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United States · Official source
3,189 records where Rep. Howard, James J. [D-NJ-3] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 1982
Amends the Truth in Lending Act to prohibit the imposition of any direct or indirect fee or charge on a service station franchisee who honors a credit card issued by the gasoline company franchisor.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 1982
Designates June 14 as Baltic Freedom Day.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 1982
Designates July 9, 1982, as National P.O.W.-M.I.A. Recognition Day.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 1982
Permits the President to appoint successors to cadets at the U.S. Air Force Academy who have been discharged, graduated, or whose class has graduated without them.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 1982
Makes supplemental appropriations to the Department of Transportation for the operating expenses of the Coast Guard during FY 1982.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 1982
Designates January 30, 1982, as A National Day of Solidarity With the Polish People. Expresses the sense of the Congress with respect to the state of martial law in Poland.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 1982
Expresses the Congress's opposition to religious persecution and bigotry wherever practiced, encouraged, or tolerated by national governments. Expresses the sense of the Congress that U.S. officials should emphasize U.S. opposition to such persecution. States that the appropriate congressional committees should hold hearings to determine U.S. policy toward governments that violate the international law guaranteeing freedom from religious persecution and bigotry.
United States · United States Congress · 15 December 1981
Orphan Drug Act - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to promulgate regulations to exempt from such Act drugs intended solely for drug treatment investigations. Defines "drug treatment investigation" as an investigation of a drug which involves human participants with a rare disease or condition. Establishes in the Department of Health and Human Services an interagency committee known as the Committee on Orphan Drug Development. Makes it the function of such committee to promote the development of drugs for rare diseases or conditions (orphan drugs). Requires the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to submit to the Committee an annual report on the rare disease and condition research activities of NIH. Requires the Committee to report by June 1 of each year to the appropriate congressional committees on its activities and the results of its evaluations, including the report submitted by NIH. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit for qualified experimental expenses incurred while researching orphan drugs.
United States · United States Congress · 11 December 1981
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to permit an individual to elect hospice care, in lieu of certain other benefits, during two periods of 180 days each during the individual's lifetime. Provides for full reimbursement of reasonable costs to a hospice program, subject to a ceiling. Directs the Comptroller General to conduct a study of the hospice reimbursement method. Defines hospice care as including items and services furnished to the terminally ill in their homes, on an outpatient basis, and on a short term inpatient basis.
United States · United States Congress · 11 December 1981
Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981 to extend by five months (until September 30, 1982) the period within which an individual must have become a full-time student at a postsecondary educational institution in order to receive, after July 1982, child's insurance benefits on the basis of student status under title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act. Extends by one year (through August 1986) the period during which such benefits may be paid to an individual so qualified.
United States · United States Congress · 11 December 1981
Expands the membership of the Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations to include three elected school board officials from different States.
United States · United States Congress · 11 December 1981
Requests the President to designate the week of June 13, 1982, as "National Orchestra Week".
United States · United States Congress · 10 December 1981
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should instruct the U.S. delegation to the February meeting of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights to tell the Commission that the Soviet Union should stop harassing Soviet Jews and should allow its citizens to practice their religion and to emigrate. Urges the Soviet Union to comply with its human rights obligations. Urges the President to: (1) express, to the Soviet Union, U.S. opposition to harassment of Soviet citizens and to restrictions on emigration; and (2) reiterate that the United States will consider the extent to which other nations honor their commitments under international law when evaluating its relations with such nations.
United States · United States Congress · 9 December 1981
Declares that the House of Representatives supports full funding of the railroad retirement dual benefit account.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 1981
Fair Practices in Automotive Products Act - Title I: Domestic Content Requirements for Motor Vehicles - Sets forth for all motor vehicle manufacturers which produce over 100,000 motor vehicles for ultimate retail sale in the United States "minimum domestic content ratios" (the domestic value, including labor and parts, of the manufacturer's production costs of all automotive products sold in the United States). Requires all vehicle manufacturers producing more than 50,000 motor vehicles for sale in the United States to provide information to the Secretary of Transportation for the purpose of administering this requirement. Authorizes the imposition of import restrictions on manufacturers violating such standards. Title II: Unfair and Deceptive Practices by Vehicle Manufacturers - Defines as an unfair method of competition and deceptive act or practice under the Federal Trade Commission Act the refusal of any vehicle manufacturer to determine whether parts produced in the United States by a parts manufacturer satisfy reasonable replacement part standards established by the vehicle manufacturer. Grants the Federal Trade Commission rulemaking authority to administer this title.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 1981
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the Congress associates itself with the hunger strike by Andrei Sakharov. Urges the Soviet Union to permit Yelizaveta Alekseyeva to emigrate. Urges the Soviet Union to allow Andrei Sakharov and his wife to choose their place of residence.
