United States · United States Congress · 22 November 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS Title I: Basic Reforms to Expand Access to Health Insurance coverage and to Ensure Universal Coverage Subtitle A: Universal Access Subtitle B: Qualified General Access Plans in the Small Employer and Individual Marketplace Subtitle C: Qualified Health Plans in the Large Employer Marketplace Subtitle D: Benefits; Benefits Commission Subtitle E: State and Federal Responsibilities in Relation to Qualified Health Plans Subtitle F: Universal Coverage Subtitle G: Definitions Title II: Tax Enforcement Provisions Subtitle A: General Tax Provisions Subtitle B: Provisions Relating to Acceleration of Death Benefits Subtitle C: Long-Term Care Tax Provisions Subtitle D: Enforcement Provisions Title III: Quality Assurance and Simplification Subtitle A: Quality Assurance Subtitle B: Administrative Simplification Title IV: Judicial Reforms Subtitle A: Medical Liability Reform Subtitle B: Anti-Fraud and Abuse Control Program Subtitle C: Treatment of Certain Activities Under the Antitrust Laws Title V: Special Assistance for Frontier, Rural, and Urban Underserved Areas Subtitle A: Frontier, Rural, and Urban Underserved Areas Subtitle B: Primary Care Provider Education Subtitle C: Programs Relating to Primary and Preventive Care Services Title VI: Treatment of Existing Federal Programs Subtitle A: Medicaid Program Subtitle B: Medicare Title VII: Patient's Right to Self-Determination Regarding Health Care Health Equity and Access Reform Today Act of 1993 - Title I: Basic Reforms to Expand Access to Health Insurance Coverage and to Ensure Universal Coverage - Subtitle A: Universal Access - Provides access to health insurance coverage under a qualified health plan for every citizen and lawful permanent resident of the United States. (Sec. 1003) Establishes a program under which persons with low incomes (and who are not eligible for Medicaid) will receive vouchers to buy insurance through purchasing groups. (Sec. 1004) Requires each employer to make available, either directly, through a purchasing group, or otherwise, enrollment in a qualified health plan to each eligible employee. Subtitle B: Qualified General Access Plan in the Small Employer and Individual Marketplace - Requires the National Association of Insurance Commissioners to develop specific standards to implement requirements concerning: (1) guaranteed eligibility, availability, and renewability of health insurance coverage; (2) nondiscrimination based on health status; (3) benefits offered; (4) insurer financial solvency; (5) enrollment process; (6) premium rating limitations; (7) risk adjustment; and (8) consumer protection. (Sec. 1119) Requires each qualified general access plan to: (1) establish and maintain a quality assurance program and a mediation procedures program; and (2) contain assurances of service to designated underserved areas. (Sec. 1141) Provides for the formation of purchasing groups by individuals and small employers. (Sec. 1161) Requires brokers or insurers to provide specified information to prospective enrollees. (Sec. 1162) Prohibits insurers from creating improper financial incentives and from selling duplicate coverage. Subtitle C: Qualified Health Plans in the Large Employer Marketplace - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, to establish standards for large employer plans similar to requirements applicable to small employer plans. (Sec. 1203) Requires large employers to offer to employees at least a standard package and a catastrophic package. (Sec. 1205) Allows two or more large employers to form purchasing groups, but not through an individual or small employer purchasing group. (Sec. 1206) Requires a semi-annual review of each large employer plan to determine whether requirements are being met and what corrective actions need to be taken. (Sec. 1221) Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 and the Public Health Service Act to revise provisions to conform to this Act. Subtitle D: Benefits; Benefits Commission - Requires each qualified health plan to provide a standard package and a catastrophic package. Specifies items and services to be covered. (Sec. 1311) Establishes the Benefits Commission to develop and propose legislation that provides a clarification of covered items and services and includes specifications for cost sharing. (Sec. 1314) Provides for congressional consideration and implementation of such legislation. Subtitle E: State and Federal Responsibilities in Relation to Qualified Health Plans - Requires each State to establish a program to: (1) certify insured health plans; (2) disseminate information on health care coverage areas; (3) establish procedures for purchasing groups; (4) prepare information concerning plans and purchasing groups; (5) provide for a risk adjustment program, including an adjustment for differences in nonpayments among qualified insured health plans; (6) develop a binding arbitration process; and (7) specify an annual general enrollment period. (Sec. 1421) Allows the waiver of specified requirements. (Sec. 1431) Provides preemptions of certain State laws. (Sec. 1441) Specifies the Federal responsibilities with respect to multi-State employer plans and in case of State defaults. Subtitle F: Universal Coverage - Requires each citizen or lawful permanent resident to be covered under a qualified health plan or equivalent health care program by January 1, 2005. Provides an exception for any individual who is opposed for religious reasons to health plan coverage, including those who rely on healing using spiritual means through prayer alone. Subtitle G: Definitions - Defines terms used in this Act. Title II: Tax and Enforcement Provisions - Subtitle A: General Tax Provisions - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from an employee's gross income employer-provided coverage under a qualified health plan or employer-provided contributions to the employee's medical savings account. Includes excess employer contributions in such gross income. (Sec. 2002) Allows a business expense deduction for employer costs of qualified health plans or contributions to an employee's medical savings account. Increases the allowable deduction (from 25 percent to 100 percent) for the qualified health insurance costs of self-employed individuals. Makes such deduction permanent. (Sec. 2003) Allows individuals a tax deduction for contributions made to a medical care savings account established for the benefit of an eligible individual. Allows such deduction whether or not an individual itemizes deductions. Disallows distributions from such accounts as medical expense deductions. Excludes employer contributions to such accounts from employment taxes. Establishes an excise tax for excess contributions to medical care savings accounts. (Sec. 2004) Eliminates the commonality of interest and geographic location requirements with respect to group purchasing by large tax-exempt organizations. (Sec. 2005) Revises and repeals provisions concerning continuation coverage requirements of group health plans upon implementation of this Act. Subtitle B: Provisions Relating to Acceleration of Death Benefits - Requires payment under a life insurance contract on the life of an insured who is terminally ill to be treated as a death benefit, making such payment eligible for tax exclusion from gross income. (Sec. 2102) Provides that any reference to life insurance shall be treated as referring to a qualified terminal illness rider. Subtitle C: Long-Term Care Tax Provisions - Treats qualified long-term care services as medical care for purposes of the medical expense deduction. (Sec. 2202) Provides for the treatment of long-term care insurance as accident and health insurance. (Sec. 2301) Sets forth consumer protection provisions to be satisfied by qualified long-term care insurance contracts, including the model regulation and Act promulgated by National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). Requires NAIC to promulgate standards for the use of uniform language and definitions in such policies, with certain variations permitted. Subtitle D: Enforcement Provisions - Amends part A (General Provisions) of Social Security Act title XI to establish the Health Insurance Coverage Data Bank to: (1) further the purposes of coverage requirements under this Act; and (2) collect certain information reported by employers about individual employee group health plan coverage for purposes of identifying and collecting from responsible third parties any amounts owed to reimburse Medicare or Medicaid for health care items and services furnished to their beneficiaries. (Replaces the Medicare and Medicaid Coverage Data Bank.) (Sec. 2402) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose excise taxes on failures by employers and insurers to comply with provisions of this Act. (Sec. 2411) Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to make conforming changes regarding enforcement of employer failures. Title III: Quality Assurance and Simplification - Subtitle A: Quality Assurance - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with relevant agencies, to develop and publish standards for quality assurance programs and ensure that appropriate performance measures are established. Requires the standards to contain provider risk programs to prevent or provide early warning of practices that may result in injury. (Sec. 3002) Provides for the standardization of information through a national health data system. (Sec. 3003) Requires the Secretary to establish measures to determine quality of care in specialized centers of care. (Sec. 3004) Authorizes appropriations to examine the feasibility of creating an Agency for Clinical Evaluations by consolidating the responsibilities of specified other offices. (Sec. 3005) Requires the Secretary to report annually to the Congress on factors affecting universal coverage and make recommendations for increasing such coverage. (Sec. 3006) Requires the Secretary to monitor the reinsurance market for qualified health plans and periodically report to the Congress on the financial implications. (Sec. 3101) Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish within the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research a clearinghouse for information and research data concerning clinical trials. Requires the appointment of a fund investigator for the Agency. (Sec. 3201) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish the National Fund for Medical Research and provide for the designation of tax overpayments to such fund. Subtitle B: Administrative Simplification - Establishes a health care data interchange system to make data available on a uniform basis to all participants in the health care system. (Sec. 3302) Requires the Health Care Data Panel to develop regulations for the operation of an integrated electronic health care data interchange system. (Sec. 3304) Sets forth requirements for such system including: data and transaction standards, uniform working files, code sets, unique identifiers, standards for confidentiality, rules for the transfer of information, and periodic reviews. (Sec. 3313) Establishes the Health Care Data Panel and a National Health Informatics Commission to advise the Panel on its