datamatters24/research-document-archive huggingface dataset:
HR 707 EAS
(E) make commitments to long-term hazard
mitigation efforts to be applied to new and exist-
ing construction.
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to establish
a national disaster hazard mitigation program—
(1) to reduce the loss of life and property, human
suffering, economic disruption, and disaster assist-
ance costs resulting from natural disasters; and
(2) to provide a source of predisaster hazard
mitigation funding that will assist States and local
governments in implementing effective hazard mitiga-
tion measures that are designed to ensure the contin-
ued functionality of critical infrastructure and facili-
ties after a natural disaster.
SEC. 102. PREDISASTER HAZARD MITIGATION.
Title II of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and
Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5131 et seq.) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘SEC. 203. PREDISASTER HAZARD MITIGATION.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Federal Emer-
gency Management Agency (referred to in this section as
the ‘Director’) may establish a program to provide technical
and financial assistance to States and local governments
to assist in the implementation of predisaster hazard miti-
gation measures designed to reduce injuries, loss of life, and
HR 707 EAS
damage and destruction of property, including damage to
critical infrastructure and facilities under the jurisdiction
of the States or local governments.
‘‘(b) APPROVAL BY DIRECTOR.—If the Director deter-
mines that a State or local government has identified all
natural disaster hazards in areas under its jurisdiction and
has demonstrated the ability to form effective public-private
natural disaster hazard mitigation partnerships, the Direc-
tor, using amounts in the National Predisaster Mitigation
Fund established under subsection (e) (referred to in this
section as the ‘Fund’), may provide technical and financial
assistance to the State or local government to be used in
accordance with subsection (c).
‘‘(c) USES OF TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL ASSIST-
ANCE.—Technical and financial assistance provided under
subsection (b)—
‘‘(1) shall be used by States and local govern-
ments principally to implement predisaster hazard
mitigation measures described in proposals approved
by the Director under this section; and
‘‘(2) may be used—
‘‘(A) to support effective public-private nat-
ural disaster hazard mitigation partnerships;
‘‘(B) to ensure that new development and
construction is resistant to natural disasters;
(b) MINIMUM FEDERAL SHARE.—Section 406(b) (42
U.S.C. 5172(b)) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(b) MINIMUM
FEDERAL
SHARE.—The Federal
share of assistance under this section shall be not less
than 75 percent of the eligible cost of repair, restoration,
reconstruction, or replacement carried out under this sec-
tion.’’.
(c) 
LARGE
IN-LIEU
CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section
406(c) (42 U.S.C. 5172(c)) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(c) LARGE IN-LIEU CONTRIBUTIONS.—
‘‘(1) FOR PUBLIC FACILITIES.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which
a State or local government determines that the
public welfare would not be best served by re-
pairing, restoring, reconstructing, or replacing
any public facility owned or controlled by such
State or local government, the State or local
government may elect to receive, in lieu of a
contribution under subsection (a)(1)(A), a con-
tribution of 75 percent of the Federal share of
the Federal estimate of the cost of repairing,
restoring, reconstructing, or replacing such fa-
cility and of management expenses.
‘‘(B) AREAS
WITH
UNSTABLE
SOIL.—In
any case in which a State or local government
HR 707 EAS2
‘‘(8) the opportunity to fund activities that
maximize net benefits to society;
‘‘(9) the extent to which assistance will fund
mitigation activities in small impoverished commu-
nities; and
‘‘(10) such other criteria as the President estab-
lishes in consultation with State and local govern-
ments.
‘‘(h) FEDERAL SHARE.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Financial assistance pro-
vided under this section may contribute up to 75 per-
cent of the total cost of mitigation activities approved
by the President.
‘‘(2) SMALL IMPOVERISHED COMMUNITIES.—Not-
withstanding paragraph (1), the President may con-
tribute up to 90 percent of the total cost of a mitiga-
tion activity carried out in a small impoverished
community.
‘‘(i) NATIONAL PREDISASTER MITIGATION FUND.—
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The President may es-
tablish in the Treasury of the United States a fund
to be known as the ‘National Predisaster Mitigation
Fund’, to be used in carrying out this section.
‘‘(2) TRANSFERS TO FUND.—There shall be de-
posited in the Fund—
of the programs and actions required to mitigate
such hazards; and
‘‘(2) the development and application of im-
proved floodplain mapping technologies that can be
used by Federal, State, and local governments and
that the President determines will likely result in
substantial savings over current floodplain mapping
methods.’’.
SEC. 104. PREDISASTER HAZARD MITIGATION.
Title II (42 U.S.C. 5131–5132) is amended by add-
ing at the end the following:
‘‘SEC. 203. PREDISASTER HAZARD MITIGATION.
