional tax on early distributions from qualified retirement plans to add as an exception to such additional tax any distribution from an individual retirement plan if made to a Persian Gulf War reservist during the qualified distribution period. Defines the qualified distribution period for such personnel as the period which: (1) begins on the date such service is first performed; and (2) ends 180 days after termination of such service. Title VI: Small Business - Veterans Entrepreneurship Promotion Act of 1991 - Defines terms used in this Act. Amends the Small Business Act to direct the President to establish Government-wide goals annually for procurement contracts awarded to small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans, including veterans of the Persian Gulf War. Increases the Government-wide goals for small business participation (including veteran-owned small businesses) from 20 percent to 25 percent of the total value of all prime contract awards for each fiscal year. Mandates that: (1) the Government-wide goal for participation by small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans be at least five percent of such contract and subcontract awards; and (2) certain reports submitted to the Small Business Administration (SBA) and to the Congress include the extent of participation in the Federal procurement process by small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans. Declares it the policy of the United States to grant small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans the maximum opportunity to participate in the performance of Federal contracts and subcontracts. Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (the Administrator) to implement an outreach and information dissemination program for small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans. Outlines the parameters of a loan assistance program implemented by the SBA for small businesses owned and controlled by veterans. Requires the Administrator to study and report to the Congress and the President on methods to reduce costs incurred by veterans during the loan application process. Directs the Administrator to take steps to ensure that small businesses owned by veterans have access to SBA programs providing entrepreneurial training, business development assistance, counseling, and management assistance. Authorizes the SBA to make grants for veterans' outreach programs with governmental and private sector entities. Mandates the establishment of an interagency working group to develop a comprehensive outreach program for veterans of the Persian Gulf War and veterans affected by reductions in armed forces personnel. Requires certain Government agencies to collect information on: (1) businesses owned and controlled by veterans; and (2) the number of such businesses that are first-time recipients of Government contracts. Amends the Small Business Economic Policy Act of 1980 to require the President to report annually to the Congress on small businesses owned and controlled by veterans and by veterans with service-connected disabilities. Amends the Small Business Act to provide for an Associate Administrator or Veterans Programs who shall be responsible for programs of assistance to small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans. Requires the SBA to enter into negotiations with any Federal agency to perform any specific Government procurement contract through the services of small businesses owned and controlled by veterans. Outlines contracting procedures. Establishes within the SBA a veterans business opportunity and development assistance program to assist exclusively small business concerns eligible under the program's parameters. Vests responsibility for the coordination and formulation of policies relating to Federal assistance to such concerns with the Associate Administrator for Veterans Programs. Restricts an individual's eligibility under the Program to business concerns only. Establishes a Division of Program Certification and Eligibility in the Office of Veterans Programs. Requires the Administrator to present an annual program status report to the Congress. Establishes the National Veterans Business Council to: (1) review Federal and State initiatives relating to business concerns owned by veterans; and (2) report annually to the President and the Congress regarding private and public sector initiatives and multiyear goals for veteran-owned businesses. Terminates the Council three years after its first meeting. Amends the Small Business Act to authorize appropriations. Title VII: Other Matters - Repeals a Federal provision containing certain limitations on the payment of unemployment compensation (prohibiting such payment before a certain time period and limiting the aggregate amount of such payment) with respect to discharged or released members of the armed forces. Makes military personnel called to active duty in the Persian Gulf eligible for the deferment of student loan repayments in the case of loans made under the Higher Education Act of 1965, such deferment lasting during the continuance of such duty. States that such deferment period shall not be counted against the grace period that is available to all individuals with respect to such loans made under such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 1991
