United States · United States Congress · 8 May 1991
Freedom from Want Act - Title I: Domestic Assistance Programs - Part A: Nutrition, Education, and Health Care - Expresses the sense of the Congress that it should make a commitment to increasing participation in the special supplemental food program for women, infants, and children (the WIC program) by 20 percent in each of FY 1992 through 1996, so that the goal of full participation may be reached by the end of FY 1996. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Head Start Act should be fully funded so that the goal of participation of all eligible three- and four-year-old children in Head Start programs can be achieved by FY 1994. Amends the Older Americans Act of 1965 to increase the reimbursement provided by the Department of Agriculture for congregate and home-delivered meals for older Americans to 65.66 cents in FY 1992, with adjustments for inflation in FY 1993 and 1994. Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to undertake a Children's Vaccine Initiative, for research, development, testing, and evaluation of children's vaccines, and for assisting in delivery of such vaccines in the United States and throughout the world. Directs the Secretary of HHS to consult with the World Health Organization and the United Nation's Children's Fund in organizing such Initiative. Requires the Director of the National Vaccine Program to plan and coordinate such Initiative, and ensure that the Public Health Service conducts activities under the Initiative in collaboration with nongovernment institutions and other Federal agencies. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to ensure that rules issued under the Federal Meat Inspection Act that impose labeling standards for any meat or meat food product sold or offered for sale in commerce also impose equivalent labeling standards for meat or meat food products distributed by the Department of Agriculture through domestic commodity food assistance programs. Part B: Individual Development Account Demonstration - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a deduction for payments (other than certain assistance from an organization of a demonstration project under this part) made by or on behalf of eligible individuals to an individual development account (IDA) to accumulate funds to pay the following qualified expenses: (1) postsecondary education expenses; (2) first-home purchase; (3) business capitalization; (4) retirement expenses; and (5) transfers to an IDA of the individual's spouse or dependent. Sets forth requirements relating to such IDAs. Establishes five-year IDA demonstration projects to determine: (1) the social, psychological, and economic effects of providing to individuals with limited means an opportunity to accumulate assets; and (2) the extent to which an asset-based welfare policy may be used to enable individuals with low income to achieve economic self-sufficiency. Allows any organization to apply to the Secretary of the Treasury for grants to conduct such a project. Requires each organization authorized to conduct such a project to establish a Reserve Fund drawn from investments, public and private funds, and IDA penalty amounts. Requires the organization to use Reserve Fund amounts to: (1) assist project participants in obtaining skills and information to achieve economic self-sufficiency through activities requiring IDA qualified expenses; (2) provide financial assistance to the IDAs of individuals selected by the organization to participate in the project; (3) administer the project; and (4) provide the organization evaluating the project with necessary information. Directs the organization to invest Reserve Fund amounts that are not immediately needed to carry out such project fund uses. Limits the administrative expenses. Requires that unused Federal grant funds be transferred to the Secretary when the project terminates. Makes eligible for IDA demonstration project assistance any individual who is a member of a household with: (1) a household income for the immediately preceding calendar year of not more th an 200 percent of the poverty threshold; and (2) a household net worth, as of the close of such year, of not more than $20,000. Directs the project organization to select individuals whom the organization deems suited to receive such assistance. Sets forth a table for organization contributions to an individual's IDA, based on: (1) the individual income for the applicable period, as a percentage of the poverty threshold; and (2) matched with the lesser of either a specified percentage of the qualified savings of the individual for the period, or a specified dollar amount. Provides for a greater organization contribution for individuals with lower incomes. Requires local control over demonstration projects by giving the organization sole authority over project administration, and allowing the Secretary of the Treasury to prescribe only regulations that are necessary to ensure compliance with approved applications and this Act. Requires each project organization to prepare ten semiannual progress reports for an oversight panel, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Treasurer (or equivalent official) of the State in which the project is conducted. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to establish an oversight panel for such demonstration projects. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to revoke the original authorization for a demonstration project upon receipt of a notice that the project has failed to implement the oversight panel's recommendations. Sets forth required revocation actions and procedures. Requires the oversight panel to enter into a contract with an independent research organization to evaluate the IDA demonstration projects, individually and as a group, addressing specified questions. Authorizes appropriations for IDA demonstration projects. Requires that funds in the IDAs of demonstration project participants to be disregarded for purposes of all means-tested Federal programs. Part C: Microenterprise Programs - Amends the Social Security Act to include microenterprise training programs under the JOBS program under provisions for aid to families with dependent children (AFDC). Requires adjustment of performance standards for microenterprises to take account of the time required for their establishment. Provides for limited exclusions of microenterprise resources and income under the AFDC program. Defines a microenterprise as a commercial enterprise which has five or fewer employees, one or more of whom owns the enterprise; and (2) none of the owners of which has income exceeding 200 percent of the poverty threshold. Authorizes States to waive Federal AFDC requirements with respect to participants in State-approved microenterpise programs. Provides that participation in such State-approved microenterprise programs shall not affect the participants' means-tested Federal benefits. Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to make microenterprises eligible for rural development loans and grants. Expresses the sense of the Congress that one percent of funds for specified types of rural development assistance should be reserved for certain purposes relating to microenterprises. Amends the Housing and Community Development Act to make microenterprises eligible for assistance under community development block grants. Provides that certain assisted activities relating to microenterprises shall be considered to benefit persons of low and moderate income. Expresses the sense of the Congress that each grantee under the community development block grant program should reserve one percent of any grant received to provide assistance to facilitate commercial economic development through microenterprises. Amends the Small Business Act to express the sense of the Congress that: (1) one percent of specified funds for small business loans should be reserved for specified purposes relating to microenterprises; and (2) the Small Business Administrator should take such other necessary actions to maximize participation by microenterprises in programs under such Act and the Small Business Investment Act of 1958. Provides for small business loans for microenterprises. Amends the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) to authorize the use of funds for training activities with respect to microenterprises. Directs the State Governor to adjust performance standards relating to microenterprises to reflect the time required to establish and develop a stable income from such an enterprise as participants seek to achieve economic self-sufficiency. Provides for JTPA microenterprise grants. Directs the Secretary of Labor, from specified funds for FY 1992 through 1996, to make grants in limited amounts to not more than ten States per year to implement and enhance community-based microenterprise activities. Requires State matching funds and annual reports. Authorizes appropriations for such microenterprise grants. Part D: Increasing the Food Purchasing Power of Low-Income Households - Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to make grants to up to 20 nonprofit community-based organizations to carry out food retailing development projects to: (1) increase the access of individuals residing in communities underserved by supermarkets to more affordable and quality food; and (2) strengthen the operation of existing food retail stores in underserved communities by providing such stores with services that lower costs, improve management, and increase the quality and nutritional value of food inventories. Sets forth priorities in selecting grantees. Sets forth requirements for grant expenditures. Authorizes appropriations for such food retailing development program. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to make grants to up to ten eligible entities to carry out a food stamp and producer direct marketing demonstration project to: (1) increase retail marketing opportunities for local agricultural producers through farmers markets, roadside stands, and other means; (2) increase the access to and consumption of fresh, perishable agricultural commodities by low-income individuals; (3) identify and implement successful strategies to increase the number of agricultural producers certified to redeem food stamp coupons in exchange for commodities sold directly to coupon recipients; and (4) increase the number of food stamp recipients who use such coupons to purchase such commodities from agricultural producers. Sets forth requirements for grant expenditures. Defines an eligible entity as a community-based organization with strong ties to both the farming community and to an anti-hunger organization. Authorizes appropriations for such food stamp and producer direct marketing demonstration program. Amends the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to revise WIC farmers' market demonstration programs. Increases from ten to 20 the number of States allowed to provide WIC participants with coupons to purchase fresh fruit and vegetables from farmers markets. Sets forth requirements for program reports and review. Authorizes appropriations. Part E: Assessing Food Security within Communities - Amends the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 to provide for regional centers for community food security. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture, through the Federal Extension Service, to make competitive grants to seven land grant colleges and universities to establish seven regional centers for community food security, with one of them designated to serve as a coordinating center. Sets forth requirements for selection of recipients, use of grants, prohibited uses, term of grants, performance evaluations, and annual reports. Defines food security as the ability of all people at all times to purchase or receive from usual food sources enough nutritionally adequate food for an active and healthy life. Part F: Findings Regarding Communities Making the Transition to Hunger-Free Status - Expresses the sense of the Congress regarding criteria for communities making the transition to food secure status. Part G: Infant Mortality Reduction - Subpart 1: Low Birthweight and Infant Mortality - Establishes within the Department of Health and Human Services a program to make grants to States, municipalities, and nonprofit organizations to establish demonstration projects to reduce infant mortality by reducing the incidence of low birthweight births in high-risk communities. Sets forth grant application requirements and preferences in awards. Directs the Secretary of HHS to: (1) establish an Infant Mortality Advisory Panel; and (2) evaluate such projects and provide technical assistance to grantees. Requires annual reports from grantees. Limits project duration to three years. Authorizes appropriations. Subpart 2: Breast Feeding and Infant Morbidity and Mortality Study - Directs the Secretary of HHS to establish a program to award grants to conduct studies of the impact of breastfeeding on infant mortality and morbidity in certain high-risk populations. Authorizes appropriations for each fiscal year for conducting such study. Part H: Amendments to the Food Stamp Act of 1977 - Mickey Leland Childhood Hunger Relief Act - Subpart 1: General Provisions - Sets forth general provisions. Subpart 2: Ensuring Adequate Food Assistance - Amends the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to remove the excess shelter deduction cap for purposes of food stamp program (program) eligibility. (Sets forth transitional caps through FY 1995.) Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to adjust the basic benefit level upwards by specified increments at the beginning of each fiscal year until it reaches 105 percent of the cost of the thrifty food plan. Eliminates food stamp reductions for households reapplying for program reinstatement within 30 days. Excludes third party payments for transitional housing for the homeless from consideration as program income. Increases funding for the nutrition assistance program in Puerto Rico. Excludes general assistance vendor payments from consideration as program income. Subpart 3: Promoting Self-Sufficiency - Excludes from consideration as program income: (1) the first $50 a month received as child support; and (2) child support payments to non-household members. Increases annually the fair market value limit of vehicles that program recipients may own. Excludes from financial resources the value of a vehicle a household depends upon to carry heating fuel or water for home use where it has no other access to fuel or water. Increases dependent care deductions and participant and State agency reimbursements in connection with employment and training activities. Subpart 4: Simplifying the Provision of Food Assistance - Permits related adults living in the same household to apply for separate program benefits under specified conditions. Permits a participating family made up of, or including, an elderly or disabled member to own $300 in allowable financial resources. (Current law refers to a family member 60 years of age or older.) Makes program authorization of appropriations permanent. Subpart 5: Implementation and Effective Dates - Sets forth the effective dates for provisions of this Act. Title II: International Programs - Part A: Food as a Human Right - Declares that the United States should: (1) make a major effort toward strengthening the right to food in international law; and (2) propose to the United Nations General Assembly that a Declaration and Convention on the Right to Food be adopted and submitted to countries for ratification. Prohibits the provision of development assistance under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the provision or financing of agricultural commodities under the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 for countries that engage in a consistent pattern of violations of internationally recognized rights to food and medical care. Requires the United States to: (1) make a major effort toward reforming and restructuring the United Nations mechanism for responding to international disasters and humanitarian emergencies; and (2) evaluate the role of the United Nations Disaster Relief Organization and develop a proposal for strengthening the United Nations response to such emergencies. Part B: Democratic Empowerment - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the President, acting through the administrator of the agency responsible for administering development assistance (administering agency), to provide assistance for eligible emerging democracies. Defines an "eligible emerging democracy" as a least developed country that is making a transition from an undemocratic to a democratic system of government. Lists authorized assistance as development and relief and rehabilitation assistance and assistance for child survival, maternal health, basic nutrition, and basic education. Waives provisions of law that prohibit or restrict assistance to countries in arrears or default on loan or credit payments owed to the United States with respect to assistance for eligible emerging democracies. Establishes a Fund for Democratic Empowerment to carry out such assistance program. Authorizes appropriations. Part C: Children - Authorizes appropriations for FY 1992 and 1993 for U.S. contributions to the United Nations Children's Fund. Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize appropriations for the Child Survival Fund for FY 1992 and 1993. Earmarks amounts of foreign assistance for activities that deal directly with the special health needs of children and mothers. Requires the President, with respect to the provision of development assistance, to promote and undertake activities relating to research on, and the treatment and control of, acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) in developing countries. Designates such assistance as the International AIDS Prevention and Control Program. Earmarks amounts of development assistance for FY 1992 and 1993 for the Vitamin A Deficiency Program and programs to eliminate iodine deficiency. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the United States should join in a comprehensive initiative to reduce micronutrient deficiencies from iron, as well as leading in the elimination of vitamin A and iodine deficiency. Earmarks foreign assistance for basic education programs. Directs the President to report annually to the Congress on U.S. contributions to the goals and strategies of the World Declaration on the Survival, Protection and Development of Children; the Plan of Action for Implementing the Declaration; the World Declaration on Education for All; and the Framework for Action to Meet Basic Learning Needs. Part D: Women in Development - Removes a limitation on, and earmarks an amount of, assistance to promote the participation and integration of women in the development process in developing countries. Requires specified amounts of such assistance to be used to support the integration of women into programs of the administering agency and to support needs of such agency in administering the women in development policy. Part E: Refugees - Authorizes appropriations for FY 1992 and 1993 for migration and refugee assistance, with earmarked funds for programs of refugee assistance overseas. Expresses the sense of the Congress that other international donors should join with the United States in ensuring that refugee relief and rehabilitation efforts are adequately funded and supported. Part F: Agriculture and the Environment - Requires agricultural development programs supported by the United States under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and in the multilateral development banks and International Monetary Fund (IMF) to incorporate principles of environmental sustainability. Directs the Administrator of the Agency for International Development (AID) to establish specified environmental sustainability guidelines and standards to be applied to all agricultural development programs supported under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, bilateral agricultural projects, and, where appropriate, environmental projects supported under such Act. Requires the U.S. executive directors of the multilateral development banks and the IMF to seek the adoption of requirements comparable to such standards by their respective institutions. Declares that AID should make a long-term commitment to research the ecological and socioeconomic components of sustainable agricultural development. Provides that research topics should include: (1) how traditional systems of agriculture respond to local ecological conditions and how such responses can be incorporated in agricultural development that aims to increase yields without degrading long-term productive potential or the ability to withstand ecological pressures; (2) the role of subsistence agriculture in meeting the nutritional needs of rural populations and the improvement of subsistence food production; and (3) the improvement of crops which comprise a substantial part of the diet of the poorest part of the population. Declares that the United States should encourage the Consultative Group on International Agriculture to incorporate such topics into its research priorities and to promote the application of research findings into project design and implementation. States that AID should increase its support for agricultural research institutions that have demonstrated a capacity to contribute to sustainable agricultural development. Directs the AID Administrator to report to the Congress on AID programs directed toward sustainability as a basis for agricultural assistance efforts. Part G: World Bank and International Monetary Fund - Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Secretary of the Treasury should instruct the U.S. executive directors of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank), the International Development Association (Association), and the IMF to seek the establishment by their institutions of programs and policies to assist in the realization of the right to food. Amends the International Financial Institutions Act to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct: (1) the U.S. executive director of the Association to advocate, in the context of the Association's tenth replenishment, that at least 50 percent of the Association's loans go to countries that have developed a national development and poverty alleviation strategy; and (2) the U.S. executive directors of the World Bank and the IMF to urge such institutions to develop Policy Framework Papers (including sections on environmental goals) for borrowing countries. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the World Bank and the Association should: (1) give greater programmatic and budgetary priority to child survival and development; and (2) commit to devoting at least five percent of the annual lending programs to primary health and five percent to basic education. Directs the Secretary to instruct the U.S. executive directors of the World Bank and the Association to urge such institutions to: (1) promote environmental sustainability as a guiding principle in agricultural development projects; (2) emphasize food-based policies in agriculture by increasing funding for research focusing on improving foods which comprise a substantial portion of the diet of poor people; and (3) ensure that such projects target and integrate women. Amends the Bretton Woods Agreements Act to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. executive director of the IMF to urge the IMF to ensure that IMF programs are designed to avoid any deterioration in the provision of social services for basic human needs and to maintain sustainable use of the environment. Part H: Debt Relief - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the President to make certain debt relief authorities concerning relatively least developed countries with respect to which an IMF standby agreement or a World Bank or Association structural adjustment program or similar IMF program is in effect applicable to least developed countries pursuing specified national economic policy reforms, even if such an arrangement is not in effect. Part I: Private and Voluntary Organizations - Increases the amount of funding for private and voluntary organizations under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 1991
Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 to allow a consortium including one or more rural hospitals (including at least a small rural hospital and/or one or more rural health clinics) to participate in the rural health medical education demonstration project of the Department of Health and Human Services. Authorizes appropriations as necessary to pay costs of such project which are attributable to travel and living expenses of medical residents and travel expenses of supervising physicians, to the extent such costs are not reimbursed under the Medicare program.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 1991
Federal Facilities Compliance Act of 1991 - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to waive the sovereign immunity of the United States for purposes of enforcing Federal, State, interstate, and local requirements with respect to solid and hazardous waste management. Absolves Federal employees from personal liability for civil penalties under any Federal or State solid or hazardous waste law if the act or omission was within the scope of official duties. Makes such employees subject to criminal sanctions under such laws. Prohibits Federal agencies from being subject to such sanctions. Authorizes the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to commence an administrative enforcement action against any Federal agency pursuant to the authorities of the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Requires fines collected by States from the Federal Government for violations of hazardous and solid waste management requirements to be used only for projects to improve or protect the environment or to defray the costs of environmental protection or enforcement.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 1991
Expedited Consideration of Proposed Rescissions Act of 1991 - Amends the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to require a special message, in the case of budget authority proposed to be rescinded or reserved, to include language amending the law authorizing such programs to allow them to continue to function at the proposed new level of budget authority. Allows the President to transmit to both Houses of the Congress, for expedited consideration, one or more special messages proposing to rescind all or part of any item of budget authority provided in an appropriation bill. Requires that such special message be transmitted not later than three days after the President approves the appropriation bill and be accompanied by a draft bill or joint resolution that would, if enacted, rescind the budget authority proposed to be rescinded. Sets forth House and Senate procedures for the expedited consideration of such a proposal.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 1991
Constitutional Amendment - Declares that nothing in the Constitution shall prohibit the inclusion of voluntary prayer in any public school program or activity. Provides that neither the United States nor any State shall prescribe the content of any such prayer.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 1991
