United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Amends the Omnibus Crime Control Act of 1970 to revise and increase the mandatory penalties for using or carrying a firearm during commission of a Federal felony. Defines such offense as using a firearm to commit a felony over which the district courts have exclusive jurisdiction or carrying a firearm during such a felony involving violence. Deletes the requirement that the firearm be carried "illegally." Increases the additional penalty imposed for such offense from one to ten years' imprisonment to five to ten years' imprisonment for a first offender and from two to 25 years to ten years to life imprisonment for a second or subsequent offender. Extends to first offenders the directions, currently applicable only to second offenders, that the court not suspend any sentence or grant probation and that the additional sentence not run concurrently with any term of imprisonment imposed for the offense itself. Makes a first offender ineligible for parole for five years and a second or subsequent offender ineligible for ten years. Expresses the sense of Congress that the executive prosecute vigorously such offenses.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Service Liability Partial Self-Insurance Act of 1981 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a deduction to any taxpayer furnishing professional design services for cash contributions to a service liability trust. Defines services liability as liability for tort damages attributable to negligence in, breach of warranty regarding, or defects in the professional construction or modification design of buildings or structures on real property. Limits the allowable deduction: (1) for a taxpayer with a severe service liability problem to a maximum of $100,000, or one of two specified formula sums, whichever is least; and (2) for a taxpayer with no severe liability problem to a maximum of $25,000, or one of two formula sums, whichever is least. Penalizes unauthorized distributions from such accounts except for: (1) corrective withdrawal of excess contributions; (2) distributions when a change of circumstances causes continued maintenance of such trust to have no trade or business purposes; (3) transfers of rollover amounts; (4) distributions following complete liquidation of the pertinent trade or business; and (5) certain sales deemed distributions. Limits the investment of account assets to: (1) Federal public debt securities; (2) nondefaulted State or local obligations; (3) time or demand deposits in certain Federally insured financial institutions; or (4) any other investment asset permissible under law of the State where such account is organized. Treats service liability loss reserves as amounts accumulated for the reasonably anticipated needs of a business, for purposes of avoiding the accumulated earnings tax.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Individual Investors' Incentive Act of 1981 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individual taxpayers a nonrefundable income tax credit equal to ten percent of the cost of domestic stock purchased by such taxpayer during the taxable year. Limits the dollar amount of such credit to $1,000 ($2,000 for married individuals filing jointly). Limits such credit to one-tenth of the increase of the aggregate adjusted basis of the taxpayer's domestic stock for the taxable year. Disallows such credit if the taxpayer controls the corporation. Requires the recapture of specified amounts of such credit if any stock for which the credit is allowed is disposed of by the taxpayer within one year of purchase. Disqualifies estates, trusts, and nonresident aliens from eligibility for the credit.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Intelligence Identities Protection Act - Amends the National Security Act of 1947 to establish criminal penalties for any person who knowingly discloses information which identifies a U.S. covert intelligence agent. Establishes a maximum penalty of ten years' imprisonment and/or a $50,000 fine for any person who, having had authorized access to classified information which identifies a covert agent, intentionally discloses such information. Establishes a maximum penalty of five years' imprisonment and/or a $25,000 fine for any person who, having had authorized access to classified information, learns the identity of a covert agent and intentionally discloses such information. Establishes a maximum penalty of three years' imprisonment and/or a $15,000 fine for any person who, in the course of an effort to identify covert agents "with intent to impair" U.S. foreign intelligence activities, discloses information identifying an agent. Directs the President to establish procedures requiring Federal agencies to provide assistance in concealing the identity of U.S. intelligence agents.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Establishes a Commission on More Effective Government to study and recommend ways of promoting economy, efficiency, and improved service within the Executive branch of Government. Directs the Commission to recommend methods to improve the relationship between Federal, State, and local governments. Directs the Commission to submit a final report to the Congress ten days after the Ninety-eighth Congress convenes. Terminates the Commission 90 days after such date. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Capital Investment Incentive Act of 1980 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase from 60 percent to 70 percent the noncorporate capital gains deduction from gross income. Reduces from 28 percent to 21 percent the corporate alternative minimum tax rate on capital gains.
United States · United States Congress · 5 January 1981
Declares the sense of Congress that the Constitution of the United States does not preclude the use of, and that public school authorities should recognize the value of, discretionary periods of silence for silent prayer, meditation, contemplation, or introspection in the public schools.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 1980
Federal District Court Organization Act of 1980 - Provides that the Court for the Central Judicial District of California shall be held at Santa Ana, in addition to Los Angeles as currently provided. Transfers the counties of Fremont and Page from the Southern to the Western Division of the Southern Judicial District of Iowa. Transfers the counties of Audrain and Montgomery from the Eastern to the Northern Division of the Eastern Judicial District of Missouri. Places within the Eastern Judicial District of North Carolina that portion of Durham County encompassing the Federal Correctional Institution in Butner, North Carolina. Transfers the counties of Alleghany, Ashe, Watauga, and Wilkes from the Middle to the Western Judicial District of North Carolina. Establishes a Lufkin Division in the Eastern Judicial District of Texas.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 1980
Industrial Energy Conservation Incentive Tax Act of 1980 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the investment tax credit energy percentage from ten to 20 percent for alternative energy property, specially defined energy property, and recycling equipment. Makes such credit refundable. Provides for a refundable 20 percent investment tax credit for qualified conservation property. Defines "qualified conservation property" as property which is used by a taxpayer as an energy-saving modification to an existing industrial facility. Excludes public utility property from such definition.
United States · United States Congress · 3 September 1980
Year-End Spending Control Act - Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to apportion appropriations to Federal agencies in a manner which insures that no more than 20 percent of the total appropriations available to an agency in a fiscal year may be obligated during the last two months of that year. Authorizes the Director to waive such a spending limitation upon determining that it would seriously disrupt an agency program or operation, if the Director reports on such waiver to Congress before the agency violates such limitation. Requires the Director to report to Congress concerning: (1) the implementation of this Act; (2) violations of spending limitations; (3) the results and impacts of this Act including the effects upon procurement and apportionment processes; and (4) recommendations on continuing the spending limitations. Exempts reserves established to comply with a spending limitation under this Act from reporting requirements of the Impoundment Control Act of 1974. Directs an agency to consider an employee's compliance with agency rules and procedures applicable to year-end expenditure practices when: (1) evaluating the performance of a member of the Senior Executive Service; and (2) determining any pay increase for a supervisor or manager under the merit pay system.
United States · United States Congress · 25 August 1980
Declares the sense of Congress that the Constitution of the United States does not preclude, and that public school authorities should recognize the value of, periods of silence (for silent prayer, meditation, contemplation, or introspection) in the public schools to be used at the discretion of individual students.
United States · United States Congress · 22 August 1980
Financial Integrity Act of 1980 - Amends the Accounting and Auditing Act of 1950 to require the head of each executive agency to prepare and transmit to the President an annual report on the adequacy of the agency's systems of internal auditing and administrative control. Directs the Comptroller General of the United States: (1) in consultation with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, to establish a method of reporting and a general framework to guide the agencies in evaluating their systems of internal accounting and administrative control, and to modify such method or framework as necessary; and (2) to define internal accounting and administrative controls to provide assurances that: (a) obligations and costs were in compliance with applicable law; (b) funds, property, and other assets were safeguarded against waste, loss, unauthorized use, or misappropriation; and (c) agency revenues and expenditures were properly accounted for and recorded. Requires any inadequacy in the agency's systems which prevents the systems from achieving such assurances to be identified, and a plan for correcting such an inadequacy to be described in detail. Requires the Inspector General or the head of the internal audit staff of each agency to receive and investigate any allegation that an agency employee provided false or misleading information in connection with an evaluation or report concerning the agency's accounting or control systems. Directs the head of an agency to take action against such an employee as necessary.
United States · United States Congress · 20 August 1980
Judicial Councils Reform and Judicial Conduct and Disability Act of 1980 - Sets forth rules governing the composition and duties of the judicial councils of the circuit courts. Provides that a council shall consist of: (1) the chief judge of the court of appeals for the circuit; (2) up to seven appellate court judges in active service (chosen by seniority by majority vote of all such judges); and (3) an equal number of district court judges of the circuit in active service (chosen by seniority). Authorizes a council to hold hearings, and to compel the appearance of witnesses and the production of documents in the performance of its duties. Allows any person to file with the clerk of the court of appeals a written complaint against a judge of the court of appeals, a district court or a bankruptcy court, or a magistrate, alleging that such judge or magistrate: (1) has engaged in conduct prejudicial to the effective and expeditious administration of the business of the courts; or (2) is unable to discharge all the duties of office because of mental or physical disability. Directs the clerk to transmit such complaint to the chief judge of the court of appeals for the circuit and a copy to the judge affected. Authorizes the chief judge to: (1) dismiss the complaint upon a finding that it relates to the merits of a decision or is frivolous; or (2) close the complaint upon finding that appropriate corrective action has been taken. Directs a chief judge who does not enter such an order to appoint a special committee consisting of himself or herself and equal numbers of appellate and district court judges to investigate the complaint and file a comprehensive report with the judicial council which includes recommendations for appropriate action. Authorizes the judicial council upon receipt of such a report to: (1) conduct additional investigation; (2) take appropriate action to assure the effective and expeditious administration of the business of the courts within the circuit; or (3) refer the complaint and its recommendations for actions to the Judicial Conference of the United States. Includes among the actions which the council may take: (1) certifying disability in accordance with current law; (2) requesting voluntary retirement; (3) ordering that the assignment of cases be temporarily suspended for a time certain; (4) censuring or reprimanding the judge or magistrate by private communication or public announcement; or (5) ordering other action appropriate under the circumstances. Stipulates that the council may not order the removal from office of any judge appointed for good behavior. Directs the judicial council to certify to the Judicial Conference a determination that a judge has engaged in conduct which: (1) might constitute grounds for impeachment under the Constitution; or (2) in the interest of justice is not amenable to resolution by the council. Directs the Judicial Conference to: (1) take appropriate action by majority vote; or (2) certify and transmit the record of the proceedings to the House of Representatives if it occurs in the council's determination that impeachment may be warranted. Allows a complainant aggrieved by a final order of the chief judge to petition the judicial council for review. Allows a judge aggrieved by an action of the judicial council to petition the the Judicial Conference for review. Provides that all orders and determinations shall be final and conclusive. Directs each judicial council to prescribe rules for the conduct of proceedings under this Act. Directs the Court of Claims, the Court of Customs and Patent Appeals, and the Customs Court to each establish procedures for the filing of complaints with respect to the conduct of any judge of such court. Requires the Judicial Conference to make a comprehensive survey of the condition of business in the Federal courts and prepare plans for assignment of judges where necessary. Requires the Director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to include in the annual report to Congress a summary of complaints and actions taken under this Act. Authorizes necessary appropriations to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 20 August 1980
Authorizes the President to negotiate agreements with foreign governments limiting exports of automobiles and trucks to the United States. Terminates such authority and any agreements pursuant to such authority on July 1, 1985. States that action taken pursuant to such agreements shall not be treated as violating U.S. laws.
United States · United States Congress · 20 August 1980
Expresses the sense of the Congress that aliens who engage in unlawful or disorderly activities in the United States should be promptly deported in accordance with provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
United States · United States Congress · 20 August 1980
Declares that the people of Poland should be allowed to settle their own affairs, including the formation of independent trade unions and the right to strike, without foreign interference.
United States · United States Congress · 19 August 1980
Patent Term Restoration Act of 1980 - Amends the patent law to extend the terms of patents which encompass specified chemical products, processes for use of a chemical product, or devices, any of which are subject to certain nonpatent regulatory review periods. Sets forth the terms and conditions of such extension, including a seven year limitation. Directs the Commissioner of Patents to issue a certificate of extension stating the fact and length of the extension and identifying the product or device and the use and the claim to which such extension is applicable. Makes such certificate a part of the original patent. Authorizes the Commissioner to revoke such extension if the person subject to the regulatory review period is convicted of a criminal violation for submitting false or misleading data in support of such application.
United States · United States Congress · 18 August 1980
Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to phase out by 1985 the limitation on outside income for beneficiaries age 65 or older.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1980
Farm Labor Contractor Registration Act Amendments of 1980 - Amends the Farm Labor Contractor Registration Act of 1963 to revise the definition of "farm labor contractor" to: (1) broaden specified exclusions from such definition (thus broadening certain exemptions from coverage under such Act); and (2) exclude from such definition (and such coverage) any nonprofit or cooperative association of farmers, growers, or ranchers, duly incorporated under appropriate State laws, and operated solely for the mutual benefit of the members thereof, and any full-time or regular employee of such association or cooperative who engages in such activity solely for such employer. Adds other definitions relating to such revisions. Revises the definition of "agricultural employment" to specify that listed activities take place on a farm or ranch. Limits the definition of "migrant worker" to mean (among individuals engaged in agricultural employment on a farm or ranch on a seasonal or temporary basis) only those who cannot regularly return to their domicile each day after working hours, or who are transported from and to their domicile each workday by the person who recruits, solicits, hires, or furnishes such worker for agricultural employment on a farm or ranch owned or operated by another person.
