United States · United States Congress · 5 December 1974
Imposes, under the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, a tax on every new automobile, except commercial and farm vehicles, manufactured, produced, or imported between July 1, 1975 and June 30, 1980, based on their fuel consumption rates. Provides that such tax shall be paid by the manufacturer, producer or importer. Requires the public disclosure of the fuel consumption rate of every new automobile. Directs the Secretary of the Department of Transportation to submit to Congress, not later than July 1, 1979, a report recommending legislation which would provide for taxation of all new automobiles after June 30, 1981, based upon a universally applicable standard of fuel consumption to be developed by the Secretary. Requires the Secretary to conduct a program to develop more efficient automobile engines, using funds received from the tax imposed by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 10 October 1974
Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to purchase lands for the establishment of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area in the State of Georgia.
United States · United States Congress · 10 October 1974
Home Purchase Assistance Act - Requires that whenever the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development determines that a substantial number of families are unable to obtain mortgage credit at reasonable rates due to high interest rates or reduced availability of mortgage credit and that the inability to obtain such credit is causing or threatening to cause a significant reduction in the volume of home construction or acquisition and thereby adversely to affect the economy and to delay the orderly achievement of the national housing goals contained in title XVI of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968, the Secretary shall direct the Government National Mortgage Association to begin making commitments to purchase and to purchase mortgages in accordance with the provisions of this Act. Establishes within the Association a Housing Trust Fund which shall be used to carry out such purposes. Provides that mortgages may be purchased under this Act only if: (1) such mortgage was executed to finance the acquisition of the principal residence of the mortgagor; and (2) such mortgage involves the acquisition or construction of a residential dwelling at a cost which does not exceed $30,000 (or such greater amount, but not to exceed $45,000 as may be necessary to meet the need for mortgage credit in high cost areas). States that the Association shall not permit the aggregate outstanding amount of mortgages held by the fund under this section to increase by more than $10,000,000,000 in any single fiscal year. Requires that 50 percent of the aggregate principal amount of home mortgages purchased under this Act in any fiscal year shall involve residences upon which construction has been completed within twelve months preceding the date of purchase.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 1974
Excludes former Presidents, whose service is terminated by resignation while impeachment proceedings are pending against them in either the House of Representatives or the Senate, from specified allowances and compensation provided by Federal law. (Amends 3U.S.C. 102nt.)
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 1974
Requires the President to provide for public access to all Watergate-related facts produced by any investigation conducted by any Federal executive office and to all Watergate-related documents which were produced from January 20, 1969, through August 9, 1974, and which were in the custody of the United States on August 9, 1974.
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 1974
Authorizes the Architect of the Capitol to acquire the Willard Hotel in the District of Columbia for the purpose of providing living quarters for congressional interns and pages of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Provides for use of space in such building for office purposes by the Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 1974
Requires, under title XVI of the Social Security Act, that the value of maintenance and support furnished an indivudual or his eligible spouse by a nonprofit retirement home be excluded from income for the purpose of determining eligibility for supplemental security income benefits under such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 1974
States that the House of Representatives disapproves the alternative plan for pay adjustments for Federal employees under statutory pay systems recommended and submitted by the President to Congress on August 31, 1974.
United States · United States Congress · 22 August 1974
Nuclear Energy Reappraisal Act - Terminates the granting of construction licenses of nuclear fission powerplants in the United States pending action by the Congress following a comprehensive five-year study of the nuclear fuel cycle, with particular reference to its safety and environmental hazards, to be conducted by the Office of Technology Assessment. Empowers the Office to compel delivery of any information in the possession of the National Laboratories which the Office deems necessary for conducting its study. Specifies that all Government agencies shall cooperate to the fullest extent with the Office. States that the recommendations of the study shall employ a cost benefit analysis of the safety and environmental hazards associated with the entire fuel cycle, the long-term economic effect of a commitment to nuclear fission powerplants, and the central question of proliferation of nuclear fission powerplants in relation to the possible alternatives. Specifies topics to be included in the comprehensive study of the office of Technology Assessment, in addition to those previously stated. Authorizes to be appropriated $100,000 for each of five fiscal years to carry out the study authorized by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 22 August 1974
Expresses the findings of Congress, including that Federal information reporting requirements have placed an unprecedented paperwork burden upon private citizens, recipients of Federal assistance, businesses, governmental contractors, and State and local governments. Establishes a Commission on Federal Paperwork to study procedures and practices of the Federal Government relating to information gathering, dissemination, and the management and control of information activities. Enumerates the areas to be considered by the Commission in its studies. Directs the Commission to make a final report to the Congress and the President within two years of the date of its first meeting. Sets forth the membership composition of the Commission and their compensation. Details the administrative powers of the Commission. Calls for cooperation between Federal agencies and the Commission. Authorizes to be appropriated to the Commission such sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 August 1974
Expresses the policy of the Congress that the performance of the functions of the Federal Government should be attained by use of its own manpower and not by means of contracts with the private sector.
