United States · United States Congress · 12 May 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Time-Limited Transitional Assistance Title II: Make Work Pay Subtitle A: Health Care Subtitle B: Earned Income Tax Credit Subtitle C: Child Care Subtitle D: AFDC Work Disregards Subtitle E: AFDC Asset Limitations Title III: The Work First Program Subtitle A: AFDC Subtitle B: Targeted Jobs Tax Credit Title IV: Family Responsibility and Improved Child Support Enforcement Subtitle A: Enhancement of Ability to Identify and Locate Noncustodial Parents Subtitle B: Paternity Establishment Subtitle C: Improvement of Child Support Order Establishment Process Subtitle D: Child Support Enforcement Title V: Teen Pregnancy and Family Stability Subtitle A: Federal Role Subtitle B: State Role Title VI: Program Simplification Subtitle A: Increased State Flexibility Subtitle B: Coordination of AFDC and Food Stamp Programs Subtitle C: Fraud Reduction Title VII: Financing Subtitle A: Ineligibility of certain Aliens for certain Social Services Subtitle B: Other Provisions Relating to Aliens Subtitle C: Limitation on Emergency Assistance Expenditures Subtitle D: Family Day Care Homes Program Improvements Subtitle E: Collection of Certain State and Local Taxes on Out-of-State Sales Title VIII: Effective Date Independence for Families Act of 1994 - Title I: Time-Limited Transitional Assistance - Amends part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) require States opting below to have work first programs to make ineligible for AFDC any family with a member who has participated in such work program for two years; (2) condition eligibility for AFDC on participation in job search activities except during unsubsidized full-time private sector employment; (3) provide transitional child care for families cut off AFDC after two years; and (4) direct the Secretary of Health and Human Service (Secretary) to establish a database of work first and community service programs participants for use by States opting to have work first programs. Title II: Make Work Pay - Amends SSA titles XIX (Medicaid) and IV part A (AFDC), as well as the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) and other specified Federal law, to make various specified changes with regard to, among others, extended Medicaid enrollment for former AFDC recipients, increased AFDC earned income disregards, limited AFDC income and resource disregards of savings for education, first time home or automobile purchase, microenterprise initiatives, increased child care funding and transitional benefits for two parent families, and refundable tax credits for dependent care and other expenses connected with gaining employment in order to enable AFDC recipients to become self-sufficient. (Sec. 229) Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the Child Care Development and Block Grant Act should be reauthorized to allow States greater flexibility to use their funds to strengthen child care; and (2) States should institute a child care voucher system to enable families on AFDC to purchase child care services, create Consumer Information Centers for providing information on eligible child care providers, and loosen their regulations to allow for reimbursement of certain provider costs. Title III: The Work First Program - Amends SSA title IV to: (1) replace the current Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program under part F with a new Work First Program that allows participating States to establish work programs similar to those operated by Riverside County, California and the State of Oregon; (2) add a new part G (Community Service Program); (3) include a work supplementation component under each such program that provides for subsidized private sector or State or local government jobs; (4) give States the option of having such programs; and (5) require States exercising such option to provide participants with the necessary case management services to ensure integrated benefits and services provided under such programs. (Sec. 311) Amends IRC to provide for an increase in the minimum period of employment required to receive a targeted jobs tax credit. Title IV: Family Responsibility And Improved Child Support Enforcement - Amends SSA title IV parts A and D (Child Support and Establishment of Paternity) to make specified changes with regard to AFDC recipient cooperation in establishing paternity of illegitimate children, locate services for enforcing child support orders, parenting services for new fathers, and distribution of child support proceeds. (Sec. 411) Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) certain actions pursuant to a child support order, such as the denial of visitation rights, should be treated as irrelevant in actions brought to enforce other provisions of the order; (2) the Secretary should investigate accessing certain Federal data banks not linked to the Parent Locator Service; (3) the national network established under this title for handling locate requests should be used to access State records only through the agency administering the State part D plan; (4) social services should be provided in hospitals to women whose pregnancy results from rape or incest; and (5) States should implement methods for verifying locate information and develop programs like the State of Wisconsin's program for noncustodial parents unable to meet support obligations. (Sec. 421) Establishes the National Child Support Guidelines Commission to: (1) study and develop a national child support guideline if one proves advisable; and (2) submit a report on the study's results to the President and the Congress. (Sec. 431) Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to establish a system for enabling child support information to be obtained at the workplace via W-4 form reporting by employees. Amends IRC to require employers to: (1) deduct and withhold child support obligations from employee wages; (2) pay withholdings to the appropriate payee; and (3) include withheld obligations on the employee's W-2 form. Makes various other specified changes to SSA title IV part D involving: (1) State procedures for comparing information in the national registry of child support orders (NR) established under this title with information obtained above from W-4 form reporting, and for imposing monetary penalties on employees who fail to report support obligations; (2) development of uniform withholding orders; (3) garnishment of certain Federal benefits and seizure of lottery winnings and other payouts to satisfy support arrearages; (4) State reporting of support obligations to credit bureaus; and (5) liability of grandparents for financial support of children of their minor children. Title V: Teen Pregnancy and Family Stability - Amends SSA title IV part A (AFDC) with respect to Federal and State roles in reducing teenage pregnancy and promoting family stability; by: (1) requiring States to deny AFDC for additional children (except those born as a result of rape or incest) of AFDC families unless the State plan explicitly provides for such additional children; and (2) providing for unmarried minors who are pregnant or who have children to live under adult supervision in order to receive AFDC. (Sec. 503) Directs the Secretary of Education to establish a task force to reduce teenage pregnancy. (Sec. 511) Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) children should be educated about the risks of early parenthood; (2) reproductive family planning and education should be made available to potential parents; and (3) States should use SSA title XX (Block Grants to States for Social Services) funds to provide comprehensive services to high-risk youth and work with schools for early identification and referral of such children. Title VI: Program Simplification - Amends SSA titles IV part A and XI, as well as the Food Stamp Act of 1977, to give States increased flexibility in providing AFDC benefits (including restoring those wrongfully terminated) through, among other means, use of electronic benefit transfers, quicker action on waiver requests, and coordination with food stamp rules. (Sec. 631) Expresses the support of the Congress for certain efforts by the Social Security Administration to reduce fraud and abuse in the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Program under SSA title XVI. (Sec. 632) Requires the Secretary to study and report to the Congress on the feasibility of issuing a single counterfeit-resistant ID card to replace the current social security card and any health security card issued under health reform legislation. Title VII: Financing - Amends the SSA, the IRC, and the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to make certain aliens ineligible for AFDC, SSI, Medicaid, food stamps, and the earned income tax credit. (Sec. 711) Sets forth special rules concerning aliens and general public assistance. (Sec. 714) Authorizes appropriations for financial assistance to States for assistance to resident aliens. Specifies the annual allocation of such Federal financial assistance for each State and the District of Columbia through FY 1988. (Sec. 721) Amends SSA title IV part A (AFDC) to revise: (1) the definition of "emergency assistance to needy families with children"; and (2) the limitation on State expenditures for such assistance. (Sec. 731) Amends the National School Lunch Act to: (1) modify family and group day care home reimbursement provisions under the child and adult care food program; and (2) provide grants to States for making grants to family and day care homes. Tax Fairness for Main Street Business Act of 1994 - States that the Congress: (1) recognizes that some States will be adversely affected by provisions of this Act which deny immigrants certain public assistance; (2) pledges to help those States offset the potential cost shift; and (3) encourages States, in authorizing them below to require out-of-State companies to collect sales taxes on certain purchases, to use increased revenues resulting from such collections to offset such cost shift and design assistance programs addressing special needs of immigrants. (Sec. 744) Authorizes a State or local jurisdiction to require certain out-of-State businesses to collect sales taxes on tangible personal property sold to residents of the State or local jurisdiction. (Sec. 745) Provides an in-lieu fee rate where local taxes are not uniform. (Sec. 746) Prohibits a State from requiring out-of-State businesses to file reporting returns more than once every calendar quarter. (Sec. 749) Requires a State to establish toll-free information services to provide such businesses with necessary forms and instructions. Title VIII: Effective Date - Sets forth the effective date of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 1994
Veterans' Persian Gulf War Benefits Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to: (1) develop and expeditiously implement a uniform case assessment protocol that will ensure thorough assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of all Persian Gulf War veterans suffering from illnesses attributed to service in the Persian Gulf theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War; (2) expedite efforts to develop case definitions or diagnoses for illnesses associated with such service; and (3) develop and implement a comprehensive outreach program to inform such veterans and their families of health-care services, including comprehensive medical evaluations, that may be available through the Department of Veterans Affairs or the Department of Defense. Directs the Secretary to pay compensation to Persian Gulf War veterans suffering from a chronic disability resulting from an undiagnosed illness that became manifest to a degree of ten percent or more within one year after completion of active duty in the Gulf War, with exceptions. Terminates compensation payments three years after the date of enactment of this Act. Authorizes appropriations to the Department of Veterans Affairs for: (1) FY 1995 through 1997 for conducting research of the health risk and effects of service during the Gulf War and the treatment of such effects; and (2) FY 1995 for a survey of Persian Gulf veterans as to the incidence and nature of health problems occurring in such veterans and their families.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 1994
Charitable Contributions Encouragement Act of 1994 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow taxpayers who do not itemize deductions to deduct a portion of their charitable contributions. Excludes the deduction for charitable contributions from the overall limitation on itemized deductions.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 1994
Restricted Explosives Control Act of 1994 - Prohibits the distribution or receipt of restricted explosives without a Federal permit. Defines "restricted explosives" to mean high explosives, blasting agents, detonators, and more than 50 pounds of black powder. Requires applications for such permits to include the applicant's photograph and fingerprints, which shall be taken and transmitted to the Secretary of the Treasury by the chief law enforcement officer of the applicant's place of residence.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 1994
Risk Assessment Improvement Act of 1994 - Establishes a Risk Assessment Program in the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Requires the Director of the Program to: (1) develop a process to conduct scientific peer review of all risk assessment guidelines developed by EPA; and (2) provide recommendations to the EPA Administrator on risk assessment, research needs, and development of guidelines. Directs the Director to regularly develop, issue, and, not less than every three years for each guideline, review the need to update guidelines that establish methods for conducting scientifically sound risk assessment. Sets forth contents of such guidelines. Requires the Director to oversee the use of risk assessment guidelines by EPA Program and Regional Offices and ensure consistency in the use of such guidelines as is appropriate in application to various environmental media or hazards. Permits departures from guidelines under specified conditions. Requires the Director to regularly develop, issue, and update guidance within EPA for any risk characterizations that may be conducted by EPA. Sets forth contents of such guidance. Requires the Director to: (1) promote open dialogue to improve the use of risk assessments by decisionmakers and to accurately and clearly communicate risk characterizations; and (2) regularly evaluate risk assessment research and training needs of EPA and develop a strategy and schedule for carrying out such research and training. Provides for, as part of the Program, a two-year pilot project using comparative risk analysis to rank dissimilar environmental risks and provide a common basis for evaluating strategies for reducing or preventing such risks. Requires the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to: (1) periodically survey the manner in which Federal agencies are conducting risk assessment; (2) provide recommendations to the President based on such surveys; and (3) establish interagency mechanisms to promote coordination of Federal risk assessment and mechanisms between Federal and State agencies to communicate state-of-the-art risk assessment practices.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 1994
