United States · United States Congress · 9 May 1978
Amends the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to provide that the term "handicapped individual" does not include any individual who is an alcoholic or drug abuser for purposes of provisions of such Act which require affirmative action programs for the handicapped by Federal contractors and which prohibit discrimination against the handicapped by entities receiving Federal financial assistance.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 1978
Comprehensive Older Americans Act Amendments - Title I: Amendments to the Older Americans Act of 1965 - Amends the Older Americans Act of 1965 to require each Federal agency proposing to establish programs and services substantially related to the purposes of such Act to consult with the Administration on Aging prior to the establishment of such programs and services. Authorizes a recipient of a grant under the Older Americans Act of 1965 to enter into an agreement with a profitmaking organization to carry out the provisions of such Act. Declares it to be the purpose of Title III of such Act (Grants for State and Community Programs on Aging) to encourage and assist State and local agencies to concentrate resources to serve older persons by entering into cooperative arrangements with the providers of social services or nutrition services or multipurpose senior centers, for the planning and provision of social services, nutrition services, or multipurpose senior centers. Defines terms used in such Title. Authorizes appropriations for fiscal years 1979, 1980, and 1981 for grants approved under such Title. Requires each State, to be eligible to receive a grant under such Title, to designate a State agency as the sole State agency: (1) to develop and administer a State plan formulated pursuant to this Act; and (2) to designate planning and service areas. Requires each such area agency on aging to prepare and develop an area plan. Sets forth specified material to be included in such plan. Requires each State, in order to be eligible for grants under such Title, to submit to the Commissioner on Aging a State plan. Sets forth specified material to be included in such plan. Authorizes the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to insure any mortgage for a multipurpose senior center in accordance with the provisions set forth in this Act. Creates a Multipurpose Senior Center Insurance Fund to be used by the Secretary as a revolving fund for carrying out all insurance provisions with respect to such mortgages. Authorizes the Commissioner, under the Act, to make grants to eligible tribal organizations, as defined in this Act, to pay all of the costs for the delivery of social and nutritional services for Indians who are age 60 and over. Sets forth criteria for applications for such grants. Requires the Commissioner to make grants to States for: (1) the establishment and operation of nutrition projects for older persons which five or more days a week, provide, in a congregate setting, at least one hot or cold meal per day, each of which assures a minimum of one-third of the daily recommended dietary allowances; and (2) the establishment and operation of multipurpose senior centers which shall be community facilities for the organization and provision of a broad spectrum of social services or nutrition services, or both, for older persons; (3) the provision of legal services for the elderly; and (4) the conduct of projects under which a State ombudsman receives and investigates complaints made by or on behalf of older persons who are residents of long-term care facilities relating to administrative action which may adversely affect the health, safety, welfare, or rights of such residents. Declares that, under the Act, a national manpower policy shall be developed for the field of aging which will reflect the present and future needs for training personnel in all programs serving the elderly. Authorizes the Commissioner to make grants for the purpose of conducting studies on: (1) the problems experienced by State and area agencies on aging and other service providers in operating transportation services; (2) the impact of this Act and other service and benefit programs in meeting the long-range needs of the elderly population; and (3) the differences in unit costs, service delivery and access between rural areas and urban areas for services assisted under this Act and the special needs of the elderly residing in rural areas. Authorizes the Commissioner to make grants to develop and operate statewide, regional, metropolitan area, county, city, or community model projects which will demonstrate methods to expand or improve social services and promote the well-being of older persons. Requires the Commissioner in making such grants to give special consideration to projects designed: (1) to assist in meeting the housing needs of older persons; (2) to provide continuing education to older persons; (3) to provide preretirement education information; (4) to provide services to assist in meeting the particular needs of physically and mentally impaired older persons; (5) to meet the special needs of, and improve the delivery of services to older persons who are not receiving adequate services under other provisions of this Act; (6) to assist older persons to remain within their communities and out of institutions; (7) to establish comprehensive service systems for older persons residing in rural areas; and (8) to develop or improve methods of coordinating all available home social services for the homebound elderly, blind, and disabled by establishing demonstration projects. Authorizes the Commissioner to make grants to and enter into contracts with appropriate bodies to support programs of legal services and ombudsman programs established under provisions of this Act. Authorizes the Commissioner to make grants to support the development of comprehensive, coordinated systems of community long-term care for older persons. Requires such grants to be used for the development of programs which provide a full continuum of services designed to support alternatives to institutional living, including (1) adult day health; (2) individual assessment of need, service plan development, monitoring, and evaluation of service effectiveness; (3) supported living in public and private, nonprofit housing; (4) family respite services; (5) preventative health services; (6) home health, homemaker, and other rehabilitative and maintenance in-home services; (7) geriatric health maintenance organizations; and (8) other services which the Commissioner determines are appropriate. Redesignates Title IV (Training and Research) of the Act "Training, Research, and Discretionary Projects and Programs. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1981 for: (1) multidisciplinary centers of gerontology; and (2) the Older American Community Service Employment Program. Title II: White House Conference on Aging - 1981 White House Conference on Aging Act - Declares it the policy of the Congress that the Federal Government should work with the States and citizens to develop recommendations and plans to meet the needs of older persons. Requires that programs developed under this Act place emphasis upon the right of older persons to free choice and self-help in planning their futures. Authorizes the President of the United States to call a White House Conference on Aging in 1981 to develop recommendations for research and action in the field of aging. Requires the Conference to include representatives of Federal, State, and local governments, and professional and lay people working in the field of aging including older persons. Directs that a final report of the White House Conference, containing a comprehensive statement of a coherent national policy on aging and the recommendations of such Conference, be submitted to the President and Congress within a specified time. Sets forth the responsibilities and duties of the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in administering this Act. Directs the Secretary to establish an advisory committee to the Conference and such other technical committees as may be necessary to carry out such Conference. Title III: Study of Racial and Ethnic Discrimination in Programs for Older Americans - Directs the Commission on Civil Rights: (1) to undertake a comprehensive study of discrimination based on race or ethnic background in any federally assisted programs and activities which affect older persons; and (2) to identify any federally assisted activity in which evidence is found of persons or organizations who are otherwise qualified being, on the basis of race or ethnic background, excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, refused employment or contracts with, or subject to discrimination under, such activity.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 1978