United States · United States Congress · 13 August 1974
Public Service Employment Act - Declares that one of the purposes of the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act of 1973 is to provide employment opportunities to assure that no area in the United States has an unemployment rate in excess of seven percent. Defines "area of severe unemployment". Establishes in the Treasury the Public Service Employment Fund. Sets forth the amounts in such fund during each fiscal year and authorizes appropriations to carry out the purposes of this Act. Provides that eligible applicants shall be entitled to allotments from the fund in accordance with the excess number of unemployed persons residing in areas of severe unemployment. Makes technical and conforming amendments to specified Federal Acts.
United States · United States Congress · 13 August 1974
Cost-of-living Adjustment Act- Provides, under the Internal Revenue Code, for automatic cost-of-living adjustments, based on the Consumer Price Index, in: (1) the income tax rates; (2) the amount of standard deductions; (3) the amount of personal exemptions; (4) the amount of depreciation deductions; and (5) the adjusted basis for property. Makes cost-of- living adjustments in specified United States savings bonds and certificates and on other obligations of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 13 August 1974
Authorizes the Architect of the Capitol to acquire the Willard Hotel in the District of Columbia for the purpose of providing living quarters for congressional interns and pages of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Provides for use of space in such building for office purposes by the Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 8 August 1974
Provides for the printing of 60,000 copies of the Constitution of the United States in Spanish, for use by members of the Senate, the House of Representatives, and the House Judiciary Committee.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1974
Establishes a Select Committee on Aging in the House of Representatives. Authorizes the committee to conduct a full and complete investigation and study of any and all matters pertaining to problems of older people, including, but not limited to, problems of maintaining health, of assuring adequate income, of finding employment, of engaging in productive and rewarding retirement activity, of securing proper housing, and, when necessary, of assuring adequate care or assistance. Directs the Committee to report to the House from time to time the results of its investigation and study, together with such recommendations as it deems advisable.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 1974
Expresses the sense of the House that the United States Government should seek agreement with other members of the United Nations on the prohibition of weather modification activity as a weapon of war.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1974
Arthritis Prevention, Treatment, and Rehabilitation Act - Makes it the purpose of this Act to establish: (1) a long-range plan to expand and coordinate the national research, treatment, and control effort against arthritis and related musculoskeletal diseases; (2) centers for arthritis prevention, research, screening, early detection, training, treatment, and rehabilitation programs; and (3) programs to develop new and improved methods of arthritis screening and early detection and to establish a central arthritis screening and early detection data bank. Requires the Director of the National Institutes of Health to establish a National Commission on Arthritis and Related Musculoskeletal Diseases. Specifies the composition, duties, and powers of the Commission. States that the Commission shall formulate a long-range plan to combat arthritis and related musculoskeletal diseases with specific recommendations for the utilization and organization of national resources for that purpose. States that the plan shall include a plan for a coordinated research program encompassing existing and proposed Federal, non-Federal and local programs. Enumerates investigations, studies, and programs to be carried out under such plan. Authorizes to be appropriated $1,000,000 to carry out the above purposes. Establishes within the National Institute on Arthritis, Metabolism, and Digestive Diseases the position of Associate Director for Arthritis and Related Musculoskeletal Diseases. States that the Director of the National Institutes of Health shall establish an Inter-Institute Arthritis and Related Diseases Coordinating Committee to better coordinate research activities relating to arthritis and related musculoskeletal diseases. Provides for the development, establishment, construction, and operation of arthritis research and training centers. Specifies the purposes to be achieved by such research and training programs. Provides for the geographical distribution, operational support, and evaluation of such research and training centers. Authorizes specified appropriations for fiscal years 1975, 1976, and 1977 for the establishment of such centers. Authorizes the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to establish and support arthritis screening, early detection, prevention, and control demonstration programs. Specifies the purpose of such programs. Authorizes specified appropriations for fiscal years 1975, 1976, and 1977 for the establishment and support of such programs. Requires the Secretary to establish the Arthritis Screening and Detection Data Bank as soon as practicable after the enactment of this Act. Provides that not less than $500,000 of the sums appropriated to the National Institutes of Health to carry out the purposes of this Act shall be obligated for basic and clinical orthopedic research conducted or supported by the National Institute on Arthritis, Rheumatism, and Metabolic Diseases.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1974
Provides that each Member of the House of Representatives, the Resident Commissioner from Puerto Rico, and the Delegates from the District of Columbia, Guam, and the Virgin Islands may hire not more than two additional employees who shall be known as John W. McCormack Senior Interns in honor of the former Speaker of the House of Representatives. States that such interns may be hired for not more than two weeks during the period May 1 through May 31 of each year and shall serve within the District of Columbia. Stipulates that for this purpose each such Member, Resident Commissioner, or Delegate shall have available annually for payment of compensation to such interns a total allowance of $500, to be payable to such interns at a rate not to exceed $125 per week, out of the contingent fund of the House. Requires that no person shall be paid compensation as a John W. McCormack Senior Intern who does not have on file with the Clerk of the House of Representatives, at all times during the period of employment as such intern, an appropriate certificate that such intern is sixty years of age or older and a resident of the district which the employing Member, Commissioner, or Delegate represents.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 1974
Revises the Employment Act of 1946 to make the promotion of price stability a recognized factor in the formulation of national economic policy, along with the promotion of employment, production, and purchasing power.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 1974
Eastern Wilderness Areas Act - Designates specified lands in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System. Provides for a study of specified additional lands in 18 States and Puerto Rico for such inclusion. Authorizes to be appropriated the sums necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 1974