United States · United States Congress · 23 November 1981
Civil Aeronautics Board Sunset Act of 1981 - Title I: Termination and Transfer of Functions of the Civil Aeronautics Board - Amends the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 to terminate certain functions of the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) pursuant to a specified timetable. Transfers certain authority of the CAB to the United States Postal Service and the Secretary of Transportation. Title II: Amendments to Conform to Civil Aeronautics Board Sunset and Related Aviation Amendments - Part A: Provisions to Take Effect on Date of Enactment - Directs that any certificate for temporary air transportation shall be issued for an initial period of at least five years. Revises provisions concerning the establishment and division of joint fares. Describes procedures for the reduction of airmail transportation subsidies. Denies the CAB the authority to find proposed fares for foreign air transportation of persons to be unjust or unreasonable if such fares are below specified limits. Prohibits States and subdivisions thereof from placing an unreasonable burden on or discriminating against interstate commerce. Sets forth procedures for certification for limited designation international markets. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to report to the appropriate congressional committees concerning air carrier agreements. Directs the Secretaries of State and Transportation and the CAB to eliminate discrimination and unfair competitive practices faced by U.S. air carriers in foreign air transportation. Provides protection for employees affected by consolidations, mergers, or the acquisition of control. Part B: Provisions to Coincide with Termination Generally of Functions of the Civil Aeronautics Board - Subpart I: Federal Aviation Act of 1958 - Makes certificates of public convenience and necessity necessary only for air carriers engaged in foreign air transportation. Authorizes the CAB to issue charter air transportation certificates to any qualified applicants. Revises procedures for acquiring such certificates. Repeals provisions concerning special operating authorizations and certificates for all-cargo air service. Prohibits air carrier operating certificates from being issued unless the applicant therefor complies with all insurance regulations issued by the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration. Allows the CAB to intervene and appear in any suit, action, or proceeding under specified antitrust laws involving air carriers. Requires air carriers to give at least 90 days notice before terminating or suspending all air transportation to a particular point. Directs air carriers to file in advance with the CAB fare changes for interstate and overseas air transportation of persons. Repeals certain reporting requirements of the CAB. Makes air carrier tariffs applicable to foreign air transportation only. Repeals provisions concerning: (1) airport security in Alaska; and (2) aircraft loan guarantees. Revises requirements regarding the issuance of airport operating certificates. Subpart 2: Other Laws - Makes conforming amendments. Part C: Provisions to Coincide with Transfer of Functions and Sunset of the Civil Aeronautics Board - Subpart I: Federal Aviation Act of 1958 - Accelerates the termination of the CAB. Repeals provisions concerning airmail transportation. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to reduce reporting requirements under such Act. Transfers functions of the CAB relating to unfair and deceptive practices and unfair methods of competition to the Federal Trade Commission. Subpart 2: Other Laws - Makes conforming amendments. Part D: Provisions to Coincide with Later Terminations of Functions of the Civil Aeronautics Board - Revises provisions concerning air carrier agreements, joint fares, and through routes. Title III: Administrative and Personnel Provisions - Transfers to the appropriate agencies the personnel, assets, liabilities, and records connected with any function transferred by this Act. Directs the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with the CAB and the appropriate agencies, to assist in such transfers. Declares that all orders, rules, and regulations issued or granted by the Board shall remain in effect according to their terms.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1981
United States Academy of Peace and Conflict Resolution Act - Establishes the United States Academy of Peace and Conflict Resolution. Sets forth the functions of the Academy. Declares that the Academy is an independent nonprofit corporation. Sets forth the powers and duties of the Academy, including establishment of an Endowment of the United States Academy of Peace and Conflict Resolution. Set forth provisions for a Board of Directors and for officers and employees of the Academy. Set forth requirements for Academy program procedures and records. Requires an annual audit of Academy accounts and audit reports to the President and the Congress. Subjects the Academy to specified freedom of information provisions. Provides that, with certain exceptions, the Academy shall not be considered a department, agency, or instrumentality of of the Federal Government. Prohibits the use of any political test or political qualification with respect to personnel financial assistance under this Act. Authorizes appropriations for Academy buildings, grounds, facilities, programs, and administration. Sets forth provisions for availability of appropriations. Requires transfer of income and assets to the U.S. Treasury upon dissolution and final liquidation of the Academy or any other legal entity created pursuant to this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 1981
Requires the appropriate non-Federal public body to reimburse the Federal Government for expenditures by the United States Army Corps of Engineers for certain operation, maintenance, construction, or rehabilitation activities concerning deep draft channels or ocean or Great Lakes ports. Requires that such reimbursements be made no later than September 30, 1983, and annually thereafter. Requires completion of such reimbursements within the life of the project concerned but in no event more than 50 years after the date the project is available for use. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to determine the rate of interest to be charged on any unpaid balance. Allows non-Federal public bodies to secure financing by other means. Permits an affected non-Federal public body to recover its reimbursement obligation by collecting fees from specified vessels engaged in commercial waterway transportation in such deep draft channels or ports. Authorizes the Secretary of the Army, in consultation with the Secretaries of State, Commerce, Transportation, Treasury, Energy, and Agriculture, the Attorney General, and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, to promulgate regulations and guidelines concerning such fee collections. States that this Act shall not prohibit or interfere with national defense transportation requirements. Authorizes the Chief of Engineers to study, design, construct, and rehabilitate channel and port projects according to the provisions of this Act. Requires the Secretary of State to consult with the Government of Canada on environmental impacts and financing if port or waterway improvements are subject to any treaty with Canada. Authorizes appropriations to carry out the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1981
