United States · United States Congress · 13 October 1987
Department of Veterans Affairs Act - Redesignates the Veterans Administration (VA) as the Department of Veterans Affairs (the Department), an executive department within the executive branch of the Government. Provides that the Department shall be headed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, to be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Designates as other principal officers of the Department the Deputy Secretary, the Chief Medical Director, and the Chief Benefits Director. Provides for the temporary continuation of service of the current Administrator, Deputy Administrator, Chief Medical Director, and Chief Benefits Director of Veterans Affairs. Establishes within the Department eight Assistant Secretaries, each of whom shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to perform such functions as the Secretary may prescribe. Directs the Secretary to assign to one such Assistant Secretary all functions regarding the National Cemetery System and the State cemetery grant program. Outlines functions which the Secretary shall assign to the Assistant Secretaries. Provides for the temporary continuation of the performance of such functions by present personnel until such functions are assigned to an individual appointed as Assistant Secretary under this Act. Redesignates the current VA's Department of Medicine and Surgery as the Veterans Health Services Administration of the Department. Redesignates the VA's current Department of Veterans Benefits as the Veterans Benefits Administration of the Department, whose primary function shall be to administer nonmedical programs which provide assistance to veterans, their dependents, and their survivors. Establishes within the Department the Office of the General Counsel. Redesignates the current Office of Inspector General of the VA as the Office of Inspector General of the Department. Provides that any references to departments or positions under the current VA system shall be considered to be references to such departments and positions of the Department as modified under this Act. Provides continuing effect of all legal documents, suits, actions, and property and resources of the current VA. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, after appropriate congressional consultation, to prepare and submit to the Congress proposed legislation containing technical and conforming amendments to reflect the changes made under this Act. Requires such legislation to be submitted no later than six months after the enactment of this Act. Provides that any spending authority of the Department is subject to available amounts as provided in appropriation Acts.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 1987
Poultry Producers Financial Protection Act of 1987 - Amends the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921 to remove live poultry handlers from marketing practices regulation under such Act. Establishes a statutory trust for the benefit of unpaid cash sellers or poultry growers which consists of the assets of live poultry dealers with average annual live poultry sales, or average annual value of poultry obtained by purchase or growing arrangement, greater than $100,000. States that a dishonored payment instrument shall not be considered as payment. Provides that an unpaid cash seller or poultry grower shall lose such trust benefit if he or she fails to give written notice of nonpayment or dishonored payment within specified time periods to the poultry dealer and then by filing such notice with the Secretary of Agriculture. Provides a cause of action for violations under such Act relating to poultry sales, purchases, or growing arrangements. Eliminates poultry handler recordkeeping provisions. States that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) shall have power and jurisdiction over all (marketing) transactions in commerce of poultry products. States that the Secretary may exercise jurisdiction over poultry products in prompt payment or trust proceedings (as established by this Act) in order to avoid impairment of the Secretary's jurisdiction. Requires the Secretary to: (1) notify the FTC of any intended action; and (2) not proceed further if notified within ten days that an FTC proceeding is pending involving the same subject matter. Authorizes the Secretary to seek injunctive relief for nonpayment of live poultry transactions, including growing arrangements. Requires poultry dealers to pay poultry producers within the following time limits: (1) for a cash sale, full payment by the close of business on the day after the sale; and (2) for a growing arrangement, full payment within 15 days after the week of slaughter. States that a payment delay or attempted delay shall be considered an "unfair practice" violation under such Act. Directs the Secretary, whenever he has reason to believe that a poultry dealer has violated the prompt payment or trust provisions created by this Act, to issue a written complaint and hold a hearing at least 30 days after service of the complaint. Authorizes the Secretary to issue a cease and desist order, and also to assess a civil penalty of up to $20,000 per violation, if he finds the dealer in violation of such provisions. Makes the Secretary's order final unless a poultry dealer files an appeal with the appropriate court of appeals within 30 days after service. Subjects a poultry dealer or his agents to fines of between $1,000 and $20,000 for failure to comply with the Secretary's order. Repeals title V of the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 1987
