United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2002
Expresses the sense of Congress that November of each year should be established as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Awareness Month to raise public awareness about the prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and the serious problems associated with it.
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2002
Clean, Learn, Educate, Abolish, Neutralize, and Undermine Production of Methamphetamines Act of 2002 (CLEAN-UP Meth Act) - Authorizes the Secretaries of Agriculture and the Interior to carry out environmental cleanup and remediation on Federal lands contaminated from illegal methamphetamine manufacture. Directs: (1) the Secretary of Transportation and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to designate as hazardous byproducts of methamphetamine production; (2) the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration to list byproducts likely to cause long-term environmental harm; (3) the Secretary of Labor to provide grants to local law enforcement; (4) the EPA Administrator to study methamphetamine laboratory operation impacts on the environment; and (5) the Secretary of Health and Human Services to study contamination issues. Amends: (1) the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants for educational programs and treatment, respectively; (2) the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to permit hiring police personnel and purchasing equipment; (3) the Controlled Substances Act to eliminate the regulatory exemption for over-the-counter pseudoephedrine product sales; and (4) the Comprehensive Methamphetamine Control Act of 1996 regarding court consideration of good faith efforts to prevent sales violations. Urges the President to seek commitments from the Canadian Government regarding pseudoephedrine availability in Canada and its importation into the United States. Directs the Attorney General to study ephedrine product theft.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 2002
Death Penalty Integrity Act of 2002 - Amends the Federal criminal code to authorize an individual who, after trial, was convicted of a Federal crime and is serving a term of imprisonment as a result, to file a motion for the performance of forensic DNA testing on evidence that was secured in relation to the investigation or prosecution but not subject to DNA testing because the technology was not available at the time of trial. Prohibits the Government from destroying certain biological evidence over a 60 month period. Declares that no statute of limitations shall extend to any person identified by means of a DNA database prior to identification. Directs the Attorney General to establish a system for reporting and tracking motions for DNA testing. Authorizes appropriations to defray State costs associated with post-conviction DNA testing. Amends: (1) the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act of 2000 regarding the definition of "qualifying Federal offense"; (2) the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to include juveniles in CODIS (the Combined DNA Indexing System); (3) the State Justice Institute Act of 1984 to authorize grant awards to States for training of counsel representing defendants charged with capital offenses in State and local courts; and (4) the code and the Controlled Substances Act to prohibit an attorney who has been disciplined relating to a criminal case, or where that attorney has been found to have rendered ineffective assistance of counsel in another criminal case, from being eligible to represent an accused.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 2002
21st Century Medicare Act - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to establish: (1) a Voluntary Prescription Drug Delivery Program under a new part D; and (2) a Prescription Drug Account in the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish: (1) within the Department of HHS the Medicare Competitive Agency, headed by an Administrator charged with carrying out Medicare parts D and C (Medicare+Choice); and (2) within the Agency an Office of Beneficiary Assistance to carry out functions relating to Medicare beneficiaries. Creates a Medicare Ombudsman in such Office. Establishes within the Medicare Competitive Agency the Medicare Competitive Policy Advisory Board. Directs the Administrator of the Medicare Competitive Agency to study and report to Congress on the need for rules relating to permitting individuals who are enrolled under Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) but are not entitled to benefits under Medicare part A (Hospital Insurance) to buy into the Medicare voluntary prescription drug delivery program. Amends SSA title XVIII with respect to the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund to require the Board of Trustees of the Trust Fund to submit to Congress a combined report on the operation and status of the Trust Fund and the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund, including the Prescription Drug Account within such Trust Fund. Expands the membership and duties of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC). Directs the Secretary to establish procedures under which each eligible beneficiary shall be entitled to elect to receive enhanced Medicare benefits under a new Medicare part E (Enhanced Medicare Benefits) instead of the benefits under Medicare parts A and B. Sets forth rules relating to Medicare supplemental insurance (Medigap) policies that provide prescription drug coverage, such as prohibiting the sale, issuance, and renewal of policies that provide prescription drug coverage to part D enrollees. Amends SSA title XVIII part C to provide for competition under the Medicare+Choice program and part D and E benefits under competitive Medicare+Choice plans.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2002
Reaffirms: (1) the language of the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag, including the phrase "one Nation under God"; and (2) the national motto "In God we trust."
