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151 records in US in 1994
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1994
Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to study cooperative marketing of U.S. and Canadian export grain.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1994
Grants congressional consent to the Northeast Interstate Dairy Compact entered into among the States of Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts to assure the viability of dairy farming in the northeast and to assure consumers of an adequate, local supply of milk.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Agricultural Programs Title II: Conservation Programs Title III: Farmers Home and Rural Development Programs Title IV: Domestic Food Programs Title V: Foreign Assistance and Related Programs Title VI: Related Agencies and Food and Drug Administration Title VII: General Provisions Agricultural, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1995 - Title I: Agricultural Programs - Appropriates funds for FY 1995 for the following programs and services: (1) Office of the Secretary of Agriculture; (2) Office of Budget and Program Analysis; (3) Chief Financial Officer; (4) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration; (5) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Congressional Relations; (6) Office of Communications; (7) Office of the Inspector General; (8) Office of the General Counsel; (9) Economic Research Service; (10) National Agricultural Statistics Service; (11) World Agricultural Outlook Board; (12) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Science and Education; (13) Alternative Agricultural Research and Commercialization Revolving Fund; (14) Agricultural Research Service; (15) Cooperative State Research Service; (16) Extension Service; (17) National Agricultural Library; (18) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Marketing and Inspection Services; (19) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service; (20) Food Safety and Inspection Service; (21) Federal Grain Inspection Service; (22) Agricultural Marketing Service; (23) Packers and Stockyards Administration; (24) Office of the Under Secretary for International Affairs and Commodity Programs; (25) Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service; (26) Federal Crop Insurance Corporation; and (27) Commodity Credit Corporation Fund. Title II: Conservation Programs - Appropriates funds for: (1) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment; (2) Soil Conservation Service; and (3) Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service. Title III: Farmers Home and Rural Development Programs - Appropriates funds for: (1) Office of the Under Secretary for Small Community and Rural Development; (2) Rural Development Administration and Farmers Home Administration; and (3) Rural Electrification Administration. Title IV: Domestic Food Programs - Appropriates funds for: (1) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Food and Consumer Services; and (2) Food and Nutrition Service, including the Food Stamp Program. Title V: Foreign Assistance and Related Programs - Appropriates funds for: (1) Foreign Agricultural Service; and (2) Public Law 480 Program Accounts. Title VI: Related Agencies and Food and Drug Administration - Appropriates funds for: (1) Food and Drug Administration; (2) Farm Credit System Financial Assistance Corporation; (3) Commodity Futures Trading Commission; and (4) Farm Credit Administration. Title VII: General Provisions - Specifies certain uses and limits on or prohibitions against the use of funds appropriated by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 1994
Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to enter into appropriate arrangements with the National Academy of Sciences to coordinate the development of an improved meat and poultry inspection program. Obligates funding for such purpose.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 1994
Amends the Emergency Unemployment Compensation Act of 1991 to extend the authorization for new claims for benefits under the emergency unemployment compensation program to August 5, 1994. Modifies the final phase-out period for continuation of claims to end it on September 30, 1994. Provides for a similar extension of the program of temporary extended railroad unemployment insurance benefits (and modification of the phase-out period). Amends the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 to repeal the export enhancement program of the Department of Agriculture (in order to fund the extensions of unemployment compensation under this Act).
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 1994
Elects Representative Frank D. Lucas to the House Committees on Agriculture and Government Operations.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 1994
Agricultural Mediation Act of 1994 - Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to determine which Department of Agriculture programs are eligible for State mediation programs. Sets forth State program certification requirements. Directs the Secretary to provide State programs with matching grants. Authorizes appropriations. Terminates program authority on September 30, 1998.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 1994
Instructs the House Committees on Agriculture; Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs; Government Operations; the Judiciary; and Small Business to commence hearings on issues within their jurisdiction relating to Madison Guaranty Savings and Loan Association, Whitewater Development Corporation, Capital Management Services Inc., Ray E. Friedman and Company, Lasater and Company, and such appropriate related issues by August 15, 1994, and to submit written findings concerning such matter to the House by the sine die adjournment of the Congress. Directs the respective committees to work to accommodate the work of Special Counsel Robert B. Fiske, Jr., and to not grant immunity, under specified provisions of the Federal criminal code, over the objection of the Special Counsel to any witness called to testify at these hearings. Instructs the Speaker and the majority and minority leaders to meet to determine the appropriate timetable, procedures, and other relevant issues relating to congressional oversight.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 1994
Mount Pleasant National Scenic Area Act - Establishes in the George Washington National Forest, Virginia, the Mount Pleasant National Scenic Area. Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) administration of the Area; (2) roads; (3) vegetation management; (4) motorized travel; (5) fire; (6) insects and disease; and (7) water. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to develop a management plan for the Area. Withdraws all federally-owned lands within the Area from disposition under the mining, mineral, and geothermal leasing laws.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 1994
Montana National Forest Management Act of 1994 - Designates certain national forest lands in Montana as wilderness areas. Retains existing water rights in such areas. Directs that, prior to the revision of Land and Resource Management Plans for national forest lands in Montana that were completed prior to this Act's enactment, decisions to allocate roadless areas to wilderness or nonwilderness categories and environmental analyses related to such allocations shall not be subject to judicial review. Provides that, except for decisions allocating lands to wilderness and nonwilderness categories, nothing in this Act shall preclude judicial review of: (1) Department of Agriculture decisions implementing such Plans or decisions made concerning the management of national forest lands subsequent to allocations to wilderness and nonwilderness categories; and (2) Forest Service regional guides and other departmental policies of general applicability. Deems certain reviews by the Department of Agriculture of national forest lands in Montana to be an adequate consideration of the suitability of such lands for inclusion in the national wilderness preservation system. Requires certain lands which were not designated as wilderness, special management, national recreation, or wilderness study areas by this Act to be managed for multiple use. Prohibits the Department of Agriculture from conducting any further statewide roadless area review and evaluation of national forest system lands in Montana for purposes of determining suitability for inclusion in the national wilderness preservation system. Designates specified national forest system lands in Montana as national education, recreation, scenic, wildlife, and wilderness study areas. Withdraws the Badger-Two Medicine Area from all forms of entry, appropriation, and disposal under mining and public land laws and from disposition under geothermal and mineral leasing laws. Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to manage such area as to protect its wilderness qualities. Provides that nothing shall preclude the gathering of timber by the Blackfeet Tribe in exercise of valid treaty rights. Requires the Secretary to review such area in accordance with the Wilderness Act of 1964. Provides that the Bitter Creek and Axolotl Lakes Wilderness Study Areas have been sufficiently studied for wilderness designations. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 1994
Designates the second week of August 1994 and the second week of August 1995 as National United States Seafood Week.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Wilderness Area Designations Title II: Multiple-Use Resource Recovery Land Designations Title III: Special Management Areas Title IV: Water Rights Title V: Protection of Private Property Title VI: Badger-Two Medicine Area Montana Jobs Security and Land Protection Act of 1994 - Title I: Wilderness Area Designations - Designates certain national forest and other lands in Montana as wilderness areas. Title II: Multiple-Use Resource Recovery Land Designations - Designates all Federal lands in Montana as multiple-use resource recovery lands to be managed by the Secretary of Agriculture. Excludes from such designation: (1) wilderness areas; (2) lands that are components of the national wild and scenic rivers or the national trails systems; (3) land withdrawn from mineral entry or timber production by Federal law or executive order; and (4) lands not reviewed for suitability as wilderness during the Second Roadless Area Review and Evaluation Program conducted by the Department of Agriculture. Requires the Secretary to: (1) emphasize the uses that are not allowed on lands designated as wilderness areas or other withdrawn lands; and (2) certify to specified congressional committees that the land and resource management plans for such lands do not preclude the achievement of output targets. Title III: Special Management Areas - Designates certain Federal lands in Montana as special management areas. Describes activities authorized on such lands, including the removal of minerals, the use of motorized equipment, if compatible with designated land uses, and livestock grazing. Title IV: Water Rights - Authorizes the Secretary to acquire such water rights as appropriate to carry out the administrative responsibilities on lands designated under this Act. Provides that this Act may not be construed to affect specified existing water rights of the State of Montana and the utilization of certain water diversion structures. Title V: Protection of Private Property - Directs the Secretary to: (1) comply with applicable State laws, including those relating to private property rights and privacy; and (2) administer this Act in a manner consistent with the constitutional and other legal rights of private property owners. Title VI: Badger-Two Medicine Area - Directs the Secretary to administer certain lands known as the Badger-Two Medicine Area in the Lewis and Clark National Forest, Montana, for nonwilderness, multiple-use purposes. Excludes from such designation lands in such area designated by the Blackfeet Tribal Council as having specific cultural or religious significance.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 1994
Rural Multifamily Rental Housing Loan Guarantee Demonstration Act - Amends the Housing Act of 1949 to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to guarantee the repayment of loans made by private lenders for the development costs of multifamily rental housing for low- and moderate-income rural families. Permits a low-income housing tax credit under the Internal Revenue Code for housing developed from such a loan guarantee if it meets certain tax requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Terminates loan guarantee authority after FY 1996.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 1994
Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to reauthorize the conservation reserve program.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 1994
Equitable Communication Site Fee Act of 1994 - Amends the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 to direct the Secretaries of Agriculture and the Interior to establish and collect annual fees for the use of radio, television, and commercial mobile radio communications sites located on public lands. Sets forth fee schedules, with required annual fee review by the National Forest Service (Service) and the Bureau of Land Management (Bureau), and provides for annual fee adjustments, with limitations. Requires additional fees for additional site users. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to establish and collect an annual fee for the use of television translator stations and FM translator stations located on public lands. Directs the: (1) Secretaries to establish an advisory group for each of the television, radio, and commercial mobile radio industries to determine the fair market value for the use of communications sites on public lands; and (2) Chief Forester of the Service and the Bureau Director to jointly establish an advisory committee to determine fair market values and next best alternative uses for private radio communications site users from public and private communications sites. Requires reports from each of the advisory committees.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 1994
Considers the relocation of a named employee by the Food Safety and Inspection Service of the Department of Agriculture to be a transfer from one official station to another for purposes of permitting reimbursement of relocation expenses to such individual.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 1994
Northern Great Plains Rural Development Act - Establishes the Northern Great Plains Rural Development Commission to study the economic needs of, and develop a rural economic development plan for, the Northern Great Plains. Terminates the Commission on the earlier of: (1) a specified period of time after submission of its final report; or (2) two years after enactment of this Act. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 1994
Stewardship End-Result Contracts Demonstration Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out a demonstration program to develop ecosystem-based and end-result oriented management practices on specified National Forest System lands. Authorizes the use of timber revenues to offset program costs. Authorizes and directs the Secretary to disseminate related research and program information.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 1994
Northern Great Plains Rural Development Act - Establishes the Northern Great Plains Rural Development Commission to study the economic needs of, and develop a rural economic development plan for, the Northern Great Plains. Terminates the Commission on the earlier of: (1) a specified period of time after submission of its final report; or (2) two years after enactment of this Act. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 1994
