United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1990
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the United States should support the unified status of Jerusalem and continue to recognize that a unified Jerusalem is an integral part of the State of Israel; (2) efforts of the U.S. Government to achieve peace in the Middle East should take into account the close relationship between the United States and Israel, as well as Israel's legitimate security needs; and (3) efforts to advance the peace process must not call into question the status of Jerusalem.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 1990
Panama Canal Commission Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 1991 - Authorizes expenditures by the Panama Canal Commission for FY 1991 for the operation, maintenance, and improvement of the Panama Canal.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 1990
Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to limit multicandidate political committee contributions to $5,000 for any candidate for the House of Representatives and the candidate's authorized political committees. Requires any person to report to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) within 24 hours after making independent expenditures exceeding $5,000 with respect to such a candidate. Requires the FEC to notify the candidate of such expenditures. Provides for the accountability of contributions made by intermediaries or conduits. Permits candidates for the House to submit to the FEC an affidavit of agreement to limit their expenditures to $500,000 in a contested election. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide tax credits of up to $200 for contributions to House candidates by residents of the congressional district involved. Disallows such tax credits for estates and trusts. Limits aggregate contributions by an individual resident to a candidate for the House in the congressional district involved and the candidate's authorized political committee to $3,000. Requires candidates for the House who violate a voluntary expenditure limitation to: (1) notify contributors that they are no longer eligible for income tax credits for campaign contributions; and (2) return individual resident contributions aggregating in excess of $2,000. Sets forth monetary penalties for violations of voluntary expenditure limitations. Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to limit the charges for broadcasts by candidates for public office within specified periods before primary, general, or special elections to: (1) the normal and usual unit charges (currently, the lowest unit charge) for the time involved; or (2) 70 percent of that amount for House candidates who have agreed to voluntary campaign expenditure limitations.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 1990
Financial Incentives Going to Help Towns Fighting Drugs Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow taxpayers to designate that one dollar of their tax liability be paid to the Local Anti-Drug Program Trust Fund. Establishes such Fund for grants to counties for: (1) law enforcement activities regarding drug-related crimes; (2) education, prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation programs regarding drug abuse; and (3) grants to units of general local government.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 1990
Provides for higher rates of basic pay (108 percent of otherwise applicable rates) for Federal employees within a consolidated metropolitan statistical area of which the District of Columbia is a part.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 1990
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the 25th anniversary of the enactment of the Older Americans Act of 1965 and its successful implementation should be recognized; (2) contributions at all levels of the aging network should be acknowledged and commended; and (3) support for the Act and its primary goal should be reaffirmed.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 1990
Tire Recycling Incentives Act of 1990 - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to require tire producers or importers to recycle an amount of scrap tires equal to at least the amount determined by multiplying the amount of tires produced or imported that year by the recycling percentage established by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Authorizes compliance by: (1) recycling scrap tires through reintroducing the reclaimed rubber into a manufacturing process to produce new tires or retread old tire casings; or (2) purchasing recycling credits under this Act. Requires such individuals to report annually to the Administrator on the amount of tires produced or imported. Directs the Administrator to establish a recycling percentage that is five percentage points higher than the existing recycling rate for tires. Provides for increases in such percentage of five points annually in the ten years following the date of enactment of this Act. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations allowing recyclers to create credits for tire recycling and tire producers or importers to purchase such credits. Sets forth: (1) specified recordkeeping requirements for owners or operators of tire sale and installation facilities and tire producers and importers; and (2) the amount of credits allowed for scrap tires. Directs the Attorney General to determine the effects of the credit system on competition within the tire and scrap tire recycling industries and to report annually to the Congress. Sets the recycling percentage at 60 percent if the Administrator fails to promulgate regulations. Directs the Administrator to: (1) publish in the Federal Register minimum requirements for State scrap tire management and procedures under which such requirements shall be incorporated into State solid waste management plans; (2) provide for expedited review of State plans which include specified scrap tire recycling measures; and (3) establish standards to minimize health and environmental damages from the improper disposal and storage of tires. Requires such standards to provide for: (1) bans on the disposal of tires in land disposal facilities; (2) State inventories of scrap tire collection facilities, tire advisory boards, and scrap tire abatement plans; (3) agreements between facilities which distribute more than 1,000 tires annually and licensed tire haulers for the exclusive hauling of scrap tires by licensed haulers; and (4) prohibitions on the transportation of scrap tires by transporters without transportation identification numbers, with specified exceptions. Directs the Administrator to publish guidelines for States for the issuance of permits to scrap tire storage, processing, transfer, and recycling facilities. Provides for: (1) limits on the size of scrap tire piles at such facilities; (2) bans on open burning within 50 feet of a scrap tire pile; (3) regulations on vegetation, rodent, and mosquito control at such facilities; and (4) different requirements for collection and storage facilities located in 100-year flood plains or other areas where water resources are critical. Requires the Administrator to promulgate guidelines for States for facility emergency plans. Directs facility owners or operators to maintain and update emergency preparedness manuals. Requires facility operators to notify the State immediately in the event of an emergency with potential offsite impacts. Sets forth specified emergency and operational recordkeeping, reporting, and inspection requirements. Requires all regulated facilities to have appropriate financial responsibility or insurance to maintain the facility for at least five years after closure. Exempts specified persons from permitting requirements. Requires the Secretary of the Interior, together with the heads of agencies responsible for public lands or military installations, to implement a plan to remediate tire piles. Applies plan requirements to the National Railroad Passenger Corporation. Directs the Administrator to develop a guideline for procuring goods that make use of scrap or used tires. Permits States to: (1) enter into consent orders with owners and operators of scrap tire collection facilities for proper management and abatement of scrap tires; and (2) levy fines on facilities for noncompliance. Imposes fines on tire facilities and landfills for specified violations of this Act. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 1990
Designates the week of June 24 through June 30, 1990, as National Sheriffs' Week in honor of the 50th anniversary of the National Sheriffs' Association.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1990
Repeals the provision of the Revenue Reconciliation Act of 1989 which requires the withholding of income tax from wages paid for agricultural labor. Requires the Internal Revenue Code to be applied as though such provision had not been enacted.
