United States · United States Congress · 11 March 1992
Improvement of Housing for the Elderly and Disabled Act - Title I: Authority to Provide Housing Under United States Housing Act of 1937 for Older Persons and Persons with Disabilities - Amends the United States Housing Act of 1937 to authorize public housing authorities to provide designated (such as only elderly or only handicapped) low-income housing, and make units available only to families so designated. Requires that current waiting lists be observed before initiating designated housing options. Prohibits forced tenant moves based upon amendments made by this title. Considers central dining facility expenditures made in connection with congregate housing as an operating cost. Title II: Standards and Obligations of Residency and Coordination of Services in Federally Assisted Housing - Requires federally assisted housing owners and public housing authorities to select only tenants who comply with specified occupancy criteria. Permits refusal of occupancy because of: (1) criminal activity; (2) prior evictions; (3) a history of disturbing other neighbors or destroying property; (4) intentional misrepresentations; or (5) failure to meet financial obligations. Requires leases to enumerate such criteria and state that their violation shall be sufficient grounds for eviction. Requires the appointment of service coordinators in federally assisted housing to coordinate services for older or disabled residents, which may include safety, social, health, and nutritional services. Amends the United States Housing Act of 1937 to direct public housing agencies to assist elderly or disabled families in funding nonpublic housing.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 1992
Spending Priority Reform Act of 1992 - Expresses the sense of the Congress that any money returned to the Treasury as a result of this Act should be deposited in the General Fund to be applied against the Federal budget deficit. Title I: Agriculture Appropriations - Rescinds FY 1992 appropriations to the Department of Agriculture for certain special research grants which were not authorized, not awarded on a competitive basis, or not subjected to congressional hearings ("unauthorized"). Title II: Commerce, Justice, State and Related Agencies Appropriations - Subtitle A: Department of Justice - Rescinds FY 1992 appropriations to the Department of Justice for: (1) an unauthorized grant to the National College of District Attorneys for a move into a permanent facility with the latest technology; and (2) an unauthorized grant to SEARCH Group, Inc. for continued support to State and local criminal justice agencies to improve their use of computers and information technology. Subtitle B: Department of Commerce - Rescinds FY 1992 appropriations to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for unauthorized funding of: (1) construction, the National Ocean Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, oceanic and atmospheric research, program support, and miscellaneous projects; (2) a specified fresh-water fish hatchery; (3) a project for fish oil research; and (4) special research grants for the International Trade Administration. Subtitle C: Related Agencies - Rescinds FY 1992 appropriations to the Small Business Administration for unauthorized grants for specified miscellaneous projects. Amends the Small Business Act to rescind appropriations and repeal the authorization for a tree planting program. Subtitle D: Department of State - Rescinds FY 1992 appropriations to the Department of State for an unauthorized grant for the North/South Center at the University of Miami, Miami, Florida. Title III: Department of Defense Appropriations - Rescinds FY 1992 appropriations made under the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 1992, for certain unauthorized: (1) university grants; (2) miscellaneous projects; (3) certain Army operations and maintenance projects; (4) Navy operations and maintenance projects; and (5) Defense Agencies grants for World University and 1996 Summer Olympics games. Title IV: Energy and Water Appropriations - Rescinds unauthorized FY 1992 appropriations made under the Energy and Water Appropriations Act, 1992, for unauthorized funding of: (1) a Corps of Engineers project in West Virginia; (2) a Shoshone Irrigation project in Wyoming; (3) certain energy supply, research, and development activities; (4) a specified solar and renewable energy project in Hawaii; (5) certain biological and environmental research projects; (6) a certain research and technical analysis project for the University of Connecticut; and (7) a grant to complete the Center of Advanced Electronics Technology at Spartes State Technical College in Eufala, Alabama. Title V: Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations - Rescinds FY 1992 appropriations made under the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1992, for unauthorized funding of: (1) certain National Park System projects; (2) certain construction projects involving anadromous fish; and (3) certain National Forest System projects. Title VI: Transportation Appropriations - Rescinds FY 1992 appropriations to the Department of Transportation for unauthorized funding of: (1) certain motor carrier safety grants; (2) certain Federal Highway Administration demonstration projects; (3) certain highway feasibility studies; and (4) certain feasibility, design, environmental, and engineering projects. Title VII: Treasury, Postal Service and General Government - Rescinds FY 1992 appropriations to the General Services Administration for certain unauthorized grants for projects funded through the Federal Buildings Fund for the construction of a Federal courthouse in Brooklyn, New York. Title VIII: Veterans Affairs, Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations - Subtitle A: Department of Veterans Affairs - Rescinds FY 1992 appropriations to the Department of Veterans Affairs for certain unauthorized construction projects. Subtitle B: Department of Housing and Urban Development - Rescinds FY 1992 appropriations to the