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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 · 30 January 1991
Designates March 10 through March 16, 1991, as Deaf Awareness Week.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 1991
Designates the month of May 1991 as National Foster Care Month.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 1991
Social Security Administration Services Preservation Act of 1991 - Amends title VII (Administration) of the Social Security Act to require the Social Security Administration (SSA) to provide adequate public notice of a determination to close, consolidate, or recategorize an SSA office at least 90 days before such determination is implemented. Requires the SSA, when making such determination, to consider: (1) the effect of such change on the community served by such office; (2) the community's need for personal service as opposed to mail or telephone service; (3) the effect of such determination on office employees; and (4) the SSA'S economic savings attributable to such change. Directs the Commissioner of Social Security or the Deputy Commissioner of Social Security to personally approve all preliminary and final determinations to close full-time offices that provide a full range of services. Requires that a public hearing on a preliminary determination to close, consolidate, or recategorize an office be held upon written request at or near the location of the affected office. Directs the SSA to issue a final report within 30 days after such hearing or 90 days after public notice of its preliminary determination, whichever is later, to the local press and appropriate Members of Congress specifying its final determination and incorporating all hearing testimony and written comments received. Provides the public with notice of and access to such final report. Authorizes persons served by an affected office to appeal a final determination to close, consolidate, or recategorize an office within the 30 days following adequate public notice of such determination. Requires the SSA to include in its annual budget submission to the Congress a list of all SSA offices and contact stations which were closed or discontinued during the preceding year and those scheduled to be closed or discontinued and the date on which such action is planned.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 1991
Directs the Secretary of Defense to make grants to eligible local educational agencies in order to provide: (1) individual and group counseling for children and other family members of military personnel who have been deployed in connection with, or are casualties of, an armed conflict; (2) training and technical assistance for teachers and other school employees to prepare them to address questions and concerns of children of such military personnel; and (3) other appropriate programs, services, and information to address the special needs of such children and other family members of such military personnel resulting from their deployment, return, or resultant medical or rehabilitation needs. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to make grants to appropriate nonprofit organizations (such as the YMCA and Red Cross) that enter into an agreement with the Secretary to furnish family support services to families of military personnel: (1) living in an area outside of a U.S. military installation in which there is a significant concentration of families of members of the reserve serving on active duty in connection with the Persian Gulf; or (2) living at or in the vicinity of an installation or facility of the Department of Defense where there is a demonstrated need to increase case-managed family support services for families of military personnel deployed in connection with a current armed conflict or to consolidate the furnishing of such services through a family support center at such facility. Outlines other grant uses and conditions. Requires funds made available to a military family support center to be used to increase the availability of case-managed family support services at such facility or installation. Provides a $50,000 minimum for each grant. Limits to 15 percent of the grant the amount which may be used to provide actual notice to appropriate military families of the availability of family support services from the grant recipients. Authorizes appropriations. Allows a reserve member called to active duty in connection with the Persian Gulf conflict and covered at the time of such call under an employer-provided group health insurance plan for the member and his or her family to elect to continue coverage under the employer-provided plan in lieu of being provided interim coverage while on active duty under the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS). Requires the Secretary of Defense, in the case of such an election, to reimburse the private employer for the cost of continued coverage during the member's period of active duty. Requires the employer to provide continued coverage under the private plan for the beneficiaries of such reserve personnel, unless the plan for all employees of the employer is discontinued. Requires the Secretary to apply requirements and limitations similar to those applicable to the continuation coverage of group health plans under the Internal Revenue Code. States that all direct or discretionary spending contained in this Act is to be considered emergency expenditures related to Operation Desert Shield for purposes of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act).
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 1991
Grants a Federal charter to the 29th Division Association, Incorporated.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 1991
Designates 1991 as the Year of Public Health. Recognizes the 75th anniversary of Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 1991
Designates the week beginning March 4, 1991, as Federal Employees Recognition Week.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 1991
Designates April 6, 1991, as National Student-Athlete Day.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 1991
Designates the months of April 1991 and 1992 as National Child Abuse Prevention Month.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 1991
Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to submit to the Congress monthly reports on Department of Defense obligations and expenditures to carry out Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm and on financial contributions made to the United States by foreign countries in support of each Operation.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 1991
National Voter Registration Act of 1991 - Requires each State to establish procedures with respect to presidential and congressional elections to permit voter registration by: (1) application in person simultaneously with application for a motor vehicle driver's license; (2) mail application; or (3) application in person at designated Federal, State, or nongovernmental office locations. Declares that this Act does not apply to any State that has no voter registration requirement with respect to elections for Federal office, or in which voters may register at the polling place at the time of a general election for Federal office. Requires each State to: (1) assure that any eligible applicant who submits an application by a certain deadline before the election is registered to vote in the election; (2) require the appropriate State election official to notify each applicant of the disposition of the application; (3) provide that the name of a voter may not be removed from the official list of eligible voters except by reason of death, criminal conviction, mental incapacity, change in residence, or voter request; (4) inform applicants under this Act of voter eligibility requirements and penalties provided by law for submission of a false voter registration application; (5) incorporate in application forms and other forms used at locations specified in this Act some means by which the person completing the form may decline to register to vote in elections for Federal office; and (6) provide a registration form to any individual who does not decline to register. Provides that any State program or activity to protect the integrity of the electoral process by assuring an accurate and current voter registration roll for elections for Federal office: (1) shall be uniform and nondiscriminatory; and (2) shall not result in the removal of the name of any person from the official list of registered voters for failing to vote. Prohibits a general or comprehensive program which is designed to systematically remove ineligible voters from the rolls from taking place less than 60 days prior to a primary or general election for Federal office. Prohibits a State from removing the name of a voter from the official list of eligible voters for Federal elections on the grounds that the registrant has moved, unless such registrant: (1) confirms in writing that he or she has changed residence to a place outside the jurisdiction of the registrar; or (2) has failed to respond to a notice from the registrar and has not appeared to vote and, if necessary, correct the address in an election during a certain period. States that in the event of a change of address, for voting purposes, of a voter to another address within the same jurisdiction, the registrar shall correct the voting registration list accordingly. Prohibits such voter's name from being removed from the registry of eligible voters by reason of such change of address, except as provided in this Act. Requires the United States attorney to give the chief State election official written notice of an offender's felony conviction in Federal district court. Amends Federal postal rate law to require the Postal Service to make certain lower postal rates available to State or local election officials who certify that a mailing is in furtherance of this Act. Directs the Federal Election Commission to: (1) develop a mail voter registration application form for Federal elections; (2) submit, not later than June 30 of each odd-numbered year, to the Congress a report assessing the impact of this Act on the administration of Federal elections during the preceding two-year period; and (3) provide information to the States with respect to their responsibilities. Requires each State to designate a chief State election official to coordinate State functions under this Act. Provides a private right of action for an individual aggrieved by a violation of this Act. Provides for the awarding of attorney fees to the prevailing party, other than the United States. Imposes criminal penalties upon any person who: (1) intimidates, threatens, or coerces any person for registering or voting or exercising any right under this Act; or (2) deprives or defrauds the inhabitants of a State of a fair and impartially conducted election process.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 1991
