United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Intelligence Activities Title II: Central Intelligence Agency Retirement and Disability System Title III: General Provisions Title IV: Central Intelligence Agency Title V: Department of Defense Intelligence Activities Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1998 - Title I: Intelligence Activities - Authorizes appropriations for FY 1998 for the conduct of intelligence and intelligence-related activities of the: (1) Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); (2) Department of Defense; (3) Defense Intelligence Agency; (4) National Security Agency; (5) Departments of the Army, Navy, and Air Force; (6) Departments of State, the Treasury, and Energy; (7) Federal Bureau of Investigation; (8) Drug Enforcement Administration; (9) National Reconnaissance Office (NRO); and (10) National Imagery and Mapping Agency. (Sec. 102) Specifies that the amounts authorized to be appropriated and the authorized personnel ceilings as of September 30, 1998, for such activities are those specified in the classified Schedule of Authorizations which shall be made available to the Senate and House Appropriations Committees and the President. (Sec. 103) Allows the Director of Central Intelligence (DCI), with the approval of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, to authorize employment of civilian personnel in excess of the number authorized for FY 1998 when necessary to the performance of important intelligence functions. Requires notification to the Senate and House Intelligence Committees (intelligence committees). (Sec. 104) Authorizes appropriations for the Community Management Account of the DCI for FY 1998. Authorizes appropriations for such Account for classified purposes. Authorizes Account personnel levels. Title II: Central Intelligence Agency Retirement and Disability System - Authorizes appropriations for the Central Intelligence Agency Retirement and Disability Fund for FY 1998. Title III: General Provisions - Permits appropriations authorized by this Act for salary, pay, retirement, and other benefits for Federal employees to be increased by such additional amounts as may be necessary for increases in such compensation or benefits authorized by law. (Sec. 302) Specifies that the authorization of appropriations by this Act shall not be deemed to constitute authority for the conduct of any intelligence activity which is not otherwise authorized by the Constitution or laws of the United States. (Sec. 303) Authorizes the head of any element of the intelligence community (IC) to detail employees to serve in any position in the Intelligence Community Assignment Program. (Sec. 304) Amends the National Security Act of 1947 to extend through January 6, 2001, the authority of the President to stay the imposition of an economic, cultural, diplomatic, or other sanction or other action when the President determines and reports to the Congress that to impose such sanction without delay would seriously risk the compromise of an intelligence source or method or an ongoing criminal investigation. (Sec. 305) Requires the administrative location of the Office of the DCI to be within the CIA. (Sec. 306) Directs the President to inform employees of the executive branch and employees of contractors carrying out activities under classified contracts that the disclosure to the appropriate congressional committees or Members of Congress of classified information concerning an alleged violation of law, false statement to the Congress, or gross mismanagement, waste, abuse of authority, or danger to public health or safety is not prohibited by law or contrary to public policy. Requires a report on actions taken. (Sec. 307) Expresses the sense of the Congress that it is in the national interest to provide information regarding the murder or kidnapping abroad of U.S. citizens to the victims or their families. Makes the Secretary of State responsible for promptly providing such information. (Sec. 308) Requires the DCI to: (1) carry out a survey of current standards for the spelling of foreign names and places among IC elements; and (2) report survey results to the intelligence committees. Requires the DCI to issue guidelines for the uniform spelling of such names and places and the uniform use of geographic coordinates for such places. Title IV: Central Intelligence Agency - Amends the Central Intelligence Agency Act of 1949 to authorize the CIA to enter into multiyear leases for up to 15 years, with exceptions concerning the availability of appropriations to cover rental payments under such leases. (Sec. 402) Empowers the CIA Inspector General (IG) with subpoena authority for the production of information, documents, and other data necessary for the performance of IG duties. Requires an annual report from the IG to the intelligence committees on the exercise of such authority. Title V: Department of Defense Intelligence Activities - Authorize the President of the Joint Military Intelligence College (currently, the Commandant of the Defense Intelligence School) to confer the degree of master of science in strategic intelligence (current law) and the degree of bachelor of science in intelligence upon graduates fulfilling such requirements. (Sec. 502) Amends the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1996 to extend through FY 1999 the authority for the expenditure of funds for infrastructure and quality of life improvements to the Menwith Hall and Bad Aibling Army Stations. (Sec. 503) Prohibits, with injunctive power, the unauthorized use of the NRO's name, initials, or seal.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1997
Repeals the tax increase on social security benefits made by the Revenue Reconciliation Act of 1993. Mandates application and administration of the Internal Revenue Code as if such increase had not been enacted.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 1997
Stealth Tax Prevention Act - Amends Federal law relating to congressional review of agency rulemaking to include in the definition of "major rule" any rule that is promulgated by the Internal Revenue Service and for which the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Management and Budget finds that implementation and enforcement of the rule has resulted in (or is likely to result in) any net increase in Federal revenues.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 1997
Sportsmen's Bill of Rights Act of 1997- Requires Federal public land to be open to access and for use for fishing and hunting if: (1) the responsible State agency in which Federal public land is located limits access to and use of the land as part of wildlife management by the State; or (2) the Federal agency responsible for Federal public land limits access and use for national security or for reasons related to specific statutory requirements regarding the management and use of the land, including public safety. Amends the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) to cooperate with the Secretary of the Interior of Puerto Rico (currently, Secretary of Agriculture of Puerto Rico) in the conduct of wildlife-restoration projects. Prohibits the amount of funding made available to the Secretary for expenses in the administration and execution of wildlife-restoration projects and the Migratory Bird Conservation Act from being made available to replace funding that is: (1) authorized for any other expense under the Secretary's jurisdiction; and (2) decreased under any other provision of law. Amends the Federal Aid in Fish Restoration Act to prohibit the amount of funding made available to the Secretary for fish restoration and management projects from being used to replace funding that is authorized and decreased as above. Prohibits a Federal agency's action that may significantly diminish opportunities or access to engage in fishing or hunting on Federal public land from being effective until the agency prepares a detailed statement evaluating the effect of such action. Provides for judicial review of such action. Entitles a person interested in fishing or hunting to intervene as a matter of right in a civil action brought under any other Federal law relating to the use of Federal public land, under specified conditions. Bars the court from granting the relief sought unless the plaintiff shows that the interest intended to be advanced by the other Federal law clearly outweighs the interest of protecting access to, and use of, Federal public land for fishing and hunting. Allows an individual licensed by a State to fish or hunt or an organization representing such individual's interests to bring a civil action in a U.S. district court to seek declaratory or injunctive relief regarding the implementation of this Act, including a declaration that a civil action brought by a person may significantly disrupt or eliminate opportunities for fishing or hunting and an injunction against the prosecution of the civil action. Reaffirms the primacy of State authority in regulating the taking of fish and wildlife on such State's land, including Federal public land, stating that a Federal agency's taking authority in such regard shall be no greater than that of a private landowner.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 1997
