United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2000
Energy Efficient Buildings Incentives Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish, for a limited time period, deductions and credits for commercial and residential properties using specified energy efficient construction or reconstruction materials or technologies, including solar energy. Sets forth provisions concerning: (1) allocation of deductions for public property; and (2) property financed by subsidized energy financing. Requires the Secretary of Energy to establish specified certification and compliance procedures. Authorizes appropriations to the Department of Energy.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2000
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow, through December 31, 2005, a limited credit for energy-efficient building property. Defines such property as a fuel cell power plant that: (1) generates electricity using an electrochemical process; (2) has an electricity-only generation efficiency greater than 30 percent; and (3) has a minimum generating capacity of 5 kilowatts. Allows, through December 31, 2005, a credit to an individual for nonbusiness energy-efficient building property expenditures.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2000
Fairness for National Guard Technicians Act - Requires National Guard military technicians (dual status) who are eligible, at the time dual status is lost, to an unreduced retirement annuity and are age 60 or older to be separated no later than 30 days after such status is lost. Requires such technicians who are not eligible to an unreduced annuity or who are not under age 60 at such time to be offered the opportunity to either reapply for a dual status position or apply for a civil service position that is not a technician position. States that a technician shall be considered to lose dual status upon: (1) being separated from the Selected Reserve; or (2) ceasing to hold the military grade specified for the technician position held.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2000
Declares that the House of Representatives supports the Secretary of Transportation's policy announced on December 18, 1995, to delay implementation of certain provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that allow increased access for Mexican trucks to U.S. roads. Recognizes compelling data reported by the Department of Transportation (DOT) Inspector General regarding the danger posed on both sides of the United States-Mexico border by unsafe Mexican trucks. Calls on the President to refuse access to U.S. roads outside the commercial zones along the United States-Mexico border to Mexican trucks that are currently restricted to these zones until the DOT Inspector General has certified that: (1) Mexican trucks and drivers are complying with standards of safety, environmental protection, and driver competency, licensing, and hours of service equivalent to standards that apply to U.S. trucks on U.S. roads; and (2) Mexican trucks inspected on entering the United States are passing inspection in the same percentage as Canadian trucks inspected on entering the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2000
Heather French Homeless Veterans Assistance Act of 2000 - Declares as a national goal to end homelessness among veterans within a decade. Encourages all Federal, State, and local departments and agencies, quasi-governmental organizations, private and public sector entities, and individuals to work cooperatively toward such goal. (Sec. 4) Establishes within the Department of Veterans Affairs the Advisory Committee on Homeless Veterans to: (1) assemble and review information relating to homeless veterans; (2) provide an ongoing assessment of Department effectiveness in assisting such veterans; and (3) provide ongoing advice on the most appropriate means of providing such assistance. Requires the Committee to take into special account the needs of veterans who have served in a theater of combat operations. Requires annual reports from the Committee to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and from the Secretary to the congressional veterans' committees, on Department programs and activities relating to homeless veterans. (Sec. 5) Amends the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act to require the Interagency Council on the Homeless to meet no less often than annually (currently, at the discretion of the Council Chairperson). (Sec. 6) Directs the Secretary to support the continuation within the Department of at least one center for evaluation to monitor the structure, process, and outcome of Department programs that address homeless veterans. Requires an annual report from the Secretary to Congress. (Sec. 7) Directs the Secretary to designate specified care provided in, or sponsored or coordinated by, the Department as being within the "complex care" category within the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation (VERA) system. Requires the Secretary to ensure that funds for any new program for homeless veterans carried out through a Department facility are designated, for the first three years of that program, as a special purpose program for which funds are not allocated through the VERA system. (Sec. 8) Directs the Secretary to carry out a program of grants to Department health care facilities to encourage the development of programs targeted at meeting the special needs of homeless veterans (age, substance abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder, terminally or mentally ill, or women). Requires the Secretary to conduct a study of the effectiveness of the grant program in meeting such needs. Provides funding from annual appropriations for Department medical care. (Sec. 9) Requires the Secretary to have appropriate officials of the Mental Health Service and the Readjustment Counseling Service of the Veterans Health Administration initiate a coordinated strategy for joint outreach to veterans at risk of homelessness, particularly those being discharged from institutions. (Sec. 10) Requires the Secretary to establish three Centers of Excellence in Integrated Mental Health Services Delivery at appropriate Department medical centers. Directs the Secretary to: (1) compare treatment outcomes for chronically mentally ill veterans at such centers with treatment outcomes provided through traditional consultation; and (2) report comparison results to Congress. (Sec. 11) Prescribes conditions under which outpatient dental services and the treatment of a dental condition or disability of a veteran shall be considered medically necessary, and therefore required to be furnished through the Department. Makes eligible for such care veterans who are: (1) enrolled under the Department's patient enrollment system; and (2) receiving care under one of a number of various departmental settings (domiciliary care, therapeutic residential or community residential care). (Sec. 12) Directs the Secretary to carry out the transitional housing grant program under the Homeless Veterans Comprehensive Service Programs Act of 1992 so as to ensure that there is at least one active transitional housing program in each State. Requires the Secretary to establish centers for the provision of comprehensive services to homeless veterans in at least each of the 20 largest metropolitan areas. Repeals a provision limiting the number of such programs. Requires the Secretary to ensure that opioid substitution therapy is available at each Department medical center. Extends through December 31, 2006, the authority of the Secretary to provide certain treatment and rehabilitation for seriously mentally ill and homeless veterans. (Sec. 13) Authorizes the Secretary to allow homeless veterans receiving care through vocational rehabilitation programs to participate in the compensated work therapy program, and to allow veterans in the latter program to be provided housing through the therapeutic residence program. Provides certain staffing requirements for homeless veterans programs within the Veterans Benefits Administration. (Sec. 14) Amends the Homeless Veterans Comprehensive Service Programs Act of 1992 to revise fire and safety standards required of facilities used for homeless veterans. (Sec. 15) Directs the Secretary to carry out a program of temporary assistance grants to homeless veterans. Makes eligible for such program veterans: (1) of a period of war or meeting certain minimum service requirements; (2) being or recently having been released from certain institutions, including a homeless shelter; (3) who are homeless immediately before the commencement of such assistance; and (4) who had less than marginal income (below poverty level) for the previous three months. Allows such assistance for no more than six months during any two-year period. Provides authorized grant amounts and requires assistance coordination with other Department benefits. (Sec. 16) Directs the Secretary to carry out a program to provide emergency housing grants to eligible veterans. Outlines eligibility requirements similar to the above program. Provides authorized grant amounts and allows a grant to an eligible veteran once during a 24-month period. (Sec. 17) Requires the Secretary to carry out a program to make technical assistance grants to nonprofit community-based groups for assistance in applying for grants to address problems of homeless veterans. Provides funding. (Sec. 18) Authorizes the Secretary to waive, with respect to homeless veterans, the requirement of the purchase of a lot under the Department's home loan program for manufactured housing. (Sec. 19) Extends through FY 2006 the authorization of appropriations for the homeless veterans reintegration program.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2000
Requires the Secretary of Defense to revise Department of Defense policy regarding the euthanization of military working dogs to: (1) terminate the practice of euthanizing such dogs at the end of their useful life; and (2) limit such euthanization to when medically necessary or necessary for the public safety. Requires the Secretary to make such a dog available for adoption by law enforcement agencies, former handlers, and other persons capable of humanely caring for such dogs. Requires the commander of the last unit to which the dog is assigned to make the decision whether a particular dog is suitable or unsuitable for adoption. Directs the Secretary to require that any dog recipient hold harmless the United States from any damages or injury caused by a dog after such transfer. Requires an annual report from the Secretary to Congress concerning dogs adopted, waiting for adoption, or euthanized during the preceding year (with an explanation in the case of euthanization).