activities. Title IV: Judicial Reforms - Subtitle A: Medical Liability Reform - Requires a qualified health plan to provide effective mediation procedures for hearing and resolving health care malpractice claims. (Sec. 4013) Requires each State to adopt an alternative dispute resolution method for the resolution of health care malpractice claims and consumer grievances. (Sec. 4021) Establishes provisions with respect to liability under health care malpractice actions brought in State or Federal courts. (Sec. 4022) Limits attorney contingency fees and award amounts for noneconomic damages. (Sec. 4024) Establishes a two-year statute of limitations for health care malpractice claims, except in the case of minors. (Sec. 4025) Requires each State to establish a set of specialty clinical guidelines. Allows the use of such guidelines as a rebuttable presumption in a claim or action, if the service provided was the appropriate standard of medical care. (Sec. 4026) Prohibits the award of punitive damages against the producer of a drug or device that is approved by the Food and Drug Administration. (Sec. 4027) Requires a report to the appropriate congressional committees on the operation of this subtitle. Subtitle B: Anti-Fraud and Abuse Control Program - Requires the Secretary to establish in the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services a program to control fraud and abuse under the universal health care plan. Establishes the Anti-Fraud and Abuse Trust Fund. (Sec. 4102) Amends title XI of the Social Security Act (SSA) to provide for the application of the penalties for Medicare and Medicaid fraud to all health care programs. (Sec. 4103) Requires the Secretary to establish a program through which Medicare-eligible individuals may report instances of suspected fraud under Medicare. (Sec. 4111) Revises current SSA title XI sanctions for fraud and abuse involving Medicare and State health care programs, with changes providing for: (1) program exclusion for individuals convicted of a felony relating to fraud or the unlawful manufacture or dispensing of a controlled substance; (2) new offenses under civil monetary penalty provisions, such as the offering of inducements to program-eligible individuals; (3) establishment of a minimum period of exclusion for practitioners and persons who fail to meet statutory obligations; (4) intermediate sanctions on eligible health maintenance organizations for program violations; and (5) procedures for imposing such sanctions. (Sec. 4121) Directs the Secretary to establish a national health care fraud and abuse data collection program for the reporting by each government agency and health care plan of final adverse actions against health care providers, suppliers, and practitioners. Requires program information to be made available to the public for a reasonable fee. (Sec. 4122) Amends SSA title XI to require the Secretary to publish in the Federal Register a listing of all final adverse actions taken during the quarter. (Sec. 4131) Amends the Federal criminal code to set penalties for knowingly executing a scheme or artifice to: (1) defraud any health care plan in connection with the delivery of, or payment for, health care benefits, items, or services (benefits); and (2) obtain, by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises, money or property owned by, or under the custody or control of, any health care plan or person in connection with the delivery of, or payment for, health care benefits. (Sec. 4132) Directs the court, upon a finding that a Federal health care offense is of a type that poses a serious threat to the health of any individual or has a significant detrimental impact on the health care system, to order a person convicted of that offense to forfeit property that was used in the commission of the offense or that constitutes or was derived from proceeds traceable to the offense that is of a value proportionate to the seriousness of the offense. (Sec. 4133) Authorizes the Attorney General to commence a civil action in Federal court to enjoin a violation constituting a Federal health care offense. (Sec. 4134) Makes commission of a Federal health care offense a predicate to a violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. (Sec. 4141) Makes provisions of the Civil False Claims Act applicable to the use of false records or statements made to a health care plan. Includes within the definition of "claim" for purposes of such Act any request or demand for money or property which is made or presented to a health care plan. Subtitle C: Treatment of Certain Activities Under the Antitrust Laws - Exempts from the antitrust laws specified "safe harbor" activities related to the provision of health care services. Sets forth provisions regarding the award of attorney fees and costs of suit to the prevailing party in an action based on a claim involving activity found to be exempt. (Sec. 4202) Lists as safe harbors specified: (1) activities relating to health care services of combinations of health care providers with market share below a specified threshold; (2) activities of medical self-regulatory entities relating to standard setting or enforcement activities not conducted for purposes of financial gain; (3) participation of a health care provider in a written survey of the prices of services, reimbursement levels, or the compensation and benefits of employees and personnel; (4) activities relating to health care joint ventures for high technology and costly equipment and services; (5) activities relating to hospital mergers; (6) joint purchasing arrangements; and (7) negotiations. (Sec. 4203) Directs the Attorney General to publish a notice in the Federal Register soliciting proposals for additional safe harbors and to review and report to the Congress on proposed safe harbors. Sets forth criteria in establishing safe harbors, including: (1) the extent to which a competitive or collaborative activity will accomplish an increase in health care access and quality, the establishment of cost efficiencies, and increased ability of health care facilities to provide services in medically underserved areas or to underserved populations; and (2) whether designation as a safe harbor will result in specified desirable outcomes. (Sec. 4204) Directs the Attorney General to issue certificates of review for providers of health care services and assist persons in applying for such certificates. Sets forth provisions regarding applications for, revocation of, and review of determinations regarding such certificates. Limits the disclosure of information. (Sec. 4205) Sets forth provisions regarding notifications providing for a reduction in certain penalties under the antitrust laws for health care cooperative ventures. (Sec. 4206) Directs the Attorney General to: (1) review the safe harbors and certificates of review periodically; and (2) promulgate such rules, regulations, and guidelines as necessary to carry out provisions of this subtitle. (Sec. 4208) Establishes within the Department of Health and Human Services an Office of Health Care Competition Policy. Title V: Special Assistance for Frontier, Rural, and Urban Underserved Areas - Subtitle A: Frontier, Rural, and Urban Underserved Areas - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish a program of allotments to States for grants for community-based primary health services to low-income or medically underserved populations regarding infant mortality and referrals for the health management of infants and pregnant women. Earmarks for the allotments specified percentages of appropriations under certain provisions added by this Act. (Sec. 5002) Mandates grants to federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) and other entities for providing access to services for medically underserved populations or in high impact areas not currently being served by a FQHC. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to report to the appropriate congressional committees on the relationship and interaction between community health centers and hospitals in providing services to such populations. (Sec. 5003) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow a nonrefundable credit for certain primary health services providers for mandatory service periods in health professional shortage areas; (2) exclude from gross income qualified loan repayments to the National Health Service Corps; (3) increase the dollar limitation allowed for expensing medical equipment used in rural health shortage areas; and (4) allow a deduction for student loan payments by medical professionals practicing in rural areas. (Sec. 5004) Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to provide for: (1) establishment of rural emergency access care hospitals under Medicare; and (2) coverage of and payment for rural emergency access care hospital services under Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance). (Sec. 5005) Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary to make grants to States to assist in the creation or enhancement of air medical transport systems that provide victims of medical emergencies in rural areas with access to treatments. Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) application and State plan requirements; (2) considerations in awarding grants; (3) State administration and use of grants; (4) the number of grants; and (5) reporting requirements. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 5006) Authorizes the Secretary to conduct a demonstration project and grant program to encourage the development and operation of rural health networks. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 5007) Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress on improving access to benefits under qualified health plans for individuals residing in rural areas. Subtitle B: Primary Care Provider Education - Requires the Secretary to provide for the establishment of demonstration projects to evaluate mechanisms to increase the number and percentage of medical students entering primary care practice through funds otherwise available for direct graduate medical education costs under the Medicare program. (Sec. 5102) Allows funding under Medicare for training in nonhospital-owned facilities. (Sec. 5103) Increases authorized funding for the National Health Service Corps Scholarship and Loan Repayment Programs. Authorizes funding through FY 1998. (Sec. 5104) Increases and extends through FY 1997 authorized funding for training for certain health service providers. Subtitle C: Programs Relating to Primary and Preventive Care Services - Authorizes appropriations for a grant program to improve coordination of maternal and infant care. (Sec. 5202) Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to authorize appropriations to carry out a comprehensive school health education and prevention program for elementary and secondary school students. (Sec. 5203) Allows frontier States (including Alaska, Wyoming, and Montana) to implement proposals and participate in demonstration projects which give special consideration to their diverse needs. Title VI: Treatment of Existing Federal Programs - Subtitle A: Medicaid Program - Gives States the option of allowing the enrollment of Medicaid-eligible individuals (including a limited number of AFDC- and