United States · United States Congress · 15 March 1994
Hate Group Public Funding Exclusion Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to make an organization controlled by an individual or individuals who promotes bias ineligible for HUD assistance.
United States · United States Congress · 10 March 1994
Spending Reduction Enforcement Act of 1994 - Establishes the Spending Reduction Commission to propose cost savings and changes in law to achieve at least $65 billion of budget outlay reductions for the budget year and each outyear until a balanced budget is reached. Sets forth the procedure for implementation of the Commission's recommendations by the Office of Management and Budget, the President, and the Congress. Makes any budget outlay reductions permanent. Sets forth sequestration procedures if the full amount of required savings is not achieved by the end of a session of Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 1994
Condemns the Hebron massacre and all acts of terror intended to disrupt the peace process or for any other purposes. Commends the Government of Israel for its strong condemnation of the Hebron killings, for reaching out to the victims' families, for taking swift and appropriate action to respond to the threat posed by the extremists, and for pledging its commitment to proceed immediately with resuming the peace talks. Supports President Clinton's efforts to reinvigorate the peace process. Urges all parties and others involved in the Middle East peace talks to apply renewed energy to achieve their prompt and just conclusion within the framework of the September 13, 1993, Declaration of Principles.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 1994
Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to utilize the resources of Fort Wadsworth in the Staten Island Unit, Fort Hancock in the Sandy Hook Unit, and Floyd Bennett Field in the Jamaica Bay and Breezy Point Units of the Gateway National Recreational Area in New York and New Jersey to provide for and support programs and activities that foster research, education, and demonstration projects concerning the environment, international affairs, cultural understanding, and health and science. Authorizes the Secretary to utilize the resources of Fort Wadsworth for any other purposes consistent with the community reuse plan or other initiatives for Naval Station New York. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into: (1) appropriate leases or other agreements with any person, firm, association, organization, corporation, or governmental entity for the use of any property within Fort Wadsworth, Fort Hancock, and Floyd Bennett Field in accordance with the general management plan for the Area or for any of the purposes set forth in the Act establishing such Area; (2) appropriate leases or other agreements with any Federal agency to house its employees engaged in activities or programs at Fort Wadsworth, Fort Hancock, Floyd Bennett Field, or in the New York City metropolitan area; and (3) interagency permitting agreements or other appropriate agreements with the Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Transportation, and other Federal agencies to locate their activities and house their employees at Fort Wadsworth, Fort Hancock, and Floyd Bennett Field. Requires the Secretary to establish competitive bidding procedures to be used for the issuance of such leases. Requires proceeds from the leases, concession, other use authorizations, and services that may be provided by the Area to be retained by the Secretary and credited to the appropriation bearing the cost of preservation, restoration, maintenance, improvement, repair, and related expenses incurred by the Secretary with respect to Fort Wadsworth, Fort Hancock, and Floyd Bennett Field properties, with the balance used to defray other costs incurred by the Secretary in the administration of such properties. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into cooperative agreements and permits for any of the purposes set out in this 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 · 24 February 1994
Explosives Control Act of 1994 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit the receipt in interstate or foreign commerce of explosive materials (other than black powder or smokeless powder in amounts less than 50 pounds) without a Federal permit. Makes provisions of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act applicable with respect to the transfer of explosive materials (i.e., requiring a Federal explosives licensee to conduct a criminal background check before the transfer of explosive materials to a non-licensee). Authorizes a person denied explosive materials pursuant to this Act due to the provision of erroneous information relating to the person by any State or political subdivision thereof or by the national instant criminal background check system, or who was not prohibited from receipt of explosive materials under this Act, to bring an action against the State or political subdivision responsible for providing the information or denying the transfer, or against the United States (as the case may be) for an order directing that the erroneous information be corrected or that the transfer be approved. Grants the court discretion to allow the prevailing party a reasonable attorney's fee as part of the costs.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1994
Health Care Reform Job Preservation Act - Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the Director of the Congressional Budget Office each to study and report to the Congress and the President on the effect of any comprehensive health care reform legislation passed by the 103d Congress on: (1) job loss and gain; (2) shifts to jobs requiring lesser levels of education or skill; (3) shifts from full-time to part-time employment; and (4) decrease in wages or salaries. Provides that any such comprehensive health care reform legislation shall not take effect until such job impact reports are completed and the President submits to the Congress written notification that the President has reviewed the reports and knows of any job losses and shifts in types of available jobs the reports may predict.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1994
