United States · United States Congress · 3 April 1985
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the administration should comply with the automatic appropriation and earmarking provisions of the Wallop/Breaux Sport Fish Restoration Trust Fund and support adequate appropriation for the Boating Safety Account in such Fund. States that funds owed to the States from such Fund should not be withheld or delayed.
United States · United States Congress · 2 April 1985
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide special rules for tax exclusion purposes for determining the value of air transportation provided to an employee by an employer which is not a commercial airline. Sets forth the method of calculating the value of such transportation based on the weight of the aircraft and whether or not the employee is a key employee (an employee who has control over the use, scheduling, or destination of the aircraft).
United States · United States Congress · 2 April 1985
National Childhood Vaccine Injury Compensation Act of 1985 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program as an elective alternative remedy to judicial action for specified vaccine-related injuries. Prescribes the contents of any petition for compensation. Grants sole authority to determine eligibility and compensation to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Sets forth injuries deemed vaccine-related for compensation purposes. Sets compensation limits. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct studies on pertussis and rubella vaccines, and develop related information materials. Establishes an Advisory Commission on Childhood Vaccines to advise the Secretary on the implementation of such program and recommend research priorities and changes in vaccine-related injury standards. Establishes in the Treasury a National Vaccine Injury Compensation Trust Fund. Authorizes FY 1985 funds. Requires the Secretary to establish annual surcharges on vaccine manufacturers to finance the Fund. Authorizes the Secretary to establish an insurance pool to cover injury claims relating to vaccines for which adequate general liability and product liability insurance is unavailable. Provides for Federal reinsurance of insurance companies participating in such a pool. Prescribes a procedure for determining the necessity of and for establishing such a pool. Authorizes the Secretary to establish in the Treasury a National Childhood Vaccine Fund to pay reinsurance claims. Requires health care providers who vaccinate patients and the manufacturers of specified vaccines to keep specified records. Requires the Secretary to: (1) make a pediatric vaccine-risk study; (2) determine the circumstances under which any such vaccine should be delayed or not given; and (3) direct pediatric health care providers to distribute such information to parents and legal guardians. Directs the Secretary to: (1) encourage the development of vaccines that result in fewer major adverse reactions than those currently on the market; and (2) assure improvements in the vaccine industry to reduce the risks of major adverse reactions. Directs the Secretary to provide grants for the education, treatment, and care of multiple handicapped persons, with priority given to the needs of persons with vaccine-related neurological impairments. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1985 through FY 1990. Entitles any person to commence a civil action against the Secretary where the Secretary allegedly has failed to perform a duty under this Act. Provides for judicial review of the Secretary's regulatory actions in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.
United States · United States Congress · 28 March 1985
Youth Employment Opportunity Wage Act of 1985 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to authorize employers to pay employees under 20 years of age 75 percent of the minimum wage rate between May and September of each year. Exempts such employees from special certificate requirements. Restricts such authorization to: (1) hours worked by eligible employees in compliance with applicable child labor laws; and (2) youth employed after May 1 of each year. Prohibits the removal of employees ineligible for the subminimum wage rate in order to replace them with employees who are eligible. Makes technical and conforming amendments to the Job Training Partnership Act. Directs the Secretary of Labor to monitor the implementation of this Act and to report to the Congress concerning the employment effects of this Act. Terminates such minimum wage rate exception after September 30, 1987.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 1985
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the Export-Import Bank of the United States shall continue to provide preliminary and advance commitments for loans which may require approval on or after October 1, 1985, unless and until the Congress directs the Bank to alter its programs.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1985
Agricultural Trade Amendment Act of 1985 - Amends the Commodity Credit Corporation Act to provide that agricultural exports, except for those under the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 (P.L. 480), shall not be subject to cargo preference requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 1985
Prohibits the cargo preference laws from applying to export activities of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) or the Department of Agriculture under which: (1) stocks of farm commodities or the products thereof acquired by the CCC are made available to U.S. exporters, users, or foreign purchasers for the maintenance or expansion of commercial export markets for U.S. farm commodities; (2) commercial credit guarantees are blended with direct interest-free credits from the CCC to reduce the interest rate on export sales of U.S. farm commodities; or (3) the CCC or the Department of Agriculture promotes commercial exports of U.S. farm commodities. Exempts from such prohibition export activity undertaken to fulfill an agreement entered into before enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1985
Interstate Compact - Grants congressional approval to the Central Interstate Low-Level Radioactive Waste Compact, which provides for cooperation among the States of Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Oklahoma in the management of low-level radioactive waste.
