United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2000
American Communities Investment Act of 1999 - Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to revise requirements for the maximum amount of outstanding loan guarantees for a single issuer in connection with community development. Mandates participation of the major stakeholders in the community in which activities funded with guaranteed obligations will be implemented. Amends the Federal Home Loan Bank Act to set forth parameters within which: (1) Federal home loan banks may make advances to a nonmember mortgagee for community lending purposes; and (2) each Federal home loan bank shall establish a Community Lending Fund to facilitate community lending by its members and nonmember mortgagees.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2000
Children's Dental Health Preservation Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to States for the purpose of: (1) identifying children, eligible for Federal programs, at risk of developing dental caries and for the provision of preventative and therapeutic services in accordance with State practice acts to reduce oral disease occurrence; and (2) training of health care professionals to educate parents on oral disease prevention.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2000
Commends the parties to the peace process in Northern Ireland for progress in implementing the Good Friday Agreement and urges them to move expeditiously to complete the implementation. Expresses belief that implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Commission on Policing for Northern Ireland holds the promise of ensuring that the police service in Northern Ireland will gain the support of both nationalists and unionists. Calls upon the British Government to implement the recommendations contained in the Commission's final report.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2000
Congratulates: (1) the people and Government of the United Mexican States for the successful completion of the democratic multiparty elections for president and the legislature; and (2) President-elect Vincente Fox for his election victory and his commitment to democracy and a free-market oriented economy. Commends all Mexican citizens and political parties for their participation in the democratic process and their support for the strengthening of their democracy. Reaffirms the United States friendship with Mexico and our unequivocal commitment to encouraging democracy throughout Latin America.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2000
Expresses the sense of the Congress that Turkey should: (1) withdraw all its armed forces from the island of Cyprus; and (2) negotiate for the reunification of the Republic of Cyprus on the basis of existing United Nations Security Council resolutions.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2000
Ryan White CARE Act Amendments of 2000 - Title I: Emergency Relief for Areas with Substantial Need for Services - Subtitle A: HIV Health Services Planning Councils - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require that an HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) planning council reflect the demographics of the population of individuals with HIV disease (currently, the demographics of the epidemic) in the eligible area involved. Modifies requirements regarding council composition, including requiring representatives of former prisoners. Requires that at least 33 percent of the council be people who: (1) are receiving HIV-related services pursuant to a grant under provisions relating to emergency relief for areas with a substantial need for services (substantial need grant); and (2) are not officers, employees, consultants, or representatives of any entity that receives substantial need grant amounts. (Sec. 102) Modifies council duties, including regarding: (1) determining the size, demographics, and needs of the HIV disease population; (2) council establishment of fund allocation priorities; and (3) coordination with Federal grantees that provide HIV-related services in the area. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) develop epidemiologic measures for establishing the number of individuals with HIV disease who are not receiving HIV-related health services and for carrying out council duties; and (2) provide to the chief elected official receiving a substantial need grant guidelines and materials for training council members regarding council duties. (Sec. 103) Requires that council meetings and records be open to the public, subject to exception. Subtitle B: Type and Distribution of Grants - Makes permanent provisions requiring expedited disbursement of certain substantial need grant amounts. Requires, after fiscal year 2004, that the substantial need grant amount formula use the number of cases of HIV disease in the most recent year rather than the number of cases of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) in the most recent ten years, but until FY 2007 conditions that change on the Secretary's determination that there is sufficiently accurate and reliable data on HIV disease cases from all eligible areas, requiring the Secretary to consider: (1) the findings of a study mandated by title V of this Act; (2) the fiscal impact of using or of not using that data; and (3) the impact of the use of that data on the organization and delivery of HIV-related services. Modifies requirements regarding increases in the amount of a substantial need grant under expedited disbursement provisions. (Sec. 112) Requires that the amount of supplemental substantial need grants be determined by the Secretary based on a weighting of specified factors, with severe need counting one-third. Includes the current HIV disease prevalence, an increasing need for services, and unmet need for services as factors the Secretary must consider in determining severe need. Directs the Secretary, in determining the required factors, to develop a mechanism to use national, quantitative incidence data by 18 months after enactment of this Act (currently, by May 20, 1998). Requires mechanism modification based on the findings of a study mandated by title V of this Act. Removes provisions basing the amount of substantial need grants on substantial need grant applications. Subtitle C: Other Provisions - Requires that substantial need grant funds be used, among other purposes, for: (1) outreach to identify individuals with HIV disease who are not receiving HIV-related services; and (2) early intervention services. Requires that substantial need grants be used to provide health and support services to infants, children, youth, and women (currently, infants, children, and women) with HIV disease in the same ratio as those groups with HIV disease bear to those groups in the general population. Requires that the chief elected official of a substantial need grant-receiving area establish a quality management program to assess whether HIV health services under the substantial need grant are consistent with the most recent Public Health Service guidelines. (Sec. 123) Requires that official to ensure that the area's planning council: (1) reviews existing, available data on expenditures by substantial need grant recipient entities from their overall budget for administrative costs; and (2) makes a determination whether the financial compensation of any of those entity's officers