Link-up for Learning Demonstration Grant Act - Establishes a program of grants to local educational agencies (LEAs) in partnership with other eligible entities for coordinated educational and other student support services for at-risk youth. Makes eligible to apply for such a grant: (1) an LEA that seeks to plan and implement a coordinated services program for at-risk students with at least one other cooperating public agency; and (2) a consortium, including at least one LEA and one cooperating public service agency, formed to coordinate support services for at-risk students. Allows nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, and private enterprises with experience or expertise in providing services for at-risk students also to participate as a cooperating agency with an LEA or consortium in developing, operating, or evaluating such programs. Makes an LEA that is receiving assistance under the Head Start Transition program also eligible for assistance under this Act if it meets certain criteria. Allows educationally deprived students, in chapter 1 eligible schools or students in chapter 1 schoolwide projects, and their family members, to receive services provided by a project under this Act. Allows an eligible LEA to select any school, grade span, or program area for project services, providing such student eligibility requirements are met and the project design is of adequate size, scope, and quality. Allows such grants to be for up to three years, subject to satisfactory progress. Limits the Federal share of project costs to 80 percent. Establishes a Federal Interagency Task Force consisting of the Secretaries of Education, Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development, and other appropriate Federal agency heads, to identify means to facilitate interagency collaboration at Federal, State, and local levels to improve support services for at-risk students. Requires the Task Force to: (1) identify and eliminate program regulations or practices impeding coordination and collaboration; (2) develop and implement plans for jointly funded programs, unified eligibility and application procedures, and confidentiality regulations that facilitate information sharing; and (3) make recommendations to the Congress on legislative action to facilitate coordination of support services. Directs the Secretary of Education to: (1) conduct a study of grantees under this Act to identify regulatory and legislative obstacles to coordinated support services and innovative procedures and programs; and (2) report study results to the Congress with recommendations for legislative action. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 1991
Farm and Woodland Owners Tax Simplification Act of 1991 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to consider a taxpayer as materially participating in a farming activity for tax accounting purposes if he or she, on a regular and continuing basis, makes substantially all significant decisions and performs substantially all the work required to conduct the activity.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 1991
Extends the immediate retirement provisions applicable to Federal law enforcement officers to: (1) revenue officers for the Internal Revenue Service; (2) customs inspectors for the U.S. Customs Service; (3) customs canine enforcement officers for the U.S. Customs Service; and (4) inspectors for the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 1991
Allows coverage under the Federal employee health insurance program of an unmarried dependent child between 22 and 23 years of age who is a student regularly pursuing a full-time course of study or training in residence in a junior college, college, university, or comparable recognized educational institution.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 1991
Repeals provisions of the Rural Development, Agriculture, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1991 to prohibit a specified rural development grant for the restoration of the birthplace of Lawrence Welk.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to raise from $5,000,000 to $25,000,000 the threshold amount of tax-exempt bonds that a small governmental unit may issue and still remain within the exception from arbitrage rebate requirements. Makes the exception from such rebate for construction bonds effective as if included under the Tax Reform Act of 1986. Permits elections concerning such bonds to be made until 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act. States that any rebates paid shall not be refunded. Increases from $10,000,000 to $25,000,000 the amount of tax-exempt obligations excepted from the pro rata allocation of interest expense of financial institutions to tax-exempt interest for qualified small issuers. Repeals the five percent unrelated and disproportionate private use rules for private activity bonds. Provides that a bond shall not be treated as an arbitrage bond by reason of any failure to meet any requirements of temporary period investments if all earnings which would cause such bond to be an arbitrage bond are paid to the United States by the issuer by the required due dates. Reduces from 100 percent to 90 percent the amount of arbitrage to be rebated to the United States if certain State and local bonds are not to be treated as arbitrage bonds. Provides that an advance refunding bond will not be tax-exempt if it results in amounts becoming available which are invested in substantially guaranteed higher yielding investments pursuant to a contract entered during a certain period before or after issuance of the bond.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 1991
