United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1997
Uniform Child Support Enforcement Act of 1997 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to deem any individual with the right to collect child support to have assigned to the Internal Revenue Service the right to collect the support (unless the individual elects to retain the right). Requires States to transmit abstracts of child support orders to the Federal Case Registry of Child Support Orders. (Sec. 3) Requires employees to notify their employers of their child support obligations and requires employers to withhold that amount from wages. Requires that an individual's child support obligations that are not covered by the withholding be paid with the individual's tax return. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to collect any past due amount. Provides for penalties and interest. Requires that child support amounts (and related penalties and interest) received by the Secretary be paid to the Commissioner of Social Security. Provides for the application of estimated tax provisions. Mandates criminal penalties for willful false statements by employees to employers regarding child support obligations. Removes provisions relating to offset of past-due support against overpayments. (Sec. 4) Amends the Social Security Act to direct the Commissioner to distribute child support amounts collected to the family and, if the family does or did receive certain types of assistance, to the State. (Sec. 5) Removes and revises numerous provisions to remove references to State enforcement of child support (but retain references to State enforcement of medical child support) obligations. Revises auditing requirements regarding certain State activities. Modifies: (1) the contents of an annual report to the Congress regarding activities under provisions relating to child support and establishment of paternity; and (2) financial recordkeeping requirements. Removes or repeals provisions relating to: (1) State case registries; (2) direct payments to Indian tribes or tribal organizations that have child support enforcement plans; (3) incentive payments to States; and (4) the collection of past-due support from Federal tax refunds.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1997
Guam War Restitution Act - Amends the Organic Act of Guam to set forth award and benefit eligibility requirements for living Guamanians, or the heirs or next of kin of deceased Guamanians, who suffered a compensable injury during the occupation of Guam in World War II. Defines "compensable injury" as: (1) death; (2) personal injury; or (3) forced labor, forced march, or internment. Establishes the Guam Trust Fund and the Guam Trust Fund Commission. Authorizes the Commission to make disbursements from the Fund to: (1) make awards available to Guamanians who personally received the compensable injury, or to their heirs or next of kin in claims for death; (2) make benefits (including scholarships, medical expenses, or first-time home ownership grants) available to Guamanians who are heirs or next of kin of the decedent Guamanian who received the compensable injury that is the basis for a claim if the claim is for a compensable injury other than death; (3) sponsor research and public educational activities to commemorate the events surrounding the wartime experiences and losses of the Guamanian people; and (4) pay the Commission's administrative expenses. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the President to submit to the Congress a list of recommended spending cuts or other measures that would provide, over the next five years, enough savings to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 1997
Equity in Prescription Insurance and Contraceptive Coverage Act of 1997 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 and the Public Health Service Act to prohibit a group health plan, and a health insurance issuer providing group coverage, from: (1) excluding or restricting benefits for prescription contraceptive drugs, devices, and outpatient services if the plan provides benefits for other outpatient prescription drugs, devices, or outpatient services; (2) denying eligibility based on use or potential use of such items or services; (3) providing monetary payments or rebates to a covered individual to encourage acceptance of less than the minimum protections available; (4) penalizing, reducing, or limiting a professional's reimbursement because the professional prescribed such drugs or devices or provided such services; or (5) providing incentives to a professional to induce the professional to withhold drugs, devices, or services. Amends the Public Health Service Act to apply those prohibitions to coverage offered in the individual market.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 1997
Pension Assistance and Counseling Act of 1997 - Amends the Older Americans Act of 1965 with regard to pension rights demonstration projects to: (1) redesignate the current pension rights information programs as counseling programs; (2) remove the limit on the number of grants under such programs; (3) require grant applicants to provide evidence of the agency's or organization's ability to provide program services on a statewide or regional basis; (4) mandate a toll-free telephone number for individuals seeking information and assistance regarding pension and other retirement benefits, and related rights; and (5) increase from 18 months to three years the duration of program grant awards.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 1997
Amends the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to make aliens eligible for food stamps if they were receiving supplemental security income benefits as of a specified date or if they are eligible for such benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 10 July 1997
