Rep. Smith, Robert [R-OR-2]

An amendment to insert the text of H.R. 3853 as substitute language in the bill.

United States · United States Congress

An amendment to require that one of each Governor's appointments to the commission be a resident of the scenic area.

United States · United States Congress

An amendment to require that local land management approved plans will not be affected by the provisions of the bill.

United States · United States Congress

An amendment to the Volkmer amendment striking the text of the amendment and substituting provisions that require a referendum to provide producer approval of the wheat, feed grain, cotton, rice, and soybean program for crop years 1987 - 1990 before the programs may take effect.

United States · United States Congress

An amendment prohibiting assistance to countries which oppose the U.S. position in the U.N. General Assembly more often than the Soviet Union.

United States · United States Congress

An amendment providing for study of the feasibility of providing beef, pork, and lamb produced in the U.S. for sale in American Military Forces commissaries located overseas in volumes equivalent to such meats secured for sale from non U.S. producers. The report is to be submitted to Congress within one year from enactment of the bill. The report is to include views of the Secretary of Agriculture.

United States · United States Congress

An amendment to specify that forest road construction authorized under the provisions of the bill would not take place where the construction would be prohibited by and Federal environmental law or the applicable land management plan.

United States · United States Congress

An amendment making technical changes in the bill.

United States · United States Congress

An amendment to provide for a two-year extension for certain states to comply with the grant eligibility provisions in the bill.

United States · United States Congress

A Manager's amendment to strike sections of the bill dealing with Resource Advisory Councils and conditions placed on grazing permits regarding access to private property. The amendment also makes a variety of technical and clarifying changes to the bill.

United States · United States Congress

Uruguay Round Agreements Compliance Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 9 October 1998

Uruguay Round Agreements Compliance Act of 1998 - Directs the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to take action to implement certain trade sanctions under the Trade Act of 1974 as if a determination had been made that the practices of the European Union (EU) regarding the importation of bananas, or EU's ban on the use of hormones in beef, violate, or are inconsistent with, or otherwise deny benefits to the United States under the Uruguay Round Agreements. Requires that any sanction to eliminate such practices be devised so as to affect EU goods or services in an amount equivalent in value to the burden or restriction being imposed by the EU on U.S. commerce. Requires the USTR to implement trade sanctions unless it is certified to the Congress that: (1) the Dispute Settlement Body has adopted a report that U.S. rights under the Uruguay Round Agreements are not being denied by EU practices (or such practices are not a violation of, or inconsistent with, such rights) regarding the importation of bananas or the EU's ban on the use of hormones in beef; (2) the EU has agreed to eliminate or phase out such practices; or (3) the taking of action under this Act would cause serious harm to the national security of the United States. Requires the USTR to continue to make efforts to preserve U.S. rights under the Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes concerning EU measures on the importation of bananas and EU's ban on the use of hormones in beef.

Expressing the sense of the House with respect to barriers between the United States and Canada with regard to certain agriculture products.

United States · United States Congress · 8 October 1998

Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Secretary of Agriculture should: (1) analyze and report to specified congressional committees on trade between the United States and Canada with regard to beef, beef cattle, wheat, barley, dairy, poultry, and eggs; and (2) based on such analyses identify any provisions of the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT), Canada Free Trade Agreement (CFTA), and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that limit, inhibit, or otherwise restrict the ability of U.S. farmers and ranchers to benefit from or mitigate the economic impact of trade between the United States and Canada.

Selective Agricultural Embargoes Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 26 September 1998

Selective Agricultural Embargoes Act of 1998 - Amends the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 to direct the President, if he or she takes action to embargo the export under an export sales contract of an agricultural commodity to a country that is not part of an embargo on all exports to the country, to report to the Congress, not later than five days after imposing the embargo, on the reasons for such embargo and its proposed duration. Sets forth congressional procedures for termination of the embargo. Specifies plant nutrient materials among the agricultural commodities whose export the President may not prohibit or curtail if: (1) the export sales contract for such materials is entered into before he or she announces an action that would otherwise prohibit or curtail their export; and (2) the contract terms require delivery of the materials within 270 days after the date of the suspension of trade is imposed.

