United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2019
Humanitarian Standards for Individuals in Customs and Border Protection Custody Act This bill imposes requirements and standards related to the care of aliens in U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody. CBP shall conduct an initial health screening of each alien in custody to identify those with acute conditions and high-risk vulnerabilities and to provide appropriate healthcare. CBP shall conduct the screening within 12 hours of each alien's initial detention, and within 3 hours for certain priority individuals such as children, pregnant women, and those with disabilities. The bill imposes various requirements related to the services, personnel, and infrastructure for providing such screenings, such as providing interpreters, chaperones, and mental health treatment when necessary. CBP shall ensure detainees have access to drinking water, toilets, sanitation facilities, hygiene products, food, and shelter. The bill imposes certain standards relating to such requirements, such as the minimum amount of drinking water and space for each detainee. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shall enter into memoranda of understanding with various emergency government relief agencies to address instances when surge capacity is necessary. The Inspector General of DHS shall conduct unannounced inspections of ports of entry, border patrol stations, and detention facilities and report the results to Congress. The Government Accountability Office shall assess CBP's management of such facilities and whether CBP and DHS processes are in compliance with this bill's requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2019
Anti-Collusion Act This bill expands the ban on solicitations of campaign contributions or donations by foreign nationals to include providing nonpublic campaign information, including polling data and opposition research. Specifically, the ban shall apply if a candidate, a political committee, or an affiliate offers or provides nonpublic campaign material to a foreign power. Upon receipt of an offer of assistance by a foreign power, a candidate, committee, or individual must report the offer to the Department of Justice within 72 hours.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2019
Kids Eat Local Act This bill modifies Department of Agriculture requirements for the national school food programs relating to the purchases of locally produced food. The bill allows institutions participating in the school food programs to use locally grown, locally raised, or locally caught as a product specification in food procurement requests.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2019
Land and Water Conservation Fund Permanent Funding Act This bill makes permanent, beginning in FY2020, funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). The President shall annually submit to Congress specified details regarding the allocation of funds to the LWCF. Congress may provide for alternate allocations using specified procedures.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2019
Broadband Data Improvement Act of 2019 This bill requires (1) broadband service providers to fulfill certain reporting requirements, and (2) the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to establish a challenge process to aid in broadband mapping. Specifically, the bill requires each provider to report certain information regarding the geographic availability of broadband service it provides. The FCC must contract with an entity to provide data submission assistance to a provider that is unable to comply with this reporting requirement. Among other responsibilities, such entity shall provide support for the required challenge process and establish an ongoing data validation and verification process. The FCC is also required to establish a framework for a process whereby information challenging the accuracy of the National Broadband Map may be submitted. Subject to the challenge process and feedback received therefrom, specified federal agencies shall use the National Broadband Map to determine the extent of broadband availability and the areas of the United States that remain unserved.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2019
South Asian Heart Health Awareness and Research Act of 2019 This bill establishes, or authorizes to be established, programs that support heart-disease research and awareness among the South Asian population of the United States. Specifically, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention must award grants to states for awareness initiatives, educational materials, and research catalogs regarding the prevalence of heart disease, including the association of type 2 diabetes, with respect to the South Asian population. The National Institutes of Health may also award grants to support research in this area.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2019
Every Child Deserves a Family Act This bill prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, or religion in the provision of child welfare programs and services by entities receiving federal funding. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) must provide technical assistance to help states follow this requirement, including (1) guidance for bringing state laws into compliance, (2) developing training to increase cultural competency related to social identity, and (3) training for judges and attorneys involved in child welfare cases, among other supports. Additionally, HHS must establish the National Resource Center on Safety, Well-Being, Placement Stability, and Permanency for LGBTQ Children and Youth Involved with Child Welfare Services to provide training, technical assistance, and guidance to applicable state and local agencies and service providers. Further, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act may not be the basis for challenging the application or enforcement of this bill. The Government Accountability Office must study and report on states' compliance with the requirements of the bill no later than three years after enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2019
Improving Seniors' Timely Access to Care Act of 2019 This bill establishes several prohibitions, requirements, and standards relating to prior authorization processes under Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. Specifically, the bill prohibits MA plans from instituting additional prior authorization requirements for surgeries (including related items) that are furnished to a patient during other surgeries for which prior authorization was not required or was already received. Additionally, MA plans must (1) establish an electronic prior authorization program that meets specified standards, including the ability to provide real-time decisions in response to requests for items and services that are routinely approved; (2) annually publish specified prior authorization information, including the percentage of requests approved and the average response time; and (3) meet other standards, as set by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, relating to the quality and timeliness of prior authorization determinations.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2019
State Flexibility for Family First Transitions Act This bill provides states with the option to extend by two years a child-welfare demonstration project scheduled to end in FY2019. A state extending a demonstration project shall provide a plan to the Department of Health and Human Services specifying how the project will transition by FY2021 to comply with provisions in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 relating to childcare institutions, foster family homes, and assessment standards for qualified residential-treatment programs.