United States · United States Congress · 22 February 1990
Benjamin Franklin Memorial Fire Service Bill of Rights Act - Title I: Minting of Benjamin Franklin National Memorial Commemorative Coin - Benjamin Franklin National Memorial Commemorative Coin Act - Provides for the sale of Benjamin Franklin commemorative coins at a surcharge of which 25 percent shall be paid to the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial and the remainder be distributed in specified percentages to the National Fire Center and Museum Account, the National Hero Scholarship Account, the Firefighter Tuition Assistance Account, the Hazardous Materials Response Computer Account, the Research and Education Account, and the Burn Research Grant Account of the Firefighter Assistance Trust Fund (Fund). Prohibits the issuance of such coins from resulting in any net cost to the Federal government. Title II: Fire Service Bill of Rights - Fire Service Bill of Rights Act - Amends the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 to establish a fire service bill of rights. Establishes the National Fire Center and Museum in the District of Columbia to provide information about the fire service and safety to the public and fire services. Establishes a National Hero Scholarship to fund the higher education of a child, spouse, or dependent parent of a deceased firefighter. Establishes a scholarship providing tuition assistance to firefighters for higher education in fire safety or protection. Authorizes the Administrator of the United States Fire Administration to use amounts in the Research and Education Account of the Fund to fund other specified programs under the Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 and the provision of information concerning surplus Federal property and infectious diseases pursuant to this Act. Establishes the Firefighter Assistance Trust Fund. Places the National Academy for Fire Prevention and Control within the United States Fire Administration. Directs the Administrator to provide States with funds from the Hazardous Materials Response Computer Account of the fund for distribution to local fire services that wish to purchase computer equipment. Directs the Administrator to make a grant from the Burn Research Grant Account of the Fund to one national firefighter's burn foundation dedicated to reducing burn injuries. Requires the Administrator to prepare and make available to fire services, upon request, a manual describing Federal procedures for disposing of surplus property and highlighting how fire services could obtain such property. Directs the Administrator to distribute to such marshals information on the infectious diseases to which firefighters are particularly vulnerable. Permits the Administrator, in certain circumstances, to award to a domestic firm a contract that, under the use of competitive procedures, would be awarded to a foreign firm.
United States · United States Congress · 22 February 1990
Calls for the retention of sanctions against South Africa under the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act until all conditions for the termination of sanctions are fulfilled and a democratic political process is established.
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 1990
National Disaster Preparedness Inventory Act of 1990 - Amends the Disaster Relief Act of 1974 to require the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to: (1) establish the Committee on Standards to identify resources and establish standards for those resources needed to provide relief and assist in search and rescue operations following a major disaster or emergency; (2) inventory resources identified by the Committee that are available to the Federal Government for such uses in a manner as to facilitate the dispatch of resources on a regional basis; (3) make the inventory available to the Governor of each State for requesting Federal assistance after a major disaster or emergency; (4) prepare a plan to deploy such resources to major disaster or emergency sites following the declaration of such by the President; and (5) request all Governors to identify the public safety officials responsible for coordinating or overseeing State and local responses to disasters and emergencies. Requires such officials to have direct and immediate access to information in the inventory to expedite State and local responses to disasters and emergencies not declared as such by the President.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 1990
Antarctic Protection and Conservation Act of 1990 - Makes it unlawful to engage in, finance, or provide assistance to, any Antarctic mineral resource activity. Directs the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere to promulgate regulations to minimize and prevent any adverse impact by tourist expeditions to the Antarctic by training and establishing qualifications for tour guides and implementing safety standards for vessel and air transportation in such area. Prohibits the financing or conducting of any tourist activity in Antarctica if such regulations are not promulgated. Applies environmental impact assessment requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 to Antarctica activities of Federal agencies or entities receiving Federal assistance. Amends the Antarctic Marine Living Resources Convention Act of 1984 to make it unlawful to engage in commercial fishing in Antarctica, except in compliance with a fishery management plan approved under the Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976. Requires the Secretary of State to enter into negotiations with the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties to conclude an agreement to: (1) permanently ban Antarctic mineral resource activities; and (2) permanently conserve and protect Antarctica's environment and ecosystems. Prescribes civil and criminal penalties for violations of this Act. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 1990
Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990 - Creates the Federal Salary Council to define local pay areas and occupational group categories that include professional, administrative, technical, clerical, law enforcement, firefighter, and health care positions. Directs the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to: (1) survey the Federal employees in such occupational categories in each local pay area at least once every three years to compare Federal rates of pay to non-Federal rates of pay for the same work; and (2) prepare appropriate alternative pay schedules. Directs the President, based on the resulting BLS report, to establish alternative pay schedules or adjust existing pay schedules where necessary to ensure the competitiveness of the Government in recruiting or retaining well-qualified employees. Requires higher rates under such schedules to be implemented through equal percentage increments over three years. Prohibits an alternative pay schedule from applying with respect to any employee who is employed outside the continental United States or elsewhere where an allowance based on living costs or environmental conditions may be paid. Prohibits employees becoming subject to an alternative pay schedule from being paid less than they would otherwise be paid under a statutory pay system schedule. Prohibits any reduction of a rate of pay under an alternative pay schedule as a result of any adjustment under this Act. Provides that if pay surveys determine that no adjustment in pay rates under an alternative pay schedule is required, such rates shall be adjusted at the same time that any pay adjustment occurs and by the overall average percentage of any adjustment in General Schedule pay