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Official portrait of Sen. Adams, Brock [D-WA]

Sen. Adams, Brock [D-WA]

United States · Official source

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1,580 records where Sen. Adams, Brock [D-WA] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years

Law· SS. 838 (102nd)enacted

Child Abuse, Domestic Violence, Adoption and Family Services Act of 1992

United States · United States Congress · 17 April 1991

Child Abuse, Domestic Violence, Adoption and Family Services Act of 1991 - Title I: Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act - Subtitle A: General State Program - Amends the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act to require (currently, authorize) grants to States to assist the States in improving the child protective service system in certain actions (currently, to assist the States in developing, strengthening, and carrying out child abuse and neglect prevention and treatment programs). Replaces provisions allowing waiver of certain State eligibility requirements with provisions requiring a State to annually submit a plan to the Secretary specifying the child protective service system area the State intends to address with funds under the grant. Sets forth required contents of the plan. Modifies the purposes of grants to State to include: (1) neglect as well as abuse; (2) the handling of suspected abuse- or neglected-related fatalities; (3) civil and criminal court handling (currently, prosecution) of abuse and neglect cases; and (4) the handling of cases involving a combination of jurisdictional authorities. Changes the requirements States must meet to be eligible for the grants. Revises the knowledge and experience requirements and the composition requirements for the State multidisciplinary task forces. Requires a State task force study, mandated by current provisions before receiving assistance, to be repeated every three years. Modifies the contents of the study. Subtitle B: Community-Based Prevention Grants - Replaces provisions authorizing Federal challenge grants to encourage States to support child abuse and neglect prevention activities with provisions authorizing community-based child abuse and neglect prevention grants to assist States in supporting such activities. Conditions State eligibility on the State having a trust fund (currently, a trust fund or other funding mechanism) which is available only for those activities. Modifies the allotment formula. Makes the trust fund (currently, the trust fund advisory board) responsible for administering and awarding Federal grants to recipients carrying out such activities. Modifies the required contents of grant applications. Subtitle C: Certain Preventive Services Regarding Children of Homeless Families or Families at Risk of Homelessness - Allows certain demonstration grants for preventive services regarding children of homeless families or families at risk of homelessness to be used, in certain circumstances, for emergency housing-related assistance and temporary rent subsidies. Subtitle D: Child Abuse Treatment Improvement Grants - Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services, through the Administration for Children, Youth and Families, to make grants to improve the treatment of children exposed to abuse or neglect and the families of such children. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle E: Reauthorization of Certain Programs - Authorizes appropriations for existing programs relating to: (1) services to children whose parents are substance abusers; (2) child abuse and neglect prevention and treatment; (3) community-based child abuse and neglect prevention; and (4) the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Amendments Act of 1990. Title II: Children With Disabilities Temporary Care - Children With Disabilities Temporary Care Reauthorization Act of 1991 - Amends the Temporary Child Care for Children with Disabilities and Crisis Nurseries Act of 1986 (formerly the Temporary Child Care for Handicapped Children and Crisis Nurseries Act of 1986) to authorize appropriations to carry out the Act. Title III: Reauthorization of Programs with Respect to Adoption and Family Violence - Amends the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1978 to authorize appropriations to carry out the Act. Amends the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act to authorize appropriations to carry out the Act.

Bill· SS. 844 (102nd)referred

United States One Dollar Coin Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 17 April 1991

United States One-Dollar Coin Act of 1991 - Amends Federal currency law to prescribe the color and features (including features to aid the visually handicapped) of one-dollar coins. Mandates that the obverse side of the one-dollar coin have a design recognizing the discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus. Requires such coins to be placed in circulation within 18 months of enactment of this Act. Mandates that the seigniorage of the new one-dollar coins be used to offset the reverse seigniorage resulting from the destruction of Susan B. Anthony dollar coins in Government storage.

Bill· SS. 806 (102nd)open

A bill to provide for the transfer of property for the Warren G. Magnuson Park in the city of Seattle, Washington, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 11 April 1991

Transfers surplus Federal property at Sand Point in Seattle, Washington, to the Secretary of the Interior. Directs the Secretary to transfer all right, title, and interest in and to such property to Seattle for the Warren G. Magnuson Park, except for a parcel occupied by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Fisheries Research Center. Prohibits the transfer of such property until Seattle submits a specified management plan for it to include: (1) the establishment of an advisory committee; and (2) the erection and maintenance within the boundaries of the park of an appropriate memorial to Warren G. Magnuson, including a permanent marker describing his contributions. Authorizes the Secretary to make a grant for the establishment of a memorial.

Bill· SS. 798 (102nd)referred

Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 11 April 1991

Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act of 1991 - Amends the Federal criminal code to impose civil or criminal penalties upon persons (other than agents of medical facilities or law enforcement officers acting within the scope of official authority) who intentionally prevent other individuals from entering or exiting a medical facility. Permits aggrieved individuals to obtain appropriate relief through civil actions.

Bill· SS. 810 (102nd)referred

Elementary School Counseling Demonstration Act

United States · United States Congress · 11 April 1991

Elementary School Counseling Demonstration Act - Authorizes appropriations for the Secretary of Education to make demonstration grants to local education agencies to establish effective and innovative elementary school counseling programs that can serve as national models. Directs the Secretary to establish an Office of School Counseling, headed by a Director, in the Department of Education.

Bill· SS. 741 (102nd)open

National Energy Efficiency and Development Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 21 March 1991