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 1985
Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 regarding urban development action grant criteria to place major emphasis on private investment leveraging and job creation, especially for low-income persons and minorities, including the unemployed. Limits fiscal year grant amounts to any single community.
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 1985
Amends the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 to declare ineffective any termination dates which appear in certificates authorizing airlines to engage in foreign air transportation. Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to: (1) review an airline's certification to provide foreign air transportation; and (2) replace such airline's certification with that of another applicant which has demonstrated it will provide a substantially improved combination of service and rates. Prescribes conditions under which the Secretary may exercise this authority.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1985
Highly Erodible Land Conservation Act of 1985 - Makes persons who cultivate crops on highly erodible land ineligible for price supports, crop insurance, and other specified agricultural loans. Provides exceptions for: (1) crops produced using approved conservation methods; and (2) certain previously cultivated land. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to: (1) use the agricultural stabilization and conservation committees to help administer this Act; and (2) complete specified soil capability surveys.
United States · United States Congress · 20 February 1985
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a 50 percent excise tax on any "greenmail profits" paid to certain corporate stockholders. Defines "greenmail profits" as any gain realized by a four-percent shareholder of any stock in a corporation if: (1) the shareholder held such stock for a period of less than two years; and (2) during the two-year period ending on the date of the sale or exchange of such stock there was a public tender offer for such stock or a four-percent shareholder submitted a written proposal for a public tender offer. Disallows an income tax deduction for certain interest paid or accrued with respect to hostile acquisition indebtedness. Defines "hostile acquisition indebtedness" as certain subordinate obligations issued after February 18, 1985, in connection with a hostile acquisition.
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 · 6 February 1985
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a 50 percent excise tax on any "greenmail profits" paid to certain corporate stockholders. Defines "greenmail profits" as any gain realized by a four-percent shareholder of any stock in a corporation if: (1) the shareholder held such stock for a period of less than two years; and (2) during the two-year period ending on the date of the sale or exchange of such stock there was a public tender offer for such stock. Requires that a hostile stock purchase in a corporate takeover attempt be treated as an asset acquisition by the purchasing corporation. Disallows an income tax deduction for any interest paid or accrued on indebtedness incurred to acquire stock in a corporation pursuant to a hostile offer.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1985
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that for purposes of the alternative minimum tax, any gain or loss from the transfer of property to a creditor in cancellation of a debt or from the sale or exchange of property under threat of foreclosure shall not be taken into account in computing net capital gain if prior to such sale or exchange the taxpayer is insolvent.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1985
Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to direct the Federal Communications Commission to require that all telephones provide internal means for use with hearing aids. Requires (currently authorizes) any common carrier or connecting carrier providing telephone exchange service to provide specialized terminal equipment for persons whose hearing, speech, vision, or mobility is impaired. Requires State regulatory commissions to require any such carrier to provide such equipment at affordable rates.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 1985
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should direct the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to: (1) explore opportunities for cooperation with the Soviet Union on specified Mars exploration missions; (2) prepare a report, in association with nongovernmental space scientists, examining opportunities for joint East-West Mars-related activities; and (3) report to the Congress by October 1, 1985, on steps taken to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 1985
Homestead Protection Act of 1985 - Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to establish an agricultural debt adjustment program which: (1) permits lenders to secure Federal guarantees (up to 90 percent) on loans in exchange for reduced interest rates on such loans; (2) permits farmers on a "break-even" basis to participate; (3) reduces the guarantee percentage over the loan's life; (4) provides for expedited loan processing; and (5) shall not consider such loans as "problem" loans.
