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United States · Official source
7,990 records where Sen. Kennedy, Edward M. [D-MA] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 3 October 1997
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the post-1987 reduction in the State ceiling on private activity bonds. Provides, beginning in 1999, for cost-of-living adjustments in the State ceiling on such bonds.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 1997
50 States Commemorative Coin Program Act - Amends Federal law to mandate redesign of quarter-dollar coins issued during the ten-year period beginning 1999, with the reverse side emblematic of five of the 50 States each year during such period, selected in the order of their ratification of the U.S. Constitution or their admission to the Union.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 1997
Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to provide that investment managers under ERISA shall include fiduciaries registered solely under State law only if Federal registration is prohibited under the Investment Advisors Act of 1940. Treats a fiduciary as meeting certain ERISA filing requirements if the information is available to the Secretary of Labor from a centralized electronic or other record-keeping database.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 1997
Human Rights Information Act - Requires certain Federal agencies to identify and organize all human rights records regarding activities occurring in Guatemala and Honduras after 1944 for declassification and disclosure purposes, and to make them available to the public and other official entities, including Latin American or Caribbean countries. Instructs the President to report to the Congress regarding agency compliance. Prescribes guidelines under which the Interagency Security Classification Appeals Panel (the Panel) shall review agency determinations to postpone public disclosure of any human rights record. Authorizes postponement of such public disclosures on specified grounds. Directs the Information Security Policy Advisory Council to report to the Congress on declassification of human rights records relating to other Latin American and Caribbean countries and to make such report available to the public. Creates two additional positions in the Panel in order to implement this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 1997
Oceans Act of 1997 - Directs the President to develop and maintain a coordinated, comprehensive, and long-range national policy on ocean and coastal activities and, regarding Federal agencies and departments, to review ocean and coastal activities, plan and implement an integrated and cost-effective program of ocean and coastal activities, designate responsibility for funding and conducting ocean and coastal activities, and ensure cooperation and resolve differences arising from laws and regulations. (Sec. 5) Establishes the National Ocean Council to serve as the forum for developing a policy and program, improve coordination and cooperation among Federal agencies, work with academic, State, industry, public interest, and other groups, and cooperate with the Secretary of State. (Sec. 6) Establishes the Commission on Ocean Policy, requiring it to report to the President and the Congress on a comprehensive national ocean and coastal policy to carry out the purpose and objectives of this Act. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 7) Requires the Council to report to the Congress biennially and to annually provide general guidance to each Federal agency or department involved in coastal activities regarding the preparation of appropriations requests. Requires each such agency or department to include with its annual appropriations request a report identifying budget elements relating to ocean and coastal activities and specifying how each element contributes to the implementation of a national ocean and coastal policy. Directs the President to identify in each budget submitted to the Congress those elements of each agency or department that contribute to the implementation of a national ocean and coastal policy. (Sec. 8) Repeals the Marine Resources and Engineering Development Act of 1966.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 1997
Declares that a primary objective of U.S. policy toward Cambodia should be the establishment of an international tribunal for the prosecution of those responsible for the Cambodia genocide. Calls upon: (1) the President, in compliance with the Cambodian Genocide Justice Act and the objectives stated above, to immediately deem it appropriate to encourage the establishment of an international criminal tribunal for the prosecution of members of the Khmer Rouge; (2) the United States, in further compliance with such Act, to support efforts to bring such members, including Pol Pot (former leader of the Khmer Rouge) to justice for their crimes against humanity before an international tribunal and to provide that tribunal with any information available on such members' involvement in the Cambodia genocide; and (3) the Secretary of State to encourage all Member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the People's Republic of China, Japan, and other interested countries to support such a tribunal.
United States · United States Congress · 23 September 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Prevention Subtitle A: Family Planning Subtitle B: Prescription Equity and Contraceptive Coverage Subtitle C: Emergency Contraceptives Title II: Research Title III: Choice Protection Family Planning and Choice Protection Act of 1997 - Title I: Prevention - Subtitle A: Family Planning - Amends the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to authorize appropriations for voluntary family planning projects. (Sec. 102) Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to prohibit, notwithstanding any other provision of law, any authority of the United States, in or through any health care services or information program or activity administered or assisted by that authority, from limiting any person's right to provide or receive nonfraudulent information regarding reproductive health care services. Subtitle B: Prescription Equity and Contraceptive Coverage - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and the PHSA to prohibit a group health plan, and an insurer providing coverage in connection with a group plan, from restricting benefits for prescription contraceptive drugs, devices, or outpatient services if the plan provides benefits for other outpatient prescription drugs, devices, or services. Prohibits related denial of eligibility or enrollment, monetary payments or rebates to covered individuals, and penalties or incentives to health care professionals. Amends the PHSA to apply these prohibitions to insurers in the individual market. Declares that this paragraph does not preempt State law providing greater enrollee protections. Subtitle C: Emergency Contraceptives - Mandates development and dissemination to the public and health care providers of information on drugs or devices designed to be used after sexual relations to prevent pregnancy. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Research - Declares the sense of the Congress regarding adequate funding for PHSA provisions regarding sexually transmitted diseases, breast and cervical cancers, and research on contraception and infertility. Title III: Choice Protection - Declares that it is the sense of the Congress that: (1) Federal and State governments should provide funding for abortion services to women eligible for assistance through title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act; (2) Federal resources are necessary to ensure safety for women and health professionals regarding reproductive health facilities and services; and (3) it is necessary and appropriate to use Federal resources to combat violence and harassment against reproductive health centers. (Sec. 303) Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) ensure that a Food and Drug Administration decision to approve the drug called Mifepristone or RU-486 is made only on the basis provided in law; and (2) assess initiatives to promote the testing, licensing, and manufacturing in the United States of the drug or other antiprogestins. (Sec. 304) Prohibits a State from restricting a woman's freedom to choose pregnancy termination before fetal viability. Allows a State to: (1) restrict that freedom after viability unless termination is necessary to preserve the woman's life or health; and (2) impose requirements on abortions if the requirements are medically necessary to protect the woman's health. (Sec. 306) Amends Federal law to allow funds available to the Department of Defense (DOD) to be used for abortions when the pregnancy resulted from rape or incest or when the abortion is medically necessary or appropriate. Replaces provisions prohibiting (with exceptions) the use of DOD facilities to perform abortions with provisions declaring that certain provisions do not limit performing abortions in a uniformed services facility outside the 48 contiguous States if the cost is fully paid by non-DOD funds, abortions are not prohibited by the facility's jurisdiction, and the abortion would otherwise be permitted under laws regarding health care for uniformed services members and former members and their dependents in that facility.
