United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1974
Directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives, the Sergeant at Arms of the House of Representatives, the Architect of the Capitol, and the Librarian of Congress (with respect to the employees of the United States Botanic Garden) to enter into agreements with Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia for the withholding of State or District of Columbia income tax in the case of each Member and employee who is subject to such income tax and who voluntarily agrees to such withholding. States that such agreement shall be subject to review by the Committee on House Administration of the House of Representatives.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1974
Provides, under title XVI of the Social Security Act, that any payments of supplemental security income benefits which are due an individual at his or her death may, if such individual does not leave a qualified surviving spouse, be made to any person who was contributing over half of such individual's support at the time of such death.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1974
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the leadership of the Nation responsible for our economic well-being meet together immediately in a spirit of unity to design a set of policy actions to achieve the common goal of restoring stability and growth to the American economy and confidence and prosperity to the American people. States that it is in imperative as in previous moments of great national need that the two political parties, the Congress and the President, labor and management, put aside their domestic and political differences and work together in a spirit of discipline, compromise, and sacrifice for the common good. Expresses the sense of the Congress that this domestic summit be convened forthwith comprised of the President, the majority and minority leadership of both Houses of the Congress, the chairman and ranking minority members of the Appropriations Committee of both Houses, the chairmen and ranking minority members of the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee, and the chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, together with leaders of labor and business, and such other participants as they may agree upon. Stipulates that they shall meet and devote such time as necessary until a plan of action is decided upon which, by its demonstration of renewed unity, direction, and purpose, will gain the public support and confidence necessary to be effective in overcoming these difficulties. States that the Congress stands ready to cooperate fully in the spirit of commitment and unity which the solution of this truly national problem will require of all elements of American society.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 1974
Public Service Employment Act - Declares that one of the purposes of the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act of 1973 is to provide employment opportunities to assure that no area in the United States has an unemployment rate in excess of seven percent. Defines "area of severe unemployment". Establishes in the Treasury the Public Service Employment Fund. Sets forth the amounts in such fund during each fiscal year and authorizes appropriations to carry out the purposes of this Act. Provides that eligible applicants shall be entitled to allotments from the fund in accordance with the excess number of unemployed persons residing in areas of severe unemployment. Makes technical and conforming amendments to specified Federal Acts.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1974
Provides that each Member of the House of Representatives, the Resident Commissioner from Puerto Rico, and the Delegates from the District of Columbia, Guam, and the Virgin Islands may hire not more than two additional employees who shall be known as John W. McCormack Senior Interns in honor of the former Speaker of the House of Representatives. States that such interns may be hired for not more than two weeks during the period May 1 through May 31 of each year and shall serve within the District of Columbia. Stipulates that for this purpose each such Member, Resident Commissioner, or Delegate shall have available annually for payment of compensation to such interns a total allowance of $500, to be payable to such interns at a rate not to exceed $125 per week, out of the contingent fund of the House. Requires that no person shall be paid compensation as a John W. McCormack Senior Intern who does not have on file with the Clerk of the House of Representatives, at all times during the period of employment as such intern, an appropriate certificate that such intern is sixty years of age or older and a resident of the district which the employing Member, Commissioner, or Delegate represents.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1974
Increases the authorization of appropriations for the Land and Water Conservation Fund from a minimum of $300,000,000 to a minimum of $900,000,000 for each fiscal year hereafter through 1989. (Amends 16 U.S.C. 460l-5)
United States · United States Congress · 23 July 1974
Provides for the establishment of a national historic park on the island of Guam. Authorizes the appropriation of such sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 1974
Provides under title II of the Social Security Act that the special procedure for expediting benefit payments (where such payments are not regularly made when due) shall apply to benefits based on disability in the same way it applies to other benefits under such title if entitlement has already been established and the benefits involved have been paid for one or more months.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 1974
Land Use Planning Act - Title I: Assistance to States - Sets forth the findings of Congress and policies of the Federal Government. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to make annual grants to any State which has: (1) established an eligible land use planning agency, and (2) an intergovernmental advisory council to assist in the development and administration of a land use planning process. Defines the elements which constitute a comprehensive land use planning process, including provisions for: (1) public involvment in the process; (2) coordination of land use activites of all State agencies; (3) consideration of esthetic, ecological, recreational and geological needs; and (4) environmental policies. Describes the factors to be included in any methods of implementation employed by a State in carrying out its land use planning process. Provides for interstate cooperation in coordinating land use planning. States that prior to making a grant to any State, the Secretary shall consult with specified officials and shall ascertain that land use planning criteria have been met. Prescribes an appeal procedure for States found ineligible to receive grants. Title II: Indian Reservation and Other Tribal Lands - Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to appoint a task force to study the need for and form of land use planning grants to any Indian tribe to assist in developing a land use planning process for Indian reservations and other tribal lands. Title III: Public Lands - Requires that each public land management agency head prepare and maintain an inventory of all public lands and other resources under his jurisdiction. States that in the development of public land use plans, specified considerations and priorities shall be taken into account. Establishes the Interagency Land Use Policy and Planning Board and enumerates the duties of such Board. Provides for the appointing of the memberss of the Board. Directs the Executive office to issue guidelines to Federal agencies and States to assist them in carrying out the requirements of this Act. Requires the Secretary to investigate the need for and form of stating national land use policies, taking into account specified factors. Calls for the Secretary to issue a biennial report on land resources, uses, and problems. States that, for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this Act, the Secretary may hold hearings, take testimony and receive evidence. Authorizes appropriations to the Secretary of the Interior of: (1) $100,000,000 for each of eight fiscal years for grants to States under title I; (2) $5,000,000 for each of three fiscal years for grants to the States for the purpose of accelerating the decisional process with respect to land use plans; and (3) $10,000,000 for each of three fiscal years for administration of this Act. Provides for the allotment of such funds. Sets forth the definitions of terms used in this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1974