Miwaleta Park Expansion Act

United States · United States Congress · 25 September 1998

Milwaleta Park Expansion Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to convey to the county of Douglas, Oregon, without consideration, Milwaleta Park and an adjacent parcel of Bureau of Land Management lands for use as a county park.

Agriculture Disaster and Market Loss Assistance Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 24 September 1998

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Emergency Assistance for Crop and Livestock Feed Losses Due to Disasters Title II: Market Loss Assistance Title III: Administration Agriculture Disaster and Market Loss Assistance Act of 1998 - Title I: Emergency Assistance for Crop and Livestock Feed Losses Due to Disasters - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to provide emergency financial assistance to producers with disaster-incurred 1998 or multiyear (1998 and previous) crop year losses. Requires producers without 1998 crop insurance to purchase insurance for the subsequent two years in order to qualify for such assistance. Requires such producers to pay any liquidated damages. (Sec. 103) Caps 1998 livestock feed assistance amounts. Title II: Market Loss Assistance - Directs the Secretary to use specified funds to provide 1998 market loss assistance to certain producers with production flexibility contracts. Title III: Administration - States that funds to carry out this Act shall be available only to the extent that the President submits to the Congress an official emergency designation budget request.

Medicare Health Plan Fair Payment Act

United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1998

Medicare Health Plan Fair Payment Act - Amends part C (Medicare+Choice) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to eliminate the budget neutrality adjustment factor used in calculating the blended capitation rate for payment of Medicare+Choice organizations.

Financial Markets Reassurance Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1998

Financial Markets Reassurance Act of 1998 - Prohibits, with specified exceptions, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission from proposing or issuing any rule or regulation that restricts or regulates activity in a qualifying hybrid instrument or swap agreement during a specified time period.

Satellite Access to Local Stations Act

United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1998

Satellite Access to Local Stations Act - Amends Federal copyright law to cite circumstances under which the secondary transmission by a satellite carrier of a primary transmission of a television broadcast station into the station's local market shall be subject to statutory licensing. Sets forth reporting requirements for a satellite carrier whose secondary transmissions are subject to such licensing requirements. Precludes any royalty obligation for such secondary transmissions. States that noncompliance with such reporting requirements by a satellite carrier of a television broadcast station is actionable as an act of infringement and fully subject to copyright remedies. Amends the Communications Act of 1934 regarding the retransmission of broadcasting station signals. Prohibits cable systems and other multichannel video programming distributors from retransmitting a broadcasting station's signal without the station's express consent. Directs the Federal Communications Commission to commence a rulemaking proceeding to revise regulations governing the exercise by television broadcast stations of the right to grant retransmission consent. Prescribes requirements for the carriage of local television signals by satellite carriers, including: (1) carriage obligations; (2) carriage of all local television stations on contiguous channels and in a nondiscriminatory manner on any navigational device, on-screen guide, or menu; (3) compensation for carriage; and (4) remedies for failure to meet obligations.

Biomass Energy Equity Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1998

Biomass Energy Equity Act of 1998 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to change the definition of "qualified energy resources" (currently, wind and closed-loop biomass) to wind and biomass. Defines terms.

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to make permanent the income averaging rules for farmers.

United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1998

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permanently extend income averaging for farmers.

Expressing the sense of Congress that Members of Congress should follow the examples of self-sacrifice and devotion to character displayed by Jacob Chestnut and John Gibson of the United States Capitol Police.

United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1998

Declares that Members of Congress should: (1) follow the example of Jacob Chestnut and John Gibson of the U.S. Capitol Police by living lives of love, respect, and integrity every day at all times, including on the floor of the Senate and House of Representatives; and (2) deserve the title "Honorable" by setting an example so that such individuals did not die in vain.

