United States · United States Congress · 3 March 1992
Provides eligibility for burial in national cemeteries for an individual who was entitled to retired pay as a member of the reserves (at least 20 years of service in the reserves) or would have been entitled to retired pay but for the fact that such person was under 60 years of age.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1992
Expands the eligibility for the veterans' readjustment appointment program (a program providing Federal employment opportunities for veterans) to include all Vietnam era veterans (currently includes Vietnam era veterans with service-connected disabilities or those having received campaign badges for active-duty service in a campaign or expedition). Expands the eligibility for the disabled veterans' outreach program to include disabled veterans of the Persian Gulf War.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1992
Waste Management Act of 1992 - Authorizes appropriations for FY 1993 through 1996 to carry out the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Title I: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitles A and B of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to revise provisions concerning congressional findings and objectives. Declares it to be U.S. national policy that: (1) the creation of surplus and remnant material from production processes shall be reduced and residuals from post-consumer products shall be managed as material resources; (2) materials are to be managed at Federal, State, and local levels using specified waste reduction and management strategies; and (3) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the States shall not differentiate in the enforcement of this Act on the basis of whether an owner or person engaged in waste disposal activities is a public or private person, whether a facility is located on or off the premises where waste is generated, or whether an activity is carried out on or off the premises where the waste is generated. Sets forth as a national goal the recycling of at least 25 and 40 percent of municipal solid waste by 1995 and 2000, respectively. Requires the Inspector General of the EPA to report annually to the Congress on the implementation of, and compliance with, the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Adds specified annual reporting requirements. Directs the Administrator, for five years following the date of enactment of this Act, to identify five of the most toxic and common constituents of municipal waste. Requires the Administrator to consider, with respect to each of the constituents, imposing the following: (1) a ban on the use of such a constituent in production; (2) a ban on disposal in landfills or treatment in incinerators of any product containing such a constituent; (3) a requirement for special management standards for such products after discard; and (4) a requirement for the use of a substitute constituent. Permits the Administrator to impose such bans or requirements only by promulgating regulations. Requires the Administrator to publish annually in the Federal Register any information on such actions. Title II: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitle D of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Subtitle A: Provisions Relating to Solid Waste Management Plans - Revises requirements for State solid waste management plans. Requires such plans to include: (1) an estimate of the capacity of the State to manage such waste; (2) permit programs; (3) solid waste recycling, reduction, incineration, and land disposal elements; (4) an overall waste materials strategy to cover one of two specified planning periods; (5) waste inventories; (6) personnel training and public education; (7) requirements for the management of household hazardous waste, tires, yard waste, and large household appliances; and (8) annual reporting requirements. Sets forth submission, approval, and implementation procedures for State plans. Authorizes a State with an approved plan and certification of compliance to: (1) prohibit the transportation of solid waste generated from another State into such State for disposal, storage, or incineration purposes; (2) prohibit the incineration, disposal, or storage of such waste; and (3) levy fees on solid waste or solid waste transporters that differentiate rates or other aspects of payment on the basis of waste origin. Requires such State, prior to exercising such authority, to certify to the Administrator that it has: (1) completed construction on facilities that will provide at least 70 percent of the capacity for solid waste management needed to implement the State plan; and (2) completed siting approval on facilities that will provide 100 percent of such capacity. Prohibits the interstate transport of solid waste in any State: (1) that does not have an approved plan within a specified time period; (2) that cannot certify continuing compliance; or (3) for which the Administrator has withdrawn approval of the State plan. Permits the Administrator to develop a plan for, and charge, any State that has not submitted a plan. Requires States to establish permit programs and issue permits to solid waste management facilities in compliance with this Act. Prohibits the incineration, storage, or disposal of such waste at, or the transportation of such waste to, facilities without permits. Sets forth transitional permit requirements and deadlines. Limits permit terms to ten years and provides for permit modifications, as appropriate. Authorizes States to grant variances from permit requirements if it is demonstrated that no adverse effects to human health or the environment will result from such variances. Subtitle B: Provisions Relating to Federal Requirements - Directs the Administrator to promulgate standards, guidelines, and regulations for: (1) municipal solid waste landfills; (2) municipal solid waste incinerators; (3) industrial waste; (4) above-ground storage tanks; and (5) other waste categories, as appropriate. Permits State Governors to petition the Administrator for the promulgation of additional standards, guidelines, and regulations. Sets forth requirements for municipal solid waste landfills, to include: (1) specified detection and monitoring controls; (2) daily cover; (3) closure and postclosure requirements; (4) financial responsibility and corrective action requirements; (5) groundwater monitoring; (6) liners and leachate collection and removal systems, as appropriate; (7) construction quality assurance plans; and (8) prohibitions on landfills being located within the 100-year flood plain, within specified distances of faults, or within seismic impact zones or other unstable areas, unless certain conditions have been met. Requires the Administrator to publish guidelines for identifying materials which should be removed from solid waste before its incineration in a municipal solid waste incinerator. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations applicable to the operation and management of municipal solid waste incinerators and to the disposal or recycling and reuse of municipal solid waste incinerator ash. Prohibits the disposal of ash in units that are created as a result of vertical expansion of an existing waste disposal facility unless it is demonstrated that there will be no settling of waste that would impair the integrity of the liners. Requires that landfills into which such ashes are disposed provide for groundwater monitoring and: (1) place such ashes in a monofill having a leachate collection system and a single liner designed and operated to prevent the migration of any constituent into such liner; or (2) have two or more liners and a leachate collection system above and between such liners. Provides that landfill design requirements shall not apply to alternatively-designed units if it is demonstrated that such designs prevent such migration. Directs the Administrator to prescribe criteria and testing procedures for identifying the hazardous properties of municipal incinerator ash so that ash which does not exhibit such properties may be placed in sanitary landfills meeting current criteria under specified conditions. Requires ash which is hazardous to human health or the environment to be treated prior to recycling or reuse. Prohibits, four years after this Act's enactment, the operation of incinerators and the receipt of ash for treatment, storage, disposal, reuse, or recycling without a permit or prior approval under a State program. Requires civil penalties imposed against local governments for violations of this Act to be deposited into a trust fund for programs that serve to enhance the protection of human health and the environment. Sets forth transitional provisions. Requires the Administrator to identify, classify, and report to the Congress and States on specified types of industrial waste. Directs generators or transporters of such waste and owners or operators of facilities handling such waste to file notifications with the State concerning facility locations and descriptions of activities and wastes handled. Sets forth requirements for industrial waste management, to include: (1) authorizations to operate; (2) monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements; (3) performance standards; (4) financial responsibility assurances; (5) design, operating, closure, and postclosure criteria; and (6) corrective action requirements. Applies such requirements to the following facilities: (1) industrial waste facilities that produce such waste and are not implementing closure or postclosure plans; and (2) inactive or abandoned facilities that are reactivated. Requires the Administrator to study the adverse effects on human health and the environment of the disposal of other nonhazardous waste. Directs the Administrator to promulgate solid waste storage regulations. Excludes from such regulations storage at transportation-related facilities. Requires State plans and permits to include requirements for municipal solid waste landfills and incinerators and for industrial wastes. Subtitle C: Other Provisions - Directs the Administrator to compile and periodically update a non-hazardous solid waste inventory to determine, by State or region: (1) an estimate of the amount of such waste to be generated annually and likely to be generated in each of the next 20 years; and (2) the capacity of existing and proposed waste management facilities. Sets forth Federal enforcement provisions. Prescribes civil and criminal penalties for violations of solid waste management requirements. Title III: Provisions Relating Primarily to Subtitle H of the Solid Waste Disposal Act - Requires the Administrator to: (1) develop model recycling programs for States and localities; and (2) carry out a continuing program to evaluate demonstrated waste management technologies that could be used by municipalities and report periodically on such program. Authorizes the Administrator to make grants to counties or municipalities for implementing recycling programs and developing markets for recycled materials. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1992
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should: (1) terminate certain current Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) petitions from Central and Eastern European countries for products (Goya cheese, mushrooms, grape wine, and other products) considered and rejected in the 1990 GSP annual review as well as other specified products (nitrocellulose and sulfasalazine); and (2) reinstate his determination of May 3, 1991, to reject such petitions.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 1992
Authorizes and urges the President to designate April 9, 1992, as Day of Recognition of Filipino War Veterans (the 50th anniversary of the fall of Bataan). Expresses the sense of the Congress that a copy of this resolution be presented to Filipino veterans and the Filipino people in Manila on April 9, 1992, during the observance of such anniversary, as an expression of goodwill and reaffirmation of the continuing regard of the United States and the American people for a lasting Filipino-American friendship.
United States · United States Congress · 19 February 1992
Brain Injury Rehabilitation Quality Act of 1992 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to provide for optional Medicaid coverage of services provided through a case management program that meets specified requirements to Medicaid-eligible individuals who suffer traumatic brain injuries. Describes the services provided under such a program, which include: (1) rehabilitation services; (2) transitional and independent living services; (3) home care; (4) behavior disorder treatment services; and (5) respite or recreation services to aid the individual and members of the individual's family in adapting to residual deficits resulting from brain injury. Authorizes such program to: (1) obtain for participating individuals other benefits and services for which such individuals are eligible under other Federal, State, or local programs, including employment services, education benefits, old age services, and disability insurance; and (2) waive restrictions on the amount, duration, and scope of services otherwise applicable under State plans. Declares that an individual must reside in a State that has designated a State coordinator for traumatic brain injuries in order to receive services under this Act. Requires such coordinator to establish policies and standards for providing services, make necessary reports to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, supervise and coordinate services for persons with traumatic brain injuries, and perform the duties set out below. Makes such coordinator responsible for a program of activities related to preventing and reducing the rate of traumatic brain injuries in the State. Requires such coordinator to: (1) establish and maintain a central registry of persons who sustain traumatic brain injury in order to collect information necessary to facilitate such programs and ensure the provision to such persons of information on rehabilitative service providers; (2) notify the State employment agency of individuals reported to have suffered a traumatic brain or spinal cord injury; (3) establish standards for marketing of services to traumatic brain injury patients or family members, in consultation with the advisory committee established below; (4) collect and analyze injury incidence information for coordinator studies concerning traumatic brain injury; (5) provide summary registry data to entities to conduct studies; (6) establish an advisory committee to provide recommendations regarding the needs of persons with traumatic brain injuries; (7) adopt such rules as are necessary to carry out this Act; and (8) establish a reporting system that notifies the coordinator of the identity of any person treated for a traumatic brain injury in the State. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish standards for the reporting of data on traumatic brain injuries and the operation of registries on traumatic brain injuries for coordinator use. Requires the Administrator for Health Care Policy and Research to conduct a study on the effectiveness of traumatic brain injury interventions.
