The world's political record
Person
![Official portrait of Sen. Bingaman, Jeff [D-NM]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/b000468_200.jpg)
United States · Official source
5,492 records where Sen. Bingaman, Jeff [D-NM] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 2 April 1992
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the U.S. Government should not condone foreign trade distorting subsidies, including development subsidies, that cause material injury to U.S. industries.
United States · United States Congress · 2 April 1992
Expresses the sense of the Senate that it should be U.S. policy to call upon the Government of: (1) Malaysia to act immediately to end the uncontrolled exploitation of the rain forests of Sarawak by reducing the annual rate of timber cutting by at least two-thirds and by formally recognizing and upholding the customary land rights and internationally established human rights of all indigenous peoples of such Government; and (2) Japan to investigate the activities of certain private companies in Japan contributing to the destruction of the Sarawak rain forest.
United States · United States Congress · 1 April 1992
Prohibits any member or employee of the Senate from receiving from a congressional or other Federal entity any service or benefit at Government expense or at a discount that is of a kind or in an amount not typically provided by employers or that is not necessary or appropriate for the member or employee to perform his or her duties. Establishes the Commission on Senate Perquisites. Requires the Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper of the Senate to report to the Commission on: (1) the services and benefits available to Senate members and employees that are not equally available to all other persons or that are available in or near the Senate buildings at below fair market value; and (2) how such services and benefits contribute to the members' and employees' performance of their duties. Requires the Commission, upon receipt of such report, to review the services and benefits provided to Senate members and employees. Directs the Commission to report to the majority and minority leaders of the Senate proposing introduction of a resolution that: (1) describes those benefits and services that may not properly be made available in or near Senate buildings by Government or private sector employees at the expense of Senate members and employees; and (2) directs the appropriate Senate officers to arrange for the provision of such services and benefits at fair market value. Authorizes any Senate member to introduce such a resolution and provides for its consideration. Requires all payments received for such services and benefits provided by Government employees and all rent and other payments received from private contractors that provide such services and benefits to be paid into the deficit reduction account of the Treasury.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 1992
National Quality Commitment Award Act of 1992 - Amends the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 to establish the National Commitment to Quality Award Program involving the awarding of a medal and at least three monetary competitive awards to institutions of higher education. Authorizes specialized monetary awards to any institution of higher education that excels in teaching or practicing either total quality management (TQM) or process manufacturing engineering services productivity improvement. Allows a recipient institution which agrees to help other institutions of higher education improve their TQM curriculum to publicize its receipt of the award. Requires the award to be used to further improve the TQM and process manufacturing engineering curriculum of the institution. Authorizes the use of gifts from public and private sources to carry out the award program. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1992
Authorizes and requests the President to designate the last Friday of April 1992 as National Arbor Day.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1992
Appropriations Category Reform Act of 1992 - States that the Congress declares that it is essential that the Nation achieve savings in national defense beyond those agreed to in the budget summit agreement of 1990, reduce the deficit, and invest in areas of pressing domestic need that have been neglected since the 1980s. Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to revise the discretionary spending limit for FY 1993 by merging the defense and domestic categories into a national category. Makes conforming changes to the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act).
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 1992
Community Works Progress Act of 1992 - Amends the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) to establish a new title VI, Community Works Progress and Youth Community Corps Programs. Establishes in the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the Department of Labor a Community Works Progress Office (the Office), to be headed by an Administrator. Directs the Administrator to prepare a plan for implementation of programs of the Office and submit a report summarizing it to the Secretary of Labor (the Secretary), who shall send a copy of the report to the appropriate congressional committees, and promulgate regulations to carry out the plan. Sets forth requirements relating to contracts made by administrative entities carrying out projects under this Act. Requires that such projects comply with nonduplication and nondisplacement requirements under the National and Community Service Act of 1990. Provides that compensation or benefits received by project participants under this Act shall be excluded from consideration under the Higher Education Act of 1965, specified provisions of the Social Security Act, and other determinations of Federal benefits. Requires administrative entities carrying out such projects to submit quarterly progress reports to the State Governor. Directs the Comptroller General to evaluate programs under this Act and report to the Secretary and appropriate congressional committees. Directs the Secretary, acting through the Administrator, to establish in the Office a Community Works Progress (CWP) program. Provides for CWP program allotments to States, including bonuses to States demonstrating progress in the preceding fiscal year in securing employment for individuals who were receiving AFDC and who no longer require such aid as a result of such employment. Allows States to use such allotments to award grants for CWP projects. Sets forth requirements for State Governors' award of CWP grants to eligible entities (including public agencies, private contractors, and private nonprofit organizations) for CWP projects that will serve a significant public purpose in a community service field (as described under the National and Community Service Act of 1990). Requires compliance with criteria established by the Secretary for job training, job search, and volunteer services. Sets forth requirements for job training plans for such CWP grant projects. Requires the Governor to enter into a written grant agreement with the administrative entity, including requirements for: (1) limits on administrative expenses and construction contracts; (2) use of at least 70 percent of the grant for compensation and supportive services for participants; (3) a three-year completion deadline; and (4) jobs opportunities and basic skills training program requirements for AFDC recipients. Sets forth requirements for nonpartisan selection and eligibility of unemployed individuals as project participants. Allows project participation, under specified conditions, of individuals who are also participants in the job opportunities and basic skills training program under AFDC provisions of the Social Security Act. Allows participation of individuals receiving unemployment compensation if certain age, education, residence, and unemployment period criteria are met. Allows participation of individuals who are not receiving unemployment compensation and who are discouraged workers if the other criteria are met. Requires, if possible, that at least 25 percent of project participants not be AFDC training program participants. Makes ineligible for project participation any individual eligible for specified retirement benefits. Sets forth restrictions on project participation, including: (1) 32-hour maximum project work per week; (2) 20-hour maximum on any additional part-time employment; (3) job search requirements; and (4) testing and education requirements. Sets forth requirements for compensation and supportive services for project participants, including unemployment compensation recipients, AFDC recipients, and individuals not receiving unemployment compensation. Sets forth duties of State units with respect to the CWP program in each State. Directs the Secretary, acting through the Administrator, to establish in the Office a youth community corps (YCC) program. Provides for YCC program allotments to States to award grants for YCC projects. Sets forth requirements for State Governor's award of YCC grants to eligible entities (community-based organizations, local educational agencies, or partnerships of local education agencies with local public community service agencies) for YCC projects to employ participants in projects in community service fields. Sets forth requirements for job training plans. Requires YCC grant agreements to limit administrative expenses and construction contracts, require 70 percent of grant funds for compensation and benefits for participants, and limit length of individual participation to not more than 250 hours per year. Sets forth requirements for selection and eligibility of YCC participants. Makes eligible elementary and secondary school students aged 14 to 21 who are children of participants in the AFDC job opportunities and basic skills training program or who are members of families receiving AFDC benefits, or of eligible households under the food stamp program, or of families with incomes at or below the official poverty line. Allows employment of other eligible students who do not meet such poverty criteria if the project requires a greater number of participants and preference in such selection is given to students with work experience related to the project. Prohibits employment as a participant in a YCC project of any individual who is not making progress toward attainment of a high school diploma or equivalent. Requires payment to YCC participants of either: (1) a monetary credit for use at institutions of higher education, based on hours of participation; or (2) a cash benefit equal to one-half the amount of the educational credit. Sets forth duties of State units with respect to the YCC program in the State. Directs the Secretary, acting through the Administrator, to establish in the