United States · United States Congress · 2 October 1992
Native American Veterans' Home Loan Equity Act of 1992 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish and implement a pilot program under which the Secretary may make direct housing loans to aid Native American (Indian, Alaska or Hawaii native, or Pacific Islander) veterans in purchasing, constructing, or improving dwellings on trust land. Requires such loans to be made in a variety of geographic areas and in areas experiencing a variety of economic circumstances. Prohibits any such loans from being made after the end of FY 1997. Authorizes the Secretary to make such a direct housing loan to a Native American if: (1) the Secretary has entered into a memorandum of understanding with respect to such loans with the tribal organization having jurisdiction over such veteran; and (2) the memorandum is in effect when the loan is made. Outlines provisions to be included in each such memorandum. Prohibits entering into any such memorandum unless the Secretary determines that it provides standards and procedures necessary for the reasonable protection of the financial interests of the United States. Limits to $80,000 the principal amount of any such loan, but authorizes the Secretary to exceed such amount in a geographic area in which housing costs are significantly higher than average housing costs nationwide. Sets forth provisions concerning loan interest rates and credit underwriting standards. Directs the Secretary to determine the reasonable value of the interest in property that will serve as security for a loan made under this Act and to establish procedures for appraisals upon which to base such determinations. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish minimum requirements for planning, construction or improvement, and general acceptability relating to any direct loan; and (2) establish credit underwriting standards to be used in evaluating such loans. Requires loans to be repaid in monthly installments. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) make advances to provide for repairs, alterations, and improvements and to meet incidental expenses of the loan transaction; and (2) take any other actions and make any necessary determinations with respect to expenses, rules and regulations, and the use of persons, organizations, or departments or agencies to carry out his functions. Directs the Secretary to carry out an outreach program to inform tribal organizations and Native American veterans of the pilot program and the availability of direct housing loans for Native American veterans residing on trust lands. Establishes in the Treasury the Native American Veteran Housing Loan Program Account to carry out financial activities relating to the making of loans under this Act. Directs the Secretary, in carrying out the pilot program, to consider the views and recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Native-American Veterans established under the Veteran's Health-Care Amendments of 1986. Directs the Secretary to report annually in 1994 through 1998 to the Senate and House Veterans' Affairs Committees on: (1) the pilot program and recommendations for legislation regarding the program; (2) the exercise of authority to exceed the maximum loan limit; and (3) the real property appraisals performed for the Secretary during such year. Allows new direct loan obligations for Native American veteran housing loans under this Act to be incurred only to the extent that appropriations to cover their anticipated cost are made in advance. Authorizes appropriations for such loans for FY 1993.
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 1992
Declares that it is U.S. policy to seek international agreements prohibiting the sale, transfer, or export, limiting the use, and terminating the production, possession, or deployment, of antipersonnel landmines. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should seek to negotiate an international agreement or a modification of the Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be Excessively Injurious or To Have Indiscriminate Effects to prohibit the sale, transfer, or export of antipersonnel landmines. Prohibits, for a period of one year from this Act's enactment date: (1) sales, financing, transfers, and the issuance of licenses under the Arms Export Control with respect to antipersonnel landmines; and (2) assistance under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 with respect to the provision of such landmines.
United States · United States Congress · 12 August 1992
Authorizes the President, on behalf of the Congress, to present a gold medal to John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie in recognition of his accomplishments as a musician. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to provide for the sale of bronze duplicates of the medal.
United States · United States Congress · 12 August 1992
Women in the Armed Forces Commemorative Coins Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) mint and issue coins to commemorate the women who have served in the armed forces of the United States; and (2) transfer the surcharges received from coin sales to the Women in Military Service for America Memorial Foundation and endow and dedicate the Women in the Armed Forces Memorial.
United States · United States Congress · 12 August 1992
National Environmental Sciences and Technology Agency Act of 1992 - Establishes the National Environmental Sciences and Technology Agency whose primary responsibility shall be to maintain a scientific and technological base to enhance environmental regulation and help U.S. industry to be more competitive. Provides for: (1) an Administrator; (2) a Deputy Administrator; (3) five Assistant Administrators; and (4) an interagency executive committee. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 12 August 1992
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Secretaries of the military departments should: (1) collect data on the number and disposition of sexual harassment and assault cases involving members of the armed forces; (2) ensure that crisis intervention and long-term counseling are available to the victims; (3) develop ongoing programs to educate members of the armed forces regarding the unacceptability and illegality of sexual harassment and assault and the sanctions imposed on violators; (4) implement an educational program for all members dealing with the prevention and risk reduction of sexual harassment and assault; (5) publicize their commitment against sexual harassment and assault by posting appropriate signs with phone numbers for victims to report incidents and obtain assistance; (6) reevaluate their existing methods of investigating and processing sexual harassment and assault complaints and consider alternative methods to provide effective enforcement; (7) reevaluate their existing sanctions to determine whether the sanctions serve as an effective deterrent; (8) determine whether adequate protections exist to ensure that members who report sexual harassment or assault do not experience retaliation and, if not, develop effective protections; and (9) protect members who report sexual harassment or assault against retaliation once a complaint is made and ensure that a subsequent investigation into the complainant's sexual orientation is not performed.
United States · United States Congress · 11 August 1992
Preventing Our Kids from Inhaling Deadly Smoke (PRO-KIDS) Act of 1992 - Prohibits, notwithstanding any other provision of law, any Federal funds or financial assistance from being provided to or used by any person for services for children under five without an enforced policy prohibiting smoking in each portion of an indoor facility used for the services, with exceptions only for portions in which the services are not normally provided to children and that are ventilated separately. Allows waivers in certain circumstances.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1992
Native American Veterans' Home Loan Equity Act of 1992 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish and implement a pilot program under which the Secretary may make direct housing loans to aid Native American (Indian, Alaska or Hawaii native, or Pacific Islander) veterans in purchasing, constructing, or improving dwellings on trust land. Requires such loans to be made in a variety of geographic areas and in areas experiencing a variety of economic circumstances. Prohibits any such loans from being made after the end of FY 1997. Authorizes the Secretary to make such a direct housing loan to a Native American if: (1) the Secretary has entered into a memorandum of understanding with respect to such loans with the tribal organization having jurisdiction over such veteran; and (2) the memorandum is in effect when the loan is made. Outlines provisions to be included in each such memorandum. Prohibits entering into any such memorandum unless the Secretary determines that it provides standards and procedures necessary for the reasonable protection of the financial interests of the United States. Limits to $80,000 the principal amount of any such loan. Sets forth provisions governing loan interest rates. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish minimum requirements for planning, construction or improvement, and general acceptability relating to any direct loan; and (2) establish credit underwriting standards to be used in evaluating such loans. Requires loans to be repaid in monthly installments. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) make advances to provide for repairs, alterations, and improvements and to meet incidental expenses of the loan transaction; and (2) take any other actions and make any necessary determinations with respect to expenses, rules and regulations, and the use of persons, organizations, or departments or agencies to carry out his functions. Establishes in the Treasury a revolving fund to be known as the Native American Veterans Housing Loan Fund to carry out financial activities relating to the making of loans under this Act. Directs the Secretary, in carrying out the pilot program, to consider the views and recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Native-American Veterans established under the Veterans' Health-Care Amendments of 1986. Directs the Secretary to report annually in 1994 through 1998 to the Senate and House Veterans' Affairs Committees on the pilot program and recommendations for legislation regarding the program. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1992
Expresses the sense of the Congress that effective follow-up to achieve the goals of the agreements reached at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) will depend on the following actions by the President and the U.S. Government: (1) adoption of a national strategy for environmentally sustainable development, based on an extensive process of nationwide consultations with all interested organizations and individuals; (2) the Government encouraging and facilitating means for adopting individual Agenda 21 plans of action, including the establishment of local, county, State, business, and other boards and commissions for achieving sustainable development; (3) the President establishing an effective mechanism to plan, initiate, and coordinate U.S. policy for implementing Agenda 21; and (4) policies being formulated for foreign policy and assistance to help developing countries, and for domestic actions to assure appropriate action to implement Agenda 21. Supports: (1) pursuing the research and policy initiatives urged in Agenda 21, including research on sustainable consumption and production patterns, creation of a policy framework for sustainable consumption patterns, identification of a strategy to eliminate or reduce subsidies for unsustainable natural resource exploitation, and improving pricing policies; (2) the Congress adopting a plan to reallocate an appropriate amount of savings from reduced defense spending to achieve its goals of global environmental protection and sustainable development over the next decade; and (3) the effective establishment of a high-level United Nations (UN) Commission on Sustainable Development. Urges the United States to call for periodic international meetings to continue the process toward developing and advancing international agreement to facilitate sustainable economic development. Calls on the President to: (1) urge and actively participate in multilateral efforts aimed at creating a more favorable international economic climate for developing countries to practice sustainable development; (2) affirm strong U.S. commitment to the Commission by appointing a high-level representative to the Commission and by encouraging the UN Secretary General to appoint an Under Secretary General for Sustainable Development; (3) submit and encourage all UN members to submit a national report to the Commission on activities the United States has undertaken to implement Agenda 21 both domestically and internationally, on progress made toward fulfilling other commitments undertaken at UNCED, and on other relevant environmental and developmental issues; and (4) submit an annual report to the Congress on the steps taken by the United States to implement Agenda 21 and the recommendations made by this Act and make information regarding such steps available to Members of the Congress upon request.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1992
