United States · United States Congress · 24 October 1991
Authorizes the Air Force Association to establish a memorial on Federal land in the District of Columbia or its environs to honor the men and women who have served in the U.S. Air Force.
United States · United States Congress · 24 October 1991
Nuclear Testing Moratorium Act - Prohibits the Secretary of Energy from conducting any explosive nuclear weapons test during the one-year period following the enactment of this Act unless the President certifies to the Congress that the Soviet Union has conducted such a test during such period.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 1991
Intermodal Safe Container Transportation Act of 1991 - Requires any person initially tendering, to a carrier of property, any container or trailer in interstate or foreign commerce having a gross weight of more than 10,000 pounds to give the carrier verification of the total cargo weight and a description of the cargo. Makes such requirement applicable only to intermodal transportation. Requires the Secretary of Transportation to adopt rules to enforce this Act and provides for State enforcement.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 1991
Management Corps Act of 1991 - Requires the President to designate a private nonprofit organization which has demonstrated expertise in providing assistance to business enterprises in the Republics of the Soviet Union and the Baltic States through United States citizens with expertise in the management of business enterprises who voluntarily donate their time and services to such enterprises in those countries. Designates such organization as the Management Corps. Sets forth administrative provisions for such Corps. Provides for grants to the Corps to be made by the Secretary of State through the Agency for International Development. Requires the Corps to publish an annual report which shall be submitted to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1993 through 1995.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 1991
Amends the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 to replace references to: (1) "agent" with "representative"; and (2) "propaganda" with advocacy or informational materials." Includes within the definition of "political advocacy or informational materials" any attempt to influence U.S. domestic policy. Excludes from the definition of "representative of a foreign principal" any incorporated, nonprofit membership organization organized under U.S. laws that is registered under the Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act, that has obtained tax-exempt status, and whose activities are directed in whole by U.S. citizens. Includes within the definition of "political consultant" any person who distributes political advocacy or informational materials to a Federal officer or employee, in his or her capacity as an officer or employee. Revises content requirements of registration statements required to be filed by representatives of foreign principals. Requires such representatives to: (1) maintain appropriate financial records and records of activities relating to registration; and (2) file quarterly reports with the Attorney General on activities for which a registration is required. Repeals specified provisions concerning the filing and labeling of political propaganda. Repeals an exemption to registration requirements for persons representing foreign governments whose defense is deemed vital to the defense of the United States. Provides that the exemption from the registration requirement for individuals providing legal representation for a foreign principal before a U.S. agency shall apply only to representation before the Patent and Trademark Office. Requires persons relying on such exemption or on an exemption provided for persons engaging in private and nonpolitical activities or soliciting funds for humanitarian assistance to notify the Attorney General. Makes subject to civil penalties persons who have: (1) failed to file registration statements; or (2) omitted a material fact or made false statements on registration statements. Authorizes the Attorney General to serve civil investigative demands on persons in control of materials relevant to investigations concerning violations of registration requirements. Redesignates the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 as the Foreign Interests Representation Act.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 1991
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should: (1) condemn the use of force in Yugoslavia; (2) recognize the independence of the Republics of Croatia and Slovenia; and (3) work for the cessation of hostilities leading to a negotiated settlement and peace in the region.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 1991
Medicaid Moratorium Amendments of 1991 - Amends the Technical and Miscellaneous Revenues Act of 1988 to: (1) delay until September 30, 1992, the issuance of regulations changing the treatment under the Medicaid program (title XIX of the Social Security Act) of voluntary contributions and provider-specific taxes; and (2) maintain current regulations that allow intergovernmental transfers as a source of a State's expenditures for which Federal matching funds are available under the Medicaid program. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to submit to specified congressional committees a report on: (1) regulations to limit the use of voluntary contributions and provider-specific taxes to obtain Federal financial participation; (2) specific types of voluntary contributions and provider-specific taxes that may be used as sources of State expenditures for which Federal financial participation is available; and (3) any legislation that the Secretary believes is appropriate. Sets forth budget compliance provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 1991
Super Savings Bond Act - Provides for the issuance of 12-year super savings bonds, through payroll deduction or regular monthly purchase plans, to increase national savings and reduce the Federal debt owed to foreign creditors.
