United States · United States Congress · 6 November 1989
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide a nonrefundable tax credit for the purchase and installation of Mode C equipment for transponders used in aircraft. (Describes Mode C equipment as certain equipment in a transponder which gives it automatic altitude reporting capacity.)
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 1989
Agricultural Promotion Programs Act of 1989 - Title I: Soybeans - Soybean Promotion, Research, and Consumer Information Act - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to issue an order (subject to producer referendum) creating a soybean promotion, research, and consumer education program. Requires any such order to provide for the establishment of: (1) a United Soybean Board; (2) State soybean boards; and (3) a Soybean Program Coordinating Committee. Funds such program through producer assessments. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Cotton - Cotton Research and Promotion Act Amendments of 1989 - Amends the Cotton Research and Promotion Act to require the Secretary of Agriculture to propose and implement alternative cotton handler orders upon request by a cotton producer or producer organization, subject to producer referenda of approval. Requires each alternative order to establish a Cotton Board to administer the order. Title III: Pecans - Pecan Promotion and Research Act of 1989 - Directs the Secretary to issue orders to pecan growers, handlers, and importers with respect to pecan promotion and research. Requires any such order to establish a Pecan Marketing Board to carry out a coordinated program of research and promotion to strengthen the pecan industry's domestic and foreign market position. Funds such program through assessments: (1) on all pecans produced in, or imported into, the United States; and (2) deducted from the first payment made to a grower for all pecans sold to a first handler. Provides for a pecan producer referendum of program approval. Authorizes appropriations. Title IV: Mushrooms - Mushroom Promotion, Research, and Consumer Information Act - Directs the Secretary to issue orders to mushroom producers, importers, and first handlers with respect to mushroom promotion, research, and consumer information. Requires such an order to establish a Mushroom Council to administer the orders and support mushroom promotion, research, and consumer information projects. Funds such activities through assessments on producers and importers. Provides for a mushroom producer referenda for approval of such orders. Authorizes appropriations. Title V: Limes - Lime Research, Promotion, and Consumer Information Act - Directs the Secretary to issue orders to lime producers, handlers, and importers with respect to lime promotion, research, and consumer information. Requires such an order to establish a Lime Board to administer such orders. Funds such activities through assessments on producers and importers. Provides for lime producer referenda for approval of such orders. Authorizes appropriations. Title VI: Potatoes - Potato Research and Promotion Act Amendments of 1989- Amends the Potato Research and Promotion Act to extend coverage to all domestic and foreign potatoes. Directs the Secretary to propose and implement an alternative potato research and promotion plan, if requested by a potato producer or producer organization, subject to approval by a producer referendum. Requires such alternative plan to establish a National Potato Promotion Board including importer representatives as well as producer and consumer representatives. Provides for producer and importer assessments. Title VII: Honey - Honey Research, Promotion, and Consumer Information Act Amendments of 1989 - Amends the Honey Research, Promotion, and Consumer Information Act to permit one of the two current Honey Board importer seats to be filled by an exporter. Exempts from honey assessments an importer, producer, or producer-handler who handles less than 6000 pounds of honey annually all of which is used at home, donated, or distributed directly through retail outlets. Provides that: (1) patents, copyrights, inventions, publications, or product formulations developed with Board funds shall belong to the Board; and (2) any funds derived therefrom shall inure to the benefit of the Board. Provides for assessments to be deducted directly from honey price support loans. Title VIII: Vidalia Onions - Prohibits the labeling of any onions as Vidalia onions unless they meet specified standards. Title IX: Prohibition on Duty Drawback - Conditions eligibility for certain agricultural export benefits on the U.S. exporter's certifying that none of such domestic commodity exports shall be used as the basis for import drawbacks (reimbursement) under the Tariff Act of 1930. Requires U.S. vegetable oil or vegetable oil products exporters to comply with this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 1989
Amends the Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act of 1986 to authorize the Secretary of Education to award grants to local education agencies, in consortia with entities which meet specified requirements, to provide drug abuse resistance education to students in kindergarten through grade six. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 through 1993.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 1989
Grants a Federal charter to the Supreme Court Historical Society, Incorporated, a nonprofit Corporation organized under the laws of the District of Columbia. Requires the Corporation to report annually to the Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 31 October 1989
Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 1989 - Amends part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for the gradual transition, from 1992 through 1995, to the determination of Medicare payments for physician services pursuant to a fee schedule which takes into account the relative value of the work, overhead, and malpractice risks associated with each physician service. Allows for geographic variations in resource values. Sets Medicare payments for nonparticipating physicians' services at 95 percent of the fee schedule amount. Prohibits payments for the same physician service from varying on the basis of whether or not the physician is a specialist. Sets forth sumptuary provisions. Limits nonparticipating physicians' actual charges for unassigned claims. Requires that payments for physician services to Medicaid (title XIX of the Social Security Act)-eligible Medicare beneficiaries be made on an assignment-related basis. Increases the incentive payment for physicians' services furnished in manpower shortage areas from five to ten percent of the payment for such services. Sets forth miscellaneous study and reporting requirements. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish: (1) a patient outcomes assessment research and education program focusing primarily on the study of the management of health conditions; and (2) a practice parameters development program providing health care professionals with information regarding the health care practices found to be most effective. Directs the Secretary to establish the Independent Advisory Committee on Managing Patient Outcomes and enter into a contract with the National Academy of Sciences for assistance in conducting such programs and reviewing outcomes research. Sets forth reporting requirements. Authorizes appropriations for such programs through FY 1992.