Violence With Firearms Prevention Act of 1994 - Prohibits and sets penalties for transporting or receiving a firearm in interstate or foreign commerce with knowledge or intent that it will be used to kill, injure, or intimidate any individual. Increases penalties where personal injury results and in the case of a second, third, or subsequent conviction. Subjects violators to the death penalty where death results. Prohibits: (1) the court from imposing a probationary sentence upon, or suspending the sentence of, any person convicted of a violation of this Act; and (2) the term of imprisonment imposed under this Act from running concurrently with any other term of imprisonment, including that imposed for any offense in which the firearm was used.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Interdiction Title II: Alien Smuggling Title III: Employment Title IV: Government Benefits Title V: Criminal Aliens Title VI: Terrorist Aliens Title VII: Inspections Title VIII: Asylum Illegal Immigration Control Act of 1994 - Title I:Interdiction - Directs the Attorney General to install additional physicial barriers in high illegal-entry border areas. (Sec. 102) Authorizes appropriations for additional Border Patrol personnel. (Sec. 103) Directs the Attorney General and the Commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to: (1) implement an interior repatriation program for illegal aliens who have been deported at least three times; and (2) increase border detention facilities. (Sec. 104) Authorizes the transfer of closed military bases to be used as Federal incarceration facilities for illegal aliens. (Sec. 105) Authorizes the Attorney General to require vessels to provide INS with port of entry notification. (Sec. 106) Directs the Commissioner to collect a user fee for each U.S. land entry. (Sec. 107) Establishes a Border Control Trust Fund. Title II: Alien Smuggling - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act) to expand INS forfeiture authority for smuggling or harboring illegal aliens. (Sec. 202) Brings alien smuggling operations under the purview of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) provisions. (Sec. 203) Amends the Act to increase penalties for certain alien smuggling offenses. (Sec. 204) Amends Federal law to authorize INS wiretaps for alien smuggling investigations. Title III: Employment - Amends the Act to revise alien employment documentation and employer verification provisions, including social security card enhancements. (Sec. 302) Authorizes appropriations for additional INS investigators. Title IV: Government Benefits - Prohibits direct Federal benefits (except for emergency medical care) or housing assistance to an alien who is not a permanent resident, a refugee, an asylee, or a parolee. (Sec. 402) Prohibits unemployment benefits to an alien who has not been granted INS work authorization. (Sec. 404) Authorizes appropriations for the Save System. (Sec. 405) Reduces Federal assistance by 20 percent to any locality that refuses to cooperate in the arrest and deportation of illegal aliens. (Sec. 406) Establishes a uniform vital statistics pilot program for three States with high numbers of undocumented aliens. Authorizes appropriations. Title V: Criminal Aliens - Amends the Act to include aliens on criminal probation or criminal parole among the categories of aliens subject to special registration. (Sec. 502) Expands the definition of "aggravated felony." (Sec. 503) Expedites deportation proceedings for specified criminal aliens. (Sec. 504) Provides for judicial deportation of aliens convicted of an aggravated felony. (Sec. 505) Restricts specified deportation defenses. (Sec. 508) Directs the Commissioner to operate a criminal alien tracking center. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 509) Directs the Secretary of State and the Attorney General to study the use and effectiveness of the Prisoner Transfer Treaty with Mexico to remove convicted aliens from the United States. Title VI: Terrorist Aliens - Amends the Act to establish procedures for the removal of alien terrorists, including a special court to hear such cases. (Sec. 602) Makes membership in a terrorist organization a basis for U.S. exclusion. Title VII: Inspections - Directs the Attorney General to establish: (1) specified numbers of preinspection stations at foreign airports identified as last departure points for the greatest numbers of U.S.-arriving passengers and at those with the greatest numbers of U.S.-arriving undocumented aliens; and (2) an air carrier consultant program. (Sec. 702) Provides for the training of airline personnel in fraudulent document detection. (Sec. 703) Amends Federal law to increase specified passport and visa penalties. Title VIII: Asylum - Amends the Act to revise asylum procedures. (Sec. 802) Sets forth mandatory and discretionary conditions for granting provisional asylum.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 1994
Head Start Act Amendments of 1994 - Amends the Head Start Act to reauthorize and revise Head Start programs. (Sec. 2) Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish quality standards for Head Start agencies and programs, including standards for performance in providing required health, education, parental involvement, social, and other services, for administrative and financial management, and for facilities' condition and location. Provides for monitoring and for corrective actions or terminations if minimum standards are not met. (Sec. 3) Eliminates a provision freezing regulations. Provides that terminations, reductions, or suspensions of financial assistance upheld in administrative hearings shall not be stayed pending any judicial appeal. (Sec. 4) Revises classroom teacher qualifications and waiver requirements. Directs the Secretary to: (1) provide technical assistance and training to enable Head Start agencies to establish positions for mentor teachers; and (2) review and revise standards for family service workers, and promote model curricula and credentials for such workers. Authorizes the Secretary to establish a program of Head Start Fellowships for staff in local Head Start programs and other individuals working in the field of child development and Directs the Secretary to develop model staffing pattern plans to guide local Head Start agencies and programs. (Sec. 5) Sets forth goals and priorities for training and technical assistance. (Sec. 6) Allocates funds for program expansion. (Sec. 7) Authorizes the Secretary to allow certain amounts to be allocated to quality improvement activities (in addition to the required 25 percent portion of appropriations). Sets forth goals and authorized activities for which quality improvement funds are to be used. (Sec. 8) Requires each Head Start agency to coordinate with schools and promote parental involvement to facilitate children's transition from program to school. Directs the Secretaries of HHS and of