First Flight Commemorative Coin Act of 1997 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue for a limited period ten-dollar gold coins, one-dollar silver coins, and half-dollar clad coins emblematic of the first flight of Orville and Wilbur Wright in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Instructs the Secretary to ensure: (1) establishment of a coin marketing plan; and (2) availability of adequate funds to cover the costs of implementing such plan.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 1997
Alternative Minimum Tax Reform Act of 1997 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide, with respect to the method of depreciation used for businesses to determine the alternative minimum tax, for the use of the regularly used method of depreciation. Revises the method for recovering long-term unused credits against such tax.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 1997
Authorizes the President to present, on behalf of the Congress, a gold medal to Mother Teresa of Calcutta in recognition of her contributions to humanitarian and charitable activities. Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to strike a suitable gold medal. Authorizes the Secretary to strike and sell bronze duplicates. Declares these medals to be national medals. Authorizes appropriations. Mandates deposit of sale proceeds in the Numismatic Public Enterprise Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 1997
Military Retirement Equity Act of 1997 - 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 age, length of service, or both. Reduces the retirement pay 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 · 24 April 1997
Patient Access to Responsible Care Act of 1997 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require a health insurance issuer to: (1) assure that covered items and services are available and accessible to each enrollee; (2) assure the availability and accessibility of emergency services and urgent care 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; (3) not require prior authorization for emergency services; and (4) cover emergency and urgent (and related ancillary) services. Requires an issuer offering network coverage to show that enrollees have access to specialized treatment. Regulates network incentive plans. Requires an issuer to: (1) permit each network enrollee to select a personal health professional from participating professionals; (2) cover nonparticipating providers, regulating premiums and cost sharing; (3) avoid undue enrollee burden from care coordination and cost control processes; (4) ensure direct specialist access; (5) provide for continuity of care for those with special needs or a chronic condition; and (6) provide for continued coverage in certain circumstances. Prohibits issuer discrimination on the basis of specified factors against individuals or providers. Prohibits any issuer-professional agreement from restricting the professional from engaging in medical communications with the professional's patient. Sets forth requirements regarding utilization review, an appeals process, and the process by which health professionals and providers become participants. Requires issuers to: (1) disclose certain information to enrollees and prospective enrollees; (2) comply with Federal and State confidentiality laws; (3) meet State solvency-related requirements; and (4) establish a quality improvement program. Requires issuers to comply with this Act regarding group and individual coverage. Declares that the requirements of this Act do not preempt any State law providing equivalent or stricter protections for individuals. Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to require a group health plan and an issuer offering coverage under such a plan to comply with the requirements of this Act. Declares that this Act does not preempt any State: (1) law providing equivalent or stricter protections for individuals; or (2) cause of action for personal injury or wrongful death damages that provides insurance or administrative services to or for an employee welfare benefit plan maintained to provide health benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 1997
Customs Enforcement and Market Access Act of 1997 - Directs the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), whenever the United States negotiates a protocol for accession of a country to the World Trade Organization (WTO), to negotiate for inclusion in that protocol: (1) provisions for effective market access to that country's domestic markets for U.S. textile and apparel products; and (2) provisions allowing the suspension or revocation of paragraph 14 (relating to increasing import levels based on growth rates) of the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, if the country has failed to enforce such market access provisions. Requires negotiation of bilateral agreements containing similar provisions with countries that are not WTO members. (Sec. 3) Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to direct the USTR to identify annually, report to the Congress, and publish in the Federal Register the names of priority foreign countries that deny fair and equitable market access to U.S. persons producing or selling textile or apparel products. (Sec. 4) Establishes in the Treasury a Textile Global Competitiveness Research Fund, consisting in part of fines levied under this Act, and whose amounts shall be available: (1) for programs aimed at enhancing the international competitiveness of U.S. textile and apparel manufacturers; and (2) to the Customs Service for the enforcement of laws governing trade in textile and apparel goods. (Sec. 5) Directs the USTR to take necessary steps to negotiate a quota agreement with any non-WTO country whose exports to the United States exceed $100 million annually, or are creating serious damage or the actual threat of it to the U.S. textile and apparel industry. States the sense of the Congress that any agreement negotiated with a non-WTO country which already has a textile agreement with the United States should permit imports of textile and apparel products of that country, during each 12-month period, to increase by not more than the percentage of growth in the U.S domestic market for all textile and apparel products in the preceding 12-month period. Specifies provisions for inclusion in the accession protocol of countries acceding to the WTO. (Sec. 6) Requires the USTR to ensure that any protocol under negotiation for accession to the WTO of a non-WTO country with a textile import bilateral agreement with the United States, as well as any subsequent agreement, provides for a reduction in the quantity of that country's textile and apparel goods that may be imported into the United States if the Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements determines that the bilateral agreement is being circumvented and that inadequate or no measures are being taken by that country to take action against such circumvention. (Sec. 7) Prescribes specified Customs Service enforcement actions and penalties (including fines, seizure, and forfeiture) for violations of customs laws involving textile and apparel goods. (Sec. 10) Directs the Commissioner of Customs to establish a Division on Textile Enforcement. (Sec. 11) Requires withdrawal of preferential tariff or quota treatment (unilateral trade concessions) from the textile and apparel goods of any country: (1) demonstrating a consistent pattern of circumventing textile agreements with United States; (2) refusing to cooperate in investigations; or (3) failing to provide fair and equitable market access for U.S. textile and apparel goods.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 1997
Medicare Bone Mass Measurement Standardization Act of 1997 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for standard national Medicare coverage of bone mass measurements (for early detection of potential osteoporosis).
