Rule of law

proposition de loi constitutionnelle relative au droit de vote et à l'éligibilité des étrangers aux élections municipales

France · Senate · 21 December 1999

proposition de loi relative à la constitution d'une commission de contrôle nationale et décentralisée des fonds publics accordés aux entreprises

France · Senate · 16 December 1999

1 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Taoiseach if he has received the recent report on the Judiciary by the All-Party Committee on the Constitution; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25072/99]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 15 December 1999

1 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Taoiseach if he has received the recent report on the Judiciary by the All-Party Committee on the Constitution; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25072/99]

Bundesverfassungsgesetz; Begrenzung von Bezügen öffentlicher Funktionäre

Austria · National Council · 10 December 1999

Bericht des Verfassungsausschusses über den Antrag 17/A der Abgeordneten Dr. Peter Kostelka, Herbert Scheibner, Georg Schwarzenberger, Dr. Alexander Van der Bellen, Kolleginnen und Kollegen betreffend ein Bundesverfassungsgesetz, mit dem das Bundesverfassungsgesetz über die Begrenzung von Bezügen öffentlicher Funktionäre geändert wird <br><br>und <br><br>über den Antrag 1/A der Abgeordneten Herbert Scheibner, Kolleginnen und Kollegen betreffend ein Bundesverfassungsgesetz, mit dem das Bundesverfassungsgesetz über die Begrenzung von Bezügen öffentlicher Funktionäre geändert wird <i>(Verhinderung der ab 1. Jänner 2000 in Aussicht genommenen</i> <i>Anhebung der Bezüge)</i>

projet de loi tendant à favoriser l'égal accès des femmes et des hommes aux mandats électoraux et aux fonctions électives

France · Senate · 8 December 1999

projet de loi organique relatif à l'égal accès des femmes et des hommes aux mandats outre-mer

France · Senate · 8 December 1999

proposition de loi portant création de la chaîne parlementaire,

France · Senate · 3 December 1999

proposition de loi relative à la chaîne parlementaire

France · Senate · 2 December 1999

Twenty-First Amendment of the Constitution (No. 5) Bill, 1999

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 30 November 1999

Bill entitled an Act to amend the Constitution

proposition de loi organique relative à la vacance de siège des parlementaires

France · Senate · 29 November 1999

proposition de loi constitutionnelle incompatibilité avec tout mandat de la fonction de membre du Gouvernement

France · Senate · 29 November 1999

17 Mr. Quinn asked the Taoiseach when the Government will make the order bringing into effect the amendments to Articles 2 and 3 of the Constitution approved by the people in the refer endum in May 1997 in view of recent developments in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24546/99]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 23 November 1999

17 Mr. Quinn asked the Taoiseach when the Government will make the order bringing into effect the amendments to Articles 2 and 3 of the Constitution approved by the people in the refer endum in May 1997 in view of recent developments in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24546/99]

Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz, Geschäftsordnungsgesetz des Nationalrats, Änderung

Austria · National Council · 18 November 1999

Antrag der Abgeordneten MMag. Dr. Madeleine Petrovic, Kolleginnen und Kollegen betreffend ein Bundesgesetz, mit dem das Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz und das Geschäftsordnungsgesetz des Nationalrats geändert werden <i>(Untersuchungsausschüsse)</i>

Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz, Geschäftsordnungsgesetz, Änderung

Austria · National Council · 18 November 1999

Antrag der Abgeordneten Dr. Peter Kostelka, Kolleginnen und Kollegen betreffend ein Bundesverfassungsgesetz, mit dem das Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz geändert wird, und ein Bundesgesetz, mit dem das Bundesgesetz über die Geschäftsordnung des Nationalrates (Geschäftsordnungsgesetz 1975) geändert wird <i>(Untersuchungsausschüsse)</i>

Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz, Geschäftsordnungsgesetz, Änderung

Austria · National Council · 18 November 1999

Antrag der Abgeordneten Dr. Peter Kostelka, Kolleginnen und Kollegen betreffend ein Bundesverfassungsgesetz, mit dem das Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz geändert wird, und ein Bundesgesetz, mit dem das Bundesgesetz über die Geschäftsordnung des Nationalrates (Geschäftsordnungsgesetz 1975) geändert wird <i>(Untersuchungsausschüsse)</i>

Bundesverfassungsgesetz über die Begrenzung von Bezügen öffentlicher Funktionäre, Änderung

Austria · National Council · 18 November 1999

Antrag der Abgeordneten Dr. Peter Kostelka, Herbert Scheibner, Georg Schwarzenberger, Dr. Alexander Van der Bellen, Kolleginnen und Kollegen betreffend ein Bundesverfassungsgesetz, mit dem das Bundesverfassungsgesetz über die Begrenzung von Bezügen öffentlicher Funktionäre geändert wird

Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz, Änderung

Austria · National Council · 18 November 1999

Gesetzesantrag der Bundesräte Jürgen Weiss, Kolleginnen und Kollegen vom 18. November 1999 betreffend ein Bundesverfassungsgesetz, mit dem das Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz geändert wird <i>(Einführung der Briefwahl auf Landes- und Gemeindeebene;</i> <i>Einbeziehung der außerhalb des Landes lebenden</i> <i>Landesbürger in die Verteilung der Mandate auf die</i> <i>Wahlkreise)</i>

Returning to the Senate the bill S. 4.

United States · United States Congress · 18 November 1999

Returns to the Senate S. 4 (Soldiers', Sailors', Airmen's, and Marines' Bill of Rights) because, in the opinion of the House of Representatives, it contravenes the Constitution and infringes upon the privileges of the House.

Returning to the Senate the bill S. 1232.

United States · United States Congress · 18 November 1999

Returns to the Senate S. 1232 (Federal erroneous retirement coverage corrections) because, in the opinion of the House of Representatives, it contravenes the Constitution and infringes upon the privileges of the House.

A concurrent resolution expressing the strong opposition of Congress to the continued egregious violations of human rights and the lack of progress toward the establishment of democracy and the rule of law in Belarus and calling on President Alexander Lukashenka to engage in negotiations with the representatives of the opposition and to restore the constitutional rights of the Belarusian people.

United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999

Condemns: (1) the current Belarusian regime; and (2) the arrests of Anatoly Lebedko, Nikolay Statkevich, and Valery Shchukin. Declares that Congress is gravely concerned about the disappearances of Viktor Gonchar, Yuri Krasovsky, Yuri Zakharenka, Tamara Vinnikova, and other members of the opposition. Calls for: (1) immediate dialogue between President Lukashenka and the Consultative Council of Belarusian opposition and the restoration of a civilian, democratically elected government in Belarus; and (2) a duly constituted national legislature, the rule of law, and an independent judiciary. Urges President Lukashenka to: (1) respect the human rights of all Belarusian citizens, including those members of the opposition who are currently being illegally detained in violation of their constitutional rights; and (2) make good on his promise to hold free parliamentary elections in 2000. Expresses support for the appeal by the Consultative Council of Belarusian opposition parties to the Government of Russia, the State Duma, and the Federation Council for a cessation of support for Lukashenka's regime. Calls on: (1) the international community to support the opposition by continuing to meet with the legitimately elected parliament; and (2) the President of the United States to continue to fund travel to the United States by the Belarusian opposition figures, to provide funding for the nongovernmental organizations in Belarus, and to support information flows into Belarus.