Education to assess results of demonstration projects under the Head Start Transition Project Act and provide technical assistance to communities to implement promising practices from those demonstrations. Extends the set-aside for the Head Start Transition Project Act. (Sec. 9) Directs the Secretary to carry on a continuing program of research, demonstrations, and evaluations of Head Start programs, and to report on such activities. (Sec. 10) Establishes programs for families with infants and toddlers. Directs the Secretary to make grants for: (1) programs providing family-centered services for low-income families with very young children, designed to promote child development, parental role fulfillment, and movement toward self-sufficiency; and (2) evaluation of, and training and technical assistance for, projects under the Comprehensive Child Development Centers Act of 1988. (Repeals the latter Act because its functions are being consolidated under the Head Start Act.) (Sec. 11) Revises parental involvement considerations with respect to designation of new Head Start agencies well as functions of such agencies. Requires agencies to offer family literacy services and parenting skills training to parents of participating children. Allows agencies also to opt to offer such parents parental social self-sufficiency training, substance abuse counseling, or other partnership in education activities. Requires a family needs assessment, including consultation with the parents, for each participating family. (Sec. 12) Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 13) Revises the poverty line definition. Updates hold-harmless provisions for Indian and Migrant programs. Specifies that each Head Start program may use Head Start funds for full-day and full-year services and shall be permitted to provide more than one year of services to eligible children in the State.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 1994
World War II Peace Accords Commemorative Coin Act - Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the 50th anniversary of the signing of the World War II peace accords on the U.S.S. Missouri should not go unrecognized at the national level; and (2) the United States should recognize such anniversary by minting and issuing a commemorative coin. Sets forth specifications for half dollar clad coins. Mandates that the surcharges received from the sale of such coins be paid by the Secretary of the Treasury to the Admiral Nimitz Foundation for the purpose of preserving the Pacific War heritage of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 1994
Head Start Enhanced Parental Involvement and Family Literacy Act of 1994 - Amends the Head Start Act to require parental involvement activities, family literacy services, parenting skills training, and family needs assessments. Authorizes Head Start agencies to offer parental social self-sufficiency training, substance abuse counseling, or opportunities for parents to assist in program operation. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide training and technical assistance for Head Start personnel engaged in providing parental involvement services. Makes compliance with parental involvement requirements a consideration in funding renewal or supplementation decisions.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 1994
Prohibits the Department of Transportation or any other Federal department, agency, or instrumentality from requiring any State or political subdivision to convert highway signs to metric units.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 1994
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow penalty-free withdrawals from individual retirement plans for expenses related to a federally-declared disaster.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 1994
Capital Formation and Jobs Creation Act of 1994 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a 50 percent income tax deduction for the net capital gain of both corporate and noncorporate taxpayers. Requires indexing, based on the gross national product deflator, of the adjusted basis of certain assets (corporate stock and tangible property that is a capital asset or property used in a trade or business) that have been held for more than one year at the time of sale or other transfer, solely for the purpose of determining gain or loss. Allows an itemized deduction for losses arising from the sale or exchange of a principal residence.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 1994
Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to study and report to the Congress on the feasibility of using biometric devices to verify the identity of applicants and recipients of Aid to Families with Dependent Children under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 1994
Expresses the sense of the Congress that a postage stamp should be issued to honor the 100th anniversary of the Jewish War Veterans of the United States and that the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee of the U.S. Postal Service should make such recommendation to the Postmaster General.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1993
Anti-Economic Discrimination Act of 1993 - Prohibits the sale or lease of defense articles or services by the U.S. Government to any country or international organization that is known to have sent letters to U.S. firms requesting compliance with, or soliciting information regarding compliance with, the secondary or tertiary Arab boycott unless the President certifies to the relevant congressional committees that the country or organization does not currently send such letters. Authorizes the President to waive such prohibition for a period of one year if the waiver is: (1) in the national interest and will promote objectives to eliminate the Arab boycott; or (2) in the national security interest. Provides for extensions of waivers upon notification of the relevant congressional committees.