United States · United States Congress · 23 September 1997
Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to revise title V requirements for Educator Recruitment, Preparation, and Induction. Authorizes appropriations for new HEA title V programs for: (1) Lighthouse Partnerships; and (2) Recruiting New Teachers for Underserved Areas. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to use Lighthouse Partnership funds to make continuation awards for Programs to Encourage Minority Students to Become Teachers. Directs the Secretary to make competitive Lighthouse Partnership grants for teacher preparation improvement programs to partnerships of lead institutions, partner institutions, and State and local educational agencies. Requires that the lead institutions: (1) operate exemplary teacher preparation programs; (2) desire to serve as national models and assist other institutions of higher education in improving teacher preparation; and (3) place a significant percentage of graduates in teaching positions in communities with concentrations of children from low-income families. Sets forth program requirements for preapplications and applications, uses of funds, selection of applications, evaluation, and national activities. Directs the Secretary to make competitive grants for Recruiting New Teachers for Underserved Areas to eligible applicants for programs that: (1) provide scholarships and necessary support services for students with high potential to become effective teachers seeking to complete teacher preparation programs (particularly minority students, including language minority students, and students with disabilities); (2) increase the quality and number of new teachers nationally; and (3) increase the ability of schools in underserved areas to recruit a qualified teaching staff. Requires an eligible applicant to be a partnership of: (1) an institution of higher education that grants baccalaureate degrees and prepares teachers for their initial entry into the teaching profession; and (2) one or more local educational agencies in underserved areas. Allows such a partnership also to include: (1) two-year colleges that operate teacher preparation programs and maintain articulation agreements, with the baccalaureate-granting institution, for the transfer of credits in teacher preparation; (2) State agencies that have responsibility for policies related to teacher preparation and licensure; and (3) other public and private, nonprofit agencies and organizations that serve, or are located in, communities served by the local educational agencies in the partnership, and that have an interest in teacher recruitment, preparation, and induction. Requires any student who receives such a scholarship to agree to teach full-time in a high-poverty school in an underserved area for at least three years, within five years after completing the teacher preparation program, or to repay the amount of the scholarship. Sets forth program provisions for grant conditions, planning, applications, uses of funds, selection of applicants, duration and amount of assistance, relation to other assistance, scholarship conditions, service requirements, evaluation, and national activities.
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 1997
Religious Workers Act of 1997 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide permanent authority for U.S. special immigrant entry by certain religious workers.
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 1997
North Atlantic Fisheries Resource Conservation Act - Prohibits the Secretary of Commerce from authorizing or permitting fishing vessels over 164 feet in length or with over 3,000 horsepower to harvest Atlantic mackerel or herring in a fishery unless their participation is specifically allowed under a fishery management plan developed and implemented under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Requires the Secretary to revoke any permit issued before enactment of this Act which would have permitted such vessels to engage in the harvest. Sets a deadline for: (1) the New England Fishery Management Council to submit an Atlantic herring fishery management plan for the Secretary's implementation; and (2) the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council to submit for the Secretary's implementation an amendment to the Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Fisheries which specifically addresses the participation of such vessels in the Atlantic mackerel harvest. Authorizes the inclusion of vessel length or power limitations or modifications in such fishery management plan or amendment.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Vocational, Technological, and Tech-Prep Education Subtitle A: Vocational Education Subtitle B: Tech-Prep Education Subtitle C: General Provisions Subtitle D: Authorization of Appropriations Subtitle E: Repeal Title II: Adult Education and Literacy Subtitle A: Adult Education and Literacy Programs Subtitle B: Repeal Title III: Workforce Investment and Related Activities Subtitle A: Workforce Investment Activities Subtitle B: Job Corps Subtitle C: National Programs Subtitle D: Administration Subtitle E: Repeals and Conforming Amendments Title IV: Workforce Investment-Related Activities Subtitle A: Wagner-Peyser Act Subtitle B: Linkages with Other Programs Title V: General Provisions Workforce Investment Partnership Act of 1997 - Establishes a coordinated system of Federal aid programs for vocational education, adult education, and job training at State and local levels. Title I: Vocational, Technological, and Tech-Prep Education - Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act of 1997 - Replaces the current Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act (Perkins Act). Subtitle A: Vocational Education - Chapter 1: Federal Provisions - Directs the Secretary of Education (the Secretary under this title) to reserve certain amounts of vocational education funds for: (1) assistance for the outlying areas; (2) Indian and Hawaiian Native programs; (3) grants to tribally controlled postsecondary vocational institutions; (4) incentive grants to States; (5) national activities; (6) national assessment of vocational education programs; and (7) national research centers. Sets forth State allotment formulas for the remainder of vocational education funds. (Sec. 112) Directs the Secretary to establish and publish performance measures to assess the progress of each eligible agency in achieving certain goals for students with respect to academic, job readiness, and vocational skills, postsecondary degrees or certificates, secondary and postsecondary education, employment, military service, and nontraditional vocational education programs. Requires each eligible agency, in developing a State plan, to negotiate with the Secretary the expected levels of performance for such measures. (Sec. 113) Sets forth requirements for use of reserved funds for assistance for the outlying areas, Indian and Hawaiian Native programs, grants to tribally controlled postsecondary vocational institutions, and incentive grants to States. Chapter 2: State Provisions - Makes each eligible agency responsible for State administration of programs under this title. (Sec. 122) Requires State reservation of certain portions of vocational education funds for: (1) State leadership activities; (2) technical assistance for gender equity; (3) State planning, review of local applications, program evaluation, and compliance; and (4) criminal offenders programs. Requires the remainder to be distributed to local secondary school and postsecondary vocational education programs. Allows the eligible agency to determine the portion of funds that will be available for secondary school and postsecondary programs. Sets forth a State matching requirement with respect to a specified portion of funds under this subtitle. (Sec. 123) Sets forth mandatory and permissible State leadership activities. (Sec. 124) Requires coordination of the three-year State plan under this title with the period for the State plan under title III of this Act. Sets forth requirements for State plan development, contents, approval, and reports. Chapter 3: Local Provisions - Sets forth formulas for State distribution of funds for: (1) secondary school vocational education; and (2) postsecondary vocational education. Allows alternative allocation formulas for postsecondary programs if the eligible