or employees exceeds that of the official. Title II: Care Grant Program - Subtitle A: General Grant Provisions - Requires that grants to States to improve the quality, availability and organization of health care and support services for individuals with HIV disease (care grants) be used to provide health and support services to infants, children, youth, and women (currently, infants, children, and women) with HIV disease in the same ratio as those groups with HIV disease bear to those groups in the general population. (Sec. 202) Allows care grants to be used for support services, outreach activities, early intervention, and quality management. (Sec. 203) Modifies requirements regarding grants to establish HIV care consortia. (Sec. 204) Allows a State to meet a requirement to use a portion of its care grant to provide therapeutics to treat HIV disease or prevent related health deterioration (including prevention and treatment of opportunistic infections) by paying for health insurance or plans whose coverage includes a full range of such therapeutics and primary care. (Sec. 205) Requires care grant applications to contain determinations of the size, demographics, and needs of the population of individuals with HIV disease in the State. Modifies requirements regarding the comprehensive plan. Requires the public health agency that administers care grants for a State to engage in a public advisory planning process. (Sec. 206) Doubles, subject to appropriations, the minimum care grant allotment to each State and U.S. territory. Requires, after fiscal year 2004, that the care grant amount formula use the number of cases of HIV disease in the most recent year rather than the number of cases of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) in the most recent ten years, but until FY 2007 conditions that change on the Secretary's determination that there is sufficiently accurate and reliable data on HIV disease cases. Provides for increases in the formula amount. Requires, if an appropriations Act provides an amount exclusively for treatment drug grants, that two percent of that exclusive amount be reserved for supplemental grants to States whose HIV population's need is greater than the quantities available under treatment drug grants from the remaining unreserved 98 percent. Adds the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau to the list of U.S. territories. Adds the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to the list of territories for minimum allotment provisions but keeps it in the list of States for other care grant provisions. (Sec. 207) Replaces provisions mandating coordination by specified Federal agencies of Federal HIV programs with provisions directing the Secretary to make grants to States to supplement care grants for comprehensive services for communities that have a severe need for supplemental financial assistance to combat the HIV epidemic. Provides for funding for the supplemental grants. Subtitle B: Provisions Concerning Pregnancy and Perinatal Transmission of HIV - Removes provisions prohibiting (after testing of pregnant women and newborns has become a routine practice in U.S. health care) care grants to a State unless the State meets certain requirements regarding such testing. (Sec. 212) Adds HIV disease treatment services to the uses for which the Secretary may make a grant to a State that is following the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) regarding HIV counseling and voluntary testing for pregnant women. Authorizes appropriations. Prohibits using care grant appropriations for grants under this section. (Sec. 213) Directs the Secretary to provide for a study and report to appropriate congressional committees regarding: (1) the number of newborns with HIV born in the United States in the most recent year for which the information is available; (2) barriers that prevent or discourage an obstetrician from routinely offering pregnant women an HIV test and routinely testing newborns when the mother's HIV status is unknown; and (3) recommendations for each State for reducing perinatal HIV transmission. Requires States to make reasonable progress toward meeting the recommendations. Subtitle C: Certain Partner Notification Programs - Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States for partner counseling and referral services, provided the State meets certain requirements regarding: (1) partner notification and (for the partner and the infected individual) testing, counseling, and referral; (2) health entity reporting of positive test results to the State; (3) reporting to the CDC regarding partner notification; and (4) State cooperation with the CDC national partner notification. Prohibits grants to a State after fiscal year 2003 unless the State's reporting system for HIV cases produces sufficiently accurate and reliable data. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Early Intervention Services - Subtitle A: Formula Grants for States - Repeals provisions mandating formula grants to States for outpatient early intervention services regarding HIV disease. Subtitle B: Categorical Grants - Requires giving preference to rural or underserved areas in making currently-authorized categorical grants for outpatient early intervention services. Allows planning grants to be used, subject to limitation, to assist the recipients to expand their capacity to provide services, including early intervention services, in low income communities and affected subpopulations that are underserved. Subtitle C: General Provisions - Requires that the counseling that categorical grant recipients are required to provide to HIV-infected individuals emphasize that it is the duty of infected individuals to disclose their status to their sexual and needle-sharing partners, provide advice on how to make the disclosures and emphasize that it is the infected individual's continuing duty to avoid behaviors that expose others to HIV. (Sec. 322) Increases the percentage limit on administrative expenses. Requires recipients to establish a quality management program to assess the extent to which medical services are consistent with Public Health Service guidelines for treatment of HIV disease and related opportunistic infections. Title IV: Other Programs and Activities - Subtitle A: Certain Programs for Research, Demonstrations, or Training - Replaces a requirement that, with regard to grants for providing opportunities for women, infants, children, and youth to participate in HIV research and for providing to those groups outpatient health care and additional services, that a significant number of individuals in those groups be participating in research with a requirement that the grant applicant demonstrate linkages to research and how access to research is being offered to patients. Directs the Secretary to examine the distribution and availability of research regarding grantees to enhance and expand HIV-related research, especially in underrepresented communities. Requires grantees to implement a quality management program. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 402) Includes, as a use of currently-authorized grants and contracts for training health personnel: (1) training in prenatal and other gynecological care for women with HIV disease; and (2) developing protocols for the medical care of such women. Directs the Secretary to implement a strategy for the dissemination of HIV treatment information to care providers and patients. Adds accredited dental hygiene programs as possible recipients of currently-authorized grants with respect to oral health care to (sic) patients with HIV disease. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes grants to dental schools, post-doctoral dental education programs, and accredited dental hygiene programs that partner with community-based dentists to provide care to HIV patients in underserved areas. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes appropriations for grants and contracts to assist public and nonprofit private entities and schools and academic health science centers to train health personnel, train faculty, and develop and disseminate curricula and resource materials regarding the care of HIV patients and prevention of HIV infection among at risk individuals. Subtitle B: General Provisions in Title XXVI - Extends the authorization of appropriations for grants and contracts to evaluate programs carried out under title XXVI of the Public Health Service Act (HIV Health Care Services Program). (Sec. 412) Authorizes appropriations for collecting and providing data for program planning and evaluation under title XXVI. (Sec. 413) Adds the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the Health Care Financing Administration to the list of agencies (currently, the Health Resources and Services Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) charged with coordinating the planning, funding, and implementation (currently, coordinating the planning of the funding) of Federal HIV programs to enhance continuity of care and prevention services (currently, continuity of care). Requires that State, local, or private entities receiving title XXVI funds enhance continuity of care and prevention services (currently, continuity of care). (Sec. 414) Directs the Secretary to develop and submit to Congress a plan for the medical case management of and the provision of support services to individuals who had HIV disease on their date of release from the Federal or State penal system. (Sec. 415) Authorizes the Secretary to reduce title XXVI grants to a State or political subdivision if the State or subdivision fails to prepare audits. (Sec. 416) Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop and submit to Congress a plan for coordinating the disbursement of appropriations for substantial need grants with the disbursement for care grants; (2) within two years after enactment of this Act, implement the disbursement plan, notwithstanding any title XXVI provision inconsistent with the plan; (3) determine whether administration of those grants by the Secretary and grantee compliance efficiency would be improved by requiring biennial rather than annual applications; (4) develop and submit to Congress a plan for simplifying the application process for those grants; and (5) within two years after enactment of this Act, implement the simplified application plan, notwithstanding any title XXVI provision inconsistent with the plan. (Sec. 417) Removes provisions directing the Secretary to develop and implement a method for adjusting the percentages allocated to substantial need grants and care grants to account for substantial need grants to new areas and other relevant factors. Authorizes appropriations for substantial need and care grants. Title V: General Provisions - Directs the Secretary to provide for studies, and report to the appropriate congressional committees, on: (1) whether the surveillance system of each State provides for the reporting of HIV infection cases in a way that provides information on the number and demographic characteristics of the cases that is sufficiently accurate for the formula grants under substantial need and care grant provisions and, if not, recommendations for improvements; and (2) the appropriate epidemiological measures and their relationship to the financing and delivery of primary care and health related support services for low income, uninsured, and underinsured individuals with HIV disease. (Sec. 502) Requires the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to expand, intensify, and coordinate research and other NIH activities regarding development of reliable and affordable HIV tests that can be rapidly administered and whose results can be rapidly obtained (rapid HIV tests). Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary: (1) to report to appropriate congressional committees on the progress made toward, and barriers to, the premarket review and commercial distribution of rapid HIV tests; and (2) promptly after rapid HIV test commercial distribution begins, to establish or update guidelines for States, hospitals, and other entities regarding the availability of those tests for administration to pregnant women in labor or late stage pregnancy and whose HIV status is unknown. (Sec. 503) Directs the Secretary, of the amounts available to the Secretary for program management at the Health Resources and Services Administration, to spend amounts necessary to ensure at least a 20 percent increase in fiscal year 2001 over fiscal year 2000 of full- time-equivalent staff of the Bureau of HIV/AIDS who administer programs under title XXVI. Title VI: Effective Date - Sets forth the effective dates for this Act and its amendments.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2000
Immigration Services and Infrastructure Improvements Act of 2000 - Directs the Attorney General to take necessary measures to: (1) reduce the immigration application backlog and ensure that a subsequent backlog does not develop; and (2) make infrastructure improvements to effectively provide immigration services. Authorizes appropriations which shall be designated in the Treasury as the Immigration Services and Infrastructure Improvements Account. Directs the Attorney General to make specified backlog elimination reports.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2000
Declares that: (1) the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall establish a special task force to study the history and contributions of African American slave laborers in the construction of the U.S. Capitol; and (2) such task force shall recommend an appropriate recognition for them which could be displayed in a prominent location in the U.S. Capitol.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2000
Pharmaceutical Products Price Equity Act - Directs the President to issue such orders and regulations, and establish such procedures and reporting requirements, as the President determines to be appropriate to ensure that no pharmaceutical product is sold to any consumer in the United States at a price that is more than six percent above the average retail price at which such pharmaceutical product is sold in the five most industrialized, free-market countries, other than the United States. Sets forth enforcement and civil liability provisions. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2000
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the Federal Government has a responsibility to increase research funding to find a treatment and cure for polycystic kidney disease, to raise awareness about such disease, and to promote kidney organ donations; (2) all Americans should review their kidney health condition; and (3) organizations and health care providers should promote awareness of such disease and encourage its early detection.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2000