Office a national youth community corps (NYCC) program. Directs the Secretary to make equal allotments to ETA regional offices to make NYCC grants and to make administrative cost grants to States in which NYCC projects are carried out. Authorizes a regional office to make one grant for each fiscal year to establish and carry out an NYCC project to employ participants aged 17 to 22 in a project related to community service fields within the region served by that office. Makes eligible to receive such a grant a State or local public agency or a private nonprofit organization that provides such community services within that region. Sets forth requirements for job training plans. Requires NYCC grant agreements to: (1) limit administrative expenses and construction contracts; (2) use at least 70 percent of the grant for compensation and benefits for participants; (3) limit individual participant employment to not more than two years; (4) provide for training participants in accordance with specified provisions of the National and Community Service Act of 1990; and (5) provide for periodic and confidential evaluations of each participant. Sets forth requirements for selection and eligibility of NYCC project participants. Requires individual applications to the Governor to indicate the NYCC projects in which the individual seeks to participate. Requires the Governor to refer such application to each administrative entity administering such projects. Requires an individual to be age 17 to 22 to be eligible to participate in a NYCC project. Requires the administrative entity to make offers to eligible individuals to become participants in the project. Provides for living allowances and payments to NYCC participants. Provides for a choice of higher educational credits equal to $10,000 per year or cash benefits equal to $5,000 per year. Sets forth duties of State units with respect to an NYCC program conducted in the State. Authorizes appropriations under JTPA to carry out this Act. Amends the Social Security Act with respect to programs under this Act in ways relating to: (1) disregard of income earned as compensation by a program participant under this Act; (2) employability plans; (3) referral to projects under the CWP, YCC, and NYCC programs; (4) work supplementation program; and (5) community work experience program. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude: (1) compensation for service under this Act as wages for unemployment compensation purposes; and (2) compensation and benefits for service under this Act from gross income for income tax purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 1992
Nutrition Screening Research Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a three-year nutrition screening and intervention activities study of the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of currently conducted nutrition screening and intervention activities and of a program that would institutionalize such screening and intervention activities. Directs the Secretary, in evaluating such a program, to determine: (1) if health or quality of life is measurably improved for older individuals who receive routine nutritional screening and treatment: (2) if federally subsidized home or institutional care is reduced because of increased independence of older individuals resulting from improved nutritional status; (3) if a multidisciplinary approach to nutritional care is effective in addressing the nutritional needs of older individuals; and (4) if reimbursement for nutrition screening and intervention activities is a cost-effective approach to improving the health status of older individuals. Specifies the populations of older individuals in which the study will be conducted. Directs the Secretary to conduct and report to the Congress on a three-year study to determine the extent of malnutrition in older individuals in hospitals and long-term care facilities and in older individuals who are living independently, including a determination regarding whether a program to institutionalize nutrition screening and intervention activities should be adopted and rationale for the determination. Directs the Secretary to establish an advisory panel to oversee the design, implementation, and evaluation of both studies. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 1992
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) an appropriate commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Mariana Islands campaign of World War II should be planned; and (2) the Secretary of the Interior should take steps to ensure by June 15, 1994, the completion of a visitor center at the War in the Pacific National Historical Park, Guam, and one at the American Memorial Park, Saipan, for the interpretation of the campaign. Increases the authorization of appropriations for such parks.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1992
Tobacco Health and Safety Act of 1992 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) to create a new chapter on tobacco products. Makes unlawful the distribution of a tobacco product that presents risks to health: (1) to persons under the age of 18, or under the higher age limit set by the State involved; (2) if it is misbranded or adulterated as described by this Act; or (3) as a free sample or by coupons or other discounting. Requires States to enact laws and promulgate regulations as necessary to ensure compliance. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services, if State enforcement is insufficient to comply with the age requirements of this Act, to impose requirements on the form, manner, and location of tobacco product sales in that State. Deems a tobacco product misbranded if: (1) its labeling is false or misleading in any particular; (2) its labeling fails to contain the statements required by the Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act and the Comprehensive Smokeless Tobacco Health Education Act; (3) its labeling fails to contain the statement "Federal Law Prohibits Sale to Minors"; or (4) other requirements are not met. Allows the Secretary of Health and Human Services, by regulation, to require manufacturers to provide additional information to consumers through labeling, inserts, or other means. Allows the Secretary to modify the existing warning labels so long as the modifications do not weaken the health message in the warnings. Deems a tobacco product adulterated if: (1) the level of any tobacco additive is in violation of a requirement set under this Act; (2) the nicotine, tar, carbon monoxide, or other harmful constituent level has not been established under this Act; (3) it contains any added poisonous or deleterious substance that may render it injurious to health; or (4) other conditions are met. Requires manufacturers, importers, or packagers to provide the Secretary with a list of additives used in tobacco products. Authorizes the Secretary to establish public disclosure requirements for such additives. Requires the Secretary to test and establish the tar, nicotine, carbon monoxide, and other harmful constituent levels for each brand of tobacco product before such product may be lawfully sold. Authorizes the Secretary to make such information public. Directs the Secretary to report annually to the appropriate congressional committees on the use of tobacco additives and the levels of harmful constituents in tobacco products. Amends the Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act to change the required Surgeon General's warning messages. Deems to be a drug any product that contains nicotine but does not meet the FDCA definition of tobacco products.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1992
Bank and Thrift Disclosure Act of 1992 - Requires each appropriate banking agency to disclose to the public the reports of all examinations of each failed depository institution performed during the five-year period preceding its transfer, failure, or receipt of certain Federal depository insurance (or other Federal "bail-out" funds). Limits such disclosure requirement to an institution that received such funds while it was critically undercapitalized within the one-year period before its failure. Cites conditions under which public disclosure may be delayed because of threats to safety, soundness, or pending administrative, civil, or criminal investigations. Subjects a holding company of such a failed institution to the same public disclosure requirements, but excludes open institutions and affiliated solvent institutions. Mandates public disclosure of settlement agreements between the Resolution Trust Corporation or the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and any other party with respect to certain failed depository institutions. Applies the public disclosure requirements of this Act to specified kinds of failed institutions. Shields certain identifying and customer information from the disclosure requirements. Requires the appropriate banking agencies to: (1) make public disclosures of loans by insiders (senior personnel and principal shareholders) who have defaulted on loans made by a failed institution; and (2) provide the public with periodic updates of pending and settled lawsuits brought by such agencies involving transactions that caused a material loss to either the failed depository institution or to the deposit insurance fund. Directs the Comptroller General to selectively audit examination reports and public disclosures made by the appropriate banking agencies to assess their compliance with this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1992
Hospital Cooperative Agreement Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish a demonstration program of ten five-year grants for collaboration among hospitals regarding the provision of expensive, capital-intensive medical technology or other highly resource-intensive services. Requires that projects be designed to demonstrate a reduction in costs, an increase in access to care, and improvements in the quality of care. Allows grant funds to be used only to facilitate collaboration and not to purchase facilities or capital equipment. Requires at least three of the grants to be used to demonstrate how such agreements may be used to increase access to or quality of care in rural areas. Requires cooperative agreements facilitated under these provisions to provide for the sharing of medical technology or eligible services. Declares that it is not a violation of antitrust laws for a hospital to carry out activities under these provisions. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 25 February 1992
Appropriations Category Reform Act of 1992 - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to revise the discretionary spending limit for FY 1993 by merging the defense and domestic categories into a national category. Makes conforming changes to the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act).