Expresses the sense of the Congress that it opposes efforts to pass Federal or State legislation allowing people to assist others to commit suicide or to promote suicide as a rational solution to certain problems.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1987
Corporation for Small Business Investment Charter Act - Amends the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 to establish timetables to govern the promulgation of regulations by the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the qualification of licensees to do business with the Corporation for Small Business Investment and the special-purpose trust established by this Act. Establishes the Corporation for Small Business Investment as a Government-sponsored private corporation. Requires the President to appoint its interim Board of Directors. Sets forth procedures for selection of the permanent Board and describes Board duties. Sets out the Corporation's stock structure. Permits only small business investment companies to hold voting common stock. Requires the Corporation to mandate certain contributions from these companies in order to accumulate capital surplus funds from private sources. Includes depository institutions as eligible contributors entitled to receive stock and dispose of it. Authorizes the Corporation to issue obligations and securities, within prescribed limits. Permits the Secretary of the Treasury to purchase such obligations but sets amount and yield restrictions. Makes all obligations issued by the Corporation acceptable as security for any fiduciary, trust, and public funds controlled by the United States. Exempts Corporation issues from the regulatory framework of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Authorizes the Corporation to issue commitments or otherwise deal in small business investment securities after the permanent Board has been duly constituted. Sets forth the procedure for perfecting a security or ownership interest in small business investment securities created by the Corporation. Authorizes the Corporation to guarantee specified securities. Directs the Corporation to establish criteria, including private capital amount requirements, for the qualification of small business investment companies to conduct business with it. Instructs the Corporation to enter into agreements with small business investment companies, which are authorized to provide equity capital and loans to small businesses. Restricts the financing activities of the investment companies, setting time limits, aggregate securities acquisition limits, and use restrictions with respect to loan funds. Prohibits the Corporation from purchasing or guaranteeing securities in excess of ten percent of its assets. Provides for both financial and compliance audits of small business investment companies. Exempts loans made by small business investment companies from State usury law, unless the State expressly enacts overriding legislation. Directs the Corporation to adopt independent criteria in connection with the qualification of a special type of small business investment company to invest solely in disadvantaged small businesses. Establishes a special-purpose trust to benefit special small business investment companies. Provides for its operation in accordance with a trust agreement with the Corporation. Sets forth procedures for appointing the trustees. Requires the trustees to establish separate accounting for all preferred securities, debentures, loss reserves, and other funds acquired and to make an annual accounting of trust operations to the Secretary of the Treasury. Sets forth the powers of the trustees. Provides for SBA conveyance to the Corporation of all right, title, and interest to all securities and outstanding debentures issued by small business investment companies that are not in liquidation. Requires the trust to apply all of the funds held in trust and income to: (1) cover any losses realized on debentures purchased or guaranteed by the Corporation; (2) reduce the interest rate on debentures issued by special small business investment companies or purchase their preferred securities; and (3) pay administrative costs. Authorizes the trustees to purchase preferred securities and the Corporation to purchase or guarantee the payment of principal and interest on debentures issued by special small business investment companies. Sets forth the terms and conditions for these purchases. Authorizes a special small business investment company to request that the Corporation purchase or guarantee its debentures. Provides that such debentures shall be subordinate to any other obligations of such companies. Sets forth restrictions on the interest rate on and total amount of such debentures. Requires that all outstanding preferred securities purchased by the trust from special small business investment companies be redeemed and transferred to the Treasury 50 years after the effective date of this Act. Gives the SBA review authority over the Corporation and requires annual reporting in connection with this review. Mandates an annual independent audit of the Corporation's accounts, with reporting to the Secretary of the Treasury, who must subsequently report to the President and to the House and Senate Small Business Committees. Subjects Corporation books and records to audit by the General Accounting Office and by the Office of the Inspector General of the SBA under specified conditions. Requires annual Corporation reporting to the President, the SBA, and relevant congressional committees. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to sell to the Corporation on September 30, 1988, all the right and interest in small business investment company securities guaranteed by the SBA and held by the Federal Financing Bank, providing such securities are due in FY 1989 or later. Sets a minimum final purchase price of $720,000,000, a specified amount of which must be in preferred stock in the Corporation. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to propose a sale price for the securities that the Corporation is to purchase. Sets forth procedures for determining the purchase price if the Board finds the Secretary's proposal unacceptable. Establishes criteria to govern the preferred stock issued by the Corporation as part of the purchase price. Directs the Corporation to issue to the SBA warrants to purchase nonvoting common stock equivalent to a 28 percent interest in the Corporation. Requires the Corporation to report, within 30 days of the completion of the purchase of the securities, to the House and Senate Committees on Small Business. Prohibits the SBA from: (1) making any payments to the Department of the Treasury on debentures guaranteed under the Small Business Investment Act after they are sold to the Corporation; or (2) selling or encumbering loans or debentures it has made or issued, except as specified in this Act. Requires the General Accounting Office, by January 1, 1993, to prepare a report for the House and Senate Small Business Committees on the Corporation's effectiveness in achieving the purposes of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1987
Federal Child Support Enforcement Act - Amends the Federal criminal code to make it a Federal criminal offense to leave or remain outside a State for the purpose of avoiding payment of arrearages in child support.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 1987
Food Security Improvements Act of 1987 - Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to limit reductions in the 1988 farm program payment yield to not more than seven percent of 1985 levels.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 1987
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that Federal estate and gift taxes should not be changed in order to increase Federal revenues as part of deficit reduction.
United States · United States Congress · 23 September 1987
Declares that the Congress: (1) expresses its solidarity with the citizens of Iran and extends its wish that the people of Iran will soon enjoy an end to the Iran-Iraq war and to internal repression; (2) supports an official U. S. policy of completely halting the shipment of arms to the Government of Iran; (3) urges the President to cooperate with the United Nations to bring about an end to government-sponsored torture in Iranian prisons and to pressure Iran to permit inspection of Iranian prisons by an international delegation; and (4) expresses support for all efforts made through the U.N. Security Council to pressure the Khomeini Government to end the Iran-Iraq war.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 1987
Directs the Secretary of the Interior to study, by the end of FY 1988, the suitability of areas adjacent to the Mississippi and Upper Mississippi Rivers for inclusion in a Mississippi River National Park.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 1987
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that colleges and universities should demand drug-free environments on campus and should enforce strict but fair policies to eliminate drug use by students with the support of parents, students, and the community.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 1987
Amends rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives to prohibit consideration of bills or resolutions making appropriations under the jurisdiction of more than one subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee for periods after November 30 of a fiscal year, unless a 60 percent majority of the House votes to waive or suspend this provision.
United States · United States Congress · 10 September 1987
Urges the German Democratic chief of state Erich Honecker to: (1) repeal the order directing East German border guards to shoot to kill anyone who attempts to cross the Berlin Wall; and (2) issue an order to tear down the Berlin Wall.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 1987
Amends rule XV of the Rules of the House of Representatives to prohibit the House from passing or adopting any bill or joint resolution, or conference report thereon, making appropriations, providing revenue, or increasing the statutory limit on the public debt except by a rollcall vote.
United States · United States Congress · 7 August 1987
Mississippi River National Heritage Corridor Act of 1987 - Establishes the Mississippi River National Heritage Corridor, which includes Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, and Wisconsin. Establishes the Mississippi River National Heritage Corridor Commission to prepare within two years a plan which includes an inventory and an assessment of the natural, economic, and historic resources of the Corridor. Requires the Commission to assist States within the Corridor and political subdivisions to preserve the values of the Corridor. Requires the Commission to collect and disseminate information related to the Corridor. Directs the Commission to assist in the development of the Great River Road. Requires the Commission to report biennially to the Secretary of the Interior and the chief executive officer of a Corridor State on the activities of the Commission. Directs the Secretary to assist and review the Commission in its work. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1989 through 1991.
