United States · United States Congress · 16 May 1979
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the carryover basis provisions enacted by the Tax Reform Act of 1976 which provide that beneficiaries receiving property from a decedent's estate will retain the decedent's basis in the property. Restores prior law which "stepped up" or "stepped down" the property's basis to its market value at the time of death without imposing tax consequences on the appreciation or depreciation the property underwent while held by the decedent.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 1979
Federal Crop Insurance Act of 1979 - Amends the Federal Crop Insurance Act to increase the capital stock of the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation from $200,000,000 to $500,000,000. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to cancel, without consideration, receipts for payments for or on account of the stock of the Corporation outstanding on the date of enactment of this Act. Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to appoint three active farmers, who are not otherwise employed by the Federal Government, to the Corporation's Board of Directors. Increases the maximum compensation of Board members not otherwise employed by the Government to no greater than the daily rate for GS-18. Removes State court jurisdiction and grants exclusive jurisdiction to Federal district courts of all suits brought by or against the Corporation, and states that all suits against the Corporation shall be tried by the court without a jury. Authorizes the Board of Directors to contract with private companies in the administration of the Federal crop insurance program. Eliminates the limitation of reinsurance to 20 selected counties. Requires the Corporation to offer lesser levels of yield coverage than the standard 75 percent coverage, at the producer's option. States that any insurance so offered shall make available coverage (per unit of production insured) equal, as close as feasible, to the highest of the: (1) target price of the commodity involved; (2) the loan rate for it under a Federal price support program; or (3) the projected market price. Excludes from coverage losses due to failure of a producer to reseed to an approved substitute crop in areas where it is customary to so reseed. Requires the Federal Government to pay 20 percent of each producer's calculated premium. Repeals: (1) the authority of the Secretary to appoint advisory committees; and (2) the requirement that the Corporation post a list of indemnities paid for farm losses at each county courthouse. Authorizes the Corporation to: (1) reinsure private insurance companies, groups or pools of such companies, or governmental entities that insure producers of any agricultural commodity under an acceptable contract (with the Federal Government paying 20 percent of every premium so reinsured); and (2) offer specific risk protection programs including prevented planting, wildlife depredation, tree damage and disease, and insect infestation. Requires insurance on yields of timber and forests to include appreciation (including interest charges) as an insurable cost of production in calculating indemnities and premiums. Grants the Corporation discretionary emergency borrowing authority. Amends the Food and Agriculture Act of 1977 to extend to the 1980 and 1981 crops of wheat, feed grains, upland cotton, and rice the farm and prevented planting disaster payment programs. Denies eligibility for such payments to anyone in any county in which federal crop insurance is generally offered for the agricultural commodity concerned.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 1979
Amends the Saccharin Study and Labeling Act to extend from 18 months to 54 months after the date of enactment the period during which the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare may not take specified actions to restrict the continued use of saccharin or of any food, drug, or cosmetic containing saccharin.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 1979
Youth Opportunity Wage Act of 1979 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to allow employers to employ youths between 16 and 20 years of age, without prior or special certification by the Secretary of Labor, at 85 percent of the minimum wage (or the applicable wage in Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands) for 180 days, with the exception of youths employed by an employer at the minimum wage before the enactment of this Act. Authorizes the Secretary to insure against violations of such provisions. Prohibits employers from engaging in a pattern and practice of: (1) substituting younger workers employed at less than the minimum wage for older workers employed at or above the minimum wage; or (2) terminating the employment of some youths and employing other youths in order to gain continual advantage from the youth opportunity wage. Establishes rates of compensation and fines for such violations. Eliminates special subminimum wage provisions for full-time students.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 1979
Prohibits the Secretary of the Interior from acquiring specified lands by condemnation in Carteret County, North Carolina, for purposes of the Cape Lookout National Seashore.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 1979
