United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2025
Provides that a member of the armed forces who is medically determined to be positive for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) within one year after entering into military service shall be immediately discharged on the basis of having entered such service under a fraudulent enlistment or appointment.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 2026
Outfitter and Guide Policy Act of 1996 - Requires a person or entity who offers to provide or conduct outfitter and guide (O&G) services for a fee on Federal lands to obtain authorization under this Act. Provides criteria for the issuance of such authorization, including the identification of skills, experience, and financial capability to offer O&G services. Authorizes the head of the National Park Service, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, or Bureau of Reclamation (agency head) to enter into a written O&G agreement for the use and occupancy of Federal lands to perform appropriate O&G services for the public. Authorizes the agency head to issue a noncompetitive O&G business license to a person or entity qualified to provide visitor services on a limited basis at a Federal resource area. Authorizes the issuance of additional agreements for specified reasons, including an increase in public recreational activity in an area or the termination of an existing O&G agreement. Provides for the solicitation of applicants for O&G agreements and business licenses and permits. (Sec. 6) Directs the agency head to require payment of a reasonable fee for the opportunity to provide O&G services pursuant to this Act, allowing for the adjustment of such fee only for: (1) inflation; (2) adverse material changes in agreement conditions; or (3) an unforeseen disaster. (Sec. 7) Directs the agency head to provide that the O&G license or permit holder (holder) will defend or indemnify the United States against all costs associated with injury, damage, or death of person or property resulting from the holder's negligence, with exceptions. (Sec. 8) Requires a holder to file an annual operating plan with the agency head prior to the first day in which operations are conducted under an O&G agreement. (Sec. 9) Requires the agency head to assign an allocation of use to the holder of an O&G authorization whose services are marketed and available to the public, requiring such allocation to include a principal use with regard to the nature of the O&G service. Provides for: (1) seasonal deviation from and adjustments to the assigned amount of principal use; and (2) an assignment of temporary use at the discretion of the agency. (Sec. 10) Specifies objectives to be used by the agency head to develop a program for O&G performance evaluations on at least an annual basis. (Sec. 11) Directs the agency head, upon a finding of good overall performance during the term of an O&G agreement, to renew such authorization at the request of the holder. Provides for agreement termination for cause. (Sec. 12) Makes O&G agreements transferrable only with the approval of the appropriate agency head, but prohibits such approval from being unreasonably withheld or delayed. Prohibits the modification of agreement terms upon transfer. Considers a transfer approved if the agency head fails to act within 90 days. (Sec. 13) Provides for the resolution of disputes arising between an agency and O&Gs under this Act. (Sec. 17) Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
United States Voluntary and Material Assistance Act of 1996 - Establishes the United States Voluntary and Material Assistance Program for the disposition of donated private sector and U.S. Government nonlethal personal property needed by eligible foreign countries. Authorizes the President, under the Program, to: (1) receive nonlethal personal property donated to the Federal Government by any U.S. private sector organization and retransfer it to eligible foreign countries; (2) provide the necessary transportation to assist private organizations and voluntary organizations in the United States in transferring to eligible foreign countries nonlethal personal property that is donated to them; and (3) transfer to eligible foreign countries any available surplus nonlethal personal property subject to the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949. Expresses the sense of the Congress that, before carrying out any other activities under the Program, the President should first conduct a pilot project in eligible countries in sub-Saharan Africa in order to demonstrate the feasibility of transferring donated nonlethal personal property under the Program. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 2025
Amends the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to reduce funding for the nutrition education and training program for FY 1997 and each succeeding fiscal year. Reduces funding, for FY 1997, for the: (1) emergency food assistance program; and (2) school meals initiative for healthy children.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2025
Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) to establish a specific definition for "human tissue" which expressly excludes vascularized human organs, gene therapy, blood, soluble blood components, milk, or products made by combining human tissue with biomaterials. Declares that human tissue is not a drug, biological product, or device unless reclassified under this Act. Amends the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to subject human tissue to regulation under such Act only if voluntary regulation is inadequate, or if it is reclassified as a drug, biological product, or device pursuant to specified guidelines established by this Act. Requires any person subject to such regulation who recovers, processes, stores, or distributes human tissue for transplantation or implantation in the United States to register in accordance with FFDCA drug registration procedures. Deems registrants to be authorized to conduct human tissue recovery, processing, storage, and distribution activities identified as applicable on the registration, unless, among other things, the Secretary of Health and Human Services suspends or revokes such authority after determining that the registrant fails to meet operating standards established by the Secretary. Prescribes certain human tissue labeling and advertising requirements. Authorizes the Secretary to reclassify human tissue as a drug, biological product, or device in specified circumstances. Outlines the mechanism for enforcement of this Act in the event that any violations of it constitute a significant risk to the public health. Subjects registrants to inspections under the Act. Applies the PHSA to umbilical cord blood to the same extent as it applies to human tissue. Prohibits the Secretary from regulating eyes until voluntary regulation is inadequate to protect the public health.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Affidavits of Support Title II: Public Charge Deportation Title III: Attribution of Sponsor's Income Title IV: Ineligibility of Illegal Aliens for Public Assistance and Benefits Title V: Enhanced Verification of Eligibility Based on Citizenship or Immigration Status Title VI: Housing Assistance Title VII: Miscellaneous Provisions Title VIII: General Provisions Alien Public Assistance Benefits Amendments of 1996 - Title I: Affidavits of Support - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (Act), as amended by the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, to apply alien sponsor affidavit of support provisions to means-tested public benefits. (Current law refers to Federal means-tested public benefits.) Revises certain related income provisions. Title II: Public Charge Deportation - Amends the Act to revise the public charge grounds for deportation, including increasing the public charge period. Sets forth a special rule for battered spouses and children. Provides for exclusion and deportation of an alien who obtains public benefits through fraud or misrepresentation. Makes an alien deportable as a public charge ineligible for naturalization. Title III: Attribution of Sponsor's Income - Amends the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to apply attribution of sponsor income provisions for five years to current immigrants. Title IV: Ineligibility of Illegal Aliens for Public Assistance and Benefits - Authorizes States to deny driver's licenses to illegal aliens. (Sec. 402) Amends the Social Security Act to prohibit crediting of "employment" for persons not authorized to work in the United States. (Sec. 403) Amends the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to deny HIV or AIDS treatment to illegal aliens. Title V: Enhanced Verification of Eligibility Based on Citizenship or Immigration Status - Amends the Social Security Act to require proof of identity for certain public assistance (SAVE program)benefits. (Sec. 502) Authorizes States to require proof of eligibility for State benefits. (Sec. 504) Requires verification of student eligibility (citizen, national, or immigrant) for postsecondary Federal student financial assistance. Title VI: Housing Assistance - Use of Assisted Housing by Aliens Act of 1996 - Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1980 to: (1) prorate rental housing assistance based upon the number of eligible family members; (2) require prior verification of immigration status and eligibility for financial assistance; and (3) prohibit sanctions against an entity making financial assistance eligibility determinations. Title VII: Miscellaneous Provisions - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to eliminate unemployment benefit crediting based upon the status of permanently residing in the United States under color of law. (Sec. 702) Amends the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to repeal a specified food stamp program transition provision. Title VIII: General Provisions - Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) effective date; (2)foreign assistance inapplicability; (3) notification; and (4) definitions.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Commemorative Coins Title II: Circulating Coins Thomas Alva Edison Sesquicentennial Commemorative Coin Act - Title I: Commemorative Coins - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint one-dollar silver coins emblematic of the inventions made by Thomas Alva Edison in commemoration of the sesquicentennial of his birth. Directs the Secretary to conduct an open design competition for the design of the obverse and reverse of the coins. Terminates the authority to mint such coins after December 31, 1997. Requires that certain surcharges received from coin sales be distributed to specified entities. Title II: Circulating Coins - Amends Federal law to declare that the obverse side of half-dollar coins minted between specified dates shall have the same likeness of Thomas Alva Edison as the commemorative coins minted under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 April 2025
Authorizes the Secretary of the Army to award a Ranger Tab to certain individuals assigned to specified Army units and performing active duty for specified periods in the Republic of Vietnam between 1960 and 1974. Requires written application for such award.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Uniform Child Support Enforcement Act of 1996 - Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to establish in the Internal Revenue Service a national registry of abstracts of child support orders. Amends part D (Child Support and Establishment of Paternity) of title IV of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, as well as the Internal Revenue Code, to require: (1) a State, as a condition for receiving Federal child support funds, to prescribe procedures requiring any State court or administrative agency that issues or modifies a child support order to transmit an abstract of the order to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS); (2) a State to prescribe procedures requiring an individual with the right to collect child support to be presumed to have assigned such right to the IRS (unless the individual affirmatively elects to retain such right); and (3) prescribe guidelines under which the IRS shall collect child support through tax withholding procedures. Declares that child support obligations will be treated as taxes for purposes of penalties and interest.