United States · United States Congress · 23 April 1997
Constitutional Amendment - Limits to ten years the term of office of the Chief Justice and judges of the Supreme Court and inferior courts. Makes such justice and judges eligible for nomination and appointment by the President to additional terms.
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 1997
Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1997 - Repeals the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935. Prescribes procedural guidelines for both Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and State access to records of a holding company (including subsidiaries, associates and affiliates) of a public utility or natural gas company. Instructs FERC to promulgate a final rule to exempt specified holding companies from such access requirements. Requires FERC to exempt any person or transaction from such access requirements if it finds that regulation of such person or transaction is irrelevant to the jurisdictional rates of a public utility company. Retains the jurisdiction of FERC and State commissions to determine whether a public utility company may recover in rates any costs of affiliate transactions. Declares this Act inapplicable to: (1) the United States; (2) a State or its political subdivision; and (3) a foreign governmental authority not operating in the United States. Grants FERC certain Federal Power Act enforcement powers. Transfers from the Securities and Exchange Commission to FERC all books and records that relate primarily to the functions vested in FERC by this Act. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the Federal Power Act to repeal its conflict of jurisdiction guidelines.
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 1997
Requests that a nationwide moment of remembrance be observed on Memorial Day, May 26, 1997, by the simultaneous pausing of all citizens to acknowledge the playing of "Taps" at 3:00 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time) in honor of the Americans who gave their lives in the pursuit of freedom and peace.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 1997
Economic Growth and Price Stability Act of 1997 - Amends the Federal Reserve Act to repeal the mandate of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Federal Open Market Committee to maintain long run growth of monetary and credit aggregates in order to promote maximum employment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates. Replaces such mandate with a mandate to: (1) establish an explicit numerical definition of "price stability"; and (2) maintain a monetary policy that effectively promotes long-term price stability. Repeals the mandate of the Board and the Committee to report biannually to the Congress on national economic trends, taking into account unemployment, investment, and productivity. Replaces such mandate with a mandate to consult semiannually with the Congress and report on their plans and the time required to achieve price stability. Repeals the Full Employment and Balanced Growth Act of 1978 (Humphrey-Hawkins Act). Amends the Employment Act of 1946 and the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to reflect the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 1997
Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to qualified State tuition programs to, among other things: (1) provide for the exclusion from gross income of distributions used for qualified higher education expenses; (2) include room and board in the definition of qualified higher education expenses; and (3) permit income from redeemed U.S. savings bonds to be used to contribute, without including such income in gross income (subject to income limitations), to a qualified State tuition program.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 1997
Congratulates the residents of Jerusalem and the people of Israel on the 30th anniversary of the reunification of that city. Calls upon the President and the Secretary of State to publicly affirm as a matter of U.S. policy that Jerusalem must remain the undivided capital of Israel. Urges U.S. officials to refrain from any actions that contradict U.S. law on this subject.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 1997
Working Americans Wage Restoration Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a deduction from adjusted gross income for Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance (OASDI) employee taxes, unless an individual claims the earned income credit. Raises the deduction for OASDI self-employment taxes. Reduces such deduction by 50 percent for self-employed individuals claiming the earned income credit.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 1997
Health Insurance Tax Equity for Self-Employed Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the deduction allowed for health insurance costs for self-employed individuals to 100 percent.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 1997
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt from the electronic fund transfer system for the collection of taxes businesses with an aggregate amount of depository taxes below an applicable dollar amount.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 1997
Prisoner Work and Responsibility Initiative of 1997 - Amends the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to require a State, to be eligible for grants for correctional facilities, to provide assurances that it: (1) has implemented requirements that each inmate perform not less than 48 hours of work per week (with exceptions for security, disciplinary, or medical reasons) and engage in not less than 16 hours of organized educational activities per week; and (2) prohibits prison officials from providing privileges to any inmate who fails to comply with such requirements. Includes among such privileges: (1) access to television, bodybuilding or weightlifting equipment, and recreational sports; (2) unmonitored telephone calls, except when between the inmate and the immediate family or inmate's attorney; (3) food exceeding in quality or quantity that which is available to enlisted U.S. Army personnel; and (4) equipment or facilities for publishing or broadcasting material not approved by prison officials as being consistent with prison order and discipline. Replaces a provision authorizing a reduction of sentence for a prisoner convicted of a nonviolent offense who successfully completes a substance abuse treatment program with one directing the Attorney General to ensure that each eligible prisoner participates in a program of substance abuse treatment. Redefines "eligible prisoner" as one who, within 24 months of the date of release or otherwise, is designated by the Bureau of Prisons for participation in a residential substance abuse treatment program.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 1997
Disapproves the rule submitted by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration relating to occupational exposure to methylene chloride. Declares that such rule shall have no force or effect.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 1997