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2000
Veterans' Family Farm Preservation Act - Excludes from the estate of a veteran and his or her spouse, for purposes of eligibility for pensions for veterans who are permanently and totally disabled from a non-service-connected disability, the value of any real property used for farming, ranching, or similar agricultural purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2000
Expresses appreciation for: (1) the U.S. service members who died in the sinking of the HMT ROHNA, a British transport ship, by the Germans in November 1943; (2) the U.S. service members who survived the sinking; (3) the families of all such service members; and (4) the U.S., British, and French rescuers, especially the crew of the USS PIONEER.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 2000
School and Day-Care Lead-Based Paint Reduction Act of 2000 - Authorizes the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to make matching grants to States, local governments, and local educational agencies to evaluate and reduce lead-based paint hazards at public elementary schools and licensed child day-care facilities. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 2000
East Timor Transition to Independence Act of 2000 - Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States should support democracy and economic recovery in East Timor, strengthen its security, and promote its ability to play a positive role in the Asia-Pacific region and in international organizations. Sets forth requirements with respect to the provision to East Timor of bilateral assistance, multilateral assistance, Peace Corps assistance, certain trade and investment assistance, scholarships for East Timorese students, and security assistance.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2000
Immigrant Health and Safety Act of 2000 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize the Attorney General to cancel removal, and adjust the status to permanent resident, of a qualifying alien whose removal would result in extreme medical hardship for such alien, or the alien's citizen or permanent resident spouse, child, or parent.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 2000
Veterans' Oral History Project Act - Requires the Director of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress to establish an oral history program to collect video and audio recordings of personal histories and testimonials of American war veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2000
Condemns the murder of Jafar Siddiz Hamzah (a human rights lawyer) in Indonesia. Offers condolences to Hamzah's family and friends. Calls upon the Department of State and the Government of Indonesia to: (1) do everything in their power to bring about a thorough, open, and transparent investigation of the murder of Hamzah and the four others with whom he was found; (2) ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice; and (3) devote official attention to broader investigations into the numerous other cases of killings and disappearance in Aceh.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2000
Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act - Revises the bloodborne pathogens standard, in effect under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSHA), to include safer medical devices, such as sharps with engineered sharps injury protections and needleless systems, as examples of engineering controls designed to eliminate or minimize occupational exposure to bloodborne pathogens through needlestick and other percutaneous injuries. Requires certain employers to: (1) review and update exposure control plans to reflect changes in technology that eliminate or reduce such exposure, and document their consideration and implementation of appropriate commercially available and effective safer medical devices for such purpose; (2) maintain a sharps injury log, noting the type and brand of device used, where the injury occurred, and an explanation of the incident (exempting employers who are not required to maintain specified OSHA logs); and (3) seek input on such engineering and work practice controls from the affected health care workers (exempting employers who are not required to establish exposure control plans). Requires such modifications of the standard to: (1) be in force until superseded by regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Labor under OSHA; and (2) take effect without regard to specified procedural requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2000
Registered Nurses and Patients Protection Act - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to limit the number of overtime hours which employers may require of licensed health care employees, including registered nurses but excluding doctors.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2000
Day Laborer Fairness and Protection Act - Requires day labor service agencies to provide notice of the wage rate expected to be paid by each third party employer using their services. Requires the wage rate for such third party employers to equal the rate paid to their permanent employees who perform substantially equivalent work, with due consideration given to seniority, experience, skills and qualifications. Requires day laborers to be paid by third party employers at a wage rate not less than that stated in the agency notice for all work performed for such employers, including work contained in the detailed description issued under notification requirements of this Act. Prohibits employers from reducing the wage rate of any employee in order to comply with requirements of this Act. Sets forth requirements for: (1) agency payments to day laborers for excessive processing time; (2) civil damages and criminal penalties for certain employer violations; (3) itemized wage statements, annual earnings summaries, and optional payment schedules; (4) no charges for cashing wage payment checks or for overpayments; (5) nondiscrimination; (6) adequate seating, restrooms and water in waiting areas; (7) no restrictions on worker acceptance of permanent positions, but allowance placement fees paid to agencies by employers; (8) health care liability for injuries on the job or in transit; (9) agency notices, including employer lists and descriptions of jobs, wages, and other working conditions; (10) equitable expenses for day laborer meals, transportation, and equipment; (11) agency registration with the Secretary of Labor; and (12) Department of Labor enforcement of this Act. Amends the National Labor Relations Act to make it an unfair labor practice for employers to offer and grant: (1) permanent replacement employee status or other employment preferences to individuals for performing bargaining unit work for the employer during a labor dispute; or (2) any employment preference based on an individual's being employed, or having indicated a willingness to be employed, during a labor dispute, over any employee who was there at dispute commencement, has exercised rights through the labor organization involved in the dispute, and is working for the employer, or has unconditionally offered to return to such work.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2000
Home Health Refinement Amendments of 2000 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: (1) eliminate the 15 percent reduction in payment rates under the Medicare prospective payment system (PPS) for home health services; (2) provide for additional payments for outliers; (3) provide for additional payments under the PPS for home health services furnished in a rural area; (4) provide for exclusion of nonroutine medical supplies under the PPS for home health services; and (5) set forth a rule of construction relating to telehomehealth services. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to report to Congress on the feasibility and advisability of including home health services furnished by telecommunications systems as a home health service.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2000
Community Character Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish a program to provide grants to States to assist in the development or revision of land use planning legislation and the creation or revision of State comprehensive land use plans or plan elements. Requires grant funds to be used to obtain technical assistance in: (1) drafting such legislation; (2) research and development for land use planning programs and requirements relating to the development of State guide plans; (3) conducting workshops, educating and consulting policy makers, and involving citizens in the planning process; and (4) integrating State and regional concerns and land use plans with such Federal plans. Requires each Federal land management agency to designate, provide information to, and participate in community events as requested by, a coordinator to work with State planning directors on funded projects.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 2000
Expresses condolences to the families and co-workers of Carlos Caceres of Puerto Rico, Samson Aregahegn of Ethiopia, and Pero Simundza of Croatia, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) staff members killed in the militia attack on UNHCR offices in West Timor. Calls upon the U.S. Government and the Government of Indonesia to ensure thorough and transparent investigations of these murders and to bring the perpetrators to justice. Expresses the belief that the United States should suspend all military relations and cooperation with the armed forces of Indonesia, including a cutoff of all security assistance and joint training programs, until: (1) certain conditions in the Foreign Operations Appropriations Act, Fiscal Year 2000 are fulfilled; (2) the disarming and disbanding of all militias in East Timor and West Timor is accomplished; and (3) civilian rule and the rule of law have been established in Indonesia. Calls upon the U.S. Government to: (1) persist in urging the Indonesian Government to disarm and disband all militias in West Timor, arrest known militia leaders, and extradite to East Timor those who committed crimes in that country; and (2) continue economic and development assistance and other similar support for the people of East Timor and of Indonesia.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2000
Veterans Comprehensive Hepatitis C Health Care Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, during the first year after the enactment of this Act, to provide a blood test for the Hepatitis C virus to: (1) each veteran who served on active military duty during the Vietnam era, is enrolled to receive veterans' medical care, and requests such care or is otherwise receiving a physical examination or any other care or treatment from the Secretary; and (2) any other veteran who so requests. Requires the Secretary, after such period, to provide such test to any veteran who presents one or more risk factors for such virus and who requests the test. Requires the Secretary to provide appropriate treatment protocol for any veteran who tests positive, without regard to whether the virus is determined to be service-connected and without regard to the veteran's priority group categorization. Prohibits a copayment from being charged for such treatment. Requires the Secretary to: (1) perform a liver biopsy test on a positive-testing veteran as a follow- up test; (2) upon request, provide a Hepatitis C genotype test before beginning virus treatment; (3) employ at each Department of Veterans Affairs medical center at least one full-time gastroenterologist or hepatologist to conduct such tests; and (4) ensure that each center has at least one staff member assigned to coordinate treatment options and provide information to positive-testing patients. Provides funding for Department Hepatitis C detection and treatment programs, beginning with FY 2001. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop and implement a standardized Department policy with respect to such virus; and (2) annually take appropriate outreach actions to notify untested veterans. Directs the Secretary to establish at least one and no more than three Hepatitis C centers of excellence within the Department health care network. Provides centers' funding.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2000
National Media Campaign to Prevent Underage Drinking Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop, implement, and conduct a national media campaign for the purpose of reducing and preventing underage drinking in the United States. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2000
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee of the U.S. Postal Service should recommend to the Postmaster General that a postage stamp be issued to honor the men and women of the Volunteer Fire Service.
United States · United States Congress · 6 September 2000
Missing Children Tax Fairness Act of 2000 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat a child who was kidnapped by a nonfamily member as a dependent for purposes of the deduction for personal exemptions, the child credit, and the earned income credit.