Department of Housing and Urban Development for unauthorized funding of: (1) certain housing projects and assistance programs; and (2) certain policy development and research grants. Subtitle C: Independent Agencies - Rescinds 1992 appropriations to: (1) the Environmental Protection Agency for certain unauthorized construction grants and specified other projects; (2) the Federal Emergency Management Agency for certain unauthorized emergency management planning and assistance projects; and (3) the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for certain unauthorized research and development projects and construction projects. Title IX: Blue Smoke and Mirrors - Expresses the sense of the Congress that, with regard to the appropriations process, "forward funding" tactics should no longer be utilized and Congress should operate within the funding limits prescribed for each fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 19 February 1992
Allows penalty-free distributions from an individual retirement account, an individual retirement annuity, or a qualified cash or deferred arrangement for the one-year period beginning after the date of enactment of this Act. Excludes from gross income ten percent of the portion of such distribution which would have been includible but for enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 February 1992
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax deduction for ten percent of the lesser of: (1) $30,000; or (2) the qualified earned income of the spouse with the lower qualified earned income. Provides for a phase-out of such deduction for adjusted gross income that exceeds $75,000. Provides a formula for determining qualified earned income. Disallows such deduction if either spouse claims tax exclusions for: (1) citizens or residents of the United States living abroad; or (2) income from sources within Guam, American Samoa, or the Northern Mariana Islands. Allows such deduction in computing adjusted gross income. Provides for the treatment of such deduction under rules for social security and tier 1 railroad retirement benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 1992
Declares that the Congress: (1) commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Midway on June 4, 1992; (2) salutes the vision and dedication of those Americans who planned and participated in this heroic battle; (3) reveres the memory, bravery, and spirit of those who fought and perished in it; and (4) honors the sacrifices and devotions of those gallant men who fought in such battle and who, in a single master stroke, reversed the tide of war in the Pacific.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1992
Designates April 14, 1992, as Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A., the birthday and the start of the 91st year of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, leader of the worldwide Lubavitch movement.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 1992
Buy American Motor Vehicles Act of 1992 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit, for an individual who purchases a domestic passenger vehicle, of: (1) 15 percent of the purchase price, in the case of a vehicle purchased in 1992 after January 31, 1992; and (2) 7.5 percent, in the case of a vehicle purchased in 1993. Limits the credit to $2,000 in 1992, and $1,000 in 1993. Allows an individual qualifying for such credit, at the time of such purchase, to assign the right to the credit to the retail dealer in exchange for a price reduction of equal value. Allows the retail dealer to assign such right to the manufacturer of the vehicle. Allows manufacturers to use such credit against their tax liability. Defines a domestic vehicle as: (1) one produced by a domestic vehicle manufacturer at a facility within the United States or Canada; and (2) one which includes required labeling on credit eligibility and the percentage of parts produced by domestic parts manufacturers. Defines a domestic parts manufacturer as one with manufacturing facilities within the United States or Canada and who is not Japanese or Japanese-affiliated.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 1992
Transfers funds from amounts appropriated for foreign operations, export financing, and related programs for each fiscal year beginning with FY 1992 (excluding funds allotted for international narcotics control) to: (1) the Department of the Treasury for restoration of the general revenue sharing program; and (2) to the Department of Education for distribution to local educational agencies on a per student basis, or a weighted average basis for certain urban areas. Requires education funds to be used for instructional and educational purposes, unless a certificate of need has been approved for capital or infrastructure improvements. Requires local educational agencies, in order to be eligible for such funds, to have a substance abuse prevention program available to students in kindergarten through 12th grades and an education program on substance abuse available to parents. Declares that, for purposes of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act), all funds transferred shall continue to be counted in the international category of discretionary appropriations and not be counted against spending limits for the domestic category.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 1992
Coastal Communities Impact Assistance Act of 1992 - Establishes the Coastal Communities Impact Assistance Fund to provide impact assistance (from revenues derived from neighboring Outer Continental Shelf natural gas and oil production activities) to eligible coastal States and counties for: (1) infrastructure; (2) services; (3) competing uses; and (4) natural resources.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 1992
