United States · United States Congress · 18 April 1990
Hydrogen Research and Development Act - Title I: Hydrogen Production and Use - Directs the Secretary of Energy to submit to specified congressional committees a comprehensive five-year management plan for a research and development program designed to permit the development of a domestic hydrogen fuel production capability within the shortest time practicable. Requires the Secretary to send the Congress annual plan descriptions and modifications. Directs the Secretary to establish within the Department of Energy a program consistent with the plan. Lists research areas and priority criteria. Directs the Secretary to conduct demonstrations to evaluate technical and nontechnical parameters to determine commercial applicability of hydrogen technology and to prepare a comprehensive large-scale hydrogen demonstration plan. Directs the Secretary, with the advice and help of industry, academic, and governmental interests, to implement a program in the interest of accelerating broader application of hydrogen technologies and of increasing the participation of private sector interests in near commercial applications. Lists the Secretary's duties in connection with the program. Establishes a Hydrogen Technical Advisory Panel as part of the Energy Research Advisory Board. Requires the Panel to report to the Board and terminates the Panel after such submittal. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Hydrogen-Fueled Aircraft Research and Development - Directs the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to prepare and submit to specified congressional committees a comprehensive five-year management plan for a research and development program for a domestic hydrogen-fueled aircraft capability within the shortest time practicable. Mandates that such plan include activities of the National Aero-Space Plane Program. Requires the Administrator to: (1) transmit to the Congress an annual plan description, including any necessary plan modifications; (2) establish such a program within NASA and incorporate within it the goals and activities of the National Aero-Space Plane Program; and (3) prepare and transmit to the Congress a comprehensive flight demonstration plan whose implementation will confirm the technical feasibility, economic viability, and safety of liquid hydrogen as a fuel for commercial transport aircraft. Prescribes required subjects of the research and development program. Establishes a Hydrogen-Fueled Aircraft Advisory Committee to advise the Administrator. Requires the Committee to report annually to the Administrator. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 1990
Directs the Administrator of the U.S. Fire Administration to review existing response information used by emergency response personnel at the State and local levels to evaluate its accuracy, consistency, and clarity. Specifies that such information should clearly communicate to such personnel the probable hazards in an emergency situation involving hazardous materials and the appropriate response to such hazards. Directs the Administrator to establish a working group to develop and disseminate hazardous materials identification, response, and incident data. Requires such working group to submit a report to the Administrator, along with recommendations to ensure that response information disseminated to emergency response personnel is appropriate for operational personnel at the local level. Requires the working group to meet at least once a year to review and recommend changes to the report.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 1990
Amends the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 to provide that the definition of "owner or operator" (for purposes of liability) does not include: (1) a designated lending institution which acquires control of a facility pursuant to the terms of a security interest held by the person in such facility or in connection with a lease subject to Federal or State banking authorities; (2) a corporate fiduciary which operates or has legal title to a facility pursuant to the terms of an estate or trust; (3) an individual or institution that serves as an indenture trustee and acquires control of a facility as the result of default on a financing document between the trustee and the issuing entity; and (4) an individual fiduciary who has legal title to a facility for purposes of administering an estate or trust.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 1990
Declares it to be an unfair or deceptive act or practice under the Federal Trade Commission Act to advertise or cause to be advertised through magazines, newspapers, brochures, promotional displays, radio or television broadcasting (including cable broadcasting) any alcoholic beverage unless the advertising includes one of specified warnings. Makes the Federal Trade Commission responsible for establishing and maintaining toll free numbers referred to in some of the warnings. Sets forth requirements for the warnings, including rotating between the warnings.
United States · United States Congress · 28 March 1990
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent the provisions permitting small issues of tax-exempt bonds to finance manufacturing facilities and farm property.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1990
Directs the Secretary of Defense to establish the Commission on Base Realignment and Closure to: (1) determine if certain efficiencies can be realized through closure or realignment of domestic and overseas U.S. military installations; and (2) make recommendations for such closures and realignments. Directs the Secretary to initiate and complete all recommended closures and realignments by specified dates. Outlines conditions for such closures and realignments, including congressional reports and the lack of a joint resolution from the Congress disapproving the Commission's recommendations. Terminates the authority to carry out any closure or realignment under this Act on a specified date. Directs the Secretary to carry out any recommended base closure or realignment and to provide economic adjustment assistance, community planning assistance, and environmental restoration with respect to affected areas or communities. Directs the Administrator of General Services to delegate to the Secretary all appropriate authority to dispose of property for purposes of such closures or realignments, after consultation with the Governor of the State and the heads of local governments concerning other uses of the property to be disposed. Requires the Secretary to notify all other departments and other instrumentalities of the availability of such property made excess by such closures or realignments. Outlines the applicability of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 with respect to actions of the Commission and the Secretary concerning base closures and realignments under this Act. Directs the Secretary to report to the Congress on the schedule for, cost savings from, and environmental effects of, base closures and realignments. Establishes the Department of Defense Base Closure Account 1990 to receive deposits for, and proceeds from, base closures or realignments to be used for such closures and realignments. Requires certain reports with respect to the use of Account funds. Outlines the legislative process for the consideration of a joint resolution to disapprove the Commission's recommendations.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 1990
Regulated Precursor Chemicals Act of 1990 - Amends the Controlled Substances Act to revise and expand the list of precursor chemicals, including transferring to such list hydriodic acid from the list of essential chemicals. Revises the definition of "regulated transaction" to include transfers of any amount of an essential listed precursor chemical, with exceptions. Requires each regulated person to report to the Attorney General on any regulated transaction involving any quantity of a listed essential chemical. Makes it unlawful for any person to engage in a regulated transaction involving a listed precursor chemical or any other conduct that defines such person as a regulated person for purposes of such Act without a license required under such Act. Requires the Attorney General to establish a program requiring licenses for regulated persons and regulated transactions involving listed precursor chemicals where such requirement will contribute to carrying out the purposes of such Act and to criminal drug law enforcement. Provides for fines and imprisonment of not more than four years for violations of the licensing requirement. Requires the Attorney General to provide for the audit and control of listed precursor chemical inventories of persons possessing a license under this Act. Directs the Attorney General to cooperate with State authorities by providing information regarding regulated transactions in such chemicals that might be useful in the administration of State laws relating to precursor chemicals, controlled substances, and other illegal drugs.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1990
Amends Federal law to require the President to include in the annual budget a statement of projected revenues obtained from the anticipated sale, lease, and transfer of Government assets and the estimated price at which the assets would be sold in the private sector.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1990
Congratulates Violeta Chamorro on her electoral victory in Nicaragua and Daniel Ortega for ensuring that the election was free and fair. Urges the current Government to comply with the law in turning over power to the National Opposition Union (UNO), including the separation of the military from Sandinista control. Commends Ortega and Chamorro for calling for an end to arms shipments to guerillas fighting in El Salvador. Supports: (1) the speedy negotiation of a ceasefire in Nicaragua; (2) the peaceful reintegration of the resistance into Nicaraguan society; and (3) the removal of sanctions enacted against Nicaragua in 1985, contingent upon an effective and fair transition of power to UNO and presidential certification that arms shipments to the FMLN guerillas have ceased. Encourages other nations to cooperate with and assist Nicaragua in rebuilding.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1990
National Fire Forces Mobilization Act of 1990 - Amends the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 to authorize appropriations to be provided as Federal matching funds to State forestry agencies and rural volunteer fire departments so that they may assist other fire fighting organizations in combatting fires.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 1990
Provides for all Federal civilian and military retirees to receive the full cost-of-living adjustment in annuities payable under Federal retirement systems for FY 1991. (Includes benefits payable under the Civil Service Retirement and Disability System, military retirement and survivor benefit programs, the Foreign Service Retirement and Disability System, the Central Intelligence Agency Retirement and Disability System, and railroad retirement programs.)
