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United States · Official source
2,368 records where Rep. Brady, Kevin [R-TX-8] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 1999
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income (under the qualified scholarship provisions) certain amounts provided by an employer to the child of an employee.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 1999
Pain Relief Promotion Act of 1999 - Title I: Use of Controlled Substances Consistent With the Controlled Substances Act - Amends the Controlled Substances Act to provide that for purposes of such Act, alleviating pain or discomfort in the usual course of professional practice is a legitimate medical purpose for the dispensing, distributing, or administering of a controlled substance consistent with public health and safety even if the use of such a substance may increase the risk of death. Declares that nothing in this Act authorizes intentionally dispensing or administering a controlled substance for purposes of causing death or assisting another person in causing death. Prohibits the Attorney General, in determining whether a controlled substance manufacturer, distributor, or dispenser registration is consistent with the public interest under the Act, from giving force and effect to State law permitting assisted suicide or euthanasia. Authorizes certain educational and research programs carried out by the Attorney General under the Act to include educational and training programs for local, State, and Federal personnel on the necessary and legitimate use of controlled substances in pain management and palliative care and means by which investigation and enforcement actions by law enforcement personnel may accommodate such use. Title II: Promoting Palliative Care - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Administrator of the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research to carry out a program to: (1) develop and advance scientific understanding of palliative care; and (2) collect and disseminate protocols and evidence-based practices regarding such care, with priority given to pain management for terminally ill patients, and make such information publicly available. Defines "palliative care" as the active total care of patients whose prognosis is limited due to progressive, far-advanced disease. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services, to award grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts to health professions schools, hospices, and other entities for programs to provide education and training to health care professionals in palliative care. Sets forth requirements for grant applicants. Provides for the evaluation of such programs to determine their effect on knowledge and practice regarding palliative care. Makes funds available for such grants and contracts.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 1999
Arctic Coastal Plain Domestic Energy Security Act of 1999 - Declares that: (1) it is the policy of the United States to permit exploration, development, production and transportation of oil and gas resources in a designated area of the Coastal Plain Study Area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge; (2) such exploration, development, production and transportation should proceed with dispatch; and (3) such activities should be conducted in a manner consistent with the protection of the Coastal Plain's fish and wildlife resources and environment and the needs of the area's subsistence users. (Sec. 4) Instructs the Secretary of the Interior to establish and implement a competitive oil and gas leasing program that will: (1) result in an environmentally sound program; (2) not result in significant adverse effects upon fish and wildlife; and (3) ensure the receipt of fair market value by the public for the mineral resources to be leased. Amends the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 to repeal the prohibition against production of oil and gas from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and any leasing or development leading to such production. States that Congress determines that the Coastal Plain oil and gas leasing program and activities authorized by this Act are compatible with the purposes for which the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge was established, and that no further findings or decisions are required to implement this determination. States this Act is the sole authority for Coastal Plain leasing, and that such Plain is considered "Federal land" for purposes of the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty Management Act of 1982. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) designate a maximum total of Coastal Plain acreage as "Special Areas" and close them to leasing if the Secretary determines that these Areas require special management and regulatory protection; (2) permit leasing in those Special Areas by setting lease terms that limit or condition surface use and occupancy by lessees but permit the use of horizontal drilling technology from sites on leases located outside the designated Special Areas. Declares that this Act constitutes the Secretary's sole authority to close Coastal Plain lands to oil and gas leasing and to exploration, development, and production. (Sec. 6) States that lands may be leased to any person qualified to obtain a lease for oil and gas deposits under the Mineral Leasing Act. Requires the Secretary to prescribe lease procedures. (Sec. 7) Authorizes the Secretary to grant to the highest responsible qualified bidder by sealed competitive cash bonus bid any Coastal Plain lands upon payment of such bonus and a royalty which shall not be less than a certain amount. Prescribes lease terms and conditions. (Sec. 10) Directs the Secretary to grant rights-of-way and easements across the Coastal Plain for oil and gas transportation.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1999
Prohibits any reconstruction assistance (other than humanitarian assistance) for the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) (other than Kosovo) until Slobodan Milosevic and the four other officials of the Government of FRY named in the indictment of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (Case IT-99-37) have been arrested and placed in custody of the Tribunal.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1999
Abolishment of Obsolete Agencies and Federal Sunset Act of 1999 - Establishes the Federal Agency Sunset Commission to: (1) submit to Congress a schedule for review by the Commission, at least once every 12 years, of the abolishment or reorganization of each agency; (2) review and evaluate the efficiency and public need for each agency; and (3) recommend whether each agency should be abolished or reorganized. Requires the abolishment of any agency within one year of the Commission's review, unless the agency is reauthorized by Congress. Authorizes the deadline to be extended for an additional two years if enacted by a super majority of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Sets forth criteria for such review. 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 within each agency for the purpose of advising and assisting Congress and the Commission in carrying out the requirements of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1999
Networking and Information Technology Research and Development Act - Amends the High-Performance Computing Act of 1991 to authorize appropriations for FY 2000 through 2004 for research and development activities of the following departments and agencies in connection with the High-Performance Computing Program (establishing goals and priorities for, and engaging in, Federal high-performance computing research, development, networking, and related activities): (1) the National Science Foundation (NSF); (2) the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; (3) the Department of Energy; (4) the National Institute of Standards and Technology; (5) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; and (6) the Environmental Protection Agency. Earmarks specified amounts of such authorized funds for: (1) long-term basic research on networking and information technology, including grants for information technology research centers; (2) grants for the development of major research equipment; and (3) information technology internship grants. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2001 and 2002 for support by such departments and agencies of the Next Generation Internet Program (research, development, and demonstration of advanced networking technologies to increase Internet capabilities and performance). Requires a previously-established advisory committee on high-performance computing to: (1) conduct periodic evaluations of high-performance computing and networking and information technology research and development programs; and (2) report at least once every two fiscal years to specified congressional committees on its findings and recommendations. Directs the NSF to study and report to Congress comparing the availability of encryption technologies in foreign countries to such technologies subject to export restrictions in the United States. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent a credit allowed for increased research activities as compared to the prior taxable year.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1999
Open Competition and Fairness Act of 1999 - Amends the National Labor Relations Act to prohibit discrimination against any bidder on a prime contract for a federally funded project on the basis of a requirement that such person enter into or adhere to a collective bargaining agreement or any similar agreement as a condition of performing work on such contract.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 1999
Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 for infant and child health programs under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 that have a direct, measurable, and high impact on reducing the incidence of illness and death among children. Earmarks 25 percent of such funds for programs of U.S.-based, citizen-supported, private voluntary organizations that implement community-based programs. Limits certain funds under the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2000 for population planning activities or other population assistance, including all programs and activities designed to control fertility or to reduce or delay childbirths or pregnancies.
United States · United States Congress · 27 May 1999
Export Enhancement Act of 1999 - Sets forth policy recommendations for the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and the International Trade Administration (ITA). Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to extend through FY 2003 OPIC's authority to issue investment insurance and guarantees. Revises the purposes of the Trade and Development Agency to include, with respect to the promotion of U.S. private sector participation in development projects in developing and middle-income countries, special emphasis on economic sectors with significant U.S. export potential, such as energy, transportation, telecommunications, and environment. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes appropriations to the ITA for its Market Access and Compliance program, Trade Development program, and Commercial Service program. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to take steps to ensure the appointment of United States and Foreign Commercial Service employees in no fewer than ten sub-Saharan African countries, including the adequate appointment of personnel for South and Central America and the Caribbean, in order that U.S. businesses are made aware of existing market opportunities for goods and services. Directs the ITA to undertake the Global Diversity and Urban Export Initiative in order to increase exports from minority-owned businesses, focusing on businesses in under-served areas, including inner-city urban enterprise zones. Authorizes the ITA to advertise in newspapers, business journals, and other relevant publications and related media to inform businesses about ITA services. Revises the composition of the OPIC Board of Directors. Amends the Export Enhancement Act of 1988 to require the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee (TPCC) to develop a Federal trade promotion plan that, among other things, shall: (1) ensure that all export promotion activities of the U.S. Agency for International Development are fully coordinated and consistent with those of other agencies; (2) identify the means for providing more coordinated export promotion services to small and medium-sized businesses; and (3) establish a set of priorities to promote U.S. exports to, and free market reforms in, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and other emerging markets, that are designed to stimulate job growth both in the United States and those regions and emerging markets. Requires the TPCC to: (1) report on actions taken to eliminate the areas of overlap and duplication identified among Federal export promotion activities; (2) coordinate efforts to sponsor or promote any trade show or trade fair; (3) work with all relevant State and national organizations, including the National Governors' Association, that have established trade promotion offices; and (4) report to Congress on actions taken to promote better coordination among State, Federal, and private sector export promotion activities.