Rural Housing Amendments of 1979 - Extends specified farm housing programs of the Farmers Home Administration under the Housing Act of 1949. Authorizes appropriations for fiscal year 1980 for: (1) loans and grants for repairs or improvements of rural dwellings and financial assistance to provide low-rent housing for domestic farm labor; (2) loans and grants for mutual and self-help housing programs in rural areas and small towns; (3) the Self-Help Housing Land Development Fund; and (4) grants for the development of technical and supervisory assistance programs in rural areas with Federal, State, and local housing programs for low-income families. Extends the authority of the Secretary of Agriculture to insure loans which provide rental and cooperative housing for the elderly or others of low-and moderate-incomes and to insure and make loans using the Rural Housing Insurance Fund for housing and buildings on farms owned by low-or moderate-income families. Repeals the requirement that in order for the Secretary of Agriculture to extend financial assistance through the Farmers Home Administration to specified owners of farms or real estate in rural areas for refinancing indebtedness such indebtedness must be incurred at least five years prior to the application for assistance. Requires the Secretary to allocate assistance for housing to households that have incomes below the national median income. Sets forth a formula for determining the percent of households to be assisted in each fiscal year. Makes provisions for the payment by the Secretary out of the Rural Housing Insurance Fund for the correction of, or compensation to homeowners for, significant construction defects in certain newly constructed assisted homes. Includes among the administrative powers of the Secretary the authority to repair and rehabilitate property pledged or mortgaged under the Housing Act of 1949 and purchased by the Secretary at any foreclosure. Sets forth restrictions on the sale or disposition of such property. Allows the Secretary to provide up to 90 percent of the development costs of housing for migrant farmworkers while they are away from their residence. Requires assurances from recipients of assistance under the Housing Act of 1949 that rural housing projects which are refinanced or prepaid will continue to be used for their original purposes and that no person occupying the housing shall be required to vacate because of such a transaction. Expands the authority of the Secretary to contract for services facilitating public and private nonprofit entities in providing technical supervisory assistance to low-income individuals who are participating in mutual self-help housing in rural areas and small towns. Authorizes the Secretary to make and insure loans for up to 100 percent of the units in multifamily rental or cooperative housing projects and related facilities for domestic farm labor, the elderly, and persons and families of low income in rural areas.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 1979
Extends specified farm housing programs of the Farmers Home Administration under the Housing Act of 1949. Authorizes appropriations for fiscal year 1980 for: (1) loans and grants for repairs or improvements of rural dwellings and financial assistance to provide low-rent housing for domestic farm labor; (2) loans and grants for mutual and self-help housing programs in rural areas and small towns; (3) the Self-Help Housing Land Development Fund; and (4) grants for the development of technical and supervisory assistance programs in rural areas with Federal, State, and local housing programs for low-income families. Extends through fiscal year 1981 the authority of the Secretary of Agriculture to insure loans which provide rental and cooperative housing for the elderly or others of low-and moderate-incomes and to insure and make loans for housing and buildings on farms owned by low-or moderate-income families. Permits the Secretary to make or insure loans for 40 percent of the units in multifamily cooperative or rental housing projects. Authorizes appropriations for fiscal year 1981 of such sums as may be necessary to carry out programs and activities for which appropriations for the fiscal year 1980 are authorized by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 23 April 1979
Amends the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 to authorize a waiver or reduction in the amount of any penalty imposed for a particular violation of a marketing quota for the 1978 through 1981 crops of peanuts, if such violation was unintentional or inadvertent.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 1979
Self-Reliant Development and International Food Assistance Reform Act of 1979 - Amends the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 to require the use of agricultural commodities under this Act for humanitarian and developmental objectives. Authorizes the export of commodities to meet developmental purposes even if it results in inadequate domestic supplies. Permits the dollar sales value of the commodities to be applied by the recipient country against their repayment obligation under the Food for Development Program and credit obligation to the Commodity Credit Corporation. Directs the President: (1) to give special consideration to increasing demand for food by expanding markets for local foodstuffs, as well as U.S. commodities; and (2) to take precautions that credit sales and commodity distributions do not interfere with local food production or marketing. Provides for the use of indigenous institutions and workers to assure that food commodities are used effectively and where most needed. Requires countries selling U.S. agricultural commodities for developmental purposes to agree to use the money generated from such sales to alleviate the causes of the need for such assistance, as well as increasing the effectiveness of food distribution and availability of food commodities. Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to declare that assistance under such Act and the Agriculture and Trade Assistance Act of 1954 emphasize programs to assist developing countries to increase their national food security.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 1979
