United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2002
Commends government employees for their outstanding contributions to this great Nation and salutes their unyielding dedication and spirit for public service, particularly during Public Service Recognition Week, May 6-12, 2002. Honors those public servants who have given their lives in service to their country and calls upon a new generation of workers to consider a career in public service as an honorable profession.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2002
National Homeland Security and Combating Terrorism Act of 2002 - Establishes the Department of National Homeland Security to: (1) develop policies and plans for homeland security; (2) develop a National Strategy for Combating Terrorism and Homeland Security Response to counter terrorist threats; (3) plan, coordinate, and integrate Government border security, critical infrastructure protection, and emergency preparedness activities and act as the focal point regarding crises and emergency planning and response; (4) annually develop a Federal response plan for homeland security and emergency preparedness; and (5) implement a coordinating center with representatives from other Federal agencies with security responsibilities. Transfers to the Department the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Customs Service, specified law enforcement components of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Coast Guard, the Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office of the Department of Commerce, the National Infrastructure Protection Center and the National Domestic Preparedness Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and a specified portion of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service of the Department of Agriculture. Establishes: (1) within the Department Directorates of Border and Transportation Protection, Critical Infrastructure Protection, and Emergency Preparedness and Response and an Office of Science and Technology (OST); (2) an Acceleration Fund for Research and Development of Homeland Security Technologies; (3) in OST a Homeland Security Science and Technology Senior Steering Group and Coordination Committee; (4) within the Executive Office of the President the National Office for Combating Terrorism; (5) a National Combating Terrorism and Homeland Security Response Council; and (6) a National Combating Terrorism Strategy Panel. Requires development of an annual consolidated proposed National Terrorism Prevention and Response Program Budget.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2002
Immigration Reform, Accountability, and Security Enhancement Act of 2002 - Abolishes the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to establish in the Department of Justice (Department) the Immigration Affairs Agency, which shall be headed by a Director of Immigration Affairs. States that the Agency shall perform the following functions: (1) policy, administration, and inspection; (2) service and adjudication; and (3) enforcement. Establishes within the Agency: (1) a General Counsel; (2) a Chief Financial Officer; (3) a Chief of Policy and Strategy; (4) a Chief of Congressional, Intergovernmental, and Public Affairs; (5) the Bureau of Immigration Services and Adjudications; and (6) the Bureau of Enforcement and Border Affairs. Sets forth Agency and Bureau offices and authorities. Establishes within the Department the Office of the Ombudsman. Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to establish within the Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics the Office of Immigration Statistics. Provides for the transfer and allocation of functions, personnel, an other resources from INS and the Department to the Agency. Establishes in the Treasury the Immigration Affairs Agency Transition Account. Amends Federal law to set forth personnel flexibilities respecting the Agency, including voluntary separation incentives. Unaccompanied Child Protection Act of 2002 - Establishes within the Department the Office of Children's Services which shall: (1) not be an INS office; and (2) be responsible for coordinating and implementing law and policy, including foster care, for unaccompanied alien children. Establishes an Interagency Task Force on Unaccompanied Alien Children. Sets forth: (1) procedures for unaccompanied children found within the United States, or along the border or at ports of entry; and (2) a family reunification preference order. Prohibits, with an exception for violent children, detention in adult or delinquent children facilities. Expresses the sense of Congress that the Government should take efforts to ensure that alien children are not repatriated to unsafe settings. Directs the Office to provide that each unaccompanied child have counsel and guardian ad litem. Directs the Attorney General to establish a related pilot program. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to establish a special immigrant juvenile visa (J Visa). Expresses congressional commendation of the Immigration and Naturalization Service' s issuance of its "Guidelines for Children's Asylum Claims." Provides related training for immigration officers. Amends the Act to exempt unaccompanied alien children from certain removal and asylum filing provisions. Provides for: (1) establishment of an Internet-based system for accessing immigration-related benefit filings; (2) conduct an on-line filing and improved processing feasibility study; and (3) establish a Technology Advisory Committee. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize the utilization of alternatives to asylee detention.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2002
Teaching Hospital Preservation Act of 2002 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to maintain the indirect medical education adjustment percentage at 6.5 percent.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2002
Confidence in Criminal Justice Act of 2002 - Amends the Federal judicial code to provide for the suspension of execution of a death sentence under specified circumstances upon notice by a party that has filed a motion for a stay of execution or for certiorari with, or that has been granted certiorari by, the United States Supreme Court. Treats a motion for a stay of execution as a petition for certiorari. Requires a U.S. justice or judge before whom a habeas corpus proceeding that involves the death sentence is pending to stay the execution until the proceeding is completed. Amends the Federal criminal code to set forth provisions: (1) allowing and governing motions by imprisoned individuals for post-conviction DNA testing on specified evidence; and (2) regarding testing and reporting of test results. Prohibits the Government, for a specified period, from destroying biological material preserved if the defendant is serving a term of imprisonment following conviction in a case, with exceptions. Directs the Attorney General to establish a system for reporting and tracking motions under this Act. Prohibits a State from denying an application for DNA testing made by a prisoner in State custody who would be eligible for such testing under Federal provisions pursuant to this Act. Entitles a defendant in a criminal action in a State court that may result in punishment by death, who is financially unable to obtain adequate representation or investigative, expert, or other reasonably necessary services before or after judgment, to the appointment of one or more attorneys and the furnishing of such services. Prescribes minimum experience requirements for such defense counsel.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2002
