United States · United States Congress · 9 January 1995
Directs the Secretary of Commerce, upon determining on the basis of comments submitted in rulemaking under this Act that interest among manufacturers is sufficient to warrant the establishment of a three-year toll-free number pilot program and manufacturers will provide fees so that the program will operate without cost to the Federal Government, to: (1) establish such program solely to help inform consumers whether a product is made in America or the equivalent thereof; and (2) publish the toll-free number in the Federal Register. Requires: (1) the Secretary to contract for the establishment and operation of such pilot program and the registration of products; and (2) such number to be used solely to inform consumers as to whether products are American made. Requires consumers to be informed that such registration does not mean that: (1) the product is endorsed or approved by the Government; (2) the Secretary has conducted any investigation to confirm that the product meets the definition of American made; or (3) the product contains 100 percent U.S. content. (Sec. 2) Directs the Secretary to propose regulations to: (1) establish a procedure under which the manufacturer of a product may voluntarily register such product as complying with such definition and have such product included in the information available through the toll-free number; (2) establish, assess, and collect a fee to cover all costs of registering products and including registered products in information provided under the number; (3) establish the pilot program; and (4) solicit views from the private sector concerning the level of interest of manufacturers in registering products. Requires the Secretary to promulgate such regulations if the pilot program and product registration is determined to be warranted. Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) registration fees; and (2) penalties for knowingly registering a product which is not American made.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends provisions of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act that revise Federal patent law to provide that a patent term shall be the later of 17 years from the date the patent is granted or 20 years from the date the application was filed in the United States. Provides that if the application contains a reference to an earlier application, the term shall be 20 years from the date the earliest application was filed. Removes provisions that provide for extensions of patent terms under certain conditions. Provides for public disclosure and inspection of original and continuing patent applications in cases where a continuing patent application is filed that claims the benefit of the filing date of a prior application that was filed more than 60 months earlier. Requires the term of a patent that is in force or results from an application filed within six months after the Uruguay Round Agreements Act enactment date to be the term provided in this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that the burden of proof with respect to all issues, in the case of any court proceeding, is on the Secretary of the Treasury. Requires the Secretary to identify in writing the specific kind or type of tax, and its specific implementing regulations, within 14 days upon the written request from any person made liable for such tax. Increases the limitation on the amount of recovery for civil damages for unauthorized collection actions by the Internal Revenue Service. Excludes such damages from gross income.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Permits the performance of honor guard functions by members of the National Guard at funerals for veterans to be treated as Federal functions for which appropriated funds may be used.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Economic Development Reauthorization Act of 1995 - Amends the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 to reenact such Act as the Economic Development Financing Act of 1995 (the Act). Prohibits any more than 15 percent of the total appropriations made for grants to States for public works and development facilities from being expended in any one State unless the Secretary of Commerce determines such expenditure is necessary due to the occurrence of a major natural disaster. Authorizes appropriations for public works and development facilities grants for FY 1995 and 1996. Allows for the use of funds for: (1) projects constructed under projected costs; and (2) projects for which the purpose or scope is changed after the grants are made if approved by the Secretary. Allows the Secretary to make public works and development facility loans to States, Indian tribes, or any private or public nonprofit organization or association if, among other conditions, the area for the proposed loan has an approved investment strategy (currently, an approved economic development program) for the funds provided. Allows the Secretary to assist in financing any industrial or commercial activity (currently, only those in a redevelopment area). Allows the Economic Development Revolving Fund established prior to this Act to continue to be available to the Secretary in connection with financial assistance extended before October 1, 1991. Directs the Secretary to establish an Office of Strategic Economic Development Planning and Policy to support research, evaluation, and demonstration projects, to provide and coordinate policy development, and to disseminate information with respect to economic development planning and policy. Directs the Secretary to establish and conduct a continuing program of study, training, and research into causes of long-term economic deterioration and to make such research available to interested parties. Requires an annual report. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop and report to the Congress concerning a computerized geographic analysis tool to be used by all Federal departments and agencies and grant recipients to evaluate the success of the continuing programs; (2) establish an independent advisory committee to advise and make recommendations to the Office; and (3) establish a Federal Coordinating Council to provide assistance in the development of a Government-wide strategic plan for economic development. Allows for grants and contracts for appropriate demonstration projects. Directs the Secretary to establish the Office of Economic Development Information to serve as a central information clearinghouse on matters relating to economic development and adjustment, industrial retention, disaster recovery, and defense conversion programs and activities of Federal and State Governments. Requires the development of information data bases to be used by Federal, State and local agencies, public and private entities, and individuals in applying for assistance under such programs. Requires the establishment of mechanisms for easy access to information compiled and appropriate outreach services. Requires the Secretary to develop and report to the Congress on the use of a general, simplified application form for grant assistance provided under this Act to be used by all Federal