United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2001
Persian Gulf War POW/MIA Accountability Act of 2001 - Amends the Bring Them Home Alive Act of 2000 to direct the Attorney General to grant refugee status in the United States to any alien (and parent, spouse, or child thereof) who: (1) is a national of Iraq or a nation of the Greater Middle East Region; and (2) personally delivers into the custody of the United States Government a living American Persian Gulf War POW/MIA. Includes Iraq, Kuwait, and any other country of the Greater Middle East Region among the countries to which the International Broadcasting Bureau is required to broadcast information that promotes such refugee program.
United States · United States Congress · 23 July 2001
Designates the month of September as National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. Declares that the Federal Government has a responsibility to: (1) raise awareness about the importance of screening methods and treatment of prostate cancer; (2) increase research funding that is commensurate with the burden of the disease so that the causes of, and improved screening, treatments, and a cure for, prostate cancer may be discovered; and (3) continue to consider ways for improving access to, and the quality of, health care services for detecting and treating prostate cancer.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2001
Port and Maritime Security Act of 2001 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to establish a Port Security Task Force to help coordinate programs to enhance the security and safety of U.S. seaports against crime and terrorism. Directs the Commandant of the Coast Guard to develop standards and procedures for conducting seaport vulnerability assessments. Directs the Commandant and the Administrator of the Maritime Administration to jointly initiate a rulemaking proceeding to prescribe regulations to protect the public from threats of crime or terrorism originating from vessels in maritime transportation originating or terminating in a U.S. seaport. Requires each port authority and marine terminal authority for which a port security vulnerability assessment has been done to establish, subject to approval of the Captain-of-the-Port, a maritime transportation security program. Directs the U.S. Coast Guard to establish seaport security committees to: (1) review seaport security vulnerability assessments; and (2) conduct an exercise periodically to verify the effectiveness of each seaport authority and marine terminal security plan. Sets forth requirements calling for: (1) the development of voluntary security guidance to serve as a benchmark for the review of security plans; (2) the adoption of such guidance and development of seaport security standards by other countries; and (3) the development of standards for the training and certification of maritime security professionals. Amends the Merchant Marine Act, 1936 to authorize the Secretary to make loan guarantees and provide grants for seaport security infrastructure improvements for eligible U.S. seaports. Reauthorizes specified tonnage duties.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2001
Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2002 - Makes appropriations for FY 2002 for the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the judiciary, and related agencies. Department of Justice Appropriations Act, 2002 - Makes appropriations to the Department of Justice for: (1) general administration; (2) the U.S. Parole Commission; (3) legal activities; (4) radiation exposure compensation; (5) interagency law enforcement; (6) the Federal Bureau of Investigation; (7) the Drug Enforcement Administration; (8) the Immigration and Naturalization Service; (9) the Federal prison system; (10) Office of Justice programs; and (11) community oriented policing services. Department of Commerce and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2002 - Makes appropriations for: (1) the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; and (2) the International Trade Commission. Makes appropriations to the Department of Commerce for: (1) the International Trade Administration; (2) export administration; (3) the Economic Development Administration; (4) the Minority Business Development Agency; (5) economic and statistical analysis; (6) the Bureau of the Census; (6) the National Telecommunications and Information Administration; (7) the Patent and Trademark Office; (8) technology administration; (9) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; and (10) departmental management. Judiciary Appropriations Act, 2002 - Makes appropriations to the Judiciary for: (1) the U.S. Supreme Court; (2) the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit; (3) the U.S. Court of International Trade; (4) the courts of appeals, district courts, and other judicial services; (5) the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts; (6) the Federal Judicial Center; (7) judiciary retirement funds; and (8) the U.S. Sentencing Commission. Department of State and Related Agency Appropriations Act, 2002 - Makes appropriations for the Department of State for: (1) administration of foreign affairs; (2) international organizations and conferences; and (3) the Broadcasting Board of Governors. Makes appropriations for the: (1) Maritime Administration; (2) Commission for the Preservation of America's Heritage Abroad; (3) Commission on Civil Rights; (4) Commission on Ocean Policy; (5) Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe; (6) Congressional-Executive Commission on the People's Republic of China; (7) Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; (8) Federal Communications Commission; (9) Federal Maritime Commission; (10) the Federal Trade Commission; (11) Legal Services Corporation; (12) Marine Mammal Commission; (13) National Veterans Business Development Corporation; (14) Securities and Exchange Commission; (15) Small Business Administration; (16) State Justice Institute; and (17) United States-Canada Alaska Rail Commission. Establishes within the Department of Justice the position of Deputy Attorney General for Combating Domestic Terrorism.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2001
