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United States · Official source
3,388 records where Sen. Burr, Richard [R-NC] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2001
American Travel Promotion Act of 2001 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to provide grants, based on a specified formula, to qualified State agencies for advertising to promote travel and tourism. Caps the Federal share of costs for such activities at 50 percent.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2001
Extends by one year the deadlines for compliance by health care providers, health plans other than small health plans, and health care clearinghouses with the standards for electronic health care transactions and code sets adopted under part C (Administrative Simplification) of title XI of the Social Security Act (SSA) by the Secretary of Health and Human Services only if, before the current deadline, such entity submits to the Secretary a plan for compliance with such standards. Amends part C of SSA title XI to include the Medicare+Choice program as a health plan (thus applying administrative simplification requirements to Medicare+Choice organizations). Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a specified administrative fee for the submission of a claim in a paper or non-electronic form for items or services for which payment is sought under Medicare.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 2001
Expresses the sense of Congress that a National Importance of Health Care Coverage Month should be established and the President should issue a proclamation calling on the public and private sectors to conduct promotional programs and events.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2001
Help America Vote Act of 2001 - Directs the Administrator of General Services to establish programs under which the Administrator makes payments to each eligible State or local government to: (1) replace a punch card voting system with a voting system which does not use punch cards; or (2) make technical enhancements to the performance of its punch card voting system. Establishes: (1) an independent Election Assistance Commission to serve as a national clearinghouse and resource for the compilation of information and review of procedures with respect to the administration of Federal elections; and (2) the Election Assistance Commission Standards Board and the Election Assistance Commission Board of Advisors to review any of the voluntary standards for engineering and procedural performance, for maintenance and enhancement of the accessibility and privacy of registration facilities, polling places, and voting methods, and for election management practices recommended by the Commission. Establishes the Technical Standards Development Committee to assist the Executive Director of the Commission by recommending standards to ensure the usability, accuracy, security, accessibility, and integrity of voting systems and voting equipment. Directs the Commission to: (1) provide for the testing, certification, decertification, and recertification of voting system hardware and software by accredited laboratories; (2) make payments to States for voting system improvements, grants to entities for voting equipment and technology research and development, and grants for pilot programs to try out new voting systems and equipment technologies; and (3) develop the Help America Vote College Program to encourage college students to assist State and local governments in election administration. Amends Federal law to create the Help America Vote Foundation as a nonprofit charitable corporation to mobilize secondary school students to participate in the election process in a nonpartisan manner as poll workers or assistants. Outlines minimum standards for State election systems. Sets forth provisions regarding voting rights of military members and overseas citizens. Amends Federal postal service law to replace reduced rates for voter registration purposes with reduced rates for official election mail.
United States · United States Congress · 8 November 2001
Recognizes and commends the efforts of State and local governments and community, religious, and charitable organizations to support military and civilian personnel engaged in the war on terrorism. Encourages the people of the United States: (1) to support such personnel through a united effort to be known as Operation Enduring Support; and (2) as part of such Operation, to support military families, stage patriotic send-off and welcome-home rallies and parades; and volunteer and contribute financial assistance to the Red Cross, United Way, and similar organizations.
United States · United States Congress · 9 October 2001
Designates the U.S. Postal Service facility located at 125 Main Street in Forest City, North Carolina, as the Vernon Tarlton Post Office Building.