National Energy Efficiency and Development Act of 1991 - Title I: Energy Policy Initiatives - Subtitle A: National Energy Strategy - Requires the first National Energy Policy Plan submitted by the President to the Congress after enactment of this Act to include a least-cost energy strategy prepared by the Secretary of Energy (Secretary). Requires such strategy to contain: (1) a comprehensive inventory of available energy and energy efficiency resources and their costs; (2) a proposed two-year program for assuring adequate supplies of such resources, along with identification of actions possible under existing Federal law; and (3) recommendations for any new Federal authority needed to achieve the purposes of this Act. Subtitle B: Director of Climate Protection - Directs the Secretary to appoint a Director of Climate Protection to: (1) serve as the Secretary's representative for interagency and multilateral policy discussions of global climate change; (2) monitor domestic and international policies for their effects on the generation of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases; and (3) have the authority to participate in departmental planning activities. Title II: Measures to Improve the Energy Efficiency of the United States Economy - Subtitle A: Research and Development - Amends the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Technology Competitiveness Act of 1989 (REEETCA) to authorize appropriations for energy efficiency research and development. Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress triennially on energy efficiency policy options. Subtitle B: Industrial Energy Efficiency - Directs the Secretary to pursue a research and development program and enter into cost-shared joint ventures to improve efficiency in energy intensive industries (such as steel, chemicals, glass, paper, and aluminum). Authorizes appropriations. Requires the Secretary to develop, directly or by contract, a voluntary national program to devise standards for energy audits and the installation of insulation in industrial facilities. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to establish (and report to the Congress on): (1) a reporting system for industry to supply annual energy use and energy intensity information; and (2) voluntary energy efficiency improvement targets for energy-intensive industries. Directs the Administrator of the Energy Information Administration to expand the scope and frequency of the data it collects on energy use in the United States; and (2) report annually to the Congress on such data. Subtitle C: Efficiency in Commercial and Residential Buildings and Other Products - Amends the National Energy Conservation Policy Act (NECPA) to direct the Secretary to establish a program to provide technical assistance to States and localities in updating energy efficiency provisions of residential and commercial building codes. Requires each State or locality, by four years after enactment of this Act, to certify that it has reviewed and updated such codes so that they meet or exceed the requirements of the Council of American Building Officials' Model Energy Code (CABO-MEC). Requires each State or locality, by three years after such certification, to further certify that all new residential commercial buildings built during such period meet updated code requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to promulgate procedural guidelines for, and provide technical assistance to, States which adopt residential energy efficiency rating systems. Requires all residential buildings, by five years after enactment of this Act, to have numerical energy efficiency ratings. Requires disclosure to potential purchasers of such ratings. Makes any residential building which fails to meet CABO-MEC standards ineligible for Federal mortgage financing programs. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the Secretary to advise the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development on energy standards for manufactured housing; and (2) test the performance and cost-effectiveness of manufactured housing built to such standards. Creates in the Treasury the State Energy Efficiency Project Fund to provide for grants to States to undertake energy efficiency projects in State- and locally-owned buildings. Requires an annual report to the Congress on Fund activities. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to provide financial and technical assistance to support the voluntary development of a national window rating program to establish energy efficiency ratings for windows and window systems. Requires the Secretary to establish such a system if no voluntary program succeeds within two years after enactment of this Act. Requires the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to prescribe labeling rules for such rating system, unless labeling is not technologically or economically feasible or is not likely to help consumers make purchasing decisions. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to set minimum energy efficiency standards for certain types of lamps, appliance motors, commercial air conditioning and heating equipment, utility distribution transformers, showerheads, and commercial office equipment. Requires: (1) the FTC to prescribe labeling for such products; and (2) manufacturers to provide labeling meeting FTC requirements. Provides for enforcement of such labeling requirements. Directs the Secretary to establish, for a five-year period, a program to train and certify energy efficiency contractors. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle D: Federal Energy Management - Amends NECPA to require all Federal agencies to install all energy conservation measures which are cost-effective on a ten-year life-cycle cost basis. Permits such agencies to accept gas or electric utility incentives designed to encourage cost-effective energy demand management or energy conservation. Requires the Secretary to develop a simplified method of contracting for shared energy savings contract services that will reduce the administrative effort and cost on the part of the government as well as the private customers. Directs the Administrator of the General Services Administration to analyze significant energy consuming products in the Federal Supply Schedule and develop and implement a method to identify products which offer cost-effective opportunities to reduce energy consumption and costs. Directs the Secretary to establish guidelines for the transfer of up to $1,000,000 per project to encourage Federal agencies to undertake energy efficiency projects in federally owned facilities. Requires annual reports to the Congress on such projects. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to establish a financial bonus program to reward outstanding facility energy managers in Federal agencies. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Motor Vehicle Information and Cost Savings Act to direct the President to promulgate rules prohibiting each executive agency from acquiring any automobile with a fuel economy that is not greater than the average fuel economy for that particular model type for the previous model year. Directs the Secretary to submit to the Congress, and update every two years, a plan for demonstrating energy efficiency and renewable energy resource technologies in federally owned facilities. Amends REEETCA to require the Secretary to finance at least one joint venture for the demonstration of fuel cell technology in Federal facilities in order to accelerate commercial application of such cells. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to study and report on the use of Federal purchasing power to encourage the development of more energy efficient products. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle E: Utility Energy Efficiency - Amends the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) to direct States to require State-regulated utilities to employ a planning and selection process for new energy resources that evaluates the full range of existing and incremental resources in order to meet expected future demand at the lowest possible cost to society. Declares that the rates allowed to be charged by a State-regulated utility shall be such that: (1) the utility's investments in and expenditures for energy conservation, energy efficiency resources, and other demand-side management resources are at least as profitable as those for the construction of new generating equipment or the acquisition of other new supply-side resources; and (2) the utility is encouraged to make investments and expenditures for all cost-effective improvements in the energy efficiency of power generation and supply. States that the full cost of an energy resource shall include specified external costs associated with its use. Requires the Secretary to report annually to the Congress and certify which States have complied with such requirements. Declares that, beginning four years after enactment of this Act, energy efficiency measures shall be considered as "qualifying facilities" eligible for certain PURPA programs in States that have not adopted procedures to meet the requirements of this Act. Directs the Western, Southwestern, and Southeastern Power Marketing Administrations (PMAs) to ensure that they and their customer utilities acquire all cost-effective energy efficiency and renewable energy resources. Requires each long-term firm power contract between a PMA and a customer utility to require the utility to develop and implement an energy efficiency and renewable energy program. Requires such PMAs to implement programs directly to acquire cost-effective conservation and renewable energy resources in the region in conjunction with such utility programs. Requires the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to: (1) develop a similar least-cost plan; and (2) execute similar long-term firm contracts with its customer utilities. Requires the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to: (1) develop an office of energy efficiency to coordinate FERC's energy conservation and efficiency activities; and (2) establish procedures for expedited review of any interstate power sales conducted in accordance with the purchasing utility's least-cost energy plan. Subtitle F: Used Oil Energy Production Act of 1991 - Used Oil Energy Production Act of 1991 - Amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to require a producer or importer of 100,000 gallons or more per year of lubricating oil to increase annually the percentage (set by the Secretary) of recycled oil either: (1) by refining, rerefining, or reprocessing it into petroleum products (including fuels); or (2) by purchasing certain oil recycling credits. Exempts certain facilities from such requirements. Requires annual reports to specified congressional committees. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) not to list or identify used oil as a hazardous waste for certain purposes. Subtitle G: Tire Recycling Incentives - Tire Recycling Incentives Act - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to require tire producers or importers to increase annually the percentage (set by the EPA Administrator) of scrap tires recycled either: (1) by retreading or processing new tire products; or (2) by purchasing certain tire recycling credits. Requires the EPA Administrator to report to the Congress on scrap tire recycling. Sets forth civil penalties for violations of this subtitle. Directs the EPA Administrator to: (1) publish in the Federal Register minimum requirements for State scrap tire management and procedures under which such requirements shall be incorporated into State solid waste management plans; (2) provide for expedited review of State plans which include specified scrap tire recycling measures; and (3) establish standards to minimize health and environmental damages from the improper disposal and storage of tires. Requires such standards to provide for: (1) bans on the disposal of tires in land disposal facilities and on the intentional infliction of damage on tire casings to preclude casings from being used in retreading; (2) State inventories of scrap tire collection facilities, tire advisory boards, and scrap tire abatement plans; (3) agreements between facilities which distribute more than 1,000 tires annually and licensed tire haulers for the exclusive hauling of scrap tires by licensed haulers; and (4) prohibitions on the transportation of scrap tires by transporters without transportation identification numbers. Specifies exceptions. Directs the Administrator to publish guidelines for States for the issuance of permits to scrap tire collection facilities. Requires the Administrator to promulgate guidelines for States for facility emergency plans. Requires facility owners or operators to notify the State immediately in the event of an emergency with potential offsite impacts. Requires all regulated facilities to have appropriate financial responsibility or insurance to maintain the facility for at least five years after closure. Exempts specified persons from permit requirements. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations for the State to use to issue permits to scrap tire recycling facilities. Requires the Secretary of the Interior, together with the heads of agencies responsible for public lands or military installations, to implement a plan to remediate tire piles. Directs the Administrator to develop a guideline for procuring items that make use of scrap or used tires. Requires Federal departments, if the Administrator fails to promulgate such guideline, to procure items containing at least 75 percent of post-consumer scrap rubber from scrap tires if the rubber is available within a reasonable time at a reasonable price and meets performance standards. Directs the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, to publish standards to determine the life-cycle costs and benefits of items that make use of rubber from scrap or used tires as compared with items that make use of rubber other than from scrap or used tires. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to report to the Congress on: (1) direct worker environmental health effects relating to asphalt made from crumb rubber from scrap tires; (2) the recyclability of asphalt road surfaces made from crumb rubber from scrap tires; and (3) the estimated life of existing asphalt road surfaces made from crumb rubber from scrap tires. Permits States to: (1) enter into consent agreements with owners and operators of scrap tire collection facilities for proper management and abatement of scrap tires; and (2) levy fines on facilities for noncompliance. Imposes fines on tire facilities and landfills for specified violations of this Act. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle H: Insular Areas Energy Assistance - Authorizes the Secretary of Energy (Secretary) to grant financial assistance to Insular area governments to carry out energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Measures to Promote the Use of Renewable Energy - Subtitle A: Renewable Energy Technology Transfers - Amends REEETCA to authorize appropriations for: (1) renewable energy research and development programs; (2) State conservation programs; (3) State research and applied technology transfer programs; (4) Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratory information and publications; (5) four pilot programs to demonstrate model technology transfer and design assistance programs; (6) an advanced research and development information computer network; and (7) at least ten photovoltaic demonstration projects of at least ten megawatts in size to supply electric power to a power grid. Directs the Secretary to develop a Strategic Technology Transfer Implementation Plan for the national and international transfer of renewable energy and energy efficiency technology information. Amends the Federal Power Act and PURPA to: (1) make small biomass and hydropower production facilities specifically "eligible facilities" under such Act; and (2) define "alternative power production facility." Subtitle B: Amendments to the Committee on Renewable Energy Commerce and Trade (CORECT) - Amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to require the Committee on Renewable Energy Commerce and Trade (CORECT) to promote the development and application in lesser-developed countries of specified renewable energy and energy efficiency resource technologies. Authorizes CORECT to establish renewable energy industry outreach offices in the Pacific Rim and in the Caribbean Basin. Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress on the range of energy efficient and renewable energy technologies available to meet the energy needs of lesser-developed countries. Authorizes appropriations. Earmarks funds to assist U.S. manufacturers of renewable energy and energy efficient technology in exporting their products to lesser-developed countries. Title IV: Measures to Promote the Use of Alternative Motor Vehicles and Fuels - Subtitle A: Alternative Transportation Fuels - Authorizes the Secretary to enter into cooperative agreements and joint ventures to demonstrate the feasibility (including safety of specific vehicle design) of using natural gas or other alternative fuels for mass transit. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to establish a program to provide financial assistance to encourage the development and commercialization of natural gas and other alternative fuel use in passenger fleets, light duty, and heavy duty trucks. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary of Labor to establish a training and certification program for technicians who are responsible for vehicle installation of equipment that converts gasoline or diesel-fuel vehicles to the capability to run on natural gas or other alternative fuels. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary of Energy to carry out a program of research, development, and demonstration on techniques related to improving natural gas and other alternative fuel vehicle technology. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to: (1) institute an awareness program to educate potential purchasers of the costs, emission characteristics, and other features of alternative fuels; (2) report to the Congress on Federal purchasing policies which inhibit Federal purchase of alternative-fuel vehicles; (3) report to the Congress on how Federal, State, and local traffic control measures could promote the use of alternative-fuel vehicles; and (4) develop a plan for establishment of Federal and State trust funds to provide loans to convert vehicles to operate on alternative fuels or purchase alternative-fuel vehicles. Amends the Natural Gas Act to exclude the sale of natural gas as a vehicle fuel from the price regulation jurisdiction of FERC. Declares that a company shall not be considered a natural gas company under the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 solely because it distributes or sells natural gas as a motor vehicle fuel. Exempts from State regulation as a public utility (unless otherwise primarily engaged in business as such) any person or entity transporting or selling alternative vehicle fuels. Directs the Secretary to establish a fund to provide 50 percent of the cost of establishing offices of alternative fuels in State governments, as well as alternative fuel programs launched by such offices. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the Secretary to study whether the use of alternative fuels in nonroad vehicles and engines would contribute substantially to reduced reliance on imported energy sources. Directs the Secretary to issue regulations requiring, where feasible, nonroad vehicles and engines to use alternative fuels if such study concludes that such use could reduce reliance on imported energy sources by ten percent nationwide within a ten-year period. Subtitle B: Alternative Fuel Fleet Requirement - Requires every person who owns, operates, leases, or otherwise controls a motor vehicle fleet of specified composition in a metropolitan statistical area of over 250,000 population which is also an EPA-classified nonattainment area to increase the percentage of alternative-fueled vehicles in such fleet by specified increments annually until it reaches 90 percent in the year 2000. Directs the Secretary to allocate credits to covered persons who exceed the required quota of alternative-fueled vehicles. Establishes administrative and civil penalties (together with appropriate enforcement procedures) for violations of the requirements or prohibitions of this subtitle. Subtitle C: Electric Vehicle Technology Development and Demonstration - Electric Vehicle Technology Development and Demonstration Act of 1991 - Directs the Secretary to identify EPA-classified nonattainment areas in the United States in which the use of conventionally fueled vehicles contributes significantly to that nonattainment and in which the use of electric vehicles could contribute to attainment of applicable National Ambient Air Quality Standards. Directs the Secretary, after identifying such areas, to request applications from, and eventually select, manufacturers to develop, demonstrate, certify, manufacture, sell, warranty, and service electric vehicles in one or more of them. Requires: (1) the selected manufacturers to offer electric vehicle purchasers certain discounts; and (2) the Secretary to reimburse them the amount of such discounts. Requires annual reports to the Congress on such program. Authorizes appropriations. Title V: Transportation and Energy Efficiency - Amends the Motor Vehicle Information and Cost Savings Act to establish average fuel economy standards for passenger automobiles and automobiles other than passenger automobiles (light trucks) for model years 1996 and thereafter. Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to modify such standards, in response to a petition, according to a specified procedure. Requires the EPA Administrator to report annually to specified congressional committees on a study which: (1) examines the accuracy of fuel economy testing of passenger automobiles and light trucks; and (2) assesses the extent to which fuel economy deteriorates during the lifetime of such vehicles. Directs the Secretary of Energy to distribute at least 100 explanatory booklets each year to every dealer and additional numbers if requested. Requires the Secretary of Transportation to provide for a review and report to the Congress by the National Academy of Sciences on the current state of research and development in light truck fuel economy and passenger automobile fuel economy and an assessment of the potential for improving the fuel efficiency and reducing the energy consumption of passenger automobiles and light trucks. Requires the Secretary of Energy to study and report to the Congress on the future options for regulating the fuel efficiency of such vehicles beyond 2001. Provides for the judicial review of average fuel economy standards (including modifications thereof) established under this Act. Doubles the civil penalty for repeated violations of the fuel economy standard. Requires such penalty to be adjusted for inflation. Title VI: Measures to Displace Petroleum as a Vehicle Fuel - Replacement Fuels and Alternative Fuels Act of 1991 - Directs the Secretary of Energy (Secretary) to: (1) establish a program to promote the development and use of domestic-produced replacement and alternative fuels; and (2) prescribe the minimum percentage of domestic-produced replacement and alternative fuels, on an energy equivalent basis, to be sold in calendar years 1996 and 1997 by any refiner for use as a motor fuel. Amends the Motor Vehicle Information and Cost Savings Act to authorize the Secretary of Transportation, if the average fuel economy standard for passenger automobiles is increased above 27.5 miles per gallon for any model year, to increase the maximum increase in average fuel economy for a manufacturer attributable to dual energy and natural gas dual energy automobiles until alternative and replacement motor fuel sales indicate that such fuels are displacing conventional petroleum as a motor fuel. Sets forth civil penalties for violations of this Act and a procedure for appealing such penalties. Authorizes appropriations. Title VII: Measures to Promote the Use of Natural Gas - Directs the Secretary of Energy (Secretary) to conduct a program of research, development, and demonstration of cofiring (of natural gas and pulverized coal), including gas reburn technologies (which reduce nitrogen oxide emissions), in electric utility units and large industrial boilers in order to determine optimal natural gas injection levels for both environmental and operational benefits. Provides for financial assistance to or cooperative agreements with public or private entities under such program. Sets the Federal shares of costs at 50 percent. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to expand the program for research, development, and demonstration for natural gas and electric heating and cooling technologies for residential and commercial buildings. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Natural Gas Act to direct FERC to develop an incentive formula for rates and charges for the sale or transportation of natural gas. Sets as the development goals for such formula: (1) allowing natural gas companies to earn a fair rate of return; (2) providing proper price signals to the marketplace; and (3) rewarding pipeline efficiency. Repeals FERC's authority to delay decision-making on ratemaking orders beyond the 30-day rehearing requirement without cause. Requires FERC to take final action on a rehearing application within 60 days after it is filed. Permits natural gas companies to file for FERC approval joint rates negotiated by them for the transportation of natural gas through each of their pipelines in sequence on the way to market. Exempts such rates from coverage under specified antitrust law. Declares that, in the setting of natural gas company rates, a plant shall be recognized so long as it is used and useful in discharging the company's utility business (even if it is already completely depreciated). Declares that pipeline sales rates shall be presumed just and reasonable if workably competitive alternatives exist for such sales. Sets forth conditions under which new natural gas company services (where competitive, certified services already exist) do not need a certificate of public convenience and necessity. Amends the Natural Gas Act to provide automatic abandonment of the sales obligation upon contract expiration, subject to a pipeline's right to extend. Declares that any fixed charge paid by an interstate pipeline to a first seller for gas supply security shall be recoverable on an "as-billed basis" in the pipeline's demand charges, unless FERC determines, after a hearing, that the pipeline does not offer a reasonably competitive alternative to its sales service. Requires the Secretary to condition the approval of any natural gas import application upon FERC action to redress any anti-competitive impacts on U.S. gas producers, including competitive disparities resulting from different rate designs applied to the transportation of domestic gas and imported supplies. Directs the Secretary to expand and continue, through joint ventures, a program of research, development, and demonstration on techniques to increase: (1) intensive recovery of natural gas in place in discovered reservoirs or formations; and (2) economic recovery from nonconventional sources, including tight formation, Devonian shales, and geopressurized brines. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1968 to exempt from Natural Gas Act coverage and FERC jurisdiction the construction or operation of any facilities if the natural gas company constructing such facilities: (1) holds a certificate pursuant to which it has agreed to provide open access transportation service; and (2) the company agrees that such certificate shall apply to any transportation service through the new facilities. Requires all such facilities to be constructed in accordance with applicable environmental protection and safety laws and regulations, except the National Environmental Policy Act of 1978 (NEPA). Directs FERC to create an environmental review process under NEPA providing that pipeline construction projects which are confined to existing utility or highway corridors, and do not involve construction in high value wetland areas, shall be afforded a rebuttable presumption of no significant impact. Makes FERC the lead agency with primary authority for compliance with NEPA in any case where FERC authorization of the construction or operation of facilities or projects under the Natural Gas Act may be deemed a major Federal action. Amends the Natural Gas Act to grant FERC the power to issue certificates of public convenience and necessity in a two-phase process: (1) the first phase, which shall constitute a final order, involving all matters requiring FERC review and approval except environmental matters; and (2) the second phase, addressing required environmental matters only. Directs FERC to revise its environmental review procedures to allow pipelines to submit Environmental Assessments (EAs) at the time of filing for approval of proposed facilities, using general standards specified by FERC. Requires the revised procedures to presume EAs valid subject to FERC review for compliance with its own standards. Requires FERC to permit a certificate applicant to elect a contractor, consultant or other FERC designee to prepare the environmental impact statement at the applicant's expense. Requires FERC to develop procedures to ensure against conflicts of interest in such contracting. Directs the Office of Technology Assessment to study and report to the Congress on: (1) the global trends of production, usage, and transportation of natural gas and the ways in which these trends can affect domestic energy policy and the U.S. natural gas industry; and (2) State and locally imposed institutional and regulatory barriers to increase national natural gas usage. Title VIII: Tax Treatment of Energy Resources - Subtitle A: Renewable Energy Production Incentive - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a renewable energy production credit for electric power plants that operate on solar, wind, and geothermal energy. Sets the credit at two cents (inflation-adjusted annually) per kilowatt hour produced and sold by the taxpayer to an unrelated person. Applies such credit only to facilities built during taxable years 1991 through 1996. Sets forth decreasing credit allowances for 1997 through 2001. Sets the credit for geothermal properties at half the credit for other renewable energy properties. Subtitle B: Transportation - Limits the exclusion from gross income of parking provided by the taxpayer's employer to parking located on the employer's premises only. (Currently the parking may be located on or near the premises.) Requires the employer to operate such facility and restrict substantially all its use to employees. Expands the working condition fringe exclusion from gross income to include up to $75 per month of any van pooling or reimbursement for public mass transit use provided by the taxpayer's employer. Subtitle C: Buildings and Housing Tax Credits - Allows an individual a tax credit of up to $100 of qualified oil retrofit conservation expenditures ($50 in the case of a married individual filing a separate return) for the taxpayer's principal residence. Defines oil retrofit component to include: (1) flame retention burners; (2) insulation measures and water-heater wraps; (3) automatic thermostat controls; and (4) window insulation measures. Subtitle D: Utilities - Excludes from gross income the amount (if in cash) or value (if in kind) of any subsidy (rebate) provided by a public utility to a customer in connection with the purchase, installation, use, or maintenance of any energy or water conservation measure or for energy savings delivered by such measures. Denies any deduction or credit to the extent of any such subsidy excluded from gross income. Declares that this tax exclusion does not apply to any payment to a qualified cogeneration facility or qualifying small power production facility under PURPA. Subtitle E: Automobiles and Trucks - Safe and Efficient Vehicles Incentives Act of 1991 - Establishes: (1) taxes on the sale of each new motor vehicle whose fuel economy is less, or whose composite safety factor is less, than the respective sales-weighted average fuel economy or average composite safety factor of all new motor vehicles within the same class; and (2) rebates for the purchase of each new motor vehicle whose fuel economy is greater, or whose composite safety factor is greater, than the respective sales-weighted average fuel economy or composite safety factor of all new motor vehicles within the same class. Sets forth formulae for the calculation of such taxes and rebates. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to publish in the Federal Register and notify each manufacturer or importer of such formulae annually. Requires labeling boldly displaying such taxes and rebates on all vehicles for sale. Provides for collection of taxes and disbursement of rebates. Sets forth formulae for the calculation of sales-weighted average fuel economies and composite safety factors. Subtitle F: Domestic Oil and Gas Production Incentives - Removes the net income limitation on the percentage depletion allowance deduction for oil and gas wells. Allows a tax credit for up to ten percent of the qualified cost of each barrel of crude oil produced from an economically marginal well (including certain stripper wells) or recovered through a tertiary recovery method. Provides for carryback or carryforward of unused credit. Allows a tax credit for specified percentages of the taxpayer's qualified investment in crude oil and natural gas exploration and development wells. Eliminates intangible drilling costs as tax preference items. Allows deduction of specified drilling costs from the Alternative Minimum Tax calculation. Repeals the taxable income limitation on the percentage depletion allowance. Allows the carryforward of excess depletion allowances. Repeals a specified Revenue Ruling with respect to mineral sharing arrangements. Allows the nonconventional source fuels credit to offset the Alternative Minimum Tax liability. Repeals the January 1, 1993, termination date for such credit, thus making it permanent.

