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Official portrait of Rep. Lehman, William [D-FL-17]

Rep. Lehman, William [D-FL-17]

United States · Official source

Memberships

  • · House of Representatives · present
  • D · D · present

Votes

No stored named vote for this person. House roll-calls come from Congress.gov; Senate member lists come from senate.gov LIS XML.

Amendment· HAMDTHAMDT 413 (99th)open

Amendments en bloc to make the following reductions: FAA, Operations from $644,000,000 to $548,000,000, Grants-In Aid from $1,000,000,000 to $925,000,000; FHA, Federal-Aid Highways from $13,800,000,000 to $13,250,000,000, rescinds $8,000,000,000 provided for ConRail Retirement Fund; National Railroad Passenger Association from $616,000,000 to $603,500,000; Urban Mass Transportation Association, Formula Grants from $2,449,500,000 to $2,210,000,000, Discretionary Grants from $1,100,000,000 to $1,010,000,000, Interstate Transfer Grants from $250,000,000 to $237,500,000, Washington Metro from $250,000,000 to $237,500,000, Los Angeles-San Fernando Valley-Rail 1986 from $130,000,000 to $117,000,000.

United States · United States Congress

Bill· HRH.R. 6039 (102nd)referred

Wind Engineering Research Program Act of 1992

United States · United States Congress · 25 September 1992

Wind Engineering Research Program Act of 1992 - Establishes within the National Institute of Standards and Technology (Institute) a Wind Engineering Program which shall: (1) provide for wind engineering research; (2) serve as an information clearinghouse; and (3) improve interagency coordination on wind engineering research. Authorizes Institute appropriations for purposes of this Act, of which at least 50 percent shall be used for interagency wind research cooperative agreements.

Bill· HRH.R. 6028 (102nd)referred

Save Florida Bay Act of 1992

United States · United States Congress · 24 September 1992

Save Florida Bay Act of 1992 - Requires the Chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality to establish and coordinate an interagency committee to develop a program for facilitating the restoration of Florida Bay and to define the roles and responsibilities of each agency in facilitating that restoration. Declares that it is the sense of the Congress that the Chairman should include Florida Bay in the Coastal America program. Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to add Florida Bay, Florida, to the list of areas mandated for priority consideration as an estuary of national significance. Mandates a study of Florida Bay problems, including those from Hurricane Andrew. Authorizes appropriations.

