Environment

3 Ms Clune asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the steps, if any, he has taken to examine methods to reduce emissions of the three additional greenhouse gases which were not considered prior to the Kyoto conference in December 1997; the target reductions in emissions of the six gases he is considering; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6054/98]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 5 March 1998

3 Ms Clune asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the steps, if any, he has taken to examine methods to reduce emissions of the three additional greenhouse gases which were not considered prior to the Kyoto conference in December 1997; the target reductions in emissions of the six gases he is considering; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6054/98]

2 Mr. Stagg asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if he will make a submission to the Joint Committee on the Environment and Local Government in advance of the Pan European Conference on the Environment to be held in 1998 in Aarhus, Denmark; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6072/98]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 5 March 1998

2 Mr. Stagg asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if he will make a submission to the Joint Committee on the Environment and Local Government in advance of the Pan European Conference on the Environment to be held in 1998 in Aarhus, Denmark; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6072/98]

1 Mr. Dukes asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if the proposals he announced on 12 January 1998 for significant reductions in tax on vehicles used for public transport will come into effect at the same time as the obligatory increases of 3 per cent in motor taxation which he has imposed on local authorities in 1998 and on 1 January 1999; the amount of the reductions; the effect, if any, they will have on general motor tax revenue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2468/98]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 5 March 1998

1 Mr. Dukes asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government if the proposals he announced on 12 January 1998 for significant reductions in tax on vehicles used for public transport will come into effect at the same time as the obligatory increases of 3 per cent in motor taxation which he has imposed on local authorities in 1998 and on 1 January 1999; the amount of the reductions; the effect, if any, they will have on general motor tax revenue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2468/98]

Sonny Bono Memorial Salton Sea Restoration Act

United States · United States Congress · 5 March 1998

Sonny Bono Memorial Salton Sea Restoration Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Commissioner of Reclamation, to prepare an action plan to restore the Salton Sea, located in Imperial and Riverside Counties, California. Outlines plan requirements, including reducing and stabilizing salinity, stabilizing surface elevation, restoring fish and wildlife resources, and enhancing recreational use and economic development. Requires the plan to include a feasibility study of the various alternatives for such remediation, the development of one or more of such options, and the development of a remediation plan implementing such options. Requires the feasibility study to be completed under a memorandum of understanding between the Secretary, the Salton Sea Authority, and the Governor of California. Preserves all current rights and obligations concerning Colorado River water use. Requires an interim and final report from the Secretary to the Congress on the findings and recommendations of the action plan. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes the Secretary, 30 days after submission of such final report, to carry out a Salton Sea remediation project based on the preferred option recommended in the final report, unless otherwise directed by the Congress. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary, concurrently with the action plan, to enter into contracts, cooperative grants and agreements with Federal and non-federal entities to conduct studies of hydrology, wildlife pathology, and toxicology relating to wildlife resources of the Salton Sea. Directs the Secretary to establish the Salton Sea Research Management Committee to make recommendations to the Secretary on study topics and their management. Authorizes appropriations. Renames the Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge as the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge. Requires the Secretary, if it is determined during such studies that environmental conditions at the Salton Sea warrant immediate emergency action to stabilize salinity, to report to the Congress on such conditions and make recommendations for remediation.

Health Care QUEST Act

United States · United States Congress · 5 March 1998

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Health Quality Oversight Title II: Quality Improvement Title III: Health Care Information Subtitle A: Plan Sponsor Responsibilities Subtitle B: Health Plan Requirements and Consumer Protection Health Care Quality, Education, Security, and Trust Act or Health Care QUEST Act - Title I: Health Quality Oversight - Establishes the Health Quality Council (HQC) to advise the President and the Congress regarding health care quality. (Sec. 102) Prohibits the Chairperson and the Executive Director of HQC from engaging in any other business, vocation, or employment. (Sec. 105) Directs HQC to: (1) serve as a resource for the appropriate congressional committees and the President in providing information and scientific evidence with respect to health care quality and consumer protection legislation; (2) develop (on request) financial and socioeconomic impact statements for health care quality and consumer protection legislation; (3) develop, update, and disseminate population-based benchmarks and indicators of health care quality; (4) provide such committees and the President with national report cards on health care quality; (5) develop recommendations for measuring and reporting quality indicators for use in the fee-for-service market; (6) develop the data sampling methods to be used in data reporting for monitoring quality indicators and health outcomes measures as required under the Public Health Service Act (PHSA), as amended by this Act. (Sec. 109) Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to contract with the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences to conduct studies to: (1) determine what standards should be used in the development of population-based benchmarks against which health care quality can be compared and measured; (2) determine, and validate, the optimal process for establishing such population-based benchmarks; (3) assess the optimal application of population-based benchmarks and how information concerning health care quality should be presented to users, including consumers, providers, and purchasers; (4) analyze the next steps necessary for a national continuous health care quality improvement process; (5) develop recommendations for linking payment for health services to health outcomes measures in order to recognize and reimburse health plans and health care providers that provide quality health care, particularly with respect to individuals with special needs or chronic health problems; and (6) consider the relationship between the need for public information to help consumers make informed health care choices and the processes necessary to create an environment that will promote the use of continuous quality improvement techniques. Requires a report on each such study to the Congress and the President. Requires the General Accounting Office to review periodically the conduct of HQC and report findings to the appropriate congressional committees and the President. (Sec. 110) Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Quality Improvement - Amends PHSA to direct the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) to collect, analyze, and disseminate health care quality information. (Sec. 201) Requires AHCPR to: (1) provide administrative and scientific support to HQC; (2) develop risk and case mix adjustment methodology for use in comparing health outcomes data; (3) compile and publicly disseminate aggregate data regarding health care quality indicators and outcomes; (4) develop a model standard format that may be used by health insurance issuers in reporting; (5) provide assistance in the development of improved information systems, including computerized formats that may be used by health plans in providing specified required information; (6) collect, maintain, and publicly distribute health care quality population-based benchmarks established by HQC; (7) coordinate its activities with respect to health care quality with health plan accrediting bodies, the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics, the National Center for Health Statistics, and State and local governments; and (8) develop survey tools to measure participant and beneficiary satisfaction as required by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). Requires health insurance issuers, group health plans, and health insurance issuers of group health plans to submit aggregate data, without patient identifiers, obtained in the process of reporting quality indicators and health outcomes measures to AHCPR for the purpose of HQC's report. Directs the Secretaries of HHS and of Labor to develop data sampling methods for the submission of such aggregate data, based on HQC recommendation. Authorizes the Secretaries to adopt different data sampling methods, if more cost-reductive or more appropriate, than those recommended by HQC. Title III: Health Care Information - Subtitle A: Plan Sponsor Responsibilities - Amends ERISA to establish requirements for group health plan distribution of information. (Sec. 301) Requires group health plan administrators to furnish to each participant a copy of the most recent summary plan description for each plan option under which the participant or beneficiary may elect to receive benefits: (1) upon employment of the participant or at the time the group health plan first becomes subject to ERISA, whichever is later; and (2) at the beginning of any open enrollment period. Requires such administrators also to provide such descriptions to participants and beneficiaries: (1) at least annually if the plan has been materially modified or amended; and (2) upon the request of a participant or beneficiary. Requires such administrators to notify participants and beneficiaries, within 30 days after the pertinent effective date, of any material changes in: (1) benefit coverage, including any new exclusions from coverage or new optional supplemental coverage (especially the associated premiums, deductibles, coinsurance, copayments for which the enrollee will be responsible, and any annual or lifetime limits on benefits); (2) the health insurance issuer's service area, including any changes in the number, mix, and geographic distribution of participating providers, including specialists; (3) out-of-area coverage or out-of-network services or additional payments required for these services; (4) prior authorization rules; and (5) plan grievance and appeals procedures. Requires a group health plan sponsor to provide to participants and beneficiaries an annual summary report of participant satisfaction and disenrollment rates regarding each enrollment option offered, if such sponsor has: (1) 100 or more participants enrolled in a group health plan during a plan year; and (2) a contracting relationship with the health insurance issuer involved for at least two years. Allows such sponsors to use satisfaction measuring tools developed by AHCPR. Requires group health plan administrators to notify participants and beneficiaries that the plan sponsor: (1) has stopped paying plan premiums or has terminated reimbursement for services covered under the plan, within 30 days after the date of the first nonpayment; or (2) in the case of a plan sponsor involved in a sale or merger, has made changes in the group health plan, by the date on which the plan sponsor's assets are transferred. Directs the Secretary of Labor to establish an Internet site to provide technical support and information concerning ERISA rights of participants and beneficiaries. Subtitle B: Health Plan Requirements And Consumer Protection - Amends PHSA to establish consumer protection standards and consumer information requirements for group health plans. (Sec. 311) Authorizes the Secretary of HHS to exempt a group health plan or a health insurance issuer from compliance with one or more of such standards and requirements if certain requirements are met. Establishes certain health plan comparative information requirements under PHSA. Directs the Secretary of HHS to develop quality indicators and health outcomes measures for use by health insurance issuers in providing such required information, taking into consideration HQC recommendations. Requires such indicators and measures to be consistent where appropriate with requirements applicable to Medicare+Choice health plans under the Social Security Act, while taking into consideration the different populations served (such as children and individuals with disabilities). Authorizes either Secretary to adopt different indicators or measures, if more cost-reductive or more appropriate, than those recommended by HQC. Establishes consumer protection and plan standards for group health plans under PHSA. Sets forth such requirements with respect to: (1) emergency services; (2) advance directives and organ donation; (3) coverage determination, grievances and appeals; and (4) confidentiality and accuracy of participants' and beneficiaries' records. Establishes health care professional protections with respect to group health plans under PHSA. Requires plan provision of specified information to such professionals. Prohibits group health plan organizations or insurance issuers from penalizing health care professionals for advocating on behalf of a patient or for providing information or referral for medical care consistent with the patient's health care needs and with the code of ethical conduct, professional responsibility, conscience, medical knowledge, and license of such professional.

