United States · United States Congress · 30 January 1990
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) it would be inequitable for Civil Service retirees to receive smaller cost-of-living adjustments to their pensions than Social Security retirement beneficiaries; and (2) any budget adopted by the Congress should provide for full cost-of-living adjustments for all individuals receiving a Federal retirement pension or benefit.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 1990
Energy and Environmental Security Act of 1990 - Title I: Extension and Modification of Tax Incentives for Ethanol - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend excise tax reductions for specified alcohol fuel mixtures for nine years. Directs the U.S. Comptroller General to study the options for reimbursing the Highway Trust Fund for the reduction in its receipts due to such reductions. Extends a tax credit for alcohol fuels to December 31, 2002. Prohibits carryovers of such credits after 2004. Extends such credits to alcohol used to produce ethyl tertiary butyl ether (ETBE). Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to extend: (1) the tariff treatment for ethanol to ETBE; and (2) the effective period of the temporary duty on ethanol to December 31, 2002. Title II: Oxygenated Fuels and Aromatic Compounds - Amends the Clean Air Act to prohibit, during October to March of each year, the introduction into commerce in any carbon monoxide nonattainment area of gasoline with an oxygen content of less than 3.1 percent. Provides for the exchange of oxygen credits between sellers of fuels with an oxygen content higher than required and other sellers of fuels to offset the use of fuels with a lower content than required. Prohibits such exchanges between sellers in different nonattainment areas. Requires retailers of oxygenated fuels to label fuel dispensing systems with a notice that the fuel is oxygenated and will reduce carbon monoxide emissions. Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to develop environmental profiles for each of the aromatic compounds in gasoline and to take action to limit the use of such compounds in accordance with the profiles. Title III: Development and Use of Ethanol - Requires the Secretary of Energy to: (1) give funding priority to ethanol development projects that have high potential for immediate benefits; and (2) establish a program to promote the development and use of ethanol in motor fuel.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 1990
Unemployment Compensation Reform Act of 1990 - Amends the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 (FSEUCA) to revise State triggers in the extended unemployment compensation program, and to provide for payment of program benefits on the basis of area triggers. Amends the Social Security Act (SSA) to revise grants to States for employment security administration. Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to increase the wage base for the Federal unemployment tax. Amends SSA to require the Secretary to report annually on the condition of each account in the Unemployment Trust Fund, with a five-year projection for each such account. Amends IRC to require State agencies to approve specified types of education and retraining for long-term unemployment compensation recipients. Amends FSEUCA to require certain extended unemployment benefit recipients to participate in training programs. Repeals certain limitations on the payment of unemployment compensation to former members of the armed forces under specified Federal law. Exempts from any order issued under the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) for FY 1992 or any succeeding fiscal year: (1) extended unemployment compensation program payments to States under FSEUCA: (2) employment security administration payments to States under SSA; and (3) railroad unemployment compensation program payments under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 1990
Congressional Commitment to Long-Term Care Concurrent Resolution - Expresses the sense of the Congress that payments to long-term care providers under titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act be sufficient to maintain the highest quality of patient care in nursing homes.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1989
Unsolicited Sexually Oriented Advertisements Prevention Act - Establishes a civil penalty for mailing sexually oriented advertisements to individuals included on the Postal Service's list of persons who have indicated a desire not to receive any such mailings. Eliminates the charge for being on such list.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1989
Amends Federal law to authorize and request the President to designate May as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month annually, beginning in 1990. (Current law designates a seven-day period beginning on May 4, 1979).
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1989
Federal Fire Service Pay Schedule Act of 1989 - Establishes a pay schedule for Federal fire service personnel. Excludes employees of the District of Columbia from such schedule. Provides for periodic and additional step increases, minimum hours of work, the computation of overtime, educational incentive service step increases, retirement, pay comparability, and additional compensation for technicians.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1989
Expedited Consideration of Proposed Rescissions Act of 1990 - Amends the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to require a special message, in the case of budget authority proposed to be rescinded or reserved, to include language amending the law authorizing such programs to allow them to continue to function at the proposed new level of budget authority. Allows the President to transmit to both Houses of the Congress, for expedited consideration, one or more special messages proposing to rescind all or part of any item of budget authority provided in an appropriation bill. Requires that such special message be transmitted not later than three days after the President approves the appropriation bill and be accompanied by a draft bill or joint resolution that would, if enacted, rescind the budget authority proposed to be rescinded. Sets forth House and Senate procedures for the expedited consideration of such a proposal.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1989
Competitive Agricultural Research Grant Act of 1990 - Amends Federal law to provide for expanded competitive grants for agricultural, food, and environmental research, including research facilities improvement. Authorizes appropriations. Expresses the sense of the Congress that funds for such purposes should not be derived by reducing farm support programs, unless changing market conditions warrant such reductions.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1989
Waste Materials Management Act of 1989 - Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 through 1993 to carry out the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Title I: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitles A and B of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to revise provisions concerning congressional findings and objectives. Declares it to be U.S. national policy that: (1) the creation of surplus and remnant material from production processes shall be reduced and residuals from post-consumer products shall be managed as material resources; (2) materials are to be managed at Federal, State, and local levels using specified waste reduction and management strategies; and (3) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the States shall not differentiate in the enforcement of this Act on the basis of whether an owner or person engaged in waste disposal activities is a public or private person, whether a facility is located on or off the premises where waste is generated, or whether an activity is carried out on or off the premises where the waste is generated. Requires the Inspector General of the EPA to report annually to the Congress on the implementation of, and compliance with, the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Adds specified annual reporting requirements. Directs the Administrator, for five years following the date of enactment of this Act, to identify five of the most toxic and common constituents of municipal waste. Requires the Administrator to consider, with respect to each of the constituents, imposing the following: (1) a ban on the use of such a constituent in production; (2) a ban on disposal in landfills or treatment in incinerators of any product containing such a constituent; (3) a requirement for special management standards for such products after discard; and (4) a requirement for the use of a substitute constituent. Permits the Administrator to impose such bans or requirements only by promulgating regulations. Requires the Administrator to publish annually in the Federal Register any information on such actions. Prohibits the disposal of used lead-acid batteries other than by recycling in accordance with this Act. Requires persons to dispose of such batteries only by delivery to: (1) battery retailers or wholesalers; or (2) secondary lead smelters or collection or recycling facilities permitted by a State or the Administrator. Sets forth battery disposal requirements for retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers. Makes violators of such requirements subject to fines under the Federal criminal code. Requires battery retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers to accept from customers used batteries of the same type as the batteries sold. Directs retailers to post a notice for customers containing information about the illegality of improperly disposed batteries, the requirements for accepting and disposing of batteries, and the merits of conservation. Permits the Administrator to inspect any establishment pursuant to this Act and to issue warnings and citations for noncompliance. Subjects persons who fail to post notices after receiving a warning to penalties of up to $1,000 per day. Requires battery wholesalers who sell batteries to retailers to provide for removal of batteries from the retailers' place of business. Prohibits the charging of fees for accepting batteries from customers. Considers violations of battery collection requirements to be misdemeanors. Requires the Administrator to study and report to the Congress on the disposal and potential recyclability of household dry-cell batteries and the need for legislation, regulation, or further study on the disposal and recyclability of such batteries. Title II: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitle C of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Identifies as a hazardous waste a waste containing more than .1 percent of any constituent listed in appendix VIII to part 261 of title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations, unless the Administrator establishes another level for such constituent. Provides that: (1) the mixing of a hazardous waste with any other matter constitutes treatment requiring a permit; and (2) dilution of a hazardous waste through such mixing, such that the resulting mixture does not exceed the established concentration levels, does not alter the character of the material as a hazardous waste. Authorizes the granting of petitions to remove from the list a hazardous waste for periods of up to five years. Permits subsequent renewals of such petitions. Requires the Administrator to charge fees for the submission of such petitions. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations on the following characteristics of hazardous waste: (1) acute and aquatic toxicity; (2) persistence and bioaccumulation potential; (3) radioactivity; (4) carcinogenicity; (5) mutagenicity; and (6) phytotoxicity. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring: (1) owners or operators of facilities which use materials containing hazardous constituents listed in the Code of Federal Regulations in a manufacturing process to test the waste generated for the presence of such constituents; and (2) owners or operators of facilities generating hazardous waste subject to land disposal prohibitions to test the waste to determine if it meets applicable treatment standards. Provides for routine testing at least every two years and additional testing when a significant change in generation or waste management processes occurs. Requires the Administrator to carry out hazardous waste programs directly in States unless a State is authorized to administer such requirements. Requires the Administrator, if a State's program is equivalent, to grant interim authorization to such State to administer such program in lieu of direct administration by the Administrator. Directs States with hazardous waste programs to report annually to the Administrator on such programs. Prohibits the Administrator from identifying used oil as a hazardous waste under the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Provides that any fuel derived from used oil that does not meet used oil specifications established by the Administrator and would otherwise be identified as a hazardous waste shall be deemed to be a hazardous waste. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations for persons who generate, transport, recycle, or dispose of used oil. Requires the Administrator, in developing such regulations, to conduct an analysis of the economic impact of such regulations on the used oil recycling industry. Provides that regulations for used oil generators shall: (1) prohibit the storage of used oil in an underground storage tank unless such tank meets requirements under this Act; (2) prohibit the storage of used oil for more than 12 months; (3) require generators to transfer such oil to specified permitted used oil recycling or disposal facilities or transporters; and (4) require generators to keep specified records on such oil. Requires used oil transporter regulations to provide that such transporters: (1) acquire identification numbers from EPA; (2) meet applicable financial responsibility requirements; and (3) keep specified records. Provides that used oil recycler regulations shall require recyclers to: (1) keep specified records; (2) test fuel produced from the recycling process before departure from the facility; and (3) obtain certain permits. Requires used oil disposal regulations to prohibit mixing used oil with any hazardous waste identified under the Solid Waste Disposal Act unless the resulting mixture does not exhibit hazardous waste characteristics or the mixture is burned to recover useful energy in a device designed such that protection of human health and the environment is assured. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring owners or operators of new and existing recycling facilities to have class permits. Provides for annual inspections of such facilities to assure permit compliance. Sets forth requirements for interim class permits. Exempts from permit requirements: (1) facilities which refine at least 10,000 barrels daily of crude oil into petroleum products, are classified as S.I.C. number 2911 (pursuant to the Office of Management and Budget Standard Classification Manual) facilities, and whose volume of refined used oil is less than one percent of the total crude oil refined into lubricant base stock annually; and (2) facilities which compound or blend lubricating base oil into finished lubricant products as their principal activity, are classified as S.I.C. number 2899 or 2992 facilities, and whose volume of used oil compounded or blended into such products is no more than ten percent of the lubricating base oil compounded or blended annually. Exempts from used oil regulation requirements on-site activities at facilities classified as S.I.C. number 4911 facilities. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations governing such facilities. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations establishing specification standards for fuel derived from used oil to be burned in furnaces and boilers. Sets forth requirements to be effective if the Administrator fails to promulgate used oil regulations by the applicable deadline. Requires the Administrator to implement education programs to inform the public and small businesses about the environmental and safety hazards associated with improper handling and disposal of used oil and the benefits derived from used oil recycling. Authorizes appropriations. Requires producers or importers of lubricating oil to recycle for a period of ten years an amount of used oil equal to at least the amount determined by multiplying the amount of lubricating oil produced or imported that year by such persons by the recycling percentage established by the Administrator. Authorizes such individuals to comply with this Act by: (1) recycling (through re-refining) used oil or purchasing re-refined oil for purposes of producing lubricating oil; or (2) purchasing recycling credits under this Act. Requires producers and importers to report annually to the Administrator on the amount of oil produced or imported by such persons. Directs the Administrator to establish a recycling percentage that is two points higher than the existing recycling rate for lubricating oil. Provides for increases in such percentage of two points annually for ten years. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations allowing recyclers to create credits for used oil recycling and producers or importers of lubricating oil to purchase such credits. Provides that such regulations shall require: (1) owners or operators of used oil collection centers to keep receipts issued by transporters who take delivery of such oil and copies of agreements under which the transporter agrees to take such oil to a recycling facility; (2) such owners or operators to certify that oil taken by transporters is not mixed with hazardous wastes; (3) owners or operators of recycling facilities to be the only persons to create a recycling credit for the recycling credit system; (4) recyclers to certify that the substance being recycled is used oil that has not been mixed with hazardous wastes; (5) oil proposed to be recycled to have come from a used oil collection place or a transporter with an identification number; (6) specified records to be kept by recyclers and by importers or producers; and (7) recyclers to sell or distribute in commerce such oil as specification used oil, off-specification used oil, industrial specification used oil, or re-refined oil. Directs the Administrator to report to the Congress on such regulations and to include: (1) a discussion of the effects of such regulations on the oil industry and the environment; and (2) an evaluation of the level of the recycling percentage and whether such percentage should be increased in future years. Requires an updated version of such report to be submitted within ten years of this Act's enactment. Applies recycling requirements to persons who import or produce more than 100,000 gallons of lubricating oil annually. Sets the recycling percentage at 40 percent if the Administrator fails to promulgate such regulations. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring owners or operators of existing and new hazardous waste facilities to have class permits. Requires such permits to include provisions for: (1) public notice and comment; (2) environmental monitoring; (3) closure and post closure requirements; (4) financial responsibility; (5) annual on-site inspections; and (6) penalties for noncompliance. Requires the Administrator to impose additional requirements, as necessary. Requires the following facilities, unless excluded from regulation, to have such permits: (1) recycling facilities; (2) facilities engaged in precious metal recovery; (3) facilities engaged in spent lead-acid battery reclamation; and (4) hazardous waste storage facilities. Title III: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitle D of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Subtitle A: Provisions Relating to Solid Waste Management Plans - Revises requirements for State solid waste management plans. Requires such plans to include: (1) an estimate of the capacity of the State to manage such waste; (2) permit programs; (3) solid waste recycling, reduction, incineration, and land disposal elements; (4) an overall waste materials strategy to cover one of two specified planning periods; (5) waste inventories; (6) personnel training and public education; (7) requirements for the management of household hazardous waste, tires, yard waste, and large household appliances; and (8) annual reporting requirements. Sets forth submission, approval, and implementation procedures for State plans. Authorizes a State with an approved plan and certification of compliance to: (1) prohibit the transportation of solid waste generated from another State into such State for disposal, storage, or incineration purposes; (2) prohibit the incineration, disposal, or storage of such waste; and (3) levy fees on solid waste or solid waste transporters that differentiate rates or other aspects of payment on the basis of waste origin. Requires such State, prior to exercising such authority, to certify to the Administrator that it has: (1) completed construction on facilities that will provide at least 70 percent of the capacity for solid waste management needed to implement the State plan; and (2) completed siting approval on facilities that will provide 100 percent of such capacity. Prohibits the interstate transport of solid waste in any State: (1) that does not have an approved plan within a specified time period; (2) that cannot certify continuing compliance; or (3) for which that the Administrator has withdrawn approval of the State plan. Permits the Administrator to develop a plan for, and charge, any State that has not submitted a plan. Requires States to establish permit programs and issue permits to solid waste management facilities in compliance with this Act. Prohibits the incineration, storage, or disposal of such waste at, or the transportation of such waste to, facilities without permits. Sets forth transitional permit requirements and deadlines. Limits permit terms to ten years and provides for permit modifications, as appropriate. Authorizes States to grant variances from permit requirements if demonstrated that no adverse effects to human health or the environment will result from such variances. Subtitle B: Provisions Relating to Federal Requirements - Directs the Administrator to promulgate standards, guidelines, and regulations for: (1) municipal solid waste landfills; (2) municipal solid waste incinerators; (3) industrial waste; (4) above-ground storage tanks; and (5) other waste categories, as appropriate. Permits State Governors to petition the Administrator for the promulgation of additional standards, guidelines, and regulations. Sets forth requirements for municipal solid waste landfills, to include: (1) specified detection and monitoring controls; (2) daily cover; (3) closure and postclosure requirements; (4) financial responsibility and corrective action requirements; (5) groundwater monitoring; (6) liners and leachate collection and removal systems, as appropriate; (7) construction quality assurance plans; and (8) prohibitions on landfills being located within the 100-year flood plain, within specified distances of faults, or within seismic impact zones or other unstable areas, unless certain conditions have been met. Requires the Administrator to publish guidelines for identifying materials which should be removed from solid waste before its incineration in a municipal solid waste incinerator. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations applicable to the operation and management of municipal solid waste incinerators and to the disposal or recycling and reuse of municipal solid waste incinerator ash. Prohibits the disposal of ash in units that are created as a result of vertical expansion of an existing waste disposal facility unless it is demonstrated that there will be no settling of waste that would impair the integrity of the liners. Requires that landfills into which such ashes are disposed provide for groundwater monitoring and: (1) place such ashes in a monofill having a leachate collection system and a single liner designed and operated to prevent the migration of any constituent into such liner; or (2) have two or more liners and a leachate collection system above and between such liners. Provides that landfill design requirements shall not apply to alternatively-designed units if demonstrated that such designs prevent such migration. Directs the Administrator to prescribe criteria and testing procedures for identifying the hazardous properties of municipal incinerator ash so that ash which does not exhibit such properties may be placed in sanitary landfills meeting current criteria under specified conditions. Requires ash which is hazardous to human health or the environment to be treated prior to recycling or reuse. Prohibits, four years after this Act's enactment, the operation of incinerators and the receipt of ash for treatment, storage, disposal, reuse, or recycling without a permit or prior approval under a State program. Requires civil penalties imposed against local governments for violations of this Act to be deposited into a trust fund for programs that serve to enhance the protection of human health and the environment. Sets forth transitional provisions. Requires the Administrator to identify, classify, and report to the Congress and States on specified types of industrial waste. Directs generators or transporters of such waste and owners or operators of facilities handling such waste to file notifications with the State concerning facility locations and descriptions of activities and wastes handled. Sets forth requirements for industrial waste management, to include: (1) authorizations to operate; (2) monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements; (3) performance standards; (4) financial responsibility assurances; (5) design, operating, closure, and postclosure criteria; and (6) corrective action requirements. Applies such requirements to the following facilities: (1) industrial waste facilities that produce such waste and are not implementing closure or postclosure plans; and (2) inactive or abandoned facilities that are reactivated. Requires the Administrator to study the adverse effects on human health and the environment of the disposal of other nonhazardous waste. Directs the Administrator to promulgate solid waste storage regulations. Excludes from such regulations storage at transportation-related facilities. Requires State plans and permits to include requirements for municipal solid waste landfills and incinerators and for industrial wastes. Subtitle C: Other Provisions - Directs the Administrator to compile and periodically update a non-hazardous solid