Health Care Savings Plan Act of 1992 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individuals a tax deduction for contributions made to a medical care savings account established for the benefit of an eligible individual. Defines an eligible individual as: (1) one who is not covered by an employer-provided group health plan; or (2) one who is covered by such a plan which is a qualified catastrophic coverage health plan and is not covered by any other health plan. Allows penalty-free withdrawals from such accounts to the extent that amounts in such accounts exceed $15,000. Allows such deduction in arriving at adjusted gross income. Establishes an excise tax for excess contributions to medical care savings accounts and makes such accounts subject to the tax on prohibited transactions. Allows the transfer of unused amounts in flexible spending accounts of cafeteria plans to medical savings accounts. Allows the full deduction for medical and dental expenses for amounts paid for qualified catastrophic coverage health plans.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 1992
Amends rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives to require a recorded vote upon final passage or adoption, as the case may be, of any bill or resolution making an appropriation or providing direct spending authority or new credit authority.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 1992
Federal Land Acquisition Impact Relief Act of 1992 - Requires the head of an agency to prepare an economic impact analysis prior to each acquisition of private land by the agency. Directs the head of an agency to pay annually to the unit of local government an amount equal to the real property taxes computed on the current market value of each parcel of private land acquired by it after October 1, 1992, other than by contemporaneous land exchange. States that if such payment is made to a State or local government with respect to a parcel of land under this Act, the payment shall be reduced in proportion to the payment in lieu of real property taxes, if any, which is made relating to the same parcel of land under any other Federal law. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 1992
Amends Federal law to prohibit a Member of the House of Representatives from sending any franked mass mailing outside the Member's congressional district. Authorizes a Member of Congress to mail franked mail with a simplified form of address for delivery within his or her congressional district only. (Current law permits such mailings throughout the Member's State.) Prohibits the Committee on House Administration from approving any payment for, and a Member from making any expenditure from, any allowance of the House or any other official funds if any portion is for any cost related to a mass mailing by a Member of the House outside his or her congressional district.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
Religious Freedom Act of 1991 - Declares that the purposes of this Act include codifying the compelling interest test as set forth in Sherbert v. Verner and Wisconsin v. Yoder. Prohibits the Government from burdening the practice of religion by any person, even if the burden results from a rule of general applicability, unless the burden is essential to further a compelling governmental interest and the least restrictive means. Amends Federal law to allow the awarding of attorney's fees and other fees and expenses in actions under this Act. Applies this Act to all Federal and State law.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
United States Commercial Center Pilot Program Act of 1990 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish, as a pilot program, a United States Commercial Center in one country each in the Baltics, including one of the former Soviet republics, Asia, and Latin America to provide additional resources for the promotion of exports of U.S. goods and services to such countries. Requires the Secretary to use the Market Development Cooperator Program to assist the Centers in providing such resources. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1991
Commends: (1) the people of Guam for their patriotism, bravery, loyalty to the United States, and many sacrifices during World War II, particularly during the invasion and occupation of the Guam territory; (2) the members of the Navy Insular Force and U.S. Navy and Marine Corps for the efforts and sacrifices they made in defense of the U.S.; (3) the Hawaiians for their sacrifices and contributions to the U.S. war effort during the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941; and (4) the Hawaii Territorial Guard members, Varsity Victory Volunteers, the civilian workers at the Pearl Harbor Naval Ship Yard and other Hawaiian military installations, 100th Infantry Battalion, Military Intelligence Service, and 442nd Regimental Combat Team for their sacrifices and contributions to the U.S. war effort during such attack.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1991
Second National Blue Ribbon Commission to Eliminate Waste in Government Act - Establishes the Second National Blue Ribbon Commission to Eliminate Waste in Government to: (1) conduct a private sector survey on management and cost control in the Federal Government; (2) review executive agency operations and existing General Accounting Office, Congressional Budget Office, Inspector General Reports, and other existing governmental and nongovernmental recommendations for reducing waste; and (3) submit to the President and the Congress a list of those recommendations with estimated savings that the Commission determines are most significant and recommendations for improving the budget process, management, and reducing waste and costs in the Government. Requires the Commission to identify, address, and to report to the President and the Congress on: (1) opportunities for increased efficiency and reduced costs in the Government that can be realized by executive action or legislation; (2) areas in the Government where managerial accountability can be enhanced and administrative control can be improved; (3) specific Federal programs that have accomplished their objectives and ought to be terminated; (4) specific Federal program services that could be provided at a lower cost by the private sector; (5) specific reforms of the budget process that would yield savings, increase accountability and efficiency, and enhance public confidence in the budget process; (6) specific areas in the Government where further study can be justified by potential savings; and (7) specific recommendations for legislative and administrative actions. Requires the Commission to be funded, staffed, and equipped, to the extent practicable and permitted by law, by the private sector without cost to the Government.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 1991
