Year Legislation Significance
1997 Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act Amendments
Reauthorized and revised the Education for All Handicapped Children
Act of 1975; created a new funding formula to permit states to reduce
local spending once federal appropriations for the program reached
$9 billion.1997 Food and Drug Administration
Modernization Act
Enacted Food and Drug Administration procedures for evaluating
medical devices; allowed food manufacturers to use health and
nutrient claims made by federal agencies on packaging.1997 Adoption and Safe Families Act Furnished states with financial incentives and greater flexibility in
finding permanent homes for foster children.
1997 National Capital Revitalization and
Self-Government Improvement Act
Transferred financial responsibility for District of Columbia’s prisons,
courts, and employee pension system to the federal government;
transferred control of nine District governmental departments to the
federal Financial Control Board.1998 Workforce Investment Act Repealed the Job Training Partnership Act of 1982 and the Adult
Education Act of 1966; amended the Wagner-Peyser Act of 1933 and
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
1998 Internal Revenue Service
Restructuring Act
Directed the commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
to develop and implement a plan to restructure management of
the agency; granted taxpayers new rights and protections in dealings
with the IRS.1998 Quality Housing and Work
Responsibility Act
Replaced federal public housing and low-income rental assistance
programs with block grants to local housing authorities for operating
costs and capital improvements; gave local housing authorities more
latitude in setting rents, selecting tenants, and evicting residents.1998 Ocean Shipping Reform Act Required ship operators to make rates known to customers; permitted
land-based labor unions to obtain certain information for use in
monitoring collective bargaining agreements with ship operators.
1998 Credit Union Membership Access
Act
Established membership standards for multi-group credit unions in
response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling the same year; required the
National Credit Union Administration to issue guidelines to ensure
credit union soundness.1998 American Competitiveness and
Workforce Improvement Act
Increased the number of temporary visas issued to highly skilled
foreign workers to 115,000 in fiscal years 1999 and 2000 and 107,500
in fiscal year 2001.1998 Child Online Protection Act Prohibited commercial distribution of material considered harmful
over the Internet to children under the age of seventeen; created
a Commission on Online Child Protection to conduct a study of ways
to reduce access by children to harmful material on the Internet.
1998 Children’s Online Privacy
Protection Act
Required operators of World Wide Web sites to obtain verifiable
parental consent before collecting information from children under
thirteen; required operators of Web sites to disclose usage plans with
information acquired.1998 Transportation Equity Act for the
21st Century
Authorized $217.9 billion for six years to cover surface transportation
projects, mass -transit programs, and highway safety initiatives.988 Legislation: Major U.S. Legislation The Nineties in America