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United States · Official source
9,184 records where Rep. Frost, Martin [D-TX-24] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 1997
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the deduction allowed for health insurance costs for self-employed individuals from 30 to 100 percent.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 1997
Higher Education Accumulation Program Act of 1997 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a deduction for amounts paid to a Higher Education Accumulation Program account established to accumulate funds to pay the educational expenses of a child of the taxpayer. Declares such accounts exempt from tax. Allows the deduction in arriving at adjusted gross income. Imposes an excise tax on excess contributions and prohibited transactions. Imposes a penalty for failure to meet reporting requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 1997
IRA Savings Opportunity Act of 1997 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to retirement savings plans, to, among other things: (1) double income limitations; (2) permit a worker without an employer plan to contribute an additional $2,000 to a plan; and (3) allow a credit of 20 percent, subject to income limitations, for amounts which would otherwise be allowed as a qualified retirement deduction.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 1997
Self-Employed Health Affordability Act of 1997 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the deduction allowed for health insurance costs for self-employed individuals from 30 to 100 percent.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 1997
Constitutional Amendment - Grants authority to the Congress and the States to set reasonable expenditure limits for their respective elections.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 1997
Constitutional Amendment - Prohibits outlays for a fiscal year (except those for repayment of debt principal) from exceeding total receipts (except those derived from borrowing) for that fiscal year unless the Congress, by a three-fifths roll call vote of each House, authorizes a specific excess of outlays over receipts. Requires a three-fifths roll call vote of each House to increase the public debt. Directs the President to submit a balanced budget to the Congress. Requires the approval of a majority of each House by roll call vote before any bill to increase revenue may become law. Authorizes the Congress to waive these provisions when: (1) a declaration of war is in effect; or (2) the United States is engaged in a military conflict which poses a threat to national security as declared by a joint resolution adopted by a majority of each House. Makes this article effective beginning with FY 2002 or with the second fiscal year beginning after its ratification, whichever is later.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 1997
Establishes the House Select Committee on POW and MIA Affairs.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 1997
Declares that the United States is fully committed to the goals enunciated in the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina and associated annexes negotiated in Dayton, Ohio, and signed in Paris, France (Agreement), and to the unified state of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Commends the NATO-led Implementation Force (IFOR) for its work in establishing peace and stability in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Encourages the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), other institutions, and non-governmental organizations to promote further rebuilding of democratic institutions and civic society in Bosnia and Herzegovina and neighboring countries. Opposes admission to international organizations and fora of, and the receipt of certain loans and financial or technical assistance from international financial institutions by, the parties to the Agreement until such states have complied with their obligations under the Agreement and United Nations Security Council Resolutions to cooperate fully with the International Criminal Tribunal. Urges: (1) the United States and the international community to oppose secession by any entity from the unified state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, to actively support the work of the parties to establish democratic institutions and the rule of law in Bosnia and Herzegovina, to increase support for the efforts of the Tribunal, and to support the request of the Tribunal President for the High Representative to impose sanction on those who have not complied with their obligations to cooperate fully with the Tribunal; (2) the signatories to the Agreement and those nations and organizations participating in its implementation to ensure full implementation of the arms control and confidence-building agreements reached as part of the Agreement; (3) IFOR, the NATO-led Stabilization Force (SFOR), the International Police Task Force, and other designated missions to make it an urgent priority to detain and bring to justice persons indicted by the Tribunal; (4) IFOR and SFOR to take an active role in ensuring respect by the parties to the Agreement for freedom of movement throughout the country; and (5) the United States, OSCE, and the international community to press the Serbian Government to recognize the results of recent elections, facilitate installation of duly elected opposition candidates, undertake a dialogue with democratic forces working for reform, and act immediately to improve respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 1997
