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United States · Official source
4,275 records where Sen. Sarbanes, Paul S. [D-MD] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2002
Amends the National Maritime Heritage Act of 1994 to: (1) revise the designation of museums composing the America's National Maritime Museum; and (2) designate specified new museums to be museums of the America's National Maritime Museum.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2002
Reaffirms support of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Commemorates the 15th anniversary of the enactment of the Genocide Convention Implementation Act of 1987 (the Proxmire Act) on November 4, 2003.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2002
Commends Bosnia and Herzegovina for its progress during the past decade on implementing the Dayton Peace Agreement and the Constituent Peoples' Decision of its Constitutional Court. Calls for further strengthening of respect for human rights, the rule of law, and its free market economy. Urges Bosnia and Herzegovina to make all national institutions and state-level governmental bodies mandated by the Dayton Agreement fully operational. Expresses support for: (1) Bosnia and Herzegovina's aspiration to become a member of the Partnership for Peace; and (2) creating a joint military command as soon as possible. Urges Bosnia and Herzegovina to accelerate the return of refugees and displaced persons and to intensify its cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia at The Hague, in particular with regard to surrendering to the Court individuals indicted for war crimes. Reaffirms the importance for Bosnia and Herzegovina's future of participation in the European integration process and welcomes the improvement in mutual cooperation among the successor states of the former Yugoslavia and the strengthening of cooperation within the region. Recognizes the important role of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian-American community in improving bilateral relations.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 2002
National Missing Adult Awareness Month Act - Designates August as National Missing Adult Awareness Month.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2002
Housing Voucher Improvement Act of 2002 - Amends the United States Housing Act of 1937 to establish a thrifty voucher component within the section 8 public housing program to assist public housing authorities (PHAs) increase housing availability for extremely low-income families. Permits PHAs to use unutilized section 8 funds, or reserve funds in cases of no such unutilized funds, to help families find housing. Establishes the Voucher Success Fund to assist certain PHAs with no unutilized funds. Authorizes PHAs to make limited increases in maximum rents. Directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to provide PHAs with lists of rental units in their metropolitan areas that were given low-income housing tax credits or were built under the HOME Investments Partnership Act. Authorizes the Secretary to reallocate chronically unutilized section 8 vouchers through designated metropolitan administrators. Permits families in project-based section 8 units to participate in specified self-sufficiency programs. Sets forth grant and income exclusion work incentives. Authorizes a welfare-to-work housing voucher program. Authorizes PHAs to: (1) begin rental payments before inspection under specified circumstances; and (2) use technical assistance funds and other means to establish electronic transfer systems for rental payments. .
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2002
Calls for the Government of the United Kingdom to enter into negotiations with the Government of Greece to facilitate the return of the Parthenon Marbles to Greece before the Olympics in 2004.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2002
Yellowstone Protection Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to implement the final rule to phase out snowplane use in Grand Teton National Park and snowmobile use in Yellowstone National Park, the John. D. Rockefeller Jr. Memorial Parkway, and Grand Teton National Park. Prohibits the Secretary from modifying or superseding any provisions of that final rule.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2002
Amends rule XLII (employment practices) of the Standing Rules of the Senate to prohibit employment discrimination in the Senate based on sexual orientation.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2002
Designates the week of November 10-16, 2002, as National Veterans Awareness Week to emphasize educational programs for elementary and secondary school students regarding the contributions and sacrifices of veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2002
Declares that the Senate strongly disapproves of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision in Newdow v. U.S. Congress. Authorizes and instructs the Senate Legal Counsel to seek to intervene in the case to defend the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2002
Public Company Accounting Reform and Investor Protection Act of 2002 - Establishes the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board to impose sanctions upon registered public accounting firms and their associated persons. Authorizes sanctions for failure to supervise. Grants the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) oversight of the Board, including general modification and rescission of Board authority. Amends the Securities Act of 1933 to authorize the SEC to recognize, as "generally accepted" for purposes of the securities laws, accounting principles established by a standard setting body. Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to prohibit a public accounting firm from performing certain non-audit services contemporaneously with a mandatory audit. Mandates audit partner rotation on a five-year basis. Prohibits a public accounting firm from performing statutorily mandated audit services if its senior executives were employed by the issuer and participated in the audit of such issuer during the one-year period preceding the audit date. Vests the audit committee of an issuer with oversight authority over any public accounting firm performing audit services. Requires a chief executive officer and chief financial officer to: (1) certify the veracity of mandatory financial statements; and (2) forfeit certain bonuses and compensation received following an accounting restatement owing to noncompliance with securities laws. Prohibits insider trades during pension fund blackout periods. Mandates enhanced disclosure of: (1) material off-balance sheet transactions and relationships; (2) pro forma financial information that is not misleading, and that is reconciled with generally accepted accounting principles; and (3) loans and loan guarantees made to senior executives. Reduces the mandatory period for disclosure of changes in ownership of securities or security-based swap agreements by certain principal stockholders. Mandates SEC rules governing analyst conflicts of interest.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2002
