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United States · Official source
878 records where Sen. Cleland, Max [D-GA] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2002
Recognizes and congratulates former President Jimmy Carter for being awarded the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize and commends him for his tireless work for and dedication to peace.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2002
Nuclear Waste Transportation Security Act of 2002 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to develop and implement a program for the transportation safety of high-level radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel (waste and fuel) taking into consideration terrorist threats and other potential emergencies. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States and local and tribal governments for activities to enhance the security of transporting nuclear waste, including emergency response. Directs the Secretaries of Transportation and Energy, in establishing routes for the transportation of nuclear waste through a State, to jointly consult with the State's chief executive officer regarding preferred or alternative routes. Requires the executive officer to be given 7 days' prior notice of any such transportation. Specifies requirements for particular shipments. Prohibits nuclear waste from being transported by vessel in the inland waters of the United States or the Great Lakes. Requires renewal every three years of a hazmat employee's certification of training to handle waste and fuel. Provides training grants for hazmat employees and instructors. Enhances civil penalties for violations in the transportation of waste and fuel. Requires: (1) a program of outreach regarding response to accidents, attacks, or other emergencies involving the transportation of waste and fuel; (2) a study regarding effects on public health of such transportation; and (3) a comprehensive program of testing the physical integrity and suitability of the packages used for such transportation. Requires the Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board to evaluate the validity of any activities undertaken by the Secretary or the Nuclear Regulatory Commission with respect to the transportation of waste or fuel.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2002
Paul and Sheila Wellstone Center for Community Building Act - Directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to award a grant to Neighborhood House of St. Paul, Minnesota, to finance the construction of a new community center in St. Paul, to be known as the Paul and Sheila Wellstone Center for Community Building.
United States · United States Congress · 28 October 2002
Expresses condolences for the deaths of Senator Paul Wellstone, members of his family, and others aboard the plane that crashed in Minnesota.
United States · United States Congress · 10 October 2002
Designates October 2002 as Children's Internet Safety Month.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2002
Designates the U.S. Postal Service facility located at 206 South Main Street in Glennville, Georgia, as the Michael Lee Woodcock Post Office.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2002
Sun Grant Initiative for Renewable Energy and Biobased Products Act - Amends the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to make grants to university-based sun grant centers which shall: (1) establish centers of excellence to pursue research, extension, and educational programs to implement biobased energy technologies, products, and economic diversification in rural areas; and (2) make grants to land-grant colleges and universities for related multiinstitutional and multistate programs. Establishes: (1) a northern sun grant center at South Dakota State University for Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Wyoming; (2) a southeastern sun grant center at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville for Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands; (3) a south central sun grant center at Oklahoma State University for Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas; (4) a western sun grant center at Oregon State University for Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington and other U.S. territories and possessions; and (5) a northeastern sun grant center at Cornell University for Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and West Virginia. Requires the centers to maintain a Sun Grant Information Analysis Center for analysis and data management support. Amends the Biomass Research and Development Act of 2000 to include a representative of the Cooperative Research, Extension, and Educational Service on the Biomass Research and Development Board.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 2002
Tobacco-Dependent Communities Assistance Act of 2002 - Amends the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture, upon making specified determinations, to establish three-year national production poundage permits for Flue-cured and Burley tobacco, unless disapproved in successive referenda by active growers. Directs the Secretary to establish a tobacco equity reduction program for quota owners and growers of Flue-cured and Burley quota tobacco. Expresses the sense of Congress that quota owners and growers of Flue-cured and Burley tobacco should be able to invest tobacco equity payments in investment retirement accounts. Terminates marketing quotas for Flue-cured and Burley tobacco. Revises provisions regarding: (1) lease and transfer of acreage allotments; and (2) national marketing quota deadlines and apportionment; (3) poundage quotas; (4) purchase intention deadlines for cigarette manufacturers; (5) production and marketing information; (6) quota adjustments; (7) eminent domain; and (8) reconstitution of farms. Repeals provisions providing for mandatory sale of Burley and Flue-cured tobacco acreage allotments and marketing quotas. Prohibits Federal promotion of manufactured tobacco products. Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to revise tobacco price support provisions. States that the price support rate for each type of tobacco shall reflect annual production costs. Eliminates references to quota tobacco in the No Net Cost Tobacco Fund and No Net Cost Tobacco Account. Amends the Tobacco Inspection Act to apply the provisions of such Act to nonauction tobacco sales. Amends the Tobacco Adjustment Act of 1983 regarding tobacco inspections. Establishes a tobacco worker transition program under which a group of workers (including workers in any firm, or subdivision, involved in the manufacture, processing, or warehousing of tobacco or tobacco products) may apply for adjustment assistance if the Secretary of Labor determines that a significant number or proportion of the workers have become totally or partially separated, or are threatened to become totally or partially separated, and: (1) sales or production of such firm have decreased; and (2) implementation of the national tobacco settlement contributed importantly to such workers' separation and to the firm's decline in sales or production. Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to establish a farmer opportunity grant program of higher education assistance for qualifying members of tobacco farm families. Amends the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 to direct the Secretary to make grants to tobacco-growing States in order to carry out economic development initiatives in tobacco-growing communities. Exempts an active tobacco producer, tobacco-related growers association, or tobacco warehouse owner or employee from Federal or State liability resulting from the failure of any tobacco product manufacturer, distributor, or retailer to comply with national tobacco settlement legislation. Prohibits an officer or employee of the Food and Drug Administration from entering a leaf tobacco farm without the written consent of the producer.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2002
Designates the month of October 2002 as Family History Month.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 2002
Civil War Battlefield Preservation Act of 2002 - Amends the American Battlefield Protection Act of 1996 to direct the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the American Battlefield Protection Program, to establish a battlefield acquisition grant program under which the Secretary may provide grants to a State or local government (eligible entity) to pay the Federal share of the cost of acquiring interests in eligible sites for the preservation and protection of those sites. Permits an eligible entity to acquire an interest in an eligible site using a grant in partnership with a nonprofit organization. Subjects acquired property to the prohibition against conversion to other than public outdoor recreation uses, without the Secretary's approval. Requires the Secretary to submit to Congress a report that updates the Report on the Nation's Civil War Battlefields to reflect preservation activities and changes in the condition of the 384 battlefields. Extends the American Battlefield Protection Program through FY 2008.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 2002
Recognizes the 100th anniversary of the 4-H Youth Development Program, and commends such program for service to the youth of the world. Designates October 6, 2002, through October 12, 2002, as National 4-H Youth Development Program Week.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2002
Consumer Rental Purchase Agreement Act of 2002 - Amends the Consumer Credit Protection Act to prescribe guidelines for rental-purchase transactions, including: (1) the determination of rental-purchase cost; (2) disclosure requirements; (3) proscriptions against confessions of judgment, wage assignments, and waiver of consumer claims or defenses; (4) furnishing of statements of account; (5) point-of-rental disclosures; and (6) rental-purchase advertising disclosures. Authorizes the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System to promulgate implementing regulations. Declares that an action for civil liability may be brought against a merchant's assignee only if the violation is apparent on the face of a rental-purchase agreement to which it relates, including, but not limited to, a disclosure that can be determined to be incomplete or inaccurate from the face of the agreement. Provides for Federal and State enforcement of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 2002
Designates the month of September 2002 as National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. Declares that the Federal Government has a responsibility to: (1) raise awareness about the importance of screening methods and treatment of prostate cancer; (2) increase research funding that is commensurate with the burden of the disease so that the causes of, and improved methods for screening, treating, and curing prostate cancer may be discovered; and (3) continue to consider ways for improving access to, and the quality of, health care services for detecting and treating prostate cancer.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 2002
Designates October 18, 2002, as National Mammography Day.
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 2002
Honoring the Passengers and Crew of United Flight 93 Act - Authorizes the President to award posthumously the Congressional Gold Medal to the passengers and crew of United Airlines flight 93 in the aftermath of the terrorist attack on the United States on September 11, 2001.
United States · United States Congress · 10 September 2002
Emergency Communications and Competition Act of 2002 - Directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to assign licenses in the 12.2 -12.7 gigahertz band for the provision of fixed terrestrial communications services. Prohibits: (1) granting such a license if operations would interfere with direct broadcast satellite service; or (2) such licenses from being used for the provision of personal communications or terrestrial telephony service. Requires licensees to begin providing services within five years after the license is granted. Requires each licensee to: (1) disseminate Federal, State, and local Emergency Alert System warnings to all subscribers; (2) provide immediate access of its services for national security and emergency preparedness personnel; and (3) adhere to all FCC-established access requirements, including the carriage of local television station signals, access for political candidates, and public interest programming and services. Directs the FCC to: (1) establish boundaries for license recipients that conform to existing television markets; and (2) redesignate the Multichannel Video Distribution and Data Service as the Terrestrial Direct Broadcast Service.