Bill· HRH.R. 5973 (102nd)referred

Family Investment Act of 1992

United States · United States Congress · 17 September 1992

Family Investment Act of 1992 - Title I: Family and Medical Leave - Subtitle A: Short Title; Findings and Purposes - Family and Medical Leave Act of 1992 - Sets forth the short title of this title I, along with findings and purposes. Subtitle B: General Requirements for Leave - Establishes certain requirements for family and medical leave for permanent employees. Makes employees eligible for such leave if they have been employed, by the employer from whom leave is sought, for at least: (1) a total of 12 months; and (2) 1,250 hours of service during the previous 12-month period. (Excludes from such coverage: (1) employees at worksites at which the employer employs less than 50 persons, if the total number of employees of that employer within 75 miles of that worksite is less than 50; and (2) Federal officers and employees covered under subtitle C of this title.) Entitles employees to 12 workweeks of leave during any 12-month period because of: (1) the birth and care of their child; (2) the placement of a child for their adoption or foster care; (3) their care of a child, spouse, or parent who has a serious health condition; or (4) their own serious health condition which makes them unable to perform the functions of their position. Conditions such leave for the birth or placement of a child as follows: (1) the entitlement ends 12 months after the birth or placement; (2) such leave may not be taken intermittently unless employee and employer agree otherwise. Allows intermittent leave for necessary medical treatment of an employee or family member. Allows the employer to require a temporary transfer to an equivalent alternative position that better accommodates such intermittent leave. Allows all leave to which an employee is entitled under this subtitle: (1) to be taken on a reduced leave schedule, upon agreement with the employer; and (2) to consist of unpaid leave, except under specified conditions when substitution of certain types of paid leave may be elected or required. Declares that nothing in this Act shall require an employer to provide paid sick or medical leave in any situation in which the employer would not normally provide any such paid leave. Requires employees to: (1) give at least 30 days' notice of the need for leave to which they are entitled under this Act, when foreseeable; and (2) make a reasonable effort to schedule medical treatment or supervision so as not to disrupt unduly the employer's operations, subject to approval of the health care provider. Allows limitation of the dual aggregate leave entitlement to 12 weeks in any 12-month period, in the case of spouses employed by the same employer, if such leave is for the birth or placement of a child or for the care of a sick parent. Sets forth conditions of certification for leave entitlements under this title, including provisions relating to: (1) sufficient certification; (2) explanation of inability to perform job functions; (3) dates and duration of planned medical treatment in the case of intermittent leave; (4) second opinion; (5) resolution of conflicting opinions; and (6) subsequent recertification. Sets forth employment and benefits protections relating to leave entitlements under this title. Requires restoration of the employee to his or her position or an equivalent position upon return from such leave. Allows an employer to deny such restoration to certain highly compensated employees (i.e. those among the highest paid ten percent of the employer's employees within 75 miles of the facility at which the employee works), under specified conditions, if necessary to prevent substantial and grievous economic injury to the employer's operations. Requires maintenance of employee health benefits during such leave. Allows the employer to recover premiums paid for such coverage if the employee fails to return to work after the leave period has expired for reasons other than a certified serious health condition or other circumstances beyond the employee's control. Prohibits employers or other persons from: (1) interfering with employee rights under this title; or (2) from discriminating against any individual because of participation in proceedings or inquiries under this subtitle, or because the individual opposes any practice made unlawful by this subtitle. Sets forth the investigative authority of the Secretary of Labor (the Secretary) under this subtitle. Provides for enforcement of this title. Provides for administrative action by the Secretary to resolve complaints of violations under this subtitle in the same manner as under specified provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. Provides for civil actions by employees, and by the Secretary on their behalf. Makes an employer who violates this subtitle's prohibitions against interfering with employee exercise of rights or discriminating against employees liable for damages in the amount of: (1) any wages, salary, employment benefits, or other compensation denied or lost to the employee by reason of the violation; (2) (in any case where such compensation has not been denied or lost) any actual monetary losses sustained by the employee as a direct result of the violation, such as the cost of providing care, up to the amount of 12 weeks' wages or salary; (3) interest on such losses; and (4) an additional amount of liquidated damages equal to the sum of such losses and the interest (except that the court may reduce or eliminate such additional liquidated damages in cases where the employer can show good faith and reasonable grounds for believing that the act or omission was not a violation). Makes such employers also liable for appropriate equitable relief, including, without limitation, employment, reinstatement, and promotion. Requires the court to allow attorney's fees and other costs of the action to be paid by the defendant in addition to any judgment awarded to the plaintiff. Sets forth provisions for limitations of such civil actions. Sets forth provisions for action for injunction by the Secretary. Sets forth special rules concerning employees of local educational agencies and of private elementary and secondary schools, including provisions relating to intermittent leave for instructional employees, periods near the completion of an academic term, and reduction of liability. Requires employers to post notice of the pertinent provisions of this subtitle. Requires fines for willful violations of such requirement. Directs the Secretary of Labor to prescribe regulations to carry out this subtitle. Subtitle C: Leave for Civil Service Employees - Amends specified Federal law to entitle civil service employees to family and temporary medical leave for specified periods. Makes such employees eligible for such leave if they have been employed by an employing agency for at least 12 months on other than a temporary or intermittent basis. Allows such employees up to 12 administrative workweeks in any 12-month period for: (1) family leave (i.e., leave because of the birth or placement of a child or care of a sick spouse, child, or parent), but such leave may not be used at a time more than 12 months after such birth or placement; or (2) temporary medical leave for a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of their position. Provides that such leave shall be without pay. Allows employees to substitute other types of paid leave for any part of such leave. Sets forth requirements for employees to give prior notice of the need for