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Nation should take additional steps to ensure the prevention of teen pregnancy by engaging in measures to educate teenagers as to why they should stop and think about the negative consequences before engaging in premature sexual activity. Designates May 8, 2002, as National Teen Pregnancy Prevention Day.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2002
Predatory Lending Consumer Protection Act of 2002 - Amends the Truth in Lending Act guidelines for certain credit transactions secured by the consumer's principal dwelling (high-cost mortgage). Requires additional disclosures that the consumer is contracting to pay a much higher loan than most people pay. Specifies additional prohibitions against prepayment penalties, except in certain circumstances. Prohibits all balloon payments. Prohibits the terms of a high-cost mortgage from including advance collection of a premium on a single premium basis for specified credit insurance products. Restricts the amount of points and fees which a creditor may finance in connection with a high-cost mortgage. Prohibits certain creditors from financing the prepayment fees or penalties due from the consumer. Prohibits a high-cost mortgage creditor from engaging in specified practices, including requiring arbitration or any other nonjudicial procedure as a method for resolving any controversy or claims arising from the transaction. Declares a consumer's waiver of the right of rescission ineffective if the creditor either advised, or encouraged such waiver, or required it as a precondition for a transaction. Amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to mandate that each high-cost mortgage creditor (including the successor creditor) report the debtor's complete payment history to certain consumer reporting agencies in accordance with specified regulations.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2002
Human Cloning Prohibition Act of 2002 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit: (1) conducting or attempting to conduct human cloning; or (2) shipping the product of nuclear transplantation in interstate or foreign commerce for the purpose of human cloning. Provides that nothing in this Act shall be construed to restrict practices not expressly prohibited. Prescribes civil and criminal penalties for violations and subjects any real or personal property derived from or used to commit a violation to forfeiture. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require research involving nuclear transplantation to be conducted in accordance with certain Federal standards for the protection of human subjects.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2002
Preservation of Civil Rights Protections Act of 2002 - Amends the Federal Arbitration Act to exclude all employment contracts from arbitration provisions (current law excludes employment contracts of seamen, railroad employees, or any other class of workers engaged in foreign or interstate commerce). Makes clauses in employment contracts that require arbitration of a dispute arising under the Constitution or U.S. laws unenforceable, with exceptions: (1) where the parties knowingly and voluntarily consent to submit a dispute to arbitration after the dispute arises; and (2) with regard to an employee or union enforcing any rights or terms of a valid collective bargaining agreement.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 2002
Mental Health Patients' Rights Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to allow a health insurance issuer to impose a preexisting condition exclusion relating to a preexisting mental condition only if: (1) such exclusion relates to a condition for which medical advice, diagnosis, care, or treatment was recommended or received within the six-month period ending on the enrollment date; (2) such exclusion extends for no more than 12 months after the enrollment date; and (3) the exclusion period is reduced by the aggregate periods of creditable coverage applicable to the individual or dependent as of the enrollment date. Prohibits any such issuer from requiring an individual or dependent with a preexisting mental health condition to pay a premium or contribution which is greater than that charged to an individual without such condition when the additional charge is based solely on such preexisting condition. Defines `preexisting mental health condition' to mean a mental health condition, including all categories of mental health conditions listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM IV-TR), or the most recent edition if different than the Fourth Edition, that was present before the date of enrollment of such coverage, whether or not any medical advice, diagnosis, care, or treatment was recommended or received before such date.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 2002
Medicaid DSH Equity Act of 2002 - Amends the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Benefits Improvement and Protection Act of 2000 to make the Medicaid DSH (disproportionate share hospitals) transition rule for payment to public hospitals permanent. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to credit certain paid but unexpended Medicaid funds against future expenditures.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 2002
Preserving Health Care in Rural America Act of 2002 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to provide for: (1) payment adjustment for low-volume hospitals; and (2) revision in the Medicare disproportionate share hospital (DSH) payment adjustment for rural hospitals equalizing DSH payment amounts. Amends the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to establish: (1) a capital infrastructure revolving loan program under which the Secretary of Health and Human Services may make described loans to any rural entity for projects for capital improvements from the loan and loan guarantee fund under PHSA; and (2) a high technology acquisition grant and loan program under which the Secretary may award grants and make loans to any eligible entity for any costs incurred by the entity in acquiring eligible equipment and services for improving the quality of health care in rural areas.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2002