Bus Regulatory Reform Act of 1981 - Sets forth the findings of Congress regarding a safe, competitive, and fuel-efficient motor bus system. Requires the appropriate congressional committees to conduct periodic oversight hearings on the effects of this Act no less than annually until July 1, 1985. Amends the Interstate Commerce Act to include the interstate motor carrier transportation of passengers in the overall transportation policy of the United States. Revises the entry policy for motor carriers of passengers, motor contract carriers, and brokers of passengers. Directs the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) to implement by regulation, within 180 days after the effective date of this Act, procedures to process expeditiously applications of motor carriers of passengers to remove certain operating restrictions. Requires the ICC to consider the adverse effects of such removals on commuter bus operations. Allows a motor common carrier of passengers to transport special or charter passengers in the same motor vehicle with regular-route passengers. Describes ratemaking procedures and the use of rate bureaus by motor carriers of passengers. Amends the Motor Carrier Act of 1980 to increase the membership of the Motor Carrier Ratemaking Study Commission. Extends to January 1, 1984, the due date of such Commission's final report on the collective ratemaking process. Sets forth the zone of pricing freedom for motor carriers of passengers. Permits the ICC to increase rates within specified percentage ranges. Declares that rates and fares implemented pursuant to this Act shall be subject to specified antitrust laws. Prohibits ICC investigation or suspension of rates proposed by motor common carriers of passengers applicable to special or charter transportation. Authorizes the ICC to grant, to motor carriers of passengers, temporary and emergency temporary authority to provide transportation. Sets forth procedures by which carriers may discontinue or substantially reduce service on the intrastate portion of a route for which they have both interstate and intrastate authority. Authorizes the ICC to prescribe rates, rules, or practices applicable to intrastate transportation provided by a motor common carrier of passengers under specified conditions. Establishes a rebuttable presumption that such rates, rules, or practices impose an unreasonable burden on interstate commerce if: (1) such a rate, rule, or practice results in intrastate rates lower than comparable interstate rates; (2) a carrier's revenues fall below the variable costs of providing such intrastate service; or (3) the State having jurisdiction over the rate, rule, or practice failed to act on a carrier's request within a specified time. Directs the ICC to report to Congress on the results of its efforts to establish uniform standards and procedures applicable to carrier rates, rules, and practices. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to establish minimum levels of financial responsibility for any motor vehicle operated in interstate or international commerce by a motor carrier of passengers. Establishes civil penalties for violations of such financial responsibility provisions. Exempts school buses, taxicabs, and certain roundtrip commuter vehicles from such provisions. Removes the issuance of securities by motor carriers of passengers from ICC jurisdiction. Prohibits a State or subdivision thereof from levying a discriminatory or unreasonably burdensome tax on interstate motor carrier transportation. Directs the Secretary to contract with the National Academy of Sciences to study the use of citizen band radios by the bus operator on motor vehicles providing intercity motor carrier passenger transportation. Requests the Academy to report to the Secretary and to Congress on such study. Requires the Secretary and the ICC to report to the President and to Congress on the ownership, location, and adequacy of bus terminals. Provides specified protection to employees whose employment is terminated by a motor common carrier of passengers (other than for cause) within ten years after enactment of this Act. Directs the ICC to maintain a list of jobs available with class I motor carriers of passengers.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1981
Good Samaritan Act - Provides relief from State or Federal civil liability for any licensed medical personnel or air carrier employee who renders emergency medical aid on an airplane or who continues such aid until arrival at a medical facility. Extends such relief to an airplane's crew and owner or operator for providing on-board emergency medical supplies.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1981
Two-Way Street Act - Imposes an import parity fee, in addition to other fees already imposed, on automobiles imported into the United States from Japan. Establishes a Parity Fee Commission to determine the size of the parity fee. Permits persons who build cars in the United States to import one car from Japan without paying the parity fee for each car built by such a person in the United States. Sets forth the powers and duties of the Commission. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1981
Amends title IV (National Research Institutes) of the Public Health Service Act to establish a National Institute on Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Diseases. Sets forth the Institute's research and training functions and arthritis and musculoskeletal diseases program plan. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Institute, to operate multipurpose arthritis and musculoskeletal disease research centers. Requires annual evaluations of such centers. Authorizes specified appropriations for such centers for fiscal years 1983 through 1985. Directs the Secretary to establish an arthritis and musculoskeletal disease Coordinating Committee, which shall meet at least four times a year.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1981
Authorizes the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation to establish and collect fees for the processing of requests for identification records. Excepts from such fees any court or government agency which performs enumerated law enforcement functions. Authorizes the Attorney General to exchange identification records with federally chartered or insured banks and, if authorized by State statute, with State and local government officials for purposes of employment and licensing.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1981
Requests the President to designate the second week in May, starting in 1982, as "Municipal Clerk's Week."
