United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1993
Amends rule XI of the Rules of the House of Representatives to require the affirmative percentage of those voting that is required to adopt any rule or order reported by the Committee on Rules providing for the consideration of any legislation that waives any rule of the House to be the same as the affirmative percentage of those voting that is required by the rules of the House to waive that rule.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1993
Amends rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives to require the membership of the Committee on Rules (and of each of its subcommittees) to reflect the ratio of the majority to minority party Members of the House at the beginning of the Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1993
Amends rule XI of the Rules of the House of Representatives to require a three-fifths vote to adopt any rule or order reported by the Committee on Rules providing for the consideration of legislation that limits the rights of Members to offer germane amendments if the legislation would otherwise be subject to amendment under House rules.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1993
Natural Disaster Protection Act of 1993 - Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (the Act) to require the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to develop programs to carry out specified multihazard mitigation and emergency management initiatives, including the development of model building codes and other hazard mitigation measures for catastrophic natural disasters, training and research in such areas, hazard mitigation technology, and local emergency response operations. Allows local communities five years after the date of enactment of this Act to comply with multihazard building and safety codes outlined under this Act, after which public assistance funds will be withheld for noncompliance. Requires the Director to identify States which are prone to damages from hurricanes, windstorms, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and flooding (natural disasters), and to designate each State appropriately as hurricane-, windstorm-, earthquake-, volcanic eruption-, or flood-prone. Requires each State so designated to either: (1) adopt the relevant natural disaster hazard mitigation portions of the newest building codes for such State for all new or substantially modified building construction in such State; or (2) certify that the local communities have adopted building codes which meet or exceed such requirements. Requires each State designated as disaster-prone to either: (1) develop a hazard mitigation plan with accompanying schedules for improving the State's ability to reduce the hazards of future natural disasters; or (2) designate an existing plan which meets such requirements. Requires a completed plan to be submitted to the Director within two years after designation. Outlines State compliance procedures, and imposes penalties for hazard mitigation plan noncompliance. Establishes the Self-Sustaining Mitigation Fund for Federal and State support of hazard mitigation and emergency management activities, with amounts provided by the Director to each disaster-prone State for appropriate purposes. Establishes the Natural Disaster Mitigation and Planning Advisory Committee as an independent advisory committee to advise the Director on hazard mitigation and disaster planning, and to review hazard mitigation regulations issued by the Director. Requires the Director to establish and carry out a national multihazard insurance program (the Primary Insurance Program) to provide insurance against real or personal property loss in any State resulting from an earthquake or volcanic eruption. Requires the Director to evaluate the feasibility of including flood as a covered peril under the Primary Insurance Program. Outlines specified procedures for increased participation in the Federal flood insurance program under the National Flood Insurance Act, with a required report. Outlines further provisions with respect to the Primary Insurance Program, including program scope (initially limited to residential housing), terms and limitations, covered hazards, and insurance actuarial rates. Establishes in the Treasury the Primary Insurance Program Fund to carry out such Program. Provides for Fund uses, investments, and disbursements, authorizing the Director, when necessary, to borrow from the Treasury for Fund purposes. Requires the Director, in carrying out the Program, to provide certain insurance mitigation incentives, including the charging of lower premiums for residential property located in disaster-prone States. Requires the Director to make available to eligible entities excess reinsurance coverage for any direct and indirect losses that arise from a hurricane, earthquake, volcanic eruption, or tsunami (tidal wave). Outlines provisions concerning eligible entities and reinsurance coverage terms, limitations, and obligations, including the covered lines of insurance. Requires the establishment of actuarially sound rates for such coverage. Establishes in the Treasury the Reinsurance Fund for implementation of such reinsurance coverage. Requires the Director to develop a plan of operation to ensure the fair, reasonable, and equitable administration of the Primary Insurance Program Fund, the Reinsurance Fund, and other activities outlined in this Act. Establishes the Federal Insurance and Reinsurance Advisory Committee as an independent committee and requires the plan to be submitted to such Committee for review and recommendations. Requires a Committee report.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Protection of Neighborhoods, Families, and Children Subtitle A: Safe Schools Subtitle B: Secure Neighborhoods Subtitle C: Crimes Against Children Subtitle D: Punishment of Serious Juvenile Offenders Title II: Equal Protection for Victims Subtitle A: Victims' Rights Subtitle B: Admissibility of Evidence Subtitle C: Protecting the Integrity of the Judicial Process Title III: Protection of Women Subtitle A: Spouse Abuse and Stalking Subtitle B: Victims of Sexual Violence Subtitle C: Punishment of Sex Offenders Title IV: Prevention of Terrorism Subtitle A: Enhanced Controls on Entry into the United States Subtitle B: Deportation of Alien Terrorists Subtitle C: Penalties for Engaging in Terrorism Title V: Criminal Aliens and Alien Smuggling Subtitle A: Deportation of Criminal Aliens Subtitle B: Prevention and Punishment of Alien Smuggling Title VI: Taking Criminals Off the Street Subtitle A: Expanding Prison Capacity Subtitle B: Miscellaneous Title VII: Punishment and Deterrence Subtitle A: Capital Offenses Subtitle B: Violent Felonies and Drug Offenses Subtitle C: Enhanced Penalties for Criminal Use of Firearms and Explosives Subtitle D: Miscellaneous Title VIII: Elimination of Delays in Carrying Out Sentences Subtitle A: Post Conviction Petitions: General Habeas Corpus Reform Subtitle B: Special Procedures for Collateral Proceedings in Capital Cases Subtitle C: Funding for Litigation of Federal Habeas Corpus Petitions in Capital Cases Title IX: Public Corruption Title X: Funding Crime Control Act of 1993 - Title I: Protection of Neighborhoods, Families, and Children - Subtitle A: Safe Schools - Amends the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) to increase penalties for drug trafficking in or near schools. (Sec. 102) Authorizes: (1) a school district to elect to qualify as a Federal safe school district by decision of a local educational agency or by referendum of the voters in a school district served by such an agency; and (2) the Attorney General to make grants to local educational agencies or local law enforcement agencies of Federal safe school districts to pay for enhanced school security measures. (Sec. 103) Increases penalties for violation of the Gun-Free School Zones Act. Subtitle B: Secure Neighborhoods - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (Omnibus Act) to authorize the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) to make grants to local governments and to community groups for increasing the police presence in communities. Requires the Director to develop a written model that informs community members regarding how to identify the existence of a drug or gang house and what civil remedies and mediation techniques are available. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 114) Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit: (1) committing specified "predicate gang crimes" (including murder, assault, kidnapping, arson, and retaliating against a witness, victim, or informant) with intent to promote or further the activities of a criminal street gang or for the purpose of gaining entrance to, or maintaining or increasing position in, a gang; (2) participating in, or inducing any individual to participate in, a gang; (3) employing or inducing any individual to commit a predicate gang crime with such intent; or (4) using any communication facility in causing or facilitating the commission of such a crime with such intent. Sets penalties for violations. Authorizes the Attorney General and the Secretary of the Treasury to investigate such offenses. Directs the U.S. Sentencing Commission to amend the sentencing guidelines to increase the base offense level for any felony committed for the purpose of gaining entrance into, or maintaining or increasing position in, a gang. (Sec. 115) Amends: (1) the Federal criminal code to set penalties for drive-by shootings; (2) the Omnibus Act to include among drug control and system improvement grant funding objectives law enforcement and prevention programs relating to gangs or to youth who are involved or at risk of being involved in gangs; and (3) the CSA to increase penalties for drug trafficking in or near public housing. Subtitle C: Crimes Against Children - Provides for imposition of the death penalty for murder during the sexual exploitation of children. (Sec. 132) Increases penalties for sex offenses against victims below age 16. (Sec. 133) Sets penalties for international trafficking in child pornography. (Sec. 134) Directs the Attorney General to establish guidelines for State legislation prohibiting the production, distribution, receipt, or possession of materials depicting a person under age 18 engaging in sexually explicit conduct and providing for a maximum imprisonment of at least one year and for the forfeiture of assets used in, or gained from, such offenses. Requires each State to enact and maintain legislation complying with such guidelines in order to receive assistance under provisions of the Victims of Crime Act and the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act. (Sec. 135) Provides for national registration of convicted child abusers. Requires the Attorney General to establish guidelines for State registration programs. Authorizes a State to permit qualified entities to obtain from an authorized State agency a nationwide background check on a provider. (Sec. 136) Increases penalties for: (1) assaults against children; (2) using minors in drug trafficking; (3) drug distribution to minors; and (4) using a minor in the commission of a Federal offense. (Sec. 137) Amends the CSA to set penalties for physical trainers or advisers who attempt to persuade or induce a person to possess or use anabolic steroids. (Sec. 139) Provides for interstate enforcement of child support orders. (Sec. 140) Makes certain crimes involving the use of persons below age 18 predicates to an offense under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). (Sec. 143) Makes it a Federal offense to remove a child from, or to retain a child outside, the United States to obstruct the lawful exercise of parental rights. Authorizes appropriations to carry out State court programs regarding international parental child abduction. Subtitle D: Punishment of Serious Juvenile Offenders - Makes serious juvenile drug offenses Armed Career Criminal Act predicates. (Sec. 152) Provides for adult prosecution of serious juvenile offenders. (Sec. 153) Requires that juveniles found guilty of certain offenses be fingerprinted and photographed, with such fingerprints and photographs sent to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Identification Division. Directs the court to transmit to such division information concerning the adjudication. Title II: Equal Protection for Victims - Subtitle A: Victims' Rights - Enacts Rules of Professional Conduct for Lawyers in Federal Practice, including provisions regarding: (1) a prohibition on attorneys engaging in actions deemed abusive to clients or others; (2) a duty of enquiry (to elicit from the client a truthful account of the material facts concerning the matters in issue); (3) a duty to expedite litigation; and (4) a duty to disclose information necessary to prevent the commission of a crime. (Sec. 202) Revises Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure: (1) 24(b) to entitle each side to six peremptory challenges (currently, six for the Government and ten for the defendant or defendants jointly); and (2) 32 to provide for a victim's right of allocution in sentencing for a crime of violence or sexual abuse. (Sec. 204) Provides for the enforcement of restitution orders through the suspension of Federal benefits. (Sec. 205) Sets penalties for retaliatory killings of witnesses, victims, and informants. Subtitle B: Admissibility of Evidence - Amends the Federal Rules of Evidence (FRE) to allow evidence of similar offenses in criminal or civil sexual assault and child molestation cases. (Sec. 212) Revises FRE 412 (sex offense cases; relevance of victim's past behavior) to: (1) expand the scope of the rape shield law and to require that an order admitting evidence of a victim's past sexual behavior explain the reasoning leading to a finding of relevance and the basis of a finding that the probative value of the evidence outweighs the danger of unfair prejudice; and (2) make inadmissible evidence to show invitation or provocation by a victim in sexual abuse cases. (Sec. 214) Specifies that evidence obtained as a result of a search or seizure shall not be excluded on the ground that the search or seizure was in violation of the fourth amendment to the Constitution if carried out in circumstances justifying an objectively reasonable belief that it was in conformity with the fourth amendment. Subtitle C: Protecting the Integrity of the Judicial Process - Provides that in a criminal trial in any Federal or State court: (1) on motion