United States · United States Congress · 19 July 1989
Authorizes the use of the official expenses allowance of each Member of the House of Representatives for production of newsletters containing directories of State, local, and nonprofit private drug counseling, treatment, and information programs.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 1989
Claude Pepper Act for Amputees - Amends the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to authorize the Director of the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation to conduct a research program to finance development of advanced technology prosthetic and orthotic devices by Federal, State, and local government agencies and qualified private organizations. Requires such program to include research on: (1) the development of lower and upper limb devices; (2) useful applications of modern materials; and (3) new methods of utilizing body power. Directs the Secretary of Education to prescribe regulations for such program within 90 days. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 and 1991 for such research program. Requires that at least ten percent of such funds be used to make grants to providers of prosthetic and orthotic services who are approved under agreement with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
United States · United States Congress · 12 July 1989
Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to provide a lump sum payment of $100,000 (adjusted to reflect the annual percentage change in the Consumer Price Index) to public safety officers (law enforcement officers and fire fighters) who become permanently and totally disabled as a result of a catastrophic injury sustained in the line of duty. Prohibits the payment of both a lump sum disability payment and a lump sum death benefit.
United States · United States Congress · 12 July 1989
Requests: (1) the Soviet Union to release the prison records of Raoul Wallenberg and account for his whereabouts; and (2) the President to pursue such release and accounting through diplomatic actions with the Soviet Union.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 1989
Authorizes any Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, or Coast Guard band to produce recordings for commercial sale. Allows proceeds to be credited to the appropriations of the Departments of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and the Coast Guard for the expenses of such bands. Directs the Secretaries of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Transportation to prescribe regulations governing the accounting of such proceeds.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 1989
Directs the American Battle Monuments Commission to establish a memorial on Federal land in the District of Columbia or its immediate area to honor World War II veterans and to commemorate U.S. participation in that conflict. Directs the Commission to plan, design, construct, and oversee the operation of the memorial. Specifies that such design shall provide for accessibility by, and accommodations for, the physically handicapped. Establishes the World War II Memorial Advisory Board to: (1) promote the establishment of the memorial and encourage the donation of private funds for construction maintenance; (2) assist and cooperate with the Commission in the selection of the site and design for the memorial; and (3) transmit annual reports on its activities to the Congress. Authorizes the Commission to solicit private contributions for such memorial. Establishes a fund in the Treasury which shall be made available to the Commission to carry out this Act. Authorizes Federal funding, in addition to such private funds, for site preparation, design, planning, establishment, construction, maintenance, and operation of the memorial. Authorizes assistance from specified Federal departments and agencies, including the Library of Congress. Authorizes Federal property to be transferred to the Commission. Authorizes the Commission to purchase suitable property within the District of Columbia for the establishment of such memorial. Urges the Government to encourage 50th anniversary commemorations of the U.S. role in World War II. Urges the Smithsonian Institution and other Federal museums to develop commemorative exhibitions to be shared with academic institutions.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 1989
Hydrogen Research and Development Act - Title I: Hydrogen Production and Use - Directs the Secretary of Energy to submit to specified congressional committees a comprehensive five-year program management plan for a research and development program designed to permit the development of a domestic hydrogen fuel production capability within the shortest time practicable. Requires the Secretary to send the Congress annual plan descriptions and modifications. Directs the Secretary to establish within the Department of Energy a program consistent with the plan. Lists research areas and priority criteria. Directs the Secretary to conduct demonstrations to evaluate technical and nontechnical parameters to determine commercial applicability of hydrogen technology and to prepare a comprehensive large-scale hydrogen demonstration plan. Directs the Secretary, with the advice and help of industry, academic, and governmental interests, to implement a program in the interest of accelerating broader application of hydrogen technologies and of increasing the participation of private sector interests in near commercial applications. Lists the Secretary's duties in connection with the program. Establishes a Hydrogen Technical Advisory Panel as part of the Energy Research Advisory Board. Requires the Panel to submit an annual report. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Hydrogen-Fueled Aircraft Research and Development - Directs the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to prepare and submit to specified congressional committees a comprehensive five-year program management plan for a research and development program for a domestic hydrogen-fueled aircraft capability within the shortest time practicable. Mandates that such plan include activities of the National Aero-Space Plane Program. Requires the Administrator to: (1) transmit to the Congress an annual plan description, including any necessary plan modifications; (2) establish such a program within NASA and incorporate within it the goals and activities of the National Aero-Space Plane Program; and (3) prepare and transmit to the Congress a comprehensive flight demonstration plan whose implementation will confirm the technical feasibility, economic viability, and safety of liquid hydrogen as a fuel for commercial transport aircraft. Prescribes required subjects of the research and development program. Establishes a Hydrogen-Fueled Aircraft Advisory Committee to advise the Administrator. Requires the Committee to report annually to the Administrator. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 1989