United States · United States Congress · 25 February 1992
Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to establish the Income Dependent Education Assistance (IDEA) program as part D of such title. (Replaces the current part D, Income Contingent Direct Loan Demonstration Project.) Authorizes the Secretary of Education (the Secretary) to carry out IDEA as a program that: (1) makes direct loans (self-reliance loans) to all eligible students enrolled at participating institutions of higher education, without regard to student financial need; and (2) establishes an account for each borrower and collects repayments on such loans in accordance with the Internal Revenue Code (as amended by this Act). Directs the Secretary to: (1) make IDEA payments to participating institutions on the basis of estimated borrowing needs of students; and (2) make initial IDEA payments in a manner similar to the procedure for distribution of Pell Grants. Deems eligible students at participating institutions to have a contractual right against the United States to receive a self-reliance loan, regardless of financial need, but requires such students nonetheless to undergo needs test assessments for the Pell Grant and Stafford Loan programs for the fiscal year for which the self-reliance loan is to be received. Directs the Secretary to select for IDEA program participation diverse types of institutions of higher education from among those eligible to participate in Stafford Loan programs. Limits the initial selection to 300 institutions by May 1, 1993, with the projected volume of new student borrowing under IDEA not to exceed specified limits for each of FY 1994 through 1997. Provides for expansion of the program, beginning on August 1, 1997, by directing the Secretary to permit participation by all institutions of higher education that have the administrative and fiscal capacity to administer a self-reliance loan program, if the Congress: (1) does not act before such date to terminate or modify the program; and (2) takes the affirmative step to approve such expansion by providing sufficient resources to offset program costs. Directs the Secretary to publish criteria for institutional eligibility for the IDEA program by September 1, 1995. Sets forth requirements for institutional applications and program agreements. Sets forth borrowing limits on self-reliance loans, as follows: (1) annual: $5,000 for an undergraduate, $15,000 for a graduate student; (2) aggregate: $25,000 for an undergraduate, $30,000 for a gradute student (with a $30,000 maximum for any student); (3) maximum in combination with Stafford guaranteed loan programs and Perkins direct loans, equal to specified limits on aggregate indebtedness under the Stafford loans program except that independent students under the Supplemental Loans for Students (SLS) program may borrow an additional $10,000 under IDEA above those limits; and (4) no self-reliance loan to exceed the student's cost of attendance for the year in question. Requires the interest rate for self-reliance loans to be: (1) established at the time the loan is made; and (2) equal to the interest rate on 52-week Treasury bills plus an additional two percentage points. Directs the Secretary to establish such interest rate at the same time and with the same frequency as interest rates are established for the Supplemental Loans for Students program. Requires repayment of self-reliance loans through the income tax collection system. Requires borrowers to devote seven percent of their adjusted gross income to such repayment, except that the Secretary is required to allow the following options to borrowers at the following levels of indebtedness when they enter repayment: (1) for low indebtedness, three, five, or seven percent of such income; and (2) for moderate indebtedness, five or seven percent of such income. Provides that self-reliance loan borrowers shall be in repayment status for any taxable year, unless: (1) the borrower was, during at least seven months of such year, a student enrolled in an institution of higher education on at least a half-time basis; or (2) such taxable year was the first year in which the borrower was such a student and the borrower was such a student during the last three months of such year. Requires repayment to continue until the loan has been repaid or for 25 years after the borrower ceases to be enrolled on at least a half-time basis, whichever occurs first. Provides that no repayment shall be due in any year in which the borrower is not required to file a tax return under the Internal Revenue Code. Requires borrowers who marry individuals who have not received self-reliance loans to make repayments on the basis of the greater of: (1) one-half of the adjusted gross income on the joint income tax return; or (2) the individual borrower's adjusted gross income. Allows borrowers to defer, at their own discretion, payment of interest on self-reliance loans while they attend institutions of higher education on at least a half-time basis. Allows borrowers to prepay all or part of a self-reliance loan to the Secretary without a penalty. Provides for discharge, by the Secretary, of the self-reliance loan liability of any borrower who dies or becomes permanently and totally disabled. Provides that, in general, a self-reliance loan shall not be dischargeable in a case of bankruptcy, but authorizes the Secretary to postpone certain portions of the loan liability in such cases. Makes the Secretary responsible for: (1) promulgating terms and conditions of self-reliance loans that are not otherwise specified in this Act; (2) enforcing compliance with institutional program participation requirements through limitation, suspension, or termination actions and additional criteria for monitoring participant performance; (3) developing and administering a central data system for use in administering self-reliance loans; (4) annually certifying to the Secretary of the Treasury specified amounts relating to each borrower's repayment status; (5) developing standard forms and data formats; (6) sending certain reports, including annual reports, to the Congress; and (7) overseeing all participating institutions. Defines eligible student, for IDEA program purposes, as a U.S. citizen aged 17 to 51. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to enter into an agreement with the Secretary of Education to provide for collection of repayments of self-reliance loans. Imposes an educational loan repayment tax equal to the repayment percentage of the taxpayer's adjusted gross income for the taxable year.
United States · United States Congress · 20 February 1992
Directs the Secretaries of the Interior and the Army to implement the settlement negotiated under Federal law by the Pueblo de Cochiti of New Mexico and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers relating to seepage problems at the Cochiti Dam on their lands. Makes the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Indian Affairs, responsible for maintenance, repair, and replacement of the underground drainage system upon its completion. Requires the Secretary of the Army to construct such drainage system to correct the high groundwater problem at the dam. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 19 February 1992
Voting Rights Act Language Assistance Amendments of 1992 - Amends the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to extend the termination date on the prohibition of covered States and political subdivisions providing voting materials only in English. Modifies criteria for determining whether a State or subdivision is covered.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1992
Cancer Registries Amendment Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants or contracts to operate population-based, statewide cancer registries in order to collect certain data for each form of in-situ and invasive cancer except basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma of the skin. Authorizes grants for planning the registries. Mandates a study on factors contributing to elevated rates of breast cancer mortality in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the District of Columbia. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services, directly or through grants and contracts, or both, to provide technical assistance to the States in the establishment and operation of statewide registries. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1992
Designates May 1992 as National Huntington's Disease Awareness Month.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 1992
Healthy Students-Healthy Schools Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to designate, within the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), a Healthy Students-Healthy Schools Office (HSHS Office). Requires the HSHS Office to assist State and local educational agencies (SEAs and LEAs) to: (1) develop and maintain comprehensive sequential school health education programs and curricula (based on a model framework) in all elementary and secondary schools in their jurisdiction; (2) train teachers in such health education; (3) integrate school, community-based, and public-private health promotion efforts; (4) provide nutritious school food services; and (5) encourage healthy, tobacco-free school environments. Requires the Office also to: (1) provide technical support to SEAs and LEAs concerning health education programs and curricula; (2) administer the Healthy American Schools grant program; (3) establish and maintain a national clearinghouse to disseminate school health education information; (4) assist States in coordinating school-based programs to progress toward relevant Healthy People 2000 (HP 2000) Objectives and Healthy Students-Healthy Schools Goals (Goals); (5) assist States in evaluating competency-based health education skills and physical fitness, and collecting and maintaining data on health behavior indicators (including absenteeism due to pregnancy and ill-health), to measure progress toward such Objectives and Goals; (6) assist the Secretary in preparing an annual report on the status of school health education in the United States; and (7) coordinate with other Federal school health education efforts. Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to transfer the Office of Comprehensive School Health Education (CSHE Office) from the Office of the Secretary (of Education) to the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (also within the Department of Education). Directs the Secretary of Education to facilitate such transfer. Requires the CSHE Office to: (1) act as a liaison office for coordination of its own activities with related activities of the Department of HHS; and (2) expand its own school health education research grant programs. Establishes the Healthy Students-Healthy Schools Advisory Council. Requires the Advisory Council to: (1) establish the national Goals based on existing data and research (including the HP 2000 Objectives), identifying the activities required to meet them as well as the Federal agencies or individuals responsible for each goal; (2) review existing comprehensive school health education standards, programs, and curricula, evaluating federally-supported programs currently being implemented in schools; (3) develop a model framework for sequential comprehensive school health education program and curricula; (4) develop and incorporate model guidelines and evaluation mechanisms, including baseline data gathering, in the model framework; (5) provide scientific and technical advice developing and implementing all components of such programs; (6) recommend uniform methods to link Federal research findings with State and local implementation; and (7) advise the Secretary of HHS and other Federal agencies. Directs the Secretary of HHS to establish a Healthy Students-Healthy Schools Interagency Task Force, to be staffed by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion and composed of representatives of that Office and specified agencies. Requires the Assistant Secretary for Health, Public Health Service, and the Assistant Secretary of Education (Elementary and Secondary Education) to serve as co-chairpersons of the task force. Requires the task force to: (1) review and coordinate all Federal school health education efforts (including drug and alcohol abuse prevention education, HIV prevention education, physical fitness, school services, and nutrition); (2) provide scientific and technical advice on developing and implementing the model framework; (3) develop a consolidated grant application form and procedures for use with respect to all school health-related programs; and (4) advise and assist the HSHS Office and other Federal agencies. Directs the Secretary of HHS, with Advisory Council assistance, to: (1) foster the interaction and coordination needed among Federal, State, and local agencies, schools, the private sector, scientific communities, health professionals, parents, and students in order to create Healthy Americans Schools; (2) update progress toward the Objectives and the Goals by establishing in the schools a national monitoring system, to be SEA-and LEA- administered; (3) ensure timely implementation of activities and mechanisms to monitor and achieve such objectives and goals; and (4) report annually to appropriate congressional committees and the States. Provides for recognition of exemplary schools and evaluation of States