United States · United States Congress · 31 October 1989
Nuclear Decommissioning Reserve Fund Act of 1989 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) decrease from 34 percent to 15 percent the rate of the tax imposed on the income of any Nuclear Decommissioning Reserve Fund; and (2) remove restrictions on permitted investments of Fund monies.
United States · United States Congress · 31 October 1989
Urges the President to use the upcoming meeting of environmental ministers in the Netherlands to: (1) announce the U.S. support for, and intention to host, an international meeting to begin negotiations on a framework convention on climate change in 1990; (2) set a target date for the completion of such convention by March 1991; and (3) announce a U.S. commitment to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases in conjunction with other industrialized countries.
United States · United States Congress · 31 October 1989
Expresses the sense of the Congress that conference committee action on the reform of the Medicare Catastrophic Coverage Act of 1988 shall not exceed the limits set by the legislative language previously agreed upon by the Senate and the House of Representatives or establish benefits and premiums not included by such language.
United States · United States Congress · 24 October 1989
Designates the week of December 3 through December 9, 1989, as National Autism Week. Designates 1990 as the National Silver Anniversary Year for the Autism Society of America.
United States · United States Congress · 19 October 1989
Title I: Capital Gains Provisions - Subtitle A: Reduction in Capital Gains Tax - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce the capital gains tax for noncorporate taxpayers. Establishes a scale for determining such deduction up to a maximum of 35 percent after owning assets for seven years. Provides for not taking into account net capital gain under the phaseout of the 15-percent rate and personal exemptions. Provides for recapturing the gain from disposition of certain depreciable property. Subtitle B: Alternative Capital Gains Rate for Corporations - Reduces the alternative capital gains tax for corporations by establishing a scale for determining such tax rate based on ownership of assets for three to 15 years. Subtitle C: Indexing of Certain Assets for Purposes of Determining Gain - Provides for indexing assets held for more than two years as an option for individuals who elect not to take advantage of the lower capital gains rate. Title II: Individual Retirement Plus Accounts - Allows individuals to establish individual retirement plus accounts with tax treatment similar to that for individual retirement plans. Makes contributions to such accounts nondeductible. Provides for qualified distributions from such accounts, other than for general retirement purposes, including special purposes distributions made for the purchase of a first home and for medical or educational purposes. Prohibits special purpose distributions from being made during the first five years of the account.