United States · United States Congress · 4 June 2019
Respond, Innovate, Succeed, and Empower Act of 2019 or the RISE Act of 2019 This bill establishes requirements for institutions of higher education (IHEs) concerning students with disabilities. Specifically, the bill requires IHEs to allow students to use certain documents, such as individualized education programs, to establish their disabilities. In addition, IHEs must make the process for determining the eligibility for accommodations transparent. Finally, IHEs must submit key data related to their undergraduate students with disabilities for inclusion in federal postsecondary institution data collection efforts.
United States · United States Congress · 4 June 2019
Woman on the Twenty Act This bill requires that all $20 Federal Reserve notes printed after December 31, 2022, prominently feature a portrait of Harriet Tubman on their front face. The bill also instructs the Department of the Treasury to release to the public by December 31, 2020, the preliminary design of the $20 Federal Reserve note that shall prominently feature a portrait of Harriet Tubman.
United States · United States Congress · 4 June 2019
Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act of 2019 This bill revises provisions of the low-income housing tax credit and renames it as the affordable housing credit . The bill increases the per capita dollar amount of the credit and its minimum ceiling amount beginning in 2019 and extends the inflation adjustment for such amounts. The bill modifies tenant income eligibility requirements and the average income formula for determining such income. It also revises rules for student occupancy of rental units and tenant voucher payments and prohibits any refusal to rent to victims of domestic abuse. The bill further modifies the credit to establish a 4% minimum credit rate for certain housing projects, repeal the qualified census tract population cap, prohibit local approval and contribution requirements, increase the credit for certain projects designated to serve extremely low-income households, increase the credit for certain bond-financed projects designated by state agencies, eliminate the basis reduction for properties that receive certain energy-related tax benefits, and increase the population cap for difficult development areas (i.e., areas with high construction, land, and utility costs relative to area median gross income). The bill also includes Indian and rural areas as difficult development areas and modifies other requirements relating to casualty losses, acquisition credits, and foreclosures.
