United States · United States Congress · 7 February 1990
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Office of the United States Trade Representative should utilize the trade mechanisms available to it to require foreign countries that tolerate the production and export of illicit narcotics to address the elimination of such production and export in a serious and effective manner.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1990
Amends Federal patent law to provide that a process of making a product shall not be considered obvious (and shall thus be patentable) if an essential material used in the process is novel and nonobvious. Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to declare as an unlawful trade practice the importation into the United States of articles made or processed by means of a biotechnological material infringing on an enforceable U.S. patent.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 1990
Judicial Integrity and Independence Act of 1990 - Authorizes the Attorney General to petition the Chief Justice of the United States to appoint three judges within the Federal judiciary to determine whether a Federal judge (other than the Chief Justice or an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court) has engaged in conduct constituting a felony under U.S. law and should be removed from office for lack of good behavior. Requires the Chief Justice to make the requested appointments within 30 days after receipt of the petition. Authorizes the Attorney General, within 30 days after receiving notification of appointment of the three-judge court, to file a civil action to remove an accused judge. Specifies that a Federal judge is removable under this Act only by unanimous vote of such court and that such decision shall be final and unreviewable. Abates any civil removal action if the House of Representatives votes an article of impeachment against the accused judge. Makes the civil removal powers of this Act inapplicable to Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 1990
Urges the President to certify that Panama is fully cooperating in combating illicit drug production, trafficking, and money laundering pursuant to the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961. Declares the intention to expeditiously enact a joint resolution approving such certification and removing other prohibitions on U.S. assistance for Panama. Commends the Government of Panama for committing itself to the anti-drug effort, negotiating a bilateral narcotics agreement with the United States, and demonstrating its determination to combat drugs.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1989
Rehabilitation Act Drug Abuse Accountability Amendments of 1989 - Amends the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (the Act), with respect to nondiscrimination in employment under Federal contracts or in federally assisted programs, to exclude from the definition of "individual with handicaps": (1) (except in drug treatment programs) any current user of an illegal drug, when the discriminatory conduct involved is carried out against the individual on the basis of such use; (2) any alcoholic or user of a legal drug whose current use of alcohol or legal drugs either constitutes a direct threat to property or the safety of others or prevents the individual from meeting performance standards or eligibility requirements; (3) students who currently use or possess alcohol or any illegal drug (thus permitting local educational agencies to take disciplinary actions); and (4) any individual with a currently contagious disease or infection which either constitutes a direct threat to the health or safety of others or prevents the individual from meeting performance standards or eligibility requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1989
Constitutional Amendment - Grants the Congress power to authorize the Supreme Court to remove from office any Article III judge if the Supreme Court determines that such judge has been convicted in a Federal court of a criminal offense.
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 1989
Amends the Controlled Substances Act to impose a mandatory minimum sentence for the illegal manufacture, distribution, or dispensation of 50 grams or more of smokable crystal methamphetamine.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1989
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Multiyear Authorization Act of 1989 - Authorizes appropriations to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for specified activities relating to: (1) research and development; (2) space flight, control, and data communications; (3) construction of facilities; (4) research and program management; and (5) the Inspector General. Permits appropriations for the first two numbered categories to be used for certain items of a capital nature (other than land acquisition) required for the performance of research and development contracts, and for grants to nonprofit educational and research organizations to augment their research facilities. Prohibits the use of these funds for the construction of any major facility whose estimated cost exceeds $500,000, unless the Administrator of NASA notifies specified congressional committees. Authorizes use of funds from one or more of the numbered categories, subject to limitations, for scientific consultations or extraordinary expenses, for facilities construction, repair, or modification, and for unforeseen programmatic facility project needs. Prohibits, subject to exception, the expenditure of funds authorized