Bill· HRH.R. 3751 (101st)open
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 1989
Prohibits the Secretary of the Interior from issuing any oil or gas exploration leases or licenses on submerged lands off the coastlines of the eastern seaboard, western seaboard, and Alaska (the Outer Continental Shelf). Retains the leases, licenses, and permits in effect on the date of enactment of this Act. Directs the Secretary to cancel (with compensation) specified leases or permits in effect on such date. Directs the Secretary to report to the Congress on alternative options for compensating leaseholders of specified land tracts.
Bill· HRH.R. 3700 (101st)open
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1989
Freedom of Choice Act of 1989 - Provides that a State may not restrict the right of a woman to choose to terminate a pregnancy: (1) before fetal viability; or (2) at any time, if such termination is necessary to protect the life or health of the woman. Allows a State to impose requirements medically necessary to protect the life or health of such women.
Bill· HRH.R. 3677 (101st)open
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1989
Asbestos School Hazard Abatement Reauthorization Act of 1989 - Amends the Asbestos School Hazard Abatement Act of 1984 to require State Governors to maintain records on asbestos in school buildings. Deletes a requirement for the submission of asbestos abatement application materials by State Governors to the Secretary of Education. Requires State Governors, in determining the adequacy of financial resources available to a local educational agency for asbestos abatement, to consider the additional costs to such agency of meeting the needs of disadvantaged students. Removes a reporting requirement concerning actions taken by State Governors in accordance with State plans. Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to approve applications for financial assistance no later than April 30 of each year. Prohibits the provision of such assistance to applicants who are not in compliance with title II of the Toxic Substances Control Act. Requires the proceeds from the repayment of Federal asbestos abatement loans and assistance recovery lawsuits to be deposited into the Asbestos Trust Fund. Removes a condition on the provision of financial assistance which requires the submission of an application within five years of the enactment of the Asbestos School Hazard Abatement Act of 1984. Prohibits the approval of assistance applications unless the local educational agency certifies that it is implementing an asbestos management plan and all abatement activities will be conducted by trained and accredited individuals in conformance with the Toxic Substances Control Act. Removes certain requirements for the promulgation by the Administrator of standards for asbestos removal contractors and the protection of school employees trained to carry out abatement activities. Requires the Administrator to report annually (until 1999) to the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on the loan and grant program under the Asbestos School Hazard Abatement Act of 1984. Authorizes appropriations for the asbestos abatement program for FY 1991 through 1995. Revises provisions concerning the allocation of appropriations. Permits up to five percent of appropriations to be reserved each fiscal year for the administration of asbestos abatement activities. Authorizes the Administrator to use up to five percent of such appropriations for grants to States for: (1) assisting local educational agencies in performing periodic reinspections and training activities; and (2) maintaining programs to accredit personnel performing asbestos inspections and response actions. Makes conforming amendments to provisions of the Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act of 1986 concerning the Asbestos Trust Fund.
Bill· HRH.R. 3663 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 1989
National Recyclable Commodities Act of 1989 - Title I: Department of Commerce Recycling Requirements - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish a Bureau of Recyclable Commodities within the Department of Commerce to promote the recycling of materials contained in municipal refuse. Requires the Secretary to gather and publish statistics on municipal refuse, pre-consumer refuse, specified types of materials contained in municipal refuse, and recycled materials. Provides for the annual updating of such statistics. Directs the Secretary to: (1) designate between six and ten multi-State regions for the purpose of regional data collection; and (2) collect and compile statistics for such regions. Requires the Secretary to revise the standard industrial classification system, as necessary, to facilitate the collection of statistics and other information on recycling and related activities. Requires the Secretary to identify and, to the extent practicable, standardize: (1) the types and grades of municipal refuse material covered under this Act that qualify as recyclable commodities; (2) the technical specifications applied to the use of recyclable commodities as raw materials or feedstocks for recycling; and (3) the test methods used in determining whether refuse materials meet specifications that apply to each commodity. Provides for the periodic revision of types and grades, as necessary. Authorizes the Secretary to assign municipal refuse materials to multiple types and grades. Requires the periodic revision of specifications and test methods to ensure continuing conformance to industry recycling standards. Directs the Secretary to establish an advisory panel to support the identification of specifications and test methods for recyclable commodities. Permits industries or local governments engaged in recycling activities to petition the Secretary for the revision of types, grades, specifications, or test methods to prevent or minimize interference with current recycling techniques. Requires the Secretary to issue a recycling advisory to potentially affected parties if a physical or chemical property