agency demonstrate that certain conditions are met. (Sec. 133) Sets forth mandatory and permissible local activities. (Sec. 134) Sets forth minimum requirements for local applications. Subtitle B: Tech-Prep Education - Tech-Prep Education Act - Revises provisions for tech-prep programs (which are currently under the Perkins Act replaced by this title). (Sec. 154) Retains the mandate for the Secretary's discretionary grants to specified local consortia for such programs when program funding is below a specified minimum. Prescribes the formula for allotments to States for State competitive and formula grants to such programs. (Sec. 155) Revises requirements for the content of tech-prep education programs and for additional authorized activities. (Sec. 156) Requires the eligible State agency (currently a State board) to approve applications for State grants by eligible entities. (Sec. 157) Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle C: General Provisions - Provides for program and funds administration, evaluation, improvement, and accountability for programs under this title. (Sec. 163) Authorizes the Secretary to carry out research, development, dissemination, evaluation, capacity-building, and technical assistance activities under this title. (Sec. 164) Directs the Secretary to: (1) conduct a national assessment of vocational education programs assisted under this title, through studies and analyses conducted independently through competitive awards; (2) appoint an independent advisory panel on the implementation of such assessment; and (3) report to the Congress. (Sec. 165) Authorizes the Secretary to establish one or more national centers in the areas of: (1) applied research and development; and (2) dissemination and training. (Revises and replaces provisions for such centers which are in the current Perkins Act). (Sec. 166) Directs the Secretary to: (1) maintain a data system to collect information about, and report on, the condition of vocational education and on the effectiveness of State and local programs, services, and activities carried out under this title; and (2) annually report to Congress on the analysis of performance data collected each year. Subtitle D: Authorization of Appropriations - Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle E: Repeal - Repeals the Perkins Act. Title II: Adult Education and Literacy - Adult Education and Literacy Act - Replaces the Adult Education Act (AEA), the National Literacy Act of 1991, and other adult education and literacy programs. Subtitle A: Adult Education and Literacy Programs - Chapter 1: Federal Provisions - Directs the Secretary of Education (the Secretary under this title) to reserve certain portions of adult education and literacy funds for: (1) national leadership activities; (2) incentive grants; (3) the National Institute for Literacy; and (4) grants to States. (Sec. 212) Directs the Secretary to establish and publish performance measures to assess the progress of each eligible agency in enhancing and developing more fully the literacy skills of the adult population in the State or outlying area, including certain measures. Requires each eligible agency, in developing a State plan, to negotiate with the Secretary the expected levels of performance for such measures. (Sec. 213) Authorizes the Secretary to establish a program of national leadership activities for adult education. Chapter 2: State Provisions - Makes each eligible agency responsible for State administration of programs under this title. (Sec. 222) Specifies percentages for distribution of State grant funds to eligible providers (including programs for corrections education and other institutionalized individuals), State leadership activities, and administrative expenses of the eligible State agency. Sets forth a State share requirement equal to 25 percent of the total amount expended for adult education in the State. Authorizes the Secretary to decrease such amount for an eligible agency serving an outlying area. (Sec. 223) Requires the eligible agency to use reserved funds for one or more of specified State leadership activities in adult education and literacy. (Sec. 224) Requires three-year State plans from eligible agencies as a condition for grants. Allows the eligible agency to submit such State plan as part of a comprehensive plan or application for Federal education assistance. Sets forth requirements for State plan contents and approval procedures. (Sec. 225) Sets forth provisions for adult education and literacy programs for corrections education and other institutionalized individuals. Chapter 3: Local Provisions - Directs each eligible agency to use State grant funds to award multiyear grants or contracts to eligible providers to adult education and literacy activities. (Sec. 232) Sets forth local application requirements and local administrative cost limits. Chapter 4: General Provisions - Provides for program and funding administration, priorities and preferences, incentive grants for States, and evaluation, improvement, and accountability for programs under this title. (Sec. 245) Revises requirements for the National Institute for Literacy (which are currently under AEA, which this title replaces). Renames the Institute's Board as its Advisory Board. (Sec. 246) Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle B: Repeal - Repeals the AEA, the National Literacy Act of 1991, and certain adult education and literacy program provisions under the Refugee Education Assistance Act of 1980. Title III: Workforce Investment and Related Activities - Replaces the Job Training Partnership Act and certain other Federal job training law. Subtitle A: Workforce Investment Activities - Chapter 1: Allotments to States for Adult Employment and Training Activities, Dislocated Worker Employment and Training Activities, and Youth Activities - Directs the Secretary of Labor (the Secretary under this title) to make allotments to States with approved State plans, and grants to outlying areas, to assist local areas in providing, through a statewide workforce investment system: (1) adult employment and training activities; (2) dislocated worker employment and training activities; and (3) youth activities, including summer employment opportunities, tutoring, activities to promote study skills, alternative secondary school services, employment skill training, adult mentoring, and supportive services. (Sec. 302) Sets forth formulas for determining amounts of such State allotments and grants to outlying areas for such activities. (Sec. 303) Directs State Governors to establish and appoint the members of a statewide partnership to assist in the development of the State plan. (Sec. 304) Sets forth requirements for State plans. Chapter 2: Allocations to Local Workforce Investment Areas - Sets forth formulas for within-State allocations to local workforce investment areas. (Sec. 307) Directs State Governors to designate local workforce investment areas in accordance with State plan requirements. Provides for automatic designations in the case of large local governments, counties, and other local political subdivisions. Allows any small State eligible for minimum allotments to be designated as single State local area. (Sec. 308) Requires that local workforce investment partnerships and youth partnerships be established in each local area of a State. (Sec. 309) Sets forth requirements for local plans. Chapter 3: Workforce Investment Activities and Providers - Authorizes the chief elected official and the local partnership to: (1) develop and implement operating agreements to appoint one-stop partners; (2) designate or certify one-stop customer service center operators; and (3) conduct oversight with respect to the one-stop customer service system in the local area. (Sec. 312) Requires certain State and local procedures for determination and identification of eligible providers of training services by program. (Sec. 313) Authorizes youth partnerships to identify eligible providers of youth activities. (Sec. 314) Sets forth both required and allowable statewide workforce investment activities, including mandatory statewide rapid response activities. (Sec. 315) Sets forth both required and permissible local employment and training activities. Requires establishment of a one- stop customer service system at the State level and one-stop customer service centers in each local area. Requires such centers to provide