Employment Opportunity Act - Title I: Programs for the Handicapped - Establishes an employment program of grants to States to create job programs for mentally and physically handicapped individuals. Provides that employment under this title shall not diminish an individual's benefits under the Social Security Act. Directs the Secretary, within 90 days, to study and report, with recommendations, to the Congress on: (1) the numbers of mentally and physically impaired individuals in the United States who are employed and not employed; and (2) the extent to which such individuals who are not employed are potentially capable of performing some type of labor. Title II: Program for Disadvantaged Persons - Directs the Secretary, within one year, to study and report to the Congress on: (1) the number of unemployed individuals in the United States who are disadvantaged because of poverty, geographical residence, or other causes; and (2) the feasibility of securing employment for such individuals through federally-subsidized employment opportunities (assisted by private enterprise and State and local governments), relocation assistance, if desired, and Federal employment when no other employment opportunities can be developed.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 1989
Provides for the awarding of the Purple Heart to former prisoners of war held captive before April 25, 1962, on the same basis at it may be awarded former prisoners of war captured on or after such date.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 1989
Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to require the President to suspend the designation as an eligible article for duty-free treatment under the Generalized System of Preferences of wood products from a beneficiary country unless such country, during each year: (1) commences a reforestation program for the equivalent forest area for such country; and (2) continues or completes such reforestation program begun in any previous year. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary) to: (1) determine those beneficiary countries that comply with such requirement; and (2) advise the President of those countries that do not. Sets forth an exception to such suspension. Authorizes any person to commence a civil suit in district court against the Secretary if he or she fails to perform any act or duty which is not discretionary under this section. Directs the United States Trade Representative to use the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations to promote reforestation in developing countries.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 1989
Designates October 29, 1989, as Fire Safety at Home Day: Change Your Clock, Change Your Battery. Directs the President to issue a proclamation to urge people to change the batteries in their smoke detectors when they reset their clocks from daylight savings time.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 1989
Declares it is U.S. policy to provide a national air transportation system which: (1) enhances the general welfare and security of the United States; and (2) is free of regulations which unreasonably burden or restrict the right of citizens to travel by air. Requires the President to submit to the Congress a plan for a new comprehensive national aviation policy.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1989
Christopher Columbus Coin and Fellowship Act - Title I: Christopher Columbus Quincentenary Coins - Christopher Columbus Quincentenary Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than a specified number of five dollar gold coins, one dollar silver coins, and half dollar clad coins emblematic of the quincentary of the discovery of America. Sets forth certain features of such coins and provides for their design, issuance, and sale. Terminates the minting of such coins after June 30, 1993. Requires the Secretary to deposit surcharges from the sale of such coins in the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Fund for use by the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation. Declares that no law governing procurement or public contracts shall be applicable to the procurement of goods and services necessary for carrying out this Act, except that this provision shall not relieve any person from complying with any law relating to equal employment opportunity. Title II: Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation - Christopher Columbus Fellowship Act - Establishes the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation to award fellowships to outstanding individuals to encourage new discoveries in all fields of endeavor for the benefit of mankind. Establishes the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Fund. Directs the Foundation to report to the President and to the Congress annually on its operations.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1989
United Services Organization's 50th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than a specified number of five dollar gold coins, one dollar silver coins, and half dollar clad coins to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the United Services Organization (USO). Requires such coins to be emblematic of USO Services to military service personnel and families. Sets forth certain features of such coins and provides for their design, issuance, and sale. Terminates the minting of such coins after February 4, 1991. Requires surcharges from the sale of such coins to be deposited in a coinage profit fund and used for USO programs and to reduce the national debt. Directs the Secretary to report to the Congress semiannually through December 31, 1992, on activities under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1989
Requires the head of each Federal agency to establish a program under which agency employees shall be reimbursed for expenses incurred in the adoption of a child. Allows a reimbursement only: (1) after the adoption becomes final; (2) if, at the time of adoption, the child is under 18 years of age and unmarried; and (3) if appropriate, written application has been filed as may be required. Provides that a reimbursement shall be payable only if, or to the extent that, similar benefits have not met the full amount of adoption expenses. Prohibits a reimbursement from exceeding $2,000. Provides for determining reimbursement amounts when both adopting parents are Federal employees. Prohibits the denial of a reimbursement from being based on the marital status of the applicant. Allows the Office of Personnel Management to issue general guidelines for the uniform administration of this Act. Makes this Act applicable to Postal Service employees.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 1989
