96th Congress (January 3, 1979 - January 3, 1981)

Senate (pie chart)

Jan 3, 1979

Democratis: 58
Republicans: 42

House of Representatives

Jan 3, 1979

Democratics: 277
Republicans: 158

Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station

Mar 28, 1979

civilian nuclear power plant (NPP) located on Three Mile Island in the Susquehanna River, south of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. It has two separate units, known as TMI-1 and TMI-2. The plant is widely known for having been the site of the most significant accident in United States commercial nuclear energy, on March 28, 1979, when TMI-2 suffered a partial meltdown.

Taiwan Relations Act

Apr 10, 1979

It more clearly defines the American position on Taiwan and its cross-strait relationship with Beijing. Congress rejected the State Department's proposed draft and replaced it with language that has remained in effect since 1979.

Skylab

Jul 11, 1979

A space station launched and operated by NASA, the space agency of the United States. Skylab orbited the Earth from 1973 to 1979.

Panama Canal Act of 1979

Sep 9, 1979

The treaty protects our economic and security interests. We continued to operate the canal until the end of 1999through the Panama Canal Commission, then Panama took over.

Department of Education Organization Act

Oct 17, 1979

Strengthen the federal commitment to assuring access to equal educational opportunity for every individual. Promote improvements in the quality and usefulness of education through federally supported research, evaluation, and sharing of information.

Iran hostage crisis

Nov 4, 1979

Diplomatic crisis between Iran and the United States where 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days from November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981, after a group of Islamist students and militants took over the American Embassy in Tehran in support of the Iranian Revolution.

Refugee Act

Mar 17, 1980

Created to provide a permanent and systematic procedure for the admission to the U.S. of refugees of special humanitarian concern to the U.S., and to provide comprehensive and uniform provisions for the effective resettlement and absorption of those refugees who are admitted.

1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens

May 18, 1980

A stratovolcano located in Washington state, in the United States, was a major volcanic eruption. The eruption was the only significant one to occur in the contiguous 48 U.S. states since the 1915 eruption of Lassen Peak in California.

Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act of 1980

Sep 29, 1980

Authorizes financial and technical assistance to the States for the development, revision, and implementation of conservation plans and programs for nongame fish and wildlife.

Staggers Rail Act

Oct 14, 1980

United States federal law that deregulated the American railroad industry to a significant extent, and replaced the regulatory structure that existed since the 1887 Interstate Commerce Act.

United States elections, 1980

Nov 4, 1980

Held on November 4. Republican Ronald Reagan was elected as the 40th President of the United States, defeating incumbent Democrat Jimmy Carter.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980

Dec 11, 1980

Requires the Director to develop and implement Federal information policies and standards including
policies concerning:
(1) the reduction of the Government paperwork burden on the public;
(2) records management activities; and
(3) the privacy of records pertaining to individuals; and
(4) the review of information collection requests.

Bayh–Dole Act

Dec 12, 1980

Also known as the Patent and Trademark Law Amendments Act is United States legislation dealing with intellectual property arising from federal government-funded research. Among other things, it gave U.S. universities, small businesses and non-profits intellectual property control of their inventions and other intellectual property that resulted from such funding.