United States · United States Congress · 5 September 2002
Veterans Health Care Funding Guarantee Act of 2002 - Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) make available to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for programs, functions, and activities of the Veterans Health Administration for FY 2004 120 percent of the amount obligated during FY 2002; and (2) adjust the amount provided after FY 2004 based on the number of enrolled veterans and the number of others eligible for and provided care and the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index.
United States · United States Congress · 3 September 2002
National AMBER Alert Network Act of 2002 - Requires the Attorney General to assign an AMBER Alert Coordinator of the Department of Justice to act as the national coordinator of the AMBER Alert communications network regarding abducted children. Requires the coordinator to: (1) seek to eliminate gaps in the network; (2) work with States to encourage the development of additional network elements and to ensure regional coordination; and (3) act as the nationwide point of contact for network development and for regional coordination of alerts on abducted children through the network. Directs the Coordinator to: (1) notify and consult with the Federal Bureau of Investigation concerning each child abduction for which an AMBER Alert is issued; and (2) establish minimum standards for the issuance of alerts and for the extent of their dissemination (limited to the geographic areas most likely to facilitate the recovery of the abducted child). Requires the Secretary of Transportation to provide grants to States for the development or enhancement of notification or communications systems along highways for alerts and other information for the recovery of abducted children. Includes among permissible activities the development or enhancement of electronic message boards, and the placement of additional signage, along highways. Directs the Attorney General to provide grants to States for the development or enhancement of programs and activities for the support of AMBER Alert communications plans.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2002
Act to Save America's Forests - States that the purposes of this Act are to protect native biodiversity and ecosystems on Federal land from losses caused by: (1) clearcutting and other forms of even-age logging operations; and (2) logging in ancient forests, roadless areas, watershed protection areas, and special areas. Amends the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 to revise eligibility criteria for members of the land and resource management scientific committee. Revises the committee termination date to ten years after enactment of this Act. Provides for conservation and restoration of native biodiversity in forested areas. Prohibits clearcutting or other even-age logging operations on any stand or watershed on certain Federal land, National Forest System land, and National Wildlife Refuge System land. Provides for: (1) Federal enforcement; and (1) a private right of action. Describes special areas as Federal forest land parcels possessing outstanding biological, scenic, recreational, or cultural values which may not meet the definitions of ancient forests, roadless areas, watershed protection areas, or Federal boundary areas. Designates specified special areas which shall be subject to restrictions on road construction and logging in the following States: (1) Alabama; (2) Alaska; (3) Arizona; (4) Arkansas; (5) California; (6) Colorado; (7) Georgia; (8) Idaho; (9) Illinois; (10) Michigan; (11) Minnesota; (12) Missouri; (13) Montana; (14) New Mexico; (15) North Carolina; (16) Ohio; (17) Oklahoma; (18) Oregon; (19) South Carolina; (20) South Dakota; (21) Tennessee; (22) Texas; (23) Vermont; (24) Virginia; (25) Wisconsin; and (26) Wyoming. Provides for the appointment of a committee of independent scientists to recommend additional special areas.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2002
Requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), within 15 days after the enactment of this Act, to return to the winning bidders of spectrum auction 35 the full amount of all deposits and down payments made for licenses that the FCC has not delivered by such date. Frees each winning bidder that elects within such period to relinquish a license not yet delivered of all license obligations such bidder would otherwise have had, including the obligation to pay the full amount of its winning bid upon license delivery.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2002
David Jayne Medicare Homebound Modernization Act of 2002 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to the definition of homebound for purposes of determining Medicare eligibility for home health services. Prohibits the Secretary of Health and Human Services from disqualifying from consideration as confined to the home, based on the purpose, frequency, or duration of the absences from the home, any individual who: (1) has been certified by a physician as having a permanent and severe condition that will not improve which requires the individual to receive assistance from another individual with at least three out of five activities of daily living for the rest of the individual's life; (2) requires one or more described home health services to achieve a functional condition giving the individual the ability to leave the home; and (3) has received part-time or intermittent nursing care provided by or under the supervision of a registered professional nurse.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2002
