Test Act

(1673) Act passed by the British Parliament that required holders of civil and military offices to profess the established religion and to receive Holy Communion according to the rites of the Church of England. Though directed primarily against Roman Catholics, it extended in principle to all non-Anglicans; it was modified in 1689 to enable most non-Catholics to qualify. An act adopted in 1828 removed the test. In the U.S. Constitution, Article VI prescribes that “no religious test” shall be required for any officeholder. Seealso Catholic Emancipation.

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(Jan. 1, 1801) Legislative agreement uniting Great Britain and Ireland under the name of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. After the unsuccessful Irish revolt of 1798, the British prime minister, William Pitt the Younger, decided that the best solution to the Irish problem was a union to strengthen the connection between the two countries. The Irish parliament resisted the proposal, which called for its abolition, but votes bought by cash or honours ensured passage of the agreement in 1800. The union remained until the recognition of the Irish Free State (excluding six of the counties of the northern province of Ulster) by the Anglo-Irish treaty concluded on Dec. 6, 1921; the union officially ended on Jan. 15, 1922.

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(1867) Law forbidding the U.S. president to remove civil officers without the consent of the Senate. Passed by the Radical Republicans over the veto of Pres. Andrew Johnson, the measure sought to prevent Johnson from removing cabinet members who supported Congress's harsh Reconstruction policies. When Johnson tried to dismiss his secretary of war, Edwin M. Stanton, an ally of the Radical Republicans, Congress began impeachment proceedings against him. The law was partially repealed in 1869 and completely repealed in 1887; in 1926 it was found unconstitutional.

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(1765) British parliamentary measure to tax the American colonies. To pay for costs resulting from the French and Indian War, the British sought to raise revenue through a stamp tax on printed matter. A common revenue device in England, the tax was vigorously opposed by the colonists, whose representatives had not been consulted. Colonists refused to use the stamps, and mobs intimidated stamp agents. The Stamp Act Congress, with representatives from nine colonies, met to petition Parliament to repeal the act. Faced with additional protests from British merchants whose exports had been reduced by colonial boycotts, Parliament repealed the act (1766), then passed the Declaratory Act.

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(1890) First U.S. legislation enacted to curb concentrations of power that restrict trade and reduce economic competition. Proposed by Sen. John Sherman, it made illegal all attempts to monopolize any part of trade or commerce in the U.S. Initially used against trade unions, it was more widely enforced under Pres. Theodore Roosevelt. In 1914 Congress strengthened the act with the Clayton Antitrust Act and the formation of the Federal Trade Commission. In 1920 the U.S. Supreme Court relaxed antitrust regulations so that only “unreasonable” restraint of trade through acquisitions, mergers, and predatory pricing constituted a violation. Later cases reinforced the prohibition against monopoly control, including the 1984 break-up of AT&T. Seealso antitrust law.

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(June 12, 1701) Act of Parliament that thereafter regulated the succession to the English throne. It decreed that if King William III or Princess (later Queen) Anne died without issue, the crown was to pass to James I's granddaughter Sophie of Hanover (1630–1714) and her Protestant heirs. The act resulted in the accession of the house of Hanover in 1714. It also decreed that future monarchs must belong to the Church of England, that judges were to hold office on the basis of good behaviour rather than at the sovereign's pleasure, and that impeachment by the House of Commons was not subject to pardon by the sovereign.

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Four laws passed by the U.S. Congress in 1798, in anticipation of war with France. The acts, precipitated by the XYZ Affair, restricted aliens and curtailed press criticism of the government. Aimed at French and Irish immigrants (who were mostly pro-France), they increased the waiting period for naturalization and authorized expulsion of aliens considered dangerous. The Alien and Sedition Acts were opposed by Thomas Jefferson and others and helped propel Jefferson to the presidency. They were repealed or had expired by 1802.

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(1959) Legislation in the U.S. designed to counter labour-union corruption. Officially called the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act, it instituted federal penalties for labour officials who misused union funds or prevented union members from exercising their legal rights. The legislation was passed in response to Senate investigations that uncovered connections between labour and organized crime. Provisions included a strict ban on secondary boycotts (union efforts to stop one employer from dealing with another employer who is being struck or boycotted) and greater freedom for individual states to set the terms of labour relations within their borders.

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(1854) Legislation that organized the territories of Kansas and Nebraska according to the doctrine of popular sovereignty. Introduced by Sen. Stephen A. Douglas to stop the sectional division over slavery, the act was criticized by antislavery groups as a capitulation to proslavery advocates. Groups on both sides rushed to settle Kansas Territory with their adherents, leading to the chaotic Bleeding Kansas period. Passage of the act led to the formation of the Republican Party as a political organization opposed to the expansion of slavery to any U.S. territory.

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(June 18, 1934) Measure enacted by the U.S. Congress to decrease federal control of American Indians and to increase tribal self-government. The act sought to strengthen tribal structure by encouraging written constitutions and to undo the damage caused by the Dawes General Allotment Act by returning surplus lands to the tribes rather than homesteaders. It gave Indians the power to manage their internal affairs and established a revolving credit fund for tribal land purchases and educational assistance. It remains the basic legislation concerning Indian affairs.

