United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2007
Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2007 - Includes as a protected disclosure by a federal employee any lawful disclosure an employee or applicant reasonably believes is credible evidence of waste, abuse, gross mismanagement, or substantial and specific danger to public health or safety without restriction as to time, place, form, motive, context, or prior disclosure. Defines "disclosure" to mean a formal or informal communication, not including a communication concerning policy decisions that lawfully exercise discretionary authority unless the employee providing the disclosure reasonably believes that the disclosure evidences: (1) any violation of law; or (2) mismanagement, waste, abuse of authority, or a danger to the public. Codifies the legal standard for determining whether a whistleblower has a reasonable belief that a disclosure evidences governmental waste, fraud, or abuse, or a violation of law. Includes under the definition of: (1) "personnel action" the implementation or enforcement of any nondisclosure policy, form, or agreement; and (2) "prohibited personnel practice" implementing or enforcing any nondisclosure policy, form, or agreement not containing a statement that it is consistent with specified provisions governing disclosures and conducting an investigation of an employee or applicant because of any protected activity. Authorizes the President to exclude certain agencies engaged in the conduct of foreign intelligence or counterintelligence activities from whistleblower protections if such exclusion is made prior to any personnel action against the whistleblower. Expands the authority of the Merit Systems Protection Board to impose disciplinary action for prohibited personnel practices. Requires a Government Accountability Office (GAO) study on security clearance revocations after 1996, claims in connection with such revocations, and resulting actions. Allows an employee, former employee, or applicant who seeks corrective action from the Merit Systems Protection Board with respect to an alleged prohibited personnel practice to bring action in federal district court for de novo review. Provides that an employee of a covered agency may not be discharged, demoted, or discriminated against as a reprisal for making a disclosure of covered information to an authorized Member of Congress, authorized executive official, or the Inspector General of the covered agency. Sets forth provisions concerning: (1) reprisal complaints; (2) determinations by the covered agency on whether the employee was subjected to a prohibited reprisal; and (3) re-initiation of procedures to restrict an employee's access to classified or sensitive information after a corrective action to restrict such access was voided. Entitles employees of executive agencies that are not covered agencies, for purposes of any disclosure of covered information which consists of classified or sensitive information, to the same protections, rights, and remedies under this Act as if those agencies were covered. Amends the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 and Armed Forces procurement provisions to modify remedy and enforcement authority relating to the protection of contractor employees from reprisal for disclosure of certain information. Makes certain prohibited personnel practices provisions applicable to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Includes within the meaning of "abuse of authority": (1) actions that compromise the validity of federally funded research or analysis; and (2) the dissemination of false or misleading scientific, medical, or technical information.
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2007
Edward William Brooke III Congressional Gold Medal Act - Awards a congressional gold medal to Edward William Brooke III, the first African American elected by popular vote to the U.S. Senate, in recognition of his unprecedented and enduring service to our Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2007
Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act - Establishes an Unsolved Crimes Section in the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and an Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Investigative Office in the Civil Rights Unit of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Makes the Chief of the Section (Chief) and the Chief Investigator of the Office responsible for investigating violations of criminal civil rights statutes in which the alleged violation occurred before January 1, 1970 and resulted in death. Requires: (1) consultation with state or local officials regarding venue when there has been a violation of a criminal civil rights statute that is also a violation of a state or local law; and (2) referral to the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division if the subject of the complaint has violated a criminal civil rights statute but the violation does not meet the requirements for the Unsolved Crimes Section. Amends the Crime Control Act of 1990 to authorize staff of an Inspector General to assist the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children by conducting reviews of inactive case files to develop recommendations for further investigations and engaging in similar activities.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2007
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 365 West 125th Street in New York, New York, as the "Percy Sutton Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2007
John R. Justice Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act of 2007- Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to direct the Attorney General to assume the obligation to repay student loans for borrowers who agree to remain employed, for at least three years, as: (1) state or local criminal prosecutors; or (2) state, local, or federal public defenders in criminal cases. Allows a borrower and the Attorney General to enter into an additional loan repayment agreement, after the required three-year period, for a successive period of service which may be less than three years. Limits the amount paid under such program on behalf of any borrower to $10,000 per calendar year and $60,000 total.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2007
