United States · United States Congress · 10 August 1984
Fair and Simple Tax Act of 1984 - Title I: Reduction of Individual and Corporate Tax Rates - Subtitle A: Reduction of Rates - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise individual tax rates. Imposes a tax rate of 25 percent on the taxable income of every individual. Imposes a tax rate of 15 percent on corporate income which does not exceed $50,000 and a tax rate of 30 percent on corporate income exceeding $50,000. Subtitle B: Increase in Amount of Personal Exemption and Zero Bracket Amount - Increases the amount of the personal exemption to $2,000. Increases the zero bracket amount to $2,700 for single taxpayers and $3,500 for a joint return or surviving spouse. Provides for an annual adjustment in the personal exemption and the zero bracket amount by a cost-of-living adjustment based on the Consumer Price Index. Repeals the exemption for dependents who are students over the age of 18. Subtitle C: Employment Income Exclusion Established - Allows an individual taxpayer to exclude 20 percent of the amount received during the taxable year by such individual as employment income. Provides that the exclusion shall be phased out when the individual's wages and salaries exceed the Federal Insurance Compensation Act's maximum wage base for the calendar year. Excludes all of an individual's employment income where the employment income for the taxable year is $10,000 or less ($15,000 or less in the case of a joint return). Provides for an annual adjustment in the employment income exclusion by a cost-of-living adjustment based on the Consumer Price Index. Subtitle D: Repeals Related to Reduction in Rates - Repeals provisions relating to: (1) tax tables for individuals; (2) special averaging rules for lump-sum distributions; (3) accumulated corporate surplus; (4) personal holding companies; (5) income averaging; and (6) graduated corporate tax rates. Applies the trust throwback rules only to amounts distributed from a foreign trust. Title II: Base Broadening - Subtitle A: Credits - Repeals the following income tax credits: (1) the credit for household and dependent care services; (2) the credit for the elderly and the permanently and totally disabled; (3) the residential energy credit; (4) the credit for contributions to candidates for public office; (5) the credit for clinical testing expenses for certain drugs; (6) the credit for producing fuel from nonconventional sources; (7) the credit for increasing research activities; (8) the credit for work incentive expenses; (9) the credit for alcohol used as fuel; (10) the employee stock ownership credit; (11) the general tax credit; (12) the investment credit for depreciable property; and (13) the credit for employment of certain new employees. Subtitle B: Exclusions - Repeals the tax exclusion for: (1) compensation for injuries or sickness; (2) dividends received by individuals; (3) amounts received under qualified group legal service plans; (4) qualified transportation furnished by employer; (5) dividend reinvestment in public utilities; and (6) payments to encourage exploration, development, and mining for defense purposes. Reduces the maximum amount of the earned income credit from $5,000 to $4,000. Provides for an annual adjustment in the earned income credit by a cost-of-living adjustment based on the Consumer Price Index. Treats as taxable income: (1) unemployment compensation; (2) the annual increase in the cash surrender value of life insurance policies; and (3) interest on industrial development bonds and mortgage subsidy bonds. Provides that the transfer of a corporation's stock in satisfaction of indebtedness will be treated as having satisfied the indebtedness with money equal to the fair market value of the stock. Provides a limited exclusion from income for scholarships and fellowships. Amends the Merchant Marine Act to repeal the tax exemption for deposits into, and withdrawals from, a capital construction fund. Excludes the first $7,000 ($10,500 for a joint return) of Social Security benefits from gross income. Provides that no more than one-half of Social Security benefits may be includible in taxable income. Subtitle C: Deductions - Repeals the tax deductions for: (1) casualty and theft losses; (2) unused business credits; and (3) two-earner married couples. Repeals the deduction for State and local income taxes. Raises the floor on the deduction for medical and dental expenses from five to ten percent. Repeals the deduction for consumer interest. Subtitle D: Adjustment to Basis; Changes in Certain Special Capital Gains Treatment Provisions - Allows an inflation adjustment, based on the gross national product deflator, to the adjusted basis of capital assets which have been held for more than one year at the time of sale or exchange solely for the purpose of determining gain or loss on such assets. Excludes from such treatment: (1) creditor's interest; (2) options; (3) net lease property in the case of the lessor; (4) preferred stock with fixed dividends; and (5) stock in small business corporations and certain foreign corporations. Allows the Secretary of the Treasury to disallow all or part of an adjustment where there was a transfer to increase the inflation adjustment or depreciation allowance. Reduces the alternative tax rate for corporations from 28 to 20 percent. Repeals the deduction for individuals for capital gains. Phases out the limitation on the deduction of capital losses by individuals over a ten-year period, with full deductibility of such losses after 1994. Provides that capital loss deductions shall be treated as tax preference items subject to the minimum tax. Permits the carryover of the excess of capital losses over gross income by individuals. Makes applicable only to corporations the rules for capital gains and losses relating to: (1) the sale of land with unharvested crop; (2) the disposal of coal or domestic iron ore; (3) gain or loss in the case of timber, coal, or domestic iron ore; (4) distribution of property; (5) collapsible partnerships; (6) property used in the trade or business and involuntary conversions; (7) the sale or exchange of patents; (8) amortization in excess of depreciation; (9) gain from the sale of depreciable property between certain