Amends rules XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives to require a three-fifths majority vote on the passage of any bill, amendment, or conference report that increases revenues. Amends rule XI to prohibit the Committee on Rules from reporting any rule or order to waive such requirement.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 1991
Redesignates the Maritime Act of 1981 as the Maritime Act of 1991 and adds a new title: the Port Improvement Act of 1991. Directs the Secretary of Transportation, through the Federal Maritime Administration and the Secretary of Commerce (the Secretaries), to jointly establish a program to make loans to port agencies for financing and refinancing improvements to facilities at deep-draft ports. Limits the aggregate amount of loans to: (1) a specified dollar amount in a five-fiscal-year period; and (2) 50 percent of the cost of the improvements. Requires the remaining percentage to come from non-Federal sources. Prohibits loans for any activity which is eligible for assistance as a water resource project carried out by the Secretary of the Army through the Chief of Engineers. Sets forth procedures and criteria for selection of loan recipients. Requires a set-aside of 20 percent of amounts appropriated from the Port Improvement Revolving Loan Fund each year for improvements at small deep-draft ports. Limits loans to a maximum of 20 years. Requires repayment at an interest rate which: (1) will ensure that the amount in the Fund will increase at approximately the rate of inflation; and (2) is less than market rates for such loans. Establishes in the Treasury the Port Improvement Revolving Loan Fund, to consist of amounts: (1) transferred to the Fund equal to specified percentages of customs duties collected during specified fiscal years; (2) deposited in the Fund as repayment of loans made under this Act; and (3) credited to the Fund from interest on and proceeds from the sale or redemption of investment of amounts in the Fund. Directs the Secretaries to establish a permanent advisory board to advise the Secretaries on matters related to this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 1991
Open Space Preservation Act of 1991 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the estate tax to exclude from the gross estate the value of land subject to a qualified conservation easement. Defers the reduction in estate tax rates from 1993 until 1998.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 1991
Morris K. Udall Wilderness Act of 1991 - Designates specified lands in Alaska as the Arctic Coastal Plain Wilderness and a component of the National Wilderness Preservation System.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 1991
Title I: Combined Sewer and Storm Water System Overflow Control - Estuarine Zone and Marine Waters Combined Sewer Overflow Control Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to issue regulations setting forth permit requirements for discharges from combined storm water and sanitary sewer overflows into the estuarine zone and marine waters. Directs the Administrator, in determining the content of such regulations, to take into account; (1) the expected composition, frequency, and volume of each discharge; (2) the anticipated effect of each discharge on the environment, economy, and aesthetic and recreational values of the receiving waters; and (3) the need for a flexible approach in minimizing such discharges. Authorizes the Administrator to issue permits after 1999 for such discharges only if the permittee has taken reasonable efforts to eliminate dry weather discharges and to minimize wet weather discharges. Requires the Administrator to provide technical assistance to State and local governments issued permits under this Act. Directs permittees, as a condition for permit issuance or renewal, to budget and expend an amount of funds for: (1) identifying all discharges of overflows into the estuarine zone and marine waters; (2) implementing water quality-based limitations of such discharges; and (3) limiting such discharges. Waives such requirement if the Administrator determines that the permittee or the State in which such permittee is located has begun to implement a plan that will result in the cessation of dry weather discharges and minimization of wet weather discharges by the year 2000. Makes funds available to permittees to address water quality problems resulting from such discharges, including the implementation of control strategies to eliminate dry weather discharges and minimize wet weather discharges. Directs the Administrator to report to the Congress on: (1) the feasibility and cost of establishing a technological clearinghouse to make available to States and local governments information on, and assistance in, controlling and ceasing discharges of overflows from combined storm water and sanitary sewers into the estuarine zone and marine waters; and (2) the major components of discharges which contribute significantly to floating debris and debris which washes up on shores and ways to eliminate the introduction of such debris into combined storm water and sanitary sewer systems. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: National Estuary Program Amendment - National Estuary Program Amendment Act - Requires the Administrator to: (1) identify estuaries where overflow discharges from combined storm water and sanitary sewer systems constitute a major source of pollution; (2) urge that the management conference for each estuary develop a priority action plan to address such overflows; and (3) report to the Congress on the extent of such discharges and the anticipated Federal cost of addressing the problem. Title III: Marine Pollution Discharge Abatement - Marine Discharge Abatement Act - Prohibits the issuance or renewal of permits for pollutant discharges into estuaries, the oceans, or other navigable waters (at the discretion of the Administrator): (1) if the applicant has failed to demonstrate the need for the discharge and the lack of reasonable alternatives to it; or (2) for any discharge for which insufficient information exists to determine its environmental impact based on the guidelines published under the Clean Water Act. (Current law bars discharges in any event where insufficient information exists to make a reasonable judgment based on such guidelines.) Prohibits the waiver of permit requirements for discharges into specified estuaries or the territorial sea. Directs the Administrator to review existing guidelines and to revise guidelines as necessary to prevent the degradation of such waters.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 1991
Federal Recycling Incentive Act - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to direct the Administrator of General Services to: (1) establish, and periodically modify, a program requiring each Federal department, agency, or instrumentality to separate and collect solid waste (including high-grade paper, newspapers, aluminum, bottles, and containers) for recycling; (2) establish and implement a system for monitoring and enforcing the provisions of this Act; and (3) report periodically to the Congress as to the extent of compliance for the preceding 12-month period. Authorizes any such entity to retain any moneys received from the sale of such waste for use in carrying out its functions. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 1991
Circle of Poison Prevention Act of 1991 - Title I: Exported Pesticides - Amends the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) to require pesticide producers operating registered establishments to inform the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency of: (1) the types and quantities of pesticides and active ingredients used in producing pesticides for export to a foreign country; and (2) the date of export and quantity of such materials exported to each foreign country to which the producer has exported during the past 365-day period. Provides that specified information on exported pesticides shall not be entitled to confidential trade secret treatment. Makes it unlawful to export a pesticide or device in violation of FIFRA export requirements. Prohibits the exportation of a pesticide or device unless: (1) such materials are prepared and packaged according to the specifications of the foreign purchaser and the legal requirements of the country of use; and (2) the label of the pesticide is written in the official language of the country of use and contains all information required to be included in the labeling for such pesticide in the United States. Prohibits the exportation of a pesticide to a country of use if: (1) the registrations for pesticides containing an active ingredient that is included in such pesticide that account for nearly all of the uses of such ingredient have been canceled; (2) the tolerances for an active ingredient in such pesticide that account for nearly all the uses of such ingredient have been revoked; or (3) an active ingredient