Comprehensive Older Americans Act Amendments - Title I: Administration on Aging - Amends the Older Americans Act of 1965 to authorize each area agency on aging to waive any minimum age requirement for eligibility under Title III (State and Community Programs on Aging), Title V (Multipurpose Senior Centers), or Title VII (Nutrition Programs), if such waiver is necessary or appropriate to facilitate the participation in programs under any such title by members of minority groups in particular communities or areas. Establishes, in the Administration on Aging, the Office of Affirmative Action and Minority Affairs. Requires the Office to: (1) review any State plan for the provision of social services to the aged to determine if such plan provides for compliance with applicable law by assuring that members of minorities are eligible to receive services under such plan in amounts which are at least proportionate to the number of such individuals in the planning and service area or State involved; and (2) develop a complaint and grievance procedure for use in communities and other areas receiving services under the provisions of the Act. Authorizes to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for the Federal Council on Aging. Designates the Director of the National Institute on Aging as an ex officio member of the Federal Council on Aging. Stipulates that no part of the cost of any program under this Act may be treated as income or benefits to any eligible individual, other than any wage paid, for the purpose of any other program or provision of State or Federal law. Exempts any wage received by any older person under this Act from any State or Federal income tax: (1) to the extent that such wage is for 20 hours of work or less in any work week; and (2) to the extent such wage or salary does not exceed any applicable minimum wage law. Title II: State and Community Programs - Authorizes to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for area planning and social service programs under the Act. Requires an area plan developed by an area agency on aging: (1) to provide for the establishment and operation of affirmative action programs designed to furnish special assistance to older persons who are members of minority groups; and (2) to provide for the designation of one or more focal points (such as multipurpose senior centers) for the delivery of social services. Grants to any unit of general purpose local government, not designated as a planning and service area: (1) the right, before approval of the State plan, to a review of the denial of such designation by the State; and (2) the right to representation on the advisory council established pursuant to the Act for the planning and service area in which such unit is located. Requires each State, to be eligible for grants, to provide that the State agency responsible for the programs act as an advocate for older persons, and that area agencies on aging shall act as advocates for older persons in their communities. Authorizes each area agency to concentrate its efforts on one or more programs for purposes of complying with the State plans. Authorizes the Commission on Aging to make grants for model projects: (1) to establish comprehensive service systems for older persons residing in rural areas which are designed to utilize approaches, methods, and techniques specially suited to rural areas; and (2) to enable older persons to provide for the security of their homes through construction modifications and the installation of security devices. Requires each State agency responsible for the programs under this Act, to be eligible for grants, to establish an advocate program to provide advocate services to the residents of long-term care facilities. Authorizes the Commissioner to make grants to establish programs to provide legal services to older persons. Requires the Commissioner to provide reimbursement to any State for the delivery of social services during any major disaster declared by the President. Requires the Commissioner to establish a special grant program to enable States to establish community long-term care initiatives designed to assess the needs of chronically ill or disabled older persons and to assist in the efficient operation of a comprehensive and coordinated system for the delivery of services to such older persons. Requires such grant program to insure that: (1) the needs of individual older persons for services are identified; (2) individual older persons are referred to appropriate services; and (3) procedures are established to insure that services continue to be responsive to the needs of individual older persons. Title III: Training and Research - Authorizes the Commissioner to make grants: (1) to assist community colleges and junior colleges in the development of programs relating to gerontology; and (2) to develop and maintain informal educational opportunities for older persons. Requires the Commissioner to conduct a comprehensive study of the problems of older persons residing in rural areas. Requires the Commissioner to set aside such funds as may be necessary: (1) to train individuals who are members of minority groups and who are employed in fields related to the purposes of this Act; and (2) to conduct a study of issues relating to the needs of older persons who are members of minority groups. Requires any multidisciplinary center of gerontology which receives a grant under the Act to establish an affirmative action plan to provide for the recruitment, enrollment, and education of individuals who are members of minority groups. Authorizes the Commissioner to establish a grant program to make reimbursements to institutions of higher education to defray a portion of tuition costs applicable to eligible older persons at such institutions. Sets forth information which must be included in an application from an institution of higher education in order to receive such reimbursements. Stipulates that any older person who is qualified to enroll in any course of study at an institution of higher education receiving reimbursements under this Act shall be eligible for such enrollment without being required to defray any cost of tuition. Title IV: Multipurpose Senior Centers - Authorizes the Commissioner to make grants to provide for multipurpose senior centers which will serve as focal points in communities for the development and delivery of social services and nutritional services designed primarily for older persons. Defines the term "multipurpose senior center" as a community facility for the organization and provision of a broad spectrum of services (including provision of health, social, and educational services and provision of facilities for recreational activities) for older persons. Requires any State desiring to receive funds for such centers to submit to the Commissioner a State plan. Sets forth specified information which must be provided in such plan. Increases the principal obligation allowed on a mortgage for a multipurpose senior center from $250,000 to $1,000,000. Title V: Nutrition Projects - Establishes a nutrition project for the elderly which, five or more days per week, provides at least one home-delivered meal which assures a minimum of one-third the daily recommended dietary allowances. Stipulates that in allotting funds for nutrition projects preference shall be given to congregate projects and meals-on-wheels projects that are operating in those areas of each State that contain the highest incidence of low-income individuals, and, to the extent feasible, projects receiving allotments shall be operated by and serve the needs of, minority, Indian, and limited English-speaking eligible individuals in proportion to their numbers in their State. Directs the Commissioner to develop minimum criteria of efficiency and quality for the furnishing of home-delivered meal services. Provides that such criteria shall be designed so that well-established meals-on-wheels programs may continue such service without major alteration in the furnishing of such services. Requires that a State plan for a nutrition program shall provide assurances that contracts shall be made, to the maximum extent feasible, with existing meals-on-wheels organizations. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1982 for home-delivered meal nutrition programs. Requires the Commissioner to conduct a study of the effectiveness of the national home-delivered meals program. Title VI: Employment Opportunities - Defines an individual who has low income for purposes of Title IX (Community Service Employment for Older Americans) of the Act as an individual who receives regular cash welfare payments or whose annual income does not exceed the appropriate percentage of State median income which determines eligibility for adult services under Title XX (Grants to States for Services) of the Social Security Act. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1982 for community service employment programs for older Americans. Title VII: White House Conference on Aging - Declares it the policy of the Congress that the Federal Government should work with the States and citizens to develop recommendations and plans to meet the needs of older persons. Requires that programs developed under this Act place emphasis upon the right of older persons to free choice and self-help in planning their futures. Authorizes the President of the United States to call a White House Conference on Aging in 1981 to develop recommendations for research and action in the field of aging. Requires the Conference to include representatives of Federal, State, and local governments, professional and lay people working in the field of aging including older persons. Directs that a final report of the White House Conference, containing a comprehensive statement of a coherent national policy on aging and the recommendations of such Conference, be submitted to the President and Congress within a specified time. Sets forth the responsibilities and duties of the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in administering this Act. Directs the Secretary to establish an advisory committee to the Conference and such other technical committees as may be necessary to carry out such Conference. Title VIII: General Provisions - Adds to the Older Americans Act of 1965 a new Title VIII, Grants for Indian Tribes. Authorizes the Commissioner, under the Act, to make grants to eligible tribal organizations, as defined in this Act, to pay all of the costs for the delivery of social and nutritional services for Indians who are age 60 and over. Sets forth criteria for applications for such grants. Authorizes the Commissioner to delegate to the Secretary of the Interior or to the head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs any functions under this title. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to make available surplus Indian educational facilities for use as multipurpose senior centers. Authorizes appropriations for the program through fiscal year 1981. Amends the formula under which funds are allocated to States for State and community programs on aging, nutrition programs for older Americans, and community service employment programs for older Americans. Requires the Commission on Civil Rights to study the occurrence of discrimination based on race in any program designed to assist older persons which receives Federal financial assistance. Amends the Age Discrimination Act of 1975: (1) to change the prohibition declared in the statement of purpose from unreasonable discrimination to any discrimination on the basis of age in programs receiving Federal financial assistance; (2) to authorize any person aggrieved pursuant to this Act, upon exhausting Federal administrative remedies, to bring a civil action; and (3) to require the head of each Federal agency to annually issue a report detailing the steps taken in the preceding year to carry out specified provisions of the Act. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1982 for area planning and social service programs, multipurpose senior centers, and nutrition programs under the Older Americans Act of 1965. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1979 for the National Older Americans Volunteer Programs under the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 1978
Extends the authority to make veterans readjustment appointments of Vietnam era veterans to the Federal Government through September 30, 1980. Abolishes the time limitation on eligibility for such appointments for veterans eligible on April 9, 1970, or who were separated from the armed services on or after such date. Raises the maximum level for such appointments from GS-5 to GS-7. Provides that any disabled veteran shall be eligible for such appointment without regard to certain existing limitations on the amount of education a veteran may have to be eligible for such an appointment.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 1978
Provides for a burial allowance of $150 to be paid by the Veterans' Administration: (1) to any State or political subdivision thereof for burying a veteran in any cemetery owned by the State or subdivision if such cemetery or section thereof is used solely for the interment of veterans; or (2) to a person prescribed by the deceased veteran if burial is in a cemetery other than the kind described.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 1978
Directs the Secretary of Defense to place a memorial plaque in the Trophy Hall of the Memorial Amphitheater at Arlington National Cemetery to pay tribute to those members of the armed force who served in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam era. Directs the Secretary, to honor those members who lost their lives in Southeast Asia, to display near such plaque the medals, ribbons, and decorations associated with service in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam era.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 1978
Removes the requirement that a veteran die in the service in order to be entitled to a memorial headstone or marker when the veteran's remains have not been recovered or identified or have been buried at sea.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 1978
Increases from $250 to $350 the burial and funeral expense allowance which may be paid by the Veterans' Administration on behalf of certain deceased veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 1978
Declares that certain proposed regulations of the Department of the Treasury regarding centralized firearms sales recordkeeping and other firearms control measures exceed the Departments' authority, and directs that the regulations be withdrawn.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 1978
Beef Act - Amends the Federal Meat Inspection Act to require imported equine meat products capable of use as human food (1) to be labeled as imported, and (2) to be tested for chemical substances. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to assess fees for the testing and labeling of such products. Authorizes the Secretary to suspend imports for failure to pay such assessments. Amends the policy of Congress to restrict the importation of beef, veal, goat, and sheep meat, and live cattle to specified amounts after December 31, 1978. Prescribes a formula for adjustment of such quota. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to allocate such quota among supplying countries according to certain criteria. Decreases the percentage by which estimates of such annual imports must exceed the imports of the preceding calendar year before triggering the imposition of import quotas. Permits the President to suspend an import quota proclamation if it determined that domestic cattle producers are operating at a reasonable profit. Permits the President to prohibit or curtail the importation of any products covered by this Act if it is determined that such action is required by the economic or national security interests of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 1978