Older Americans Act Reauthorization Amendments of 1991 - Reauthorizes and extends the Older Americans Act of 1965 through FY 1995.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 1991
Congressional Recycling Act of 1991 - Requires the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate to purchase recycled paper and paper products for use to the greatest extent practicable in the operations of the House and the Senate. Directs the Public Printer to assure that the Government Printing Office uses recycled paper in providing services to the House.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 1991
Authorizes the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity to establish a memorial to Martin Luther King, Jr., in the District of Columbia and its environs. Prohibits the United States from paying any expense of establishing the memorial.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 1991
Amends the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 to modify the ban on honoraria to allow Federal officers and employees, other than Representatives in, or Delegates or Resident Commissioners to, the Congress and noncareer officers and employees whose rate of basic pay exceeds GS-15, to receive an honorarium for an article in a bona fide publication, a speech, or an appearance if: (1) the subject of the article, speech, or appearance and the reason for which the honorarium is paid is unrelated to the recipient's official duties or status; and (2) the party offering the honorarium has no interests that may be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of the recipient's official duties. Prohibits the amount of such honorarium accepted from exceeding the usual and customary fee for the services for which the honorarium is paid, up to $2,000. Subjects the acceptance of any honorarium to financial disclosure under the Ethics in Government Act of 1978. Extends the period within which the Clerk of the House or the Secretary of the Senate must send a copy of each financial disclosure report filed by a Member or candidate to the appropriate State officer designated under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 1991
Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 to require (current law authorizes) the Secretary of Defense to allow members of the U.S. armed forces serving under arduous conditions as part of Operation Desert Shield to participate in a savings program designed for military personnel assigned to permanent duty outside the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 1991
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the President should immediately review all economic benefits provided by the U.S. Government to the Soviet Union, report to the Congress on whether such benefits should be suspended in light of Soviet actions in the Baltic States, suspend all ongoing technical exchanges, consider withdrawing U.S. support for Soviet membership in the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, or General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, and withhold Most Favored Nation trade treatment until: (1) Soviet troops refrain from obstructing the functioning of the democratic governments of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia; (2) the troops that were deployed following the January 7 announcement by the Soviet Defense Ministry, (of the deployment of additional troops to specified republics) are withdrawn; (3) Soviet authorities cease their interference with the media in such States; (4) good-faith negotiations between the governments of such States and the Soviet Union on the restoration of sovereignty to such States have begun; and (5) concrete assurances are received from President Gorbachev that grain purchased with U.S. credits will not be used to coerce such States or any Soviet republic to sign the Union Treaty. States that the United States should consult with and encourage its allies to follow a similar policy.
United States · United States Congress · 15 January 1991
Designates September 8 through 14, 1991, as National Historically Black Colleges Week.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Allows retired military personnel who are recalled to active duty to serve in the highest grade previously held while on active duty. (Currently, retired personnel who are recalled to active duty must be recalled in the grade in which they retired.) Makes this Act effective as of August 2, 1990.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Repeals current Federal law which: (1) prohibits military personnel from being entitled to unemployment compensation before the fifth week after discharge or release; and (2) limits the aggregate amount of compensation payable on the basis of active service in the armed forces in any benefit year to 13 weeks of compensation.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income compensation received for active service as a member in the armed forces for any month served in a dangerous foreign area. (Current provisions exclude such income for any month served in a combat zone.) Increases from $500 to $2,000 the compensation excluded from the gross income of commissioned officers.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Spark M. Matsunaga Concurrent Payment of Retired Pay and Compensation Benefits Act - Permits retired members of the armed forces to be paid retirement pay concurrently with compensation for any service-connected disability if the person's entitlement to such retirement pay is based solely on: (1) age; (2) length of service; or (3) both. Reduces the amount of retirement pay, in the case of individuals receiving both types of pay, by a specified percentage of the disability compensation which decreases as the disability rating increases. Prohibits any reduction in the retirement pay of a disabled person when the disability rating is total.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Disregards the period of service in the Persian Gulf in connection with Operation Desert Shield, including any period of hospitalization outside the United States as a result of injury received while serving in such region, and the next 180 days thereafter, in determining the time for performing certain tax-related acts required under the Internal Revenue Code.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permanently extend the period during which qualified mortgage bonds and mortgage credit certificates may be issued.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Strengthening Education for American Families Act - Title I: National Goals - Sets forth national goals for education, to be achieved by the year 2000, in the following categories: (1) family literacy and lifelong learning; (2) disadvantaged children's readiness for school; (3) school completion; (4) student achievement; (5) mathematics and science; (6) safe, disciplined, and drug-free schools; (7) teacher recruitment and retention; and (8) equal opportunity for postsecondary education. Title II: National Council on Educational Goals - National Academic Report Card Act of 1991 - Establishes a National Council on Educational Goals (the Council). Directs the Council, after the conclusion of its first meeting, to submit: (1) an interim report within one year; and (2) a National Report Card, within two years and annually thereafter for the duration of its existence. Requires the interim report to: (1) establish a timetable for reporting progress toward achieving the national educational goals by the year 2000; and (2) include a series of reasonable steps for measuring implementation and success of each recommendation of the Council. Requires the National Report Card to set forth an analysis of U.S. progress toward achieving the national education goals, presented in a form understandable to parents and the general public. Provides that the National Report Card may, if the Council deems necessary, also: (1) describe modifications to existing goals; (2) identify continuing gaps in existing educational data; and (3) make recommendations to improve methods and procedures of assessing educational attainment and to strengthen the national educational assessment and information system. Directs the Secretary of Education to make matching grants to the States to: (1) conduct State summits on education; (2) evaluate progress toward implementing national goals; and (3) evaluate the implementation process. Requires States receiving such grants to report on State goals and plans. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1992 through 2001 for: (1) the Council and its National Report Card; and (2) State summits on education. Title III: Literacy - National Literacy Act of 1991 - Provides for comprehensive activities to ensure that all Americans can become literate by the year 2000. Part A: Literacy: Strategic Planning, Research, and Coordination -Establishes an Interagency Task Force on Literacy. Amends the Department of Education Organization Act to direct the Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education to coordinate literacy-related programs. Establishes the National Institute for Literacy and the National Institute Board. Authorizes the Institute to award Literacy Leader Fellowships. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Adult Education Act (AEA) to authorize the Secretary of Education (the Secretary) to make grants to establish a network of State or regional adult literacy resource centers. Authorizes appropriations. Part B: Workforce Literacy - Establishes in the Department of Labor a National Workforce Literacy Assistance Collaborative. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Adult Education Act (AEA) to revise provisions for national workforce literacy strategies grants business, industry, labor, and education partnerships for workplace literacy. Requires the Secretary of Education (the Secretary), in awarding grants for exemplary demonstration partnerships for workplace literacy, to: (1) give priority to partnerships which include small businesses; and (2) limit such grant awards to not more than three years. Directs the Secretary to reserve a specified amount, whenever appropriations for workforce literacy partnership grants exceed a certain level, to establish a program of grants for large-scale national workforce literacy strategies. Authorizes appropriations for AEA workforce literacy programs. Part C: Investment in Literacy - Extends through FY 1995 the authorization of appropriations for programs under the Adult Education Act (AEA). Revises the use of funds under the AEA basic State grants program. Requires that basic grants to States also be used for competitive two-year Gateway Grants to public housing authorities for literacy programs and related activities. Requires biennial evaluations and reports on such Gateway Grants. Revises AEA to give State advisory councils, plans, and evaluations literacy-related responsibilities. Requires States to report biennially to the Interagency Task Force on meeting literacy goals, coordinating workplace literacy services, and building a high quality delivery system for adult literacy programs. Provides for training educators to recognize and serve illiterate individuals more effectively. Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to revise targeted assistance programs under ESEA to include training programs to enhance the ability of teachers and school counselors to identify, particularly in the early grades, students with reading and related problems which place them at risk for adult illiteracy. Renames the Even Start program under ESEA the Even Start Family Literacy Program. Revises the program to expand eligibility to include community-based organizations or other nonprofit organizations of demonstrated quality applying in collaboration with a local educational agency (LEA) (as well as LEAs and LEA consortia). Sets minimum grant amounts. Makes individual children eligible from birth through age seven (currently from age one through age seven). Provides for continuation of eligibility for certain participants until the parents become ineligible due to educational achievement, or until all children in the family attain age eight. Gives priority to applicants demonstrating that the area to be served has a high percentage or a large number of children and adults in need of program services. Authorizes appropriations for the Even Start Family Literacy Program. Establishes a Family Literacy Public Broadcasting Program. Authorizes the Secretary of Education, subject to availability of appropriations, to contract with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) for production and dissemination of family literacy programming and accompanying materials to assist parents in improving family literacy skills and languages development. Requires CPB to: (1) cooperate with local public broadcasting stations; (2) arrange for distribution of audio and video instructional media materials for use, and distribution on loan, to families at sites chosen from among State and local libraries with literacy programs and nonprofit entities serving hard-to-serve populations; and (3) report to the Congress. Authorizes appropriations for the Family Literacy Public Broadcasting Program. Part D: Business Leadership for Employment Skills - Amends the Adult Education Act (AEA) to provide for education programs for commercial drivers. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to make competitive matching grants for adult education programs which increase the literacy skills of eligible commercial drivers so that they may successfully complete the knowledge test requirements under the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986. Requires grantees to refer individuals identified as having literacy skill problems to appropriate adult education programs. Authorizes appropriations. Part E: Books for Families - Revises the ESEA inexpensive book distribution program to require that priority be given in selection of additional local programs to those which serve children and students with special needs. Requires the program contractor (Reading is Fundamental) to report to the Secretary of Education annually on such additional programs. Amends the Library Services and Construction Act to direct the Secretary of Education, in awarding grants for library literacy programs and services, to give priority to those that: (1) will be delivered in areas of greatest need with highest concentrations of adults without secondary education or its equivalent, and which either have few community or financial resources or have low per capita income, unemployment, or underemployment; and (2) coordinate with literacy organizations and community-based organizations providing literacy services. Part F: Volunteers for Literacy - Amends the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 to establish a Literacy Challenge Grants program. Authorizes the Director of the ACTION Agency to award such grants to eligible public and private entities to pay the Federal share of costs of establishing, operating, or expanding community or employee literacy programs that include the use of full- or part-time volunteers. Authorizes appropriations for Literacy Challenge Grants, but only if there are specified levels of funding for the VISTA Program and the VISTA Literacy Corps. Part G: Literacy for Incarcerated Individuals - Amends the Adult Education Act (AEA) to establish requirements for mandatory functional literacy programs for incarcerated adults in State correctional systems and local jails or detention centers. Requires such a program to be in effect in at least one major correctional facility, for each State correctional system and each local jail or detention center with an inmate population, within two years after enactment of this Act. Requires, if adequate funds are available, each State correctional system and each local jail or detention center with over 150 inmates to have such a program in effect within five years after enactment of this Act. Sets forth required components of such programs, including inmate mandatory participation (except for any individual who is serving a life sentence without parole, or terminally ill, or under a sentence of death). Requires annual reports. Encourages: (1) parole agencies to make educational recommendations for those being released who do not have a marketable job skill or a high school diploma; and (2) jails with less than 150 inmates to develop such mandatory functional literacy programs.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Family and Medical Leave Act of 1991 - Title I: General Requirements for Leave - Establishes certain requirements for family and medical leave for permanent employees. (Excludes from such coverage: (1) employees at worksites at which the employer employs less than 50 persons, if the total number of employees of that employer within 75 miles of that worksite is less than 50; and (2) Federal officers and employees covered under title II of this Act.) Entitles employees to 12 workweeks of leave during any 12-month period because of: (1) the birth of their child; (2) the placement of a child for their adoption or foster care; (3) their care of a child, spouse, or parent who has a serious health condition; or (4) their own serious health condition which makes them unable to perform the functions of their position. Conditions such leave for the birth or placement of a child as follows: (1) the entitlement ends 12 months after the birth or placement; (2) both parents may not take such leave at the same time; and (3) such leave may not be taken intermittently unless employee and employer agree otherwise. Allows all leave to which an employee is entitled under this title: (1) to be taken on a reduced leave schedule, upon agreement with the employer; and (2) to consist of unpaid leave, except under specified conditions when substitution of certain types of paid leave may be elected or required. Declares that nothing in this Act shall require an employer to provide paid sick or medical leave in any situation in which the employer would not normally provide any such paid leave. Requires employees to: (1) give reasonable notice of the