waste inventory to determine, by State or region: (1) an estimate of the amount of such waste to be generated annually and likely to be generated in each of the next 20 years; and (2) the capacity of existing and proposed waste management facilities. Sets forth Federal enforcement provisions. Prescribes civil and criminal penalties for violations of solid waste management requirements. Title IV: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitle H of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Requires the Administrator to: (1) develop model recycling programs for States and localities; and (2) carry out a continuing program to evaluate demonstrated waste management technologies that could be used by municipalities and report periodically on such program. Prohibits the Administrator from funding the development or demonstration of such technologies. Title V: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitle I of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations applicable to above-ground storage tanks. Applies such requirements to all tanks except those subject to the requirements of subtitle C of the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Exempts from this Act's requirements releases of small quantities of regulated substances which will not endanger human health and the environment and particular tanks, as appropriate. Requires such regulations to include requirements for field-erected tanks. Directs owners and operators of such tanks to implement release prevention plans which provide for release prevention systems capable of: (1) catching and holding 110 percent of the full capacity of the tank and preventing releases beyond tank boundaries; and (2) restraining drainage and preventing contamination of soil and water. Requires the plan and system to be inspected by a registered engineer who is not employed by the owner or operator. Directs the engineer, if the system does not reflect good engineering practices or the tank does not comply with the regulations, to notify the Administrator or the State. Provides for amendments of release prevention plans whenever there is a major modification in the tank which affects the tank's potential to release substances. Sets forth recordkeeping and reporting requirements for field-operated tanks. Prohibits the operation of such tanks after a release unless the Administrator determines that such prohibition is not necessary. Requires the regulations to include requirements for shop-fabricated tanks. Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish an inspection program for such tanks in the factory when construction is complete and before the tanks enter interstate commerce; and (2) require such tanks to bear labels with specified manufacturing, capacity, and use information. Provides for requirements relating to the installation of such tanks. Directs the Administrator, as necessary, to promulgate financial responsibility requirements for taking corrective action and compensating third parties for bodily injury and property damage caused by accidental releases from above-ground storage tanks. Permits the establishment of financial responsibility for a spill by any means the Administrator deems appropriate. Authorizes the assertion of claims against guarantors providing evidence of financial responsibility for claims against insolvent owners or operators of tanks. Limits guarantor liability to the aggregate amount which the guarantor has provided as evidence of financial responsibility to the owner or operator. Authorizes the Administrator to establish coverage requirements which may vary among particular classes or categories of above-ground storage tanks. Permits the Administrator to make grants to States for carrying out enforcement requirements. Authorizes a State to submit for the Administrator's review and approval a program under which such State would assume primary responsibility for the enforcement of regulations pertaining to above-ground storage tanks. Requires that State regulation and enforcement procedures be at least as stringent as those used by the Administrator. Requires the Administrator to: (1) monitor State programs for compliance with this Act's requirements; and (2) provide technical assistance to assist States, local governments, and owners and operators in complying with this title. Authorizes the Administrator to issue compliance orders or commence civil actions against violators of this Act's requirements, but requires that prior notification be given to States operating their own programs. Imposes criminal and civil monetary penalties for violations of this Act's requirements. Makes tank owners and operators liable for the Administrator's corrective action costs and damages. Authorizes the Administrator to require a tank owner or operator to undertake corrective action in response to any release of a regulated substance from the tank when such action will be done properly and promptly. Permits the Administrator, upon notification of a release, to prohibit operations in a facility until such action has been taken. Authorizes the Administrator to take corrective action where the owner or operator fails to take prompt and effective action and human health and the environment are endangered. Prohibits indemnification agreements from transferring liability under this title. Prohibits States or political subdivisions from enforcing requirements for shop-fabricated tanks that are more stringent than those imposed under this title. Authorizes appropriations. Prohibits the Administrator from enforcing financial responsibility regulations with respect to an owner or operator of an underground storage tank if such owner or operator has applied for insurance. Revises provisions concerning financial responsibility for such tanks. Requires the Administrator to evaluate and report to the Congress on the effects of financial responsibility regulations on the cost and availability of insurance used to demonstrate financial responsibility. Title VI: Waste Materials Reduction - Authorizes any person to petition a Federal agency to undertake a waste reduction action if such action would bring about at least a ten percent increase in recycling of the petitioned item, reduce by at least ten percent the total volume or toxic constituents of a waste described in the petition, or would bring about a net savings in true cost to the Federal Government or be neutral in effect or cost. Requires each Federal agency to designate a waste reduction officer to oversee compliance with Federal agency waste reduction requirements, prepare agency waste reduction plans, and report annually to the Administrator on the implementation of such plans. Directs the Administrator to establish a clearinghouse within EPA to collect and disseminate information on waste reduction and recycling. Makes such information available to the public. Requires the Administrator to establish a commission to study and report to the President and the Congress on waste reduction with respect to consumer products and packaging. Provides for the submission of periodic reports by the commission on the status of waste reduction efforts by the Federal Government and industry. Terminates the commission five years after the date of its establishment. Title VII: Procurement and Marketing of Recycled Materials - Applies Federal procurement requirements concerning recycled goods to States or other entities if such entities use funds appropriated to a Federal agency to which such procurement requirements apply. Directs the Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy to report to the Congress on the effect of a certain price preference concerning the procurement of recycled paper products. Requires affirmative procurement programs to include: (1) programs for monitoring compliance by States, political subdivisions, and contractors with recovered materials procurement requirements; and (2) a requirement that paper procured for uses which have enduring value be permanent paper. Requires such agencies to report annually to the Administrator on such programs and on the amount and value of recovered materials procured. Makes such report available to the public. Directs the EPA Administrator to: (1) report biennially to the Congress on the progress made by Federal agencies in implementing recovered materials procurement programs; and (2) review and revise, if necessary, guidelines concerning such programs which were prepared before this Act's enactment. Prohibits Federal agencies from entering into procurement contracts with any persons convicted of specified offenses of the Solid Waste Disposal Act if such a contract is to be performed at the facility at which the violation occurred. Authorizes the President to make exemptions to such prohibition. Requires the President to report annually to the Congress on the implementation of such prohibition. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to conduct a biennial survey that: (1) identifies the major domestic uses for, and users of, recovered and recycled materials; (2) documents or estimates the amounts of such materials used, exported, and imported annually; and (3) identifies the markets for such materials and the products made from such materials. Requires the Secretary and the Administrator to establish an interagency working group to: (1) promote markets in recovered and recycled materials and link sources of such materials with potential markets; (2) work cooperatively with generators, collectors, transporters, users, and regulators of such materials and with manufacturers of products containing such materials; (3) link businesses dealing in such materials with potential sources of capital; (4) educate government and business officials about potential commerce in such materials; (5) coordinate efforts to promote lawful commerce in such materials; (6) encourage reuse and recycling of solid waste; and (7) identify the institutional, economic, and technical barriers to the use of such materials. Directs the Secretary to take such actions as may be necessary to stimulate the development of new domestic markets for such materials. Requires the Secretary and the U.S. Trade Representative to: (1) identify foreign markets for recovered materials and products containing a high content of recycled materials; and (2) assist exporters in selling such materials and products in foreign markets. Title VIII: Financial Assistance - Authorizes the Administrator to provide financial assistance to States with approved solid waste management plans to develop programs to encourage and facilitate recycling. Permits the Administrator to: (1) provide financial assistance to States and local authorities for solid waste management planning; (2) make bonus grants to municipalities or other agencies that demonstrate achievement of a recycling rate greater than 25 percent; (3) make loans to States for waste reduction activities and programs in rural areas to collect household hazardous waste and waste from small quantity generators. Title IX: Other Provisions - Permits Government agencies to retain any amounts received from sales of materials or energy recovered from solid waste. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations for the use and composition of compost made from yard waste. Revises oil labeling requirements to direct the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring packages of lubricating oil (of less than five gallons) sold in commerce to bear a label stating that used oil should be taken to collection centers. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring rigid and semi-rigid plastic packaging and products sold in commerce to bear a label identifying the plastic resin used in such packaging and products. Authorizes the Administrator, subject to certain conditions, to: (1) treat Indian tribes as States under the Solid Waste Disposal Act; (2) delegate to such tribes primary enforcement responsibility for programs under such Act; and (3) provide such tribes grant and contract assistance to carry out such functions. Permits States and Indian tribes, subject to the Administrator's approval, to enter into cooperative agreements to administer such Act. Requires the Administrator to report to the Congress on measures for addressing hazardous and solid wastes and underground storage tanks in Indian country. Directs the Administrator to undertake a continuing program to establish an inventory of hazardous waste sites and solid waste open dumps in Indian country. Requires the Administrator to assist Indian tribes that operate such dumps in upgrading such facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1989
Expresses the sense of the Congresss that the U.S. Postal Service representatives to the 20th Universal Postal Congress should seek support from all member countries for proposed resolutions which will help ensure respect for the privacy and integrity of postal communications by: (1) making clear that delivery receipts accompanying restricted delivery items must be signed; (2) requiring destination postal administrations to provide confirmation of delivery in the event of a claim that an item has not been received; and (3) requiring a notice of reasons for the return of wrongly admitted items.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 1989
Small Business Rehabilitation Relief Act of 1989 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit for small businesses for the expense of providing accessibility to the disabled.