Solar Photovoltaic Energy Research, Development, and Demonstration Act - Requires the Secretary of Energy to develop research, development, and demonstration programs concerning the use of solar photovoltaic energy systems. Authorizes the Secretary to provide up to 75 percent of the purchase and installation costs of selected systems used for research purposes. Requires the Secretary to formulate definitive performance criteria concerning solar photovoltaic systems and to develop a system certification for conforming systems. Directs the Secretary to consult with relevant Federal agencies concerning the use of solar photovoltaic systems in Federal facilities. Requires the Secretary to set up a development and demonstration program of prototype photovoltaic systems at the Solar Energy Research Institute in Golden, Colorado. Directs the Secretary to establish a solar energy data bank at the Golden facility. Requires relevant Federal officials to ensure that small business concerns are granted realistic and adequate opportunities to participate, to the maximum extent possible, in the programs under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 1978
Veterans' Housing Improvements Act - Increases from $25,000 to $30,000 the maximum amount of assistance available for specially adapted housing for certain disabled veterans. Makes Vietnam era veterans eligible for home, condominium, and mobile home loans, and for automatic 60 percent guaranteed home loans. Increases the amount of a home loan which may be guaranteed by the Veterans' Administration from $17,000 to $25,000. Revises veterans' mobile home and mobile home lot loans provisions with regard to guarantees and removes the restriction against multiple loan entitlements and the requirement that the Veterans' Administration periodically inspect manufacturers and make onsite inspections to ensure compliance with mobile home standards established by the Administration. Provides a formula for determining the maximum amount available for direct veterans' loans for mobile homes and mobile home lots.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 1978
Surface Transportation Assistance Act - Title I: Federal Aid Highway Act - Amends the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 to revise and extend the authorization for appropriations for the Interstate Highway System through fiscal year 1992. Sets forth a formula for the apportionment of a portion of such funds for fiscal years 1980 through 1983. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to apportion such amounts in a specified manner for fiscal year 1980. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1982 for specified highway programs. Stipulates that the Federal share of railroad-highway crossing demonstration projects under the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1973 shall be 95 percent of the cost of such a project. Establishes a cutoff date for the designation and completion of the Interstate Highway System. Authorizes the Secretary to approve projects for resurfacing, restoring, and rehabilitating lanes on the Interstate System which have been in use for more than five years. Sets forth the Federal share of the costs of such projects. Increases the Federal share for specified highway programs. Authorizes the Secretary to approve a State's request for the retention of certain outdoor advertising where the sign or display was in existence on May 5, 1976. Authorizes the Secretary to approve Federal participation in State projects for replacing unsafe highway bridges which are not on the Federal-aid system. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States for traffic control signalization projects designed to conserve motor fuel and decrease traffic congestion. Directs the Secretary to allocate funds made available for pavement marking demonstration programs in a manner deemed by the Secretary most appropriate to expedite the completion of pavement markings on all highways. Increases the amount of appropriations authorized for the construction of bridges across Federal dams which may be expended as an emergency fund to meet additional costs. Amends the Appalachian Regional Development Act of 1965 to increase the Federal share for construction projects on the Appalachian development highway system and to increase the authorized mileage for such system. Establishes a ceiling on obligations for Federal- aid highways and highway construction projects for fiscal year 1979. Amends the Energency Highway Emergy Conservation Act to authorize the Secretary to approve carpool projects in urbanized areas. Authorizes the reapportionment of funds not used by a State for the Interstate System to another State which has obligated all of its apportionment. Authorizes the Secretary to carry out access control demonstration projects designed to demonstrate whether preserving the capacity of existing highways to move traffic safely by acquiring and controlling the right of access to such highways is a cost effective alternative to the construction of additional highways. Bikeway Transportation Act - Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States and municipalities for the construction of bikeways in urbanized areas. Stipulates that the Federal share of such a project shall be 80 percent of its cost. Authorizes appropriations for such grants for fiscal years 1979 through 1982. Stipulates that upon repayment of a specified sum by the State of Indiana to the Treasurer of the United States, Interstate Route 80/90 shall be free of all restrictions with respect to the imposition and collection of tolls. Authorizes the Secretary to conduct a demonstration project in a metropolitan area of 500,000 or more population to restrict the access of motor vehicles to the central business district during peak traffic hours in order to determine the practicability of this method in reducing motor vehicle congestion. Directs the Secretary to conduct a demonstration project on the Interstate System to place vending machines in rest and recreation areas located on the rights-of-way of such System. Directs the Secretary to designate a portion of State Highway Numbered 17 in Richmond, California as part of the Interstate System. Exempts the facility owned by the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority on the right-of-way of interstate route I-81 in New York State from certain restrictions prohibiting commercial establishments on such a right-of-way. Authorizes the Secretary to approve certain construction projects with respect to interstate route I-90 in New York State. Authorizes the Secretary to provide for the construction of spur highways to connect the Great River Road with existing bridges across the Mississippi River. Directs the Secretary to reimburse the Federal share of the cost of constructing a new toll bridge across the Ohio River at Huntington, West Virginia. Prohibits the expenditure of Federal funds to erect or modify road signs solely using the metric system unless specifically authorized by Congress. Requires each State to annually report to the Secretary regarding State enforcement of its vehicle weight limitations on the Federal-aid system. Amends the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1973 to authorize appropriations to the State of New Hampshire for expenditure on Federal-aid highways (other than Interstate System highways) which serve as alternative routes to the Franconia Notch Parkway. Directs the Secretary to carry out a demonstration project permitting a State to sell State lottery tickets at publicly owned rest and recreation areas on the rights-of-way of the Interstate System in such State. Authorizes the Secretary to carry out a demonstration project on the Federal-aid primary system for the construction of a bypass highway around Prairie Creek Redwood State Park in Humbolt County, California. Directs the Secretary to conduct a study on the feasibility of an additional bridge across the Columbia River between Vancouver, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. Directs the Secretary to carry out a rural highway public transportation demonstration project in the Sherman, Texas - Denison, Texas area. Title II: Highway Safety Act - Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1982 for specified highway safety programs. Amends the Highway Safety Act of 1973 to authorize appropriations through fiscal year 1982 for projects to eliminate hazards relating to rail-highway crossings. Requires each State to annually certify to the Secretary that it is enforcing the national maximum speed limit. Directs the Secretary to reduce a State's apportionment for Federal-aid highway funds if the percentage of motor vehicles exceeding 55 miles per hour exceeds a specified percentage. Authorizes appropriations for fiscal years 1979 through 1982 to the Secretary of Transportation for the acquisition, storage, and retrieval of highway accident data and for establishing procedures for reporting accidents on a nationwide basis. Abolishes the National Highway Safety Advisory Committee. Authorizes the Secretary to waive State highway safety program standards for projects to identify highway accident causes and to reduce accidents. Directs the Secretary to carry out six pilot projects designed, through the use of television and radio, to develop and evaluate methods to achieve maximum measurable effectiveness in reducing traffic accidents, injuries, and death. Authorizes appropriations for such purpose. Title III: Urban Mass Transportation Act Amendments - Amends the Urban Mass Transportation Act to repeal the provision which allows States or local public bodies to use Federal urban mass transportation assistance for the payment of operating expenses for mass transportation services. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1982 for specified projects under such Act. Requires that a specified portion of such appropriations be used for grants for intercity bus service. Directs the Secretary to apportion authorizations for the urban mass transit program according to a specified formula for fiscal years 1979 through 1982. Removes specified restrictions regarding the availability of fellowships for public transportation training programs. Authorizes general appropriations to carry out the provisions of the Urban Mass Transportation Act through fiscal year 1982. Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress monthly regarding the funding of projects under such Act. Revises the Federal operating assistance program for the provision of rail passenger service under such Act. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1982 for such program. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States and local bodies to acquire, construct, or alter facilities for use in providing intercity bus service and in coordinating such service with other modes of transportation. Stipulates that the Federal share of such a project shall be 80 percent of its net cost. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1982 to carry out such program. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1982 for the liquidation of obligations incurred for public mass transit projects substituted for routes on the Interstate Highway System. Authorizes the Secretary to convert specified mass transportation equipment and facilities loans to grants under specified conditions. Directs the Secretary to make a full and complete investigation and study of establishing and operating a mass transportation system which would provide basic services with a minimum of amenities at low costs and to report the results of such study to Congress. Directs the Secretary to carry out a demonstration project using high speed jetfoil transportation facilities and operating between the Long Branch, New Jersey area, Sandy Hook State Park, and New York, New York to determine the feasibility of utilizing this technology in providing certain public mass transportation service. Authorizes appropriations to carry out such project. Title IV: Prohibits the awarding of grants of more than $5,000,000 for the acquisition of any steel or rolling stock for fixed rail service unless substantially all the steel to be acquired has been domestically produced. Sets forth exceptions to this requirement. Provides for Congressional review of certain rules and regulations relating to highways or urban mass transportation.
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 1978
Agriculture Emergency Act - Title I: Agricultural Export Expansion - Amends the Agricultural Act of 1954 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to establish abroad between six and 25 United States Agricultural Trade Offices, for the purpose of developing, maintaining, and expanding international markets for United States agricultural commodities. Changes the title of Agricultural Attaches to Agricultural Counselors, and requires each Counselor to submit to the Secretary an annual report detailing the social, political and economic factors affecting agriculture and agricultural trade in the country or area to which such Counselor is assigned. Establishes in the Department of Agriculture: (1) an Assistant Secretary for Commodity Programs, to perform duties related to agricultural stabilization and conservation; and (2) an Under Secretary for International Affairs to perform duties related to foreign agriculture. Amends the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act to direct the Secretary to provide Corporation financing to exporters of agricultural commodities who wish to extend deferred payment terms, not to exceed three years, to foreign buyers in order to meet foreign competition and to make additional export sales. Title II: Agricultural Credit - Subtitle A: Amendments to the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act - Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to provide loans to any farm owners or tenants for the purposes of meeting Federal, State, or local requirements for agricultural, animal, or poultry waste pollution abatement and control facilities. Establishes a low-income farm ownership loan program for owners or operators of small or family farms, and extends eligibility for real estate and operating loans to private domestic corporations and partnerships primarily engaged in farming or ranching. Extends eligibility for operating loans to farm cooperatives. Increases the maximum allowable total principal indebtedness for real estate loans which may be outstanding by any one borrower to $200,000, or $300,000 in the case of a guaranteed loan. Removes the $500,000 ceiling from the aggregate principal of loans made using the Agricultural Credit Insurance Fund. Increases the amount of indebtedness which may be outstanding for operating loans for an individual from $50,000 to $100,000, or in the case of a guaranteed loan, $200,000. Authorizes the Secretary to purchase the guaranteed portion of any rural development loan using funds from the Rural Development Insurance Fund and the guaranteed portion of all other loans with funds from the Agricultural Credit Insurance Fund. Replaces the current provision for an up to five-year renewal of an operating loan with a provision for the consolidation or rescheduling of outstanding loans for payment over a period not to exceed seven years from the date of such consolidation or rescheduling. Authorizes the Secretary to make loans and grants, and approve transfers and assumptions under such Act in connection with property securing a loan made, insured, or held by the Secretary notwithstanding the fact an area ceases to be eligible for assistance under the Act. Authorizes the Secretary to provide a procedure for appeal and review of determinations by a county committee that a loan applicant is able to obtain sufficient credit elsewhere to finance his actual needs at reasonable rates and terms. Increases from $15,000 to $25,000 the amount of claims that can be compromised without approval of the Administrator of the Farmers Home Administration. Authorizes the Secretary to grant a moratorium upon the payment by an individual of interest and principal on a loan, upon a showing of temporary inability to continue making payments, beyond the individual's control. Subtitle B: Emergency Agricultural Credit Adjustment Act - Directs the Secretary to insure, guarantee, or make direct loans for the purpose of making payment of principal and interest installments