United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2000
Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) everyone in the United States should have a decent home; (2) Members of the Senate should demonstrate the importance of volunteerism; and (3) Members of the Senate and contributing organizations should sponsor and construct two homes in the District of Columbia, each of which to be known as a "House That the Senate Built."
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2000
Broadband Internet Access Act of 2000 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish the broadband credit which shall be the sum of: (1) the current generation broadband credit; plus; (2) the next generation broadband credit. Defines terms. Requires a study and report.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2000
Calls upon the President to: (1) issue a proclamation recognizing the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Helsinki Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, reasserting the U.S. commitment to full implementation of the Act, and urging all signatory states to abide by their obligations under the Act; and (2) convey to all signatory states that respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, democratic principles, economic liberty, and the implementation of related commitments continue to be vital elements in promoting a new era of democracy, peace, and unity in the region.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2000
Amends the National Labor Relations Act to provide for inflation adjustments to the mandatory jurisdiction thresholds of the National Labor Relations Board.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 2000
Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, if storage or carrying capacity in excess of the requirements of the land to be irrigated under the Mancos Project, Colorado, is available, to contract with the Mancos Water Conservancy District and any of its member unit contractors for impounding, storage, diverting, or carriage of nonproject water for irrigation, domestic, municipal, industrial, and any other beneficial purposes, to an extent not exceeding the excess capacity. Requires the Secretary, in fixing the charges under such a contract, to take into consideration: (1) the costs of construction and maintenance of the project by which the nonproject water is to be diverted, impounded, stored, or carried; and (2) the canal by which the water is to be carried. Prohibits the District from imposing a charge for the storage, carriage, or delivery of the nonproject water in excess of the charge paid to the United States, except to such extent as may be reasonably necessary to cover: (1) a proportionate share of the project cost; and (2) the cost of carriage and delivery of such water through the District's facilities. Provides for: (1) any funds received by the United States under a contract to be available for expenditure for operation and maintenance of the project without further Act of appropriation; and (2) any amount of funds received in excess of the amount needed for such operation and maintenance to be applied against the repayment contract of the project.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2000
National Energy Security Act of 2000 - Title I: Energy Security Actions Required of the Secretary of Energy - Directs the Secretary of Energy (the Secretary) to report annually to the President and Congress on the progress the United States has made toward obtaining the goal of not more than 50 percent dependence on foreign oil sources by 2010. (Sec. 102) Sets a deadline for the Secretary to submit to the President a certain report of the National Petroleum Council, together with recommendations for administrative or legislative actions. (Sec. 103) Directs the Secretary to establish within the National Economic Council an Interagency Work Group on Natural Gas (the Group), whose function shall be to develop a strategy and comprehensive policy for the use of natural gas as an essential component of overall national objectives of energy security, economic growth, and environmental protection. Title II: Amendments to Energy Policy and Conservation Act and Actions Affecting the Strategic Petroleum Reserve - Amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) to authorize drawdown and distribution of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) if: (1) the President concurs in the determination of the Secretary of Defense that it will not impair national security; and (2) the Secretary of Energy finds that it will not have an adverse effect on the domestic petroleum industry. (Sec. 201) Extends through FY 2003 the availability of FY 2000 appropriations for SPR authorities. Extends the expiration date for authorities related to domestic supply availability from March 31, 2000, to December 31, 2003. (Sec. 202) Extends from FY 1997 through 2003 the authorization of appropriations for the interagency working group that coordinates Federal programs affecting exports of renewable energy and energy efficiency products and services. Extends the expiration date for standby energy authorities from March 31, 2000, to December 31, 2003. (Sec. 203) Instructs the President to establish immediately an Interagency Panel on the Strategic Petroleum Study to study and report to the President and Congress regarding oil markets and estimated future fluctuations in the price, supply, and demand for crude oil, and to determine appropriate SPR capacity and use. Title III: Provisions to Protect Consumers and Low Income Families and Encourage Energy Efficiencies - Amends the Energy Conservation and Production Act to repeal: (1) the requirement that participating States share 25 percent of the cost of weatherization programs as a condition for receiving assistance grants; and (2) the mandate that forty percent of weatherization program funds be spent for weatherization program materials. Instructs the Secretary to establish energy audit procedures and techniques. Increases the financial assistance for labor and weatherization materials expenditures per dwelling unit. Includes among such weatherization materials heating and cooling modification costs, including replacement. (Sec. 301) Repeals the mandate for the Secretary to establish, pursuant to State application, a separate average per dwelling unit limitation. (Sec. 302) Amends the EPCA to direct the Secretary, upon State request, to provide information, technical assistance, and funding for specified actions (summer fill programs) to avoid severe seasonal price increases and supply shortages of kerosene, propane, and heating oil during summer months. (Sec. 303) Authorizes appropriations for an Energy Efficiency Science Initiative, managed by the Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, for grants for energy efficiency research. (Sec. 304) Authorizes the Secretary to establish, maintain, and operate a Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve (Reserve) (containing no more than two million barrels of petroleum distillate) in the Northeast. States that such Reserve shall not be considered to be an SPR component. Restricts release of Reserve petroleum distillate to: (1) a severe energy supply disruption; (2) a severe price increase; or (3) an emergency affecting the Northeast which the President determines to merit such release. Mandates establishment of the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve Account in the Treasury subsequent to the Secretary's decision to establish the Reserve. Authorizes appropriations. Title IV: Provisions to Enhance the Use of Domestic Energy Resources - Subtitle A: Hydroelectric Resources - Directs the Secretaries of the Interior and of the Army, respectively, to inventory all dams, impoundments, and other facilities under their jurisdiction and to report to Congress on the potential of such facilities to generate hydroelectric power and on actions planned to do so. (Sec. 402) Directs the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to report to Congress on expedited hydroelectric licensing procedures. Subtitle B: Nuclear Resources - Directs the Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to report to Congress on: (1) domestic nuclear power generation and production; and (2) the potential for increasing nuclear generating capacity and production as part of the domestic energy mix. Subtitle C: Development of a National Spent Nuclear Fuel Strategy - Establishes an Office of Spent Nuclear Fuel Research within the Office of Nuclear Energy Science and Technology of the Department of Energy, headed by an Associate Director, to implement an integrated research and development program on technologies for the treatment, recycling, and disposal of high-level nuclear radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel, under the general supervision of the Secretary. Confers upon the Secretary grant and contract making authority. Subtitle D: Coal Resources - Directs the Secretary to: (1) report to Congress on the potential for increased generation from existing coal-fired power plants; and (2) provide grants for refinement and demonstration of new technologies for the conversion of coal to liquids. Title V: Arctic Coastal Plain Domestic Energy Security Act of 2000 - Arctic Coastal Plain Domestic Energy Security Act of 2000 - Instructs the Secretary of the Interior to establish and implement a competitive oil and gas leasing program that will: (1) result in an environmentally sound program; (2) not result in significant adverse effects upon fish and wildlife; and (3) ensure the receipt of fair market value by the public for the mineral resources to be leased. (Sec. 503) Amends the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 to repeal the prohibition against production of oil and gas from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and any leasing or development leading to such production. States that Congress determines that the Coastal Plain oil and gas leasing program and activities authorized by this Act are compatible with the purposes for which the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge was established, and that no further findings or decisions are required to implement this determination. States this Act is the sole authority for Coastal Plain leasing, and that such Plain is considered "Federal land" for purposes of the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty Management Act of 1982. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) designate up to a specified total of Coastal Plain acreage as "Special Areas" and close them to leasing if the Secretary determines that these Areas require special management and regulatory protection; and (2) permit leasing in those Special Areas by setting lease terms that limit or condition surface use and occupancy by lessees but permit the use of horizontal drilling technology from sites on leases located outside the designated Special Areas. Declares that this Act constitutes the Secretary's sole authority to close Coastal Plain lands to oil and gas leasing and to exploration, development, and production. Instructs the Secretary to convey the surface estate of specified lands to the Kaktovik Inupiat Corporation and to the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation in order to remove clouds on title and clarify land ownership patterns within the Coastal Plain. (Sec. 505) Declares that the Final Legislative Environmental Impact Statement on the Coastal Plain of April 1997 is adequate to satisfy the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. (Sec. 506) States that lands may be leased to any person qualified to obtain a lease for oil and gas deposits under the Mineral Leasing Act. Requires the Secretary to prescribe lease procedures. (Sec. 507) Authorizes the Secretary to grant to the highest responsible qualified bidder by sealed competitive cash bonus bid any Coastal Plain lands upon payment of such bonus and a royalty which shall not be less than a certain amount. Prescribes lease terms and conditions. Sets forth bonding requirements to ensure financial responsibility of lessee and avoid Federal liability. (Sec. 512) Directs the Secretary to grant rights-of-way and easements across the Coastal Plain for oil and gas transportation. (Sec. 513) Requires the Secretary to promulgate regulations to provide for: (1) biannual scheduled onsite inspections for compliance of Coastal Plain facilities with environmental or safety regulations; and (2) annual nonscheduled onsite inspections of such facilities. Title VI: Improvements to Federal Oil and Gas Lease Management - Federal Oil and Gas Lease Management Improvement Act of 2000 - Emphasizes that this Act does not give a State a property right or interest in any Federal lease or land. Subtitle A: State Option to Regulate Oil and Gas Lease Operation on Federal Land - Permits a State to notify either the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture (depending upon the appropriate jurisdiction) of its intent to accept authority for regulation of certain oil and gas lease operations on Federal land within such State. Declares an automatic transfer of regulatory authority over designated operations from the appropriate Secretary to the State effective 180 days following receipt of such notification. Bars a Federal agency from exercising authority formerly held by such Secretary with respect to oil and gas lease operations on Federal land. Subtitle B: Use of Cost Savings from State Regulation - Prescribes guidelines to compensate a State for the costs of implementing such transferred authority. Subtitle C: Streamlining and Cost Reduction - Bars the appropriate Secretary from recovering costs for applications and other documents relating to oil and gas leases. (Sec. 632) Requires the Secretary to ensure: (1) timely issuance of Federal agency decisions respecting oil and gas leasing and operations on Federal land; and (2) that unwarranted denials and stays