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2002
Designates the week of November 10-16, 2002, as National Veterans Awareness Week to emphasize educational programs for elementary and secondary school students regarding the contributions and sacrifices of veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2002
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to specify that church employees and persons treated as church employees under the Code are eligible for the exclusion for qualified tuition reduction programs of charitable educational organizations.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2002
Declares that the Senate strongly disapproves of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision in Newdow v. U.S. Congress. Authorizes and instructs the Senate Legal Counsel to seek to intervene in the case to defend the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 2002
Animal Drug User Fee Act of 2002 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to assess and collect fees for an animal drug or a supplemental animal drug application (if it requires safety or effectiveness data). Requires payment upon submission or the application will be considered incomplete and not accepted. Excepts from payment applications which were previously filed but withdrawn or not approved without a waiver or refund. Assesses annual fees on animal drug products, establishments, and sponsors. Establishes a fee schedule for FY 2003 through 2007, including total fee revenues for animal drug products, establishments, and sponsors. Adjusts fees to reflect inflation, review workload, operating reserves of carryover user fees (in the final year), and to maintain an equal balance of revenue from applications, products, establishments, and sponsors. Reduces or waives fees: (1) in excess of administrative costs; (2) that present a significant barrier to innovation; (3) to promote availability of drugs intended solely for minor uses or use in minor species; or (4) for first applications by a small business. Makes fees available for obligation only to the extent provided in advance in appropriations Acts. Offsets any excess fees against subsequent appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 2002
Working Toward Independence Act of 2002 - Amends title IV (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to reauthorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services (Secretary) to award state family assistance grants. Authorizes States to use grants for healthy marriage promotion activities and requires the Secretary to make bonus grants to each State that has achieved formulated employment goals. Revises requirements for the consideration of certain child care expenditures in determining State compliance with contingency fund requirements. Revises State work participation requirements, incorporating a 40-hour work week standard. Revises requirements for the use of TANF grants. Repeals the Secretary's authority to make loans to State welfare programs and revises State work participation requirements. Authorizes the Secretary to develop TANF performance measures. Makes appropriations for research, demonstrations, and technical assistance. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to public and nonprofit community entities for demonstration projects to test the effectiveness of various approaches to create a Fatherhood Program. Permits States the option to make TANF programs mandatory partners with one-stop employment training centers. Reauthorizes funding for State child care entitlement programs and revises State requirements for child support payments. Amends SSA title XI (General Provisions) to eliminate specified limitations on the Secretary's authority to approve demonstration projects and grant waivers. Amends SSA title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) to require the Commissioner of Social Security to review State agency blindness and disability determinations. Authorizes the administering Secretary to authorize innovative State demonstration projects involving individual programs, or integrating multiple public assistance, employment security, and other programs to support working families. Amends the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to require the Secretary to establish a program to make grants to States to provide food assistance and funds to operate employment and training programs for needy individuals. Extends abstinence education funding and reauthorizes transitional medical assistance.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 2002
Expresses the sense of Congress that there should be established a National Community Health Center Week for the week beginning on August 18, 2002, to raise awareness of health services provided by community, migrant, public housing, and homeless health centers.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2002
Amends the Omnibus Parks and Public Lands Management Act of 1996 to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to make a grant to an eligible historically black college or university for the preservation and/or restoration of a building or structure listed or eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places if the grantee agrees to provide funds derived from non-Federal sources in an amount equal to 30 percent (currently, a matching amount) of the total cost of the project. Authorizes additional appropriations for such grants.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2002
Rural Community Hospital Assistance Act of 2002 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) provide for establishment of the rural community hospital (RCH) program; (2) remove certain barriers to establishment of distinct part units by RCH and Medicare critical access hospital (CAH) facilities; and (3) revise the CAH program, making various specified payment-related changes.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2002
Mammography Quality Standards Reauthorization Act of 2002 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to extend funding for the mammography facilities certification program through FY 2007. Permits the Secretary of Health and Human Services to issue a temporary certificate to facilities seeking reaccreditation and awarded an accreditation extension for specified reasons, including inability of accrediting body to complete the process in time and unforeseen situations which cause the facility to be unable to meet the reaccreditation timeframes, but do not compromise the quality of mammography. Requires the Comptroller General to evaluate the Mammography Quality Standards Act, including the demonstration program's frequency of inspections, accessibility of services, and the role of States as both accreditation and certification bodies. Directs the Secretary to contract with the Institute of Medicine to study health professional training in the area of mammography.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2002