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1981
Includes bulletproof vests within the licensing and penalty provisions of the Gun Control Act of 1968.
United States · United States Congress · 12 November 1981
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that guidelines relating to title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (concerning sex discrimination in education) should not be repealed or altered.
United States · United States Congress · 12 November 1981
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should: (1) continue to express U.S. opposition to the imprisonment of Mart Niklus; (2) urge the Soviet Union to permit Niklus to emigrate; and (3) inform the Soviet Union that the United States will consider the extent to which countries honor their commitments under international law when evaluating U.S. relations with such countries.
United States · United States Congress · 12 November 1981
Expresses the sense of the Congress that policies of Jewish emigration discrimination and anti-Semitism are morally reprehensible. Urges the President to tell the Soviet Union that the United States opposes these policies and wants emigration restrictions on Soviet Jews removed.
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1981
Requests the President to designate the week of November 7, 1982, through November 13, 1982, as "National Disabled Veterans Week."
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1981
Expresses the sense of the Congress that regulations pertaining to nutritional requirements for meals under the National School Lunch Act be consistent with the goal of such Act to provide one-third of the recommended dietary allowance of nutrients in the school lunch program.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 1981
Declares that it is the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the United States must manage its assets in a manner more prudent and beneficial to the interests of the American people; (2) all executive branch agencies should inventory their assets, estimate the approximate value of each asset, and identify the uses to which each asset is put; (3) the President should then identify which assets are surplus to Federal needs and should be candidates for liquidation; (4) the President should submit recommendations to Congress on any legislative and administrative revisions that may be needed to carry out such a program of liquidation in an orderly manner; (5) the receipts of this program should be used only to restrain and ultimately reduce the national debt; and (6) the Comptroller General should investigate and recommend to Congress and each agency improved processes for managing Federal assets, estimating their value, and liquidating those which are unneeded.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 1981
Expresses the sense of the Congress that no limitation should be placed on the Federal income tax deduction for interest paid on a residential mortgage.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 1981
Violent Crime Control Act of 1981 - Title I: Mandatory Sentences For Use of Firearms in Felonies - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control Act of 1970 to revise and increase the mandatory penalties for using or carrying a firearm during commission of a Federal felony. Makes the additional penalties inapplicable to offenses consisting solely of possessing, transporting, or selling a firearm. Increases the additional penalty to two years' imprisonment for a first offense (currently, one to ten years) and to five years for a second or subsequent offense (currently, two to 25 years). Extends to first offenders the stipulations, currently applicable only to second or subsequent offenders, that the court not suspend any sentence, grant probation, or impose concurrent sentences. Prohibits the granting of parole to any offender. Prohibits the Government attorney from plea bargaining with respect to this offense. Title II: Assassination-Related Killings - Amends the Federal criminal code to extend the current offense of killing designated Federal employees to include any Federal public servant engaged in the performance of, or on account of, his or her duties. Replaces the current crimes of Presidential and Congressional assassination with new offenses covering the assassination, assault, kidnapping, or conspiracy to kill or kidnap "United States officials." Includes Cabinet heads and Federal judges within such definition, in addition to the President, Vice President, and Members of Congress. Makes it a Federal crime to kill any civilian in the course of an assassination of a U.S. official. Authorizes the Attorney General to offer a reward of up to $100,000 for information and services concerning these offenses. Makes it the duty of any Federal agency to assist the Attorney General in the investigation and prosecution of violations. Title III: Bail Reform - Bail Reform Act of 1981 - Repeals the Bail Reform Act of 1966 and sets forth new bail procedures. Authorizes a judicial officer to consider the safety of any person of the community when making a pretrial release determination. Establishes as a mandatory release condition that the person not commit a Federal, State, or local crime during release. Authorizes pretrial release upon execution of an unsecured appearance bond. Expands the number of discretionary release conditions. Authorizes a judicial officer to order the detention for up to ten days of a person who is presently on pretrial release for a felony under Federal, State, or local law or on probation or parole or release pending sentencing or appeal for any offense if no conditions will assure his appearance and the safety of the community and any other person. Authorizes a judicial officer to order the pretrial detention of a person upon finding that: (1) no condition will reasonably assure such person's appearance and the safety of any other person and the community; and (2) there is a substantial probability that the person committed the offense. Requires that a detention hearing be