Oregon Public Lands Transfer and Protection Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1998

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Rogue River National Forest Transfers Title II: Protection of Oregon and California Railroad Grant Lands Oregon Public Lands Transfer and Protection Act of 1998 - Title I: Rogue River National Forest Transfers - Provides for the transfer of: (1) specified lands in the Rogue River National Forest System, Oregon, from public domain status to the National Forest; and (2) other lands from the National Forest to public domain status. Restores the status of certain revested Oregon and California railroad grant lands (O&C lands) and revokes the reservation of such lands as part of the National Forest. Adds certain other revested railroad grant lands to such National Forest. Title II: Protection of Oregon and California Railroad Grant Lands - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, in carrying out sales, purchases, and exchanges of Bureau of Land Management lands located within six Oregon districts (the geographic area), to ensure that, upon the expiration of a ten-year period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act and each ten-year period thereafter, the total number of acres of O&C lands, Coos Bay Wagon Road grant lands, and public domain lands in the geographic area that are available for timber harvesting is not less than such number on the date of enactment of this Act. (Sec. 203) Prohibits the Secretary from selling or exchanging any lands in such area that are located within a congressionally designated wilderness area, the national wild and scenic river system, or an area designated as a critical environmental concern. Requires sales to be for fair market value under competitive bidding procedures. Requires appropriate valuation procedures for exchanged lands. Authorizes the Secretary to make equalization payments for lands received which are of greater value than lands exchanged. (Sec. 205) Treats all lands acquired under this title as O&C lands. Directs the Secretary to designate all public domain lands in the geographic area that are timberlands and to notify the Congress of such designation. Treats such designated lands as O&C lands.

Endangered Species Consolidation Act

United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1998

Endangered Species Consolidation Act - Transfers all functions performed by the Secretary of Commerce under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (including functions performed by the National Marine Fisheries Service) to the Secretary of the Interior.

National Parks Air Tour Management Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1998

National Parks Air Tour Management Act of 1998 - Amends Federal aviation law to prohibit a commercial air tour operator from conducting commercial air tour operations over a national park or tribal lands, except in accordance with this Act, conditions prescribed for that operator by the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and with any applicable commercial air tour management plan for the park or tribal lands. (Sec. 3) Sets forth specified requirements with respect to: (1) the granting of authority to commercial air tour operators to conduct air tour operations over national parks or tribal lands, with specified exceptions; (2) establishment of commercial air tour management plans; and (3) determination of whether a flight is a commercial air tour operation. (Sec. 4) Directs the Administrator of the FAA and the Director of the National Park Service (Director) to establish, jointly, an advisory group to provide continuing advice and counsel with respect to the operation of commercial air tours over and near national parks. (Sec. 5) Directs the Administrator of the FAA to report to the Congress on the effects proposed overflight fees are likely to have on the commercial air tour industry. Directs the Administrator of the FAA and the Director to report jointly to the Congress on the effectiveness of this Act in providing incentives for the development and use of quiet aircraft technology. (Sec. 6) Exempts any unit of the National Park System, or any other land or water, located in Alaska from the requirements of this Act.

Emergency Farm Financial Relief Act

United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1998

Emergency Farm Financial Relief Act - Amends the Agricultural Market Transition Act to provide that FY 1999 production flexibility contract payments shall be paid at such time or times as the owner or producer so requests as long as payment is completed by such fiscal year's end.

Agricultural Credit Improvement Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 16 July 1998

Agricultural Credit Improvement Act of 1998 - Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to prohibit agricultural loan guarantees to borrowers who have received debt forgiveness after a specified date. Authorizes emergency loans to be made to borrowers who have received debt forgiveness after a specified date. (Sec. 3) States that with respect to agricultural real estate, operating, and emergency loans, the primary factor in determining whether an applicant is primarily and directly engaged in farming or ranching shall be whether he or she participates in ongoing farm activities and decision making. (Sec. 4) Increases the respective limits and provides inflation indexing for guaranteed farm ownership and operating loans. (Sec. 5) Eliminates the prohibition on providing beginning farmer direct operating loans to persons who have operated a farm or ranch for more than five years. (Sec. 6) Gives loan and grant priority to projects that encourage farmer-owned value-added processing facilities. (Sec. 7) Requires borrowers under shared appreciation arrangements to be given notice of recapture. (Sec. 8) Provides for reservation and reallocation of specified loan funds for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers. (Sec. 9) Prohibits emergency loan denial based upon insufficient collateral if it is reasonably certain that the borrower will be able to repay the loan. (Sec. 10) Provides that under specified conditions a grower-shipper agreement shall not disqualify the applicant-grower from receiving a real estate, operating, or emergency loan.