Child and Family Service Act - Title I: Child and Family Service Programs - Provides that the Secretary shall take all necessary action to coordinate child and family service programs under his jurisdiction and that, to this end, he shall establish and maintain within the Office of the Secretary of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare an Office of Child and Family Services administered by a Director appointed by the President with the advise and consent of the Senate. Provides that such office shall assume the responsibility of the Office of Child Development and shall be the principal agency of the Department for the administration of this Act. Establishes a Child and Family Services Coordinating Council, consisting of the Director of the Office of Child and Family Services (who shall serve as chairperson), and representatives from the Federal agencies administering the Social Security Act and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and from the appropriate Federal agencies. Requires the Department of Labor, and other appropriate agencies, to meet on a regular basis, as they may deem necessary, in order to assure coordination of child and family service activities under their respective jurisdictions so as to assure maximum use of available resources through the prevention of duplication of activities; and to structure the activities related to the purposes of this Act. States that funds available for this title may be used (in accordance with approved applications and plans) for planning and developing child and family service programs; establishing, maintaining, and operating child and family service programs, which may include: (1) part-day or full-day child care programs, which provide educational, health, nutritional, and social services directed toward enabling participating children to attain their maximum potential; (2) other health, social, recreational, and educational programs designed to meet the special needs of children and families including before- and after- school and summer programs; (3) school services, and education, and consultation for parents, other family members functioning in the capacity of parents, youth, and prospective and expectant parents who request assistance in meeting the needs of their children; (4) social services to help families determine the appropriateness of child and family services and the possibility of alternative plans; (5) prenatal, post partum and other medical care, including services to expectant mothers who cannot afford such services, designed to help reduce handicapping conditions among the newborn; (6) programs designed to meet the special needs of ethnic groups and to meet the needs of all children to understand the history and cultural backgrounds of ethnic groups and the role of members of such groups in the histroy and cultural development of the Nation and the region in which they reside; (7) food and nutritional services; (8) diagnosis, identification, and treatment, and special activities designed to ameliorate physiological, mental, psychological, and emotional barriers to full participation in child and family service programs; (9) programs designed to extend child and family service gains (particularly parent participation) into the kindergarten and early primary grades, in cooperation with local educational agencies; (10) other such services and activities as the Secretary deems appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of this Act; (11) rental, lease or lease-purchase, mortgage amortization payments, renovation, acquisition and maintenance of necessary equipment and supplies, and to the extent authorized by this Act, construction or acquisition of facilities, including mobile facilities; (12) preservice and inservice education and training for professional and paraprofessional personnel, including parents and volunteers, especially education and training for career development and advancement; (13) staff and other administrative expenses of child and family service councils and of project policy committees established and operated in accordance with the provisions of this Act; and (14) dissemination of information in the functional language of those to be served to assure that parents are well informed of child and family service programs available to them and may participate in such programs. Provides that a State, locality, or combination of localities may be designated by the Secretary as a prime sponsor for the purpose of entering into arrangements to carryout programs under this title. Enumerates the requirements which must be met by States and localities submitting prime sponsorship applications. States that each prime sponsor shall establsih and maintain a Child and Family Service Council of specified composition. States that such Council shall be responsible for approving child and family service plans, basic goal, policies, procedures, overall budget policies and project funding, and the selection or establishment and annual renewal of an administering agency or agencies and will be responsible for annual and ongoing evaluation of child and family service programs according to criteria established by the Secretary. States that financial assistance under this title may be provided by the Secretary for fiscal year 1975 and any subsequent fiscal year to a prime sponsor only pursuant to a child and family service plan which is submitted by such prime sponsor and approved by the Secretary in accordance with the provisions of this title. Specifies the elements to be contained in such plans, and the procedure including opportunity for airing of views with respect to such plan, for approval or disapproval of the plan. States that funds may be provided by the prime sponsor for carrying out any program under such prime sponsor's comprehensive child and family service plan only to a qualified public or private agency or organization, including but not limited to an educational agency or institution, a community action agency, single-purpose Headstart agency, community development corporation, parent cooperative, organization of migrant agricultural workers, organization of Indians, organization interested in child care, employer or business organization, labor union, or employee or labor management organization, or by any other public or private agency whose project application is approved by the Child and Family Service Council of the prime sponsorship. Provides for special grants to States for necessary expenses incident to the operation of programs authorized by this Act in such States, and, in addition to the conditions which must be met for such grants, requires that grants for construction or acquisition of facilities may be made only if such construction or acquisition is essential to the provision of adequate child care services. Title II: Standards And Evaluations - Provides that, within six months after the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall promulgate a common set of program standards which shall be applicable to all programs providing child care services under this or any other Federal Act, to be known as the Federal Standards for Child Care. Provides that the Secretary shall, within sixty days of the enactment of this Act, appoint a Special Committee on Federal Standards for Child Care to participate in the development of Federal Standards for child care and modifications thereof. Provides for the development of a minimum code for child and family service facilities to be addressed to the