United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1991
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the Congress and the President should reexamine and reduce the defense budget based on changing national security needs in the post-Cold War era; and (2) savings should be used to reduce the Federal budget deficit.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1991
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should: (1) recognize Ukraine's independence and take steps toward the establishment of full diplomatic relations with Ukraine should the December 1, 1991, referendum confirm the Ukrainian parliament's independence declaration; and (2) use U.S. assistance, trade, and other programs to support the Government of Ukraine and encourage the further development of democracy and a free-market.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 1991
Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to extend the period in which a Governor or Indian Tribal Council may request the Secretary of Agriculture to determine that a natural disaster has occurred for purposes of emergency loan eligibility.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 1991
Medicare EKG Payment Restoration Act of 1991 - Amends part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: (1) reestablish separate payment for the interpretation of electrocardiograms (EKGs) that are ordered or performed during an office visit or consultation with a physician; and (2) require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish separate fee schedule amounts for EKG interpretations and to adjust the relative values established for office visits to or consultations with a physician to reflect the establishment of such separate fee schedule amounts. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish practice guidelines for the use of EKGs for dissemination along with other educational information relating to the use of EKGs to physicians; (2) develop a profile of the use of EKGs by physicians; and (3) conduct a study and report to the Congress on the utilization and costs of EKGs.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 1991
Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to detail members of the armed forces to a State or local correctional agency for temporary duty as advisors and instructors at a correctional facility operated as a military-style boot camp if the Secretary determines that such personnel could contribute to the rehabilitative purposes of such facility. Credits such military personnel for all service performed during such detail. Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 1990 and 1991 and other Federal provisions relating to actions taken in conjunction with defense base closures and realignments to authorize the Secretary to transfer to the State or local government in which the military installation is located such appropriate property or facilities for conversion and use in conjunction with military-style boot camp operations at a correctional facility.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 1991
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the Secretary of the Army should investigate whether James L. Cadigan should be awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism in combat during World War II; and (2) if the Secretary recommends making such award, the Congress should consider appropriate legislation.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 1991
Extends nondiscriminatory treatment (most-favored-nation treatment) to the products of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to remove their products from the column two duty rate.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 1991
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should provide agricultural credit guarantees and technical assistance to the Soviet Union, the Soviet Republics, and the Baltic Nations to help meet their food needs.
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 1991
Commends the people of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and their democratically elected leaders for their continuing courage and commitment to freedom.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1991
Amends the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 to direct the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration to publish and update clearly defined arrival and departure routes leading to and from airports located within and in close proximity to terminal control areas and airport radar service areas for the optional use of pilots operating under visual flight rules.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1991
Intermodal Carriers Competitiveness Act of 1991 - Prohibits a State, political subdivision, or interstate agency of two or more States from adopting or enforcing any law, rule, regulation, or standard relating to interstate or intrastate rates, routes, services, or terms of service of any national intermodal carrier with respect to the provision of surface transportation of property in the State.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1991
Trade Equity Act of 1991 - Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to classify certain light trucks or light-duty trucks as motor vehicles for the transport of goods for purposes of tariff treatment under the Schedule.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1991
National Energy Efficient Lighting Education Act of 1991 - Directs the Secretary of Energy (the Secretary), within 12 months after enactment of this Act, to make grants to nonprofit institutions and universities (or a consortium of such entities) to establish one regional energy efficient lighting education and demonstration center (centers) in each of the ten regions served by a Department of Energy regional support office. Sets forth such centers' responsibilities, including functions relating to training of lighting professionals, information dissemination, and assistance for lighting engineering and technical programs and curricula. Sets forth requirements for grant applications, selection criteria, and matching funds. Directs the Secretary to establish a task force to: (1) oversee research and training carried out by grant recipients; (2) disseminate such research results; (3) review such programs; and (4) make recommendations for possible future programs. Directs the Secretary to report annually to the Congress on the activities of such centers. Authorizes appropriations for grants for such centers. Authorizes the Secretary to make matching grants to States to encourage State energy offices to supplement the activities of such centers in providing educational workshops to train local building owners, developers, and facility energy and financial managers regarding energy efficient lighting options. Requires such workshops to be conducted in cooperation with the center for the region in which the State is located and with technical assistance and educational material from such center. Gives preference for such grants to States in which a center has not been established. Sets limits on the amount of such a grant to any State. Directs the Secretary to report annually to the Congress on such educational workshops supported by State energy offices. Authorizes appropriations for such grants to States.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1991