United States · United States Congress · 4 October 2001
Medicare Regulatory, Appeals, Contracting, and Education Reform Act of 2001 - Amends part D (Miscellaneous) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) with respect to: (1) timelines for publication of final regulations and compliance with substantive changes after notice; (2) timeframes for the completion of the record in the appeals process; (3) contracts with Medicare administrative contractors for determining payment amounts, making payments, and providing certain provider services; (4) coordination of funding for education of service providers; and (5) standardization of random prepayment review and recovery of overpayments from Medicare administrative contractors.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 2001
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish a two year recovery period for depreciation of computers and other technological equipment. Reduces the recovery period from five to two years under the alternative depreciation system for certain property ( tax-exempt use property, etc.). Reduces the useful life for depreciation of computer software from 36 to 24 months. Establishes a seven year useful life for depreciation of certain auction-acquired telecommunications licences.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 2001
Price-Anderson Reauthorization Act of 2001 - Amends the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to extend from 2002 to 2017 the indemnification authority of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and the Secretary of Energy with respect to certain licensees, Department of Energy (DOE) contractors, and nonprofit educational institutions, respectively. Increases the maximum amount of standard deferred premium that may be charged a licensee following a nuclear incident. Specifies the aggregate amount by which the Secretary must indemnify DOE contractors above the amount of financial protection required for each nuclear incident. Increases the indemnification limits for incidents outside the United States. Revises inflation adjustment provisions. Instructs the NRC to consider a combination of modular reactors at a single site, each of which has between 100,000 and 300,000 electrical kilowatts (but a combined rated capacity of no more than 950,000 kilowatts), as a single facility having a rated capacity of 100,000 electrical kilowatts or more.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2001
Authorizes the President to award posthumously the Congressional Gold Medal to the people aboard United Airlines Flight 93 who helped resist the hijackers and caused their plane to crash prematurely on September 11, 2001.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2001
Expresses the sorrow of Congress for the death and injuries suffered by first responders as they tried to save innocent people in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. Honors and commends the first responders who participated in evacuating and rescuing the innocent people in the World Trade Center and the Pentagon after the terrorist attacks. Encourages all levels of government to continue to work together to coordinate emergency preparedness effectively by providing the infrastructure, funding, and interagency communication and cooperation necessary to ensure that when another terrorist attack occurs, first responders will be as prepared as possible to respond to the attack effectively.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2001
Declares that the House of Representatives: (1) condemns any price gouging with respect to motor fuels during the hours and days after the terrorist acts of September 11, 2001; and (2) urges the appropriate Federal and State agencies to investigate any incidents of such price gouging, and prosecute any violations of law discovered as a result of the investigations.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2001
See summary of: H.Con.Res. 224
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2001
Interstate Transmission Act- Amends the Federal Power Act to: (1) prescribe standards for establishing rates for electricity transmission service; (2) instruct the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to encourage innovative transmission pricing policies; and (3) provide for the establishment and enforcement of mandatory reliability standards to ensure reliable operation of the bulk-power system. Grants FERC enforcement jurisdiction. Prescribes procedural guidelines for FERC approval of: (1) applications competing for status as the Electric Reliability Organization; and (2) Organization standards. Requires users of the bulk-power system to comply with such standards. Mandates that: (1) the Organization take all appropriate steps to gain recognition in Canada and Mexico; and (2) the United States use its best efforts to enter into international agreements with the Governments of Canada and Mexico to effectuate compliance with Organization standards and its mission. Requires every system operator to be a member of the Organization and of the pertinent Affiliated Regional Reliability Entity. Confers responsibility upon each FERC-authorized regional transmission organization for maintaining the short-term reliability of the bulk-power system that it operates. Repeals the proscription against the disposition of public utility facilities. Authorizes FERC to promote voluntary development of regional transmission organizations. Provides for State and Federal authority to site transmission facilities. Amends the Public Utility Holding Company Act to exempt regional transmission organizations from its application. Amends the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat as an involuntary conversion any sale or other disposition to an independent transmission company of the property of or stock or partnership interest in a corporation or partnership whose principal trade or business consists of providing electric transmission services, if the transaction is meant to implement FERC or State electric restructuring policy.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2001
Drug Access Act of 2001 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to authorize a charitable health care entity to receive a drug sample donated by specified individuals or by another such entity for dispensing to a patient of the charitable institution, and to donate a drug sample to another such entity for dispensing to its patients, if: (1) delivery of the sample is completed by mail or common carrier, collection by an authorized agent or employee of the recipient entity, or personal delivery by a licensed practitioner or an agent or employee of the donating entity; (2) the entity receiving the sample executes a written receipt upon its delivery and provides for the return of the receipt to the donating entity; (3) the donated drug sample received by the entity is in its original, unopened packaging with its labeling intact; and (4) before dispensing such sample to a patient, the sample is examined by a licensed practitioner or registered pharmacist to confirm that the sample is not adulterated or misbranded.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2001