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 1991
Foreign Aid Reporting Reform Act of 1991 - Directs the President, in conjunction with the submission of annual requests for enactment of authorizations and appropriations for foreign assistance programs, to submit to the Congress a single report containing: (1) an integrated justification for all foreign assistance programs proposed for the coming fiscal year; and (2) an assessment of when the objectives of those programs will be achieved so that the assistance can be terminated. Requires the President to include in such report general information regarding the foreign assistance program, as well as information concerning specific assistance recipients and centrally-funded programs. Directs congressional committees reporting legislation authorizing the enactment of or providing new budget authority for foreign assistance programs to include in reports accompanying such legislation an explanation for any change proposed in: (1) the total amount of new budget authority authorized or provided for any program as compared to the amount proposed by the President; or (2) the amount of assistance for any specific recipient or for any centrally-funded program as compared to the amount proposed by the President.
United States · United States Congress · 15 October 1991
Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to authorize the use of certain unobligated amounts in the Customs Forfeiture Fund for FY 1992 only by the Department of Health and Human Services for drug treatment for individuals under criminal justice supervision and for trauma care.
United States · United States Congress · 10 October 1991
Improved Bottled Water Act of 1991 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to modify quality standards for bottled water. Sets forth labeling requirements. Allows testing to be performed only by a certified laboratory. Provides for annual inspections of facilities. Provides for recalls. Regulates transportation, storage, processing, and bottling. Establishes a regulatory program office for bottled water in the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition.
United States · United States Congress · 10 October 1991
Escrow Account Reform Act of 1992 - Amends the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974 to modify the limitation placed on advance deposits in escrow accounts. Requires any mortgage lender or servicer that establishes or maintains an escrow account in connection with a federally related mortgage loan to pay interest on the balance in such account at a specified minimum annual rate. Cites conditions under which a borrower in connection with a federally related mortgage may terminate an escrow account by submitting a statement certifying that the borrower agrees to make timely payments of all charges paid from the escrow account. Defines the liability incurred for noncompliance with this Act. Sets forth Federal court jurisdiction over escrow account violations, and identifies the parties with standing to sue (including the borrower). Requires the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to: (1) report to the Congress the results of a study regarding standard escrow account management procedures; and (2) promulgate regulations implementing this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 10 October 1991
Emergency Job Creation Appropriations Act, 1992 - Title I: Meeting Our Economic Problems Coming from Changing Conditions with Essential Productive Jobs - Directs the appropriate congressional committees to study the current economic crisis, with emphasis on long-term recovery and and a strong private sector based on Government/industry partnership, and present their findings to the Congress as expeditiously as possible for appropriate action. Declares that the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve and the Federal Open Market Committee should take necessary actions to achieve and maintain a level of interest rates low enough to achieve significant economic growth and reduce the current level of unemployment. Makes appropriations for FY 1992, in order to create productive jobs and protect public investment, for various activities relating to: (1) Federal buildings; (2) interstate highways; (3) air transportation; (4) mass transportation; (5) rehabilitation of highway bridges crossing over Northeast corridor rail transportation properties; (6) railroad infrastructure and rights-of-way improvement; (7) veterans' medical facilities and services; (8) public housing modernization; (9) community development; (10) international trade competition; (11) local economic development; (12) small business loans and investments; (13) small business oriented employment or national resources development programs; (14) parks and recreational areas and facilities; (15) the National Forest System; (16) Indian health facilities; (17) Fish and Wildlife Service facilities; (18) rural development and resource conservation, including rural water and waste disposal; (19) soil conservation, including watershed and flood prevention operations; (20) Federal, State, and local prison modernization; (21) water resource and hydroelectric power, flood control, shore protection, harbor channel and navigable waterway maintenance; (22) reclamation and irrigation projects; (23) Federal agricultural research facilities; (24) tree-planting and other natural resources development programs; (25) historic properties restoration; and (26) Bureau of Land Management facilities. Makes appropriations for FY 1992 to the Department of Labor to provide productive jobs for unemployed individuals under specified conditions, in various types of public service employment. Provides for allocation of such funds to eligible local governments, rural area concentrated employment program grantees, or States. Makes appropriations in additional amounts for FY 1992 for: (1) employment and training services; (2) grants to States for unemployment insurance and employment services; (3) higher education academic and research facilities; and (4) the Federal Emergency Management Agency's emergency food and shelter program. Makes appropriations for FY 1991 for: (1) construction and modernization of military family housing; (2) low-income energy conservation weatherization activities (in an additional amount) and (3) Federal motor vehicle procurement. Title II: Technical Provisions - Provides that no part of any appropriation contained in this Act shall remain available for obligation beyond the current fiscal year unless expressly so provided herein.