To require additional public education, outreach, and participation with respect to the disposal of napalm and certain other materials owned or controlled by the Department of Defense, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 5 March 1998

Directs the Secretary of Defense to inform the public through an outreach program in communities near a disposal site (within ten miles) and along the disposal shipment route no later than 120 days before the disposal of: (1) napalm; (2) any material that includes polystyrene, gasoline, and benzene; (3) ammunition larger than small- caliber ammunition; or (4) explosives. Requires the Secretary to: (1) establish near the disposal site an outreach office (staffed by Department of Defense personnel) and information repositories; (2) provide a mobile outreach unit to service communities near the site; and (3) establish a Citizens' Advisory Committee to study and comment on disposal issues of concern to the community. Requires the Secretary, before carrying out a disposal project, to certify the training adequacy and capabilities of entities that are likely to respond to an emergency. Directs the Secretary to obtain from the: (1) Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) a certification that the health and welfare of the public and of workers are protected near the site and along the route; and (2) Occupational Safety and Health Administration a certification that the site is safe for disposal workers and that such workers are properly trained for such work. Requires the Secretary, after soliciting appropriate comments, to complete an environmental impact statement for any such disposal project. Directs the Secretary to provide funds to the HHS Secretary to monitor, collect, and review air, soil, and water samples near the site and along the route to ensure the protection during the project of human health and the environment. Requires the Secretary, before carrying out any such project, to study and test alternative technologies for the disposal. Directs the Secretary to obtain scientific and technical advice regarding such disposals from the National Academy of Sciences and to provide funds to the Academy to investigate the safety and performance of any disposal project. Requires the Secretary, for any such project, to develop a master implementation plan, with weekly plan updates, to be made available to the public through the information repositories required under this Act.

Comprehensive One-Call Notification Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 4 March 1998

Comprehensive One-Call Notification Act of 1998 - Provides for the establishment of a State one-call notification program to protect underground facilities from excavation damage. Outlines required elements of the program, including minimum standards and provisions for implementation and enforcement. Authorizes a State to maintain an alternate one-call notification program if it provides protection for public safety, the environment, or excavators that is equivalent to, or greater than, protection under a program that meets the minimum standards of this Act. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to study damage prevention practices associated with existing one-call notification systems in order to determine which systems practices appear to be the most effective in preventing damage to underground facilities and in protecting the public, the environment, excavators, and public service disruption. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to assist qualifying States in improving their one-call notification programs. Authorizes appropriations.

A bill to provide for the conveyance of certain property from the United States to Stanislaus County, California.

United States · United States Congress · 3 March 1998

Directs the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to convey to Stanislaus County, California, specified lands known as the NASA Ames Research Center, Crows Landing Facility. Prohibits such conveyance from relieving Federal agencies of environmental remediation responsibilities. Retains NASA's right to use such property for aviation activities without consideration and on mutually acceptable terms.

Sondergutachten des Rates von Sachverständigen für Umweltfragen Flächendeckend wirksamer Grundwasserschutz; Ein Schritt zur dauerhaft umweltgerechten Entwicklung (G-SIG: 14000214)

Germany · German Bundestag · 3 March 1998

Flächendeckend wirksamer Grundwasserschutz als Mittel einer nachhaltigen Entwicklung, Einwirkungen auf das Grundwasser, Auswirkungen anthropogener Eingriffe auf Ökosysteme und Grundwassernutzung, Konsequenzen auf die Wasseraufbereitung, Handlungsbedarf, Strategien und Maßnahmen

Umweltgutachten 1998 des Rates von Sachverständigen für Umweltfragen Umweltschutz: Erreichtes sichern - Neue Wege gehen (G-SIG: 14000213)

Germany · German Bundestag · 3 March 1998

Umweltpolitische Entscheidungsfindung, Umwelt- und Nachhaltigkeitsindikatoren, Umweltsituation und Umweltpolitik, europäische Rahmenbedingungen, Abfallwirtschaft, gentechnisch veränderte Pflanzen, internationaler Handel, Freizeit und Tourismus

National Parks Omnibus Management Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 27 February 1998

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Management Reform Title II: Procedures for Establishment of New National Parks Title III: Recreational Fee Demonstration Program Title IV: Concession Reform Title V: National Park Passport Program Title VI: National Parks Resource Inventory and Management Title VII: Designation of Tax Refunds and Contributions for the Benefit of the National Parks Title VIII: National Park Foundation Title IX: Commercial Filming in National Parks Title X: Capital Improvement Project Bond Demonstration Program Title XI: Miscellaneous Vision 2020 National Parks Restoration Act - Title I: Management Reform - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the National Park Service, to continually improve the ability of the National Park System (NPS) to provide state-of-the-art protection and interpretation to NPS resources. (Sec. 103) Makes park rangers responsible for protecting, interpreting, managing, and educating the public about the natural and cultural resources contained within the national parks, as well as serving and protecting park visitors. Directs the Secretary to strengthen and enhance the park ranger occupation through the ranger careers program designed to enable rangers to meet the challenges confronting national parks in the future. Outlines provisions concerning program staffing, training, management and specialized positions, a design phase, educational requirements, the park ranger workforce, fitness standards, and a program operational phase. Requires regular reports from the Secretary to the Congress on the state of the program. (Sec. 104) Directs the Secretary, during 2000 and biennially thereafter, to implement a strategic management plan for the NPS, with a focus on functions performed at the national headquarters, regional offices, support offices, service centers, and national parks. Requires a report from the Secretary to specified congressional committees detailing actions implemented as a result of the plan. (Sec. 105) Requires the superintendent or manager of each NPS national park, central office, and support office to develop and make public a comprehensive annual budget for such park or office. Title II: Procedures for Establishment of New National Parks - Directs the Secretary to submit to specified congressional committees a list of areas recommended for study for potential inclusion as new NPS units. Requires specific authorization by an Act of Congress before initiation of any such study. Outlines factors to be included in such studies, including whether the area possesses nationally significant natural, historic, or cultural resources, or outstanding recreation opportunities. Requires any such study to be completed within three years of its authorization. Directs the Secretary to submit to the appropriate committees a list of areas previously studied that contain primarily historical or cultural resources, or that contain natural resources, but that have not been added to the NPS. Title III: Recreational Fee Demonstration Program - Extends through FY 2005 NPS authority under the recreational fee demonstration program. Makes such authority available for all NPS units, except that no recreational admission fee may be charged at Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Lincoln Home National Historic Site. Requires a report from the Secretary to specified congressional committees on the program's status. Title IV: Concession Reform - Calls upon the continued involvement of the private sector in the delivery of high-quality goods and services in the national parks. Establishes within NPS a Concession Board to: (1) assist the Secretary in the preparation and issuance of a solicitation for proposals for persons to serve as Concession Manager; (2) review and make recommendations on such Manager's decisions on the selection of concessionaires and other matters; (3) make recommendations regarding the allocation of collected concession fees; and (4) mediate disputes between concessionaires and the Manager or national park superintendents. Provides for Manager appointment and functions, including the negotiation of concession contracts. Outlines concession contract terms and conditions, including provisions concerning franchise fees, capital improvements, possessory interest payments, appraisals, leasehold surrender values, property rights as collateral, and prices for goods and services provided under such contracts. Allows concession contract transfer only with the Secretary's approval. Allows the Secretary to negotiate any individual concession contract with anticipated annual revenues of less than $2 million without the issuance of a prospectus or the solicitation of competitive bids. Sets forth provisions applicable to all other contracts, including provisions governing issuance of a prospectus for the solicitation of competitive bids, submission of a statement as to the concessionaire's financial capability and operational expertise, concessionaire selection, and contract termination. (Sec. 406) Requires all contract concession fees collected to be used first to pay consideration under the contract with the Manager for the fiscal year, with the remainder to be allocated to each national park, based on that park's relative share of fees collected, to fund high-priority resource management and visitor services programs and operations. (Sec. 407) Authorizes the Manager to suspend or terminate concession contracts. (Sec. 408) Outlines concessionaire recordkeeping and reporting requirements. Requires Comptroller General access to such information. (Sec. 409) Directs the Secretary to promote the sale of authentic Indian and Alaska Native handicrafts relating to the cultural, historical, and geographic characteristics of national park areas. Exempts revenue derived from such sales from any franchise fee payments. (Sec. 410) Makes a Federal provision which requires the lease of government property to be made for money consideration only inapplicable to leases, permits, and contracts granted by the Secretary for the use of NPS land and improvements to provide accommodations, facilities, and services for park visitors. (Sec. 411) Excludes a concession contract's award, extension, renewal, or amendment from provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. Title V: National Park Passport Program - Directs the Secretary to establish a national park passport program which shall provide the passport holder with admission to all U.S. national parks. Includes under the program the issuance of collectible stamps. Makes such passports nontransferable. Outlines program administrative provisions and requirements, including provisions governing the sale of stamps and passports and the use of passport proceeds for NPS projects. (Sec. 505) Directs the Secretary to establish an international park passport program under which park passports and stamps are made available exclusively to foreign visitors to the United States. Terminates such program at the end of 2003 unless at least 200,000 permits are sold during that year. (Sec. 506) Authorizes appropriations for the park passport program. (Sec. 507) Sets at $50 the fee for a park passport and stamp. Title VI: National Parks Resource Inventory and Management - Directs the Secretary to undertake a program of scientific study by NPS employees and cooperators in each national park. Requires natural, cultural, and physical resources of each park, as well as contemporary park uses, to be studied under such program. Directs the Secretary to appoint a Chief Scientist within the NPS to: (1) coordinate all unit resource studies; and (2) exercise authority over all NPS persons conducting such studies. Requires a peer review process to ensure the validity and reliability of each study. (Sec. 604) Directs the Secretary to: (1) enter into long-term cooperative agreements with geographically dispersed colleges and universities to act as primary centers through which unit resource studies shall be conducted; and (2) undertake a program of inventory and monitoring of national park resources to establish baseline information and provide information on long-term trends in the conditions of national park resources. Requires appropriate workforce training to carry out NPS missions. (Sec. 606) Authorizes the Chief Scientist to solicit, receive, consider, and, when appropriate, approve requests for the use of any national park for purposes of scientific study. (Sec. 607) Requires, in each case in which a park resource may be adversely affected by an NPS action, the administrative record to reflect the manner in which unit resource studies and other studies have been considered. (Sec. 608) Provides for the confidentiality of information concerning the nature and location of a natural park resource that is endangered, threatened, rare, commercially valuable, or is an object of cultural patrimony within a national park. (Sec. 609) Authorizes appropriations. Title VII: Designation of Tax Refunds and Contributions for the Benefit of the National Parks - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to authorize an individual taxpayer to designate a specified portion (not less than $1) of any overpayment of tax and any cash contribution included with his or her tax return to be paid over to the National Parks Trust Fund to be established pursuant to this Act. Appropriates to the Fund amounts equivalent to those received under such designations. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to submit to specified congressional committees a study of the effects of the Fund. (Sec. 703) Authorizes the Secretary to use Fund amounts for the design, construction, rehabilitation, and repair of high priority park facilities that directly enhance the experience of park visitors. Prohibits the use of Fund amounts for land acquisition. Title VIII: National Park Foundation - Directs the National Park Foundation to: (1) design and implement a comprehensive program to assist and promote philanthropic support programs at the individual national park level; and (2) include information on the program's progress in a required annual report. Title IX: Commercial Filming in National Parks - Directs the Secretary to establish or designate an NPS office to perform functions required under this title. Prohibits a person from producing any part of a commercial (for-profit) recorded image in a national park without first obtaining a permit from the Secretary and paying a permit fee. Sets such fee at one-half of one percent of the production budget for the vehicle in which the image is to be included. Requires permit proceeds to be used for the preservation, restoration, operation, maintenance, and improvement of high-priority projects and programs in the park in which the fee is collected that directly enhance the experience of park visitors. Requires a report from the Secretary to specified congressional committees on the collection of such fees. Title X: Capital Improvement Project Bond Demonstration Program - Directs the Secretary to identify not more than four NPS capital improvement projects, totaling not more than $40 million, which shall be financed through obligations issued to the Secretary of the Treasury as part of a bond demonstration program established under this title. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to purchase obligations issued under the program if such Secretary finds that there is reasonable assurance of repayment of the obligations. (Sec. 1005) Directs the Secretary and the Secretary of the Treasury to report to the Congress on the program. Title XI: Miscellaneous - Directs the Secretary to appoint a multidisciplinary task force to fully evaluate the shortfalls, needs, and requirements of the U.S. Park Police, including facility repair, rehabilitation, and communications needs. Requires a report from the Secretary to specified congressional committees on findings and recommendations. (Sec. 1102) Authorizes the Secretary to enter into a lease with any person or governmental entity for the use of buildings and associated property administered by the Secretary as part of the NPS. Outlines lease requirements. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into an agreement with a State or local government agency for the cooperative management of national park land and nearby State or local park land.