related taxpayers; (10) gain from dispositions of certain depreciable property; (11) gain on foreign investment company stock; (12) the election by foreign investment companies to distribute income currently; (13) gain from certain sales or exchanges of stock in certain foreign corporations; (14) gain from certain sales or exchanges of patents, etc., to foreign corporations; (15) gain from disposition of certain depreciable realty; (16) gain from disposition of farm land; (17) gain from disposition of interest in oil, gas, or geothermal property; and (18) gain from disposition of property acquired with certain cost-sharing payments. Provides a transition period of ten-years, beginning on January 1, 1985, in which a taxpayer may elect to not apply the inflation adjustment to the basis of capital assets for purposes of determining capital gain or loss. Provides that when such election is made, 25 percent of any gain from the sale or disposition of such asset shall be excludible from gross income and 25 percent of any loss shall not be deductible. Title III: Capital Cost Recovery - Subtitle A: Simplified Cost Recovery System for Depletable Property - Allows individuals and corporations a depletion deduction for qualified depletable property equal to an applicable percentage determined by the cost recovery tables for cost recovery property. Requires that qualified depletable property be assigned to one class of recovery property. Uses the anticipated productive life of such depletable property (rather than the present class life as provided under current law) for making the assignment. Assigns oil, gas wells or wells drilled for any geothermal deposit to the class of three year property. Provides that these rules shall not deny any deduction allowable for loss sustained by reason of the abandonment of a nonproductive well or mine. Subtitle B: Other Changes - Repeals the income tax deductions for: (1) research and experimental expenditures; (2) soil and water conservation expenditures; (3) depreciation or amortization of improvements made by a lessee on a lessor's property; (4) expenditures by farmers for clearing land; (5) amortization of reforestation expenditures; (6) start-up expenditures; (7) intangible drilling and development costs in the case of oil and gas wells and geothermal wells; (8) percentage depletion; (9) development expenditures; and (10) deduction and recapture of certain mining exploration expenditures. Allows a ten-year period for the amortization of construction period interest and taxes. Allows a deduction for circulation expenses for a newspaper, magazine, or other periodical ratably over a five-year period. Excludes amounts chargeable to a capital account from such treatment. Title IV: Miscellaneous Provisions - Subtitle A: Foreign Income - Repeals the domestic international sales corporations (DISC) provisions for taxable years beginning after December 31, 1984. Subtitle B: Other Miscellaneous Provisions - Requires farmers to compute their taxable income using the accrual method of accounting with the capitalization of preproduction expenses. Exempts taxpayers who do not have gross receipts of $1,000,000. Requires farming syndicates to use the accrual method of accounting without regard to gross receipts. Requires the recognition of the gain or loss on distributions of property by corporations. Eliminates the special bad debt reserves of financial institutions. Reduces the percentage by which Social Security benefits must be reduced for income earned above certain amounts. Repeals the earnings reduction test for taxable years beginning after December 31, 1989. Title V: Effective Dates - Sets forth the effective dates of the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 1984
Local Government Antitrust Act of 1984 - Limits the amount a person may recover on a claim under the antitrust laws which is based on official conduct of a local government and which is filed before July 1, 1984, to the amount of actual damages sustained, interest thereon, and the cost of suit, including a reasonable attorney's fee. Requires interest on damages to be awarded for the period: (1) beginning on the date the claim is filed and ending on the date of judgment, unless the court finds that the award of all or part of such interest is unjust; and (2) beginning on the date of injury and ending immediately before the date the claim is filed if the court finds that the award of all or part of such interest is just. Prohibits the United States or any person from recovering any monetary relief for any claim under the antitrust laws which is based on official conduct of a local government and which is filed on or after July 1, 1984.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1984
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal rules relating to the determination of the issue price of certain debt instruments issued for property. Amends the Tax Reform Act of 1984 to repeal the revisions made to rules for the imputation of interest on certain deferred payments. Provides that the Internal Revenue Code shall be applied and administered as if such revisions had not been enacted.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 1984
Tax Status of Space Act - Provides that activities performed in space for U.S. persons on any spacecraft owned by U.S. persons and articles produced in space primarily for sale or use within the United States shall be treated as activities performed within and articles produced within the United States for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code and the Tariff Schedules of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 1984
Reaffirms that it is U.S. policy to oppose the practice of torture by foreign governments through the implementation of laws and through public and private diplomacy. Requests the President to: (1) instruct the U.S. representative to the United Nations to continue to raise the issue of torture by such governments; and (2) continue to involve the U.S. Government in the formulation of international standards, particularly the draft Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. Requests the Secretary of State to issue specified formal instructions to each U.S. mission chief regarding U.S. policy with respect to such torture. States that the Secretary of Commerce should continue to enforce the current restrictions on the export of crime control equipment pursuant to the Export Administration Act of 1979. Directs the heads of U.S. departments that furnish military and law enforcement training to foreign personnel to include in such training instruction regarding international human rights standards with respect to torture.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 1984