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend the tax credit for expenditures for providing access to disabled individuals to half the cost, between $250 and $35,250, of modifications enabling inter-city buses to meet Americans with Disabilities Act requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 2001
Requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to modify its regulations concerning the multiple ownership of broadcast stations to: (1) require the immediate review of a license for any AM, FM, or TV broadcast station (station) held by any party that acquires the ownership, operation, or control of a daily newspaper; and (2) require the modification or revocation of such license, or divestiture of such ownership, unless such ownership will not cause a radio contour overlap or overlap a third station. Authorizes the FCC to grant a permanent or temporary waiver of such requirement when consistent with the principles of competition, diversity, and localism in the public interest. Prohibits the FCC from requiring such modification, revocation, or divestiture when it is against the public interest, convenience, or necessity. Requires the FCC to further modify its regulations so that it will determine compliance with such modified multiple ownership requirements whenever: (1) a party that holds a license for such a station acquires ownership, operation, or control of a daily newspaper; or (2) a party that owns, operates, or controls a daily newspaper acquires a license for any such station. Allows the FCC to modify or repeal its media ownership rules after reporting an explanation thereof to specified congressional committees.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 2001
Directs the Secretary of the Army to terminate specified leases covering certain land at the Richard B. Russell Dam and Lake project, South Carolina, and enter into a single lease with the South Carolina Department of Commerce, for a term not to exceed 111 years, that shall allow for development activities that will enhance the recreational opportunities available on the Savannah River and at the project.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2001
Dairy Consumers and Producers Protection Act of 2001 - Amends the Agricultural Market Transition Act to include Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania within the Northeast Interstate Dairy Compact. Eliminates: (1) the Compact's termination date; and (2) certain restrictive authority respecting non-Compact milk. States that only Ohio may join such Compact. Eliminates and revises specified provisions regarding Compact implementation, duration, restricting authority, and Commodity Credit Corporation compensation. States that Congress consents to the Southern Dairy Compact entered into by Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. States that only Florida, Nebraska, and Texas may join such Compact. Limits price regulatory authority to Class I fluid milk unless otherwise consented to by the Congress. Provides for Commodity Credit Corporation compensation. Sets forth the Southern Dairy Compact. States that Congress consents to: (1) the Pacific Northwest Dairy Compact proposed for California, Oregon, and Washington; and (2) the Intermountain Dairy Compact proposed for Colorado, Nevada, and Utah. Limits price regulatory authority to Class I fluid milk. Provides for Corporation compensation. States that such Compacts shall be the same as the Southern Dairy Compact with specified differences.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2001
Motor Vehicle Franchise Contract Arbitration Fairness Act of 2001 - Provides that whenever a motor vehicle franchise contract provides for the use of arbitration to resolve a controversy arising out of or relating to the contract, arbitration may be used to settle the controversy only if both parties consent in writing after such controversy arises. Requires the arbitrator to provide the parties with a written explanation of the factual and legal basis for the award.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2001
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the United States: (1) at the 53rd Annual Meeting of the International Whaling Commission, should remain firmly opposed to commercial whaling, should initiate and support efforts to ensure that all activities conducted under reservations to the Commission's moratorium or sanctuaries are ceased, should oppose the lethal taking of whales for scientific purposes unless it is specifically authorized by the Scientific Committee of the Commission, should seek the Commission's support for specific efforts by member nations to end illegal trade in whale meat, and should support the permanent protection of whale populations through the establishment of whale sanctuaries in which commercial whaling is prohibited; (2) at the 12th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, should oppose all efforts to reopen international trade in whale meat or to downlist any whale population; and (3) should make full use of all appropriate diplomatic mechanisms, relevant international laws and agreements, and other appropriate mechanisms to implement these goals.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2001
Increases, for FY 2002 through 2004, the rates of veterans' basic educational assistance. Prohibits any rate increase during such period based on adjustments to the Consumer Price Index.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2001
Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for student loan forgiveness for public defenders under the Federal Perkins Loan program. Prohibits construing this Act to authorize refunding of any loan repayment.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2001
Designates the second Sunday in the month of December as National Children's Memorial Day and the last Friday in the month of April as Children's Memorial Flag Day.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2001
Meningitis Immunization Awareness Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop and make available to day care centers, camps, educational entities, prisons, and other entities that provide dorm-like housing, information concerning bacterial meningitis and the meningitis vaccine.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2001
Medicare Wellness Act of 2001 - Establishes within the Department of Health and Human Services a Working Group on Disease Self-Management and Health Promotion (Working Group) to establish policies and criteria for the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to approved applicants to study specified approaches to further health promotion and disease prevention among Medicare beneficiaries under title XVIII of the Social Security Act (SSA). Directs the Secretary to conduct demonstration projects to promote disease self-management for conditions identified by the Working Group for target individuals. Amends SSA title XVIII to outline Medicare coverage of various specified preventive services, including: (1) therapy and counseling for cessation of tobacco use, and counseling for post-menopausal women; (2) screening for diminished visual acuity, and screening for hypertension; and (3) medical nutrition therapy services for Medicare beneficiaries with cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, or a renal disease. Permits waiver of coinsurance and deductibles for certain preventive services, such as: (1) diabetes outpatient self-management training services; (2) colorectal and prostate cancer screening tests; and (3) bone mass measurement. Directs the Secretary to: (1) integrate supplemental preventive health services with existing program integrity measures; and (2) conduct specified activities, including annual notices to Medicare beneficiaries, to promote use of preventive health benefits, items, and services. Directs the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to conduct a national falls prevention and awareness campaign among Medicare beneficiaries. Prescribes requirements for clinical depression screening demonstration projects. Amends SSA title XVIII to direct the Secretary to establish a health education and risk appraisal program. Provides for fast-track consideration of prevention benefit legislation in Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2001
Trade Law Reform Act of 2001 - Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to repeal the requirement that the cause of serious injury (or threat) be substantial to the domestic industry producing an article like or directly competitive with an article that is being imported into the United States in such increased quantities with respect to the President's taking action to facilitate efforts by such industry to make a positive adjustment to the import competition. Defines "cause" to mean a cause that contributes significantly to serious injury (or threat) to the domestic industry but need not be equal to or greater than any other cause. Revises certain factors the International Trade Commission (ITC) must consider when investigating whether an article is being imported into the United States in such increased quantities as to be a substantial cause of serious injury (or threat) to the domestic industry producing an article like or directly competitive with the imported article. Repeals, similarly, the requirement that such injury be substantial. Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to revise various factors that the ITC must consider in making material injury determinations in countervailing duty and antidumping duty proceedings. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to implement a steel import notification and monitoring program. Requires a person to have a steel import notification certificate before entering certain steel products into the United States. Authorizes certain entities or groups of workers which are representative of a domestic industry that produces an article like or directly competitive with an imported article to file a request to monitor such imports if serious injury to the domestic industry is caused or threatened. Provides for the treatment of certain steel products for purposes of bilateral agreements or quantitative restriction arrangements covering such products. Applies this Act to goods from Canada and Mexico.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2001
Rural Broadband Enhancement Act - Amends the National Telecommunications and Information Administration Organization Act to direct the Rural Utilities Service of the Department of Agriculture to make loans or other extensions of credit to eligible entities (any non-Federal public or private entity that submits a qualifying project) to provide funds for the construction, improvement, or acquisition of facilities and equipment for the provision of broadband telecommunications service in eligible rural communities (non-metropolitan areas with no more than 20,000 inhabitants). Prohibits any such loan or credit extension after September 20, 2006.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2001
Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2001 - Authorizes appropriations for the Coast Guard for: (1) operation and maintenance; (2) acquisition and construction; (3) research and development; (4) retired pay; (5) environmental compliance; and (6) bridge alteration or removal. Authorizes: (1) the Coast Guard end-of-year strength for active duty personnel and its average military training student loads; (2) appropriations for Coast Guard operation of the LORAN-C system; (3) the Secretary of Transportation to accept for Coast Guard drug interdiction activities up to seven PC-170 patrol craft from the Department of Defense; (4) suspension of retired pay of a service member or former member who willfully remains outside the United States to avoid criminal prosecution or civil liability; (5) compensatory absence from duty for military Coast Guard personnel serving at isolated duty stations in certain circumstances; (6) the Coast Guard to provide fishing vessel safety training; (7) conveyance and 30-year lease-back of the Naval Reserve Pier property in Portland, Maine, to the Gulf of Maine Aquarium Development Corporation; and (8) a student pre-commissioning assistance program. Adds the Secretary of Transportation (when the Coast Guard is not operating under the Department of the Navy) to the required members of the Board of Governors of the United Service Organizations, Inc. (USO). Extends specified Coast Guard housing authorities. Allows a promotion selection board to recommend officers of particular merit for placement at the top of the list of selectees. Amends the Vessel Bridge-to-Bridge Radiotelephone Act to revise requirements regarding the waters on which vessels, dredges, and floating plants must carry a radiotelephone. Prohibits the Coast Guard from planning or implementing decommissioning of icebreaking vessels until replacements have been procured. Exempts certain passenger vessel service personnel from a requirement that a vessel employee have a merchant mariner's document. Extends time for recreational vessel and associated equipment recalls. Renames and extends the Commercial Fishing Industry Vessel Safety Advisory Committee. Extends: (1) the Houston-Galveston Navigation Safety Advisory Committee; (2) the Lower Mississippi River Waterway Advisory Committee; (3) the Navigation Safety Advisory Council; (4) the Towing Safety Advisory Committee; and (5) the National Boating Safety Advisory Council. Requires the Coast Guard to: (1) study existing local harbor safety coordinating committees regarding cooperation with interested groups, organizational models, technological assistance, and recurring resources; and (2) test the feasibility of expanding the harbor safety committee concept to ceratin small and medium-sized ports. States that Coast Guard Vessel Traffic Service pilots shall not be liable for damages related to their official assistance unless such assistance constitutes gross negligence or willful misconduct. Amends the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 1998 to repeal certain endorsement revocation authority.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2001
Medicare Medical Nutrition Therapy Amendment Act of 2001 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Benefits Improvement and Protection Act of 2000, to provide coverage of medical nutrition therapy services for certain Medicare beneficiaries with cardiovascular diseases.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 2001
Providing Reliable Officers, Technology, Education, Community Prosecutors, and Training In Our Neighborhoods Act of 2001 or PROTECTION Act - Modifies provisions of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 regarding public safety and community policing ("cops on the beat" program, COPS) to authorize the Attorney General to use funding under COPS grants to: (1) increase prosecutor presence and to enhance law enforcement access to new technologies; (2) pay overtime to existing career law enforcement officers to the extent that such overtime is devoted to community policing efforts; and (3) promote higher education among in-service State and local law enforcement officers by reimbursing them for the costs associated with seeking a college or graduate school education. Includes among permitted additional grant projects: (1) specialized integrity and ethics training; and (2) innovative proactive crime control and prevention programs involving school officials and religiously-affiliated organizations. Authorizes the Attorney General to use up to five percent of appropriated funds for technical assistance and training to States, local governments, Indian tribal governments, and other public and private entities. Repeals provisions of the Act regarding termination of grants for hiring officers. Allows grants to be used to assist: (1) police departments in employing specified professional, scientific, and technological advancements; and (2) State, local, or tribal prosecutors' offices in implementation of community-based prosecution programs that build on local community policing efforts. Reserves specified funds for units of local government with a population of less than 50,000. Authorizes the Attorney General to use no more than 50 percent of grant renewal funds to award grants targeted specifically for retention of police officers.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 2001
Prohibits the importation into the United States of any Burmese products until the President determines and certifies to Congress that the State Peace and Development Council in Burma has made progress in: (1) reversing gross violations of internationally-recognized human rights and worker rights; (2) implementing democratic government; and (3) cooperating with U.S. counter-narcotics efforts.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2001
Access to Cancer Therapies Act of 2001 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to extend Medicare coverage to all oral drugs prescribed for use as an anticancer agent for a medically accepted indication.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2001
