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United States · Official source
2,614 records where Sen. Mitchell, George J. [D-ME] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1989
Tiananmen Square Park Authorization Act - Designates the park located in front of the Chinese Embassy in the District of Columbia as Tiananmen Square Park.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1989
Declares that the Senate: (1) expresses its disappointment that the Texas statute prohibiting the desecration of the flag was found to be unconstitutional; (2) expresses its commitment to preserving the honor and integrity of the flag; (3) intends to make a study of the impact of the Supreme Court decision on Federal and State laws and to seek ways to restore sanctions against such conduct; and (4) urges the American people to continue to display proudly the American flag.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1989
Authorizes the Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Select Committee on Intelligence to make available copies of documents which are responsive to the request of defendant's counsel in the case of United States v. Fernandez, Criminal No. 89-150-A, pending in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 1989
Provides for a recess or adjournment of the Senate from June 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, or July 1, 1989, until July 11, 1989, and for an adjournment of the House of Representatives from June 29 or 30, 1989, until July 10, 1989.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 1989
Designates October 22 through October 28, 1989, and October 21 through October 27, 1990, as National Adult Immunization Awareness Week.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 1989
Expresses support for the President's commitment to achieving a verifiable strategic nuclear arms reduction (START) treaty with the Soviet Union. Encourages the United States and the Soviet Union to resolve the outstanding issues impeding progress toward successful conclusion of such a treaty. Calls upon the Soviet Union to take steps to rectify its violations of existing treaties, particularly the dismantling of the radar site at Krasnoyarsk. Urges the President to consult closely with the Senate and with America's allies as he proceeds with the START negotiations.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 1989
Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to pay the maximum amount of special pay authorized for Department of Veterans Affairs physicians and dentists.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 1989
National Sediment Contamination Survey Act of 1989 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to conduct a comprehensive national survey of bottom sediment contamination in all lakes, rivers, harbors, estuaries, and streams of the United States and report findings to the Congress. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 1989
Designates April 22, 1990, as Earth Day for public activities that promote global environmental preservation.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 1989
Designates December 7, 1989, as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 1989
Maternal and Child Health Act of 1989 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to require States to provide Medicaid coverage to pregnant women and children under age six whose family income is below 185 percent of the Federal poverty level. Authorizes States to provide Medicaid coverage to children under age 19 whose family income is below the Federal poverty level. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct three-year demonstration projects to study the effect on access to health care, private insurance coverage, and health care costs of extending Medicaid coverage in three States to medically uninsurable children and extending such coverage in one State to children under age six whose family income is below 185 percent of the Federal poverty level and children under age 20 whose family income is below the Federal poverty level. Permits such States to provide coverage by buying into the health insurance offered by certain employers. Imposes premiums on project beneficiaries whose family income exceeds the Federal poverty level. Caps project expenditures. Sets forth reporting requirements. Requires States to make Medicaid ambulatory prenatal care available to pregnant women during a presumptive eligibility period. Eliminates the requirement that pregnant women apply for Medicaid coverage within 14 days of the commencement of presumptive eligibility. Requires States to continue the Medicaid coverage of a woman and her infant for 60 days after delivery regardless of fluctuations in her income during such period. Prohibits the redetermination of the Medicaid eligibility of a child under age six who has been deemed eligible less than six months previously, unless such eligibility is due to his or her receipt of aid under part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) or E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of title IV of the Act or under title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) of the Act. Preserves the Medicaid eligibility of a child under age six who loses such aid until it is determined that he or she is not eligible for Medicaid on some other basis. Amends the Child Support Enforcement Amendments of 1984 to make permanent the four-month continuation of Medicaid eligibility for children who lose AFDC eligibility due to increased collection of child support payments. Requires that Medicaid coverage of inpatient hospital services provided to children under age 18 at hospitals serving a disproportionate share of low-income patients: (1) make an outlier adjustment in payment amounts for exceptionally long or costly cases if such payments are made on a prospective basis; (2) not impose durational limitations on such services; and (3) not set dollar limits on the delivery of services to individuals who enter the hospital prior to their first birthday. Directs States to pay for the care of a child under age 19 in an out-of-State hospital at the receiving State's rate, unless the involved States have an alternative payment agreement. Requires States to provide Medicaid coverage of services furnished by certified pediatric or family nurse practitioners. Permits States to cover home and community-based services for children under age 18 who have acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) or are medically dependent on a ventilator for life support. Allows States to cover home visitor services furnished by registered nurses to infants, during the first six months of life, who require treatment with life sustaining medication or equipment or technically-assisted feeding. Prohibits the Secretary from limiting to fewer than 500 (currently, 200) the number of individuals in a State who may receive home and community-based services under a waiver of certain Medicaid requirements. Amends title V (Maternal and Child Health Services) of the Act to increase authorized appropriations for such program for FY 1990. Requires the Secretary to set-aside 15 percent of appropriated amounts for special Federal projects which include: (1) projects promoting the use of outpatient and community-based services for children with special health care needs; and (2) demonstration projects utilizing alternative approaches to providing health insurance coverage to children under age 19 who are not covered by other public or private programs. Directs States to use at least 30 percent of their title V allotments on services for children with special health care needs, and at least five percent of such allotments for projects in sickle-cell anemia and genetic disorders screening, the development of community-based service networks and case management services for children with special health care needs, and programs providing primary health care services to children. Requires each State to: (1) conduct a statewide maternal and child health care needs assessment; (2) establish a State maternal child health advisory board to participate in the planning and development of services; (3) develop a system of family centered community-based coordinated care for children with special care needs in collaboration with other programs; (4) develop and maintain a consolidated data base containing information about providers available to meet the needs of chronically ill children and establish a toll-free number for parents to access such information; (5) include in the annual title V report information on the extent to which needs have been met with respect to specific services and the amount of funds allotted for family centered community-based coordinated care; and (6) maintain its title V funding at at least 1989 levels. Amends part A (General Provisions) of title XI of the Act to direct the Secretary to publish an annual report on the health status of U.S. children. Requires the Secretary to make available to States, by January 1, 1991, a model uniform Medicaid application for individuals who are neither institutionalized nor receiving AFDC cash assistance. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop definitions of medically high risk pregnancy and children at a high risk of medical problems; (2) develop alternative definitions of medically uninsurable children; (3) develop a model health benefit package for pregnant women and children through age 18; and (4) study different methodologies to improve the coordination between various public health programs. Sets forth reporting requirements. Amends the Medicaid program to set forth the required components of Medicaid early and periodic screening, diagnostic, and treatment services. Requires Medicaid coverage of the measures which need to be taken to correct or ameliorate defects or conditions discovered by the screening services. Directs the Secretary to conduct demonstration projects and establish annual participation goals for each State to increase participation in Medicaid early and periodic screening and diagnostic services. Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress by the close of 1990 on the requirements of such services relative to mental illness. Requires States to provide Medicaid coverage to all children under age 18 who are SSI recipients. Requires that Medicaid payment rates for obstetric and pediatric services be set at levels which are sufficient to induce enough providers of such services to participate in the Medicaid program so that such services are available to beneficiaries to at least the same extent that they are available to the general population. Directs States to furnish providers of such services with assistance in complying with Medicaid billing and recordkeeping requirements, which includes: (1) training; (2) a toll-free number for resolving administrative problems; and (3) a State ombudsman for resolving their complaints. Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress by January 1, 1990, on the adequacy and timeliness of Medicaid payments to providers of obstetric and pediatric services. Amends part E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of title IV of the Social Security Act to require that a preplacement health care record for a child be provided to such child's foster care provider and be completed before he or she is placed in foster care or within 30 days after an emergency foster care placement. Requires the maintenance of a health care plan and record for such child while he or she is in foster care, and notification of the provider concerning such child's eligibility for Medicaid early and periodic screening, diagnosis, and treatment services. Amends part A (General Provisions) of title XI of the Act to reduce the lag time between the Secretary's calculation of the Federal matching rate under the AFDC, Medicaid, and Foster Care and Adoption Assistance programs and its implementation.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 1989
