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United States · Official source
237 records where Rep. Funderburk, David [R-NC-2] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 1995
Bartlett-Mfume Health Insurance Deduction Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to restore the 25-percent deduction for health insurance costs of self-employed individuals for the taxable year 1994.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 1995
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Retirement Savings Incentives Subtitle A: Restoration of IRA Deduction Subtitle B: Nondeductible Tax-Free IRAs Title II: Penalty-Free Distributions Title III: Aid to Families with Dependent Children Savings and Investment Incentive Act of 1995 - Title I: Retirement Savings Incentives - Subtitle A: Restoration of IRA Deduction - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to restore the deduction for individual retirement plans (IRAs). Provides a phase-up of income limits (from 1995 through 1998) with respect to the limitation on the deductibility of contributions to IRAs by active participants in employer-maintained plans. Removes the spousal rule from such limitation. Terminates income limits after December 31, 1998. Provides an inflation adjustment for deductible amounts after 1995. Allows certain spouses a full deduction for contributions to an IRA. Makes certain coins and bullion ineligible as collectible investments for purposes of distributions from an IRA. Coordinates the limit on such deduction with the elective deferral limit under other pension provisions. Subtitle B: Nondeductible Tax-Free IRAs - Allows individuals to establish individual retirement plus (IRA plus) accounts with tax treatment similar to that for individual retirement plans. Makes contributions to such accounts nondeductible. Excludes distributions from such accounts from the gross income of the distributee, if the assets remain in such accounts for at least five years. Allows qualified transfers to be made to such accounts. Establishes penalties for early withdrawals and excess contributions. Title II: Penalty-Free Distributions - Allows distributions from certain retirement plans without penalty to: (1) purchase first homes; (2) pay higher education expenses; (3) pay long-term care insurance premiums; (4) pay financially devastating medical expenses; and (5) assist certain unemployed individuals. Title III: Aid to Families with Dependent Children - Amends part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) of title IV of the Social Security Act to exclude from AFDC eligibility determinations certain income and resources that are to be used for education, training, and employability purposes. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to report to specified congressional committees on the use of qualified asset accounts. Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress on a revision of the AFDC limit on automobiles in order to increase the employability of AFDC recipients.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 1995
No Frills Prison Act - Amends the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to require a State, to be eligible for truth in sentencing incentive grants, to demonstrate that it: (1) provides living conditions and opportunities within its prisons that are not more luxurious than those that the average prisoner would have experienced if not incarcerated; (2) does not provide to any such prisoner specified benefits or privileges, including earned good time credits, less than 40 hours a week of work that either offsets or reduces the expenses of keeping the prisoner or provides resources toward restitution of victims, unmonitored phone calls (with exceptions), in-cell television viewing, possession of pornographic materials, instruction or training equipment for any martial art or bodybuilding or weightlifting equipment, or dress or hygiene other than as is uniform or standard in the prison; and (3) in the case of a prisoner serving a sentence for a crime of violence which resulted in serious bodily injury to another, does not provide housing other than in separate cell blocks intended for violent prisoners, less than nine hours a day of physical labor (with exceptions), any release from the prison for any purpose unless under physical or mechanical restraint and under constant supervision of at least one armed correctional officer, or any viewing of television. Directs the Attorney General to establish conditions in the Federal prison system that are, as nearly as possible, the same as those required in State prisons under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 1995
Prohibits funds appropriated or otherwise available to the Department of Defense from being obligated or expended for activities of any element of the armed forces that is placed under the operational control of a foreign national acting on behalf of the United Nations (UN), unless the President certifies to the Congress that such operational control is necessary to protect vital U.S. national security interests. Requires a follow-up report from the President to the Congress within ten days after such a certification. Provides an exception to such prohibition in the case of elements involving fewer than 100 members of the armed forces in any one country.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 1995
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to prohibit the imposition of any excise tax on air transportation for the purpose of providing medical care if such transportation is not scheduled and is not along regular routes. (Current tax law refers to such air transportation by helicopter.)