Area Wage and Base Payment Improvement Act - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) mandate a single national average standardized payment amount for inpatient hospital services furnished, regardless of whether in an urban or non-urban area, under the Medicare prospective payment system (PPS) for discharges occurring in FY 2002 and thereafter; and (2) establish a minimum factor of .925 as a floor for area wage adjustment factors used under the PPS for inpatient and outpatient hospital services.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2001
Amends part C (Administrative Simplification) of title XI of the Social Security Act to postpone the deadline for compliance by applicable entities and programs with standards for: (1) reduction of the administrative costs of providing and paying for health care; and (2) electronic transactions of health information. Sets the new deadline at the later date of either October 16, 2004, or two years after: (1) the final adoption of relevant regulations concerning all such standards, except those for unique health identifiers for individuals; and (2) the availability of reliable national unique health identifiers for health plans and health care providers. Makes this Act effective as if included in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2001
American Hospital Preservation Act of 2001 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Benefits Improvement and Protection Act, to: (1) increase (restore the full) market basket update for inpatient prospective payment services hospitals; and (2) maintain the indirect medical education adjustment percentage at 6.5 percent.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2001
Recognizes and acknowledges the 50th anniversary of the National Science Foundation (NSF) and its achievement and service to the United States. Reaffirms commitment for the next 50 years to support research, education, and technological advancement and discovery through the NSF, the premier scientific agency in the Federal Government.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2001
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal specified occupational taxes relating to distilled spirits, wine, and beer. Revises recordkeeping requirements for wholesale and retail liquor dealers. Makes it unlawful for any liquor dealer (except one selling beer exclusively) to purchase distilled spirits from any person other than a specified wholesale liquor dealer.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2001
Muscular Dystrophy Community Assistance, Research and Education Amendments of 2001, or the MD-CARE Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), in coordination with specified national research institutes, to: (1) expand research and related programs concerning various forms of muscular dystrophy, including Duchenne, myotonic, and facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy. Requires the Director to: (1) award grants and contracts for establishing at least five related centers of excellence; and (2) provide for a related tissue donation program. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish the Muscular Dystrophy Coordinating Committee to coordinate NIH programs and other Federal programs. Authorizes the Secretary, through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to: (1) award grants and cooperative agreements for muscular dystrophy data collection and analysis; and (2) conduct a National Muscular Dystrophy Surveillance Program. Requires the Secretary, through the Centers, to establish at least three centers of excellence in muscular dystrophy epidemiology. Requires the Secretary to establish a program to provide professionals and the public with muscular dystrophy information.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2001
Rural Electric Tax Equity Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit an exempt mutual or electric cooperative to exclude from income certain prepayments of any loan, debt, or obligation made, insured, or guaranteed under the Rural Electrification Act of 1936. Adds rules concerning the treatment of certain amounts received by taxable electric cooperatives.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2001
Gun Show Background Check Act of 2001 - Amends the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act to require registration of gun show promoters and to set forth the responsibilities of promoters, licensees, and other transferors. Provides that if any part of a firearm transaction takes place at a gun show, each licensed importer, manufacturer, and dealer who transfers one or more firearms to a person who is not licensed shall, within ten days after the transfer, submit a report of the transfer to the Secretary of the Treasurer. Sets forth penalties for violations. Grants the Secretary authority to enter the place of business of any gun show promoter and any place where a gun show is held, during business hours and without a showing of reasonable cause or a warrant, for purposes of examining records and the inventory of licensees conducting business to determine compliance with this Act. Increases penalties for: (1) serious record-keeping violations by licensees; and (2) violations of criminal background check requirements. Modifies provisions regarding the national instant criminal background check system and the destruction of records in cases where receipt of a firearm would not violate the Brady Act or State law to provide for such destruction as soon as possible, consistent with the Attorney General's responsibility to ensure privacy and security of the system and to prevent system fraud and abuse, but in no event later than 90 days after the licensee first contacts the system.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2001