Expressing the sense of Congress that executive departments and agencies must maintain the division of governmental responsibilities between the national government and the States that was intended by the framers of the Constitution, and must ensure that the principles of federalism established by the framers guide the executive departments and agencies in the formulation and implementation of policies.

United States · United States Congress · 16 July 1998

Calls for executive agencies, when formulating and implementing policies that have federalism implications, to: (1) strictly adhere to constitutional principles and closely examine the constitutional and statutory authority supporting any Federal action that would limit the policy making direction of the States; (2) take Federal action limiting the policy making discretion of the States only where constitutional authority for the action is clear and certain and the national activity is necessitated by the presence of a problem of national scope; (3) recognize the distinction between problems of national scope and problems that are merely common to the States; (4) recognize that constitutional authority for Federal action is clear and certain only when authority for the action may be found in a specific provision of the Constitution, when there is no provision in the Constitution prohibiting Federal action, and when the action does not encroach upon authority reserved to the States; (5) encourage States to develop their own policies to achieve program objectives and to work with officials in other States; (6) refrain from establishing uniform, national standards for programs and, when possible, defer to the States to establish standards; and (7) consult with officials and organizations representing the States in developing national standards when required. States that: (1) the national Government should grant the States the maximum administration discretion possible with respect to national policies administered by the States; and (2) intrusive Federal oversight of State administration is neither necessary nor desirable. Calls for observation of the following special requirements for preemption of State law: (1) agencies should construe a Federal statute to preempt only when it contains an express preemption provision, when there is some other firm and palpable evidence compelling the conclusion that the Congress intended preemption, or when the exercise of State authority directly conflicts with the exercise of Federal authority under the statute; (2) if a Federal statute does not preempt, such agencies should construe any authorization in the statute for the issuance of regulations as authorizing preemption by rule making only when the statute expressly authorizes issuance of preemptive regulations or when there is some other such evidence compelling the conclusion that the Congress intended to delegate preemption authority; (3) any regulatory preemption should be restricted to the minimum level necessary to achieve the objectives of the statute; (4) an agency that foresees the possibility of a conflict between State law and federally protected interests should consult with State officials and organizations to avoid such a conflict; and (5) an agency that proposes to act through adjudication or rule making should provide all affected States notice and an opportunity for participation in the proceedings.

Agriculture Export Relief Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 14 July 1998

Agriculture Export Relief Act of 1998 - Amends the Arms Export Control Act to exempt, through September 30, 1999, Department of Agriculture assistance for the purchase or other provision of food or other agricultural commodities (including fertilizer, medicines, and medical equipment) from the prohibition against extensions of U.S. Government credit, credit guarantees, or other financial assistance to countries involved in the transfer or use of nuclear explosive devices.

Export Apple Act

United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1998

Export Apple Act - Amends the Export Apple and Pear Act to: (1) exclude pears from its coverage; and (2) rename the Act the Export Apple Act.

Forest Service Cost Reduction and Fiscal Accountability Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1998

Forest Service Cost Reduction and Fiscal Accountability Act of 1998 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, to prepare an implementation schedule for a Forest System accounting system to be known as the All Resources Accounting System which shall include: (1) specified program areas; (2) cost allocations; (3) identification of indirect expenditures and general administration costs; and (4) separate reports for Forest System units, State and private forestry, and research. Directs the Secretary to: (1) limit and eliminate within a certain period indirect expenditures from Forest Service trust funds or permanent appropriations; (2) disclose indirect expenditures and general administration costs in annual budget requests; and (3) prepare a five-year Forest System cost reduction strategic plan.