specified core services and required training services to participants. Gives priority to disadvantaged adults for receipt of limited local adult employment and training activities. Sets forth customer choice requirements. Authorizes local areas to use certain funds for additional permissible local activities, including intensive and customized services and supportive services for certain participants, and needs-related payments for dislocated workers. (Sec. 316) Sets forth certain required elements in the provision of local youth activities. Requires that at least 50 percent of funds for such youth activities be devoted to out-of-school youth. Chapter 4: General Provisions - Sets forth accountability requirements for: (1) State and local performance measures; (2) reports and information dissemination; (3) State program evaluation; and (4) fiscal and management accountability information systems. (Sec. 321) Authorizes the Secretary to make incentive grants to States that exceed State performance measures. (Sec. 322) Authorizes appropriations for: (1) adult employment and training activities; (2) dislocated worker employment and training activities; and (3) youth activities. Subtitle B: Job Corps - Revises provisions for the Job Corps. (Currently such provisions are under the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA), which this title repeals and replaces.) (Sec. 335) Provides for Job Corps: (1) recruitment standards; (2) graduate readjustment allowances through local one-stop customer service centers; (3) industry councils; (4) management information. (Sec. 334) Revises Job Corps requirements for: (1) individual eligibility; (2) screening, selection, assignment, and enrollment; (3) Job Corps Centers; (4) program activities and continued services; (5) counseling and job placement; (6) support; (7) operating plan; (8) standards of conduct; (9) community participation; (10) advisory committees; and (11) experimental, research, and demonstration projects. (Sec. 351) Extends the authorization of appropriations for the Job Corps. Subtitle C: National Programs - Provides for workforce investment activities and supplemental services under programs for: (1) Native Americans and Native Hawaiians; (2) migrant and seasonal farmworkers; and (3) veterans. (Replaces similar programs which are currently under JTPA.) (Sec. 364) Directs the Secretary to make youth opportunity grants to eligible local partnerships to provide specified activities to increase the long-term employment of eligible youth who live in empowerment zones, enterprise communities, and high poverty areas. (Sec. 365) Authorizes the Secretary to make incentive grants to States that exceed: (1) the State performance measures established by the Secretary of Education under this Act; and (2) the State performance measures established under this title. (Sec. 366) Directs the Secretary of Labor to provide technical assistance to States to help with transitions, general performance improvement, and dislocated worker training improvement. (Sec. 367) Directs the Secretary to publish a biennial plan for demonstration, pilot, multiservice, research, and multistate projects. Sets forth requirements for such projects under such plan, including competitive award procedures and peer review. (Sec. 368) Directs the Secretary to provide for continuing evaluation of programs and activities under this title. Authorizes the Secretary to conduct evaluations of other federally funded employment related programs and activities. (Sec. 369) Authorizes the Secretary to make national emergency grants for: (1) employment and training assistance to workers affected by major economic dislocations; (2) disaster relief employment; and (3) additional assistance for dislocated workers, under certain conditions. (Sec. 370) Authorizes appropriations for specified programs and activities under this subtitle. Subtitle D: Administration - Sets forth requirements for: (1) labor standards, prohibitions on worker displacement, and other requirements relating to use of funds; (2) prompt allocation of funds; (3) monitoring; (4) fiscal controls and sanctions; (5) reports, recordkeeping, and investigations; (6) administrative adjudication; (7) judicial review; (8) nondiscrimination; and (9) State legislative authority. Subtitle E: Repeals and Conforming Amendments - Repeals: (1) the JTPA; and (2) the Displaced Homemakers Self-Sufficiency Assistance Act. (Sec. 391) Repeals certain provisions relating to employment and training assistance under various Federal laws, including the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, and the Appalachian Regional Development Act of 1965. Title IV: Workforce Investment-Related Activities - Subtitle A: Wagner-Peyser Act - Amends the Wagner-Peyser Act to direct the Secretary to: (1) assist in the coordination and development of a nationwide system of public labor exchange services, provided as part of the one-stop customer service systems of the States; (2) assist in the development of continuous improvement models for such nationwide system that ensure private sector satisfaction with the system and meet the demands of jobseekers relating to the system; and (3) ensure, for individuals otherwise eligible to receive unemployment compensation, the provision of reemployment services and other activities in which the individuals are required to participate to receive the compensation. (Sec. 406) Provides for coordination of State plans under the Wagner-Peyser Act and this Act. (Sec. 407) Repeals the mandate for a Federal Advisory Council on problems relating to employment. (Sec. 409) Sets forth requirements for a system of labor market information. Authorizes appropriations for such system. Subtitle B: Linkages with Other Programs - Provides for linkages between programs under this title and specified employment and training assistance programs under: (1) the Trade Act of 1974; (2) the National Apprenticeship Act; (3) veterans employment programs; and (4) the Older Americans Act of 1965. Title V: General Provisions - Allows for State unified plans for two or more of specified one-stop customer service system programs, including programs under titles I, II, or III of this Act, as well as specified programs under the Food Stamp Act of 1977, the Trade Act of 1974, the Wagner-Peyser Act, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Older Americans Act of 1965, State unemployment compensation and Federal unemployment insurance, and certain work programs under the Social Security Act, as well as activities of the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training, and training activities of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 1997
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to permit the waiver of nonimmigrant visa fees for aliens entering the United States for certain charitable purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 1997
Secret Tobacco Giveaway Repeal Act - Amends the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, as amended by the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, to repeal the provision crediting the increase in excise taxes on certain tobacco products against payments made pursuant to specified tobacco industry settlement legislation.
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 1997
Visa Waiver Pilot Program Reauthorization Act of 1997 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to revise and extend the visa waiver pilot program.
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 1997
Declares September 26, 1997, to be Austrian-American Day.
United States · United States Congress · 10 September 1997
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize appropriations for refugee and entrant assistance.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 1997
Expresses the condolences of the Congress on the death of Mother Teresa. Designates September 13, 1997, as a National Day of Recognition for the humanitarian efforts of Mother Teresa and those who have labored with her in service to the poor and afflicted of the world.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 1997
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the Secretary of Agriculture should use specified existing authority to establish a temporary emergency minimum milk price that is equitable to all producers nationwide and provides price relief to economically distressed milk producers.