United States · United States Congress · 19 February 1992
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) consideration of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) should be a high priority; (2) LIHEAP funding for FY 1993 should be increased to a level greater than or equal to funding for FY 1992; and (3) the President should accept the LIHEAP funding level for FY 1993 as recommended by the Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 1992
Declares that the Congress: (1) commemorates the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Midway on June 4, 1992; (2) salutes the vision and dedication of those Americans who planned and participated in this heroic battle; (3) reveres the memory, bravery, and spirit of those who fought and perished in it; and (4) honors the sacrifices and devotions of those gallant men who fought in such battle and who, in a single master stroke, reversed the tide of war in the Pacific.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1992
Rural Communities Hazardous Waste Information Act of 1992 - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to prohibit the issuance of permits for off-site hazardous waste treatment, storage, or disposal facilities to be located in a rural community unless a rural community impact statement has been prepared. Makes such statements available for public review. Sets forth requirements concerning the selection of independent contractors to prepare such statements. Provides for the imposition of fees on permit applicants. Requires such fees to be in an amount necessary to cover the cost of preparing impact statements. Requires impact statements to describe: (1) the economic and social impacts of the proposed facility on each rural community which is within a 20-mile radius of the facility site, including effects on employment, recreational amenities, tourism, public safety and emergency preparedness, and transportation systems; and (2) the costs of mitigating such impacts.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 1992
Cancer Registries Amendment Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants or contracts to operate population-based, statewide cancer registries in order to collect certain data for each form of in-situ and invasive cancer except basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma of the skin. Authorizes grants for planning the registries. Mandates a study on factors contributing to elevated rates of breast cancer mortality in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the District of Columbia. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services, directly or through grants and contracts, or both, to provide technical assistance to the States in the establishment and operation of statewide registries. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 1992
Designates the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Northampton, Massachusetts, as the Edward P. Boland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 1992
Anti-Recession Infrastructure Jobs Act of 1992 - Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Economic Development Administration, to make grants to State and local governments for infrastructure projects in distressed areas. Provides for direct grants for construction and improvement and for completion of planning. Provides for supplemental grants for other Federal grant programs and for State and local programs. Prohibits the use of grants to acquire real property or to cover maintenance costs. Requires assurance that on-site labor can begin within 90 days of project approval. Requires: (1) contracting out construction or improvement work on grant projects; (2) competitive bidding; (3) acceptance of the lowest responsive bid; (4) advertised specifications covering all requirements or obligations preceding contract award; (5) Buy American conditions; (6) minority participation; and (7) applicability of specified Federal laws regarding individuals with disabilities. Directs the Secretary, in carrying out this Act, to prescribe rules, regulations, and procedures that assure adequate consideration is given to the relative needs of various sections of the country, including consideration of these factors in proposed project areas: (1) severity and duration of unemployment; (2) income levels and extent of underemployment; (3) extent of proposed project contribution to reducing unemployment; and (4) amount of unemployment or underemployment in the construction and construction-related industries. Requires a final determination on each grant application within 60 days after the Secretary receives it (or else the grant will be deemed approved). Sets forth formulas for allocation of funds. Sets aside two and one-half percent for Indian tribes and Alaska Native villages. Sets minimum and maximum allocation limits for any one State and for specified U.S. territories. Requires the Secretary, in making such grants, to give priority and preference to public works: (1) projects of local governments; (2) projects requested by a State or special purpose unit of local government and endorsed by a general purpose local government; and (3) projects requested by school districts. Requires the Secretary, if the average national unemployment rate is six percent or above for the most recent 12 consecutive months, to: (1) expedite and give priority to applications from State or local governments with rates for that period above the national rate; and (2) give priority thereafter to those from any State or local governments having rates for that period above six percent but below the national rate. Requires State and local prioritization of applications. Requires (if the applicant so requests) that the local government's unemployment rate be based on the rate of any community or neighborhood within such local government's jurisdiction. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 1992