health, safety, and physical comfort of the children participating in such programs. Title III: Facilities and Research for Child and Family Services Programs - States that it is the purpose of this title to assist and encourage the provision of urgently needed facilities for child care and comprehensive child services programs. States that the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare is authorized to insure any mortgage (including advances on such mortgage during construction) in accordance with the provisions of this title upon such terms and conditions as he may prescribe and make commitments for insurance of such mortgage prior to the date of its execution or disbursement thereon. Provides that the mortgage shall be executed by a mortgagor approved by the Secretary, and that such mortgages shall involve in principal obligation of up to $250,000 and not to exceed 90 percent of the estimated replacement costs of properties or projects when the proposed improvements are completed. Creates a Child and Family Services Facility Insurance Fund which shall be used by the Secretary as a revolving fund for carrying out all the insurance provisions of this title, including mortgage insurance. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants, contracts, or other arrangements to carry out a program of research and demonstration projects, which shall include but not be limited to: (1) research to develop techniques to measure and evaluate child and family services, and to develop standards to evaluate professional and paraprofessional child and family service personnel; (2) research to test preschool programs emphasizing reading and reading readiness; (3) preventive medicine, techniques, and technology to improve the early diagnosis and treatment of diseases and learning disabilities of pre-school children; (4) research to test alternative methods of providing child and family service; (5) evaluation of research findings and the development of these findings and the effective application thereof; (6) dissemination and application of research and development efforts and demonstration projects to early childhood education programs; (7) production of informational systems and other resources necessary to support the activities authorized by this Act; (8) developing methods of determining the needs of individual children in particular areas such as education, nutrition, and medical services, so as to permit the modification of programs to fit the needs of individual children; and (9) a study of the need on a nationwide basis for child and family services programs and of the resources, including personnel, which are available to meet this need. Title IV: Training of Personnel for Child and Family Services - Authorizes the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to make grants to or enter into contracts with institutions of higher education, State and local agencies, State and local educational agencies, private organizations and agencies engaged in teacher training, teacher training institutions, national child care organizations, and producers of television programing, for the purpose of establishing, developing, or upgrading early childhood personnel training programs to respond to the demonstrated need for child services personnel in the 1970's; and by stimulating the development of sufficient training and educational programs in every State and region of the United States to assure an adequate supply of personnel to meet staffing requirements. Authorizes appropriations for fiscal years 1975, 1976 and 1977 to carry out this title. Title V: General Provisions - Defines the terms used in this Act. Provides for nutrition services to be provided to child and family service programs under the National School Lunch Act of 1946 and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966.
United States · United States Congress · 2 July 1974
Requires, under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, that all proposed agreements between the United States and any foreign power for cooperation on atomic energy development be subject to a congressional power to disapprove. (Amends 42 U.S.C. 2153)
United States · United States Congress · 2 July 1974
Provides, under provisions of the Internal Revenue Code relating to scholarship and fellowship grants, that no amount shall be included in gross income by reason of the discharge of the indebtedness of an individual under a student loan if such discharge was pursuant to a provision of the loan under which the indebtedness would be discharged if the individual worked for a certain period of time in certain professions or certain geographical areas or for certain classes of employers. Defines "student loan" for purposes of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1974
Harry S. Truman Memorial Scholarship Act - Expresses the findings of Congress and declares that it is especially appropriate to honor former President Harry S. Truman through the creation of a perpetual educational scholarship program to develop increased opportunities for young Americans to prepare and pursue careers in public service. Establishes as an independent establishment of the executive branch of the United States Government, the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation, to be subject to the supervision and direction of the Board of Trustees. Authorizes the Foundation to award fifty-one scholarships in any fiscal year beginning after June 30, 1973, for undergraduate study for persons who plan to pursue a career in public service. States that each recipient shall be knows as a Truman scholar. Sets forth provisions governing: (1) the scholarship requirements; (2) the procedures for selection of Truman scholars; (3) stipends and institutional allowances; and (4) the scholarship conditions. Establishes in the Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known as the Harry S. Truman Memorial Scholarship Trust Fund. Prescribes the procedures for expenditures from the fund. Directs that there shall be an Executive Secretary of the Foundation, appointed by the Board, who shall be the chief executive officer and shall carry out the functions of the Foundation subject to the supervision and direction of the Board. Authorizes to be appropriated $30,000,000 to the fund. Authorizes to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for administrative expenses incident to carrying out the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1974
Natural Resource Information Act - Expresses the findings of Congress and declares the purposes of this Act, including to provide: (1) for improved resource information within a National Resource Information System, (2) for inventories of natural resources in the public lands, (3) for regular reporting of information by significant corporations in natural resource industries, and (4) information that will aid in improved policy making, conservation, science, environmental protection, competition and regulation. Defines the terms used in this Act. Title I: Bureau of Natural Resource Information - Establishes a Bureau of Resource Information within the Department of Commerce, headed by a Director of Resource Information appointed by the President by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Provides that the Bureau is to (1) build, operate, maintain and improve the National Resource Information System; (2) establish consultation, coordination and exchange arrangements with other departments and agencies of government, and private institutions, which have libraries of natural resource information; and (3) conduct studies of the state of information on such subjects as