Budget

Foster Care Independence Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 18 November 1999

Foster Care Independence Act of 1999 - Title I: Improved Independent Living Program - Subtitle A: Improved Independent Living Program - Amends title IV part E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to revise the program of grants to States for independent living programs providing education, training, employment services, and financial support for individuals between ages 16 and 18 leaving foster care for independent living. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) develop outcome measures to assess State performance in operating such programs; (2) identify data elements needed to track such performance, services, and the individuals served; and (3) develop and implement a plan to collect such data. (Sec. 101) Authorizes appropriations. Expresses the sense of Congress that States should provide medical assistance under the State plan approved under (SSA) title XIX (Medicaid) to 18-, 19-, and 20-year-olds who have been emancipated from foster care. Subtitle B: Related Foster Care Provision - Increases the amount of assets allowable for children in foster care. (Sec. 112) Mandates that State plans for foster care and adoption assistance include a certification that before foster care placement the prospective parents will be adequately prepared to provide for the needs of the child, and that such preparation will continue, as necessary, after placement of the child. Subtitle C: Medicaid Amendments - Amends SSA title XIX (Medicaid) to authorize a State to limit the eligibility of independent foster care adolescents to individuals for whom foster care maintenance payments or independent living services were furnished under the Improved Independent Living Program. (Sec. 121) Sets forth contingency provisions for coordination of this Act with the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999. Subtitle D: Adoption Incentive Payments - Instructs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make supplemental grants to adoption incentive-eligible States. Increases the appropriations authorized for FY 1999 through 2003. Title II: SSI Fraud Prevention - Subtitle A: Fraud Prevention and Related Provisions - Amends SSA title II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) and title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) to subject a representative payee to liability for overpayments made after the death of the individual on whose behalf the payments were made. Instructs the Commissioner of Social Security (the Commissioner) to establish an overpayment control record under the social security account number of the representative payee. (Sec. 202) Provides for recovery of overpayments of SSI benefits from lump sum SSI benefit payments. (Sec. 203) Authorizes the Commissioner to employ certain statutory debt collection practices to collect delinquent accounts. (Sec. 204) Requires (currently, merely authorizes) States to provide State prisoner information to Federal and federally assisted benefit programs. (Sec. 205) Sets forth a statutory mechanism for the treatment of assets held in trust for an individual in connection with eligibility for SSI benefits. (Sec. 206) Revamps guidelines governing eligibility criteria in connection with disposal of resources for less than fair market value under the SSI program. (Sec. 207) Prescribes administrative procedures for: (1) imposing penalties for false or misleading statements; and (2) excluding representatives and health care providers convicted of violations from participation in social security programs. (Sec. 210) Directs the Commissioner to: (1) study and report to certain congressional committees on possible measures to improve fraud prevention and administrative processing; (2) include in the annual budget an itemization of the amount of funds required to support efforts to combat fraud committed by applicants and beneficiaries; and (3) conduct periodic computer matches with Medicare and Medicaid institutionalization data. (Sec. 213) Authorizes the Commissioner to require applicants or beneficiaries to authorize access to information held by their financial institutions in order to ascertain benefits eligibility. Subtitle B: Benefits for Certain World War II Veterans - Amends the Social Security Act to add a new title VIII (Special Benefits for Certain World War II Veterans) to provide monthly benefits for each month certain qualified World War II veterans reside outside the United States. Delineates procedural guidelines. Authorizes appropriations. Subtitle C: Study - Directs the Commissioner to: (1) study and report to certain congressional committees on the reasons why family farmers with resources of less than $100,000 are denied SSI benefits, including whether the deeming process unduly burdens and discriminates against family farmers who do not institutionalize a disabled dependent; and (2) determine the number of such farmers who have been denied such benefits during each of the preceding ten years. Title III: Child Support - Cites circumstances under which the State share of distribution of collected child support shall be increased by statutory formula. Repeals the current statutory formula. Title IV: Technical Corrections - Sets forth technical corrections relating to amendments made by the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996.

New Insurance Coverage Equity (NICE) Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 18 November 1999

New Insurance Coverage Equity (NICE) Act of 1999 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to add a new part D (NICE Drug Benefit Program) (NICE program) (redesigning the current Medicare part D (Miscellaneous Provisions) as Medicare part E (Miscellaneous Provisions) to establish a voluntary NICE program, administered by the NICE Board which also operates a New Insurance Coverage Equity Office established within the Department of Health and Human Services, under which all individuals entitled to Medicare part A (Hospital Insurance) benefits and enrolled in Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) shall be provided access to coverage of outpatient prescription drugs that meet specified requirements. Grants such access via either enrollment in a Medicare+Choice (Medicare part C) plan, enrollment in a NICE Medicare supplemental policy, or enrollment in a group health plan, all as defined by this Act. Provides for described financial assistance for covered beneficiaries for them to obtain enrollment coverage, with such assistance varying depending upon beneficiary income. Vests the Board with outreach and other specified duties, such as establishing procedures for enrollment and enhanced financial assistance with regard to eligible Medicare beneficiaries and the NICE program, and conducting certain ongoing studies, as well as a study and report to Congress on permitting an alternative outpatient prescription drug benefit package under Medicare supplemental health insurance policies (Medigap) provisions. Outlines requirements for the offering of NICE program coverage, which include prohibiting pre-existing condition exclusions with respect to coverage and allowing use of reasonable cost containment methods. Establishes in the Treasury the NICE Trust Fund, consisting in part of amounts from the on-budget surplus, to be available only for expenditures to carry out the NICE program. Makes appropriations and authorizes appropriations. Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 to include with Medigap policy comparison information for Medigap policies, information on the NICE program for purposes of State grant application plans for State-wide health insurance, counseling, and assistance grants.

Second Generation of Environmental Improvement Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 18 November 1999

Second Generation of Environmental Improvement Act of 1999 - Title I: Information Management - Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to designate a Chief Information Officer for EPA to carry out the authorities of the Administrator under this title. Directs the Administrator to prepare a report for Congress proposing a set of national environmental performance indicators (quantitative measures designed to provide data on the quality of the environment over time) designed to: (1) focus EPA resources on the most critical environmental problems; (2) inform the public of progress toward meeting environmental goals; and (3) evaluate the success of innovative environmental strategies. Provides for an annual State of the Environment Report to Congress analyzing the measured levels of each environmental indicator. (Sec. 103) Directs the Administrator to submit to Congress a unified plan for all of EPA's information activities. Requires the plan to provide a scientifically and technically sound foundation for EPA programs and facilitate the development of a performance-based system of environmental protection and of innovative strategy agreements pursuant to this Act. (Sec. 104) Directs the Administrator to establish an Information Management Program to provide financial assistance to States and local entities to improve the accuracy and timeliness of environmental reporting and to meet the goals of the EPA plan. Requires the Administrator, acting through the Small Business Ombudsman, to create a program to provide technical and financial assistance to small businesses to help them meet the requirements of such plan. (Sec. 105) Directs the President to include in each budget submission a comprehensive analysis of the activities in each Federal agency devoted to measuring ambient environmental conditions and trends. (Sec. 106) Requires the Administrator to establish a program to publicly recognize persons who contribute to improved environmental monitoring and other measurement methods. Directs the Administrator to report to Congress on the length of time EPA has taken over the prior ten years to approve monitoring technologies and to recommend ways to: (1) reduce that time to get reliable monitoring information to EPA and the public more quickly; and (2) increase the deployment of existing technologies. (Sec. 108) Requires the Administrator to report to Congress on whether the Administrative Procedures Act should be amended to apply to information reporting requirements and the use of existing information to create new information products. (Sec. 109) Authorizes appropriations to carry out this title. Title II: Innovative Strategies - Authorizes the Administrator to enter into innovative strategy agreements with persons or governmental entities with good records of meeting statutory environmental standards to experiment with new approaches to regulation. (Sec. 204) Permits the Administrator, under such agreements, to: (1) modify or waive applicable agency rules or requirements; (2) allow a tiered approach under which monitoring and reporting requirements are loosened initially when emissions are significantly below those allowable under the agreement, with increased requirements as environmental performance gets closer to the emission, discharge, and other limitations in the agreement; (3) extend permit terms, expedite permit review, or provide multi-media permits; (4) establish facility-wide limitations on overall allowable emissions and discharges; (5) allow third-party or self-certification in lieu of frequent inspection; and (6) employ market-based strategies. (Sec. 205) Permits termination of agreements for noncompliance with terms. Authorizes civil actions against parties in violation of such agreements. (Sec. 209) Requires the Administrator to implement an employee incentive awards program that rewards employees and organizational units that demonstrate leadership in the planning, implementation, and evaluation of innovative environmental strategies and other activities that result in better environmental performance, greater economic efficiency in the public and private sectors, and expedited delivery and improved quality of public services. (Sec. 211) Authorizes appropriations to carry out this title.

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that a biennial budget process should be enacted in the second session of the 106th Congress.

United States · United States Congress · 18 November 1999

Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that a biennial budget process should be enacted in the second session of the 106th Congress.

Expressing the sense of the Congress that a portion of the budget surplus should be used to fulfill moral and legal responsibilities of the United States by ensuring proper payment and management of all federally held tribal trust fund accounts and individual Indian money accounts.

United States · United States Congress · 18 November 1999

Expresses the sense of the Congress that a portion of the budget surplus should be used to fulfill the moral and legal responsibilities of the United States by ensuring proper payment and management of all federally held tribal trust fund accounts and individual Indian money accounts.

Straßenbenützungsabgabegesetz, Änderung

Austria · National Council · 17 November 1999

Bundesgesetz, mit dem das Straßenbenützungsabgabegesetz geändert wird

22 Mr. Broughan asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if all outstanding arrears will be paid to widows, widowers, pensioners and other benefit claimants in the context of budget 2000; and the cost of discharging these arrears. [23639/99]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 17 November 1999

22 Mr. Broughan asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if all outstanding arrears will be paid to widows, widowers, pensioners and other benefit claimants in the context of budget 2000; and the cost of discharging these arrears. [23639/99]

Intellectual Property and Communications Omnibus Reform Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999

Intellectual Property and Communications Omnibus Reform Act of 1999 - Title I: Satellite Home Viewer Improvement - Satellite Home Viewer Improvement Act of 1999 - Amends Federal copyright law to cite circumstances under which the secondary transmission by a satellite carrier (carrier) of a primary transmission of a television broadcast station (TV station) into the station's local market shall be subject to statutory (compulsory) licensing. Requires the carrier: (1) within 90 days after commencing such secondary transmission, to submit to the network that owns or is affiliated with the network station a list identifying all subscribers to which the carrier currently makes such transmission; and (2) on the 15th day of each month, to submit a subsequent list identifying any subscribers who have been added or dropped. Restricts the use of subscriber information to monitoring compliance by the carrier. Applies the submission requirements to a carrier only if the network to which the submissions are to be made places on file with the Register of Copyrights a document identifying the name and address of the person to whom such submissions are to be made. (Sec. 1002) Precludes any royalty obligation for such secondary transmission. Makes actionable as an infringement and fully subject to copyright remedies a carrier's willful or repeated transmission into a TV station's local market of the station's primary transmission embodying a performance or display, if the carrier has not complied with specified reporting requirements. Applies such infringement and copyright remedies to a carrier if: (1) the content of a particular program in which the performance or display is embodied or any commercial advertising or station announcement transmitted by the primary transmitter during, or immediately before or after, the transmission of such program is in any way willfully altered by the carrier or is combined with programming from any other broadcast signal; or (2) such transmission is made to a subscriber outside the TV station's local market who is not subject to compulsory licensing, except that no damages (other than certain restricted statutory damages) may be awarded if the carrier promptly withdraws service from the ineligible subscriber. Sets forth additional remedies for willful and repeated patterns or practices of such violations. Places on the carrier the burden of proof in any action brought under this title that its secondary transmission of a TV station's primary transmission is made only to subscribers within the station's local market. (Sec. 1003) Amends the Satellite Home Viewer Act of 1994 to extend until December 31, 2004, the sunset of the satellite compulsory license. (Sec. 1004) Revises the formula used to compute the rate of royalty fees in effect on January 1, 1998, to be deposited with the Register of Copyrights by carriers by reducing the $.27 rate for retransmission of: (1) superstation signals by 30 percent; and (2) network stations by 45 percent. Provides that for purposes of copyright arbitration royalty panels, the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) shall be the agent for all public television copyright claimants and all PBS member stations with respect to royalty fees paid by the carriers for retransmitting the PBS satellite feed. (Sec. 1005) Modifies the definition of "unserved household" to eliminate the 90-day period that satellite subscribers must wait after termination of their cable service until they are eligible for satellite service of network signals. Defines an unserved household as one not able to receive through a conventional antenna an over-the-air signal of a primary network station affiliated with that network of Grade B intensity (with certain additional requirements). Provides exceptions to the limitations placed on the secondary transmissions by a carrier of the primary transmission made by a network station with respect to subscribers who do not reside in unserved households. Allows, until December 31, 2004, a subscriber who does not receive a signal of grade A intensity of a local network station to remain eligible to receive signals of stations affiliated with the same network, as long as that subscriber had satellite service of such signal terminated after July 11, 1998, and before October 31, 1999, or received such service on such latter date. Exempts from the unserved household requirements operators of recreational vehicles and commercial trucks who have complied with certain documentation requirements. (Sec. 1006) Subjects copyrighted programming carried upon the PBS's national satellite feed to copyright compulsory licensing requirements. Defines the "Public Broadcasting Service satellite feed" as the national satellite feed distributed by the PBS consisting of educational and informational programming intended for private home viewing, to which the PBS holds national terrestrial broadcast rights. (Sec. 1007) Subjects the copyright compulsory license to the rules, regulations, or authorizations of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Makes carrier eligibility for such license contingent upon full compliance with all FCC signal carriage requirements. (Sec. 1008) Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to require carriers that retransmit a television broadcast signal to subscribers located within the signal's local market to carry, upon request beginning January 1, 2002, the signals of all TV stations located within that local market (must-carry requirement), subject to the retransmission consent election by such stations. Requires a TV station asserting its right to such carriage to bear costs associated with delivering a good quality signal to the carrier's designated local receive facility or to another facility that is acceptable to at least one-half the stations asserting the right to carriage in the local market. Provides that a carrier shall not be required: (1) to carry upon request the signal of any local commercial TV station that substantially duplicates the signal of another local commercial TV station which is secondarily transmitted by the carrier within the same local market; or (2) to carry upon request the signals of more than one local commercial TV station in a single local market that is affiliated with a particular television network unless such stations are licensed to communities in different States. Requires the FCC to prescribe regulations that provide the same degree of carriage by carriers of multiple local noncommercial television broadcast stations as is provided by cable systems. Declares that no carrier shall be required to provide a local TV station signal to subscribers in that station's local market on any particular channel number, or to provide the signals in any particular order, except that the carrier shall retransmit the signal of the local stations to subscribers in the station's local market on contiguous channels and provide access to such signals at a nondiscriminatory price and in a nondiscriminatory manner on any navigational device, on-screen program guide, or menu. Prohibits a carrier from accepting or requesting monetary payments or other valuable consideration in exchange either for carriage of local TV stations in fulfillment of the requirements of this title or for channel positioning rights provided to such stations. Allows any such station, however, to be required to bear the costs associated with delivering a good quality signal to the satellite's local receive facility. Provides administrative procedures by which stations may seek redress from the FCC for violations of the must-carry obligations for carriers. Sets a deadline by which the FCC must issue regulations (modeled after those currently applicable to the cable industry) that apply network nonduplication protection, syndicated exclusivity protection, and sports blackout protection to retransmission of broadcast signals by carriers to subscribers. Permits a carrier to provide the signals of no more than two network stations in a single day for each television network to any household not located within the local markets of those stations. Allows such a carrier to also provide service under the secondary transmission provisions of this title to the local market within which such household is located. Provides penalties for carrier violations. Requires the FCC to establish regulations that apply the above network nonduplication protection, syndicated exclusivity protection, and sports blackout protection to the transmission of nationally transmitted superstations by carriers, and to apply sports blackout protection to the retransmission of the signals of network stations by carriers to subscribers. Directs the FCC to conclude an inquiry to evaluate all possible standards and factors for determining eligibility for retransmission of the signals of network stations and, if appropriate: (1) recommend modifications to the current Grade B intensity standard for analog signals (or an alternative standard); and (2) make an additional recommendation relating to an appropriate standard for digital signals. Authorizes a subscriber who is denied the retransmission of a signal of a network station under this title to request from the station a waiver of such denial. Requires the FCC to develop and prescribe by rule a point-to-point predictive model for reliably and presumptively determining the ability of individual locations to receive signals in accordance with the current effective signal intensity standard, taking into account terrain, building structures, and other land cover variations. Requires the selection and employment of an independent signal tester by the appropriate carrier and network stations when a subscriber's request for waiver under this subtitle is denied. (Sec. 1009) Revises generally the requirements for retransmission of a TV station's signal by a cable system or other multichannel video programming distributor. Directs the FCC to revise regulations governing the exercise by TV stations of the right to grant consent to such retransmission. Provides enforcement proceedings against carriers concerning retransmissions of TV stations (without the above consent) in the respective local markets of such carriers. Places, in such proceedings, the burden of proof upon a TV station to establish that the carrier retransmitted the TV station to at least one person in the local market of such station on the day in question. Provides for FCC enforcement of proceeding determinations through cease-and-desist orders, as appropriate. Outlines court proceedings for the enforcement of such FCC orders. Authorizes TV stations to file civil actions for statutory damages for any violations determined by the FCC to have been committed by a carrier. Title II: Rural Local Television Signals - Rural Local Broadcast Signal Act - Directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to make a determination regarding licenses or other authorizations for facilities that will utilize spectrum otherwise allocated to commercial use for delivering local TV signals to satellite TV subscribers in unserved and underserved local TV markets. Requires an FCC report to specified congressional committees on the extent to which such licenses and other authorizations have facilitated the delivery of local signals to satellite TV subscribers in such markets. Title III: Trademark Cyberpiracy Prevention - Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act - Amends the Trademark Act of 1946 to make liable in a civil action by the owner of a mark (including a personal name protected as a mark) any person who, with a bad faith intent to profit from that mark, registers, traffics in, or uses a domain name which, at the time of its registration, is: (1) identical or confusingly similar to a distinctive mark; (2) dilutive of a famous mark; or (3) is a protected trademark, word, or name (including protected marks, words, or names of the Red Cross, the U.S. Olympic Committee, the International Olympic Committee, International Paralympic Committee, and the Pan-American Sports Organization). Limits liability to the domain name registrant or that registrant's authorized licensee. (Sec. 3002) Specifies factors a court may consider in determining bad faith intent, but prohibits such a determination if the defendant believed, with reasonable grounds, that the use of the domain name was fair or otherwise lawful. Authorizes a court to order the forfeiture or cancellation of the domain name or its transfer to the mark owner. Prescribes conditions for an in rem civil action, in addition to any other action, against a domain name by a mark owner. Limits remedies in an in rem action to a court order for the forfeiture or cancellation of the domain name or its transfer to the mark owner. Declares that the domain name registrar, registry, or other registration authority shall not be liable for injunctive or monetary relief in an in rem action except in the case of bad faith or reckless disregard, which includes a willful failure to comply with any such court order. Declares that any person who registers a domain name consisting of the name of another living person, or a name substantially and confusingly similar to it, without that person's consent, and with specific intent to profit by selling the domain name for financial gain to that person or any third party, shall be liable to such person in a civil action for injunctive relief, including forfeiture or cancellation of the domain name or its transfer to the plaintiff. Shields from such liability, however, any copyright owner or licensee who registers such a domain name in good faith if: (1) the name is used in, affiliated with, or related to a work of authorship protected by copyright, including a work made for hire; and (2) the registrant intends to sell the domain name in conjunction with the lawful exploitation of the work, provided registration is not prohibited by a contract between the registrant and the named person. (Sec. 3003) Applies to cybersquatting actions such trademark remedies in addition to injunctive relief as recovery of defendant's profits, actual damages, and attorneys' fees and court costs. Provides for statutory damages in an amount of at least $1,000 and up to $100,000 per domain name, as the court considers just. (Sec. 3004) Shields from liability for monetary or (except in specified circumstances) injunctive relief, regardless of whether the domain name is finally determined to infringe or dilute the mark in question, any domain name registrar, registry, or other registration authority that refuses to register, removes from registration, transfers, temporarily disables, or permanently cancels a domain name: (1) in compliance with a court order; or (2) in the implementation of a reasonable policy prohibiting the registration of a domain name identical to, confusingly similar to, or dilutive of another's mark. Makes liable to a domain name registrant for monetary and injunctive relief (including reactivation or transfer to the registrant of the domain name) any person who makes a knowing and material misrepresentation that a domain name is identical to, confusingly similar to, or dilutive of a mark, and a registrar, registry, or other registration authority takes such an action based on such misrepresentation. Shields a registrar, registry, or other registration authority from liability for damages for the registration or maintenance of a domain name for another, unless there is a showing of bad faith intent to profit from such registration or maintenance of the domain name. Authorizes a registrant whose domain name has been suspended, disabled, or transferred, upon notice to the mark owner, to file a civil action for injunctive relief (including reactivation or transfer to the registrant of the domain name) to establish that the registration or use of the domain name by such registrant is not unlawful under the Trademark Act of 1946. (Sec. 3006) Directs the Secretary of Commerce to: (1) study and report to Congress on guidelines and procedures for resolving disputes involving the registration or use by a person of a domain name that includes the personal name of another person, in whole or in part, or a name confusingly similar to it; and (2) collaborate, under the Memorandum of Understanding with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, to develop such guidelines and procedures. (Sec. 3007) Amends the National Historic Preservation Act to provide a limited immunity from suit under trademark law for historic buildings and structures on or eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places, or that are designated by a State or local government as an individual landmark or as a contributing building in a historic district. Permits retention of the name historically associated with such a building or structure. Title IV: Inventor Protection - American Inventors Protection Act of 1999 - Subtitle A: Inventors' Rights - Inventors' Rights Act of 1999 - Amends Federal patent law to oblige any invention promoter, before entering into a contract for invention promotion services, to disclose to a customer in writing: (1) the total number of inventions evaluated by the promoter for commercial potential in the past five years, including the number of positive and of negative evaluations; (2) the total number of customers who have contracted with the promoter in the past five years; (3) the total number of customers known by the promoter to have received a net financial profit as a direct result of the invention promotion services provided; (4) the total number of customers known by the invention promoter to have received license agreements for their inventions as a direct result of such services; and (5) the names and addresses of all previous invention promotion companies with which the promoter or its officers have collectively or individually been affiliated in the previous ten years. (Sec. 4102) Establishes a Federal cause of action for inventors injured by material false or fraudulent statements or representations, or any omission of material fact, by an invention promoter, or by the promoter's failure to make the required written disclosures. Sets statutory damages (if elected by a customer before judgment is rendered) at a maximum of $5,000. Requires the Commissioner of Patents to make publicly available any complaints received involving invention promoters, along with the response, if any, from the promoters. Subtitle B: Patent and Trademark Fee Fairness - Patent and Trademark Fee Fairness Act of 1999 - Amends Federal patent law to reduce: (1) from $760 to $690 original filing and reissue fees, as well as the national fee for certain international applications; and (2) from $940 to $830 the three-and-a-half year maintenance fee. (Sec. 4203) Authorizes the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and the Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to adjust trademark fees in FY 2000 without regard to fluctuations in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) during the preceding 12 months. (Sec. 4204) Directs the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and the USPTO Director to study and report to specified congressional committees on alternative fee structures that the USPTO could adopt to encourage maximum participation by the inventor community in the United States. (Sec. 4205) Changes from discretionary to mandatory the authority of the Commissioner of Patent and Trademarks to make all trademark fees available only for the processing of trademark registrations and trademark-related activities, services, and materials. Subtitle C: First Inventor Defense - First Inventor Defense Act of 1999 - Amends Federal patent law to declare that it shall be a defense to an infringement action with respect to any subject matter that would otherwise infringe one or more claims for a method in the patent being asserted against a person, if such person had, acting in good faith, actually reduced the subject matter to practice at least one year before the effective filing date of such patent, and commercially used the subject matter before the effective filing date of such patent. (Sec. 4302) Deems a commercial use, in the case of activities performed by a nonprofit research laboratory, or nonprofit entity such as a university, research center, or hospital, any use for which the public is the intended beneficiary, except that such use: (1) may be asserted as a defense only for continued use by and in the laboratory or nonprofit entity; and (2) may not be asserted as a defense with respect to any subsequent commercialization or use outside such laboratory or nonprofit entity. States that the sale or other disposition of a useful end product produced by a patented method, by a person entitled to assert such a defense with respect to that useful end result, shall exhaust the patent owner's rights under the patent to the extent such rights would have been exhausted had such sale or other disposition been made by the patent owner. Limits the defense to inventions for methods. Prohibits the defense if the subject matter on which the defense is based was derived from the patentee or persons in privity with the patentee. Declares that this defense is not a general license under all claims of the patent at issue, but extends only to the specific subject matter claimed in the patent with respect to which the person can assert a defense. Extends the defense, however, to variations in the quantity or volume of use of the claimed subject matter, and to improvements that do not infringe additional specifically claimed subject matter of the patent. Requires a person asserting the defense to establish it by clear and convincing evidence. Prohibits any person who has abandoned commercial use of subject matter from relying on activities performed before the date of abandonment in establishing a defense with respect to actions taken after such date. Limits assertion of the defense to the person who performed the acts necessary to establish it. Prohibits licensing, assignment, or transfer to any person but the patent owner of the right to assert the defense, except as an ancillary and subordinate part of a good faith assignment or transfer for other reasons of the entire enterprise or line of business to which the defense relates. Restricts the site of use of a subject matter for which the defense may be asserted if the defense has been acquired as part of such a good faith assignment or transfer. Subtitle D: Patent Term Guarantee - Patent Term Guarantee Act of 1999 - Amends Federal patent law to extend the term of a patent one day for each day lost as a result of delay created by the USPTO when the agency fails to: (1) make notifications within 14 months after filing of a non-provisional application about the rejection of any patent claim, or objections to or requirements for it, or of allowance of the application; (2) respond within four months to a reply to a rejection, objection, or requirement, or to an appeal of a twice-rejected claim; (3) act on an application within four months after the date of a decision by the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences, or a decision by a Federal court in a case in which allowable claims remain in the application; or (4) issue a patent within four months after the date on which the issue fee was paid and all outstanding requirements were satisfied. (Sec. 4402) Requires a day-for-day extension of a patent term if: (1) a patent is not issued within three years after the filing of the application; or (2) issue is delayed by interferences, secrecy orders, or appeals. Specifies limitations to such an extension, as well as grounds for its reduction. Requires the USPTO Director to prescribe regulations establishing procedures for the application for and determination of patent term extensions and adjustments. (Sec. 4403) Authorizes the USPTO Director to: (1) prescribe regulations for the continued examination, at the applicant's request, of a patent application notwithstanding a final rejection; and (2) establish appropriate fees for continued examination proceedings, with a mandatory 50% fee reduction for qualifying small entities. Subtitle E: Domestic Publication of Patent Applications Published Abroad - Domestic Publication of Foreign Filed Patent Applications Act of 1999 - Requires the USPTO Director to publish each patent application 18 months after the earliest filing date for which a benefit is sought, unless the applicant requests earlier publication. Makes final and unreviewable the Director's determination to release or not to release information concerning a published patent application. Prohibits publication of any application: (1) no longer pending; (2) subject to a secrecy order; (3) which is provisional; (4) for a design patent; or (5) for an invention the applicant certifies has not and will not be the subject of an application filed in another country, or under a multilateral international agreement, that requires publication of applications 18 months after filing. Requires any applicant, in the latter instance, who subsequently files, in a foreign country or under a multilateral international agreement, an application directed to the invention disclosed in the application filed in the PTO, to notify the Director. (Sec. 4502) Allows an applicant to submit a redacted copy of the PTO-filed application, eliminating any part or description of the invention that is not also contained in any of the corresponding applications the applicant has filed in one or more foreign countries whose applications require a less extensive description of the invention than the application or description of the invention in the application filed in the PTO. Requires the USPTO Director to publish only the redacted copy of the application, unless it is not received within 16 months after the earliest effective filing date. Requires the USPTO Director to establish appropriate procedures to ensure that no protest or other form of pre-issuance opposition to the grant of a patent on an application may be initiated after publication of the application without the express written consent of the applicant. Prohibits publication or disclosure of the application of any invention whose publication or disclosure would be detrimental to the national security. Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to specified congressional committees on applicants who file only in the United States on or after the effective date of this subtitle. (Sec. 4503) Amends Federal patent law with respect to the option of an applicant seeking patent protection in the United States to claim the filing date of an application for the same invention filed in another Convention country, provided the subsequent application is filed in the United States within 12 months of the earlier filing in the foreign country. Revises requirements for claiming such priority. Authorizes the Director to: (1) consider an applicant's failure to file a timely claim for priority to be a waiver of any such priority claim; and (2) establish procedures (including the payment of a surcharge) to accept an unintentionally delayed priority claim. (Sec. 4504) Amends Federal patent law to state that a patent shall contain a (provisional) right to obtain a reasonable royalty for applicants whose applications are published under this title, or international applications designating the United States filed under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). Entitles the applicant to obtain a reasonable royalty from any person who between publication of the application and issuance of the patent: (1) makes, uses, offers for sale, or sells the invention in, or imports it into, the United States; or (2) if the invention claimed is a process, makes, uses, offers for sale, sells, or imports a product made by that process in the United States; and (3) had actual notice of the published application, including a translation into English if it was filed in a non-English language under the PCT designating the United States. Denies availability of such right unless the invention as claimed in the patent is substantially identical to the invention as claimed in the published application. Sets a six-year statute of limitations from the date of patent issuance in which an action for reasonable royalties must be brought. (Sec. 4505) Grants a published application prior art effect as of its earliest effective U.S. filing date against any subsequently filed U.S. applications. States that any foreign filing date to which the published application is entitled will not be the effective filing date of the U.S. published application for prior art purposes, unless it is an international application designating the United States published in English under the PCT. (Sec. 4506) Requires the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and the USPTO Director to recover the cost of early publication required by this title by charging a separate publication fee after a notice of allowance is given. Subtitle F: Optional Inter Partes Reexamination Procedure - Optional Inter Partes Reexamination Procedure Act of 1999 - Amends Federal patent law to allow a third party to request inter partes reexamination by the PTO of a patent on the basis of any prior art, as long as the real party in interest is identified. (Sec. 4604) Requires the USPTO Director to: (1) make a determination (which shall be final and non-appealable) determine whether a substantial new question of patentability affecting any claim of the patent concerned is raised by the request, with or without consideration of other patents or printed publications; and (2) order for inter partes reexamination of the patent for resolution of any substantial new question determined. Prescribes procedures for an inter partes reexamination. Entitles the third-party requester to: (1) submit one written comment addressing issues raised by the action of the Office or the patent owner's response each time the patent owner files a response to the USPTO; and (2) appeal to the USPTO Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (but not the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit) from an examiner's determination that the reexamined patent is valid. Entitles the patent owner to appeal to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit any decision adverse to a claim's patentability. Estops any third-party requesters who participate in an inter partes reexamination proceeding from raising in a subsequent civil action or inter partes reexamination any issue of patent validity that they raised or could have raised during such inter partes reexamination. Permits a subsequent assertion of patent invalidity, however, based on newly discovered prior art unavailable to the third-party requester and the PTO at the time of the inter partes reexamination proceedings. Requires the USPTO Director, upon expiration of the time for appeal or termination of any appeal proceeding with regard to an inter partes reexamination, to cancel any patent claim finally determined unpatentable, confirm any claim determined patentable, or incorporate in the patent any proposed amended or new claim determined patentable. Prescribes circumstances in which an inter partes reexamination is prohibited. (Sec. 4606) Directs the Under Secretary for Intellectual Property and the USPTO Director to evaluate for Congress whether the inter partes reexamination proceedings established under this title are inequitable to any of the parties in interest and, if so, recommend suitable changes. (Sec. 4607) Estops an inter partes reexamination requester from challenging at a later time, in any civil action, any fact determined during the process of such reexamination, except with respect to a fact determination later proved to be erroneous based on information unavailable at the time of the inter partes reexamination decision. Subtitle G: Patent and Trademark Office - Patent and Trademark Office Efficiency Act - Amends Federal patent law to reorganize the Patent and Trademark Office in the Department of Commerce into a U.S. agency within the Department, called the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), subject to the general policy direction of the Secretary of Commerce but exercising independent control of its budget, personnel, procurements, and other administrative and management functions. (Sec. 4713) Vests the enumerated powers and duties of the USPTO in an Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO (currently, the Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks). Requires the Secretary to appoint a Commissioner of Patents and a Commissioner of Trademarks. (Sec. 4714) Establishes a Patent Public Advisory Committee and a Trademark Public Advisory Committee. (Sec. 4715) Revises the composition of the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board and the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences to reflect the changes of this Act. Repeals the current authority (of the Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks) to designate any patent examiner of the primary examiner grade or higher to serve as examiner-in-chief for a six-month period, and act as a member of the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences. Subtitle H: Miscellaneous Patent Provisions - Amends Federal patent law to permit the conversion, upon applicant request, of a provisional application into a non-provisional application. Repeals the requirement that a provisional application be pending on the filing date of a non-provisional application in order for the provisional application to be relied upon in any proceeding in the USPTO. (Sec. 4802) Permits persons who filed an application for patent first in a World Trade Organization (WTO) member country to claim the right of priority in a subsequent patent application filed in the United States, even if such country does not yet afford similar privileges on the basis of applications filed in the United States. Provides for the right of priority in the United States on the basis of an application for a plant breeder's right first filed in a WTO member country or in a foreign member of the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV Contracting Party). (Sec. 4803) Makes certain limitations on remedies for patent infringement applicable only to applications filed on or after September 30, 1996. (Sec. 4804) Authorizes the USPTO to receive, publish, disseminate, and maintain information in electronic form. Prohibits the USPTO Director from ceasing to maintain paper or microform collections of U.S. patents, foreign patent documents, and U.S. trademark registrations, except pursuant to notice and opportunity for public comment. Requires the USPTO Director to report to Congress the details of any proposal to cease maintaining paper or microform collections, certifying that its implementation will not negatively impact the public. (Sec. 4805) Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on the potential risks to the U.S. biotechnological industry regarding biological deposits in support of biotechnology patents. Requires the USPTO to consider the Comptroller General's recommendations when drafting regulations affecting biological deposits. (Sec. 4806) Specifies that an inventor involved in a USPTO interference proceeding who establishes a date of invention is subject to certain requirements, including the one that the invention was not abandoned, suppressed, or concealed. (Sec. 4807) Revises the condition of patentability that subject matter developed by another person which qualifies as prior art only in certain circumstances shall not preclude the granting of a patent on an invention with only obvious differences where the subject matter and claimed invention were, at the time the invention was made, owned by the same person or subject to an obligation of assignment to the same person. Adds to such qualifying prior art circumstances that the invention was described in another patent granted on an application filed before the applicant's date of invention. (Thus allows an applicant to receive a patent when an invention with only obvious differences from the applicant's invention was described in a patent granted on an application filed before the applicant's invention, provided the inventions are commonly owned or subject to an obligation of assignment to the same person.) (Sec. 4808) Prohibits the USPTO Director from entering into an agreement to provide copies of specifications and drawings of U.S. patents and applications to a foreign country, other than a North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) country or a WTO member country, without the express authorization of the Secretary of Commerce. Title V: Miscellaneous Provisions - Amends Federal law establishing the Commission on Online Child Protection to: (1) revise membership provisions; (2) extend by one year the Commission report deadline; (3) terminate the Commission either 30 days after such report (current law) or on November 30, 2000, whichever is earlier; and (4) revise meeting requirements and establish Commission rules. (Sec. 5002) Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to provide privacy requirements with respect to donors to public broadcasting entities. (Sec. 5003) Requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), within 180 days after enactment of this Act, to complete a biennial regulatory review required under the Telecommunications Act of 1996. (Sec. 5004) Amends Federal copyright law to provide a remittance of copyright damages for public broadcasting entities that were not aware that their acts constituted a copyright violation. (Sec. 5005) Amends the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and the Tariff Act of 1930 to make technical amendments relating to vessel hull design protection. (Sec. 5007) Amends Federal copyright law to allow surety corporations, like other corporations, to utilize approved state officials to receive service of process in any legal proceeding in lieu of having a separate service agent in each Federal judicial district. (Sec. 5008) Community Broadcasters Protection Act of 1999 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to direct the FCC to prescribe regulations to establish a class A license for qualifying low-power television (LPT) stations. Requires notification of LPT licensees of the requirements for class A designation. Requires requesting licensees to submit to the FCC a certification of eligibility based on the requirements of this section. Requires the FCC to: (1) grant such certification absent a material deficiency; and (2) act to preserve the service areas of LPT stations pending final resolution of such applications. Allows an LPT station to submit an application for class A designation only within 30 days after final regulations are adopted. Defines as a qualifying LPT station one which, during the 90 days preceding the date of enactment of this title: (1) broadcast for at least 18 hours per day; (2) broadcast an average of at least three hours per week of programming that was produced within the market area served by such station or the market area served by a group of commonly controlled LPT stations that carry common local programming produced within the market area served by such group; and (3) complied with other requirements applicable to LPT stations and, after the date of its license application, complies with the FCC's operating rules for full power television stations. Allows the FCC to also qualify stations as LPT stations if public interest, convenience, and necessity would be so served. Provides that: (1) the FCC is not required to issue any additional licenses for advanced television services to the licensees of class A television stations; and (2) the FCC shall approve such applications proposing facilities that will not cause interference to any other broadcast facility authorized on the date of the filing of the advanced television application. States that nothing in this section shall preempt Federal provisions concerning the allocation and assignment of new public safety services licenses and commercial licenses. Prohibits the FCC from granting a class A license to an LPT station operating between 698 and 806 megahertz, but requires the FCC to provide to LPT stations assigned to and temporarily operating within such bandwidth the opportunity to meet the licensing requirements. Prohibits the FCC from granting a class A license to an LPT station operating on a channel that includes any of the 175 additional channels referenced within a certain FCC Memorandum of Opinion and Order of Reconsideration. Directs the FCC to identify such channels within 18 months after enactment of this section. Prohibits the FCC from granting a class A license or modification unless the applicant or licensee shows that the station for which such license or modification is sought will not cause interference within: (1) the predicted contour (service area) of any television transmitting in analog format; (2) certain digital television service areas; (3) the predicted contour of any LPT station or LPT translator station that was licensed, authorized for construction, or had a pending application before the date of the class A license application; or (4) 80 miles from the geographic center of certain listed areas, including the 482-488 megahertz band in New York. Provides that LPT stations that are displaced by applications filed under this section shall have priority over other LPT stations in the assignment of available channels. Title VI: Superfund Recycling Equity - Amends the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 to absolve persons (other than owners or operators) who arranged for the recycling of recyclable material from liability for environmental response actions. (Sec. 6001) Excludes from the meaning of recyclable material (thus deeming a non-recyclable material): (1) any shipping container of a capacity from 30 liters to 3,000 liters, whether intact or not, having any hazardous substance (but not metal bits and pieces or hazardous substance that form an integral part of the container) contained in or adhering to it; or (2) any item of material that contained polychlorinated biphenyls at a concentration in excess of 50 parts per million or any new standard promulgated pursuant to applicable Federal laws. Declares, however, that a determination whether or not any person shall be liable for any non-recyclable material shall be made without regard to the amendments made by this title. Deems transactions involving scrap paper, plastic, glass, textiles, or rubber (other than whole tires) to be arranging for recycling if the person who arranged the transaction demonstrates that the following criteria were met: (1) the recyclable material met a commercial specification grade and a market existed for the material; (2) a substantial portion of the material was made available for use as a feedstock for the manufacture of a new saleable product; (3) the material (or product to be made from the material) could have been a replacement for a virgin raw material; and (4) with respect to transactions occurring 90 days after this Act's enactment, the person exercised reasonable care to determine that the facility where the material would be managed by another was in compliance with Federal, State, or local environmental laws or regulations. Deems transactions involving scrap metal to be arranging for recycling if the person who arranged the transaction demonstrates that: (1) the criteria for scrap materials were met; (2) he or she complied with applicable standards regarding activities associated with the recycling of scrap metals; and (3) the scrap metal was not melted prior to the transaction. Deems transactions involving spent lead-acid, nickel-cadmium, or other batteries to be arranging for recycling if the person involved demonstrates that: (1) the criteria for scrap materials were met; and (2) he or she complied with applicable Federal environmental regulations or standards regarding such batteries. Makes the exemptions from liability under this Act inapplicable if the person: (1) had an objectively reasonable basis to believe at the time of the recycling transaction that the recyclable material would not be recycled or would be burned as fuel or for energy recovery or incineration or that the consuming facility was not in compliance with Federal, State, or local environmental laws or regulations; (2) had reason to believe that hazardous substances had been added to the material for purposes other than processing for recycling; or (3) failed to exercise reasonable care with respect to the management of the material.