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

United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999

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

Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2000

United States · United States Congress · 17 November 1999

Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2000 - Title I: Export and Investment Assistance - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 for: (1) direct loans, loan guarantees, tied-aid grants, insurance, and administrative expenses under Export-Import Bank programs; (2) Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) direct and guaranteed loans and credit and insurance programs, including administrative expenses; and (3) the Trade and Development Agency. Title II: Bilateral Economic Assistance - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 for: (1) expenses of the President in carrying out certain programs under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961; (2) the Agency for International Development (AID) child survival and disease programs, including basic education programs (earmarking $35 million only for the HIV-AIDS programs requested under this heading in House Document 106-101); (3) specified development assistance (allowing availability of limited amounts for the Inter-American Foundation and the African Development Foundation); (4) specified projects aimed at reunification of Cyprus; (5) specified assistance for Lebanon for scholarships and direct support to the American educational institutions there; (6) democracy and humanitarian activities in Burma; (7) international disaster assistance; (8) micro and small enterprise development programs; (9) the cost and administrative expenses related to guaranteed loans for the urban and environmental credit program; (10) direct loans and loan guarantees under the development credit authority program for development assistance to foreign countries, including Eastern Europe and the Baltic States; (11) the Foreign Service Retirement and Disability Fund; (12) operating expenses of AID and the AID Office of Inspector General; (13) Economic Support Fund (ESF) assistance (earmarking amounts for Israel, Egypt, Jordan, and East Timor and to support victims of and programs related to the Holocaust and for nongovernmental organizations located outside of the People's Republic of China to support activities which preserve cultural traditions and promote sustainable development and environmental conservation in Tibetan communities there); (14) the International Fund for Ireland; (15) ESF assistance for Eastern Europe and the Baltic States (earmarking amounts for Kosova and Bosnia and Herzegovina, subject to specified conditions); (16) assistance for the Independent States of the former Soviet Union (subject to specified conditions, and earmarking amounts for the Russian Far East, Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia, Mongolia, the Southern Caucasus (especially the areas of Abkhazia and Nagorno-Karabagh), and for salaries and expenses to carry out the Russian Leadership Program, and maternal and neo-natal health activities in the Independent States of the former Soviet Union); (17) the Peace Corps (with a bar on the use of such funds for abortions); (18) international narcotics control and law enforcement; (19) migration and refugee assistance; (20) the Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund; (21) nonproliferation, anti-terrorism, demining, and related programs and activities (including U.S. contributions to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO), subject to specified conditions, the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Preparatory Commission, and the Nonproliferation and Disarmament Fund); (22) the Department of the Treasury international affairs technical assistance program; (23) debt restructuring of concessional loans, guarantees, and credits made to eligible countries; and (24) the United States Community Adjustment and Investment Program. Bars the use of development assistance funds for: (1) coercive abortions or involuntary sterilizations; (2) U.S. private and voluntary organizations which obtain less than 20 percent of annual funding from sources other than the U.S. Government; and (3) any activity that is in contravention to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna (CITES). Prohibits funds to Russia unless the Secretary of State certifies to the Committees on Appropriations that Russian peacekeepers deployed in Kosova have not established a separate zone of operational control and are operating under the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) unified command. Withholds 50 percent of the funds allocated for the Government of the Russian Federation until the President certifies to the Committees on Appropriations that it has terminated arrangements to provide Iran with technology to develop a nuclear program or ballistic missile capability. Title III: Military Assistance - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 for: (1) expanded international military education and training (IMET) to Indonesia and Guatemala; (2) foreign military financing grants and direct loans (earmarking amounts for Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia (including drawdowns of defense articles and services), and Ecuador); and (3) international peacekeeping operations (subject to certain conditions). Declares that none of the funds appropriated under this heading may be made available to support grant financed military education and training at the School of the Americas unless the Secretary of Defense certifies that the instruction and training provided by the School is fully consistent with training and doctrine, particularly with respect to the observance of human rights, provided by the Department of Defense to U.S. military students at Department of Defense institutions whose primary purpose is to train U.S. military personnel. Requires the Secretary of Defense to report to a specified congressional committee by January 15, 2000, on the School's training activities and a general assessment regarding the performance of its graduates during 1997 and 1998. Prohibits foreign military financing for: (1) Sudan, Liberia, and Guatemala; or (2) any non-NATO country participating in the Partnership for Peace Program except through the regular notification procedures of the Committees on Appropriations. Title IV: Multilateral Economic Assistance - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 for the U.S. contribution to: (1) the Global Environment Facility of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank); (2) the International Development Association (IDA); (3) the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency; (4) the Inter-American Investment Corporation; (5) the Inter-American Development Bank; (6) the Asian Development Bank; (7) the Asian Development Fund; (8) the African Development Bank; (9) the African Development Fund; and (10) the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Makes appropriations for FY 2000 for international programs and organizations. Sets certain restrictions on international organization funding, including prohibiting the use of funds for the United Nations Fund for Science and Technology, KEDO, or the IAEA. Title V: General Provisions - Sets forth limits on the use of appropriations, including that no more than 15 percent of such appropriations shall be obligated during the last month of availability. (Sec. 502) Prohibits: (1) the use of funds for bilateral funding of international financial institutions; and (2) the transfer of such funds by AID directly to such an institution for the purpose of repaying a foreign country's loan obligations to it. (Sec. 503) Sets forth limits on the use of appropriations, including no more than specified maximums for official residence expenses, entertainment expenses, and representation allowances for AID, and for entertainment and representation allowances for the Inter-American Foundation and the Trade and Development Agency. Limits the use of funds for entertainment expenses of the Peace Corps, and of entertainment and representation allowances under the Foreign Military Financing Program. (Sec. 506) Prohibits the use of funds for: (1) the export of nuclear equipment, fuel, or technology (except for nuclear safety purposes); (2) direct assistance or reparations to Cuba, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Iran, Sudan, or Syria; (3) assistance to any country whose duly elected head of government is deposed by military coup or decree; (4) certain transfers between appropriations accounts without prior presidential consultation with Congress; (5) assistance to any country in default in excess of a year on payments on a U.S. loan (except for any narcotics-related assistance for Colombia, Bolivia, and Peru); and (6) assistance (except in certain circumstances) for production of any commodity for export by a foreign country, if the commodity is likely to be in surplus on world markets when the resulting productive capacity is expected to become operative, and if the assistance will cause substantial injury to U.S. producers of a similar commodity. (Sec. 514) Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. Executive Directors of specified international financial institutions to oppose any assistance for the production or extraction of any commodity or mineral for export if it is in surplus on world markets and such assistance will cause substantial injury to U.S. producers of a similar commodity. (Sec. 516) Declares that funds appropriated for foreign operations, export financial, and related programs, that are returned or not made available for international organizations and programs shall remain available for obligation until FY 2001. (Sec. 517) Prohibits the availability of assistance for the Independent States of the former Soviet Union to a Government of such an Independent State, unless such Government is making progress in implementing comprehensive economic reforms based on market principles, private ownership, respect for commercial contracts, and equitable treatment of foreign private investment. Prohibits the availability of assistance also: (1) if such a Government applies or transfers U.S. assistance to any entity for the purpose of expropriating or seizing ownership of assets, investments, or ventures (unless the President determines such assistance is in the national interest); (2) if such a Government directs action in violation of the territorial integrity or national sovereignty of any other Independent State of the former Soviet Union; or (3) to enhance its military capability (except for demilitarization, demining, or nonproliferation programs). (Sec. 518) Prohibits the use of development assistance funds for abortions or involuntary sterilizations as methods of family planning or to motivate or coerce any person to practice abortions, or provide any financial incentive to undergo sterilization. (Sec. 519) Limits to no more than five percent the amount of export financing funds (other than for administrative expenses) that can be transferred from one appropriation to another, with no appropriation being increased by more than 25 percent by such transfer. (Sec. 520) Prohibits the use of funds for Colombia, Haiti, Liberia, Pakistan, Panama, Serbia, Sudan, or the Democratic Republic of Congo, except through the regular notification procedures of the Committees on Appropriations. (Sec. 522) Makes funds available to AID for child survival, basic education, infectious disease activities and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) research and control in developing countries. (Sec. 523) Bars funding for indirect assistance or reparations to Cuba, Iraq, Libya, Iran, Syria, North Korea, or China unless the President certifies that the withholding of such funds is contrary to the U.S. national security interest. (Sec. 524) Requires the Department of Defense (DOD) to notify the Committees on Appropriations before providing excess DOD articles to certain NATO and major non-NATO countries. (Sec. 526) Authorizes the availability of ESF funds to provide general support and grants for nongovernmental organizations located outside China that have as their primary purpose fostering democracy in that country. Earmarks ESF funds to the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights for a project to disseminate information and support research about China, and related activities. (Sec. 527) Prohibits bilateral assistance funds to any country which the President determines grants sanctuary from prosecution to any individual or group which has committed an act of international terrorism or otherwise supports such activities. Authorizes the waiver of this prohibition by the President for national security and humanitarian reasons, requiring notification to the Committees on Appropriations. (Sec. 528) Authorizes the commercial leasing of defense articles (instead of government-to-government sale) to Israel, Egypt, NATO, and major non-NATO allies if the President determines that there are compelling foreign policy or national security reasons. (Sec. 529) Requires all AID contracts and subcontracts to include a clause requiring that U.S. insurance companies have a fair opportunity to bid for insurance when insurance is necessary or appropriate. (Sec. 530) Prohibits U.S. sale of Stinger missiles in the Persian Gulf region, with certain exceptions. (Sec. 531) Authorizes nongovernmental organizations which are AID grantees or contractors to place funds made available to them under this Act in interest bearing accounts in order to enhance their participation in economic activities under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, including endowments and debt-for-development and debt-for- nature exchanges. (Sec. 532) Directs the Administrator of AID to require foreign countries that receive foreign assistance which results in the generation of local currencies to deposit such currencies in a separate account to be used to finance foreign assistance activities. (Sec. 533) Prohibits payments to any international financial institution while the U.S. Executive Director to the institution is compensated at a rate in excess of that for Level IV of the Executive Schedule. (Sec. 534) Bars assistance to any country that is not in compliance with the United Nations (UN) sanctions against Iraq, unless the President certifies to Congress that such assistance: (1) is in the U.S. national interest; (2) will directly benefit the needy people in that country; or (3) will be humanitarian assistance for foreign nationals who have fled Iraq and Kuwait. (Sec. 535) Declares that provisions under this or any other Act authorizing appropriations for foreign operations or export financing shall not be construed to prohibit activities authorized by the Peace Corps Act, the Inter-American Foundation Act, or the African Development Foundation Act. Requires an agency to report to the Committees on Appropriations whenever it is conducting or proposing activities in a country for which such assistance is prohibited. (Sec. 536) Prohibits the use of funds to provide: (1) any financial incentive to a business for purposes of inducing it to relocate outside the United States if it will reduce the number of employees in the United States; (2) assistance for establishing or developing in a foreign country an export processing zone or other designated area in which a country's tax, tariff, labor, environment, and safety laws do not apply to activities in the area, unless the President certifies that such assistance is not likely to cause a loss of U.S. jobs; or (3) assistance for any project that contributes to the violation of internationally recognized workers rights in the recipient country. (Sec. 537) Prohibits the availability of funds under this Act for the Republic of Serbia (except for Kosova or Montenegro or for assistance to promote democratization). (Sec. 538) Declares that funds appropriated under this Act for Afghanistan, Lebanon, Montenegro, and for victims of war, displaced children, displaced Burmese, humanitarian assistance for Romania, and humanitarian assistance for the peoples of Kosova may be made available notwithstanding any other provision of law. Prohibits the use of funds made available to Cambodia for military or paramilitary purposes. Authorizes the use of foreign assistance funds to support tropical forestry and biodiversity conservation programs, and subject to the regular notification procedures of the Committees on Appropriations, energy programs aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Authorizes AID to employ personal services contractors to administer programs for the West Bank and Gaza. Authorizes the President to waive certain prohibitions with respect to the Palestine Liberation Organizations (PLO) if the President determines and certifies to Congress that it is in the national interest. (Sec. 539) Expresses the sense of Congress with respect to: (1) immediate public renunciation by the Arab League countries of the boycott of Israel (reinstated in 1997) and of American firms having commercial ties with Israel; and (2) steps the President should take to encourage such renunciation. (Sec. 540) Authorizes the use of ESF funds to strengthen the administration of justice in countries in Latin America, the Caribbean, and in other regions. (Sec. 541) Declares that the restrictions on assistance to foreign countries contained in this Act or any other Act (except those relating to international terrorism or human rights violations) shall not be construed to restrict assistance: (1) in support of certain programs of nongovernmental organizations; or (2) under specified provisions of the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954. (Sec. 542) Authorizes the reprogramming of earmarked appropriations for other programs within the same account, provided certain requirements are met. (Sec. 544) Prohibits the use of funds for publicity or propaganda purposes within the United States that were not authorized before the enactment of this Act. Earmarks specified amounts to private and voluntary organizations to deal with world hunger abroad. (Sec. 545) Declares that assistance under this Act should make full use of American resources, including commodities, products, and services, to the maximum extent possible. Declares the sense of Congress that, to the greatest extent practicable, all agricultural commodities, equipment, and products purchased with funds made available in this Act should be American- made. Requires Federal agency heads, in providing financial assistance to or entering into any contract with any entity using funds made available in this Act, to notify such entity of this intention. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to report annually on the efforts of such agency heads and the U.S. directors of international financial institutions in complying with such requirements. (Sec. 546) Prohibits the use of funds to pay any assessments, arrearages, or dues of any UN member (including costs for attendance of another country's delegation at international conferences). (Sec. 548) Prohibits the provision of funds to a private voluntary organization that fails to provide any document, file, or record necessary to the auditing requirements of AID. (Sec. 549) Prohibits the provision of funds to any foreign government that provides lethal military equipment to a country that the Secretary of State has determined has a terrorist government, unless the President determines that the furnishing of such assistance is in the U.S. national interest. (Sec. 550) Withholds assistance to a foreign country in an amount equal to 110 percent of the total unpaid parking fines and penalties owed by the country to the District of Columbia. (Sec. 551) Prohibits the obligation of any appropriations for the PLO for the West Bank and Gaza unless the President has exercised certain authorities to suspend prohibitions on assistance to the PLO. (Sec. 552) Permits the President to provide up to a specified amount of commodities and services to the UN War Crimes Tribunal if doing so will contribute to a just resolution of charges regarding genocide or other violations of international law in the former Yugoslavia. (Sec. 553) Authorizes disposal on a grant basis in foreign countries of demining equipment used in support of the clearance of land mines and unexploded ordnance for humanitarian purposes. Extends the U.S. moratorium on the transfer of anti-personnel landmines. (Sec. 554) Prohibits the obligation of appropriations to create in Jerusalem a new U.S. agency office for the purpose of conducting U.S. business with the Palestinian Authority over Gaza and Jericho (or any successor Palestinian governing entity) provided for in the Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles. (Sec. 555) Prohibits the obligation of certain funds appropriated for Informational Program activities to pay for: (1) alcoholic beverages; or (2) entertainment expenses for recreational activities. (Sec. 556) Declares that direct costs associated with a foreign customer's additional or unique requirements with respect to the sale of defense articles shall continue to be an allowable cost under the Arms Export Control Act. (Sec. 557) Authorizes the President to reduce amounts owed to the United States by eligible countries as a result of: (1) housing guarantees made pursuant to the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961; (2) credits extended or guarantees issued under the Arms Export Control Act; or (3) any obligation to pay for purchases of U.S. agricultural commodities guaranteed by the Commodity Credit Corporation. Permits the exercise of such authority only: (1) to implement multilateral official debt relief and referendum agreements known as the Paris Club Agreed Minutes; and (2) with respect to countries with heavy debt burdens that are eligible to borrow from the IDA (but not from the World Bank) (IDA-only countries). Prescribes additional conditions for the exercise of such authority. (Sec. 558) Authorizes the President to engage in certain debt buybacks or sales. Authorizes the sale, reduction, or cancellation of certain loans to foreign governments, upon receipt of payment from an eligible purchaser that plans to use such loans only for the purposes of engaging in debt-for-equity swaps, debt-for-development swaps, or debt-for nature swaps. Limits such authority to funds appropriated by this Act under the heading of debt restructuring. (Sec. 559) Urges the President, in providing assistance to Haiti, to place priority on: (1) aggressive action to support the Haitian National Police, including efforts to purge corrupt and politicized elements within the police; (2) steps to ensure that U.S. assisted elections in Haiti are free, fair, and democratic; (3) support for a program to develop an indigenous human rights monitoring capacity; (4) steps to continue privatization of state-owned enterprises; (5) a sustainable agricultural development program; and (6) establishment of an economic development fund for Haiti to provide long-term, low interest loans to U.S. investors and businesses that are committed to doing business there. Directs the President to report to specified congressional committees on the status: (1) of each of the governmental institutions envisioned in the 1987 Haitian Constitution; (2) of the privatization of the major public entities; (3) of the Government of Haiti's efforts to conduct thorough investigations of extrajudicial and political killings; (4) of steps being taken to secure ratification of the maritime counter-narcotics agreements signed October 1997; and (5) of the extent to which domestic capacity to conduct free, fair, and democratic elections has been developed in Haiti. Earmarks a specified percentage of funds appropriated under this Act for bilateral assistance to Latin America and the Caribbean region. (Sec. 560) Requires a specified annual report of the Secretary of State containing the voting record of each foreign member country of the UN to include a side-by-side comparison of each country's overall support for the United States at the UN and the amount of U.S. assistance provided to it in FY 1999. (Sec. 561) Prohibits the United States from paying any voluntary contribution to the UN, including the UN Development Program, unless the President certifies to Congress 15 days in advance of such payment that the UN is not engaged in any effort to implement or impose any taxation on U.S. persons in order to raise revenue for itself or any of its specialized agencies. (Sec. 562) Makes the Government of Haiti eligible to purchase U.S. defense articles and services for the civilian-led Haitian National Police and Coast Guard. (Sec. 563) Prohibits the obligation of any appropriations for the PLO unless the President certifies to Congress that it is in the U.S. national security interests. (Sec. 564) Prohibits the use of funds for the security forces of a foreign country if the Secretary of State believes they have committed gross violations of human rights, unless the Secretary reports to the Committees on Appropriations that such country is taking steps to bring the responsible persons to justice. (Sec. 565) Requires that any agreement between the United States and the Government of Indonesia for the sale of lethal weapons shall state that the United States expects that such items will not be used in East Timor. (Sec. 566) Provides for bilateral and multilateral assistance sanctions (with humanitarian, democratization, and certain infrastructure project exceptions) against countries harboring war criminals indicted with respect to the former Yugoslavia. Prohibits the provision of bilateral assistance for programs in which publicly indicted war criminals are known to have any financial interest or communities that are not in compliance with specified sections of the Dayton Agreement relating to war crimes and the Tribunal. Requires the Secretary of State to report to the appropriate congressional committees on the location, if known, of publicly indicted war criminals, on country, entity and municipality authorities known to have obstructed the work of the Tribunal, and on sanctioned countries, entities, and municipalities. (Sec. 567) Prohibits the use of funds for the Government of the Russian Federation unless the President certifies to specified congressional committees that the Federation has not enacted laws or promulgated executive orders that discriminate against religious minorities in violation of international agreements on human rights and religious freedoms to which it is a party. (Sec. 568) Subjects the availability of funds in this Act to support programs or activities promoting country participation in the Kyoto Protocol to the Framework Convention on Climate Change (FCCC) to the regular notification procedures of the Committees on Appropriations. (Sec. 569) Authorizes for FY 1999 and 2000 the use of DOD funds for crating, packing, handling, and transportation of excess defense articles to countries that are eligible to participate in the Partnership for Peace and that are eligible for assistance under the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989. (Sec. 570) Bars funds to the Central Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo. (Sec. 571) Earmarks specified foreign assistance funds for Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, the West Bank and Gaza, the Israel-Lebanon Monitoring Group, the Multinational Force and Observers, the Middle East Regional Democracy Fund, Middle East Regional Cooperation, and Middle East Multilateral Working Groups. (Sec. 572) Requires the President to submit to specified congressional committees a plan for the distribution of the assets of an Enterprise Fund before any distribution resulting from liquidation, dissolution, or winding up of the Fund. (Sec. 573) Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. executive directors of international financial institutions to oppose loans to Cambodia (except loans to support basic human needs). Prohibits the availability of funds under this Act for assistance for the Government of Cambodia. (Sec. 574) Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to declare that the prohibition on the use of funds under such Act to provide law enforcement training to foreign governments within the United States or abroad shall not apply with respect to assistance provided to customs personnel for customs law enforcement. (Sec. 575) Directs the Secretaries of Defense and of State to report jointly to Congress on all overseas military training provided to, and proposed to be provided to, foreign military personnel under programs administered by the Defense and State Departments during FY 1999 and 2000. (Sec. 576) Earmarks specified funds for KEDO for administrative expenses and heavy fuel oil costs associated with the Agreed Framework (Joint Declaration on Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula). Earmarks other amounts to KEDO if the President certifies to Congress that North Korea is complying with the provisions of the Agreed Framework. (Sec. 577) Authorizes investment of funds made available to grantees of the African Development Foundation pending expenditure for project purposes when authorized by the President of the Foundation. (Sec. 578) Bars the use of funds appropriated under this Act to provide equipment, technical support, consulting services, or any other assistance to the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation. (Sec. 579) Authorizes voluntary separation incentive payments to AID employees to eliminate AID positions and functions contained in a mandatory strategic plan outlining such payments. (Sec. 580) Earmarks specified amounts of ESF funds for a political transition in Iraq, Iraqi opposition groups for political, economic, humanitarian, and other activities, and for groups and activities seeking the prosecution of Saddam Hussein and other Iraqi government officials for war crimes. (Sec. 581) Directs AID to submit its annual budgets to the Committees on Appropriations. (Sec. 582) Requires information relevant to the December 2, 1980, murders of four American churchwomen in El Salvador be made public to the fullest extent possible. (Sec. 583) Prohibits the use of funds appropriated under this Act to propose or issue rules, regulations, decrees, or orders for implementation, or in preparation for implementation, of the Kyoto Protocol to the United States Framework Convention on Climate Change, which has not been submitted to the Senate for advice and consent to ratification pursuant to the U.S. Constitution, and which has not entered into force. (Sec. 584) Makes funds available for FY 2000 for defense article stockpiles in foreign countries, including the Republic of Korea and Thailand. (Sec. 585) Amends the 1999 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act to extend the pilot Russian Leadership Program at the Library of Congress through FY 2000. (Sec. 586) Abolishes the Inter-American Foundation. (Sec. 587) Directs the Secretary of State, 30 days prior to the initial obligation of ESF funds for the bilateral West Bank and Gaza Program, to certify to the appropriate congressional committees that procedures have been established to assure the Comptroller General will have access to appropriate U.S. financial information in order to review the uses of such funds for the Program. (Sec. 588) Earmarks specified amounts of international narcotics control and law enforcement funds for: (1) the Colombia Attorney General's Human Rights Unit; (2) activities of Colombian nongovernmental organizations involved in human rights monitoring; (3) the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to assist the Government of Colombia in strengthening its human rights policies and programs; (4) personnel and other resources to enhance U.S. Embassy monitoring of assistance to the Colombian security forces and responding to reports of human rights violations; and (5) administration of justice programs including support for the Colombia Attorney General's Technical Investigations Unit. (Sec. 589) Makes IMET and foreign military financing program funds available for Indonesia if the President determines and reports to the appropriate congressional committees that the Indonesian government and the Indonesian armed forces are taking specified actions to: (1) bring to justice, and cooperate with investigations and prosecutions of, members of the armed forces and militia groups with respect to human rights violations in Indonesia and East Timor; (2) allow safe passage for refugees returning home to East Timor from West Timor; and (3) not impede the International Force in East Timor (INTERFET). (Sec. 590) Bars the use of appropriated funds under this Act for the UN Man and the Biosphere Program or the UN World Heritage Fund for programs in the United States. (Sec. 591) Declares that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) (except Montenegro or Kosova) shall be deemed a state sponsor of terrorism for purposes of granting U.S. courts jurisdiction to award money damages for personal injury caused to or the death of a U.S. national by an act of terrorism by an official, employee, or agent of FRY. (Sec. 592) Authorizes the President to provide, through appropriate Federal agencies, food assistance to groups engaged in the protection of civilian populations from attacks by Sudanese government forces, associated militias, or other paramilitary groups supported by the Sudan government. Sets forth certain conditions for the provision of such assistance. Requires the President to report to the Committees on Appropriations on U.S. bilateral assistance to opposition-controlled areas of Sudan. (Sec. 593) Requires the Secretary of State to consult with the appropriate congressional committees and leadership of Congress to devise a mechanism to provide for congressional input before making any determination on the nature or quantity of defense articles and services to be made available to Taiwan. (Sec. 594) Authorizes appropriations for the U.S. contributions to the African Development Bank, Inter-American Investment Corporation, the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, the African Development Fund, and the IDA. (Sec. 595) Earmarks for Costa Rica a specified amount of funds from the Central America and the Caribbean Emergency Disaster Recovery Fund. (Sec. 596) Silk Road Strategy Act of 1999 - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize specified assistance, including humanitarian, economic, migration and refugee, development, border control, and democracy building assistance to promote economic and political independence in the South Caucasus and Central Asia countries. (Sec. 597) Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to require that the annual report to Congress on the status of human rights in foreign countries slated to receive development assistance include a list of foreign states where trafficking in persons, especially women and children, originates, passes through, or is a destination, and an assessment of the efforts of such states to combat such trafficking. (Sec. 598) Expresses the sense of Congress that OPIC shall select a fund manager for the purpose of creating a maritime fund consisting of capital of up to $200 million to support international maritime projects. (Sec. 599) Imposes certain economic and political sanctions against Serbia unless the President makes a certain certification with respect to Serbia to specified congressional committees. Exempts the governments of Montenegro and Kosova from such sanctions. (Sec. 599A) Urges the export of U.S. clean coal technology. (Sec. 599B) Urges the use of U.S. assistance for the reconstruction efforts in the FRY to the maximum extent practicable for the procurement of U.S. articles and services. (Sec. 599C) Earmarks a specified amount of international organizations and program funds for the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) (except for any country program in China). Conditions the availability of such funds to UNFPA on specified requirements, including that it does not fund abortions. (Sec. 599D) Earmarks a specified amount of funds for population planning activities or other population assistance. Prohibits the availability of appropriated funds for population activities to any private, nongovernmental, or multilateral organization until it certifies that it will not during the period for which funds are made available: (1) perform abortions in any foreign country, except if the life of the mother would be endangered if the pregnancy were carried to term or in cases of forcible rape or incest; or (2) violate the laws of a foreign country with respect to the circumstances under which abortion is permitted, regulated, or prohibited, or engage in lobbying activities in an effort to alter its laws with respect to abortion (except lobbying in opposition to coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization). Provides for the reduction of such assistance in the event that the President waives such requirements. (Sec. 599E) Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to extend through November 1, 2000, OPIC's authority to issue investment insurance and guarantees. Title VI: International Affairs Supplemental Appropriations - Makes supplemental appropriations for FY 2000 for: (1) the ESF (earmarking amounts for Jordan and the West Bank and Gaza); and (2) foreign military financing (earmarking amounts for grants for Israel, Egypt, and Jordan).

Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to abolishing personal income, estate, and gift taxes and prohibiting the United States Government from engaging in business in competition with its citizens.

United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1999

Constitutional Amendment - Prohibits the United States from engaging in any business, professional, commercial, financial, or industrial enterprise except as specified in the Constitution. Prohibits the constitution or laws of any State, or the laws of the United States, from being subject to the terms of any foreign or domestic agreement which would abrogate this amendment. Requires any activities of the U.S. Government which violate the intent and purposes of this amendment to, within a period of three years from the date of the ratification of this amendment, be liquidated and the properties and facilities affected to be sold. Repeals, three years after the ratification of this amendment the sixteenth article of amendments to the Constitution of the United States and thereafter Congress shall not levy taxes on personal incomes, estates, and or gifts.

Expressing the strong opposition of Congress to the continued egregious violations of human rights and the lack of progress toward the establishment of democracy and the rule of law in Belarus and calling on President Alexander Lukashenka to engage in negotiations with the representatives of the opposition and to restore the constitutional rights of the Belarusian people.

United States · United States Congress · 16 November 1999

Condemns: (1) the current Belarusian regime; and (2) the arrests of Anatoly Lebedko, Nikolay Statkevich, and Valery Shchukin. Declares that Congress is gravely concerned about the disappearances of Viktor Gonchar, Yuri Krasovsky, Yuri Zakharenka, Tamara Vinnikova, and other members of the opposition. Calls for: (1) immediate dialogue between President Lukashenka and the Consultative Council of Belarusian opposition and the restoration of a civilian, democratically elected government in Belarus; and (2) a duly constituted national legislature, the rule of law, and an independent judiciary. Urges President Lukashenka to: (1) respect the human rights of all Belarusian citizens, including those members of the opposition who are currently being illegally detained in violation of their constitutional rights; and (2) make good on his promise to hold free parliamentary elections in 2000. Expresses support for the appeal by the Consultative Council of Belarusian opposition parties to the Government of Russia, the State Duma, and the Federation Council for a cessation of support for Lukashenka's regime. Calls on: (1) the international community to support the opposition by continuing to meet with the legitimately elected parliament; and (2) the President of the United States to continue to fund travel to the United States by the Belarusian opposition figures, to provide funding for the nongovernmental organizations in Belarus, and to support information flows into Belarus.

READY Act

United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1999

Reducing the Effects of Abuse and Domestic Violence on Youth or READY Act - Title I: Children Who Witness Domestic Violence - Amends the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA) to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services (for purposes of this title, the Secretary) to award grants to eligible entities to conduct programs to encourage the use of domestic violence intervention models using multi-system partnerships to address the needs of children who witness domestic violence. Sets forth provisions regarding grant term and amount, eligible entities, application requirements, and technical assistance. Requires an entity that receives a grant to use amounts provided to conduct a program to design or replicate, and implement, domestic violence intervention models that use multi-system partners to respond to the needs of children who witness domestic violence. Specifies elements of such program, including involvement of collaborative partnerships with local entities carrying out domestic violence programs that provide shelter or related assistance, and provision of direct counseling and advocacy for adult victims of domestic violence and their children who witness domestic violence. Authorizes appropriations. Amends the FVPSA to direct the Secretary to appoint one or more employee of the Department of Health and Human Services to carry out such Act, each of whom shall have had prior expertise in the field of family violence prevention and services (current law provides for one such employee with such expertise). Title II: Violence Against Women Prevention In Schools - Directs the Secretary of Education (for purposes of this title, the Secretary) to provide grants to State, local, or tribal school systems to develop, modify, and implement State, local, or tribal school system policies and programs for elementary schools, middle schools, and secondary schools which address domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Sets forth eligibility and application requirements. Lists permissible uses of grant funds, such as the development and implementation of educational programs or prevention strategies for students and personnel in elementary, middle, and secondary schools addressing domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Requires that policies and programs developed and implemented address issues of victim safety and confidentiality that are consistent with applicable State and Federal laws. Directs the Secretary to: (1) disseminate any existing Department of Education policy guidance regarding preventing domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking; (2) study existing policies and programs as well as new policies and programs funded by this title and report to Congress recommendations for implementation of successful policies for referring students to services when they may be witnessing or experiencing domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking; and (3) publish the availability of grants through announcement in professional publications for State, local, or tribal school systems and through notice in the Federal Register. Sets forth requirements for a State, local, or tribal school system in carrying out an educational program under a grant, including consulting and collaborating with experts on violence against women and girls. Authorizes appropriations. Title III: Safe Havens for Children - Authorizes the Attorney General to award grants to public or private nonprofit nongovernmental entities to establish and operate supervised visitation centers. Authorizes appropriations. Title IV: Child Abuse Accountability - Child Abuse Accountability Act - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and the Internal Revenue Code to permit the assignment, and provide for the tax treatment, of any pension benefit payable to a participant pursuant to a qualified child abuse order. Exempts qualified child abuse orders from preemption by ERISA. Title V: Family Safety - Family Safety Act - Amends the Parental Kidnaping Prevention Act of 1980 (PKPA) to include among its purposes: (1) the promotion of cooperation between State and tribal courts to protect parents and children from domestic violence or sexual assault; (2) the promotion of realistic and protective standards for interstate relocation when parents dispute custody; and (3) the avoidance of jurisdictional conflicts between State courts in matters of child custody and visitation consistent with not endangering or inappropriately punishing parents who are victims of domestic violence, or children who are victims of sexual assault. (Sec. 503) Amends the Federal criminal code to provide as a defense to prosecution of either a criminal custodial interference or parental abduction charge, or criminal contempt of court relating to an underlying child custody or visitation determination, that the defendant was fleeing an incident or pattern of domestic violence or sexual assault of the child, or would otherwise have a defense under the PKPA. Directs the Attorney General to issue guidelines to assist U.S. Attorneys and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to determine whether to initiate or terminate an action due to the potential availability of such defense. (Sec. 504) Amends the Federal judicial code to: (1) provide that no State shall be required to enforce any order obtained in a proceeding which would violate the constitution of the enforcing State if the proceeding were conducted in the enforcing State; and (2) declare that the intent of full faith and credit doctrine in child custody determinations is to preempt inconsistent State law. Declares that a protection order regarding custody and visitation of a minor child that is consistent with this Act shall be given full faith and credit by the courts of any State where the party who sought the order seeks enforcement. Modifies State court jurisdiction guidelines governing: (1) relocation of the child due to domestic violence or sexual assault; and (2) court authority to decline to exercise jurisdiction on behalf of parents engaged in specified conduct. Title VI: Sense of Congress - Expresses the sense of Congress that, for purposes of determining child custody, it is not in the best interest of children to: (1) force parents to share custody over the objection of one or both parents where there is a history of domestic violence; or (2) make "friendly parent" provisions a factor when there is abuse of one parent against another or a child.