United States · United States Congress · 7 August 1987
Provides that when any bill or joint resolution making continuing appropriations is agreed to by both Houses of the Congress in the same form, the Clerk of the House of Representatives shall enroll the provisions in such bill or joint resolution as separate bills or joint resolutions (for item veto purposes). Requires the enrollment as part of one separate bill or joint resolution of: (1) all the provisions within the jurisdiction of a subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations; (2) all the provisions within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Appropriations; (3) all the provisions within the jurisdiction of any other House committee; and (4) all the provisions for which jurisdiction cannot be determined.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1987
Fair and Equitable Cargo Allocation Act of 1987 - Amends the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 to repeal a provision which requires the Secretary of Transportation to preserve, during calendar years 1986 through 1989, the percentage share, or the metric tonnage of bagged, processed, or fortified commodities, whichever is lower, experienced in 1984, of waterborne cargoes exported from Great Lakes ports under the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1987
Agricultural Paperwork Reduction Act of 1987 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture, within 180 days of this Act's enactment, to report to specified congressional committees concrete proposals for reducing recordkeeping and other paperwork required of agricultural producers in connection with price support programs and other agriculture-related activities.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1987
Urges the leadership of the Government of Chile to take steps to: (1) assure that military rule should end in Chile no later than by 1989, as outlined in the 1980 constitution; (2) ensure that the next democratically-elected leaders of Chile are chosen from civilian candidates; (3) assure voting procedures for the electoral process which are fair and based upon universal and equal suffrage; (4) implement procedures to ensure that the vote will be accurately counted and subject to independent verification; and (5) ensure that prior to any electoral process, freedom of assembly and expression are fully restored and non-violent government opponents are given fair access to every means of communication, including television.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 1987
Anti-Tree Spiking Act - Amends the Federal criminal code to provide criminal penalties for: (1) spiking timber; (2) teaching another to spike timber knowing that such technique will be unlawfully employed; or (3) traveling in interstate or foreign commerce (or using any facility of interstate or foreign commerce) to organize or participate in a violation of this Act. Authorizes the Attorney General to pay for information concerning violations of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1987
Amends Internal Revenue Code provisions relating to the income tax deduction for the health insurance costs of self-employed individuals to: (1) increase from 25 percent to 100 percent the allowable deduction; and (2) make the deduction permanent (under current law it will expire after tax year 1989).
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 1987
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the President should direct the appropriate agencies to establish a systematic method for encouraging, screening, and processing Soviet defectors and prisoners of war in Afghanistan; (2) Soviet defectors and prisoners of war who request political asylum should be granted such asylum and transported to the United States; (3) the President should seek to establish a framework under which Soviet defectors would be helped in adapting to American life; and (4) the President should direct the appropriate agencies to broadcast into the Soviet Union and Afghanistan information concerning the Soviet Union's actions in Afghanistan and the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 1987
Marine Science, Technology and Policy Development Act of 1987 - Amends the National Sea Grant College Program Act to declare the need for a national ocean strategy and to revise definitions under such Act. Expands coverage of the Act to include Great Lakes resources. (Current law covers ocean and coastal resources.) Authorizes the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere to make grants and enter into contracts to carry out a sea grant strategic research plan. Requires the Under Secretary to develop and publish the plan every three years. Requires the plan to identify and describe a limited number of priority areas for strategic marine research. Requires consultation with Federal agencies, representatives of sea grant colleges, programs, and consortia, and other public and private interested parties. Requires the plan to be submitted to specified congressional committees. Describes the priority areas on which the plan is required to concentrate, including: (1) critical resource and environmental areas of national, international, or global scope where adequate funding is otherwise precluded under other provisions of the National Sea Grant College Program Act; and (2) areas where sustained programmatic research and technology transfer can be utilized. Describes graduate, post-graduate, Federal, congressional, and postdoctoral fellowships which the Under Secretary is required or permitted to support. Adds to the duties of the sea grant review panel the responsibility of giving advice with respect to applications, proposals, performance, grants, and contracts awarded under the sea grant strategic research plan. Makes changes regarding membership and terms of the panel. Authorizes the Under Secretary to provide annual grants to certain sea grant colleges, sea grant regional consortiums, or institutions of higher education having a sea grant program to improve and support curriculum offerings at the graduate level, support graduate students through scholarships and fellowships, and increase multidisciplinary research, all with regard to marine resource management. Limits the amount of any grant to any such institution in any year. Requires each institution receiving a grant to report annually and upon termination of the grant to the Under Secretary regarding the results of the activities to which the institution applied the grant. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1988 through 1990. Amends provisions of the Sea Grant Program Improvement Act of 1976 relating to the purposes of the Sea Grant International program to authorize grants and contracts to enhance international research, promote marine activities with foreign universities, encourage technology transfer, promote foreign data exchanges, or enhance regional collaboration regarding marine research between foreign nations and the United States. Permits the following organizations to apply for and receive financial assistance under this provision: (1) any sea grant college, sea grant program, and sea grant regional consortium; and (2) any institution of higher education, laboratory, or institution which is located within a State. Requires the Under Secretary, before approving an application under this provision, to consult with the Secretary of State.