Requires the Postal Service to ensure that nothing in its regulations prevents a veterans' organization from soliciting contributions on postal property so long as those activities do not impede or disturb: (1) postal employees in the performance of their duties; or (2) the general public in transacting business or obtaining services.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1992
Children's Initiative - Family Preservation Act of 1992 - States that titles I through V of this Act may be cited as the Family Preservation Act of 1992 - Title I: Child Welfare Services - Amends part B (Child Welfare Services) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to create a capped entitlement program to provide child welfare services designed to strengthen and preserve families. Provides for allotments, reallotments, and payments to States of entitlement funds. Requires use of part of such funds to develop or expand specialized child welfare service programs for families in crisis due to substance abuse. Requires uses of remaining funds to develop or expand certain family and child service programs. Repeals provisions for incentive payments to States which maintain a foster care inventory, information system, and case review system; but requires States to provide such protections and other services designed to keep families together or reunify them, or to place children for adoption, with a legal guardian, or in some other planned, permanent living arrangement. Requires States to submit the following types of reports on child welfare services and expenditures: (1) pre-expenditure reports; (2) post-expenditure reports; and (3) comparative financial contributions reports. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to transmit to specified congressional committees annual summaries of the information in such comparative financial contributions reports. Requires such information to be made available to the public. Reserves entitlement funds for grants to State court systems to assess and improve procedures in child welfare cases in carrying out parts B and E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of SSA title IV. Sets forth application requirements and formulas for determining the amount of such grants for FY 1994 through 1998. Directs the HHS Secretary to submit interim and final reports to the Congress on the information obtained from assessments conducted with such grants and the impact of such grant program on State court procedures and functions. Requires each State to compile periodically a detailed directory of programs designed to keep families together or reunify them or place children permanently, identifying which of such programs provides specialized child welfare services to families in crisis due to substance abuse. Requires States to report on measures taken to comply with the Indian Child Welfare Act. Title II: Foster Care And Adoption Assistance - Amends SSA title IV to add a new part C, Comprehensive Service Projects to grant States flexibility and resources to develop comprehensive and coordinated services designed to: (1) preserve and strengthen families with children at risk of placement outside their homes; (2) reunite children with their families expeditiously if an out-of-home placement is found to be necessary; and (3) place children in adoptive homes or other permanent arrangements in a timely fashion if reunification with their families is not appropriate. Permits any State to apply to the HHS Secretary for permission to: (1) conduct a comprehensive service project in a selected area or areas; and (2) suspend certain child welfare services and foster care and adoption assistance requirements with respect to State activities in such area or areas during the project. Sets forth application requirements and administrative provisions for such projects. Prohibits the HHS Secretary from requiring as a condition of approval of a project application: (1) the State to select any area or areas in which to conduct the project; or (2) the project to comply with any requirements not specified in the project authorization. Sets forth those requirements with which such a project must comply. Provides for determining the expenses for which a State might properly seek reimbursement, for purposes of calculating such grant amount. Authorizes the HHS Secretary to increase such grant amount, to the extent appropriate, by taking specified factors into account. Sets forth requirements for notification to States of grant amounts, and for grant payments in equal quarterly installments. Prohibits a State from carrying out such a project in a manner that impairs the entitlement of any child to: (1) the foster care benefits he or she would have receive if the HHS Secretary had approved the State plan and had not authorized the State to conduct such a project; or (2) any other benefit to which the child is legally entitled. Deems a State to have in effect an approved foster care and adoption assistance plan during the period in which it conducts such a project for purposes of State plan requirements under part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) of SSA title IV. Requires States to report annually on project funds expended to the HHS Secretary and the Advisory Commission on Children and Families. Provides for administrative remedies for unsuccessful projects. Provides for project termination. Makes abandoned children entering foster care eligible for foster care maintenance payments. Makes the adoptive parents of any such child with respect to whom foster care maintenance payments may be made eligible for adoption assistance payments. Makes technical revisions to the foster care maintenance payments program and the adoption assistance program to expand the removal from home requirement to include removal from legal custody. Provides for retroactive application of such new requirement under the adoption assistance program. Makes children whose adoption has been set aside by a court eligible for foster care maintenance payments. Makes the adoptive parents of any such child with respect to whom foster care maintenance payments may be made eligible for adoption assistance payments. Establishes a respite care program for foster parents with children who have special needs. Limits the expenses eligible for reimbursement under such program. Expands the definition of children with special needs, for purposes of the adoption assistance program, to include: (1) those children for whom information is known and available about their genetic or social history indicating a high risk of medical conditions or physical, mental, or emotional handicaps which makes it reasonable to conclude that they cannot be placed for adoption without providing part E adoption assistance or Medicaid (SSA title XIX) medical assistance; and (2) those children that have been adopted, that were under the care and responsibility of the State agency responsible for administering the State's part E programs immediately before adoption, and that have a mental, physical, or emotional handicap that either existed before the adoption but was not diagnosed until afterwards, or first manifests itself after the adoption but is congenital or was caused beforehand. Extends to relatives (as well as foster parents) who are prospective adoptive parents, and with whom the child has significant emotional ties while in their care, the exception to the requirement that an effort be made to place special needs children with appropriate adoptive parents without providing adoption or Medicaid assistance. Requires each State to submit to the HHS Secretary the factors and conditions it uses to identify children with special needs for purposes of the adoption assistance program, and any modifications to such factors and conditions. Directs the HHS Secretary to establish an Advisory Committee on Foster Care Placement to study and report to the Secretary and the Congress on the implementation of specified requirements, under State plans for foster care and adoption assistance, that reasonable efforts be made: (1) before placement of a child in a foster home, to prevent or eliminate the need for removal of the child from the child's home; and (2) to make it possible for the child to return to the child's home. Provides Federal coverage of 90 percent of State costs in developing and installing certain statewide mechanized data collection and information retrieval systems. Covers 50 percent of State costs for operation of such systems. Provides that all State expenditures for development, installation, and operation of such systems shall be treated as necessary for proper and efficient administration of the State plan, without regard to whether the systems may be used with respect to foster or adoptive children other than those on behalf of whom payments may be made for foster care maintenance or adoption assistance. Reduces, after three years, from 90 to 50 percent the Federal matching payment for development and installation of such systems. Defers a deadline for implementation of automated systems until one year after certain regulations are promulgated. Directs the Secretary to establish a work group to advise on planning and implementation of the system to be used for collection of data relating to adoption and foster care in the United States. Requires the State plan to provide for: (1) a triennial review of the amounts paid as foster care maintenance payments and adoption assistance to assure their continuing appropriateness; and (2) a report to the HHS Secretary on the results. Sets forth requirements concerning dispositional hearings to determine the final status of a foster child. Revises the time frame for judicial determinations on voluntary placements. Sets forth case plan requirements for placement of children in out-of-State foster care. Requires annual review, with the child present, of the status of children in out-of-State foster care placements. Requires States to collect data on the numbers of children in out-of-State foster care placements. Requires a State, in order to receive payments for expenditures after FY 1994 for foster care maintenance payments made with respect to children placed in foster care outside the State, to conduct and submit a study to the HHS Secretary, by the end of such fiscal year, identifying the number and common characteristics of such children and the reasons why they were not placed in foster care in the State. Provides for the treatment of assets of youth participating in the independent living program. Eliminates the ceilings on Federal foster care payments to States and the State's authority to transfer unused foster care funds to child welfare services programs. Directs the HHS Secretary to: (1) establish an advisory committee; and (2) issue final regulations for training of staff of agencies responsible for