United States · United States Congress · 4 February 1988
Radon Gas Tax Relief Act of 1988 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit a 40 percent nonrefundable income tax credit of up to $4,000 for expenditures made for radon testing in or below the taxpayer's principal residence and for the installation of property designed to reduce radon levels inside the residence. Permits an income tax deduction (both individual and corporate) for radon prevention expenditures in connection with: (1) the development of real property; (2) the construction or enlargement of any building or dwelling unit; or (3) a dwelling required to be purchased by the taxpayer under a contract with an employer covering employee relocation services (the deductible expenses must be incurred by the taxpayer-employee). Makes the tax credit and the tax deduction mutually exclusive with respect to the same expenditures. Amends Federal law to make funds available for the reimbursement of Federal employees for radon protection expenditures necessary to overcome a substantial obstacle to the salability of a principal residence being sold in conjunction with a transfer to a new location.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 1988
Long-Term Health Care Amendments of 1988 - Title I: Medicare Long-term Care Benefits - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to add a new part C entitled "Long-Term Care Benefit Program." (Redesignates the current part C as part D.) Provides coverage for the home health services and nursing care required by individuals who are eligible for part A (Hospital Insurance) benefits. Sets forth the formula for determining the long-term care deductible for a calendar year, increasing the size of such deductible as an individual's income exceeds $10,000. Conditions payment of long-term care providers on: (1) such providers making written requests for payment within three years of furnishing service; and (2) a physician's certification that the beneficiary needs or needed nursing facility care or home health services, and that home health services are or were furnished while the individual is or was under a physician's care. Prohibits physicians who have a significant ownership interest in, or a significant financial or contractual relationship with, a home health agency from performing such a certification of the agency, unless it is a sole community home health agency. Pays providers the lesser of the reasonable cost or the customary charges for part C services. Prohibits part C payments: (1) to Federal providers; and (2) for services for which an individual is entitled to be paid under part A of the Medicare program. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the hospital insurance tax rates and contribution and benefit base and reduce the old age, survivors and disability insurance tax rates for taxable years beginning with 1989. Includes nursing care furnished under the supervision of a registered or licensed professional nurse as well as care provided in a skilled nursing or intermediate care facility within the scope of nursing facility care. Requires the Board of Directors of the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund to provide for a separate accounting of the additional taxes deposited into such fund by reason of this Act and the disbursements from such fund for part C benefits. Makes Medicare the primary payor where part C benefits are also covered under employment-related group health plans. Title II: Incentives for Individuals to Purchase Long-Term Care Insurance - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individuals to deduct certain qualified long-term care insurance premiums they have paid on behalf of eligible beneficiaries. Defines a "qualified long-term care insurance policy" as a policy certified by the Secretary of Health and Human Services and providing coverage for diagnostic, preventive, therapeutic, rehabilitative, maintenance, or personal care services provided in a setting other than a hospital acute care unit. Excludes from gross income any distribution from an individual retirement plan if: (1) the payee has attained age 59 1/2 on or before the date of the distribution; and (2) the distribution is used to pay premiums for any qualified long-term care insurance policy for the payee or a spouse meeting the same 59 1/2 year age requirement. Excludes from the gross income of an individual otherwise taxable amounts derived from the whole or partial surrender, cancellation, or exchange of any life insurance policy if: (1) the individual is age 65 or older on the date of the transaction; and (2) the amounts in question are used to pay premiums for any qualified long-term care insurance policy for the individual or a spouse meeting the same 65-year age requirement. Title III: Incentives for Employers to Provide Group Long-Term Care - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that a trust forming part of a pension plan shall not be treated as a nonqualified trust merely because such plan covers qualified long-term health care of employees or retired employees.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 1988