United States · United States Congress · 6 September 2000
National Health Service Corps Reauthorization Act of 2000 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to extend through FY 2005 (currently terminated after FY 2000) the authorization of appropriations for certain programs for the National Health Service Corps.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2000
Shambala Wild Animal Protection Act of 2000 - Amends the Animal Welfare Act to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to prepare a list of protected wild animals (as defined by this Act). Requires, with specified exceptions, non-transferable permits for personal possession, transfer, or breeding of protected wild animals. Sets forth provisions respecting: (1) permits; (2) animal care and treatment; (3) import and export; (5) enforcement; and (6) protected animal euthanasia.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2000
Amends the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to require local educational agencies, if they choose to treat certain IDEA funds as local funds, to use them to provide additional funding for programs under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2000
IMF Reform Act of 2000 - Amends the International Financial Institutions Act to urge the President, in order to reduce long-term lending by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and protect eligible poor countries from harmful IMF and International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank) policies, to commence immediate efforts, within the Paris Club of Official Creditors, the IMF, and other appropriate multilateral development institutions, to accomplish certain goals, including: (1) the cancellation of debts owed to the IMF by eligible poor countries (encouraging such countries to allocate 20 percent of their national budgets, including the savings from the cancellation of debt, for the provision of health care services, education services, and clean water services to individuals in their countries); (2) a bar on new IMF concessional loans, guarantees, insurance, or credits to any country that receives debt cancellation under this Act, or the privileging of the IMF as a creditor over the United States or private creditors by any country receiving new concessional loans; (3) a bar on IMF and World Bank policies harmful to eligible poor countries; and (4) a bar on the conditioning of debt cancellation to poor countries on any such country's adoption or implementation of any structural adjustment program. Urges the President, in order to promote equitable burden-sharing by bilateral, multilateral, and private creditors, to commence efforts to ensure that such creditors draw upon their own resources to finance debt reduction without diverting funds from other high priority poverty alleviation programs. Prohibits the obligation of appropriated funds to the IMF and World Bank unless specified conditions are met.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2000
Nazi and Japanese War Crimes Disclosure Act - Amends the Nazi War Crimes Disclosure Act to: (1) extend the authority of the Nazi War Criminal Records Interagency Working Group for an additional two years; and (2) change the name of the Act to the Nazi and Japanese War Crimes of World War II Disclosure Act. Revises the term "Nazi war criminal records" to include classified records (or portions thereof) that pertain to any transaction as to which the U.S. Government, in its sole discretion, has grounds to believe involved assets taken from persecuted persons during the period beginning on January 1, 1931, and ending on December 31, 1945, by, under the direction of, on behalf of, or under authority granted by the Nazi government of Germany or any nation then allied with that government. Changes the name Nazi War Criminal Records Interagency Working Group to Nazi and Japanese War Criminal Records Interagency Working Group. Authorizes appropriations. Expresses the sense of Congress that foreign nations, and in particular Japan, should make every effort possible to cooperate with the Nazi and Japanese War Criminal Records Interagency Working Group in carrying out its duties.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2000
Immigration Services Consumer Protection Act of 2000 - Establishes criminal penalties for immigration consultants who handle immigration matters and do not meet specified requirements, including license and contract requirements. Exempts from such provisions: (1) attorneys; (2) certain law students and law graduates; (3) accredited representatives of qualifying organizations; (4) accredited foreign officials; and (5) persons authorized to practice before the Board of Immigration Appeals and the Immigration and Naturalization Service as of a certain date. Authorizes the Attorney General to provide State grants to educate persons respecting the requirements of this Act. Provides for confidentiality of information provided under this Act, and fines for knowing violation of such confidentiality.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2000
Affordable HIV-AIDS Medicines for Poor Countries Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury, the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to encourage developing countries (including sub-Saharan African countries) and pharmaceutical companies to make HIV-AIDS pharmaceuticals and medical technologies available to people who live in such countries without charge or at affordable prices. Sets forth certain restrictions and limitations, including that: (1) appropriated funds made available to U.S. agencies may not be obligated to seek the revocation or revision of any intellectual property or competition law or policy of a developing country (including any sub- Saharan African country) that regulates HIV-AIDS pharmaceuticals or medical technologies if such law or policy promotes access to such drugs and technologies to the country's population; and (2) the USTR may not initiate a proceeding in the World Trade Organization (WTO) challenging and law or policy of a developing country (including a sub-Saharan African country) that promotes access to HIV-AIDS pharmaceuticals or medical technologies to the population of the country. Requires the President to direct the U.S. representative to the WTO to urge the WTO and member countries to exempt developing countries (including sub-Saharan African countries) from the application of any provision of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights or any other international agreement relating to intellectual property rights that would prohibit or restrict such countries from establishing or implementing any law or policy that promotes access to HIV-AIDS pharmaceuticals or medical technologies to their population.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2000
Gas Price Spike Act of 2000 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an excise tax on the sale of any crude oil, natural gas, or products thereof a tax equal to the applicable percentage of the windfall profit on such sale. Define "applicable percentage." Establishes a credit for the purchase of U.S. made fuel efficient passenger vehicles. Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to make grants to the operator of a mass transit system to assist the operator in reducing fares paid by passengers using the system which shall be paid for by revenues from the windfall profits tax. Establishes an independent board to be known as the Reasonable Profits Board to make reasonable profit determinations with respect to the windfall profit tax.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2000
Resource Efficient Appliance Incentives Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish a limited credit, for a limited time period, for producers of qualified energy efficient clothes washers and energy efficient refrigerators.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2000
Medicare Early Access and Tax Credit Act of 2000 - Title I: Access to Medicare Benefits for Individuals 62-to-65 Years of Age - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to add a new part D (Purchase of Medicare Benefits by Certain Individuals Age 62-to-65 Years of Age) under which an enrollee is entitled to the same Medicare benefits as an individual entitled to benefits under Medicare part A (Hospital Insurance) and enrolled under Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance). Provides for the determination and payment of monthly premiums under the new part D program. Creates in the Treasury the Medicare Early Access Trust Fund to hold the premiums paid pursuant to this Act and savings from new fraud and abuse initiatives that are obtained pursuant to the Medicare Fraud and Reimbursement Reform Act of 1999. Provides for oversight and accountability concerning the status of the Trust Fund. Title II: Access to Medicare Benefits for Displaced Workers 55-to-62 years of Age - Amends SSA title XVIII to provide access to Medicare benefits to displaced workers (and their spouse) 55-to-62 years of age. Title III: COBRA Protection for Early Retirees - Subtitle A: Amendments to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to provide for COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985) continuation benefits for certain retired workers who lose retiree health coverage. Subtitle B: Amendments to the Public Health Service Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to provide for COBRA continuation benefits for certain retired workers who lose retiree health coverage. Subtitle C: Amendments to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for COBRA continuation benefits for certain retired workers who lose retiree health coverage. Title IV: Financing - Provides that any increase in Medicare payments resulting from enactment of this Act shall be offset by reductions in Medicare payments pursuant to the anti-fraud and -abuse provisions of the Medicare Fraud and Reimbursement Reform Act of 1999. Title V: Credit Against Income Tax for Medicare Buy-In Premiums and for Certain COBRA Continuation Coverage Premiums - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide an individual with a tax credit for 25 percent of certain COBRA continuation coverage premiums and Medicare buy-in premiums.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2000
Community Environmental Equity Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to define "covered substance" to mean hazardous contaminants, chemicals, materials, wastes, and substances listed, identified, or defined in specified laws or designated by the President. Prohibits any entity that handles, manages, treats, releases, disposes, stores, transports, or delivers covered substances from disproportionately exposing any individual or community, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, to any covered substance. Authorizes enforcement: (1) by denial or termination of authorization to handle, manage, treat, release, discharge, dispose, store, transport, remove, move, or deliver covered substances; (2) by any other means authorized by law; and (3) for entities receiving Federal financial assistance, through specified compliance provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2000