held in any case involving: (1) a crime of violence; (2) any offense punishable by life imprisonment or death; or (3) a narcotics offense punishable by at least ten years' imprisonment. Permits the Government or the court to move for a detention hearing in any other case involving a serious risk of flight or obstruction of justice or any offense committed after the person has been convicted of two or more offenses for which a hearing is mandated. Enumerates additional factors to be considered by the judicial officer in making a release determination, including the defendant's past conduct, history of drug or alcohol abuse, criminal history, and the nature and seriousness of the danger to the community or any person. Requires the detention of a person who has appealed his conviction unless the judicial officer finds by clear and convincing evidence that: (1) such person is not likely to flee or pose a danger to another person or property; and (2) the appeal raises a substantial question of law or fact. Requires the detention of a person awaiting sentencing unless the officer finds by clear and convincing evidence that the person is not likely to flee or pose a danger to any other person or the community. Authorizes a U.S. attorney to appeal a release order. Establishes mandatory additional penalties for commission of an offense while on pretrial release. Subjects a person who has been conditionally released and violates a condition of release to revocation of release and prosecution for contempt of court. Grants new authority to law enforcement officers to arrest a person who violates certain pretrial release conditions. Title IV: Insanity Defense Modifications - Amends Rule 12 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure to authorize a new plea of "guilty but insane" for any criminal defendant whose actions constitute all necessary elements of the offense charged but who lacks the requisite state of mind as a result of mental disease or defect. Permits the jury or the court in a non-jury trial to find a defendant guilty but insane. Requires the court in any such case to hold a hearing to determine the present mental condition of the convicted person. Directs the court to commit such person to the custody of the Attorney General upon a finding by a preponderance of the evidence that the person is presently suffering from a mental disease or defect as a result of which release would create a substantial danger to himself or to the person or property of another. Directs the Attorney General to release such person to a State which will assume responsibility for his custody and treatment or otherwise to hospitalize such person in a suitable facility. Requires the court to hold a hearing upon the certification by the director of the facility that such person's release will no longer create a substantial danger to himself or the person or property of another. Directs the court to order the discharge of a person who is found to have recovered. Provides for the hospitalization of persons found guilty, imprisoned persons, and persons due for release who are found to suffer from mental disease or defect. Title V: Modification of the Exclusionary Rule - Declares that evidence obtained in violation of the fourth amendment shall not be excluded in a criminal proceeding if the Government attorney shows by a preponderance of the evidence that the law enforcement officer acted with a reasonable, good faith belief that the search or seizure conformed with fourth amendment requirements. States that evidence obtained in accordance with a warrant is prima facie evidence of good faith belief. Makes the United States liable for damages resulting from a search or seizure conducted by a law enforcement officer acting within the scope of employment in violation of the fourth amendment, unless the Government attorney shows the officer's reasonable good faith belief of constitutional compliance. Permits recovery of actual and punitive damages not exceeding $50,000. Authorizes the court to award reasonable attorney fees. Limits recovery of a person convicted of an offense for which evidence was illegally seized to actual physical personal injury and property damage. Authorizes a Federal agency to discipline an officer who conducts an illegal search or seizure upon a determination, after notice and hearing, that the officer lacked a good faith belief that the action was constitutional. Title VI: Sentencing Reform - Establishes as an independent body in the judicial branch the United States Sentencing Commission to set forth sentencing policies and practices for the Federal criminal justice system. Directs the Commission to promulgate: (1) sentencing guidelines, including appropriate fines and terms of probation and imprisonment; and (2) general policy statements regarding application of the guidelines. Requires the court to consider the Commission's guidelines and policy statements in imposing sentences in a criminal case. Requires the court to state in open court at the time of sentencing the reason for imposing a sentence at a point within the prescribed range or the specific reason for imposing a sentence outside of such range. Provides that in the case of a felony or misdemeanor carrying a maximum imprisonment term of one year, a defendant may appeal a sentence greater than the maximum allowed under the Commission's guidelines which are found by the sentencing court to be applicable, unless contrary to a plea agreement. Permits the Government, with the personal approval of the Attorney General or the Solicitor General, to appeal a sentence less than the applicable minimum. Title VII: Habeas Corpus Changes - Prohibits Federal magistrates from conducting evidentiary hearings in habeas corpus actions brought by State prisoners, except upon consent of the parties. Prohibits the consideration in a habeas corpus proceeding of a Federal question which was not properly presented under State law at trial and on appeal unless the petitioner establishes that the alleged violation of the Federal right was prejudicial and that: (1) the