such leave, when foreseeable, and to schedule medical treatments, if possible, so as to not unduly disrupt the employing agency's operations. Sets forth certification provisions. Provides for protection for job position and health insurance benefits of employees using such leave. Sets forth prohibitions against coercion. Requires the Office of Personnel Management to prescribe regulations for administration of this title which are consistent with the regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Labor under subtitle B of this title. Subtitle D: Commission on Leave - Establishes the Commission on Leave. Requires the Commission to conduct a comprehensive study of: (1) existing and proposed policies relating to leave; (2) the potential costs, benefits, and impact on productivity of such policies on employers; and (3) alternative and equivalent State enforcement of this title with respect to employees of local educational agencies and private schools. Requires the Commission to report on such study to the Congress within two years after the Commission first meets. Terminates the Commission within 30 days after its report to the Congress. Subtitle E: Miscellaneous Provisions - Sets forth the effect of this title on other laws and existing employment benefits. Provides that nothing in this title shall be construed to discourage employers from adopting more generous leave policies. Directs the Secretary of Labor to prescribe regulations to carry out this subtitle within 60 days. Subtitle F: Coverage of Congressional Employees - Applies the rights and protections established under specified provisions of subtitle B of this title to Senate employees and any employing office of the Senate. Makes specified provisions of the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991 applicable, with certain exceptions including limitations on the period for requests for counseling. Provides that allegations shall be considered by the Office of Senate Fair Employment Practices or another entity designated by the Senate. Requires such Office to ensure that Senate employees are informed of their rights under this title. Applies the rights and protections under subtitle B of this title to employees of the House of Representatives, except for the exemption concerning highly compensated employees. Requires that the remedies and procedures under the Fair Employment Practices Resolution be applied in administering such coverage. Title II: Head Start, Child Immunization, and WIC Programs as Emergency Funding for Budget Purposes - Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to treat as emergency funding requirements not subject to discretionary spending limits the costs of carrying out Head Start programs under the Head Start Act, child immunizations under the Public Health Service Act, and the special supplemental food program (WIC) under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966. Title III: Parents as Teachers - Parents as Teachers: the Family Involvement in Education Act of 1992 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to establish a Parents as Teachers program. Authorizes the Secretary of Education (the Secretary) to make grants to States for parents as teachers programs, with special consideration for hard-to-serve populations. Makes eligible for such a grant any State which operates a parents as teachers program associated with the Parents as Teachers National Center in Missouri. Sets forth program requirements, limiting services to families during the period from the last three months of a mother's pregnancy to the child's attaining age three. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish a Parents as Teachers National Center for information dissemination and technical and training assistance for States with such programs; and (2) evaluate such programs within four years. Provides for a declining Federal share in such program from 100 percent in the first year to 25 percent in the fifth year. Authorizes appropriations. Title IV: Family Preservation - Subtitle A: References to Social Security Act - States that, except as otherwise expressly provided, all amendments in this title are to the Social Security Act. Subtitle B: Child Welfare Services - Amends part B (Child Welfare Services) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to create an entitlement program for specialized child welfare services designed to keep together or reunify families in crises due to substance abuse, and prevent the need for placement in foster care. Repeals provisions for incentive payments to States which maintain a foster care inventory, information system, and case review system; but requires States to provide such protections and other services designed to keep families together or reunify them, or to place children for adoption, with a legal guardian, or in some other planned, permanent living arrangement. Requires States to submit the following types of reports on child welfare services and expenditures: (1) pre-expenditure reports; (2) post-expenditure reports; and (3) comparative financial contributions reports. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to transmit annually to specified congressional committees a summary of the information in such contributions reports. Reserves funds for entitlement grants to State court systems to assess and improve procedures in child welfare cases, in carrying out SSA title IV parts B and E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance). Sets forth application requirements and formulas for determining the amount of such grants for FY 1994 through 1998. Directs the Secretary to submit interim and final reports to the Congress on the information obtained from assessments conducted with such grants and the impact of such grant program on State court procedures and functions. Requires each State to compile biennially a detailed directory of programs designed to keep families together or reunify them or place children permanenty, identifying which of such programs provides specialized child welfare services to families in crisis due to substance abuse. Requires State part B plans to contain a description of the measures taken by the State to comply with the Indian Child Welfare Act. Subtitle C: Foster Care and Adoption Assistance - Amends SSA title IV to add a new part C, Comprehensive Service Projects to grant States the flexibility and resources to develop comprehensive and coordinated services designed to: (1) preserve and strengthen families with children at risk of placement outside their homes; (2) reunite children with their families expeditiously if an out-of-home placement is found to be necessary; and (3) place children in adoptive homes or other permanent arrangements in a timely fashion if reunification with their families is not appropriate. Permits any State to apply to the Secretary for permission to: (1) conduct a comprehensive service project in a selected area or areas; and (2) suspend certain child welfare services and foster care and adoption assistance requirements with respect to State activities in such area or areas during the project. Sets forth: (1) application requirements and administrative provisions for such projects; (2) requirements with which such a project must comply; (3) provisions for determining project grant amounts; and (4) requirements for notification to States of such amounts, and for grant payments in equal quarterly installments. Places restrictions on the manner in which a State may carry out such projects. Requires States to report annually on funds expended under