Transparency and Fairness Trade Act of 2001 - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to extend the meaning of "interested party" for purposes of the filing of a petition alleging imported merchandise has been provided a subsidy with respect to its manufacture, or imported merchandise is being sold in the United States at less than fair value, and that such importation has materially injured (or threatened injury to) a domestic industry, or the establishment of a U.S. industry is materially retarded by reason of such importation. Includes as interested parties any industrial users of imported merchandise subject to a countervailing duty or antidumping duty investigation, or of a domestic like product (or an association a majority of whose members are industrial users of subject merchandise or domestic like product). Requires the administering authority not to issue a countervailing duty order or antidumping duty order to a particular product for a specified quantity or for more than a year if such authority determines from a relief application that a lack of domestic availability exists with respect to a particular product which is within the class or kind of merchandise that is the subject of an investigation, an order, or a suspension agreement. Sets forth requirements regarding application of "lack of domestic availability" exception to countervailing duty and antidumping duty orders and findings. Specifies interested parties (including industrial users) who are parties to an investigation that are entitled to access, through authorized representatives, to confidential business information under protective order.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2001
Date Certain Tax Code Replacement Act - Prohibits the imposition of any tax by the Internal Revenue Code: (1) for any taxable year beginning after December 31, 2005; and (2) in the case of any tax not imposed on the basis of a taxable year, on any taxable event or for any period after December 31, 2005. Excepts the: (1) tax on self-employment income (chapter 2 of the Code); (2) Federal Insurance Contributions Act (chapter 21 of the Code); and (3) Railroad Retirement Tax Act (chapter 22 of the Code). Establishes the National Commission on Tax Reform and Simplification to review: (1) the present structure and provisions of the Code; (2) whether the tax systems of other countries could provide more efficient and fair methods of funding government revenue requirements; (3) whether the income tax should be replaced with a tax imposed in a different manner or on a different base; and (4) whether the Code can be simplified, absent wholesale restructuring or replacement. Requires a Commission report to Congress on review results, with recommendations for Code reform and simplification. Terminates the Commission 90 days after such report. Authorizes appropriations (with interim funding). Declares that any new Federal tax system should be approved by Congress in its final form before July 4, 2005, and, if not, Congress should be required to vote to reauthorize the Code.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2001
Health Care Account Act of 2001 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for the exclusion from income of an employee of both the amounts contributed by the employee's employer to any health care expenditure account of such employee and amounts contributed by the employee to such an account. Limits contributions and requires employers to make comparable contributions. Provides for the creation of such accounts and permits expenditures from such accounts for qualified medical expenses which are not compensated for by insurance. Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) with respect to ERISA coverage of such accounts.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2001
Contact Lens Prescription Release Act of 2001 - Instructs the Federal Trade Commission to promulgate a rule on ophthalmic practice that: (1) requires a contact lens prescriber to provide the patient, (or, upon request, the patient's agent), a copy of the contact lenses prescription, including its two-year expiration date; and (2) makes it an unfair trade practice for a contact lenses industry member to publish any advertisement or sales presentation relating to contact lenses that represents that they may be obtained without a valid prescription.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2001
National Uniformity for Food Act of 2001 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) to prohibit any State or political subdivision from establishing or continuing in effect as to any food in interstate commerce any requirement for food that is not identical to specified FDCA provisions. Prohibits any State or political subdivision from establishing or continuing in effect any notification requirement for a food that provides for a warning concerning the food's safety that is not identical to FDCA provisions. Allows current State notification or food safety requirements to continue for 180 days after the enactment of this Act, during which such State may petition for an exemption or a new national standard. Allows a State to petition for an exemption and for a national standard regarding any requirement under the FDCA, as amended by this Act, or the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act relating to food regulation. Allows a State to establish a requirement that would otherwise violate FDCA provisions relating to national uniform nutrition labeling or this paragraph if the requirement is needed to address an imminent hazard to health that is likely to result in serious adverse health consequences and if other requirements are met.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2001
Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to extend for an additional 26 weeks (130 weeks in total) the permissible maximum period for payment of trade adjustment assistance to adversely affected workers who require a program of remedial education to complete their job training.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2001
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Government of the People's Republic of China should cease its persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. Calls for the U.S. Government to urge the Chinese Government to: (1) release from detention all Falun Gong practitioners and end the torture and other cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment of such practitioners and other prisoners of conscience; and (2) abide by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by allowing Falun Gong practitioners to pursue their personal beliefs.