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) trafficking in persons violates the fundamental principles of human dignity and that forced prostitution involving coercion or debt bondage constitutes a form of forced labor and a slavery-like practice; (2) the State Department or other appropriate Government agencies should investigate, combat, and report to the Congress annually on trafficking of women and girls and forced prostitution; (3) the international working group formed as a result of the World Congress on Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children should continue its efforts; (4) the executive branch should take steps to assure that weapons and equipment provided or sold to the Thai police do not become available to members of forces involved in trafficking, forced prostitution, or abuse of women and girls who are apprehended; (5) the United States Agency for International Development should target a portion of its assistance to Thailand for AIDS prevention and control to the foreign population in Thailand, particularly Burmese women and girls in the Thai sex industry; and (6) the State Department should take specified steps, such as urging the Thai Government to strictly enforce the law criminalizing brothel operators, procurers, Thai police complicity in forced prostitution, and customers of women and children trafficked for the purpose of forced prostitution.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1997
Joan's Law Act of 1997 - Amends the Federal criminal code to require that any person convicted of a Federal offense involving a serious violent felony or the sexual exploitation of children shall, unless the death sentence is imposed, be sentenced to life in prison if the victim is under 14 years old and dies as a result of the offense.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1997
Directs the Secretary of Defense to enter into an agreement with the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) under which current or former military personnel who are or become entitled to hospital insurance benefits under part A of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act are offered enrollment in a Federal employees health benefits plan in lieu of receiving care in military treatment facilities or through the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS). Allows such enrollment for any dependent of such individual if the dependent is entitled to health care under CHAMPUS and is or becomes entitled to hospital insurance benefits under Medicare. Outlines provisions concerning: (1) contributions for such coverage; (2) management of member participation; and (3) cancellation of coverage. Directs the Secretary and the OPM Director to report jointly to the Congress each year on the provision of such services to eligible persons during the preceding fiscal year. Requires the Secretary to offer such health benefits option no later than October 1, 1997.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1997
War Crimes Prosecution Facilitation Act of 1997 - Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) reconciliation in Bosnia and Herzegovina cannot be achieved if indicted war criminals remain at large and refugees and displaced persons are unable to return to their homes; (2) the United States should ensure that multilateral and bilateral assistance is provided to the Dayton Agreement parties only if doing so would promote reconciliation as well as reconstruction, including the transfer of war criminals to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, the return of refugees and displaced persons, and freedom of movement; and (3) the Tribunal should continue to investigate and bring indictments against persons who have violated international humanitarian law. Prohibits foreign assistance under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 or the Arms Export Control Act (except humanitarian or democratization assistance, or assistance for physical infrastructure projects) to: (1) any country whose government fails to apprehend and transfer to the Tribunal persons who have been indicted by the Tribunal and are in their territory; (2) any program or activity in such country in which an indicted war criminal has any financial interest or through any organization with which the indicted person is affiliated; and (3) any program or activity in any country (other than emergency food, medical, or demining assistance) in which local authorities are not complying with certain articles of the Dayton Agreement. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. executive directors of the international financial institutions to oppose, and vote against, any extension of any financial assistance or grants to such a country. Provides for a waiver of such sanctions if a majority of indicted persons within the country's territory have been arrested and transferred to the Tribunal.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1997
Women's Cardiovascular Diseases Research and Prevention Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to mandate expansion, intensification, and coordination of research and related activities of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute with regard to cardiovascular diseases in women. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1997
Urges the German Government to: (1) expand and simplify its system of reparations so that all Holocaust survivors can receive reparations regardless of their nationality, length or place of internment, or current financial situation; (2) provide reparations to Holocaust survivors in the former Soviet Union and other former Communist countries in Eastern and Central Europe; (3) fulfill its responsibilities to Holocaust victims and immediately set up a comprehensive medical fund to cover the medical expenses of all Holocaust survivors worldwide; and (4) help restore the dignity of such survivors by paying them sufficient reparations to ensure that no Holocaust survivor be forced by poverty to live in conditions worse than those generally enjoyed by the surviving former Nazis who persecuted them.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1997
Commends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for successfully carrying out the Mars Pathfinder Mission and for its commitment to developing low-cost spacecraft with highly focused science objectives. Urges the United States to continue to act as the leader in space exploration into the 21st century.