Designates September 1989 as National Minority Health Awareness Month. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) make publicly available information on minority health problems and minority health professionals' careers and contributions; and (2) present public service announcements on health promotion and disease prevention among minority Americans.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1989
National Ground Water Research Act of 1989 - Directs the President to coordinate Federal ground water research, monitoring, and protection activities through the establishment of an Interagency Ground Water Research Committee. Requires the Committee to appoint an Education Committee to review the academic and related institutional capabilities for education and training of ground water research related professionals and to identify opportunities for improving such education and training. Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the U.S. Geological Survey, to prepare a report assessing ground water quality and quantity information systems and data collection and monitoring. Requires the Secretary to submit such report to the Congress with biennial updates. Directs the Secretary to conduct a national ground water assessment program to assist State and local governments in ground water protection and remediation of contamination and depletion and in the design of monitoring programs, including recommendations for protocols to assist such governments in meeting their data collection responsibilities under specified Federal environmental statutes. Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish and coordinate a research, development, and demonstration program for ground water protection and remediation of contamination, to include surveys, the development of cost-effective prevention, detection, and remediation techniques, and the provision of technical assistance. Sets forth demonstration project selection criteria and procedures, based upon the seriousness of the contaminant addressed and a project's applicability to other locations and circumstances. Requires that such project be monitored and evaluated by the Administrator. Authorizes the Administrator to pay the costs of such evaluation, but limits Federal cost sharing for the project in general. Requires the Administrator to publish an environmental profile for each significant ground water contaminant. Requires such profiles to include risk assessment analyses to assess the risk to human health and the environment within a range of concentrations of such contaminants. Directs the Administrator to implement research programs for the development of information necessary to conduct risk assessments and make risk management decisions regarding the presence of such contaminants in ground water. Establishes a timetable for the publication of such profiles. Requires the Administrator, in publishing such profiles, to give priority to the most toxic contaminants. Directs the Secretary and the Administrator each to establish a technical assistance program to serve other Federal and governmental agencies, including assistance for research, surveys, training, and technology transfer. Directs the Secretary, acting through the U.S. Geological Survey, to establish and maintain a National Groundwater Information Clearinghouse. Directs the Administrator to establish a ground water research committee for ground water resources. Directs the Science Advisory Board established by the Environmental Research, Development, and Demonstration Act of 1978 to review and report to the Congress on EPA's ground water research programs. Authorizes the Administrator to establish and maintain research fellowships. Directs the Administrator to make grants for ground water research institutes. Requires that funds be equitably distributed throughout the United States and that one of the institutes be the National Center for Ground Water Research, a consortium between Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Rice Universities. Limits the Federal share to 50 percent of costs and earmarks funds for technology transfer. Requires the Administrator to review and evaluate such institutes and subjects the institute's research to peer review. Directs the President to report annually to the Congress on activities carried out under this Act. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 through 1992. Authorizes the Administrator to make grants to States to support the development and implementation of State strategies designed to detect, prevent, and correct ground water contamination and control sources of contaminants. Sets forth allotment requirements. Limits such grants to 50 percent of a project's total cost. Authorizes appropriations for such grants for FY 1990 through 1992.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1989
Treats Hong Kong as a separate foreign state rather than a colony or dependent area for U.S. immigration purposes, beginning in FY 1990 (thereby increasing the number of visas chargeable to Hong Kong).
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1989
Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to develop minimum standard criteria for the treatment and diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to be applied uniformly to all Department of Veterans Affairs (Department) medical centers. Directs the Secretary to publish such criteria in a mental health program guide. Outlines factors to be considered by the Secretary when developing such criteria. Directs the Secretary to develop criteria for the education, training, and evaluation of personnel whose duties include the counseling and treatment of veterans suffering from PTSD to be applied uniformly at all Department medical centers. Directs the Secretary no later than three years after enactment of this Act, to prescribe such criteria. Requires the Secretary, in establishing such criteria, to consult with the Special Committee on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, established under the Veterans' Health Care Act of 1984. Directs the Secretary to establish, in at least one Department medical center in each State, a PTSD treatment team which shall be responsible for the counseling and treatment of veterans suffering from such disorder. Directs the Secretary to hire such additional personnel as necessary to establish such teams at each medical center. Directs the Secretary to identify in annual congressional budget documents the funding amounts requested for PTSD-related programs.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1989
Constitutional Amendment - Declares that the Congress and the States shall have power to prohibit the act of desecration of the U.S. flag and to set criminal penalties for that act.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 1989