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Telecommunications Infrastructure and Competition Title II: Communications Competitiveness National Communications Competition and Information Infrastructure Act of 1993 - Title I: Telecommunications Infrastructure and Competition - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 (the Act) to state that the duty of a common carrier to furnish communications services includes the duty to furnish that service in accordance with such regulations concerning openness and accessibility of common carrier networks as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) may prescribe in the public interest. (Sec. 102) Requires local telephone exchange service carriers to provide equal access to and interconnection with the facilities of the carrier's networks to any other carrier or person providing telecommunications services reasonably requesting such equal access and interconnection, so that the networks are fully interoperable. Directs the FCC to: (1) establish and implement regulations for such equal access and interconnection; and (2) establish reasonable compensation rates to the carrier for such services. Requires the convening of a Federal-State Joint Board to determine equal access and interconnection standards. Preempts contrary State law. Requires local carriers to prepare and file tariffs with respect to services or elements offered to comply with such standards, along with supporting information. Requires the FCC to determine whether a telecommunications service or provider of such service is or will be subject to reasonable competition and to take appropriate action thereafter. Requires the establishment of a Federal-State Joint Board to recommend actions to the FCC and State commissions for the preservation of universal service. Directs the FCC, at least once every three years, to review standards and requirements concerning equal access, interconnection, and the preservation of universal service, and take appropriate action thereafter. Requires such review to include a study of rural phone service. Includes among the duties of a communications service provider the duty to furnish such service in accordance with regulations concerning functionality and reliability as established by the FCC. Directs the FCC to initiate an inquiry to consider rules and policies necessary to make open platform service (a switched, end-to-end digital telecommunications service) available to all subscribers at reasonable rates. Provides for regulations, oversight, and determination as to whether such requirements would result in adverse competitive impact. Directs the FCC to establish network reliability and quality performance measures to ensure the continued maintenance and evolution of common carrier facilities and service. Provides certain regulatory exemptions for rural areas. (Sec. 103) Directs the FCC to: (1) issue a final determination within 180 days after a complaint concerning an alleged discriminatory interconnection; and (2) provide for the expedited licensing of new technologies or services related to the furnishing of telecommunications services. (Sec. 105) Requires any application filed by a provider of telephone exchange service for authority to construct or extend a line to address the means by which such construction or extension will meet the network access needs of individuals with disabilities. Title II: Communications Competitiveness - Amends the Act to allow a common telecommunications services carrier to provide video programming (cable TV service) directly to subscribers in its telephone service area, as long as the video programming is provided through a video programming affiliate that is separate from such carrier (with separate books, records and accounts). Sets forth rules and regulations concerning interaction and business transactions between a common carrier and an affiliate with respect to the provision of video programming services. Requires the common carrier with a video programming affiliate to establish a video platform (a listing and description of video services offered) and to provide capacity (open channels) in its video programming for unaffiliated video program providers. Prohibits a common carrier from: (1) cross-subsidizing costs of telephone service with costs of video programming service among its customers; and (2) buying out a cable system located within its telephone exchange area and owned by an unaffiliated person. (Sec. 201) Directs the FCC to convene a Federal-State Joint Board to establish practices, classifications, and regulations necessary to ensure proper jurisdictional separation and cost allocation of establishing and providing a video platform and allocations of those costs between regulated and unregulated services, including affiliated video programming. Provides for: (1) the applicability of franchising and other requirements; and (2) rural area exemptions from certain provisions of this title.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Family Tax Credit Title II: Reducing the Cost of Capital by Reducing Capital Gains Tax Rates and Indexing the Basis of Certain Assets Title III: Neutral Cost Recovery Title IV: Increasing National Savings Through Individual Retirement Plus Accounts, Indexing for Inflation the Income Thresholds for Taxing Social Security Benefits, etc. Title V: Cap on Federal Spending and Establishment of Commission to Reduce Federal Spending Title VI: Elimination of Social Security Earnings Test Family, Investment, Retirement, Savings, and Tax Fairness Act of 1993 - Title I: Family Tax Credit - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individuals a tax credit of $500 multiplied by the number of qualifying children who have not attained age 18. Places limitations on such credit and adjusts it for inflation. Title II: Reducing the Cost of Capital by Reducing Capital Gains Tax Rates and Indexing the Basis of Certain Assets - Reduces the individual and corporate capital gains rate from 34 percent to 15 percent. Reduces such tax to 7.5 percent for low- and middle-income taxpayers. Provides for the phaseout of personal exemptions and the overall limitation on itemized deductions to take into account adjusted gross income which has been reduced by net capital gain. Requires indexing, based on the gross national product deflator, of the adjusted basis of certain assets (corporate stock and tangible property that is a capital asset of property used in a trade or business) that have been held for more than one year at the time of sale or other transfer, solely for the purpose of determining gain or loss. Provides for indexing the limitation on capital losses of noncorporate taxpayers. Title III: Neutral Cost Recovery - Allows the depreciation deduction to be computed based on a neutral recovery basis for property placed in service after December 31, 1993. Disallows the interest deduction for such property to ensure that equity financing receives the same treatment as debt financing. Provides special depreciation rules applicable under the adjusted current earnings provisions of the minimum tax for 1994. Title IV: Increasing National Savings Through Individual Retirement Plus Accounts, Indexing for Inflation the Income Thresholds for