Chesapeake Bay Environmental Education Pilot Program Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to establish a pilot program of matching grants for developing, demonstrating, or disseminating information on practices, methods, or techniques relating to environmental education and training in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Makes eligible for such grants public elementary or secondary schools and nonprofit environmental or educational organizations located in the District of Columbia, Delaware, Maryland, New York Pennsylvania, Virginia, or West Virginia.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 2002
Peace Corps Charter for the 21st Century Act - Amends the Peace Corps Act to require all recruiting of volunteers to be undertaken solely by the Peace Corps. Conditions the President's authority to detail or assign Peace Corps volunteers to certain Federal and State agencies and other entities upon a determination that such a detail or assignment does not contradict the standing of such volunteers as being independent from foreign policy-making and intelligence collection. Requires the Director of the Peace Corps, before implementing any new initiative, to consult with the Peace Corps National Advisory Council and to report to Congress on: (1) the initiative's objectives and costs, and any impact it may have on existing programs and the safety of volunteers; (2) the status of security procedures in any country in which the Peace Corps operates programs or is considering doing so; (3) student loan forgiveness programs currently available to Peace Corps volunteers; and (4) initiatives the Peace Corps intends to pursue in order to solicit requests from eligible countries where the presence of volunteers would facilitate a greater understanding of the world and of diverse cultures and systems of government, including peoples from countries with substantial Muslim populations. Requires the Director to develop a training program for all Peace Corps volunteers in the education, prevention, and treatment of infectious diseases. Increases Peace Corps volunteer readjustment allowances to $275 a month. Establishes a program to award grants to private nonprofit corporations in the District of Columbia to serve as incubators for returned Peace Corps volunteers seeking to use their knowledge and expertise to undertake community-based projects.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 2002
International AIDS Treatment and Prevention Act of 2002 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (AID), to carry out HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, and related activities in countries with or at risk for severe HIV epidemic. Requires particular attention to resource constrained countries and the use of indigenous capacity to the degree practicable. Authorizes support and assistance relating to: (1) HIV prevention services, including post exposure prophylaxis and a safe blood supply; (2) HIV/AIDS care and treatment services, linked to prevention services; (3) infrastructure and training, including the availability of health care facilities; and (4) HIV/AIDS treatment protocols. Creates grant programs for: (1) clinical education and training in the delivery of HIV/AIDS care and treatment services; (2) activities to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV; and (3) research on innovative microbicide concepts. Requires the coordination of Department of Health and Human Services programs by the Director of the Office of International Affairs. Extends the tuberculosis prevention program, to be coordinated with the activities under this Act. Authorizes the Secretary of Labor, in consultation with the Administrator of AID, to carry out workplace-based HIV/AIDS prevention and education programs in at-risk, constrained countries, with emphasis on protections against discrimination and creating supportive environments for individuals living with HIV/AIDS.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 2002
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the status quo on Cyprus must end and the island and its people must be reunited in a bi-zonal, bi-communal federal Cyprus, on the basis of United Nations Security Council resolutions; (2) the accession of Cyprus to the European Union (EU) would act as a catalyst for the solution of the Cyprus problem without such solution being a precondition for accession; (3) membership of Cyprus to the EU should be strongly supported; (4) all Cypriots should be urged to support and encourage efforts to bring Cyprus into the EU; and (5) U.S. agencies should pursue initiatives that will help promote and achieve reunification, reconciliation, stability, and prosperity on Cyprus.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 2002
TANF Financial Education Promotion Act of 2002 - Amends part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of title IV of the Social Security Act to require a State to specify in its State plan how it intends to establish goals and take action to promote financial education among parents and caretakers receiving assistance under TANF through collaboration with community-based organizations, financial institutions and the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service of the Department of Agriculture. Defines "financial education" as education that promotes an understanding of consumer, economic, and personal finance concepts, including the basic principles involved with earning, budgeting, spending, saving, investing, and taxation. Defines "financial education" as a work activity for TANF purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2002
