United States · United States Congress · 19 March 1985
Textile and Apparel Trade Enforcement Act of 1985 - Limits the total quantity of 1985 imports of textiles and textile products from a major exporting country to the lesser of an amount equal to 101 percent: (1) of the total quantity of textile products imported from such country if the total had increased by six percent annually during 1981 through 1984; or (2) if the United States has an agreement with such country providing for an annual growth rate of less than six percent, of the total quantity of such products from such country imported during 1984. Limits the total quantity of 1985 imports of textiles and textile products from an exporting country to an amount equal to the total quantity of such products imported from such country during 1984 plus: (1) 15 percent of such quantity in the case of a category that is not an import sensitive category; or (2) one percent in the case of an import sensitive category. Provides for changing the classification of a country, except for a Caribbean country, from an exporting country to a major exporting country if the total textile imports from such country equals or exceeds one and one-quarter percent of all textiles imported into the United States. Sets forth a formula for adjusting the growth of textile imports annually. Sets forth certain minimum quantities of textile imports that all countries shall be allowed to export to the United States. Requires the Secretary of Commerce to enforce this Act. Directs the Secretary, within six months of enactment of this Act, to establish an import licensing system under which an importer of textiles will be required to present an import permit as a condition of entry of such textiles. Directs the President to report to the Congress annually on the administration of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 1985
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the Secretary of Education should review the financial aid formulas for students in postsecondary educational institutions under title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 with special attention to devising a more equitable formula for farm families.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 1985
Administrative Law Judge Corps Act - Amends Federal law to establish, in Washington, D.C., an Administrative Law Judge Corps (the Corps) comprised of all current administrative law judges. States the chief administrative law judge shall be the chief administrative officer of the Corps as well as its presiding judge. Specifies the qualifications for chief judge. States such judge shall be appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate. Directs the chief judge to submit a written report to the President and the Congress at the end of each fiscal year concerning the business of the Corps during the preceding fiscal year. Establishes between four and ten divisions within the Corps, with each division headed by a division chief judge appointed initially by the President, with the consent of the Senate. Identifies initial divisions and their respective areas of jurisdiction. Specifies qualifications required for division chief judges. States that the Corps' policymaking body shall be the Council of the Corps (the Council), comprised of the chief judge and the division chief judges. Authorizes the Council to: (1) assign judges to divisions and to transfer or reassign judges from one division to another; (2) create or abolish divisions of the corps; (3) appoint persons as administrative law judges and members of the Corps; (4) file charges against an administrative law judge; (5) prescribe certain rules of practice and procedure for proceedings before the Corps; (6) issue rules and regulations for the efficient conduct of the Corps; and (7) perform other administrative functions. Establishes a Judicial Nomination Commission (the Commission) to submit a list of qualified nominees for positions of chief judge and division chief judges. Specifies officials who shall appoint a member to the Commission. Sets the terms of initial Corps appointments and the procedure for filling vacancies. Prescribes a procedure for recommending appointments to the President. Directs the Corps to appoint new judges from a register maintained by the Office of Personnel Management. Confers jurisdiction upon members of the Corps to adjudicate cases under specified sections of the Administrative Procedures Act. Requires cases arising under such sections to be referred to the Corps. Directs the Council to issue regulations for assigning such cases. Requires guidelines for the removal and discipline of administrative law judges. Establishes a Complaints Board within the Corps to recommend action upon complaints against the offical conduct of judges. Details the membership of such Board and the procedures to be followed. Declares Board proceedings and the contents of complaints to be privileged and confidential. Exempts documents and reports considered by the Board from the disclosure and publication requirements of the Freedom of Information Act. Exempts the Board from compliance with the public meeting requirements of specified Federal law. Directs the Corps' chief administrative law judge to study the various types of agency review to which decisions of administrative law judges are subject. Sets guidelines for such studies and directs the Council to report the findings of such studies to the President and the Congress. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1985
Amends the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 to allow a retired railroad worker to be employed in any non-railroad employment and still qualify for an annuity, subject to specified deductions, including reduction of certain benefits by $1 for every $2 earned from the last non-railroad employment.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1985
Small Business Paperwork Reduction Act of 1985 - Amends the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 to direct the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to set a goal to reduce the burden on small businesses of Federal collections of information by at least five percent by October 1, 1986, and for each of the next two years by not less than an additional five percent.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 1985
