United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
American Conservation Corps Act of 1985 - Establishes an American Conservation Corps within the Departments of the Interior and Agriculture. Directs the Secretaries of both departments to establish and administer a conservation and rehabilitation program on Federal public and Indian lands. Directs the Secretary of the Interior alone to establish and administer such a program on non-Federal public lands. Directs the Secretaries to assist program agencies (any Federal, State, or Indian agency responsible for the management of public lands) in establishing and operating residential and nonresidential American Conservation Corps Centers. Describes the types of projects which will receive program preference. Limits program projects to those on public lands or Indian lands, except where projects on nonpublic lands provide documented public benefits. Sets forth requirements for establishing conservation centers and eligibility criteria for enrollees in the program. Requires that preference be given to economically, socially, physically, and educationally disadvantaged youth and youth residing in areas having substantial unemployment. Requires program agencies to provide services, facilities, supplies, and equipment for conservation centers as the Secretary deems necessary. States under what conditions and for what purposes an enrollee/volunteer shall be deemed a Federal or State employee. Permits the Tennessee Valley Authority to utilize such volunteers. Sets forth compensation and reimbursement provisions for volunteers and their upkeep. Directs the Secretaries to assist program agencies in securing certification or academic credit for skills acquired by volunteers during their participation and to conduct cost-benefit analysis and evaluations of the program. Permits the Secretaries to conduct pilot programs for alternative approaches. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to report to the Congress within the year on a study of Civilian Conservation Corps sites suitable for a commemoration of such Corps. Sets forth study opportunities and limitations for program volunteers, including a requirement that program agencies provide job guidance and placement assistance. Directs the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture to report at least annually to the President and the Congress. Directs the Secretary of Labor to make available appropriate labor market information. Sets forth employee appeal rights for workers displaced by American Conservation Corps volunteers. Sets forth funding limitations. Requires participating program agencies to certify that their programs will not displace workers. Sets forth procedures whereby State shares go to local governments when no State program agency exists. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1985 and 1986.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Pay Equity Act of 1983 - Requires the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, after consultation with the Secretary of Labor, to publish in the Federal Register guidelines for identifying and eliminating discriminatory wage-setting practices and discriminatory wage differentials. Requires the guidelines to include recommendations for utilization of job-evaluation techniques to establish rates of compensation for employees. Requires the Commission to submit annually to the President and the Congress a detailed report of the activities of the Commission in carrying out the purposes of this Act. Authorizes the Commission to have a study conducted by a private consultant on the wage-setting practices and wage differentials within and between the Federal Government's position classification system and the job grading system. Directs the Commission to submit a report on the findings to the President, the Congress, and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management. Requires the Secretary of Labor to publish guidelines and submit an annual report to the President and the Congress for the purpose of requiring all contractors of the United States to identify and eliminate discriminatory wage-setting practices and wage differentials. Requires each Federal agency responsible for submitting an equal employment opportunity plan under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to include a review and identification of any discriminatory wage-setting practices and wage differentials with respect to its labor force and a plan to eliminate such practices. Requires the Commission to submit to the President and the Congress a detailed report of its enforcement activities relating to the Equal Pay Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Older Americans Employment Opportunities Act of 1985 - Title I: Amendments to Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 - Amends the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 to eliminate the upper age limitation (70 years of age) of the class of persons to whom such Act applies. Repeals specified provisions allowing mandatory retirement at age 65 in certain professions. Prohibits any employee benefit plan from requiring or permitting the suspension of an employee's benefit accrual because of age before accruing the maximum normal retirement benefit. Title II: Pension Accrual for Older Workers - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and the Internal Revenue Code to prohibit specified types of plans under such Acts from suspending or reducing the rate of an employee's benefit accrual or employer contributions to the employee's account solely because of age. Revises ERISA to prohibit an employer from withholding plan benefits because of any increase in the income of the participant due to employment for less than 1,000 hours during a calendar year. Title III: Further Amendments to the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to include low-income older workers (who are members of economically disadvantaged families and who are at least 65 years of age) as members of targeted groups for purposes of the tax credit for employment of certain new employees. Reduces the rates of the employment (FICA) taxes on employees and on employers by one-half in the case of workers 65 years of age or older. Makes similar reductions in the case of older workers in the rates of Railroad Retirement Act taxes on employees, employee representatives, and employers. Title IV: Amendments to the National Apprenticeship Act - Amends the National Apprenticeship Act to direct the Secretary of Labor to ensure that no program of apprenticeship discriminates because of age against any individual in admission or employment.