United States · United States Congress · 8 July 1997
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to prohibit requiring persons who pay election officials and workers to furnish the officials and workers with an annual statement of amounts paid and withheld unless the pay is subject to tax under provisions relating to the Federal Insurance Contributions Act.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 1997
Public Safety Officers Memorial Scholarship Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award scholarships to surviving spouses and dependent children of State or local public safety officers who are killed in performance of their official duties. Provides that such scholarships may be for public or private kindergarten, or elementary or secondary school, or for an institution of higher education.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 1997
Inactive Well Recovery Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income (if so elected by the taxpayer) income attributable to independent producer oil from a recovered inactive well. Includes both oil and natural gas in the definition of "independent producer oil." Prohibits deductions directly connected with amounts so excluded.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1997
Debt Collection Wage Information Act of 1997 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make information in the National Directory of New Hires available to the Secretary of the Treasury for use in collecting delinquent debt owed to the Federal Government. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to disclose the information provided by the HHS Secretary to a Federal agency for use by the agency in collecting delinquent debt owed to the agency.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1997
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended by the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, to make the cancellation of removal (deportation or exclusion) provisions inapplicable to certain permanent resident aliens who have been convicted of an aggravated felony or felonies and sentenced to at least five years' aggregate imprisonment. (Current law makes such cancellation inapplicable to certain permanent resident aliens convicted of an aggravated felony).
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1997
Calls upon the parliamentary bodies and government officials of other nations, particularly those that participate in Little League baseball, to recognize and celebrate the international character of Little League baseball and to render Little League Baseball Incorporated assistance and recognition of its status as a nongovernmental international organization.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1997
Paycheck Fairness Act - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (CRA) to revise and increase remedies and enforcement on behalf of victims of discrimination in the payment of wages on the basis of sex. Amends FLSA to provide for enhanced enforcement of equal pay requirements (also known as the Equal Pay Act of 1963), adding a nonretaliation requirement. Increases penalties for such violations. Provides for the Secretary of Labor to seek additional compensatory or punitive damages in such cases. Amends CRA to direct the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to require certain employers to maintain payroll records and report to the EEOC pay information analyzed by race, sex, and national origin of employees. Applies such requirement to employers who have 100 or more employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks. Requires EEOC and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) to train EEOC employees and affected individuals and entities on matters involving discrimination in the payment of wages. Directs the Secretary to conduct studies and provide information to employers, labor organizations, and the general public concerning the means available to eliminate pay disparities between men and women, including convening a national summit and carrying out other specified activities. Establishes the Robert Reich National Award for Pay Equity in the Workplace, which shall be evidenced by a medal. Sets forth criteria for specified types of entities to receive such an award. Authorizes appropriations to the EEOC, the OFCCP, and the Secretary to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1997
First-time Homebuyer Affordability Act of 1997 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make the tax on prohibited transactions inapplicable to a qualified home equity participation arrangement (one in which up to $10,000 in an individual retirement plan is used to acquire an ownership interest in a dwelling unit that is to be used as the principal residence for a first-time homebuyer). Requires such ownership interest to be a fee interest requiring full repayment. Defines "first-time homebuyer" as an individual on whose behalf an individual retirement plan is established (eligible participant) or a family member (child, parent, or grandparent) who had no present ownership interest in a principal residence during the 36-month period before the date of the arrangement. (Sec. 4) Allows the use of amounts in an individual retirement plan to make loans of up to $10,000 to purchase a home for a first-time homebuyer on behalf of an eligible participant or a family member. Prohibits a related interest deduction. Requires repayment within 15 years.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 1997