Declares that the House of Representatives: (1) reiterates its condemnation of the attack on the AMIA Jewish Community Center in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in July 1994, and honors the victims; and (2) desires a lasting, warm relationship between the United States and Argentina built on mutual abhorrence of terrorism and commitments to peace, stability, and democracy in the Western Hemisphere. Urges the Government of Argentina to pursue the local and international connections to such terrorist act and to duly punish all those who were involved. Calls on the President to: (1) raise this issue in bilateral discussions with Argentine officials and to underscore U.S. concern regarding the six-year delay in the resolution of this case; and (2) direct U.S. law enforcement agencies to provide support and cooperation to such Government, if requested, for purposes of the investigation into this bombing and terrorist activities in the tri-border area. Recommends that the United States Representative to the Organization of American States seek support from countries comprising the Inter-American Committee Against Terrorism to assist, if required by that Government, in the investigation.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 2000
Commends President Mathieu Kerekou of the Republic of Benin for his leadership and the people of Benin for their commitment to democracy. Calls for: (1) the United States to enhance its efforts to consolidate democracy and free enterprise in Benin; (2) the Administration to leverage U.S. assistance to Benin in order to mobilize greater foreign direct investment in Benin; and (3) other nations throughout the developing world to emulate Benin's example as a bastion of peace, security, free enterprise, and religious tolerance.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 2000
Community Economic Adjustment Act of 2000 - Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to establish in the Economic Development Administration (EDA) an Office of Community Economic Adjustment to coordinate the Federal Government's response to communities experiencing sudden economic distress caused by a loss of jobs due to plant closures, significant layoffs, or significant relocation of jobs to other communities for any reason, including shifting patterns in international trade, natural disasters, or other problems, by: (1) identifying relevant programs and resources to ensure that communities are aware of all available Federal resources that complement or support state and local resources and programs; (2) working with specified departments and agencies to ensure that communities receive Federal assistance in a targeted, integrated manner; and (3) assigning a project manager to work with an affected community. Directs such Office to: (1) provide technical assistance, planning grants, and other assistance to help communities organize themselves, develop, and carry out economic adjustment strategies for replacing industry and jobs that have been lost or are threatened by the economic downturn; and (2) help eligible applicants in completing applications for other assistance that may be useful in alleviating the economic distress in such communities. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2001 through 2005 for community adjustment assistance under the economic adjustment program of the EDA, including specified amounts for such Office and for communities successfully completing planning grants to implement their approved plans.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 2000
Legal Immigrant Children's Health Improvement Act of 2000 - Amends titles XIX (Medicaid) and XXI (Children's Health Insurance) (CHIP) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to grant States the option of covering certain categories of eligible women and child resident aliens under the Medicaid and CHIP programs.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 2000
International Anti-Corruption and Good Governance Act of 2000 - Revises U.S. policy with respect to the provision of development assistance to foreign countries to require the President in assessing the commitment and progress of a country to use such assistance to help satisfy basic human needs of its poor to utilize certain criteria, including but not limited to, progress in combating corruption and improving transparency and accountability in the public and private sector. Requires technical assistance provided by a certain program to foreign governments and foreign central banks of developing or transitional countries also to include elements designed to combat anti-competitive, unethical, and corrupt activities, including protection against actions that may distort or inhibit transparency in market mechanisms and, to the extent applicable, privatization procedures. Authorizes the President to establish programs that combat corruption, improve transparency and accountability, and promote other forms of good governance in developing countries or countries eligible to receive assistance under the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989. Requires the President to give priority to establishing programs in countries that received a significant amount of U.S. foreign assistance for the prior fiscal year, or in which the United States has a significant economic interest, and that continue to have the most persistent problems with public and private corruption. Requires the President to report to specified congressional committees with respect to such programs. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2000
Provides for: (1) the identification and discipline (which may include civil money penalties and loss of annuity or retirement pay in addition to current removal authority) of members and employees of county and area agricultural committees who discriminate against other persons in administering agricultural programs; and (2) due process requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2000
USDA Accountability and Equity Act of 2000 - Title I: Improved Accountability of County and Area Committees and Their Employees - Amends the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act to increase the size of the county committees by two members who shall be: (1) appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture; and (2) demographically representative of local producers. (Sec. 102) Directs the Secretary to prescribe uniform guidelines for conducting county and area committee elections. (Sec. 103) Provides for the conversion of permanent and temporary county committee employees to Federal civil service status. Title II: Improved Program Equity - Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 respecting the environmental quality incentives program to: (1) increase program funding; (2) reduce the livestock set-aside; and (3) give priority to, establish set-asides, and waive cost-share requirements for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers. (Sec. 202) Amends the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 to make permanent appropriations for 1890 land grant college grants. (Sec. 203) Amends the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 to make permanent appropriations for: (1) outreach and technical assistance programs for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers; and (2) Indian reservation extension education programs. (Sec. 205) Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to make permanent appropriations for farm operating and ownership loans.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2000