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Child-Care Assistance Act of 1985 - States that nothing in this Act shall be construed to authorize interference with parental authority. Requires States to submit a plan to the Secretary of Health and Human Services in order to participate in a child-care assistance program authorized under this Act. Requires such State plan to include provisions on: (1) the designation of a responsible State agency; (2) distribution of funds, with priority to be given to child-care providers with priority for services on the basis of family need; (3) the establishment of fee schedules for services based on family need and size; (4) information and referral services; (5) child-care personnel training; (6) licensing of child-care providers; (7) parental involvement in the planning and evaluating of child-care programs; (8) maximum allowable administrative costs; (9) the establishment of a State Advisory Panel on child-care matters; and (10) hearings on adverse decisions of the State agency or any funded program. Directs the Secretary to approve any plan complying with the requirements of this Act. States that the Secretary must first provide notice and a hearing before disapproving any State plan. Directs the Secretary to designate, within the Department of Health and Human Services, an administrative unit and an individual in charge of such unit to carry out the provisions of this Act and to coordinate other child-care activities within such Department. Provides for the establishment, within the Office of the Secretary, of a National Advisory Panel on Child Care Needs and Services. Directs the Secretary, with the assistance of the National Advisory Panel, to develop standards for programs under this Act. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants and to enter into contracts for demonstration child-care projects. Directs participating States to submit a report to the Secretary outlining the current status of child-care licensing within the State. Directs the Secretary to develop a Model State Licensing of Child Care Providers Act as a guide. Authorizes the Secretary to provide training and technical assistance to the States. Limits allotments of funds appropriated under this Act to not more than one percent for Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. Establishes an allotment priority system for the States based on the number of children living in homes in which: (1) both parents are employed; or (2) the child resides with only one parent and that parent is employed. Authorizes the Secretary, after reasonable notice and opportunity for hearing, to withhold payments to any State where there has been a substantial failure to comply with requirements of such State's plan or other applicable provisions under this Act. Directs the Secretary to: (1) review and evaluate programs carried out under this Act; and (2) submit a report on national child-care needs to the President and the Congress not later than four years after enactment of this Act. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1986 through 1990. Provides that no appropriations are authorized under this Act for FY 1986 in the event that a concurrent resolution for FY 1986 is in effect which sets forth total budget outlays for FY 1986 in an amount which does not exceed a specified sum.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
High Technology Research and Scientific Education Act of 1985 - Title I: The Credit for Increasing Research Activities - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent the tax credit for research and development (R&D) expenditures. Modifies the definition of qualified research for purposes of the R&D credit to narrow the category of eligible activities for which the credit is available. Provides that all in-house and contract research expenses paid or incurred by a regular corporation shall constitute qualified R&D expenses for credit purposes if the corporation undertakes the research with the intention to use the results thereof in the active conduct of a present or future trade or business. Provides that in the case of research being conducted in the partnership form, the trade or business test is applied at the partnership level, and the credit is apportioned among the partners in accordance with general partnership rules. Title II: Promotion of University Research and Scientific Education - Establishes a new income tax credit equal to 20 percent of that portion of a corporation's payments to universities (and other nonprofit, tax-exempt organizations for basic research) which exceeds a fixed, historical "minimum university basic research" floor. Defines the fixed "minimum university basic research" floor as one percent of the annual average of the corporate taxpayer's combined qualified in-house research expenses, contract research expenses, and university basic research payments for the base period composed of the period from 1981 through 1983. Modifies the charitable contribution deduction of corporations for scientific and technical property to: (1) expand the eligible uses to which the property may be put to include direct education as well as research and research training; (2) make computer software eligible for the deduction; and (3) make state-of-the-art equipment used in the taxpayer's trade or business eligible for the deduction. Sets forth a formula for determining the amount of the allowable deduction for scientific equipment. Provides for an income tax exclusion for the scholarships, fellowship grants, student loan forgiveness, or stipends of students who are enrolled in postgraduate study as degree candidates. Provides that such tax exclusion will not be forfeited merely because the student is required, as a condition of the scholarship or fellowship, to perform future service in teaching or research.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to provide coverage as a "qualified pregnant woman" to a pregnant woman who is a member of a family which meets the income and resources requirements of part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) of title IV of such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Amends part E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of title IV of the Social Security Act to extend for one year: (1) the conditional ceiling on Federal financial participation in foster care; (2) the provision which permits a State to use, under part B (Child Welfare Services) of title IV, funds made available to it under the conditional ceiling that are not needed under part E; and (3) the provision permitting Federal financial participation for foster care for certain children voluntarily placed in foster care.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Social Security Equity Act of 1985 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to provide that the combined earnings of a married couple which are attributable to the period of their marriage shall be shared equally between them for purposes of determining the eligibility for, and amount of, OASDI benefits to which each spouse is or may become separately entitled. Credits the survivor of the marriage with 100 percent of the combined total wages for the period of the marriage. Provides that this Act shall not apply in specified cases where it would result in a reduction of OASDI benefits. Sets forth certain age and marriage requirements with which married couples must comply in order for this Act to apply.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Prohibits the expenditure of funds for the production of lethal binary chemical munitions after the enactment of this Act. Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the President should intensify efforts to reach agreement with the Soviet Union and other countries for a mutual, verifiable ban on chemical weapons; and (2) the Department of Defense should improve the capability of the United States to detect chemical weapons and protect members of the armed forces from the effects of such weapons.