of the pesticide is ineligible for reregistration. Prohibits such exports (including pesticides used for agricultural production) unless: (1) the pesticide is registered; or (2) all of the active ingredients in the pesticide are the subject of a food tolerance. Requires exporters, prior to the shipment of certain pesticides, to provide specified information to the Administrator. Prohibits the exportation of any pesticide to a country of use that: (1) has refused consent; or (2) has given conditional consent unless the conditions on which the consent was given are met. Prohibits refusals to consent unless the country certifies that it is not producing or importing and will not produce or import the pesticide or a similar product with the same active ingredient. Waives certain requirements, upon the request of a country of use and subject to certain determinations by the Administrator, to permit the export of pesticides not meeting FIFRA requirements to: (1) prevent or arrest the spread of a communicable disease; or (2) stop or prevent the spread of a pest that is destroying or will destroy quantities of the country's food supply so as to result in widespread famine. Permits the export of pesticides for experimental use in foreign countries if specified conditions are met. Directs the Administrator to submit information to the Secretary of Health and Human Services concerning inspections for pesticide residues in imported foods conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services. Requires the Administrator to notify foreign countries and the International Register of Potentially Toxic Chemicals whenever regulatory action is taken with respect to a pesticide. Directs the Administrator to: (1) convene meetings with foreign governments and other interested parties to promote the implementation of improved research and regulatory programs for pest management and strategies for sustainable agriculture and to encourage the adoption of a multilateral convention requiring standard notice and pesticide export control measures; and (2) provide foreign countries with technical assistance to develop pesticide regulatory programs. Permits persons to bring civil actions to secure the imposition of penalties on persons who violate pesticide export requirements. Prohibits civil actions from being initiated on the basis of the same unlawful acts that form the basis of existing proceedings for criminal violations. Requires the Comptroller General to report to the Congress every four years on: (1) the operation and effect of this Act; and (2) how exported pesticides and their containers are used and disposed of and on their impact on the public health and the environment of countries of use. Title II: Pesticide Residue Monitoring - Amends the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 to direct the Food and Drug Administration to summarize the volume of each food product subject to the requirements of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act imported into the United States in quantities determined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services to be commercial quantities (currently, products having an entry value exceeding an amount established by the Secretary). Requires the summary to: (1) be made by food product, country of origin, port of entry, pesticides monitored by the Secretary, pesticide residues detected, and the quantity of each pesticide exported from the United States for agricultural use; and (2) indicate the volume of each type of food tested for pesticide residues, arranged by pesticide, food, and country of origin. Title III: Pesticide Tolerances - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the Administrator, if a registration under FIFRA for a pesticide to be used on food is canceled or modified to prohibit its use in connection with food, to revoke any tolerance or exemption that permits the presence of the pesticide on the food. Suspends tolerances or exemptions for pesticides used on food if such use is suspended under FIFRA. Authorizes the Administrator, if a residue of a canceled or suspended pesticide will persist in the environment and be present on a food, to establish a tolerance for the pesticide at a level that permits the residue to remain and will protect public health. Requires the Administrator to reduce the tolerance for any suspended or canceled pesticide annually if any decrease in the pesticide's residual environmental contamination or residues on food has occurred. Prohibits the Administrator from establishing or continuing a tolerance for a pesticide chemical residue unless the best available, practical method for detecting and measuring the levels of the residue on a food exists. Title IV: Pesticide Information - Prohibits the importation of a raw agricultural commodity into U.S. customs territory unless the commodity importer files with the Secretary and the Secretary of the Treasury a document identifying each pesticide chemical used in connection with the commodity. Requires such importers, if unreported pesticides are detected in such commodities, to submit residue analyses for such pesticides. Waives reporting requirements for unreported pesticides if the presence of such pesticides is attributable to long-term environmental persistence and does not pose a health risk. Amends the Federal Meat Inspection Act, the Poultry Products Inspection Act, and the Egg Products Inspection Act to apply such requirements to importers of meat, poultry, and eggs. Amends the Agricultural Act of 1954 to add to the list of annual reporting requirements of agricultural attaches a report on the customary use of pesticides in the production of agricultural commodities in foreign countries. Title V: Effective Dates - Sets forth the effective dates for provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 1991
National Biological Diversity Conservation Act - Declares that the conservation of biological diversity is a national goal. Establishes the Interagency Working Committee on Biological Diversity to: (1) prepare a coordinated Federal strategy for the conservation of biological diversity; and (2) issue guidance to Federal agencies regarding biodiversity impact assessment. Dissolves the Committee upon its submission of the strategy to the Congress. Sets forth required elements of the strategy. Requires the Council on Environmental Quality to identify the Federal agencies that conduct programs having a significant impact on biological diversity. Directs such agencies to: (1) review its actions and programs biennially for consistency with the Federal strategy; and (2) report the results of such reviews to the Council. Requires the Council to review such reports biennially and report to the Congress on the consistency of Federal programs with the strategy. Directs the President to establish a National Center for Biological Diversity and Conservation Research. Requires the Center to: (1) identify gaps in the understanding of biological diversity and develop a plan for filling such gaps; (2) issue grants to private institutions for projects to contribute to implementation of the plan; (3) provide information to the Interagency Committee in preparation of the Federal strategy; (4) develop a plan for the establishment of a clearinghouse; and (5) identify species and natural communities of special concern. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to establish a biological diversity grant program for purposes of monitoring the status of plants, invertebrate organisms, terrestrial communities, and freshwater aquatic communities and species. Limits the Federal share of grant activities to 75 percent of the total cost. Requires the Secretary to identify: (1) the types of natural communities native to the United States; (2) the types of communities that do not occur in at least three protected areas of sufficient size to maintain populations of the species of plants and animals associated with such communities; (3) the types of communities that are especially rich in terms of the number of native species they contain; and (4) the location on Federal lands of communities identified under (2) and (3). Directs the Secretary to issue regulations establishing requirements for considering areas of lands to be protected areas for purposes of this Act. Prohibits lands from being considered as protected areas unless the lands are: (1) managed primarily for the purpose of maintaining viable populations of native plants and animals and self-sustaining natural communities; and (2) subject to permanent land use restrictions to ensure the protection of such plants, animals, and communities. Requires Federal agency heads to consult with the Secretary regarding the management actions necessary to maintain natural communities on Federal lands identified under this Act and to ensure the long-term sustainability of such communities. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 1991
Declares that it is the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States implement the recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences in its report "Policy Implications of Greenhouse Warming."