Taxing Social Security Benefits, etc. - Allows individuals to establish individual retirement plus accounts with tax treatment similar to that for individual retirement plans. Makes contributions to such account nondeductible. Provides for qualified distributions from such accounts. Other than for general retirement purposes, including special purpose distributions made for the purchase of a first home and for medical or educational purposes. Prohibits special purpose distributions from being made during the first five years of the account. Provides an inflation adjustment after 1996 for income thresholds in determining the taxation of social security benefits. Excludes income from individual retirement plans when determining modified adjusted gross income. Provides an inflation adjustment after 1996 for the maximum amount allowable as a deduction for retirement savings. Title V: Cap on Federal Spending and Establishment of Commission to Reduce Federal Spending - Establishes the Commission on Reduction of Federal Spending to: (1) recommend specific reductions in Federal activities to assure that spending does not grow at a rate in excess of two percent per year through FY 1998; and (2) report a bill to the Congress with changes necessary to achieve such reductions. Establishes an advisory council to assist the Commission. Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to set forth sequestration procedures when the increase in annual Federal spending exceeds the amount resulting from an annual rate of inflation of two percent. Title VI: Elimination of Social Security Earnings Test - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to remove the limitation on the amount of outside income which beneficiaries who have attained retirement age may earn without incurring a reduction in benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1993
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the United States and the international community should ensure that the people of Bosnia-Herzegovina have adequate medical supplies, food, and other humanitarian assistance during the winter of 1993-1994; (2) the United States should support preparations to facilitate a relief effort in order to prevent a possible humanitarian disaster; (3) all parties should cooperate with the provision of humanitarian assistance to those in need throughout the former Yugoslav republics, especially Bosnia-Herzegovina; (4) the United States should provide similar assistance to the peoples endangered this winter throughout the former Yugoslav republics, especially Macedonia; and (5) the United States should expend appropriated funds for such purposes as expeditiously as possible.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1993
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President and Secretary of State should: (1) raise the matter of Hugo Princz (a U.S. citizen who was liberated by U.S. armed forces at the close of World War II and whose application for reparations from the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) as a "survivor" was rejected) with the FRG, including the Chancellor and Foreign Minister, and ensure that this matter will be expeditiously resolved and that fair reparations will be provided to Princz; and (2) state that the United States will not countenance the continued discriminatory treatment of Princz.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1993
Mickey Leland Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention and Parenthood Act of 1993 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to replace the title on adolescent family life demonstration projects with a title on adolescent pregnancy prevention, care, and research grants. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to provide, supplement, or improve the quality of prevention and care services to pregnant adolescents and their male partners, adolescent parents, and nonpregnant adolescents. Requires grantees to charge fees for services only under a fee schedule, approved by the Secretary, based on the income of the person and taking into account the difficulty adolescents face in obtaining resources to pay for services. Prohibits discrimination because of an individual's inability to pay for services. Sets forth priorities in making grants, including giving priority to applicants that: (1) serve an area with a high incidence of adolescent pregnancy; and (2) serve an area with a high proportion of low-income families and low availability of care programs. Directs the Secretary to coordinate Federal policies and programs providing services relating to the prevention of initial and recurrent adolescent pregnancies and providing care services, including by requiring grantees under these provisions to report concerning Federal, State, and local policies that interfere with delivery and coordination of programs of care for pregnant adolescents and adolescent parents. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to institutions of higher education to support and disseminate the results of research relating to adolescent pregnancy. Limits grants or contracts to: (1) one year, subject to renewal for four additional one-year periods; and (2) subject to waiver, a specified dollar amount. Directs the Secretary to establish a system for the review of grant and contract applications which is similar to the system of scientific peer review of the National Institutes of Health. Allows grants only to programs determined by the review panel to have scientific merit. Authorizes appropriations. Prohibits using grant funds for the performance of an abortion.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1993
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the President should seek a decision by the United Nations to immediately and completely cut off the delivery of natural gas to Serbia; and (2) such cutoff should continue until the regular and unimpeded flow of natural gas to Sarajevo and other areas of Bosnia-Herzegovina is fully restored.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1993
Prohibits the shipment in interstate or foreign commerce of steel jaw leghold traps and of articles of fur derived from animals trapped in such traps. Prescribes criminal penalties for violations of this Act. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to reward nongovernment informers for information leading to a conviction under this Act. Empowers enforcement officials to detain, search, and seize suspected merchandise or documents and to make arrests with and without warrants. Subjects seized merchandise to forfeiture.