Revises the Employment Act of 1946 to make the promotion of price stability a recognized factor in the formulation of national economic policy, along with the promotion of employment, production, and purchasing power.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1974
Declares it to be the sense of the House that: (1) the contribution by the United States to the growing economic and human crisis in the developing world should be primarily in the form of food and the means and technology to produce it; (2) the President, the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Agriculture and their advisors should give the highest priority to the immediate expansion of American food assistance and (b) take such additional steps as might be necessary to expedite the transfer of American food commodities on concessional and donation terms to those nations most severely affected; (3) the United States should increase its matching pledge to the World Food Program for 1975-1976 and encourage other nations to do so; (4) the President and the Secretary of State should (a) negotiate with other major food exporting nations to seek to obtain their participation in this emergency effort proportionate to their share of world food exports and, (b) strongly encourage oil exporting nations to contribute a fair share to these efforts to assist the most severely affected nations; (5) the United States should announce its desire to work with the oil exporting and other nations in a major effort to increase world fertilizer production with the possibility of including the offer of American technology and capital; and (6) the President should encouarge the American people to reduce the non-critical, non-food-producing uses of fertilizer which now total nearly three million tons of nutrient a year, to make available increased fertilizer supplies for raising food production at home and in the developing world. Declares the sense of the House that the President of the United States and the Secretaries of State and Agriculture should, and are hereby urged and requested to: (1) maintain regular and full consultation with the appropriate committees of the Congress; and (2) report to the Congress and the Nation at regular intervals on the progress toward formulating an American response in a cooperative framework to the world food crisis and the needs of the most severly affected developing countries.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 1974
State Lottery Exemption Act - Exempts State-conducted lotteries, sweepstakes, and wagering pools, as well as vending machines maintained by State agencies for such purposes, from the wagering tax imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1954.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 1974
Eastern Wilderness Areas Act - Designates specified lands in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System. Provides for a study of specified additional lands in eighteen states and Puerto Rico for such inclusion. Authorizes appropriations of such sums as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 1974
Food Research and Development Act - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct research and development relating to the following: (1) new methods of protein production, including the treatment of waste materials with microorganisms; (2) new methods of improving the protein content of cereals and grains, including combining different types of these products to create the amino acid balance required for "complete" protein; (3) new methods of fertilizer production, including microbiological techniques; (4) new methods of processing vegetable protein into low-cost substitutes for meat and dairy products; and (5) the effect of existing public policy, including Federal and State regulation of food products, on the utilization of new methods of protein production, fertilizer production, and processing vegetable protein. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to public or nonprofit entities and individuals for research, development, and demonstration projects, and provide for the conduct of research, development, and demonstration projects by contract with public or private entities or persons. Requires the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to develop and make available to educational and other nonprofit institutions an educational program relating to the preparation and use of the food products produced by the methods developed under this Act. Authorizes appropriations of such sums as are necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act through fiscal year 1978.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 1974
Child and Family Service Act - Title I: Child and Family Service Programs - Provides that the Secretary shall take all necessary action to coordinate child and family service programs under his jurisdiction and that, to this end, he shall establish and maintain within the Office of the Secretary of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare an Office of Child and Family Services administered by a Director appointed by the President with the advise and consent of the Senate. Provides that such office shall assume the responsibility of the Office of Child Development and shall be the principal agency of the Department for the administration of this Act. Establishes a Child and Family Services Coordinating Council, consisting of the Director of the Office of Child and Family Services (who shall serve as chairperson), and representatives from the Federal agencies administering the Social Security Act and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and from the appropriate Federal agencies. Requires the Department of Labor, and other appropriate agencies, to meet on a regular basis, as they may deem necessary, in order to assure coordination of child and family service activities under their respective jurisdictions so as to assure maximum use of available resources through the prevention of duplication of activities; and to structure the activities related to the purposes of this Act. States that funds available for this title may be used (in accordance with approved applications and plans) for planning and developing child and family service programs; establishing, maintaining, and operating child and family service programs, which may include: (1) part-day or full-day child care programs, which provide educational, health, nutritional, and social services directed toward enabling participating children to attain their maximum potential; (2) other health, social, recreational, and educational programs designed to meet the special needs of children and families including before- and after- school and summer programs; (3) school services, and education, and consultation for parents, other family members functioning in the capacity of parents, youth, and prospective and expectant parents who request assistance in meeting the needs of their children; (4) social services to help families determine the appropriateness of child and family services and the possibility of alternative plans; (5) prenatal, post partum and other medical care, including services to expectant mothers who cannot afford such services, designed to help reduce handicapping conditions among the newborn; (6) programs designed to meet the special needs of ethnic groups and to meet the needs of all children to understand the history and cultural backgrounds of ethnic groups and the role of members of such groups in the histroy and cultural development of the Nation and the region in which they reside; (7) food and nutritional services; (8) diagnosis, identification, and treatment, and special activities designed to ameliorate physiological, mental, psychological, and emotional barriers to full participation in child and family service programs; (9) programs designed to extend child and family service gains (particularly parent participation) into the kindergarten and early primary grades, in cooperation with local educational agencies; (10) other such services and activities as the Secretary deems appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of this Act; (11) rental, lease or lease-purchase, mortgage amortization payments, renovation, acquisition and maintenance of necessary equipment and supplies, and