SSI-eligible individuals) in the standard benefit package under a qualified health plan, instead of enrollment in the State's Medicaid program. (Sec. 6001) Sets forth requirements for States exercising such option. Places a cap on Federal payments for acute medical services furnished under a State's Medicaid programs. (Sec. 6011) Discontinues reimbursement standards for inpatient hospital services. Revises the Federal medical assistance percentage for certain States. Modifies Federal requirements to allow States more flexibility in contracting for coordinated care services under Medicaid. (Sec. 6021) Provides for waivers from requirements on coordinated care programs. Gives States the option to guarantee the continued Medicaid eligibility of individuals enrolled with risk contracting and other managed care entities. (Sec. 6031) Provides for phased-in elimination of Medicaid hospital disproportionate share adjustment payments. Subtitle B: Medicare - Requires the Secretary to: (1) submit to the Congress a proposal for legislation which provides for the enrollment of Medicare beneficiaries in qualified health plans; and (2) provide for a monthly payment to a qualified health plan on behalf of enrolled Medicare beneficiaries. (Sec. 6111) Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 (OMBRA '90) to revise provisions for a modified payment methodology for risk contractors. (Sec. 6112) Requires the Secretary to provide for adjustment in Medicare capitation payments to take into account secondary payer status. Authorizes the Secretary to make additional payments to eligible organizations with risk-sharing contracts. (Sec. 6121) Amends OMBRA '90 to: (1) make permanent the Medicare select policy program; and (2) allow access to Medicare select policies in all States. Amends Medicare to revise the Medicare select policy program and provide for a civil penalty for misrepresentations made in connection with such a policy. (Sec. 6131) Makes specified changes with regard to monthly Medicare part B premium determinations for part B enrollees. (Sec. 6132) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for an increase in the Medicare part B premium for individuals with high income. (Sec. 6133) Makes permanent certain payment reductions relating to outpatient hospital services furnished under Medicare. (Sec. 6135) Imposes copayments for laboratory services and certain home health visits provided under Medicare. (Sec. 6137) Provides for phased-in elimination of Medicare disproportionate share hospital payments. (Sec. 6138) Directs the Secretary to discontinue hospital reimbursements for costs relating to the recovery of bad debts. (Sec. 6139) Makes specified changes with regard to Medicare as a secondary payer. Title VII: Patient's Right to Self-Determination Regarding Health Care - Provides for the treatment of advance directives and other measures, including a study by the Secretary on issues relating to health care decisions by the patient, in addressing the patient's right to self-determination regarding health care.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1993
DOE Minority Bank Preservation Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act to provide separate Federal deposit insurance for each beneficiary of an irrevocable trust or insured depository institution depositing funds pursuant to the Bank Deposit Financial Assistance Program of the Department of Energy. Authorizes appropriations for wastewater treatment projects in minority communities with special needs in order to: (1) improve housing stock infrastructure; and (2) abate health hazards caused by groundwater contamination.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1993
Persons With Disabilities Trusts Tax Rate Restoration Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the 1993 rate increase in the rate of income tax as applied to trusts established for: (1) individuals who are disabled; (2) support and maintenance of individuals under age 21 whose parents are deceased; and (3) higher education costs of the grantor's children or grandchildren.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1993
Commercial Mortgage Capital Availability Act of 1993 - Sets forth a regulatory scheme under which qualified insured depository institutions meeting prescribed reserve and capital requirements may execute mortgage loan transfers with a recourse arrangement. Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to modify the definition of "mortgage related security" to include notes directly secured by a first lien on real estate with commercial structures located upon it (thus bringing such securities within the purview of the Act). Directs the Secretary of Labor to exempt commercial mortgage related securities transactions from: (1) certain restrictions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974; and (2) certain taxes imposed under the Internal Revenue Code.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1993
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require that payment under a life insurance contract on the life of an insured who is terminally ill or who has a dread disease be treated as a death benefit, making such payment eligible for tax exclusion from gross income. Provides that any reference to life insurance shall be treated as referring to a qualified terminal illness or dread disease rider. Provides for the tax treatment of such riders. Describes such a rider as one which provides for payments to an individual upon the insured's becoming terminally ill or having a dread disease. Provides that applicants for or recipients of assistance under the Social Security Act may not be required to elect to receive accelerated death benefits under life insurance policies.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 1993
Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) obstetrician-gynecologists should be included as primary care providers for women in Federal laws relating to the provision of health care; and (2) legislative proposals that define primary care should include primary care services performed by obstetrician-gynecologists in such definition.
United States · United States Congress · 27 October 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Legislative Reform Title II: Federal Intergovernmental Relations Fiscal Accountability and Intergovernmental Reform Act (FAIR Act) - Title I: Legislative Reform - Provides that, with certain exceptions, whenever a committee of either House reports a bill or resolution of a public character (excluding resolutions of ratification of a treaty) to its House mandating unfunded requirements upon State or local governments or the private sector, the report accompanying that bill or resolution shall analyze the effect of the new requirements on: (1) State and local government expenditures necessary to comply with Federal mandates; (2) private businesses; and (3) economic growth and competitiveness. Requires the Congressional Budget Office to prepare such economic analyses. Title II: Federal Intergovernmental Relations - Provides that, whenever an agency publishes a general notice of proposed rulemaking or promulgates a final rule, the agency shall prepare and make available for public comment an Intergovernmental and Economic Impact Assessment. Specifies the contents of such an assessment.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 1993
Fair Trade in Financial Services Act of 1993 - Amends the International Banking Act of 1978 to direct the Secretary of the Treasury (the Secretary) to: (1) identify the extent to which a foreign country denies national treatment to U.S. banking and securities organizations; and (2) determine whether such denial has a significant adverse effect upon them. Authorizes the Secretary to publish the determinations of adverse effect in the Federal Register. Authorizes Federal banking agencies and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), upon concurrence and/or recommendation of the Secretary, to deny applications filed by entities of such identified countries. Prohibits a financial services organization of such a country from commencing any line of business in the United States in which, as of the Secretary's publication date, it was not engaged, or conduct business from any location at which the organization did not conduct business as of that date. Requires securities organizations from those countries to notify the SEC and gain its approval before acquiring control of any registered domestic securities organization. Prescribes guidelines for the Secretary to initiate negotiations with foreign countries that deny national treatment for U.S. banking and securities organizations. Requires the Secretary to submit a biennial status report to the Congress. Amends the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 to direct the Secretary to investigate and report to the President and the Congress on: (1) the extent of the interdependence of U.S. financial services sectors and certain foreign countries; and (2) the economic and strategic consequences of that interdependence for the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 1993
General Aviation Revitalization Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 to set forth a 15-year statute of limitations within which a person may bring a civil action against an aircraft manufacturer for damages for death or injury or damage to property arising from an aircraft accident.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 1993
Confers jurisdiction upon the United States Court of Federal Claims with respect to certain land claims of the Pueblo of Isleta Indian Tribe of New Mexico.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1993
National Forest Foundation Act Amendment Act of 1993 - Amends the National Forest Foundation Act to authorize start-up and matching funds to the National Forest Foundation to carry out project expenses. Extends the start-up funding to October 1, 1994, and the matching funding to October 1, 1997.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 1993