Motor Carrier Safety Improvement Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999

Motor Carrier Safety Improvement Act of 1999 - Title I: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration - Establishes the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration within the Department of Transportation (DOT), to be headed by an Administrator (with professional experience in motor carrier safety) appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. (Sec. 101) Decreases the amount the Secretary of Transportation can deduct from Federal-aid highway funds for administrative expenses related to carrying out various Federal transportation projects. Sets forth a specified percentage of such funds for administrative expenses related to administering motor carrier safety programs and motor carrier safety research. Declares that the number of personnel positions at the Office of Motor Carrier Safety (the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration beginning January 1, 2000) shall not be increased above the level transferred from the Federal Highway Administration to the Office of Motor Carrier Safety. (Sec. 102) Amends Federal aid highway law to provide, based on a specified formula pursuant to the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act), for proportionate reductions in appropriated funds from the Highway Trust Fund to carry out the motor carrier safety grant program. (Sec. 103) Authorizes additional appropriations out of the Highway Trust Fund for the motor carrier safety grant program for FY 2001 through 2003. Amends the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century to increase authorizations of appropriations for the motor carrier safety grant program for FY 2001 through 2003. Prohibits the Secretary from making such grants to a State unless the State enters into an agreement that provides that the total State expenditure for the development or implementation of programs for improving motor carrier safety and enforcement of U.S. orders on commercial motor vehicle safety, hazardous materials transportation safety, and compatible State regulations will be maintained at a level at least equal to FY 1997, 1998, and 1999 levels. Authorizes the Secretary to make emergency commercial driver license grants out of certain Highway Trust Fund amounts to States whose commercial driver's license programs do not meet certain Federal commercial driver license requirements. Requires the Secretary to withhold amounts allocated for motor carrier safety from States that are not in compliance with certain commercial driver license requirements. Provides for the reallocation of such funds if a State is not in compliance with such requirements by June 30 of the fiscal year in which the funds are withheld. (Sec. 104) Directs the Secretary to develop a long-term strategy (including an annual plan and schedule for achieving, at a minimum, specified goals) for improving commercial motor vehicle, operator, and carrier safety. (Sec. 105) Authorizes the Secretary to establish a motor carrier safety advisory committee. Title II: Commercial Motor Vehicle and Driver Safety - Amends Federal transportation law to disqualify from operating a commercial motor vehicle for at least one year any individual: (1) committing a first violation of driving a commercial motor vehicle with a revoked, suspended, or canceled commercial driver's license; or (2) convicted of causing a fatality through negligent or criminal operation of a commercial motor vehicle. Disqualifies an individual from operating a commercial motor vehicle for life for committing more than one violation of operating such vehicle with a revoked, suspended, or canceled commercial driver's license or being convicted of more than one offense of causing a fatality through negligent or criminal operation of such vehicle. (Sec. 201) Requires the Secretary to disqualify an individual from operating a commercial motor vehicle on an emergency basis for up to 30 days if allowing such individual to continue to operate such vehicle would create an imminent hazard. Directs the Secretary to issue regulations disqualifying an individual from operating a commercial motor vehicle who has been convicted of a serious offense that has resulted in the revocation, cancellation, or suspension of the individual's license or a drug or alcohol related offense involving a noncommercial motor vehicle. Defines "serious traffic violation" to mean, among other things, driving a commercial motor vehicle when the individual: (1) has not obtained a commercial driver's license; (2) does not have in his or her possession a commercial driver's license unless the individual held a valid commercial driver's license on the date of the citation; and (3) has not met certain minimum testing standards with respect to the class of vehicle the individual is operating or type of cargo the vehicle is carrying. (Sec. 202) Requires a State, in order to avoid the withholding of its apportionment of Federal-aid highway funds, to comply with certain commercial driver's license requirements, including to: (1) request from any other State that has issued a driver's license to an individual information concerning their driving record before renewing the individual's commercial license; (2) record any violation that has resulted in the disqualification, revocation, suspension, or cancellation of an individual's commercial driver's license; (3) notify State officials of the State in which an individual has committed a (non-parking) violation of a State or local motor vehicle control traffic law and has a commercial driver's license that has been issued by another State or is operating a commercial vehicle without a commercial driver's license and has a driver's license issued by another State; (4) prohibit the issuance of a special license or permit (including a provisional or temporary license) to an individual who holds a commercial driver's license that permits the individual to drive a commercial motor vehicle during a period in which the individual is disqualified from operating a commercial motor vehicle or the individual's driver license is revoked, suspended, or canceled; (5) maintain, as part of its driver information system, a record of each (non-parking) violation of a State or local motor vehicle traffic control law while operating for each individual who holds a commercial driver's license; and (6) record and make available to authorized persons and entities such violations (including those that involve a motor vehicle and a commercial motor vehicle) in the driving record of the individual who has a commercial driver's license. (Sec. 203) Requires the Secretary, if a State is in substantial noncompliance with specified Federal commercial driver's license requirements, to prohibit such State from carrying out commercial driver licensing procedures and issuing any more commercial driver's licenses. (Sec. 204) Directs a State, before issuing or renewing an individual's motor vehicle operator's license, to request information on the individual's driving record from the National Driver Register and the commercial driver's license information system. (Sec. 205) Amends Federal transportation law to subject to specified civil penalties (in addition to any other penalties) motor carriers that fail to register their operations or that operate beyond the scope of their registrations. (Sec. 206) Authorizes the Secretary to suspend, amend, or revoke any part of the registration of a motor carrier, broker, or freight forwarder for failure to pay certain civil penalties imposed with respect to violation of certain Federal commercial motor vehicle safety regulations or failure to arrange and abide by an acceptable payment plan for such penalties. Prohibits an owner or operator of a commercial motor vehicle from operating in interstate commerce if such owner or operator fails to pay (or to arrange and abide by an acceptable plan for paying) a civil penalty for violation of certain Federal commercial motor vehicle safety regulations. (Sec. 207) Requires the Secretary to approve a State's plan to adopt and assume responsibility for enforcing Federal and State regulations on commercial motor vehicle safety if the Secretary decides the plan is adequate to promote specified objectives and, among other things, ensures that the State will cooperate in the enforcement of registration requirements and financial responsibility requirements with respect to motor carriers (including motor carriers for passengers and property), brokers, and freight forwarders. (Sec. 208) Redefines "imminent hazard", for which a commercial motor vehicle may be ordered out of service, to mean any condition of vehicle, employee, or commercial motor vehicle operations which substantially increases the likelihood of serious injury or death if not discontinued immediately. (Sec. 209) Excludes from the Board's jurisdiction over transportation of household goods any property moving from a factory or store unless the householder has purchased it with the intent to use in his or her dwelling, has requested the transportation, and has paid the carrier for it. Increases from $1,000 to $5,000 the threshold amount of a claim requiring binding arbitration of a dispute between a motor carrier, water carrier, or freight forwarder and a shipper of household goods. Directs the Comptroller General to study the effectiveness of DOT's enforcement of household goods consumer protection rules. (Sec. 210) Directs the Secretary to require, by regulation, each commercial motor vehicle owner and operator granted new operating authority to undergo a safety review. Directs the Secretary to initiate a rulemaking to establish minimum requirements for applicant motor carriers (including foreign motor carriers) seeking Federal interstate operating authority to ensure that they are knowledgeable about applicable Federal motor carrier safety standards. (Sec. 211) Directs the Secretary to complete a rulemaking to improve training and provide for the certification of motor carrier safety auditors, including private contractors, to conduct safety inspection audits and reviews. (Sec. 212) Directs the Secretary to complete DOT's rulemaking, Docket No. FHWA-99-5710, to amend Federal motor carrier safety regulations to determine which motor carriers operating commercial motor vehicles designed or used to transport between nine and 15 passengers (including the driver) for compensation shall be covered. (Sec. 213) Amends the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century with respect to the nationwide toll-free telephone system for drivers of commercial motor vehicles and others to report violations of Federal motor carrier safety regulations. Requires such system to be staffed 24 hours a day seven days a week by individuals knowledgeable about Federal motor carrier safety regulations and procedures. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 214) Directs the Secretary to conduct a rulemaking to establish a special commercial driver's license endorsement for drivers of school buses. (Sec. 215) Directs the Secretary to initiate a rulemaking to provide for a Federal medical qualification certificate to be made a part of commercial driver's licenses. (Sec. 216) Directs the Secretary to implement the safety improvement recommendations provided for in the DOT Inspector General's Report TR-1999-091. (Sec. 217) Directs the Secretary to amend section 385.21 of DOT's regulations (49 C.F.R. 385.21) to require periodic updating, not more frequently than once every two years, of the motor carrier identification report, form MCS-150, filed by each motor carrier conducting operations in interstate or foreign commerce. (Sec. 218) Directs the Secretary to develop and implement appropriate staffing standards for Federal and State motor carrier safety inspectors in international border areas. Directs the Secretary to allocate five percent of specified funds for border commercial motor vehicle safety programs and enforcement activities and projects. (Sec. 219) Declares that any foreign motor carrier or foreign motor private carrier that operates without authority, before implementation of the land transportation provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), outside the boundaries of a commercial zone along the U.S.-Mexico border: (1) shall be liable to the United States for specified civil penalties; and (2) shall be disqualified from operating a commercial motor vehicle anywhere in the United States. (Sec. 220) Authorizes the Secretary to carry out a program to develop innovative methods of improving motor carrier compliance with traffic laws. (Sec. 221) Directs the Secretary to develop a uniform system to support the electronic transmission of data State-to-State on convictions for all motor vehicle traffic control law violations by individuals possessing a commercial drivers' licenses. (Sec. 222) Urges the Secretary to ensure that motor carriers operate safely by imposing civil penalties at a level calculated to ensure prompt and sustained compliance with Federal motor carrier safety and commercial driver's license laws. (Sec. 224) Directs the Secretary to study and report to Congress on the causes of, and factors contributing to, crashes that involve commercial motor vehicles. Requires the study to yield information that will help DOT and States identify activities and other measures likely to lead to significant reductions in the frequency, severity, and rate per mile traveled of crashes involving commercial motor vehicles. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 225) Directs the Secretary to carry out a program to improve the collection and analysis of data on crashes, including crash causation, involving commercial motor vehicles. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 226) Directs the Secretary to study and report to Congress on the feasibility and merits of requiring: (1) medical review officers to report all verified positive controlled substances test results on any driver, including the identity of such driver and such substance, to the State that issued the driver's commercial driver's license; and (2) all prospective employers, before hiring any driver, to query the license-issuing State on whether the State has on record any verified positive controlled substances test on such driver. (Sec. 227) Sets forth provisions with respect to the periodic review of Surface Transportation Board approvals of motor carrier rate agreements.

Telehealth Improvement Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999

Telehealth Improvement Act of 1999 - Amends the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 with regard to telehealth services to: (1) extend Medicare reimbursement for such services to all Medicare services furnished in all rural areas, including those by physical, occupational, and speech therapists; (2) revise related payment methodology; and (3) add additional congressional reporting requirements pertaining to the telehealth services program. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Office of Advancement of Telehealth, to make grants to eligible recipients for the purpose of expanding access to health care services for individuals in rural areas, frontier areas, and medically underserved areas through the use of telehealth. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Joint Working Group on Telemedicine to ensure that individuals representing the interests of rural areas and medically underserved areas are members of the Group. Establishes the mission of the Joint Working Group, among other things, as identifying, monitoring, and coordinating Federal telehealth projects and programs. Authorizes appropriations.

Admiral James W. Nance and Meg Donovan Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 2000 and 2001