Workplace Religious Freedom Act of 2002 - Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to provide criteria to determine whether an employer has committed an unlawful employment practice by failing to provide a reasonable accommodation to the religious observance or practice of an employee. Deems an accommodation to be reasonable if it removes the conflict between employment requirements and the religious observance or practice of the employee. Declares that an employer shall be considered to commit an unlawful employment practice if the employer refuses to permit the employee to utilize leave of general usage to remove such a conflict solely because the leave will be used to accommodate the employee's religious observance or practice.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2002
Arming Pilots Against Terrorism and Cabin Defense Act of 2002 - Amends federal law to direct the Under Secretary of Transportation for Security to establish a program to: (1) deputize volunteer qualified pilots of commercial cargo or passenger aircraft as Federal flight deck officers; and (2) provide training, supervision, and equipment for such officers. Authorizes flight deck officers to carry firearms and to use force, including lethal force, when they judge the security of an aircraft is at risk. Shields air carriers from liability for damages in Federal or State court arising out of the actions or omissions of a flight deck officer defending a plane from criminal violence or air piracy. Shields flight deck officers from liability except in cases of gross negligence or willful misconduct. Directs the Under Secretary to prescribe requirements for an air carrier cabin crew training program and its instructors. Shields an air carrier liability for actions or omissions of training instructors or cabin crew in defending an aircraft. Shields training instructors and cabin crew from liability except in cases of gross negligence or willful misconduct. Directs the Under Secretary to form an Aviation Crew Self-Defense Division within the Transportation Security Administration to develop and implement the program for training cabin crew members. Directs the Under Secretary of Transportation for Security to study and report to Congress on whether possession of a nonlethal weapon by a member of an air carrier's cabin crew would aid the flight deck crew in combating air piracy and criminal violence on commercial airlines.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 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 third and fourth calendar quarters of FY 2002. Declares similarly that 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. Requires each eligible State for the third and fourth calendar quarters of FY 2002 and each calendar quarter of FY 2003 to have its FMAP increased by 1.0 percentage point. Mandates 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). Amends SSA title XX (Block Grants to States for Social Services), for the purpose of providing State fiscal relief allotments to States and territories in accordance with a specified table, to make appropriations to be available for obligation by the State through June 30, 2004, and for expenditure by the State through September 30, 2004.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2002
Calls for Americans to observe a national moment of remembrance at 3:00 p.m. on Memorial Day, 2002, for members of the armed forces and civilian national security agencies.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2002
Prosecutorial Remedies and Tools Against the Exploitation of Children Today Act of 2002 - Amends Federal criminal code provisions regarding activities relating to material constituting or containing child pornography to prohibit: (1) advertising, promoting, distributing, or soliciting through the mails or in interstate or foreign commerce any material in a manner that conveys the impression that the material is or contains an obscene visual depiction of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct; or (2) knowingly distributing, offering, sending, or providing to a minor any such visual depiction that has been transported in interstate or foreign commerce and that was produced using materials that have been so transported for purposes of inducing such minor to participate in any illegal activity. Makes certain identifying information of minors depicted in child pornography inadmissible in any prosecution of such an act. Increases penalties for violation of record-keeping requirements. Amends: (1) the Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990 to authorize disclosure to State officials by a law enforcement agency of a report of child pornography by an electronic communication service provider indicating a violation of State criminal law; and (2) the code to authorize disclosure of child pornography by such a service provider to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Sets penalties for: (1) employing or coercing a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct outside of the United States for the purpose of producing any visual depiction intended to be transported to the United States; or (2) transporting such depiction to the United States. Authorizes civil remedies for offenses relating to material constituting or containing child pornography. Sets forth provisions regarding enhanced penalties for recidivists and sentencing enhancements for interstate travel to engage in a sexual act with a juvenile. Directs the Attorney General to appoint 25 additional trial attorneys to focus on the investigation and prosecution of Federal child pornography laws.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2002
Expresses profound gratitude for the faithful service provided by flight attendants to make air travel safe and honors their courage and dedication. Supports all flight attendants who continue to display heroism on a daily basis, as they had been doing before, during, and after September 11, 2001.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2002