‘‘(a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—The President may es-
tablish a program to provide financial assistance to States
and local governments for the purpose of undertaking
predisaster hazard mitigation activities that are cost effec-
tive and substantially reduce the risk of future damage,
hardship, or suffering from a major disaster.
‘‘(b) PURPOSE OF ASSISTANCE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), a State or local government that receives
financial assistance under this section shall use the
assistance for funding activities that are cost effec-
tive and substantially reduce the risk of future dam-
age, hardship, or suffering from a major disaster.
‘‘(2) DISSEMINATION.—The State or local gov-
ernment may use not more than 10 percent of finan-
cial assistance it receives under this section in a fis-
cal year for funding activities to disseminate infor-
mation regarding cost effective mitigation tech-
nologies (such as preferred construction practices
and materials), including establishing and maintain-
ing centers for protection against natural disasters
to carry out such dissemination.
‘‘(c) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.—The amount of finan-
cial assistance to be made available to a State, including
amounts made available to local governments of such
State, under this section in a fiscal year shall—
‘‘(1) not be less than the lesser of $500,000 or
1.0 percent of the total funds appropriated to carry
out this section for such fiscal year; but
‘‘(2) not exceed 15 percent of such total funds.
‘‘(d) CRITERIA.—Subject to the limitations of sub-
sections (c) and (e), in determining whether to provide as-
sistance to a State or local government under this section
and the amount of such assistance, the President shall
consider the following criteria:
‘‘(1) The clear identification of prioritized cost-
effective mitigation activities that produce meaning-
ful and definable outcomes.
HR 707 RH
Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assist-
ance Act (42 U.S.C. 5170).
TITLE III—MISCELLANEOUS
SEC. 301. TECHNICAL CORRECTION OF SHORT TITLE.
The first section (42 U.S.C. 5121 note) is amended to
read as follows:
‘‘SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
‘‘This Act may be cited as the ‘Robert T. Stafford Dis-
aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act’.’’.
SEC. 302. DEFINITION OF STATE.
Section 102 (42 U.S.C. 5122) is amended in each of
paragraphs (3) and (4) by striking ‘‘the Northern’’ and all
that follows through ‘‘Pacific Islands’’ and inserting ‘‘and
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands’’.
SEC. 303. FIRE SUPPRESSION GRANTS.
Section 420 (42 U.S.C. 5187) is amended by inserting
‘‘and local government’’ after ‘‘State’’.
‘‘§ 2413. Arlington National Cemetery: persons eligi-
ble for placement in columbarium
‘‘The cremated remains of the following individuals
may be placed in the columbarium in Arlington National
Cemetery:
‘‘(1) A person eligible for burial in Arlington
National Cemetery under section 2412 of this title.
‘‘(2)(A) A veteran whose last period of active
duty service (other than active duty for training)
ended honorably.
‘‘(B) The spouse, surviving spouse, minor child,
and, at the discretion of the Superintendent of Ar-
lington National Cemetery, unmarried adult child of
such a veteran.
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections
at the beginning of chapter 24 of title 38, United States
Code, is amended by adding after section 2412, as added
by section 2(c) of this Act, the following new item:
‘‘2413. Arlington National Cemetery: persons eligible for placement in columba-
rium.’’.
(c) 
CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—Section
11201(a)(1) of title 46, United States Code, is amended
by inserting after subparagraph (B), the following new
subparagraph:
I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 710
To modernize the requirements under the National Manufactured Housing
Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 and to establish a
balanced consensus process for the development, revision, and interpreta-
tion of Federal construction and safety standards for manufactured
homes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 11, 1999
Mr. LAZIO (for himself, Ms. HOOLEY of Oregon, Mr. NEY, Mr. JONES of
North Carolina, Mr. GOODE, Mr. MCINTOSH, Mr. ROEMER, Mr. CAL-
VERT, and Mr. ETHERIDGE) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Banking and Financial Services
A BILL
To modernize the requirements under the National Manufac-
tured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act
of 1974 and to establish a balanced consensus process
for the development, revision, and interpretation of Fed-
eral construction and safety standards for manufactured
homes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND REFERENCES.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the
‘‘Manufactured Housing Improvement Act’’.
I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 711
To amend title 39, United States Code, to exempt veterans’ organizations
from regulations prohibiting the solicitation of contributions on postal
property.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 11, 1999
Mr. BILIRAKIS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Government Reform
A BILL
To amend title 39, United States Code, to exempt veterans’
organizations from regulations prohibiting the solicitation
of contributions on postal property.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
That section 403 of title 39, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(d)(1) For the purpose of this subsection—
‘‘(A) the term ‘veterans’ organization’ means an
organization described in section 501(c)(19) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986; and
HR 711 IH
‘‘(B) the term ‘postal property’ means any real
property under the charge or control of the Postal
Service, including any real property leased by or for
the Postal Service.