Food Quality Protection Act of 1991 - Title I: Cancellation and Suspension - Amends provisions of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) relating to cancellation and changes in classification or other terms or conditions of registration with respect to the authority of the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Requires that a rulemaking under such provisions be based on a validated test or other significant evidence raising prudent concerns of unreasonable adverse effects to man or to the environment. Sets forth procedural requirements for such a rulemaking. Provides for amendment of a rule and for judicial review. Allows the Administrator, in the case of a suspension, to waive certain requirements. Allows the Administrator to elect to proceed with a special review proceeding or a public interim administrative review proceeding, if published before a specified date, under the law in effect before enactment of this Act. Requires the Administrator to reassess each tolerance and exemption from the requirement for a tolerance at certain times in connection with reregistration of pesticides. Establishes the Science Review Board to assist the Scientific Advisory Panel in reviews conducted by the Panel. Revises procedures applicable after denial of an application for registration. Allows the Administrator to deny an application for registration because it does not comply with the requirements of a rule issued under provisions of this Act. Repeals provisions regulating the authority of the Administrator to initiate a public interim administrative review process. Declares a decision made after a hearing in certain circumstances during phase three of reregistration to be final. Amends provisions regulating: (1) review by district courts of suspension of registrations; and (2) public hearings. Title II: Data Collection - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to collect pesticide use data of Statewide or regional significance for all the major crops and crops of dietary significance. Mandates research, development, and dissemination of integrated pest management techniques and other pest control methods that enable producers to reduce or eliminate application of pesticides which pose a greater than negligible dietary risk to humans. Title III: Amendments to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) to define, subject to exception, "pesticide chemical" as it is defined in the FIFRA. Adds to the list of prohibited acts under the FDCA violation of provisions relating to confidentiality of data, as amended by this Act. Deems a food adulterated if it bears or contains: (1) a pesticide chemical residue that is unsafe; or (2) a new animal drug, or conversion product thereof, that is unsafe. Sets forth requirements relating to tolerances and exemptions from the requirement of a tolerance for pesticide chemical residues in food, including residues of degradation products. Prohibits establishment of a tolerance higher than a level the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency determines is adequate to protect the public health. Sets forth the factors the Administrator must consider. Allows a greater than negligible dietary risk if: (1) use protects from greater adverse health effects to humans or the environment; (2) use avoids greater risks from another pesticide; or (3) the unavailability of the pesticide would reduce the availability of an adequate, wholesome, and economical domestic supply of the food, and the adverse effects from the reduction would outweigh the risk posed by the residue. Allows the Administrator to issue an exemption from the requirement for a tolerance only if the Administrator determines that a tolerance is not needed to protect the public health, in view of the levels of dietary exposure that could reasonably be expected to occur. Sets forth the factors the Administrator must consider. Sets forth procedures and requirements in connection with: (1) petitions for tolerances or exemptions; (2) certain actions authorized on the Administrator's own initiative; (3) the required submission of additional data to support the continuation of a tolerance or exemption; and (4) confidentiality of data submitted to the Administrator. Provides for continuation of previously issued regulations. Sets forth transitional provisions. Prohibits a final rule that revokes, modifies, or suspends a tolerance or exemption until the Administrator has taken any necessary action under the FIFRA with respect to the registration of the pesticide involved. Requires the Administrator, if the Administrator takes certain actions with respect to the registration of a pesticide, to revoke any tolerance or exemption that allows the presence of the chemical or chemical residue. Requires the suspension of any tolerance or exemption upon the suspension of the use of an associated registered pesticide. Provides for: (1) tolerances for unavoidable residues in the case of a residue of a canceled or suspended pesticide chemical that will unavoidably persist in the environment and thereby be present in or on a food; and (2) residues resulting from an application which was lawful at the time of the application. Directs the Administrator to require the payment of fees sufficient for the Administrator's functions under these provisions. Prohibits, subject to exception, a State from establishing or enforcing any limit on a qualifying pesticide chemical residue in or on any food which is not identical to Federal requirements. Prohibits a State from enforcing a residue limit which was lawful at the time of application. Authorizes appropriations for increased monitoring by the Secretary of Health and Human Services of pesticide residues in imported and domestic food.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1991