Congratulates the people of India on the 50th anniversary of India's independence.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 1997
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the U.S. Government should pursue policies that: (1) encourage all residents of this country to become fully proficient in English by expanding educational opportunities and access to information technologies; (2) conserve and develop the Nation's linguistic resources by encouraging all residents to learn or maintain skills in a language other than English; (3) assist Native Americans, Native Alaskans, Native Hawaiians, and other peoples indigenous to the United States in their efforts to prevent the extinction of their languages and cultures; (4) continue to provide services in languages other than English as needed to facilitate access to essential functions of government, promote public health and safety, ensure due process, promote equal educational opportunity, and protect fundamental rights; and (5) recognize the importance of multilingualism to vital national interests and individual rights, and oppose "English-only" measures and similar language restrictionist measures.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 1996
Quiet Communities Act of 1996 - Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to reestablish an Office of Noise Abatement and Control, which shall be responsible for coordinating Federal noise abatement activities, updating or developing noise standards, providing technical assistance to local communities, and promoting research and education. Requires the Administrator, with funds provided for the Office, to conduct a study of airport noise and its physiological effects on surrounding communities in major metropolitan areas. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 1996
Late Term Abortion Restriction Act - Makes it unlawful, in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce, to knowingly perform an abortion after the fetus has become viable, except, if in the medical judgment of the attending physician, it is necessary to preserve the life of the woman or to avert serious adverse health consequences to her.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 1996
Assisted Suicide Funding Restriction Act of 1996 - Prohibits the use of appropriated funds to provide, procure, furnish, fund, or support, or to compel any individual, institution, or government entity to provide, procure, furnish, fund, or support, any item, good, benefit, program, or service, the purpose of which is to cause, or to assist in causing, the suicide, euthanasia, or mercy killing of any individual. Amends the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act, the Protection and Advocacy for Mentally Ill Individuals Act of 1986, and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to incorporate a modified version of this prohibition. Adds a further prohibition, with regard to protection and advocacy systems, against certain assistance provided under such Federal laws for asserting or advocating a legal right to cause, or to assist in causing, or to receive assistance in causing, suicide, euthanasia, or mercy killing. Amends the Public Health Service Act to prohibit the use or availability of appropriations under such Act to provide any item, or service, for the purposes of causing or assisting in suicide, euthanasia, or mercy killing. Prohibits Federal financial participation under title XIX (Medicaid), or Federal reimbursement under title XVIII (Medicare), of the Social Security Act for assisted suicide or related services. Provides for the treatment of advance directives under both Medicare and Medicaid. Prohibits the use of appropriated funds for assisted suicide and related services under the Older Americans Act of 1965, the Indian Health Care Improvement Act, and under title XX (Block Grants to States for Social Services Program) of the Social Security Act. Prohibits the use of appropriated funds for assisted suicide and related services under the military and Federal employees health care systems, and as health care for Peace Corps volunteers and Federal prisoners. Amends the District of Columbia Self-Government and Governmental Reorganization Act to ban the use of Federal funds for assisted suicide and related services. Amends the Legal Services Corporation Act to prohibit the use of legal assistance for assisted suicide and related services, and for asserting or advocating a legal right to such services.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 1996
Jackie Robinson Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) mint and issue one-dollar silver coins emblematic of Jackie Robinson in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the breaking of the color barrier in major league baseball; and (2) distribute surcharge proceeds to the Jackie Robinson Foundation to enhance its education and youth leadership programs, and increase the availability of scholarships for economically disadvantaged youths.