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 1995
Declares that, for the purposes of any constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget, the appropriate committees of the House and the Senate shall report to their respective Houses implementing legislation to achieve a balanced budget without increasing the receipts or reducing the disbursements of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund to achieve that goal.
United States · United States Congress · 19 January 1995
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act and other Federal law to make any managed health care plan established by the Secretary of Defense in the Military Health Services System eligible for payments by the Secretary of Health and Human Services on behalf of any plan enrollees entitled to Medicare benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 1995
Amends Federal transportation law to exempt farmers or retail farm suppliers transporting agricultural commodities or farm supplies from requirements limiting the maximum driving and on-duty time for drivers used by motor carriers if such transportation occurs within a 100-air mile radius of the source of such commodities or the distribution point for such farm supplies.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 1995
Church Retirement Benefits Simplification Act of 1995 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to recodify and revise qualifications for church retirement and pension plans. Makes employee contributions to such plans nonforfeitable. Requires the plan to meet minimum vesting requirements. Recodifies the authority of a church or a convention or association of churches to be treated as an employer making contributions to retirement income accounts. Subjects church-related hospitals and universities to certain coverage and related rules in the case of a contract purchased by a church. Requires distributions from retirement income accounts provided by churches to be in accordance with distributions under cash or deferred arrangements. Provides for determining the beginning date for such distributions. Allows self-employed ministers and chaplains who work for non-church employers to participate in their church plans. Provides that certain rules aggregating employees do not apply to churches. Restores qualified voluntary employee contributions to church plans. Treats self-employed ministers as employees for purposes of certain welfare benefit plans and retirement income accounts. Allows a deduction for contributions to retirement income accounts by such ministers. Provides that a church plan maintained by more than one employer shall not be treated as a single plan. Provides that accounting methods of deferred compensation plans of State and local governments and tax-exempt organizations do not apply to a church plan. Exempts a church plan from the requirement to maintain separate accounts for medical benefits for key employees. Provides that the special rules for computing employee contributions to pension plans do not apply to certain foreign missionaries. Repeals the elective deferral catch-up limitation for church retirement income accounts. Allows church plans to annuitize benefits and increase benefit payments. Provides that rules for self-insured medical reimbursement plans are not applicable to church plans. Provides that retirement benefits of ministers are not subject to the tax on net earnings from self-employment.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 1995
Freedom and Self-Determination for the Former Soviet Union Act - Prohibits foreign assistance from being obligated or expended for Russia for any fiscal year unless the President certifies to the Congress for such fiscal year that: (1) the President has received satisfactory assurances from the Government of Russia, which have been confirmed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, that Russia's intelligence activities in the United States are confined to routine, non-adversarial information gathering; (2) Russia is making progress toward the unconditional implementation of the Russian-Moldovan troop withdrawal agreement and that the Russian Government is not providing military assistance to any military forces in the Transdniestra region of Moldova; (3) Russian troops in the Kaliningrad region of Russia are respecting the sovereign territory of Lithuania and neighboring countries and are not offensively postured against any other countries; (4) the activities of Russia in the independent states of the former Soviet Union do not represent an attempt by Russia to diminish the sovereignty and independence of such states; (5) Russia is not providing military assistance to any Bosnian Serb military units or to the Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia; (6) the Russian Government has ceased the unilateral demarcation of the border between Russia and Estonia, is engaged in dialogue with Estonia to resolve the border dispute, and has demonstrated a willingness to submit this issue to international arbitration; (7) Russia is not providing any intelligence information to Cuba or assistance to Cuba with respect to the signal intelligence facility at Lourdes; (8) Russia is not providing goods or technology which could contribute to the acquisition of chemical, biological, nuclear, or advanced conventional weapons to Iran, Iraq, Syria, or other countries whose governments have provided support for international terrorism; (9) Russia is in compliance with a specified convention regarding biological weapons and the Wyoming Memorandum of Understanding on chemical weapons; and (10) Russia is committed to reforming the Russian economy along free-market lines. Prohibits, with respect to FY 1995 and 1996, obligating or expending foreign assistance for Russia unless the President certifies to the Congress that the Russian Government has: (1) ceased its military offensive in Chechnya and is committed to resolving the status of Chechnya through negotiations; and (2) provided a full accounting of the espionage activities of Aldrich Ames and has reimbursed the United States for amounts paid to Rosario Ames since her arrest. Requires the President and the Comptroller General to report to the Congress for each fiscal year: (1) the amount of foreign assistance provided to Russia for the preceding fiscal year; (2) a detailed accounting of the amount of foreign assistance appropriated which has not been expended and its status; and (3) an estimate of the total amount of capital exported from Russia during the previous fiscal year and an analysis of reasons for such export. Directs the President to instruct the U.S. executive directors of the international financial institutions to oppose assistance to Russia unless Russia is in compliance with this Act's requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 1995