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Research, Treatment, and Assistance Act of 1997 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to provide for a waiver of the 24-month waiting period for Medicare coverage for individuals disabled by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's Disease. Amends SSA title XVIII (Medicare) to provide for Medicare coverage of any drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in the treatment or alleviation of ALS-related symptoms. Authorizes appropriations, in addition to any already available, for ALS research through the National Institutes of Health.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 1997
Eating Disorders Information and Education Act of 1997 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to provide for a program of information and public education concerning the prevention and treatment of eating disorders. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 1997
Give Surviving Spouses of Veterans a Chance to Remarry Act of 1997 - Makes a remarried surviving spouse of a veteran eligible for reinstatement of dependency and indemnity compensation if the remarriage is terminated by death or divorce, unless the Secretary of Veterans Affairs determines that the divorce was secured through fraud by the surviving spouse or collusion. Provides that if the surviving spouse of a veteran ceases living with another person and holding himself or herself out openly to the public as that person's spouse, the bar to such compensation shall not apply.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 1997
Point Reyes National Seashore Farmland Protection Act of 1997 - Amends Federal law to include the Farmland Protection Area in the Point Reyes National Seashore, California, with the primary objective being to protect private agricultural land from nonagricultural development by conservation easements. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to make farmland acquisitions within the Area. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 1997
Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to carry out a Thurgood Marshall Legal Educational Opportunity Program to provide low-income, minority, and disadvantaged college students with information, preparation, and financial assistance to gain access to and complete law school study. Authorizes the Secretary to contract with, or make a grant to, the Council on Legal Education Opportunity, for at least a five-year period, to deliver specified services under such program, directly and through subgrants and subcontracts. Directs the Secretary to establish annually the maximum stipend to be paid to Thurgood Marshall Fellows for the period of prelaw preparation in summer institutes and midyear seminar prior to and during the period of law school study. Sets forth the maximum amount of grants for such program services for any fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 1997
Fair Play Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require: (1) each institution of higher education to provide the Secretary of Education with information regarding men's and women's athletic programs; and (2) the Secretary to prepare a report based on such information, which shall be made available on the Internet. Requires the Secretary to establish a toll-free telephone service to provide the public with information regarding such reports and respond to inquiries about title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and athletic opportunities for girls and women.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 1997
Supports the National Railroad Hall of Fame, Inc., of Galesburg, Illinois, in its endeavor to erect the monument known as the National Railroad Hall of Fame.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 1997
Young American Workers' Bill of Rights - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to revise and increase requirements relating to child labor standards, including: (1) reporting, recordkeeping, and certification; (2) orders and regulations; (3) penalties; (4) coverage regardless of sales volume; (5) civil actions; and (6) migrant or seasonal agricultural labor. Directs the Secretary of Labor to: (1) compile (jointly with the Census Bureau) annual child labor data with respect to individuals under age 18; (2) provide for coordination among enforcement personnel for Federal and State labor standards, occupational health and safety laws, and Federal immigration laws; (3) establish an Advisory Committee for Child Labor; and (4) publicize violators of child labor laws. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 1997
FERS Buyback Act of 1997 - Amends Federal law concerning government organization and employees to make certain temporary Federal service creditable for retirement purposes. Sets forth provisions relating to persons who have separated from Government service.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 1997