for FY 1991 unless a specified minimum sum is made available for that fiscal year for the U.S. International Space Station Freedom. Permits reprogramming of funds for facilities construction, subject to conditions outlined in this Act. Authorizes certain fund transfers and makes available specified funds for the construction and modification of laboratories and other installations. Requires the Administrator to notify specified congressional committees of the nature, cost, and need for such construction before expending the funds in question. Prohibits, until 30 days following congressional receipt of the Administrator's full explanation, the use of funds appropriated pursuant to this Act for any program: (1) not authorized by the Congress; or (2) in excess of the amount actually authorized for the particular program. Authorizes and encourages the Administrator to use up to a specified amount of funds appropriated for orbiter production by a specified law to procure shuttle structural spare parts. Requires the Administrator to distribute research and development funds geographically in order to provide the broadcast practicable participation in NASA programs. Directs the Administrator to award to a domestic firm a contract that, under the use of competitive procedures, would be awarded to a foreign firm, if certain conditions exist. Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 to add to the functions of the Administration those of: (1) seeking and encouraging the fullest commercial use of space; and (2) encouraging and providing for Federal Government use of commercially provided space services and hardware. Amends the Commercial Space Launch Act to authorize appropriations to carry out the Act for FY 1990. Authorizes appropriations to carry out the activities of the National Space Council. Requires the Council to reimburse other agencies for at least half of the personnel compensation costs of individuals detailed to it. Provides for terms and conditions for employment of staff, experts, and consultants. Amends Federal law relating to pay rates to add the Executive Secretary of the Council to the list of positions to which level III of the Executive Schedule applies. Requests the Council to initiate a review of U.S. launch policy. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should take specified actions with respect to the International Space Year (ISY), including: (1) declaring a World Space Congress to be convened in 1992; and (2) directing NASA to continue to develop ISY activities with a primary emphasis on Mission to Planet Earth. Directs the Administrator to submit to specified congressional committees certain reports relating to the Advanced Solid Rocket Motor. Declares it to be U.S. policy to use the space shuttle: (1) for purposes that require the presence of man or the unique capabilities of the shuttle; or (2) when other compelling circumstances exist, including those related to national security or foreign policy. States that the policy does not preclude carrying secondary payloads that do not require the presence of man if consistent with the requirements of research, development, demonstration, scientific, commercial, and educational programs authorized by the Administrator. Requires the Administrator to submit to the Congress a plan for implementing the policy. Declares: (1) it is U.S. policy that the U.S. Trade Representative should enter into negotiations for fair pricing agreements, supporting free and fair competition, for international trade in commercial launch services; (2) the policy shall not apply if the President certifies that the price for launch services offered by any nation utilizing Soviet launch vehicles is not more than 25 percent below the price of a comparable launch vehicle built in a market-based economy; and (3) in the absence of an agreement or a certification, U.S. policy is that the export of U.S. manufactured satellites for launch on Soviet manufactured vehicles should be prohibited. Continues the suspension of any license for the export of a satellite of U.S. origin that is intended for launch from a launch vehicle owned by the People's Republic of China, unless the President reports to the Congress that: (1) that country has made progress on political reform, including human rights, throughout the country, including Tibet; and (2) it is in the U.S. national security interest to terminate a suspension. Directs the Administrator to: (1) review proposed manned space flight missions with regard to identifying the human factors knowledge base necessary and developing a schedule of when specified components of information will need to be acquired or developed; (2) develop a strategic plan for life sciences research and technology development, including a crew certification plan and a life sciences implementation plan; and (3) verify the physiological and technical feasibility of the life sciences implementation plan. Commission for International Cooperation in Planetary Exploration Act - Establishes the Commission for International Cooperation in Planetary Exploration to: (1) develop an inventory of intentions of all national space agencies; (2) seek ways to enhance the planning and exchange of information; (3) prepare a proposal for efficient use of resources; (4) develop priority goals for needs that could not be achieved by any individual country; (5) explore the possibilities of international unmanned probes and international manned missions; and (6) devise strategies for cooperation that would prevent unwanted transfer of technology. Requires the Commission, within