that incorporate the Goals. Directs the Secretary of HHS, through the HSHS Office, to award grants to States and LEAs to assist schools in becoming Healthy American Schools that teach comprehensive sequential school health education programs using advanced technologies such as computer-based learning and innovative communication channels. Requires that every public elementary and secondary school be eligible to receive such assistance. Requires such grants to be used to establish and implement programs that meet the goals of the HSHS program, including programs of: (1) teacher training in sequential school health education and related in-service training; (2) healthy school environment standards; (3) personal health and fitness; (4) nutrition education and nutritious food services; (5) mental health wellness; (6) chronic disease prevention; (7) substance abuse prevention; (8) accident prevention and safety education; (9) community and environmental health; (10) family life education; (11) communicable disease prevention and control; (12) effective use of health service delivery systems; (13) development and aging; and (14) worksite health promotion. Sets forth grant application requirements including 25 percent matching funds by the State (or Indian tribe). Directs the Secretary of HHS to recognize annually with plaques and cash awards those schools that epitomize the HSHS Goals established under this Act. Sets forth requirements for data collection, program evaluation, and annual reports by the Secretary of HHS to the appropriate congressional committees and the States. Directs the Secretary of the Interior, through the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and in cooperation with the Secretary of HHS, to develop and implement a program providing sequential comprehensive health education and physical education to students enrolled in elementary and secondary schools operated by or on behalf of the BIA. Sets forth program requirements for: (1) courses of instruction; (2) student participation; and (3) consultation with representatives of the Indian tribes, local educational and health personnel, and the Advisory Council. Requires the Secretary of the Interior to submit a program progress report to the Congress within one year after enactment of this Act. Authorizes appropriations. Requires that fiscal year appropriations for the Healthy American Schools grant program attain a specified minimum level before the Secretary of HHS may carry out any of this Act. Amends the Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act of 1986 to allow appropriations under it to be used in conjunction with the HSHS program of any State, Indian tribe, LEA, or school, so long as substance abuse prevention is a major component.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 1992
Jemez National Recreation Area Establishment Act - Establishes the Jemez National Recreational Area in New Mexico. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to develop a management plan for the Area as an amendment to the Santa Fe National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan. Declares the intent of the Congress that nothing in this Act requires the Secretary to revise the Santa Fe Forest Land and Resource Management Plan pursuant to provisions of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974. Requires the Secretary to: (1) protect religious and cultural sites in the Area; and (2) provide access to such sites by Indian peoples for traditional cultural and religious purposes. Authorizes the Secretary to permit timber harvesting in the Area for commercial purposes as long as it is compatible with the Area's purposes. Continues: (1) timber sales already under contract on enactment of this Act; and (2) the Los Griegos timber sale in a specified area of the Santa Fe National Forest. Directs the Secretary to manage the Los Griegos timber sale by using uneven aged management including the individual tree selection method. Requires the Secretary to prepare a transportation plan to provide for the most efficient use of existing roads and trails, including a comprehensive system for dispersed recreation which minimizes its impact on significant archaelogical and religious sites. Directs the Secretary to provide for recreational facilities within the Area and establish a visitor center. Authorizes the Secretary to permit under certain conditions: (1) a utility corridor for high power electric transmission lines; and (2) scientific investigations. Prohibits the issuance of any mining location or claim patents after May 31, 1991, with respect to the area. Permits any party who has been deprived of any property rights by such prohibition to file a compensation claim against the United States in the U.S. Claims Court within one year after enactment. Withdraws lands within the Area from U.S. mining, mineral leasing, and related laws. Declares that any requirements imposed by the Secretary on certain mining activities within the Area shall include requirements for reasonable reclamation of disturbed lands to a visual and hydrological condition as close as practicable to their premining condition. Directs the Secretary to expedite a program to determine the validity of all unpatented mining claims within the Area (incuding those for which a patent has been filed). Requires the Secretary to declare any invalid claims null and void. Authorizes the Secretary to use, under specified conditions, mineral materials from within the Area for public purposes such as maintenance and construction of roads, trails, and facilities. Directs the Secretary to evaluate and make recommendations to the Congress about lands adjoining the Area (including specified privately-owned land) for possible inclusion in it. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 1992
Fair Market Standards Act - Prohibits a Member or employee of the Congress from receiving from any office, officer, employee, or other entity in the Congress or in a U.S. department or agency any service or other benefit, at Government expense, that is not equally available to all other persons, with specified exceptions. Requires the Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper of the Senate and the Sergeant at Arms of the House of Representatives to survey and report to specified congressional committees on all the services and benefits available to Members and employees that are not equally available to all other persons, and the manner in which each service or benefit contributes to the performance of their duties. Requires each Committee to introduce a resolution that describes: (1) each service and benefit that may properly be made available to Members and employees for specified reasons; and (2) each service and benefit that may not properly be made available to them but may be made available in or near the Senate or House buildings, at the expense of Members and employees, and provided by employees of the Government or by private contractors. Directs the appropriate officers of the Senate and House to make arrangements for the necessary services and other benefits at fair market value. Mandates that all payments received from Members and employees of the Congress for unnecessary services and benefits provided by Government employees, all rent, or other payments received from private contractors that provide such services and benefits be deposited into the deficit reduction account of the Treasury.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 1992
National Education Property Board Act - Amends the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 to establish as an independent establishment a National Education Property Board to: (1) identify and collect information on surplus and excess Federal personal property available from Federal agencies; (2) make such property available to the education community; (3) establish an information dissemination strategy; (4) provide technical assistance to property managers in participating government agencies; (5) develop a method of direct transfer of property from the Federal agency to the receiving educational institution; (6) develop a method to provide a Federal agency with the option to directly transfer surplus or excess personal property by loan, grant, or education donation slip; (7) oversee that transfers shall not be competitive and shall be at the discretion of the designated education authority at the respective Federal agency; (8) facilitate the disposal of all applicable surplus and excess personal property to educational institutions; and (9) report annually to the President and the Congress as specified. Authorizes the Board to make surplus and excess personal property, which would otherwise be made available to educational institutions through State agencies, directly available to educational institutions. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 1992
Third World Development and Threat Reduction Act of 1992 - Amends the International Financial Institutions Act to declare that it is U.S. policy to promote policies within the international financial institutions to encourage developing countries to: (1) reduce military expenditures and dedicate greater resources to health, education, and productive enterprises; and (2) dedicate an equitable allocation of health and education resources to meet the needs of their populations. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. executive directors of the international financial institutions to oppose loans, credits, or guarantees to any developing country whose military expenditures as a percentage of its gross national product are greater than its expenditures on health and education. Makes such prohibition inapplicable if the President reports to the Congress that such prohibition would: (1) result in harm to U.S. national security; or (2) endanger a democratically elected government facing armed aggression from a hostile neighboring country or from a local insurgency that presents an immediate danger to the government's survivability or is guilty of human rights violations.
United States · United States Congress · 21 January 1992
Long-Term Care Insurance Improvement and Accountability Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish the Long-Term Care Insurance Standards Commission to establish and modify minimum Federal standards for long-term care insurance. Authorizes appropriations. Prohibits the offering of a long-term care insurance policy in a State unless the State has a regulatory program meeting the requirements of this Act or the policy has been certified by the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Directs the Secretary to periodically review State regulatory programs. Provides for enforcement of the prohibition. Authorizes grants to States for demonstration programs to improve enforcement of the standards. Imposes on agents selling long-term policies a duty of good faith and fair dealing. Prohibits: (1) twisting, high pressure tactics, and cold lead advertising; and (2) the agent from completing the medical history portion of the application. Mandates minimum financial standards, including income and asset criteria, for the purchase of a long-term policy. Prohibits sales: (1) to an individual eligible for assistance under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act; and (2) of duplicate service policies. Provides for penalties. Mandates agent training and certification. Sets forth additional carrier responsibilities relating to refunding of premiums, mailing of policies, providing information on denials of claims, reporting of information, and limiting compensation to agents for the sale or renewal of policies. Prohibits cancellation or nonrenewal of a long-term care policy except for nonpayment of premium or material misrepresentation. Sets forth continuation and conversion rights for group policies. Requires guaranteed issuance to an individual if the individual meets the minimum medical requirements of the policy. Limits cancellation for nonpayment by an incapacitated individual. Requires: (1) standard definitions and terminology, a uniform format, and standard benefits; and (2) disclosure of certain matters, including an outline of benefits. Limits certain conditions on benefits, including those based on preexisting conditions. Requires: (1) that eligibility for, and the level of, benefits be based on a functional assessment; (2) inflation protection; (3) limits on premium increases; and (4) nonforfeiture benefits. Limits the period during which the issuer may cancel the policy or deny a claim based on fraud or misrepresentation. Establishes: (1) the right of a purchaser to return a policy within a specified period; and (2) civil money penalties for failure to comply with specified provisions of this Act. Defines "long-term care insurance policy," excluding: (1) any Medicare supplemental policies; (2) other insurance offered primarily to provide specified types of coverage; and (3) certain life insurance policies. Requires the Commission to issue guidelines applicable to organizations that endorse long-term policies or permit such policies to be offered through their organization. Authorizes appropriations to provide information, counseling, and assistance regarding the procurement of long-term insurance. Mandates reports to the Congress on: (1) standards to assure the solvency of insurers regarding long-term care policies; and (2) a standard measure of value for long-term care policies.