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: AFDC Transition and Work Program Title II: Paternity Establishment Title III: Expansion of Statutory Flexibility of States Title IV: Expansion of State and Local Flexibility Title V: Child Support Enforcement Title VI: Welfare Restrictions for Aliens Title VII: Controlling Welfare Costs Title VIII: Consolidated Block Grant to States for Food Assistance Title IX: Miscellaneous Responsibility and Empowerment Support Program Providing Employment, Child Care, and Training Act - Title I: AFDC Transition and Work Program - Amends part F (Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program) (JOBS) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to give the JOBS program the new purpose of assuring that needy families with children obtain not only the education and training needed to prepare them for a life without welfare, but the work experience as well. (Sec. 101) Requires State JOBS programs to include a transition component and a work supplementation component that: (1) are each allowed to include any State work experience program approved by the Secretary; and (2) with respect to the first component, must include the State's job search program, and, with respect to the second component, may include the State's work supplementation or community work experience program. Amends part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) of SSA title IV to revise State AFDC plan participation requirements to incorporate participation in the two JOBS program components above under specified guidelines as a requirement for qualified individuals to receive AFDC. Imposes sanctions for a qualified individual's failure to participate in the JOBS program as required under such guidelines, which include a reduction in AFDC benefits and eventual benefit termination for repeated failures. Revises the exemptions from JOBS program participation requirements. Extends to all States the option to limit AFDC-UP. Increases State JOBS program and work program participation rates with regard to, respectively, AFDC-eligible individuals and unemployed parents. Provides for additional payments to States for JOBS programs. (Sec. 102) Amends community work experience and work supplementation program provisions. Title II: Paternity Establishment - Amends SSA title IV part A to: (1) provide for denial or reduction of AFDC for children whose paternity is not established; and (2) require unmarried individuals under 19 who are eligible for AFDC and are pregnant or with dependent children under their care to reside at home in order to receive AFDC. (Sec. 203) Amends SSA title IV part D (Child Support and Establishment of Paternity) to require earlier specified paternity establishment efforts by States. Expresses the encouragement of the Congress for States to develop procedures in public hospitals and clinics to facilitate the acknowledgment of paternity. (Sec. 204) Increases the paternity establishment percentage. Title III: Expansion of Statutory Flexibility of States - Amends SSA title IV part A to give States the option to: (1) convert AFDC into a block grant program; (2) exempt themselves from otherwise mandatory denial of AFDC where either parent is a minor; (3) treat families moving interstate who apply for AFDC in their new State of residence (where they have resided for less than on year) under the AFDC rules of their former State of residence; (4) reduce AFDC for parents under 21 who have dropped out of school and dependent children who, without good cause, do not maintain minimum school attendance; (5) exempt themselves from otherwise mandatory denial of AFDC for additional children; (6) modify certain AFDC income disregard rules; (7) provide for a married couple transitional benefit in cases where an AFDC recipient marries an individual who is not a parent of the recipient's child, and the resulting family would become ineligible for AFDC by reason of the marriage; (8) disregard certain savings and income of a family on AFDC designated for education, training, employability, home purchase, or residence change in determining eligibility for AFDC; and (9) condition the receipt of AFDC on the recipient's attendance at parenting and money management classes and prior approval of any action requiring a change in the educational institution attended by the recipient's dependent child. Title IV: Expansion of State and Local Flexibility -Establishes an Interagency Waiver Request Board in order to provide a focal point within the Federal Government for the development and coordination of waiver requests to improve opportunities for low-income individuals and families. (Sec. 402) Prescribes contents of applications to implement Federal assistance plans, as well as the review, approval, implementation, and evaluation processes. (Sec. 405) Requires any entity applying for plan approval to establish a Public Private Partnership Committee to advise it on plan development and implementation. Title V: Child Support Enforcement - Provides for a national system for employee reporting of any child support owed, the obligee involved, and other specified related information on W-4 forms for employer withholding and distribution of support owed, and reporting of related information to the State involved for availability to other States through the Interstate Locate Network established under this title. (Sec. 502) Makes various changes with regard to State child support order registries, the Parent Locater Service, regulations for sharing child support information, withholding orders, and noncustodial parents with child support arrearages who are receiving certain public welfare assistance. Title VI: Welfare Restrictions for Aliens - Makes aliens (except refugees, permanent residents, and certain current residents) ineligible for various specified types of public welfare assistance, including non-emergency related assistance under Medicaid, food stamps, and job training assistance. (Sec. 602) Amends part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require State AFDC agencies to provide information on illegal aliens to the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Title VII: Controlling Welfare Costs - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act), and other Federal law to establish various specified measures for controlling welfare costs, including Federal spending caps. Title VIII: Consolidated Block Grant to States for Food Assistance - Repeals the Food Stamp Act of 1977, National School Lunch Act, Commodity Distribution Reform Act and WIC Amendments of 1987, and other specified Federal laws and replaces them with a: (1) State food assistance block grant program to provide food assistance to economically disadvantaged individuals and families (eligible populations); and (2) new food coupon program. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 803) Grants the Secretary of Agriculture and the Commodity Credit Corporation the authority to sell surplus commodities and foodstuffs to the States to provide food assistance to eligible populations. Title IX: Miscellaneous - Amends SSA title IV part A to require AFDC applicants and recipients to undergo any necessary substance abuse treatment as a condition of receiving AFDC. (Sec. 902) Amends SSA title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) to: (1) make ineligible for SSI benefits individuals receiving SSI on the basis of a disability resulting from illegal drug addiction who continue to use illegal drugs or refuse to be tested for them; and (2) make representative payee changes. (Sec. 903) Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) conduct research projects to evaluate the impact of education and training programs on the ability of individuals to end participation in the AFDC program; (2) conduct demonstration projects and report to the Congress on whether providing benefits based on need through the use of electronic cards and automatic teller machines would reduce administrative costs and fraud; and (3) establish a commission to determine the cost and feasibility of creating an interstate system to compare the social security numbers of all AFDC recipients in order to identify those recipients receiving AFDC from multiple States. (Sec. 904) Amends SSA to require State AFDC applicants to participate in job search activities while the application is pending, unless a State by law exempts itself from this requirement. (Sec. 906) Public Housing Rent Reform and Empowerment Act - Amends the United States Housing Act of 1937 with regard to the determination of income and rent charges. Authorizes the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to allow, upon request, under certain circumstances, a public housing agency or resident management corporation to carry out a demonstration program to determine the feasibility and desirability of providing such entities with the authority to establish policies for agency-administered public housing projects, without regard to the public housing requirements of the United States Housing Act of 1937. (Sec. 907) Amends SSA title IV part A to deny AFDC for certain children who have not received appropriate medical examinations and immunizations. Amends the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act with regard to childhood immunizations. Requires the Surgeon General to issue and periodically revise recommendations for the immunization of children under age six.
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1993
United States Military Academy Bicentennial Commemorative Coin Act of 1993 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue five-dollar gold coins, one-dollar silver coins, and half dollar clad coins emblematic of the U.S. Military Academy. Mandates that surcharges collected from coin sales be paid to the Association of Graduates, U.S. Military Academy, to assist its efforts to provide direct support to the Corps of Cadets, U.S. Military Academy.
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
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Redesignation of Environmental Protection Agency as Department of Environmental Protection Title II: Administrative Provisions Department of Environmental Protection Act - Title I: Redesignation of Environmental Protection Agency as Department of Environmental Protection - Redesignates the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the Department of Environmental Protection to be headed by a Secretary of the Environment. (Sec. 109) Requires the Secretary to establish a permanent information resources management steering committee and to designate a Chief Information Officer. (Sec. 110) Directs the Secretary to develop policies for encouraging greater public access to departmental information and to maintain a public access system that provides an inventory of the Department's information services and other holdings. (Sec. 111) Establishes a Bureau of Environmental Statistics, an Office of Environmental Justice, and an Advisory Committee on Environmental Justice. Requires the Director of the Office to promote environmental justice for all people wherever they are located or work in the United States and regardless of income, race, ethnicity, or national origin. (Sec. 113) Requires the Secretary to: (1) provide for the acquisition and development of the best credible and unbiased scientific information; and (2) implement peer review and quality assurance guidelines. (Sec. 114) Establishes conflict-of-interest reporting requirements for members of Department advisory committees who are not Federal employees. (Sec. 115) Permits the Department to enter into an umbrella contract only if the contract: (1) does not exceed five years (ten years for a response action contract or a longer period under unusual and compelling circumstances); (2) is awarded pursuant to full and open competition, except under specified conditions; and (3) does not authorize the contractor to procure items on behalf of the Federal Government, other than items procured under and for response action contracts and in which the Government has all rights and interests. Defines an "umbrella contract" as a contract that: (1) provides for the performance of specific advisory and assistance services but does not procure or specify a firm quantity of services; (2) provides for services to be supplied in response to Federal task orders; (3) requires the contractor to provide a stated amount of effort over a given period of time; and (4) has a maximum potential value of at least $1 million, is not a fixed price contract, and is for a period longer than one year. Lists subcontracting requirements. (Sec. 116) Declares that it shall be the policy of the Department to prevent the transfer of inherently governmental functions to private sector contractors. (Sec. 117) Disallows indirect costs incurred by a Department contractor if a cost submitted is unallowable because it is in violation of a cost principle in the Federal Acquisition Regulation or other law. Applies this requirement to contracts in excess of $100,000 other than fixed-price contracts without cost incentives. Prescribes penalties for the submission of unallowable costs. (Sec. 118) Lists unallowable costs as costs of entertainment, gifts, or recreation for contractor employees. Title II: Administrative Provisions - Sets forth provisions governing: (1) the acquisition of copyrights and patents by the Secretary; (2) the acceptance of gifts; (3) the departmental seal; and (4) the use of existing stationery, forms, and other EPA supplies.