Medicare Skilled Nursing Beneficiary Protection Act of 2002 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to revise the prospective payment system for skilled nursing facility services for determining updates for FY 2003 and for FY 2004 and subsequent fiscal years.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2002
Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2002 - Amends the Federal criminal code to authorize qualified law enforcement officers (including qualified retired officers) carrying the photographic identification issued by the governmental agency for which the individual is, or was, employed as a law enforcement officer, notwithstanding State or local laws, to carry a concealed firearm that has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce. Specifies that this Act shall not be construed to supersede or limit the laws of any State that: (1) permit private persons or entities to prohibit or restrict the possession of concealed firearms on their property; or (2) prohibit or restrict the possession of firearms on any State or local government property, installation, building, base, or park.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2002
Designates the U.S. Postal Service facility located at 1590 East Joyce Boulevard in Fayetteville, Arkansas, as the Clarence B. Craft Post Office Building.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2002
Broadband Regulatory Parity Act of 2002 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to require the Federal Communications Commission to prescribe regulations to ensure that: (1) all broadband services and broadband access services are subject to the same regulatory requirements (or no such requirements); (2) all providers of such services are subject to the same regulatory requirements with respect to such services and the facilities and equipment used to provide such services; and (3) the above requirements are met without increasing current regulatory requirements with respect to such services, facilities, or equipment. Prohibits such services and related facilities and equipment from being subject to the jurisdiction of any State. Requires each incumbent local exchange carrier to provide all Internet service providers with the telecommunications necessary for the provision of broadband access service to subscribers at just and reasonable rates.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2002
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit a deduction from adjusted gross income of up to $500, whether a taxpayer itemizes or not, for certain expenses in connection with the determination, collection, or refund of any tax.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2002
Post-Abortion Support and Services Act - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (Institute), to expand and intensify research and related activities of the Institute with respect to post-abortion depression and post-abortion psychosis. Requires the Director of NIH to also address the physical side effects of having an abortion, including infertility, excessive bleeding, cervical tearing, infection, and death. Requires the Director of the Institute to: (1) coordinate NIH activities related to post-abortion conditions; (2) conduct or support research to expand the understanding of the causes of, and to find a cure for, post-abortion conditions; and (3) conduct a national longitudinal study to determine the incidence and prevalence of cases of post-abortion conditions, and the symptoms, severity, and duration of such cases, toward the goal of more fully identifying the characteristics of such cases and developing diagnostic techniques. Requires the Secretary to make grants of up to $100,000 per fiscal year to provide for projects for the establishment, operation, and coordination of effective and cost-efficient systems for the delivery of essential services to individuals with post-abortion depression or post-abortion psychosis.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2002
Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act - Amends the Organic Act establishing the Department of Commerce to direct the Secretary of Commerce to establish and maintain a list of each person that notifies the Secretary that it is a manufacturer or seller that is: (1) licensed to engage in interstate or foreign commerce of a firearm (including antique firearm) or ammunition product; or (2) is a trade association representing such manufacturers or sellers. Declares that any lawful conduct carried out by a manufacturer or seller in interstate or foreign commerce of a firearm or ammunition product, or lawful conduct carried out by a trade association in the course of representing such manufacturers or sellers, shall not be the basis for imposing a restriction on such commerce (the award of civil damages, equitable relief, or any other specified limitation) as a result of harm caused by the criminal or other unlawful misuse of such firearm or ammunition product by any other person.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2002
Veterans Hearing Loss Compensation Act of 2002 - Removes the requirement that a veteran's hearing loss must be total in order to qualify for disability compensation, as long as the combination of hearing loss in both ears was the result of service-connected disability. Considers hearing loss, tinnitus, or both of a veteran who, while on active military service, was assigned to an occupational specialty which likely exposed such veteran to a sufficiently high level of acoustic trauma so as to result in permanent hearing loss or tinnitus, to have been incurred or aggravated by military service (and therefore compensable under veterans' disability compensation), notwithstanding that there is no record of evidence of such hearing loss or tinnitus during such service. Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs: (1) in determining which occupational specialties qualify as having such acoustic trauma, to take into account a report required to be submitted by the National Academy of Sciences under this Act; and (2) to report to the congressional veterans' committees on claims submitted for disability compensation or health care based on hearing loss or tinnitus.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2002
Amends the Miscellaneous Appropriations Act, 2001 to set a $6 million limit on the total amount of Federal funds that may be expended to construct intake facilities for the benefit of Lonoke and White Counties, Arkansas, as part of the flood control project for Greers Ferry Lake.