Community Housing Partnership Act - Title I: Housing Education and Organizational Support Grants for Community Based Housing Projects - Authorizes the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to provide housing education and organizational support grants directly to nonprofit organizations or indirectly to States and cities to assist such organizations. Authorizes permanent appropriations beginning with FY 1989. Title II: Community Housing and Partnership Grants - Authorizes the Secretary to provide community partnership grants directly to nonprofit organizations or indirectly to States and cities to assist such organizations. Divides appropriations among: (1) urban community housing partnership grants (60 percent); (2) State community housing partnership grants (30 percent); and (3) direct community housing partnership grants (ten percent). Sets forth the following eligible activities: (1) technical assistance and site control loans; (2) seed-money loans; (3) matching grants or loans; and (4) program-wide technical and management assistance for nonprofit sponsors. Sets forth rental project and home ownership eligibility provisions, including: (1) occupancy by lower income families; (2) profit limitations; (3) funding coordination; (4) tax treatment; and (5) affirmative action requirements. Authorizes permanent appropriations beginning with FY 1989. Title III: General Provisions - Defines specified terms for purposes of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 1988
Air Travel Rights for Blind Individuals Act - Amends the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 to preclude an air carrier from establishing aircraft seating restrictions based upon a passenger's visual acuity or use of a white cane or dog guide or other such means of assistance.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 1988
Commends the President, Secretary of State, and Administrator of the Agency for International Development for their response to the drought and food emergency in Ethiopia and other nations of sub-Saharan Africa, and urges them to continue efforts to preclude the onset of famine and to ensure the timely delivery of medical and other emergency relief supplies. Declares that: (1) the Government response to these food emergencies should include initiatives to prevent the dislocation of large numbers of persons across national borders and/or into relief camps; and (2) the plight of the refugees or displaced should be addressed by emphasizing the provision of basic human needs, such as food, water, and shelter.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 1988
Removes the earmark of a specified amount of funds appropriated to the Department of State by the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1988 for the construction of educational facilities for North African Jewish refugees in France.
United States · United States Congress · 22 December 1987
Amends Federal law to prohibit the Secretary of Transportation from approving State highway safety programs that do not provide for a uniform system for handicapped parking to promote safety. Details the criteria for such a system. Reduces by two percent the amounts that would otherwise be apportioned to a State if it fails either to obtain approval for such a system or to implement it.
United States · United States Congress · 17 December 1987
Medicare Home Health Care Benefits Commission Act of 1987 - Directs the Administrator of the Health Care Financing Administration to establish a Medicare Home Health Care Benefits Commission to study the coverage of, and payments for, home health services under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act. Sets forth reporting requirements and provides for implementation of recommendations for changes in regulations described in the report. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 15 December 1987
Amends the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 to grant: (1) air passenger customers of off-airport operators access rights to courtesy vehicles provided by such operators; and (2) off-airport operators access rights over airport roadways to public passenger pickup and discharge areas. Authorizes airport operators to charge fees to off-airport operators for the business use of air terminal facilities. Authorizes persons aggrieved by a violation of this Act to bring a civil action in court.
United States · United States Congress · 10 December 1987
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to include as income, for purposes of the unrelated business income tax, amounts received by tax-exempt organizations in connection with the sale, rental, or other disposition of member, customer, or donor lists. Exempts certain charitable and veterans' organizations from this provision in the case of transactions involving like organizations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 December 1987
Designates January 28, 1988, as National Challenger Center Day. (The Challenger Center is an institution offering children and teachers activities and information derived from American space research.)
United States · United States Congress · 9 December 1987
Requires that, for the purpose of the income tax deduction for medical expenses, expenditures for the acquisition, training, and maintenance of a service animal used to assist a handicapped individual be treated in the same manner as corresponding expenditures in connection with guide dogs for the blind. (Under Internal Revenue Service revenue rulings, these latter expenditures are treated as deductible.)