United States · United States Congress · 1 November 1993
Federal Mandate Reduction, Reform, and Budget Act of 1993 - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to set forth reporting requirements for the Office of Management and Budget and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) with respect to reducing the direct costs to States and local governments of complying with Federal mandates. Requires concurrent resolutions on the budget to provide for such reductions until such costs do not exceed three percent of the estimated gross national product for the same fiscal year as the costs will be incurred. Requires CBO to prepare an analysis of mandated costs for States and local governments for each public bill or resolution reported in the Congress (except those from Appropriations Committees). Requires a similar analysis in the President's annual budget submissions. Requires initial regulatory flexibility analyses for proposed rules that establish or implement new Federal mandates to contain a description of the nature and amount of monetary costs to be incurred by State and local governments. Requires Federal agencies to prepare a cost estimate and cost benefit analysis of such mandates that would cost State and local governments at least $10 million for a fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Smuggling and Fraud Title II: Asylum Title III: Inspections Title IV: Authorization of Appropriations for the Immigration and Naturalization Service Immigration Enforcement and Asylum Reform Act of 1993 - Title I: Smuggling and Fraud - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide procedures for expedited exclusion of aliens who arrive without proper documentation or who are determined by a special asylum officer not to have a proper claim of asylum (based upon a credible fear of prosecution). Limits judicial review to habeas corpus. Creates a separate offense and penalty for an alien smuggler who seriously injures or jeopardizes the life of an alien. Extends penalties to persons who contract to bring illegal labor. Treats smuggling as an aggravated felony. Expands Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) forfeiture authority to include any real or personal property used or intended to be used to smuggle aliens, or that constitutes, is derived from, or traceable to such activities. Exempts property used without the owner's consent or knowledge, or not to his or her benefit. Amends Federal law to authorize INS wiretaps for alien smuggling investigations. Brings alien smuggling operations under the purview of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) provisions. Title II: Asylum - Revises asylum procedures. Sets forth mandatory and discretionary conditions for granting provisional asylum. States that asylum applications shall be determined by specially trained asylum officers. Terminates an alien's claim for failure to appear at the application provisional asylum hearing. Title III: Inspections - Directs the Attorney General to: (1) establish specified numbers of preinspection stations at foreign airports identified as last departure points for the greatest numbers of U.S.-arriving passengers and at those with the greatest numbers of U.S.-arriving undocumented aliens (and to assign additional immigration officers at such airports without preinspection stations); and (2) establish an expedited inspection process for U.S. citizens returning by air from abroad. Revises the pilot visa waiver program to: (1) make it permanent; (2) repeal certain paperwork requirements; (3) subject participants to exclusion or deportation without appeal (except for an asylum claim); and (4) require carriers to distribute program information to passengers. Provides for the training of airline personnel in detection of fraudulent documents. Authorizes the Attorney General to reduce, refund, or waive the fine for bringing illegal aliens into the United States if: (1) a carrier followed prescribed screening procedures; or (2) other justifiable circumstances exist. Title IV: Authorization of Appropriations for the Immigration and Naturalization Service - Authorizes appropriations for the Border Patrol.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 1993
Urges the Attorney General and the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to cooperate with the U.S. Postal Service and the Polly Klaas Search Center to use nationwide mailings to disseminate information concerning the kidnapping of Polly Klaas. Commends the community of Petaluma, California, the Petaluma Police Department, and the FBI for their hard work on this case.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 1993
Authorizes the Attorney General and the Secretary of State to jointly designate Portugal, Ireland, and Greece as pilot program countries if the rate of refusals of nonimmigrant visitor visas for such countries meets specified criteria.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 1993
Establishes a toll-free number to inform consumers regarding: (1) whether a product is made in America; (2) where products may be purchased; and (3) the purchase of products. Allows registration of American-made products.