United States · United States Congress · 30 May 2019
School Nutrition Transparency for Healthy Kids Act of 2019 This bill requires that each state educational agency annually publish on the Department of Agriculture website data on the compliance of school food authorities with respect to nutritional requirements, including the number of school food authorities in compliance with such requirements, disaggregated by state; the total number of such authorities in each state; and the percentage of such authorities in compliance with such requirements, disaggregated by state.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2019
Women's Health Protection Act of 2019 This bill prohibits state or local governments from imposing certain restrictions on access to abortion services. Specifically, state or local government may not require unnecessary tests or procedures in connection with the provision of abortion services, the same health care provider who provides abortion services to perform such tests or procedures, providers to offer medically inaccurate information to patients before or during abortion services, providers to refrain from prescribing certain drugs, certain hospital facility transfer agreements, one or more medically unnecessary in-person visits, or patients to disclose the reason for seeking abortion services. The bill also prohibits limitations or requirements that both single out and impede access to abortion services based on a number of factors (e.g., restrictions that are reasonably likely to decrease the availability of abortion services in a state). A state or local government also may not prohibit abortions prior to fetal viability nor prohibit abortions after fetal viability in cases where the health care provider determines that continuing the pregnancy poses a risk to the patient's life or health. Additionally, the Department of Justice, individuals, or health care providers may bring a lawsuit to prospectively enjoin a limitation or restriction that is prohibited by this bill. The bill further requires the government defending such a limitation or restriction to show that (1) it significantly advances the safety of abortion services or patient health, and (2) such advancement cannot be met by a less-restrictive measure.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2019
Democracy Is Strengthened by Casting Light On Spending in Elections Act of 2019 or the DISCLOSE Act of 2019 This bill expands prohibitions and requires additional disclosures related to political spending. Specifically, foreign nationals are further restricted regarding their involvement in election related activity, including by prohibiting their participation in the decision-making process regarding an election expenditure. Existing foreign money prohibitions are expanded to prohibit disbursements for paid internet or digital communications. The Federal Election Commission must perform an audit after each election cycle to determine the incidence of illicit foreign money. In general, organizations making political expenditures must disclose donors who have contributed $10,000 or more during an election cycle. Certain of these organizations, including corporations, must also disclose their beneficial owners. The bill requires organizations to provide additional disclosures on certain political ads, including the donors who contributed the most money to that organization in the last year.
United States · United States Congress · 21 May 2019
This resolution expresses support for the leaders of the peaceful Tiananmen pro-democracy demonstrations in the spring of 1989 in Beijing, and expresses sympathy and solidarity with the families of those killed, tortured, and imprisoned for their participation. It also calls on the Chinese government to (1) support a full and transparent accounting of its violent suppression of the protests, (2) cease censoring information about the massacre, and (3) allow the protesters to return to China without risk of retribution.
United States · United States Congress · 21 May 2019
Vaccine Awareness Campaign to Champion Immunization Nationally and Enhance Safety Act of 2019 or the VACCINES Act of 2019 This bill requires the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to take a series of actions relating to vaccination rates and awareness. Specifically, the CDC must (1) develop a national surveillance system to monitor vaccination rates, and (2) conduct a national campaign to increase awareness of the importance of vaccines. Additionally, the National Vaccine Advisory Committee must assess national confidence in vaccines and update a specified 2015 report accordingly.
United States · United States Congress · 21 May 2019
This concurrent resolution expresses support for efforts to ensure that all women have access to comprehensive, preventative, and affordable health care services and are able to receive unbiased information about those services.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2019
AUMF Clarification Act This bill expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that Congress has not authorized the use of military force against Iran. It further specifies that no previous authorization for the use of military force against anyone associated with the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, may be construed to provide authorization for the use of such force against Iran.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2019
Historic Tax Credit Growth and Opportunity Act of 2019 This bill increases the rehabilitation tax credit and modifies certain requirements for the credit. The bill increases the rate of the credit to 30% for smaller projects (rehabilitation expenditures not exceeding $3.75 million) and caps the credit for such projects at $750,000 for all taxable years. The bill also allows taxpayers to transfer all or a portion of the credits that are allowable for smaller projects. The bill expands the types of buildings eligible for rehabilitation by decreasing the rehabilitation threshold from 100% to 50% of project expenses. It also eliminates the basis adjustment requirement for the credit and modifies rules relating to the eligibility of tax-exempt use property for the credit.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2019