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 1987
Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the targeted jobs income tax credit. Extends the credit to employees who begin work in 1989 through 1991. (Current law terminates the credit for employees who begin work after December 31, 1988.) Includes as a targeted group individuals aged 65 or older who are members of economically disadvantaged families. Revises the minimum employment period requirement for purposes of this credit.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 1987
Expresses the sense of the Congress that, in celebration of the millennium of the Christianization of Kievan-Rus', the Soviet Union should: (1) comply with its international obligations and allow Christians to practice their faith without harassment; (2) grant a general amnesty for all Christians who have been imprisoned because of their religious beliefs; (3) allow religious believers to practice their faith freely; (4) permit unlimited publication, distribution, and importation of religious materials; and (5) allow closed churches to reopen, new churches to be built, and theological seminaries to open or expand.
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1987
Authorizes the Vietnam Women's Memorial Project, Inc., to establish a commemorative statue within the Vietnam Veterans Memorial to recognize and honor the women of the U.S. armed forces who served in the Vietnam war. Expresses the sense of the Congress that after the addition of such statue, no further commemorative works should be added to the Memorial. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to select a site for the statue within the Memorial. Makes the design proposal subject to the approval of the Secretary and the National Capital Planning Commission. Prohibits the United States and the District of Columbia from paying any expense of establishing the statue.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 1987
Expresses the opposition of the House of Representatives to the continued control of the cathedral in Vilnius, Lithuania, by the Soviet Union. Calls upon the President, the Secretary of State, and Members of Congress visiting the Soviet Union to raise the issue of the cathedral's return to the Roman Catholic Church in meetings with Soviet officials. Urges U.S. representatives to speak out forcefully for such a return at international human rights forums. Voices the House of Representatives' support to the Lithuanian people in their efforts to secure basic religious freedoms and the return of the cathedral. Urges the Soviet Government to allow Roman Catholics to worship at the cathedral and to return it to Roman Catholic Church control before the end of 1988.
United States · United States Congress · 28 October 1987
Amends the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 to establish a fine of not more than $50,000, or imprisonment for up to five years, or both, as criminal penalties for any person who knowingly and without authority tampers with a smoke detection device of an aircraft used for air transportation.
United States · United States Congress · 13 October 1987
Department of Veterans Affairs Act - Redesignates the Veterans Administration (VA) as the Department of Veterans Affairs (the Department), an executive department within the executive branch of the Government. Provides that the Department shall be headed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, to be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Designates as other principal officers of the Department the Deputy Secretary, the Chief Medical Director, and the Chief Benefits Director. Provides for the temporary continuation of service of the current Administrator, Deputy Administrator, Chief Medical Director, and Chief Benefits Director of Veterans Affairs. Establishes within the Department eight Assistant Secretaries, each of whom shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to perform such functions as the Secretary may prescribe. Directs the Secretary to assign to one such Assistant Secretary all functions regarding the National Cemetery System and the State cemetery grant program. Outlines functions which the Secretary shall assign to the Assistant Secretaries. Provides for the temporary continuation of the performance of such functions by present personnel until such functions are assigned to an individual appointed as Assistant Secretary under this Act. Redesignates the current VA's Department of Medicine and Surgery as the Veterans Health Services Administration of the Department. Redesignates the VA's current Department of Veterans Benefits as the Veterans Benefits Administration of the Department, whose primary function shall be to administer nonmedical programs which provide assistance to veterans, their dependents, and their survivors. Establishes within the Department the Office of the General Counsel. Redesignates the current Office of Inspector General of the VA as the Office of Inspector General of the Department. Provides that any references to departments or positions under the current VA system shall be considered to be references to such departments and positions of the Department as modified under this Act. Provides continuing effect of all legal documents, suits, actions, and property and resources of the current VA. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, after appropriate congressional consultation, to prepare and submit to the Congress proposed legislation containing technical and conforming amendments to reflect the changes made under this Act. Requires such legislation to be submitted no later than six months after the enactment of this Act. Provides that any spending authority of the Department is subject to available amounts as provided in appropriation Acts.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 1987