Small Business Development Center Act of 1979 - Amends the Small Business Act to implement a pilot program to establish small business development centers in order to provide management, technical, and technological assistance to small businesses. Authorizes the Small Business Administration to make grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative agreements with, States, regional entities, State-chartered development credit or finance corporations, and any public or private institution of higher education to assist them in developing centers to provide small businesses with a broad range of advice, information, and assistance. Requires grant applicants to obtain matching funds on a 50-50 basis from non-Federal sources. Entitles such applicants to an amount of funds for programs in fiscal years 1980 through 1982 based on the percent of the population proposed to be served as compared to total population in the United States. Requires applicants to assist small businesses to solve their business problems in such areas as: operations, manufacturing, engineering, technology exchange and development, personnel administration, marketing, merchandising, finance, accounting, and business strategy development. Stipulates that a center must employ on a full time basis a director, business analysts, technology transfer agents, and information specialists. Requires that the services provided by a center should include, but not be limited to, counseling on a one-to-one basis and solutions for complying with environmental, energy, health, safety, and other Federal, State, and local regulations. Directs the National Science Foundation and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to cooperate with small business development centers participating in the program and to report annually to the Small Business Administration and the Congress and to make recommendations to the Small Business Administration on continued funding. Directs the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to appoint a Deputy Associate Administrator for Management Assistance to administer the small business development center program. Establishes a National Small Business Development Center Advisory Board composed of nine members appointed by the Administrator to advise and confer with the Deputy Associate Administrator for Management Assistance. Directs the Administration, with the advice of the Board, to establish an evaluation plan of the center program and to submit a report to the appropriate committees of Congress within three years. Prohibits the Administration from funding any small business development center program except as authorized by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 1979
Federal Employee Parking Act - Amends the National Energy Conservation Policy Act to prohibit free parking at parking facilities owned or controlled by the Federal Government. Directs the Administrator of General Services, the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, and the Architect of the Capitol to coordinate the activities of the executive, judicial, and legislative branches in implementing such restrictions. Stipulates that all revenues collected be deposited into the Treasury.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 1979
Affirms that farmer cooperatives are a vital and necessary element in maintaining and promoting the family farm system of food production. States that the Department of Agriculture and all appropriate budget appropriation review groups should recognize the need to reinforce and expand programs of cooperative research, service, education, and other cooperative assistance. Declares that the Department should: (1) establish an Office of Farmer Cooperatives to coordinate such programs; and (2) take other aggressive leadership toward expanding resources for cooperative work.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 1979
Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act Amendments of 1979 - Revises specified requirements concerning the sale or lease of lots located within a municipality or county under the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act. Requires that a title insurance binder or title opinion be presented to the purchaser prior to the time of closing. Exempts the following transactions from the terms of the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act: (1) sale or lease of real estate by a developer who is engaged in a sales operation which is intrastate in nature, and (2) the sale or lease of real estate by a developer who has fulfilled specified conditions to the resident of another State when the principal residence of the purchaser is within a radius of 100 miles from the property. Directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to conduct all actions brought under the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 1979
Expresses the sense of the Senate that if depository institutions are permitted to offer market-sensitive rates of return on savings instruments, such institutions should be able to offer mortgage loans which may vary to reflect fluctuations in market interest rates and conditions.
United States · United States Congress · 2 April 1979
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an income tax credit for 50 percent (not in excess of $500 per vehicle) of the costs to convert automobile engines to use alcohol fuels.
United States · United States Congress · 28 March 1979
Eliminates restrictions and conditions on the appointment of female pages in the Senate that require Senators to be responsible for: (1) the safe transportation of the female page between the Senate and the page's place of local abode; and (2) the safety, well- being, and strict supervision of such page while she is in her place of local abode.
United States · United States Congress · 28 March 1979
Directs the Senate Select Committee on Ethics, after consultation with the Committees an Governmental Affairs and Rules and Administration, to report to the Senate concerning: (1) the desirability of repealing, repealing in part or modifying rule XLII of the Standing Rules of the Senate which requires the Senate and staff earning over $25,000 a year to file a report containing a full and complete financial statement for that year; and (2) a review of S. Res. 109 which simplifies financial disclosure requirements, limits the Senate Select Committee on Ethics to investigations of improper misconduct, and repeals the limitations on outside earned income.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 1979
Provides that members of the Armed Forces Reserves shall not be denied employment because of membership in a Reserve unit. Excludes employers of less than ten employees from such prohibition.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 1979