United States · United States Congress · 3 June 2026
Transported Air Pollution Mitigation Act of 1996 - Amends Clean Air Act provisions regarding State implementation plans for national primary and secondary ambient air quality standards to require a State, for each upwind area which causes or significantly contributes to a violation of the ambient air quality standard for ozone in a downwind area, to submit a plan revision that requires the upwind area to either: (1) reduce emissions of each air pollutant concerned by an amount necessary to mitigate impacts to pollution concentrations in the downwind area; or (2) make payments to the State or the air quality district as compensation to the downwind area for the costs of emission reduction measures. Requires a State, for each Moderate ozone nonattainment area determined to cause or significantly contribute to a violation of the national ambient air quality standard for ozone in a downwind area, to submit a plan revision including all provisions necessary for an enhanced vehicle inspection described in provisions concerning Serious areas and Environmental Protection Agency regulations. Requires amendment by a State of its plan for maintenance (required when a State requests redesignation of a nonattainment area as an area which has attained the national ambient air quality standard) to include measures for such an inspection program if the State determines that the area concerned is causing or significantly contributing to a violation of such standards for ozone in a downwind area.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Child Support Recovery Amendments Act of 1996 - Amends Federal criminal code provisions regarding failure to pay legal child support obligations to create two new categories of felony offenses, subject to a two-year maximum prison term: (1) traveling in interstate or foreign commerce with intent to evade a support obligation if the obligation has remained unpaid for a period longer than one year or is greater than $5,000; and (2) willfully failing to pay a support obligation regarding a child residing in another State, if the obligation has remained unpaid for a period longer than two years or is greater than $10,000. Specifies that the existence of a support obligation that was in effect for the time period charged in the indictment or information creates a rebuttable presumption that the obligor has the ability to pay such obligation for that period. Directs the court, upon a conviction, to order restitution in an amount equal to the total unpaid support obligation as it exists at the time of sentencing.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 2019
Amends the Federal criminal code to: (1) allow an indictment or information for a Class A felony involving murder to be found at any time without limitation; and (2) prohibit (except under such provision) a person from being prosecuted, tried, or punished for a Class A felony that is a crime of violence or a drug trafficking crime unless the indictment is returned or the information is filed within ten years after the commission of the offense.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2025
Prohibits the Secretary of Defense, when making cost or business comparisons between U.S. and foreign bases for the supply of U.S. Navy activities, from using shipping cost differentials that are attributable to the application of the Merchant Marine Act, 1920 to the United States bases.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2025
Prohibits Department of Defense funds from being used to relocate any Government contractor from the Stratford Army Engine Plant, Connecticut, in connection with the termination of Army activities under the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute Administrative Systems Act of 1996 - Provides that certain civil service laws relating to personnel management shall not apply to applicants for employment with, employees of, or positions in or under the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute. Requires the Institute president by regulation to prescribe alternative personnel management provisions. Disallows covering current Institute employees except pursuant to a voluntary election. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to delegate to the institute president procurement authority with respect to the conduct of the administrative functions of the Institute. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Civil Rights Commission Reauthorization Act of 1996 - Amends the Civil Rights Commission Act of 1983 to require approval of a majority of the Commission before the Commission may submit a report or issue a subpoena. Prescribes a procedure for the withholding of the issuance of a subpoena. Allows the Commission, by majority vote, to remove the staff director from office. Provides for the application of the Freedom of Information Act, Privacy Act of 1974, and the Government in the Sunshine Act with regard to the Commission. Authorizes appropriations. Extends the Commission's termination date through FY 1997.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Local Growth Management Incentives Act of 1996 - Requires each Federal agency to cooperate with qualified State agencies and local land use jurisdictions (those with growth management and land use programs certified under this Act) to reduce duplication of State and local requirements by National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) environmental assessment procedures. Requires such cooperation to include joint planning processes, environmental research, public hearings, and environmental assessments. Permits use of one document if State or local law imposes requirements that are in addition to, but not in conflict with, the NEPA requirements. Requires a NEPA statement to address, and describe the extent to which the State or local entity will reconcile, any inconsistency of a proposed action with any approved plan or other requirement of the entity. Allows States and local land use jurisdictions, upon certification (and with exceptions), additional time to comply with any new Federal requirement in order to integrate a qualified program's requirements with the Federal requirement. Describes certification procedures (and restrictions) and requires for support of a certification that State or local laws establish a qualified program containing, among other things, mechanisms for: (1) designating areas of critical environmental concern (those in which development may damage important historic, cultural, or aesthetic values or natural systems or processes or result in a threat to human life and safety from natural hazards); (2) addressing compatibility of land uses; and (3) assessing whether development activity impacts would result in environmental or health law violations. Describes methods for establishment of such a program. Requires federally conducted development projects or activities that affect land use or are otherwise regulated under a qualified program to be carried out consistently with the program. Amends Federal law concerning obligation of Federal-aid highway and surface transportation funds to require the Secretary of Transportation to give priority, in discretionary awards of funding, to States and local land use jurisdictions that have in effect a State or local program that meets this Act's certification requirements. Requires the Council on Environmental Quality to report to the Congress regarding: (1) the impacts of Federal activities on growth and land use; and (2) the effectiveness of growth management and land use programs in addressing the cumulative impacts of Federal activities.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Tobacco-Free Children's Internet Act of 1996 - Directs the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration to issue regulations limiting the advertising of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco over the Internet or other interactive computer service within the United States in a manner consistent with certain previously issued regulations.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Coverage for Children and Pregnant Women Subtitle A: Definitions Subtitle B: Participating State Program Title II: Qualifying Policies Subtitle A: Qualifying Policies Subtitle B: Access and Preexisting Condition Limitations Subtitle C: General Duties and Responsibilities of the Secretary Title III: Assistance to Families and Pregnant Women Title IV: Miscellaneous Provisions Healthy Children Family Assistance Health Insurance Program Act of 1996 - Title I: Coverage for Children and Pregnant Women - Subtitle A: Definitions - Sets forth definitions used in this Act. Subtitle B: Participating State Program - Sets forth the general framework for a State program negotiated and contracted with at least one health plan to provide access to qualified health plans to eligible children and pregnant women residing in the State. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide certain payments for operating and administrative costs of participating States. Title II: Qualifying Policies - Subtitle A: Qualifying Policies - Describes the qualifying health policies for children and pregnant women, with a prohibition under each policy against any cost-sharing requirements for preventive services. Subtitle B: Access and Preexisting Condition Limitations - Places certain limitations on the imposition of preexisting condition exclusions under such policies, prohibiting them outright with regard to pregnant women. Subtitle C: General Duties and Responsibilities of the Secretary - Authorizes the Secretary to issue regulations and interim final regulations to implement the State program. Title III: Assistance to Families and Pregnant Women - Prescribes guidelines for determining the eligibility of children and pregnant women for premium and cost-sharing assistance. Requires States to have such assistance programs in effect to qualify for Federal payments under this Act. Prescribes penalties for material misrepresentation and false information in applications for assistance. Directs the Secretary to promulgate regulations under which each State operating a program for premium assistance shall have in effect an enrollment outreach system. Requires reduction of Federal payments for administrative errors. Title IV: Miscellaneous Provisions - Prohibits any employer which elects to make employer contributions on behalf of an employee, or an employee dependent, for health insurance coverage from conditioning, or varying, such contributions with respect to any such individual by reason of their status as an individual eligible for premium assistance. Provides that an employer shall not be treated as failing to meet such requirements if the employer ceases to make employer contributions for health insurance coverage for all its employees. (Sec. 402) Prohibits a participating State from modifying the eligibility requirements for children or pregnant women under the State Medicaid program under title XIX of the Social Security Act in any manner that would have the effect of reducing the eligibility of children or pregnant women for coverage under such program. (Sec. 403) Expresses the sense of the Committee on Labor and Human Resources of the Senate that the program established under this Act should be fully financed in a budget neutral manner by offsetting revenues derived from increasing the taxes on tobacco and providing for reductions in undeserved corporate tax breaks.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2024