Medicare Outpatient Prescription Drug Act of 2002 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to establish: (1) a Medicare Outpatient Prescription Drug Benefit Program under new part D; (2) a Prescription Drug Account in the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund; and (3) a Medicare Prescription Drug Advisory Committee. Provides for: (1) part D benefits under Medicare+Choice plans under Medicare part C (Medicare+Choice); and (2) Medicare cost-sharing and other assistance for low-income individuals but only as it relates to benefits provided under new part D. Revises Medicare supplemental insurance policy (Medigap) benefit packages to conform to changes made by this Act, eliminating obsolete policies with no grandfathering. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to study and report to Congress on the feasibility and advisability of: (1) establishing a uniform format for pharmacy benefit cards provided to beneficiaries; and (2) developing systems to transfer electronically prescriptions under such program from the prescriber to the pharmacist. Requires the Comptroller General to conduct an ongoing study and analysis of the program established under this Act, especially: (1) the extent to which the competitive bidding process under it fosters maximum competition and efficiency; and (2) the savings to the Medicare program resulting from it, including the reduction in the number or length of hospital visits. Expands the membership and duties of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC).
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2002
Amends the Omnibus Parks and Public Lands Management Act of 1996 to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to make a grant to an eligible historically black college or university for the preservation and/or restoration of a building or structure listed or eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places if the grantee agrees to provide funds derived from non-Federal sources in an amount equal to 30 percent (currently, a matching amount) of the total cost of the project. Authorizes additional appropriations for such grants.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2002
Coastal and Estuarine Land Protection Act - Amends the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 to establish a Coastal and Estuarine Land Protection Program to protect the environmental integrity of undeveloped coastal and estuarine areas. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to make program grants to coastal States for the purpose of acquiring property interests. Prohibits any more than 75 percent of the grant funding from being derived from Federal sources. Authorizes the Secretary to provide $5 million for a regional watershed protection demonstration project that: (1) leverages land acquisition funding from other Federal conservation or acquisition programs; (2) involves partnerships with Federal, State, and non-governmental entities; (3) creates conservation corridors; (4) protects habitats under imminent threat of development or conversion; (5) provides water quality protection for areas under the National Estuarine Research Reserve program; and (6) provides a model for future regional watershed protection projects. Reserves 15 percent of program funds for acquisitions benefitting the National Estuarine Research Reserve. Specifies that when property is acquired under this program: (1) title will be held by the grant recipient; (2) property will be managed consistent with the purpose of the program; and (3) funds will be returned to the Secretary if the property is sold, exchanged, or divested.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2002
Museum and Library Services Act of 2002 - Amends the Museum and Library Services Act (MLSA) and the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) to extend authorizations of appropriations and revise programs under such Acts. Amends MLSA to establish the National Museum and Library Services Board, within the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). (Eliminates a National Museum Services Board.) Requires the IMLS Director to: (1) ensure coordination with certain activities under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and other Federal activities; and (2) conduct and publish analyses of museum and library services impact. Revises requirements for annual national awards to outstanding libraries and museums that have made significant contributions in service to their communities. Amends LSTA to provide for: (1) an increased portion for administrative costs; (2) an increased alternative minimum allotment to States under certain conditions; (3) competitive grants to specified U.S. Territories; (4) State plans once every five years, as determined by the IMLS Director; (5) additional uses of grants to States for library programs; and (6) recruitment of library and information science personnel under the program of national leadership grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements. Includes specified entities under the term museum, for MLSA purposes. Revises museum services activities. Repeals requirements under the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science Act relating to Commission responsibilities to: (1) advise the IMLS Director; and (2) meet with the National Museum Services Board, which is eliminated by this Act. Revises Commission membership requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2002
Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002 - Establishes in the Department of the Treasury the Terrorism Insured Loss Shared Compensation Program, administered by the Secretary of the Treasury, who shall have general Program authorities. Prescribes guidelines for: (1) mandatory insurance company participation in the Program; and (2) mandatory availability of property and casualty insurance. Sets a Program termination date. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Secretary should make any determination to extend such Program in sufficient time to enable participating insurance companies to include coverage for acts of terrorism in their policies for 2003. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the insurance industry should build capacity and aggregate risk to provide affordable property and casualty insurance coverage for terrorism risk. Establishes a Federal cause of action for property damage, personal injury, or death arising out of or resulting from an act of terrorism, which shall be the exclusive cause of action and remedy for claims for such property damage, personal injury, or death (except for claims against terrorists or aiders and abettors, including governments and other entities).