Amends the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 to prescribe requirements for a Federal Renewable Portfolio Standard for calendar years 2010 through 2039. Specifies a schedule of graduated annual percentages of a supplier's base amount that shall be generated from renewable energy resources, from 1% in 2010 up to 20 % in 2020 and thereafter. Authorizes a retail electric supplier to satisfy such requirements through submission of renewable energy credits to the Secretary of Energy. Provides for energy credit trading or borrowing among suppliers. Directs the Secretary to: (1) encourage federally-owned utilities, municipally-owned utilities, and rural electric cooperatives that sell electric energy to electric consumers for purposes other than resale to participate in the renewable portfolio standard program; and (2) establish by December 31, 2009, a state renewable energy account program.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2007
Community Pharmacy Fairness Act of 2007 - Entitles independent pharmacies negotiating contract terms with a health plan for the provision of health care items or services to the same treatment under the antitrust laws as the treatment to which bargaining units recognized under the National Labor Relations Act are entitled. Treats such a pharmacy as an employee engaged in concerted activities in connection with such negotiations. Exempts actions taken in good faith reliance on this Act from being subject to criminal sanctions or civil penalties beyond actual damages incurred. Prohibits: (1) exempting from the antitrust laws any agreement or otherwise unlawful conspiracy that excludes, limits the participation or reimbursement of, or otherwise limits the scope of services to be provided by any independent pharmacy or group of independent pharmacies with respect to the performance of services that are within their scope of practice as defined or permitted by relevant law or regulation; and (2) applying this Act to negotiations between independent pharmacies and health plans pertaining to federal health benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2007
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) member states of the United Nations should meet their obligations to women as agreed to in U.N. Security Council Resolution 1325, including increased representation of women at all decision-making levels in conflict resolution and peace processes; and (2) the United States should fully implement international law relating to human rights that protects the rights of women and girls during and after conflicts. Urges U.S. representatives at the United Nations to call upon all parties to armed conflict to protect women and girls from gender-based violence. Requests the Secretary of State to study and report to Congress on the impact of armed conflict on women and girls, the role of women in peace-building, the gender dimensions of peace processes and conflict resolution, and progress on gender mainstreaming throughout peacekeeping missions.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2007
Supports the goals of International Women's Day. Recognizes and honors the women who have fought and continue to struggle for equality. Reaffirms the commitment of the House of Representatives to ending discrimination and violence against women and girls, to ensuring their safety and welfare, and to pursuing policies that guarantee their basic rights. Encourages the President to: (1) affirm his commitment to pursue policies to protect human rights and civil liberties, particularly of women and girls; and (2) issue a proclamation calling upon the people of the United States to observe International Women's Day.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2007
Veterans Employment and Respect Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow employers a work opportunity tax credit for hiring veterans of Afghanistan or Iraq who served after October 6, 2001, in the Operation Iraqi Freedom Area or the Operation Enduring Freedom Area.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2007
High School Athletics Accountability Act of 2007 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to direct coeducational elementary and secondary schools, if they participate in any ESEA program, to: (1) report certain information on equality in their school athletic programs to the Commissioner for Educational Statistics; and (2) make such information available to their students and potential students, upon request, and to the public.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2007
Student Loan Sunshine Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require each lender entering into an educational loan arrangement with a postsecondary school to: (1) report annually to the Secretary of Education specified information concerning such arrangement; (2) inform borrowers of their loan options under title IV (Student Assistance) before extending private educational loans for attendance at such school; and (3) be barred by such school from marketing such loans in a manner implying the school's endorsement. Directs the Secretary to report to specified congressional committees on the adequacy of educational loan information provided to borrowers, including a model format for lender use in providing annual loan information to the Secretary and covered schools. Requires any school that provides prospective borrowers with private educational loan information to: (1) include information on their title IV assistance eligibility; and (2) compare and distinguish private loans from title IV loans. Bars lenders or guarantors of educational loans from offering gifts to school employees or agents. Directs the Comptroller General to study the effect loan arrangements and lender inducements to schools have on loan terms. Imposes conditions on school maintenance of preferred lender lists, requiring that lenders be listed on the basis of the benefits they provide borrowers. Amends the Truth in Lending Act to require lenders of private educational loans to provide specified information to prospective borrowers and, if the loan equals or exceeds $1,000, notify the relevant school of the proposed loan. Requires such schools to notify the prospective borrower whether and to what extent such loan exceeds the student's attendance costs, after considering other assistance the student has or is eligible to receive.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2007