the institutional structure of the resource supply system, consumption patterns, statistical and accounting methods and problems in natural resource information, price and cost factors affecting energy, technological and environmental factors, and capital requirements of public and private institutions responsible for natural resources. Directs the Bureau to report monthly, quarterly and annually on specified classes of natural resource information. Title II: National Resource Information System - Establishes a National Resource Information System to be operated and maintained by the Bureau. Establishes in the System three components: a public library, a confidential library, and a secret library. Provides that the System shall use other available libraries of resource information; use modern, including microform and electronic, methods; have its information on natural resource industries organized by establishments, companies, Standard Industrial Classifications, geographical locations and other referents; and have the capacity to receive and answer questions of fact concerning, and compare sources of, natural resource information. Provides for public use of the public library of the System, at fees sufficient to cover costs of such use. Provides for waiver or reduction of fees in cases of public-interest use. Provides for access to the confidential library by Federal Government officials for official use only. Establishes the secret library as the repository for information that may be used only for statistical purposes in anonymous aggregates. Establishes priorities for entry of information into the System. Defines and limits national security and reasonable competitive equities as reasons for placement of information in the confidential or secret library. Provides for removal of information more than 25 years old from the confidential or secret library to the public library. Provides for hearings in cases of dispute on placement of information in a particular library of the System, and for placement of information in question in the secret library pending resolution of the dispute. Provides penalties for unauthorized disclosures and thefts of information from the System, and for failure to provide required information for the System. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce or the Director to obtain from an affiliate of a company, or an organization of which it is a member, any information which they are empowered by this Act to obtain directly from the company, provided the company is notified. Gives the Secretary of Commerce and the Director power to inspect records and subpoena documents in certain cases. Confers jurisdiction on U.S. District Courts to enforce such subpoenas. Title III: Natural Resources Inventories and Inspections by the Department of the Interior - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to compile and maintain, on an annual basis, an inventory of natural resources in public lands of the United States including the Outer Continental Shelf. Provides that the inventories may be based on estimates, supplemented as feasible by onsite geological and engineering inspections by departmental personnel. Provides that the first inventory is to be completed within 18 months and reported to Congress within 20 months of the effective date of this title. Provides that copies of all such annual reports and inventories shall be given to the Director for the System's public library. Provides that, on request of the Director, the Secretary of the Interior shall make onsite physical inspections of mineral reserves and resources reported in private lands. Contains directions for the contents of reports by the Secretary of the Interior. Title IV: Information on Natural Resources - Provides that substantial natural resource companies are to file verified annual reports with the Director on the mineral reserves and natural resources they control. Contains directions on the contents of such reports. Provides for the promulgation by the Director of forms for the making of such reports. Provides that such forms shall be mailed by the Director to reporting companies within 11 months of the effective date of this title and be returned by companies to the Director within 60 days after receipt. Provides that information obtained by Director on report forms required by this title and title V shall be placed in the public, confidential, or secret library of the System, as provided by this Act. Title V: Information on Natural Resource Industries - Requires major companies in commerce to file verified annual reports, on an establishment basis, on their operations worldwide. Provides for the making of such reports in two parts, one being for the public library of the System and the other for the confidential or secret library. Contains directions for the contents of such reports, including information on shipments by Standard Industrial Classification, total business receipts, and in specified cases profit information. Authorizes the Director to require such reports more often than annually in specified cases, and to require from major natural resource companies lists describing all mandatory and voluntary reports they file elsewhere, containing natural resource information. Title VI: General Accounting Office Oversight - Provides that the Comptroller General of the United States, upon his own initiative or by direction of Congress, shall review and evaluate procedures of the Bureau. Directs the Comptroller General to report to Congress at least annually on such reviews of the Bureau. Provides that such report may be by endorsement of or addendum to the Bureau's own annual report. Title VII: Conformance of and With Other Statutes - Provides that the Director may excuse a company from providing natural resources information required by this Act, if the company waives confidential status of the same information as previously provided by it to the Census Bureau and protected by the Census Code. Title VIII: Miscellaneous - Authorizes appropriations to carry out the provisions of this Act. Establishes the effective date as the date of enactment, except titles IV and V, which are effective on the first day of the third full calendar month after date of enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 1974
Strip Mining Abolition Act - Requires public participation in the development and enforcement of regulations and standards promulgated and permits issued under this Act pertaining to strip mining. Empowers the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to: (1) investigate and inspect to insure compliance with this Act; (2) hold public hearings; (3) issue cease-and-desist orders; and (4) order the revocation, suspension or modification of permits. Title I: Environmental Protection Coal Mining Limitations - Prohibits development of any new or previously mined and abandoned site for coal surface mining and, within 6 months, contour surface coal mining. Allows continuation of non-contour coal mining if a permit is obtained, containing provisions for a reduction of mining production in three years to 50 percent of the 1973 level. Prohibits surface coal mining after 6 months unless a permit is obtained, containing provisions for land stabilization and postmining land use. Prohibits the issuance of permits for mining within 300 feet of dwellings or public buildings or that will interrupt watercourses. Sets forth requirements for permit applications, including submission of ownership statements, mining maps, a hydrologic effect statement, and results of test borings and core samplings. Sets forth requirements for mining and stabilization plans required