Ausstieg aus der Nukleartechnik - "Stillegung des Atomreaktors"

Austria · National Council · 26 February 1998

Schriftliche Anfrage der Abgeordneten Dipl.-Ing. Leopold Schöggl und Genossen an den Bundesminister für Wissenschaft und Verkehr betreffend Ausstieg aus der Nukleartechnik - "Stillegung des Atomreaktors" <i>(im Österreichischen Forschungszentrum Seibersdorf)</i>

Familiensteuerreform

Austria · National Council · 26 February 1998

Mündliche Anfrage der Abgeordneten Dr. Sonja Moser an den Bundesminister für Umwelt, Jugend und Familie betreffend Familiensteuerreform <br><br>Welche Schlußfolgerungen ergeben sich aus der Österreichischen Verfassung für die Familiensteuerreform?

Chemikaliengesetz, Änderung

Austria · National Council · 26 February 1998

Antrag der Abgeordneten Ing. Mag. Erich L. Schreiner und Genossen betreffend ein Bundesgesetz, mit dem das Chemikaliengesetz 1996 (ChemG 1996) geändert wird

Umweltförderungen für die Altlastensanierung

Austria · National Council · 26 February 1998

Antrag der Abgeordneten Mag. Karl Schweitzer und Genossen betreffend Umweltförderungen für die Altlastensanierung

5 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will exempt farmers with commonage from cross compliance regulations and allow them to join REPS without owning ten acres of private land. [5349/98]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 26 February 1998

5 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if he will exempt farmers with commonage from cross compliance regulations and allow them to join REPS without owning ten acres of private land. [5349/98]

Persian Gulf Veterans Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 26 February 1998

Persian Gulf Veterans Act of 1998 - Presumes to be service-connected (and therefore compensable or treatable under Federal veterans' benefits provisions) a disease or disability occurring in a Persian Gulf War veteran that: (1) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs determines to have a positive association with exposure to a biological, chemical, or other toxic agent or environmental or wartime hazard (agent or hazard) associated with service in the southwest Asia theater of operations during the Persian Gulf War; and (2) becomes manifest in a Gulf War veteran within a period to be prescribed by the Secretary. Requires such presumption even though there is no record of evidence of such disease or disability in the veteran during the period of service. Provides the same presumption for diseases and disabilities determined to be positively associated with such service by reason of having a prevalence among Persian Gulf veterans greater than such prevalence among matched peers who are veterans or active duty servicemembers of the same era who were neither deployed nor vaccinated for deployment (and which becomes manifest within the prescribed period). Requires the Secretary to make the above determinations based on sound medical and scientific evidence and within 60 days after receipt of reports submitted by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) as required under this Act. (Sec. 3) Directs the Secretary to enter into an agreement under which NAS shall: (1) identify the agents or hazards to which Gulf War veterans may have been exposed; (2) identify the diseases that are manifest in such members; and (3) determine whether a disease occurs in a Persian Gulf veteran with a greater prevalence than in matched peers who were neither deployed nor vaccinated for deployment. Directs NAS to determine whether a statistical association exists between exposure to such agent or hazard and the disease, separately review potential treatment models and evolving technologies to identify such diseases, make recommendations for additional studies, perform subsequent reviews of available evidence and data, and report to the Secretary, the Secretary of Defense, and the veterans and defense committees (designated committees) concerning NAS activities under this Act. Terminates requirements and activities under this Act ten years after NAS submits its first report. Requires the Secretary to enter into an agreement with an alternative scientific organization if agreement cannot be reached with NAS. (Sec. 4) Directs the Secretary to develop and implement a plan for the establishment and operation of a single computerized information database for the collection, storage, and analysis of information on diseases of, and treatment provided to, Gulf War veterans. Requires such plan to be submitted to the Secretary of Defense, NAS, and the designated committees. Directs NAS to evaluate and report on such plan. Requires the Secretary to: (1) continually compile and analyze all appropriate clinical data contained in the database; and (2) report annually, along with the Secretary of Defense, to the designated committees with respect to such data analysis. (Sec. 5) Directs the Secretary to carry out a research program of the evolving technologies available to measure the exposure to certain agents or hazards associated with Gulf War service, as well as the diagnosis of diseases resulting from such exposure. Directs the Secretary and the Secretaries of Defense and Health and Human Services to jointly report to the designated committees on research results. (Sec. 6) Directs the Secretary and the Secretary of Defense to carry out an ongoing program to provide Gulf War veterans with information relating to: (1) any health risks determined to be associated with Persian Gulf service; and (2) any services or benefits available with respect to such health risks.

International Monetary Fund Reform and Authorization Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 26 February 1998

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: International Monetary Fund Title II: New Arrangements to Borrow Title III: Policy Provisions Title IV: Reports to Congress International Monetary Fund Reform and Authorization Act of 1998 - Title I: International Monetary Fund - Amends the Bretton Woods Agreement Act to authorize the U.S. Governor of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to consent, subject to appropriations, to a specified increase in the U.S. IMF quota of Special Drawing Rights. Title II: New Arrangements to Borrow - Sets forth conforming amendments for Federal participation in new arrangements to borrow. Title III: Policy Provisions - Amends the International Financial Institutions Act to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. Executive Director of the IMF to advocate specified policies whose goal, among other things, is to: (1) make the IMF a more effective mechanism for implementation of specified international banking and trade principles; (2) assist the IMF to avoid becoming a lender of last resort for private investors and commercial banks; (3) structure IMF programs and assistance so that recipient governments commit to specified internationally recognized worker rights; (4) structure IMF programs and assistance so as not to exacerbate or precipitate ethnic strife within a recipient country; (5) work with the IMF to adopt appropriate environmental policies supporting macroeconomic stability; and (6) facilitate IMF transparency and accountability. Directs the Secretary to coordinate with other Executive Departments in order to achieve realization of such policies. Conditions Federal funding for the IMF upon establishment of an IMF Advisory Committee within the Department of the Treasury to review individual IMF country programs and advise the Secretary on the extent to which such programs address the policies advocated under this Act. Mandates that each Committee meeting be chaired by the Secretary or the Secretary's designee. Title IV: Reports to Congress - Instructs the Secretary to report semi-annually to the Congress on the status of IMF programs linked to official Federal financing, addressing specified questions.

Directive 98/10/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 1998 on the application of open network provision (ONP) to voice telephony and on universal service for telecommunications in a competitive environment

European Union · EUR-Lex · 26 February 1998

"Stranded Investments" der E-Wirtschaft

Austria · National Council · 25 February 1998

Schriftliche Anfrage der Abgeordneten Dipl.-Ing. Thomas Prinzhorn und Genossen an den Bundesminister für wirtschaftliche Angelegenheiten betreffend "Stranded Investments" der E-Wirtschaft

Errichtung eines grenznahen Zwischenlagers in Dukovany

Austria · National Council · 25 February 1998

Unselbständiger Entschließungsantrag der Abgeordneten Dr. Gabriela Moser und Genossen betreffend Maßnahmen gegen die Errichtung eines grenznahen Zwischenlagers für hochradioaktive, abgebrannte Brennelemente in Dukovany

Vermeidung unnötiger Tierversuche

Austria · National Council · 25 February 1998

Schriftliche Anfrage der Abgeordneten MMag. Dr. Madeleine Petrovic und Genossen an die Bundesministerin für Arbeit, Gesundheit und Soziales betreffend Vermeidung unnötiger Tierversuche

Schadenersatzklage der Finanzprokuratur in der Sache Fischerdeponie

Austria · National Council · 25 February 1998

Schriftliche Anfrage der Abgeordneten Mag. Johann Ewald Stadler und Genossen an den Bundesminister für Finanzen betreffend Schadenersatzklage der Finanzprokuratur in der Sache Fischerdeponie

Umweltförderungen für die Altlastensanierung

Austria · National Council · 25 February 1998

Unselbständiger Entschließungsantrag der Abgeordneten Mag. Karl Schweitzer und Genossen betreffend Maßnahmen zur Verfahrensvereinfachung und -beschleunigung im Bereich der Altlastensanierung

Salton Sea Reclamation Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 1998

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Salton Sea Reclamation Project Title II: Emergency Action to Stabilize Salton Sea Salinity Sonny Bono Memorial Salton Sea Reclamation Act - Title I: Salton Sea Reclamation Project - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, to undertake a project to reclaim the Salton Sea, located in Imperial and Riverside Counties, California. Outlines project requirements, including salinity reduction and stabilization, stabilizing surface elevation, restoring fish and wildlife resources, and enhancing recreational use and economic development. Directs the Secretary to initiate a feasibility study of various options for meeting such requirements and to develop a plan that implements the selected options. Requires the Secretary to report to the Congress on the chosen reclamation plan and required construction activities and to complete all necessary environmental compliance and permit requirements. Requires the feasibility study to be completed under a memorandum of understanding between the Secretary, the Salton Sea Authority, and the Governor of California. Requires initiation of project construction within 60 days after feasibility study submission, provided that the Secretary, the Governor, and the Authority have adopted a cost-sharing formula. Directs the Secretary to initiate a process to determine a disposal method for water pumped out under the project. Preserves all current rights and obligations concerning Colorado River water use. Limits administrative and judicial review of the project. Authorizes appropriations for the feasibility study and project construction. Directs the Secretary to conduct, concurrently with the feasibility study, studies of hydrology, wildlife pathology, and toxicology relating to wildlife resources of the Salton Sea by Federal and non-Federal sources. Directs the Secretary to establish the Salton Sea Research Management Committee to select and manage such studies. Authorizes appropriations. Renames the Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge as the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge. Directs the Secretary to conduct research and implement actions, including river reclamation, to treat irrigation drainage water that flows into the Alamo and New Rivers in Imperial County, California. Authorizes appropriations. Title II: Emergency Action to Stabilize Salton Sea Salinity - Directs the Secretary to immediately initiate action, including salt expulsion and infusion of other water, to reduce Salton sea salinity levels.