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
Amends the Hobbs Act to redefine "extortion" to mean obtaining property from another with consent by use of actual or threatened force, violence, or fear thereof, or wrongful use of fear not involving force or violence, or under color of official right. Expresses congressional intent: (1) not to exclude Federal jurisdiction on the ground that conduct involving force, violence, or fear thereof, takes place in the course of a legitimate business or labor dispute, or on the ground that the conduct violates State or local law; or (2) not to chill legitimate labor activity by authorizing Federal prosecution for offenses occurring during a labor dispute not involving extortion. Makes it an affirmative defense to a prosecution under this section that the defendant's conduct: (1) was incidental to peaceful picketing in the course of a legitimate labor dispute; (2) consisted solely of minor bodily injury or property damage; or (3) was not intended to extort property.
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
Authorizes and directs the Secretary of the Treasury to pay a sum to be determined to a named individual in full satisfaction of all claims for injuries, expenses, and damages inflicted by a Federal prison parolee as a result of the alleged negligence of U.S. military personnel.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 1985
Expresses the sense of the Congress that it is necessary to change enacted laws in order to reduce budget authority by an amount sufficient to reduce outlays by specified amounts in FY 1985 and 1986.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 1985
Professional Sports Community Protection Act of 1985 - States that it shall not be unlawful for a professional sports league or its clubs to enforce rules or agreements that: (1) decide that a member club may not relocate; (2) divide revenues to promote economic opportunities for member clubs; and (3) establish procedures and standards for the selection and termination of club ownership. Prescribes a notice requirement for clubs seeking relocation. Lists factors for consideration in determining whether a league will permit a club to relocate, which include: (1) the adequacy of the existing stadium and facilities; (2) the operating revenues or losses during the preceding three years; and (3) any offers to purchase the club at fair market value which would keep such club in its home territory. Provides that judicial review of the league's determination may be sought in a civil action brought in a district court of the United States by: (1) the club seeking relocation; (2) the stadium owner or operator; or (3) the local government. Prohibits the bringing of such action in a district court within the club's home or proposed territory. Requires leagues to file with the Secretary of Commerce their rules regarding: (1) team relocation; (2) division of revenues; and (3) selection and termination of club ownership. States that the provisions of this Act do not affect the applicability of the antitrust laws (as defined in the Clayton Act and the Federal Trade Commission Act). Preempts State and local laws inconsistent with this Act. Applies the provisions of this Act to any major league football, basketball, hockey, or soccer team.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 1985
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that the substantiation requirements for the deductibility of business expenses for passenger automobiles or other means of transportation shall be met by providing adequate records or sufficient corroborating evidence rather than contemporaneous records.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Sex Discrimination in the United States Code Reform Act of 1985 - Title I: Armed Forces, Soldiers' Home, Coast Guard, Lighthouse Service, and Merchant Marine - Amends Federal laws dealing with the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, and the Coast Guard to eliminate gender-based distinctions. Title II: Elimination of Gender-Based Distinctions Under the Social Security Act and the Railroad Retirement Act - Eliminates gender-based distinctions in the social security and railroad retirement programs. Title III: Amendments to United States Code - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act, the Walsh-Healey Act, the Child Nutrition Act of 1966, the Federal criminal code and other Acts (dealing with Indian affairs, transportation, public lands, Saint Elizabeths Hospital, contract law, the U.S. Coast Guard, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, longshoremen and harbor workers, conservation programs, internee benefits, and the spouses of former Presidents, among other subjects) to eliminate gender-based distinctions. Title IV: Effective Date - Sets forth the effective date for the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Provides that each item of any general or special appropriation bill and any bill or joint resolution making supplemental, deficiency, or continuing appropriations that is agreed to in the same form by both Houses of the Congress shall be enrolled as a separate bill or joint resolution for presentation to the President (line-item veto).