United States · United States Congress · 5 September 1997
Child Care Access Means Parents in School Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to authorize the Secretary of Education to award grants to assist institutions of higher education in providing campus-based child care services to low-income students. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 2 September 1997
Commends the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service on its 50th anniversary.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 1997
Allows an individual with a disability who has or is granted the privilege of the Senate floor to bring necessary supporting aids and services (including service dogs, wheelchairs, and interpreters) on the Senate floor, unless the Senate Sergeant at Arms determines that the use of such supporting aids and services would place a significant difficulty or expense on Senate operations in accordance with the Rules for Regulation of the Senate Wing of the U.S. Capitol.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Victim Rights Subtitle A: Amendments to Title 18, United States Code Subtitle B: Amendments to Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure Subtitle C: Amendment to Federal Rules of Evidence Subtitle D: Remedies for Noncompliance Title II: Victim Assistance Initiatives Crime Victims Assistance Act - Title I: Victim Rights - Subtitle A: Amendments to Title 18, United States Code - Amends the Federal criminal code to require that, in any case involving a defendant who is arrested for an offense involving death or bodily injury to any person, a threat of death or bodily injury, or a sexual assault or attempted sexual assault (listed offenses) in which a detention hearing is scheduled: (1) the Government make a reasonable effort to notify the victim of the hearing and of the victim's right to be heard on the issue of detention; and (2) the court, at such hearing, inquire of the Government as to whether notification efforts were successful and whether the victim wishes to be heard and, if so, afford the victim such opportunity. (Sec. 102) Includes among the factors which a judge shall consider in determining whether to grant a continuance the interests of the victim (or the family of a victim who is deceased or incapacitated) in the prompt and appropriate disposition of the case, free from unreasonable delay. (Sec. 103) Requires the probation officer, prior to submitting the presentence report, to provide notice to all identified victims of their right to attend the sentencing hearing and to make a statement to the court at the sentencing hearing. (Sec. 104) Amends the Victims' Rights and Restitution Act of 1990 to require, after trial, a responsible official to provide a victim the earliest possible notice of the escape, work release, furlough, or any other form of release of an offender from a psychiatric institution or other facility that provides mental health services to offenders. (Sec. 105) Increases the scope of provisions and severity of penalties regarding witness tampering. Subtitle B: Amendments to Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure - Amends rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure (FRCP) to require that, in any case involving a defendant who is charged with a listed offense: (1) the Government, prior to a hearing at which a plea of guilty or nolo contendere is entered, make a reasonable effort to notify the victim of the date and time of the hearing and of the victim's right to attend the hearing and to address the court; and (2) if the victim attends, the court, before accepting a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, afford the victim an opportunity to be heard on the proposed plea agreement. Authorizes the court, in cases involving more than 15 victims and after consultation with the Government and the victims, to appoint a number of victims to serve as representatives of the victims' interests. (Sec. 122) Amends FRCrP 32 and 32.1 to provide for enhanced rights of notification and allocution at sentencing and at a probation revocation hearing. Subtitle C: Amendment to Federal Rules of Evidence - Amends rule 615 of the Federal Rules of Evidence (FRE) to provide that such rule does not authorize exclusion of a person who is a victim of a listed offense for which a defendant is being tried in a criminal trial unless the court concludes that: (1) the testimony of the person will be materially affected by hearing the testimony of other witnesses, and the material effect of hearing the testimony of other witnesses on the testimony of that person will result in unfair prejudice to any party; or (2) due to the large number of victims or family members of victims who may be called as witnesses, permitting attendance in the courtroom itself when testimony is being heard is not feasible. Directs the Judicial Conference of the United States to submit to the Congress reports containing recommendations for amending: (1) the FRCrP to provide enhanced opportunities for victims of listed offenses to be heard on the issue of whether or not the court should accept a plea of guilty or nolo contendere and to participate during the presentencing phase of the criminal process, and to ensure that reasonable efforts are made to notify victims of such offenses of revocation hearings; and (2) the FRE to provide enhanced opportunities for victims of listed offenses to attend judicial proceedings, even if they may testify as a witness at the proceeding. Sets forth provisions regarding congressional action on such reports. Subtitle D: Remedies for Noncompliance - Specifies that any failure to comply with any amendment made by this Act shall not give rise to a claim for damages, or any other action against the United States, any employee of the United States, any court official or officer of the court, or an entity contracting with the United States, or any action seeking a rehearing or other reconsideration of action taken in connection with a defendant. Directs the Attorney General and the Chairman of the United States Parole Commission to promulgate regulations to carry out this title. Title II: Victim Assistance Initiatives - Authorizes appropriations to enable the Attorney General to: (1) hire 50 full-time or full-time equivalent employees to serve victim-witness advocates to provide assistance to victims of any criminal offense investigated by any department or agency of the Federal Government; and (2) provide grants through the Office of Victims of Crime (the Office) to qualified private entities to fund 50 victim-witness advocate positions within those organizations. (Sec. 202) Authorizes the use of sums collected under the False Claims Act to be used by the Office to make grants to States, units of local government, and qualified private entities, to provide training and information to prosecutors, judges, law enforcement officers, probation officers, and other officers and employees of Federal and State courts to assist them in responding effectively to the needs of crime victims. (Sec. 203) Amends the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to authorize to the Office such sums as necessary for grants to State and local prosecutors' offices, State courts, county jails, State correctional institutions, and qualified private entities, to develop and implement state-of-the-art systems for notifying victims of crime of important dates and developments relating to the criminal proceedings at issue. Allows sums collected under the False Claims Act to be used for such grants. Authorizes the use of sums from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund for such grants. (Sec. 204) Directs the Attorney General, acting through the Director of the Office, to establish and carry out a program to provide for pilot programs to establish and operate Victim Ombudsman Information Centers in Iowa, Massachusetts, Ohio, Tennessee, Utah, and Vermont. (Sec. 205) Amends the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 to: (1) provide for the deposit into the Crime Victims Fund of any gifts, bequests, and donations from private entities or individuals; (2) direct that certain unobligated balances transferred to the judicial branch for administrative costs be returned to the Fund and be used by the Director of the Office to improve services for crime victims in the Federal criminal justice system; (3) require States that receive supplemental funding to respond to incidents of terrorism or mass violence to return to the Fund for deposit in the reserve fund, amounts subrogated to the State as a result of third-party payments to victims; (4) increase the percentage of amounts awarded by the Director to an eligible crime victim compensation program; (5) require the Director to make grants for training and technical assistance that address the significance of and effective delivery strategies for providing long-term psychological care; and (6) make funds available to the Director for fellowships and clinical internships, and to carry out programs of training and special workshops for the presentation and dissemination of information resulting from demonstrations, surveys, and special projects. (Sec. 207) Directs that a specified statute not be construed to prohibit a recipient from using funds derived from a source other than the Legal Services Corporation to provide related legal assistance to any person with whom an alien has a relationship covered by the domestic violence laws of the State in which the alien resides or in which an incidence of violence occurred. (Sec. 208) Authorizes the use of funds collected under the False Claims Act by the Office to make grants to States, units of local government, and qualified private entities for the establishment of pilot programs that implement balanced and restorative justice models.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 1997
Immigration Reform Transition Act of 1997 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (and the Illegal Immigration and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996) to authorize the Attorney General to cancel the removal and adjust the status of certain Central American aliens.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1997
Authorizes the President to present a gold medal to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in recognition of his outstanding and enduring contributions to religious understanding and peace. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to strike duplicate medals in bronze. Authorizes appropriations from the Numismatic Public Enterprise Fund, where sales proceeds shall be deposited.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1997