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Federal Reserve System Reform Act of 1983 - Amends the Federal Reserve Act to require the net earnings of a Federal reserve bank, after all the dividend claims have been fully met, to be paid into the general fund of the Treasury instead of such bank's surplus fund. Eliminates the provisions of such Act which allow the Board of Governors to levy assessments upon Federal Reserve banks to pay its expenses. Subjects salaries and operating and administrative expenses of the Board to annual congressional appropriations. Permits the Board to enter into agreements with the Administrator of General Services with respect to the maintenance, operation, or protection of any building owned by the Board. Provides that as of enactment of this Act the Secretary of the Treasury shall serve as a member of the Board ex officio and that the term of office of each member shall be seven years. Changes the terms of office of the Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Board from four years to that period which ends with the expiration of the term of the President making such designations.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Constitutional Amendment - Declares that equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State on account of sex.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Designates May 7, 1985, as Helsinki Human Rights Day. Requests the President to: (1) reassert American commitment to the Helsinki Accords; (2) raise the issue of noncompliance with such Accords with the U.S.S.R. and the Warsaw Pact nations; and (3) convey to U.S. allies the necessity of unity on these points.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
States that the United States and the Soviet Union should: (1) pursue a complete halt to the nuclear arms race; (2) decide when and how to achieve a mutual verifiable freeze on the testing, production, and further deployment of nuclear warheads, missiles, and other delivery systems; (3) give special attention to destabilizing weapons; and (4) proceeding from this freeze, pursue major, mutual, and verifiable reductions in nuclear warheads, missiles, and other delivery systems.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should appoint a special diplomatic envoy to investigate and report on how the United States could assist Ireland, Great Britain, and communities in Northern Ireland in arriving at a peaceful resolution of the conflict in Northern Ireland.
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1984
Expresses the Senate's appreciation to members of the entertainment industry, especially the Entertainment Industries Council, for their work in discouraging and communicating the danger of drug use.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 1984
Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Federal Challenge Grants Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make challenge grants to any State in the fiscal year following the fiscal year in which the State has collected funds for child abuse and neglect prevention activities through a trust fund or other funding mechanism. Authorizes appropriations to carry out this Act for FY 1985 through 1989. Sets forth State eligibility provisions. Sets forth specified activities for which such State funding must be available. Limits the amount of any such challenge grant to a State in any fiscal year to the lesser of either: (1) 25 percent of the total amount made available by such State for such activities in the previous fiscal year; or (2) an amount equal to 50 cents time the number of children residing in such State. Sets forth application requirements for such challenge grants. Requires the trust fund advisory board, or in States without a trust mechanism, the State liaison agency to the National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect to be responsible for administering and awarding Federal grants to eligible recipients carrying out specified activities under this Act. Prohibits assistance under this Act from being used as a source for non-Federal funds for the matching requirements of any other provision of Federal law. Requires such State recordkeeping and reporting as the Secretary deems essential to carry out this Act. Sets forth provisions for withholding and auditing of such grants. Directs the Secretary to prepare and submit to Congress at the end of each year a compilation and analysis of any reports submitted by eligible States under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 1984
States that the Congress supports the Chilean people in their efforts to end the military dictatorship and restore democratic institutions and human rights in Chile. Provides that until Chile returns to democracy the United States should: (1) deny all military and economic assistance, including guarantees and loans from the Export-Import Bank and the Commodity Credit Corporation; and (2) oppose all loans and grants to Chile by the Inter-American Development Bank, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the International Development Association, unless such assistance is directed to programs which serve the basic human needs of the people.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 1984
Arms Race Control Act of 1984 - Directs the President to propose to the Soviet Union that the two sides agree to halt for a limited time: (1) the flight, testing, and deployment of strategic ballistic missiles under development; (2) the testing of antisatellite weapons against objects in space; and (3) the detonation of any nuclear explosive device. Prohibits the obligation or spending of any funds, beginning six months after enactment of this Act, for any such testing, deployment, or detonation unless the President provides a determination and certification to the Congress, together with an unclassified report and a detailed classified report setting forth the basis for the decision stating that: (1) the President has tried in good faith and has failed to achieve a mutual and verifiable agreement with the Soviet Union to impose the constraints on such testing, deployment, and detonation; (2) the President has reliable evidence that the Soviet Union is proceeding with such testing, deployment, or detonation; and (3) failure of the United States to do the same would undermine the national security. Provides for the allocation of personnel as may be appropriate to ensure continued progress toward the goal of a comprehensive halt in the nuclear arms race. Directs the Secretary of State, in coordination with the Director of the United States Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, to transmit to the Congress an annual report regarding the status of and prospects for bilateral and multilateral negotiations to accomplish the goal of a comprehensive halt in the nuclear arms race.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 1984
Congratulates the U.S. athletes who participated in the games of the XXIII Olympiad in Los Angeles. Urges the speedy enactment of S. 2568 (discrimination by Federal assistance recipients).