Training the Next Generation of Primary Care Doctors Act of 2019 This bill alters funding provisions, and establishes additional reporting requirements, relating to the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education Program, which is administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). The program supports training for primary-care-physician and dental residents at community-based clinics. The bill (1) establishes certain parameters for payments to approved and newly approved graduate medical-residency training programs, and (2) requires HRSA to publish a report regarding new and expanded programs.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2019
Healthy Maternity and Obstetric Medicine Act or the Healthy MOM Act This bill expands health insurance coverage availability for pregnant individuals. It requires health insurers, health insurance exchanges, and group health plans to offer a special enrollment period to pregnant individuals. The special enrollment period offered by an insurer or exchange must begin when the pregnancy is reported to the insurer or exchange. The special enrollment period offered by a group health plan must begin when the pregnancy is reported to the plan or is confirmed by a health care provider. The bill also makes pregnancy a qualifying life event for the purpose of enrolling in a federal employee health benefit plan. Additionally, a group health plan or health insurer that covers dependents must provide coverage for maternity care to all covered individuals. Any individual who is eligible for Medicaid and is, or becomes, pregnant maintains such eligibility for one year after the end of the pregnancy. The bill revises the range in which a state must establish a maximum level of family income for pregnant women and infants to be eligible for Medicaid. The upper limit of the range is eliminated and the lower limit is set to the level in place on January 1, 2014.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2019
Pregnant Workers Fairness Act This bill prohibits employment practices that discriminate against making reasonable accommodations for job applicants or employees affected by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions. Specifically, the bill declares that it is an unlawful employment practice to (1) fail to make reasonable accommodations to known limitations of such job applicants or employees, unless the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on an entity's business operation; (2) deny employment opportunities based on the need of the entity to make such reasonable accommodations to an applicant or employee; (3) require such job applicants or employees to accept an accommodation that they do not want, if such accommodation is unnecessary to perform the job; (4) require such employees to take paid or unpaid leave if another reasonable accommodation can be provided to their known limitations; or (5) take adverse action in terms, conditions, or privileges of employment against an employee requesting or using such reasonable accommodations. The bill sets forth enforcement procedures and remedies under various statutes that cover different types of employees in relation to such unlawful employment practices. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission must provide examples of reasonable accommodations that shall be provided to affected job applicants or employees unless the employer can demonstrate that doing so would impose an undue hardship. The bill prohibits state immunity under the Eleventh Amendment to the Constitution from an action for a violation of this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2019
Savanna's Act This bill directs the Department of Justice (DOJ) to review, revise, and develop law enforcement and justice protocols to address missing and murdered Native Americans. The bill requires DOJ to take the following actions: provide training to law enforcement agencies on how to record tribal enrollment for victims in federal databases, develop and implement a strategy to notify the public of the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, conduct specific outreach to tribes regarding the ability to publicly enter information through the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System or other non-law enforcement sensitive portal, develop regionally appropriate guidelines for response to cases of missing and murdered Native Americans, provide training and technical assistance to tribes and law enforcement agencies for implementation of the developed guidelines, and report statistics on missing and murdered Native Americans. The bill authorizes DOJ to provide grants for the purposes of (1) developing and implementing policies and protocols for law enforcement regarding cases of missing and murdered Native Americans, and (2) compiling and reporting data relating to missing and murdered Native Americans. Federal law enforcement agencies must modify their guidelines to incorporate the guidelines developed by DOJ. The Federal Bureau of Investigation shall include gender in its annual statistics on missing and unidentified persons published on its website.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2019
Disarm Hate Act The bill expands the categories of persons who are prohibited from receiving or possessing a firearm. Specifically, it prohibits firearm sale or transfer to and receipt, possession, shipment, or transport by a person (1) who has been convicted of a misdemeanor hate crime, or (2) who has received an enhanced hate crime misdemeanor sentence.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2019
Adoptee Citizenship Act of 2019 This bill provides for the automatic acquisition of citizenship for certain individuals adopted by a U.S. citizen. A child born outside the United States and adopted by a U.S. citizen shall automatically acquire citizenship upon meeting certain requirements, regardless of when the adoption was finalized. Currently, adoptees who were over the age of 18 on February 27, 2001, do not automatically acquire citizenship. An individual born outside the United States and residing in the United States shall automatically acquire citizenship if the individual (1) was adopted by a citizen before becoming 18 years old, (2) was physically present in the United States in the citizen parent's custody pursuant to lawful admission before becoming 18 years old, (3) never acquired citizenship before this bill's enactment, and (4) was lawfully residing in the United States on this bill's enactment date. An individual born outside the United States and residing outside the United States but who otherwise meets all of the requirements shall automatically acquire citizenship upon being physically present in the United States pursuant to lawful admission. Such an individual shall be subject to a background check. If the background check reveals the individual has committed a crime that was not properly resolved, the individual may not receive a visa unless the Department of Homeland Security and Department of State have coordinated with law enforcement to ensure that action was taken to resolve the issue.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2019