Export Administration Act of 1979 - Authorizes the President to prohibit or curtail the export of goods and technology to the extent necessary. Stipulates that U.S. policy concerning the administration of export controls for national security purposes shall not be based exclusively on a country's Communist or non-Communist status, but shall take into account various factors. Directs the President to review annually U.S. policy towards individual countries and to report the results to Congress. Authorizes export controls on goods and technology which would make a significant contribution to the military potential of any nation threatening U.S. national security. Directs the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, to review such controls annually to insure that export controls are limited to militarily critical goods and technologies. Sets forth the factors to be taken into consideration by the President before imposing export controls. Requires the President to report to Congress concerning the imposition or extension of export controls. Prohibits export controls of goods and technology available outside the United States, unless the absence of such controls would be detrimental to U.S. foreign policy or national security. Directs the President to take steps to negotiate with the appropriate foreign countries to eliminate such availability. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to reorganize the Department of Commerce as necessary. Requires the Secretary to maintain and review a list of goods and technology subject to export controls. Requires the Secretary to establish an Office of Foreign Product and Technology Assessment to gather information on the foreign availability of such goods. Requires the Secretary to keep the public informed of export control policy and procedures. Directs the Secretary to establish validated, qualified general, and general licenses. Sets forth procedures for export license applications. Establishes an Export Administration Board and an Export Administration Review Council composed of the Secretaries of Commerce, Defense, and State and their designated representatives to review export license applications. Provides for review of proposed exports by the appropriate department or agency. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to monitor the export of goods which may contribute to an increase in domestic prices or a domestic shortage. Authorizes the President to impose export license fees in order to protect the domestic economy. Prohibits the exporting of domestically produced crude oil unless specified requirements are met. Prohibits controlling the exports of agricultural commodities without the approval of the Secretary of Agriculture. Directs the President to prohibit compliance with or support of any foreign boycott against a country which is friendly to the United States, with specified exceptions. Requires people receiving a request for compliance with such a boycott to report such request to the Secretary of Commerce. Permits domestic manufacturers or business operators to petition the Secretary of Commerce for an exemption from export controls to alleviate any unique hardship. Sets forth the procedure for such petitions. Directs departments and agencies making determinations as to export controls to consult and cooperate with other departments. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to appoint technical advisory committees to assist in evaluating certain goods and technology which are subject to export controls because of their significance to U.S. national security. Provides criminal and civil penalties for violations of this Act. Authorizes the head of any department or agency exercising any function under this Act or the Export Control Act of 1949 to make such investigations as are necessary. Prohibits the disclosure of confidential information. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to review and report to Congress concerning the simplification of rules and regulations issued under this Act. Exempts this Act from specified provisions concerning administrative procedure and judicial review. Requires the Secretary of Commerce to report annually to Congress concerning the administration of this Act. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1980. Stipulates that this Act shall become effective on the expiration of the Export Administration Act of 1969. Provides for the continuation of rules and other administrative action under such Act to remain effective.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 1979
Homeownership Opportunity Act of 1979 - Amends the National Housing Act to permit the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to insure a graduated payment mortgage with a principal amount of up to 100 percent of the appraised value of the property involved.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 1979
Amends the venue provisions of Federal law to provide that a civil action in which a defendant is the United States, a United States agency, or an officer or employee thereof acting in an official capacity may be brought in any judicial district in which the plaintiff or defendant has its principal place of business and must be brought in a judicial district in which it has been determined that a substantial portion of the impact or injury exists. Requires an appeal from a final order of the Federal Communications Commission, the Federal Maritime Commission, the Interstate Commerce Commission, the Atomic Energy Commission, the Secretary of Agriculture, or the Maritime Administration to be brought in a judicial circuit in which such a determination has been made.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 1979
Amends title VII of the Public Health Service Act (Health Research and Teaching Facilities and Training of Professional Health Personnel) to authorize the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to make grants to schools of medicine and osteopathy for the establishment and operation of educational programs in geriatrics.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 1979
States that the total funds which the executive branch may obligate for the travel and transportation expenses of its officers and employees during fiscal year 1980 shall not exceed an amount which is $500,000,000 less than the amount proposed therefor in the Budget of the United States for such fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 1979
Excludes civilian personnel engaged in industrially funded activities from the computation of the authorized end strength for civilian personnel within the Department of Defense.