Children's Electronic Access Safety Enhancement (CEASE) Act - Requires providers of Internet content management services (providers) to notify local educational agencies or other authorities responsible for schools (LEAs), or libraries, of the providers' policies regarding collection, use, and disclosure of information from or about children under age 19 whose Internet use will be covered by such services, before entering into a contract or other agreement to provide such services to or for an elementary or secondary school or a library, and before implementing any later material modifications of such policies. Directs the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to treat noncompliance with these requirements as a violation of a rule defining an unfair or deceptive act or practice under the Federal Trade Commission Act. Allows LEAs or libraries to terminate such contracts or agreements with providers who fail to comply with these requirements. Requires a school or library to provide reasonable notice of its provider's policy to students' parents or library patrons. Prohibits providers from collecting personal information from or about a child who is a school student or library patron. Requires providers, if they do collect such information, to: (1) promptly notify the LEA and appropriate State officials, or the library, and the FTC; and (2) treat the information in accordance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA) if the child is under 12, and in accordance with FTC regulations if the child is over 12. Requires the LEA or library to notify a parent or guardian of the child of receipt of such notice. Amends COPPA to treat providers as operators.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2002
Recognizes the significance of the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. Acknowledges the outstanding contributions of its member agencies to fish and wildlife conservation.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2002
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the United States Postal Service should issue a postage stamp commemorating registered nurses.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 2002
Our Lady of Peace Act - Amends the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act to require the head of each U.S. department or agency to ascertain whether it has such information on persons for whom receipt of a firearm would violate specified Federal provisions regarding excluded individuals or State law as is necessary to enable the National Instant Criminal Background Check System to operate. Directs that any such record that the department or agency has be made available to the Attorney General for inclusion in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System or transmission of a certification identifying the record for removal from the System. Directs the head of such department or agency, at the Attorney General's request, to furnish such information to the System electronically. Makes a State eligible to receive a waiver of the ten percent matching requirement for National Criminal History Improvement Grants if the State provides at least 95 percent of the information described in this Act, including the name of and other relevant identifying information related to each person disqualified from acquiring a firearm. Requires the Attorney General to make grants to each State: (1) to establish or upgrade information and identification technologies for firearms eligibility determinations; and (2) for use by the State's chief judicial officer to improve the handling of proceedings related to criminal history dispositions and restraining orders. Requires the Director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics to study and evaluate the operations of the System and to report on grants and on best practices of States.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2002
Foreign and Armed Forces Tax Fairness Act of 2002 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) restore the full exclusion from gross income of the death gratuity payment; (2) permit a suspension of residency rules governing the exclusion of gain from sale of a principal residence for members of the uniformed services or the Foreign Service serving on qualified official extended duty; (3) exclude from gross income qualified military base realignment and closure fringe benefits; (4) extend tax filing delay provisions to military personnel serving in contingency operations; (5) allow as a business or trade deduction the expenses of a member of the reserve component of the U.S. armed forces in connection with such service (available to itemizers and non-itemizers); (6) include ancestors and lineal descendants of past or present members of the armed forces when determining whether a veterans' organization is exempt from tax; and (7) fully exclude from gross income certain dependent care assistance programs sponsored by the Department of Defense.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2002
Military Families Tax Fairness Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) exclude education loan repayments made by the Federal government for a member of the Armed Forces from gross income; (2) allow as a business or trade deduction the expenses of a member of the reserve component of the U.S. armed forces in connection with such service (available to itemizers and non-itemizers); (3) allow a reserve component employment credit equal to 50 percent of the amount of qualified compensation, including those who are self-employed; (4) permit a suspension of residency rules governing the exclusion of gain from sale of a principal residence for members of the uniformed services, the Foreign Service, or civilian employee of the Department of Defense serving on qualified official extended duty; and (5) exclude qualified military base realignment and closure fringe benefits from gross income.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2002
Reaffirms support of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Commemorates the 15th anniversary of the enactment of the Genocide Convention Implementation Act of 1987 (the Proxmire Act) on November 4, 2003.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2002