need for leave to which they are entitled under this Act, when foreseeable; and (2) make a reasonable effort to schedule medical treatment or supervision so as not to disrupt unduly the employer's operations, subject to approval of the health care provider. Allows limitation of the dual aggregate leave entitlement to 12 weeks in any 12-month period, in the case of spouses employed by the same employer, if such leave is for the birth or placement of a child or for the care of a sick parent. Sets forth conditions of certification for leave entitlements under this Act, including provisions relating to: (1) sufficient certification; (2) explanation of inability to perform job functions; (3) second opinion; (4) resolution of conflicting opinions; and (5) subsequent recertification. Sets forth employment and benefits protections relating to leave entitlements under this Act, including provisions relating to: (1) restoration to position; and (2) maintenance of health benefits. Prohibits employers or other persons from interfering with employee rights under this Act or from discriminating against any individual because of participation in proceedings or inquiries under this Act. Provides for administrative enforcement of this title by the Secretary of Labor, as well as enforcement by civil action. Sets forth provisions for investigative authority, injunctive and monetary relief, attorneys' fees, and limitation of actions. Sets forth special rules concerning employees of local educational agencies, including provisions relating to intermittent leave for instructional employees, periods near the completion of an academic term, and reduction of liability. Requires employers to post notice of the pertinent provisions of this title. Requires fines for willful violations of such requirement. Directs the Secretary of Labor to prescribe regulations to carry out this title. Title II: Leave for Civil Service Employees - Amends specified Federal law to entitle civil service employees to family and temporary medical leave for specified periods. Allows such employees up to: (1) 12 workweeks in any 12-month period for family leave (i.e., leave because of the birth or placement of a child or care of a sick child or parent), but such leave may not be used at a time more than 12 months after such birth or placement; and (2) 12 workweeks during any 12-month period for temporary medical leave. Provides that such leave will be without pay. Allows employees to substitute other types of paid leave for part of such leave. Provides for protection for job position and health insurance benefits of employees using such leave. Sets forth certification provisions and prohibitions against coercion. Directs the Office of Personnel Management to prescribe regulations for administration of this title which are consistent with the regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Labor under title I of this Act. Title III: Commission on Leave - Establishes the Commission on Leave. Requires the Commission to report on its study of family and medical leave (which may include legislative recommendations concerning coverage of small businesses and alternative and equivalent State enforcement of this Act with respect to employees of local educational agencies) to the Congress within two years after the Commission first meets. Terminates the Commission within 30 days after its report to the Congress. Title IV: Miscellaneous Provisions - Sets forth the effect of this Act on existing laws and existing employment benefits. Provides that nothing in this Act shall be construed to discourage employers from adopting more generous leave policies. Directs the Secretary of Labor to prescribe regulations to carry out this title within 60 days.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Freedom of Choice Act of 1991 - Provides that a State may not restrict the right of a woman to choose to terminate a pregnancy: (1) before fetal viability; or (2) at any time, if such termination is necessary to protect the life or health of the woman. Allows a State to impose requirements medically necessary to protect the life or health of such women.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Amends the National Labor Relations Act and the Railway Labor Act to make it an unfair labor practice for an employer to offer or grant: (1) permanent replacement employee status during a labor dispute; or (2) any employment preference to an individual who worked or indicated a willingness to work during a labor dispute over an employee who exercised specified rights during such dispute and who is working for, or has unconditionally offered to return to work for, the employer.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Child Welfare and Preventive Services Act - Title I: Provisions Relating to Child Welfare and Family Support - Amends part B (Child-Welfare Services) of title IV of the Social Security Act to provide Federal funds to enable States to plan, develop, or expand innovative programs of child welfare services and family support services in order to preserve and strengthen families and prevent the need for placement in foster care. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to authorize demonstration projects to improve the coordination of welfare services for families and children. Directs the Secretaries of HHS, Agriculture, and Education, and the Attorney General to: (1) review department policies to determine whether changes can be made without statutory changes to improve the funding and delivery of such services; and (2) issue a report to the Congress that includes recommendations for both legislative and nonlegislative changes to improve the coordination of the funding and delivery of such services. Amends part E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of title IV of the Social Security Act to set forth provisions to facilitate adoption, including provisions allowing States to disregard adoption assistance payments in determining a family's eligibility for the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program under part A. Directs the Secretary of HHS to establish an Advisory Committee on Foster Care Placement to study and make recommendations regarding the current requirement that States make reasonable efforts to prevent the need for removal of a child from home, and to make it possible for the child to return home, under State plans for foster care and adoption assistance. Requires that a child who is placed in foster care be placed in a setting that is most appropriate for that child. Authorizes demonstration projects to facilitate the reunification of children eligible for AFDC services with their families. Allows States to claim 90 percent Federal matching for the costs of planning, designing, developing, or installing a statewide data collection and information retrieval system for purposes of administering the Child-Welfare Services program and the Foster Care and Adoption Assistance program. Allows States to claim 50 percent Federal matching for the costs of operating a data collection and information system for purposes of administering the Foster Care and Adoption Assistance program. Allows youths in independent living programs to accumulate assets sufficient to enable them to establish their own households. Requires States to submit all claims for Federal reimbursement under the Foster Care and Adoption Assistance program within one year after the calendar quarter in which the expenditure is made (currently, within two years). Outlines the criteria for the Secretary of HHS to use for approving applications by colleges for grants to provide child welfare traineeships. Permits the Secretary of HHS to authorize up to ten States to establish and evaluate specified types of child welfare demonstration projects. Grants such States more flexible spending authority for such purposes. Directs the Secretary, in order to improve the capacity of State and local child welfare agencies to administer Child-Welfare Services and Foster Care and Adoption Assistance programs and to provide services to families and children, to develop and publish a model staff training program for use by such agencies. Requires the health and education records of foster children to include: (1) the telephone numbers of their health and education providers; and (2) a record indicating that their foster care provider was advised of their eligibility for services under the Medicaid program (title XIX of the Social Security Act). Title II: Provisions Relating to Comprehensive Substance Abuse Programs for Pregnant Women and Caretaker Parents with Children - Amends the Child-Welfare Services program to provide Federal funds to enable States to establish comprehensive substance abuse programs for certain low-income pregnant women and caretaker parents with children. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Provisions Relating to Child Health - Amends the Medicaid program to allow States to provide federally reimbursed Medicaid coverage for children of families with income below 185 percent of the Federal poverty level. Allows States to extend Medicaid coverage to children born before October 1, 1983, who have attained six years of age but have not attained 19 years of age or a lesser age as selected by the State. Provides for optional State Medicaid coverage for foster children. Provides for optional State Medicaid coverage of: (1) home visitor services for medically fragile infants; and (2) home or community-based services to children with acquired immune deficiency syndrome or children who are ventilator-dependent. Removes restrictions on the ownership of certain assets, such as automobiles and household goods, by pregnant women for purposes of determining Medicaid eligibility. Provides for greater continuous Medicaid eligibility for certain children. Requires States to provide medical assistance under the Medicaid program to any individual who is eligible for and receiving benefits under the Supplemental Security Income program (title XVI of the Social Security Act). Revises the requirement that States with prospective payment systems must provide for outlier payment adjustments for certain expensive services provided to children under age six during their stay in disproportionate share hospitals to make such requirement applicable to children under age 19. Requires the Federal Government to use the most recent data in calculating its matching share for Medicaid. Provides for the extension of certain waivers for services related to pregnancy. Increases the limit on the number of individuals allowed to participate in home and community-based programs under waivers. Outlines various congressional reporting requirements imposed by this Act on the Secretary of HHS, including requirements with respect to the Maternal and Child Health Services program (title V of the Social Security Act). Directs the Secretary of HHS to appoint a Commission on the Evaluation of Disability in Children. Directs the Commission to conduct a study and report to the Congress on the meaning of the term "disability" under the SSI program as it applies to determining whether a child under the age of 18 is eligible to receive benefits under such program. Terminates the Commission on September 30, 1993. Title IV: Provisions Relating to Adoption Expense Deduction - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a deduction for the expenses incurred to adopt a child with special needs, up to an annual limit of $3,000.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Violence Against Women Act of 1991 - Title I: Safe Streets for Women - Safe Streets for Women Act of 1991 - Subtitle A: Federal Penalties for Sex Crimes - Amends Federal law to require the U.S. Sentencing Commission to create or amend guidelines to provide for: (1) up to twice the term of imprisonment or fine for violation, after the first conviction, of Federal laws relating to sexual abuse or similar laws of any State or foreign country; and (2) minimum or increased maximum sentences for rape, aggravated rape, or statutory rape. Requires that a court order restitution for violations of such Federal sexual abuse laws. Subtitle B: Law Enforcement and Prosecution Grants to Reduce Violent Crime Against Women - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to require the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance to make grants to areas of high intensity crime against women. Requires that the grants be used for personnel, training, technical assistance, data collection, and other equipment for the more widespread apprehension, prosecution, and adjudication of persons committing violent crimes against women. Authorizes the Director to make grants to States, for use by States and their subdivisions, to be used for the same purposes as the high intensity area grants and to reduce the the rate of violent crimes against women. Authorizes the Director to make general grants to: (1) States to reduce violent crimes against women; and (2) Indian tribes to reduce violent crimes against women in Indian country. Authorizes the Director, in addition to the grants under this subtitle, to direct any Federal agency, with or without reimbursement, to use its authorities and resources in support of State and local assistance efforts. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle C: Safety for Women in Public Transit and Public Parks - Directs the Secretary of Transportation, from funds authorized under existing provisions, to make capital grants for the prevention of crime and to increase security in existing and future public transportation systems. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants and loans to States and local public bodies to increase the safety of public transportation through lighting, camera surveillance, security phones, or other projects. Sets the Federal share of each project at 90 percent of the net cost. Directs the Secretary to provide grants and loans to study ways to reduce violent crimes against women in public transit through better design or operation of public transit systems. Amends the National Park System Improvements in Administration Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide assistance to reduce violent crime in the National Park System (NPS). Provides for compilation of a list of areas within the NPS with the highest rates of violent crime. Allows funds to be used, around public parks and recreation areas, for increasing lighting, providing emergency phone lines, increasing security or law enforcement personnel, and any other project to increase security and safety. Amends the Land and Water Conservation Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of the Interior to provide grants for capital improvements and other measures to increase safety in public parks and recreation areas. Subtitle D: National Commission on Violent Crime Against Women - Establishes the National Commission on Violent Crime Against Women to promote a national policy on violent crime against women and to make recommendations on reducing such crime. Authorizes appropriations. Terminates the Commission after submission of its final report, subject to extension by the President for up to one more year. Subtitle E: New Evidentiary Rules - Amends the Federal Rules of Evidence to exclude, notwithstanding any other provision of law and in criminal cases other than a sex offense case, reputation or opinion evidence of the past sexual behavior of a victim from admission into evidence. Allows other types of evidence of a victim's past sexual behavior in accordance with specified procedures if its probative value outweighs the danger of unfair prejudice. Makes reputation or opinion evidence of the plaintiff's past sexual behavior, notwithstanding any other provisions of law, inadmissable in a civil action involving allegations of actionable sexual misconduct. Makes other types of evidence of a plaintiff's past sexual behavior admissible in accordance with specified procedures if its probative value outweighs the danger of unfair prejudice. Defines actionable sexual misconduct to include sex harassment or discrimination claims under title VII (Equal Employment Opportunity) of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and gender bias claims under title III of this Act. Makes evidentiary rulings made under specified Federal Rules of Evidence relating to sex offense cases and the relevance of a victim's past behavior subject to interlocutory appeal by the Government or by the alleged victim. Allows the alleged victim to waive those rules if the prosecution seeks to offer evidence of prior sexual history. Makes evidence of an alleged victim's clothing, notwithstanding any other provision of law and in a criminal case under Federal laws relating to sexual abuse, inadmissable to show the victim incited or invited the offense. Subtitle F: Assistance to Victims of Sexual Assault - Amends the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to allow States to use amounts transferred by the State under block grant provisions for rape prevention and education programs conducted by rape crisis centers or similar nongovernmental nonprofit entities. Authorizes appropriations. Removes a requirement that a minimum amount from the block grants under the PHSA be allotted to States on the basis of population. Removes provisions allowing a State to use amounts paid to the State under block grant provisions and amounts transferred by the State to provide services to rape victims and for rape prevention. Requires grant recipients under this title to incur the full cost of forensic medical exams for victims of sexual assault. Title II: Safe Homes for Women - Safe Homes for Women Act of 1990 - Subtitle A: Interstate Enforcement - Provides for a Federal term of imprisonment or fine, in addition to any State penalties, for any person who travels or causes another (including the intended victim) to travel across State lines or in interstate commerce with intent to injure a spouse or intimate partner and who, during the travel or thereafter, injures his or her spouse or intimate partner in violation of a criminal law of the State where the injury occurs, or in violation of a State protection order. Provides for temporary protection orders while a case under these provisions is pending. Mandates that a court order restitution to the victim of an offense under this Act. Requires, provided certain conditions are met, that a protection order issued by the court of one State be accorded full faith and credit by the court of another State. Makes a protection order issued against a person who filed a written pleading for protection not entitled to full faith and credit if no cross or counter petition, complaint, or other written pleading was filed seeking such a protection order or, if a cross or counter petition was filed, the court did not specifically find each party entitled to such an order. Subtitle B: Arrest in Spousal Abuse Cases - Amends the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA) to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants, with regard to spousal abuse, to: (1) implement pro-arrest programs and policies in police departments and improve case tracking; (2) centralize and coordinate police enforcement, prosecution, or judicial responsibility for cases in one group of officers, prosecutors, or judges; and (3) educate judges to improve judicial handling of cases. Directs the Secretary to delegate to the Attorney General responsibility to carry out these provisions. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle C: Funding for Shelters - Amends the FVPSA to authorize appropriations to carry out that Act, earmarking at least 85 percent of funds appropriated for State demonstration grants to prevent family violence and provide immediate shelter and related assistance. Limits the percentage which may be used to carry out public information campaigns under provisions of subtitle D of this title. Subtitle D: Family Violence Prevention and Services Act Amendments - Allows demonstration grants to be used to increase public awareness about, as well as to prevent, family violence. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants for public information campaigns regarding domestic violence. Requires each State, in order to be eligible for the grants, to establish a Commission on Domestic Violence to examine matters such as arrest, prosecution, sentencing, restitution, and reporting. Directs (currently, authorizes) the Secretary to make a specified percentage (currently, no specified percentage) available for demonstration grants to Indian tribes. Removes the limit on the aggregate amount of grants to any single entity. Revises requirements regarding the local share of program costs for grants to entities other than States or Indian tribes. Increases the percentage of funds required to be used for shelter and related assistance for victims of family violence and their dependents. Allows law enforcement training grants to be made under existing provisions only to private nonprofit organizations with experience in providing training and technical assistance to law enforcement personnel on a national or regional basis. Directs the Secretary to make grants to at least ten States to assist in becoming model demonstration States and in improving State leadership concerning: (1) increasing prosecutions for domestic crimes; (2) encouraging reporting of domestic violence; and (3) facilitating arrests and aggressive prosecution policies. Sets forth requirements for being designated a model State. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary to delegate responsibilities under these provisions to the Attorney General. Directs the Secretary to make grants or contracts for the establishment and maintenance of six national resource centers to provide training and technical assistance to State, Indian tribal, and local domestic violence programs and to other professionals who provide services to domestic violence victims. Subtitle E: Youth Education and Domestic Violence - Directs the Secretary of Education to develop three separate model programs for education of young people about domestic violence and violence among intimate partners, with one program for each of primary and middle schools, secondary schools, and institutions of higher education. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle F: Confidentiality for Abused Persons - Requires the Postmaster General to promulgate regulations to secure the confidentiality of abused persons' addresses. Title III: Civil Rights - Declares that all persons within the United States shall have the same rights, privileges, and immunities in every State as are enjoyed by all other persons to be free from crimes of violence motivated by the victim's gender (defined as any crime of violence, including rape, sexual assault, sexual abuse, abusive sexual contact, or any other crime of violence committed because of or on the basis of gender). Makes any person, including a person who acts under color of any statute, ordinance, regulation, custom, or usage of any State, who deprives another of the rights, privileges, and immunities secured by the Constitution and laws as enumerated by this Act liable to the injured party in an action for compensatory and punitive damages, injunctive and declaratory relief, or other relief as the court deems appropriate. Amends the Civil Rights Attorney's Fees Awards Act of 1976 to allow the awarding of attorney's fees in actions to enforce this title. Title IV: Safe Campuses for Women - Safe Campuses for Women Act of 1990 - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to authorize the Secretary of Education to make, on a competitive basis, grants to and contracts with institutions of higher education for rape education and prevention programs. Requires that the grants be used to educate and provide support services to student victims of rape or sexual assault, with 25 percent of the funds available for model demonstration programs for rape prevention and education curricula and for local programs to provide services to student rape victims. Authorizes appropriations to carry out title X (Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education) of the Act. Amends the Crime Awareness and Campus Security Act of 1990 to add sexual assault to the list of criminal offenses about which statistics must be disclosed by institutions participating in certain programs. Title V: Equal Justice for Women in the Courts Act of 1990 - Equal Justice for Women in the Courts Act of 1991 - Subtitle A: Education and Training for Judges and Court Personnel in State Courts - Authorizes the State Justice Institute to make grants for model programs to be used by States in training judges and court personnel in State laws on rape, sexual assault, domestic violence, and other crimes of violence motivated by the victim's gender. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the State Justice Institute to expend at least: (1) 40 percent of appropriated funds on programs regarding domestic violence; and (2) 40 percent on programs regarding rape and assault. Subtitle B: Education and Training for Judges and Court Personnel in Federal Courts - Directs the Federal Judicial Center to study and report on the nature and extent of gender bias in the Federal courts. Requires the Center to develop and disseminate model programs to be used in training Federal judges and court personnel in the laws on rape, sexual assault, domestic violence, and other crimes of violence motivated by the victim's gender. Authorizes appropriations. Requires between 25 and 40 percent of such funds to be used for the study required by this subtitle.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from the gross income of an individual the following qualified employer-provided transportation fringe benefits: (1) the value of transportation in a commuter highway vehicle between the employee's residence and workplace; and (2) up to $60 per month of the value of any transit pass entitling the employee to transportation on mass transit facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Central American Democracy and Development Act - Declares that it is U.S. policy to: (1) encourage and support the Central American countries in efforts to build democracy, restore peace, establish respect for human rights, expand economic opportunities, and improve living conditions; (2) support and encourage dialogue as the proper means of resolving armed conflicts in Central America; (3) assist in, and secure greater international support for, the recommendations of the International Commission on Central American Recovery and Development; (4) participate in, and contribute to, the United Nations Development Programme for its Special Plan of Economic Cooperation for Central America; (5) help organize a partnership among donor countries and the Central American countries to provide a means of mobilizing resources and promoting a forum for dialogue about issues of development, democracy, social justice, and human rights; and (6) support and promote the President's proposed Enterprise for the Americas Initiative to assist Central American countries in opening their economies and managing their foreign debt. Requires the United States, if requested by the governments of Central America, to provide assistance for the development of the Central American Development Coordination Commission.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to declare that any individual who performed Desert Shield services (and the individual's spouse) shall be entitled to an extension of time for performing certain tax-related acts by reason of service in a combat zone. Allows the payment of interest on any overpayments due such individuals starting April 15. (Generally, interest will be paid only on refunds made more than 45 days after a return is filed.) Applies the time extension granted by this Act to individuals during any period of continuous hospitalization.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Chesapeake Bay Restoration Act of 1991 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to maintain within EPA a Chesapeake Bay Liaison Office to support the Chesapeake Executive Council in the following areas: (1) supporting and coordinating Federal, State, and local efforts to improve the water quality and living resources of the Chesapeake Bay; (2) assisting Bay program signatories in implementing specific action plans to carry out responsibilities under the Chesapeake Bay Agreement; (3) collecting and making available information on the Bay's environmental quality and living resources; and (4) coordinating the monitoring and data collection program to assess the impact of environmental changes on the Bay. Requires the Administrator and the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to implement science, research, monitoring, and data collection activities supporting the Chesapeake Bay Program. Sets forth responsibilities of the Administrator of NOAA with respect to the Chesapeake Bay. Directs the Administrators to ensure that projects for which funds are requested have undergone peer review. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the EPA Administrator to implement the Comprehensive Basinwide Toxics Reduction Strategy to achieve a multijurisdictional approach for reducing toxic inputs to the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed. Directs the Administrator to: (1) undertake research and monitoring to improve understanding of intermedia transfers and the eventual fate and biological effects of toxics within the Bay watershed; and (2) implement toxics reduction and prevention programs. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the EPA Administrator to expedite the development of a Chesapeake Bay watershed land use data base to provide information to plan for and manage growth and development and associated impacts on the Chesapeake Bay system. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the EPA Administrator to establish a demonstration program to address problems associated with urban and suburban runoff. Sets forth program requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the EPA Administrator, the Administrator of NOAA, and the Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service to implement a living resources program for the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed to meet commitments in the Chesapeake Bay Agreement. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the EPA Administrator to study and report to the Congress on the Chesapeake Bay Agreement, Chesapeake Bay Program management strategies, and the Chesapeake Bay restoration program. Authorizes appropriations. Extends the authorizations of appropriations for the Chesapeake Bay Program and related interstate development plan grants through FY 1994.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Increase and Agent Orange Act of 1991 - Title I: Compensation Rate Increases - Increases the rates of veterans' disability compensation, additional compensation for dependents, the clothing allowance for certain disabled veterans, and dependency and indemnity compensation for surviving spouses and children. Title II: Agent Orange Exposure and Vietnam Service - States that the following diseases will be presumed to be service-connected for purposes of eligibility for veterans' disability compensation, if they become manifest to a degree of disability of ten-percent or more in a veteran who served on active duty in Vietnam during the Vietnam era: (1) non-Hodgkins lymphoma; (2) each soft-tissue sarcoma, with specified exceptions; and (3) chloracne, if it becomes manifest to such degree within one year after the last date the veteran performed active duty in Vietnam. Provides that, in the case of a Vietnam veteran exposed to certain dioxins or other herbicide agents during service in Vietnam, specified diseases listed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and identified as having a positive association with the biological effects of exposure to such herbicide agent shall be considered to have been incurred in or aggravated by such service, even though there is no record of such disease having occurred during such service. Presumes that Vietnam veterans having such disease were exposed to such dioxin or herbicide during their Vietnam service, unless there is affirmative evidence to the contrary. Authorizes the Secretary to extend the applicability of this section to those exposed to the same type of dioxins or herbicides outside of Vietnam while on active duty. Provides a presumption of service-connection in the case of a Vietnam veteran suffering from a disease associated with effects of exposure to certain dioxins or other herbicide agents during such service in Vietnam. Directs the Secretary to prescribe regulations listing a positive association between any disease and the biological effects of exposure to an herbicide agent in Vietnam. Requires the Secretary, in prescribing and revising such list, to obtain by contract the determinations and estimates of a contract scientific organization. Requires such organization to: (1) determine which diseases have any degree of association with the biological effects of exposure to a herbicide agent; and (2) estimate the extent of association between each such disease and each such biological effect. Requires the organization to determine such association specifically with respect to lung cancer and each other cancer. Outlines contract provisions required in such agreements between the Secretary and the scientific organization, including surveys, evaluations, and periodic determinations. Requires such scientific organizations to provide reports to the Secretary and the Senate and House Veterans' Affairs Committees regarding their determinations and evaluations. Requires such organization to determine, in the event of a positive association, whether there is a reasonable basis for concluding that a Vietnam veteran with the highest level of exposure to that herbicide agent in Vietnam was exposed to such agent under the circumstances necessary for such biological effects. Requires a report from the organization to the Secretary and the veterans' committees when there is no such reasonable basis found. Requires the Secretary to make certain determinations and follow-up reports after receiving such reports from the contract scientific organization, including the issuance of a report to the veterans' committees and the promulgation of positive association regulations, if necessary. Requires benefits to be continued even though a disease is removed from the regulations listing diseases having positive associations. Terminates such contracting authority ten years after the first day of the fiscal year in which a scientific organization transmits its first report to the Secretary. Provides interim regulations and special effective dates. Directs the Secretary to compile and analyze all clinical data that: (1) are obtained by the Department in connection with examinations and treatment of veterans for disabilities related to exposure to certain herbicides or to service in Vietnam; and (2) are likely to be scientifically useful in determining the association, if any, between the disabilities of such veterans and their exposure to such herbicides and other toxic substances. Requires the Secretary to submit an annual report to the veterans' committees concerning such analysis and its results. Directs the Secretary to consult with the Director of the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) before compiling and analyzing such information. Requires the Director of OTA to review each annual report submitted by the Secretary and transmit to the Secretary an evaluation of the contents of each report. Directs the Secretary to establish and maintain a system for the collection and storage of voluntarily contributed samples of blood and tissue of veterans who performed active service in Vietnam during the Vietnam era. Outlines provisions concerning the security and authorized uses of such specimens, as well as limitations on the acceptance of such samples. Requires the Secretary to consult with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to the extent that an agreement has been reached with the NAS serving as the contract scientific organization for the Secretary. Requires the Secretary to consult with the Director of OTA in the event of no agreement with NAS. Directs the Secretary to establish a program to provide for the conduct of studies of the feasibility of conducting additional scientific research on health hazards resulting from: (1) exposure to dioxin; (2) exposure to other toxic agents in herbicides used in support of U.S. and allied military operations in Vietnam during the Vietnam era; and (3) active military, naval, or air service there. Requires the Secretary to report to the veterans' committees on the results of such studies. Requires the Secretary to consult with the NAS before undertaking such studies and requires the NAS to review such studies and report recommendations to the Secretary and the veterans' committees, to the extent provided under any agreement between the Secretary and the NAS. Amends the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 1988 to require the Secretary to annually furnish updated information listed in the Department of Veterans Affairs Agent Orange Registry on health risks resulting from exposure to dioxin or other toxic agents in herbicides as a result of service in Vietnam during the Vietnam era. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to report to the veterans' committees on the research being conducted to develop treatments for physiological absorption of dioxin and other toxic agents used in herbicides by the United States in Vietnam, including research relating to exposure to dioxin and other toxic agents outside Vietnam. Extends through December 31, 1993, the eligibility for hospital and nursing home care for veterans exposed to toxic substances in Vietnam.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent the income tax exclusion of amounts paid under employee educational assistance programs.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Designates the months of November 1991 and November 1992 as National Alzheimer's Disease Month.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Declares that the Department of Commerce, in considering the population discrepancies in the 1990 census, should utilize the statistical correction methodology to achieve a fair and accurate census.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Designates the year 1992 as Year of the Wetlands.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 1991
Constitutional Amendment - Declares that equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State on account of sex.