Stamp Out Domestic Violence Act of 2000 - Amends Federal law to require the Postal Service to establish a special rate of postage for first class mail that is up to 25 percent higher than the regular rate as a voluntary alternative that the public may use to contribute to funding for domestic violence programs. Requires collected amounts to be paid to the Department of Justice. Expresses the sense of the Congress that nothing in this Act should: (1) cause a net decrease in total funds received by the Department or any other Federal agency below the level that would have otherwise been received but for this Act's enactment; or (2) affect first-class or other regular postage rates. Requires special postage stamps to be made available to the public. Directs the Comptroller General to report to Congress on the operation of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2000
Recognizes that the Birmingham Pledge has made a significant contribution in fostering racial harmony and reconciliation in the United States and around the world. Commends the people involved with the Pledge's creation and signatories to it for the steps they are taking to make the Nation and the world a better place for all people. Expresses the sense of Congress that a National Birmingham Pledge Week should be established.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2000
Nursing Staff Accountability and Training Improvement Act of 2000 - Title I: Information on Nursing Staff in Nursing Facilities - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require a skilled nursing facility (SNF) to submit to the Secretary of Health and Human Services nursing staff level data for purposes of determining whether adjusted payment amounts for inadequate staffing should be made to the facility. Require SNF standard surveys to include a review of the sufficiency and distribution of staffing in the SNF to meet the needs of residents. (Sec. 101) Require a SNF to submit to the Secretary cost reports using a standard, uniform cost reporting form developed to enable the Secretary to: (1) assess amounts of direct patient care furnished by the SNF nursing staff; and (2) determine whether payments made for such care are appropriate. Amends SSA title XIX (Medicaid) to require a State to carry out periodic audits of cost reports submitted by a nursing facility operating in the State. Directs the Secretary to study the feasibility of developing and administering a standardized, uniform cost reporting form for all nursing facilities furnishing services for which Medicaid payment is made. Establishes similar survey requirements with regard to nursing staffing levels. (Sec. 102) Amends SSA titles XVIII and XIX with regard to information on nurse staffing, requiring the Secretary to provide for Internet publication of certain survey information on nursing staff levels. Mandates penalties for failure to post required information. (Sec. 103) Amends SSA title XVIII to direct the Secretary to pay expenses incurred in the administration of State agency determination of service provider compliance with conditions of Medicare participation from funds in the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund, in such amounts from each of such trust funds as the Secretary deems fair and equitable. (Sec. 104) Directs the Secretary to report to Congress on training of certified nurse aides. Title II: Grants to Improve Quality of Nursing Home and Long-Term Care - Directs the Secretary to award grants to a qualified entity to establish education and training programs for individuals who furnish direct resident care services in nursing facilities, including registered professional nurses, licensed practical nurses, and certified nurse aides. Authorizes grants to existing training programs. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 202) Requires the Secretary to award grants to qualified entities to provide for additional or advanced education and training of certified nursing aides who furnish services in the facility. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 203) Directs the Secretary to award grants to nursing facilities to establish programs to retain individuals who furnish direct resident care services in nursing facilities located in medically underserved areas, including registered professional nurses, licensed practical nurses, and certified nurse aides. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 204) Requires the Secretary to award grants to nursing facilities to establish model workplace safety programs. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 205) Directs the Secretary to provide for a demonstration project of grants to a limited number of States to implement innovative quality improvement models to improve the quality of care furnished to residents of nursing facilities. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2000
WISEWOMAN Expansion Act of 2000- Amends the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to permit the Secretary of Health and Human Services, through a competitive review process, to award grants to States to provide additional specified preventive health services, screenings, education, and referrals under PHSA provisions concerning preventive health measures with respect to breast and cervical cancers. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2000
Declares that Congress strongly encourages the Mexican Government to facilitate the presence of foreign human rights observers in Mexico without restrictions that prevent them from effectively carrying out human rights observation. Urges: (1) the Department of State and the U.S. Embassy in Mexico to clarify with Mexican authorities current law concerning such observers, entrance requirements, and restrictions on those observers' activities and movements; (2) the Mexican Government to respect internationally established norms for freedom of transit and of association for foreigners visiting Mexico; and (3) the Mexican Government to review all of the expulsions of human rights workers since 1994 for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and resolution of outstanding cases.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2000
National Employment Dispute Resolution Act of 2000 (NEDRA) - Amends title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to require the pertinent agency or entity to: (1) provide counseling services regarding, and endeavor to address and resolve, claims of unlawful discrimination using certified contract mediators; and (2) disseminate information regarding such services to employees and members. Mandates that any Federal agency or court (or business enterprise receiving $20,000 or more in Federal funds, or having 20 or more employees): (1) establish an internal dispute resolution mechanism that provides, as a voluntary option, employee-disputant access to external third-party certified mediators; and (2) participate in mediation in specified circumstances. Prescribes mediation guidelines. States that attorneys and consultants are legally obligated to advise their clients of the mediation alternative and their obligations to participate in "good faith".