Medicaid Home and Community Quality Services Act of 1987 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to require States to provide Medicaid coverage of community and family support services for severely disabled individuals who became disabled before age 22 and are living in a family home, foster family home, or community living facility. Requires that such services be provided in accordance with a written habilitation plan developed by an interdisciplinary team on the basis of a comprehensive assessment of the individual's strengths and the services and support necessary to: (1) enable such individual to attain or retain capabilities for independence or self-care; (2) promote interaction between disabled and nondisabled individuals within the community; and (3) enable disabled individuals who are over age 18 to engage in paid employment. Increases the age at which newly disabled individuals will be eligible for this Act's coverage so that eventually individuals who become disabled between age 22 and 50 will be covered. Lists the services which may comprise community and family support services, requiring that such services include at a minimum: (1) case management services; (2) individual and family support services; (3) specialized vocational services; and (4) protective intervention services. Excludes from such services: (1) room and board, other than room and board provided for less than six consecutive weeks and less than 12 weeks per year; (2) cash payments as a service; (3) aversive behavior intervention, management, or therapies; (4) services provided to a disabled individual living in a hospital, or skilled nursing or intermediate care facility; (5) educational services which the State makes generally available to its residents without cost and without regard to their income; and (6) services for which payment is made under title XVIII (Medicare), or part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) or B (Child Welfare Services) of title IV of the Act. Requires each State to make certain assurances regarding their provision of community and family support services and submit an implementation strategy to the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Requires that such implementation strategies: (1) describe the extent and scope of community and family support services provided to the severely disabled and the extent and scope of services provided to the severely disabled who are institutionalized; (2) set forth the objectives and a five-year strategy for expanding community and family support services for the severely disabled; (3) include certain procedures for transferring severely disabled, institutionalized individuals to family homes, foster family homes, or community living facilities; (4) set forth standards for the provision of community and family support services and a program for licensing and certifying all facilities and programs providing such services; (5) provide for assessments of the provision and affect of community and family support services and the correction of service deficiencies; (6) provide the public with an adequate opportunity to comment on the strategies; (7) set forth methods ensuring that the personnel providing community and family support services receive adequate training and are competent to provide such services; (8) provide that the State has in effect a management information system capable of collecting, storing, and retrieving data on the severely disabled who receive community and family support services; (9) provide an opportunity for an appeal and hearing before a hearing officer to individuals who believe themselves to be inappropriately served or denied an appropriate service, or who are being scheduled for an involuntary transfer from one living arrangement to another; (10) describe the methods to be used in administering community and family support services; and (11) set forth procedures to protect the interests of public employees who will be affected by the transfer of the severely disabled from public institutions. Allows States to provide any new community and family support service for up to three years without meeting the Medicaid requirements that they provide a service on a statewide basis and that the service be comparable in all parts of the State. Requires that intermediate care facility services for the mentally retarded include the ascertainment of the individual needs of each newly admitted individual by an interdisciplinary team within 30 days and the development of a written habilitation plan for each individual. Limits Medicaid payments to States for skilled nursing and intermediate care facility services furnished to individuals under age 65 who became disabled before age 22 to the amount payable for such services in the fiscal year ending after the enactment of this Act, increased if and by the extent to which the percentage increase in the consumer price index exceeds six percent. Makes such limitation inapplicable to facilities which have less than 16 beds or meet the size and location requirements for a community living facility. Requires States to have in effect a system to protect and advocate those rights of the severely disabled who are eligible for medical assistance which relate to the