Disadvantaged Minority Health Improvement Amendments Act of 1997 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to replace certain provisions relating to the Office of Minority Health with provisions establishing the Advisory Committee on Minority Health. Regulates the Office's activities, including regarding: (1) bilingual assistance to providers (mandating special consideration to those serving Asians and Pacific Islanders); (2) equitable allocation of grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts among racial and minority populations; (3) provision of information and services in the most appropriate language, educational, and cultural context; (4) the making of grants, cooperative agreements, contracts; and (5) evaluations. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 3) Requires: (1) that the Office of Research on Minority Health of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) coordinate minority health research conducted or supported by NIH; (2) a comprehensive research plan; (3) equitable addressing of all racial and ethnic minority groups; (4) establishment of the Advisory Committee on Research on Minority Health; (5) determination of the extent of minority representation among senior physicians and scientists of (or conducting research with funding from) the national research institutes; (6) that all grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts be competitively awarded; and (7) expansion of the Minority Health Initiative. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 4) Authorizes appropriations for: (1) the National Center for Health Statistics; (2) grants to States for demonstration programs to increase the availability of primary care in health professional shortage areas; (3) Federal capital contributions to health professions student loan funds; (4) scholarships for health professions students of exceptional financial need; (5) grants to health professions schools for scholarships for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds; (6) educational loan repayments in return for serving as faculty at health professions schools; (7) grants and contracts to increase the number of underrepresented minority faculty at health professions schools; (8) grants to health professions schools for programs of excellence for minority individuals; (9) grants and contracts for health professions schools for recruiting, counseling, preparing, and providing scholarships to individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds; (10) grants and contracts for research on the extent to which medical student educational debt has had a detrimental effect on students' decisions on entering primary care specialties. (Sec. 5) Mandates a conference on matters relating to the health of individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, including racial and ethnic minorities.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1997
Forest Biodiversity Act of 1997 - Amends the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (Act), the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, the National Indian Forest Resources Management Act, and Federal law relating to military lands to: (1) provide for the protection of forest native biodiversity; (2) restrict certain logging activities; and (3) provide a private right of action in U.S. district court for violations of such provisions. Amends the Act to provide for the termination of the committee of scientists ten years from the date of enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1997
Oklahoma City National Memorial Act of 1997 - Establishes the Oklahoma City National Memorial in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, as a National Park System unit; and (2) the Oklahoma City National Memorial Trust, as a wholly owned Government corporation, to administer the operation, maintenance, management, and interpretation of the Memorial. Requires the Trust, in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, to develop a comprehensive program for management of lands, operations, and facilities within the Memorial. Authorizes appropriations. Requires amounts appropriated in any fiscal year to carry out this Act to be expended only on a matching basis in ratio of at least one non-Federal dollar to every Federal dollar. Requires, before the construction of the Memorial, the Administrator of the General Services Administration to exchange, sell, lease, donate, or otherwise dispose of the site of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, or a portion thereof, to the Trust. Excludes such disposal from: (1) the Public Buildings Act of 1959; (2) the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949; and (3) any other Federal law establishing requirements or procedures for Federal property disposal. Directs the General Accounting Office, six years after the first meeting of the Trust's Board of Directors, to study and report to specified congressional committees on the Trust's activities.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1997
Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 1997 - Prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation by covered entities, including an employing authority or office to which specified provisions of the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991 or the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 apply. Prohibits related retaliation and coercion. Declares that: (1) this Act does not apply to the provision of employee benefits for the benefit of an employee's partner; and (2) a disparate impact does not establish a prima facie violation of this Act. Prohibits: (1) quotas and preferential treatment; and (2) the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission from entering into a consent decree that includes a quota or preferential treatment. Declares that this Act does not apply to: (1) religious organizations (except regarding employment in a position the duties of which pertain solely to activities of the organization that generate unrelated business income subject to taxation under specified Internal Revenue Code provisions); (2) the armed forces; or (3) laws creating special rights or preferences for veterans. Provides for enforcement. Disallows State immunity. Makes the United States or a State liable for all remedies (except punitive damages, with compensatory damages available to the extent specified in certain existing provisions of law) to the same extent as under specified provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Allows recovery of attorney's fees. Requires posting notices for employees and applicants.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1997
