United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2000
Colorado Ute Settlement Act Amendments of 2000 - Amends the Colorado Ute Indian Water Rights Settlement Act of 1988 to authorize the Secretary of the Interior, in order to settle the outstanding claims of the Ute Indian tribes on the Animas and La Plata Rivers in Colorado and acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, to: (1) complete construction of, operate, and maintain a reservoir, pumping plant, reservoir inlet conduit, and appurtenant facilities to divert and store water from the Animas River to provide a municipal and industrial water supply (the Project); and (2) deliver through the use of such components, specified municipal and industrial water allocations to the San Juan Water Commission, Animas-La Plata Conservancy District, State of Colorado, La Plata Conservancy District of New Mexico, Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute tribes, and Navajo Nation. Provides that construction costs required to deliver each tribe's water allocation shall be nonreimbursable. Sets forth provisions regarding defenses to challenges of environmental impact statements and biological opinions with respect to provision of water to the Ute tribes and compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act, Federal Water Pollution Control Act, and Endangered Species Act of 1973. Requires the Secretary, upon request of the State Engineer of New Mexico, to assign to the New Mexico Project beneficiaries or the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission any portion of Department of the Interior interests under a specified permit in order to fulfill the New Mexico purposes of the Project, so long as the assignment does not affect the application of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to the use of the water. Authorizes the Secretary to construct a water line to augment the existing system that conveys municipal water supplies to the Navajo Indian Reservation at Shiprock, New Mexico. Makes construction costs for the water line nonreimbursable. Authorizes appropriations to the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Tribal Resource Funds. Requires the Secretary to establish such Funds. Provides for disbursement of Fund monies in accordance with approved natural resource acquisition and enhancement plans. Establishes the Colorado Ute Settlement Fund in the Treasury and authorizes appropriations to the Fund to complete the construction of Project facilities. Requires the construction of facilities, allocation of water supply to the Indian tribes, and provision of funds under this Act to constitute final settlement of tribal claims to water rights on the Animas and La Plata Rivers.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2000
Nuclear Weapons Complex Conversion Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of Energy to expand and enhance the activities under the Nuclear Cities Initiative (Initiative) so as to: (1) assist the Russian Federation in the downsizing of its nuclear complex; and (2) coordinate such downsizing with other U.S. nuclear nonproliferation programs. Requires the Secretary, in carrying out such actions, to: (1) facilitate the enhanced use of the technology, research and development services of the Russia Ministry of Atomic Energy; and (2) accelerate the Initiative by implementing programs at specified Russian cities in which nuclear weapons facilities exist in order to convert significant portions of activities from military to civilian activities. Urges the President to enter into negotiations with the Russian Federation for the Federation's development of a plan to restructure its nuclear complex in order to meet changes in Russian nuclear security requirements by 2010. Directs the Secretary to carry out a program to encourage students in the United States and the Russian Federation to pursue careers in nonproliferation. Authorizes appropriations. Expresses the sense of Congress that availability of Initiative funds after FY 2001 should be contingent upon: (1) demonstrable progress in enhancing and accelerating Initiative activities; and (2) the development and implementation of Russia's nuclear restructuring plan. Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) there should be a National Coordinator for Nonproliferation Matters to coordinate various Federal nonproliferation programs, including the Initiative; and (2) such Coordinator position should be similar to the Coordinator position filled by the President under the Defense Against Weapons of Mass Destruction Act of 1996.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2000
Authorizes presentation of a gold medal on behalf of Congress to former President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy Reagan. Authorizes specified sums to be charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund for medal costs. Mandates that sale proceeds from duplicate bronze medals be deposited into such Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2000
Pope John Paul II Congressional Gold Medal Act - Authorizes the presentation of a gold medal to Pope John Paul II in recognition of his outstanding and enduring contributions to humanity. Authorizes appropriations. Mandates that proceeds from duplicate bronze medal sales be deposited in the U.S. Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2000
King and Tsiorvas Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to: (1) implement the oil and gas pipeline safety improvement recommendations provided for in the Department of Transportation (DOT) Inspector General's Report (RT-2000-069); and (2) report every 90 days to specified congressional committees on the specific actions taken to implement them. Requires the DOT Inspector General to assess periodically for the same committees the Secretary's progress in doing so. (Sec. 3) Directs the Secretary, the Administrator of Research and Special Program Administration, and the Director of the Office of Pipeline Safety to: (1) comply fully with certain Federal transportation law requirements to ensure timely responsiveness to National Transportation Safety Board recommendations about pipeline safety; (2) make a copy of each recommendation on pipeline safety and response available to the public at reasonable cost; and (3) report annually to Congress on each pipeline safety recommendation made by the Board during the prior year, and a copy of the response to each such recommendation. (Sec. 4) Requires each pipeline operator to submit to the Secretary a training plan designed to enhance training (and periodic retraining) for pipeline personnel and reduce the likelihood of accidents and injuries. Requires the plan to include criteria to demonstrate an individual's ability to safely and properly perform assigned tasks. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) review the submitted plans, initially and on a continuing basis, to determine if they are sufficient to provide a safe operating environment; and (2) establish minimum standards for operators to include in such plans. (Sec. 5) Requires the Secretary to issue regulations requiring pipeline operators to: (1) periodically determine the adequacy of pipelines to operate safely in unusually sensitive areas and high-density population areas; and (2) perform periodic inspections or tests capable of identifying corrosion, mechanical damage, or other structural or operational defects that could be detrimental to safety and the environment. (Sec. 6) Amends Federal transportation law to grant shutdown authority to the Secretary to take necessary action to prevent the operation for 30 days (including additional 30-day periods) of any hazardous liquid or natural gas pipeline whose continuing operation creates an imminent safety hazard to persons, property, or the environment. (Sec. 7) Revises the public education program requirements for gas pipeline facility owners or operators. Applies such requirements to owners or operators of a hazardous liquid pipeline facility. Includes among the items for public education: (1) damage prevention activities in addition to the use of a one-call notification system before excavation; (2) the physical indications that an unintended release may have occurred; (3) what steps should be taken for public safety in the event of a pipeline release; (4) how to report such an event; and (5) activities to advise municipalities, school districts, businesses, and residents of pipeline facility locations. Repeals the specific requirement of education on the importance of reporting gas odors to the appropriate authority. Requires submission to and review of such programs by the Secretary. Requires pipeline facility owners and operators to review their public education programs annually and make necessary revisions. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) issue standards prescribing the elements of an effective public education program; and (2) provide technical assistance to the pipeline industry on developing public safety and public education program content and best practices for program delivery, and on evaluating program effectiveness. Requires an operator of a gas transmission or hazardous liquid pipeline facility to initiate and maintain liaison with the State emergency response commissions, and local emergency planning committees (or local fire, police, and other emergency response agencies in the absence of a committee) in the areas of pipeline right-of-way, established under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act of 1986 in each State in which it operates. Requires the operator, when requested, to make specified information available to such State emergency response commissions and local emergency planning committees. Requires the owner or operator of each gas or hazardous liquid pipeline facility to provide annually to the governing body of each municipality in which the pipeline facility is located a map identifying the facility's location. Requires the Secretary to make available to the public any safety-related condition report and any report of a pipeline incident filed by an operator. (Sec. 8) Increases from $25,000 to $100,000 the civil penalty for each facility operator failure to: (1) mark accurately the location of pipeline facilities in the vicinity of a demolition, excavation, tunneling, or construction; or (2) comply with safety standards, prepare and carry out an inspection and maintenance plan, allow access to records, or allow required entries or inspections. Increases the maximum civil penalty for a related series of violations to $1 million. (Sec. 9) Authorizes the Secretary, if a State pipeline safety program certification is accepted, to make an agreement with a State authority authorizing it to participate in the oversight of interstate pipeline transportation, including a plan for the State authority to participate in special investigations involving new construction or incidents, as well as (subject to specified requirements) other activities overseeing interstate pipeline transportation that supplement the Secretary's program and address issues of local concern. Allows the Secretary to end an agreement for the oversight of interstate pipeline transportation when significant gaps are found in the State authority's regulatory authority over intrastate pipeline transportation, or when the State authority's continued participation in the oversight of interstate pipeline transportation: (1) is found inconsistent with the Secretary's program; (2) would adversely affect oversight of intrastate pipeline transportation; or (3) the State is not promoting activities that enable communities to live safely with pipelines. (Sec. 10) Directs the Secretary to develop and implement a comprehensive plan for the collection and use of gas and hazardous liquid pipeline data to revise the causal categories on the accident report forms to eliminate overlapping and confusing categories and include subcategories. Requires the plan to include components to provide the capability to perform sound accident trend analysis and evaluations of pipeline operator performance using normalized accident data. (Sec. 11) Requires the Secretary, as part of the DOT research and development program, to direct research attention to the development of alternative technologies: (1) to expand the defect detection capabilities of internal inspection devices; (2) to inspect pipelines that cannot accommodate internal inspection devices available on the date of enactment; and (3) to develop innovative techniques measuring the structural integrity of pipelines. (Sec. 12) Authorizes appropriations with respect to gas and hazardous liquid and State grants. Requires the transfer of specified amounts from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund to carry out authorized programs.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2000
State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) Preservation Act of 2000 - Requires amounts allotted to a State under title XXI (Children's Health Insurance) of the Social Security Act for FY 1998 and 1999 to remain available through FY 2002, notwithstanding a specified time limitation on the availability of such amounts.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 2000
Honoring the Navajo Code Talkers Act - Authorizes the President to: (1) present to each of the original twenty-nine Navajo Code Talkers or a surviving family member, on behalf of Congress, a gold medal honoring the Navajo Code Talkers; and (2) award to each man who qualified as a Navajo Code Talker (MOS 642) or a surviving family member a silver medal. Provides that such medals are to express recognition by the United States and its citizens in honoring the Navajo Code Talkers who distinguished themselves in performing a unique, highly successful communications operation that greatly assisted in saving countless lives and in hastening the end of World War II in the Pacific. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell bronze duplicates. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 2000
Breast Cancer Research Stamp Reauthorization Act of 2000 - Amends the Stamp Out Breast Cancer Act to extend for an additional two years the authority under which postal patrons may contribute to funding for breast cancer research through the voluntary purchase of certain specially issued U.S. postage stamps.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2000