United States · United States Congress · 23 April 1991
Title I: General Provisions - Operation Coastal Shield of 1991 - Sets forth congressional findings and purposes with respect to coastal and Great Lakes water quality. Title II: Coastal Water Quality - Amends the Clean Water Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to: (1) issue guidance to States for implementing water quality criteria, developing water and sediment quality-based effluent limitations, and implementing water quality related controls on nonpoint sources; (2) submit a workplan to specified congressional committees on a five-year schedule for developing and revising criteria for pollutants found in coastal waters; (3) issue or revise at least five new criteria and revise at least five existing criteria biennially for pollutants which pose the greatest risk to coastal waters; and (4) publish biological criteria for assessing and protecting coastal water quality and habitat to complement pollutant-specific criteria. Requires a coastal State, whenever the State reviews water quality standards, to adopt coastal water quality standards for pollutants for which water quality criteria and information have been issued. Requires criteria issued by the Administrator to take effect immediately as interim coastal water quality standards for States that fail to adopt approvable standards. Directs the Administrator to publish information on methods for measuring water quality criteria for pollutants that may pose risks to coastal and Great Lakes water quality on bases other than pollutant-by-pollutant criteria. Requires applicants for Federal permits to conduct activities which may result in discharges into navigable waters to obtain a certification from the State in which the discharge will originate that such activities will not contribute to a failure to achieve water quality standards. Directs coastal States to develop coastal water quality protection programs for restoring and protecting coastal water quality. Requires such programs to: (1) incorporate requirements of specified Acts; (2) identify coastal waters for which standards cannot be expected to be maintained and waters that currently meet standards but are threatened by increases in pollution; (3) establish a priority ranking for such waters and implement schedules for developing water quality restoration plans for those waters; (4) provide for a system of allocating and exchanging discharge reduction credits and pollution offsets among sources of conventional pollutants and nutrients into coastal waters; (5) establish a system through which a State authority certifies that the issuance or renewal of a discharge permit or the undertaking of any activity subject to the requirements of a coastal water quality restoration plan complies with such requirements; and (6) ensure public participation in the program and include procedures to ensure compliance with the program. Sets forth: (1) requirements for coastal water quality restoration plans; and (2) approval procedures for such plans and for coastal water quality protection programs. Directs the Administrator to develop water quality restoration plans for States that fail to do so. Requires the Administrator to issue orders to, or commence civil actions against, persons failing to comply with coastal water quality protection program requirements. Authorizes citizen suits against the United States and other governmental authorities for violations of such requirements. Prohibits the issuance or renewal of permits for discharges into estuaries nominated for the National Estuary Program, except in compliance with specified guidelines. Directs the Administrator to review and revise guidelines to prevent the degradation of coastal water quality and to reflect changes made by this Act. Authorizes State Governors to request the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating to enter into a cooperative agreement to permit a State and its political subdivisions to enforce requirements for marine sanitation devices. Requires such agreements to authorize States or political subdivisions to assess and retain required penalties. Directs the Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Administrator to notify the fish and game and water pollution control authorities of each coastal State of the funds available under the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act to finance shoreside pumpout stations for marine sanitation devices. Requires the Administrator to review and revise standards for marine sanitation devices to prevent discharges from vessels equipped with Type III marine aviation devices. Directs the Administrator to: (1) identify pollution control measures for controlling the introduction of pollutants into coastal waters from nonpoint sources; (2) develop techniques for evaluating the effectiveness of such measures; and (3) make available to State and local authorities technical guidance for implementing and monitoring such measures. Requires the Administrator, with respect to best management practices for industry, to identify releases of pollutants that may cause risks to human health or the environment and to prohibit or restrict the production of such pollutants to eliminate such risks. Revises provisions concerning the purposes of management conferences under the National Estuary Program. Requires such conferences to be convened for periods of at least five years (currently, up to five years). Permits the extension of a conference for an additional five years if the affected Governors concur in the extension and the extension is necessary to meet requirements. Revises approval and implementation procedures for conservation and management plans under the Program. Authorizes the Administrator to make grants for the implementation of such plans. Extends the authorization of appropriations for Program activities. Authorizes appropriations to the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and the Director to participate in the development and implementation of such plans. Requires the Administrator to issue orders to, or commence civil actions against, persons failing to comply with requirements concerning national estuaries. Title III: Coastal and Great Lakes Contaminated Sediments Remediation Program - Directs the Administrator to conduct a survey and report to the Congress on bottom sediment contamination in the Great Lakes and U.S. coastal waters. Declares that the purpose of such survey is to assess the severity of such contamination, identify areas for which additional pollution reduction requirements may be required, and determine the order of priority for undertaking remedial actions. Requires the Administrator to publish: (1) criteria for sediment quality; and (2) information on the factors necessary to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of aquatic ecosystems. Authorizes persons to petition for the development of criteria for pollutants. Requires the Administrator to approve a petition if the pollutant, when present in sediments, is preventing: (1) the attainment of a balanced, indigenous population of fish, shellfish, or wildlife; or (2) recreation in and on the Great Lakes or coastal waters. Directs the Administrator to: (1) issue national sediment remediation standards to govern remediation projects involving contaminated sediments; and (2) issue standards to establish temporary maximum permissible concentrations of pollutants or contaminants during the duration of projects for sediment contamination. Requires the Administrator, when publishing sediment quality criteria for a pollutant, to issue guidance on the imposition by the appropriate permitting authority of sediment-based effluent limits that will prevent the violation of such criteria. Directs the Administrator to publish guidelines to govern projects to clean up contaminated sediments. Provides for the review and revision of such guidelines at least once every five years. Requires the Administrator, with the approval of a State Governor, to implement sediment remediation projects for locations posing the greatest risks to human health and the environment. Prohibits the Administrator, in selecting such sites, from selecting any site listed as a priority under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 and for which there is reasonable likelihood of remediation under such Act. Authorizes approprations. Title IV: Monitoring Coastal Waters - Establishes the National Coastal Water Quality Monitoring Task Force. Requires the Task Force to: (1) implement a national strategy for conducting coastal water quality monitoring programs; (2) identify all Federal water quality monitoring programs and incorporate those programs into the national strategy; (3) develop a memorandum of understanding among appropriate Federal agencies to implement such strategy; (4) develop coastal water quality monitoring guidelines; and (5) select high priority coastal waters and approve, implement, or disapprove coastal water quality monitoring programs for such waters. Directs the Task Force to issue quidelines to assist in the development and implementation of such programs. Amends the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 to require Regional Marine Research Boards to establish monitoring committees comprised of individuals with technical expertise in coastal water quality monitoring programs. Requires the Boards, acting through such committees, to: (1) recommend areas for individual monitoring; (2) submit recommendations to the Task Force; (3) develop coastal water quality monitoring programs for high priority coastal waters selected by the Task Force; (4) provide for public participation in such programs; (5) provide technical guidance for the implementation of such programs; and (6) review the effectiveness of such programs and make necessary modifications. Sets forth requirements for coastal water quality monitoring programs and approval procedures for programs submitted by the committees to the Task Force. Requires