Safe Motherhood Act for Research and Treatment or SMART Mom Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through either the Office of Woman's Health, the National Institutes of Health, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, or the Centers for Disease Control, to address the health issues of pregnant women. Establishes the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Safe Motherhood to evaluate and coordinate Federal research and information efforts and establish and implement the national Safe Motherhood Campaign. Requires the development and maintenance of a single Internet website. Requires expanded and intensified research activities concerning pregnancy-related illness, injury, and death and the impact of chronic conditions, physical impairments, and mental health problems on the health of women during pregnancy. Requires the establishment of a Maternal Fetal Medicine Unit Network. Awards research and demonstration project grants to address racial/ethnic disparities in pregnancy outcomes. Requires: (1) studies of the quality of maternal health care (from a patient's perspective) and the effects of pregnancy on women's health; and (2) surveillance of pregnancy-related mortality and morbidity data. Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the Secretary to address issues concerning certain drugs and medical devices and their appropriate use by or effects on pregnant or lactating women and/or fetuses, through: (1) identification and study; (2) pharmacoepidemiological data bases; (3) biennial review and prioritization (drugs); (4) labeling; and (5) the Women's Health: Take Time to Care (or a new) program.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2002
Joseph Moakley Memorial Fire Safe Cigarette Act of 2002 - Directs the Consumer Product Safety Commission to prescribe fire safety standards for cigarettes to reduce the risk of ignition presented by cigarettes (including a proscription against the stockpiling of cigarettes to which the fire safety standards will apply). Sets forth general test requirements. Denies the Commission any jurisdiction over tobacco or tobacco products.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2002
Calls upon European governments to: (1) acknowledge the anti-Semitic character of the attacks on Jewish institutions in cities across Europe in the last 18 months as violations of human rights and to utilize their law enforcement tools to investigate the crimes and punish the perpetrators; (2) decry the rationalizing of attitudes and attacks against Jews as merely a result of popular frustration with the Middle East conflict; and (3) take measures to protect and ensure the security of Jewish citizens and institutions. Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) Congress and the Administration must raise this issue in bilateral contacts; (2) the State Department's Annual Country Reports on Human Rights should document this phenomenon worldwide; and (3) the Commission on International Religious Freedom should continue to document and report on this phenomenon.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2002
Prescription Drug Price Parity for Americans Act - Amends provisions of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act set forth in the Medicine Equity and Drug Safety Act of 2000 to: (1) direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to promulgate regulations permitting pharmacists and wholesalers to import Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved prescription drugs from Canada (currently, from Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, South Africa, the countries in the European Union and the European Free Trade Association, or other countries designated by the Secretary); and (2) exclude an infused or intravenously injected drug or a drug that is inhaled during surgery. Prohibits discrimination in the sale of prescription drugs by manufacturers to pharmacists or wholesalers, requiring: (1) terms as favorable as those provided to foreign purchasers; and (2) full access to drugs permitted to be imported. Continues the requirement that exported donated prescription drugs may only be reimported by the manufacturer. Permits the Secretary to waive the prohibition against importing a prescription drug or device on a case-by-case basis, particularly those from Canada that are FDA-approved and for limited personal use. Requires a study and report by the: (1) Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences on the regulatory compliance of importers of drugs; and (2) Comptroller General on how drug prices were affected.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2002
Amends Federal law to prohibit the collection of tolls from vehicles and military equipment owned by the Department of Defense for the use of any toll facility (toll highway, bridge, or tunnel on a public road, or toll ferry boat operating on a route classified as a public road) when the vehicle or military equipment is under the actual physical control of a uniformed member of the Armed Forces.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2002
Truth in Auditing Act of 2002 - Instructs the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to designate an Independent Public Accounting Oversight Board (Board) as a private, self-regulatory entity, subject to SEC oversight, and which shall not be a Federal agency or instrumentality. Limits certified public accountant membership on such Board to two out of the five members. Identifies Board duties as : (1) the establishment and enforcement of auditor quality control, independence, and auditing standards; and (2) the conduct of a continuing program of inspections to assess compliance with this Act by each registered public accounting firm. Grants the SEC general oversight and enforcement authority over the Board, including abrogation and amendatory authority over any Board rule or disciplinary action. Mandates prior SEC approval of any Board ruling. Empowers the SEC to censure the Board, impose sanctions upon it and to rescind its authority, as well as remove Board members. Mandates registration of public accounting firms with the Board. Prescribes auditor independence rules. Prescribes guidelines for Board investigations and disciplinary proceedings, including assessment of civil money penalties. Places foreign public accounting firms within the purview of this Act. Requires certain corporate officers to certify and sign the periodic financial statements filed under this Act and transmitted to shareholders.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2002
Promoting Healthy Eating Behaviors in Youth Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to award research grants or make cooperative agreements for up to four years for the promotion of healthy eating behaviors in youth, specifically at-risk populations such as adolescent girls. Includes nutritional content, hunger and satiety, positive body image and self-esteem development, and life skills among the components of such a program. Requires the Director to evaluate the results and identify "Programs that Work" for dissemination to the public.