Roadless Area Conservation Act of 2002 - Prohibits road construction and road reconstruction in inventoried roadless areas of the National Forest System. Specifies exceptions, including because: (1) there is threat of a catastrophic event; (2) a natural resource restoration action is necessary; or (3) a Federal-aid highway project is in the public interest or is consistent with the purposes for which the land was reserved or acquired. Forbids timber from being cut, sold, or removed in an inventoried roadless area. Permits various exceptions, including for specified environmental reasons, if the responsible official determines that the cutting, sale, or removal of timber is expected to be infrequent. Declares that this Act does not: (1) revoke, suspend, or modify legal instruments and decisions concerning the use of NFS land made before January 12, 2001; (2) compel the amendment or revision of any land and resource management plan; or (3) apply to specified activities in the Tongass National Forest. States that the prohibitions and restrictions of this Act cannot be reconsidered, modified, or terminated under the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2002
Designates the week beginning September 15, 2002, as National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2002
Amends the Federal Law Enforcement Pay Reform Act of 1990 to revise the special pay adjustments for (percentage differentials payable to) Federal law enforcement officers in specified consolidated metropolitan statistical areas.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2002
Expresses the sense of Congress that November of each year should be established as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Awareness Month to raise public awareness about the prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and the serious problems associated with it.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2002
Access to High Quality Child Care Act - 2002 ACCESS Act - Amends the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act (CCDBGA) to extend the authorization of appropriations, and to revise or set forth provisions relating to: (1) lead agencies; (2) State plan requirements; (3) activities to improve the quality of child care; (4) increased reimbursement rates; (5) administration and enforcement; (6) data about families receiving subsidies; (7) child care research and data; (8) activities for infants, toddlers, and children in other special populations; (9) resource and referral services; and (10) funds for Indian tribes. Federal Employees Child Care Act - Directs the Administrator of General Services to: (1) establish health, safety, and facility standards and compliance requirements for child care in executive branch facilities; (2) issue regulations requiring a child care facility to comply with standards of a child care accreditation entity; and (3) establish an interagency council to facilitate cooperation and sharing of best practices. Prescribes accreditation requirements for child care services in the House of Representatives, the Library of Congress, the Senate, and the U.S. Courts. Revises the criteria for children permitted child care and related services in Federal buildings, extending eligibility to children of Federal employees or on-site Federal contractors, or dependent children who live with such employees or contractors. Authorizes agreements, where necessary, with non-Federal, licensed, and accredited child care facilities, or planned facilities that will become licensed and accredited. Permits a Federal agency to conduct a pilot project to test innovative approaches to providing more cost-effective alternative forms of child care assistance for Federal employees. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award competitive grants to assist eligible intermediaries to provide technical and financial assistance to eligible recipients to pay the Federal matching share of costs of acquisition, construction, or improvement of center-based or home-based child care facilities or equipment, or for the improvement of related management and business practices. Book Stamp Act - Directs the Secretary of HHS to establish a grant program (based on certain State allocations under CCDBGA) to promote child literacy and improve children's access to books at home and in early learning and other child care programs, by making books available through such programs. Early Care and Education Act - Directs the Secretaries of Education and of HHS to: (1) allot incentive grants to States to develop or enhance high-quality systems of early child care and early education; (2) award bonus grants to States for demonstrated improvement in such care and education; and (3) establish an information clearinghouse.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2002
Small and Disadvantaged Business Ombudsman Act - Amends the Small Business Act to require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to designate a Small and Disadvantaged Business Ombudsman for Procurement, who shall: (1) work with each Federal agency with procurement authority to ensure that small businesses are treated fairly in the procurement process; (2) establish a procedure for receiving comments from small businesses and personnel of the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (Office) of each Federal agency regarding the activities of agencies and prime contractors on Federal procurement contracts for small businesses; and (3) establish a procedure for addressing concerns received with respect to small businesses and Federal procurement contracting. Requires an annual report from the Ombudsman to the congressional small business committees evaluating such activities. Requires each Federal agency to assist the Ombudsman to ensure compliance with Federal procurement goals for small businesses, certain procurement policies, and Federal prime contractor small business subcontracting plans. Requires a Federal agency to submit a goal attainment plan upon failure to meet small business procurement goals. Requires each Office director to: (1) have experience assisting small businesses with Federal procurement; (2) not currently serve as the chief procurement officer of such agency; (3) have no other duties; and (4) attend meetings of the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization Council. Establishes such Council. Increases, from the current 23 percent to up to 30 percent for FY 2006 and thereafter, the Federal small business procurement goal.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 2002
Small Business Drought Relief Act - Amends the Small Business Act to include drought within its definition of disaster (thus qualifying small businesses suffering economic harm from droughts for assistance under such Act).