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should: (1) ensure that U.S. officials carry out his pledge to resolve the issue of the Americans still missing and unaccounted for in Indochina; (2) work for the immediate release of any Americans still held captive and the return of the remains of those who died in Southeast Asia; and (3) make every effort to secure the cooperation pledged by Laos and Vietnam in resolving this issue.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 1984
Designates the week beginning February 17, 1985, as a time to recognize the contributions of volunteers who give their time to become Big Brothers and Big Sisters to youths in need of adult companionship.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1984
Bail Reform Act of 1984 - Repeals the Bail Reform Act of 1966 and sets forth new bail procedures. Authorizes a judicial officer to consider the safety of any person or the community when making a pretrial release determination. Establishes as a mandatory release condition that the person not commit a Federal, State, or local crime during release. Authorizes pretrial release upon execution of an unsecured appearance bond. Expands the discretionary release conditions to require that the defendant: (1) maintain employment or an educational program; (2) avoid contact with an alleged victim or potential witness; (3) report to a law enforcement or pretrial service agency; (4) comply with a curfew; (5) refrain from possessing a firearm or using alcohol or narcotic drugs; (6) undergo medical treatment; (7) forfeit designated property upon failure to appear; and (8) return to custody at specified hours. Authorizes a judicial officer to order the detention for up to ten days of a person who is presently on pretrial release for a felony under Federal, State, or local law or on probation or parole or release pending sentencing or appeal for any offense, if no conditions will assure his appearance and the safety of the community and any other person. Provides for the detention of an alien whose presence in the United States is not under color of law. Authorizes a judicial officer to order the pretrial detention of a person upon finding that no condition will reasonably assure such person's appearance and the safety of any other person and the community. Requires that a detention hearing be held in any case involving: (1) a crime of violence; (2) any offense punishable by life imprisonment or death; (3) a narcotics offense punishable by at least ten years imprisonment; or (4) any offense committed after the person has been convicted of two or more offenses for which a hearing is mandated. Permits the government or the court to move for a detention hearing in any other case involving a serious risk of flight or obstruction of justice. Enumerates additional factors to be considered by the judicial officer in making a release determination, including the defendant's past conduct, history of drug or alcohol abuse, criminal history, and the nature and seriousness of the danger to the community or any person. Requires the detention of a person who has appealed his conviction unless the judicial officer finds by clear and convincing evidence that: (1) such person is not likely to flee or pose a danger to another person or property; and (2) the appeal raises a substantial question of law or fact. Requires the detention of a person awaiting sentencing unless the officer finds by clear and convincing evidence that the person is not likely to flee or pose a danger to any other person or the community. Authorizes a U.S. attorney to appeal a release order. Provides additional penalties for failing to appear before the court or surrender for service of sentence as required. Establishes mandatory additional penalties for commission of an offense while on pretrial release. Subjects a person who has been conditionally released and violates a condition of release to revocation of release and prosecution for contempt of court. Grants new authority to law enforcement officers to arrest a person who violates certain pretrial release conditions.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 1984
Sunshine Resolution of 1984 - Amends Rule XXVIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives to provide that, after the approval of any matter, House conferees shall be entitled to three days in which to file supplemental, minority, or additional views. Establishes Rule LI which requires the Speaker of the House to provide for printing of the floor schedule in the Congressional Record at least two legislative days in advance. Amends Rule XXVII to require the printing in the Record of the names of Members who have signed, or withdrawn a signature to, a motion to discharge a committee from consideration of a bill or resolution, whenever 100 Members have signed such a motion. Amends Rule I to require the broadcasting system to include frequent, wide-angle visual coverage of the chamber when the House is in session. Amends Rule X to provide for the compilation of an oversight agenda resolution. Requires the House to complete action on such resolution within 100 days after the Congress convenes. Amends Rule XI to prohibit proxy voting in committees. Establishes Rule LII which requires the body of the Congressional Record for the House to contain an accurate and verbatim account of remarks actually delivered on the floor. Limits extension and revision of remarks delivered on the floor to the correction of grammatical and typographical errors. Authorizes Members, by unanimous consent, to make insertions of remarks not actually delivered on the floor and requires such insertions to be clearly distinguished from verbatim remarks. Amends Rule X to require committee ratios to reflect the majority to minority party ratio in the House.