of permit applicants, including identification of the entire mining area over the life of the operations, a statement of land uses prior to mining, a detailed description of mining and land stabilization methods, and a time schedule of operations. Requires public liability insurance on such operations for resulting personal and property damage. Requires surface coal mining operators to: (1) restore land to a condition capable of supporting prior uses; (2) carry on stabilization along with mining operations; (3) preserve topsoil; (4) restore the original contour of the land; (5) revegetate the land; (6) maintain hydrologic balance in the area; and (7) meet certain requirements in the use of explosives. Requires underground mine operators to: (1) backfill mine wastes in mine voids for mines opened after enactment of this Act where possible; (2) provide for adequate ground support; (3) seal all portals; and (4) refrain from use of water impoundments. Allows local, State, and Federal agencies to file objections to surface mining and stabilization plans and request and receive hearings at which the permit applicant must establish that his plans comply with applicable law. Requires the Administrator to make a decision within 30 days of such hearings on issuing a permit. Requires permit applicants whose permits have been approved to file a performance bond sufficient to assure stabilization in the event of forfeiture. Allows release of such bond upon satisfactory completion of mining and stabilization work. Prohibits suspension or revocation of a permit without notice of violations to the permittee and 10 days to take corrective action, without a public hearing (if requested), unless a significant threat to public health, private or public property, land or air exists. Provides for a written statement of reasons of any such action to a permittee and the right to appeal to United States district courts. Requires mine operators to keep specified records and use monitoring equipment. Requires inspection of surface mining sites once a month without notice and public disclosure of reports of such inspections. Provides that the Attorney General, at the Administrators request, may institute civil action to enforce this Act. Requires civil penalties for violations of permits or of this Act. Allows citizen suits against any alleged violators of this Act. Authorizes necessary appropriations to carry out this title. Prohibits Government procurement from mines in violation of this Act. States that where the surface owner is not the owner of the mineral estate proposed to be surface mined, the permit application shall include the written consent of the owner of such surface land, including lessees. Title II: Abandoned Mine Stabilization - Creates the Abandoned Coal Mine Stabilization Fund and authorizes appropriations to it of $100,000,000 and such other sums thereafter as Congress may appropriate. Directs the fund to be used for acquisition and stabilization of mined lands, acquisition and filling of voids and sealing of tunnels and shafts, and for use by the Secretary of Agriculture to combat erosion caused by mining effects. Limits the use of the fund to lands affected by mining prior to enactment of this Act. Provides for the condemnation of land when the Chief of the Corps of Engineers cannot otherwise acquire land for stabilization purposes. Authorizes bidding for stabilization work contracts, with preference to be given to former employees of surface coal mines. Authorizes matching grants to States which require and transfer land to the chief of the Corps of Engineers for such purposes. Provides for resale of such stabilized land. Title III: Assistance to Workers - Allows the Secretary of Labor to pay a readjustment allowance, equal to 90 percent of average wages, less any unemployment insurance payments, to an individual who has been totally or partially separated from employment in a surface or undergound coal mine because of the requirements of title I. Limits such assistance to 104 weeks, with an added 26 weeks to assist in completion of approved training. Affords such workers assistance in testing, counseling, and training and placement provided under any Federal law. Provides for relocation allowances for such workers. Provides for State cooperation in such training assistance. Authorizes necessary appropriations to the Secretary of Labor to carry out this title.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 1974
Provides hospital and medical care to members of the armed forces of Poland or Czechoslovakia who participated in armed conflict with an enemy of the United States during World War I or World War II, and who has been a citizen of the United States for not less than 10 years. Provides that such hospital and medical care shall be available to the same extent as if such service had been performed in the Armed Forces of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 1974
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should (1) immediately initiate negotiations at the highest level of the Turkish Government to prevent the resumption of opium production; and (2) if such negotiations prove unfruitful, exercise the authority provided by the Congress under the Foreign Assistance Act, to terminate all assistance to the Government of Turkey.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1974
Provides under the Internal Revenue Code, a tax deduction for dependent care expenses for married taxpayers who are employed part time, or who are students. Sets limits on such deductions Prohibits a reduction in such deduction (for dependent and household care services necessary for gainful employment) by the amount of income or payments received by an incapacitated spouse or dependent. (Amends 26 U.S.C. 214).
United States · United States Congress · 4 June 1974
Provides under title XVI of the Social Security Act for emergency assistance grants to recipients of supplemental security income benefits. Authorizes cost-of-living increases in such benefits and in State supplementary payments. Requires that in order for any State to be eligible for payments pursuant to title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act, all increases in the adjusted payment level of supplemental security income benefits shall be fully reflected in the amount of the benefits under title XVI of such Act actually paid to and received by recipients of such benefits. Prevents reductions in such benefits because of social security benefit increases. Provides reimbursement to States for home relief payments to disabled applicants prior to determination of their disability. Permits the payment of such benefits directly to drug addicts and alcoholics (without a third-party payee) in specified cases. Requires action within 30 days upon requests for such benefits. Continues on a permanent basis the provision making supplemental security income recipients eligible for food stamps. States that determinations by the Secretary of Health Education, and Welfare as to eligibility for such benefits shall be final. Excludes from income, for purposes of eligibility for such benefits, specified education expenses paid for by grants, fellowships, or scholarships. Provides that the State social service agency will provide an opportunity for a fair hearing, before such agency, to any aged, blind, or disabled individual requesting a hearing because his claim for services is denied, or it is not acted upon with reasonable promptness, or because he is aggrieved by any other agency action by which he is affected and which relates to the receipt, suspension, reduction, or termination of such services.