such projects to the Secretary and the Advisory Commission on Children and Families. Provides for project termination. Permits foster care and adoption assistance payments to be made in certain cases involving abandoned children and children whose adoption has been set aside by a court. Makes technical changes in the foster care maintenance and adoption assistance programs with respect to the removal from home requirement. Gives States the option of providing for respite care for foster parents with children who have special needs. Expands the definition of children with special needs for purposes of the adoption assistance program. Requires each States to submit to the Secretary the factors and conditions it uses to identify children with special needs, for purpsoes of such program, and any modifications to such factors and conditions. Directs the Secretary to establish an Advisory Committee on Foster Care Placement to study and report to the Secretary and the Congress on reasonable efforts requirements under State part E plan provisions. Covers specified percentages of State costs in developing, installing, and operating statewide mechanized data collection and information retrieval systems which: (1) the Secretary determines are likely to enhance the administrations of programs under parts B and E; and (2) meet other specified requirements. Requires State part E plans to provide for: (1) a triennial review of the amounts paid as foster care maintenance payments and adoption assistance to assure their continuing appropriateness; and (2) a report to the Secretary on the results. Requires that the dispositional hearing to determine the final status of a foster child occur within 12 months of his or her original placement, rather than the current 18 months. Revises: (1) the definition of "case review system"; and (2) the time frame for judicial determinations on voluntary placements. Sets forth case plan requirements for placement of children in out-of-State foster care. Requires annual review of the status of children in out-of-State foster care placements with the child present, except under certain circumstances. Requires States to collect data on the numbers of children in out-of-State foster care placements. Requires a State, in order to receive payments for expenditures after FY 1994 for foster care maintenance payments with respect to children placed in foster care outside the State, to conduct and submit to the Secretary a study identifying the number and common characteristics of such children and the reason why they were not placed in foster care in the State. Permits States to allow foster children making the transition from foster care to independent living to accumulate assets for the purpose of establishing a household. Eliminates: (1) the ceilings on Federal foster care payments to States; and (2) the States' authority to transfer unused foster care funds to the Child Welfare Services program. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish an advisory committee; and (2) after consultation with it, issue final regulations for training of staff of agencies responsible for administering foster care and adoption assistance programs and for training of foster and adoptive parents. Directs the Secretary to publish annually information, on a State-by-State basis, on expenditures for, and the operations of, the Child Welfare Services program, the Foster Care and Adoption Assistance program, and Comprehensive Service Projects. Amends SSA title IV to add a new part G, Child Welfare Review System, under which the Secretary is required to: (1) establish a new system for reviewing State child welfare program compliance with SSA requirements; and (2) take certain actions in cases of noncompliance, which include imposing financial penalties. Subtitle D: Social Services Block Grant - Amends SSA title XX (Block Grants to States for Social Services) to authorize increased appropriations under such grant program. Provides for the allocation of funds to Indian tribes and tribal organizations. Subtitle E: Research, Demonstration, and Evaluation Activities - Amends part A (General Provisions) of SSA title XI to require the Director of the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) to establish an Advisory Commission on Children and Families. Requires the Commission to collect and assess specified types of information in order to identify cost-effective approaches to protect and enhance the physical, mental, emotional, and financial well-being of children and their families. Directs OTA to report annually to the Congress on the Commission and its assessment. Requires the Commission to conduct, directly or through contracts with independent research organizations, the following research and evaluation projects: (1) an evaluation of child welfare service programs, including intensive family preservation programs; (2) foster care evaluations; (3) longitudinal child welfare data bases, and studies of child welfare population dynamics; and (4) comprehensive service projects evaluations. Requires the Commission to study child separation guidelines. Directs the Secretary to contract with independent organizations to conduct the following research and evaluations: (1) a study to assess the prevalence and nature of risks to the safety of employees of child welfare systems; and (2) a three-year study to examine methodologies for measuring the workloads of providers of child welfare services and community mental health services. Directs the Secretary to authorize the following types of child welfare demonstration projects: (1) expeditious permanent placement of children; (2) child welfare worker training to deliver culturally sensitive and special needs services in U.S. areas that border on Mexico; (3) child welfare worker recruitment and retention strategies; and (4) joint training of child welfare workers and staff of mental health and juvenile justice agencies. Permits the Secretary to authorize foster care and adoption assistance demonstration projects to test the feasibility of eliminating certain SSA income and resources requirements, and allowing States to receive reimbursement for foster care and adoption assistance payments made with respect to children without regard to such income and resources. Directs the Secretary to provide technical assistance to States for: (1) implementing child welfare services, comprehensive service projects, and foster care and adoption assistance programs; (2) disseminating information on innovative child welfare agencies; (3) correcting problems identified through Federal audits and reviews and carrying out corrective action plans under foster care and adoption assistance programs; (4) implementing the foster care and adoption data collection system; and (5) addressing other matters identified by the Secretary. Subtitle F: Miscellaneous Human Resources Amendments - Amend SSA title IV part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Chidren) (AFDC) to: (1) give States the option to use retrospective budgeting without monthly reporting under the AFDC program; and (2) increase the stepparent income disregarded under the AFDC program. Amends the Family Support Act of 1988 to provide for an extension of the period for demonstration projects for evaluating model procedures for reviewing child support awards. Title V: Safe Children and Communities - Safe Children and Communities Act of 1992 - Authorizes the Secretary to make grants for projects to improve the safety of families with children in low-income, violent communities. Authorizes appropriations.