Special Diabetes Program Reauthorization Act of 2019 This bill reauthorizes through FY2024 the Special Diabetes Program. The program is administered by the National Institutes of Health and focuses on research regarding the prevention and cure of type I diabetes.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2019
Strength in Diversity Act of 2019 This bill directs the Department of Education to award grants to specified educational agencies to develop or implement plans to improve diversity and reduce or eliminate racial or socioeconomic isolation in publicly funded early childhood education programs, public elementary schools, or public secondary schools.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2019
Safe Schools Improvement Act of 2019 This bill requires states to direct their local educational agencies (LEAs) to establish policies that prevent and prohibit conduct, including bullying and harassment, that is sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive to (1) limit students' ability to participate in, or benefit from, school programs; or (2) create a hostile or abusive educational environment that adversely affects students' education. LEAs shall also provide (1) students, parents, and educational professionals with annual notice of the conduct prohibited in their disciplinary policies; (2) students and parents with grievance procedures that target such conduct; and (3) the public with annual data on the incidence and frequency of that conduct at the school and LEA level. The Department of Education must conduct, and report on, an independent biennial evaluation of programs and policies to combat bullying and harassment in elementary and secondary schools. The National Center for Education Statistics shall collect state data to determine the incidence and frequency of the conduct prohibited by LEA disciplinary policies.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2019
CCAMPIS Reauthorization Act This bill reauthorizes through FY2025 and revises the Child Care Access Means Parents in School Program. (The program awards grants to support the participation of low-income parents in postsecondary education through the provision of campus-based child care services.) Among other revisions to the program, the bill authorizes the Department of Education (ED) to provide performance bonuses to certain institutions of higher education (IHEs); requires ED to give priority in awarding grants to certain IHEs, including those with high proportions of independent or low-income students; and specifies additional grant application requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2019
This resolution celebrates the 100th anniversary of the passage and ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution, providing for women's suffrage. The resolution also reaffirms the desire of Congress to continue strengthening democratic participation.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2019
Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2019 This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act and related labor laws to extend protections to union workers. Specifically, it revises the definition of "employee" and "supervisor" to prevent employers from classifying employees as exempt from labor law protections, expands unfair labor practices to include prohibitions against replacement of or discrimination against workers who participate in strikes, makes it an unfair labor practice to require or coerce employees to attend employer meetings designed to discourage union membership, permits workers to participate in collective or class action litigation, allows injunctions against employers engaging in unfair labor practices involving discharge or serious economic harm to an employee, expands penalties for labor law violations, including interference with the National Labor Relations Board or causing serious economic harm to an employee, and allows any person to bring a civil action for harm caused by labor law violations or unfair labor practices.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2019
Stronger Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act This bill reauthorizes through FY2025 and revises the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act and the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment and Adoption Reform Act of 1978 to expand services for preventing and treating child abuse. Specifically, the bill establishes requirements concerning collecting and exchanging data about child abuse and neglect. For instance, the bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to (1) establish uniform national standards for tracking and reporting child fatalities and near-fatalities resulting from maltreatment, and (2) develop an electronic interstate data exchange system that allows states to share information from their child abuse and neglect registries with other states. In addition, the bill addresses child abuse and neglect related to families impacted by substance use disorders, racial bias in the child protective services system, and child sexual abuse. Finally, the bill requires HHS to examine unregulated custody transfers and make recommendations for preventing, identifying, and responding to such transfers.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2019
Roadless Area Conservation Act of 2019 This bill bars the Department of Agriculture from allowing the construction of roads, the reconstruction of roads, or logging in an inventoried roadless area where those activities are prohibited by the Roadless Rule (i.e., certain federal regulations relating to roadless area management).