Requires the Consumer Product Safety Commission to promulgate a safety standard under the Consumer Product Safety Act to require manufacturers of liquid consumer products to include denatonium benzoate in the products if the products present a hazard if ingested by children.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 1989
Stratospheric Ozone Protection Act of 1989 - Amends the Clean Air Act to list as class I and II substances which are known or may reasonably be anticipated to contribute to stratospheric ozone depletion. Authorizes any person to petition the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to add a chemical to such lists. Requires the Administrator to: (1) add to the class I list any substance having an ozone depletion potential greater than .15; (2) add to the class II list any substance having a significant ozone depletion potential; and (3) assign each listed substance a numerical ozone depletion potential factor, based upon a comparison with chlorofluorocarbon-11. Directs producers and importers of such substances to report annually to the Administrator on the production or import levels of such substances. Makes it unlawful to produce such substances in an amount greater than 1986 levels effective 180 days after enactment of this Act. Requires a further reduction by July 1, 1993, and makes it unlawful, effective July 1, 1996, to produce such substances for other than medical purposes. Authorizes the Administrator to promulgate rules under which persons may produce such substances in annual quantities greater than those specified under this Act if such persons obtain the rights to such production from other persons who will be subject to enforceable reductions in such substances which: (1) exceed the reduction otherwise required; (2) are greater than the annual production increase; and (3) would not have occurred in the absence of such transaction. Makes it unlawful to produce any listed substance which yields an ozone depletion potential greater than the 1986 depletion level. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring a 95 percent reduction in ozone depletion potential of such substances by 1997. Provides that if the Administrator fails to promulgate such regulations, it shall be unlawful, effective July 1, 1997, to produce such substances in annual quantities yielding ozone depletion potentials greater than five percent of the 1986 depletion level. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring producers of such substances to reduce production more rapidly if the accelerated schedule is necessary to protect human health and the environment or if the reduction is attainable, based on the availability of substitutes for such substances. Prohibits the importation of such substances or products using such substances, unless the exporting nation has an equivalent or more stringent production reduction program. Requires the Administrator to certify national programs, such certification to be reviewed annually. Equates imports with production when determining a manufacturer's required reductions. Directs the President to prohibit: (1) the export of technologies to produce class I substances; and (2) investment in facilities for producing such substances in nations which are not certified. Requires the Administrator to: (1) review sources containing information on potential chemicals or product substitutes and alternative manufacturing processes as replacements for class I substances; (2) report such findings to the Congress; (3) require producers to provide the EPA with their unpublished health and safety studies on chemical substitutes for such substances and notify the EPA before existing chemicals are put to significant new uses as chlorofluorocarbon and halon substitutes; and (4) annually update such review and, two years after this Act's enactment, include class II substances in such review. Directs the Administrator to promulgate rules applicable to replacements for such substances to require that processes and products that reduce overall risks to public health and the environment are used. Requires the Administrator to publish a list of prohibited substitutes and safe alternatives. Authorizes any person to petition the Administrator to add or remove a substance from such list. Makes it unlawful, after 1992, to manufacture or import any household or commercial appliance containing such substances unless such appliances have apertures that allow the removal of such substances without loss into the atmosphere. Prohibits, after 1990, the introduction of such substances into interstate commerce in pressurized containers weighing less than 15 pounds. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring the maximum feasible reductions in the use of class I substances, including measures to: (1) recover and recycle such substances in manufacturing processes and prior to disposal of products containing such substances; (2) increase the efficiency of the use of such substances; (3) provide for the use of safe alternatives; (4) achieve reductions of at least 50 percent in the use of class I substances for servicing and repairs of household and commercial appliances and in the manufacture of products in which such substances are used as solvents or blowing agents; and (5) achieve reductions, without reduced fire safety, in releases associated with discharges of such substances from fire prevention or extinguishing equipment. Prohibits business establishments from performing services on motor vehicle air conditioners involving refrigerants, unless approved refrigerant recycling equipment is used and persons performing such services have been properly trained and certified. Applies such requirement three years after this Act's enactment to establishments which performed service on fewer than 100 air conditioners during 1990. Requires such establishments to certify to the Administrator that they meet such requirements or serviced fewer than 100 air conditioners during 1990. Requires containers of listed substances to bear labels stating that such substances harm public health and the environment by destroying the ozone layer and disrupting the climate.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 1989
Emergency Chinese Adjustment of Status Facilitation Act of 1989 - Waives the two-year home country residence requirement for nationals of the People's Republic of China in the United States on a student (J) visa. Continues the legal status of nonimmigrant nationals of the People's Republic of China in the United States for adjustment or change of status purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 1989