Fair Disbursement of Offshore Oil Revenue Act of 1992 - Establishes the Coastal Communities Outer Continental Shelf Receipt Fund in the Treasury. Requires the Secretary of the Interior to pay into the Fund two-thirds of certain revenue from Outer Continental Shelf leases. Prescribes guidelines for distribution of such Fund to coastal States and counties. Directs the Secretary to determine which counties, parishes, boroughs, tribal governments, or other unit of general government immediately below State government level shall be designated as coastal counties.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 1991
Congressional Accountability Act - Makes applicable to the Congress the following Federal laws, to the extent that they relate to the terms and conditions of employment, the health and safety of employees, and the rights and responsibilities of employers and employees: (1) Social Security Act; (2) National Labor Relations Act; (3) Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938; (4) Civil Rights Act of 1964; (5) Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967; (6) Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970; (7) title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; (8) Rehabilitation Act of 1973; (9) Privacy Act of 1974; (10) Age Discrimination Act of 1975; (11) Ethics in Government Act of 1978; and (12) Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Makes applicable also to the Congress specified provisions of Federal law: (1) commonly referred to as the Freedom of Information Act; and (2) relating to independent counsel.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 1991
Urges the establishment of an International Memorial to the Victims of Communism in the District of Columbia on land owned by the United States. Calls for the appointment of an international commission to oversee the design, construction, and other pertinent details of the memorial.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 1991
Federal Prison Industries Competition in Contracting Act - Amends the Federal criminal code to require that: (1) a decision by Federal Prison Industries (FPI) to produce a new prison-made product or to expand the production of an existing product be made by the Board of Directors of FPI (the Board) in conformance with the public notice and comment requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act; and (2) the corporation prepare and furnish to the Board a detailed analysis of the probable impact on industry and free labor of any proposal to authorize the production and sale of a new prison-made product or to expand production of a currently authorized product (such proposal). Requires such analysis to identify and consider factors including: (1) the number of vendors that currently meet Federal requirements for the specific product; (2) the proportion of the Federal market for the product currently furnished by small and disadvantaged businesses and businesses in labor surplus areas during the previous three fiscal years; (3) the share of the Federal market for the product projected for FPI for the fiscal year in which production will commence (or expand) and the subsequent three fiscal years; (4) whether the industry producing the product in the private sector has an unemployment rate higher than the national average, a rate of employment for production workers that has consistently shown an increase during the previous five years, or an import to domestic production ratio of 25 percent or greater; (5) whether the specific product is an import-sensitive product; (6) the projected growth in the Government for the specific product and the capability of such demand to sustain both FPI and private vendors; and (7) whether authorizing the production of the new product will provide inmates with the maximum opportunity to acquire knowledge and skill in trades and occupations that will provide them with a means of earning a livelihood upon release. Bars the Board from approving such proposal if the product is: (1) produced in the private sector by an industry which has reflected during the previous year an unemployment rate above the national average; or (2) an import-sensitive product. Directs the Board to: (1) give additional notice of such proposal in a publication designed to most effectively provide notice to private vendors and labor unions representing private sector workers who could reasonably be expected to be affected by approval of such proposal; (2) solicit comments on the analysis required under this Act from trade associations representing private sector workers who could reasonably be expected to be affected by its approval; (3) afford an opportunity, upon request, for a representative of private industry to present comments on such proposal directly to the Board. Requires the corporation to provide the Board with its recommendations regarding action on the proposal, taking into consideration the comments received. Requires: (1) the various Federal departments and agencies (agencies) to offer to purchase from FPI any product authorized to be offered for sale and listed in the UNICOR Schedule of Products (whenever it has a requirement for an FPI product); and (2) FPI to publish and periodically revise such Schedule. Sets forth provisions with respect to the solicitation of offers from FPI and contract awards to FPI on either a competitive or sole source basis. Prohibits the cancellation or withdrawal of a solicitation solely for the purpose of affording an agency buying activity the opportunity to enter into noncompetitive negotiation with FPI unless the Attorney General determines that FPI