United States · United States Congress · 10 September 2018
Study of Underrepresented Classes Chasing Engineering and Science Success Act of 2018 or the SUCCESS Act This bill directs the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to study and report to Congress on the number of patents applied for and obtained: (1) by women and minorities, and (2) by small businesses owned by women and minorities. The USPTO must provide legislative recommendations to increase the number of women and minorities who participate in entrepreneurship activities and apply for patents. Additionally, the bill amends the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act to extend for eight years the authority of the USPTO to set and adjust patent fees.
United States · United States Congress · 24 August 2018
Clean Slate Act of 2018 This bill requires courts to automatically seal records for certain arrests and nonviolent offenses involving marijuana. Additionally, the bill creates a mechanism to allow an individual to petition to seal criminal records for certain other nonviolent offenses.
United States · United States Congress · 24 August 2018
Aretha Franklin Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill instructs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the posthumous presentation of a Congressional Gold Medal in commemoration of Aretha Franklin in recognition of her outstanding artistic and historical significance to the culture of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 14 August 2018
Clean Slate Act of 2018 This bill requires courts to automatically seal records for certain arrests and nonviolent offenses involving marijuana. Additionally, the bill creates a mechanism to allow an individual to petition to seal criminal records for certain other nonviolent offenses.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2018
This bill makes it unlawful for a person who is not a licensed gun dealer to transfer a firearm at a gun show. The prohibition does not apply to a transfer to a licensed manufacturer, importer, dealer, or collector. A violator is subject to criminal penalties—a fine, a prison term, or both.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2018
Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2018 This bill revises and reauthorizes through FY2023 various programs and activities under the Violence Against Women Act that seek to prevent and respond to domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking. Among other things, the bill also authorizes new programs, makes changes to federal firearms laws, and establishes new protections to promote housing stability and economic security for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2018
Democracy Restoration Act of 2018 This bill establishes that an individual's right to vote in a federal election may not be abridged due to a criminal conviction unless the individual is incarcerated for a felony sentence at the time of the election. The bill also (1) requires incarcerated individuals to be notified of the restoration of their voting rights upon release, and (2) prohibits states and local governments that do not comply with this bill from receiving federal funds for constructing or improving prisons.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2018
Aim Higher Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to reauthorize and revise federal financial aid programs for postsecondary education and institutions of higher education.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2018
Restore Our Parks and Public Lands Act This bill establishes the National Park Service and Public Lands Legacy Restoration Fund and requires 50% of all energy development revenues for FY2019-FY2023 to be deposited into such fund. Amounts deposited in the fund must not exceed $1.3 billion for any fiscal year and must be used for meeting high-priority deferred maintenance needs of the National Park Service.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2018
Funding Attorneys for Indigent Removal (FAIR) Proceedings Act This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize the appointment of counsel, at government expense, for aliens in immigration proceedings and to automatically provide to such aliens a complete copy of the their immigration file in the possession of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). DHS must also facilitate access to counsel and legal orientation programs for all aliens in DHS detention facilities. The bill also establishes the Immigration Counsel Account to collect fees for providing access to counsel when required or authorized by this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2018
Medicare Negotiation and Competitive Licensing Act of 2018 This bill requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies regarding prices for drugs covered under the Medicare prescription drug benefit. (Current law prohibits the CMS from doing so.) The CMS must take certain factors into account during negotiations, including the clinical- and cost-effectiveness of the drug, the financial burden on patients, and unmet patient needs. If the CMS is unable to negotiate the price of a drug, such drug is subject to competitive licensing in order to further its sale under Medicare, notwithstanding existing government-granted exclusivities. Additionally, for one year after a drug is provided under a competitive license, such drug is also subject to specified price limitations; if the drug is not offered at such prices, the drug is subject to additional licensing that furthers its sale under any federal program (e.g., Medicaid).
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2018
Fairness in Liver Allocation Act of 2018 This bill requires the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network to reform the criteria for liver allocation so that allocation is not based on the donor candidate's place of residence or listing, unless it is necessary to avoid wasting organs.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2018
Stop the Tax Hike on Charities and Places of Worship Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to modify the requirements for determining the unrelated business taxable income of tax-exempt organizations. The bill repeals a provision that requires unrelated business taxable income to be increased by the amount of expenses paid or incurred by a tax-exempt organization for certain fringe benefits for which a tax deduction is not allowed, including benefits relating to transportation, parking, or an on-premises athletic facility. The bill also increases the corporate tax rate from 21% to 22%.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2018
Authorizes specified committees of the House of Representatives to intervene on behalf of the House in the case of Texas v. United States in order to defend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Authorizes the Office of General Counsel of the House, under the supervision of such committees, to represent them in the intervention.