Children's Protection and Community Cleanup Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 1998

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Remedy Title II: Community Participation and Human Health Subtitle A: Community Participation Subtitle B: Human Health Subtitle C: General Provisions Title III: Right to Know Title IV: Environmental Justice Title V: Children's Environmental Health Title VI: Brownfield Remediation and Environmental Cleanup Subtitle A: Brownfields Subtitle B: Innocent Landowners and Prospective Purchaser Liability Subtitle C: Department of Housing and Urban Development Brownfield Grants Title VII: Natural Resource Damages Title VIII: Federal Facilities Title IX: Liability Title X: Funding Title XI: Miscellaneous Children's Protection and Community Cleanup Act of 1998 - Title I: Remedy - Amends the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) to revise general rules for the selection of remedial cleanup actions. Removes a provision requiring the President to specifically address the long-term effectiveness of various alternative treatment or resource recovery technologies. Requires remedial actions to: (1) make contaminated property available for beneficial use to the maximum extent practicable; and (2) protect uncontaminated groundwater and surface water, wherever technically feasible, and restore such water to beneficial uses in a reasonable time period given the circumstances of the release of the hazardous substance concerned. Lists minimum factors to be taken into account by the President in assessing alternative remedial actions and selecting remedial actions. Requires selected remedial actions, unless the President determines that a risk-based standard for a contaminant is based on data and assumptions adequate to assure protection of children's health, to reduce contamination to background levels (where more stringent) with respect to such contaminant, to the maximum extent technically feasible. Prohibits the selection of an action that allows hazardous substances to remain on site above levels that would be protective for unrestricted use unless institutional controls are incorporated into the action to achieve protection of human health and the environment during and after completion of the action. Requires remedial actions for hazardous substances that remain on site to comply with any more stringent and legally applicable tribal standard. Directs the President to ensure that a remedial action attains standards of control protective of human health in the environment in cases where: (1) no Federal, State, or tribal standard has been established for the specific hazardous substance present at the facility where the action is being undertaken; or (2) there are multiple hazardous substances present and the remedial action is not protective even though applicable requirements would be attained. Removes a provision which requires the President to conform a remedial action to a State standard in cases where a State has initiated a law suit against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) prior to May 1, 1986. Eliminates a provision which allows the President to select a remedial action that does not attain a standard equivalent to a legally applicable standard if compliance with requirements is technically impracticable from an engineering perspective. Sets forth minimum requirements for remedies for contaminated groundwater or surface water in cases where a legally applicable standard for a hazardous substance is waived. Authorizes the President to use institutional controls as a supplement to, but not as a substitute for, other response measures under CERCLA. Lists requirements for actions that rely on institutional controls. Provides for funds to be established for facilities for which the selected remedy is containment or at which hazardous substances remain on site above levels that would allow for unrestricted use of the facility. Requires such funds to be sufficient to guarantee successful performance of a remedy and, to the extent technically feasible, future beneficial reuse. Directs the EPA Administrator (Administrator) to report annually to the Congress, for each record of decision signed during the previous fiscal year, on the type of institutional controls and media affected and the institution designated to monitor, enforce, and ensure compliance with such controls. Makes procedural requirements of State laws inapplicable to the portion of any removal or remedial action conducted entirely on site, except for recordkeeping and reporting. (Sec. 102) Sets forth criteria for institutional control instruments. Requires the President, if such an instrument is adopted, to record a notice of property use restriction in the public land records for the jurisdiction in which the affected property is located. Makes such instruments enforceable in perpetuity (unless terminated and released) against holders of interest in an affected property and all persons who subsequently acquire such interest. Directs the President to maintain a registry of all property at which institutional controls have been established in connection with response actions. Describes types of institutional control instruments, including easements. Authorizes the President, in order to respond to a release or threatened release of a hazardous substance, to acquire an easement to limit or control the use of land or other natural resources. Permits easements to be used whenever institutional controls have been selected as a component of a response action. Sets forth provisions regarding the President's authority to assign easements to other parties, issue orders imposing restrictions on land or natural resources, and include State institutional controls in response actions. (Sec. 103) Requires the President to ensure that a removal action is not undertaken in lieu of a long-term remedial action. Title II: Community Participation and Human Health - Subtitle A: Community Participation - Revises provisions regarding grants for technical assistance to make such grants available to Community Advisory Groups or affected communities (defined as two or more individuals affected by the release or threatened release of a hazardous substance at a covered facility. Defines a "covered facility" as a facility: (1) that has been listed or proposed for listing on the National Priorities List (NPL); (2) at which the Administrator is undertaking an action anticipated to exceed one year or a specified funding limit; or (3) with respect to which the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) Administrator has accepted a petition requesting a health assessment or related health activity. Expands the list of authorized grant activities and increases the maximum amount of such grants. Requires the President to take specified actions to provide for meaningful public participation in every significant phase of response activities under CERCLA. Permits Community Advisory Groups, affected Indian tribes and communities, and local government and health officials to propose remedial alternatives to the President. Requires the President to make records relating to response actions at a covered facility available to the public throughout all phases of an action. Sets forth additional requirements with respect to public notice of certain removal actions. (Sec. 203) Requires States or Indian tribes with covered facilities to establish Community Information and Access Offices. Provides funding for such Offices. Directs the Administrator to establish Offices for States or tribes that fail to do so. (Sec. 204) Requires the President to provide the opportunity for the establishment of a Community Advisory Group, a representative public forum, to achieve direct, regular, and meaningful consultation with all interested parties throughout all stages of a response action whenever: (1) the President determines such a group will be helpful; or (2) ten individuals residing in the area in which the covered facility is located, or ten percent of the population of a locality in which the covered facility is located, whichever is fewer, petition for a Group to be established. Directs the President to adopt any consensus recommendation of a Group on land use as part of the remedy selected for the facility, with exceptions. Authorizes the President to provide administrative support for such Groups. Directs the Administrator to submit to the Congress a community study that includes an analysis of: (1) the speed of listing; (2) the speed and nature of response actions; (3) the degree to which public views are reflected in response actions; (3) use of institutional controls; and (4) the population, race, ethnicity, and income characteristics of communities affected by facilities listed or proposed for listing on the NPL. Requires periodic updates of such study. Directs the Administrator to institute necessary improvements or modifications to address any deficiencies identified by the study. (Sec. 205) Requires the Administrator to conduct a program to assist in the recruitment and training of individuals in affected communities for employment in response activities. Subtitle B: Human Health - Directs the President to notify State and local public health authorities and tribal health officials whenever there is reason to believe that a release (or threat of release) of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant has occurred, is occurring, or is about to occur. Requires the ATSDR Administrator to perform a health assessment for each facility listed, or proposed for listing, on the NPL, including Federal facilities. Permits related health activities to be performed in lieu of assessments for facilities that are so listed or proposed for ecological reasons only. Requires the ATSDR Administrator to develop and distribute educational materials on human health effects of hazardous substances to the public. (Sec. 213) Provides for research on exposure or tolerance limits for hazardous substances found commonly at NPL facilities in cases where adequate information on health effects of a substance is not available. Expands the duties of the ATSDR Administrator to require the Administrator to establish an inventory of exposure or tolerance limits for such substances. (Sec. 215) Directs the President, in any case in which a person is relocated in order to reduce exposure and eliminate health risks from hazardous substances, to provide to the individual the replacement value of the individual's residence. (Sec. 216) Authorizes and directs the ATSDR Administrator, pursuant to specified grants and contracts, to provide health services to communities affected by the release of hazardous substances. Makes funds available for such services for FY 2000 through 2004. (Sec. 217) Provides for cooperation with Indian tribes with respect to certain ATSDR activities. Requires the ATSDR Administrator to include in a biennial report on ATSDR activities the health impacts on Indian tribes of hazardous substances from covered facilities. Subtitle C: General Provisions - Sets forth effective dates for provisions of this title. Title III: Right to Know - Requires the annual disclosure of certain information by potentially responsible parties at NPL facilities and owners or operators of facilities subject to toxic chemical release reporting requirements under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act of 1986 (EPCRA). Includes within such required disclosures information on quantities of certain hazardous substances and potential exposure of facility employees. Directs the Administrator to consolidate all annual reporting pursuant to title I of CERCLA and other Federal environmental laws to the extent not prohibited by such laws. Prescribes penalties for noncompliance with disclosure requirements. Amends EPCRA to permit the withholding of portions of information required to be disclosed under CERCLA for purposes of protecting trade secrets. (Sec. 302) Requires owners or operators of facilities subject to EPCRA reporting requirements to submit to the Administrator and State officials annual unstudied chemical release forms for each chemical subject to this section that was manufactured, processed, or used in quantities exceeding thresholds during the preceding year at the facility. Permits the Administrator to: (1) apply such requirements to other facilities that use unstudied chemicals, as appropriate; and (2) exclude a class of facilities in a Standard Industrial Classification Code that is required to report under EPCRA if unstudied chemicals will not cause certain adverse human health or environmental effects. Makes subject to the requirements of this section an unstudied chemical: (1) for which the information needed to complete a preliminary assessment of potential toxicity is not available; and (2) that is a compound containing at least carbon, hydrogen, and one or more of the elements chlorine, fluorine, or bromine or is a compound included on the 1990 High Production Volume List issued pursuant to the Toxic Substances Control Act. Authorizes the addition of chemicals subject to such requirements based on health or environmental effects or presence in human tissues, food stuffs, or drinking water. Excludes from reporting requirements chemicals: (1) that are listed under EPCRA; (2) that are high molecular weight polymers; or (3) for which information is publicly available. Sets forth provisions regarding information needed for preliminary assessment of potential toxicity of unstudied chemicals. Establishes threshold amounts of unstudied chemicals which trigger reporting requirements. Makes release form information publicly available. Authorizes