Waterways Restoration Act of 1994 - Amends the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act to delete the requirement that each watershed improvement under such Act must contain benefits directly related to agriculture that account for at least 20 percent of the total project benefits. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish and implement a Waterways Restoration Program which provides technical assistance and grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities for carrying out waterway restoration projects. Requires such projects to achieve ecological restoration or protection and one or more of the following objectives: (1) flood damage reduction; (2) erosion control; (3) stormwater management; or (4) water quality enhancement. Provides project descriptions and priorities, including the location of projects in low-income or economically depressed areas adversely impacted by poor watershed management. Outlines other project requirements, including a cost-benefit analysis. Requires the Secretary to designate Program administrators for each participating State (including a State agency if approved by the Secretary). Requires program grants to be awarded on an annual basis. Provides project application and selection requirements, including the establishment in each participating State of an interdisciplinary team of specialists to assist in reviewing project applications under the Program. Outlines conditions for receiving assistance under the Program, with sponsor and cosponsor requirements. Requires a non-Federal share of 25 percent of project costs, with a waiver for economically depressed communities. Limits the administrative and technical assistance costs of the Program. Requires the governor of each participating State to establish a citizens oversight committee to evaluate management of the Program in that State. Requires program administrators to issue annual reports summarizing the Program evaluations of the oversight committees. Provides funding.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 1994
Economic Development Reauthorization Act of 1994 - Amends the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 to reenact such Act as the Economic Development Financing Act of 1994 (the Act). Prohibits any more than 15 percent of the total appropriations made for grants to States for public works and development facilities from being expended in any one State unless the Secretary of Commerce determines such expenditure is necessary due to the occurence of a major natural disaster. Authorizes appropriations for public works and development facilities grants for FY 1994 and 1995. Allows for the use of funds for: (1) projects constructed under projected costs; and (2) projects for which the purpose or scope is changed after the grants are made if approved by the Secretary. Allows the Secretary to make public works and development facility loans to States, Indian tribes, or any private or public nonprofit organization or association if, among other conditions, the area for the proposed loan has an approved investment strategy (currently, an approved economic development program) for the funds provided. Allows the Secretary to assist in financing and industrial or commercial activity (currently, only those in a redevelopment area). Allows the Economic Development Revolving Fund established prior to this Act to continue to be available to the Secretary in connection with financial assistance extended under this Act before October 1, 1991. Directs the Secretary to establish an Office of Strategic Economic Development Planning and Policy to support research, evaluation, and demonstration projects, to provide and coordinate policy development, and to disseminate information with respect to economic development planning and policy. Directs the Secretary to establish and conduct a continuing program of study, training, and research into causes of long-term economic deterioration and to make such research available to interested parties. Requires an annual report. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop and report to the Congress concerning a computerized geographic analysis tool to be used by all Federal departments and agencies and grant recipients to evaluate the success of the continuing programs; (2) establish an independent advisory committee to advise and make recommendations to the Office; and (3) establish a Federal Coordinating Council to provide assistance in the development of a government-wide strategic plan for economic development. Allows for grants and contracts for appropriate demonstration projects. Directs the Secretary to establish the Office of Economic Development Information to serve as a central information clearinghouse on matters relating to economic development and adjustment, industrial retention, disaster recovery, and defense conversion programs and activities of Federal and State governments. Requires the development of information data bases to be used by Federal, state and local agencies, public and private entities, and individuals in applying for assistance under such programs. Requires the establishment of mechanisms for easy access to information compiled and appropriate outreach services. Requires the Secretary to develop and report to the Congress on the use of a general, simplified application form for grant assistance provided under this Act to be used by all Federal departments and agencies. Removes the authority of the Secretary to provide technical assistance to alleviate or prevent conditions of excessive unemployment or underemployment in redevelopment areas. Directs the Secretary, with funds made available under this Act, to conduct during FY 1994 through 1996 a project to demonstrate methods of assisting isolated small businesses to access services provided by Federal, State, and local governments. Requires, as part of such project, the establishment of three business outreach centers. Authorizes appropriations. Requires applicants, in order to be eligible for assistance provided under the Act, to make certain certifications for the area in which the economic development project would be located with respect to unemployment, low incomes, sudden job loss, and related factors. Makes ineffective the designation of a redevelopment area made before the date of enactment of the Act. Requires the applicant to submit an investment strategy which identifies the economic development problems to be addressed using such assistance. Provides for the appointment of an Administrator for Economic Development. Directs the Assistant Secretary for Economic Development to publish and submit to specified congressional committees guidelines for the expeditious processing of applications for assistance under the Act. Requires, at least biennially, evaluations of each university center and economic development district receiving grant assistance under the Act. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to ensure that Regional Counsels of the Economic Development Administration report directly to their Regional Director. Directs the Secretary to prescribe regulations and procedures for determining priorities in the awarding of grants for special economic development and adjustment assistance to State and local areas having special needs arising from severe unemployment due to economic dislocation. Authorizes the Secretary to make such assistance available to military bases which are closed or realigned and the communities affected by such closures or realignments. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1994 and 1995 for such projects, with a specific amount set aside for defense conversion activities and for any natural disaster. Authorizes the Secretary to guarantee loans made to private borrowers by private institutions and other lenders for the development of land and facilities for industrial or commercial usage or for the provision of working capital. Directs the Secretary, in order to study the possibility of equity financing, to establish a five-year pilot program under which the Secretary provides grants to eligible entities to purchase nonvoting instruments of private U.S. businesses or nonprofit organizations and associations for the purpose of providing capital for any project relating to industrial or commercial development or working capital for such projects. Establishes the Equity Investment Revolving Fund for grant purposes. Outlines conditions concerning the use of payments. Authorizes appropriations. Requires certain public review and comment with respect to revolving loan fund guidelines. Allows for the sale of financial instruments in the Fund, with proceeds to be used for Fund purposes. Directs the Secretary to establish a multiyear demonstration project under which grants are provided to selected recipients on a matching basis for the purpose of establishing substantially leveraged financing for business development and other innovative economic development efforts. Requires the recipient to establish an investment fund for such purposes. Outlines eligibility requirements (low per capita income, high unemployment rate, and related factors). Outlines grant and demonstration project requirements and limitations. Requires evaluations and reports. Authorizes FY 1995 appropriations. Directs the Secretary to establish and maintain an integrated, comprehensive data base describing all patents, licenses, technologies, processes, and other proprietary rights owned or held by the Federal Government or which originated in the course of federally funded research in which the Government has an interest. Requires the standardization and accessibility of such information. Requires access to the data base by the public (with restrictions such as national security interests) and by the Business Development and Technology Commercialization Corporation (created under this part). Directs the Secretary to review and report to the Congress on current Federal technology transfer efforts and commercialization activities. Establishes the Business Development and Technology Commercialization Corporation to facilitate the transfer and commercialization of Federal patents, licenses, technologies, processes, and other proprietary rights to qualified concerns. Requires such outreach to include the use of a cable television network devoted to marketing efforts for the commercialization of Federal technologies and processes, with promotional fees paid to the Corporation by the Secretary. Directs the Corporation to: (1) provide technical assistance and services upon request; (2) provide specific outreach services to qualified concerns located in areas of chronically depressed economies or high unemployment; and (3) act as an agent of the Government in facilitating the transfers of Federal technologies and processes. Outlines provisions with respect to the rights of the Government and qualified concerns receiving such technologies and processes, the financing of the Corporation, Corporation consultation with regard to their activities, Comptroller General audits, and jurisdiction when the Corporation is a party to a civil action. Directs the Corporation to act as a one-step clearinghouse for information to assist qualified concerns to identify sources of business development and technology commercialization financing available through the Federal Government, State and local governments, and private sources. Allows the Corporation to charge fees for technical assistance and services.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1994
United States Botanic Garden Commemorative Coin Act of 1995 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) issue one-dollar silver coins to commemorate the 175th anniversary of the founding of the United States Botanic Garden; and (2) pay all surcharges received from such coin sales to the National Fund for the United States Botanic Garden.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1994
Calls for the United States, at the International Conference on Population and Development, to: (1) place the highest priority on the success of the Conference by actively participating, particularly through the President's personal participation; (2) propose or support an initiative concerning the financing of global cooperation on efforts to slow rapid population growth that takes into account the costs of slowing growth and the basic development goals of developing countries and that increases accountability for the use of funds provided for family planning purposes; (3) seek to initiate a process of regular high-level intergovernmental consultations on the issues under consideration at the Conference and establish improved organizational and procedural means to implement its objectives; (4) support the effective implementation of a global action plan to raise the economic, educational, and leadership status of women and programs that provide maternal and child health care, education, and training for women and voluntary family planning; and (5) promote public participation, especially by women, at all levels of formulation and implementation of family planning and sustainable development policy and programs.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1994
A Child is Waiting Resolution - Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) any health care reform legislation include guaranteed full funding for the special supplemental food program for women, infants, and children (WIC); and (2) specified amounts should be made available to move toward such full funding goal.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 1994
Prohibits any person from taking (or threatening to take) an unfavorable personnel action or withholding (or threatening to withhold) a favorable personnel action as a reprisal against a member of the armed forces for making or preparing a communication alleging sexual harassment or unlawful discrimination against such member. Requires the Inspector General of either the Department of Defense or the Department of Transportation (for Coast Guard members when such service is not operating as a service in the Navy) to expeditiously investigate such allegations and report results to the Secretary of Defense or Transportation, as appropriate.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 1994
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) when there is Federal jurisdiction, Federal authorities should prosecute to the fullest extent of the law murders, rapes, burglaries, kidnappings, and assaults committed against commercial truckers; and (2) appropriate Federal agencies should acknowledge this problem and place a priority on evaluating how best to prevent such crimes and apprehend those involved and continue to coordinate their activities with multi-jurisdictional authorities to combat violent crimes committed against truckers.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 1994
Interstate Municipal Solid Waste Control Act - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to authorize State Governors to limit the quantity of out-of-State municipal solid waste (MSW) received for disposal at landfills or incinerators to an annual quantity equal to that received during 1990, 1991, or 1992, whichever is less. Limits the quantity of out-of-State MSW received to an annual quantity no greater than 30 percent of all MSW received in 1990, 1991, or 1992, whichever is less, if, during such year, the landfill or incinerator received documented shipments of more than 50,000 tons of out-of-State MSW representing more than 30 percent of all MSW received during the calendar year concerned. Provides for further limits in 1995 through 1997. Authorizes State Governors to prohibit the disposal of out-of-State MSW in: (1) new landfills or incinerators; or (2) landfills or incinerators that do not meet certain requirements of Federal and State laws. Permits State Governors to treat any out-of-State industrial solid waste as out-of-State MSW if it is disposed of at a landfill or incinerator that receives MSW. Authorizes counties to exercise the same authorities with respect to out-of-State MSW as State Governors, except that the 30 percent limitation described in this Act shall be 20 percent. Prohibits discrimination against shipments of out-of-State solid waste on the basis of State of origin. Authorizes a State Governor to limit or prohibit the exportation outside the State of MSW generated in the State, except for materials that have been separated from MSW for recycling. Exempts from the requirements of this Act: (1) material that has been separated or diverted from MSW and has been transported into the State for purposes of recycling and any material returned from a dispenser or distributor to the manufacturer for credit, evaluation, or reuse (this section does not apply to material disposed of in a landfill or incinerator); (2) solid waste generated by an industrial facility and transported for purposes of treatment, storage, or disposal to a facility owned or operated by the waste generator; and (3) solid waste generated incident to the provision of air transportation.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 1994