Repeals the Davis-Bacon Act (an Act which requires that the locally prevailing wage rate be paid to various classes of laborers and mechanics working under federally-financed or federally-assisted contracts for construction, alteration, and repair of public buildings or public works). Repeals the Copeland Act (an Act which requires the Secretary of Labor to regulate contractors and subcontractors engaged in the construction or repair of public buildings, public works, or federally financed or assisted buildings or works).
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 1995
Workforce Preparation and Development Act - Declares the intent of the Congress to provide for the establishment of a comprehensive and consolidated workforce preparation and development system in the United States. Declares that, by the end of the 104th Congress, the Congress shall: (1) conduct a thorough evaluation of all Federal workforce preparation and development programs to determine their quality, effectiveness, and efficiency; (2) enact legislation that provides for a comprehensive and consolidated workforce preparation and development system, with specified features; and (3) repeal specified existing Federal workforce preparation and development programs, as appropriate.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 1995
Farm Estate Fairness Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to estate tax valuation to allow a qualified heir to rent the property to a member of the heir's family on a net cash basis.
United States · United States Congress · 11 January 1995
Social Security Trust Funds Integrity Act of 1995 - Amends titles II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) and XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to restructure the Board of Trustees of the trust funds supporting the OASDI and Medicare programs, with each Board composed of members appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, on a bipartisan basis at the recommendation of House and Senate leadership and the five largest organizations representing senior citizens. Makes it the duty of the Managing Trustee chairing the Board to invest trust fund amounts according to an annual investment plan the Board is required to formulate and submit to the President and the Congress. Removes restrictions on investment and disinvestment of amounts in such trust funds.
United States · United States Congress · 9 January 1995
Regulatory Transition Act of 1995 - Establishes a moratorium on Federal regulatory rulemaking actions from November 9, 1994, through June 30, 1995, with certain emergency exceptions for presidentially designated imminent threats to health or safety, or actions necessary for enforcement of criminal laws. Suspends until July 1, 1995, starting 30 days after enactment of this Act, the effectiveness of any such action taken or made effective after November 9, 1994, but before enactment of this Act. Extends for five months or until July 1, 1995, whichever is later, any statutory, regulatory, or judicial deadline for, relating to, or involving any action dependent upon, any regulatory rulemaking actions authorized or required to be taken before the end of the moratorium period. Requires the President to inventory and publish in the Federal Register a list of all covered regulatory rulemaking actions taken or made effective during the moratorium period but before the date of enactment of this Act. Excludes from the meaning of rule: (1) the approval or prescription, on a case-by-case or consolidated basis, for the future of rates, wages, corporation, or financial structures or reorganizations thereof, prices, facilities, appliances, services or allowances therefor, or of valuations costs, or accounting, or practices bearing on any of the foregoing; and (2) the granting of an application for a license, registration, or similar authority, the granting or recognition of an exception, the granting of a variance or petition for relief from a regulatory requirement, or other action relieving a restriction, or any action necessary to permit new or improved applications of technology. Authorizes civil actions by anyone adversely affected by any conduct of a Federal agency in violation of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Bilingual Voting Requirements Repeal Act of 1995 - Amends the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to eliminate certain bilingual voting requirements and related provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends provisions of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act that revise Federal patent law to provide that a patent term shall be the later of 17 years from the date the patent is granted or 20 years from the date the application was filed in the United States. Provides that if the application contains a reference to an earlier application, the term shall be 20 years from the date the earliest application was filed. Removes provisions that provide for extensions of patent terms under certain conditions. Provides for public disclosure and inspection of original and continuing patent applications in cases where a continuing patent application is filed that claims the benefit of the filing date of a prior application that was filed more than 60 months earlier. Requires