High-Performance Computing Act of 1991 - Declares that this Act does not apply to computer systems that process classified information or are used in connection with certain defense purposes. Allows Federal agencies and departments to procure prototype or early production models of new high-performance computer systems and subsystems to stimulate hardware and software development. Amends the National Science and Technology Policy, Organization, and Priorities Act of 1976 to direct the President, through the Federal Coordinating Council for Science, Engineering, and Technology (Council), to develop and implement a National High-Performance Computing Plan, to be submitted to the Congress within one year of this Act's enactment and revised at least biennially. Requires the plan to recommend a five-year proposal of goals and priorities for a Federal high-performance computing program. Describes required plan contents, including funding requirements, roles for various Federal agencies, and establishment of a national multi-gigabit-per-second computer network (to be known as the National Research and Education Network (Network). Designates the Council as the lead entity responsible for development and implementation of the plan, directing it to coordinate related activities among Federal agencies and departments and review budget estimates. Directs the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) to establish a High-Performance Computing Advisory Panel to provide the Council with an assessment of the plan. Directs each Federal entity involved in high-performance computing to submit, as part of its annual budget request, a report on the role of its activities with regard to the plan and relevant budget requests. Instructs the Chairman of the Council to submit to the President and to the Congress, by March 1 annually, a report on plan achievements and progress. Requires the National Science Foundation to provide for the establishment of the Network by 1996 to link government, industry, and the education community. Designates the Department of Defense, through the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, as the lead agency for research and development of advanced fiber optics technology, switches, and protocols needed to develop the Network. Gives to the National Science Foundation, within the Federal Government, the primary responsibility for connecting colleges, universities, and libraries to the Network. Directs the Council to carry out certain functions, including: (1) developing goals and strategies; (2) identifying the roles of Federal agencies and departments; and (3) overseeing the Network's operation and evolution. Authorizes the National Science Foundation, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Department of Defense, the Department of Commerce, the Department of the Interior, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Environmental Protection Agency to allow Federal research grant recipients to use grant funds to pay for computer networking. Requires the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to report to the Congress on specified matters, including: (1) funding mechanisms for the Network, including user fees, industry support, and continued Federal investment; (2) a plan for the eventual commercialization of the Network; (3) charging commercial information service providers for Network access; (4) charging Network users for commercial services; (5) the technological feasibility of allowing commercial services to use the Network and other federally-funded networks; (6) copyright protection; and (7) resource security and user privacy. Requires the National Science Foundation (NSF) to provide funding to enable researchers to access supercomputers. Sets forth other responsibilities of the NSF, including promoting development of information services that could be provided over the Network. Authorizes appropriations to the NSF for the purposes of this Act. Requires the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to conduct basic and applied research in high-performance computing, with specified emphases. Authorizes appropriations to NASA for the purposes of this Act. Requires the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to: (1) adopt standards and guidelines, and develop measurement techniques and test methods, for the interoperability of high-performance computers in networks and for common user interfaces to systems; and (2) develop benchmark tests and standards for high performance computers and software. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to conduct a study regarding the impact of Federal procurement regulations which require that contractors providing software to the Federal Government share the rights to proprietary software development tools that the contractors used to develop the software.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 1991
Authorizes the Secretary of Education to enter into a contract with the National Writing Project (a nonprofit educational organization) to support costs of programs of teacher training and classroom research to improve the teaching of writing and the quality of student writing and learning. Directs the Project to establish a National Advisory Board. Directs the Secretary, through the Office of Educational Research and Improvement, to make grants to individuals and higher education institutions for research on the teaching of writing. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1991 through 1995.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 1991
Radiation Protection Act of 1991 - Amends the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to affirm State authority to regulate the disposal of certain low-level radioactive waste for which the Nuclear Regulatory Commission does not require disposal in a licensed facility.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 1991
Rape and Incest Victims' Choice Resolution - Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that Federal Medicaid (title XIX of the Social Security Act) funding should be available for the abortion of pregnancies resulting from rape or incest if such acts, considering the physical and mental state of the women involved, are reported promptly.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 1991
Amends Federal law to declare that the Tax Reform Act of 1986 shall be applied and administered as if the three-year basis recovery rule applicable to government employees' annuities had not been repealed.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend the targeted jobs credit permanently. Increases the maximum age requirement for economically disadvantaged youth from 23 to 25.