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency should accelerate the interim phaseout schedules and the final phaseout date of chlorofluorocarbons, carbon tetrachloride, methyl chloroform, and halons (and shall provide for complete phaseout as early as possible), accelerate the interim phaseout schedule and the final phaseout date of the hydrochlorofluorocarbons that have relatively long atmospheric lifetimes or high ozone depletion potentials, and prioritize efforts to issue regulations providing for the recapture and recycling of ozone-destroying substances used in appliances and motor vehicle air-conditioners and for the elimination of such substances used in nonessential consumer products; and (2) the President should urge the Contracting Parties to the Montreal Protocol to accelerate the interim phaseout schedules and the final phaseout date of the ozone-destroying chemicals currently covered by the Protocol, to include hydrochlorofluorocarbons within the terms of the Protocol and provide for the most rapid phaseout of those hydrochlorofluorocarbons with relatively long atmospheric lifetimes or high ozone depletion potentials, to amend the Protocol to include recapture and recycling provisions and prohibit the venting or release of ozone-destroying chemicals from refrigeration and air-conditioning units into the atmosphere by a set date, and to accelerate the compliance of developing countries with the terms of the Protocol.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 1992
Title I: Short Title, Findings, and Definitions - Trade Enhancement Act of 1992 - Sets forth congressional findings and purposes with respect to access to Japanese markets by U.S. manufacturers of motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts. Title II: Merchandise Trade Deficit Reduction - Sets forth annual merchandise trade deficit reduction targets with respect to Japan's trade deficit with the United States. Requires the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) to compute annually whether the target has been met for each year, and if it has not, to publish in the Federal Register the import and production restriction implementation period for such year. Authorizes the Secretary to impose temporary quantitative import restrictions on Japanese or Japanese-related motor vehicles (foreign motor vehicles) entered during the first three months of the calendar year following the year for which such computation is made. Requires the Secretary to submit a report to the Congress. Expresses the sense of the Congress that representatives of the United States and Japan should continue discussions regarding measures, to be selected by the Japanese Government, to achieve the merchandise trade deficit reduction targets. Urges the United States Trade Representative (USTR) during such discussions to address market access priorities for U.S. exports to Japan. Title III: Import and Production Restrictions to Be Implemented If Trade Deficit Reduction Target Not Met - Directs the Secretary to compute for calendar years 1993 through 1999 quantitative import restrictions on foreign motor vehicles and domestic motor vehicle production restrictions for transplanted Japanese-related auto manufacturers, except such computations are not required for calendar years 1997 through 1999 if trade deficit reduction targets for calendar years 1992 through 1996 are met. Sets forth civil penalties. Requires each person that has one or more motor vehicle or motor vehicle parts manufacturing facilities within the United States to certify to the Secretary whether it is a domestic vehicle or parts manufacturer or a transplanted Japanese-related vehicle manufacturer. Sets forth provisions with respect to: (1) the Secretary's authority to obtain information and data; and (2) enforcement of this Act. Sets forth civil penalties. Sets forth provisions with respect to the enforcement and judicial review of such penalties. Requires the Secretary to report annually to the Congress on implementation of this Act. Title IV: Negotiations and Other Actions - Requires the USTR to enter into negotiations with Japan to enter into a bilateral agreement that: (1) provides a phased-in increase in the use by transplanted motor vehicle manufacturers of domestically-produced motor vehicle parts to the point where such parts constitute 60 percent or more of the total parts used in the production of such vehicles; and (2) eliminate those aspects of the Japanese automotive distribution system that affect the access of domestically-produced motor vehicle parts to Japanese markets. Directs the USTR to enter into negotiations with representatives of the European Community, Japan, and the governments of other major vehicle-producing countries to enter into multilateral agreements that rationalize world-wide market access and production of motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts. Considers acts, practices, and policies of Japan (including, but not limited to, acts, policies, and practices utilized in the Japanese automotive distribution system known as "Keiretsu") that affect the access of manufacturers of domestic motor vehicle parts to the Japanese market as being unjustifiable and burdensome or restrictive to U.S. commerce, according to the Trade Act of 1974. Adds to response authority under such Act authority to increase the percentage of domestically-produced motor vehicle parts used in the production of motor vehicles for purposes of the qualification of Japanese manufacturers as domestic vehicle manufacturers. Specifies certain objectives to be included in negotiations with Japan if the USTR decides to take action with respect to such practices. Requires the USTR to make certain estimates with respect to the percentage of the Japanese market that is accounted for by domestic motor vehicle parts manufacturers. Directs the Secretary to commence an antidumping duty investigation under the Tariff Act of 1930 to determine whether imports or sales (or the likelihood of sales) of Japanese motor vehicle parts to the United States warrant the imposition of antidumping duties. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to study and report to the Congress on the extent to which: (1) "Keiretsu" operations in the United States are in compliance with the internal revenue laws, particularly those relating to transfer pricing; and (2) the Internal Revenue Service is auditing such operations. Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to classify for the purposes of tariff treatment certain light trucks as motor vehicles for the transport of goods.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1992