Community Health Clinic Improvement Act of 1989 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide Medicare cost-based reimbursement to all community health clinics which meet the requirements for receiving a grant under the Public Health Service Act. Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Act to require States to cover the reasonable costs for services provided by such community health clinics.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 1989
Designates October 22 through October 28, 1989, as World Population Awareness Week.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 1989
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should: (1) take immediate steps to achieve a consensus among South Africa's major trading partners on effective economic, political, and diplomatic measures to end apartheid; (2) implement to the fullest extent all the provisions of the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act of 1986, and the recommendations of the Secretary of State's Advisory Committee on South Africa; (3) take steps to bring about concerted multilateral pressure to dismantle apartheid; (4) instruct the permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations to offer a resolution in the Security Council that would impose selective mandatory sanctions against South Africa similar to those embodied in the Act for 12 months, and to vote for any resolution offered which would impose such sanctions; (5) strengthen the impact of the Act through diplomatic and political pressure; (6) direct specified executive agencies to monitor trade relations between South Africa and U.S. allies; and (7) take action against those countries benefiting from or taking advantage of U.S. sanctions against South Africa.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 1989
Designates June 16, 1989, as Soweto Remembrance Day. Encourages Americans to participate in local activities designed to commemorate the victims of Soweto and to show solidarity with those who are fighting to end apartheid.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 1989
Declares that the Congress: (1) is prepared to support a presidential waiver of the Jackson-Vanik amendment of the Trade Act of 1974 (relating to most favored nation treatment) with respect to the Soviet Union at such time as the President has received appropriate assurances that the Soviet Government is firmly on course toward sustained high levels of emigration and the removal of unreasonable impediments to persons wishing to emigrate; and (2) will continue to monitor Soviet efforts to institutionalize its liberalized emigration policy.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1989
Marine Protection Act of 1989 - Title I: Water Quality Protection Programs - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, within 18 months of this Act's enactment and biennially thereafter, to designate all estuaries and coastal waters which are experiencing a general degradation of environmental conditions and do not support a balanced, indigenous population of fish and wildlife or allow for recreational activities in and on the water. Outlines elements to be considered in making such designations and requires the Administrator to conduct studies, research, and assessments, as necessary. Directs the Administrator to consider designations of specific estuaries and waterbodies. (All are currently listed as priority considerations under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, with the exception of Casco Bay, Maine.) Authorizes the Governor of any State to nominate to the Administrator an estuary or coastal waterbody within such State for designation. Requires the Chesapeake Bay to be treated as a designated coastal waterbody pursuant to this Act. Directs the Administrator or, under certain circumstances, an approved State to: (1) exercise authorities concerning discharges to coastal waters and a prohibition on discharges of sewage from vessels pursuant to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act; (2) issue permits for industrial and municipal discharges of storm water to such waters; (3) consider prohibiting the specification of a designated area as a disposal site; (4) require public treatment works discharging to such waters to develop and enforce facility specific programs for the pretreatment of industrial wastes; and (5) conduct an assessment and prepare a management program for the watershed of a designated waterbody for States without approved programs. Applies such requirements to estuaries and coastal waterbodies designated after January 1, 1989. Makes technical amendments to provisions concerning management conferences, grants, and reporting requirements for the National Estuary Program. Authorizes the Administrator to require any person whose alleged activities cause or contribute to pollution to file a report concerning pollution prevention or reduction practices with the Administrator. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1990 through 1993. Requires penalties paid as a result of enforcement actions for violations of this Act to be deposited into the Estuaries Protection Fund. Directs the Administrator, in the case of any waterbody designated after January 1, 1989, to issue or renew a permit only if the applicant demonstrates: (1) a need to discharge to the designated waterbody based on a showing of the full utilization of waste minimization practices and the lack of alternative disposal options; and (2) that a proposed new discharge or an increase in volume or toxicity of an existing discharge will be offset by a decrease in other discharges and result in no net increase in pollutant loading to the waterbody. Applies such requirements to all new and existing discharges (except for existing discharges composed entirely of storm water). Authorizes the Administrator to modify such requirements, with respect to existing dischargers, if the owner or operator of a point source shows that such requirements will: (1) represent the maximum use of technology within the economic capability of the owner or operator; and (2) result in reasonable further progress toward the elimination of the discharge of pollutants. Requires applicants for Federal flood insurance for activities which may result in discharges or pollution to navigable waters to certify that such discharges will comply with applicable provisions of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish a national registry of coastal land; and (2) list such land in the registry based on submission of a completed application by the property owner. Provides that inclusion of land in the registry shall be at the sole discretion of the land owner. Directs the Administrator to operate a program to provide registrants of coastal land with informational and educational materials concerning: (1) land management and related practices to prevent water pollution and protect habitat; (2) activities and measures to protect aquatic life, wildlife, and significant natural features of land or natural resources; (3) the activities of Federal, State, and local agencies to protect coastal waters; and (4) the various requirements of Federal and State laws concerning land management, discharges to water, and other related activities. Permits the Administrator, at the request of a State Governor, to delegate operation of such program to a State agency. Requires the Administrator to publish periodically a National Coastal Registry document summarizing the listed land and to provide a copy to any applicant. Authorizes local public agencies or organizations, beginning on August 4, 1989, to take actions to implement a State management program for coastal waters without the State's approval if such State has failed to submit an approved program. Includes within the list of programs to receive priority consideration for grant assistance programs to control nonpoint source pollution of designated waters. Requires the Administrator to prohibit the discharge from a vessel of sewage into any designated waterbody. Directs the Administrator to: (1) study the availability of adequate facilities for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of sewage from vessels operating on coastal waters; and (2) report and make recommendations to the Congress on such study to assure that such facilities are reasonably available. Requires States in which a municipality discharges overflows from combined storm water and sanitary sewers into coastal waters to submit biennially to the Administrator an inventory of such discharges which shall: (1) identify the location of each discharge and the affected waterbody; (2) identify the municipal entity responsible for the discharge; (3) identify the estimated volume and pollutant loading of the discharge over a one-year period; (4) assess the proportion of the volume of the combined discharge to the volume capacity of the appropriate treatment works over a specified time period; (5) assess the potential to eliminate the discharge through flow reduction methods; and (6) identify the nature and status of any existing programs to eliminate discharges. Directs such municipalities to submit to the Administrator a program for the elimination of such discharges. Outlines program requirements and procedures for approval and modification. Makes municipalities which fail to implement such programs subject to penalties. Directs the Administrator to modify or issue permits for discharges of combined storm water and sanitary sewers by such municipalities to set forth a schedule for treatment. Requires the Administrator to publish guidance describing best management practices and other measures for the elimination of combined storm water and sanitary sewer overflows. Provides for the establishment of a water pollution control revolving fund for States which implement a combined storm water and sanitary sewer elimination program. Requires certain assistance to be provided only for development of such programs. Directs the Administrator, in allocating such assistance, to give priority to municipalities discharging into coastal waters. Limits the amount of Federal funding for such programs to 75 percent of the total cost of a project. Directs the Administrator to promulgate numeric coastal water and sediment quality standards for pollutants for which certain criteria have been published under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. Authorizes any person to petition the Administrator for the development of additional criteria. Provides that State standards shall take precedence over Federal standards, unless the Federal standard pursuant to this Act is more stringent or protective of human health and the environment. Authorizes State Governors to petition the Administrator for lower numerical standards if proven that such standards will assure an equal degree of protection of human health and the environment and are appropriate because of significant differences in the biological, physical, and chemical characteristics of the waters in question and U.S. coastal waters. Permits the Administrator to comply with requirements to establish sediment quality standards by establishing a scientific method, to be approved by the EPA Science Advisory Board, to convert numerical water quality standards to numerical sediment quality standards. Prohibits the issuance of permits for discharges into the territorial sea, the waters of the contiguous zone, the oceans, or coastal waters if the Administrator determines that a discharge will: (1) prevent the protection and propagation of a balanced, indigenous population of fish and wildlife and will not provide for recreation in and on the water; or (2) prevent the attainment of standards established pursuant to this Act. Deems regulations creating exemptions to ocean discharge requirements to be invalid. Title II: Marine Sediment Contamination - Requires the Administrator to provide that criteria for any pollutant address coastal sediment to an extent adequate for the development of sediment standards. Amends the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act to set forth permit requirements for contaminated dredge material. Directs the Administrator to publish a description of best management practices for the dredging, transport, and disposal of contaminated dredge material. Prohibits the issuance of a general permit for such material. Permits States to adopt criteria and regulations relating to ocean dumping if such criteria and regulations are more stringent and protective of waters than those issued pursuant to such Act. Directs the Administrator to develop and implement site management plans for designated ocean dumping sites. Provides for: (1) the review and redesignation, if necessary, of such sites every five years; and (2) public comment on such designations. Revises general permit provisions for ocean dumping. Limits general permits to a period of two years. Directs the Administrator to revise guidelines to require permit applicants to dispose of dredge or fill material in coastal waters to establish whether such material contains pollutants in excess of concentrations established in sediment standards. Directs the Secretary of the Army to deny any such permit if such material is contaminated and the disposal site is located within an area designated as a priority estuary or coastal waterbody pursuant to this Act. Title III: Other Provisions - Requires the Administrator to report to the Congress on the extent and seriousness of airborne disposition of contaminants in coastal waters. Directs the Administrator to: (1) conduct research and monitoring, as necessary, to identify currently unregulated pollutants in the estuarine zone and coastal waters not addressed under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act; and (2) report and provide a plan to the Congress for controls of such pollutants. Requires the Administrator to report to the Congress on the potential use of microorganisms to degrade organic materials or chemical pollutants in municipal or industrial wastes both before and after disposal in the marine environment.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 1989