departments and agencies. Removes the authority of the Secretary to provide technical assistance to alleviate or prevent conditions of excessive unemployment or underemployment in redevelopment areas. Directs the Secretary, with funds made available under this Act, to conduct during FY 1995 through 1997 a project to demonstrate methods of assisting isolated small businesses to access services provided by Federal, State, and local governments. Requires, as part of such project, the establishment of three business outreach centers. Authorizes appropriations. Requires applicants, in order to be eligible for assistance provided under the Act, to make certain certifications for the area in which the economic development project would be located with respect to unemployment, low incomes, sudden job loss, and related factors. Makes ineffective the designation of a redevelopment area made before the date of enactment of the Act. Requires the applicant to submit an investment strategy which identifies the economic development problems to be addressed using such assistance. Provides for the appointment of an Administrator for Economic Development. Directs the Assistant Secretary for Economic Development to publish and submit to specified congressional committees guidelines for the expeditious processing of applications for assistance under the Act. Requires, at least biennially, evaluations of each university center and economic development district receiving grant assistance under the Act. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to ensure that Regional Counsels of the Economic Development Administration report directly to their Regional Director. Directs the Secretary to prescribe regulations and procedures for determining priorities in the awarding of grants for special economic development and adjustment assistance to State and local areas having special needs arising from severe unemployment due to economic dislocation. Authorizes the Secretary to make such assistance available to military bases which are closed or realigned and the communities affected by such closures or realignments. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1995 and 1996 for such projects, with a specific amount set aside for defense conversion activities and for any natural disaster. Authorizes the Secretary to guarantee loans made to private borrowers by private institutions and other lenders for the development of land and facilities for industrial or commercial usage or for the provision of working capital. Directs the Secretary, in order to study the possibility of equity financing, to establish a five-year pilot program under which the Secretary provides grants to eligible entities to purchase nonvoting instruments of private U.S. businesses or nonprofit organizations and associations for the purpose of providing capital for any project relating to industrial or commercial development or working capital for such projects. Establishes the Equity Investment Revolving Fund for grant purposes. Outlines conditions concerning the use of payments. Authorizes appropriations. Requires certain public review and comment with respect to revolving loan fund guidelines. Allows for the sale of financial instruments in the Fund, with proceeds to be used for Fund purposes. Directs the Secretary to establish a multi-year demonstration project under which grants are provided to selected recipients on a matching basis for the purpose of establishing substantially leveraged financing for business development and other innovative economic development efforts. Requires the recipient to establish an investment fund for such purposes. Outlines eligibility requirements (low per capita income, high unemployment rate, and related factors). Outlines grant and demonstration project requirements and limitations. Requires evaluations and reports. Authorizes FY 1996 appropriations. Directs the Secretary to establish and maintain an integrated, comprehensive data base describing all patents, licenses, technologies, processes, and other proprietary rights owned or held by the Federal Government or which originated in the course of federally funded research in which the Government has an interest. Requires the standardization and accessibility of such information. Requires access to the data base by the public (with restrictions such as national security interests) and by the Business Development and Technology Commercialization Corporation (created under this part). Directs the Secretary to review and report to the Congress on current Federal technology transfer efforts and commercialization activities. Establishes the Business Development and Technology Commercialization Corporation to facilitate the transfer and commercialization of Federal patents, licenses, technologies, processes, and other proprietary rights to qualified concerns. Requires such outreach to include the use of a cable television network devoted to marketing efforts for the commercialization of Federal technologies and processes, with promotional fees paid to the Corporation by the Secretary. Directs the Corporation to: (1) provide technical assistance and services upon request; (2) provide specific outreach services to qualified concerns located in areas of chronically depressed economies or high unemployment; and (3) act as an agent of the Government in facilitating the transfers of Federal technologies and processes. Outlines provisions with respect to the rights of the Government and qualified concerns receiving such technologies and processes, the financing of the Corporation, Corporation consultation with regard to their activities, Comptroller General audits, and jurisdiction when the Corporation is a party to a civil action. Directs the Corporation to act as a one-step clearinghouse for information to assist qualified concerns to identify sources of business development and technology commercialization financing available through the Federal Government, State and local governments, and private sources. Allows the Corporation to charge fees for technical assistance and services.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to reimburse a person for the cost of acquiring a non-Government headstone or grave marker for placement in a cemetery other than a national cemetery in connection with the burial of a veteran.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to pay a specified sum to a named individual in full satisfaction of all claims against the United States relating to the murder of her daughter by her husband while both husband and wife were serving in the U.S. Army and after the daughter had requested the Army to protect her from her husband's abuse.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends Internal Revenue Code provisions relating to the income tax deduction for the health insurance costs of self-employed individuals to: (1) increase the allowable deduction from 25 percent to 100 percent; and (2) make the deduction permanent.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Solid Waste Compact Act of 1995 - Amends the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act to require States to submit solid waste disposal plans to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for approval. Authorizes States to enter into compacts to provide for the establishment and operation of regional solid waste disposal facilities. Prohibits a compact from restricting the use of such facilities to solid waste generated in the compact region before January 1, 1997, and before the Congress consents to such compact. Requires a compact to provide that every five years after such compact has taken effect the Congress may withdraw its consent. Directs EPA to: (1) identify alternative management programs for the control of solid waste and publish technical guidance regarding the implementation of such programs; and (2) publish information that a State or compact must provide to EPA, together with requirements for facilities, if such programs are pursued as alternatives to traditional solid waste management.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