United States · United States Congress · 12 July 2001
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the United Nations should immediately transfer to the Israeli Government an unedited and uncensored form of the videotape that contains images which could provide material evidence for the investigation into the incident of October 7, 2000, when Hezbollah forces abducted three Israeli Defense Force soldiers, as well as any other material it may possess.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2001
Wage Equity Act of 2001 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to include among the conditions of approval of an H-2A (visa) temporary agricultural worker petition the requirement that an employer may not be required to pay workers more than the greater of: (1) the prevailing wage for seasonal agricultural workers in the occupation in the area of intended employment; or (2) the greater of Federal or State minimum wage.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2001
Commercial Driver's License Devolution Act of 2001 - Amends Federal transportation law to authorize an individual to operate a commercial motor vehicle solely within the borders of a State (intrastate) if such individual meets State-prescribed minimum standards for fitness for operating a commercial motor vehicle and has passed written and driving tests meeting those same standards. Requires States to test the fitness of commercial motor vehicle operators, including the passing of a written and driving test, who operate intrastate.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2001
Houses of Worship Political Speech Protection Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit a church to participate or intervene in a political campaign and maintain its tax-exempt status as long as such participation is not a substantial part of its activities.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2001
Melanie Stokes Postpartum Depression Research and Care Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of NIH and the Director of the National Institute of Mental Health, to expand and intensify research and related activities of the Institute with respect to postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to provide for projects for the establishment, operation, and coordination of effective and cost-efficient systems for the delivery of essential services to individuals with postpartum depression or postpartum psychosis and their families. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2001
Urges the Government of Vietnam to: (1) allow freedom of religious belief and practice to all Montagnards; (2) return all traditional Montagnard lands that have been confiscated or encroached upon; (3) allow nongovernmental and international humanitarian organizations to deliver humanitarian assistance directly to Montagnards in their villages; (4) open up all parts of the Central Highlands to journalists and other observers; and (5) withdraw its security forces from Cambodia and stop hunting refugees. Commends: (1) the Royal Cambodian Government for its official policy of guaranteeing temporary asylum for Montagnards fleeing Vietnam and urges that Government to take specified measures, including providing security at sites where refugees are sheltered; (2) the officials and employees in Cambodia of the United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Refugees and the UN Human Rights Center for their assistance to and advocacy on behalf of Montagnard asylum seekers and refugees; and (3) the Department of State for the assistance to and advocacy of Montagnard asylum seekers that have been provided by officials and employees of the U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh. Urges the State Department to make clear to the Vietnamese Government that continued mistreatment of Montagnards and efforts to seek forcible repatriation of refugees and asylum seekers from Cambodia represent a grave threat to the normalization process between the Governments of the United States and Vietnam and a serious obstacle to any prospects for the future provision of U.S. assistance to that Government.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2001
National Disaster Medical System Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish within the Office of Public Health and Science an Office to be known as the Office of Emergency Preparedness. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to coordinate the activities of the Department of Health and Human Services with respect to planning for and responding to public health emergencies that burden the response capacity of State and local governments sufficient to require the assistance of the Federal Government in responding to the emergencies. Establishes the National Medical Disaster System. Requires such system to be a coordinated effort by Federal agencies working in collaboration with States. Requires such system to provide health services, health-related social services, other appropriate human services, and appropriate auxiliary services to respond to the needs of victims of a declared public health emergency. Provides for the appointment of temporary personnel for the purpose of assisting the Office of Emergency Preparedness and the National Medical Disaster System.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2001
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish in the U.S. Treasury the Tobacco Farmer Trust Fund. Appropriates to such Fund amounts equivalent to the taxes received under chapter 52 (relating to cigars, cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, pipe tobacco, and cigarette papers and tubes) to the extent such amounts exceed the amounts that would have been received under the rates of tax that applied for 1999. Makes amounts available from the Fund to carry out a program established by the Secretary of Agriculture to buyout tobacco quota and to study the future of growing tobacco in the United States. Expresses the sense of Congress that there should be an advisory committee to advise the Secretary of Agriculture as to how the Federal Government plans to address tobacco growing in the future and how the future can be more predictable and stable for tobacco growing.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2001