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2002
Veterans Right-To-Know Act of 2002 - Requires the Secretary of Defense to identify each developmental or operational test of the Department of Defense (DOD) involving chemical or biological weapons, or defense against such weapons, in which military personnel or civilians were or may have been exposed to actual or simulated hazardous agents, with or without their knowledge or consent. Requires the Comptroller General to establish within the General Accounting Office an Oversight Working Group on Biological and Chemical Testing to: (1) review DOD chemical and biological test activities that involved exposure to military personnel or civilians; (2) report to Congress information concerning Project SHAD (DOD tests to evaluate the effectiveness of shipboard detection and protective procedures against chemical and biological warfare agents) and Project 112 (DOD tests in and around Alaska using chemical and biological agents); (3) continue to review DOD investigations of any other cases of DOD chemical or biological testing; and (4) identify veterans and veterans organizations with significant information involving such test projects and seek to have that information made available to the Secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to: (1) notify any veterans who may have been exposed, with instructions on how to receive a health care evaluation; and (2) review declassified material to determine any lasting health effects that may have been incurred by exposed veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2002
Social Security Attorney Fee Payment System Improvement Act of 2002 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to set a cap of $75 on assessments owed by attorney representatives upon receiving payment for representing a successful claimant for past-due benefits. Amends title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) of the Social Security Act to extend a similar payment system to attorney representatives of claimants who obtain a favorable court judgment for past-due SSI benefits. Sets a cap to such an attorney payment by the Commissioner of Social Security of 25% of the amount of such past-due benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2002
Aid to Tobacco-Dependent Communities Act of 2002 - Amends the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture, upon making specified determinations, to establish three-year national production poundage permits for Flue-cured and Burley tobacco, unless disapproved in successive referenda by active growers. Directs the Secretary to establish a tobacco equity reduction program for quota owners and growers of Flue-cured and Burley quota tobacco. Limits payments for owners who are not growers. Terminates marketing quotas for Flue-cured and Burley tobacco. Revises provisions regarding: (1) lease and transfer of acreage allotments; and (2) national marketing quota deadlines and apportionment; (3) poundage quotas; (4) purchase intention deadlines for cigarette manufacturers; (5) production and marketing information; (6) quota adjustments; (7) eminent domain; and (8) reconstitution of farms. Repeals provisions providing for mandatory sale of Burley and Flue-cured tobacco acreage allotments and marketing quotas. Prohibits Federal promotion of manufactured tobacco products. Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to revise tobacco price support provisions regarding: (1) price support availability; (2) support levels; (3) no net cost tobacco fund contributions and assessments; and (4) marketing assessments. Amends the Tobacco Inspection Act to apply the provisions of such Act to nonauction tobacco sales. Amends the Tobacco Adjustment Act of 1983 regarding tobacco inspections. Establishes: (1) the nonprofit Center for Tobacco-Dependent Communities which shall provide economic and community assistance to communities in transition from tobacco-based economies; and (2) the Tobacco Grower Advisory Board within the Department of Agriculture which shall advise Federal agencies on the technical and economic feasibility of tobacco-related actions. Directs the President to establish the Interagency Task Force on Tobacco-Dependent Communities which shall: (1) identify Federal economic and business development grants and loans to assist communities in transition from tobacco-based economies; and (2) be coordinated by the Department's Under Secretary for Rural Development. Provides for reports on: (1) marketing incentives; (2) stabilization of tobacco production opportunities; and (3) investment and taxation issues.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2002
Amends rule XLII (employment practices) of the Standing Rules of the Senate to prohibit employment discrimination in the Senate based on sexual orientation.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2002
Designates the week of November 10-16, 2002, as National Veterans Awareness Week to emphasize educational programs for elementary and secondary school students regarding the contributions and sacrifices of veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2002
Declares that the Senate strongly disapproves of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision in Newdow v. U.S. Congress. Authorizes and instructs the Senate Legal Counsel to seek to intervene in the case to defend the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2002
Nurturing Special Kids Act of 2002 - Amends the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (CCDBGA) to require States to reserve certain funds for activities to improve the quality of child care for children with disabilities or other special needs (special children). Requires States that receive CCDBGA allotments in excess of a covered amount to reserve and use the excess to: (1) support child care programs that accept special children, provide higher reimbursements to providers who serve special children, and support training for providers in the care of special children; (2) fund consultations by professionals to improve providers' abilities to identify and care for special children; (3) provide a comprehensive system of ongoing training and technical assistance with respect to providers and others involved in care of special children; and (4) provide grants for recruitment and retention of qualified staff for care of special children.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 2002