United States · United States Congress · 31 May 1984
Abolishes the United States Synthetic Fuels Corporation 90 days after enactment of this Act. Requires the transfer to the Secretary of Energy of any legally binding commitments of the Corporation remaining upon the Corporation's abolition. Sets forth specified amounts of funds which shall be retained in the Energy Security Reserve until expended or no longer needed for: (1) legally binding commitments which the Corporation enters into before the date of the enactment of this Act; (2) administrative expenses of the Corporation during the 90-day period following the enactment of this Act and of the Secretary with respect to responsibilities transferred to him or her under this Act; and (3) obligations made before February 8, 1982, by the Secretary with respect to projects funded under the Defense Production Act of 1950 or under the Federal Nonnuclear Energy Research and Development Act of 1974. Requires that any remaining funds in the Energy Security Reserve be deposited upon enactment of this Act into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts. Repeals the United States Synthetic Fuels Corporation Act of 1980.
United States · United States Congress · 31 May 1984
Expresses the sense of Congress that television and radio networks and stations broadcasting coverage of the XXIII Olympiad should include public service announcements or other informational programming warning young people of the dangers of alcohol and drug abuse.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 1984
Youth Employment Opportunity Wage Act of 1984 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to authorize employers to pay employees under 20 years of age 75 percent of the minimum wage rate between May and September of each year. Exempts such employees from special certificate requirements. Restricts such authorization to: (1) hours worked by eligible employees in compliance with applicable child labor laws; and (2) youth employed after May 1 of each year. Prohibits the removal of employees ineligible for the subminimum wage rate in order to replace them with employees who are eligible. Makes technical and conforming amendments to the Job Training Partnership Act. Terminates the minimum wage rate exception after September 30, 1987. Directs the Secretary of Labor to monitor the implementation of this Act and to report to the Congress concerning the employment effects of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 1984
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should support the efforts of the Catholic Bishops of Nicaragua to bring about a national reconciliation between the struggling factions in that country in order to establish democratic harmony.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 1984
Crime Control Act of 1984 - Title I: Bail - Bail Reform Act of 1984 - Repeals the Bail Reform Act of 1966 and sets forth new bail procedures. Retains execution of a money bond as a condition for pretrial release. Authorizes a judicial officer to consider the safety of any person or the community when making a pretrial release determination. Establishes as a mandatory release condition that the person not commit a Federal, State, or local crime during release. Expands the discretionary release conditions to include that the defendant: (1) maintain employment or an educational program; (2) avoid contact with an alleged victim or potential witness; (3) report to a law enforcement or pretrial service agency; (4) comply with a curfew; (5) refrain from possessing a firearm or using alcohol or narcotic drugs; (6) undergo medical treatment; (7) agree to forfeit designated property, including money, upon failure to appear; and (8) return to custody at specified hours. Prohibits a judicial officer from imposing financial conditions that result in the pretrial detention of a person. Authorizes a judicial officer to order detention for up to ten days: (1) if a person who is presently on pretrial release for a felony under Federal, State, or local law or on probation or parole or release pending sentencing or appeal for any offense, upon a determination that such person may flee or pose a danger to any person or the community; or (2) if such person is not a U.S. citizen. Requires that a detention hearing be held upon motion of the attorney for the Government or upon the judge's own motion in any case involving: (1) a crime of violence; (2) any offense punishable by life imprisonment or death; (3) a narcotics offense punishable by at least ten years' imprisonment; (4) a serious risk of flight or obstruction of justice; or (5) any felony committed after the person has been convicted of two or more offenses for which a hearing is mandated. Authorizes a judicial officer after such a hearing to order the pretrial detention of a person upon finding that no condition will reasonably assure such person's appearance and the safety of any other person and the community. Enumerates additional factors to be considered by the judicial officer in making a release determination, including the defendant's past conduct, history of drug or alcohol abuse, criminal history, and the nature and seriousness of the danger to the community or any person. Requires the detention of a person who has appealed his conviction unless the judicial officer finds by clear and convincing evidence that: (1) such person is not likely to flee or pose a danger to another person or property; and (2) the appeal raises a substantial question of law or fact. Requires the detention of a person awaiting sentencing unless the officer finds by clear and convincing evidence that the person is not likely to flee or pose a danger to any other person or the community. Authorizes a U.S. attorney to appeal a release order. Allows a defendant to file a motion for amendment of a condition of