Bill· SS. 720 (102nd)referred

Urban Schools of America (USA) Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 21 March 1991

Urban Schools of America (USA) Act of 1991 - Title I: Urban School Improvement - Authorizes appropriations for this title. Directs the Secretary of Education (the Secretary) to reserve five percent of specified funds for competitive grant awards to exemplary school programs. Directs the Secretary to allot, from remaining amounts, to each eligible local educational agency (LEA) with an approved application an amount based on that LEA's relative allocation under certain provisions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 for education of disadvantaged children (ESEA title I chapter 1). Provides for annual payments to eligible LEAs with approved applications if they comply with certain data collection requirements to monitor progress toward meeting national education goals, and demonstrate such progress. Requires each such LEA to reserve up to five percent of its allotment to make as many grants as practicable, for authorized activities, to community-based organizations or nonprofit partnerships between the LEA and a city-wide collaborative of private sector businesses. Sets limits on the time and the amount of funds to be used for planning purposes. Requires LEAs to use funds under this title to meet national education goals through programs designed to: (1) increase the academic achievement of urban school children to at least the national average; (2) prepare all urban children for school; (3) increase the graduation rates of urban students to at least the national average; (4) prepare urban school graduates to enter higher education, pursue careers, and exercise their responsibilities as citizens; (5) recruit and retain qualified teachers; and (6) decrease the use of drugs and alcohol by urban students, and enhance their physical and emotional health. Sets forth program accountability requirements: (1) in general, for initial grants, renewal grants, and renewal of school participation; (2) for achievement, including demonstration of improvement; and (3) for data collection to monitor progress in achieving national education goals. Authorizes the Secretary to make, from reserved funds, competitive incentive awards to individual schools participating in projects assisted under this title that demonstrate exemplary progress in meeting specified program requirements. Directs the Secretary, by January 1, 1993, to report on the impact of Federal regulations, guidelines, and policies on urban public schools. Requires LEAs desiring to receive an allotment under this Act to establish a local advisory group to: (1) advise on design and conduct of a needs assessment for participating schools; (2) assist in planning for community-wide collaboration in service delivery for youths in participating schools; (3) advise the LEA and the community on how they can work together to use multiple service providers; and (4) advise and assist program implementation and review program evaluation; (5) review and approve community-based organizations' applications; (6) advise on strategies for increasing parental involvement and the number of school volunteers and role models; and (7) review community-based programs' progress or national education goals. Allows use of a comparable existing local advisory group to comply with such requirement. Sets forth special rules relating to ranking of schools to determine relative need, in general, on the basis of achievement, poverty, and racial isolation. Requires each LEA receiving a grant to serve between ten and 20 percent of its schools. Requires eligible LEAs to have flexibility to serve homeless children, desegregating students, immigrants, migrants, or other highly mobile populations, within the program assisted under this title. Deems any approved program for any school served under certain ESEA title I chapter 1 provisions to be sufficient to meet the application and program accountability requirements of this title. Title II: School Building Repair and Renovation - Authorizes appropriations to assist eligible LEAs in repairing and renovating instructional facilities in city schools. Directs the Secretary to reserve one percent of such funds for monitoring activities under this title. Directs the Secretary to allot the remainder to eligible LEAs, which shall use half of such allotment for programs for school building repair and renovation, and half for programs for school environmental concerns and safety improvements. (Authorizes the Secretary to waive such 50 percent division in certain cases.) Directs the Secretary to allocate such funds on the basis of the number of: (1) children from families below the poverty line; (2) school buildings used for instructional purposes; and (3) school buildings more than 25 years old used for instructional purposes. Limits the period covered by a grant application to three years, and requires annual review by the Secretary. Lists types of programs eligible LEAs must conduct with their allotments for: (1) repair and renovation of school buildings; and (2) improvements related to environmental concerns and safety. Title III: Urban School Research - Authorizes appropriations, to carry out this title, for the National Institute for Urban Education (the Institute), established in the Department of Education by this title. Amends the Department of Education Organization Act to create an Assistant Secretary for Urban Education (the Assistant Secretary), who is to establish the Institute in the Department. Directs the Assistant Secretary to: (1) reserve 20 percent of funds for this title for operation of the Institute; and (2) from the remainder of such funds, make allotments to eligible LEAs on the basis of numbers of students. Directs the Institute to: (1) evaluate and disseminate results of activities under title I; (2) conduct research in urban education; (3) serve as a clearinghouse on urban education research findings, policies, and practices; (4) assist LEAs in developing research and evaluation to assess progress toward meeting national education goals; (5) provide training in research and evaluation; (6) design a research and evaluation strategy for assessing progress under this Act; and (7) design and test both common indicators and new multiple-measures of progress toward national education goals. Provides for an Institute Governing Board. Allows LEAs to use funds under this title for: (1) collaborative and coordinated research and evaluation of educational techniques or approaches in multiple cities served by eligible LEAS; (2) evaluation of projects assisted under title I; (3) dissemination of information on successful projects and approaches under title I; (4) design and implementation of programs for LEA technical assistance to individual schools and teachers involved in title I projects; (5) data and information management services for schools participating in a title I program; (6) staff training in such schools; (7) evaluation of progress in meeting national educational goals by LEAs receiving assistance under this Act; (8) staff training in test interpretation and use for diagnostic purposes; (9) information for parents on test results and interpretation; (10) research and evaluation technology and training; (11) tools for assessment of students in individualized instruction; (12) research on school policies and practices that may be barriers to student success; and (13) new, multiple, alternative assessments of student progress. Title IV: General Provisions - Establishes the Interagency Council on Urban Schools to: (1) review Federal programs to determine effects on urban schools' ability to meet national education goals; (2) track school progress toward such goals; (3) solicit advice and information for urban education experts and urban school representatives on improvement of Federal programs; (4) review Federal regulations for duplication or contradiction; (5) report annually to the Congress and the President on urban school progress; (6) review and recommend improvement or streamlinig of Federal data collection in urban schools; and (7) conduct research to help urban school practitioners improve school performance. Directs the President to conduct a White House Conference on Urban Education before October 30, 1993. Requires the Conference to: (1) develop recommendations and strategies for improving urban education; (2) marshal the forces of the private sector, governmental agencies at all levels, parents, teachers, communities, and education officials to assist urban schools in meeting national goals; and (3) conduct initial planning for a permanent national advisory commission on urban education. Requires a report to the President. Authorizes appropriations for such Conference. Establishes a National Commission on Urban Education (the Commission). Directs the Commission to: (1) study specified issues relating to urban schools; and (2) report, and recommend changes in Federal legislation, to the President and appropriate congressional committees. Terminates the Commission three years after its first meeting. Authorizes appropriations for the Commission. Requires eligible LEAs to use Federal funds received under this Act only to supplement but not supplant non-Federal funds.

Resolution· SRESS.Res. 90 (102nd)passed

A resolution extending a warm welcome to His Excellency Lech Walesa, President of the Republic of Poland, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 21 March 1991

Declares that the Senate: (1) extends a warm welcome to His Excellency Lech Walesa, President of the Republic of Poland, upon the occasion of his State Visit to the United States; (2) recalls the historic ties between the people of both countries; (3) applauds his commitment to economic and political reform; (4) reaffirms the Senate's and U.S. people's support for the independence and security of Poland; (5) looks forward to cooperation with Poland on issues relating to security and stability in Europe; and (6) commends the Bush Administration's decision to reduce Poland's debt to the United States, applauds the Paris Club's decision to reduce Poland's foreign debt, and urges Poland's private creditors to do the same.

Bill· SS. 715 (102nd)referred

A bill to permit States to waive application of the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986 with respect to vehicles used to transport farm supplies from retail dealers to or from a farm, and to vehicles used for custom harvesting, whether or not such vehicles are controlled and operated by a farmer.

United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1991

Authorizes the States to waive application of the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986 to vehicles used either for transporting farm supplies from retail dealers to or from a farm, or for custom harvesting, regardless of whether or not they are controlled or operated by a farmer.

Law· SJRESS.J.Res. 98 (102nd)enacted

A joint resolution to express appreciation for the benefit brought to the Nation by Amtrak during its twenty years of existence.