to the extent authorized by this Act, construction or acquisition of facilities, including mobile facilities; (12) preservice and inservice education and training for professional and paraprofessional personnel, including parents and volunteers, especially education and training for career development and advancement; (13) staff and other administrative expenses of child and family service councils and of project policy committees established and operated in accordance with the provisions of this Act; and (14) dissemination of information in the functional language of those to be served to assure that parents are well informed of child and family service programs available to them and may participate in such programs. Provides that a State, locality, or combination of localities may be designated by the Secretary as a prime sponsor for the purpose of entering into arrangements to carryout programs under this title. Enumerates the requirements which must be met by States and localities submitting prime sponsorship applications. States that each prime sponsor shall establsih and maintain a Child and Family Service Council of specified composition. States that such Council shall be responsible for approving child and family service plans, basic goal, policies, procedures, overall budget policies and project funding, and the selection or establishment and annual renewal of an administering agency or agencies and will be responsible for annual and ongoing evaluation of child and family service programs according to criteria established by the Secretary. States that financial assistance under this title may be provided by the Secretary for fiscal year 1975 and any subsequent fiscal year to a prime sponsor only pursuant to a child and family service plan which is submitted by such prime sponsor and approved by the Secretary in accordance with the provisions of this title. Specifies the elements to be contained in such plans, and the procedure including opportunity for airing of views with respect to such plan, for approval or disapproval of the plan. States that funds may be provided by the prime sponsor for carrying out any program under such prime sponsor's comprehensive child and family service plan only to a qualified public or private agency or organization, including but not limited to an educational agency or institution, a community action agency, single-purpose Headstart agency, community development corporation, parent cooperative, organization of migrant agricultural workers, organization of Indians, organization interested in child care, employer or business organization, labor union, or employee or labor management organization, or by any other public or private agency whose project application is approved by the Child and Family Service Council of the prime sponsorship. Provides for special grants to States for necessary expenses incident to the operation of programs authorized by this Act in such States, and, in addition to the conditions which must be met for such grants, requires that grants for construction or acquisition of facilities may be made only if such construction or acquisition is essential to the provision of adequate child care services. Title II: Standards And Evaluations - Provides that, within six months after the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall promulgate a common set of program standards which shall be applicable to all programs providing child care services under this or any other Federal Act, to be known as the Federal Standards for Child Care. Provides that the Secretary shall, within sixty days of the enactment of this Act, appoint a Special Committee on Federal Standards for Child Care to participate in the development of Federal Standards for child care and modifications thereof. Provides for the development of a minimum code for child and family service facilities to be addressed to the health, safety, and physical comfort of the children participating in such programs. Title III: Facilities and Research for Child and Family Services Programs - States that it is the purpose of this title to assist and encourage the provision of urgently needed facilities for child care and comprehensive child services programs. States that the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare is authorized to insure any mortgage (including advances on such mortgage during construction) in accordance with the provisions of this title upon such terms and conditions as he may prescribe and make commitments for insurance of such mortgage prior to the date of its execution or disbursement thereon. Provides that the mortgage shall be executed by a mortgagor approved by the Secretary, and that such mortgages shall involve in principal obligation of up to $250,000 and not to exceed 90 percent of the estimated replacement costs of properties or projects when the proposed improvements are completed. Creates a Child and Family Services Facility Insurance Fund which shall be used by the Secretary as a revolving fund for carrying out all the insurance provisions of this title, including mortgage insurance. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants, contracts, or other arrangements to carry out a program of research and demonstration projects, which shall include but not be limited to: (1) research to develop techniques to measure and evaluate child and family services, and to develop standards to evaluate professional and paraprofessional child and family service personnel; (2) research to test preschool programs emphasizing reading and reading readiness; (3) preventive medicine, techniques, and technology to improve the early diagnosis and treatment of diseases and learning disabilities of pre-school children; (4) research to test alternative methods of providing child and family service; (5) evaluation of research findings and the development of these findings and the effective application thereof; (6) dissemination and application of research and development efforts and demonstration projects to early childhood education programs; (7) production of informational systems and other resources necessary to support the activities authorized by this Act; (8) developing methods of determining the needs of individual children in particular areas such as education, nutrition, and medical services, so as to permit the modification of programs to fit the needs of individual children; and (9) a study of the need on a nationwide basis for child and family services programs and of the resources, including personnel, which are available to meet this need. Title IV: Training of Personnel for Child and Family Services - Authorizes the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to make grants to or enter into contracts with institutions of higher education, State and local agencies, State and local educational agencies, private organizations and agencies engaged in teacher training, teacher training institutions, national child care organizations, and producers of television programing, for the purpose of establishing, developing, or upgrading early childhood personnel training programs to respond to the demonstrated need for child services personnel in the 1970's; and by stimulating the development of sufficient training and educational programs in every State and region of the United States to assure an adequate supply of personnel to meet staffing requirements. Authorizes appropriations for fiscal years 1975, 1976 and 1977 to carry out this title. Title V: General Provisions - Defines the terms used in this Act. Provides for nutrition services to be provided to child and family service programs under the National School Lunch Act of 1946 and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1974