Amends the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1997 to repeal the provision that eliminated contract extension authority under the conservation reserve program.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Gambling Credit Reform Act - Amends the Truth in Lending Act to prohibit any creditor from extending any credit to any consumer under any open end consumer credit plan if the creditor knows or has reason to believe that the proceeds of such extension of credit are being used or will be used by the consumer to make any form of wager or bet, to play any game of chance, to use any gambling device, or to otherwise participate in gambling at any gambling establishment.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2024
Directs the President to take necessary steps to renegotiate with Canada the annual quantity limitations of tailored wool apparel assembled in Canada from fabric or yarn produced or obtained in a non-North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) country, that is eligible for preferential tariff treatment under NAFTA, to reflect current conditions in the wool apparel industry in Canada and the United States, including the ability of tailored wool apparel producers to obtain supplies of wool fabric within U.S. and Canadian territories.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Family Business Estate Tax Relief Act of 1996 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from a family-owned business' gross estate up to $900,000 of family-owned business interest (in addition to the existing $600,000 estate and gift tax credit), provided that the heirs continue to materially participate in the business for a specified period after the owner's death. Increases the portion of the estate tax subject to the "four- percent" (interest) rule.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Children's Health Insurance for Long-Term Development Act of 1996 - Requires health plans and employee health benefit plans to ensure coverage of all medically necessary health care and related services for children during the Infant Neurological Risk Exposure Period (INREP), which extends through age three and encompasses the period of most rapid neurological changes in young children. Prohibits health plans from using a service limitation, including a lifetime benefit limit, to deny medically necessary health care and related services to a child. Sets forth enforcement provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 2026
National Grasslands Management Act of 1996 - Amends the Forest Rangeland Renewable Resource Planning Act of 1974 to remove the National Grasslands and land utilization projects administered under title III of the Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act (such Act) from the National Forest System (NFS). Directs the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, to manage the National Grasslands as a separate entity and in accordance with this Act and the provisions and multiple use purposes of such Act. Requires the Secretary to administer grazing permits and implement grazing management decisions in consultation, cooperation, and coordination with local grazing associations and other grazing permits. Requires fees and charges for livestock grazing on the National Grasslands to be determined in the same manner and according to the same formula that was used for such grazing during the 1996 grazing year. Allows the Secretary to adjust the grazing fee to compensate for approved conservation practices and administrative expenditures.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 2026
Endangered Cultural Heritage Act of 1996 - Establishes in the Treasury an Endangered Cultural Heritage Fund. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to designate or establish a Federal agency to administer the Fund. Requires use of the Fund to support activities by qualified U.S. and international organizations to preserve and protect cultural resources that are significantly at risk, at qualified sites both inside and outside the United States. Requires the designated agency to provide grants or fellowships that engage: (1) U.S. professionals in historic preservation; and (2) U.S. and foreign graduate students in onsite conservation and development of plans to protect endangered cultural resources. Directs the agency to support public education programs, seminars, conferences, and other activities.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Airport and Airway Improvements Subtitle A: Reauthorization of FAA Programs Subtitle B: Airport Development Financing Subtitle C: Airport Improvement Program Modifications Title II: FAA Reform Subtitle A: General Provisions Subtitle B: Federal Aviation Administration Streamlining Programs Subtitle C: System to Fund Certain Federal Aviation Administration Functions Title III: Aviation Security Title IV: Aviation Safety Title V: Pilot Record Sharing Title VI: Child Pilot Safety Title VII: Family Assistance Title VIII: Airport Revenue Protection Title IX: Metropolitan Washington Airports Title X: Extension of Airport and Airway Trust Fund Expenditures Title XI: FAA Research, Engineering, and Development Title XII: Miscellaneous Provisions Federal Aviation Reauthorization Act of 1996 - Title I: Airport and Airway Improvements - Subtitle A: Reauthorization of FAA Programs - Amends Federal aviation law to reauthorize the Airport Improvement Program through FY 1998, with specified allocations for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Facilities and Equipment Program. (Sec. 102) Authorizes appropriations for the FAA through FY 1998. Subtitle B: Airport Development Financing - Revises the apportionment of airport improvement fund amounts to sponsors of primary and cargo service airports for each fiscal year. (Sec. 122) Revises the minimum amount of airport improvement funds that shall be credited in a fiscal year to the discretionary fund. (Sec. 123) Increases the apportionment for airport improvement grant funds for: (1) airport noise compatibility programs; and (2) current and former military airports. (Sec. 124) Reduces from 15 to 12 at any time the number of current or former military airports that may receive airport improvement grant funds. Subtitle C: Airport Improvement Program Modifications - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to encourage: (1) airport sponsors and State and local officials to develop airport master plans and airport system plans; and (2) metropolitan planning organizations, particularly in areas with populations greater than 200,000, to establish membership positions for airport operators. (Sec. 142) Directs the FAA Administrator to issue guidelines to carry out up to ten pavement maintenance pilot projects to preserve and extend the useful life of airport runways, taxiways, and aprons. (Sec. 143) Makes it a condition for approval of a grant application for an airport development project that the airport owner or operator makes assurances that it will permit, to the maximum extent practicable, intercity buses to have access to the airport. (Sec. 144) Eliminates as an allowable project cost for Federal reimbursement certain costs for airport development projects commenced during FY 1994 before the execution of the grant agreement. Allows such reimbursement only for costs incurred after September 30, 1996. Denies priority consideration for the use of discretionary funds for projects incurring costs before execution of the grant agreement. (Sec. 145) Specifies additional factors for the Secretary to consider in selecting a project for a grant to preserve and enhance capacity at primary and reliever airports. (Sec. 146) Requires the Secretary, in making grants to sponsors of small airports, to give priority consideration to multi-year projects for construction of new runways that are cost beneficial and that increase capacity in a U.S. region. (Sec. 147) Increases from seven to eight for FY 1997, and nine for each fiscal year thereafter, the number of States the Secretary may designate to assume administrative responsibility for all airport (except primary airport) grant amounts under the State block grant pilot program. Makes permanent the State block grant pilot program. (Sec. 148) Authorizes the Secretary to carry out a demonstration program of up to ten projects for grants to implement innovative financing techniques for airport development projects. (Sec. 149) Authorizes an airport sponsor who intends to sell or lease the airport for a long term to a private person to apply for exemption from the prohibition on the use of airport revenues for non-airport purposes, and the requirement for written assurances about such use. Waives the current prohibition on the imposition of passenger facility fees by any airport receiving such an exemption. Title II: FAA Reform - Air Traffic Management System Performance Improvement Act of 1996 - Subtitle A: General Provisions - Amends the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 to delineate the powers and duties of the FAA Administrator and the Secretary with respect to the FAA. (Sec. 224) Authorizes the Administrator to issue, rescind, and revise regulations as necessary to carry out the FAA functions. Prohibits the Administrator, without prior approval of the Secretary, from issuing a proposed or final regulation that is significant or is likely to result in the expenditure by State, local, and tribal governments in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100 million or more in any year. Excepts emergency regulations from such prohibition, but subjects them to rescission if the Secretary fails to ratify them. Requires the Administrator to review, within three years after issuance, any unusually burdensome regulations, which would result in the annual expenditure by State, local, and tribal governments in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $25 million or more (adjusted annually for inflation) in any year. (Sec. 225) Authorizes the Administrator to utilize personnel of other Federal agencies. (Sec. 230) Directs the Administrator to establish the Federal Aviation Management Advisory Council which shall: (1) provide advice and counsel to the Administrator on issues which affect or are affected by the Administrator's operations; and (2) function as an oversight resource for management, policy, spending, and regulatory matters. Subtitle B: Federal Aviation Administration Streamlining Programs - Directs the Administrator to employ outside experts to provide an independent evaluation of the effectiveness of the FAA's acquisition management system. (Sec. 252) Requires the Administrator