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that it should be U.S. policy to maintain all sanctions and embargoes against Iraq until all Kuwaiti prisoners are released to the proper Kuwaiti authorities and an account is rendered for Kuwaiti deaths under Iraqi detention.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1991
Amends rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives to prohibit a Member of the House from serving on any particular committee for more than 12 years. Disregards service performed on such committee for less than a full session of Congress and service performed prior to the beginning of the 103d Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 1991
Declares that the Congress: (1) regards the U.S. Trade Representative's policy on relaxation of quotas on Eastern European cheese as not in the interests of the United States and the American dairy industry; and (2) calls for the withdrawal of such policy. Declares that U.S. trade policy should be directed toward reducing the trade imbalance of cheese by promoting policies that increase the export of American dairy products.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 1991
Uniform Business Tax Act of 1991 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a uniform nine percent tax on the taxable value of property and services produced and sold in the United States by a taxable business. Provides that the taxable value shall be equal to the net business receipts of the business. Declares that the minimum tax shall not be less than the sum of employer payroll taxes. Allows as a credit against the uniform business tax for any taxable year of an amount equal to the minimum uniform business tax credit for such year. (Provides a formula for determining such minimum tax credit.) Defines net business receipts as the excess of business receipts over business expenses. Defines business receipts as the aggregate amount received in connection with a business from: (1) the sale or rental of property located in the United States; (2) the performance of services in the United States; or (3) the sale or use of intangibles (such as copyrights, patents, franchise rights, and know-how) in the United States. Excludes receipts from exports and certain other receipts. Defines business expenses as any amount paid by the taxpayer with respect to a business of the taxpayer for the purchase or use of property or for the purchase of services. Specifies expenses that are not included as business expenses. Sets forth special rules for determining business receipts and expenses with respect to: (1) sales of property; (2) services performed both inside and outside the United States; (3) exchanges treated as sales; (4) intermediation services in the case of insurance activities; and (5) sale or lease payments received in more than one taxable period. Provides special rules for possessions corporations in determining net business receipts. Provides that the uniform business tax will not be imposed on tax-exempt organizations. Defines a taxable business as: (1) any C corporation (any corporation other than a small business corporation); and (2) any other taxpayer with business receipts in excess of $50,000. Sets forth administrative provisions concerning the time for filing returns and consolidated returns of an affiliated group of corporations. Allows a tax credit against the net uniform business tax paid or incurred by an eligible taxpayer (any person liable for such tax). Imposes a tax on importers of nine percent of the customs value of all imported property for consumption, use, or warehousing, except for items entered into the United States duty-free. Repeals the: (1) corporate income tax; and (2) corporate minimum tax. Makes the employment tax on wages and the employer railroad retirement tax on compensation inapplicable to employers subject to the uniform business tax.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 1991
Military Retirement Equity Act of 1991 - Permits retired members of the armed forces to be paid retirement pay concurrently with compensation for any service-connected disability if the person's entitlement to such retirement pay is based solely on: (1) age; (2) length of service; or (3) both. Reduces the amount of retirement pay, in the case of individuals receiving both types of pay, by a specified percentage of the disability compensation which decreases as the disability rating increases. Prohibits any reduction in the retirement pay of a disabled person when the disability rating is total. Expresses the sense of the Congress that, once the Federal budget deficit has been reduced, the Congress should reexamine and eliminate any offset of retired pay by a veteran's disability compensation.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 1991
Military Fish and Wildlife Refuge Act of 1991 - Mandates: (1) notice to the Secretary of the Interior of any formal proposal to close a military installation; (2) transfer to the Department of the Interior, without compensation, of any of that real property appropriate for inclusion in the National Wildlife Refuge System; (3) inclusion of the property in the System; and (4) reversion of the property to the Department of Defense, if needed for national security.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1991
Dairy Production Stabilization Act of 1991 - Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to limit the milk price support program to the 48 contiguous States. Establishes manufacturing allowances for milk manufactured into: (1) butter and nonfat dry milk; and (2) cheese. Reduces support prices, including imposing a milk diversion program, if estimated Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) milk purchases exceed specified levels. Establishes: (1) a National Dairy Inventory Management Board; and (2) a milk inventory management program to handle excess inventory if estimated annual CCC milk prices exceed a specified level. Amends the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921 to establish milk producer and handler trusts. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to direct the CCC to carry out a diary heifer export program. Modifies the dairy termination program to permit a producer whose facilities have been rendered unusuable by a natural disaster to transfer such production facilities to an idled farm under specified conditions. Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to require: (1) annual CCC milk purchase estimates to include estimates of dairy cattle slaughtering; and (2) additional Department of Agriculture beef purchases in any year in which dairy cattle slaughtering exceeds specified levels. Amends the Agricultural Adjustment Act, as reenacted with amendments by the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, to establish marketing order milk solid percentages for whole, lowfat, and skim milk.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1991