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 · 21 November 1989
National and Community Service Act of 1989 - Title I: School Based Community Service - Part A: School Based Community Service - Serve America, the Service to America Act of 1989 - Authorizes the Secretary of Education (the Secretary) to make grants to States or local applicants to create or expand service opportunities for students and out-of-school youth and for community members, particularly senior citizens, to volunteer in schools. Limits the term of such grants to three years. Authorizes the Secretary to fund: (1) one or more national or regional clearinghouses on service; (2) national model youth service programs; and (3) development of innovative curriculum materials for use in student community service programs and school volunteer and partnership programs. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1991 through 1995. Part B: Higher Education - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to revise and rename a certain program Innovative Projects for Community Service. Provides that grants for innovative projects are to encourage student participation in community service activities before, during, or after the completion of the student's higher education. Authorizes the Secretary to appoint a limited number of technical employees to administer Postsecondary Improvement Programs. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1991 through 1995 for grants for innovative projects for community service. Part C: State Student Incentive Grant and Work Study Programs - Amends HEA provisions relating to grants for State student incentives to direct the Secretary to make an additional reservation and allotment of funds for campus-based community work learning study jobs whenever appropriations exceed a specified amount. Amends HEA provisions for Work Study Programs to: (1) decrease the maximum Federal share of compensation of students employed in the work study program from 70 percent to 60 percent for academic year 1992-1993; and (2) increase the maximum Federal share of compensation of students employed in the work study for community service-learning programs from 90 percent to 100 percent. Part D: Publication - Amends HEA provisions for the direct (Perkins) and guaranteed (Stafford) student loan programs to require publicizing of the current loan repayment deferral program for full-time volunteers with the Peace Corps, VISTA, and tax-exempt organizations. Requires informing students of this deferral program option in their exit counseling. Requires the Secretary of Education to: (1) provide students with specified information on the deferral program; and (2) gather data on loan deferrals and cancellations for such volunteers. Part E: Direct Loans to Students in Institutions of Higher Education - Amends HEA provisions for the direct (Perkins) student loan program to provide for partial loan cancellation for full-time volunteer service with a tax-exempt organization. (Current law provides for such partial cancellation for service in the Peace Corps or VISTA.) Part F: Loan Forgiveness - Amends HEA provisions for the guaranteed (Stafford) student loan program to provide for partial loan cancellation for service in the Peace Corps or VISTA or for comparable full-time service as a volunteer with a tax-exempt organization. Title II: Youth Service Corps - American Conservation and Youth Service Corps Act of 1989 - Authorizes the National Service Board (the Board, established under title IV of this Act) to provide grants to State and local applicants to create or expand full-time or summer youth service corps programs. Sets forth provisions for grant duration and renewal, allocation of funds, and State and local applications. Sets forth authorized project for conservation corps programs and for human services corps programs. Sets forth ineligible service categories. Encourages use of program services by related programs administered under the authority of the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Directs the Board to: (1) fund only programs that involve projects on public lands or Indian lands or provide a public benefit; and (2) consult with the Department of the Interior in reviewing applications proposing programs or projects on public lands or Indian lands. Requires program agencies to provide to participants: (1) in-service training and education; and (2) post-service education and training assistance. Limits enrollment in programs under this title to individuals who at the time of enrollment are: (1) 16 through 25 years of age (15 through 21 for summer programs); and (2) U.S. citizens or nationals or lawful permanent resident aliens. Requires program agencies to provide post-service education and training benefits in specified amounts for each participant. Excludes such amounts from gross income for specified purposes of the Internal Revenue Code. Authorizes the program agency to provide certain services. Requires the program agency to provide necessary job guidance and placement information and assistance to participants, in coordination with other appropriate entities. Requires that each participant in a full-time youth service corps program receive a living allowance and health insurance. Authorizes the Board to develop regulations and standards for joint projects coordinating activities under this title with activities under employment and training programs administered by the Department of Labor (including the Job Training Partnership Act programs). Makes participants, crew leaders, and volunteers responsible to, and the responsibility of, the program agency administering the project. Provides that participants and crew leaders shall not be considered Federal employees, except for purposes of work-related injuries, tort claims procedure, and allowances for quarters. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1991 through 1995 to carry out this title. Title III: National Service Demonstration Program - National and Community Service Demonstration Act - Directs the National Service Board, not later than one year from the date of enactment of this title, to make grants to States to create full-time and part-time national service demonstration programs. Limits authorization to exercise an alternative voucher option to no more than 25 percent of the States. Requires that at least 25 percent of funded programs include full-time, part-time, and special senior service participants. Limits the number of States authorized to operate full-time or part-time programs in specified fiscal years. Requires program participants to perform national service to meet unmet educational, human, environmental, and public safety needs, especially those relating to poverty. Sets forth various authorized types of such national service. Requires part-time volunteers to agree to serve for: (1) at least three years but not more than six years, at the individual's discretion; and (2) two weekends a month and two weeks during the year, or an average of nine hours per week. Requires full-time volunteers to agree to serve for: (1) at least one year but not more than two years, at the individual's discretion; and (2) at least 40 hours per week. Requires special senior service participants to serve either part-time or full-time as allowed by the Board. Authorizes the Board to provide a participant with a portion of specified financial assistance if the State releases the participant from completion of service for compelling personal circumstances. Allows individuals to serve part-time if they are: (1) age 17 or over; and (2) U.S. citizens or lawful permanent U.S. residents. Requires States, in selecting part-time participants, to give priority to applicants who are currently employed. Allows individuals to serve full-time if they: (1) are age 17 or over; (2) have received a high school diploma or equivalent, or agree to work toward it while participating; and (3) are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent U.S. residents. Allows individuals to serve as special senior service members if they: (1) are age 60 or over; and (2) meet eligibility criteria established by the Board. Directs the Board to provide to each participant annually a nontransferrable voucher equal to: (1) $3,000 for each year of part-time service; and (2) $8,500 for each year of full-time service. Makes special senior service participants ineligible for such vouchers. Limits use of such vouchers to payment of: (1) a student loan; (2) downpayment or closing costs for a first home; or (3) tuition at an institution of higher education on a full-time basis, or expenses of full-time participation in an approved apprenticeship program. Allows some States to apply to the Board for authorization to offer an alternative option limiting voucher use to either those education or those housing purposes. Excludes such vouchers from gross income for specified Internal Revenue Code purposes. Requires that each full-time participant receive a living allowance and health insurance. Requires that each full-time special senior service participant receive an equivalent living allowance and such other assistance as the Board considers necessary and appropriate. Requires that each participant receive three weeks of specified training conducted by the Board in cooperation with the State. Authorizes States to provide additional training. Requires that each participant receive additional training from the sponsoring organization in relevant skills. Sets forth prohibited and allowable uses of Federal funds. Directs the Board to develop opportunities for cooperation between public and private entities in the funding and execution of a program under this title, including cost-sharing arrangements with sponsoring organizations. Requires each State receiving funds under this title to provide to each full-time participant in-service educational services and materials to enable such participant to obtain a high school diploma or equivalent. Sets forth provisions relating to the treatment of such vouchers or living allowances for purposes of certain student aid determinations under the Higher Education Act of 1965. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1991 through 1995 to carry out this title. Title IV: Corporation for National Service - Establishes the Corporation for National Service (the Corporation), as a nonprofit corporation that shall not be considered an agency or establishment of the U.S. Government. Declares that the Corporation shall be directed by a National Service Board consisting of members appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Directs the Corporation, pursuant to title III of this Act, to: (1) issue housing and education vouchers; and (2) establish living allowances, taking account of variations in the cost of living. Requires each State receiving funds under specified provisions of this Act to report annually to the Board on the status of national and community youth service programs in that State and on compliance with specified nonduplication and nondisplacement requirements. Authorizes States to require local grantees to supply necessary information for such reports. Requires the Board to report annually to specified congressional committees. Requires each State applying for funds under titles I, II, or III of this Act to form a State Advisory Board for National and Community Service, with members appointed by the Governor. Sets forth State board duties, including coordinating service programs with related programs, disseminating information, recruiting participants, and developing materials and activities. Directs the National Board to provide for continuing evaluation of programs assisted under titles II and III of this Act. Sets a deadline for the evaluation of title III programs' effectiveness in reaching specified objectives. Directs the Board to: (1) administer programs under titles II and III; (2) provide training and technical assistance; (3) provide one or more service information clearinghouses; (4) consult with appropriate Federal agencies; and (5) arrange for program evaluation. Authorizes the President to make Presidential Awards for service to: (1) individuals demonstrating outstanding community service; and (2) outstanding service programs. Authorizes one individual award and one program award in each congressional district, and one statewide program award in each State. Provides for dissemination of information on such individuals and programs. Directs the President to design a comprehensive Federal service strategy including specified elements. Prohibits a State from engaging a participant to serve in any program funded under this Act unless and until Federal funds have been appropriated for vouchers and other necessary costs associated with such participant in such fiscal year in such State. Title V: Expansion of Volunteers in Service to America - VISTA Expansion Act of 1989 - Amends the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 to authorize appropriations increasing amounts for FY 1990 through 1993 for the Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) program. Title VI: National Older Americans Volunteer Programs - National Older American Volunteer Programs Expansion Act of 1989 - Amends the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 to require the Director of the ACTION Agency to establish, within each National Older American Volunteer Program, grants to support activities that address national problems on a local level. Sets forth award criteria and grant uses. Gives grant priority for activities assisting: (1) those with chronic debilitating illnesses such as AIDS: (2) drug and alcohol abuse prevention and treatment; (3) teenage parents; (4) mentoring of youth needing guidance; (5) adult and school-based literacy; (6) respite care; (7) before and after-school programs serving children of working parents; (8) boarder babies; (9) child care, especially of children with special needs; and (10) developmentally disabled adult individuals (and, when appropriate, involvement of such individuals as volunteers). Limits funding of such grants to those years when program funding is increased by a specified amount. Authorizes appropriations in increasing amounts for FY 1990 through 1993 for: (1) the Retired Senior Volunteer Program; (2) the Foster Grandparent Program; and (3) the Senior Companion Program.
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 · 19 November 1989
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for the treatment of rental and nonrental real estate activities under the limitations on losses from passive activities.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1989
Deplores the continuing violence in El Salvador and calls for a disengagement of military forces to allow international humanitarian organizations to provide medical attention and supplies to the civilian casualties. Condemns the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN) for initiating a military offensive on November 11, 1989. Urges the Government of El Salvador and the FMLN to resume a peaceful dialogue leading to settlement of the conflict. Deplores the murder of six Jesuit priests and two women. Demands that those responsible be brought to justice. Declares that satisfactory resolution of this case will be instrumental in determining continued U.S. support for the Government of El Salvador.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 1989
Declares that it is the policy of the United States to recognize Brazil's sovereign authority in the Amazon and that the United States should adopt a policy to encourage and support conservation efforts initiated by Brazil to protect the Amazon forest. Declares that the United States should redouble its efforts to address development within its own borders in an environmentally sound and sustainable manner.