cannot reasonably expect to receive the contract award on a competitive basis and that such award is necessary to: (1) maintain work opportunities otherwise unavailable at the penal facility at which the contract is to be performed to prevent circumstances that could reasonably be expected to significantly endanger the safe and effective administration of such facility; or (2) permit diversification into the labor-intensive manufacture of a specific product that has been approved by the Board. Specifies that: (1) a timely offer received from FPI shall be considered eligible for award (even if the competition is restricted); and (2) FPI shall be required to perform its contractual obligations to the same extent as any other contractor. Repeals a provisions under which any dispute relating to the price, quality, character, or suitability of FPI products shall be arbitrated by a board consisting of the Comptroller General of the United States, the Administrator of General Services, and the President, or their representatives. Specifies that: (1) a decision by a contracting officer regarding the award of a contract to FPI or relating to the performance of such contract shall be final, unless reversed on appeal (but authorizes the Director of FPI to appeal to the head of a Federal agency an adverse determination made by a contracting officer, in which case the decision of such agency head shall be final); and (2) a dispute between FPI and a buying activity regarding contract performance shall be subject to final resolution by the board of contract appeals having jurisdiction over the buying activity's contract performance disputes under the Contract Disputes Act of 1978. Requires that the amendments made by this Act be implemented through modifications to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) within 180 days. Makes the FAR subject to provisions of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (which assure publication in the Federal Register and the opportunity for public comment before the promulgation of a final regulation). Requires each Federal agency reporting to the Federal Procurement Data System through the General Services Administration to report all acquisitions from FPI. Amends the Federal criminal code to require the Board, in its annual report to the Congress, to include: (1) an analysis of the corporation's total sales for each specific product sold to Federal agencies, the total purchases by each agency of each specific product, the corporation's share of such total Government purchases by specific product, and the number and disposition of disputes submitted to agency heads; (2) an analysis of the inmate workforce, including the number of inmates employed, the number and percentage of employed inmates by the term of their incarceration, and the various hourly wages paid to inmates employed with respect to the production of the various specific products authorized for production and sale; and (3) data concerning employment obtained by former inmates upon release to determine whether the employment provided by FPI during incarceration provided such inmates with knowledge and skill in a trade or occupation that enabled such former inmate to earn a livelihood upon release. Directs that copies of such annual report be made available to the public at a price not to exceed the cost of printing. Authorizes the Department of Defense (DOD) to count toward the attainment of the goal set out in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1987 for participation by small disadvantaged businesses, historically Black colleges and universities, and minority institutions in DOD contracting opportunities, the value of any purchase of supplies or services made by FPI from an entity described in such Act for the performance of a contract with DOD.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 1991
1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games Commemorative Coin Act - Provides for the minting and sale of commemorative gold and silver coins to support the 1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games and the programs of the United States Olympic Committee.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 1991
Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to increase to four months the extension of time allotted to Old Age and Survivors Insurance beneficiaries to file reports on outside earnings which exceed applicable limitations.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 1991
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to limit citizenship at birth to persons born in the United States to a mother who is a U.S. legal resident.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 1991
Medicaid Moratorium Amendments of 1991 - Amends the Technical and Miscellaneous Revenues Act of 1988 to: (1) delay until September 30, 1992, the issuance of regulations changing the treatment under the Medicaid program (title XIX of the Social Security Act) of voluntary contributions and provider-specific taxes; and (2) maintain current regulations that allow intergovernmental transfers as a source of a State's expenditures for which Federal matching funds are available under the Medicaid program. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to submit to specified congressional committees a report on: (1) regulations to limit the use of voluntary contributions and provider-specific taxes to obtain Federal financial participation; (2) specific types of voluntary contributions and provider-specific taxes that may be used as sources of State expenditures for which Federal financial participation is available; and (3) any legislation that the Secretary believes is appropriate. Sets forth budget compliance provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 11 October 1991