Colonia Assistance Authorization Act of 1993 - Authorizes the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to transfer funds to another Federal agency or award grants to any appropriate entity or border State (Arizona, California, New Mexico, or Texas) to provide assistance to low-income communities in such areas that lack basic sanitation facilities for: (1) the conservation, development, use, and control of water; and (2) the construction or improvement of sewers, wastewater treatment works, and essential community facilities. Requires such funds to be used in communities subject to a significant health risk due to lack of access to a water supply system and wastewater treatment works. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Safe Streets Subtitle A: Police Subtitle B: Prisons Title II: Safe Schools Title III: Criminal Aliens and Alien Smuggling Subtitle A: Deportation of Criminal Aliens Subtitle B: Prevention and Punishment of Alien Smuggling Subtitle C: Border Patrol Title IV: Gangs, Juveniles, Drugs, and Prosecutors Subtitle A: Criminal Youth Gangs Subtitle B: Gang Prosecution Title V: Drug Control and Rural Crime Subtitle A: Drug Trafficking in Rural Areas Subtitle B: Rural Drug Prevention and Treatment Subtitle C: Rural Areas Enhancement Subtitle D: Chemical Control Subtitle E: Personnel Title VI: Punishment and Deterrence Subtitle A: Death Penalty Subtitle B: Equal Justice Act Subtitle C: Enhanced Penalties for Criminal Use of Firearms and Explosives Subtitle D: Exclusionary Rule Subtitle E: Pre-Trial Interrogation Title VII: Elimination of Delays in Carrying Out Sentences Subtitle A: General Habeas Corpus Reform Subtitle B: Death Penalty Litigation Procedures Subtitle C: Equalization of Capital Habeas Corpus Litigation Funding Title VIII: Prevention of Terrorism Subtitle A: Penalties and Offenses Subtitle B: Removal of Alien Terrorists Subtitle C: Enhanced Entry Controls Title IX: Victims' Rights and Child Abuse Subtitle A: Victims' Rights Subtitle B: National Child Protection Act Subtitle C: Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children Registration Act Title X: Violent Crimes and Law Enforcement Support Subtitle A: Violent Crimes Subtitle B: National Commission to Support Law Enforcement Title XI: Civil Rights Offenses Title XII: Public Corruption Title XIII: Funding Neighborhood Security Act of 1993 - Title I: Safe Streets - Subtitle A: Police - Chapter 1: Defense Conversion - Establishes an America's Safe Streets Program under which the Attorney General may enter into agreements with State or local law enforcement agencies to pay, and may pay, for a six-year period, the salaries of former members of the armed forces who are hired as police officers assigned to neighborhood patrol duties. Grants priority to agencies located in communities adversely affected by recent military base or facility closings. Sets limits on diminishing the size of the police force during the term of such agreements. Authorizes appropriations. Chapter 2: Cops on the Street - Cops on the Street Act of 1993 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (Omnibus Act) to authorize the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) to make between 50 and 100 grants to units of local government for the purpose of increasing police presence in the community. Authorizes appropriations. Chapter 3: Police Corps Program - Establishes in the Department of Justice an Office of the Police Corps, headed by a Director. Sets forth: (1) provisions regarding the designation of a lead agency and submission of State plans, scholarship assistance, selection of participants, and service obligation (four years); and (2) State plan requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Chapter 4: Community Policing Grants - Amends the Omnibus Act to authorize the Director of the BJA to make grants to units of local government and community groups to establish or expand cooperative efforts between police and a community for the purpose of increasing police presence in the community. Requires the Director to develop a written model that informs community members regarding identification of the existence of a drug or gang house, civil remedies (such as public nuisance violations and civil suits in small claims court), and mediation techniques. Authorizes appropriations. Chapter 5: Improved Training and Technical Automation - Directs the Attorney General to: (1) make grants to units of State and local law enforcement to improve law enforcement agency efficiency through computerized automation and technological improvements; and (2) expand and improve investigative and managerial training courses for State and local law enforcement agencies, including improvements of the training facilities of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Academy at Quantico, Virginia. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle B: Prisons - Chapter 1: Regional Prisons for Violent Criminals and Violent Criminal Aliens - Directs the Attorney General to construct a minimum of ten regional prisons, situated throughout the United States, each containing space for at least 2,500 inmates. Specifies that at least 50 percent of the overall capacity of such prisons in the aggregate shall be dedicated to qualifying prisoners from qualifying States. Authorizes appropriations. Chapter 2: Federal Grants for State Prison Construction and Operation - Authorizes the Attorney General to enter into agreements with qualifying States to provide construction grants or operating grants for new prisons. (Defines a "new prison" as a prison: (1) or city or county detention facility, including an addition to an existing prison or city or county detention facility, certified by the State and approved by the Attorney General as providing additional prison capacity beyond that which the State previously had available or had already planned to construct; and (2) that is principally dedicated to housing repeat violent offenders and sex offenders.) Authorizes the Attorney General to pay up to half of construction and operating costs. Sets forth provisions regarding the canceling and distribution of grants. Authorizes appropriations. Chapter 3: Judicial Remedies for Prison Crowding - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit a Federal court from: (1) holding prison or jail crowding unconstitutional under the eighth amendment except to the extent that an individual plaintiff inmate proves that the crowding causes the infliction of cruel and unusual punishment of that inmate, and limit relief to that necessary to remove the conditions causing such punishment of such inmate; and (2) placing a ceiling on the inmate population of any Federal, State, or local detention facility as an equitable remedial measure for conditions that violate the eighth amendment unless crowding is inflicting cruel and unusual punishment on particular identified prisoners. Requires that each Federal court order seeking to remedy an eighth amendment violation be reopened at the behest of a defendant for recommended modification at a minimum of two-year intervals. Chapter 4: Sentences to Account for Costs to the Government of Imprisonment, Release, and Probation - Amends the Federal criminal and judicial codes, respectively, to: (1) require the court, in determining whether to impose a fine, to consider the expected costs to the Government of any imprisonment, supervised release, or probation component of the sentence; and (2) authorize the U.S. Sentencing Commission to include, as a component of a fine, the expected costs to the Government of any imprisonment, supervised release, or probation sentence that is ordered. Title II: Safe Schools - Establishes an America's Safe Schools Program under which the Secretary of Education may enter into agreements with local educational agencies (LEAs) to pay, and may pay, for a six-year period, the salaries of former members of the armed forces who are hired as teachers assigned to public elementary and secondary schools. Sets limits on diminishing the number of teachers in such schools in the school district served by the LEA during the term of agreement. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 203) Authorizes: (1) a school district to elect to qualify as a Federal safe school district by decision of an LEA or by referendum of the voters in a school district served by an LEA; and (2) the Attorney General to make a grant to an LEA serving a Federal safe school district or to a local law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the school district, as appropriate, to pay for enhanced school security measures. Provides for enhanced mandatory penalties for carrying a firearm into a public or private elementary or secondary school, or possessing a firearm within such a school, that is located within a school district that has elected to qualify as a Federal safe school district. Directs the Sentencing Commission to increase offense levels for such activity. Requires the U.S. Attorney for the judicial district in which the school district is located to prosecute as an adult any juvenile 16 years of age or older who uses or carries a firearm in or within 1,000 feet of a public or private elementary or secondary school. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Criminal Aliens and Alien Smuggling - Subtitle A: Deportation of Criminal Aliens - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize the Attorney General to issue a final order of deportation against any alien who was not lawfully admitted for permanent residence, or who had permanent resident status on a conditional basis, whom the Attorney General determines to be deportable under provisions relating to conviction of an aggravated felony. Limits judicial review of such determinations. Provides for deportation of permanent resident aliens under specified circumstances. Conclusively presumes an alien convicted of an aggravated felony to be deportable from the United States. (Sec. 302) Grants a U.S. district court jurisdiction to enter a judicial order of deportation at the time of sentencing against an alien whose criminal conviction causes such alien to be deportable under provisions relating to conviction of an aggravated felony, if such an order has been requested prior to sentencing by the U.S. Attorney, subject to specified requirements. (Sec. 303) Restricts defenses to deportation for certain criminal aliens based on seven years of permanent residence and based on withholding of deportation or return to a country where such alien's life or freedom would be threatened. Enhances penalties for failing to depart or reentering after a final order of deportation. Limits collateral attacks on deportation orders. Subtitle B: Prevention and Punishment of Alien Smuggling - Increases penalties for: (1) alien smuggling; and (2) smuggling aliens for the commission of a crime. (Sec. 313) Makes alien smuggling a predicate to a violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). (Sec. 314) Expands: (1) forfeiture for smuggling or harboring illegal aliens; and (2) the definition of "aggravated felony" to include illicit trafficking in explosive materials, a crime of violence for which the term of imprisonment imposed is at least five years, and other specified offenses. (Sec. 316) Directs the Sentencing Commission to increase offense levels with respect to various immigration-related offenses. (Sec. 317) Increases the penalty for visa fraud. (Sec. 318) Authorizes: (1) the Secretary of the Treasury to refund out of the Immigration User Fee Account expenses incurred by the Attorney General in the training of, and technical assistance to, commercial airline personnel on detection of fraudulent documents used by passengers traveling to the United States (and directs the Attorney General to provide for specified expenditures for such training and assistance); and (2) the Attorney General to suspend the entry of some or all aliens transported to the United States by a commercial airline that has failed to comply with regulations relating to requirements of airlines for the detection of such fraudulent documents. Subtitle C: Border Patrol - Authorizes appropriations for the hiring of 1,000 additional Border Patrol agents and 1,000 additional Immigration and Naturalization Service criminal inspectors. (Sec. 323) Directs the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization to operate a criminal alien tracking center to assist Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies in identifying