Federal Facilities Radioactive Waste Control Act - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to provide that source, special nuclear, or byproduct materials generated at Federal facilities which are mixed with hazardous wastes listed under such Act shall be subject to regulation under such Act for hazardous waste constituents and the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 for radioactive constituents.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 1989
Social Security Notch Adjustment Act - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to establish a new alternative formula for computing the primary insurance amount (used in calculating the amount of OASDI benefits to which an individual is entitled) of workers born after 1916 and before 1927.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 1989
Emergency Response Equipment Inventory Act of 1989 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to direct the National Response Center (NRC) to establish, maintain, and annually revise a nationwide computerized listing of emergency response resources which are available to, and appropriate for use by, the National Response Team (NRT) in responding to: (1) discharges and substantial threats of discharge of oil which are within the scope of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan; and (2) releases and substantial threats of release of hazardous substances, pollutants, and contaminants within that scope. Directs the NRC to provide continuous access to such information to regional response teams and centers, on-scene coordinators, and all State and local government officials responsible for directing responses to such discharges or releases. Requires the head of each Federal agency having a representative on the NRT to ensure that all such individuals have ready accessibility to all relevant, unclassified data. Directs the President to take such actions as may be necessary to encourage appropriate international organizations to establish an international inventory of emergency response resources.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 1989
Directs the Secretary of Defense to identify annually those local educational agencies that will experience an increase or reduction in enrollment of dependents of members of the armed forces or civilian officers or employees of the Department of Defense as a result of the closure or realignment of a military installation. Requires the Secretary to notify the local educational agencies affected by such determinations.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 1989
Job Corps Amendments Act of 1989 - Amends the Job Training Partnership Act (the Act) to revise provisions for the Job Corps. Raises the maximum age limit for Job Corps enrollees from 22 to 25, and repeals authority to waive the age limitation for handicapped individuals. Declares that nothing in the Act prohibits transfer of Job Corps participants to and from Training Services programs for the disadvantaged. Increases from ten to 20 percent the maximum percentage of Job Corps enrollees who may be nonresident participants in any year. Prohibits the Secretary of Labor (the Secretary) from reducing the number of residential participants during any program year below their number during program year 1989. Prohibits any Department of Labor funds from being used to: (1) close any Job Corps Center that was operating during program year 1989; or (2) carry out any contract with a nongovernmental entity to administer or manage a Civilian Conservation Center of the Job Corps which was not under such a contract as of September 1, 1984. Directs the Secretary to provide child care at or near Job Corps centers for the children of Job Corps participants. Requires each Job Corps Center to provide alcohol or drug abuse counseling, treatment, and related prevention services for enrollees.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 1989
Federal Budget Structure Act of 1989 - Amends Federal law to require that the budget the President submits to the Congress be a unified budget comprising an operating budget and a capital budget, each presented separately for total funds, Federal funds, and trust funds. Restricts the capital budget to the major activities, projects, and programs supporting the acquisition, construction, alteration, and rehabilitation of capital assets. Includes all other items in the operating budget. Directs the Comptroller General to review and report to the Congress, as necessary, on the implementation of this Act. Requires the following reports to the House Committee on Public Works and Transportation and the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works on capital activities and operating activities associated with: (1) roadways and bridges, airports and airway facilities, and mass transportation systems; (2) waste water treatment and related facilities; (3) water resource projects; and (4) public buildings.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 1989
Solid Waste Prevention Act - Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to establish within the Office of Research and Development a program to support the development of technologies and other means of assisting State and local governments in preventing solid wastes. Requires the Administrator, through grants, contracts, or other means, to emphasize research into: (1) developing improved solid waste prevention and recycling technologies and methods; (2) determining types of materials and packaging that could be recycled more easily; and (3) identifying markets for recycled materials. Directs: (1) the Administrator to establish a program of research grants to State and local governments that have solid waste prevention and recycling programs to enable such governments to evaluate the effectiveness of their programs and determine ways in which they could be improved; and (2) each State or local government receiving such a grant to report to the Administrator on the results of such research. Specifies that such grants, in combination with any other Federal funds, shall not exceed 50 percent of the costs of any project assisted under this Act. Requires the Administrator to: (1) disseminate to the public and private sectors information obtained from solid waste prevention research or State evaluation research grants; (2) provide technical assistance to State and local governments; and (3) submit to the Congress, by January 1, 1991, and annually thereafter, a report describing program accomplishments, identifying and ranking technical or other management actions that could be taken by State and local governments according to their cost and effectiveness in preventing solid wastes, and outlining future research needs. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 through 1994.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1989
