United States · United States Congress · 7 March 2001
Clean Diamonds Act - Prohibits the import of diamonds into the United States unless the exporting country is implementing a system of controls on the export or import of rough diamonds that meets specified requirements, consistent with United Nations General Assembly Resolution 55/56 adopted on December 1, 2000, or a future international agreement which implements such controls and to which the United States is a signatory. Sets forth both civil and criminal penalties for violations of the requirements of this Act. Prohibits the Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the Export-Import Bank from engaging in certain transactions in connection with projects or exports to countries violating the requirements of this Act. Expresses the sense of Congress that the President should take steps to negotiate an international agreement to eliminate the trade in diamonds used to support conflict in the country or regions in which such diamonds are mined. Provides a waiver for the requirements of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 2001
Authorizes the President to present, on behalf of the Congress, a congressional gold medal to John Walsh in recognition of his outstanding and enduring contributions to the Nation through his work in the fields of law enforcement and victims' rights.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2001
School Safety Hotline Act of 2001 - Amends the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 and the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act of 1994 to allow certain grants to be used to establish and maintain school violence hotlines.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2001
Chiropractic Patients' Freedom of Choice Act of 2001 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for Medicare reimbursement for all physicians' services furnished by doctors of chiropractic within the scope of their license.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2001
Medicare Education and Regulatory Fairness Act of 2001 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) concerning: (1) prospective application only of certain regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS); and (2) certain requirements for judicial and regulatory challenges of regulations. Requires the Secretary, with respect to Medicare audits, except when clear and convincing evidence exists of fraud or similar fault, to give a physician, provider of services, or provider of ambulance services (physicians or providers) the option of entering into: (1) an arrangement to offset alleged overpayments against future payments; or (2) a repayment plan with its carrier or fiscal intermediary to recoup such an overpayment. Prohibits the Secretary from taking any action to recoup an overpayment or to impose a penalty during the period in which a physician or provider is appealing a determination that such an overpayment has been made or the amount of the overpayment. Prohibits carriers, absent cause, from demanding the production of records or documentation before paying a Medicare claim. Amends SSA title XI with respect to prohibited extensions of remuneration to a Medicare-eligible individual to influence a choice of provider, practitioner, or supplier. Excludes from the meaning of remuneration any waiver of copayment made in a written, mailed communication with existing patients. Amends SSA title XVIII with regard to: (1) construction of hearing rights related to decisions to deny or not renew a physician enrollment agreement; (2) the post-payment audit process; (3) definitions relating to physicians or providers; and (4) the right to appeal on behalf of deceased beneficiaries. Amends SSA title XVIII to require carriers, fiscal intermediaries, and contractors to conduct education programs (funded from the Medicare Integrity Program) for physicians and providers on billing, coding, cost reporting, and documentation regulations and procedures. Outlines provisions with regard to certain information requests from physicians and providers. Amends SSA title XVIII to provide for the inclusion of regulatory costs in the calculation of the sustainable growth rate with respect to the costs of physicians' services. Prohibits the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) from implementing any new evaluation and management documentation guidelines under Medicare, unless it: (1) has provided for an assessment of the proposed guidelines by organizations representing physicians; (2) has established a plan that contains specific goals, including a schedule, for improving use of such guidelines; (3) has completed a minimum of four pilot projects to test such guidelines; and (4) finds that specified objectives will be met in the implementation of such guidelines.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2001
No Guns for Violent Perpetrators Act - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit the shipment, transportation, or possession of a firearm or ammunition by an individual who has committed an act of juvenile delinquency that would be a violent felony if committed by an adult.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2001
Military Home School Children Equal Access Act of 2001 - Amends the Defense Dependents' Education Act of 1978 to allow home school students who are eligible for enrollment in a school of the overseas defense dependents' education system to use or receive auxiliary services of such schools without enrolling or registering for a minimum number of courses.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2001
IDEA Full Funding Act of 2001 - Amends the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to authorize funding to reach the Federal Government's goal of providing 40 percent of the national average per pupil expenditure to assist States and local educational agencies with the excess costs of educating children with disabilities. Authorizes appropriations for IDEA part B programs of assistance for education of all children with disabilities.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2001