United States · United States Congress · 4 June 2002
Holocaust Restitution Tax Fairness Act of 2002 - Amends the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-16) to make the sunset provisions inapplicable to section 803, which excluded from income, under the Internal Revenue Code, specified restitution payments received by persons (or heirs) persecuted by Nazi Germany, its allied or controlled countries, or any other Axis regime because of race, religion, physical or mental disability, or sexual orientation.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2002
Community Partnership to End Homelessness Act of 2002 - Amends the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act to include the Commissioner of Social Security as a member of the Interagency Council on the Homeless. States that the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy within the Executive Office of the President shall oversee Council functioning. Provides for the establishment of community homeless assistance planning boards. Revises the emergency shelter grants program. Replaces the supportive housing program with a community homeless assistance program.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2002
Declares that, if the Federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) for a State for FY 2002 is less than the FMAP for FY 2001, the FY 2001 FMAP shall be substituted for the State's FMAP for the third and fourth calendar quarters of FY 2002. Declares similarly that if a State's FY 2003 FMAP is less than the FY 2002 FMAP, the FY 2002 FMAP shall be substituted for each calendar quarter of FY 2003. Requires each eligible State for the third and fourth calendar quarters of FY 2002 and each calendar quarter of FY 2003 to have its FMAP increased by 1.0 percentage point. Mandates a specified Medicaid payment cap increase for territories. Prohibits application of the FMAP increases for a State under this Act with respect to: (1) disproportionate share hospital payments under Medicaid; and (2) payments under SSA titles IV and XXI (State Children's Health Insurance) (SCHIP). Amends SSA title XX (Block Grants to States for Social Services), for the purpose of providing State fiscal relief allotments to States and territories in accordance with a specified table, to make appropriations to be available for obligation by the State through June 30, 2004, and for expenditure by the State through September 30, 2004.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 2002
Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2002 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to increase the Federal minimum wage to: (1) $5.75 an hour beginning 30 days after enactment of this Act; (2) $6.25 an hour during the year beginning on January 1, 2003; and (3) $6.65 an hour beginning January 1, 2004. Makes Federal minimum wage requirements applicable to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Sets forth a transition period during which a specified minimum wage there shall be gradually increased to equal the Federal minimum wage.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2002
Designates the week beginning May 19, 2002, as National Emergency Medical Services Week.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2002
United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2002 - Requires the President to establish a comprehensive, integrated, five-year strategy to combat the global spread of HIV and AIDS. Requires the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to develop a comprehensive plan to empower women to protect themselves against the spread of HIV/AIDS. Establishes within the Department of State a presidentially appointed Coordinator of United States Government Activities to Combat HIV/AIDS Globally. Authorizes the United States to participate in the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and increases financial assistance for vaccine contributions. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to conclude an agreement with the Paris Club of Official Creditors and other specified multilateral development institutions to modify the Enhanced HIPC Initiative with respect to debt cancellation for eligible countries. Authorizes the President to provide assistance and coordination between international organizations for the global prevention, treatment, monitoring, and control of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. Requires the President to establish a program to demonstrate the feasibility of facilitating services of American health care professionals in sub-Saharan Africa and other parts of the world severely affected by HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. Requires the Secretary of Defense to expand the Department of Defense program of HIV/AIDS prevention educational activities in sub-Saharan African countries. Requires the Administrator of USAID to establish a program of assistance that would demonstrate the feasibility of providing care and treatment to orphans, other children, and young people affected by HIV/AIDS in foreign countries. Sets forth principles for U.S. firms operating in countries affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2002
Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to: (1) restrict the application of the windfall elimination provision to individuals whose combined monthly income from the individual's primary insurance amount under such title and the portion of the monthly periodic payment attributable to noncovered service performed after 1956 exceeds $2,000; and (2) provide for a graduated implementation of such provision by specified percentages with respect to incremental amounts above such threshold, up to 100 percent for combined amounts over $3,000.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2002