Amends the Railroad Retirement Solvency Act of 1983 to make permanent the transfer to the Railroad Retirement Account of income tax revenues attributable to the taxation of tier II railroad retirement benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
Coal Industry Retiree Health Benefit Act of 1991 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish the Coal Industry Retiree Health Benefit Corporation to administer a program for the provision of retiree health benefits in the coal industry. Establishes the Coal Industry Retiree Benefit Fund for the deposit of all amounts received by the Corporation. Requires the following payments to the Corporation: (1) an hourly premium on each hour worked in coal production by employees by each person that produces coal for use or for sale; (2) a per-ton premium obligation on the importer of coal; and (3) an annual per beneficiary premium by each last signatory operator and each other employer. Sets forth the eligibility requirements for benefits for orphan miners, and spouses and dependents or orphan miners or deceased coal miners. Requires the Corporation to provide medical and death benefits to such persons. Directs the Corporation to develop managed care rules applicable to the payment of benefits. Establishes the United Mine Workers of America 1991 Benefit Fund as an employee welfare benefit plan consisting of the merger of excess assets from certain closed plans. Sets forth eligibility requirements for benefits from such Fund. Requires the last signatory operator of any individual receiving retiree health care benefits as of February 1, 1993, from an individual employer plan maintained pursuant to a coal wage agreement to provide retiree health care benefits to such individual. Provides for the determination and disposition of excess pension assets to the Corporation or the 1991 Benefit Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
Municipal Employee Protection Amendments of 1991 - Amends Federal bankruptcy law to give claims priority to municipal employee pension contributions and credits.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
Steel Trade Liberalization Program Extension Act - Amends the Steel Import Stabilization Act to express the sense of the Congress with respect to the quantity of steel products imported into, or exported to, the United States from April 1, 1992, through September 30, 1994, under the steel trade liberalization program.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle for America Act - Title I: State Recycling Requirements and Related Provisions - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to promulgate regulations containing a standard methodology for States and municipalities to measure: (1) the composition of waste generated in their jurisdictions, by type and amount; and (2) the waste management capacity of landfills, recycling facilities, and incinerators. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations for States, municipalities, and regional solid waste management authorities to identify the life-cycle costs of waste management or recycling options. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations containing a standard methodology to measure the amount of material annually diverted from a municipal solid waste stream and to calculate the diversion rates for materials. Requires a diversion rate for a particular material to be calculated by comparing the amount of the material generated within a municipality or regional authority with the annual amount of that material diverted from an incinerator or landfill for recycling purposes. Directs such municipalities or regional authorities to conduct waste composition analyses at least once every five years to indicate: (1) the percentage of solid waste managed in the jurisdiction that consists of materials required to be analyzed; and (2) the percentage of such waste that consists of noncombustible materials. Includes within the list of materials to be analyzed: (1) paper; (2) glass; (3) metal; (4) plastics; (5) food and yard waste; (6) wood; (7) construction and demolition debris; (8) household hazardous waste and lead-acid and household batteries; (9) medical waste; (10) incinerator ash; and (11) miscellaneous combustibles and noncombustibles. Prohibits States, municipalities, or other local solid waste management authorities from issuing permits for the construction, expansion, or operation of a landfill, incinerator, or composting unit unless a waste composition analysis has been conducted in the jurisdiction where the facility is or will be located. Requires States or regional authorities to carry out programs to divert annually from incineration and landfilling those materials that otherwise would be destined for disposal by such methods. Sets forth required diversion percentages for glass, paper, metals, plastics, and yard and food waste. Provides that the delivery of plastics, metals, or glass for composting purposes shall not be considered diversion. Requires the Administrator to increase diversion rates by July 1, 2002, to assure decreasing reliance on incineration and landfilling. Authorizes States to petition for alternative diversion rates if economic conditions preclude an entity from achieving such rates, subject to specified requirements. Directs entities to which diversion requirements apply to certify to the State that the applicable percentage of materials has been diverted from the waste stream. Prohibits the issuance of permits by States, municipalities, or other regional authorities for the construction, expansion, or operation of a landfill or incinerator unless the entity from which the facility plans to accept waste: (1) is achieving the required diversion rates; and (2) demonstrates that the facility will not interfere with maintaining such rates. Declares that States must demonstrate achievement of diversion rates in order to receive approval for solid waste management plans. Prohibits the incineration of the following materials in municipal incineration units: (1) glass; (2) ferrous and nonferrous metals; (3) lead-acid and household batteries; (4) recyclable plastics; (5) yard waste; and (6) other