administering foster care and adoption assistance programs, and for training of foster care and adoptive parents. Directs the Secretary annually to publish information, on a State-by-State basis, on expenditures for, and the operation of, the Child Welfare Services program, the Foster Care and Adoption Assistance program, and Comprehensive Service Projects. Amends SSA title IV to add a new part G, Child Welfare Review System. Directs the HHS Secretary to establish such system to: (1) review each State child welfare program to assess whether the requirements of the Act are being carried out; (2) impose financial penalties in cases of substantial failure to comply; and (3) provide technical assistance to any such program. Sets forth provisions relating to effects of noncompliance, suspension and rescission of financial penalties, and administrative and judicial review. Requires that all State child welfare programs be reviewed at least once by the end of FY 1997. Prohibits the Secretary from reducing or withholding any payment, or seeking any repayment from any State under part B or E, by reason of a determination made in connection with specified reviews or audits for certain periods. Prohibits suspension of payments with respect to any claim for reimbursement 30 days after the HHS Secretary receives the quarterly statement of expenditures that contains the report of the claim. Provides that within ten months after the Secretary takes any action to suspend payment with respect to such a claim, the Secretary shall: (1) determine the allowability of the claim; or (2) if unable to make such a determination, make payment with respect to the claim, subject to a later determination of allowability. Title III: Social Services Block Grant - Amends SSA title XX (Block Grants to States for Social Services) to authorize increased appropriations for title XX programs. Provides for the allocation to tribal organizations of program funds otherwise allotted to the State in which the Indians represented by such an organization reside. Title IV: Research, Demonstration, and Evaluation Activities - Amends part A (General Provisions) of SSA title XI to require the Director of the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) to establish an Advisory Commission on Children and Families. Requires the Commission to collect and assess specified types of information in order to identify cost-effective approaches to protect and enhance the physical, mental, emotional, and financial well-being of children and their families. Directs OTA to report annually to the Congress on the Commission and its assessment. Requires the Commission to conduct, through contracts with independent research organizations, the following research and evaluation projects: (1) the evaluation of child welfare service programs, including intensive family preservation programs; (2) foster care evaluations; (3) longitudinal child welfare data bases, and studies of child welfare population dynamics; and (4) comprehensive service projects evaluations. Requires the Commission to study child separation guidelines. Directs the HHS Secretary to conduct the following research and evaluations: (1) a study (under contract with an independent research organization) to assess the prevalence and nature of risks to the safety of employees of child welfare systems; and (2) a three-year study (under contract with an organization with demonstrated appropriate experience) to examine methodologies for measuring the workloads of providers of child welfare services and community mental health services. Directs the HHS Secretary to make grants to States or localities for child welfare demonstration projects concerning abandoned child permanent placement. Directs the HHS Secretary to authorize eligible institutions to conduct demonstration projects to train eligible individuals to deliver culturally sensitive and bilingual child welfare services in U.S. areas that border on Mexico. Directs the HHS Secretary to make grants to eligible institutions to conduct projects to train eligible institutions to deliver culturally sensitive and bilingual welfare services in urban centers which have a high proportion of historically unserved or underserved populations. Authorizes the HHS Secretary to make grants to State or local government agencies to conduct demonstration projects designed to: (1) develop and implement innovative recruitment or retention strategies for trained staff in public and private nonprofit agencies working with children and adolescents at risk of being placed in foster care; and (2) test the effect of joint training programs for the staff of child welfare, mental health, and juvenile justice agencies, and for judicial personnel and judges. Authorizes the HHS Secretary to conduct demonstration projects designed to test the feasibility of eliminating income and resource requirements respecting foster care and adoption assistance payments. Directs the HHS Secretary to provide technical assistance to States for: (1) interpreting and implementing parts B, C, and E; (2) disseminating information on innovative child welfare agencies; (3) correcting problems identified through Federal audits and reviews and carrying out corrective action plans under part E; (4) implementing the foster care and adoption data collection system; and (5) addressing other matters identified by the HHS Secretary. Title V: Miscellaneous Human Resources Amendments - Amends the AFDC program to give States the option of using retrospective budgeting without monthly reporting under AFDC. Increases the amount of stepparent income disregarded under AFDC. Amends the Family Support Act of 1988 to extend demonstration projects for evaluating model procedures for reviewing child support awards. Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1989 and the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 to make technical corrections relating to human resource and income security provisions. Title VI: Childhood Hunger Relief - Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act - Subtitle A: Ensuring Adequate Food Assistance - Amends the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to remove the excess shelter deduction cap for purposes of food stamp program eligibility. (Sets forth transitional caps through 1996.) Eliminates food stamp reductions for households reapplying for program reinstatement within 30 days. Excludes 100 percent (currently only a specified portion) of third party payments for transitional housing for the homeless from consideration as program income. Increases funding for the nutrition assistance program in Puerto Rico. Excludes general assistance vendor payments from consideration as program income. Excludes the income of high school students from consideration as program income. (Current law excludes income until a student's eighteenth birthday.) Subtitle B: Promoting Self-Sufficiency - Excludes from consideration as program income: (1) the first $50 a month received as child support; and (2) child support payments to non-household members. Increases annually the fair market value limit of vehicles that program recipients may own. Subtitle C: Simplifying the Provision of Food Assistance - Permits related adults living in the same household to apply for separate program benefits under specified conditions. Repeals provisions authorizing benefit reductions due to insufficient funding. Subtitle D: Commodity Distribution to Needy Families - Amends the Emergency Food Assistance Act of 1983 to provide for increased allotments in FY 1993 for commodity purchases under the emergency food assistance program. Subtitle E: Implementation and Effective Dates - Sets forth the effective dates for provisions of this title. Title VII: Funding - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a surtax on individuals with incomes over $1,000,000.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1992
Supports the planting of 500 redwood trees from California on the northwest coast of Spain in commemoration of the quincentenary of the voyage of Christopher Columbus to the New World. Designates such trees as a gift to the people of Spain made in the name of the people of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 7 July 1992
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the United States should support the process of nonviolent democratic reform in, and increase its support for Voice of America programming to, Vietnam; (2) the Secretary of State should declare U.S. support for the democratization of Vietnam and reaffirm that progress on the POW/MIA issue is critical to normalizing economic and diplomatic relations with the United States; and (3) the Administration should take the lead in mobilizing the United Nations, ASEAN, human rights organizations, and various other interested groups to work toward helping Vietnam reach free and democratic elections.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1992
Directs that, in the administration of any benefits program established by or under Federal law which requires the use of data obtained in the most recent decennial census, the 1990 adjusted census data be considered the official data for such census.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1992
Antarctic Environmental Protection Protocol Act of 1992 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, to appoint a U.S. officer or employee as the U.S. representative to the Committee for Environmental Protection (Committee) under the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (Treaty) (done at Madrid in October 1991). Makes it unlawful for any person to: (1) conduct an activity within Antarctica in a manner inconsistent with the Protocol; (2) engage in, provide assistance to, or knowingly finance any Antarctica mineral resource activity; (3) introduce any prohibited product within Antarctica (defined as polychlorinated biphenyls, nonsterile soils, polystyrene or similar packaging, pesticides, and other products designated by the Secretary); (4) conduct open burning, maintain a landfill at a U.S. coastal facility, or maintain an incinerator after December 31, 1994; (5) bring any dog into Antarctica; (6) use leaded fuel at a U.S. facility within Antarctica or in any vessel or aircraft subject to U.S. jurisdiction; (7) engage in specified activities without a permit; (8) violate any terms of this Act; (9) ship, sell, purchase, import, export, or have control of any native bird, mammal, or plant, or mineral resource which the person knows was taken in violation of this Act; (10) refuse to permit any authorized U.S. employee to board a U.S. vessel subject to U.S. jurisdiction for conducting any search or inspection in connection with enforcement; or (11) interfere with any search or resist a lawful arrest or detention or interfere with such an arrest or detention. Waives the prohibition on activities conducted without a permit under emergency circumstances to prevent the loss of human life. Makes it unlawful for any vessel subject to U.S. jurisdiction to discharge into Antarctic waters any: (1) oil, noxious liquid substance, chemical, or any substance in quantities determined to be harmful; or (2) plastic, garbage, or food waste, except that food waste may be disposed of not less than 12 nautical miles from the nearest land or ice shelf after it has been passed through a comminutor or grinder. Applies such prohibitions to a vessel owned or operated by the United States when engaged in noncommercial service within Antarctica. Prohibits the following activities in Antarctica, except in accordance with a permit: (1) construction or decommissioning of any U.S. facility, building, or airfield within Antarctica; (2) the conduct of an expedition of more than ten persons to, from, or within Antarctica; (3) the operation of U.S. facilities within Antarctica conducted with support provided by the Director of the National Science Foundation; (4) taking within Antarctica any native mammal, bird, or plant in such quantities that their local distribution or abundance would be adversely affected; (5) taking within Antarctica any specially protected species; (6) introducing any animal