United States · United States Congress · 17 October 1989
Newsprint Recycling Act of 1989 - Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to establish a program to require consumers of newsprint to use a certain percentage of recycled paper in printing or publishing operations. Defines "consumer" as a person who uses 1000 tons or more annually of newsprint in a commercial printing or publishing operation. Provides for graduated increases in such percentage, to require at least 40 percent of the newsprint used by consumers in the year 2000 to be recycled newsprint. Requires the Administrator to report to the Congress, prior to 1999, on whether the recycling program should be modified or expanded. Directs the Administrator to establish regulations to allow newsprint consumers to purchase or sell credits to meet the requirements of this Act. Requires consumers to maintain and make available to the Administrator certain records and to report annually to the Administrator on the amount of newsprint and recycled newsprint used and the number of credits purchased and sold. Prohibits the use of such credits, from 2004 through 2009, unless a specified percentage of the newsprint used by the consumer is recycled. Terminates the use of such credits after 2009. Directs the Administrator to require consumers owning more than one commercial printing or publishing operation to consider such operations as a single operation for purposes of this Act. Prescribes civil penalties for violations of this Act. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 1989
Small Governments Regulatory Partnership Act of 1989 - Title I: Establishment of the Office for Small Government Advocacy and Small Government Coordinators - Establishes within the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) the Office for Small Government Advocacy (OSGA) to: (1) receive complaints, criticisms, and suggestions concerning the regulatory policies and activities of agencies which affect small governments (governments of localities with populations of less than 50,000); (2) represent the views and interests of small governments before such agencies; (3) develop proposals for changes in such policies and activities to fulfill the purposes of this Act and communicate such proposals to appropriate agencies; (4) monitor the costs and other burdens of Federal regulation on small governments and make proposals for eliminating excessive or unnecessary regulatory burdens; (5) monitor agency compliance with regulatory function analysis provisions applicable to small governments; (6) oversee and consult with the Small Government Coordinators; (7) chair the Interagency Committee of Small Government Coordinators; and (8) consult and cooperate with the Small Government Advisory Council. Requires OSGA to be managed by a Director who is familiar with small government needs and problems with the Federal regulatory process. Requires the Director to submit an annual report to the Congress which includes: (1) a summary of proposals and actions taken pursuant to such proposals; (2) a detailed assessment of the costs and other burdens of Government regulation on small governments; (3) a description of the Director's activities under regulatory function analysis provisions; (4) an account of agency compliance with such provisions; and (5) a summary of the activities of the Interagency Committee and the Small Government Advisory Council. Requires such report to be based upon the information submitted by Small Government Coordinators. Establishes within certain Federal agencies a Small Government Coordinator to be responsible for: (1) representing the small government perspective on agency rules and policies; (2) overseeing agency efforts to comply with regulatory function analysis as applied to small governmental jurisdictions; (3) overseeing establishment of agency small government data banks; (4) reporting annually to the Director on his or her activities and involvement in rulemaking processes; and (5) participating in the Interagency Committee. Establishes within OMB the Interagency Committee to coordinate the programs, plans, activities, and policies of the Small Government Coordinators. Requires the Director to establish a Small Government Advisory Council to advise him or her to ensure that OSGA programs and policies are familiar to, and meet the needs of, small governments. Requires the Council to report annually to the Director on its activities. Title II: Small Government Considerations in the Analysis of Regulatory Functions - Authorizes the Director to appear as amicus curiae in any action brought in a U.S. court to review a rule to present his or her views with respect to its effect on small governmental jurisdictions. Revises provisions concerning regulatory function analysis to increase the scope of analysis of regulatory impact on small entities. Revises the contents of initial regulatory flexibility analyses to include: (1) a description of data resources including outreach efforts used in making certain determinations; and (2) a statement as to whether adequate information was available to determine the number of small businesses, organizations, and governmental jurisdictions affected by the proposed rule and the significance of that impact. Prohibits application of provisions relating to regulatory flexibility analysis descriptions of significant alternatives to certain proposed rules and application of final regulatory flexibility analysis to any proposed or final rule, if the agency head certifies that the rule will not have a significant impact on a substantial number of small entities. Requires agencies to publish such certification in the Federal Register with the general notice of proposed rulemaking, along with a statement explaining the reasons for such certification. Title III: Data Banks on Small Governments - Directs the General Accounting Office (GAO) to issue a report which develops and assesses: (1) at least three measures of the impact of the implementation of Federal regulations on small governments; and (2) a standard designation of government size categories which agencies can use in data collection on such governments. Requires Government Coordinators to establish and oversee data banks on small governments which shall contain all information collected by the agency relating to the impact of Federal regulations on such governments for use as an agency-wide resource to develop regulatory burden estimates. Directs the head of each agency with a Small Government Coordinator to require its offices to assist such Coordinator by contributing all information it has collected that relates to the impact of the implementation of Federal regulations on small governments. Directs Small Government Coordinators to issue guidelines to govern such information to facilitate establishment and maintenance of such data banks. Requires such guidelines to include a designation of the three measures developed by GAO and standard government size categories.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 1989
Amends the Small Business Development Center Act of 1980 to extend the Small Business Development Center Program from October 1, 1990, to October 1, 1995.