United States · United States Congress · 23 September 1996
Commission on Chemical and Biological Warfare Agent Exposure Act - Establishes the Commission on Chemical and Biological Warfare Agent Exposure to investigate the presence of, and U.S. military personnel exposure to, chemical and biological warfare agents in the Persian Gulf theater during the Persian Gulf War. Requires a Commission report to the President and the Congress on investigation results and appropriate recommendations for changes in the recordkeeping, reporting, preparation, and training procedures of the Department of Defense with respect to such exposure in order to improve the safety and readiness of U.S. military personnel. Terminates the Commission 60 days after such report.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 1996
Workplace Religious Freedom Act of 1996 - Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to modify the definition of "religion" to include all aspects of religious observance, practice, and belief unless an employer demonstrates that it is unable to reasonably accommodate a religious observance or practice without undue hardship (action requiring significant difficulty or expense) on the conduct of the employer's business (as under current law) after initiating and engaging in an affirmative and bona fide effort. Sets forth the circumstances in which an accommodation by the employer shall not be deemed to be reasonable. Excludes, in certain circumstances, a defense that the accommodation would be in violation of a seniority system. Prohibits requiring payment of premium wages for work performed during hours to which premium wages would ordinarily be applicable if work is performed during those hours only to accommodate religious requirements of an employee.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 1996
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Child Labor Free Labeling Standards Title II: Child Labor Free Commission Title III: Recognition of Exemplary Corporate Efforts Title IV: Definitions Child Labor Free Consumer Information Act of 1996 - Title I: Child Labor Free Labeling Standards - Directs the Secretary of Labor to issue regulations to ensure that a label using any term or symbol denying the use of child labor does not make a false statement or suggestion that the article or section of wearing apparel or sporting good was not made with child labor. Requires such standards to encourage the use of an easily identifiable symbol or term indicating that the article or section of wearing apparel or sporting good was not made with child labor. (Sec. 101) Requires a producer, importer, exporter, distributor, or other person intending to use any such label to notify the Child Labor Free Commission (CLFC, established under title II of this Act) within 60 days after the product bearing that label becomes available to the public for purchase. Requires the Commission to review the notification. Authorizes the Secretary to charge a fee to cover the expenses of the CLFC in reviewing a notification. Makes it a violation of the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA) for any producer, importer, exporter, distributor, or seller of any article of wearing apparel (or section of an article of wearing apparel) or sporting good that is exported from or offered for sale in the United States to: (1) falsely indicate on the label or the packaging of that item that the item was not made with child labor; or (2) otherwise falsely claim or suggest that the item was not made with child labor. Amends FTCA to prescribe civil penalties for such violations. Establishes in the Treasury the Free the Children Fund for receipt of such penalties. Authorizes annual appropriations of such amounts in the Fund for specified educational and other programs to eliminate child labor. (Sec. 102) Directs the CLFC to assist the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) by reviewing petitions alleging violations of the labeling standards under this Act. (Sec. 103) Directs the Secretary of Commerce, upon discovering a violation of this Act in the course of an investigation, to report it to the Secretary of Labor, who will review such report and, as appropriate, refer the violation to the FTC for enforcement under FTCA. Title II: Child Labor Free Commission - Establishes the Child Labor Free Commission (CLFC). (Sec. 202) Directs the CLFC to: (1) assist the Secretary of Labor in developing child free labor labeling standards, and in developing and implementing a compliance system; and (2) commence developing an easily identifiable labeling standard that the Secretary of Labor shall issue to encourage the use of voluntary labels assuring consumers that an article of wearing apparel or sporting good was made without the use of sweatshop or exploited adult labor. Title III: Recognition of Exemplary Corporate Efforts - Directs the Secretary of Labor to: (1) issue annual reports concerning companies making exemplary progress in ensuring that products they make, sell, or distribute are not made with abusive and exploitative child labor; and (2) develop and implement, with the CLFC, other methods of recognizing such exemplary company programs. Title IV: Definitions - Defines child as an individual who has not attained the age of: (1) 15 years, as measured by the Julian calendar; or (2) 14 such years, for a resident of a country that, by law, so defines a child.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 1996