House of Representatives Election Campaign Reform Act of 1995 - Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 with respect to House of Representatives campaign financing. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) provide a full tax credit for small individual contributions to a House candidate; and (2) establish in the Treasury the House of Representatives Campaign Trust Fund. Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to require broadcast stations to offer their lowest rates for certain campaign commercials to House candidates who agree to limit personal spending. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Energy Price and Supply Information Act of 1995 - Directs the Administrator of the Energy Information Administration of the Department of Energy to conduct and publish weekly surveys on a national, State, and PADD (Petroleum Administration Defense District) basis during each winter season with respect to: (1) home heating fuel; (2) natural gas; and (3) automotive fuel. Directs the Secretary of Energy to establish on such basis recommended adequate inventory levels for home heating fuel, natural gas, and automotive fuel. Requires the Secretary to: (1) notify the Congress, the President, and State energy offices before October 1 of each year whether such inventory levels will be met for the winter heating season; and (2) recommend legislative and administrative actions necessary to restore inadequate inventories if they fall below recommended levels. Requires the Secretary to study and report on the effect of interruptible natural gas contracts on the demand and supply of home heating fuel during the 1989-1990 winter heating season.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Management and Conflict of Interest Reform Amendments of 1995 - Amends the Depository Institution Management Interlocks Act to include foreign banks within the administrative and enforcement purview of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Prohibits an outside counsel or outside accountant of a depository institution or a depository holding company from serving as a member of the board of directors of such institution, holding company, or any of its subsidiaries, affiliates, or holding companies. Requires each depository institution and depository holding company to provide to each member of its board of directors and each member of the board of directors of any depository institution or depository holding company it controls: (1) a list of the names and principal places of business of each individual or company which directly or indirectly owns, controls, or has power to vote five percent or more of any class of voting securities of such institution or holding company; and (2) a notice of any proposed change in control of the parent depository institution or depository holding company. Requires a majority of the voting members of the board of directors of depository institutions and depository holding companies to be outside directors.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Savings and Loan Asset Recovery Act - Amends the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 to allow a person to bring a civil action to assess a civil penalty for a violation with respect to a federally insured financial institution in the same manner, and subject to the same procedures, as a person may bring an action under Federal law with respect to civil actions for false claims.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Economic Growth and Stabilization Financing Demonstration Act of 1995 - Prescribes guidelines under which the Secretary of Commerce may conduct demonstration programs in economically distressed communities to: (1) guarantee loans made to private parties by private lending institutions, community development financial institutions, and other lenders; (2) pay interest rate subsidies; (3) implement an equity financing program; and (4) provide secondary market credit enhancements to pools of financial instruments related to economic growth and stabilization in such communities. Directs the Secretary to conduct performance evaluations and submit an annual status report to the Congress. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969 to provide for a presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis with respect to certain coal miners whose claims were filed during a specified period under the Black Lung Benefits Program.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Mineral Exploration and Development Title II: Environmental Considerations of Mineral Exploration and Development Title III: Abandoned Minerals Mine Reclamation Fund Title IV: Administrative and Miscellaneous Provisions Mineral Exploration and Development Act of 1995 - Title I: Mineral Exploration and Development - Sets forth guidelines for mineral exploration on public domain lands. Declares that holders of mining claims executed under this Act have the exclusive right of possession and use of the claimed land for mineral activities. (Sec. 103) Prescribes rules for mining claim location and use of public land surveys. Provides for administrative adjudication of conflicting claims. Mandates a specified location fee for every unpatented mining claim located after the date of enactment of this Act. (Sec. 104) Subjects existing unpatented mining claims, mill sites, and tunnel sites to the provisions of this Act ("converted mining claims"). (Sec. 105) Sets forth certain annual claim maintenance fees. Mandates that all monies received from such fees be deposited into the Abandoned Locatable Minerals Mine Reclamation Fund (established under this Act). (Sec. 106) States that failure to comply with the requirements of this Act shall be deemed conclusively to constitute forfeiture of the mining claim. (Sec. 107) Prescribes procedural guidelines for: (1) contesting a mining claim on the basis of discovery; and (2) demonstrating the continued sufficiency of a mining claim. Title II: Environmental Considerations of Mineral Exploration and Development - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, and for National Forest System lands the Secretary of Agriculture (the Secretaries), to require that mineral activities on Federal lands be conducted in a manner that minimizes adverse impacts to the