United States · United States Congress · 23 April 2002
Medicare Equity for Veterans Act of 2002 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to authorize the Secretaries of Health and Human Services (HHS) and of Veterans Affairs (VA), under a new Medicare Subvention Project for Veterans, to establish a demonstration project under which the HHS Secretary shall reimburse the VA Secretary from the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund for Medicare health care services furnished to targeted Medicare-eligible veterans who volunteer for such project. Requires the demonstration project to be conducted at up to ten sites jointly designated by the Secretaries. Directs the VA Secretary to establish and operate coordinated care health plans to provide benefits to the enrolled veterans consistent with the program under SSA title XVIII part C (Medicare+Choice).
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 2002
Declares that, if the Federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) for a State for FY 2002 is less than the FMAP for FY 2001, the FY 2001 FMAP shall be substituted for the State's FMAP for the last three calendar quarters of FY 2002. Declares similarly that: (1) if a State's FY 2003 FMAP is less than the FY 2002 FMAP, the FY 2002 FMAP shall be substituted for each calendar quarter of FY 2003; and (2) if a State's FY 2004 FMAP is less than the FY 2003 FMAP, the FY 2003 FMAP shall be substituted for each calendar quarter of FY 2004. Requires each eligible State for each calendar quarter for the last three calendar quarters of FY 2002 and each calendar quarter for FY 2003 through FY 2004 to be increased by 1.5 percentage points. Mandates specified FMAP increases for States with high unemployment rates, and a specified Medicaid payment cap increase for territories. Prohibits application of the FMAP increases for a State under this Act with respect to: (1) disproportionate share hospital payments under Medicaid; and (2) payments under SSA titles IV and XXI (State Children's Health Insurance) (SCHIP).
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 2002
Declares that the Senate: (1) stands in solidarity with Israel as it takes necessary steps to provide security to its people by dismantling the terrorist infrastructure in the Palestinian areas; (2) remains committed to Israel's right to self-defense; and (3) will continue to assist Israel in strengthening its homeland defenses. Condemns Palestinian suicide bombings. Demands that the Palestinian Authority fulfill its commitment to dismantle the terrorist infrastructure in the Palestinian areas. Urges: (1) all Arab states, particularly Egypt and Saudi Arabia, to declare their unqualified opposition to all forms of terrorism, particularly suicide bombing, and to act in concert with the United States to stop the violence; and (2) all parties in the region to pursue vigorous efforts to establish comprehensive peace in the Middle East.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 2002
Arafat Accountability Act - Expresses the support of Congress for the President's efforts to achieve comprehensive peace in the State of Israel. Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the United States should urge an immediate and unconditional cessation of all terrorist activities and the commencement of a cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinians; (2) the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Palestinian Authority (PA) should immediately surrender to Israel for detention and prosecution those Palestinian extremists wanted by Israel for the assassination of Israeli Minister of Tourism Rehavam Zeevi; and (3) Yasser Arafat and the PLO must take immediate and concrete action to publicly condemn all acts of terrorism, confiscate and destroy the infrastructures of terrorism, and end (and urge all Arab nations to end) financial support for terrorism. Prohibits the Secretary of State (Secretary) and the Attorney General, respectively, from issuing a visa or admitting to the United States any member of the PLO or official of the PA. Permits the President to waive this prohibition in the national security interest of the United States. Directs the Secretary to prohibit the operation of a PLO or PA office in the United States from carrying out any function other than those carried out prior to the Oslo Accords. Requires the Secretary to impose travel restrictions on the senior official of the Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine. Requires the Secretary and the Attorney General to identify and freeze United States assets of the PLO, the PA, and Yasser Arafat. Requires the President to report to specified congressional committees on PLO terrorist activities.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 2002
Requires former reserve enlisted personnel (currently, only former active-duty enlisted personnel) entitled to monthly retired pay to receive an additional ten percent of such pay if, during their reserve service, such personnel were credited by the Secretary of the military department concerned with extraordinary heroism in the line of duty.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 2002
Debt Relief Enhancement Act of 2002 - Amends the International Financial Institutions Act to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to commence efforts immediately within the Paris Club of Official Creditors, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and other appropriate multilateral development institutions to modify the Enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative so that the amount of debt stock reduction approved for a country eligible for debt relief shall be sufficient to reduce, by a specified deadline, the net present value of the outstanding public and publicly guaranteed debt of the country, and the annual payments due, to levels determined according to certain formulae. Prohibits conditioning any such debt cancellation on an agreement by an impoverished country to implement or comply with policies that deepen poverty or degrade the environment. Prescribes other specified conditions and prohibitions with respect to country eligibility. Requires any country otherwise eligible to receive debt cancellation under the modifications to the Initiative made by this Act to agree to: (1) ensure that the financial benefits of debt cancellation are applied to programs to combat HIV/AIDS and poverty; and (2) implement transparent and participatory policymaking and budget procedures, good governance, and effective anticorruption measures. Requires the Secretary to report to Congress on the options and costs associated with expanding debt relief under the Initiative to poor countries not eligible for inclusion in it.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 2002