and locating aliens who may be subject to deportation by reason of their conviction of aggravated felonies. Authorizes appropriations. Title IV: Gangs, Juveniles, Drugs, and Prosecutors - Anti-Gang and Youth Protection Act of 1993 - Subtitle A: Criminal Youth Gangs - Amends the Federal criminal code to make it unlawful to: (1) commit specified "predicate gang crimes" (including murder, assault, kidnapping, arson, and retaliating against a witness, victim, or informant) with intent to promote or further the activities of a criminal street gang (gang) or for the purpose of gaining entrance to or maintaining or increasing position in such gang; (2) participate in, or induce another to participate in, a gang; (3) employ any individual to commit or facilitate the commission of a predicate gang crime with such intent; or (4) use any communication facility in causing or facilitating the commission of such an offense with such intent. Sets penalties for such offenses. Provides for forfeiture of proceeds obtained from, and property used to commit, the violation. Authorizes the Attorney General and the Secretary of the Treasury to investigate such offenses. Directs the Sentencing Commission to increase the base offense level for any felony committed for the purpose of gaining entrance into, or maintaining or increasing position in, a criminal street gang. (Sec. 412) Makes: (1) offenses against the United States involving the use of minors predicates under RICO; and (2) serious juvenile drug offenses Armed Career Criminal Act predicates. (Sec. 414) Expands the scope of offenses warranting adult prosecution of serious juvenile offenders. Directs the court, in considering the nature of the offense, to consider the extent to which the juvenile played a leadership role in an organization, or otherwise influenced other persons to take part in criminal activities, involving the use or distribution of controlled substances or firearms (which factor, if found to exist, shall weigh heavily in favor of transfer to adult status, but its absence shall not preclude such a transfer). (Sec. 415) Increases penalties under: (1) the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) for employing children to distribute drugs near schools and playgrounds, and for drug trafficking near public housing; and (2) the Federal criminal code for Travel Act crimes involving violence and conspiracy to commit contract killings. (Sec. 418) Revises procedures under the Federal criminal code with respect to the use of records of crimes committed by juveniles, including the repeal of special probation and expungement procedures for drug possessors. (Sec. 419) Amends the Omnibus Act to include among drug control and system improvement grant funding objectives law enforcement and prevention programs relating to gangs or youth who are involved or at risk of involvement in gangs. Subtitle B: Gang Prosecution - Authorizes appropriations for the hiring of additional Assistant U.S. Attorneys to prosecute violent youth gangs. (Sec. 432) Directs: (1) the Attorney General to develop a national strategy to coordinate gang-related investigations by Federal law enforcement agencies; and (2) the Director of the FBI to acquire and collect information on incidents of gang violence for inclusion in an annual uniform crime report. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 433) Continues the current Federal-State funding formula for drug control and system improvement grants under the Omnibus Act through FY 1993. (Sec. 434) Exempts grants awarded to State and local governments for the purpose of participating in multijurisdictional drug and gang (currently, drug) task forces from specified limitations on the use of drug control and system improvement grants. Title V: Drug Control and Rural Crime - Subtitle A: Drug Trafficking in Rural Areas - Amends the Omnibus Act to: (1) authorize appropriations for rural drug law enforcement assistance; and (2) increase the base allocation to each nonrural State. (Sec. 502) Directs the Attorney General to establish a Rural Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force in each of the Federal judicial districts that encompass significant rural lands. (Sec. 503) Authorizes the Attorney General to cross-designate up to 100 law enforcement officers from agencies with jurisdiction to enforce the provisions of the CSA on non-Federal lands and the Federal criminal code to the extent necessary to effect the purposes of this Act. Directs the Attorney General to ensure that each of the task forces are adequately staffed. (Sec. 504) Requires the Director of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center to develop a specialized course of instruction devoted to training law enforcement officers from rural agencies in the investigation of drug trafficking and related crimes. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle B: Rural Drug Prevention and Treatment - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the Office of Treatment Improvement to establish a program to provide grants to hospitals, community health centers, migrant health centers, health entities of Indian tribes and tribal organizations, and other appropriate entities that serve nonmetropolitan areas to assist such entities in developing and implementing programs to provide, or expand the availability of, substance abuse treatment services. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle C: Rural Areas Enhancement - Requires that assets seized as a result of investigations initiated by a Rural Drug Enforcement Task Force be used primarily to enhance the operations of the task force and its participating State and local enforcement agencies. (Sec. 522) Directs State and Federal prosecutors, when bringing charges against the operators of clandestine methamphetamine and other dangerous drug laboratories, to include counts involving infringements of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act or any other environmental protection Act, including illegal disposal of hazardous waste and knowing endangerment of the environment. Authorizes Federal prosecutors to bring suit against the operators of clandestine methamphetamine and other dangerous drug laboratories for environmental and health related damages caused by the operators in their manufacture of illicit substances. Subtitle D: Chemical Control - Chemical Control Amendments Act of 1993 - Amends the CSA to: (1) replace references to "listed precursor chemicals" with "list I chemicals" and "listed essential chemicals" with "list II chemicals"; and (2) revise the definition of "regulated person" to include individuals who act as brokers or traders for international transactions involving a listed chemical, tableting machine, or encapsulating machine. Redefines "regulated transaction" to mean any transaction in a listed chemical that is contained in a drug that may be marketed or distributed lawfully in the United States under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (as under current law) unless: (1) the drug contains ephedrine as the only active medicinal ingredient or contains ephedrine and therapeutically insignificant quantities of another active medicinal ingredient; or (2) the Attorney General has determined that the drug or group of drugs is being diverted to obtain the listed chemical for use in the illicit production of a controlled substance; and (3) the quantity of ephedrine or other listed chemical contained in the drug included in the transaction or multiple transactions equals or exceeds the threshold established for that chemical by the Attorney General. Defines: (1) "international transaction" to mean a transaction involving the shipment of a listed chemical across an international (other than a U.S.) border in which a broker or trader located in the United States participates; and (2) "broker" and "trader" to mean a person that assists in arranging an international transaction in a listed chemical by negotiating contracts, serving as an agent or intermediary, or bringing together a buyer and seller, buyer, and transporter, or a seller and transporter. Requires the Attorney General to remove from exemption a drug or group of drugs that the Attorney General finds is being diverted to obtain a listed chemical for use in the illicit production of a controlled substance. Sets forth provisions regarding factors to be considered, specificity of designation, reinstatement of exemption with respect to particular drug products, and status pending application for reinstatement. (Sec. 533) Authorizes the Attorney General to promulgate rules and regulations and to charge reasonable fees relating to the registration and control of regulated persons and regulated transactions. Directs the Attorney General to register an applicant to distribute, and to import or export, a list I chemical unless the Attorney General determines that registration of the applicant is inconsistent with the public interest, with exceptions. Prohibits regulated persons from knowingly or intentionally distributing, importing, or exporting a list I chemical without the registration required by the Act. (Sec. 534) Requires a regulated person that manufactures a listed chemical to report annually to the Attorney General information concerning listed chemicals manufactured by such person, with exceptions. (Sec. 535) Amends the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act (CSIEA) to subject U.S. brokers and traders for international transactions in a listed chemical regulated solely because of such persons' involvement as brokers and traders to specified notification, reporting, recordkeeping, and other requirements placed upon exporters of listed chemicals. (Sec. 536) Authorizes the Attorney General to: (1) require that the 15-day notification requirement under the CSIEA apply to all exports of a listed chemical to a specified country, regardless of the status of certain customers in such country as regular customers, if the Attorney General finds that such notification is necessary to support effective chemical diversion control programs or is required by treaty or other international agreement to which the United States is a party; and (2) waive such requirement under specified circumstances. Prohibits knowingly or intentionally importing or exporting a listed chemical with the intent to evade specified reporting or recordkeeping requirements by falsely representing to the Attorney General that the importation or exportation qualifies for a waiver of the 15-day notification requirement, or by misrepresenting the actual country or final destination of the listed chemical or the actual listed chemical being imported or exported. (Sec. 537) Amends the CSA to add benzaldehyde and nitroethane, and delete D-lysergic acid, N-ethylephedrine, and N-ethylpseudoephedrine. (Sec. 538) Eliminates "regular supplier" status and creates "regular importer" status. (Sec. 539) Includes within the definition of "controlled premises" places where regulated persons may lawfully hold, manufacture, or dispose of controlled substances or listed chemicals, or where records relating to those activities are maintained. (Sec. 541) Prohibits a person who possesses a listed chemical with the intent that it be used in the illegal manufacture of a controlled substance to