to terminate programs funded under the Facilities and Equipment account, and to consider the termination of substantial acquisitions, that fail to meet specified established project criteria. (Sec. 253) Requires the Administrator to negotiate with the bargaining representatives of FAA employees in developing and making changes to the FAA personnel management system. Subtitle C: System to Fund Certain Federal Aviation Administration Functions - Directs the Administrator to establish a schedule of new user fees, and a collection process for such fees, for various FAA services. (Sec. 274) Directs the Administrator to contract for an independent assessment of the financial requirements of the FAA through 2002. Establishes the National Civil Aviation Review Commission to: (1) analyze the FAA's budgetary requirements through FY 2002, including an analysis of alternative financing means for meeting the needs of the aviation system; and (2) analyze (through a specified task force) aviation safety in the United States and emerging trends in the safety of particular sectors of the aviation industry. (Sec. 275) Sets forth congressional procedures for consideration of FAA funding proposals. (Sec. 277) Requires the multiyear appropriation of funds (not less than three years) for Airport and Airway Trust Fund activities. Rural Air Service Survival Act - Authorizes the availability of a specified amount of user fees collected for each fiscal year for expenditure to carry out the essential air service program. Title III: Aviation Security - Directs the Administrator to study and report to the Congress on whether to transfer to airport operators or to the Federal Government certain responsibilities of air carriers relating to security activities at onsite commercial service airports, or to provide for shared responsibilities between air carriers and airport operators or the Federal Government. (Sec. 302) Directs the Administrator to: (1) certify companies providing security screening at airports; and (2) develop uniform performance standards for providing security screening services. (Sec. 303) Directs the Administrator to arrange with the National Academy of Sciences or an equivalent entity for a study of the effectiveness of weapons and explosive detection technologies deployed in commercial aviation. Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 304) Authorizes the Administrator to require by regulation an employment investigation (including, in certain circumstances, a criminal history record check) for employees who will be responsible for screening airline passengers and property. (Sec. 305) Directs the Administrator to provide for: (1) the interim deployment of explosive detection devices at airports until certain certified equipment becomes commercially available to replace them; and (2) the periodic audit of the effectiveness of criminal history record checks. (Sec. 307) Urges the Administrator, the Secretary, the intelligence community, and the law enforcement community to continue to assist air carriers in developing computer-assisted passenger profiling programs for use with other security measures. (Sec. 308) Authorizes the use of certain project grant funds and passenger facility fees for airport security programs and activities. (Sec. 309) Requires the Secretary and the Attorney General, acting through the Administrator and the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), to enter into an interagency agreement for establishment of an aviation security liaison at existing appropriate Federal agencies' field offices in or near cities served by a high-risk airport. (Sec. 310) Requires the Administrator and the FBI Director to carry out, at least triennially, joint threat and vulnerability assessments on security at each high-risk airport. (Sec. 311) Requires the Administrator to report to Congress on the safety and effectiveness of any bag match pilot program carried out pursuant to certain recommendations. Expresses the sense of the Senate that the Administrator should work with airports and air carriers to develop, to the extent feasible, effective domestic bag matching proposals at airports. (Sec. 312) Authorizes the Administrator to require each air carrier and airport to conduct periodic vulnerability assessments of their security systems. (Sec. 313) Directs the Secretary to report to the Congress on any changes recommended and implemented as a result of the White House Conference on Aviation Safety and Security to enhance screening and inspection of cargo, mail, and company-shipped materials transported in commerce. (Sec. 314) Expresses the sense of the Senate that a state of war should be declared to exist between the United States and any nation that commits an act of international terrorism against a U.S. citizen. Title IV: Aviation Safety - Directs the Administrator to consider the assigning, maintaining, and enhancing of safety and security as the highest priorities in air commerce. Repeals the duty of the Administrator to promote civil aeronautics. (Sec. 402) Prohibits the Administrator or any agency from disclosing voluntarily-provided safety or security related information if certain conditions apply. (Sec. 403) Authorizes the Administrator to issue a supplemental type certificate for a change to an aircraft, aircraft engine, propeller, or appliance. (Sec. 404) Requires the Administrator to issue an airport operating certificate for an airport (not located in Alaska) that serves any scheduled passenger operation of an air carrier aircraft designed for more than nine but less than 31 passenger seats. (Currently, the mandate covers only an airport serving an air carrier operating aircraft designed for at least 31 passenger seats). (Sec. 405) Authorizes appropriations to the FAA for FY 1997 for the purpose of addressing State-specific aviation safety problems identified by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). (Sec. 406) Requires the Administrator to prescribe aircraft noise and sonic boom standards for aircraft engines. (Sec. 407) Directs the NTSB to develop a system for classifying air carrier accident data. Directs the Administrator to give high priority to developing and deploying a fully enhanced safety performance analysis system including automated surveillance targeting systems. Title V: Pilot Record Sharing - Pilot Records Improvement Act of 1996 - Requires air carriers to request and receive a pilot applicant's record for the previous five years with respect to: (1) current airman certificate, including any summaries of legal enforcement actions; (2) employment; and (3) motor vehicle driving. (Sec. 502) Prohibits any Federal or State court action for defamation or invasion of privacy against any carrier or person with respect to the furnishing or use of such records according to the requirements of this Act. (Sec. 503) Directs the Administrator to appoint a task force to study: (1) the development of standards and criteria for preemployment screening of pilots and pilot training facilities; and (2) to determine if the practice of air carriers requiring employees to pay for the training that is needed to perform flight check duties is in the public interest. (Sec. 504) Directs the Administrator to study and report to the Congress on whether current minimum flight requirements for air carrier pilot applicants are sufficient to ensure public safety. Title VI: Child Pilot Safety - Child Pilot Safety Act - Prohibits a pilot in command of an aircraft from allowing an individual who does not hold a valid private pilot's certificate, and an appropriate medical certificate, to manipulate the controls of an aircraft if the pilot knows or should have known that the individual is attempting to set a record or engage in an aeronautical competition or aeronautical feat. (Sec. 602) Mandates revocation of the Federal certificate of any airman who, while acting as a pilot in command of an aircraft, permits another individual to manipulate the aircraft's controls in violation of this Act. Directs the Administrator to conduct a study and report on the impacts of children flying aircraft. Title VII: Family Assistance - Aviation Disaster Family Assistance Act of 1996 - Requires the Chairman of the NTSB, after an accident involving an aircraft that results in a significant loss of life, to: (1) designate and publicize the name and phone number of a director of family support services to be a Government liaison between the air carrier and the families of the passengers; and (2) designate an experienced, independent nonprofit organization which shall have primary responsibility for coordinating the care and support of the passengers' families. Grants the NTSB primary responsibility for coordinating the recovery and identification of passengers involved in an aircraft accident. (Sec. 702) Prohibits any person from impeding the ability of the NTSB, or the designated organization, from carrying out its responsibilities under this Act. Sets forth penalties for violations of this Act. (Sec. 703) Requires each air carrier to submit to the Secretary of Transportation a plan for addressing the needs of the passengers' families. Prohibits the Secretary from approving an air carrier's application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity without such plan in its application. (Sec. 704) Requires the Secretary to establish a task force to develop: (1) a model plan to assist air carriers in responding to aircraft accidents; and (2) recommendations to the Congress on methods to ensure that attorneys and the media do not intrude on the privacy of the passengers' families. Title VIII: Airport Revenue Protection - Airport Revenue Protection Act of 1996 - Amends Federal aviation law to prohibit, with specified exceptions, the expenditure for non-airport purposes of local aviation fuel taxes or revenues generated by an airport that is the subject of Federal assistance or that operates pursuant to an airport operating certificate. Sets forth a civil penalty for diversion of aviation revenues. (Sec. 805) Requires the Secretary, acting through the Administrator, to promulgate regulations requiring a recipient of an airport project grant or any other Federal airport financial assistance to include in its annual audit a review of airport-related funding activities. Requires the Secretary to review any audit identifying an illegal diversion of airport revenues. Authorizes the Secretary, after determining such identification is accurate, and notifying the airport and its sponsor, to withhold any amount from apportioned or grant funds that would otherwise be made available to the sponsor. Authorizes the Secretary to initiate a civil action under which the sponsor shall be liable for a civil penalty equal to the amount of the illegal diversion, plus interest. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to conform to this Act. Title IX: Metropolitan Washington Airports - Metropolitan Washington Airports Amendments Act of 1996 - Amends the Metropolitan Washington Airports Act of 1986 to revise the composition of the board of directors of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, among other things increasing the number of members from 11 to 13. (Sec. 903) Requires board members appointed by the President to be registered voters of States other than Maryland, Virginia, or the District of Columbia. Revises requirements for length of term and the filling of vacancies. Declares that no more than two members of the board appointed by the President may be of the same political party. Requires eight votes (currently, seven) to approve bond issues and the annual budget. (Sec. 904) Terminates the Board of Review of the Airports Authority. (Sec. 905) Prohibits the Secretary, after October 1, 2001, from approving an application of the Airports Authority for: (1) an airport development project grant; or (2) imposition of a passenger facility fee. (Sec. 906) Directs the Airports Authority to continue to enforce certain restrictions in the Metropolitan Washington Airports Regulations with respect to the use of the Dulles access highway. (Sec. 909) Expresses the sense of the Senate that the Airports Authority: (1) should not provide free reserved parking areas to Members of Congress, Government officials, or diplomats; and (2) should establish a parking policy for airports that provides equal access to the public. Title X: Extension of Airport and Airway Trust Fund Expenditures - Extends the expenditure authority of the Airport and Airway Trust Fund through October 1, 1998. Title XI: FAA Research, Engineering, and Development - FAA Research, Engineering, and Development Management Reform Act of 1996 - Amends Federal transportation law to authorize appropriations for FY 1997 for specified aviation programs. (Sec. 1103) Directs the Administrator of the FAA to consider the advice of a certain research advisory committee in establishing research and development priorities. (Sec. 1104) Directs the research advisory committee in the FAA to review annually the Administrator's appropriation allocation among major research and development activities, and give advice and recommendations on whether such allocation is appropriate to meet certain needs and objectives. (Sec. 1105) Amends the guidelines for the national aviation research plan with respect to the goals, priorities, and resources of research and development activities. Title XII: Miscellaneous Provisions - Authorizes the Administrator, in carrying out various aviation programs, to purchase a housing unit located outside the contiguous United States if the unit's cost is $300,000 or less. (Sec. 1203) Authorizes a sponsor to close, without any obligation to repay grants, a non-commercial service airport located near a closed or realigned military base. (Sec. 1204) Authorizes the Secretary to waive, subject to specified conditions, any deed terms in a specified conveyance of certain property to Gadsden, Alabama, for airport purposes. (Sec. 1205) Directs the FAA Administrator, in modifying certain regulations in a manner affecting intrastate aviation in Alaska, to consider the extent to which Alaska is not served by transportation other than aviation. (Sec. 1206) Provides for the payment of all Westchester County Airport, New York, fees into the Westchester County treasury. (Sec. 1207) Authorizes the Administrator to transfer and install at Bedford Airport, Pennsylvania, any instrument landing system decommissioned elsewhere in the State. (Sec. 1208) Directs the Administrator to take action to improve the safety of aircraft landing: (1) at Worcester Municipal Airport, Massachusetts, including, if appropriate, providing air traffic radar service from the Providence Approach Radar Control in Coventry, Rhode Island; and (2) at Central Florida Airport, Sanford, Florida, including, if appropriate, providing a new instrument landing system on Runway 27R. (Sec. 1210) Amends the Airport and Airway Improvement Act of 1982 to establish within the FAA an Aircraft Noise Ombudsman who shall be consulted when the FAA proposes changes in aircraft routes so as to minimize any increases in aircraft noise over populated areas. (Sec. 1211) Amends Federal transportation law to declare that, if any privately owned reliever airport contributes any lands, easements, or rights-of-way to carry out an airport improvement project, their current fair market value shall be credited toward the non-Federal share of allowable project costs. (Sec. 1212) Expresses the sense of the Senate that there should be an immediate enactment of an 18-month reinstatement of the aviation excise taxes to provide short-term funding for the FAA. (Sec. 1213) Directs the Secretary to study and report to specified congressional committees on rural air fare. (Sec. 1214) Directs the Administrator to revise certain regulations to apply to candidates for State or local office the same or similar carriage rules as apply to candidates for Federal office. (Sec. 1215) Directs the Secretary, acting through the Administrator, to provide 45 additional days for comment by interested persons on certain proposed special flight rules in the vicinity of Grand Canyon National Park. (Sec. 1216) Authorizes the Administrator to: (1) transfer any U.S. title, right or interest in the air traffic control tower at Hickory Regional Airport to the City of Hickory, North Carolina; and (2) study and certify to specified congressional committees whether the number of operations at such airport meet the criteria for contract towers. Prohibits the Administrator from closing the New Bern-Craven County flight services station, the Hickory Regional Airport flight service station, or the Pierre, South Dakota Regional Airport flight service station without certification to the same committees that such closure will not result in the degradation of air safety (at the first two stations) or (at the third station) of air safety, air service, or the loss of meteorological services or data that cannot be obtained in a more cost-effective way, and that any such station closure will reduce costs to taxpayers. (Sec. 1217) Directs the Administrator to study and report to the Congress on the feasibility of constructing two offshore platforms to serve as sites for the location of Doppler radar stations for John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport in New York City, New York. (Sec. 1218) Requires the Secretary to take into account the interest of affected communities (among other criteria) when issuing Federal train whistle regulations. (Sec. 1219) Prohibits the Surface Transportation Board from increasing service fees for small shippers in connection with rail maximum rate complaints. (Sec. 1220) Amends Federal transportation law to declare that, in a case in which two landfills have been proposed or established within six miles of a commercial service airport with fewer than 50,000 enplanements per year, no person shall construct or establish either landfill if an official of the Federal Aviation Administration has stated in writing within the three-year period ending on the date of the enactment of this Act that one of the landfills would be incompatible with aircraft operations at the airport, unless the landfill is already active on such date of enactment or the airport operator agrees to the construction or establishment of the landfill. (Sec. 1221) Declares that, through FY 1998, an air carrier which commenced all-cargo turnaround service during November 1995 with Stage 2 aircraft with a maximum weight of more than 75,000 pounds: (1) may operate no more than one such aircraft in all-cargo turnaround service; but (2) may maintain a second such aircraft in reserve. Limits the use of the reserve aircraft to replacement of the first aircraft when it is not airworthy or is unavailable due to closure of an airport in Hawaii at which it is located. (Sec. 1222) Amends the Johnson Act to provide that States (except Hawaii) may not regulate the possession or use of gambling equipment on a vessel whose voyage includes or consists of a segment: (1) that begins and ends in the same State; (2) that is part of a voyage to another State or a foreign country; and (3) in which the vessel reaches the other State or foreign country within three days after leaving the State in which it begins.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 2026
Requires the President: (1) to appoint a Special Master to mediate the issues involved in the impasse regarding fish and game management responsibilities in Alaska ; and (2) in making such appointment, to give careful consideration to recommendations submitted by the Governor of Alaska, the President of the Alaska State Senate, and the Speaker of the Alaska State House. Requires the principal office of the Special Master to be in Alaska. Directs the Special Master to: (1) review existing State and Federal laws regarding subsistence use of fish and game resources in Alaska; (2) recommend specific actions to the Congress and to Alaska that assure that Alaska recovers and retains management authority and responsibility for fish and game on all of its lands, that provide for the continuation of the opportunity for subsistence uses by Alaska residents, including both Natives and non-natives, on the public lands and by Alaska Natives on Native lands which is essential for Native physical, economic, traditional, and cultural existence, and to non- native physical, economic, traditional, and social existence; and (3) report to the Secretary, the Congress, the Governor, and the Alaskan legislature. Makes the report available to the public. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 24 March 2026
Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to convey to the Burlington Resources Oil and Gas Company (formerly known as Meridian Oil Inc.) all Federal rights and interests identified on a map entitled the "Billings County, North Dakota, Consolidated Mineral Exchange--November 1995," contingent on Burlington's conveyance to the Secretary of title to its own rights and interests identified on the same map. Directs the Secretary to convey to owners of the remaining non-oil gas mineral interests identified on the map all Federal rights, title, and interests in the National Forest System lands and National Grasslands in the State of North Dakota, contingent on the owners' conveyance to the Secretary, after Burlington's conveyance, of all their rights, title, and interests. Directs the Secretary to grant to Burlington the use of federally-owned surface lands to explore for and develop interests conveyed to Burlington under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Military Reservists Small Business Relief Act - Amends the Small Business Act to direct the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA), upon request, to defer repayment of a direct loan made to: (1) an individual who is a reservist who received such loan before being called or ordered to, or retained on, active duty; or (2) a small business that received such loan before a reservist who is an owner, manager, or key employee of such small business was so called, ordered, or retained. Extends the loan deferral period from the date the individual is so called, ordered, or retained until the later of 180 days after: (1) such individual is released; or (2) the enactment of this Act, with no accrual of interest during such period. Authorizes the SBA to make disaster loans to assist a small business that has suffered or is likely to suffer economic injury as the result of its owner, manager, or key employee being ordered to active duty during a period of military conflict. Limits to $500,000 the amount outstanding and committed on each loan.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Children's Environmental Protection Act of 1996 - Amends the Toxic Substances Control Act to state U.S. policy regarding the adequacy of protection of children and other vulnerable subpopulations from exposure to environmental pollutants. Defines "vulnerable subpopulations" to include children, pregnant women, the elderly, individuals with a history of serious illness, and other subpopulations identified by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as likely to experience elevated health risks from environmental pollutants. Directs the Administrator to: (1) work with each State, including by making grants, to develop a family right-to-know initiative requiring disclosure of the details of application of a pollutant in a public area accessible to children, State reports of such information, and provision of data for a nationwide survey; (2) identify and make publicly available a list of hazardous substances and pesticides commonly used in schools and parks; (3) create a list of substances with high hazard risks; (4) develop and issue an EPA-approved warning sign and label for posting in such areas; and (5) prohibit a school or park from using any pollutant on the high hazard risk list. Directs the Administrator and the Secretaries of Agriculture and of Health and Human Services to: (1) coordinate and implement research studies of the physiological and pharmacokinetic differences in the effects and toxicity of pesticides and other pollutants on children and other vulnerable subpopulations; (2) conduct surveys and research to document differences between children and adults with respect to exposure; and (3) report to the Congress. Directs the Administrator to evaluate environmental health risks to children and vulnerable subpopulations in all risk assessments and characterizations, environmental or public health standards, or general regulatory decisions and develop and use a separate assessment with respect to vulnerable subpopulations. Requires a report to the Congress. Requires public availability, subject to restrictions, of information concerning any test of a pesticide, pesticide residue, or other pollutant to determine potential levels of exposure or health effects. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Strengthening Social Security Act of 1996 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code and title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require covered employers to have a plan for withholding certain contributions from the wages of their eligible employees for investment according to the individual employee's personal investment plan. Defines personal investment plan as: (1) any personal investment retirement plan restricted to certain contribution deposits in the Personal Investment Fund, established in the Treasury by this Act; or (2) any individual retirement plan restricted to certain contribution deposits and administered or issued by a bank. Requires the Personal Investment Fund to be governed by a Personal Investment Fund Board under a system similar to the Thrift Savings Program for Federal employees. Covers self-employed individuals. Applies this Act only to employees who have not attained age 55. Specifies reduced social security tax rates for plan participants. Imposes civil penalties upon employers who fail to establish a personal investment payroll deduction plan or observe certain requirements with respect to it. Provides for: (1) specified graduated increases in "normal" and early retirement ages; and (2) reduction in cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) applied to higher primary insurance amounts under the OASDI program, tying OASDI COLA determinations based on applicable increase percentages to similar determinations under other specified Federal benefit programs, including the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program under SSA title XVI. Directs the Bureau of Labor Statistics to reduce by .5 percentage point the annual percentage change in the Consumer Price Indexes used with respect to OASDI COLA calculations. Provides for: (1) a phased in reduction in spousal benefits other than survivors' benefits to 33 percent of the primary insurance amount; and (2) various specified adjustments in the formula for determining primary insurance amounts under OASDI. Mandates social security coverage of all State and local government employees hired after January 1, 1997. Amends the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 with respect to social security and tier 1 railroad retirement benefits, continuing for only a limited period the increased amount of benefits included in the gross income of certain taxpayers. Establishes within the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund an Equities Fund containing the income on, and proceeds from the sale or redemption of, equities held in the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Fair Trade Practices Act of 1996 - Directs the President to report annually to the Congress the identities of: (1) foreign persons and concerns that engage in certain foreign corrupt trade practices; and (2) foreign countries that do not have in effect or do not enforce laws similar to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977. Authorizes the President to impose specified sanctions upon countries that are not making a good faith effort to enact or enforce such laws.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Medicare Reimbursement for Telehealth Services Title II: Telehealth Licensure Title III: Periodic Reports to Congress from the Joint Working Group on Telehealth Title IV: Development of Telehealth Networks Comprehensive Telehealth Act of 1996 - Title I: Medicare Reimbursement for Telehealth Services - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make payments from the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund under part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act in accordance with a specified payment methodology for professional consultation via telecommunications systems with an individual or entity furnishing a service for which payment may be made to a Medicare beneficiary residing in a rural or an underserved area, notwithstanding that the individual health care practitioner providing the professional consultation is not at the same location as the individual furnishing the service to the Medicare beneficiary. (Sec. 101) Amends the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 to require the Health Care Financing Administration's report to the Congress on Medicare's reimbursement of telemedicine services to include telehealth services. Title II: Telehealth Licensure - Directs the Secretary to report to the appropriate congressional committees on: (1) practitioners licensed to provide telehealth services across State lines, including those licensed to provide them in more than three States; (2) any reciprocal or other licensure agreements between or among various States; (3) any efforts to develop uniform national sets of licensure standards for interstate telehealth services; (4) a projection of future interstate telehealth consultations; (5) State efforts to increase or reduce licensure as a burden to interstate telehealth practice; and (6) any State licensure requirements that appear to constitute unnecessary barriers to interstate telehealth services. (Sec. 202) Directs the Secretary to report annually to the appropriate congressional committees on relevant developments concerning such matters. Provides that, if States are not making progress in facilitating interstate telehealth services by eliminating unnecessary requirements, adopting reciprocal licensing arrangements, implementing uniform licensure requirements, or other means, the Secretary must include in the report recommendations on the Federal actions required to reduce licensure as a barrier to the interstate provision of telehealth services. Title III: Periodic Reports to Congress from the Joint Working Group on Telehealth - Redesignates the Joint Working Group on Telemedicine as the Joint Working Group on Telehealth, with the chairperson designated by the Director of the Office of Rural Health Policy. Makes it the mission of the Joint Working Group on Telehealth to: (1)) identify, monitor, coordinate, and analyze Federal telehealth projects, data sets, and programs; and (2) make further recommendations for coordination of Federal and State efforts to increase access to health services, education, and information in rural and underserved areas. Requires the Joint Working Group to report annually to the Congress on mission status and the state of the telehealth field generally. Authorizes appropriations. Title IV: Development of Telehealth Networks - Directs the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Office of Rural Health Policy, to provide specified financial assistance to eligible providers to expand access to health care services for individuals in rural and frontier areas through the use of telehealth. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Deadbeat Parents Punishment Act of 1996 - Amends Federal criminal code provisions regarding failure to pay legal child support obligations to create two new categories of felony offenses, subject to a two-year maximum prison term: (1) traveling in interstate or foreign commerce with intent to evade a support obligation if the obligation has remained unpaid for a period longer than one year or is greater than $5,000; and (2) willfully failing to pay a support obligation regarding a child residing in another State, if the obligation has remained unpaid for a period longer than two years or is greater than $10,000. Specifies that the existence of a support obligation that was in effect for the time period charged in the indictment or information creates a rebuttable presumption that the obligor has the ability to pay such obligation for that period. Directs the court, upon a conviction, to order restitution in an amount equal to the total unpaid support obligation as it exists at the time of sentencing.