of lease issuance and unwarranted restrictions on lease operations are eliminated from the administration of oil and gas leasing on Federal land. (Sec. 635) Directs the Secretary of the Interior to publish a national inventory of oil and gas reserves and potential resources underlying Federal land and the Outer Continental Shelf. Subtitle D: Federal Royalty Certainty - Amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act and the Mineral Leasing Act pertaining to oil and gas leases to reformulate the payment of their respective lease royalties. Exempts Indian lands from such reformulation. Subtitle E: Royalty Reinvestment in America - Directs the appropriate Secretary, whenever certain crude oil or natural gas prices dip below a specified level, to allow as a credit against the payment of Federal oil and gas production royalties, a specified percentage of expenditures made for capital exploration and development on Federal oil and gas leases. (Sec. 651) Prohibits capital expenditures made on Outer Continental Shelf leases from being credited against onshore Federal royalty obligations. (Sec. 652) Instructs the appropriate Secretary to reduce the royalty rate for marginal oil and gas production following prescribed guidelines whenever certain crude oil or natural gas prices dip below a specified level. (Sec. 653) Prescribes procedural guidelines under which any operator of an oil well leased under specified statutes may notify the Secretary of the Interior of suspension of operation and production at the well. Title VII: Frontier Oil and Gas Exploration and Development Incentives - Frontier Exploration and Development Incentives Act of 2000 - Amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act governing bidding procedures for oil and gas leases to set a certain net profit royalty share for oil and gas production in the Beaufort Sea and Chukchi Sea Planning Areas of Alaska. (Sec. 702) Requires the Secretary of the Interior to reduce any future royalty or rental obligation by a specified percentage after an oil and gas lease has been granted pursuant to the statutory bidding system. Title VIII: Tax Measures to Enhance Domestic Oil and Gas Production - Subtitle A: Marginal Well Preservation - Marginal Well Preservation Act of 2000 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to specify a tax credit for marginal domestic oil and natural gas well production. (Sec. 803) Authorizes taxpayer election to expense geological and geophysical expenditures and to delay rental payments for domestic oil and gas wells. Subtitle B: Independent Oil and Gas Producers - Amends the IRC to: (1) set forth a five-year net operating loss carryback for losses attributable to operating mineral interests of independent oil and gas producers; and (2) suspend through 2004 the limitation on the total amount of the depletion allowance to 65 percent of taxable income. Title IX: Tax Measures to Enhance the Use of Renewable Energy Sources, Improve Energy Efficiencies, Protect Consumers and Conversion to Clean Burning Fuels - Amends the IRC to: (1) set forth placed-in-service rules and special rules for biomass facilities; (2) deny renewable electricity production credit to electricity sold to utilities under certain contracts; (3) exclude from gross income as contributions to capital certain amounts received by electric energy, gas, or steam utilities; (4) extend the credit for electricity produced from steel cogeneration; (5) declare certain expense limitations on depreciable business assets inapplicable to a storage facility used in connection with home heating oil distribution; and (6) establish a tax credit for certain percentages of residential solar energy photovoltaic and solar water heating property expenditures.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2000
Great Sand Dunes National Park Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to: (1) establish the Great Sand Dunes National Park (Colorado) as soon as sufficient land having sufficient diversity of resources has been acquired to warrant its designation as a unit of the National Park System; and (2) include the Great Sand Dunes National Monument within such Park. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) establish the Great Sand Dunes National Preserve (Colorado) as a unit of the National Park System; and (2) include in the Preserve any Federal land adjacent to the National Park that may be managed in conjunction with the National Park. Sets forth guidelines for: (1) the transfer of administrative jurisdiction from the Secretary to the National Park Service; (2) administration of the National Park and Preserve; (3) hydrologic regime protection; (4) grazing on both Federal and non-Federal National Park lands; and (5) hunting, fishing and trapping within the Preserve. Retains Bureau of Reclamation hegemony over any feature of the Closed Basin Division, San Luis Valley Project, located within the boundaries of the National Park or the Preserve. Withdraws Federal lands within the boundaries of either the National Park or Preserve from all forms of entry and disposition under: (1) public land laws; (2) mining laws; and (3) mineral and geothermal leasing laws. Grants the Secretary acquisition authority in connection with inclusion of non-Federal land and water in the National Park or Preserve, including the Luis Maria Baca Grant No. 4. Precludes the Secretary from prohibiting hunting, fishing, or trapping on non-Federal land located within National Park boundaries. Amends the Reclamation Projects Authorization and Adjustment Act of 1992 to extend the proscription against water withdrawal to: (1) the Great Sand Dunes National Monument and the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve; and (2) any Federal land adjacent to such areas. Prescribes procedural guidelines governing water rights. Directs the Secretary to establish the Great Sand Dunes National Park Advisory Council to advise the Secretary regarding preparation and implementation of a management plan for the National Park and Preserve. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2000
Terminates the entitlement to educational assistance for members of the Selected Reserve on the date the member is separated from the Reserve. (Currently, such termination is the earlier of two conditional dates). Provides a conditional date of such entitlement for Selected Reserve members who cease to be such a member during a ten-year period beginning on October 1, 1991, due to Reserve unit deactivation or the involuntary cessation of such Reserve member designation.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2000