one year of the enactment of this Act, to submit a report with specified contents to the President and the Congress. Terminates the Commission 30 days after submitting its report, unless the President or the Congress have requested further revisions to the report. Establishes within the Department of Commerce an Office of Space Commerce to: (1) promote private sector investment in space activities; (2) assist commercial space companies in their efforts to do business with the U.S. Government and act as an industry advocate with regard to Government use of commercially available goods and services; (3) ensure that the Government does not compete with the private sector; (4) promote space goods and services exports; (5) represent the Department of Commerce in the development of U.S. policies and in negotiations with foreign countries to ensure free and fair trade; and (6) seek the removal of impediments to space commerce. Directs the Secretary of Defense and the Administrator of NASA to establish a joint National Aero-Space Plane program to develop a long-range hypersonic cruise research flight vehicle. Prescribes the respective funding and administrative responsibilities of the Defense and NASA. Directs the Secretary and the Administrator to develop and submit to the Congress a management plan that includes goals, tasks, schedules, and resource procurement strategies. Mandates that the Administrator require random drug testing of officers and employees of NASA. Authorizes the Administrator to use up to five percent of the funds provided for the Small Business Innovation Research Program for program management and promotional activities. Prohibits use of Program funds for travel or civil service salaries. Authorizes the Administrator to use up to specified sums of previously appropriated funds for: (1) continued development of an extended duration orbiter; and (2) space transportation system requirements. Amends the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 1988 to require the Administrator to support a space grant fellowship program at the undergraduate as well as the graduate level. Declares that: (1) no civil Space Station authorized under this Act may be used to carry or place in orbit any nuclear weapon or any other weapon of mass destruction, or to station any such weapon in space in any other manner; and (2) this civil Space Station may be used only for peaceful purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1989
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for the treatment of rental and nonrental real estate activities under the limitations on losses from passive activities.
United States · United States Congress · 8 November 1989
International Parental Child Abduction Act of 1989 - Amends the Federal criminal code to establish penalties for taking or retaining a child outside the United States with intent to defeat the lawful custody of such child by a lawful custodian in the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 1989
Directs the heads of Federal departments or agencies which hold or receive records and information which have or could possibly have been correlated to U.S. personnel listed as prisoners of war or missing in action in World War II and the Korean and Vietnam conflicts to publicly disclose such records and information, except where such disclosure would compromise national security. Requires the Department of Defense to publicly disclose a complete list of such personnel including those killed in action (body not returned) in such hostilities with each service member's current classification as well as any changes in such classification occurring during or after such hostilities.
United States · United States Congress · 19 October 1989
United States Commission on Civil Rights Act of 1989 - Reestablishes the United States Commission on Civil Rights comprised of nine-members appointed by the President. Enumerates the Commission's duties in allegations of discrimination on the basis of color, race, religion, sex, age, disability, or national origin. Reestablishes other commission operations and procedures, including annual reports, administrative functions, hearings procedures, and other matters, including a prohibition on studies of abortion. Adds to Commission duties a requirement for appraisal of denials of equal protection of the laws involving Americans of eastern-European and southern European ethnic groups.
United States · United States Congress · 19 October 1989
Small Business Access Improvement Act of 1989 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit for small businesses for the expense of providing public accommodations access to the disabled. Reduces the tax deduction for expenditures to remove architectural and transportation barriers to the handicapped and elderly.
United States · United States Congress · 18 October 1989
Consumer Awareness and Trademark Protection Act of 1989 - Amends the Trademark Act of 1946 to prohibit the importation, selling, or distribution in the United States of foreign-made items (and their wrappings) which bear a trademark that is identical (or substantially similar) to one owned by a U.S. citizen who has registered it with the Patent and Trademark Office, unless such person consents to the importation or sale. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to exclude such items from entry into Federal customs territory if the trademark owner files a copy of the trademark registration certificate with the Secretary. Authorizes such trademark owner to bring an action to enjoin such importation or sale.