Jane's Law - Amends the federal criminal code to impose a fine and/or a prison term of up to two years on any person who travels in interstate or foreign commerce to evade compliance with a court-ordered property distribution in a divorce proceeding involving more than $5,000. Requires payment of restitution equal to the total unpaid property distribution from any person convicted of evading payment.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2007
Dog and Cat Fur Prohibition Enforcement Act - Amends provisions of the Tariff Act of 1930 that prohibit the importation of dog or cat fur to modify the definitions of "cat fur" and "dog fur" to include the pelt or skin of the domestic cat or dog, respectively. Amends the Fur Products Labeling Act to expand the definition of "fur product" to include all fur as defined by such Act regardless of the quantity used.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2007
Honors the life and public service of Jacob Birnbaum on the occasion of his 80th birthday, especially his commitment to freeing Soviet Jews from religious, cultural, and communal extinction.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2007
City Youth Violence Recovery Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to partnerships between a state mental health authority and one or more local public or private entities to prevent or alleviate the effects of youth violence in urban communities with a high or increasing incidence of such violence by providing violence-prevention education, mentoring, counseling, and mental health services to children and adolescents. Gives priority to grant applicants that agree to use the grant in communities that lack the resources to address youth violence. Requires grant applicants to agree to use no more than 15% of a grant for violence-prevention education.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2007
Urges the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to: (1) develop a long-term, comprehensive plan to medically monitor all individuals who were exposed to the toxins of Ground Zero following the 9/11 terrorist attacks and to treat all those sick or injured; and (2) submit the plan to Congress and the President as quickly as possible.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2007
Department of Peace and Nonviolence Act - Establishes a Department of Peace and Nonviolence, which shall be headed by a Secretary of Peace and Nonviolence appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate. Sets forth the mission of the Department, including to: (1) hold peace as an organizing principle; (2) endeavor to promote justice and democratic principles to expand human rights; and (3) develop policies that promote national and international conflict prevention, nonviolent intervention, mediation, peaceful resolution of conflict, and structured mediation of conflict. Establishes in the Department the Intergovernmental Advisory Council on Peace and Nonviolence, which shall provide assistance and make recommendations to the Secretary and the President concerning intergovernmental policies relating to peace and nonviolent conflict resolution. Transfers to the Department the functions, assets, and personnel of various federal agencies. Establishes a Federal Interagency Committee on Peace and Nonviolence. Establishes Peace Day. Urges all citizens to observe and celebrate the blessings of peace and endeavor to create peace on such day.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2007
Prevention First Act - Title X Family Planning Services Act of 2007 - Authorizes appropriations for family planning services grants and contracts under the Public Health Service Act (PHSA). Equity in Prescription Insurance and Contraceptive Coverage Act of 2007 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and PHSA to prohibit a group health plan and a health insurance issuer providing group coverage from excluding or restricting benefits in any way for prescription contraceptive drugs, devices, and outpatient services if the plan or coverage provides benefits for other outpatient prescription drugs, devices, or outpatient services. Applies such prohibitions to coverage offered in the individual market. Emergency Contraception Education Act of 2007 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop and disseminate information on emergency contraception to the public and to health care providers. Compassionate Assistance for Rape Emergencies Act of 2007 - Requires hospitals, as a condition of receiving federal funds, to offer and to provide, upon request, emergency contraception to victims of sexual assault. At-Risk Communities Teenage Pregnancy Prevention Act of 2007 - Authorizes the Secretary to award grants for teenage pregnancy prevention programs. Requires the Secretary to award grants for teenage pregnancy prevention research. Truth in Contraception Act of 2007 - Requires that any information concerning the use of a contraceptive provided through specified federally funded education programs be medically accurate and include health benefits and failure rates. Unintended Pregnancy Reduction Act of 2007 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to expand Medicaid's coverage of family planning services. Responsible Education About Life Act of 2007 - Requires the Secretary to make grants to states for family life education, including education on abstinence and contraception, to prevent teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2007
Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act of 2007 - Amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) with respect to: (1) ballot verification and mandatory paper record audit capacity; and (2) accessibility and ballot verification of results for individuals with disabilities. Requires the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology to study, test, and develop best practices to enhance the accessibility of ballot verification mechanisms for individuals with disabilities, voters whose primary language is not English, and voters with difficulties in literacy. Requires laboratories to meet standards prohibiting conflicts of interest as a condition of accreditation for the testing of voting system hardware and software. Outlines additional voting system requirements and prohibitions. Extends the authorization of the Election Assistance Commission (EAC). Provides for complaints to the Attorney General by persons aggrieved by violations of HAVA. Makes available additional funding to enable states to meet the costs of the requirements imposed by this Act. Directs the chief auditor of each state to appoint an Election Audit Board to administer, without advance notice to the precincts selected, random hand counts of the voter-verified paper ballots required to be produced and preserved for each such election held in the state. Repeals the exemption of the EAC from certain government contracting requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2007