United States · United States Congress · 10 October 1991
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the ambulance currently maintained at the Capitol solely for Members of Congress should be made available to aid any individual who experiences a serious or life threatening medical condition while on the Capitol grounds.
United States · United States Congress · 9 October 1991
Approves the extension of nondiscriminatory treatment (most-favored-nation treatment) to the products of the Soviet Union transmitted to the Congress by the President on October 9, 1991.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 1991
Economic Equity Act - Title I: Employment Opportunities - Subtitle A: Nontraditional Employment for Women Act - Nontraditional Employment for Women Act - Amends the Job Training Partnership Act to modify requirements regarding women in nontraditional employment (defined as occupations or fields where women comprise less than 25 percent of the individuals) relating to: (1) job training plans and coordination and special services plans; (2) the duties of the State job training coordinating council; and (3) the use of certain funds. Requires States to develop demonstration programs to train and place women in nontraditional employment. Subtitle B: Worker Retraining Act of 1991 - Worker Retraining Act of 1991 - Mandates grants to not more than ten States to plan, establish, and operate worker retraining initiatives to allow employed low-income individuals to advance from low skill to higher skill positions. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle C: Women in Apprenticeship Occupations and Nontraditional Occupations Act - Women in Apprenticeship Occupations and Nontraditional Occupations Act - Requires the Department of Labor to promote an outreach program to employers to inform employers of the availability of technical assistance in preparing the work place to employ women in apprenticeable occupations and other nontraditional occupations. Mandates a report to the Congress on the participation of women in apprenticeable and other nontraditional occupations. Subtitle D: Glass Ceiling Act of 1991 - Glass Ceiling Act of 1991 - Establishes a Glass Ceiling Commission to study and report to the President and appropriate committees of the Congress concerning: (1) eliminating artificial barriers to the advancement of women and minorities; and (2) increasing the opportunities and developmental experiences of women and minorities to foster advancement to management and decision making positions in business. Establishes the National Award for Diversity and Excellence in American Executive Management. Allows a recipient business to publicize the receipt of the award and use the award in its advertising, if the business agrees to help other U.S. businesses improve with respect to the promotion of opportunities and developmental experiences of women and minorities to foster the advancement of women and minorities to management and decision making positions. Authorizes appropriations. Terminates the Commission and the authority to make awards four years after enactment of this Act. Subtitle E: Women and Minorities in Science and Mathematics Act of 1991 - Women and Minorities in Science and Mathematics Act of 1991 - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 with regard to women and minorities who are underrepresented in science and mathematics to mandate grants and contracts for education programs. Modifies existing provisions regarding: (1) off-campus programs; (2) adult and continuing education staff development; (3) research and research application in adult and continuing education; (4) the "talent search" and "upward bound" programs; (5) midcareer teacher retraining; (6) school, college, and university partnerships; (7) professional development resource centers; (8) congressional teacher scholarships; (9) model and cooperative education; (10) graduate education programs; (11) Harris fellowships; (12) graduate assistance in areas of national need; (13) the Minority Science Improvement Program; and (14) science and engineering access programs. Subtitle F: Commission on the Advancement of Women in the Science and Engineering Work Forces Act - Commission on the Advancement of Women in the Science and Engineering Work Forces Act - Establishes the Commission on the Advancement of Women in the Science and Engineering Work Forces. Title II: Women in Business - Subtitle A: Act for Microenterprise - Act for Microenterprise - Amends the Social Security Act to exclude business assets from consideration in determining: (1) eligibility for aid and services to needy families with children (AFDC); and (2) income and resources in connection with provisions relating to supplemental security income (SSI). Excludes income from a business with five or fewer employees, during the first year of the business, from consideration in determining the amount of aid under AFDC and SSI. Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to require approval of any State law making unemployment compensation payable to individuals starting microenterprises. Requires State law to entitle an individual performing services in a microenterprise to receive regular or extended unemployment compensation. Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to allow assistance under certain provisions of the Act to be used for: (1) loans to commercial enterprises with five or fewer employees, one or more of whom own the enterprise; and (2) counseling, technical assistance, educational programs, planning, and training to facilitate such commercial enterprises. Amends the Small Business Act to set forth Congressional findings regarding microenterprises and implementation of loan programs under specified provisions of the Small Business Act and the Small Business Investment Act of 1958. Amends the Home Owners' Loan Act to add references to microenterprise loans to provisions defining "qualified thrift investments." Requires each Federal banking agency to establish a division to be known as the Microenterprise Technical and Operations Office to offer technical assistance, training, outreach, and other support. Subtitle B: Microlend for the Future Act - Microlend for the Future Act - Authorizes the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to make loans and grants to community based organizations for the startup and expansion of microenterprises, with the organizations using the loans to make loans and the grants to provide technical assistance to microenterprises. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle C: Women's Business Procurement Assistance Act of 1991 - Women's Business Procurement Assistance Act of 1991 - Amends the Small Business Act to add references to small businesses owned and controlled by women to provisions concerning: (1) Government-wide goals for participation of small businesses in procurement; (2) U.S. policy on small business participation in Federal procurement and on timely payment by prime contractors to small business subcontractors; and (3) a clause required to be included in Federal agency contracts. Requires that each Federal agency having procurement powers: (1) designate a specialist responsible for programs to assist small businesses owned and controlled by women; and (2) engage in affirmative efforts to identify and solicit offers from such businesses. Establishes in the Small Business Administration the Office of Women's Business Ownership. Subtitle D: Equal Surety Bond Opportunity Act - Equal Surety Bond Opportunity Act - Prohibits discrimination by a surety in any aspect of a surety bond transaction: (1) on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, or age; (2) because the applicant has exercised any right under this title; or (3) because the applicant previously obtained a bond through certain means. Specifies activities not constituting discrimination. Provides for civil and equitable relief and prohibits a company from being approved as a surety by the Secretary of the Treasury unless the company is in full compliance with the requirements of this subtitle. Amends Federal Law to require surety companies to be in compliance with this subtitle. Subtitle E: Small Business Access to Surety Bonding Survey Act of 1991 - Small Business Access to Surety Bonding Survey Act of 1991 - Requires the Comptroller General to conduct a survey and report to specified congressional committees on the experiences of businesses, especially small businesses, in obtaining surety bonds from corporate surety firms. Title III: Economic Justice - Subtitle A: Pay Equity Technical Assistance Act - Pay Equity Technical Assistance Act - Directs the Secretary of Labor to carry out a continuing program regarding reducing or eliminating, conducting research on, and providing technical assistance concerning wage disparities based on sex, race, or national origin. Subtitle B: Legislative Pay Equity Study - Declares that it is congressional policy that persons employed in the legislative branch shall receive equal pay for comparable work. Establishes the Commission on Employment Discrimination in the Legislative Branch. Subtitle C: Part-Time and Temporary Workers Protection Act - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to set forth special participation, vesting, and accrual rules applicable to part-time and temporary employees. Allows limited reductions in employer-provided group health plan premiums for part-time employees. Modifies, for provisions relating to protection of employee benefit rights, the definition of "employee" to include persons who have performed at least 500 hours of service per year. Subtitle D: Child Support Enforcement Improvements Act of 1991 - Child Support Enforcement Improvements Act of 1991 - Shields a depository institution from liability under Federal