United States · United States Congress · 9 August 1984
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal rules relating to the determination of the issue price of certain debt instruments issued for property. Amends the Tax Reform Act of 1984 to repeal the revisions made to rules for the imputation of interest on certain deferred payments. Provides that the Internal Revenue Code shall be applied and administered as if such revisions had not been enacted.
United States · United States Congress · 9 August 1984
Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to cooperate with State and local law enforcement officials for the enforcement of laws and ordinances within Federal water resources projects.
United States · United States Congress · 9 August 1984
Expresses the sense of the Senate that no recess appointments should be made when the Senate stands adjourned or recessed within a session for a period of less than 30 days.
United States · United States Congress · 9 August 1984
Reaffirms the U.S. commitment to the furnishing of population assistance. Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) U.S. policy toward furnishing such assistance should continue; and (2) the President should not deny funds to any multilateral institution or nongovernmental or private and voluntary organization because of their participation in family planning activities that are financed with funds from non-Federal sources as long as those activities are in accordance with U.S. laws.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 1984
National Advisory Committee on Oceans and Atmosphere Act of 1984 - Establishes the National Advisory Committee on Oceans and Atmosphere (the Committee). Requires the 13 members of the Committee (the currently established committee has 18 members) to: (1) not be full-time U.S. employees; (2) be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate; and (3) relfect diverse backgrounds relating to oceanic and atmospheric policy. Requires the Committee to: (1) continually review ocean policy, coastal zone management, and the U.S. marine and atmospheric science and service programs; and (2) advise the Secretary of Commerce (the Secretary) with respect to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration programs; (3) submit an annual report to the Secretary, President, and Congress. Sets forth provisions relating to: (1) the membership and Chairmanship of the Committee; (2) the terms, compensation and travel expenses of the committee members; and (3) interagency cooperation and assistance. Repeals Federal law establishing qualifications for individuals appointed to the current National Advisory Committee on Oceans and Atmosphere and authorizing appropriations for such committee. Transfers the personnel and functions of such committee to the Committee established under this Act. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1985.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 1984
Proclaims October 23, 1984, as "A Time of Remembrance" for Americans to take time to reflect on the sacrifices that have been made in the pursuit of peace and freedom.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1984
Handicapped Children's Protection Act of 1984 - Amends the Education of the Handicapped Act to authorize the award of a reasonable attorney's fee as part of the costs to a parent or legal representative of a handicapped child or youth who is the prevailing party in a civil suit under such Act to protect the child's right to a free appropriate public education. Provides that such amendment shall apply to actions and proceedings brought on or after July 4, 1984, and actions and proceedings brought prior to such date which were pending on such date. Provides that nothing in the Education of the Handicapped Act shall be construed to restrict or limit the rights, procedures, and remedies under the Constitution, title V of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, or other Federal statutes prohibiting discrimination.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 1984
Amends the Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands to permit the leasing of certain Federal lands which are incorporated into and are a part of the city of Corpus Christi, Texas, or the city of Port Hueneme, California, for oil or gas exploration and extraction. Provides that such lands shall be available for such leasing as if they were not in an incorporated city, except that no such leasing activity shall proceed without the permission of the appropriate city.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 1984
Reaffirms that it is U.S. policy to oppose the practice of torture by foreign governments through the implementation of laws and through public and private diplomacy. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should: (1) instruct the U.S. representative to the United Nations to continue to raise the issue of torture by such governments; and (2) continue to involve the U.S. Government in the formulation of international standards and the implementation of the draft Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. Requests the Secretary of State to issue specified formal instructions to each U.S. mission chief regarding U.S. policy with respect to such torture. States that the Secretary of Commerce should continue to enforce the current restrictions on the export of crime control equipment pursuant to the Export Administration Act of 1979. Directs the heads of U.S. departments that furnish military and law enforcement training to foreign personnel to include in such training instruction regarding international human rights standards with respect to torture.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 1984
Congratulates and commends the United States of America Philharmonic Society for its work on behalf of the Nation's young musicians and its commitment to furthering better understanding among peoples of all nations through the language of music.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 1984
Congratulates and commends the USA Philharmonic Society for its work on behalf of the Nation's young musicians and its commitment to furthering better understanding among peoples of all nations through the language of music.
![Official portrait of Sen. Cranston, Alan [D-CA]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/c000877_200.jpg)