petitions to the Administrator to compel certain actions under this title, including the exemption from reporting, addition of chemicals subject to reporting, and revision of thresholds. Requires the Administrator to establish a national unstudied chemicals inventory based on submitted data. Makes violations of this title subject to civil and administrative penalties under EPCRA. Provides trade secret protection for information disclosed under this title in the same manner as provided under EPCRA. Title IV: Environmental Justice - Directs the President, acting through the Secretary of Commerce, to publish a list of special priority areas which shall be geographic areas in which residents face a high degree of economic distress or social disenfranchisement. Provides for updates to such list no later than two years after each official census count on social and economic characteristics. Describes areas to be included on such list. Requires the President to advertise the right of petition for assessment of a hazardous substance release in such areas. Directs the President to publish a list of special priority facilities which shall be those facilities located in special priority areas that are: (1) listed in the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Information System; (2) the subject of a petition; or (3) those the President considers appropriate. Establishes deadlines for completing preliminary assessments, site inspections, and hazard ranking of such facilities and for listing them on the NPL. Requires the President to ensure that a remedial action for any such facility on the NPL is completed within three years of placement on the NPL. Provides exceptions from placing such facilities on the NPL. Title V: Children's Environmental Health - Requires the ATSDR Administrator and the Administrator to create a scientifically peer-reviewed list of environmental pollutants commonly found at facilities listed or proposed for listing on the NPL with known or suspected health risks to which fetuses and children are especially susceptible. Provides for a toxicological profile for each listed substance. each listed substance. Directs the Administrator or the Secretary of Health and Human Services, as appropriate, to review and revise, where necessary, environmental and public health regulations, risk assessment policies and procedures, and guidance documents issued under CERCLA to determine whether they consider and fully protect fetal and children's health. Incorporates fetal and children's health concerns into all health research initiatives under CERCLA. Requires the ATSDR Administrator to develop: (1) guidelines for addressing fetal and children's health issues in health studies and research programs; and (2) criteria for determining when and what type of child-specific health study shall be conducted based on the results of a health assessment. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the costs of such research programs should be borne by the manufacturers and processors of the hazardous substance in question. Directs the ATSDR Administrator to: (1) establish an exposure registry for all children exposed to hazardous substances as the result of a release at an NPL facility where levels of exposure are significant for children's health; and (2) implement specified children's environmental health education and training programs. Requires all lists, profiles, studies, and research results conducted under this title to be reported or adopted only after appropriate peer review. Sets forth requirements for peer reviews. Title VI: Brownfield Remediation and Environmental Cleanup - Subtitle A: Brownfields - Directs the Administrator to establish a program to award grants to local governments to inventory and conduct site assessments of brownfield sites and provide training in the cleanup of such sites. Defines a "brownfield site" as land that contains or contained abandoned or under-used commercial or industrial facilities, the expansion or redevelopment of which may be complicated by the presence of hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants. Sets forth grant application requirements and grant conditions. Requires States to submit information to the Administrator on brownfield sites. Directs the Administrator to compile a National Brownfields Registry. Directs the Administrator to establish a program to award grants to be used by local governments to capitalize revolving loan funds for the cleanup of brownfield sites, including associated rivers and streams. Authorizes local governments to provide such loans to finance cleanups by such governments or by owners or prospective purchasers of affected brownfield sites. Sets forth grant application and agreement requirements. Requires grant recipients to report to the Administrator on the extent of local citizen involvement in funded projects. Authorizes the Administrator to award a grant to a State if necessary to facilitate the receipt of funds by local governments that do not have the capabilities to manage grants. Makes certain facilities ineligible for the grant program, including facilities that are the subject of response actions and Federal facilities. Authorizes the President to make exceptions for excluded facilities and allow grants on a facility-by-facility basis. Makes amounts available from the Hazardous Substance Superfund (Superfund) to carry out the grant programs. Authorizes appropriations for FY 1999 through 2003. (Sec. 602) Authorizes the Administrator to award grants to, and enter into cooperative agreements with, States, Indian tribes, municipalities, and other specified agencies and organizations for training, technology transfer, and information dissemination programs to strengthen environmental response activities. (Sec. 603) Requires the Administrator to provide grants and other forms of assistance for brownfields workforce training programs in communities that contain brownfield sites. Subtitle B: Innocent Landowners and Prospective Purchaser Liability - Amends CERCLA, with respect to defenses to liability of an owner of after-acquired property, to deem a person to have made (under current law, "undertaken") appropriate inquiry into the property's previous ownership and uses if the person establishes that an environmental site assessment was conducted which meets specified requirements (compliance with an American Society for Testing and Materials standard or with standards issued by the President) and the person fulfills certain responsibilities concerning information compilation, exercise of appropriate care with respect to hazardous substances at the facility, and cooperation with those conducting response actions. (Sec. 622) Absolves from liability for response actions bona fide prospective purchasers to the extent liability at a facility for a release or threat thereof is based solely on ownership or operation of a facility. Gives a lien upon a facility to the United States for unrecovered response costs in any case in which there are such unrecovered costs for which the owner is not liable by reason of this section and the facility's fair market value has increased above that which existed 180 days before the action was taken. (Sec. 623) Exempts certain contiguous property owners from liability. Subtitle C: Department of Housing and Urban Development Brownfield Grants - Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to direct the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to make grants, in connection with the authority to guarantee obligations to finance certain community development activities, to eligible public entities for projects and activities for economic redevelopment of brownfield sites. Title VII: Natural Resource Damages - Adds the reasonable costs of recovering natural resource damages to the list of recoverable damages for which liable parties are responsible under CERCLA. (Sec. 703) Eliminates the damage assessment rebuttable presumption and prescribes revised procedures for natural resource damage assessments. (Sec. 704) Authorizes a trustee for natural resources to establish an administrative record on which the trustee will base the selection of a plan for restoration of the resource. Provides for participation of interested persons in the development of an administrative record. (Sec. 705) Provides that the presence of hazardous substances in sediments of U.S. waters above background or reference levels shall be sufficient to establish injury to natural resources for purposes of determining liability. Directs the Administrator and the appropriate natural resource trustees to report to the Congress on how response, remedial, and restoration actions are restoring and protecting natural resources affected by the facilities of: (1) Hudson River, New York; (2) Newark and New York Bays, New York and New Jersey; (3) Housatonic River, Connecticut and Massachusetts; (4) New Bedford Harbor, Massachusetts; (5) Clark Fork River, Montana; (6) Lavaca Bay, Texas; (7) Palos Verdes, California; (8) Fox River, Wisconsin; (9) Coeur d'Alene, Idaho; and (10) Hanford, Washington. (Sec. 706) Requires natural resource trustees to conduct a program to assist in the recruitment and training of individuals in affected communities for employment in restoration activities. (Sec. 707) Revises provisions regarding the statute of limitations on natural resource damage actions. (Sec. 708) Adds archaeological resources to the definition of "natural resources" under CERCLA. (Sec. 709) Authorizes citizen suits to recover natural resources damages. Title VIII: Federal Facilities - Revises provisions regarding the applicability of CERCLA to the U.S. Government. Makes Federal agencies subject to all Federal, State, interstate, and local requirements regarding response actions and damages related to, or management of, hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants in the same manner as any nongovernmental entity. Waives immunity of the United States with respect to the enforcement of injunctive relief. Makes Federal employees subject to criminal sanctions under State or Federal response laws. Authorizes the Administrator to issue an abatement order to a Federal agency and requires initiation of an administrative enforcement action in the same manner as action would be initiated against any other person. Requires all funds collected by a State from the Federal Government from penalties imposed under this section to be used only for projects to improve or protect the environment or to defray costs of environmental protection or enforcement unless a State law requires such funds to be used differently. Requires Federal agencies to notify States and the Administrator of removal actions. Sets forth additional conditions under which a Federal property may be transferred to any other person without a covenant warranting that all remedial action has been taken on the property. Establishes additional assurances to be contained in deeds governing such transfers with regard to hazardous substances releases for which a Federal agency is potentially responsible. Title IX: Liability - Provides exemptions to liability (including liability for contribution) for response costs for pre-July 1997 acts if liability is based solely on arranging for disposal, treatment, or transport of, or accepting, a specified limited amount of hazardous substances. Absolves certain small parties of liability based on arrangement or acceptance provisions if the substance involved was municipal solid waste or sewage sludge. Removes a provision which excludes petroleum from the definition of "hazardous substance" under CERCLA. Provides that persons liable for willful releases of hazardous substances or threats thereof may be liable to the United States for punitive damages in an amount of up to two times the costs incurred by Superfund as a result of such a release. Title X: Funding - Extends the authorization of appropriations to carry out specified Superfund authorities through FY 2003. (Sec. 1007) Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend the environmental income tax to taxable years beginning after December 31, 1998, and before January 1, 2004. Extends specified provisions regarding: (1) Superfund's financing rate; (2) limits on tax if the unobligated balance in Superfund exceeds a specified amount; and (3) the repayment deadline for advances made to Superfund. Title XI: Miscellaneous - Increases the ceiling on certain penalties under CERCLA. Prescribes penalties for specified additional violations. (Sec. 1103) Considers a remedial action that attains applicable requirements to be protective of human health and the environment unless the President determines otherwise. Directs the President to establish additional requirements to ensure such protection, as necessary. Provides that the decontamination regulations for site termination issued by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) on July 21, 1997, shall not be considered sufficiently protective. Revises the definition of "federally permitted release" under CERCLA with respect to releases of source, special nuclear, or byproduct material in compliance with licenses, permits, regulations, or orders pursuant to the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to apply such definition only if such licenses, permits, regulations, or orders adequately protect groundwater. Applies requirements of this Act pertaining to Federal facilities to facilities subject to licenses or decontamination regulations for license termination issued by the NRC. Amends environmental excise tax provisions to treat uranium dioxide as a taxable chemical only if it is used as a fuel in a nuclear reactor.