Colorado Ute Settlement Act Amendments of 2000 - Amends the Colorado Ute Indian Water Rights Settlement Act of 1988 to authorize the Secretary of the Interior, in order to settle the outstanding claims of the Ute Indian tribes on the Animas and La Plata Rivers in Colorado and acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, to: (1) complete construction of, operate, and maintain a reservoir, pumping plant, reservoir inlet conduit, and appurtenant facilities to divert and store water from the Animas River to provide a municipal and industrial water supply (the Project); and (2) deliver through the use of such components, specified municipal and industrial water allocations to the San Juan Water Commission, Animas-La Plata Conservancy District, State of Colorado, La Plata Conservancy District of New Mexico, Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute tribes, and Navajo Nation. Provides that construction costs required to deliver each tribe's water allocation shall be nonreimbursable. Sets forth provisions regarding defenses to challenges of environmental impact statements and biological opinions with respect to provision of water to the Ute tribes and compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act, Federal Water Pollution Control Act, and Endangered Species Act of 1973. Requires the Secretary, upon request of the State Engineer of New Mexico, to assign to the New Mexico Project beneficiaries or the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission any portion of Department of the Interior interests under a specified permit in order to fulfill the New Mexico purposes of the Project, so long as the assignment does not affect the application of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to the use of the water. Authorizes the Secretary to construct a water line to augment the existing system that conveys municipal water supplies to the Navajo Indian Reservation at Shiprock, New Mexico. Makes construction costs for the water line nonreimbursable. Authorizes appropriations to the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Tribal Resource Funds. Requires the Secretary to establish such Funds. Provides for disbursement of Fund monies in accordance with approved natural resource acquisition and enhancement plans. Establishes the Colorado Ute Settlement Fund in the Treasury and authorizes appropriations to the Fund to complete the construction of Project facilities. Requires the construction of facilities, allocation of water supply to the Indian tribes, and provision of funds under this Act to constitute final settlement of tribal claims to water rights on the Animas and La Plata Rivers.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2000
Fairness for the Military Reserve Act of 2000 - Authorizes armed forces reserve and National Guard personnel traveling to perform annual training duty outside the continental United States to travel on a space-required basis between the member's home and place of duty if there is no available road or rail transportation. Directs the Secretary of Defense to prescribe regulations to provide the following persons with transportation on Department of Defense (DOD) aircraft on a space-available basis under the same terms and conditions that apply to members of the armed forces entitled to retired pay: (1) members of the Selected Reserve in good standing; (2) a former reserve member under 60 years of age who would be eligible for retired pay except for being under such age; and (3) dependents of the above. Limits the required identification for such travel. Directs the Secretary to prescribe regulations authorizing a reserve member traveling to inactive duty training at least 50 miles from home to be eligible for billeting (housing) in DOD facilities on the same basis as active-duty personnel traveling under orders away from such member's duty station. Requires proof of the reason for such travel. Increases the maximum number of reserve retirement points that may be credited in a year for reserve service from 75 to 90 for years during and subsequent to the date of enactment of the Reserve Component Equity Act of 1999. Authorizes the Secretary of the military department concerned to provide civil legal services to reserve personnel (and their dependents) not otherwise entitled to such services following a release from active duty under a call or order to such duty for more than 30 days under a mobilization authority, but only for a period that is not in excess of twice the length of the duty period served.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2000
Military Health Care Improvements Act of 2000 - Title I: Senior Health Care - Amends the Strom Thurmond National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999 to extend through December 31, 2005, the TRICARE Senior Supplement Program (a demonstration program under which certain Medicare-eligible senior citizens are given medical care and services under TRICARE (a Department of Defense (DOD) managed health care program) for which DOD is reimbursed through the Medicare program). Amends the Social Security Act to extend through the same date a similar demonstration program known as TRICARE Senior Prime. Authorizes the latter program to be offered at major medical centers of DOD (currently limited to six military treatment facilities). (Sec. 103) Amends a demonstration program offering health care coverage to certain military personnel, spouses, and dependents through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program to allow eligible beneficiaries who will be at least 65 years of age on December 31, 2002, to enroll, or extend a previous enrollment, during a three-year period of open enrollment for the year 2003. Extends such demonstration program through December 31, 2005. Repeals the ten-site limit for the program. (Sec. 104) Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to charge an enrollment fee for participation in the TRICARE pharmacy system (a program for providing reduced-cost pharmaceuticals to TRICARE-eligible beneficiaries). Authorizes the Secretary to impose one or more cost-sharing requirements upon such participants. Allows participants to pay required premiums on a monthly or annual basis. Title II: TRICARE Program - Amends the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS) relating to medical and dental care provided to certain members and former members of the armed forces to: (1) make eligible for such services members and former members of the Coast Guard when not operating as a service in the Navy, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Public Health Service; (2) require coverage for immediate family members of eligible individuals to be comparable to coverage for medical care and standards for timely access to such care under TRICARE Prime; and (3) entitle dependents of members performing duty in remote locations who reside with such member to the same care and waiver of such care under CHAMPUS as the members themselves. (Sec. 202) Prohibits a member from being charged a copayment for care provided under TRICARE Prime to an immediate family member. (Sec. 203) Directs the Secretary to improve certain business practices used when administering the access of eligible persons to health care services through the TRICARE program. Title III: Joint Initiatives With Department of Veterans Affairs - Directs the Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs to jointly: (1) prescribe a centralized process for the reporting, compiling, and analysis of errors in the provision of health care under their respective departments that endanger patients beyond the normal risks associated with such care and treatment; and (2) develop a system for the use of bar codes for the identification of pharmaceuticals. Requires the Secretary of Defense to experiment with the use of such bar codes in the current DOD mail order pharmaceuticals demonstration project. Title IV: Other Matters - Directs the Secretary to authorize the following persons to obtain prescription pharmaceuticals from DOD by mail: (1) individuals who are eligible for medical care under CHAMPUS; or (2) individuals who would be so eligible except for also being entitled to hospital insurance benefits under Medicare. Directs the Secretary to prescribe an appropriate fee or copayment for pharmaceuticals so obtained. (Sec. 402) Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000 to limit to $100 million the annual cost limitation for the CHAMPUS individual case management program. (Sec. 403) Directs the Secretary to carry out two studies to assess the feasibility and desirability of financing the military health care program for military retirees on an accrual basis.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2000
Authorizes presentation of a gold medal on behalf of Congress to former President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy Reagan. Authorizes specified sums to be charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund for medal costs. Mandates that sale proceeds from duplicate bronze medals be deposited into such Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2000
Pope John Paul II Congressional Gold Medal Act - Authorizes the presentation of a gold medal to Pope John Paul II in recognition of his outstanding and enduring contributions to humanity. Authorizes appropriations. Mandates that proceeds from duplicate bronze medal sales be deposited in the U.S. Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2000
Water Pollution Program Enhancements Act of 2000 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to reauthorize appropriations for grants to States and interstate agencies for pollution control programs for FY 2001 through 2007. Makes $50 million of such funds available to States for the: (1) collection of reliable monitoring data; (2) the improvement of specified lists regarding waters with insufficient controls and maximum daily loads; (3) preparation of total maximum daily load allocations for such waters; and (4) development of watershed management strategies. Reauthorizes appropriations for FY 2001 through 2007 for grants to States for: (1) implementation of nonpoint source pollution control management programs; and (2) groundwater quality protection activities to advance States toward implementation of comprehensive nonpoint source pollution control programs. Makes $200 million available from funds appropriated for such management programs for States to provide grants to landowners to develop and implement nonpoint source control projects to restore or improve water quality of impaired waters that have been identified as a priority for restoration. Limits such grants to 90 percent of project costs. (Sec. 4) Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to contract with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to conduct a study on the: (1) scientific basis underlying the development and implementation of total maximum daily loads; (2) costs of implementing measures to comply with such loads; and (3) availability of alternative programs or mechanisms to reduce the discharge of pollutants from point sources and nonpoint source pollution to achieve water quality standards. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the Administrator to submit such study to specified congressional committees. (Sec. 5) Directs the Administrator to establish jointly with the States a watershed management pilot program to evaluate the relative water quality improvements resulting from up to five State watershed management programs or strategies that incorporate non-Federal water quality control programs, innovative technologies, and incentives to reduce the discharge of pollutants or total maximum daily load allocations under the Act. Provides that a strategy, to be eligible for consideration in the program, must be expected to achieve environmental results comparable to those of the Federal total maximum daily load program. Requires reports to Congress on the program. Terminates the program after three years after a State is accepted in the program. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 6) Requires the Administrator, prior to finalizing the Proposed Revisions to the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Program and Federal Antidegradation Policy and the Proposed Revisions to the Water Quality Planning and Management Regulations Concerning Total Maximum Daily Loads of August 1999, to: (1) review the NAS study prepared under this Act; and (2) take into consideration NAS recommendations in issuing any final regulations. Directs the Administrator, if provisions are included in any final regulation that are not consistent with NAS recommendations, to publish an explanation with the final rule of why such recommendations were not included in the regulation.
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 2000
Directs the Secretary of the Interior to convey the North Poudre Supply Canal and Diversion Works, the Charles Hansen (Supply) Canal and Windsor Extension, and the Dixon Feeder Canal, all of which are facilities of the Colorado-Big Thompson Project located in Larimer County, Colorado, to the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District. Permits the Secretary to accept from the District a specified amount as consideration for the conveyance of such facilities. Provides that such amount paid shall be credited toward repayment of capital costs of the Project in an amount equal to the associated undiscounted obligation for repayment of such capital costs.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2000
Home Health Payment Fairness Act of 2000 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to eliminate a specified 15 percent reduction in cost and per beneficiary limits with respect to payment rates for home health services under the Medicare prospective payment system.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2000
Conservation Reserve Program Tax Fairness Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat conservation reserve program payments as real estate rentals for self-employment earnings purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 30 March 2000
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal Subchapter B (Communications) of Chapter 33 (Facilities and Services) of Subtitle D (Miscellaneous Excise Taxes).