Stealth Lobbyist Disclosure Act of 2007 - Amends the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 to redefine the term "client" with respect to coalitions and associations on whose behalf a lobbyist must file a registration. Provides that, in the case of a coalition or association that employs or retains other persons to conduct lobbying activities, each of the individual members of the coalition or association, and not the coalition or association itself as under current law, is the client for whom a registration must be filed. Exempts from such registration requirement any individual member of a coalition or association if the amount such member is reasonably expected to contribute toward specific legislation-influencing activities of the coalition or association is less than $1,000 per any quarterly period. Requires quarterly instead of semiannual filing of lobbying disclosures reports. Lowers the dollar thresholds of contributions toward lobbying activities that trigger the requirement to register as a lobbyist.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2007
Employee Free Choice Act - Amends the National Labor Relations Act to require the National Labor Relations Board to certify a bargaining representative without directing an election if a majority of the bargaining unit employees have authorized designation of the representative (card-check) and there is no other individual or labor organization currently certified or recognized as the exclusive representative of any of the employees in the unit. Sets forth special procedural requirements for reaching an initial collective bargaining agreement following certification or recognition. Revises enforcement requirements with respect to unfair labor practices during union organizing drives, particularly a preliminary investigation of an alleged unfair labor practice (ULP) which may lead to proceedings for injunctive relief. Requires that priority be given to a preliminary investigation of any charge that, while employees were seeking representation by a labor organization, or during the period after a labor organization was recognized as a representative until the first collective bargaining contract is entered into, an employer: (1) discharged or otherwise discriminated against an employee to encourage or discourage membership in the labor organization; (2) threatened to discharge or to otherwise discriminate against an employee in order to interfere with, restrain, or coerce employees in the exercise of guaranteed self-organization or collective bardaining rights; or (3) engaged in any other related ULP that significantly interferes with, restrains, or coerces employees in the exercise of such guaranteed rights. Adds to remedies for such violations: (1) back pay plus liquidated damages; and (2) additional civil penalties.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2007
Routine HIV/AIDS Screening Coverage Act of 2007 - Amends the Public Health Service Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), and the Internal Revenue Code to require a group health plan or a health insurance issuer offering group health insurance coverage to provide coverage for routine HIV/AIDS screening under terms and conditions no less favorable than for other routine screenings. Prohibits such a plan or issuer from: (1) denying eligibility or continued eligibility to enroll or renew solely to avoid these requirements; (2) denying coverage for such screening because there are no known risk factors present or because the screening is not clinically indicated, medically necessary, or pursuant to a referral, consent, or recommendation by any health care provider; (3) providing monetary payments, rebates, or other benefits to encourage individuals to accept less than the minimum protections available under this Act; (4) penalizing or otherwise reducing or limiting the reimbursement of a provider because such provider provided care to a participant or beneficiary in accordance with this Act; (5) providing incentives to induce the provision of care in a manner inconsistent with this Act; or (6) denying a participant or beneficiary continued eligibility to enroll or renew solely because of the results of an HIV/AIDS test or screening procedure. Applies such requirements to health insurance coverage offered in the individual market and coverage offered under the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2007
Breast Cancer Patient Protect Action of 2007 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code to require a group health plan or a health issuer offering group health insurance coverage that provides medical and surgical benefits to ensure that inpatient (and in the case of a lumpectomy, outpatient) coverage and radiation therapy are provided for breast cancer treatment. Prohibits such a plan or issuer from: (1) restricting benefits for any hospital length of stay to less than 48 hours in connection with a mastectomy or breast conserving surgery or 24 hours in connection with a lymph node dissection; or (2) requiring that a provider obtain authorization from the plan or issuer for prescribing any such length of stay. Requires such a plan or issuer to: (1) provide notice to each participant and beneficiary regarding the coverage required under this Act; and (2) ensure that full coverage is provided for secondary consultations by specialists in the appropriate medical fields to confirm or refute a diagnosis of cancer. Applies such requirements to health insurance issuers offering coverage in the individual market.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2007
Medicare Access to Rehabilitation Services Act of 2007 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to repeal the outpatient therapy cap.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2007
Redesignates the Ellis Island Library, on the third floor of the Ellis Island Immigration Museum on Ellis Island in New York Harbor, as the "Bob Hope Memorial Library."