Freedom of the Highways Act of 1996 - Prohibits any law enforcement agency or officer, acting under color of authority, from stopping any person driving or riding in an automobile because of that person's race or color. Authorizes any person or class of persons aggrieved by such a violation, in a civil action, to obtain appropriate relief. Specifies that a showing that a pattern exists in a particular region of disparate stopping of persons on highways based on race or color is sufficient to constitute prima facie evidence of a violation in that region.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 1996
Declares that the end of slavery in the United States should be celebrated and recognized.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 1996
Women's Business Training Centers Act of 1996 - Amends the Small Business Act to: (1) authorize the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to provide financial assistance to private organizations to conduct five-year (currently, three-year) demonstration projects to benefit small businesses owned and controlled by women; (2) adjust the level of cash contributions required from Federal and non-Federal sources for each of the five years of the projects; (3) require each assistance applicant to submit a five-year (currently, three year) plan on proposed fund raising and training activities under a project; (4) allow each recipient to receive such assistance for five years (in lieu of three); and (5) increase the annual authorization of appropriations for such projects.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 1996
Commends the organizers, coordinators, and volunteers of NetDay96 throughout the Nation. Calls for: (1) NetDay96's success in California to be used as a model in other States; (2) NetDay96 to be expanded nationwide to assist students, parents, and schools to obtain the full benefits of computer equipment and networks, strengthen their educations, and begin careers with more skills and opportunities in order to help them compete more successfully in the global economy; and (3) businesses, students, parents, educators, and unions throughout the country to consider organizing NetDay96 activities in their communities. Affirms support of NetDay96's commitment to have U.S. classrooms fitted with the needed technological infrastructure for the 21st century.
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 1996
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Title II: General Provisions Emergency Disaster Assistance Supplemental Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 1996 - Title I: Emergency Supplemental Appropriations - Makes emergency supplemental appropriations for FY 1996 to provide relief from the damages caused by Hurricane Fran and other natural disasters of 1996. Chapter 1: Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies - Makes such FY 1996 emergency supplemental appropriations to: (1) the Department of Agriculture, for the Farm Service Agency's emergency conservation program; (2) the Natural Resources Conservation Service, for watershed and flood prevention operations; (3) the Rural Housing Service, for Rural Housing Insurance Fund Program Account direct loans, and for very low-income housing repair grants; (4) the Rural Utilities Service, for the rural utilities assistance program; and (5) the Commodity Credit Corporation, for covering 1996 crop losses. Chapter 2: Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies - Makes such FY 1996 emergency supplemental appropriations to: (1) the Department of Commerce, for the Economic Development Administration's economic development assistance programs; and (2) the Small Business Administration, for the Disaster Loans Program Account. Chapter 3: Energy and Water Development - Makes such FY 1996 emergency appropriations to the Department of Defense-Civil, Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers-Civil, for: (1) general operation and maintenance; and (2) flood control and coastal emergencies. Chapter 4: Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies - Makes such FY 1996 emergency appropriations to: (1) the Department of Housing and Urban Development for community development grants; and (2) the Federal Emergency Management Agencies for disaster relief. Title II: General Provisions - Designates each amount provided for a program or activity in title I as an emergency requirement for all purposes of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act). Makes such amount available only to the extent of a specific dollar amount for such program or activity that is: (1) included in an official budget request submitted by the President to the Congress; and (2) designated as an emergency requirement for all purposes of that Act. (Sec. 202) Authorizes Federal department or agency heads to waive certain restrictions in administering funds provided under title I.
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 1996
Establishes in the House of Representatives the Select Committee to Investigate CIA involvement in Crack Cocaine Sales in South Central Los Angeles to investigate and report to the House on the alleged involvement of the Central Intelligence Agency in: (1) the financing, distribution, and sale of crack cocaine in south central Los Angeles and the surrounding area; and (2) the use of profits from such alleged activities to fund anti-government forces in Nicaragua.