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1989
Expresses the sense of the Congress that in determining the allocation of foreign assistance the Department of State should: (1) weigh heavily the persecution, torture, and execution of innocent Somalis by the armed forces of Siad Barre; and (2) insist upon significant improvements in human rights as a precondition to the resumption of foreign assistance to Somalia.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 1989
Revises the articles of impeachment exhibited by the House of Representatives against Walter L. Nixon, a judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 1989
Provides for a message to be sent to the Senate informing the Senate that the House of Representatives has adopted amendments to the articles of impeachment exhibited against Walter L. Nixon, Jr., a judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 1989
Amends the Rail Passenger Service Act to repeal an exemption from specified communicable disease control requirements of the Public Health Service Act for waste disposal from railroads operating in intercity rail passenger service.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 1989
Bounty Hunter Act of 1989 - Amends the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984 to increase the maximum reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction under Federal law of any individual for the unlawful sale, or possession for sale, of a controlled substance or a controlled substance analogue. Provides for the payment of incentive rewards to States to encourage the establishment of programs to pay similar rewards for violations of State laws.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 1989
Declares that it is the sense of the Congress that: (1) the NASA/jet propulsion laboratory team is to be commended for its achievement in the Voyager program; and (2) the United States should remain preeminent in planetary exploration and will continue to support science missions to maintain that leadership.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 1989
Prohibits the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from enforcing, during the 12-month period following the enactment of this Act, its underground petroleum storage tank financial responsibility regulations promulgated pursuant to the Solid Waste Disposal Act with respect to certain underground tank owners. Permits enforcement after such period if the Administrator of the EPA determines that such enforcement would not impose an unjust economic burden on the owners. Requires the Administrator to conduct a study for the purpose of identifying the principal economic difficulties associated with compliance by underground tank owners with EPA technical standards for such tanks. Directs the Administrator to report the results of such study to specified congressional committees. Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to: (1) delete the requirement that regulations under such Act include provisions for compensation of third parties for injury and property damage caused by accidental releases from underground storage tanks; and (2) reduce financial responsibility requirements for specified underground petroleum storage tanks.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 1989
Farm Animal and Research Facilities Protection Act of 1989 - Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to make it unlawful to disrupt or damage a farm animal facility, its animals, or property. Sets forth penalties for violations of this Act. Allows the Secretary of Agriculture to investigate such offenses. Grants U.S. district courts jurisdiction in such cases. Provides for a private right of action.
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 1989
Amends the Controlled Substances Act to provide for the imposition of the death penalty or a sentence of life imprisonment without the benefit of parole, probation, or suspension for certain violations involving cocaine, heroin, lysergic acid diethylamide, or phencyclidine. Provides that the procedures applicable to the death penalty under the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 shall apply to the death penalty for offenses under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1989
Science Museum Assistance Act - Directs the National Science Foundation (NSF) to establish: (1) a merit based, competitive program of awards to science museums to make their services more available and to foster their involvement in local science and technology education; and (2) a peer review process to select award recipients. Sets forth selection criteria. Requires the program established under this Act to be administered through the Science and Engineering Education activity at the NSF. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 and subsequent fiscal years.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 1989
Mandates that a portion of Federal highway funds be withheld from States that do not enact and enforce laws requiring the suspension or revocation of driver's licenses of persons convicted of drug-related criminal offenses. Sets forth provisions for determining the period of availability of withheld funds and the disposition of such funds in cases of noncompliance with such requirement.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 1989
