United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
Amends part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to limit the late enrollment penalty to a ten percent increase in the monthly part B premium due over a period equal to twice the number of years that the part B beneficiary could have been but was not enrolled under part B.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
Osteoporosis Early Detection and Prevention Act of 1999 - Amends the Public Health Service Act and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to require a group health plan, and an insurer offering group coverage, to include coverage for bone mass measurement for individuals who: (1) are estrogen-deficient women at clinical risk for osteoporosis; (2) have vertebral abnormalities; (3) are receiving chemotherapy or long-term gluococorticoid (steroid) therapy; (4) have primary hyperparathyroidism, hyperthyroidism, or excess thyroid replacement; or (5) are being monitored to assess the response to or efficacy of approved osteoporosis drug therapy. Regulates frequency and cost sharing. Prohibits related denial of coverage, incentives to individuals, restrictions on provider-patient communications, and provider penalties. Allows State laws providing greater detection or prevention benefits. Amends the Public Health Service Act to apply the above requirements to coverage offered in the individual market.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
Access to Emergency Medical Services Act of 1999 - Provides that if a group health plan or health insurance coverage offered by a health insurance issuer provides any benefits with respect to emergency services, the plan or issuer shall cover such services: (1) without the need for any prior authorization determination; (2) whether or not the health care provider furnishing such services is a participating provider with respect to such services; (3) in a manner so that if such services are provided by a nonparticipating provider, the participant, beneficiary, or enrollee is not liable for amounts that exceed the liability that would be incurred if the services were provided by a participating provider; and (4) without regard to any other term or condition of such plan or coverage (other than exclusion or coordination of benefits, a specified affiliation or waiting period, and applicable cost sharing). Requires such plans or issuers, in the case of maintenance or post-stabilization care services other than emergency services, to provide for reimbursement for services provided by nonparticipating providers in a manner consistent with specified guidelines relating to promoting efficient and timely coordination of maintenance and post-stabilization care of an enrollee under the Social Security Act or such guidelines as the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish. Requires information regarding coverage of emergency services to be made available annually by plans and issuers. Amends the Public Health Service Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, and the Internal Revenue Code to deem requirements of the Access to Emergency Medical Services Act of 1999 to be incorporated into such Acts and the Internal Revenue Code.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Funding Act of 1999 - Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 and 2001 for U.S. voluntary contributions to the United Nations Population Fund. Withholds from the U.S. voluntary contribution to the UNFPA amounts allocated by the UNFPA for the country program in China, unless the President certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that the UNFPA country program in China: (1) focuses on improving the delivery of voluntary family planning information and services; (2) is in conformity with the human rights principles affirmed at the International Conference on Population and Development with the support of 180 nations including the United States; (3) is implemented only in counties of China where all quotas and targets for the recruitment of program participants have been abolished and the use of coercive measures has been eliminated; (4) is carried out in consultation with and under the oversight and approval of the UNFPA executive board, including the U.S. representative; (5) is subject to regular, independent monitoring to ensure compliance with the principles of informed consent and voluntary participation; and (6) suspends operations in project counties found to be in violation of program guidelines.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
Consumer Credit Card Protection Amendments of 1999 - Amends the Consumer Credit Protection Act to require the following disclosures by a creditor of open-end consumer credit plans: (1) the method of determining the required minimum payment amount and the charges for failure to pay either such amount or its attendant finance charge; (2) certain repayment information applicable to the outstanding balance; (3) the method for determining the required minimum payment amount and the charge for failure to pay it; and (4) the amount and deadline for late payment penalties. (Sec. 4) Extends the Act's disclosure requirements to World Wide Web-based applications and solicitations for a credit card account under an open-end consumer credit plan. (Sec. 5) Mandates additional disclosures for credit card applications or solicitations whose annual percentage rates of interest are applicable for an introductory period of less than one year. (Sec. 6) Proscribes the imposition of inactivity fees under an open-end consumer credit plan if the obligor maintains an outstanding balance and is charged an attendant finance charge. (Sec. 7) Sets forth application requirements for credit cards issued to underage consumers. (Sec. 8) Prohibits the imposition of penalties for on-time payments under an open-end consumer credit plan. (Sec. 9) Mandates: (1) advance notice of any interest rate increase applicable to an outstanding credit balance, accompanied by notice of the debtor's right to cancel before the effective date of such increase; and (2) disclosure of interest rates and fees upon credit advances through third-party checks. (Sec. 11) Proscribes the imposition of fees for any extension of credit in excess of the authorized amount if such extension was made in connection with a creditor-approved transaction. (Sec. 12) Encompasses within the term "credit card" specified dual-purpose or multifunction cards connected with an open-end credit plan and that can be used to obtain credit directly or indirectly. Repeals the limitation of card-issuer liability only to fee-paying or credit- or charge-card-using cardholders in connection with specified disclosures required of a creditor pertaining to: (1) open-end consumer credit plans; and (2) credit and charge card applications and solicitations.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
Converts a temporary Federal judgeship in the district of Hawaii to a permanent judgeship. Directs the President to appoint, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, one additional district judge for the district of Hawaii. Provides permanent statutory authority for magistrate positions in the district courts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that an individual who leaves employment because of sexual harassment or the loss of child care will, for purposes of determining such individual's eligibility for unemployment compensation, be treated as having left such employment for good cause.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
Osteoporosis Federal Employee Health Benefits Standardization Act of 1999 - Amends Federal law concerning Government organization and employees to prohibit contracts from being made or plans approved under the health insurance program for Federal employees which do not include coverage of bone mass measurements of qualified individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
Amends the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (relating to certain claims for injuries due to exposure to radiation from nuclear testing) to remove the requirement that exposure resulting in stomach cancer occur before age 30. Extends the time for the filing of claims that were previously barred.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
Work for Real Wages Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide, with respect to an individual, that the term earned income credit shall include a specified portion of benefits received under part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of title IV of the Social Security Act if: (1) as a condition of receiving any TANF payment or amount, the individual is required to perform services for any person or governmental unit; and (2) such individual receives no compensation (other than such payment or amount) for performing such services.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1999
Biomedical Revitalization Resolution of 1999 - Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that funding for the National Institutes of Health should be increased by $2 billion in FY 2000.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 1999
Robin Danielson Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: (1) to establish a program to collect, analyze, and make available data on toxic shock syndrome, including data on the causes of such syndrome; and (2) in carrying out such program, to determine the national incidence and prevalence of such syndrome. Authorizes the Secretary to carry out such program directly and through grants to States and local health departments. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 1999
Tampon Safety and Research Act of 1999 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to mandate the conduct or support of research on the extent to which additives in feminine hygiene products pose any risks to the health of women or to the children of women who use those products during or before the pregnancies involved. Requires that the research include research to confirm the data on feminine hygiene products submitted to the Commissioner of Food and Drugs by manufacturers of the products. Requires that research results be submitted to the Congress, specified governmental agencies, and the public.