Bill· HJRESH.J.Res. 549 (102nd)referred

Prohibiting the proposed sale of F-15 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia until that country renounces and no longer observes the boycott of Israel by Arab countries.

United States · United States Congress · 15 September 1992

Prohibits the proposed sale of F-15 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia described in the certification transmitted to the Congress on September 14, 1992 (transmittal number 92-42), unless the President certifies to the Congress that such country renounces and no longer observes the boycott of Israel by Arab countries.

Bill· HJRESH.J.Res. 548 (102nd)referred

To prohibit the proposed sale to Saudi Arabia of F-15 aircraft.

United States · United States Congress · 15 September 1992

Prohibits the proposed sale to Saudi Arabia of 72 F-15XP jet aircraft and related defense and construction services described in the certification submitted to the Congress on September 14, 1992 (transmittal number 92-42).

Bill· HRH.R. 5911 (102nd)referred

Dire Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1992, for Disaster Assistance to Meet the Present Emergencies Arising from the Consequences of Hurricane Andrew and other Natural Disasters

United States · United States Congress · 9 September 1992

Dire Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1992, for Disaster Assistance to Meet the Present Emergencies Arising from the Consequences of Hurricane Andrew and other Natural Disasters - Makes supplemental appropriations for FY 1992 for emergencies arising from natural disasters such as Hurricane Andrew and Typhoon Omar. Designates such amounts as emergency requirements for all purposes of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act). Title I: Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies - Makes additional appropriations available to the Department of Agriculture for: (1) the Agricultural Research Service for buildings and facilities; (2) the Commodity Credit Corporation for crop losses and the tree assistance program; (3) the Soil Conservation Service for watershed and flood prevention operations; (4) the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service for the emergency conservation program; (5) the Farmers Home Administration for the agricultural credit insurance fund program account, the rural housing insurance fund program account, the rural development insurance fund program account, the rural development loan fund program account, rural water and waste disposal grants, very-low-income housing repair grants, rural housing for domestic farm labor, emergency community water assistance grants, and salaries and expenses; and (6) the Food and Nutrition Service for the food stamp program. Declares that funds provided by this title are available only to the extent funds are not provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Title II: Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies - Makes additional funds available to: (1) the Department of Commerce for the Economic Development Administration, the Minority Business Development Agency, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; (2) the Department of Justice for general administration, legal activities, the Federal Prison System, and the Office of Justice Programs; (3) the Department of State for the administration of foreign affairs; (4) the Judiciary for Courts of Appeals, District Courts, and other judicial services; and (5) the Small Business Administration for the disaster loans program account. Title III: Department of Defense - Military - Makes additional amounts available for incremental costs of military, reserve, and national guard personnel and for operation and maintenance of military forces. Title IV: Energy and Water Development Department of Defense - Civil - Makes additional funds available to the Army Corps of Engineers-Civil for general construction, flood control and coastal emergencies, operation and maintenance, and flood control for the Mississippi River and tributaries, Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee. Title V: Department of the Interior and Related Agencies - Makes additional appropriations available to the Department of the Interior for: (1) the United States Fish and Wildlife Service; (2) the National Park Service; (3) the United States Geological Survey; and (4) the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Title VI: Departments of Laobr, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies - Makes additional funds available to: (1) the Department of Health and Human Services for the Public Health Emergency Fund; (2) the Department of Education for educational excellence, impact aid, student financial assistance, and departmental management. Title VII: Department of Defense - Military - Makes supplemental amounts available to cover incremental costs at Homestead Air Force Base, Florida, for military construction and family housing. Title VIII: Department of Transportation and Related Agencies - Makes additional funds available to the Department of Transportation for: (1) the Coast Guard; (2) the Federal Aviation Administration; (3) the Federal Transit Administration; and (4) the Research and Special Programs Administration. Title IX: Treasury Department, U.S. Postal Service, the Executive Office of the President, and Certain Independent Agencies - Makes supplemental funds available to: (1) the Department of the Treasury for the U.S. Customs Service and the Internal Revenue Service; and (2) the General Services Administration (GSA) for the Federal Buildings Fund and the Federal Supply Service. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury and the Administrator of GSA to hire temporary employees as necessary for government operations in areas affected by Hurricane Andrew and Typhoon Omar. Amends the Treasury, Postal Service and General Government Appropriations Act, 1992 to repeal restrictions on travel expenses on employees subject to such Act. Authorizes heads of Federal agencies to establish emergency administrative leave as necessary for employees affected by the Hurricane and the Typhoon. Title X: Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies - Makes additional amounts available to: (1) Department of Veterans Affairs for the Veterans Health Administration and departmental administration; (2) the Department of Housing and Urban Development for housing programs, housing counseling assistance, guaranteed housing loans, and management administration; and (3) the Federal Emergency Management Agency for disaster relief, the disaster assistance direct loan program account, the community disaster loan program account, and salaries and expenses.

Bill· HRH.R. 5842 (102nd)referred

To award a congressional gold medal to John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie.

United States · United States Congress · 12 August 1992

Authorizes the President, on behalf of the Congress, to present a gold medal to John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie in recognition of his accomplishments as a musician. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to provide for the sale of bronze duplicates of the medal.

Resolution· HCONRESH.Con.Res. 353 (102nd)referred

Expressing the sense of the Congress that the United States should assume a strong leadership role in implementing the decisions made at the Earth Summit by developing a national strategy to implement Agenda 21 and other Earth summit agreements through domestic policy and foreign policy, by cooperating with all countries to identify and initiate further agreements to protect the global environment, and by supporting and participating in a high-level United Nations Sustainable Development Commission.

United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1992

Expresses the sense of the Congress that effective follow-up to achieve the goals of the agreements reached at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) will depend on the following actions by the President and the U.S. Government: (1) adoption of a national strategy for environmentally sustainable development, based on an extensive process of nationwide consultations with all interested organizations and individuals; (2) the Government encouraging and facilitating means for adopting individual Agenda 21 plans of action, including the establishment of local, county, State, business, and other boards and commissions for achieving sustainable development; (3) the President establishing an effective mechanism to plan, initiate, and coordinate U.S. policy for implementing Agenda 21; and (4) policies being formulated for foreign policy and assistance to help developing countries, and for domestic actions to assure appropriate action to implement Agenda 21. Supports: (1) pursuing the research and policy initiatives urged in Agenda 21, including research on sustainable consumption and production patterns, creation of a policy framework for sustainable consumption patterns, identification of a strategy to eliminate or reduce subsidies for unsustainable natural resource exploitation, and improving pricing policies; (2) the Congress adopting a plan to reallocate an appropriate amount of savings from reduced defense spending to achieve its goals of global environmental protection and sustainable development over the next decade; and (3) the effective establishment of a high-level United Nations (UN) Commission on Sustainable Development. Urges the United States to call for periodic international meetings to continue the process toward developing and advancing international agreement to facilitate sustainable economic development. Calls on the President to: (1) urge and actively participate in multilateral efforts aimed at creating a more favorable international economic climate for developing countries to practice sustainable development; (2) affirm strong U.S. commitment to the Commission by appointing a high-level representative to the Commission and by encouraging the UN Secretary General to appoint an Under Secretary General for Sustainable Development; (3) submit and encourage all UN members to submit a national report to the Commission on activities the United States has undertaken to implement Agenda 21 both domestically and internationally, on progress made toward fulfilling other commitments undertaken at UNCED, and on other relevant environmental and developmental issues; and (4) submit an annual report to the Congress on the steps taken by the United States to implement Agenda 21 and the recommendations made by this Act and make information regarding such steps available to Members of the Congress upon request.