Economic Growth Act of 1991 - Title I: Investment and Job Creation Incentives - Subtitle A: Reduction in Capital Gains Tax for Individuals - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a capital gains deduction for individuals for assets held from one to three years. Provides special rules for the gain or loss from the sale or exchange of collectibles and sales of interest in partnerships. Disallows such deduction in computing the alternative minimum tax. Revises the formula for determining gain from the dispositions of certain depreciable realty to take into account depreciation adjustments (adjustments allowed or allowable for exhaustion, wear and tear, obsolescence, or certain amortization). Subtitle B: Inflation Adjustment for Investments - Requires indexing, based on the consumer price index, of the adjusted basis of certain assets (corporate stock and tangible property that is a capital asset of property used in a trade or business after April 15, 1991) that have been held for more than one year at the time of sale or other transfer, solely for the purpose of determining gain or loss. Provides for the inflation adjustment treatment of: (1) short sales; (2) regulated investment companies and real estate investment trusts; and (3) partnerships, S corporations, and common trust funds. Prohibits gain from the sale or other disposition of an indexed asset from being taken into account under the limitation on investment interest. Subtitle C: Enterprise Zones - Part I: Designation - Authorizes the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (Secretary) to designate enterprise zones for purposes of providing tax and regulatory relief and improving local services. Limits choices to areas nominated by States and local governments. Limits the total number of areas that may be designated, and the time period of the designation. Authorizes the Secretary to designate a zone only if the area meets certain locational, demographic, unemployment, and poverty criteria. Requires nominating local governments, as a condition of the Secretary's designation, to agree in writing to follow a course of action that may include reducing tax rates, improving local services, simplifying or streamlining regulation of business, and providing job training to area residents. Describes areas to which the Secretary must give preference in selecting areas for designation. Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress every two years on the effects of such enterprise zones' designation in accomplishing the purposes of this Act. Part II: Federal Income Tax Incentives - Allows a nonrefundable income tax credit to enterprise zone employees for five percent of any wages earned as do not exceed a specified amount. Phases out such credit. Provides for the nonrecognition of capital gain on the sale of enterprise zone property. Allows a taxpayer a deduction on the aggregate amount paid for the purchase of enterprise stock on its original issue by a qualified issuer. Requires any gain from the disposition of the stock to be treated as ordinary income. Excludes enterprise zone capital gains from income computation of alternative minimum taxes. Part III: Regulatory Flexibility - Amends Federal law to revise the definition of "small entity" for purposes of the analysis of regulatory functions to include qualified business, government, and nonprofit enterprises operating within enterprise zones. Authorizes Federal agencies, upon request by a designating government, to waive or modify rules and regulations pertaining to the implementation of projects or activities within an enterprise zone. Requires agencies to approve the request if the resulting benefits of job creation, community development, or economic revitalization outweigh the public interest in retaining the rule unchanged. Disallows waiver or modification of a rule that would directly violate a statutory requirement or present a danger to the public health and safety. Part IV: Establishment of Foreign-Trade Zones in Enterprise Zones - Requires the Foreign-Trade Zone Board to consider on a priority basis and to expedite the processing of applications for the establishment of foreign-trade zones within enterprise zones. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to give priority to, and expedite applications for, the establishment of ports of entry necessary to establish such zones. Part V: Repeal of Title VII of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1987 - Repeals title VII (enterprise zone development) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1987. Subtitle D: Research and Experimentation Credit Made Permanent - Makes permanent the tax credit for increasing research activities and the tax credit for clinical testing expenses. Title II: Savings Incentives - Allows individuals to establish individual retirement plus accounts with tax treatment similar to that for individual retirement plans. Makes contributions to such accounts nondeductible. Allows existing individual retirement accounts (IRA) to be rolled over into individual retirement plus accounts with payment of tax on the amount rolled over for which a deduction was once allowable, but no tax when withdrawn. Title III: Homeownership Incentives - Subtitle A: First-Time Homebuyers - Allows a tax credit for the first-time purchase of a principal residence by individuals with incomes of $31,000 or less (phased-out to incomes of up to $41,000). Limits such credit to $1,000. Subtitle B: Penalty-Free IRA Plus Withdrawal for Home Purchase, Higher Education, and Health Costs - Allows penalty-free distributions from IRA Plus accounts of up to 25 percent of the account limit for: (1) first-time homebuyers; (2) medical expenses; and (3) higher education expenses. Title IV: Work Incentives - Subtitle A: Reduction in Social Security Penalty on Working Elderly - Amends title II of the Social Security Act (Federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance Benefits) to raise the earnings limit for retirees. Appropriates to each payor fund amounts equivalent to the aggregate increase in social security benefits payable from such fund which is attributable to such amendment. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to study during 1997 whether further amendments relating to deductions on account of work and the exempt amount under the earnings limit are necessary or appropriate. Subtitle B: Economic Growth Dividend - Requires any economic growth dividend (as determined by the Secretary of the Treasury) to be used to increase the personal exemption amount. Requires, after 1995, all revenues resulting from real growth in the gross national product greater than three percent to fund an increased personal exemption. Requires, for fiscal years beginning on or after October 1, 1992, and before October 1, 1995, that 50 percent of such dividend be used to increase the personal exemption amount and the other 50 percent be used to make a downward adjustment in the maximum deficit amount.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1991