or State law for disclosing any financial record of an individual to a State child support enforcement agency attempting to establish, modify, or enforce a child support obligation. Prohibits the recipient enforcement agency from improperly disclosing the information and provides for civil damages. Amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to allow a consumer reporting agency to furnish a consumer report to such an enforcement agency that is making such an attempt. Amends the Social Security Act to require that a State plan for child and spousal support include certain procedures relating to the provision by an absent parent of medical insurance coverage for one or more children of a custodial parent. Increases the incentive payment to States for successful enforcement of court orders for the coverage. Modifies requirements concerning: (1) regulation of the interception of refunds from the internal revenue service; and (2) employer withholding of support payments. Provides for a national network to build on the statewide child support enforcement systems States are developing. Subtitle E: Dependent Care Tax Credit Refundability - Amends the IRC to allow as a limited refundable credit a portion of: (1) expenses for household services and for the care of a qualifying individual; and (2) respite care expenses. Subtitle F: Pell Grant Eligibility Expansion Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to remove provisions prohibiting, in certain circumstances, basic educational opportunity grants (BEOGs) to less than half-time students. Subtitle G: Federal Council on Women Act - Federal Council on Women Act - Establishes in the legislative branch the Federal Council on Women to make recommendations on a wide range of issues and concerns relating to women. Title IV: Retirement Equity - Subtitle A: Pension Reform Act of 1991 - Pension Reform Act of 1991 - Amends the Tax Reform Act of 1986 to modify requirements relating to the effective date of the application of nondiscrimination rules to integrated plans. Amends the IRC to repeal provisions relating to nondiscrimination requirements and permitted disparity with regard to contributions to pension plans, including simplified pension plans. Modifies minimum coverage requirements for qualified pension, profit-sharing, and stock bonus plans with regard to whether an employer operates separate lines or a single line of business. Amends the IRC and ERISA to modify minimum vesting standards to remove provisions relating to multiemployer plans. Requires the Comptroller General to report to specified congressional committees on alternative: (1) methods of requiring employee pension benefit plans to provide cost-of-living and other adjustments to benefits; and (2) pension portability mechanisms for preserving and enhancing the real value of deferred vested pension benefits. Allows a domestic relations court order entered after enactment of this Act and amending an order originally entered before 1985 to be considered a qualified domestic relations order for purposes of certain provisions of the Retirement Equity Act of 1984. Subtitle B: Spousal Pension Equity Act - Spousal Pension Equity Act - Amends provisions of the IRC relating to limitations on the amount of annual compensation taken into account to prohibit aggregation of spousal incomes when both spouses are licensed to perform services in the same professional field and perform the services for the employer. Subtitle C: Social Security Care Provider Act of 1991 - Social Security Care Provider Act of 1991 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to change the formula for determining the number of an individual's benefit computation years. Subtitle D: Social Security Modernization Act of 1991 - Social Security Modernization Act of 1991 - Amends OASDI to require, provided this method increases benefits, that the combined earnings of an individual and his or her spouse, during their marriage, be divided equally for determining OASDI benefits. Terminates the amendment made by this subtitle after the year 2015. Mandates studies every five years by the appropriate congressional committees to determine the effect of the termination on beneficiaries. Subtitle E: Former Military Spouses - Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 to apply amendments relating to retired pay to any divorces, dissolutions of marriage, annulments, and legal separations (currently, to any such events that occur more than 90 days after enactment of the Act). Subtitle F: Federal Employees Former Spouses - Amends the Civil Service Retirement Spouse Equity Act of 1984 to modify requirements for entitlement of a former spouse of a Federal employee or Member of Congress to a survivor annuity. Allows any former spouse who becomes eligible, because of this subtitle, for a survivor annuity, to enroll in a health benefits plan under specified provisions of Federal law.