Resolution· HRESH.Res. 538 (102nd)passed

Commending the heroic individuals who acted to rescue Jews during the Holocaust and the Jewish Foundation for Christian Rescuers, which perpetuates the altruism and moral courage of such individuals.

United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1992

Commends: (1) the many heroic individuals who acted at great risk to save Jews from death during the Holocaust; and (2) the Jewish Foundation for Christian Rescuers for its work in recognizing, honoring, and encouraging the people of the world to show the altruism and moral courage of such heroic individuals.

Resolution· HRESH.Res. 515 (102nd)referred

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the need for the President to seek the Senate's advice and consent to ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1992

Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should seek the consent of the Senate to the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted by the United Nations on November 20, 1989.

Bill· HRH.R. 5613 (102nd)referred

To amend the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require ingredient labeling for malt beverages, wine, and distilled spirits, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1992

Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to deem a malt beverage, wine, or distilled spirit mislabeled unless it bears a label disclosing: (1) the alcoholic content; (2) the number of drinks (defining "drink" as .6 ounces of alcohol); (3) its ingredients and calories; (4) the common name of each ingredient, including additives; and (5) a toll-free number for help with a drinking problem. Authorizes appropriations for the toll-free number.

Bill· HRH.R. 5600 (102nd)open

Children's Initiative

United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1992

Children's Initiative - Family Preservation Act of 1992 - States that titles I through V of this Act may be cited as the Family Preservation Act of 1992 - Title I: Child Welfare Services - Amends part B (Child Welfare Services) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to create a capped entitlement program to provide child welfare services designed to strengthen and preserve families. Provides for allotments, reallotments, and payments to States of entitlement funds. Requires use of part of such funds to develop or expand specialized child welfare service programs for families in crisis due to substance abuse. Requires uses of remaining funds to develop or expand certain family and child service programs. Repeals provisions for incentive payments to States which maintain a foster care inventory, information system, and case review system; but requires States to provide such protections and other services designed to keep families together or reunify them, or to place children for adoption, with a legal guardian, or in some other planned, permanent living arrangement. Requires States to submit the following types of reports on child welfare services and expenditures: (1) pre-expenditure reports; (2) post-expenditure reports; and (3) comparative financial contributions reports. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to transmit to specified congressional committees annual summaries of the information in such comparative financial contributions reports. Requires such information to be made available to the public. Reserves entitlement funds for grants to State court systems to assess and improve procedures in child welfare cases in carrying out parts B and E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of SSA title IV. Sets forth application requirements and formulas for determining the amount of such grants for FY 1994 through 1998. Directs the HHS Secretary to submit interim and final reports to the Congress on the information obtained from assessments conducted with such grants and the impact of such grant program on State court procedures and functions. Requires each State to compile periodically a detailed directory of programs designed to keep families together or reunify them or place children permanently, identifying which of such programs provides specialized child welfare services to families in crisis due to substance abuse. Requires States to report on measures taken to comply with the Indian Child Welfare Act. Title II: Foster Care And Adoption Assistance - Amends SSA title IV to add a new part C, Comprehensive Service Projects to grant States flexibility and resources to develop comprehensive and coordinated services designed to: (1) preserve and strengthen families with children at risk of placement outside their homes; (2) reunite children with their families expeditiously if an out-of-home placement is found to be necessary; and (3) place children in adoptive homes or other permanent arrangements in a timely fashion if reunification with their families is not appropriate. Permits any State to apply to the HHS Secretary for permission to: (1) conduct a comprehensive service project in a selected area or areas; and (2) suspend certain child welfare services and foster care and adoption assistance requirements with respect to State activities in such area or areas during the project. Sets forth application requirements and administrative provisions for such projects. Prohibits the HHS Secretary from requiring as a condition of approval of a project application: (1) the State to select any area or areas in which to conduct the project; or (2) the project to comply with any requirements not specified in the project authorization. Sets forth those requirements with which such a project must comply. Provides for determining the expenses for which a State might properly seek reimbursement, for purposes of calculating such grant amount. Authorizes the HHS Secretary to increase such grant amount, to the extent appropriate, by taking specified factors into account. Sets forth requirements for notification to States of grant amounts, and for grant payments in equal quarterly installments. Prohibits a State from carrying out such a project in a manner that impairs the entitlement of any child to: (1) the foster care benefits he or she would have receive if the HHS Secretary had approved the State plan and had not authorized the State to conduct such a project; or (2) any other benefit to which the child is legally entitled. Deems a State to have in effect an approved foster care and adoption assistance plan during the period in which it conducts such a project for purposes of State plan requirements under part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) of SSA title IV. Requires States to report annually on project funds expended to the HHS Secretary and the Advisory Commission on Children and Families. Provides