United States · United States Congress · 2 July 1980
Tax Rate Reduction Act of 1980 - Title I: Individual Tax Rates - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce individual income tax rates for calendar years 1981 through 1985, and permanently thereafter. Title II: Inflation Adjustments for Taxable Years Beginning After 1985 - Requires annual cost of living adjustments to income levels in each income tax bracket, beginning in calendar year 1985. Requires similar cost of living adjustments to the $1,000 personal tax exemption. Increases the minimum income levels at which a taxpayer is required to file an income tax return by providing that such levels shall be equal to the taxpayer's income tax exemption and zero bracket amount, adjusted for inflation.
United States · United States Congress · 2 July 1980
Expresses the sense of the Congress that U.S. foreign policy should reflect a national strategy of peace through strength with specified principles and goals.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1980
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide homebuilders with an income tax credit for the construction of residences which incorporate a passive solar energy system. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury, after consultation with the Secretaries of Energy and Housing and Urban Development, to prescribe regulations setting forth a solar construction credit table for purposes of determining the amount of the credit for which the incorporator of the solar energy system is eligible. Limits the dollar amount of such credit to $2,000 for calendar years prior to 1986 and phases out the amount of the credit by $500 decrements until 1989 when such credit terminates. Defines "passive solar energy system" as a system which contains a solar collection area, an absorber, a storage mass, a heat distribution method, and heat regulation devices. Requires such system to be installed in a new residence after September 30, 1980 and before January 1, 1989.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 1980
Government Cost Reduction Act - Title I: Productivity Improvement by the Office of Personnel Management - Requires each performance appraisal system developed by a Federal agency under Office of Personnel Management (OPM) regulations to include performance standards relating to the degree of attainment of cost reduction goals and management objectives established under title III of this Act. Directs an agency to consider such standards when evaluating the performance of senior executives. Prohibits the President from awarding the rank of Meritorius Executive or Distinguished Executive to a senior executive who fails to attain such standards. Specifies criteria for the classification of Federal managerial positions which excludes any consideration of the subordinate position structure or the extent to which functions are performed by an agency rather than by contract. Directs OPM to prescribe regulations to assure that managers who reduce their staffing levels or budget utilization are rewarded and do not, as a result, have their position reduced in grade. Title II: Program Goals and Performance Indicators - Requires the head of each executive agency to establish goals for each agency program, and performance indicators which measure the effectiveness of each program. Directs the President to issue on Executive order providing for the termination of the current system by which agencies report productivity data to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Title III: Cost Reduction Goals and Performance Objectives - Directs the Presidents to establish goals for each fiscal year for reducing unit costs and the costs of maintaining required levels of Government effectiveness, and to include such goals in the annual Budget transmitted to Congress. Requires that such goals indicate the reductions which will occur in direct and indirect labor costs and overhead costs. Requires each agency head: (1) to achieve explicit, measurable cost reduction goals; (2) to establish performance indicators to measure the effectiveness of the production of goods and delivery of services by an agency; (3) to establish objectives for each program of the agency; and (4) to report to the President annually on the progress of the agency in achieving its goals. Title IV: Productivity Program Reporting - Prescribes a framework for reporting and assessing the results of productivity enhancing programs, including guidelines governing budget savings and surplus personnel resulting from productivity improvements. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to report savings returned to the Treasury by the agencies to the President and Congress. Requires the Office of Management and Budget (OMB): (1) to report at least annually to the President and Congress on each agency's productivity reserve transactions; and (2) to maintain an inventory of all reports on executive branch productivity, unit costs, and work measurement, resource requirement factors, and data bases containing similar information. Title V: Productivity Enhancing Capital Investments - Directs OMB to: (1) promote capital investments which enhance productivity; (2) develop guidelines for agencies to identify capitol investments which result in fast payback within four years or increased program effectiveness; (3) issue guidelines for establishing agency revolving funds to finance productivity enhancing capital investments; and (4) monitor and report annually to the President and Congress on the savings and improved program effectiveness derived from fast payback investments. Title VI: Labor Management Relations - Establishes standards for productivity and quality of working life as negotiable items between an agency and any labor organization. Directs OMB to issue guidelines enabling agencies and employees to demonstrate that work could be performed by an outside contract as efficiently as it could be performed by agency employees. Requires OPM to prescribe regulations which: (1) prohibit a reduction in force if unit cost reductions are maintained when productivity improvements result in a reduced workload; and (2) provide for a necessary reduction by attrition, relocation, retraining, or job redesignation. Directs OMB to prescribe regulations: (1) to permit half of the savings resulting from effective management to be reapplied to authorized functions or used to record productive employees; and (2) to abolish personnel ceilings and budgeted workload requirements designed to limit the agency workforce. Authorizes agencies to establish Joint Employee Management Work Committees to improve work performance. Establishes, within each agency, merit teams to develop performance appraisal standards on a consensus basis. Directs each agency to include employees in training sessions respecting the development of such standards. Directs OPM to transmit periodic reports to the President and Congress on the costs and benefits of quality of work life initiatives. Title VII: Quality of Working Life - Requires each agency to prescribe regulations which provide that management systems, operating procedures, and jobs are structured to improve the productivity, environment, morale, job security, and utilization of employees. Title VIII: Consultant Reform - Establishes general statutory authority for the head of a Federal agency to appoint and fix the compensation of experts or consultants for temporary or intermittent services. Eliminates provisions of Federal law permitting an agency to procure such services by contract only when specifically authorized by appropriation or statute. Establishes the pay rate payable for GS-18 as the maximum pay rate for experts and consultants for all agencies. Directs OPM to prescribe regulations governing the employment of experts and consultants by Federal agencies. Requires each agency: (1) to submit to OPM a quarterly report on the number of days each consultant or expert is employed and the amount each individual is paid; and (2) to count such individuals as fractions of persons (depending on the number of hours they are employed) in administering any personnel ceiling. Prohibits an agency from initiating any action to obtain consultant or expert services by contract unless it has been certified that all reasonable steps have been taken to obtain such services by appointment. Requires each Federal agency to transmit to the Secretary of Commerce a written notice describing: (1) any proposed contract in an amount exceeding $10,000, with specified exemptions; and (2) any contract modification that increases the contract award by $50,000 or more. Directs the Secretary to publish such notices in a specified publication of the Department of Commerce. Directs each agency to notify the Committees on Appropriations of each House of Congress concerning any such modification. Directs every Federal agency to maintain and make available to the public each month a list of contracts which were entered into during the preceding 24 months and for which contractors have not completed performance. Requires that such list disclose certain information concerning the contract, contractor, and Government employees responsible for awarding and administering the contract. Declares that all contracts, excluding contracts determined to be classified information for national security reasons, shall be considered public information. Specifies information concerning the qualifications and selection of a contractor which shall be available to the public upon request. Requires each agency report which is prepared by a contractor or which is derived from a contractor's report, to disclose certain information converning the contract including: (1) the identity of the contractor; (2) the amount of the contract; and (3) the type of procurement process used to award the contract. Defines the term "organizational conflict of interest" as any situation in which a contractor has interests relating to work to be performed under a contract which may bias the contractor's judgment or result in an unfair competitive advantage to the contractor. Requires each contractor and each consultant or subcontractor used by such contractor to disclose any information relevant to any potential or existing organizational conflict of interest with regard to any contract for which such contractor is submitting a proposal or any proposed modification to an existing contract. Directs an agency, upon determining that such a conflict exists, to: (1) disqualify such contractor or the consultant or subcontractor from eligibility for ward of the proposed contract; (2) modify the proposed contract to eliminate such conflict; (3) include in the agency records and transmit to Congress a statement concerning such conflict if the contract services can be obtained from no other person; (4) terminate the existing contract to be modified; or (5) modify the existing contract to mitigate the conflict and report thereon to Congress if termination is not in the best interest of the Government. Requires each agency to include with its requests for regular appropriations for each fiscal year, an itemized statement of amounts requested for the procurement of goods and the procurement of services. Requires the Budget transmitted by the President to Congress each year to specify requests for new budget authority for and estimates of outlays by each agency for such procurement. Directs each agency head, by a specified date, to transmit to the Committees on Appropriations of each House an analysis of such requests and estimates. Requires each agency to include in its records regarding any completed contract totaling more than $50,000 and for which a report was prepared, an evluation describing such report, the actions taken by the agency in response to such report, and a summary of the performance of the contractor. Directs an agency to consider an employee's compliance with agency rules and procedures applicable to contracting functions when: (1) evaluating the performance of a member of the Senior Executive Service; and (2) determining any pay increase for a supervisor or manager under the merit pay system. Requires the Director of OMB to apportion appropriations to Federal agencies in a manner which insures that no more than 20 percent of the total appropriations available to an agency in a fiscal year may be obligated during the last two months of that year. Authorizes the Director to waive such spending limitation with regard to certain funds upon determining that such action is necessary to avoid a serious disruption of an agency program or operation, if the Director reports on such waiver to Congress. Requires the Director to report to Congress on the implementation, agency violations, impact, and continuation of such spending limitation. Exempts reserves established to comple with such a spending limitation from reporting requirements of the Impoundment Control Act of 1974. Requires the Director to promulgate a regulation establishing a data system for the collection and dissemination of information regarding Government procurement activities. Specifies information concerning each Government contract for the procurement of goods or services which must be included in the system. Directs the Director: (1) to make information within the system available to Congress, Federal agencies, and the public upon request; and (2) to submit to Congress quarterly and annual reports on Government procurement activities. Amends the Freedom on Information Act to require agencies to make information produced pursuant to a contract available to the public to the same extent as if produced by Government officials. Amends the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act to require agencies to pay interest on any payment which is overdue by more than four weeks on a contract with a small business concern. Consultant Reform Act of 1980 - Title I: Appointments - Establishes general statutory authority for the head of a Federal agency to appoint and fix the compensation of experts or consultants for temporary or intermittent services. Eliminates provisions of Federal law permitting an agency to procure such services by contract only when specifically authorized by appropriation or statute. Establishes the pay rate payable for GS-18 as the maximum pay rate for experts and consultants for all agencies. Directs the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to prescribe regulations governing the employment of experts and consultants by Federal agencies. Requires each agency: (1) to submit to OPM a quarterly report on the number of days each consultant or expert is employed and the amount each individual is paid; and (2) to count such individuals as fractions of persons (depending on the number of hours they are employed) in administering any personnel ceiling. Prohibits an agency from initiating any action to obtain consultant or expert services by contract unless it has been certified that all reasonable steps have been taken to obtain such services by appointment. Title II: Contracts - Requires each Federal agency to transmit to the Secretary of Commerce a written notice describing: (1) any proposed contract in an amount exceeding $10,000, with specified exemptions; and (2) any contract modification that increases the contract award by $50,000 or more. Directs the Secretary to publish such notices in a specified publication of the Department of Commerce. Directs each agency to notify the Committees on Appropriations of each House of Congress concerning any such modification. Directs every Federal agency to maintain and make available to the public each month a list of contracts which were entered into during the preceding 24 months and for which contractors have not completed performance. Requires that such list disclose certain information concerning the contract, contractor, and Government employees responsible for awarding and administering the contract. Declares that all contracts, excluding contracts determined to be classified information for national security reasons, shall be considered public information. Specifies information concerning the qualifications and selection of a contractor which shall be available to the public upon request. Requires each agency report which is prepared by a contractor or which is derived from a contractor's report, to disclose certain information concerning the contract including: (1) the identity of the contractor; (2) the amount of the contract; and (3) the type of procurement process used to award the contract. Defines the term "organizational conflict of interest" as any situation in which a contractor has interests relating to work to be performed under a contract which may bias the contractor's judgment or result in an unfair competitive advantage to the contractor. Requires each contractor and each consultant or subcontractor used by such contractor to disclose any information relevant to any potential or existing organizational conflict of interest with regard to any contract for which such contractor is submitting a proposal or any proposed modification to an existing contract. Directs an agency, upon determining that such a conflict exists, to: (1) disqualify such contractor or the consultant or subcontractor from eligibility for award of the proposed contract; (2) modify the proposed contract to eliminate such conflict; (3) include in the agency records and transmit to Congress a statement concerning such conflict if the contract services can be obtained from no other person; (4) terminate the existing contract to be modified; or (5) modify the existing contract to mitigate the conflict and report thereon to Congress if termination is not in the best interest of the Government. Requires each agency to include with its requests for regular appropriations for each fiscal year, an itemized statement of amounts requested for the procurement of goods and the procurement of services. Requires the Budget transmitted by the President to Congress each year to specify requests for new budget authority for and estimates of outlays by each agency for such procurement. Directs each agency head, by a specified date, to transmit to the Committees on Appropriations of each House an analysis of such requests and estimates. Requires each agency to include in its records regarding any completed contract totaling more than $50,000 and for which a report was prepared, an evaluation describing such report, the actions taken by the agency in response to such report, and a summary of the performance of the contractor. Directs an agency to consider an employee's compliance with agency rules and procedures applicable to contracting functions when: (1) evaluating the performance of a member of the Senior Executive Service; and (2) determining any pay increase for a supervisor or manager under the merit pay system. Requires the Director of OMB to apportion appropriations to Federal agencies in a manner which insures that no more than 20 percent of the total appropriations available to an agency in a fiscal year for procurement of goods and services may be obligated during the last two months of that year. Authorizes the Director to waive such spending limitation with regard to certain funds upon determining that such action is necessary to avoid a serious disruption of an agency program or operation, if the Director reports on such waiver to Congress. Requires the Director to report to Congress on the implementation, agency violations, impact, and continuation of such spending limitation. Exempts reserves established to comply with such a spending limitation from reporting requirements of the Impoundment Control Act of 1974. Requires the Director to promulgate a regulation establishing a data system for the collection and dissemination of information regarding Government procurement activities. Specifies information concerning each Government contract for the procurement of goods or services which must be included in the system. Directs the Director: (1) to make information within the system available to Congress, Federal agencies, and the public upon request; and (2) to submit to Congress quarterly and annual reports on Government procurement activities. Amends the Freedom of Information Act to require agencies to make information produced pursuant to a contract available to the public to the same extent as if produced by Government officials.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1980
Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to revise the eligibility requirements for adjustment assistance for workers to make workers eligible for such assistance if: (1) their firms' sales or production threaten to decrease absolutely; or (2) their firms provide essential parts or services to articles adversely affected by increased imports.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1980
Urges the President to negotiate with Japan concerning: (1) a temporary restraint in automobile exports to the United States; (2) an equitable relationship between domestic and foreign sales prices; and (3) trade barriers affecting U.S. products.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1980
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that deferred compensation plans shall not be deemed as not satisfying minimum vesting standards even if there is a reasonable likelihood that the accrual of benefits or forfeitures under such plans will tend to discriminate in favor of employees who are officers, shareholders, or highly compensated.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1980
Extends the congratulations of the Congress to the Order of the Sons of Italy in America for their 75th anniversary. Proclaims Sunday, June 22, 1980, as "National Italian-American Day."