United States · United States Congress · 30 May 1974
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should (1) immediately initiate negotiations at the highest level of the Turkish Government to prevent the resumption of opium production; and (2) if such negotiations prove unfruitful, exercise the authority provided by the Congress under the Foreign Assistance Act, to terminate all assistance to the Government of Turkey.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 1974
Directs the Department of Labor in cooperation with the Bureau of the Census to immediately begin to undertake the collection and compilation of data in order to provide for the monthly publication by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, beginning not later than July 1973, of the nationwide unemployment rate among Spanish-speaking Americans; and that the Bureau of the Census and the Department of Labor and the Department of Agriculture undertake further efforts to collect and publish regularly statistics which provide indicators of the social and economic condition of Spanish-speaking citizens in urban and rural America.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 1974
Requires the Secretary of Defense to take such action as is necessary to insure that any member of the Armed Forces who is discharged shall receive a discharge certificate which shall indicate that such member was so discharged and which shall not bear any indication of the conditions under which such separation occured. States that the reason why such member was so separated (other than by reason of discharged dismissal pursuant to a sentence of a general or special court-martial) and all other records or documents pertaining to such reason or reasons shall be treated as confidential and shall not be made known to or otherwise released to any private person or any public agency (whether Federal, State, or local) without the prior written consent of the member concerned. Sets forth the conditions under which an enlisted member of the Armed Forces may be discharged under other than honorable conditions. Establishes procedures for military review panels in considering the dishonorable discharge of enlisted personnel. Requires military review panels to conduct hearings which afford the enlisted member concerned an opportunity to: (1) appear before the panel and present evidence in his own behalf; (2) be represented by counsel; (3) confront the witnesses against him; and (4) examine documentary and real evidence against him. States that the recommendation of a review panel appointed under the provisions of this Act for separation under other than honorable conditions may be appealed to an appeal board established by the Judge Advocate General concerned, or the General Counsel of the Department of Transportation, as appropriate. Authorizes the Secretaries concerned to prescribe regulations to carry out the provisions of this Act. Requires the Secretaries concerned, after consultation with the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs, to establish a number (but not less than ten) of regional boards of review throughout the United States. States that the function of the regional boards shall be to review the discharge or dismissal (other than a discharge or dismissal by a general or special court-martial) of any former member of an Armed Forces under the jurisdiction of the military department concerned. Provides that if a request for the review of a discharge or dismissal of any person who was discharged or dismissed from the Armed Forces within the fifteen-year period immediately preceding the effective date of this Act was filed before such effective date and such review resulted in no change to the discharge or dismissal, or no new discharge was issued, another request for review of that discharge or dismissal pursuant to this Act may be filed and such review shall be acted upon without prejudice, if such request for review is filed with the appropriate regional board of review within the one-year period immediately following such effective date.
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 1974
Reduces from twelve to five years the creditable service requirements under the Federal employees group life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance and health benefits programs. (Amends 5 U.S.C. 8706 (b), 8714, 8901, and 8905)
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 1974
Directs the Secretary of the Interior, within 30 days after enactment of this Act, to transmit to the Federal Power Commission the rate schedules promulgated by him on November 1, 1973 for each of five Bureau of Reclamation projects (Central Valley, Colorado River storage, Parker-Davis, eastern and western divisions of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin, and Rio Grande), and all pertinent documents, letters, memoranda, and other materials. Requires the Commission, with the assistance of the Comptroller General, to promptly conduct a thorough review of the promulgated schedules and the criteria and procedures followed by the Secretary in developing such schedules for the purpose of determining their reasonableness and adequacy and their consistency with applicable requirements of law and regulations. Provides that, upon completion of such review, the Commission shall issue a decision as to each project, approving the schedules or recommending modifications to the Secretary. States that each such decision shall be made on the record after an opportunity for public hearing pursuant to the Federal Power Act. Requires the Secretary to promptly publish proposed regulations providing for opportunity for an adequate public hearing and written decision on the record concerning any electric power rate increase hereinafter proposed by the Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 1974
Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to study the feasibility of a national park, recreation area, or wilderness area in the Ridgelands east of the San Francisco Bay in the State of California. Authorizes to be appropriated the sums necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 1974
Increases the per diem allowance of Federal employees traveling on official business within the continental United States; and increases the reimbursement for necessary travel expenses in excess of the per diem allowance. Directs the Comptroller General to conduct annually a study on the actual cost a mile to Federal employees for the use of privately owned vehicles. States than an employee shall not use a privately owned motorcycle, automobile, or airplane, under specified conditions, unless authorized in writing to do so in the travel authorization.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 1974
Directs the Joint Committee on the Library to procure a bronze bust or statue of Martin Luther King, Junior, and to cause such sculpture to be placed in a suitable location in the Capitol as determined by the Joint Committee on the Library.
United States · United States Congress · 3 April 1974
Authorizes a five-year extension of the period of temporary admission into the United States for specified residents of Chile who are presently in the United States as nonimmigrant aliens.