Conservation Reserve Program Tax Fairness Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat conservation reserve program payments as real estate rentals for self-employment earnings purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 31 March 2000
Sets forth the congressional budget for the Government for FY 2001, including the appropriate budgetary levels for FY 2002 through 2005 and the revised budgetary levels for FY 2000. Title I: Levels and Amounts - Lists recommended budgetary levels and amounts, for FY 2001 through 2005 (and revised levels and amounts for FY 2000), with respect to: (1) Federal revenues; (2) new budget authority; (3) budget outlays; (4) deficits; (5) public debt; and (6) debt held by the public. (Sec. 102) Sets forth for such fiscal years specified amounts of revenues and outlays of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund, including amounts of new budget authority and outlays for administrative expenses. (Sec. 103) Lists the appropriate levels of new budget authority and budget outlays for specified major functional categories for FY 2001 through 2005 (and revised levels for FY 2000). (Sec. 104) Requires the Senate Finance Committee to report to the Senate a reconciliation bill proposing changes in laws within its jurisdiction to reduce revenues by specified amounts in FY 2001 and the period of FY 2001 through 2005. Title II: Budgetary Restraints and Rulemaking - Makes it out of order in the House of Representatives or the Senate to consider any revision to this or any other concurrent budget resolution (or an amendment or conference report) that sets forth a deficit for any fiscal year. Makes such point of order inapplicable if: (1) the most recent of the Department of Commerce's advance, preliminary, or final reports of real economic growth indicate that the rate of real economic growth for the most recently reported quarter and immediately preceding quarter is less than one percent; or (2) a declaration of war is in effect. Provides that if the social security surplus in any fiscal year is used to finance general Federal Government operations, such amount shall be deducted from the available amount of discretionary spending for the following fiscal year for purposes of any concurrent budget resolution. Waives or suspends the point of order under this section in the Senate only by an affirmative three-fifths majority vote. Requires the same majority to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair on such point of order. (Sec. 202) Authorizes the adjustment of spending aggregates and other budgetary levels and limits and revision of allocations in the Senate for legislation reported by the Finance Committee to provide a prescription drug benefit for FY 2001 through 2003, provided the legislation will not reduce the on-budget surplus by a total of $20 billion during these years and will not cause an on-budget deficit. Requires such adjustments to be made for legislation or an amendment that provides prescription drug coverage if the Finance Committee has not reported such legislation before September 1, 2000. Authorizes the Chairman of the Budget Committee (Chairman), if legislation is reported by the Finance Committee that extends the solvency of the Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund without the use of transfers of new subsidies from the general fund, decreasing beneficiaries' access to health care, and excluding the cost of extending and modifying the prescription drug benefit described above, to change committee allocations and spending aggregates by up to $20 billion total for FY 2004 and 2005 to fund such benefit if such legislation will not cause an on-budget deficit. (Sec. 203) Permits the Chairman, whenever the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee reports a bill (or an amendment or conference report is submitted) that provides additional resources for counties and complies with this section, to increase the allocation of budget authority (and resulting outlays to that committee by the amount) provided by such legislation, with limitations. Provides that legislation complies if it provides for the stabilization of receipt-based payments to counties that support school and road systems and provides that a portion of those payments would be dedicated toward local investments in Federal lands within the counties. (Sec. 204) Authorizes the appropriate Budget Committee Chairman, if the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry reports a bill before June 29, 2000 (or an amendment or conference report is submitted), that provides assistance for producers of program and specialty crops and enhancements for agriculture conservation that does not cause a specified net increase in budget authority and outlays, to increase the allocation of budget authority (and resulting outlays to that committee by the amount) provided by such legislation, with limitations. (Sec. 205) Authorizes the Chairman to reduce spending and revenue aggregates and revise committee allocations for legislation that reduces revenues if such legislation will not increase the deficit or decrease the surplus for FY 2001 or for the period of FY 2001 through 2005. (Sec. 206) Requires the: (1) Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to update its economic and budget outlook for FY 2001 through 2010 by July 1, 2000; and (2) appropriate Budget Committee Chairman to make certain budget adjustments if such update estimates a budget surplus that exceeds the surplus set forth in the CBO's March 2000 outlook. (Sec. 207) Directs the Chairman, if the reconciliation legislation provided for in section 104 or the Medicare legislation provided for in section 202 of this resolution does not become law by October 1, 2000, to make certain adjustments to the pay-as-you-go scorecard and the level of debt held by the public set forth in this resolution. (Sec. 208) Provides that the criteria to be considered in determining whether a proposed expenditure or tax change is an emergency requirement in legislation are whether it is: (1) necessary, essential, or vital; (2) sudden, quickly coming into being, and not building up over time; (3) an urgent, pressing, and compelling need requiring immediate action; (4) unforeseen, unpredictable, and unanticipated; and (5) not permanent, temporary in nature. Requires a committee report or the statement of managers to justify why a requirement should be accorded emergency status if it does not meet such criteria. Strikes emergency requirements in legislation under consideration in the Senate when a point of order is sustained against such requirements. Waives or suspends such point of order only by an affirmative three-fifths majority vote. Requires the same majority to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair. (Sec. 209) Requires the appropriate Budget Committee chairman, if legislation becomes law that increases the discretionary spending limit for FY 2001 set out in the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act), to increase a specified allocation called for in the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to the appropriate Appropriations Committee. Prohibits such allocation from exceeding the total budget authority and outlays set forth under such Act. (Sec. 210) Provides a point of order in the Senate against consideration of legislation