rates. Provides annual pay adjustments for employees under each statutory pay system equal to the annual increase in the Employment Cost Index (a quarterly measure of the cost of labor in the private sector). Declares that increases in rates of pay under this Act are not equivalent increases in pay under provisions regarding periodic step-increases. Grants the President authority to provide for special pay rates if the Government's efforts to recruit or retain well-qualified individuals are significantly handicapped by: (1) the remoteness of the area or location involved; (2) undesirable working conditions including exposure to toxic substances; or (3) any other circumstances which the President considers appropriate. Prohibits a minimum special pay rate from exceeding the maximum statutory pay rate for the applicable grade or level. Authorizes the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to grant authority to executive department and agency heads to fix the basic pay rate of up to 400 Government-wide positions which such heads determine to be critical positions at an annual rate that does not exceed the rate for level I of the Executive Schedule. Directs agency heads, in determining whether a position is critical, to consider to the extent to which: (1) the position requires scientific, technical, professional, or administrative qualifications; and (2) additional compensation is necessary to recruit or retain exceptionally qualified individuals. Allows such authority to be reexercised when such a position becomes vacant and is refilled if: (1) an agency head determines that the position remains a critical position; and (2) the Director reconfirms his or her original allocation of critical-position pay authority among executive departments and agencies. Eliminates the GS-11 grade requirement for paying new employees above the minimum rate of the appropriate grade. Creates a new pay system for administrative law judges and contract appeals board members consisting of at least three pay rates to be established and thereafter adjusted by the President. Sets the maximum rate at level IV of the Executive Schedule and the minimum rate at a grade GS-16, Step 1. Requires the Office of Personnel Management to determine which of such rates shall be paid to individual administrative law judges or contract appeals board members according to criteria prescribed by the Office.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 1990
Permits the reimbursement of a patient's regular physician under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act for services provided to such patient by another physician who occasionally covers for the regular physician.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1990
Medicare Supplemental Insurance Reform Act of 1990 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to prohibit a Medicare supplemental policy from being sold in any State if the policy's premium exceeds its premium for the previous year by a percentage greater than the projected percentage increase in Medicare costs, unless the premium increase has been approved by the State pursuant to a specified process providing for the detailed review of the reasonableness of such increase. Prohibits the sale of a Medicare supplemental policy which has neither been certified by the Secretary of Health and Human Services as meeting NAIC (National Association of Insurance Commissioners) Model Standards and returning a specified percentage of premiums as benefits, nor determined by a State regulatory program to be returning the requisite percentage of premiums as benefits. Increases the percentage of premiums which must be returned to policyholders as benefits. Requires that each State having a Medicare supplemental policy regulatory program maintain and make available to consumers a listing of the most recent year's ratio of benefits provided to, and premiums collected for, each policy sold in the State.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 1990
Amends the National Labor Relations Act to make it an unfair labor practice for an employer to offer or grant: (1) permanent replacement employee status during a labor dispute; or (2) any employment preference to an individual who worked or indicated a willingness to work during a labor dispute over an employee who exercised specified rights during such dispute.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 1990
Budget Process Reform Act of 1990 - Title I: Repeal of Part C of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 and Amendments Relating to the President's Budget - Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to repeal provisions concerning: (1) emergency powers to eliminate deficits in excess of maximum deficit amounts, including sequestration; and (2) prohibitions against the Presidents budget exceeding the maximum deficit amount. Title II: Permanent Amendments to the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 - Amends the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to revise the congressional budget process, including the budget timetable. Removes prohibitions against exceeding the maximum deficit amount through the concurrent resolution on the budget. Excludes from budget totals: (1) government-sponsored enterprises; and (2) changes in the level of new budget authority, new spending requirements, outlays, or revenues resulting from new timing shifts. Provides for credit and deposit insurance accounting. Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to revise provisions regarding fiscal procedures and to add procedures governing contract or borrowing authority, direct loan obligations or loan guarantee commitments, and offsetting collections. Requires the Congressional Budget Office to use revenue estimates prepared by the Joint Committee on Taxation, if timely received for purposes of providing information on legislation affecting income, payroll, excise, estate or gift taxes. Requires the Congressional Budget Office to include in its report to the Budget Committees five-year projections of fiscal spending, revenues, and tax expenditures. Title III: Debt Legislation - Requires conference reports on concurrent resolutions on the budget to be considered first in the House of Representatives. Title IV: Pay-As-You-Go - Pay-As-You-Go Act of 1990 - Provides for calculating the baseline (a projection of base-year levels of new budget authority, outlays, revenues, and the surplus or deficit into the budget year and the outyears based on laws enacted before the beginning of the budget year), the budget base during the deficit reduction period, and the budget base during the budget neutrality period. Establishes the budget year deficit requirement for FY 1991, 1992, and 1993. Sets forth multiyear requirements for the deficit reduction period. Requires the Congress to use baseline and budget base estimates prepared by the Congressional Budget Office. Requires the President's budget to meet deficit requirements set forth under this Act. Title V: Conforming Amendments - Makes amendments to Federal law, the Standing Rules of the Senate, and the Rules of the House of Representatives to conform to provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 1990
Provides for all Federal civilian and military retirees to receive the full cost-of-living adjustment in annuities payable under Federal retirement systems for FY 1991. (Includes benefits payable under the Civil Service Retirement and Disability System, military retirement and survivor benefit programs, the Foreign Service Retirement and Disability System, the Central Intelligence Agency Retirement and Disability System, and railroad retirement programs.)