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1980
Industrial Energy Conservation Incentive Tax Act of 1980 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the investment tax credit energy percentage from ten to 20 percent for alternative energy property and for specially defined energy property. Makes such credit refundable. Provides for a refundable 20 percent investment tax credit for qualified conservation property. Defines "qualified conservation property" as property which is used by a taxpayer as an energy-saving modification to an existing industrial facility.
United States · United States Congress · 4 June 1980
Authorizes the President to present a gold-plated medal, on behalf of the Congress, to those athletes selected through the Olympic trial process to be members of the United States Summer Olympic Team of 1980. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to cause to be stricken 650 such medals with suitable emblems. Declares that such medals are national medals and that funds to carry out this Act shall be made available under the Amateur Sports Act of 1978.
United States · United States Congress · 3 June 1980
National Export Policy Act of 1980 - Title I: General Findings and Purposes - Sets forth congressional findings and the purposes of this Act. Title II: Export Financing - Amends the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 to direct the Export-Import Bank to adopt export finance programs comparable in structure to those extraordinary measures of official export credits offered by competing countries, until such financing is limited by international agreements. Requires the Bank to report annually to Congress as to whether any additional appropriations or any increases in its commitment authority or ceiling levels are necessary to carry out this Act. States that this Act shall not take effect until six months after enactment, unless the President defers the effective date for an additional six months. Declares it to be the policy of the Congress that the Export-Import Bank of the United States should facilitate, particularly in the presence of foreign officially-supported export credit competition, exports to countries: (1) having insufficient access to international credit facilities; (2) demonstrating reasonable economic progress; and (3) offering adequate formal assurances of repayment (currently, must offer sufficient likelihood of repayment). Increases the aggregate amount of loans and contractual liability of guarantees and insurance which may be outstanding at any one time. Requires such activities to be carried out through the Export Expansion Facility. Provides for the capitalization of such facility. Establishes staggered ten-year terms of office for the Bank directors. Declares that the appropriate congressional committees should consider limitations on Bank activities when considering appropriations for international trade activities rather than when considering foreign assistance activities. Title III: Export-Related Tax Policy - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the earned income exclusion for United States citizens working abroad, who are bona fide residents of a foreign country, from an annual rate of $20,000 to: (1) $50,000; or (2) $65,000, if such persons qualify as bona fide residents for certain specified periods. Allows separate exclusions to married individuals who are both working overseas, although one's excess exclusion cannot be used against income earned by the other. Waives the residency requirements to qualify for such exclusion for those required to leave a foreign country because of civil unrest, war, or similar adverse conditions precluding the normal conduct of business. Reduces from 17 to 11 months the foreign residency requirement with respect to the deduction for certain housing expenses of living abroad. Revises the formula for determining the base housing amount with regard to such deduction to make it 16 percent of the salary of a GS-14, step 1. Repeals similar deductions for cost-of-living differential, schooling expenses, home leave travel expenses, and residence in a hardship area. Provides that the foreign bad debt loss deduction shall not exceed the greater of 15 percent of the taxpayer's taxable income from exports, or two percent of the taxpayer's export receivables outstanding at the close of the taxable year. Provides that the amount of bad debt losses that may be added to a bad debt reserve shall not exceed five percent of the taxpayer's export receivables outstanding as of the close of the taxable year. Permits the amortization, based on a period of 60 months, of: (1) foreign market studies; (2) foreign marketing expenses; and (3) foreign patents. Permits an income tax deduction for currency fluctuation losses on export credit which have not been repaid by the end of the taxable year. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to extend the six-month deadline for exempting exports from the manufacturer's excise tax for an additional 12 months if it is determined, after consultation with the Secretary of State, that exports were delayed because of war, civil unrest, or similar adverse conditions in a foreign nation. Amends the Foreign Trade Zones Act to authorize the Secretary of Commerce to approve the duty-free entry of machinery, materials, and fuels to be used for the production of goods in a foreign trade zone if such goods are not subsequently entered into U.S. customs territory. Sets forth requirements before applications for such treatment will be approved. Makes such approval valid for six years. Requires the Foreign Trade Zones Board to include in its annual report to Congress a summary of activities and proposals to increase the use of foreign trade zones to expand U.S. exports. Makes banking organizations which have invested in an export trading company eligible for treatment as domestic international sales corporations (DISC). Includes the gross receipts from the export of services produced in the United States and from export trade services as qualified export receipts, in the case of a DISC which is an export trading company. Directs the Secretary of Commerce, with the Secretary of the Treasury, to develop and distribute information concerning the utilization of the DISC provisions. Makes export trading companies eligible for Subchapter S treatment if the shareholders of such companies are otherwise small business corporations. Exempts such companies from restrictions on the amount of foreign income they can receive and still be eligible for Subchapter S tax treatment. Title IV: Antitrust - Amends the Webb-Pomerene Act to exempt the export trade, export trade activities, and methods of operation of certified export trade associations and export trading companies from the antitrust laws. Delays the effectiveness of any certificate upon the notification of the Secretary of Commerce by the Attorney General or the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) of disagreement with the decision to issue a certificate. Sets forth the procedure to be followed by any association, company, or export trading company seeking certification under this Act and by the Secretary in issuing such certificates. Provides for appeal of the Secretary's denial of certification. Authorizes the Attorney General or the FTC to bring an action to invalidate a certification. Requires the Secretary, in consultation with the Attorney General and the FTC, to publish guidelines for determining whether an association or export trading company will meet the certification requirements. Requires certified associations and export trading companies to submit annual reports to the Secretary. Directs the Secretary to establish within the Department of Commerce an office to promote export trade associations and trading companies. Provides for automatic certification of existing associations. Requires that all applications for certification be kept confidential with specified exceptions. Authorizes the Secretary to require an association or trading company to modify its operation to be consistent with international obligations of the United States. Directs the President to appoint, with the Senate's advice and consent, a task force seven years after enactment to examine the effect of this Act and to make recommendations. Directs the Attorney General to study whether: (1) U.S. business conduct to expand exports conflicts with basic antitrust principles; and (2) a more liberal enforcement policy for overseas activities would impede implementation of the antitrust laws. Requires the Attorney General to identify such conduct which would not warrant prosecution under the antitrust laws. Sets forth the procedures for describing such permissible conduct and disclosing such descriptions. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to intervene in such suits and to provide legal assistance to exporters. Prohibits prosecution under the antitrust laws of exporters who: (1) have notified the Attorney General of their intention to engage in such designated conduct; or (2) receive an approval, or no objection, from the Attorney General concerning proposed transactions. Requires the Attorney General and the Secretary of Commerce to report to Congress concerning implementation of this section. Title V: Amendments to Other Laws that Hinder Exports - Amends the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 to change the name of such Act to the Business Practices and Records Act. Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to require issuers of securities to keep their books and maintain a system of internal accounting controls in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Makes issuers liable for knowingly falsifying any books or for the intentionally wrongful maintenance or circumvention of the system of internal accounting controls. Requires only good faith efforts by issuers holding 50 percent or less of the equity capital to use their influence to cause transactions and dispositions of assets to be carried out consistent with such provisions. Repeals the provisions specifying prohibited foreign corrupt practices by issuers. Amends the Business Practices and Records Act to include issuers within the provisions specifying prohibited foreign corrupt practices by domestic concerns. Permits items of value to be given to foreigners in specified circumstances, including courtesy items, demonstration expenses, and payments lawful under the laws of the country of the intended recipient. Directs the Attorney General to issue guidelines specifying permissible conduct and arrangements associated with common types of export sales arrangements and business contracts and precautionary procedures creating a rebuttable presumption of compliance. Provides for the establishment of a Business Practices and Records Act Review Procedure to answer specific inquiries concerning enforcement of such Act. Requires the Attorney General to issue opinions regarding compliance. Makes such opinions final and binding on all parties if the conduct does not involve a violation. Requires annual reports to Congress by: (1) the Attorney General concerning actions taken pursuant to such Act; and (2) the Securities and Exchange Commission concerning the reporting requirements. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should negotiate agreements establishing standards of conduct for international business practices, a resolution procedure, and rates of commissions. Directs the President to report to Congress concerning the progress of such negotiations. Requires Congress to review the Business Practices and Records Act after receiving the President's report. Requires an export competitiveness impact statement from any issuing authority taking significant action which could affect adversely U.S. exports or the international competitive position of the United States and its exporters. Expresses the sense of Congress that export paperwork must be reduced to encourage export sales. Requires all agencies to minimize paperwork and reporting requirements. Title VI: Export Awareness and Export Promotion Programs - Export Trading Company Act of 1980 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to promote export trading companies and facilitate contacts between producers of exportable goods and export trading companies. Authorizes any banking organization to invest up to specified amounts in export trading companies upon notifying, but without obtaining the prior approval of, the appropriate Federal banking agency, if such investment does not cause an export trading company to become a subsidiary of such organization. Allows greater investment by Edge Act Corporations not engaged in banking. Permits any banking organization to invest beyond such limitations with the prior approval of the appropriate Federal banking agency. Requires prior notification of such agencies in specified circumstances. Sets forth further limitations on export trading companies and investments by banking organizations. Specifies factors to be taken into consideration by the banking agencies. Permits such agencies to impose conditions in approving applications to invest in export trading companies. Requires such agencies to report to the appropriate congressional committees concerning implementation of this Act and any recommendations. Provides for judicial review of denial orders in the appropriate U.S. Court of Appeals. Sets forth the grounds for disapproval. Provides for remand for further consideration by the banking agency. Directs the Economic Development Administration and the Small Business Administration to give special weight to export-related benefits when considering applications for loans and guarantees by export trading companies. Directs the Export-Import Bank of the United States to provide loan guarantees to export trading companies or exporters to be secured by accounts receivable or inventories when adequate financing is not otherwise available and such guarantees will facilitate expansion of exports. Small Business Export Expansion Act of 1980 - Amends the Small Business Act to authorize the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to permit participating lending institutions to take actions on behalf of the Administrator with respect to deferred participation loans. Empowers the SBA, either directly or in cooperation with lending institutions, to extend credit for export purposes to enable small business concerns to develop foreign markets. Limits the extension of such credit to periods of 18 months or less. Sets a maximum of $750,000 which may be committed to any borrower from the business loan and investment revolving fund. Establishes within the Administration an Office of International Trade to promote sales opportunities for small business goods and services abroad. Requires such Office to: (1) provide small businesses with access to current and complete export information; (2) encourage greater small business participation in trade fairs, shows, missions, and other domestic and overseas export development activities of the Department of Commerce; and (3) assign full-time export development specialists to each Administration regional office. Directs the Administrator, after consultation with specified agencies, to establish an export promotion center in each of two regional offices of the Administration where field offices of the Department of Commerce and the Internal Revenue Service exist. Requires each such center to serve as a one-stop information center of Federal Government export assistance, financing programs available to small business, and other provisions of law governing exporting for small business. Requires: (1) a progress report on the implementation of such centers to the appropriate Congressional committees within six months of enactment of this Act; and (2) an evaluation, within two years after enactment, of the effectiveness of such centers in developing and expanding small business exports. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to make grants to qualified applicants to encourage the development and implementation of small business international marketing programs. Sets forth eligibility requirements for applicants. Prohibits the use of any Federal funds to directly underwrite any small business participation in foreign trade missions abroad. Requires each small business international marketing program to: (1) have a full-time staff director to manage program activities; (2) have access to export specialists to counsel and assist small business clients; and (3) establish an advisory board. Directs the Secretary to require, as a condition to any grant, that an additional amount equal to twice the amount of such grant be provided from sources other than the Federal Government. Directs the Secretary to develop a plan to evaluate such programs to: (1) determine the impact of such programs on the small businesses assisted; (2) determine the amount of export sales generated by such businesses; and (3) make recommendations concerning continuation and/or expansion of the program. Requires the establishment of at least one small business international program within each region of the Department of Commerce. Directs the Secretary of Commerce, through the International Trade Administration, to maintain a central clearinghouse for the collection, dissemination, and exchange of information between such programs. Directs the Secretary to enter into cooperative agreements with industrial corporations to develop foreign markets for their products. Requires the Secretary to direct specific market research for the products involved in foreign markets upon entering such agreements. Permits interested industrial corporations to submit a proposal incorporating specific marketing actions to the Secretary. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into a marketing agreement after approving any such proposal. Requires repayment of the Federal share of the costs by the entity entering into such an agreement. International Education Programs Act - Amends the Higher Education Act to direct the Secretary of Education to make grants to, and contracts with, institutions of higher education to pay the Federal share of the cost of programs designed to promote linkages between such institutions and the American business community engaged in international economic activities. Requires higher education institutions to apply for such grants and contracts. Limits the amount of Federal assistance. Provides for an advisory board to consider the grants made, or contracts entered into, and to review programs established under this section. Directs each Federal agency and U.S. representative to any international organization to: (1) identify programs affecting the export of U.S. firms' services; (2) make available information concerning such programs; (3) establish programs to publicize export-related programs for services; and (4) modify those programs with an adverse effect on the export of services. Makes the Secretary of Commerce responsible for coordinating such programs. Directs the Department of Treasury to report to Congress concerning the feasibility of extending DISC treatment to the export of services. Title VII: Agricultural Exports - Amends the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act to establish the Agricultural Export Credit Revolving Fund to be available for: (1) the export of, or aid in the development of, foreign markets for agricultural commodities; and (2) loans for the acquisition of facilities in foreign countries to improve the countries' capacities to handle agri-commodities exported from the United States. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to report to Congress annually concerning the export credit sales program. Abolishes such fund effective October 1, 1983. Amends the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 to require the ratio of credit extended by the Export-Import Bank for agricultural exports in comparison with the total amount extended be at least equivalent to the value of agricultural exports in comparison with total value of exports. Specifies exceptions to this requirement. Requests the President to take action to establish an International Wheat Exporting Commission which would establish an annual minimum world market price for wheat and prescribe export quotas. Requires the President to keep Congress informed about the establishment of such Commission and to report annually once such Commission is established. Title VIII: International Agreements - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the multilateral trade agreement be strongly implemented; and (2) the efforts must continue to secure a freer world trading environment. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to implement a special export subsidy program for agricultural commodities to neutralize the effects of foreign export subsidy programs. Specifies the circumstances required before such program may be implemented. Expresses the sense of Congress that the President should enter negotiations for international codes of: (1) official export financing; (2) business conduct; (3) reciprocity of antitrust enforcement; and (4) fair trade in services. Requires the President to report to Congress concerning the progress of such negotiations. Title IX: Government Support of Export Goals - Overseas Private Investment Corporation Act of 1980 - Establishes the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) as an independent agency. Sets forth the duties of OPIC. Provides for the capital of OPIC to be paid in through the appropriation process and through transfer from OPIC's earned income. Sets forth the structure of OPIC with a Board of Directors, a President of the Corporation, an Executive Vice President of the Corporation, other officers and staff, and consultants. Authorizes OPIC to issue insurance to eligible investors covering new or existing investments protecting against specified risks. Authorizes OPIC to make arrangements with foreign governments or multilateral organizations for sharing liabilities. Limits the insurance that may be issued to a single investor. Authorizes OPIC to issue guarantees of loans and other investments. Sets forth limitations on such guarantees. Authorizes OPIC to make direct loans to privately owned or mixed publicly and privately owned firms for projects sponsored by or significantly involving United States small business or cooperatives. Limits the circumstances under which OPIC may acquire stock in any other corporation. Authorizes OPIC to initiate and support the identification, assessment, and promotion of private investment opportunities, with specified exceptions. Authorizes OPIC to administer special projects to provide private technical, professional, or managerial assistance in the development of human resources, skills, technology, capital savings, and intermediate financial institutions and cooperatives. Authorizes OPIC to engage in other insurance, reinsurance, and risk sharing activities with other insurance companies, financial institutions, persons, or groups. Limits the amount of reinsurance of liabilities which OPIC may issue. Limits the amount of maximum contingent liability pursuant to insurance or guarantees issued under this Act which may be outstanding at any one time. Establishes the: (1) Direct Investment Fund as a revolving fund to be available for direct investments; and (2) Insurance Reserve and Guaranty Reserve to be available for discharging liabilities. Authorizes appropriations to the investment and guaranty fund in specified circumstances. Authorizes OPIC to issue obligations in specified circumstances in order to discharge liabilities. Requires that all revenues and income transferred to or earned by OPIC be available to carry out OPIC's purposes. Directs OPIC to determine that suitable arrangements exist for protecting OPIC's interests in connection with any insurance, guaranty, or reinsurance issued under this Act. Pledges the full faith and credit of the United States for the full payment and performance of previous obligations. Sets forth conditions with respect to insurance, guaranty, and reinsurance coverage under this Act concerning fees, time limits, fraud, and settlement of disputes. Sets forth administrative provisions and duties applicable to OPIC. Requires OPIC to undertake to broaden the participation of United States small business, cooperatives, and other small investors in the development of small private enterprise in less developed friendly countries or areas. Directs OPIC to report annually to Congress concerning its operations. Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to define "eligible investor" in terms of this Act with respect to housing guarantees. Repeals provisions: (1) prohibiting the transfer of OPIC funds between accounts; (2) authorizing the President to deny assistance to any less developed country which fails to enter into an agreement to institute the investment guaranty program; and (3) establishing OPIC. Stipulates that nothing in this part shall be construed as terminating any of OPIC's statutory authority. Requires the President to submit to the appropriate congressional committees any necessary technical or conforming amendments. Declares that the potential for U.S. exports shall be a primary decisionmaking factor in considering which projects to include in U.S. foreign aid programs. Requires the Director of the International Development Cooperation Agency, (IDCA) to transfer the functions of the Office of Reimbursable Development from the Agency for International Development to an independent functional status within the IDCA. Declares that the Office of Management and Budget should assure that adequate budget allocations are made available to carry out the programs prescribed in this Act. Declares that the Department of Justice should do what it can to facilitate procedures for exporters. Declares that the Small Business Administration should: (1) be aware of the benefits of export to small business development; and (2) use every opportunity to provide information and assistance to potential exporters. Declares that the U.S. ability to export coal, nuclear power fuels, and other energy matters in a reliable manner should be a key consideration. Directs congressional committees to include in their reports the effect of the bill or resolution on the international competitiveness of the United States. Creates a National Export Council to: (1) serve as a national advisory body on matters relating to United States export trade: (2) act as a liaison among the communities represented by its membership; and (3) provide advice on Federal plans and actions that affect export promotion and development policies which have an impact on those communities represented by its membership. Requires the Council to make an annual report to the President and the Congress on its activities. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to appoint commercial ministers, counselors, and attaches with the rank and privileges of other ministers, counselors, and attaches in U.S. embassies and consulates, to: (1) provide trade and commercial services; (2) engage in the promotion of U.S. exports; (3) file semiannual reports to the Secretary on market, industrial, and commodity conditions in their districts and on the implementation of multilateral and bilateral trade agreements; and (4) maintain current data on the commercial standing and capacity of foreign firms within their districts. Provides for domestic assignment, office logistics, allowances and benefits of such ministers, counselors, and attaches. Directs the Comptroller General to report to Congress with any recommendations concerning: (1) the organization of international trading and financing programs in the United States; (2) the effectiveness of foreign export promotion programs; and (3) the trade activities of specified Federal agencies. Expresses the sense of Congress that the appropriate congressional committees should review periodically the trade organization of the U.S. Government.