United States · United States Congress · 8 November 1989
International Narcotics Control Act of 1989 - Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) it is crucial to international antidrug efforts that funds be made available to provide alternative sources of income for individuals in major coca producing countries who are dependent on illicit drug production, as well as for eradication, enforcement, rehabilitation, treatment, and education programs in such countries; and (2) the United States and other major donor countries should provide increased economic assistance to major coca producing countries which have taken steps to attack illicit coca production by methods which reduce the flow of cocaine to the world market. Urges the Director of National Drug Policy to develop and submit to the Congress a plan which addresses such needs. Authorizes the President to make funds for foreign military financing under the Arms Export Control Act and international military education and training under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 available to provide defense articles and services and international military education and training to Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru. Earmarks specified amounts of such assistance for narcotics law enforcement training and interdiction activities and procurement of defense articles by enforcement agencies in such countries. Makes such countries eligible only if they maintain democratic governments and their law enforcement agencies do not engage in human rights violations. Requires the President to report to specified congressional committees prior to obligating such funds. Provides for human rights reporting on such countries. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the International Narcotics Control Act of 1988 to earmark specified amounts of international military education and training assistance and anti-narcotics military assistance for FY 1990 for eligible countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. Waives provisions of the Arms Export Control Act concerning foreign military financing with respect to financing for narcotics control activities. Prohibits the provision of such assistance to Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru. Amends the Arms Export Control Act to require the Special Defense Acquisition Fund to be used to acquire defense articles for narcotics control purposes. Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the President to transfer excess defense articles to any country: (1) which is a major illicit drug producing country in Latin America and the Caribbean with a democratic government; and (2) whose armed forces do not engage in human rights violations. Requires such countries to ensure that such articles will be used only in support of anti-narcotics activities. Limits the aggregate value of articles to be transferred to a country in any fiscal year. Permits such transfers only if: (1) the articles are drawn from existing Department of Defense (DOD) stocks; (2) funds available to DOD for the procurement of defense equipment are not expended in connection with such transfers; and (3) the President determines that such transfers will not have an adverse impact on the military readiness of the United States. Permits such transfers without cost to the recipient country. Requires the President to notify specified congressional committees prior to transferring such articles. Waives certain prohibitions on the provision of assistance to countries in default on loan payments to the United States with respect to narcotics-related assistance for FY 1990 for major illicit drug producing countries. Earmarks specified amounts of grant military assistance and foreign military financing for FY 1990 for arming aircraft used in narcotics control eradication or interdiction efforts. Prohibits such funds from being used to purchase new aircraft. Requires the notification of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee prior to the use of such funds. Earmarks a specified amount of international narcotics control assistance for FY 1990 for the testing and use of herbicides for the aerial eradication of coca. Limits the amount of FY 1990 international narcotics control assistance to be made available for Mexico. Permits excess assistance to Mexico only if specified congressional committees are notified. Waives a prohibition on assistance to drug traffickers with respect to FY 1990 assistance to major drug transit countries if the President certifies that: (1) certain provisions of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 with regard to money laundering do not apply to such a country; (2) such country was previously a major illicit drug producing country but has effectively eliminated drug production during the preceding two years; and (3) such country is cooperating fully with the United States or has taken certain steps with respect to narcotics control. Expresses the sense of the Congress that U.S. trade policy should be coordinated with U.S. narcotics control objectives, particularly with respect to the International Coffee Agreement. Commends the President for reviewing, and urges him to continue to review whether: (1) the International Coffee Agreement negotiations should be resumed; and (2) the trade benefits provided in the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act should be extended to the major coca producing countries of Latin America. Requires the President to report to the Congress on such review. Urges the President to: (1) place debt relief and drug control efforts in Latin American countries among the highest of foreign policy priorities; and (2) ensure that the Director of National Drug Control Policy, the Secretary of State, and the Secretary of the Treasury have leading roles in addressing these problems. Urges the President to consult with Latin American countries to arrange a hemispheric summit to discuss specific illicit drug and debt issues. Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the proposal for the promotion of a multilateral anti-narcotics force for the Western Hemisphere should be endorsed; and (2) the United States should work through multilateral organizations to determine the feasibility, and assist in the establishment, of such force. Urges the President to: (1) seek agreement by relevant foreign countries, especially NATO countries and members of the Warsaw Pact, to join with the United States in halting weapons transfers to narcotics traffickers in Latin America; and (2) improve the coordination of U.S. efforts to track the flow of such weapons to international narcotics traffickers and to prevent illegal shipments from the United States. Calls upon the President to direct the U.S. representative to INTERPOL to urge such organization to study the feasibility of establishing an international database on the flow of the types of weapons acquired illegally by international narcotics traffickers. Requires the President to report to the Congress on such actions. Amends the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to raise the limit on the amount of rewards for information concerning international terrorism. Makes technical amendments to provisions of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 concerning international narcotics control. Incorporates related provisions of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988 and the International Narcotics Control Act of 1986 into such Act. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 for international narcotics control assistance. Requires countries receiving such assistance to bear an appropriate share of the costs for any activity for which assistance is provided. Exempts assistance for narcotics control crop substitution activities from a prohibition on the use of funds to support the production of any agricultural commodity in a foreign country which would compete with a similar U.S. commodity. Authorizes the President to release Bolivia, Colombia, or Peru from obligations to make payments to the United States if such country is participating in a program for the use of herbicides for the aerial eradication of coca. Directs the President to report annually to the Speaker of the House and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on international narcotics control activities. Makes technical amendments to, and repeals specified provisions of, the International Narcotics Control Act of 1988, the International Narcotics Control Act of 1986, and the Narcotics Control Trade Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 1989
Directs the heads of Federal departments or agencies which hold or receive records and information which have or could possibly have been correlated to U.S. personnel listed as prisoners of war or missing in action in World War II and the Korean and Vietnam conflicts to publicly disclose such records and information, except where such disclosure would compromise national security. Requires the Department of Defense to publicly disclose a complete list of such personnel including those killed in action (body not returned) in such hostilities with each service member's current classification as well as any changes in such classification occurring during or after such hostilities.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 1989
Benjamin Franklin Memorial Fire Service Bill of Rights Act - Title I: Minting of Benjamin Franklin National Memorial Commemorative Coin - Benjamin Franklin National Memorial Commemorative Coin Act - Provides for the sale of Benjamin Franklin commemorative coins at a surcharge of which 25 percent shall be paid to the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial and the remainder be distributed in specified percentages to the National Fire Center and Museum Account, the National Hero Scholarship Account, the Firefighter's Tuition Assistance Account, the Hazardous Materials Response Computer Account, the In Search of Excellence Research and Education Account, and the Burn Research Grant Account of the Firefighter Assistance Trust Fund (Fund). Prohibits the issuance of such coins from resulting in any net cost to the Federal government. Title II: Fire Service Bill of Rights - Fire Service Bill of Rights Act - Amends the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 to establish a fire service bill of rights. Establishes the National Fire Center and Museum in the District of Columbia to provide information about the fire service and safety to the public and fire services. Funds such museum exclusively through the Fund. Establishes a National Hero Scholarship to fund the higher education of the children or spouse of a deceased firefighter. Establishes a scholarship providing tuition assistance to firefighters for higher education in fire safety or protection. Authorizes the Administrator of the United States Fire Administration to use amounts in the In Search of Excellence Research and Education Account of the Fund to fund other specified programs under the Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974. Establishes the Firefighters Assistance Trust Fund. Places the National Academy for Fire Prevention and Control within the United States Fire Administration. Directs the Administrator to use funds from the Hazardous Materials Response Computer Account of the fund to procure computer equipment for fire services that want such equipment. Directs the Administrator to make a grant from the Burn Research Grant Account of the Fund to one national firefighter's burn foundation dedicated to reducing burn injuries. Requires the Administrator to prepare and make available to State fire marshals, upon request, a manual describing Federal procedures for disposing of surplus property and highlighting how fire services could obtain such property. Directs the Administrator to distribute to such marshals information on the infectious diseases to which firefighters are particularly vulnerable.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 1989
Welcomes the foreign postal representatives participating in the 20th Congress of the Universal Postal Union in Washington, D.C. Expresses hope that the efforts of this international conference will improve global communications in the next century.