Syria Accountability Act of 2002 - Prohibits the President from exporting any item on the United States Munitions List or Commerce Control List of dual-use items in the Export Administration Regulations, providing any U.S. assistance to U.S. businesses with respect to investment or other activities, or conducting Overseas Private Investment Corporation and Trade Development Agency programs in or with respect to Syria. Directs the President to impose two or more specified sanctions against Syria. Requires maintenance of such prohibition and sanctions until the President certifies that Syria meets specified requirements, including that it: (1) does not support international terrorist groups; (2) has withdrawn all of its military personnel from Lebanon: (3) has ceased the development and deployment of ballistic missiles and biological and chemical weapons; and (4) is no longer in violation of United Nations (UN) Security Council Resolution 661 and subsequent relevant resolutions.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 2002
Directs the Secretary of Labor, in accordance with specified provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, to issue a final rule relating to ergonomics.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 2002
Steel Industry Consolidation and Retiree Benefits Protection Act of 2002 - Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to establish a steel industry retiree benefits protection program administered by the Secretary of Commerce and the Board of Trustees of the Steel Industry Legacy Relief Trust Fund (created by this Act) to provide specified medical and death benefits to eligible steel retirees and beneficiaries. Prescribes qualifying events (acquisition, closing, election, or bankruptcy transfer) as a result of which the United States shall assume liability for the provision of steel retiree benefits for each eligible retiree and eligible beneficiary certified for participation in the retiree benefits program. Requires transfer to the Trust Fund by a qualified steel company and any applicable acquiring company of all assets which, under the terms of an applicable collective bargaining agreement, were required to be set aside under an employee benefit plan or otherwise for the provision of the steel retiree benefits. Requires contributions to the Trust Fund by such companies.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 2002
Designates the week of May 5-11, 2002, as National Occupational Safety and Health Week. Commends safety professionals for their ongoing commitment to protecting people, property, and the environment and encourages all industries, organizations, community leaders, employers, and employees to support educational activities aimed at increasing awareness of the importance of preventing illness, injury, and death in the workplace.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2002
Provides a presumption of eligibility for trade adjustment assistance under the Trade Act of 1974 for a worker (including a worker in any agricultural firm or subdivision of an agricultural firm) in an industry where the International Trade Commission (ITC) notifies the Secretary of Labor that it has made an affirmative determination that an article is being imported into the United States in such increased quantities as to be a substantial cause of serious injury (or threat thereof) to that industry producing an article like or directly competitive with the imported article. Requires the Secretary, where a worker is presumed eligible for assistance, to: (1) initiate outreach to the industry to gather information on the number and geographic location of workers in that industry who are likely to be certified eligible for assistance; (2) work with the State to develop an expedited process to accept applications from workers in that industry; (3) process each application for certification within a specified time after receiving the application or after enactment of this Act, whichever is later; and (4) deny an application for certification only if there is clear and compelling evidence that a worker was laid off or a plant was closed as a result of causes other than the ITC's affirmative determination for that industry.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2002
Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) religious freedom and the protection of minority rights must remain as priority issues on the bilateral agenda of both the United States and the Russian Federation; (2) any U.S. actions to "graduate" or terminate the application of the Jackson-Vanik Amendment (free emigration as a condition for granting normal trade relations to non-market economies) to any individual country must take into account the progress already achieved through the application of such amendment as well as appropriate assurances regarding the continued commitment of such country to enforcing the fundamental human rights envisioned by the amendment; and (3) the U.S. Government must demonstrate how, in "graduating" individual countries, the "continued dedication of the United States" to these fundamental rights will be assured.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2002