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2007
Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2007 - Deems certain service performed before July 1, 1946, in the organized military forces of the Philippines and the Philippine Scouts as active military service for purposes of eligibility for veterans' benefits through the Department of Veterans Affairs. Repeals certain provisions discounting such service as qualifying service.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2007
Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Prevention, Education, and Research Act of 2007 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish the Tick-Borne Diseases Advisory Committee. Requires the Committee to advise the Secretary and the Assistant Secretary for Health regarding how officials can: (1) ensure interagency coordination and communication and minimize overlap regarding efforts to address tick-borne diseases; (2) identify opportunities to coordinate efforts with other federal agencies and private organizations addressing such diseases; (3) ensure interagency coordination and communication with constituency groups; (4) ensure that a broad spectrum of scientific viewpoints is represented in public heath policy decisions and that information disseminated to the public and physicians is balanced; and (5) advise relevant federal agencies on priorities related to Lyme and tick-borne diseases. Requires the Secretary, acting through the appropriate federal officials, to provide for the coordination of all federal programs and activities related to Lyme and other tick-borne diseases, including: (1) developing sensitive and accurate diagnostic tools and tests, (2) improving the efficient utilization of diagnostic testing currently available; (3) accurately determining the prevalence of such diseases; (4) evaluating the feasibility of creating a national uniform reporting system; (5) providing and promoting access to a clearinghouse of information on such diseases; (6) increasing public education related to such diseases; (7) creating a physician education program; (8) establishing epidemiological research objectives to determine the long term course of illness for Lyme disease; and (9) determining the effectiveness of different treatment modalities by establishing treatment outcome objectives
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2007
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the government of Japan should: (1) formally acknowledge, apologize, and accept historical responsibility for its Imperial Armed Force's coercion of young women into sexual slavery (comfort women) during its colonial and wartime occupation of Asia and the Pacific Islands from the 1930s through the duration of World War II; (2) have this official and public apology presented by the Prime Minister of Japan; (3) refute any claims that the sexual enslavement and trafficking of the comfort women never occurred; and (4) educate current and future generations about this crime while following the international community's recommendations with respect to the comfort women.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2007
Water Quality Financing Act of 2007 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (popularly known as the Clean Water Act) to authorize the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to make grants to nonprofit organizations to provide: (1) technical assistance to rural and small municipalities for wastewater infrastructure financing; and (2) technical assistance and training for rural and small publicly owned treatment works. Authorizes appropriations through FY2012 for: (1) state pollution control programs; and (2) watershed pilot projects. Revises: (1) eligibility requirements for grants for sewage collection systems; and (2) state water pollution control revolving fund provisions. Requires states to: (1) establish a list of revolving fund projects that prioritizes water quality improvement projects; and (2) provide financial assistance to only projects on such lists. Authorizes and increases funding for capitalization grants for state water pollution control revolving funds for FY2008-FY2012. Revises funding allocations for activities serving Indian tribes and reservations. Requires the Comptroller General to study the funding mechanisms and funding sources available to establish a Clean Water Trust Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2007
Affirmation of the United States Record on the Armenian Genocide Resolution - Calls upon the President: (1) to ensure that U.S. foreign policy reflects appropriate understanding and sensitivity concerning issues related to human rights, ethnic cleansing, and genocide documented in the U.S. record relating to the Armenian Genocide and the consequences of the failure to realize a just resolution; and (2) in the President's annual message commemorating the Armenian Genocide to characterize the systematic and deliberate annihilation of 1.5 million Armenians as genocide, and to recall the proud history of U.S. intervention in opposition to the Armenian Genocide.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2007
Demands that: (1) Hamas release Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit; (2) Hezbollah accept the mandate of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701 by releasing Israeli soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev; and (3) Hezbollah and Hamas accede to basic standards of humanitarian conduct and allow access to the Israeli captives by competent medical personnel and representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross. Expresses: (1) commitment to Israel's survival as a Jewish and democratic state with secure borders; (2) support and interest in achieving a resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through the creation of a viable and independent Palestinian state living in peace alongside Israel; (3) concern for the families of Gilad Shalit, Ehud Goldwasser, and Eldad Regev; and (4) commitment to seek the Israeli captives' release. Condemns: (1) Hamas and Hezbollah for the cross border attacks and kidnappings which precipitated the armed conflict between Israel, Hezbollah, and armed Palestinian groups; and (2) Iran and Syria, the primary state sponsors of global terrorism and the patrons of Hezbollah and Hamas, for their ongoing support for international terrorism.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2007
Annie Fox Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to expand, intensify, and coordinate Institute activities regarding breast cancer in younger women, including the conduct and support of: (1) basic and clinical research on the causes, prevention, detection, treatment, and long-term effects of breast cancer in young women; and (2) information and education programs for health professionals and the public.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2007