Deficit Reduction Lock Box Act of 1994 - Establishes the Deficit Reduction Trust Fund consisting of amounts contained in deficit reduction lock box provisions of appropriations Acts. Reduces discretionary spending limits by amounts transferred to the Fund. Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to require that amounts resulting from reduced spending under general appropriations bills be placed in the Fund. Requires the Congressional Budget Office to score all general appropriations measures as passed by the House and Senate and to publish such scorecard in the Congressional Record.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Victims' Rights Title II: Crime Victims' Fund Title III: Report on Battered Women's Syndrome Victims of Crime Act of 1994 - Title I: Victims' Rights - Amends Rule 32 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure to require the court, before imposing sentence for a crime of violence or sexual abuse, to address the victim personally if the victim is present at the sentencing hearing and determine if the victim wishes to make a statement and present any information in relation to the sentence. Title II: Crime Victims' Fund - Amends the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 to revise the formula for allocating funds for costs and grants. Authorizes the retention of any portion of the Crime Victim Funds that was deposited during a fiscal year that is in excess of 110 percent of the total amount deposited in the Fund during the preceding fiscal year as a reserve for use in a year in which the Fund falls below the amount available in the previous year. Limits such reserve to $20 million. Allows any sums awarded as part of a grant that remain unspent at the end of a fiscal year in which the grant is made, to be expended for grant purposes at any time during the succeeding two fiscal years, after which any remaining unobligated funds shall be returned to the Fund. Directs that, if the compensation paid by an eligible crime victim compensation program would cover costs that a Federal program or a federally financed State or local program would otherwise pay: (1) such crime victim compensation program shall not pay that compensation; and (2) the other program shall make its payments without regard to the existence of the crime victim compensation program. Limits to five percent of: (1) a grant the amount that may be used for the administration of the State crime victim compensation program receiving the grant; and (2) sums received for the State crime victim assistance program the amount that may be used for the administration of such program. Authorizes grants for demonstration projects. Requires each entity receiving sums made available under the Act for administrative purposes to certify that such sums will be used not to supplant State or local funds, but to increase the amount of such funds that would, in the absence of Federal funds, be made available for such purposes. Title III: Report on Battered Women's Syndrome - Directs the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services to report to specified congressional committees on the medical and psychological basis of "battered women's syndrome" and the extent to which evidence of the syndrome has been considered in a criminal trial.
United States · United States Congress · 11 March 1994
National Community Health Advisor Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, for each State or State-designated entity that submits an appropriate application, to award financial assistance for the development and operation of community health advisor (CHA) programs. Requires such States to: (1) operate a clearinghouse to maintain and disseminate information on CHA programs; (2) provide technical assistance for training CHAs; and (3) coordinate all CHA activities carried out by the State under the award. Limits administrative costs to 15 percent of the total award. Provides CHA program objectives and goals. Requires funding agreements for such awards to give priority to developing and operating CHA programs for medically underserved communities (poor rural and inner city areas). Requires a State to provide matching funds of 25 percent of award amounts toward such programs. Requires a CHA program in a State to be carried out in at least one urban area and one rural area. Requires ongoing supervision of CHAs involved in the program. Allows for expenditures under the award for training and continuing education programs. Requires reports from State applicants to the Secretary assessing the effectiveness of CHA programs. Provides for the determination of the amount allotted to each chosen applicant, taking into account the population and poverty level of the area involved. Directs the Secretary to establish guidelines for quality assurance and cost-effectiveness of the CHA programs, requiring evaluations of each such program. Prohibits this Act from being construed to require the Secretary to modify or terminate the Community Health Representative Program of the Indian Health Service.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 1994
Helium Act of 1994 - Amends the Helium Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to: (1) enter into agreements with private parties for the recovery and disposal of helium on Federal lands; (2) grant leasehold rights to such helium; (3) store and transport crude helium; and (4) maintain and operate existing crude helium storage at the Bureau of Mines Cliffside Field. Directs the Secretary to: (1) cease producing, refining, and marketing refined helium; and (2) dispose of all facilities, equipment, and Federal property interests relating to refined helium activities. Requires the Secretary to impose fees for helium storage, withdrawal, or transportation services. Prescribes guidelines for: (1) the purchase of helium by Federal agencies from certain private persons; and (2) the sale of crude helium by the Secretary. Mandates that proceeds from helium sales be paid to the Treasury. Instructs the Secretary to eliminate helium stockpiles by a prescribed deadline. Repeals the Secretary's authority to borrow under the Helium Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 March 1994
Designates March 23, 1994, the 92d birthday of the Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson (leader of the worldwide Lubavitch movement), as Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1994
1995 Special Olympics World Games Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue one-dollar silver coins emblematic of the 1995 Special Olympics World Games. Mandates that the surcharges collected from the sale of such coins be paid to the 1995 Special Olympics World Games Organizing Committee, Inc.
United States · United States Congress · 22 February 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: General Provisions Title II: Policy Coordination and Technology Programs Subtitle A: Policy Coordination and Program Planning Subtitle B: Environmental Technology Innovation Initiative Subtitle C: Other Research Activities Title III: Performance Measurements Title IV: Authorization of Appropriations Title I: General Provisions - Environmental Technologies Act of 1994 - Sets forth congressional findings and purposes. Title II: Policy Coordination and Technology Programs - Subtitle A: Policy Coordination and Program Planning - Requires the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to: (1) ensure the coordinated, interagency promotion of the research, development, integration, and deployment of environmental technologies; and (2) develop priorities for Federal environmental technology efforts. (Sec. 202) Requires the Director to coordinate Federal activities and resources that are applied to life-cycle assessment in order to maximize the contribution of such assessments to the efficient design, development, and use of such technologies and to sustainable economic development. (Sec. 203) Amends the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 to include goals for sustainable economic development within technology innovation programs. Includes such goals in other existing programs under specified Acts. Subtitle B: Environmental Technology Innovation Initiative - Establishes an Environmental Innovation Initiative, to be administered by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to promote the research, development, integration, and deployment of technologies that will contribute to sustainable economic development. Includes programs established under this Act in the Initiative. Provides assistance to eligible entities. (Sec. 211) Requires the Administrator to encourage the participation of socially and economically disadvantaged individuals and entities located in economically depressed areas in carrying out the Initiative. (Sec. 212) Directs the Administrator to conduct an interagency innovative environmental technology program to develop or demonstrate advanced precommercial environmental technologies. Makes U.S. companies and partnerships eligible for financial assistance for projects subject to certain conditions. (Sec. 213) Establishes the President's Total Environmental Quality Award to be awarded periodically to companies and other organizations which have benefited the United States through environmental technologies. Establishes a National Environmentally Sound Technology Award for individuals who have pioneered the development and use of a highly innovative environmental technology. (Sec. 214) Directs the Administrator to use existing information network capabilities to provide access to data on environmental technologies developed, tested, or verified by programs under this Act and by other appropriate sources. (Sec. 215) Requires the Administrator to establish a program to demonstrate the performance of environmental technologies at Federal laboratories and facilities. (Sec. 216) Directs the Administrator to enter into an agreement with the National Research Council to study the influences on technological innovation in environmental technologies of economic, governmental, and other incentives and barriers. Subtitle C: Other Research Activities - Requires the Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) to support research activities that will advance the integration of engineering practices and environmental protection in the development of advanced technologies. (Sec. 222) Directs the Administrator to submit a strategic plan for interagency coordination of Federal programs related to innovative environmental control and remediation technologies. Title III: Performance Measurements - Requires the Secretary of Commerce, through the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, to establish a program that provides for performance measurements for environmental technology products. (Sec. 302) Authorizes the Administrator to designate entities to perform environmental technology verification. (Sec. 303) Requires the President to establish a program for evaluating and approving the purchase by the Federal Government of environmental technology products. Title IV: Authorization of Appropriations - Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1994
Amends the Interstate Commerce Act to direct the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) to require a fair and equitable arrangement for protection of the interests of railroad employees who may be affected by an ICC order approving an application for construction or acquisition and operation of a railroad line. Requires such arrangement to be no less fair and beneficial to the interests of such employees than those established under specified provisions for employee protective arrangements in transactions involving rail carriers.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1993
Truth in Voting Act of 1993 - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to provide for downward adjustments in Appropriations Committees allocations and suballocations when bills are passed that reduce appropriations and require rescissions. Requires the Congressional Budget Office to provide scorecards for such measures. Amends rule XI of the Rules of the House of Representatives to prohibit proxy voting by any committee or subcommittee member. Establishes conditions under which meetings of the standing committees and subcommittees may be closed to the public. Requires proceedings of open committee hearings or meetings to be open to television or radio broadcast and still photography. Applies the Freedom of Information Act to the Congress as such Act applies to executive agencies. Prohibits the Committee on Rules from reporting any rule for the consideration of a measure commonly known as a "king of the hill" rule. Repeals rule XLIX (statutory limit on the public debt). Amends rule XXVIII to prohibit conference committee reports from funding any program or activity at a level higher than that contained in the bill or resolution as passed by the House or Senate or from funding any program not contained in such versions. Requires the President's annual budget to include estimated expenditures and proposed appropriations for each function and subfunction in the current fiscal year and the fiscal year for which the budget is submitted. Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to make the starting point for any deliberations on the budget in committee the estimated level of outlays for the current period in each function and subfunction. Requires the budget to include comparisons of current fiscal year and proposed subsequent fiscal year spending. Requires the Comptroller General to prepare an economic and employment impact statement to accompany each bill, resolution, or conference report reported by a committee or considered on the floor. Makes it out of order to consider any legislation that is not accompanied by such statement unless the point of order is waived by a two-thirds vote. Requires regulations and proposed regulations promulgated by Federal agencies to be accompanied by such statements as well.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1993
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the President shall not enter into any trade agreement requiring changes in U.S. antidumping laws which would reduce their effectiveness as a remedy against injurious dumped imports; (2) the U.S. Government shall not condone distorting subsidies by foreign governments, including development subsidies, that cause material injury to U.S. industries; and (3) the United States not enter into any trade agreement on dispute settlement contained in the Draft Final Act embodying the Results of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations (Negotiations) of December 21, 1991, unless, with respect to the review of countervailing duty and antidumping duty actions taken by General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) members, the settlement mechanisms and procedures shall not allow specified review actions. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the principal U.S. negotiating objective regarding situations of global structural excess capacity is to negotiate multilateral rules to permit rapid realignment of capacity to demand. Urges the President to review antidumping duty provisions contained in the Negotiations and to seek changes in such provisions that are necessary to maintain the effectiveness of U.S. antidumping laws, including, but not limited to, changes proposed by the United States in December 1992, any changes needed to clarify the right to cumulate and cross-cumulate imports under investigation, and the prohibition of procedures to sunset dumping and countervailing duty orders.