Community Reinvestment Modernization Act of 2000 - Title I: Modernization of Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 and Community Service Obligations - Amends the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 to subject to the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 (CRA) in the same manner as regulated financial institutions all nonbank affiliates of bank holding companies that engage in lending or offer banking products or services. (Sec. 101) Mandates that: (1) the Federal regulatory agency with jurisdiction over the affiliate's bank holding company take into account the record of any such affiliate in meeting community credit, investment, and consumer needs; (2) the Federal financial supervisory agency perform separate evaluations of a depository institution's State, metropolitan, and community service areas; and (3) the CRA rating of a regulated financial institution be reduced to reflect predatory or negative credit practices. (Sec. 104) Places upon each securities company, mortgage bank, and insurance company the affirmative obligation to meet the need for their respective services in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods as regards each community constituting an assessment area of such entities. (Sec. 105) Sets forth a statutory framework within which the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), respectively, shall develop a program to ensure that such financial entities meet their obligations. (Sec. 106) Authorizes the Secretary of HUD to impose specified limitations upon mortgage and insurance companies that engage in practices with negative impacts upon their respective assessment areas. (Sec. 107) Requires all bank holding company affiliates of securities, mortgage, and insurance companies to maintain satisfactory CRA ratings. Title II: Data Disclosure Requirements - Subtitle A: Disclosure of Insurance Availability and Insurer Investment Information - Insurance Disclosure Act - Directs the Secretary of HUD to establish data reporting requirements incumbent upon insurers, rural, and small business insurers in order to ascertain the availability and affordability of insurance by type and coverage in connection with: (1) census tract; (2) low- and moderate-income neighborhoods; (3) race and gender of policyholders; and (4) location of principal place of agents and their termination by race. (Sec. 206) Requires the Financial Institutions Examination Council to determine annually the extent to which each private mortgage insurer makes private mortgage insurance information available to the public and to the appropriate agency in the same manner as mortgage insurance information is required to be reported under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975 (HMDA). (Sec. 207) Directs the Secretary of HUD to require each insurer that makes an investment in a property or business to submit annually data detailing direct loans and loan purchases in connection with: (1) commercial real estate loans; (2) single-family mortgages; (3) commercial and industrial loans; and (4) other investments. Sets forth civil penalties for violations of such insurance data disclosures. Subtitle B: Improvements in Other Data Disclosure Requirements - Amends the CRA to declare that it may not be construed as authorizing any Federal agency to exempt a depository institution from data disclosure requirements pertaining to farm and small business loans (except an institution that is not an affiliate of a either a bank holding company or savings and loan company). (Sec. 221) Requires regulated financial institutions to collect data regarding farm and small business loan applications that details: (1) applicant race and gender; (2) minority-owned and women-owned enterprises; (3) the revenue of such applicants; and (4) the actual census tract of the applicants' locale. Title III: Regulatory and Structural Reforms - Sets forth antiredlining requirements for financial holding companies. Amends certain bank regulatory Acts to require notice and public comment prior to establishing a financial holding company or transacting bank acquisitions, consolidations, or mergers if regulatory authorities believe there will be a substantial public impact. (Sec. 304) Amends the CRA to reduce the small banks examination schedule by one year. (Sec. 306) Requires the appropriate Federal banking agency to prohibit a financial holding company or insured depository institution from continued engagement in expanded financial activities if any subsidiary or affiliate of such entities has received in a CRA rating of less than "satisfactory record of meeting community credit needs" in its most recent examination. (Sec. 307) Amends the HMDA to prohibit a Federal regulatory agency from exempting a depository institution from HMDA reporting requirements. Mandates expanded data disclosure from depository institutions regarding: (1) prime and subprime mortgage loans; (2) loan pricing and terms; and (3) manufactured home loans that are not treated as real estate loans by depository institutions. Subjects HMDA depository institutions to specified Federal Deposit Insurance Act requirements. Grants the Secretary of HUD enforcement powers regarding compliance with such requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2000
Privacy and Identity Protection Act of 2000 - Title I: Provisions Relating to the Social Security Account Number - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) with regard to: (1) governmental use and treatment of social security account numbers, including restrictions on the sale of such account numbers by governmental agencies; and (2) prohibitions against public access to such account numbers in governmental agency possession, and against use of such account numbers on checks issued for payment by such agencies. (Sec. 101) Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to the Congress on: (1) the current usage by governmental agencies of the Social Security account numbers of individuals, and derivatives of such numbers, for identification purposes; and (2) the most effective means by which any such usage extending beyond the original purposes of the Social Security account number may be minimized. Amends SSA title II to provide for independent verification of birth records provided in support of applications for Social Security account numbers. Directs the Commissioner of Social Security and the Attorney General to report jointly to Congress on the progress of the Social Security Administration and the Immigration and Naturalization Service in implementing a process for enumeration at entry for aliens entering the United States. Amends SSA title II to prohibit: (1) the appearance of Social Security account numbers on driver's licenses or motor vehicle registrations; and (2) the display of such account numbers, or any derivative, on any card or tag provided by governmental agencies to their employees for identification purposes. (Sec. 102) Provides for the regulation and restriction of the sale and purchase of the Social Security account number in the private sector. (Sec. 103) Amends SSA title II to subject criminal penalties the sale and purchase of Social Security account numbers. (Sec. 104) Amends SSA title XI with regard to civil monetary penalty authority concerning treatment of withholding of material facts, and application of civil money penalties to elements of criminal violations. (Sec. 105) Amends SSA titles II and XVI (Supplementary Security Income) (SSI) to provide authority for judicial orders of restitution in cases of Social Security payments obtained by fraud. Amends SSA title VII (Administration) to provide for the establishment of a special fund in the Treasury for receipt of restitution payments. (Sec. 106) Amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to provide for confidential treatment of credit report header information including the Social Security account number of the consumer or any derivative thereof. (Sec. 107) Amends SSA title VII to provide for law enforcement authority by special agents of the Office of the Inspector General of the Social Security Administration. Title II: Provisions Relating to Representative Payees - Amends SSA titles II and XVI to authorize reissue to beneficiaries or alternative representative payees of OASDI and SSI benefits misused by organizational representative payees. (Sec. 202) Amends SSA titles II and XVI to provide for: (1) oversight of nongovernmental organizational representative payees and disqualification from service as a representative payee upon a felony conviction; (2) fee forfeiture in case of benefit misuse by such a representative payees; (3) liability of representative payees for misused benefits; and (4) extension of civil monetary penalty authority with respect to representative payees.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2000
Railroad Retirement and Survivors' Improvement Act of 2000 - Title I: Amendments to the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 - Amends the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 to increase benefits to railroad employees and their beneficiaries and to revise financing of the pension part (tier II) of the railroad retirement system. (Sec. 101) Increases benefits for widows and widowers by guaranteeing to them all of the tier II annuity the employee was entitled to at the time of the death. (Sec. 102) Makes employees with 30 years of service eligible to retire at age 60 with unreduced tier I and tier II annuities. Makes spouses of such employees eligible for unreduced annuities at age 60. (Sec. 103) Reduces the vesting requirement for tier II retirement annuities from ten years to five years of service after December 1995. Makes employees with at least five years of such service, but less than ten years of total service, eligible for a tier I disability annuity if their combined railroad retirement and social security earnings credits would satisfy social security eligibility requirements. Makes spouses, divorced spouses, and survivors of employees with at least five years of such service, but less than ten years of total service, eligible for a tier I annuity if they would have been entitled to a social security benefit based on combined service. (Sec. 104) Repeals a limit on the total amount of monthly railroad retirement benefits payable to an employee and spouse at the time the employee's annuity begins. (Sec. 105) Establishes a Railroad Retirement Trust Fund (the Fund) and a Railroad Retirement Investment Trust (RRIT) to manage and invest the assets of the Fund. Declares that RRIT is not an agency, department, or instrumentality of the U.S. Government. Requires RRIT to be administered by a Board of Trustees (the Trustees) with seven members (three representing labor, three representing employers, and one representing the general public) with experience and expertise in the management of financial investments and pension plans. Requires the Trustees to be appointed by a unanimous vote of the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB). Prohibits RRB members from being Trustees. Applies specified reporting requirements and fiduciary standards to the RRIT. Requires the Trustees to diversify investments so as to minimize the risk of large losses. Authorizes the Trustees to invest Fund assets in non-Governmental assets. (Sec. 106) Abolishes the Railroad Retirement Supplemental Annuity Account and provides for transfer of its funds to the Fund. (Sec. 107) Requires the RRB, upon the establishment of the Fund, to determine the portion of the Railroad Retirement Account not needed to pay current administrative expenses and direct the Secretary of the Treasury to transfer that amount into the Fund. Requires the Fund to transfer the necessary amount of funds to pay benefits and related administrative expenses to the disbursing agent. Transfers to the Fund Social Security Equivalent Benefit account funds not needed to pay current benefits, but requires that such funds only be used to pay benefits or to invest in U.S. Government or Government-guaranteed securities. Transfers to the disbursing agent from the Dual Benefit Account the amount necessary to make dual benefit payments. Requires the Trustees to consult with the Secretary of the Treasury to develop an appropriate method for transferring or converting existing account obligations. (Sec. 108) Requires the RRB to calculate the ratio of assets to benefits to determine annual tier II tax rates for employers, employee representatives, and employees. Establishes schedules for: (1) decreasing tax rates if the average account benefits ratio, based on the ratios for the ten most recent fiscal years, is above six; and (2) increasing employer and employee representatives' tax rates if the ratio is below four. Title II: Amendments to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt the Railroad Retirement Trust Fund (the Fund) from taxation. (Sec. 203) Repeals a supplemental annuity tax that railroad employers pay to finance a benefit for long-time rail employees. (Sec. 204) Provides for adjustments to railroad employers, employee representatives, and employee tier II tax rates. Decreases such rates in 2001 and in 2002 for employers and employee representatives. Provides in the years after 2002 for tax rate schedules, based on the ten-year average account benefit ratio, for employers, employee representatives, and employees.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2000
Violence Against Women Office Act - Establishes within the Department of Justice (DOJ) a Violence Against Women Office, headed by a Director. Specifies the duties of the Director, including serving as special counsel to the Attorney General on the subject of, and carrying out DOJ functions under the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 and on matters relating to, violence against women.