United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999

Admiral James W. Nance and Meg Donovan Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 2000 and 2001 - Division A: Department of State Provisions - Title I: Authorizations of Appropriations - Subtitle A: Department of State - Authorizes appropriations for the Department of State for FY 2000 and 2001 for: (1) administration of foreign affairs; (2) international commissions; (3) migration and refugee assistance (including for humanitarian assistance to Tibetan refugees in India and Nepal, refugees resettling in Israel, displaced Burmese and Sierra Leoneans, and for an international rape counseling program to counsel female victims of rape during times of war); (4) U.S. informational, educational, and cultural programs; (5) the Asia Foundation; (6) contributions to international organizations (including the U.S. assessment for the civil budget of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization) and international peacekeeping activities; and (7) certain voluntary contributions to international organizations. Withholds twenty percent of the U.S. assessed contribution to the United Nations (UN) until the Secretary of State certifies that the UN has met specified conditions. Bars the use of funds for U.S. contributions to: (1) pay for expenses related to the holding of any UN global conference (except one scheduled before October 1, 1998); and (2) the UN regular budget for the U.S. share of framework treaty-based organization, including the Framework Convention on Global Climate Change, the International Seabed Authority, the Desertification Convention, and the International Criminal Court. Withholds a certain amount of funds from the UN Development Program that will be spent in Burma during each fiscal year unless the President certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that the Program's activities in Burma: (1) are focused on eliminating human suffering and addressing the needs of the poor; (2) are undertaken only through international or private voluntary organizations that are independent of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) (formerly known as the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC)); (3) provide no financial, political, or military benefit to the SPDC; and (4) are carried out only after consultation with the leadership of the National League for Democracy and the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma. Limits the U.S. voluntary contributions to international organizations for the UN Population Fund (UNFPA). Makes such funds available only if: (1) UNFPA maintains funds available to it in a separate account; (2) it does not commingle such funds; and (3) it does not fund abortions. Prohibits the use of funds for UNFPA for a country program in China. Directs the Secretary to report to the appropriate congressional committees on the amount of funds that the UNFPA is budgeting for the year in which the report is submitted for a country program in China. Withholds the U.S. voluntary contribution to the UNFPA, if a report indicates plans to spend funds for a country program in China, in an amount equal to that which would be spent on a country program in China after March 1 for the remainder of the fiscal year in which the report is submitted. Subtitle B: United States International Broadcasting Activities - Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 and 2001 to carry out certain international broadcasting activities. Title II: Department of State Basic Authorities and Activities - Subtitle A: Basic Authorities and Activities - Directs the Secretary of State to fill the position of Director of the Office of Children's Issues of the Department of State with an individual of senior rank who: (1) can ensure long-term continuity in the management and policy matters of the Office; and (2) has a strong background in consular affairs. Designates in each U.S. diplomatic mission an employee who shall serve as the point of contact for matters relating to international abductions of children by parents. Directs the Secretary, with a specified exception, to report semi-annually to each parent who has requested assistance regarding an abducted child. (Sec. 202) Amends the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 to extend through September 30, 2001, the requirement that the Secretary report to the appropriate congressional committees on compliance by member countries with the Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (done at The Hague on October 25, 1980). Requires such report to include (among other things): (1) specific actions taken by the U.S. chief of mission in the country to which a child is alleged to have been abducted; (2) a list of countries party to the Convention in which parents who have been left-behind in the United States have not been able to secure prompt enforcement of a final return or access order under a Hague proceeding, of a U.S. custody, access, or visitation order, or of an access or visitation order in the country concerned, due to the absence of an effective method for enforcement of civil court orders, the absence of comity, or other factors; and (3) a description of the Secretary's efforts to encourage the parties to the Convention to facilitate the work of nongovernmental organizations within their countries that assist parents seeking the return of children under the Convention. (Sec. 203) Directs the Secretary to report to the appropriate congressional committees on the investigation into the March 30, 1997, grenade attack in Cambodia. (Sec. 204) Prohibits the State Department from obligating more funds than expressly authorized and appropriated (or obligating such funds unless the appropriate congressional committees are notified) for a U.S. pavilion or other major exhibit at any international exposition or world's fair registered by the Bureau of International Expositions. (Sec. 205) Amends the Inspector General Act of 1978 to declare that the Inspector General of the Agency of International Development (AID) shall serve as the Inspector General of the Inter-American Foundation and the African Development Foundation. (Sec. 206) Directs the Secretary to report to the appropriate congressional committees on the extent of international drug trafficking through Cuba since 1990. (Sec. 207) Amends the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution to require the President to report to Congress at least once every 90 days (currently, 60 days) on the status of efforts to obtain Iraq's compliance with resolutions adopted by the UN Security Council in response to Iraq's aggression. (Sec. 208) Amends the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to require the Director General of the Foreign Service to report to specified congressional committees summarizing the number of Foreign Service positions in each overseas mission requiring foreign language competence that became vacant during the previous year and were filled by individuals having the required foreign language competence. (Sec. 209) Extends certain reporting requirements. (Sec. 210) Authorizes interest accrued on certain joint funds under agreements for cooperation in environmental, scientific, cultural and related areas to be used by the State Department without return to the Treasury and without further appropriation by Congress. (Sec. 211) Directs the Secretary to: (1) review extradition treaties and other agreements containing extradition obligations to which the United States is a party; and (2) report to the appropriate congressional committees regarding U.S. extradition policy. Subtitle B: Consular Authorities - Amends the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995 with respect to fees charged for processing machine readable nonimmigrant visas and machine readable combined border crossing identification cards and nonimmigrant visas. Makes any fee collections that exceed a certain amount for FY 2000, 2001, and 2002 available for deposit as an offsetting collection to any State Department appropriation to recover the costs of providing consular services only if Congress is notified in accordance with specified reprogramming notification procedures. Repeals: (1) provisions making inapplicable certain requirements concerning accounting for consular fees to fees collected under this section; and (2) the prohibition against the charging of fees to citizens of countries signatory to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). (Sec. 232) Authorizes the Secretary to charge a fee for State Department services provided to ensure that an affidavit of support provided by a sponsor is properly completed before it is forwarded to a consular post for adjudication of an immigrant visa. (Sec. 233) Amends the Passport Act to provide that a nonrefundable fee of $10 shall be collected for the filing of each passport application (including the cost of passport issuance and use). (Sec. 234) Amends the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to revise requirements concerning the State Department and the death of U.S. citizens abroad. Sets forth requirements regarding: (1) notification of next of kin by consular officers; (2) the appointment of such officers as conservators of a decedent's estate; and (3) losses in connection with the conservation of the estate. (Sec. 236) Directs the Secretary to issue regulations that provide that before a child under age 14 is issued a passport: (1) both parents, or the child's legal guardian, have executed the application and provided documentary evidence demonstrating that they are who they say they are; and (2) the person executing the application has provided documentary evidence that he or she has sole custody of the child, has the consent of the other parent to the issuance of the passport, or is in loco parentis and has the consent of both parents, of a parent with sole custody over the child, or of the child's legal guardian. (Sec. 237) Declares it shall be State Department policy to process immigrant visa applications of immediate relatives of U.S. citizens and nonimmigrant K-1 visa applications of fiances of U.S. citizens within 30 days (60 days for other than immediate relative) of the receipt of all necessary documents from the applicant and the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). Directs the Secretary to report annually to the appropriate congressional committees on the extent to which the State Department is meeting such policy standards. (Sec. 238) Directs the Secretary to report to the appropriate congressional committees (including those specified) on the feasibility of decreasing the amount of an individual's arrearages of child support that would require the Secretary to refuse to issue such individual a passport. Subtitle C: Refugees - Bars the use of funds (including migration and refugee assistance, unless the appropriate congressional committees are first notified) for the involuntary return of a person to a country in which the person has a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. (Sec. 252) Requires a certain human rights report in connection with the provision of security assistance to a foreign country to include the extent to which such country has extended protection to refugees (including the provision of first asylum and resettlement). (Sec. 253) Amends the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 to include State Department employees together with INS personnel within guidelines that address potential biases by such personnel who are hired abroad and involved with duties which could constitute a barrier to a refugee claim if they carry a bias against the claimant on the grounds of religion, race, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. Directs the Secretary to issue guidelines to ensure that persons with potential biases against a refugee applicant (including persons employed by, or otherwise subject to influence by, governments known to be involved in such persecution) shall not be used in processing determinations of refugee status, including interpretation of conversations or examination of documents presented by such applicants. (Sec. 254) Directs the Secretary to establish a task force to determine and report to Congress on eligibility guidelines for women seeking refugee status overseas due to gender-related persecution. (Sec. 255) Makes certain Vietnamese nationals eligible for in-country refugee processing and admittance into the United States for resettlement. Title III: Organization and Personnel of the Department of State - Subtitle A: Organization Matters - Directs the Secretary to assess and report to specified congressional committees on the administrative and personnel requirements for the establishment of legislative liaison offices for the State Department within the House of Representatives and Senate office buildings. (Sec. 302) Directs the Secretary to designate an existing senior- level State Department official with responsibility for promoting regional cooperation in and coordinating U.S. policy toward Northeastern Europe. (Sec. 303) Directs the Secretary to designate a senior-level State Department official as the Science and Technology Adviser who shall advise the Secretary on international science and technology matters affecting U.S. foreign policy. (Sec. 305) Earmarks certain additional amounts authorized to the Diplomatic Telecommunications Service Program Office (DTS-PO) for enhancement of Diplomatic Telecommunications Service capabilities. Sets forth specified actions the DTS-PO must take in order for it to better manage a fully integrated telecommunications network to service all agencies at diplomatic missions and consular posts. Subtitle B: Personnel of the Department of State - Amends the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to provide for the award of the Foreign Service Star to an individual whose death or injury occurs overseas while performing official duties as a member of the Foreign Service or a civilian employee of the U.S. Government. (Sec. 323) Amends the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to limit to no more than 33 percent (currently, 50 percent) the percentage of Senior Foreign Service members that may receive performance pay in any fiscal year. (Sec. 324) Requires the Director of the Foreign Service to report to the appropriate congressional committees on the placement of Senior Foreign Service personnel. (Sec. 325) Directs the State Department to report to the appropriate congressional committees on the feasibility of modifying current training programs so that the Department can provide significant and comprehensive management training at all career grades for Foreign Service personnel. (Sec. 326) Requires the Secretary to report to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and a specified Senate committee on: (1) the steps taken and planned in furtherance of maximum compatibility among agencies utilizing the Foreign Service personnel system, and the development of uniform policies and procedures and consolidated personnel functions; and (2) a five-year workforce plan, including projected personnel needs, by grade and by skill. (Sec. 327) Requires any record of disciplinary action that includes a suspension of more than five days taken against a member of the Foreign Service (including any correction of such record) to remain a part of the personnel records until such person is tenured as a career member of the Service or next promoted. (Sec. 328) Requires an employee, at any time the Secretary recommends such employee be separated from the Service, to be placed on leave without pay pending final resolution of the case, subject to reinstatement with back pay if cause for separation is not established in a hearing before the Foreign Service Grievance Board. (Sec. 329) Declares that nothing shall prevent a Foreign Service grievant from placing a rebuttal to accompany a record of disciplinary action in such grievant's personnel records, nor prevent the State Department from inserting a response to such rebuttal, including documenting those cases in which the Board has reviewed and upheld the discipline. (Sec. 330) Reduces from three years to two years after the occurrence giving rise to such grievance the deadline for the filing of a grievance by a Foreign Service employee with the State Department; or, in the case of a grievance with respect to the grievant's rater or reviewer, one year after the date on which the grievant ceased to be subject to rating or review by the reviewer, but in no case less than two years after the occurrence giving rise to the grievance. Requires the Chairman of the Board to report to specified congressional committees on its activities during the previous year. (Sec. 332) Authorizes the Secretary, whenever it is in the best interest of the United States, to allow the head of any Federal agency or other Government establishment to hire individuals abroad as members of the Foreign Service. (Sec. 333) Requires a Foreign Service employee who regularly commutes from his or her place of residence in the United States to an official duty station in Canada or Mexico to receive a border equalization adjustment (locality pay adjustment). (Sec. 334) Amends Federal law to set forth provisions regarding contributions made to the Thrift Savings Fund by Foreign Service employees who are reemployed by the Service after a temporary transfer to an international organization. (Sec. 335) Authorizes the spouse and dependents of Foreign Service employees who have died at post in a foreign area to receive a transfer allowance (extraordinary, necessary, and reasonable subsistence and other relocation expenses) for their return to the United States. (Sec. 336) Provides for an education allowance to an employee at a post in a foreign area not to exceed the cost of obtaining kindergarten, elementary and secondary educational services, plus room and board, where adequate schools are not available at the employee's post, and periodic transportation between that post and the school chosen by the employee, not to exceed the total cost to the Government of the dependent attending an adequate school in the nearest locality where an adequate school is available. (Currently, an employee can receive an allowance only for a school at the nearest locality). (Sec. 337) Authorizes up to three months advance pay to: (1) an employee (other than an employee appointed by the Secretary and employed as a family member of a Government employee) who is a U.S. citizen, stationed outside the United States, and requires (or has a family member who requires) medical treatment outside the United States; and (2) a foreign national employee who is appointed by the Secretary, or a non-family member U.S. citizen, who is stationed outside the country of employment, and must undergo medical treatment outside the country of employment. (Sec. 338) Declares that Congress finds that administrative and technical personnel posted to U.S. missions abroad who do not have diplomatic status suffer financial disadvantages from their lack of such status. Requires the Secretary to report to the appropriate congressional committees on such disadvantages, including proposals to alleviate them. (Sec. 339) Sets forth certain standards which must be followed with regard to Inspector General investigations of potential violations of Federal criminal law or Federal regulations (including certain reports on such investigations). Requires the Inspector General, in a certain annual report to the Secretary, to include: (1) a notification of any instance in which the Inspector General decided not to afford an individual the opportunity to refute any allegation with respect to an adverse personnel action; and (2) the rationale for denying the individual such opportunity. Declares that a failure to comply with such requirements shall not give rise to any private right of action in court or to any administrative grievance procedure. (Sec. 340) Directs the President to report to the appropriate congressional committees on the benefits and compensation paid to the survivors of U.S. Government employees (including those in the uniformed services and Foreign Service National employees) killed in the performance of their duties abroad as a result of terrorist acts. (Sec. 341) Amends the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 (as enacted by division G of the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1999 (Public Law 105-277)) to direct the Secretary to ensure that the advances made in increasing the number of women and minorities within the foreign affairs agencies of the Federal Government are not undermined by discrimination within the newly reorganized State Department. Title IV: United States Informational, Educational, and Cultural Programs - Subtitle A: Authorities and Activities - Amends the Human Rights, Refugee, and Other Foreign Relations Provisions Act of 1996 to designate educational and cultural exchange programs between the United States and Tibet as the Ngawang Choephel Exchange Programs. (Sec. 401) Extends through FY 2000 scholarships for Tibetan and Burmese students and professionals who live outside Tibet and Burma, respectively. Requires the scholarship program for Tibetan students, whenever practical, to give consideration to individuals who are active in the preservation of Tibet's culture, language, and religion. (Sec. 402) Directs the Secretary (currently, the Director of the United States Information Agency (USIA)), in carrying out programs of educational and cultural exchange in countries whose people do not fully enjoy freedom and democracy, to provide, where appropriate, opportunities for significant participation in such programs to nationals of such countries who are, among other things, committed to advancing human rights and democratic values in such countries. (Sec. 403) Amends the United States Information and Educational Exchange Act of 1948 to direct the Secretary, in coordination with other appropriate executive branch officials, to take all appropriate steps to: (1) prevent an agent of a foreign power from participating in educational and cultural exchange programs; and (2) ensure that no person who is involved in the research, development, design, testing, evaluation, or production of missiles or weapons of mass destruction or of chemical or biological weapons for offensive purposes is a participant in such programs. (Sec. 404) Amends the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 (as enacted in division G of the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1999 (Public Law 105-277)) to repeal the abolition of the of the United States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy, and extend authority for it until October 1, 2001. Provides for the reduction of the Commission's staff and budget. (Sec. 405) Prohibits the use of funds appropriated under this Act to support any training or exchange program conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) (or any other Federal law enforcement agency) for the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) or RUC members until the President reports to the appropriate congressional committees on past training programs between the FBI and the RUC, and makes a certain certification with respect to such future training activities. Subtitle B: Russian and Ukrainian Business Management Education - Establishes a training program in Russia and the Ukraine for nationals of such countries to obtain skills in business administration, accounting, and marketing, with special emphasis on instruction in business ethics and in the basic terminology, techniques, and practices of those disciplines, to achieve international standards of quality, transparency, and competitiveness. Authorizes appropriations. Title V: United States International Broadcasting Activities - Amends the United States International Broadcasting Act of 1994 to: (1) authorize appropriations for FY 2000 and 2001 for Radio Free Asia; and (2) extend its authority through FY 2009. (Sec. 502) Amends the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995 to require the President to appoint (currently, designate) one member of the Broadcasting Board of Governors as Chairman of the Board, subject to the advice and consent of the Senate. (Sec. 503) Expresses the sense of Congress that Radio Free Europe (RFE) and Radio Liberty (RL) Incorporated should continue to broadcast to the peoples of Central Europe, Eurasia, and the Persian Gulf until such time as a particular nation has established democratic rule, including a free and balanced media. (Sec. 504) Amends the United States International Broadcasting Act of 1994 to grant immunity from civil liability to Broadcasting Board of Governors members while also acting as members of the board of directors of RFE/RL, Incorporated and Radio Free Asia. Title VI: Embassy Security and Counterterrorism Measures - Secure Embassy Construction and Counterterrorism Act of 1999 - Authorizes appropriations for the purpose of acquiring, or providing major security enhancements to, U.S. diplomatic facilities in order to meet specified security requirements. Specifies among such requirements that: (1) threat assessments such as the Emergency Action Plan (EAP) and the Security Environment Threat List address threats to U.S. missions from large vehicular bombs and transnational terrorism; (2) in the selection of sites for new U.S. diplomatic facilities abroad, all U.S. Government agency personnel (except those under U.S. military command) be located on the site; (3) each newly acquired U.S. diplomatic facility be sited not less than 100 feet from the perimeter of the property on which the facility is situated; (4) appropriate State Department and U.S. diplomatic personnel undertake crisis management training for mass casualty and mass destruction incidents relating to diplomatic facilities; (5) the Secretary develop annual physical fitness standards for all diplomatic security agents; (6) there is adequate State Department support for the Foreign Emergency Support Team (FEST); (7) the Secretary enter into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Secretary of Defense setting out rapid response procedures for mobilization of personnel and equipment of their respective departments to provide more effective assistance in times of emergency with respect to U.S. diplomatic facilities; and (8) all U.S. diplomatic missions have emergency equipment and records stored at a secure off-site facility. (Sec. 605) Directs the Secretary to report annually for five years to the appropriate congressional committees an identification of U.S. diplomatic facilities that are priority for replacement or for major security enhancement because of vulnerability to terrorist attack, setting them out, in groups of 20, from the most vulnerable to the least vulnerable. Dedicates the use of account funds to facilities in the first four groups. (Sec. 607) Directs the Secretary to review, and report to the appropriate congressional committees on, the findings of the Overseas Presence Advisory Panel with respect to the closure of vulnerable U.S. diplomatic missions overseas. (Sec. 608) Amends the Omnibus Diplomatic Security and Antiterrorism Act of 1986 to provide that the Secretary is not required to convene an Accountability Review Board after the occurrence of serious injury, loss of life, or significant destruction of property, or breach of security at a Department of Defense (DOD) facility in cases where the Secretary has delegated operational control of overseas security to the Secretary of Defense. Requires the Secretary, subject to a specified exception, to convene a Board not later than 60 days after the occurrence of serious injury, loss of life, or significant destruction of property, or breach of security at a U.S. diplomatic mission (except that such 60-day period may be extended for one additional 60-day period if it is necessary for the convening of the Board). Requires the Secretary whenever he or she convenes a Board to inform the chairman of a specified congressional committee and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. (Sec. 609) Directs the Secretary of State to report to the appropriate congressional committees on a proposed operational plan and site selection to establish an International Law Enforcement Academy on the African continent in anti-terrorism and transnational crime fighting. Title VII: International Organizations and Commissions - Subtitle A: International Organizations Other than the United Nations - Amends the Department of State Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1984 and 1985 to redesignate: (1) the United States-European Community Interparliamentary Group as the Transatlantic Legislators' Dialogue (United States-European Union Interparliamentary Group); and (2) the North Atlantic Assembly as the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. (Sec. 702) Authorizes the Commissioner of the U.S. Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission to provide technical tests, evaluations, information, surveys, or other similar services to State or local governments upon request on a reimbursable basis. (Sec. 703) Amends the American-Mexican Chamizal Convention Act of 1964 to authorize the Commissioner of the International Boundary and Water Commission to receive payments of money from public or private sources in the United States or Mexico for the purpose of sharing in the cost of operations and maintenance of the Bridge of the Americas which crosses the Rio Grande between El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua. (Sec. 704) Directs the Secretary of State to report semiannually to Congress on the status of efforts by the U.S. Government to support membership and participation of Taiwan in international organizations. (Sec. 705) Prohibits the United States from becoming a party to the International Criminal Court except pursuant to a treaty made according to the U.S. Constitution after enactment of this Act. Prohibits the use of funds made available by any Act to: (1) support the International Criminal Court unless the United States becomes a party to the Court; (2) extradite a U.S. citizen to a foreign nation that is under obligation to surrender persons to the Court unless such nation confirms that applicable prohibitions on reextradition apply to such surrender or gives other assurances that it will not extradite or transfer that citizen to the Court; or (3) provide consent to the extradition or transfer of a U.S. citizen to a third country by a foreign country that is under obligation to surrender persons to the Court, unless the third country makes such confirmation. (Sec. 707) Amends the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 to extend through FY 2000 and 2001 certain requirements prohibiting, without a prior estimated expense report to the Department's Director of the Office of International Conferences, the use of funds under such Act to pay: (1) foreign travel expenses of an employee of the U.S. Executive agencies (with certain exceptions) in attending any international conference; or (2) the routine services that a U.S. diplomatic mission provides in support of travel by such employee. Makes permanent the requirement that the Director report to Congress with respect to each international conference. (Sec. 708) Amends the United Nations Participation Act of 1945 and the International Atomic Energy Agency Participation Act of 1957 to require the U.S. representative to the Vienna office of the UN to serve also as U.S. representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency. Subtitle B: United Nations Activities - Declares it to be U.S. policy to: (1) promote an end to Israel's inequity in the UN due to its denied acceptance into any of the UN's regional blocs; and (2) seek abolition of certain UN Palestinian groups. Directs the Secretary to report to the appropriate congressional committees on: (1) actions taken by U.S. representatives to encourage nations of the Western Europe and Others Group (WEOG) to accept Israel into their regional bloc; (2) other measures taken to ensure and promote Israel's full participation in the UN; and (3) steps taken by the United States to secure the abolition of the UN Palestinian groups. (Sec. 722) Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to direct the President to provide the Secretary General of the UN with data regarding all costs incurred by DOD, as well as all costs incurred by all UN members, during the preceding year in support of all UN Security Council resolutions. (Sec. 723) Amends the United Nations Participation Act of 1945 to direct the President to obtain reimbursement from the UN for expenses incurred by it in UN peacekeeping operations, with specified exceptions. Provides a waiver for such requirement if it is in the national interest of the United States. (Sec. 724) Revises certain congressional reporting requirements with respect to UN peacekeeping operations (including U.S. participation in such operations) to require the President to consult with Congress monthly on the status of such operations (currently, the President must report at least annually). Directs the President to notify designated congressional committees at least 15 days before the United States provides assistance to the UN for peacekeeping operations, with specified exceptions. Title VIII: Miscellaneous Provisions - Subtitle A: General Provisions - Prohibits the Secretary of State from issuing any visa to, and the Attorney General from admitting to the United States, any foreign national that has been directly involved in the enforcement of population control policies forcing a woman to undergo an abortion against her free choice, or forcing a man or woman to undergo sterilization against his or her free choice, unless such national has discontinued his or her involvement with, and support for, such policies. Authorizes the President to waive such prohibition if: (1) it is in the national interest of the United States; and (2) Congress is notified in writing. (Sec. 803) Directs the Secretary to report to the appropriate congressional committees with respect to steps being taken by the Government of Morocco and by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Rio de Oro (POLISARIO) to ensure a free, fair, and transparent referendum in July 2000 in which the Western Saharan people will choose between independence and integration with Morocco. (Sec. 804) Amends the PLO Commitments Compliance Act of 1989 to require a certain report of the President to the Speaker of the House and the chairman of a specified congressional committee to include statements on: (1) the effectiveness of end-use monitoring of international or U.S. aid being provided to the Palestinian Authority, Palestinian Liberation Organization, or the Palestinian Legislative Council to comply with international accounting standards and on enforcement of anti-corruption measures; and (2) compliance by the Palestinian Authority with democratic reforms. (Sec. 805) Directs the Secretary of State to report semiannually to the appropriate congressional committees regarding terrorist attacks against U.S. citizens in Israel or in territories administered by Israel or by the Palestinian Authority (including a list of suspects implicated in such attacks). (Sec. 806) Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 with respect to the Secretary of State's annual reports to Congress concerning the human rights situation in countries proposed to receive security or development assistance. Authorizes the Secretary to include in such reports information regarding the commission of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and evidence of acts that may constitute genocide. Subtitle B: North Korea Threat Reduction - North Korea Threat Reduction Act of 1999 - Prohibits any agreement for cooperation between the United States and North Korea, or issuance of a license for the export, or approval for the transfer or retransfer, to North Korea of any nuclear material, facilities, goods, services, or technology that would be subject to such agreement, until the President determines and reports to specified congressional committees that North Korea has come into full compliance with the Agreed Framework and other specified nuclear nonproliferation agreements, has permitted the International Atomic Energy Agency full access to certain nuclear sites and material, does not have uranium enrichment or nuclear reprocessing facilities, and does not have nuclear weapons and is making no effort to acquire them. Subtitle C: People's Republic of China - Earmarks specified funds for FY 2001 for the support of additional personnel in U.S. Embassies in Beijing and Kathmandu, as well as the American consulates in Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang, Chengdu, and Hong Kong, China, in order to monitor political and economic conditions there, including the respect for internationally recognized human rights. (Sec. 873) Establishes the Prisoner Information Registry for the People's Republic of China which shall provide information on all political prisoners, prisoners of conscience, and prisoners of faith in China. Makes funds available to nongovernmental organizations for such monitoring activities. Title IX: Arrears Payments and Reform - Subtitle A: General Provisions - United Nations Reform Act of 1999 - Defines terms. Subtitle B: Arrearages to the United Nations - Authorizes appropriations for FY 1999 and 2000 only for the payment of arrearages in assessed contributions to the UN for: (1) the U.S. share of assessments for the regular UN budget; (2) the U.S. share of UN peacekeeping operations; (3) the U.S. share of UN specialized agencies; and (4) the U.S. share of other international organizations. (Sec. 913) Authorizes the President to forgive or reduce any amount (up to a total of $107 million) owed by the UN to the United States as reimbursement, including any payable under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 or the United Nations Participation Act of 1945. (Sec. 921) Authorizes the disbursement of funds under this subtitle only upon submission to Congress of certain certifications concerning: (1) continuing U.S. sovereignty vis-a-vis the UN; and (2) the reform of UN fiscal, budget, and personnel practices, assessments, and peacekeeping operations. Subtitle C: Miscellaneous Provisions - Prohibits the use of funds to pay any arrearage for: (1) the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), including any costs to merge it into the UN; (2) the costs associated with any UN organization from which the United States has withdrawn; or (3) the World Tourism Organization, or any other organization with respect to which Congress has rescinded funding. Division B: Arms Control, Nonproliferation, and Security Assistance Provisions - Arms Control, Nonproliferation, and Security Assistance Act of 1999 - Title XI (sic): Arms Control and Nonproliferation - Arms Control and Nonproliferation Act of 1999 - Subtitle A: Arms Control - Authorizes the Secretary of State to transfer available State Department funds to the DOD, Department of Energy (DOE), or any other agency of the intelligence community, as needed, for retraining, researching, developing, or acquiring technologies or programs relating to the verification of arms control, nonproliferation and disarmament agreements or commitments. Earmarks amounts (Key Verification Assets Fund) for this purpose. (Sec. 1112) Directs the Secretary to designate one of the Assistant Secretaries of State as the Assistant Secretary of State for Verification and Compliance. (Sec. 1113) Amends the Arms Control and Disarmament Act to require a certain annual ("Pell") report by the President to Congress to include: (1) a detailed assessment of adherence of the United States to obligations undertaken in arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament commitments (including the Missile Technology Control Regime); and (2) a specific identification, to the maximum extent practicable in unclassified form, of each and every question that exists with respect to compliance by other countries with arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament agreements with the United States. (Sec. 1114) Requires the Director of Central Intelligence to report to the appropriate congressional committees on: (1) a comprehensive identification of all monitoring activities associated with the START and START II treaties; (2) the specific intelligence community assets and capabilities of which the Senate was informed, before giving advice and consent to ratification of the treaties, would be necessary to accomplish those activities; (3) an identification of the extent to which those assets and capabilities have, or have not, been attained or retained, and the corresponding effect this has had upon U.S. monitoring confidence levels; and (4) an assessment of any Russian activities relating to the START Treaty which have had an impact upon the U.S. ability to monitor Russian adherence to the Treaty. (Sec. 1115) Requires the Secretary, upon the request of the chairman or ranking member of specified congressional committees, to report to such committee on the degree to which elements of an arms control, nonproliferation, or disarmament proposal are capable of being verified. (Sec. 1116) Requires, to the maximum extent practicable, the Government to make certain raw seismological data available to the public. (Sec. 1117) Directs the U.S. National Authority, upon the request of the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), to reimburse the FBI for all costs (up to $2 million) incurred by it in connection with the protection of U.S. companies. (Sec. 1118) Requires the Secretary of State to report to specified congressional committees on the status of any U.S. delegation engaged in negotiations on arms control, nonproliferation, or disarmament. National Security and Corporate Fairness under the Biological Weapons Convention Act - Directs the President to: (1) conduct a series of national security trial investigations and trial visits to develop a compliance protocol to the Biological Weapons Convention that ensures that the compliance procedures of such protocol adequately protect U.S. national security; and (2) report to specified congressional committees with respect to such investigations and trials. Subtitle B: Nuclear Nonproliferation, Safety, and Related Matters - Amends the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Act of 1978 to require certain Federal agencies to notify specified congressional committees with respect to their activities for preventing proliferation, including the proliferation of nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons, or their means of delivery. Requires the Director of Central Intelligence to notify such committees about the current activities of foreign nations which are of significance from the proliferation standpoint. (Sec. 1132) Prohibits the provision of U.S. assistance to any person involved in the research, development, design, testing, or evaluation of chemical or biological weapons for offensive purposes (unless the activity is conducted under certain provisions of the National Security Act of 1947). (Sec. 1133) Directs the Secretary of Energy to report to specified congressional committees with respect to the agreement between the United States and Russia for the disposition of excess weapons plutonium. Expresses the sense of Congress that, whenever the President submits the agreement to establish a mixed oxide fuel fabrication or production facility in Russia, the Secretary should certify specified nonproliferation guaranties to specified congressional committees with respect to such facility. (Sec. 1134) Requires specified Federal agencies to provide Congress with information on their activities to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. (Sec. 1138) Authorizes appropriations from certain nonproliferation foreign operations accounts for science and technology centers in the independent states of the former Soviet Union. (Sec. 1139) Authorizes the use of such funds for certain research and international exchange activities to support the redirection of former Soviet weapons scientists. Title XII: Security Assistance - Security Assistance Act of 1999 - Subtitle A: Transfers of Excess Defense Articles - Amends Federal law to extend through FY 2001 DOD authority to transfer excess defense articles to countries eligible to participate in the Partnership for Peace program and eligible for assistance under the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989. (Sec. 1211) Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to extend through FY 2004 the President's authority to transfer excess defense articles to Greece and Turkey. (Sec. 1212) Authorizes for FY 2000 and 2001 the use of funds made available to DOD for crating, packing, handling, and transportation of excess defense articles to Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. (Sec. 1213) Increases the aggregate value of excess defense articles that can be transferred to eligible countries in a given year. Subtitle B: Foreign Military Sales Authorities - Provides that expenses for termination of foreign military training programs under the Arms Export Control Act (AECA) may include the expenditure of funds to complete the training or studies outside the countries of origin of students whose course of study or training program began before assistance was terminated, as long as the origin country's termination was not a result of activities beyond default of financial responsibilities. (Sec. 1222) Amends AECA to authorize the sale of excess Coast Guard defense articles and defense services to eligible foreign countries and international organizations. (Sec. 1223) Declares that: (1) direct costs associated with meeting additional or unique requirements of the purchaser shall be an allowable cost under DOD procurement contracts; and (2) loadings applicable to such direct costs shall be permitted at the same rates applicable to procurement of like items purchased by the DOD for its own use. (Sec. 1224) Applies certain numbered congressional certification requirements with respect to the upgrade of major defense articles, equipment, or services to their direct commercial sale as well. (Sec. 1225) Requires any agreement for the sale or lease of any article on the United States Munitions List entered into by the U.S. Government to state that the U.S. Government retains the right to verify credible reports that such article has not been used as authorized. Subtitle C: Stockpiling of Defense Articles for Foreign Countries - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to increase the maximum value of additions to stockpiles in foreign countries in FY 2000. Makes amounts available for such stockpiles in South Korea and Thailand. (Sec. 1232) Authorizes the President, during a three-year period, to transfer to South Korea and Thailand certain obsolete or surplus defense articles in return for concessions to be negotiated by the Secretary of Defense. Requires the value of such concessions to be at least equal to the fair market value of the transferred items. Requires the President to notify Congress of a proposed transfer, including the identity of the items to be transferred and the concessions to be received. Subtitle D: Defense Offsets Disclosure - Defense Offsets Disclosure Act of 1999 - Declares that it is U.S. policy to monitor the use of offsets in the defense industry (the entire range of industrial and commercial benefits provided to foreign governments as an inducement or condition to purchase military goods or services), to promote fairness in international trade, and to ensure an appropriate level of foreign participation in production of U.S. weapons systems. (Sec. 1244) Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the executive branch should pursue efforts to address trade fairness by establishing reasonable, business-friendly standards for the use of offsets in international business transactions among U.S. trading partners and competitors; (2) the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Commerce, and the United States Trade Representatives should raise the need for transparency and reasonable standards with other industrialized nations at every venue; and (3) the U.S. Government should enter into discussions for the establishment of multilateral standards for the control of the use of offsets in international defense trade through the appropriate multilateral fora (like the Transatlantic Economic Partnership, the Wassenaar Arrangement, the G-8, and the World trade Organization), taking into account the distortions produced by the provision of other benefits and subsidies by various countries to support defense trade. (Sec. 1245) Amends AECA to require certain numbered certifications to Congress with respect to any letter of offer to sell (Government-to-Government sale), or license for export (commercial sale), major defense equipment in the amount of $14 million or more, or defense articles or services in the amount of $50 million or more. Requires each numbered certification to include a description of any offset agreement. Treats such information as confidential. (Sec. 1246) Extends to exports of defense articles or services the current prohibition against incentive payments by U.S. suppliers to satisfy any offset agreement with a foreign country to which such articles or services are sold. (Sec. 1247) Establishes a National Commission on the Use of Offsets in Defense Trade to address all aspects of the use of offsets in international defense trade. Requires the Commission to report to the appropriate congressional committees with respect to such offset agreements. (Sec. 1248) Directs the President to initiate, and report to the appropriate congressional committees on, a review to determine the feasibility of establishing, and the most effective means of negotiating, a multilateral treaty on standards for the use of offsets in international defense trade, with a goal of limiting all offset transactions injurious to the U.S. economy. Subtitle E: Automated Export System Relating to Export Information - Proliferation Prevention Enhancement Act of 1999 - Amends Federal law to direct the Secretary of Commerce to publish regulations requiring exporters of items on the U.S. Munitions List or the Commerce Control List to file their Shippers' Export Declarations through an Automated Export System (electronic filing). (Sec. 1253) Expresses the sense of Congress urging exporters (or their agents) who are required to file Shippers' Export Declarations, but are not required under this Act to file them using the Automated Export System, to do so anyway. (Sec. 1254) Requires the Secretary of Commerce to report to the appropriate committees of Congress on: (1) the advisability and feasibility of mandating electronic filing through the Automated Export System for all Shippers' Export Declarations; (2) the manner in which data gathered through the System can most effectively be used by other automated licensing systems administered by Federal agencies; and (3) a proposed timetable for any expansion of information required to be filed through the System. (Sec. 1255) Authorizes the Secretary of State to use funds to employ: (1) up to 40 percent of the individuals who are performing services within the Office of Defense Trade Controls of the Department of State in positions classified at GS-14 and GS-15; and (2) other individuals within the Office at a rate of basic pay that may exceed the maximum rate payable for positions classified at GS-15. Subtitle F: International Arms Sales Code of Conduct Act of 1999 - International Arms Sales Code of Conduct Act of 1999 - Directs the President to attempt through negotiations with other countries (including countries in the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms) to achieve the foreign policy goal of an international arms sales code of conduct that limits, restricts, or prohibits arms transfers to countries that do not observe certain fundamental values of human liberty, peace, and international stability. Subtitle G: Transfer of Naval Vessels to Certain Foreign Countries - Declares that the value of certain naval vessels transferred on a grant basis to another country pursuant to specified authority of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000 shall not be counted under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 for the limitation on the aggregate value of excess defense articles that can transferred to such country in any fiscal year. Title XIII: Miscellaneous Provisions - Amends the AECA to require a U.S. person to whom a license has been granted to export significant military equipment listed on the U.S. Munitions List to report to the Department of State on all shipment information, including a description of the equipment and the quantity, value, port of exit, end-user, and its destination. Requires the President to include, among other things, a report on all such exports in a certain quarterly unclassified report to Congress. (Sec. 1303) Authorizes the Secretary of State to commence a civil action to recover civil penalties with respect to violations regarding the export of defense articles and services to foreign countries and terrorist supporting countries, instead of imposing certain administrative sanctions. (Sec. 1305) Authorizes the President to consent to the retransfer by the Government of Greece of HS Rodos (ex-U.S.S. Bowman County (LST 391)) to the USS LST Ship Memorial, Inc. Sets forth specified conditions for the granting of the consent. (Sec. 1306) Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to require a specified annual report to Congress regarding the export of defense articles (including excess defense articles) and services to foreign countries to specify, among other things, whether such defense articles were furnished with U.S. aid, including through loans and guarantees. (Sec. 1307) Directs the Secretaries of Defense and of State to report jointly to the appropriate congressional committees on all military training provided to foreign military personnel by DOD and the State Department during the previous and current fiscal years. (Sec. 1308) Urges the President to transfer on a grant basis certain excess defense articles to the Government of the Philippines. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 1309) Directs the Secretary of State to establish a regulatory regime for the licensing (including expedited approval) for export by U.S. companies of commercial satellites, satellite technologies, and satellite systems to NATO allies and major non-NATO allies. Authorizes appropriations for the Office of Defense Trade Controls of the State Department. (Sec. 1310) Directs the Secretary of State to report to specified congressional committees on the performance of the licensing process under AECA, including recommendations on how to improve it. (Sec. 1311) Directs the Secretary of State to report to the appropriate congressional committees regarding the proliferation of small arms.