of the defense attorney or prosecutor, the risk of racial prejudice or bias shall be examined on voir dire if there is a substantial likelihood that such prejudice will affect the jury; (2) on motion of the defense attorney or prosecutor, a change of venue shall be granted if an impartial jury cannot be obtained in the original venue because of such prejudice; and (3) neither the prosecutor nor the defense attorney shall make any appeal to such prejudice in statements before the jury. (Sec. 222) Amends the Federal criminal code to provide that a list of veniremen and witnesses need not be furnished in capital cases if the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that providing the list may jeopardize the life or safety of any person. (Sec. 223) Increases penalties for attempting to influence or injure court officers or jurors. (Sec. 224) Provides for the imposition of the death penalty for the murder of a Federal witness. Title III: Protection of Women - Subtitle A: Spouse Abuse and Stalking - Amends the Federal criminal code to: (1) set penalties for interstate travel to commit spouse abuse or to violate a protective order; and (2) provide for full faith and credit of protective orders among the States. Subtitle B: Victims of Sexual Violence - Establishes a civil remedy for victims of sexual violence. (Sec. 312) Authorizes the restitution of victims of sex offenses. (Sec. 313) Provides for pretrial detention in sex offense cases. Subtitle C: Punishment of Sex Offenders - Provides for imposition of the death penalty for persons engaging in sexual abuse resulting in death. (Sec. 322) Increases penalties for recidivist sex offenses. (Sec. 323) Directs the Sentencing Commission to amend the sentencing guidelines to increase the base offense level for sex offenses. (Sec. 324) Provides for testing for human immunodeficiency virus for persons charged in sex offense cases and the disclosure of the test results to the victim. Directs the Sentencing Commission to amend existing guidelines for sentences for sex offenses where the offender knew or had reason to know that he was infected with such virus, except where the offender did not engage or attempt to engage in conduct creating a risk of transmission of the virus to the victim. Title IV: Prevention of Terrorism - Subtitle A: Enhanced Controls on Entry into the United States - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to require exclusion from admission to the United States of anyone who is a member of an organization that engages in terrorist activity or who actively supports or advocates terrorist activity. (Sec. 402) Provides for the exclusion of an alien for presenting fraudulent documents, or for failing to present documents used to board a common carrier, to an immigration officer upon arrival at a port of entry into the United States. Specifies that any alien who is excludable under such provisions may not apply for or be granted asylum, with exceptions. (Sec. 404) Limits court jurisdiction with respect to habeas corpus review, other judicial review and action, and collateral enforcement proceedings. Subtitle B: Deportation of Alien Terrorists - Establishes procedures to apply whenever the Attorney General certifies under seal to a special court (established pursuant to this subtitle) that: (1) the Attorney General or Deputy Attorney General has approved of the deportation proceeding; (2) an alien terrorist is physically present in the United States; and (3) removal of such terrorist by deportation proceedings would pose a risk to national security because such proceedings would disclose classified information. Directs the Chief Justice of the United States to publicly designate up to seven judges to hear and decide such cases. Sets forth procedures for a special removal hearing, including provisions for appointment of counsel and appeals. Subtitle C: Penalties for Engaging in Terrorism - Amends the Federal criminal code to: (1) prohibit providing material support to terrorists; and (2) extend the statute of limitations for certain terrorism offenses. (Sec. 422) Directs the Sentencing Commission to provide for an increase in the base offense level for any felony involving or intended to promote international terrorism, unless such involvement or intent is itself an element of the crime. (Sec. 424) Increases penalties under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act for violation of orders with respect to the declaration of a national emergency and the Federal criminal code for passport and visa-related violations. (Sec. 425) Sets penalties for: (1) specified acts of violence at international airports; (2) violence against maritime navigation; (3) violence against maritime fixed platforms; and (4) the use of weapons of mass destruction. (Sec. 429) Directs the President to establish a National Task Force on Counterterrorism. (Sec. 430) Provides for imposition of the death penalty for causing death through the use of a bomb or other destructive device. Title V: Criminal Aliens and Alien Smuggling - Subtitle A: Deportation of Criminal Aliens - Amends the INA to permit an alien sentenced to imprisonment to be deported prior to the termination of such imprisonment if the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) petitions the appropriate court or other authority to release the alien into INS custody for execution of a deportation order. Prohibits the deportation until all direct appeals of the conviction have been exhausted. (Sec. 502) Authorizes the registration of aliens on criminal probation or criminal parole within the United States. (Sec. 503) Expands the definition of "aggravated felony" to include illicit trafficking in explosive materials and a crime of violence for which the term of imprisonment imposed is at least five years. (Sec. 504) Amends the INA to authorize the Attorney General to issue a final order of deportation without an administrative hearing or administrative review for any alien who was not lawfully admitted for permanent residence, or who had permanent resident status on a conditional basis, and whom the Attorney General determines is deportable and has been convicted of an aggravated felony. Limits judicial review of such determinations. Provides that an alien convicted of an aggravated felony shall be conclusively presumed to be deportable. (Sec. 505) Grants a U.S. district court jurisdiction to enter a judicial order of deportation at the time of sentencing against an alien convicted of an aggravated felony, if such order has been requested prior to sentencing by the U.S. Attorney. (Sec. 506) Restricts defenses to exclusion and deportation for certain aliens convicted of aggravated felonies. (Sec. 507) Enhances penalties for failing to depart or reentering after a final order of deportation. Limits collateral attacks on deportation orders. (Sec. 509) Authorizes appropriations for a criminal alien information system. Subtitle B: Prevention and Punishment of Alien Smuggling - Authorizes appropriations for Border Patrol agents and investigators. (Sec. 513) Includes alien smuggling as a predicate to an offense under RICO. (Sec. 514) Increases penalties for: (1) employers who knowingly employ smuggled aliens; and (2) bringing in and harboring certain aliens. (Sec. 516) Expands forfeiture for smuggling or harboring illegal aliens. Title VI: Taking Criminals Off the Street - Subtitle A: Expanding Prison Capacity - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to include within the definition of "exempt facility bond" certain bonds issued to provide for correctional facilities. (Sec. 602) Directs the Attorney General to: (1) establish a Regional Prison Task Force; and (2) create a plan for the establishment of a nationwide regional prison system. Sets forth provisions regarding State and prisoner eligibility requirements. Establishes in the Treasury a Regional Prison Fund. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 603) Amends the Davis-Bacon Act to make provisions concerning the rate of wages for laborers and mechanics inapplicable to prison construction. Subtitle B: Miscellaneous - Amends the Federal judicial code to deny the district court, in any action challenging the constitutionality of conditions of confinement in any correctional institution housing persons accused or convicted of a crime or juveniles adjudicated delinquent, jurisdiction to: (1) impose a ceiling on the population of any correctional institution or to require any adjustment of the release dates of inmates; or (2) prohibit the use of tents or prefabricated structures for housing inmates. Prohibits any consent decree in any such action from providing relief greater than the minimum required to bring the conditions of confinement into substantial compliance with the Constitution. Provides for modification of orders or decrees. Title VII: Punishment and Deterrence - Subtitle A: Capital Offenses - Amends the Federal criminal code to establish criteria for the imposition of the death penalty for Federal crimes. Requires the attorney for the Government, whenever the Government intends to seek the death penalty for an offense punishable by death, to file with the court and serve on the defendant a notice of such intent and the aggravating factors the Government will seek to prove as the basis for such penalty. Requires the judge who presided at the trial or before whom the guilty plea was entered, or another judge if that judge is unavailable, to conduct a separate sentencing hearing when the attorney for the Government has filed such notice and the defendant is found guilty of an offense punishable by death. Permits information to be presented as to any matter relating to any mitigating factor and any aggravating factor for which notice has been provided, except that information may be excluded if its probative value is outweighed by the danger of creating unfair prejudice, confusing the issues, or misleading the jury (but permits the Government to present information concerning the effect of the offense on the victim and the victim's family). Specifies mitigating and aggravating factors. Sets forth special aggravating factors for: (1) treason, espionage, homicide, and the attempted murder of the President; and (2) drug offenses punishable by death (including previous serious drug felony convictions, use of a firearm in committing or furthering certain continuing criminal enterprises, use of minors in trafficking, and lethal adulteration of controlled substances). Requires the court to instruct the jury not to consider the race, color, religion, national origin, or sex of the defendant or victim in considering whether to recommend a sentence of death. Sets forth procedures for the imposition, appeal, and implementation of a sentence of death. Prohibits: (1) a death sentence from being carried out upon a pregnant woman or a person who lacks the mental capacity to understand the death penalty and why it was imposed; and (2) requiring any employee of, or any person providing services under contract to, any State department of corrections, the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and the U.S. Marshals Service to be in attendance or to participate in any execution if such participation is contrary to such employee's moral or religious convictions. Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) appointment of counsel; (2) collateral attacks on judgments imposing a death sentence; and (3) stays of execution. Limits the circumstances under which a person subject to the criminal jurisdiction of an Indian tribal government may be executed under this Act. Declares that the death penalty and all other penalties shall be administered by the United States and by every State without regard to the race or color of the defendant or victim, and that neither the United States nor any State shall prescribe any racial quota or statistical test for the imposition or execution of the death penalty or any other penalty. Specifies that, in a prosecution for an offense against the United States for which a death sentence is authorized, the fact that the killing was motivated by racial prejudice or bias shall be deemed an aggravating factor. Amends specified civil rights provisions to cover conspiracy against the rights, and deprivation of rights under color of law, of any person in (currently, inhabitant of) a State, territory, or district. Provides for the imposition of the death penalty for specified Federal crimes, including: (1) murders committed by prisoners in Federal correctional institutions; (2) murders of Federal, State, and local law enforcement officers; (3) civil rights murders; (4) gun murders; (5) murders by escaped prisoners; (6) torture under specified circumstances where death results; and (7) carjackings which result in death. Subtitle B: Violent Felonies and Drug Offenses - Amends the Federal criminal code to require: (1) the Director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to establish a program of drug testing of criminal defendants on post-conviction release; and (2) the chief probation officer in each district to arrange for the drug testing of such defendants. Requires, as an explicit condition of probation, parole, or supervised release for a felony or a specified violent or drug offense, that the defendant refrain from any unlawful use of a controlled substance and submit to periodic drug tests. (Sec. 712) Requires the court to sentence a defendant convicted of a Federal violent felony to life imprisonment or, if death results, subject such defendant to the death penalty, if the defendant had previously been convicted of two other violent felonies. (Sec. 713) Amends the Armed Career Criminal Act to include within the definition of "serious drug offense" an offense under State law which, if it had been prosecuted as a CSA violation at the time of the offense and because of the type and quantity of the controlled substance involved, would have been punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of ten years or more. (Sec. 714) Provides an enhanced penalty for the use of a semiautomatic firearm during a crime of violence or drug trafficking crime. (Sec. 715) Sets mandatory penalties for firearms possession by persons previously convicted of a violent felony or a serious drug offense, and a mandatory minimum sentence for unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, fugitive from justice, or transferor or receiver of a stolen firearm. (Sec. 717) Increases: (1) the general penalty for violation of Federal firearms laws; and (2) enhanced penalties for possession of a