United States · United States Congress · 12 July 2000
Family Opportunity Act of 2000 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) give States the option of allowing families of disabled children to purchase Medicaid coverage for such children; and (2) provide for treatment of inpatient psychiatric hospital services for individuals under age 21 under waivers allowing for payment for part or all of the cost of home or community-based services. Authorizes a State to apply to the Secretary of Health and Human Services for approval of a demonstration project to provide Medicaid coverage to up to a specified maximum number of children with a potentially severe disability. Amends SSA title V (Maternal and Child Health Services) to make appropriations to the Secretary for special projects of regional and national significance for development and support of family-to-family health information centers. Amends SSA title XIX to provide for the restoration of Medicaid eligibility to certain SSI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSA title XVI) beneficiaries under age 21.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2000
National Flood Insurance Program Fairness Act - Amends the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to replace requirements for the notification of changes to flood insurance map panels (thus, repealing them) with the following new requirements for the notification and appeal of such changes. Requires the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide notice of any change to flood insurance map panels, including any change in a letter of map amendment or a letter of map revision by: (1) providing the chief executive officer of each community affected by the change, by registered mail, a copy of the revised maps for such community and a statement explaining the process under this Act to appeal to the Director for changes in such revised maps; and (2) causing notice of such changes to be published in the Federal Register, and a statement explaining the process (under this Act) to appeal to the Director for changes in such revised maps. Allows a community affected by the change to appeal the change. Requires the Director: (1) during a 30-day period that begins upon the receipt of an objection, to determine whether to deny the objection, revise the changes to the panels in response to the objection, or to grant additional time to the community to obtain evidence related to the objection; and (2) to notify the chief executive of the community, in writing and by registered mail, of such determination. Requires the Director, not later than 30 days after any final determination as described by this Act, to provide written notification to each owner of real property affected by the change to panels resulting from such determination. Requires the Director, if an owner of real property affected by a change to panels incurs expense in connection with the services of surveyors, engineers, or similar services (but not legal services) in effecting any appeal of such change to the Director which is successful, to reimburse such individual for such expense. Amends the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to repeal the requirement for the publication or notification of proposed flood elevation determinations to require the Director, in establishing projected flood elevations for land use purposes for any community, to first propose such determinations by: (1) providing the chief executive officer of each community affected by the proposed elevations, by registered mail, notice of the elevations, including a copy of the maps and a statement explaining the process to appeal for changes in such elevations; (2) causing notice of such elevations to be published in the Federal Register, which shall include a statement explaining the process to appeal for changes in such elevations; and (3) publishing the elevations in a prominent local newspaper.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2000
Ryan White CARE Act Amendments of 2000 - Title I: Emergency Relief for Areas with Substantial Need for Services - Subtitle A: HIV Health Services Planning Councils - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require that an HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) planning council reflect the demographics of the population of individuals with HIV disease (currently, the demographics of the epidemic) in the eligible area involved. Modifies requirements regarding council composition, including requiring representatives of former prisoners. Requires that at least 33 percent of the council be people who: (1) are receiving HIV-related services pursuant to a grant under provisions relating to emergency relief for areas with a substantial need for services (substantial need grant); and (2) are not officers, employees, consultants, or representatives of any entity that receives substantial need grant amounts. (Sec. 102) Modifies council duties, including regarding: (1) determining the size, demographics, and needs of the HIV disease population; (2) council establishment of fund allocation priorities; and (3) coordination with Federal grantees that provide HIV-related services in the area. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) develop epidemiologic measures for establishing the number of individuals with HIV disease who are not receiving HIV-related health services and for carrying out council duties; and (2) provide to the chief elected official receiving a substantial need grant guidelines and materials for training council members regarding council duties. (Sec. 103) Requires that council meetings and records be open to the public, subject to exception. Subtitle B: Type and Distribution of Grants - Makes permanent provisions requiring expedited disbursement of certain substantial need grant amounts. Requires, after fiscal year 2004, that the substantial need grant amount formula use the number of cases of HIV disease in the most recent year rather than the number of cases of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) in the most recent ten years, but until FY 2007 conditions that change on the Secretary's determination that there is sufficiently accurate and reliable data on HIV disease cases from all eligible areas, requiring the Secretary to consider: (1) the findings of a study mandated by title V of this Act; (2) the fiscal impact of using or of not using that data; and (3) the impact of the use of that data on the organization and delivery of HIV-related services. Modifies requirements regarding increases in the amount of a substantial need grant under expedited disbursement provisions. (Sec. 112) Requires that the amount of supplemental substantial need grants be determined by the Secretary based on a weighting of specified factors, with severe need counting one-third. Includes the current HIV disease prevalence, an increasing need for services, and unmet need for services as factors the Secretary must consider in determining severe need. Directs the Secretary, in determining the required factors, to develop a mechanism to use national, quantitative incidence data by 18 months after enactment of this Act (currently, by May 20, 1998). Requires mechanism modification based on the findings of a study mandated by title V of this Act. Removes provisions basing the amount of substantial need grants on substantial need grant applications. Subtitle C: Other Provisions - Requires that substantial need grant funds be used, among other purposes, for: (1) outreach to identify individuals with HIV disease who are not receiving HIV-related services; and (2) early intervention services. Requires that substantial need grants be used to provide health and support services to infants, children, youth, and women (currently, infants, children, and women) with HIV disease in the same ratio as those groups with HIV disease bear to those groups in the general population. Requires that the chief elected official of a substantial need grant-receiving area establish a quality management program to assess whether HIV health services under the substantial need grant are consistent with the most recent Public Health Service guidelines. (Sec. 123) Requires that official to ensure that the area's planning council: (1) reviews existing, available data on expenditures by substantial need grant recipient entities from their overall budget for administrative costs; and (2) makes a determination whether the financial compensation of any of those entity's officers or employees exceeds that of the official. Title II: Care Grant Program - Subtitle A: General Grant Provisions - Requires that grants to States to improve the quality, availability and organization of health care and support services for individuals with HIV disease (care grants) be used to provide health and support services to infants, children, youth, and women (currently, infants, children, and women) with HIV disease in the same ratio as those groups with HIV disease bear to those groups in the general population. (Sec. 202) Allows care grants to be used for support services, outreach activities, early intervention, and quality management. (Sec. 203) Modifies requirements regarding grants to establish HIV care consortia. (Sec. 204) Allows a State to meet a requirement to use a portion of its care grant to provide therapeutics to treat HIV disease or prevent related health deterioration (including prevention and treatment of opportunistic infections) by paying for health insurance or plans whose coverage includes a full range of such therapeutics and primary care. (Sec. 205) Requires care grant applications to contain determinations of the size, demographics, and needs of the population of individuals with HIV disease in the State. Modifies requirements regarding the comprehensive plan. Requires the public health agency that administers care grants for a State to engage in a public advisory planning process. (Sec. 206) Doubles, subject to appropriations, the minimum care grant allotment to each State and U.S. territory. Requires, after fiscal year 2004, that the care grant amount formula use the number of cases of HIV disease in the most recent year rather than the number of cases of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) in the most recent ten years, but until FY 2007 conditions that change on the Secretary's determination that there is sufficiently accurate and reliable data on HIV disease cases. Provides for increases in the formula amount. Requires, if an appropriations Act provides an amount exclusively for treatment drug grants, that two percent of that exclusive amount be reserved for supplemental grants to States whose HIV population's need is greater than the quantities available under treatment drug grants from the remaining unreserved 98 percent. Adds the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau to the list of U.S. territories. Adds the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to the list of territories for minimum allotment provisions but keeps it in the list of States for other care grant provisions. (Sec. 207) Replaces provisions mandating coordination by specified Federal agencies of Federal HIV programs with provisions directing the Secretary to make grants to States to supplement care grants for comprehensive services for communities that have a severe need for supplemental financial assistance to combat the HIV epidemic. Provides for funding for the supplemental grants. Subtitle B: Provisions Concerning Pregnancy and Perinatal Transmission of HIV - Removes provisions prohibiting (after testing of pregnant women and newborns has become a routine practice in U.S. health care) care grants to a State unless the State meets certain requirements regarding such testing. (Sec. 212) Adds HIV disease treatment services to the uses for which the Secretary may make a grant to a State that is following the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) regarding HIV counseling and voluntary testing for pregnant women. Authorizes appropriations. Prohibits using care grant appropriations for grants under this section. (Sec. 213) Directs the Secretary to provide for a study and report to appropriate congressional committees regarding: (1) the number of newborns with HIV born in the United States in the most recent year for which the information is available; (2) barriers that prevent or discourage an obstetrician from routinely offering pregnant women an HIV test and routinely testing newborns when the mother's HIV status is unknown; and (3) recommendations for each State for reducing perinatal HIV transmission. Requires States to make reasonable progress toward meeting the recommendations. Subtitle C: Certain Partner Notification Programs - Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States for partner counseling and referral services, provided the State meets certain requirements regarding: (1) partner notification and (for the partner and the infected individual) testing, counseling, and referral; (2) health entity reporting of positive test results to the State; (3) reporting to the CDC regarding partner notification; and (4) State cooperation with the CDC national partner notification. Prohibits grants to a State after fiscal year 2003 unless the State's reporting system for HIV cases produces sufficiently accurate and reliable data. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Early Intervention Services - Subtitle A: Formula Grants for States - Repeals provisions mandating formula grants to States for outpatient early intervention services regarding HIV disease. Subtitle B: Categorical Grants - Requires giving preference to rural or underserved areas in making currently-authorized categorical grants for outpatient early intervention services. Allows planning grants to be used, subject to limitation, to assist the recipients to expand their capacity to provide services, including early intervention services, in low income communities and affected subpopulations that are underserved. Subtitle C: General Provisions - Requires that the counseling that categorical grant recipients are required to provide to HIV-infected individuals emphasize that it is the duty of infected individuals to disclose their status to their sexual and needle-sharing partners, provide advice on how to make the disclosures and emphasize that it is the infected individual's continuing duty to avoid behaviors that expose others to HIV. (Sec. 322) Increases the percentage limit on administrative expenses. Requires recipients to establish a quality management program to assess the extent to which medical services are consistent with Public Health Service guidelines for treatment of HIV disease and related opportunistic infections. Title IV: Other Programs and Activities - Subtitle A: Certain Programs for Research, Demonstrations, or Training - Replaces a requirement that, with regard to grants for providing opportunities for women, infants, children, and youth to participate in HIV research and for providing to those groups outpatient health care and additional services, that a significant number of individuals in those groups be participating in research with a requirement that the grant applicant demonstrate linkages to research and how access to research is being offered to patients. Directs the Secretary to examine the distribution and availability of research regarding grantees to enhance and expand HIV-related research, especially in underrepresented communities. Requires grantees to implement a quality management program. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 402) Includes, as a use of currently-authorized grants and contracts for training health personnel: (1) training in prenatal and other gynecological care for women with HIV disease; and (2) developing protocols for the medical care of such women. Directs the Secretary to implement a strategy for the dissemination of HIV treatment information to care providers and patients. Adds accredited dental hygiene programs as possible recipients of currently-authorized grants with respect to oral health care to (sic) patients with HIV disease. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes grants to dental schools, post-doctoral dental education programs, and accredited dental hygiene programs that partner with community-based dentists to provide care to HIV patients in underserved areas. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes appropriations for grants and contracts to assist public and nonprofit private entities and schools and academic health science centers to train health personnel, train faculty, and develop and disseminate curricula and resource materials regarding the care of HIV patients and prevention of HIV infection among at risk individuals. Subtitle B: General Provisions in Title XXVI - Extends the authorization of appropriations for grants and contracts to evaluate programs carried out under title XXVI of the Public Health Service Act (HIV Health Care Services Program). (Sec. 412) Authorizes appropriations for collecting and providing data for program planning and evaluation under title XXVI. (Sec. 413) Adds the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the Health Care Financing Administration to the list of agencies (currently, the Health Resources and Services Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) charged with coordinating the planning, funding, and implementation (currently, coordinating the planning of the funding) of Federal HIV programs to enhance continuity of care and prevention services (currently, continuity of care). Requires that State, local, or private entities receiving title XXVI funds enhance continuity of care and prevention services (currently, continuity of care). (Sec. 414) Directs the Secretary to develop and submit to Congress a plan for the medical case management of and the provision of support services to individuals who had HIV disease on their date of release from the Federal or State penal system. (Sec. 415) Authorizes the Secretary to reduce title XXVI grants to a State or political subdivision if the State or subdivision fails to prepare audits. (Sec. 416) Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop and submit to Congress a plan for coordinating the disbursement of appropriations for substantial need grants with the disbursement for care grants; (2) within two years after enactment of this Act, implement the disbursement plan, notwithstanding any title XXVI provision inconsistent with the plan; (3) determine whether administration of those grants by the Secretary and grantee compliance efficiency would be improved by requiring biennial rather than annual applications; (4) develop and submit to Congress a plan for simplifying the application process for those grants; and (5) within two years after enactment of this Act, implement the simplified application plan, notwithstanding any title XXVI provision inconsistent with the plan. (Sec. 417) Removes provisions directing the Secretary to develop and implement a method for adjusting the percentages allocated to substantial need grants and care grants to account for substantial need grants to new areas and other relevant factors. Authorizes appropriations for substantial need and care grants. Title V: General Provisions - Directs the Secretary to provide for studies, and report to the appropriate congressional committees, on: (1) whether the surveillance system of each State provides for the reporting of HIV infection cases in a way that provides information on the number and demographic characteristics of the cases that is sufficiently accurate for the formula grants under substantial need and care grant provisions and, if not, recommendations for improvements; and (2) the appropriate epidemiological measures and their relationship to the financing and delivery of primary care and health related support services for low income, uninsured, and underinsured individuals with HIV disease. (Sec. 502) Requires the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to expand, intensify, and coordinate research and other NIH activities regarding development of reliable and affordable HIV tests that can be rapidly administered and whose results can be rapidly obtained (rapid HIV tests). Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary: (1) to report to appropriate congressional committees on the progress made toward, and barriers to, the premarket review and commercial distribution of rapid HIV tests; and (2) promptly after rapid HIV test commercial distribution begins, to establish or update guidelines for States, hospitals, and other entities regarding the availability of those tests for administration to pregnant women in labor or late stage pregnancy and whose HIV status is unknown. (Sec. 503) Directs the Secretary, of the amounts available to the Secretary for program management at the Health Resources and Services Administration, to spend amounts necessary to ensure at least a 20 percent increase in fiscal year 2001 over fiscal year 2000 of full- time-equivalent staff of the Bureau of HIV/AIDS who administer programs under title XXVI. Title VI: Effective Date - Sets forth the effective dates for this Act and its amendments.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2000
Comprehensive Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to: (1) implement the oil and gas pipeline safety improvement recommendations provided for in the Department of Transportation (DOT) Inspector General's Report (RT-2000-069); and (2) report every 90 days to specified congressional committees on the specific actions taken to implement them. Requires the DOT Inspector General to assess periodically for the same committees the Secretary's progress in doing so. (Sec. 3) Directs the Secretary, the Administrator of Research and Special Program Administration, and the Director of the Office of Pipeline Safety to: (1) comply fully with certain Federal transportation law requirements to ensure timely responsiveness to National Transportation Safety Board recommendations about pipeline safety; (2) make a copy of each recommendation on pipeline safety and response available to the public over the Internet without charge or otherwise at a reasonable cost; and (3) review and publish the results of General Accounting Office report number GAO-RCED-00-128. (Sec. 4) Requires each pipeline operator, or, in the case of an intrastate pipeline facility operator, the appropriate State regulatory agency, to submit to the Secretary a plan designed to enhance the qualifications of pipeline personnel and reduce the likelihood of accidents and injuries. (Sec. 5) Requires the Secretary to issue regulations requiring: (1) natural gas pipeline operators to conduct periodic assessment of facility integrity; and (2) hazardous liquid pipeline operators to periodically determine the adequacy of pipelines to operate safely in unusually sensitive areas and high-density population areas; and (3) perform periodic inspections or tests capable of identifying corrosion, mechanical damage, or other structural or operational defects that could be detrimental to safety and the environment. (Sec. 6) Amends Federal transportation law to grant shutdown authority to the Secretary, or, in the case of an intrastate pipeline facility operator, to the appropriate State regulatory agency, to take necessary action to prevent the operation for 30 days (including additional 30-day periods) of any hazardous liquid or natural gas pipeline whose continuing operation creates an imminent safety hazard to persons, property, or the environment. (Sec. 7) Revises the public education program requirements for gas pipeline facility owners or operators, including specified items. Applies such requirements to owners or operators of a hazardous liquid pipeline facility. Requires an operator of a gas transmission or hazardous liquid pipeline facility to initiate and maintain liaison with the State emergency response commissions, and local emergency planning committees (or local fire, police, and other emergency response agencies in the absence of a committee) in the areas of pipeline right-of-way, established under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act of 1986 in each State in which it operates. Requires the owner or operator of each gas or hazardous liquid pipeline facility to provide annually to the governing body of each municipality