or refinancing, in whole or in part, equipment or operating loans, giving preference to owners or operators of small or family farms. Requires the Secretary to guarantee 100 percent of the principal and interest of any such loan. Limits the total principal balance outstanding on insured or guaranteed loans to $200,000. Allows the total outstanding principal indebtedness of any borrower to reach $150,000 without approval of the senior State official of the Farmers Home Administration. Limits the total principal amount of all outstanding loans under this title during 1978 to $1,500,000,000, and during 1979 to $3,000,000,000. Terminates such program on December 31, 1979. Subtitle C: Miscellaneous Provisions - Extends the Emergency Livestock Credit Act through September 30, 1979. Title III: Wheat, Feed Grains, and Cotton Price Supports, Set-Aside and Release Prices - Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to provide for the 1978 and 1979 crops of the following commodities a sliding-scale of established prices, keyed to voluntary five percent increments above the required acreage set-aside level, ranging: (1) for wheat, from $3.00 per bushel for a 20 percent set-aside up to $5.00 per bushel for a 50 percent set-aside; (2) for corn, from $2.10 for a ten percent set-aside up to $3.49 for a 50 percent set-aside; and (3) for upland cotton, from 54 cents per pound for a 20 percent set-aside up to 85 cents per pound for a 50 percent set-aside. Sets the 1979 established price for a 50 percent set-aside of all three commodities at the January, 1979 parity price for the 1979 crops. Prohibits: (1) the Secretary from providing for the redemption of stored wheat and feed grains loans unless the market price for such commodities is not less than parity; (2) the calling of such loans until the market price for wheat and feed grains is at least 105 percent of parity; and (3) the Commodity Credit Corporation from selling its stocks of wheat and feed grains for less than the parity price of such commodities. Title IV: Sugar - Amends the Food and Agriculture Act of 1977 to increase the price support for the 1978 through 1980 crops of sugar beets and sugarcane to a minimum of 65 percent of parity, but not less than 17 cents per pound raw sugar equivalent. Title V: Meat Imports - Sets formulae for quotas on the importation of specified meat products as of January 1, 1979. Prohibits the annual importation of specified kinds of cattle in excess of the smaller of either: (1) the average number of such livestock imported during the period January 1, 1973, through December 31, 1977; or (2) 960,000 head. Title VI: National Farmer and Rancher Board - Establishes the National Farmer and Rancher Board, composed of bona fide farmers and ranchers from eight agricultural regions of the United States who shall be elected to such Board by agricultural producers according to specified procedures. Limits the duties of such Board to advising, consulting with, and making written recommendations to the President, the Secretary of Agriculture, and the Secretaries and Administrators of other specified departments and agencies on matters pertaining to the family farm and/or the production and marketing of agricultural commodities. Title VII: Congressional Review of Embargoes or Sale Suspensions - Amends the Food and Agriculture Act of 1977 to require notification of Congress of any embargo or suspension of a commercial export sale of specified commodities, and to permit Congress to halt such embargo by adoption of a resolution of disapproval within 60 days after notification. Title VIII: Government Purchases - Declares that it is the sense of Congress that all departments, agencies, and instrumentalities of all three branches of the United States Government use their resources and facilities to the maximum extent practicable to purchase agricultural products produced in the United States. Amends the Food Stamp Act of 1964 to exclude from food stamp coverage any food labeled imported. Title IX: Agricultural Tax Provisions - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an investment tax credit for buildings and structural components used in the business of farming. Grants an exemption from the excise tax for any trailer or semitrailer used for farming purposes or for transporting horses or livestock, whose gross vehicle weight is 10,000 pounds or less. Entitles aerial applicators to a refund of gasoline and special fuels taxes. Repeals the carryover basis provisions of the Tax Reform Act of 1976 which provide that beneficiaries receiving property from a decedent's estate will retain the decedent's basis in the property. Restores prior law which "stepped up" or "stepped down" the property's basis to its market value at the time of death without imposing tax consequences on the appreciation or depreciation the property underwent while held by the decedent. Allows a deduction from income for State estate taxes in the case of income in respect of a decedent. Title X: Natural Gas for Essential Agricultural Purposes - Directs the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to prohibit curtailment by a natural gas company of natural gas for essential agricultural, food processing, and food packaging purposes for which natural gas is necessary. Requires the Secretary to determine the purposes for which natural gas is necessary. Title XI: Increase Farm Storage Loan Ceiling - Amends the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act to increase the farm storage loan ceiling from $50,000 to $100,000. Title XII: Regulatory Reform - Authorizes either House of Congress by resolution to disapprove, in whole or in part, any rule or regulation prescribed by the head of any Federal department or agency. Requires the heads of all Federal departments and agencies to submit a comprehensive review and evaluation of their programs and activities so that the Congress may determine if the merits of each program or activity support its continuation or diminution rather than its termination.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1978
Amends the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to rescind the authority of the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to designate a type of disability as qualifying as a "severe handicap" for purposes of such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1978
Botulism Prevention Act - Prohibits the Secretary of Agriculture, for a two-year period, from issuing any order or regulation: (1) restricting the use of nitrites or nitrates as preservatives in meat products beyond the degree recommended in the final report of the Department of Agriculture's Expert Panel on Nitrates, Nitrites, and Nitrosamines; or (2) requiring labeling on meat products concerning nitrites or nitrates in addition to the requirements in effect on January 1, 1978.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 1978
Federal Aviation Act Amendments - Amends the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 to direct the Civil Aeronautics Board in the performance of its functions to consider safety as the highest priority in air commerce and to consider the development of an air transportation industry which allows responsible new air carriers to enter the industry as being in the public interest. Establishes time limitations during which the Board must act on applications for certificates to engage in air transportation. Authorizes any air carrier to petition the Board to have granted to it the authority of another air carrier to provide nonstop scheduled interstate or overseas air transportation where the previous authority has not been exercised to a specified extent. Establishes time limitations during which the Board must act on an application by an air carrier for the removal or modification of a term attached to a certificate to engage in air transportation. Directs the Board to establish simplified procedures for the disposition of applications for certificates or permits to engage in air transportation and for applications to amend or modify such certificates. Stipulates that such procedures need not provide for oral evidentiary hearings. Establishes time limitations during which the Board must act on applications to approve consolidation agreements, pooling agreements, or exemptions from air carrier economic regulation.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 1978