Comprehensive Right to Privacy Act - Requires that any organization of Federal, State, or local government maintaining an information system that includes personal information shall: (1) collect, maintain, use, and disseminate only personal information necessary to accomplish a proper purpose of the organization; (2) collect information to the greatest extent possible from the data subject directly; (3) maintain information in the system with accuracy, completeness, timeliness, and pertinence as necessary to assure fairness in determinations relating to a data subject; (4) make no dissemination to another system or any individual other than the data subject without specifying requirements for security and the use of information exclusively for the purpose set forth in the notice required under this Act; (5) maintain a complete and accurate record, including identity purpose, and date, of every access to any personal information in a system by persons or organizations not having regular access authority; and (6) collect no personal information concerning the political or religious beliefs, affiliations, and activities of data subjects maintained by any government agency unless expressly authorized by statute. Prohibits any Federal agency from requiring individuals to disclose for statistical purposes any personal information unless such disclosure is required by a constitutional provision or Act of Congress, and the individual is so informed. Requires any organization maintaining or proposing to establish an information system for personal information to: (1) give notice of the existence and character of each existing system once a year to the Federal Privacy Board; (2) give public notice of the existence and character of each existing system each year; and (3) assure that such public notice specifies the categories of data maintained, and the categories of all information sources, a description of types of use made of information, and the procedures whereby an individual can gain access to such information and contest its accuracy and the necessity for its retention. Requires any organization maintaining personal information to inform an individual asked to supply personal information whether he is legally required, or may refuse, to supply the information requested, and also of any specific consequences, which are known to the organization, of providing or not providing such information. Permits data subjects who dispute information about themselves to have such disputed information noted as being disputed when such information about him is disseminated. Requires, upon request, corrections in information to be sent to past recipients of information. Directs organizations maintaining information to inform, within two years and each year thereafter, individuals on whom data is stored of its content and where a copy of such data may be obtained. Allows the head of a Federal agency maintaining such information to exempt his agency from requirements of this Act in the interest of national defense. Makes it unlawful for any organization to require an individual to disclose or furnish his social security account number, for any purpose in connection with any business transaction unless the disclosure or furnishing of such number is specifically required by Federal law. Establishes the Federal Privacy Board whose five members shall be appointed by the President. Directs the Board to: (1) publish an annual Data Base Directory of the United States containing the name and characteristics of each personal information system covered by this Act; (2) make rules to assure compliance with this Act; (3) upon the determination of a violation of a provision of this Act or regulation promulgated under the Act, and after opportunity for a hearing, order the organization violating such provision to cease and desist such violation; and (4) conduct open, public hearings on all petitions for exceptions or exemptions from provisions, application, or jurisdiction of this Act. States that any individual or organization or responsible officer of an organization who willfully: (1) keeps an information system without having notified the Federal Privacy Board; or (2) issues personal information in violation of this Act; or (3) solicits, uses, or otherwise acquires information in violation of this Act shall be fined not more than $10,000 in each instance or imprisoned not more than five years, or both. Provides that any person, system, or agency which violates the provisions of the Act, or any rule, regulation, or order issued thereunder, shall be liable to any person aggrieved thereby.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1974
Authorizes the President to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to prohibit the importation into the United States of products from foreign countries conducting fishing operations which adversely affect international fishery conservation programs, or to state his reasons for not doing so to the Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1974
Food Research and Development Act - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct research and development relating to the following: (1) new methods of protein production, including the treatment of waste materials with microorganisms; (2) new methods of improving the protein content of cereals and grains, including combining different types of these products to create the amino acid balance required for "complete" protein; (3) new methods of fertilizer production, including microbiological techniques; (4) new methods of processing vegetable protein into low-cost substitutes for meat and dairy products; and (5) the effect of existing public policy, including Federal and State regulation of food products, on the utilization of new methods of protein production, fertilizer production, and processing vegetable protein. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to public or nonprofit entities and individuals for research, development, and demonstration projects, and provide for the conduct of research, development, and demonstration projects by contract with public or private entities or persons. Requires the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to develop and make available to educational and other nonprofit institutions an educational program relating to the preparation and use of the food products produced by the methods developed under this Act. Authorizes appropriations of such sums as are necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act through fiscal year 1978.
United States · United States Congress · 2 July 1974
Requires, under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, that all proposed agreements between the United States and any foreign power for cooperation on atomic energy development be subject to a congressional power to disapprove. (Amends 42 U.S.C. 2153)
United States · United States Congress · 2 July 1974
Requests that each of the several States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, the Canal Zone, American Samoa, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands conduct a survey or study to determine the views of their citizens with respect to abortion laws.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1974
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should instruct the Secretary of State to give favorable consideration to making use of the various chambers of the International Court of Justice, including chambers convened to resolve regional disputes, where such disputes cannot be resolved by negotiation. Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should take all appropriate measures to attempt to expand the range of international bodies eligible to request advisory opinions of the Court, giving special attention to attempting to extend eligibility to regional organizations as well as any two or more states jointly seeking an advisory opinion on any legal questions relating to a dispute between them. Makes it the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should undertake appropriate steps to improve, within the existing provisions of the statute, the process whereby persons are nominated and elected to serve as judges of the International Court of Justice, and that the President should undertake steps to encourage the International Court of Justice, from time to time, to sit and excercise its functions outside the Hague at places more convenient to the various parties to the statute of the International Court of Justice.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1974
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should direct the Secretary of State to encourage the maximum possible use of the procedures outlined in chapter VI of the Charter of the United Nations, relating to the pacific settlement of international disputes, whose continuance is likely to endanger the maintenance of international peace and security, particularly those procedures providing for the reference of legal disputes to the International Court of Justice.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1974