Title I: General Provisions - Coastal Defense Initiative of 1989 - Sets forth congressional findings and definitions. Title II: Coastal Water Quality - Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to promulgate numeric water quality standards for pollutants for which certain information has been published under the Clean Water Act. Requires such criteria to ensure the protection of public health and wildlife habitats, the propagation of a balanced, indigenous population of fish, shellfish, and wildlife, and recreation in and on coastal waters. Provides for the promulgation of additional criteria for pollutants which contribute to the degradation of coastal water quality. Provides that State criteria that are more protective of human health or the environment shall take precedence over national criteria. Authorizes Governors of coastal States to petition the Administrator to establish less stringent criteria if demonstrated that such criteria will achieve the designated uses of the water body and are justified because of the physical, chemical, or biological characteristics of such water. Requires the Administrator to grant such petitions if the proposed criteria will achieve the same level of protection as the national criteria. Authorizes any person to petition the Administrator to develop criteria for a pollutant. Directs the Administrator to develop and publish criteria and information on: (1) sediment quality for coastal waters; (2) marine and estuarine biological integrity; and (3) such other indices determined to complement the criteria published under the Clean Water Act. Requires Governors of coastal States to identify coastal waters: (1) for which applicable water quality standards cannot reasonably be anticipated to be achieved or maintained; and (2) which are currently achieving such standards but are threatened by foreseeable increases in pollution loadings from new or expanding sources. Directs such Governors, acting through State water pollution control authorities, to develop individual control strategies to: (1) identify the principal sources of pollutants from point and nonpoint sources; (2) establish the total maximum daily load of pollutants determined to contribute to the failure of waters to achieve or maintain water quality standards; (3) allocate among such sources the necessary reductions in loadings to achieve and maintain such standards and provide an implementation schedule for achieving such reductions; and (4) provide for a system for allocating and exchanging discharge credits and pollution offsets. Requires such control strategies to be submitted triennially to the Administrator for approval. Directs Governors to certify that permit renewals for point sources and land use activities in coastal zones are consistent with strategy requirements. Requires Governors of coastal States or the Administrator to designate outstanding coastal resource waters with particular ecological, recreational, or esthetic value, taking into account fisheries and shellfish resources, habitat, and recreational uses. Provides for petitioning and appeals of such designations. Directs such Governors to revise the continuing planning process to ensure that water quality and ecological integrity of State coastal waters will be maintained and protected. Amends the Clean Water Act to prohibit the issuance or renewal of permits for discharges into certain estuaries, outstanding resource waters designated under this Act, the territorial sea, or the exclusive economic zone unless the Administrator or a State determines that: (1) the need for the discharge and the lack of reasonable alternatives; and (2) that the discharge will not inhibit the protection of public health and wildlife habitat, the propagation of a balanced, indigenous population of fish, shellfish, and wildlife, or recreation in and on the water. 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 or its political subdivision to enforce requirements for marine sanitation devices. Requires such agreements to authorize States or political subdivisions to assess and retain required penalties. Increase the amount of appropriations authorized to be appropriated for the National Estuary Program. Title III: Coastal Management - Amends the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 to require State agencies designated to carry out approved coastal zone management plans to submit coastal water quality protection plans to the Secretary of Commerce for approval. Sets forth provisions for plan approval and resubmission of disapproved plans. Limits Federal assistance to States that fail to submit plans. Authorizes the Secretary to approve plans that: (1) identify major land uses which may cause or contribute significantly to violations of marine water quality standards or impair existing uses of such waters; (2) establish and periodically revise model ordinances and regulations for use by State and local authorities for encouraging best land use management practices for preventing or reducing coastal water pollution; (3) encourage and assist local governments in implementing such ordinances; (4) contain enforceable review and certification policies; (5) establish a schedule of pollution reduction goals; (6) improve coordination between State and local agencies and officials for land use planning and permitting, water quality permitting and enforcement, and public health and safety; and (7) modify State boundaries as necessary to manage such activities. Applies such plans to coastal areas in which marine water quality standards are not being achieved, or are being met but are identified as threatened. Requires the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere to provide technical assistance to States and local governments in developing and implementing such plans. Directs the Administrator to review the inland coastal zone boundary of each State program to evaluate whether such boundary extends inland to the extent necessary to control land and water uses having a significant impact on State coastal waters. Requires the Administrator to recommend appropriate boundary modifications to the Secretary and the State if such modifications are necessary to manage better land and water uses and to protect water quality. Directs the Secretary, to promote coordination between the National Estuary Program and the Coastal Zone Management Program, to issue regulations governing the incorporation of Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plans under the Clean Water Act into State management programs under the Coastal Zone Management Act. Requires State agencies responsible for administering coastal zone management programs to designate representatives for each management conference convened under the Clean Water Act that includes coastal lands and waters. Deems Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plans