No Safe Harbor in Cuba Act

United States · United States Congress · 10 November 1999

No Safe Harbor in Cuba Act - Expresses congressional findings that on May 2, 1973, Joanne Chesimard and two companions opened fire on two New Jersey State Troopers, killing Trooper Werner Foerster; that Ms. Chesimard was found guilty of first-degree murder; that she escaped from the reformatory and fled to Cuba; and that approximately 90 other criminals have fled to Cuba. Amends the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 to require that, in order to determine that a democratically elected government exists in Cuba, the government prove its respect for the democratic rule of law by ceasing to provide a safe harbor to criminals, including Joanne Chesimard and all others who have fled from the United States to Cuba for the sole purpose of avoiding prosecution or confinement for serious criminal offenses committed in the United States.

proposition de loi organique relative à la cour de justice de la République

France · Senate · 9 November 1999

7 Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Taoiseach if he has received a report from the All-party Committee on the Constitution in relation to representation in the Oireachtas for citizens resident in the Six Counties. [21827/99]

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 9 November 1999

7 Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Taoiseach if he has received a report from the All-party Committee on the Constitution in relation to representation in the Oireachtas for citizens resident in the Six Counties. [21827/99]

Gaming Clarification Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 9 November 1999

Gaming Clarification Act of 1999 - Amends the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act to make class III gaming activities lawful on Indian trust land in the State of Missouri only when they are conducted in accordance with any geographic limitation placed by the Missouri State Constitution. Prohibits the Secretary of the Interior from taking land into trust for an Indian tribe in Missouri for class II or class III gaming or approving such gaming on lands taken into trust in the State when the Missouri State Constitution authorizes the State's general assembly to permit lotteries, gift enterprises, and games of chance to be conducted only upon the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers on excursion gambling boats and floating facilities.

Authorizing printing of the brochures entitled "How Our Laws Are Made" and "Our American Government", the pocket version of the United States Constitution, and the document-sized, annotated version of the United States Constitution.

United States · United States Congress · 9 November 1999

Authorizes the printing of the following brochures as House documents: (1) the 1999 revised editions of "How Our Laws Are Made" and "Our American Government;" and (2) the 20th edition of the pocket version of the U.S. Constitution and its 1999 document-sized, annotated version.

Condemning the assassination of Armenian Prime Minister Vazgen Sargsian and other officials of the Armenian Government and expressing the sense of the Congress in mourning this tragic loss of the duly elected leadership of Armenia.

United States · United States Congress · 9 November 1999

Declares that Congress: (1) deplores the slaying of the Prime Minister of Armenia, Vazgen Sargsian, the Chairman of the Armenian Parliament, Karen Demirchian, the Deputy Chairman of the Armenian Parliament, Yuri Bakhshian, the Minister of Operative Issues, Leonard Petrossian, and other members of the Armenian Government; (2) strongly shares the determination of the Armenian people that the perpetrators will be swiftly brought to justice so that Armenia may demonstrate its resolute opposition to acts of terror; (3) commends the efforts of the late Prime Minister and the Armenian Government for their commitment to democracy and the rule of law and for supporting free market movements internationally; and (4) continues to cherish the strong friendship between Armenia and the United States.

proposition de loi organique limitant le recours aux dispositions fiscales rétroactives

France · Senate · 4 November 1999

proposition de loi constitutionnelle recours aux dispositions fiscales rétroactives

France · Senate · 4 November 1999

Twenty-First Amendment of the Constitution (No. 3) Bill 1999

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 4 November 1999

Bill entitled an Act to amend the Constitution

Twenty-First Amendment of the Constitution (No. 4) Bill, 1999

Ireland · Dáil Éireann · 4 November 1999

Bill entitled an Act to amend the Constitution

proposition de loi relative à la validation législative des admissions au concours d'entrée en deuxième année du premier cycle d'études médicales de l'Université de Montpellier I