in which the pipeline facility is located a map identifying the facility's location. Requires the Secretary to designate the Regional Emergency Transportation Coordinator with the responsibility of defining the in-vehicle navigation mapping standards and contracting the outsource mapping vendor, which can provide the most cost effective first responder mapping tool, for coordinated emergency responses, in the geographic area. Requires the owner or operator of each gas or hazardous liquid pipeline facility to: (1) provide a public safety and public education program annually to the governing body of each municipality in which the pipeline facility is located; and (2) notify annually all residents within 1,000 yards (or other appropriate distance) of the facility of its general location and certain other information, including appropriate procedures for such residents to follow in response to accidents concerning such facilities. (Sec. 8) Increases from $25,000 to $100,000 the civil penalty for each facility operator failure to: (1) mark accurately the location of pipeline facilities in the vicinity of a demolition, excavation, tunneling, or construction; or (2) comply with safety standards, prepare and carry out an inspection and maintenance plan, allow access to records, or allow required entries or inspections. Increases the maximum civil penalty for a related series of violations to $1 million. Authorizes a court to award temporary or permanent injunctive relief and to assess civil penalties in a civil action brought by the Attorney General to enforce pipeline safety law. Establishes civil penalties for hazardous liquid pipeline discharges, including gross negligence or willful misconduct. (Sec. 9) Authorizes the Secretary, if a State pipeline safety program certification is accepted, to make an agreement with a State authority authorizing it to participate in the activities of interstate pipeline transportation, including a plan for the State authority to participate in additional inspections and special investigations involving new construction or incidents, as well as (subject to specified requirements) other activities involving interstate pipeline transportation consistent with the Secretary's program and that address issues of local concern. Allows the Secretary to end an agreement for the oversight of interstate pipeline transportation when the State authority has not complied with any provision of the agreement. Requires the Secretary to end such an agreement when: (1) significant gaps are found in the State authority's responsibilities for oversight of intrastate pipeline transportation; (2) the State actions under the agreement have failed to meet certain requirements; or (3) continued oversight participation by the State authority is not promoting pipeline safety. Requires the Secretary to continue specified interstate agent agreements. (Sec. 10) Directs the Secretary to develop and implement a comprehensive plan for the collection and use of gas and hazardous liquid pipeline data to revise the causal categories on the accident report forms to eliminate overlapping and confusing categories and include subcategories. Requires the plan to include components to provide the capability to perform sound accident trend analysis and evaluations of pipeline operator performance using normalized accident data. Requires any owner or operator of a hazardous liquid pipeline facility to report to the Secretary each release to the environment greater than five gallons of the hazardous liquid or carbon dioxide. (Sec. 11) Requires the Secretary, as part of the DOT research and development program, to direct research attention to the development of alternative technologies: (1) to expand the defect detection capabilities of internal inspection devices; (2) to inspect pipelines that cannot accommodate internal inspection devices available on the date of enactment; and (3) to develop innovative techniques measuring the structural integrity of pipelines. (Sec. 12) Authorizes appropriations with respect to gas and hazardous liquid and State grants. Requires the transfer of specified amounts from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund to carry out authorized programs. (Sec. 13) Authorizes the Secretary to study how best to preserve environmental resources in conjunction with maintaining pipeline rights-of-way. (Sec. 14) Directs the Secretary to designate one or more States the Governor of each of which may establish a self-governing Regional Advisory Council to: (1) advise the Secretary and the Governor on policies, permits, regulations, and standards relating to hazardous liquid pipeline facilities which affect or may affect that State's environment; (2) monitor the environmental impacts of the facility operations; (3) review the adequacy of the integrity management plan and spill prevention and contingency plans developed by each hazardous liquid pipeline operator; (4) monitor developments in pipeline spill prevention, leak detection, pipeline inspection, operator training, spill containment, response, and cleanup technology; and (5) perform other specified related duties. (Sec. 15) Sets forth whistle blower protections prohibiting discrimination against facility employees who: (1) perform or refuse to perform certain acts related to pipeline safety or environmental protection; or (2) testify in Federal or State proceedings regarding compliance with pipeline safety or environmental protection requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2000
Recognizes the 60th anniversary of the U.S. nonrecognition policy of the Soviet takeover of the Baltic states and the contribution that policy made in supporting the aspirations of the people of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania to reassert their freedom and independence. Commends Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania for the reestablishment of their independence and the role they played in the disintegration of the former Soviet Union in 1990 and 1991, and for their success in implementing political and economic reforms. Expresses support for regional cooperation in Northern Europe among the Baltic and Nordic states and the Russian Federation. Calls for further cooperation in addressing common environmental, law enforcement, and public health problems, and in promoting civil society and business and trade development, and similar efforts that promote a peaceful, democratic, prosperous, and secure future for Europe, Russia and the Nordic-Baltic region.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2000
Medicare Guaranteed and Defined Rx Benefit and Health Provider Relief Act of 2000 - Title I: Medicare Prescription Medicine Benefit Program - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to add a new part D (Prescription Medicine Benefit for the Aged and Disabled) which establishes a voluntary insurance program to provide defined prescription medicine benefits, including pharmacy services, for eligible individuals who are aged or disabled or who have end-stage renal disease, and who voluntarily elect to enroll. States that the program shall be financed from enrollee premium payments together with contributions from funds appropriated by the Federal Government. (Sec. 101) Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to submit to Congress a legislative proposal for: (1) the delivery of home infusion therapy services under Medicare; and (2) a system of payment for such a benefit that coordinates items and services furnished under Medicare parts B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) and D. Creates within the Federal Supplemental Medical Insurance Trust Fund the Prescription Medicine Insurance Account. Directs the Secretary to provide for administration of part D benefits through a private benefit administrator for certain enrolled individuals residing in each geographic service area or, where that is impossible, with a fiscal intermediary under Medicare part A (Hospital Insurance) or a carrier under Medicare part B. Requires the Secretary to: (1) ensure that all beneficiaries have guaranteed access to the full range of pharmaceuticals under part D, with special attention to access, pharmacist counseling, and delivery in rural and hard-to-serve areas, including use of incentives such as bonus payments to retail pharmacists in rural areas and extra payments to the benefit administrator for the cost of rapid delivery of pharmaceuticals; and (2) develop and implement the Employer Incentive Program that encourages employers and other sponsors of employment-based health care coverage who meet specified requirements to provide adequate prescription medicine benefits to retired individuals, and maintain existing benefit programs, by subsidizing, in part, the cost of providing coverage under qualifying plans. Provides for part D enrollment for individuals whose employment-based retiree health coverage ends under certain conditions. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 102) Amends SSA title XIX (Medicaid), with regard to the prescription medicine benefit for certain low-income individuals, to provide for coverage of part D premiums as medical assistance for individuals dually eligible for other SSA assistance or for other medical care. Requires State Medicaid plans to provide that, in the case of any individual whose eligibility for medical assistance is not limited to Medicare or Medicare medicine cost-sharing, and for whom the State elects to pay monthly premiums under part D, the State will purchase all prescription medicines for such individual in accordance with the provisions part D, without regard to whether the basic benefit limitation for such individual has been reached. Requires Government payment of Medicare medicine cost-sharing for qualified Medicare beneficiaries and for Medicare beneficiaries with incomes between 100 and 150 percent of the Federal poverty line. Amends SSA title XVIII part D to outline special eligibility, enrollment, and copayment rules for low-income individuals, which include options for continuation of Medicaid coverage or enrollment under such part. (Sec. 103) Provides that if the mid-summer 2000 budget estimate prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office results in a higher-than-projected level of projected on-budget surplus over the ten fiscal year period beginning with FY 2001, there shall be (beginning with FY 2003) transfers to the Prescription Medicine Insurance Account in a fiscal year to offset the costs attributable to provisions added to Medicare by this Act that relate to catastrophic benefit payments in that fiscal year. (Sec. 104) Directs the Comptroller General of the United States to analyze and report to Congress on an ongoing basis about the part D prescription medicine benefit program. Directs the Secretary to: (1) report to Congress on possible tax and trade law changes to encourage increased original research on new pharmaceutical breakthrough products designed to address disease and illness; (2) study and report to Congress on methods used by the pharmaceutical industry to advertise and sell to consumers and to educate and sell to providers; and (3) study and report to Congress on the costs of, and needs for, pharmaceutical research, and the role that the taxpayer provides in encouraging such research. Requires the Secretary to report to Congress on the retail price of major pharmaceutical products in various developed nations, compared to prices for the same or similar products in the United States. Title II: Improvement In Beneficiary Services - Subtitle A: Improvement of Medicare Coverage and Appeals Process - Amends SSA title XVIII to revise requirements with respect to Medicare determinations and appeals, including initial determinations, expedited determinations, and publication on the Internet of decisions of hearings of the Secretary. (Sec. 201) Amends SSA title XVIII part C (Medicare+Choice) to apply the limitations on liability of qualified independent contractors to certain Medicare+Choice independent contractors who conduct reconsiderations of initial determinations. (Sec. 202) Amends SSA title XVIII to limit the liability of beneficiaries for repayment with