in compliance with regulations under this title to be approved as components of a State's coastal zone management program. Title IV: National Coastal Monitoring Program - Establishes a National Coastal Environmental Monitoring Task Force. Requires the Task Force to establish uniform protocols to: (1) assess long-term conditions and trends; (2) assist in the development of regulatory programs to restore and protect coastal water quality; and (3) assess the effectiveness of coastal protection programs. Provides for the periodic review of such protocols. Requires the Task Force to authorize regional monitoring teams to develop regional coastal environmental monitoring plans to: (1) identify the current environmental conditions of coastal waters; (2) establish a sound technical basis for coastal environmental management decisionmaking; (3) incorporate standardized methods for sampling, analysis, and data management; (4) make better use of funds available for such monitoring; and (5) involve the public as full participants. Directs the Task Force to publish criteria for selecting coastal regions that may be eligible for the development of regional programs. Requires the Task Force to designate such regions and teams. Sets forth plan requirements and approval and modification procedures. Authorizes the Under Secretary to develop the plan if a regional team fails to do so. Incorporates monitoring requirements into: (1) the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972; (2) approved State coastal zone management plans; and (3) appropriate discharge permits. Establishes within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration the National Coastal Monitoring Data Center. Requires the Under Secretary to examine existing Federal and State monitoring data management systems and issue guidance for the development of compatible systems. Makes available to the public all data maintained at the Center. Title V: Compliance and Enforcement - Directs the Administrator to provide to Federal agencies a list of persons discharging pollutants into coastal waters who have been found to be: (1) in significant noncompliance with discharge permits issued pursuant to the Clean Water Act; or (2) in violation of requirements established in management programs or conferences pursuant to such Act. Provides for the semiannual revision of such list. Prohibits Federal agencies from contracting with such persons for the procurement of goods, materials, or services if the contract is to be performed at any facility owned, leased, or operated by such persons. Prohibits Federal agencies from approving any project or awarding any grant for an activity that may adversely affect coastal water quality or coastal land and water use to any coastal State found to have: (1) demonstrated a pattern of continuing failure to achieve and maintain applicable marine water quality standards; or (2) failed to implement and enforce an approved comprehensive estuary management plan pursuant to the Clean Water Act. Waives sovereign immunity for purposes of enforcing any requirement of this Act or the Clean Water Act against any Federal agency discharging pollutants into coastal waters. Authorizes the Administrator to commence an administrative enforcement action against any executive department to enforce this Act. Requires Federal agencies which own or operate facilities that discharge into coastal waters (and that would otherwise qualify as major dischargers) to submit to the Administrator plans to carry out environmental audits of such facilities and to correct any incident of noncompliance with requirements of this Act or the Clean Water Act. Provides for biannual audits during the first year of plan implementation and periodically thereafter as determined by the Administrator. Requires industrial facilities found to be in significant noncompliance with a discharge permit to conduct such audits on a quarterly basis until the condition giving rise to the finding has been corrected and the facility is no longer in violation of applicable requirements. Directs major dischargers to provide certifications by environmental auditors prior to renewal of a discharge permit. Requires audits to be conducted by independent auditors unless the Administrator determines that the permittee has an internal auditing program consistent with applicable regulations. Directs the Administrator to: (1) issue regulations on such auditing and guidance for certification procedures; (2) convene a forum of interested professional organizations to identify eligibility requirements for certification and continuing education of such auditors; and (3) publish a list of auditors qualified to meet such guidelines. Permits dischargers, upon the development of a program consistent with such guidelines by a State, to select an auditor from the State list. Requires penalties assessed against dischargers under the Clean Water Act to be no less than an amount that eliminates economic benefit or savings that may have accrued to such person as a result of the violation. Makes a conforming amendment to the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972. Requires States having coastal 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 water body does not meet. Deems violations of this Act to be violations of title I of the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act. Title VI: Funding - Establishes the Coastal Defense Fund (Fund). Directs the Administrator and the Under Secretary to make grants from the Fund to coastal States that: (1) establish their own coastal resources protection fund into which such grants will be deposited; (2) agree to deposit into such fund all receipts from coastal effluent charge systems; (3) agree to make grants and other expenditures from such funds; and (4) agree to undertake periodic accounting and reporting procedures. Outlines specific criteria to be considered by the Administrator and the Under Secretary in determining grant amounts. Allocates Fund moneys. Requires the Administrator to establish a National Coastal Effluent Charge System to: (1) provide economic incentives to coastal dischargers to eliminate or reduce the volume or toxicity of effluents; (2) raise $100,000,000 for the Fund; and (3) supplement existing public funding for Federal, State, and local coastal environmental quality programs. Directs the Administrator to establish a schedule of charges to be assessed annually against each coastal discharger. Establishes minimum and maximum amounts to be paid. Provides for a special hardship exemption under specified conditions. Sets forth deadlines for the assessments of such charges by the Administrator and States. Authorizes a coastal State to petition the Administrator for exemptions to the national charge system if such State currently requires fees similar in