Reforestation Tax Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1998

Reforestation Tax Act of 1998 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a deduction to a taxpayer who has a qualified timber gain in an amount equal to the qualified percentage of such gain. Decreases the amortization period for reforestation expenditures.

Bosnia Force Realignment Act

United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1998

Bosnia Force Realignment Act - Prohibits the use of any funds appropriated or otherwise available to the Department of Defense (DOD) for FY 1999 or any subsequent fiscal year for the deployment of any U.S. ground combat forces in the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina after June 30, 1999. Provides exceptions to such prohibition to the extent necessary to support: (1) a limited number of U.S. military personnel sufficient only to protect U.S. diplomatic facilities; or (2) non-combat military personnel sufficient only to advise the commanders of the North American Treaty Organization (NATO) peacekeeping operations there. Prohibits DOD funds from being used after June 30, 1999, for: (1) the conduct of, or support for, any law enforcement activities in the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, except for the training of law enforcement personnel or to prevent imminent loss of life; (2) any activity that may jeopardize the primary mission of the NATO-led force in preventing armed conflict there; (3) the transfer of refugees within the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina that has a purpose of acquiring control by one Bosnian Entity of territory allocated to another or that may expose U.S. armed forces to substantial risk; or (4) implementation of any decision to change the legal status of any territory within the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, unless expressly agreed to by all signatories to the Dayton Peace Agreement. Requires the President to report to the Congress on the progress of the withdrawal of U.S. ground combat forces from the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding assistance to Mexico to combat wildfires, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1998

Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States should: (1) provide assistance to Mexico, including disaster relief assistance, to extinguish the wildfires currently burning in Mexico and Central America; and (2) initiate negotiations with Mexico at the earliest possible date in order to come to a mutually beneficial agreement addressing the concerns of both countries in suppressing fires occurring along the border between the two countries.

No Gun Tax Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 22 May 1998

No Gun Tax Act of 1998 - Amends the Federal judicial code to prohibit a Federal officer, employee, or agent, including a State or local employee or officer acting on behalf of the United States (officer), from charging or collecting any fee in connection with a background check required in connection with the transfer of a firearm. Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit and set penalties for the unlawful retention, or transfer to another person, of firearms background check information by such officer or by a Federal contractor or consultant after: (1) the 24-hour period beginning with the receipt of such information on an individual who is determined not to be prohibited from receiving a firearm; and (2) the five-year period beginning with the receipt of such information on an individual who is prohibited from receiving a firearm.

Speed Trafficking Life in Prison Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 19 May 1998

Speed Trafficking Life in Prison Act of 1998 - Amends the Controlled Substances Act and the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act to decrease the quantities of methamphetamine necessary to trigger specified trafficking penalties (to correspond to amounts triggering penalties for trafficking in crack cocaine).

American Homeownership Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 19 May 1998