Authorizes and directs the Secretary of the Army to take necessary streambank erosion control measures on the Warrior River to protect Mound State Park, Alabama. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 1985
Directs the Secretary of the Army to institute bank stabilization measures along the banks of the Coosa River, Alabama, in order to preserve and protect the Fort Toulouse National Historic Landmark and the Tuskigi Indian Mound. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 1985
Authorizes and directs the Secretary of the Treasury to pay a specified sum to a named Alabama bank in full satisfaction of all claims against the United States for losses arising from the cancellation of a Government loan guarantee due to actions and misrepresentations of the Defense Logistics Agency of the Department of Defense.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 1985
Federal Courts Study Act - Establishes the Federal Courts Study Commission on the Future of the Federal Judiciary. Describes the purposes, membership, and powers of the Commission. Directs the Commission to: (1) conduct a study of the jurisdiction of United States courts; (2) recommend revisions to the Constitution and laws of the United States; (3) collect and review studies on the effectiveness of the courts; and (4) develop a long-range plan for the judicial system. Requires a report to the Congress and the President on such study within two years. Requires a final report not later than ten years after enactment of this Act. Terminates the Commission 90 days after submission of its final report. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 1985
Declares that the Commissioner of Social Security and the Secretary of Health and Human Services should immediately study and report to the Congress on ways to change the benefit disparity caused by the 1977 changes in the social security benefit formula.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 1985
Employee Educational Assistance Act of 1985 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend indefinitely the income tax exclusion for employee educational assistance programs. (Present law terminates such exclusion as of December 31, 1985.) Limits the maximum amount of such exclusion (beginning in 1986) to $5,000 of amounts paid or expenses incurred for educational assistance furnished to an employee during a calendar year. Exempts graduate students engaged in teaching or research activities from such maximum limit. Provides for annual cost-of-living adjustments in such maximum limit beginning in 1987.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1985
Bipartisan Commission on Congressional Campaign Financing Act - Establishes the Bipartisan Commission on Congressional Campaign Financing to consider and study laws, regulations, and public commentary relating to the financing of congressional elections. Requires such study to give particular attention to the extent to which current campaign financing practices undermine public confidence in the Government. Requires the Commission to consider the following changes in the present system of campaign financing: (1) increasing or decreasing allowable contributions; (2) increasing the income tax credit for campaign contributions; (3) initiating a plan of public financing; (4) making available free or subsidized broadcasting time; or (5) examining the role of independent expenditures. Directs the Commission to make reasonable efforts to achieve the broadest bipartisan consensus in arriving at its recommendations. Requires the Commission, not later than one year after enactment of this Act, to submit to the Congress its final report. Terminates the Commission 90 days after submission of such report. Requires the Director of the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress and the Chairman of the Federal Election Commission, not later than two months after enactment of this Act, to transmit briefing papers to the Bipartisan Commission which catalog and synthesize pertinent reports, analyses, and recommendations. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1985
Readiness Enhancement of Air Force Reserve Special Operations Act of 1985 - Authorizes appropriations for FY 1986 for the operation and maintenance of: (1) a Special Operations Wing of the Air Force Reserve; and (2) the Directorate of the Department of Defense Task Force on Drug Law Enforcement. Directs the Secretary of Defense, not later than September 30, 1985, to report to specified congressional committees concerning the expenditure of funds authorized by this Act. Outlines information to be included in such report.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 1985
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) veterans' disability compensation payments should remain exempt from Federal income taxation; and (2) the President should reject any proposals to tax such payments.
United States · United States Congress · 20 February 1985
Prohibits ending the voluntary restraint on imports of Japanese automobiles until U.S. exports to Japan are substantially increased and the U.S. trade deficit with Japan is substantially reduced.
United States · United States Congress · 19 February 1985
Authorizes the President to award a prisoner of war medal to any member of the Army, Navy, Marines, or Air Force who has been taken prisoner and held captive by a hostile opposing armed force.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 1985
Electric Consumers Protection Act of 1985 - Amends the Federal Power Act to require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to issue a new license to an existing licensee for a hydroelectric project authorized under such Act if the United States does not, upon the expiration of the existing license, exercise its right to take over, maintain, and operate such licensee's project, unless the Commission determines that such licensee's project will not meet the licensing standards under such Act. Provides that if the Commission determines that such licensee's project does not meet such standards, the Commission is authorized to issue a new license to a new licensee which may cover the existing licensee's project provided that the new licensee pays just compensation determined by the Commission and enters into any contracts required under the Federal Power Act. (Under current law, the Commission is authorized to issue a new license to the original licensee or to a new licensee if the United States does not exercise its rights with respect to an expired license.)
