seven years no serious effort was made to enact the bill. Finally, after arduous negotiations among members 01 Congress, civil rights activists, the Reagan Administration and the National Association of Realtors, a compromise was reached. The new law lor the first time hars discrimination in the sale or rental 01 housing against the handicapped or families with young children. The bill gives HUD new enforcement and litigation authority when mediation fails to resolve a complaint. Any party could choose a trial in U.S. district court or the case could be handled by an administrative law judge if all parties agreed. The ALJ would have the power to decide the case, impose fines and issue injunctions, (H.R. 1158, Pub. 1. No. 100-430) Welfare Reform. Reform of our nation's 50-year-old welfare laws was accomplished after heated negotiations and substantial compromise on all sides. Under the $3.3 billion compromise. some wellare recipients will be subject to work requirements for the first time, and child care and medical coverage will be extended to families that are successful in securing employment and leaving the welfare rolls. In addition, the legislation would substantially strengthen child support enforcement by requiring states to meet strict federal standards and would require states to offer education and job training programs to welfare recipients. (H.R. 1720, Pub. 1. No. 100485) Clean Water. On February 4, 1987, by an overwhelming margin, Congress overrode President Reagan's second veto of a $20 billion water pollution control bill. While Reagan viewed the bill as a "budget buster," Congress saw the measure as landmark environmental protection legislation. The measure ended seven years of contentious wrangling between Congress and the administration
over federal aid for local sewage treatment plants and other water projects. The bill reauthorized through 1994, $18 billion in aid (55 percent federal share) for sewage plant construction and set limits on wastewater discharges into waterways. (H.R. I, Pub. L. No. 100-4) Drought Reliel lor Farmers. Responding to a devastating drought, Congress passed a broad measure to provide relief to farmers and livestock producers who were the hardest hit. Under the bill. any farmer who lost 35 percent or more of any crop is eligible for payments equal to 65 percent 01 either his projected lederal subsidy or the projected market price for his crops. The cost of the bill is anticipated to be in the range of $5 billion. (H.R. SOlS, Pub. L. No. 100387) Civil Rights. On March 22. 1987. Congress voted to override the President's veto of landmark civil rights legislation designed to overturn the 1984 Supreme Court decision in Grove City College v. Bell. In the Grove City case. a 6-3 majority of the Court surprised civil rights advocates by ruling that when an entity receives federal dollars, only the "program or activity" which actually gets the aid, not the entire institution, is barred from discrimination. The new law, known as the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987, amends lour civil rights statutes to make clear that even if only part of an institution receives federal aid. the entire institution is prohibited from discrimination. (Pub. 1. No. 100259) See Massey. Congress Overrides President's Civil Rights Veto. 22 The Arkansas Lawyer 156 (1988) Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. In May 1988, by a vote of 93-5, the Senate consented to the ratification 01 the United States-Soviet Union treaty requiring the elimination within three years of all ground-launched
nuclear missiles with ranges of 300 to 3400 miles. In practical terms, the Soviets will be required to destroy roughly 1600 warheads, and the U.S. roughly 400. It was the first major arms reduction agre'ement of the Reagan Administration. Highway and Mass Transit Reauthorization. Without a vote to spare, on April 2, 1987. the Senate lollowed the House's lead and voted 67-33 to override the President's veto of a highway reauthorization measure totaling $88 billion. The President had charged that the five-year package was "pork barreling" at its worst. but the bill had strong bipartisan support. The enacted measure authorized $70 billion for highway construction and $18 billion for mass transit programs. Included in the bill were authorizations 01 particular interest to Arkansas, including improvements in Highway 71 and Waldron Road in Fort Smith and in the Jonesboro and Pine Bluff areas. (H.R. 2. Pub. L. No. 100-17) Veterans. On March 15. 1989. a Cabinet-level Department of Veterans' Affairs will begin taking care of the needs of the nation's 27.4 million veterans under the terms of Pub. L. No. 100-527. Veterans' organizations had been pushing for years to elevate the Veterans' Administration to cabinet status. A separate bill ends a decade-long struggle to grant the right to judicial review for veterans' claims. The legislation creates a new Article I court. the U.S. Court 01 Veterans' Appeals, to hear appeals by veterans from "clearly erroneous" decisions of the Board of Veterans' Appeals and repeals the existing and anachronistic $10 cap on attorneys' fees. Veterans will be allowed to pay their lawyers a "reasonable fee." (S. 11. Pub. 1. No. 100-XXX) Medicare Catastrophic Coverage. Ever since the enactment of the Medicare program in 1965. conJanuary 19891Arkansas Lawyerll3