Makes it the sense of the House that the United States endeavor to include, in all future treaties and other international treaties and other international agreements to which the United States shall be a party or which shall be negotiated subsequent to the adoption of this resolution, operative clauses providing that any dispute arising from the interpretation or application of these treaties and international agreements which is not settled by agreement between or among the states concerned shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice or other appropriate body.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1974
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should direct the Secretary of State to undertake a study examining and appraising the various ways of granting direct and indirect access to the International Court of Justice to individuals, corporations, nongovernmental organizations, intergovernmental! organizations, regional organizations, and other natural or legal persons, in cases concerning questions of international law arising within the scope of activities directly pursued by such natural and legal persons. Makes it the sense of the House of Representatives that such a study should include an examination of the feasibility of establishing a special committee of the General Assembly of the United Nations, similar to the committee used for review of decisions of the Administrative Tribunal of the United Nations, with authority to request from the International Court of Justice advisory opinions on behalf of those natural and legal! persons concerning questions of international law arising within the scope of activities directly pursued by such persons.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1974
Expresses the sense of the House with respect to the submission of United States territorial disputes to the International Court of Justice. Makes it the sense of the House that the President is requested to direct the Secretary of State forthwith to seek to submit to the International Court of Justice for binding decisions as many as possible of the approximately 28 territorial disputes involving our country and a number of our close allies over desolate and largely uninhabited islands in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. Makes it the sense of the House that the President should direct the Secretary of State to make a full written report, to the Senate and to its Committee on Foreign Affairs within one year of the adoption of this resolution and a report for each of the five years thereafter, of actions taken and progress achieved in submitting such disputes to the Court.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 1974
Provides that, under the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, real property which is farmland, woodland, or open land and forms part of an estate may be valued, for estate tax purposes, at its value as farmland, woodland, or open land (rather than at its fair market value). Provides that real property which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places may be valued, for estate tax purposes, at its value for its existing use. Provides for the revocation of such lower valuation and recapture of unpaid tax with interest under specified circumstances.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1974
Prohibits the military departments from using dogs in connection with any research or other activities relating to biological or chemical warfare agents.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 1974
Foreign Investment Study Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Commerce to conduct a comprehensive, overall study of foreign direct and portfolio investments in the United States. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to carry out that part of the study relating to foreign direct investment, and to specifically: (1) investigate and review the nature, scope, magnitude, and rate of foreign direct investment activities in the United States; (2) survey the reasons foreign firms are undertaking direct investment in the United States; and (3) identify the processes and mechanisms through which foreign direct investment flows into the United States, the financing methods used by foreign direct investors, and the effects of such financing on American financial markets. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to carry out that part of the study relating to foreign portfolio investment, and to specifically: (1) investigate and review the nature, scope, and magnitude of foreign portfolio investment activities in the United States; (2) survey the reasons for foreign portfolio investment in the United States; and (3) identify the processes and mechanisms through which foreign portfolio investment is made in the United States, the financing methods used, and the effects of foreign portfolio investment on American financial markets. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of the Treasury to use the available services, equipment, personnel, and facilities of any agency or instrumentality of the Federal Government in conjunction with the study authorized in this Act. Authorizes appropriations of up to $3,000,000 to carry out the purposes of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 1974
Food Research and Development Act - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct research and development relating to the following: (1) new methods of protein production, including the treatment of waste materials with microorganisms; (2) new methods of improving the protein content of cereals and grains, including combining different types of these products to create the amino acid balance required for "complete" protein; (3) new methods of fertilizer production, including microbiological techniques; (4) new methods of processing vegetable protein into low-cost substitutes for meat and dairy products; and (5) the effect of existing public policy, including Federal and State regulation of food products, on the utilization of new methods of protein production, fertilizer production, and processing vegetable protein. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to public or nonprofit entities and individuals for research, development, and demonstration projects, and provide for the conduct of research, development, and demonstration projects by contract with public or private entities or persons. Requires the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to develop and make available to educational and other nonprofit institutions an educational program relating to the preparation and use of the food products produced by the methods developed under this Act. Authorizes appropriations of such sums as are necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act through fiscal year 1978.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1974
Provides under title II of the Social Security Act that the special procedure for expediting benefit payments (where such payments are not regularly made when due) shall apply to benefits based on disability in the same way it applies to other benefits under such title if entitlement has already been established and the benefits involved have been paid for one or more months.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1974
Provides under title II of the Social Security Act that the special procedure for expediting benefit payments (where such payments are not regularly made when due) shall apply to benefits based on disability in the same way it applies to other benefits under such title if entitlement has already been established and the benefits involved have been paid for one or more months.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1974
Provides under title II of the Social Security Act that the special procedure for expediting benefit payments (where such payments are not regularly made when due) shall apply to benefits based on disability in the same way it applies to other benefits under such title if entitlement has already been established and the benefits involved have been paid for one or more months.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1974