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2000
Corporate Code of Conduct Act - Requires any national of the United States that employs more than 20 persons in a foreign country, either directly or through subsidiaries, subcontractors, affiliates, joint ventures, partners, or licensees (including any security forces), to take the necessary steps to implement the Corporate Code of Conduct specified by this Act with respect to the employment of those persons. (Sec. 3) States that such Corporate Code of Conduct requires that a U.S. national: (1) provide a safe and healthy workplace; (2) ensure fair employment, including prohibition of the use of child and forced labor, prohibition of discrimination based upon race, gender, national origin, or religious beliefs, respect for freedom of association and the right to organize independently and bargain collectively, and the payment of a living wage to all workers; (3) prohibit mandatory overtime work by employees under age 18; (4) prohibit the practice of pregnancy testing of employees, including forced usage of birth control, and the dismissal or discrimination of employees based on pregnancy; (5) prohibit retaliation against any employee who conveys information relating to a violation or alleged violation of any fair employment requirement of this Code; (6) promote specified good governance and good business practices; (7) maintain a corporate culture that respects free expression consistent with legitimate business concerns, does not condone political coercion in the workplace, encourages good corporate citizenship, makes a positive contribution to the communities in which the U.S. national operates, and promotes ethical conduct by all employees; (8) comply with internationally recognized worker rights and core labor standards; (9) uphold responsible environmental protection and environmental practices; (10) comply with minimum international human rights standards; (11) require partners, suppliers, and subcontractors of the U.S. national (including any security forces) to adopt and adhere to these principles; (12) require full public disclosure of specified information; and (13) implement and monitor compliance with these principles through a self-financing program internal to the business that meets certain requirements. (Sec. 4) Requires: (1) Federal agency heads to give preference in the award of contracts to entities adopting and enforcing such Code; (2) the Secretary of Commerce to give preference to such entities that are also U.S. exporters with introduction to contacts in foreign countries, and in coordinating trade missions; (3) the Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the Trade and Development Agency to give such entities preference in providing financing and issuing investment insurance, reinsurance, and guaranties under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961; and (4) the Export-Import Bank to give such entities preference in providing guarantees, insurance, and credit, and in participating in extensions of credit. (Sec. 5) Establishes a private right of action to petition the appropriate Federal official to investigate alleged Code compliance violations. (Sec. 6) Requires the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of State, or the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, upon a determination of Code noncompliance, to terminate a contract entered into with the noncomplying entity, and withdraw, suspend, or limit the entity's preference under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2000
Gray Market Cigarettes Abolition Act of 2000 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to cigarettes manufactured for export, but which nevertheless are sold domestically. Sets additional restrictions on tobacco products labeled for export. Requires imported cigarettes to meet specified requirements of the Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act, as well as other specified requirements. Establishes additional civil penalties for, and requires the forfeiture of, cigarettes sold for domestic consumption without the precise warnings required by the Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2000
States that the House of Representatives commends Richard and Annette Bloch and the Bloch Cancer Foundation and their network of invaluable volunteers on behalf of 8,400,000 Americans living with cancer.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2000
Declares that Congress: (1) condemns the use of children as soldiers by governmental and nongovernmental armed forces worldwide; (2) welcomes the optional protocol on the use of child soldiers as a critical first step in ending such use; and (3) applauds the decision by the U.S. Government to support such protocol. Calls on: (1) President Clinton to sign such protocol and the Senate to ratify it as quickly as possible; (2) the President and Congress to work together to enact a law that establishes a fund for the rehabilitation and reintegration into society of child soldiers; and (3) the Departments of State and Defense to undertake all possible efforts to persuade and encourage other governments to ratify and endorse such protocol.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2000
Authorizes the Homeward Bound Foundation to establish a Middle Passage National Monument on Federal land in the District of Columbia or environs to honor the millions of Africans who died in the Middle Passage en route to the Americas and at the hands of transatlantic slave traders between the 15th and 19th centuries. Makes the Foundation solely responsible for accepting contributions for, and paying the expenses of, the establishment of the monument. Prohibits the use of Federal funds for such monument.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2000
Urges the United Nations (UN) to establish a permanent standing UN security force of up to 15,000 volunteers who are trained and equipped for rapid deployment for not to exceed six months in international peacekeeping operations pursuant to a UN Security Council resolution.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2000
Federal Employees Paid Parental Leave Act of 2000 - Amends Federal Civil Service provisions to require that, of the 12 weeks of leave available to a Federal employee during any 12-month period based on the birth of a child or the placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care, up to one-half of that time (as the employee may designate) shall be with pay, in addition to any annual or sick leave which the employee may otherwise elect to use as part of the same12-week period.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2000
Providing Annual Pap Tests to Save Women's Lives Act of 2000 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to extend coverage of screening pap smears and screening pelvic exams to annual examinations regardless of whether a woman is of childbearing age or at high-risk.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2000
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Medicare program should cover the treatment and removal of actinic keratoses based on the appropriate standard of care as determined by a beneficiary's treating physician.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2000
Expresses the sense of the Congress regarding the fight against tuberous sclerosis with respect to the role of: (1) all Americans; (2) national and community organizations and health care providers; (3) the Federal Government; and (4) the National Institutes of Health.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2000
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the water boundaries established in the 1923 Lausanne Treaty of Peace, the 1932 Convention and Protocol Between Italy and Turkey, and the 1947 Paris Treaty of Peace, under which the Dodecanese islands and adjacent islets were ceded by Italy to Greece, are the borders between Greece and Turkey in the Aegean Sea; and (2) any party, including Turkey, objecting to such boundaries should seek redress in the International Court of Justice at The Hague.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2000