United States · United States Congress · 27 May 1999
National Retail Sales Tax Act of 1999 - Repeals the income, estate, gift, and certain excise tax provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. (Sec. 4) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a 15 percent tax on the use, consumption or enjoyment in the U.S. of any property or service produced or rendered within or without of the United States. Prohibits, subject to exception, imposing a tax on any property or service purchased for: (1) a business purpose in an active trade or business; or (2) export from the Unites States for use or consumption outside of the Unites States, provided that the purchaser provided the seller with either an intermediate sales certificate or an export sales certificate. Defines "purchased for a business purpose in an active trade or business" as property or services: (1) purchased for resale; (2) purchased to produce property or services; or (3) purchased in furtherance of other bona fide business purposes. Sets forth rules relating to the obligation of governmental units and not-for-profit organizations to collect, remit, and pay taxes. Sets forth provisions concerning credits and refunds. Allows for general credits against the tax, including: (1) a used property credit; (2) a business use conversion credit; (3) an administration credit; (4) a compliance equipment cost credit; (5) a bad debt credit; (6) an insurance proceeds credit; and (7) a transition inventory credit. Provides for installment payments of the tax on the purchase of a principal residence. Allows an eligible family unit to receive a sales tax rebate. Requires that a family member, to be counted for the purposes of determining family unit size, must: (1) if over two years old, have a bona fide Social Security number; and (2) be a lawful U.S. resident. Declares that no individual shall be considered part of more than one family unit. Sets forth definitions and special rules concerning such things as: (1) foreign financial intermediation services; (2) financing leases; and (3) installment sales. Imposes a 15 percent tax on gaming services. Directs an administering State to administer, collect, and remit to the U.S. Treasury the tax on gross payments for the use, consumption or enjoyment of taxable property or services within the State. Defines an administering State as one which maintains a specified conforming sales tax and enters into a specified cooperative agreement with the Secretary. Provides for administrative support for States. Sets forth provisions concerning, among other things: (1) monthly reports and payments; (2) records; (3) penalties; (4) appeals; (5) accounting; and (6) hobby activities. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to establish an Office of Revenue Allocation to arbitrate any claims or disputes among States. (Sec. 5) Prohibits the authorizing of any appropriations for the Internal Revenue Service after FY 2003. Establishes in the Treasury: (1) an Excise Tax Bureau to administer any excise taxes not repealed by this Act; and (2) a Sales Tax Bureau to administer the national sales tax. (Sec. 6) Authorizes the Social Security Administration to collect and administer self-employment income and employment taxes beginning in 2001. (Sec. 7) Sets forth provisions concerning: (1) the self- employment tax; (2) the indexing of social security benefits; (3) compensating payments to individuals on fixed incomes; and (4) the interest rate on tax underpayments and overpayments. (Sec. 11) Requires a supermajority in the House of Representatives or the Senate to raise rates.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 1999
Disapproves the rule submitted by the U.S. Postal Service relating to delivery of mail to a commercial mail receiving agency (as published in the Federal Register on March 25, 1999). Declares that such rule shall have no force or effect.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 1999
Empowering Minorities with Procurement Opportunities Which Expand and Revive Businesses Resolution (EMPOWER Businesses Resolution) - Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that all Federal agencies would benefit from implementing, and urges agencies to implement, specified recommendations to improve equitable access for minority-owned businesses to Federal procurement possibilities.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 1999
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Soft Money and Contributions and Expenditures of Political Parties Title II: Indexing Contribution Limits Title III: Expanding Disclosure of Campaign Finance Information Title IV: Effective Date Campaign Integrity Act of 1999 - Title I: Soft Money and Contributions and Expenditures of Political Parties - Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (FECA) to prohibit any national committee of a political party, including the national congressional campaign committees of a political party, and any party committee officers or agents, from soliciting, receiving, or directing any contributions, donations, or transfers of funds, or spending any funds, which are not subject to the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting requirements of such Act. Declares that no candidate for Federal office, individual holding Federal office, or any agent of such candidate or officeholder may solicit, receive, or direct: (1) any funds in connection with any Federal election unless they are subject to the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting requirements of such Act; (2) any funds that are to be expended in connection with any non-Federal election unless they are not in excess of the amounts permitted contributions to Federal candidates and political committees, and are not from prohibited sources; or (3) any funds on behalf of any person which are not subject to the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting requirements of such Act if such funds are for the purpose of financing any activity on behalf of a candidate for election to Federal office or any communication which refers to a clearly identified candidate for election to Federal office. Exempts from the prohibitions of this Act: (1) the solicitation or receipt of funds by a candidate for a non-Federal office if such activity is permitted under State law; or (2) the attendance by a Federal office-holder or a candidate for election to Federal office at a fundraising event for a State or local committee of a political party of the State which the individual represents or seeks to represent as a Federal officeholder, if the event is held in that State. Prohibits a State committee of a political party from transferring any funds to a State committee of a political party of another State, except according to the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting requirements of such Act. (Sec. 102) Increases the aggregate annual limit on contributions by individuals to political parties from $20,000 to $25,000. (Sec. 103) Repeals limitations on the amount of coordinated expenditures by the national and State committees of political parties. (Sec. 104) Increases from $15,000 to $20,000 the limit on contributions by multicandidate political committees (PACs) to national political parties. Title II: Indexing Contribution Limits - Amends FECA to mandate indexing of contribution limits, according to a specified formula involving the Consumer Price Index, beginning calendar 2001. Title III: Expanding Disclosure of Campaign Finance Information - Prescribes reporting requirements for expenditures for radio or television broadcast communications regarding a candidate for the Senate or the House of Representatives. Applies such requirements to any person who expends an aggregate amount of more than $25,000 during a calendar year for such communications relating to a single candidate for election to Federal office (or an aggregate amount of more than $100,000 during a calendar year for all such communications relating to all such candidates). Establishes civil fines for violations of such requirements. (Sec. 302) Amends FECA to require the principal campaign committees of candidates for the Senate or the House, and all political committees other than authorized committees of such a candidate, to file monthly reports (instead of quarterly reports, as currently), by specified deadlines. (Sec. 303) Directs the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to require electronic filing of campaign finance reports, unless the aggregate amount of contributions or expenditures (as the case may be) reported by the committee in all reports filed with respect to the election involved (taking into account the period covered by the report) is less than $50,000. Requires the FEC to make available without charge a standardized package of software to enable persons filing reports by electronic means to meet such requirements. (Sec. 304) Revises the waiver of strict compliance with FECA reporting requirements where a political committee's treasurer shows that best efforts have been used to obtain, maintain, and submit the information required. Denies such a waiver with respect to information regarding the occupation or the name of the employer of any individual who makes a contribution or contributions aggregating more than $200 during a calendar year. Title IV: Effective Date - Sets forth the effective date of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 1999
Amends the Clean Air Act to incorporate specified provisions of transportation conformity regulations (regulations to determine conformity of Federal transportation programs with Federal and State implementation plans) as in effect on March 1, 1999.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 1999
Expresses the sense of Congress that it: (1) rejects and condemns suggestions in a study recently published by the American Psychological Association that sexual relationships between adults and children might be positive for children; (2) urges the President to likewise reject and condemn any such suggestion; and (3) encourages competent investigations to continue to research the effects of child sexual abuse using the best methodology, so that the public and public policymakers may act upon accurate information.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 1999
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic should provide the necessary security assurances to the United Nations interagency mission to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to permit them to safely and accurately provide the international community with an objective, first-hand assessment of the condition of refugees inside of Kosovo and Yugoslavia. Encourages member nations of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to weigh the value of this humanitarian mission toward ending human suffering in Kosovo, and to consider reasonable measures to enhance the safety of this international delegation during its mission within Yugoslavia.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 1999