or contaminant of a recyclable commodity is not adequately addressed by specifications or test methods and is interfering with: (1) current recycling techniques; (2) marketing of recycled goods manufactured from the commodity; or (3) handling of the recyclable commodity prior to recycling. Directs the Secretary to make reports available to the public, at least on a quarterly basis, on prevailing market prices for recyclable commodities. Requires the Secretary to make reports available to the public, at least annually, on: (1) the prevailing national recycling rate for each recyclable commodity; and (2) the technical and economic factors that may influence future foreign and domestic markets for recyclable commodities. Directs the Secretary to report to the Congress on the potential for expanded recycling of waste paper and paperboard, lead scrap, rubber scrap, plastic scrap, ferrous and nonferrous scrap, waste glass, and yard and food waste. Requires the Secretary to promulgate regulations requiring labeling on the recyclability and composition of packaging, containers, and nondurable goods. Sets deadlines for the promulgation of such regulations, requiring regulations for all covered items within four years of this Act's enactment. Directs the Secretary, when determining the type of label to be required on an item, to determine the recyclability of such item. Sets forth label requirements. Requires nonrecyclable items to bear a label stating that they are nonrecyclable by Federal standards. Authorizes the Secretary to establish an alternative label requirement if such alternative conveys information equivalent to labels required by this Act. Authorizes exemptions from labeling requirements if the Secretary determines that labeling will interfere with normal use or handling. Prohibits such exemptions if the manufacturer's or distributor's trade name appears on the packaging, container, or nondurable good. Requires the Secretary to review and, as necessary, revise labeling regulations. Permits industries or local governments engaged in recycling activities to petition the Secretary for revisions of regulations or labeling requirements. Directs the Secretary to publish a standardized, national recyclability seal to further assist purchasers in identifying recyclable packaging, containers, and nondurable goods. Authorizes the Secretary, when a person is in violation of labeling requirements, to: (1) issue a recall order requiring the removal of the item from sale or distribution in commerce; or (2) commence a civil action against such person. Permits the assessment of civil penalties for noncompliance with an order. Requires the Secretary to promulgate regulations defining minimum content requirements for packaging, containers, or nondurable goods labeled as recycled. Directs the Secretary to issue and periodically revise guidelines for the use of procuring agencies in complying with this Act. Requires such guidelines to set forth information concerning the procurement of recycled items. Sets deadlines for the revision and issuance of guidelines for specified items. Requires the Secretary to establish standards for the level of recycled content in recycled paper and paperboard goods purchased by procuring agencies. Phases in minimum recycled content standards for such goods, requiring 50 percent of paper goods procured by Federal agencies to have a recycled content of at least 50 percent by 1992. Permits the Secretary to establish more stringent targets and schedules for the procurement of recycled paper goods. Authorizes the Secretary to establish minimum content standards for other items, as necessary. Requires procuring agencies which procure items designated in the guidelines to procure items composed of the highest percentage of recycled content practicable or which are in conformance with minimum content standards issued by the Secretary. Makes exceptions to such requirements if procurement items: (1) are not reasonably available within a reasonable period of time; (2) fail to meet performance standards set forth in specifications or standards of the procuring agencies; or (3) are only available at an unreasonable price. States that an unreasonable price is one which exceeds the price of alternative items by more than ten percent. Requires contracting offices at procuring agencies to require vendors to: (1) certify that the percentage of recycled content used in the contract will be at least the amount required by specifications or contractual requirements; and (2) estimate the percentage of the total material used in the contract which is recycled. Applies such requirements to contracts in which the purchase price of procurement items exceeds $10,000. Directs procuring agencies to develop affirmative procurement programs to assure that items composed of recycled content will be purchased to the maximum extent practicable. Requires such agencies to: (1) adopt procedures equivalent to those specified in the guidelines and to set equivalent minimum content standards; and (2) maintain records on types, quantities, and percentages of items composed of recycled content which are purchased or contracted for by the agency and report such statistics annually to the Secretary. Requires the Secretary to report annually to the Congress on actions taken by Federal agencies to implement such procurement policies. Repeals a section of the Solid Waste Disposal Act concerning Federal procurement of recovered materials. Directs the Secretary to review and, if necessary, revise guidelines issued by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency after November 8, 1984, pursuant to Federal procurement provisions of the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Requires the Secretary to develop a program to promote the export of recyclable commodities for recycling by foreign industries. Directs the Secretary to make available to the public information identifying potential foreign buyers of recyclable commodities. Requires the Secretary to develop a program to promote the export of recycled goods produced