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2019
Medical Nutrition Equity Act of 2019 This bill expands coverage under Medicare, Medicaid, other specified federal health-care programs, and private health insurance to include foods, vitamins, and individual amino acids that are medically necessary for the management of certain digestive and metabolic disorders and conditions.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2019
Gold Star Family Tax Relief Act This bill treats certain military survivor benefits that are received by children as earned income of the child for the purposes of the kiddie tax (the tax on the unearned income of children). This has the effect of exempting the benefits from such tax.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2019
Federal Retirement Fairness Act This bill modifies the federal civilian service that is creditable service under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). Specifically, it expands the nondeduction service that may be creditable under FERS. Nondeduction service is federal service where an employee's pay is not subject to retirement deductions (e.g., service under a temporary appointment). Currently, nondeduction service performed before January 1, 1989, is creditable under FERS so long as a deposit is made into the retirement fund to cover the period of nondeduction service. This bill allows nondeduction service performed on or after January 1, 1989, to be creditable under FERS so long as a deposit is made into the retirement fund.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2019
State Opioid Response Grant Authorization Act This bill reauthorizes through FY2024 the State Opioid Response Grants program that is administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2019
Accelerating Veterans Recovery Outdoors Act This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to establish the Task Force on Outdoor Recreation for Veterans to report on and make recommendations regarding the use of public lands or other outdoor spaces for medical treatment and therapy for veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2019
National Museum of the American Latino Act This bill establishes the National Museum of the American Latino in the Smithsonian Institution. The purposes of the museum are to (1) illuminate Latino contributions to the story of the United States; (2) provide for the collection, study, research, publication, and establishment of exhibitions and programs related to Latino life, art, history, and culture; and (3) provide for collaboration with Smithsonian Institution museums and research centers and other museums and educational institutions in the United States and abroad to promote the study and appreciation of Latino life, art, history, culture, and its impact on society in the United States. The bill establishes a Board of Trustees for the museum to advise and assist the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian on all matters related to the administration and preservation of the museum. The Director of the museum shall manage the museum and may carry out educational and liaison programs in support of its goals. The Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services shall establish and carry out specified grant programs and a scholarship program, including a grant program to promote the understanding of the Latin American diaspora in the United States. The Board of Regents shall designate a site for the museum and is authorized to design and construct it.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2019
Tobacco to 21 Act This bill prohibits the sale of tobacco products to (1) anyone under the age of 21, or (2) anyone under the age of 30 without photo identification of the purchaser's age. The Food and Drug Administration must enforce this prohibition by, for example, conducting undercover compliance checks, performing retailer inspections, and initiating enforcement actions for noncompliance. The bill establishes penalties for violations.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2019
This resolution expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that only a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can ensure Israel's survival as a secure Jewish and democratic state and fulfill the legitimate aspirations for a Palestinian state. It also expresses the sense that any U.S. proposals that fail to expressly endorse a two-state solution will likely put a peaceful end to the conflict further out of reach.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2019
Duty to Refuse and Report Foreign Interference in American Elections Act of 2019 This bill prohibits campaigns from accepting foreign assistance and requires a campaign to report an offer of foreign assistance to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 2019
Ghost Army Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to award a Congressional Gold Medal to the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops, known as the "Ghost Army," collectively, in recognition of its service during World War II.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 2019
Reversing the Youth Tobacco Epidemic Act of 2019 This bill revises regulations related to the safety, sale, and advertisement of tobacco products, including electronic nicotine delivery systems (e.g., e-cigarettes, e-hookah, e-cigars, and vape pens). Among other requirements, the bill requires the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to implement regulations that require color graphics depicting the negative health consequences of smoking on the labeling of cigarette packages; requires the FDA to apply regulations on tobacco products to all tobacco products, including e-cigarettes; raises the minimum age for purchasing tobacco products to age 21, and makes it unlawful to market, advertise, or promote any electronic nicotine delivery system to individuals under such age; prohibits the retail online sale of tobacco products, including electronic nicotine delivery systems; prohibits the use of flavored products in an electronic nicotine delivery system, except in specified circumstances; increases the user fees that the FDA collects from manufacturers and importers; and directs the FDA to regulate products containing synthetic nicotine (not made or derived from tobacco).