for administrative remedies for unsuccessful projects. Provides for project termination. Makes abandoned children entering foster care eligible for foster care maintenance payments. Makes the adoptive parents of any such child with respect to whom foster care maintenance payments may be made eligible for adoption assistance payments. Makes technical revisions to the foster care maintenance payments program and the adoption assistance program to expand the removal from home requirement to include removal from legal custody. Provides for retroactive application of such new requirement under the adoption assistance program. Makes children whose adoption has been set aside by a court eligible for foster care maintenance payments. Makes the adoptive parents of any such child with respect to whom foster care maintenance payments may be made eligible for adoption assistance payments. Establishes a respite care program for foster parents with children who have special needs. Limits the expenses eligible for reimbursement under such program. Expands the definition of children with special needs, for purposes of the adoption assistance program, to include: (1) those children for whom information is known and available about their genetic or social history indicating a high risk of medical conditions or physical, mental, or emotional handicaps which makes it reasonable to conclude that they cannot be placed for adoption without providing part E adoption assistance or Medicaid (SSA title XIX) medical assistance; and (2) those children that have been adopted, that were under the care and responsibility of the State agency responsible for administering the State's part E programs immediately before adoption, and that have a mental, physical, or emotional handicap that either existed before the adoption but was not diagnosed until afterwards, or first manifests itself after the adoption but is congenital or was caused beforehand. Extends to relatives (as well as foster parents) who are prospective adoptive parents, and with whom the child has significant emotional ties while in their care, the exception to the requirement that an effort be made to place special needs children with appropriate adoptive parents without providing adoption or Medicaid assistance. Requires each State to submit to the HHS Secretary the factors and conditions it uses to identify children with special needs for purposes of the adoption assistance program, and any modifications to such factors and conditions. Directs the HHS Secretary to establish an Advisory Committee on Foster Care Placement to study and report to the Secretary and the Congress on the implementation of specified requirements, under State plans for foster care and adoption assistance, that reasonable efforts be made: (1) before placement of a child in a foster home, to prevent or eliminate the need for removal of the child from the child's home; and (2) to make it possible for the child to return to the child's home. Provides Federal coverage of 90 percent of State costs in developing and installing certain statewide mechanized data collection and information retrieval systems. Covers 50 percent of State costs for operation of such systems. Provides that all State expenditures for development, installation, and operation of such systems shall be treated as necessary for proper and efficient administration of the State plan, without regard to whether the systems may be used with respect to foster or adoptive children other than those on behalf of whom payments may be made for foster care maintenance or adoption assistance. Reduces, after three years, from 90 to 50 percent the Federal matching payment for development and installation of such systems. Defers a deadline for implementation of automated systems until one year after certain regulations are promulgated. Directs the Secretary to establish a work group to advise on planning and implementation of the system to be used for collection of data relating to adoption and foster care in the United States. Requires the State plan to provide for: (1) a triennial review of the amounts paid as foster care maintenance payments and adoption assistance to assure their continuing appropriateness; and (2) a report to the HHS Secretary on the results. Sets forth requirements concerning dispositional hearings to determine the final status of a foster child. Revises the time frame for judicial determinations on voluntary placements. Sets forth case plan requirements for placement of children in out-of-State foster care. Requires annual review, with the child present, of the status of children in out-of-State foster care placements. Requires States to collect data on the numbers of children in out-of-State foster care placements. Requires a State, in order to receive payments for expenditures after FY 1994 for foster care maintenance payments made with respect to children placed in foster care outside the State, to conduct and submit a study to the HHS Secretary, by the end of such fiscal year, identifying the number and common characteristics of such children and the reasons why they were not placed in foster care in the State. Provides for the treatment of assets of youth participating in the independent living program. Eliminates the ceilings on Federal foster care payments to States and the State's authority to transfer unused foster care funds to child welfare services programs. Directs the HHS Secretary to: (1) establish an advisory committee; and (2) issue final regulations for training of staff of agencies responsible for administering foster care and adoption assistance programs, and for training of foster care and adoptive parents. Directs the Secretary annually to publish information, on a State-by-State basis, on expenditures for, and the operation of, the Child Welfare Services program, the Foster Care and Adoption Assistance program, and Comprehensive Service Projects. Amends SSA title IV to add a new part G, Child Welfare Review System. Directs the HHS Secretary to establish such system to: (1) review each State child welfare program to assess whether the requirements of the Act are being carried out; (2) impose financial penalties in cases of substantial failure to comply; and (3) provide technical assistance to any such program. Sets forth provisions relating to effects of noncompliance, suspension and rescission of financial penalties, and administrative and judicial review. Requires that all State child welfare programs be reviewed at least once by the end of FY 1997. Prohibits the Secretary from reducing or withholding any payment, or seeking any repayment from any State under part B or E, by reason of a determination made in connection with specified reviews or audits for