Children's Health Coverage Improvement Act of 1997 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to require group health plans to offer children-only coverage to dependents of participants under plans. Provides for continuation of coverage to add special rules for children-only coverage.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1997
Family Farm and Small Business Estate Tax Relief Act of 1997 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the estate tax exclusion for qualifying family-owned businesses. Provides for a related inflation adjustment.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1997
Requests the President to issue a proclamation commending the 82 American airmen held as political prisoners at the Buchenwald concentration camp during World War II for their service, bravery, and fortitude.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1997
Personal Information Privacy Act of 1997 - Amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to redefine the term "consumer report" to exclude identifying information listed in a local telephone directory (thereby ensuring that the personal identification information in the credit headers accompanying credit reports of unlisted individuals remains confidential). Amends part A (General Provisions) of title XI of the Social Security Act to prohibit the commercial acquisition or distribution of an individual's social security number (or any derivative of it), as well as its use as a personal identification number, without the individual's written consent. Provides for a civil action in a U.S. District Court by any individual aggrieved by any violation of this prohibition. Provides for civil money penalties for violations as well. Amends the Federal criminal code to require the uses of social security numbers by State departments of motor vehicles to be consistent with the uses authorized by the Social Security Act, the Privacy Act, and by any other statutes explicitly authorizing their use. Prohibits the use of social security numbers by marketing companies.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Lifetime Learning Accounts Title II: Increase in Maximum Pell Grant Awards Title III: Restoration of Deduction for Interest on Educational Loans Lifetime Learning Affordability Act of 1997 - Title I: Lifetime Learning Accounts - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an annual deduction ($4,000 or $2,000 for a married single filer) for contributions to a lifetime learning account established to pay for higher education or job training expenses of the taxpayer or family member. Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) deductibility income limitations; (2) account ceilings; (3) age and contribution restrictions; and (4) tax treatment of distributions. Title II: Increase in Maximum Pell Grant Awards - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to increase maximum Pell Grant awards. Title III: Restoration of Deduction for Interest on Educational Loans - Amends the Code to allow an annual deduction for interest on qualified educational loans for a taxpayer, spouse, or dependent.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1997
State Infrastructure Banks for Schools Act of 1997 - Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) enter into cooperative agreements with States for the establishment of State infrastructure banks and multistate infrastructure banks for making loans to local educational agencies (LEAs) for building or repairing elementary or secondary public schools; and (2) make initial capitalization grants to State and multistate infrastructure banks. Sets forth: (1) conditions, including State contribution requirements, for States to meet in order to establish such infrastructure banks; (2) authorized forms of assistance to LEAs from such banks; (3) criteria for loans; and (4) qualifying projects. Declares that the contribution of Federal funds to an infrastructure bank shall not be construed as an obligation of the United States to any third party. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to review the financial condition of each infrastructure bank and report to the Congress. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Individuals' Rights' Subtitle A: Review of Protected Health Information by Subjects of the Information Subtitle B: Establishment of Safeguards Title II: Restrictions on Use and Disclosure Title III: Sanctions Subtitle A: Civil Sanctions Subtitle B: Criminal Sanctions Title IV: Miscellaneous Medical Privacy in the Age of New Technologies Act of 1997 - Defines "health information trustee" (HIT) to mean a person or entity that creates, receives, obtains, maintains, uses, or transmits protected health information (PHI) and any employee, agent, or contractor of such a person. Title I: Individuals' Rights - Subtitle A: Review of Protected Health Information by Subjects of the Information - Requires a HIT to permit an individual who is the subject of PHI to inspect and copy the information, subject to cost reimbursement and exceptions. Subtitle B: Establishment