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(May 28, 1830) First major legislation that reversed the U.S. policy of respecting the rights of American Indians. The act granted tribes unsettled western prairie land in exchange for their territories within state borders, mainly in the Southeast. Some tribes refused to trade their land, and U.S. troops forced tribes such as the Cherokee to march westward in what became known as the Trail of Tears (1838–39). In Florida the Seminoles fought resettlement in the Seminole Wars (1835–42).

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Comprehensive U.S. law intended to end discrimination based on race, colour, religion, or national origin. It is generally considered the most important U.S. law on civil rights since Reconstruction (1865–77). It guarantees equal voting rights (Title I); prohibits segregation or discrimination in places of public accommodation (Title II); bans discrimination, including sex-based discrimination, by trade unions, schools, or employers that are involved in interstate commerce or that do business with the federal government (Title VII); calls for the desegregation of public schools (Title IV); and assures nondiscrimination in the distribution of funds under federally assisted programs (Title VI). A 1972 amendment, the Equal Employment Opportunity Act, extended Title VII coverage to employees of state and local governments and increased the authority of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which was created in 1964 to enforce Title VII provisions. The act was proposed by Pres. John F. Kennedy in 1963 and strengthened and passed into law under Pres. Lyndon B. Johnson. Seealso civil rights movement.

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or Constitution Act

Measure formally ending British power to legislate for Canada, approved by the British Parliament on March 25, 1982, and proclaimed by Queen Elizabeth II on April 17, 1982. The document contains the British North America Act and was approved by all the Canadian provinces except Quebec, which was denied its claim of a constitutional veto by Canada's Supreme Court.

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(1867) Act of the British Parliament by which three British colonies—Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Canada—were united as “one Dominion under the name of Canada.” The act also divided the province of Canada into the provinces of Quebec and Ontario. It served as Canada's “constitution” until 1982, when it became the basis of the Canada Act.

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(Jan. 1, 1801) Legislative agreement uniting Great Britain and Ireland under the name of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. After the unsuccessful Irish revolt of 1798, the British prime minister, William Pitt the Younger, decided that the best solution to the Irish problem was a union to strengthen the connection between the two countries. The Irish parliament resisted the proposal, which called for its abolition, but votes bought by cash or honours ensured passage of the agreement in 1800. The union remained until the recognition of the Irish Free State (excluding six of the counties of the northern province of Ulster) by the Anglo-Irish treaty concluded on Dec. 6, 1921; the union officially ended on Jan. 15, 1922.

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(June 12, 1701) Act of Parliament that thereafter regulated the succession to the English throne. It decreed that if King William III or Princess (later Queen) Anne died without issue, the crown was to pass to James I's granddaughter Sophie of Hanover (1630–1714) and her Protestant heirs. The act resulted in the accession of the house of Hanover in 1714. It also decreed that future monarchs must belong to the Church of England, that judges were to hold office on the basis of good behaviour rather than at the sovereign's pleasure, and that impeachment by the House of Commons was not subject to pardon by the sovereign.

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ACT may refer to:

Most commonly:

• Australian Capital Territory, the capital territory of the Commonwealth of Australia
• ACT (examination), a college entrance exam in the United States

In business:

• Advanced Cell Technology, a biotech corporation involved in researching and developing cloning and stem cell technologies
• Ada Core Technologies, now AdaCore, a software company that develops an Ada compiler, tools and libraries
• Applied Computer Techniques, renamed Apricot Computers in 1985, a computer services company
• Aviation Composite Technology, an aircraft manufacturer in the Philippines
• ACT (NASDAQ), Automated Confirmation of Transactions, a trade reporting and clearing system
• Advance corporation tax, a tax collected in the United Kingdom until 1999

Organizations:

• ACT New Zealand, a political party in New Zealand
• Academy of Clinical Thyroidologists
• Association for Competitive Technology, a pro-Microsoft lobby group
• The Association of Commercial Television in Europe, represents the business interests of the commercial television sector at the EU institutions
• Association of Cinematograph Technicians, now the Association of Cinematograph Television and Allied Technicians
• Association of Corporate Treasurers
• Action for Children's Television, an organization dedicated to improvements in children's television
• Alliance of Concerned Teachers, an alliance of teachers, educators and teacher organizations in the Philippines
• America Coming Together, a United States political group
• AIDS Committee of Toronto
• Asian College of Technology (ACT), a private university in Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines.
• Association for Citizenship Teaching, a professional subject association for teachers of citizenship

In government:

• Allied Command Transformation, a NATO strategic command
• Advanced Concepts Team, a research team of the European Space Agency

In science and technology:

• ACT!, contact management software
• ACT-R, a symbolic cognitive architecture
• Apple Certified Trainer
• Astrographic Catalog/Tycho, a star catalogue. See Hipparcos Catalogue
• Atacama Cosmology Telescope, a telescope under construction in Chile

In medicine:

• Artemisinin-based combination therapy, a treatment for malaria
• Assertive community treatment, a system for treating mental illness
• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, a type of cognitive-behavioral therapy

In entertainment:

• A.C.T, a progressive rock band from Sweden
• ACT Theatre, in Seattle, Washington
• American Conservatory Theater, in San Francisco, California

Other:

• Ascot railway station, a railway station in the United Kingdom with the National Rail code "ACT"
• Waco Regional Airport, an airport in Waco, Texas, United States, with the IATA airport code "ACT"
• Agency for Community Transit, Madison County Transit's paratransit system. Abbreviation is "ACT"

See also

• Act
• ACTS