that exceeds certain discretionary spending limits in the defense and nondefense categories for FY 2001. Makes this section inapplicable if a declaration of war is in effect. Waives or suspends such point of order only by an affirmative three-fifths majority vote. Requires the same majority to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair. (Sec. 211) Provides a point of order in the Senate against consideration of legislation or motions that provide an appropriation of new budget authority for any fiscal year: (1) after the budget year that exceeds a specified amount; and (2) subsequent to the year after the budget year. Makes a point of order in the Senate against consideration of legislation (with exceptions) or motions that contain an appropriation of new budget authority for any fiscal year which does not become available upon the later of enactment of such legislation or the first day of that fiscal year. Waives or suspends such points of order only by an affirmative three-fifths majority vote. Requires the same majority to sustain an appeal of the ruling of the Chair. Terminates this section on October 1, 2002. (Sec. 212) Provides that for purposes of points of order of this resolution and the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974, provisions contained in legislation, amendments, or motions that affect any surplus funds of the Federal reserve banks shall not be scored with respect to the levels of budget authority, outlays, or revenues contained in such legislation. (Sec. 213) Provides that provisions contained in an appropriations bill (or related amendment or conference report) that result in increased revenues shall continue not to be scored with respect to the level of budget authority or outlays in such legislation for purposes of points of order under this resolution and the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974. (Sec. 214) Provides for the application and effect of changes in allocations and aggregates made pursuant to this resolution. (Sec. 215) Authorizes the Chairman, whenever the Finance Committee reports a bill (or an amendment or conference report is submitted) that facilitates children with disabilities receiving health care at home and finances health programs designed to allow such children to access the health services they need to remain at home while allowing their families to become or remain employed, to increase the spending aggregate and allocation of budget authority (and resulting outlays) to that committee by the amount provided by such legislation, with limitations. Title III: Sense of the Senate Provisions - Expresses the sense of the Senate with respect to: (1) funding international tuberculosis control efforts; (2) tax relief for parents and funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant; (3) tax relief for college tuition and interest paid on student loans; (4) increased funding for the National Institutes of Health; (5) funding for elementary and secondary education being in proportion to levels authorized in the Educational Opportunities Act; (6) elimination of wasted Federal expenditures and the use of revenue for tax relief or debt reduction; (7) the skilled nursing benefit and Medicare; (8) full funding as discretionary programs of certain conservation, historic preservation, and wildlife programs and funds; (9) increased appropriations for veterans' medical care; (10) educational impact aid; (11) raised acreage limits under the Conservation and Wetlands Reserve Programs; (12) tax simplification; (13) antitrust enforcement regarding agriculture mergers and anticompetitive activity; (14) trade support for American farmers; (15) the effects of social security reform on women; (16) full funding for programs established by the Violence Against Women Act of 1994; (17) the use of the False Claims Act to combat Medicare fraud; (18) funding for the National Guard; (19) protection of the defense readiness accounts; (20) compensation for the Chinese Embassy bombing in Belgrade; (21) access to information technologies and information technology training to address the digital divide; (22) funding for immunization grants; (23) tax credits for small businesses that provide health insurance to low-income employees; (24) funding for certain criminal justice programs; (25) Pell Grant funding; (26) public education reform; (27) funding for U.S. international leadership; (28) the HIV-AIDS epidemic; and (29) funding for tribal colleges.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2000
Expresses support for a National Moment of Remembrance at 3:00 p.m. eastern standard time on each Memorial Day in honor of the men and women of the United States who died in the pursuit of freedom and peace.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2000
Recognizes the unique role of the Indian Tribes and their members in the United States. Commemorates the vision and leadership of President Nixon, and every succeeding President, in fostering the policy of Indian Self-Determination.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 2000
2002 Winter Olympic Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue five dollar gold coins and one dollar silver coins emblematic of the participation of American athletes in the 2002 Olympic Winter Games. Mandates that coin design be selected by the Secretary after consultation with: (1) the Commission of Fine Arts; (2) the United States Olympic Committee; and (3) Olympic Properties of the United States-Salt Lake 2002 (created and owned by the Salt Lake Organizing Committee). States that all surcharges from the coin sales ($35 for a $5 coin and $10 for a $1 coin) shall be distributed by the Secretary to: (1) Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the Olympic Winter Games of 2002; and (2) the United States Olympic Committee.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 2000
Family Opportunity Act of 2000 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) give States the option of allowing families of disabled children to purchase Medicaid coverage for such children; and (2) provide for treatment of inpatient psychiatric hospital services for individuals under age 21 under waivers allowing for payment for part or all of the cost of home or community-based services. Authorizes a State to apply to the Secretary of Health and Human Services for approval of a demonstration project to provide Medicaid coverage to up to a specified maximum number of children with a potentially severe disability. Amends SSA title V (Maternal and Child Health Services) to make appropriations to the Secretary for special projects of regional and national significance for development and support of family-to-family health information centers.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2000
Marginal Well Preservation Act of 2000 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to set forth provisions relating to domestic oil and gas production which: (1) establish a credit for producing oil and gas from marginal wells; and (2) permit a taxpayer to expense geological and geophysical expenditures and to delay rental payments in connection with oil and gas development.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2000