the term of a patent that is in force or results from an application filed within six months after the Uruguay Round Agreements Act enactment date to be the term provided in this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends the Clean Air Act to authorize a State in which all or part of a Severe ozone nonattainment area is located to submit a plan revision requiring employers in such area to implement programs to reduce work-related vehicle trips and miles by employees. (Current law requires such States to submit such revision within two years of the enactment of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990.) Authorizes such revision to require employers in such areas to increase average passenger occupancy per vehicle in commuting trips between home and workplace during peak travel periods. (Current law requires specified increases in average passenger occupancy.) Authorizes (currently, requires) the revision to require employers subject to a vehicle occupancy requirement to submit a compliance plan.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to change the income tax rate table for estates and trusts to the tax rate table of married individuals filing separate returns.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that the burden of proof with respect to all issues, in the case of any court proceeding, is on the Secretary of the Treasury. Requires the Secretary to identify in writing the specific kind or type of tax, and its specific implementing regulations, within 14 days upon the written request from any person made liable for such tax. Increases the limitation on the amount of recovery for civil damages for unauthorized collection actions by the Internal Revenue Service. Excludes such damages from gross income.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Repeals the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Language of Government Act of 1995 - Declares English to be the official language of the U.S. Government. States that the Government has an affirmative obligation to preserve and enhance the role of English as the official language. Requires the Government to conduct its official business in English. Prohibits anyone from being denied Government services because he or she communicates in English.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
1995 Community Protection Initiative - Amends the Federal criminal code to exempt qualified current and former law enforcement officers carrying appropriate written identification of such status from State and local laws prohibiting the carrying of a concealed handgun.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Gun Ban Repeal Act of 1995 - Amends the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to repeal the ban on semiautomatic assault weapons and large capacity ammunition feeding devices.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
American Dream Restoration Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individuals a tax credit of $500 multiplied by the number of qualifying children who have not attained age 18. Places limitations on such credit based on: (1) taxpayer adjusted gross incomes over $200,000; and (2) social security tax payments. Provides an inflation adjustment for such credit and the taxpayer adjusted gross income amount. Allows a tax credit for qualified married couples equal to a dollar amount determined by the Secretary of the Treasury to reduce revenues by $2 billion. Describes such couples as those who would be required to pay more in income taxes because they are married than they would be required to pay if they were not married. Establishes individual retirement plans which can be designated as American Dream Savings Accounts. Disallows a tax deduction for amounts contributed to such accounts. Limits contributions to such accounts to the lesser of $2,000, or compensation includible in an individual's gross income for a taxable year ($4,000 in the case of certain married individuals). Provides an inflation adjustment on such amounts. Permits contributions to be made after age 70.5. Excludes distributions from such accounts from gross income and makes the penalty on early distributions inapplicable. Designates qualified distributions as those: (1) made after the individual attains age 59.5; (2) made to a beneficiary on or after the death of the individual; (3) attributable to the individual being disabled; and (4) qualified as special purpose distributions. Prohibits qualified distributions from being made within the five-year period since the account began. Describes special purpose distributions as those for: (1) qualified first-time homebuyers; (2) qualified higher education expenses; and (3) qualified medical expenses, including long-term care insurance.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Repeals the Service Contract Act of 1965.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Capital Formation and Jobs Creation Act of 1995 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a 50 percent income tax deduction for the net capital gain of both corporate and noncorporate taxpayers. Requires indexing, based on the gross domestic product deflator, of the adjusted basis of certain assets (corporate stock and tangible property that is a capital asset or property used in a trade or business) that have been held for more than one year at the time of sale or other transfer, solely for the purpose of determining gain or loss. Allows an itemized deduction for losses arising from the sale or exchange of a principal residence.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
COLA Equity Act - Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 to: (1) provide that the initial month for which a cost of living increase in military retired pay that becomes effective on December 1 of 1993, 1994, or 1995 is payable shall be March (currently, September) of the following year for persons who first became a member of a uniformed service before August 1, 1986; and (2) provide that such special rule shall apply only through FY 1996 (currently, FY 1998).