National Employment Priorities Act - Declares that it is the prupose of this Act: (1) to require prenotification to employees and communities of dislocation of business concerns; (2) to prevent Federal support for unjustified dislocation; and (3) to provide assistance to employees, and affected communities threatened with dislocation. Defines the terms used in this Act. Establishes in the Department of Labor a National Employment Relocation Administration, to be headed by an Administrator and Deputy Administrator appointed by the President, by and with the advise and consent of the Senate. Provides that, in order to carry out the purposes of this Act, the Secretary is authorized to perform enumerated functions and duties, including: (1) conduct investigations on any proposed closing or transfer of operations of a business concern; (2) provide adjustment assistance to employees becuase of a closing or transfer of operations of an establishment of a business concern; and (3) conduct research into the problems of business closings, transfers of operations, and unemployment. Establishes a National Employment Relocation Advisory Council. Specifies the composition and compensation rates of members of such Council to perform enumerated functions, including to advise the Secretary and Administrator with respect to the activities of the National Employment Relocation Administration and to evaluate the effectiveness of programs carried out under this Act. Requires written notice be given to the Secretary whenever (1) a business concern intends to close or transfer all or part of the operations of an establishment of that business concern; and (2) at least 15 percent of the employees who are members of any labor organization or 15 percent of all employees in that establishment will suffer an eligible employment loss as a result of any such closing or transfer. Specifies the items to be included in such notice. Authorizes the Secretary to investigate a proposed closing or transfer of operations under specified circumstances. Directs the Secretary to establsih a program of adjustment assistance for employees suffering an eligible employment loss. Provides that such adjustment assistance shall include: (1) income maintenance payment; (2) Maintenance of pension and health benefits; (3) job placement and retraining benefits; (4) relocation allowances; (5) early retirement benefits; (6) emergency mortgage and rent payments; and (7) food stamps and surplus commodities. Directs the Secretary to make every effort to place each employees for substantially equivalent full employment in accordance with their capacity and prospective employeent opportunities. Provides that a unit of local government is eligible for assistance under this Act upon determination by the Secretary that the closing or transfer of operations of business establishments has contributed substantially to an unemployment rate within such jurisdiction exceeding 8 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis. Enumerates the types of assistance available under this Act. Authorizes the Secretary to develop a retraining program for employees who will be required to acquire new or additional skills as a result of the economic adjustemnt assistance proposal. Provides that whenever the Secretary determines, after an investigation conducted under this Act that: (1) the closing or transfer of operations of an establishment or a business concern was not justified; or (2) if the transfer or closing could have been avoided if the business concern had accepted assistance under this Act; or (3) the eligible employment loss could have been avoided except for the failure to file a notice of intent to close or transfer, or because of some other unreasonable delay, bad faith or misrepresentation on the part of the business concern; or (4) the transfer of operations is to a new location outside the United States while other alternatives to such transfer of operations exist, then such business concern shall be ineligible for specified benefits under the Internal Revenue Code, for a period not to exceed 10 years. Authorizes to be appropriated to the Secretary such sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 1974
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should (1) immediately initiate negotiations at the highest level of the Turkish Government to prevent the resumption of opium production; and (2) if such negotiations prove unfruitful, exercise the authority provided by the Congress under the Foreign Assistance Act, to terminate all assistance to the Government of Turkey.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1974
Increases the authorization of appropriations for the Land and Water Conservation Fund from a minimum of $300,000,000 to a minimum of $900,000,000 for each fiscal year hereafter through 1989. (Amends 16 U.S.C. 460l-5)
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1974
Constitutional Amendment - Provides that a citizen of the United States otherwise eligible to hold the Office of President shall not be ineligible because such citizen is not a natural born citizen.
United States · United States Congress · 4 June 1974
Provides under title XVI of the Social Security Act for emergency assistance grants to recipients of supplemental security income benefits. Authorizes cost-of-living increases in such benefits and in State supplementary payments. Requires that in order for any State to be eligible for payments pursuant to title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act, all increases in the adjusted payment level of supplemental security income benefits shall be fully reflected in the amount of the benefits under title XVI of such Act actually paid to and received by recipients of such benefits. Prevents reductions in such benefits because of social security benefit increases. Provides reimbursement to States for home relief payments to disabled applicants prior to determination of their disability. Permits the payment of such benefits directly to drug addicts and alcoholics (without a third-party payee) in specified cases. Requires action within 30 days upon requests for such benefits. Continues on a permanent basis the provision making supplemental security income recipients eligible for food stamps. States that determinations by the Secretary of Health Education, and Welfare as to eligibility for such benefits shall be final. Excludes from income, for purposes of eligibility for such benefits, specified education expenses paid for by grants, fellowships, or scholarships. Provides that the State social service agency will provide an opportunity for a fair hearing, before such agency, to any aged, blind, or disabled individual requesting a hearing because his claim for services is denied, or it is not acted upon with reasonable promptness, or because he is aggrieved by any other agency action by which he is affected and which relates to the receipt, suspension, reduction, or termination of such services.
United States · United States Congress · 30 May 1974
Declares it to be the sense of the House that: (1) the contribution by the United States to the growing economic and human crisis in the developing world should be primarily in the form of food and the means and technology to produce it; (2) the President, the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Agriculture and their advisors should give the highest priority to the immediate expansion of American food assistance and (b) take such additional steps as might be necessary to expedite the transfer of American food commodities on concessional and donation terms to those nations most severely affected; (3) the United States should increase its matching pledge to the World Food Program for 1975-1976 and encourage other nations to do so; (4) the President and the Secretary of State should (a) negotiate with other major food exporting nations to seek to obtain their participation in this emergency effort proportionate to their share of world food exports and, (b) strongly encourage oil exporting nations to contribute a fair share to these efforts to assist the most severely affected nations; (5) the United States should announce its desire to work with the oil exporting and other nations in a major effort to increase world fertilizer production with the possibility of including the offer of American technology and capital; and (6) the President should encouarge the American people to reduce the non-critical, non-food-producing uses of fertilizer which now total nearly three million tons of nutrient a year, to make available increased fertilizer supplies for raising food production at home and in the developing world. Declares the sense of the House that the President of the United States and the Secretaries of State and Agriculture should, and are hereby urged and requested to: (1) maintain regular and full consultation with the appropriate committees of the Congress; and (2) report to the Congress and the Nation at regular intervals on the progress toward formulating an American response in a cooperative framework to the world food crisis and the needs of the most severly affected developing countries.