environment. Prescribes surface management guidelines for the granting of both an exploration and an operations permit. Requires applications for such permits to contain both an operations plan and a reclamation plan, and evidence of financial assurances. Limits an operations permit to a ten-year term (subject to renewal). (Sec. 205) Declares persons in violation of this Act ineligible for permits. Sets as a prerequisite to the issuance of any permit evidence of financial assurance payable to the United States for all lands to be affected by the mineral activities described in the permit application. (Sec. 207) Mandates that lands subject to mineral activities be restored to a condition capable of supporting their prior uses, or to other beneficial uses which conform to applicable land use plans. Sets forth reclamation standards applicable to mineral exploration. (Sec. 208) Declares that State standards for reclamation, bonding, inspection, and water or air quality which either meet or exceed Federal standards shall not be construed as inconsistent with this Act. Permits cooperative agreements between the States and the Secretary. Prohibits the Secretary from delegating authorities or responsibilities conferred under this Act to any State or its political subdivision. (Sec. 209) Requires the Secretaries, in preparing land use plans, to determine those areas deemed unsuitable for certain mineral activities. Requires withdrawal of such areas from mineral exploration and development. Title III: Abandoned Locatable Minerals Mine Reclamation Fund - Establishes the Abandoned Locatable Minerals Mine Reclamation Fund (the Fund) to be administered by the Secretary of the Interior acting through the Director of the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement for the reclamation and restoration of land and water resources adversely affected by past minerals activities on certain public lands. (Sec. 303) Restricts reclamation expenditures to Federal or Indian land and water resources that traverse or are contiguous to Federal or Indian lands where such resources have been affected by past mineral activities. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 306) Subjects to a royalty scheme of eight percent of the net smelter return the production of locatable minerals (or mineral concentrates or products derived from locatable minerals) from any mining claim under this Act. Title IV: Administrative and Miscellaneous Provisions - Subtitle A: Administrative Provisions - Amends the Mining and Minerals Policy Act of 1970 and the National Materials and Minerals Policy Research and Development Act of 1980 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to implement minerals policy and actions to improve availability and analysis of mineral data in Federal land use decision making for National Forest System lands. (Sec. 402) Authorizes the Secretaries to establish and collect user fees to reimburse the United States for expenses incurred in administering this Act. (Sec. 403) Prescribes procedural guidelines for the publication of an application for an operations permit and public participation requirements. (Sec. 404) Instructs the Secretaries to: (1) inspect mineral activities to ensure compliance with surface management requirements; and (2) require all operators to maintain a monitoring and evaluation system to identify compliance with them. Authorizes citizen suits to enforce compliance. (Sec. 406) Prescribes procedural guidelines for administrative and judicial review of agency actions. (Sec. 407) Sets forth enforcement guidelines and civil and criminal penalties for non-compliance. Subtitle B: Miscellaneous Provisions - Provides transitional rules for: (1) new and preexisting claims; (2) claims that have not been converted; (3) contest proceedings; and (4) oil shale claims. (Sec. 413) Adjusts the dollar amounts established under this Act to a certain inflation formula. (Sec. 417) Prohibits the issuance after January 4, 1995, of patents for vein, lode, placer, and mill site mining claims unless certain administrative requirements are met. (Sec. 418) Declares that the Multiple Minerals Development Act, and certain other Federal law, apply to all mining claims located or converted under this Act. (Sec. 419) Amends Federal law to subject all mineral materials deposits to disposal under the terms of the Materials Act of 1947 (eliminating the concept of uncommon varieties). Renames specified Federal : s: (1) the Surface Resource Act of 1955; and (2) the Materials Act of 1947. Repeals the Building Stone Act and the Saline Placer Act. (Sec. 420) Declares this Act applicable to Federal lands that are used for beneficiation or processing activities for any mineral regardless of Federal title to the mineral. (Sec. 421) Requires recipients of funds under this Act to comply with the "Buy American Act." Expresses the sense of the Congress that such funds should be used to purchase only American-made equipment and products. Declares a person ineligible to receive any contract made with funds provided under this Act if the person has been judicially determined to have intentionally affixed a "made in America" label to a product that is not U.S.-made. (Sec. 423) Declares that court-awarded compensation for a Federal taking under the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution shall be paid from the Fund. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to submit an annual report to the Congress describing the percentage of each mining claim held by a foreign firm.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Repeals the National Endowment for Democracy Act. Prohibits Federal agencies from expending funds for assistance for the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). Directs the Comptroller General to audit funds granted to NED by the U.S. Government that have not been audited previously. Provides that a specified provision of the National Endowment for Democracy Act requiring compliance by NED with the Freedom of Information Act shall continue to apply with respect to funds received by NED on or before this Act's enactment date.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends Federal civil service law to provide that an individual serving in a position in the competitive or excepted service, under an indefinite or temporary appointment, who performs at least two years of service in such a position within a five-year period and passes a suitable noncompetitive examination, acquires competitive status for purposes of appointment to a position in the competitive service.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends Federal law with respect to the Secretary of the Treasury's authority to enter into agreements with certain cities and counties for the withholding of city and county income and employment taxes from the pay of Federal employees who are residents of, or regularly employed in, such cities and counties. Repeals the limitation of such authority to cities and counties with 500 or more persons regularly employed by all agencies of the Federal Government (thus authorizing the Secretary to enter into such agreements with cities and counties with fewer than 500 Federal employees).