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Antitrust and Criminal Provisions Title II: Additional Provisions Internet Freedom Act - Title I: Antitrust and Criminal Provisions - Provides that in any civil action based on antitrust violations, evidence that an incumbent local exchange carrier that has market power in the broadband service provider market area has willfully and knowingly failed to provide conditioned unbundled local loops when economically reasonable and technically feasible, or restrains the ability of another carrier to compete in the provision of such services, shall establish a presumption of an antitrust violation. Establishes an identical presumption in the case of a broadband access transport provider that has market power in the broadband service provider market who has offered access to a service provider on terms and conditions less favorable than those otherwise offered, or restrains unreasonably the ability of another provider from competing in the provision of such services. Defines: (1) broadband as a transmission capability in excess of 200 kilobits per second in at least one direction; and (2) a broadband access transport provider as one who engages in the broadband transmission of data between a user and his service provider's point of interconnection with the broadband access transport provider's facilities. Makes it unlawful for a broadband access transport provider to engage in unfair methods of competition or unfair or deceptive acts or practices in the provision of such services. Amends the Federal criminal code to provide criminal penalties against anyone who intentionally: (1) and without authorization initiates the transmission of a bulk unsolicited electronic mail message to a protected computer with knowledge that such message falsifies an Internet domain, header information, or other identifier; or (2) sells or distributes any computer program designed primarily to conceal the source or routing information on such mail, has only limited commercially significant purpose or use, or is marketed by the violator or another person acting in concert with the violator with the violator's knowledge of such use. Title II: Additional Provisions - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to require each local exchange carrier to submit to the State communications commission in each State in which such carrier does business a plan to provide broadband telecommunications service in all local exchange areas in which such carrier has telephone exchange service customers, as soon as such service is economically reasonable and technically feasible. Considers such plan certified unless rejected within 45 days. Requires plan implementation within 180 days (if reasonable and feasible). Prohibits State or Federal Communications Commission (FCC) modification of such plans. Provides that interLATA services shall not include services that consist of or include the transmission of any data or information by means of the Internet or any other network that employs Internet Protocol-based or other packet-switched technology. Prohibits a Bell operating company or its affiliate from providing, by the Internet or similar network employing such technology, two-way voice only interLATA telecommunications services originating in any of its in-region States until the FCC approves the application of such company for such State.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 1999
Amends the National Labor Relations Act to provide for inflation adjustments to the mandatory jurisdiction thresholds of the National Labor Relations Board.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 1999
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to restore and make permanent the exclusion from gross income for amounts received under qualified group legal services plans.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 1999
Regulatory Fairness and Openness Act of 1999 - Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to conduct a transition analysis report with respect to pesticide tolerances before releasing any product safety information to the public, or making final tolerance decisions. Includes within such report's requirements a description of the extent to which specified assumptions have been used to support findings or regulatory recommendations. (Sec. 5) Sets forth interim review or reassessment procedures. (Sec. 6) Requires the Administrator to issue within one year of enactment of this Act final implementing rules for tolerances and exemptions for pesticide chemical residues. (Sec. 7) Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the Administrator to issue guidelines specifying required data in support of tolerances and exemptions. Amends the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act to provide for related notice and opportunity for hearing. (Sec. 8) Amends the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act to provide for an expedited replacement product registration process. Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to authorize an expedited tolerance for an emergency exemption if no significant (food) consumer risk exists. (Sec. 9) Requires the Administrator and the Secretary of Agriculture to report with respect to related pesticide, residue, and food use priorities and resources. (Sec. 10) Requires the Secretary to develop a program to monitor the competitive international market strength of major U.S. agricultural commodity sectors. (Sec. 11) Establishes the Pesticide Advisory Committee.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 1999
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Improvement of Classroom Services and Activities Title II: Miscellaneous Provisions Dollars to the Classroom Act - Title I: Improvement of Classroom Services and Activities - Authorizes the Secretary of Education award grants to States for use by States and local educational agencies (LEAs) to improve classroom services and activities for students. (Sec. 102) Requires reservation of specified portions of title I funds for: (1) outlying areas, to be distributed on the basis of their relative need; and (2) the Secretary of the Interior for programs in schools operated or funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Sets forth a formula for distribution of title I funds to States, including a hold harmless provision with respect to amounts received in FY 1999 under current formula grant programs (which are under specified Acts and programs repealed by this Act). Requires States to distribute at least 95 percent of allotted funds to LEAs. Requires States and LEAs to use title I funds to supplement and not to supplant funds from non-Federal sources. Requires State annual reports to the Secretary and specified congressional committees to be made available to parents and the public. (Sec. 103) Requires States to consider certain factors when distributing funds within the State. Sets forth hold-harmless provisions for LEAs with respect to: (1) funds received for FY 1999 under current formula grant programs; and (2) funds the LEA is eligible to receive during FY 1999 through 2003 under multiyear awards made prior to enactment of this Act. Lists local uses of title I funds. Requires LEAs to involve parents and members of the public in planning for the use of title I funds. (Sec. 104) Provides for participation of private school children and teachers in title I activities and services. (Sec. 106) Declares that nothing in this title shall be construed to authorize any Federal officer or employee to require, direct, or control a State, LEA, or school's specific instructional content of pupil performance standards and assessments, curriculum, or program of instruction as a condition of eligibility to receive funds under this title. Prohibits the Secretary from issuing any regulation regarding the type of classroom activities or services that may be assisted under this title. Provides that LEAs shall not be required to provide services under this title through a particular instructional method or in a particular instructional setting in order to receive funding under this title. (Sec. 107) Repeals the following programs under the Goals 2000: Educate America Act: (1) State and local education systemic improvement; (2) parental assistance; and (3) international education exchange and study. Repeals the following programs under the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994: (1) school-to-work opportunities system development and implementation grants to States; (2) Federal implementation grants to local partnerships; and (3) national programs. Repeals the following programs under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA): (1) demonstrations of innovative practices; (2) innovative elementary school transition projects; (3) Dwight D. Eisenhower Professional Development Program, including national programs and State and local activities; (4) Technology for Education, including national programs, State and local programs for school technology resources, Star Schools, Ready-to-Learn Television, telecommunications demonstration project for mathematics, elementary mathematics and science equipment, and elementary and secondary school library media resources; (5) Magnet Schools Assistance; (6) Women's Educational Equity; (7) Innovative Education Program Strategies; (8) Native Hawaiians Education; (9) Alaska Native Education; (10) Fund for the Improvement of Education; (11) Gifted and Talented Education; (12) Arts in Education; (13) Civic Education; (14) Allen J. Ellender Fellowship Program (Close-Up programs for middle and secondary school students and teachers); (15) 21st Century Community Learning Centers; (16) Urban and Rural Education Assistance; (17) National Writing Project; (18) Extended Time for Learning and Longer School Year; (19) Comprehensive Regional Assistance Centers; and (20) Eisenhower Math and Science Regional Consortia. Repeals the Education for Homeless Children program under the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act. (Sec. 108) Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Miscellaneous Provisions - Authorizes the Secretary to waive statutory or regulatory requirements for a State educational agency (SEA), LEA, or school under certain conditions for specified programs under ESEA and the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act. (Sec. 201) Education Flexibility Partnership Demonstration Act - Authorizes the Secretary to allow all 50 States to participate in the Education Flexibility Partnership Demonstration Act program (currently under title III of the Goals 2000: Educate America Act, which is repealed by this Act). Directs the Secretary to: (1) review the progress of agencies or schools affected by waivers under title II; and (2) publish and disseminate the decision to grant, or to authorize SEAs to issue, such waivers. (Sec. 202) Amends ESEA to eliminate criteria which a school must meet in order for its LEA to use funds for schoolwide programs at that school.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 1999
Urges the Congress and the President, working within the constraints of the balanced budget agreement, to make student scholarship aid the highest priority for higher education funding by, prior to authorizing or appropriating funds for any new education initiative: (1) increasing by $400 the maximum Pell Grant awarded to low-income students; and (2) increasing other existing campus-based aid programs.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 1999
Truth in Employment Act of 1999 - Amends the National Labor Relations Act to provide that nothing in specified prohibitions against unfair labor practices by employers shall be construed as requiring an employer to employ any person who is not a bona fide employee applicant, in that such person seeks or has sought employment with the employer with the primary purpose of furthering another employment or agency status.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 1999