United States · United States Congress · 31 October 1989
Sustainable Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1989 - Title I: General Provisions - Sets forth sustainable agricultural reporting requirements of the Secretary of Agriculture. Title II: Farm Program Flexibility Option - Directs the Secretary to establish a program (program) to assist farmers in adopting sustainable agricultural production systems aimed at: (1) enhancing profitability and productivity; (2) conservation; (3) protecting human and animal welfare; (4) minimizing chemical use; and (5) promoting diversification. Prohibits farm program payment yield reductions for program participants. Title III: Sustainable Agriculture Research and Extension Program - Establishes within the Extension Service a Sustainable Agriculture Extension Program. Title IV: Technical and Financial Assistance - Subtitle A: Technical Assistance and Training - Directs the Secretary to: (1) revise the Soil Conservation Service field office technical guides to incorporate sustainable agricultural practices; and (2) establish grants for such purpose. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to provide related in-service training for the Extension Service and the Soil Conservation Service. Subtitle B: Financial Assistance - Authorizes the Secretary to enter into cost-sharing agreements with producers who implement farm management plans.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 1989
Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act of 1977 Amendments Act - Amends the Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act of 1977 to give to the Federal Emergency Management Agency the responsibility to lead the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program. Revises: (1) the duties of the Director of the Agency; (2) Program objectives; (3) research elements required in the Program, including specifying that research includes basic and applied research; and (4) mitigation elements required in the Program. Sets forth the public education and planning and response elements of the Program. Requires the establishment within the U.S. Geological Survey of a Center for the International Exchange of Earthquake Information. Establishes within the U.S. Geological Survey an Earthquake Investigations Program to learn lessons which can be applied to reduce the loss of lives and property in future earthquakes. Increases the authorization of appropriations to the National Institute of Standards and Technology for responsibilities under the Act. Authorizes appropriations to the U.S. Geological Survey for earthquake investigations under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 October 1989
NP-5 Program Amendments of 1989 - Amends the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 to extend the NP-5 visa program through FY 1995. (Such program provides 15,000 additional visas annually to nationals of countries adversely affected by the 1965 Immigration Act.) Revises such program's visa lottery to award visas on the basis of application chronology. Voids the application of an alien who submits multiple petitions. Requires the Secretary of State to report to the appropriate congressional committees with respect to the lottery's implementation. Provides, with regard to such program, for: (1) definition of "adversely affected foreign state"; (2) waiver of the two-year home country residency requirement for certain temporary residents; (3) carryover of unused visas; and (4) no denial of visa for failure to have U.S. employment. Directs the Comptroller General to conduct a country by country study of consular visa denials and report to the appropriate congressional committees.
United States · United States Congress · 24 October 1989
Federal Reserve Reform Act of 1989 - Amends the Federal Reserve Act to direct the Federal Open Market Committee to meet and consult with the Secretary of the Treasury, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and the chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors during certain periods related to the submission of: (1) certain reports by the Board of Governors to the Congress; and (2) the President's budget for the coming fiscal year. 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 end of the term of the President who appointed the Chairman expires. 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 takes office if a vacancy occurs in the office of the chairman. Provides that in the case of vacancies in both offices chairman and vice chairman, the member of the Board with the most years of service shall perform the duties of the chairman until a successor takes office. Requires each change in the intermediate targets for monetary policy 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. Repeals provisions which exempt from Comptroller General audit any transactions made under the direction of the Federal Open Market Committee and deliberations, decisions, or actions on monetary policy by the Federal Reserve Board and Federal Reserve banks. Requires the estimated expenditures and receipts and proposed appropriations for the Board to be submitted to the President by October 16 each year and included, unchanged, in the annual Federal budget submitted by the President to the Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 19 October 1989
Declares it is in the interests of the United States to support efforts to protect South Pacific marine resources (including albacore tuna, porpoises, whales, seals and other marine mammals, birds, sea turtles, and fish) from the slaughter of driftnet fishing. Supports the Tarawa Declaration and the South Pacific Commission resolution calling for an immediate ban on driftnet fishing in the South Pacific. Urges the Secretary of State to work toward an international convention banning driftnet fishing in the South Pacific. Urges Japan and Taiwan to immediately cease the use of driftnets in international South Pacific waters.
United States · United States Congress · 18 October 1989
Approves the location of a commemorative work to honor women who served in the armed forces of the United States in Vietnam during the Vietnam era on certain Federal land in the District of Columbia.
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 1989
Coal Industry Health Benefit Stabilization Act of 1989 - Authorizes the transfer of surplus assets from a coal industry pension plan to a coal industry health benefits plan, under specified conditions, without certain adverse effects in tax treatment under the Internal Revenue Code. Obliges specified employers to continue to contribute to multiemployer coal industry health benefits plans. Provides that nothing in this Act shall diminish or adversely affect any cause of action of such a plan, or its board of trustees, against an employer for contributions based on a collective bargaining agreement between the employer and a labor organization which is a settlor of the plan. Directs the United Mine Workers of America and the Bituminous Coal Operators' Association to report by February 1, 1994, on the effect of this Act on the delivery of retiree health benefits in the bituminous coal industry.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 1989
Amends the Rail Passenger Service Act to repeal an exemption from specified communicable disease control requirements of the Public Health Service Act for waste disposal from railroads operating in intercity rail passenger service.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 1989
Expresses the sense of the Congress that in recognition of several significant steps that Angola has taken toward peace, national reconciliation, and economic reform it is in the interest of the United States to take steps to normalize relations with the Government of Angola, including: (1) establishing a U.S. liaison office in Luanda; (2) supporting Angola's full participation in multilateral development institutions; and (3) providing humanitarian assistance.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 1989
Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in any case in which there has been either a disallowance of a veterans benefits claim or a partially awarded claim, to provide to the claimant a written statement setting forth notice of procedural rights of the claimant and the rationale for the disallowance. Requires that such statement: (1) be provided at each procedural stage relating to the disposition of a claim; (2) include a summary of the evidence supporting the disallowance or the partial award; (3) be in such forms as the Secretary prescribes by regulation; (4) include a description of each subsequent procedural stage before the Department of Veterans Affairs; (5) include a description of all rights of the claimant expressly provided for in the veterans' benefits code, the claimant's right to a hearing, to reconsideration, to appeal, and to representation, and any specific procedures necessary to obtain the various forms of review available for consideration of the claim; and (6) include such other information as the Secretary determines would be useful and practical to assist the claimant in obtaining full consideration of the claim. Adds parallel requirements with respect to the Chairman of the Board of Veterans' Appeals.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 1989
Prohibits the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from enforcing, during the 12-month period following the enactment of this Act, its underground petroleum storage tank financial responsibility regulations promulgated pursuant to the Solid Waste Disposal Act with respect to certain underground tank owners. Permits enforcement after such period if the Administrator of the EPA determines that such enforcement would not impose an unjust economic burden on the owners. Requires the Administrator to conduct a study for the purpose of identifying the principal economic difficulties associated with compliance by underground tank owners with EPA technical standards for such tanks. Directs the Administrator to report the results of such study to specified congressional committees. Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to: (1) delete the requirement that regulations under such Act include provisions for compensation of third parties for injury and property damage caused by accidental releases from underground storage tanks; and (2) reduce financial responsibility requirements for specified underground petroleum storage tanks.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 1989
Farm Animal and Research Facilities Protection Act of 1989 - Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to make it unlawful to disrupt or damage a farm animal facility, its animals, or property. Sets forth penalties for violations of this Act. Allows the Secretary of Agriculture to investigate such offenses. Grants U.S. district courts jurisdiction in such cases. Provides for a private right of action.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 1989
Amends Federal transportation law to authorize a person to assert that it would be an unreasonable practice for a motor common carrier or a nonhousehold goods freight forwarder to seek to collect tariff rates or charges in addition to those originally billed and collected, or to impose rules, classifications, or practices permitting such a collection. Declares that the Interstate Commerce Commission shall determine whether or not such a collection or imposition is an unreasonable practice violating Federal law. Shortens the statute of limitations for the filing of claims: (1) by a motor common carrier for recovery of transportation or service charges; and (2) by a person to recover overcharges by a motor carrier. Decreases the limitation period for both kinds of claims from 36 months to: (1) 24 months for claim accruals during the year following enactment of this Act; and (2) 18 months for claim accruals on or after one year following enactment. Permits motor carriers and shippers to resolve by mutual consent, subject to Commission review, any overcharge and undercharge claims resulting from billing errors or incorrect tariff provisions arising from the inadvertent failure to properly and timely file and maintain agreed upon rates, rules, or classifications, or under circumstances where application of the filed tariff would be an unreasonable practice.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1989
Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore Access and Enhancement Act - Amends Federal law to include specified rights-of-way in the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Requires the Secretary of the Interior to acquire roads and road rights-of-way owned by a State or local government when they are no longer necessary for public access or their continuation interferes with the purposes for which the Lakeshore was established. Revises Lakeshore boundaries to include specified river corridors and wetlands. Directs the Secretary to complete protection plans for such areas. Requires studies of the Deep River Corridor and the Beverly Shores wetlands to be submitted to specified congressional committees. Authorizes appropriations for such studies and plans. Allows individual property owners within Lakeshore boundaries to retain use and occupancy rights on improved property for noncommercial residential purposes. Grants the Secretary the right-of-first-refusal whenever a property owner intends to transfer ownership. Requires leaseback of improved residential property to previous owners in the case of any property acquired by the United States before a certain date. Authorizes appropriations for the maintenance of the Lakeshore. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into a cooperative agreement with Gary, Indiana, for financial and technical assistance for programs and development in the city's Marquette Park and Lake Street Beach. Directs the Secretary to advise the Commissioner of the Indiana Department of Transportation to determine what lands and interests the State requires for improvements to certain roads. Designates the National Park Service visitor center at the Lakeshore the Dorothy Buell Memorial Visitor Center.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1989
Older Workers Benefit Protection Act - Amends the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) to specify that it prohibits discrimination against older workers in all employee benefits except when age-based reductions in employee benefit plans are justified by significant cost considerations. Declares that, as used in ADEA, the phrase "compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment" encompasses all employee benefits, including those provided under a bona fide employee benefit plan. Requires that the actual amount of payment made or cost incurred on behalf of an older worker be no less than that made or incurred on behalf of a younger worker, for each benefit or benefit package, in order for an employee benefit plan not to violate ADEA. Places on the employer, employment agency, or labor organization the burden of proving, in any civil enforcement proceeding brought under ADEA, that specified actions are lawful. Requires a seniority system or employee benefit plan to comply with ADEA regardless of the date of adoption of such system or plan. Applies this Act to all actions or proceedings under ADEA that were brought after June 23, 1989, or that were pending on such date (which is the date on which the Supreme Court issued the decision in Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio v. Betts).