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 1993
Truth in Sentencing Act of 1993 - Authorizes the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance to provide grants to States to build, expand, or operate space in correctional facilities in order to implement specified "truth in sentencing" requirements. Requires a State, to be eligible for funding under this Act, to have in effect throughout the State such requirements, including provisions which: (1) restrict parole, good-time credit release, or other forms of early release to require that criminals convicted of crimes of violence serve at least 85 percent of the sentence imposed by a judge or jury; (2) require the sentencing authority to allow the defendant's victim or the victim's family the opportunity to be heard regarding the issue of sentencing; (3) allow as a sentencing option a "life sentence" without the possibility of parole; and (4) provide that the victim and the victim's family shall be notified whenever such defendant is to be released. Makes exceptions that: (1) allow the State to provide that the Governor may permit the release of a prisoner after a public hearing in which representatives of the public and the prisoner's victims have an opportunity to be heard regarding the proposed release; and (2) make a State eligible for funding under this Act when that State has enacted legislation that provides for the State to be in compliance with this Act within three years of the enactment of such legislation. Sets forth provisions regarding the distribution of, and limitations on, funds. Authorizes appropriations. Provides for a reduction of full-time equivalent positions in all Federal agencies. Sets forth requirements regarding monitoring and notification of the President and the Congress as to whether such reductions are taking place (and, if they are not being met in a given agency, prohibits hiring for any position in such agency until the Office of Management and Budget notifies the President that the agency is in compliance).
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Consolidation of Information on Technologies Title II: Technology Transfer and Commercialization Financing Corporation Title III: Commercialization Financing Title IV: Alternative Minimum Tax on Corporations Importing Products Into the United States Title V: Miscellaneous Provisions Federal Technology Commercialization and Credit Enhancement Act of 1993 - Title I: Consolidation of Information on Technologies - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish a standardized, accessible data base describing all patents, licenses, technologies, and processes owned in whole or in part by the Federal Government. Provides for data base access by: (1) the Technology Transfer and Commercialization Financing Corporation (established by this Act); and (2) the public. Directs the Secretary to review current Federal technology transfer efforts. Title II: Technology Transfer and Commercialization Financing Corporation - Establishes a public/private Technology Transfer and Commercialization Financing Corporation (Corporation) to foster U.S. economic growth by providing credit for businesses and facilitating the transfer and commercialization of federally owned or developed patents, licenses, processes, and technologies. Title III: Commercialization Financing - Establishes in the Treasury the Technology Transfer Investment Fund. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Corporation to provide outreach activities to areas that: (1) have a depressed economy or chronically high unemployment; (2) have been adversely affected by the North American Free Trade Agreement; or (3) are designated as Federal empowerment zones or enterprise communities. Title IV: Alternative Minimum Tax on Corporation's Importing Products into the United States - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an alternative minimum tax on certain corporations importing products into the United States. Title V: Miscellaneous Provisions - Sets forth effective date and separability provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1993
Designates the division of the Department of Veterans Affairs medical center at University Drive in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, constituting the Aspinwall long-term care facility as the Mathew B. Ridgway Division of the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
United States · United States Congress · 9 November 1993
Child Care Availability Incentive Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit (as part of the general business credit) for employers who provide qualified day care centers for the use of their employees.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 1993
Three-Time Loser Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal criminal code to require a court to sentence a defendant convicted of a Federal violent felony to life imprisonment if the defendant had previously been convicted of two or more other violent felonies, at least two of which occurred during separate criminal episodes. Specifies that this Act shall not be construed to prevent the imposition of the death penalty.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 1993
Guam and the Northern Marianas Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue one-dollar coins emblematic of the American forces that liberated Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands in World War II. Requires payment of surcharges received from the coin sales to the Secretary of the Interior to construct a visitors center and museum at: (1) the War in the Pacific National Historical Park on Guam; and (2) the American Memorial Park on Saipan.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 1993
Driver's Privacy Protection Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit disclosure of personal information derived from an individual's motor vehicle records to anyone other than that individual. Makes exceptions for use: (1) by any Federal or State court or agency in carrying out its functions; (2) in connection with matters of automobile and driver safety; (3) in the normal course of business by a legitimate business, in research activities, and in marketing activities (subject to specified limitations); (4) in any civil or criminal proceeding in any Federal or State court; and (5) by any insurer in connection with claims investigation or antifraud activities. Permits reselling the personal information for a permissible use under specified circumstances. Requires each State to establish and carry out procedures under which: (1) an individual to whom the information pertains may authorize its disclosure; and (2) a State motor vehicle department may enter into an agreement with any business based upon a certification that the business has consent from the individual to obtain the requested personal information. Prohibits: (1) knowingly obtaining or using personal information, derived from a motor vehicle record, for any impermissible purpose; and (2) making a false representation to obtain or use any such information. Sets penalties and remedies for willful and nonwillful violations by non-governmental entities and by governmental entities.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 1993
Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance to make grants to States for the purpose of developing alternatives to traditional forms of incarceration and probation as methods of punishment for young offenders. Specifies that such alternative methods of punishment should ensure certainty of punishment for young offenders and promote reduced recidivism, crime prevention, and assistance to victims, including: (1) alternative sanctions that create accountability; (2) boot camp prison programs; (3) technical training and support for State and local restitution programs for young offenders; (4) innovative projects; (5) correctional options, such as community-based incarceration, weekend incarceration, and electronic monitoring of offenders; (6) community service programs that provide work service placement for young offenders at nonprofit, private, and community organizations; (7) demonstration restitution projects that are evaluated for effectiveness; and (8) innovative methods that address the problems of young offenders convicted of serious substance abuse. Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) State and local application requirements; (2) review of State applications; (3) allocation and distribution of funds; and (4) evaluation. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Managed Competition in Employer-Based Health Plans: Incentives to Control Costs Subtitle A: Use of Tax Incentives to Purchase Cost-Effective Plans Subtitle B: Health Plan Purchasing Cooperatives (HPPCs) Subtitle C: Accountable Health Plans (AHPs) Subtitle D: Health Care Standards Commission Subtitle E: Managed Competition in Rural and Urban Underserved Areas Subtitle F: Treatment of Chronically Underserved Areas Subtitle G: Repeal of COBRA Continuation Requirements Subtitle H: Definitions Title II: Low-Income Assistance for Health Coverage Subtitle A: Low-Income Assistance Subtitle B: Long-Term Care Phase-Down Assistance to States Subtitle C: Financing Subtitle D: Repeal of Medicaid Program Title III: Training and Education of Health Care Professionals Subtitle A: Reform of Federal Funding for Medical Residency Training Subtitle B: Other Medical Education Grants and Programs Title IV: Preventive Health and Individual Responsibility Subtitle A: Expansion of Public Health Programs Subtitle B: Medicare Title V: Malpractice Reform Subtitle A: Findings; Purpose; Definitions Subtitle B: Uniform Standards for Malpractice Claims Subtitle C: Requirements for State Alternative Dispute Resolution Systems (ADR) Subtitle D: Grants to States for Development of Practice Guidelines Title VI: Paperwork Reduction and Administrative Simplification Title VII: Additional Benefits On a Pay-As-You-Go Basis Managed Competition Act of 1993 - Title I: Managed Competition in Employer-Based Health Plans: Incentives to Control Costs - Subtitle A: Use of Tax Incentives to Purchase Cost-Effective Plans - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a tax on the excess health plan expenses of any employer which are health plan expenses exceeding specific limits under an accountable health plan for a defined geographical area. (Sec. 1002) Increases to 100 percent and makes permanent the deduction for health plan premium expenses of self-employed individuals. (Sec. 1003) Permits the deduction for medical, dental, etc. expenses without regard to the limitation on such deduction with respect to amounts paid for premiums under an accountable health plan. (Sec. 1004) Provides for the exclusion from gross income of contributions by a partnership or S corporation to a health plan covering partners or shareholders. (Sec. 1006) Eliminates the commonality of interest and geographic location requirements with respect to group purchasing by large tax-exempt organizations. Subtitle B: Health Plan Purchasing Cooperatives (HPPCs) - Provides for the establishment of Health Plan Purchasing Cooperatives (HPPCs). Considers each State to be a HPPC, except