provision of such assistance. Provides Federal Medicaid matching funds for such system. Gives individuals who are adversely affected by a violation of this Act's requirements the right to bring an action to enjoin such violation. Allows States to set payment rates for community and family support services for the severely disabled. Authorizes States to treat severely disabled individuals under age 19 who are not in a medical institution as receiving benefits under title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) of the Act for Medicaid eligibility purposes if they would be eligible for SSI benefits if institutionalized. Requires States to establish a uniform income standard for the severely disabled regardless of whether or not they are in a medical institution. Authorizes States to provide Medicaid coverage of disabled spouses and children who, except for the resources deemed to them, would be eligible for SSI benefits. Removes certain limitations on the Secretary's approval of reduction and correction plans for deficient intermediate care facilities for the mentally retarded. Makes individuals who are severely disabled and receiving or deemed to be receiving SSI benefits eligible for Medicaid as long as such qualifications continue to be satisfied. Directs the Secretary to establish, within the Health Care Financing Administration, a Bureau of Developmental Disabilities Services responsible for administering Medicaid programs for the severely disabled. Requires the Secretary to: (1) develop standards and a program for training Federal and State personnel who perform surveys of skilled nursing and intermediate care facilities to determine whether such facilities meet Medicaid participation requirements; and (2) periodically conduct studies of the reliability of such surveys and make the changes necessary to improve such reliability. Directs the Secretary to support the development of: (1) instruments to assess outcomes in the provision of this Act's services; and (2) competency-based personnel standards for agencies and organizations providing services to the severely disabled pursuant to this Act. Requires the Secretary to: (1) conduct an annual assessment of each State's compliance with this Act's requirements; and (2) issue final regulations regarding this Act's amendments prior to the first fiscal year beginning after this Act's enactment. Sets forth reporting requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 1987
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an individual a 15 percent nonrefundable income tax credit for interest paid or incurred on indebtedness to pay qualified educational expenses (tuition, supplies, reasonable living expenses) of the taxpayer or the taxpayer's spouse or dependent at a qualified educational institution. Excludes indebtedness secured by a qualified residence of the taxpayer. Reduces the credit (but not below zero) by one percent for each $1,000 by which the taxpayer's adjusted gross income exceeds $25,000 ($40,000 for joint returns). Repeals the current income tax deduction for interest on home equity loans used to pay educational expenses.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 1987
Private Long-Term Care Insurance Promotion Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require that, for the purpose of determining the income tax liability of insurance companies, guaranteed renewable insurance contracts providing for qualified long-term health care be treated in the same way as noncancellable accident or health insurance contracts. Applies this requirement to contracts covering diagnostic, preventive, therapeutic, rehabilitative, and personal care services that are: (1) required by a chronically ill or disabled individual; and (2) provided by a qualified licensed provider (other than a family member) in a nursing facility, including hospitals and nursing homes, or in a home (if home care is a substitute for care in a nursing facility).
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 1987
Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control, to develop a curriculum for educating emergency response employees (EREs) with respect to the prevention of exposure to infectious diseases during the process of responding to emergencies. Directs the Secretary to establish a task force to assist in developing the curriculum, appointing to the task force representatives of the Centers for Disease Control, State governments, and EREs. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to make grants to States to assist in purchasing educational materials and protective equipment recommended in the curriculum, with at least 75 percent of the grant spent for educational materials. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to make grants to States to assist in conducting demonstration projects for programs of screening EREs for infectious diseases and immunizing them against vaccine-preventable infectious diseases. Prohibits the grants unless the applicant agrees that screenings and immunizations will be conducted only with the consent of the emergency response employee (ERE) involved. Exempts, from the screening and immunization provisions, infection with the etiologic agent for acquired immune deficiency syndrome (etiologic agent). Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to make grants to States to assist in the initial implementation of programs of testing notified EREs for infection with the etiologic agent. Prohibits grants unless the applicant agrees that the testing will be conducted only with the consent of the ERE. Requires the amount of the grant to be determined on the basis of the population of the geographic area relative to the U.S. population. Prohibits grants unless the applicant agrees to provide counseling before and, for both those testing negative and those testing positive, after testing. States that such agreements do not prohibit providing the counseling services to an ERE who will not undergo testing. Authorizes appropriations. Requires a medical facility to notify the employer of EREs if the facility determines that a victim the EREs transported to the facility has an infectious disease. Requires a medical facility, upon request of an employer of EREs, to notify the employer if the facility makes a determination that a victim transported by EREs has an infectious disease. Makes notification requirements apply to both the facility receiving the victim and, if the victim dies, to the facility ascertaining the cause of death. Requires such disclosure on request by any ERE employer. Sets forth notification procedures. Directs the public health officer of each State to designate one official of each employer of EREs to make requests and receive notifications. Prohibits other individuals from receiving notifications. Provides for notification of EREs and for requests from an ERE to an employer that the employer request notification from the medical facility. Prohibits: (1) persons providing testing or counseling services from disclosing the identity of any notified ERE; and (2) persons receiving a disclosure of protected information from disclosing the information. Provides for exceptions to the prohibitions. Prohibits a person from discriminating against an otherwise qualified notified ERE in employment, housing, public accommodations, governmental services, or the provision of benefits under any program receiving Federal financial assistance, solely because the ERE is, or is regarded as being, infected with the etiologic agent. Prohibits a person who obtains, as a result of notification provisions of this Act, information relating to the identity of a victim of an emergency who is infected with the etiologic agent, from disclosing such information. Provides, for violations of certain provisions of this Act, for civil monetary penalties, injunctive relief, civil causes of action, and criminal penalties.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1987
Federal Employees' Political Activities Act of 1987- Prohibits an employee from using or attempting to use official authority or influence to interfere with or affect the result of any election. Prohibits an employee from using or attempting to use official authority to intimidate, threaten, coerce, command, or influence: (1) any individual for the purpose of interfering with the right of any individual to vote as the individual may choose, or of causing any individual to vote, or not to vote, for any candidate or measure in any election; (2) any person to give or withhold any political contribution; or (3) any person to engage, or not to engage, in any form of political activity. Prohibits an employee from using or attempting to use, or permitting the use of, any official information unless such information is available to the general public. Prohibits an employee from: (1) giving or offering to give a political contribution to any individual either to vote or refrain from voting, or to vote for or against any candidate or measure, in any election; (2) soliciting, accepting, or receiving a political contribution to vote or refrain from voting, or to vote for or against any candidate or measure, in any election; or (3) giving or handing over a political contribution to a superior of the employee. Prohibits an employee from soliciting, accepting, or receiving, or from being in any manner concerned with soliciting, accepting, or receiving, a political contribution: (1) from another employee (or a member of another employee's immediate family) with respect to whom the employee is a superior; or (2) in any room or building occupied in the discharge of official duties by a Federal employee or official or an individual receiving salary or compensation from the Treasury. Prohibits an employee from soliciting, accepting, or receiving a political contribution from, or giving a political contribution to, any person who: (1) has, or is seeking to obtain, contractual or other business or financial relations with the employing agency; (2) conducts operations or activities which are regulated by that agency; or (3) has interests which may be substantially affected by the performance of the employees' official duties. Directs the Special Counsel of the Merit Systems Protection Board to prescribe regulations which exempt employees from such prohibitions. Prohibits an employee from engaging in political activity: (1) while on duty; (2) in any room or building occupied in the discharge of official duties by a Federal employee or official; (3) while wearing a uniform or official insignia identifying the office or position of the employee; or (4) while using any vehicle owned or leased by the Government. Exempts certain high level political appointees from such prohibitions if the costs associated with the political activity are not paid for by money derived from the Treasury. Describes such a political appointee as one: (1) whose duties and responsibilities continue outside normal duty hours and while away from the normal duty post; (2) who is paid from an appropriation for the Executive Office of the President; (3) whose position