respect to Medicare claims not paid or paid incorrectly. Includes in the explanation of Medicare benefits statement lists of each item or service furnished and the amount of the individual's liability for payment, as well as the toll-free telephone number for information and questions concerning the statement, individual liability for payment, and appeal rights. (Sec. 203) Amends SSA title XI to revise the meaning of waiver of coinsurance and deductible amounts (excluded from the meaning of unlawful remuneration subject to civil monetary penalties) to include a waiver offered as part of a supplemental insurance policy or retiree health plan. Subtitle B: Establishment of Medicare Ombudsman - Establishes a Medicare Ombudsman within the Health Care Financing Administration of the HHS Department to: (1) receive complaints, grievances, and requests for information submitted by a Medicare beneficiary concerning the Medicare program; and (2) provide assistance with respect to such complaints, grievances, and requests. Title III: Medicare+Choice Reforms; Preservation of Medicare Part B Drug Benefit - Subtitle A: Medicare+Choice Reforms - Amends SSA title XVIII part C with regard to calculation of annual Medicare+Choice capitation rates to: (1) reduce the national per capita Medicare+Choice growth percentage for 2001 and 2002; (2) remove permanently application of budget neutrality beginning in 2002; (3) increase the minimum payment amount for 2002; (4) increase the update for payment areas with only one or no Medicare+Choice contracts; and (5) permit higher negotiated rates in certain Medicare+Choice payment areas below the national average. (Sec. 307) Amends SSA title XVIII part C to provide for a ten year phase-in of the risk adjustment to the capitation rate based on data from all settings. Subtitle B: Preservation of Medicare Coverage of Drugs and Biologicals - Amends SSA title XVIII to: (1) cover under Medicare part B injectable and infusable drugs and biologicals which are not usually self-administered by the patient (currently only drugs and biologicals which cannot be self-administered are covered under Medicare part B); and (2) revise Medicare coverage for immunosuppressive drugs, establishing a part D catastrophic limit on part B copayments for such drugs. Subtitle C: Improvement of Certain Preventive Benefits - Amends SSA title XVIII to allow coverage of annual screening pap smear and pelvic exams. Title IV: Adjustments to Payment Provisions of the Balanced Budget Act - Subtitle A: Payments for Inpatient Hospital Services - Amends SSA title XVIII to eliminate the reduction in the hospital market basket update for FY 2001. (Sec. 402) Eliminates specified further reductions in indirect medical education (IME) and in disproportionate share hospital (DSH) payments (and freezes Medicaid DSH payments) for FY 2001. (Sec. 404) Revises the formula for the increase in base payment to certain Puerto Rico hospitals for inpatient hospital discharges. Subtitle B: Payments for Skilled Nursing Services - Amends SSA title XVIII to eliminate the reduction in the skilled nursing facility (SNF) market basket update for FY 2001. (Sec. 412) Extends through 2002 the moratorium on therapy caps. Subtitle C: Payments for Home Health Services - Amends SSA title XVIII to delay for one more year the application of the 15 percent reduction on payment limits for home health services. (Sec. 422) Applies the full market basket update for home health services for FY 2001. Subtitle D: Rural Provider Provisions - Amends SSA title XVIII to eliminate the scheduled reduction in hospital outpatient market basket increase for rural hospitals in 2001 and 2002. Subtitle E: Other Providers - Amends SSA title XVIII to increase the update in the renal dialysis composite rate. Subtitle F: Provision for Additional Adjustments - Provides for specified aggregate amounts from estimated Social Security surpluses for the five fiscal year and ten fiscal year periods beginning in FY 2001 for additional improvements to the Medicare and Medicaid programs and payments to providers.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2000
Lower Gasoline Prices through Technology Access Act of 2000 - Amends the Clean Air Act to authorize the licensing of patents in cases where a right to a patent is necessary to comply with provisions regarding the regulation of fuels.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2000
National and Community Service Amendments Act of 2000 - Title I: Amendments to National and Community Service Act of 1990 - Amends the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (NCSA) to reauthorize and revise various programs. (Sec. 103) Revises provisions for school-based and community-based service-learning programs to: (1) include Indian tribes as qualified organizations for program participation; and (2) eliminate a requirement that the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) give priority to grant applications containing specified proposals. (Sec. 104) Revises provisions for the national service trust program to: (1) eliminate provisions authorizing CNCS to transfer funds to another Federal agency to support a national service program; (2) limit the CNCS's share of the aggregate cost of national service positions, through a formula based on a specified amount per participant; (3) eliminate Federal agency positions from eligibility for approval for national service positions or educational awards; (4) establish a State minimum for national service grant awards; (5) provide for grants to increase the participation of individuals with disabilities, and for demonstration programs of outreach to such individuals; (6) reserve certain funds to support programs reducing CNCS costs; and (7) modify provisions relating to participant performance, selection, terms of service, and living allowances. (Sec. 105) Revises provisions for the national service trust to include, as an allowable use of trust funds, national service scholarships (under the program established by this Act). Makes expenditures from the trust available for interest payments during forbearance on loan repayment and for national service scholarship awards. Provides that a prohibition against using the educational award to pay off loans made to parents also applies to loans made to parents under the direct student loan program. Allows educational awards to be used to pay off private or State loans. Permits the trust to be used to support a national service scholarship program to recognize secondary school juniors and seniors engaged in community service activities. (Sec. 106)Authorizes the Director of the Civilian Community Corps (CCC) to select individuals with prior supervisory or service experience to be team leaders. Requires team leaders to be selected without regard to a specified age limitation. Revises authorized benefits for CCC members. (Sec. 107) Repeals the authority of State commissions and any division of CNCS to enter into agreements for coordinating functions. (Sec. 108) Eliminates a provision relating to staggered terms for CNS board members. Allows appointed board members whose terms have expired to continue to serve for a specified limited period. Authorizes the chief executive officer (CEO) of CNCS to enter into agreements with other agencies to carry out activities to implement national service laws. (Sec. 109) Authorizes the CEO of CNCS to serve as an ex officio, nonvoting member of the board of directors of the Points of Light Foundation. (Sec. 110) Extends through FY 2005 the authorization of appropriations for programs under NCSA. Title II: Amendments to the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 - Amends the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (DVSA) to reauthorize and revise: (1) title I National Volunteer Antipoverty Programs, part A Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) including VISTA Literacy Corps, part B University Year for VISTA, part C Special Volunteer Programs including literacy challenge grants; and (2) title II National Senior Service Corps (currently National Senior Volunteer Corps), part A Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), part B Foster Grandparent Program (FGP), and part C Senior Companion Program (SCP). (Sec. 203) Includes as a VISTA objective the encouragement of supportive efforts by local agencies and organizations to achieve long-term sustainability of programs in the absence of Federal assistance. Encourages the VISTA Director to enter into agreements under which public agencies and private organizations pay all or part of the direct cost of supporting volunteers. Authorizes the VISTA Director to provide a stipend of a maximum of $200 per month to individuals designated as volunteer leaders. (Sec. 204) Renames the National Senior Volunteer Corps as the National Senior Service Corps (NSSC). Eliminates the priority for enrolling individuals age 60 and older (but continues to allow individuals age 55 and older to enroll). Allows individuals age 55 (currently 60) or older to enroll in FGP, but gives priority to enrolling individuals age 60 or older. Requires any stipend under FGP to be at least $2.55 per hour and be adjusted for inflation once prior September 30, 2005. Allows individuals age 55 (currently 60) or older to enroll in SCP, but gives priority to enrolling individuals age 60 or older. Requires the SCP Director spend certain amounts each year to promote SCP. Prohibits awarding national significance grants for RSVP, FGP, or SCP unless the appropriated allocation for each program exceeds the appropriated allocations for each of the two preceding years. (Sec. 206) Extends through 2005 the authorization of appropriations for programs under DVSA. Title III: Technical Amendments to Other Laws - Revises references and makes other technical and conforming amendments to various other Federal laws.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2000
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) each year should begin with a day of peace and sharing during which people around the world should gather with family, friends, neighbors, their faith community, or people of another culture to pledge nonviolence in the new year and to share in a celebratory new year meal; and (2) Americans who are able should match or multiply the cost of their new year meal with a timely gift to the hungry.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 2000
Community Economic Adjustment Act of 2000 - Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to establish in the Economic Development Administration (EDA) an Office of Community Economic Adjustment to coordinate the Federal Government's response to communities experiencing sudden economic distress caused by a loss of jobs due to plant closures, significant layoffs, or significant relocation of jobs to other communities for any reason, including shifting patterns in international trade, natural disasters, or other problems, by: (1) identifying relevant programs and resources to ensure that communities are aware of all available Federal resources that complement or support state and local resources and programs; (2) working with specified departments and agencies to ensure that communities receive Federal assistance in a targeted, integrated manner; and (3) assigning a project manager to work with an affected community. Directs such Office to: (1) provide technical assistance, planning grants, and other assistance to help communities organize themselves, develop, and carry out economic adjustment strategies for replacing industry and jobs that have been lost or are threatened by the economic downturn; and (2) help eligible applicants in completing applications for other assistance that may be useful in alleviating the economic distress in such communities. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2001 through 2005 for community adjustment assistance under the economic adjustment program of the EDA, including specified amounts for such Office and for communities successfully completing planning grants to implement their approved plans.
![Official portrait of Rep. Kucinich, Dennis J. [D-OH-10]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/k000336_200.jpg)