Federal Crop Insurance Reform Act of 1994 - Amends the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 to revise the Federal crop insurance program. Appropriates permanent program funds. Authorizes program operating appropriations for the Commodity Credit Corporation. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to establish within the Department of Agriculture the Advisory Committee for Federal Crop Insurance. Establishes a noninsured assistance program.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Water Program Funding Title II: Toxic Pollution Prevention and Control Title III: Nonpoint Pollution Control and Watershed Planning Title IV: Municipal Pollution Control Title V: Permit Program and Enforcement Title VI: Program Management Title VII: Wetlands Title VIII: Coastal Protection Title IX: Innovative Technology Title X: Interstate Water Quality Programs Water Pollution Prevention and Control Act of 1994 - Title I: Water Program Funding - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to expand the list of projects for which State water pollution control revolving fund monies are available. (Sec. 101) Authorizes States to: (1) reduce amounts required for matching contributions to capitalization grants for water pollution control revolving funds by an amount equal to the amount of technical assistance provided to publicly owned treatment works or subsurface sewage disposal systems that serve 10,000 or fewer individuals; and (2) forgive an amount of loan principal for disadvantaged communities with respect to loans for water pollution control activities. Revises the allotment formula for revolving funds and extends the authorization of appropriations for such funds through FY 2000. Increases amounts authorized to be appropriated for FY 1996 through 2000 subject to certain on-budget deficit estimates. Reserves funds for a grant to implement a plan for the elimination of discharges to Onondaga Lake, New York. (Sec. 102) Extends the authorization of appropriations for specified pollution control programs through FY 2000. Title II: Toxic Pollution Prevention and Control - Adds to the list of requirements for effluent limitation guidelines that the Administrator: (1) in determining the best practicable control technology and best measures available, give highest priority to source reduction measures; (2) identify control measures to limit the release of pollutants associated with wastewater to other environmental media; and (3) prohibit specific control measures that are likely to have a significant adverse effect on any environmental medium. (Sec. 201) Revises provisions concerning pretreatment standards to require the Administrator to promulgate pretreatment standards for the introduction of pollutants (currently, pollutants which are not susceptible to treatment or would interfere with the operation of the treatment works) into publicly owned treatment works. (Sec. 202) Directs the Administrator to publish a water quality criteria plan every five years. Requires the initial plan to contain at least eight sediment quality criteria. Directs the Administrator to: (1) require pesticide registrants to provide information sufficient to publish criteria unless the pesticide will not enter water in more than de minimis amounts; and (2) ensure that information necessary to publish criteria for chemical substances that are the subject of a premanufacture notice pursuant to the Toxic Substances Control Act is submitted unless certain conditions are met. Requires the Administrator to publish guidance concerning contaminant levels in finfish and shellfish for use by States in the issuance of finfish and shellfish consumption advisories to protect recreational and subsistence fishers. Prohibits sediment quality criteria published under this Act from being: (1) used as a standard for determining appropriate cleanup levels or for whether cleanup should be undertaken; or (2) deemed an applicable requirement for remediation unless the Administrator determines criteria appropriate for such use. Requires States to report triennially to the Administrator on the designated uses of waters. Deems all waters for which a use has not been designated to be designated as fishable and swimmable, unless a State establishes an alternative use. Directs States to adopt pollutant specific standards for any pollutant for which criteria are published if the discharge of such pollutant could interfere with designated water uses. Requires States to implement antidegradation policies. Directs States to implement programs to protect outstanding national resource waters. Requires permitting authorities to conduct antidegradation reviews for a water prior to issuing a permit to a point source authorizing any new or expanded discharge of a pollutant. (Sec. 203) Directs the Administrator to review and revise the list of toxic pollutants subject to this Act at least every five years. Authorizes persons to petition the Administrator to establish effluent standards. Requires the Administrator to offer to enter into arrangements with the National Academy of Sciences to study the effects of pollution found in navigable waters on the development of aquatic life, wildlife, or humans. Directs the Administrator to: (1) publish a list of substances anticipated to cause significant and widespread adverse effects on the development of aquatic life, wildlife, or humans; (2) publish a comprehensive strategy to control, prevent, and remediate water pollution or sediment contamination associated with listed substances; and (3) report to specified congressional committees on an estimate of the costs and benefits of each action proposed under the strategy. (Sec. 204) Authorizes the Administrator to impose pretreatment requirements on industrial users that introduce pollutants into publicly owned treatment works. Prohibits the introduction of hazardous wastes into publicly owned treatment works unless certain conditions are met. Directs the Administrator to publish guidance for: (1) toxic reduction action plans (one of the conditions to be met if introducing hazardous wastes) to be implemented by certain commercial users that are not subject to categorical pretreatment standards and that introduce toxic pollutants or hazardous wastes into treatment works; and (2) technical assistance to small communities to assist in minimizing the introduction of toxic pollutants and hazardous wastes from commercial sources into treatment works. Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations revising the definition and applicability of certain local limits under Federal regulations as may be necessary to protect health and the environment with respect to hazardous wastes discharged to publicly owned treatment works. Requires revised limits to address all points from which hazardous wastes may be released from a treatment works to the environment. Directs the Administrator to study and report to the Congress on actual discharges of hazardous wastes to treatment works to determine quantities, the sources of the discharges, the releases from various release points, and resulting threats to health and the environment. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes a publicly owned treatment works to apply to the Administrator for the designation of the treatment works as a publicly owned industrial treatment works. Provides for approval of the application if: (1) greater than 75 percent of the wastewater received is from one or more industrial sources; (2) the works was specifically designed to treat pollutants associated with such sources; (3) the works consistently complies with applicable effluent limitations that are as stringent as those that would apply if the works were an industrial facility; (4) sludge from the works meets requirements for beneficial reuse; and (5) the works has imposed controls on all pollutants received from such sources as necessary to protect health and the environment. (Sec. 205) Amends the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990 to require facilities that are subject to toxic chemical release reporting requirements under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act of 1986 and whose reports total releases and transfers of toxic chemicals in excess of 200,000 pounds annually to prepare pollution prevention plans. Deems small businesses to be in compliance with such requirement if they retain a pollution prevention opportunities assessment manual and checklist. Requires facilities to include pollution prevention progress reports with each annual filing of toxic chemical release reports. Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish an integrated pollution prevention information network; (2) develop industry-specific pollution prevention opportunities assessment manuals and checklists for industrial categories with respect to which the lack of information is an impediment to pollution prevention by small businesses; and (3) establish a program to promote local voluntary programs to prevent pollution and promote energy conservation. (Sec. 206) Requires the Administrator to establish an integrated| permit pilot program at up to ten demonstration sites that: (1) combines all applicable Federal environmental requirements (with exceptions) into a single integrated permit; and (2) provides the sites the opportunity to demonstrate innovative and alternative methods of compliance with such requirements. Permits the Administrator, with the consent of the State in which a demonstration site is located, to temporarily waive Federal environmental statutory and regulatory requirements (with exceptions, including limitations of emissions) for such sites. Authorizes the Administrator to provide technical assistance grants to applicant organizations and local communities in the vicinity of demonstration sites. Requires demonstration projects to terminate within ten years of this Act's enactment. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Nonpoint Pollution Control and Watershed Planning - Requires States to conduct and report to the Administrator on programs to monitor the quality of navigable waters and aquatic sediment. (Sec. 301) Establishes the Intergovernmental Task Force on Monitoring Water Quality to coordinate Federal and State water and sediment quality monitoring programs. (Sec. 302) Revises provisions concerning State assessments of nonpoint source pollution. Requires States to submit to the Administrator every five years a list of navigable waters that cannot, without additional action to control nonpoint source pollution, be anticipated to attain or maintain: (1) water and sediment quality standards; and (2) in the case of a parameter with respect to which no water or sediment quality standard is in effect, water and sediment quality that supports the designated use. Authorizes States to include within such list other waters that are: (1) threatened with impairment; (2) outstanding national resource waters; or (3) groundwater threatened with nonpoint source pollution. Requires States to delineate land areas of the watersheds of listed waters. Revises requirements for State nonpoint source management programs. Requires such programs to be submitted for approval every five years. Authorizes States to select alternative management practices that are not identified in the national program guidance if such practices are as effective in controlling nonpoint source pollution. Permits alternative requirements with respect to specific sources with the Administrator's approval and subject to other conditions. Considers approved coastal nonpoint pollution control programs to meet the requirements for such programs. Requires the Administrator to implement programs for States that fail to do so. Directs the Administrator to publish guidance for nonpoint source management programs, taking into account certain regional variations and land and water management practices. Authorizes the Administrator to list new sources in the guidance if they are likely to contribute to pollution preventing the attainment of water or sediment quality standards. Authorizes sources located in watershed areas of listed waters to implement site-specific water quality plans in lieu of management measures outlined in the national guidance. Provides that certain existing plans implemented under conservation compliance and agricultural water protection programs under the Food Security Act of 1985 satisfy site-specific plan requirements subject to certain conditions. Requires the Administrator to establish a formula for the allocation of sums based on certain factors related to nonpoint source pollution. Sets forth limitations on funding. Withholds up to 50 percent of funds from States that fail to implement nonpoint source programs. Authorizes (current law requires) the Administrator to make grants to States for groundwater protection activities that will advance nonpoint source pollution control. Extends the authorization to carry out nonpoint source programs through FY 2000. Authorizes the Administrator to make grants: (1) for certain education and outreach activities regarding nonpoint pollution source control; and (2) to the CleanMarina Program to support the reduction of pollution from marina facilities and recreational boating activities. Authorizes appropriations. Provides for the implementation of nonpoint source water pollution control measures on Federal lands and for the prevention of water pollution resulting from highway construction. Directs the Administrator to review and approve each plan for the construction of an animal waste management facility. Authorizes the Administrator to provide technical assistance and education concerning the design of such facilities. Requires the Administrator to publish guidelines for the design, operation, and management of publicly owned subsurface sewage organizations. (Sec. 303) Authorizes State Governors to designate waters and associated land areas as watershed management units. Makes certain watershed planning activities eligible for assistance. Authorizes State Governors to submit watershed management plans to the Administrator for approval. Makes approved plan activities eligible for Federal assistance. Provides for extensions of discharge permits in watershed planning units, subject to certain conditions. Title IV: Municipal Pollution Control - Requires permits issued for discharges from combined storm and sanitary sewers to conform with combined sewer overflow control policy under Federal regulations published by the Administrator in January 1993. (Sec. 401) Authorizes the issuance of permits for compliance with a long-term control plan for a term of up to 15 years. (Sec. 402) Applies permit requirements to stormwater discharges associated with commercial activity. Exempts sources of discharges composed entirely of stormwater from municipal storm sewer systems, with certain exceptions, from permit requirements (currently, such exemption is only available prior to October 1, 1994). Provides that permits issued for discharges from municipal storm sewers composed entirely of stormwater shall not require compliance with numeric effluent limitations and water quality standards shall not be applied as effluent limitations. Authorizes the Administrator to issue a consolidated permit for discharges from a storm sewer system owned by a municipality and the stormwater discharges from industrial or commercial sources owned by the same municipality. Requires the Administrator to establish permit requirements for stormwater discharges from commercial and light industrial sources. Directs the Administrator to list each municipal storm sewer system the discharge from which is the sole or principal cause for the failure of receiving waters affected by the discharge to achieve a designated use or other water quality standard. Requires such systems to obtain discharge permits. Requires a revised list at least every five years. Authorizes the Administrator to exempt certain commercial and light industrial stormwater discharges from permit requirements. (Sec. 403) Requires EPA to be the primary coordinator for all Federal policies related to municipal, commercial, residential, and industrial water conservation. Authorizes the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Army Corps of Engineers, to provide technical assistance and take specified actions to encourage