manage the listed chemical or waste from the manufacture of a controlled substance otherwise than as required by regulations issued under the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Requires violators to be assessed the costs of initial cleanup and disposal of the listed chemical and contaminated property and of restoring property damaged by exposure to a listed chemical for rehabilitation under Federal, State, and local standards. Makes violations punishable as a class D felony, or in the case of a willful violation, a class C felony. Expresses the sense of the Congress that guidelines issued by the Sentencing Commission regarding sentencing for such an offense should recommend a term of not less than five years imprisonment, nor less than ten years in the case of a willful violation. Authorizes: (1) the court to order that all or a portion of the earnings from work performed by a defendant in prison be withheld for payment of such costs; and (2) the Attorney General to direct that assets forfeited in connection with a prosecution under this Act be shared with State agencies that participated in the seizure or cleanup of the contaminated site. Specifies that a discharge in bankruptcy does not discharge an individual from any debt for costs assessed with respect to the management of listed chemicals under the CSA. (Sec. 543) Amends the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 to provide for access by the Attorney General to information in the National Practitioner Data Bank. Subtitle E: Personnel - Authorizes appropriations for the hiring of additional Drug Enforcement Administration agents. (Sec. 552) Amends the National Narcotics Leadership Act of 1988 to require the Director of National Drug Control Policy to select, appoint, employ, and fix compensation of at least 75 and such additional (currently, of such) officers and employees as may be necessary to carry out the functions of the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Title VI: Punishment and Deterrence - Subtitle A: Death Penalty - Federal Death Penalty Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal criminal code to establish criteria for the imposition of the death penalty for Federal crimes. (Sec. 602) Allows the defendant and the Government to present any information relevant to sentencing (including victim impact statements), but permits evidence to be excluded where its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of creating unfair prejudice, confusing the issues, or misleading the jury. Sets forth: (1) procedures for the implementation of, and appeal from, a sentence of death; and (2) provisions regarding the appointment of counsel, deadlines for collateral attacks on judgments imposing a death sentence, and stays of execution. (Sec. 610) Provides for the imposition of the death penalty for various offenses, including: (1) murder committed by prisoners in Federal prisons; (2) murder for hire; (3) murder in the aid of racketeering activity; (4) specified violations of the CSA; (5) murder of Federal witnesses; (6) rape and child molestation murders; and (7) murders in the District of Columbia. Subtitle B: Equal Justice Act - Equal Justice Act - Requires that the death penalty and all other penalties be administered by the United States and by every State without regard to the race or color of the defendant or victim. Bars the use of any racial quota or statistical test for the imposition or execution of any penalty. (Sec. 653) Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) safeguarding against racial prejudice or bias in criminal courts; and (2) jury instructions and certification, and racial motivation in killings as an aggravating factor, in Federal capital cases. (Sec. 655) Amends specified civil rights provisions to cover conspiracy against rights, and deprivation of rights under color of law, of any person in (currently, inhabitant of) a State, territory, or district. Subtitle C: Enhanced Penalties for Criminal Use of Firearms and Explosives - Amends the Federal criminal code to establish penalties for smuggling firearms in aid of drug trafficking and for theft of firearms and explosives. (Sec. 663) Increases penalties for: (1) making knowingly false, material statements in connection with the acquisition of a firearm from a licensed dealer; and (2) interstate gun trafficking. (Sec. 664) Authorizes the summary destruction of explosives subject to forfeiture under specified circumstances. Sets forth requirements for reimbursement of the value of destroyed property. (Sec. 666) Prohibits: (1) the receipt of firearms by non-residents of the State in which the transferor resides, unless such receipt is for lawful sporting purposes; (2) transactions involving stolen firearms which have moved in interstate or foreign commerce; and (3) the possession of explosives by felons and specified others. (Sec. 671) Amends: (1) the Internal Revenue Code regarding the disposition of forfeited firearms; and (2) the Federal criminal code regarding the definition of burglary under the Armed Career Criminal Act of 1984. Subtitle D: Exclusionary Rule - Amends the Federal criminal code to bar the exclusion of evidence obtained as a result of a search or seizure carried out under circumstances justifying an objectively reasonable belief that it was in conformity with the fourth amendment. Subtitle E: Pre-Trial Interrogation - Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Attorney General shall instruct all U.S. Attorneys, and implement policies consistent therewith, that confessions obtained in conformity with Federal provisions related to such admissibility will be offered into evidence. Title VII: Elimination of Delays in Carrying Out Sentences - Subtitle A: General Habeas Corpus Reform - Habeas Corpus Reform Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal judicial code to establish a one-year statute of limitations for habeas corpus actions brought by State prisoners. (Sec. 704) Vests authority to issue certificates of probable cause for appeal of habeas corpus orders exclusively in the courts of appeals. Subtitle B: Death Penalty Litigation Procedures - Death Penalty Litigation Procedures Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal judicial code to set forth special habeas corpus procedures in capital cases. Subtitle C: Equalization of Capital Habeas Corpus Litigation Funding - Amends the Omnibus Act to require the Director of the BJA to provide grants to the States to support litigation pertaining to Federal habeas corpus petitions in capital cases. Title VIII: Prevention of Terrorism - Subtitle A: Penalties and Offenses - Amends the Federal criminal code to: (1) make it a criminal offense to provide material support to terrorists; (2) provide for forfeiture of assets used to support terrorists; (3) establish penalties for removing a child from, or retaining a child outside, the United States with intent to obstruct the lawful exercise of parental rights; (4) provide for the prosecution of individuals who murder U.S. nationals abroad; and (5) permit FBI access to telephone subscriber information under specified circumstances. (Sec. 802) Increases penalties under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (for violation of orders with respect to the declaration of a national emergency) and the Federal criminal code (for passport and visa-related violations). (Sec. 803) Directs the Sentencing Commission to provide for an increase in the base offense level for any felony involving or intended to promote international terrorism, unless such involvement or intent is itself an element of a crime. (Sec. 804) Extends the statute of limitations for certain terrorism offenses. Subtitle B: Removal of Alien Terrorists - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to establish procedures to apply whenever the Attorney General certifies under seal to a special court (established pursuant to this subtitle) that: (1) the Attorney General or Deputy Attorney General has approved of the proceeding; (2) an alien terrorist is physically present in the United States; and (3) removal of such terrorist by deportation proceedings would pose a risk to national security because such proceedings would disclose classified information. Directs the Chief Justice of the United States to publicly designate up to seven judges to hear and decide such cases. Sets forth procedures for a special removal hearing, including provision for appointment of counsel and appeals. Subtitle C: Enhanced Entry Controls - Provides for the exclusion of an alien for presenting fraudulent documents and failure to present documents to an immigration officer upon arrival at a port of entry into the United States. Specifies that any alien who is excludable under such provisions may not apply for or be granted asylum, with exceptions. (Sec. 833) Limits court jurisdiction with respect to habeas corpus review, other judicial review and action, and collateral enforcement proceedings. Title IX: Victims' Rights and Child Abuse - Subtitle A: Victims' Rights - Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) restitution and suspension of Federal benefits; and (2) the number of peremptory challenges under the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. Subtitle B: National Child Protection Act - National Child Protection Act of 1993 - Provides for: (1) State reporting of child abuse crime information to a national criminal background check system; (2) funding to improve such information; and (3) the withholding of a portion of such funding to States not in compliance with a timetable established under this Act. Subtitle C: Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children Registration Act - Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children Registration Act - Directs the Attorney General to establish guidelines for State programs requiring any person who is convicted of a criminal offense against a minor to register a current address with a designated State law enforcement agency for ten years after release from prison or being placed on parole or supervised release. Sets forth registration, State compliance, and related requirements. Title X: Violent Crimes and Law Enforcement Support - Subtitle A: Violent Crimes - Amends the Federal criminal code to set penalties for attempted: (1) robbery; (2) kidnapping; (3) smuggling; and (4) malicious mischief. (Sec. 1002) Increases penalties for: (1) certain assaults; (2) manslaughter; (3) interstate and foreign travel or transportation in aid of racketeering enterprises; and (4) conspiracy to commit murder for hire. (Sec. 1006) Establishes Federal penalties for carjacking. (Sec. 1007) Increases mandatory minimum sentences for criminals using firearms during and in relation to a crime of violence or drug trafficking crime. (Sec. 1008) Amends the CSA to provide for life imprisonment without release for criminals convicted of specified drug-related offenses (including distribution to persons under age 21, distribution in or near schools, and employment or use of persons under age 18 in drug operations) after two previous convictions of such an offense, a felony drug offense, or a crime of violence. Subtitle B: National Commission to Support Law Enforcement - National Commission to Support Law Enforcement Act - Establishes