materials that are noncombustible or recyclable, as appropriate. Requires owners or operators of such units to inspect wastes to ensure that such materials are removed before incineration and to certify to the State that they are in compliance with such prohibition. Excludes from the inspection requirement waste delivered after prohibited materials have been: (1) removed at a materials recovery facility; or (2) collected pursuant to a curbside collection or deposit program under which material is diverted from solid waste at a rate of at least 90 percent. Prohibits the disposal of lead-acid and household batteries in municipal landfills. Makes such prohibition inapplicable under certain circumstances. Provides for the incorporation of requirements under this title into State solid waste management plans. Title II: Other Recycling Provisions - Requires manufacturers or importers of covered items to ensure that such items contain a minimum percentage of post-consumer materials. Defines a "covered item" as a product, packaging or a container for a product, or materials made of aluminum, glass, steel, plastic, or paper. Authorizes manufacturers or importers to comply with such requirements by: (1) recycling a covered item for purposes of producing such item; or (2) purchasing recycling credits under a system established by the Administrator. Sets forth minimum content standards and deadlines for compliance for aluminum, glass, steel, plastics, and paper. Provides for exemptions to such requirements in cases where meeting such requirements would result in a potential hazard to human health or the environment. Prescribes penalties for violations of such requirements. Sets forth recordkeeping requirements for importers and manufacturers of covered items. Prohibits manufacturers, distributors, retailers, or importers from offering a consumer item for sale or promotional purposes if such item contains less than 90 percent product (by volume) or more than ten percent package and packing material (by volume). Exempts specified items from such requirement. Requires manufacturers or importers of products, packages, or packing material to furnish to the Administrator, a retailer, or a consumer, upon request, a certification of compliance with respect to such requirement. Prescribes penalties for violations of such requirement. Requires manufacturers, distributors, retailers, or importers of motorized vehicles (other than automobiles) or large appliances to: (1) accept any vehicle or appliance of the type sold by such persons from purchasers; or (2) assure the diversion of such items away from incinerators or landfills. Permits the disposal of household batteries only by delivery to retailers, wholesalers, or manufacturers of batteries of the same general type, regulated collection or recycling facilities, or governmental curbside collection programs. Sets forth disposal requirements for retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers. Prohibits battery retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers from refusing to accept batteries of the same type as the batteries sold. Requires wholesalers to remove used batteries from the place of business of the retailer. Sets forth refund requirements with respect to such batteries. Requires notices to be posted in household battery retail establishments that: (1) state that is illegal to throw away such batteries and that Federal law requires acceptance of batteries for recycling and the return of batteries to authorized recyclers or collectors; and (2) encourage the recycling of used batteries. Prohibits the sale of household batteries unless such batteries bear a label that identifies the chemical in the battery and that states the refund value and requirements for recycling and acceptance. Requires the Administrator to promulgate labeling requirements for small, button-shaped batteries. Prohibits States or local governments from enforcing labeling requirements unless identical with this Act's requirements. Prohibits the sale of a rechargeable consumer product unless: (1) the battery can be easily removed by the consumer or is contained in a battery pack separate from the product and can be easily removed; and (2) the product and the battery are both labeled in a manner that is clearly visible, that indicates that the battery must be collected separately, and that identifies the electrode used in the battery. Revises provisions concerning Federal procurement of recycled goods. Applies procurement requirements to the purchase or acquisition of items during a fiscal year if, during any of the preceding five fiscal years, the price of such items exceeded $10,000 in the aggregate. Includes the Congress within the definition of "procuring agency." Requires procuring agencies to procure only items which are composed of the highest percentage of post-consumer materials (currently, recovered materials) practicable or, in the case of items for which minimum content standards have been set, which contain no less than the required minimum content. Revises conditions under which a procuring agency may determine not to procure such items. Directs the Administrator to: (1) revise existing standards for the procurement of paper containing post-consumer materials so that the standards are at least as stringent as the minimum content requirements of title II; (2) promulgate standards for the procurement and use of containers and packaging and other goods made from aluminum, ferrous, and plastic scrap and waste glass that are as stringent as such requirements; (3) promulgate standards for the procurement and use of waste glass in the construction of paved surfaces, rubber scrap in the construction of paved surfaces, roofing, and other nonroadway applications, and compost, fertilizers, and other soil amendments made from yard and food waste; and (4) promulgate standards for at least three additional categories of items and other items, as appropriate.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
Equal Remedies Act of 1991 - Amends Federal law relating to damages in cases of intentional employment discrimination to remove provisions limiting the dollar amount of damages awarded for pecuniary and nonpecuniary losses and punitive damages.