United States · United States Congress · 5 September 1996
Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act of 1996 - Amends the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act of 1990 to: (1) include among the Act's purposes to develop and implement proposals for the restoration of fish and wildlife resources in the Great Lakes Basin (Basin); and (2) include microorganisms within the definition of "nonindigenous species." Requires the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) to: (1) ensure that proposals resulting from recommendations of the Great Lakes fishery resources restoration study or identified through an annual request to specified State and tribal entities are developed and that the highest priority proposals are implemented; and (2) annually request that State Directors and Indian Tribes submit fish and wildlife resources restoration proposals based on the results of the study or other sources. Requires the Great Lakes Fishery Commission to retain authority and responsibility for formulation and implementation of a comprehensive program for eradicating or minimizing sea lamprey populations in the Basin. Authorizes the Secretary of the Army, at the Commission's request, to construct and improve water resources projects related to sea lamprey management. Establishes the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Proposal Review Committee. Directs the Secretary to select proposals to be implemented and, within available appropriations, fund their implementation. Sets forth cost-sharing requirements. Authorizes appropriations for the operation of the three offices for each of FY 1998 through 2002. Revises the Act to require the Director to maintain the functions of the Great Lakes Coordination Office in East Lansing, Michigan, and of the Upper and Lower Great Lakes Fishery Resources Offices and to provide administrative and technical support services. Requires the Director, within six months after the end of every second fiscal year, to submit to specified congressional committees a report describing actions taken to implement the process for the indentification, review, and implementation of proposals, and the results of proposals so implemented. Authorizes appropriations for implementation of specified fish and wildlife restoration proposals for FY 1996 through 2002.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1996
Restores Federal armed forces provisions relating to the status of missing persons as in effect before amendments made by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1997.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1996
Prescription Drug Benefit Equity Act of 1996 - Prohibits a health plan from providing mail-order prescription drug coverage without also providing non-mail-order prescription drug coverage meeting benefit and cost-sharing requirements. Provides for enforcement.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1996
Authorizes the President to award the Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously to Theodore Roosevelt for his actions in the attack of San Juan Heights, Cuba, during the Spanish-American War on July 1, 1898.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1996
Medicare Commission Act of 1996 - Establishes the National Commission on the Long-Term Solvency of the Medicare Program to provide analyses of and recommendations with respect to the current and long-term financial condition of the Medicare trust funds for a report to the President, the Congress, and the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Outlines steps for the development and consideration of legislation with regard to such recommendations that provides for the long-term solvency of the Medicare trust funds.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1996
Condemns human rights abuses and denials of religious liberty to Christians around the world and calls upon the responsible regimes to cease such abuses. Recommends that the President expand and invigorate U.S. international advocacy on behalf of persecuted Christians and initiate a thorough examination of all U.S. policies that affect persecuted Christians. Encourages the President to proceed expeditiously in appointing a White House special advisor on religious persecution. Applauds the actions of the World Evangelical Fellowship in declaring an annual international day of prayer on behalf of persecuted Christians.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1996
Requires each Member and employing authority of the House of Representatives to comply with the Office Recycling Program of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol (AOC). Directs the AOC to: (1) ensure that all House employees with custodial duties are adequately trained in Program implementation; and (2) require any House contractor carrying out the Program to ensure that all personnel are trained in Program implementation; and (3) report semiannually to the Committee on House Oversight on Program compliance.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 1996