Drug-Free Communities Act of 1997 - Amends the National Narcotics Leadership Act of 1988 to authorize appropriations to carry out this Act. Establishes a program to support communities in the development and implementation of comprehensive, long-term plans and programs to prevent and treat substance abuse among youth, including grants to coalitions including youth, parents, businesses, the media, schools, organizations serving youth, law enforcement, religious organizations, and other specified types of entities. Authorizes: (1) technical assistance and training; and (2) contracts and cooperative agreements with grant recipients. Establishes the Advisory Commission on Drug-Free Communities. Terminates the Commission five years after enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 1997
National POW-MIA Recognition Act of 1997 - Mandates the display of the National League of Families POW-MIA flag on Armed Forces Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, Veterans Day, National POW-MIA Recognition Day, and on the last business day before each of the preceding holidays, on the grounds or in the public lobbies of: (1) major military installations as designated by the Secretary of Defense; (2) Federal national cemeteries; (3) the national Korean War Veterans Memorial; (4) the national Vietnam Veterans Memorial; (5) the White House; (6) the official office of the Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and the Director of the Selective Service System; and (7) U.S. Postal Service post offices. Repeals provisions of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 1992 and 1993 relating to the display of the POW-MIA flag.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 1997
Morris K. Udall Parkinson's Research Act of 1997 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to mandate a program for the conduct and support of research and training regarding Parkinson's disease. Directs the Director of the National Institutes of Health to provide for coordination of the program among all the national research institutes conducting Parkinson's research. Requires coordination to include the convening of a research planning conference at least once every two years. Provides for each such conference to prepare and submit to certain congressional committees a report concerning the conference. Requires Core Center Grants to encourage the development of innovative multidisciplinary research and provide training concerning Parkinson's, designating each grant recipient as a Morris K. Udall Center for Research on Parkinson's Disease. Establishes a grant program to support investigators with a proven record of excellence and innovation in Parkinson's research and who demonstrate potential for significant breakthroughs in the understanding of the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of Parkinson's. Limits the availability of grants for a period not to exceed five years. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 1997
Taxpayer Privacy Protection Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit civil damages and criminal penalties for the unauthorized or unlawful accessing or disclosure (currently, only for the unauthorized or unlawful disclosure) of tax returns or return information. Requires immediate notification to a taxpayer upon discovery that the taxpayer's return or return information has been accessed in an unauthorized manner.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 1997
Taxpayer Privacy Protection Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit civil damages and criminal penalties for the unauthorized or unlawful accessing or disclosure (currently, only for the unauthorized or unlawful disclosure) of tax returns or return information. Requires immediate notification to a taxpayer upon discovery that the taxpayer's return or return information has been accessed in an unauthorized manner.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1997
Federal Prisoner Health Care Copayment Act - Amends the Federal criminal code to impose a fee for health care visits (with certain types of visits exempted) and prescriptions, to be paid by the prisoner making the visit or taking the prescription or, in the case of a prisoner injured by another prisoner, to be paid by the prisoner who inflicted the injury. Prohibits refusal of treatment on the basis that a prisoner is unable to pay.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1997
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Penalties for Unlawful Activities Within the United States or By United States Nationals Abroad Subtitle A: Criminal Penalties Subtitle B: Civil Penalties Subtitle C: Other Penalties Title II: Foreign Relations and Defense-Related Provisions Chemical and Biological Weapons Threat Reduction Act of 1997 - Declares that it should be U.S. policy to take all appropriate measures to: (1) prevent and deter the threat or use of chemical and biological weapons against the citizens, armed forces, and territory of the United States and its allies, and to protect against, and manage the consequences of, such use; (2) discourage the proliferation of chemical and biological weapons; (3) prohibit within the United States the development, production, acquisition, stockpiling, and transfer to third parties of chemical or biological weapons; and (4) impose unilateral sanctions, and seek international sanctions, against any nation using chemical and biological weapons in violation of international law. Title I: Penalties for Unlawful Activities Within the United States or By United States Nationals Abroad - Subtitle A: Criminal Penalties - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit: knowingly developing, producing, otherwise acquiring, receiving from any person located outside U.S. territory, stockpiling, retaining, transferring, using, owning, or possessing any chemical or biological weapon, unless: (1) such weapon is intended for a permissible purpose; (2) the types and quantities of such weapons are strictly limited to those that can be justified for such purposes; and (3) the amount of such weapons per person at any given time does not exceed a quantity that, under the circumstances, is inconsistent with permissible purposes. Provides for the death penalty or life imprisonment for knowingly using chemical or biological weapons in violation of such provision where the death of another person results. Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) exclusions; (2) jurisdiction; (3) reimbursement of costs to the United States for expenses incurred incident to the seizure, storage, handling, transportation, and destruction or other disposition of property seized in connection with an investigation of the offense; and (4) the seizure, forfeiture, and destruction of chemical and biological weapons. Makes the owner or possessor of seized property jointly and severally liable to the United States in an action for money damages for any expenses incurred by the United States incident to the seizure. Sets penalties for using riot control agents as an act of terrorism. Authorizes the United States to obtain injunctions against proscribed conduct under this subtitle. Authorizes the Attorney General to request military assistance in support of Department of Justice activities relating to enforcement of this subtitle in an emergency situation involving a biological or chemical weapon. Subtitle B: Civil Penalties - Directs the President to designate the Federal Bureau of Investigation as the agency primarily responsible for implementing this subtitle. (Sec. 112) Sets forth civil prohibitions (analogous to the criminal prohibitions) on chemical and biological weapons-related activities and prescribes a penalty of up to $100,000 per violation. Sets forth procedures regarding hearings, administrative appellate review, offsets of amounts of such penalty from sums owed by the United