Organ Procurement Organization Certification Act of 2000 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to add to the list of requirements to be met by qualified organ procurement organizations that an organization has been certified or recertified by the Secretary of Health and Human Services within the previous four-year period as meeting performance standards. Requires certification or recertification to be made through a process that either granted certification or recertification with such certification or recertification in effect as of January 1, 2000, and remaining in effect through the earlier of January 1, 2002, or the completion of recertification under regulations promulgated by the Secretary, or that is defined through regulations promulgated by January 1, 2002, that: (1) require recertifications of such organizations no more frequently than once every four years; (2) rely on outcome and process performance measures that are based on empirical evidence of organ donor potential and other related factors in each service area of such organizations; (3) use multiple outcome measures as part of the certification process; (4) provide for filing and approval of a corrective action plan by an organization that fails to meet performance standards and a grace period of up to three years to implement the plan without risk of decertification; and (5) provide for a qualified organization to appeal a decertification to the Secretary on substantive and procedural grounds.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2000
National Museum of the American Indian Commemorative Coin Act of 2000, or American Buffalo Coin Commemorative Coin Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue a maximum of 500,000 $1 dollar coins in commemoration of the opening of the Museum of the American Indian of the Smithsonian Institution. Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States Mint Facility in Denver, Colorado, should strike such coins unless the Secretary determines that it would be technically or cost-prohibitive. Mandates that the proceeds from sales surcharges be paid promptly to the National Museum of the American Indian of the Smithsonian Institution to: (1) commemorate the opening of the Museum; and (2)supplement the Museum's endowment and educational outreach funds. Subjects the Museum to certain Federal audit requirements. Instructs the Secretary to take actions to ensure that coin minting and issuance will not result in any net cost to the Government.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2000
Arctic Coastal Plain Domestic Energy Security Act of 2000 - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Land Management, to: (1) establish and implement a competitive oil and gas leasing program for the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas resources in the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (Alaska); (2) ensure that such program does not result in significant adverse effects upon either fish, wildlife, or the environment; and (3) ensure receipt of fair market value by the public for the mineral resources to be leased. (Sec. 3) Amends the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 to repeal the proscription against the leasing or development for oil or gas production on the Coastal Plain. Declares that: (1) Congress has determined that such oil and gas leasing activities are compatible with the purposes for which the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge was established; and (2) no further findings or decisions are required. Authorizes the Secretary to designate up to a total of 45,000 acres of the Coastal Plain as Special Areas closed to leasing, but within which the Secretary may permit: (1) restrictive lease terms with respect to surface use and occupancy; and (2) the use of horizontal drilling technology from sites located outside the designated Special Areas. States that this Act constitutes the Secretary's sole authority to close lands to oil and gas exploration and production within the Coastal Plain. Directs the Secretary to convey: (1) the surface estate of specified Coastal Plain lands to the Kaktovik Inupiat Corporation; and (2) the subsurface estate beneath such surface estate to the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation. (Sec. 6) Prescribes procedural guidelines for lease sales on the Coastal Plain, including lease terms, conditions, and bonding requirements. Provides for expedited judicial review in the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia with respect to actions of the Secretary. (Sec. 12) Directs the Secretary to grant rights of way and easements across the Coastal Plain for oil and gas transportation. Mandates that all revenues received by the Federal Government from competitive transactions and charges derived from Coastal Plain oil and gas leasing be deposited into the Treasury. Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to pay semiannually to the State of Alaska the same percentage of such revenues as is set forth in specified law.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 2000
Sets a three-year term of office for the first person appointed as Under Secretary for Nuclear Security of the Department of Energy. Makes inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office the exclusive reasons for removing such person from office.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 2000
Amends the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century to prohibit the Secretary of Transportation from distributing obligation authority, for each of FY 2001 through 2003, for amounts authorized for Indian reservation roads under the Federal Lands Highway Program.
United States · United States Congress · 22 February 2000
Social Security Earnings Test Elimination Act of 2000 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to repeal the limitation on the amount of outside income which beneficiaries who have attained retirement age may earn (earnings test) without incurring a reduction in benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 22 February 2000
Authorizes the President to present, on behalf of Congress, a gold medal to John Cardinal O'Connor, Archbishop of New York, in recognition of his accomplishments as a priest, a soldier, and a humanitarian. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell bronze duplicates. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2000
Indian Tribal Development Consolidated Funding Act of 2000 - Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to select up to 24 Indian tribes per fiscal year to participate in projects to foster community, economic, and business development in Native American communities through grants or other financial assistance provided through Federal programs or projects. Directs the President to promulgate regulations to carry out this Act and to ensure it is applied and implemented by all executive agencies. Outlines procedures for processing requests for joint financing (financing by at least two Federal assistance programs). Authorizes the establishment of a joint assistance fund to ensure that amounts received from more than one Federal program or appropriation are more effectively administered. Provides for the financial management, accountability, and audits of the use of financial assistance provided. Authorizes the provision of technical assistance and personnel training under a project approved for joint financing. Authorizes the head of an executive agency to enter into an agreement with a State to extend the benefits of this Act to a project that involves assistance from at least one executive agency and at least one tribal agency or instrumentality. Requires an implementation report from the President to Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2000