or plant not indigenous to Antarctica; (7) entering any specially protected area; or (8) operating an incinerator prior to December 31, 1994. Authorizes the Secretary to issue general permits for any category of research activity if the activities are similar in nature and will cause no more than a minor environmental impact when performed cumulatively. Establishes a specific procedure for permit applications requesting authority to undertake actions with respect to: (1) native marine mammals covered by the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972; (2) endangered or threatened species; (3) native birds protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act; (4) the discharge of any untreated sewage into Antarctic waters; or (5) the discharge of any substance which is regulated under the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973. Prohibits the issuance of a permit unless there is sufficient information to assess possible environmental impacts and if required, an environmental impact statement (EIS) has been prepared and circulated to Treaty parties and to the Committee. Provides that permits which authorize any taking may only be issued for providing specimens for scientific study or institutions or for the unavoidable consequences of scientific research activities and shall ensure that only small numbers are taken, the variety of the species and balance of the ecological systems are maintained, and the taking is required to further a bona fide scientific purpose. Authorizes permits for takings of specially protected species to be issued only if: (1) there is a compelling scientific purpose which does not involve unnecessary duplication of research; (2) the actions authorized will not jeopardize any existing natural ecological systems or the survival or recovery of the species; and (3) nonlethal techniques are used. Requires permits which authorize the introduction of any nonindigenous animal or plant to be issued only for animals and plants to be used in a laboratory and requires the removal of such plants or animals from Antarctica prior to the expiration of the permit. Authorizes the issuance of a permit that allows the entry into any specially protected area only if: (1) there is a compelling scientific purpose for the entry; and (2) the actions will not jeopardize the natural ecological system and are in accordance with the management plan. Provides that permits that authorize the construction of a U.S. facility, building, or airfield within Antarctica may be issued only if there is a compelling scientific or logistical purpose that cannot be met by an existing facility, building, or airfield. Requires permits which authorize the construction or operation of incinerators prior to 1995, or the disposal of sewage or garbage within Antarctica, to minimize the environmental impact. Requires permits that authorize the discharge of material from a U.S. vessel to contain terms consistent with the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973. Permits judicial review of permit issuance decisions. Authorizes permit modification, suspension, or revocation. Provides for permit application fees. Applies the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 to activities of Federal agencies in Antarctica. Requires Federal agencies planning to conduct activities in Antarctica to determine whether such activities will have more than a minor or transitory impact on the environment. Authorizes such activities if the agency monitors them to assess and verify the minor or transitory impact. Directs Federal agencies, if activities will have more than a minor or transitory environmental impact, to prepare an EIS. Requires the preparation of an EIS for the issuance of a permit for the construction or decommissioning of any U.S. facility, building, or airfield. Directs the Secretary, acting through the Under Secretary, to issue regulations establishing procedures for the environmental assessment of nongovernmental activities in Antarctica. Provides for review of an EIS by the Treaty parties and the Committee prior to permission for an activity to proceed. Directs the Secretary, acting through the Under Secretary, to establish a plan for monitoring activities within Antarctica that have more than a minor or transitory environmental impact. Authorizes the Secretary, acting through the Under Secretary, to conduct a program for monitoring the health of the waters of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean as part of a global ocean observing system. Directs the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating to develop requirements for contingency plans for responses to incidents with adverse environmental impacts in Antarctica. Requires the President to circulate to all Treaty parties all inspection and compliance reports and all actions taken to ensure compliance with the Protocol and to bring to the attention of the other parties all known incidents of noncompliance with the Protocol by the nationals of those parties. Prescribes civil and criminal penalties for violations of this Act. Sets forth enforcement procedures and establishes authorities for searches and seizures and forfeitures. Gives the Secretary, acting through the Under Secretary, primary responsibility for implementing the Protocol. Requires the Director to continue to support basic research investigations of the Antarctic environment in order to understand globally important processes. Repeals the Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978 and the Antarctic Protection Act of 1990. Sets forth procedures with respect to acceptance of amendments to the Protocol. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the prohibition on Antarctic mineral resource activities should remain in effect permanently or indefinitely. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 1992
Drinking Water Regulatory Relief Act of 1992 - Amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to report to the Congress on the ability of small public water systems to comply with such Act's requirements. Requires such report to include an analysis of the: (1) extent to which access to technical expertise to operate public water systems is limited in the case of small systems; (2) barriers which inhibit the financing of capital improvements in such systems to bring them into compliance with regulations; and (3) difficulties experienced by such systems in financing water monitoring and testing. Requires the report to include the Administrator's recommendations for actions to insure that such systems can come into compliance with regulations as expeditiously as other systems but in a manner which recognizes differences in geographic locations, drinking water sources, and in levels of exposure and risk. Directs the Administrator to propose regulations to implement such actions. Suspends all compliance deadlines (for a period of 24 months after this Act's enactment date) under the Safe Drinking Water Act with respect to public water systems serving fewer than 5,000 persons.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 1992
Directs the National World War II Memorial Fund, Inc., to construct a memorial on Federal land in the District of Columbia or its environs to: (1) honor members of the armed forces who served in World War II; and (2) commemorate U.S. participation in that conflict. Directs the fund to plan, design, and oversee the construction of the Memorial. Establishes the World War II Memorial Advisory Board to: (1) promote and encourage the donation of private funds for the construction of the Memorial; and (2) recommend the site for and assist in the selection of the design of the Memorial. Terminates the Board within 30 days after completion of the Memorial or on the lapse of the authority provided by this Act. Authorizes the Fund to solicit and accept private contributions for construction of the Memorial. States that the requirements and authority of this Act shall lapse if: (1) construction of the Memorial is not commenced within seven years of its enactment; or (2) before such construction, the Secretary of the Interior certifies that funds are not available in an amount sufficient to ensure its completion.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 1992
Small Community Environmental Infrastructure Grants Act of 1992 - Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to make grants to States for the establishment of small community environmental infrastructure funds. Makes such funds available to small communities for the construction of wastewater treatment works, public water systems, and solid waste management facilities and for assuring that underground storage tanks are in compliance with the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Sets forth provisions concerning grant payment schedules and allotment and reallotment requirements. Requires States to establish funds to receive such grants. Sets forth specific requirements for the use of such funds and for the grants to be provided to small communities. Permits States to provide assistance only to community wastewater treatment and solid waste management facilities and public water systems that are in compliance with plans under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, and the Solid Waste Disposal Act, as appropriate. Requires States to submit plans to the Administrator that identify the intended use of the funds. Directs States to reserve the greater of one percent of fund sums or $100,000 to carry out planning. Provides for the withholding of grant payments if a State is not in compliance with this Act's requirements. Requires the Administrator to establish an Office of Small Community Environmental Infrastructure Assistance to: (1) oversee and manage the grants and funds made under this Act; and (2) provide specified environmental and financial information to small communities. Authorizes the Office to provide grants to States, Indian tribes, and not-for-profit organizations to assist small communities in assessing issues related to the financing of environmental facilities, compliance with environmental laws, and the construction, operation, and rehabilitation of environmental infrastructure facilities. Requires such grants to be matched by non-Federal funds. Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish a program and plan to provide financial assistance to Indian tribes for carrying out the same environmental infrastructure projects on Federal Indian reservations; and (2) administer an environmental infrastructure fund for providing such assistance. Sets forth a matching requirement for such assistance. Authorizes and allocates appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 1992
Designates August 1, 1992, as Helsinki Human Rights Day. Authorizes and requests the President to: (1) reassert American commitment to the Helsinki Accords; (2) raise the issue of noncompliance with such Accords with any signatory nation which may be in violation; (3) convey to all signatories of such Accords that respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms is vital to progress in the ongoing Helsinki process; and (4) develop new proposals to advance the human rights objectives of the Helsinki process.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1992
National Biological Resources Research and Development Act - Establishes within the Smithsonian Institution a National Center for Biological Resources (Research and Development) to facilitate the collection, synthesis, and dissemination of information relating to the sustainable use, research, development, and conservation of biological resources. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1992
Provides for all Federal civilian and military retirees to receive the full cost-of-living adjustment in annuities payable under Federal retirement systems for 1993. (Includes benefits payable under the Civil Service Retirement and Disability System, military retirement and survivor benefit programs, the Foreign Service Retirement and Disability System, the Central Intelligence Agency Retirement and Disability System, and railroad retirement programs.)