in the United States. Directs the Secretary to integrate this program with existing programs promoting such exports. Requires the Secretary to make available to the public statistics and information on: (1) recycling techniques employed by foreign industries; (2) available export markets for recyclable commodities; (3) specifications and test methods employed by foreign industries to assess commodity quality; (4) prevailing prices in foreign markets for recyclable commodities; and (5) other information on export markets. Directs the Secretary to establish a national recycling clearinghouse through which all statistics and other information on recycling and related activities shall be made available to the public. Requires the Secretary to conduct a national advertising campaign to promote recycling and the purchase of recycled goods. Prohibits the Secretary from endorsing specific products or trade names. Authorizes the Secretary to publish recycling rates for specific refuse materials or recyclable commodities and for types of containers, packaging, or goods. Directs the Secretary to make grants to accredited institutions of higher education to establish at least four to six recycling research centers in the United States. Requires the Secretary to establish such centers equitably among the regions of the United States. Directs each center to carry out at least one project relating to research on the composting of yard waste, food waste, or waste paper and paperboard. Authorizes such centers, as necessary to conduct research, to enter into contracts with: (1) persons involved in recycling activities; (2) State and local governments; and (3) nonprofit private entities which are exempt from Federal taxation. Limits the Federal share of grants to 80 percent of the total cost of establishing and operating the research center. Prohibits the use of such grants for the acquisition of real property or for building construction. Requires at least 40 percent of the funds made available to each center to be allocated to projects performed jointly by the center and local governments with expertise in areas critical to such research. Sets forth grant selection criteria. Requires the Secretary to establish a program for the source separation and collection of materials contained in refuse from Federal agencies. Directs the Secretary to issue guidelines for such program. Requires Federal office facilities with more than 25 workers to carry out such programs. Provides for the retention by a Federal agency of any funds received from the sale of collected materials and any savings in refuse disposal costs resulting from the implementation of such programs. Authorizes the Secretary to conduct an independent technical assessment of any product specification or standard that may: (1) disfavor the use of a recyclable commodity as a substitute for comparable virgin feedstocks or raw materials in the manufacture of the product; and (2) have a substantial adverse impact on existing or potential markets for the recyclable commodity. Prohibits the Secretary from reviewing specifications or standards established by individual firms or persons. Requires the Secretary to publish and make available to the public the findings of the technical assessment. Permits industries or local governments engaged in recycling activities to petition for an independent technical assessment of any specification or standard. Requires the Secretary to establish an interagency working group to assist in the development of regulations and guidelines and the collection of information required by this Act. Sets forth provisions concerning citizen suits and judicial review of final regulations. Authorizes appropriations. Repeals a section of the Solid Waste Disposal Act concerning resource and recovery functions of the Secretary. Title II: Tax Incentives for Certain Recycling and Remanufacturing Facilities - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat qualified recycling facilities as solid waste disposal facilities under tax exempt bond rules. Exempts qualified government-owned recycling facilities from a volume cap. Allows an investment tax credit of 15 percent of the qualified investment for remanufacturing equipment. Provides that such equipment shall cease to be section 38 property when it ceases to be qualified remanufacturing property.
Resolution· HCONRESH.Con.Res. 220 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 1 November 1989
Expresses the sense of the Congress that railroad retirement benefits are exempt from reduction under the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) and that supplemental annuities payable under the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 and sequestered under a specified presidential order should be restored.
Law· HJRESH.J.Res. 425 (101st)enacted
United States · United States Congress · 23 October 1989
Designates the week of November 12 through November 18, 1989, as Community Foundation Week.
Bill· HRH.R. 3497 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 19 October 1989
Home Repairs for Older and Disabled Homeowners Act of 1989 - Directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to make grants to locally based nonprofit organizations, local governments, and Indian tribes to provide home repair services for low-income older homeowners and disabled homeowners. Authorizes appropriations. Limits grants to two-year terms. Requires the Secretary to develop and distribute a program manual.
Bill· HRH.R. 3439 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 October 1989
Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) instruct the U.S. Executive Director of each multilateral development bank to vote to give preference for debt reduction loans to those countries which show marked improvement in reducing the volume of cultivation, processing, trafficking, and export to the United States of illegal drugs; and (2) include in the detailed accounting required by the International Narcotics Control Act of 1986 a discussion of the steps taken to achieve the goals of this Act.