Making miscellaneous appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1999, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999

Title I: Emergency Supplemental Appropriations - Chapter 1: Department of Agriculture - Makes emergency supplemental appropriations for the Department of Agriculture for: (1) the Farm Service Agency for the Agricultural Credit Insurance Fund program account and the Emergency Conservation Program; (2) the Commodity Credit Corporation Fund for crop loss, specialty crop, and livestock assistance; (3) the Natural Resources Conservation Service for Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations; and (4) the Rural Housing Service for the Rural Housing Insurance Fund program account and for rural housing assistance grants. Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to provide up to $20 million in assistance under the noninsured crop assistance program under the Agricultural Market Transition Act, without any requirement for an area loss, to producers located in a county with respect to which a natural disaster was declared by the Secretary or a major disaster or emergency was declared by the President. (Sec. 103) Makes a specified amount of funds made available for market loss assistance under the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2000 available to carry out livestock mandatory reporting provisions of such Act. Makes a specified amount of funds for market loss assistance under such Act and the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1999 available for producers or first-handlers for the 1999 crop of cottonseed and for the program under this Act to expand the domestic use of U.S.-produced extra long staple cotton. Amends the Agricultural Market Transition Act to require the Secretary of Agriculture, from October 1, 1999, to July 31, 2003, to carry out a program to maintain and expand the domestic use of U.S.-produced extra long staple cotton to increase exports of such cotton and to ensure that it remains competitive in world markets. Directs the Secretary to make payments available to domestic users of U.S.-produced extra long staple cotton and exporters of such cotton who enter into an agreement with the Commodity Credit Corporation to participate in the program whenever: (1) for a consecutive four-week period, the world market price for the lowest priced competing growth of extra long staple cotton (adjusted to U.S. quality and location and for other factors affecting its competitiveness) is below the prevailing U.S. price for a competing growth of such cotton; and (2) the lowest priced competing growth of such cotton (adjusted to the factors described above) is less than 134 percent of the loan rate for such cotton. Chapter 2: Federal Emergency Management Agency Disaster Relief - Makes a limited amount of funds available from unobligated balances for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)disaster relief under the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 2000 for the buyout of homeowners (or relocation of structures) for principal residences that have been made uninhabitable by flooding caused by Hurricane Floyd and surrounding events and are located in a 100-year floodplain. Sets forth conditions regarding such buyouts. Requires the FEMA Director to report to Congress on the feasibility and justification of reducing buyout assistance to those who fail to purchase and maintain flood insurance. Title II: Other Appropriations Matters - Amends the Federal Crop Insurance Act to extend a revenue insurance pilot program through crop year 2001. Authorizes any pilot program under such Act that was approved by the Board of Directors of the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation before September 30, 1999, to be offered on a regional, whole State, or national basis for the 2000 and 2001 crop years. (Sec. 208) Appropriates an additional amount of funds for rural development programs to repair damage to the Tillamook Railroad caused by flooding and high winds. (Sec. 211) Repeals provisions of the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 regarding the release of tobacco production and marketing information. (Sec. 212) Amends the Small Business Reauthorization Act of 1997 to add the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State to the list of agencies initially involved in a program to provide Federal contracting assistance to HUBZone small business concerns. (Sec. 213) Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to repeal a requirement that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) not commence bidding for commercial licenses for certain reallocated frequency spectrum until after January 1, 2001. Directs the FCC to initiate such bidding on this Act's enactment date and to ensure that all proceeds of such bidding are deposited no later than September 30, 2000. Provides for the expedited assignment of such frequencies. Requires at least seven days' public notice prior to the granting of an application for an instrument of authorization for any such frequency. Requires reports from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director and the FCC with respect to such bidding process. Repeals similar provisions of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2000. (Sec. 214) Amends the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2000 to make a certain provision regarding progress payments applicable only with respect to billings received during the last month of the fiscal year. (Sec. 215) Amends such Act to revise provisions regarding adjustments in payment procedures to ensure that payments are made no earlier than one day before the date on which the payments would otherwise be due under any other provision of law (currently, no less than 29 days after receipt of a proper invoice). Makes this provision effective only with respect to invoices received during the last month of the fiscal year. (Sec. 216) Directs the Office of Net Assessment of the Department of Defense and the United States Pacific Command, through the Under Secretary of Defense (Policy), to report to Congress addressing certain issues relating to the military balance between Taiwan and the People's Republic of China. (Sec. 217) Requires the Secretary of Defense, jointly with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, to report to Congress on the adequacy of medical research activities currently underway or planned to commence in FY 2000 to investigate the health effects of low-level chemical exposures of Persian Gulf military forces while serving in the Southwest Asia theater of operations. (Sec. 218) Appropriates a specified amount to the Department of the Army to meet readiness needs. (Sec. 220) Prohibits the imposition of a financial responsibility requirement on the Federal Government or its contractors as to the operation of any federally-owned or -operated waste management facility designed to manage transuranic waste material that is subject to regulation by the Solid Waste Disposal act or by a State program authorized under such Act. (Sec. 222) Appropriates a specified amount of funds to the Department of the Interior from the Land and Water Conservation Fund for acquisition of lands in the Wertheim National Wildlife Refuge. (Sec. 223) Provides a payment to Virginia C. Chafee, widow of the late Senator John H. Chafee. (Sec. 225) Makes a specified amount available from the Mass Transit Account of the Highway Trust Fund for buses and bus facilities in Minnesota, California, Nebraska, and Alaska. (Sec. 226) Prohibits the use of funds available in any Act to decommission or reduce operations of U.S. Coast Guard WYTL harbor tug boats. (Sec. 231) Amends Federal transportation provisions regarding the operation of certain aircraft not in compliance with stage 3 noise levels to authorize an air carrier operating Stage 2 aircraft with respect to certain Hawaiian operations to transport such aircraft to or from the 48 contiguous States on a non-revenue basis in order to perform certain maintenance or other operations. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to permit a person to operate, after December 31, 1999, a Stage 2 aircraft in nonrevenue service through U.S. airspace or to or from an airport in the contiguous 48 States in order to: (1) sell, lease, or use the aircraft outside the 48 contiguous States; (2) scrap the aircraft; (3) obtain modifications to the aircraft to meet Stage 3 noise levels; (4) perform scheduled heavy maintenance or significant modifications on the aircraft at a maintenance facility located in the 48 contiguous States; (5) deliver the aircraft to an operator leasing the aircraft from the owner or return the aircraft to the lessor; (6) prepare or park or store the aircraft in anticipation of the activities listed above; or (7) divert the aircraft to an alternative airport in such States on account of safety reasons while conducting a flight in order to perform any of the activities listed above. Bars the use of funds in any Act to implement or enforce Stage 3 noise limitations for aircraft operating under an experimental airworthiness certification issued by the Department of Transportation. (Sec. 232) Makes additional amounts available for FY 2001 through 2003 for the Federal Railroad Administration for expenses for engineering, design, and construction to enable the James A. Farley Post Office in New York City to be used as a train station and commercial center. (Sec. 233) Amends the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 to extend until July 31, 2000, certain authority to transfer surplus Government property required for correctional facility use as needed by States, localities, and territories for law enforcement or emergency management response purposes. (Sec. 236) Amends the Federal Reports Elimination and Sunset Act of 1995 to make May 15, 2000, the termination date for certain Federal reporting requirements. (Currently, such requirements expire four years after such Act's enactment.) (Sec. 237) Appropriates additional funds to the Office of National Drug Control Policy for a grant to the U.S. Olympic Committee for its anti-doping program. (Sec. 238) Amends Federal law to change the Executive Schedule classification of the Commissioner of Customs from Level IV to Level III. (Sec. 240) Appropriates an additional amount for salaries and expenses of the Secret Service. (Sec. 241) Amends the Government Management Reform Act of 1994 to extend OMB's authority to adjust the frequency and due dates of, or consolidate, certain Federal reports. (Sec. 242) Amends the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 2000 to decrease the amount available for individual grants for targeted economic investments. Title III: Fiscal Year 2000 Offsets and Rescissions - Rescinds .38 percent of the discretionary budget authority provided (or obligation limit imposed) for FY 2000 in any Act for each Federal agency. Prohibits: (1) any Federal program from being reduced by more than 15 percent; or (2) any reduction from being taken from any military personnel account. Applies the reduction for the Department of Defense and Department of Energy defense activities proportionately to all defense accounts. (Sec. 302) Amends the Federal Reserve Act to require the transfer of a specified amount in FY 2000 from the surplus funds of the Federal reserve banks to the general fund of the Treasury. Prohibits any such bank from replenishing its surplus by the amount of the transfer. (Sec. 303) Amends provisions of the Social Security Act regarding the Federal Parent Locator Service to provide for disclosure to the Secretary of Education of certain information in the National Directory of New Hires on individuals who are in default on certain loans or owe obligations to refund overpayments of grants made under the Higher Education Act. Establishes conditions on such disclosure, including that priority be given to support collection over collection of such loans or grants and that such information be used only for collecting debt owed by individuals whose annualized wage level exceeds $16,000. Permits such information to be used only for collection purposes. Title IV: Canyon Ferry Reservoir, Montana - Amends the Omnibus Consolidated and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1999 (the Act) to revise provisions regarding the conveyance of Bureau of Reclamation properties near the Canyon Ferry Reservoir in Montana. Removes a provision that requires disputes over fair market values to be resolved in accordance with specified Federal regulations. Requires the appraisal of properties under such provisions to be based on the Canyon Ferry Cabin Site appraisal with a completion date of March 29, 1999, and amended June 11, 1999, with an effective date of valuation of October 15, 1998, for the Bureau. Directs the contract appraisers that conducted the original appraisal having such effective date of valuation to make modifications to permit recalculation of the lot values established in the original appraisal into an updated appraisal, the function of which shall be to provide market values for the sale of each of the 265 Canyon Ferry Cabin site lots. Provides for adjustments to the updated appraisal based on changes in property characteristics. Authorizes periodic updates of the fair market values through appropriate market analyses, subject to the approval of the Canyon Ferry Recreation Association (CFRA) and the Secretary of the Interior. Grants the Bureau and the 265 Canyon Ferry cabin owners the right to seek reconsideration, before commencement of the updated appraisal, of the assumptions used by the appraisers in arriving at the fair market values derived in the original appraisal. Requires the original appraisal to remain valid for use by the Bureau in the sale process for a period of at least three years from the date of completion of the updated appraisal. Grants nonpurchasing lessees the right to continue leasing through August 31, 2014. Permits such lessees to close under the terms of the sale at any time before such date. Removes all personal property and improvements, on termination of the lease either by expiration or by violation of lease terms, and requires the cabin site to remain in Federal ownership. Requires the Secretary to close on the property and prepare all other properties for closing within 45 days if no one (including CFRA) bids for a property. Directs CFRA and the lessees to purchase at least 75 percent of the properties not later than August 1 of the year that begins at least 36 months (currently, 12 months) after title to the first property is conveyed by the Secretary to a lessee. Requires the Secretary to allocate all funding necessary to conduct the sales process for the sale of property under the Act. Directs the Secretary to begin: (1) preparing for the sales process on enactment of the Act; and (2) conveying the property not later than one year after the Act's enactment. (Sec. 403) Requires the Montana Fish and Wildlife Conservation Trust, acting through the trust manager, to enter into a legally enforceable Recreation Trust Agreement with CFRA. Requires the Agreement to provide that: (1) the Trust shall loan up to $3 million of a property's sale proceeds to CFRA; (2) CFRA shall deposit such borrowed funds in the Canyon Ferry-Broadwater County Trust; (3) CFRA and the individual purchasers shall repay loan principal to the Trust as soon as practicable in accordance with a loan agreement repayment schedule; and (4) CFRA and the purchasers shall make an annual interest payment (at a rate between six and eight percent) on the outstanding loan principal. Prohibits the trust manager, except as otherwise provided, from disbursing any Trust funds until August 1, 2001, unless Broadwater County, at an earlier date, certifies that the Canyon Ferry-Broadwater County Trust has been fully funded. Bars any closing of property until the Recreation Trust Agreement is entered into. (Sec. 404) Prohibits any closing of property until CFRA and Broadwater County enter into a legally enforceable agreement concerning contributions to the Trust. Provides that such agreement shall require that CFRA ensure that $3 million is deposited in the Canyon Ferry-Broadwater County Trust by August 1, 2001. (Current law prohibits any sale of property before such amount is deposited as the initial corpus of such trust.) Title V: International Debt Relief - Directs the President, subject to the availability of amounts provided in advance in appropriations Acts, to cancel amounts owed (as a result of loans made or credits extended before June 20, 1999) to the United States (or any Federal agency) by any country eligible for debt reduction (a country that is performing satisfactorily under a social and economic reform program, and meeting other specified conditions). Urges the President to seek to leverage scarce foreign assistance and give priority to heavily indebted poor countries with demonstrated need and the capacity to use such relief effectively. Makes ineligible for debt cancellation any country that: (1) has an excessive level of military expenditures; (2) has repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism; (3) is failing to cooperate on international narcotics control matters; or (4) engages in a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally recognized human rights. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 501) Directs the President to report annually to specified congressional committees with regard to debt cancellation under this title. (Sec. 502) Amends the International Financial Institutions Act to urge the President, in order to accelerate multilateral debt relief and promote human and economic development and poverty alleviation in heavily indebted poor countries, to commence efforts to make specified modifications to the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative, including to require: (1) a country that is otherwise eligible to receive debt cancellation under the Initiative to implement certain social and economic reforms, support the reduction of poverty, and promote citizen participation in economic policy decisions; and (2) the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank) to complete a debt sustainability analysis by December 31, 2000, and determine eligibility for debt relief for as many of the countries under the modified Initiative as possible. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. Executive Directors at the World Bank and the IMF to use the U.S. vote to promote the establishment of poverty reduction strategies that similarly support programs of countries to reduce poverty. (Sec. 503) Amends the Bretton Woods Agreements Act to authorize the Secretary to instruct the U.S. Executive Director at the IMF to vote to: (1) approve an arrangement whereby the IMF sells to a member, and immediately accepts payment in such gold to satisfy the member's existing repurchase obligations (thus retaining IMF ownership of), a quantity of its gold at prevailing market prices, and uses the earnings on the investment of the profits of such sales for the purpose of providing debt relief to eligible countries under the modified HIPC Initiative; and (2) support termination of the Special Contingency Account 2 (SCA-2) of the IMF so that SCA-2 funds will become available to the poorest countries. (Sec. 504) Directs the Secretary to instruct the U.S. Executive Director at the IMF to use the U.S. vote to urge the IMF to publish its operational budgets quarterly. Directs the Secretary to report quarterly to specified congressional committees on costs and benefits of the United States for participation in the IMF. Directs the Secretary to instruct the U.S. Executive Director at the IMF to use the U.S. vote to urge the IMF to continue to forgo reimbursements of its expenses incurred in administering the Enhanced Structural Adjustment Facility until the HIPC Initiative is terminated. Amends the Bretton Woods Agreements Act with respect to certain IMF actions needing congressional approval to prohibit the President from approving the disposition of IMF gold (currently, disposition of more than 25 million ounces of IMF gold) unless the Secretary certifies to Congress that it is necessary for the IMF to restitute gold to its members, or for the IMF to provide liquidity that will enable it to meet member country claims or to meet threats to the stability of the international financial system. Repeals the requirement of prior congressional authorization for presidential approval of the establishment of any additional trust fund whereby IMF resources would be used for the special benefit of a single IMF member, or of a particular segment of IMF membership. Directs the U.S. Comptroller General to report annually to Congress on the extent to which IMF practices are consistent with U.S. policies. Title VI: Survivor Benefits - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to pay a specified amount to the survivors of 14 military personnel and one civilian Federal employee who were killed on April 14, 1994, when U.S. F-15 fighter aircraft mistakenly shot down two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters in Iraq. Limits attorney's fees in connection with such survivor claims. Title VII: Miscellaneous Provisions - Naturalizes Petra Lovetinska as a U.S. citizen. (Sec. 702) Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to authorize appropriations: (1) to the Departments of Labor and of Commerce through FY 2001 for trade adjustment assistance (TAA) for workers and firms, respectively, that have been adversely affected by import competition; and (2) for TAA for training of such workers under the North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) transitional program. Postpones termination of the TAA programs until the end of FY 2001.

Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Balanced Budget Refinement Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999

Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Balanced Budget Refinement Act of 1999 - Title I: Provisions Relating to Part A - Subtitle A: Adjustments to PPS Payments for Skilled Nursing Facilities - Provides that, for computing payments for covered skilled nursing facility (SNF) services furnished under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) on or after April 1, 2000, and before a described date, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) shall increase by 20 percent the adjusted Federal per diem rate otherwise determined for covered SNF services for certain RUG-III groups furnished to an individual during the period in which such individual is classified in such an RUG-III category. (Sec. 101) Provides that for purposes of computing Medicare payments for covered SNF services furnished during FY 2001 and 2002, the Secretary shall increase by four percent for each such fiscal year the adjusted Federal per diem rate. Prohibits the Secretary from including such additional payment in updating the Federal per diem rate. (Sec. 102) Permits a SNF to elect to have the amount of the payment for all costs of covered SNF services for each day of such services furnished in cost reporting periods beginning no earlier than 30 days before the date of such election. (Sec. 103) Amends title XVIII to exclude the following items and services from the definition of covered SNF services: (1) ambulance services furnished to an individual in conjunction with renal dialysis services; (2) chemotherapy items identified by the Secretary; (3) chemotherapy administration services; (4) radioisotope services; and (5) customized prosthetic devices. Directs the Secretary to provide for an appropriate proportional reduction in payments so that beginning with FY 2001, the aggregate amount of such reductions is equal to the aggregate increase in payments. (Sec. 104) Amends title XVIII to revise provisions on determination of facility specific per diem rates under the prospective payment system (PPS) for SNFs, including adding a specified payment rule for certain facilities. (Sec. 105) Directs the Secretary to assess the resource use of patients of SNFs furnishing services under Medicare who are immuno-compromised secondary to an infectious disease, with specific diagnoses as specified by the Secretary to determine whether any permanent adjustments are needed to the RUGs to take into account the resource uses and costs of these patients. (Sec. 106) Directs the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPac) to study and report to Congress on SNFs furnishing covered services to determine the need for an additional Medicare payment amount to take into account the unique circumstances of SNFs in Alaska and Hawaii. (Sec. 107) Directs the Secretary to conduct a study that: (1) identifies variations in State licensure and certification standards for health care providers (including nursing and allied health professionals) and other individuals providing respiratory therapy in SNFs; (2) examines State requirements relating to respiratory therapy competency examinations for such providers and individuals; and (3) determines whether regular respiratory therapy competency examinations or certifications should be required under Medicare for such providers and individuals. Subtitle B: PPS Hospitals - Amends title XVIII to: (1) modify the formula for the Secretary to provide for an additional payment amount for a disproportionate share hospital (DSH) with indirect costs of medical education; and (2) direct the Secretary to make one or more payments to DSH hospitals which receive payment for the direct costs of medical education for discharges occurring in FY 2000, in an amount according to a specified formula. (Sec. 112) Decreases reductions in additional payments for DSH and certain other hospitals for FY 2001 and 2002. Directs the Secretary to require DSH hospitals to submit to the Secretary in their discharge cost reports for a fiscal year data on the costs incurred by the hospital for providing inpatient and outpatient hospital services for which the hospital is not compensated, including non-Medicare bad debt, charity care, and charges for Medicaid (SSA title XIX) and indigent care. Subtitle C: PPS-Exempt Hospitals - Amends SSA title XVIII to revise provisions on payment to hospitals for inpatient hospital services with respect to the following: (1) a hospital or unit that is within a class of hospital and estimates concerning the target amounts for such hospitals within such class to require the Secretary to provide for an appropriate wage adjustment; (2) determination of the increase in the amount of payment on a per discharge basis for an eligible hospital to alter such determination for psychiatric and long-term care hospitals for specified cost reporting periods beginning on or after October 1, 2000; and (3) PPS for inpatient rehabilitation services. (Sec. 123) Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop a per discharge PPS for payment for inpatient hospital services of long-term care hospitals; (2) develop a per diem PPS for payment for inpatient hospital services of psychiatric hospitals and units; and (3) study and report to Congress on the impact on utilization and beneficiary access to services of the implementation of the PPS for inpatient hospital services or a rehabilitation hospital or unit. Subtitle D: Hospice Care - Directs the Secretary to increase the payment rate in effect for hospice care for FY 2001 and 2002. Prohibits the Secretary from using such temporary payment increase when updating the payment rate. (Sec. 132) Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on updating the payment rates and the cap for routine home care and other services included in hospice care. Subtitle E: Other Provisions - Directs MEDPac to study and report to Congress on Medicare policy with respect to professional clinical training of different classes of nonphysician health care professionals and the basis for any differences in treatment among such classes. Subtitle F: Transitional Provisions - Outlines various transitional provisions applicable to specified geographic areas of the United States and certain health care entities pertaining to: (1) an exception to the Medicare hospital payment case mix index qualifier criteria for classification as a rural referral center; (2) reclassification of certain counties and areas for purposes of Medicare reimbursement; (3) wage index correction; (4) calculation and application of wage index floor; and (5) a special rule for certain SNFs. Title II: Provisions Relating to Part B - Subtitle A: Hospital Outpatient Services - Revises Medicare requirements for payments to hospitals for inpatient hospital services, among other changes, modifying the following: (1) the PPS for hospital outpatient department (OPD) services with respect to outlier adjustment, transitional pass-through for additional costs of innovative medical devices, transitional adjustment to limit decline, drugs, and biologicals, transitional adjustment to limit decline in payment, the inclusion of certain implantable items under the PPS, and a limitation on outpatient hospital copayment for a procedure to the hospital deductible amount; and (2) amendments by the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA '97) to provide for an extension of reductions in payments for costs of hospital outpatient services under Medicare. (Sec. 201) Provides that with respect to determining the total amounts of copayments estimated to be paid to hospitals by Medicare beneficiaries under the PPS for covered OPD services in 1999, as though the deductible did not apply, Congress finds: (1) that such amount should be determined in a budget neutral manner with respect to aggregate payments to hospitals; and (2) that the Secretary has the authority to determine such amount. Directs the Secretary to study and report to Congress on the extent to which intravenous immune globulin (IVIG) could be delivered and reimbursed under the Medicare program outside of a hospital or a physician's office. (Sec. 203) Directs MedPAC to study and report to Congress on the appropriateness of providing payments to specified rural and cancer hospitals for covered OPD services based on the PPS established by the Secretary. Subtitle B: Physician Services - Revises update adjustment factor requirements to reduce update oscillations and mandate estimate revisions for payments for physicians' services. Directs the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, to study and report to Congress on specified issues, which include the various methods for accurately estimating the economic impact on expenditures for physicians' services under the original fee-for-service program under Medicare parts A (Hospital Insurance) and B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) resulting from improvements in medical capabilities as well as certain other technological advancements, and demographic and geographic changes. (Sec. 212) Directs the Secretary to establish by regulation a process (including data collection standards) under which the Secretary will accept for use and will use data collected or developed by non-HHS entities and organizations to supplement the data normally collected by HHS in determining the practice expense component for determining relative values for payment for physicians' services under the Medicare fee schedule. (Sec. 213) Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on the physician and non-physician clinical resources necessary to provide safe outpatient cancer therapy services and the appropriate payment rates for them under Medicare. Subtitle C: Other Services - Revises requirements for payment of benefits certain physical and occupational therapy services under Medicare part B to exempt expenses considered as incurred by an individual from the cap on such expenses for calendar years 2000 and 2001. (Sec. 221) Directs the Secretary to conduct focused medical reviews of claims for certain services provided to residents of SNFs. Directs the Secretary to study and to report to Congress on utilization policies for outpatient physical and occupational therapy services. (Sec. 222) Amends SSA title XVIII to direct the Secretary to increase the amount of each composite rate payment for dialysis services: (1) furnished during 2000 by 1.2 percent above such composite rate payment amounts for such services furnished on December 31, 1999; and (2) for such services furnished on or after January 2001, by 1.2 percent above such composite rate payment amounts for such services furnished on December 31, 2000. Requires MEDPac to study and report to Congress on the appropriateness of the differential in payment under Medicare for hemodialysis services furnished in a facility and for such services furnished in a home. (Sec. 223) Prohibits the Secretary from using, or permitting fiscal intermediaries or carriers to use, certain inherent reasonableness authority with respect to use of carriers for administration of benefits until after: (1) the Comptroller General releases a specified report on the impact of the Secretary's, fiscal intermediaries', and carriers' use of such authority; and (2) the Secretary has published in the Federal register a notice of final rulemaking relating to such authority in response to such report. (Sec. 224) Amends SSA title XVIII to direct the Secretary to establish a national minimum payment amount of $14.60, adjusted annually, for a diagnostic or screening pap smear laboratory test. Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) has been slow to incorporate or provide incentives for providers to use new screening diagnostic health care technologies in the area of cervical cancer; (2) some new technologies have been developed which optimize the effectiveness of pap smear screening; and (3) HCFA should institute an appropriate increase in the payment rate for such technologies that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration, and that are significantly more effective than a conventional pap smear. (Sec. 225) Amends BBA '97 to with respect to demonstration of Medicare coverage of ambulance services through contracts with units of local government, revising the definition of capitated payment rate. (Sec. 226) Provides for the phase-in of a PPS for ambulatory surgical centers. (Sec. 227) Amends SSA title XVIII to provide for the extension of immunosuppressive drug coverage for individuals who would otherwise exhaust their Medicare benefits for prescription drugs used in immunosuppressive therapy. Provides that national coverage determinations under Medicare part C (Medicare+Choice) benefits and beneficiary protections provisions shall apply with respect to the coverage of additional benefits for immunosuppressive drugs for drugs furnished in 2000 in the same manner as if the amendments of this Act constituted a national coverage determination. (Sec. 228) Directs the Secretary to increase the payment amount for durable medical equipment and medical supplies (including oxygen) for 2001 and 2002. (Sec. 229) Directs MEDPac to study and report to Congress on: (1) post-surgical recovery care center services; and (2) regulatory burdens placed on all classes of health care providers under Medicare parts A and B, and on the costs these burdens impose on the nation's health care system. Requires the Administrator for Health Care Policy and Research to provide for a study and report to Congress on the effect of credentialing of technologists and sonographers on the quality of ultrasound under Medicare and Medicaid. Direct the Comptroller General to continue monitoring Department of Justice compliance with certain guidelines on the use of the False Claims Act in civil health care matters for reports to Congress. Title III: Provisions Relating to Parts A and B - Subtitle A: Home Health Services - Provides that, in the case of a home health agency that furnishes home health services to a Medicare beneficiary, for each such beneficiary to whom the agency furnished such services during the agency's cost reporting period beginning in FY 2000, the Secretary shall pay the agency for the beneficiary and only for such cost reporting period, an aggregate additional amount of $10 to defray costs attributable to data collection and reporting requirements under the Outcome and Assessment Information Set (OASIS) required by BBA '97. Requires: (1) the Secretary to pay to a home health agency an amount estimated to be 50 percent of the aggregate amount payable to the agency by reason of this subtitle; and (2) payments under this subtitle to be made, in appropriate part as specified by the Secretary, from Medicare trust funds. (Sec. 301) Requires the Comptroller General to: (1) report to Congress on specified matters with respect to the data collection requirement of patients of home health agencies under the OASIS standard as part of the comprehensive assessment of patients; and (2) conduct an independent audit of, and report to Congress on, the costs incurred by Medicare home health agencies in complying with such data collection requirement. (Sec. 302) Amends BBA' 97 to eliminate the scheduled automatic 15 percent reduction in payment amounts to home health agencies furnishing home health services under the Medicare program. Amends SSA title XVIII to provide for a delay in application of the 15 percent reduction in payment rates for home health services until one year after implementation of the PPS for home health services. Requires the Secretary to report to Congress on the need for the 15 percent reduction or for any reduction in the computation of the base payments under such PPS. (Sec. 303) Amends SSA title XVIII to provide for an increase in the agency-specific per beneficiary annual limitation under the interim system of limits for home health agencies furnishing home health services. Excludes such increase from the home health services PPS base. (Sec. 304) Revises surety bond requirements under home health agencies provisions, requiring such agencies to provide the Secretary with a surety bond: (1) that is effective for a period of four years; and (2) for a year in such period in an amount that is equal to the lesser of $50,000 or ten percent of the aggregate amount of payments to the agency under Medicare and Medicaid for that year, as estimated by the Secretary. Amends part A (General Provisions) of SSA title XI to provide for coordination of surety bonds under Medicare and Medicaid. (Sec. 305) Amends SSA title XVIII to include medical supplies as home health services for purposes of consolidated billing. (Sec. 307) Directs MEDPac to study and report to Congress on the feasibility and advisability of exempting from payment under the PPS for such services any home health services provided by a home health agency (or by others under arrangements with such agency) located in a rural area, or to an individual residing in a rural area. Subtitle B: Direct Graduate Medical Education - Amends SSA title XVIII to provide for the use of national average payment methodology in computing direct graduate medical education (DGME) payments. (Sec. 312) Makes the initial residency period for child neurology residency training programs the period of board eligibility for pediatrics plus two years. Directs MEDPac to include in its report to Congress in March of 2001 recommendations regarding the appropriateness of the initial residency period used for other residency training programs in a specialty that require preliminary years of study in another specialty. Subtitle C: Technical Corrections - Makes various specified technical corrections to BBA '97 and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 codified in SSA title XVIII. (Sec. 321) Amends SSA title XI to repeal provisions on the development of model prospective rate methodology. Title IV: Rural Provider Provisions - Subtitle A: Rural Hospitals - Amends SSA title XVIII with respect to payment to hospitals for inpatient hospital services to: (1) permit reclassification of certain urban hospitals as rural hospitals; and (2) add standards applied for geographic reclassification for certain hospitals for cost reporting periods beginning in a fiscal year before FY 2003 and after FY 2002. (Sec. 403) Revises requirements for the Medicare critical access hospital program to: (1) apply on an annual, average basis the 96-hour limit on providing inpatient care; (2) permit for-profit hospitals to qualify for designation as a critical access hospital; (3) allow closed or downsized hospitals to convert to critical access hospitals; (4) provide for election of cost-based payment option for outpatient critical access hospital services; and (5) eliminate coinsurance for clinical diagnostic laboratory tests furnished by a critical access hospital on an outpatient basis. (Sec. 404) Provides, with respect to payment to hospitals for inpatient hospital services, for: (1) extending for five years the payment methodology for Medicare-dependent, small rural DSH hospitals; (2) rebasing for certain sole community hospitals; (3) providing for a full market basket percentage increase for FY 2001 for sole community hospitals; and (4) increasing flexibility in providing graduate physician training in rural and other areas. (Sec. 408) Amends SSA title XVIII with regard to hospital providers of extended care services to eliminate: (1) the requirement for the hospital to have a certificate of need from the State in order to provide long-term care services; and (2) eliminate "swing bed" restrictions on certain hospitals with more than 49 beds. (Sec. 409) Amends SSA title XVIII with regard to the Medicare rural hospital flexibility program to authorize the Secretary to assist eligible small rural hospitals in meeting the costs of implementing data systems required to meet requirements established under Medicare pursuant to BBA '97 requirements for implementation of PPSs. (Sec. 410) Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on the current laws and regulations for geographic reclassification of hospitals to determine if such reclassification: (1) is appropriate for applying wage indices under Medicare; and (2) results in more accurate payments for all hospitals. Subtitle B: Other Rural Provisions - Directs MEDPac to study and report to Congress on rural providers furnishing items and services for which payment is made under Medicare. (Sec. 412) Amends BBA '97 to provide for: (1) expanding access to paramedic intercept services in rural areas; and (2) promoting prompt implementation of the informatics, telemedicine, and education demonstration project. Title V: Provisions Relating to Part C (Medicare+Choice Program) and Other Medicare Managed Care Provisions - Subtitle A: Provisions to Accommodate and Protect Medicare Beneficiaries - Amends SSA title XVIII parts C and D (Miscellaneous) with respect to Medicare+Choice enrollment rules to permit enrollment in alternative Medicare+Choice plans and Medicare supplemental health insurance (Medigap) policies coverage in case of involuntary termination of Medicare+Choice enrollment. (Sec. 502) Amends SSA title XVIII part C to revise the effective date of elections and changes of elections of Medicare+Choice eligible individuals who make such elections after the tenth day of the month. (Sec. 503) Amends SSA title XVIII part D to extend Medicare cost contracts by two years. Subtitle B: Provisions to Facilitate Implementation of the Medicare+Choice Program - Amends title XVIII part C to require the Secretary to phase-in, according to a specified schedule, the implementation of a risk adjustment methodology (in calculating payments to Medicare+Choice organizations) that accounts for variations in per capita costs based on health status and other demographic factors for payments. (Sec. 511) Directs MEDPac to study specified related issues and report to Congress on the methodology used by the Secretary in developing the risk factors used in adjusting the Medicare+Choice capitation rate paid to Medicare+Choice organizations. Directs the Secretary to study and report to Congress on how to reduce the costs and burdens on Medicare+Choice organizations of compliance with reporting requirements for encounter data imposed by the Secretary in establishing and implementing a risk adjustment methodology. (Sec. 512) Amends SSA title XVIII part C to: (1) provide for a new entry bonus increasing the amount of monthly payment otherwise made to Medicare+Choice organizations in order to encourage the offering of Medicare+Choice plans in certain payment areas without plans; (2) reduce from five to two years the general exclusion period following a Medicare+Choice organization's contract termination; (3) require the continued computation and annual publication of Medicare original fee-for-service expenditures for each Medicare+Choice payment area; (4) direct the Secretary to permit a Medicare+Choice organization to elect to apply Medicare+Choice premiums provisions uniformly to separate segments of a service area (rather than uniformly to an entire service area) as long as such segments are composed of one or more Medicare+Choice payment areas; (5) delay the deadline for submission of proposed premiums and related information each Medicare+Choice organization is required to submit to the Secretary for each Medicare+Choice plan for the service area in which it intends to be offered in the following year; (6) reduce the adjustment in the national per capita Medicare+Choice growth percentage for 2002 with respect to calculation of annual Medicare+Choice capitation rates; (7) make additional requirements that a Medicare+Choice organization may be deemed to meet under specified circumstances if it is privately accredited; (8) change the timing of Medicare+Choice health information fairs; (9) require preferred provider organization plans to meet certain of the quality assurance requirements currently applicable to Medicare+Choice plans; and (10) include the average number of individuals enrolled in Medicare+Choice plans during the fiscal year within the formula limiting the amount of user fees collected by the Secretary in any fiscal year from each Medicare+Choice organization under contract with the Secretary. (Sec. 520) Directs MEDPac to study and report to Congress on appropriate quality improvement standards that should apply to: (1) described Medicare+Choice plans, including coordinated care plans; and (2) the original Medicare fee-for-service program under Medicare parts A and B. (Sec. 521) Amends SSA title XVIII part D to provide that, in the case of a discharge plan for an individual enrolled with a Medicare+Choice organization under a Medicare+Choice plan who is furnished inpatient hospital services by a hospital under a contract with the organization, the discharge planning evaluation is not required to include information on the availability of home health services through individuals and entities which do not have a contract with the organization. Allows the plan to specify or limit the provider or providers of post-hospital home health services or other post-hospital services under the plan. (Sec. 524) Amends SSA title XVIII part D to exempt a Medicare+Choice organization offering a coordinate care plan from the limitation on certain physician referrals. Subtitle C: Demonstration Projects and Special Medicare Populations - Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Acts of 1987 and of 1993 to: (1) extend the authority for the social health maintenance organizations (SHMOs) demonstration project; and (2) authorize the Secretary to impose an aggregate limit of not less than 324,000 for all sites (currently, the Secretary is prohibited from imposing a limit of less than 12,000 on the number of individuals that may participate in a single project site.) (Sec. 532) Extends certain Medicare community nursing organization demonstration projects an additional two years. (Sec. 533) Amends BBA '97 to provide for a delay in implementation of the Medicare+Choice competitive bidding demonstration project. (Sec. 534) Amends the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA), as amended by BBA '97 and other specified Acts, to extend for two years the Medicare municipal health services demonstration projects. (Sec. 535) Amends BBA '97 with regard to Medicare coordinated care demonstration projects to direct the Secretary to provide for the transfer from the Medicare trust funds, in appropriate proportions, of such funds as necessary to cover costs of the project in a cancer hospital. (Currently amounts shall be available for such hospitals only as provided in any Federal law making appropriations for the District of Columbia). (Sec. 536) Amends SSA title XVIII part D to extend to enrollees in programs of all-inclusive care for the elderly (PACE programs) the Medigap prohibitions on denial of issuance of Medigap policies, discrimination in policy pricing, and imposition of an exclusion of benefits based on a pre-existing condition. Subtitle D: Medicare+Choice Nursing and Allied Health Professional Education Payments - Amends SSA title XVIII part D to provide for: (1) payment for nursing and allied health education for managed care enrollees; and (2) adjustments in payments for direct graduate medical education. Directs the Secretary to estimate a proportional adjustment in payments for nursing and allied health education. Subtitle E: Studies and Reports - Directs the Secretary, jointly with the Secretaries of Defense and of Veterans Affairs, to report to Congress on the estimated use of health care services furnished to Medicare beneficiaries by the Departments of Defense and of Veterans Affairs, including beneficiaries under the original Medicare fee-for-service program and under the Medicare+Choice program. (Sec. 552) Directs MEDPac to study and report to Congress on the development of a payment methodology under the Medicare+Choice program for frail elderly beneficiaries enrolled in a Medicare+Choice plan under a specialized program. Directs MEDPac to report to Congress on specific legislative changes that should be made to make Medical Savings Account plans a viable option under the Medicare+Choice program. (Sec. 553) Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on each type of Medigap policy with respect to: (1) the level of coverage provided; (2) current enrollment levels; (3) policy availability to Medicare beneficiaries over age 65 Directs the Comptroller General to: (1) conduct an annual audit of the Secretary's expenditures during the preceding year in providing information regarding the Medicare+Choice program to eligible Medicare beneficiaries; and (2) report to Congress on the results of such audits of the preceding three years, together with an evaluation of the effectiveness of the means used by the Secretary in providing such information. Title VI: Medicaid - Amends SSA title XIX (Medicaid) to: (1) increase the DSH allotment for the District of Columbia, Minnesota, New Mexico, and Wyoming; (2) remove the fiscal year limitation on certain transitional administrative costs assistance; (3) modify the phase-out of payment for Federally-qualified health center services and rural health clinic services based on reasonable costs; (6) provide for parity in reimbursement for certain utilization and quality control services; (7) eliminate duplicative requirements for external quality review of Medicaid managed care organizations; (8) make the enhanced match under the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) inapplicable to Medicaid DSH payments; and (9) provide for the optional deferment of the effective date for outpatient drug agreements. (Sec. 603) Directs the Comptroller General to report to Congress on the effect on Federally-qualified health centers and rural health clinics and on the populations served by such centers and clinics of the phase-out and elimination of the reasonable cost basis for payment for Federally-qualified health center services and rural health clinic services provided. Amends BBA '97 to make the Medicaid DSH transition rule permanent. Title VII: State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) - Amends SSA title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance Program) (SCHIP) to revise the SCHIP allotment formula, among other changes revising the floor for State allotments and adding ceilings. (Sec. 702) Increases appropriations for FY 2000 through 2007 for U.S. territories with approved SCHIP plans. (Sec. 703) Directs the Secretary of Commerce to make appropriate adjustments to the annual Current Population Survey conducted by the Bureau of the Census in order to produce statistically reliable annual State data on the number of low-income children without health insurance coverage, so that real changes in the uninsurance rates of children can reasonably be detected. Makes appropriations. Requires the HHS Secretary to conduct an independent evaluation of ten select States with approved child health plans, including surveys of enrollees, disenrollees, and individuals eligible for but not enrolled in SCHIP, and evaluation of effective and ineffective outreach and enrollment practices with respect to children. Makes appropriations for FY 2000. Directs the Secretary to audit a sample from among States with an approved State child health plan to: (1) determine the number of plan enrollees eligible under Medicaid (other than as optional targeted low-income children; and (2) assess the progress made in reducing the number of uncovered low-income children, including the progress made to achieve the strategic objectives and performance goals in the State child health plan. Amends SSA title V (Maternal and Child Health Services) to require each State's annual reports to the Secretary on its activities under such title to include information (by racial and ethnic group) on the number of infants in the State under one year of age who were entitled to benefits under the State SCHIP plan at any time during the year. Directs the Secretary to establish a clearinghouse for the consolidation and the coordination of all Federal databases and reports regarding children's health. (Sec. 704) Directs the Secretary or any other Federal officer or employee, with respect to any reference to the program under SSA title XXI in any publication or other official communication to use the term "SCHIP" instead of "CHIP" and the term "State's children's health insurance program" instead of the term "children's health insurance program."

Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2000

United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999

Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2000 - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education and related agencies. Title I: Department of Labor - Department of Labor Appropriations Act, 2000 - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 to the Department of Labor for: (1) training and employment services; (2) community service employment for older Americans; (3) Federal unemployment benefits and allowances; (4) State unemployment insurance and employment service operations; (5) advances to the Unemployment Trust Fund and other trust funds; (6) employment and training program administration; (7) the Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation; (8) the Employment Standards Administration; (9) certain special benefits; (10) the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund; (11) the Occupational Safety and Health Administration; (12) the Mine Safety and Health Administration; (13) the Bureau of Labor Statistics; (14) departmental management; (15) the Assistant Secretary for Veterans Employment and Training; and (16) the Office of Inspector General. Sets forth authorized uses of, and limitations on, funds appropriated under this title. Title II: Department of Health and Human Services - Department of Health and Human Services Appropriations Act, 2000 - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for: (1) the Health Resources and Services Administration; (2) the Medical Facilities Guarantee and Loan Fund for Federal interest subsidies for medical facilities; (3) health education assistance loans; (4) the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program Trust Fund; (5) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; (6) the National Institutes of Health, including amounts for the John E. Fogarty International Center, the National Library of Medicine, the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, the Office of the Director, and buildings and facilities; (7) the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration; (8) the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research; (9) the Health Care Financing Administration for grants to States for Medicaid, payments to health care trust funds, program management, and the Health Maintenance Organization Loan and Loan Guarantee Fund; (10) the Administration for Children and Families for family support payments to States; (11) low income home energy assistance; (12) refugee and entrant assistance; (13) the child care and development block grant; (14) the social services block grant; (15) children and families services programs; (16) promoting safe and stable families pursuant to a specified provision of the Social Security Act; (17) payments to States for foster care and adoption assistance; (18) the Administration on Aging; (19) the Office of the Secretary for general departmental management; (20) the Office of Inspector General; (21) the Office for Civil Rights; (22) policy research; (23) retirement pay and medical benefits for Public Health Service commissioned officers; and (24) activities related to countering potential biological, disease, and chemical threats to civilian populations. Rescinds FY 2000 funds for a sample study of child welfare. Sets forth authorized uses of, and limitations on, funds appropriated under this title. (Sec. 209) Prohibits funds appropriated in this Act from being made available under title X (population research and voluntary family planning) of the Public Health Service Act unless the award applicant certifies to the Secretary of HHS that it encourages family participation in the decision of minors to seek family planning services and provides counseling to minors on resisting attempts to coerce them into engaging in sexual activities. (Sec. 211) Prohibits the use of funds appropriated by this Act to carry out the Medicare+Choice program if the Secretary of HHS denies participation in such program to an otherwise eligible entity (including a Provider Sponsored Organization) because the entity informs the Secretary that it will not provide, pay for, provide coverage of, or provide referrals for abortions. (Sec. 212) Amends the Public Health Service Act to require State allotments under block grants for community health services for FY 2000 to be at least the amount the State received for FY 1998. Provides a specified minimum State allotment for FY 2000 under block grants for substance abuse prevention and treatment as well. (Sec. 214) Amends the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1990 to extend through FY 2000 the authorization of admission into the United States of a specified number of refugees from the independent states of the former Soviet Union, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania based on religious persecution owing to participation in the Ukrainian Catholic or Orthodox churches. Makes September 30, 2000, the latest allowable entry date for specified aliens from the former Soviet Union, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia for purposes of qualifying for adjustment of status. (Sec. 215) Prohibits the use of funds provided in any Act making FY 2000 appropriations for the implementation in Arizona or in Kansas City, Missouri or Kansas, of the Medicare Competitive Pricing Demonstration Project operated by the Secretary of HHS under the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. (Sec. 217) Directs the Secretary of HHS to study and report to Congress on: (1) the reasons why, and the appropriateness of the fact that, the geographic adjustment factor used in determining the amount of payment for physicians' services under Medicare is less for services provided in New Mexico than for those provided in Arizona, Colorado, and Texas; and (2) the effect that the level of the geographic cost-of-practice adjustment factor has on the recruitment and retention of physicians in small rural States. (Sec. 218) Prohibits funds appropriated by this Act from being used to withhold substance abuse funding from a State pursuant to Public Health Service Act provisions for withholding funds from States that are not in compliance with specified requirements prohibiting the sale of tobacco products to minors if a State certifies to the Secretary of HHS that it will commit additional State funds to ensure compliance with State laws prohibiting such sales. (Sec. 219) Bars the use of funds made available under this title to carry out the transmittal of August 13, 1997 (relating to self-administered drugs), of the Deputy Director of the Division of Acute Care of the Health Care Financing Administration to regional offices of the Administration or to promulgate any regulation or other transmittal or policy directive that imposes or clarifies the imposition of a restriction on the coverage of injectable drugs under Medicare beyond the restrictions applied before the date of such transmittal. Title III: Department of Education - Department of Education Appropriations Act, 2000 - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 to the Department of Education for: (1) education reform; (2) education for the disadvantaged; (3) impact aid; (4) school improvement activities; (5) reading excellence; (6) Indian education; (7) bilingual and immigrant education; (8) special education; (9) rehabilitation services and disability research; (10) special institutions for persons with disabilities, including the American Printing House for the Blind, the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, the Kendall Demonstration Elementary School, the Model Secondary School for the Deaf, and Gallaudet University; (11) vocational and adult education; (12) student financial assistance; (13) the Federal Family Education Loan program account; (14) higher education; (15) Howard University; (16) the college housing and academic facilities loans program; (17) the historically Black college and university capital financing program account; (18) education research, statistics, and improvement; (19) departmental management; (20) the Office for Civil Rights; and (21) the Office of the Inspector General. Sets forth authorized uses of, and limitations on, funds appropriated under this title. (Sec. 301) Prohibits funds appropriated in this Act from being used to: (1) transport teachers or students in order to overcome racial imbalance in any school or to carry out a racial desegregation plan; or (2) prevent the implementation of programs of voluntary prayer and meditation in public schools. (Sec. 306) Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to reduce to 35 percent the Federal share available for Even Start family literacy programs in any year after the eighth year of receiving assistance. Removes a provision which limits the receipt of such assistance to a period of eight years. (Sec. 307) Requires the Secretary of Education to restore the eligibility of Jacksonville College in Texas to participate in the Pell Grant program. Directs the College to implement a default management plan satisfactory to the Secretary. (Sec. 310) Allocates amounts appropriated for title VI of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Provides for distribution of funds to local educational agencies (LEAs) for purposes of reducing class size. Authorizes the use of such funds for: (1) recruiting, hiring, and training teachers; (2) testing new teachers for academic content knowledge and to meet State certification requirements; and (3) providing professional development to teachers. Requires States and LEAs to report to parents on progress in reducing class size, increasing the percentage of classes in core academic areas taught by fully qualified teachers who are certified and demonstrate competency in the content areas in which they teach, and the impact that hiring additional highly qualified teachers and reducing class size has had on increasing student academic achievement. Repeals titles III and IV of the Goals 2000: Educate America Act on September 30, 2000. (Sec. 311) Amends the Y2K Act to prohibit punitive damages in a Y2K action from being awarded against an institution of higher education. Makes such prohibition inapplicable to an institution where the Y2K failure occurred in a computer-based student financial aid system of that institution and the institution has passed Y2K data exchange testing with the Department of Education or is not or was not in the process of performing data exchange testing with the Department at the time the Department terminates such testing. (Sec. 312) Amends the Missing, Exploited, and Runaway Children Protection Act to remove a funding provision with respect to a study of school violence. Title IV: Related Agencies - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 to the: (1) Armed Forces Retirement Home; (2) Corporation for National and Community Service; (3) Corporation for Public Broadcasting; (4) Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service; (5) Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission; (6) Office of Library Services; (7) Medicare Payment Advisory Commission; (8) National Commission on Libraries and Information Science; (9) National Council on Disability; (10) National Education Goals Panel; (11) National Labor Relations Board; (12) National Mediation Board; (13) Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission; (14) Railroad Retirement Board for the dual benefits payments account, Federal payments to the railroad retirement accounts, administration, and the Office of Inspector General; (15) Social Security Administration for payments to the social security trust funds, special benefits for disabled coal miners, the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Program, administrative expenses, and the Office of Inspector General; and (15) U.S. Institute of Peace. Sets forth authorized uses of, and limitations on, funds appropriated under this title. Title V: General Provisions - Sets forth authorized uses of, and limitations on, funds appropriated under this Act. (Sec. 505) Prohibits the use of funds appropriated under this Act for programs to distribute sterile needles or syringes for the injection of illegal drugs. (Sec. 506) Sets forth Buy American requirements. (Sec. 508) Prohibits funds appropriated under this Act from being expended for abortions or for health benefits coverage that includes coverage of abortion, except in cases where the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest or where a woman suffers from a physical condition that would, as certified by a physician, place her in danger of death unless an abortion is performed. (Sec. 510) Prohibits the use of funds made available in this Act for: (1) the creation of a human embryo for research purposes; or (2) research in which a human embryo is destroyed or knowingly subjected to risk of injury or death greater than that allowed for research on fetuses in utero under Federal regulations and the Public Health Service Act. (Sec. 511) Prohibits the use of funds made available in this Act for activities to promote the legalization of a controlled substance unless there is significant medical evidence of a therapeutic advantage to the use of such substance or that federally-sponsored trials are being conducted to determine such advantage. (Sec. 514) Bars the use of funds made available in this Act to promulgate a final standard under the Social Security Act providing for a unique health identifier for an individual (except in an individual's capacity as an employer or health care provider) until legislation is enacted specifically approving the standard. (Sec. 515) Amends the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1997 to extend the availability of certain voluntary separation incentives for employees of the Railroad Retirement Board and its Office of Inspector General. (Sec. 516) Amends the United States-Mexico Border Health Commission Act to require the President to appoint the U.S. members of the U.S.-Mexico Border Health Commission and to attempt to conclude an agreement with Mexico providing for the establishment of such Commission. Eliminates a Commission duty to formulate recommendations regarding a method by which the government of one country could reimburse an entity in the other country for the cost of a health care service provided by the entity to a citizen of the first country who is unable to pay for the service. (Sec. 517) Provides that the applicable time limitations with respect to the giving of notice of injury and the filing of a claim for compensation for disability or death under the Federal Employees' Compensation Act for injuries sustained as a result of exposure to a nitrogen or sulfur mustard agent in the performance of official duties as an employee at the Department of the Army's Edgewood Arsenal before March 20, 1944, shall not begin to run until this Act's enactment date. Title VI: Early Detection, Diagnosis, and Interventions For Newborns and Infants With Hearing Loss - Mandates grants or cooperative agreements to: (1) develop statewide newborn and infant hearing screening, evaluation, and intervention programs and systems; and (2) provide technical assistance to State agencies to complement an intramural program and to conduct applied research related to newborn and infant hearing screening, evaluation, and intervention programs and systems. Requires the National Institutes of Health to continue a program of research and development on the efficacy of new screening techniques and technology. Mandates Federal coordination and collaboration with State and local agencies, consumer groups, national medical, health, and education specialty organizations, deaf or hard-of-hearing individuals and their families, qualified professional personnel, and related commercial industries. Authorizes appropriations. Title VII: Denali Commission - Amends the Denali Commission Act of 1998 to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to the Denali Commission to plan, construct, and equip demonstration health, nutrition, and child care projects in order to demonstrate the value of adequate health facilities and services to regional economic development. Limits grants for construction or equipment to 50 percent of costs (80 percent for projects located in severely economically distressed communities). Authorizes appropriations. Title VIII: Welfare-To-Work And Child Support Amendments of 1999 - Amends part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) repeal certain eligibility requirements (thus allowing flexibility in eligibility) for participation of both custodial and noncustodial parents in the welfare-to-work (WtW) program; (2) make vocational educational and job training of up to six months allowable TANF activities; (3) authorize a grantee that is neither a private industry council nor a workforce investment board to provide employment services directly; (4) revise financial and participant information reporting requirements; (5) authorize State agencies to disclose name, address, and telephone information (subject to safeguards) about potential program participants to aid private industry councils in their administration of WtW grant funds; and (6) reduce the set-aside of a portion of WtW funds for performance bonuses. (Sec. 807) Amends SSA title IV part D (Child Support and Establishment of Paternity) to establish an alternative penalty procedure for State disbursement units under which: (1) units that achieve compliance requirements by April 1, 2000, shall have all penalties waived; and (2) units that achieve compliance between April 1, 2000, and September 30, 2000, shall pay no more than one percent of the penalty base with respect to the failure involved.

Expedited Rescissions Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999

Expedited Rescissions Act of 1999 - Amends the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to authorize the President to propose the rescission of any budget authority provided in an appropriation Act or repeal of any targeted tax benefit provided in any revenue Act. Permits the President, if proposing a rescission of budget authority, to propose to reduce the appropriate discretionary spending limit set forth in the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) by an amount that does not exceed the proposed rescission. Authorizes the President to transmit a draft bill to Congress with such a proposal that clearly identifies the budget authority proposed to be rescinded or the targeted tax benefit to be repealed. Sets forth procedures for the identification of targeted tax benefits. Establishes expedited procedures in the Senate and the House of Representatives for consideration of the draft bill. Makes any amount of budget authority proposed to be rescinded available for obligation on the day after the date either House rejects such bill. Provides that any targeted tax benefit proposed for repeal shall not be deemed repealed unless the draft bill is enacted into law. Provides for expedited judicial review of provisions of this Act in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and direct appeals to the Supreme Court.

Report from the Commission to the budget authority on the impact on EAGGF Guarantee Section expenditure of movements in the dollar/euro exchange rate - 1999 financial year

European Union · European Commission · 17 November 1999

Convicted Offender DNA Index System Support Act

United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1999

Convicted Offender DNA Index System Support Act - Requires the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to: (1) develop a plan to assist States in performing deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) analyses of DNA samples collected from convicted offenders, aimed at eliminating the backlog of convicted offender DNA samples awaiting analysis in State or local forensic laboratory storage in an efficient, expeditious manner that will provide for their entry into the Combined DNA Indexing System (CODIS); and (2) give preference in assistance to those States that have developed a comprehensive program for the DNA analysis of crime scene evidence in casework for which there are no suspects. Sets forth provisions regarding plan conditions and plan implementation. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 3) Directs the Attorney General to develop a plan to assist States in performing DNA analyses of crime scene evidence in casework for which there are no suspects aimed at eliminating the backlog of crime scene evidence awaiting DNA analysis in State or local forensic laboratory storage, including evidence that needs to be re-analyzed using upgraded methods, in an efficient, expeditious manner that will provide for the entry of those analyses into CODIS. Sets forth provisions regarding plan conditions and plan implementation. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 4) Requires the FBI Director to develop a plan to effectively eliminate the backlog of crime scene evidence awaiting DNA analysis in forensic laboratory storage of the Bureau, including evidence that needs to be re-analyzed using upgraded methods, in an efficient, expeditious manner that will provide for the entry of those analyses into CODIS. Sets forth provisions regarding plan conditions and plan implementation. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 5) Requires the FBI Director to expand CODIS to include information on missing persons, including analyses of DNA samples voluntarily contributed from relatives of missing persons. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 6) Revises the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 to authorize the Director of the FBI to expand CODIS to include information on DNA identification records and analyses related to criminal offenses and acts of juvenile delinquency under Federal law, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and the District of Columbia (DC) Code. Modifies the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (VCCLEA) to authorize the Director to establish an index of individuals convicted of criminal offenses or adjudicated delinquent for acts of juvenile delinquency, including specified qualifying offenses, and an index of analyses of DNA samples voluntarily contributed from relatives of missing persons. Directs that the index include only information on DNA identification records and DNA analyses that undergo semiannual external proficiency testing and that meet other specified requirements. Requires the Director to establish a list of qualifying offenses, including each criminal offense or act of juvenile delinquency under Federal law that constitutes a crime of violence (or, in the case of an act of juvenile delinquency, would, if committed by an adult, constitute a crime of violence), and each criminal offense under the DC Code that would, if committed in the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States, constitute a crime of violence. Requires: (1) the Director of the Bureau of Prisons to collect a DNA sample from each individual in the custody of the Bureau who has been convicted of or adjudicated delinquent for a qualifying offense, and to specify the time and manner of collection of DNA samples; and (2) the agency responsible for the supervision under Federal law of an individual on supervised release, parole, or probation to collect a DNA sample from each individual who has been convicted of or adjudicated delinquent for a qualifying offense, and to specify the time and manner of collection of DNA samples. Authorizes the Government of DC to: (1) identify one or more categories of individuals who are in the custody of, or under supervision by, DC as a result of a conviction of a qualifying offense, from whom DNA samples should be collected; and (2) collect a DNA sample from each such individual. Directs the Director of the Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency for DC, or the Trustee appointed under the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, as appropriate, to collect a DNA sample from each individual under Agency or Trustee supervision who is on supervised release, parole, or probation and who has been convicted of or adjudicated delinquent for a qualifying offense, and to specify the time and manner of collection of DNA samples. Directs the Secretary of Defense to: (1) prescribe regulations that specify categories of conduct punishable under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (qualifying military offenses) that are comparable to qualifying offenses, and sets forth standards and procedures for the analysis of DNA samples collected from individuals convicted of a qualifying military offense, their inclusion in an index, and the expungement of DNA identification records and such DNA analyses from the index in any circumstance in which the underlying conviction for the qualifying military offense has been reversed or the underlying record has been expunged for any other reason; and (2) specify the time and manner of collection of DNA samples. Sets criminal penalties for individuals from whom the collection of a DNA sample is required or authorized who fail to cooperate in the collection of that sample. Requires such cooperation as a condition of probation, supervised release, or release generally. Authorizes appropriations. Sets forth report and evaluation requirements.