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1991
Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Act - Amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to direct the Secretary of Commerce to establish the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program to examine marine mammal health and effectively coordinate responses to strandings and unusual mortality events. Requires the Secretary to establish: (1) as part of the Program, a stranding response program; and (2) an emergency response group (ERG) of marine science and conservation experts which the Secretary shall utilize to respond to marine emergencies or unusual mortality events (emergencies). Requires the ERG to: (1) assist the Secretary in determining when an emergency is occurring; (2) develop contingency plans for responding to such emergencies; (3) assist the Secretary in formulating a response plan for particular emergencies; and (4) identify individuals or organizations at a regional or local level who could, in times of such emergencies, assist the Secretary in implementing a coordinated and effective response. Directs the ERG to develop, and the Secretary to issue, contingency plans for responding to such emergencies. Establishes in the Treasury the Marine Mammal Emergency Response Contingency Fund. Authorizes the Secretary to accept, solicit, and use the services of volunteers, and accept and use gifts, devises, and bequests to carry out the stranding response and emergency response programs. Directs the Secretary to: (1) coordinate facilities for the storage, preparation, examination, and archiving of marine mammal tissues, to be known as the National Marine Mammal Tissue Bank; (2) establish criteria for access to such tissues; (3) issue guidance for marine mammal tissue collection, preparation, and archiving, tissue analysis, and quality assurance protocols to ensure uniformity in techniques and data reporting for such analysis; (4) monitor and determine the levels, and if possible the effects, of potentially harmful contaminants present in representative species and populations of marine mammals in U.S. coastal waters, using the most effective and advanced diagnostic technologies and tools practicable; and (5) develop and maintain a central data base for tracking and assessing data on marine mammals. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1991
Solid Waste Metals Reduction Act - Prohibits the intentional introduction of lead, cadmium, mercury, or hexavalent chromium into a package or packaging component during manufacturing or distribution. Sets forth the maximum allowable concentration level of the sum of such elements in packaging. Makes such regulations inapplicable (for a specified period) for packaging: (1) that was manufactured prior to this Act's effective date; (2) to which lead, cadmium, mercury, or hexavalent chromium have been added to comply with Federal health or safety requirements or, because it is essential for the protection, safe handling, or function of the contents of the package, provided that the manufacturer, supplier, or distributor petitions the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the exemption; or (3) that would not exceed the maximum concentration levels set forth in this Act but for the addition of post-consumer materials. Provides for the renewal of exemptions if the Administrator determines that a renewal is warranted. Requires packaging manufacturers or suppliers to furnish certificates of compliance (with respect to this Act's requirements) to distributors. Makes certificates of compliance, upon request, available to EPA and the public. Authorizes the assessment of civil penalties for violations of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1991
Federal Communications Commission Engineering Sciences Qualification Act of 1991 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to require at least one Commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission to be skilled in the engineering sciences at the time of his or her appointment.
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to authorize an employee to enter into a new salary reduction agreement with an employer under an annuity plan purchased by a tax-exempt organization or public school due to the impairment or insolvency of the issuer of such plan.
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1991
Condemns: (1) the ongoing violence in Yugoslavia; and (2) the Yugoslav Federal Army's partisan conduct. Calls on: (1) the peoples of the Yugoslav region to reject calls for violent retribution for past injustices and to cooperate to advance the common good; and (2) such Army to cease providing assistance to the Serbian insurgents in Croatia. Urges federal and republican government leaders to: (1) guarantee the rights of minorities within their borders; (2) recognize the inadmissibility of change in borders except through negotiation and mutual consent; and (3) institute economic reform based on free market principles. Urges the President and Secretary of State to support the formation of a Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe peacekeeping force to assist in enforcing ceasefire compliance and its deployment in Yugoslavia.
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1991
Amends rule XXXIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives to require that a portion of the House gallery be set aside for use by scholars of the Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 1991
Women in Apprenticeship Occupations and Nontraditional Occupations Act - Directs the Department of Labor (the Department) to promote an outreach program to inform employers and labor unions of the availability of technical assistance for preparing the workplace to employ women in apprenticeable occupations and other nontraditional occupations. Requires the Department to: (1) promote such program to employers through, but not limited to, the private industry councils in each service delivery area; (2) provide outreach to labor unions through, but not limited to, the building trade councils, joint apprenticeable occupations councils, and individual unions; and (3) give priority to employers in areas that have nontraditional employment and training programs specifically targeted to women. Sets forth various activities which such technical assistance provided by community-based organizations to employers and labor unions. Directs the Department to select a total of 50 employers or labor unions to receive such technical assistance. Requires each eligible community-based organization desiring to receive a competitive grant to provide such technical assistance to employers and labor unions to submit an application to the Department. Requires the Department to give priority to applications to community-based organizations that demonstrate specified types of experience and that have tradeswomen or women in nontraditional occupations as active members. Sets forth application requirements, including specified descriptions, assurances, and commitments. Directs the Department to serve as a liaison among employers, labor, and community organizations. Directs the Department to: (1) conduct a study of the participation of women in apprenticeable occupations and nontraditional occupations, examining specified topics; and (2) report to the Congress within two years on such study, with recommendations. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 1991