Electric Reliability 2000 Act - Amends the Federal Power Act to provide for the establishment and enforcement of mandatory reliability standards to ensure the reliable operation of the bulk-power system. Grants the Federal Energy Regulatory Corporation (FERC) jurisdiction, for purposes of approving and enforcing compliance with standards in the United States, over: (1) the electric reliability organization; (2) all Affiliated Regional Reliability Entities (entities to which authority has been delegated to enforce compliance with reliability standards); (3) all system operators; and (4) all users of the bulk-power system. Provides that, prior to the establishment of the Electric Reliability Organization (Organization), any person (including the North American Electric Reliability Council and its member Regional Reliability Councils) may file a proposed reliability standard, guidance, or practice which, subject to FERC approval, shall be mandatory and enforceable. Prescribes procedural guidelines for FERC approval of: (1) applications competing for status as the Electric Reliability Council; and (2) Organization standards. Requires all 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 to provide for the effectiveness of the Organization's mission. Requires every system operator to be a member of the Organization and of any Affiliated Regional Reliability Entity operating under an agreement applicable to the region in which the system operator operates or is responsible for the operation of a bulk-power system facility. Empowers the Organization to take disciplinary and enforcement action. Directs the Organization to assess periodically the reliability and adequacy of the inter-connected bulk-power system in North America, and to report its findings and recommendations annually to FERC and to the Secretary. Provides for the assessment and recovery of implementation and enforcement costs incurred by the Organization and each Affiliated Regional Reliability Entity, respectively. Sets forth antitrust defenses for activities undertaken by the Organization, its members, or members of an affiliated regional reliability entity. Instructs FERC to establish a regional advisory body on the petition of the Governors of at least two-thirds of the States within a region that have more than one- half of their electrical loads served within the region. Restricts such body to the 48 contiguous States.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2000
Radio Broadcasting Preservation Act of 2000 - Prohibits the Federal Communications Commission from prescribing any rules authorizing the operation of new, low power FM radio stations, or establishing a low power radio service, as currently proposed. Terminates previously prescribed rules which would violate such prohibition and voids licenses issued pursuant to such rules.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2000
Authorizes the President to present, on behalf of Congress, a congressional gold medal to Charles M. Schulz in recognition of his lasting artistic contributions to the Nation and the world. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell bronze duplicates. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2000
Recognizes the 50th anniversary of the Korean War, and expresses the gratitude of the American people for the service of members of the armed forces during such War.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2000
New Mexico Community Land Grant Review Act - Requires: (1) the Department of Justice, if the General Accounting Office concludes in its report to the President and Congress on implementation by the United States of the provisions of the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo pertaining to the protection of community land grant claims in New Mexico that U.S. obligations under the Treaty regarding the protection of the community land grant rights do not appear to have been met, to prepare for the President a list of alternative methods for remedying such problem; and (2) the President to submit to Congress recommendations for resolving these claims. Declares that in no event shall these recommendations include the divestiture of private property rights.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2000
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Authorization and Improvements Act of 2000 - Amends the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to repeal the mandate for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to maintain an office in the District of Columbia for the service of process. (Sec. 4) Restricts the initial duration of a combined construction and operating license to 40 years from the date on which the NRC finds that certain acceptance criteria have been met prior to facility operation. (Sec. 5) Limits to production facilities only the current prohibition against granting either a commercial license or a medical therapy and research and development license to an alien or a corporation or other entity under foreign ownership or domination (thus allowing such licenses for utilization and other kinds of facilities). (Sec. 6) Shields from NRC antitrust scrutiny certain industrial and commercial license applications to construct or operate utilization facilities. (Sec. 7) Confers gift acceptance authority upon the NRC. Establishes the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Fund to accept gifts or net proceeds of gift sales. (Sec. 8) Authorizes the NRC to authorize employees of NRC licensees to carry firearms for the protection of licensee property designated of significance to or necessary in the interest of the common defense and security. (Sec. 9) Authorizes the NRC to prescribe and collect cost recovery fees from other Federal agencies. (Sec. 12) Encompasses within NRC police powers: (1) installations subject to its licensing or certification authority; (2) facilities for storage, treatment, or disposal; and (3) facilities for production, utilization, waste storage, treatment and disposal, and uranium enrichment, or nuclear fuel fabrication. (Sec. 14) Directs the NRC to promulgate requirements to ensure that a non-licensee complies fully with any nuclear decommissioning obligation. (Sec. 15) Amends the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 to provide for continuation of service until a successor has taken office of an NRC member whose term of office has expired. (Sec. 16) Amends the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 to prohibit commencement of administrative or judicial actions regarding source, special nuclear, or byproduct material that is subject to NRC or State-issued decontamination regulations unless the action is pursuant to NRC or State request. (Sec. 17) Authorizes appropriations for FY2001, including those for the Office of Inspector General of the NRC.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2000