States to the person, judicial review, enforcement of orders, and regulatory authority. Subtitle C: Other Penalties - Authorizes the President, upon determining that any person within U.S. jurisdiction has committed a violation of prohibitions under section 112, to issue an order for the suspension or revocation of such person's authority to export from any goods or technology from the United States. Repeals provisions of the Export Administration Act of 1979 regarding civil penalties and administrative sanctions relating to chemical and biological weapons proliferation. (Sec. 122) Provides for a three-year suspension of patent rights for knowingly violating any provision of section 112. Sets forth provisions regarding effect on patent rights, procedures, fees, and certificates of suspension. Title II: Foreign Relations and Defense-Related Provisions - Amends the Arms Export Control Act (AECA) to rewrite provisions regarding determinations with respect to the use of chemical and biological weapons, and sanctions for their use. Requires the President, after consulting with the Congress, to impose at least five of the following sanctions for three years upon determining that any foreign government has used a chemical or biological weapon in violation of international law or against its own nationals: (1) termination of foreign assistance (with exceptions); (2) termination of arms sales; (3) termination of foreign military financing; (4) denial of U.S. Government credit or other financial assistance; (5) imposition of export controls; (6) imposition of import restrictions; (7) opposition to financial or technical assistance by international financial institutions; (8) prohibition on U.S. bank loans or credit; (9) termination of air service and suspension of aviation rights to or from the United States; and (10) downgrading or suspending diplomatic privileges with such country. Declares that such sanctions are in addition to any multilateral sanction or measure that may be otherwise agreed. Specifies exceptions: (1) where the President certifies that implementing such sanctions would have a substantial negative impact upon the supreme national interests of the United States; and (2) with respect to any activity pursuant to a contract or international agreement entered into before the date of the President's determination if performance of the activity would reduce the potential for the use of a chemical or biological weapon by the sanctioned country. Requires the President, in addition, to block any transactions in property subject to U.S. jurisdiction in which the violating foreign country or any national thereof has any interest, for the purpose of compensating the victims of such weapons use and for punitive damages. Conditions the removal of sanctions against a foreign government on the President's certification, after three years, that such government: (1) has provided reliable assurances that it will not use such a weapon in violation of international law or against its people; (2) will accept onsite inspections to verify that it is not preparing to use such a weapon; and (3) is making restitution to those affected by any use of such weapons in violation of international law or against its own nationals. Requires the President to notify and report to the Congress within specified periods regarding any use of such a weapon and any actions planned and undertaken by the President in response. (Sec. 202) Expresses the sense of the Congress that any collapse of the "Australia Group" or any substantial weakening of common Australia Group export controls and nonproliferation measures would seriously undermine international and national efforts to curb the spread of chemical and biological weapons. Declares that it shall be U.S. policy to: (1) continue close cooperation with other countries in the Australia Group in support of its current efforts and in devising additional means to monitor and control the supply of chemicals and biological agents applicable to weapons production; (2) maintain an equivalent or more comprehensive level of control over the export of toxic chemicals and their precursors, dual-use processing equipment, human, animal, and plant pathogens and toxins with potential biological weapons application, and dual-use biological equipment as that afforded by the Australia Group as of this Act's enactment date; (3) block any effort by any Australia Group member to achieve Australia Group consensus on any action that would substantially weaken export controls and nonproliferation measures or otherwise undermine the Group's effectiveness; and (4) work closely with other countries to devise and harmonize the most effective national controls possible on the transfer of equipment, materials, and technology with particular applicability to the production of chemical or biological weapons. Requires the President, annually, to determine and certify to the Congress whether: (1) the Australia Group continues to maintain an equivalent or more comprehensive level of control over exports and remains a viable mechanism for curtailing the spread of such weapons; and (2) the Group's effectiveness has been undermined by changes in membership, lack of compliance with common export controls, or any weakening of common controls and measures in effect as of this Act's enactment date. Sets forth provisions regarding presidential consultation with the Congress on Australia Group export controls and nonproliferation measures. (Sec. 203) Prohibits the provision of certain U.S. assistance to Russia unless the President determines and certifies to the Congress, annually, that: (1) Russia is making reasonable progress toward the implementation of a bilateral agreement signed on June 1, 1990, regarding destruction and nonproduction of chemical weapons and on measures to facilitate the multilateral convention on banning chemical weapons; (2) the United States and Russia have resolved, to the satisfaction of the United States, outstanding compliance issues under such agreement and under a memorandum of understanding signed in Wyoming on September 23, 1989, regarding a bilateral verification experiment and data exchange related to a prohibition on chemical weapons; (3) Russia has fully and accurately declared all information regarding its unitary and binary chemical weapons, chemical weapons production facilities, and other facilities associated with the development of chemical weapons and riot control agents; and (4) Russia is in compliance with its obligations under a biological weapons convention completed at Washington, London, and Moscow on April 10, 1972. (Sec. 204) Requires the President to report annually to the Speaker and specified congressional committees on: (1) proliferation by foreign countries; (2) foreign persons assisting in proliferation; (3) third country assistance in proliferation, and intelligence information on such assistance; (4) intelligence information on subnational groups, including terrorists or paramilitary organizations, developing, producing, stockpiling, or using any chemical or biological weapon; and (5) funding priorities for detection and monitoring capabilities. (Sec. 205) Declares that it shall be U.S. policy to work to obtain multilateral agreement: (1) to effective, international enforcement mechanisms to existing international agreements that prohibit the use of chemical and biological weapons, to which the United States is a state party; and (2) regarding the collective imposition of sanctions and other measures described