release. Makes a person guilty of an offense for failing to appear after having been released. Provides increased penalties for persons charged with more serious offenses. Makes it an affirmative defense to such crime that uncontrollable circumstances prevented the person from appearing. Establishes mandatory additional penalties for commission of an offense while on pretrial release. Subjects a person who has been conditionally released and violates a condition of release to revocation of release and prosecution for contempt of court. Authorizes a surety to arrest a person charged with an offense who is released upon execution of an appearance bond with such surety. Requires such person to be delivered promptly to a judicial officer for a revocation determination. Grants new authority to law enforcement officers to arrest a person who violates pretrial release conditions. Title II: Limitation of the Exclusionary Rule - Exclusionary Rule Limitation Act of 1984 - Amends the Federal criminal code to provide that evidence obtained by a search or seizure shall not be excluded in a Federal proceeding if the seizure was undertaken in a reasonable good faith belief in its conformity with the fourth amendment to the Constitution. Provides that evidence obtained in accordance with a warrant is prima facie evidence of good faith, absent intentional and material misrepresentation. Title III: Reform of Federal Intervention in State Proceedings - Reform of Federal Intervention in State Proceedings Act of 1984 - Conditions consideration of a habeas corpus claim by a State prisoner on a showing of actual prejudice resulting from the Federal right violated and a showing that: (1) State action precluded assertion of the right; (2) the Federal right did not previously exist; or (3) the factual basis of the claim could not have been discovered by reasonable diligence. Establishes a one-year statute of limitations for habeas corpus actions brought by State prisoners. Vests authority to issue certificates for probable cause for appeal or habeas corpus orders exclusively in the courts of appeals. Permits denial on the merits of habeas corpus writs notwithstanding the failure to exhaust State remedies. Prohibits the granting of a habeas corpus writ with respect to any claim which has been fully and fairly adjudicated in State proceedings. Title IV: Reinstitution of Capital Punishment - Establishes procedures for imposition of the death penalty in certain homicide, treason and espionage cases.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 1984
Semiconductor Chip Protection Act of 1984 - Extends copyright protection to original mask works fixed in semiconductor chip products. Defines a mask work as the two- and three-dimensional features of shape, pattern, and configuration of the surface of the layers of a semiconductor chip product which portray the appearance of a product or convey information. Requires as a condition of protection that: (1) the owner of the mask work be a resident or citizen of the United States or of a country which is party to a protection treaty to which the United States is also a party on the date the work is first commercially exploited or registered; (2) the work is first commercially exploited in the United States; or (3) the mask work comes within the scope of a presidential proclamation extending reciprocal protection to the works of foreign citizens or residents. Vests exclusive rights in the mask work in the owner who may transfer, convey, or bequeath such interest. Recognizes the first registered transfer in case of a conflict. Sets the copyright term for mask works at ten years from the date of registration or first commercial exploitation, whichever comes first. Sets forth the exclusive rights of the owner of such a copyright, including the rights to: (1) reproduce the mask; (2) import or distribute a semiconductor chip product in which the mask work is embodied; and (3) cause another to perform such acts. Excludes from the applicability of an owner's exclusive rights a mask work used for educational purposes or an innocent purchaser of a semiconductor chip product. Protects works registered within two years of the date of their first commercial exploitation. Sets forth administrative procedures for the Register of Copyrights. Permits the owner of the mask work to place a notice of copyright on such works which includes the words 'mask work' or M in a circle, the year the work was first fixed in a semiconductor chip product, and the name of the owner of the work. Entitles the owner of a mask work whose protection has been infringed or whose registration of such work has been refused to institute a civil action. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury and the U.S. Postal Service to issue regulations for the enforcement of the right to import mask works. Permits the impoundment and seizure of mask works imported in violation of the owner's exclusive rights. Sets forth remedies for infringement, including temporary and permanent injunctive relief, actual damages, and the award of the infringer's profits to the owner. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 1984