Steel Revitalization Act of 2001 - Directs the President to impose quotas, tariff surcharges, or other measures on, and to negotiate enforceable voluntary export restraint agreements with respect to, imports of steel products in order to ensure that: (1) the tonnage of iron ore, coke and coke products, semifinished steel, and pig iron imported into the United States during any month does not exceed the average tonnage of each product that was imported monthly into the United States during the 36-month period preceding July 1997; and (2) the share of domestic consumption of any other applicable steel product in the United States derived from imports during any month does not exceed the average monthly share of domestic U.S. consumption of that steel product during any month in the 36-month period preceding July 1997. Authorizes the Customs Service to refuse entry into the U.S. customs territory for a five-year period of any steel products that exceed their allowable levels. Establishes: (1) the Steel Retiree Health Care Board in the Department of Labor; (2) the Steelworker Retiree Health Care Trust Fund; and (3) the Health Care Benefit Costs Assistance Program. Sets forth the functions of the Board, including to: (1) provide, under the Health Care Benefit Costs Assistance Program, for payments to designated steelworker group health plans to assist in the funding of qualified retiree health benefits under such plans; and (2) establish policies for the investment and management of the Steelworker Retiree Health Care Trust Fund that provides for prudent investments and low administrative costs. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an excise tax on steel sold by the manufacturer, producer, or importer (such taxes to be deposited into the Steelworker Retiree Health Care Trust Fund). Amends the Emergency Steel Loan Guarantee Act of 1999 to increase the aggregate amount of loans guaranteed and outstanding (including additional costs of such loans) at any one time under Emergency Steel Guarantee Loan Program or with respect to a single qualified steel company. Requires the Loan Guarantee Board to approve or deny an application for a guarantee within 45 days after its receipt. Authorizes any person who acquires another person that produces any of the specified categories of steel products contained in this Act to apply to the Secretary of Commerce for a grant to defray the costs necessary to bring, and maintain, the resulting entity into compliance with U.S. environmental laws. Requires the Secretary to make a determination whether or not such mergers will promote the retention of at least 80 percent of the jobs of the steel workers and production of capacity of such steel products. Sets forth penalties for failure to achieve such retention levels.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2001
Veterans' Hospital Emergency Repair Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out major medical facility projects at Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers for improving, renovating, and updating patient care facilities. Requires the Secretary to use FY 2002 or 2003 appropriated funds for such purpose. Limits to $25 million the cost of any single project. Requires an independent board within the Department to review projects before their selection.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2001
Medicare Certified Registered Nurse First Assistant Direct Reimbursement Act of 2001 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for coverage of surgical first assisting services furnished by certified registered nurse first assistants.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2001
Amends title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) of the Social Security Act to require the disregard of State paid annuities for blind veterans and their spouses in determining SSI benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2001
Long-Term Care and Retirement Security Act of 2001 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow: (1) a deduction (based on years of continuous coverage) for eligible long-term care insurance premiums for a taxpayer, spouse, and dependents, including accelerated deduction percentages for persons who are 55 years old; and (2) long-term care insurance to be offered under cafeteria plans and flexible spending arrangements. Allows an income-adjusted (limited) credit for eligible individuals with long-term care needs. Sets forth specified requirements for qualifying long-term care insurance contracts.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2001
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Federal Government should make the benefits of chiropractic care available as a covered benefit in any Federal employees health plan.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2001
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish, for a limited time period, deductions and credits for commercial and residential properties using specified energy efficient construction or reconstruction materials or technologies, including solar energy. Sets forth provisions concerning: (1) allocation of deductions for public property; and (2) property financed by subsidized energy financing. Requires the Secretary of Energy to establish specified certification and compliance procedures.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2001
Veterans' Opportunities Act of 2001 - Increases the maximum annual Reserve Officers' Training Corps award while continuing eligibility for benefits under the Montgomery GI Bill program. Includes certain outreach services within veterans' work-study opportunities. Includes as an "educational institution," for purposes of veterans' educational assistance, private entities teaching a profession or education in a technology occupation. Revises the incremental GI bill contributions required from active-duty personnel. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to: (1) provide increased transition assistance to members of the armed forces; and (2) maintain overseas veterans assistance offices. Requires veterans' pre-separation counseling to occur as soon as possible within 18 months preceding an anticipated retirement. Increases certain education and training outreach services available for separating military personnel and veterans. Directs the Secretary to ensure that the outreach needs of veterans' dependents are fully addressed, including through the use of the Internet and announcements in veterans publications and through the media. Increases the maximum available benefits for veterans' burial expenses, family coverage under Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance, automobile and adaptive assistance benefits for certain disabled veterans, and veterans' specially adapted housing. Allows real property used for farming, ranching, or similar agricultural purposes to be excluded from the value of a veteran's estate for purposes of pension eligibility for veterans who are permanently and totally disabled from a non-service-connected disability.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2001