United States · United States Congress · 27 November 1991
1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games Commemorative Coin Act - Provides for the minting and sale of commemorative gold and silver coins to support the 1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games and the programs of the United States Olympic Committee.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
Orphan Drug Amendments of 1991 - Amends provisions of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) relating to designation of drugs for rare diseases or conditions to require that the number of people affected be determined three years after the request for designation as well as on the date of the request. Creates additional exceptions from the protection of exclusive approval, certification, or license for drugs for rare diseases for drugs which qualified for protection because the disease or condition for which they are used affected less than a specified number of persons, but which have ceased to so qualify. Provides for the termination of orphan drug status for drugs having cumulative sales over a certain amount, provided the costs of developing the drug in the United States are not over the same amount. Amends the Public Health Service Act to replace provisions establishing the Orphan Products Board with provisions establishing the Office for Orphan Diseases and Conditions. Includes in the functions of the Office dealing with drugs, devices, and medical foods (currently, the Board deals with drugs and devices). Establishes an advisory committee within the Office. Amends the FDCA to authorize appropriations for grants and contracts for development of drugs for rare diseases and conditions.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
Equal Remedies Act of 1991 - Amends Federal law relating to damages in cases of intentional employment discrimination to remove provisions limiting the dollar amount of damages awarded for pecuniary and nonpecuniary losses and punitive damages.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
Confers jurisdiction upon the U.S. Claims Court to hear and render judgment on land claims by the Pueblo of Isleta Indian Tribe of New Mexico against the United States. Authorizes such Court to award: (1) interest accrued from the date such lands were acquired by the United States; and (2) cost of suit and reasonable attorney's fees to any prevailing party, other than the United States. Sets forth provisions with respect to: (1) jurisdictional limitations; (2) exhaustion of administrative remedies (not required); and (3) standards for determining reasonable attorney's fees. Specifies that any award made to other Indian tribes with respect to lands subject to such claims shall not be considered a defense, estoppel, or set-off to such claim or otherwise affect relief stemming from such claim.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
State Export Program Assistance and Development Act of 1991 - Amends the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 to direct the Secretary of Commerce to provide assistance to States (that so request it) in developing and implementing an effective export program. Describes the form and scope of such assistance. Authorizes appropriations and terminates authorities under this Act three years after its enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 26 November 1991
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the President should closely examine the proposed sale of 40 percent of McDonnell Douglas' commercial aircraft division to the Taiwan Aerospace Corporation.
United States · United States Congress · 25 November 1991
Casas Grandes Culture Study Act of 1991 - Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the National Park Service, to study and report to specified congressional committees on the Casas Grandes Culture in southwestern New Mexico and to determine its significance in illustrating and commemorating the prehistory of the Southwest. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 25 November 1991
Establishes a Commission on the Bicentennial of the United States' Democratic Party to coordinate ceremonial events and related activities during 1992. Requires the Commission to submit periodic reports and a final one to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President Pro tempore of the Senate on its activities. Terminates the Commission on February 13, 1993, unless otherwise provided by law.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1991
Rio Grande Designation Act of 1991 - Amends the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate a segment of the Rio Grande, New Mexico, as a component of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. Withdraws such lands from U.S. public land, mining, and mineral leasing laws.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1991
Albert Einstein Teacher Fellowship Act of 1991 - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to establish the Albert Einstein Teacher Fellowship Program to provide fellowships for outstanding secondary school science or mathematics teachers. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1991
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to eliminate the annual cap on the amount of payment for outpatient physical therapy and occupational therapy services under (Medicare) part B (Supplemental Medical Insurance).
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 1991
Authorizes the President Pro Tempore of the Senate to enter into an agreement with the Triangle Coalition for Science and Technology Education to establish an Albert Einstein Congressional Fellowship Program providing for two fellowships within the Senate in each fiscal year, beginning in FY 1991. Provides for the agreement only if the Triangle Coalition for Science and Technology meets certain program requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 1991
Inter-American Scientific Cooperation Act of 1991 - Directs the National Science Foundation to establish the Inter-American Scientific Cooperation Program aimed at increasing science and technology cooperation between the United States and Latin America. Requires the Program to identify and cooperate with private and governmental funding bodies. Requires the Program to encourage the use of debt-for-science exchanges to finance cooperative scientific research projects. Requires the Program Director to make funds available, in accordance with the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, to non-Federal organizations for such exchanges. Requires intent by a debtor nation to contribute at least 75 percent of the full face value of the discounted debt, or at least 20 percent over the current market purchase price of the debt. Requires the Director to appoint a Board of Governors for the U.S. side of a United States-Mexico Binational Science Endowment. Requires that the Endowment be an independent, nongovernmental, nonadvocacy, not-for-profit organization operated exclusively for scientific and educational purposes, receiving funds and supporting projects of potential benefit to both nations. Authorizes the use of a limited amount of funds authorized under specified Acts to carry out this Act. Authorizes and encourages the President to provide a specified amount from the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 for certain purposes of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 13 November 1991
Justice for Wards Cove Workers Act - Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1991 to remove a provision excluding from application of the Act any disparate impact case filed before March 1, 1975, and decided after October 30, 1983. (Wards Cove Packing Co. Inc. v. Antonio, 1989, held that, in cases brought under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the burden is on the plaintiff to prove an employer had no business necessity for a practice with discriminatory effects.)
United States · United States Congress · 12 November 1991
Act for a Fit and Healthy America - Mandates allotments to States for Governor's Advisory Councils on Health Promotion. Requires the Councils to establish, oversee, and report on statewide health promotion programs. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 1991
Enterprise Capital Formation Act of 1991 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a deduction for gain on investments in new small business stock (seed capital) held for at least five years. Establishes special rules for such investments. Provides for determining the maximum capital gains rate for small business net capital gain or seed capital gain. Treats capital gains on the sale of such stock as a preference item for purposes of the minimum tax.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 1991
Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Act of 1991 - Title I: Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Assistance - Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Assistance Act of 1991 - Subtitle A: Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize appropriations for block grants. Modifies requirements regarding: (1) State reports to the Secretary of Health and Human Services; (2) health status indicators and reports; (3) application requirements; and (4) health promotion and disease prevention related to women's health. Amends the Year 2000 Health Objectives Planning Act to authorize appropriations to carry out the Act and to establish and operate State Health Objectives Advisory Committees under specified provisions of the Public Health Service Act. Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize appropriations for centers for research and demonstration of health promotion and disease prevention. Subtitle B: National Health Objectives Project Grants to States - Requires appropriations exceeding a certain amount under general block grant authorizations to be used to carry out this subtitle. Provides for the amount of the allotment to each State and each Indian tribe or tribal organization. Provides for the uses of the funds, including assessing public health needs and health status and providing other types of assistance. Requires a State to: (1) develop a State health objectives plan containing at least five objectives from the national objectives list described by the Secretary; and (2) establish a State Health Objectives Advisory Committee. Directs the Secretary to establish: (1) the National Health Objectives Advisory Committee; (2) national health priorities, including three core priorities which must be included in each State plan; and (3) an estimate of the personnel and training needed to accomplish the national priorities. Subtitle C: Categorical Programs - Mandates grants for: (1) demonstration projects for preventing conditions or diseases affecting women; (2) demonstration projects for the promotion of women's health; and (3) development and dissemination of information on health promotion and disease prevention related to women's health. Authorizes establishment of a national information clearinghouse to disseminate information concerning prevention of injuries in locations not covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. Authorizes grants and contracts to help public schools implement programs to prevent injuries. Mandates grants for the establishment of ten demonstration projects for the prevention of injuries in locations not covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. Authorizes appropriations to carry out injury research and control provisions. Establishes the Office of Adolescent Health. Sets forth Office activities, including: (1) establishing a national clearinghouse; (2) establishing the National Advisory Committee on Adolescent Health; and (3) developing a national strategic plan to access adolescent health issues. Mandates grants and contracts for multidisciplinary projects to: (1) use innovative methods to train health care practitioners to serve adolescents; and (2) demonstrate and evaluate innovative models to prevent adolescent violence. Authorizes appropriations. Requires grantees under provisions relating to community programs on childhood lead poisoning: (1) to provide screening, referral for both treatment and environmental intervention (currently, for treatment), and education; and (2) with regard to services provided under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act, to be or work with a qualified Medicaid provider. Revises other requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes setting aside a specified percentage of amounts appropriated for related programs in addition to the grants. Establishes: (1) a national program to educate health professionals and paraprofessionals and the general public on lead poisoning; (2) a concerted technology assessment and epidemiology program on lead poisoning; and (3) the Interagency Task Force on the Prevention of Lead Poisoning. Authorizes appropriations to carry out provisions relating to the prevention and control of sexually transmitted diseases. Authorizes grants to determine: (1) the prevalence, mortality rates, and stage at diagnosis of prostate cancer; and (2) current prostate cancer screening and diagnosis practices and their effectiveness. Mandates grants for demonstration projects for the prevention of diseases that disproportionately affect minorities. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Coordination of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Activities - Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Coordination Act of 1991 - Modifies the duties of the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. Authorizes appropriations to carry out specified provisions relating to health information and health promotion. Establishes an interdepartmental group for coordination and cooperation regarding multidimensional school health programs. Removes references to health information from provisions authorizing the Secretary to conduct and to support through grants and contracts research on health information and health promotion, preventive health services, and education in the appropriate use of health care. Mandates an annual report to the President and appropriate congressional committees (currently, the President and the Congress) on the status of the nation's health (currently, on the status of health information and health promotion, preventive health services, and education in the appropriate use of health care). Modifies the report contents. Mandates, with respect to the health concerns of individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, including racial and ethnic minorities, the development of model curricula and programs for health information and education for use in community and work place settings. Authorizes grants for improving the health status in minority communities through the operation of State offices of minority health established to monitor and facilitate the achievement of the Health Objectives for the Year 2000. Requires certain activities under the grants, including establishment within a State of a clearinghouse for certain information relating to minorities and health care. Authorizes appropriations. Terminates the program after aggregate appropriations reach a specified level. Title III: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Foundation - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Foundation Act of 1991 - Establishes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Foundation as a nonprofit corporation to support efforts to prevent disease, injury, and disability, and to promote health. Requires the Foundation to establish a fund to provide endowments for positions at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (endowment fund). Allows those positions to be held by individuals without regard to whether the individuals are Federal Government employees. Authorizes appropriations. Prohibits providing appropriated funds to the endowment fund. Authorizes the Secretary to make limited additional amounts available to carry out this title. Title IV: Preventable Cases of Infertility - Authorizes grants for carrying out certain activities, with regard to any treatable sexually transmitted disease that can cause infertility in women if treatment is not received for the disease, including counseling, screening, treatment, referrals, public information and education, training health care providers, and data collection. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes grants for research on the manner in which service delivery under this title may be improved. Authorizes appropriations. Title V: Miscellaneous - Establishes the Secretary's Advisory Council on Health Promotion. Authorizes the transfer of a limited percentage of any appropriation under the Public Health Service Act to provide for the operation of the Council. Limits the total amount transferred in a fiscal year. Requires that the Surgeon General: (1) notify active members of the Commissioned Corps concerning guidelines for clinical practice developed or issued by the Public Health Service; and (2) ensure that the members are using the guidelines. Directs the Secretary to inform the Surgeon Generals of the uniformed services, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and the Administrator of the Office of Personnel Management concerning any guidelines for clinical practice developed by the Public Health Service. Amends the Comprehensive Smoking Education Act, the Education Amendments of 1978, the Veterans' Benefits and Services Act of 1988, the Public Health Service Act, the Health Omnibus Programs Extension of 1988, the Health Research Extension Act of 1985, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, and other Federal law to change certain references to the Centers for Disease Control to references to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Mandates a study and report to specified congressional committees regarding bloodborne disease transmission in the health care setting.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 1991
Health Professions Training and Nurse Education Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 1991 - Title I: Provisions Relating to Title VII - Health Professions Training Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 1991 - Subtitle A: General Provisions - Amends title VII (Health Research and Teaching Facilities and Training of Professional Health Personnel) of the Public Health Service Act to change the composition of the National Advisory Council on Health Professions Education and establish the Subcommittee on Allied Health. Prohibits making a grant, loan guarantee, or interest subsidy payment to specified types of educational institutions and programs which discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, disability, marital status, or educational affiliation (currently, on the basis of sex). Adds graduate programs in clinical social work to the list of institutions and programs covered. Modifies requirements and authorizations concerning the collection and reporting of certain data about specified types of health professionals. Requires all grant or contract applicants under title VII to instruct all trainees regarding precautions to prevent transmission of bloodborne diseases. Sets forth priorities in the awarding of competitive grants under titles VII or title VIII (Nurse Education) of the Act. Subtitle B: Student Assistance - Sets forth limits on the total principal amount of new loans made and installments paid for specified fiscal years under the Federal program of insured loans to health professions graduate students. Extends the date after which insurance may not be granted for loans or installments. Sets forth additional circumstances under which principal repayment may be deferred. Modifies loan consolidation requirements, including removing provisions prohibiting, in certain circumstances, the inclusion of such an insured loan in a consolidated loan under the authority of the Student Loan Marketing Association. Prohibits interest on such loans from being compounded more frequently than annually (currently, semiannually). Sets a maximum rate of interest. Provides for a quarterly special allowance to eligible loan holders based on a percentage of the unpaid principal of all eligible loans held by that holder. Requires an increase in the allowance if not promptly paid. Allows the educational institution or program attended by the borrower to assist in the collection of a delinquent loan by providing information on the borrower to lenders and holders. Mandates performance standards and fees to be paid by lenders and holders for the servicing of loans and for the processing of loan default claims. Requires (currently, allows) reduction in Federal payments to borrowers who are practicing their professions and have defaulted on their loans. Modifies the circumstances under which a lender or holder is not required to prosecute an action for default. Requires assessment of a risk-based premium on an eligible borrower and, if required, an eligible institution that is based on the default rate of the eligible institution involved. Allows an institution to pay off the outstanding principal and interest owed by defaulters to reduce the risk category of the institution. Removes provisions regulating premiums for insurance on the loans. Bars Federal or State time limits on enforcement of repayment of the loans. Allows the student loan insurance fund to be used for making payments in connection with the administration as well as for the collection or default of insured loans. Authorizes the use of a specified amount for the Office for Health Education Assistance Loans. Requires that borrowers under the loan insurance program who enter and remain in specified primary care fields receive preference for participation in the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program. Increases the maximum amount which may be repaid per year in return for the borrower serving in a health professional shortage area. Cancels the borrower's repayment obligation on death or total permanent disability (currently, on death). Limits discharge through bankruptcy. Mandates a report to specified congressional committees regarding the default rates for each institution, lender, and loan holder. Modifies the authority of the Secretary of Health and Human Services to issue regulations regarding specified aspects of the loan insurance program. Requires each participating institution to have an annual workshop on the requirements of the program and require all student borrowers to attend. Establishes, in the Bureau of Health Professions, the Office for Health Education Assistance Loans to achieve a reduction in the number and amounts of defaults on loans made or guaranteed under specified provisions. Authorizes appropriations for Federal capital contributions to student loan funds under specified provisions. Subtitle C: Direct Student Loan Health Demonstration Program - Establishes a direct student loan health demonstration program to make assistance available to certain institutions for those institutions to use to make direct loans to health professions students. Directs the Secretary to borrow up to a specified amount from the Secretary of the Treasury each year to provide the assistance to the institutions. Authorizes selection of up to 20 eligible institutions for the program. Sets forth institutional eligibility and other requirements. Makes student borrowers under this program ineligible for loans under other specified provisions. Requires certain collection efforts. Terminates the authority to make loans under these provisions five years after enactment. Modifies the loan repayment program for allied health personnel to allow repayment in exchange for service in a medically underserved or rural community that can demonstrate a shortage of allied health professionals in a recognized discipline. (Current law allows repayment in exchange for service in one of a list of types of facilities and agencies.) Authorizes appropriations for scholarships for students in specified health fields schools who are of exceptional financial need. Repeals provisions mandating grants for medical school scholarships for individuals agreeing to enter family practice (known as Lister Hill scholars). Authorizes appropriations for scholarships for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds. Modifies eligibility requirements for individuals to participate in a loan repayment program regarding service on the faculties of certain health professions schools. Limits payments to 20 percent of the principal and interest due on a loan (currently, 50 percent) of the principal and interest due on a loan for a given repayment year). Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle D: Grants and Contracts for Programs and Projects - Modifies application requirements and priorities regarding grants to establish, maintain, or improve departments of family medicine. Authorizes appropriations. Requires that agreements for developing and operating area health education center programs remain in effect for six years. Sets forth priorities. Mandates contracts to health education and training centers to improve services along the U.S.-Mexico border and in other high-impact urban or rural areas (currently, along the U.S.