Comprehensive Ocean Assessment and Strategy (Coast) Act of 1989 - Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to designate marine areas which are in need of protection. Sets forth criteria to be considered in such designations, including: (1) the status and effects of pollutants and floatables found in the water and marine resources; (2) loss of coastal habitat; and (3) anticipated increases in pollutants and floatables in the area. Requires the Administrator to designate as a marine area in need of protection: (1) any area of the marine environment for which a State's most recent Water Quality Inventory, prepared pursuant to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, reported that the waters did not meet water, sediment, and living marine resource biological quality standards; (2) any estuary for which a management conference has been convened pursuant to the National Estuary Program. Directs the Administrator, in designating any area, to: (1) specify the reason for, and sources of, pollution resulting in the designation; and (2) submit to the Congress an analysis of each designated area which assesses trends, identifies research and monitoring needs, and describes actions and strategies. Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to require States to submit to the Administrator individual management strategies for designated areas. Requires such strategies to include water quality effluent limitations, nonpoint source management, and monitoring programs for permittees. Directs the Administrator to develop plans for States that fail to do so. Requires the Administrator to convene management conferences for estuaries which are designated as marine protection areas and are located in more than one State. Directs the Administrator to submit to the Congress a Marine Environment Toxics Release Inventory Assessment and Strategy to: (1) analyze industrial categories of sources and receiving waters of toxic discharges into the marine environment and into publicly owned treatment works which discharge into such environment; and (2) identify sources which discharge the greatest amount of toxic chemicals on the Inventory, and the greatest amount of the most toxic chemical; and (3) identify the geographical areas receiving the greatest amount of discharges from such chemicals. Provides that the Strategy shall contain the Administrator's plan for using Assessment information to improve the EPA's marine environment programs. Includes criteria for marine water, sediment, and resource biological quality within criteria required to be published for water quality standards under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. Directs the Administrator to: (1) submit a schedule for the development of such criteria to specified congressional committees; and (2) develop or revise criteria for specified pollutants. Requires States to establish numerical standards for pollutants to prevent degradation of the marine environment. Directs the Administrator to establish such standards for States which fail to do so. Prohibits the issuance of permits for discharges into the marine environment if found that such discharges can be expected to result in the degradation of the environment or are likely to prevent the attainment of standards pursuant to this Act. Requires the Administrator to revise guidelines for determining degradation of waters. Includes within the list of programs to receive priority consideration for grant assistance programs to control nonpoint source pollution of waters designated under this Act. Directs the Administrator to: (1) provide technical assistance to the Secretary of Agriculture in utilizing the Secretary's authorities to reduce cropland sources of nonpoint source pollution of the marine environment; (2) identify those lands which, if enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program, would contribute to protection of water quality and the marine environment by reducing such pollution; and (3) furnish a list of such lands to the Secretary for establishing priorities for expenditures under the Program. Requires the Secretary to provide the Administrator with actions in response to such list. Directs the Administrator to: (1) publish regulations to eliminate marine combined sewer overflows; and (2) publish guidance on additional measures to bring such overflows into compliance with this Act. Requires such guidance to identify monitoring standards designed to characterize and evaluate water quality impacts of discharges and determine compliance with permit requirements. Directs States with such overflows to submit biennially to the Administrator an inventory of discharges which shall: (1) identify the location of each discharge and the receiving waterbody; (2) identify the entities which operate the overflow system; and (3) determine whether each discharge point is permitted and in compliance with this Act. Requires permitting authorities to: (1) establish a schedule to bring each discharge point into compliance with this Act; and (2) establish priorities for issuing permits and controlling discharges. Directs municipalities or publicy owned treatment works to submit to the Administrator or, under certain circumstances, a State a permit program for the elimination of such discharges. Outlines program requirements and approval procedures. Makes owners or operators of sewer operators without permits subject to penalties. Directs the Administrator or a State, when determined that a publicly owned treatment works discharges toxic pollutants contributing to the degradation of the marine environment or in violation of marine water, sediment, or resource standards, to require the treatment works to establish or revise a pretreatment program to eliminate pollutants contributing to such degradation. Requires the Administrator to: (1) develop and test guidelines for treatment works to identify the sources of toxics in waste waters; and (2) establish a data base of identified sources. Directs the Administrator and the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere to: (1) implement a joint program of research and monitoring to determine the effects of atmospheric pollutants on degradation of the marine environment; and (2) report biennially to specified congressional committees on such program. Requires the Administrator to: (1) establish a nationwide system for monitoring and quantifying the accumulation of floatables along coastal shorelines and waterways and the costs of cleanup of floatables; and (2) report annually to the Congress on such program. Directs the Administrator to promulgate protocols for monitoring water, sediments, and living marine resources in the marine environment. Provides for the use of whole effluent biological toxicity testing in such monitoring. Directs the Under Secretary to study the nature of any relationship between contact with pollutants in the marine environment and shellfish consumption with the incidence of human illnesses. Requires the Administrator to report to specified congressional committees on such study. Directs the Under Secretary to study and report to the Congress on: (1) a quantification of economic impacts caused by marine degradation; and (2) the impact that enhanced nitrogen levels in the marine environment may have on stimulating toxic algal blooms. Requires the Under Secretary to establish a Marine Environment Information Center to compile, analyze, and disseminate information on marine degradation and protection. Directs the Administrator and the Under Secretary to study and report to the Congress on activities of Federal agencies that may result in degradation of the marine environment, along with recommendations to reduce such degradation. Requires Federal agencies to take actions to minimize such degradation and to evaluate the potential effects of any actions on the marine environment. Amends the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 to require fines under the Federal criminal code (currently, fines up to $50,000) or imprisonment of up to five (currently, one) years, or both, for ocean dumping violations. Authorizes appropriations. Limits the amount of grants to any State for the implementation of management strategies under this Act to 50 percent of the total cost of the program. Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to provide for the establishment of a water pollution control revolving fund for States for implementing management strategies under this Act and marine combined sewer overflow correction programs. Requires certain assistance to be used only for implementation of approved marine combined sewer overflow elimination permits. Directs the Administrator to give priority for assistance to municipalities discharging into marine areas designated under this Act. Limits such grants to 50 percent of the total cost of a project.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 1989
Authorizes the Secretary of Education to provide financial assistance to establish an endowment for the Muskie Archives at Bates College, Lewiston, Maine. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 1989
Establishes a Commission on the Bicentennial of the United States Senate to oversee and coordinate bicentennial activities. Sets forth the composition of, and Senate offices responsible for staffing, the Commission. Directs the Commission to seek to assemble a private sector task force to explore private sector bicentennial project ideas and funding. Requires the Commission to submit a final report to the Senate upon its termination at the end of the 101st Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 1989