Holocaust Education and Awareness Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of Education to make matching grants to carry out education and awareness programs about the Holocaust. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2000
Teaching Children to Save Lives Act - Directs the Secretary of Education to make grants to State departments of education to establish cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training, using nationally recognized training courses, in public schools which include students in any of grades six through 12 (targeted schools). Limits such grants to not more than $6,000 per targeted school. Requires such grants to provide funding for two-year programs in targeted schools, with a majority of the funding to be provided in the first year to pay for start-up costs, including initial teacher training in CPR instruction and purchase of printed informational or instructional materials, manikins, and other equipment. and the remainder in the second year to pay for upkeep, continued or additional teacher training, and other subsidiary cost. Requires such grants to be used to encourage and foster new and existing community partnerships with and among public and private organizations (such as local school districts, nonprofit organizations, public health organizations like the American Heart Association and the American Red Cross, emergency medical service providers, fire and police departments, and parent-teacher associations) to aid in providing CPR training in targeted schools. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2000
Investment in Quality School Leadership Act - Establishes a program of grants to consortia for professional development of superintendents, principals, and prospective superintendents and principals. Directs the Secretary of Education to award such competitive grants to consortia to establish programs that serve a State or region and provide superintendents, principals, and prospective superintendents and principals, particularly those serving, or intending to serve, in high-poverty, low-performing school districts and schools, with ongoing, intensive professional development opportunities to improve their capacity to serve as effective leaders and successfully implement standards-based reforms. Requires a consortium, to be eligible to apply for such a grant, to include at least: (1) one local educational agency (LEA) serving a high concentration of children living in poverty; (2) one institution of higher education; and (3) one organization that does not usually provide educational services, but has the necessary expertise to provide professional development to school administrators (expertise). Allows such consortia also to include: (1) one or more additional LEAs; (2) State educational agencies; (3) for-profit organizations with expertise; and (4) public or private nonprofit organizations with expertise. Sets forth required program activities and additional uses of grant funds. Requires grantees to provide 50 percent of the project's annual costs, in cash or in kind. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) waive such matching requirement for applicants that serve low-income areas; and (2) reserve certain funds for technical assistance, evaluation, dissemination of information on effective programs, activities to encourage the spread and adoption of successful leadership development centers, and other national activities that support the programs. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2000
Digital Bridge Trust Fund Act - Amends the National Telecommunications and Information Administration Organization Act to establish in the Treasury the Digital Bridge Trust Fund. Appropriates to the Fund 100 percent of the amounts received by the Treasury after FY 2000 as taxes on communications required under the Internal Revenue Code. Establishes in the Department of Commerce the Board of Trustees of the Digital Bridge Trust Fund to make decisions with respect to allocations authorized under this Act. Requires the Board to submit annual reports to the President and Congress regarding its activities. Requires the Board to ensure that assistance provided herein is: (1) made available for the benefit of rural and urban areas and Native Americans in a manner that targets such assistance for areas, communities, and populations that are underserved with respect to information technology needs, employment, and education; and (2) appropriately allocated. Directs the Board to make such assistance available for FY 2001 through 2010 for: (1) teacher training; (2) community technology centers; (3) neighborhood network learning centers; (4) the Technology Development Fund; (5) the Technology Opportunity Program; (6) rural, urban, and Native American technology training; (7) broadband network deployment; (8) the Home Internet Access Program; and (9) the Falling Through the Net survey (to determine the extent to which Americans have access to telephones, computers, and the Internet). Allows excess amounts to be allocated at the Board's discretion. Authorizes the Board, in any of fiscal years 2006 through 2010, to reduce the amounts of assistance provided during the first five years. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2001 through 2010. Repeals this Act on October 1, 2010. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce from 3 to 1.5 percent, as of October 1, 2000, the excise tax on telephone and other communications services. Expresses the sense of Congress that providers of communications services should not increase service rates based upon such reduction.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2000
Women's Health Office Act of 2000 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish: (1) within the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services an Office on Women's Health (2) within the Office of the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention an office to be known as the Office of Women's Health; and (3) establish within the Office of the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality an office to be known as the Office of Women's Health. Amends the Social Security Act to establish within the Office of the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration an office to be known as the Office of Women's Health. Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to establish within the Office of the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration an office to be known as the Office of Women's Health. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2000
Dual Degree Achievement Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to establish a Dual Degree Achievement program of assistance for partnerships between minority-serving institutions (MSIs) and other institutions of higher education (IHEs) that enable students attending MSIs to earn dual degrees and enter fields in which students from MSIs are underrepresented. Directs the Secretary of Education to make five-year grants to eligible partnerships to carry out the program activities. Requires such partnerships to include one or more MSIs that award baccalaureate degrees and one or more partner IHEs that offer baccalaureate or post-baccalaureate degrees not awarded by the MSIs with which they are partnered. Allows such partnerships also to include other public and private entities, including MSIs (such as community colleges) that do not award baccalaureate degrees, community-based organizations, and businesses. Sets forth application requirements, including assurances that each participating student: (1) is enrolled in an academic program that leads to a five-year baccalaureate or post-baccalaureate degree not awarded by the MSI; and (2) upon successful completion of the program, will be awarded a baccalaureate degree from the MSI and a baccalaureate degree or a master's degree from the partner IHE that the student attends. Directs the Secretary to publish an annual list of baccalaureate and post-baccalaureate degree fields of study associated with professions in which students attending MSIs are underrepresented. Requires grants to be used for: (1) support services for participating students, including tutoring, mentoring, academic and personal counseling, and transition services; (2) scholarships to students in their fourth and fifth years in the program; (3) reimbursement to MSIs for the amount of tuition that they would have received had participating students attended those MSIs during their fourth year of the program instead of the partner IHE; and (4) academic program enhancements at the MSI that increase program quality and the number of student participants in the dual degree program. Requires that such scholarships: (1) reflect any additional amount of tuition and fees charged the participating student by the partner IHE compared to that charged by the MSI during the student's third year in the program; and (2) not be considered for the purposes of awarding Federal Pell Grants. Requires a majority of funds received under this program to be expended for such scholarships to students and such reimbursement to MSIs. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2000