Industrial Design Anti-Piracy Act of 1989 - Amends the copyright law to provide for the protection of industrial designs of useful articles (including typefonts), except designs that are: (1) not original; (2) staple or commonplace; (3) different from commonplace or staple designs in insignificant ways; (4) determined solely by a utilitarian function; (5) composed of three-dimensional features of shape and surface in wearing apparel; (6) a semiconductor chip product already protected under another provision; or (7) embodying a process or idea or system. States that protection for a design shall be available for subject matter usually excluded if the design is a substantial revision, adaptation, or rearrangement of such subject matter. Sets the term of protection at ten years. Requires the design to be marked with a design notice when it is made public. States that omission of such notice shall not cause loss of protection or prevent recovery for infringement against any person who receives written notice of the protection. Specifies the criteria for determination of infringement of a protected design. Provides that protection of a design shall be lost if application for registration is not made within one year after the date on which the design is first made public. Provides procedures for application for the protection of a design through a certificate of registration. Sets a fee schedule for such process. Specifies the ownership and transfer rights of designs subject to protection. Provides remedies for infringement of a registered design, including injunctive relief and damages. Allows judicial review of a final refusal of the Register of the Copyright Office to register a design. Prescribes penalties for fraudulent registration, false marking, and false representation of any design. Provides that this Act shall take effect one year after the date of enactment. States that no design made public prior to the effective date shall be protected.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 1989
Fairness in Campaign Finance Act of 1989 - Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to prohibit a candidate for the Senate or the House of Representatives from accepting a contribution from a multicandidate political committee if the amount of such contribution plus the total of multicandidate political committee contributions previously accepted during the same calendar quarter exceeds one-third of the sum of such contribution and the total of contributions previously accepted from all sources during that calendar quarter.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1989
Amends the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 to extend indefinitely, with regard to certain cargo preference provisions, the requirement that the Secretary of Transportation take steps to preserve the percentage share, or metric tonnage of bagged, processed, or fortified commodities experienced in calendar year 1984, of waterborne cargoes exported from Great Lakes ports pursuant to specified provisions of the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1989
Fastener Quality Act - Prohibits the offering for sale or sale in commerce of any fastener (screw, nut, bolt, stud, similar threaded device, or washer) unless it is part of a lot which: (1) conforms to standards and specifications represented by the manufacturer; and (2) has been inspected, tested, and certified according to this Act. Sets forth special rules for small lots. Requires manufacturers to have a fastener lot sample inspected by a laboratory accredited under an approved system (including one owned or affiliated with the manufacturer if it is so accredited). Requires the laboratory, upon determination of conformance with the appropriate standards and specifications, to provide the manufacturer certificates with respect to such lot. Directs the Secretary of Commerce, through the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, to establish: (1) a program for the accreditation of laboratories engaged in the inspection and testing of fasteners; (2) conditions under which accreditation by private entities using standards issued by consensus standards organizations shall be deemed to satisfy the accreditation requirements of this Act; and (3) conditions, no less stringent than those for private accrediting entities, under which accreditation of foreign laboratories by their governments shall be deemed to satisfy the requirements of this Act. Limits accreditation to three years. Requires that laboratory accreditation standards issued by one or more consensus standards organizations selected by the Director be used to accredit laboratories under the accreditation program. Authorizes the Director to hire contractors as necessary to carry out the accreditation program. Requires costs for the establishment and operation of the program to be fully reimbursable through fees or other charges for accreditation services. Directs the Secretary to ensure that private accrediting entities and laboratories accredited by such entities or by foreign governments comply with conditions and requirements in this Act. Requires the Director to periodically transmit recommendations to consensus standards organizations. Prohibits any manufacturer from selling any container of fasteners manufactured in the United States unless delivery to the first purchaser is accompanied by a written notification of testing and certification by an accredited laboratory. Prohibits any person from selling any container of fasteners manufactured outside the United States to any importer or end user unless delivery is accompanied by an original certificate from an accredited laboratory. Allows delivery to an importer or private label distributor without the required certificate if: (1) the manufacturer discloses in writing the appropriate standards and specifications; and (2) the importer or private label distributor assumes responsibility in writing for inspection and testing. Requires that, in a sale of any quantity for resale at wholesale, the container be conspicuously marked with the lot number. Requires persons who make significant alterations to a fastener subsequent to manufacture to have the altered fastener inspected and tested unless delivery is accompanied by a disclosure of the alteration and a warning. Requires subsequent disclosures of the alteration in resales. Prohibits commingling of fasteners from different lots in the same container. Requires fastener manufacturers or private label distributors to comply with requirements of a program for recordation of insignias. Directs the Secretary to establish such a program, including regulations to ensure traceability. Sets forth civil remedies, including declaratory and injunctive relief, and criminal penalties, including fines and imprisonment, for violations of this Act. Provides that nothing in this Act shall be construed to: (1) preempt any rights or causes of action that any buyer may have with respect to any seller of fasteners under the law of any State, except insofar as such State law conflicts with this Act; and (2) limit or otherwise affect the authority of any consensus standards organization to establish, modify, or withdraw any standards and specifications under any other law or authority in effect on the date of enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 21 July 1989