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1989
Yosemite National Park Centennial Medal Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell not more than 750,000 gold, silver, and bronze medals in commemoration of the centennial of Yosemite National Park, California, in 1990. Requires that all sales of such medals include a surcharge of $35 per medal for the gold medals, $7 per medal for the silver medals, and $2 per medal for the bronze medals. Requires that all surcharges be paid to an endowment fund for the benefit of the Park to be administered by the National Park Foundation. Requires that the interest from the fund be paid to the Secretary of the Interior to fund special supplemental projects relating to back country trail development and rehabilitation and the preservation of Sequoia groves within the boundaries of the Park. Requires the Secretaries to enter into a memorandum agreement to allow: (1) the Secretary of the Treasury to deliver medals to the Secretary of the Interior; and (2) the Secretary of the Interior to provide for the sale of the medals in National Park facilities. Grants the Comptroller General the right to examine all records of the National Park Foundation which are related to such medals. Provides that no medals may be struck after December 31, 1991.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1989
Science Museum Assistance Act - Directs the National Science Foundation (NSF) to establish: (1) a merit based, competitive program of awards to science museums to make their services more available and to foster their involvement in local science and technology education; and (2) a peer review process to select award recipients. Sets forth selection criteria. Requires the program established under this Act to be administered through the Science and Engineering Education activity at the NSF. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 and subsequent fiscal years.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1989
Amends the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to permit prepayment and refinancing of Rural Electrification Administration guaranteed loans made to rural electrification and telephone systems if: (1) private capital is used for such prepayment; and (2) the borrower certifies that any savings incurred will be passed on to customers, used to improve the borrower's financial strength, or used to mitigate future rate increases. Sets forth the interest rate for such loans. Prohibits any additional loan charges.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 1989
Adult Literacy and Employability Act of 1989 - Title I: Literacy Coordination - Establishes a Joint Presidential-Congressional Task Force on Adult Literacy. Requires the Task Force to report to the Council for Literacy Coordination established by this Act. Terminates the Task Force six months after its last member is appointed. Authorizes appropriations for the Task Force for FY 1990. Establishes the Cabinet Council for Literacy Coordination (the Council). Requires the Council to report annually to the Congress and the President. Authorizes appropriations for the Council for FY 1990 through 1993. Amends the Department of Education Organization Act to establish in the Department of Education an Office of Adult Literacy, to be administered by a Director of such Office. Requires the Director to: (1) coordinate the administration of literacy programs within the Department; and (2) work with the Cabinet Council for Literacy to coordinate related activities. Establishes the National Center for Adult Literacy as a nonprofit corporation which will not be an agency or establishment of the Federal Government. Divides the Center into a research institute, a technical assistance and training institute, and a policy analysis institute. Requires an annual report to the Congress. Authorizes appropriations for the Center for FY 1990 through 1994. Directs the Chairperson of the Council to make grants to States for a network of State or regional adult literacy resource centers. Authorizes appropriations for such grants for FY 1990 through 1992 and succeeding fiscal years. Requires each State that receives adult literacy assistance under an applicable Federal program to: (1) establish a State advisory board on literacy; and (2) submit a State literacy coordination plan. Requires the State Governor to report annually to the Council. Title II: Investment in Literacy - Amends the Adult Education Act (AEA) to increase and extend through FY 1995 the authorization of appropriations for AEA programs. Revises allotment provisions. Requires limitations on the use of funds to: (1) eliminate a cap on high school equivalency certificate programs; and (2) require that a specified amount be used to support adult education and literacy services provided by community-based organizations and nonprofit volunteer agencies. Includes among projects for which State must expand a portion of their AEA allotments: (1) development and expansion of innovative programs; and (2) support for statewide volunteer technical assistance activities. Eliminates certain maintenance of effort requirements. Authorizes the Chairperson of the Council to make matching challenge grants to State for investment in adult literacy instruction staff training and educational technology. Allows States, for purposes of matching such grants, to reserve specified portions of funds for FY 1990 through 1995 under specified Federal laws. Requires that States receiving such grants make available federally-assisted adult literacy program equipment, facilities, or training services, when not in program use or when surplus capacity exists, to other adult literacy programs (without charge or in certain circumstances at cost). Authorizes appropriations for such challenge grants for FY 1990 and succeeding fiscal years. Establishes a Literacy Leader Training Fund. Directs the Secretary of Education (the Secretary), through the Office of Adult Literacy, to make scholarship grants from the Fund to individuals pursuing careers in adult education, instruction, management, research, or innovation, for education or research to expand their expertise. Authorizes appropriations for such purposes for FY 1990 and succeeding fiscal years. Amends the Library Services and Construction Act (LSCA) to establish a library literacy demonstration program. Directs the Secretary to make grants to State and local public libraries for model innovative programs for delivery of adult literacy services, including development of technology-based centers. Requires that a peer review panel advise on grant criteria and application review, and that an expert in library literacy activities administer such program in the Department of Education. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 through 1994 for such library literacy demonstration program. Extends through FY 1994 the authorization of appropriations for other LSCA library literacy programs. Title III: Family Literacy - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary to carry out through the Office of Adult Literacy the Secretary's functions under the Even Start program (which integrates early childhood education and adult education for parents). Title IV: Workplace Literacy - Amends the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) to provide for workplace literacy skills and programs. Revises State education coordination and grant programs to provide financial assistance for any State education, labor, or economic development agency (or consortia) to enhance provision of statewide workplace literacy training and education through cooperative agreements between appropriate agencies and organizations. Requires that at least 75 percent of funds for such activities be used to improve program quality by means such as application of learning technology, model program development, and investment in staff training and services targeted at participants lacking workplace skills. Revises general program requirements for the service delivery system to require private industry councils to give priority to participant placements with businesses and industries that have a workplace literacy program or are willing to develop one with other public and private agencies. Makes individuals lacking workplace literacy skills eligible for adult and youth training program services. Requires, beginning in program year 1990, that at least 40 percent of adult program participants in each service delivery area (SDA) be in need of and be offered basic training through an individual workplace literacy plan. Requires assessment and testing of each potential participant's workplace literacy skills and employment skills. Allows participants who have been placed in employment to continue workplace literacy training until they have achieved their goal or for at least two years, whichever is earlier. Requires SDAs to provide such training for such duration to participants who need and would benefit from it. Allows such training to include workplace literacy training and English-as-a-second-language. Requires such activities to be described in an individualized workplace literacy plan for each participant, including goals based on participant needs. Requires that eligible dislocated workers lacking workplace literacy be offered basic skills training for at least a two-year period from the date of entry into the program. Establishes a Workplace Literacy Demonstration Program. Authorizes the Secretary of Labor to make grants for joint ventures of business, industry, or labor (or consortia) cooperating with State, County, or local governments or private industry councils (or consortia) to provide large-scale model development approaches to improving the basic workplace skills of the workforce. Requires the use of such funds for: (1) basic skills training; (2) specific program offerings; (3) assessments of individual and workplace skill needs; (4) program evaluations; and (5) technology-based learning environments. Sets forth matching requirements for grantees. Requires independent evaluation of such programs. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 through 1995 for such programs.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 1989
Agricultural Extended Retirement Credit Act of 1990 - Extends creditable service under the Civil Service Retirement System for periods of service in certain Federal-State cooperative programs which had agricultural or related purposes. Establishes a hiring limitation period of four fiscal years after 60 days following enactment of this Act on the replacement of retirees in the United States Department of Agriculture. Prohibits the obligation or expenditure of any budget authority or outlays saved in any fiscal year by reason of reduced pay and personnel resulting from implementation of this Act. Requires that the budget authority and outlays thus saved: (1) be carried to the surplus fund of the Department of Agriculture and deposited by the Secretary of Agriculture in the Treasury to the credit of the Civil Service Retirement Fund, as a Government contribution; and (2) credited against pay and other personnel costs required to be sequestered under the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act). Requires the Comptroller General to notify the Congress, of of each instance of noncompliance with the requirements of this Act. Directs the Director of the Office of Personnel Management to report to the Congress on an evaluation of the extended credit retirement program and the limitation on replacement of retirees provided under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 1989