United States · United States Congress · 12 January 1991
Calls on President Gorbachev to refrain from further use of coercive tactics against the democratically-elected Governments of Lithuania, Latvia, or Estonia and declares that such tactics are unacceptable among the community of democratic nations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 January 1991
Declares that the Congress: (1) is firmly committed to reversing Iraq's occupation of Kuwait; and (2) supports the continued application of international sanctions and diplomatic efforts to pressure Iraq to leave Kuwait, but does not rule out declaring war or authorizing the use of force at a later time. Authorizes the use of American military force to enforce the United Nations economic embargo against Iraq, defend Saudi Arabia from direct Iraqi attack, and protect American forces in the region. Pledges continued support for sustaining the policy of increasing economic and diplomatic pressure against Iraq, maintaining U.S. military options, and seeking to increase the military and financial contributions made by allied nations. Declares that: (1) the Constitution vests all power to declare war in the Congress; and (2) the Congress will expeditiously consider any presidential request for a declaration of war or for authority to use military force against Iraq. Sets forth congressional priority procedures for consideration of a joint resolution declaring war or authorizing military force against Iraq.
United States · United States Congress · 23 October 1990
Declares that the fast track procedure under the Trade Act of 1974 shall not apply to the Senate's consideration of an implementing bill for the Uruguay Round on the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.
United States · United States Congress · 19 October 1990
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise provisions concerning rollovers from qualified employer pensions plans. Allows the tax-free rollover of savings into individual retirement accounts. Makes this Act effective for distributions made after December 31, 1986.
United States · United States Congress · 18 October 1990
Chesapeake Bay Restoration Act of 1990 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to maintain within EPA a Chesapeake Bay Liaison Office to support the Chesapeake Executive Council in the following areas: (1) supporting and coordinating Federal, State, and local efforts to improve the water quality and living resources of the Chesapeake Bay; (2) assisting Bay program signatories in implementing specific action plans to carry out responsibilities under the Chesapeake Bay Agreement; (3) collecting and making available information on the Bay's environmental quality and living resources; and (4) coordinating the monitoring and data collection program to assess the impact of environmental changes on the Bay. Requires the Administrator and the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to implement science, research, monitoring, and data collection activities supporting the Chesapeake Bay Program. Sets forth responsibilities of the Administrator of NOAA with respect to the Chesapeake Bay. Directs the Administrators to ensure that projects for which funds are requested have undergone peer review. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the EPA Administrator to implement the Comprehensive Basinwide Toxics Reduction Strategy to achieve a multijurisdictional approach for reducing toxic inputs to the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed. Directs the Administrator to: (1) undertake research and monitoring to improve understanding of intermedia transfers and the eventual fate and biological effects of toxics within the Bay watershed; and (2) implement toxics reduction and prevention programs. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the EPA Administrator to expedite the development of a Chesapeake Bay watershed land use data base to provide information to plan for and manage growth and development and associated impacts on the Chesapeake Bay system. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the EPA Administrator to establish a demonstration program to address problems with urban and suburban runoff. Sets forth program requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the EPA Administrator, the Administrator of NOAA, and the Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service to implement a living resources program for the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed to meet commitments in the Chesapeake Bay Agreement. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the EPA Administrator to study and report to the Congress on the Chesapeake Bay Agreement, Chesapeake Bay Program management strategies, and the Chesapeake Bay restoration program. Authorizes appropriations. Extends the authorizations of appropriations for the Chesapeake Bay Program and related interstate development plan grants through FY 1994.
United States · United States Congress · 15 October 1990
Expresses the sense of the Senate that any proposal to increase the Federal-aid highway program's minimum allocation percentage from 85 to 95 percent should be addressed as part of the legislative process to reauthorize surface transportation programs in 1991.
United States · United States Congress · 11 October 1990
Requires Federal employees furloughed as a result of the lapse in appropriations from midnight October 5, 1990, until the enactment of House Joint Resolution 666 to be compensated at their standard rate of compensation for the period during which the lapse in appropriations occurred.
United States · United States Congress · 11 October 1990
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the Department of Commerce, in considering the population discrepancies in the 1990 census, should utilize the statistical correction methodology to achieve a fair and accurate census. States that the Secretary of Commerce should release adjusted data by April 1, 1991, to avoid undue complications in various jurisdictions with respect to formulating redistricting plans.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 1990
Disability Determination Fairness Act - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) and title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to promulgate regulations which provide for the State Disability Determination Service to conduct personal appearance interviews of applicants with a mental, cardiovascular, or musculoskeletal disability who, on the basis of an initial disability determination by the Service, are subject to potentially unfavorable determinations of benefit eligibility. Grants an applicant who is denied benefits on the basis of such an interview an immediate right to appeal directly to an administrative law judge without going through the reconsideration stage.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 1990
Grants a Federal charter to the 29th Division Association, Incorporated.