Fair and Simple Tax Act of 1984 - Title I: Reduction of Individual and Corporate Tax Rates - Subtitle A: Reduction of Rates - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise individual tax rates. Imposes a tax rate of 25 percent on the taxable income of every individual. Imposes a tax rate of 15 percent on corporate income which does not exceed $50,000 and a tax rate of 30 percent on corporate income exceeding $50,000. Subtitle B: Increase in Amount of Personal Exemption and Zero Bracket Amount - Increases the amount of the personal exemption to $2,000. Increases the "zero bracket amount" to $2,700 for single taxpayers and $3,500 for a joint return or surviving spouse. Provides for an annual adjustment in the "zero bracket amount" by a cost-of-living adjustment based on the Consumer Price Index. Subtitle C: Employment Income Exclusion Established - Allows an individual taxpayer to exclude 20 percent of the amount received during the taxable year by such individual as employment income. Provides that the exclusion is phased out when the individual's wages and salaries exceed the Federal Insurance Contributions Act maximum wage base for the calendar year. Excludes all of an individual's employment income where the employment income for the taxable year is $10,000 or less ($20,000 or less in the case of a joint return). Subtitle D: Repeals Related to Reduction in Rates - Repeals provisions relating to: (1) tax tables for individuals; (2) personal service corporations; (3) special averaging rules for lump-sum distributions; (4) accumulated corporate surplus; (5) personal holding companies; (6) income averaging; and (7) graduated corporate tax rates. Applies the trust throwback rules only to amounts distributed from a foreign trust. Title II: Base Broadening - Subtitle A: Credits - Repeals the general tax credit, the investment tax credit, and the income tax credits relating to: (1) the elderly and the permanently and totally disabled; (2) investments in certain depreciable property; (3) work incentive expenses; (4) contributions to candidates for public office; (5) home purchases; (6) expenses for household and dependent care services necessary for gainful employment; (7) employment of certain new employees; (8) residential energy credit; (9) producing fuel from a nonconventional source; (10) alcohol used as fuel; (11) research activities; (12) employee stock ownership credit; and (13) clinical testing for certain drugs. Subtitle B: Exclusions - Repeals the tax exclusion for: (1) compensation for injuries or sickness; (2) amounts received under accident and health plans; (3) partial exclusion of dividends received by individuals; (4) amounts received under qualified group legal service plans; (5) qualified transportation furnished by an employer; (6) dividend reinvestment in public utilities; (7) partial exclusion of interest as in effect in 1985; and (8) payments to encourage exploration, development, and mining for defense purposes. Reduces the maximum amount of the earned income credit from $5,000 to $4,000. Treats as taxable income: (1) unemployment compensation; (2) the annual increase in the cash surrender value of life insurance policies; and (3) interest on industrial development bonds and mortgage subsidy bonds. Provides that the transfer of a corporation's stock in satisfaction of indebtedness will be treated as having satisfied the indebtedness with money equal to the fair market value of the stock. Provides a limited exclusion from income for scholarships and fellowships. Amends the Merchant Marine Act to repeal the tax exemption for deposits into, and withdrawals from, a capital construction fund. Subtitle C: Deductions - Repeals the tax deductions for: (1) the additional exemption for the elderly and the blind; (2) unused investment credits; (3) two-earner married couples; and (4) adoption expenses. Provides that the deduction for losses shall be limited to capital losses. Increases the floor on the deduction for medical and dental expenses from five to 10 percent. Subtitle D: Adjustment to Basis; Changes in Certain Special Capital Gains Treatment Provisions - Allows an inflation adjustment, based on the gross national product deflator, to the adjusted basis of capital assets which have been held for more than one year at the time of sale or exchange solely for the purpose of determining gain or loss on such assets. Excludes from such treatment: (1) creditor's interest; (2) options; (3) net lease property in the case of the lessor; (4) preferred stock with fixed dividends; and (5) stock in small business corporations and certain foreign corporations. Allows the Secretary of the Treasury to disallow all or part of an adjustment where there was a transfer to increase the inflation adjustment or depreciation allowance. Reduces the alternative tax rate for corporations from 28 to 20 percent. Repeals the deduction for individuals for capital gains. Repeals the limitation on the deduction of capital losses by individuals. Permits the carryover of the excess of capital losses over gross income by individuals. Applies the rules for capital gains and losses only to corporations relating to: (1) the sale of land with an unharvested crop; (2) the disposal of coal or domestic iron ore; (3) the gain or loss in the case of timber, coal, or domestic iron ore; (4) the distribution of property; (5) collapsible partnerships; (6) property used in the trade or business and involuntary conversions; (7) the sale or exchange of patents; (8) amortization in excess of depreciation; (9) gain from the sale of depreciable property between certain related taxpayers; (10) gain from dispositions of certain depreciable property; (11) gain on foreign investment company stock; (12) an election by foreign investment companies to distribute income currently; (13) gain from certain sales or exchanges of stock in certain foreign corporations; (14) gain from certain sales or exchanges of patents, etc., to foreign corporations; (15) gain from disposition of certain depreciable realty; (16) gain from disposition of property used in farming where farm losses offset nonfarm income; (17) gain from disposition of farm land; (18) gain from disposition of interest in oil, gas, or geothermal property; and (19) gain from disposition of property acquired with certain cost-sharing payments. Provides a transition period of ten years beginning January 1, 1985, in which a taxpayer may elect to not apply the inflation adjustment to the basis of capital assets for purposes of determining capital gain or loss. Provides