Patients' Bill of Rights Act of 2001 - Sets forth provisions concerning group health plans and health insurers and the provision of certain advice and care, including: (1) emergency care; (2) obstetric and gynecological care; (3) specialists care; (4) prescription drugs; (5) participation in approved clinical trials; and (6) health plan information. Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, the Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code to, among other things: (1) provide for review and appeal of health plan decisions; (2) provide penalties for health plans failing to provide benefits; (3) provide for patient protection standards; (4) repeal the limitation on the number of Archer Medical Savings Accounts and increase the deduction for contributions to such accounts; and (5) set forth rules governing association health plans.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 2001
Retirement Security Advice Act of 2001 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and the Internal Revenue Code to allow prohibited transaction exemptions under specified conditions to: (1) a fiduciary adviser's providing certain investment advice to an employee benefit plan or to a participant or beneficiary of such plan; (2) sale, acquisition, or holding of securities or other property (including any lending of money or other extension of credit associated with these) pursuant to such advice; and (3) direct or indirect receipt of fees or other compensation by the fiduciary adviser or an affiliate in connection with providing such advice.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 2001
Savings for Working Families Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit any qualified financial institution, qualified nonprofit organization, or Indian tribe to establish one or more qualified individual development account programs. Defines such an account as an account established for an eligible individual (income based) as part of a qualified individual development account program (matched individual and entity savings accounts for qualifying educational, first-time home purchase, or business expenses). Sets forth provisions concerning such accounts, including: (1) the structure and administration of account programs; (2) procedures for opening and maintaining an account and qualifying for matching funds; (3) withdrawal procedures; and (4) disregarding account funds for purposes of certain means-tested Federal programs. Provides matching funds through a tax credit for a participating entity's program investment.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2001
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit: (1) Federal civilian and military retirees to pay Federal Employees Health Benefits Program and TRICARE supplemental premiums on a pretax basis; and (2) a deduction (available to itemizers and nonitemizers) for TRICARE supplemental premiums and enrollment fees.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2001
Rural Teachers Recruitment Act of 2001 - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to make grants to eligible rural local educational agencies to recruit and retain qualified teachers for elementary and secondary schools. Includes among authorized uses of such teacher incentive program funds: (1) salary increases; (2) reimbursement for teacher certification and relocation expenses; and (3) assistance to pay college and graduate school tuition and training expenses.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2001
Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act - Amends the Organic Act to direct the Secretary of Commerce to establish and maintain a list of each person that notifies the Secretary that it is a manufacturer or seller that is: (1) licensed to engage in interstate or foreign commerce of a firearm or ammunition product; or (2) is a trade association representing such manufacturers or sellers. Declares that any lawful conduct carried out by a manufacturer or seller in interstate or foreign commerce of a firearm or ammunition product, or lawful conduct carried out by a trade association in the course of representing such manufacturers or sellers, shall not be the basis for imposing a restriction on such commerce (the award of civil damages, equitable relief, or any other specified limitation) as a result of harm caused by the criminal or other unlawful misuse of such firearm or ammunition product by any other person.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2001
ILSA Extension Act of 2001 - Amends the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act of 1996 to extend such Act for another five year period.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2001
Access to Medical Treatment Act of 2001 - Defines: (1) "danger" as an adverse reaction to an unapproved drug or medical device that used as directed causes serious harm which would not otherwise have occurred, or harm more serious than side effects for drugs or medical devices approved by the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the same disease or condition; and (2) other terms as used in this Act, including "health care practitioner" and "unapproved drug or medical device." Allows a patient to receive, and the practitioner to provide or administer, any unapproved drug or medical device the patient or their legal representative desires, provided certain conditions are met. Sets forth circumstances under which a health care practitioner may recommend, provide, or administer an unapproved drug or medical device. Requires a practitioner who discovers that an unapproved drug or medical device creates a danger to a patient immediately to cease use and recommendation of such drug or device and provide specified information to its manufacturer and the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Requires the manufacturer that receives such information to: (1) immediately cease sale and distribution of the drug or device; and (2) comply with specified notification and reporting requirements. Sets forth certain investigative and reporting duties that the Director, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and a practitioner must perform with respect to the dangerousness or effectiveness of unapproved drugs or medical devices. Sets forth a penalty for violations of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2001