Declares that it is the policy of the United States not to: (1) establish any military installation or base for providing for the permanent stationing of U.S. Armed Forces in Iraq; and (2) exercise U.S. control over Iraqi oil resources.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
National Security Language Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to establish programs to encourage early foreign language instruction, including grants to: (1) partnerships of institutions of higher education (IHEs) and local educational agencies (LEAs) for activities relating to foreign language instruction at elementary or secondary schools, with priorities for high-need LEAs and less-commonly taught foreign languages; and (2) IHEs that develop innovative programs for the teaching of foreign languages, with priorities for combining foreign languages with science and technology and for less-commonly taught foreign languages. Provides undergraduate student loan forgiveness of up to $10,000 for students who major in a critical foreign language and are employed as teachers of such language in elementary or secondary schools or as using such language regularly in a federal agency. Directs the Secretary of Education to: (1) establish a foreign language education marketing campaign to encourage students at secondary schools and IHEs to study foreign languages, particularly ones less commonly taught and critical to national security; and (2) conduct a study to identify foreign language heritage communities and recruit speakers of such critical languages. Amends the David L. Boren National Security Education Act of 1991 to establish an International Flagship Language Initiative with grants to IHEs.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
Keeping Our Promises to America's Children Act of 2007 - Provides a moratorium on compliance by failing schools with certain requirements for achieving adequate yearly progress (AYP) toward state academic performance standards under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Allows states and local educational agencies, if the federal funds appropriated for the pertinent remedial program, project, or activity are less than those authorized, to defer, modify, or suspend related functions the agencies are required to carry out to ensure that schools achieve AYP. Requires the Secretary of Education to ensure that negative consequences shall not apply to such agencies for actions taken under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
United States National Health Insurance Act (or the Expanded and Improved Medicare for All Act) - Establishes the United States National Health Insurance (USNHI) Program (the Program) to provide all individuals residing in the United States and in U.S. territories with free health care that includes all medically necessary care, such as primary care and prevention, prescription drugs, emergency care, and mental health services. Prohibits an institution from participating in the Program unless it is a public or nonprofit institution. Allows nonprofit health maintenance organizations (HMOs) that actually deliver care in their own facilities to participate in the Program. Gives patients the freedom to choose from participating physicians and institutions. Prohibits a private health insurer from selling health insurance coverage that duplicates the benefits provided under this Act. Allows such insurers to sell benefits that are not medically necessary, such as cosmetic surgery benefits. Sets forth methods to pay hospitals and health professionals for services. Prohibits financial incentives between HMOs and physicians based on utilization. Establishes the USNHI Trust Fund to finance the Program with amounts deposited: (1) from existing sources of Government revenues for health care; (2) by increasing personal income taxes on the top 5% income earners; (3) by instituting a progressive excise tax on payroll and self-employment income; and (4) by instituting a small tax on stock and bond transactions. Requires the Program to give first priority in retraining and job placement and unemployment benefits to individuals whose jobs are eliminated due to reduced administration. Establishes a National Board of Universal Quality and Access to provide advice on quality, access, and affordability. Provides for the eventual integration of the Indian Health Service into the Program.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
Restroom Gender Parity in Federal Buildings Act of 2007 - Requires the Administrator of General Services to include in a prospectus submitted to Congress for approval of a proposed public facility a statement that the number of toilets in women's restrooms in such facility will exceed the number of toilets (including urinals) in men's restrooms by a ratio of two to one or a statement as to why such a ratio is not needed.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
Army Specialist Joseph P. Micks Federal Flag Code Amendment Act of 2007 - Amends federal law with regard to the flying of the national flag at half-staff to: (1) allow a governor of a state, territory, or possession of the United States (governor) to proclaim that the national flag be flown at half-staff upon the death of a member of the Armed Forces from the governor's state, territory, or possession who dies while serving on active duty; and (2) require, when a governor issues such a proclamation, the national flag flown at any federal installation or facility in that state, territory, or possession to be flown at half-staff consistent with that proclamation.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
Downed Animal and Food Safety Protection Act - States that it is U.S. policy that all nonambulatory livestock in interstate and foreign commerce be immediately and humanely euthanized when such livestock become nonambulatory. Amends the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act of 1958 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to promulgate regulations providing for the humane treatment, handling, and disposition of nonambulatory livestock by a covered entity, including a requirement that nonambulatory livestock be humanely euthanized. Requires an entity to: (1) humanely euthanize nonambulatory livestock (while not limiting the Secretary's ability to test nonambulatory livestock for disease, such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy); and (2) not move nonambulatory livestock while such livestock is conscious, and ensure that such livestock remains unconscious until death. Prohibits an inspector at an establishment covered by the Federal Meat Inspection Act to pass nonambulatory livestock, carcass, or carcass parts through inspection. Requires an inspector or other employee at such establishment to label such material as "inspected and condemned." Defines "covered entity," "nonambulatory livestock," and "humanely euthanize."