in the AECA, as amended by this Act. Directs the Secretary of State: (1) as a priority matter, to take steps necessary to achieve such objectives; and (2) to work to convene an international negotiating forum to conclude an international agreement on enforcement of the 1925 Geneva Protocol regarding the prohibition of the use in war of poisonous gas and bacteriological warfare. (Sec. 206) Restricts the use of funds for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons until the Convention on the Prohibition of Development, Production, Stockpiling, and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction enters into force for the United States. (Sec. 207) Expresses the sense of the Congress that the U.S. armed forces should place increased emphasis on potential threats to deployed U.S. forces and should make countering the use of chemical and biological weapons an organizing principle for U.S. defense strategy and policy. Directs the Secretary to take actions to ensure that the U.S. armed forces are capable of carrying out required military missions in U.S. regional contingency plans despite the threat or use of chemical or biological weapons. Directs the Secretary and the Secretary of State to: (1) give a high priority to discussions with key regional allies and likely regional coalition partners to determine what steps are necessary to ensure that allied and coalition forces and other critical civilians are adequately equipped and prepared to operate in chemically and biologically contaminated environments; and (2) report to the Speaker and to specified congressional committees on the results of such discussions. Directs the Secretary to take actions to ensure that the United States Army Chemical School remains under the oversight of a general officer of the United States Army. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the transfer, consolidation, and reorganization of the School should not disrupt or diminish the training and readiness of the armed forces to fight in a chemical-biological warfare environment, and that the Army should continue to operate the Chemical Defense Training Facility at Fort McClellan until such time as the replacement facility at Fort Leonard Wood is functional. Directs the President to report to the Speaker and specified congressional committees on previous, current, and planned chemical and biological weapons defense activities of the U.S. armed forces. (Sec. 208) Expresses the sense of the Congress that in order to achieve an effective deterrence against attacks of the United States and U.S. armed forces by chemical weapons, the President should reevaluate the extension of negative security assurances by the United States to non-nuclear weapon states (i.e., assurances that the United States will forswear the use of certain weapons unless attacked by that non-nuclear weapon state in alliance with a nuclear-weapon state) in the context of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Requires the President to report to the Speaker and specified congressional committees on: (1) the findings of a detailed review of U.S. policy on negative security assurances as a deterrence strategy; and (2) a determination by the President of appropriate responses to the use of chemical or biological weapons against the U.S. armed forces, U.S. citizens, allies, and third parties. (Sec. 209) Prohibits the President from issuing any order or directive that diminishes, abridges, or alters the right of the United States to use riot control agents in any circumstance not involving international armed conflict, or in a defensive military mode to save lives in such a conflict. Expresses the sense of the Congress that international law permits the United States to use herbicides, under regulations applicable to their domestic use, for control of vegetation within U.S. bases and installations or around their immediate defensive perimeters. Directs the President to take all necessary measures, and prescribe such rules and regulations as necessary, to ensure that the policy contained in this section is observed by the U.S. armed forces.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1997
Return Capital To The American People Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide all taxpayers with a 50 percent capital gains deduction. Allows such deduction in computing adjusted gross income. (Sec. 3) Increases from 50 to 75 percent the exclusion for gain from the sale or exchange of certain qualified small business stock. Reduces from three to five the number of years which such stock must be held in order to be excludable. Makes such exclusion available to corporations. Repeals the minimum tax preference. Doubles the dollar gross asset limits domestic C corporations must not exceed in order to qualify for the exclusion and institues an inflation adjustment. Repeals the per-issuer limitation. Modifies the working capital limitation and the definition of a qualified trade or business. (Sec. 4) Provides for the taxation of the gain from the sale of qualified small business stock, when such gain is used to purchase qualified small business stock, only to the extent that the amount realized from the sale exceeds: (1) the cost of any qualified small business stock purchased within 60 days of the sale; and (2) any portion of such cost previously taken into account. (Sec. 5) Substitutes the indexed basis, based on the "applicable inflation adjustment" (as defined), for the adjusted basis of assets held more than three years for purposes of determining gain or loss on the disposition of: (1) common stock in a C corporation; or (2) tangible property, which is a capital asset or property used in a trade or business. Sets forth special rules: (1) where there is a diminished risk of loss; (2) for short sales; (3) for regulated investment companies and real estate investment trusts; (4) for other pass-through entities; (5) for dispositions between related persons; (6) for transfers to increase the indexing adjustment; (7) for the sale of a principal residence; and (8) to cover other situations. (Sec. 6) Permits a capital loss deduction with repect to the sale or exchange of a principal residence.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 1997
HIV Prevention Act of 1997 - Mandates that States require: (1) confidential reporting of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive results by the entity performing the test to the State public health officer; (2) notification by the State public health officer of individuals who may have been exposed to HIV and State cooperation regarding national notification; (4) mandatory testing of individuals indicted for a crime involving force or the threat of force to compel sexual activity, with related notification of victims and their attorneys, allowing use of positive test results, as relevant, in related judicial proceedings; (5) allowing a health professional to not perform a procedure that would place the professional at risk of becoming infected unless the patient undergoes the test and the health professional and the patient are notified of the results; (6) allowing a funeral services practitioner to not perform funeral procedures unless the body undergoes a test and the practitioner is notified of the results; (7) mandatory notification of a funeral service practitioner by a health care entity that knows the body is infected with HIV; (8) allowing a health insurance applicant, if required by the insurance issuer to undergo a test, to be notified of the results; and (9) allowing a prospective adoptive parent to choose to be informed of the adoptive child's HIV status (if known by the adoption agency). Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) with respect to health professionals with HIV disease, the professionals should notify their patients in circumstances that place the patients at risk of HIV infection by the professional; and (2) States should encourage the medical profession to develop related guidelines. Amends the Public Health Service Act to declare that compliance with certain provisions of this Act is not a violation of title XXVI (HIV Health Care Services Program) of that Act. Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the States should make it a felony for individuals who know they have HIV disease to intentionally infect another; and (2) strict confidentiality should be maintained in carrying out certain requirements of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 March 1997
Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) the Ten Commandments are a declaration of fundamental principles that are the cornerstones of a fair and just society; and (2) the public display of the Ten Commandments, including in government offices and courthouses, should be permitted.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 1997
Home-Based Business Fairness Act of 1997 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase the deduction allowed for the health insurance costs of a self-employed individual to allow as a deduction an amount equal to the amount paid by such individual for insurance which constitutes medical care for such individual, such individual's spouse, and dependents. Adds to provisions defining the disallowance of certain expenses in connection the business use of the home to provide that a home office shall in any case qualify as the principal place of business if the office is: (1) in the location where the taxpayer's essential administrative or management activities are conducted on a regular and systematic basis; and (2) necessary because the taxpayer has no other location for the performance of the essential management or administrative activities of the business. Considers a service provider as not being an employee if the provider: (1) can realize a profit or loss, can incur unreimbursed expenses, and makes a time-limited or task-limited agreement; (2) has a principal place of business, does not primarily provide service at a single service recipient's facilities, pays fair rent for the use of the recipient's facilities, or operates primarily with equipment not supplied by the recipient; and (3) if there is a written contract providing that the provider will not be treated as an employee for Federal tax purposes. Considers (in addition) a provider as not an employee if: (1) there is such a written contract; and (2) the provider is a corporation or limited liability company and does not receive benefits that the recipient's employees receive. Regulates the treatment of determinations by the Secretary of the Treasury that a service provider should have been treated as an employee.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 1997
Prohibits the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from establishing a national housing occupancy standard for five years. Provides that during such period: (1) a State-established standard shall be presumed reasonable for purposes of determining familial status discrimination and the Secretary shall not decertify a State or local public agency based upon such standard or its operation; and (2) in the absence of a State standard a two-person per bedroom standard shall be deemed reasonable.
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 1997
Internet Tax Freedom Act - Prohibits a State or political subdivision thereof from imposing, assessing, or attempting to collect any tax or fee on the Internet or interactive computer services (ICs) or on their use. Preserves State and local taxing authority with respect to income, license, and sales taxes. Directs the Secretaries of the Treasury, Commerce, and State to: (1) undertake an examination of U.S. and international taxation of the Internet and ICs, as well as commerce conducted thereon; and (2) jointly submit to the President appropriate policy recommendations concerning such taxation. Directs the President to transmit to the appropriate congressional committees policy recommendations on the taxation of sales and other transactions effected on the Internet or through ICs. Requires all such recommendations to be consistent with policy statements of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should seek bilateral and multilateral agreements through various international forums to establish that activity on the Internet and ICs be free from tariff and taxation.
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 1997
Expresses the sense of the Congress that the President should not certify Mexico pursuant to the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (as having cooperated fully with the United States to combat international narcotics trafficking) on March 1, 1998, unless the Mexican Government demonstrates clear progress in specified matters, including: (1) developing and deploying a southern tier of radar to monitor aircraft flying into Mexico; (2) arresting or extraditing major drug trafficking kingpins; (3) implementing recent money-laundering and anti-crime legislation; and (4) deploying and using units of specially trained law enforcement personnel to disrupt drug trafficking organizations.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 1997
Congressional Responsibility Act of 1997 - Prohibits a regulation from taking effect before the enactment of a bill comprised solely of the text of the regulation. Requires an agency, whenever it promulgates a regulation, to submit to each House of the Congress a report containing its text and an explanation. Sets forth expedited congressional procedures for consideration of agency regulations.
United States · United States Congress · 3 March 1997
Mandates Information Act of 1997 - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to require a congressional committee report on any bill or joint resolution that includes any Federal mandate to contain information concerning the impact of such mandate on consumers, workers, and small businesses, including any disproportionate impact in particular regions or industries. Revises provisions concerning legislation subject to a point of order to: (1) define the point of order for a determination by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office that it is not feasible to determine the economic impact of a Federal mandate; and (2) replace certain references to Federal intergovernmental mandates with references to Federal mandates.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1997
Blind Persons Earnings Equity Act - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to restore the link ended by the Senior Citizens' Freedom to Work Act of 1995 between the rules relating to substantial gainful activity for blind individuals and the rules relating to excess earnings under the social security earnings test for individuals who have attained retirement age (thus allowing blind individuals, once again, to earn up to the social security excess earnings threshold without being regarded as having demonstrated an ability to engage in substantial gainful activity and without losing entitlement to OASDI benefits).