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 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
Clergy Housing Allowance Clarification Act of 2002 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to specify that the parsonage allowance exclusion from gross income cannot exceed the fair rental value of the home, including furnishings and appurtenances such as a garage, plus the cost of utilities. Sets forth effective date provisions.
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
Emergency Agricultural Assistance Act of 2002 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to provide market loss assistance payments to owners and producers on a farm that are eligible for a final FY 2002 production flexibility contract payment. Directs the Secretary to provide assistance for: (1) soybeans and oilseeds; (2) quota or additional peanuts; (3) honey (loans); (4) wool and mohair; (5) cottonseed; (6) specialty crops, including school nutrition program commodities; (7) pulse crops (chickpeas, lentils, dry peas); and (8) tobacco. Amends the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 to extend loan deficiency payment eligibility through crop year 2002 for contract commodity producers who are not eligible for marketing assistance loans. Directs the Secretary to make payments in lieu of loan deficiency payments for crop year 2002 to producers who: (1) elect to use wheat, grain sorghum, barley, or oats acreage for livestock grazing; and (2) agree to forgo any other harvesting of such crops on such acreage. States that such acreage shall be ineligible for Federal crop insurance. Amends the Agricultural Market Transition Act to extend milk price supports. Directs the Secretary to provide livestock feed assistance to producers affected by 2001 or 2002 disasters. Increases crop year 2002 payment limitations respecting loan deficiency payments and marketing assistance loans for oilseeds and contract commodities. States that funds shall be obligated and expended only during FY 2002 (with specified exceptions) to carry out this Act and its amendments.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2002
Constitutional Amendment - Grants victims of violent crime the rights: (1) to reasonable and timely notice of any public proceeding involving the crime and of any release or escape of the accused; (2) to not be excluded from such public proceeding and reasonably to be heard at public release, plea, sentencing, reprieve, and pardon proceedings; and (3) to adjudicative decisions that consider the victim's safety, interest in avoiding unreasonable delay, and just and timely claims to restitution from the offender. Prohibits any restriction of such rights except as dictated by a substantial interest in public safety or the administration of criminal justice, or by compelling necessity.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2002
Amends Internal Revenue Code provisions concerning tax-exempt insurance companies (other than life insurance companies) to increase from $350,000 to $551,000 (adjusted annually for inflation) the maximum amount of premiums that may be written annually by such a company in order to remain tax-exempt. Raises the maximum amount of premiums that may be written annually by an insurance company (other than a life insurance company) to qualify for an alternative tax for small companies.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2002
Home Health Modernization Act of 2002 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to provisions regarding conditions on payments for services and payments of claims of service providers, as amended by Federal law commonly referred to as the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Benefits Improvement and Protection Act. Declares that no individual shall be disqualified from being considered confined to the home for any non-medical absence (including, as currently, any absence to attend a religious service), without regard to whether the absence is infrequent or of relatively short duration.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2002
Alzheimer's Disease Research, Prevention, and Care Act of 2002 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to expand the purposes of the National Institute on Aging to include conducting programs regarding Alzheimer's disease and related disorders. Requires the Director of the Institute to: (1) undertake an Alzheimer's Disease Prevention Initiative, including accelerating the discovery of new risk and protective factors, rapidly identifying therapies and preventive interventions, and implementing effective prevention and treatment strategies; (2) establish and support a national consortium for cooperative clinical research regarding Alzheimer's; and (3) conduct, or make grants to conduct, research concerning early detection and diagnosis, the relationship between Alzheimer's and vascular disease, and interventions designed to help caregivers. Authorizes the Director to establish a National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center to facilitate collaboration among Alzheimer's Disease Centers and Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers.
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 · 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.
![Official portrait of Sen. Hutchinson, Tim [R-AR]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/h001015_200.jpg)