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 · 16 October 1989
Amends the Peace Corps Act to require the Director of the Peace Corps to drape a flag over the casket of a deceased Peace Corps volunteer or former volunteer. Requires such flag to be given to such individual's next-of-kin or, if no claim is made by the next-of-kin, to a close friend or associate. Prohibits a flag from being given to any other person if a flag is given to a friend or associate.
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 · 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
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 · 3 August 1989
Enhanced Oil and Gas Recovery Tax Act of 1989 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to set a depletion allowance of 27.5 percent in connection with domestic oil and natural gas recovered through enhanced recovery techniques. Reduces this percentage (but not below 15 percent) as the average annual removal price during the calendar year exceeds $30 (indexed for inflation). Terminates this provision with respect to production after 2009. Increases from 50 percent to 100 percent the net income limitation on percentage depletion in connection with incremental tertiary oil or natural gas. Makes the alternative minimum tax preference for percentage depletion and for intangible drilling costs in connection with oil and gas removed through enhanced recovery methods inapplicable whenever the average annual removal price for the year is less than $30 (indexed for inflation). Terminates this provision with respect to production or costs after 2009. Permits a ten percent income tax credit for research to discover or improve tertiary recovery methods for domestic crude oil or natural gas.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1989
Section 457 Reform and Simplification Act of 1989 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to state that the accounting provisions applicable to the deferred compensation plans of State and local governments and of private tax-exempt organizations shall not apply to nonelective deferred compensation. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to promulgate regulations defining nonelective deferred compensation. Applies retroactively to tax year 1988 and thereafter.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 1989
High Risk Occupational Disease Notification and Prevention Act - Establishes a Risk Assessment Board (the Board), within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), to: (1) review pertinent medical and scientific reports on the incidence of disease associated with exposure to occupational health hazards; (2) identify and designate populations at risk that should receive notification; (3) develop a form and method of notification that will be used by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the Secretary); and (4) determine the appropriate type of medical monitoring or beneficial health counseling. Sets forth factors for Board consideration and priorities in designating populations at risk of disease for notification. Directs the Secretary to make every reasonable effort to ensure that each individual within a population at risk of disease is notified of the risk. Requires the Secretary, through the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), to conduct the required notification, with specified exceptions. Allows an employer to apply to NIOSH for an exemption from such employee notification because that employer's employees are not at risk of disease because of significant mitigating factors. Provides for telephone "hot lines" and other dissemination of information. Authorizes the Secretary to certify a private employer or a State or local government to conduct notification. Provides for judicial review of Board determinations. Requires the Secretary to establish and certify ten occupational and environmental health centers to: (1) provide education, training, and technical assistance to personal physicians and health and social service professionals who serve employees notified that they are at risk under this Act; and (2) provide diagnosis, treatment, and medical monitoring and family services for such employees. Directs the Secretary to make grants to conduct research, training, and education aimed at improving the means of identifying employees exposed to occupational health hazards and improving medical assistance to such employees. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants and contracts for training and curriculum development in occupational medicine or health to schools of medicine and of nursing. Provides that such assistance shall be for projects: (1) at schools with occupational medicine or health programs, for faculty continuing education, curricula and training materials for undergraduate medical or nursing training, and clinical training for residents in graduate medical programs; and (2) at schools without such programs, for faculty training. Directs the Secretary, during FY 1991 through 1993, to make such grants and contracts to at least ten schools of medicine or nursing. Requires that the medical monitoring recommended by the Board be provided by the current employer: (1) at no additional cost to the employee (above any existing employee health care contribution), if any part of the exposure occurred in the course of employment by that employer; or (2) at a charge to the employee not exceeding the additional cost to the employer (above any existing employer health care contribution), or at no charge, if no part of such exposure occurred in the course of employment by that employer. Sets forth special rules for medical monitoring by small businesses and of seasonal agricultural workers. Prohibits discharging or discriminating against employees, or applicants for employment, on the basis that they are or have been members of a population at risk. Makes an exception to such prohibition if the position which the applicant seeks requires exposure to the occupational health hazard which is the subject to the notice. Allows an employer with 50 or fewer employees to transfer an employee who is or has been a member of a population at risk to another job if earnings, seniority, and other employment rights and benefits are as comparable as possible to the old job and if the terms of an applicable collective bargaining agreement are not violated. Grants the option of being transferred to a less hazardous or nonexposed job to any employee member of a population at risk who is determined by a physician to show evidence of developing the disease described in the notice or other symptoms or conditions increasing the likelihood or incidence of such disease. Requires that the employee maintain earnings, seniority, and other employment rights and benefits of the former job. Sets forth procedures for independent reconsideration of the initial medical determination. Sets forth special rules for medical removal. Makes such protection inapplicable to seasonal agricultural workers with less than six months continuous employment with an employer. Exempts from the requirement of medical removal protection any employer who has 50 or fewer employees and who has made or is making a reasonable good faith effort to eliminate the occupational health hazard that is the basis for the medical removal decision. Provides for confidentiality of employee records unless disclosure is authorized by and is necessary to carry out a provision of this Act, or is authorized by the employee. Permits employees aggrieved by violations of provisions involving medical monitoring, medical removal, discrimination, and confidentiality to apply, within six months after the violation occurs, to the Secretary of Labor for a review of the alleged violation. Sets forth provisions for investigations, actions, defenses, determinations, and appeals in such cases. Provides for reinstatement and other relief for employees injured by such violations. Sets forth civil penalties for such violations. Authorizes the Secretary (of HHS) to bring an action in U.S. district court to enjoin an employer from violating this Act. Directs the Secretary of Labor to report annually to the Congress on the implementation and enforcement of the hazard communication standard. Directs the Secretary of HHS to report annually to the Congress on the implementation and enforcement of notification under this Act. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1989 through 1993.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1989