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends part A (General Provisions) of title XI of the Social Security Act to provide that information requested from the Secretary of Health and Human Services to assist a party in interest with respect to the administration of an employee benefit plan shall be provided at least once without charge.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Limits assessments of underpayments with respect to taxable periods beginning before July 1, 1985, in connection with the annual occupational tax on retail liquor and beer dealers. Abates assessments and refunds overpayments of any post-1987 tax.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit secret service protection, other than on a reimbursable basis, for any former President or family member who is away from his or her domicile and who directly or indirectly obtains income from activities while away.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends Federal law to exclude the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund from the Federal and congressional budgets, and exempt it from any general budget limitation imposed by statute on U.S. budget outlays and from certain orders issued under the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act).
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Consolidation of Information on Technologies Title II: Technology Transfer and Commercialization Financing Corporation Title III: Commercialization Financing Title IV: Alternative Minimum Tax on Corporations Importing Products Into the United States Title V: Miscellaneous Provisions Federal Technology Commercialization and Credit Enhancement Act of 1995 - Title I: Consolidation of Information on Technologies - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish a standardized, accessible data base describing all patents, licenses, technologies, and processes owned in whole or in part by the Federal Government. Provides for data base access by: (1) the Technology Transfer and Commercialization Financing Corporation (established by this Act); and (2) the public. Directs the Secretary to review current Federal technology transfer efforts. Title II: Technology Transfer and Commercialization Financing Corporation - Establishes a public-private Technology Transfer and Commercialization Financing Corporation (Corporation) to foster U.S. economic growth by providing credit for businesses and facilitating the transfer and commercialization of federally owned or developed patents, licenses, processes, and technologies. Title III: Commercialization Financing - Establishes in the Treasury the Technology Transfer Investment Fund. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Corporation to provide outreach activities to areas that: (1) have a depressed economy or chronically high unemployment; (2) have been adversely affected by the North American Free Trade Agreement; or (3) are designated as Federal empowerment zones or enterprise communities. Title IV: Alternative Minimum Tax on Corporation's Importing Products into the United States - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an alternative minimum tax on certain corporations importing products into the United States. Title V: Miscellaneous Provisions - Sets forth effective date and separability provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Federal Travel Disclosure Act of 1995 - Prohibits the obligation or expenditure of Federal funds for: (1) Government travel other than from amounts specifically appropriated by law for such purpose; or (2) travel expenses paid by one Federal entity for an individual employed by another Federal entity without reimbursement by the individual or the travel account of the individual's employer. (Sec. 3) Directs the head of each executive department to designate a travel supervisor. Specifies the travel supervisors for the legislative and judicial branches. (Sec. 4) Requires all Government travel to be: (1) approved in advance by the appropriate travel supervisor; (2) accomplished by the most economical means conveniently possible; and (3) accomplished by U.S. commercial carrier wherever possible. Requires all legislative branch foreign travel, with specified exceptions, to be approved in advance by recorded vote of the committee (in the case of travel by a committee member or committee staff) or by the appropriate travel supervisor. (Sec. 5) Requires each travel supervisor to establish written guidelines for Government travel and to submit quarterly reports with respect to such travel to the Administrator of General Services (for executive branch or independent agency travel), the Clerk of the House of Representatives or the Secretary of the Senate (for legislative branch travel), and the Director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (for judicial branch travel). Requires such reports to be made available for public inspection.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Enhanced Supervision of Derivatives Activities Title II: Supervisory Improvements Title III: Financial Institution Insolvency Reforms Title IV: International Regulatory Cooperation Title V: GAO Study Derivatives Safety and Soundness Supervision Act of 1995 - Title I: Enhanced Supervision of Derivatives Activities - Directs the appropriate Federal regulatory agencies to establish, in consultation with one another, substantially similar capital, accounting, disclosure, and suitability standards for their supervision of financial institutions engaged in derivatives activities. Requires the agencies to consider specified factors in establishing such standards, including: (1) capital requirements; (2) comprehensive risk management systems; (3) joint regulatory examinations; (4) prudent use of collateral by counterparties to derivatives transactions; (5) evaluation tools regarding a financial institution's exposure to derivatives activities; (6) protections against credit, legal, and