Federal School Construction Act of 2001 - Schools for the 21st Century Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to revise and reauthorize provisions for school infrastructure improvement. Directs the Secretary of Education to award grants for the construction, repair, renovation, and modernization of public school facilities to eligible local educational agencies in specified categories based on numbers of students enrolled, and to set maximum award amounts for each such category. Requires reservation of one percent of program funds to provide assistance to schools operated predominantly for Native American or Alaska Native students. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish a limited tax credit for holders of qualified public school modernization bonds. Repeals a restriction on zone academy bond holders. Amends the General Education Provisions Act to apply certain labor standards on construction projects financed under such public school modernization bond program and specified zone academy bond provisions. Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to establish provisions concerning local employment and training activities related to the construction or reconstruction of public school facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2001
Treatment of Children's Deformities Act of 2001 - Amends the Public Health Service Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, and the Internal Revenue Code to set standards requiring that group and individual health insurance and group health plans provide coverage for treatment of a minor child's congenital or developmental deformity or disorder due to trauma, infection, tumor, or disease.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2001
People's Access to Government Information Act - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish a searchable Internet site to provide to the public ready access to information on Federal financial assistance, including grants, loans, loan guarantees, scholarships, and fellowships.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2001
Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to require the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, jointly with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and other appropriate Federal agencies, to develop, transmit to Congress, and implement a plan for stockpiling potassium iodide tablets in areas within a 50-mile radius of a nuclear power plant which includes a strategy for the storage and delivery of such tablets to persons who may be affected by a disaster at such a plant.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2001
Members-elect Gift Ban Application Act of 2001 - Amends Federal law to apply to Members-elect certain requirements and restrictions concerning gifts to Federal employees.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2001
Morris K. Udall Arctic Wilderness Act of 2001 - Designates specified lands within the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as wilderness and components of the National Wilderness Preservation System.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2001
North American Slavery Memorial Council Act - Establishes the North American Slavery Memorial Council to: (1) establish an architectural design for a national memorial and museum to slavery in North America appropriate to honor the memory of victims of slavery; (2) establish a single site within the District of Columbia suitable for construction and operation of the Memorial and Museum; and (3) construct and operate them.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2001
American Voting Standards and Technology Act - Amends the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act to direct the Secretary of Commerce to: (1) develop standard practices, codes, specifications, and voluntary consensus standards needed to assure the accuracy, integrity, and security of voting systems used in the United States; and (2) establish a program to accredit laboratories to test vote casting and counting devices for conformance with such standard practices, codes, specifications, and voluntary consensus standards. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to the State agency responsible for administering elections in a State for the purpose of: (1) purchasing new or rehabilitated voting equipment that improves the ability of the public to cast a timely and accurate vote; and (2) implementing voter education campaigns.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2001
Religious Communication Sanctity Act of 2001 - Amends the Federal criminal code to impose penalties upon persons who, under color of governmental authority, surreptitiously listen to or record any communication that is privileged because of its religious character. Authorizes any person aggrieved by a violation consisting of the recording of a communication to obtain, in a civil action, the prompt destruction of that recording and any copies or transcripts made from such recording.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2001
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Adjustment Act - Amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act to prescribe a formula for periodic adjustments to the maximum amount of deposit insurance coverage, including an inflation adjustment.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2001
Recognizes the importance of: (1) substantially increasing U.S. investment in international tuberculosis control within the foreign aid budget for FY 2002; and (2) supporting and expanding domestic efforts to eliminate tuberculosis in the United States. Calls upon local, national and global leaders, including the President, to commit to putting an end to the worldwide tuberculosis epidemic.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2001
Expresses support for continuing, substantially increasing, and expediting relief and reconstruction assistance provided by relief agencies and the international community in connection with the earthquakes of January 13, 2001, and February 13, 2001, in El Salvador.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2001