Retirement Security and Savings Act of 2001 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code (the Code) with respect to pensions. (All the following are amendments to the Code, except where the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, ERISA, is mentioned.) Increases: (1) annual dollar Individual Retirement Account (IRA) contribution limits; and (2) benefit and contribution limits, with indexes for inflation. Amends the Code and ERISA to deem certain voluntary employee contributions to accounts and annuities as IRAs rather than pension plans. Provides for tax-free distributions from IRAs for charitable purposes. Modifies adjusted gross income limits for Roth IRAs. Revises requirements relating to: (1) plan loans for subchapter S owners, partners, and sole proprietors; and (2) specified top-heavy rules. Provides that elective deferrals shall not be taken into account for purposes of limits on certain plan contributions. Repeals specified coordination requirements for deferred compensation plans of State and local governments and tax-exempt organizations. Revises certain deduction limits for stock bonus and profit sharing trusts and for defined contribution plans. Provides for optional treatment of elective deferrals as after-tax contributions. Establishes nonrefundable tax credits for elective deferrals and IRA contributions. Establishes refundable tax credits for: (1) qualified pension plan contributions of small employers; and (2) the pension plan startup costs of small employers. Allows individuals age 50 or older to make additional contributions to an applicable employer plan (section 401(k) or similar plan). Sets forth requirements relating to equitable treatment for contributions of employees to defined contribution plans. Provides for faster vesting of certain employer matching contributions under the Code and ERISA. Revises: (1) minimum distribution rules; and (2) requirements relating to tax treatment of division of section 457 plan benefits upon divorce. Sets forth provisions: (1) relating to hardship distributions; and (2) for waiver of a tax on nondeductible contributions for domestic or similar workers. Permits, under certain conditions, rollovers: (1) from and to various types of plans; (2) of IRAs into workplace retirement plans; and (3) of after-tax contributions in an exempt trust. Sets forth a hardship exception to the 60-day rule. Sets forth requirements for treatment of forms of distribution available under transferor and transferee plans under the Code and ERISA. Revises restrictions on distributions, including the same desk exception. Allows trustee-to-trustee transfers to purchase permissive service credit with respect to governmental defined benefit plans. Allows employers to disregard rollovers for purposes of cash-out amounts, under retirement plan provisions of the Code. Revises minimum distribution and inclusion requirements for section 457 plans. Repeals, for plan years beginning in 2004 and following years, the current liability full funding limit under the Code and ERISA. Revises maximum contribution deduction rules, and applies them to all defined benefit plans. Allows an employer, in determining the amount of nondeductible contributions for any taxable year, to elect not to take into account any contributions to a defined benefit plan except to the extent they exceed the full-funding limitation. Makes certain compensation limitations for defined benefit plans inapplicable to governmental and multiemployer plans. Prohibits combining or aggregating a multiemployer plan with any other plan maintained by the employer for the purpose of applying such limitations. Amends the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 to protect the investment of employee contributions to 401(k) plans by providing that specified requirements apply to elective deferrals for plan years beginning after December 31, 1998. Requires that pension benefit statements be furnished annually (once every three years for defined benefit plans) or on request. Establishes an excise tax for certain prohibited allocations of stock in an S corporation ESOP. Provides for automatic rollovers of certain mandatory distributions. Establishes an excise tax for the failure of a defined benefit plan or an individual account plan (except governmental, church, and other specified plans), subject to minimum funding standards to meet specified notice requirements, under the Code and ERISA, for plan amendments which significantly reduce benefit accruals. Revises Code and ERISA requirements relating to timing of plan valuations. Allows applicable dividends of ESOPs to be reinvested without loss of dividend deduction. Repeals a transition rule relating to certain highly compensated employees under the Tax Reform Act of 1986. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to modify specified regulations with respect to certain plan participation by employees of tax-exempt entities. Treats the provision of certain retirement planning services by an employer for an employee as a de minimis fringe benefit to the extent it is not treated as a working condition fringe. Directs the Secretary to provide simplified annual filing requirements for retirement plans with assets below a specified amount, if they cover: (1) one participant (an owner and spouse); or (2) fewer than 25 employees. Directs the Secretary to continue to update and improve the Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System, or any successor program. Repeals a multiple use test. Allows certain alternative ways of satisfying nondiscrimination, coverage, and line of business rules. Exempts plans maintained by any governmental entity from certain nondiscrimination rules. Directs the Secretary to modify specified regulations relating to the notice and consent period regarding distributions. Directs the Secretary to study and report on pension coverage and preretirement use of benefits. Revises ERISA provisions relating to: (1) annual report dissemination; (2) the National Summit on Retirement Savings; (3) missing participants; (4) Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) reduction of premiums for new plans of small employers and of additional premiums for new and small plans; (5) PBGC authority to pay interest on premium overpayment refunds; (6) substantial owner benefits in terminated plans; (7) civil penalties for breach of fiduciary responsibility; and (8) benefit suspension notices. Prescribes time requirements for plan amendments or annuity contract amendments.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2001