-Mexico border). Sets forth priorities. Authorizes agreements with eligible schools of medicine and osteopathic medicine for the planning, development, and operation of State supported area health education center programs meeting specified requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Requires matching non-Federal contributions. Adds a school of osteopathic medicine, a school of public health, and a graduate program in clinical psychology to the definition of "health professions school" for provisions mandating grants or contracts (currently, mandating grants) for programs of excellence in health professions education for minority individuals. Authorizes appropriations for such grants. Allows grants and contracts under existing provisions to be used to: (1) plan, develop, and operate, or participate in (currently, to plan, develop, and operate) a professional training program, including a residency or internship program (currently a residency program) in internal medicine or pediatrics for allopathic and osteopathic students, interns, residents, or practicing physicians (currently, for residents); and (2) provide financial assistance to allopathic and osteopathic students, interns, residents, practicing physicians, or other medical personnel (currently, to residents) who plan to work in general internal medicine and general pediatrics. Authorizes appropriations. Modifies eligibility requirements. Allows grants and contracts for educational assistance to individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds to be used for graduate programs in clinical social work. Modifies preferences (currently, priorities) in making the grants and contracts. Authorizes appropriations. Removes provisions setting aside certain funds for specified purposes. Authorizes limited payment of stipends. Authorizes appropriations for grants for retention programs for health professions schools with individuals with disadvantaged backgrounds. Authorizes grants and contracts to increase the number of underrepresented minority faculty at certain types of health professions schools. Authorizes appropriations. Replaces provisions authorizing grants for two-year schools of medicine or osteopathy with provisions authorizing grants and contracts for studies and demonstration projects regarding health professions education, licensing, credentialing, continuing competency, and discipline. Replaces provisions authorizing grants and contracts for model projects on faculty and curriculum development and development of new clinical training sites with provisions authorizing grants and contracts regarding chiropractic health care. Repeals provisions authorizing grants and contracts for training in preventive medicine. Transfers and authorizes appropriations for remaining similar provisions. Authorizes appropriations for grants and contracts for training physician assistants. Authorizes appropriations for grants and contracts for: (1) studies and demonstration projects regarding health professions education, licensing, credentialing, continuing competency, and discipline; (2) chiropractic health care; and (3) certain projects with respect to hospitals and schools of podiatric medicine. Amends provisions relating to training with respect to acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) to modify eligibility for grants and contracts and allow such awards to be used with regard to: (1) faculty, students, and health professions practitioners (currently, faculty and students); (2) individuals infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and individuals at high risk for such infection (currently, individuals with AIDS); and (3) developing curricula for care, treatment, and prevention (currently, care and treatment). Modifies preferences in making grants. Authorizes appropriations for: (1) the grants; and (2) grants to assist dental schools and certain programs with respect to oral health care to patients with AIDS. Modifies eligibility requirements regarding grants and contracts relating to geriatric education. Allows certain grants and contracts to be used to train physicians and dentists to teach geriatric medicine, geriatric psychiatry, or geriatric dentistry (currently, to teach geriatric medicine or geriatric dentistry). Modifies the associated training options. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle E: Personnel in Public Health, Health Administration and Allied Health - Adds references to Healthy People 2000: National Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Objectives to provisions authorizing grants and contracts for certain special projects involving schools of public health. Sets forth purposes of such projects. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes appropriations for grants for: (1) graduate programs in health administration; and (2) traineeships for students in other graduate programs. Requires that public health traineeships under existing provisions be used to increase the number of graduate students preparing to serve the Healthy People 2000 objectives. Sets forth priorities and preferences and modifies program requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Replaces provisions authorizing grants and contracts relating to the training of allied health professionals with provisions authorizing grants and contracts for: (1) increasing program enrollments or establishing programs to increase the number of individuals in allied health professions with demonstrated personnel shortages to provide individuals to serve in medically underserved or rural communities; (2) planning, developing, establishing, and operating certain allied health training programs; and (3) training centers for allied health professions for student traineeships. Authorizes appropriations. Allows grants and contracts for training of allied health professions to be used with regard to postbaccalaureate (currently, doctoral or postdoctoral) training. Sets forth preferences. Authorizes appropriations. Replaces provisions authorizing grants and contracts for educational assistance to disadvantaged individuals in allied health training with provisions establishing the Division of Allied Health in the Bureau of Health Professions. Subtitle F: Miscellaneous Programs - Modifies the functions and composition of and authorizes appropriations for the Council on Graduate Medical Education. Modifies the uses of grants and contracts under provisions relating to rural health training (currently, to health care for rural areas). Changes eligibility requirements. Removes provisions mandating a study of manpower training needs in rural areas. Authorizes appropriations. Establishes the Council on Medical Licensure to take specified actions, including giving advice regarding the establishment and operation of a system of verifying and maintaining information on the qualifications of individuals to practice medicine. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to determine whether the system is operating efficiently and without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, disability, marital status, or educational affiliation and, if the system fails either test, to make recommendations regarding establishment of an alternative system. Mandates an annual study of at least ten States regarding licensure of domestic and foreign medical graduates. Subtitle G: Repealers and Technical and Conforming Amendments - Repeals provisions relating to grants and loan guarantees and interest subsidies for construction of teaching facilities for medical, dental, and other health personnel. Modifies testing requirements for admission to the United States of aliens who are graduates of unaccredited medical schools. Title II: Provisions Relating to Title VIII - Nurse Education Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 1991 - Amends title VIII (Nurse Education) of the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants and contracts for special projects to: (1) provide education for nurses serving in medically underserved or rural communities (currently, provide continuing education for nurses); and (2) provide nursing education courses to rural areas (currently, to rural areas through telecommunications via satellite). Removes provisions authorizing grants and contracts for: (1) facilitating agreements between health facilities and nursing students regarding repayment of educational loans by the facilities in return for service by the students in the facilities; and (2) geriatrics health education centers. Allows grants for innovative hospital nursing practice models to also be used for models in primary care and long-term care settings. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes appropriations for grants and contracts relating to advanced nurse education. Removes provisions requiring certain special considerations in making grants and contracts for the education of nurse practitioners and nurse midwives. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes grants and contracts for support, including traineeships and fellowships, to develop resources or strengthen programs or faculty to address the National Health Objectives for the Year 2000. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes appropriations for grants and contracts to increase nursing education opportunities for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds. Makes non-nurses as well as nurses eligible for traineeships for masters and doctoral degree nursing programs, requiring non-nurses to first complete basic nursing preparation. Removes provisions authorizing grants for postbaccalaureate fellowships for faculty for certain studies. Authorizes appropriations for grants and contracts for advanced nurse education. Authorizes appropriations for grants for: (1) traineeships for licensed registered nurses to become nurse anesthetists and for developing and operating programs for the education of nurse anesthetists; and (2) improvement of existing programs for the education of nurse anesthetists. Authorizes appropriations for loan repayments, under existing provisions, in exchange for service in certain health facilities. Repeals provisions authorizing appropriations for allotments to schools of nursing for Federal capital contributions to their student loan funds. Amends remaining provisions relating to Federal capital contributions to allow allotted funds which have been returned to the Secretary of Health and Human Services to be available until expended (currently, to be available in the fiscal year of return and the subsequent fiscal year). Modifies requirements regarding the capital distribution of the balance of the loan fund. Requires certain scholarship recipients to serve as a nurse for a period equal to the number of years of the scholarship (currently, for a period of not less than two years). Authorizes appropriations. Repeals provisions authorizing loans to nursing students who enter into agreements with health facilities to engage in employment as nurses during a period of time not more than the period during which the students receive loan assistance. Prohibits making grants, loan guarantees, or interest subsidy payments under title VIII (Nurse Education) of the Public Health Service Act to any school of nursing which discriminates on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, disability, marital status, or educational affiliation (currently, on the basis of sex). Requires a report to specified congressional committees to be submitted every two years (currently, biannually). Authorizes grants for fellowships to licensed vocational or practical nurses, nursing assistants, and other paraprofessional nursing personnel to assist in obtaining professional nursing education to attain the level of registered nurse. Requires a fellowship recipient to contract with a long-term care facility certified under titles XVIII (Medicare) or XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to engage in full-time employment at the registered nurse level for a period not less than the period of assistance to the fellowship recipient. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes grants to nursing schools for the establishment or expansion of clinical training sites or training affiliations to provide training and experience in primary care. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Miscellaneous Provisions - Provides for the continuation of any grant or contract in effect on enactment of this Act for that grant or contract's full duration, notwithstanding termination by any provision of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 1991
States that the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency should: (1) accelerate the phaseout schedules and final phaseout dates of chlorofluorocarbons, carbon tetrachloride, methyl chloroform, and halons required pursuant to the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990; (2) accelerate the phaseout schedules and final phaseout date of hydrochlorofluorocarbons that have relatively long atmospheric lifetimes, high ozone depletion potentials, or high global warming potentials; and (3) prioritize efforts to issue regulations providing for the recapture and recycling of ozone-destroying substances as used in appliances and motor vehicle air conditioners and the elimination of such substances as used in non-essential consumer products. Declares that the President should urge the contracting parties to the Montreal Protocol to: (1) accelerate the phaseout schedules and final phaseout date of ozone-destroying chemicals covered by the Protocol; (2) include hydrochlorofluorocarbons within the Protocol and provide for the most rapid phaseout of hydrochlorofluorocarbons with relatively long atmospheric lifetimes, high ozone depletion potentials, or high global warming potentials; (3) amend the Protocol to include recapture and recycling provisions and to prohibit the venting or releasing of ozone-destroying chemicals from refrigeration and air conditioning units by a certain date; and (4) accelerate the compliance of developing countries with the terms of the Protocol.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 1991
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the President should: (1) communicate to the leadership of the Government of the People's Republic of China the concern of the Congress and the citizens of the United States for the rights of political prisoners; and (2) urge such Government to recognize the right of Dai Qing and all Chinese writers and journalists to free expression and travel.