Reserve Survivors' Benefits Act - Title I: Annuities Under Survivor Benefit Plan - Grants annuities to the survivors of individuals who would have been eligible for retired military pay for non-regular service but who died before reaching the age of 60. Establishes formulae for computing such benefits. Title II: Medical and Dental Care - Entitles such survivors to specified medical and dental benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 1978
Amends the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 to direct the Civil Aeronautics Board to use a specified rate schedule in computing the subsidy to be paid to local service air carriers for the transportation of mail for the years 1964 and 1965.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 1978
Authorizes the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Corps of Engineers, to construct an adjacent-type pumped-storage hydroelectric dam as part of the Fort Randall Dam-Lake Francis Case project, South Dakota.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 1978
Reclamation Safety of Dams Act - Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to modify Bureau of Reclamation dams and related facilities in order to preserve structural safety.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 1978
Urges the Secretary of Defense not to include within the competitive rate program (under which services are procured for the movement of the household goods of Department of Defense employees) the movement of household goods of Department personnel who are being transferred between the continental United States and Alaska or Hawaii.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 1978
Tribally Controlled Community College Assistance Act - Title I: Tribally Controlled Community Colleges - Provides for educational grants by the Secretary of the Interior to tribally controlled Indian community colleges. Provides that schools eligible for such grants shall be: (1) formally controlled, sanctioned or chartered by an Indian tribe or tribes; (2) governed by a board of directors, a majority of whom are Indians; (3) directed by stated goals, philosophy, or plan of action aimed at meeting the needs of Indians; and (4) attended by students, a majority of whom must be Indians if the school has been in operation more than one year. Authorizes technical assistance to the schools. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to contract with the Assistant Secretary of Education of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare for feasibility studies of individual schools. Requires such studies to be conducted by the Secretary of the Interior upon tribal request. Provides for the administration, and funding of these grants, with certain rule-making authority being vested in the Secretary. Authorizes appropriations of stated amounts for three years. Directs the Secretary to make annual reports and recommendations to Congress on the program. Stipulates that assistance under this Act shall not, in itself, prevent any recipient college from receiving other educational assistance. Directs the Secretary to prepare a report, on existing and planned tribally controlled community college facilities, Bureau of Indian Affairs facilities which could reasonably be converted to such use. Excludes the Navajo Tribe from the provisions of this title, as well as any colleges which limit enrollment to specific tribes. Title II: Construction Grants - Directs the Secretary to submit to Congress by November, 1979, a survey and study on the academic facilities required by tribally controlled community colleges. Authorizes the Secretary to make planning and construction grants to the colleges upon proper applications and showings. Excludes the Navajo Tribe, as well as any colleges which limit enrollment to specific tribes, from the provisions of this title. Title III: Navajo Community College - Navajo Community College Assistance Act - Amends the Navajo Community College Act to authorize construction appropriations of $60,000,000 for the College over the three years following this enactment. Appropriates additional operating and maintenance appropriations for the College. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to establish procedures to control such appropriations and to segregate them from appropriations for Navajo programs historically expended by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 1978
Emergency Highway and Transportation Repair Act - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to enter into a contract with each State for payment of 100 percent of the costs of repairing highways and surface rails of urban mass transportation systems (other than railroads) which were damaged as a result of the winter weather of 1977-1978. Authorizes appropriations of $250,000,000 out of the Highway Trust Fund to carry out the purposes of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 1978
Amends the Board for International Broadcasting Act of 1973 to prohibit assistance to Radio Free Europe or Radio Liberty if any Communist country is permitted to use such broadcast facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 1978
Directs the House Committee on the Judiciary to investigate whether sufficient grounds exist for the House of Representatives to exercise its constitutional power to impeach Griffin B. Bell, Attorney General of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 1978
Legislative Oversight Act - Title I: Requirements for Authorization Bills - Requires all legislation considered by either House of Congress which authorizes new budget authority or increased tax expenditures to include a statement of objectives of the program to be authorized or established and a requirement that the agencies administering the program report annually to Congress to assist it in determining whether such program should be amended. Requires such agency reports to list the costs and accomplishments of each program. Title II: Requirements for Reports Accompanying Authorization Bills - Requires committee reports accompanying such legislation to identify expected economic and social costs and benefits of new programs authorized or established by such legislation, potentially duplicative programs, and previous efforts to accomplish the objectives of the program being considered. Requires reports to contain, if the legislation continues an existing program, authorization, or tax expenditure, an assessment of the degree to which such program or tax expenditure has met previously stated objectives. Requires the Comptroller General to publish and periodically update a descriptive catalog of interrelated Federal activities which compares program costs and accomplishments and describes program interrelationships, including the extent to which programs are duplicative. Title III: Presidential Budget Recommendations - Requires the President's budget to describe the relationship between the President's recommended program budgets and the program accomplishments reported by Federal agencies under this Act. Title IV: Authorization Time Limit; Certain Obligations not Impaired - Prohibits congressional consideration of any legislation which authorizes new budget authority or provides new or increased tax expenditures, or new spending authority for a period exceeding five years. Exempts from this prohibition national debt service and payments to individuals from Federal trust funds to which such individuals have contributed. Title V: Miscellaneous Provisions; Effective Date - Recognizes the authority of either House to amend this Act. Sets the effective date of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 1978
Directs the Secretary of Transportation to evaluate the adequacy and appropriateness of Federal Motor Vehicle Standard 121 (49 CFR 571.121) with particular attention to whether the antilock braking requirement is practicable and meets the needs of motor vehicle safety. Requires the Secretary to submit the results of such evaluation to Congress within 12 months. Suspends the implementation of any antilock braking requirement until three months after the Secretary submits such report.