Commission on the Advancement of Women in the Science and Engineering Work Forces Act - Establishes the Commission on the Advancement of Women in the Science and Engineering Work Forces. Excludes the Commission from application of provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act relating to the termination of advisory committees.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 1991
Qualified Medicare Beneficiary Enrollment Improvement and Protection Act of 1991 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to include in the annual mailing to Medicare beneficiaries: (1) a clear and simple explanation of the availability of and the requirements to qualify for Medicaid (title XIX of the Social Security Act) payment of their premiums, deductibles, and copayments under Medicare; (2) the toll-free telephone number to be established by the Secretary for information on such assistance; and (3) an initial application for such assistance. Directs the Secretary to develop a poster containing the information listed above and distribute it to service providers in order to publicize the availability of such assistance. Amends the Medicaid program to direct the Secretary to: (1) establish a process for using local Social Security Administration offices for the distribution and receipt of applications for such assistance; (2) transmit such applications to the appropriate State agency; (3) develop a form to be available at such offices which individuals may use to request additional information on or an application for such assistance; and (4) distribute such form to entities receiving grants for programs to provide services to older individuals. Requires States to provide for a process for receiving, distributing, and processing applications for such assistance and for responding to requests for information on or applications for such assistance. Allows individuals who qualified during a certain period for Medicaid payment of Medicare costs to temporarily apply for retroactive payment of any medical costs incurred but not paid under a State plan required to provide for making Medicaid payment of Medicare costs available to Medicare beneficiaries. Allows States, in determining the income level for individuals who seek to qualify for Medicaid payment of Medicare costs, to exclude expenses for medical care incurred by the individual that are not reimbursed under a public program of the State or political subdivision thereof, a health plan, or Medicare. Directs the Secretary to establish a grant program to provide outreach services to enable individuals who are entitled to receive Medicaid payment of Medicare costs to receive such assistance. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 1991
Combined Sewer Overflow Control Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to make combined sewer overflow (CSO) (defined as the discharge of untreated sanitary wastes and stormwater from combined stormwater and sanitary sewers) unlawful, except in accordance with the requirements of this Act. Requires any person owning or operating a combined stormwater and sanitary sewer from which there is CSO to notify the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency or the State of the CSO. Directs the Administrator to issue any such person a permit authorizing such CSO which: (1) prohibits dry water overflow; (2) requires the permittee to implement technically sound operation and maintenance practices for its sewer system designed to minimize CSO and to maximize the use of its facilities to minimize CSO; and (3) implements the study and plan required by this Act to the extent such study and plan has not been previously implemented. Provides that permits authorizing CSO issued prior to the enactment of this Act shall remain in effect until reissued or modified in accordance with this Act. Requires: (1) any such person to file with the Administrator a complete (phase II) permit application not later than 12 months after the effective date of the regulations required by this Act or two years after the effective date of this Act, whichever occurs last (deadline); and (2) the Administrator, within 12 months after the receipt of such application, to issue a permit to the applicant authorizing the CSO. Mandates that: (1) each such person complete a study and evaluation of its combined sewer system and CSO and prepare a CSO control plan by the deadline; and (2) the Administrator, within two years, establish regulations setting forth the phase II permit requirements for CSO. Sets forth additional requirements with respect to: (1) regulation contents; (2) technology-based controls; and (3) water quality-based controls. Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish, within six months, a technological clearinghouse disseminating information on controlling CSO available to States and local governments; and (2) report to the Congress, within two years, with a list of CSO outfalls, the nature and location of such outfalls, and the estimated Federal share of such costs. Requires that, whenever a State reviews water quality standards, it revises and adopts standards for those waters receiving storm sewer discharges and CSO overflow during wet weather conditions. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Administrator to: (1) fund that portion of the cost of CSO controls beyond the financial capability of local governments upon the request of the Governor of the State in which the local government is located, subject to specified requirements; (2) set regulatory guidelines to be used by individual local governments with respect to CSO control costs; and (3) establish priorities for individual CSO control projects to be funded.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1991