Breast Implant Research and Information Act - Requires the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to report to all appropriate committees of Congress on the status of the existing breast implant research funded by such Institutes. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the NIH Director to: (1) appoint an official of the Department of Health and Human Services to serve as the NIH coordinator regarding breast implant research; (2) establish either a study section or special emphasis panel for NIH to review extramural breast implant research grant applications to ensure research design and quality, as well as quality intramural research; and (3) conduct or support research to expand the understanding of the health implications of both saline and silicone breast implants. Requires a report from the Commissioner of Food and Drugs concerning postmarket evaluations of saline implant manufacturers' data. Directs the Commissioner to take specified steps to assist women in receiving accurate and complete information about the risks of silicone breast implants.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2001
Clean Diesel Fuel Provider Relief Act - Amends the Clean Air Act to prohibit, after September 1, 2006, the manufacture or introduction into commerce of motor vehicle diesel fuel that contains a concentration of sulfur exceeding 15 parts per million or fails to meet a cetane minimum index of 40 and a maximum aromatic content of 35 volume percent.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2001
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to include landfill gas as a qualified energy resource for purposes of the business credit for electricity produced from certain renewable resources.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2001
Small Business Liability Protection Act - Amends the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 to provide (with exceptions) that persons shall be liable for response costs at a National Priorities List (NPL) facility as non-owners or operators only if the total of material containing a hazardous substance that the business arranged for disposal, transport, or treatment of, or accepted for transport, was greater than 110 gallons of liquid material or 200 pounds of solid material. Applies this exemption only to activities taking place before April 1, 2001. Exempts a person from liability for response costs (with exceptions) at a NPL facility for municipal solid waste (MSW) as a non-owner or operator if the person is an owner, operator, or lessee of residential property from which all of the person's MSW was generated, or a certain small business or small charitable tax-exempt organization that generated all its MSW, with respect to the facility concerned. Makes nongovernmental entities that commence a contribution action liable to the defendant for all reasonable costs of defending the action if the defendant is not liable based on the above-described exemptions. Adds to the list of parties eligible for de minimis final settlements certain persons and businesses that demonstrate an inability or limited ability to pay response costs. Revises conditions of eligibility for such settlements for de minimis parties.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2001
Hydroelectric Licensing and Incentives Act of 2001 - Amends the Federal Power Act to prescribe procedural guidelines for the consideration of hydroelectric power licensing by Federal agencies and the Secretaries of the Interior and of Commerce. Instructs the Secretary of Energy to make incentive payments: (1) for a period of ten fiscal years to the owner or operator of electric energy generated and sold by a qualified hydroelectric facility; and (2) to the owner or operator of hydroelectric facilities at existing dams for capital improvements directly related to specified facility efficiency improvements. Amends the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 to redefine "an existing dam" for purposes of small hydroelectric power projects as one whose construction was completed on or before May 16, 2001 (currently, on or before April 20, 1977). Instructs the Secretary of Energy to study and report to certain congressional committees on cost-effective opportunities to increase hydropower generation at existing federally-owned or operated water regulation, storage, and conveyance facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2001
Dairy Consumers and Producers Protection Act of 2001 - Amends the Agricultural Market Transition Act to include Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania within the Northeast Interstate Dairy Compact. Eliminates: (1) the Compact's termination date; and (2) certain restrictive authority respecting non-Compact milk. States that only Ohio may join such Compact. Eliminates and revises specified provisions regarding Compact implementation, duration, restricting authority, and Commodity Credit Corporation compensation. States that Congress consents to the Southern Dairy Compact entered into by Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. States that only Florida, Nebraska, and Texas may join such Compact. Limits price regulatory authority to Class I fluid milk unless otherwise consented to by the Congress. Provides for Commodity Credit Corporation compensation. Sets forth the Southern Dairy Compact. States that Congress consents to: (1) the Pacific Northwest Dairy Compact proposed for California, Oregon, and Washington; and (2) the Intermountain Dairy Compact proposed for Colorado, Nevada, and Utah. Limits price regulatory authority to Class I fluid milk. Provides for Corporation compensation. States that such Compacts shall be the same as the Southern Dairy Compact with specified differences.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2001
Free Trade Community Relief Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to, among other things: (1) provide for the designation of NAFTA-impacted communities; (2) establish an employment credit for such communities; and (3) provide for job training grants to such communities.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2001