Indian Health Care Improvement Act Amendments of 2000

United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1999

Indian Health Care Improvement Act Amendments of 2000 - Amends the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (the Act) to require funding authorized for programs under title I (Indian health, human resources, and development) of the Act to be allocated by service area under a formula developed in consultation with Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations. Empowers the Director of the Indian Health Service (IHS) with the administration of Indian health professions scholarships. Requires all recipients of such scholarships awarded after 2001 to meet the active duty service obligation (service with the IHS or related service for Indians) within the service area from which the scholarship was awarded. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make funds available to Indian tribes and tribal organizations to assist such entities in educating Indians to serve as health professionals in Indian communities, as long as such Indians are enrolled or accepted for enrollment in a course of study in one of the health professions contemplated by the Act. Requires a written contractual agreement from such recipients to provide service in an Indian health program in the same service area where the entity providing the scholarship is located. Provides Indian health scholarship recipients a preference for IHS employment or authorizes employment by a program of an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or urban Indian organization, or other HHS agencies, as available. Adds Indian tribes and tribal organizations as participants in the Community Health Representative Program under the Act, which provides for the training and use of Indians as community health representatives (currently, as community health paraprofessionals). Allows participants completing a term of education under the Indian Health Service Loan Repayment Program to be employed within an Indian urban organization. Discontinues the annual authorization of appropriations for the Indian Health Scholarship and Loan Repayment Recovery Fund. Authorizes the Secretary to reimburse health professionals seeking positions with Indian tribes, tribal organizations, or urban Indian organizations (currently, only those seeking employment with the IHS) for certain recruitment evaluation expenses. Limits to three years demonstration programs to enable Indian tribes, tribal organizations (current law), and urban Indian organizations to recruit, place, and retain Indian health professionals. Requires health professionals from urban Indian organizations to be given an equal opportunity to participate in a demonstration program to enable Indian health professionals to pursue advanced training or research in needed areas of study. Discontinues the annual authorization of appropriations for the Indian Nursing Program. Requires the Secretary to award grants to community colleges for programs which provide education in a health profession for individuals who desire to practice such profession in the IHS or a tribal health program (currently, only on an Indian reservation or tribal clinic). Provides a funding priority for tribally controlled colleges in service areas where they exist. Authorizes the Secretary to pay a retention bonus to any health professional (currently, physician or nurse) employed by or assigned to, and serving in, Indian tribes, tribal organizations, or urban Indian organizations (currently, only in the IHS) who meet specified requirements. Directs the Secretary to develop and operate a National Community Health Aide Program based on the current Community Health Aide Program for Alaska. Authorizes the Secretary to fund pilot programs for tribes and tribal organizations to address the chronic shortages of health professionals. Deems scholarships provided under title I of the Act as "qualified scholarships" and therefore excluded from gross income for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code. Makes a certain prohibition on the Secretary removing a member of the National Health Service Corps from an Indian health program applicable to health programs operated by urban Indian organizations as well. Requires all service areas served by programs operated by the IHS, tribes, tribal organizations, or urban Indian organizations to be designated as Health Professional Shortage areas under the Public Health Service Act. Authorizes appropriations through FY 2012 to carry out title I of the Act. Provides additional authorized uses for funds appropriated under the authority of provisions regarding the Indian Health Care Improvement Fund. Authorizes such funds to be allocated to Indian tribes or tribal organizations. Requires funds provided through the Indian Catastrophic Health Emergency Fund to be administered by service area offices based upon priorities determined by the Indian tribes and tribal organizations within each area. Increases the cost level required to qualify for payments from the Fund. Requires the Secretary to continue to fund through FY 2012 each model diabetes project in existence on the date of enactment of this Act. Directs the Secretary to include funding to establish dialysis programs. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into arrangements with Indian tribes or tribal organizations for the delivery of long-term care and similar services to Indians on a shared- services basis. Directs the Secretary to make funding available for research to further the performance of the health service responsibilities of the IHS, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations and to coordinate the activities of other agencies within HHS to address such research needs. Directs the Secretary to provide mammography and other cancer screening through Indian tribes or tribal organizations (currently, only through the IHS). Requires the Secretary to pay certain patient travel costs through Indian tribes and tribal organizations (currently, only through the IHS). Revises provisions regarding epidemiology centers. Directs the Secretary to provide funding to Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations (currently, Indian tribes) to develop comprehensive school health education programs for children from preschool through grade 12 in schools (currently, schools on reservations) for the benefit of Indian and urban Indian children. Includes urban Indian preadolescent and adolescent youth within a program for innovative mental and physical disease prevention and health promotion and treatment. Authorizes the Secretary to make funding available to Indian tribes and tribal organizations for the prevention, control, and elimination of communicable and infectious diseases. Authorizes the Secretary, acting through the IHS, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations, to provide funding for other health care services and programs not otherwise described in the Act, including hospice care and assisted living, long-term health care, home- and community-based services, public health functions, and traditional health care practices. Directs the Secretary, acting through the IHS, Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations, to provide funding to monitor and improve the quality of health care for Indian women of all ages through the planning and delivery of programs administered by the IHS. (Currently, an Office of Indian Women's Health Care has such monitoring duty.) Revises provisions regarding nuclear resource development health hazards to direct the Secretary and the IHS to conduct studies and ongoing monitoring programs to determine trends in health hazards to Indian miners and to Indians on or near Indian reservations and in Indian communities as a result of environmental hazards which may result in chronic or life-threatening health problems. Extends through FY 2012 the designation of Arizona as a contract health service delivery area for purposes of providing health care services to members of federally recognized Arizona Indian tribes. Authorizes the Secretary to fund a program using the California Rural Indian Health Board as a contract care intermediary to improve the accessibility of health services to California Indians. Allows certain counties in California that are currently excluded from the contract health services delivery area to be included in such area if funding is provided by the IHS for such services in those counties. Requires the IHS to provide funds for health care programs and facilities operated by Indian tribes and tribal organizations under funding agreements entered into under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDEA) on the same basis as such funds are provided to programs and facilities operated directly by the IHS. Exempts from State licensing requirements health care professionals employed by Indian tribes and tribal organizations to carry out the above funding agreements if such individuals are licensed in any other State. Allows elderly or disabled Indians receiving emergency medical care or services from a non-IHS provider or in a non-IHS facility 30 days to notify the IHS of such treatment or admission. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations for title II (health services) of the Act. Prohibits the closure of any hospital, outpatient health care, inpatient service, or special care facility operated by the IHS if the Secretary has not submitted to Congress at least one year prior to such proposed closure an evaluation of the impact of such closure. Directs the Secretary to establish a health care facility priority system. Directs the Secretary, beginning in the year 2000, to annually transmit to the President a report setting forth the needs of the IHS and all Indian tribes and tribal organizations for inpatient, outpatient, and specialized care facilities. Directs the Secretary to consult and cooperate with Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations in developing innovative approaches to address unmet needs for the construction of health facilities. Provides authority for the Secretary to use specified appropriated funds for providing sanitation facilities and related services to Indian tribes and tribal organizations. Requires the Secretary to: (1) enter into inter-agency agreements with appropriate Federal agencies to provide financial assistance for safe water supply and sanitary sewage disposal facilities under the Act; and (2) establish standards applicable to the planning, design, and construction of water supply and sanitary sewage and solid waste disposal facilities funded under the Act. Makes the Indian family, community, or tribe primarily responsible for establishing, collecting, and using reasonable user fees for operating and maintaining sanitation facilities. Revises the defined water sanitation deficiency levels for facilities serving an Indian individual or community. Exempts construction or renovation of facilities constructed or renovated by funds made available under title III (facilities) of the Act from the Davis-Bacon Act. Authorizes the Secretary to accept any major expansion (currently, only renovation or modernization) by an Indian tribe of any IHS facility or any other Indian health facility operated pursuant to a funding agreement entered into under ISDEA.Revises grant eligibility requirements with respect to the construction, expansion, or modernization of ambulatory care facilities. Authorizes all Federal agencies to transfer land and improvements to the IHS at no cost for the provision of health care services. Makes certain provisions that authorize leases with Indian tribes applicable to tribal organizations as well. Considers such leases as operating leases for purposes of scoring under the Budget Enforcement Act of 1990. Establishes in the Treasury the Health Care Facilities Loan Fund to provide Indian tribes and tribal organizations direct loans, or guarantees for loans, for construction of health care facilities and related facilities and staff quarters. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes Indian tribes and tribal organizations (currently, only Indian tribes) providing health care services pursuant to a funding agreement under the ISDEA to lease permanent structures for providing health care services without obtaining advance approval in appropriations Acts. Directs the Secretary to establish joint venture demonstration projects under which an Indian tribe or tribal organization shall expend tribal, private, or other available funds for the acquisition or construction of a health care facility for a minimum of ten years under a no-cost lease, in exchange for agreement by the IHS to provide the equipment, supplies, and staffing for such facility. Makes an Indian tribe or tribal organization liable for noncompletion of such a project. Adds Alaska Native lands to the definition of "Indian lands" for purposes of giving priority to locating Bureau of Indian Affairs and IHS facilities on such lands. Requires an annual report from the Secretary to the President identifying the backlog of maintenance and repair work required at both IHS and tribal health care facilities. Authorizes an Indian tribe or tribal organization which operates a hospital or other health care facility and the federally owned quarters associated therewith pursuant to a funding agreement under the ISDEA to establish the rental rates charged, and to notify the Secretary of its election to exercise such authority. Requires rental occupants to be notified at least 60 days in advance of a change in rental rates by an Indian tribe or tribal organization. Authorizes such tribe or organization to collect rents directly from Federal employees occupying such quarters, under specified conditions and procedures. Authorizes the Secretary to accept from any source funds for the construction of Indian health care facilities, and to enter into funding agreements with other Federal entities for such purposes. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations for title III of the Act. Requires the Secretary, in making payments to IHS service units for services rendered to Indians eligible for benefits under title XIX (Medicaid), to ensure that each such unit receives 100 (currently 80) percent of the amounts to which such facilities are entitled under the Medicaid provisions.Directs the Secretary to make grants to, or enter into funding agreements with, Indian tribes (currently, only tribal organizations) for establishing and administering programs on or near Indian reservations and trust areas and Alaska Native villages to assist Indians to enroll and apply for Medicare, Medicaid, and child health assistance under XXI (Children's Health Insurance) of the Social Security Act. Requires the Secretary to make grants or enter into contracts with urban Indian organizations for the provision of such assistance to urban Indians. Makes permanent (currently a demonstration project) a program under which an Indian tribe or tribal organization may directly bill and receive reimbursement for health care services provided for which payment is made under Medicare, Medicaid, a State's children's insurance health plan approved under title XXI (Children's Health Insurance) of the Social Security Act, or from any other third-party payor. Applies to urban Indian organizations a certain right to recovery of expenses incurred by the United States, Indian tribes, or tribal organizations in providing health services. Provides for the enforcement of such right of recovery. Authorizes tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations to use funding from the Secretary under this Act to purchase managed care coverage for IHS beneficiaries. Directs the Secretary to examine, and report to Congress on, the feasibility of entering into or expanding existing arrangements for the sharing of medical facilities and services between the IHS and the Department of Veterans Affairs and other appropriate Federal agencies. Authorizes the IHS Director to enter into agreements with other Federal agencies to assist in achieving parity in health services for Indians. Makes the IHS and programs operated by Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations the payor of last resort for services provided to persons eligible for services from these programs, notwithstanding contradicting Federal, State, or local law, unless such law explicitly provides otherwise. Makes such entities eligible to receive payment or reimbursement for services provided by such entities from any federally funded health care program, unless there is an explicit prohibition on such payments in the applicable authorizing statute. Authorizes the IHS service unit in Tuba City, Arizona, to enter into a demonstration project with Arizona under which the IHS would provide certain Medicaid services to IHS/Medicaid eligibles in return for payment from the State. Entitles an Indian tribe or tribal organization carrying out programs under the ISDEA, or an urban Indian organization carrying out programs under title V of the Act, to purchase Federal health and life insurance for the employees of such tribe or organization. Requires certain consultation with Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations prior to the adoption of any policy or regulation by the Health Care Financing Administration. Authorizes the IHS, an Indian tribe, or tribal organization to apply for a waiver of certain Medicare, Medicaid, or Children's Health Insurance sanctions. Excludes from the definition of "remuneration," for purposes of specified provisions of the Social Security Act, certain exchanges of value between or among the IHS, Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations related to the provision of health care services. Prohibits any Indian eligible for services under Medicare, Medicaid, or Children's Health Insurance of the Social Security Act from being charged a deductible or other payment for any service provided by or through the IHS, an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or urban Indian organization. Excludes certain income and property from the estate, for purposes of eligibility for services or implementing estate recovery rights under Medicare, Medicaid, or Children's Health Insurance. Prohibits a parent from being responsible for reimbursing the Federal Government or a State for the cost of medical services provided to a child through the IHS, an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or urban Indian organization. Provides such entities with a right of recovery from all private and public health plans for the reasonable costs of delivering health services to Indians entitled to receive services. Requires States entering into agreements with one or more managed care organizations to provide services under Medicaid or Children's Health Insurance to enter into such an agreement with the IHS, an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or urban Indian organization that can provide services to Indians who may be eligible or required to enroll in such a managed care plan. Authorizes the Secretary to treat the Navajo Nation as a State, for purposes of Medicaid, to provide services to Indians living within the boundaries of the Navajo Nation. Directs the Health Care Financing Administration to establish and fund a National Indian Technical Advisory Group and an Indian Medicaid Advisory Committee. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations for title IV (access to health services) of the Act. Authorizes the Secretary, through the IHS, to contract with, or make grants to, an urban Indian organization that provides or arranges for the provision of health care services to urban Indians in more than one urban center. Changes from quarterly to semiannually certain reporting requirements of urban Indian organizations receiving or expending funds pursuant to a grant or contract with respect to health care services provided to urban Indians. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to contractors or other recipients for the lease, purchase, renovation, construction, or expansion of facilities in order to assist them in complying with licensure or certification requirements. Authorizes the Secretary, acting through the IHS or the Health Resources and Services Administration, to provide loans to such entities from the Urban Indian Health Care Facilities Revolving Loan Fund (established herein) for the construction, renovation, expansion, or purchase of health care facilities. Redesignates the Branch of Urban Health Programs as the Office of Urban Indian Health. Includes among office responsibilities the provision of technical assistance to urban Indian organizations. Treats the Tulsa Clinic demonstration project as a permanent program within the IHS direct care program and as a service unit in the allocation of resources and coordination of Indian health care. Requires grants or contracts made or entered into by the Secretary for the administration of urban Indian alcohol programs to become effective no later than September 30, 2001.Directs the Secretary to ensure that the IHS, the Health Care Financing Administration, and other operating and staff divisions of HHS consult with urban Indian organizations prior to taking any action, or approving Federal financial assistance for any action, that may affect urban Indians or urban Indian organizations. Deems an urban Indian organization that has entered into a contract or received a grant pursuant to title V (health services for urban Indians) of the Act to be part of the Public Health Service while carrying out such contract or grant for purposes of coverage under the Federal Tort Claims Act. Directs the Secretary to make payments for the construction and operation of at least two residential alcohol treatment centers in each State where there reside urban Indian youth with a need for alcohol and substance abuse treatment services and at which there is a significant shortage of such services. Directs the Secretary to permit an urban Indian organization that has entered into a contract or received a grant under title V of the Act to use existing facilities and equipment and other personal property owned by the Federal Government, including that determined to be excess to the needs of the IHS or the General Services Administration. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to those urban Indian organizations that have entered into a contract or grant under title V of the Act for the provision of services for the prevention, treatment, and control of complications resulting from, diabetes among urban Indians. Authorizes the Secretary, through the IHS, to enter into contracts with, and make grants to, urban Indian organizations for the use of Indians trained as health service providers through the Community Health Representatives Program in the provision of health care, health promotion, and disease prevention services to urban Indians. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations for title V and VI (organizational improvements) of the Act. Directs the Secretary, acting through the IHS, Indian tribes, and tribal and urban Indian organizations, to encourage Indian tribes and tribal organizations to participate in developing area-wide plans for Indian Behavioral Health Services, including plans for treating substance abuse, mental illness, and dysfunctional and self-destructive behavior (suicide, child abuse, and family violence) among Indians. Requires the establishment of a national clearinghouse for such plans and related information. Authorizes technical assistance to Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations to develop community behavioral health plans. Directs the Secretary, acting through the IHS and Indian tribes and tribal organizations, to provide a program of comprehensive behavioral health, prevention, treatment, and aftercare for Indian tribes. Requires the development of criteria for the certification of behavioral health service providers and accreditation of service facilities providing such care. Directs (currently, authorizes) the Secretary to make funds available to urban Indian organizations to develop and implement a comprehensive behavioral health program (currently, an alcohol and substance abuse program) of prevention, intervention, treatment, and relapse prevention services that specifically address the spiritual, cultural, historical, social, and child care needs of Indian women, regardless of age. (Currently, such funding is available only to Indian tribes and tribal organizations.) Includes behavioral health services within a current program for acute detoxification and treatment for Indian youth. Authorizes the Secretary to provide specified intermediate behavioral health services to Indian children and adolescents. Requires Indian tribes or tribal organizations (currently, only the Secretary) to develop and implement within each IHS service unit community- based rehabilitation and follow-up services for Indian youth who are having significant behavioral health problems and require long-term treatment, community reintegration, and monitoring after their return to their home community. Provides for the inclusion of family members of such youth in their treatment. Directs the Secretary, acting through the IHS, Indian tribes, and tribal and urban Indian organizations, to provide programs and services to prevent and treat the abuse of multiple forms of substances, including alcohol, drugs, inhalants, and tobacco, among Indian youth residing in Indian communities, on Indian reservations, and in urban areas and to provide appropriate mental health services to address the incidence of mental illness among such youth. Directs the Secretary, acting through the IHS and Indian tribes and tribal organizations, to provide, in each IHS service area, not less than one inpatient mental health care facility for Indians with behavioral health problems. Requires the Secretary to develop and implement (or provide funding to enable Indian tribes and tribal organizations to implement) programs of behavioral health (currently, alcohol and substance abuse) community leadership training and education. Directs the Secretary, acting through Indian tribes and tribal and urban Indian organizations, to establish and operate fetal alcohol disorders programs in order to meet specified health status objectives. (Currently, the Secretary is authorized to make grants to Indian tribes and tribal organizations to establish such programs.) Redesignates a task force established for such purposes as the Fetal Alcohol Disorders Task Force. Includes urban Indian organizations as entities eligible for funding from the Secretary for such programs. Directs the Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the IHS, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations, to establish programs involving treatment for both victims and perpetrators of child sexual abuse. Directs the Secretary to provide funding to Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations, or make appropriate contracts or grants, for research on the incidence and prevalence of behavioral health problems among Indians served by the IHS or such tribes or organizations. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations for title VII (behavioral health programs) of the Act. Requires the President to include in required annual reports to Congress reports on various programs established under this Act. Requires regulations implementing amendments to the Act to be negotiated by a rulemaking committee made up of representatives of the Federal Government, Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations. Directs the Secretary to prepare and submit to Congress a plan explaining the manner and schedule by which the Secretary will implement provisions of the Act, as amended by this Act. Directs the Secretary to provide services and benefits for Indians in Montana in a manner consistent with the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in McNabb for McNabb v. Bowen. Directs the IHS to provide health care services during a moratorium period in which certain service eligibility criteria are being developed. Establishes the National Bipartisan Indian Health Care Entitlement Commission to: (1) establish a Study Committee to study the extent of Indian health services needs; (2) review and analyze the Study Committee's report; and (3) make recommendations to Congress for providing health services for Indians as an entitlement. Authorizes appropriations for the Commission. Extends through FY 2012 the authorization of appropriations under title VIII (miscellaneous) of the Act.

Access Aid Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1999

Access Aid Act of 1999 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to establish under ESEA title X (Programs of National Significance) a new part L, Access Aid Act. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to establish an Access Aid demonstration program to assist nonprofit organizations (organizations) working with local school districts to establish programs (programs) that identify and mentor college-eligible students and their families. Requires program counseling services to: (1) focus on college selection, admissions, and funding; (2) involve the students' parents or legal guardians and be conducted on an individual and confidential basis; and (3) enable students to evaluate and select a college based on the student's interest level and qualifications, not on cost. Allows programs to provide participating students small grants to underwrite the costs of college visits or to purchase books and equipment required by, but not included in, the student budget of the college. Allows emergency grants to be used when a student's demonstrated need is not fully funded by the postsecondary institution. Requires organizations to provide outreach support to each participating school's guidance or career counseling staff and provide workshops relating to college admissions, college funding, and financial aid form completion to the general population of each participating school or other interested schools. Requires an organization to provide, at each project site, at least workshops in participating and surrounding school districts. Requires the students selected for program assistance to be nominated by the staffs of the participating high schools. Bases selection primarily on their being college-eligible, first- generation, low-income students. Makes ineligible for program assistance students served by TRIO or GEAR UP programs. Requires students in each State to be selected for program assistance. Requires individual services to begin not later than the end of the tenth grade and continue until completion of college. Requires an applicant organization, in order to qualify for a part L grant, to: (1) be a tax-exempt not-for-profit organization, not affiliated with a public or private educational institution, and not a seller of any kind of financial product; (2) demonstrate experience in the college admissions and college funding arenas, familiarity with Federal outreach programs, prior experience with the public secondary school sector, and a demand by schools and school districts for its program; and (3) provide plans for orderly shift of the funding component from the public to the private sector, for public awareness of the program, the participants, and the outcomes, for counseling services for participants from entry into the program until completion of college, for quantifiable evaluation, and for program implementation. Authorizes appropriations.

Amending the Rules of the House of Representatives to improve deliberation on proposed Federal private sector mandates.

United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1999

Amends rule XVIII of the House of Representatives, with regard to deliberation of proposed Federal private sector mandates in the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, to repeal the limitation of unfunded mandates to certain Federal intergovernmental mandates, and thus extend the definition of "unfunded mandate" to mean any Federal mandate, including a Federal private sector mandate, the direct costs of which exceed the threshold otherwise specified for a reported bill or joint resolution in provisions of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.

Supplementary and amending budget 5/99

European Union · European Parliament · 15 November 1999

Einsparungen im Bundeshaushalt 1999 durch die Verschiebung der Anhebung der Bezüge der Beamten, Richter und Soldaten sowie der Versorgungsempfänger des Bundes (G-SIG: 14051265)

Germany · German Bundestag · 12 November 1999

12 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Health and Children his views on the proportion of funds allocated by health boards to family support and problem prevention; the plans, if any, he has to target this specific area in the coming budget; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22865/99]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 11 November 1999

12 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Health and Children his views on the proportion of funds allocated by health boards to family support and problem prevention; the plans, if any, he has to target this specific area in the coming budget; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22865/99]

Electronic Commerce Technology Promotion Act

United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1999

Electronic Commerce Technology Promotion Act - Requires the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology to establish within such Institute the Center of Excellence for Electronic Commerce to: (1) act as the centralized resource of information for Federal agencies in electronic commerce technologies and issues; (2) provide guidance to the Office of Management and Budget in developing policies pertaining to electronic commerce; (3) promote the use of electronic commerce technologies within Federal agencies and small and medium-sized businesses; and (4) ensure that U.S. interests are appropriately represented at both domestic and international meetings pertaining to the setting of interoperability specifications for electronic commerce technologies. Requires a report from: (1) the Undersecretary of Technology on issues concerning electronic commerce; and (2) the Director detailing the plan, proposed schedule, and associated costs and benefits for the deployment of electronic commerce technologies in Federal agencies.

Natural Disaster Insurance Solvency Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1999

Natural Disaster Insurance Solvency Act of 1999 - Establishes the Natural Disaster Insurance Solvency Fund (NDISF) as a non-Federal agency to hold, invest, and distribute private insurance solvency reserve amounts for rare catastrophic events. Directs the NDISF to establish and maintain a Catastrophe Emergency Solvency Reserve Account as a tax-exempt custodial account to hold all contributions of solvency reserve amounts. Mandates NDISF audits by the Comptroller General. Grants the NDISF off-budget status.

Regulatory Improvement Act of 2000

United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1999

Regulatory Improvement Act of 2000 - Requires a Federal agency, when it publishes a notice of proposed rule making for a major rule, to: (1) prepare and place in the rule making file an initial regulatory impact analysis; and (2) include a summary of such analysis in the notice of proposed rule making. Requires that, when the Director of the Office of Management and Budget has designated a rule as a major rule, or when an agency has published an interim final major rule, such agency shall: (1) promptly prepare and place in the rule making file an initial regulatory impact analysis; (2) publish in the Federal Register a summary of such analysis; and (3) give interested parties the same opportunity to comment as if the initial regulatory impact analysis had been issued with the notice of proposed rule making. Requires an agency publishing a final major rule to prepare and place in the rule making file a final regulatory impact analysis which shall reflect any changes made to the proposed rule or its cost-benefit analysis or risk assessment, as well as agency consideration of comments from interested parties as provided above. Mandates a comparative risk study by the Director of the extent and severity of significant risks to human health, safety, or the environment. Requires the President to periodically report to Congress recommending legislation to reduce such risks.

Veterans Health Fairness Resolution

United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1999

Veterans Health Fairness Resolution - Expresses the sense of Congress that the President's budget for Department of Veterans Affairs health care for FY 2001 and thereafter should include amounts necessary to ensure that all veterans, including those in priority group 7, are able to benefit from the broad array of Department health care services, including preventive care, primary care, and inpatient and outpatient services.

Expressing the sense of the Congress that the United States has an obligation to serve its veterans' health needs, that future congressional budget resolutions should reflect the ongoing need of the Nation's veterans, and that the Committees on Appropriations should provide the financial resources needed by the Veterans Health Administration to meet future demands.

United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1999

Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the United States has a responsibility toward its veterans; (2) future congressional budget resolutions and laws making appropriations to the Veterans Health Administration should reflect the ongoing need for quality health care; and (3) the congressional committees of jurisdiction should act accordingly.