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Employee Educational Assistance Act of 1995 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent the income tax exclusion of amounts paid under employee educational assistance programs.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Makes State compliance with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 voluntary.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow the deduction for home office expenses if a portion of a dwelling unit is used as the sole fixed location of business for a taxpayer who has no other fixed location of business, regardless of: (1) the amount of time or type of work performed in such location; or (2) the proportion of the total income from the business attributable to such location.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Constitutional Amendment - Requires the Congress, prior to each fiscal year, to adopt a statement in which total Federal outlays do not exceed total receipts, unless a three-fifths vote of both Houses authorizes a specific excess. Prohibits a bill to increase receipts from becoming law unless approved by a three-fifths majority in each House. Directs the President to submit a balanced budget. Sets a permanent limit on the amount of Federal public debt, prohibiting any increase unless legislation enacted by a three-fifths majority of both Houses become law. Requires roll call votes in the House and Senate under this amendment.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Constitutional Amendment - Provides that no person who has been elected to the Senate two times shall be eligible for election or appointment to the Senate. Provides that no person who has been elected to the House of Representatives six times shall be eligible for election to the House.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Findings, Policy, and Purposes Title II: Missile Defense Title III: Revitalization of National Security Commission Title IV: Command of United States Forces Title V: United Nations Title VI: Revitalization and Expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization Title VII: Budget Firewalls National Security Revitalization Act - Title I: Findings, Policy, and Purposes - Sets forth as purposes of this Act: (1) to establish a commission to reassess U.S. military needs and reverse the decline in defense spending; (2) to commit to acceleration of the development and deployment of theater and national ballistic missile defense capabilities; (3) to restrict deployment of U.S. forces to missions that are in the national interest; (4) to maintain U.S. command of U.S. forces participating in United Nations (UN) peacekeeping operations and to reduce the cost to the United States of such operations; and (5) to reemphasize the U.S. commitment to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Title II: Missile Defense - Directs the Secretary of Defense (Secretary) to: (1) develop for deployment at the earliest possible date a cost- and operationally-effective antiballistic missile system to protect the United States against ballistic missile attacks; and (2) develop for expeditious deployment advanced theater missile defense systems. Requires a plan with respect to the deployment of such systems to be submitted to specified congressional committees within 60 days after enactment of this Act. Title III: Revitalization of National Security Commission - Establishes the Revitalization of National Security Commission to conduct a comprehensive review of the long-term U.S. national security needs. Requires an interim and final report from the Commission to designated congressional committees on its assessments and recommendations. Provides funding. Title IV: Command of United States Forces - Prohibits funds made available to the Department of Defense (DOD) from being obligated or expended for activities of any element of the armed forces that after the date of enactment of this Act is placed under the command or operational control of a foreign national acting on behalf of the UN for international peacekeeping or peace enforcement purposes. Waives such prohibition if the President, at least 15 days in advance, certifies to the Congress that such command or control is necessary to protect U.S. national security interests. Allows the President, in emergency situations, to allow such foreign command or control without the advance notification, but requires congressional notification within 48 hours after such action. Outlines certification requirements. Waives all such requirements when less than 50 members of U.S. armed forces are involved. Requires the President to submit to the Congress a memorandum of legal points and authorities explaining why the foreign placement of U.S. military personnel does not violate the Constitution. Excepts ongoing operations in Macedonia from the above requirements. (Sec. 402) Amends the United Nations Participation Act of 1945 (the Act) to require approval by the Congress, by law, of any presidential action taken which makes available to the UN Security