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 1989
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for the time of deposit of payroll taxes by employers if the monthly amount to be deducted and withheld does not exceed $10,000.
United States · United States Congress · 4 October 1989
Amends the Medicare Catastrophic Coverage Act of 1988 to repeal provisions: (1) setting a cap on an individual's out-of-pocket expenses under part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act; (2) establishing the Prescription Drug Payment Review Commission and outpatient drug study and reporting requirements; (3) creating the Federal Catastrophic Drug Insurance Trust Fund and the Medicare Catastrophic Coverage Account; and (4) imposing a supplemental Medicare premium on Medicare beneficiaries whose tax liability equals or exceeds $150. Amends part A (Hospital Insurance) of the Medicare program to cover post-hospital extended care services for up to 100 days in a calendar year and other extended care services to the extent the Secretary of Health and Human Services finds will not result in an increase of Medicare expenditures or after the acute care nature of the benefit. (Currently, coverage of extended care services is provided for up to 150 days in a calendar year.) Modifies the methods of determining the coinsurance amount required of recipients of post-hospital extended care services. Directs the Secretary to report to the Congress by February 1, 1990, on reasons for the unexpected increase in cost estimates of Medicare extended care services, including recommendations for further modification of such coverage while the provision of long-term care benefits receives consideration. Limits Medicare drug benefits to immunosuppressants and home IV drugs. Provides for the annual adjustment of the Medicare part B premium in a manner which takes into account this Act's changes in catastrophic coverage. Requires Medicare supplemental insurance policies from which individuals terminated their coverage as of January 1, 1989, (or the earliest renewal date thereafter) to offer such individual a continuation of coverage under terms respecting treatment of pre-existing conditions and group rating of premiums which are at least as favorable as terms which existed on December 31, 1988. Directs the Secretary to: (1) take this Act's amendments into account in determining the payments to be made to health maintenance organizations; (2) require such organizations to adjust their agreements with Medicare beneficiaries in consideration of such amendments; and (3) notify Medicare beneficiaries of changes made by this Act's amendments.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 1989
Designates the week of October 22 through October 29, 1989, as National Red Ribbon Week for a Drug-Free America. Recognizes and commends the hard work and dedication of certain individuals and organizations and urges activities that support community and alcohol education during such week. Encourages Americans to wear or display red ribbons during such Week to present and symbolize their commitment to a healthy, drug-free lifestyle, and to develop an attitude of intolerance to the use of drugs.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 1989
Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization Act of 1989 - Title I: Establishment of Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization Corporation - Establishes within the Department of Agriculture (Department) the Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization Corporation. Title II: Research and Development - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to select research projects to develop new industrial projects, as recommended by the Corporation, for funding under this Act. Title III: Establishment of Regional Centers - Provides for the establishment of between four and nine regional centers and related advisory councils. Title IV: Financial Assistance for Commercialization - Authorizes the Corporation to provide projects with financial assistance in the form of: (1) loans; (2) interest subsidies; (3) venture capital; (4) repayable grants; and (5) umbrella bonding. Authorizes the Corporation to establish a discretionary fund for each regional center. Title V: Revolving Fund - Establishes a revolving fund to be administered by the Corporation. Title VI: Authorization of Appropriations - Authorizes FY 1990 through 1999 appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 1989
Requires that the amount equal to one-third of the total amount collected or recovered in a fiscal year as reimbursement from third parties for care and services furnished by a Department of Veterans Affairs medical center be credited to the Department appropriation account for medical care and be available to such medical center for the provision of direct patient care.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 1989
Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization Act of 1989 - Title I: Establishment of Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization Corporation - Establishes within the Department of Agriculture (Department) the Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization Corporation. Title II: Research and Development - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to select research projects to develop new industrial projects, as recommended by the Corporation, for funding under this Act. Title III: Establishment of Regional Centers - Provides for the establishment of between four and nine regional centers and related advisory councils. Title IV: Financial Assistance for Commercialization - Authorizes the Corporation to provide projects with financial assistance in the form of: (1) loans; (2) interest subsidies; (3) venture capital; (4) repayable grants; and (5) umbrella bonding. Authorizes the Corporation to establish a discretionary fund for each regional center. Title V: Revolving Fund - Establishes a revolving fund to be administered by the Corporation. Title VI: Authorization of Appropriations - Authorizes FY 1990 through 1999 appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 1989
Designates November 11, 1989, as Washington Centennial Day in recognition of the economic, social, and historic contributions of Washington State to the United States over the past century.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 1989
Amends the Railroad Retirement Solvency Act of 1983 to extend for three years provisions for the transfer of tier 2 railroad retirement benefit taxation revenues from the general fund of the Treasury to the Railroad Retirement Account.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 1989
Authorizes the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to present a bronze medal to individuals who: (1) were members of the armed forces and were present in Hawaii on December 7, 1941; and (2) participated in combat operations that day against Japanese military forces attacking Hawaii. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to strike such medals. Authorizes the Secretary to provide for the sale of bronze duplicates of the medal. Authorizes appropriations which are to be reimbursed out of the proceeds from sales of the medals.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 1989
Commends and expresses support for President Barco and the Government and people of Colombia for standing up to drug traffickers. Urges the President to continue to commend the cooperation of the President of the United States with the Government of Colombia and provide assistance to Colombia to overcome the activities of drug traffickers.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 1989
Small Business Disabilities Tax Credit Act of 1989 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a disability tax credit for qualified expenses to modify existing facilities, equipment, and materials to make them usable by individuals with disabilities and to make other accommodations for disabled persons. Allows a carry forward of excess qualified disability expenses. Repeals the treatment of expenditures to remove architectural and transportation barriers to the handicapped and elderly as an itemized deduction.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 1989
Great Lakes Critical Programs Act - Amends the Clean Water Act to require the Great Lakes National Program Office: (1) by January 1991, to publish in the Federal Register proposed water quality rules for the Great Lakes System; and (2) by January 1, 1993, to publish in the Federal Register final water quality rules for the Great Lakes System and to include such rules in an identifiable section of the national water quality guidance issued under the Act. Requires the Great Lakes States to adopt water quality standards affecting the Great Lakes System which are consistent with such rules. Requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), when reviewing any Great Lakes State's water quality plan, to consider the extent to which the State has complied with such rules. Requires the Program Office to ensure, for each area of concern for which the United States has agreed to draft a Remedial Action Plan, that the Great Lakes State in which such area of concern is located: (1) submits a Remedial Action Plan to the Program Office by January 1, 1992; (2) submits such Plan to the International Joint Commission by June 30, 1991; and (3) includes such Plan within the State's water quality plan by January 1, 1993. Provides that on the date that a State includes a Remedial Action Plan in its water quality plan, such State shall become eligible for monetary assistance from the EPA to implement such Plan. States that for each area of concern for which Canada has agreed to draft a Remedial Action Plan, the Program Office shall work with the Department of State to ensure that Canada submits such Plans to the International Joint Commission by June 30, 1991, and finalizes such Plans by January 1, 1993. Requires the Program Office: (1) by July 31, 1990, to publish in the Federal Register a proposed Lakewide Management Plan for Lake Michigan and solicit public comments; (2) by December 31, 1990, to submit such Plan to the International Joint Commission for review; and (3) by June 30, 1991, to publish in the Federal Register a final Lakewide Management Plan for Lake Michigan and begin implementation. Requires the Program Office to: (1) promulgate numerical standards which will allow the classification of sediments in the Great Lakes according to the extent to which such sediments assure the propagation of a balanced, indigenous population of fish, shellfish, and wildlife and permit recreation in and on the water; (2) issue regulations specifying the proper use of these sediment standards and enabling Great Lakes States to issue more stringent standards and to petition for alternate numerical standards due to differences in the chemical, physical, or biological characteristics of particular areas; and (3) identify