water conservation. Directs the Secretary to establish a national clearinghouse on water conservation. Authorizes appropriations. Title V: Permit Program and Enforcement - Requires fees for discharge permits to be used for point source elements of the water quality program and sewage sludge use and disposal and pretreatment programs. Establishes a Federal Water Pollution Control Permit Fund. (Sec. 502) Requires a permit applicant, in the case of a new discharge resulting from facility construction, to apply for a permit prior to the commencement of construction. Modifies permit application requirements. (Sec. 503) Revises enforcement and penalty provisions. Title VI: Program Management - Requires the Administrator to conduct research with respect to the harmful effects on the health and habitat of fish, shellfish, and wildlife caused by water pollutants. (Sec. 601) Authorizes appropriations for research programs. (Sec. 603) Establishes employee protection provisions to apply to cases where employees refuse to perform duties that would constitute violations of the Clean Water Act. (Sec. 606) Increases the amount required to be reserved for assistance to Indian tribes for the construction of treatment works and nonpoint source pollution control programs. Permits State revolving funds to be used for assistance to Indian tribes. Requires the Administrator to issue permits for discharges to navigable waters on Federal Indian reservations unless the Indian tribe has been delegated permit issuance authority. (Sec. 607) Requires the Administrator to establish a national water quality education program as well as specified volunteer awards programs related to water pollution control. (Sec. 608) Directs the Administrator to establish: (1) an Arid West Water Quality Research Project; and (2) an Arid West Water Quality Research Board. Requires the project to: (1) be located at the EPA monitoring laboratory in Las Vegas, Nevada; (2) develop data for water quality criteria documents for species and environments appropriate for ephemeral and effluent-dependent streams; and (3) conduct additional research. Authorizes appropriations. Requires the Administrator to convene a working group to: (1) recommend revisions to methodology used to develop water quality criteria to include criteria appropriate for ephemeral and effluent-dependent streams; and (2) make recommendations for additional scientific research and other information needed for the development of water quality criteria that can be adapted by States to reflect special regional and site-specific characteristics, especially with respect to the arid West. Direct the Administrator to: (1) revise such methodology in accordance with the recommendations; and (2) publish at least two criteria documents addressing such streams. Requires the Administrator to promote the environmentally beneficial use of reclaimed water and the development of appropriate water quality criteria and standards for ephemeral and effluent-dependent streams: (1) that have a limited ability to maintain traditional water resources; and (2) with respect to which the discharge of reclaimed water to otherwise arid or semiarid environments can also support limited aquatic and riparian habitat that would otherwise not exist. Authorizes States to establish an alternative use for ephemeral and effluent-dependent streams if such streams cannot attain current designated uses because of natural, ephemeral, intermittent, or low flow conditions or water levels. Permits revised or new interim water quality criteria for such streams. (Sec. 610) Directs the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Army Corps of Engineers, to establish a grant program to provide assistance to States and political subdivisions for the construction of environmental education facilities. Requires facilities to be used to enhance public awareness of the importance of aquatic, marine, and other natural resources and to serve as a clearinghouse. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 611) Requires certain water pollution control plans prepared by States, localities, and other nonfederal entities pursuant to the Clean Water Act to evaluate the acquisition of lands or interests as a means of meeting the goals of such plans. Permits the use of funding under the Clean Water Act for such acquisitions if: (1) the lands or interests are acquired from willing sellers and held in perpetuity in public ownership; and (2) the plan finds the acquisition to be effective and appropriate. Makes acquired lands available for public recreational purposes to the extent possible considering the environmental sensitivity and suitability of the lands. (Sec. 612) Directs the Administrator to establish: (1) an Environmental Financial Advisory Board to provide expert advice on issues affecting the costs and financing of environmental activities at the Federal, State, and local levels; and (2) Environmental Finance Centers in each of the ten Federal regions. Authorizes the Centers to: (1) provide training of State and local officials; (2) publish materials relating to financing of environmental infrastructure; (3) conduct conferences and advisory panels on specific environmental finance issues; (4) establish information services; (5) generate case studies and reports; (6) develop surveys of financial issues and needs of State and local governments; (7) identify financial programs and alternative financing mechanisms for training purposes; (8) hold public meetings; and (9) collaborate and exchange information. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 613) Directs the Administrator to: (1) conduct a comprehensive research program concerning U.S. lakes; and (2) appoint a Lake Research Advisory Committee. Requires States to designate the use of each publicly-owned lake consistent with the following uses: (1) public drinking water supply; (2) swimming and related body contact recreation; and (3) resource protection. Directs the Administrator to publish: (1) water quality criteria for freshwater lakes; and (2) guidance to assist States in the adoption of lake water quality standards for contaminants for which criteria documents have been published. Extends the authorization of appropriations for the clean lakes program through FY 2000. Revises requirements for lake water quality demonstration programs. Adds to the priority list for such programs China Lake, Maine, Flathead Lake, Montana, and Candlewood Lake, Connecticut. Requires the Administrator to report to the Congress on phosphates in detergent products. Directs the Administrator to implement a national education program on lake quality and protection. Provides for a Lake Watch Program and a Lake Watch Award. Amends the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control Act of 1990 to require the Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force to undertake a program to prevent the dissemination of Eurasian Milfoil (Myriophyllum Spicatum), a type of aquatic weed. Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit the importation of such species into the United States. (Sec. 614) Applies certain Federal wage standards to contract employees working on projects (currently, treatment works) financed under the Clean Water Act. (Sec. 615) Requires the Administrator to consult with any Federal agency having jurisdiction over food processing activities prior to the promulgation of any requirements for an effluent guideline, new source performance standard, pretreatment standard, process change, or use restriction which will affect food processing activities to ensure that the guideline, standard, change, or restriction will not adversely affect food safety or the integrity and wholesomeness of a food product. (Sec. 616) Revises provisions concerning training grants and contracts to require the Administrator to implement a national program to train individuals in the operation of municipal and industrial wastewater treatment works and other water pollution control facilities. Provides for grants to institutions of higher education and State agencies to support such programs. Requires chief operators of publicly owned treatment works that have discharge permits and such additional personnel as may be designated by a State to be certified as proficient. Directs the Administrator to issue certification guidelines. Authorizes appropriations for training and scholarship programs. Title VII: Wetlands - Prohibits the Administrator and the Secretary of the Army from taking private property for public |use without just compensation. (Sec. 702) Prohibits the issuance of revisions to or clarifications of the guidelines for identifying and delineating wetlands under the Clean Water Act until the National Academy of Sciences has completed a specified wetlands study. Provides for the continued use of the 1987 Corps of Engineers wetlands delineation manual until such guidelines are issued. Requires wetlands located on agricultural and associated nonagricultural lands to be delineated by the Secretary of Agriculture in accordance with a specified January 1994 memorandum. Directs the Secretary to delineate wetlands on rangelands using the 1987 manual. Authorizes the Administrator to issue guidelines to identify and delineate wetlands. Earmarks funding for: (1) wetlands delineation training programs; and (2) assistance to private landowners who lack financial capacity to identify or delineate wetlands in order to apply for dredge or fill permits or avoid impacts to wetlands. Provides for a public information program on Federal regulations, permitting requirements, and wetlands delineation. (Sec. 704) Sets forth permit decision deadlines and administrative appeal procedures, including procedures for landowners to appeal regulatory jurisdiction determinations. (Sec. 705) Authorizes the issuance of general permits on a State, regional, or nationwide basis for any category of activities involving discharges of dredge or fill material if the activities are similar in nature and will cause only minimal adverse environmental effects when performed separately and cumulatively. (Sec. 706) Exempts prior converted croplands and certain waters and activities from regulation under dredged and fill permit provisions. (Sec. 707) Provides for the establishment of mitigation banks (wetlands restoration projects that provide compensation credits to offset foreseeable wetlands losses from future discharges of dredged or fill material into navigable waters if compensatory mitigation is not practicable). (Sec. 710) Authorizes funding to States for wetlands conservation and watershed management planning. Requires the Administrator to carry out a wetlands and watershed management research program. Establishes a committee to coordinate Federal, State, and local government wetlands policies. Provides for the development of a National Cooperative Wetlands Restoration Strategy. Requires the Secretary of the Army and the Administrator to establish a wetlands restoration pilot program. (Sec. 711) Authorizes the Administrator to make grants to States to administer wetlands programs. Authorizes appropriations. Title VIII: Coastal Protection - Extends the authorization of appropriations for the national estuary program through FY 2000. Revises requirements for estuary management conferences and conservation plans and provisions regarding research and grants. Adds Charlotte Harbor, Florida, to the list of estuaries to be given priority consideration. (Sec. 802) Directs the Administrator to revise water quality for pathogens. Requires the Administrator to revise the aquatic life criteria for each pollutant with respect to which such criteria for freshwater have been published and revise such criteria to address aquatic life in marine waters. Directs each State with coastal recreation waters to adopt water quality standards for pathogens. Requires the Administrator to establish numeric water quality standards for marine waters that: (1) are not located within the jurisdiction of a State; and (2) are located within 200 miles seaward of the landward boundary of the territorial seas. (Sec. 803) Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish a national program to provide information, education, and technical assistance to owners of land bordering marine water; (2) establish the Ocean Watch Program to encourage nonprofit citizens groups to engage in activities to assess and protect marine and ocean waters; and (3) provide an annual Ocean Watch Award. (Sec. 804) Make it unlawful to discharge sewage: (1) into certain designated waters; and (2) that has not been treated by a marine sanitation device. Makes the construction of marine pumpout stations provided for in plans approved under the Clean Vessel Act of 1992 eligible for State revolving fund assistance. Makes it unlawful for the owner or operator of a marina that has a docking or mooring capacity for more than 500 vessels: (1) beginning on January 1, 2000, to fail to provide pumpout stations and waste reception facilities for marine sanitation devices unless a plan developed under the Clean Vessel Act of 1992 expressly waives such requirement; and (2) to fail to comply with a plan pursuant to such Act. Requires the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating to carry out an information and education program to encourage compliance with marine sanitation device requirements and foster understanding concerning water quality and pollution prevention. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 805) Revises provisions concerning the issuance of permits with respect to ocean discharges. Prohibits permits for such discharges if: (1) a discharge may cause or contribute to the violation of water and sediment quality standards; or (2) discharge alternatives were not adequately evaluated. Directs the Administrator to: (1) biennially list marine waters that do not and are not likely to support the protection and propagation of fish, shellfish, and wildlife and allow for recreational activities in and on the waters; and (2) take actions to prevent the further degradation of water and sediment quality of a priority marine water. (Sec. 806) Authorizes the Secretary of the Army to provide financial assistance to local governments for the construction of facilities for the control of overflows from combined storm and sanitary sewers to marine waters. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 807) Directs the Administrator to publish regulations specifying methods to be used by States to monitor coastal recreation waters, during periods of use by the public, for compliance with standards. Requires notification of local governments and the public of water quality standards violations. Directs the Administrator to: (1) issue guidance on uniform assessment and monitoring procedures for floatable materials in coastal recreation waters; and (2) specify the conditions under which the presence of floatable materials constitutes a threat to public health and safety. Authorizes grants to States for carrying out such requirements. Authorizes appropriations. Provides for a research program to develop better indicators for detecting harmful bacteria and viruses in coastal recreation waters. Title IX: Innovative Technology - Requires the Administrator to establish a program to demonstrate practices, methods, technologies, or processes that may be effective in the prevention and control of sources of water pollution or aquatic habitat degradation or loss. Authorizes grants for such projects. Permits the Administrator, as part of such program, to: (1) enter into cooperative agreements with State permitting authorities and the managers of Federal facilities for the demonstration of innovative and alternative approaches for the prevention and control of point and nonpoint sources of water pollution at properties owned by the Federal Government; and (2) select proposals for funding agreements for projects to demonstrate comprehensive and innovative technologies for the prevention, control, or remediation of acid, metal-contaminated, or other mine water pollution that results from active, inactive, or abandoned hard rock mining operations. (Sec. 901) Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 902) Authorizes the Administrator, with State consent, to temporarily waive permit limitations for certain point sources for purposes of encouraging the development and testing of certain innovative production or pollution prevention processes, pollution control technologies, or recycling methods. Limits waivers to 90 days and provides for extensions. (Sec. 903) Provides for limited waivers from national categorical pretreatment standards under certain conditions for facilities that apply innovative production or pollution prevention processes, pollution control technologies, or recycling methods. Limits waivers to 90 days and provides for extensions. (Sec. 904) Directs the Administrator to establish a program to verify, evaluate, and disseminate: (1) performance and cost information on technologies, processes, techniques, and management measures appropriate for controlling water pollution; and (2) information on the properties and toxicity of substitute chemicals. Requires the Administrator to establish and update a list of technologies and alternative chemicals verified under the program. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 905) Authorizes States to submit programs to assist small business sources of water pollution to the Administrator for approval. Requires the Administrator to establish a small business source assistance program within EPA. Title X: Interstate Water Quality Programs - Establishes a Gulf of Mexico Program to: (1) protect the coastal and marine waters and natural habitats of the Gulf; (2) protect human health and the food supply; and (3) ensure the recreational use of the Gulf in ways consistent with the economic well being of the region. (Sec. 1001) Establishes a Gulf of Mexico Commission to make recommendations to the President on Program goals. Provides for a Management and Restoration Plan for the Gulf. Requires the Commission to report to the Congress on the environmental quality of the Gulf and impact of Gulf environmental problems on economic conditions. Authorizes grants to Gulf States to further the implementation of the Plan. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 1002) Directs the Administrator to develop a Great Lakes testing manual that implements the national guidance for the disposal of sediment material into U.S. waters. Requires the Administrator to report to the Congress on the general condition of Confined Disposal Facilities (CDFs) located in the Great Lakes basin and to identify each facility that is causing or is at risk of causing an exceedance of water or sediment quality standards or interfering with protection of designated uses. Directs the Administrator to publish a ranking of at least 15 priority harbors within the Great Lakes system for development of long-term sediment management strategies for harbor maintenance. Makes it unlawful, with respect to such harbors, to discharge sediment dredged from the harbors at any location in the open waters of the Great Lakes or any CDF or to establish, expand, or modify any CDF that receives sediment from the harbors unless specified conditions are met. Requires the Administrator and the Secretary of the Army to jointly issue guidelines for the development of sediment management strategies for such harbors. Provides for sediment management working groups for each site subject to routine navigational dredging. Requires all dredging and disposal operations to be consistent with such strategies. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop tributary sediment models for each major river system that deposits sediment into a Great Lakes federally authorized commercial harbor, channel harbor, channel maintenance project site, or area of concern; (2) develop an analytical method to project the effectiveness of sediment source reduction approaches; and (3) use such method to conduct sediment load reduction analyses to estimate the effectiveness of such approaches. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Great Lakes National Program Office to conduct demonstration projects of promising technologies to remedy contaminated sediments. Replaces provisions concerning the Great Lakes Research Office to establish a Great Lakes Research Council. Revises provisions regarding Lakewide Management Plans to require the Administrator to publish the final plans for: (1) Lake Michigan and Lake Superior by January 1, 1995; and (2) Lake Erie, Lake Huron, and Lake Ontario by January 1, 1998. Raises the ceiling on, and extends the authorization of, appropriations for a health research report regarding the Great Lakes. Directs the Administrator to seek the cooperation of Canada in developing a binational program to restore and protect water and sediment quality within the watershed area of Lake Superior. Extends the authorization of appropriations for the Great Lakes program through FY 2000. (Sec. 1003) Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to: (1) continue the Chesapeake Bay Program; and (2) maintain a Chesapeake Bay Program Office. Establishes a Chesapeake Bay Federal Agencies Committee to coordinate Federal activities relating to the restoration of the Bay. Requires Federal agencies to report to the President on activities planned and undertaken, and resources provided, to meet responsibilities under the Program. Directs Federal agencies that own or operate facilities within the Bay watershed to assess the facilities to ensure compliance with the Program and include a plan for addressing such impacts in the report to the President. Requires the Administrator to establish a habitat restoration program in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Authorizes technical and financial assistance to public and nonprofit agencies to carry out such program. Directs the Administrator to develop a basinwide toxic reduction strategy, as well as research and monitoring to improve understanding of intermedia transfers of toxic pollutants and the ultimate fate of the pollutants within the Bay ecosystem. Authorizes financial assistance for specified activities. Extends the authorization of appropriations for the Program through FY 2000. (Sec. 1004) Requires the Administrator to continue the Clark Fork-Pend Oreille Watershed Program and to establish a Tri-State Implementation Council to implement the management plan developed for the Program. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 1005) Establishes a Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment. Authorizes grants to the Council and to the St. Croix International Waterway Commission. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 1006) Directs the Administrator to establish a Mississippi River Program within EPA to carry out specified activities to protect and restore the Mississippi River. Establishes the Mississippi River Program Office. Requires the Administrator and the Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to report on the environmental quality and and ecosystem health of the Mississippi River and the impact on economic viability, human health, and ecological health of plants and animals. Directs the Administrator to design a strategy for developing a monitoring program to assess the environmental quality of such ecosystem. Requires the Governors of the Mississippi River States, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Administrator to form a Mississippi River States Council to: (1) assist in collecting assessment and monitoring data; (2) ratify a Management, Protection, and Restoration Plan and (3) facilitate coordination on issues related to restoration of environmental quality. Authorizes grants for the development and implementation of the Plan. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 1007) Extends the authorization for, and raises the ceiling on, appropriations to implement the Long Island Sound program. Designates the Connecticut River and the watershed of such river in Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut as a multistate watershed. Requires the New England Interstate Water Pollution Commission to coordinate State and interstate management efforts. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 1008) Directs the Administrator to make grants to maintain the Narragansett Bay Project and to implement a comprehensive conservation and management plan. Authorizes grants to carry out the Project. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 1009) Requires the Administrator to establish an Executive Council of the San Francisco Bay-Delta Estuary Restoration Program to coordinate the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 1010) Extends the authorization of appropriations for the Lake Champlain program.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 1994
Farmers' Risk Management Act of 1994 - Amends the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 to revise the Federal crop insurance program. Authorizes program operating appropriations for the Commodity Credit Corporation. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to establish within the Department of Agriculture the Advisory Committee for Federal Crop Insurance. Establishes a noninsured assistance program.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 1994
Farm Credit System Agricultural Export and Risk Management Act - Amends the Farm Credit Act of 1971 to permit banks for cooperatives to participate in agricultural export financing arrangements with domestic or foreign businesses. Prohibits the financing of a U.S. facility's foreign relocation. Authorizes a Farm Credit Bank or direct lender association to participate in loans to similar but non-Farm Credit System entities for entities for risk management purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 1994
Extends (from May 8, 1994) to August 18, 1994, the effective date of certain nutrition labeling requirements of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990. Applies such extension to food products contained in a package for which the label was printed before April 1, 1994, if, before June 15, 1994, the person introducing or delivering the food product for introduction into interstate commerce certifies to the Secretary of Health and Human Services that such requirements will be complied with after August 18, 1994.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 1994
Amends the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to remove the maximum interest rate limit on certain Rural Electrification Administration loans.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 1994
Pesticide Reform Act of 1994 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to replace provisions relating to tolerances for pesticide chemicals in or on raw agricultural commodities with provisions relating to tolerances and exemptions for pesticide chemical residues. (Sec. 3) Deems a pesticide chemical residue unsafe, unless it is within an established tolerance or an exemption is in effect. Requires a tolerance or exemption for a pesticide chemical residue for a food to apply to all foods derived from such food unless a tolerance specifies otherwise. Requires expiration dates for tolerances for pesticide chemicals to be: (1) the expiration date for the chemical established under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); or (2) 18 years after the date the tolerance is established, whichever occurs first. Authorizes the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to establish a separate tolerance for a pesticide chemical residue with respect to food at any point in the chain of production or marketing. Prohibits a tolerance for a pesticide chemical residue in or on food from being established or left in effect unless the residue permitted under the tolerance is safe. Prohibits a tolerance from being established or left in effect for pesticides found to induce cancer in humans or animals based on reliable scientific evidence, unless the Administrator finds on the basis of conservative methods of risk assessment that risk is negligible for all anticipated consumer exposures to such residue. Requires tolerances for residues that may pose dietary risks of adverse health effects other than cancer to provide an ample margin of safety. Provides for the periodic review and revision, as necessary, of risk assessment procedures used to make safety determinations. Sets forth factors to be evaluated by the Administrator in determining whether to establish, modify, or revoke tolerances for pesticide chemical residues on food. Includes within such factors risks to infants and children. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct surveys to document dietary exposure to pesticides among infants and children. Requires, if a tolerance or exemption is revoked and the residue will unavoidably persist in the environment and be found in food, that a new tolerance be established at a level no greater than the level that permits only the unavoidable levels to remain in the food. Conditions establishment and continuation of a tolerance on the existence of a method of multiresidue detection that can be performed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services on a routine basis as part of surveillance and compliance sampling for residues. Directs registrants of pesticide chemicals for which tolerances have been established to provide the Administrator with a pesticide reference standard for such chemicals to be certified by a competent laboratory. Requires the Administrator to maintain a repository of such standards, audit the certifications, and make such standards available to requesting laboratories. Allows: (1) establishment, modification, or revocation of a tolerance or establishment or revocation of an exemption from a tolerance in response to a petition or on the initiative of the Administrator; and (2) an exemption if the residue is not a human or animal carcinogen and presents no risk to human health at any level that is likely to occur under extreme conditions of use from dietary exposure. Authorizes any person to petition the Administrator for the establishment, modification, or revocation of a tolerance or exemption. Requires the Administrator, if granting an exemption for emergency purposes for a pesticide chemical under FIFRA, to establish a tolerance or exemption for such chemical's residue. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations for exempting new pesticide chemicals intended solely for use by experts to investigate the safety of such chemicals. Requires the Administrator to publish a list of pesticide chemical residues that are generally recognized as safe. Directs any person who, before this Act's enactment, distributed any pesticide chemical in commerce that produces a residue that is not listed, to provide the data that supports the claim that the residue is safe. Requires the Secretary to conduct surveillance and compliance enforcement monitoring of food for pesticide chemical residues. (Sec. 4) Authorizes employees of the Department of Health and Human Services, if there is reason to believe that any food is adulterated due to unsafe pesticide residues, to detain the food for a specified period. (Sec. 6) Permits the Secretary to require manufacturers, processors, or distributors to recall food deemed to be adulterated from unsafe pesticide residues. (Sec. 7) Directs the Administrator to identify tolerances and exemptions for existing pesticide residues that do not appear to meet the requirements of this Act and requires the submission of data for maintenance of such tolerances and exemptions. Establishes deadlines for final determinations on whether tolerances and exemptions meet requirements and for the submission of data.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 1994