Declares that Members of Congress are no longer exempted from Federal laws, including the: (1) Americans with Disabilities Act; (2) title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act; (3) Equal Opportunity Act; (4) Occupational Safety and Health Act; (5) Fair Labor Standards Act; and (6) Freedom of Information Act. Makes it illegal to furnish any Member of the Congress, at the expenses of the Federal Government, free or at reduced costs: (1) medicine; (2) hospital care; (3) ambulance services; (4) meals; (5) flowers or plants; (6) pictures or picture frames; (7) haircuts; or (8) other items, services, or privileges, except official office expenses such as supplies and stationery.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 1991
Telecommunications Act of 1991 - Title I: Infrastructure Development - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to provide for the establishment of a Federal-State Joint Board to impose and enforce network quality standards upon common carriers (CC) to ensure the continued maintenance and evolution of CC facilities and services. Directs the Board to initiate a rulemaking proceeding to establish standards, to be enforced by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the State commissions as to matters within their respective jurisdictions, for measuring CC network quality. Requires each CC to submit to the Board a quarterly data report regarding compliance with the prescribed standards. Authorizes the Board to require periodic independent audits of CC compliance with such standards. Directs the FCC to establish enforcement penalties and procedures, including expedited customer complaint mechanisms, to ensure CC compliance with such standards. Requires each local exchange carrier (LEC) to provide interconnection, on a reasonable and nondiscriminatory basis, to CCs and other providers of telecommunications and information services who request it, and to provide the interconnecting party with physical colocation, unless it demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence that physical colocation is not technically practicable, in which case virtual colocation is required. Specifies that a rural exchange carrier (REC) shall not be required to provide interconnection to another LEC. Directs the FCC to: (1) adopt and make effective rules to enforce the obligations imposed by such Act; and (2) initiate a rulemaking to require that the interconnection offered by an LEC pursuant to such Act provide for the portability of telephone numbers. Requires the FCC to revise its order entitled "Filing and Review of Open Network Architecture Plans" to require that: (1) the plans for compliance with such order offer unbundled features and functions; (2) such features and functions are made available on a reasonably uniform basis by all of the CCs subject to such order, and are accessible throughout the service territory of each such carrier; (3) such plans include a schedule for timely offering of new features and functions; and (4) CCs subject to such order not unreasonably discriminate between affiliated and unaffiliated providers of information services in offering tariffed and non-tariffed features, functions, and capabilities. Directs the FCC, at least once every three years, to: (1) conduct a proceeding in which interested parties shall have an opportunity to comment on whether the order, as further revised, and the plans filed pursuant to it, have opened the networks of the carriers subject to such order to reasonable and non-discriminatory access by providers of telecommunications and information services; and (2) revise such order as necessary or appropriate and require the CCs subject to the order to file new plans consistent with such revisions, which shall also be subject to public comment and FCC review prior to their becoming effective. Restricts the release of personally identifiable customer information obtained or collected by an LEC in the course of providing telephone exchange information. Requires: (1) an LEC to prepare and file tariffs in accordance with such Act with respect to the interconnection and network access services required under such Act; (2) the costs that an LEC incurs in providing such services to be borne solely by the users of the features and functions comprising such services; and (3) the FCC to review such tariffs to ensure that the charges for such services are cost-based and the terms and conditions contained in such tariffs do not bundle together any separable elements, features, or functions. Requires: (1) an LEC to submit supporting information with its tariffs for interconnection and network access services that is sufficient to enable the FCC and the public to determine the relationship between the proposed changes and the costs of providing such services; and (2) the submission of such information to be pursuant to rules adopted by the FCC to ensure that similarly situated carriers provide such information in a uniform fashion. Authorizes an LEC to include in its tariffs for interconnection services an element intended to recover the amount necessary to preclude any substantial increases in the rates for telephone exchange service (service) that would otherwise result from the offering of interconnection services, subject to specified requirements. Directs the FCC to adopt and make effective rules governing the calculating of such element. Specifies that any amounts recovered by the LEC through the imposition of this additional element shall be used to defray the costs of providing service. Specifies that the resale of service in conjunction with the furnishing of an interstate telecommunications or any information service shall not be prohibited or subject to unreasonable conditions by the FCC, any State, or any LEC. Requires the FCC to: (1) adopt and make effective rules for the conduct of coordinated network planning by CCs; and (2) initiate an inquiry to examine the effects of competition in the provision of telephone exchange access and service on the availability and rates for service furnished by RECs. Directs the FCC to provide for expedited: (1) review of complaints alleging violations of service, quality, network access, and interconnection rules; and (2) licensing of new technologies or services related to the furnishing of telecommunications or information services determined to be in the public interest. Title II: Provisions Affecting Divested Operating Companies - Authorizes a divested operating company or affiliate (DOC) to provide information services, subject to specified requirements. Bars a DOC from offering electronic publishing services in any State in which it provides service until the FCC, after notice and opportunity for public comment, determines that: (1) at least 50 percent of all businesses and residences within the areas in each State in which such DOC provides service have access to transmission and switching facilities (other than those owned or controlled by a DOC) that are comparable to those offered by the DOC for the delivery of electronic publishing services; (2) at least ten percent of all businesses and residences within the areas in each State in which such DOC provides service subscribe to services delivered over such alternative facilities; and (3) the DOC seeking to provide such services has demonstrated that there is no substantial possibility that the DOC could use its position as an LEC to impede competition in the provision of electronic publishing services or impose additional costs upon service subscribers. Permits a DOC to petition the FCC for a waiver of restrictions on electronic publishing imposed under such Act. Requires such petition to be granted if the DOC can demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that: (1) electronic publishing service would not exist unless offered by such DOC; and (2) the provision of such DOC would not impose additional costs upon service subscribers. Sets forth additional requirements. Permits a DOC to provide information services after October 1, 1991, only through a subsidiary that is separated from the service operations of the divested company, with exceptions. Provides for a minimum number of outside directors. Specifies that any transaction between a DOC and any other affiliate of such DOC (including the subsidiary): (1) shall not be based upon any preference or discrimination arising out of the affiliation, or have the effect of permitting any violation of the requirements of such Act; and (2) shall be carried out in the same manner as such company or affiliate conducts such business with unaffiliated persons, shall be pursuant to contract or tariff reported to the FCC and made available for public inspection, and shall be fully auditable and reflect all costs associated with the conduct of such business. Bars such subsidiary from: (1) entering into any joint venture or partnership with the DOC; (2) having employees or a financial structure in common with the DOC, except as provided in such Act; (3) owning any property in common with a DOC; or (4) establishing any other subsidiary or affiliate except after notice to the FCC in such form and containing such information as the FCC may require. Requires such subsidiary to: (1) carry out directly its own marketing, sales, accounting, hiring and training of personnel, purchasing, and maintenance; and (2) maintain books, records, and accounts, prepare its own financial statements, and prepare and file with the FCC the annual and periodic reports required of publicly traded companies by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Sets forth additional provisions with respect to: (1) advertising; (2) securities information; (3) outside ownership; (4) transmission capacity; (5) preservation of separate subsidiary requirements for grandfathered functions; (6) provision of services and information to others on the same terms and conditions as provided to the subsidiary; and (7) a cost allocation system requirement to prohibit any cost of providing information services from being subsidized by revenue from service or access services. Requires the FCC to establish cost assignment and allocation regulations, under which joint and common costs shall be allocated to unregulated services under a formula that ensures that the rates for service are no greater than they would have been in the absence of such investment, or based upon the highest forecast unregulated usage of the investment over the life of the investment, whichever method results in the lesser allocation of such costs to service. Directs the FCC, by regulation, to ensure that the economic risks associated with the provision of information services by DOCs are not borne by service customers in the event of a business loss or failure. Prohibits: (1) investments or other expenditures assigned to information services from being reassigned to service or access service; and (2) any DOC affiliate which is providing information services and is required to be, or is, structurally separate from an affiliate engaged in the provision of service from obtaining credit under any arrangement that would permit a creditor, upon default, to have recourse to the assets of the DOC, or would induce a creditor to rely on the tangible or intangible assets of the DOC in extending credit. Requires the FCC to prescribe regulations governing the accounting for the transfer of assets between a DOC and its affiliates which protect the interests of service ratepayers and meet specified requirements. Establishes an annual auditing requirement for each DOC that engages in, or has a financial or management interest in an entity that provides, information services. Sets forth provisions with respect to the conduct of the audit, submission and certification of audit results, and access to documents. Requires the FCC and a State commission, within their respective jurisdictions, to require a DOC to assess any affiliate providing information services a charge for the reasonable value of any intangible assets used in the provision of such services and to credit the amount of such charge to the provision of service. Bars a DOC from providing electronic publishing services, other than those it provided on or before October 1, 1991, in any State in which such DOC provides service, unless and until all entry barriers to the competitive provision of telecommunications services imposed by each State or State commission in which such DOC service have been removed with respect to such DOC. Requires any DOC that offers a gateway service to make such service available concurrently to all of its subscribers at the same rates, terms, and conditions. Sets forth enforcement provisions with respect to persons injured by a violation of requirements under such Act. Directs the FCC to take such actions as necessary to: (1) prevent anticompetitive practices between a DOC and any affiliate of the DOC; (2) protect ratepayers of DOCs from subsidizing the provision of information services by such DOCs; and (3) prevent any DOC from imposing any unjust or unreasonable rates or charges for any CC services provided in connection with the provision of information services. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Miscellaneous Provisions - Authorizes a State to regulate the rates, terms, or conditions for the offering of information services, subject to specified requirements. Bars a State from imposing regulations upon an LEC with respect to the intrastate provision of information services by such carrier or affiliate if such regulations: (1) are necessary and appropriate to separate the provision of information services from the provision of service by such carrier or affiliate; (2) are intended to protect the privacy rights of service customers; (3) do not affect the rates, terms, or conditions for the provision of such information services or the types of such services offered by such carrier or affiliate; and (4) are not inconsistent with the purposes, or do not significantly impede the enforcement, of this Act or any regulation or order prescribed by the FCC pursuant to this Act. Specifies that: (1) nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit State authority to take actions, consistent with this Act, to ensure the availability of service at reasonable rates in areas served by RECs, to relieve a DOC of any obligations, limitations, or responsibilities imposed by any other provision of such Act, or to create any antitrust immunity to any civil or criminal action under Federal or State antitrust law, or alter or restrict the applicability of any Federal or State law to the actions of a DOC; and (2) a DOC shall remain fully subject to the order entered on August 24, 1982, in United States v. Western Electric Company .
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an individual income tax deduction for contributions to a savings account established to pay the educational expenses (tuition, supplies, meals, and lodging) of the taxpayer's child or certain other relatives at an institution of higher education or a vocational school. Limits the deduction to $150,000 for all taxable years (adjusted for inflation) for each account. Disallows the deduction for contributions to an account maintained for any individual aged 19 or older. Requires any account balance to be distributed after the beneficiary attains age 30. Permits an exclusion from the gross income of the contributor or the beneficiary of account distributions: (1) used to pay educational expenses of the beneficiary; or (2) contributed to the individual retirement plan (IRA) of the contributor. Exempts an account from taxation (except for the tax on unrelated business income of a charitable organization), unless a contributor or the beneficiary engages in specified prohibited transactions in connection with it. Imposes a ten percent surtax on distributions not used for educational purposes. Requires the account trustee to report to the Secretary of the Treasury and to the account's beneficiary concerning the account. Imposes a penalty for failure to report. Allows taxpayers who do not otherwise itemize deductions to deduct for contributions to an education savings account. Imposes penalty taxes in connection with excess contributions or prohibited transactions associated with an account. Exempts from annual contribution limitations any distributions from education savings accounts into IRA's. Excludes from gross income any distributions from IRA's into education savings accounts.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1991
Cancer Screening Incentive Act of 1991 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a refundable tax credit for expenditures (not paid by insurance or otherwise) incurred by the taxpayer for qualified cancer screening tests.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1991
Southeast Region African American Educator Institute Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to provide financial assistance to pay all of the cost of construction, and related expenses, for the establishment of the Southeast Region African American Educator Institute at Knoxville College, in Knoxville, Tennessee, to be used as a national and regional resource and education center. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 1991
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the people of Taiwan deserve to be represented in the United Nations and other international organizations by appointees representing Taiwan's government.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 1991
Medicare EKG Payment Restoration Act of 1991 - Amends part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: (1) reestablish separate payment for the interpretation of electrocardiograms (EKGs) that are ordered or performed during an office visit or consultation with a physician; and (2) require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish separate fee schedule amounts for EKG interpretations and to adjust the relative values established for office visits to or consultations with a physician to reflect the establishment of such separate fee schedule amounts. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish practice guidelines for the use of EKGs for dissemination along with other educational information relating to the use of EKGs to physicians; (2) develop a profile of the use of EKGs by physicians; and (3) conduct a study and report to the Congress on the utilization and costs of EKGs.
![Official portrait of Rep. Duncan, John J., Jr. [R-TN-2]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/d000533_200.jpg)