firearm in connection with a crime of violence or a drug trafficking crime. (Sec. 719) Sets penalties for smuggling firearms in aid of drug trafficking or violent crime. (Sec. 723) Establishes: (1) a temporary prohibition against possession of a firearm by, or transfer of a firearm to, persons convicted of a drug crime; and (2) enhanced penalties for possession of a firearm during a drug crime. Subtitle C: Enhanced Penalties for Criminal Use of Firearms and Explosives - Chapter 1: Instant Check System for Handgun Purchases - Requires each State to establish and maintain an instant criminal check system for handgun purchases. Sets forth: (1) prohibitions on uses of such information; and (2) identification procedure requirements for licensed importers, manufacturers, and dealers once a State system becomes operational and specified notice requirements are met. Sets penalties for noncompliance. (Sec. 734) Requires each State to establish a system accessible by telephone that any licensee, law enforcement officer, or court may contact for criminal history information. (Sec. 735) Provides for the correction of erroneous system information as well as a private course of action after all administrative remedies are exhausted and records are not corrected. (Sec. 736) Directs the Attorney General to expedite: (1) the incorporation of the remaining State criminal history records into the Federal criminal records systems maintained by the FBI; and (2) the development of hardware and software systems to link State criminal history check systems into the National Crime Information Center. (Sec. 737) Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) access to State criminal records; and (2) funding for improvements in State records systems. Chapter 2: Other Firearms Provisions - Increases penalties for: (1) interstate gun trafficking; (2) making knowingly false, material statements in connection with the purchase of a firearm from a licensed dealer; and (3) a second offense of using an explosive to commit a felony. (Sec. 742) Prohibits: (1) transactions involving stolen firearms which have moved in interstate or foreign commerce; (2) the receipt of firearms by non-residents of the State in which the transferor resides, unless such receipt is for lawful sporting purposes; (3) the possession of explosives by felons and others; and (4) the possession of explosives during the commission of a felony. (Sec. 745) Provides for mandatory revocation of supervised release for possession of a firearm in violation of a condition of release. (Sec. 756) Authorizes the summary destruction of explosives subject to forfeiture under specified circumstances. Subtitle D: Miscellaneous - Increases penalties for Travel Act crimes involving racketeering and conspiracy to commit contract killings. (Sec. 762) Makes it a criminal offense to fail to obey an order to land an aircraft issued by an authorized Federal law enforcement officer under specified circumstances. (Sec. 764) Provides enhanced penalties for drug trafficking in prisons. (Sec. 765) Directs the Federal Communications Commission: (1) in its review of applications for renewal of television broadcast licenses, to consider the extent to which the licensee has participated in efforts to educate the public as to the dangers of drug abuse and appropriate methods for obtaining treatment; and (2) not to find that a renewal of such a licensee is consistent with the public interest unless the applicant demonstrates that the station has broadcast public service announcements concerning drug abuse and treatment. Title VIII: Elimination of Delays in Carrying Out Sentences - Subtitle A: Post Conviction Petitions: General Habeas Corpus Reform - Amends the Federal judicial code to establish a one-year statute of limitations for habeas corpus actions brought by State prisoners. (Sec. 802) Vests authority to issue certificates of probable cause for appeal of habeas corpus orders exclusively in the courts of appeals. (Sec. 804) Permits the denial of a habeas corpus petition on the merits notwithstanding the failure of the applicant to exhaust State court remedies. (Sec. 805) Imposes a two-year period of limitation for filing for collateral relief by Federal prisoners. Subtitle B: Special Procedures for Collateral Proceedings in Capital Cases - Amends the Federal judicial code to set forth special habeas corpus procedures in capital cases. Subtitle C: Funding for Litigation of Federal Habeas Corpus Petitions in Capital Cases - Amends the Omnibus Act to require the Director of BJA to provide grants to the States to support litigation pertaining to Federal habeas corpus petitions in capital cases. Title IX: Public Corruption - Amends the Federal criminal code to prescribe criminal penalties to be imposed upon: (1) anyone who uses any facility of, or affects, interstate or foreign commerce to deprive or defraud the inhabitants of a State of the honest services of a State official or of a fair and impartially conducted election process; and (2) any State or Federal official who, in order to carry out or conceal any scheme or artifice to defraud, discriminates, harasses, or takes adverse action against another official. Authorizes such adversely affected official to obtain relief through a civil action, provided such person did not participate in the scheme or artifice. (Sec. 902) Amends mail fraud provisions to prohibit the use of any facility of interstate or foreign commerce in the execution of a scheme or artifice to defraud. (Sec. 903) Sets forth prohibitions regarding narcotics-related public corruption. Title X: Funding - Requires each head of a Federal agency making a grant to, or entering into a contract with, an institution of higher education for research and development to reduce the overhead payment rate under the grant or contract to 90 percent of the current level and return the amount saved to the general fund of the Treasury. (Sec. 1002) Reduces the overhead expenses identified and reduced by the President in Executive Order 12837 by an additional five percent.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1993
Prohibits the intentional creation of legislative districts based on race, color, or language minority status of voters within such districts. Provides a private right of action for a violation of such prohibition.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1993
Amends rule XI of the Rules of the House of Representatives to allow meetings of standing committees and subcommittees to be closed to the public only if approved by a majority of the committee or subcommittee's total membership because disclosure of matters to be considered would endanger national security, tend to defame, degrade, or incriminate any person, jeopardize an ongoing criminal investigation, or compromise a confidential source of any criminal investigation. Repeals provisions making the coverage of committee hearings and meetings by television broadcast, radio broadcast, or still photography a privilege made available by the House. Requires proceedings of open committee hearings or meetings to be open to television broadcast, radio broadcast, and still photography, or by any of such method of coverage. Prohibits a committee or subcommittee chairman from limiting the number of television or still cameras below two representatives from each medium.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 1993