Pesticide Reform Act of 1994 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to replace provisions relating to tolerances for pesticide chemicals in or on raw agricultural commodities with provisions relating to tolerances and exemptions for pesticide chemical residues. (Sec. 3) Deems a pesticide chemical residue unsafe, unless it is within an established tolerance or an exemption is in effect. Requires a tolerance or exemption for a pesticide chemical residue for a food to apply to all foods derived from such food unless a tolerance specifies otherwise. Requires expiration dates for tolerances for pesticide chemicals to be: (1) the expiration date for the chemical established under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); or (2) 18 years after the date the tolerance is established, whichever occurs first. Authorizes the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to establish a separate tolerance for a pesticide chemical residue with respect to food at any point in the chain of production or marketing. Prohibits a tolerance for a pesticide chemical residue in or on food from being established or left in effect unless the residue permitted under the tolerance is safe. Prohibits a tolerance from being established or left in effect for pesticides found to induce cancer in humans or animals based on reliable scientific evidence, unless the Administrator finds on the basis of conservative methods of risk assessment that risk is negligible for all anticipated consumer exposures to such residue. Requires tolerances for residues that may pose dietary risks of adverse health effects other than cancer to provide an ample margin of safety. Provides for the periodic review and revision, as necessary, of risk assessment procedures used to make safety determinations. Sets forth factors to be evaluated by the Administrator in determining whether to establish, modify, or revoke tolerances for pesticide chemical residues on food. Includes within such factors risks to infants and children. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct surveys to document dietary exposure to pesticides among infants and children. Requires, if a tolerance or exemption is revoked and the residue will unavoidably persist in the environment and be found in food, that a new tolerance be established at a level no greater than the level that permits only the unavoidable levels to remain in the food. Conditions establishment and continuation of a tolerance on the existence of a method of multiresidue detection that can be performed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services on a routine basis as part of surveillance and compliance sampling for residues. Directs registrants of pesticide chemicals for which tolerances have been established to provide the Administrator with a pesticide reference standard for such chemicals to be certified by a competent laboratory. Requires the Administrator to maintain a repository of such standards, audit the certifications, and make such standards available to requesting laboratories. Allows: (1) establishment, modification, or revocation of a tolerance or establishment or revocation of an exemption from a tolerance in response to a petition or on the initiative of the Administrator; and (2) an exemption if the residue is not a human or animal carcinogen and presents no risk to human health at any level that is likely to occur under extreme conditions of use from dietary exposure. Authorizes any person to petition the Administrator for the establishment, modification, or revocation of a tolerance or exemption. Requires the Administrator, if granting an exemption for emergency purposes for a pesticide chemical under FIFRA, to establish a tolerance or exemption for such chemical's residue. Directs the Administrator to promulgate regulations for exempting new pesticide chemicals intended solely for use by experts to investigate the safety of such chemicals. Requires the Administrator to publish a list of pesticide chemical residues that are generally recognized as safe. Directs any person who, before this Act's enactment, distributed any pesticide chemical in commerce that produces a residue that is not listed, to provide the data that supports the claim that the residue is safe. Requires the Secretary to conduct surveillance and compliance enforcement monitoring of food for pesticide chemical residues. (Sec. 4) Authorizes employees of the Department of Health and Human Services, if there is reason to believe that any food is adulterated due to unsafe pesticide residues, to detain the food for a specified period. (Sec. 6) Permits the Secretary to require manufacturers, processors, or distributors to recall food deemed to be adulterated from unsafe pesticide residues. (Sec. 7) Directs the Administrator to identify tolerances and exemptions for existing pesticide residues that do not appear to meet the requirements of this Act and requires the submission of data for maintenance of such tolerances and exemptions. Establishes deadlines for final determinations on whether tolerances and exemptions meet requirements and for the submission of data.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 1994
Interstate Compact - Grants congressional consent to the Northeast Interstate Dairy Compact entered into among the States of Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts to assure the viability of dairy farming in the northeast and to assure consumers of an adequate, local supply of milk.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 1994
Down To Earth Tiny Wetland Act of 1994 - Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to permit the conversion of wetlands that are one acre or less.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 1994
Meat and Poultry Products Inspection Amendments of 1994 - Amends the Federal Meat Inspection Act to: (1) permit State inspected meat and meat products to be sold or transported in interstate commerce; (2) permit the Secretary of Agriculture to use State inspectors; (3) permit State inspected meat products to be used in the preparation of products processed in federally inspected facilities; and (4) prohibit the imposition of additional or different State facilities or marketing and labeling requirements than apply under such Act. Amends the Poultry Products Inspection Act to make similar amendments for poultry and poultry products.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 1994
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act Amendments of 1994 - Amends the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) to establish a registration renewal procedure. Requires active ingredients, for purposes of such procedure, to be classified as follows: (1) in group one if first contained in a pesticide initially registered before November 1, 1984; (2) in group two if first contained in a pesticide initially registered after October 31, 1984, but before this Act's enactment; or (3) in group three if first contained in a pesticide initially registered after this Act's enactment. (Sec. 2) Sets reapplication dates for active ingredients as follows: (1) 12-14 years after the issuance of a reregistration eligibility decision document for the active ingredient for those in group one; (2) ten to 13 years after this Act's enactment for those in group two; and (3) 12 years after the date of initial registration of a product containing the active ingredient for those in group three. Sets subsequent reapplication dates for active ingredients at 12 years after the preceding expiration date. Authorizes the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to assess fees from registrants to cover costs associated with registration review. Permits the Administrator to cancel a registration for nonpayment. Establishes a registration renewal fund in the Treasury. Allows the continued use, distribution, or sale of existing stocks of an expired pesticide subject to conditions specified by the Administrator. (Sec. 3) Revises pesticide export provisions to prohibit the export of a pesticide that contains an active ingredient if virtually all uses of the active ingredient in the United States have been prohibited. Permits such exports where an export would be prohibited only because registration applications have been voluntarily withdrawn or cancelled by an applicant if the Administrator is unaware of any information indicating that use of the pesticide could pose adverse health or environmental risks. Authorizes such exports to a specified importing country if: (1) the pesticide is not subject to a prohibition for any human health related reason; and (2) the country has informed the Administrator that it wishes to import the pesticide and is aware that U.S. uses of the pesticide are prohibited. Requires the Administrator to prohibit, by order, persons from exporting a pesticide to a foreign country if such country has informed the Administrator or an international agency of which the United States is a member, that the country does not wish to import the pesticide and certifies that it: (1) is not producing or importing and will not produce or import the pesticide for use in the country; and (2) does not wish to import the pesticide because of human health or environmental concerns. Provides for withdrawal of such order if the country is not in compliance with such certification. Prohibits the export of a pesticide unless: (1) there is a tolerance or an exemption from certain tolerance requirements under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) governing residues of each ingredient in the pesticide in at least one food; (2) there is a practical method for detecting residues in or on foods and the Administrator has an appropriately certified pesticide reference standard; or (3) the Administrator determines that the pesticide is not likely to be used in a manner resulting in residues in or on imported foods. Prohibits the export of a pesticide if any ingredient has not been and is not the subject of any registration unless the Administrator determines that: (1) for each active ingredient, there is a tolerance greater than zero or an exemption from the tolerance requirement under the FDCA; or (2) residues of the pesticide on food have been permitted or the pesticide has been approved for use in at least three countries that evaluate pesticides prior to marketing in accordance with internationally recognized scientific standards and on the basis of an independent scientific review of health and environmental risks; and (3) the country of import participates in the United Nations Environment Program-Food and Agriculture Organization system for exchange of information on pesticides in international trade. Permits persons to petition the Administrator to withdraw authorization to export such pesticides. Authorizes the Administrator to permit the export of a small quantity of a pesticide to a foreign country solely for research and development purposes, but not test marketing. Prohibits such export if the pesticide contains an active ingredient which has been prohibited for virtually all uses, with exceptions. Requires exporters, in the case of unregistered pesticides other than those containing active ingredients that are banned in the United States, to obtain signed statements from foreign purchasers acknowledging that they understand that the pesticide is not registered for use, and cannot be sold, in the United States. Prohibits the export of a pesticide or a device unless it complies with requirements of this Act and the label of the pesticide is written in an official language of the country of use and, to the extent not in conflict with the country's requirements, contains all health, safety, environmental, and other related information required to be included on labeling in the United States. Requires pesticide exporters to comply with the product stewardship provisions of the 1994 International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides of the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations. Permits the Administrator to prohibit noncomplying exporters from exporting for up to 180 days. Requires persons who distribute or sell pesticides for export to submit distribution or sale records to the Administrator as prescribed. Authorizes the assessment of fees on pesticide registrants to carry out export requirements and establishes a fund in the Treasury. Permits the Administrator to use a specified amount to provide countries technical assistance in certain pesticide safety, management, and training programs, alternative methods of pest control, and other related activities. Gives priority for assistance to developing countries that are major sources of food imported into the United States. Requires persons who export pesticides or produce pesticides for export to submit to the Administrator information regarding: (1) unreasonable environmental effects of the pesticides; and (2) the regulatory status of the pesticides in other countries that would affect exports. (Sec. 4) Revises the procedure for the cancellation, denial of registration, or change in the classification of pesticides. (Sec. 5) Requires the Administrator, by order and without a hearing, to cancel a pesticide registration or deny a registration application if the Administrator has revoked a tolerance regulation or denied a petition to establish a tolerance regulation for residues in or on food that could result from the use of the pesticide unless such use is unlikely to result in food that is adulterated. (Sec. 6) Revises procedures for suspension of pesticide registrations and removes certain provisions requiring hearings. (Sec. 7) Authorizes the Administrator, if the risks associated with the use of a pesticide can be reduced by a change in the labeling, packaging, or composition of the pesticide, to issue a notice requiring registrants to make such change. Prohibits such change if it will prohibit or make uses of the pesticide economically unfeasible. Authorizes registrants to object to such changes and requires the Administrator to respond by withdrawing, modifying, or affirming the changes. Authorizes the Administrator to suspend a registration if a registrant fails to comply with a notice. Permits the continued sale or distribution of such pesticides for a limited period by persons other than the registrant. Authorizes the Administrator to require the recall of pesticides sold or distributed in violation of requirements. (Sec. 8) Requires the Administrator, if credible scientific evidence indicates that the use of a pesticide is likely to pose a significant risk to humans or the environment and additional information should be developed to reduce uncertainties regarding the risk, to restrict, reduce, or eliminate the use or production of the pesticide or evaluate other actions necessary to address the risk. (Sec. 9) Directs the Administrator to develop criteria for the designation of reduced risk pesticides. Permits registrants or registration applicants to request the Administrator to designate a pesticide as a reduced risk pesticide. Extends the period of exclusive use for data submitted to support the application for the original registration of a pesticide if the Administrator approves at least three minor uses of the pesticide or the pesticide has been designated as a reduced risk pesticide prior to the expiration of the period of exclusive use. Permits the Administrator to conditionally register a biological pesticide or a mixture of such pesticides not contained in any currently registered pesticide prior to the development of data necessary to determine whether a pesticide meets registration requirements. Conditions such registrations on a determination that use of the pesticide will not cause any adverse environmental effects and is in the public interest. Requires the Administrator to give priority to registration applications in the following order: (1) registration of pesticides that would meet pest control needs that are currently being addressed through emergency pesticide uses authorized under FIFRA (these uses exempt Federal or State agencies from requirements as dictated by emergency circumstances); (2) applications likely to reduce the risk of adverse environmental effects from the use of currently registered pesticides subject to cancellation proceedings; (3) applications for reduced risk pesticides; and (4) applications for minor use pesticides. Directs the Secretaries of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Agriculture to review the recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences' report, "Pesticides in the Diets of Infants and Children," and conduct surveys to document dietary exposure to pesticides among infants and children and perform other research as necessary to implement the recommendations. Revises provisions regarding pest control strategies to make it a goal to support research and development of methods that reduce health and environmental risks, including alternative pest control strategies. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture and the Administrator to implement a process for coordinating environmental risk reduction through identification of pesticides that pose significant risks and for which development of use reduction programs and research on safer alternative means of pest control should be high priority for research programs. Requires the Administrator to provide an annual list to the Secretary of agricultural use pesticides: (1) for which the Administrator is considering certain regulatory actions (e.g., cancellations, denials of registrations) that would affect their availability, including agricultural commodities and pests affected; (2) which otherwise pose significant health and environmental risks; and (3) for which there exists significant instances of pest resistance. Directs the Secretary to: (1) review all available alternatives to the pesticides listed; and (2) develop a research and technology transfer plan for each pest-commodity combination on the list for which there are insufficient alternative pest control techniques that present less risk. Allocates funding to carry out such objectives. Expands provisions regarding integrated pest management to require the Secretary to implement research, demonstration, and education programs to support goals for adoption of integrated pest management. Directs the Secretary to implement pesticide use reduction goals in selected ecosystems. (Sec. 10) Authorizes the Administrator, subject to specified conditions, to delay action to delete a minor food or feed use for which a registrant has not agreed to timely submit data necessary for reregistration. Authorizes appropriations for the development of public health data in cases where the Administrator determines that further study is needed on public health pesticides to support continued registration. (Sec. 11) Adds reregistration fee provisions. (Sec. 12) Permits a restricted use pesticide to be applied only by or under the direct supervision of a certified applicator or subject to other restrictions if the Administrator determines that the pesticide or its uses may cause adverse environmental effects without additional regulatory restriction. (Sec. 13) Revises judicial review procedures. (Sec. 14) Sets time limitations on claims for indemnity payments from the United States to persons suffering losses from cancelled pesticides. (Sec. 17) Expands current pesticide recordkeeping requirements. Revises enforcement authorities. Bars Federal contracts with persons convicted of offenses under FIFRA if such a contract is to be performed at any facility at which the violation giving rise to the offense occurred. Continues such prohibition until the condition giving rise to the conviction has been corrected. Requires the Administrator to treat Indian tribes as States under FIFRA. (Sec. 18) Provides protection to whistleblowers.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 1994
Makes certain Department of Agriculture funds available to improve National Forest System trail accessibility for disabled persons.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 1994
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act Amendments of 1994 - Amends the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) to establish a registration renewal procedure. Requires active ingredients, for purposes of such procedure, to be classified as follows: (1) in group one if first contained in a pesticide initially registered before November 1, 1984; (2) in group two if first contained in a pesticide initially registered after October 31, 1984, but before this Act's enactment; or (3) in group three if first contained in a pesticide initially registered after this Act's enactment. (Sec. 2) Sets reapplication dates for active ingredients as follows: (1) 12-14 years after the issuance of a reregistration eligibility decision document for the active ingredient for those in group one; (2) ten to 13 years after this Act's enactment for those in group two; and (3) 12 years after the date of initial registration of a product containing the active ingredient for those in group three. Sets subsequent reapplication dates for active ingredients at 12 years after the preceding expiration date. Authorizes the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to assess fees from registrants to cover costs associated with registration review. Permits the Administrator to cancel a registration for nonpayment. Establishes a registration renewal fund in the Treasury. Allows the continued use, distribution, or sale of existing stocks of an expired pesticide subject to conditions specified by the Administrator. (Sec. 3) Revises pesticide export provisions to prohibit the export of a pesticide that contains an active ingredient if virtually all uses of the active ingredient in the United States have been prohibited. Permits such exports where an export would be prohibited only because registration applications have been voluntarily withdrawn or cancelled by an applicant if the Administrator is unaware of any information indicating that use of the pesticide could pose adverse health or environmental risks. Authorizes such exports to a specified importing country if: (1) the pesticide is not subject to a prohibition for any human health related reason; and (2) the country has informed the Administrator that it wishes to import the pesticide and is aware that U.S. uses of the pesticide are prohibited. Requires the Administrator to prohibit, by order, persons from exporting a pesticide to a foreign country if such country has informed the Administrator or an international agency of which the United States is a member, that the country does not wish to import the pesticide and certifies that it: (1) is not producing or importing and will not produce or import the pesticide for use in the country; and (2) does not wish to import the pesticide because of human health or environmental concerns. Provides for withdrawal of such order if the country is not in compliance with such certification. Prohibits the export of a pesticide unless: (1) there is a tolerance or an exemption from certain tolerance requirements under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) governing residues of each ingredient in the pesticide in at least one food; (2) there is a practical method for detecting residues in or on foods and the Administrator has an appropriately certified pesticide reference standard; or (3) the Administrator determines that the pesticide is not likely to be used in a manner resulting in residues in or on imported foods. Prohibits the export of a pesticide if any ingredient has not been and is not the subject of any registration unless the Administrator determines that: (1) for each active ingredient, there is a tolerance greater than zero or an exemption from the tolerance requirement under the FDCA; or (2) residues of the pesticide on food have been permitted or the pesticide has been approved for use in at least three countries that evaluate pesticides prior to marketing in accordance with internationally recognized scientific standards and on the basis of an independent scientific review of health and environmental risks; and (3) the country of import participates in the United Nations Environment Program-Food and Agriculture Organization system for exchange of information on pesticides in international trade. Permits persons to petition the Administrator to withdraw authorization to export such pesticides. Authorizes the Administrator to permit the export of a small quantity of a pesticide to a foreign country solely for research and development purposes, but not test marketing. Prohibits such export if the pesticide contains an active ingredient which has been prohibited for virtually all uses, with exceptions. Requires exporters, in the case of unregistered pesticides other than those containing active ingredients that are banned in the United States, to obtain signed statements from foreign purchasers acknowledging that they understand that the pesticide is not registered for use, and cannot be sold, in the United States. Prohibits the export of a pesticide or a device unless it complies with requirements of this Act and the label of the pesticide is written in an official language of the country of use and, to the extent not in conflict with the country's requirements, contains all health, safety, environmental, and other related information required to be included on labeling in the United States. Requires pesticide exporters to comply with the product stewardship provisions of the 1994 International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides of the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations. Permits the Administrator to prohibit noncomplying exporters from exporting for up to 180 days. Requires persons who distribute or sell pesticides for export to submit distribution or sale records to the Administrator as prescribed. Authorizes the assessment of fees on pesticide registrants to carry out export requirements and establishes a fund in the Treasury. Permits the Administrator to use a specified amount to provide countries technical assistance in certain pesticide safety, management, and training programs, alternative methods of pest control, and other related activites. Gives priority for assistance to developing countries that are major sources of food imported into the United States. Requires persons who export pesticides or produce pesticides for export to submit to the Administrator information regarding: (1) unreasonable environmental effects of the pesticides; and (2) the regulatory status of the pesticides in other countries that would affect exports. (Sec. 4) Revises the procedure for the cancellation, denial of registration, or change in the classification of pesticides. (Sec. 5) Requires the Administrator, by order and without a hearing, to cancel a pesticide registration or deny a registration application if the Administrator has revoked a tolerance regulation or denied a petition to establish a tolerance regulation for residues in or on food that could result from the use of the pesticide unless such use is unlikely to result in food that is adulterated. (Sec. 6) Revises procedures for suspension of pesticide registrations and removes certain provisions requiring hearings. (Sec. 7) Authorizes the Administrator, if the risks associated with the use of a pesticide can be reduced by a change in the labeling, packaging, or composition of the pesticide, to issue a notice requiring registrants to make such change. Prohibits such change if it will prohibit or make uses of the pesticide economically unfeasible. Authorizes registrants to object to such changes and requires the Administrator to respond by withdrawing, modifying, or affirming the changes. Authorizes the Administrator to suspend a registration if a registrant fails to comply with a notice. Permits the continued sale or distribution of such pesticides for a limited period by persons other than the registrant. Authorizes the Administrator to require the recall of pesticides sold or distributed in violation of requirements. (Sec. 8) Requires the Administrator, if credible scientific evidence indicates that the use of a pesticide is likely to pose a significant risk to humans or the environment and additional information should be developed to reduce uncertainties regarding the risk, to restrict, reduce, or eliminate the use or production of the pesticide or evaluate other actions necessary to address the risk. (Sec. 9) Directs the Administrator to develop criteria for the designation of reduced risk pesticides. Permits registrants or registration applicants to request the Administrator to designate a pesticide as a reduced risk pesticide. Extends the period of exclusive use for data submitted to support the application for the original registration of a pesticide if the Administrator approves at least three minor uses of the pesticide or the pesticide has been designated as a reduced risk pesticide prior to the expiration of the period of exclusive use. Permits the Administrator to conditionally register a biological pesticide or a mixture of such pesticides not contained in any currently registered pesticide prior to the development of data necessary to determine whether a pesticide meets registration requirements. Conditions such registrations on a determination that use of the pesticide will not cause any adverse environmental effects and is in the public interest. Requires the Administrator to give priority to registration applications in the following order: (1) registration of pesticides that would meet pest control needs that are currently being addressed through emergency pesticide uses authorized under FIFRA (these uses exempt Federal or State agencies from requirements as dictated by emergency circumstances); (2) applications likely to reduce the risk of adverse environmental effects from the use of currently registered pesticides subject to cancellation proceedings; (3) applications for reduced risk pesticides; and (4) applications for minor use pesticides. Directs the Secretaries of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Agriculture to review the recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences' report, "Pesticides in the Diets of Infants and Children," and conduct surveys to document dietary exposure to pesticides among infants and children and perform other research as necessary to implement the recommendations. Revises provisions regarding pest control strategies to make it a goal to support research and development of methods that reduce health and environmental risks, including alternative pest control strategies. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture and the Administrator to implement a process for coordinating environmental risk reduction through identification of pesticides that pose significant risks and for which development of use reduction programs and research on safer alternative means of pest control should be high priority for research programs. Requires the Administrator to provide an annual list to the Secretary of agricultural use pesticides: (1) for which the Administrator is considering certain regulatory actions (e.g., cancellations, denials of registrations) that would affect their availability, including agricultural commodities and pests affected; (2) which otherwise pose significant health and environmental risks; and (3) for which there exists significant instances of pest resistance. Directs the Secretary to: (1) review all available alternatives to the pesticides listed; and (2) develop a research and technology transfer plan for each pest-commodity combination on the list for which there are insufficient alternative pest control techniques that present less risk. Allocates funding to carry out such objectives. Expands provisions regarding integrated pest management to require the Secretary to implement research, demonstration, and education programs to support goals for adoption of integrated pest management. Directs the Secretary to implement pesticide use reduction goals in selected ecosystems. (Sec. 10) Authorizes the Administrator, subject to specified conditions, to delay action to delete a minor food or feed use for which a registrant has not agreed to timely submit data necessary for reregistration. Authorizes appropriations for the development of public health data in cases where the Administrator determines that further study is needed on public health pesticides to support continued registration. (Sec. 11) Adds reregistration fee provisions. (Sec. 12) Permits a restricted use pesticide to be applied only by or under the direct supervision of a certified applicator or subject to other restrictions if the Administrator determines that the pesticide or its uses may cause adverse environmental effects without additional regulatory restriction. (Sec. 13) Revises judicial review procedures. (Sec. 14) Sets time limitations on claims for indemnity payments from the United States to persons suffering losses from cancelled pesticides. (Sec. 17) Expands current pesticide recordkeeping requirements. Revises enforcement authorities. Bars Federal contracts with persons convicted of offenses under FIFRA if such a contract is to be performed at any facility at which the violation giving rise to the offense occurred. Continues such prohibition until the condition giving rise to the conviction has been corrected. Requires the Administrator to treat Indian tribes as States under FIFRA. (Sec. 18) Provides protection to whistleblowers.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 1994