United States · United States Congress · 2 April 1974
Grand Jury Reform Act - Provides for the confinement of recalcitrant witnesses in proceedings before any Federal grand jury of the United States. Requires a District Court to give adequate and reasonable notice upon the impanelment of the grand jury concerning specified information, including: the grand jury's duty to inquire into offenses against the criminal laws of the United States, which have been committed within that district; its authority to make independent inquiry; its right to question witnesses; its right to request production of documents; its rights with respect to an independent inquiry and such other duties and rights as the court deems advisable. Permits an impaneled grand jury to inquire of its own initiative about offenses against the United States. Outlines the term of service of the grand jury. Authorizes the court appointment of a special attorney to assist the grand jury if so requested. Specifies that such attorney shall have the exclusive authority to assist the grand jury, and shall sign any indictment returned by such jury. Outlines special rights of grand jury witnesses with regard to subpoena, testimony, counsel, scope of investigation and self-incrimination. Permits immunity from prosecution in specified circumstances for any witness who is compelled to produce or testify before the grand jury. Specifies those instances in which a U.S. District Court may issue an order compelling a witness to testify. Sets forth the general rules governing immunity of witnesses. Requires the Attorney General to annually report to the Congress and the Administrative Office of the United States Courts specified information concerning grand jury investigations.
United States · United States Congress · 28 March 1974
Octane Rating Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to conduct tests of a representative sample of motor vehicles for the purposes of determining the lowest average octane rating of gasoline which can be used without knocking in each motor vehicle sold in the United States, beginning with motor vehicles manufactured for the 1965 model year and ending with motor vehicles manufactured for the 1975 model year, and to publish such findings in the Federal Register not later than December 31, 1974. States that beginning with motor vehicles manufactured for the 1976 model year, no new motor vehicle shall be sold or offered for sale in the United States unless the manufacturer has: (1) tested a motor vechicle which is in all respects substantially the same construction as such new vehicle; (2) submitted the results of such tests to the Secretary for publication in the Federal Register; and (3) published in the owners' manual of such new vehicle the lowest average octane rating of gasoline which can be used without knocking in such vehicle based upon such tests. Requires every major refiner to produce and market to the general public, in amounts determined by the Secretary, a gasoline the average octane rating of which is equal to the lowest average octane rating which can be used without knocking in the particular class of motor vehicles. States that such gasoline shall be produced and marketed after such period as the Secretary finds necessary to permit the development and application of the requisite technology. Sets forth penalties for violations of the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 1974
Energy Accounting Investigations Act - Declares that the Congress reiterates the continuing commitment of the United States to the goal of a free enterprise economy which functions fairly and efficiently with a minimum of Government interference. Defines the terms used in this Act. Defines the term "energy industries" as meaning the following lines of commerce: (1) production of mineral fuels; (2) refining or otherwise processing mineral fuels for use as a source of energy; (3) transportation of mineral fuels by rail, motor vehicle, water, pipeline, or otherwise; (4) electrical power generation and transmission; or (5) wholesale or retail distribution or sale of mineral fuels or electrical energy. Defines the term "production" as meaning the development of oil lands or oil shale lands within any State, the extraction of crude petroleum or oil shale, and the storage of crude petroleum on or in such lands. Requires the Federal Trade Commission to determine: (1) the extent to which competition among persons engaged in the provision of accounting services is abridged with relation to the provision of such services to the major oil companies; (2) the nature of the practices of persons engaged in the provision of accounting services to the major oil companies and the extent to which such practices work to the disadvantage of the general or investing public; (3) the extent to which those persons engaged in the provision of accounting services to the major oil companies fulfill their primary duty of "presenting fairly" the conditions of the firms they audit, as defined by the United States Court of Appeals; and (4) the nature and extent to which persons engaged in the provision of accounting services to the major oil companies serve as information conduits between persons involved in the energy industries. Requires that, no later than nine months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Federal Trade Commission shall prepare and submit to Congress and the President a report containing all information gathered under this Act, and such report shall be available for public inspection and for copying purposes. Declares that beginning one year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Federal Trade Commission shall take such steps as shall be necessary to: (1) remove anticompetitive barriers existing in the fields of auditing, tax servicing, and consulting with and for the major oil companies; and (2) promote fair and ethical standards in the relationships between persons engaged in the provision of the accounting services and their clients in the energy industries. Requires all integrated major oil companies, beginning one year after enactment of this Act, to file on an annual basis with the Federal Trade Commission economic and financial reports for each of the levels of operation with which they may be involved. Provides for the enforcement of this Act. Directs the Federal Trade Commission and the Attorney General of the United States or his designee to examine the activities of those persons engaged in the provision of accounting services as those services relate to the business of major oil companies. Provides that the Federal Trade Commission and the Attorney General of the United States or his designee, together or independently, shall institute suits in the district courts of the United States requesting the issuance of such relief as is appropriate under this Act to insure compliance with this Act. Provides for penalties for violations of the provisions of this Act. States that a violation by a corporation shall also be deemed to be a violation by the individual directors, officers, receivers, trustees, or agents of such corporation who shall have authorized, ordered, or done any of the act constituting the violation in whole or part, or who shall have omitted to authorize, order, or do any acts which would terminate, prevent, or correct conduct violative of this Act.
![Official portrait of Rep. Waldie, Jerome R. [D-CA-14]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/w000035_200.jpg)