the Under Secretary, the Administrator, and State Governors to ensure compliance with such programs. Deems requirements of approved programs to be requirements of the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 and requires such programs to be submitted for approval as part of coastal zone management programs under the coastal Zone Management Act of 1972. Directs the Administrator or a State permitting authority to incorporate monitoring requirements into discharge permits. Title V: Compliance and Enforcement - Amends the Clean Water Act to authorize the use of specified civil and administrative penalties for beneficial mitigation projects. Increases the maximum on class II civil penalties authorized to be assessed under such Act. Prohibits Federal agencies from entering into any contract for the procurement of goods or services if the contract is to be performed at any facility owned or operated by a person who has: (1) repeatedly violated a discharge permit or the requirements of a nonpoint source management program or categorical standard with respect to the treatment of pollutants; or (2) been in repeated noncompliance with an estuary conservation and management plan. Authorizes the Administrator to commence administrative enforcement actions against Federal agencies to enforce this Act. Permits partial program withdrawal of State discharge permit programs if the Administrator determines that a State is not administering part of a program in accordance with applicable requirements. Requires permits to take effect upon issuance unless the permittee demonstrates that: (1) he will be irreparably harmed; and (2) there is a likelihood that he will succeed on the merits in an administrative hearing or civil action to review the permit's conditions. Prohibits Federal agencies from undertaking any development project or awarding any grant for an activity that may adversely affect the quality of navigable waters in any State with a pattern of: (1) continuing and chronic violations of coastal water quality standards; or (2) continuing and chronic failure to maintain a designated use under such standards. Requires Federal agencies which own or operate facilities that discharge pollutants into navigable waters (and that would qualify as major dischargers if industrial facilities) to develop and submit to the Administrator environmental auditing plans for such facilities. Directs industrial dischargers and publicly owned treatment works that discharge pollutants into navigable waters and that have repeatedly violated discharge permits or consent decrees to conduct biannual environmental audits of such facilities until they are no longer in violation of applicable requirements. Requires major dischargers, prior to the renewal of a permit, to provide to the Administrator an environmental audit conducted during the six-month period preceding the renewal. Sets forth requirements for audits and auditors. Requires the Administrator to: (1) issue regulations establishing eligibility requirements for certification of environmental auditors and continuing education requirements for maintaining the certification; and (2) issue guidance to States on the development of State programs for certification of environmental auditors. Directs States having navigable waters that do not meet applicable water quality standards to post and maintain signs at each place of public access to such waters indicating the standards such waters fail to meet and the health and environmental effects which may occur as a result of such failure. Title VI: Financing - Subtitle A: Discharge Fees - Establishes the Coastal Defense Fund. Provides for the deposit of specified fines, penalties, and payments collected under the Clean Water Act and the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 into the Fund. Requires the Administrator to use Fund revenues to supplement funding for activities associated with administering the discharge permit program. Directs the Administrator to establish a National Coastal Discharge Permit Fee System to collect fees from coastal dischargers. Declares that the objectives of the System are to: (1) recoup the costs to Federal, State, and local governments of administering coastal discharge permit programs; (2) provide economic incentives to dischargers to eliminate or reduce the volume of toxicities of their effluents; and (3) supplement funding for discharge permitting programs under the Clean Water Act. Provides for the deposit of fees and penalties collected under the System into the Fund. Makes persons failing to pay fees liable for civil penalties. Provides for a hardship exemption to fees under certain conditions. Requires the Administrator, upon the petition of a coastal State, to waive the application of the System to such State if the amount of discharge fees collected under a State system is equivalent to the amount that would be collected by the System. Prohibits such waiver if the State uses fees solely to support State water quality programs. Makes industrial users of publicly owned treatment works liable for fees and requires users to pay fees to the authority responsible for controlling the treatment works. Directs the authority to retain such fees and use them to enforce water quality programs. Requires the Administrator to establish a fee schedule under the System that provides for the assessment of fees at least once a year and for the triennial adjustment of fees. Subtitle B: General Authorizations - Extends through FY 1999 the authorization of appropriations under the Clean Water Act for: (1) specified research, investigations, training, and information; (2) grants to States for pollution control programs; (3) nonpoint source pollution control in rural areas; (4) interagency agreements to maintain water quality; (5) the clean lakes program; and (6) nonpoint source pollution management programs. Extends the general authorization under such Act through FY 1999. Subtitle C: State and Local Financing - Authorizes States to use up to 15 percent of monies available in water pollution control revolving funds under the Clean Water Act to provide financial assistance to financially restricted communities. Permits loans to be made to such communities on terms of up to 40 years. Authorizes a fund to be used to reduce the principal of a debt obligation of a municipality or intermunicipal or interstate agency incurred after April 1, 1991, by up to 34 percent. Adds to the list of projects eligible for revolving fund assistance: (1) approved combined stormwater and sanitary sewer control programs; and (2) Great Lakes protection programs. Provides that: (1) annual principal and interest payments for loans made with revolving fund monies will commence no later than three years (currently, one year) after the completion of the project; and (2) amounts used for administering a fund shall not exceed four percent of amounts allotted to a State, or $400,000, whichever is greater (currently, four percent of all grant awards to such fund). Extends the allotment formula with respect to such funds. Raises the ceiling on the dollar amount to be reserved for planning purposes. Extends the authorization of appropriations for such funds through FY 1999.
United States · United States Congress · 23 April 1991
Amends Federal provisions relating to the National Guard to add a new chapter concerning the formation of State defense forces. Defines a "State defense force" as a military force organized by a State to become operational when the State National Guard forces are federalized or otherwise unavailable or inadequate for the defense needs of such State. Provides that, as general policy, State defense forces are in the national interest as a reserve force of the States, for specified reasons. Provides that membership in a State defense force shall be determined by the individual States, but that a member of the U.S. armed forces shall not also be a member of a State defense force. Provides further that membership in a State defense force does not exempt a person from any required duty under the Military Selective Service Act, nor does such membership limit a person from enlistment or appointment in an armed force. Authorizes the Secretary of a military department to issue or loan military equipment, supplies, or uniforms to a State for use in connection with its State defense force. Directs the Secretary of Defense to prescribe policies and procedures to be followed in the issuing and loaning of such equipment. Authorizes the sale (by the Secretary of the military department concerned) and the wearing of military uniforms by members of a State defense force, as long as such uniforms have been approved by such Secretary. Authorizes the Secretary of a military department to provide a member of a State defense force and States with defense forces training and training assistance for such forces. Authorizes such training, in the alternative, to be provided by an executive department and an independent agency of the Federal Government in the interest of national security and when not detrimental to the primary operational requirements of the department or agency concerned. Provides that the Chief of the National Guard Bureau shall serve as the means of communication between a State and the Federal Government on matters involving the State defense forces. Provides that a member of a State defense force is not to be considered a member of the U.S. armed forces for any reason, including eligibility for federally-sponsored health care or disability benefits. Authorizes the Secretary of a military department to conduct such background investigations for potential members of State defense forces as considered necessary and appropriate by such Secretary for the granting of appropriate security clearances for such personnel. Authorizes a State sponsoring a State defense force to conduct necessary and appropriate background investigations as a condition for allowing access to classified information by a member of the defense force.