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) obstetrician-gynecologists should be designated as primary care providers for women in Federal laws relating to the provision of health care; and (2) legislative proposals that define primary care should include services performed by obstetrician-gynecologists in such definition.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1993
Constitutional Amendment - Requires a three-fifths majority of the whole number of each House of the Congress before a bill increasing any revenue may pass. Provides that total revenue of the United States Government for each fiscal year shall not exceed 20 percent of the gross domestic product and that any revenue in excess of this limit shall be used to reduce the public debt. Authorizes a specific amount of additional revenue above such limit for the current or next fiscal year when a bill for this sole purpose is passed by a three-fifths majority of the whole number of each House of the Congress and becomes law. Authorizes the Congress, upon the President's request, to waive the provisions of this joint resolution by a roll call vote for any fiscal year in which a declaration of war is in effect. Requires any law that has the effect of increasing any revenue, if adopted when a waiver is in effect, to expire within two years after the law is adopted.
United States · United States Congress · 23 July 1993
Amends the Federal criminal code to include peonage and slavery offenses as predicates to a violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.
United States · United States Congress · 23 July 1993
Authorizes the National Captive Nations Committee, Inc., to construct in the District of Columbia an appropriate international memorial to honor victims of Communism. Makes the Corporation solely responsible for expenses for the construction of the memorial. Requires excess funds for the memorial to be remitted to the Secretary of the Treasury.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 1993
Wage and Hour Reform and Equity Act of 1993 - Amends the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 to suspend the running of the statute of limitations on violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 during the period of a complaint or investigation until final action is taken. Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (the Act) to require the Secretary of Labor to notify all affected employees if there is an investigation or proceeding involving actual or potential violations of the Act affecting at least 50 employees, inform them of their rights and protections, and disclose the terms of any settlement. Removes the exemption from minimum wage and overtime requirements of the Act for teachers in elementary or secondary schools. Prohibits: (1) discrimination or retaliation against an employee for asserting any right under the Act; or (2) interference with an employee's right to provide information in connection with an investigation or proceeding under the Act. Provides that certain rights to bring actions do not terminate upon the filing for injunction proceedings. Allows actions for injunction proceedings to be brought by the Secretary or by one or more employees for such employees and others similarly situated. Eliminates a consent requirement for plaintiffs in certain class action suits. Adds a civil penalty for violation of certain prohibitions. Requires publication of violations and violators.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 1993
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow taxpayers primarily engaged in a farming-related business an investment tax credit for a percentage of: (1) the costs of agricultural environmental property; and (2) the amount allowed as a deduction for soil and water conservation expenditures.
United States · United States Congress · 21 July 1993
Urges the Government of Iran to extend to the Baha'i community the rights guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the international covenants on human rights. Calls upon the President to continue to: (1) urge such Government to emancipate the Baha'i community by granting such rights; (2) emphasize that the United States regards the human rights practices of such Government, particularly its treatment of the Baha'is and other religious minorities, as a significant factor in the development of U.S.-Iranian relations; and (3) encourage other governments to continue to appeal to the Government of Iran and to cooperate with other governments and international organizations in efforts to protect the religious rights of the Baha'is and other minorities in Iran.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 1993
Federal Benefit Integrity Act - Amends part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) reduce the amount of AFDC currently being paid to families which do not include a U.S. citizen or national; and (2) prohibit AFDC from being paid to any family applying for AFDC which does not include such an individual. Amends SSA title XVI (Supplementary Security Income), the Housing and Community Development Act of 1980, and the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to make similar amendments with respect to the receipt of Federal benefits by illegal aliens, and, in certain cases, phase-out such benefits entirely.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 1993
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the United States should use its influence as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council to support the efforts of Greece, in its negotiations with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, to find a solution which promotes a cooperative relationship between the two countries.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 1993
Military Separation Retirement Benefits Act of 1993 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow rollovers into individual retirement accounts of military separation pay.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 1993
Armed Career Criminal Clarification Act - Establishes as a predicate offense under the armed career criminal statute any offense under State law which would have been punishable by a maximum term of imprisonment of ten years or more because of the type and quantity of the controlled substance involved if the offense had been prosecuted as a violation of the Controlled Substances Act.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 1993
Recognizes July 13, 1993, as Cost of Government Day. Encourages all Federal, State, and local elected officials to carefully consider Government spending costs and regulatory schemes in the year to come.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 1993
Disapproves the unilateral deployment by the President of U.S. troops as peacekeepers to the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Urges the President to consult with the Congress regarding the deployment and mission of such troops.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1993
FHA Parental Loan Act - Amends the National Housing Act to authorize amounts borrowed from family members to be used as a downpayment under the Federal Housing Administration uninsured mortgage program.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1993