Bill· HRH.R. 3430 (101st)open
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 1989
Food Contamination Prevention Act - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to promulgate regulations: (1) prohibiting the transportation in commerce of hazardous, medical, recyclable, and terminal waste in any refrigerated or other vehicle designed for transporting perishable food or in any vehicle that is also used to transport any food, food additive, drug, cosmetic, or device, or any package containing such items; (2) establishing health and safety standards for the transportation in commerce of recyclable and reusable waste in vehicles that are also used to transport any food, food additive, drug, cosmetic, or device, or any package containing such items; (3) requiring any vehicle used to transport solid waste to be labeled in a manner that identifies the vehicle as a dedicated or nondedicated waste vehicle and that identifies the class of waste transported by such vehicle; (4) requiring each solid waste management facility to institute a program to ensure that all nondedicated waste vehicles that are used to transport solid waste are kept free from contaminants through the use of reasonably available current technology; and (5) establishing criteria for three classes of nonhazardous solid waste (reusable, recyclable, and terminal as defined in this Act). Prescribes criminal penalties for violation of such regulations.
Bill· HJRESH.J.Res. 417 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 1989
Designates April 24, 1990, as National Day of Remembrance of the 75th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923.
Bill· HJRESH.J.Res. 416 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 4 October 1989
Designates December 3 through December 9, 1989, as National Cities Fight Back Against Drugs Week.
Law· HRH.R. 3402 (101st)enacted
United States · United States Congress · 4 October 1989
Polish and Hungarian Democracy Initiative of 1989 - Title I: Structural Adjustment - Requires the U.S. Government, to the extent that Poland and Hungary continue to evolve toward pluralism and democracy and develop and implement comprehensive economic reform programs, to: (1) take the leadership in mobilizing international financial institutions to provide timely and appropriate resources to help Poland and Hungary; (2) use the Exchange Stabilization Fund to support the implementation of a plan of the Polish Government to attack hyperinflation and other structural economic problems, address pressing social problems, and carry out comprehensive economic reform; (3) urge all members of the Paris Club of creditor governments and other creditor governments to adopt a generous and early rescheduling program for debts owed by the Polish Government, and reschedule payments due on the debt owed by such Government to the U.S. Government that is payable during FY 1990 through 1994; and (4) make available to Poland U.S. agricultural assistance and encourage parallel efforts by the European Community and other agricultural surplus nations. Sets a minimum level of agricultural assistance to Poland for FY 1990. Requires the President to submit a report to the Congress: (1) describing the steps taken by the U.S. Government under this Act; (2) assessing Poland's requirements for additional agricultural assistance during FY 1990 and for assistance during FY 1991 through 1992; and (3) specifying how much agricultural assistance the President proposes be provided by the United States to meet those requirements. Directs the President to provide to the Congress revised assessments of Poland's requirements for agricultural assistance during FY 1991 through 1992, as additional information becomes available. Title II: Private Sector Development - Authorizes appropriations for the three-year period beginning October 1, 1989, to support the Polish-American Enterprise Fund and the Hungarian-American Enterprise Funds (Enterprise Funds). Authorizes the President to designate two private, nonprofit organizations as eligible to receive funds and support (the Enterprise Funds). Sets forth provisions with respect to the management and administration of such funds, audits, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements. Requires each Enterprise Fund to take into account such considerations as internationally recognized worker and human rights, environmental factors, U.S. economic and employment effects, and the likelihood of commercial viability of the activity receiving assistance from the Enterprise Fund. Requires the Secretary of Labor to provide technical assistance to Poland and Hungary for the implementation of labor market reforms and to facilitate adjustment during the period of economic transition and reform. Specifies types of technical assistance authorized, including assistance pertaining to job training and retraining, labor-management relations, and worker rights. Requires the President to develop and implement a program for extending basic agribusiness, commercial, entrepreneurial, financial, scientific, and technical skills to the people of Poland and Hungary to enable them to better meet their needs and develop a market economy, including management training and agricultural extension activities. Specifies agencies, programs, and organizations participating in such program. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes appropriations to carry out programs in Poland and Hungary under the Peace Corps Act. Directs that a portion of specified agricultural commodities be made available and sold or bartered to generate local currencies to be used to complement the assistance for Poland authorized by this Act. Title III: Trade and Investment - Amends: (1) the Trade Act of 1974 to make Poland eligible for the Generalized System of Preferences; and (2) the Foreign Assistance Act to make Poland and Hungary eligible for Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) programs. Directs the OPIC to support projects in Poland and Hungary which will result in enhancement of the nongovernmental sector and reduction of State involvement in the economy. Amends the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 to remove Poland and Hungary from a list of Marxist-Leninist countries. Directs the Export-Import Bank and the Agency for International Development (AID) to work with certain international financial intermediaries which will facilitate trade between the United States and Poland which is eligible for financing from such Bank. Authorizes the President to provide guarantees to the Bank for liabilities incurred in connection with guarantees or insurance provided under the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 for financing for transactions involving the export of goods and services for the use of the private sector in Poland and Hungary. Limits such guarantees to short-term guarantees and insurance extended by the Banks which shall be repayable within one year from the date of arrival at the port of importation of the goods and services covered by such guarantees or insurance. Provides that such guarantees or insurance shall: (1) be by the Administrator of AID and the Bank; and (2) provide for the establishment of a reserve fund by the administering agency. Sets forth provisions with respect to funding, the discharge of liabilities, reporting requirements, administrative and technical assistance, fees and premiums charged by the Bank, and congressional reporting requirements in connection with guarantees of insurance guaranteed by the administering agency. Authorizes appropriations. Urges the President to seek bilateral investment treaties with Poland and Hungary to establish a more stable legal framework for U.S. investment in those countries. Title IV: Educational, Cultural, and Scientific Activities - Urges the United States to: (1) expand its participation in educational and cultural exchange activities with Poland and Hungary; and (2) establish binational Fulbright commissions with Poland and Hungary to facilitate and enhance academic and scholarly exchanges with those countries. Encourages the establishment of "sister institution" programs between American and Polish, and American and Hungarian, organizations. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the Administrator to establish and administer a program to provide scholarships to enable students from Poland and Hungary to study in the United States. Authorizes the Administrator to make grants to States to provide scholarship assistance for undergraduate or graduate degree programs, and training programs of one year or longer, in study areas related to the critical development needs of Poland and Hungary. Authorizes appropriations to the Secretary of State to continue to implement the 1987 U.S.-Polish science and technology agreement for FY 1990 through 1992. Title V: Other Assistance - Authorizes appropriations to support democratic institutions and activities in Poland and Hungary. Authorizes appropriations to undertake such action (including educational, research, and technical and financial assistance) as the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) deems appropriate in protecting the environment in Poland and Hungary. Authorizes the Administrator to cooperate with Polish officials and experts to: (1) establish an air quality monitoring network in the Krakow metropolitan area as part of Poland's national air monitoring network; and (2) improve both water quality and the availability of drinking water in such area. Requires the Administrator to work with the United States and Hungarian officials and private parties to establish a regional center in Budapest for facilitating cooperative environmental activities between governmental experts and public and private organizations from the United States and Europe. Authorizes appropriations for EPA activities for FY 1990 through 1992. Directs the Secretary of Energy to cooperate with Polish officials and experts to: (1) retrofit a coal-fired commercial powerplant in Krakow, Poland, with advanced clean coal technology; and (2) assess and develop the capability within Poland to manufacture boilers or other equipment that will enable industrial facilities within Poland to burn fossil fuels cleanly. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes appropriations for medical supplies, hospital equipment, and training of Polish medical personnel. Title VI: Other Provisions - Requires: (1) the President to submit a report to the Congress on actions taken pursuant to this Act; and (2) the Secretary of State to coordinate the assistance for Poland and Hungary provided for in this Act.
Bill· HRH.R. 3390 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 1989
Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to prepare a document containing a detailed description of the benefits, limitations, procedures, requirements, and other aspects of the education programs administered by the Department. Requires the Secretary to distribute the document: (1) to individuals applying for benefits under an education program administered by the Department and to such individuals receiving benefits at least annually thereafter; (2) to education and training institution officials on at least an annual basis; and (3) upon request, to other individuals affected by education programs administered by the Secretary, including military education personnel. Adds the chapter which pertains to training and rehabilitation for veterans with service-connected disabilities to existing law provisions which: (1) require the veteran and the educational institution offering a course in which such veteran is enrolled to report to the Secretary such enrollment and any interruption or termination of the education of such veteran; (2) require the Secretary, prior to making payment of a reporting fee to an educational institution, to require such institution to certify that it has exercised reasonable diligence in determining whether such institution or any course offered by such institution approved for the enrollment of veterans meets certain applicable requirements and that it will report any failure to meet any such requirement to the Secretary; and (3) authorize the Secretary to pay to any educational institution or to any joint apprenticeship training committee acting as a training establishment a reporting fee which will be in lieu of any other compensation or reimbursement for reports or certifications which such institution or training committee is required to submit to the Secretary. Repeals portions of the work-study allowance provision relating to the number of hours worked by veterans-students and the compensation received for such work. Changes the eligibility for such allowance from veteran-students who are pursuing full-time programs of rehabilitation, education, or training to individuals who are pursuing such programs at least half-time. Authorizes the Secretary to renew payment of previously discontinued educational assistance allowances only upon finding that: (1) the veteran will be resuming enrollment at the same educational institution in the same program and such institution has both approved the veteran's reenrollment and certified it to the Department of Veterans Affairs; or (2) in the case of a proposed change of either educational institution or program of education by the veteran, the cause of the unsatisfactory conduct or progress has been removed; the program proposed to be pursued is suitable to the veteran's aptitudes, interests, and abilities; and if a proposed change of program is involved, the change meets the requirements for approval under the change of program provisions of the Veterans' Benefits statute. Makes parallel changes with respect to the survivors' and dependents' educational assistance program. Provides that payment of an educational assistance allowance in the case of an eligible individual pursuing a program of education on less than a half-time basis shall be made in a lump-sum amount for the entire quarter, semester, or term not later than the last day of the month immediately following the month in which certification is received from the educational institution that such individual has enrolled and is pursuing a program at such institution. Provides for the reduction of the entitlement provided pursuant to the apprenticeship or other on-job training provisions.