that a State may subdivide into HPPC areas, and that there may be interstate HPPCs, as specified. Requires HPPCs to enter into agreements with accountable health plans and small employers, offer enrollment in accountable health plans, and charge premiums. Subtitle C: Accountable Health Plans (AHPs) - Directs the Health Care Standards Commission to provide a process whereby a health plan may be registered with the Commission by its sponsor as an accountable health plan. Sets forth requirements for a plan to be registered, including: (1) coverage for a specified uniform set of benefits, including cost-sharing for low-income individuals; (2) standard premiums for the uniform benefits; (3) grievance procedures; (4) collecting and providing specified information; (5) prohibiting discrimination in enrollment or benefits; and (6) financial solvency. (Sec. 1208) Sets forth additional requirements for open AHPs, which is any plan which is not closed. Defines a closed plan as one limited by structure or law to one or more large employers. (Sec. 1211) Requires each AHP to provide for payment of one percent of gross premium receipts to the National Medical Education Fund. (Sec. 1221) Sets forth provisions concerning the preemption of State laws for AHPs. (Sec. 1231) Directs the President to provide for the development and publication of guidelines on the application of Federal antitrust laws to AHPs. (Sec. 1232) Provides for the issuance of certificates of public advantage by the Attorney General to eligible health care joint ventures which, if followed, exempt such ventures from antitrust liability. Subtitle D: Health Care Standards Commission - Establishes, as an independent agency in the Executive Branch, a Health Care Standards Commission. Requires the Commission to transmit annually to the Congress recommendations for the uniform set of effective benefits. States that such recommendations shall apply unless the Congress passes a joint resolution of disapproval. (Sec. 1303) Directs the Commission to provide for the initial organization, as a nonprofit corporation, of the Benefits, Evaluations, and Data Standards Board in order to make recommendations to the Commission concerning the uniform set of effective benefits and matters related to the evaluation of health care services. (Sec. 1304) Directs the Commission to provide for the initial organization, as a nonprofit organization of the Health Plan Standards Board in order to make recommendations to the Commission concerning the standards for AHPs and concerning its assessment of risk-adjustment factors. (Sec. 1305) Sets forth provisions concerning the registration of AHPs. (Sec. 1306) Directs the Commission to establish rules for the process of risk-adjustment of premiums among AHPs by HPPCs. (Sec. 1307) Directs the Commission to publish information concerning procedures, their prices, and their quality. (Sec. 1309) Establishes, within the Department of Health and Human Services, the Agency for Clinical Evaluations which shall assume the responsibilities of the Director of the Office of Medical Applications of Research at the National Institutes of Health, the Director of the Office of Research and Demonstrations of the Health Care Financing Administration (insofar as such responsibilities relate to clinical evaluations), the Administrator for Health Care Policy and Research under title IX of the Public Health Service Act, as well as other specified responsibilities. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 1311) Prohibits the Commission from establishing or enforcing any controls on health care spending. (Sec. 1313) Authorizes appropriations for the Commission through FY 2000. Terminates the Commission on December 31, 1999. Subtitle E: Managed Competition in Rural and Urban Underserved Areas - Authorizes the Governor of any State to designate rural and urban areas of a State as underserved areas. Permits a HPPC serving such an area to require AHPs offered by the HPPC and with a service area adjoining such area to include the area as part of their service area. (Sec. 1411) Authorizes appropriations for: (1) technical assistance for entities seeking to establish a network plan in an underserved area; (2) financial assistance to eligible entities in order to provide for the development and implementation of AHPs in rural areas; and (3) under the Public Health Service Act, migrant health centers and community health centers. (Sec. 1422) Provides coverage under part B of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act for rural emergency access care hospital services. (Sec. 1431) Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make payments for transitional assistance to eligible hospitals. Requires any hospital accepting such assistance to provide a significant volume of services to persons unable to pay for services. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle F: Treatment of Chronically Underserved Areas - Directs the Health Care Standards Commission to develop standards for the identification of chronically underserved areas. Makes provisions for addressing health care delivery in such areas. Subtitle G: Repeal of COBRA Continuation Requirements - Repeals the COBRA continuation requirements for group health plans and title XXII of the Public Health Service Act. Subtitle H: Definitions - Sets forth definitions for this title and title II. Title II: Low-Income Assistance for Health Coverage - Subtitle A: Low-Income Assistance - Provides premium assistance for very-low income individuals and moderately low-income individuals. Provides for nominal cost-sharing for such individuals and special assistance for certain items and services. Subtitle B: Long-Term Care Phase-Down Assistance to States - Provides for long-term care phase-down assistance to eligible States for each calendar quarter in 1995 through 1998. Subtitle C: Financing - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to achieve savings under such program by: (1) reducing the update for inpatient hospital services; (2) reducing the conversion factor for the physician fee schedule for non-primary care services; and (3) reducing hospital outpatient services through establishing a prospective payment system. (Sec. 2204) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a Medicare part B premium tax on higher-income individuals. (Sec. 2205) Achieves additional Medicare savings through the: (1) phased-in elimination of Medicare disproportionate share adjustment payments; (2) reduction of routine cost limits for home health services; (3) reduction in routine cost limits for extended care services; and (4) reductions in payments for hospice services. Subtitle D: Repeal of Medicaid Program - Repeals title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act. Title III: Training and Education of Health Care Professionals - Subtitle A: Reform of Federal Funding for Medical Residency Training - Directs the Health Care Standards Commission to approve a resident training position in medical residency program for purposes of funding approved medical residency training programs under this title. Provides funding, in addition, for physician retraining. Sets forth provisions concerning: (1) the allocation of entry positions among programs; and (2) the general distribution of positions among specialties. (Sec. 3004) Requires payment by AHPs of one percent of gross premium receipts to the National Medical Education Fund. Requires payments from the Medicare trust funds to the National Medical Education Fund. (Sec. 3005) Establishes the National Medical Education Fund. Subtitle B: Other Medical Education Grants and Programs - Authorizes appropriations under the Public Health Service Act for medical education programs, including: (1) the scholarship and loan repayment programs of the National Health Service Corps; (2) area education centers; (3) public health and preventive medicine; (4) family medicine; (5) general internal medicine and pediatrics; (6) physician assistants; (7) allied health projects grants and contracts; and (8) nurse practitioner and nurse midwife programs. Title IV: Preventive Health and Individual Responsibility - Subtitle A: Expansion of Public Health Programs - Authorizes appropriations under the Public Health Service Act for the following public health programs: (1) immunizations against vaccine-preventable diseases; (2) prevention, control, and elimination of tuberculosis; (3) lead poisoning prevention; (4) preventive health measures with respect to breast and cervical cancers; (5) the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion; (6) the Office of Minority Health; (7) preventive health and health services block grant; (8) categorical grants for early intervention regarding acquired immune deficiency syndrome; and (9) programs of the Centers for Disease Control regarding the smoking of tobacco products. Directs the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion to promote individual responsibility in personal health care and in the use of valuable health care resources. Subtitle B: Medicare - Provides Medicare coverage for: (1) screening fecal-occult blood tests and screening flexible sigmoidoscopies for the purpose of the early detection of cancer; (2) tetanus-diphtheria boosters; (3) well-child services; and (4) an annual screening mammography for women over age 64. Title V: Malpractice Reform - Subtitle A: Findings; Purpose; Definitions - Sets forth the findings, purpose, and definitions for this title. Subtitle B: Uniform Standards for Malpractice Claims - Prohibits bringing a medical malpractice liability action in a State court unless there has been an initial resolution under an alternative dispute resolution system. Limits the total noneconomic damages in such actions to $250,000. Sets limits on attorney's fees. Makes special provision for obstetric services. Subtitle C: Requirements for State Alternative Dispute Resolution Systems (ADR) - Establishes requirements for State alternative dispute resolution systems. Provides for grants to States to assist in implementation of such systems. Subtitle D: Grants to States for Development of Practice Guidelines - Directs the Secretary to make grants to States for the development of medical practice guidelines for health care professionals that may be applied to resolve medical malpractice liability claims. Title VI: Paperwork Reduction and Administrative Simplification - Preempts State quill pen laws. Ensures the confidential treatment of electronic health care information. Sets forth provisions which provide for: (1) the standardization of electronic health information; (2) uniform claims forms; (3) the liability of insurers when benefits are payable under two or more plans; and (4) the uniformity of the availability of information among health plans when benefits are payable under two or more plans. (Sec. 6007) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a tax on a health plan not in compliance with specified requirements of this title. Title VII: Additional Benefits On a Pay-As-You-Go Basis - Expresses the sense of the Congress that additional benefits should be provided by the Federal Government to the extent that additional financing is made available on a pay-as-you-go basis.