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 1979
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the President should withdraw the standby gasoline rationing plan submitted to Congress on March 1, 1979, and resubmit an amended plan to remedy interstate inequities with regard to gasoline rationing coupon distribution.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 1979
Amends the Federal Mine Safety and Health Amendments Act of 1977 to provide that the provisions of such Act shall not apply to stone mining or sand and gravel mining operations.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 1979
Authorizes the payment out of the contingent fund of the Senate in an amount subject to the approval of the Committee on Rules and Administration of expenses incurred by Senator Morgan of North Carolina in supporting the motion to quash subpoenas for the production of correspondence between himself and Bernard Nash in the case of Zenith Radio Corporation against Matsushita Electric Industrial Company, Limited, et al.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 1979
Soft Drink Interbrand Competition Act - Declares that exclusive territorial arrangements made as a part of a licensing agreement for the manufacture, distribution, or sale of a trademarked soft drink product are lawful under the antitrust law provided such product is in substantial and effective competition with other products for the same general class in the relevant market or markets. Prohibits recovery in private actions under the Clayton Act based on territorial provisions in a trademark licensing agreement prior to a final determination that such provisions are unlawful.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 1979
Independent Local Newspaper Act of 1979 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for the establishment of independent local newspaper advance estate tax trusts to facilitate payment of the estate tax imposed upon the estate of a decedent who owned an interest in an independent local newspaper. Sets forth requirements for the establishment of such trusts, including requirements that such trusts: (1) be created pursuant to a plan adopted by the newspaper; (2) be governed by a written instrument which requires that contributions to and income of the trust be invested solely in obligations of the United States; (3) name as trustee a bank or another individual who is capable of administering such trust in compliance with the requirements of this Act; (4) maintain trust assets separately from other property; (5) accept contributions exclusively from independent local newspapers; (6) devote assets of the trust solely to the payment of the estate tax; and (7) distribute any excess funding of the trust to its beneficiaries or their estates. Limits an individual who owns interests in several independent local newspapers to participation in not more than one estate tax payment trust. Defines an "independent local newspaper" as a newspaper publication which is not a member of a chain and which maintains all its offices in a single city, community or metropolitan area, or, on January 1, 1979, within one State. Defines "excess funding" as the excess of the face value of the assets of a qualified trust over: (1) 70 percent of the value of a decedent's interest in an independent local newspaper which is includable in his gross estate; or (2) a decedent's estate tax which is attributable to his interest in an independent local newspaper included in his gross estate. Exempts independent local newspaper advance estate tax trusts and the individuals for whom such trusts are established from income taxation with respect to income earned by such trust. Terminates such tax-exempt status if the taxpayer's interest in the newspaper is sold, the newspaper itself is sold or ceases to qualify as an independent newspaper, or there is an excess funding of the trust. Provides that the amount of any excess funding shall be distributed to the individual for whom the trust was created and included in his gross income or gross estate. Allows an income tax deduction to local independent newspapers for contributions made to estate tax payment trusts. Limits the amount of such deduction to 50 percent of the taxable income derived from such newspaper for the taxable year. Requires the redetermination of the estate tax of an individual for whom an independent local newspaper advance estate tax trust is established and the inclusion in the gross estate of such individual of an amount equal to the estate tax payment made by such trust which is attributable to the individual's interest in the newspaper, if the trust or any heir of the individual sells, within 15 years of the death of such individual, any part of the interest in the newspaper with respect to which the trust was created. Provides for the gradual phaseout of any additional estate tax which is imposed due to the premature sale of a newspaper, if the sale does not occur prior to the ten to 15 year period following the death of the individual for whom the estate tax trust is established. Permits the shareholders of an independent local newspaper who receive the stock of a corporation which the newspaper controls to exclude from their gross income any gain realized as a result of such distribution if: (1) the shareholders do not sell such stock within five years after the date of its distribution; (2) the shareholders retain control of the newspaper for five years after the date of the distribution; and (3) the newspaper and the controlled corporation each continue to be engaged in the active conduct of a trade or business through the five year period beginning on the date of the distribution. Excludes from the gross estate of a decedent the value of any interest in an independent local newspaper which he holds at the time of his death and any estate tax payment made by an independent local newspaper advance estate tax payment trust. Permits the executor of an estate which includes an interest in an independent local newspaper to pay the estate tax in two or more (but not exceeding ten) equal installments. Limits the maximum amount of estate tax that may be paid in installments to the excess of the amount of estate tax over the tax that would have been imposed if the interest in the newspaper had not been included in the gross estate, reduced by all payments of the estate tax made by an independent local newspaper advance estate tax payment trust.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 1979
Solar Energy Bank Act - Establishes a Government corporation to be known as the Solar Energy Development Bank to make long-term, low-interest loans to encourage the use of solar energy in commercial and residential structures. Sets forth requirements for loan eligibility concerning the term and amount of the loan and necessary warranties for the solar energy systems covered by such loan. Prohibits conflicts of interest on the part of officers or employees of the Bank. Imposes criminal penalties for the furnishing of false or misleading information by applicants for loans under this Act. Establishes a seven-member Advisory Board to make annual reports to Congress and the President on the operation of the program established by this Act. Prohibits subsidy payments under this Act to any person who has received other Federal assistance for purchase and/or installation of energy systems similar to the solar systems assisted under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 1979
Amends the Poultry Products Inspection Act to prohibit the Secretary of Agriculture from prescribing different quantity or volume limits on poultry processing on the basis of State, region, or geographic location, or on the basis of the availability of poultry inspectors.
United States · United States Congress · 22 February 1979
Authorizes and requests the President to designate the week beginning with the Sunday preceding the fourth Thursday in November of each year as "National Family Week."