Amends the Internal Revenue Code (as amended by the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999) to repeal revisions to the Code (made by the Act) which repealed the use of the installment method of accounting for accrual method taxpayers and modified the pledge rules of installment obligations.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2000
Recognizes May 15, 2000, as Peace Officers Memorial Day, in honor of Federal, State, and local law enforcement officers killed or disabled in the line of duty.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1999
Milton Friedman Congressional Gold Medal Act - Authorizes the President to present, on behalf of the Congress, a gold medal to Milton Friedman in recognition of his outstanding and enduring contributions to individual freedom and opportunity in American society through his exhaustive research and teaching of economics and his extensive writings on economics and public policy. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell bronze duplicates of such national medal. Requires proceeds to be deposited in the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 1999
Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, to study and report to Congress on the most feasible method of developing a safe and adequate municipal, rural, and industrial water supply for the residents of the Jicarilla Apache Indian Reservation in New Mexico. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999
John H. Chafee Environmental Education Act of 1999 - Amends the National Environmental Education Act to rename it the John H. Chafee Environmental Education Act (the Act). (Sec. 2) Requires the Office of Environmental Education (OEE), within the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to: (1) develop and support balanced and scientifically sound programs; and (2) provide for implementation of the Act through the headquarters and regional offices of the EPA. Eliminates provisions for: (1) OEE administration of environmental internship and fellowship programs (internship programs are eliminated and fellowship program administration is transferred elsewhere later in this Act); (2) an OEE Director who is a member of the Senior Executive Service; and (3) a minimum of six full-time equivalent employees on the OEE headquarters staff (retains the maximum of ten). Authorizes the EPA Administrator to carry out OEE activities directly or through awards of grants, cooperative agreements, or contracts. (Sec. 3) Revises provisions for environmental education grants to decrease from 25 to 15 percent the portion of grant funds which must be used for grants of $5,000 or less. Prohibits environmental education grants from being used to support lobbying activities. Requires the EPA Science Advisory Board to review and approve the guidance before the EPA Administrator issues any guidance to grant applicants. (Sec. 4) Establishes the John H. Chafee Memorial Fellowship Program for the award and administration of five annual one-year graduate education fellowships in environmental sciences. (Eliminates provisions for OEE-administered environmental internships and fellowships.) Provides that such Fellowships are to stimulate innovative graduate level study and the development of expertise in complex, relevant, and important environmental issues and effective approaches to addressing those issues through organized programs of guided independent study and environmental research. Requires each $25,000 Fellowship to be made available to individual candidates through a sponsoring institution of higher education and an annual competitive selection process. Requires each Fellowship to focus on: (1) effective land and resource management; (2) innovative open space preservation; (3) science associated with such worldwide issues as global climate change and sustainable marine resources; or (4) any other issue that a sponsoring institution determines to be appropriate. Requires annual awards of two Fellowships by the University of Rhode Island. Allows three annual Fellowships to be applied for through any other sponsoring institution. Directs the National Environmental Learning Foundation (as renamed in this Act) to establish and administer the John H. Chafee Fellowship Panel to establish selection process criteria, receive and review applications, and select Fellowship recipients. Requires that Panel members with specified qualifications be appointed by a majority vote of the National Environmental Education Advisory Council. Directs the Foundation to make specified amounts available for such Fellowships and administrative expenses of the Fellowship Program. (Sec. 5) Revises provisions for national environmental education awards. Retains and revises provisions for: (1) President's Environmental Youth Awards; and (2) environmental education awards for elementary and secondary school teachers and their local educational agencies. (Eliminates provisions for awards named for Theodore Roosevelt, Henry David Thoreau, Rachel Carson, and Gifford Pinchot.) (Sec. 6) Revises provisions for the National Environmental Education Advisory Council and for the Federal Task Force on Environmental Education. Directs the EPA Administrator to appoint at least one Advisory Council member to represent each of the following sectors: (1) elementary schools and secondary schools; (2) colleges and universities; (3) not-for-profit organizations involved in environmental education; (4) State departments of education and natural resources; (5) business and industry; and (6) senior citizens. Revises requirements for Advisory Council meetings and reports. Opens membership on the Task Force to representatives of any Federal agency actively engaged in environmental education. (Sec. 7) Renames the National Environmental Education and Training Foundation as the National Environmental Learning Foundation. Increases the number of director's on the Foundation's Board. Allows the Foundation to acknowledge receipt of donations by listing the names of donors in materials it distributes, but prohibits such acknowledgment from: (1) appearing in educational material presented to students; or (2) identifying a donor by means of a logo, letterhead, or other corporate commercial symbol, slogan, or product. Eliminates a time limit on the EPA Administrator's provision of administrative services and support to the Foundation. (Sec. 8) Extends through FY 2005 the authorization of appropriations to EPA to carry out the Act, with specified portions for: (1) OEE activities; (2) the environmental education and training program; (3) environmental education grants; and (4) Foundation activities. Directs the EPA Administrator to submit an annual report to Congress on the activities for which such funds were expended.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1999
Vietnam Veterans Recognition Act of 1999 - Authorizes the American Battle Monuments Commission to place within the Vietnam Veterans Memorial a plaque to honor Vietnam veterans who died after service in the Vietnam War, but as a direct result of such service, and whose names are not otherwise eligible for placement on the Memorial wall.