areas within the Great Lakes which are likely to experience numerous or voluminous spills of oil or other hazardous materials and ensure the adequacy of Federal and State plans to prevent and respond to such spills. Adds specific due dates for specified tasks under an existing law provision which requires a five-year study and demonstration projects relating to the control and removal of toxic pollutants in the Great Lakes. Requires any Federal entity which conducts research related to spills of oil or hazardous materials into U.S. waters to cooperate with requests by the Research Office to conduct research into issues of importance to the Great Lakes. Requires the U.S. Coast Guard to maintain a comprehensive and current list of equipment available to respond to spills of oil and hazardous materials in the Great Lakes. Directs that such list be made available to the EPA and the Great Lakes States. States that any Federal plan to establish regional spill response teams or facilities throughout the United States shall locate at least one such team or facility in the Great Lakes. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 through 1993. Amends the Clean Air Act to require the EPA to oversee the establishment and operation of a Great Lakes atmospheric deposition network to monitor atmospheric deposition of toxic substances into the Great Lakes System. States that as part of this network, by December 31, 1990, the EPA shall establish, in each of the five Great Lakes, at least one facility capable of monitoring the atmospheric deposition of toxic substances in both dry and wet conditions. Requires the EPA to: (1) operate such network for a minimum of five years; (2) use the data produced by the network to identify and track the movement of toxic substances throughout the Great Lakes; and (3) assist in the development of Remedial Action Plans and Lakewide Management Plans required by the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. Directs the EPA to ensure that: (1) the data collected by the network is made available to the public promptly and in a format which is accessible to databases sponsored by the International Joint Commission, Canada, and State environmental agencies conducting Great Lakes surveillance and monitoring; (2) a report analyzing the data collected during the previous two years is issued by the EPA to the International Joint Commission; and (3) a report analyzing the data collected during the previous five years is issued by the EPA to the International Joint Commission.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 1989
Amends the Railroad Retirement Solvency Act of 1983 to extend for two years provisions for the transfer of tier 2 railroad retirement benefit taxation revenues from the general fund of the Treasury to the Railroad Retirement Account.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 1989
United Services Organization's 50th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than a specified number of five dollar gold coins, one dollar silver coins, and half dollar clad coins to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the United Services Organizations (USO). Requires such coins to be emblematic of USO Services to military service personnel and families. Sets forth certain features of such coins and provides for their design, issuance, and sale. Terminates the minting of such coins after February 4, 1991. Requires surcharges from the sale of such coins to be deposited in a coinage profit fund and used for USO programs and to reduce the national debt. Directs the Secretary to report to the Congress semiannually through December 31, 1992, on activities under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 1989
Telephone Operator Service Consumer Protection Act of 1989 - Directs the Federal Communications Commission to initiate, within 30 days, a proceeding under the Communications Act of 1934 to establish regulations to protect from unfair and deceptive practices consumers who use operator services to place interstate telephone calls and to ensure that consumers have the opportunity to make informed choices in making such calls. Provides for the timing and content of such regulations, including certain minimum requirements. Directs the Commission, in making the regulations, to consider the need to prescribe compensation, other than advance payment by consumers, for owners of competitive public pay telephones for calls routed to carriers other than the designated provider of operator services. Directs the Commission to require each provider of operator service to file an informational tariff specifying rates, terms, and conditions with respect to calls for which operator services are provided. Directs the Commission to require any provider whose rates and charges appear unjust or unreasonable to demonstrate that its rates and charges are just and reasonable. Directs the Commission to: (1) initiate a proceeding examining specified aspects of service and report to the Congress; and (2) unless the Commission finds that market forces are securing rates and charges that are just and reasonable, establish regulations requiring that rates and charges for operator services be just and reasonable.
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 1989
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend from December 31, 1989, until December 31, 1991, the exemption from the termination of small issue bonds for farm property and manufacturing facilities located in rural areas.