Veränderungen im Bereich des finanzierungsaufkommens für den Familienlastenausgleichsfonds

Austria · National Council · 23 February 1998

Mündliche Anfrage der Abgeordneten Dr. Ilse Mertel (SPÖ) an den Bundesminister für Umwelt, Jugend und Familie Dr. Martin Bartenstein <br><br>Planen Sie Veränderungen im Bereich des Finanzierungsaufkommens für den Familienlastenausgleichsfonds?

Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive amending Directive 90/220/EEC on the deliberate release into the environment of genetically modified organisms

European Union · European Commission · 23 February 1998

Lockerung des Kormoranschutzes

Austria · National Council · 18 February 1998

Schriftliche Anfrage der Abgeordneten Mag. Dr. Udo Grollitsch und Genossen an den Bundesminister für Land- und Forstwirtschaft betreffend Lockerung des Kormoranschutzes

Altlastensanierungsprojekt Arnoldstein Bleiberger Bergwerks Union

Austria · National Council · 16 February 1998

Schriftliche Anfrage der Abgeordneten Ing. Monika Langthaler und Genossen an den Bundesminister für Umwelt, Jugend und Familie betreffend Altlastensanierungsprojekt Arnoldstein sowie Versuchsbetriebsgenehmigung für einen Wirbelschichtofen und zwei Dörschelöfen am Standort der ehemaligen Bleiberger Bergwerks Union im Bereich der Fa. ABRG

Agricultural production methods compatible with protection of the environment and maintenance of the countryside

European Union · European Parliament · 16 February 1998

Healthy Kids Act

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 1998

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Healthy Kids Trust Fund Subtitle A: General Provisions Subtitle B: Payments Title II: FDA Jurisdiction Over Tobacco Products Title III: Youth Smoking Reduction Targets and Incentives to Reduce Youth Smoking Rates Title IV: Tobacco Transition Assistance Fund Title V: Standards to Reduce Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke Title VI: Public Health and Other Programs Subtitle A: Research Programs Subtitle B: Education and Prevention Programs Subtitle C: Miscellaneous Programs Title VII: Liability Protection; Consent Decrees; National Protocol Subtitle A: Liability Protection and Attorney Fees Subtitle B: Consent Decrees Subtitle C: National Tobacco Control Protocol Title VIII: Miscellaneous Provisions Title IX: Provisions Relating to Native Americans Healthy Kids Act - Title I: Healthy Kids Trust Fund - Subtitle A: General Provisions - (Sec. 101) Establishes the Health Enhancement and Lowered Tobacco Hazards for Young Kids Trust Fund (HEALTHY Kids Trust Fund)(Fund). Appropriates to the Fund the initial payment under section 102 of this Act and 75 percent of annual assessments under section 102, fines or penalties under section 103, and amounts repaid or recovered under title III. Authorizes appropriations to the Fund as repayable advances. Makes specified percentages of Fund amounts available without further appropriation for carrying out provisions of this Act, for the Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, and for reducing the Federal debt subject to limit. Excludes amounts for the Hospital Insurance Trust Fund and the debt from consideration for the Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, and House Concurrent Resolution 67 of the 104th Congress. (Sec. 102) Requires each tobacco product manufacturer (including repackers, labelers, and relabelers) to pay annually to the Fund amounts based on that manufacturer's stock market capitalization as compared to the average stock market capitalization of all manufacturers. Mandates annual assessments on each manufacturer based on the number of specified products removed during the year. Provides for floor stock treatment. Makes the initial capitalization-based payment and any penalties under title III not tax deductible. Amends the Federal bankruptcy code regarding the priority of unsecured Federal claims for payments, assessments, or penalties to be paid into the Fund. Prohibits manufacturers from using any liability insurance to make payments into the Fund. Mandates regulations regarding placing a Healthy Kids Stamp on each tobacco product package for which an assessment has been paid. Exempts a manufacturer who has consent decrees with more than 25 States before 1998 from the initial payment and certain portions of annual payments. (Sec. 103) Establishes a tobacco manufacturer licensing program. Requires a manufacturer or importer to be licensed to manufacture, distribute, or import tobacco products and to be eligible for protections under subtitle A of title VII. Mandates, for assessment nonpayment, manufacturer and importer license ineligibility and license revocation or suspension. (Sec. 104) Imposes a minimum monetary penalty for noncompliance with section 102. Subtitle B: Payments - Chapter 1: To States - Requires that funds under section 101 be made available to reimburse each eligible State for: (1) State expenditures under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act for the treatment of individuals with tobacco-related conditions; (2) other State expenses incurred in providing treatment for tobacco-related conditions; and (3) providing funds to local governments. Requires States, in order to receive the funds, to: (1) agree to resolve any State civil action against a tobacco manufacturer, distributor, or retailer; (2) submit a plan regarding payments to local governments; and (3) have procedures to provide an equitable portion of the funds to local government entities for the local entities' tobacco-related health costs. Chapter 2: Federal Health Programs - Establishes the National Institutes of Health Trust Fund for Health Research (Research Fund), transferring to it amounts made available under section 101. Sets forth the portions of Research Fund amounts to be used for specified purposes. Chapter 3: Investments for Children - Requires use of amounts under section 101: (1) working through the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990, to improve child care, early childhood development, school-aged care, parent education and supportive services, health services, and services for children with disabilities; and (2) for grants to State and local educational agencies to train, recruit, and hire elementary school teachers, thus reducing average class size for certain grades. (Sec. 133) Amends Medicaid provisions regarding presumptive eligibility for children to include in the definition of "qualified entity" elementary or secondary schools, child care resource and referral agencies, and agencies authorized to determine child eligibility for health assistance under title XXI (Children's Health Insurance) of the Social Security Act. Modifies requirements regarding certain Medicaid expenditures that are counted against individual State allotments. Allows an alien who lawfully entered the United States after August 22, 1996, to be eligible for child health assistance under title XXI and Medicaid, notwithstanding the five-year means-tested public benefit waiting period or any other provision of law. Declares that a State does not have the authority to determine the Medicaid eligibility of a qualified alien. Makes the above amendments of this section effective as if they had been included in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. Mandates a performance bonus payment to each State relating to increases in the number of Medicaid-enrolled children. (Sec. 134) Mandates a demonstration project providing for payment under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act of routine patient care costs that are provided to an individual with cancer and enrolled in Medicare as part of the individual's participation in a clinical trial and that are not otherwise eligible for Medicare payment. Requires use of amounts available under section 101 to carry out this section. Title II: FDA Jurisdiction Over Tobacco Products - Deems specified regulations to have been promulgated under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) as amended by this title. (Sec. 203) Amends the FDCA to include nicotine in tobacco products in the definition of "drug" and tobacco product delivery components in the definition of "device." Authorizes regulation of any tobacco product as a drug, device, or both. Deems tobacco misbranded if it: (1) states or implies that it presents a reduced health risk unless the product will achieve the best public health result; or (2) violates the FDCA or its regulations. Makes noncompliance with specified provisions added to the FDCA by this Act a prohibited act under the FDCA. Makes provisions preempting State and local requirements inapplicable to tobacco product devices. (Sec. 204) Exempts tobacco products from device Class II special controls if the Secretary of Health and Human Services finds that special controls will achieve the best public health result. Declares that, for the purposes of listed provisions, the safety and effectiveness of a tobacco product device need not be found if the action to be taken under any such provision would achieve the best public health result. Authorizes a tobacco product recall if the best public health result would be achieved. (Sec. 205) Establishes the Scientific Advisory Committee to assist the Secretary, examine the effects of tobacco product nicotine yield level alteration, examine whether there is a nicotine threshold below which dependence is not produced, and review other safety, dependence, or health issues regarding tobacco products. Authorizes the Secretary to adopt a tobacco product performance standard regardless of whether the product has been classified under device classification provisions. Allows the standard to include: (1) reduction or elimination of nicotine; or (2) reduction or elimination of other constituents. Authorizes the Secretary to require that a manufacturer test, report, and disclose tobacco and tobacco smoke constituents, including in labeling and advertising. Requires manufacturers to annually submit: (1) an ingredient list for each brand it manufactures; and (2) a safety assessment for each new ingredient it desires to make a part of the product, with current ingredients receiving a safety assessment within five years after enactment of this Act. Requires that the safety assessment demonstrate that the ingredient will not present any risk to consumers or the public in the intended quantities. Mandates regulations to prohibit any ingredient if: (1) no safety assessment has been submitted as required; or (2) the Secretary finds that safety has not been demonstrated. Requires tobacco product packages to disclose: (1) all ingredients; and (2) the percentages of domestic and foreign tobacco. Authorizes the Secretary to require disclosure of an ingredient that relates to a trade secret if the Secretary determines that the disclosure will promote the public health. Mandates specified warnings on cigarette and smokeless tobacco packages and advertising. Preempts related State or local requirements. Declares that nothing in this paragraph relieves any person from liability to any other person at common law or under State statutory law. Makes it unlawful to advertise tobacco products on electronic communications subject to Federal Communications Commission jurisdiction. Directs the Secretary to restrict the access of minors to tobacco products. Requires States, in order to receive amounts under section 111 of this Act, to have a program meeting or exceeding the requirements of the model State program under which a retailer would be required to obtain a State or local license to distribute tobacco products. Includes in minimum model program requirements: (1) licensing fees to defray program administration; (2) prohibiting retail distribution without a license; (3) prohibiting distribution to minors; (4) monetary penalties for violations; and (5) suspension and revocation for repeated distribution to minors or violation of State or local law. Provides for specified penalties for distribution to minors, including penalties imposed on employees of retailers, minors (including loss of driving privileges), and retailers. Authorizes enforcement grants to States. Authorizes the Secretary to enforce the prohibition of distribution to minors. Declares that the provisions of this paragraph do not preempt State or local laws providing greater restrictions than these provisions. Mandates a Federal tobacco licensing program regarding military installations, U.S. embassies, Federally-owned facilities, duty-free shops, and any other Federal entity or Federal property. Treats an Indian tribe or tribal organization as a State for applying and enforcing the provisions of this paragraph regarding Indian reservations. Requires each manufacturer to submit to the Secretary each document in the manufacturer's possession: (1) relating to tobacco-caused health effects in humans or animals (including addiction), control of nicotine, tobacco sale or marketing, or research involving safer tobacco products; or (2) produced, or ordered to be produced, in any health-related civil or criminal proceeding, including attorney-client and other documents produced, or ordered to be produced, for in camera inspection. Directs the Secretary to make the documents available to the public. Exempts from public disclosure trade secrets and attorney-client privilege materials unless the Secretary determines disclosure is necessary to promote the public health. Authorizes any individual to begin a civil action: (1) against any person allegedly in violation of these provisions; or (2) against the Secretary or the Commissioner of Food and Drugs for alleged failure to perform as required. Prohibits regulations having