that when such election is made, 25 percent of any gain from the sale or disposition of such asset shall be excludible from gross income, or 25 percent of any loss shall not be deductible. Title III: Capital Cost Recovery - Subtitle A: Simplified Cost Recovery System for Depletable Property - Allows individuals and corporations a depletion deduction for qualified depletable property equal to an applicable percentage determined by the cost recovery tables for cost recovery property. Requires qualified depletable property be assigned to one class of recovery property. Uses the anticipated productive life of such depletable property, rather than the present class life, for making the assignment. Assigns oil, gas wells, or wells drilled for any geothermal deposit to the class of three year property. Provides that these rules shall not deny any deduction allowable for loss sustained by reason of the abandonment of a nonproductive well or mine. Subtitle B: Other Changes - Repeals the income tax deductions for: (1) research and experimental expenditures; (2) soil and water conservation expenditures; (3) depreciation or amortization of improvements made by a lessee on a lessor's property; (4) expenditures by farmers for clearing land; (5) amortization of reforestation expenditures; (6) start-up expenditures; (7) intangible drilling and development costs in the case of oil and gas wells and geothermal wells; (8) percentage depletion; (9) development expenditures; and (10) deduction and recapture of certain mining exploration expenditures. Allows a ten year period for the amortization of construction period interest and taxes. Allows a deduction for circulation expenses for a newspaper, magazine, or other periodical ratably over a five-year period. Excludes amounts chargable to a capital account from such treatment. Title IV: Miscellaneous Provisions - Subtitle A: Foreign Income - Repeals the domestic international sales corporations (DISC) provisions for taxable years beginning after December 31, 1984. Subtitle B: Other Miscellaneous Provisions - Requires farmers to compute their taxable income using the accrual method of accounting with the capitalization of preproduction expenses. Exempts taxpayers who do not have gross receipts of $1,000,000. Requires farming syndicates to use the accrual method of accounting without regard to gross receipts. Requires the recognition of the gain or loss on distributions of property by corporations. Eliminates the special bad debt reserves of financial institutions. Title V: Effective Dates - Sets forth the effective dates of the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 1984
Federal Reserve Reform Act of 1984 - Amends the Federal Reserve Act to place the Secretary of the Treasury on the Federal Open Market Committee. Changes the term of office of the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System from four years to the period ending on January 31 of the first calendar year beginning after the calendar year during which the term of the President who appointed the Chairman is scheduled to expire. Provides that in the event of the absence or unavailability of the chairman, the vice chairman (or in the vice chairman's absence another member of the Board) may be designated acting chairman. Provides that the vice chairman shall perform the duties of the chairman until a successor is appointed in the event of the chairman's death or resignation. Provides that in the case of the death or resignation of the chairman and the vice chairman or a vacancy in both offices, the member of the Board with the most years of service shall perform the duties of the chairman until a successor is appointed. Changes from 14 years to seven years the term of office of members of the Federal Reserve Board. Requires each change, of any nature whatsoever, in the intermediate targets for monetary policy that is adopted by the Federal Open Market Committee to be disclosed to the public on the date of adoption. Defines "intermediate targets" as any policy objectives regarding monetary aggregates, credit aggregates, prices, interest rates, or bank reserves.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 1984
Balanced Monetary Policy and Price Stability Act of 1984 - Amends the Federal Reserve Act to make it the policy of the Federal Open Market Committee to maintain low interest rates and stable exchange rates, and to encourage strong economic growth, to the extent that such policy is consistent with long-term price stability. Requires the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Secretary of the Treasury to develop a price index to assist the Committee in establishing intermediate targets for the conduct of monetary policy. Requires the Chairman and the Secretary to establish a target range for such price index which will not result in a decline in the general level of prices. Requires the Committee, if the price index rises above such target range, to restrict the availability of bank reserves, or raise their cost, or both, and if the index falls below the target to increase the availability of bank reserves, or reduce their cost, or both. Permits a new target range to be set after a declaration of the existence of extraordinary circumstances by the Chairman and the Secretary. Repeals the requirements of such Act concerning the targeting of monetary aggregates. Directs the Secretary to seek the establishment of an international advisory task force, and ultimately an international monetary conference, consisting of representatives of the major industrial nations. Declares the purposes of such task force and conference to be: (1) the improvement of price stability throughout the world; (2) the improvement of the stability of currency exchange rates; and (3) the improvement of the prospects for liberal trade and strong noninflationary economic growth.