United States · United States Congress · 19 January 1978
Amends the Food and Agriculture Act of 1977 and the Agriculture Act of 1949 to: (1) increase the established prices of wheat and corn for the 1978 crops; (2) require land diversion payments whenever a set-aside of wheat or feed grains cropland is in effect for the 1978 crop year; (3) declare that no further acreage set-aside shall be required in any year on a summer fallow farm if at least 55 percent of cropland acreage is diverted to summer fallow use; (4) require implementation of the critical lands resource conservation program for the Great Plains states for the 1978 crop year; and (5) allow, under specified circumstances, interest-free extensions of the repayment period on wheat and feed grains loans.
United States · United States Congress · 19 January 1978
Petitions the President and the Secretary of Agriculture to: (1) increase price supports to bring commodity prices up to parity; (2) provide diversion payments for devoting land to conservation practices; (3) implement the critical lands and graze-out programs; (4) prevent Government dumping of surplus grain and dairy products into already depressed markets; (5) re-implement fully the summer-fallow provisions of the Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act of 1973; and (6) maximize agricultural exports.
United States · United States Congress · 15 December 1977
Amends the Woodrow Wilson Memorial Act of 1968 to establish a Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship in Social and Political Thought at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars at the Smithsonian Institution. Establishes the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Trust Fund in the Treasury.
United States · United States Congress · 15 December 1977
Authorizes improvements of the Belle Fourche project, South Dakota, including construction, land rehabilitation, and water conservation. Integrates such project into the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program. Provides for the negotiation and execution of an amendatory repayment contract with the Belle Fourche Irrigation District covering all the lands of the existing project.
United States · United States Congress · 15 December 1977
Petitions the President and the Secretary of Agriculture to: (1) increase price supports to bring commodity prices up to parity; (2) provide diversion payments for devoting land to conservation practices; (3) implement the critical lands and graze-out programs; (4) prevent Government dumping of surplus grain and dairy products into already depressed markets; (5) re-implement fully the summer-fallow provisions of the Agriculture and Consumer Protection Act of 1973; and (6) maximize agricultural exports.
United States · United States Congress · 29 November 1977
Equal Housing Opportunity Amendments - Amends the Rural Development Act of 1972 to require that loan guarantees from the Farmers Home Administration be under terms and restrictions no less favorable to borrowers than those offered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1977
Declares it the sense of Congress that the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare should not include in the National Guidelines for Health Planning any guidelines which would directly or indirectly cause the closing of any small, rural hospital which is the only hospital providing primary care services to a local community.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 1977
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development should not implement the proposed reorganization of the field and insuring offices of the Department of Housing and Urban Development prior to the time when the appropriate committees of the Congress have had an opportunity to hold hearings on such reorganization.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 1977
Omnibus Indian Jurisdiction Act - Title I: Criminal Law and Jurisdiction - Grants exclusive State jurisdiction over all crimes committed in Indian country: (1) by persons not members of the tribe or tribes occupying such Indian country; and (2) by members of the occupying tribe against those who are not members. Grants to Indian tribes exclusive criminal jurisdiction over all offenses committed in Indian country by members of the tribe; but not over offenses committed by nonmembers, or by members against nonmembers. Title II: Civil Law and Jurisdiction - Subjects Indian tribes to suit in the courts of the United States or any State. Grants every State: (1) civil governmental power, including judicial power, over the persons, conduct, and property of members and of Indian tribes in Indian country to the extent such power is necessary and incidental to the effective enforcement of State laws; and (2) jurisdiction over civil causes of action arising in Indian country between or against members or Indian tribes. Grants to every Indian tribe: (1) civil governmental power over the conduct and property of its members (but not of nonmembers) to the extent that such property is located in or such conduct occurs in the Indian country of the tribe; and (2) jurisdiction over civil actions as established by Federal law. Places the regulation of hunting, trapping, and fishing within the exclusive power of the: (1) tribe on tribal lands; and (2) State on any lands outside the tribal lands. Title III: Miscellaneous and Conforming Provisions - Amends specified provisions of the United States Code to bring them into conformity with this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 1977
Quantification of Federal Reserved Water Rights for Indian Reservations Act - Requires the adjudication and qualification of all claims to the use of water based on Federal reserved rights for Indian reservation by the United States district courts within a five-year period of limitations.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 1977
Declares it the sense of Congress that the sovereign rights of the United States in the Panama Canal Zone shall not be transferred, and that no Federal funds shall be made available for negotiation or implementation of any treaty or other agreement which may impair the sovereign rights of the United States in the Canal Zone.
United States · United States Congress · 1 November 1977
Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, to supply electric pumping energy to certain irrigation projects in the Missouri River Basin.
United States · United States Congress · 1 November 1977
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development should not implement the proposed reorganization of the field and insuring offices of the Department of Housing and Urban Development prior to the time when the appropriate committees of the Congress have had an opportunity to hold hearings on such reorganization.
![Official portrait of Sen. Abdnor, James [R-SD]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/a000009_200.jpg)