United States · United States Congress · 23 July 2018
Federal Jobs Guarantee Development Act of 2018 This bill requires the Department of Labor to establish a pilot program to provide grants to eligible entities (i.e., political subdivisions of states and Tribal entities with a high unemployment rate) for programs to guarantee employment to individuals residing in the areas served by such entities.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2018
Protecting Access to Classified Information in Elections Act This bill amends the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to authorize certain candidates for President or Vice President to request a security clearance. Candidates must be the nominees of a major party or on the election ballot in at least 10 states to qualify. The federal government must expeditiously conduct background investigations and eligibility determinations for qualified candidates.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 2018
Study of Underrepresented Classes Chasing Engineering and Science Success Act of 2018 or the SUCCESS Act This bill directs the Small Business Administration to (1) report to Congress on the benefits of increasing the number of patents obtained by small business concerns owned and controlled by women and by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, and (2) provide legislative recommendations on how to promote entrepreneurial and patenting activities by these individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 2018
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that Congress should take all appropriate measures to ensure that the U.S. Postal Service remains an independent establishment of the federal government and is not subject to privatization.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2018
9/11 Memorial Act This bill directs the Department of the Interior to award competitive grants for the continued operation, security, and maintenance of the on-site memorials to the events and victims of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and United Airlines Flight 93.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2018
By the People Resolution Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that Congress should enact various reforms with respect to voter registration and protection, campaign-finance contribution limits and violations, and political advertisements.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2018
Recognizes the contributions of African Americans to the musical heritage of the United States. Recognizes that Black History Month and African-American Music Appreciation Month is an important time to celebrate this impact and to encourage greater access to music education.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2018
Family Unity Rights and Protection Act This bill requires the Departments of Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, State, and Defense to ensure that alien children (i.e., children under the age of 18 removed from their parents or legal guardians at or near a port of entry or within 100 miles of the U.S. border pursuant to a zero tolerance policy for criminal illegal reentry) are reunited at the earliest possible date with their parents and guardians from whom they were separated. It also requires notification of parents and guardians of procedures for reuniting with such children and for the location of such children. The bill requires the creation of an electronic registry for information used to locate such alien children and their parents and guardians. The information in such registry may only be used for locating such children and may not be used in any criminal prosecution or other immigration proceeding. The bill also sets forth conditions on the termination of parental rights in immigration proceedings and requires the consolidation of asylum and immigration proceedings involving alien children.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2018
Democracy Is Strengthened by Casting Light On Spending in Elections Act of 2018 or the DISCLOSE Act of 2018 This bill expands the ban on election contributions by foreign nationals to include corporations subject to specified levels of ownership or control by foreign nationals. The bill also expands (1) reporting requirements related to campaign contributions, and (2) disclosure requirements related to the funding sources of political advertisements.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2018
Fairness for Farm Workers Act This bill amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 with respect to agricultural workers. The bill requires employers, beginning in 2019, to compensate agricultural workers for hours worked in excess of their regular hours (i.e., 55 hours in 2019, 50 hours in 2020, 45 hours in 2021, and 40 hours in 2022) at not less than one and one-half times the employee's regular rate. For employers with 25 or fewer employees, the overtime pay requirements begin in 2022. These overtime pay requirements do not apply, as in current law, to employees who are the parent, spouse, child, or other member of the employer's immediate family. The bill also repeals the exemption from overtime pay requirements for employers in various agriculture-related industries, including certain small farms, irrigation projects, sugar processing, and cotton ginning and compressing.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2018
Sets forth the rule for consideration of the bill (H.R. 1902) to protect our Social Security system and improve benefits for current and future generations.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 2018