United States · United States Congress · 11 January 1991
Christopher Columbus Coin and Fellowship Act - Title I: Christopher Columbus Quincentenary Coins - Christopher Columbus Quincentenary Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than a specified number of five-dollar gold coins, one-dollar silver coins, and half-dollar clad coins emblematic of the quincentenary of the discovery of America. Sets forth certain features of such coins and provides for their design, issuance, and sale. Terminates the minting of such coins after June 30, 1993. Requires the Secretary to deposit surcharges from the sale of such coins in the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Fund for use by the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation. Declares that no law governing procurement or public contracts shall be applicable to the procurement of goods and services necessary for carrying out this Act, except that this provision shall not relieve any person from complying with any law relating to equal employment opportunity. Mandates that all amounts received from coin sales be deposited in the coinage profit fund. Title II: Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation - Christopher Columbus Fellowship Act - Establishes the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation to award fellowships to outstanding individuals to encourage new discoveries in all fields of endeavor for the benefit of mankind. Establishes the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Fund. Directs the Foundation to report to the President and to the Congress annually on its operations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 January 1991
Employee Educational Assistance Act of 1991 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent the income tax exclusion of amounts paid under employee educational assistance programs. (Under current law the exclusion expires for taxable years beginning after December 31, 1991.)
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1991
Budget Process Reform Act - Title I: Statement of Congressional Purpose - Declares that the purpose of this Act is to facilitate rational, informed, and timely decisions by the Congress. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Federal budget process should focus the attention of policymakers and the public on the aggregate impact of Federal spending on the economy, and on the tradeoffs that must be made among priorities in order to control overall levels of spending. Declares that the budget process should contain safeguards against delay and inaction, so that temporary shut-downs of the Government may be avoided. Title II: Binding Budget Law - Requires the Congress to enact a binding budget law, in the form of a joint resolution, by April 15 of the calendar year before that in which the fiscal period commences. Requires the budget law to fit on a single page, which sets forth specific budget ceilings in major functional categories. Makes it out of order in the House of Representatives or the Senate to consider any spending bill affecting spending in a major functional category unless and until a joint resolution on the budget is enacted. Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to prohibit baseline budgeting. Requires the budget to include comparisons of current fiscal year and proposed subsequent fiscal year spending. Requires the President to submit to the Congress on or before the fifteenth day after a joint resolution on the budget is enacted a detailed budget for the fiscal period beginning on October 1 of the current calendar year. Title III: Enforcement Mechanics - Subtitle A: Supermajority Required to Break Budget Law - Requires a two-thirds majority vote in the House and the Senate to consider any spending bill prior to the enactment of the budget law. Requires the Congressional Budget Office to provide to the Congress an estimate of the costs in each major functional category of any spending bill as soon as practicable after its introduction. Limits such estimates to those bills likely to result in costs of more than $10,000,000. Requires a two-thirds affirmative vote in the House and the Senate to consider over-budget spending bills. Requires a two-thirds affirmative vote in the House and the Senate to waive any provision of this Act. Subtitle B: Limited Enhanced Rescission Authority - Amends the Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to limit the President's rescission authority to spending that is above the limits of the budget law. Subtitle C: "Blank Check" Appropriations Prohibited - Declares the intent of the Congress to end open-ended, "blank check" appropriations which typically authorize spending "such sums as may be necessary." Requires fixed-dollar appropriations for every account except social security and interest on the debt. Prohibits open-ended appropriations. Requires Executive agencies to adjust benefit levels to ensure that appropriations for entitlement programs are not exceeded. Restricts budget authority and entitlement authority to one fiscal period. Subtitle D: "Pay As You Go" Requirement for New Spending - Prohibits the Congress from considering any legislation which exceeds the budget ceiling unless it offsets such increased spending with an equal amount of reductions. Requires a two-thirds affirmative vote in the House and the Senate to waive such prohibition. Title IV: Sustaining Mechanism - Makes appropriations to provide for an automatic continuing resolution if for any account an appropriation for a fiscal period does not become law before the beginning of such period. Restricts legislation providing funding to the Committees on Appropriations. Title V: Protection of Social Security - Provides that no reduction in benefits under title II of the Social Security Act (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) shall be made as a consequence of this Act. Title VI: Timetable - Revises the timetable for the congressional budget process. Title VII: Conforming Amendments - Makes various technical and conforming amendments, including changing references to a concurrent resolution on the budget to references to a joint resolution on the budget. Title VIII: Definitions and Rules of Interpretation - Sets forth definitions for specified terms. Title IX: Effective Date - Declares the effective date of this Act to be January 1, 1993, applicable to fiscal years beginning after September 30, 1993. Applies to FY 1993 certain provisions of Federal law, including the Congressional Budget Impoundment Control Act of 1974 and the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act).