Council, or a foreign national acting on behalf of the UN, U.S. armed forces for international peace and security activities. Provides exceptions: (l) in the case of presidential certifications, as above; and (2) when such action is authorized by law. Outlines certification requirements and provides an exception for: (1) actions requiring less than 50 U.S. military personnel; and (2) ongoing operations in Macedonia. Requires the President to submit to the Congress the same legal memorandum as required above. Title V: United Nations - Amends the Act to specifically limit the U.S. assessment for UN expenditures in support of international peacekeeping operations. Requires crediting for the United States by the UN for the costs of U.S. support for, or participation in, such activities. Directs the President to annually submit to designated congressional committees a report on the total amount of any fiscal year's national defense funds that are expended to support such activities. (Sec. 502) Codifies within the Act specified provisions of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995, concerning the required notification to the Congress of proposed UN peacekeeping activities. Requires within such notification a description of any uncovered U.S. assistance to or support for such activities. Defines a new UN peacekeeping operation as one to be expanded by more than 25 percent during the period covered, or one to be authorized to operate in a country in which it was not previously authorized. (Sec. 503) Requires presidential notification to designated congressional committees within 15 days: (1) after receipt by the United States of a billing request from the UN for the U.S. contribution toward UN peacekeeping activities; or (2) before the U.S. obligates funds for such contributions (except for emergencies, in which case notification is required within 48 hours of such obligation). (Sec. 504) Requires, in a report required under the Act, a description of the anticipated budget for the next fiscal year for U.S. participation in UN peacekeeping activities. (Sec. 506) Authorizes the Secretary, in emergency circumstances, to waive the requirement for reimbursement to the United States for in-kind contributions to UN peacekeeping activities. Requires appropriate notification to the designated congressional committees. Directs the Secretary of State to ensure that U.S. goods provided by DOD on a reimbursable basis for UN peacekeeping activities are reimbursed at the appropriate value. Directs the U.S. Permanent Representative to the UN to report to the designated congressional committees on all U.S. action taken to achieve such objectives. (Sec. 507) Prohibits appropriated funds from being used in any fiscal year to pay any U.S. assessed or voluntary contribution for UN peacekeeping activities until the Secretary certifies to the Congress that the UN has reimbursed DOD directly for all goods and services provided during the previous fiscal year for such activities. (Sec. 508) States that, beginning October 1, 1995, funds made available to DOD shall be available for UN peacekeeping activities or their related incremental costs only to the extent that the Congress has by law specifically made those funds available for such purpose. (Sec. 509) Codifies within the Act a specified provision which limits the use of funds authorized for Contributions for International Peacekeeping Activities for payment of the U.S. assessed contribution for a UN peacekeeping operation to 25 percent of the total amount of all assessed contributions for such operation. (Sec. 510) Prohibits funds from being obligated or expended for U.S. contributions to UN peacekeeping activities unless the Secretary of State determines and certifies to the designated congressional committees that U.S. manufacturers and suppliers are being given opportunities equal to foreign manufacturers and suppliers to provide equipment, material, and services for such activities. (Sec. 511) Withholds specified percentages of U.S. assessed and voluntary contributions toward UN peacekeeping activities until receipt by the Congress of a certification by the President that the UN, through its Office of Inspector General, has undertaken certain prescribed activities with respect to a financial and management accounting of UN peacekeeping activities. (Sec. 512) Authorizes the United States to provide intelligence to the UN only pursuant to a written agreement between the President and the UN's Secretary General specifying the types of and circumstances for such intelligence and the procedures to be observed by the UN with respect to access and disclosure of the intelligence. Requires advance notification (30 days) to the Congress before such an agreement will be considered effective. Provides exceptions. Title VI: Revitalization and Expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization - NATO Revitalization and Expansion Act of 1995 - Declares that it should be U.S. policy: (1) to continue the commitment to an active leadership role in NATO; (2) to join with NATO allies to