Comprehensive Budget Process Reform Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 9 November 1999

Comprehensive Budget Process Reform Act of 1999 - Makes this Act effective for fiscal years beginning after September 30, 2000. Title I: Budget With Force of Law - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (CBA) to revise required contents of the annual budget resolution. Requires such resolution to set forth, for the current fiscal year and for at least each of the four ensuing fiscal years: (1) subtotals of new budget authority and outlays for nondefense and defense discretionary spending, direct spending (excluding interest), and interest; and (2) subtotals of new budget authority and outlays for emergencies, for fiscal years to which the amendments made by title II of this Act apply. (Current law requires the resolution to set forth levels of new budget authority and outlays for each major functional category.) Removes a provision which requires the resolution to exclude the outlays and revenue totals of the Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program in surplus and deficit totals required under congressional budget process provisions. Revises matters which may be included in the budget resolution. Authorizes the resolution to change the statutory limit on the public debt if the amendment is submitted by the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives or the Senate Finance Committee to the appropriate Budget Committee. Requires the report accompanying the resolution to include: (1) new budget authority and outlays for each major functional category based on allocations of total levels; (2) a measure, as a percentage of gross domestic product, of total outlays, total Federal revenues, the surplus or deficit, and new outlays for nondefense discretionary, defense, and direct spending; and (3) a justification for not subjecting any program or activity for which an allocation is made to annual discretionary appropriations if the resolution includes any committee allocation (other than the Appropriations Committees) exceeding current law levels. Amends Federal provisions concerning elements of the President's required budget submission to the Congress. Requires such submission to include, for the affected fiscal year and at least each of the nine ensuing fiscal years: (1) totals of new budget authority and outlays; (2) total Federal revenues and the amount by which the aggregate level of revenues should be increased or decreased by reported bills and resolutions; (3) the budget surplus or deficit; (4) subtotals of new budget authority and outlays for nondefense and defense discretionary spending, direct spending, and interest; (5) the public debt; and (6) subtotals of new budget authority and outlays for emergencies for fiscal years to which title II of this Act applies. Amends the CBA to provide a point of order against consideration of any budget resolution or related amendment or conference report that contains matter not specified in content requirements. (Sec. 104) Removes a provision that provides for an adjustment of the allocation of discretionary spending in the House if the budget resolution is not adopted by April 15. Removes an exception which allows general appropriations bills in the House, after May 15, to be considered before the budget resolution has been agreed to. Eliminates a provision which exempts, after April 15, certain reported legislation which does not increase the deficit from a requirement that the budget resolution be adopted before consideration of budget-related legislation. Requires a three-fifths majority in the Senate to waive or suspend provisions requiring the budget resolution to be adopted before budget-related legislation is considered. Provides for expedited procedures upon presidential veto of the budget resolution. Authorizes the House or Senate majority leader to introduce a concurrent or joint budget resolution upon such veto. Discharges the Budget Committees from further consideration of the resolution if such resolution is not reported within five days of referral. Deems any agreed-to concurrent resolution to be the budget resolution for the applicable fiscal years. (Sec. 105) Changes CBA references to the concurrent resolution to the joint resolution. Title II: Reserve Fund for Emergencies - Repeals provisions of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) regarding: (1) discretionary spending limits and emergency appropriations; and (2) direct spending and emergency legislation. (Sec. 206) Amends the CBA to provide for adjustments in allocations for the amount of new budget authority or outlays and outlays flowing from budget authority after reporting of a joint budget resolution that provides budget authority for an emergency. Prohibits such adjustments from exceeding the amount reserved for emergencies established by this Act. Requires the amount set forth in the reserve fund for emergencies for budget authority and outlays for a fiscal year to equal: (1) the average of the enacted levels of budget authority for emergencies in the five fiscal years preceding the current year; and (2) the average of the levels of outlays for emergencies in the five fiscal years preceding the current year flowing from such budget authority, but only in the fiscal year for which such authority first becomes available for obligation. Requires committees, when reporting legislation that provides budget authority for any emergency, to identify all provisions that provide such authority and the resulting outlays in the accompanying report or joint explanatory statement of managers. (Sec. 207) Includes up-to-date tabulations of amounts remaining in the reserve fund for emergencies in summary budget scorekeeping reports provided by the Budget Committees. (Sec. 208) Makes it out of order to consider an amendment to a budget resolution which changes the amount of budget authority and outlays set forth for the emergency reserve fund. Permits limitations on the contents of the budget resolution and the point of order against changing the budget authority and outlays for the emergency reserve fund to be waived or suspended only by a three-fifths majority in the Senate. (Sec. 209) Makes the amendments of this title effective only after the enactment of legislation changing or extending for any fiscal year any of the budgetary procedures set forth in Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act provisions regarding discretionary spending limits and pay-as-you-go requirements. Title III: Enforcement of Budgetary Decisions - Subtitle A: Application of Points of Order to Unreported Legislation - Applies a certain point of order against the consideration of unreported legislation in the House before the adoption of the budget resolution. Subtitle B: Compliance with Budget Resolution - Amends rule XIII of the Rules of the House to require committee reports to include a budget compliance statement prepared by the chairman of the Budget Committee. Subtitle C: Justification for Budget Act Waivers - Amends rule XIII of the Rules of the House to provide a point of order against consideration of any resolution from the Committee on Rules to consider any reported legislation which waives specified provisions of the CBA unless the report contains certain information on the provision proposed for waiver. Subtitle D: CBO Scoring of Conference Reports - Amends the CBA to provide for Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analysis and scoring of conference reports. Requires such analysis to include, for reported legislation and conference reports, a determination of whether the measure provides direct spending. Title IV: Accountability for Federal Spending - Subtitle A: Limitations on Direct Spending - Provides a point of order in the House and the Senate against consideration of legislation that provides direct spending for a new program unless such spending is limited to a period of ten or fewer fiscal years. Removes provisions regarding points of order and legislation providing new entitlement authority. Amends rule XXI of the Rules of the House to make it out of order to consider any legislation that authorizes the appropriation of new budget authority for a new program unless such authorization is specifically provided for ten or fewer fiscal years. (Sec. 412) Amends rule XVIII of the Rules of the House to provide that, in the Committee of the Whole, an amendment to subject a new program providing direct spending to discretionary appropriations if offered by the chairman of the Budget or Appropriations Committees may be precluded from consideration only by the specific terms of a special House order. Declares that the purpose of the following amendments is to hold the discretionary spending limits and allocations made to the Appropriations Committee harmless for legislation that offsets a new discretionary program with a designated reduction in direct spending. Amends the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act to require, if a provision of direct spending legislation is enacted that decreases direct spending for any fiscal year and is designated as an offset and specifically identifies an authorization of discretionary appropriations for a new program, the reductions in new budget authority and outlays resulting from such provision to be designated as an offset in specified CBO pay-as-you-go estimates. Excludes such offsets from such estimates. Requires, if an Act other than an appropriation Act includes provisions reducing direct spending and identifies those provisions as offsets, the adjustments to be an increase in the discretionary spending limits for budget authority and outlays in each fiscal year equal to such authority and outlay reductions, respectively, achieved by the specified offsets. Prohibits the adjustments for the budget year in which the offsetting provisions take effect from exceeding the amount of discretionary new budget authority provided for the new program in an Act making discretionary appropriations and the resulting outlays. Provides for: (1) adjustments to discretionary spending limits, allocations, and budgetary allocations resulting from programs for which offsets were designated and resulting outlays; and (2) reductions of committee allocations of new budget authority and outlays with respect to reported legislation containing provisions that decrease direct spending and are designated as offsets. Subtitle B: Enhanced Congressional Oversight Responsibilities - Amends rule X of the Rules of the House to require House committees, in developing oversight plans, to provide a specific timetable for review of laws, programs, or agencies within their jurisdiction. Removes a provision of such rule pertaining to procedures for consideration of legislation providing new entitlement authority which exceeds the appropriate allocation of budget authority. Requires the House Appropriations Committee to report at least once each Congress (currently, from time to time) on recommendations for terminating or modifying provisions of law which provide permanent budget authority. (Sec. 422) Amends the CBA to require the joint explanatory statement accompanying a conference report on a joint budget resolution that includes an allocation to a committee (other than the Appropriations Committee) of levels exceeding current law levels to set forth a justification for not subjecting any program to annual discretionary appropriations. Makes conforming amendments to provisions regarding the presidential budget submission and to House rules regarding committee consideration of legislation. (Sec. 424) Requires the Budget Committees, during the 106th Congress, to report results of a study on budget reform proposals. Subtitle C: Strengthened Accountability - Requires certain reports on legislation providing new budget authority or increases or decreases in revenues or tax expenditures to include CBO projections of how such legislation will affect levels of budget authority, outlays, revenue, or tax expenditures for the affected fiscal year and the ensuing nine (currently, four) fiscal years. Provides for ten-year (currently, four) CBO cost estimates of reported legislation as well. Amends rule XIII of the Rules of the House to require committee reports to contain cost estimates for each of 11 fiscal years. (Sec. 432) Repeals rule XXIII (relating to the establishment of the statutory limit on the public debt) of the Rules of the House. Title V: Budgeting for Unfunded Liabilities and Other Long-Term Obligations - Subtitle A: Budgetary Treatment of Federal Insurance Programs - Amends the CBA to establish a new title known as the Federal Insurance Budgeting Act of 1999. Requires the President's budget, beginning with FY 2006, to be based on the risk-assumed cost of Federal insurance programs. Defines "risk-assumed cost" as the net present value of the estimated cash flows to and from the Government resulting from an insurance commitment or modification. Requires the program accounts for such programs to pay: (1) the risk-assumed cost borne by the taxpayer to the financing account; and (2) actual insurance program administrative costs. Requires the financing accounts to: (1) receive premiums and other income; (2) pay all claims for insurance and receive all recoveries; and (3) transfer to the program account at least annually amounts necessary to pay administrative costs. Provides that a negative risk-assumed cost shall be transferred from the financing to the program account and from the program account to the general fund. Requires all payments by or receipts of the financing accounts to be treated in the budget as a means of financing. Permits insurance commitments to be made for FY 2006 and thereafter only to the extent that new budget authority to cover the risk-assumed cost is provided in advance in an appropriations Act. Prohibits modification of an outstanding commitment in a manner that increases the risk-assumed cost unless budget authority for the additional cost has been provided in advance. Makes such requirements inapplicable to insurance programs that constitute entitlements. Provides for re-estimations of risk-assumed cost in each subsequent year. Requires agencies with responsibility for Federal insurance programs to develop models to estimate risk-assumed cost by year through the budget horizon and to submit such models, all relevant data, justifications for critical assumptions, and annual projected risk-assumed costs to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) with budget requests each year starting with the request for FY 2002. Directs OMB and CBO, after a comment period for interested persons, to revise the models, data, and major assumptions they would use to estimate the risk-assumed cost of Federal insurance programs. Requires the President's budget submissions and budgets and CBO's reports on the economic and budget outlook for FY 2003 through 2005 to estimate, for display purposes only, the risk-assumed cost of existing or proposed Federal insurance programs. Requires OMB, CBO, and the General Accounting Office to report to the Budget Committees on the advisability and appropriate implementation of this subtitle. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 through 2005 to OMB and each agency responsible for administering a Federal program to carry out this subtitle. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to borrow from, receive from, lend to, or pay the insurance financing accounts appropriate amounts. Establishes a financing account for each Federal insurance program on September 30, 2005. Appropriates to such accounts the amount of the risk-assumed cost of outstanding Federal insurance commitments as of the close of September 30, 2005. Terminates this subtitle on the last day of FY 2007. Subtitle B: Reports on Long-Term Budgetary Trends - Requires the President's budget submission to include: (1) an analysis based upon current law and one based upon the policy assumptions underlying the submission for every fifth year of the period of the 75 fiscal years beginning with the affected fiscal year of the estimated levels of total new budget authority, outlays, estimated revenues, surpluses, and deficits and, for Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and all other direct spending, estimated levels of total new budget authority and outlays; and (2) a specification of underlying assumptions and a sensitivity analysis of factors that have a significant effect on the projections made in each analysis and a comparison of the effects of the two analyses on the economy. Establishes a conforming requirement for CBO's annual report to the Budget Committees on fiscal policy. Title VI: Baselines, Byrd Rule, and Lock-Box - Subtitle A: The Baseline - Revises required elements of the President's budget submission to include percentage changes between the current year and the fiscal year for which the budget is submitted for: (1) estimated expenditures and appropriations which are necessary to support the Government, with an exception for detailed budget estimates; (2) laws in effect when the budget is submitted and proposals in the budget to increase revenues as well as for each of the nine ensuing fiscal years; and (3) certain proposed appropriations and expenditures for legislation that would establish or expand Government activities or functions, with an exception for detailed budget estimates. Includes within the submission: (1) a comparison of levels of estimated expenditures and proposed appropriations for each function and subfunction in the current fiscal year and the fiscal year for which the budget is submitted, along with the proposed increase or decrease of spending in percentage terms for each function and subfunction; and (2) a table on sources of growth in total direct spending under current law and as proposed in the submission for the budget year and the ensuing nine fiscal years. (Sec. 612) Amends the CBA to require the report accompanying the budget resolution to include a comparison of levels for the current fiscal year with proposed spending and revenue levels for subsequent fiscal years along with the proposed increase or decrease of spending in percentage terms for each function. (Sec. 613) Includes similar requirements in certain CBO reports. (Sec. 614) Requires the OMB and CBO Directors, in making budgetary projections for years for which there are no discretionary spending limits, to assume discretionary spending levels at the levels for the last fiscal year for which such levels were in effect. Subtitle B: The Byrd Rule - Removes the applicability of certain procedures with respect to extraneous matter in reconciliation legislation to conference reports. Subtitle C: Spending Accountability Lock-box - Spending Accountability Lock-box Act of 1999 - Directs the chairmen of the Budget Committees to each maintain a Spending Accountability Lock-box Ledger, to be divided into entries corresponding to the subcommittees of the Appropriations Committees. Requires each entry to consist of three components: (1) the House Lock-box Balance; (2) the Senate Lock-box Balance; and (3) the Joint House-Senate Lock-box Balance. Authorizes Members of the House or the Senate, when offering an amendment to an appropriation bill to reduce new budget authority in any account, to state the portion of such reduction to be: (1) credited to the House or Senate Lock-box Balance; (2) used to offset an increase in new budget authority in any other account; or (3) allowed to remain within the Appropriations Committees' subcommittee suballocation. Credits the amount of the reduction to either Lock-box Balance, as applicable, if the amendment is agreed to and no such statement is made. Requires the Budget Committee chairmen, upon the engrossment of any appropriation bill by the House and upon the engrossment of Senate amendments to that bill, to credit to the applicable entry balance of that House amounts of new budget authority and outlays equal to the net amounts of reductions in new budget authority and in outlays resulting from amendments agreed to by that House to that bill. Specifies the amounts to be credited to the Joint House-Senate Lock-box Balance. Requires a running tally to be available to Members of the House, during the consideration of any appropriations bill by the House, of the amendments adopted reflecting increases and decreases of budget authority in such bill as reported. (Sec. 633) Provides for the downward adjustment, by the amounts credited to the applicable Joint House-Senate Lock-box Balance, of: (1) allocations for the House and Senate upon the engrossment of Senate amendments to any appropriation bill; and (2) suballocations, whenever a such a downward adjustment is made to an allocation. (Sec. 634) Requires the CBO Director to include an up-to-date tabulation of the amounts contained in the Spending Accountability Lock-box Ledger and each entry in periodic reports. (Sec. 635) Requires the downward adjustment of discretionary spending limits set forth in the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act by amounts set forth in the final regular appropriation bill for the fiscal year or joint resolution making continuing appropriations through the end of such fiscal year. Subtitle D: Automatic Continuing Resolution - Amends Federal law to make appropriations, if any regular appropriation bill for a fiscal year does not become law prior to the beginning of such year or a continuing appropriations resolution is not in effect, to continue any program, project, or activity for which funds were provided in the preceding year: (1) in the corresponding regular appropriations Act for that year; or (2) in a continuing appropriations resolution for such year if the regular bill did not become law. Makes such appropriations available: (1) at a rate of operations not to exceed the rate provided for the project in the preceding fiscal year; and (2) beginning with the first day of a lapse in appropriations and ending on the earlier of the date the regular appropriation bill, or continuing resolution, becomes law or the last day of the fiscal year. Excludes from the rate of operations amounts for which adjustments were made under the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act with respect to emergency appropriations or allowances for the International Monetary Fund or international arrearages. Subjects such appropriations to any conditions imposed in the preceding fiscal year or pursuant to current law. Provides that nothing in this section shall be construed to affect Government obligations mandated by other law, including obligations with respect to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Title VII: Budgeting in an Era of Surpluses - Revises provisions regarding sequestrations to require a sequestration to offset an amount equal to any excess of decreases in receipts and increases in direct spending over increases in receipts and decreases in direct spending for legislation enacted prior to October 1, 2002, minus the estimated on-budget surplus. Revises sequestration calculation provisions to require the sequestration amount to be the sum of all OMB estimates for the budget year of direct spending and receipts legislation for legislation enacted prior to FY 2003, the estimated amount of savings in direct spending programs applicable to the budget year resulting from the prior year's sequestration, and all OMB estimates for the current year not reflected in the final sequestration report minus the OMB estimate of the on-budget surplus as set forth in the OMB sequestration update report. Defines the "on-budget surplus" as the amount by which receipts exceed outlays for all Government spending and receipt accounts that are designated as on-budget. Excludes from such term outlays and receipts of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors and Disability Insurance Trust Funds or other off-budget entities. Makes certain provisions regarding a special reconciliation process applicable to the House as well as the Senate. Title VIII: Social Security Surplus Protection Act of 1999 - Social Security Surplus Protection Act of 1999 - Amends the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act to provide for a sequestration to eliminate any on-budget deficit (excluding any surplus in the social security trust funds). Provides that such deficit shall not be subject to adjustment for any purpose.

Minority Health and Health Disparities Research and Education Act of 2000

United States · United States Congress · 8 November 1999

Health Care Fairness Act of 1999 - Title I: Improving Minority Health Through the National Institutes of Health - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) the Center for Research on Minority Health and Health Disparities, to be headed by a Director who shall: (1) chair a trans-NIH task force (task force) that will establish a comprehensive plan and budget estimates for minority health that should be conducted or supported by NIH and recommend an appropriate agenda for such research; (2) establish a minority health research information system to track minority-related research, training, and construction; (3) act as the primary Federal official for monitoring all minority health research conducted or supported by NIH; and (4) identify areas of insufficient minority health research at NIH and its institutes and centers, and provide funds to such entities for the awarding of peer-review grants for innovative projects that address high priority areas of minority health research. Provides a fiscal year limit on grant funds. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish an advisory council for providing advice to the Director for carrying out responsibilities under this Act. Requires the Director and task force to: (1) establish a comprehensive plan and budget for conducting and supporting all minority health research activities of NIH agencies; (2) ensure that such plan and budget establish minority health research priorities; (3) ensure that budget amounts are properly expended; and (4) review the plan and budget at least annually. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 through 2004. Directs the Secretary to make grants to, and enter into contracts with, designated biomedical research institutions and other public and nonprofit health or educational entities to assist such entities in supporting programs of excellence in biomedical research education for under-represented minority individuals. Outlines entity requirements and grant conditions, including a grant term limit of five years. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 through 2004. Directs the Secretary to contract with qualified health professionals who agree to engage in minority health research or research into the nature of health disparities that affect racial, ethnic, and indigenous populations, in return for the Federal repayment of up to $35,000 for each year of such research of the principal and interest of educational loans of such health professionals. Requires the Secretary to ensure the active participation of appropriately qualified minority health professionals, including extensive outreach and recruitment efforts. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 through 2004. Requires the Director to report annually to Congress and the Secretary on progress and expenditures made with regard to minority health research. Requires the Secretary to provide administrative and support services to the Director and ensure that such support takes maximum advantage of existing administrative structures at NIH agencies. Requires the use of appropriate scientific expertise and technical assistance. Requires the Secretary to: (1) conduct an evaluation of minority health research programs at NIH institutes; and (2) report to specified congressional committees on evaluation results. Title II: Medical Education - Authorizes the Secretary to award grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements to public and private nonprofit entities to carry out research and demonstration projects which develop curricula to reduce disparity in health care outcomes, including cultural competency in graduate and undergraduate health professions education. Outlines eligibility requirements and grant conditions, including a maximum of 20 grants and a term limit of three years. Directs the Secretary to award up to 20 grants, contracts, or agreements to eligible entities to establish demonstration projects which develop curricula to reduce minority disparity in health care and health care outcomes (health care disparity) as part of continuing medical education. Limits such grants, contracts, or agreements to a three-year term. Requires monitoring of awardees. Requires a report from the Secretary to Congress on the effectiveness of such programs. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 through 2003. (Sec. 202) Directs the Secretary to convene a national conference on continuing health professions education as a method for reducing health care disparity, including continuing medical education on cultural competency. Requires the publication of conference findings. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 203) Directs the Secretary to establish a committee to advise the Secretary on matters related to development, implementation, and evaluation of graduate and continuing education curricula for health care professionals to decrease the health care disparity. Terminates the committee four years after appointment of its first member. (Sec. 204) Requires the Director of the Office of Minority Health within HHS to establish within the Resource Center of such Office, or through the awarding of a contract provide for the establishment of, an information clearinghouse for curricula to reduce racial and ethnic health care disparity. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Minority Health Research by the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research - Directs the Administrator of the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research to: (1) conduct and support research for improving the quality and outcomes of health care services for minority populations and the causes of such health care disparities; (2) identify, test, and evaluate strategies for eliminating such disparities; and (3) endeavor to increase the number of minority health care researchers and health services research capacity of institutions that train minority health care researchers. Authorizes the use of demonstration projects as part of such research. Requires the Administrator to support the development of measures that assess the experience of minority populations with health care systems. Requires a report from the Secretary to the appropriate congressional committees describing quality measurement for minority populations which will identify critical unmet needs and activities to address those needs. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2000 through 2004. Title IV: Data Collection Relating to Race or Ethnicity - Directs the Secretary to contract with the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a comprehensive study of HHS data collection systems and practices relating to the collection of data on race or ethnicity, including other Federal data collection systems with which HHS interacts. Requires a report from the Academy to specified congressional committees on study results and recommendations. Authorizes appropriations. Title V: Public Awareness - Directs the Secretary to conduct a national media campaign for informing the public about racial and ethnic health care disparities. Authorizes appropriations.

Federal Reports Elimination and Sunset Act Amendments of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 8 November 1999

Federal Reports Elimination and Sunset Act Amendments of 1999 - Makes a provision of the Federal Reports Elimination and Sunset Act of 1995 which terminates on December 31, 1999, all reporting requirements on a list prepared by the Clerk of the House of Representatives for the first session of the 103d Congress inapplicable to certain reporting requirements under specified Federal provisions and Acts, including: (1) all laws relating to the budget of the U.S. Government; (2) the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985; (3) a decennial census report required of the President; (4) requirements concerning the disposition of excess Federal personal property under the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act; and (5) certain fiscal policy and budget authority proposal reports under the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974.

State Flexibility Clarification Act

United States · United States Congress · 8 November 1999

State Flexibility Clarification Act - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to require a congressional committee report on a public bill or joint resolution that includes a Federal intergovernmental mandate that reduces the Federal Government's responsibility to provide funding to State, local, or tribal governments under the then-existing program, to include in such report a statement of how the committee specifically intends the States to implement the reduction and to what extent the legislation provides additional flexibility, if any, to offset it. Requires the Director of the Congressional Budget Office to include in the estimate statement required with respect to such legislation: (1) if no additional flexibility is provided in the legislation, a description of whether and how the States can offset the reduction under existing law; or (2) if additional flexibility is provided, whether the resulting savings would offset the reductions in that program, assuming the States fully implement such flexibility.

Conservation and Reinvestment Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 8 November 1999

Conservation and Reinvestment Act of 1999 - Requires: (1) Governors of each State receiving monies from the Conservation and Reinvestment Act Fund (established under this Act) to report on June 15 of each year to the Secretaries of the Interior or of Agriculture, as appropriate, accounting for the money received for the previous fiscal year, including the funded projects and activities; and (2) the Secretary of the Interior to report annually to Congress on monies the Departments of the Interior and of Agriculture have spent out of the Fund, including a summary of such Governors' reports. (Sec. 5) Establishes the Conservation and Reinvestment Act Fund (CRAF). Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to deposit into CRAF certain Outer Continental Shelf revenues, undisbursed amounts under title I of this Act, and certain interest earned on CRAF investments. Transfers all amounts deposited into the CRAF as follows: (1) to the Secretary of the Interior for payment of $1 billion to States for impact assistance and coastal conservation, $125 million for the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978, $100 million for the National Historic Preservation Act, and $50 million to develop and implement Endangered and Threatened Species Recovery Agreements; (2) to the Secretaries of the Interior and of Agriculture for payment of $200 million for Federal and Indian land restoration; (3) to the Secretary of Agriculture $100 million to carry out the conservation easement program under this Act; (4) to the Land and Water Conservation Fund in the amount of $900 million; and (5) to the Federal Aid to Wildlife Restoration Fund (FAWRF) established under the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act in the amount of $350 million. Provides that any shortfalls less than $2.825 billion in a fiscal year, after FY 2000, proportionally reduce such sums for that fiscal year. (Sec. 6) Limits the amount available for administrative expenses to two percent. Provides that nothing in this Act shall affect the prohibition contained in the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (as amended by this Act) that bars the use of funds transferred to the FAWRF by this Act for administrative or execution of program expenses. (Sec. 7) Declares that receipts and disbursements of funds shall be off-budget. (Sec. 9) Prohibits a State or local government from receiving funds under this Act during any fiscal year: (1) when its expenditures of non-Federal funds for recurrent expenditures for programs for which such funding is provided will be less than its expenditures were for such programs during the preceding fiscal year; or (2) for a program unless the Secretary of the Interior is satisfied that such a grant will be used to supplement and, to the extent practicable, increase the level of State, local, or other non-Federal funds available for such program. Exempts a State or local government from such prohibition if the Secretary determines that a reduction in expenditures is attributable to a non-selective reduction in the expenditures in the programs of all executive branch agencies of such entity. Treats all funds received by a State or local government under this Act as Federal funds for purposes of compliance with provisions in effect under other law requiring that non-Federal funds be used to provide a portion of the funding for any program or project. (Sec. 10) Prohibits: (1) the taking of private property in whole or in part, without just compensation; and (2) Federal agencies, using funds appropriated by this Act, from applying any regulation on any lands until the lands or water or an interest therein is acquired, unless authorized to do so by another Act of Congress. (Sec. 11) Requires the Secretary of the Interior to design a standardized sign and, where appropriate, require its installation at sites receiving funds under this Act. Title I: Impact Assistance and Coastal Conservation - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to allocate such transferred CRAF payments to coastal States for impact assistance and coastal conservation only if such States have: (1) a Secretary-approved Coastal State Conservation and Impact Assistance Plan; (2) agreed to provide specified reports; and (3) certain necessary fiscal control and fund accounting procedures. (Sec. 101) Sets forth the formula for allocating such funds to coastal States and coastal political subdivisions. (Sec. 102) Requires the development and submission of a Coastal State Conservation and Impact Assistance Plan by each coastal State seeking to receive grants under this title (and in the case of a producing State, the Governor) to incorporate the plans of the coastal political subdivisions into the Statewide plan for transmittal to the Secretary of the Interior for approval or disapproval before the disbursement of CRAF funds. Specifies authorized uses of the CRAF funds. Title II: Land and Water Conservation Fund Revitalization - Amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to provide that all CRAF funds transferred to the Land and Water Conservation Fund shall be covered into the Fund. (Sec. 203) Makes $900 million available each fiscal year after FY 2001 for expenditure without further appropriation, to be allocated as follows: (1) 50 percent for Federal purposes; and (2) 50 percent for State grants. (Sec. 205) Prohibits the obligation or expenditure of the Federal portion of such funds for any land or water interest acquisition except those specified and approved by Congress in the appropriate appropriations Act. Prescribes: (1) a procedure for preparing and transmitting to Congress of a list of proposed Federal acquisitions; and (2) notification to specified officials of affected areas with respect to such proposed acquisitions. (Sec. 206) Revises the formula used to allocate amounts made available for State purposes from the Fund each fiscal year. Makes all federally recognized Indian tribes, or in the case of Alaska, Native Corporations eligible to receive shares of such apportionment in accordance with a competitive grant program established by the Secretary of the Interior. Requires each State, with an exception, to make available as grants to local governments at least 50 percent of its annual apportionment or an equivalent amount made available from other sources. (Sec. 207) Revises the requirement that a State have a comprehensive statewide outdoor recreation plan as a prerequisite to consideration by the Secretary of the Interior of financial assistance for acquisition or development projects. Allows each State to define its own priorities and criteria for selection of outdoor conservation and recreation acquisition and development projects eligible for grants under this Act if the priorities and criteria defined are consistent with the purposes of this Act, the State provides for public involvement in this process, and publishes an accurate and current State Action Agenda for Community Conservation and Recreation, within five years after enactment of this Act, indicating the needs it has identified and the priorities and criteria it has established. Allows an existing Comprehensive State Plan to remain in effect until the appropriate State adopts a State Action Agenda. (Sec. 209) Requires the Secretary to approve, subject to certain conditions, the conversion of property (other than for public outdoor recreation use) acquired or developed with assistance under the Act only if the State demonstrates no prudent or feasible alternative exists. Exempts from such requirement those properties that no longer meet the criteria within the State Plan or Agenda as an outdoor conservation and recreation facility due to changes in demographics, or that must be abandoned because of environmental contamination which endangers public health and safety. (Sec. 210) Provides that nothing in this title shall affect any State or Federal water law or an interstate compact governing water, alter any allocations of water rights, or create any new water rights. Title III: Wildlife Conservation and Restoration - Amends the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (FAWRA) to require CRAF funds transferred for FAWRA purposes to be deposited in a new subaccount in the FAWRF, to be made available without further appropriation, for apportionment in each fiscal year for State wildlife conservation and restoration programs. (Sec. 304) Sets forth requirements for: (1) apportionment of such subaccount funds; (2) applications for approval of, and development grants for, State wildlife conservation and restoration programs; and (3) coordination. Prohibits such funds from being used for expenses incurred in the administration and execution of programs. Limits to ten percent the use of such funds for wildlife-associated recreation. (Sec. 305) Allows the subaccount funds to be used for a wildlife conservation education program. Exempts education efforts, projects, or programs that promote or encourage opposition to the regulated taking of wildlife. (Sec. 306) Prohibits a State from receiving FAWRA matching funds if it diverts any funds from wildlife conservation purposes. Title IV: Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Program Amendments - Amends the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978 to make transferred CRAF funds available to the Secretary of the Interior, without further appropriation, to assist local governments in improving their park and recreation systems. Sets forth limits on the use of such funds. (Sec. 404) Provides for the development of new recreation areas and facilities (including the acquisition of lands for such development) under the urban park and recreation recovery program. (Sec. 406) Revises requirements for: (1) Federal assistance grant eligibility; (2) matching grants to local governments for rehabilitation, development, acquisition, and innovation purposes; (3) local park and recreation recovery action programs; (4) State action incentives; and (5) conversion of recreation property for any other purposes other than public recreation purposes. (Sec. 411) Repeals sunset provisions and congressional reporting requirements with respect to: (1) the impact of the urban park and recreation recovery program; and (2) the annual achievements of the innovation grant program. Title V: Historic Preservation Fund - Amends the National Historic Preservation Act to provide that amounts transferred from the CRAF each fiscal year shall be deposited into the Historic Preservation Fund to be available without further appropriation to carry out the Act. (Sec. 501) Requires at least one half of the funds obligated or expended each fiscal year under this Act to be used for preservation projects on historic properties (giving priority to the preservation of endangered historic properties). (Sec. 502) Authorizes a State to provide financial assistance to the management entity for any national heritage area or national heritage corridor to support cooperative historic preservation planning and development. Title VI: Federal and Indian Lands Restoration - Makes CRAF funds transferred to the Secretaries of the Interior and of Agriculture available to be used as a dedicated source of funding for a coordinated program on Federal and Indian lands to restore degraded lands, protect resources that are threatened with degradation, and protect public health and safety. Allocates: (1) 60 percent to the Secretary of the Interior for lands within the National Park System, National Wildlife Refuge System, and public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management; (2) 30 percent to the Secretary of Agriculture for lands within the National Forest System; and (3) ten percent to the Secretary of the Interior for competitive grants to qualified Indian tribes (giving priority to projects based upon the protection of significant resources, the severity of damages or threats to resources, and the protection of public health). (Sec. 603) Requires the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture to: (1) each establish priority lists for the use of funds (giving priority to projects based upon the protection of significant resources, the severity of damages or threats to resources, and the protection of public health or safety); and (2) jointly establish a coordinated program for tracking the progress of activities carried out with amounts made available by this title and determining the extent to which demonstrable results are being achieved. Title VII: Conservation Easements and Endangered and Threatened Species Recovery - Subtitle A: Conservation Easements - Provides that CRAF funds transferred to the Secretary under title V of this Act in a fiscal year shall be available to the Secretary, without further appropriations, to carry out this subtitle. (Sec. 704) Directs the Secretary of the Interior to establish and carry out a Conservation Easement Program for making grants to State or local governments, Indian tribes, and certain private organizations to provide the Federal share of up to 50 percent of the total cost of purchasing permanent conservation easements in lands with prime, unique, or other productive uses. Subtitle B: Endangered and Threatened Species Recovery - Makes CRAF funds transferred from the CRAF for this title in a fiscal year available to the Secretary of the Interior without further appropriations, in that fiscal year, to provide financial assistance to persons for development and implementation of Endangered and Threatened Species Recovery Agreements entered into under this title. Requires the Secretary to give priority to the development and implementation of Agreements that: (1) implement actions identified under recovery plans approved by the Secretary; (2) have the greatest potential for contributing to the recovery of an endangered or threatened species; and (3) require use of the assistance on land owned by a small landowner or on a family farm by its owner or operator. (Sec. 713) Prohibits the Secretary from providing financial assistance for any action that is required by a permit or an incidental take statement issued under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 or that is otherwise required under Federal law. (Sec. 714) Authorizes the Secretary to enter into such Agreements and sets forth Agreement requirements, including: (1) requiring activities not otherwise mandated by law that contribute to species recovery; and (2) specifying species recovery goals. Requires the Secretary to review Agreements in compliance, periodically monitor the implementation of each Agreement, and disburse financial assistance to implement the Agreement.