Department of the Environment Act of 1991 - Redesignates the Environmental Protection Agency as the Department of the Environment, an executive agency to be administered by a Secretary of the Environment.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1991
Tax Fairness and Accountability Act of 1991 - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to require any legislation that increases the tax rate, the tax base, or the amount of income subject to tax, or decreases a deduction, exclusion, or credit to be approved in the House of Representatives and the Senate by an affirmative vote of three-fifths of its Members.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1991
All-Americans Savings and Investment Incentive Act of 1991 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide individuals a deduction for capital gains based on the period the asset is held (up to three years). Excludes collectibles from such assets. Makes such deduction an item of tax preferences. Excludes from gross income interest received during a taxable year up to $350 ($700 in the case of a joint return). Provides a phaseout of such exclusion for incomes over $50,000. Makes such exclusion applicable to distributions from regulated investment companies and real estate investment trusts. Makes certain nonresident aliens ineligible for such exclusion.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 1991
Establishes a Joint Committee on the Organization of the Congress to: (1) make a full and complete study of the organization and operation of the Congress; and (2) recommend improvements in such organization and operation with a view toward strengthening its effectiveness, simplifying its operations, improving its relationships with other branches of the Government, and improving the orderly consideration of legislation. Requires a report to the Senate and the House of Representatives not later than the adjournment sine die of the 102d Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1991
Establishes an Office of Family Support within the Department of Justice (DOJ), to be headed by a Director. Requires the Director to: (1) establish guidelines and oversee the implementation of family-friendly policies within law enforcement-related offices and divisions in DOJ; (2) study the effects of stress on law enforcement personnel and family well-being and disseminate the findings of such studies to Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies (LEAs), related organizations, and other interested parties; (3) identify and evaluate model programs that provide support services to law enforcement personnel and families; (4) provide technical assistance and training programs to develop stress reduction and family support to State and local LEAs; (5) collect and disseminate information regarding family support, stress reduction, and psychological services to Federal, State, and local LEAs, law enforcement-related organizations, and other interested entities; and (6) determine issues to be researched by the Office and by grant recipients. Authorizes the Director to make grants to States and local LEAs to provide family support services to law enforcement personnel. Directs State or local law enforcement grant recipients to use sums provided to establish or improve training and support programs for law enforcement personnel, including providing at least one of the following services: (1) counseling for law enforcement family members; (2) child care on a 24-hour basis; (3) marital and adolescent support groups; (4) stress reduction programs; and (5) stress education for law enforcement recruits and families. Authorizes such recipients to provide services such as: (1) post-shooting debriefings for officers and their spouses; (2) group therapy; (3) hypertension clinics; (4) counseling for families of personnel killed in the line of duty; and (5) seminars regarding alcohol, drug abuse, gambling, and overeating. Sets forth provisions with respect to: (1) application requirements; (2) geographic distribution of assistance among the States; (3) duration of the grant (not to exceed five years); and (4) limitations on the use of grant funds (not more than ten percent) for administrative purposes. Authorizes the Director to reserve ten percent of appropriated funds for discretionary research grants. Sets forth reporting requirements (by grant recipients and by the Director). Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1991
Access to Obstetrical Care Act of 1991 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide for demonstration projects to reduce infant mortality by improving access in underserved areas to obstetric services for eligible pregnant women under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act. Amends the Public Health Service Act to: (1) deem any officer, employee, or contractor of an entity receiving Federal funds, under provisions relating to migrant and community health centers and health services for the homeless, and who is a licensed health care practitioner to be an employee of the Public Health Service; and (2) subrogate to the United States any medical malpractice claim of such employee. Requires such entities to take certain actions regarding malpractice. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) develop and make available to the public each year a compendium of State initiatives to address the obstetric access crisis; and (2) provide funding for a study, and report to the Congress on, obstetrical malpractice claims payment by Medicaid and private insurance companies.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1991