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
Dependence Reduction through Innovation in Vehicles and Energy Act or DRIVE Act - Directs the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to publish in the Federal Register an oil savings target and action plan for specified calendar years. Directs the Secretary of Energy to conduct a national media campaign to decrease oil consumption in the United States over the next decade. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to develop: (1) a fuel efficiency program for passenger car and light truck tires; (2) a program to designate Transit-Oriented Development Corridors; and (3) pilot projects to save oil by reducing vehicle miles traveled. Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to: (1) develop a testing and assessment program to determine the fuel economy of heavy duty vehicles; (2) establish a near-term electric transportation deployment program; and (3) implement a fuel and technology neutral program to reduce tailpipe emissions. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to prescribe average heavy duty vehicle fuel economy standards. Amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to direct the Secretary of Energy to make loan guarantees for eligible projects to improve hybrid technologies or to encourage production of efficient hybrid and advanced diesel vehicles. Requires a specified graduated percentage of passenger cars manufactured by light-duty motor vehicles manufacturers to be fuel choice enabling motor vehicles or alternative fuel automobiles. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow an advanced technology motor vehicles manufacturing tax credit; (2) allow a flexible fuel vehicle tax credit; (3) extend the alternative vehicle tax credit for new qualified hybrid motor vehicles; (4) allow a fuel-efficient tax credit for private fleets; (5) subject heavy vehicles to the depreciation limitation for certain luxury automobiles; (6) increase the alternative fuel vehicle refueling property tax credit; (7) provide a graduated tax credit for plug-in hybrid electric passenger and light truck vehicles; and (8) allow an idling reduction tax credit for heavy-duty diesel-powered on-highway vehicles. Establishes the Alternative Fueling Infrastructure Trust Fund. Authorizes the Secretary of Energy to obligate sums from the Fund for the Clean Cities grant program to increase the availability to consumers of ethanol, biodiesel, and other alternative fuels. Amends the Clean Air Act to prescribe minimum annual quantities of renewable fuel from cellulosic biomass. Directs the Secretary of Energy to: (1) require at least a 20% reduction in the federal fleets' petroleum consumption (including that at least 30% of federal vehicles required to be alternative fuel vehicles be flexible fuel hybrid or flexible fuel plug-in hybrid vehicles); (2) submit to Congress an action plan calling for a specified graduated percentage of the nation's ground fuel demand to be supplied by fuels derived from sources other than oil; and (3) carry out a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle prize program.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
Taxpayer Abuse and Harassment Prevention Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the authority of the Secretary of the Treasury to enter into contracts with private collection agencies to collect unpaid taxes.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
Export Freedom to Cuba Act of 2007 - Prohibits the President from regulating or prohibiting travel to or from Cuba by U.S. citizens or legal residents, or any of the transactions ordinarily incident to such travel relating to: (1) accompanied personal baggage; (2) payment of living expenses and the acquisition of personal-use goods or services; (3) travel arrangements; (4) nonscheduled air, sea, or land voyage transactions (such provision does not permit the carriage of articles other than accompanied baggage into Cuba or the United States); and (5) normal banking transactions. States that such provision does not: (1) restrict presidential authority in time of war or armed hostilities between the United States and Cuba, or of imminent danger to the public health or the physical safety of U.S. travelers; and (2) authorize U.S. importation of personal consumption goods acquired in Cuba.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
Requires: (1) the Department of Defense Inspector General and the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction to report quarterly to Congress respecting the expenditures of military and reconstruction funds in Iraq, including efforts to obtain assistance from other countries and an assessment of future funding needs; (2) the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to conduct an audit if either Inspector General fails to submit such report; and (3) the imposition of sanctions against contractors who have engaged in profiteering or fraud. States that: (1) Congress should create a Truman Committee to conduct an ongoing study and investigation of Operation Iraqi Freedom contracts; (2) funding requests for Operation Iraqi Freedom beginning with FY2008 must come through the regular appropriations process and not through emergency supplementals; and (3) the Administration should condition further American financial, military, and political resources upon improvement in Iraqi assumption of principal responsibility for internally policing Iraq.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