Comprehensive Trade Negotiating Authority Act of 2002 - Sets forth the overall trade negotiating objectives of the United States for trade agreements (generally similar to the objectives of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 (OTCA)), including to: (1) obtain clear and specific commitments from U.S. trading partners to fulfill existing international trade obligations according to existing schedules; (2) ensure that dispute settlement mechanisms in multilateral, regional, and bilateral agreements lead to prompt and full compliance; (3) pursue market access initiatives that benefit the world's least-developed countries; (4) promote enforcement of internationally recognized core labor standards by U.S. trading partners; and (5) promote compatibility of trade rules with national environmental, health, and safety standards and with multilateral environmental agreements. Sets forth the principal U.S. negotiating objectives (generally similar to the principal OTCA negotiating objectives) under the auspices of the World Trade Organization (WTO), or in seeking a trade agreement establishing a Free Trade Area for the Americas (FTAA), or bilateral trade agreements, with regard to reciprocal trade in agriculture, trade in services, trade in manufactured and non-agricultural goods, trade in civil aircraft, rules of origin, dispute settlement, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights, transparency, government procurement, trade and labor market standards, trade remedy laws, trade and the environment, trade and investment, electronic commerce, developing countries, corruption, and WTO agreements. Requires U.S. negotiators in pursuing such objectives to take into account legitimate U.S. domestic objectives, including, but not limited to, the protection of health and safety, essential security, environmental, consumer, and employment opportunity interests, and related laws and regulations. Requires the President to take into account the extent to which a foreign country has implemented its obligations under the Uruguay Round Agreements when entering into a trade agreement with such foreign country. Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to set forth certain changes in the designation of congressional advisers on trade policy and negotiations. Sets forth the authority of the President (generally similar to the authority under OTCA) to enter into trade agreements with foreign countries regarding tariff and non-tariff barriers. States that a trade agreement may be entered into only if it makes progress in meeting the overall and principal trade negotiating objectives, it would benefit the United States, the President satisfies certain congressional notification and consultation requirements, including submission of the agreement for assessment by the International Trade Commission, and the U.S. Trade Representative consults with congressional trade advisers and relevant committees and assesses the environmental effects of the agreement. Declares that bills implementing trade agreements may qualify for fast track procedures (no amendments) if they contain: (1) a provision approving a trade agreement entered into under this Act, and approving any statement of administrative action; (2) provisions necessary to implement such trade agreements if changes in existing laws or new authority are required to implement it; and (3) provisions to provide trade adjustment assistance to workers, firms, and communities. Extends fast track procedures to bills implementing trade agreements only if the President requests such extension and neither House of Congress adopts an extension disapproval resolution. Exempts from congressional notification and consultation requirements any tariff or nontariff agreement which results from negotiations commenced before enactment of this Act, and which: (1) is entered into under the auspices of the WTO regarding rules of origin or otherwise under the WTO; (2) is entered into with Chile or Singapore; or (3) establishes a FTAA. Requires the President to submit an implementation and enforcement plan at the time a final text of any tariff or nontariff trade agreement is submitted to Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2002
Removes, for months beginning on or after October 1, 2002, the requirement that qualifying offsetting legislation be enacted before a member or former member of the armed forces may be paid military retired pay and veterans' disability compensation concurrently without deduction. Repeals, as of such date, a special compensation program for certain severely disabled military retirees.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 2002
National Aviation Capacity Expansion Act of 2002 - Directs the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration to implement the redesign and reconstruction of Chicago O'Hare International Airport in Cook and Dupage Counties, Illinois, in accordance with a specified runway design plan, and the development of a south suburban airport in the Chicago metropolitan region, by facilitating their approval, funding, construction, and implementation. Requires an implementation plan to be prepared by the State of Illinois under the Clean Air Act for regulating emissions associated with activity at commercial service airports. Makes the Administrator's approval of an airport layout plan submitted by Chicago that includes the runway redesign plan conditional on the meeting of specified requirements. Requires the withholding of all airport grant funds for O'Hare (other than grants involving national security and safety) until January 1, 2026, unless specified conditions with respect to operations at Merrill C. Meigs Field have been met.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 2002
Homeland Security Block Grant Act of 2002 - Authorizes the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to make homeland security block grants to States, local governments, and Indian tribes. Requires grantees to: (1) prepare a statement of homeland security objectives and projected fund use; and (2) provide the Director with a certification that they have developed a homeland security plan that meets short- and long-term security needs and that they will comply with applicable laws. Directs: (1) each grantee to submit to the Director a performance and evaluation report concerning the use of funds, together with an assessment of the relationship of such use to security objectives; and (2) the Director to encourage and assist national associations of eligible grantees, States, and local governments in non-qualifying areas to develop and recommend uniform record-keeping, performance reporting, evaluation reporting, and auditing requirements, to establish such requirements, and to make specified reviews and audits at least annually. Lists activities eligible for assistance under this Act, including funding additional law enforcement, fire, and emergency resources, improving cyber and infrastructure security, and devising a homeland security plan. Provides that grants may be used to cover costs incurred for eligible activities on or after September 11, 2001. Sets forth provisions regarding allocation and distribution of funds and matching requirements. Earmarks specified sums for State and regional homeland defense planning, Statewide training facilities and homeland best-practices clearinghouses, and first responder communication systems. Mandates nondiscrimination in programs and activities. Sets forth remedies for noncompliance with Act requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2002