is located within the United States; and (4) who determines policies to be pursued by the United States in its relations with foreign powers or in the nationwide administration of Federal laws. Authorizes leave without pay or accrued annual leave to an employee who is a candidate, upon request, to allow such employee to engage in activities relating to that candidacy. Declares that such request may be denied if the exigencies of the public business so require. Declares that such employee may be required to take leave without pay or accrued annual leave in order to be a candidate if activities relating to the candidacy interfere with the employee's performance of duties. Directs the Special Counsel to prescribe rules and regulations to implement this Act. Applies this Act to postal employees and employees of the Postal Rate Commission.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 1987
Taxpayer Safeguard and Protection Act of 1987 - Title I: Provisions Relating to Liens and Levies - Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to entitle a taxpayer, in the event of a wrongful levy on property, to the prompt return (within 14 days) of the property in question or, if the property has been sold, to the greater of the amount received from its sale or its fair market value immediately preceding the levy. Treats property wrongfully levied upon and subsequently lost or destroyed while in the possession of the United States as if it had been sold at its fair market value immediately before the levy. Permits a taxpayer to request the sale of seized property within 60 days. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury (Secretary) to comply with such a request unless it is adverse to the best interests of the United States. Requires the Secretary, in the case of a wrongful lien, to issue a certificate of release of the lien stating that the lien was erroneusly imposed. Directs the Secretary to provide toll-free telephone numbers for: (1) discussion of alleged Internal Revenue Service (IRS) administrative errors with respect to a taxpayer; and (2) 24-hour access to taxpayers experiencing emergencies associated with any lien or levy imposed under the internal revenue laws. Extends from ten to 20 days the period between the required notice to a person who neglects or refuses to pay tax liability and a levy on such person's salary, wages, or other property. Increases for levy purposes the exempt amount permitted for certain personal effects, the property of a business, and wages. Exempts from levy: (1) welfare payments under title IV (aid to families with dependent children) of the Social Security Act; (2) supplemental security income under title XVI of the Social Security Act (aid for the aged, blind, and disabled); (3) State or local government public assistance programs whose eligibility requirements are based on income or need; and (4) unemployment training allowances under the Job Training Partnership Act. Revises levy exemptions related to service-connected disability payments to: (1) remove the exemption of certain veterans' life insurance benefits; and (2) add exemptions for wartime and peacetime death compensation, burial benefits, and dependency and indemnity compensation for service-connected deaths. States that levy exemption provisions shall not apply to withholding taxes. Title II: Statement Disclosing Rights and Obligations of Taxpayers - Requires the Secretary to prepare a statement setting forth in nontechnical terms: (1) the rights and obligations of a taxpayer and of the IRS during a tax audit; (2) the procedures by which a taxpayer may appeal adverse decisions, prosecute refund claims, and file complaints; and (3) the procedures that the IRS may use in enforcing revenue laws. Title III: Civil Damages for Unauthorized Disclosure or Use of Return Information by Return Preparers - Amends the IRC to permit a civil cause of action for damages in district court for a taxpayer with respect to whom a tax preparer discloses or misuses tax return information. Permits such actions only when: (1) six months have elapsed since the taxpayer notified an appropriate Federal official of the improper disclosure; and (2) statutorily-authorized prosecution of the offender was not begun during that six-month period. Title IV: Tax Court Jurisdiction to Redetermine Interest on Deficiencies - Amends the IRC to authorize the Tax Court, upon the motion of a taxpayer who has paid the entire amount of a deficiency assessment plus the associated interest, to reopen the case solely to determine whether the taxpayer has made an overpayment of interest because of mathematical error in its computation. Provides for judicial review of any order redetermining interest due. Title V: Reports; Improvement of Taxpayer Assistance - Directs the Secretary, not later than July 1, 1988, to prepare and submit to specified congressional committees a report on: (1) the effectiveness of the Office of the Taxpayer Ombudsman and of the Problem Resolution Program; (2) the results of IRS quality improvement procedures; and (3) the adequacy of IRS training programs with respect to preparing individuals for effective and helpful interaction with taxpayers. Directs the Assistant Commissioner (Inspection) of the IRS and the Taxpayer Ombudsman, not later than July 1, 1988, jointly to prepare and submit to specified congressional committees a report on: (1) significant problems taxpayers experience in dealing with the IRS; and (2) the status of current projects designed to improve IRS communication with taxpayers. Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the level of taxpayer service should be improved to assure taxpayer compliance with the Tax Reform Act of 1986; and (2) the IRS should conduct taxpayer interviews at a time and place convenient to both taxpayer and interviewer, continue to permit taxpayers to record IRS interview proceedings, improve its handling of taxpayer inquiries and correspondence, and take steps to ensure that taxpayers do not incur unnecessary legal, accounting, or other expenses as a result of IRS delays, errors, or requests for redundant information.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 1987