Veterans' Agent Orange Exposure and Vietnam Service Benefits Act of 1989 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to pay a monthly disability or death benefit to a veteran or his or her survivors for any disability or death of a veteran who served in the active forces in Vietnam during the Vietnam era and who suffered from non-Hodgkins lymphoma or a soft-tissue sarcoma. Provides an exception to the payment of such benefits when there is affirmative evidence that such disease was not incurred during such service in Vietnam or that there was an intervening disease since such service. Provides the rates for the payment of such disability or death benefit. Prohibits such payments when other disability compensation is being paid for such disability. Provides that such disabilities shall be treated as service-connected for the purposes of all laws administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (Department). Terminates such payments as of April 15, 1992, unless extended by a joint resolution of the Congress. Outlines congressional procedures for the consideration of such joint resolution. Requires the Secretary to take all reasonable actions necessary to notify veterans and their survivors of the availability of such payments. Requires the Secretary to inform such recipients of the temporary nature of such payments. Provides that the disease of chloracne in Vietnam veterans shall be considered to have been service-connected if such disease became manifest to a ten percent degree of disability or more within one year after the last date on which the veteran performed such service in Vietnam. Provides a presumption of service-connection in the case of a Vietnam veteran suffering from a disease associated with effects of exposure to certain dioxins or other herbicide agents during such service in Vietnam. Directs the Secretary to prescribe regulations listing a positive association between any disease and the biological effects of exposure to an herbicide agent in Vietnam. Requires the Secretary to update such list continually. Requires the Secretary, in prescribing and revising such list, to obtain by contract the determinations and estimates of a contract scientific organization. Requires such organization to: (1) determine which diseases have any degree of association with the biological effects of exposure to an herbicide agent; and (2) estimate the extent of association between each such disease and each such biological effects. Requires the organization to determine such association specifically with respect to non-Hodgkins lymphoma, each soft-tissue sarcoma, lung cancer, and each other cancer. Outlines contract provisions required in such agreements between the Secretary and the scientific organization, including surveys, evaluations, and periodic determinations. Requires such scientific organizations to provide reports to the Secretary and the Senate and House Veterans' Affairs Committees regarding its determinations and evaluations. Requires such organization to determine, in the event of a positive association, whether there is a reasonable basis for concluding that a Vietnam veteran with the highest level of exposure to that herbicide agent in Vietnam was exposed to such agent under the circumstances necessary for such biological effects. Requires a report from the organization to the Secretary and the veterans' committees when there is no such reasonable basis found. Requires the Secretary to make certain determinations and follow-up reports after receiving such reports from the contract scientific organization, including the issuance of a report to the veterans' committees and the promulgation of positive association regulations, if necessary. Requires benefits to be continued even though a disease is removed from the regulations listing diseases having positive associations. Terminates such contracting authority ten years after the first day of the fiscal year in which a scientific organization transmits its first report to the Secretary. Provides interim regulations and special effective dates. Directs the Secretary to compile and analyze all clinical data that: (1) are obtained by the Department in connection with examinations and treatment of veterans for disabilities related to exposure to certain herbicides or to service in Vietnam; and (2) are likely to be scientifically useful in determining the association, if any, between the disabilities of such veterans and their exposure to such herbicides and other toxic substances. Requires the Secretary to submit an annual report to the veterans' committees concerning such analysis and its results. Directs the Secretary to consult with the Director of the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) before compiling and analyzing such information. Requires the Director of OTA to review each annual report submitted by the Secretary and transmit to the Secretary an evaluation of the contents of each report. Directs the Secretary to establish and maintain a system for the collection and storage of voluntarily contributed samples of blood and tissue of veterans who performed active service in Vietnam during the Vietnam era. Outlines provisions concerning the security and authorized uses of such specimens, as well as limitations on the acceptance of such samples. Requires the Secretary to consult with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to the extent that an agreement has been reached with the NAS serving as the contract scientific organization for the Secretary. Requires the Secretary to consult with the Director of OTA in the event of no agreement with NAS. Directs the Secretary to establish a program to provide for the conduct of studies of the feasibility of conducting additional scientific research on health hazards resulting from: (1) exposure to dioxin; (2) exposure to other toxic agents in herbicides used in support of U.S. and allied military operations in Vietnam during the Vietnam era; and (3) active military, naval, or air service there. Requires the Secretary to report to the veterans' committees on the results of such studies. Requires the Secretary to consult with the NAS before undertaking such studies and requires the NAS to review such studies and report recommendations to the Secretary and the veterans' committees to the extent provided under any agreement between the Secretary and NAS. Amends the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 1988 to require the Secretary to annually furnish updated information to affected veterans on health risks resulting from exposure to dioxin or other toxic agents in herbicides as a result of service in Vietnam during the Vietnam era. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to report to the veterans' committees on the research being conducted to develop treatments for physiological absorption of dioxin and other toxic agents used in herbicides by the United States in Vietnam, including research relating to exposure to dioxin and other toxic agents outside Vietnam. Extends through December 31, 1993, the eligibility for hospital and nursing home care for veterans exposed to toxic substances in Vietnam. Amends the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 1988 to authorize direct consultation between the Ranch Hand Advisory Committee and Department of the Air Force scientists conducting the Ranch Hand Study (a study of the long-term health effects of exposure to phenoxy herbicides and contaminants). Requires the preparation and submission of annual reports and a final report in connection with such study.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 1989
Directs the Senate Legal Counsel to represent Joseph E. Jenifer, the Acting Public Printer of the United States, in the case of The Honorable Alcee L. Hastings, United States District Judge v. The United States Senate, et al.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 1989
Federal Facility Compliance Act of 1989 - Requires Federal agencies to perform assessments of hazardous substance releases from solid waste management units at each hazardous substance treatment, storage, or disposal facility owned or operated by such agencies after November 19, 1980. Requires such assessments to indicate whether such facilities are in compliance with specified environmental laws and to be provided to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and to States in which such facilities are located. Directs the EPA Administrator to inspect such facilities annually to ensure compliance with such laws. Requires such inspections to include an analysis of groundwater monitoring. Makes inspection records available to the public. Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to waive sovereign immunity for Federal agencies with respect to certain requirements under such Act. Makes Federal employees subject to criminal sanctions under Federal or State solid or hazardous waste laws. Authorizes the Administrator to commence enforcement actions against Federal agencies pursuant to this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 1989
Designates the week beginning on the second Sunday in May 1990 as National Tourism Week.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 1989
Designates August 1, 1989, as Helsinki Human Rights Day. Requests the President to: (1) reassert American commitment to the Helsinki Accords; (2) raise the issue of noncompliance with such Accords with any signatory nation which may be in violation, in particular, the Soviet Union, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, the German Democratic Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Romania; (3) convey to all signatories of such Accords that respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms is vital to progress in the ongoing Helsinki process; and (4) convey to U.S. allies the necessity of unity regarding such Accords.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 1989
Designates October 22 through October 28, 1989, and the last full week of October in following years as National Adult Immunization Awareness Week.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 1989
Amends the Tax Reform Act of 1986 to delay until 1990 the effective date of the nondiscrimination requirements for benefits provided under certain employee benefit plans. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise such nondiscrimination requirements by requiring the taxation of the excess health benefits of a highly compensated employee. Excludes from such requirements certain students, certain elderly, and prisoners. Imposes an excise tax on employers or employer plans if an employee benefit plan fails to satisfy certain administrative requirements. Restores prior law with respect to nondiscrimination requirements of group-term life insurance plans. Authorizes an employer to elect to use current nondiscrimination rules for years beginning 1990 or 1991 as they apply to health plans and dependent care assistance programs. Revises provisions relating to the nontaxable benefits of employers of leased employees, dependent care assistance, and group-term life insurance provided to highly compensated employees.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 1989
Condemns the use of force by the People's Republic of China against unarmed advocates of democracy and human rights in China. Supports the President's actions, including suspension of all Government sales and commercial exports of arms to China. Praises the actions of American diplomatic personnel in China in seeking to insure the safety of American citizens there. Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) certain Chinese students studying in the United States should be granted permission to extend their stay; (2) applications to the Overseas Private Investment Corporation for the protection of investments in China and to the U.S. Export-Import Bank for the financing of trade with China should be reviewed; (3) U.S. departments charged with and considering liberalization of regulations relating to export licenses for sales to China should take into account the current situation; (4) the President should consult major U.S. allies to determine whether multilateral sanctions are necessary; (5) the President should inform the Congress of the results of his planned review of U.S.-Chinese relations and consult with the Congress on further actions to be taken; and (6) the Voice of America should increase its broadcasts to China.
United States · United States Congress · 2 June 1989
Amends Internal Revenue Code provisions governing situations in which unearned income of a child under age 14 is taxed as if it were parental income. Excludes from income subject to the parental tax rate any earnings.
United States · United States Congress · 2 June 1989
Designates the week of October 8 through October 14, 1989, as National Job Skills Week.
United States · United States Congress · 2 June 1989
Directs the Senate Legal Counsel to represent the United States Senate, the Impeachment Trial Committee, and Walter J. Stewart, the Secretary of the Senate, in the case of the Honorable Alcee L. Hastings, U.S. District Judge v. The United States Senate, et al.