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1992
Great Lakes Wildlife Tissue Bank Act - Provides for the storage, preparation, examination, and archiving of tissues from Great Lakes wildlife, to be known as the Great Lakes Wildlife Tissue Bank. Mandates: (1) a central data base to track and assess data on Great Lakes wildlife, including Bank data; and (2) criteria for tissue access by scientific researchers. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1992
Great Lakes Federal Effectiveness Act - Establishes a Great Lakes Research Council to: (1) advise and promote the coordination of Federal research activities and ensure greater effectiveness in achieving ecosystem protection of the Great Lakes through the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement; (2) prepare and provide to interested parties a document which includes an assessment of research activities needed to fulfill the goals of the Agreement and of existing Federal expertise in such activities and recommendations for research priorities; (3) identify topics for and participate in workshops and conferences on Great Lakes research issues; (4) make recommendations for the uniform collection of data for enhancing research and management protocols relating to the Great Lakes ecosystem; (5) advise and cooperate in the establishment of a multi-media data base for such ecosystem; and (6) ensure that findings and information regarding such research is disseminated in a timely manner.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1992
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Great Lakes Improvements Act - Establishes in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration a Great Lakes Office in the District of Columbia area to promote and coordinate Administration research, monitoring, and assessment work in the Great Lakes region consistent with Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement goals.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1992
Declares that the Congress acknowledges and appreciates the commitment, devotion, and sacrifices of present and former military families. Designates November 23, 1992, as National Military Families Recognition Day.
United States · United States Congress · 4 June 1992
NOAA Fleet Modernization Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to implement a 15-year program to replace and modernize the fleet of research vessels owned or operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Mandates a plan for the program and preparation of requirements for each class of vessels to be constructed or converted. Authorizes, subject to conditions, multiyear contracts for: (1) acquisition of the vessels; and (2) oceanographic research, fisheries research, and mapping and charting services to assist in fulfilling NOAA missions. Prohibits awarding a contract for the construction, repair, or alteration of any NOAA vessel in a foreign shipyard if the foreign shipyard benefits from unfair subsidies. Requires, for the fleet replacement and modernization program, use of excess capacity of University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System vessels. Mandates consultation regarding interoperability of NOAA and Navy vessels. Authorizes appropriations. Requires unobligated amounts appropriated for fleet modernization, shipbuilding, and conversion under the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1992 to be obligated in accordance with this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 28 May 1992
Prohibits, unless a certification under this Act is in effect: (1) U.S. economic assistance to the Government of Russia; and (2) the U.S. Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) from consenting to an increase in the U.S. quota in the IMF. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury, unless such certification is in effect, to instruct the U.S. Executive Directors of the IMF and other international financial institution to oppose any loan to the Government of Russia. Describes such certification as a certification by the President to the Congress that: (1) progress has been achieved toward removal of Russian armed forces from Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania; (2) additional Russian armed forces have not been brought into such countries for any purpose without their permission; (3) artillery exercises or training operations are not being conducted by Russian armed forces on the territory of such countries without their permission; (4) Russian military installations in such countries are open to inspection by the governments of such countries; (5) Russian air and naval forces are not interfering with traffic in the air space or territorial waters of such countries; and (6) the Russian Government is keeping such governments informed regarding the number and location of Russian armed forces in such countries. Makes such certifications effective for six months and authorizes the President to make recertifications for additional six-month periods. Terminates the restrictions under this Act if the President certifies that all Russian armed forces have been withdrawn from such countries.
United States · United States Congress · 28 May 1992
Every Fifth Child Appropriations Act - Appropriates funds to carry out the special supplemental food program for women, infants, and children (WIC program) authorized in specified provisions of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966. Declares that, in order to achieve full funding for the program, there should be specified amounts appropriated in certain fiscal years. Appropriates funds to carry out the Head Start programs authorized in specified provisions of the Head Start Act. Declares that, in order to achieve full funding for the programs, there should be specified amounts appropriated in certain fiscal years. Appropriates funds to carry out the Job Corps program authorized in specified provisions of the Job Training Partnership Act. Declares that, in order to establish a minimum number of additional centers, serve a minimum additional number of youths, and achieve full funding for the program, there should be specified amounts appropriated in certain fiscal years.