United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1991

Recognizes the role of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) in preserving a national rail passenger system and providing Americans with an energy efficient, environmentally preferable transportation alternative. Declares that the need for a balanced national transportation system dictates that transportation planners consider the many advantages of improved rail passenger services as they look to addressing national and regional transportation concerns.

Bill· SS. 694 (102nd)referred

Allied Health Professionals Promotion Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 19 March 1991

Allied Health Professionals Promotion Act of 1991 - Amends provisions of the Public Health Service Act relating to grants and contracts concerning training of allied health personnel to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to allocate 75 percent of the funds authorized to those allied health fields the Secretary determines to have: (1) the most significant shortages of practitioners; and (2) a significant role in the care and rehabilitation of patients who are elderly or disabled. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants and contracts to assist allied health students in meeting the costs of entry level education, allocating 75 percent of the funds as above. Makes payments of tuition under these provisions to, or on behalf of, a participating student, notwithstanding other law, exempt from taxation. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes appropriations for traineeships for advanced training of allied health personnel, making the traineeships available for postgraduate (currently, doctoral) programs and students. Establishes within the Health Resources and Services Administration the Advisory Council on Allied Health. Excludes registered nurses from the definition of "allied health personnel."

Bill· SS. 673 (102nd)referred

Construction Safety, Health, and Education Improvement Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 14 March 1991

Construction Safety, Health, and Education Improvement Act of 1991 - Amends the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (the Act) to establish in the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) an Office of Construction Safety, Health, and Education (the Office) to ensure safe and healthy working conditions in the performance of construction work. Directs the Secretary of Labor (the Secretary) to: (1) develop mandatory standards for construction safety and health plans and programs established under this Act; (2) assume control of a construction site to both prevent the destruction of any evidence that would assist in the investigation of a fatality, serious injury, or incident, (unless it must be moved or destroyed as a part of rescue operations) and monitor the rescue operations conducted in response to the incident; (3) assist the Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health in developing training courses and curriculum for the Construction Safety and Health Academy; (4) advise and consult with construction employer associations, construction employers, construction employees, and labor organizations as to effective means of preventing fatalities and serious injuries in construction work; (5) increase awareness of construction site safety through education, training, and outreach programs; (6) promulgate regulations requiring construction employers to establish and comply with special health and safety programs if they have high frequency rates of fatalities or serious injuries or patterns of noncompliance with health and safety standards; (7) develop and implement regulations necessary to ensure compliance with the Act, and ensure that such regulations are appropriate and adequate for the safety and health of employees of firms of different sizes, types of work, and past safety and compliance records (different firms); (8) make available materials necessary for compliance with the Act to project constructors, employers, and employees; and (9) carry out other duties set forth in this Act. Establishes within OSHA the position of Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for Construction who is to: (1) be appointed by the Secretary; (2) coordinate Office activities with those of other offices and directorates within OSHA as they relate to safety, health, and education in the construction industry; and (3) coordinate the activities and advice of the Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health with all OSHA activities relating to such matters, ensuring that the Advisory Committee performs its functions under the Act and the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act. Directs the Secretary, with the advice of the Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health, to determine the necessary qualifications and training for OSHA inspectors, including: (1) full understanding of the Act and the Secretary's standards and regulations for the construction industry; and (2) at least five years' experience working in the construction industry. Provides for designation of an Office employee to serve as small business liaison. Establishes requirements for construction safety and health plans and programs. Requires designation of a project constructor (the constructor) by the construction owner for every construction project covered by the Act. Gives the constructor overall responsibility for the safety and health of all construction employees at the construction worksite, and for performing constructor duties set out in the Act and regulations issued under it. Considers the construction owner as the project constructor if such owner does not designate a constructor. Directs the constructor for a worksite to develop and implement written safety and health plans, including: (1) hazard analyses that identify the potential for and provide instructions to prevent hazards in the construction process; and (2) construction process plans that include means to ensure worksite structural stability and worksite inspections. Requires constructors to designate project safety coordinators (coordinators) for construction projects and notify construction employers of their identity (although such coordinators may not be assigned overall responsibility for project safety). Requires coordinators, on behalf of constructors, to: (1) monitor compliance by construction employers with the project safety and health plan, the employer's own safety and health program, and the Act and all applicable standards and regulations; (2) maintain project safety records; (3) give notice of hazards or noncompliance; (4) review employer safety and health programs prior to work commencement; and (5) ensure construction employers' compliance with reporting requirements. Requires constructors to develop and implement permit systems to authorize employers to engage in operations determined to pose a risk of death or serious injury (covered operations). Requires covered operations to include: (1) construction of trenches and excavations; (2) erection and dismantling of scaffolding; (3) demolition of any building or structure; (4) operation of cranes and derricks; (5) operations requiring employees to enter confined or enclosed spaces; (6) operations involving exposure to asbestos and other toxic materials; and (7) other operations designated by the Secretary. Requires constructors, in issuing such permits, to ensure that employers: (1) know of and show intent to comply with requirements of the Act and standards and regulations issued by the Secretary; and (2) have developed safety and health programs that adequately address the hazards of the covered operation. Requires each construction employer (employer) on a construction project to develop and implement a project safety and health program commensurate with the scope of their work. Requires such programs to require: (1) the employer to appoint one competent person to be responsible for general program administration; (2) a competent person to be at each worksite at all times that the employer is engaged in construction work; (3) competent persons to inspect worksites frequently and take all necessary actions to eliminate hazards, including work stoppage or removal of affected employees if necessary; (4) provision of prescribed general health and safety training for construction employees; (5) adequate worksite instruction in the recognition of unsafe and unhealthy conditions, applicable standards and regulations, use of construction worksite equipment, and the handling of toxic and harmful substances; (6) emergency evacuation plans, inspection procedures, reporting and recording of incidents; (7) a procedure for employees and employee representatives to obtain an immediate inspection or a written evaluation, or both, of a perceived hazardous condition or harmful substance by a qualified person at any time in the construction process; (8) upon determination that such condition or substance presents an imminent danger, for the project constructor to stop work at, or remove affected employees from, the area in which such danger exists; and (9) other requirements, including procedures for monitoring, notification, and safety meetings. Sets forth procedures for emergency waivers of such requirements under specified conditions. Sets forth provisions for inspections, investigations, reporting, and recordkeeping. Directs the Secretary to establish an effective system for construction worksite inspections. Requires such system to give inspection priority to construction worksites and operations on the basis of their potential for fatalities or serious injuries, giving due weight to: (1) employers' and owners' worksite compliance records; and (2) frequency and severity rates of fatalities, serious injuries, and incidents attributable to particular owners and employers and particular types of construction projects, worksites, and operations. Prohibits such priority system from limiting: (1) inspections based on complaints of imminent dangers; or (2) inspections following up prior enforcement actions or proceedings. Prohibits the Secretary from excluding from construction worksite inspections any construction owner or employer. Requires project constructors to submit, before construction work commences, specified types of information necessary for the Secretary to develop and conduct a system of prioritized inspections. Requires project constructors to make and maintain accurate records concerning fatalities, serious injuries, and incidents on a project. Requires construction employers to make and maintain such records with respect to their own employees. Requires reports to the Secretary by telephone or telegraph, within four hours after its occurence, any incident involving construction work that results in: (1) a serious injury or a fatality (to be reported by the construction employer of the employee involved); or (2) a structural failure (to be reported by the project constructor). Requires such reports to specify certain information. Directs the Secretary to conduct site inspections to investigate all such reports of incidents, as the Secretary prescribes. Requires such inspections within 24 hours after receipt of the telephone or telegraph report, unless site conditions would make inspection dangerous. Requires the project constructor to prevent destruction of evidence. Directs the Secretary to make public a narrative description of the occurrence. Requires the project constructor, at project completion or at one-year intervals during the project, to report to the Secretary all fatalities and serious injuries and all structural failures. Requires such report to provide specified information. Establishes in OSHA a Construction Safety and Health Academy to train: (1) OSHA employees who conduct construction worksite inspections; (2) construction employers and employees; and (3) other persons as the Secretary, with the advice of the Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health, considers appropriate. Authorizes the Academy to enter into cooperative educational and training agreements with educational institutions, State governments, labor organizations, and construction industry employers. Requires the Secretary and the Academy to provide equal access to services for employers, employees, and employee representatives. Makes technical revisions relating to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Grants the Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health specified powers to carry out its functions under the Act and under the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act. Limits the terms of members of such Committee. Directs the Secretary to respond in writing within 60 days to any recommendation made by such Committee. Requires any State construction safety and health plan to comply with specified requirements for State plans under the Act and to provide for development and enforcement of requirements at least as effective as those imposed by the Act and the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States for administering and enforcing this Act. Sets forth formulas for determining the Federal share of such grants. Directs the Secretary to report to the President and the Congress: (1) annually on certain general subjects as these relate to the construction industry, including the operation of the Office; and (2) within 120 days after three years of Office operation, on whether specified relevant information supports the continued existence of the Office within OSHA or supports enactment of legislation to establish in the Department of Labor a Construction Industry Safety and Health Administration to be headed by an Assistant Secretary of Labor for Construction Safety and Health. Sets forth provisions relating to the application of this Act. Authorizes the Secretary to determine that certain types of construction projects or operations should not be covered by specified requirements of this Act because compliance is not feasible and will not promote a significant increase in construction employee safety and health. Requires the Secretary, in making such determinations with repect to construction projects or operations, to take account of: (1) number of construction employees working; (2) duration; (3) type of work being performed, particularly associated risk of death or serious injury; (4) frequency and severity rates of deaths, serious injuries, and incidents of the construction employers and owners involved; and (5) such employers' and owners' record of compliance with Federal and State safety and health laws and regulations. Sets forth procedures for appealing adverse effects of such determinations. Requires each type of construction project or operation that the Secretary determines to be not covered by specified requirements of this Act to comply with alternative requirements established by the Secretary. Requires that all construction projects and operations be covered by specified requirements of this Act unless and until the Secretary establishes a contrary determination. Exempts from such coverage construction work performed under a contract between a construction employer and a homeowner for work on the homeowner's own residence, unless such work involves a specified covered operation. Directs the Secretary to: (1) review all laws describing criteria by which Federal construction contracts are awarded; and (2) within 90 days after enactment of this Act, deliver to specified congressional committees recommendations regarding legislative changes required to make safety records (including records of compliance with safety and health laws and regulations) one criterion considered in the awarding of Federal construction contracts. Sets forth an effective date for this Act and timetables for interim and final regulations.