Calls upon the President to discontinue economic assistance to the Government of the Russian Federation until all pertinent documents from the archives of the Communist Party of the former Soviet Union relating to the fates of American prisoners of war and missing in action have been provided to the U.S. Government.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1993
Expresses the sense of the Congress that any limitation under Federal tax law on the deductibility of compensation exceeding $1 million paid to executives individually should be expanded to apply to compensation paid to entertainers and athletes.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 1993
Amends part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) of title IV of the Social Security Act to require States to implement workfare programs for able-bodied residents on welfare aged 18 or over with no dependents in order for the State to maintain its current level of Federal funding for AFDC administrative expenses.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1993
Amends the Federal criminal code to: (1) authorize the death penalty for carjacking if death results; and (2) include as carjacking intentionally making physical contact with a motor vehicle, while in possession of a firearm or other dangerous device, with the intent or result of injuring an occupant or of taking or damaging the motor vehicle or its contents.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1993
POW/MIA Full Accounting Act of 1993 - Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should not normalize diplomatic relations with the Government of Vietnam until he certifies to the Congress that the U.S. Government has received the fullest possible accounting of American POW/MIAs from the Vietnam conflict. Provides for the following actions until the President certifies to the Congress that the U.S. Government has received such accounting: (1) a continuation of the trade embargo in effect as of June 1, 1993, against Vietnam; (2) an instruction to the U.S. executive director of the International Monetary Fund to defer consideration of a resolution to allow Vietnam to pay off loans that are in arrears; and (3) an instruction to the U.S. executive directors of appropriate multilateral financial institutions to deny any new loans, grants, or credits to Vietnam.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1993
Designates September 17, 1993, as National POW/MIA Recognition Day. Requires the display of the National League of Families POW/MIA flag at: (1) all national cemeteries and the National Vietnam Veterans Memorial on May 31, 1993 (Memorial Day), September 17, 1993 (National POW/MIA Recognition Day), and November 11, 1993 (Veterans Day); and (2) the White House and the buildings containing the primary offices of the Secretaries of State, Defense, and Veterans Affairs and the Director of the Selective Service Commission (sic) on September 17, 1993 (National POW/MIA Recognition Day).
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 1993
Social Security Trust Funds Integrity Act of 1993 - Amends titles II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) and XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: (1) restructure the Board of Trustees of the trust funds supporting the OASDI and Medicare programs, with each Board composed of members appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, on a bipartisan basis at the recommendation of House and Senate leadership and the five largest organizations representing senior citizens; (2) make it the duty of the Managing Trustee chairing the Board to invest trust fund amounts according to an annual investment plan the Board is required to formulate and submit to the President and the Congress; and (3) remove restrictions on investment and disinvestment of amounts in such trust funds.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1993
Prohibits funds appropriated or otherwise made available for military functions of the Department of Defense from being made available to any other Federal department or agency unless the Secretary certifies to the Congress at least 30 days in advance that such transfer is in the national security interest. Authorizes the Secretary to waive such prohibition during a period of national emergency.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 1993
Refugee Impact Assistance Supplemental Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 1993 - Makes emergency supplemental appropriations for FY 1993 to the Department of Health and Human Services for refugee and entrant assistance in Florida, Massachusetts, and New York for expenses resulting from the entry of HIV-infected Haitian refugees.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 1993
Vietnam Women's Memorial Coin Act of 1994 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue silver coins emblematic of the Vietnam Women's Memorial sculpture. Requires all surcharges received from the sale of such coins to be used for: (1) an endowment for the Memorial; (2) education and research concerning veterans and their families; and (3) the identification and documentation of women who served in the armed forces during the Vietnam era. Expresses the sense of the Congress that this coin program shall be self-sustaining and administered to result in no net cost to the Numismatic Public Enterprise Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 1993
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow the deduction for home office expenses if a portion of a dwelling unit is used as the sole fixed location of business for a taxpayer who has no other fixed location of business, regardless of: (1) the amount of time or type of work performed in such location; or (2) the proportion of the total income from the business attributable to such location.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Family Tax Credit Title II: Reducing the Cost of Capital by Reducing Capital Gains Tax Rates and Indexing the Basis of Certain Assets Title III: Neutral Cost Recovery Title IV: Increasing National Savings Through Individual Retirement Plus Accounts, Indexing for Inflation the Income Thresholds for Taxing Social Security Benefits, Etc. Title V: Cap on Federal Spending and Establishment of Commission to Reduce Federal Spending Putting Jobs and the American Family First Act of 1993 - Title I: Family Tax Credit - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individuals a tax credit of $500 multiplied by the number of qualifying children who have not attained age 18. Places limitations on such credit and adjusts it for inflation. Title II: Reducing the Cost of Capital by Reducing Capital Gains Tax Rates and Indexing the Basis of Certain Assets - Reduces the individual and corporate capital gains rate from 34 percent to 15 percent. Reduces such tax to 7.5 percent for low- and middle-income taxpayers. Provides for the phaseout of personal exemptions and the overall limitation on itemized deductions to take into account adjusted gross income which has been reduced by net capital gain. Requires indexing, based on the gross national product deflator, of the adjusted