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2019
Scarlett’s Sunshine on Sudden Unexpected Death Act This bill establishes various programs for the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) to award grants to states, local agencies, and nonprofit organizations to address sudden unexpected infant and childhood deaths. The CDC must award grants to eligible applicants to (1) conduct comprehensive death scene investigations, (2) increase the rate of standardized autopsies, and (3) obtain informed consent from families to collect genetic or tissue samples for research into the causes of such deaths. The bill also provides grants for training medical examiners, and other appropriate personnel, about standardized investigative practices, including the infant or child's medical history, other circumstances surrounding the death. The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) of the Department of Health and Human Services also must provide grants to states to develop the capacity for local governments to comprehensively review 100% of all infant and child deaths and maintain the National Fatality Review Case Reporting System. Further, the CDC must use such national reporting system to compile and make publicly available summary data about sudden unexpected infant and childhood deaths. The CDC also must revise its death investigation forms to align with the form used under the national reporting system. Additionally, the bill requires the ACF to award grants to (1) promote evidence-based best practices, (2) support prevention efforts, (3) provide safe-sleep products, and (4) support the provision of services to families who have had an infant or child die from a sudden unexpected death.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2019
Safe Step Act This bill requires a group health plan to establish an exception to medication step-therapy protocol in specified cases. A medication step-therapy protocol establishes a specific sequence in which prescription drugs are covered by a group health plan or a health insurance issuer. A request for such an exception to the protocol must be granted if (1) the treatment is expected to be ineffective, (2) the treatment will cause or is likely to cause an adverse reaction to the individual, (3) the treatment is expected to decrease the individual's ability either to perform daily activities or occupational responsibilities or adhere to the treatment plan, (4) the individual is stable based on the prescription drugs already selected, or (5) there are other medical reasons that warrant withholding the treatment. The bill requires a group health plan to implement and make readily available a clear process for an individual to request an exception to the protocol. Requests must be granted no later than three days after receipt of the request. In certain cases where the life, health, and ability of the individual are jeopardized by the protocol, the request shall be granted no later than 24 hours after receipt of the request.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2019
National Origin-Based Antidiscrimination for Nonimmigrants Act or the NO BAN Act This bill imposes limitations on the President's authority to suspend or restrict aliens from entering the United States and terminates certain presidential actions implementing such restrictions. It also prohibits religious discrimination in various immigration-related decisions, such as whether to issue an immigrant or non-immigrant visa, with certain exceptions. The President may temporarily restrict the entry of any aliens or class of aliens after the Department of State determines that the restriction would address specific acts that threaten U.S. interests such as security or public safety. The bill also imposes limitations on such restrictions, such as requiring the President, State Department, and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to provide specific evidence of a need for the restriction, and to narrowly tailor the restriction to meet a compelling government interest. Before imposing a restriction, the President, State Department, and DHS shall consult with Congress. The State Department and DHS shall report to Congress about the restriction within 48 hours of the restriction's imposition, with regular updates. If such reports are not made, the restriction shall immediately terminate.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2019
Promoting United Government Efforts to Save Our Sound Act or the PUGET SOS Act This bill provides support for the restoration and protection of the Puget Sound, an estuary in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Washington. Specifically, the bill establishes (1) a Puget Sound Recovery National Program Office within the Environmental Protection Agency, and (2) the Puget Sound Federal Leadership Task Force. Finally, the bill establishes a State Advisory Committee.
![Official portrait of Rep. Schrier, Kim [D-WA-8]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s001216_200.jpg)