United States · United States Congress · 29 May 1974
Bureaucratic Accountability Act - Provides that each Government agency shall pay to any interested person who participates in a proceeding before the agency, and who is determined by objective standards to be unable to pay: (1) reasonable attorney fees for representation of such person in the proceeding, and (2) other reasonable costs, including fees for witnesses, if such person made a discernible contribution to promoting agency implementation of a purpose of the Act of Congress pursuant to which such proceeding is conducted. States that an action in a court of the United States seeking relief other than money damages and stating a claim that an agency or an officer or employee thereof acted or failed to act in an official capacity or under color of legal authority shall not be dismissed nor relief therein be denied on the ground that it is against the United States or that the United States is an indispensable party. Establishes procedures for the enforcement of grants-in-aid to be followed by each agency which is authorized to make or administer such grants.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 1974
National Science Policy and Priorities Act - States the Congressional declaration that the total Federal investment in science and technology must be raised to an expenditure level which is adequate to the human needs of the nation; and that Federal programs for civilian research and engineering must be focused in such priority problem areas as health care, poverty, public safety, pollution, unemployment, productivity, housing, education, transportation, nutrition, communications, and energy resources. Title I: Science Policy and Priorities for Civilian Research and Engineering - Science policy Act - Requires the National Science Foundation to identify, research, and report on priority areas of civilian research and engineering likely to contribute to the resolution of such national problem areas as stated above. Authorizes appropriations totalling $50,000,000 for fiscal years 1974-1976 for such purposes. Title II: Design and Demonstration of Civil Science Systems - Civil Science Systems Act - Authorizes the Foundation to initiate and support programs which use science, technology, and advanced analythical techniques, such as systems analysis, to design civil science systems which are capable of providing improved public services in such areas as health care delivery, public safety, public sanitation, pollution control, housing, transportation, public utilities, communications, and education. Establishes, within the NSF, the Civil Science Systems Administration to administer programs carried out under this title. Establishes the Civil Science Systems Advisory Council, composed of 31 members, 18 of whom shall serve for terms of 3 years and be chosen from the following areas: business, labor, engineers, social and behavioral scientists, environmental and other community groups, and consumers. Authorizes the Director of the Administration to conduct and contract for planning studies for the design and demonstration of civil science systems capable of providing improved public services. Authorizes contracts: (1) for the conduct of applied social research into the economic, sociological, political, legal, administrative, and psychological aspects of the design, development, and implementation of such civil science systems; and (2) for research, testing, and evaluation of such civil science systems which make use of advanced science and technology. Authorizes the Director to establish a computerized Civil Science Systems Information Service, which shall collect the information pertaining to civil science systems resulting from programs under this title, and shall provide such information to interested Government, educational, and private organizations. Requires the Director, in conducting programs under this title, to maintain coordination with appropriate Federal, State, regional, and local governmental agencies. Authorizes appropriations for this title of $200,000,000 for fiscal year 1974, $490,000,000 for 1975, and $600,000,000 for 1976. Title III: Transition of Technical Manpower to Civilian Programs - Technical Manpower Transition Act - Authorizes the Foundation to plan and assist in the transition of scientific and technical manpower research and engineering programs which have been terminated or significantly reduced to other civilian-oriented research and engineering activities. Establishes an Advisory Panel on Transition of Scientific and Technical Manpower to Civilian Programs, to be composed of 31 members, 18 of whom shall serve for terms of 3 years and be chosen from the following categories: engineering and natural sciences, economic and social sciences, industry, labor, public affairs and manpower training, and unemployed scientists, engineers, and technicians. Authorizes the Foundation to make grants: (1) for the conduct of research designed to study and appraise the social, economic, and managerial aspects of transition from defense research and engineering activities to civilian-oriented research and engineering activities; (2) for programs designed to facilitate the transition of scientific and technical activities to civilian programs at the State, local, or regional level; (3) for training programs for officers and employees of Federal, State, and local government who will be responsible for administering Government-assisted programs for civilian, socially oriented research and engineering activities; (4) for establishing community conversion corporations which shall conduct civilian-oriented research and development activities focusing on the particular problems of the community where the corporation is located; (5) for job transition programs involving the hiring of unemployed scientists, engineers, and technicians to work on civilian-oriented projects for which they are not yet fully qualified; (6) for career transition fellowships to unemployed scientists, engineers, and technicians to enable them to pursue a course of study through which they can acquire specialized technical knowledge and skills in fields other than the ones in which they are already proficient; (7) for placement programs for unemployed or underemployed scientists, engineers, and technicians; and (8) for education programs which design courses and curriculums intended to prepare students for careers in civilian, socially oriented research and engineering activities, in areas such as pollution control, mass transit, solid waste disposal systems, public utilities, public safety systems, and health care technology. Authorizes to be appropriated to carry out this title, $152,000,000 for fiscal year 1974, $203,000,000 for fiscal year 1975, and $205,000,000 for fiscal year 1976. Title IV: Protection of Pension Rights of Scientists and Engineers - Requires the Director of the National Science Foundation to develop a recommendation for modifications of Federal procurement regulations to insure that scientists, engineers, and those employed under Federal procurement, construction, or research contracts or grants shall be protected against forfeiture of pension or retirement benefits as a consequence of job transfers or loss of employment resulting from terminations or modifications of Federal contracts or procurement policies. Title V: General Provisions - Defines the terms used in this Act. Authorizes the Director to appoint additional personnel and advisory committees, and use the services of Federal, State, and local government organizations to carry out the purposes of this Act. Makes provisions for the payment and withholding of funds under this Act. Requires records to be kept of costs by recipients of assistance under this Act. Provides for an audit of records of recipients of assistance. Requires provisions in grants or contracts under this Act governing the disposition of inventions produced thereunder in a manner calculated to protect the public interest and the equities of the individual or organization with which the grant or contract is executed. Prohibits any Foundation employee from retaining or transferring any rights, under the patent laws of the United States, in any invention which he may produce in connection with performing his assigned activities and which is directly related to the subject matter thereof.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 1974