Section 457 Clarification Act of 1987 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to state that the accounting provisions applicable to the deferred compensation plans of State and local governments and of private tax-exempt organizations shall not apply to nonelective deferred compensation. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to promulgate regulations defining nonelective deferred compensation. Applies retroactively to tax year 1979 and thereafter.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1987
Immigration Act of 1987 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to revise numerical limitations for immigrant admissions with respect to family reunification immigrants and independent immigrants. Directs the Attorney General and the Secretaries of State, Labor, and Health and Human Services, every five years, beginning two years after this Act becomes effective, to prepare jointly and to submit to the President and to specified congressional committees a report discussing the need to revise these numerical limitations. Lists factors to be considered in preparing the report. Requires the President within 60 days of receiving the report to transmit to the Congress a certification as to whether the numerical limitations should be changed and, if so, what they should be. Deems the numerical limitations certified by the President to be valid for the subsequent five fiscal years unless the Congress acts through a joint resolution to prohibit their effect. Prescribes the expedited parliamentary procedure to be followed in the House of Representatives and in the Senate in considering such a joint resolution. Revises the preference visa allocation system for immigrant admissions with respect to family reunification immigrants to: (1) increase the percentage of visas available to qualified spouses and unmarried minor children of permanent resident aliens; and (2) decrease the percentage available to qualified children and siblings of U.S. citizens. Revises the preference and nonpreference visa allocation system for independent immigrants to set fiscal year numerical limitations on visas available to aliens who are professionals holding doctoral degrees, aliens of exceptional ability, or skilled workers. Establishes a point system applicable to nonpreference aliens under which credit for visa qualification assessment is based on such eligibility criteria as: (1) country of origin (with preference for countries adversely affected by immigration reforms enacted in 1965); (2) work skills and employability; (3) education and literacy; and (4) age. Sets forth the formula for determining the appropriate allocation preference system to be applied to natives of any single foreign state with respect to which the maximum number of visas will be made available. Revises the labor certification procedure used with regard to excludable aliens and reduces the scope of its applicability to certain preference immigrants. Provides for judicial review in U.S. district court of the Secretary of Labor's decisions with respect to exclusions related to labor certification. Permits a waiver of the offer of employment requirement for immigrant admission purposes when the Attorney General deems the waiver to be in the national interest. Directs the Secretary of Labor to study and report to the Congress, within six months of this Act's enactment, on means for streamlining the labor certification process used in the immigration context. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1987
Authorizes the President to award a Congressional Medal of Honor in honor of Lieutenant Charles B. Gatewood, in recognition of services rendered by Lieutenant Gatewood in connection with the surrender of the Apache leader Geronimo in the fall of 1886. Directs the President to present the medal, if awarded, to a named descendant of Lieutenant Gatewood.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1987
Amerasian Homecoming Act - Provides for the admission as an immigrant into the United States (for two years beginning 90 days after enactment of this Act) of an alien residing in Vietnam who: (1) was born in Vietnam after January 1, 1962, and before January 1, 1976, and whose father was a U.S. citizen; or (2) is the spouse, child, or mother, or has acted as the next of kin (with specified limitations) of such an alien. Requires on-site consular interviews in making such determinations. Provides for an eight-month period of visa validity. Provides, with regard to such aliens, for: (1) the waiver of specified exclusionary grounds under the Immigration and Nationality Act; and (2) specified (refugee) assistance under such Act. Directs the Attorney General, in cooperation with the Secretary of State, to submit program reports to the Congress annually for three years.
![Official portrait of Rep. Donnelly, Brian J. [D-MA-11]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/d000416_200.jpg)