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 1990
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the current inquiries into the activities of the British West Midlands Crime Squad must be extended to cover the period of the Birmingham bombings of November 21, 1974; (2) the British Prime Minister should call upon the British Home Secretary to reopen the case of the Birmingham Six (those convicted for the bombings); (3) the convictions of such individuals should be quashed; and (4) the President should raise with the British Prime Minister concern for the basic human rights violations and miscarriage of justice arising from the continued incarceration of such individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 1990
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) it would be inequitable for Civil Service retirees to receive smaller cost-of-living adjustments to their pensions than Social Security retirement beneficiaries; and (2) any budget adopted by the Congress should provide for full cost-of-living adjustments for all individuals receiving a Federal retirement pension or benefit.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 1990
Makes it unlawful to ship or transport any solid waste generated in a State into another State for treatment or disposal if such shipment or transportation is in violation of the laws of the recipient State. Authorizes States to enact and enforce laws regulating the treatment and disposition of solid waste, including laws regulating the importation of such wastes into States. Prescribes penalties for violations of this Act, including up to ten years' imprisonment for subsequent violations. Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, by regulation, to require persons transporting or shipping more than 100 pounds of solid waste in interstate commerce to submit annual registration statements. Directs the Administrator, upon request, to make such statements available to the public.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 1990
Rose Kushner Medicare Screening Mammography Act of 1990 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to cover screening mammographies for women over age 34 at a frequency which varies on the basis of a woman's age and risk of developing breast cancer. Finances such coverage by increasing the Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) premium.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 1990
Department of Environmental Protection Act - Title I: Establishment of Department of Environmental Protection - Redesignates the Environmental Protection Agency as the Department of Environmental Protection, an executive department to be administered by a Secretary of Environmental Protection. Establishes within the Department: (1) an Office of International Environmental Affairs; (2) an Office of Enforcement; and (3) a Center for Environmental Statistics (Center). Encourages the Secretary to assist the Secretary of State in negotiating and administering international environmental protection agreements and participating in the work of international environmental protection organizations. Encourages the Secretary to continue the Department's role in conducting international environmental research and providing technical assistance to other nations to improve environmental quality. Requires the Secretary to establish an Advisory Committee on Environmental Statistics to advise the Center and the Congress on the collection and dissemination of statistical data. Directs the Secretary to maintain a comprehensive guide to the Department's environmental and public health information services. Requires the Secretary to establish an Advisory Committee on Public Access to provide recommendations on improving public access to departmental information. Directs the Secretary to: (1) study the use of computer telecommunications and other means to provide for access to such information; and (2) permit the reduction or waiver of user fees for such access. Title II: Commission on Environmental Administration - Establishes the Commission on Environmental Administration to analyze and make recommendations on specified reorganization and management issues in the Department. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1989
Conservation Reserve Program Enhancement Act of 1989 - Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to extend the conservation reserve program (CRP) through the 1995 crop year. Shortens contract length to five years (reduced from ten) for conservation priority areas. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to acquire 50-year easements for conservation, water quality, recreational, and wildlife purposes on property enrolled in the conservation reserve upon termination of contracts. Allows designation of watershed areas of special environmental sensitivity as conservation priority areas. Authorizes program participation incentives to farmers, including one-time bonuses, higher rental premiums, narrower filter strips, allowing CRP acreage to count toward set-aside land, and paying up to 90 percent of conservation costs. Encourages tree planting.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1989
Federal Fire Service Pay Schedule Act of 1989 - Establishes a pay schedule for Federal fire service personnel. Excludes employees of the District of Columbia from such schedule. Provides for periodic and additional step increases, minimum hours of work, the computation of overtime, educational incentive service step increases, retirement, pay comparability, and additional compensation for technicians.