Dairy Production Stabilization Act of 1991 - Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to limit the milk price support program to the 48 contiguous States. Establishes manufacturing allowances for milk manufactured into: (1) butter and nonfat dry milk; and (2) cheese. Reduces support prices, including imposing a milk diversion program, if estimated Commodity Credit Corportion (CCC) milk purchases exceed specified levels. Establishes: (1) a National Dairy Inventory Management Board; and (2) a milk inventory management program to handle excess inventory if estimated annual CCC milk prices exceed a specified level. Amends the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921 to establish milk producer and handler trusts. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to direct the CCC to carry out a dairy heifer export program. Modifies the dairy termination program to permit a producer whose facilities have been rendered unusuable by a natural disaster to transfer such production facilities to an idled farm under specified conditions. Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to require: (1) annual CCC milk purchase estimates to include estimates of dairy cattle slaughtering; and (2) additional Department of Agriculture beef purchases if any year in which dairy cattle slaughtering exceeds specified levels.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1991
Authorizes the President to use all necessary means to achieve the goals of United Nations Security Council Resolution 687 (concerning the control and elimination of Iraq's chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons). Endorses the determination of the President to accomplish such goals. Urges the President to: (1) continue to consult with the partners in the Desert Storm Coalition and the United Nations Security Council to achieve such goals; and (2) take all precautions to ensure that civilian casualties are avoided, should the use of force to achieve such goals be necessary.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 1991
Medicare Physician Payment Reform Amendments of 1991 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to revise the transition rules for phasing in the resource-based relative value scale (RB RVS) method of payment for physician services to prohibit adjustments for asymmetry in the transition and for behavioral responses. Declares spending under this Act to be an emergency requirement under the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) and exempt from sequestration.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 1991
Children and Families Services Act of 1991 - Title I: Strengthening Families; Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect; Preventing the Avoidable Separation of Families - Amends title IV (Grants to States for Aid and Services to Needy Families with Children and for Child-Welfare Services) of the Social Security Act (the Act) to provide for family crisis intervention. Entitles States to Federal payments for intensive family-based crisis intervention programs for families whose children are at imminent risk of placement outside their homes in order to: (1) maintain children safely in their homes; (2) preserve their families; and (3) reduce the use of unnecessary separation of children from their families. Sets forth requirements for State plans, annual reports, and payments to States. Amends part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) of title IV of the Act to authorize States, in order to encourage family reunification under specified planned conditions to: (1) continue AFDC payments after removal of a child from a family; and (2) resume AFDC payments before reunification. Requires States which elect to make such continued or resumed payments to report annually on: (1) the number of families so assisted; (2) the number of such families to which the children were returned; (3) the time frames for such returns; and (4) the impact of such assistance on reunification. Amends part E (Federal Payments for Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of title IV of the Act to authorize States to make payments and provide assistance for aftercare services to preserve families, under specified conditions. Allows such continued payments and assistance on behalf of a child who has been returned from foster care to the parents or another family member as if the child were in foster care, under specified planned conditions. Requires States which provide such payments or assistance to report annually on the effectiveness of such aftercare services in minimizing reentry of children into foster care. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to submit an annual summary of such reports to the Congress. Title II: Improving the Quality of Out-of-Home Care - Revises the independent living initiatives transition program under part E of title IV of the Act to remove certain asset limitations under AFDC and other title IV programs and under the title XIX Medicaid program for purposes of determining a reasonable amount of assets to allows a child to establish a household under such transition program. Authorizes States to continue part E foster care maintenance payments with respect to a child, who would be otherwise ineligible as a result of attaining the applicable age limit, until that child reaches a higher age specified by the State (but not more than 21 years), if the child is participating in a program for transition from foster care to independent living and a written plan has been or is being developed. Provides for Medicaid transitional benefit eligibility for any child under 21 years of age who is participating in an independent living initiatives transition program. Establishes a demonstration program of grants to increase housing opportunities for youth making the transition from foster care to independent living, under part E of title IV of the Act. Directs the Secretary of HHS to make such grants, on a competitive basis, to five cities for the development and operation of programs to provide a broad range of housing-related activities for individuals participating in transition programs for independent living initiatives. Requires, in order for a city to be eligible for such a grant, that: (1) its fair market rent for a one-bedroom apartment exceeds the national median; and (2) child welfare and housing agencies cooperate in planning and developing grant activities. Sets a minimum grant amount. Requires use of such grants for: (1) housing-search assistance; (2) housing-related counseling; (3) up to 18 months or rent subsidies to assist transition to permanent housing; (4) moving-related expenses, including security and utility deposits; and (5) room and board in