scope and purpose to the national system. Directs significant industrial users of publicly owned treatment works to pay annual charges based on pollutants authorized to be introduced into such works as determined by the Administrator's schedule of charges. Requires municipal authorities to retain charges paid by such users to implement and enforce requirements under this Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972. Bases initial charges on relevant variables in the discharge permit. Provides for modifications of such charges at the time of permit renewal. Amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Amendments of 1978 to authorize transfers from the Offshore Oil Pollution Compensation Fund to the Fund. Removes an upper limit placed on the Offshore Oil Pollution Compensation Fund. Amends the Coastal Zone Management Act to provide for the deposit into the Fund of certain unobligated funds and loan payments. Credits the following to the Fund: (1) certain penalties, fines, and other payments assessed under the Clean Water Act and the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act; and (2) specified Outer Continental Shelf revenues.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1989
Federal Health Insurance Equity Act of 1989 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish by rule national minimum standards regarding the provision of health insurance to persons with pre-existing conditions. Describes elements required to be included. Requires that, within 24 months of establishment of the standards and notwithstanding other laws: (1) each sponsor of a health benefit plan comply with the standards; and (2) each State adopt the standards and assume responsibility for enforcing them through assessment of penalties. Requires States to notify the Secretary when they have done so and the Secretary to certify that they have adopted the standards and assumed such responsibility. Prohibits the Secretary, in the case of a State that must enact legislation in order to adopt and assume responsibility for enforcing the standards, from refusing to certify a State before the close of the first regular session of the State legislature that begins after establishment of the standards. Directs the Secretary to withdraw a State's certification for stated reasons. Provides, with regard to a sponsor who does not comply with the standards, for civil monetary penalties, subject to exception, and for liability to individuals for damages.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1989
Consumer Products Recovery Act of 1989 - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to require producers or importers of lubricating oil to recycle, through methods specified under this Act, an amount of used oil equal to at least the amount determined by multiplying the amount of lubricating oil produced or imported that year by such persons by the recycling percentage established by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Authorizes such individuals to comply with this Act by: (1) recycling (through re-refining) used oil or purchasing re-refined oil for purposes of producing lubricating oil; or (2) purchasing recycling credits under this Act. Directs the Administrator to establish a recycling percentage that is two points higher than the existing recycling rate for lubricating oil. Provides for increases in such percentage of two points annually until 1999. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations allowing recyclers to create credits for used oil recycling and producers or importers of lubricating oil to purchase such credits. Provides that such regulations shall require: (1) owners or operators of used oil collection places to keep receipts issued by transporters who take delivery of such oil and copies of agreements under which the transporter agrees to take such oil to a recycling facility; (2) such owners or operators to certify that oil taken by transporters is not contaminated with hazardous wastes or substances above de minimis levels; (3) transporters to obtain an identification number from the Administrator and to keep certain records; (4) owners or operators of recycling facilities to be the only persons to create a recycling credit for the recycling credit system; (5) recyclers to certify that the substance being recycled is uncontaminated used oil; (6) oil proposed to be recycled to have come from a used oil collection place or a transporter with an identification number; (7) specified records to be kept by recyclers and by importers or producers; and (8) recyclers to sell or distribute in commerce such oil as specification used oil, off-specification used oil, hazardous waste fuel, or re-refined oil. Allows used oil re-refiners to exclude between 15 and 25 percent of re-refined oil from recycling requirements. Directs the Administrator to report to the Congress on such regulations and to include: (1) a discussion of the effects of such regulations on the oil industry and the environment; and (2) an evaluation of the level of the recycling percentage and whether such percentage should be increased in future years. Requires an updated version of such report to be submitted within ten years of this Act's enactment. Applies recycling requirements to persons who import or produce more than 100,000 gallons of lubricating oil annually. Sets the recycling percentage at 40 percent if the Administrator fails to promulgate such regulations. Directs the Administrator to submit to the Congress a plan for the recycling of certain commodities, including daily newspapers, used tires, lead acid batteries, pesticide containers, antifreeze, and specified volatile organic compounds. Requires such plan to include an incentive-based method for accomplishing such recycling. Directs the Administrator to implement such plan with respect to one commodity and with respect to an additional commodity each year thereafter. Provides that if used oil is identified as a hazardous waste under the Solid Waste Disposal Act, any fuel derived from such oil shall not be considered to be a hazardous waste after being reprocessed at a permitted facility. Requires persons who package lubricating oil to label such packages with a hazardous substance warning label and to include a telephone number for information on area recycling. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations requiring States to develop plans for making information about used oil recycling available to the public. Requires the Administrator to establish a toll-free telephone line for information on State used oil recycling programs. Makes certain regulations proposed in the Federal Register on November 29, 1985, effective with respect to used oil management if the Administrator fails to promulgate regulations under this Act. Authorizes appropriations.