France · Senate · 2 November 1999

Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2000

United States · United States Congress · 2 November 1999

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Export and Investment Assistance Title II: Bilateral Economic Assistance Title III: Military Assistance Title IV: Multilateral Economic Assistance Title V: General Provisions Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2000 - Title I: Export and Investment Assistance - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 for: (1) direct loans, loan guarantees, tied-aid grants, insurance, and administrative expenses under Export-Import Bank programs; (2) Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) direct and guaranteed loans and credit and insurance programs, including administrative expenses; and (3) the Trade and Development Agency. Title II: Bilateral Economic Assistance - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 for: (1) expenses of the President in carrying out certain programs under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961; (2) the Agency for International Development (AID) child survival and disease programs, including basic education programs (earmarking $35 million only for the HIV-AIDS programs requested under this heading in House Document 106-101); (3) specified development assistance (allowing availability of limited amounts for the Inter-American Foundation and the African Development Foundation); (4) specified projects aimed at reunification of Cyprus; (5) specified assistance for Lebanon for scholarships and direct support to the American educational institutions there; (6) democracy and humanitarian activities in Burma; (7) international disaster assistance; (8) micro and small enterprise development programs; (9) administrative expenses related to guaranteed loans for the urban and environmental credit program; (10) direct loans and loan guarantees under the development credit authority program for development assistance to foreign countries, including Eastern Europe and the Baltic States; (11) the Foreign Service Retirement and Disability Fund; (12) operating expenses of AID and the AID Office of Inspector General; (13) Economic Support Fund (ESF) assistance (earmarking amounts for Israel, Egypt, and Jordan, and to support victims of and programs related to the Holocaust and for nongovernmental organizations located outside of the People's Republic of China to support activities which preserve cultural traditions and promote sustainable development and environmental conservation in Tibetan communities there); (14) the International Fund for Ireland; (15) ESF assistance for Eastern Europe and the Baltic States (earmarking amounts for Kosova and Bosnia and Herzegovina, subject to specified conditions); (16) assistance for the Independent States of the former Soviet Union (subject to specified conditions, and earmarking amounts for the Russian Far East, Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia, Mongolia, the Southern Caucasus (especially the areas of Abkhazia and Nagorno-Karabagh), and for salaries and expenses to carry out the Russian Leadership Program, certain expanded nonproliferation and security cooperation programs, and maternal and neo-natal health activities in the Independent States of the former Soviet Union); (17) the Peace Corps (with a bar on the use of such funds for abortions); (18) international narcotics control and law enforcement; (19) migration and refugee assistance; (20) the Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund; (21) nonproliferation, anti-terrorism, demining, and related programs and activities (including U.S. contributions to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO), subject to specified conditions, the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Preparatory Commission, and the Nonproliferation and Disarmament Fund); (22) the Department of the Treasury international affairs technical assistance program; and (23) debt restructuring of concessional loans, guarantees, and credits made to eligible countries, including sub-Saharan African countries. Bars the use of development assistance funds for: (1) coercive abortions or involuntary sterilizations; (2) U.S. private and voluntary organizations which obtain less than 20 percent of annual funding from sources other than the U.S. Government; and (3) any activity that is in contravention to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna (CITES). Prohibits funds to Russia unless the Secretary of State certifies to the Committees on Appropriations that Russian peacekeepers deployed in Kosova have not established a separate zone of operational control and are operating under the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) unified command. Withholds 50 percent of the funds allocated for the Government of the Russian Federation until the President certifies to the Committees on Appropriations that it has terminated arrangements to provide Iran with technology to develop a nuclear program or ballistic missile capability. Title III: Military Assistance - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 for: (1) expanded international military education and training (IMET) to Indonesia and Guatemala; (2) foreign military financing grants and direct loans (earmarking amounts for Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia (including drawdowns of defense articles and services), and Ecuador); and (3) international peacekeeping operations (subject to certain conditions). Declares that none of the funds appropriated under this heading may be made available to support grant financed military education and training at the School of the Americas unless the Secretary of Defense certifies that the instruction and training provided by the School is fully consistent with training and doctrine, particularly with respect to the observance of human rights, provided by the Department of Defense to U.S. military students at Department of Defense institutions whose primary purpose is to train U.S. military personnel. Requires the Secretary of Defense to report to a specified congressional committee by January 15, 2000, on the School's training activities and a general assessment regarding the performance of its graduates during 1997 and 1998. Prohibits foreign military financing for: (1) Sudan, Liberia, and Guatemala; or (2) any non-NATO country participating in the Partnership for Peace Program except through the regular notification procedures of the Committees on Appropriations. Title IV: Multilateral Economic Assistance - Makes appropriations for FY 2000 for the U.S. contribution to: (1) the Global Environment Facility of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank); (2) the International Development Association (IDA); (3) the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency; (4) the Inter-American Development Bank; (5) the Asian Development Bank; (6) the Asian Development Fund; (7) the African Development Fund; and (8) the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Makes appropriations for FY 2000 for international programs and organizations. Sets certain restrictions on international organization funding, including prohibiting the use of funds for the United Nations Fund for Science and Technology, KEDO, or the IAEA. Title V: General Provisions - Sets forth limits on the use of appropriations, including that no more than 15 percent of such appropriations shall be obligated during the last month of availability. (Sec. 502) Prohibits: (1) the use of funds for bilateral funding of international financial institutions; and (2) the transfer of such funds by AID directly to such an institution for the purpose of repaying a foreign country's loan obligations to it. (Sec. 503) Sets forth limits on the use of appropriations, including no more than specified maximums for official residence expenses, entertainment expenses, and representation allowances for AID, and for entertainment and representation allowances for the Inter-American Foundation and the Trade and Development Agency. Limits the use of funds for entertainment expenses of the Peace Corps, and of entertainment and representation allowances under the Foreign Military Financing Program. (Sec. 506) Prohibits the use of funds for: (1) the export of nuclear equipment, fuel, or technology (except for nuclear safety purposes); (2) direct assistance or reparations to Cuba, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Iran, Sudan, or Syria; (3) assistance to any country whose duly elected head of government is deposed by military coup or decree; (4) certain transfers between appropriations accounts without prior presidential consultation with Congress; (5) assistance to any country in default in excess of a year on payments on a U.S. loan (except for any narcotics-related assistance for Colombia, Bolivia, and Peru); and (6) assistance (except in certain circumstances) for production of any commodity for export by a foreign country, if the commodity is likely to be in surplus on world markets when the resulting productive capacity is expected to become operative, and if the assistance will cause substantial injury to U.S. producers of a similar commodity. (Sec. 514) Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. Executive Directors of specified international financial institutions to oppose any assistance for the production or extraction of any commodity or mineral for export if it is in surplus on world markets and such assistance will cause substantial injury to U.S. producers of a similar commodity. (Sec. 516) Declares that funds appropriated for foreign operations, export financial, and related programs, that are returned or not made available for international organizations and programs shall remain available for obligation until FY 2001. (Sec. 517) Prohibits the availability of assistance for the Independent States of the former Soviet Union to a Government of such an Independent State, unless such Government is making progress in implementing comprehensive economic reforms based on market principles, private ownership, respect for commercial contracts, and equitable treatment of foreign private investment. Prohibits the availability of assistance also: (1) if such a Government applies or transfers U.S. assistance to any entity for the purpose of expropriating or seizing ownership of assets, investments, or ventures (unless the President determines such assistance is in the national interest); (2) if such a Government directs action in violation of the territorial integrity or national sovereignty of any other Independent State of the former Soviet Union; or (3) to enhance its military capability (except for demilitarization, demining, or nonproliferation programs). (Sec. 518) Prohibits the use of development assistance funds for abortions or involuntary sterilizations as methods of family planning or to motivate or coerce any person to practice abortions, or provide any financial incentive to undergo sterilization. (Sec. 519) Limits to no more than five percent the amount of export financing funds (other than for administrative expenses) that can be transferred from one appropriation to another, with no appropriation being increased by more than 25 percent by such transfer. (Sec. 520) Prohibits the use of funds for Colombia, Haiti, Liberia, Pakistan, Panama, Serbia, Sudan, or the Democratic Republic of Congo, except through the regular notification procedures of the Committees on Appropriations. (Sec. 522) Makes funds available to AID for child survival, basic education, infectious disease activities and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) research and control in developing countries. (Sec. 523) Bars funding for indirect assistance or reparations to Cuba, Iraq, Libya, Iran, Syria, North Korea, or China unless the President certifies that the withholding of such funds is contrary to the U.S. national security interest. (Sec. 524) Requires the Department of Defense (DOD) to notify the Committees on Appropriations before providing excess DOD articles to certain NATO and major non-NATO countries. (Sec. 526) Authorizes the availability of ESF funds to provide general support and grants for nongovernmental organizations located outside China that have as their primary purpose fostering democracy in that country. Earmarks ESF funds to the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights for a project to disseminate information and support research about China, and related activities. (Sec. 527) Prohibits bilateral assistance funds to any country which the President determines grants sanctuary from prosecution to any individual or group which has committed an act of international terrorism or otherwise supports such activities. Authorizes the waiver of this prohibition by the President for national security and humanitarian reasons, requiring notification to the Committees on Appropriations. (Sec. 528) Authorizes the commercial leasing of defense articles (instead of government-to-government sale) to Israel, Egypt, NATO, and major non-NATO allies if the President determines that there are compelling foreign policy or national security reasons. (Sec. 529) Requires all AID contracts and subcontracts to include a clause requiring that U.S. insurance companies have a fair opportunity to bid for insurance when insurance is necessary or appropriate. (Sec. 530) Prohibits U.S. sale of Stinger missiles in the Persian Gulf region, with certain exceptions. (Sec. 531) Authorizes nongovernmental organizations which are AID grantees or contractors to place funds made available to them under this Act in interest bearing accounts in order to enhance their participation in economic activities under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, including endowments and debt-for-development and debt-for- nature exchanges. (Sec. 532) Directs the Administrator of AID to require foreign countries that receive foreign assistance which results in the generation of local currencies to deposit such currencies in a separate account to be used to finance foreign assistance activities. (Sec. 533) Prohibits payments to any international financial institution while the U.S. Executive Director to the institution is compensated at a rate in excess of that for Level IV of the Executive Schedule. (Sec. 534) Bars assistance to any country that is not in compliance with the United Nations (UN) sanctions against Iraq, unless the President certifies to Congress that such assistance: (1) is in the U.S. national interest; (2) will directly benefit the needy people in that country; or (3) will be humanitarian assistance for foreign ationals who have fled Iraq and Kuwait. (Sec. 535) Declares that provisions under this or any other Act authorizing appropriations for foreign operations or export financing shall not be construed to prohibit activities authorized by the Peace Corps Act, the Inter-American Foundation Act, or the African Development Foundation Act. Requires an agency to report to the Committees on Appropriations whenever it is conducting or proposing activities in a country for which such assistance is prohibited. (Sec. 536) Prohibits the use of funds to provide: (1) any financial incentive to a business for purposes of inducing it to relocate outside the United States if it will reduce the number of employees in the United States; (2) assistance for establishing or developing in a foreign country an export processing zone or other designated area in which a country's tax, tariff, labor, environment, and safety laws do not apply to activities in the area, unless the President certifies that such assistance is not likely to cause a loss of U.S. jobs; or (3) assistance for any project that contributes to the violation of internationally recognized workers rights in the recipient country. (Sec. 537) Prohibits the availability of funds under this Act for the Republic of Serbia (except for Kosova or Montenegro or for assistance to promote democratization). (Sec. 538) Declares that funds appropriated under this Act for Afghanistan, Lebanon, Montenegro, and for victims of war, displaced children, displaced Burmese, humanitarian assistance for Romania, and humanitarian assistance for the peoples of Kosova may be made available notwithstanding any other provision of law. Prohibits the use of funds made available to Cambodia for military or paramilitary purposes. Authorizes the use of foreign assistance funds to support tropical forestry and biodiversity conservation programs, and subject to the regular notification procedures of the Committees on Appropriations, energy programs aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Authorizes AID to employ personal services contractors to administer programs for the West Bank and Gaza. Authorizes the President to waive certain prohibitions with respect to the Palestine Liberation Organizations (PLO) if the President determines and certifies to Congress that it is in the national interest. (Sec. 539) Expresses the sense of Congress with respect to: (1) immediate public renunciation by the Arab League countries of the boycott of Israel (reinstated in 1997) and of American firms having commercial ties with Israel; and (2) steps the President should take to encourage such renunciation. (Sec. 540) Authorizes the use of ESF funds to strengthen the administration of justice in countries in Latin America, the Caribbean, and in other regions. (Sec. 541) Declares that the restrictions on assistance to foreign countries contained in this Act or any other Act (except those relating to international terrorism or human rights violations) shall not be construed to restrict assistance: (1) in support of certain programs of nongovernmental organizations; or (2) under specified provisions of the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954. (Sec. 542) Authorizes the reprogramming of earmarked appropriations for other programs within the same account, provided certain requirements are met. (Sec. 544) Prohibits the use of funds for publicity or propaganda purposes within the United States that were not authorized before the enactment of this Act. Earmarks specified amounts to private and voluntary organizations to deal with world hunger abroad. (Sec. 545) Declares that assistance under this Act should make full use of American resources, including commodities, products, and services, to the maximum extent possible. Declares the sense of Congress that, to the greatest extent practicable, all agricultural commodities, equipment, and products purchased with funds made available in this Act should be American- made. Requires Federal agency heads, in providing financial assistance to or entering into any contract with any entity using funds made available in this Act, to notify such entity of this intention. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to report annually on the efforts of such agency heads and the U.S. directors of international financial institutions in complying with such requirements. (Sec. 546) Prohibits the use of funds to pay any assessments, arrearages, or dues of any UN member (including costs for attendance of another country's delegation at international conferences). (Sec. 548) Prohibits the provision of funds to a private voluntary organization that fails to provide any document, file, or record necessary to the auditing requirements of AID. (Sec. 549) Prohibits the provision of funds to any foreign government that provides lethal military equipment to a country that the Secretary of State has determined has a terrorist government, unless the President determines that the furnishing of such assistance is in the U.S. national interest. (Sec. 550) Withholds assistance to a foreign country in an amount equal to 110 percent of the total unpaid parking fines and penalties owed by the country to the District of Columbia. (Sec. 551) Prohibits the obligation of any appropriations for the PLO for the West Bank and Gaza unless the President has exercised certain authorities to suspend prohibitions on assistance to the PLO. (Sec. 552) Permits the President to provide up to a specified amount of commodities and services to the UN War Crimes Tribunal if doing so will contribute to a just resolution of charges regarding genocide or other violations of international law in the former Yugoslavia. (Sec. 553) Authorizes disposal on a grant basis in foreign countries of demining equipment used in support of the clearance of land mines and unexploded ordnance for humanitarian purposes. Extends the U.S. moratorium on the transfer of anti-personnel landmines. (Sec. 554) Prohibits the obligation of appropriations to create in Jerusalem a new U.S. agency office for the purpose of conducting U.S. business with the Palestinian Authority over Gaza and Jericho (or any successor Palestinian governing entity) provided for in the Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles. (Sec. 555) Prohibits the obligation of certain funds appropriated for Informational Program activities to pay for: (1) alcoholic beverages; or (2) entertainment expenses for recreational activities. (Sec. 556) Declares that direct costs associated with a foreign customer's additional or unique requirements with respect to the sale of defense articles shall continue to be an allowable cost under the Arms Export Control Act. (Sec. 557) Authorizes the President to reduce amounts owed to the United States by eligible countries as a result of: (1) housing guarantees made pursuant to the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961; (2) credits extended or guarantees issued under the Arms Export Control Act; or (3) any obligation for a Latin American country to pay for purchases of U.S. agricultural commodities guaranteed by the Commodity Credit Corporation. Permits the exercise of such authority only: (1) to implement multilateral official debt relief and referendum agreements known as the Paris Club Agreed Minutes; and (2) with respect to countries with heavy debt burdens that are eligible to borrow from the IDA (but not from the World Bank) (IDA-only countries). Prescribes additional conditions for the exercise of such authority. (Sec. 558) Authorizes the President to engage in certain debt buybacks or sales. Authorizes the sale, reduction, or cancellation of certain loans to foreign governments, upon receipt of payment from an eligible purchaser that plans to use such loans only for the purposes of engaging in debt-for-equity swaps, debt-for-development swaps, or debt-for nature swaps. Limits such authority to funds appropriated by this Act under the heading of debt restructuring. (Sec. 559) Urges the President, in providing assistance to Haiti, to place priority on: (1) aggressive action to support the Haitian National Police, including efforts to purge corrupt and politicized elements within the police; (2) steps to ensure that U.S. assisted elections in Haiti are free, fair, and democratic; (3) support for a program to develop an indigenous human rights monitoring capacity; (4) steps to continue privatization of state-owned enterprises; (5) a sustainable agricultural development program; and (6) establishment of an economic development fund for Haiti to provide long-term, low interest loans to U.S. investors and businesses that are committed to doing business there. Directs the President to report to specified congressional committees on the status: (1) of each of the governmental institutions envisioned in the 1987 Haitian Constitution; (2) of the privatization of the major public entities; (3) of the Government of Haiti's efforts to conduct thorough investigations of extrajudicial and political killings; (4) of steps being taken to secure ratification of the maritime counter-narcotics agreements signed October 1997; and (5) of the extent to which domestic capacity to conduct free, fair, and democratic elections has been developed in Haiti. Earmarks a specified percentage of funds appropriated under this Act for bilateral assistance to Latin America and the Caribbean region. (Sec. 560) Requires a specified annual report of the Secretary of State containing the voting record of each foreign member country of the UN to include a side-by-side comparison of each country's overall support for the United States at the UN and the amount of U.S. assistance provided to it in FY 1999. (Sec. 561) Prohibits the United States from paying any voluntary contribution to the UN, including the UN Development Program, unless the President certifies to Congress 15 days in advance of such payment that the UN is not engaged in any effort to implement or impose any taxation on U.S. persons in order to raise revenue for itself or any of its specialized agencies. (Sec. 562) Makes the Government of Haiti eligible to purchase U.S. defense articles and services for the civilian-led Haitian National Police and Coast Guard. (Sec. 563) Prohibits the obligation of any appropriations for the PLO unless the President certifies to Congress that it is in the U.S. national security interests. (Sec. 564) Prohibits the use of funds for the security forces of a foreign country if the Secretary of State believes they have committed gross violations of human rights, unless the Secretary reports to the Committees on Appropriations that such country is taking steps to bring the responsible persons to justice. (Sec. 565) Requires that any agreement between the United States and the Government of Indonesia for the sale of lethal weapons shall state that the United States expects that such items will not be used in East Timor. (Sec. 566) Provides for bilateral and multilateral assistance sanctions (with humanitarian, democratization, and certain infrastructure project exceptions) against countries harboring war criminals indicted with respect to the former Yugoslavia. Prohibits the provision of bilateral assistance for programs in which publicly indicted war criminals are known to have any financial interest or communities that are not in compliance with specified sections of the Dayton Agreement relating to war crimes and the Tribunal. Requires the Secretary of State to report to the appropriate congressional committees on the location, if known, of publicly indicted war criminals, on country, entity and municipality authorities known to have obstructed the work of the Tribunal, and on sanctioned countries, entities, and municipalities. (Sec. 567) Prohibits the use of funds for the Government of the Russian Federation unless the President certifies to specified congressional committees that the Federation has not enacted laws or promulgated executive orders that discriminate against religious minorities in violation of international agreements on human rights and religious freedoms to which it is a party. (Sec. 568) Subjects the availability of funds in this Act to support programs or activities promoting country participation in the Kyoto Protocol to the Framework Convention on Climate Change (FCCC) to the regular notification procedures of the Committees on Appropriations. (Sec. 569) Authorizes for FY 1999 and 2000 the use of DOD funds for crating, packing, handling, and transportation of excess defense articles to countries that are eligible to participate in the Partnership for Peace and that are eligible for assistance under the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989. (Sec. 570) Bars funds to the Central Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo. (Sec. 571) Earmarks specified foreign assistance funds for Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, the West Bank and Gaza, the Israel-Lebanon Monitoring Group, the Multinational Force and Observers, the Middle East Regional Democracy Fund, Middle East Regional Cooperation, and Middle East Multilateral Working Groups. (Sec. 572) Requires the President to submit to specified congressional committees a plan for the distribution of the assets of an Enterprise Fund before any distribution resulting from liquidation, dissolution, or winding up of the Fund. (Sec. 573) Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. executive directors of international financial institutions to oppose loans to Cambodia (except loans to support basic human needs). Prohibits the availability of funds under this Act for assistance for the Government of Cambodia. (Sec. 574) Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to declare that the prohibition on the use of funds under such Act to provide law enforcement training to foreign governments within the United States or abroad shall not apply with respect to assistance provided to customs personnel for customs law enforcement. (Sec. 575) Directs the Secretaries of Defense and of State to report jointly to Congress on all overseas military training provided to, and proposed to be provided to, foreign military personnel under programs administered by the Defense and State Departments during FY 1999 and 2000. (Sec. 576) Earmarks specified funds for KEDO for administrative expenses and heavy fuel oil costs associated with the Agreed Framework (Joint Declaration on Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula). Earmarks other amounts to KEDO if the President certifies to Congress that North Korea is complying with the provisions of the Agreed Framework. (Sec. 577) Authorizes investment of funds made available to grantees of the African Development Foundation pending expenditure for project purposes when authorized by the President of the Foundation. (Sec. 578) Bars the use of funds appropriated under this Act to provide equipment, technical support, consulting services, or any other assistance to the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation. (Sec. 579) Authorizes voluntary separation incentive payments to AID employees to eliminate AID positions and functions contained in a mandatory strategic plan outlining such payments. (Sec. 580) Earmarks specified amounts of ESF funds for a political transition in Iraq, Iraqi opposition groups for political, economic, humanitarian, and other activities, and for groups and activities seeking the prosecution of Saddam Hussein and other Iraqi government officials for war crimes. (Sec. 581) Directs AID to submit its annual budgets to the Committees on Appropriations. (Sec. 582) Requires information relevant to the December 2, 1980, murders of four American churchwomen in El Salvador be made public to the fullest extent possible. (Sec. 583) Prohibits the use of funds appropriated under this Act to propose or issue rules, regulations, decrees, or orders for implementation, or in preparation for implementation, of the Kyoto Protocol to the United States Framework Convention on Climate Change, which has not been submitted to the Senate for advice and consent to ratification pursuant to the U.S. Constitution, and which has not entered into force. (Sec. 584) Makes funds available for FY 2000 for defense article stockpiles in foreign countries, including the Republic of Korea and Thailand. (Sec. 585) Amends the 1999 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act to extend the pilot Russian Leadership Program at the Library of Congress through FY 2000. (Sec. 586) Abolishes the Inter-American Foundation. (Sec. 587) Directs the Secretary of State, 30 days prior to the initial obligation of ESF funds for the bilateral West Bank and Gaza Program, to certify to the appropriate congressional committees that procedures have been established to assure the Comptroller General will have access to appropriate U.S. financial information in order to review the uses of such funds for the Program. (Sec. 588) Earmarks a specified amount of international narcotics control and law enforcement funds for activities of Colombian nongovernmental organizations involved in human rights monitoring. (Sec. 589) Prohibits the obligation of ESF, IMET, or foreign military financing program funds for Indonesia unless the Committees on Appropriations are advised 20 days prior to each proposed obligation. (Sec. 590) Bars the use of appropriated funds under this Act for the UN Man and the Biosphere Program or the UN World Heritage Fund. (Sec. 591) Declares that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) (except Montenegro or Kosova) shall be deemed a state sponsor of terrorism for purposes of granting U.S. courts jurisdiction to award money damages for personal injury caused to or the death of a U.S. national by an act of terrorism by an official, employee, or agent of FRY. (Sec. 592) Authorizes the President to provide, through appropriate Federal agencies, food assistance to groups engaged in the protection of civilian populations from attacks by Sudanese government forces, associated militias, or other paramilitary groups supported by the Sudan government. Sets forth certain conditions for the provision of such assistance. Requires the President to report to the Committees on Appropriations on U.S. bilateral assistance to opposition-controlled areas of Sudan. (Sec. 593) Requires the Secretary of State to consult with the appropriate congressional committees and leadership of Congress to devise a mechanism to provide for congressional input before making any determination on the nature or quantity of defense articles and services to be made available to Taiwan. (Sec. 594) Authorizes appropriations for the U.S. contributions to the Inter-American Investment Corporation, the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, the African Development Fund, and the IDA. (Sec. 595) Earmarks for Costa Rica a specified amount of funds from the Central America and the Caribbean Emergency Disaster Recovery Fund. (Sec. 596) Silk Road Strategy Act of 1999 - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize specified assistance, including humanitarian, economic, migration and refugee, development, border control, and democracy building assistance to promote economic and political independence in the South Caucasus and Central Asia countries. (Sec. 597) Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to require that the annual report to Congress on the status of human rights in foreign countries slated to receive development assistance include a list of foreign states where trafficking in persons, especially women and children, originates, passes through, or is a destination, and an assessment of the efforts of such states to combat such trafficking. (Sec. 598) Expresses the sense of Congress that OPIC shall select a fund manager for the purpose of creating a maritime fund consisting of capital of up to $200 million to support international maritime projects. (Sec. 599) Imposes certain economic and political sanctions against Serbia unless the President makes a certain certification with respect to Serbia to specified congressional committees. Exempts the governments of Montenegro and Kosova from such sanctions. (Sec. 599A) Urges the export of U.S. clean coal technology. (Sec. 599B) Urges the use of U.S. assistance for the reconstruction efforts in the FRY to the maximum extent practicable for the procurement of U.S. articles and services. (Sec. 599C) Earmarks a specified amount of international organizations and program funds for the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) (except for any country program in China). Conditions the availability of such funds to UNFPA on specified requirements, including that it does not fund abortions. (Sec. 599D) Earmarks a specified amount of funds for population planning activities or other population assistance, subject to certain apportionment requirements.