United States · United States Congress · 25 February 1999
Civil Rights Procedures Protection Act of 1999 - Amends specified Federal civil rights statutes (including title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, the equal pay requirement under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, and the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993) to prevent the involuntary application of arbitration to claims that arise from unlawful employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or disability.
United States · United States Congress · 25 February 1999
Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to: (1) restrict the application of the windfall elimination provision to individuals whose combined monthly income from the individual's primary insurance amount under such title and the portion of the monthly periodic payment attributable to noncovered service performed after 1956 exceeds $2,000; and (2) provide for a graduated implementation of such provision by specified percentages with respect to incremental amounts above such threshold, up to 100 percent for combined amounts over $3,000.
United States · United States Congress · 25 February 1999
Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to exempt from competitive bidding requirements licenses issued by the Federal Communications Commission for stations in the instructional television fixed service.
United States · United States Congress · 25 February 1999
Low-Income Medicare Beneficiary Assistance Act of 1999 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require a State plan to provide for making medical assistance with respect to Medicare (SSA title XVIII) cost-sharing covered under the State plan available to a low-income individual on the date the low-income individual becomes entitled to benefits under part A (Hospital Insurance) of title XVIII during a presumptive eligibility period.
United States · United States Congress · 25 February 1999
State and Local Investment Opportunity Act of 1999 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the State ceiling on private activity bonds. Provides for inflation adjustment.
United States · United States Congress · 25 February 1999
Declares that it is the sense of the Congress that: (1) a commemorative postage stamp should be issued by the U.S. Postal Service honoring Paul Leroy Robeson; and (2) the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee should recommend such a stamp to the Postmaster General.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 1999
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide for the temporary visitor or student admission of certain alien spouses or children of U.S. permanent residents. States that a petition for permanent resident classification filed on behalf of such alien shall not constitute evidence of intent to abandon a foreign residence.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 1999
Beneficiary Health Coverage Notification Rights Act of 1999 - Amends the Public Health Service Act and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to require a health insurance issuer to notify all participants and beneficiaries of an intention to terminate coverage or allow a policy to lapse because a group health plan failed to pay premiums necessary to maintain coverage. Amends such Acts and the Internal Revenue Code to deem any participant or beneficiary notified of a group health plan termination or lapse only after the fact to have been covered during the deeming period between the effective date of the termination or lapse and the date of notification. Limits the application of the deeming period to certain purposes, including reduction of pre-existing condition exclusion periods and avoidance of a significant break in coverage. Declares that nothing in this Act shall be construed as entitling any individual to any plan or coverage benefits during such deeming period.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 1999
Mental Health Juvenile Justice Act - Amends the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 to direct the Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to make grants to State and local juvenile justice agencies in collaboration with State and local mental health agencies for training the officers and employees of the State juvenile justice system regarding appropriate access to mental health and substance abuse treatment programs and services in the State for juveniles who come into contact with the State juvenile justice system who have mental health or substance abuse problems. Authorizes a State or local juvenile justice agency that receives such a grant to use it for providing: (1) cross-training, jointly with the public mental health system, for State juvenile court judges, public defenders, and mental health and substance abuse agency representatives regarding the appropriate use of effective, community-based alternatives to juvenile justice or mental health system institutional placements; or (2) training for State juvenile probation officers and community mental health and substance abuse program representatives on appropriate linkages between probation programs and mental health community programs. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 3) Amends the Act to direct the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to partnerships between State and local or county juvenile justice agencies and State and local mental health authorities for the establishment and implementation of programs that address the service needs of juveniles who come into contact with the justice system and who have mental health or substance abuse problems. Sets forth requirements regarding appropriate diversion from incarceration, screening and assessment, treatment of such juveniles, correctional facility policies and procedures (and staff training and annual certification) on suicide prevention, classification of juveniles, confidentiality of records, State recordkeeping and mandatory State reporting to the Department of Justice regarding mental health and substance abuse disorders, staff ratios for correctional facilities, guidelines on the use of force, and requirements under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) make grants to systems established under the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act to monitor the mental health and special education services provided by grantees to juveniles and to advocate on behalf of juveniles; and (2) reserve no less than three percent of appropriated funds for such purposes. Authorizes appropriations. Allocates 35 percent for diversion programs and 65 percent for treatment programs. Directs the Attorney General and the Secretary to give preference in treatment to partnerships that integrate treatment programs to serve juveniles with co-occurring mental health and substance abuse disorders. Authorizes waivers of treatment requirements. Sets forth grant application requirements. (Sec. 4) Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Attorney General and the Secretary to award competitive grants to eligible entities for programs that address the service needs of juveniles, and juveniles with serious mental illnesses, by requiring the State or local juvenile justice system, the mental health system, and the substance abuse treatment system to work collaboratively to ensure: (1) the appropriate diversion of such juveniles and juveniles from incarceration; (2) the provision of appropriate mental health and substance abuse services as an alternative to incarceration and for those juveniles on probation or parole; and (3) the provision of followup services for juveniles who are discharged from the juvenile justice system. Sets forth requirements regarding eligibility of entities, use of funds, and areas served by projects. Makes specified funds available. (Sec. 5) Directs the Secretary to award grants and contracts for the establishment of four research, training, and technical assistance centers. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 6) Establishes a Federal Coordinating Council on Criminalization of Juveniles With Mental Disorders. (Sec. 7) Amends: (1) the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to require a State, to be eligible for funds under the violent offender incarceration and truth-in-sentencing grants program, to have (by January 1, 2001) a program of mental health screening and treatment for appropriate categories of juvenile and other offenders during periods of incarceration and juvenile and criminal justice supervision, that is consistent with guidelines issued by the Attorney General; and (2) make Federal criminal code provisions regarding appropriate remedies with respect to prison conditions applicable to a civil action that seeks to remedy conditions which pose a threat to the health of individuals who are under age 16 or mentally ill.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 1999
Improved Maternal and Children's Health Coverage Act of 1999 - Amends titles XIX (Medicaid) and XXI (Children's Health Insurance Program) (CHIP) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to mandate: (1) development and use of a uniform, simplified application form for establishing eligibility for Medicaid and CHIP benefits; (2) coordinated enrollment processes; and (3) timely response to inquiries received through a national toll-free telephone number for information on children's coverage under such programs. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish such number. (Sec. 2) Provides for the expanded availability of funding for administrative costs related to certain outreach and eligibility determinations under Medicaid and CHIP with regard to children and pregnant women. Directs the Secretary to establish a procedure with regard to the participation of local and community-based public or nonprofit organizations in outreach and enrollment activities if States do not otherwise obligate the amounts made available under this Act. Sets forth a special rule for certain enrollment and outreach activities providing for use of three percent of CHIP funds at 90 percent Federal match for such activities. Amends SSA title XIX to provide for additional entities (including elementary and secondary schools, child support enforcement agencies, and child care resource and referral agencies) that are qualified to determine Medicaid presumptive eligibility for low-income children. (Sec. 3) Amends SSA title XXI to require, to the extent a State child health plan provides coverage other than through providing benefits under the State's Medicaid plan, a State child health plan to: (1) specify methods to ensure coordination of pediatric care within a family; (2) make the State and its contractors, and not beneficiaries and families, responsible for applying limitations on cost-sharing; (3) impose, at its option, a flat limit (of up to $500) on out-of-pocket expenditures for certain low-income children (as an alternative to the current five percent of family income); and (4) provide a grace period and prior notice before disenrollment for nonpayment of premiums, if the State child health plan requires the payment of a premium and such premium is not paid on a timely notice, as well as an opportunity for a hearing on the matter. Prohibits State child health plan eligibility standards from permitting the use of mandatory waiting periods, unless the Secretary finds that such a period would not be contrary to title XXI. (Sec. 4) Amends SSA title XIX to provide for, among other changes: (1) automatic reassessment of eligibility for CHIP and Medicaid benefits for children losing Medicaid or CHIP eligibility; (2) optional CHIP coverage of low-income, uninsured pregnant women; (3) State option to cover qualified alien children under the Medicaid and CHIP programs; (4) elimination of the funding offset for exercise of the presumptive eligibility option; (5) automatic enrollment of children born to targeted low-income pregnant women receiving pregnancy-related assistance under such programs; and (6) CHIP and Medicaid program coordination with the Maternal and Child Health Services program under SSA title V.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 1999
Child Support Enforcement Act - Prohibits construing this Act to affect: (1) the right of an individual or State to receive child support payments; or (2) the obligation of an individual to pay child support. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require that taxable child support payments the taxpayer is required to pay and that are unpaid be treated as included in gross income by reason of discharge of indebtedness. Allows a taxpayer entitled to receive such payments a deduction for unpaid payments. Allows the deduction for those who do not itemize deductions. Requires that net revenues received in the Treasury under this Act be applied, as provided in appropriations Acts, solely to the retirement of outstanding public debt.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 1999
Veterans Tobacco-Related Illness Benefits Restoration Act of 1999 - Repeals a Federal provision which prohibits a veteran's disability or death from being considered to have resulted from a personal injury suffered or a disease contracted in the line of duty on the basis that it resulted from the use of tobacco products during the veteran's military, naval, or air service. Provides that such repeal shall apply to any claim for compensation received by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs before or after enactment of this Act. Prohibits the Director of the Office of Management and Budget from making any estimate of changes in direct spending outlays under provisions of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) for any fiscal year resulting from the enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 1999
National Weather Service Flexible Work Scheduling Act - Provides an overtime hourly rate of pay of one and one-half times the hourly rate of basic pay and provides that all such pay is premium pay for an employee of the National Weather Service who occupies a nonmanagerial position in GS-14 or under: (1) the duties of which are essential to the immediate daily operation of the forecast and warning responsibilities of the Service and directly affect public and aviation safety; (2) in which overtime work is usually unscheduled due to the vicissitudes of severe weather; and (3) in which overtime work is therefore unusually taxing. Exempts such an employee from the limitation on aggregate pay, including premium pay, for a pay period. Provides for a National Weather Service employee, who works during a regularly scheduled eight-hour period of service a part of which is performed on Sunday, to be paid at his or her basic pay rate, plus premium pay at a rate equal to 25 percent of his or her basic pay rate with respect to that portion of such period of service which is performed on Sunday. Directs the Office of Personnel Management to provide for the rounding of any fraction of an hour of service performed on Sunday to the next highest whole number, with offsetting rounding in non-Sunday service so that the total service for the period involved remains the same.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 1999