National Retail Sales Tax Act of 1999 - Repeals the income, estate, gift, and certain excise tax provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. (Sec. 4) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a 15 percent tax on the use, consumption or enjoyment in the U.S. of any property or service produced or rendered within or without of the United States. Prohibits, subject to exception, imposing a tax on any property or service purchased for: (1) a business purpose in an active trade or business; or (2) export from the United States for use or consumption outside of the United States, provided that the purchaser provided the seller with either an intermediate sales certificate or an export sales certificate. Defines "purchased for a business purpose in an active trade or business" as property or services: (1) purchased for resale; (2) purchased to produce property or services; or (3) purchased in furtherance of other bona fide business purposes. Sets forth rules relating to the obligation of governmental units and not-for-profit organizations to collect, remit, and pay taxes. Sets forth provisions concerning credits and refunds. Allows for general credits against the tax, including: (1) a used property credit; (2) a business use conversion credit; (3) an administration credit; (4) a compliance equipment cost credit; (5) a bad debt credit; (6) an insurance proceeds credit; and (7) a transition inventory credit. Provides for installment payments of the tax on the purchase of a principal residence. Allows an eligible family unit to receive a sales tax rebate. Requires that a family member, to be counted for the purposes of determining family unit size, must: (1) if over two years old, have a bona fide social security number; and (2) be a lawful resident. Declares that no individual shall be considered part of more than one family unit. Sets forth definitions and special rules concerning such things as: (1) foreign financial intermediation services; (2) financing leases; and (3) installment sales. Imposes a 15 percent tax on gaming services. Directs an administering State to administer, collect, and remit to the Treasury the tax on gross payments for the use, consumption or enjoyment of taxable property or services within the State. Defines an administering State as one which maintains a specified conforming sales tax and enters into a specified cooperative agreement with the Secretary. Provides for administrative support for States. Sets forth provisions concerning, among other things: (1) monthly reports and payments; (2) records; (3) penalties; (4) appeals; (5) accounting; and (6) hobby activities. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to establish an Office of Revenue Allocation to arbitrate any claims or disputes among States. (Sec. 5) Prohibits the authorizing of any appropriations for the Internal Revenue Service after FY 2003. Establishes in the Treasury: (1) an Excise Tax Bureau to administer any excise taxes not repealed by this Act; and (2) a Sales Tax Bureau to administer the national sales tax. (Sec. 6) Authorizes the Social Security Administration to collect and administer self-employment income and employment taxes beginning in 2001. (Sec. 7) Sets forth provisions concerning: (1) the self-employment tax; (2) the indexing of social security benefits; (3) compensating payments to individuals on fixed incomes; and (4) the interest rate on tax underpayments and overpayments. (Sec. 11) Requires a supermajority in the House of Representatives or the Senate to raise rates.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 1999
Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to implement the Class I milk price structure known as Option A as part of the final rule to consolidate Federal milk marketing orders.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 1999
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce from $18 to $9 (its pre-1991 level) the per-barrel tax on beer.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1999
Silicone Breast Implant Research and Information Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to: (1) appoint an official of the Department of Health and Human Services to serve as the NIH coordinator regarding silicone breast implant research; (2) establish either a study section or special emphasis panel for NIH to review extramural silicone breast implant research grant applications to ensure research design and quality, as well as quality intramural research; and (3) conduct or support research to expand the understanding of the health implications of silicone breast implants. Directs the Commissioner of Food and Drugs to: (1) take specified steps to make updated information about the risks of silicone breast implant available to the public, via the toll-free Consumer Information Line and other means; (2) revise the breast implant information update to clarify the procedure for reporting implant problems; (3) require manufacturers to update implant package inserts and informed consent documents regularly with accurate information; and (4) require any manufacturer conducting an adjunct study on implants to take specified measures with respect to informed consent documents, including informing women on how to obtain a Medwatch form and encouraging women who withdraw from the study, or who would like to report a problem, to submit such a form. Establishes the President's Interagency Committee on Silicone Breast Implants to ensure strategic management, communication, and oversight of Federal policy formation, research, and activities regarding silicone breast implants. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1999
Fairness in Asbestos Compensation Act of 1999 - Title I: Asbestos Resolution Corporation - Establishes the Asbestos Resolution Corporation which shall: (1) have exclusive authority to adopt rules for cost recovery, physician qualifications, alternative dispute resolution, exceptional medical cases, and disease eligibility; and (2) appoint a Medical Advisory Board. Title II: Medical Eligibility Determinations - Sets forth claimant medical eligibility determination criteria for: (1) nonmalignant conditions; (2) mesothelioma; (3) lung cancer; and (4) other cancer. (Sec. 205) Sets forth procedures for Corporation determination of a claimant's certificate of medical eligibility. (Sec. 206) Directs the Corporation to establish one or more exceptional medical claims panels. Sets forth application and acceptance provisions. (Sec. 207) Provides for: (1) confidentiality; and (2) U.S. district court review, following exhaustion of administrative remedies, of Corporation determinations that a claimant fails to meet medical criteria or that a claim does not qualify as an exceptional medical claim. Title III: Alternative Dispute Resolution - Directs the Board to establish procedural rules for an alternative dispute resolution process. Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) motions officers; (2) respondent notification; (3) additional respondents; (4) grace period; (5) mediation and arbitration; and (6) subpoena powers. Title IV: Civil Actions - Prohibits: (1) a civil asbestos action unless the plaintiff has obtained a certificate of medical eligibility and release from mediation; and (2) a class action or other collective action without the consent of each defendant. (Sec. 404) Requires a penalty for a final offer made by a respondent in mediation if such offer is below a certain amount assigned by the jury or fact-finder. Title V: Rules Applicable to Arbitrations and Civil Actions - Sets forth arbitration and civil action rules with respect to: (1) relief; (2) timeliness defenses; (3) attorney's fees; and (4) nonpreclusion of nonmalignant claims upon subsequent malignancy claims. Title VI: Funding - Directs the Corporation to estimate its annual medical review and administrative and overhead costs and allocate proportionate cost shares among the previous year's respondents. Provides monetary penalties for noncooperation with the Corporation. (Sec. 602) Provides for mediation and arbitration costs to be charged on a per capita basis to participating respondents. (Sec. 603) Directs the Corporation to establish procedures for informal resolution of cost assessment disputes. Provides for U.S. district court review of cost assessment disputes. Title VII: Applicability; Pending Civil Actions - Makes this Act applicable to any civil asbestos action that has not resulted in a final, nonappealable judgment, with specified conditions applicable to pending civil actions. Title VIII: Miscellaneous Provisions - Defines specified terms. (Sec. 804) Makes this Act inapplicable to: (1) existing asbestos trusts, with an elective trust exception; and (2) any settlement agreement or related agreement concerning asbestos claims entered into by claimants, defendants, or their counsel.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1999
Amends the Clean Air Act to prohibit the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency from listing liquefied petroleum gas under provisions regarding the accidental release of regulated substances (substances known to cause or which may reasonably be anticipated to cause death, injury, or serious adverse effects to human health or the environment) into the ambient air from a stationary source.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1999
Triple-A Health Improvement Act of 1999 - Title I: Promoting Access to Health Care Services in Rural Areas Under the Medicare Program - Subtitle A: Hospital-Related Payment Provisions - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to revise hospital-related payment provisions concerned with: (1) the prospective payment system for hospital outpatient department services; (2) repeal of a certain restriction on Medicare payment to hospitals for inpatient hospital services with regard to certain hospital discharges to post-acute care; (3) geographic reclassification of sole community hospitals and the conversion of certain hospitals to critical access hospitals; (4) graduate medical education (GME); (5) Medicare- dependent small rural hospitals with regard to rebasing for discharges during the most current audited fiscal year; (6) geographic reclassification for purposes of disproportionate share hospital (DSH) payments; (7) guidelines for such reclassification by wage index; and (8) hospital geographic reclassification for labor costs for all items and services reimbursed under prospective payment systems. Subtitle B: Medicare+Choice - Amends part C (Medicare+Choice) of SSA title XVIII to make certain adjustments to the calculation of annual capitation rates used in determining payments to Medicare+Choice organizations. (Sec. 112) Repeals the phase-out of certain Medicare reasonable cost reimbursement contracts with respect to health maintenance organizations and competitive medical plans. (Sec. 113) Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to conduct demonstration projects to establish provider-sponsored organizations and other managed care entities based in rural and frontier areas. Subtitle C: General Payment Provisions - Outlines general payment provisions, including those for: (1) direct Medicare payment for physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and clinical nurse specialists practicing in underserved rural areas; (2) coverage of and payment rules for qualified mental health professional services; and (3) creation of a safe harbor under anti-kickback provisions of SSA title XI part A (General Provisions) for any remuneration from a hospital to an ambulance provider under specified conditions. (Sec. 123) Directs the Secretary to establish a waiver process under which Medicare program entities and individuals treated for reimbursement purposes as located in an urban or large urban area may apply to be considered as located in a rural area if such entity or individual is in fact located in a rural area (according to a specified definition), outside of an urbanized area, or in an area designated by a State as a rural area. Title II: Promoting Access to Health Care Services in Rural Areas under the Medicaid Program - Amends SSA title XIX (Medicaid) to provide for continuation of certain Medicaid reimbursement rules (in existence before the Balanced Budget Act of 1997) for Federally-qualified health centers and rural health clinics, and to cover services of physicians' assistants and nurse practitioners under certain circumstances. Title III: Promoting Access to Health Care Services in Rural Areas under the Internal Revenue