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 1989
National Forest Hunter Safety and Protection Act of 1989 - Prescribes civil penalties for knowingly interfering with the conduct of a lawful hunt in a national forest or on lands affected with a Federal interest. Authorizes injunctive relief, the recovery of actual and punitive damages, and the awarding of attorney's fees. Grants hunting and sportsman's organizations standing under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1989
Waste Materials Management Act of 1989 - Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 through 1993 to carry out the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Title I: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitles A and B of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to revise provisions concerning congressional findings and objectives. Declares it to be U.S. national policy that: (1) the creation of surplus and remnant material from production processes shall be reduced and residuals from post-consumer products shall be managed as material resources; (2) materials are to be managed at Federal, State, and local levels using specified waste reduction and management strategies; and (3) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the States shall not differentiate in the enforcement of this Act on the basis of whether an owner or person engaged in waste disposal activities is a public or private person, whether a facility is located on or off the premises where waste is generated, or whether an activity is carried out on or off the premises where the waste is generated. Requires the Inspector General of the EPA to report annually to the Congress on the implementation of, and compliance with, the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Adds specified annual reporting requirements. Directs the Administrator, for five years following the date of enactment of this Act, to identify five of the most toxic and common constituents of municipal waste. Requires the Administrator to consider, with respect to each of the constituents, imposing the following: (1) a ban on the use of such a constituent in production; (2) a ban on disposal in landfills or treatment in incinerators of any product containing such a constituent; (3) a requirement for special management standards for such products after discard; and (4) a requirement for the use of a substitute constituent. Permits the Administrator to impose such bans or requirements only by promulgating regulations. Requires the Administrator to publish annually in the Federal Register any information on such actions. Prohibits the disposal of used lead-acid batteries other than by recycling in accordance with this Act. Requires persons to dispose of such batteries only by delivery to: (1) battery retailers or wholesalers; or (2) secondary lead smelters or collection or recycling facilities permitted by a State or the Administrator. Sets forth battery disposal requirements for retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers. Makes violators of such requirements subject to fines under the Federal criminal code. Requires battery retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers to accept from customers used batteries of the same type as the batteries sold. Directs retailers to post a notice for customers containing information about the illegality of improperly disposed batteries, the requirements for accepting and disposing of batteries, and the merits of conservation. Permits the Administrator to inspect any establishment pursuant to this Act and to issue warnings and citations for noncompliance. Subjects persons who fail to post notices after receiving a warning to penalties of up to $1,000 per day. Requires battery wholesalers who sell batteries to retailers to provide for removal of batteries from the retailers' place of business. Prohibits the charging of fees for accepting batteries from customers. Considers violations of battery collection requirements to be misdemeanors. Requires the Administrator to study and report to the Congress on the disposal and potential recyclability of household dry-cell batteries and the need for legislation, regulation, or further study on the disposal and recyclability of such batteries. Title II: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitle C of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Identifies as a hazardous waste a waste containing more than .1 percent of any constituent listed in appendix VIII to part 261 of title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations, unless the Administrator establishes another level for such constituent. Provides that: (1) the mixing of a hazardous waste with any other matter constitutes treatment requiring a permit; and (2) dilution of a hazardous waste through such mixing, such that the resulting mixture does not exceed the established concentration levels, does not alter the character of the material as a hazardous waste. Authorizes the granting of petitions to remove from the list a hazardous waste for periods of up to five years. Permits subsequent renewals of such petitions. Requires the Administrator to charge fees for the submission of such petitions. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations on the following characteristics of hazardous waste: (1) acute and aquatic toxicity; (2) persistence and bioaccumulation potential; (3) radioactivity; (4) carcinogenicity; (5) mutagenicity; and (6) phytotoxicity. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring: (1) owners or operators of facilities which use materials containing hazardous constituents listed in the Code of Federal Regulations in a manufacturing process to test the waste generated for the presence of such constituents; and (2) owners or operators of facilities generating hazardous waste subject to land disposal prohibitions to test the waste to determine if it meets applicable treatment standards. Provides for routine testing at least every two years and additional testing when a significant change in generation or waste management processes occurs. Requires the Administrator to carry out hazardous waste programs directly in States unless a State is authorized to administer such requirements. Requires the Administrator, if a State's program is equivalent, to grant interim authorization to such State to administer such program in lieu of direct administration by the Administrator. Directs States with hazardous waste programs to report annually to the Administrator on such programs. Prohibits the Administrator from identifying used oil as a hazardous waste under the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Provides that any fuel derived from used oil that does not meet used oil specifications established by the Administrator and would otherwise be identified as a hazardous waste shall be deemed to be a hazardous waste. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations for persons who generate, transport, recycle, or dispose of used oil. Requires the Administrator, in developing such regulations, to conduct an analysis of the economic impact of such regulations on the used oil recycling industry. Provides that regulations for used oil generators shall: (1) prohibit the storage of used oil in an underground storage tank unless such tank meets requirements under this Act; (2) prohibit the storage of used oil for more than 12 months; (3) require generators to transfer such oil to specified permitted used oil recycling or disposal facilities or transporters; and (4) require generators to keep specified records on such oil. Requires used oil transporter regulations to provide that such transporters: (1) acquire identification numbers from EPA; (2) meet applicable financial responsibility requirements; and (3) keep specified records. Provides that used oil recycler regulations shall require recyclers to: (1) keep specified records; (2) test fuel produced from the recycling process before departure from the facility; and (3) obtain certain permits. Requires used oil disposal regulations to prohibit mixing used oil with any hazardous waste identified under the Solid Waste Disposal Act unless the resulting mixture does not exhibit hazardous waste characteristics or the mixture is burned to recover useful energy in a device designed such that protection of human health and the environment is assured. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring owners or operators of new and existing recycling facilities to have class permits. Provides for annual inspections of such facilities to assure permit compliance. Sets forth requirements for interim class permits. Exempts from permit requirements: (1) facilities which refine at least 10,000 barrels daily of crude oil into petroleum products, are classified as S.I.C. number 2911 (pursuant to the Office of Management and Budget Standard Classification Manual) facilities, and whose volume of refined used oil is less than one percent of the total crude oil refined into lubricant base stock annually; and (2) facilities which compound or blend lubricating base oil into finished lubricant products as their principal activity, are classified as S.I.C. number 2899 or 2992 facilities, and whose volume of used oil compounded or blended into such products is no more than ten percent of the lubricating base oil compounded or blended annually. Exempts from used oil regulation requirements on-site activities at facilities classified as S.I.C. number 4911 facilities. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations governing such facilities. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations establishing specification standards for fuel derived from used oil to be burned in furnaces and boilers. Sets forth requirements to be effective if the Administrator fails to promulgate used oil regulations by the applicable deadline. Requires the Administrator to implement education programs to inform the public and small businesses about the environmental and safety hazards associated with improper handling and disposal of used oil and the benefits derived from used oil recycling. Authorizes appropriations. Requires producers or importers of lubricating oil to recycle for a period of ten years an amount of used oil equal to at least the amount determined by multiplying the amount of lubricating oil produced or imported that year by such persons by the recycling percentage established by the Administrator. Authorizes such individuals to comply with this Act by: (1) recycling (through re-refining) used oil or purchasing re-refined oil for purposes of producing lubricating oil; or (2) purchasing recycling credits under this Act. Requires producers and importers to report annually to the Administrator on the amount of oil produced or imported by such persons. Directs the Administrator to establish a recycling percentage that is two points higher than the existing recycling rate for lubricating oil. Provides for increases in such percentage of two points annually for ten years. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations allowing recyclers to create credits for used oil recycling and producers or importers of lubricating oil to purchase such credits. Provides that such regulations shall require: (1) owners or operators of used oil collection centers to keep receipts issued by transporters who take delivery of such oil and copies of agreements under which the transporter agrees to take such oil to a recycling facility; (2) such owners or operators to certify that oil taken by transporters is not mixed with hazardous wastes; (3) owners or operators of recycling facilities to be the only persons to create a recycling credit for the recycling credit system; (4) recyclers to certify that the substance being recycled is used oil that has not been mixed with hazardous wastes; (5) oil proposed to be recycled to have come from a used oil collection place or a transporter with an identification number; (6) specified records to be kept by recyclers and by importers or producers; and (7) recyclers to sell or distribute in commerce such oil as specification used oil, off-specification used oil, industrial specification used oil, or re-refined oil. Directs the Administrator to report to the Congress on such regulations and to include: (1) a discussion of the effects of such regulations on the oil industry and the environment; and (2) an evaluation of the level of the recycling percentage and whether such percentage should be increased in future years. Requires an updated version of such report to be submitted within ten years of this Act's enactment. Applies recycling requirements to persons who import or produce more than 100,000 gallons of lubricating oil annually. Sets the recycling percentage at 40 percent if the Administrator fails to promulgate such regulations. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring owners or operators of existing and new hazardous waste facilities to have class permits. Requires such permits to include provisions for: (1) public notice and comment; (2) environmental monitoring; (3) closure and post closure requirements; (4) financial responsibility; (5) annual on-site inspections; and (6) penalties for noncompliance. Requires the Administrator to impose additional requirements, as necessary. Requires the following facilities, unless excluded from regulation, to have such permits: (1) recycling facilities; (2) facilities engaged in precious metal recovery; (3) facilities engaged in spent lead-acid battery reclamation; and (4) hazardous waste storage facilities. Title III: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitle D of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Subtitle A: Provisions Relating to Solid Waste Management Plans - Revises requirements for State solid waste management plans. Requires such plans to include: (1) an estimate of the capacity of the State to manage such waste; (2) permit programs; (3) solid waste recycling, reduction, incineration, and land disposal elements; (4) an overall waste materials strategy to cover one of two specified planning periods; (5) waste inventories; (6) personnel training and public education; (7) requirements for the management of household hazardous waste, tires, yard waste, and large household appliances; and (8) annual reporting requirements. Sets forth submission, approval, and implementation procedures for State plans. Authorizes a State with an approved plan and certification of compliance to: (1) prohibit the transportation of solid waste generated from another State into such State for disposal, storage, or incineration purposes; (2) prohibit the incineration, disposal, or storage of such waste; and (3) levy fees on solid waste or solid waste transporters that differentiate rates or other aspects of payment on the basis of waste origin. Requires such State, prior to exercising such authority, to certify to the Administrator that it has: (1) completed construction on facilities that will provide at least 70 percent of the capacity for solid waste management needed to implement the State plan; and (2) completed siting approval on facilities that will provide 100 percent of such capacity. Prohibits the interstate transport of solid waste in any State: (1) that does not have an approved plan within a specified time period; (2) that cannot certify continuing compliance; or (3) for which that the Administrator has withdrawn approval of the State plan. Permits the Administrator to develop a plan for, and charge, any State that has not submitted a plan. Requires States to establish permit programs and issue permits to solid waste management facilities in compliance with this Act. Prohibits the incineration, storage, or disposal of such waste at, or the transportation of such waste to, facilities without permits. Sets forth transitional permit requirements and deadlines. Limits permit terms to ten years and provides for permit modifications, as appropriate. Authorizes States to grant variances from permit requirements if demonstrated that no adverse effects to human health or the environment will result from such variances. Subtitle B: Provisions Relating to Federal Requirements - Directs the Administrator to promulgate standards, guidelines, and regulations for: (1) municipal solid waste landfills; (2) municipal solid waste incinerators; (3) industrial waste; (4) above-ground storage tanks; and (5) other waste categories, as appropriate. Permits State Governors to petition the Administrator for the promulgation of additional standards, guidelines, and regulations. Sets forth requirements for municipal solid waste landfills, to include: (1) specified detection and monitoring controls; (2) daily cover; (3) closure and postclosure requirements; (4) financial responsibility and corrective action requirements; (5) groundwater monitoring; (6) liners and leachate collection and removal systems, as appropriate; (7) construction quality assurance plans; and (8) prohibitions on landfills being located within the 100-year flood plain, within specified distances of faults, or within seismic impact zones or other unstable areas, unless certain conditions have been met. Requires the Administrator to publish guidelines for identifying materials which should be removed from solid waste before its incineration in a municipal solid waste incinerator. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations applicable to the operation and management of municipal solid waste incinerators and to the disposal or recycling and reuse of municipal solid waste incinerator ash. Prohibits the disposal of ash in units that are created as a result of vertical expansion of an existing waste disposal facility unless it is demonstrated that there will be no settling of waste that would impair the integrity of the liners. Requires that landfills into which such ashes are disposed provide for groundwater monitoring and: (1) place such ashes in a monofill having a leachate collection system and a single liner designed and operated to prevent the migration of any constituent into such liner; or (2) have two or more liners and a leachate collection system above and between such liners. Provides that landfill design requirements shall not apply to alternatively-designed units if demonstrated that such designs prevent such migration. Directs the Administrator to prescribe criteria and testing procedures for identifying the hazardous properties of municipal incinerator ash so that ash which does not exhibit such properties may be placed in sanitary landfills meeting current criteria under specified conditions. Requires ash which is hazardous to human health or the environment to be treated prior to recycling or reuse. Prohibits, four years after this Act's enactment, the operation of incinerators and the receipt of ash for treatment, storage, disposal, reuse, or recycling without a permit or prior approval under a State program. Requires civil penalties imposed against local governments for violations of this Act to be deposited into a trust fund for programs that serve to enhance the protection of human health and the environment. Sets forth transitional provisions. Requires the Administrator to identify, classify, and report to the Congress and States on specified types of industrial waste. Directs generators or transporters of such waste and owners or operators of facilities handling such waste to file notifications with the State concerning facility locations and descriptions of activities and wastes handled. Sets forth requirements for industrial waste management, to include: (1) authorizations to operate; (2) monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements; (3) performance standards; (4) financial responsibility assurances; (5) design, operating, closure, and postclosure criteria; and (6) corrective action requirements. Applies such requirements to the following facilities: (1) industrial waste facilities that produce such waste and are not implementing closure or postclosure plans; and (2) inactive or abandoned facilities that are reactivated. Requires the Administrator to study the adverse effects on human health and the environment of the disposal of other nonhazardous waste. Directs the Administrator to promulgate solid waste storage regulations. Excludes from such regulations storage at transportation-related facilities. Requires State plans and permits to include requirements for municipal solid waste landfills and incinerators and for industrial wastes. Subtitle C: Other Provisions - Directs the Administrator to compile and periodically update a non-hazardous solid waste inventory to determine, by State or region: (1) an estimate of the amount of such waste to be generated annually and likely to be generated in each of the next 20 years; and (2) the capacity of existing and proposed waste management facilities. Sets forth Federal enforcement provisions. Prescribes civil and criminal penalties for violations of solid waste management requirements. Title IV: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitle H of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Requires the Administrator to: (1) develop model recycling programs for States and localities; and (2) carry out a continuing program to evaluate demonstrated waste management technologies that could be used by municipalities and report periodically on such program. Prohibits the Administrator from funding the development or demonstration of such technologies. Title V: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitle I of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations applicable to above-ground storage tanks. Applies such requirements to all tanks except those subject to the requirements of subtitle C of the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Exempts from this Act's requirements releases of small quantities of regulated substances which will not endanger human health and the environment and particular tanks, as appropriate. Requires such regulations to include requirements for field-erected tanks. Directs owners and operators of such tanks to implement release prevention plans which provide for release prevention systems capable of: (1) catching and holding 110 percent of the full capacity of the tank and preventing releases beyond tank boundaries; and (2) restraining drainage and preventing contamination of soil and water. Requires the plan and system to be inspected by a registered engineer who is not employed by the owner or operator. Directs the engineer, if the system does not reflect good engineering practices or the tank does not comply with the regulations, to notify the Administrator or the State. Provides for amendments of release prevention plans whenever there is a major modification in the tank which affects the tank's potential to release substances. Sets forth recordkeeping and reporting requirements for field-operated tanks. Prohibits the operation of such tanks after a release unless the Administrator determines that such prohibition is not necessary. Requires the regulations to include requirements for shop-fabricated tanks. Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish an inspection program for such tanks in the factory when construction is complete and before the tanks enter interstate commerce; and (2) require such tanks to bear labels with specified manufacturing, capacity, and use information. Provides for requirements relating to the installation of such tanks. Directs the Administrator, as necessary, to promulgate financial responsibility requirements for taking corrective action and compensating third parties for bodily injury and property damage caused by accidental releases from above-ground storage tanks. Permits the establishment of financial responsibility for a spill by any means the Administrator deems appropriate. Authorizes the assertion of claims against guarantors providing evidence of financial responsibility for claims against insolvent owners or operators of tanks. Limits guarantor liability to the aggregate amount which the guarantor has provided as evidence of financial responsibility to the owner or operator. Authorizes the Administrator to establish coverage requirements which may vary among particular classes or categories of above-ground storage tanks. Permits the Administrator to make grants to States for carrying out enforcement requirements. Authorizes a State to submit for the Administrator's review and approval a program under which such State would assume primary responsibility for the enforcement of regulations pertaining to above-ground storage tanks. Requires that State regulation and enforcement procedures be at least as stringent as those used by the Administrator. Requires the Administrator to: (1) monitor State programs for compliance with this Act's requirements; and (2) provide technical assistance to assist States, local governments, and owners and operators in complying with this title. Authorizes the Administrator to issue compliance orders or commence civil actions against violators of this Act's requirements, but requires that prior notification be given to States operating their own programs. Imposes criminal and civil monetary penalties for violations of this Act's requirements. Makes tank