Care Givers Tax Reduction Act of 1999 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make the existing dependent care tax credit a refundable credit; (2) increase allowable dependent care expenses; and (3) revise the credit phasedown formula.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 1999
Welcomes the Model Nuclear Weapons Convention as a discussion document intended to further negotiations on complete nuclear disarmament. Urges the President to initiate multilateral negotiations leading to the early conclusion of a nuclear weapons convention. Requests the President to inform the Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) of the efforts and measures the United States has taken on the implementation of the UN General Assembly Resolution 52-38 O and nuclear disarmament.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1999
Reduces (retroactively) the citizen-parent U.S. residency requirement for transmission of U.S. citizenship to certain persons born abroad to one citizen parent and one alien parent.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1999
Amends the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1999 to extend for three additional months (until July 1, 1999) the period for which chapter 12 of the Federal Bankruptcy Code (Adjustments of Debts of a Family Farmer) is reenacted.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1999
Amends the Older Americans Act of 1965 to extend through FY 2002 the authorization of appropriations for: (1) the Federal Council on the Aging; (2) administration; (3) grants for State and community programs on aging; (4) the availability of surplus commodities; (5) training, research, and discretionary projects and programs; (6) community service employment for older Americans; (7) grants for Native Americans; (8) allotments for Vulnerable Elder Rights Protection activities; and (9) the Native American program.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1999
Fairness for State and Local Workers Act - Amends the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 to provide for coverage under that Act of State and local government workers.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1999
Resources 2000 Act - Reduces according to a specified formula the amount of qualified Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) revenues that shall be deposited for a limited fiscal year into the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the Historic Preservation Fund, or any other fund or account established by this Act. (Sec. 6) Limits the amount available for administrative expenses to two percent. (Sec. 7) Requires off-budget treatment of the receipts and disbursements of funds under this Act. Title I: Land and Water Conservation Fund Revitalization - Amends the Land and Water Conservation Act of 1965 to extend indefinitely the period for: (1) depositing amounts into the Land and Water Conservation Fund (currently, such period ends September 30, 2015); and (2) under specified conditions, annual authorization of appropriations to the Fund in certain amounts for FY 1977 through 1978 and each succeeding fiscal year. (Sec. 103) Makes $900 million available each fiscal year for obligation or expenditure without further appropriation, to be allocated as follows: (1) 50 percent for Federal purposes; and (2) 50 percent for State grants. (Sec. 105) Removes the "outdoor recreation" limitation on the use of financial assistance to States to carry out planning, land acquisition, and development projects for land and water conservation purposes. (Sec. 106) Revises the formula used to allocate amounts made available for State purposes from the Fund each fiscal year, including distributing one-third of such funds among the several States under a competitive grant program. (Sec. 107) Revises the requirement that a State have a comprehensive statewide outdoor recreation plan as a prerequisite to consideration by the Secretary of the Interior of financial assistance for acquisition or development projects. Allows a State, in order to reduce costly repetitive planning efforts, to use for such a plan a current State comprehensive outdoor recreation plan, a State recreation plan, or a State action agenda under criteria developed by the Secretary. (Sec. 108) Removes the restriction on providing financial assistance to States for incidental costs relating to land and water acquisition. Permits local funding and a limited percentage of the amount of State allocated funds in any one year to be used for sheltered facilities for swimming pools and ice skating rinks in areas where the Secretary determines a need to enhance public safety. (Sec. 109) Requires the Secretary to approve, subject to certain conditions, the conversion of property (other than for public outdoor recreation use) acquired or developed with assistance under the Act only if the State demonstrates that no prudent or feasible alternative exists. Exempts from such requirement conversion of property that is no longer viable as an outdoor conservation or recreation facility due to changes in demographics, or that must be abandoned because of environmental contamination which endangers public health and safety. Title II: Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Program Amendments - Amends the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978 to provide for the development of new recreation areas and facilities (including the acquisition of lands for such development) under the urban park and recreation recovery program. (Sec. 205) Revises requirements for: (1) Federal assistance grant eligibility; (2) matching grants to local governments for rehabilitation, development, and innovation purposes; (3) local park and recreation recovery action programs; (4) State action incentives; and (5) conversion of recreation property for any other purpose other than public recreation purposes. (Sec. 210) Establishes in the Treasury the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Fund. Specifies the amount to be deposited into the Fund each fiscal year out of qualified OCS revenues, which shall be available, without further appropriation, until expended. Sets forth limitations on annual State grants under this Act and grant and program administration. (Sec. 211) Repeals sunset provisions and congressional reporting requirements with respect to: (1) the impact of the urban park and recreation recovery program; and (2) the annual achievements of the innovation grant program. Title III: Historic Preservation Fund - Amends the National Historic Preservation Act to specify the amount to be deposited into the Historic Preservation Fund each fiscal year after FY 1998 out of qualified OCS revenues, which shall remain available, without further appropriation, and until expended, only to carry out the purposes of such Act. (Sec. 301) Requires at least one half of the funds obligated or expended each fiscal year under this Act to be used for preservation projects on historic properties (giving priority to the preservation of endangered historic properties). Title IV: Farmland, Ranchland, Open Space, and Forestland Protection - Establishes in the Treasury the Farmland, Ranchland, Open Space, and Forestland Protection Fund. (Sec. 403) Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to use specified amounts from the Fund for the farmland protection and forest legacy programs. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to use specified amounts from the Fund for the ranchland protection program. (Sec. 404) Amends the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 with respect to the farmland protection program to: (1) specify that the program shall be a matching grant program carried out through eligible entities such as State and local government, Indian tribes, and nonprofit conservation organizations; (2) eliminate acreage limitations; and (3) increase the existing funding cap, revising it from a total program cap to a fiscal year cap. (Sec. 405) Directs the Secretary of the Interior to establish a ranchland protection program similar to the farmland protection program. Title V: Federal and Indian Lands Restoration Fund - Establishes the Federal and Indians Lands Restoration Fund which shall be used as a dedicated source of funding for a coordinated program on Federal and Indian lands to restore degraded lands, protect resources that are threatened with degradation, and protect public health and safety. Deposits $250 million of qualified Outer Continental Shelf revenues received by the United States each fiscal year into the Fund and allocates: (1) 60 percent to the Secretary of the Interior for lands within the National Park System, National Wildlife Refuge System, and public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management; (2) 30 percent to the Secretary of Agriculture for lands within the National Forest System; and (3) ten percent to the Secretary of the Interior for competitive grants to Indian tribes under this Act. Requires the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture to: (1) each establish priority lists for the use of funds which give priority to projects based upon the protection of significant resources, the severity of damages or threats to resources, and the protection of public health or safety; and (2) jointly establish a coordinated program for tracking the progress of activities carried out and determining the extent to which demonstrable results are being achieved. Title VI: Living Marine Resources Conservation, Restoration, and Management Assistance - Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to use amounts from the Living Marine Resources Conservation Fund for allocation to a coastal State with a Living Marine Resources Conservation Plan to reimburse the State for the costs of developing, implementing, and revising such a plan. Sets forth plan requirements. Establishes the Living Marine Resources Conservation Fund. Provides for the deposit in such fund of specified amounts received by the United States as qualified Outer Continental Shelf revenues. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants from such fund for the conservation, restoration, or management of living marine resources. Sets forth criteria for grant approval. Defines "living marine resources" as indigenous fin fish, anadromous fish, mollusks, crustaceans, and all other forms of marine animal and plant life, including marine mammals and birds, that inhabit marine or brackish waters of the United States during all or part of their life cycle. Title VII: Funding for State Native Fish and Wildlife Conservation and Restoration - Amends the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act of 1980 to revise the purposes and applicability of such Act so as to: (1) provide for promoting conservation of native (currently, nongame) fish and wildlife; and (2) preserving biological diversity by maintaining natural assemblages of native fish and wildlife. Replaces the definition of "fish and wildlife" and "nongame fish and wildlife" with a definition of "native fish and wildlife" as a fish, animal, or plant species that: (1) historically occurred or occurs in an ecosystem, other than as a result of an introduction, and lives in an unconfined state; and (2) does not include any population of a domesticated species that has reverted to a feral existence. (Sec. 703) Requires State conservation plans to promote balanced and diverse assemblages of native fish and wildlife. (Sec. 704) Repeals the provision specifying that conservation actions set forth in a conservation plan approved by the Secretary of the Interior shall be eligible for reimbursement as fish and wildlife projects. (Sec. 705) Makes amendments relating to the reimbursement of State costs for the development, revision, and implementation of conservation plans to: (1) extend eligibility for reimbursement of costs incurred by States for developing conservation plans through FY 2010, and for implementing conservation plans through FY 2005; (2) repeal specified reimbursement requirements; (3) prohibit paying reimbursement to any State for any cost incurred in implementing an approved conservation plan or action to the extent that more than 50 (currently ten) percent of such costs in any such year are accounted for by inkind contributions; and (4) prohibit the amount of reimbursement paid to any State for any fiscal year after FY 2010 from exceeding 75 percent of the cost of implementing and revising the plan during the fiscal year. (Sec. 706) Establishes the Native Fish and Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Fund into which the following amounts received as qualified Outer Continental Shelf revenues shall be deposited: (1) $100 million for each of FY 2000 and 2001; (2) $200 million for each of FY 2002 through 2004; and (3) $350 million for FY 2005 and each proceeding fiscal year. Makes up to the amount stated for a fiscal year available to the Secretary of the Interior for that fiscal year to reimburse States for conservation plans and actions. Title VIII: Endangered and Threatened Species Recovery - Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Commerce to use amounts in the Endangered and Threatened Species Recovery Fund to provide financial assistance to persons for development and implementation of Endangered and Threatened Species Recovery Agreements. Requires either Secretary to give priority to the development and implementation of Agreements that: (1) implement actions identified under recovery plans approved by the Secretary; (2) have the greatest potential for contributing to the recovery of an endangered or threatened species; and (3) require use of the assistance on land owned by a small landowner or on a family farm by the owner or operator. Prohibits the Secretary from providing financial assistance for any action that is required by a permit issued under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 or that is otherwise required under Federal law. (Sec. 803) Authorizes the Secretary to enter into such Agreements and sets forth Agreement requirements, including: (1) requiring activities not otherwise mandated by law that contribute to species recovery; and (2) specifying species recovery goals. Requires the Secretary to review Agreements for compliance with such requirements, propose necessary revisions, approve Agreements in compliance, periodically monitor the implementation of each Agreement, and disburse financial assistance to implement the Agreement. (Sec. 804) Establishes the Endangered and Threatened Species Recovery Fund in the Treasury and requires $100 million to be deposited into the Fund each fiscal year from amounts received as qualified Outer Continental Shelf revenues.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1999
Amateur Radio Spectrum Protection Act of 1999 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), after July 1, 1999, from making any reallocations of amateur radio service and amateur satellite service frequency bands, diminishing the secondary allocations of such bands or making additional allocations within such bands that would substantially reduce their utility unless at the same time the FCC provides equivalent replacement spectrum.