HIV Prevention Act of 1996 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to add certain requirements relating to prevention of the transmission of the HIV virus which State Medicaid plans must incorporate in order to receive Federal approval. Includes among such requirements: (1) mandatory confidential reporting of HIV positive results by the health professional or other entity performing HIV tests to the State public health officer; (2) informing of individuals who may have been exposed to HIV by the public health officer of the State; (3) mandatory HIV testing of alleged rapists for which victims and their attorneys are notified of the results; (4) subjection to mandatory HIV testing of prospective patients who are to undergo an invasive medical procedure that would place the health professionals involved at risk of becoming infected with HIV, with the health professionals notified of the results; and (5) notification of individuals who are to undergo an invasive medical procedure by any health professional who is to perform such procedure and knows that he or she has HIV disease. Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) with respect to health professionals with HIV disease who perform invasive medical procedures on patients, the medical profession should develop guidelines to assist them in complying with the requirements of this Act; (2) the States should have in effect laws providing that, in the case of individuals who know they have HIV disease, it is a felony to engage in any behaviors that the individual knows will place others at risk of infection with the disease, regardless of whether the behaviors actually transmit such infection; and (3) strict confidentiality should be maintained in carrying out the requirements added by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1996
Agent Orange Benefits Act of 1996 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide needed health care to a child of a Vietnam veteran who is suffering from spina bifida, for any associated disability. Authorizes the Secretary to provide such health care directly or by contract or other arrangement with a health care provider. Includes within such care home, hospital, nursing home, outpatient, preventive, and rehabilitative care, case management, respite care, the training of family members in the provision of necessary home care, and necessary pharmaceuticals, supplies, and equipment. Authorizes the Secretary to provide vocational training to such a child if the Secretary determines that the achievement of a vocational goal by such child is reasonably feasible. Limits such training to 24 months, unless the Secretary determines that an extension is necessary (up to 24 additional months). Requires a child eligible for more than one assistance program through the Department of Veterans Affairs to elect one program for participation. Directs the Secretary to pay a monetary allowance to any such child for any disability resulting from spina bifida based on the degree of disability. Requires an increase in such disability benefit whenever there is an increase in benefits payable under title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act. Provides veterans' disability compensation and dependency and indemnity compensation for the additional disability or death of a veteran which was: (1) not the result of the veteran's own willful misconduct; (2) caused by care, treatment, or examination furnished to the veteran through the Department; and (3) incurred as a proximate result of such care, treatment, or examination.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1996
Aviation Disaster Family Assistance Act of 1996 - Amends Federal transportation law to require the Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), after an accident involving an aircraft that results in a significant loss of life of passengers, to: (1) designate and publicize the name and phone number of a family advocate to be a Government liaison between the air carrier and the families of the passengers; and (2) designate an independent nonprofit organization which shall have primary responsibility for coordinating the care and support of the passengers' families. Declares that the NTSB shall have primary responsibility for coordinating the recovery and identification of passengers involved in an aircraft accident. Prohibits any person from impeding the ability of the NTSB, or the designated organization, from carrying out its responsibilities under this Act. Sets forth penalties for violations of this Act. Requires each air carrier to submit to the Secretary of Transportation a plan for addressing the needs of the passengers' families. Prohibits the Secretary from approving an air carrier's application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity unless it includes such plan in its application. Requires the Secretary to establish a task force to develop: (1) a model plan to assist air carriers in responding to aircraft accidents; and (2) recommendations to the Congress on methods to ensure that attorneys and the media do not intrude on the privacy of the passengers' families. Expresses the sense of the Congress that each State bar association should adopt a rule providing in transportation accidents that no unsolicited communications should be made to the families concerning potential action for personal injury or wrongful death before the 30th day following the accident.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1996