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 1979
Declares that it is the sense of the Senate that in any governmental reorganization, the Department of Agriculture should not be changed in any way that would diminish its ability to perform any of its vital functions.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 1979
Antitrust Procedural Improvements Act of 1979 - Amends the Antitrust Civil Process Act to authorize the Attorney General or the Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Antitrust Division to issue civil investigative demands for depositions, interrogatories, documents, and other specified items produced during the discovery phase of private lawsuits and other proceedings. Sets forth procedures for the issuance and return of such demands. Declares that such demands supercede any inconsistent protective order, rule, or provision of law restraining disclosure of products of discovery. Stipulates that any disclosure made pursuant to such a demand shall not constitute a waiver of privilege. Permits any person retained or consulted by the Department of Justice in connection with the enforcement of the antitrust laws to examine documentary material obtained pursuant to an investigative demand. Establishes procedures to enable any person to challenge an investigative demand for products of discovery. Subjects any attorney or other person engaging in unreasonable dilatory conduct to personal liability for any resulting excess costs, expenses, and attorney's fees. Makes an unsuccessful defendant in an antitrust damage suit liable for interest at the prevailing commercial rate on the plaintiff's actual damages from the date of service of the complaint to the date of judgment. Empowers the courts to reduce or deny an award of such interest if justice requires. Amends the Clayton Act to give judgments in antitrust actions brought by the United States collateral estoppel effect in subsequent litigation. Empowers the Department of Justice to contest mergers indirectly affecting commerce.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 1979
Small Business Employee Ownership Act - Amends the Small Business Act to make employee-owned firms eligible for financial assistance under the business loan program. States that in the case of small business concerns using an employee stock ownership plan, as defined in the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, all financial assistance shall be made to the trust created for employee ownership of stock (ESOT). Predicates such assistance on: (1) a guarantee by the company seeking assistance that it will repay all obligations incurred by the ESOT; (2) the written assurance of the trustee of the ESOT that all guaranteed loans will be used solely for the purchase of company stock; (3) a distribution arrangement which vests ownership of all stock with the employees no later than the expiration date of any assistance made available to acquire such stock; and (4) a certified plan, meeting specified conditions, for the allocation of company stock among the employees. Authorizes the extension of loan guarantees to employee organizations, including those using an ESOT, to finance the acquisition of the employee's workplace if it is a small business or a subsidiary which, if independently owned, would be a small business. States that such guarantees may be extended only if the small business or subsidiary would otherwise close, liquidate, relocate or sell out to a large business or if the owner agrees to the purchase by the employees. Requires an employee organization to compile a feasibility study and plan containing specified provisions in order to be eligible for such guarantees. Limits the principal amount of any loan guaranteed under this Act to $1,000,000. Authorizes $10,000 loans to conduct feasibility studies which will be considered grants if the loan application is denied. Directs the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to report periodically to the Congress on the programs established by this Act. Authorizes the Small Business Administration to extend loan guarantees directly to an owner of a business who is selling the business to employees under an installment contract provided specified conditions are met in the event of default. Makes a company with 51 percent of its stock allocated through an ESOT to one or more socially and economically disadvantaged individuals eligible for the minority enterprise contract assistance program.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 1979
Brown Lung Disease Act of 1979 - Directs the Secretary of Labor to compile and publish a list of State workers' compensation laws found to provide adequate coverage for byssinosis ("brown lung disease", arising out of employment in a textile plant), utilizing specified criteria. Subjects such a determination to judicial review in an appropriate circuit court. Requires any claim for death or total disability due to byssinosis to be filed under the State workers' compensation law, but entitles a worker or surviving family members to claim benefits under this Act during any period when such persons are not covered by a State law providing adequate coverage. Specifies the amounts of benefits to which retired and other workers suffering from byssinosis are entitled to be paid by the Secretary. Provides that such benefit payments shall be reduced by the amount of payments received from certain other sources, such as workers' compensation, unemployment compensation, disability insurance, or a percentage of Social Security benefits. Directs the Secretary, in conjunction with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, to establish standards for determining whether a worker is, or deceased worker was, totally disabled from byssinosis. Makes every employer liable for the securing of benefits equal to or greater than those provided by this Act. Sets forth the means by which such an employer shall secure the payment of such benefits during any period in which the State workers' compensation law is not found to provide adequate coverage. Stipulates that this Act does not relieve any employer of the duty to comply with any State workers' compensation law and that any such law which provides greater benefits shall not be construed to conflict with this Act. Provides that during any period in which a State workers' compensation law is not included on the list published by the Secretary, certain provisions of the Longshoremen's and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act shall be applicable. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into contracts with and make grants to public and private agencies and organizations and individuals for the construction, purchase, and operation of fixed site and mobile clinical facilities for the analysis, examination, and treatment of respiratory and pulmonary impairments in active and inactive textile plant workers. Requires the Secretary to initiate research within the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, and authorizes the Secretary to make research grants to public and private agencies and organizations and individuals for the purpose of devising a simple and effective test to measure, detect, and treat respiratory and pulmonary impairments in active and inactive textile plant workers.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 1979