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2000
Voluntary Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Act of 2000 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to add a new part D (Voluntary Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage) under which a Medicare Prescription Drug plan eligible individual, not enrolled in a Medicare+Choice plan, may enroll in the Rx Option coverage for outpatient prescription drugs offered only through private contractors, and subject to payment of a combined deductible ($675) in lieu of the deductibles applied under Medicare parts A (Hospital Insurance) and B (Supplementary Medical Insurance). Sets the outpatient prescription drug benefit at 50 percent of the lesser of: (1) the cost of such drugs for a year; or (2) $5000. Establishes special rules with respect to Medicare supplemental health insurance (Medigap) for individuals enrolled in the Rx Option.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2000
Expresses support for a National Moment of Remembrance at 3:00 p.m. eastern standard time on each Memorial Day in honor of the men and women of the United States who died in the pursuit of freedom and peace.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2000
Amends the Water Resources Research Act of 1984 to authorize appropriations through FY 2005 for: (1) carrying out certain provisions relating to water resources research and technology institutes; and (2) for reimbursement of the direct cost expenses of additional research or synthesis of research by the institutes which focuses on water problems and issues of a regional or interstate nature beyond those of concern only to a single State and which relate to specific program priorities identified jointly by the Secretary of the Interior and the institutes.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2000
Urges all contracting parties to the Hague Convention: (1) particularly European civil law countries that consistently violate the Convention such as Austria, Germany and Sweden, to comply fully with their international obligations under the Convention; (2) to ensure their compliance with the Convention by enacting effective implementing legislation and educating their judicial and law enforcement authorities; (3) to honor their commitments and return abducted or wrongfully retained children to their place of habitual residence without reaching the merits of any underlying custody dispute and to ensure parental access rights by removing obstacles to the exercise of such rights; and (4) to further educate their central authority and local law enforcement authorities regarding the Convention, the severity of the problem of international child abduction, and the need for immediate action when a parent of an abducted child seeks assistance. Urges the Secretary of State to disseminate to all Federal and State courts the Department of State's annual report to Congress on Hague Convention compliance and related matters.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 2000
2002 Winter Olympic Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue five dollar gold coins and one dollar silver coins emblematic of the participation of American athletes in the 2002 Olympic Winter Games. Mandates that coin design be selected by the Secretary after consultation with: (1) the Commission of Fine Arts; (2) the United States Olympic Committee; and (3) Olympic Properties of the United States-Salt Lake 2002 (created and owned by the Salt Lake Organizing Committee). States that all surcharges from the coin sales ($35 for a $5 coin and $10 for a $1 coin) shall be distributed by the Secretary to: (1) Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the Olympic Winter Games of 2002; and (2) the United States Olympic Committee.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2000
Authorizes appropriations to the Secretary of the Interior to undertake capital projects for the Recovery Implementation Program for Endangered Fish Species in the Upper Colorado River Basin and the San Juan River Basin Recovery Implementation Program. Terminates the authority to implement projects for such Programs at the end of FY 2005 and 2007, respectively. Limits to $100 million the total cost of authorized projects. Authorizes the: (1) Secretary to accept contributed funds from Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming, or political subdivisions or organizations thereof, pursuant to agreements that provide for such contributions to be used for capital project costs; and (2) Secretary and the Secretary of Energy, acting through the Western Power Administration, to utilize for such projects power revenues not exceeding $17 million collected pursuant to the Colorado River Storage Project Act. Makes funds available on a matching basis with funds contributed by the above States. Authorizes alternative project funding through loans from the Colorado Water Conservation Board Construction Fund (with specified loan requirements). Authorizes the Secretary to utilize the power revenues, above, for the annual base funding contributions to the programs by the Bureau of Reclamation. Provides funding limits for each Basin Program. Terminates at the end of FY 2011 the authority for the use of power revenues for annual base funding, with an exception. Requires a report from the Secretary to Congress on the use of such revenues. Requires the Administration and the Bureau to maintain sufficient Fund revenues to meet the base funding requirements. States that nothing in this Act shall restrict the Secretary from funding activities or capital projects in accordance with the Federal Government's Indian trust responsibility.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2000
National Museum of the American Indian Commemorative Coin Act of 2000, or American Buffalo Coin Commemorative Coin Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue a maximum of 500,000 $1 dollar coins in commemoration of the opening of the Museum of the American Indian of the Smithsonian Institution. Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States Mint Facility in Denver, Colorado, should strike such coins unless the Secretary determines that it would be technically or cost-prohibitive. Mandates that the proceeds from sales surcharges be paid promptly to the National Museum of the American Indian of the Smithsonian Institution to: (1) commemorate the opening of the Museum; and (2)supplement the Museum's endowment and educational outreach funds. Subjects the Museum to certain Federal audit requirements. Instructs the Secretary to take actions to ensure that coin minting and issuance will not result in any net cost to the Government.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2000
American Social Security Protection and Debt Repayment Act - Prohibits, beginning with FY 2001, budgeted outlays from exceeding budgeted revenues. Requires actual revenues to exceed actual outlays in order to provide for the reduction of the Federal debt held by the public. Provides for a reduction in the public debt of $15 billion in FY 2001, increased by an additional $15 billion every fiscal year until the entire debt has been paid. Requires the surplus funds in the Federal Old Age and Survivors and Disability Insurance Trust Funds to be used to reduce the debt owed to the public until Congress enacts major social security reform legislation. Defines "social security reform legislation" as legislation that: (1) insures the long-term financial solvency of the social security system; and (2) includes an option for private investment of social security funds by beneficiaries. Provides a point of order against consideration of any concurrent resolution on the budget that does not comply with this Act. Authorizes a waiver of this Act for any fiscal year in which a declaration of war is in effect. Bars any bill to increase revenues from being deemed to have passed the House of Representatives or the Senate unless approved by a majority of each House. Directs Congress to review actual revenues on a quarterly basis and adjust outlays to assure compliance with this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2000