United States · United States Congress · 1 June 1989
Waste Minimization and Control Act of 1989 - Title I: General Amendments - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to establish a waste prevention and management policy that gives priority in the following order to: (1) source reduction; (2) recycling; (3) energy recovery; (4) waste treatment; and (5) contained disposal. Establishes as a national goal the recycling of waste to the maximum extent consistent with market demand for recycled materials and the creation and expansion of markets for recycled materials. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1989 through 1993 for purposes of carrying out this Act. Title II: Solid Waste Management - Requires that State solid waste management plans: (1) identify the amount of wastes by type that are expected to be generated within the State or accepted from another State during the ensuing 20-year period; (2) identify waste management capacity needs for the same period; (3) require the development of new solid waste management facilities to satisfy such capacity needs and a process for siting such facilities; (4) identify and provide for the collection of recyclable materials, including the development and stabilization of markets for such recyclables; and (5) establish solid waste management practices, based on the State's environmental and economic conditions, which are consistent with this Act's waste reduction and recycling goals. Provides for the loss of Federal financial assistance for failure to submit an approved State plan. Sets forth a schedule for the reduction of such assistance. Prohibits the storage, treatment, disposal, or transportation of solid waste one year after this Act's enactment except in accordance with a permit issued by a State or the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Sets forth requirements for interim status permits. Requires the EPA to issue or deny such permits unless a State certifies that its laws provide the regulatory authority and personnel necessary to implement a permit program. Prohibits the issuance of permits by an agency or person (other than a Governor) responsible for the design, construction, or operation of a unit. Requires that such permits be issued for a fixed term not to exceed ten years and contain conditions that will assure compliance with solid waste management guidelines to be developed by the EPA Administrator. Requires such guidelines to be developed for the management of: (1) municipal solid waste; (2) municipal waste combustion ash; (3) emissions from municipal waste incineration facilities; (4) medical wastes; (5) mining wastes; (6) specified industrial solid wastes; (7) oil, gas, and geothermal wastes; and (8) other solid wastes. Requires such guidelines to include requirements regarding: (1) the siting of solid waste sources; (2) construction quality assurance with respect to the installation of sources; (3) the licensing and training of persons who install or operate sources; (4) the design, operation, and maintenance of sources; (5) the monitoring of releases to air, soil, and surface and ground water; (6) the separation or treatment of sources prior to disposal or incineration; (7) corrective action in response to such releases; (8) closure and postclosure care; (9) the maintenance of records of a leak detection, sampling, or monitoring system; and (10) the maintenance of evidence of financial responsibility. Sets forth minimum guidelines for each category of solid waste. Amends the Clean Air Act to direct the Administrator to promulgate performance standards to control emissions of particulate matter, opacity, sulfur dioxide, hydrogen chloride, oxides of nitrogen, carbon monoxide, lead, cadmium, mercury, halogenated organic compounds, dioxins, and dibenzofurans from new or modified municipal waste incineration units and from units which begin operation after July 1, 1989, with specified exceptions. Requires that such standards reflect the greatest degree of emission limitation achievable through application of the best available control technologies and practices, unless the Administrator determines that such degree will not be achievable by units for reasons that are unique to the units or locations of such units. Deems specified practices and control technologies to be available. Requires that such standards be promulgated within 18 months of this Act's enactment, take effect within six months of promulgation, and be reviewed and, if necessary, revised within five years of promulgation and every five years thereafter. Extends the effective date for such standards for units which require the installation of an acid gas scrubber to comply with such standards. Requires existing units to comply with such standards within four years of promulgation. Prohibits the issuance of permits to any unit unless a permit pursuant to the Solid Waste Disposal Act for the treatment, storage, or disposal of municipal waste combustion ash has been issued. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations and emission control standards requiring existing units and units which are substantially completed before January 1, 1989, to meet such standards within at least six years. Establishes specific, minimum emission limitations for carbon monoxide, particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, and hydrogen chloride emissions from such units. Requires owners or operators of municipal incinerators to: (1) monitor emissions at the point such emissions move into the ambient air and at other points as necessary to protect human health and the environment; (2) monitor other parameters relating to the operation of the unit and its pollution control technology; and (3) report the results of such monitoring. Sets monitoring standards, including ones for continuous and periodic monitoring. Authorizes the Administrator to require unit owners or operators to establish and operate or pay for a program to detect impacts of the unit on humans or the environment, including the testing for and reporting of significant levels of contaminants. Authorizes the Administrator or States to request the Administrator of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry to conduct health assessments, studies, or surveillance when exposure to municipal waste incinerator unit emissions may pose a potential health risk. Sets a 20-year limit on unit permits. Provides for the termination of such a permit if: (1) the unit is not in compliance with permit terms and conditions; (2) compliance with additional conditions will impose minimal costs on the unit owner or operator and reduce air emissions below levels specified in the permit; or (3) capacity to treat or dispose of the ash from such unit for a five-year period has not been demonstrated. Requires permits to be reviewed at least once every five years. Authorizes concurrent State enforcement of unit emission standards, provided such enforcement is equivalent to Federal enforcement under this Act. Requires that civil penalties imposed against municipalities pursuant to this Act be applied in support of public programs and activities that enhance the protection of the health and environment of their residents. Directs the Administrator to publish guidelines identifying items or materials that should be removed from municipal waste prior to incineration. Requires unit operators to establish contractual requirements or notification and inspection procedures to assure that units do not receive such items or materials. Directs the Administrator to establish a model State program for the training and certification of municipal waste incinerator operators. Requires operators to pass such training and be certified by an authorized State program. Includes as major emitting facilities under the Clean Air Act municipal incinerators capable of charging more than 50 tons of refuse per day. (Currently, only incinerators charging more than 250 tons per day are included.) Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to authorize the Administrator to assess civil penalties and/or issue a compliance order, or commence a civil action against violators of permits or solid waste management guidelines, if a State fails to take action. Authorizes the imposition of civil and/or criminal penalties. Prohibits the export of solid waste for disposal, incineration, or recycling except where there is an agreement between the United States and the receiving country that establishes notice, export, and enforcement procedures and standards protective of human health and the environment for the transportation and management of such wastes. Prohibits the export to Canada of solid waste, 24 months after this Act's enactment, unless the United States and Canada have entered into such an agreement. Authorizes the Administrator to prohibit such exports when there is reason to believe that the handling of such waste may threaten human health or the environment. Requires exporters of solid waste to register with and submit specified export information to the Administrator who shall report annually to the Congress on such information. Authorizes appropriations for grants to States and rural communities for the development and implementation of solid waste reduction and recycling plans. Authorizes and directs the Administrator to make grants to all States with a population density of ten persons or less per square mile to conduct feasibility studies or operate recycling demonstration programs. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Waste Reduction and Recycling Act of 1989 - Directs the Administrator to establish: (1) a national performance efficiency standard concerning the release of hazardous substances; (2) a national goal for each State of 25 percent municipal solid waste recycling within four years, 50 percent within ten years, and a ten percent municipal solid waste reduction within four years; (3) responsibility within the EPA for the provision of waste reduction and recycling outreach and technical assistance to States and the industrial and educational communities; (4) the requirement that the responsible office for waste reduction and recycling activities review and sign-off on EPA actions; and (5) a national packaging institute to develop voluntary packaging standards that encourage waste reduction and recycling and programs of consumer education regarding packaging. Directs the Administrator to establish within the Office of the Administrator a multimedia Office of Waste Minimization with a separate section solely responsible for waste reduction activities. Authorizes the Administrator to make grants to States to assist States in developing and implementing programs to promote the use of waste reduction and recycling techniques by businesses, local governments, or regional waste management authorities. Limits the Federal share of program funding to 50 percent. Directs the Administrator to establish a waste reduction clearinghouse to compile information generated by grant recipient States on management, technical, and operational approaches to waste reduction and recycling. Prohibits persons who are required to file a toxic chemical release form under the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 from releasing into the environment more than five percent of production throughput of hazardous substances. Authorizes the Administrator or a State to waive such standard on a plant by plant basis if meeting it is not technically feasible, the plant has installed and is operating continuous monitoring, has adopted all available waste minimization procedures, and all releases are in the form of managed waste or in compliance with applicable clean water or clean air permits. Requires plant owners or operators to submit to the State or Administrator plans to quantify and report on the manner in which each hazardous substance is consumed, used, or released. Directs the Administrator to report to the Congress on waste efficiency rates by manufacturing category or process, the efficiency levels that each industry can reasonably be expected to achieve within five years, and