United States · United States Congress · 29 May 1980
Permits veterans to refinance previously guaranteed mortgage loans which are secured by homes they still own and occupy. Sets forth conditions and requirements pursuant to such loans.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 1980
Family Protection Act - States as the purpose of this Act the strengthening of the American family and the reversal of governmental policies which hinder its strength and prosperity. Title I: Education - Amends the General Education Provisions Act to prohibit payments under such Act to States or State or local educational agencies, which: (1) prohibit voluntary prayer in public buildings; (2) lack procedures for the involvement of parents and representatives of the community in decisions relating to the establishment or continuation of religious studies; (3) limit parental visits to public schools or classes or the right of parents to inspect their children's school records; (4) require the payment of dues or fees as a condition of employment for teachers; or (5) lack procedures for parental review of textbooks prior to their use in the classroom. Stipulates that no Federal funds may be made available for curricula which promote values contradictory to the demonstrated beliefs of the community or for textbooks which tend to deny the role differences between the sexes. Guarantees the right of any State or local educational agency to set qualifications for teachers, set attendance requirements for students, and to limit or prohibit the intermingling of sexes in sports or other school-related activities. Amends the National Labor Relations Act to exclude from the definition of employer any corporation or association operating a school. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an income tax deduction for cash contributions to a savings account established to pay the expenses of a dependent child under the age of 22 at an educational institution (pre-school through college). Limits the amount of such deduction to $2,500 for a taxable year and permits only one account to be established on behalf of any individual. Exempts from income taxation, distributions from such accounts which are used exclusively to meet the educational expenses of the dependent child. Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to authorize appropriations for the payment of allotments to States for the financing of elementary and secondary school programs. Directs the Commissioner of Education to terminate the payment of such allotments if the programs for which funds are paid no longer comply with specified requirements. Permits judicial review of any finding of the Commissioner with respect to applications for funding or termination of payments to a State. Prohibits the exercise of Federal control over the curriculum, administration, or personnel of any State or local school system. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to grant tax-exempt status to an educational institution controlled by the parents of students enrolled in such institution. Provides for the termination of the tax exemption of a school which is found to discriminate in the hiring of teachers or the admission of students on the basis of race, nationality, or ethnic background. Denies jurisdiction to the U.S. Supreme Court to review any case arising out of a State statute or regulation which relates to voluntary prayer in public schools or buildings or to qualifications imposed by a State for the hiring of public school teachers. Title II: Welfare - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individuals who maintain a household which includes a dependent who has reached age 65 a nonrefundable income tax credit not in excess of $250 for the taxable year. Allows such individuals to take an income tax deduction in lieu of the credit. Limits the amount of such deduction to $1,000 for the taxable year. Amends the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to disqualify students enrolled in post-secondary educational institutions from participation in the food stamp program if such enrollment is equivalent to full-time employment. Grants tax-exempt status to organizations providing day care for children. Allows contributors to a tax- exempt day care center to claim a business expense deduction for contributions not deductible as a charitable contribution. Directs the Secretary of the branch of the Armed Forces concerned to deduct from the monthly pay and allowances of a member of such Armed Forces, who is living separate from his or her dependents, an amount sufficient to provide for the support of such dependents. Title III: First Amendment Guarantees - Prohibits the Federal Government from imposing legal requirements upon the operation of a church organization which sponsors a child care center, orphanage, foster home, social action training program, emergency shelter for abused children or spouses, school, or juvenile delinquency or drug abuse treatment center or home. Amends provisions of the United States Code relating to judicial procedure to establish a legal presumption in favor of an expansive interpretation of a parent's role in supervising and determining the religious or moral formation of his child, in cases involving such issue. Title IV: Taxation - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit married individuals to compute on a separate basis the maximum retirement savings deduction to which each individual is entitled. Permits a maximum deduction of $3,000 for a spouse who is handicapped. Increases the zero bracket amount for married individuals filing separately to $2,300 (the same as for unmarried individuals). Imposes the same income tax rates upon married individuals filing separately as are imposed upon unmarried individuals. Specifies that an individual who works without compensation for a charitable, civic, religious, or political activity shall be considered to be gainfully employed for purposes of eligibility for the child care credit. Allows an additional personal tax exemption of $1,000 for each child born to, or adopted by, a taxpayer during the taxable year. Permits an exemption of $3,000 for the adoption of a handicapped child over the age of three whose parents are not of the same race. Allows an income tax deduction for contributions to a trust established by a taxpayer to provide care to such taxpayer's parents or handicapped relatives. Limits the amount of such deduction to $3,000 for a taxable year. Provides for the tax exemption of such trusts. Title V: Domestic Relations - Prohibits Federal preemption of State laws relating to child or spousal abuse, or juvenile delinquency. Prohibits the expenditure of Federal funds for such programs in any State unless the legislature of such State has specifically authorized such programs. Defines "child abuse" as physical maltreatment or psychological or emotional neglect. Excludes from such definition discipline or corporal punishment applied by a responsible parent or an individual authorized to act in the place of such parent. Grants tax-exempt status to organizations which provide for the treatment and care of individuals who suffer physical or psychological abuse from a spouse, parent, or other family member and to organizations which provide shelter, care, and medical treatment for individuals under the age of 18 who have run away from their homes. Requires federally-funded abortion and venereal disease treatment centers to notify parents of unmarried minors that such minors have requested an abortion, contraceptives, or are undergoing treatment for a venereal disease. Amends the Legal Service Corporation Act to place restrictions on the classes of individuals to whom legal assistance may be given and the circumstances under which such assistance may be given. Prohibits the expenditure of Federal funds to any organization which presents male or female homosexuality as an acceptable alternative life style or which suggests that it can be an acceptable life style. Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to provide that any action taken by an employer against a homosexual shall not be considered an unlawful employment practice. Prohibits any instrumentality of the Federal Government from seeking to enforce nondiscrimination with respect to homosexuals. Title VI: Miscellaneous - Grants jurisdiction to U.S. district courts to hear any cases arising under this Act. Provides for a six-year statute of limitation. Provides a civil penalty for persons violating any provision or regulation promulgated pursuant to this Act. Requires the Secretary to report to Congress on the administration of this Act and the progress of the States in effectuating its provisions. Authorizes appropriations to carry out the provisions of this Act. Provides for the separability of provisions of this Act if any provisions are declared invalid.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 1980
Veterans' Rehabilitation and Education Amendments of 1980 - Title I: Revision of Vocational Rehabilitation Program - Revises veterans' vocational rehabilitation provisions to declare the purpose of this Act to be to provide all services necessary to enable veterans with service-connected disabilities to attain maximum independence, to become employable, and to obtain and maintain suitable employment. Redefines "vocational rehabilitation" to include the provision of all services required to achieve the purpose of this Act, including discharge, medical, social, psychological, economic, and vocational services (presently defined in terms of educational and vocational training to restore employability). Defines "employment handicap" as a disability impairing a veteran's ability to prepare for, obtain, or retain employment consistent with his or her abilities, aptitudes, and interests. Revises entitlement provisions to: (1) make eligibility run as of September 16, 1940, (rather than World War II as at present); (2) require a handicap to be an employment handicap as defined by this Act; and (3) provide for follow up vocational services to a rehabilitated veteran in order for such veteran to enter new employment more suitable to his or her current capacity or condition. Eliminates the language extending eligibility for specified veterans to October 15, 1971. Sets forth the scope of services, including: (1) evaluation of rehabilitation potential; (2) educational, vocational and personal counseling; (3) a vocational rehabilitation plan; (4) vocational and related services including tutorial services, tuition, books, and other training materials; (5) treatment for mental and emotional disorders; (6) medical care; (7) prosthetic and other corrective devices; (8) placement and postplacement services; (9) services to a veteran's family; (10) special rehabilitation services, including services for the blind and the deaf; (11) subsistence allowances; (12) essential employment equipment and supplies for severely disabled veterans requiring homebound training and or self-employment; (13) transportation costs, including pre- and post-training services; and (14) work study allowance, loans, and other incidental goods and services. Revises duration of services provisions to: (1) provide basic vocational rehabilitation services for 48-months; (2) remove the nine year (from discharge) eligibility limitation; and (3) provide a 12 month rehabilitation evaluation period. Revises subsistence allowance provisions to: (1) provide for payments during the evaluation of vocational rehabilitation potential; (2) provide payments for unpaid on-job training or work experience in a Federal agency or during such evaluation period; (3) pay room and board expenses for individuals pursuing a program on a residential basis in a specialized rehabilitation facility; (4) provide that vocational payments be paid on a full-time basis for two months following a determination of employability; (5) set forth the rate of payment for individuals in unpaid Federal training or work experience; (6) prohibit payments to incarcerated individuals; and (7) provide for advance payment of subsistence allowances. Authorizes personal adjustment counseling during the evaluation of rehabilitation feasibility period. Sets forth basic requirements of a vocational rehabilitation program, which shall include: (1) participation by the veteran in formulation of a written plan; and (2) a statement of objectives and goals, services and a time schedule for providing such services, and a projected completion date. Revises leave of absence provisions to remove the 30-day per year limitation on such leave. Revises the regulation of conduct provisions to remove the three-month forfeiture of subsistence penalty for unsatisfactory conduct and to replace the permanent disqualification for further vocational rehabilitation penalty with a provision allowing the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs to reinstate such benefits upon satisfactory conduct. Increases the maximum amount of loans available to a veteran from $200 to $400. Authorizes vocational rehabilitation to members of the Armed Forces, otherwise eligible, and veterans hospitalized in VA or non-VA medical facilities. Authorizes vocational training outside the United States (presently prohibited for post-World War II veterans who were not citizens at the time of their United States military service). Provides that any Federal agency facility may be used to provide unpaid training or work experience as part of a veteran's vocational rehabilitation program. States that such veteran shall be deemed a Federal employee for workmen's compensation purposes but not for the purposes of laws administered by the Office of Personnel Management. Authorizes the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs to use the facilities, staff, and other resources of any Federal agency to provide services under this Act. Directs the Administrator to assist in the development of employment and on-job training opportunities, including payments to employers for providing on-job training to certain veterans. Directs the Veterans Administration (VA) to: (1) provide employment assistance, including direct employment placement, utilization of Federal, State, and nonprofit private employment services, and securing loans and paying business license fees; (2) provide vocational rehabilitation staff training and development; and (3) carry out an ongoing program of rehabilitation research and special projects, including grants and contracts with public and nonprofit agencies. Directs the Administrator to appoint a Veterans' Advisory Committee on Rehabilitation. Revises provisions concerning the limitation on periods of assistance under two or more veterans' educational assistance programs to include post-Vietnam era benefits within such limitation, and to provide a 48-month aggregate eligibility period for vocational rehabilitation and other educational assistance. Limits the current provision which reduces the number of clock hours of attendance required for payment of benefits for certain courses to courses accredited by nationally recognized accrediting agencies. Authorizes veterans eligible for vocational rehabilitation services to pursue such program using their educational assistance entitlements. Title II: GI Bill Rate Increase - Increases rates of veterans payments for: (1) educational assistance allowances, including special supplementary assistance; (2) educational assistance for survivors and dependents, including special training allowances; and (3) State and local agency administrative expenses, including educational assistance for apprenticeship or other on-job training and education loans. Title III: Educational Assistance Program Amendments : Part A - Educational Assistance for Veterans - Authorizes the Administrator to disapprove a veteran's or serviceperson's application for educational assistance if enrollment would be prohibited by any of the appropriate administrative provisions. Eliminates the 50 percent employment reporting requirement for courses if: (1) veteran and eligible dependent or survivor enrollment does not exceed 35 percent of total enrollment (for the two-year reporting period); and (2) the course had met the employment requirements for two consecutive reporting periods. Eliminates the requirement that a major portion of an open circuit television course must require conventional classroom or laboratory attendance in order to be approved by the Administrator for assistance. Eliminates computing persons receiving Federal educational assistance from the "85-15" enrollment eligibility requirement. Eliminates the course completion time provision as a requirement for satisfactory educational progress with regard to discontinuance of educational assistance. Revises foreign study provisions to authorize such study if: (1) the course is part of a standard college degree program (or its equivalent) at an institution of higher learning so recognized by the foreign country; and (2) the Administrator approves. Authorizes assistance for continuing education or training required by Federal, State, or local law for professional or vocational relicensure or continued employment. Provides that such continuing education shall be paid at the same rate as refresher training. Stipulates that educational assistance for a veteran pursuing an eligible (as revised by this Act) open circuit television course shall be paid in the same manner as an independent study program. Part B - Educational Assistance for Dependents and Survivors - Disqualifies specified family members from eligibility as qualified tutors for veterans receiving supplementary tutorial assistance. Directs the Administrator to approve any application for educational assistance received from an eligible survivor or dependent. Authorizes the Administrator to arrange for educational or vocational counseling for such dependents upon their request. Authorizes the Administrator to disapprove an eligible survivor's or dependent's application for educational assistance if enrollment would be prohibited by any of the appropriate administrative provisions. Prohibits such individuals from enrolling in an educational institution not located in a State or in the Republic of the Philippines unless: (1) the course is part of a standard college degree (or its equivalent) at an institution of higher learning so recognized by the foreign country; and (2) the Administrator approves. Revises provisions concerning advance educational assistance payments to such individuals to: (1) authorize direct payments to an eligible