basis of certain assets (corporate stock and tangible property that is a capital asset of property used in a trade or business) that have been held for more than one year at the time of sale or other transfer, solely for the purpose of determining gain or loss. Provides for indexing the limitation on capital losses of noncorporate taxpayers. Title III: Neutral Cost Recoverry - Allows the depreciation deduction to be computed based on a neutral recovery basis for property placed in service after December 31, 1993. Repeals the special depreciation rules applicable under the adjusted current earnings provisions of the minimum tax. Title IV: Increasing National Savings Through Individual Retirement Plus Accounts, Indexing for Inflation the Income Thresholds for Taxing Social Security Benefits, etc. - Allows individuals to establish individual retirement plus accounts with tax treatment similar to that for individual retirement plans. Makes contributions to such account nondeductible. Provides for qualified distributions from such accounts. other than for general retirement purposes, including special purpose distributions made for the purchase of a first home and for medical or educational purposes. Prohibits special purpose distributions from being made during the first five years of the account. Provides an inflation adjustment after 1996 for income thresholds in determining the taxation of social security benefits. Excludes income from individual retirement plans when determining modified adjusted gross income. Provides an inflation adjustment after 1996 for the maximum amount allowable as a deduction for retirement savings. Title V: Cap on Federal Spending and Establishment of Commission to Reduce Federal Spending - Establishes the Commission on Reduction of Federal Spending to: (1) recommend specific reductions in Federal activities to assure that spending does not grow at a rate in excess of two percent per year through FY 1998; and (2) report a bill to the Congress with changes necessary to achieve such reductions. Establishes an advisory council to assist the Commission. Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollidngs Act) to set forth sequestration procedures when the increase in annual Federal spending exceeds the amount resulting from an annual rate of inflation of two percent.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 1993
Lupus Research Amendments of 1993 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases to expand and intensify research and related activities of the Institute with respect to lupus. Requires the Director to: (1) coordinate such activities with similar activities conducted by other national research institutes and agencies of the National Institutes of Health; and (2) conduct or support research to expand the understanding of the causes of, and to find a cure for, lupus, including research to determine the reasons underlying the elevated prevalence of the disease among African-American and other women. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 1993
Gun Penalty Enhancement Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal criminal code to double the enhanced penalties for carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence or a drug trafficking crime.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 1993
Reserve Account for Administrative Savings Act of 1993 - Amends Federal law to require that appropriated salaries and expenses be apportioned. Requires the establishment of reserve accounts equal to five percent of the actual amount incurred for those salaries and expenses in the immediately preceding fiscal year. Provides procedures for such funds to be permanently rescinded, released and spent, or used to offset supplemental appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Investment Tax Credit Title II: Capital Gains Tax Reduction Title III: Incentives For Redevelopment of Closed Military Bases Title IV: Use of Transferred Defense Funds For Provision of Services to Certain Dislocated Defense Workers Under Job Training Partnership Act Economic Resurgence and Jobs for America Act - Title I: Investment Tax Credit - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reinstate a five-percent investment tax credit for property placed in service after December 31, 1992. Repeals provisions of the Revenue Reconciliation Act of 1990 concerning the elimination of expired or obsolete investment tax credit provisions. Title II: Capital Gains Tax Reduction - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce the individual and corporate capital gains rate from 34 percent to 15 percent. Reduces such tax to 7.5 percent for low- and middle-income taxpayers. Provides for the phaseout of personal exemptions and the overall limitation on itemized deductions to take into account adjusted gross income which has been reduced by net capital gain. Requires indexing, based on the gross national product deflator, of the adjusted basis of certain assets (corporate stock and tangible property that is a capital asset of property used in a trade or business) that have been held for more than one year at the time of sale or other transfer, solely for the purpose of determining gain or loss. Provides for indexing the limitation on capital losses of noncorporate taxpayers. Title III: Incentives for Redevelopment of Closed Military Bases - Excludes from gross income 100 percent of any qualified capital gain recognized on the sale or exchange of a qualified closed base asset held for more than five years. Excludes property acquired after November 30, 1997. Excludes rental real estate activity near a closed base from passive loss rules. Increases the deduction for expensing depreciable business assets in the case of a closed base business. Treats loss on a closed base asset as an ordinary loss. Provides special rules for redevelopment bonds that provide financing for closed military bases. Imposes penalties in cases of loans made to businesses that cease to be closed based businesses. Title IV: Use of Transferred Defense Funds for Provision of Services to Certain Dislocated Defense Workers Under Job Training Partnership Act - Amends the Job Training Partnership Act to require the use of defense funds in the program for employment and training assistance to individuals who have been terminated, laid off, or so notified, due to a closure of a military base. Provides for the transfer of defense reinvestment and economic growth funds for such program.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1993
Prohibits the Secretary of Transportation from approving certain highway-related projects in any State which has a maximum speed limit in excess of 65 miles per hour (mph) on any highway which is located outside an urbanized area with a population of 50,000 or more and is constructed to interstate standards. (Eliminates the further condition under existing law that the highway is connected to the Interstate System.) Directs the Secretary to study and report to the Congress on the effects on highway safety of increasing (under this Act) the maximum speed limit above 55 mph on highways with four lanes or more open to traffic.
![Official portrait of Rep. Solomon, Gerald B. H. [R-NY-22]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s000675_200.jpg)