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Personal Investment Plan Act of 1996 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code and title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to require covered employers to have a plan for withholding certain contributions from the wages of their eligible employees electing to participate for investment according to the individual employee's personal investment plan. Defines personal investment plan as: (1) any personal investment retirement plan restricted to certain contribution deposits in the Personal Investment Fund, hereby established in the Treasury; or (2) any individual retirement plan restricted to certain contribution deposits and administered or issued by a bank or other specified person. Establishes in the Social Security Administration a Personal Investment Fund Board to govern the Personal Investment Fund under a system similar to the Thrift Savings Program for Federal employees. Covers self-employed individuals. Specifies reduced social security tax rates for participating employees and self-employed individuals. Sets forth civil penalties for employers who fail to establish a personal investment payroll deduction plan or observe certain requirements with respect to it. Prescribes adjustments to primary insurance amounts under the OASDI program.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Law Enforcement Officers Protection Amendment Act of 1996 - Amends the Federal criminal code to expand the definition of "armor piercing ammunition" to include a projectile that may be used in a handgun and that the Secretary of Treasury determines to be capable of penetrating body armor. Directs the Secretary to promulgate regulations based on standards to be developed for the uniform testing of projectiles to determine whether such projectiles are capable of penetrating National Institute of Justice Level II-A body armor. Authorizes appropriations for the Secretary and the Attorney General to develop and implement, and promulgate regulations for, performance standards for armor piercing ammunition.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Aviation Safety Protection Act of 1996 - Amends Federal law regarding air commerce and safety to prescribe whistleblower protection guidelines for airline employees providing air safety information to the Federal government. Sets forth civil penalties for violation of such employees' protections.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Information Technology System Control Board Title II: Administration of Department of Agriculture Title III: Effective Date Department of Agriculture Responsibility and Accountability Act of 1996 - Title I: Information Technology System Control Board - Establishes in the Department of Agriculture the Information Technology System Control Board to manage the Department's technology planning and procurement processes. Terminates the Board as of a specified date. Title II: Administration of the Department of Agriculture - Amends the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1997 with respect to the Department of Agriculture personnel buyout authority to: (1) prohibit persons eligible for retirement from also receiving buyout payments; (2) require that buyout funds come only from salary and expense appropriations; and (3) end buyout authority as of March 31, 1997. Title III: Effective Date - Sets forth the effective date for this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Better Pharmaceuticals for Children Act - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to allow for additional deferred effective dates for the approval of certain new drug applications to allow for additional pediatric information developed by further studies of the drug concerned.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to revise the temporary agricultural worker (H-2A visa) program with respect to: (1) H-2A petition considerations and approvals; (2) labor certification denial; (3) reduction in deadline filing; (4) expedited appeal of certain decisions; and (5) limitations on employer liability and judicial remedies.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Cap Entitlements and Other Mandatory Spending Title II: Enforcement Provisions Save Our Savings Act of 1996 - Title I: Cap Entitlements and Other Mandatory Spending - Sets forth a timetable for completion of certain budget actions by the President and by the Directors of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). (Sec. 103) Applies direct spending caps to all entitlement authority, except for undistributed offsetting receipts and net interest outlays. Sets forth a table of such caps for specified categories of entitlements and other mandatory spending. (Sec. 104) Requires determinations of such direct spending caps (as well as any breaches of such caps and actions necessary to remedy such breaches) to be based on certain economic assumptions for specified future fiscal years, subject to periodic reestimation based on changed economic conditions or changes in eligible population. (Sec. 105) Provides for automatic adjustments to the caps for entitlements and other mandatory spending. Allows the direct spending caps to be revised in a specified manner, only by recorded vote. Title II: Enforcement Provisions - Provides for enforcement of the direct spending caps on categories of spending established under title I of this Act. Applies specified enforcement rules and procedures for any fiscal year in which direct spending exceeds the applicable direct spending cap. (Sec. 202) Directs OMB to: (1) compile a statement of actual direct spending for a fiscal year, following the end of that year, identifying such spending by categories of entitlements and other mandatory spending; and (2) under specified conditions, issue a report to the President and the Congress, estimating necessary spending reductions. Sets forth a timetable for specified budget actions by the President and by OMB and CBO. (Sec. 203) Subjects all direct spending (except matters specifically exempted under this title) to caps on total direct spending outlays for each fiscal year. Establishes separate caps, consistent with the cap on total outlays, for: (1) any entitlement program named in the table in title I; (2) such other program or groups of programs for which additional caps are established in subsequent legislation; and (3) the remainder of direct spending programs. Prohibits the total of the separate caps from title I, plus any additional separate caps subsequently established, from exceeding the cap for total direct spending, as appropriately adjusted. Sets forth: (1) general rules triggering sequestration to reduce spending for programs subject to direct spending caps; (2) special rules for programs with certain characteristics; and (3) rules for insurance programs, loan programs, and State grant program formulas. Requires a within session sequester under certain conditions. (Sec. 204) Exempts from sequestration specified programs and activities, in terms of their budget accounts, activities within accounts, or income. Authorizes the President to exempt any military personnel account from sequestration or provide for a lower uniform percentage reduction than would otherwise apply, if the Congress is notified of the manner in which such authority will be exercised on or before the initial snapshot date for the budget year. (Sec. 205) Sets forth special rules for sequestration orders for: (1) the child support enforcement program under the Social Security Act; (2) the Commodity Credit Corporation; (3) the earned income tax credit; (4) regular and extended unemployment compensation; (5) the Federal Employees Health Benefits Fund; (6) the Federal Housing (Finance) Board; (7) Federal personnel pay; (8) the Medicare program under the Social Security Act; (9) the Postal Service Fund; (10) the Department of Energy power marketing administration funds or the Tennessee Valley Authority fund; and (11) programs which provide a businesslike service in exchange for a fee. (Sec. 206) Directs CBO and OMB to report to the President and the Congress the budget baselines for the budget year and at least the subsequent nine fiscal years. Requires submission of the CBO report on or before January 15. Requires the OMB report to accompany the President's budget. Specifies requirements for the budget baseline.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Local Empowerment and Flexibility Pilot Act of 1996 - Lists the purposes of this Act, including to: (1) improve the delivery of services to the public; (2) promote State, local, and tribal governments and private, nonprofit organizations to identify goals to improve their communities and the lives of their citizens; and (3) enable eligible applicants to adapt programs of Federal financial assistance to the particular needs of their communities by integrating programs and program funds across existing similar Federal financial assistance programs. (Sec.5) Creates a Community Empowerment Board composed of specified Cabinet Secretaries and agency heads. Requires the Board, among other things, to: (1) select six States to participate; and (2) receive, review, and approve or disapprove flexibility plans. Defines a "flexibility plan" as a comprehensive plan for the coordination and administration by an eligible applicant of financial assistance provided by the Federal Government under two or more eligible Federal financial assistance programs that includes funds from Federal, State, local, or tribal government or private sources to address the service needs of a community. Requires that the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in consultation with the Board, coordinate and assist in creating: (1) a uniform Federal financial assistance application; (2) a release form to facilitate the sharing of information across Federal financial assistance programs; and (3) a system wherein an organization or consortium of organizations may use one proposal to apply for assistance. (Sec. 6) Authorizes an applicant to apply to the Board for approval of a flexibility plan which must meet specified requirements, including that the application: (1) contain written certification that each entity with legal authority over a Federal financial assistance program included in the plan has consented to the terms of the plan; and (2) be submitted to, and contain all comments on the proposed plan made by, each affected State, local and tribal government and affected State agency. Provides for the submission of an application to the Board without such comments if, within 60 days of submission of the plan to an affected government, such government has failed to act on or endorse the application. (Sec.7) Sets forth the following limitations: (1) authorizes the Board to approve no more than 30 plans; and (2) allows State applicants to submit only three approved plans. Prohibits the Board from approving any plan that includes funds under a Federal financial assistance program to support tuition vouchers for children attending private schools or otherwise pay their cost of attending such schools. Authorizes affected Federal agencies to waive any requirement under a Federal financial assistance program if the waiver is: (1) necessary to implement a plan; (2) not disapproved by the Board; and (3) necessary to effectively achieve the purposes of this Act by adhering to conditions for approval of a flexibility plan, and review and approval of flexibility plans and waiver requests. (Sec. 9) Requires an approved applicant to monitor the effectiveness of its plan and report on it to the Board. Mandates a final report to the Board. Requires the: (1) Board to report to the President and the Congress on the Federal laws or regulations most frequently waived, with the President reviewing the report and identifying those statutory and regulatory requirements that the President determines should be amended or repealed; and (2) OMB Director to report on its progress in achieving certain functions outlined under this Act requiring coordination and assistance with Federal agencies. Requires the General Accounting Office to: (1) evaluate the effectiveness of Federal financial assistance programs included in flexibility plans approved pursuant to this Act; (2) establish and maintain a program for the ongoing collection of data and analysis of each such program included in an approved flexibility plan; and (3) submit a report to the Congress and the President. Mandates a specified report by the Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations to the Congress and the President. Repeals this Act on January 1, 2005.