Save Our Surplus for Debt Reduction Act of 2000 - Makes it out of order in the House of Representatives or the Senate to consider any bill, joint resolution, amendment, motion, or conference report if the enactment of the bill or resolution as reported, the adoption and enactment of the amendment, or the enactment of the bill or resolution in the form recommended in the conference report would cause a decrease in the on-budget surplus for FY 2000. Makes such point of order inapplicable to any such legislation or motion if it reduces revenues or implements structural social security or Medicare reform. Waives or suspends the point of order under this Act in the Senate only by an affirmative three-fifths majority vote. Requires the same majority to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on such point of order. Terminates this Act on October 1, 2000.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2000
Competitive Market Supervision Act - Amends the Securities Act of 1933 to: (1) eliminate the general revenue fees on securities for the cost of the securities registration process; (2) set a uniform and higher rate for the offsetting collection fee schedule for FY 2001 through 2006; and (3) set a permanent rate for FY 2007 and thereafter (presently such rates phase out after FY 2006). (Sec. 3) Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to revise the filing fees related to the purchase of securities by issuers and to preliminary proxy solicitations to reflect such modified offsetting collection fee schedule. Mandates that fees collected during any fiscal year be deposited and credited as offsetting collections. (Sec. 4) Replaces the statutory transaction fee formula for either a national securities exchange or national securities association with a transaction offsetting collection rate which is the uniform rate required to reach a specified transaction fee cap for the fiscal year. (Sec. 5) Prescribes guidelines for adjustments to fee rates, including: (1) estimates of collections; (2) a floor for total fee collections; and (3) a cap on total fee collections. Instructs the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to explain to certain congressional committees the methodology used to make its estimates of collections. Shields SEC determinations and actions from judicial review. Requires the SEC to notify each national securities exchange or national securities association prior to taking action with respect to either a total fee collection floor or a total fee collection cap. (Sec. 7) Revises guidelines governing SEC employee appointment and compensation to include conformance with guidelines covering Federal agency employees under the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 2000
Launching Our Communities' Access to Local Television Act of 2000 - Establishes the Local Television Loan Guarantee Board to approve or disapprove loan guarantees under this Act. Allows loan guarantees to be approved only to the extent provided for in advance in appropriations Acts. Requires such loans to be used to finance the means by which local television broadcast signals will be delivered to an unserved or underserved area, with a loan priority for unserved areas. Prohibits the Board from approving a loan which will serve one of the 40 most populated designated market areas. Limits: (1) each loan guarantee to 70 percent of the total cost of a project; and (2) the aggregate value of all loan guarantees to$1.25 billion. Requires the Administrator of the Rural Utilities Service to administer all loan guarantees approved under this Act. Requires loan applicants to enter into stipulated performance schedules with respect to the local television signals to be provided through the project. Outlines procedures governing loan application and credit requirements, default procedures, and recovery of payments for breach of conditions. Authorizes the Board to charge and collect a loan guarantee fee and use such fee to cover administrative costs. Requires an annual audit and report concerning the loan guarantee program. Prohibits any loan guarantee from being approved after December 31, 2006. Subjects all loan applicants to Federal copyright provisions relating to the required retransmission of local television stations. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2001 through 2006.
United States · United States Congress · 23 February 2000
Military Health Care Improvements Act of 2000 - Title I: Demonstration Programs - Subtitle A: TRICARE Demonstration Programs for Seniors - Amends the Strom Thurmond National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1999 to extend through December 31, 2005, the TRICARE Senior Supplement Program (a demonstration program under which certain Medicare-eligible senior citizens are given medical care and services under TRICARE (a Department of Defense (DOD) managed health care program) for which DOD is reimbursed through the Medicare program). Amends the Social Security Act to extend through the same date a similar demonstration program known as TRICARE Senior Prime. Authorizes the latter program to be offered at major medical centers of DOD (currently limited to six military treatment facilities). Subtitle B: Other Demonstration Programs - Amends a demonstration program offering health care coverage to certain military personnel, spouses, and dependents through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program to allow eligible beneficiaries who will be at least 65 years of age on December 31, 2002, to enroll, or extend a previous enrollment, during a two-year period of open enrollment for the year 2003. Extends such demonstration program through December 31, 2005. Repeals the ten-site limit for the program. (Sec. 107) Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to charge an enrollment fee for participation in the TRICARE pharmacy system (a program for providing reduced-cost pharmaceuticals to TRICARE-eligible beneficiaries). Authorizes the Secretary to impose one or more cost-sharing requirements upon such participants. Allows participants to pay required premiums on a monthly or annual basis. Title II: TRICARE Prime Permanent Authorities - Amends the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS) relating to medical and dental care provided to certain members and former members of the armed forces to: (1) make eligible for such services members and former members of the Coast Guard when not operating as a service in the Navy, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Public Health Service; (2) require coverage for immediate family members of eligible individuals to be comparable to coverage for medical care and standards for timely access to such care under TRICARE Prime; and (3) entitle dependents of members performing duty in remote locations who reside with such member to the same care and waiver of such care under CHAMPUS as the members themselves. (Sec. 202) Prohibits a member from being charged a copayment for care provided under TRICARE Prime to an immediate family member. (Sec. 203) Directs the Secretary to improve certain business practices used when administering the access of eligible persons to health care services through the TRICARE program. Title III: Other Defense Health Program Matters - Directs the Secretary to carry out a program that permits the following eligible persons to obtain prescription pharmaceuticals from DOD by mail: (1) individuals 65 years old or older who would be eligible for medical care under CHAMPUS except for also being entitled to hospital insurance benefits under Medicare; and (2) individuals 65 years old or older who are enrolled in the supplemental medical insurance program under part B of Medicare. Authorizes the Secretary to impose an annual program deductible of up to $150. (Sec. 302) Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000 to extend the provision of domiciliary and custodial care for certain CHAMPUS beneficiaries to include a person who formerly was an eligible beneficiary and is enrolled in the TRICARE Senior Prime plan under the Medicare subvention demonstration project for military retirees. Provides a program cost limitation for FY 2000 and thereafter. (Sec. 303) Directs the Secretary to carry out two studies to assess the feasibility and desirability of financing the military health care program for military retirees on an accrual basis. Title IV: Joint Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs Initiatives - Directs the Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs to jointly: (1) prescribe a centralized process for the reporting, compiling, and analysis of errors in the provision of health care under their respective departments that endanger patients beyond the normal risks associated with such care and treatment; and (2) develop a system for the use of bar codes for the identification of pharmaceuticals. Requires the Secretary of Defense to experiment with the use of such bar codes in the current DOD mail order pharmaceuticals demonstration project.