redefine the role of the alliance in the post-Cold War world, taking into account specified factors; (3) to affirm that NATO military planning should include joint military operations beyond the geographic bounds of the alliance under the North Atlantic Treaty when the shared interests of the United States and other member countries require such actions to defend vital interests; (4) that Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia should be permitted to join NATO by January 10, 1999, as long as each such country meets specified standards and undertakes certain commitments; (5) that the United States and other NATO member nations should furnish appropriate assistance to enable such countries to achieve membership by such date; and (6) that other European countries, particularly the Baltic states and Ukraine, may be in a position to achieve NATO membership at a future date. (Sec. 604) Directs the President to establish a program to assist the transition to full NATO membership of Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and any other European country emerging from communist domination that is designated by the President. Outlines types of assistance to be provided. Requires annual reports from the President to the appropriate congressional committees on the progress made in implementing this section. Title VII: Budget Firewalls - Expresses the sense of the Congress that so-called "budget firewalls" between defense and domestic discretionary spending should be established for each of FY 1996 through 1998.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Review of Unfunded Federal Mandates Title II: Regulatory Accountability and Reform Title III: Legislative Accountability and Reform Unfunded Mandate Reform Act of 1995 - Prohibits this Act from applying to any provision in a Federal statute or proposed or final Federal regulation that: (1) enforces constitutional rights of individuals; (2) establishes or enforces any statutory rights that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, religion, gender, national origin, or handicapped or disability status; (3) requires compliance with accounting and auditing procedures with respect to grants or other money or property provided by the Federal Government; (4) provides for emergency assistance or relief at the request of any State, local, or tribal government; (5) is necessary for national security or ratification or implementation of international treaty obligations; or (6) is designated as emergency legislation. Title I: Review of Unfunded Federal Mandates - Establishes the Commission on Unfunded Federal Mandates to investigate and review the role of unfunded Federal mandates in intergovernmental relations and their impact on State, local, tribal, and Federal government objectives and responsibilities. Requires the Commission to make recommendations to the President and the Congress with regard to: (1) allowing flexibility where the terms of compliance are unnecessarily rigid or complex; (2) consolidating or simplifying unfunded Federal mandates in order to facilitate compliance; (3) terminating those mandates which are duplicative, obsolete, or lacking in practical utility; and (4) temporarily suspending those mandates which are not vital to public health and safety and which compound the fiscal difficulties of State, local, and tribal governments. (Sec. 107) Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Regulatory Accountability and Reform - Requires each Federal agency, to the extent permitted under current law, to: (1) assess the effects of Federal regulations on States, local, and tribal governments, and the private sector (other than to the extent that such regulations incorporate requirements specifically set forth in legislation), including specifically the availability of resources to carry out any Federal mandates in those regulations; and (2) seek to minimize those burdens that uniquely or significantly affect such governmental entities or the private sector, consistent with achieving statutory and regulatory objectives. (Sec. 201) Directs each agency to develop an effective process to permit elected officials and other representatives of States and local and tribal governments to provide meaningful and timely input in the development of regulatory proposals containing significant Federal intergovernmental mandates. Requires each agency, before establishing regulatory requirements, to develop plans for: (1) notifying small governments of such requirements; (2) enabling their officials to provide appropriate input into the regulatory process; and (3) preparing estimates of the effect of Federal private sector mandates on the national economy. (Sec. 202) Requires each agency to prepare a written statement of specified estimates and analyses before promulgating any notice of proposed rulemaking or final rule including Federal mandates that may result in private or public sector expenditures of $100 million or more in any one year. (Sec. 203) Directs the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to collect such statements