Drug War Bond Act of 1989 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue: (1) Drug War Bonds for a three-year period with a 12-year maturity date; and (2) Drug War Stamps to evidence payments for or on account of such bonds. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude the interest earned on such War Bonds from an individual's gross income. Authorizes a taxpayer to designate a specified portion of any tax overpayment or make cash contributions to the War on Drugs Trust Fund (established by this Act). Authorizes the Attorney General to make expenditures from the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund into the War on Drugs Trust Fund. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish the War on Drugs Trust Fund. Transfers to such Fund: (1) proceeds from the sale of Drug War Bonds and stamps; and (2) certain cash contributions and portions of tax overpayments. Prescribes expenditures from the War on Drugs Trust Fund, including the construction of Federal prison facilities and education and rehabilitation programs. Precludes the receipts and disbursements from the War on Drugs Trust Fund from being included in either the congressional budget totals or in the budget totals as submitted by the President. Exempts the receipts and expenditures from the War on Drugs Trust Fund from: (1) statutory expenditure and lending limitations; and (2) certain orders issued under the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act). Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress on programs established by this Act. Directs the Attorney General to make recommendations to the Congress regarding the merits of privatizing Federal prisons.
United States · United States Congress · 21 July 1989
Drug Paraphernalia Act of 1989 - Amends the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986 to prohibit any sale or offer for sale of drug paraphernalia. (Current law prohibits the offer for sale and transportation of drug paraphernalia in interstate or foreign commerce.) Directs the Attorney General to use the authority granted under the Controlled Substance Act to enforce the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986 through the use of task forces consisting of appropriate Federal, State, and local personnel. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 through 1994.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 1989
Amends the State Justice Institute Act of 1984 to authorize the use of Institute funds to conduct up to five projects to: (1) investigate and carry out research regarding State judicial decisions relating to child custody litigation involving domestic violence; (2) develop training curricula to assist State courts to develop an understanding of, and appropriate responses to, child custody litigation involving domestic violence; and (3) disseminate the results of such investigation and research and the curricula to State courts. Authorizes appropriations through FY 1992.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 1989
Medicare Catastrophic Coverage Revision Amendments of 1989 - Delays, for one year, the implementation of the Medicare Catastrophic Coverage Act of 1988, except for provisions of such Act expanding benefits under part A (Hospital Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1989
Prescribes criminal penalties for the performance of abortions in the District of Columbia, including fines, imprisonment, forfeiture of property used in connection with such performance, and medical license revocation. Makes an exception with respect to medical procedures required to prevent the death of the pregnant woman or the preborn child if every reasonable effort is made to save both.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1989
Constitutional Amendment - Declares that the Congress and the States shall have power to prohibit the act of desecration of the U.S. flag and to set criminal penalties for that act.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1989
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to its concern over the Supreme Court's decision in Texas v. Johnson and its commitment to preserving the honor and integrity of the flag. Condemns all actions intended to desecrate the flag. Urges the American people to continue to display proudly the U.S. flag.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1989
Computer Software Rental Amendments Act of 1989 - Amends Federal copyright law to prohibit the person in possession of a computer software program from renting, leasing, or lending it for direct or indirect commercial advantage unless authorized to do so by the copyright owner (or licensee). Directs the Register of Copyrights to report to the Congress whether this Act has achieved its purpose of maintaining the integrity of the copyright system while providing nonprofit libraries the capability to fulfill their function. Grants remedies for copyright infringement in cases of violations of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1989
Treats Hong Kong as a separate foreign state rather than a colony or dependent area for U.S. immigration purposes, beginning in FY 1990 (thereby increasing the number of visas chargeable to Hong Kong).