Breast Cancer Screening Safety Act of 1991 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require certification in order for a facility to perform or interpret mammograms, inspect equipment, perform needle localizations or other procedures using mammography equipment, or conduct quality assurances oversight related to mammography. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to issue and renew certificates for up to two years. Allows the Secretary to approve a private nonprofit organization to be an accreditation body which meets certain requirements, including inspecting facilities. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish standards for facilities to assure the safety and accuracy of mammography; (2) specify organizations eligible to certify individuals to perform radiological procedures; (3) specify boards eligible to certify individuals to interpret screening mammograms; (4) establish standards regarding the qualifications for individuals to interpret screening mammograms; and (5) specify boards eligible to certify individuals to inspect screening mammography equipment and oversee quality assurance practices. Directs the Secretary to conduct annual announced and unannounced inspections of certified facilities. Provides for: (1) intermediate sanctions for certain violations; (2) suspension, revocation, and limitation of certificates; and (3) injunctions. Requires fees for certificate issuance and renewal, and for inspections, sufficient to cover costs. Requires annual publication of a list of facilities convicted of fraud and abuse, false billings, or kickbacks, facilities that have had certificates revoked, suspended, or limited, and facilities that have been the subject of a sanction or other similar matters. Allows the Secretary to exempt facilities in a State with more stringent requirements from compliance with this Act. Directs the Secretary to: (1) make grants for research on new methods of establishing a Mammography Registry; and (2) based on the research, establish the Registry. Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to require that screening mammographies paid for under Medicare be performed by a facility: (1) certified under this Act; and (2) in compliance with specified provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1991
Infertility Prevention Act of 1991 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services, with regard to any treatable sexually transmitted disease that can cause infertility in women if treatment is not received for the disease, to make grants for specified activities, including counseling, screening, treatment, referrals, outreach, public information and education, training for health care providers, and data collection. Directs the Secretary to establish criteria for ensuring the quality of screening for such diseases. Limits grants to three years, with annual approval by the Secretary. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants for research on improving the delivery of services under this Act. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1991
Declares it is U.S. policy that the European Community's Third Country Meat Directive is an unfair nontariff trade barrier and that it is in the public interest to remove barriers to exports of U.S. meat products. Directs the President to prohibit the importation of all European Community meat products.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1991
Urges the President to call upon the President of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics to begin negotiations with leaders of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia for the prompt withdrawal of Soviet troops from the Baltic States.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1991
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should: (1) recognize Ukraine's independence and take steps toward the establishment of full diplomatic relations with Ukraine should the December 1, 1991, referendum confirm the Ukrainian parliament's independence declaration; and (2) use U.S. assistance, trade, and other programs to support the Government of Ukraine and encourage the further development of democracy and a free-market.
United States · United States Congress · 23 September 1991
Directs the Sergeant at Arms of the House of Representatives, after consultation with the Speaker of the House and the Comptroller General, to establish procedures to assure that check cashing at the Sergeant at Arms Bank is conducted in a manner consistent with standard banking practices. Requires such procedures to: (1) provide for overdraft protection, suspension or termination of check privileges, or other means of protection against returned checks; and (2) be strictly and uniformly applied to all users with public disclosure. Requires a report to the Speaker by January 3, 1992, on carrying out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 1991
Federal Fire Safety Act of 1991 - Amends the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 to prohibit the use of Federal funds to: (1) construct, purchase, or lease a newly constructed Federal office building, other than housing, having more than 25 full-time Federal employees nor to renovate one with five or more stories unless the entire building includes automatic sprinkler systems or an equivalent level of safety, with specified exceptions; and (2) increase the number of employees in such building by more than 100 employees over that as of enactment of this Act without such system or level of safety. Prohibits the use of such funds after the enactment of this Act: (1) to construct, purchase, lease, rebuild, or operate Federal Government housing for Federal employees and their dependents; (2) multifamily housing for Federal employees subsidized by the Federal Government; and (3) rental assistance housing, without automatic sprinkler systems and smoke detectors (in some cases smoke detectors alone). Directs the: (1) Administrator of the National Fire Prevention and Control Administration (Administrator) to promulgate regulations implementing this Act; and (2) head of any Federal agency that owns, leases, or operates a federally-funded building or housing unit, to invite the local agency or voluntary organization with fire protection responsibility in the jurisdiction of such building or housing unit to prepare, and biennially review, a prefire plan for it.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 1991
Designates 1992 as the Year of the Gulf of Mexico. Directs all Federal and State agencies which have responsibility for matters affecting the Gulf to work to increase public awareness regarding the immeasurable value of this resource and current conditions which threaten its aesthetic and economic value.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 1991
Extends nondiscriminatory treatment (most-favored-nation treatment) to the products of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should take prompt action to provide preferential tariff treatment to such products under the Generalized System of Preferences.