Code - Amends the Internal Revenue Code: (1) to exclude from an individual's gross income certain amounts received under the National Health Service Corps Scholarship Program; (2) to revise certain requirements with respect to tax-exempt bonds of certain volunteer fire departments; and (3) allow banks to elect to apply the limitation on the amount of obligations which may be designated deductible small, tax-exempt debts by treating each borrower as the issuer of a separate item. Title IV: Additional Provisions to Address Shortages of Health Professionals in Rural Areas - Requires that, whenever the Secretary promulgates a regulation relating to a health care program, there must be included with the promulgation an analysis of its likely impact on rural areas. (Sec. 402) Amends the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to include among health professional shortage areas frontier areas with six or fewer residents per square mile. Requires the Secretary to consider any pending retirements or resignations of available physicians when determining whether to designate an area as a health professional shortage area. (Sec. 403) Requires the heads of the National Health Service Corps, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, and the Bureau of the Census to negotiate and enter into interagency agreements with HHS agencies and offices under which they will be provided access to data sets for the intramural and extramural research they conduct or support. (Sec. 404) Amends Federal civil service law to provide for the designation of underserved areas under health care contracts administered by the Office of Personnel Management. (Sec. 405) Mandates and outlines the process for revision of standards for designation of health professional shortage areas under PHSA. Directs the Secretary to develop a definition for the term "frontier" for certain PHSA- and Medicare-related purposes. (Sec. 406) Expresses the sense of Congress that the Secretary should establish within the Public Health Service an Office of Reserve Corps Coordination for the Commissioned Corps to oversee Reserve Corps management and provide for its effective utilization in improving rural health care. Title V: Telemedicine - Subtitle A: Improvements to the Medicare Program - Amends the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 with regard to telehealth services, among other changes to: (1) extend Medicare reimbursement for such services to all Medicare services in all rural areas, including services by physical, occupational, and speech therapists; (2) revise related payment methodology; and (3) add congressional reporting requirements pertaining to the telehealth services program. (Sec. 502) Redesignates the Joint Working Group on Telemedicine as the Joint Working Group on Telehealth, with the chairperson being designated by the Office for the Advancement on Telehealth. Directs the Joint Working Group to ensure that individuals representing the interests of rural areas are members of the Group. Establishes the mission of the Joint Working Group, among other things, as identifying, monitoring, and coordinating Federal telehealth projects and programs. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle B: Development of Telehealth Networks - Directs the Secretary to provide specified financial assistance for the purpose of expanding access to health care services for individuals in rural frontier areas through the use of telehealth. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1999
American Wetland Restoration Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to declare that it is national policy to: (1) achieve, through regulatory means that take into account that 75 percent of the wetlands in the contiguous United States are privately owned and that private property rights should not be unreasonably infringed and through nonregulatory opportunities involving all levels of government and supported by private initiatives, the conservation, creation, and restoration of wetlands to increase the quantity and quality of, and meet the interim goal of no overall net loss for the remaining, wetlands resource base of the contiguous United States, taking into account the status and trends of such base in particular regions and areas; and (2) foster wetlands mitigation banking as a means to mitigate the unavoidable loss of wetlands by providing a regulatory framework for the use of mitigation banking, making appropriate use of existing, successful programs, taking into account regional variations in wetlands conditions, functions, and values. Directs the Secretary of the Army to issue a mitigation bank charter to a person who, with respect to the project or projects to be included in the scope of the charter, meets specified criteria. Requires an applicant to submit an application signed by a responsible official which includes, at a minimum, information on such criteria. Sets forth provisions regarding annual reports, decision deadlines, and other procedural matters. Authorizes a mitigation bank, upon receipt of its charter, to offer mitigation credits for sale, subject to specified requirements. Authorizes the Secretary to provide additional guidance on the size and use of the service area and to resolve interstate disagreements. Authorizes an approved mitigation bank to provide compensatory mitigation for activities requiring authorization under this Act or provide required injunctive relief in an enforcement action by the Secretary or the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. States a preference for in-kind compensation of wetlands impacts. Directs the Secretary and the Administrator to establish standards and criteria applicable to the use of on-site mitigation, in lieu fees, and other off-site mitigation as compensatory mitigation that are similar to those applicable to a mitigation bank. Sets forth reporting requirements. Allows a State that operates an approved program regulating the discharge of dredged or fill material into navigable waters to administer a wetland mitigation banking program in accordance with State procedures if such banking program is approved by the Administrator as part of the State's dredged or fill material program.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1999
Authorizes the Secretary of the Navy to convey to the city of Dallas, Texas, the Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant No. 387 in Dallas, for economic or other public purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1999
Small Savers Retirement Enhancement Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase from $2,000 to $5,000 the annual limits on an individual's contributions to his or her individual retirement account (IRA). Mandates annual indexing of the $2,000 deductible portion of such contributions.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1999
Right-To-Know National Payroll Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require that each employer show on the W-2 form of each employee the employer's share of taxes for old-age, survivors, and disability insurance (OASDI) and for hospital insurance (Medicare) for the employee, as well as the total amount of such taxes for such employee. Requires a W-2 also to show any tier 1 railroad retirement tax with respect to OASDI and Medicare the employer has paid.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1999
Federal Employee Right to Know Payroll Act - Requires each Federal agency, after December 31, 2000, to include on each paycheck to an employee, information on: (1) the total amount of excise tax imposed with respect to the employee, during the period covered by the paycheck, on the agency for Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance (FICA tax) and for Hospital Insurance (Medicare tax); and (2) the agency's estimated total payroll allocation for the employee for the period.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1999
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Continuing the Commitment of the Violence Against Women Act Subtitle A: Law Enforcement and Prosecution Grants to Combat Violence Against Women Subtitle B: National Domestic Violence Hotline Subtitle C: Battered Women's Shelters and Services Subtitle D: Community Initiatives Subtitle E: Education and Training for Judges and Court Personnel Subtitle F: Grants to Encourage Arrest Policies Subtitle G: Rural Domestic Violence and Child Abuse Enforcement Subtitle H. National Stalker and Domestic Violence Reduction Subtitle I: Federal Victims' Counselors Subtitle J: Education and Prevention Grants to Reduce Sexual Abuse of Runaway, Homeless, and Street Youth Subtitle K: Victims of Child Abuse Programs Title II: Sexual Assault Prevention Violence Against Women Act of 1999 - Title I: Continuing the Commitment of the Violence Against Women Act - Subtitle A: Law Enforcement and Prosecution Grants to Combat Violence Against Women - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (the Act) to authorize appropriations for grants to combat violent crimes against women. (Sec. 102) Revises grant allocation guidelines governing prosecution grants, victims' services and State court systems,. Expands grant purposes to include training that addresses sexual assault, domestic violence, and stalking for State, local, and tribal judicial personnel, as well as training of sexual assault forensic nurse examiners, and supporting the development of sexual assault response teams. Directs the Attorney General to deny State grant applications that fail to provide documentation of collaborative efforts with other agencies or organizations. Redefines "victims' services" to include advocacy and assistance for victims seeking legal, social, and health care services. Includes as a prerequisite for Federal reimbursement of forensic medical exams of victims of sexual assault that the participating governmental entity notify all victims that such reimbursement is neither contingent upon the victim's report to law enforcement officials, nor upon the victim's cooperation in the prosecution of the assault. (Sec. 103) Directs the Attorney General to make grants to State domestic violence and sexual assault coalitions for purposes of coordinating with: (1) victim services activities; and (2) Federal, State, and local entities engaged in violence-against-women activities. Subtitle B: National Domestic Violence Hotline - Amends the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA) to authorize increased appropriations for the national domestic violence hotline grant. Requires grantees to submit a grant evaluation report to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the HHS Secretary) for publication and public comment as a prerequisite to a grant award or renewal. Subtitle C: Battered Women's Shelters and Services - Battered Women's Shelters and Services Act - Amends the FVPSA to authorize appropriations for State grants. Modifies guidelines governing: (1) allotment of appropriations; (2) grants for information and technical assistance centers; and (3) authorization of appropriations. (Sec. 123) Instructs the HHS Secretary to award grants for: (1) State domestic violence coalitions and local domestic violence programs providing shelter or related assistance, in order to develop model strategies to address domestic violence in underserved populations; (2) each State domestic violence coalition for an emergency assistance fund for domestic violence victims; (3) technical assistance and training for State and local domestic violence programs; and (4) private, nonprofit, tribal domestic violence coalitions with representatives from a majority of the programs for victims of domestic violence operating within Indian reservations, and programs whose primary focus is the populations of such Indian country. Subtitle D: Community Initiatives - Authorizes appropriations for demonstration grants for community initiatives. Subtitle E: Education and Training for Judges and Court Personnel - Amends the Equal Justice for Women in the Courts Act of 1994 to permit training grants for judges and court personnel to include: (1) child custody, visitation, and safety issues raised by domestic violence and child sexual assault; and (2) the extent to which addressing domestic violence and victim safety contributes to the efficient administration of justice. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle F: Grants to Encourage Arrest Policies - Amends the Act to reauthorize appropriations to implement the functions of the Bureau of Justice Statistics. (Sec. 153) Mandates that at least five percent of appropriated funds be used for grants to Indian tribal governments to treat domestic violence as a serious violation of criminal law. Subtitle G: Rural Domestic Violence and Child Abuse Enforcement - Amends the Safe Homes for Women Act of 1994 to authorize appropriations for rural domestic violence and child abuse enforcement. Mandates that five percent of such funds be used for grants to Indian tribal governments. Subtitle H: National Stalker and Domestic Violence Reduction - Amends the Safe Homes for Women Act of 1994 to authorize appropriations for grants to enter stalking and domestic violence data into crime information databases. Subtitle I: Federal Victims' Counselors - Amends the Safe Streets for Women Act of 1994 to authorize appropriations for the United States Attorneys to appoint Victim-Witness counselors for the prosecution of domestic violence and sexual assault crimes. Subtitle J: Education and Prevention Grants to Reduce Sexual Abuse of Runaway, Homeless, and Street Youth - Amends the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act to authorize appropriations for street-based outreach and education to prevent sexual abuse and exploitation. Subtitle K: Victims of Child Abuse Programs - Amends the Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990 to authorize appropriations for: (1) the court-appointed special advocate program; and (2) child abuse training programs for judicial personnel and practitioners. (Sec. 195) Amends the Act to authorize appropriations for grants for closed-circuit televising of testimony of child abuse victims. Title II: Sexual Assault Prevention - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the use of certain State funds exclusively for rape prevention and education programs conducted by rape crisis centers and private nonprofit nongovernmental State and tribal sexual assault coalitions for specified programs. (Sec. 201) Instructs the HHS Secretary to establish a National Resource Center on Sexual Assault when appropriations reach a specified minimum level. Mandates that State grantors ensure that at least 25 percent of the funds are devoted to educational programs targeted for middle school, junior high, and high school aged students. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1999
Enhancement of Trade, Security, and Human Rights Through Sanctions Reform Act - Declares that it is the purpose of this Act to establish an effective framework for consideration by the legislative and executive branches of unilateral economic sanctions in order to ensure coordination of U.S. policy with respect to trade, security, and human rights. (Sec. 3) Declares that it is U.S. policy to: (1) pursue U.S. interests through vigorous and effective diplomatic, political, commercial, charitable, educational, cultural, and strategic engagement with other countries, while recognizing that U.S. national security interests may sometimes require the imposition of economic sanctions on other countries; (2) foster multilateral cooperation on vital matters of U.S. foreign policy, including promoting human rights and democracy, combating international terrorism, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and international narcotics trafficking, and ensuring adequate environmental protection; (3) promote U.S. economic growth and job creation by expanding exports of goods, services, and agricultural commodities, and by encouraging investment that supports the sale abroad of U.S. products and services; (4) maintain the reputation of U.S. businesses and farmers as reliable suppliers to international customers of quality products and services; (5) avoid the use of restrictions on exports of agricultural commodities as a foreign policy weapon; and (6) oppose policies of other countries designed to discourage economic interaction with countries friendly to the United States or with any U.S. national, and to avoid use of such measures as instruments of U.S. foreign policy. States that when economic sanctions are necessary, it is U.S. policy to: (1) target them as narrowly as possible on those foreign governments, entities, and officials that are responsible for the conduct being targeted, thereby minimizing unnecessary or disproportionate harm to individuals who are not responsible for such conduct; and (2) to the extent feasible, avoid any adverse impact of economic sanctions on the humanitarian activities of the United States and foreign nongovernmental organizations in a country against which sanctions are imposed. (Sec. 5) Expresses the sense of Congress that any bill or joint resolution imposing or authorizing the imposition of a unilateral economic sanction by the executive branch, and considered by the House of Representatives or the Senate, should: (1) state the U.S. foreign policy or national security objective; (2) terminate after two years unless specifically reauthorized; (3) provide for contract sanctity; (4) provide presidential authority to adjust or waive the sanction in the national interest; (5) target the sanction as narrowly as possible against the parties responsible for the conduct being targeted (without restricting medicine, medical equipment, or food, disaster relief or refugee assistance, or other specified foreign assistance); and (6) provide for expanded export promotion programs if sanctions are likely to target an export market for American farmers. (Sec. 6) Sets forth a procedure for congressional consideration of any bill or joint resolution that imposes, or authorizes the imposition of, any unilateral economic sanction by the executive branch. Requires specified reports: (1) from the President assessing the likelihood that the proposed unilateral economic sanction will achieve its stated objective within a reasonable period of time, as well as the impact of the proposed unilateral economic sanction on U.S. foreign policy, national security, and humanitarian activities; and (2) from the Secretary of Agriculture assessing the extent to which any country or countries proposed or likely to be sanctioned are markets that accounted for more than three percent of all U.S. agricultural export sales in the preceding calendar year, as well as the likelihood that U.S. agricultural exports will be affected by the proposed sanction or by retaliation by any country proposed or likely to be sanctioned, and specific commodities which are most likely to be affected. Considers any bill or joint resolution that imposes any unilateral economic sanction to include a Federal private sector mandate for purposes of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995. Requires the Congressional Budget Office, in its report pursuant to such Act, to assess the likely short- and long-term costs of the proposed sanction to the U.S. economy. (Sec. 7) Requires the President to publish notice in the Federal Register at least 45 days in advance of the imposition of a unilateral economic sanction of his intention to implement such sanction. Authorizes the President to waive such notice in cases where the sanction involves freezing the assets of a foreign country or entity, if it is determined that U.S. national interest would be jeopardized. Requires any executive sanction to include an assessment of whether the sanction is likely to achieve a specific U.S. foreign policy or national security objective within a reasonable and specified period of time. Requires, before imposition of a unilateral economic sanction, that the President and the Secretary of Agriculture report to appropriate congressional committees the same assessments required in connection with any bill or joint resolution imposing or authorizing the imposition of a unilateral economic sanction by the executive branch. Requires the President to request a report by the U.S. International Trade Commission on the likely short- and long-term costs of the proposed sanction to the U.S. economy, including the potential impact on U.S. competitiveness. Provides, in the case of a national emergency, for allowing the President temporarily to waive most of the requirements for executive action in order to act immediately, generally requiring the waived requirements to be met within 60 days after imposition of the sanction (which shall terminate after 90 days if such requirements are not met). Establishes within the executive branch an interagency Sanctions Review Committee to coordinate U.S. policy regarding unilateral economic sanctions and provide appropriate recommendations to the President. (Sec. 8) Authorizes the President to waive any sanction or prohibition contained in specified sections of the Arms Export Control Act, the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, or the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 for periods of six months each if it is determined that it would advance the purposes of such Acts or the national security interests of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 1999
Child Custody Protection Act - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit transporting an individual under age 18 across a State line to obtain an abortion and thereby abridging the right of a parent under a law in force in the State where the individual resides requiring parental involvement in a minor's abortion decision. Makes an exception if the abortion was necessary to save the life of the minor. Specifies that neither the minor transported nor her parent may be prosecuted or sued for a violation of this Act. Makes it an affirmative defense to a prosecution for, or to a civil action based on, such a violation that the defendant reasonably believed that before the individual obtained the abortion, the parental consent or notification or judicial authorization that would have been required had the abortion been performed in the State where the individual resides, took place. Authorizes any parent who suffers legal harm from a violation to obtain appropriate relief in a civil action. Defines "parent" to include a guardian, legal custodian, or person standing in loco parentis who has care and control of the minor, and with whom the minor regularly resides, who is designated by such law as a person to whom notification, or from whom consent, is required.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 1999
Landowners Equal Treatment Act of 1999 - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to require the head of an agency to make every possible effort to avoid, minimize, or mitigate impacts on non-Federal property that result from Federal use of the property (including constructive use) as a direct result of an agency action under such Act (including actions to provide or retain habitat for endangered or threatened species or to designate non-Federal property as critical habitat). Prohibits an agency from taking action under such Act that results in a Federal use of non-Federal property unless it: (1) obtains the landowner's permission; (2) negotiates a voluntary agreement authorizing such use; or (3) compensates the landowner for the fair market value of the Federal use. Sets forth provisions governing landowner requests for compensation, compensation negotiations, arbitration or civil actions to resolve compensation disagreements, and payment of compensation from an agency's annual appropriations. Prohibits an agency from taking any action that is a Federal use of non-Federal property unless it has given 30 days notice to each property owner directly affected explaining their rights and either obtaining their permission or providing procedures for obtaining compensation.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 1999