Prohibits the President from regulating or prohibiting, directly or indirectly, travel to or from Cuba by U.S. citizens or legal residents, or any of specified transactions incident to such travel. Declares that: (1) this prohibition does not authorize the importation into the United States of any goods for personal consumption acquired in Cuba; and (2) the restrictions on authority contained in this Act do not apply in a case in which the United States is at war with Cuba, armed hostilities between the two countries are in progress, or there is imminent danger to the public health or the physical safety of U.S. travelers.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2000
Expresses the sense of the Congress that U.S. policy should: (1) support the restoration of democracy in Burma, including implementation of the results of the 1990 elections; (2) continue to call upon the military regime in Burma known as the State Peace and Development Council to guarantee freedoms of assembly, movement, speech, and the press for all Burmese citizens, to accept a political dialogue with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the National League for Democracy, and ethnic leaders to advance peace, to release all detained Members elected to the 1990 parliament and other political prisoners, and to uphold the terms and conditions of all human rights and related resolutions passed by the United Nations General Assembly, the Commission on Human Rights, the International Labor Organization, and the European Union; and (3) sustain current economic and political sanctions against Burma as the appropriate means of securing the restoration of democracy, human rights, and civil liberties and of supporting U.S. national security counternarcotics interests.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2000
Declares that Federal funding for diabetes research should be increased in accordance with the recommendations of the Diabetes Research Working Group so that a cure for juvenile diabetes can be found.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2000
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Health Care Financing Administration should: (1) consider the unique nature of the emergency medical services (EMS) delivery system in New Jersey when implementing new reimbursement guidelines for paramedics and hospitals under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act; and (2) promote innovative EMS systems enacted by States that reduce reimbursement costs to the Medicare program while ensuring that all residents receive quick and appropriate emergency care when needed.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2000
MediKids Health Insurance Act of 2000 - Amends the Social Security Act to add a new title XXII (MediKids Program) under which an eligible individual born after December 31, 2001, who has not attained age 23 may enroll in the MediKids Program for entitlement to benefits specified by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). Includes among such benefits the following: (1) at least the same benefits available under Medicare parts A (Hospital Insurance) and B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) under SSA title XVIII; (2) early and periodic screening, diagnostic services, and treatment services under Medicaid (SSA title XIX); and (3) prescription drugs and biologicals. Provides for cost-sharing, a payment schedule for covered benefits, and a monthly MediKids premium and the means for payment of it. Provides for a reduction in premium for certain low-income families. (Sec. 2) Creates in the Treasury the MediKids Trust Fund (Trust Fund) for collected premiums, appropriated amounts, and other revenues for use in funding the coverage provided under the MediKids Program and maintaining its financial solvency. Authorizes the Secretary to implement a care coordination services program including specified elements under which eligible individuals may elect to have health care services covered under new SSA title XXII managed and coordinated by a designated care coordinator. Sets forth administration and miscellaneous provisions applicable to new SSA title XXII, including provisions for coordination with Medicaid and SSA title XXI (Children's Health Insurance) and the maintenance of Medicaid eligibility and benefits for children. Amends SSA title XVIII to increase the membership of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission from 17 to 19 members, with the initial terms of additional members staggered. (Sec. 3) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) impose a MediKids premium tax in the case of any taxpayer required to pay a premium under the MediKids Program for an eligible individual; and (2) provide for a refundable tax credit for cost-sharing expenses under the MediKids Program. (Sec. 5) Mandates deposit in the Treasury of any amounts: (1) recovered by the United States in the civil action brought on September 22, 1999, under the Medical Care Recovery Act and other specified provisions of Federal law in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the tobacco industry and associated parties; and (2) attributable to expenditures of HHS for tobacco-related illnesses. (Sec. 6) Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to propose a gradual schedule of progressive tax changes to fund the MediKids program as the number of enrollees grows in the out-years.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2000
Farmers for Africa Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish the Farmers for Africa Program to provide grants for exchange programs with African-American farmers and other agricultural specialists and (sub-Saharan) African farmers. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2000
Authorizes the President to present on behalf of Congress: (1) a gold medal to the family of Andrew Jackson Higgins in recognition of his contributions to the Nation and to the Allied victory in World War II; (2) an identical medal to the D-Day Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana, for public display; and (3) a gold medal to the Museum in honor of the World War II employees of Higgins Industries and in recognition of their contributions to the Nation and to the Allied victory in World War II. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell bronze duplicates. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2000
United States Capitol Fire Protection Act of 2000 - Establishes in the Office of the Architect of the Capitol the position of Director of Fire Safety and Protection to assume responsibility for all fire safety and protection activities of the Architect of the Capitol. Directs the Architect of the Capitol to assign at least 12 full-time employees to the Director.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2000
Furniture Fire Safety Act - Amends the Consumer Product Safety Act with respect to the labeling of upholstered furniture sold in interstate commerce. Requires the Consumer Product Safety Commission to establish a flammability performance standard.
![Official portrait of Rep. Payne, Donald M. [D-NJ-10]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/p000149_200.jpg)