Expresses profound gratitude for the faithful service provided by flight attendants to make air travel safe and honors their courage and dedication. Supports all flight attendants who continue to display heroism on a daily basis, as they had been doing before, during, and after September 11, 2001.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2002
Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) small business participation is vital to U.S. defense and should play an active role in assisting the military, Federal intelligence and law enforcement agencies, and State and local police to combat terrorism through the design and development of innovative products; and (2) Federal, State, and local governments should aggressively seek out and purchase innovative technologies and services from, and promote research opportunities for, American small businesses to help in homeland defense and the fight against terrorism.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2002
Predatory Lending Consumer Protection Act of 2002 - Amends the Truth in Lending Act guidelines for certain credit transactions secured by the consumer's principal dwelling (high-cost mortgage). Requires additional disclosures that the consumer is contracting to pay a much higher loan than most people pay. Specifies additional prohibitions against prepayment penalties, except in certain circumstances. Prohibits all balloon payments. Prohibits the terms of a high-cost mortgage from including advance collection of a premium on a single premium basis for specified credit insurance products. Restricts the amount of points and fees which a creditor may finance in connection with a high-cost mortgage. Prohibits certain creditors from financing the prepayment fees or penalties due from the consumer. Prohibits a high-cost mortgage creditor from engaging in specified practices, including requiring arbitration or any other nonjudicial procedure as a method for resolving any controversy or claims arising from the transaction. Declares a consumer's waiver of the right of rescission ineffective if the creditor either advised, or encouraged such waiver, or required it as a precondition for a transaction. Amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to mandate that each high-cost mortgage creditor (including the successor creditor) report the debtor's complete payment history to certain consumer reporting agencies in accordance with specified regulations.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2002
National Sea Grant College Program Act Amendments of 2002 - Amends the National Sea Grant College Program Act to include an emphasis on management and collaboration between academia and the scientists and programs of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Requires the Secretary of Commerce's strategic plan to be developed at least every four years and integrate with the strategic plans of the Department of Commerce and of NOAA. Revises and expands the terms of membership for the sea grant review panel. Authorizes appropriations for: (1) FY 2004 through 2008; and (2) zebra mussel, oyster, harmful algal bloom, and additional support to the fisheries extension program. Limits the percentage of funds available for administration.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2002
Designates the week beginning May 5, 2002, as National Correctional Officers and Employees Week.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2002
Safe Motherhood Act for Research and Treatment or SMART Mom Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through either the Office of Woman's Health, the National Institutes of Health, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, or the Centers for Disease Control, to address the health issues of pregnant women. Establishes the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Safe Motherhood to evaluate and coordinate Federal research and information efforts and establish and implement the national Safe Motherhood Campaign. Requires the development and maintenance of a single Internet website. Requires expanded and intensified research activities concerning pregnancy-related illness, injury, and death and the impact of chronic conditions, physical impairments, and mental health problems on the health of women during pregnancy. Requires the establishment of a Maternal Fetal Medicine Unit Network. Awards research and demonstration project grants to address racial/ethnic disparities in pregnancy outcomes. Requires: (1) studies of the quality of maternal health care (from a patient's perspective) and the effects of pregnancy on women's health; and (2) surveillance of pregnancy-related mortality and morbidity data. Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the Secretary to address issues concerning certain drugs and medical devices and their appropriate use by or effects on pregnant or lactating women and/or fetuses, through: (1) identification and study; (2) pharmacoepidemiological data bases; (3) biennial review and prioritization (drugs); (4) labeling; and (5) the Women's Health: Take Time to Care (or a new) program.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2002
Calls upon European governments to: (1) acknowledge the anti-Semitic character of the attacks on Jewish institutions in cities across Europe in the last 18 months as violations of human rights and to utilize their law enforcement tools to investigate the crimes and punish the perpetrators; (2) decry the rationalizing of attitudes and attacks against Jews as merely a result of popular frustration with the Middle East conflict; and (3) take measures to protect and ensure the security of Jewish citizens and institutions. Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) Congress and the Administration must raise this issue in bilateral contacts; (2) the State Department's Annual Country Reports on Human Rights should document this phenomenon worldwide; and (3) the Commission on International Religious Freedom should continue to document and report on this phenomenon.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2002