Code of Conduct on Arms Transfers Act of 1997 - Prohibits U.S. military assistance and arms transfers to a foreign government unless the President certifies to the Congress that the government: (1) meets specified conditions regarding democracy, including that it was chosen by free and fair elections and promotes civilian control of the military, the rule of law, and respect for individual rights; (2) does not engage in human rights violations, investigates and prosecutes those responsible for human rights violations, permits access to political prisoners by international organizations, and provides access to such organizations in situations of conflict or famine; (3) is not engaged in acts of armed aggression in violation of international law; and (4) is participating in the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms. Authorizes the President to request from the Congress an exemption from such prohibition, stating that: (1) it is in the national security interest to provide military assistance and arms transfers to a government; or (2) an emergency exists under which it is vital to the U.S. interest to do so. Makes the exemption effective upon such request, unless disapproved by the Congress. Directs the President to: (1) compile a list of countries that do not meet the requirements of this Act; (2) notify the governments participating in the Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual Use Goods and Technologies, done at Vienna, July 11 and 12, 1996, that the listed countries are ineligible to receive U.S. arms sales and military assistance; and (3) request that the notified countries also declare the listed countries as ineligible for arms sales and military assistance. Requires the President to continue efforts through the United Nations and other international fora, such as the Wassenaar Arrangement, to limit arms transfers worldwide, particularly transfers to the listed countries, for the purpose of establishing a permanent multilateral regime to govern the transfer of conventional arms. Directs the President, in conjunction with the submission of the annual congressional presentation documents for foreign assistance programs, to report to the Congress on progress made toward establishing such regime.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 1997
Allows use of the rotunda of the Capitol on October 21, 1997, for a congressional ceremony honoring Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: National Science Foundation Authorization Title II: General Provisions National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 1997 - Title I: National Science Foundation Authorization - Sets forth long-term goals and core strategies. Authorizes appropriations to the National Science Foundation (NSF) for FY 1998 and 1999. Title II: General Provisions - Directs NSF to submit to the Congress an annual upgrade and maintenance plan for national research facilities. (Sec. 202) Makes administrative amendments to the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, the National Science Foundation Authorization Act, 1976, the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 1988, and the Science and Engineering Equal Opportunities Act. (Sec. 203) Directs the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, in consultation with other relevant agencies the Director deems appropriate, to prepare a certain report analyzing the Federal indirect cost reimbursement rates paid to universities in comparison with Federal indirect cost reimbursement rates paid to other entities, such as industry, government laboratories, research hospitals, and non-profit institutions. Requires that such report be transmitted to the Congress no later than one year after the date of enactment of this Act. (Sec. 204) Subjects NSF temporary employees to the same financial disclosure requirements as apply to permanent employees. (Sec. 205) Prohibits the use of any funds authorized under this Act from being used for any lobbying activity, except that the prohibition shall not prevent officers or employees of the Federal Government or of its departments or agencies, from communicating to: (1) Members of Congress on the request of any Member; or (2) to the Congress, through the appropriate procedures, requests for legislation or appropriations which the officers or employees deem necessary for the efficient conduct of the Federal Government. (Sec. 206) Requires that if any funds authorized by this Act are subject to a reprogramming action that requires notice to be provided to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, notice of such action shall concurrently be provided to the House Committee on Science and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Directs the NSF Director to provide notice not later than 15 days before any major reorganization of any NSF program, project, or activity. (Sec. 207) Directs the NSF Director to: (1) donate surplus computers and other research equipment to elementary and secondary schools to enhance the science and mathematics programs of such schools; and (2) report annually to the appropriate congressional committees on the donations made.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 1997
Genetic Justice Act - Prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of genetic information with respect to an individual, including an inquiry by the individual regarding genetic services. Sets forth confidentiality and civil action provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 Title II: Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Act Arts and Humanities Amendments of 1997 - Title I: National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 - Amends the National Foundation on the Arts and Humanities Act of 1965 to revise and reauthorize provisions for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). (Sec. 101) Prohibits the use of grants awarded under such Act for lobbying or providing general membership services for groups. Establishes a single Office of the Inspector General for both the NEA and the NEH. Requires the NEA and NEH Chairpersons to jointly conduct, or contract for, a study, and report to the appropriate committees of Congress, on the feasibility of establishing a true endowment for the NEA and the NEH to provide supplemental funding to support their efforts. Requires examination of innovative methods through which a true endowment may be funded, including private fund raising, an extension of a copyright term, recapture of funds from past grants that have proven profitable, or any other innovative methods the Chairpersons determine appropriate. Provides for NEA and NEH solicitation, acceptance, and investment of donations, bequests, and devises. Permits use of a certain amount of the proceeds for reception and representation expenses. Limits administrative expenditures by NEA and NEH for annual funding under $150 million and for funding over that amount. Extends the authorization of appropriations for the NEA and the NEH through FY 2002. Provides for a program of NEA partnership grants to States and local and regional groups for 50 percent (with certain discretionary increases) of the costs of establishing local arts activities, with emphasis on arts education and projects that reach rural and urban underserved communities. Provides for a program of NEA national significance grants to groups, including regional groups, of demonstrated and substantial artistic and cultural importance, for projects, productions, and workshops to increase the access of all the people to the best of U.S. arts and culture (with a 25 percent Federal match, or 16.67 percent in the case of groups with certain larger annual budgets, and with certain discretionary increases of such match). Gives priority to projects, productions, and workshops that increase public access, including by touring, by regional or national dissemination, or by geographic dispersion. Provides for a program of NEA direct grants to groups and individuals that are broadly representative of the U.S. cultural heritage and broadly geographically representative, for projects, productions, and workshops of high artistic excellence and merit (with a 50 percent Federal match, and certain discretionary increases of such match). Gives priority to those that will be disseminated widely after completion. Authorizes the NEA Chairperson to make grants to States, arts agencies, or other local or regional groups to promote access to the arts through support of specified activities for education, for expansion and advancement of the arts, and for assisting developing arts organizations in underserved communities (with a 50 percent Federal match, and certain discretionary increases of such match). Revises requirements for advisory panels which review and make recommendations on grant applications. Reduces the number of members of the National Council on the Arts. Sets forth limitations on NEA grants. Prohibits subgrants, except by State or regional groups, to any other organization or individual to conduct activities independent of the direct grant recipient. Revises NEA administrative provisions and those for reports, sanctions, and payments. Requires recipients of funding to repay certain amounts if they have derived net program income from the funded activities exceeding a specified amount. Continues provisions for the National Medal of Arts. Provides for NEH partnership grants to support programs of humanities councils at the State and local levels (with a 50 percent Federal match, and certain discretionary increases of such match). Provides for NEH national grants to groups, individuals, and State agencies or entities for specified activities relating to education and the public humanities that have a national audience and significance (with a 50 percent Federal match, or 25 percent in the case of development of new sources of long-term support). Provides for NEH research and scholarship grants to groups, individuals, and State agencies and entities (with a 50 percent Federal match). Provides for review panels. Reduces the number of members of the National Council on the Humanities. Revises limitations on NEH grants. Revises NEH administrative provisions and those for reports, sanctions, and payments. Requires recipients of funding to repay certain amounts if they have derived net program income from the funded activities exceeding a specified amount. Continues provisions for the Jefferson Lecture in the Humanities Award. Eliminates authority for the Charles Frankel Prize. Authorizes the President to award a National Humanities Medal to individuals or groups. Repeals authorization for a grant program to support artistic and cultural programs in the Nation's Capital. (Sec. 102) Makes conforming amendments to the Inspector General Act of 1978. Title II: Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Act - Amends the Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Act to re-establish the Federal Council on the Arts and Humanities as an independent Federal agency. (Sec. 201) Makes eligible for loss or damage indemnity agreement coverage parts of an exhibition that originates either in the United States or outside the United States and that is touring the United States (thus extending coverage to domestic as well as foreign exhibitions). Revises Council functions to eliminate: (1) specified current advise and consult duties; (2) the mandate to plan and coordinate participation in major and historic national events; and (3) the mandate for studies and reports on the state of the arts and humanities, particularly their economic needs and problems.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 1997
American Family Fair Minimum Wage Act of 1997 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to increase the Federal minimum wage per hour, beginning on September 1 of the years mentioned, to: (1) $5.65 in 1998; (2) $6.15 in 1999; (3) $6.65 in 2000; (4) $6.95 in 2001; and (5) $7.25 in 2002.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 1997
Commemorates the 20th anniversary of the Presidential Management Intern Program.