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1991
Congressional Recycling Act of 1991 - Requires the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate to purchase recycled paper and paper products for use to the greatest extent practicable in the operations of the House and the Senate. Directs the Public Printer to assure that the Government Printing Office uses recycled paper in providing services to the House. Directs the Clerk of the House and the Secretary of the Senate to determine the price or range of prices to be considered unreasonable for purposes of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1991
Tourism Policy and Export Promotion Act of 1991 - Declares it to be the national goal to increase U.S. export earnings from U.S. tourism and transportation services and to maintain a travel and tourism export surplus in order to help eliminate the overall U.S. trade deficit. Requires the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) to publish on a monthly basis a statistical report on U.S. international travel receipts and payments. Requires the Secretary to: (1) identify foreign trade barriers to U.S. travel and tourism; (2) estimate the trade-distorting impact of such barriers on U.S. commerce; and (3) estimate the value of U.S. travel and tourism exports that would have been exported to a foreign country if such barriers did not exist. Requires the Secretary to submit to specified congressional committees a report on such barriers. Directs the Secretary to take appropriate action to ensure that foreign tourists are not unnecessarily delayed when entering the United States. Amends the International Trade Act of 1961 to require each annual tourism trade development plan to focus on those countries in which tourism trade development has the greatest potential for increasing travel and tourism export revenues. Declares that the Congress finds that increased efforts directed at the promotion of rural tourism will contribute to the economic development of rural America. Establishes the Rural Tourism Development Foundation. Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress on: (1) economic effects of the identification and promotion of scenic byways as tourist attractions; and (2) techniques for incorporating scenic byways into tourism development programs. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1991
Title X Pregnancy Counseling Act of 1990 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to prohibit the Secretary of Health and Human Services from making a grant for the provision of family planning methods or services unless the applicant agrees to provide complete information and counseling regarding pregnancy, and for a pregnant woman who requests information on options for an unintended pregnancy, to provide: (1) nondirective counseling on prenatal care and delivery, infant care, foster care and adoption, and termination of pregnancy; and (2) referrals for the services that are appropriate to the decision of the woman.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1991
Sport Hunting Safety and Preservation Act of 1991 - Prescribes civil penalties for knowingly interfering with the conduct of a lawful hunt in a national forest or on other Federal lands. Authorizes injunctive relief, the recovery of actual and punitive damages, and the awarding of attorney's fees. Grants hunting and sportsman's organizations standing to sue under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an itemized deduction for the qualified nursing educational expenses paid or incurred by a licensed practical or vocational nurse enrolled in a course of study leading to qualification as a registered nurse. Allows such deduction in computing adjusted gross income.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1991
Merchant Mariners Fairness Act of 1991 - Provides that certain qualified service of a member of the U.S. merchant marine, including a vessel crewmember of the U.S. Army Transport Service, during World War II constituted active military service for purposes of eligibility for various veterans' benefits under the GI Bill Improvement Act of 1977. Requires the Secretary of Defense to issue an honorable discharge under such Act to each merchant marine member whose qualified service warrants such a discharge. Defines "qualified service." Prohibits the payment of any retroactive benefits under this Act. Mandates a processing fee of a specified amount for any benefit application for such qualified service. Amends the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 to add references to components or ingredients of equipment, materials, or commodities in certain cargo preference provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1991
Freedom of Choice Act of 1991 - Provides that a State may not restrict the right of a woman to choose to terminate a pregnancy: (1) before fetal viability; or (2) at any time, if such termination is necessary to protect the life or health of the woman. Allows a State to impose requirements medically necessary to protect the life or health of such women.
![Official portrait of Rep. Boehlert, Sherwood [R-NY-24]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/b000586_200.jpg)