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income amounts received after December 31, 2001, as loan repayments under the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program established under the Public Health Service Act.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2002
Amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to prohibit gillnet fishing in a specified part of America's exclusive economic zone of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Georgia.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2002
Medicare Outpatient Prescription Drug Act of 2002 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to establish: (1) a Medicare Outpatient Prescription Drug Benefit Program under new part D; (2) a Prescription Drug Account in the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund; and (3) a Medicare Prescription Drug Advisory Committee. Provides for: (1) part D benefits under Medicare+Choice plans under Medicare part C (Medicare+Choice); and (2) Medicare cost-sharing and other assistance for low-income individuals but only as it relates to benefits provided under new part D. Revises Medicare supplemental insurance policy (Medigap) benefit packages to conform to changes made by this Act, eliminating obsolete policies with no grandfathering. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to study and report to Congress on the feasibility and advisability of: (1) establishing a uniform format for pharmacy benefit cards provided to beneficiaries; and (2) developing systems to transfer electronically prescriptions under such program from the prescriber to the pharmacist. Requires the Comptroller General to conduct an ongoing study and analysis of the program established under this Act, especially: (1) the extent to which the competitive bidding process under it fosters maximum competition and efficiency; and (2) the savings to the Medicare program resulting from it, including the reduction in the number or length of hospital visits. Expands the membership and duties of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC).
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 2002
Authorizes the President to award on behalf of Congress a gold medal to Joseph De Laine, Jr., to honor posthumously his father, Rev. Joseph Anthony De Laine (civil rights activist), for his contributions to the Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2002
Amends the Omnibus Parks and Public Lands Management Act of 1996 to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to make a grant to an eligible historically black college or university for the preservation and/or restoration of a building or structure listed or eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places if the grantee agrees to provide funds derived from non-Federal sources in an amount equal to 30 percent (currently, a matching amount) of the total cost of the project. Authorizes additional appropriations for such grants.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2002
Coastal and Estuarine Land Protection Act - Amends the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 to establish a Coastal and Estuarine Land Protection Program to protect the environmental integrity of undeveloped coastal and estuarine areas. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to make program grants to coastal States for the purpose of acquiring property interests. Prohibits any more than 75 percent of the grant funding from being derived from Federal sources. Authorizes the Secretary to provide $5 million for a regional watershed protection demonstration project that: (1) leverages land acquisition funding from other Federal conservation or acquisition programs; (2) involves partnerships with Federal, State, and non-governmental entities; (3) creates conservation corridors; (4) protects habitats under imminent threat of development or conversion; (5) provides water quality protection for areas under the National Estuarine Research Reserve program; and (6) provides a model for future regional watershed protection projects. Reserves 15 percent of program funds for acquisitions benefitting the National Estuarine Research Reserve. Specifies that when property is acquired under this program: (1) title will be held by the grant recipient; (2) property will be managed consistent with the purpose of the program; and (3) funds will be returned to the Secretary if the property is sold, exchanged, or divested.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2002
Museum and Library Services Act of 2002 - Amends the Museum and Library Services Act (MLSA) and the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) to extend authorizations of appropriations and revise programs under such Acts. Amends MLSA to establish the National Museum and Library Services Board, within the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). (Eliminates a National Museum Services Board.) Requires the IMLS Director to: (1) ensure coordination with certain activities under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and other Federal activities; and (2) conduct and publish analyses of museum and library services impact. Revises requirements for annual national awards to outstanding libraries and museums that have made significant contributions in service to their communities. Amends LSTA to provide for: (1) an increased portion for administrative costs; (2) an increased alternative minimum allotment to States under certain conditions; (3) competitive grants to specified U.S. Territories; (4) State plans once every five years, as determined by the IMLS Director; (5) additional uses of grants to States for library programs; and (6) recruitment of library and information science personnel under the program of national leadership grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements. Includes specified entities under the term museum, for MLSA purposes. Revises museum services activities. Repeals requirements under the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science Act relating to Commission responsibilities to: (1) advise the IMLS Director; and (2) meet with the National Museum Services Board, which is eliminated by this Act. Revises Commission membership requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2002
Ocean Habitat Protection Act of 2002 - Amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to place size limits on ground gear used on bottom trawls. Treats as unlawful the use of rollers, bobbins, tires, rockhoppers, or any other devices attached to a trawl's foot rope that are more than eight inches in diameter for fishing subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.