United States · United States Congress · 30 March 1984
Age Discrimination in Employment Act Public Safety Officers Amendments of 1984 - Amends the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 to exclude State and local law enforcement officers and firefighters from coverage under the Act.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 1984
Anti-Profiteering From Crime Act of 1984 - Amends the Federal criminal code to require an individual indicted, accused, or convicted of an offense to pay to the Attorney General all proceeds received from the sale of literary or other rights with respect to the criminal act. Requires the Attorney General to deposit all proceeds in a separate escrow account. Authorizes the Attorney General to make payments from the account to the victim. Allows money from the fund to pay for the defendant's legal representation. Requires the Attorney General to pay the balance of the account to the individual if acquitted or if five years have elapsed and no action is pending regarding the victim.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1984
Shopping Center Tenant Bankruptcy Protections Improvements Act of 1984 - Amends the Bankruptcy Code to require a trustee in bankruptcy to perform all of the obligations of a tenant arising from an order for bankruptcy relief under an unexpired nonresidential lease (including payment of the rent and other charges specified in the lease) until such lease is assumed or rejected. Permits the court to extend the time for performance of any obligation of rent or other charges due upon an unexpired lease. Declares that acceptance of such performance shall not constitute a waiver or relinquishment of the lessor's rights under the lease or under this Act. Imposes a 60 day limit (with additional time, if the court so orders) on a trustee's acceptance or rejection of an unexpired lease in all bankruptcy cases, after which time the lease will be deemed rejected. Requires the trustee to assure that an assignee of such a lease has a financial standing similar to the original tenant's at the time of execution of the lease. Revises the condition that assignment or assumption of the lease not cause a substantial disruption of any tenant mix in the center by deleting the qualifier "substantial". Permits the lessor, if an unexpired lease is assigned pursuant to this Act, to require a deposit or other security for the performance of the obligations under the lease. Declares that the property of the estate does not include any property subject to a lease which has expired by virtue of its own terms without regard to the bankruptcy proceedings.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 1984
Want Not, Waste Not Act - Directs an executive agency to print copies of its reports for distribution to only those Members of Congress requesting the reports. Directs an agency: (1) at least 60 days before publishing a report, to notify each Member of his or her right to receive the report; and (2) to use the number of requests from Members as a publication guide.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 1984
Broadcasters' Protection Act of 1984 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to declare that provisions requiring a broadcast station licensee to provide equal opportunities for station access to political candidates and prohibiting the licensee from censoring a candidate's broadcast do not require the licensee to broadcast any material the broadcast of which the licensee believes would violate any criminal law. Provides that a licensee's refusal to broadcast material based on such belief shall be a defense to any revocation action by the Federal Communications Commission and shall not be used adversely against the licensee in a comparative licensing process. Permits a broadcaster to petition any appropriate U.S. district court for a determination as to whether the broadcast of such material would violate a criminal law and for declaratory judgment relief. Allows a candidate whose broadcast is denied to petition the court for such a determination and for declaratory judgment relief with respect to such denial.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 1984
Joint Research and Development Act of 1984 - Declares that no joint research and development program shall be deemed illegal per se under the Federal antitrust laws or under any similar State law. Excludes from the term "joint research and development program" any activity in which two or more participating parties: (1) exchange information regarding the sales, marketing, or distribution of any product, process, or service; or (2) restrict or require the participation by any party in another research and development program, the production, marketing, or other commercial application by any party of any product, process, or service, or the sale, licensing, or sharing by any party of any invention not jointly developed under the program. Permits any party to a joint research and development program to file with the Attorney General and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) a written notice disclosing: (1) the parties to such program; (2) the nature, objectives, and duration of the program; and (3) the agreements made by the parties under the program. Directs the Attorney General or the FTC, within 60 days after receiving such notice, to publish in the Federal Register a notice identifying the parties to such program and the general nature and duration of such program. Exempts material submitted as part of such notices from public disclosure. Limits the amount that may be recovered in an action brought by a person or by a State on behalf of its residents for an injury to business or property sustained as a result of a violation of a State or Federal antitrust law, to the amount of the actual damages sustained, interest thereon, and the cost of the suit, if: (1) the action is based on conduct under a joint research and development program that is described in the program notice filed with the Attorney General and the FTC; and (2) such action is filed after the notice of such program is published in the Federal Register. Directs the court to award the prevailing party in such action a reasonable attorney's fee. Provides that such recovery limitation shall not apply to any conduct that occurs after an order granting a permanent injunction has been issued against such conduct as a result of an action under Federal or State antitrust law.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 1984
Permits the President, in the light of economic conditions and all other relevant factors, to permanently reserve from obligation and expenditure any budget authority which is otherwise available for FY 1984 or 1985 to the extent necessary or appropriate to reduce the Federal deficit. Sets forth limitations on such reservations by the President. Requires that at least 25 percent of the total amount of the reservations made by the President for either of the two fiscal years involved be made from appropriations and other obligational authority available for national defense. Provides that no such reservation shall have the objective, or the effect, of eliminating any program or combination of programs which has been specifically authorized by law. Declares that the authority conferred upon the President by this Act shall be in addition to and separate from any impoundment authority granted by the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 or any other law and shall not be subject to any restrictions or limitations other than those imposed by this Act. Requires the President, whenever he reserves any budget authority under this Act, to transmit to Congress a special message specifying certain information. Sets forth the procedure for congressional veto of any or all of such reservations by passage of a joint resolution of disapproval by both Houses of Congress within 60 days after notification. Requires the Comptroller General to review each such reservation and inform the House and the Senate whether or not it was made in accordance with the requirements of this Act. Declares that in the administration of any program for which reservation has been made and the distribution of funds is to be determined by a formula, the amount available for expenditure after such reservation shall be substituted for the amount appropriated or otherwise made available in the application of the formula.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 1984
Expresses the sense of the Congress that an international prayer breakfast would be an appropriate event to be held in conjunction with the games of the XXIII Olympiad.
![Official portrait of Rep. Lungren, Daniel E. [R-CA-3]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/l000517_200.jpg)