Federal right did not exist at time of trial and has been determined to be retroactive; (2) the State procedures precluded assertion of the right; (3) evidence was suppressed which prevented raising of the claim; or (4) material and controlling facts upon which the claim is based were unknown and could not have been ascertained by reasonable diligence. Establishes a three-year statute of limitations for habeas corpus actions brought by State prisoners. Prohibits a Federal evidentiary hearing from being conducted where State court records demonstrate that the factual issue was litigated and determined, unless the petitioner establishes the existence of at least one of six circumstances (currently, the State findings are presumed to be correct unless the petitioner establishes the existence of a circumstance). Requires the Federal court to view the State court record in the light most favorable to the prosecution. Title VIII: Corrections Construction and Development - Corrections Construction and Program Development Act of 1981 - Authorizes the Attorney General to make grants to States for up to 75 percent of the cost of projects to: (1) construct, expand, and repair correctional facilities; and (2) improve correctional programs and practices. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1985. Amends the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 to authorize the Administrator of the General Services Administration to donate surplus property to States for correctional purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 1981
Requests the President to designate 1982 as "Bicentennial Year of the American Bald Eagle" and June 20, 1982, as "National Bald Eagle Day."
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 1981
Requests the President to designate 1982 as the "National Year of Disabled Persons."
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 1981
Public Lands Conservation, Rehabilitation, and Improvement Act of 1981 - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, in cooperation with the Secretary of Agriculture, to establish and administer a public lands conservation, rehabilitation, and improvement program. Requires the Secretary to provide assistance to program agencies (any Federal or State agency responsible for the management of public lands) to establish and operate residential and nonresidential conservation centers to implement program projects. Describes the types of projects which will receive program preference. Limits program projects to those benefitting public lands or Indian lands, except where projects on nonpublic lands benefit associated public or Indian lands or provide significant public benefits. Sets forth requirements for establishing conservation centers and eligibility criteria for enrollees in the program. Makes persons eligible for enrollment and employment in the program if they are: (1) unemployed; (2) between the ages of 16 and 25 years; and (3) citizens, lawful permanent residents, or lawfully admitted alien parolees or refugees. Provides that in the selection of enrollees for the program, preference shall be given to economically, socially, physically, and educationally disadvantaged youth and youth residing in areas having substantial unemployment. Requires program agencies to provide services, facilities, supplies, and equipment for conservation centers as the Secretary deems necessary. Authorizes the Secretary to award grants to, or enter into agreements with, program agencies for the funding and operation of conservation centers. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1983 through 1989. Requires such appropriations to be credited from specified Treasury receipts. States that program enrollees shall not be deemed Federal employees, except as provided in specified provisions of law. Makes the Secretary responsible for the pay of enrollees and coordination of the program with related Federal, State, local, and private activities. Directs the Secretary to submit a report to Congress, within one year of enactment of this Act, on the feasibility of allowing enrollees who have completed two years in the program an exemption from training and service under the Military Selective Service Act. Directs the Secretary to make arrangements with educational institutions for the award of academic credit to enrollees for competencies developed under this Act. Authorizes program agencies to make arrangements with such institutions for academic study by enrollees during nonworking hours. Requires program agencies to provide certification of skills acquired by program participants and to provide job guidance and placement information as may be necessary. Directs the Secretary to report to the President and Congress by March 1 of each year on the activities carried out under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 27 October 1981
Designates the Lincoln, Nebraska, Federal Building as the Robert V. Denney Federal Building and Courthouse.
United States · United States Congress · 27 October 1981
Aircraft Sabotage Act - Amends the Federal criminal code to redefine the offense of "destruction of aircraft or aircraft facilities" to, among other revisions: (1) prohibit communicating false information which endangers any aircraft in flight; (2) prohibit any act of violence against any individual on an aircraft which is likely to endanger the aircraft in service; and (3) define "in service" to mean pre- and post-flight ground preparation. Establishes criminal penalties for whoever commits an offense in violation of the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Civil Aviation and is afterward found in the United States. Establishes a new Federal crime of "imparting or conveying threats" to commit an act which would constitute the felony of aircraft sabotage if executed. Amends the Federal Aviation Act to establish civil penalties for conveying false information regarding aircraft crimes and concealing a deadly weapon while boarding an aircraft. Makes any person who willfully and maliciously conveys false information criminally liable.