United States · United States Congress · 21 May 1992
Designates February 21 through 27, 1993, as American Wine Appreciation Week. Commends the winegrape and fruit growers and vintners of the United States for the production of high quality agricultural products.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 1992
Civil War Battlefield Commemorative Coin Act of 1992 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue a specified number of five-dollar gold coins, one-dollar silver coins, and half-dollar clad coins to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Civil War battlefield preservation. Sets forth certain features of such coins and provides for their design, issuance, and sale. Requires that all sales include a surcharge of $35 per coin for the five-dollar coins, $7 per coin for the one-dollar coins, and $1 per coin for the half-dollar coins. Requires that all surcharges be paid to the Civil War Battlefield Foundation for the preservation of historically significant Civil War battlefields.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 1992
Trade Expansion Act of 1992 - Title I: Market Access Provisions - Subtitle A: Enforcement of United States Rights Under Trade Agreements and Response to Certain Foreign Trade Practices - Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to extend through calendar year 1997 the requirement that the United States Trade Representative (USTR) identify U.S. trade liberalization priorities. Expresses the sense of the Congress that foreign countries that have substantial trade surpluses with the United States, and maintain acts, policies, or practices that are major barriers to, or distortions of, potential U.S. export trade, should be identified (for purposes of "Super 301" under the Trade Act of 1974) as priority foreign countries, and such acts, policies, or practices identified as priority practices. Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to authorize any interested person to request the USTR to review to determine whether a foreign country is in material compliance with the terms of a trade agreement. Defines an "interested person" as any person with a significant economic interest that is being or has been adversely affected by a foreign country's failure to comply materially with terms of a trade agreement. Requires the USTR to determine what action to take if a foreign country is found not in material compliance with such agreement. Directs the USTR to initiate an investigation of all acts, policies, and practices of Japan, Korea, and Taiwan that affect the access of U.S. rice to their markets. Requires the USTR to negotiate the elimination of such acts, policies, and practices, and report to the Congress on the progress of such negotiations. Subtitle B: International Trade in Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Parts - Directs the USTR to initiate an investigation of all acts, policies, and practices of Japan that affect the access of U.S. motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts to its market, including but not limited to: (1) acts, policies, and practices utilized in the Japanese automotive distribution system; (2) toleration of anticompetitive activities by private Japanese firms (including "Keiretsu"); (3) exclusionary business practices; and (4) testing requirements and other government regulations. Requires the USTR to negotiate with Japan for a trade agreement that: (1) eliminates such acts, policies, and practices; (2) provides enforcement of Japan's commitments under the Structural Impediments Initiative, the Market -Oriented Sector Specific agreements, and the Action Plan announced at the Tokyo Summit in January 1992 with respect to trade in, and purchase of, motor vehicles and motor vehicles parts; (3) establishes long term goals for the purchase by Japanese motor vehicle manufacturers of high value-added motor vehicle parts and accessories; and (4) establishes procedures for the exchange of information between the United States and Japan that will permit the accurate assessment of the bilateral trade in motor vehicle parts. Requires the USTR to report to the Congress if such negotiations prove unsuccessful. Directs the President to negotiate with Japan for a voluntary restraint agreement that will provide for the imposition of limitations on the aggregate number of Japanese passenger automobiles and light trucks that may be exported to the United States between 1992 and 2000. Authorizes the President to enforce such agreements. Requires specified reports with respect to such negotiations. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the USTR should refer to the U.S. Government all information pertaining to Japanese acts, policies, and practices that adversely affect access to the purchasing by Japanese motor vehicle manufacturers in the United States of U.S. motor vehicle parts by Japanese-owned or-controlled producers. Requires the Board established by the Foreign-Trade Zones Act to: (1) review the operations of U.S. and foreign motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts producers to determine any positive economic effect on the United States of such Act; and (2) take appropriate action, including revocation or modification of a foreign-trade zone or subzone grant, with respect to any producer whose operations in such zone are determined not to have a net positive effect on the U.S. economy. Title II: Customs Modernization - Customs Modernization and Informed Compliance Act - Subtitle A: Improvements in Customs Enforcement - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to revise customs procedures with respect to: (1) electronic transmission of forged, altered, or false data to the United States Customs Service with regard to the entry of imported merchandise; (2) penalties for failure to declare imported controlled substances; (3) examination and detention of imported merchandise; (4) certain recordkeeping requirements; (5) examination of books and witnesses; (6) review of protests by the Customs Service; (7) a repeal of a provision relating to the reliquidation on account of fraud; (8) penalties relating to manifests, false drawback or refund claims, and for fraud, gross negligence, and negligence; (9) unlawful unlading or transshipment; (10) public access to Customs Service interpretative rulings and decisions; and (11) seizure of imported merchandise. Subtitle B: National Customs Automation Program - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury (Secretary) to establish the National Customs Automation Program which shall be an automated and electronic system for the processing of commercial imports. Provides for electronic data transmission relating to: (1) remote location filing; (2) effective date of rates of duty on imported merchandise; (3) merchandise manifests; (4) imported merchandise invoices; (5) entry and release of imported merchandise; (6) admissibility in administrative and judicial proceedings of electronically transmitted information; (7) appraisement and liquidations of imported merchandise; (8) the payment of duties; (9) abandonment and damage to imported merchandise; (10) protests of Customs Service decisions; (11) refunds and errors; (12) bonds and other security; and (13) customs house brokers. Requires a refund (drawback) of duties (less one per cent of such duties) on articles produced in the United States with imported merchandise that have been destroyed under Customs Service supervision, provided such articles have not been used prior to such destruction. Sets forth provisions with respect to customs officer's immunity in regard to the appraisement of or collection of duties on imported merchandise. Subtitle C: Miscellaneous Amendments to the Tariff Act of 1930 - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to authorize the Secretary to disregard the difference, but not less than $20 (currently ten dollars), between the total estimated duties deposited with respect to imported merchandise and the total amount actually due on such merchandise. Authorizes the Secretary to admit duty-free: (1) gifts from persons in foreign countries to persons in the United States whose value does not exceed $100 (currently, $50), or $200 (currently, $100) in the case of gifts from persons in the Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa; (2) articles accompanying persons for personal or household use whose value does not exceed $200 (currently, $25); or (3) articles whose value does not exceed $200 (currently, five dollars) in other cases. Authorizes the Secretary to waive collection of duties due on merchandise that are worth less than $20, or such greater amount as prescribed by him or her. Requires masters of vessels that have visited a hovering vessel or received merchandise while outside the U.S. territorial sea to report their arrival to the nearest customs facility. Provides for the electronic transmission of vessel documentation to the Customs Service. Requires the following vessels to report to the nearest Customs Service facility within 24 hours (or other period of time) as provided after arrival to a U.S. port: (1) vessels from a foreign port; (2) foreign vessels from a domestic port; (3) U.S. vessels having bonded or foreign merchandise for which entry has not been made; or (4) vessels which visited a hovering vessel or received merchandise outside the U.S. territorial sea. Authorizes the Secretary to permit masters of vessels to make preliminary entry of their vessel with the Customs Service in lieu of or before formal entry is made. Requires U.S. and foreign vessels to obtain clearance from the Customs Service before proceeding from a U.S. port for: (1) a foreign port; (2) another U.S. port (for foreign vessels only), or (for U.S. vessels only) another U.S. port if the vessel has bonded or foreign merchandise for which entry has not been made; or (3) outside the U.S. territorial sea to visit a hovering vessel or to receive merchandise. Exempts from entry and clearance requirements certain passenger vessels on excursion from the U.S. Virgin Islands to the British Virgin Islands and returning, U.S. documented vessels with recreational endorsement, or (as under current law) undocumented U.S. pleasure vessels not engaged in trade, except such vessels must comply upon arrival with specified customs reporting requirements and navigation laws and must not have visited any hovering vessel. Prohibits merchandise, passengers, or baggage from being unladen from any vessel required to make entry or vehicle required to report its arrival until such entry or report of arrival is made and a permit for unlading has been issued by the Customs Service. Authorizes the issuance of such permits through electronic data transmission. Requires every importer of record of merchandise to make and file electronically or otherwise a declaration stating whether such merchandise is imported pursuant to a purchase or purchase agreement and that all other required documents are true and correct. Requires persons who gained any benefit from, or met any obligation to the United States as the result of the prior exportation of merchandise that has returned as undeliverable to inform the Customs Service of the return of such merchandise within a reasonable time. Provides for electronic data transmission of entry information to complete any incomplete entry of imported merchandise. Declares entered or unentered merchandise that remains in customs custody for six months, with an extension at the importer's request of up to a year (currently, for merchandise that remains in custody for one year), and in which duties, taxes, fees, storage, and other charges have not been paid, to be unclaimed merchandise which shall be appraised and sold by the Customs Service at public auction. Authorizes the sale of imported gunpowder and other explosive merchandise that if permitted to remain in a bonded warehouse for six months (currently, one year) would depreciate in value to the extent that its sale would be insufficient to pay such duties, taxes, fees, storage, and other charges. Authorizes the Customs Service, in lieu of sale, to provide notice to interested parties that, unless, within 30 days of such notice, the subject merchandise is entered or withdrawn for consumption and payment made of all duties, taxes, and fees, transfer and storage charges and other expenses that title to such merchandise shall be deemed to vest in the United States. Authorizes the Secretary to pay to a party that has lost a