United States · United States Congress · 23 July 1987
Elephant Protection Act - Directs the President to propose to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species that all trade in elephant products be suspended until accurate data demonstrate the stability of healthy elephant populations. Prohibits the knowing import, export, or sale of such products by any person subject to U.S. jurisdiction. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to administer this Act. Authorizes exceptions for scientific or survival purposes. Establishes civil and criminal penalties for violations of this Act. Grants enforcement authority to the Secretary, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Coast Guard. Subjects to forfeiture items possessed, sold, shipped, received, imported, exported, or carried in violation of this Act and vehicles used to aid such activities. Authorizes the charging of permit fees. Authorizes citizen suits to enforce this Act. Preempts State law.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 1987
Amends rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives to provide that no appropriation shall be reported in any joint resolution continuing appropriations, or amendment thereto, for any expenditure not previously authorized by law, except to continue appropriations for public works and objects which are already in progress. Declares that this provision shall only be applicable for FY 1989 or any subsequent fiscal year. Makes it out of order in the House to consider any joint resolution continuing appropriations, or amendment thereto, which covers a period of more than 90 calendar days. Declares that an item of appropriation set forth in any joint resolution continuing appropriations shall not be for an amount exceeding 90 percent of the amount that represents a continuation of the rate of appropriation for such item under current law. Prohibits any provision of this Act from being waived other than by a two-thirds vote of the Members present and voting.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 1987
Declares that the Congress recognizes the importance of the agricultural export enhancement program under the Food Security Act of 1985: (1) to multilateral trade negotiations; (2) to counter agricultural subsidies and unfair practices of foreign countries; and (3) as a transitional tool in implementing such Act. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Secretary of Agriculture should provide sufficient funding under the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act for FY 1987 through 1990 to carry out agricultural export enhancement initiatives.
United States · United States Congress · 21 July 1987
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit a partnership, S corporation, or personal service corporation, unless it is part of a tiered structure, to elect to have a taxable year other than the required one, but generally only if the deferral period of the taxable year elected is three months or less. (Current law requires partnerships, S corporations, and personal service corporations, in most cases, to conform their taxable years to the calendar years used by their owners.) Subjects the principals of a partnership or S corporation electing to change taxable years to additional estimated tax requirements to offset any tax deferral resulting from such election. Imposes deduction limitations on a personal service corporation that changes taxable years. Provides that an election with respect to taxable year shall be made by the partnership, S corporation, or personal service corporation and shall be binding on all partners and shareholders. Sets forth the formula for determining the additional tax requirement when a taxpayer: (1) is a partner or shareholder in at least one such entity during any applicable election years of the entity that end within the taxpayer's taxable year; and (2) has an aggregate deferred tax exceeding $200 with respect to the entity. Describes payment procedures. Requires the inclusion of specified information on returns filed by partnerships and S corporations that elect to use a non-required taxable year. Limits the tax deduction permitted to a personal service corporation for amounts paid or incurred with respect to employee-owners when such a corporation: (1) elects to have a taxable year other than the required one; and (2) fails to meet certain minimum distribution requirements regarding non-dividend amounts paid to owners.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 1987
Title I: Temporary Extension of Public Debt Limit - Increases the public debt limit (until September 30, 1987) to $2,358,000,000,000. Title II: Budget Process Reform - Amends the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to increase the permissible maximum deficit amounts for FY 1987 through 1990. Extends for one year the expiration date of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act). Title III: Economic Summit - Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President, together with the bipartisan leadership of the Senate and House of Representatives, should convene a domestic economic summit conference to address the dangerous economic situation which is created by large deficits and the ineffectual budget process. Directs the conference to report its recommendations for solutions to budgetary issues and budget process reforms to the Congress and the President.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 1987
Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to provide that if, by April 15 of the calendar year in which the fiscal year begins, the Congress fails to adopt a concurrent resolution on the budget for such fiscal year, then (unless and until the Congress adopts such a resolution for such fiscal year) the most recently agreed to concurrent resolution on the budget shall govern for purposes of committee allocations and new budget authority points of order.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 1987
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the Federal excise taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel should not be increased as a means of reducing the Federal deficit.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 1987
Taxpayers' Deficit Reduction Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow taxpayers who have overpaid their income tax liability to designate on their tax returns that a specified portion of such overpayment, rather than being credited or refunded, be used to reduce the public debt of the United States. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to transfer these designated amounts to the special account for reduction of the public debt.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 1987
Federal Meat Inspection Act Amendments of 1987 - Amends the Federal Meat Inspection Act to revise the definition of "misbranded" to include any meat or meat food product not labeled with its country of origin. Applies such provision to meat and meat products sold at wholesale and retail, including items subject to additional preparation after entering the United States. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to provide for exemptions by regulations covering instances when compliance is impracticable. Authorizes the Secretary either to refuse to provide or to withdraw inspection service upon the determination, after opportunity for a hearing is given, that proper labeling has not been done. Requires the Secretary to withdraw inspection upon a third violation. Provides for judicial review by the appropriate U.S. Court of Appeals of the Secretary's determinations and orders with respect to country of origin labeling.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1987
Directs the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration to: (1) conduct a study of methods of screening persons and property to be carried in air transportation in order to detect dangerous weapons, explosives, and incendiary devices; and (2) report to the Congress on the study results.
United States · United States Congress · 30 June 1987
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the administration should oppose the implementation of the European Community directive which will limit U.S. access to such Community's agricultural markets; (2) if the European Community denies U.S. meat imports based on unsubstantiated standards or standards not applied to all Community members, the administration should adopt countermeasures; and (3) the administration should communicate to the Community that the United States views the directive as inconsistent with such Community's obligations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1987
Authorizes the Administrator of Veterans Affairs to establish a national cemetery in the central geographical area of Louisiana. Authorizes the Administrator to acquire such land as necessary for the cemetery.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1987
Amends rule XXI of Rules of the House of Representatives to prohibit any appropriation from being reported in any joint resolution continuing appropriations, or from being in order as an amendment thereto, for any expenditure not previously authorized by law, except to continue appropriations for public works and objects which are already in progress. Prohibits any provision which changes existing laws from being reported in any joint resolution continuing appropriations except germane provisions which retrench expenditures by the reduction of money covered by the bill, which may include those recommended to the Committee on Appropriations by direction of any legislative committee having jurisdiction over the subject matter. Prohibits an amendment to a joint resolution continuing appropriations from being in order if changing existing law. Declares that, except as provided by this Act, no amendment shall be in order during consideration of a joint resolution continuing appropriations proposing a limitation not specifically contained or authorized in existing law for the period of the limitation. Sets forth floor procedure for consideration of an acceptable joint resolution continuing appropriations. Prohibits the House from considering any joint resolution continuing appropriations, or amendments thereto, which covers a period of more than 90 calendar days. Prohibits any item of appropriation set forth in any joint resolution continuing appropriations from exceeding the lesser of the amount set forth for such item in the House-passed or Senate-passed general appropriation bill for the fiscal year. Declares that if there is no House-passed or Senate-passed bill containing such item, then such item shall be at the rate at which it would have been assuming the continuation of current law. Prohibits the waiver of any provision of this resolution except by two-thirds vote of the Members present and voting. Declares this resolution applicable with respect to joint resolutions continuing appropriations for FY 1989 or any subsequent fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1987