United States · United States Congress · 8 July 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Amendment to the Adult Education Act Title II: Effective Date; Transition Title III: Repeals of Other Acts Title I: Amendment to the Adult Education Act - Adult Basic Education and Literacy Act - Amends the Adult Education Act to revise and rename it the Adult Basic Education and Literacy Act. Authorizes appropriations for national leadership activities and for State grants for adult education and literacy, including technical assistance in developing performance goals and uniform national performance data. Sets forth authority and priorities for Adult Education and Literacy programs, including: (1) State grants, leadership activities, administration, and plans; (2) State awarding of subgrants and contracts to eligible applicants; (3) performance goals and indicators; (4) evaluation, improvement, and accountability reports; and (5) allotments and reallotment of funds. Provides for national leadership and evaluation activities. Authorizes use of reserved funds for specified purposes, including research and development, demonstration programs, information dissemination, assessments, support for State and local capacity building, data collection, professional development, and technical assistance for distance learning and use of technology in the classroom. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to make awards for national excellence to States for specified types of program achievements. Revises provisions for the National Institute for Literacy. Sets forth conditions for waivers of certain program requirements. Title II: Effective Date; Transition - Sets forth effective date and transition provisions. Title III: Repeals of Other Acts - Repeals: (1) the National Literacy Act of 1991; and (2) specified provisions of the Higher Education Act of 1965 for grants to States for workplace and community training for incarcerated youth offenders.
United States · United States Congress · 8 July 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Amendments to the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act Title II: Effective Dates; Transition Title III: Amendments to Other Acts Career Preparation Education Reform Act of 1997 - Title I: Amendments to the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act - Amends the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act to: (1) rename it the Carl D. Perkins Career Preparation Education Act (the Act); (2) revise it; and (3) extend the authorization of appropriations through FY 2002. (Sec. 101) Provides that, under the Act, career preparation education programs, services, and activities are those that: (1) support the development, implementation, or improvement of State School-to-Work systems, as set forth in title I of the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994; or (2) otherwise prepare students for employment and further learning in technical fields. Replaces the current title I, Vocational Education Assistance to the States, with a new title I, Preparing Students for Careers. Sets forth a new title I, part A, Career Preparation Education. Directs the Secretary of Education to make grants to States (which will make subgrants to localities) for career preparation, programs, services, and activities. Sets forth requirements for such career preparation education programs and priorities, State leadership activities, State plans, local activities, local applications, performance goals and indicators, evaluation, improvement, and accountability, allotments, and within-State allocation and distribution of funds. Revises, under a new title I part B, program elements for Tech-Prep Education (currently under title III part E). Revises requirements for State grants for tech-prep education programs, eliminating discretionary Federal grants for such programs. Sets forth requirements for State leadership activities and plans, local activities and consortia applications, program evaluation, and allotment and distribution of funds. Replaces the current title II, Basic Grants for Vocational Education, with a new title II, National Support for State and Local Reforms (which revises some of the current title IV, National Programs). Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) make awards for excellence to States; (2) carry on certain national research, development, dissemination, evaluation, capacity-building, and technical assistance activities; (3) support professional development activities for educators; and (4) establish one of more national centers in the areas of applied research and development and of dissemination and training. Directs the Secretary to carry out certain activities related to: (1) national assessment; and (2) data systems. Continues the National Occupational Information Coordinating Committee. Provides for reservation of funds for career preparation education for Indians and Native Hawaiians. Replaces the current title III, Special Programs, with a title III, General Provisions (currently title V). (Eliminates all such special programs, except Tech-Prep Education which is transferred to title I, part B.) Title II: Effective Dates; Transition - Sets forth effective date and transition provisions. Title III: Amendments to Other Acts - Amends the following Acts with respect to references to the Act and to the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994: the Job Training Partnership Act, the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, the Goals 2000: Educate America Act, the Higher Education Act of 1965, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Displaced Homemakers Self-Sufficiency Assistance Act, the Wagner-Peyser Act, the Equity in Educational Land-Grant States Act of 1994, the Nontraditional Employment for Women Act, and the Training Technology Transfer Act of 1988.