United States · United States Congress · 25 November 1991
Administrative Law Judge Corps Act - Establishes an Administrative Law Judge Corps to be comprised of all current administrative law judges. States that the chief administrative law judge shall be the chief administrative officer of the Corps as well as its presiding judge. Specifies the qualifications for chief judge. States that such judge shall be appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate. Directs the chief judge to submit a written report to the President and the Congress at the end of each fiscal year concerning the business of the Corps during the preceding fiscal year. Establishes eight divisions within the Corps, with each division headed by a division chief judge appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate. Identifies the divisions and their respective areas of jurisdiction. Specifies qualifications required for division chief judges. States that the Corps' policymaking body shall be the Council of the Corps comprised of the chief judge and the division chief judges. Authorizes the Council to: (1) assign judges to divisions and to transfer or reassign judges from one division to another; (2) appoint persons as administrative law judges and members of the Corps; (3) file charges against an administrative law judge; (4) prescribe certain rules of practice and procedure for proceedings before the Corps; (5) issue rules and regulations for the efficient conduct of the Corps; and (6) perform other administrative functions. Directs the Council to appoint new judges from a register maintained by the Office of Personnel Management. Confers jurisdiction upon members of the Corps to adjudicate cases under specified sections of the Administrative Procedure Act. Requires cases arising under such sections to be referred to the Corps. Directs the Council to issue regulations for assigning such cases. Requires guidelines for the removal and discipline of administrative law judges. Establishes a Complaints Resolution Board within the Corps to recommend action upon complaints against the official conduct of judges. Details the membership of such Board and the procedures to be followed. Declares Board proceedings and the contents of complaints to be privileged and confidential. Exempts documents and reports considered by the Board from the disclosure and publication requirements of the Freedom of Information Act. Exempts the Board from compliance with the public meeting requirements of specified Federal law. Directs the Corps' chief administrative law judge to study the various types of agency review to which decisions of administrative law judges are subject. Sets guidelines for such studies and directs the Council to report the findings of such studies to the President and the Congress. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1991
American Jobs Protection Act - Requires employers to provide specified notice and employee benefits (including severance pay, continuation of health care benefits, reimbursement for retraining, and accelerated eligibility for early retirement) to employees who are subject to a plant closing or mass layoff because their work is transferred to another country which has specified levels of lower wages or less effective employment standards for overtime compensation, child labor, and employee safety. Provides for enforcement of this Act by investigative and administrative actions by the Secretary of Labor, civil actions by employees and the Secretary, and actions for injunctions. Provides for application under this Act of definitions under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, with exceptions for the terms employer, plant closing, mass layoff, and employment loss.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1991
Satellite Home Viewer Act Amendments of 1991 - Amends Federal copyright law to grant satellite distributors standing to sue satellite carriers for price discrimination practiced against home dish distributors for superstation and network station programming. Sets forth unlawful discrimination standards.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1991
Calls upon the President, as part of the Uruguay Round General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) talks, to initiate negotiations to make GATT compatible with the Marine Mammal Protection Act and other U.S. health, safety, labor, and environmental laws, including laws to protect the environment outside of the United States. Declares that the Congress will not approve legislation to implement any trade agreement (including the Uruguay Round of the GATT and the U.S.-Mexico Free Trade Agreement) that jeopardizes such laws, including the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the Clean Air Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1991
National Fallen Firefighters Foundation Act - Establishes the National Fallen Firefighters' Foundation. Declares that the Foundation is: (1) a charitable and nonprofit corporation to be organized under the laws of the State of Maryland; and (2) not an agency or establishment of the United States. Provides that the Foundation is to: (1) primarily encourage, accept, and administer private gifts of property for the benefit of the National Fallen Firefighters' Memorial and its annual memorial service; (2) provide financial assistance to the families of firefighers who die in the line of duty; and (3) assist in the recognition of such firefighters. Sets forth provisions for establishment and membership of a Board of Directors of the Foundation. Makes the Administator of the U.S. Fire Administration of the Federal Emergency Management Agency an ex officio nonvoting member of the Board, who shall appoint Directors of the Board. Sets forth rights and obligations of the Foundation, including having its principal offices in the State of Maryland. Authorizes the Administrator to: (1) provide, and accept reimbursements for, personnel, facilities, and other administrative services to the Foundation; and (2) accept the services of the Foundation, the Board, and the Board's officers and employees as volunteers in performing functions authorized under this Act. Sets forth requirements relating to audits and annual reports. Provides for relief for certain Foundation acts or failures to act. Provides that the United States is not liable for any debts, defaults, acts, or omissions of the Foundation. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 12 November 1991
House of Representatives Campaign Spending Limit and Election Reform Act of 1991 - Title I: Expenditure Limitations, Contribution Limitations, Matching Funds, and Reduced Third-Class Mail Rate for Eligible House of Representatives Candidates - Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to set forth limitations regarding House of Representatives election expenditures, contributions, and matching funds. Limits aggregate contributions received and expenditures made by an eligible House of Representatives candidate in an election cycle to $600,000, with specified additional limitations in general, special, and runoff elections. Establishes the Make Democracy Work Fund (the Fund) for payment of funds and initial expenditures incurred by the Federal Election Commission (FEC) in the administration of this Act. Outlines FEC examination, audit, and repayment procedures to determine candidate compliance with this Act. Subjects FEC actions to judicial review. Directs the FEC to report to the House of Representatives regarding: (1) candidate expenditures made and balances remaining in the Fund after each election; and (2) a detailed explanation and justification of rules, regulations, and forms it has issued under this Act. Precludes a House of Representatives candidate from receiving funds from the Make Democracy Work Fund without prior certification that any television commercial was prepared or distributed by the candidate in a manner that readily permits closed captioning of the commercial's oral content by way of specified broadcast technology. Amends Federal Postal Service law to provide reduced third-class mailing rates to eligible House of Representatives candidates during a general election period. Title II: Limitations on Political