a National Commission to Support Law Enforcement to study and recommend changes regarding law enforcement agencies and law enforcement issues on the Federal, State, and local levels. Authorizes appropriations. Title XI: Civil Rights Offenses - Increases maximum penalties for certain civil rights violations under the Federal criminal code and the Fair Housing Act, including damage to religious property. Title XII: Public Corruption - Anti-Corruption Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prescribe criminal penalties to be imposed upon any: (1) person who uses any facility of, or affects, interstate or foreign commerce to deprive or defraud the inhabitants of a State or political subdivision of a State of the honest services of a government official or employee, or of a fair and impartially conducted election process; and (2) official, or person selected to be a public official, who, in order to carry out or conceal any scheme or artifice to defraud, discriminates, harasses, or takes adverse action against any employee or official of the United States, or any State or political subdivision (and authorizes such adversely affected individual to obtain relief through a civil action, provided such person did not participate in the scheme or artifice). (Sec. 1203) Amends mail fraud provisions to prohibit the use of any facility of interstate or foreign commerce in the execution of a scheme or artifice to defraud. (Sec. 1204) Sets forth prohibitions regarding narcotics-related public corruption. Title XIII: Funding - Requires each head of a Federal agency making a grant to, or entering into a contract with, an institution of higher education for research and development to reduce the overhead payment rate under the grant or contract to 90 percent of the current level and return the amount saved to the general fund of the Treasury. (Sec. 1302) Reduces the overhead expenses identified and reduced by the President in Executive Order 12837 by an additional five percent. (Sec. 1303) Reallocates the amount of available budget authority resulting from the enactment of such provisions as specified.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 1993
Equity in Educational Land-Grant Status Act of 1993 - Provides land-grant status for tribally controlled community colleges, tribally controlled postsecondary vocational institutions, the Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts Development, Southwest Indian Polytechnic Institute, and Haskell Indian Junior College. Authorizes appropriations, in lieu of public land donations, for such colleges and institutions.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 1993
Establishes the budget for FY 1994 and sets forth appropriate budgetary levels for FY 1995 through 1998. (Sec. 2) Sets forth recommended budgetary levels of Federal revenues, new budget authority, budget outlays, deficits, public debt, and credit activity. (Sec. 3) Sets forth the increase in the public debt subject to limitation. Sets forth Social Security trust fund revenues and outlays for Senate enforcement purposes. (Sec. 5) Sets forth funding levels for each major functional category. (Sec. 6) Requires the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Finance to report reconciliation legislation to their respective Houses containing recommendations to change laws to increase the statutory limit on the public debt to not more than a specified amount. (Sec. 7) Limits the levels of social security outlays and revenues for this resolution to the current services levels. (Sec. 8) Establishes Senate enforcement procedures to extend the system of discretionary spending limits to budget resolutions for FY 1996 through 1998 and enforce "pay-as-you-go" spending. (Sec. 9) Expresses the sense of the Senate that legislation should be enacted that: (1) caps the growth of mandatory spending for all programs except Social Security at a level that allows for beneficiary and inflation growth; (2) prohibits, through a super-majority point of order, the consideration of congressional budget resolutions or direct spending legislation that would cause the mandatory cap to be exceeded; and (3) provides processes, including reconciliation and sequestration procedures, to provide for orderly restraint in mandatory spending growth except Social Security if such spending exceeds the cap. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the conference report on this concurrent resolution on the budget should: (1) include spending limits on aggregate mandatory spending excluding Social Security, at levels that allow for inflation and beneficiary growth; (2) include spending limits on defense and non-defense discretionary spending for FY 1994 through 1998; and (3) include reconciliation instructions to restrain mandatory spending growth to meet the mandatory cap. (Sec. 10) Expresses the sense of the Congress that the budget effects of the President's economic stimulus package should not be exempted from the congressional budget process and that if such legislation is enacted it should abide by "pay-as-you-go" and not cause an increase in the deficit. (Sec. 11) Expresses the sense of the Congress that the budget should be balanced and that legislation should be adopted mandating a balanced budget. (Sec. 12) Expresses the sense of the Congress that budget enforcement procedures should be enacted including: (1) individual statutory caps on defense and non-defense discretionary spending enforced by points of order and sequester orders; (2) pay-as-you-go discipline for mandatory spending programs enforced by super-majority points of order and sequester orders; and (3) fixed statutory maximum deficit amounts that are enforced by super-majority points of order and sequester orders.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 1993
Landmine Moratorium Extension Act of 1993 - Declares that it is U.S. policy to seek international agreements prohibiting the sale, transfer, or export, and terminating the manufacture, possession, and use, of antipersonnel landmines. Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the President should submit the 1980 Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons to the Senate for ratification; and (2) the Administration should negotiate a modification of the Landmine Protocol under United Nations auspices or another international agreement to limit the sale, transfer, manufacture, and use of landmines. Prohibits for three years after this Act's enactment: (1) sales, financing, transfers, and the issuance of licenses under the Arms Export Control Act with respect to antipersonnel landmines; and (2) assistance under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 with respect to the provision of such landmines.
United States · United States Congress · 21 July 1993
Small Business Credit Reform Act of 1993 - Amends the Small Business Act (the Act) to increase, for each of FY 1993 through 1996, the funding under such Act for: (1) disaster loans; (2) loans under the Small Business Investment Act of 1958; and (3) loans for other programs under the Act. Revises the loan funding authority and adds FY 1995 and 1996 funding authority for the Microloan Demonstration Program (the provision of loans and grants to start up, newly established, or growing small businesses). Amends the Small Business Administration Reauthorization and Amendments Act of 1988 to remove limitations on the commercial loan interest rates to be charged by a State for private debenture sales authorized under such Act. Authorizes the Small Business Administration (SBA) to charge an additional loan guarantee fee for loans made under the Act which are sold on the secondary market. Makes miscellaneous changes with respect to other loans guaranteed by the SBA under the Act, including the Microloan Program. Revises the dates of conferences to be held by the National White House Conference on Small Business. Increases the authorization of appropriations for Conference activities.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 1993
Amends the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to prescribe guidelines under which the Secretary of the Treasury and the Rural Electrification Administrator (the Administrator) shall allow, upon a borrower's request, the prepayment or repricing of a loan made by the Federal Financing Bank and guaranteed by the Administrator. Authorizes appropriations as necessary to provide for the cost of prepayment premium waivers for such loans.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Community Development Banks Title II: Conforming Amendments Community Development Bank Act - Title I: Community Development Banks - Authorizes the Comptroller of the Currency to charter certain national banking associations (community development banks) that will: (1) engage primarily in community development activities; (2) be capitalized by insured depository institutions as its shareholders; and (3) provide credit, capital, and related services to revitalize distressed urban and rural communities. Restricts such a bank's loans and investments to provide a reasonable economic return to the bank and its shareholders consistent with its primary community development purpose. Mandates: (1) such bank's coordination with certain Federal agencies regarding its community development activities; and (2) an annual onsite examination to evaluate its compliance with this Act and its record of meeting community credit needs. Title II: Conforming Amendments - Amends the Federal Credit Union Act to: (1) authorize the National Credit Union Administration Board (the Board) to provide technical assistance to community development credit unions by using the interest earned from authorized investments in Treasury securities; and (2) direct the Board to study and report to certain congressional committees on regulatory and legislative changes that may be necessary to ensure the viability and productivity of community development activities by credit unions.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1993
National Quality Commitment Award Act of 1993 - Amends the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 to establish the National Commitment to Quality Award Program involving the awarding of a medal and at least three monetary competitive awards to institutions of higher education. Authorizes specialized monetary awards to any institution of higher education that excels in teaching or practicing either total quality management (TQM) or process manufacturing engineering services productivity improvement.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 1993
Spending Reduction Act of 1993 - Establishes the Spending Reduction Commission to propose cost savings and changes in law to achieve at least $65 billion of budget outlay reductions for the budget year and each outyear until a balanced budget is reached. Sets forth the procedure for implementation of the Commission's recommendations by the Office of Management and Budget, the President, and the Congress. Makes budget outlay reductions permanent. Requires the Comptroller General to make a compliance report on this Act at the end of each congressional session.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1993