substantial interest in merchandise by virtue of title vesting in the United States, and can establish that it did not receive a vesting notice, an amount from the Customs Forfeiture Fund equal to what such party would have received if such merchandise had been sold and a proper claim filed. Requires any surplus of the proceeds from the sale of such merchandise to be deposited into the Fund if a claim for such surplus is not filed with the Customs Service. Authorizes the Secretary to prescribe regulations for the declaration and entry of merchandise whose value does not exceed a certain amount, not more than $2,500 (currently not greater than $1,250), and/or when different commercial facilitation and risk considerations that may vary for different classes or kinds of merchandise or different classes of transactions may dictate. Requires the Secretary upon seizure and forfeiture of imported merchandise bearing a counterfeit mark to dispose of such merchandise more than 90 days (currently, one year) after such forfeiture. Authorizes withdrawal of imported merchandise from a warehouse for transfer to a foreign trade zone. Authorizes the Customs Service to order the destruction or other appropriate disposition of vessels, vehicles, aircraft, merchandise, or baggage that has been seized under the customs laws if it determines that the expense of keeping such items is disportionate to their value (currently applies only to items of less than $1,000 in value). Authorizes the use of funds from the Customs Forfeiture Fund for the payment of: (1) certain transfer and storage charges and expenses; and (2) claims against Customs Service employees. Requires actions for fraud, gross negligence, and negligence, false drawback or refund claims, and restoration of lawful duties with respect to imported merchandise to be instituted within five years after the alleged violation or discovery of such fraud. Requires the Customs Service to be reimbursed the administrative cost and expense incurred in collecting fees on behalf of other Federal agencies. Authorizes the Secretary to settle, for no more than $50,000 in each case, claims for personal injury, death, or damage to, or loss of, privately owned property caused by an investigative or law enforcement officer of the Customs Service. Authorizes the Secretary to contract with persons for collection services to recover indebtedness arising under the customs laws, provided the Customs Service has exhausted all administrative efforts to collect such indebtedness. Subtitle D: Miscellaneous Provisions and Consequential and Conforming Amendments to Other Laws - Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to exempt from such Schedule articles which are returned within 45 days after being exported from the United States as undeliverable and which have not left the custody of the carrier or foreign customs service. Prohibits such exportations from satisfying any requirement for exportation in order to receive a benefit from, or meet an obligation, to the United States as a result of such exportation. Declares that certain railway locomotives and railway freight cars on which no duty is owed are not subject to the entry or release requirements for imported merchandise under the Tariff Act of 1930. Exempts instruments of international trade, such as containers, lift vans, rail cars and locomotives, truck cabs and trailers, etc., from formal entry procedures. Requires them to be accounted for however, when imported to and exported from the United States through the manifesting procedures required for international carriers by the U.S. Customs Service. Amends the Internal Revenue Code and other specified Federal law with respect to: (1) certain expenditures from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund; and (2) coastwise trade vessels and U.S. vessels visiting foreign ports. Amends Federal law to grant the Court of International Trade exclusive jurisdiction of any civil action for review decisions of the Customs Service that deny, suspend, or revoke accreditation of private customs laboratories. Bars the commencement of such actions unless brought before such Court within 60 days of such decisions. Repeals specified provisions of Federal law. Requires the Commissioner of Customs to report to the Congress each fiscal year after FY 1992 on the collection of duties imposed under the antidumping and countervailing duty laws. Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 to authorize the Commissioner of Customs to obtain from the operators of centralized cargo examination stations information on fees paid for the provision of services at such stations. Requires the Commissioner to report to specified congressional committees on the payment of such fees. Amends the Customs and Trade Act of 1990 to require the Commissioner of Customs to: (1) devise a methodology for estimating the level of compliance with the U.S. customs laws; and (2) evaluate the extent to which such compliance was obtained during the 12-month period preceeding the 60th day before each fiscal year 1993 through 1995. Directs the Commissioner to initiate, and submit to the Congress, a compliance review of certain carrier services. Title III: Customs and Trade Agency Authorizations for Fiscal Years 1993 and 1994 - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to authorize appropriations to the United States International Trade Commission (ITC) for FY 1993 and 1994. Earmarks a specified amount for reception and entertainment expenses. Prohibits use of such funds for any special study, investigation, or report requested by an agency of the executive branch unless such agency reimburses the ITC for its costs. Amends the Customs Procedural Reform and Simplification Act of 1978 to authorize appropriations to the United States Customs Service for FY 1993 and 1994 for: (1) noncommercial operations; (2) commercial operations; and (3) the air interdiction program. Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to authorize appropriaitons to the Office of the United States Trade Representative for FY 1993 and 1994. Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to authorize apropriations for FY 1993 and 1994 for certain expenditures from the Customs Forfeiture Fund relating to purchases by the Customs Service of evidence of smuggling of controlled substances. Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to eliminate the East-West Trade Statistics Monitoring System. Title IV: Miscellaneous Trade Provisions - Subtitle A: Nontariff Provisions - Directs the President to negotiate trade agreements that eliminate the adverse effects of anticompetitive practices on international trade. Requires the President to report to the Congress on the status of such negotiations. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President, with respect to ensuring the effectiveness of the U.S. embargo of Cuba, should seek negotiations with countries that trade with Cuba to seek their agreement to restrict trade relations with it. Amends the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 to require the Secretary of the Treasury, at the request of the Secretary of Commerce (currently, authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury): (1) to take necessary action to ensure the attainment of the objectives of the machine tool decision of the President on May 20, 1986, and on December 27, 1991; and (2) to enforce any imported machine tool quantitative limitations, restrictions, or other terms contained in related bilateral arrangements. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to enforce the quantitative limitations and other provisions of bilateral arrangements negotiated with Taiwan on December 31, 1991, pursuant to the President's machine tool decision of May 20, 1986, until bilateral agreements are negotiated with such country pursuant to the President's December 27, 1991, decision. Directs the ITC to report to the Congress propsals for consolidating and simplifying U.S. international trade laws. Requires the Director of the Congressional Research Service to make recommendations to the Congress about establishment of a special unit that would: (1) integrate the resources of the Service, the ITC, and other appropriate agencies; and (2) serve as a central and objective source of information for the Congress on data and trends in trade between the United States and foreign countries. Subtitle B: Foreign Subsidies and Countervailing and Antidumping Duty Amendments - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to require completion of reviews by the administering authority of the amount of duty with respect to countervailing and antidumping duty orders by the 270th day after the day on which a request for review was received. (Currently, there is no such deadline for completion of such a review.) Requires the ITC to consider contracts with long lead time as a factor when making material injury determinations with respect to an affected domestic industry in countervailing and antidumping duty investigations. Declares that the presence or absence of any factor the ITC is required to consider shall not give decisive guidance with respect to any threat of material injury determinations. Provides that, with respect to the determination of foreign market value of imported merchandise under investigation, no allowance shall be made to account for differences in input costs that are based on whether the end product made from the input is sold in the home market or exported. Requires the United States Customs Service to report annually to the administering authority on the amount of duties collected during each year under each countervailing and antidumping duty order. Requires the administering authority to make such data available to interested parties. Requires the administering authority, when determining whether imported parts or components are circumventing an antidumping or countervailing duty order or finding, and whether to include such parts or components in such order or finding, to consider: (1) the pattern of trade; (2) the value and sources of supply of parts or components historically used in completion or assembly of the merchandise subject to such order; (3) whether the manufacturer or exporter of such parts or components is related to the person who assembles or completes the merchandise sold in the United States from the parts or components produced in the foreign country with respect to which the order or finding applies; and (4) whether imports into the United States of the parts or components produced in such foreign country have increased after the issuance of such order or finding. Authorizes the administering authority to include within the scope of such order or finding imported parts or components that are used in the completion or assembly of certain merchandise sold in the United States and subject to such order or finding, provided: (1) such merchandise is completed or assembled in the United States from parts or components supplied by the exporter or producer with respect to which such order or finding applies, from suppliers that have historically supplied the parts or components to that exporter or producer, or from any party in the exporting country supplying parts or components on behalf of such exporter or producer; (2) the value of such imported parts and components is significant in relation to the total value of all parts and components used in the assembly or completion operation, excluding packing, of the imported merchandise covered by such order or finding; or (3) consideration of specified factors establishes a pattern of circumvention of a countervailing and antidumping duty order or finding. Enables the administering authority to base such a decision on any of such factors by itself, rather than on all of them together. Sets forth similar provisions for merchandise completed or assembled in other foreign countries. Directs the Secretary of Commerce and the ITC to study and report to the Congress on modification of standards applicable to the initiation of countervailing and antidumping duty actions in order to make petitioning for such initiations less costly and more accessible for domestic petitioners. Requires the USTR to report to the Congress on the operation of the Agreement Concerning the Application of the GATT Agreement on Trade in Civil Aircraft between the United States and the European Community. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should not enter into any international trade agreement on antidumping requiring changes in U.S. antidumping laws that would reduce the effectiveness of such laws as a remedy against injurious dumped imports. Urges the President to review antidumping provisions contained in the Draft Final Act Embodying the Results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations dated December 21, 1991 and seek changes to strengthen the effectiveness of U.S. antidumping laws, including, but not limited to, changes in provisions dealing with cumulation of injury and dispute settlement. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the U.S. Government should not condone the use by foreign governments of trade distorting subsidies, including development subsidies, that cause material injury to U.S. industries. Subtitle C: Other Tariff Provisions - Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to remove the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics from the list of countries ineligible for designation as a beneficiary developing country under the Generalized System of Preferences. Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to create a new tariff classification to cover imports of motor fuel blending stocks. Imposes a duty on such stocks. Revises the classification of linear alkylbenzenesulfonates and linear alkylbenzene sulfonic acids. Revises a specified subheading relating to nonalloy iron and steel pipes and tubes to include non-galvanized forms of such products. Increases the duty on certain other iron and steel pipes and tubes. Imposes a duty on galvanized nonalloy iron and steel pipes and tubes having a specified thickness. Increases the duty on certain stainless steel pipes and tubes. Authorizes the USTR to negotiate compensation for claims made pursuant to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, or any other trade agreement to which the United States is a party, as a result of the amendments made by this Act. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury, with respect to producers of watches in the insular possessions of the United States who are wage certificate holders, to pay to such a holder, at the holder's election, the face value of such certificates less the value of: (1) any duty refunds claimed by the holder under the certificate; and (2) any duty refunds under such certificate that are sold by such holder. Grants duty-free treatment of articles (not over $600 in value) acquired in Bermuda. Grants duty-free treatment to sweaters in which the number of U.S. citizens, nationals, or resident aliens who perform the assembly operations (in Guam) comprise at least 50 percent of the total number of assembly production workers. Sets forth specified exceptions. Provides that stuffed dolls and doll skins that are imported into the United States on or after December 31, 1985, and before October 1, 1988, shall be liquidated as duty free as of October 1, 1988. Declares that a specified production incentive certificate shall be deemed to have been reissued on the 15th day after the enactment of this Act, and shall expire one year after such day. Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to exempt semiconductors from the country of origin marking requirements under such Act. Amends the Foreign Trade Zones Act to extend until December 31, 1994, the exclusion of bicycle component parts from the exemption from customs laws provided by such Act. Treats certain entries of fabric wholly of polyamide as having been exported from the United States in accordance with and in satisfaction of the temporary importation bond and obligations of The Umbrellas: Joint Project for Japan and U.S.A. Corporation if specified conditions are met. Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to authorize the extension of time (not to exceed five years) for the exportation of articles to be repaired, altered, or processed, including processes which result in articles manufactured or produced in the United States, that are imported duty-free under bond, provided that any extension beyond the third year must be accompanied by the importer's certification that such articles are to be incorporated into a communications satellite. Subjects to liquidated damages any such articles imported after January 1, 1983, and before the effective date of this Act, that are certified by the importer as having been dedicated for incorporation into a communications satellite, and as not having been exported within the time required because of launch schedule delays. Limits such liquidated damages to a maximum one percent of the liquidated damages established under the bond.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 1992
Veterans In Transition Act - Directs the Secretary of Defense to provide post-service training vouchers to eligible members of the armed forces who apply in order to finance employment retraining provided through programs established under the Job Training Partnership Act. Requires such vouchers to be provided to such members within 60 days of their separation from active duty. Defines as eligible those members serving on active duty or full-time National Guard duty on September 30, 1990, who were either involuntarily separated or separated under one of the military separation incentive programs, and who were not entitled to retired or retainer pay incident to such separation. Requires such a member to certify to the Secretary that the member is unemployed and does not have a firm commitment for employment upon separation. Directs the Secretary to provide such vouchers to certain unemployed members who did not receive such vouchers due to lack of the required certification. Authorizes the Secretary to provide such vouchers to other members discharged or released from active duty if they would benefit from the training provided. Directs the Secretary to provide appropriate notification to members eligible for such vouchers. Provides for the determination of voucher amounts, requiring such amounts to be generally equal to the cost of providing the training required to achieve the employment objective chosen by the member. Directs the Secretary of Labor to assist the Secretary in determining voucher amounts. Authorizes any member receiving such a voucher to exchange it for employment and training services provided under the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) to the same extent as other individuals eligible to receive such services. Requires such vouchers to be used within a two-year period after discharge, release, or separation. Directs the Secretary, after receiving a voucher, to reimburse the training provider for the actual cost of providing such training, not to exceed the face value of the voucher. Prohibits more than ten percent of the funds provided under this Act from being used for administrative costs. Prohibits the training providers, in accepting vouchers in exchange for employment and training services under the JTPA, from: (1) reducing the number of individuals who receive such services in the absence of the voucher program; or (2) denying such services to veterans who are eligible for such services but do not have a voucher. Directs the Secretary to notify the State agency administering the JTPA in which the member intends to reside and take up training. Amends the JTPA to include such separated members in the defense conversion adjustment program provided under such Act. Requires preseparation counseling of members about to be discharged or released from active duty to occur as soon as possible, but not later than 90 days before the date of discharge (currently, upon discharge). Includes as part of such counseling the creation of a transition plan for the member and spouse to achieve educational, training, and employment objectives. Directs the Secretary to consult with the Secretaries of Labor, Education, and Veterans Affairs and the Economic Adjustment Committee to improve the coordination of, and eliminate duplication between, specified job training and placement programs available to members who are discharged or released from active duty. Directs the Secretary to use ten percent of the amount authorized to be appropriated under this Act for the financing of specified coordination efforts. Directs the Secretary, as part of the preseparation counseling provided to discharged or released members, to insure that information is provided to interested members with respect to the establishment and operation of small businesses. Authorizes the Secretary to make a grant to a member eligible for a training voucher to assist such member in establishing a small business after such discharge or release. Authorizes the Secretary to make a grant to a business owned or operated by a veteran to assist the business to employ members eligible for training vouchers. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into an agreement with the head of a Federal agency under which the agency makes grants to States and local governments and nonprofit organizations to establish internships or other training programs for members eligible for training vouchers. Provides that all such grants will be made in lieu of providing the member with a training voucher. Authorizes the Secretary, in order to assist discharged or released members and their spouses in locating civilian employment, to conduct marketing and employer outreach activities to promote the creation of employment opportunities for such members and spouses. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 1992
DeLauro-Lowey Water Pollution Control and Estuary Restoration Financing Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to extend the authorization of appropriations for the State water pollution control revolving fund program through FY 1999. Requires a specified percentage (increasing with each succeeding fiscal year) of such appropriations to be used by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to make capitalization grants for estuary plans to qualified States. Requires States to submit estimates of the need for assistance for implementing and monitoring such plans. Prohibits the submission of such estimates unless the estimates are approved by the appropriate management conference under the National Estuary Program. Makes States that fail to submit approved estimates ineligible for assistance. Directs States to establish separate Estuary Accounts in their water pollution control revolving funds, to be used for implementing approved estuary plans. Permits loans made with amounts in such Accounts to be for terms of up to 40 years or for the useful life of a facility constructed with the loan, whichever is less, if the borrower demonstrates financial hardship. Allows States to use interest earned on amounts in such Accounts to subsidize up to 90 percent of the principal portion of debt service of certain entities that are financially unable to carry out a necessary project for an estuary plan. Establishes a State matching requirement for deposits into Accounts. Authorizes the Administrator to make grants for the implementation of estuary conservation and management plans. Limits the Federal share to 75 percent of the total cost of implementation. Authorizes appropriations. Permits certain grants under the National Estuary Program to be used for interim actions adopted by management conferences to protect the water and sediment quality of estuaries. Extends the authorization of appropriations for management conferences, grants, conservation and management plans, and research under the National Estuary Program through FY 1999. Revises provisions concerning the purposes of management conferences. Directs the Administrator to issue a guidance document that establishes requirements for: (1) management conferences to follow in developing, implementing, and monitoring conservation and management plans; and (2) approving and implementing interim actions to protect water quality of estuaries for which plans are developed. Requires management conferences to be convened for periods of at least five years (currently, up to five years). Permits the extension of a conference for an additional five years if the affected Governors concur in the extension and the extension is necessary to meet requirements. Revises approval and implementation procedures for estuary conservation and management plans and establishes such procedures for interim actions.
![Official portrait of Rep. Hertel, Dennis M. [D-MI-14]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/h000547_200.jpg)