Declares that the Congress joins with the President in challenging Soviet General Secretary Gorbachev to open the Brandenburg Gate and tear down the Berlin Wall.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 1987
Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a program to encourage the use of program crop acreage (with respect to wheat, feed grains, upland cotton, and rice) to create wildlife sanctuaries, as well as habitat and feed and storage areas for game and wildlife. Provides that when the owner or operator of a farm, upon notice to the Secretary, converts all or any portion of any program crop acreage base established for the preceding crop year to targeted game and wildlife uses, the converted land shall be counted toward any acreage reduction program with respect to preserving the program crop base acreage and program payment yield of the farm. Permits the person who converted the program crop base acreage to a permissible wildlife/game use to resume program crop production on the affected acreage upon 120 days' written notice to the Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 1987
Amends the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 to repeal the requirement that first sale contracts for the purchase of certain natural gas produced on the Outer Continental Shelf must be for a specified duration. Repeals the statutory restrictions placed upon: (1) natural gas offers of sale; and (2) rights of first refusal.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 1987
Constitutional Amendment - Requires the Congress and the President, prior to each fiscal year, to agree, by enactment of a joint resolution, on an estimate of total receipts for that fiscal year. Prohibits outlays for that year from exceeding such estimated receipts unless the Congress, by a three-fifths rollcall vote of each House, provides for a specific excess of outlays over receipts. Requires the Congress, whenever actual outlays exceed actual receipts for any fiscal year, to provide by law for the repayment of such excess in the ensuing fiscal year. Requires a three-fifths rollcall vote of each House to increase the public debt. Directs the President to submit to the Congress a proposed budget for each fiscal year in which total outlays do not exceed total receipts. Requires the approval by a majority of the total membership of each House by rollcall vote before any bill to increase revenue may become law. Waives this article for any fiscal year in which a declaration of war is in effect. Declares that total receipts shall include all receipts of the United States, except those derived from borrowing, and total outlays shall include all outlays of the United States, except those for repayment of debt principal.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 1987
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should express to the Soviets: (1) the U.S. opposition to the Soviet Union's treatment of certain individuals and the Soviets' refusal to permit these individuals, their families, and other families to emigrate to Israel; (2) the U.S. desire that the Soviet Union comply with specified human rights agreements by permitting such individuals to emigrate to Israel; and (3) the U.S. desire that the Soviet Union cease harassing Soviet Jews seeking to emigrate and denying human rights to Soviet Jews.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 1987
White House Conference on Small Business Authorization Act - Calls upon the President to conduct a National White House Conference on Small Business once every four years to: (1) increase public awareness of the contributions of small business; (2) identify small business problems; (3) examine the status of minority and women small business owners; (4) assist small business in carrying out its role as the Nation's job creator; (5) develop specific recommendations for executive and legislative action; and (6) review the status of recommendations adopted at the preceding Conference. Authorizes and directs Federal departments, agencies, and instrumentalities to provide support and assistance to the planning of such Conferences. Requires a final report of each Conference, within six months from the date a Conference is convened, to be submitted to the President and the Congress. Requires the Small Business Administration to report annually to the Congress for the next three years following the submission of the final report of the Conference. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1987
National Petroleum Security Act of 1987 - Title I: Financial Incentives to Stimulate Oil and Gas Production - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the windfall profit tax on domestic crude oil. Allows a crude oil production tax credit for maintaining economically marginal wells. Allows as a tax deduction geological and geophysical costs paid or incurred during the taxable year. Repeals special rules for deduction of intangible drilling costs and mineral exploration and development costs. Increases the net income depletion limitations for oil or gas wells to 100 percent. Repeals certain depletion transfer rules. Title II: Federal Leasing Reform Provisions - Amends the Mineral Lands Leasing Act of 1920 to direct the Secretary of the Interior to implement a competitive oil and gas leasing program on the public lands of the Coastal Plain (in Alaska) in order to assure expeditious exploration, development, and production of the area's oil and gas resources. Delineates the elements of the Coastal Plain leasing program. Mandates deposit of the