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Domestic Oil and Gas Production Preservation Provisions Title II: Domestic Oil and Gas Industry Crisis Tax Relief Subtitle A: Credits to Cash Provisions Subtitle B: Hard Times Tax Relief Subtitle C: Oil-for-Food Program compensating Tax Benefits Title III: Foreign Oil Reliance Reversal Provisions Title IV: National Security Emergency Provisions Domestic Oil and Gas Crisis Tax Relief and Foreign Oil Reliance Reversal Act of 1999 - Title I: Domestic Oil and Gas Production Preservation Provisions - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for a marginal oil and gas well production credit. Excludes from gross income certain income attributable to independent producer oil from a recovered inactive well. Extends the enhanced oil recovery credit to include certain nontertiary recovery methods. Title II: Domestic Oil and Gas Industry Crisis Tax Relief - Subtitle A: Credits to Cash Provisions - Provides a ten-year carryback for: (1) unused energy minimum tax credits; (2) percentage depletion for oil and gas recovery; and (3) losses attributable to oil servicing companies and mineral interests of oil and gas producers. Provides for a waiver of limitations. Subtitle B: Hard Times Tax Relief - Provides, as a general rule, that in computing the alternative minimum taxable income of any taxpayer which is an integrated oil company for any taxable year beginning after 1998, there shall be allowed as a deduction an amount equal to the alternative tax energy preference deduction (as defined). Makes the depreciation adjustment inapplicable to property used in the active conduct of the trade or business of exploring for, extracting, developing, or gathering crude oil or natural gas. Repeals specified adjustments. Allows using the enhanced oil recovery credit and the credit for producing oil from a nonconventional source against the minimum tax. Subtitle C: Oil-for-Food Program Compensating Tax Benefits - Increases the percentage depletion for stripper wells. Repeals the net income limitation on percentage depletion for oil and gas properties. Permits a taxpayer to treat geological and geophysical expenses incurred in connection with the exploration for, or development of, oil or gas within the United States as expenses which are not chargeable to capital account. Doubles from the 90th to the 180th day the time allowed under the "spudding rule." Title III: Foreign Oil Reliance Reversal Provisions - Establishes a crude oil and natural gas exploration credit. Title IV: National Security Emergency Provisions - Directs the President to: (1) establish a National Security Energy Independence Ceiling which shall represent a ceiling beyond which foreign crude and oil product imports as a share of U.S. crude and oil product consumption shall not rise; (2) report to Congress annually with a national security projection for energy independence; and (3) certify whether such imports will exceed the ceiling. Provides for review of each projection by Congress. Requires the President, if the ceiling level will be exceeded, to submit a National Security and Oil production policy to Congress which shall prevent such imports from the exceeding the National Security Energy Independence Ceiling.
United States · United States Congress · 11 March 1999
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Expanded Availability of Health Care Services Title II: Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program Title III: Technical Amendments Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Act of 1999 - Title I: Expanded Availability of Health Care Services - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to provide for expanding State options under Medicaid for workers with disabilities, namely by creating State options to eliminate income, assets, and resource limitations for workers with disabilities who buy into Medicaid and to expand opportunities for such workers to make such a buy. Provides that Federal funds paid to a State for medical assistance provided to certain working disabled individuals must be used to supplement but not supplant the level of State funds expended as of FY 1999 for programs to enable working disabled individuals to work. (Sec. 102) Extends Medicare (SSA title XVIII) coverage for OASDI (SSA title II) disability benefit recipients who are using tickets to work and self-sufficiency (TWSS). (Sec. 103) Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) award grants to eligible States to support establishment of State infrastructures to support the working disabled as well as to enable State outreach campaigns on infrastructure existence; and (2) submit a recommendation to specified congressional committees on whether such grant program should be continued after FY 2010. Authorizes and makes appropriations. (Sec. 104) Authorizes State demonstration projects under which Medicaid coverage equal to that afforded under the State option provided for above for eliminating income, assets, and resource limitations for disabled workers buying into Medicaid is provided for up to a specified maximum number of workers with a potentially severe disability. Authorizes and makes appropriations. Title II: Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program - Amends part A (General Provisions) of SSA title XI to direct the Commissioner of Social Security to establish a Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program (TWSSP) under which a disabled beneficiary may use a TWSS issued by the Commissioner under a described system, designed to ensure quality assurance, to obtain employment, vocational rehabilitation, or other support services, pursuant to an appropriate individual work plan meeting specified requirements, at the Commissioner's expense, from a participating employment network, public or private, which: (1) meets specified qualifications and is under an agreement with the Commissioner who must select a program manager to assist in administering TWSSP; (2) is chosen by the beneficiary, and (3) is willing to accept assignment of the beneficiary's TWSS. Allows State agencies administering or supervising the administration of the State plan under title I of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to elect to participate as an employment network. Sets forth special requirements applicable to cross-referral to certain State agencies and requirements relating to provision of services. Describes employment network payment systems. Provides that during any period for which an individual is using a TWSS, the Commissioner and any applicable State agency may not initiate a continuing disability or similar review with regard to whether the individual is or is not disabled. Authorizes to be transferred from the social security trust funds each fiscal year such sums as may be necessary to carry out this title with respect to SSA title II disability beneficiaries. Directs the Commissioner to establish a corps of trained, accessible, and responsive work incentive specialists to specialize in SSA title II and title XVI disability work incentives for the purpose of disseminating accurate information to disabled beneficiaries with respect to inquiries and issues relating to work incentives. (Sec. 204) Establishes within the executive branch the Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Advisory Panel to advise the Commissioner with respect to TWSSP, and furnish progress on TWSSP to the President and Congress. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 205) Directs the Commissioner to conduct certain demonstration projects designed to provide for specified reductions in disability insurance benefits based on earnings. Requires expenditures for such demonstration projects to come out of the social security and Medicare trust funds to the extent provided in advance in appropriation acts. Directs the Comptroller General to conduct and report to Congress on various described studies concerning existing disability-related employment incentives and coordination of the OASDI disability insurance program and the SSI program as they relate to individuals entering or leaving concurrent entitlement under such programs. Title III: Technical Amendments - Amends the Contract with America Advancement Act of 1996 with respect to: (1) final adjudication of denied claims by drug addicts and alcoholics for SSA title II disability benefits; and (2) the effective dates of certain requirements concerning representative payees and treatment referrals for drug addicts and alcoholics. (Sec. 302) Amends SSA title II to: (1) provide for payments to State and local prisons for monthly reports on the identities of inmates whose OASDI benefits are determined by the Commissioner not to be payable as a result of such reports; (2) provide for a 50 percent reduction in such payments under SSA titles II and XVI in cases involving a comparable payment under the other title with respect to the same prisoner; (3) exempt from the Privacy Act of 1974 any agreements with State and local prisons to supply such information; (4) transfer from the social security trust funds any sums necessary to enable the Commissioner to make such payments; (5) eliminate the requirement that confinement stem only from a crime punishable by imprisonment for more than one year (thus denying OASDI benefits to individuals confined for any criminal offense); and (6) provide for continued denial of benefits to sex offenders remaining confined to public institutions upon completion of prison term. (Sec. 303) Provides for a two-year open season for members of the clergy who wish to revoke their exemption from social security coverage . (Sec. 304) Amends SSA title XI to make a miscellaneous technical amendment relating to cooperative research or demonstration projects under SSA titles II and XVI. (Sec. 305) Amends SSA title XI to make miscellaneous technical amendments to provisions concerning the requirements of State income and eligibility verification systems to, among other changes, allow a State to permit certain employers that make returns with respect to domestic service employment taxes on a calendar year basis to instead make such reports on an annual basis.
United States · United States Congress · 11 March 1999
Reforestation Tax Act of 1999 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a deduction to a taxpayer who has a qualified timber gain in an amount equal to the qualified percentage of such gain. Decreases the amortization period for reforestation expenditures.
United States · United States Congress · 11 March 1999
Constitutional Amendment - Requires that any bill, resolution, or other legislative measure changing the internal revenue laws shall require for final adoption in each House the concurrence of two-thirds of the Members of that House voting and present, unless the bill is determined at the time of adoption, in a reasonable manner prescribed by law, not to increase the internal revenue by more than a de minimis amount. States that for purposes of determining any increase, there shall be excluded any increase resulting from the lowering of an effective rate of any tax. Requires journal entry of any vote. Permits the waiver of such requirement, for up to two years, if there is a declaration of war or if the United States is engaged in a military conflict which causes an imminent and serious threat to national security and is so declared by a joint resolution which becomes law.