Investor-Employees Need Financial Facts and Options for Responsible Retirement Plan Management Act of 2002 - INFORM Act of 2002 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to set forth requirements for disclosure, diversification, account access, and accountability under defined contribution plans that are individual account plans (IAPs) (401(k) and similar plans). Requires pension plan administrators to provide certain benefit information to participants or beneficiaries periodically. Requires plan sponsors and administrators to provide all material investment information to participants and beneficiaries, in an accurate form, as required to be disclosed to investors under applicable securities laws, and treats misleading investment information as a violation. Establishes diversification standards for certain IAPs holding employer stock and real property. Requires notification of, and signing of risk acknowledgment forms by, participants or beneficiaries whenever assets consisting of employer securities and real property exceed 30 percent of total IAP assets. Directs the Secretary of Labor to study and report on investment of IAP assets in employer securities. Requires IAP fiduciaries to give 60 days notice to plan participants and beneficiaries before a lockdown limiting their control over their account assets, and limits the maximum duration of any such lockdown to ten consecutive business days. Makes employers liable for excessive losses by IAPs on employer securities during lockdowns. Requires each fiduciary of an IAP to be bonded or insured to cover financial losses due to failures to meet certain ERISA requirements. Requires joint boards of trustees, representing interests of employers, employee participants, and beneficiaries, to hold in trust the assets of single-employer IAPs whose assets derive from employee contributions. Prohibits: (1) waiver of rights or claims under ERISA, with specified exceptions; and (2) interference with such rights. Establishes an Office of Pension Participant Advocacy in the Department of Labor. Directs the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation to study and report to specified congressional committees on the feasibility of and options for developing an insurance system for IAPs.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2002
Clean Diamond Trade Act - Directs the President to prohibit the import of rough diamonds from countries that do not take measures meeting the requirements of the United Nations Security Council Resolutions on trade in conflict diamonds. Excludes imports for personal use and previously exported and reimported diamonds. Authorizes the President to prohibit the import of polished diamonds on the same basis. Directs the President to prohibit the entry of polished diamonds and jewelry containing them if there is credible evidence such diamonds are conflict diamonds. Subjects diamonds imported in violation of these requirements to the seizure and forfeiture laws as well as all criminal and civil laws. Earmarks proceeds for the Leahy War Victims Fund and other specified purposes. Requires periodic reports on the effectiveness of the U.N. requirements and the requirements of this Act in preventing the importation of conflict diamonds. Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the President should negotiate an international arrangement to eliminate the conflict diamond trade and seek U.N. resolutions concerning the diamond trade in additional countries; (2) this Act should not impede the legitimate diamond trade; and (3) companies in diamond extraction and trade should contribute financially to countries seeking to implement effective measures to stop trade in conflict diamonds.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2002
Living American Hero Appreciation Act - Increases from $600 to $1,000 the monthly special pension for Medal of Honor (Medal) recipients, makes such award effective from the first day of the month that begins after the date of the act for which the Medal was awarded, and makes such amount subject to an annual cost-of-living adjustment. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to make a lump-sum payment to existing Medal recipients for any retroactive amounts due as a result of such increase. Provides criminal penalties for the unauthorized purchase or possession of a Medal or for false representation as a Medal recipient.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2002
Meat and Poultry Pathogen Reduction and Enforcement Act - Amends the Federal Meat Inspection Act and the Poultry Products Inspection Act, respectively, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to: (1) prescribe initial and final pathogen performance standards for raw meat and raw poultry, and meat and poultry products processed in establishments inspected under such Acts; (2) identify, and publish a list of, such pathogens; (3) initiate pathogen surveys to determine existing levels of meat and poultry contamination; and (4) perform microbial compliance testing at such establishments, and prohibit non-complying establishments from labeling such products as "inspected and passed." Directs the Secretary to establish a National Advisory Committee for Microbiology Criteria for Foods.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 2002