United States · United States Congress · 23 September 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Public Safety and Policing Title II: Death Penalty Title III: Habeas Corpus Reform Title IV: Coerced Confessions Title V: Firearms Subtitle A: Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act Subtitle B: Gun Crime Penalties Title VI: Youth Violence Subtitle A: General Subtitle B: Criminal Street Gangs Subtitle C: Certainty of Punishment for Young Offenders Subtitle D: Juvenile Drug Trafficking and Gang Prevention Grants Title VII: Terrorism Subtitle A: Maritime Navigation and Fixed Platforms Subtitle B: General Provisions Title VIII: Sexual Violence and Child Abuse Subtitle A: Sexual Abuse Subtitle B: Child Protection Subtitle C: Crimes Against Children Title IX: Crime Victims Title X: State and Local Law Enforcement Subtitle A: Safer Streets and Neighborhoods Subtitle B: DNA Identification Subtitle C: Department of Justice Community Substances Abuse Prevention Subtitle D: Drug Testing of Arrested Individuals Subtitle E: Racial and Ethnic Bias Study Grants Title XI: Provisions Relating to Police Officers Subtitle A: Law Enforcement Relating to Police Officers Subtitle B: Police Pattern or Practice Subtitle C: Police Corps and Law Enforcement Officers Subtitle D: Study Rights of Police Officers Title XII: Grant Program for State Prisons Title XIII: Federal Prisons Subtitle A: General Subtitle B: Drug Testing Subtitle C: Enhanced Penalties for Drugs in Federal Prisons Subtitle D: Drug Treatment in Federal Prisons Subtitle E: Studies Title XIV: Rural Crime Subtitle A: Fighting Drug Trafficking in Rural Areas Subtitle B: Drug Free Truck Stops and Safety Rest Areas Title XV: Drug Control Subtitle A: Drug Emergency Areas Subtitle B: Precursor Chemicals Subtitle C: General Provisions Title XVI: Drunk Driving Provisions Title XVII: Commissions Subtitle A: Commission on Crime and Violence Subtitle B: National Commission to Study the Causes of the Demand for Drugs in the United States Subtitle C: National Commission to Support Law Enforcement Title XVIII: Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention Title XIX: Protections for the Elderly Title XX: Consumer Protection Title XXI: Sentencing Provisions Title XXII: Computer Cime Title XXIII: International Parental Kidnapping Title XXIV: Safe Schools Title XXV: Financial Institutions Fraud Prosecutions Title XXVI: White Collar Crime Amendments Title XXVII: Gambling Title XXVIII: Bail Posting Reporting Title XXIX: General Increased Penalty Provisions Title XXX: Miscellaneous Title XXXI: Technical Corrections Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1993 - Title I: Public Safety and Policing - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (Omnibus Act) to authorize the Attorney General to make grants and provide technical assistance to units of State and local government, and to other public and private entities, to increase police presence (including the rehiring of law enforcement officers laid off as a result of State and local budget reductions, as well as the hiring of new, additional career law enforcement officers, for deployment in community-oriented policing), expand and improve cooperative efforts between law enforcement agencies (LEAs) and members of the community, and otherwise enhance public safety. Sets forth matching fund, application, and related requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Death Penalty - Amends the Federal criminal code to provide for imposition of the death penalty for various offenses, including: (1) murder by a Federal prisoner; (2) civil rights murders; (3) drive-by shootings and carjackings resulting in death; (4) foreign murder of U.S. nationals; (5) rape and child molestation murders; (6) gun murders during Federal crimes of violence and drug trafficking crimes; and (7) murder of Federal witnesses. (Sec. 201) Sets forth procedures for the imposition, implementation, and review of such sentence. Limits mitigating factors (such as impaired capacity, duress, minor participation, and victim's consent) and aggravating factors (such as previous conviction of a violent felony involving a firearm, previous conviction of other serious offenses, vulnerability of victim, and continuing criminal enterprise involving drug sales to minors, and previous conviction of sexual assault or child molestation). Requires a special hearing to determine whether a death sentence is justified. Directs the court to instruct the jury not to consider the race, color, religious beliefs, national origin, or sex of the defendant or of any victim. Prohibits the execution of a woman while she is pregnant and of a person who is mentally retarded. Title III: Habeas Corpus Reform - Amends the Federal judicial code to impose a 180-day limitations period for the filing of Federal habeas corpus petitions, applicable in both capital and non-capital cases in which the State has offered the petitioner counsel for State post-conviction review, which begins from the time the petitioner's conviction becomes final on State direct review. Tolls such period while the petitioner pursues State post-conviction remedies, unless the petitioner fails to initiate post-conviction review within 270 days in capital cases or 180 days in non-capital cases. Provides for a one-time 60-day extension of the period upon a showing of good cause. (Sec. 302) Provides an automatic stay of execution in capital cases through the consideration of the first Federal habeas corpus petition. Permits a stay of execution to be granted thereafter only if the petition on its face satisfies the requirements for successive petitions. (Sec. 303) Prohibits a Federal court from announcing or applying a new rule to grant relief to a habeas corpus petitioner, except where the new rule places a class of individual conduct beyond the power of the criminal lawmaking authority to proscribe or prohibits the imposition of a certain type of punishment for a class of persons because of their status or offense, or constitutes a watershed rule of criminal procedure implicating the fundamental fairness and accuracy of the criminal proceeding. Codifies case law providing for an independent Federal habeas corpus review of claims under Federal law, except for fourth amendment exclusionary rule claims. Specifies that the State bears the burden of proving harmless error in Federal habeas corpus review of State criminal convictions. (Sec. 304) Allows a prisoner to bring a second or subsequent petition only upon a showing of cause for not having brought the claim before and prejudice if the claim is not heard. (Sec. 306) Sets standards and procedures for the provision of counsel for indigent defendants. Requires each State in which a sentence of death may be imposed to establish a State counsel certification authority, comprised of members of the State's criminal defense bar, to recruit, train, monitor, and support attorneys involved at all stages of capital litigation. (Sec. 307) Amends the Omnibus Act to require the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) to make grants to States to help fund the provision of defense counsel. Authorizes: (1) Federal grants of up to 75 percent of the additional costs imposed by the new counsel requirements during the first three years following enactment of this title and 50 percent thereafter; and (2) grants for the prosecution of Federal habeas corpus cases in an amount equal to that allocated to capital resource centers. Title IV: Coerced Confessions - Specifies that the admission into evidence of a coerced confession (i.e., one elicited in violation of the fifth or fourteenth amendments to the Constitution) shall not be considered harmless error. Title V: Firearms - Subtitle A: Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act - Amends the Federal criminal code to provide for a five (business) day waiting period for the purchase of a handgun. Sets forth: (1) interim procedures (pending the establishment of a national instant criminal background check system) for checking with the chief law enforcement officer of the place of residence of the purchaser as to whether the purchaser has a criminal record or whether there is any other legal impediment to such individual's receiving a handgun; and (2) permanent procedures for conducting criminal background checks. Sets penalties for violations. (Sec. 502) Directs the Attorney General to establish a national instant criminal background check system that any licensee may contact for information on whether receipt of a firearm by a prospective purchaser would violate specified legal provisions. Provides for the correction of erroneous information in the system. (Sec. 503) Permits the use of formula grants under the Omnibus Act for improvements in State criminal records. Authorizes appropriations. Sets forth provisions with respect to the withholding of State and Department of Justice (DOJ) funds for failure to meet set deadlines. Subtitle B: Gun Crime Penalties - Directs the U.S. Sentencing Commission to amend its sentencing guidelines to enhance the penalty for: (1) use of a semiautomatic firearm during a crime of violence or a drug trafficking crime; (2) a second offense of using an explosive to commit a Federal felony; (3) use of a firearm in the commission of counterfeiting or forgery; and (4) firearms possession by violent felons and serious drug offenders. (Sec. 506) Prohibits and sets penalties for: (1) smuggling firearms in aid of drug trafficking; (2) theft of firearms and explosives; (3) the transfer of firearms to a nonresident of a State, except for lawful sporting purposes; (4) conspiracies to commit firearms and explosives crimes; and (5) the distribution of explosives to a person who is legally disqualified from having the explosives. (Sec. 508) Increases the penalty for: (1) knowingly making a false, material statement in connection with the acquisition of a firearm from a licensed dealer; and (2) interstate gun trafficking. Title VI: Youth Violence - Subtitle A: General - Amends the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to increase the penalty for employing, using, inducing, or coercing individuals under age 18 to violate provisions of such Act, or to assist in avoiding detection or apprehension for certain offenses under such Act by Federal, State, or local law enforcement officials. (Sec. 602) Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit a juvenile from being transferred to adult prosecution or a hearing from being held under section 5037 (disposition after a finding of juvenile delinquency) until any prior juvenile records have been received by the court or other specified conditions are met. (Sec. 603) Amends the Omnibus Act to authorize grants for bindover systems for the prosecution of 16- and 17-year-olds as adults for certain violent crimes (first- and second-degree murder, attempted murder, armed robbery with a firearm, aggravated battery or assault with a firearm, criminal sexual penetration when armed with a firearm, and drive-by shooting). Subtitle B: Criminal Street Gangs - Amends the Federal criminal code to provide for imprisonment of up to ten years for a gang member or person acting on behalf of a criminal street gang who commits a Federal drug or violent crime offense and who has had a prior drug or violent crime conviction, with the penalty to run consecutively to any other sentence imposed Subtitle C: Certainty of Punishment for Young Offenders - Amends the Omnibus Act to authorize the Director of the BJA to make grants to States for the purpose of developing alternative methods of punishment for young offenders to traditional forms of incarceration and probation. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle D: Juvenile Drug Trafficking and Gang Prevention Grants - Amends the Omnibus Act to authorize the Director of the BJA to make grants for programs to reduce the formation or continuation of juvenile gangs and the use and sale of illegal drugs by juveniles. Authorizes appropriations. Title VII: Terrorism - Subtitle A: Maritime Navigation and Fixed Platforms - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit and set penalties for the seizure of a ship or fixed platform by force, an act of violence against a person aboard, damage or destruction, or the injuring or killing of a person in connection with such activities. Provides the death penalty where death results. Subtitle B: General Provisions - Provides the death penalty where death results from the use of a weapon of mass destruction. (Sec. 705) Extends: (1) special maritime and territorial jurisdiction to offenses committed by or against a U.S. national during a voyage on a foreign vessel scheduled to depart from or arrive in the United States; and (2) the statute of limitations to ten years for certain terrorist offenses. (Sec. 706) Provides: (1) the death penalty for the commission of torture outside the United States and for the killing of a U.S. national outside the country; (2) the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) with access to telephone subscriber information if the Director or Deputy Assistant Director certifies that such information is relevant to a foreign counterintelligence investigation and that it pertains to an agent of a foreign power; and (3) criminal penalties for willful violations of airport or airline security regulations. (Sec. 709) Prohibits: (1) acts of terrorism at U.S. international airports (and provides the death penalty where death results); and (2) counterfeiting U.S. currency abroad. Enhances penalties for any felony that involves or is intended to promote international terrorism. (Sec. 713) Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize the Attorney General to grant a nonimmigrant visa to an alien who possesses critical information about a criminal organization and whose presence in the United States is essential to an investigation or prosecution of such organization; and (2) the Federal criminal code to set penalties for those who provide material support to terrorists. Title VIII: Sexual Violence and Child Abuse - Subtitle A: Sexual Abuse - Amends the Federal criminal code to include within the definition of "sexual act" the intentional touching, not through the clothing, of the genitalia of another person who has not attained age 16 with intent to abuse, humiliate, harass, degrade, or arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any person. Subtitle B: Child Protection - Provides for the establishment of a national background check system whereby child care organizations can determine whether prospective employees have histories of child abuse or other serious crimes. Requires State to have at least 80 percent currency of crime cases in their systems within three years. Directs the Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to begin a study of child abusers' criminal records. (Sec. 806) Amends the Omnibus Act to provide for the use of drug control and system improvement grants