Fastener Quality Act - Prohibits the offering for sale or sale in commerce of any fastener (screw, nut, bolt, stud, similar threaded device, or washer) unless it is part of a lot which: (1) conforms to standards and specifications represented by the manufacturer; and (2) has been inspected, tested, and certified according to this Act. Sets forth special rules for small lots. Requires manufacturers to have a fastener lot sample inspected by a laboratory accredited under an approved system (including one owned or affiliated with the manufacturer if it is so accredited). Requires the laboratory, upon determination of conformance with the appropriate standards and specifications, to provide the manufacturer certificates with respect to such lot. Directs the Secretary of Commerce, through the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, to establish: (1) a program for the accreditation of laboratories engaged in the inspection and testing of fasteners; (2) conditions under which accreditation by private entities using standards issued by consensus standards organizations shall be deemed to satisfy the accreditation requirements of this Act; and (3) conditions, no less stringent than those for private accrediting entities, under which accreditation of foreign laboratories by their governments shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of this Act. Limits accreditation to three years. Requires that laboratory accreditation standards issued by one or more consensus standards organizations selected by the Director be used to accredit laboratories under the accreditation program. Authorizes the Director to hire contractors as necessary to carry out the accreditation program. Requires costs for the establishment and operation of the program to be fully reimbursable through fees or other charges for accreditation services. Directs the Secretary to ensure that private accrediting entities and laboratories accredited by such entities or by foreign governments comply with conditions and requirements in this Act. Requires the Director to periodically transmit recommendations to consensus standards organizations. Prohibits any manufacturer from selling any container of fasteners manufactured in the United States unless delivery to the first purchaser is accompanied by a written notification of testing and certification by an accredited laboratory. Prohibits any person from selling any container of fasteners manufactured outside the United States to any importer or end user unless delivery is accompanied by an original certificate from an accredited laboratory. Allows delivery to an importer or private label distributor without the required certificate if: (1) the manufacturer discloses in writing the appropriate standards and specifications; and (2) the importer or private label distributor assumes responsibility in writing for inspection and testing. Requires that, in a sale of any quantity for resale at wholesale, the container be conspicuously marked with the lot number. Requires persons who make significant alterations to a fastener subsequent to manufacture to have the altered fastener inspected and tested unless delivery is accompanied by a disclosure of the alteration and a warning. Requires subsequent disclosures of the alteration in resales. Prohibits commingling of fasteners from different lots in the same container. Requires fastener manufacturers or private label distributors to comply with requirements of a program for recordation of insignias. Directs the Secretary to establish such a program, including regulations to ensure traceability. Sets forth civil remedies, including declaratory and injunctive relief, and criminal penalties, including fines and imprisonment, for violations of this Act. Provides that nothing in this Act shall be construed to: (1) preempt any rights or causes of action that any buyer may have with respect to any seller of fasteners under the law of any State, except insofar as such State law conflicts with this Act; and (2) limit or otherwise affect the authority of any consensus standards organization to establish, modify, or withdraw any standards and specifications under any other law or authority in effect on the date of enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1989
Veterans Agent Orange Exposure and Vietnam Service Benefits Act of 1989 - Provides that the disease of chloracne in Vietnam veterans shall be considered to have been service-connected if such disease became manifest to a ten percent or more degree of disability within one year after the last date on which the veteran performed such service in Vietnam. Presumes the following diseases to be service-connected for veterans who performed active service in Vietnam during the Vietnam era, notwithstanding that there is no record of evidence of such disease during the period of such service: (1) non-Hodgkins lymphoma; (2) soft-tissue sarcoma; and (3) melanoma and basal cell carcinoma. Provides a presumption of service-connection in the case of a Vietnam veteran suffering from a disease associated with effects of exposure to certain dioxins or other herbicide agents during such service in Vietnam. Directs the Secretary to prescribe regulations listing a positive association between any disease and the biological effects of exposure to an herbicide agent in Vietnam. Requires the Secretary to update such list continually. Requires the Secretary, in prescribing and revising such list, to obtain by contract the determinations and estimates of a contract scientific organization. Requires such organization to: (1) determine which diseases have any degree of association with the biological effects of exposure to an herbicide agent; and (2) estimate the extent of association between each such disease and each such biological effects. Requires the organization to determine such association specifically with respect to non-Hodgkins lymphoma, each soft-tissue sarcoma, lung cancer, and each other cancer. Outlines contract provisions required in such agreements between the Secretary and the scientific organization, including surveys, evaluations, and periodic determinations. Requires such scientific organization to provide reports to the Secretary and the Senate and House Veterans' Affairs Committees regarding its determinations and evaluations. Requires such organization to determine, in the effect of a positive association, whether there is a reasonable basis for concluding that a Vietnam veteran with the highest level of exposure to that herbicide agent in Vietnam was exposed to such agent under the circumstances necessary for such biological effects. Requires a report from the organization to the Secretary and the veterans' committees when there is no such reasonable basis found. Requires the Secretary to make certain determinations and follow-up reports after receiving such reports from the contract scientific organization, including the issuance of a report to the veterans' committees and the promulgation of positive association regulations, if necessary. Requires benefits to be continued even though a disease is removed from the regulations listing diseases having positive associations. Terminates such contracting authority ten years after the first day of the fiscal year in which a scientific organization transmits its first report to the Secretary. Provides special effective dates. Directs the Secretary to compile and analyze all clinical data that: (1) is obtained by the Department in connection with examinations and treatment of veterans for disabilities related to exposure to certain herbicides or to service in Vietnam; and (2) is likely to be scientifically useful in determining the association, if any, between the disabilities of such veterans and their exposure to such herbicides and other toxic substances. Requires the Secretary to submit an annual report to the veterans' committees concerning such analysis and its results. Directs the Secretary to consult with the Director of the National Institutes of Health Research and Grants Division (NIH) before compiling and analyzing such information. Requires the Director of NIH to review each annual report submitted by the Secretary and transmit to the Secretary an evaluation of the contents of each report. Directs the Secretary to establish and maintain a system for the collection and storage of voluntarily contributed samples of blood and tissue of veterans who performed active service in Vietnam during the Vietnam era. Outlines provisions concerning the security and authorized uses of such specimens, as well as limitations on the acceptance of such samples. Requires the Secretary to consult with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to the extent that an agreement has been reached with the NAS serving as the contract scientific organization for the Secretary. Requires the Secretary to consult with the Director of the Medical Follow-up Agency in the event of no agreement with NAS. Directs the Secretary to establish a program to provide for the conduct of studies of the feasibility of conducting additional scientific research on health hazards resulting from: (1) exposure to dioxin; (2) exposure to other toxic agents in herbicides used in support of U.S. and allied military operations in Vietnam during the Vietnam era; and (3) active military, naval, or air service there. Requires the Secretary to report to the veterans' committees on the results of such studies. Requires the Secretary to consult with the NAS before undertaking such studies and requires the NAS, to review such studies and report recommendations to the Secretary and the veterans' committees, to the extent provided under any agreement between the Secretary and NAS. Amends the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 1988 to require the Secretary to annually furnish updated information to veterans listed in the Department of Veterans Affairs' Agent Orange Registry on health risks resulting from exposure to dioxin or other toxic agents in herbicides as a result of service in Vietnam during the Vietnam era. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to report to the veterans' committees on the research being conducted to develop treatments for psychological absorption of dioxin and other toxic agents used in herbicides by the United States in Vietnam, including research relating to exposure to dioxin and other toxic agents outside Vietnam. Extends through December 31, 2000, the eligibility for hospital and nursing home care for veterans exposed to toxic substances in Vietnam. Amends the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 1988 to authorize direct consultation between the Ranch Hand Advisory Committee and Department of the Air Force scientists conducting the Ranch Hand Study (a study of the long-term health effects of exposure to phenoxy herbicides and contaminants). Requires the preparation and submission of annual reports and a final report in connection with such study.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1989
Global Change Research Act of 1989 - Title I: National Global Change Research Program - Directs the President to establish a Committee on Earth Sciences within the Federal Coordinating Council on Science, Engineering, and Technology (Council) of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. Declares that the purpose of the Committee shall be to increase the overall effectiveness of Federal research and assessment efforts directed toward an understanding of global change. Directs the President to establish an interagency National Global Research Program which shall include: (1) making measurements necessary to document global change; (2) developing quantitative models to facilitate identification and prediction of global environmental trends; and (3) increasing international cooperation in global change research, monitoring, and analysis. Requires the Committee to develop a National Global Change Research Plan to: (1) identify goals, priorities, and approaches for global change research and assessment conducted or funded by the Government; (2) provide for identification and coordination of relevant programs and activities of specified Federal agencies; (3) recommend allocations of Federal funding among such activities; and (4) make recommendations for coordination with activities of other nations and international organizations. Sets forth requirements for: (1) submission of the Plan to the Congress; (2) providing general budgetary guidance to participating Federal agencies on an annual basis; (3) the submission of reports to the President and the Congress; and (4) sunset provisions. Directs the Committee to enter into an agreement under which the National Academy of Sciences shall evaluate the Plan and provide information on future global change research and assessment priorities. Title II: International Programs in Global Change Research - Directs the Secretary of State to initiate discussions with other nations leading toward an international protocol in global change research and assessment, including discussions concerning: (1) the allocation of costs in research and assessment programs; (2) management of such programs; (3) establishment of training centers for scientists from developing nations; and (4) establishment of certain other international projects. Directs the Secretary to initiate discussions with other nations leading toward an international research protocol for environmentally safe energy technologies. Title III: National Climate Program Act Amendments - Amends the National Climate Program Act to: (1) shift responsibility for the National Climate Program from the President to the Committee on Earth Sciences; and (2) incorporate such program within the National Global Change Research Program as a separate coordinating and programmatic unit. Specifies the duties of the Secretary of Commerce with respect to such program.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 1989
Reclassifies administrative law judge positions currently classified at the GS-15 level at the GS-16 level of the General Schedule. Declares that the conversion and initial basic pay rate adjustment of such positions and employees to a GS-16 under this Act shall not be considered to be transfers or promotions.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 1989
Authorizes Oklahoma to exercise jurisdiction over the Fort Still Indian School located in Comanche County, Oklahoma, for the period during which the Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache Intertribal Land Use Committee leases such school to the State for the purpose of operating a minimum security correctional facility.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 1989
Directs the American Battle Monuments Commission to establish a memorial on Federal land in the District of Columbia or its immediate area to honor World War II veterans and to commemorate U.S. participation in that conflict. Directs the Commission to plan, design, construct, and oversee the operation of the memorial. Specifies that such design shall provide for accessibility by, and accommodations for, the physically handicapped. Establishes the World War II Memorial Advisory Board to: (1) promote the establishment of the memorial and encourage the donation of private funds for construction maintenance; (2) assist and cooperate with the Commission in the selection of the site and design for the memorial; and (3) transmit annual reports on its activities to the Congress. Authorizes the Commission to solicit private contributions for such memorial. Establishes a fund in the Treasury which shall be made available to the Commission to carry out this Act. Authorizes Federal funding, in addition to such private funds, for site preparation, design, planning, establishment, construction, maintenance, and operation of the memorial. Authorizes assistance from specified Federal departments and agencies, including the Library of Congress. Authorizes Federal property to be transferred to the Commission. Authorizes the Commission to purchase suitable property within the District of Columbia for the establishment of such memorial. Urges the Government to encourage 50th anniversary commemorations of the U.S. role in World War II. Urges the Smithsonian Institution and other Federal museums to develop commemorative exhibitions to be shared with academic institutions.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 1989
Requires interest income from certain qualified leased property transactions of rural electric cooperatives to be offset by rental expenses of such transactions before allocating income or expense to members and nonmembers of such cooperatives for purposes of the accelerated cost recovery system of the Internal Revenue Code.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1989