receipts from such leasing program in the Treasury. Requires that activities be conducted to achieve the reasonable protection of wildlife resources, the environment, and subsistence users. Authorizes the Secretary of State to initiate discussions with the Canadian Government regarding mutual planning for the development and transportation of crude oil and natural gas resources in the Arctic region under the respective jurisdiction of each country, both onshore and offshore. Title III: Oil Regulatory Reform Provisions - Amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to direct the Secretary of Energy to assure that at least 50 percent (by volume) of the petroleum products acquired for storage in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve during each fiscal year are derived from domestic crude oil production (other than production of Federal lands). Amends the Department of Energy Organization Act to authorize the Attorney General to petition the Secretary of Energy for an adjudication of whether continued regulation of an existing pipeline is in the public interest. Directs the Secretary, upon receipt of such petition, to conduct such adjudication according to prescribed guidelines. Terminates Federal Energy Regulatory Commission jurisdiction over an existing pipeline that is not the subject of such a petition 120 days after the effective date of this Act, unless a joint resolution is enacted before then directing the Secretary to conduct an adjudication of whether regulation of such pipeline is in the public interest. Prescribes adjudication guidelines under which the Secretary shall find that regulation of a pipeline is in the public interest only if it is demonstrated that such regulation is necessary to constrain the exercise of substantial market power in a significant portion of the markets in which the pipeline operates. Terminates Commission regulatory jurisdiction over an existing pipeline if the Secretary finds the regulation over such pipeline is not in the public interest. Prescribes guidelines under which the Secretary is authorized to conduct an adjudication of whether, as a direct result of changed circumstances, regulation of an existing pipeline not then subject to Commission regulatory jurisdiction is in the public interest. Declares that new pipelines shall not be subject to Commission regulatory jurisdiction. States that the termination of Commission regulatory jurisdiction does not apply to its jurisdiction over crude oil or refined oil products transported prior to termination. Precludes Commission regulatory jurisdiction from being transferred in any manner to any Federal agency. Declares that the pipeline jurisdiction provisions of this Act do not apply to the Trans-Alaska pipeline. Confers exclusive, original jurisdiction over any petition for judicial review upon the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Precludes from such judicial review any action of the Attorney General under this Act, including adjudication petitions. Authorizes both the Secretary and the Attorney General to promulgate regulations under this Act. Retains the applicability of all antitrust laws to pipeline transportation of crude oil or refined oil products. Title IV: Natural Gas Regulatory Reform Provisions - Amends the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 to authorize the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to: (1) allow any pipeline to transport natural gas on behalf of any person; (2) require pipelines to transport gas without discrimination; and (3) require pipelines which receive gas to provide nondiscriminatory transportation services. Requires the Commission (upon request by any person) to direct an interstate pipeline to provide transportation service, without discrimination, unless such pipeline demonstrates to the Commission that it is incapable of providing such service. Removes wellhead price controls over all natural gas first sales beginning April 1, 1988. Removes such control for certain gas sales contracts executed after the date of enactment of this Act. Repeals Commission jurisdiction over first sales of natural gas committed or dedicated as of the day before enactment of this Act. Repeals Commission authority to specify the minimum duration of certain natural gas contracts (thus removing all non-price regulation of first sales of natural gas). Declares that, with respect to ceiling prices of certain natural gas sales, the last price paid for such gas shall be considered a federally established rate for purposes of an area rate clause. Provides a limited antitrust exemption for independent natural gas producer cooperatives. Title V: Environmental Provisions - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to exclude from the definition of "underground storage tank" all well cellars, sumps, drip collection devices, and specified equipment used in petroleum marketing operations. Expresses the sense of the Congress that certain rules regarding mixtures and derivatives should not be invoked to curtail certain petroleum industry recycling practices. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency should encourage continued use of land treatment for petroleum waste, and that such treatment should be considered as complying with the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to modify the underground injection control program with respect to the utilization of brine or other fluids.
![Official portrait of Rep. Holloway, Clyde [R-LA-8]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/h000729_200.jpg)