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Declares that it shall not be in order for either House of the Congress to consider an appropriations bill that would cause the aggregate total budget authority for national defense and non-defense discretionary activities for FY 1986 to exceed specified FY 1985 levels. Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for no increase in hospital or physician reimbursements during FY 1986. Prohibits any cost of living increase in Federal benefits or payments during FY 1986.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Compassionate Pain Relief Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a 60-month program under which parenteral diacetylmorphine shall be made available through hospital and other prescribed pharmacies for the relief of pain from terminal cancer (as defined by this Act). Directs the Secretary to provide for the manufacture of such drug. Permits physicians registered under the Controlled Substances Act to prescribe such drug. States that for purposes of such program the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and titles II and III of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970 shall not apply with respect to: (1) the importing of opium; and (2) the manufacture, distribution, and dispensing of parenteral diacetylmorphine. Requires: (1) the Secretary to make program reports to specified congressional committees; and (2) the Comptroller General of the United States to make a program report to such committees upon expiration of 56 months after the date the program is established. Requires the Secretary to report to specified congressional committees concerning: (1) the extent of research activities in the management of pain which have received funds through the National Institutes of Health; (2) the ways in which the Federal Government supports the training of health personnel in pain management; and (3) recommendations for expanding and improving the training of health personnel in pain management. Permits the Secretary at any time six months after implementation of the program to modify or terminate the program.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Prohibits the expenditure of funds for the production of lethal binary chemical munitions after the enactment of this Act. Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the President should intensify efforts to reach agreement with the Soviet Union and other countries for a mutual, verifiable ban on chemical weapons; and (2) the Department of Defense should improve the capability of the United States to detect chemical weapons and protect members of the armed forces from the effects of such weapons.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Constitutional Amendment - Declares that nothing in the Constitution shall be construed to prohibit individual or group silent prayer or reflection in public schools. Prohibits the United States or any State from requiring any person to participate in such prayer or to encourage any particular prayer.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 1985
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the Federal Communications Commission should affirm that State and local regulations must not: (1) discriminate among home satellite reception antennas; (2) prohibit or frustrate the reception of satellite transmitted programming by the public, except as necessary to carry out a compelling government interest, or (3) restrict any means of delivering or receiving satellite programming in order to provide a competitive advantage to any other means of delivering or receiving such programming.
United States · United States Congress · 4 October 1984
Expresses the Senate's appreciation to members of the entertainment industry, especially the Entertainment Industries Council, for their work in discouraging and communicating the danger of drug use.
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1984
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the Customs Service should suspend the operation of interim regulations, for at least six months, to permit the completion of a comprehensive analysis, with the participation by retailers and other specified groups, of the effects of such regulations on U.S. imports of textiles and apparel.
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1984
Expresses the Senate's appreciation to members of the entertainment industry, especially the Entertainment Industries Council, for their work in discouraging and communicating the danger of drug use.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 1984
Balanced Budget Procedures Act of 1984 - States that if the total outlays set forth for FY 1989 would exceed the total revenues set forth for such fiscal year under conditions of high employment in any budget submitted by the President for FY 1985 through 1988, then the President shall submit along with such budget an alternative budget in which total outlays for FY 1989 would not exceed total revenues for such fiscal year under conditions of high employment. Requires the President, when such an alternative budget is submitted, to submit recommendations and proposals for changes in Federal laws which would be required in order to achieve such a balance. Requires the Budget Committees of each House, not later than April 15 before each fiscal year from FY 1985 through 1989, to report: (1) a first concurrent resolution on the budget for such fiscal year in which total outlays and total revenues for FY 1989 would be in balance under conditions of high employment; or (2) an alternative concurrent resolution in equal detail. Requires that any presidential budget for a fiscal year that assumes conditions of high employment and recommends that total outlays exceed total revenues be accompanied by an alternative budget in which total outlays do not exceed total revenues. Requires that any presidential budget which assumes that conditions of high employment will not exist during a given fiscal year, and recommends that total outlays exceed total revenues by a certain amount for such fiscal year, be accompanied by an alternative budget in which total outlays would not exceed total revenues under conditions of high employment. Requires the President, not later than March 15 of any year in which an alternative budget is submitted, to submit recommendations and proposals for changes in Federal laws which will, if enacted, reduce the amount by which total outlays exceed total revenues for such fiscal year. Establishes a National Bipartisan Commission on the Balanced Budget to review the budget and alternative budget and make recommendations for levels of spending and changes in the laws of the United States which may be necessary to achieve a balanced budget by FY 1989. Requires the Commission to report to the President and Congress not later than March 15, 1985, its findings, conclusions, and recommendations for such levels of spending, legislation, and administrative actions as it considers appropriate. Terminates the Commission 30 days after it submits its report. Exempts the budget from the requirements of this Act for any fiscal year for which a declaration of war by the Congress is in effect.
![Official portrait of Sen. Kassebaum, Nancy Landon [R-KS]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/549ffd7cef829ff27fc294bb4a5e8c9a_200.jpg)