certain periods. Prohibits suspension of payments with respect to any claim for reimbursement 30 days after the HHS Secretary receives the quarterly statement of expenditures that contains the report of the claim. Provides that within ten months after the Secretary takes any action to suspend payment with respect to such a claim, the Secretary shall: (1) determine the allowability of the claim; or (2) if unable to make such a determination, make payment with respect to the claim, subject to a later determination of allowability. Title III: Social Services Block Grant - Amends SSA title XX (Block Grants to States for Social Services) to authorize increased appropriations for title XX programs. Provides for the allocation to tribal organizations of program funds otherwise allotted to the State in which the Indians represented by such an organization reside. Title IV: Research, Demonstration, and Evaluation Activities - Amends part A (General Provisions) of SSA title XI to require the Director of the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) to establish an Advisory Commission on Children and Families. Requires the Commission to collect and assess specified types of information in order to identify cost-effective approaches to protect and enhance the physical, mental, emotional, and financial well-being of children and their families. Directs OTA to report annually to the Congress on the Commission and its assessment. Requires the Commission to conduct, through contracts with independent research organizations, the following research and evaluation projects: (1) the evaluation of child welfare service programs, including intensive family preservation programs; (2) foster care evaluations; (3) longitudinal child welfare data bases, and studies of child welfare population dynamics; and (4) comprehensive service projects evaluations. Requires the Commission to study child separation guidelines. Directs the HHS Secretary to conduct the following research and evaluations: (1) a study (under contract with an independent research organization) to assess the prevalence and nature of risks to the safety of employees of child welfare systems; and (2) a three-year study (under contract with an organization with demonstrated appropriate experience) to examine methodologies for measuring the workloads of providers of child welfare services and community mental health services. Directs the HHS Secretary to make grants to States or localities for child welfare demonstration projects concerning abandoned child permanent placement. Directs the HHS Secretary to authorize eligible institutions to conduct demonstration projects to train eligible individuals to deliver culturally sensitive and bilingual child welfare services in U.S. areas that border on Mexico. Directs the HHS Secretary to make grants to eligible institutions to conduct projects to train eligible institutions to deliver culturally sensitive and bilingual welfare services in urban centers which have a high proportion of historically unserved or underserved populations. Authorizes the HHS Secretary to make grants to State or local government agencies to conduct demonstration projects designed to: (1) develop and implement innovative recruitment or retention strategies for trained staff in public and private nonprofit agencies working with children and adolescents at risk of being placed in foster care; and (2) test the effect of joint training programs for the staff of child welfare, mental health, and juvenile justice agencies, and for judicial personnel and judges. Authorizes the HHS Secretary to conduct demonstration projects designed to test the feasibility of eliminating income and resource requirements respecting foster care and adoption assistance payments. Directs the HHS Secretary to provide technical assistance to States for: (1) interpreting and implementing parts B, C, and E; (2) disseminating information on innovative child welfare agencies; (3) correcting problems identified through Federal audits and reviews and carrying out corrective action plans under part E; (4) implementing the foster care and adoption data collection system; and (5) addressing other matters identified by the HHS Secretary. Title V: Miscellaneous Human Resources Amendments - Amends the AFDC program to give States the option of using retrospective budgeting without monthly reporting under AFDC. Increases the amount of stepparent income disregarded under AFDC. Amends the Family Support Act of 1988 to extend demonstration projects for evaluating model procedures for reviewing child support awards. Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1989 and the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 to make technical corrections relating to human resource and income security provisions. Title VI: Childhood Hunger Relief - Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act - Subtitle A: Ensuring Adequate Food Assistance - Amends the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to remove the excess shelter deduction cap for purposes of food stamp program eligibility. (Sets forth transitional caps through 1996.) Eliminates food stamp reductions for households reapplying for program reinstatement within 30 days. Excludes 100 percent (currently only a specified portion) of third party payments for transitional housing for the homeless from consideration as program income. Increases funding for the nutrition assistance program in Puerto Rico. Excludes general assistance vendor payments from consideration as program income. Excludes the income of high school students from consideration as program income. (Current law excludes income until a student's eighteenth birthday.) Subtitle B: Promoting Self-Sufficiency - Excludes from consideration as program income: (1) the first $50 a month received as child support; and (2) child support payments to non-household members. Increases annually the fair market value limit of vehicles that program recipients may own. Subtitle C: Simplifying the Provision of Food Assistance - Permits related adults living in the same household to apply for separate program benefits under specified conditions. Repeals provisions authorizing benefit reductions due to insufficient funding. Subtitle D: Commodity Distribution to Needy Families - Amends the Emergency Food Assistance Act of 1983 to provide for increased allotments in FY 1993 for commodity purchases under the emergency food assistance program. Subtitle E: Implementation and Effective Dates - Sets forth the effective dates for provisions of this title. Title VII: Funding - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a surtax on individuals with incomes over $1,000,000.

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