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Removal of Barriers to Affordable Housing Title II: Homeownership Through Mortgage Insurance and Loan Guarantees Title III: Assistance for Self-Help Housing Providers Title IV: Section 8 Homeownership Option Title V: Home Investment Partnerships Program Title VI: Local Homeownership Initiatives Title VII: Manufactured Housing Improvement Title VIII: Indian Housing Homeownership American Homeownership Act of 1998 - Title I: Removal of Barriers to Affordable Housing - Affordable Housing Barrier Removal Act of 1998 - Requires proposed and final agency rules to analyze their impact upon affordable housing availability. Directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to develop model housing impact analyses. (Sec. 103) Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1992 to authorize direct appropriations for State and local grants for regulatory barrier removal. (Sec. 104) Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to make affordable housing barrier removal eligible for community development block grant (CDBG) assistance. (Sec. 105) States that the regulatory barriers clearinghouse shall be established within the Office of Policy Development of HUD under the direction of the Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research. Title II: Homeownership Through Mortgage Insurance and Loan Guarantees - Amends the National Housing Act to increase the number of adjustable single family mortgages and loans that may be insured each year. Directs the Secretary to increase premiums as necessary. (Sec. 202) Makes permanent the demonstration program of home equity conversion mortgages for elderly homeowners. Replaces the program limitation based upon number of mortgages with an aggregate outstanding balance limitation. Obligates specified funds for conversion mortgage counseling and related expenses. Requires that mortgagors be given full disclosure of mortgage related costs such as estate planning and financial advice, and that any such costs not be excessive. (Sec. 203) Requires an inspection under the single family housing mortgage insurance program. Directs the Secretary to establish inspection guidelines and maximum costs. (Sec. 204) Authorizes the Secretary to treat a county or statistical area and contiguous or proximate counties as a single area for certain loan insurance limitation purposes. (Sec. 205) Amends the Housing Act of 1949 to eliminate certain rural housing guaranteed loan limitations. Title III: Assistance for Self-Help Housing Providers - Amends the Housing Opportunity Program Extension Act of 1996 to authorize specified appropriations for Habitat for Humanity and other self-help housing programs. Title IV: Section 8 Homeownership Option - Amends the United States Housing Act to provide a home ownership option under the section 8 housing assistance program, including downpayment assistance. Title V: Home Investment Partnerships Program - Amends the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act to authorize appropriations for affordable housing programs. Revises the definition of "low-income families." (Sec. 503) Makes limited equity cooperatives and mutual housing associations eligible for home investment partnerships. (Sec. 504) Permits loan pool investment of partnership funds. (Sec. 505) Authorizes the Secretary to make home investment partnerships loan guarantees. Sets forth an aggregate loan guarantee limitation. Title VI: local Homeownership Initiatives - Amends the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation Act to authorize appropriations for the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation, including a pilot home ownership initiative set-aside. (Sec. 602) Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to authorize the Secretary to modify CDBG home ownership income requirements in high-cost areas. (Sec. 603) Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1992 to revise the home ownership zone grant program, including providing: (1) grant eligibility for units of general local government (currently nonprofit organizations); and (2) set-asides for specified low-income homebuyers. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 604) Expresses the sense of the Congress in favor of lease-to-own tenancies as home ownership tools. (Sec. 605) Amends the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 to extend authorization of appropriations and authority for home ownership counseling. Title VII: Manufactured Housing Improvement - Manufactured Housing Improvement Act - Amends the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 to revise Federal construction and safety provisions for manufactured homes based upon a consensus standards development process. Eliminates the National Manufactured Home Advisory Council. Title VIII: Indian Housing Homeownership - Establishes the Indian Lands Status Commission which shall analyze and evaluate the Bureau of Indian Affairs' land recording and documentation system. Terminates the Commission one year after appointment of its members.

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide additional retirement savings opportunities for small employers, including self-employed individuals.

United States · United States Congress · 14 May 1998

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to set forth provisions for: (1) a small employer (100 or fewer employees) retirement plan; (2) a credit for the expenses of establishing such a plan; and (3) a model small employer retirement plan.

To designate the Headquarters Compound of the Central Intelligence Agency located in Langely, Virginia, as the George H.W. Bush Center for Central Intelligence.

United States · United States Congress · 7 May 1998

Designates the headquarters compound of the Central Intelligence Agency in Langley, Virginia, as the George H.W. Bush Center for Central Intelligence.

To authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to convey the administrative site for the Rogue River National Forest and use the proceeds for the construction or improvement of offices and support buildings for the Rogue River National Forest and the Bureau of Land Management.

United States · United States Congress · 5 May 1998

Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to convey the administrative site for the Rogue River National Forest and use such proceeds for the construction or improvement of offices and support buildings for combined Forest Service-Bureau of Land Management use.

Library of Congress Bicentennial Commemorative Coin Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 5 May 1998

Library of Congress Bicentennial Commemorative Coin Act of 1998 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue five-dollar gold coins and one-dollar silver coins emblematic of the Library of Congress. Authorizes the Secretary to mint and issue $10 bimetallic coins of gold and platinum in lieu of the gold coins. Requires payment of coin sale surcharges to the Library of Congress Trust Fund Board to support Library activities.