Women in the Armed Forces Commemorative Coins Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) mint and issue coins to commemorate the women who have served in the armed forces of the United States; and (2) transfer the surcharges received from coin sales to the Women in Military Service for America Memorial Foundation to be used to create, endow, and dedicate the Women in the Armed Forces Memorial.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 1993
Credit Crunch Relief Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act to exempt from certain loan documentation review requirements a loan to a small business or small farm that is identified by an eligible depository institution as a qualifying loan. Provides loan limitation amounts for such qualifying loans, allowing for certain adjustments. Directs the President to: (1) conduct a thorough review and evaluation of all statutory and regulatory provisions affecting insured depository institutions; and (2) if determined appropriate, suspend the applicability of any Federal law or regulation or guideline promulgated by a Federal banking agency affecting such insured depository institutions. Requires Federal Register publication of such an order, as well as congressional notification. Prohibits a new regulation from being promulgated by a Federal banking agency until the agency has conducted a regulatory impact analysis and arrived at certain positive conclusions with respect to the costs and benefits of such regulation. Amends the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 to presume compliance with meeting credit needs for a regulated financial institution that has received satisfactory or outstanding ratings in its most recent written evaluation. Amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Improvement Act of 1991 to extend until January 1, 1996, the required promulgation of final standards for insured depository institution operational and managerial safety and soundness. Requires each Federal banking agency to: (1) conduct a survey of financial services users to determine awareness and benefits of Federal banking laws; and (2) report to specified congressional committees on survey results.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 1993
Bars persons nominated by the President to serve in offices which require the advice and consent of the Senate from performing any function which is authorized by law to be performed by an officer of the United States before their appointments are approved by the Senate.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 1993
Office of Indian Women and Families Act of 1993 - Establishes: (1) in the Department of the Interior the Office of Indian Women and Families; and (2) a temporary policy task force on Indian women and families.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 1993
Federal Employees Leave Sharing Amendments Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal Employees Leave Sharing Act of 1988 to repeal the termination of the Federal employee leave transfer and leave bank programs (thus making them permanent). Revises provisions concerning the leave transfer program to require annual or sick leave accrued by an employee under such program to be: (1) credited to the annual leave or sick leave account of the employee, as appropriate; and (2) available for use as provided under such program. Authorizes Federal agencies to establish leave bank and leave transfer programs and to provide for employee participation in either or both programs. (Current law limits employee participation to one program.) Requires the Office of Personnel Management to prescribe regulations for instances in which a leave contributor and recipient are participants in different programs. Applies this Act to leave accrued before this Act's enactment date.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 1993
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Regulatory Improvements Subtitle A: Reduction of Regulatory Burdens Subtitle B: Studies and Reports Title II: Enhanced Credit Availability and Deposit Insurance Protection Title III: Technical and Conforming Amendments Depository Institutions Regulatory Improvements Act of 1993 - Title I: Regulatory Improvements - Subtitle A: Reduction of Regulatory Burdens - Amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (FDIA) to direct Federal banking regulatory authorities, when prescribing regulations, to consider and minimize their impact upon the availability of credit for businesses and upon low- and moderate-income communities. Amends the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 to direct the Appraisal Subcommittee to encourage the States to develop reciprocity agreements allowing certified appraisers to perform appraisals in sister States. Amends the FDIA to permit: (1) annual State examinations of insured depository institutions in lieu of Federal examinations; (2) biennial examinations for certain small-sized depository institutions in good standing; and (3) the exemption of insured depository institutions controlled by certain depository institution holding companies from the Act's examination requirements. Authorizes coordinated Federal and State examinations. Directs the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) to review the regulatory burden incurred by insured depository institutions and credit unions in preparing mandated condition reports. Amends Federal banking law to repeal certain publication requirements for national banks, State non-member insured banks, and Federal Reserve banks. Requires the appropriate Federal regulatory agency to consider the administrative burdens placed upon depository institutions when determining the effective date for regulations changing the form of condition reports. Excludes from the purview of the FDIA certain depository institution branches and automated teller machines. Amends Federal law to modify the recordkeeping requirements for monetary instruments transactions. Amends the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act to repeal certain disclosure requirements with respect to federally related home equity mortgage loans that are statutorily mandated elsewhere. Amends the Electronic Fund Transfer Act to increase consumer liability for unauthorized electronic funds transfers where the cardholder has substantially contributed to such use. Amends the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 to modify its homeownership debt counseling notification requirements. Amends the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974 to: (1) modify the disclosure requirements for federally related mortgage loans; and (2) exempt from its purview specified credit extension transactions. Subtitle B: Studies and Reports - Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to report to certain congressional committees on the impact of risk-based capital standards upon domestic institutions and credit availability. Requires reports to the Congress by: (1) the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the Board) on certain sterile reserves associated with depository institutions; and (2) the Office of Management and Budget and the Congressional Budget Office on the budgetary impact of interest payments associated with such reserves. Requires Federal banking regulatory agencies to review and eliminate regulations requiring insured depository institutions to produce unnecessary internal written policies. Directs FFIEC to reduce, where appropriate, the burdensome effect upon community banks of compliance requirements associated with risk-based capital rules. Requires the Board to study and report to the Congress on ways to streamline the credit-granting process. Title II: Enhanced Credit Availability and Deposit Insurance Protection - Amends the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 to limit lender liability for the release of petroleum or a hazardous substance associated with property acquired in the ordinary course of business. Shields Federal banking and lending agencies from strict liability for the release of petroleum or a hazardous substance associated with property acquired in the ordinary course of business. Title III: Technical and Conforming Amendments - Makes technical and conforming amendments to specified Federal law.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 1993
National Indian Research Institute Act - Establishes as a federally chartered corporation the National Indian Research Institute (Institute) which shall be located in the George Washington University, Washington, D.C. Directs the Institute to: (1) conduct research and analysis and provide public information relating to Indian public policy; (2) develop a data base and act as an information clearinghouse; (3) conduct public forums and symposia; and (4) make public information available. Establishes in the Institute a Resource Advisory Council. States that the Institute shall: (1) be nonprofit and nonpolitical in nature; and (2) have tax exempt status. Transfers to the Institute the functions of the National Center for Native American Studies and Indian Policy Development. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award a grant to the George Washington University for Institute activities. Authorizes the Institute to enter into agreements with and provide grants to specified tribal colleges. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1993
Designates July 25 through 31, 1993, as National Week of Recognition and Remembrance for Those Who Served in the Korean War. Authorizes the President to urge U.S. departments and agencies, interested organizations, groups, and individuals to fly the American flag at half-staff on July 27, 1993, in honor of the Americans who died as a result of their service in Korea.
United States · United States Congress · 27 May 1993
Lechuguilla Cave Protection Act of 1993 - Withdraws the Lechuguilla Cave Protection Area, New Mexico, from all forms of appropriation or disposal under the public land, mining, and material disposal laws and from operation of mineral and geothermal leasing laws. Prohibits the Secretary of the Interior from permitting any new drilling within the Protection Area until the earlier of the effective date of a record of decision regarding the proposal to drill analyzed in the Dark Canyon Environmental Impact Statement or 12 months after enactment of this Act. Directs the Secretary to suspend other activities under mineral or geothermal leases to prevent an adverse impact on significant cave resources of Carlsbad Caverns National Park and the Protection Area. Requires the Secretary to seek the agreement of the holder of a mineral or geothermal lease for termination of such lease or for restrictions on activities on covered lands to protect significant cave resources and, if an agreement is not reached, to take appropriate protective steps. Directs the Secretary to take additional steps to protect significant cave resources of Carlsbad Caverns National Park and the Protection Area, such as limiting or prohibiting access to or across Federal lands or prohibiting removal of any mineral, geological, or cave resources except for scientific purposes. Requires the Secretary to inform specified congressional committees of the need of additional protection authority.
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