‘‘(2) The Postal Service shall take appropriate meas-
ures to ensure that nothing in its regulations shall prevent
a veterans’ organization from soliciting contributions on
postal property, so long as those activities do not impede
or disturb—
‘‘(A) postal employees in the performance of
their duties; or
‘‘(B) the general public in transacting business
or obtaining services provided on such property.’’.
Æ
I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 714
To amend title 46, United States Code, to protect seamen against economic
reprisal.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 11, 1999
Mr. BOSWELL introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
A BILL
To amend title 46, United States Code, to protect seamen
against economic reprisal.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protection of Seamen
Against Economic Reprisal Act of 1999’’.
SEC. 2. PROTECTION OF SEAMEN AGAINST DISCRIMINA-
TION FOR REFUSING TO PERFORM DUTIES.
Section 2114 of title 46, United States Code, is
amended—
(1) by amending subsection (a) to read as fol-
lows:
‘‘(a)(1) No person shall discharge or in any manner
discriminate against a seaman for refusing to perform the
seaman’s duties when the seaman has a reasonable appre-
hension that performing such duties would result in seri-
ous injury to the seaman, other seamen, a vessel, cargo,
or the environment. The circumstances causing the sea-
man’s apprehension of serious injury must be of such a
nature that a reasonable person, under the circumstances
then confronting the seaman, would conclude that there
is a bona fide danger of an injury or serious impairment
of health resulting from the circumstances.
‘‘(2) In order to qualify for protection, the seaman
must have—
‘‘(A) sought from the seaman’s employer or the
owner, charterer, or managing operator of the vessel
on which the seaman is employed, and have been un-
able to obtain, corrections of the circumstances caus-
ing the refusal to perform the duties; and
‘‘(B) reported to the Coast Guard, in a timely
manner to the extent practicable, in accordance with
regulations issued by the Secretary.’’;
(2) in subsection (b)—
(A) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘and’’
after the semicolon;
(B) in paragraph (2) by striking the period
and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(3) an award of costs and reasonable attor-
ney’s fees to a prevailing plaintiff.’’.
Æ
(b) TRANSITIONAL PERIOD.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graphs (2) through (4), the transitional period under
this subsection shall extend for at least 90 days from
the date of the notice described in subsection
(a)(1)(A) of the provider’s termination.
(2) INSTITUTIONAL CARE.—The transitional pe-
riod under this subsection for institutional or inpa-
tient care from a provider shall extend until the dis-
charge or termination of the period of institutional-
ization and also shall include institutional care pro-
vided within a reasonable time of the date of termi-
nation of the provider status if the care was sched-
uled before the date of the announcement of the ter-
mination of the provider status under subsection
(a)(1)(A) or if the individual on such date was on
an established waiting list or otherwise scheduled to
have such care.
(3) PREGNANCY.—If—
(A) a participant, beneficiary, or enrollee
has entered the second trimester of pregnancy
at the time of a provider’s termination of par-
ticipation, and
(B) the provider was treating the preg-
nancy before date of the termination,
‘‘(2) any other benefit administered by the Sec-
retary of Veterans Affairs.’’
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by
subsection (a) shall apply to taxable years beginning after
December 31, 1984.
Æ
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Emergency Medical
Services Enhancement Act of 1999’’.
SEC. 2. ISSUANCE OF TAX-EXEMPT BONDS BY ORGANIZA-
TIONS PROVIDING RESCUE AND EMERGENCY
MEDICAL SERVICES.
(a) GENERAL RULE.—Subsection (e) of section 150
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to read
as follows:
‘‘(e) BONDS OF CERTAIN VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPART-
MENTS OR EMERGENCY SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS.—For
purposes of this part and section 103—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A bond of a volunteer fire
or other emergency services organization shall be
treated as a bond of a political subdivision of a State
if—
‘‘(A) such organization is a qualified volun-
teer fire or other emergency services organiza-
tion with respect to an area within the jurisdic-
tion of such political subdivision, and
‘‘(B) such bond is issued as part of an
issue 95 percent or more of the net proceeds of
which are to be used for the acquisition, con-
struction, reconstruction, or improvement of—
‘‘(i) a firehouse or other building used
or to be used by such organization in pro-
et seq.; commonly known as the Resource Con-
servation and Development Program).
‘‘(3) STRUCTURAL MEASURE.—The term ‘struc-
tural measure’ means a physical improvement that
impounds water, commonly known as a dam, which
was constructed as part of a covered water resource
project, including the impoundment area and flood
pool.