To gradually increase the fees paid by current holders of Forest Service special use permits that authorize the construction and occupancy of private recreation houses or cabins.

United States · United States Congress · 30 April 1998

Sets forth a fee adjustment schedule for existing holders of Forest Service special use permits for recreation home or cabin construction and occupancy.

Farm and Ranch Risk Management Act

United States · United States Congress · 1 April 1998

Farm and Ranch Risk Management Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individuals engaged in eligible farming businesses to deduct from gross income for any taxable year the amount (limited to 20 percent of the individual's taxable income for the year) paid into an interest-bearing Farm and Ranch Risk Management (FARRM) Account, created for the taxpayer's exclusive benefit. Requires withdrawal of contributions within five years, upon which they are taxable as ordinary income in the year of withdrawal. Deems a distribution, subject to income tax, of any deposits not actually distributed within five years, and prescribes an additional penalty tax of ten percent of any such deemed distribution.

Hart Mountain Transfer Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 26 March 1998

Hart Mountain Transfer Act of 1998 - Transfers administrative jurisdiction over certain lands in Lake County, Oregon, located adjacent to or within the Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Includes transferred lands within the Refuge. Requires the BLM to retain jurisdiction over certain lands located south of the Refuge identified for cooperative management. Requires such lands that are within the Guano Creek Wilderness Study Area to be managed to maintain the values for which the Area was designated. Transfers administrative jurisdiction over other specified lands adjacent to or within the Refuge from the Fish and Wildlife Service to the BLM. Removes such lands from the Refuge and designates them as public lands.

Water Adjudication Fee Fairness Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1998

Water Adjudication Fee Fairness Act of 1998 - Subjects the United States to administrative fees, claiming fees, and the imposition of judicial costs in any administrative or judicial proceeding for the adjudication or administration of water use rights to the same extent as a private party to the proceeding.

O&C Lands Protection Act

United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1998

O&C Lands Protection Act - Establishes specified limitations on the sale and exchange out of Federal ownership by the Secretary of the Interior of O&C and public domain lands within the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Medford, Roseburg, Eugene, Salem, and Coos Bay districts and the Klamath Resource Area of the Lakeview District (geographic area) in Oregon. Defines "O&C lands" as certain lands originally granted in Oregon for purposes of establishing railroad and telegraph lines that revested in the United States. (Sec. 3) Bars the Secretary from selling or exchanging out of Federal ownership any O&C or public domain lands within the geographic area located within: (1) a congressionally designated wilderness area; (2) the national wild and scenic river system; or (3) an area designated to be of critical environmental concern. Sets forth provisions regarding prices and procedures for making such land sales. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) use the O&C Lands Protection Fund (established by this Act) to purchase non-Federal lands located within the geographic area that are contiguous to other O&C or public domain lands; and (2) give first priority to acquiring lands adjacent to streams, riparian areas, or wildlife corridors within such area used by endangered or threatened species. (Sec. 4) Sets forth procedures for exchanges as well as requirements for the value of exchanged lands. (Sec. 5) Directs the Secretary to: (1) determine annually whether there has been a net reduction in the acreage of O&C lands during the preceding fiscal year as a result of disposal of lands by the United States; (2) designate an equivalent number of acres of public domain lands within the geographic area for treatment as O&C lands, if there was a reduction; and (3) designate such public domain lands that are stocked with timber in volumes per acre that are not less than the average volumes found on the O&C lands and public domain lands in the area that were disposed of during the preceding fiscal year. (Sec. 6) Establishes the O&C Lands Protection Fund to be available for purchasing lands, making equalization payments, and making distributions to the State of Oregon and the counties within the geographic area. (Sec. 7) Allocates revenues received by the United States from the sale of timber and other surface resources from public domain lands within such area to the State of Oregon, the affected counties, and the Salmon Habitat Restoration Fund. Establishes the Salmon Habitat Restoration Fund for specified activities within the geographic area.