Declares that the Congress acknowledges and appreciates the commitment, devotion, and sacrifices of present and former military families. Designates November 20, 1989, as National Military Families Recognition Day.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1989
Steel Fair Trade Review Act - Requires the President to submit to the Congress a report concerning progress achieved, pursuant to the steel trade liberalization program, on an international consensus to remove trade distorting practices in global steel markets. Specifies the issues such report must address.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1989
Civil Service Due Process Amendments - Makes certain employees in the excepted service (civilian positions in the executive branch specifically excepted from civil service requirements) subject to adverse personnel action provisions respecting removal, suspension for more than 14 days, reduction in grade or pay, or furlough for 30 days or less. Excludes the following persons from such provisions: (1) presidential appointees; (2) retirees receiving an annuity from the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund or the Foreign Service Retirement and Disability Fund; (3) National Guard technicians; (4) members of the Foreign Service; (5) employees of the Central Intelligence Agency, the General Accounting Office, or the Department of Medicine and Surgery of the Veterans Administration; (effective March 1989, Veterans Health Services and Research Administration); (6) employees who are not preference eligibles in the U.S. Postal Service, the Postal Rate Commission, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the National Security Agency, or the Tennessee Valley Authority; and (7) aliens and noncitizens of the United States occupying positions outside the United States. Prohibits an individual's status under any retirement system from being taken into account in determining the appealability to the Merit Systems Protection Board of any case involving a removal from service. Requires the Board to hold hearings or other proceedings near the employee's or applicant's job site unless the costs to the Government would be less elsewhere.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1989
Economic Equity Act of 1989 - Title I: Employment - Subtitle A: Pay Equity Technical Assistance to Public and Private Sector - Pay Equity Technical Assistance Act - Directs the Secretary of Labor to develop and implement a continuing program of information dissemination, research, and technical assistance to public and private entities with respect to correction of wage-setting practices, and reduction or elimination of wage disparities, to the extent that they are based on the sex, race, or national origin of the employee, rather than on the work performed and other appropriate factors. Subtitle B: Legislative Pay Equity Commission and Study - Establishes a Commission on Employment Discrimination in the Legislative Branch. Directs the Commission to: (1) employ a nongovernmental consultant to study the compensation paid to Library of Congress personnel and analyze personnel policies of the Library; (2) evaluate the compensation system of the Library for compliance with title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and make any recommendations needed to achieve compliance; (3) develop a plan for the application of title VII throughout the legislative branch; and (4) make recommendations to the Congress for improvement of personnel policies and practices in the legislative branch. Directs the Commission to submit a final report to the Congress 18 months after enactment of this Act. Terminates the Commission 30 days after submission of the final report. Subtitle C: Extension of Benefits to Part-Time and Temporary Workers - Part-Time and Temporary Workers Protection Act of 1989 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to bring certain part-time employees within the participation, vesting, and accrual rules governing pension plans. Addresses any employee who, within a relevant 12-month period: (1) has customarily completed more than 500 but fewer than 1,000 hours of service; or (2) is employed in a type of position in which employment customarily consists of such a number of hours. Provides that completion of such hours of service will be treated as completion of 1,000 hours of service (thereby bringing the employee within the ERISA benefit framework). Permits a reduction in the employer-provided premium under a group health plan in the case of a part-time employee only when such employee: (1) has customarily completed fewer than 30 hours of service per week; or (2) is employed in a type of position in which employment customarily consists of such a number of hours. Limits such a premium reduction, when permissible, to not less than a ratable portion of the premium ordinarily provided in the case of an employee who completes 30 hours of service per week. Revises the ERISA definition of "employee" to include non-employees who, pursuant to a contract or agreement, provide employee-like services to an employer for at least one year at the rate of 500 or more hours per year. Subtitle D: Federal Council on Women - Federal Council on Women Act - Establishes a Federal Council on Women to: (1) collect and evaluate information with respect to any problems that are particular to women in the United States; (2) review and evaluate Federal policy related to any such problems; (3) coordinate the activities of the Council with similar activities conducted by States, local governments, and concerned organizations; and (4) make recommendations. Directs the Council to report its findings and recommendations to the Congress. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle E: Maintenance of Sex Equity Set-Asides in Vocational Education Programs - Amends the Carl D. Perkins Vocational Education Act (the Act) to include displaced homemakers in the vocational education program for single parents or homemakers. Makes single pregnant women eligible for such program. Directs the administrator of such program, and of the sex equity program, to: (1) distribute to community-based organizations the State allotment for such programs on a competitive basis; and (2) develop procedures for appropriate data collection from fund recipients for program evaluation. Requires States to: (1) develop an annual plan for use of funds; (2) manage funds distribution; (3) monitor recipients' use of funds; and (4) evaluate program effectiveness. Provides for pre-vocational services to single parents, single pregnant women, homemakers, and displaced homemakers. Allows use of funds for dependent care (currently only child care) as part of such services. Directs the Secretary of Education to conduct biennial oversight visits to the States to determine if funds for programs for single parents, single pregnant women, and for elimination of sex bias and stereotyping in secondary and postsecondary education are being allocated, distributed, and used in accordance with the Act. Provides that assistance under the Act shall not effect an individual's eligibility for assistance under other Federal programs. Directs the General Accounting Office, within 18 months, to conduct a study of State compliance with specified assurances required under the Act. Subtitle F: Women in Business Procurement Assistance - Women's Business Procurement Assistance Act of 1989 - Amends the Small Business Act to add to existing goals for participation of small business concerns in Federal procurement contracts the participation of small business concerns owned and controlled by women. Requires the head of each Federal agency to report to the Small Business Administration (SBA) on the extent that small business concerns owned and controlled by women participate in procurement contracts and subcontracts. Declares it is the policy of the United States that small business concerns owned and controlled by women shall have the maximum opportunity to participate in the performance of contracts and subcontracts let by any Federal agency. Precludes the award of any contract unless the procurement authority determines that the offeror's plan includes the maximum opportunity for participation of small business concerns owned and controlled by women. Authorizes any Federal agency, when dealing with negotiated contracts, to provide such incentives as it may deem appropriate in order to encourage subcontracting opportunities for small business concerns owned and controlled by women. Requires the SBA to report annually to certain congressional committees on subcontracting plans found acceptable by any Federal agency which the SBA determines do not contain maximum opportunities for small business concerns owned and controlled by women. Requires the Director of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization for each Federal agency to designate an employee of that Director's office to be a Women-in-Business Specialist. Requires each Federal agency having procurement powers to affirmatively solicit offers from small business concerns owned and controlled by women and socially and economically disadvantaged individuals. Title II: Economic Security - Subtitle A: Earnings Sharing by Married Couples - Social Security Modernization Act - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to provide that the combined earnings of a married couple which are attributable to the period of their marriage shall be shared equally between them for purposes of determining the eligibility for and amount of OASDI benefits to which each spouse is or may become separately entitled. Credits the survivor of the marriage with 100 percent of the combined total wages for the period of the marriage. Provides that this subtitle shall not apply in specified cases where it would result in a reduction of OASDI benefits. Subtitle B: Treatment of Disabled Widows and Widowers - Social Security Disabled Widow's and Widower's Equity Act of 1989 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to repeal the separate definition of disability applicable to widows and widowers. Permits the months of a widow's or widower's entitlement to Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits (title XVI of the Social Security Act) on the basis of a disability to be counted towards the 24 months needed to become entitled to hospital insurance benefits under Medicare (title XVIII of the Social Security Act) on that basis. Provides full widow's or widower's insurance benefits to disabled widows or widowers without regard to age. Amends the SSI program to preserve the Medicaid (title XIX of the Social Security Act) eligibility of disabled widows or widowers who become ineligible for SSI benefits upon the implementation of this Act's amendments making them eligible for, or increasing their, widow's or widower's insurance benefits. Amends the OASDI program to extend the time period during which a surviving spouse or a surviving divorced spouse must have initially become disabled in order to qualify for widow's or widower's insurance benefits before reaching age 60 in cases where such surviving spouse or surviving divorced spouse has quarters of coverage based on his or her own work after the death of the insured individual on whose wages such benefits are based. Subtitle C: Private Pension Reform - Pension Reform Act of 1989 - Amends the Tax Reform Act of 1986 to extend to all accrued benefits existing in plan year 1989 and thereafter the amendments made with regard to the nondiscriminatory coordination of defined contribution plans with Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance (OASDI). Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to repeal provisions that permit a certain disparity in simplified employee pension plan contributions with respect to nondiscriminatory coordination with OASDI. Provides for the repeal, effective for plan year 2000 and thereafter, of IRC rules with respect to: (1) the nondiscriminatory coordination of defined contribution plans with OASDI; and (2) pension integration exceptions. Amends the IRC to establish distinct minimum employee coverage requirements applicable in cases when an employer with respect to a plan is treated as operating a single line of business. Requires such a plan to benefit all the employer's employees. Limits the exception to minimum coverage requirements available to employers treated as operating separate lines of business for a year. Amends the IRC and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to eliminate the special vesting requirements governing multiemployer plans. Directs the Comptroller General of the United States, as soon as possible after this Act's enactment, to undertake thorough studies with respect to: (1) possible methods of requiring employee pension plans to provide cost of living and other adjustments to plan benefits; and (2) potential pension portability mechanisms, including ways to preserve and enhance the real value of deferred vested pension benefits. Lists specific items to be addressed in each study. Requires submission of the studies to specified congressional committees within two years of this Act's enactment. Subtitle D: Eligibility of Displaced Homemakers for First-Time Homebuyers Assistance - Displaced Homemakers and Single Parents Homeownership Assistance Act - States that displaced homemakers and single parents shall not be deemed ineligible for Federal assistance for first-time homebuyers on the basis of previous home ownership or residence while married or a homemaker. Subtitle E: Section 8 Housing Assistance for Domestic Violence Victims - Family Housing Options Program Act of 1989 - Amends the United States Housing Act of 1937 to reserve at least five percent of section 8 housing assistance for families affected by domestic violence and for homeless families. Requires administration of such program through the local public housing agencies. Permits assistance to be used in shared housing arrangements if the family receiving assistance so consents. States that rent contributions made by a family in such an arrangement shall not be considered income to the participating family for purposes of specified housing assistance eligibility. Includes among State allocation factors the number of transitional and emergency shelters, domestic violence shelters, and the number of families served by such programs. Requires: (1) each State to make an annual program report to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; and (2) the Secretary to include a summary of such reports in the annual section 8 report. Title III: Dependent Care - Subtitle A: Quality Child Care Demonstration Projects - Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to not more than ten eligible public agencies and private entities, in urban and rural areas, to administer child development models to increase the quality and availability of child care services. Defines "child development model," with respect to child care services, as an entity capable of providing training and on-going assistance to satellites that provide child care services to sick children or exceptional children, and which is either: (1) a child care development center providing services at a single site (or at multiple sites in reasonably close proximity) to infants, toddlers, preschool children, and school-age children; or (2) a high quality child care program capable of recruiting, training, supporting, and monitoring family child care providers. Directs the Secretary to report by April 1, 1992, to the Congress on such program. Subtitle B: Dependent Care Tax Credit Expansion - Repeals the Internal Revenue Code's nonrefundable income tax credit for employment-related dependent care expenses, replacing it with a corresponding refundable 50 percent credit, reduced (but not below 20 percent) as the taxpayer's adjusted gross income exceeds $15,000 (adjusted for inflation). Includes within the scope of the new credit up to $1,200 ($2,400 in the case of more than one qualifying individual) of respite care expenses incurred in the care of: (1) a dependent of the taxpayer who is at least 15 years old; or (2) a spouse or other dependent who is physically or mentally incapable of self-care. Subtitle C: Mortgage Financing for Family Day Care Centers - Small Day Care Center Assistance Act - Amends the Federal National Mortgage Association Charter Act and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation Act to define the term "mortgage" to include a mortgage secured by a one-to-four family residential property that is occupied as a residence and in which child care service is legally provided. Subtitle D: Flexible Work Force Tax Credit - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit an employer tax credit (to a maximum of two percent of wages) for one-third of the aggregate wages (to a maximum of $6,000) attributable to services performed by a full-time employee of the taxpayer who is permitted to work at home or during nonbusiness hours solely in order to reduce dependent care needs. Requires that there be at least a 20 percent reduction in the time of dependent care provided outside the employee's home. Terminates these provisions, subject to exception, after December 31, 1993. Subtitle E: Child Care Services in Transitional Housing - Transitional Housing Child Care Services Act - Amends the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act to authorize the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to provide child care assistance for transitional housing residents. Subtitle F: Title XX Funding Increase - Amends title XX (Block Grants to States for Social Services) of the Social Security Act to increase the amount authorized for such program in FY 1991 and thereafter. Subtitle G: School-Based Child Care - State Dependent Care Grants Amendments Act of 1989 - Amends the State Dependent Care Development Grants Act to authorize the use of funds for operation of school-age child care services before and after school. Requires that such amounts be earmarked to enable children whose families lack adequate financial resources to participate in before or after school child care programs. Requires State Governors to include specified information in their reports on programs assisted under such Act. Extends until September 30, 1993, the period during which descriptions of intended uses of State allotments must be revised to reflect substantial changes. Title IV: Health - Subtitle A: Breast Cancer Prevention - Older Women's Breast Cancer Prevention Act of 1989 - Amends part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to eliminate the cap on coverage of screening mammography. Subtitle B: Maternal and Child Health Funding Increase - Amends title V (Maternal and Child Health Services) of the Social Security Act to increase authorized appropriations for such program. Requires States, as a condition of receiving additional funds, to conduct a statewide needs assessment of maternity and infant care, including prenatal care and prevention of low birthweight and infant mortality, and to develop a plan to meet those needs. Changes State reporting requirements to monitor plan implementation results. Subtitle C: Infant Mortality Education and Health Services in Public Housing - Public Housing One-Stop Perinatal Services Act of 1989 - Directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to carry out a program to demonstrate the effectiveness of grants to public housing agencies for providing facilities for one-stop perinatal services programs for pregnant women who reside in public housing. Sets forth preferences in selecting the agencies to receive grants. Limits the aggregate amount provided under these provisions for any public housing project to a specified sum. Requires services and facilities provided or assisted with grants under these provisions to comply with all applicable State and local laws, regulations, and ordinances, and all requirements established by the Secretary of Health and Human Services for such services and facilities. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle D: Domestic Violence Judiciary Training Grants - Amends the State Justice Institute Act of 1984 to authorize the use of Institute funds to conduct up to five projects to: (1) investigate and carry out research regarding State judicial decisions relating to child custody litigation involving domestic violence; (2) develop training curricula to assist State courts to develop an understanding of, and appropriate responses to, child custody litigation involving domestic violence; and (3) disseminate the results of such investigation and research and the curricula to State courts. Authorizes appropriations through FY 1992. Subtitle E: Sense of Congress on Child Custody - Expresses the sense of the Congress that, for purposes of determining child custody, evidence of spousal abuse should create a statutory presumption that it is detrimental to the child to be placed in the custody of the abusive parent. Subtitle F: Immigration Reform for Domestic Violence Victims - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to permit certain battered alien spouses to apply for permanent residence without filing a joint petition (and interview) with the citizen spouse. Requires such an alien spouse to demonstrate: (1) that the marriage was entered into with good faith; and (2) evidence of physical abuse or extreme mental cruelty. Subtitle G: Long-Term Care Workers Demonstration Projects - Amends the Older Americans Act of 1965 to require the Commissioner on Aging to give special consideration to funding demonstration projects providing older individuals with the opportunity to serve as volunteers furnishing long-term care services to nursing home residents. Subtitle H: Sense of Congress on Caregivers - Declares that it is the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) recognition and further attention should be given to the professional and personal needs of long-term care aides; (2) expanded access to health and pension benefits should be provided to such aides; (3) long-term care policy makers should recognize that problems of female household heads and minority workers affect most nursing care aides; (4) more data is needed on home health and nursing home aides; (5) expanded recruitment of specified groups should be considered to abate the long-term care aide shortage; and (6) changes should be made in nursing aide positions to ensure integration into management structures and to enhance attraction to careers in long-term care.
![Official portrait of Rep. McCloskey, Frank [D-IN-8]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/m000342_200.jpg)