for the improvement of State record systems and the sharing of records of child abuse crime information to implement this subtitle. Subtitle C: Crimes Against Children Registration - Directs the Attorney General to establish guidelines for State programs requiring any person convicted of a criminal offense against a victim who is a minor to register a current address with a designated State LEA for ten yeas after release from prison, or being placed on parole or supervised release. Subjects to criminal penalties a person required to register under a State program who knowingly fails to register and keep such registration current. (Sec. 808) Specifies that the allocation of BJA grant funds (under the Omnibus Act) received by a State not complying with provisions of this Act three years after its enactment shall be reduced by ten percent, with the unallocated funds to be reallocated to the States in compliance with this Act. Title IX: Crime Victims - Amends the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 to: (1) specify the amounts available for grants under certain sections of the Act; and (2) provide that if the compensation paid by an eligible crime victim compensation program would cover costs that a Federal, or federally financed State or local, program would otherwise pay, such victim compensation program shall not pay such compensation and the other program shall make its payments without regard to the existence of the crime victim compensation program. (Sec. 903) Amends Rule 32 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure to give victims of violent crimes and sexual abuse the right to address the court concerning the sentence to be imposed on convicted offenders. Permits such right to be exercised by a parent or guardian if the victim is under 18, or by one or more family members if the victim is deceased or incapacitated. (Sec. 904) Directs the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services to report to specified congressional committees on the medical and psychological basis of "battered women's syndrome" and the extent to which evidence of the syndrome has been admitted as evidence of guilt or as a defense in criminal trials. Title X: State and Local Law Enforcement - Subtitle A: Safer Streets and Neighborhoods - Continues the current Federal-State funding formula for grants under title I of the Omnibus Act. (Sec. 1002) Amends such Act to authorize the Director of the BJA to make grants to, or enter into contracts with, non-Federal public or private agencies, institutions, or organizations to carry out specified purposes of the Act (current law does not specify "non-Federal"), effective October 1, 1994. Subtitle B: DNA Identification - Amends the Omnibus Act to authorize the use of drug control and system improvement grants to develop or improve in a forensic laboratory a capability to analyze deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) for identification purposes. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 1004) Requires the Director of the FBI to appoint an advisory board on DNA quality assurance methods and issue standards for quality assurance. Authorizes the Director to establish an index of DNA identification records of persons convicted of crimes, and of analyses of DNA samples recovered from crime scenes and from unidentified human remains. (Sec. 1006) Sets forth proficiency testing and privacy protection requirements, and penalties for violations. (Sec. 1007) Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle C: Department of Justice Community Substances Abuse Prevention - Amends the Omnibus Act to authorize the Attorney General to make grants to eligible coalitions to develop and implement substance abuse prevention programs, with the efforts of such coalitions involving substantial community participation. Grants priority to communities providing evidence of significant abuse. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle D: Drug Testing of Arrested Individuals - Amends the Omnibus Act to authorize the Director of the BJA to make grants to States for the purpose of developing, implementing, or continuing a drug testing project when individuals are arrested and during the pretrial period. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle E: Racial and Ethnic Bias Study Grants - Authorizes the Attorney General to make grants to States that have established, by State law or the court of last resort, plans for analyzing the role of race in their criminal justice systems. Requires State plans to include recommendations designed to correct any findings of racial and ethnic bias. Authorizes appropriations. Title XI: Provisions Relating to Police Officers - Subtitle A: Law Enforcement Family Support - Amends the Omnibus Act to: (1) require the Director of the BJA to establish guidelines and oversee the implementation of family-friendly policies in law enforcement divisions of DOJ, identify model programs that provide support to law enforcement families, and provide technical assistance for stress reduction and family support efforts by State and local LEAs; and (2) authorize the Director to make grants to States and local LEAs and organizations representing State or local law enforcement personnel to provide family support services to law enforcement personnel. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle B: Police Pattern or Practice - Prohibits any governmental authority, or any agent or person acting on behalf of such authority, from engaging in a pattern or practice of conduct by law enforcement officers that deprives persons of their constitutional or Federal rights. Authorizes the Attorney General to bring a civil action against such officers to eliminate such practices. (Sec. 1104) Directs the Attorney General to acquire data about the use of excessive force by law enforcement officers. Subtitle C: Police Corps and Law Enforcement Officers Scholarship Programs - Chapter 1: Community Police Corps Initiatives - Authorizes the Attorney General to make grants for up to ten Community Police Corps Programs in which participants can receive scholarships of not more than $5,000 annually times the number of years in the educational institution's regular program in exchange for a commensurate period of work with a State or local police force upon graduation. Authorizes appropriations. Permits up to ten percent of grant funds to be awarded to law enforcement officers currently employed by the jurisdiction, and who are assigned to community-oriented policing or who exercise supervisory or training roles in relation to such officers, for college or post-graduate work. Chapter 2: Law Enforcement Scholarship Program - Requires the Director of the BJA to provide scholarships for in-service law enforcement personnel who seek further education, allotting 80 percent of funds based on the relative number of law enforcement officers per State and 20 percent based on the relative shortage of officers. Provides grants for summer jobs or part-time jobs during the year for high school students interested in law enforcement careers. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle D: Study Rights of Police Officers - Directs the Attorney General to conduct a study of the procedures followed in internal, noncriminal investigations of State and local law enforcement officers to determine if such investigations are conducted fairly and effectively. Title XII: Grant Programs for State Prisons - Amends the Omnibus Act to authorize the Director of the BJA to make grants to States for residential substance abuse treatment programs in State correctional facilities, as well as those in which inmates are incarcerated for a time sufficient to permit substance abuse treatment. Authorizes appropriations. Title XIII: Federal Prisons - Subtitle A: General - Amends the Federal criminal code to: (1) prohibit the Bureau of Prisons from considering the social or economic status of a prisoner in designating such prisoner's place of imprisonment; and (2) require that any submission of legislation by the judicial or executive branch that might affect prison populations be accompanied by an impact statement (and requires the Attorney General to prepare and transmit to the Congress annual prison impact assessments). (Sec. 1303) Requires notice to State and local law enforcement authorities concerning the release or relocation to their areas of Federal offenders under post-release supervision at least five days prior to such release or relocation, with respect to prisoners convicted of drug trafficking and violent crimes. (Sec. 1304) Deems references to supervised release, in the case of prisoners convicted of offenses committed prior to November 1, 1987, to be references to probation or parole. Subtitle B: Drug Testing - Requires the Director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to establish a program of drug testing of Federal offenders on post-conviction release. Subtitle C: Enhanced Penalties for Drugs in Federal Prisons - Provides for enhanced penalties for drug trafficking and illegal drug use in Federal prisons. Subtitle D: Drug Treatment in Federal Prisons - Establishes a schedule for the Bureau of Prisons to place all eligible prisoners into residential substance abuse treatment programs for between nine and 12 months, in facilities separate from the general prison population. Specifies that prisoners who successfully complete such programs could be released up to a year early. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle E: Studies - Requires the National Institute of Justice to study: (1) the feasibility of establishing an information clearinghouse to facilitate the interstate transfer of prisoners to facilities near their families; (2) the recidivism rates of persons who were under the influence of alcohol at the time they committed their crimes, comparing recividism rates of those who participated in a residential treatment program while in custody with those who did not; and (3) the use of alcohol, alone or in combination with other drugs, as a factor in criminal activity. Title XIV: Rural Crime - Subtitle A: Fighting Drug Trafficking in Rural Areas - Amends the Omnibus Act to authorize appropriations, and increase the base allocation, for rural drug enforcement assistance. (Sec. 1402) Directs the Attorney General to establish a Rural Drug Enforcement Task Force in each of the Federal judicial districts which encompass significant rural lands. (Sec. 1403) Authorizes the Attorney General to cross-designate up to 100 Federal officers with jurisdiction to enforce CSA provisions on non-Federal lands to the extent necessary to effect the purposes of this title. (Sec. 1404) Requires the Director of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center to develop a specialized course of instruction devoted to training law enforcement officers from rural agencies in the investigation of drug trafficking and related crimes. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle B: Drug Free Truck Stops and Safety Rest Areas - Amends the CSA to enhance penalties for drug distribution at or near truck stops and safety rest areas. Title XV: Drug Control - Subtitle A: Drug Emergency Areas - Amends the National Narcotics Leadership Act of 1988 to authorize the President to declare a State, or part thereof, a drug emergency area, to take all necessary actions to save lives and protect property, public health, and safety, and to make grants aggregating $25 million for any single major drug-related emergency. Requires grant money to be divided equally between drug supply and demand reduction efforts, unless State or local conditions dictate otherwise. Permits the President to direct any Federal agency to utilize its resources to assist State anti-drug efforts. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle B: Precursor Chemicals - Amends the CSA to impose registration requirements for precursor chemicals. (Sec. 1504) Requires manufacturers to submit annual reports concerning listed chemicals manufactured during the year. (Sec. 1505) Amends the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act to: (1) subject brokers and traders to the same recordkeeping and reporting requirements for international transactions, and the same criminal penalties, as exporters; and (2) authorize the Attorney General to require that the 15-day advance notice requirement with respect to the importation and exportation of listed chemicals apply to all exports of specific listed chemicals to specified countries, regardless of the status of certain customers in such countries as regular customers, if necessary to support effective diversion control programs or as required by treaty; and (3) establish criminal penalties for attempting to evade reporting requirements and for smuggling listed drugs. (Sec. 1509) Grants the Attorney General the same inspection authority for listed chemicals as presently exists with respect to controlled substances. (Sec. 1511) Makes it a felony to violate the Solid Waste Disposal Act in the handling of chemicals used to illegally manufacture a controlled substance. Requires that violators be assessed costs of the initial cleanup and disposal of the listed chemical and contaminated property and the costs of restoring property damaged by exposure to such chemical. Subtitle C: General Provisions - Prohibits and sets penalties for: (1) drug dealing in or near public housing authority facilities; (2) a physical trainer or adviser who tries to persuade an individual to use anabolic steroids; and (3) advertising which aims to illegally solicit or sell drugs. (Sec. 1518) Enhances penalties for drug dealing in "drug-free zones." (Sec. 1519) Includes among the long-term goals of the National Drug Control Strategy making drug treatment available to all who need it. Title XVI: Drunk Driving Provisions - Amends the Federal criminal code to provide supplementary prison terms and fine authorizations in cases where drunk driving endangers or injures a person under age 18. (Sec. 1602) Expresses the sense of the Congress that in determining child custody and visitation rights the courts should consider the history of drunk driving of anyone involved in the determination. Title XVII: Commissions - Subtitle A: Commission on Crime and Violence - Establishes the National Commission on Crime and Violence in America to develop a comprehensive crime control plan for the 1990's. Subtitle B: National Commission to Study the Causes of the Demand for Drugs in the United States - Establishes a National Commission to Study the Causes of the Demand for Drugs in the United States. Subtitle C: National Commission to Support Law Enforcement - Establishes a National Commission to Support Law Enforcement. Title XVIII: Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention - Directs the Attorney General to develop a national voluntary motor vehicle theft prevention program which would involve placing identifiable decals on the vehicles of consenting