Forest Recovery and Protection Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1998

Forest Recovery and Protection Act of 1998 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to: (1) begin a national program of U.S. forest land recovery and protection; and (2) identify and prioritize recovery areas, and allocate amounts from the Forest Recovery and Protection Fund for such activities. Sets forth program provisions regarding: (1) project selection; (2) prohibited areas; and (3) reporting requirements. (Sec. 5) Establishes a Scientific Advisory Panel to assist the Secretary. (Sec. 6) Directs the Secretary to: (1) conduct an initial number of advance recovery projects; and (2) prepare a national pilot program monitoring plan. (Sec. 8) Establishes in the Treasury the Forest Recovery and Protection Fund, which shall be administered by the Chief of the Forest Service. (Sec. 9) Authorizes appropriations through the later of September 30, 2005, or September 30 of the fifth full fiscal year following the implementation date of this Act. (Sec. 10) Sets forth audit requirements. (Sec. 11) Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish a public and private forest inventory and analysis program; (2) prepare an annual forest inventory for each State; (3) develop and publish national standards and definitions for forest inventory and analysis; and (4) prepare a strategic implementation plan.

To award a congressional gold medal to Gerald R. and Betty Ford.

United States · United States Congress · 19 March 1998

Authorizes the President to present, on behalf of the Congress, a gold medal to Gerald and Betty Ford in recognition of their dedicated public service and outstanding humanitarian contributions to the people of the United States. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell duplicate medals in bronze. Declares such medals to be national medals.

Health Care Claims Guidance Act

United States · United States Congress · 19 March 1998

Health Care Claims Guidance Act - Amends Federal law relating to claims against the U. S. Government to prohibit any action under such provisions based on a claim submitted: (1) under a federally funded health care program unless the amount of damages alleged is a material amount; (2) in reliance on erroneous information supplied by a Federal agency or in reliance on written statements of Federal policy which affects such claim provided by a Federal agency; or (3) by a person that is in substantial compliance with a model compliance plan issued by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (in consultation with the Secretary of Defense). Requires that the Government prove an allegation of a false health care claim by clear and convincing evidence. Defines, for the amendments made by this Act, "federally funded health care program" to mean a program that provides health benefits, directly or otherwise, established under Social Security Act titles XVIII (Medicare), XIX (Medicaid), or XXI (Children's Health Insurance) or provisions of Federal law relating to the armed forces.

California Spotted Owl Interim Protection Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 17 March 1998

California Spotted Owl Interim Protection Act of 1998 - Directs the U.S. Forest Service: (1) within six months, to begin using the preferred alternative contained in the revised version of the draft environmental impact statement (EIS) prepared by the Service in 1996 for the California spotted owl as its interim management direction for the owl in the ten national forests in the Sierran Province of Region 5 of the Service; and (2) to use such preferred alternative, modified as required below, as its interim management direction until such time as a final EIS and record of decision are released. Directs the Service: (1) before implementation of the preferred alternative, to evaluate and modify the assessment regarding fire and fuels reduction contained in the revised draft EIS to address the concerns raised in the December 1997 final report of the panel of scientists that was appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture to review the revised draft EIS; (2) within 18 months, to complete a final EIS and record of decision; and (3) within 12 months, to issue a proposed final EIS for public comment and review. Specifies that: (1) nothing in this Act shall preclude the Service from developing a long-term conservation strategy for the Sierra Nevada Mountains; and (2) the Secretary shall submit to the Congress a report every six months describing the Service's progress toward completion of the final EIS within the specified time periods.

Temporary Agricultural Worker Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 10 March 1998

Temporary Agricultural Worker Act of 1998 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to establish a 24-month pilot program for the U.S. admission of temporary or seasonal agricultural workers based upon an employer labor condition attestation filed with the appropriate State agency. Sets forth program provisions. Offsets such admissions with temporary reductions in diversity and unskilled workers' immigrant visas. Establishes a trust fund in the Treasury to assure the return of such workers to their home countries.