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 1989
Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) South Korea has erected an unfair trade barrier against U.S. citrus imports under the guise of a health (Alar) concern; (2) the South Korean Government should condemn false claims of Alar in U.S. grapefruits; (3) the South Korean Government should accept the use of standardized chemical residue tests; and (4) the United States will not tolerate the practice of erecting agricultural trade barriers disguised as health claims.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 1989
Torture Victim Protection Act of 1989 - Imposes civil liability on anyone who, under actual or apparent authority of a foreign nation, subjects any person to torture or extrajudicial killing.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 1989
Environmental Sector Lending Act of 1989 - Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. Executive Director of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development to: (1) initiate discussions with Bank officials and propose the establishment of a three-year pilot environmental sector lending program to be made available to any and all interested countries with a demonstrated commitment to national resource conservation; and (2) support, through program loans and projects based on long-term economic return, the sustainable use and protection of tropical forests, soil erosion control, maintenance and improvement of fisheries, water supply regulation, and indigenous knowledge of the management and use of natural resources.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 1989
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce the occupational tax from $250 to $100 for retail dealers in liquors and in beer. Limits assessments of underpayments with respect to taxable periods beginning before July 1, 1986, in connection with such tax. Abates assessments and refunds overpayments of any post-1987 tax.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 1989
Poland and Hungary Democracy Act of 1989 - Title I: Enterprise Funds in Poland and Hungary - Authorizes appropriations to the President for promoting the development of the Hungarian and Polish private sectors through the support of a Polish-American Enterprise Fund and a Hungarian-American Enterprise Fund. Allows the President to designate two private, nonprofit organizations as the Funds. Requires the President to designate an executive agency to grant such monies to the Funds. Permits the agency to use a specified amount of such monies for carrying out functions under this title. Makes certain commodities eligible for assistance programs under the Agricultural Act of 1949 and the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 available to the Funds to generate local currencies. Authorizes grants to be made to the Funds only if the Funds are in compliance with this title. Provides for annual audits of the Funds. Requires the Funds to ensure that: (1) each recipient of Fund assistance keeps separate accounts and financial records; and (2) the Funds have access to such records for audit purposes. Directs each Fund to publish annual reports. Title II: Labor Market Transition - Requires the Secretary of Labor to provide technical assistance to Poland and Hungary for the implementation of labor market reform and to facilitate adjustment during the period of economic transition and reform. Authorizes the Secretary to transfer a specified amount from Department of Labor funds to provide such assistance. Title III: Environmental Initiatives - Authorizes the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to: (1) undertake environmental protection activities in Hungary and Poland; and (2) use specified amounts of funds made available for FY 1990 through 1992 under the Clean Water Act and other authorizing statutes to carry out such activities. Requires the Administrator to: (1) establish an air quality monitoring network in the Krakow metropolitan area; and (2) improve water quality and the availability of drinking water in such area. Directs the Administrator to work with U.S. and Hungarian officials and private parties to establish and support a center in Budapest, Hungary, for facilitating cooperative environmental activities between governmental experts and U.S. and Eastern and Western European organizations.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 1989
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to specify the frequency of deposits of payroll taxes (social security and withheld income taxes) by small local government employers.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 1989
Global Climate Change Prevention Act of 1989 - Title I: Agriculture and Global Climate Change - Subtitle A: Office of Climate Change - Establishes in the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture the Office of Climate Change to coordinate policy, planning, research, and response strategies relating to climate change issues. Directs the Secretary to conduct a study of the implications of global climate change for agriculture and forestry. Subtitle B: Research on Global Warming, Forests, and Agriculture - Domestic Research on Global Warming, Forests, and Agriculture Act of 1989 - Directs the Secretary to conduct studies on: (1) the effects of global warming on rice production; (2) the effects of global warming on major U.S. crops; (3) methane emissions from irrigated rice production; (4) emissions from nitrogen intensive crops; and (5) forest emissions. Establishes in the Department of Agriculture the Methane Emissions Evaluation, Use, and Control Program and a related technical advisory committee. Title II: Forestry and Global Climate Change - Subtitle A: International Forestry Cooperation - International Forestry Cooperation Act of 1989 - Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) undertake international forestry activities; (2) undertake tropical reforestation and conservation activities; and (3) expand the capabilities and facilities of the Caribbean National Forest and Institute of Tropical Forestry in Puerto Rico. Subtitle B: Forestry Planning and Global Warming - Amends the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 to consider the effects of climate change in developing plans for units of the National Forest System. Subtitle C: Urban Forestry - Directs the Secretary to carry out an urban forestry energy conservation education and accelerated planting program. Subtitle D: Biomass Energy Demonstration Projects - Authorizes the Secretary to carry out projects that demonstrate the potential of short-rotation forestry methods to produce wood for electricity production and industrial energy needs. Subtitle E: Forestry Research and Global Warming - Amends the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Research Act of 1978 to include the effects of weather, climate, and air pollution on forests and rangelands among the areas of research under such Act. Subtitle F: Conservation Reserve Program - Directs the Secretary to take steps to meet the conservation reserve program tree planting goal. Subtitle G: Interagency Cooperation on Forestry and Climate Change - Directs the Secretary to enter into an agreement with the Secretary of Defense to manage Department of Defense forests and lands.
![Official portrait of Sen. Boschwitz, Rudy [R-MN]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/b000647_200.jpg)