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 1999
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Research on Lupus Title II: Delivery of Services Regarding Lupus Lupus Research and Care Amendments of 1999 - Title I: Research on Lupus - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases to expand and intensify research and related activities of the Institute regarding lupus. Requires the Director to: (1) coordinate such activities with similar activities conducted by other national research institutes and agencies of the National Institutes of Health; and (2) conduct or support research to expand the understanding of the causes of, and to find a cure for, lupus, including research to determine the reasons underlying the elevated prevalence of the disease among African-American and other women. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Delivery of Services Regarding Lupus - Mandates grants for the establishment, operation, and coordination of effective and cost-efficient systems for the delivery of essential services to individuals with lupus and their families. Regulates charges (whether they are characterized as enrollment fees, premiums, deductibles, cost sharing, copayments, coinsurance, or other charges) imposed by grantees on service recipients. Authorizes technical assistance. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1999
Medicare Substitute Adult Day Care Services Act of 1999 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for coverage of substitute adult day care services. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to monitor Medicare expenditures for home health services for a fiscal year, including substitute adult day care services, and compare them to expenditures that the Secretary estimates would have been made for home health services for that fiscal year if there had been no coverage of substitute adult day care services. Requires the Secretary, if home health service expenditures exceed such estimates, to adjust the rate of payment to adult day care facilities so that total expenditures do not exceed such estimates.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1999
Retirement Account Portability Act of 1999 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit rollovers from State and tax-exempt instrumentalities and from and to public school retirement plans. (Sec. 3) Permits individual retirement plan (IRA) rollovers only if the entire amount is deposited into another defined contribution retirement plan and certain other conditions are met. (Sec. 4) Provides for faster vesting of employer matching contributions. (Sec. 5) Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to extend single employer missing participant provisions to multiemployer plans. Authorizes transfer of a missing participant's benefits to a corporation upon termination of certain pension plans. (Sec. 6) Removes certain restrictions on the rollover of after-tax contributions. Provides a hardship exception to the 60-day transfer requirement. (Sec. 7) Permits distributions upon severance from employment (currently upon separation from employment). (Sec. 8) States that a transferee defined contribution plan shall not be treated as having failed to meet certain requirements because it does not provide for some or all of the distribution options available under a transferor defined contribution plan. (Sec. 9) Authorizes employers to disregard rollovers for purposes of employee cash-out amounts under the Code and ERISA. (Sec. 10) Authorizes trustee-to-trustee transfers to purchase permissive service credit with respect to Federal or public school and State and tax-exempt instrumentality pension plans.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1999
National Eye Institute Authorization Act of 1999 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize appropriations for the National Eye Institute for FY 1999 through 2004 (with amounts for FY 2004 double those authorized for FY 1999).