owners and operators liable for the Administrator's corrective action costs and damages. Authorizes the Administrator to require a tank owner or operator to undertake corrective action in response to any release of a regulated substance from the tank when such action will be done properly and promptly. Permits the Administrator, upon notification of a release, to prohibit operations in a facility until such action has been taken. Authorizes the Administrator to take corrective action where the owner or operator fails to take prompt and effective action and human health and the environment are endangered. Prohibits indemnification agreements from transferring liability under this title. Prohibits States or political subdivisions from enforcing requirements for shop-fabricated tanks that are more stringent than those imposed under this title. Authorizes appropriations. Prohibits the Administrator from enforcing financial responsibility regulations with respect to an owner or operator of an underground storage tank if such owner or operator has applied for insurance. Revises provisions concerning financial responsibility for such tanks. Requires the Administrator to evaluate and report to the Congress on the effects of financial responsibility regulations on the cost and availability of insurance used to demonstrate financial responsibility. Title VI: Waste Materials Reduction - Authorizes any person to petition a Federal agency to undertake a waste reduction action if such action would bring about at least a ten percent increase in recycling of the petitioned item, reduce by at least ten percent the total volume or toxic constituents of a waste described in the petition, or would bring about a net savings in true cost to the Federal Government or be neutral in effect or cost. Requires each Federal agency to designate a waste reduction officer to oversee compliance with Federal agency waste reduction requirements, prepare agency waste reduction plans, and report annually to the Administrator on the implementation of such plans. Directs the Administrator to establish a clearinghouse within EPA to collect and disseminate information on waste reduction and recycling. Makes such information available to the public. Requires the Administrator to establish a commission to study and report to the President and the Congress on waste reduction with respect to consumer products and packaging. Provides for the submission of periodic reports by the commission on the status of waste reduction efforts by the Federal Government and industry. Terminates the commission five years after the date of its establishment. Title VII: Procurement and Marketing of Recycled Materials - Applies Federal procurement requirements concerning recycled goods to States or other entities if such entities use funds appropriated to a Federal agency to which such procurement requirements apply. Directs the Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy to report to the Congress on the effect of a certain price preference concerning the procurement of recycled paper products. Requires affirmative procurement programs to include: (1) programs for monitoring compliance by States, political subdivisions, and contractors with recovered materials procurement requirements; and (2) a requirement that paper procured for uses which have enduring value be permanent paper. Requires such agencies to report annually to the Administrator on such programs and on the amount and value of recovered materials procured. Makes such report available to the public. Directs the EPA Administrator to: (1) report biennially to the Congress on the progress made by Federal agencies in implementing recovered materials procurement programs; and (2) review and revise, if necessary, guidelines concerning such programs which were prepared before this Act's enactment. Prohibits Federal agencies from entering into procurement contracts with any persons convicted of specified offenses of the Solid Waste Disposal Act if such a contract is to be performed at the facility at which the violation occurred. Authorizes the President to make exemptions to such prohibition. Requires the President to report annually to the Congress on the implementation of such prohibition. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to conduct a biennial survey that: (1) identifies the major domestic uses for, and users of, recovered and recycled materials; (2) documents or estimates the amounts of such materials used, exported, and imported annually; and (3) identifies the markets for such materials and the products made from such materials. Requires the Secretary and the Administrator to establish an interagency working group to: (1) promote markets in recovered and recycled materials and link sources of such materials with potential markets; (2) work cooperatively with generators, collectors, transporters, users, and regulators of such materials and with manufacturers of products containing such materials; (3) link businesses dealing in such materials with potential sources of capital; (4) educate government and business officials about potential commerce in such materials; (5) coordinate efforts to promote lawful commerce in such materials; (6) encourage reuse and recycling of solid waste; and (7) identify the institutional, economic, and technical barriers to the use of such materials. Directs the Secretary to take such actions as may be necessary to stimulate the development of new domestic markets for such materials. Requires the Secretary and the U.S. Trade Representative to: (1) identify foreign markets for recovered materials and products containing a high content of recycled materials; and (2) assist exporters in selling such materials and products in foreign markets. Title VIII: Financial Assistance - Authorizes the Administrator to provide financial assistance to States with approved solid waste management plans to develop programs to encourage and facilitate recycling. Permits the Administrator to: (1) provide financial assistance to States and local authorities for solid waste management planning; (2) make bonus grants to municipalities or other agencies that demonstrate achievement of a recycling rate greater than 25 percent; (3) make loans to States for waste reduction activities and programs in rural areas to collect household hazardous waste and waste from small quantity generators. Title IX: Other Provisions - Permits Government agencies to retain any amounts received from sales of materials or energy recovered from solid waste. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations for the use and composition of compost made from yard waste. Revises oil labeling requirements to direct the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring packages of lubricating oil (of less than five gallons) sold in commerce to bear a label stating that used oil should be taken to collection centers. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring rigid and semi-rigid plastic packaging and products sold in commerce to bear a label identifying the plastic resin used in such packaging and products. Authorizes the Administrator, subject to certain conditions, to: (1) treat Indian tribes as States under the Solid Waste Disposal Act; (2) delegate to such tribes primary enforcement responsibility for programs under such Act; and (3) provide such tribes grant and contract assistance to carry out such functions. Permits States and Indian tribes, subject to the Administrator's approval, to enter into cooperative agreements to administer such Act. Requires the Administrator to report to the Congress on measures for addressing hazardous and solid wastes and underground storage tanks in Indian country. Directs the Administrator to undertake a continuing program to establish an inventory of hazardous waste sites and solid waste open dumps in Indian country. Requires the Administrator to assist Indian tribes that operate such dumps in upgrading such facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1989
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an excise tax on the use of virgin materials in the manufacture or production of taxable products. Establishes the Recycling Assistance and Solid Waste Management Planning Trust Fund to support certain programs under the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Provides for financing the trust fund with the excise tax on the use of virgin materials.