Christopher Columbus Coin and Fellowship Act - Title I: Christopher Columbus Quincentenary Coins - Christopher Columbus Quincentenary Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than a specified number of five dollar gold coins, one dollar silver coins, and half dollar clad coins emblematic of the quincentary of the discovery of America. Sets forth certain features of such coins and provides for their design, issuance, and sale. Terminates the minting of such coins after June 30, 1993. Requires the Secretary to deposit surcharges from the sale of such coins in the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Fund for use by the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation. Declares that no law governing procurement or public contracts shall be applicable to the procurement of goods and services necessary for carrying out this Act, except that this provision shall not relieve any person from complying with any law relating to equal employment opportunity. Title II: Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation - Christopher Columbus Fellowship Act - Establishes the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation to award fellowships to outstanding individuals to encourage new discoveries in all fields of endeavor for the benefit of mankind. Establishes the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Fund. Directs the Foundation to report to the President and to the Congress annually on its operations.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1989
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to its concern over the Supreme Court's decision in Texas v. Johnson and its commitment to preserving the honor and integrity of the flag. Condemns all actions intended to desecrate the flag. Urges the American people to continue to display proudly the U.S. flag.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 1989
Constitutional Amendment - Declares that the Congress and the States shall have power to prohibit the act of desecration of the U.S. flag and to set criminal penalties for that act.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 1989
Emergency Chinese Adjustment of Status Facilitation Act of 1989 - Waives the two-year home country residence requirement for nationals of the People's Republic of China in the United States on a student (J) visa. Continues the legal status of nonimmigrant nationals of the People's Republic of China in the United States for adjustment or change of status purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 1989
National American Indian Museum Act - Establishes within the Smithsonian Institution a memorial to Native Americans to be known as the National Museum of the American Indian, to provide for the study, research, collection, and exhibition of Native Americans and their culture. Designates specified areas in the District of Columbia and New York City as the sites of facilities for the Museum. Requires establishment of a facility for the conservation and storage of Museum collections at the Museum Support Center in Suitland, Maryland. Authorizes the Smithsonian to: (1) provide for the transfer of certain assets of the Heye Foundation for the benefit and use of the Museum; (2) construct such facilities; (3) provide for acquisition of Native American objects and artifacts from museums or private collections; and (4) maintain or loan objects and artifacts in the Museum collection. Establishes the Board of Trustees of the Museum. Directs the Board to: (1) recommend annual budgets for the Museum; and (2) assist the Board of Regents on matters relating to the Museum. Grants the Trustees sole authority to: (1) dispose of and acquire additional Museum property; and (2) establish policy with respect to the utilization of the Museum's collections. Grants the Trustees authority to: (1) establish policy with respect to the restoration, preservation, and maintenance of Museum collections; (2) solicit funds for the Museum; (3) approve expenditures from the Museum's endowment; (4) advise the Museum's Director; (5) provide for the exhibition of Native American objects and artifacts; and (6) conduct research and evaluation and educational programs with respect to the Museum collections. Requires the Trustees to submit annual reports to the Board of Regents and the Congress. Requires the Foundation's employees serving at the time of the transfer to be offered employment by the Smithsonian. Directs the Board of Regents to: (1) loan artifacts and objects from the Smithsonian Institution traveling exhibit service to the Heye Foundation's successor; and (2) provide training and assistance to such successor to maintain and operate exhibits and a museum facility at Audubon Terrace, New York, New York. Directs the Board, in providing such services, to require such successor to: (1) designate a specified area for exhibit space; (2) ensure physical suitability of such space for exhibition of traveling collections; and (3) make an effort to coordinate exhibits. Authorizes the Board to enter into agreements with museums, educational institutions, and cultural organizations to: (1) loan Native American artifacts and objects from the Museum collection; (2) sponsor and coordinate traveling exhibitions; and (3) provide technical assistance. Directs the Board to enter into an agreement with the Secretary of the Interior to insure that certain museums have an opportunity to participate in such programs. Directs the Board to: (1) identify the geographic and tribal origins of the skeletal remains of Indians and associated grave offerings in the Smithsonian; (2) conduct a study and make recommendations on how to implement a policy of returning or repatriating such skeletal remains and associated grave offerings according to tribal custom; (3) consult with traditional Indian religious leaders in making such recommendations; and (4) report to the Congress within three years of this Act's enactment on the identity of such skeletal remains and associated grave offerings and the findings and recommendations of such study. Directs the Secretary to make grants available for assisting Indian tribes in such repatriation. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1989
Title I: Federal Minimum Wage - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (the Act) to increase the minimum wage per hour from $3.35 in 1989 to: (1) $3.65 in 1990; (2) $3.95 in 1991; and (3) $4.25 in 1992 and thereafter. Increases the tip credit under the Act from 40 percent to 45 percent for 1990 and to 50 percent for 1991 and thereafter. (The tip credit deems the amount paid to a tipped employee, for minimum wage purposes, to be increased by an amount determined by the employer, but not by an amount in excess of the specified percentage of the applicable minimum wage rate.) Increases the small business exemption by revising the definition of an enterprise engaged in commerce, for purposes of coverage under the Act ("the enterprise test"). Exempts from such coverage enterprises whose annual gross volume of sales or business is less than $500,000 (currently $362,500), effective in 1990. Requires employers who were covered in 1988, but who are exempt under the new threshold, to continue to pay the $3.35 per hour minimum wage. Title II: Earned Income Tax Credit - Amends Internal Revenue Code provisions governing the earned income tax credit to: (1) increase from $5,714 to $7,000 the amount of earned income subject to the credit; (2) increase the basic credit from 14 percent to 15 percent; and (3) add additional credits to apply to not more than four children of 5 percent for each dependent school age child between age 6 and age 16 and ten percent for each preschool age child. Reduces the amount of the credit for taxpayers with adjusted gross income over $40,000. Indexes amounts relating to the credit beginning in 1992.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1989
Provides for the allocation of funds awarded to the Seminole Indians in certain dockets of the Indian Claims Commission, according to a specified formula, to the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, and the unaffiliated Seminoles of Florida. Directs the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with each Indian tribe, to prepare and submit plans to the Congress for the use and distribution of such funds within 180 days of this Act's enactment. Provides that such funds may not be used or distributed until a membership roll of Seminole Indians has been certified by the Secretary. Specifies that any plans for the investment, use, or distribution of such funds shall account for common tribal needs, educational requirements, and long-term economic and social interests of the affected tribe. Directs the Secretary to implement such plans 60 days after their submission unless the Congress enacts a joint resolution disapproving such plan. Requires that tribal investment decisions under such plans be subject to the Secretary's approval. Declares that the funds allocated to each Indian tribe under this Act are to be held in trust by the United States for the benefit of such tribe.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 1989