Bill· HRH.R. 3380 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 1989
Amends the Rail Passenger Service Act to repeal an exemption from specified communicable disease control requirements of the Public Health Service Act for waste disposal from railroads operating in intercity rail passenger service.
Bill· HRH.R. 3345 (101st)open
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 1989
Amends the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 to prohibit the issuance of any permit, after December 31, 1991, which authorizes a person to burn, or to transport for the purpose of burning, wood on ocean waters. Makes permits issued on or before December 31, 1991, invalid after such date.
Bill· HRH.R. 3319 (101st)open
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 1989
Requires the Director of the Office of Personnel Management to report to the Congress on a plan to subject General Schedule employees to a locality pay system by October 1, 1990, to ensure that employees working in high-cost areas are compensated at basic pay rates commensurate with the costs of living in such areas. Requires such report to include: (1) the number of employees likely to receive locality pay and the implementation costs during the first three years of such plan; (2) any benefits resulting from such plan; (3) a description of which aspects of the plan may be implemented under existing law; and (4) proposals for any legal action which may be necessary.
Bill· HRH.R. 3305 (101st)open
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 1989
Directs the Administrator of the Agency for International Development to establish a program of scholarship assistance for students from Poland and Hungary to study in the United States. Authorizes the Administrator to make grants to States to help provide such scholarship assistance for undergraduate and training programs in study areas related to the critical developmental needs of such students' respective countries. Provides for private sector participation in such program. Provides for forgiveness of such scholarship assistance if the student recipient promptly returns to his or her respective country for a certain period. Requires that funding for such program be derived from funds available to carry out specified provisions of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 relating to the economic support fund.
Bill· HRH.R. 3199 (101st)open
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1989
Veterans Health Professionals Educational Amendments of 1989 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to institute a Reserve member stipend program under the Armed Forces Educational Assistance Program. Requires an individual, in order to be eligible for such assistance, to be accepted or enrolled as a full-time student at a qualifying educational institution in a course of education or training approved by the Secretary and that leads toward completion of a degree in a health profession involving direct patient care or care incident to such direct patient care. Prohibits the Secretary from approving the application of an individual applying for such assistance unless the individual is entitled to benefits under the Reserve GI Bill program and the individual achieved a certain qualifying score on the Armed Forces Qualification Test. Authorizes the Secretary to pay a qualifying individual $400 monthly under such program. Requires a period of obligated service as a full-time employee of the Department of Veterans Affairs from a participating individual in return for such assistance. Makes such an individual liable to the United States for failure to serve in the Department at a health-care facility for the agreed upon period. Increases the reserve member stipend amount whenever there is a general Federal pay increase.
Law· HJRESH.J.Res. 392 (101st)enacted
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1989
Designates October 1989 as Italian-American Heritage and Culture Month.
Bill· HJRESH.J.Res. 397 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1989
Designates November 12 through November 18, 1989, as National Glaucoma Awareness Week.