Expresses condolences to the families of women and girls murdered in Guatemala and recognizes the families' courage in seeking justice. Condemns the ongoing abductions and murders of women and girls in Guatemala. Urges the government of Guatemala to recognize domestic violence and sexual harassment as criminal acts and encourages the government of Guatemala to investigate the killings of women, prosecute those responsible, and eliminate the tolerance of violence against women. Supports efforts to identify perpetrators and unknown victims through forensic analysis, including DNA testing. Encourages the Secretary of State to urge the government of Guatemala to: (1) honor the victims of the brutal murders and to continue to include in the Department of State's annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices all instances of improper investigatory methods, threats against human rights activists, and the use of torture with respect to cases involving the murder and abduction of women and girls in Guatemala; (2) hold accountable those law enforcement and judicial officials who fail to investigate and prosecute the murders adequately; and (3) take measures to ensure that the special Guatemalan police and prosecutorial units are adequately staffed and have sufficient resources. Recommends that the Secretary develop a comprehensive plan to combat the growing problem of violence against women in Latin America.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the full realization of the rights of women is vital to the development and well-being of people of all nations; and (2) the Senate should, therefore, give its advice and consent to the ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2007
Recognizes the 98th anniversary of the historic founding of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Honors and praises the NAACP for its work to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of all persons.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2007
College Fire Prevention Act - Directs the Secretary of Education to make competitive demonstration grants to private or public colleges or universities, fraternities, and sororities for up to half the cost of installing fire sprinkler systems, or other fire suppression or prevention technologies, in student housing and dormitories owned or controlled by such entities. Gives grant priority to applicants that demonstrate the greatest financial need. Reserves the following portions of grant funds made available for each fiscal year: (1) at least 10% for historically Black colleges and universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, and tribally controlled colleges and universities; and (2) at least 10% for social fraternities and sororities. Provides that any application for assistance under this Act, any negative determination on the part of the Secretary with respect to such application, or any statement of reasons for the determination, shall not be admissible as evidence in any proceeding of any court, agency, board, or other entity (except a proceeding to enforce an agreement entered into between the Secretary and a grantee under this Act).
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2007
American Veterans Disabled for Life Commemorative Coin - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue $1 silver coins emblematic of the design selected by the Disabled Veterans' LIFE Memorial Foundation for the American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial, in commemoration of disabled American veterans. Expresses the sense of Congress that, to the greatest extent possible, the coins should be struck at the U.S. Mint at West Point, New York. Limits the period for coin issuance to the calendar year beginning on January 1, 2010. Imposes a $10 surcharge per coin, to be distributed to the Disabled Veterans' LIFE Memorial Foundation for the purpose of establishing an endowment to support the construction of American Veterans' Disabled for Life Memorial in Washington, D.C.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2007
Global Democracy Promotion Act - Declares that foreign nongovernmental organizations: (1) shall not be ineligible for assistance under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 solely on the basis of health or medical services (including counseling and referral services) provided by them with non-U.S. government funds if such services do not violate the laws of the country in which they are being provided, and would not violate U.S. federal law if provided in the United States; and (2) shall not be subject to requirements relating to the use of non-U.S. government funds for advocacy and lobbying activities other than those that apply to U.S. nongovernmental organizations receiving such assistance.
![Official portrait of Rep. Nadler, Jerrold [D-NY-12]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/n000002_200.jpg)