United States · United States Congress · 10 March 1999
United Nations Voting Accountability Act - Prohibits U.S. assistance to any country that consistently opposed the U.S. position in the United Nations General Assembly during its most recent session. Authorizes the Secretary of State to exempt a country from such prohibition: (1) if there has been a fundamental change in its government policies; and (2) the Secretary believes that because of such change the country will no longer oppose the U.S. position in the General Assembly. Directs the Secretary to make a certification of each exemption to Congress. Authorizes the Secretary to waive the requirements of this Act if the Secretary reports to Congress that, despite the UN voting pattern of a particular country, U.S. assistance to such country is necessary to promote U.S. foreign policy objectives.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 1999
Date Certain Tax Code Replacement Act - Prohibits the imposition of any tax by the Internal Revenue Code: (1) for any taxable year beginning after December 31, 2002; and (2) in the case of any tax not imposed on the basis of a taxable year, on any taxable event or for any period after December 31, 2002. Excepts the: (1) tax on self-employment income (chapter 2 of the Code); (2) Federal Insurance Contributions Act (chapter 21 of the Code); and (3) Railroad Retirement Tax Act (chapter 22 of the Code). Declares that any new Federal tax system should be: (1) a simple and fair system; and (2) approved by the Congress in its final form no later than July 4, 2002.
United States · United States Congress · 4 March 1999
Workplace Preservation Act - Prohibits the Secretary of Labor from promulgating, through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, any standard or guideline on ergonomics until the National Academy of Sciences completes a study and submits a report to the Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 4 March 1999
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: United States-Caribbean Trade Partnership Title II: Foreign Assistance For Central America and the Caribbean Subtitle A: Microcredit and Agricultural Assistance Subtitle B: Overseas Private Investment Corporation Subtitle C: Economic Support Fund Assistance Title III: Department of Defense Title IV: Immigration and Naturalization Service Title V: Debt Rescheduling and Reduction for Honduras and Nicaragua; Funding for the Central American Emergency Trust Fund of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development Subtitle A: Debt Rescheduling and Reduction for Honduras and Nicaragua Subtitle B: Authorization of Funding for the Central American Emergency Trust Fund of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development Caribbean and Central America Relief and Economic Stabilization Act - Title I: United States-Caribbean Trade Partnership - United States-Caribbean Trade Partnership Act -Amends the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act (CBERA) to accord, for a specified period, the same tariff and quota treatment (duty-free or reduced duty treatment, free of any quantitative limitations) given certain textile and apparel articles (including those imported from North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) countries) to such articles from CBERA partnership countries, or beneficiary countries (other than Central American countries) planning to become parties to NAFTA, or a comparable free trade agreement. Subjects to certain penalties exporters that engage in the transshipment of such articles (preferential treatment claimed on the basis of material false information concerning the country of origin, manufacture, processing, or assembly of the article or any of its components). (Sec. 104) Directs the Commissioner of Customs to analyze and report to Congress on the extent to which partnership countries have cooperated with the United States with respect to the circumvention of existing quotas on imports of textile and apparel goods, and taken appropriate measures against circumvention violators (including exporters and importers involved in false information declarations relating to such goods). (Sec. 105) Directs the President to: (1) monitor the effects, if any, that implementation of NAFTA has on the access of beneficiary countries to the U.S. market for sugars, syrups, and molasses; and (2) in the event such implementation is adversely affecting such countries' access to the U.S. market, to take specified action to ameliorate such adverse effect. (Sec. 106) Grants duty-free treatment to rum liqueurs and spirituous beverages from Canada if certain conditions are met. (Sec. 107) Directs the President to convene a meeting with the trade ministers of the partnership countries in order to reach agreement for initiating negotiations for partnership countries to accede to the NAFTA. (Sec. 108) Directs the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to assess, and report to specified congressional committees on, the economic development efforts and market oriented reforms in each partnership country, and the ability of each country, on the basis of such efforts and reforms, to undertake the obligations of the NAFTA. Title II: Foreign Assistance for Central America and the Caribbean - Subtitle A: Microcredit and Agricultural Assistance - Directs the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (AID) to use credit and microcredit assistance to provide disaster assistance to rehabilitate agriculture production in the hurricane-affected areas of Central America and the Caribbean. (Sec. 203) Authorizes the Administrator of AID to utilize relevant foreign assistance programs and initiatives for the Central America and Caribbean region to support private producer-owned cooperative marketing associations there, including rural business associations owned and controlled by farmer shareholders. (Sec. 204) Directs the Administrator of AID to develop a comprehensive plan to coordinate and build on the research and extension activities of U.S. land-grant universities, international agricultural research centers, and national agricultural research and extension centers in Central America and the Caribbean. (Sec. 205) Provides assistance through the nonemergency food assistance programs of the Agriculture Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 to the hurricane-affected Central American and Caribbean areas. Subtitle B: Overseas Private Investment Corporation - Expresses the sense of Congress that the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) should foster U.S. private investment and enhance the ability of private enterprise to make its full contribution in the hurricane- affected areas of Central America and the Caribbean. Subtitle C: Economic Support Fund Assistance - Authorizes appropriations for reconstruction and disaster mitigation assistance for the areas of Central America and the Caribbean affected by Hurricane Mitch and Hurricane Georges. Earmarks specified amounts for operating expenses of AID. (Sec. 222) Authorizes appropriations to reimburse the international disaster assistance account for expenses incurred with respect to such assistance provided to the affected areas of Central America and the Caribbean. Title III: Department of Defense - Authorizes appropriations for: (1) replenishment of the Department of Defense (DOD) accounts used in providing disaster relief and reconstruction to the hurricane- affected areas of Central America and the Caribbean (earmarking amounts for replenishment of operation and maintenance and military personal accounts, the Overseas Humanitarian Disaster and Civic Aid account, and the Commanders in Chief (CINC) Initiative Fund); and (2) the New Horizons Program (earmarking amounts for expanding National Guard and Reserve exercises in Central American countries and the Dominican Republic). Title IV: Immigration and Naturalization Service - Authorizes appropriations for Enforcement and Border Affairs within the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to: (1) support increased detention requirements for Central American criminal aliens held in detention by the INS; and (2) address the expected influx of illegal immigrants from Central America. Title V: Debt Rescheduling and Reduction for Honduras and Nicaragua; Funding for Central American Emergency trust Fund of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development - Subtitle A: Debt Rescheduling and Reduction for Honduras and Nicaragua - Authorizes the President to reschedule the repayment of interest on, and (subject to specific appropriations) reduce the amount of, the indebtedness owed by the Honduran and Nicaraguan governments to the United States. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle B: Authorization of Funding for the Central American Emergency Trust Fund of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development - Amends the Bretton Woods Agreements Act to authorize the U.S. Governor of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank), subject to specific appropriations, to contribute $25 million on behalf of the United States to the Central American Emergency Trust Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 3 March 1999
Farm and Ranch Risk Management Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an individual engaged in an eligible farming business to deduct a limited amount from gross income for amounts paid into an interest-bearing Farm and Ranch Risk Management (FARRM) Account, created for the taxpayer's exclusive benefit. Requires withdrawal of contributions within five years, upon which they are taxable as ordinary income in the year of withdrawal. Prescribes penalties on amounts not distributed within five years.
United States · United States Congress · 3 March 1999
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the Republic of Slovakia should be commended for its progress toward political and economic liberty and meeting the guidelines for prospective North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) members; and (2) the Republic of Slovakia should become a full NATO member at the earliest opportunity.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
No Second Chances for Murderers, Rapists, or Child Molesters Act of 1999 or Aimee's Law - Expresses the sense of the Congress that any individual convicted of: (1) murder should receive the death penalty or be imprisoned for life without the possibility of parole; and (2) rape or a dangerous sexual offense involving a child under age 14 should be imprisoned for life without the possibility of parole. Requires the Attorney General to transfer the following amounts from Federal law enforcement assistance funds that have been allocated to but not distributed to the State that convicted a person of a first offense of murder, rape, or a dangerous sexual offense to a State that convicts that person for a subsequent such offense: (1) up to $100,000 for transfer to each victim of the subsequent offense; and (2) the cost of incarceration, prosecution, and apprehension of such person. Sets forth provisions regarding situations where a person has a prior conviction in more than one State. Directs the Attorney General to seek to obtain information for each calendar year, starting with calendar year 1999, about the number of convictions for murder, rape, and any sex offenses in the United States: (1) where the victim has not attained age 14 and the offender has attained age 18; and (2) that are second or subsequent convictions of the defendant for such a crime. Sets forth reporting requirements.