Provides under title II of the Social Security Act that the special procedure for expediting benefit payments (where such payments are not regularly made when due) shall apply to benefits based on disability in the same way it applies to other benefits under such title if entitlement has already been established and the benefits involved have been paid for one or more months.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 1974
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that (1) it most strongly condemns all acts of terrorism in the Middle East; (2) the President and the Secretary of State should and are hereby urged and requested to (a) call upon all governments to condemn this inhuman act of violence against innocent victims; and (b) strongly urge the governments who harbor these groups and individuals to take appropriate action to rid their countries of those who subvert the peace through terrorism and senseless violence; and (3) the President should request the American Ambassador to the United Nations to take appropriate action before that body in order to have introduced a Security Council resolution condemning this brutal act of violence.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 1974
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should (1) immediately initiate negotiations at the highest level of the Turkish Government to prevent the resumption of opium production; and (2) if such negotiations prove unfruitful, exercise the authority provided by the Congress under the Foreign Assistance Act, to terminate all assistance to the Government of Turkey.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 1974
Requires the Secretary of Defense to take such action as is necessary to insure that any member of the Armed Forces who is discharged shall receive a discharge certificate which shall indicate that such member was so discharged and which shall not bear any indication of the conditions under which such separation occured. States that the reason why such member was so separated (other than by reason of discharged dismissal pursuant to a sentence of a general or special court-martial) and all other records or documents pertaining to such reason or reasons shall be treated as confidential and shall not be made known to or otherwise released to any private person or any public agency (whether Federal, State, or local) without the prior written consent of the member concerned. Sets forth the conditions under which an enlisted member of the Armed Forces may be discharged under other than honorable conditions. Establishes procedures for military review panels in considering the dishonorable discharge of enlisted personnel. Requires military review panels to conduct hearings which afford the enlisted member concerned an opportunity to: (1) appear before the panel and present evidence in his own behalf; (2) be represented by counsel; (3) confront the witnesses against him; and (4) examine documentary and real evidence against him. States that the recommendation of a review panel appointed under the provisions of this Act for separation under other than honorable conditions may be appealed to an appeal board established by the Judge Advocate General concerned, or the General Counsel of the Department of Transportation, as appropriate. Authorizes the Secretaries concerned to prescribe regulations to carry out the provisions of this Act. Requires the Secretaries concerned, after consultation with the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs, to establish a number (but not less than ten) of regional boards of review throughout the United States. States that the function of the regional boards shall be to review the discharge or dismissal (other than a discharge or dismissal by a general or special court-martial) of any former member of an Armed Forces under the jurisdiction of the military department concerned. Provides that if a request for the review of a discharge or dismissal of any person who was discharged or dismissed from the Armed Forces within the fifteen-year period immediately preceding the effective date of this Act was filed before such effective date and such review resulted in no change to the discharge or dismissal, or no new discharge was issued, another request for review of that discharge or dismissal pursuant to this Act may be filed and such review shall be acted upon without prejudice, if such request for review is filed with the appropriate regional board of review within the one-year period immediately following such effective date.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 1974
Designates for study specified rivers in California, Michigan, Alabama, Wyoming, Colorado, Minnesota, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Wisconsin as potential additions to the national wild and scenic rivers system.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 1974
Entitles specified veterans of the Mexican border period and of World War I and their widows and children to a veterans' pension benefit on the same basis as that accorded to veterans of the Spanish American War and their widows and children, respectively. Provides for an increase in pension rates applicable to such classes of veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 1974
District of Columbia Urban Homestead Act - Sets forth the findings of Congress and defines the terms used in this Act. Establishes the District of Columbia Homesteading Commission composed of nine members appointed by the Commissioner of the District of Columbia with the advice and consent of the District of Columbia Council. Requires that members appointed be representative of various interest groups in the District of Columbia. Requires the assessor of the District of Columbia to maintain a list of single-family dwellings which are eligible for sale under the provisions of D. C. law that pertain to the sale of property for unpaid taxes. Declares that the Commissioner shall offer the dwellings on the list for sale to the record owner and to any recorded lien holder for six months before all right, title, and interest, in the dwelling or land shall be transferred to the Commission with all right of redemption, foreclosure, or claim being extinguished in all persons. Provides that the Commission shall convey the dwellings or land transferred to it under this Act to qualified low-income and moderate-income applicants, with a lottery conducted if more than one qualified applicant applies for the same dwelling or land. Requires the applicant to pay $1 and to enter into an agreement stating that he will (1) construct or rehabilitate and reside in the dwelling as his principal residence for a period of at least five years; (2) maintain the dwelling so as to satisfy all the requirements of applicable District of Columbia law; (3) pay the amounts agreed upon between the owner-applicant and a financial institution; (4) carry adequate fire and liability insurance on the dwelling at all times; (5) permit inspections of the dwelling to be made at reasonable times by agents of the Commission to determine the progress of the rehabilitation; and (6) comply with reasonable terms imposed by the Commission. Declares that Bolling Air Force Base and the Anacostia Naval Air Station, except land approved for development by the Department of Defense shall be among the lands eligible to be conveyed by the Commission. Authorizes to be appropriated not more than $2,500,000 to carry out the purposes of this Act.
![Official portrait of Rep. Seiberling, John F. [D-OH-14]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s000230_200.jpg)