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 1989
Census Equity Act - Requires the Secretary of Commerce to ensure that during any decennial census: (1) no member of the armed forces, civilian employee of the Department of Defense, or dependent of such member or employee, is excluded based on such member or employee being assigned to a post outside the United States; and (2) any alien not lawfully admitted for permanent residence is not included.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 1989
Constitutional Amendment - Requires the removal from office of an Article III judge upon conviction of a criminal offense punishable by more than one year's imprisonment.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 1989
Expresses the sense of the Congress regarding admissions of minority students to institutions of higher education, especially with respect to illegal exclusion and illegal racial discrimination against Asian-Americans and other groups.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 1989
Fair Housing for Americans of All Ages Act of 1989 - Amends the Fair Housing Act to repeal the prohibitions with respect to familial status-based discrimination. Directs the United States Commission on Civil Rights to: (1) conduct a study of familial status-based housing discrimination; and (2) report the results of such study to the Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 1989
Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to waive the application of certain Medicaid requirements in up to ten States which choose to provide long-term care pursuant to joint, State-sponsored public and private financing arrangements. Sets durational and fiscal limitations on such programs. Directs the Secretary to report to the Congress, by January 1, 1999, on the effectiveness of such programs.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 1989
Great Lakes Maritime Trade Act of 1989 - Title I: Eligibility of Certain Reflagged Vessels in the Great Lakes to Carry Preference Cargoes - Exempts an American Great Lakes vessel (AGLV) from provisions of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 which prohibit a vessel which is built or rebuilt outside the United States or documented under any foreign registry from being, for purposes of cargo preference provisions, a privately owned U.S.-flag vessel. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to designate a vessel to be an AGLV if it meets certain requirements regarding U.S. documentation and if the owner enters into a construction and purchase agreement specifying that: (1) all repair, maintenance, reconditioning, and other construction (except emergency repairs) shall be performed in the United States; and (2) if the designation is revoked or terminated under provisions of this Act, the United States shall have an exclusive right to purchase the vessel under specified price terms. Declares that, notwithstanding any law, if the United States does not purchase the vessel, the owner shall not be prohibited from transferring the vessel to a foreign registry or selling it to a non-U.S. citizen. Prohibits an AGLV, except during the Great Lakes shipping off-season, from engaging in trade: (1) from a non-Great Lakes U.S. port; (2) between U.S. ports; or (3) between Great Lakes U.S. ports and Great Lakes Canadian ports. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to revoke the designation of a vessel as an AGLV on determining that the vessel does not meet a requirement for the designation, it has been operated in violation of this title, or the owner has violated a construction and purchase agreement under this title. Terminates an AGLV designation three years after the date of the designation or on an earlier date as may be requested by the vessel owner. Title II: Great Lakes Maritime Passage Enhancements - Amends the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 to extend indefinitely, with regard to certain cargo preference provisions, the requirement that the Secretary of Transportation take steps to preserve the percentage share, or metric tonnage of bagged, processed, or fortified commodities experienced in calendar year 1984, of waterborne cargoes exported from Great Lakes ports pursuant to specified provisions of the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954. Directs the Secretary of the Army, notwithstanding specified requirements of the Water Resources Development Act of 1986, to initiate and complete the design, planning, and engineering of the Sault Sainte Marie lock project. Extends the authorization of such project to the end of FY 1993. Directs the Secretary of State to: (1) initiate discussions with Canada to eliminate all tolls on the Great Lakes and the Saint Lawrence Seaway; and (2) report to the Congress, by January 1, 1990, regarding those efforts, any results, and recommendations for further action. Declares that it is the sense of the Congress that: (1) funding for icebreaking capability in the Great Lakes should be maintained at a level sufficient to ensure passage under any conditions which may reasonably be expected to occur during the Great Lakes shipping season; and (2) it is essential to maintain in the Great Lakes an icebreaking vessel with horsepower and beam equivalent to those of the Coast Guard cutter Mackinaw.
![Official portrait of Rep. Sensenbrenner, F. James, Jr. [R-WI-5]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s000244_200.jpg)