Calls for the United States, at the 57th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Commission in Geneva, Switzerland, to solicit co-sponsorship for, and take the lead in organizing multilateral support to obtain passage of, a resolution calling upon the Government of the People's Republic of China to end its human rights abuses in China and Tibet.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Conservation and Reinvestment Act - Establishes the Conservation and Reinvestment Act Fund (CRAF). Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to deposit into the CRAF certain Outer Continental Shelf revenues, undisbursed impact assistance and coastal conservation amounts, and interest earned on CRAF investments. Allocates CRAF funds among coastal States for impact assistance and coastal conservation, the Land and Water Conservation Fund, and Federal aid to a certain wildlife restoration fund. Provides for CRAF funding of the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978, the National Historic Preservation Act, the National Maritime Heritage Act of 1994, Endangered and Threatened Species Recovery Agreements, and a specified program for payments in lieu of taxes and refuge revenue sharing. Expresses the intent of Congress that amounts made available under this Act are to supplement, and not to detract from, annual appropriations for the National Park Service. Prohibits the expenditure of funds under this Act if such an expenditure diminishes benefit obligations of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund, the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund, the Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, or the Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Truthfulness, Responsibility, and Accountability in Contracting Act - Prohibits any Federal agency from making a decision to privatize, outsource, contract out, or contract for the performance of a function currently performed by the agency or to conduct a study to convert a function from Federal to contractor performance. Allows an agency to contract out a function not then performed by Federal employees if such function would be performed under contract by the blind or handicapped. Authorizes any agency to apply to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget for a waiver of such prohibition on specified grounds. Requires each agency to establish a centralized system for reporting on its contracting efforts during the preceding and current fiscal years. Requires any agency decision to privatize, outsource, or contract out for the performance of a function, after expiration of the prohibition enacted by this Act, to be based on the results of a public-private competition process meeting specified requirements. Requires an agency either to conduct a new public-private competition or to convert a function to performance by Federal employees if a report indicates that: (1) contracting out costs exceed costs of performance by Federal employees; or (2) contracting out fails to meet quality control standards. Directs the Secretary of Labor to survey and report to specified congressional committees on the wages and quantifiable benefits provided by contractors to non-Federal personnel working under contract.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Hope for Children Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the expenses allowable towards the adoption credit. Renames such credit as the "Tom Bliley adoption credit."
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Childhood Assistance, Research and Education Amendments of 2001, or the DMD CARE Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health to: (1) expand and intensify programs of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (the National Institutes) with respect to research and related activities concerning Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD); (2) award grants or contracts to public or nonprofit entities for at least three DMD research centers of excellence; and (3) provide for donation, collection, and preservation of tissues and genetic materials for such research. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a Muscular Dystrophy Coordinating Committee to coordinate all Federal DMD health programs and activities. Authorizes the Secretary, through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to award grants and cooperative agreements for the collection, analysis, and reporting of DMD data. Requires the establishment through the CDC of at least three regional centers of excellence in DMD epidemiology. Directs the Secretary to establish a DMD education and information program.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Education IRA Plus Act of 2001 - Amends the education individual retirement account provisions of the Internal Revenue Code to increase the contribution limit from $500 to: (1) $1,000 beginning in taxable year 2002; (2) $1,500 beginning in taxable year 2003; and (3) $2,000 beginning in taxable year 2004.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Men's Health Act of 2001 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish within the Department of Health and Human Services an office to be known as the Office of Men's Health. Requires a report.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Energy Emergency Response Act of 2001 - Amends the following Acts to provide increased funding through FY 2005 for energy programs: (1) the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 1981(for home energy grants); (2) the Energy Conservation and Production Act (for weatherization assistance); and (3) the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (for State energy conservation grants). Amends the National Energy Conservation Policy Act (NECPA) to: (1) mandate that each Federal agency undertake a comprehensive review of practicable measures for increasing energy and water conservation, and for using renewable energy sources; (2) allow as an approved benefit ancillary to an energy savings or performance contract those savings resulting from reduced operation and maintenance costs at replacement facilities; and (3) repeal the termination dates governing the authority to enter into energy savings performance contracts (thus extending such authority indefinitely).