To exempt certain reports from automatic elimination and sunset pursuant to the Federal Reports and Elimination and Sunset Act of 1995.

United States · United States Congress · 5 November 1999

Exempts certain reports within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Education and the Workforce from automatic elimination and sunset provisions under the Federal Reports and Elimination and Sunset Act of 1995. Includes among such reports those submitted under specified provisions of: (1) the General Education Provisions Act, on effectiveness of applicable programs; (2) the Department of Education Organization Act, on Departmental activities; (3) the Higher Education Act of 1965, on the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Evaluation and Integrity, waivers, budget submissions, audits, notices of failures to comply with master calendar deadlines, the student loan data system, and the Javits Fellows Program Fellowship Board; (4) the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965, on the state of the arts and of the humanities in the Nation, and activities of the National Endowments of the Arts and of the Humanities; (5) the Arts and Artifacts Indemnity Act, on certification of validity of claims, and to claims and contracts; (6) the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science Act, on activities of the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science; (7) the Education of the Deaf Act of 1986, on certain indirect costs; (8) the United States Institute of Peace Act, on audits and progress; (9) the Education Amendments of 1978, on review of or proposed closure or consolidation of schools operated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), plans to bring Indian educational facilities into compliance with health and safety standards, the status of educational programs administered by the BIA, and educational problems encountered; (10) the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 1988, on applications received and actions taken on grants for tribally controlled schools; (11) the Helen Keller National Center Act, on evaluation of such Center's operation; (12) the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, on activities, program performance analysis, the status of disability policy, the Access Board, and the Interagency Disability Coordinating Council; (13) the National Labor Relations Act, on case activities and operations of the National Labor Relations Board; (14) the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), on variances granted for vesting or funding, status of enforcement cases, and recommendations received from the Advisory Council or for further legislation; (15) ERISA, on Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) financial statements, activities, and actuarial evaluations; (16) the Head Start Act, operation of Head Start programs; and (17) the Inspector General Act, on audits conducted by the Office of the Inspector General, and on reasons for removal or transfer of the Inspector General, for the PBGC, the Department of Labor, or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Unterstützung und Förderung junger Unternehmen; Rücknahme der Kürzung der Mittel für Forschung und Entwicklung im Mittelstand im Haushalt des BMWi (G-SIG: 14041170)

Germany · German Bundestag · 5 November 1999

Hilfe für mittlere Unternehmen auf den europäischen und internationalen Märkten; Rücknahme der im Haushalt 2000 des BMWi für Außenwirtschaftsförderung vorgesehenen Kürzungen (G-SIG: 14041164)

Germany · German Bundestag · 5 November 1999

Millennium Digital Commerce Act

United States · United States Congress · 4 November 1999

Millennium Digital Commerce Act - Declares that an interstate contract transaction shall not be denied legal effect solely because an electronic signature or electronic record was used in its formation. Authorizes parties to an interstate transaction to determine the appropriate electronic signature technologies for their transaction, and the means of implementing such technologies. Denies the legal effect of an electronic record of a contract required by law to be in writing, unless it is delivered to all parties in a form that can be: (1) retained for later reference; and (2) used to prove agreement terms. Provides exclusions. Prohibits a contract relating to a commercial transaction from being denied legal effect solely because its formation involved electronic agents (computers or other automated means). States as the specific intent of Congress that this section apply to the business of insurance. Directs the Federal Government, to the extent practicable, to observe certain principles governing the use of electronic signatures in international commercial transactions, including to: (1) remove paper-based obstacles to electronic transactions by adopting relevant principles from the Model Law on Electronic Commerce adopted in 1996 by the UN Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL); (2) permit parties to a transaction to determine the appropriate authentication technologies for such transactions, with assurance that they will be recognized and enforced; (3) permit such parties to have the opportunity to prove in court that such authentication approaches and transactions are valid; and (4) take a nondiscriminatory approach to electronic signatures and authentication methods from other jurisdictions. Directs each Federal agency to report to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the Secretary of Commerce on any provision of law administered, or regulation issued, by it that imposes a barrier to electronic transactions. Requires the Secretary to report to Congress concerning any legislation needed or Executive or Federal agency action being taken to remove such barriers.

Social Security Solvency Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 3 November 1999

Social Security Solvency Act of 1999 - Title I: Individual Retirement Security Program - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to create a new Individual Retirement Security Program (Program) in which a covered individual and spouse, upon the attainment of a minimum deposit balance of $2,500 in the Interim Investment Fund (IIF) established by this Act in the Treasury and governed by the Board (Board) of Trustees of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund, may designate one or more personal retirement savings accounts to which the Secretary of the Treasury shall make deposits from the IIF with respect to the individual according to prescribed formulae. (Sec. 101) Directs the Commissioner of Social Security to conduct a public education effort regarding the Program. Mandates that the Board divide the IIF into three accounts for investment in common stock and corporate bonds according to prescribed guidelines. Requires the Secretary to deposit into the IIF, from amounts otherwise available in the general fund of the Treasury, a total amount equal, in the aggregate, to 100 percent of the redirected social security taxes for such calendar year of each covered individual for such calendar year. (Sec. 102) Requires a reduction in Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance appropriations, according to a certain formula. Directs the Board of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund to publish in the Federal Register each year the reallocation percentage (calculated according to a specified formula) for amounts otherwise appropriated to the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund from Federal Insurance Contributions Act taxes imposed with regard to wages and self-support income for the fiscal year beginning on October 1 of each calendar year. (Sec. 103) Provides for adjustments to primary OASDI insurance amounts of such covered individuals with designated accounts in the IIF. (Sec. 104) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax deduction in the case of an electing personal retirement savings account participant in an amount equal to 50 percent (up to $2,000) of the amount the individual contributed during the taxable year to a personal retirement savings account maintained for the individual's benefit, regardless of whether or not the taxpayer itemizes other deductions. Excludes from gross income any amount deposited in a personal retirement savings account. Includes distributions in gross income as if they were social security benefits. Allows an excise tax on excess contributions to a personal retirement savings account. Title II: Social Security Surplus Protection - Amends SSA title II to provide for transfers of budget surpluses to the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund for FY 2001 through 2009. (Sec. 202) Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to mandate the sequestration of the estimated net surplus in the social security trust funds for the budget year, less the transfers made above to reduce the public debt and to provide for associated reports regarding such sequestration. Title III: Social Security Benefit Reforms - Amends SSA title II to provide for: (1) a gradual increase in retirement age and early retirement age; (2) adjustments to bend points in determining primary insurance amounts; (3) information relating to benefit limitations in social security account statements; (4) coverage of newly hired State and local employees; (5) an increase in widow's and widower's insurance benefits; (6) elimination of the limitation on the amount of outside income (earnings test) which a beneficiary may earn without incurring a reduction in benefits for individuals who have attained retirement age; (7) acceleration of increase in delayed retirement credit; and (8) authorization for reimbursement of Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund for certain costs of disability insurance benefits. (Sec. 309) Directs the Commissioner of Social Security to study and report to the Congress on the most appropriate and feasible means of providing for elections under which individuals may opt for exclusion from OASDI coverage.

166 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the discretionary and non-discretionary elements of the ODA budget for the past three years; the figures agreed for both categories under the multi-annual budgeting agreement announced in December 1998; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21848/99]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 2 November 1999

166 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the discretionary and non-discretionary elements of the ODA budget for the past three years; the figures agreed for both categories under the multi-annual budgeting agreement announced in December 1998; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21848/99]

166 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the discretionary and non-discretionary elements of the ODA budget for the past three years; the figures agreed for both categories under the multi-annual budgeting agreement announced in December 1998; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21848/99]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 2 November 1999

166 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the discretionary and non-discretionary elements of the ODA budget for the past three years; the figures agreed for both categories under the multi-annual budgeting agreement announced in December 1998; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21848/99]

Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2000

United States · United States Congress · 2 November 1999

Hr3194-dgst-00 ................ Hr3064-48-02 10/27/99 Conf. Rept. 106-419 Abd ............ H.R.3064 (Major Legislation) SPONSOR: Rep Istook, Ernest J., Jr. (introduced 10/13/99) SUMMARY: (REVISED AS OF 10/15/99 -- Passed Senate, amended) District of Columbia Appropriations Act, 2000 - Title I: Fiscal Year 2000 Appropriations - Makes appropriations for the District of Columbia for FY 2000, including amounts for the Federal payments: (1) for District of Columbia Resident Tuition Support; (2) for incentives for adoption of children; (3) to the Citizens Complaint Review Board; (4) to the Department of Human Services; (5) to the District of Columbia Corrections Trustee Operations; (6) to the District of Columbia Courts; (7) for Defender Services in District of Columbia Courts; (9) to the Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency for the District of Columbia; (10) to the Children's National Medical Center; and (11) for the Metropolitan Police Department. Appropriates specified sums out of the District's general fund (and other funds, in some cases) for the current fiscal year for: (1) governmental direction and support; (2) economic development and regulation; (3) public safety and justice; (4) the public education system; (5) human support services; (6) public works; (7) receivership programs; (8) workforce investments; (9) a reserve to be established by the Chief Financial Officer of the District and the District of Columbia Financial Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority (Authority); (10) the Authority itself; (11) repayment of certain loans and interest; (12) repayment of General Fund Recovery Debt; (13) payment of interest on short-term borrowing; (14) lease payments in accordance with the Certificates of Participation involving the land site underlying the building located at One Judiciary Square; and (15) optical and dental insurance payments. Directs the Chief Financial Officer to: (1) finance projects totaling $20 million in local funds (Productivity Bank) that result in cost savings or additional revenues by an amount equal to such financing; (2) make reductions totaling $20 million in local funds to be allocated to projects funded through the Productivity Bank that produce such cost savings or additional revenues; and (3) make reductions of specified amounts for general supply schedule savings and for management reform savings, in local funds to one or more of the appropriation headings in this Act. Requires quarterly reports by the Mayor on such financial activities to specified congressional committees. Appropriates specified sums for: (1) the Water and Sewer Authority and the Washington Aqueduct; (2) the Lottery and Charitable Games Enterprise Fund; (3) the Sports and Entertainment Commission; (4) the D.C. Health and Hospitals Public Benefit Corporation; (5) the D.C. Retirement Board; (6) the Correctional Industries Fund; (7) the Washington Convention Center Enterprise Fund; and (8) capital outlay (including rescissions). Sets forth authorizations as well as limitations and prohibitions on the uses of appropriations under this Act, and directives to the Mayor, the Council, and the Board of Education identical with or similar to those in the District of Columbia Appropriations Act, 1999. (Sec. 130) Prohibits the expenditure of funds appropriated under this Act for abortions except where the mother's life would be endangered if the fetus were carried to term or in cases of rape or incest. (Sec. 131) Bars the use of funds made available by this Act to implement or enforce: (1) the District of Columbia Health Care Benefits Expansion Act of 1992 (also known as the District Domestic Partner Act); or (2) any system of registration of unmarried, cohabiting couples for purposes of extending them benefits on the same basis as such benefits are extended to legally married couples. (Sec. 142) Requires recipients of funds under this Act to comply with the Buy American Act. Expresses the sense of Congress that, to the greatest extent practicable, such funds should be used to purchase only American-made equipment and products. Declares a person ineligible to receive any contract made with funds provided under this Act if the person has been judicially determined to have intentionally affixed a "Made in America" label to a product that is not U.S.-made. (Sec. 147) Prohibits the use of funds contained in this Act to transfer or confine inmates classified above the medium security level, as defined by the Federal Bureau of Prisons classification instrument, to the Northeast Ohio Correctional Center located in Youngstown, Ohio. (Sec. 149) Requires the Chief Financial Officer, by November 1, 1999, or within 30 calendar days after the enactment of this Act, to submit to the appropriate congressional committees, the Mayor, and the Authority, a revised appropriated funds operating budget for all District government agencies for such fiscal year that is in the total amount of the approved appropriation and that realigns budgeted data for personal services and other-than-personal-services, respectively, with anticipated actual expenditures. (Sec. 150) Prohibits the use of funds contained in this Act for: (1) any program of distributing sterile needles or syringes for the hypodermic injection of any illegal drug, or for any payment to any individual or entity who carries out such program; or (2) rental payments under a lease for the use of real property by the District government, or to enter a lease, or purchase or manage real property for the District, unless specified conditions are met. (Sec. 152) Terminates such conditioned prohibition on the use of funds contained in this Act to lease, purchase, or manage real property for the District if the District enacts legislation to reform the practices and procedures governing such activities and disposition of its surplus real property. (Sec. 153) Amends the Student Loan Marketing Association Reorganization Act of 1996 to provide funding for public charter school construction and repair in the District. Sets aside a specified amount for use as a credit enhancement fund for such schools. (Sec. 154) Requires the Mayor, the Authority, and the Superintendent of Schools to implement a process to dispose of excess public school real property within 90 days of the enactment of this Act. (Sec. 155) Amends the District of Columbia School Reform Act of 1995 to: (1) extend the Act indefinitely; and (2) grant sibling preference to applicants seeking enrollment in public charter schools in the District. (Sec. 157) Transfers from the Authority to the District a specified sum for: (1) severance payments to individuals separated from employment during FY 2000; (2) expanded contracting authority of the Mayor; and (3) the implementation of a system of managed competition among public and private providers of goods and services by and on behalf of the District. (Sec. 158) Requires the Authority, working with the Commonwealth of Virginia and the Director of the National Park Service, to carry out a project to complete all design requirements and all requirements for compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act for construction of expanded lane capacity for the Fourteenth Street Bridge. Transfers a specified limited amount to the Authority from the District's dedicated highway fund for the project. (Sec. 159) Requires the Mayor to carry out, through the Army Corps of Engineers, an Anacostia River environmental cleanup program. (Sec. 160) Amends the Victims of Violent Crime Compensation Act of 1996 (the Act) to: (1) prohibit payment of administrative costs from the Crime Victims Compensation Fund; and (2) limit the use of such Fund to compensation and attorneys' fees awarded under the Act. Provides that: (1) the Fund shall be maintained as a separate Fund in the Treasury; (2) all amounts deposited to the credit of the Fund are appropriated without fiscal year limitation to make payments as authorized under the Act; and (3) the Fund shall also consist of any other fines, fees, penalties, or assessments that the Court determines necessary to carry out the purposes of the Fund. Transfers any unobligated balance existing in the Fund in excess of $250,000 as of the end of each fiscal year (beginning with FY 2000) to miscellaneous receipts of the Treasury within 30 days after the end of the fiscal year. Ratifies any payments made from or deposits made to the Fund on or after April 9, 1997, to the extent such payments and deposits are authorized under the Act. (Sec. 161) Prohibits the use of funds contained in this Act 60 days after its enactment to pay the salary of any chief financial officer of any District government office who has not filed a certification with the Mayor and the Chief Financial Officer of the District that the officer understands the duties and restrictions applicable as a result of this Act or its amendments. (Sec. 162) Requires the proposed FY 2001 budget of the District government to specify potential adjustments that might become necessary in the event that the management savings achieved by the District during the year do not meet the level of management savings projected. (Sec. 163) Requires any document showing the budget for a District government office that contains specified labels categorizing activities to include descriptions of the types of activities covered and a detailed breakdown of the amount allocated for each one. (Sec. 164) Provides that, in using the funds made available for improvements to specified Federal properties in the Southwest Waterfront of the District, any District government entity may place orders for engineering and construction and related services with the Chief of Engineers of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on a reimbursable and, if applicable, contractual basis. Transfers to the Mayor from the Authority a specified amount from the escrow account held by the Authority for the District's infrastructure needs to be used by the Mayor for such improvements. Requires the Mayor to submit quarterly reports to specified congressional committees on the status of the improvements until they are completed. (Sec. 165) Expresses the sense of Congress that the District should not impose or take into consideration any height, square footage, set-back, or other construction or zoning requirements in authorizing the issuance of industrial revenue bonds for a project of the American National Red Cross at 2025 E Street Northwest, Washington, D.C., because this project is subject to approval of the National Capital Planning Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts. (Sec. 166) Amends the National Capital Revitalization and Self-Government Improvement Act of 1997 (the Act) to permit the District of Columbia Offender Supervision, Defender, and Courts Services Agency to carry out sex offender registration functions in the District. Authorizes the Pretrial Services, Parole, Adult Probation and Offender Supervision Trustee appointed under the Act to exercise, during the Agency's transition to full operation, the powers and functions of the Agency relating to sex offender registration, but only upon the Trustee's certification that the Trustee is able to assume such powers and functions. Vests such authority in the Metropolitan Police Department until the Trustee makes such certification. (Sec. 167) Prohibits the use of funds contained in this Act to enact or carry out any law, rule, or regulation to legalize or otherwise reduce penalties associated with the possession, use, or distribution of any schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act or any tetrahydrocannabinols (THC) derivative. Provides that the Legalization of Marijuana for Medical Treatment Initiative of 1998, also known as Initiative 59, approved by the electors of the District on November 3, 1998, shall not take effect. (Sec. 168) Transfers to the District from the Authority a specified amount for the Mayor to provide offsets against local taxes for a commercial revitalization program to be available in enterprise zones and low and moderate income areas in the District, provided that the Mayor uses Federal commercial revitalization proposals introduced in Congress as a guideline. (Sec. 169) Amends the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to transfer to the Mayor the Authority's duty with respect to annually developing and submitting to specified congressional committees a performance accountability plan for the District government, and annually reporting to such committees on the performance of the government's activities. (Sec. 170) Declares the sense of Congress that, in considering the District of Columbia's FY 2001 budget, the Congress will take into consideration progress or lack of progress in addressing specified issues, including crime, access to drug abuse treatment, management of parolees and pretrial violent offenders, education, improvement in basic city services, application for and management of Federal grants, and indicators of child well-being. (Sec. 171) Urges the Mayor, before using Federal Medicaid payments to Disproportionate Share Hospitals (DSH) to serve a small number of childless adults, to consider the recommendations of the Health Care Development Commission. (Sec. 172) Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on the law enforcement, court, prison, probation, parole, and other components of the criminal justice system of the District of Columbia in order to identify the components most in need of additional resources, including financial, personal, and management resources. (Sec. 173) Declares that nothing in this Act bars the District of Columbia Corporation Counsel from reviewing or commenting on briefs in private lawsuits, or from consulting with officials of the District government regarding such lawsuits. (Sec. 174) Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the National Park Service, to implement the notice of decision approved by the National Capital Regional Director, dated April 7, 1999, including issuance of right-of-way permits at market rates within seven days after enactment of this Act, subject to judicial review. Declares that any Federal agency receiving an application to locate a wireless communications antenna on Federal property in the District of Columbia or surrounding area over which the Federal agency exercises control shall take final action on the application, including action on the issuance of right-of-way permits at market rates. (Sec. 175) Amends the Department of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 2000 (the Act) to provide that out of funds appropriated to the Department of Housing and Urban Development for Community Development block grants a specified amount shall be available as a grant for the Special Olympics in Anchorage, Alaska, to develop the Ben Boeke Arena and Hilltop Ski Area. Increases the amount made available for grants for the Economic Development Initiative for making individual grants for targeted economic investments. Deems the statement of the managers of the committee of conference accompanying the Act to be amended under the heading "Community Development Block Grants" to include specified targeted economic development initiatives. Makes specified funds made available for Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to redevelop the Sun Co. - LTV Steel Site in Hazelwood, Pennsylvania, available to the Department of Economic Development in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, for the development of a technology based project in the county. Amends the Act and the Housing and Community Development Act of 1992 to extend the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development's authority through FY 2000 with respect to mortgage risk-sharing agreements and housing finance agency pilot demonstration programs. Amends the Act and the Public and Assisted Housing Drug Elimination Act of 1990 to revise the definition of "federally-assisted low-income housing" to exclude housing assisted under the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act. Provides that such amendment shall be construed to have taken effect on October 21, 1998. Title II: Tax Reduction - Commends the District of Columbia for its action to reduce taxes. Ratifies the Service Improvement and Fiscal Year 2000 Budget Support Act of 1999.

Kosten der Rettungs- und Bergearbeiten - Tragödie von Lassing

Austria · National Council · 29 October 1999

Schriftliche Anfrage der Abgeordneten Dr. Günther Kräuter, Kolleginnen und Kollegen an den Bundesminister für wirtschaftliche Angelegenheiten betreffend Kosten der Rettungs- und Bergearbeiten im Zusammenhang mit der Tragödie von Lassing

Bundesrechnungsabschluss für das Jahr 1998

Austria · National Council · 29 October 1999

Bundesrechnungsabschluss für das Jahr 1998 <br><br><br><br>Titeländerung:<br><br>Bundesgesetz über die Genehmigung des Bundesrechnungsabschlusses für das Jahr 1998

Umweltschutz und Senkung der Lohnnebenkosten durch Umsetzung einer ökosozialen Steuerreform

Austria · National Council · 29 October 1999

Antrag der Abgeordneten Dr. Van der Bellen Alexander, Kolleginnen und Kollegen betreffend Umweltschutz und Senkung der Lohnnebenkosten durch Umsetzung einer ökosozialen Steuerreform

Finanzmittel im Bundeshaushalt 1999 für die Türkei (G-SIG: 14051196)

Germany · German Bundestag · 29 October 1999

Strengthening Social Security and Medicare Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 28 October 1999

Strengthening Social Security and Medicare Act of 1999 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to make additional appropriations, in amounts prescribed by a specified formula, and allocated between the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund (Trust Funds), through FY 2016 to assure that the interest savings on the public debt achieved as a result of Social Security surpluses from 2000 to 2015 are dedicated to Social Security solvency. Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to make it out of order in Congress to consider any budget resolution that would: (1) set forth an on-budget deficit for any fiscal year; or (2) decrease the on-budget surplus below a level of Medicare surplus reserve determined according to a certain formula, except for any portion of such reserve appropriated in new amounts for Medicare prescription drug benefits, or to the Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund. Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm- Rudman-Hollings Act) to extend: (1) discretionary spending limits in specified amounts; (2) the pay-as-you-go requirement; (3) the Act itself; and (4) the Social Security firewall. Declares that any legislation that would reduce, reverse, or repeal the transfers to the Trust Funds made by this Act shall not be counted on the pay-as-you-go scorecard and shall not be included in any pay- as-you-go estimates of the Congressional Budget Office or the Office of Management and Budget under the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act.

Federal Research Investment Act

United States · United States Congress · 28 October 1999

Federal Research Investment Act - Calls for Federal research and development programs to be conducted in accordance with specified guiding principles with respect to good science, fiscal accountability, program effectiveness, and criteria for government funding. Authorizes aggregate funding levels for civilian research and development (R&D) in specified agencies for FY 2000 through 2010. Sets forth requirements for adjusting amounts received by agencies for which appropriations increase by more than eight percent in a covered fiscal year. Directs the President to include with the annual budget request a report providing: (1) a summary of the total level of Federal funding for R&D throughout all civilian agencies; (2) a strategy reflecting funding projections of this Act; (3) an analysis of funding levels across Federal agencies by funding methodology; and (4) specific proposals for infrastructure development and R&D capacity building in States with less concentrated R&D resources. Requires the Director of the Office of Science Technology Policy to enter into an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a comprehensive study to develop methods for evaluating federally-funded R&D programs. Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), based on study results, to promulgate one or more alternative forms for Federal R&D performance goals. Permits an agency head to apply such an alternative form without further authorization by OMB. Requires agency heads carrying out R&D activities, upon updating a strategic plan, to describe the current and future use of methods for determining an acceptable level of R&D success as recommended by the study. Authorizes appropriations for the study. Requires the OMB Director, based upon program performance reports, to identify the civilian R&D program activities or components which do not meet an acceptable level of success as defined under current law. Directs the head of an agency, for each program activity or component identified as being below the acceptable level of success for two consecutive fiscal years, to submit to the appropriate congressional committees: (1) a concise statement of the steps necessary to bring such program into compliance with performance goals or to terminate such program should compliance efforts fail; and (2) any legislative changes needed to effectuate the steps contained in such statement.

To amend chapter 31 of title 31, United States Code, to require the Secretary of the Treasury to reduce the debt held by the public in fiscal year 2000 by up to the amount of surplus in the Social Security trust funds, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 28 October 1999

Amends Federal law to require the Secretary of the Treasury to reduce the face amount of publicly-held obligations issued under public debt provisions and of those whose principal and interest are guaranteed by the U.S. Government (except guaranteed obligations held by the Secretary) by an amount not to exceed the amount of the social security trust funds surplus in the preceding fiscal year. Defines a "publicly-held obligation" as one subject to the public debt limit, except any obligation issued directly to certain Federal trust funds or Government accounts. Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm- Rudman-Hollings Act) to require, in any fiscal year when such obligations are reduced by an amount less than the amount of such surplus, the shortfall to be included in the calculation of the sequestration required to offset the deficit increase.

Strengthen Social Security and Medicare Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 28 October 1999

Strengthening Social Security and Medicare Act of 1999 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to make additional appropriations, in amounts prescribed by a specified formula, and allocated between the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund (Trust Funds), through FY 2016 to assure that the interest savings on the public debt achieved as a result of Social Security surpluses from 2000 to 2015 are dedicated to Social Security solvency. Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to make it out of order in Congress to consider any budget resolution that would: (1) set forth an on-budget deficit for any fiscal year; or (2) decrease the on-budget surplus below a level of Medicare surplus reserve determined according to a certain formula, except for any portion of such reserve appropriated in new amounts for Medicare prescription drug benefits, or to the Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund. Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm- Rudman-Hollings Act) to extend: (1) discretionary spending limits in specified amounts; (2) the pay-as-you-go requirement; (3) the Act itself; and (4) the Social Security firewall. Declares that any legislation that would reduce, reverse, or repeal the transfers to the Trust Funds made by this Act shall not be counted on the pay-as-you-go scorecard and shall not be included in any pay- as-you-go estimates of the Congressional Budget Office or the Office of Management and Budget under the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act.

Public Interest Declassification Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 27 October 1999

Public Interest Declassification Act of 1999 - Establishes within the National Archives and Records Administration the Public Interest Declassification Board to: (1) direct and provide for the thorough, coordinated, comprehensive, and cost-effective identification, collection, review for declassification, and release to Congress, interested agencies, and the public of records and materials that are of extraordinary public interest; and (2) provide Congress, interested agencies, and the public with the fullest possible access to a documentary record of significant U.S. national security decisions and activities in order to support congressional oversight and legislative functions and executive policymaking, respond to public interest in national security matters, and promote reliable historical analysis and new avenues of historical study in national security matters. (Sec. 4) Authorizes the Board to recommend to the Archivist of the United States that an agency or Federal Presidential library (library) be directed to carry out records and materials identification, collection, and declassification review activities. Requires such agency or library to release records and materials that are unclassified or declassified as a result of such review. (Sec. 5) States that nothing in this Act shall limit the head of an agency to classify information or to continue the classification of information previously classified, or to grant or deny access to a special access program. (Sec. 6) Requires each agency and library that possesses or controls classified records or materials to develop standards and procedures for Board access thereto, as well as appropriate access by Board employees or employees of such agency or library. Provides access limits. Requires an annual activities report from the Board to the congressional intelligence committees. (Sec. 7) States that this Act does not create any right or benefit subject to judicial review. (Sec. 8) Directs the President to include in each annual budget submission a request for amounts for Board activities, including amounts to be transferred to agencies and libraries for activities under this Act. Requires such agency or library to provide the Board an estimate of such costs. Directs the Archivist to transfer to an agency or library the amount recommended by the Board. Authorizes the Board to recommend to the Archivist that additional amounts be transferred to such agency or library to ensure compliance with this Act.