American Opportunity Grant Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to rename basic educational opportunity grants (currently, Federal Pell Grants) as American Opportunity Grants for students at institutions of higher education. Revises the determination of the amount of such a grant. Sets forth formulas based on adjusted incomes and amounts of the basic awards, and of the additional "B" average merit awards and public service awards. Sets forth limitations relating to calculations of individual grant awards. Sets forth baseline expenditure and revenue limitations on institutional eligibility for participation in such grants program. Revises provisions relating to individual periods of eligibility. (Sec. 4) Preserves Pell Grant eligibility provisions with respect to students attending proprietary institutions of higher education or postsecondary vocational school. Sets the maximum grant in such cases at $2,500. Directs the Comptroller General to evaluate and report to specified congressional committees on the financial aid needs of students attending such institutions, with recommendations for appropriate alternatives. (Sec. 5) Directs the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance to study and report to the Congress on the baseline expenditure and revenue limitations for institutional eligibility to participate in the grants program under this Act, including recommendations to restrain the annual rate of tuition increases and increases in the cost of attendance. (Sec. 6) Establishes a Commission on Corporate Welfare to report to the President and the Congress and to recommend changes in existing law relating to Federal expenditures and revenues that would: (1) reduce direct or indirect subsidies to corporations; and (2) produce, in total, a net savings that would fully offset expenditures resulting from the American Opportunity Grants program under this Act. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1996
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the German Government should investigate and prosecute Dr. Hans Joachim Sewering for his crimes of active euthanasia and crimes against humanity committed during World War II.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1996
Veterans' Cemetery Protection Act of 1996 - Sets penalties for vandalism and theft at national cemeteries.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 1996
Amends the Clean Air Act to delete from the glycol ether category in the list of hazardous air pollutants ethylene glycol monobutyl ether as used or emitted by metal or composite can manufacturing. Amends the toxic chemical release forms provisions of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act of 1986 to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to delete from the lists of toxic chemicals and extremely hazardous substances employed under such Act any substance that has been deleted or removed from the hazardous air pollutants list unless the Administrator demonstrates on the basis of convincing evidence significant human health or environmental threats posed by the substance's storage, use, or release.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 1996
Urges the national broadcast television networks to renew their commitment to voluntarily reserving the first hour of prime-time broadcasting for programming suitable for American family members of all ages.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1996
Church Insurance Protection Act - Prohibits an insurer from canceling, declining to renew, or requiring a higher premium or contribution for fire insurance for a religious property based on: (1) the race, color, religion, or national origin of property users; (2) the status of the property as religious property; (3) any previous arson against the property; or (4) any perceived arson threat. Places authority and responsibility for investigating and enforcing this Act in the Attorney General. Authorizes the Attorney General to begin a civil action. Authorizes preventive relief and mandates civil monetary damages.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1996
Battered Women's Employment Protection Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to unemployment tax to require appropriate State laws to provide for unemployment compensation for an individual separated from employment due to circumstances directly resulting from the individual's experience of domestic violence. Amends the Social Security Act to require State laws approved under the Federal Unemployment Tax Act to provide for training for claims reviewers and hearing personnel in the nature of domestic violence, and in methods of ascertaining its existence, so that employment separations stemming from domestic violence are reliably screened, identified, and adjudicated. Requires employers subject to the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act or similar State law, employment benefits program, or collective bargaining agreement to provide leave to employees seeking temporary absences to deal with domestic violence and its aftermath. Entitles employees to use such leave to deal with domestic violence.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1996
Aircraft Repair Station Safety Act of 1996 - Terminates the effectiveness of certain November 22, 1988, amendments to the foreign repair station rules of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Declares that certain standards issued by the FAA that apply to domestic repair stations shall apply in the same manner to foreign repair stations. Amends Federal aviation safety law to require the FAA Administrator to issue an order revoking a repair station certificate if it is determined that the station knowingly used an uncertified or substandard airframe, engine, propeller, appliance, or any other part in the repair or overhaul of an aircraft.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1996
Social Security Benefits Fairness Act of 1996 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to provide that a monthly OASDI benefit shall be paid for the month in which the recipient dies, subject to a reduction of 50 percent if the recipient dies during the first 15 days of such month.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1996
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt from taxation a qualified State tuition program. Defines such a program.