United States · United States Congress · 27 October 1981
Directs the Secretary of the Army, in consultation with the Secretary of Transportation, to prescribe a system of user fees to be levied on commercial transportation on the inland waterway system pursuant to this Act. Sets forth criteria by which such fees shall be established. Authorizes the Secretary of the Army to utilize various mechanism as means to recover Federal costs from system users. Specifies that such fees shall recover 100 percent of Federal operation and maintenance expenditures and an amount necessary to amortize capital expenditures for rehabilitation or replacement of existing structures completed after October 1, 1981. Directs that such fees shall be credited to the Inland Waterways Trust Fund. Sets forth civil penalties for failure to pay user fees. Lists, by project, the percentage of Federal expenditures for operation, maintenance, construction, and rehabilitation of inland waterway projects to be assigned to commercial waterway transportation. Directs that costs assigned to commercial waterway transportation for the Mississipp River and tributaries project shall be 25 percent of total project costs. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the excise tax on fuel used in commercial transportation on inland waterways. Amends the Inland Waterways Revenue Act of 1978 to revise the list of the inland and intracoastal waterways of the United States. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 1981
Acid Deposition Control Act - Amends title I (Air Pollution Prevention and Control) of the Clean Air Act to establish a new program entitled "Interstate Transport and Acid Precursor Reduction." Establishes an "acid deposition region" consisting of 31 States (east of or bordering the Mississippi River) and the District of Columbia. Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to: (1) study air pollution problems associated with long-range transport of pollutants in the portions of the continental United States not included in the acid deposition region; and (2) report the results to Congress within two years. Establishes an acid deposition regional target providing for a ten-year phased schedule of reductions to achieve an annual average emission level that is 10,000,000 tons of sulfur dioxide below the 1980 baseline level. Directs the Administrator, within six months, to compute and publish a target and a schedule for each affected State. Permits two or more States to agree to change their share of the sulfur dioxide emissions reduction ("reduction"). Requires that State reduction schedules begin within five years, be substantially complete within eight years, and reach the State target within ten years of enactment of this Act. Sets forth formulas for: (1) State reduction fractions (based on 1980 emissions from electric utility steam generating units); and (2) the 1980 baseline level for the region or any State within the region. Requires States within the region to prepare, publish, and submit to the Administrator, within two years of enactment of this Act, State programs of reduction in accordance with the State schedules. Directs the Administrator to approve State programs, within four months of submission, if such programs: (1) were adopted after public notice, opportunity for hearing, and submission to Governors of the other States in the region; and (2) contain enforceable reduction measures, including emission limitations, monitoring requirements, and compliance schedules. Requires State programs to include enforceable continuous emission reduction measures. Lists some measures that State programs may include. Permits a State or any person subject to State program requirements to substitute a reduction of twice as many units of oxides of nitrogen emissions for each unit of required reductions of sulfur dioxide emissions. Provides for an EPA alternative program if a State program: (1) has not been adopted by a State within two years; or (2) has not been approved by the Administrator within two years and four months. Requires, in such cases, that any owner or operator of an electric utility steam generating unit in such State submit, within three years of enactment of this Act, a unit plan and schedule for reductions. Requires unit plans and schedules only from units which: (1) are major stationary sources; (2) are not subject to new source performance standards; and (3) actually emitted, or were permitted to emit, sulfur dioxide during 1980 in excess of a specified rate. Requires that unit plans and schedules provide for a reduction to a specified rate of emissions, according to a phased schedule (beginning within five years, substantially complete within eight years, and finally complete within ten years of the enactment of this Act). Sets forth provisions for approval of unit plans and schedules. Provides that any unit for which a plan has not been submitted and approved must comply with the specified emission limitation within five years of the enactment of this Act. Directs the Administrator to establish a program of purchase and sale of emission reduction credits among stationary sources of sulfur dioxide in five emission reduction credit regions within the acid deposition region. Provides that specified requirements under this Act shall be treated as emission limitation requirements of applicable State implementation plans. Sets forth procedures for petitions for determination that programs or plans will not meet deadlines and for petitions for review of such determinations or denials.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 1981
Amends the copyright law to exempt the private, noncommercial recording and use of copyrighted works on a video recorder from copyright infringement.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 1981
Requests the President to designate the week beginning February 28, 1982, as "National Construction Industry Week."
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 1981
Commitment to the Clean Air Act resolution of the Ninety-seventh Congress - Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) clean air is fundamentally important for the health and well-being of the citizens, economy, and environment of the United States; and (2) the existing Clean Air Act should be maintained and strengthened subject only to changes that will improve its administration and effectiveness.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 1981
Gives the endorsement of Congress to the principles relating to family planning set forth in a resolution adopted by the World Conference of the United Nations Decade for Women. Urges the President to take steps to implement those principles in the United States and in other countries.