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1999
Directs the Secretary of the Army to close the military education and training facility known as the United States Army School of the Americas at Fort Benning, Georgia. Repeals current statutory authority for the School. Expresses the sense of the Congress that, in each training activity undertaken by the United States with foreign security forces, the Secretary of Defense should: (1) substantially increase emphasis upon respect for human rights, the proper role of a military within a democratic society, and appropriate management of defense and security policy; and (2) implement Department of Defense regulations regarding the screening of foreign candidates for inclusion in the training activity to ensure that the United States does not train individuals implicated in human rights abuses, illegal drug trafficking, or corruption.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1999
Social Security Benefits Restoration Act of 1999 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to eliminate provisions that reduce primary insurance amounts for individuals receiving pensions from noncovered employment.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1999
United States-Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Human Dignity Act - Amends Federal law to prohibit the affixation of the "Made in the USA" label to a textile fiber product from the Northern Mariana Islands unless: (1) each worker producing such product was paid a minimum wage equal to or greater than a specified amount; (2) the product was manufactured in compliance with all Federal labor laws, including, but not limited to, the National Labor Relations Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, and the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938; (3) the factory or other business producing the product has full-time employees in nonmanagerial positions who are U.S. citizens or nationals, aliens lawfully admitted into the United States for permanent residence, citizens of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, or the Federated States of Micronesia, aliens admitted into the United States as refugees, or aliens granted asylum in the United States, in specified percentages; and (4) the factory or other business producing the product does not employ individuals under conditions of indentured servitude. (Sec. 3) Applies to the Northern Mariana Islands: (1) the minimum wage provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as modified by this Act (requires a minimum wage through December 31, 1999, of $3.55 per hour, adjusted semiannually thereafter in $.50 increments until it equals the minimum wage required by the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938); and (2) the Immigration and Nationality Act. Prohibits any product of the Northern Mariana Islands from entering the customs territory of the United States duty-free or not subject to quota as a product of an insular possession unless specified requirements relating to fair labor practices and country of origin are met. Requires the President, for a two-year period, to deny an exporter duty-free and quota-free treatment if it is determined that such exporter has willfully falsified information regarding the country of origin of a product of the Northern Mariana Islands for which such treatment is claimed. (Sec. 4) Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to authorize the inspection by the Customs Service of any vessel from a foreign port or from a place in any U.S. territory or possession arriving at a port or place in the Northern Mariana Islands (currently, the United States or the Virgin Islands) (Sec. 5) Requires a study of the extent of human and labor rights violations in the Northern Mariana Islands, including any efforts being taken by the united States or the Government of the Northern Mariana Islands to address or prohibit such violations. Requires a report on the results of the study to specified congressional committees. (Sec. 8) Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1999
Protection of Seamen Against Economic Reprisal Act of 1999 - Amends Federal shipping law to prohibit a person from discharging, or in any manner discriminating against, a seaman for refusing to perform the seaman's duties when the seaman has a reasonable apprehension that performing such duties would result in serious injury to the seaman, other seamen, a vessel, cargo, or the environment. Sets forth requirements with respect to receiving such protection. Authorizes a U.S. district court in which a seaman has brought an action for wrongful discharge or discrimination to award such seaman costs and reasonable attorney's fees.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 1999
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Outer Continental Shelf Impact Assistance Title II: State, Local, and Urban Conservation and Recreation Title III: Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Conservation and Reinvestment Act of 1999 - Title I: Outer Continental Shelf Impact Assistance - Establishes the Outer Continental Shelf Impact Assistance Fund (OCSIAF) to provide impact assistance to coastal States from a portion (27 percent) of allocable new OCS revenues (payments received by the United States as royalties, net profit share payments, and related late-payment interest from natural gas and oil leases under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act). Prohibits placement in the Fund of OCS revenues from a leased tract (or portion) located in a geographic area subject to a leasing moratorium on January 1, 1999, unless the lease was issued before the moratorium and was in production on such date. (Sec. 103) Sets forth a formula for use by the Secretary of the Interior to determine the portion of the allocable share of new revenues attributable to each coastal State and county eligible to receive impact assistance payments. Mandates that such OCS funds be expended by the eligible coastal States and counties for certain environmental projects and activities. Requires: (1) the Governor of every OCSIAF recipient State to develop (and certify to the Secretary) a State plan for the use of such funds; (2) an eligible county to submit for the Governor's approval a plan setting forth the projects and activities for which it proposes to expend OCSIA funds; and (3) the Governor of each recipient State to account to the Congress for all OCSIAF monies received for the previous fiscal year. Title II: State, Local, and Urban Conservation and Recreation - Amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (LWCFA) to require an amount equal to 23 percent of specified Outer Continental Shelf revenues to be credited to a separate account in the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) in the Treasury in each fiscal year through September 30, 2015. (Sec. 202) Makes such funds available, without further appropriation, to carry out LWCFA in the next succeeding fiscal year. Provides that, if such revenues in a fiscal year exceed $900 million, such excess shall be available, without further appropriation, in the next succeeding fiscal year for obligation or expenditure as payments in lieu of taxes. Authorizes appropriations to maintain a certain minimum total annual income of the LWCF. Makes certain amounts covered into the LWCF available for expenditure without appropriation. Sets forth formulae for allocation of such funds for: (1) Federal acquisition of certain lands, waters, or interests; (2) financial assistance to the States for land acquisition, urban conservation, and recreation projects; and (3) local governments through the Urban Parks and Recreation Recovery Program of the Department of the Interior. Provides for an LWCFA allocation of funds to Indian tribes and Alaska Native Village Corporations. Requires States to make at least 50 percent of the annual State apportionment under LWCFA available as grants to local governments. Replaces, within a five-year period, LWCFA requirements for comprehensive State plans with requirements for State action agendas. Allows each State to define its own priorities and criteria for selection of outdoor recreation and conservation acquisition and development projects eligible for LWCFA grants so long as it provides for public involvement in this process and publishes an accurate and