of Safeguards - Requires a HIT to maintain: (1) administrative, technical, and physical confidentiality and accuracy safeguards; and (2) a record of any PHI disclosure not related to treatment. Prohibits HIT retaliation for actions under this Act. Title II: Restrictions on Use and Disclosure - Prohibits disclosures except: (1) as allowed under this title; (2) as compatible with the purposes for which the information was obtained or for the specific purpose for which an individual authorized disclosure; and (3) in the minimum amount necessary to accomplish the disclosure's purpose. (Sec. 202) Regulates disclosure authorizations, the disclosure of nonidentifiable information, and the creation of coded information. (Sec. 205) Specifies the criteria for disclosure: (1) to an individual's next of kin; (2) regarding directory information to any person; (3) in emergencies placing the information subject or another individual at serious risk; (4) to a health oversight agency; (5) to an accrediting body; (6) by a health care provider to a public health authority; (7) by a HIT to a health researcher; (8) by specified entities in connection with certain judicial and administrative proceedings; (9) by specified entities pursuant to a subpoena; and (10) by specified entities regarding subpoenas and warrants. Title III: Sanctions - Subtitle A: Civil Sanctions - Imposes a civil penalty for material failure to comply with this Act. Provides, if the violations have occurred with such frequency as to constitute a general business practice, for a higher civil penalty or exclusion from Medicare and Medicaid (titles XVIII and XIX of the Social Security Act) or any other federally funded health care programs. (Sec. 302) Allows an individual aggrieved by a violation of this Act to bring a civil action for preliminary and equitable relief, actual or liquidated damages, and punitive damages. Allows assessment of attorney's fees. Subtitle B: Criminal Sanctions - Provides for criminal fines, imprisonment, or exclusion from Medicare, Medicaid, or any other Federally funded health care program (or some combination of those penalties) for violations of this Act or this title. Title IV: Miscellaneous - Provides for: (1) the promulgation of regulations (and establishment of a related advisory group); and (2) the relationship of this Act to other laws.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1997
Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to provide for a ten percent reduction of drug control and system improvement (Byrne) grants to States that do not have in effect a law which requires, at a minimum, imprisonment of not less than: (1) ten years, for first offenders inflicting serious bodily injury on a child; (2) 20 years, for offenders having a previous conviction for such offense; (3) five years, for first offenders inflicting any bodily injury on a child; and (4) ten years, for such offenders having a previous conviction. Provides for redistribution of such reduced amount to other States having such a law in effect.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1997
Amends the Small Business Act to increase from 20 to 25 percent of the total value of all Federal prime contracts awarded in a fiscal year the goal for contracts awarded to small businesses, small businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, and small businesses owned and controlled by women.
United States · United States Congress · 4 June 1997
DES Education and Research Amendments of 1997 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize and permanently extend the following programs regarding the drug diethylstilbestrol (commonly known as DES): (1) the research program; and (2) the new national program of education. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the heads of the appropriate agencies of the Public Health Service, to carry out a national program for the education of health professionals and the public with respect to DES, from amounts appropriated for carrying out the research and training program. Requires such program, to the extent appropriate, to use methodologies developed through the education demonstration program carried out under the Act. Directs the Secretary, in developing and carrying out the national program, to consult closely with representatives of nonprofit private entities that represent individuals who have been exposed to DES and that have expertise in community-based information campaigns for the public and for health care providers. Requires the implementation of the national program to begin during FY 1998.
United States · United States Congress · 3 June 1997
Directs the Secretary of Defense to enter into an agreement with the Office of Personnel Management to conduct a demonstration project under which covered members and beneficiaries under the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS) who are or become entitled to hospital insurance benefits under part A of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act will be eligible to enroll in health benefits plans offered through the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program. Requires the demonstration project to be conducted in two geographic areas and to last at least two, but not more than three, contract years. Provides for: (1) management of participation in the project; (2) Government contributions for beneficiary coverage under the FEHB program; and (3) reporting requirements.
![Official portrait of Rep. Frost, Martin [D-TX-24]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/f000392_200.jpg)