Animal Disease Risk Assessment, Prevention, and Control Act of 2001 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to submit a preliminary report to specified congressional committees concerning: (1) interagency measures to assess, prevent, and control the spread of foot and mouth disease and bovine spongiform encephalopathy ("mad cow disease") in the United States; (2) related Federal information sources available to the public; and (3) the need for any additional legislative authority or product bans. Directs the Secretary to submit a final report to such committees that discusses such diseases' economic impacts, public and animal health risks, and related legislative authority or product bans.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2001
Stem Cell Research Act of 2001 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to permit the Secretary of Health and Human Services to only conduct, support, or fund research on human embryos for the purpose of generating embryonic stem cells and utilizing stem cells that have been derived from embryos in accordance with the provisions of this Act. Makes it unlawful for any person receiving Federal funds to knowingly acquire, receive, or otherwise transfer any human embryos for valuable consideration if such action affects interstate commerce. Directs the Secretary, in conjunction with the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to issue guidelines expanding on the rules governing human embryonic stem cell research to include rules that govern the derivation of stem cells from donated embryos under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2001
Nurse Reinvestment Act - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for nurse education training payments to qualified entities. Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to temporarily increase the matching rate for Medicaid nurse aide training and competency evaluation programs. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for the exclusion from gross income of amounts received under the National Nursing Service Corps Scholarship Program. Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) develop and issue public service announcements that advertise and promote the nursing profession, highlight the advantages and rewards of nursing, and encourage individuals from diverse communities and backgrounds to enter the nursing profession; and (2) award grants to designated eligible educational entities in order to increase the number of nurses. Authorizes appropriations. Establishes a National Nurse Service Corps Scholarship program that provides scholarships to individuals seeking nursing education in exchange for service by such individuals in areas with nursing shortages. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2001
Railroad Retirement and Survivors' Improvement Act of 2001 - Amends the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974 to increase benefits to railroad employees and their beneficiaries and to revise financing of the pension part (tier II) of the railroad retirement system. Establishes a Railroad Retirement Trust Fund and a Railroad Retirement Investment Trust to manage and invest Fund assets. Abolishes the Railroad Retirement Supplemental Annuity Account and provides for transfer of its funds to the Fund. Provides for transfer to the Fund of certain portions of the Railroad Retirement Account and of Social Security Equivalent Benefit account funds. Transfers to the disbursing agent from the Dual Benefits Payments Account the amount necessary to make dual benefit payments. Requires the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) to calculate the ratio of assets to benefits to determine annual tier II tax rates for employers, employee representatives, and employees. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt the Fund from taxation. Repeals a supplemental annuity tax that railroad employers pay to finance a benefit for long-time rail employees. Provides for adjustments to railroad employers, employee representatives, and employee tier II tax rates.
United States · United States Congress · 3 April 2001
Blind Persons Earnings Equity Act of 2001 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to restore the link ended by the Senior Citizens' Freedom to Work Act of 1995 between the rules relating to substantial gainful activity for blind individuals and the rules relating to excess earnings under the Social Security earnings test for individuals who have attained retirement age (thus allowing blind individuals, once again, to earn up to the Social Security excess earnings threshold without being regarded as having demonstrated an ability to engage in substantial gainful activity and without losing entitlement to OASDI benefits).
United States · United States Congress · 2 April 2001
Andrew Carnegie Libraries for Lifelong Learning Act - Amends the Library Services and Technology Act to require the Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services to carry out a program of awarding grants to States for the construction or technology enhancement of public libraries.