United States · United States Congress · 9 November 1999
Title I: Valles Caldera National Preserve and Trust - Valles Caldera Preservation Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to acquire all or part of the Baca ranch in New Mexico. Requires the Secretary of the Interior, upon acquisition of the Baca ranch, to assume administrative jurisdiction over those lands within the boundaries of the Bandelier National Monument. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Forest Service, to: (1) prepare a report of management alternatives which may provide more coordinated land management within the Lower Alamo watershed, allow for improved management of elk and other wildlife populations ranging between the Santa Fe National Forest and the Bandelier National Monument, and include proposed boundary adjustments between such Forest and Monument to facilitate those objectives; and (2) submit the report to specified congressional committees. Makes the acquisition of the ranch subject to all outstanding valid existing mineral interests. Authorizes and directs the Secretary to negotiate the acquisition of any fractional interest in the subsurface estate on a willing seller basis for up to the appraised fair market value. Authorizes the Secretary to assign to the Pueblo of Santa Clara rights to acquire for fair market value portions of the Baca ranch. (Sec. 105) Establishes: (1) upon the date of acquisition of the Baca ranch, the Valles Caldera National Preserve as a unit of the National Forest System; and (2) the Valles Caldera Trust, as a wholly owned Government corporation, to provide management and administrative services for the Preserve and for other specified purposes. (Sec. 107) Requires the Trust: (1) to be governed by a nine member Board of Trustees; and (2) to manage the land and resources of the Preserve, subject to specified requirements, including development of a comprehensive program for the management of lands, resources, and facilities within the Preserve. Authorizes the Trust to construct and upgrade roads and bridges and provide other facilities for recreational activities. Directs that the public be given reasonable access to the Preserve for recreation purposes. (Sec. 109) Sets forth provisions regarding authorities of the Secretary, termination of the Trust, and funding limitations. (Sec. 111) Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 112) Requires the General Accounting Office to conduct an interim study, and a subsequent study, of the activities of the Trust. Provides for a report to Congress of study results. Title II: Federal Land Transaction Facilitation - Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act - Directs the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture to: (1) establish a procedure to identify, by State, inholdings within federally designated areas in Alaska and the 11 contiguous western States for which the landowner has indicated a desire to sell the land or an interest in land to the Federal Government and to establish the date upon which the land or interest in land identified became an inholding; and (2) provide in the Federal Register and through other means as deemed appropriate periodic notice to the public of such policy, including any information to consider an inholding for acquisition. Provides that an inholding shall be considered for identification only if the appropriate Secretary receives notification of a desire to sell from the owner in response to such a notice and shall be deemed to have been established as of the later of the earlier of the date on which the land was withdrawn from the public domain or established or designated for special management, or the date on which the inholding was acquired by the current owner. Directs the Secretary to establish a program, using funds from a Federal Land Disposal Account of the Treasury established by this Act, to complete appraisals and satisfy other legal requirements for the sale or exchange of public land identified for disposal under approved land use plans. Sets forth reporting and program termination requirements. Requires that gross proceeds generated by the sale or exchange of public land under this Act be deposited in the Federal Land Disposal Account. Sets forth provisions regarding use of the Account, contaminated sites and sites difficult and uneconomic to manage, and program termination.
United States · United States Congress · 8 November 1999
Entitles to an annuity under either the Civil Service Retirement System or the Federal Employee Retirement System a military reserve technician who is separated from service as a technician after either: (1) becoming 50 years of age and completing 20 years of such service; or (2) completing 25 years of such service.
United States · United States Congress · 8 November 1999
Designates November 11, 1999, as a special day for: (1) recognizing and welcoming home the members of the armed forces and the civilian personnel of the United States who participated in the operations in Kosovo and the Balkans, including combat operations and humanitarian assistance operations; and (2) remembering the members of the armed forces deployed in Kosovo and throughout the world and their families.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 1999
America's Law Enforcement and Mental Health Project - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize the Attorney General to make grants to States, State courts, local courts, units of local government, and Indian tribal governments, acting directly or through agreements with other public or nonprofit entities, for up to 125 programs that involve: (1) continuing judicial supervision, including periodic review, over preliminarily qualified offenders with mental illness, mental retardation, or co-occurring mental illness and substance abuse disorders who are charged with non-violent offenses; and (2) the coordinated delivery of services, which includes specialized training of law enforcement and judicial personnel to identify and address the unique needs of a mentally ill or mentally retarded offender, voluntary outpatient or inpatient mental health treatment that carries with it the possibility of dismissal of charges or reduced sentencing upon successful completion of treatment, and centralized case management involving the consolidation of all of a mentally ill or mentally retarded defendant's cases (including violations of probation) and the coordination of all mental health treatment plans and social services, including life skills training. Defines "preliminarily qualified offender with mental illness, mental retardation, or co-occurring mental and substance abuse disorders" to mean a person who: (1) previously or currently has been diagnosed by a qualified mental health professional as having a mental illness, mental retardation, or co-occurring mental and substance abuse disorders or who manifests obvious signs of mental illness, mental retardation, or co-occurring mental and substance abuse disorders during arrest or confinement or before any court; and (2) is deemed eligible by designated judges. Directs the Attorney General to issue regulations and guidelines necessary to carry out this Act, including the methodologies and outcome measures proposed for evaluating each applicant program. Sets forth provisions regarding application requirements, the Federal cost share (75 percent), geographic distribution of grants, reporting requirements, and technical assistance, training, and evaluation. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 1999
Bisti PRLA Dispute Resolution Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, upon the relinquishment by certain holders of coal preference right lease applications, to issue to each such holder a Certificate of Bidding Rights that constitutes the fair market value of the relinquished rights. Provides a fair market value determination method. Directs the Secretary: (1) no later than July 15, 2000, to verify the selection of current Bureau of Land Management lands in New Mexico made by the Navajo Indian Nation pursuant to a resettlement plan for the Navajo Tribe; and (2) within 30 days thereafter, to issue patents to the Navajo Nation to the relinquished coal preference rights.
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