the extent to which technical assistance may be needed. Deems manufacturers to be in compliance with such standard if they have continuous emission and environmental monitoring equipment installed within 48 months of this Act's enactment, continue to comply with appropriate environmental permits, and report monitoring data to local, State, and Federal regulatory agencies. Requires that persons who are required to file the toxic chemical release form and are unable to account for a hazardous substance as product or permitted discharge or emissions or as managed waste to install, operate, and maintain continuous monitoring technology within one year of such failure. Requires such persons who release toxic chemicals in violation of any clean air, NPDES, or waste management permit to be required to install, operate, and maintain continuous monitoring technology as part of any enforcement action. Directs the Administrator to report to the Congress: (1) by September 30, 1990, and biennially thereafter on actions taken to implement waste reduction and recycling goals; (2) within two years of this Act's enactment, on the EPA's program to insure the consideration of multi-media impacts in EPA policies, regulations, and guidance, with recommendations for a permanent location of an office of waste minimization and recycling; and (3) within 36 months after this Act's enactment, on an evaluation of the capacity of industry to reduce waste volume and toxicity. Authorizes the Administrator to charter a National Packaging Institute which shall promote packaging standards and practices which minimize the quantity of packaging materials that are consumed, reduce litter, and do not adversely affect human health and the environment. Permits the Institute to design and license the use of a seal or symbol which may be employed by the licensed users on packages which satisfy Institute standards. Authorizes the Administrator to conduct a program of public information and education on the impact of packaging on natural resource consumption and the Nation's solid waste management system, and the benefits of implementing the Institute's standards. Authorizes appropriations through FY 1993 for grants to the Institute. Authorizes any person to petition a Federal agency to undertake a waste reduction action if such action would bring about at least a ten percent increase in recycling of the petitioned item, reduce by at least ten percent the total volume or toxic constituents of a waste described in the petition, or would bring about a net savings in true cost to the Federal Government or be neutral in effect or cost. Requires each Federal agency to designate a waste reduction officer to oversee compliance with Federal agency waste reduction requirements, prepare agency waste reduction plans, and report annually to the EPA on the implementation of such plans. Requires Federal contractors to use recycled material in performance of any contract for $1,000,000 or more, unless the contractor certifies that recycled material is not available or not available at a cost of not more than ten percent more than non-recycled materials. Directs the Administrator to publish and submit to the Congress a list of at least ten products which identifies hazardous substances most frequently found in such products which present a risk to human health and the environment when incinerated or disposed. Provides for regulation of the disposal or incineration of such products. Prohibits the land disposal and incineration of lead-acid and mercury batteries. Directs the Administrator to promulgate performance standards and other requirements necessary to protect the public health and the environment from hazards associated with recycled lead-acid and mercury batteries. Exempts transporters of lead-acid and mercury batteries from certain liability provisions of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act if such batteries are not mixed with other hazardous substances and are managed in compliance with standards promulgated under the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Requires the Federal procurement of recycled materials if the recycled materials are available at no more than ten percent of the price of alternative items. Requires the EPA to reissue its paper procurement guidelines to ensure that they are consistent with such requirement and to promulgate final procurement guidelines requiring the use of recycled lead in lead-acid batteries, used tire fragments in road cover, compost from yard waste and sewage sludge, recycled plastic from discarded bottles, recycled steel from discarded cans, recycled glass from discarded containers, and recycled aluminum from discarded cans.
United States · United States Congress · 1 June 1989
Municipal Solid Waste Source Reduction and Recycling Act of 1989 - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to establish as national goals: (1) a ten percent reduction in municipal solid waste by 1993 as a result of source reduction; (2) a 25 percent reduction in such waste by 1993 as a result of recycling; and (3) a 50 percent reduction in such waste by 1999 as a result of recycling. Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to: (1) promote source reduction and recycling methods and opportunities by providing technical assistance to States, local governments, and the business, industry, and educational communities; (2) promote public understanding of and participation in source reduction and recycling programs; and (3) propose strategies to reduce toxic constituents in consumer products. Requires the Administrator to establish an Office of Waste Reduction to carry out responsibilities under this Act. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations to carry out this Act to include requirements for: (1) a standardized methodology for calculating costs of solid waste management; (2) decisionmaking models to assist State and local governments in the selection and integration of waste management services; (3) criteria for use of a standardized, national recycling seal or symbol; (4) a standardized label identifying the plastic resin used in products; and (5) specified national packaging standards. Requires the Administrator to: (1) implement an education and information program to foster an understanding of the benefits of source reduction and recycling; and (2) establish a source reduction clearinghouse to collect, evaluate, and disseminate information on the effectiveness of source reduction and recycling techniques. Prohibits the use of: (1) cadmium as a pigment and the importation of products containing cadmium as a pigment; and (2) cadmium for all other nonessential purposes and the importation of products containing cadmium for such purposes. Deems the use of cadmium to be nonessential where alternative substances which present less of a threat to human health and the environment are available. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations concerning the production, distribution, or disposal of any product (including products containing lead, mercury, cadmium, and other heavy metals) which, on the basis of its constituents, disposal, or incineration, presents a threat to human health or the environment. Prohibits: (1) the placement of lead-acid batteries in landfills and the incineration of such batteries; (2) the placement of used lead-acid batteries in mixed municipal solid waste or the disposal of such batteries except by delivery to automotive battery retailers or wholesalers, permitted secondary lead smelters, or State-approved collection or recycling facilities; and (3) the disposal of such batteries by battery retailers or wholesalers except by delivery to permitted secondary lead smelters, State-approved collection or recycling facilities, battery manufacturers or, in the case of a retailer, agents of battery wholesalers. Provides that each improperly-disposed battery shall constitute a separate violation of this Act. Requires persons selling lead-acid batteries to accept from customers used batteries of the type and quantity equal to the number of new batteries purchased, if offered. Directs retailers of such batteries to post notices in public areas of retail establishments that: (1) state that it is illegal to throw away motor vehicle or lead-acid batteries and that Federal law requires an exchange of used batteries for new batteries purchased; and (2) encourage recycling of used batteries. Prohibits the sale of any lead-acid battery after 1989 unless such battery bears a label containing such language. Requires the Administrator to establish a Products and Packaging Advisory Board. Directs the Board to report to the Administrator on a program to: (1) minimize the quantity of packaging and other material in the waste stream; (2) minimize the consumption of scarce natural resources in production and use of packaging; (3) eliminate the use of toxic constituents in packaging; (4) maximize packaging recycling and reduce litter; (5) assure that human health and the environment will not be affected adversely by the use and disposal of packaging; and (6) include use of recycling seals for consumer information, mandatory labeling for plastic containers, and national packaging standards. Requires the Administrator to prepare guidelines for Federal agency procurement of glass, metals, plastic, compost, and rubber from ground tires. Directs the Administrator of the General Services Administration to report annually to the Congress on items procured by Federal agencies and include an analysis of the procurement of products containing recycled materials and obstacles to obtaining such materials. Requires Federal agencies to develop waste reduction plans to facilitate: (1) dual-sided copying; (2) paper waste reduction; (3) the purchase of products that contain recycled materials or can be recycled; (4) the purchase of nonhazardous products; and (5) the replacement of plastic food utensils with washable or recyclable tableware. Authorizes any person to petition a Federal agency to undertake a waste reduction action if such action would bring about at least a ten percent increase in recycling of the petitioned item, reduce by at least ten percent the total volume or toxic constituents of a waste described in the petition, or would bring about a net savings in true cost to the Federal Government or be neutral in effect or cost. Directs Federal contractors to use recycled material in performance of any contract for $1,000,000 or more, unless the contractor certifies that recycled material is not available or not available at a cost of not more than ten percent more than non-recycled materials. Requires State solid waste management plans to: (1) identify the amounts and types of municipal solid wastes and industrial wastes that are expected to be generated within the State or accepted from another State during the ensuing 20-year period; (2) include projections of State capacity to manage such wastes; (3) include estimates of the volumes of such wastes that will not require management in landfills or incinerators; (4) establish a hierarchy for solid waste management practices; (5) include provisions for the removal from the waste stream and safe management of any product designated to be a threat to human health or the environment; (6) inform taxpayers of the nature of waste management services and the amount of taxes attributable to such services; (7) identify and promote markets for recyclable materials; (8) list all municipal solid waste landfills at which the recovery of methane gas is economically and technically feasible; (9) describe current and proposed programs to promote source reduction and recycling; and (10) facilitate the siting of environmentally sound facilities for the transportation, separation, and processing of recyclable materials. Prohibits the Federal financing or the issuance of any permit under this Act, the Clean Water Act, or the Clean Air Act for any new or modified municipal waste incineration unit: (1) if the EPA Administrator determines that the State does not have an approved plan in accordance with this Act or has not taken