adult-supervised group living programs to assist individuals to live independently. Prohibits use of more than ten percent of any such grant for payment of housing renovation or rehabilitation costs. Prohibits use of such grants for new housing construction. Authorizes appropriations. Revises part E with respect to State plans for foster care and adoption assistance to add health care requirements for early and periodic screening, diagnostic, and treatment (EPSDT) services. Requires the State to ensure that: (1) each child in foster care under the State's responsibility shall have a specified type of health care record; (2) each such child who is eligible for Medicaid is provided assessments and services required under the EPSDT program; (3) each such child who is not eligible for Medicaid is provided comprehensive health assessments comparable to those under the EPSDT program; (4) State agency personnel and foster care providers have been satisfactorily trained to meet the responsibilities under a plan for a child's proper care and appropriate services; and (5) appropriate information from the child's health care record (including at least an abbreviated summary of the health care plan) is provided, when the child is to be in their care, to foster parents or other care providers, parents or guardians, prospective adoptive parents or adoptive parents, and the child when discharged to his or her own care. Requires inclusion in the health care record, if appropriate, of a record indicating that the foster care provider was advised of the child's eligibility for EPSDT services. Provides for reimbursement of the costs of providing for health and dental examinations of foster care children ineligible for Medicaid. Requires part E program plans to: (1) provide training foster parents and staff of child-care institutions; and (2) require satisfactory participation in such training by any foster parent or one preparing to qualify as a foster parent and by child-care institution staff members who have responsibilities with respect to foster children, as a condition of eligibility for foster care maintenance payments. Sets forth requirements for such training program, including periodic training and retraining and child care services for participants. Directs the Secretary of HHS to develop and disseminate model training programs and curricula. Allows such training program costs to be considered as specified administrative expenses. Title III: Enhancing Adoption Assistance - Authorizes each State with an approved part E plan to make post-adoption assistance payments to the adoptive parents of children with special needs who have entered into adoption agreements with the State. Provides for reimbursement for such payments. Provides that such payments may cover respite care for adoptive parents and other specialized treatment services required by children with special needs which are not reimbursable under the agreement or Medicaid (but not including care in a child care institution unless the child was there when the adoption became final). Revises part E with respect to periodic review of a child's status to require: (1) in the case of a child who should be placed for adoption, a description of the specific steps that must be taken to enhance the likelihood of freeing the child for adoption and finding an adoptive family, and a timetable for subsequent periodic reviews of progress toward adoption; and (2) in the case of a child who is legally free for adoption, a determination and documentation of the specific steps which must be taken to find an adoptive family, including the extent of contacting for assistance adoption exchanges and agencies with experience in placing children with special needs. Requires part E case plans to include an assurance that the agency responsible for the child in foster care has evaluated the child's eligibility for supplemental security income (SSI) program benefits under title XVI of the Act and, where appropriate, has proceeded with the application for such benefits. Title IV: Strengthening Service Delivery - Amends part B (Child Welfare Services) of title IV of the Act to establish a program of grants for improving staff recruitment, retention, competency, and training. Authorizes the Secretary of HHS to make such grants, on a multiyear and competitive basis, to public and private nonprofit child welfare, juvenile justice, and mental health agencies as well as to social service agencies for improved cooperation in delivery of services to children and adolescents or their families, and to schools of social work and other higher education institutions for stipends for students to provide certain such services). Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary of HHS to select an organization with demonstrated experience in measuring human service agency workloads to study and report on workload methodologies among providers of child welfare services and community mental health services. Sets forth various topics and requirements for such study. Directs the Secretary to establish an advisory panel to oversee such study. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1991
Fairness in Product Liability Act of 1991 - Governs any product liability action brought in either State or Federal court against a manufacturer or product seller on any theory for harm caused by a product, superseding State law in specified ways and degrees. Makes a product seller liable only if the seller: (1) failed to exercise reasonable care regarding the product, and the failure was the proximate cause of the harm; (2) made an express warranty, independent of any express warranty by the manufacturer, the product failed to conform to the warranty and the failure caused the harm; or (3) engaged in international wrongdoing which was a proximate cause of the harm. Makes a product seller liable as if the seller were the manufacturer if: (1) the manufacturer is not subject to service of process under State laws; or (2) a court determines the claimant would be unable to enforce a judgment against the manufacturer. Allows, in certain circumstances, a complete defense of alcohol or controlled substance use. Reduces damages by the percentage of harm attributable to misuse or alteration of a product by any person, subject to exception involving misuse or alteration by the claimant's employer or coemployees. Allows punitive damages against a manufacturer or seller for conscious, flagrant indifference to user safety. Prohibits, in certain circumstances, punitive damages regarding a drug or device, as defined in the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, unless packaging of a drug is substantially out of compliance with tamper-resistant packaging regulations. Declares manufacturer or seller liability to be several and not joint for noneconomic damages. Requires a product liability action to be brought within two years after the harm and its cause is, or with reasonable diligence should have been, discovered. Sets the time limit at 25 years for products which are capital goods. Requires offset of workers' compensation benefits. Sets forth rules regarding subrogation, contribution, indemnity, and liens. Provides for tort actions against employers. Prohibits U.S. district courts from having jurisdiction under specified provisions of Federal law over any civil action arising under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1991