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1985
Amends the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981 to make permanent the exemption from Federal unemployment tax of service performed on certain fishing vessels.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1985
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income amounts received by law enforcement officers as statutory or negotiated subsistence allowances. Limits such exclusion to five dollars per day.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1985
Expresses the Senate's commendation of the Soil Conservation Service on its 50th anniversary, and the Senate's commitment to vigorous soil and water conservation efforts. Expresses the Senate's commendation of the Soil Conservation Service on its 50th anniversary, and the Senate's commitment to vigorous soil and water conservation efforts.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 1985
Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Committee Act of 1985 - Amends the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act to permit a county committee, by majority vote, to petition the Secretary of Agriculture to change the number of local areas in a county. Directs the Secretary to make such change, except that the number of such areas (from which agricultural stabilization and conservation committees are elected) shall not be fewer than existed as of of December 31, 1980. Requires with regard to such committees that: (1) all members, as of January 1, 1986, be elected to three-year terms; and (2) they meet at least four times a year. Sets forth committee duties and makes them effective as of January 1, 1986. Provides that if there is an increase in a county's local areas and local committees as a result of this Act, any member of a local committee elected before January 1, 1986, shall reserve the unexpired portion of his or her term of the committee for the area in which he or she resides. Expands the Secretary of Agriculture's authority to use local and county committees. Amends the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 to require the Secretary to pay: (1) travel expenses for members of State, county, and local committees; and (2) hourly compensation for work actually performed by county members (at GS-11 rate) and by local members (at GS-9 rate).
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 1985
Authorizes the Special Counsel of the Merit Systems Protection Board (which receives allegations of prohibited personnel practices, including cases involving employee disclosure of waste, fraud, and mismanagement) to obtain judicial review of a final Board decision pursuant to a written complaint recommending disciplinary action against an employee. Authorizes any employee aggrieved by the final decision to intervene in such proceedings. Requires that petitions filed pursuant to this Act be filed with the district court and preserves the right of a trial de novo and appellate review.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 1985
Interstate Cost Estimate Act of 1985 - Revises Federal procedures regarding the establishment of interstate cost estimates to direct the Secretary of Transportation to apportion interstate construction funds and interstate substitute highway and public mass transit funds at the beginning of each fiscal year if the Congress has not approved such cost estimates to make such apportionment by that time. Directs the Secretary to apportion: (1) the interstate cost estimate sums remaining to be apportioned for FY 1985 and 1986; and (2) the interstate substitute cost estimate sums remaining to be apportioned for FY 1984 and 1985.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 1985
Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) changes in the Internal Revenue Code shall have a general effective date no earlier than their date of enactment; (2) transactions and investments undertaken prior to the enactment of comprehensive tax reform by the Congress shall continue to be treated under the existing Federal income tax law; and (3) appropriate transition rules shall be incorporated in all tax legislation to assure that transactions planned and entered into in reliance upon existing law shall not be subject to new and adverse provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 1985
Anti-Nuclear Terrorism Act of 1985 - Amends the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to require every individual allowed unescorted access to a nuclear power facility to be fingerprinted. Provides that all fingerprints shall be submitted to the Attorney General for identification and appropriate processing. Authorizes the Nuclear Regulatory Commission by rule to waive such requirement under certain conditions. Allows the Commission to prescribe regulations regarding the use of information received by the Attorney General.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 1985
Fair Trade in Ferroalloys Act - Amends the Tariff Schedules of the United States to replace the current tariff on certain ferroalloys with a tariff equal to the fair price differential. Defines fair price differential as the average cost to produce such article in the United States plus a prescribed amount for general expenses and profits over the duty declared value at U.S. ports of entry. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to publish annually the fair price for such ferroalloys.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 1985
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat the use of a public safety vehicle by a public safety employee as a working condition fringe for purposes of the tax exclusion of certain employee fringe benefits. Defines "public safety employee" to include any person working in law enforcement, fire protection, or emergency medical services.
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