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Quality Teacher Recruitment and Retention Act - Directs the Secretary of Education to carry out a program of student loan forgiveness in exchange for the borrower's commitment to three consecutive years of full-time teaching in low-income schools or special education teaching.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Character Learning and Student Success Act of 2001 - CLASS Act of 2001 - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to make: (1) a grant to develop initiatives and disseminate information about character education; and (2) a grant to research character education.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a multistate comparative study for a report to Congress on mortality and adverse outcome rates of Medicare patients by providers of anesthesia services and by type of such providers. Requires the Secretary to revise any regulations establishing conditions of Medicare participation for hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers relating to anesthesia services to provide that nurse anesthetists may furnish such services under: (1) the medical direction of an immediately available anesthesiologist; (2) the supervision of an immediately available physician; or (3) a written collaboration agreement with an immediately available physician or physician group experienced in anesthesia administration and credentialed by the hospital and ambulatory surgical center to participate in such collaboration.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Organ Donation Improvement Act of 2001 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants or contracts to States, transplant centers, qualified organ procurement organizations, or other public or private entities for the purpose of providing payment for: (1) travel and subsistence expenses incurred by individuals toward living donations of their organs; and (2) such incidental nonmedical expenses that are so incurred as the Secretary determines to be appropriate. Sets forth payment eligibility criteria and limitations, including that payments may be made for the qualifying expenses of a donating individual only if: (1) the State in which the donating individual resides is a different State than the State in which the intended recipient of the organ resides; and (2) the annual income of the intended recipient of the organ does not exceed $35,000. Directs the Secretary to (directly or through grants or contracts) carry out a program to educate the public with respect to organ donation, including the need to provide for an adequate rate of such donations. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to public and nonprofit private entities for the purpose of carrying out studies and demonstration projects with respect to providing for an adequate rate of organ donation. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States for the purpose of assisting States in carrying out organ donor awareness, public education and outreach activities and programs designed to increase the number of organ donors within the State, including living donors. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
East Timor Transition to Independence Act of 2001 - Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States should facilitate East Timor's transition to independence, support democracy and economic recovery there, and strengthen its security. Sets forth requirements with respect to the provision to East Timor of bilateral assistance, multilateral assistance, Peace Corps assistance, certain trade and investment assistance, scholarships for East Timorese students, and security assistance. Directs the Broadcasting Board of Governors to further the communication of information and ideas through increased use of audio broadcasting to East Timor.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Amends Federal provisions relating to the military Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) to change from October 1, 2008, to October 1, 2002, the effective date on or after which no reduction may be made in the retired pay of an SBP participant for any month after the later of: (1) the 360th month for which such pay was so reduced; and (2) the month during which the participant attains 70 years of age.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to modify the formula for determining the amount of reduced monthly OASDI benefits payable to a spouse, surviving spouse, or parent receiving monthly payments from a Federal or State pension plan. Declares that such benefit reductions shall be equal to the lesser of: (1) the amount by which the total amount of the combined monthly benefit (before reduction) and monthly pension exceeds $1,200, adjusted for inflation; or (2) an amount equal to two-thirds of the amount of any such monthly pension plan payment.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Straight Talk on Social Security Act of 2001 - Amends the Social Security Act to require Social Security account statements to contain additional information, such as a statement of the current Social Security tax rates applicable to wages and self-employment income, including an indication of the combined total of such rates of employee and employer taxes with respect to wages.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Clean Water Infrastructure Financing Act of 2001 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to remove certain requirements for States with respect to construction of treatment works under capitalization grant agreements. Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to assist States in establishing simplified procedures for small water systems to obtain assistance under the Act. Requires revolving funds to be used only for providing assistance for activities which have as a principal benefit the improvement or protection of water quality of navigable waters. Provides for an extended repayment period and additional subsidization with respect to loans made to financially distressed communities from revolving funds. Reauthorizes appropriations for FY 2002 through 2006 for the revolving fund program.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2001
Survivor Benefits Tax Fairness Act - Amends the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 to extend to survivors of public safety officers killed in the line of duty before December 31, 1996, the same tax benefits available to the survivors of such officers killed after such date.