Resolution· SRESS.Res. 82 (102nd)passed

A resolution to establish a Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs.

United States · United States Congress · 14 March 1991

Establishes the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs to receive, concurrently with other committees of the Senate with jurisdiction, all messages, petitions, memorials, and other matters relating to U.S. personnel unaccounted for from military conflicts.

Bill· SS. 614 (102nd)referred

A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide coverage under such title for certain chiropractic services authorized to be performed under State law, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 12 March 1991

Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to limit Medicare coverage of chiropractic services to diagnostic x-rays, physical examinations, and certain spinal manipulations conducted by State-licensed chiropractors who are legally authorized by the State to provide such services.

Bill· SS. 612 (102nd)open

Savings and Investment Incentive Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 12 March 1991

Savings and Investment Incentive Act of 1991 - Title I: Retirement Savings Incentives - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to remove the limitations on deductions for individual retirement plans and provides a cost of living adjustment for deductible amounts. Establishes special individual retirement accounts that are nondeductible. Makes such accounts nontaxable if earnings on contributions are held for at least five years. Applies the early withdrawal penalty to distributions made before the end of the five year-period. Title II: Penalty-Free Distributions - Provides exemptions from the ten-percent penalty on early withdrawals from individual retirement plans for: (1) first home purchases; (2) higher education expenses; and (2) financially devasting medical expenses.

Resolution· SCONRESS.Con.Res. 17 (102nd)referred

A concurrent resolution expressing the sense of Congress with respect to certain regulations of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

United States · United States Congress · 12 March 1991

Requests the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to publish, before the expiration of 102d Congress, proposed amended regulations that specify the components of an adequate operator training program and certification system for operators of powered industrial trucks.

Bill· SS. 597 (102nd)referred

Children of Substance Abusers Act

United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1991

Children of Substance Abusers Act - Title I: Services for Children of Substance Abusers - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services, through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, to make grants for the Federal share of the cost of community outreach services and services for children of substance abusers. Sets forth program requirements, including providing comprehensive services for the entire family. Sets forth requirements regarding: (1) the distribution of grants among specified types of entities; and (2) information and assurances which must be included in grant applications. Sets the Federal share at 90 percent. Authorizes appropriations. Provides for grants for the training of professionals and other staff who provide services to, or come in contact with, children and families of substance abusers. Requires the Administrator to identify the training needs of such professionals and other staff and develop a strategy for satisfying the needs. Prescribes the uses of the grant funds. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Home-Visiting Services for at-Risk Families - Directs the Secretary to make competitive three- to five-year grants for the Federal share of the costs of home visiting services, including help in obtaining health and social services. Sets forth priorities in awarding grants and information and assurances which must be included in grant applications. Sets the Federal share at 90 percent. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Treatment - Requires a State to: (1) use at least 20 (currently, at least ten) percent of alcohol and drug abuse and mental health services block grant allotments for alcohol and drug abuse programs and services for women and demonstration projects for residential treatment services to pregnant women; (2) ensure that treatment services are available to each woman who is pregnant and who meets other requirements; and (3) establish, if treatment programs in the State have insufficient capacity, quantitative goals and implement a program for the provision of adequate capacity to meet the needs of each such woman. Modifies requirements regarding the contents of an annual report mandated by existing provisions concerning certain block grant programs.

Bill· SS. 602 (102nd)referred

Childhood Hunger Prevention Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1991

Childhood Hunger Prevention Act of 1991 - Title I: Food Stamp Program - Amends the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to increase the basic food stamp program (program) benefit level by specified annual increments until it reaches 105 percent of the cost of the thrifty food plan. Excludes from consideration as program income the first $50 a month received as child support. Removes the excess shelter deduction cap for purposes of program eligibility. Increases annually the fair market value limit of vehicles that program recipients may own. Directs the Secretary to conduct, and authorizes States to conduct, pilot projects to study program participation barriers in rural areas. Authorizes the Secretary to use specified funds to improve program services for homeless persons. Title II: Nutrition Programs - Amends the National School Lunch Act to: (1) permit certain private residential day care organizations to participate in the child care and adult food program; (2) permit meal supplements (snacks) for children in after school care programs (by eliminating the child care food program requirement); and (3) increase specified funds for food assistance to homeless preschool children. Amends the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to authorize specified appropriations for the supplemental food program for women, infants, and children (WIC) program. Title III: Effective Dates - Sets forth the effective dates for provisions of this Act.

Bill· SS. 601 (102nd)referred

A bill to withhold United States military assistance for El Salvador, subject to certain conditions.