individual (presently payments must be made to a parent or guardian); (2) eliminate certain certification requirements; and (3) provide that payments for an eligible (as revised by this Act) open circuit television course shall be paid in the same manner as an independent study program. Part C - Amendment Relating to Administration of Educational Benefits - Revises provisions concerning the period for which educational or subsistence allowances will be paid for eligible veterans or persons to provide that: (1) the individual must be pursuing a course of study (presently only required to be enrolled); (2) the Administrator shall determine regulations regarding eligibility; and (3) payment shall be for the stated period of enrollment, or the actual period of enrollment, whichever is shorter. Requires veterans and other individuals to report any changes in their educational status to the Administrator. Requires educational institutions to report any facts they know or should have known concerning their compliance with, or eligibility for, such educational assistance. Includes "residence" in the definition of a full-time undergraduate course. Defines "in residence on a standard quarter-or semester-hour basis" to require pursuit of regularly scheduled weekly class instruction on campus at the rate of one standard class session per week throughout the semester for one semester hour of credit. Provides for payments to veterans and eligible persons attending non- degree courses during periods between terms which do not exceed 15 calendar days and periods when the school is not in session because of teacher conferences or teacher training sessions (not to exceed five days in any 12-month period). Terminates the (veterans') education advisory committee as of December 31, 1989. Includes post- Vietnam era veterans' educational assistance, and deletes vocational rehabilitation, within such committee's responsibility. Title IV: Post-Vietnam Era Veterans' Educational Assistance Program Adjustments - Makes eligible for participation in the Post-Vietnam Era Veterans' Educational Assistance Program certain persons who entered military service on or after January 1, 1977, after having served on active duty before or after such date for a period of 180 days or less and were discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable. Revises the procedure for distribution of unused contributions to such program fund by the participant, if the participant dies while on, or after discharge from, active duty and has not designated a beneficiary under the Servicemen's Group Life Insurance program. Title V: Revision of Eligibility for Veterans Employment and Training Programs - Defines "veteran" for purposes of veterans' job counseling, training, and placement benefits, and disabled and Vietnam era veterans' employment and training benefits as one who: (1) served on active-duty for more than 180 days and received other than a dishonorable discharge; or (2) received a service-connected disability discharge. Defines "disabled veteran" for purposes of disabled veterans' training and employment benefits as one who: (1) is entitled to veterans' disability compensation; or (2) received a service-connected disability discharge. Declares that no veteran shall be considered a Vietnam-era veteran after December 31, 1989. Requires the Secretary of Labor to assure that any veteran made ineligible for certain veterans' job counseling and placement assistance by provisions of this Act (defining categories of eligible veterans) shall be provided with employment assistance and related services under other applicable provisions of law. Includes disabled veterans and Vietnam-era veterans as those eligible veterans who shall receive special consideration for job placement. Requires the Secretary of Labor to include numerical breakdowns of such veterans' categories in his annual veterans' training report to Congress. Makes a qualifying Vietnam veteran eligible for Federal contract priority-hiring. Directs that the benefits an eligible veteran may be receiving (or has received) under certain other programs of the VA shall be disregarded when determining the needs and qualifications of such veteran under any employment or training program financed with Federal funds. Authorizes the Administrator to give preference to qualified disabled and Vietnam-era veterans for employment in the VA as veterans' benefits counselors and veterans' claim examiners. Grants to members of the National Guard, called to assemble for required drills and field exercises for a period of not less than twelve consecutive weeks, the reemployment rights of reserves called to active duty. Title VI: Cost-Savings Provisions - Repeals the authority for veterans to receive educational assistance for the pursuit of flight and correspondence training, including post-Vietnam-era veterans and survivors and dependents. Directs the Administrator to deduct from future payments any overpayment made to persons for service-connected disability or death compensation, dependency and indemnity compensation, pension for non-service-connected disability for death, and educational assistance benefits. Provides that such deductions are not subject to time limitations for bringing civil actions or administrative proceedings. Grants the Administrator the authority to charge interest on amounts owed to the United States for overpayment of benefits or services provided by the Veterans' Administration, unless such amounts are repaid within a reasonable period of time. Directs the Administrator to prescribe regulations to set forth the rate of interest to be charged. Repeals the authority of the Administrator to deduct from future payments any overpayment made to parents for dependency and indemnity compensation. Revises existing provisions of law relating to overpayments made to veterans receiving educational assistance to declare that such overpayment constitutes a liability of the veteran to the United States (present provisions cover the liability of the institution attended by the veteran). Stipulates that if such liability of the veteran is waived, the institution is not released from its liability. Authorizes the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs to disclose to a consumer reporting agency the name and address of an individual indebted to the Veterans' Administration (VA) for the purpose of obtaining consumer reports in order to assess such individual's ability to repay the debt and to give notice of the outstanding obligation. Prohibits: (1) the VA from disclosing other information that would imply an individual's indebtedness to the United States; and (2) the credit reporting agency from indicating in its reports or files that such VA inquiry indicates any indebtedness by such individual (willful violation punishable by a fine of up to $5,000 for the first offense and up to $20,000 for a subsequent offense). Authorizes the disclosure of an individual's name, address, and other identifying information necessary to locate him or her in order to carry out specified VA evaluation studies. Requires the Administrator to make a pre-disclosure determination that the inclusion of a particular individual in such study is clearly warranted. Establishes other disclosure requirements similar to those for indebtedness disclosures. Authorizes the disclosure of information affecting an individual's credit rating (name, address, indebtedness) if such individual has failed to respond to administrative debt-collection efforts. Requires the VA, before making such indebtedness disclosures, to: (1) notify an individual of the information to be disclosed, and to which credit agencies, at least 30 days prior to such disclosure; (2) inform the individual of his or her right to dispute the debt claim; and (3) make a determination regarding any such disputed debt. Defines "consumer reporting agency" for purposes of this Act. Authorizes the Administrator, upon application by any person, to make available any appraisal report submitted to, or prepared by, the VA in connection with any home, condominium, or mobile home loan. Authorizes the Administrator to disclose the name and address of any person to any person (authorized by regulation) for the purpose of determining creditworthiness, verifying information, or to provide assistance pursuant to any such loan made by the VA. Stipulates that any such disclosure be recorded in the file of the person concerned. Exempts a credit agency's handling of such VA debt disclosures from the Privacy Act. Authorizes the VA to use its own attorneys to recover any amount owed the United States under laws administered by the Administration. Repeals specified provisions authorizing servicepersons to participate in the predischarge education training program (PREP). Sets forth the rate of educational assistance allowance for an incarcerated veteran or eligible person. Title VII: Technical Amendments - Defines "person" for purposes of veterans' survivors and dependents special restorative training to mean children of veterans. Title VIII: Effective Date - Provides that the provisions of this Act shall take effect on the first day of the second month after the date of enactment of this Act and specifies those provisions which shall take effect on October 1, 1980.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 1980
Authorizes and requests the President to present, on behalf of the Congress, a national medal to each athlete selected to be a member of the 1980 United States Olympic Team to the Olympic Games. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to cause to be struck such medals in bronze with gold plating, and with such emblems as shall be determined by the Secretary in consultation with the United States Olympic Committee. Authorizes the Secretary to strike duplicates and replicas of such medal in bronze for sale to the general public.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 1980
Prohibits any Federal court (excluding the Supreme Court) from issuing injunctive relief in any case arising out of Federal, State, or local law that prohibits, limits, or regulates abortion or the provision of public assistance for the performance of abortions.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 1980
Amends the Black Bass Act to make unlawful the catching, killing, taking, sale, purchase, possession, or transportation of any protected fish species, as such term is defined in this Act, in the Great Lakes State of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, or Wisconsin other than for direct personal or family consumption or for sporting purposes. Authorizes any such State, any time later than one year after enactment of this Act, to designate any protected fish species as available for commercial fishing within the Great Lakes waters within its jurisdiction. Declares that this Act does not preclude a State from regulating the taking of protected fish species for direct personal or family consumption or for sport for purposes of conserving that species.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 1980
Michigan Wilderness Heritage Act of 1980 - Designates the following lands in the State of Michigan as wilderness and components of the National Wilderness Preservation System: (1) the Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness in the Manistee National Forest; (2) the Sylvania Wilderness, Sturgeon River Gorge Wilderness and the McCormick Wilderness all in the Ottawa National Forest; (3) the Rock River Canyon Wilderness, Big Island Wilderness, Carp River Wilderness, Horsehoe Bay Wilderness, Delirium Wilderness, Government Island Wilderness and the Round Island Wilderness, all in the Hiawatha National Forest.
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 1980
Veterans' Administration Health-Care Personnel Act of 1980 - Title I: Physicians and Dentists Pay Comparability - Exempts physicians, dentists, nurses, and other health-care professionals employed by the Veterans' Administration (VA) Department of Medicine and Surgery from the Senior Executive Service. Sets forth increased special pay schedules for physicians, dentists, and nurses. Title II: Veterans' Administration Health Professional Scholarship Program - Establishes the Veterans' Administration Health Professional Scholarship Program. Sets forth eligibility, contract, obligated service, and application provisions. Exempts such scholarship payments from taxation. Provides, with regard to Veterans' Administration physician's or dentist's primary and special incentive pay, that such scholarship recipients shall not be eligible for such pay during the first three years of obligated service, and thereafter shall only be eligible for half of such pay. Title III: Miscellaneous Amendments - Sets forth standards for: (1) a presumption of inability to defray the expenses of medical care provided by the Veterans' Administration; (2) the supervision of real property transactions by the Congressional Committees on Veterans' Affairs; (3) the number of beds per thousand veterans population required to provide adequate nursing home care in State home facilities. Extends the time for submission of reports on hospital care and medical services furnished in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and in the Virgin Islands. Repeals the requirement that recipients of health-care personnel training grants must increase the number of individuals receiving training.
United States · United States Congress · 1 April 1980
Proclaims October 19, 1981, a national day of celebration as the two hundredth anniversary of the victory of General George Washington at Yorktown, Virginia.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1980
Criminal Code Revision Act of 1980 - Title I: Revision of Title 18 - Amends in its entirety title 18, the Federal criminal code. Subdivides such title into the following subtitles: (1) provisions of general applicability; (2) offenses; (3) sentencing and corrections; (4) administration and procedure; and (5) ancillary civil proceedings. Subtitle I: Provisions of General Applicability - Sets forth 35 general definitions. Defines Federal jurisdiction as including the general and special (territorial, maritime, and aircraft) jurisdiction of the United States, specified aspects of extraterritorial jurisdiction, and Indian country jurisdiction. Provides that the separate sections describing offenses may specify circumstances giving rise to Federal jurisdiction. Directs the Attorney General to prescribe guidelines for the exercise of Federal enforcement efforts where there is concurrent State or local jurisdiction over the offense. Requires that such guidelines provide for the discontinuation of Federal efforts unless a demonstrable, substantial interest would be served, and take into consideration the following factors: (1) the relative gravity of the Federal offense and the State or local offense; (2) the nature and extent of the Federal interest in the investigation; and (3) the resources available to the Federal, State, and local authorities. Directs the Attorney General to consult with State and local governments concerning the exercise of Federal jurisdiction and to report annually to Congress on the extent of such exercise. Requires that the finder of fact determine issues of fact bearing on the existence of Federal jurisdiction over the offense. Provides that Federal jurisdiction is not generally preemptive of the exercise of jurisdiction by a State or local government, Indian tribe, or military court, but enumerates offenses with respect to which the Attorney General may order preemption. Limits to four the mental states required to be proved with respect to criminal conduct ("intentional", "knowing", "reckless", and "negligent"). Specifies matters of law requiring no proof of state of mind, including jurisdiction, bars to prosecution, and defenses. Sets forth a general criminal complicity section, including rules with respect to the liability of an accomplice, of an organization for the conduct of an agent, and of an agent for the conduct of an organization. Allows a defendant to be convicted of an offense based on the conduct of another person only if such defendant knowingly and with specific intent induced or aided the commission of the offense. Makes an organization criminally liable for an offense based on another person's conduct which involves a failure by the organization or its agent to discharge a specific duty of conduct imposed on the organization by law, but stipulates that an organization is not criminally liable where the agency relationship is established by operation of law and without the consent of the organization. Makes it a bar to prosecution that the defendant was less than 18 years old at the time of the commission of the offense, but allows the court upon motion of the Attorney General to determine that the nonapplicability of such bar is in the interest of justice with respect to a defendant who has attained the age of 16 years and is alleged to have committed a class A, B, or C felony. (Under current law the age of 16 years bars prosecution of all offenses as an adult, and persons between the ages of 16 and 18 are treated as juveniles unless the offense is a felony punishable by ten or more years of imprisonment.) Provides for a general statute of limitations of: (1) five years for a felony; and (2) three years for a misdemeanor or infraction (under current law such bar varies with the offense), but permits an extended period for certain concealable offenses. Sets forth as statutory law the following defenses to criminal liability: (1) insanity; (2) intoxication; (3) mistake of fact or law; (4) protection of persons; and (5) protection of property. Sets forth as affirmative defenses: (1) duress; and (2) reliance upon official misstatement. Subtitle II: Offenses - Organizes offenses by the following types (rather than alphabetically as under current law): (1) attempt and conspiracy; (2) offenses involving national defense; (3) offenses involving international affairs; (4) offenses involving government process; (5) offenses involving revenue; (6) offenses involving individual rights; (7) offenses involving the person; (8) offenses involving property; and (9) miscellaneous offenses. Replaces the particularized penalties for individual offenses in current law with general penalty provisions specifying: (1) terms of imprisonment based on five classes of felonies (A to E) and three classes of misdemeanors (A to C); and (2) levels of fines according to the type of offense. Includes among new