United States · United States Congress · 12 July 1996
George Bush School of Government and Public Service Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to make a grant to assist in the establishment of the George Bush Fellowship Program, located at the George Bush School of Government and Public Service of the Texas A & M University. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 12 July 1996
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt from the additional tax on early distribution from retirement plans distributions to individuals during periods of unemployment.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 1996
50 States Commemorative Coin Program Act - Amends Federal law to: (1) mandate redesign of quarter dollar coins issued between January 1, 1997, and January 1, 2007, to commemorate each of the 50 States; and (2) set fixed, four-year terms for members of the Citizens Commemorative Coin Advisory Committee.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 1996
Cattle Industry Improvement Act of 1996 - Amends the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 to advance the Fund for Rural America's initial funding date. (Sec. 3) Amends the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921 to prohibit noncompetitive practices relating to the price or terms of sale of livestock or meat and meat by-products. (Sec. 4) Amends the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to set forth domestic market reporting requirements for certain persons in the slaughter business. Defines "captive supply." (Sec. 5) Amends the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 with regard to livestock and meat food products reporting requirements. (Sec. 6) Amends the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921 to prohibit retaliation by packers against livestock producers. Provides damages for producers suffering such retaliation. (Sec. 7) Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish an interagency working group to review whether Federal lending practices are contributing to market concentration in the livestock and dairy sectors. (Sec. 8) Directs the President to prepare a consolidation plan for the U.S. food inspection system. (Sec. 9) Amends the Federal Meat Inspection Act to require a labeling system for U.S.-produced meat and meat food products. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 10) Directs the Secretary to collect and publicize information on bulk cheese spot transactions.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 1996
Women's Health and Dioxin Act of 1996 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to mandate research on the extent to which dioxin in tampons poses any health risks to women, including risks regarding cervical cancer.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 1996
Authorizes the Ralph David Abernathy Memorial Foundation to establish a memorial on Federal land in the District of Columbia to honor Dr. Ralph David Abernathy and the Poor People's Campaign. Exempts the memorial from provisions of the Commemorative Works Act which: (1) prohibit commemorative works honoring a nonmilitary event, individual, or group of individuals from being authorized until after the 25th anniversary of the event or death of the individual(s); and (2) require the offset of Federal funds used to pay maintenance and preservation expenses of the memorial and its infrastructure (but requires excess construction funds received by the Foundation to be deposited in a Treasury account for such expenses).
United States · United States Congress · 10 July 1996
ISTEA Integrity Restoration Act - Authorizes appropriations out of the Highway Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Account) for FY 1998 through 2002 for: (1) the National Highway System (NHS); (2) the Surface Transportation Program (STP); and (3) the Federal Lands Highway Program (FLHP), including Indian reservation roads, public lands highways, and parkways and park highways. (Sec. 6) Modifies the definition of: (1) "Federal-aid system" to mean the NHS; and (2) NHS to mean the Federal-aid highway system established pursuant to Federal highway provisions. Defines: (1) "highest priority corridor" to mean (with exceptions) any NHS corridor that the Secretary determines has national and international significance, that directly accounts for at least 35 percent of the truck-borne traffic for Canadian and Mexican imports and exports, that has at least 20 percent truck traffic, that directly benefits impoverished areas, that provides multiple intermodal connections, and that connects to military bases; and (2) "highway funds" to mean the funds apportioned to a State for a fiscal year and the funds allocated to a State for the preceding fiscal year for Federal-aid highway and highway safety construction (other than funds made available for the FLHP and for emergency relief). Modifies provisions regarding Federal-aid systems and the formula for apportionments of NHS funds. (Sec. 7) Repeals provisions regarding: (1) apportionments for resurfacing, restoring, rehabilitating, and reconstructing the Interstate System (IS); and (2) the transfer of interstate construction apportionments, the transfer of funds for STP projects, and limits on new capacity. (Sec. 8) Modifies STP provisions regarding the location of projects and allocations of apportioned funds. Authorizes a State, in nonattainment areas for ozone or carbon monoxide, or for PM-10 resulting from transportation activities, or any combination thereof, to obligate STP funds for any congestion mitigation and air quality improvement project or program without regard to any Department of Transportation limitation relating to the type of ambient air quality standard such project or program addresses. (Sec. 9) Directs that, for purposes of STP and IS provisions, population shall be determined based on the most recent decennial census for which data are available. (Sec. 10) Repeals provisions regarding: (1) the highway bridge replacement and rehabilitation program; and (2) the congestion mitigation and air quality improvement program. (Sec. 12) Replaces provisions regarding minimum allocations to States with an apportionment adjustment program to provide that the Secretary shall allocate among the States amounts sufficient to ensure that the ratio of the highway funds of the State to those of all States for the fiscal year is not less than certain listed percentages for the State. Repeals existing apportionment adjustment programs.