Bill· HRH.R. 3067 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 1989
High Risk Occupational Disease Notification and Prevention Act - Establishes a Risk Assessment Board (the Board), within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), to: (1) review pertinent medical and scientific reports on the incidence of disease associated with exposure to occupational health hazards; (2) identify and designate populations at risk that should receive notification; (3) develop a form and method of notification that will be used by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the Secretary); and (4) determine the appropriate type of medical monitoring or beneficial health counseling. Sets forth factors for Board consideration and priorities in designating populations at risk of disease for notification. Directs the Secretary to make every reasonable effort to ensure that each individual within a population at risk of disease is notified of the risk. Requires the Secretary, through the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), to conduct the required notification, with specified exceptions. Allows an employer to apply to NIOSH for an exemption from such employee notification because that employer's employees are not at risk of disease because of significant mitigating factors. Provides for telephone "hot lines" and other dissemination of information. Authorizes the Secretary to certify a private employer or a State or local government to conduct notification. Provides for judicial review of Board determinations. Requires the Secretary to establish and certify ten occupational and environmental health centers to: (1) provide education, training, and technical assistance to personal physicians and health and social service professionals who serve employees notified that they are at risk under this Act; and (2) provide diagnosis, treatment, and medical monitoring and family services for such employees. Directs the Secretary to make grants to conduct research, training, and education aimed at improving the means of identifying employees exposed to occupational health hazards and improving medical assistance to such employees. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants and contracts for training and curriculum development in occupational medicine or health to schools of medicine and of nursing. Provides that such assistance shall be for projects: (1) at schools with occupational medicine or health programs, for faculty continuing education, curricula and training materials for undergraduate medical or nursing training, and clinical training for residents in graduate medical programs; and (2) at schools without such programs, for faculty training. Directs the Secretary, during FY 1991 through 1993, to make such grants and contracts to at least ten schools of medicine or nursing. Requires that the medical monitoring recommended by the Board be provided by the current employer: (1) at no additional cost to the employee (above any existing employee health care contribution), if any part of the exposure occurred in the course of employment by that employer; or (2) at a charge to the employee not exceeding the additional cost to the employer (above any existing employer health care contribution), or at no charge, if no part of such exposure occurred in the course of employment by that employer. Sets forth special rules for medical monitoring by small businesses and of seasonal agricultural workers. Prohibits discharging or discriminating against employees, or applicants for employment, on the basis that they are or have been members of a population at risk. Makes an exception to such prohibition if the position which the applicant seeks requires exposure to the occupational health hazard which is the subject to the notice. Allows an employer with 50 or fewer employees to transfer an employee who is or has been a member of a population at risk to another job if earnings, seniority, and other employment rights and benefits are as comparable as possible to the old job and if the terms of an applicable collective bargaining agreement are not violated. Grants the option of being transferred to a less hazardous or nonexposed job to any employee member of a population at risk who is determined by a physician to show evidence of developing the disease described in the notice or other symptoms or conditions increasing the likelihood or incidence of such disease. Requires that the employee maintain earnings, seniority, and other employment rights and benefits of the former job. Sets forth procedures for independent reconsideration of the initial medical determination. Sets forth special rules for medical removal. Makes such protection inapplicable to seasonal agricultural workers with less than six months continuous employment with an employer. Exempts from the requirement of medical removal protection any employer who has 50 or fewer employees and who has made or is making a reasonable good faith effort to eliminate the occupational health hazard that is the basis for the medical removal decision. Provides for confidentiality of employee records unless disclosure is authorized by and is necessary to carry out a provision of this Act, or is authorized by the employee. Permits employees aggrieved by violations of provisions involving medical monitoring, medical removal, discrimination, and confidentiality to apply, within six months after the violation occurs, to the Secretary of Labor for a review of the alleged violation. Sets forth provisions for investigations, actions, defenses, determinations, and appeals in such cases. Provides for reinstatement and other relief for employees injured by such violations. Sets forth civil penalties for such violations. Authorizes the Secretary (of HHS) to bring an action in U.S. district court to enjoin an employer from violating this Act. Directs the Secretary of Labor to report annually to the Congress on the implementation and enforcement of the hazard communication standard. Directs the Secretary of HHS to report annually to the Congress on the implementation and enforcement of notification under this Act. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1989 through 1993.
Resolution· HCONRESH.Con.Res. 177 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 1989
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the United States Postal Service should issue a postage stamp commemorating the life and work of Doctor Thomas Anthony Dooley III.
Resolution· HCONRESH.Con.Res. 176 (101st)referred
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 1989
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) human rights violations in Cuba should be condemned; and (2) the President should award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Armando Valladares.