Committee and Large Donor Contributions That May Be Accepted By House of Representatives Candidates; Miscellaneous Provisions Relating To Contributions Under The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 - Sets forth limitations on political committee and large donor contributions (and contributions by dependents not of voting age) that may be accepted by House of Representatives candidates. Mandates that contributions to candidates from State and local political party committees be aggregated. Increases the amount that multicandidate political committees may contribute to national political party committees. Deems corporate or labor union expenditures for candidate appearances, debates, or voter guides to be contributions if the corporate or labor organization expressly advocates the election or defeat of a candidate or favors one candidate over another. Title III: Requirement of Budget Neutrality - Provides that the net costs of providing certain benefits under this Act must be fully offset by specified measures that either raise revenues or reduce spending by a specified deadline (thus achieving budget neutrality). Title IV: Independent Expenditures - Modifies definitions relating to independent expenditures. Sets forth reporting requirements for certain independent expenditures. Title V: Bundling and Soft Money - Prohibits any person from acting as conduit or intermediary for any contribution to any candidate, except in specified circumstances. States that such persons are likewise prohibited from conducting or participating in joint fundraising activities with or on behalf of any candidate. Sets forth limitations upon the combined political activities of political committees of political parties. Prohibits incumbents and candidates for Federal office from soliciting contributions to certain organizations substantially engaged in voter registration or get-out-the-vote campaigns. Mandates that political committees established and maintained by a national political party shall report all receipts and disbursements during the reporting period, whether or not in connection with an election for Federal office. Title VI: Prohibitions Relating to Political Committees and Foreign Nationals - Prohibits a candidate for Federal office from establishing, maintaining, or controlling any political committee other than a principal campaign committee, or certain authorized committees (thereby prohibiting the use of leadership committees). Allows such leadership committees to continue making contributions until one year after January 1, 1993, after which time all funds must be disbursed in one or more specified manners. Prohibits an unauthorized political committee from using the name of any candidate in any fundraising activity on its behalf in a context which suggests that the committee is the candidate's authorized committee. Prohibits a foreign national from controlling, influencing, or participating in election-related activities, including making contributions or expenditures relating to any political election or the administration of a political committee. Title VII: Campaign Surplus - Mandates that the funds exceeding $600,000 of incumbents who are House of Representatives candidates be deposited in a separate account subject to the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971. Title VIII: Campaign Advertising - Prescribes guidelines for campaign advertising related to: (1) printed communication; and (2) broadcast or cablecast communication. Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to entitle House of Representatives candidates to the lowest unit rate charged by a licensee for the same amount of time (currently, the same class and amount of time for the same period on the same date, during the 30 (currently 45) days prior to the primary election and the 45 (currently 60) days prior to the general election). Prohibits the licensee from pre-empting such a candidate's use of the station except in an emergency. Title IX: Contribution Solicitation - Proscribes the solicitation of contributions by false representation by any person as a candidate or as a representative of a candidate or of a political party or committee. Title X: Reporting Requirements - Requires certain reports to identify any person (other than a committee) who contributes more than $50 (currently, more than $200). Directs the FEC to: (1) require with respect to specified reports that operating expenditures be reported on an election cycle basis, by category, as specified by the FEC; and (2) maintain computerized indices of contributions of $50.00 or more. Title XI: Effective Date - Sets forth the effective date of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 1991
Budget Process Reform Act of 1991 - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to: (1) eliminate the division of discretionary appropriations into three categories (defense, international, and domestic) for purposes of discretionary spending limits for FY 1993; and (2) consolidate them into a single limit for budget authority and outlay. Directs the Office of Management and Budget to recalculate any adjustments made to such spending limits before enactment of this Act under the sequestration provisions of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act). Requires the President to report revised discretionary spending limits for FY 1993 to the Congress by the fifth day after enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 1991
Repeals a Federal provision requiring a two-dollar copayment for each 30-day supply of medication furnished to a veteran on an outpatient basis by the Department of Veterans Affairs for the treatment of a non-service-connected disability or condition.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 1991
Calls upon the President not to proceed toward the normalization of diplomatic and economic relations with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam until the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs has reported its findings on the accounting of missing American servicemen in Southeast Asia.
United States · United States Congress · 6 November 1991
Authorizes the Attorney General to impose on any person who is not a visiting nurse association or service a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per violation, and to enjoin a violation, for knowingly using the term "visiting nurse association," "visiting nurse service," "VNA," VNS," or any colorable imitation of any such term: (1) in commerce; and (2) in connection with any goods or services in a manner that falsely suggests, or causes any confusion, mistake, or deception, that the goods or services are produced or endorsed by a visiting nurse association or service, or that the person is associated in any way with a visiting nurse association or service. Directs the Attorney General to: (1) establish standards and procedures governing the imposition of civil penalties for such violations which provide for the imposition of a penalty only after the person has been given an opportunity for a hearing on the record; and (2) issue any regulations necessary to carry out this Act. Makes the remedies provided under this Act in addition to the remedies provided by any other law.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 1991
Designates December 4, 1991, as Federal Civilian Employee Remembrance Day to recognize contributions provided by Federal civilian employees during the attack on Pearl Harbor and during World War II.
United States · United States Congress · 31 October 1991
Makes the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November in each even numbered year a legal public holiday known as Democracy Day (exept for purposes of statutes relating to pay and leave of Federal employees).
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 1991
1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games Commemorative Coin Act - Provides for the minting and sale of commemorative gold and silver coins to support the 1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games and the programs of the United States Olympic Committee.
![Official portrait of Rep. Staggers, Harley O., Jr. [D-WV-2]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s000779_200.jpg)