United States · United States Congress · 22 February 2000
Hunger Relief Tax Incentive Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to set forth a rule for determining the amount of the deduction allowable for a charitable contribution of food inventory.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2000
Radio Broadcasting Preservation Act of 2000 - Prohibits the Federal Communications Commission from prescribing any rules authorizing the operation of new, low power FM radio stations, or establishing a low power radio service, as currently proposed. Terminates previously prescribed rules which would violate such prohibition and voids licenses issued pursuant to such rules.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2000
Recognizes the 50th anniversary of the Korean War, and expresses the gratitude of the American people for the service of members of the armed forces during such War.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2000
Amends the Internal Revenue Code (as amended by the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999) to repeal revisions to the Code (made by the Act) which repealed the use of the installment method of accounting for accrual method taxpayers and modified the pledge rules of installment obligations.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2000
Social Security and Medicare Surplus Protection Act of 2000 - Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to require a sequestration to eliminate any on-budget deficit (excluding any surplus in the social security trust funds and the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund). Bars the deficit from being subject to adjustment for any purpose. Requires, in determining rates of pay for service performed in any fiscal year beginning after September 30, 2000, the rate of pay for a Member of Congress to be determined as if the pay adjustment for such year had resulted in a rate equal to the rate that would otherwise have taken effect beginning in such year (if this Act had not been enacted) reduced by the same percentage as any reduction made as a result of the amendment made by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1999
Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to convey to the town of Dolores, Colorado, for open space, park, and recreational purposes a parcel of approximately 25 acres of land comprising the site of the Joe Rowell Park.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1999
Milton Friedman Congressional Gold Medal Act - Authorizes the President to present, on behalf of the Congress, a gold medal to Milton Friedman in recognition of his outstanding and enduring contributions to individual freedom and opportunity in American society through his exhaustive research and teaching of economics and his extensive writings on economics and public policy. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell bronze duplicates of such national medal. Requires proceeds to be deposited in the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 1999
Social Security and Medicare Safe Deposit Box Act of 1999 - Provides that the net surplus of any trust fund for part A of Medicare shall not be counted as a net surplus for purposes of the Federal or congressional budgets or the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act). Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to provide a point of order in the House of Representatives or the Senate against consideration of any concurrent budget resolution or conference report or amendment pertaining thereto that would set forth an on-budget deficit for any fiscal year. Makes it out of order in the House or the Senate to consider any bill, joint resolution, amendment, motion, or conference report if the enactment of the reported bill or resolution, the adoption and enactment of an amendment, or the enactment of a bill or resolution in the form recommended in the conference report would cause or increase an on-budget deficit for any fiscal year. Includes the receipts, outlays, and surplus or deficit in the Federal Old-Age and Survivors and Disability Insurance Trust Funds within the content of the concurrent budget resolution. Authorizes a waiver or suspension in the Senate of points of order under this Act only with a three-fifths majority. Requires the same majority to sustain an appeal on a ruling on such points of order. Prohibits the Federal Government budget submitted by the President from recommending an on-budget deficit for any covered fiscal year. Applies the amendments made by this Act to FY 2001 and subsequent fiscal years.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999
Cabin User Fee Fairness Act of 1999 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, to ensure that the basis and procedure for calculating cabin user fees on National Forest System lands shall reflect the probable value of the use and occupancy of a lot to the cabin owner. States that such value shall: (1) not be equivalent to the lot's rental fee; and (2) reflect regional economic influences, as determined by appraisal. Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) appraisal requirements and right of second appraisals; (2) cabin user fees and annual adjustments; and (3) right of arbitration and judicial review. (Authorizes appropriations for the arbitration program.)
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999
Small Investors Tax Simplification Act of 1999 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that a partner's distributive share of all items of income, gain, loss, deduction, or credit of a qualified investment club shall be determined under the simplified method. Defines such method, in general, as a method pursuant to which a partnership allocates each of the items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit for its taxable year to its partners based on their proportionate interests on the last day of such taxable year in partnership profits.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1999
Vietnam Veterans Recognition Act of 1999 - Authorizes the American Battle Monuments Commission to place within the Vietnam Veterans Memorial a plaque to honor Vietnam veterans who died after service in the Vietnam War, but as a direct result of such service, and whose names are not otherwise eligible for placement on the Memorial wall.
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1999
Amends the Wildfire Suppression Aircraft Transfer Act of 1996 to extend the authority of the Secretary of Defense to sell certain aircraft and aircraft parts to persons for use in wildfire suppression through September 30, 2005. Requires the Secretary to report, not later than March 31, 2005, to specified congressional committees with respect to such authority.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 1999
Declares that a specified final rule relating to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network and the equitable and medically effective allocation of organs for transplantation shall have no force or legal effect. Prohibits the Secretary of Health and Human Services from implementing or exercising further regulatory authority regarding the Network, as well as regulatory authority under specified provisions of the Social Security Act (SSA) (relating to general SSA regulations, disclosure of information, organ procurement, and general Medicare regulations), before the enactment of amendments to reauthorize and revise provisions of the Public Health Service Act relating to organ transplants.
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