Extends to former employees of county soil conservation committees who are employed by any Federal agency, specified civil service compensation, leave, and seniority benefits afforded to former employees of such county committees employed by the Department of Agriculture.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 1979
Robert A. Taft Institute of Government Trust Fund Act - Establishes in the United States Treasury the Robert A. Taft Institute Trust Fund. Authorizes the Commissioner of Education to make grants from such fund to develop the Robert A. Taft Institute of Government, New York, New York. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to invest portions of the Fund not required to meet current withdrawals. Appropriates $15,000,000 to the Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 1979
Expresses the disapproval of the Senate with respect to the Secretary of Transportation's recommendations designating the basic route system for the National Railroad Passenger Corporation which were submitted to the Congress on January 31, 1979.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 1979
Reform of Federal Regulation Act of 1979 - Title I: The Analysis, Planning and Management of Regulatory Functions - Requires each Federal agency to publish for each proposed major rule, as such rule is defined in this Act, an initial regulatory analysis which describes the need for the rule, at least two available alternative approaches, and a description of the economic and social effects of the proposed rule and alternatives. Requires that each agency publish for each adopted major rule a final regulatory analysis which includes a summary of public comments received on the initial analysis, and a justification of the selection of the final rule. Requires the Director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to review and report to Congress on the agency actions to implement this Title. Directs each agency to: (1) report annually to Congress and the public on its regulatory agenda and priorities for the current fiscal year; and (2) include in the announcement of a rulemaking or adjudication the date by which the agency intends to complete such proceeding. Requires each agency to report annually to the Administrative Conference of the U.S., the Congress, and the public on its regulatory activities of the past fiscal year. Stipulates that such report include: (1) the number of agency proceedings which the agency failed to complete by the established deadline and the reasons for such failure; and (2) any changes the agency made to improve its regulatory actions. Directs each regulatory agency to establish an office to be responsible for regulatory planning and management. Requires any independent regulatory commission to submit any budget information or legislative recommendation to Congress concurrently upon submission to any officer or agency of the executive branch. Title II: Improving the Efficiency of Administrative Proceedings - Establishes a new procedure for administrative rulemaking and adjudication by United States Government agencies. States that such procedure shall apply to: (1) all adjudications; and (2) all rulemaking or licensing proceedings required by statute to be determined on the record after opportunity for an agency hearing except proceedings to withdraw, suspend, revoke, or annul a license. Provides two levels for the conduct of proceedings subject to this Act, a "general hearing process" and a "formal hearing" for the resolution of matters determined during the general hearing to involve general and substantial issues of fact which cannot be resolved at the general hearing and upon which the decision of the agency is likely to depend. Requires, for the general hearing process, the conduct of a hearing to afford parties an opportunity to submit written data, and, at the request of any party, an opportunity for oral argument. Enumerates the powers of the presiding employee at a general hearing. Authorizes such employee to cross-examine witnesses and to request the agency to consider and act on interlocutory appeals when action on such appeals would expedite final agency action. Directs the employee to: (1) oversee the expeditious completion of such hearing; and (2) provide a concise record of the important matters of the proceeding. States that no person who participates in the decision making of any proceeding or in a board or agency review of such decision may: (1) make ex parte communications; or (2) be responsible to or subject to the supervision of an employee or agent performing investigative or litigating functions for the agency. Allows an agency to prohibit an individual from appearing at a proceeding if the individual engages in unethical conduct or deliberate dilatory tactics. Authorizes an agency to subpoena any person or evidence as necessary. Sets forth the judicial procedure and civil penalty for persons who fail to comply with a subpoena. Requires each agency to maintain a public file of significant material concerning the major stages of a proceeding. Authorizes the presiding employee at a formal hearing to: (1) rule on offers of proof and receive relevant evidence; (2) require written testimony and arguments when oral testimony is not required; and (3) upon request, to issue a decision prior to completion of the hearing if there is no substantial dispute of fact. Authorizes each agency to establish employee boards to review the decisions of presiding employees. Directs each agency to specify the conditions under which it will accept an appeal of the decision of such a board, and specifies the conditions which enable an agency to review such a decision. Requires the Office of Personnel Management to test, register, and certify eligible candidates for the position of administrative law judge (hereinafter referred to as "judge"). Authorizes