Bill· HRH.R. 3004 (101st)open
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1989
Veterans Agent Orange Exposure and Vietnam Service Benefits Act of 1989 - Provides that the disease of chloracne in Vietnam veterans shall be considered to have been service-connected if such disease became manifest to a ten percent or more degree of disability within one year after the last date on which the veteran performed such service in Vietnam. Presumes the following diseases to be service-connected for veterans who performed active service in Vietnam during the Vietnam era, notwithstanding that there is no record of evidence of such disease during the period of such service: (1) non-Hodgkins lymphoma; (2) soft-tissue sarcoma; and (3) melanoma and basal cell carcinoma. Provides a presumption of service-connection in the case of a Vietnam veteran suffering from a disease associated with effects of exposure to certain dioxins or other herbicide agents during such service in Vietnam. Directs the Secretary to prescribe regulations listing a positive association between any disease and the biological effects of exposure to an herbicide agent in Vietnam. Requires the Secretary to update such list continually. Requires the Secretary, in prescribing and revising such list, to obtain by contract the determinations and estimates of a contract scientific organization. Requires such organization to: (1) determine which diseases have any degree of association with the biological effects of exposure to an herbicide agent; and (2) estimate the extent of association between each such disease and each such biological effects. Requires the organization to determine such association specifically with respect to non-Hodgkins lymphoma, each soft-tissue sarcoma, lung cancer, and each other cancer. Outlines contract provisions required in such agreements between the Secretary and the scientific organization, including surveys, evaluations, and periodic determinations. Requires such scientific organization to provide reports to the Secretary and the Senate and House Veterans' Affairs Committees regarding its determinations and evaluations. Requires such organization to determine, in the effect of a positive association, whether there is a reasonable basis for concluding that a Vietnam veteran with the highest level of exposure to that herbicide agent in Vietnam was exposed to such agent under the circumstances necessary for such biological effects. Requires a report from the organization to the Secretary and the veterans' committees when there is no such reasonable basis found. Requires the Secretary to make certain determinations and follow-up reports after receiving such reports from the contract scientific organization, including the issuance of a report to the veterans' committees and the promulgation of positive association regulations, if necessary. Requires benefits to be continued even though a disease is removed from the regulations listing diseases having positive associations. Terminates such contracting authority ten years after the first day of the fiscal year in which a scientific organization transmits its first report to the Secretary. Provides special effective dates. Directs the Secretary to compile and analyze all clinical data that: (1) is obtained by the Department in connection with examinations and treatment of veterans for disabilities related to exposure to certain herbicides or to service in Vietnam; and (2) is likely to be scientifically useful in determining the association, if any, between the disabilities of such veterans and their exposure to such herbicides and other toxic substances. Requires the Secretary to submit an annual report to the veterans' committees concerning such analysis and its results. Directs the Secretary to consult with the Director of the National Institutes of Health Research and Grants Division (NIH) before compiling and analyzing such information. Requires the Director of NIH to review each annual report submitted by the Secretary and transmit to the Secretary an evaluation of the contents of each report. Directs the Secretary to establish and maintain a system for the collection and storage of voluntarily contributed samples of blood and tissue of veterans who performed active service in Vietnam during the Vietnam era. Outlines provisions concerning the security and authorized uses of such specimens, as well as limitations on the acceptance of such samples. Requires the Secretary to consult with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to the extent that an agreement has been reached with the NAS serving as the contract scientific organization for the Secretary. Requires the Secretary to consult with the Director of the Medical Follow-up Agency in the event of no agreement with NAS. Directs the Secretary to establish a program to provide for the conduct of studies of the feasibility of conducting additional scientific research on health hazards resulting from: (1) exposure to dioxin; (2) exposure to other toxic agents in herbicides used in support of U.S. and allied military operations in Vietnam during the Vietnam era; and (3) active military, naval, or air service there. Requires the Secretary to report to the veterans' committees on the results of such studies. Requires the Secretary to consult with the NAS before undertaking such studies and requires the NAS, to review such studies and report recommendations to the Secretary and the veterans' committees, to the extent provided under any agreement between the Secretary and NAS. Amends the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 1988 to require the Secretary to annually furnish updated information to veterans listed in the Department of Veterans Affairs' Agent Orange Registry on health risks resulting from exposure to dioxin or other toxic agents in herbicides as a result of service in Vietnam during the Vietnam era. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to report to the veterans' committees on the research being conducted to develop treatments for psychological absorption of dioxin and other toxic agents used in herbicides by the United States in Vietnam, including research relating to exposure to dioxin and other toxic agents outside Vietnam. Extends through December 31, 2000, the eligibility for hospital and nursing home care for veterans exposed to toxic substances in Vietnam. Amends the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 1988 to authorize direct consultation between the Ranch Hand Advisory Committee and Department of the Air Force scientists conducting the Ranch Hand Study (a study of the long-term health effects of exposure to phenoxy herbicides and contaminants). Requires the preparation and submission of annual reports and a final report in connection with such study.
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