FHA Downpayment Simplification Act of 2002 - Amends the National Housing Act to revise downpayment requirements for mortgage insurance eligibility.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2002
Instructional Materials Accessibility Act of 2002 - Directs Secretary of Education to: (1) develop and publish instructional materials accessibility standards for the national electronic file format to be used by publishers of instructional materials in the preparation of electronic files suitable for efficient conversion into specialized formats; (2) establish a National Instructional Materials Accessibility Advisory Committee to provide technical expertise and guidance in creating such national electronic file format; (3) periodically review and amend such standards to reflect technological advances or changes; and (4) establish a National Instructional Materials Access Center. Requires State educational agencies, as a condition for receiving Federal financial assistance under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, to develop and implement statewide plans and make contracts with publishers to ensure that instructional materials for classroom use in elementary and secondary schools are made available in specialized formats to individuals who are blind or have other print disabilities at the same time such materials are provided to individuals without such disabilities. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to eligible entities to provide or improve their capacity to prepare or obtain instructional materials in specialized formats, including the national electronic format. Provides for enforcement of rights of children and parents under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2002
Declares that the Export-Import Bank of the United States shall continue to exercise its functions through May 31, 2002.
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 2002
Declares that, if the Federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) for a State for FY 2002 is less than the FMAP for FY 2001, the FY 2001 FMAP shall be substituted for the State's FMAP for the last three calendar quarters of FY 2002. Declares similarly that: (1) if a State's FY 2003 FMAP is less than the FY 2002 FMAP, the FY 2002 FMAP shall be substituted for each calendar quarter of FY 2003; and (2) if a State's FY 2004 FMAP is less than the FY 2003 FMAP, the FY 2003 FMAP shall be substituted for each calendar quarter of FY 2004. Requires each eligible State for each calendar quarter for the last three calendar quarters of FY 2002 and each calendar quarter for FY 2003 through FY 2004 to be increased by 1.5 percentage points. Mandates specified FMAP increases for States with high unemployment rates, and a specified Medicaid payment cap increase for territories. Prohibits application of the FMAP increases for a State under this Act with respect to: (1) disproportionate share hospital payments under Medicaid; and (2) payments under SSA titles IV and XXI (State Children's Health Insurance) (SCHIP).
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 2002
Declares that the Senate: (1) stands in solidarity with Israel as it takes necessary steps to provide security to its people by dismantling the terrorist infrastructure in the Palestinian areas; (2) remains committed to Israel's right to self-defense; and (3) will continue to assist Israel in strengthening its homeland defenses. Condemns Palestinian suicide bombings. Demands that the Palestinian Authority fulfill its commitment to dismantle the terrorist infrastructure in the Palestinian areas. Urges: (1) all Arab states, particularly Egypt and Saudi Arabia, to declare their unqualified opposition to all forms of terrorism, particularly suicide bombing, and to act in concert with the United States to stop the violence; and (2) all parties in the region to pursue vigorous efforts to establish comprehensive peace in the Middle East.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 2002
Debt Relief Enhancement Act of 2002 - Amends the International Financial Institutions Act to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to commence efforts immediately within the Paris Club of Official Creditors, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and other appropriate multilateral development institutions to modify the Enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative so that the amount of debt stock reduction approved for a country eligible for debt relief shall be sufficient to reduce, by a specified deadline, the net present value of the outstanding public and publicly guaranteed debt of the country, and the annual payments due, to levels determined according to certain formulae. Prohibits conditioning any such debt cancellation on an agreement by an impoverished country to implement or comply with policies that deepen poverty or degrade the environment. Prescribes other specified conditions and prohibitions with respect to country eligibility. Requires any country otherwise eligible to receive debt cancellation under the modifications to the Initiative made by this Act to agree to: (1) ensure that the financial benefits of debt cancellation are applied to programs to combat HIV/AIDS and poverty; and (2) implement transparent and participatory policymaking and budget procedures, good governance, and effective anticorruption measures. Requires the Secretary to report to Congress on the options and costs associated with expanding debt relief under the Initiative to poor countries not eligible for inclusion in it.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 2002