Amends the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to remove the seven percent maximum interest rate on Rural Electrification Administration insured electric and telephone loans and Federal Financing Bank loan refinancings.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 1994
Waterways Restoration Act of 1994 - Amends the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act to delete the requirement that each watershed improvement under such Act must contain benefits directly related to agriculture that account for at least 20 percent of the total project benefits. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish and implement a Waterways Restoration Program which provides technical assistance and grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities for carrying out waterway restoration projects. Requires such projects to achieve ecological restoration or protection and one or more of the following objectives: (1) flood damage reduction; (2) erosion control; (3) stormwater management; or (4) water quality enhancement. Provides project descriptions and priorities, including the location of projects in low-income or economically depressed areas adversely impacted by poor watershed management. Outlines other project requirements, including a cost-benefit analysis. Requires the Secretary to designate Program administrators for each participating State (including a State agency if approved by the Secretary). Requires program grants to be awarded on an annual basis. Provides project application and selection requirements, including the establishment in each participating State of an interdisciplinary team of specialists to assist in reviewing project applications under the Program. Outlines conditions for receiving assistance under the Program, with sponsor and cosponsor requirements. Requires a non-Federal share of 25 percent of project costs, with a waiver for economically depressed communities. Limits the administrative and technical assistance costs of the Program. Requires the governor of each participating State to establish a citizens oversight committee to evaluate management of the Program in that State. Requires program administrators to issue annual reports summarizing the Program evaluations of the oversight committees. Provides funding.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Establishment of the Social Security Administration as an Independent Agency Title II: Miscellaneous Improvements to the Old-Age Survivors, and Disability Insurance Program Social Security Administrative Reform Act of 1994 - Title I: Establishment of the Social Security Administration as an Independent Agency - Amends title VII (Administration) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to establish as an independent executive agency the Social Security Administration, governed by a Social Security Board, to administer the Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance (OASDI) program and the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program under SSA titles II and XVI. (Sec. 102) Establishes in the Administration an Office of the Beneficiary Ombudsman. (Sec. 104) Transfers to the Board all functions carried out by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) pertaining to such programs. (Sec. 107) Requires the Board to report to the Congress within 120 days after the beginning of each regular session of its administration under SSA. Requires the Secretary to study and make recommendations on the most effective methods of providing economic security and on the administrative policy for SSA programs administered by the Secretary. Title II: Improvements (sic) to the Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance Program - Amends SSA titles II and XVI with respect to the payment of disability benefits to substance abusers. (Sec. 202) Amends SSA titles II and related provisions of Federal law with respect to: (1) OASDI trust fund administration, including the creation of a Continuing Disability Review Account in the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund; (2) telephone access to local Social Security Administration offices; (3) OASDI coverage of State election personnel, police officers, and fire fighters; (4) use of social security numbers for jury selection and in administration of Federal workers' compensation laws; (5) totalization benefits, military reservists, and application of windfall elimination and Government pension offset provisions; (6) facility-of-payment provisions; (7) maximum family benefits in guarantee cases; (8) annual earnings filing; (9) disability insurance program demonstration project authority; (10) cross-matching of social security number information and employer ID number information maintained by the Department of Agriculture; (11) retirement eligibility for Federal employees transferred to International Organizations; (12) treatment of certain visas; and (13) rounding when calculating OASDI contribution and benefit base and earnings test exempt amounts. (Sec. 208) Provides a limited exemption from certain self-employment tax liability for individuals performing religious services in Canada. (Sec. 213) Amends SSA title XI with regard to: (1) disclosure of mortality information for research purposes; (2) misuse of HHS and Treasury symbols, emblems, or names in reference to social security programs and agencies, and associated penalties; and (3) penalties for unauthorized disclosure of social security information. (Sec. 219) Amends the Railroad Retirement Solvency Act of 1983 concerning certain transfers to the Railroad Retirement Account. (Sec. 223) Directs the Secretary to appoint a Commission on the Evaluation of Disability in Children to study and report to the Congress on SSI's definition of "disability" and how it applies with respect to children.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 1994
Lost Creek Land Exchange Act of 1994 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to acquire certain lands owned by the Brand S Corporation and located in the Lost Creek area of the Deerlodge National Forest and within the Gallatin National Forest (to be added to and administered as part of such National Forests) in exchange for certain lands within such National Forests and specified timber rights on Deerlodge National Forest lands. Directs the Secretary to secure legal public road access to Gallatin National Forest System lands in the Eightmile Creek area and the Miller Gulch-Fridley Creek-Dry Creek area. Releases the United States from any liability under Federal, State, or local law solely as a result of acquiring an interest in the Lost Creek Tract or due to circumstances or events occurring before acquisition, including any release or threat of release of hazardous substances.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 1994
Federal Crop Insurance Reform Act of 1994 - Amends the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 to revise the Federal crop insurance program. Appropriates permanent program funds. Authorizes program operating appropriations for the Commodity Credit Corporation. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to establish within the Department of Agriculture the Advisory Committee for Federal Crop Insurance. Establishes a noninsured assistance program.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Initiatives Within the Department of the Interior Title II: Initiatives Within the Department of Energy Title III: Lower Mississippi Delta Development Center Lower Mississippi Delta Initiatives Act of 1994 - Title I: Initiatives Within the Department of the Interior - Establishes within the Department of the Interior an Office of Education to: (1) promote education in selected areas of environmental, natural, historic, and cultural resources; and (2) establish initiatives at minority schools of higher education. (Sec. 102) Directs the Secretary of the Interior to: (1) report annually to certain congressional committees on opportunities for minority schools of higher education to participate in Departmental programs; (2) establish a scholarship program for degrees in natural resource and environmental related fields at minority schools of higher learning in the Lower Mississippi Delta Region; (3) encourage pre-college education programs in designated subject areas; (4) implement a volunteer educational enrichment program in cooperation with State departments of education and local school districts in the Delta Region; (5) establish a Center for Excellence in the Sciences and a Center for Aquaculture to encourage women and minority students in the Delta Region to pursue careers in the sciences and in aquaculture; and (6) coordinate the educational programs under this Act with those of other Federal agencies. (Sec. 103) Directs the Secretary to transmit to the Congress: (1) a study of nationally significant sites within the Delta Region; (2) recommendations for a transportation network linking such sites; and (3) a study outlining recommendations for funding a Delta Region Native American Heritage Corridor and Heritage and Cultural Center, and a Delta Region African American Heritage Corridor and Heritage and Cultural Center (including a Music Heritage Program). Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to State Humanities Councils to assist minority and rural museums and related associations in the Delta region. (Sec. 105) Directs the Secretary to provide technical and financial assistance to historically Black colleges and universities to undertake: (1) a survey of historic and prehistoric structures on campus; and (2) their preservation. (Sec. 106) Directs the Secretary to: (1) transmit to the Congress a feasibility study regarding establishment of a Delta Antiquities Trail or Delta Antiquities Heritage Corridor; and (2) conduct a research and preservation program of significant historic and archeological resources in the Delta. (Sec. 108) Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Initiatives Within the Department of Energy - Directs the Secretary of Energy (the Secretary) to establish the Delta Energy Technology and Business Development Center (the Center). Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to the Center. (Sec. 203) Amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to require the Secretary to make grants to schools or hospitals for energy conservation projects, and to provide supplemental Federal financing for energy conservation projects at schools and hospitals in the Delta Region. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 204) Requires the Secretary to: (1) report annually to certain congressional committees regarding opportunities for minority colleges and universities to participate in Department of Energy (DOE) activities and laboratories; (2) establish scholarship programs for students pursuing energy-related and/or technical disciplines at minority colleges and universities in the Delta Region; (3) encourage pre-college programs in energy-related and/or technical disciplines; (4) implement a volunteer program for education at DOE; and (5) implement a program to encourage women and minority students in the Delta Region to pursue careers in technical disciplines. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 205) Directs the Secretary to conduct a research and demonstration program to determine the economic viability of integrated biomass energy systems within the Delta Region. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 206) Amends the Energy Conservation and Production Act to direct the Secretary to make grants to States and Indian tribal organizations in the Delta Region for weatherization of low-income dwelling units. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 207) Amends the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to qualify for incentive payments certain renewable energy facilities owned by the Tennessee Valley Authority. Title III: Lower Mississippi Delta Development Center - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to make a grant to the Lower Mississippi Delta Development Center to implement the recommendations made in the final report of the Lower Mississippi Delta Development Commission. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 1994
Dairy Producer Market Stabilization and Export Development Act of 1994 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary) to establish the national Class IV Pool (Pool), which shall establish a blend price for milk used in commercially exported dairy products; and (2) the Dairy Export Marketing Board (Board) which shall administer the Pool and work to expand dairy exports and markets. Directs the Board to: (1) establish a settlement fund to operate the Pool; and (2) prepare an annual Pool plan. Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to revise excess purchase milk price reduction provisions. Extends: (1) the milk price support program (including the support rate); and (2) the dairy transfer program to the military and veterans' hospitals. Amends the Agriculture and Food Act of 1981 to extend Federal milk marketing order authority. Amends Federal law to extend the dairy indemnity program. Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to extend the dairy export incentive program. Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to extend the Secretary's requirement to estimate Commodity Credit Corporation milk and milk products purchases, but stipulates that such estimates be made prior to Pool effects or purchase price revisions are determined. Amends provisions of the Agricultural Adjustment Act, reenacted by the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 to include certain milk handler reimbursement provisions among the terms of Federal milk marketing orders.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 1994
Child Nutrition Protection Act of 1994 - Amends the National School Lunch Act to direct the Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary) to provide State and local agencies with training and other assistance to prevent fraud and anticompetitive activities in the school lunch, school breakfast, special milk, summer food service, WIC, and child and adult care food programs. Directs the Secretary to bar a company for at least three years (five years for a repeat conviction) from program participation upon conviction for anticompetitive or specified related activities.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 1994
Amends the National School Lunch Act to permit eligibility information submitted under such Act or under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to be used for similar purposes under other nutrition programs with comparable standards. Amends commodity letter of credit (CLOC) demonstration program provisions to: (1) make permanent the cash-CLOC program; and (2) require the creation of one statewide demonstration program if 80 percent of a State's schools agree to participate. Provides for the increased offering of fresh fruits and vegetables under the school lunch program.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 1994
Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to expand the eligibility of timber dependent communities for certain rural development grants and loans.