the effect of placing burdens on tobacco producers in excess of the burdens generally placed on other agricultural commodity producers. Repeals the Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act and the Comprehensive Smokeless Tobacco Health Education Act of 1986. Title III: Youth Smoking Reduction Targets and Incentives to Reduce Youth Smoking Rates - Mandates an annual survey of the percentage of individuals under 18 using tobacco products. (Sec. 303) Requires annual determinations of whether the required percentage reduction in underage tobacco use has been achieved. Specifies the required reductions in cigarette and smokeless tobacco products. Requires each manufacturer to reduce the percentage of children who use the manufacturer's brand accordingly. (Sec. 304) Mandates industry-wide and individual manufacturer monetary penalties if targets are not met for a year. Multiplies the penalties for consecutive failure years. Requires regulations to prohibit the sale of single packs of a manufacturer's tobacco products in cases of repeated noncompliance with required reductions and to require generic packaging in severe repeated noncompliance. Authorizes regulations requiring reductions in the use of other tobacco products by individuals under 18, including manufacturer monetary penalties for reduction failures. Title IV: Tobacco Transition Assistance Trust Fund - Establishes the Tobacco Transition Trust Fund and transfers to it amounts available under section 101. Authorizes appropriations to the Fund as repayable advances as necessary for Fund expenditures. Makes the Fund available for transition assistance to tobacco producers and tobacco-growing communities to adjust to reduced demand for tobacco, including economic development assistance, producer and factory worker retraining, or producer scholarships. Makes those amounts available only if a law is enacted by January 1, 2000, specifically prescribing Fund authorized uses. Declares that this title constitutes budget authority in advance of appropriations Acts. Terminates the authority of this title unless such a prescribing law is enacted. Title V: Standards to Reduce Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke - Amends the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 to require the responsible entity for each non-residential public building (regularly entered by at least ten individuals at least one day per week (except certain types of facilities)) to implement a smoke-free environment policy. Allows designated smoking areas meeting specified requirements. Sets forth special rules for: (1) schools and other facilities serving children; and (2) public transportation. Requires States, in order to receive funds under this Act, to demonstrate enforcement. Title VI: Public Health and Other Programs - Subtitle A: Research Programs - Mandates programs (through grants, contracts, or otherwise) to: (1) promote expanded research concerning specified aspects of tobacco and health; and (2) for the conduct of research on the cultural, social, behavioral, neurological, and psychological reasons that individuals refrain from using, begin, continue, or quit using tobacco products. (Sec. 603) Mandates surveillance and evaluation to monitor patterns of tobacco use and determine the effectiveness of various anti-tobacco programs funded under this Act. Requires that funding be made available for the activities under this subtitle. Subtitle B: Education and Prevention Programs - Mandates a program of grants to States for: (1) school-, college-, or university-based education programs concerning tobacco product use dangers; and (2) community-based prevention programs. Requires that funding be made available. Subtitle C: Miscellaneous Programs - Requires a program to reduce tobacco use through national and local media-based (such as counter-advertising campaigns) and nonmedia-based education, prevention, and cessation campaigns. Requires that funding be made available. (Sec. 622) Establishes the National Tobacco Cessation Program. Authorizes grants, contracts, and cooperative agreements. Requires making funding available. (Sec. 623) Establishes a program to provide assistance and compensation to individuals (and entities providing services to individuals) suffering from tobacco-related conditions, targeting uninsured or underinsured individuals who can demonstrate financial hardship. Requires making funding available. (Sec. 624) Authorizes multilateral assistance to foreign countries to assist in reducing and preventing the use of tobacco in foreign countries, focusing on preventing use by minors. Requires making funding available. Establishes in the District of Columbia a private, nonprofit corporation to be known as the American Center on Global Health and Tobacco (ACT). Requires that an International Advisory Council advise ACT. Mandates the annual transfer of a specified amount to carry out this paragraph. Makes ACT and its grantees subject to the oversight and supervision of the Congress. (Sec. 625) Mandates the National Event Sponsorship Program, authorizing grants for the sponsorship of athletic or other social or cultural events that, before enactment of this Act, was provided by a tobacco manufacturer or distributor. Requires making funding available. Terminates the Program ten years after enactment of this Act. (Sec. 626) Requires a program of grants to States to augment existing programs to reduce alcohol and illicit drug use by individuals under 18. Requires making funding available. Title VII: Liability Protection; Consent Decrees; National Protocol - Subtitle A: Liability Protection and Attorney Fees - Requires that, in order to receive funds under section 111, a State resolve any existing, and agree not to start any new, civil action seeking recovery for expenditures attributable to tobacco-related conditions commenced by the State against a manufacturer, distributor, or retailer and pending at enactment of this Act. Bars the Federal Government from starting any such action. Prohibits construing these provisions to limit an individual's right to start a civil action for past, present, or future conduct by tobacco product manufacturers, distributors, or retailers. (Sec. 702) Establishes an Arbitration Panel to award attorney's fees and expenses relating to litigation affected by, or legal services resulting in, this Act. Prohibits any Panel award from affecting any fee payments required under any provision of this Act. Subtitle B: Consent Decrees - Requires that, in order to receive funds under section 111 a State, and in order to receive liability protections under subtitle A tobacco manufacturer, enter into consent decrees under this subtitle. Allows a State to qualify with good faith but unsuccessful efforts. Requires that the decrees resolve State actions for claims associated with manufacturer conduct before this Act. Sets forth required terms, conditions, and limitations. Makes the decrees enforceable by the signatories and the Attorney General. Requires, prior to decree entry by a court, that the decrees be: (1) approved by the Secretary and the Attorney General; (2) fair and reasonable; and (3) in the public interest. Subtitle C: National Tobacco Control Protocol - Chapter 1: Establishment - Requires that a tobacco manufacturer, in order to receive liability protections under subtitle A, enter into a National Tobacco Control Protocol with the U.S. Attorney General and the attorney general of each State that does not opt out. Requires that the Protocol be a binding contract embodying the terms of this subtitle and designed to be enforceable in Federal or State courts. Chapter 2: Terms and Conditions - Declares that this chapter is a part of the Protocol. (Sec. 726) Prohibits tobacco advertising: (1) outdoors; (2) except as allowed in this Act, in any arena or stadium where athletic or other social or cultural activities occur; (3) using a human image or cartoon character; (4) on the Internet, unless inaccessible in or from the United States; and (5) subject to exception, at the point of sale. (Sec. 727) Prohibits a manufacturer from using a trade or brand name of a non-tobacco product for a cigarette or smokeless tobacco product, unless in use before 1998. Sets forth situations in which tobacco brand names or other identification indicia may, with prior notice to the Secretary, be used in advertising and labeling. Prohibits payment for the placement of tobacco products in television programs, motion pictures, or videos or on video game machines. Prohibits direct or indirect payment or consideration for promoting tobacco product image or use through print, film, or broadcast media that appeals to individuals under 18 or through a live performance artist that appeals to such individuals. (Sec. 728) Allows, subject to exceptions, tobacco product labeling and advertising to use only black text on a white background. Limits audio (alone or with video) to words only, prohibiting music and sound effects. (Sec. 729) Prohibits: (1) the use of a tobacco product brand name, logo, symbol, motto, selling message, recognizable color or pattern of colors, or any other indicia of product identification on any service or nontobacco item; (2) offering tobacco purchasers any non-tobacco item in consideration of purchase; and (3) manufacturers, distributors, and retailers from sponsoring athletic or other social or cultural event in which any indicia of product identification is used (but allows sponsorship under the corporate name, if in use before 1995 and if the corporate name does not include any indicia of product identification). Chapter 3: Enforcement - Allows the Attorney General to bring an action for enforcement, or restrain a breach, of the Protocol. Allows restraining orders, orders of specific performance, civil monetary penalties, and (for officers of manufacturers who knowingly violate the Protocol) criminal penalties, including incarceration. Authorizes grants and contracts for State enforcement. Authorizes use of amounts from the HEALTHY Kids Trust Fund and Department of Justice funds for Attorney General enforcement. (Sec. 732) Authorizes the attorney general of a State to bring an action for enforcement, or to restrain a breach, of the Protocol if the alleged violation occurred in that State. Provides for concurrent Federal and State court jurisdiction in such actions. Allows the remedies specified in section 731. (Sec. 733) Authorizes a manufacturer to file an action seeking a declaration of its Protocol rights and obligations. Authorizes any person to bring an action to enforce the Protocol, with any damages remitted to the Treasury. Entitles any manufacturer to intervene as a matter of right in any Federal or State Attorney General enforcement action. Title VIII: Miscellaneous Provisions - Prohibits the use of funds made available by appropriations or otherwise for specified actions, including: (1) promoting the export, reexport, sale, manufacture, advertising, or use of tobacco products to or in a foreign country; or (2) subject to exception, seeking the removal or reduction of any foreign restriction on the importation, export, sale, manufacture, advertising, use, imposition of tariffs, or taxation of tobacco products. (Sec. 802) Prohibits reprisals against a whistleblower employee of any tobacco product manufacturer, distributor, or retailer for disclosing to specified Federal agencies or State or local authorities information regarding a violation of law related to this Act or related State or local laws. Allows the whistleblower to receive a portion of a payment to the Government resulting from the whistleblower's disclosure. (Sec. 803) Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) to make it unlawful for any domestic concern, directly or through a foreign subsidiary or affiliate, to use the mails or interstate commerce to contribute to: (1) the foreign sale or distribution of tobacco products to children or the foreign advertising of tobacco products in a way that appeals to children; and (2) the tobacco product export from any country without a package warning label in the primary language or languages of the country of sale or distribution that complies with domestic labeling requirements. Adds the unlawful acts of this section to the FDCA list of prohibited acts and entitles a person who provides information leading to a related criminal conviction to a portion of the criminal fine collected. (Sec. 804) Allows State or local measures to further this Act's purposes not less stringent than the requirements of this Act. Title IX: Miscellaneous Provisions - Declares that the provisions of this Act shall apply to the manufacture, distribution, and sale of tobacco products in any area in tribal or tribal organization jurisdiction, with exceptions for religious practices. Mandates regulations applying the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act requirements regarding tobacco products to such areas. Provides for the treatment of tribes and tribal organizations under various provisions of this Act. Prohibits manufacturers from engaging in any activity in such areas that is prohibited under the Protocol. Requires that amounts made available under certain portions of section 101 be provided to the Indian Health Service for anti-tobacco-related consumption and cessation activities. Allows tribes and tribal organizations to: (1) take measures to further this Act's purposes in addition to the requirements of this Act; and (2) have rules or practices providing greater protection from the health hazards of environmental tobacco smoke. Prohibits a State from imposing requirements regarding the application of this Act to Indian tribes and tribal organizations.