Federal crimes: (1) obstructing by force the following government functions: the service or attempted service or execution of any authorized legal or judicial document, the performance of extradition duties, the performance of duties under a court order, the passage of the United States mail, and the execution by a law enforcement officer of an arrest; (2) speculating on official action or information; (3) a series of offenses covering the obstruction of political rights; (4) possession of an eavesdropping device with intent that it be used unlawfully; (5) trafficking in stolen property; (6) trafficking in counterfeit labels for phonorecords, motion pictures, and audiovisual works; and (7) operating a racketeering syndicate. Provides for the offenses of "obstruction of official proceedings by fraud" and "government program bribery." Revises numerous offenses, including the following changes. Limits the offense of "impairing military effectiveness" to a time of war or a national defense emergency or where a major weapons system or means of defense against large scale enemy attack is impaired. Makes the scienter requirement with respect to such offense "knowing." Revises "espionage" and certain offenses relating to the dissemination of classified information to cross-reference to the following existing laws: the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, the Espionage and Sabotage Act of 1954, and the Subversive Activities Control Act of 1950. Modifies the offense of "failing to appear as a defendant" to: (1) include the failure to surrender for service of sentence pursuant to a court order; and (2) vary the penalties according to the category of offense. Revises "criminal contempt" to: (1) prohibit disobedience or resistance to lawful court orders, unless the alleged contemnor took reasonable and timely steps to obtain judicial review of the order or such order is constitutionally invalid. Imposes a maximum penalty of five days' imprisonment and/or a $500 fine for such offense. (Current law imposes no such limits.) Amends "making a false statement" to: (1) consolidate numerous false statement statutes under current law; and (2) prohibit the knowing submission of false material in a government matter under specified circumstances. Requires that a Federal public servant who commits the offense of "tampering with a government record" be disqualified from office for a period of up to five years. Revises "tax evasion" to cross-reference to existing prohibitions under the Internal Revenue Code. Modifies "civil rights offenses" to: (1) include all "persons" (current law protects "citizens"); (2) allow for a single offender (current law requires a conspiracy); (3) eliminate the requirement (Screws v. United States, 325 U.S. 91 (1945)) that a defendant be found to have had a specific intent to deprive the victim of federally protected rights; and (4) prohibit discrimination based on sex (current law includes race, color, religion, or national origin). Revises "sex offenses" to: (1) apply such offenses without distinction as to the sex of the offender or victim; (2) redesignate rape as aggravated criminal sexual conduct; (3) include additional acts with respect to such redesignated offense; (4) make punishable aggravated criminal sexual conduct towards one spouse by the other (but applies the interspousal exemption with respect to other sex offenses); (5) modify the offense of sexual assault (redesignated as criminal sexual conduct) to add the act of compelling a person to participate by threat or placing such person in fear; and (6) provide, with respect to sexual abuse of a minor, that the victim must be less than 16 years old and at least five years younger than the offender, and add as an affirmative defense that the actor reasonably believed the other person to be 16 years of age or older (current law prohibits the carnal knowledge of a female under the age of 16 years). Modifies the offense of "extortion" to provide that it is not a defense to prosecution that the conduct constituting the offense was in furtherance of a legitimate objective or activity (see United States v. Enmons, 410 U.S. 396 (1973)). Consolidates numerous theft statutes under current law. Broadens the application of the offense of "laundering racketeering proceeds." Revises "loansharking" to add as a new offense an extension of credit over $100 in value carrying an annual interest rate exceeding 45 percent. (Such a rate under current law only evidences extortion.) Modifies "drug offenses" to: (1) provide for an increased penalty for simple possession of 100 grams or more of an opiate; and (2) make possession of 30 grams (approximately one ounce) or less of marihuana an infraction. Retains the current mandatory minimum sentences for anyone using or carrying a firearm in the course of a crime, where the offender uses a firearm which, at the time of the offense, was capable of causing serious bodily injury. Requires, with respect to the offense of "inciting or leading a riot," the existence of circumstances which render it likely that the prohibited incitement will cause a riot. Redefines "riot" as involving ten or more persons (three in current law). Prohibits the transfer or exhibition of obscene material to a minor or to any person where there is no opportunity to avoid such exposure. Repeals: (1) the Logan Act (which prohibits private communication with a foreign government with intent to influence foreign policy); (2) the Smith Act (which prohibits advocating the overthrow of the government); (3) the Mann Act (which prohibits the transportation of women in commerce for immoral purposes); and (4) the prohibition against making false reports with intent to interfere with the operation of U.S. military or naval forces. Subtitle III: Sentencing and Corrections - Specifies factors to be considered in sentencing, including: (1) the nature and circumstances of the offense and the history and characteristics of the defendant; (2) the need for the sentence imposed to (A) assure that the severity of the sentence is related to the culpability of the offender and the harm done, (B) assure that similarly placed offenders receive similar sentences, (C) promote respect for the law, (D) deter criminal conduct, (E) protect the public, (F) provide the defendant with needed training, (G) provide restitution to victims, and (H) reconcile the victim, community, and offender; (3) the kinds of sentences available; and (4) the applicable sentencing guidelines prescribed by the Judicial Conference of the United States. Requires the court to impose a sentence consistent with the guidelines set forth by the Judicial Conference unless the court finds that an aggravating or mitigating circumstance should result in another sentence. Requires the court to state on the record the reasons for imposing a particular sentence, or the specific reasons for imposing a sentence different from that provided for in the guidelines. Requires a presentence hearing to determine any unresolved issue of fact that is essential to the sentencing decision. Allows a defendant who is found guilty of an offense to be sentenced to conditional discharge, unless the offense is a class A felony and the defendant is an individual or the defendant is sentenced at the time to probation or imprisonment. Specifies the considerations of the court in imposing such sentence and conditions which may be attached to such sentence. Authorizes imposition of a term of probation with respect to all but class A felonies, or where the defendant is sentenced at the same time to conditional discharge or imprisonment. Lists permissible terms of probation for each category of offenses. Requires as mandatory conditions of probation that a defendant not commit another crime and make restitution when practical. Enumerates 18 discretionary conditions of probation. Allows a defendant who is found guilty of an offense to be sentenced to make restitution to the victim, unless the offense: (1) violates the provisions relating to investment, monetary, and antitrust offenses or the crime of "fraud in a regulated industry;" or (2) is a class A felony, the defendant is an individual, and no other sentence is imposed on the defendant. Directs the court not to impose a sentence of restitution if it will unduly complicate or prolong the sentencing process. Sets forth provisions relating to authorized payments for types of offenses, considerations in imposing such a sentence, conditions of such a sentence, restitution imposed upon an organization, and enforcement. Requires, when a defendant is alleged to have violated a condition of a sentence of conditional discharge, probation, or restitution, that the appropriate court hold a preliminary hearing to find probable cause if such violation has occurred. Sets forth the powers of the court upon a finding. Requires a revocation hearing to be held within 60 days of any such finding. Sets forth the powers of the court upon a determination by the preponderance of the evidence that the defendant has violated any such sentence. Sets limits on the amount of a fine for each category of offenses, including higher maximums for organizational than for individual defendants. Sets forth provisions relating to considerations in imposing such a sentence, conditions of such a sentence, payment of fines by organizations, modification or remission, and enforcement. Sets maximum terms of imprisonment for five classes of felonies (A to E), and three classes of misdemeanors (A to C). Prohibits the court from considering the defendant's need for correctional treatment as a justification for imposing a term of imprisonment or in determining the length of a term of imprisonment. Prescribes guidelines relative to the modification of a term and the running of concurrent and consecutive terms of imprisonment. Authorizes the court to designate a defendant under the age of 21 years a youthful offender upon a finding that such defendant will benefit from placement in a separate facility or institution pursuant to this Act. Retains the Bureau of Prisons within the Department of Justice and outlines its organization and responsibilities. Retains the National Institute of Corrections in the Bureau and the Advisory Corrections Council. Continues the Federal Prison Industries. Allows a defendant to: (1) appeal any sentence on the ground that it is not authorized by law; (2) appeal any sentence other than one imposed for an infraction on the grounds that such sentence is based on an inapplicable sentencing guideline, exceeds the maximum prescribed by the guideline and is unreasonable, or is a sentence for which no guideline has been prescribed and is unreasonable; or (3) petition for leave to appeal a felony sentence within the guideline on the ground that it is unreasonable. Authorizes the court of appeals to resentence the defendant or remand for resentencing upon specified determinations, but stipulates that a new sentence shall not be more severe that the sentence appealed. Directs the Judicial Conference of the United States to prescribe guidelines for use by a sentencing court. Requires that the guidelines: (1) be based on categories of offenders derived from relevant history and characteristics of defendants sentenced in Federal court, and categories of offenses derived from the nature and circumstances of the offenses for which such defendants are convicted; and (2) be reported to Congress by May 1st of the year they are to become effective and take effect 180 days later, subject to congressional action. Establishes within the Judicial Conference a seven-member Committee on Sentencing to collect information and recommend sentencing guidelines and standards with respect to plea bargaining and the designation of youthful offenders. Requires that the Committee membership: (1) consist of four judges and three persons who are not judges; and (2) reflect a variety of backgrounds and participation and interest in the Federal criminal justice system. Sets forth rules regarding supervision of probation, the appointment and duties of probation officers, transportation of a probationer, transfer of jurisdiction over a probationer, and the arrest and return of a probationer. Carries forward, generally unchanged, current law relating to parole. Makes a prisoner eligible for release after serving one-half of a term of imprisonment over one year (currently one-third), or after serving ten years of a life sentence or sentence over 20 years (currently 30 years). Includes among the items to be considered by the Parole Commission in making a parole release determination: (1) the specific reasons for the sentence imposed; and (2) any transcript of the district court proceedings that are relevant to sentencing. Directs the Judicial Conference of the U.S. and the Parole Commission to submit joint reports within five years of the effective date of the sentencing guidelines evaluating such guidelines and the need for parole release. Subtitle IV: Administration and Procedure - Restates the procedural requirement for the appointment of counsel in criminal cases. Retains the current compensation rates for such services. Adds to the existing circumstances under which a district court must furnish representation for persons financially unable to obtain adequate representation: (1) modification of the term or conditions of sentence of conditional release or probation; and (2) the preliminary and revocation hearing with respect to alleged violations of a sentence of conditional discharge, probation, or parole. Carries forward current law regarding an appeal by the United States in a criminal case to a court of appeals. Continues the existing authority of the Supreme Court to prescribe rules and procedures in criminal cases (retains the current period of 90 days for congressional review). Leaves current law generally unchanged with respect to the following arrest, law enforcement, and other preliminary matters: (1) indictment and list of jurors and witnesses for a prisoner in capital cases; (2) demands for production of statements and reports of witnesses; (3) power of courts and magistrates; (4) extraterritorial jurisdiction; (5) security of the peace and good behavior; (6) warrant for removal; (7) powers of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; (8) powers of marshals and deputies; (9) powers of certain officers relating to offenses involving animals and birds; (10) powers of the Secret Service; (11) bankruptcy investigations; (12) interned belligerent nationals; (13) rewards and appropriations; (14) powers of postal personnel; (15) preliminary examinations; and (16) surrender of youthful offenders to State authorities. Carries forward current law regarding extradition and the transfer of offenders to and from foreign countries. Enacts into law the Interstate Agreement on Detainers. Leaves generally unchanged current law with respect to venue, but limits the prosecution of the offense of transferring obscene material to the district from which the material was disseminated or in which the offense was completed. (Current law allows such prosecution in any district through which the material moves.) Leaves generally unchanged current law regarding juvenile delinquency. Requires that a juvenile charged with committing an offense who is not surrendered to State authorities be proceeded against pursuant to the juvenile delinquency procedures unless the court determines that the juvenile shall be treated as a adult because the immaturity bar to prosecution does not apply. Requires the court in determining whether a juvenile shall be treated as an adult to consider whether juvenile disposition will reflect the seriousness of the juvenile's conduct, promote respect for the law, and provide a just response to the conduct of the juvenile. Revises the procedures to be followed by Federal courts with respect to an offender suffering from mental incompetence. Directs the court to order a screening examination whenever there is reasonable cause to believe that the defendant lacks competence, but allows a defendant to request a hearing based on the report of a qualified mental health examiner after a more thorough examination. Specifies material to be included in such report. Directs the court, after determining at such hearing that the defendant is not competent, to hold a subsequent hearing to determine: (1) whether there is substantial probability that the defendant can be restored to competence within a certain maximum period; and (2) if so, the appropriate treatment. Directs the court to release a defendant of all charges (except class A or B felonies) if: (1) the defendant does not request an opportunity to be restored; (2) there is no substantial probability that the defendant can be restored, or if the defendant has received a certain period of treatment. (Current law does not provide for the screening examination or subsequent hearing.) Directs the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to prescribe rules with respect to the use of psychosurgery, electric shock treatment, and protracted use of psychotropic drugs on mentally incompetent defendants. Requires that such rules: (1) entitle the person treated to accept, refuse, or revoke an acceptance of, proposed treatment; and (2) require informed consent in accordance with specified guidelines. Amends the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure to permit a defendant to be found not guilty by reason of insanity. Directs a court which determines that there is probable cause to believe that a person who is found: (1) not guilty by reason of insanity; (2) incompetent with no substantial probability of improvement; or (3) incompetent and has not recovered after the end of the maximum period, presently suffers from a mental disease or defect as a result of which such person's release would create a substantial likelihood of serious injury to the person or property of another, to deliver such person to State authorities for possible civil commitment. Requires a hearing on the mental condition of a defendant serving a sentence of imprisonment who objects to being transferred to a facility for care or treatment. Carries forward certain provisions of current law regarding the release of offenders. Restates certain search warrant provisions in current law. Prohibits any Federal agency from installing or using a "pen register" (a mechanical device which records the numbers dialed on a telephone line to which it is attached) without first obtaining a court order pursuant to specified procedures. Allows a law enforcement officer