United States · United States Congress · 25 March 1994
Amends the Agricultural Act of 1949 to: (1) provide deficiency payments for specified rice and upland cotton crops without regard to certain minimum planting requirements; (2) amend the deficiency payment rate calculation for barley; and (3) amend the excess purchase dairy price reduction calculation.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: General Authorities of the Secretary Title II: National Appeals Division Title III: Farm and International Trade Services Title IV: Rural Economic and Community Development Title V: Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services Title VI: Natural Resources and Environment Title VII: Marketing and Inspection Services Title VIII: Research, Economics, and Education Title IX: Food Safety Title X: Miscellaneous Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 - Title I: General Authorities of the Secretary - Delegates, with specified exceptions, all Department of Agriculture functions to the Secretary of Agriculture. Grants the Secretary general reorganization authority. (Sec. 103) Directs the Secretary to make specified employee reductions. (Sec. 104) Directs the Secretary to consolidate Washington, D.C. headquarters offices. Title II: National Appeals Division - Directs the Secretary to establish a National Appeals Division within the Office of the Secretary. Sets forth related provisions. Title III: Farm and International Trade Services - Establishes in the Department the position of Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm and International Trade Services. (Sec. 302) Authorizes the Secretary to establish a Farm Service Agency to carry out specified agricultural assistance programs. (Sec. 304) Authorizes the Secretary to establish an International Trade Service. Title IV: Rural Economic and Community Development - Amends the Rural Development Policy Act of 1980 to establish in the Department the position of Under Secretary of Agriculture for Rural Economic and Community Development (in lieu of the position of Under Secretary of Agriculture for Small Community and Rural Development). (Sec. 402) Authorizes the Secretary to establish within the Department: (1) the Rural Utilities Service; (2) the Rural Housing and Community Development Service; and (3) the Rural Business and Cooperative Development Service. Title V: Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services - Establishes in the Department the position of Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services. (Sec. 502) Authorizes the Secretary to establish within the Department: (1) the Food and Consumer Service; and (2) the Nutrition Research and Education Service. Title VI: Natural Resources and Environment - Authorizes the Secretary to establish in the Department the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Title VII: Marketing and Inspection Services - Authorizes the Secretary to establish within the Department the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration. Title VIII: Research, Economics, and Education - Authorizes the Secretary to establish within the Department: (1) the Federal Research and Information Service; (2) the Cooperative State Research and Education Service; (3) the Agricultural Economics and Statistics Service; and (4) the Program Policy and Coordination Staff. Title IX: Food Safety - Amends the Federal Meat Inspection Act to direct the Secretary to establish within the Department the Food Safety Service. Title X: Miscellaneous - Establishes within the Department six positions of Assistant Secretary of Agriculture. (Sec. 1004) Terminates, with specified exceptions, the Secretary's reorganization authority two years after enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1994
A Child is Waiting Resolution - Expresses the sense of the Congress that: (1) any health care reform legislation include guaranteed full funding for the special supplemental food program for women, infants, and children (WIC); and (2) specified amounts should be made available to move toward such full funding goal.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Credit for Rural Business Enterprises Title II: Credit for Rural Infrastructure Title III: Credit for Rural Housing Rural Credit and Development Act of 1994 - Title I: Credit for Rural Business Enterprises - Amends the Farm Credit Act of 1971 to permit farm credit banks and production credit associations to purchase loans and loan interests from non-Farm Credit System institutions. Enlarges the scope of farm-related business for credit availability purposes. Authorizes banks for cooperatives to provide loans and other financial services to entities providing certain farm-related services or products under specified conditions. Title II: Credit for Rural Infrastructure - Authorizes Farm Credit banks to make community facility loans. Authorizes banks for cooperatives to finance utility-related services. Title III: Credit for Rural Housing - Enlarges rural housing credit availability by: (1) increasing eligible population areas; (2) increasing farm credit bank and production credit association loan portfolios for non-farmer rural housing loans; and (3) authorizing loans to rural residents for personal, family, or household needs other than housing finance.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: State Welfare Reform Option Title II: Incentives for State Participation in Welfare Reform Title III: Policy Changes to Reward Work Title IV: Child Support Enforcement Work-First Welfare Reform Act of 1994 - Title I: State Welfare Reform Option - Amends part A (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) (AFDC) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to give States the option of developing a welfare reform plan containing a welfare-job development integration plan meeting specified requirements (including those requiring welfare recipient participation along with the State in one of two specified types of Empowerment Compacts with specific goals and timetables for each individual participant's attainment of self-sufficiency) for reorienting their welfare programs towards such overall goal for all welfare recipients who are capable of working. (Sec. 101) Provides for approval, implementation, and evaluation of welfare reform plans. Title II: Incentives for State Participation in Welfare Reform - Amends SSA title IV part A to provide for: (1) increased Federal payments to welfare reform States meeting specified requirements for the costs of operating programs under part F (Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program) (JOBS); and (2) modification of the amount payable to individual welfare reform plan participants expecting a decrease in income over a certain period in States which have elected to adjust individual AFDC benefits quarterly. (Sec. 203) Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States for purposes of developing welfare reform plans. Sets limits on the amount the Secretary may expend on such grants in any fiscal year through FY 2000. Title III: Policy Changes to Reward Work - Amends SSA title IV part A and the Internal Revenue Code to make various specified changes designed to reward work, by, for example: (1) giving States the authority to establish enhanced earnings disregards for AFDC recipients and define unemployment for purposes of the AFDC-UP program; and (2) making the tax credit for dependent care expenses refundable, and requiring employers to make advance payments of such credit to their employees. (Sec. 304) Requires the Secretaries of Agriculture, of Health and Human Services, and of Labor to submit to the Congress an annual report on any State or Federal laws which may inhibit implementation of welfare reform plans. (Sec. 305) Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish the requirements to be followed by each State in developing and applying outcome measures and targets for assessing the effectiveness of the State's JOBS program. Amends SSA title IV part A to provide for a reduction in State JOBS funding for States which have not submitted for approval a plan for meeting such requirements. (Sec. 306) Directs the Comptroller General to submit to the Congress a methodology for determining the use of transitional child care and extended medical assistance under Medicaid. Makes various specified amendments to SSA title IV part A, including with regard to matters concerning transitional child care and certain student earnings and income. Title IV: Child Support Enforcement - Directs the Secretary to establish a Federal registry of child support orders issued or modified in a State for comparing information reported on an employee's W-4 form with information in the registry, and for notifying the appropriate State child support order registry established by this Act of the accuracy of the amount specified on the form as the empoyee's monthly child support obligation. (Sec. 402) Makes various specified amendments to SSA title IV part D (Child Support and Establishment of Paternity), including with regard to matters concerning: (1) expansion of the Federal Parent Locator Service; (2) development of a uniform child support withholding order; (3) State agency access to various data bases containing information with respect to absent parents; and (4) private access to State locate resources and enforcement services for purposes of establishing, modifying, and enforcing child support and parentage orders. (Sec. 403) Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) establish a national system for reporting copies of every employee's W-4 form to the appropriate State and Federal child support order registries; and (2) modify the W-4 form to enable the employee to indicate on it certain information related to child support and health care insurance for any dependent children. (Sec. 404) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) provide for the reconciliation of child support obligations and payments on income tax returns, with the full amount due by the end of the applicable tax year and subject to the same collection process and penalties applicable to back taxes; (2) provide for a tax credit for withholdings and payments in excess of applicable obligations; (3) require the Secretary to pay amounts collected to the appropriate State registry; and (4) require employers to include withheld obligations on the employee's W-2 form. (Sec. 407) Amends the Consumer Credit Protection Act to: (1) give debts relating to child support higher priority in a garnishment than other Federal debts when an individual's disposable earnings are not sufficient to pay both debts; and (2) prohibit employers from discharging employees with more than one indebtedness, if all but one of the debts arise from one or more orders for the support of a child. (Sec. 408) Amends SSA title IV part D to require States to enact the version of the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act adopted by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws in August 1992.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1994
Agricultural Mediation Improvement Act of 1994 - Amends the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987 to expand the types of agricultural issues covered by State mediation programs. Extends the authorization of appropriations for such programs.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 1994
Farmers Home Administration Improvement Act of 1994 - Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to use the Attorney General, the General Counsel of the Department of Agriculture, or a private attorney to collect delinquent Farmers Home Administration obligations.