reasonable steps to achieve the goals of this Act; and (2) unless, in the case of new units, the State or other entity designing, constructing, or operating the unit certifies that no more than 50 percent of the waste generated annually by such unit will be incinerated annually. Sets forth additional required State plan provisions (unless the State demonstrates that such provisions are not practicable) to include: (1) a policy requiring the State and political subdivisions of the State to procure products made with recycled materials whenever such products do not exceed by more than ten percent the cost of similar products using nonrecyclable materials; (2) a program to encourage composting of yard waste; (3) a system for curbside pickup of source-separated materials or separation at recycling facilities, or both; and (4) a policy requiring recyclable materials in solid waste to be separated prior to deposition in municipal landfills, waste-to-energy facilities, or waste treatment facilities and a surcharge on tipping fees for any such waste from commercial establishments or office buildings that is delivered to such facilities without being separated. Requires the Administrator to report to the Congress: (1) biennially on actions taken to implement this Act; and (2) five years after this Act's enactment on procurement requirements under the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Authorizes the Administrator to issue grants to States for encouraging source reduction and recycling. Provides that such grants shall be funded by the Source Reduction and Recycling Trust Fund. Makes ineligible to receive such grants States which do not have approved plans (or have not taken steps to implement plans) within five years of this Act's enactment. Allocates Fund moneys as follows: (1) 35 percent for annual recycling grants to States; (2) five percent for source reduction grants to States, counties, localities, and businesses to promote innovations in source reduction; (3) 30 percent for source reduction grants to States to assist in low-interest loans or guarantees to businesses and industries for implementing source reduction measures or manufacturing recyclable products; (4) ten percent for research grants to universities, businesses, and other institutions for research on source reduction, recycling, or disposal of recyclable materials; (5) five percent for rural assistance grants to States to assist rural areas in complying with State plans; and (6) 15 percent to be appropriated to the Administrator for carrying out this Act. Limits specified grants to 50 percent of the total cost of a project. Prohibits assistance from being used for the acquisition of land or interest in land. Requires the Secretary of Commerce to report biennially to the Congress on progress in implementing this Act, including recommendations on the need to continue or revise loan programs under this Act. Directs the Secretary to give priority to assisting exporters of recyclable materials and products containing such materials in identifying foreign markets and securing favorable financial terms for such exports. Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress on national and international markets for recyclable materials and include a methodology for market analysis to be made available to States. Authorizes the Administrator to assess civil penalties, issue compliance orders, or commence civil actions for violations of this Act. Prescribes criminal penalties for certain knowing violations. Provides for judicial review of final actions and citizen lawsuits.
United States · United States Congress · 31 May 1989
Designates the week of December 10 through December 16, 1989, as National Drunk and Drugged Driving Awareness Week.
United States · United States Congress · 31 May 1989
Designates the week of September 24, 1989, as Religious Freedom Week.
United States · United States Congress · 31 May 1989
Designates the week beginning July 23, 1989, as Lyme Disease Awareness Week.
United States · United States Congress · 31 May 1989
Designates June 6, 1989, as National D-Day Remembrance Day.
United States · United States Congress · 31 May 1989
Declares that the reappointment of Kenneth U. Benjamin, Jr. as Deputy Senate Legal Counsel is effective on June 1, 1989, and that such term of service shall expire at the end of the 102d Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
National Environmental Education Act - Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish an Office of Environmental Education within the Office of External Affairs to carry out this Act. Establishes an Environmental Education and Training Program to train educational professionals in the development and delivery of environmental education and training programs and studies. Directs the Administrator to make an annual grant to an institution of higher education or nonprofit research institution to establish and operate such program. Sets forth application and eligibility requirements and criteria to be considered in awarding such grants. Authorizes the Administrator to enter into cooperative agreements or provide grants to support projects to design, demonstrate, and disseminate practices related to environmental education and training. Outlines activities eligible for grant support and priorities in awarding such grants. Requires the Administrator to publish an annual solicitation for environmental education grants. Authorizes local education agencies, colleges or universities, State education or environmental agencies, or nonprofit agencies to apply for such grants. Limits Federal funds for demonstration projects to 75 percent of the total cost, except in specified instances. Limits such grants to $100,000 and requires 25 percent of all funds obligated to be for grants of no more than $5,000. Requires the Administrator to provide for internships by postsecondary students with Federal agencies involved in environmental issues. Directs the Administrator, to the extent practicable, to support at least 150 internships annually. Makes eligible for participation in such program students enrolled at accredited colleges or universities who have successfully completed at least four courses or the equivalent in environmental sciences. Requires the Administrator to provide for a series of national awards recognizing outstanding contributions to environmental education to include: (1) the Theodore Roosevelt Award for environmental teaching or administration; (2) the Henry David Thoreau Award for literature on the environment and pollution problems; and (3) the Rachel Carson Award for film or print media for public education and information on environmental issues or problems. Provides that recipients of such awards shall be nominated by the Environmental Education Advisory Council. Requires the regional administrator of each EPA office to present an "Outstanding Environmental Educator Award" annually to a teacher or faculty member from a local education agency, college or university, or nonprofit organization in recognition of an outstanding contribution to environmental education. Establishes a National Environmental Education Advisory Council. Requires the Council to report biennially to the Congress on: (1) the extent and quality of environmental education in the Nation's schools; (2) activities conducted pursuant to this Act; (3) obstacles to improving environmental education; and (4) training and skills needed to respond to environmental problems. Establishes the Environmental Education Trust Fund to carry out this Act. Allocates funding for this Act's activities and authorizes 50 percent of penalties received under specified environmental Acts to be appropriated to the Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
Rural Partnerships Act of 1989 - Title I: Rural Business and Job Creation - Subtitle A: Rural Partnerships Investment Board - Establishes a Rural Partnerships Investment Board to provide lines of credit through local revolving funds for rural business expansion. Terminates the Board five years after enactment of this Act. Establishes in the Treasury the Rural Business Investment Fund to provide funds for such purpose. Limits an entity's credit line to $750,000. Stipulates that a State agency may receive up to $1,250,000. Requires a participating entity to: (1) provide matching funds at least equal to the line of credit; and (2) demonstrate financial institution participation. Requires only 50 percent matching funds in areas with per capita income levels below specified levels. Limits the maximum amount of Federal contributions to each State's revolving funds to $100,000. Obligates a specified amount of appropriated funds for businesses serving very distressed rural areas or providing specified rural services, including health care, elderly and handicapped services, educational services, or transportation. Authorizes FY 1990 through 1992 appropriations. Requires each participating entity to establish a local revolving fund to: (1) make loans, investments, or loan guarantees; and (2) pay for various training and related programs. Requires local revolving funds to enter into 50 percent matching loan or investment partnerships with banks and other financial institutions. Limits a fund's annual investments in any one business to $250,000. Sets forth compliance and enforcement provisions, including: (1) grounds for revocation of a line of credit; (2) investigatory authority of the Board; (3) unlawful acts of officers, directors, employees, or agents; (4) penalties; and (5) Board authority to bring an action in district court. Subtitle B: Rural Economic Development Promoted by the Rural Electrification Administration - Amends the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to direct the Administrator of the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) to appoint an Assistant Administrator for Economic Development to carry out REA programs concerning the involvement of rural electric and telephone systems in community and economic development. Directs the Administrator to establish a technical assistance unit to assist borrowers with respect to community and economic development activities. Permits a borrower to defer loan repayments (five or ten years, depending on the project) for amounts invested in community or economic development projects. Limits such deferment to 50 percent of a project's cost. Authorizes and limits water and waste facility loans to the lesser of $40,000,000 or ten percent of fiscal year REA insured loan authority. Sets forth loan priority provisions. Requires private sector assistance under specified circumstances. Targets electrification borrower investments in: (1) the Incubation Fund established by this Act or other business incubators; and (2) community, business, or economic development projects. Expands the scope of REA rural economic development functions. Establishes in the Treasury a Rural Business Incubation Fund to make grants and reduced interest loans to electric and telephone borrowers in order to promote business incubation programs or to create rural business incubators. Requires such incubators to: (1) be operated on a not-for-profit basis; and (2) assist businesses to become viable business entities. Provides for funding of such incubators by assisted businesses, REA borrowers, and the Treasury. Deems investments by REA telephone borrowers in rural telecommunication or other rural development projects not to be dividends or capital distributions. Title II: Enhancing Human Resources - Establishes a grant program to increase rural educational opportunities through the use of telecommunications and related technologies. Authorizes FY 1990 through 1994 appropriations. Requires grantee partnerships to consist of: (1) REA borrowers; (2) specified national telecommunication organizations; and (3) educational institutions. Establishes the Rural Educational Opportunities Board to advise grant recipients, evaluate programs and technology, serve as a liaison with REA and the Secretary of Education, and review and make grant application recommendations. Requires REA and the Secretary of Agriculture to make an annual program report to the appropriate congressional committees. Provides for expedited REA telephone loans. Establishes: (1) a rural medical link telecommunications grant program; and (2) a rural business link telecommunications grant program. Authorizes FY 1990 through 1994 appropriations for such programs. Title III: Focus on Rural America by the Department of Agriculture - Amends the Rural Development Act of 1972 to direct the Secretary to establish an Extension Service rural economic and business program to permit State or county extension services to hire business development and related telecommunications specialists. Authorizes appropriations beginning with FY 1990. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish a program to study economically distressed rural counties; (2) evaluate the nature and availability of assistance needed by such counties; and (3) report to the appropriate congressional committees in each of FY 1990 through 1993. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to establish a rural development assistance information program. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to report to the appropriate congressional committees by September 1, 1989, concerning the coordination of Department of Agriculture rural development activities. Directs the Secretary to conduct a study and report to the appropriate congressional committees with respect to the Department's data processing functions and whether they can be performed more economically in rural areas. Authorizes appropriations. Title IV: Rural Business and Employment Assistance - Directs the Secretary to make technical assistance grants for rural business development, including business support centers. Prohibits the use of such funds for political activity or business relocation. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to direct the Secretary to make grants for rural technology assistance. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to make rural emergency assistance loans to communities of less than 20,000 persons. Limits such loans to two-year periods, with a maximum of $50,000 to any one borrower. Authorizes appropriations. Title V: National Rural Information Center Clearinghouse - Directs the Secretary to establish within the National Agricultural Library a National Rural Information Center Clearinghouse. Authorizes FY 1990 through 1994 appropriations. Title VI: Water and Sewer Assistance - Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to increase the authorization of appropriations for small community water and waste facility grants. Directs the Secretary to establish an emergency water assistance grant program for rural and small communities (less than 3000 population, median household income below State nonmetropolitan level) with significant water shortages, or to enable such communities to comply with the requirements of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act or the Safe Drinking Water Act. Limits grants to: (1) $75,000 for existing system repairs; and (2) $500,000 for water shortage areas. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to base loan rates for health care and related facilities solely on the income of the area to be served. Directs the Administrator of the Farmers Home Administration to establish a national rural waste water circuit rider program modeled after the existing National Rural Water Association rural water circuit rider program. Authorizes appropriations. Title VII: Miscellaneous - Directs the Census Bureau to: (1) expand data collection efforts to gather data on the changing economic conditions of rural America, including employment, poverty and income, and the labor force; and (2) employ rural residents for such efforts in FY 1990. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to establish regulations regarding projects funded under this Act with respect to the preservation of historic properties and historical and archaeological data. Authorizes certain Farm Credit System banks to make small community water and waste system loans. Amends the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to permit a State to designate State areas where the food stamp program (program) employment and training requirements shall be voluntary. Includes self-employment within the scope of such requirements. Increases rural program accessibility for people engaged in certain employment and training programs. Exempts from household financial resources for purposes of program eligibility the value of a vehicle used in rural areas to haul fuel or water. Amends Federal law to increase the amount of annual funds available to the Reforestation Trust Fund. Authorizes Fund use for economic diversification assistance to communities that are economically dependent upon the Forest Service. Directs the Secretary to establish a program of loan restructuring for distressed rural hospitals and health care facilities. Title VIII: Effective Date and Implementation - Makes this Act effective as of October 1, 1989, unless otherwise provided for. Sets forth the effective dates for specified implementing regulations under such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
National Environmental Policy on International Financing Act of 1989 - Amends the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 to require that before casting the U.S. vote on a proposed action by an international financial institution significantly affecting the quality of the environment, the appropriate Federal official request such institution to furnish an environmental impact statement. Requires such official to identify: (1) any minimum criteria not met; and (2) any pertinent information absent from the statement but available elsewhere. Requires such official to: (1) inform the management of such institutions of the expected nature of such statements; and (2) begin negotiations with their personnel to facilitate the conduct of environmental impact assessments. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) make Federal personnel available upon request to assist an institution in making such assessments; (2) take steps with both donor and borrower nations to expand international consensus on environmental needs; and (3) file a detailed status report with specified congressional committees on the institution's implementation of procedures for systematically assessing the environmental impact of its activities. Directs the Council on Environmental Quality to report to certain congressional committees on the efficacy of U.S. efforts to encourage timely environmental impact assessment within international financial institutions.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
Food Irradiation Safety and Labeling Requirement Act of 1989 - Prohibits the Secretary of Agriculture from implementing pork irradiation regulations and the Secretary of Health and Human Services from implementing other food irradiation regulations. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to arrange for and report within two years on a study of the risks to human health and the environment presented by food irradiation. Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require that food for domestic use or export which has been irradiated be labeled in a prescribed fashion. Requires restaurant menus to indicate when foods have been irradiated. Requires persons irradiating food to report at least semiannually to the Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
Aviation Security and Terrorism Commission Act of 1989 - Establishes the Commission on Aviation Security and Terrorism to investigate events leading up to and surrounding the destruction of Pan American World Airways flight 103 on December 21, 1988, and the destruction of Korean Air Lines flight 007 on August 31, 1983. Terminates the Commission 30 days after it makes required reports.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
Rural Health Clinic Improvement Act of 1989 - Amends title VII (Administration) of the Social Security Act to direct the Office of Rural Health Policy to provide technical assistance to entities seeking certification as rural health clinics and distribute brochures describing the services provided at rural health clinics. Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Act to include the services of nurse midwives within covered rural health clinic services. Requires a rural health clinic to: (1) have a nurse practitioner, physician assistant, or certified nurse midwife available to furnish patient care services at least 50 percent of the time the clinic operates; and (2) meet certain requirements for funding as a health center under the Public Health Service Act. Expands the area within which rural health clinics may operate. Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Act to modify the method of determining which costs are reasonable and related to Medicaid rural health clinic services when calculating Medicaid payments to such clinics. Deems clinics which are certified as meeting certain requirements for funding as health centers under the Public Health Service Act to be certified as Medicaid rural health clinics.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
Designates January 7 through January 13, 1990, as National Law Enforcement Training Week.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
Designates November 19 through November 25, 1989, as National Family Caregivers Week.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
Designates October 16, 1989, and October 16, 1990, as World Food Day.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
Welcomes steps taken toward institutionalizing a democratic process in the Soviet Union, with the convening on May 25, 1989, of a Congress of Peoples' Deputies from which members of the Supreme Soviet will be elected. Expresses the hope that this process will ultimately result in a reconstituted Supreme Soviet with access to the information needed to make policy and the power to make laws, approve and alter budgets, appoint and change government officials, and oversee security and military services.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1989
Designates June 21, 1989, as Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner Day. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Voting Rights Act of 1965 has helped to fulfill the promise of democracy in this Nation. Reaffirms the goal of removing remaining barriers to full voter participation in this Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 1989
Rural Investment Fund Act of 1989 - Establishes the Rural Partnerships Investment Board (Board) to provide qualifying nonprofit private entities, State and local agencies, and Indian tribes and organizations with lines of credit to form revolving loan funds for rural business development. Establishes in the Treasury the Rural Business Investment Fund to provide funds for the Board. Limits lines of credit to $750,000, except for specified State agencies which may receive up to $1,250,000. Requires qualifying entities to provide matching funds. Requires funding in at least 45 States. Limits total funds to any one State to $10,000,000. Authorizes FY 1990 through 1992 appropriations. Prohibits the use of funds to relocate or refinance businesses. Requires each qualifying entity to establish a local revolving fund. Authorizes the use of such funds to: (1) provide debt or equity capital or loan guarantees; (2) pay for training or technical assistance; (3) provide for return of capital to non-Federal investors in the fund; and (4) cover operating or capital expenses or other charges. Requires banks or other financial institutions to provide at least a 50 percent match of each investment or loan made to a business applicant. Limits: (1) annual assistance to a business applicant to $500,000; and (2) eligible businesses to those with fewer than 100 employees. Requires the revocation of a line of credit and refund for specified false statements or violations of this Act. Sets forth civil penalties for failure to file reports required under this Act.