specially designated by the Attorney General to install and use a pen register without a court order if an emergency situation exists with respect to life threatening criminal activities and grounds exist for the authorization of such use. Carries forward current law regarding special grand juries (leaving unchanged the reporting requirements). Restates certain provisions of current law regarding speedy trial (as amended by the Speedy Trial Act Amendments of 1979, Public Law 96-43). Deletes certain provisions relating to district court plans for the disposition of criminal cases. Retains current provisions regarding the exercise of criminal jurisdiction by United States magistrates (as amended by Public Law 96-82). Restates current law regarding witnesses and evidence. Subtitle V: Ancillary Civil Proceedings - Consolidates and enumerates offenses for which the appropriate Government agency may initiate civil forfeiture proceedings. Establishes procedures and standards for the seizure of property involved in such crimes. Reenacts the current civil remedies provisions dealing with restraint of racketeering, as provided in title IX of the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970. Prohibits the restriction of an individual's eligibility for: (1) a Federal benefit, privilege, or activity; (2) Federal jury duty; or (3) voting in a Federal election, because such person has been convicted of a Federal offense. Prohibits the restriction of an individual's eligibility for employment by a Federal or State government agency because such person has been convicted of a Federal offense. Specifies exceptions to such restrictions. Authorizes the court in which a person is convicted of an offense (other than a class A felony) to issue an order, upon application of such person, providing relief from certain collateral results of such offense under specified circumstances. Restates generally the current provision authorizing a civil action against an eavesdropping offender. Title II: Reenactment of Certain Portions of Former Title 18 with Substantive Changes, Amendments to Laws Outside of Title 18, and Technical and Conforming Amendments - Reenacts various current offenses under title 18, amending the penalties for such crimes to conform to the new general penalty provisions under this Act. Restates generally unchanged the Gun Control Act of 1968. Amends offenses outside of title 18 to cross-reference to offenses and penalties under this Act. Requires that the appropriate State authorities enforce and not modify any child custody determination made by a court of another State (unless such other court no longer has, or has declined to exercise, jurisdiction over such matter). Title III: Effective Date - Makes this Act effective on the fourth January 1 that occurs after enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1980
Methane Transportation Research, Development, and Demonstration Act of 1980 - Directs the Secretary of Energy to designate an organizational entity within the Department of Energy to manage the methane vehicle research, development, and demonstration program established under this Act. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into agreements with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Department of Transportation, the Environmental Protection Agency, or any other Federal agency, providing that such agencies conduct specified aspects of such program as the Secretary deems appropriate. States that the Secretary shall have responsibility to ascertain that such program includes activities to: (1) promote research on methane-fueled vehicles; (2) determine optimum overall specifications for such vehicles; (3) determine means and facilities for storing, transporting, and dispensing methane for use as vehicular fuel; (4) conduct demonstration projects with respect to the feasibility of such vehicles; (5) gather performance data on such vehicles and related methane transmission and storage facilities; (6) enter into arrangements to assure adequate continuous supplies of methane for use in the demonstrations assisted under this Act; (7) ascertain the need for modifying available methane-fueled vehicles in order to facilitate their use by fleet owners; and (8) report to the Congress on any changes in fuel supply patterns, tax policies, and manufacturing standards needed to facilitate the manufacture and use of such vehicles. Directs the Secretary to assure maximum coordination between Federal agencies and the Department of Energy in carrying out such program. Directs the Secretary to initiate and provide for research and development in areas relating to such vehicles. Directs the Secretary to promulgate rules and regulations and to issue an initial report for proposals for technical and financial assistance to support public and private entities in developing and implementing demonstration projects to gather data on the operation of such vehicles and facilities for the transmission and storage of methane as a vehicular fuel. Sets forth the types of technical and finacial assistance to be provided under this Act, including grants and loans to cover specified percentages of the costs associated with the installation of methane transmission, storage, and dispensing facilities. Sets forth requirements as to the number and duration of such demonstrations. Directs the Secretary to consult with the Postmaster General, the Administrator of the General Services Administration, the Secretary of Defense, and the heads of other Federal agencies to determine the practicability of using methane vehicles in the performance of agency functions and to arrange for appropriate use of such vehicles at the earliest practicable date. Requires the Secretary to submit an annual report on all activities undertaken under this Act to the Senate and the House of Representatives for referral to appropriate committees. Authorizes appropriations for fiscal years 1981 thorugh 1985 to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1980
Vietnam Veterans Comprehensive Readjustment and Rehabilitation Act - Title I: Interagency Coordination and Veterans Outreach Services - Requires the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs to coordinate all programs and activities affecting veterans and their dependents with other departments and agencies. Directs the Administrator to initiate a comprehensive outreach and information program to inform and assist eligible veterans and eligible persons to understand and utilize such programs. Title II: Compensation and Treatment for Diseases and Disabilities caused by Toxic Substances and Radiation Exposure - Entitles a veteran who suffers from a personal injury or disease contracted in the line of duty, or a disabled child with birth defects resulting from genetic damage to a veteran, to compensation and medical care. Authorizes the Administrator to establish and carry out a comprehensive program of screening veterans who may have been exposed to toxic substances, chemical or biological agents, or radiation during their military, naval, or air service to determine whether such veterans have incurred any disease or disability as a result of such exposure. Provides for outreach services to inform and assist such veterans in adjusting to such diseases or disabilities. Permits the Administrator to establish a centralized registry of claims made before the Veterans' Administration (VA) or other appropriate agency arising out of exposure or possible exposure to toxic substances, chemical or biological agents, or radiation, and of the disabilities, diseases, genetic damage, or symptoms associated with such exposure. Title III: Readjustment Counseling Improvement and Expansion - Authorizes the Administrator to arrange for or assist the veteran or the veteran's dependent, or both, in obtaining readjustment counseling or mental health services. Allows for the Administrator to conduct or contract for comprehensive studies of the psychological and sociological effects of the Vietnam Conflict, military service, and the readjustment process upon veterans and dependents. Title IV: Vocational Rehabilitation - Defines for purposes of this Act: (1) medical condition; (2) program of education; (3) program of independent living services and assistance; (4) rehabilitated; (5) rehabilitation program; (6) serious employment handicap; (7) vocational goal; (8) vocational rehabilitation program. Sets forth the provisions regarding basic entitlement and periods of eligibility for eligible veterans. Sets forth the scope of services and assistance, including: (1) evaluation for rehabilitation potential; (2) educational, vocational, psychological, employment, and personal adjustment counseling; (3) allowance and other appropriate assistance; (4) work study allowance; (5) placement services; (6) personal adjustment and work adjustment training assistance, tuition, fees, books, supplies, and other training materials; (8) loans; (9) treatment care, and services; (10) prosthetic appliances and other corrective devices; (11) services to a veterans' family; (12) essential employment equipment and supplies for severely disabled veterans requiring homebound training and for self-employment; (13) travel and incidental expenses; (14) special rehabilitation services, including services for the blind and the deaf. Provides for the duration of rehabilitative programs. Requires extended evaluations of veterans with service-connected disabilities to determine whether such veteran may have or has a serious employment handicap. Allows the Administrator to formulate an individualized written plan of vocational rehabilitation for a veteran. Provides for the payment of a subsistence allowance to eligible veterans. Entitles severely disabled veterans to a program of independent living services, and assistance designed to enable such veteran to achieve maximum independence in the functions of daily living. Authorizes the Administrator to prescribe regulations regarding leaves of absences, conduct, and cooperation. Releases to eligible veterans all books, supplies, and equipment furnished to such veteran under this Act, unless the Administrator determines that such veteran must return the resources. Allows for vocational rehabilitation to hospitalized members of the Armed Forces and veterans. Provides that any Federal agency's facilities may be used to provide unpaid training or work experience as part of a veteran's vocational rehabilitation program. States that such a veteran shall be deemed a Federal employee for workmen's compensation purposes but not for the purposes of laws administered by the Office of Personnel Management. Directs the Veterans Administration (VA) to: (1) provide employment assistance, including direct employment placement, utilization of Federal, State, and nonprofit private employment services and securing loans and paying business license fees; (2) provide vocational rehabilitation staff training and development; and (3) carry out an ongoing program of rehabilitation research and special projects, including grants and contracts with public and nonprofit agencies. Directs the Administrator to appoint a Veterans' Advisory Committee on Rehabilitation. Revises provisions concerning the limitation on periods of assistance under two or more veterans' educational assistance programs to include post-Vietnam era benefits within such limitation, and to provide a 48 month aggregate eligibility period for vocational rehabilitation and other educational assistance. Authorizes the Administrator to evaluate a veteran's employability in considering certain claims based on total disability and unemployability. Title V: Conditional Cost-of-Living Adjustment Educational Assistance Allowance - Authorizes the Administrator to provide a conditional cost-of-living adjust educational assistance to an eligible veteran or eligible person who makes an application and is eligible therefore. Stipulates that a cost-of-living adjustment allowance shall be in lieu of any authorized educational assistance or training allowance. Title VI: GI Bill Program Adjustments - Modifies the delimiting period for completing a program of education for veterans. Provides for the extension of the delimiting period for eligible veterans up to a period of two years. States that the Administrator shall provide educational, vocational, and personal adjustment counseling for veterans eligible for educational assistance. Limits the aggregate period during which any person may receive assistance under two or more programs of education administered by the Veterans' Administration. Declares that educational assistance allowances for institutionalized veterans after 30 days of institutionalization shall accrue and be withheld (and converted to securities), paid to dependents, and paid to such veteran upon discharge. Authorizes the Administrator, upon the request of such veteran, to pay to such veteran all or part of the monthly allowance to meet continuing financial obligations of such veteran. Provides for the payment of unused contributions to the education assistance fund to specified individuals upon death of the participant. Eliminates reporting requirements to Congress regarding default rates and experience with respect to loans made under this Act to eligible veterans. Discharges a veteran's liability on loans upon such veteran's successful completion of educational, professional, or vocational objective. Title VII: Interagency Task Force; Presidential Commission or Veterans' Affairs - Establishes an Interagency Veterans' Advisory Task Force. Sets forth the duties and responsibilities of such Task Force. Title VIII: Job Counseling, Training, and Placement Service for Veterans - Establishes within the Department of Labor an Assistant Secretary of Labor for Veterans Employment. Title IX: Employment and Training of Disabled and Vietnam Era Veterans - Requires Federal contracts of $10,000 or more to require the contracting party to take affirmative steps to employ qualified disabled veterans and veterans of the Vietnam era and to make reasonable efforts to provide career development, advancement, and training opportunities to such veterans. Encourages veterans employment within the Federal Government. Title X: Veterans Career Development, Advancement, and Training Assistance - Establishes a program of career development, advancement, training, and related services for Vietnam-era veterans. Defines, for purposes of this Act: (1) eligible veteran; (2) eligible employer; and (3) dependent. Sets forth provisions regarding the entitlement to and the eligibility of a veteran for a career development and advancement or training allowance. Sets the duration of such eligibility. Requires the Administrator of the Veterans' Administration to provide occupational and vocational counseling. Permits an eligible veteran to select a program of career development and advancement, or a program of career development and training with an eligible employer in a chosen career field if the employer hires such veteran into its regular workforce with the expectation of permanent employment of the veteran after the training and career development assistance ends. Disallows approval of enrollment of a veteran for: (1) seasonal, intermittent or temporary jobs; (2) jobs paying less than $4.00 an hour, unless the Administrator determines in a particular case that the clause does not apply; (3) jobs outside the United States or its territories or possessions; (4) jobs under which commissions are the primary source of income; (5) employment which involves political or religious activities; (6) employment in an industry which a substantial number of experienced and able workers are unemployed; (7) jobs that are above entry level, except when applicable personnel procedures and collective bargaining procedures regarding the advancement of currently employed workers are complied with; (8) employment which would result in the displacement of any currently employed worker; (9) jobs which if filled would replace any worker who is on lay off, or on strike. Requires the Administrator to discontinue the career development and advancement allowance of an eligible veteran whose conduct or progress is unsatisfactory. Allows the Administrator to renew the veterans' allowance under certain conditions. Directs the Administrator to pay to each eligible veteran employer, on behalf of each eligible veteran, an allowance to meet in part the expenses of such veteran's wages, benefits, training, and any other necessary or appropriate costs. Sets forth the provisions for computation of career development, advancement, and training allowances and payment to eligible employers. Outlines the specifications for approval of career development and advancement programs. Provides for the issuance of certificates of approval to the eligible employers. Requires an employer who receives an overpayment as a result of: (1) willful or negligent failure to report a veteran's excessive absences from work or interruptions in a planned program; or (2) false certification to repay the amount of such overpayment to the United States. Allows the Administrator to make a complete report of the facts to the appropriate approving agency and, if considered advisable, to the Attorney General of the United States for appropriate action. Allows an eligible veteran to make one change of program, unless the Administrator finds sufficient reason to support further changes. Authorizes the Administrator to periodically conduct compliance surveys. Outlines the duties of the Secretary of Labor under this Act. Directs the Administrator, in consultation with the Secretaries of Labor, and of Health, Education, and Welfare, to provide for an outreach and public information program to inform eligible veterans of the program established by this Act. Title XI: Honorable Discharge (Limited) - Creates a discharge category of honorable discharge (limited) if the board determines that such individual has been rehabilitated, that such individual's conduct, activities, and habits since the individuals last discharge or dismissal have been exemplary for a reasonable period of time. Title XII: Effective Date - The amendments made by this Act shall take effect October 1, 1980.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 1980
Expresses the sense of the Congress that U.S. foreign policy should reflect a national strategy of peace through strength with specified principles and goals.
![Official portrait of Rep. Sawyer, Harold S. [R-MI-5]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s000087_200.jpg)