Aviation Research Grant Act of 1989 - Amends the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 to authorize the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration to make grants to colleges, universities, and nonprofit research organizations to: (1) conduct aviation research; and (2) establish research centers for the long-term growth of civil aviation. Directs the Administrator to report annually to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation regarding the research grant program. Amends the Airport and Airway Improvement Act of 1982 to make a specified percentage of funds under the Airport and Airway Trust Fund available for such grants.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1989
Title I: Federal Minimum Wage - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (the Act) to increase the minimum wage per hour from $3.35 in 1989 to: (1) $3.65 in 1990; (2) $3.95 in 1991; and (3) $4.25 in 1992 and thereafter. Increases the tip credit under the Act from 40 percent to 45 percent for 1990 and to 50 percent for 1991 and thereafter. (The tip credit deems the amount paid to a tipped employee, for minimum wage purposes, to be increased by an amount determined by the employer, but not by an amount in excess of the specified percentage of the applicable minimum wage rate.) Increases the small business exemption by revising the definition of an enterprise engaged in commerce, for purposes of coverage under the Act ("the enterprise test"). Exempts from such coverage enterprises whose annual gross volume of sales or business is less than $500,000 (currently $362,500), effective in 1990. Requires employers who were covered in 1988, but who are exempt under the new threshold, to continue to pay the $3.35 per hour minimum wage. Title II: Earned Income Tax Credit - Amends Internal Revenue Code provisions governing the earned income tax credit to: (1) increase from $5,714 to $7,000 the amount of earned income subject to the credit; (2) increase the basic credit from 14 percent to 15 percent; and (3) add additional credits to apply to not more than four children of 5 percent for each dependent school age child between age 6 and age 16 and ten percent for each preschool age child. Reduces the amount of the credit for taxpayers with adjusted gross income over $40,000. Indexes amounts relating to the credit beginning in 1992. Disallows application of the nonrefundable dependent care income tax credit with respect to a taxpayer's dependents under age 13, unless the child is physically or mentally incapable of self-care. Permits the credit with respect to handicapped children under age 15 only if the taxpayer elects not to include the child within the framework of the earned income credit. Repeals provisions of the Family Support Act of 1988 that revise the way in which the earned income credit is treated in the context of needs analysis for purposes of State plans for aid and services to needy families with children under title IV of the Social Security Act.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
Title I: National Weather Service - Authorizes FY 1990 through 1992 appropriations to the Secretary of Commerce to enable the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to carry out the operations and research duties of the National Weather Service (NWS), including meteorological, hydrological, and oceanographic public warnings and forecasts and related applied research. Instructs the Secretary to direct the Office of the Chief Scientist of NOAA to establish an advisory committee of tropical cyclone research experts to make recommendations concerning Atlantic tropical cyclone research activities and reconnaissance procedures. Earmarks amounts for the Stormscale Operational and Research Meteorological (STORM) program. Authorizes FY 1990 through 1992 appropriations to enable NOAA to carry out the public warning and forecast systems duties of the NWS, including the development, acquisition, and implementation of major public warning and forecast systems. Directs the Secretary to prepare for the Congress, before FY 1990, an Implementation Plan for NWS modernization. Lists required plan contents. Calls for submission of a revised plan prior to each fiscal year. Requires that the FY 1991 plan describe resources necessary for demonstration of modernized weather forecasting technologies at a northeastern U.S. site. Prohibits the Secretary from closing, consolidating, automating, or relocating any office or forecast office of the NWS without certifying to specified congressional committees that the action will not result in any degradation of weather services to the affected area. Prohibits corresponding actions in connection with offices located at an airport, unless an air safety appraisal permits certification that safety will not be decreased. Prohibits corresponding actions with respect to any NWS office that is the only one in a State, unless certification can be made that comparable weather services will remain available to in-State users. Title II: Atmospheric Research - Authorizes FY 1990 through 1992 appropriations to the Secretary to enable NOAA to carry out its climate and air quality research duties, including interannual and seasonal climate research, long-term climate and air quality research, and the National Climate Program. Earmarks amounts for: (1) implementation of a nationwide climate services system and applied climatology program; (2) activities of the National Climate Program and the Regional Climate Centers; and (3) tornado and severe thunderstorm weather research in the U.S. southeastern coastal plan. Authorizes FY 1990 through 1992 appropriations to fund NOAA's atmospheric research duties, including research for developing improved prediction capabilities for atmospheric processes and solar-terrestrial services and research. Instructs the Secretary to direct the Office of the Chief Scientist of NOAA to submit to the Congress a plan for the implementation of a nationwide climate services system and applied climatology program. Lists required plan contents. Title III: National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service - Authorizes FY 1990 through 1992 appropriations to fund NOAA's satellite observing systems duties, including spacecraft procurement, launch, and associated ground station system changes involving polar orbiting and geostationary environmental satellites and land remote sensing satellites. Earmarks amounts for geological sea surface research and basic geological remote sensing for energy resources at the Cooperative Institute for Applied Remote Sensing. Authorizes FY 1990 through 1992 appropriations to enable NOAA to carry out its duties relating to data and information services, including climate, ocean, and geophysical data services and environmental assessment and information services.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
Chemical and Biological Weapons Nonproliferation Act - Sets forth U.S. policy concerning chemical and biological weapons. Requires the Secretary of Commerce to issue such regulations, licenses, and orders as may be required to control the export of materials, equipment, and technology having significance for the manufacture or use of chemical and biological weapons. Makes subject to the penalties imposed by the Export Administration Act of 1979 any person who violates any regulation, license, or order issued by the Secretary. Requires the Secretary of State to assess the risk of the proliferation of chemical and biological weapons. Specifies particular matters to be considered by such assessment and requires such assessment to give particular attention to the materials, equipment, and technology that have direct significance for the production and use of chemical and biological weapons. Requires the Secretary of State to submit to the Congress a biannual report describing the status of: (1) control of the proliferation of chemical and biological weapons; (2) efforts to prevent the spread of such weapons; and (3) programs to control the export of materials, equipment, and technology having direct significance for the production of chemical and biological weapons. Requires the Secretary of State to establish a Chemical Industry Advisory Group to provide advice to the Secretary concerning such assessment and such biannual report. Requires the Secretary of State to inform the appropriate committees of the Congress of developments of significance to the proliferation and control of chemical and biological weapons.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 1989
Airport Security Technology and Research Act of 1989 - Amends the Airport and Airway Improvement Act of 1982 to authorize appropriations for research and evaluation of aviation and airport security projects and activities.
![Official portrait of Rep. McCurdy, Dave [D-OK-4]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/m000398_200.jpg)