United States · United States Congress · 24 October 1991
National Community Economic Partnership Act of 1991 - Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981 to establish a National Commission on Community Economic Development (the Commission), as an independent agency, to: (1) administer the community development programs established under this Act; and (2) serve as a focal point for Federal promotion of community-based economic development. Directs the Commission to develop and promulgate, in consultation with the heads of other Federal agencies, regulations to permit appropriate operation of joint programs coordinating activities supported with assistance under this Act with activities supported with assistance under programs administered by such agency heads. Authorizes the Commission to enter into contracts and other appropriate arrangements with nonprofit organizations for operation and management of any projects undertaken under such a joint program. Requires the Commission to coordinate such joint programs with other related Federal, State, local, and private activities. Establishes a program of community economic partnership investment funds. Authorizes the Commission to provide nonrefundable lines of credit to community development corporations (CDCs) to establish, maintain, or expand revolving loan funds to finance projects to: (1) provide business and employment opportunities for low-income and unemployed individuals; and (2) improve the quality of life in urban and rural areas. Sets forth requirements relating to such revolving loan funds, including: (1) competitive assessment of applications from eligible entities for capitalization of such funds; (2) applications including strategic investment plans and demonstrations of experience and achievement; (3) matching local funds (with exceptions); (4) application approval criteria, including priority for target areas with low incomes and high unemployment; and (5) availability of lines of credit; (6) authorized uses of lines of credit and of revolving loan funds; (7) limitations on use of funds; (8) local contributions; and (9) use of proceeds from investments. Requires the Commission to give priority in providing lines of credit under this Act to CDCs that propose to undertake economic development activities in distressed communities that target women, Native Americans, at-risk youth, farmworkers, very low-income communities, single mother or refugees and programs providing loans in limited amounts to very small business enterprises. Allows not more than five percent of program appropriations to be reserved for such priority activities. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1993 through 1995 for such community economic partnership investment funds program. Establishes a program for emerging community development corporations (CDCs). Directs the Commission to award: (1) grants to community development corporations to attain or enhance the business management and development skills of the individuals that manage such CDCs, in order to enable such CDCs, to seek the public and private resources necessary to develop community economic projects; and (2) operating grants to community development corporations to enable them to support an administrative capacity for planning, developing, and management of low-income community development projects. Sets forth authorized uses and maximum amounts of, and application requirements for, such grants. Authorizes the Commission to award grants to emerging CDCs to enable them to establish, maintain, or expand revolving loan funds, to make or gurantee loans, or to make capital investments in new or expanding local businesses. Sets forth eligibility requirements, authorized uses of such revolving loan funds and of proceeds from investments, and maximum grant amount. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1993 through 1995 for such program for emerging CDCs. Establishes a community economic development research and demonstration program. Directs the Commission to award grants to enable eligible organizations to undertake programs involving research, testing, studies, or demonstrations related to community economic development. Makes eligible for such grants, if they submit appropriate applications, the following entities: CDCs, universities, fiscal intermediaries, or nonprofit organizations involved in community-based economic development. Sets forth authorized uses and maximum amount of such grants. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1993 through 1995 for such grants program. Prohibits funds authorized under this Act from being used to finance the construction of housing.
United States · United States Congress · 24 October 1991
Better Access to Affordable Health Care Act of 1991 - Title I: Improvements in Health Insurance Affordability for Small Employers - Amends the Internal Revenue code to raise from 25 to 100 percent the deduction for self-employed individuals for health insurance premiums and makes the deduction permanent. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the Secretary) to make grants to up to 15 States for the establishment and operation of small employer health insurance purchasing programs. Permits grant funds to be used to finance administrative costs associated with developing and operating a group purchasing program for small employers. Authorizes appropriations. Requires a report to the Congress from the Secretary concerning the feasibility of establishing a requirement that health insurers must make available plans providing that payments to providers be made using Medicare (title XVIII of the Social Security Act) payment rules. Title II: Improvements in Health Insurance for Small Employers - Amends the Social Security Act to add a new title, Title XXI: Standards for Small Employer Health Insurance and Certification of Managed Care Plans. Directs the Secretary to request the National Association of Insurance Commissioners to develop model standards and regulations concerning requirements for health insurance plans for small employers. Requires such plans to provide for: (1) guaranteed eligibility; (2) guaranteed availability; and (3) guaranteed renewability. Prohibits: (1) an insurer from refusing to renew or terminate a plan, except for nonpayment of premiums, fraud, or failure to maintain minimum participation rates; and (2) for certain services, discrimination based on health status. Sets limits controlling the variation of premium charges permitted among all small employers insured by an insurer. Requires the full disclosure of an insurer's rating practices. Requires a health insurance plan for small employers to offer: (1) both a standard and basic benefit package; and (2) a managed care option, if the insurer also offers such an option to other employers. Provides, under both the standard and basic package, for coverage of: (1) inpatient and outpatient hospital care; (2) inpatient and outpatient physician services; (3) diagnostic tests; and (4) preventive services. Provides, in addition, under the standard plan: (1) for the coverage of certain mental health care; (2) that, except as specified, there will be no limits on the amount, scope, or duration of benefits, and (3) for specified limits on deductibles, copayment, coinsurance, and out-of-pocket expenses. Provides under the basic plan that: (1) premiums, deductibles, copayments, or other cost-sharing may be imposed, but does not specify in what amounts; and (2) there shall be an out-of-pocket limit, but does not specify such limit. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an excise tax of 25 percent of gross premiums on the issuer of any health insurance plan to a small employer, if the plan does not meet the requirements of title XXI. Sets forth study and reporting requirements. Title III: Improvements in Portability of Private Health Insurance - Imposes an excise tax of $100 per day, with respect to a covered individual, on a group health plan for its failure to provide coverage for a preexisting condition, subject to stated exceptions. Title IV: Health Care Cost Containment - Establishes a Health Care Cost Commission which shall report annually to the President and the Congress on national health care costs. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, under title XXI of the Social Security Act, to establish a process for the certification of managed care plans and utilization review programs. Sets forth requirements for certification. Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Administrator of the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research to develop outcomes research and practice parameters for mental health services, including at least the diagnosis and treatment of childhood attention deficit syndrome disorders and manic depression. Amends Part A (General Provisions) of title XI of the Social Security Act to authorize appropriations for research outcomes of health care services and procedures. Title V: Medicare Prevention Benefits - Amends part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to establish frequency and payment limits for screening for fecal-occult blood tests and screening flexible sigmoidoscopies. Amends Medicare part C (Miscellaneous Provisions) to provide coverage for tetanus-diphtheria boosters and their administration. Provides Medicare coverage for well-child services, which include routine office visits, immunizations, laboratory tests, and preventive dental care. Expands the coverage of a screening mammography to provide for one such screening annually for all covered women over age 49. Directs the Secretary to establish and provide for a series of ongoing demonstration projects which provide coverage for specified preventive services, including: (1) glaucoma screening; (2) cholesterol screening; (3) osteoporosis screening and treatment; (4) screening services for pregnant women; (5) assessments for individuals beginning at age 65 or 75; and (5) other appropriate services. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 24 October 1991
Designates 1993 as the Year of American Craft: A Celebration of the Creative Work of the Hand.
United States · United States Congress · 17 October 1991
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to prohibit the use of claim sampling to deny claims or recover overpayments under Medicare except when fraud has been determined, in which case claim sampling may be used for the purpose of assessing civil monetary penalties.
United States · United States Congress · 17 October 1991
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the United States should continue to support the full protection of the African elephant through an unqualified listing of all populations of the African elephant on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna.
United States · United States Congress · 15 October 1991
Directs all Members of Congress to pay full market value for all medical services, medical tests, and medications provided by the Office of the Attending Physician. Establishes the Office of Attending Physician Revolving Fund in the Treasury (within the contingent fund of the Senate) for deposit of such payments and monies received from any other source.