Tire Recycling and Recovery Act of 1991 - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to require States to submit scrap tire management plans to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Sets forth plan approval procedures. Requires the Administrator to: (1) convene a forum of Federal, State, and local authorities and experts in the field of scrap tire management to discuss the requirements of this Act; (2) distribute guidelines and a model plan to States; (3) review approved plans and audit plans periodically; and (4) promulgate plans for States that fail to do so. Sets forth plan requirements and declares that plans must: (1) address the reduction and elimination of existing scrap tire piles that contain more than 3,000 scrap tires; (2) address current and future disposal, recycling, recovery, and reuse of scrap tires; and (3) provide for the issuance of permits to owners or operators of scrap tire collection sites and others who handle scrap tires. Authorizes the Administrator to provide financial assistance to States for purposes of conducting surveys of scrap tire piles and for developing and implementing tire plans. Grants a preference for assistance to applicants who have shown progress in eliminating such piles. Sets forth assistance application procedures. Permits States to apply for assistance in conjunction with neighboring States. Prohibits: (1) the disposal of scrap tires in a landfill, monocell, or monofill; (2) the operation of collection sites, except in compliance with specified regulations; (3) the storage of more than 3,000 scrap tires for more than 60 days at collection sites, unless necessary for further reuse, recovery, or recycling; (4) the commingling of new scrap tires with existing scrap tire piles; (5) the transfer of control over scrap tires for transportation to a collection site to a transporter without a permit; and (6) the operation and maintenance of a pile or collection site, or the delivery or receipt of scrap tires for storage or disposal at a collection site, except in compliance with a permit. Exempts specified persons from such prohibitions if no threat of an adverse effect on human health or the environment will result from the exemption. Authorizes the Administrator to impose alternative requirements as a condition for an exemption. Authorizes civil penalties or civil actions for violations of this Act. Prescribes criminal penalties for knowing violations. Directs the Administrator to prepare guidelines for the Federal procurement of items that make use of rubber from scrap or used tires. Requires the Administrator, together with the heads of appropriate Federal agencies, to: (1) determine the extent of scrap tire piles on Federal property; and (2) implement a plan for, and report to the Congress on, the abatement of such piles. Repeals a provision concerning grants for discarded tire disposal.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1991
Establishes the Scrap Tire Trust Fund in the Treasury. Provides that the Fund shall consist of a Scrap Tire Reduction Account and a Scrap Tire Recycling Account. Appropriates amounts equivalent to fees collected under this Act to the Accounts. Makes amounts in the Accounts available for: (1) financial assistance to States for conducting surveys of scrap tire piles, developing State tire management plans, reducing and eliminating scrap tire piles, and carrying out parts of such plans relating to tire disposal; and (2) administration of such assistance. Imposes fees on new tires sold by manufacturers or importers from January 1, 1993, through December 31, 2004. Provides for the deposit of such fees into the General Fund of the Treasury.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 1991
Condemns Syria's denial of Syrian Jews' right to travel freely and calls upon the Syrian Government to: (1) immediately grant Syrian Jews the right to travel freely without imposing a fee; and (2) release all Jewish prisoners who were charged or suspected of traveling illegally. Urges the President to encourage U.S. allies and trading partners to make similar pleas to the Syrian Government. Calls upon the United Nations to send an official delegation to Syria to investigate the present condition of Syrian Jews.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1991
Global Warming Assessment Act of 1991 - Directs an interagency panel consisting of the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Energy, and the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to develop a systems architecture for obtaining the data necessary to assess and respond to global warming. Requires the systems architecture to: (1) incorporate data on solar variability as an essential data element; (2) maximize the use of existing data and technologies to make the data available to scientists and policymakers quickly and in a cost-effective manner; (3) minimize the need for development and operations costs; (4) utilize existing or planned U.S. assets; and (5) initiate operations by December 31, 1995.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1991
Directs the Committee on Appropriations to establish a new Subcommittee on Veterans' Affairs with exclusive subcommittee jurisdiction over the Department of Veterans Affairs and its programs.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 1991
Social Security Protection Act of 1991 - Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to exclude the appropriations for the administration of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund from Federal budget deficit calculations and to exempt such appropriations from sequestration under such Act.
![Official portrait of Rep. Walsh, James T. [R-NY-25]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/w000099_200.jpg)