United States · United States Congress · 2 April 2001
Housing Bond and Credit Modernization and Fairness Act of 2001 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) repeal the required use of certain principal repayments on mortgage subsidy bond financings to redeem bonds; (2) modify the purchase price limitation under mortgage subsidy bond rules based on median family income; and (3) define the term "area median gross income" for low-income housing credit projects.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2001
Government Pension Offset Reform Act - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to modify the formula for determining the amount of reduced monthly OASDI benefits payable to a spouse, surviving spouse, or parent receiving monthly payments from a Federal or State pension plan. Declares that such benefit reductions shall be equal to the amount by which two-thirds of the total amount of the combined monthly benefit (before reduction) and monthly pension exceeds $1,200, adjusted for inflation.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 2001
Recognizes May 15, 2001, as Peace Officers Memorial Day, in honor of Federal, State, and local law enforcement officers killed or disabled in the line of duty.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 2001
Medicaid Safety Net Hospital Preservation Act of 2001 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to repeal specified reductions after FY 2000 and thereby extend certain modifications to disproportionate share hospital (DSH) allotments provided under the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Benefits Improvement and Protection Act of 2000. Increases the Medicaid DSH allotment for the District of Columbia.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2001
Equal Protection of Voting Rights Act of 2001 - Establishes the Commission on Voting Rights and Procedures to study: (1) election technology and systems; (2) ballot design and uniformity; (3) ballot and polling place access; (4) voting systems capacity and election administration efficiency; (5) voter registration and maintenance of voter rolls; (6) alternative voting methods; (7) voter intimidation; (8) accuracy of voting, election procedures, and election technology; (9) voter education; (10) election personnel and volunteer training; (11) implementation of provisions of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act on registration and voting by absent uniformed services voters and overseas voters in elections for Federal office; (12) establishment of the date on which such elections are held as a Federal or a State holiday and on establishment of modified polling place hours; and (13) Federal assistance to State and local authorities to improve the administration of elections for Federal office. Directs the Commission to develop specific recommendations, consistent with certain uniform and nondiscriminatory election technology and administration requirements under this Act, regarding: (1) best practices in voting and election administration; (2) Federal assistance to State and local authorities to improve administration of Federal elections; (3) increased voter registration, accuracy of voter rolls, and participation and inclusion of legal voters, and (4) improved voter education and training of election personnel. Authorizes the Attorney General to make grants to approved State, territory, and locality applicants to pay the Federal share of the costs of activities to: (1) improve, acquire, or replace voting equipment or technology and improve the accessibility of polling places; (2) implement new election administration procedures to increase voter participation and reduce disenfranchisement, such as "same-day" voter registration procedures; (3) educate voters concerning voting procedures, voting rights or voting technology, and to train election personnel; and (4) implement Commission recommendations. Specifies certain uniform and nondiscriminatory requirements each voting system used in an election for Federal office must meet with regard to election technology and administration. Outlines requirements for provisional voting and sample ballot mailings to voters. Authorizes the Attorney General to bring a civil action in an appropriate district court to enforce the requirements of this Act for election technology and administration through the Office of Civil Rights of the Department of Justice.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2001
Economic Stimulus Act of 2001 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, as of tax year 2001, to reduce the 15 percent tax rate to ten percent for: (1) joint filers with taxable income below $20,000; (2) heads of household with taxable income below $16,000; and (3) single or married persons filing separately with taxable income below $10,000. Provides a payroll tax credit ($500 maximum) for qualifying taxpayers with no tax liability as of tax year 2001.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 2001
Mental Health Equitable Treatment Act of 2001 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 and the Public Health Service Act, respectively, to prohibit certain employee group health plans or related insurances providing both medical-surgical and mental health benefits from imposing mental health treatment limitations or financial requirements unless comparable limitations and requirements are imposed upon medical-surgical benefits. Exempts specified small employers from such requirements. Requires a General Accounting Office study of such requirements' effects upon health insurance costs, access, and quality.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 2001
Reserve Component Tax Assistance Act of 2001 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow as a business or trade deduction the expenses of a member of the reserve component of the U.S. armed forces in connection with such service. Makes such deduction available to itemizers and non-itemizers. Establishes related reserve component business-related employment and self-employment credits.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 2001
Assure Access to Mammography Act of 2001 - Amends the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Benefits Improvement and Protection Act of 2000 to delay until 2003 the inclusion of payment for screening mammography in the Medicare physician fee schedule. Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for a change in the payment amount for screening mammography performed in 2002 under Medicare. Provides that, for cost reporting periods between October 1, 2001, and October 1, 2006, in applying the limitations regarding the total number of full-time equivalent residents in the field of allopathic or osteopathic medicine under Medicare for a hospital, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall not take into account a maximum of three residents in the field of radiology to the extent the hospital increases the number of radiology residents above the number of such residents for the hospital's most recent cost reporting period ending before October 1, 2001. Amends the Public Health Service Act to revise authorization of appropriations and allocation provisions with regard to interdisciplinary, community-based linkages, with changes establishing a specified authorization of appropriations for FY 2002 and a specified amount to be available for awards of grants and contracts under provisions on allied health and other disciplines. Directs the Comptroller General to study the relative value units established by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under the Medicare physician fee schedule for physicians' services that are gender-specific. Directs the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission to study the relative value units established by the Secretary under the such fee schedule for screening services that are reimbursed under it.
![Official portrait of Sen. Hollings, Ernest F. [D-SC]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/h000725_200.jpg)