owners, whereby such vehicles could then be stopped by law enforcement officers upon a reasonable suspicion that the vehicles were not being operated by or with the consent of their owners. (Sec. 1802) Prohibits and sets penalties for tampering with the decals, with exceptions. Title XIX: Protections for the Elderly - Directs the Attorney General to make grants in support of programs to protect and locate missing patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 1902) Directs the Sentencing Commission to ensure that the sentences for those convicted of crimes of violence against elderly victims be sufficiently stringent to deter such crimes, protect the public from additional crimes of such a defendant, and provide enhanced penalties under specified criteria. Title XX: Consumer Protection - Amends the Federal criminal code to set penalties for insurance industry crimes, including embezzling from insurance companies, making false entries in insurance company books with intent to deceive, and corruptly influencing or obstructing proceedings before State insurance regulatory agencies or insurance examiners. Prohibits persons convicted of criminal felonies involving dishonesty or breach of trust from engaging in the insurance business without the written consent of an insurance regulatory official authorized to regulate the insurer. (Sec. 2002) Consumer Protection Against Credit Card Fraud Act of 1993 - Prohibits the sale of credit cards without credit card company authorization, fraudulent receipt of payments via credit card for goods never received or inferior to those promised, and laundering to credit card receipts. (Sec. 2003) Extends the mail fraud statute to include mail sent by private interstate carriers. Title XXI: Sentencing Provisions - Amends the Federal criminal code to allow the court, in determining the sentence to be imposed in the case of a violation of probation or supervised release, to consider guidelines or policy statements issued by the Sentencing Commission. (Sec. 2103) Sets forth provisions regarding mandatory revocation of probation and of supervised release after imprisonment for possession of a controlled substance or firearm, or for refusal to comply with drug testing. (Sec. 2105) Permits concurrent sentencing of a defendant to imprisonment and probation for petty offenses. Title XXII: Computer Crime - Amends the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act to make it a felony to knowingly transmit an unauthorized program or code that alters the information stored in a computer with the intent to damage the system or information contained within the affected computer or system, or to withhold or deny the use of such system or information, if the transmission: (1) occurred without the authorization of the person responsible for the computer system receiving the program; and (2) causes damage exceeding $1,000 in any one-year period or modifies or impairs the medical care of any individual. Makes it a misdemeanor to recklessly transmit a destructive computer program or code. Creates a civil cause of action for persons suffering damage or loss by virtue of a violation of this title. Modifies the prohibition against accessing a Government computer where such conduct affects the use of the Government's operation of such computer to cover only actions that "adversely" affect such use. Title XXIII: International Parental Kidnapping - Amends the Federal criminal code to establish penalties for removing a child from, or retaining a child outside, the United States with intent to obstruct the lawful exercise of parental rights. (Sec. 2302) Authorizes appropriations to carry out under the State Justice Institute Act of 1984 national, regional, and in-State training and educational programs dealing with criminal and civil aspects of interstate and international parental child abduction. Title XXIV: Safe Schools - Amends the Omnibus Act to: (1) authorize the Director of the BJA to make grants to local educational agencies for the purpose of providing assistance to such agencies most directly affected by crime and violence; and (2) require the Director to develop a written safe schools model in English and in Spanish and make such model available to any such agency that requests it. Authorizes appropriations. Title XXV: Financial Institutions Fraud Prosecutions - Amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and the Federal Credit Union Act to disqualify certain persons with criminal records from participating in the affairs of insured depository institutions and credit unions. Title XXVI: White Collar Crime Amendments - Establishes penalties for knowingly receiving the proceeds of: (1) extortion; (2) a kidnapping; and (3) a postal robbery. (Sec. 2603) Extends the prohibition against obstructing civil investigative demands to include obstruction in racketeering and false claims investigations. Title XXVII: Gambling - Sets forth provisions regarding the scope of the prohibition on gambling on ships in international waters. Grants a State gaming enforcement office located within a State Attorney General's office access to FBI criminal history record information for licensing purposes. Title XXVIII: Bail Posting Reporting - Illegal Drug Profits Act of 1991 (sic) - Requires State and Federal criminal court clerks to report to the Internal Revenue Service and prosecutors the name and taxpayer identification number of anyone accused of a drug, money laundering, or racketeering crime who posts cash bail exceeding $10,000. Title XXIX: General Increased Penalty Provision - Increases penalties for assault: (1) of Federal officers, foreign officials, and official guests and internationally protected persons; (2) within a maritime and territorial jurisdiction; and (3) of the President, presidential staff, congressional leaders, cabinet officials, and Supreme Court justices. (Sec. 2902) Increases the maximum penalties for voluntary and involuntary manslaughter. (Sec. 2903) Increases penalties for: (1) conspiracy to commit murder for hire; (2) trafficking in counterfeit goods and services; and (3) Travel Act violations. (Sec. 2906) Broadens the scope and increases the penalties for conspiracies to deprive persons of their civil rights. Title XXX: Miscellaneous - Extends the protection of the criminal civil rights statute to any person in a State. (Currently, the statute only covers a State "inhabitants.") (Sec. 3003) Directs the Attorney General to: (1) require State and local LEAs to annually audit and detail the uses and expenses to which forfeiture funds were dedicated and the amount used for each use or expense; and (2) report to the Congress on the administrative and contracting expense paid from the DOJ Assets Forfeiture Fund. (Sec. 3005) Creates an optional venue in the District of Columbia for espionage and related offenses regarding the gathering, transmitting, losing, or delivering of defense information. (Sec. 3007) Prohibits: (1) the disclosure of information obtained through wiretapping or electronic surveillance with the intent to obstruct a criminal investigation; (2) the theft of major art works from museums; (3) misuse of the words "Drug Enforcement Administration" or the initials "DEA"; and (4) attempted robbery, kidnapping, smuggling, and property damage offenses. (Sec. 3010) Permits trials by a magistrate judge in petty offense cases involving juveniles. Title XXXI: Technical Corrections - Makes technical corrections to various criminal law provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 1993
Crime Victims' Bill of Rights Act - Amends Rule 32 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure to require the court, before imposing sentence, to address personally any victim of the offense for which sentence is to be imposed (or a member of that victim's immediate family or, in the court's discretion, any other appropriate person representing the victim) who is present at the sentencing hearing and to afford such individual the opportunity to make a statement and present information in relation to the sentence. Permits the court, upon request by a victim, to hear in camera such a statement by that victim. Amends the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 to condition Federal grant eligibility of crime victim compensation programs on a State providing an effective system of notice to eligible victims of the existence of compensation and other programs to assist victims of crime. Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to: (1) authorize drug control and system improvement grants to States to be used for programs that allow for the physical and visual separation of a victim of crime from an alleged perpetrator of such crime while waiting in a judicial facility for a courtroom appearance; and (2) provide for a reduction of formula grants by 25 percent (for redistribution to other participating States) for States which fail to notify a crime victim of specified rights. Directs the Attorney General to assure that Federal prosecutors and law enforcement officials: (1) provide an effective system of notice to crime victims of the existence of compensation and other programs to assist victims who might be eligible to participate; (2) notify crime victims of the availability of, and provide such victims the opportunity for, visual and physical separation from alleged crime perpetrators while waiting in a judicial facility for a courtroom appearance; and (3) provide a crime victim with the earliest possible notice of the scheduling of each court proceeding or parole hearing that the witness is required or entitled to attend.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Maternal Health Certificates Program Title II: Rehabilitation Grants for Maternity Housing and Services Facilities Health Care and Housing for Women and Children Act of 1993 - Title I: Maternal Health Certificates Program - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a program to provide maternal health certificates for eligible pregnant women to cover expenses incurred at a maternity and housing services facility. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Rehabilitation Grants for Maternity Housing and Services Facilities - Directs the Secretary to establish a program of rehabilitation grants for maternity housing and services facilities. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Authorization of Appropriations Title II: Reducing the Burden of Federal Paperwork on the Public Title III: Enhancing Federal Agency Responsibility and Accountability for Reducing the Burden of Federal Paperwork Title IV: Enhancing Government Responsibility and Accountability for Reducing the Burden of Federal Paperwork Title V: Enhancing Agency Responsibility for Sharing and Disseminating Public Information Title VI: Additional Government Information Management Responsibility Title VII: Effective Dates Paperwork Reduction Act of 1993 - Title I: Authorization of Appropriations - Amends the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 to authorize appropriations to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. Title II: Reducing the Burden of Federal Paperwork on the Public - Applies the Act to all federally sponsored paperwork. Requires a Government-wide paperwork reduction goal of at least five percent and individual agency goals that aggregate to the Government-wide goal. Title III: Enhancing Federal Agency Responsibility and Accountability for Reducing the Burden of Federal Paperwork - Makes the senior official charged with carrying out the responsibilities of a Federal agency under the Act the head of a separate office with qualified staff responsible for assuring agency compliance with requirements under the Act. Requires each agency to: (1) prepare estimates of the burden that will result from proposed collections of information; (2) develop a strategic Information Resources Management Plan; and (3) establish oversight procedures for agency information systems. Requires each agency head to establish a certification process for the review of each information collection request before it is submitted to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval. Title IV: Enhancing Government Responsibility and Accountability for Reducing the Burden of Federal Paperwork - Makes the OMB Director responsible for ensuring that all information collection requests display an estimate of the paperwork burden for each response. Requires OMB procedures in order for agencies to estimate such burden. Requires OMB pilot projects to test approaches to improve information management practices and related activities. Reduces the time afforded the OMB Director for approving a routine agency request to collect information. Provides for greater participation by the public and Federal agencies in the review of proposed paperwork burdens generated by agency information requests. Requires the OMB Director to make publicly available any decision to disapprove a collection of information requirement contained in an agency rule, together with the reasons for such decision. Provides protection for whistleblowers of unauthorized Federal paperwork burdens. Provides for expedited OMB review of an agency information request with a reduced paperwork burden. Title V: Enhancing Agency Responsibility for Sharing and Disseminating Public Information - Provides for Government-wide standards for sharing and disseminating public information. Imposes certain responsibilities on Federal agencies for sharing and disseminating public information. Abolishes the Federal Information Locator System established in the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs and replaces it with a system in each agency for providing public access via electronic and other means to a comprehensive inventory of agency information dissemination products. Title VI: Additional Government Information Management Responsibility - Revises the statistical policy and coordination functions of the OMB Director. Requires the OMB Director to: (1) establish an interagency working group on statistical policy to coordinate agency statistical activities; and (2) provide training in the statistical policy functions of the chief statistician to Federal employees. Provides for the use of electronic information collection and dissemination techniques to reduce the Federal paperwork burden. Requires the OMB Director's annual report to the Congress to list any increased Federal paperwork burdens and describe each agency's plans to implement the applicable policies, standards, and guidelines under the Act. Requires the OMB Director to develop a plan for meeting the automatic data processing needs of the Federal Government in accordance with the Act and certain requirements of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949. Title VII: Effective Dates - Sets forth the effective dates for this Act.
![Official portrait of Rep. McHale, Paul [D-PA-15]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/m000466_200.jpg)