Corporate and Criminal Fraud Accountability Act of 2002 - Amends the Federal criminal code to set penalties for: (1) destroying, altering, or falsifying records in Federal investigations or in bankruptcy; and (2) failure of an accountant who conducts an audit of an issuer of securities to maintain all documents sent, received, or created in connection with the audit for a five year period. Amends: (1) the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act to authorize State attorneys general and the Securities and Exchange Commission (current law limits such authority to the Attorney General) to institute proceedings under the Act; (2) Federal bankruptcy law to make certain debts incurred in violation of Federal or State securities laws, or common law fraud in connection with the purchase or sale of any security, non-dischargeable in bankruptcy; and (3) the Federal judicial code to authorize a private right of action that involves a securities fraud-related claim to be brought by the earlier of five years after the date of the alleged violation or three years after its discovery. Directs the United States Sentencing Commission to review the Federal sentencing guidelines for obstruction of justice, and for fraud when the number of victims adversely involved is significantly greater than 50 or when it endangers the solvency or financial security of multiple victims. Authorizes a civil action to protect whistle-blowing employees against retaliation in fraud cases involving publicly traded companies. Sets forth criminal penalties for defrauding shareholders of such companies.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 2002
General Aviation Industry Reparations Act of 2002 - Directs the President to take certain actions to compensate general aviation entities and their employees for economic injuries incurred by them as a result of the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, including to: (1) issue them federal credit instruments; and (2) compensate them and employees for direct losses incurred as a result of any Federal ground stop order or flight restrictions for a period of one week or more imposed in response to the increased security required by such attacks, as well as certain incremental losses, especially those incurred by employees of an entity receiving assistance who lost their jobs (other than for cause) as a result of such attacks. Authorizes the Air Transportation Stabilization Board to enter into agreements with one or more obligors to issue such instruments. Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to provide insurance or reinsurance, or reimbursement of insurance costs increases, to a general aviation entity against loss or damage arising from the operation of nonmilitary aircraft while in the United States. Authorizes the President to issue a Federal credit instrument to a general aviation entity if it has entered into a binding agreement to: (1) pay costs attributable to providing health insurance coverage for former and current employees who lost their jobs and coverage because of the terrorist attacks; and (2) maintain current health benefit and contribution levels for currently insured employees. Defines "general aviation entity" to mean any person (non-air carrier) that: (1) operates nonmilitary aircraft to conduct its primary business; (2) manufactures nonmilitary aircraft with a maximum seating capacity of fewer than 20 passengers, or aircraft parts to be used in such aircraft; (3) provides services necessary for nonmilitary operations; or (4) operates a nonprimary airport meeting certain criteria. Includes fixed based operators, flight schools, manufacturers of general aviation aircraft and products, persons engaged in nonscheduled aviation enterprises, and general aviation independent contractors.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 2002
Family Violence Prevention Act of 2002 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish an Office of Family Violence within the Department of Health and Human Services. Directs the Office to coordinate intra-departmental family violence programs and develop a Federal family violence prevention Internet website. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide for the establishment of five family violence research and education centers through grants or contracts with public and nonprofit private entities. Requires such centers to: (1) include both professional and public education; and (2) be linked to national, State, and local resources. Requires one center to be linked to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and another to the National Institute of Mental Health. Directs the Secretary to establish an advisory board to make recommendations concerning the centers' research agenda. Requires the Director to award grants to eligible entities, including healthcare delivery systems or training entities, to develop and disseminate family violence education and training curricula, programs, and strategies.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2002
Veterans Benefits and Pensions Protection Act of 2002 - Includes as a prohibited assignment of veterans' benefits any agreement entered into by a beneficiary under which another person acquires for consideration the right to receive any compensation, pension, or dependency and indemnity compensation of such beneficiary. Provides criminal penalties for violations. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to conduct an outreach program to inform veterans and other potential recipients of such compensation or pension of the prohibition against the assignment of such benefits, including information on various schemes to evade the prohibition and means of avoiding such schemes.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2002
Designates March 8, 2002, as International Women's Day. Reaffirms the Senate's commitment to ending discrimination and violence against women, ensuring their safety and welfare, and pursuing policies that guarantee their basic rights both in the United States and in the world. Calls upon the U.S. people to observe International Women's Day with appropriate programs and activities.
![Official portrait of Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/d000563_200.jpg)