systemic risks; and (7) supervision of senior management by the board of directors of a financial institution regarding the prudence of derivatives activities. (Sec. 102) Amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (FDIA) and the Federal Credit Union Act to authorize Federal banking agencies to require that specified disclosures of derivatives activities be set forth in financial institution reports of condition ("call reports"). Authorizes each appropriate Federal regulatory agency to require non-insured financial institutions and credit unions to file derivative financial instruments' quarterly reports which contain information comparable to that of their insured counterparts. (Sec. 103) Directs the Financial Institutions Examination Council (the Council) to sponsor training programs concerning derivatives activities for examiners employed by any agency represented on the Council. Mandates that the Council's risk management training include techniques related to derivatives activities. (Sec. 104) Directs the appropriate Federal regulatory agencies to establish liaison committees with their State counterparts. Title II: Supervisory Improvements - Prohibits a financial institution from: (1) engaging in derivatives activities without a specified written management plan approved by its board of directors; or (2) acting as a dealer in derivative financial instruments or as an active end-user unless its board of directors is familiar with specified attendant risks. Authorizes the appropriate Federal regulatory agency to treat noncompliance with this Act as an unsafe or unsound practice. (Sec. 202) Mandates that the appropriate Federal regulatory agency develop the means to obtain all necessary information regarding derivatives activities or instruments whenever it determines an emergency situation exists. (Sec. 203) Amends the FDIA to require each appropriate Federal banking agency to prescribe safety and soundness standards for insured depository institutions and depository institution holding companies relating to internal control for activities involving derivative financial instruments. (Sec. 204) Amends the International Banking Act of 1978 to include as a prerequisite for Federal approval of an application to establish a foreign bank office in the United States the comprehensive supervision and regulation of derivatives activities by the applicant's home country. Title III: Financial Institution Insolvency Reforms - Amends the FDIA regarding the prohibition against the avoiding of transfers of money or property by conservators or receivers of insured depository institutions in connection with certain swap agreements to include within the definition of such agreements: (1) equity derivatives; (2) equity or equity index swaps or options; (3) bond options; and (4) spot foreign exchange transactions. (Sec. 302) Prohibits any construction of Federal law that would place legal or judicial constraints upon the power of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to transfer or liquidate a qualified financial contract. Requires the FDIC to prescribe regulations requiring more detailed recordkeeping by undercapitalized insured depository institutions for qualified financial contracts. (Sec. 303) Modifies the guidelines governing transfers of qualified financial contracts with respect to: (1) certain netting rights; (2) notification; (3) the treatment of bridge banks; and (4) certain conservatorships. (Sec. 304) Declares that a master agreement for any contract, together with all supplements, shall be treated as a single agreement and a single qualified financial contract. Title IV: International Regulatory Cooperation - Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to request a meeting with representatives of major industrialized countries to plan a study of the adequacy of the international regulation and supervision of derivatives activities of financial institutions. Prescribes study goals and issues. (Sec. 402) Directs the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Comptroller of the Currency to encourage central banks and regulatory authorities of other industrialized countries to adopt comparable supervisory and capital standards and regulations for financial institutions engaged in derivatives activities. Title V: GAO Study - Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to the Congress on speculative transactions by financial institutions involving derivative financial instruments and the feasibility of imposing margin and collateral requirements upon them.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an alternative minimum tax on certain corporations equal to five percent of their net business receipts for a taxable year. Imposes such tax on a corporation (foreign or domestic) if: (1) its gross sales in the United States of manufactured parts or products exceeded $10 million; (2) it imported such products with a customs value in excess of $10 million (artificially inflated prices); and (3) its tax obligation under the alternative minimum tax exceeds its total tax obligation.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 1995
Amends rule XLVII (regarding limitations on outside employment and earned income) of the Rules of the House of Representatives to include within the definition of "honorarium" copyright royalties, advances, or other forms of compensation (other than payments for actual expenses incurred for writing or editing) for the writing, editing, or creation of books, records, movies, other publications, or works of art during an individual's service as a House Member, officer, or employee. Prohibits such individuals from entering into contracts which would provide deferred compensation or royalties for works written or edited during such service. Repeals provisions which exclude copyright royalties received from established publishers pursuant to usual and customary contractual terms from the definition of "outside earned income."