United States · United States Congress · 8 July 1997
Captive Exotic Animal Protection Act of 1997 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit and set penalties for knowingly transferring, transporting, or possessing, in or affecting interstate commerce, a confined exotic animal for purposes of allowing the killing or injuring of that animal for entertainment or the collection of a trophy.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Amendments to Existing Land Management Laws Title II: Protection for Ancient Forests, Roadless Areas, Watershed Protection Areas, Special Areas, and Federal Boundary Areas Act to Save America's Forests - Title I: Amendments to Existing Land Management Laws - Amends the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (National Forest System), the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (public lands), the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 (National Wildlife Refuge System), the National Indian Forest Resources Management Act (Indian lands), and Federal law relating to forest management on military lands to: (1) provide for native biodiversity conservation; and (2) restrict and prohibit certain logging practices. Title II: Protection for Ancient Forests, Roadless Areas, Watershed Protection Areas, Special Areas, and Federal Boundary Areas - Describes Special Areas as Federal forest land parcels possessing outstanding biological, scenic, recreational, or cultural values, exemplary on a regional or national level, which may not meet the definitions of ancient forests, roadless areas, watershed protection areas, or Federal boundary areas. Designates specified Special Areas which shall be subject to restrictions on road construction and logging in the following States: (1) Alabama; (2) Alaska; (3) Arizona; (4) Arkansas; (5) California; (6) Colorado; (7) Georgia; (8) Idaho; (9) Illinois; (10) Michigan; (11) Minnesota; (12) Missouri; (13) Montana; (14) New Mexico; (15) North Carolina; (16) Ohio; (17) Oklahoma; (18) Oregon; (19) South Carolina; (20) South Dakota; (21) Tennessee; (22) Texas; (23) Vermont; (24) Virginia; (25) Wisconsin; and (26) Wyoming. Provides for the appointment of a committee of scientists to recommend additional Special Areas. Restricts road construction and logging in ancient forests, roadless areas, watershed protection areas, Special Areas, and Federal boundary areas.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1997
Directs the Secretary of the Army to close the military education and training facility known as the United States Army School of the Americas at Fort Benning, Georgia. Repeals current statutory authority for the School.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1997
Expresses the sense of the Senate that any legislation implementing the tobacco liability settlement shall prohibit parties from claiming Federal tax deductions for certain payments.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 1997
Calls for the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee to recommend and the Postal Service to issue a postage stamp to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the first Women's Rights Convention.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 1997
Fair Play Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require: (1) each institution of higher education to provide the Secretary of Education with information regarding men's and women's athletic programs; and (2) the Secretary to prepare a report based on such information, which shall be made available on the Internet. Requires the Secretary to establish a toll-free telephone service to provide the public with information regarding such reports and respond to inquiries about title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and athletic opportunities for girls and women.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 1997
Landmine Elimination Act of 1997 - Prohibits, beginning on January 1, 2000, funds appropriated or otherwise available to any Federal department or agency from being obligated or expended for new deployments of anti-personnel landmines. Requires the Secretary of Defense to report to the Congress on actions and proposals to substitute for new deployments of such landmines on the Korean Peninsula. Allows the President to delay application of the prohibition with respect to the Peninsula if, not later than January 1, 2000, and each year thereafter, the President certifies the Congress that new deployments of anti-personnel landmines on the Peninsula in the event of a Korean war or a period of emergency in Korea declared by the President would be indispensable to the defense of the Republic of Korea in such year.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1997
National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Act of 1997 - Requires the Secretary of the Interior to establish in the National Park Service (NPS) a program to be known as the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom under which the Secretary shall: (1) produce and disseminate educational materials about the Railroad; (2) provide technical assistance to other government agencies, private entities, or the Governments of Canada, Mexico, or any appropriate Caribbean country to ensure coordination of Federal and non-Federal elements of the Network; and (3) regulate use of an official symbol for the Network. Includes within the Network: (1) NPS units or programs pertaining to the Underground Railroad; (2) Federal, State, local, or privately-owned properties pertaining to the Railroad that have a verifiable connection to it and that are included or eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places; and (3) governmental or nongovernmental facilities or programs of educational, research, or interpretive natures that are directly related to such Railroad. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 1997
After School Education and Safety Act of 1997 - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award after-school education and safety program grants to schools to carry out at least two of the following activities: (1) mentoring programs; (2) academic assistance; (3) recreational activities; and (4) technology training. Allows each school also to carry out any of the following activities: (1) drug, alcohol, and gang prevention activities; (2) health and nutrition counseling; and (3) job skills preparation activities. Requires the school to provide such grant-assisted activities: (1) only after regular school hours during the school year; (2) in a manner that reflects the specific needs of the population, students, and community to be served; and (3) in a school building or other public facility designated by the school. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 1997
Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 1997 - Prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation by covered entities, including an employing authority or office to which specified provisions of the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991 or the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 apply. Prohibits related retaliation and coercion. Declares that: (1) this Act does not apply to the provision of employee benefits for the benefit of an employee's partner; and (2) a disparate impact does not establish a prima facie violation of this Act. Prohibits: (1) quotas and preferential treatment; and (2) the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission from entering into a consent decree that includes a quota or preferential treatment. Declares that this Act does not apply to: (1) religious organizations (except regarding employment in a position the duties of which pertain solely to activities of the organization that generate unrelated business income subject to taxation under specified Internal Revenue Code provisions); (2) the armed forces; or (3) laws creating special rights or preferences for veterans. Provides for enforcement. Disallows State immunity. Makes the United States or a State liable for all remedies (except punitive damages, with compensatory damages available to the extent specified in certain existing provisions of law) to the same extent as under specified provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Allows recovery of attorney's fees. Requires posting notices for employees and applicants.
United States · United States Congress · 3 June 1997
Clean-Fuel Vehicle Act of 1997 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise the tax treatment of electric and other clean-fuel motor vehicles.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 1997
Designates the weeks beginning on November 23, 1997, and November 22, 1998, as National Family Week.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 1997
Designates July 2, 1997 and 1998 as National Literacy Day.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 1997
John F. Kennedy Center Parking Improvement Act of 1997 - Amends the John F. Kennedy Center Act to authorize the Board of Trustees for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, in accordance with a specified site master plan, to design and construct: (1) parking garage additions at the north and south ends of the Center; and (2) site improvements and modifications. Prohibits the use of appropriated funds for such parking facilities and for such site improvements and modifications that the Board specifically designates for financing through non-appropriated fund sources. Requires the Board to ensure that safe and convenient Center site access is provided for pedestrians and vehicles and to develop plans and carry out projects for access improvements. Prohibits appropriated funds from being used for acquiring large screen format equipment for an interpretive theater or for the production of an interpretive film.
United States · United States Congress · 21 May 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Designation of Wilderness Title II: Administrative Provisions America's Red Rock Wilderness Act of 1997 - Title I: Designation of Wilderness - Designates specified lands in the following areas of Utah as components of the National Wilderness Preservation System: (1) Great Basin wilderness areas; (2) Zion and Mojave Desert wilderness areas; (3) the Grand Staircase Wilderness and the Kaiparowits Plateau Wilderness; (4) Escalante Canyon wilderness areas; (5) the Henry Mountains Wilderness; (6) the Dirty Devil River Wilderness; (7) Cedar Mesa wilderness areas; (8) Canyonlands wilderness areas; (9) San Rafael Swell wilderness areas; and (10) Book Cliffs and Uinta Basin wilderness areas. Title II: Administrative Provisions - Provides that if State-owned land is included within a designated wilderness area, then the Secretary of the Interior shall offer to exchange U.S. lands in that State of approximate equal value (prohibits the transfer of associated mineral interests). Reserves the Federal Government's rights to a quantity of water sufficient for each wilderness area designated by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 21 May 1997
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude gain or loss from the sale of livestock (as defined in existing provisions relating to property used in the trade or business and involuntary conversions) from the definition of "disqualified income" for purposes of the earned income credit. Applies the amendment to taxable years beginning after December 31, 1995.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 1997
Equity in Prescription Insurance and Contraceptive Coverage Act of 1997 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 and the Public Health Service Act to prohibit a group health plan, and a health insurance issuer providing group coverage, from: (1) excluding or restricting benefits for prescription contraceptive drugs, devices, and outpatient services if the plan provides benefits for other outpatient prescription drugs, devices, or outpatient services; (2) denying eligibility based on use or potential use of such items or services; (3) providing monetary payments or rebates to a covered individual to encourage acceptance of less than the minimum protections available; (4) penalizing, reducing, or limiting a professional's reimbursement because the professional prescribed such drugs or devices or provided such services; or (5) providing incentives to a professional to induce the professional to withhold drugs, devices, or services. Amends the Public Health Service Act to apply those prohibitions to coverage offered in the individual market.