Central America Family Protection and Reunification Act This bill states that it shall be: (1) U.S. policy to not separate immigrant families as a deterrent and to reunite families that were separated due to the criminal prosecution of parents for illegal entry, and (2) Department of State policy to prioritize supporting governments and citizens to facilitate reunification of such families. The State Department shall submit to Congress: reports concerning gender-based violence in the Northern Triangle (the region encompassing Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador); reports concerning gang and organized-crime related violence in the Northern Triangle; strategies to use portions of funds for the U.S. Strategy for Engagement in Central America to combat gender-based violence in the Northern Triangle, as well as to address the damage to the health and well-being of children and caregivers caused by separating children from their families at the U.S.-Mexico border. The State Department shall establish an office to study serious crimes committed against aliens who were removed from the United States and against U.S. citizens who left the United States because of having an alien parent who was removed from the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 2018
Aviation-Impacted Communities Act This bill directs the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to conduct outreach to community leaders of aviation-impacted communities to inform them of the opportunity to be a designated community. An "aviation-impacted community" is a community that is located not more than one mile from any point at which a commercial or cargo jet route is 3,000 feet or less above ground level. The FAA must devise an action plan that alleviates or addresses the concerns of a designated community. It may also make grants for necessary noise mitigation in a designated community for residences, hospitals, nursing homes, and schools.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 2018
Guarantee Access to Arts and Music Education Act of 2018 or the GAAME Act of 2018 This bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to specify that Title I funds (which support the instructional needs of students from low-income families) may be used for arts and music programs.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 2018
Keep Families Together Act This bill prohibits an agent or contractor of the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, or the Department of Health and Human Services from removing a child who is under the age of 18 and has no permanent immigration status from his or her parent or legal guardian at or near the port of entry or within 100 miles of the U.S. border unless: an authorized state court determines that it is in the child's best interests to be removed; a state or county child welfare official with expertise in child trauma and development determines that it is in the child's best interests to be removed because of abuse or neglect; or the Chief Patrol Agent or the Area Port Director authorizes separation based on a documented finding that the child is a trafficking victim or is at significant risk of becoming a victim, a strong likelihood exists that the adult is not the parent or legal guardian, or the child is in danger of abuse or neglect. A child may not be removed from a parent or guardian unless an independent licensed child welfare expert authorizes the separation within 48 hours of such removal. An agency may not remove a child from a parent or legal guardian solely for the policy goals of deterring migration to the United States or of promoting immigration law compliance. The bill sets forth presumptions: (1) in favor of family and sibling unity and parental rights, and (2) that detention is not in the best interests of families and children. The bill limits the prosecution of asylum seekers.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 2018
Recognizes the historical significance and supports the continued celebration of Juneteenth Independence Day, which commemorates the end of slavery in the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2018
Choose Medicare Act This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to establish public health plans that are available on health insurance markets, subject to specified requirements; the bill also makes a series of changes related to health insurance costs, including alterations to cost-sharing provisions and the authority to negotiate prices under the Medicare prescription drug benefit.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2018
Metastatic Breast Cancer Access to Care Act This bill specifies that individuals with metastatic breast cancer are not subject to certain waiting periods for disability insurance benefits under the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program and related Medicare coverage.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 2018
Workers' Freedom to Negotiate Act of 2018 This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act (NRLA) and related labor laws to extend protections to union workers. Specifically, it: revises the definition of "employee" and "supervisor" to prevent employers from removing employees from the protections of the labor laws, prohibits employers from interfering with certain rights granted to employees under the NLRA, expands unfair labor practices to include prohibitions against replacement of worker who strike or discrimination against them, imposes new penalties against employers who violate labor law requirements, allows workers to bring civil actions against employers for labor law violations and unfair labor practices, requires certain disclosures with respect to worker wages, and requires contractors seeking federal contracts over $500,000 to disclose labor law violations when applying for such contracts.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 2018
This bill specifies that an offense involving lynching is a hate crime act. A violator is subject to criminal penalties—a prison term, a fine, or both.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2018
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the War on Drugs has failed to achieve its goal of reducing drug use. Apologizes to those harmed through the War on Drugs.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2018
This bill designates the Oyster Bay National Wildlife Refuge near Oyster Bay, New York, as the "Congressman Lester Wolff National Wildlife Refuge."