current State Action Agenda for Community Recreation and Conservation. Requires such Agendas to: (1) be strategic, originating in broad-based and long-term needs, but focused on actions that can be funded over the next four years, and be updated every four years; (2) consider all providers of recreation and conservation lands, and correlate with other State, regional and local plans for parks, recreation, open space, and wetlands conservation; (3) address wetlands as important outdoor recreation and conservation resources, and incorporate a State wetlands priority conservation plan consistent with the national plan developed under the Emergency Wetlands Resources Act; and (4) be guided in part by recovery action programs developed by urban localities under the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act. Revises LWCFA conditions for approval of conversions. (Sec. 203) Amends the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act (UPRRA) to provide (in addition to the current types of at-risk recreation grants and recovery action program grants) for matching capital grants to local governments in the form of: (1) development grants for development and construction on existing or new neighborhood recreation sites, including indoor and outdoor recreation facilities, support facilities, and landscaping, but excluding routine maintenance and upkeep activities; and (2) acquisition grants for purchasing new parkland to be permanently dedicated and made accessible for public recreation use. Revises UPRRA requirements for: (1) eligibility; (2) matching grants; (3) coordination; and (4) conversion approval. Repeals the limitation on the use of UPRRA funds for acquisition of land or interests in land. (Sec. 205) Establishes a Habitat Reserve Program (HRP) within the Department of the Interior to be administered by the Secretary of the Interior in association with the applicable State fish and wildlife department in the State where the affected land is located. Requires lands eligible for enrollment in the HRP to be privately owned and designated by the State agency as necessary to preserve the existence of one or more species listed under the Endangered Species Act, and their owners and operators to have voluntarily entered into partnership agreements with the Secretary and the State agency. Prescribes: (1) limitations on lands eligible for enrollment in the HRP; (2) HRP contract requirements; (3) HRP management plans; (4) HRP contract duration; and (5) payments to owners or operators of lands included in the HRP. Title III: Wildlife Conservation and Restoration - Amends the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (FAWRA) to require an amount equal to ten percent of specified Outer Continental Shelf revenues to be deposited in a new subaccount in the Federal aid to wildlife restoration fund (FAWRF), to be invested and to be made available without further appropriation, for apportionment in the next succeeding fiscal year for State wildlife conservation and restoration programs. Provides that all interest on such amounts shall be available without further appropriations, for obligation or expenditure for purposes of the North American Wetlands Conservation Act of 1989. (Sec. 305) Sets forth requirements for: (1) allocation of such subaccount receipts; (2) applications for approval of, and development grants for, State wildlife conservation and restoration programs; and (3) coordination. (Sec. 306) Allows certain subaccount funds for such a State wildlife conservation and restoration program to be used for law enforcement and education. (Sec. 307) Prohibits a State from receiving FAWRA matching funds if it diverts any funds from wildlife conservation purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 1999
Prescription Drug Fairness for Seniors Act of 1999 - Requires each participating manufacturer of a covered outpatient drug to make available for purchase by each pharmacy such covered outpatient drug in the described amount (an amount equal to the aggregate amount of the covered outpatient drug sold or distributed by the pharmacy to Medicare beneficiaries) and at the described price (the price equal to the lower of either the lowest price paid for the drug by the Federal Government or the manufacturer's best price for the drug). Sets forth special provisions with respect to hospice programs.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 1999
Post Office Community Partnership Act of 1999 - Modifies Federal postal law to revise requirements for the closing or consolidation of a post office and apply them, as well, to its relocation or construction. Requires a 60-day notice before an office's relocation, closing, consolidation, or construction. Requires such notice to be: (1) hand delivered or delivered by mail; and (2) published in one or more newspapers of general circulation within the zip codes served by such post office. Sets forth provisions which: (1) allow any person served by the post office to offer an alternative relocation, closing, consolidation, or construction proposal within such 60-day period; and (2) require the Postal Service to conduct a hearing, if requested by such person, to allow the individual to present oral or written testimony. Revises the factors to be considered in deciding whether or not to relocate, close, consolidate, or construct a post office to include: (1) the extent to which the post office is part of a core downtown business area; (2) the sentiment of the community; (3) the adequacy of the existing post office; and (4) whether all reasonable alternatives to relocation, closing, consolidation, or construction have been explored. Requires the Postal Service to respond in a consolidated report to all of the alternative proposals offered within the 60-day notification period by persons served by the post office in question. Requires the Postal Service to follow a community's public participation procedures to address the relocation, closing, consolidation, or construction of buildings in the community if such procedures are more stringent than those provided in this Act. Provides that nothing in this Act shall be construed to apply to a temporary customer service facility used for less than 60 days. Allows for a one-time suspension of this Act with respect to a single emergency for any specific post office for a maximum 180-day period.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 1999
Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to prohibit the receipts and disbursements of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund (social security trust funds) from being included in the Federal budget baseline for any fiscal year and from being counted as new budget authority, outlays, receipts, or deficit or surplus for purposes of offsetting any tax decrease or spending increase. Excludes social security trust fund receipts and disbursements totals from official Office of Management and Budget and Congressional Budget Office budget pronouncements.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 1999
Gifted and Talented Students Education Act of 1999 - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to make grants to States for use by public schools to develop or expand gifted and talented education programs through one or more of the following activities: (1) professional development programs; (2) technical assistance; (3) innovative approaches and curricula; and (4) emerging technologies, including distance learning. Sets forth requirements for grant applications, allotment to States, and reporting. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 1999
Prohibits States from authorizing the sale of automobile insurance unless it is subject to cancellation in accordance with the cancellation requirements of this Act. Allows cancellation only if: (1) written cancellation notice is given at least 180 days before the cancellation; (2) the named insured's driver's license was suspended or revoked; or (3) the named insured has been convicted of, or forfeited bail for, any action connected with operating a motor vehicle that is grounds for license suspension or revocation. Mandates notice of nonrenewal at least 180 days before the expiration of the policy. Provides for enforcement.
![Official portrait of Rep. Mink, Patsy T. [D-HI-2]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/m000797_200.jpg)