United States · United States Congress · 20 October 1981
Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to provide special impact assistance to States and local governments to avoid an unfair financial burden attributable to the major construction or expansion of military facilities. Requires that multiyear plans to administer such assistance be prepared by an Intergovernmental Defense Impact Planning and Mitigation Board comprising appropriate State, local and Federal representatives. Directs such Board to submit an annual community impact facilities and services program to the Secretary for approval. Directs the Secretary to promulgate regulations governing the administration of this assistance and to keep the appropriate committees of Congress informed of major changes in the program. Requires the Secretary to report to Congress annually on the amounts expended by each recipient. Makes grant assistance available through designated fiscal agents upon certification that the funds will be used within 12 months in accordance with the approved program. Directs the Secretary to determine when the major construction or expansion has been completed. Prohibits new assistance under such circumstances unless the Secretary determines on a biennial basis that an unfair burden still exists.
United States · United States Congress · 20 October 1981
Bankruptcy Improvements Act of 1981 - Amends title 11 of the United States Code (Bankruptcy) to establish an eligibility test for liquidation bankruptcy relief based on the individual petitioner's ability to pay a reasonable portion of his debts out of future income. Permits the court to dismiss a bankruptcy case under chapter 7 (liquidation) upon the motion of any party in interest filed not later than 30 days after the meeting of creditors, and after notice and a hearing, if the debtor is ineligible for relief under such title. Requires the bankruptcy judge to preside at any meeting of creditors and to perform such additional judicial duties any may be required. Declares that the value of the creditor's interest in the estate's interest in such property shall be determined in light of the purpose of the valuation and of the proposed disposition or use of such property, and in conjunction with any hearing on such disposition or use or on a plan affecting such creditor's interest. Declares that the value of consumer goods which the debtor seeks to redeem in liquidation shall be presumed to be the established resale market price, if such market exists. Requires the debtor in bankruptcy cases to file a statement of income and expenses. Requires the debtor, if the debtor's schedule of assets and liabilities includes consumer debts which are secured by property of the estate, to file and serve upon each creditor holding such security and the trustee, a statement expressing the debtor's intention with respect to retention or surrender of the collateral. Requires the debtor, at or before the meeting of creditors provided for by such title, to perform his intention with regard to such secured creditors. Repeals the provisions concerning exempt property and makes the States responsible for establishing exemptions to bankruptcy proceedings. Makes any debt which was incurred on or within 90 days before the date of the filing of a petition under such title nondischargeable. Allows creditors to enforce liens which have not been voided in bankruptcy. Permits reaffirmation of consumer debts subject to the debtor's right to rescind any such agreement within 60 days or until a discharge is received, whichever occurs later, by giving a written notice of rescission to the creditor. Declares that at the meeting of creditors the court shall inform the debtor of the nature and effect of a discharge. Eliminates the trustee's power to avoid liens or recover payments made within 90 days of filing petition in bankruptcy (within one year in the case of an insider) unless the creditor had reasonable cause to believe the debtor was insolvent. Permits the court, upon notice and hearing, to require a creditor to accept payments in redemption of the value of a claim secured by a nonpossessory, nonpurchase money security interest in tangible personal property, over a reasonable period not to exceed five years, if such tangible personal property consists of specified objects. Allows a creditor, upon 10 days notice to the debtor and codebtor, to collect any portion of a debt from the codebtor which is not being paid by the debtor through the adjustment of debts of such debtor with a regular income. Requires payments under an adjustment of debts payment plan to commence at the time of the filing of the plan. Provides for the return of such funds after deducting the costs of administration if no plan is confirmed. Provides for the separate classification of co-debtor claims and non-dischargeable claims and authorizes payment of them under an adjustment of debts payment plan. Allows a debtor to choose such a repayment plan of up to five years. Bases such repayment upon the debtor's ability to repay out of future income after taking into account the basic living necessities for the debtor and dependents. Provides for an early discharge of debts where at least 70 percent of all allowed unsecured claims are paid. Permits a hardship discharge of otherwise non-dischargeable debts to the extent the debtor attempted to pay such debts under an adjustment of debts payment plan.
United States · United States Congress · 20 October 1981
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit a handicapped taxpayer or a taxpayer with a handicapped dependent to elect the one-time exclusion of gain from the sale or exchange of a principal residence.
United States · United States Congress · 20 October 1981
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should: (1) proclaim the fifth anniversary of the establishment of the Ukrainian Public Group to Promote the Implementation of the Helsinki Accords as a day honoring that Group; and (2) ask the Soviet Union to release the jailed members of the Group and to cease persecuting and jailing Ukrainian citizens seeking their rights.
United States · United States Congress · 15 October 1981
Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to prohibit the payment of title II benefits to an incarcerated felon during any month of confinement. Treats the benefits withheld as having been paid to the felon for purposes of the payment of benefits to other persons so entitled on the basis of the wages and self-employment income of the felon.