United States · United States Congress · 23 April 1991
Nuclear Decommissioning Reserve Fund Act of 1991 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) decrease the rate of the tax imposed on the income of any Nuclear Decommissioning Reserve Fund; and (2) remove restrictions on permitted investments of Fund monies.
United States · United States Congress · 23 April 1991
Designates May 22, 1991, as National Desert Storm Reservists Day to commemorate the accomplishments of the men and women of the reserve components of the U.S. Armed Forces who proudly served the United States during Operation Desert Storm.
United States · United States Congress · 23 April 1991
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that it should be U.S. policy to reduce national emissions of carbon dioxide in the next ten years by 20 percent from the 1988 baseline level and to assume a leadership position in negotiating an international climate protection treaty that includes establishing: (1) agreements by industrialized nations to reduce their current carbon dioxide emissions by 20 percent over 1988 levels in the next ten years, by developing nations to reduce their growth in carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel combustion, and by all countries to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases; (2) an international fund and other financial mechanisms to help developing countries achieve such objectives; (3) mechanisms for continuing international cooperation for the development of policies for future emissions reductions; and (4) commitments to cease the destruction of primary forests.
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 1991
Forest Biodiversity and Clearcutting Prohibition Act of 1991 - Amends the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966, the National Indian Forest Resources Management Act, and Federal law to provide for the conservation of native biodiversity in each national forest community. Revises land management guidelines for such forests to prohibit any even-age logging or even-age management after one year of enactment of this Act. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture, on each site already under such management, to: (1) prescribe a shift to selection management within one year; or (2) cease managing for timber purposes and actively restore the native biodiversity, or permit each site to regain its native biodiversity.
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 1991
Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to suspend, through December 31, 1995, the duty on 2,3-Dihydro-1,3,3-trimethyl-2-methylene-1H-indole (trimethyl base).
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 1991
Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to suspend, through December 31, 1995, the duty on 1, 4-diaminobenzene-2-sulfonic acid (paramine acid).
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 1991
Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to suspend the duty on 6-amino-1-naphthol-3-sulfonic acid, 1-amino-2-chloro-4-hydroxyl-anthraquinone, and 2-(4-amino-phenyl)-6-methyl-benzothiazole-7-sulfonic acid through December 31, 1995.
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 1991
Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to suspend, through December 31, 1995, the duty on N-(2-((2,6-dicyano-4-methylphenyl)azo)-5-(diethylamino phenyl)-methanesulfonamide and N-(2-((2,6-dicyano-4-methylphenyl)azo)-5- (di-l-propylamino) phenyl)-methanesulfonamide (Resolin Red F3BS Components I and II).
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 1991
Defense Environmental Activities Act - Authorizes appropriations for FY 1992 for the armed forces and other agencies and activities of the Department of Defense (DOD) for environmental restoration, defense. Earmarks a specified amount of FY 1992 DOD appropriations for other environmental activities. Requires information pertaining to amounts obligated in the past fiscal year and estimated to be allocated for the current fiscal year for DOD compliance with applicable environmental law and for certain DOD waste minimization programs to be included in an annual report of the Secretary of Defense on DOD environmental restoration.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 1991
World War I Veterans' Service Pension Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to pay a monthly pension of $100 to each veteran of World War I who meets specified service requirements. Requires such a veteran, if entitled to another pension administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, to elect which pension to receive.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 1991
National Commemorative Events Advisory Act - Establishes the President's Advisory Commission on National Commemorative Events to: (1) establish criteria for recommending to the President that a proposed commemorative event be approved or disapproved; (2) review proposals for national commemorative events submitted in accordance with procedures published by the Commission; and (3) issue recommendations to the President concerning each proposal reviewed. Terminates the Commission within five years after the date of its first meeting.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the tax-exempt status of a cooperative telephone company to provide for the tax treatment of income received from a nonmember telephone company for services by the cooperative which are indirectly paid for by members of the cooperative. Includes billing and collection services for a nonmember telephone company under such treatment.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 1991
Constitutional Amendment - Declares that the Congress shall have the power to set reasonable limits on campaign expenditures by, in support of, or in opposition to any candidate in any primary or other election for Federal office. Declares that the States shall have such power with respect to State or local elections.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 1991
Declares that the House of Representatives: (1) applauds the Architect of the Capitol and the Committee on House Administration for developing an effective recycling program in the House office buildings; and (2) supports ongoing efforts to expand and update source separation and recycling during the 102d Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 1991
Expresses the sense of the Congress that employers resume normal business travel that was suspended during the Persian Gulf War and that travel and tourism-related businesses intensify efforts to promote travel both to and within the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 1991
National Traffic Fatality and Injury Reduction Act of 1991 - Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to make grants for traffic safety programs to States which require any person riding a motorcycle to wear a helmet and any driver or front seat passenger of a passenger car to have seat belts properly fastened. Authorizes appropriations. Requires States receiving grants to agree to maintain at least their average levels of expenditures for traffic safety programs over the preceding two fiscal years. Prohibits a State from receiving such a grant in more than three fiscal years. Specifies the Federal share of grants and the aggregate amount of such grants to each State. Sets forth requirements with respect to: (1) States' eligibility for grants; and (2) measurement of compliance with State safety laws. Eliminates a provision prohibiting a highway safety program approved by the Secretary from requiring that motorcycle operators or passengers 18 years or older wear a safety helmet. Requires any State where it is lawful to operate or ride a motorcycle without wearing a motorcycle helmet or to occupy a front seating position in a passenger car without using a safety belt or child restraint system to expend a specified percentage of its apportioned Federal aid highway funds for highway safety programs.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 1991
Federal Employees Retirement Incentive Act - Allows certain Federal employees serving in entities undergoing a major reorganization, reduction in force, or transfer of functions to elect to have four years added to their age upon separation, their total creditable service, or a combination thereof (not to exceed four years) for purposes of determining retirement eligibility and benefits under the Civil Service and Federal Employees' Retirement Systems. Amends provisions governing early or immediate retirement for Government employees to consider certain requirements for entitlement to annuities to have been met (with respect to agency reorganization, reduction in force, or transfer of functions conditions) if: (1) at least five percent of the employees within the agency and geographic area involved will be separated; or (2) at least 20 percent of such employees will be subject to an immediate reduction in the rate of basic pay. Waives such minimum percentages under certain circumstances.
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