Small Business Liability Reform Act of 2001 - Allows punitive damages to be awarded against a small business only if the claimant establishes by clear and convincing evidence that conduct carried out by the defendant with a conscious, flagrant indifference to the rights or safety of others was the proximate cause of the harm that is the subject of the action. Limits such punitive damages to the lesser of three times the amount awarded for economic and noneconomic losses, or $250,000. Makes such limitation inapplicable if the court finds that the defendant acted with specific intent to cause the type of harm for which the action is brought. Provides liability limitation exceptions. States that in any civil action against a small business: (1) each defendant shall be liable only for the amount of noneconomic loss allocated to that defendant in direct proportion to the percentage of responsibility of that defendant for the harm caused to the plaintiff; and (2) the court shall render a separate judgment against each defendant describing such percentage of responsibility. Excepts from such liability limitations specified misconduct of a defendant. Mandates that, in any product liability action covered by this Act, a product seller other than a manufacturer shall be liable to a claimant only if such claimant establishes that: (1) the product that caused the harm was sold, rented, or leased by the seller, the seller failed to exercise reasonable care with respect to the product, and such failure was the proximate cause of harm to the plaintiff; (2) the seller made an express warranty applicable to such product, the product failed to conform to the warranty, and such failure caused the harm to the plaintiff; or (3) the product seller engaged in intentional wrongdoing, and such wrongdoing caused the harm to the plaintiff.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2001
Electricity Supply Assurance Act of 2001 - Price-Anderson Amendments Act of 2001 - Amends the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to extend the authority of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to indemnify licensees and Department of Energy contractors for public liability arising from nuclear incidents in excess of the required financial protection. Revises guidelines for licensee insurance premiums and liability and indemnification limits. Amends the Department of Energy Organization Act to add two Assistant Secretaries of Energy responsible, respectively, for: (1) the Office of Science; and (2) the Office of Nuclear Energy, Science, and Technology. Amends the USEC Privatization Act to prohibit the Secretary of Energy from selling surplus natural uranium and conversion services through 2005. Requires sale of uranium hexaflouride. Instructs the Secretary to begin construction of the Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility by October 2003. Authorizes the Secretary to place the Portsmouth gaseous diffusion plant into cold standby condition for a five-year period. Mandates a program to: (1) demonstrate the NRC Early Site Permit process; (2) evaluate opportunities for completion of partially constructed nuclear plants; (3) assess opportunities for Generation IV reactors; and (4) research potential licensing issues associated with new reactor technologies and designs. Declares electricity generated by a nuclear plant to be an environmentally preferable product. Conditions Federal funding for a domestic or international organization that supports electricity production facilities upon reasonable efforts to include projects that use nuclear plants. Establishes the Office of Spent Nuclear Fuel Research. Directs the Secretary to: (1) conduct an advanced fuel recycling technology research and development program; and (2) establish the Advanced Accelerator Applications Program. Amends the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to: (1) revise certain commercial license requirements; (2) repeal restrictions pertaining to foreign ownership of commercial licensees; and (3) grant firearms and arrest authority to employees of NRC licensees.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2001
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) mandate a single national average standardized payment amount for inpatient hospital services furnished, regardless of whether in an urban or non-urban area, under the Medicare prospective payment system (PPS) for discharges occurring in FY 2002 and thereafter; and (2) establish a minimum factor of .925 as a floor for area wage adjustment factors used under the PPS for inpatient and outpatient hospital services.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2001
Amends the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act to grant duty-free treatment, free from quantitative restrictions, to imported apparel articles (socks and hosiery) that are sewn or assembled, or cut in a U.S.-Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA) beneficiary country from components knit-to-shape in the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2001
Federal Prison Industries Competition in Contracting Act of 2001 - Amends the Federal criminal code to replace provisions regarding the purchase of prison-made products by Federal departments with provisions establishing a Government-wide procurement policy relating to purchases from Federal Prison Industries (FPI) which shall generally require the use of competitive procedures. Requires FPI to comply with Federal occupational, health, and safety standards regarding its industrial operations. Requires that an analysis of the probable impact of a proposed expansion of inmate-work activities by FPI on private sector firms and their non-inmate workers be made whenever FPI proposes to authorize the sale of a new specific product or service or to expand production of a current product or service. Provides for inmate wages and deductions. Amends the Federal judicial code regarding the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund to authorize payments to the Bureau of Prisons exclusively for the purpose of providing additional vocational and remedial educational training for inmates. Amends the Federal criminal code to require that not less than 20 percent of the gross profits of the corporation at the end of each fiscal year be allocated to fund vocational training for inmates. Requires the Director of the Bureau to afford to inmates opportunities to participate in programs and activities designed to help prepare such inmates to obtain employment upon release. Authorizes FPI to: (1) locate more than one workshop at a Federal correctional facility; and (2) operate a workshop outside of a correctional facility if all of participating inmates are minimum security inmates.