Federal Facilities Community Right-To-Know Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 1998

Federal Facilities Community Right-To-Know Act of 1998 - Amends the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act of 1986 to include the United States in the definition of "person" under such Act (thus providing for coverage of Federal facilities).

NPDES Permit Gap Prevention Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 1998

NPDES Permit Gap Prevention Act of 1998 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to provide that if the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency or a State with an approved permit program does not reissue or withdraw a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit on or before the permit's expiration date, the permit shall remain in full force and effect and new discharges may be authorized under such permit until reissued or withdrawn.

Farm Sustainability and Animal Feedlot Enforcement Act

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 1998

Farm Sustainability and Animal Feedlot Enforcement Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to make it unlawful, except in compliance with a permit issued under this Act, to discharge pollutants from concentrated animal feeding operations. Requires permits, at a minimum, to specify the surface water and groundwater monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements necessary to ensure that no discharge of pollutants is occurring from such operations. Provides that permits shall require operation in conformance with: (1) applicable effluent limitations and standards of performance under the Act; and (2) an approved waste management plan. Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to publish guidance on the preparation and implementation of waste management plans for concentrated animal feeding operations. Lists minimum required elements of such plans. Provides for submission of plans by operators to the Administrator for approval. Requires revision of guidance at least every five years. Directs the Administrator to revise regulations to ensure that concentrated animal feeding operations employ the best available technology economically achievable or, in the case of new or expanded operations, the best available demonstrated technology necessary to achieve no pollutant discharge. Requires effluent limitations and pretreatment standards for new and existing operations and standards of performance for new operations to, at a minimum and within specified time frames: (1) require that new containment structures and waste application systems be sited and constructed to minimize the risk of pollutant discharges to water; (2) prohibit the use of unlined containment structures or those that pose a significant risk of water pollution; (3) eliminate open-air lagoons for the storage of animal waste; (4) eliminate discharges of pollutants to surface water and groundwater; (5) eliminate the atmospheric deposition of nutrients derived from such operations to water; (6) significantly reduce the liquid content of wastes; and (7) promote technologies and production practices that minimize the need for large-scale storage of animal waste. Sets forth provisions regarding joint liability of owners of animals confined at operations in violation of the Act. Sets forth conditions under which the application of animal waste to land shall be considered to be a discharge of pollutants for purposes of this Act. Requires the Administrator to establish minimum distances from residences and environmentally sensitive locations within which animal waste shall not be applied by aerial spraying. Requires containment structures for animal waste to retain all waste produced by the operation between applications, including runoff that runs through or into any area or structure in which such waste is present. Sets forth requirements for containment systems for wet waste operations. Directs animal owners and operators, before applying waste from an operation on land other than their own, to execute an agreement that includes terms necessary to ensure that the waste is applied in accordance with this Act.

Alternative Water Source Development Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 1998

Alternative Water Source Development Act of 1998 - Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to establish a program for making grants for the development and construction of alternative water source projects to State, interstate, and intrastate water resource development agencies and local government agencies that have authority to develop water resources for potable, commercial, industrial, or agricultural uses. Permits grants only for agencies in States experiencing critical water supply needs. Requires the Administrator to carry out such program to: (1) demonstrate methods of developing alternative water source technologies; and (2) protect groundwater from overpumping and to preserve minimum flows and levels of surface water bodies. Permits grants only to agencies that have: (1) engaged in a planning effort to assess the availability of water resources and the need to develop alternative sources and have produced a comprehensive water resource plan to meet expected water resource needs for a 20-year period; (2) demonstrated that currently available water resources will not be sufficient to provide for expected potable, commercial, industrial, and agricultural needs over the next 20 years; and (3) agreed to provide 50 percent of the cost of the project to be funded with the grant. Makes agencies of States eligible for assistance or receiving funds under the Reclamation Projects Authorization and Adjustment Act of 1992 ineligible for grants under this Act. Requires the Administrator to report to the Congress on the program, together with an analysis of whether program purposes have been realized and recommendations for administrative and legislative actions. Authorizes appropriations.

Airport Environmental and Community Fairness Act

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1998

Airport Environmental and Community Fairness Act - Declares that the granting of additional slots for air service at LaGuardia Airport in New York shall be considered a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment and requiring an environmental impact statement for purposes of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. Declares invalid the Secretary of Transportation's order 97-10-17 granting slot exemptions at such airport.

Innovative Environmental Strategies Act of 1997

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 1998

Innovative Environmental Strategies Act of 1997 - Authorizes owners or operators of facilities subject to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules, requirements, policies, or practices to submit proposals for innovative environmental strategies for achieving better environmental results to the EPA Administrator. Excludes rules for emissions reductions under the Clean Air Act and certain reporting requirements under the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act of 1986 from the definition of "rule." Authorizes the Administrator to enter into an innovative environmental strategy agreement with a facility upon approval of the proposal and subject to other specified requirements. Permits such agreements to: (1) modify or waive otherwise applicable EPA rules, requirements, policies, or practices; (2) establish new environmental standards for a facility; or (3) establish new requirements not contained in existing rules or statutes. Bars such agreements from contravening the specific terms of a statute. Declares that such agreements should further the purposes of environmental statutes. Requires the Administrator to establish procedures under which a person other than the owner or operator may cosponsor a proposal. Gives priority to proposals cosponsored by stakeholder groups. Sets forth requirements for the stakeholder participation process. Permits the Administrator to limit the number of stakeholder participants if it is determined that such participants adequately represent the full range of interests (excluding competitive business interests) that may be affected by the innovative environmental strategy. Lists conditions for the approval of agreements, including that a strategy is expected to achieve better environmental results. Requires the Administrator to give great weight to stakeholders in determining whether to approve or disapprove a strategy. Sets forth conditions under which the Administrator shall deny a proposal if individual stakeholders object. Provides that if a proposed strategy involves waiving or modifying requirements under State, tribal, or local law, the Administrator shall not approve an agreement unless procedures required under such laws for waivers or modifications are followed. Requires agreements to include enforceable requirements and permits agreements to include voluntary commitments. Provides that failure to implement a voluntary commitment constitutes a ground for agreement termination. Sets forth conditions under which the Administrator may terminate agreements. Limits agreements to five-year terms, with exceptions. Provides for renewals. Provides for judicial review of a decision by the Administrator to enter into an agreement. Limits the number of agreements to 50 and authorizes the Administrator to limit the number to fewer than 50. Requires the Administrator to: (1) give priority consideration to proposals from small businesses; (2) ensure that agreements reflect proposals from a diversity of industrial sectors; and (3) establish a program to facilitate development of proposals from small businesses. Sets forth limits on the purposes and uses of agreements. Directs the Administrator to study and report to the Congress on whether approaches embodied in an innovative environmental strategy should be proposed for incorporation in a statute or regulation. Requires the Administrator to report to the Congress on the aggregate effect of agreements. Permits the Administrator to provide grants for technical assistance to stakeholder groups. Authorizes appropriations.

Federal Surplus Property Improvement Act of 1998

United States · United States Congress · 10 February 1998

Federal Surplus Property Improvement Act of 1998 - Requires that nonlethal excess supplies of the Department of Defense be made available to a State or a local government upon request before such supplies are made available for humanitarian relief purposes. Permits the President to make such supplies available for humanitarian purposes before they are made available to a State or local government in response to a natural disaster emergency. Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, with respect to the transfer of property for environmental protection in foreign countries, to prohibit such transfers unless the Administrator of General Services (GSA Administrator) determines that there are no Federal or State use requirements for the property under any other provision of law. Amends the Small Business Act to: (1) repeal the requirement permitting the transfer of U.S.-owned technology or surplus property to participants in the small business and capital ownership development program on a priority basis; and (2) subject to the oversight of the GSA Administrator, in consultation with State agencies responsible for surplus property distribution, the transfer of such technology or surplus property to program participants. Repeals the authority of the Secretary of Energy to transfer surplus equipment to an educational institution with which it has a partnership agreement. Requires the Administrator of General Services to report to the Congress on the effectiveness of surplus personal property donation and disposal programs (except for any program that grants access to personal property by local communities affected by the closure of a military base), along with recommendations for consolidating such programs under a single Federal authority.

Umweltförderungen des Bundes 1996

Austria · National Council · 4 February 1998

Bericht des Umweltausschusses über den Bericht (III-91 d.B.) des Bundesministers für Umwelt, Jugend und Familie betreffend Umweltförderungen des Bundes 1996 sowie die Finanzvorschau über die dem Bund aus der Vollziehung des Umweltförderungsgesetzes erwachsenden Belastungen

Vereinbarung gemäß Art. 15a B-VG zur Errichtung und Erhaltung eines Nationalparks Thayatal

Austria · National Council · 4 February 1998

Bericht des Umweltausschusses über die Regierungsvorlage (905 d.B.): Vereinbarung gemäß Art. 15a B-VG zwischen dem Bund und dem Land Niederösterreich zur Errichtung und Erhaltung eines Nationalparks Thayatal samt Anlage

Bundesgesetz über die Gründung und Beteiligung an der Nationalpark Thayatal GmbH

Austria · National Council · 4 February 1998

Bericht des Umweltausschusses über die Regierungsvorlage (904 d.B.): Bundesgesetz über die Gründung und Beteiligung an der Nationalpark Thayatal GmbH

Errichtung einer 380-kV-Leitung in Österreich

Austria · National Council · 4 February 1998

Bericht des Umweltausschusses über den Antrag 565/A(E) der Abgeordneten Mag. Karl Schweitzer und Genossen betreffend die Errichtung einer 380-kV-Leitung in Österreich

A bill to direct the Secretary of the Army to carry out an environmental restoration and enhancement project at the Eastern Channel of the Lockweeds Folly River, Brunswick County, North Carolina.

United States · United States Congress · 4 February 1998

Directs the Secretary of the Army to carry out an environmental restoration project at the Eastern Channel of the Lockwoods Folly River, Brunswick County, North Carolina. Authorizes appropriations.

86 Mr. Cosgrave asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the plans, if any, he has to increase the funding for the provision of recreational facilities and amenities in built up areas in future and existing local authority estates, where there is very high density housing, relatively high unemployment and crime rates and virtually no amenities. [2383/98]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 3 February 1998

86 Mr. Cosgrave asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the plans, if any, he has to increase the funding for the provision of recreational facilities and amenities in built up areas in future and existing local authority estates, where there is very high density housing, relatively high unemployment and crime rates and virtually no amenities. [2383/98]

79 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the steps he is taking to ensure every local authority provides play areas and playing pitches for recreational purposes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21488/97]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 3 February 1998

79 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the steps he is taking to ensure every local authority provides play areas and playing pitches for recreational purposes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21488/97]

56 Mr. Ferris asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the negotiations, if any, which have taken place with the Department of the Environment and Local Government to ensure proper planned recreational areas in all future housing estates; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21501/97]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 3 February 1998

56 Mr. Ferris asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the negotiations, if any, which have taken place with the Department of the Environment and Local Government to ensure proper planned recreational areas in all future housing estates; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21501/97]

55 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the plans, if any, there are to apply the urban rural renewal scheme to listed buildings so that the owners have an incentive to have them refurbished; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2386/98]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 3 February 1998

55 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the plans, if any, there are to apply the urban rural renewal scheme to listed buildings so that the owners have an incentive to have them refurbished; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2386/98]

54 Mr. Hayes asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the total number of persons who have applied to a local authority for housing; the total number within each local authority area; the percentage of applicants who have remained on a housing list for the past three years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2373/98]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 3 February 1998

54 Mr. Hayes asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the total number of persons who have applied to a local authority for housing; the total number within each local authority area; the percentage of applicants who have remained on a housing list for the past three years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2373/98]

53 Ms Clune asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the proposals, if any, he has to introduce the cap on commercial rates which he announced on 12 January 1998; the nature of the proposed cap; whether it will be uniform for all rating authorities; the effect, if any, it will have on the autonomy of local authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2467/98]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 3 February 1998

53 Ms Clune asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the proposals, if any, he has to introduce the cap on commercial rates which he announced on 12 January 1998; the nature of the proposed cap; whether it will be uniform for all rating authorities; the effect, if any, it will have on the autonomy of local authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2467/98]