each agency to appoint a judge from the list of certified candidates. Directs the Administrator of the Administrative Conference of the U.S. to: (1) establish a performance appraisal system for evaluating judges at least once every ten years; and (2) establish performance and evaluation review boards to assist in setting up the appraisal system and in evaluating judges. Directs the Administrator to evaluate each judge before the expiration of the judge's ten-year term, and to make a recommendation on the reappointment of the judge. Requires each agency to reappoint a judge if the Administrator so recommends. Directs the Merit Systems Protection Board to remove, downgrade, or suspend a judge whose performance is found to be unacceptable. Provides for the transfer and reassignment of judges by the Administrator. Requires the President to nominate members of independent regulatory commissions by reason of their training and experience, and to appoint the chairman of each commission with the advice and consent of the Senate. Directs each agency to issue rules to implement this title within 150 days. Title III: Agency Review of Rules - Direct each agency to review annually one or more of its rules to determine whether continuation or amendment of the rule is in the public interest. Sets forth guidelines the agency should consider in selecting rules to review. Requires each agency to: (1) publish an agenda and the procedure for reviewing one or more rule every five years; (2) provide an opportunity for public comment on such rule; and (3) report the results of each review to Congress and the public. Requires the Director of the CBO to review the agency reports and oversee implementation of this Title. Title IV: Administrative Conference of the United States - Reorganizes the Administrative Conference. Makes the head of the Conference the Administrator who shall be appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate for a four-year term. Grants the Administrator authority to appoint officers and employees and to prescribe their powers and duties as necessary. Sets forth the functions of the Conference which include: (1) studying and making recommendations on the adequacy of administrative procedures used by agencies to carry out regulatory functions; (2) monitoring agency compliance with such laws as the Freedom of Information Act and the Administrative Procedure Act; (3) compensating persons for the cost of participating in agency proceedings in certain cases; and (4) evaluating the performance of administrative law judges. Directs the Conference to submit an analysis of agency reports on regulatory activities to Congress, and to report to Congress on a study of providing incentives to participants to expedite agency proceedings. Establishes an Advisory Commission within the Conference.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 1979
Antitrust Enforcement Act of 1979 - Amends the Clayton Act to entitle any purchaser or seller in the chain of manufacture, production, or distribution of goods and services to relief under such Act, upon proof of an overcharge or underpayment resulting directly or indirectly from an antitrust violation. States that such relief may be granted in individual suits, suits by the United States, or parens patrie actions brought by a State attorney general for natural persons residing in the State. Authorizes the courts, in any civil action brought by a person or the United States, to permit the defendant to prove that the plaintiff was able to pass on to third parties all or part of an overcharge or underpayment. Grants the court the discretion to hear such evidence as a partial or complete defense in order to avoid duplicative liability. Enables the parties to any class action to prove the fact of injury, the amount of passed on charges and the extent of damages on a classwide basis, without requiring proof of such matters by each individual member of the class. Authorizes the judicial panel on multidistrict litigation to consolidate and transfer any action brought under the Clayton Act, with or without the consent of the parties for both pretrial and trial purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 1979
Military Registration and Mobilization Assessment Act of 1979 - Directs the President to commence military selective service registration by October 18, 1979, and to report to the Congress by June 30, 1979, on plans for a modern and efficient system of registration. Amends the Military Selective Service Act of 1967 to authorize regulations granting the Selective Service System access to age and address information in the records of any school, or any agency or political subdivision of any State for the sole purpose of conducting selective service registration. Requires the Secretary of Defense, in the Secretary's annual report to Congress on military manpower requirements, to include an assessment of the Nation's capabilities to mobilize such additional manpower as may be needed to meet national security requirements under emergency situations.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 1979
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to subject nonresident aliens, estates, trusts, partnerships, and foreign corporations to a tax on the gain from the sale or exchange of farm or rural lands situated in the United States. Requires foreign corporations which hold United States farm lands comprising 20 percent of their assets to make reports on such holdings as the Secretary of the Treasury may require.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 1979
Federal Trade Commission Regulatory Review Act - Amends the Federal Trade Commission Act to require that any rule promulgated by the Federal Trade Commission under such Act be transmitted to congress. Prescribes procedures for congressional review of any such rules and for resolutions of disapproval preventing rules from becoming effective.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 1979
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide payment for the services of a clinical psychologist under the supplementary medical insurance program.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 1979
Establishes a National Agricultural Cost of Production Board to review and advise the Secretary of Agriculture concerning the adequacy and accuracy of the cost-of-production formulas used by the Department of Agriculture in connection with the administration of its price support programs.
![Official portrait of Sen. Morgan, Robert B. [D-NC]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/m000956_200.jpg)