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 1994
Economic Development Reauthorization Act of 1994 - Amends the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 to authorize appropriations for grants to public works facilities through FY 1997. Repeals a limitation on financial assistance for sewer and other waste disposal facilities. Requires the Secretary of Commerce to: (1) conduct projects to demonstrate methods of assisting isolated small businesses to access small business services provided by Federal, State, and local governments; and (2) establish three business outreach centers. Directs the Secretary to establish: (1) an Office of Strategic Economic Development Planning and Policy within the Economic Development Administration; and (2) within such Office an Office of Economic Development Information. Establishes a Federal Coordinating Council for Economic Development to develop a Government-wide strategic plan for economic development. Authorizes appropriations. Requires applicants for economic development assistance to certify that a redevelopment area meets at least one criterion regarding per capita income, unemployment rates, job losses, population growth, employment declines, concentrations of low-income individuals, or outmigration. Voids designations of redevelopment areas made before this Act's enactment. Revises annual review provisions to permit assistance to a project only if the applicant has submitted an overall economic development plan or investment strategy to the Secretary for approval. Provides for approval of existing economic development plans and programs to the maximum extent practicable. Directs the Assistant Secretary for Economic Development to publish guidelines to expedite the processing of applications for assistance under this Act. Requires the Secretary to: (1) issue and implement regulations containing criteria and procedures to prioritize allocations of Federal assistance made under this Act so that the level of economic distress in an area is the primary factor in determining whether the area receives an allocation; (2) develop a general, simplified application form for grant assistance under this Act that may be used by all Federal agencies that provide such assistance; and (3) conduct biennial evaluations of university centers and economic development districts receiving grant assistance to assess performance and contribution toward job creation. Authorizes: (1) the Secretary to establish a competitive communities pilot program for the purpose of investing in identified business transactions that will create opportunities for long-term employment in economically distressed communities; and (2) assistance to be available for projects on military installations to be closed or realigned or for communities adversely affected by such closure or realignment. Authorizes appropriations. Requires funds expended pursuant to this Act to be in compliance with the Buy American Act.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 1994
Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to extend the period during which the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may not recapture, adjust, withdraw, or reduce any urban development action grants (UDAG) from UDAG recipients.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 1994
Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to pay a specified sum to a named individual in full satisfaction of all claims against the United States relating to the murder of her daughter by her husband while both husband and wife were serving in the U.S. Army and after the daughter had requested the Army to protect her from her husband's abuse.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 1994
Foreign Tax Compliance Act of 1994 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to include in the taxation of controlled foreign corporations income attributable to imported property. Requires the separate application of limitations on the foreign tax credit for imported property income. Expresses the sense of the Congress that deficit reduction should be achieved in part by eliminating enforcement breakdowns that enable foreign-controlled corporations operating in the United States, and foreign persons investing in the United States, to pay no taxes.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 1994
Economic Growth and Stabilization Financing Demonstration Act 1994 - Prescribes guidelines under which the Secretary of Commerce may conduct demonstration programs in economically distressed communities to: (1) guarantee loans made by lending institutions to private parties; (2) pay interest rate subsidies; (3) implement an equity financing program; and (4) provide secondary market credit enhancements to pools of financial instruments related to economic growth and stabilization in such communities. Directs the Secretary to conduct performance evaluations and submit an annual status report to the Congress. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 1994
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) June 21, 1994, is designated as Freedom Summer Remembrance Day; and (2) it reaffirms the goal of removing remaining barriers to full voter participation in this Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Enhanced Supervision of Derivatives Activities Title II: Supervisory Improvements Title III: Financial Institution Insolvency Reforms Title IV: International Regulatory Cooperation Title V: GAO Study Derivatives Safety and Soundness Supervision Act of 1994 - Title I: Enhanced Supervision of Derivatives Activities - Directs the appropriate Federal regulatory agencies to jointly: (1) establish guidelines for capital, accounting, disclosure, suitability or other oversight actions regarding the derivatives activities of financial institutions; and (2) issue substantially similar regulations regarding such activities. (Sec. 101) Directs such agencies to consider comparable regulatory action by all such agencies in other matters regarding financial institutions engagd in derivatives activities, including the need for: (1) strong capital requirements; (2) comprehensive risk management systems; (3) joint regulatory examinations; (4) prudent use of collateral by counterparties to derivatives transactions; (5) evaluation tools regarding a financial institution's exposure to derivatives activities; (6) protections against credit, legal, and systemic risks; and (7) supervision of senior management by the board of directors of a financial institution regarding the prudence of derivatives activities. (Sec. 102) Amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (FDIA) and the Federal Credit Union Act to authorize Federal