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2018
Duty to Report Act of 2018 This bill requires each candidate for public office (and certain affiliated individuals) to notify the Federal Bureau of Investigation upon receiving unsolicited information (or an offer of such information) about another candidate for the same office from a source the candidate knows to be a foreign power, unless (1) the candidate reasonably believes the information is in the public domain, or (2) the information could not give an advantage to the receiving candidate. An individual who fails to comply with this bill may be criminally liable.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2018
International Human Rights Defense Act of 2018 This bill establishes in the Department of State a permanent Special Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or intersex) Peoples who shall serve as the principal State Department advisor regarding human rights for LGBTI people and represent the United States in diplomatic matters relevant to the human rights of LGBTI people. The special envoy shall periodically provide Congress with a U.S. global strategy to prevent and respond to criminalization, discrimination, and violence against LGBTI people. The State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development may provide assistance to prevent and respond to such activities against LGBTI people. The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 is amended to require that annual country reports on human rights practices include information on criminalization, discrimination, and violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2018
This bill reauthorizes the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act through FY2023. The Act provides services and support for victims of family violence, domestic violence, or dating violence.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2018
Mothers and Offspring Mortality and Morbidity Awareness Act or the MOMMA's Act This bill establishes a series of programs and requirements to address maternal mortality in the United States, including expanded coverage under Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for pregnant and postpartum women.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2018
Victims of Child Abuse Act Reauthorization Act of 2018 This bill reauthorizes for FY2019-FY2023 grants for local and regional children's advocacy centers (CACs), as well as for technical assistance and training. CACs coordinate a multidisciplinary response to child abuse.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2018
Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2018 This bill establishes a series of programs and requirements relating to the health of minority populations, including provisions to improve data collection, health literacy, health workforce diversity, and overall access to health care.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2018
Jobs and Justice Act of 2018 This bill addresses a wide variety of domestic policy matters and focuses on economically distressed communities, opportunities for minorities and the disadvantaged, and civil rights enforcement. Included in the programs and requirements affected are those concerning: diversity in contracting; infrastructure development; areas of persistent poverty; job training for youth and older Americans; education of girls and minorities in STEM fields; the federal minimum wage; military family benefits; health care coverage and access; small business investment; commercial investment in underserved areas, including through tax benefits; housing, including affordability and homelessness programs, landlord-tenant matters, public housing, foreclosure mitigation, and discrimination; access to higher education, including through community college attendance; science, technology, and information security education; hate crimes; law enforcement officer conduct; law enforcement resources and administration; juvenile justice; sentencing procedures; voting rights and administration; prison administration; and firearms sales and possession.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2018
The Solitary Confinement Study and Reform Act of 2018 This bill establishes the National Solitary Confinement Study and Reform Commission: (1) to study the impact of solitary confinement in correctional facilities on governments, communities, and social institutions; (2) to report findings; and (3) to recommend national standards to reduce the use of solitary confinement. The bill directs the Department of Justice (DOJ) to publish national standards to reduce solitary confinement in correctional facilities. The Bureau of Prisons must comply with the national standards immediately. A state or local government must certify compliance with the national standards to be eligible for DOJ-administered grant program funding to construct, maintain, or operate correctional facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2018
Formerly Incarcerated Reenter Society Transformed Safely Transitioning Every Person Act or the FIRST STEP Act This bill amends various provisions of law and sets forth new provisions: to require the Department of Justice to establish and the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to implement a risk and needs assessment system to assess prisoner recidivism risk; guide housing, grouping, and program assignments; and incentivize and reward participation in and completion of recidivism reduction programs and productive activities; to modify the computation of good time credit; to allow federal correctional officers to securely store and carry concealed firearms on BOP premises outside the security perimeter of a prison; to limit the use of restraints on federal prisoners who are pregnant or in postpartum recovery; to require a prisoner to be placed at a facility not more than 500 driving miles away from the prisoner's primary residence; to require low-risk prisoners to be placed on home confinement for the maximum amount of time permitted; to reauthorize through FY2022 and modify eligibility for an elderly offender early release pilot program; to require the BOP to help prisoners obtain identification documents prior to release, to incorporate de-escalation procedures into training programs, and to make tampons and sanitary napkins available free of charge; to repeal the National Institute of Corrections; to authorize Federal Prison Industries to sell products to additional markets; to require probation and pretrial services officers to perform court-directed supervision of sex offenders conditionally released from civil commitment; to require auditors who monitor compliance with national prison rape standards be certified; and to require the BOP to establish pilot programs on youth mentorship and service to abandoned, rescued, or vulnerable animals.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2018
Burn Pits Accountability Act This bill requires the Department of Defense (DOD) and the military departments to evaluate whether each member of the Armed Forces has been (1) based or stationed where an open air burn pit was used to dispose of waste, or (2) exposed to toxic airborne chemicals. Members located where an open burn pit was used or exposed to toxic airborne chemicals must be enrolled in the Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry, unless the member elects not to enroll. The evaluations must be included in periodic health assessments, physical exams conducted immediately prior to separation from active duty, and deployment assessments. DOD must share the results of the evaluations with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
![Official portrait of Rep. Jeffries, Hakeem S. [D-NY-8]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/j000294_200.jpg)