‘‘(b) COST SHARE ASSISTANCE FOR REHABILITA-
TION.—
‘‘(1) ASSISTANCE AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary
may provide financial assistance to a local organiza-
tion to cover a portion of the total costs incurred for
the rehabilitation of structural measures originally
constructed as part of a covered water resource
project. The total costs of rehabilitation include the
costs associated with all components of the rehabili-
tation project, including acquisition of land, ease-
ments, and rights-of-ways, rehabilitation project ad-
ministration, the provision of technical assistance,
contracting, and construction costs, except that the
local organization shall be responsible for securing
all land, easements, or rights-of-ways necessary for
the project.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘United States-Com-
monwealth of the Northern Marianas Human Dignity
Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that—
(1) between 1955 and 1975, the people of the
Northern Mariana Islands, through their duly elect-
ed representatives, expressed on numerous occasions
formally and informally to the United States and to
the United Nations their strong desire to become a
part of the United States;
(2) in 1975 the legislature of the Northern
Mariana Islands unanimously endorsed the Covenant
to Establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mari-
ana Islands in Political Union with the United
States of America, and the Covenant was put before
the voters of the Northern Mariana Islands on June
17, 1975, with 95 percent of eligible voters casting
ballots and 78.8 percent voting to approve the Cov-
enant;
(3) to allay any concerns of the Commonwealth
of the Northern Mariana Islands that United States
SEC. 2. MEDICARE PART B SPECIAL ENROLLMENT PERIOD
AND WAIVER OF PART B LATE ENROLLMENT
PENALTY AND MEDIGAP SPECIAL OPEN EN-
ROLLMENT PERIOD FOR CERTAIN MILITARY
RETIREES AND DEPENDENTS.
(a) MEDICARE PART B SPECIAL ENROLLMENT PE-
RIOD; WAIVER OF PART B PENALTY FOR LATE ENROLL-
MENT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any eligible
individual (as defined in subsection (c)), the Sec-
retary of Health and Human Services shall provide
for a special enrollment period during which the in-
dividual may enroll under part B of title XVIII of
the Social Security Act. Such period shall be for a
period of 6 months and shall begin with the first
month that begins at least 45 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act.
(2) COVERAGE PERIOD.—In the case of an eli-
gible individual who enrolls during the special enroll-
ment period provided under paragraph (1), the cov-
erage period under part B of title XVIII of the So-
cial Security Act shall begin on the first day of the
month following the month in which the individual
enrolls.
(3) WAIVER
OF
PART
B
LATE
ENROLLMENT
PENALTY.—In the case of an eligible individual who
immigration laws would allow mass immigration into
the small island communities, article V of the Cov-
enant which established a Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands provided the Common-
wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands with a par-
tial exemption from the Immigration and Nationality
Act until the United Nations trusteeship over the Is-
lands ended in 1986;
(4) the Commonwealth of the Northern Mari-
ana Islands then instituted a largely unrestricted im-
migration policy, resulting in a population explosion
of over 250 percent in 15 years, so that in 1999,
60,000 people live in the Northern Mariana Islands,
including over 33,000 foreign contract workers and
only 27,000 United States residents;
(5) the Commonwealth of the Northern Mari-
ana Islands has used its immigration policy to re-
cruit a large, low-cost foreign workforce of des-
perately poor individuals with virtually no voice to
demand safe living and working conditions or better
wage and benefit options;
(6) 91 percent of all private sector jobs in the
Northern Mariana Islands are held by temporary
contract workers while 56 percent of all locally born
I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 71
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to clarify the exclusion from
gross income for veterans’ benefits.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 6, 1999
Mr. STUMP (for himself and Mr. EVANS) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
A BILL
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to clarify
the exclusion from gross income for veterans’ benefits.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF VETERANS’
BENEFITS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 134 of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to certain
military benefits) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(a) GENERAL
RULE.—Gross income shall not
include—
‘‘(1) any qualified military benefit, and
I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 720
To amend the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 to require that a
State having an approved coastal zone management program must be
provided a copy of an environmental impact statement to enable its
review under that Act of any plan for exploration or development of,
or production from, any area in the coastal zone of the State.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 11, 1999
Mr. GOSS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Resources
A BILL
To amend the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 to
require that a State having an approved coastal zone
management program must be provided a copy of an
environmental impact statement to enable its review
under that Act of any plan for exploration or develop-
ment of, or production from, any area in the coastal
zone of the State.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘OCS Environmental
Consistency Act of 1999’’.
SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT THAT STATE HAVE ENVIRON-
MENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT TO REVIEW
PLAN FOR EXPLORATION, DEVELOPMENT, OR
PRODUCTION IN THE COASTAL ZONE OF THE
STATE.
Section 307(c)(3) of the Coastal Zone Management
Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1456(c)(3)) is amended by adding
at the end the following:
‘‘(C) For purposes of subparagraph (B), a State shall
not be considered to have received all necessary data and
information with respect to a plan for exploration, develop-
ment, or production, before the date the State has received
a copy of an environmental impact statement under sec-
tion 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act
of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)) that applies to that explo-
ration, development, or production.’’.
Æ