and forward copies to the CBO Director. (Sec. 204) Requires the OMB Director to establish pilot programs in at least two agencies to test innovative and more flexible regulatory approaches that: (1) reduce reporting and compliance burdens on small governments; and (2) meet overall statutory goals and objectives. Title III: Legislative Accountability and Reform - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to add provisions on Federal mandates, with applicability limited in the same manner as indicated before in title I. (Sec. 301) Provides that when a congressional authorization committee orders a public bill or joint resolution reported, the committee shall promptly provide the text of the legislation to the CBO Director, identifying any Federal mandate in it. Requires, when such a committee reports legislation including any Federal mandate, that the accompanying report contain certain information, including statements on whether the legislation is intended to preempt any State, local, or tribal law (and the reasons for such intention), as well as individual mandate descriptions, cost- benefit analyses, and statements regarding Federal financial assistance to State, local, and tribal governments for meeting mandate costs. Requires the CBO Director, for each piece of legislation, to prepare and submit to such committee certain statements estimating the direct costs of mandate compliance and the amount of new or increased Federal financial assistance needed to meet such costs, if the estimates indicate at least a $50 million per fiscal year direct cost of all intergovernmental mandates in the legislation, or a $100 million per fiscal year direct cost of private sector mandates. Provides that, at the request of any congressional committee, the CBO Director shall: (1) consult with and assist it in analyzing the budgetary or financial impact of any proposed legislation that may have a significant impact on the State, local, or tribal government involved or on the private sector; and (2) study any legislative proposal containing a Federal mandate. Requires the CBO Director to conduct continuing studies to enhance comparisons of budget outlays, credit authority, and tax expenditures. Requires any congressional committee that anticipates considering proposed legislation establishing, amending, or reauthorizing any Federal program likely to have a significant budgetary impact on the State, local, or tribal government involved, or to have a significant financial impact on the private sector, to include that information in its views and estimates on that proposal to the applicable budget committee. Authorizes appropriations to CBO to carry out such new requirements under the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. Makes it out of order for the House of Representatives or the Senate to consider: (1) any reported nonappropriations legislation unless it has a CBO Director report; or (2) any reported nonappropriations legislation containing a Federal intergovernmental mandate with direct costs exceeding the thresholds specified by this Act, unless it provides for new or increased budget, entitlement, or direct spending authority or makes other specified arrangements for each fiscal year to ensure that Federal funds equal or exceed the estimated direct costs of the mandate, or that State, local, and tribal programmatic and financial responsibilities are reduced so they do not exceed the amount of Federal funding. Requires the direct costs of a Federal mandate for a fiscal year to be determined based on estimates by congressional budget committees. Gives the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight of the House and the Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Senate final authority to determine whether a piece of legislation contains a Federal mandate. Provides that it shall not be in order in the House of Representatives to consider a rule or order waiving application of these provisions to a bill or joint resolution reported by an authorization committee. (Sec. 302) Amends House rules with regard to the Committee of the Whole and Committee on Rule: (1) to make it always in order in the former to strike from the portion of any bill open to amendment any Federal mandate whose direct costs exceed the prescribed threshold; and (2) to require the latter to include in its reports on waived points of order a separate item identifying all waivers of points or order relating to Federal mandates. (Sec. 305) Repeals the State and Local Government Cost Estimate Act of 1981.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Constitution provides that all citizens have the right to keep and bear arms and that such right supersedes the power and authority of any government.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) Taiwan deserves full participation, including a seat, in the United Nations (UN); and (2) the U.S. Government should immediately encourage the UN to establish an ad hoc committee for the purpose of studying membership for Taiwan in that organization and its related agencies.