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 1997
Internal Revenue Service Accountability Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to mandate a fine or imprisonment for any U.S. officer or employee who willfully and maliciously disregards any revenue law or related regulation relating to any proceeding against a taxpayer. Allows, if litigation costs are awarded, a portion of the costs to be assessed against any current or former Internal Revenue Service officer or employee (prohibiting Government reimbursement) if the proceeding resulted from any arbitrary, capricious, or malicious act of the officer or employee. Allows Government defense of the officer or employee, but makes the officer or employee liable for defense costs if the employee is found liable for litigation costs. Imposes similar liabilities regarding civil damages for a failure to release a lien or for certain unauthorized collection actions. Amends provisions allowing civil damages for disclosure of returns and return information to allow the damages for access as well as disclosure and apply the provisions to former as well as current officers and employees. Provides for dismissal from office or discharge from employment, a fine or imprisonment, and costs of prosecution for unauthorized access. Prohibits unauthorized access and, on discovery of unauthorized access, requires immediate taxpayer notification. Requires reasonable justification (not random selection) for examining a return. Prohibits, except on court approval, a second examination of a return or extending an examination back beyond three taxable years. Extends from 21 to 90 calendar days after notice and demand the deadline to pay a tax required to be shown on certain returns but not shown. Allows a district court to rule on a decision by the Secretary of the Treasury to not acquiesce regarding conclusions of law in identical, similar, or previously-decided cases. Requires court consent for a levy to collect a tax. Prohibits interest on assessable penalties, additional amounts, or additions to tax. Sets the interest rate for overpayments and underpayments (the same rate for both). Modifies requirements regarding abatement of interest, penalties, additional amounts, or additions to tax attributable to a mathematical or clerical error.
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 1997
Individual Investment Account Act of 1997 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a deduction for amounts contributed to individual investment accounts. Allows tax-free distributions, limited to $15,000 for all taxable years, from such accounts for use in the purchase of a principal residence by a first-time homebuyer. Makes such accounts tax-exempt unless the individual engages in prohibited transactions. Adjusts dollar limitations under this Act for inflation. Allows such deduction in determining adjusted gross income. Exempts such accounts from estate tax. Excludes from gross income gain from the sale or exchange of property if, during the five-year period ending on the date of the sale or exchange, such property has been owned and used by the taxpayer as a principal residence for periods aggregating three years or more. Limits such exclusion to the amount paid to an individual investment account during the one-year period beginning on the date of the sale or exchange. Provides for adjusting the basis of a residence acquired through the use of an individual investment account.
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 1997
ISTEA Integrity Restoration Act - Authorizes appropriations out of the Highway Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Account) for the: (1) National Highway System (NHS); (2) Surface Transportation Program (STP); and (3) Federal Lands Highway Program, including Indian reservation roads, public lands highways, and parkways and park highways. (Sec. 4) Defines "highway funds" as funds apportioned and allocations authorized under this Act for the fiscal year and funds allocated to a State for the preceding fiscal year for Federal-aid highways and highway safety construction. Revises the apportionment of NHS funds to allocate one third of one percent (previously, one percent) to U.S. territories and possessions, and the remaining 99 and two-thirds percent among the States according to a formula based on population density. Includes bridge construction and related activities among eligible NHS projects. (Sec. 5) Repeals provisions regarding: (1) apportionments for resurfacing, restoring, rehabilitating, and reconstructing the Interstate System (IS); and (2) the transfer of interstate construction apportionments, the transfer of funds for STP projects, and limits on new capacity. (Sec. 6) Includes bridge construction and related activities as an eligible activity within the streamlined STP. Makes eligible under the STP an area of a State that is a nonattainment area for ozone or carbon monoxide, or for particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter smaller than or equal to ten micrometers resulting from transportation activities, or for any combination thereof, for congestion mitigation and air quality improvement projects without regard to any Department of Transportation limitation relating to the type of ambient air quality standard addressed by such project. Requires a State, for each fiscal year, to allocate an amount determined according to a specified formula (based on FY 1995 funds) for transportation enhancement activities. Revises State certification procedures. (Sec. 7) Directs that, for purposes of STP and IS provisions, population shall be determined based on the most recent estimate prepared by the Secretary of Commerce, while apportionment factors shall be determined on the basis of the most recent data certified by the Secretary. (Sec. 8) Repeals provisions regarding: (1) the highway bridge replacement and rehabilitation program; and (2) the congestion mitigation and air quality improvement program. (Sec. 10) Replaces provisions regarding minimum allocations to States with an apportionment adjustment program under which the Secretary shall apportion among the States amounts sufficient to ensure that the ratio of the highway funds of a State to highway funds of all States for the fiscal year is not less than the adjustment percentage specified for that State under this Act. Requires each State to receive additional apportionments so that its percentage of highway funds is not less than 95 percent of the percentage of estimated tax payments attributable to highway users in the State paid into the Highway Trust Fund. Repeals: (1) existing apportionment adjustment programs; and (2) set-asides for interstate discretionary projects. (Sec. 12) Reduces from 3.75 to 2.0 the percentage of program funds authorized to be set aside for administrative costs. (Sec. 13) Sets forth provisions regarding permissible transfers of unobligated balances of funds apportioned to a State for: (1) congestion mitigation and air quality improvement; (2) interstate construction and maintenance; (3) bridge replacement and rehabilitation; and (4) the STP.
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 1997
Language of Government Act of 1997 - Declares English to be the official language of the U.S. Government. States that the Government has an affirmative obligation to preserve and enhance the role of English as the official language. Requires the Government to conduct its official business in English. Prohibits anyone from being denied Government services because he or she communicates in English.
![Official portrait of Sen. Shelby, Richard C. [R-AL]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s000320_200.jpg)