United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1991

Expresses the sense of the Congress that the United States shall use diplomacy to encourage the Government of El Salvador and the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN) to: (1) participate in good-faith negotiations to achieve a cease-fire and permanent settlement of the conflict in El Salvador; (2) adhere to the terms of agreements signed in Geneva, Switzerland, Caracas, Venezuela, and San Jose, Costa Rica; and (3) support the role of the Secretary General of the United Nations in advancing proposals on the outstanding issues defined in the Caracas Accords to resolve the conflict. Withholds from El Salvador unobligated military assistance for FY 1991 and prior fiscal years and military assistance allocated for FY 1992 and 1993 until the Congress enacts a joint resolution authorizing the provision of such assistance and the President reports to the Congress that: (1) those responsible for ordering and carrying out, or obstructing the investigation into, the November 1989 murders of certain priests and civilians have been apprehended and brought to justice; (2) internationally recognized workers' rights have been extended to Salvadoran workers; (3) the El Salvadoran Government has pursued legal avenues to bring to trial and obtain verdicts for those responsible for the murders of Archbishop Romero and certain land reformers and for the bombings of the FENASTRAS headquarters; (4) the El Salvadoran Government is complying with international standards of respect for humanitarian and medical workers; (5) steps have been taken to place the El Salvadoran military under the control of the civilian government; (6) the El Salvadoran Government is negotiating to achieve a cease-fire and a settlement of the conflict and has not rejected a plan for the settlement of the conflict put forth by the United Nations Secretary General; and (7) the El Salvadoran Government, through its military and security forces, has not engaged in assassinations of, or acts of violence against, civilians and has not failed to control such activities by elements subject to the control of such forces. Prohibits funding for: (1) the stationing of U.S. military personnel in El Salvador as trainers or advisors to the El Salvadoran armed forces; and (2) the financing of covert operations in El Salvador or for covert military assistance to the El Salvadoran Government. Establishes the Demobilization, Transition, and Reconstruction Fund to assist with the cost of monitoring a permanent settlement of the conflict, the demobilization of combatants in the conflict and their transition to peaceful pursuits, and the reconstruction of El Salvador. Makes the Fund available only upon the President's notification to the Congress that the El Salvadoran Government and the FMLN have reached a permanent settlement to the conflict. Requires the President, upon notification of a permanent settlement or on September 30, 1992, if no notification has occurred prior to such date, to transfer withheld military assistance to the Fund. Prohibits economic support fund (ESF) assistance from being obligated as balance-of-payments or cash assistance for El Salvador. Makes ESF assistance for El Salvador available only for projects for child nutrition, health, clean water, basic education, agrarian reform, resettling refugees, and other human needs of the people of El Salvador. Requires such assistance to be used only for programs implemented solely by civilian agencies. Subjects ESF assistance for El Salvador to reprogramming notifications under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.

Bill· SS. 591 (102nd)referred

Highway Fatality and Injury Reduction Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1991

Highway Fatality and Injury Reduction Act of 1991 - Requires all passenger cars, trucks, buses, and multipurpose passenger vehicles manufactured after a specified date to be equipped with airbags.

Bill· SS. 596 (102nd)open

Federal Facility Compliance Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1991

Federal Facility Compliance Act of 1991 - Requires Federal agencies to perform assessments of hazardous substance releases from solid waste management units at each hazardous substance treatment, storage, or disposal facility owned or operated by such agencies after November 19, 1980. Requires such assessments to indicate whether such facilities are in compliance with specified environmental laws and to be provided to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and to States in which such facilities are located. Directs the EPA Administrator to inspect such facilities annually to enforce compliance with such laws. Requires such inspections to include an analysis of groundwater monitoring. Makes inspection records available to the public. Requires Federal agencies owning or operating such facilities to reimburse the EPA for inspection costs. Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to waive sovereign immunity for Federal agencies with respect to certain requirements under such Act. Makes Federal employees subject to criminal sanctions under Federal or State solid or hazardous waste laws. Permits Federal agencies to: (1) represent or expend funds to represent an employee in State criminal proceedings if the actions for which representation were requested appear to have been performed within the scope of the employee's employment; and (2) reimburse an employee for defense costs in Federal criminal proceedings if actions were performed within such scope. Authorizes the Administrator to commence enforcement actions against Federal agencies pursuant to this Act.

Resolution· SCONRESS.Con.Res. 16 (102nd)open

A concurrent resolution urging Arab states to recognize, and end the state of belligerency with, Israel.

United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1991

Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) all Arab nations should recognize Israel, end the economic boycott against Israel, end the state of belligerency with Israel, and enter into direct negotiations with Israel for the purpose of concluding peace treaties and establishing full diplomatic relations; and (2) the United States should use all available means to influence and encourage the Arab states which were allied with it in the Persian Gulf War to achieve those objectives.

Bill· SS. 574 (102nd)referred

Civil Rights Amendments Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 6 March 1991

Civil Rights Amendments Act of 1991 - Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Act of 1968 to prohibit discrimination on the basis of affectional or sexual orientation. Provides that this Act shall not be construed to permit a finding of discrimination based on statistical differences or the fashioning of any remedy requiring a quota.

Bill· SS. 584 (102nd)referred

A bill to clarify that certain greenhouses and nurseries that suffer damage as the result of severe storms or flooding in connection with a major disaster declared by the President on or after November 26, 1990, are eligible for loans under section 7 of the Small Business Act.

United States · United States Congress · 6 March 1991

Declares that certain greenhouses and nurseries which suffered substantial economic injury as a result of certain major disasters declared by the President on or after November 26, 1990, shall be eligible for loans under the Small Business Act.

Bill· SS. 567 (102nd)referred

Social Security Notch Adjustment Act of 1991

United States · United States Congress · 6 March 1991

Social Security Notch Adjustment Act of 1991 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to establish a new formula for computing the primary insurance amount of individuals who attain age 65 in or after 1982 and would otherwise be subject to the benefit computation rules of the Social Security Amendments of 1977. Extends the application of such transitional benefit computation rules to those who become eligible for benefits before 1989. (Currently those who become eligible after 1983 are subject to the benefit computation rules of the Social Security Amendments of 1977.)

Bill· SS. 550 (102nd)referred

A bill to amend the Act of May 15, 1965, authorizing the Secretary of the Interior to designate the Nez Perce National Historical Park in the State of Idaho, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 5 March 1991

Amends Federal law to include in the Nez Perce National Historical Park, Idaho, certain historical sites in the States of Oregon, Washington, Montana, and Wyoming. Requires the Secretary of the Interior to: (1) acquire State and locally-owned lands or interests only by donation or exchange; and (2) purchase private lands or interests only on a willing seller basis. Authorizes appropriations. Declares that the individual and separate Federal components of such Historical Park shall be administered by the respective administrative region of the National Park Service in which each is located.

Law· SS. 565 (102nd)enacted

A bill to authorize the President to award a gold medal on behalf of the Congress to General Colin L. Powell, and to provide for the production of bronze duplicates of such medal for sale to the public.

United States · United States Congress · 5 March 1991

Authorizes the President to present a gold medal to General Colin Powell in recognition of his exemplary performance in planning and coordinating the U.S. military response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Authorizes appropriations.

Bill· SS. 559 (102nd)referred

Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm Commemorative Coin Act

United States · United States Congress · 5 March 1991

Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm Commemorative Coin Act - Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to issue one dollar coins emblematic of the U.S. military's participation in Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm. Sets a termination date for the Secretary's authority. Mandates that the: (1) minting and issuing of such coins will not result in any net cost to the Federal Government; (2) surcharges received from the sale of such coins be used to defray the costs of Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm; and (3) Congress receive annual reports on all surcharge funds expenditures.

Bill· SS. 548 (102nd)referred

Reproductive Health Equity Act

United States · United States Congress · 5 March 1991

Reproductive Health Equity Act - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act, the Indian Health Care Improvement Act, the Peace Corps Act, the District of Columbia Self-Government and Governmental Reorganization Act, and other Federal laws covering armed forces personnel and dependents, certain veterans, Federal employees' health benefits, and Federal penal and correctional institutions to provide that services related to abortion be made available to the same extent as are other pregnancy-related services under federally-funded programs. Repeals provisions of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act requiring submission of a resource allocation plan to the Congress by December 17, 1981.