Directs the Secretary of Labor, in accordance with specified provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, to issue a final rule relating to ergonomics.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 2002
Steel Industry Consolidation and Retiree Benefits Protection Act of 2002 - Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to establish a steel industry retiree benefits protection program administered by the Secretary of Commerce and the Board of Trustees of the Steel Industry Legacy Relief Trust Fund (created by this Act) to provide specified medical and death benefits to eligible steel retirees and beneficiaries. Prescribes qualifying events (acquisition, closing, election, or bankruptcy transfer) as a result of which the United States shall assume liability for the provision of steel retiree benefits for each eligible retiree and eligible beneficiary certified for participation in the retiree benefits program. Requires transfer to the Trust Fund by a qualified steel company and any applicable acquiring company of all assets which, under the terms of an applicable collective bargaining agreement, were required to be set aside under an employee benefit plan or otherwise for the provision of the steel retiree benefits. Requires contributions to the Trust Fund by such companies.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 2002
Rural Hospital Access and Improvement Act of 2002 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to extend the authorization for appropriations through FY 2007 for rural hospital flexibility grants with respect to rural health care plans, rural health networks, critical access hospitals, rural emergency medical services, and assistance to eligible small rural hospitals in meeting the costs of implementing Medicare-required data systems.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 2002
Designates August 16, 2002, as National Airborne Day.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 2002
Designates the week of April 21 through April 28, 2002, as National Biotechnology Week.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2002
Uterine Fibroids Research and Education Act of 2002 - Authorizes appropriations for National Institutes of Health uterine fibroid research. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a related public awareness program.
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 2002
Welfare Reform and Housing Act - Amends title IV part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of the Social Security Act to authorize States to use State Family Assistance Grants to provide: (1) supplemental housing benefits to, or on behalf of, an individual to reduce or reimburse the individual's costs for housing accommodations; and (2) grants, loans, or other payments for the costs of minor rehabilitation of housing owned or rented by TANF-eligible individuals. Requires State plans to describe: (1) the primary problems that families receiving assistance and families who have recently ceased receiving assistance experience in securing and retaining adequate affordable housing; and (2) the methods adopted to identify and remedy barriers to work posed by living arrangements, housing costs, and housing locations. Requires an individual responsibility plan to include housing-related benefits or services the State or other entities will provide to overcome those barriers. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (Secretary) and the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development jointly to: (1) develop a uniform data collection and matching protocol to determine the type of subsidized housing received by families receiving assistance and federally- or State-funded housing benefits; and (2) award grants for the conduct and evaluation of demonstrations of different models to provide housing with services. Requires participating States to enter into cooperation agreements with public housing agencies for economic self-sufficiency activities. Authorizes States to invite private owners of federally assisted housing to participate in cooperation agreements. Authorizes the Secretary to make housing assistance available for certain qualified aliens, including battered aliens or their children.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 2002
Congratulates the mighty University of Maryland Terrapins for winning the 2002 NCAA national men's basketball championship on April 1, 2002. Recognizes the achievements of the players, coaches, and support staff who were instrumental in helping the University of Maryland Terrapins win the 2002 NCAA championship.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 2002
Children First Act of 2002 - Amends part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) exclude child care assistance from the determination of the five year limit on assistance under TANF; (2) increase funding for child care; and (3) require State TANF plans to include a certification of procedures to ensure that child care providers comply with applicable State or local health and safety standards. Raises from six years to 13 years the age of a child whose single custodial parent may refuse to engage in required work without incurring a reduction or termination of TANF under the State program. Subjects to the individual and case data reporting requirements of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 any TANF funds expended for child care, whether or not transferred to that Act, and exempts such funds from SSA reporting requirements. Amends the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 to increase the set-aside for child care quality.