Education for Democracy Act

United States · United States Congress · 2 November 1999

Education for Democracy Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to revise provisions for Civic Education, under part F of title X (Programs of National Significance). (Sec. 2) Authorizes the Secretary of Education to make grants to or contracts with: (1) the Center for Civic Education (CCE) to carry out civic education activities under the We the People... The Citizen and the Constitution program and The Project Citizen program, and under Cooperative Educational Exchange programs; and (2) the National Council on Economic Education (NCEE) to carry out economic education activities under Cooperative Educational Exchange programs. Revises requirements for CCE implementation of the We the People... The Citizen and the Constitution program and The Project Citizen program. Sets forth requirements for the Cooperative Educational Exchange programs of civic education by CCE and economic education by NCEE. Makes eligible for such programs Central European countries, an Eastern European country, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and the independent states of the former Soviet Union. Allows such program eligibility also for the Republic of Ireland, the province of Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom, and any developing country as defined under the Education for the Deaf Act. Authorizes appropriations through FY 2004 for: (1) the We the People... The Citizen and the Constitution program and The Project Citizen program; and (2) the Cooperative Educational Exchange programs. (Sec. 3) Repeals title VI (International Education Program) of the Goals 2000: Educate America Act.

Proposing a spending limitation amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

United States · United States Congress · 2 November 1999

Constitutional Amendment - Prohibits total outlays of the U.S. Government in any fiscal year from exceeding 19 percent of the gross domestic product in the last calendar year ending before the fiscal year for which this limitation is being calculated. Requires the President, before each fiscal year, to transmit to Congress a proposed statement of outlays for such fiscal year consistent with this Act. Authorizes the Congress, following a presidential declaration of emergency, and with a two-thirds vote of both Houses, to authorize a specified amount of emergency outlays in excess of the limit. Prohibits, for each of the first four fiscal years after ratification of this amendment, total grants to States and local governments from being a smaller fraction of total outlays than the average of the three fiscal years before ratification. Authorizes a Member of Congress or the President (but no other persons) to enforce this amendment in an action brought in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Expressing the sense of the Congress that the Government of the People's Republic of China should stop its persecution of Falun Gong practitioners.

United States · United States Congress · 2 November 1999

Expresses the sense of the Congress that the Government of the People's Republic of China should stop persecuting FalunGong practitioners and other religious believers. Calls for the U.S. Government to use every appropriate forum, including the United Nations Human Rights Commission, to urge the Government of the People's Republic of China to: (1) release from detention all Falun Gong practitioners and put an immediate end to the practices of torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment against them and other prisoners of conscience; (2) allow Falun Gong practitioners to pursue their religious beliefs in accordance with article 36 of the Constitution of the People's Republic of China; and (3) abide by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Bundesverfassungsgesetz über die Begrenzung von Bezügen öffentlicher Funktionäre, Änderung

Austria · National Council · 29 October 1999

Antrag der Abgeordneten Herbert Scheibner, Kolleginnen und Kollegen betreffend ein Bundesverfassungsgesetz, mit dem das Bundesverfassungsgesetz über die Begrenzung von Bezügen öffentlicher Funktionäre geändert wird <i>(Verhinderung der ab 1. Jänner 2000 in Aussicht genommenen</i> <i>Anhebung der Bezüge)</i>

Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz, Änderung

Austria · National Council · 29 October 1999

Antrag der Abgeordneten Mag. Terezija Stoisits, Kolleginnen und Kollegen betreffend ein Bundesverfassungsgesetz, mit dem das Bundes-Verfassungsgesetz idF von 1929 geändert wird <i>(Einfügung einer Staatszielbestimmung zur Achtung,</i> <i>Bewahrung, Förderung und zum Schutz der sprachlichen und</i> <i>kulturellen Vielfalt der Republik Österreich)</i>

A resolution expressing concern over interference with freedom of the press and the independence of judicial and electoral institutions in Peru.

United States · United States Congress · 29 October 1999

Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) the erosion of the independence of judicial and electoral branches of the Government of Peru and the blatant intimidation of journalists in Peru are matters of serious concern to the United States; (2) efforts by any person or political movement in Peru to undermine that country's constitutional order for personal or political gain are inconsistent with the standard of representative democracy in the Western Hemisphere; (3) the U.S. Government supports the effort of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to report on the pattern of threats to democracy, freedom of the press, and judicial independence by the Government of Peru; and (4) systematic abuse of the rule of law and threats to democracy in Peru could undermine the confidence of foreign investors in, as well as the creditworthiness of, Peru.

A concurrent resolution condemning the assassination of Armenian Prime Minister Vazgen Sargsian and other officials of the Armenian Government and expressing the sense of the Congress in mourning this tragic loss of the duly elected leadership of Armenia.

United States · United States Congress · 29 October 1999

Declares that Congress: (1) deplores the slaying of the Prime Minister of Armenia, Vazgen Sargsian, the Chairman of the Armenian Parliament, Karen Demirchian, the Deputy Chairman of the Armenian Parliament, Yuri Bakhshian, the Minister of Operative Issues, Leonard Petrossian, and other members of the Armenian Government; (2) strongly shares the determination of the Armenian people that the perpetrators will be swiftly brought to justice so that Armenia may demonstrate its resolute opposition to acts of terror; (3) commends the efforts of the late Prime Minister and the Armenian Government for their commitment to democracy and the rule of law and for supporting free market movements internationally; and (4) continues to cherish the strong friendship between Armenia and the United States.

A bill to provide grants to the State of Alaska for the purpose of assisting that State in fulfilling its responsibilities under sections 803, 804, and 805 of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 28 October 1999

Directs the Secretary of the Interior, upon request of the Governor of Alaska, to certify to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives that a bill or resolution has been passed by the Alaska State Legislature which, if approved, would amend the Alaska State Constitution to enable the implementation of State laws consistent with specified provisions of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act which authorize, and provide for local and regional participation in, the taking of fish and wildlife on public lands in Alaska for nonwasteful subsistence uses. Requires, after such certification, grants to Alaska to fulfill such responsibilities. Outlines specified restrictions on Federal action to manage or assert jurisdiction over land, water, and wild, renewable resources in Alaska for subsistence uses, effective on the date of the above certification (with exceptions). Requires the participation of, and consultation with, Alaska Native Corporations and other Alaska Native entities in undertaking activities to implement such State laws. States that this Act has no effect on any Alaska title claim to any tidal or submerged Alaska lands.

To provide grants to the State of Alaska for the purpose of assisting that State in fulfilling its responsibilities under sections 803, 804, and 805 of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 28 October 1999

Directs the Secretary of the Interior, upon request of the Governor of Alaska, to certify to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives that a bill or resolution has been passed by the Alaska State Legislature which, if approved, would amend the Alaska State Constitution to enable the implementation of State laws consistent with specified provisions of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act which authorize, and provide for local and regional participation in, the taking of fish and wildlife on public lands in Alaska for subsistence uses. Requires, after such certification, grants to Alaska to fulfill such responsibilities. Outlines specified restrictions on Federal action to manage or assert jurisdiction over land, water, and wild, renewable resources in Alaska for subsistence uses, effective on the date of the above certification (with exceptions). Requires the participation of, and consultation with, Alaska Native Corporations and other Alaska Native entities in undertaking activities to implement such State laws. States that this Act has no effect on any Alaska title claim to any tidal or submerged Alaska lands.

Condemning the assassination of Armenian Prime Minister Vazgen Sargsian and other officials of the Armenian Government and mourning this tragic loss of the duly elected leadership of Armenia.

United States · United States Congress · 28 October 1999

Declares that Congress: (1) deplores the slaying of the Prime Minister of Armenia, Vazgen Sargsian, the Chairman of the Armenian Parliament, Karen Demirchian, the Deputy Chairman of the Armenian Parliament, Yuri Bakhshian, the Minister of Operative Issues, Leonard Petrossian, and other members of the Armenian Government; (2) strongly shares the determination of the Armenian people that the perpetrators will be swiftly brought to justice so that Armenia may demonstrate its resolute opposition to acts of terror; (3) commends the efforts of the late Prime Minister and the Armenian Government for their commitment to democracy and the rule of law and for supporting free market movements internationally; and (4) continues to cherish the strong alliance between Armenia and the United States.

A bill to require that before issuing an order, the President shall cite the authority for the order, conduct a cost benefit analysis, provide for public comment, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 26 October 1999

Authorizes the President to issue an order only if such order is authorized under a provision of the Constitution or expressly authorized by statute. Requires the President, before issuing an order, to: (1) cite all constitutional and statutory provisions that authorize the order; (2) conduct and publish in the Federal Register a cost benefit analysis of the order; and (3) provide no less than 30 days after publication for public comment before the order takes effect. Sets forth special requirements respecting orders that include classified information. States that any order that is not compliance with this Act shall have no force and effect. Provides that an order in effect before this Act's effective date shall have no force or effect one year after such effective date unless the President reissues such order in compliance with the requirements of this Act. Sets forth provisions governing civil actions challenging an order not in compliance with this Act and judicial review thereof.

proposition de loi constitutionnelle visant à accorder le droit de vote et d'éligibilité aux élections municipales aux étrangers non ressortissants de l'Union européenne résidant en France

France · Senate · 21 October 1999

Presidential Order Limitation Act of 1999

United States · United States Congress · 21 October 1999

Presidential Order Limitation Act of 1999 - Requires the President to transmit a copy of each presidential order to: (1) the Speaker of the House of Representatives; (2) the president pro tempore of the Senate; and (3) the chairperson and ranking member of each standing and select committee of the House and the Senate. Prohibits an order from taking effect earlier than 30 days after transmission to such parties to allow congressional review of, and action on, the order. Makes such time limitation inapplicable in the case of an order describing an emergency which requires the order to take effect at an earlier time to: (1) protect national security; (2) prevent physical injury; (3) provide disaster relief; or (4) safeguard an American foreign policy interest. Makes this Act inapplicable in any circumstance in which the Constitution prevents its application.