banking agencies to require that specified disclosures of derivatives activities be set forth in financial institution reports of condition ("call reports"). Subjects non-insured financial institutions and credit unions to the same disclosure requirements with respect to their derivatives activities. (Sec. 103) Includes the Chairperson of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Comptroller of the Currency as principals on any interagency task force dealing with issues regarding derivative financial instruments. (Sec. 104) Directs the Financial Institutions Examination Council to sponsor training programs concerning derivatives activities for examiners and assistant examiners employed by any agency represented on the Council. Mandates that the Council's risk management training include techniques related to derivatives activities. (Sec. 105) Directs the appropriate Federal regulatory agencies to establish liaison committees with State agencies which supervise financial institutions. Title II: Supervisory Improvements - Prohibits a financial institution from: (1) engaging in derivatives activities without a specified written management plan approved by its board of directors; or (2) acting as a dealer in derivative financial instruments or as an active end-user unless its board of directors is familiar with specified attendant risks. Authorizes the appropriate Federal regulatory agency to treat noncompliance with this Act as an unsafe or unsound practice. (Sec. 202) Mandates that the appropriate Federal regulatory agencies develop the means to obtain all necessary information regarding derivatives activities or instruments whenever it determines an emergency situation exists. (Sec. 203) Amends the FDIA to require each appropriate Federal banking agency to prescribe safety and soundness standards relating to internal control for activities involving derivative financial instruments for insured depository institutions and depository institution holding companies. (Sec. 204) Amends the International Banking Act of 1978 to include as a prerequisite of Federal approval of an application to establish a foreign bank office in the United States the comprehensive supervision and regulation of derivatives activities by the applicant's home country. Title III: Financial Institution Insolvency Reforms - Amends the FDIA regarding the treatment of certain swap agreements by conservators or receivers of insured depository institutions to include within the definition of such agreements: equity derivative, equity or equity index swap, equity or equity index option, bond option, and spot foreigh exchange transactions. (Sec. 302) Prohibits any construction of Federal law that would place any legal or judicial constraints upon the power of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to transfer or liquidate any qualified financial contract. Requires the FDIC to prescribe regulations requiring more detailed recordkeeping for qualified financial contracts by undercapitalized insured depository institutions. (Sec. 303) Modifies the guidelines governing transfers of qualified financial contracts with respect to notification guidelines and the treatment of bridge banks. Title IV: International Regulatory Cooperation - Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to request a meeting with representatives of major industrialized countries to plan a study to examine the adequacy of the international regulation and supervision of derivatives activities of financial institutions. Prescribes study goals and issues. (Sec. 402) Directs the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Comptroller of the Currency to encourage central banks and regulatory authorities of other industrialized countries to maintain and adopt comparable supervisory and capital standards and regulations for financial institutions engaged in derivatives activities. Title V: GAO Study - Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to the Congress on speculative transactions by financial institutions involving derivative financial instruments and the feasibility of imposing margin and collateral requirements upon them.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 1994
Exchange Rate Policy Reporting Act of 1994 - Amends the Federal Reserve Act to direct the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the Board) to report to certain congressional committees biannually and contemporaneously with the Secretary of the Treasury on the effect of monetary policy upon: (1) the exchange rate of the dollar; and (2) the status of currency swap agreements with any foreign entity. Amends the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 to modify the Secretary's report to such committees to include: (1) the Secretary's objectives with respect to the exchange rate of the dollar; (2) a specified analysis of the exchange rate of the dollar; and (3) the status of currency swap agreements with any foreign entity. Instructs the Secretary to report to the Congress within 24 hours if the Secretary intervenes, or directs the Board or any Federal Reserve Bank to intervene, in the currency markets.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 1994
Designates September 16, 1994, as National POW/MIA Recognition Day. Requires the display of the National League of Families POW/MIA flag at: (1) all national cemeteries and the National Vietnam Veterans Memorial on May 30, 1994 (Memorial Day), September 16, 1994 (National POW/MIA Recognition Day), and November 11, 1994 (Veterans Day); and (2) the White House and the buildings containing the primary offices of the Secretaries of State, Defense, and Veterans Affairs and the Director of the Selective Service System on September 16, 1994 (National POW/MIA Recognition Day).
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 1994
National Community Service Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue one-dollar silver coins to commemorate students who volunteer to perform community service. Mandates that all surcharges received from such coin sales be paid to the National Community Service Trust to fund innovative community service programs at American universities, including the service, research, and teaching activities of the faculty and students involved in such programs.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 1994
Prohibits the refugee admission into the United States of persons who served in the Iraqi armed forces during the Persian Gulf conflict. Revokes refugee status and provides for deportation of such persons already admitted to the United States.
![Official portrait of Rep. Kanjorski, Paul E. [D-PA-11]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/k000008_200.jpg)