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Mississippi Sioux Tribes Judgement Fund Distribution Act of 1996 - Provides for distribution to, and use of certain funds by, the Sisseton and Wahpeton Tribes of Sioux Indians. (Sec. 4) Directs the Secretary of the Interior, one year after enactment of this Act, to distribute specified amounts to the tribal governing body of the: (1) Devils Lake Sioux Tribe of North Dakota; (2) Sisseton and Wahpeton Sioux Tribe of South Dakota; and (3) Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Reservation in Montana. Designates the Sisseton and Wahpeton Sioux Council of the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes as the tribal governing body of the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Reservation. (Sec. 5) Directs each tribal governing body, as a condition for receiving the distributed funds, to establish a tribal trust fund for the benefit of the covered Indian tribe under its jurisdiction. Requires that each tribal governing body shall: (1) serve as the trustee of the trust fund; and (2) administer the trust fund. (Sec. 6) Prohibits funds distributed to a covered Indian tribe from being used to make per capita payments to members of the covered Indian tribe. Allows funds distributed to be used by a tribal governing body only for the purpose of making investments or expenditures that the tribal governing body determines to be related to: (1) economic development that is beneficial to the covered Indian tribe; (2) the development of resources of the covered Indian tribe; or (3) the development of a program that is beneficial to members of the covered Indian tribe, including educational and social welfare programs. Directs the Secretary to conduct an annual audit. (Sec. 7) Sets forth provisions concerning the effect of payments to a covered Indian tribe or an individual on eligibility for, or the reduction or denial of, Federal benefits. Prohibits subjecting a payment made to a covered Indian tribe or individual under this Act to Federal or State income tax. (Sec. 8) Directs the Secretary, not later than one year after enactment, to distribute a specified amount to the lineal descendants of the Sisseton and Wahpeton Tribes of Sioux Indians.
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2026
Constitutional Amendment - Grants victims of crimes of violence and other crimes that the Congress and the States may define by law the right: (1) to notice of, and to not be excluded from, all public proceedings relating to the crime; (2) to be heard, if present, and to submit a statement at a public pre-trial or trial proceeding to determine a release from custody, an acceptance of a negotiated plea, or a sentence (grants such rights at a parole proceeding to the extent they are afforded to the convicted offender); (3) to notice of a release pursuant to a public or parole proceeding or an escape; (4) to a final disposition free from unreasonable delay; (5) to an order of restitution from the convicted offender; (6) to have the victim's safety considered in determining a release from custody; and (7) to notice of the rights established by this amendment. Grants the victim standing to assert such rights. Provides that nothing in this amendment shall provide grounds for: (1) the victim to challenge a charging decision or a conviction, to obtain a stay of trial, to compel a new trial, or to give rise to a claim for damages against the United States, a State, a political subdivision, or a public official; or (2) the accused or convicted offender to obtain any form of relief. Grants power to the Congress and the States to enforce this amendment within their respective jurisdictions by appropriate legislation, including the power to enact exceptions when required for compelling reasons of public safety.
United States · United States Congress · 3 June 2026
TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Affidavits of Support Title II: Public Charge Deportation Title III: Attribution of Sponsor's Income Title IV: Ineligibility of Illegal Aliens for Public Assistance and Benefits Title V: Enhanced Verification of Eligibility Based on Citizenship or Immigration Status Title VI: Housing Assistance Title VII: Miscellaneous Provisions Title VIII: General Provisions Alien Public Assistance Benefits Amendments of 1996 - Title I: Affidavits of Support - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (Act), as amended by the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, to apply alien sponsor affidavit of support provisions to means-tested public benefits. (Current law refers to Federal means-tested public benefits.) Revises certain related income provisions. Title II: Public Charge Deportation - Amends the Act to revise the public charge grounds for deportation, including increasing the public charge period. Sets forth a special rule for battered spouses and children. Provides for exclusion and deportation of an alien who obtains public benefits through fraud or misrepresentation. Makes an alien deportable as a public charge ineligible for naturalization. Title III: Attribution of Sponsor's Income - Amends the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to apply attribution of sponsor income provisions for five years to current immigrants. Title IV: Ineligibility of Illegal Aliens for Public Assistance and Benefits - Authorizes States to deny driver's licenses to illegal aliens. (Sec. 402) Amends the Social Security Act to prohibit crediting of "employment" for persons not authorized to work in the United States. (Sec. 403) Amends the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to deny HIV or AIDS treatment to illegal aliens. Title V: Enhanced Verification of Eligibility Based on Citizenship or Immigration Status - Amends the Social Security Act to require proof of identity for certain public assistance (SAVE program)benefits. (Sec. 502) Authorizes States to require proof of eligibility for State benefits. (Sec. 504) Requires verification of student eligibility (citizen, national, or immigrant) for postsecondary Federal student financial assistance. Title VI: Housing Assistance - Use of Assisted Housing by Aliens Act of 1996 - Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1980 to: (1) prorate rental housing assistance based upon the number of eligible family members; (2) require prior verification of immigration status and eligibility for financial assistance; and (3) prohibit sanctions against an entity making financial assistance eligibility determinations. Title VII: Miscellaneous Provisions - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to eliminate unemployment benefit crediting based upon the status of permanently residing in the United States under color of law. (Sec. 702) Amends the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to repeal a specified food stamp program transition provision. Title VIII: General Provisions - Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) effective date; (2)foreign assistance inapplicability; (3) notification; and (4) definitions.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Child Pornography Prevention Act of 1996 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit and set penalties for specified activities relating to material: (1) constituting or containing child pornography, including knowingly possessing any book, magazine, periodical, film, videotape, computer disk, or other material that contains three or more images of child pornography (and enhances penalties if the offender has a prior Federal or State conviction relating to aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse, abusive sexual conduct involving a minor or ward, or for specified activities relating to child pornography (prior conviction)); and (2) depicting the sexual exploitation of minors, including knowingly mailing, or transporting or shipping in interstate or foreign commerce, including by computer, any visual depiction created, adapted, or modified to appear that an identifiable minor is engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Revises the definition of "visual depiction" to include data stored on computer disk or by electronic means which is capable of conversion into a visual image. Defines "identifiable minor" to mean a person who was a minor at the time the visual depiction was created, adapted, or modified or whose image as a minor was used in creating, adapting, or modifying such depiction and who is recognizable by the person's face, likeness, or other distinguishing characteristic (but proof of the actual identity of such minor is not required). Increases and expands the scope of penalties for sexual exploitation of children. Revises provisions regarding activities relating to material involving the sexual exploitation of minors, including providing enhanced penalties for offenders having a prior conviction. Amends the Privacy Protection Act of 1980 to authorize certain searches and seizures of work product materials and other documents if an offense involves the production, possession, receipt, mailing, sale, distribution, shipment, or transportation of child pornography, or the sale or purchase of children. Amber Hagerman Child Protection Act of 1996 - Modifies code provisions regarding aggravated sexual abuse and sexual abuse of a minor, including by: (1) setting penalties for crossing a State line with intent to engage in a sexual act with a person under age 12; and (2) providing for life imprisonment (unless the death penalty is imposed) for violation of such provisions if the defendant has previously been convicted of specified Federal or State offenses involving aggravated sexual abuse or sexual abuse of a minor.
United States · United States Congress · 21 August 2025
Smoke-Free Transportation Facilities Act of 1996 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to: (1) require, as a condition of Federal financial assistance, that the owner or operator of a transportation facility take the necessary action to prohibit smoking in any indoor portion of the facility accessible to the general public; and (2) issue implementing regulations.