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![Official portrait of Rep. Pocan, Mark [D-WI-2]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/p000607_200.jpg)
United States · Official source
4,947 records where Rep. Pocan, Mark [D-WI-2] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2018
Supports the designation of Public Education Week.
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 2018
Sets forth the rule for consideration of the bill (H.R. 4760) to amend the immigration laws and the homeland security laws.
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 2018
Stemming the Tide of Rural Economic Stress and Suicide Act or the STRESS Act This bill amends the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 to reauthorize through FY2023 and modify the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network, which is a Department of Agriculture (USDA) program to provide grants for programs that provide mental health services to individuals engaged in farming, ranching, and other agriculture-related occupations. The bill also sets forth requirements for USDA to review and evaluate the stress assistance programs carried out using the grants.
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 2018
Disapproves of using and expanding the use of federal funds, including tax expenditures, to subsidize tuition or other expenses associated with students enrolling in private elementary schools and secondary schools, except for limited allowances permitted in law. Affirms that public funds should be used to support public elementary schools and secondary schools only.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2018
Adoptee Citizenship Act of 2018 This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to grant automatic citizenship to all qualifying children adopted by a U.S. citizen parent. (Currently, an adopted child must have been under 18 years old as of February 27, 2001, in order to qualify for automatic citizenship.) An individual born outside of the United States who was adopted by a U.S. citizen parent shall automatically become a U.S. citizen when the following conditions have been fulfilled: the individual was adopted by a U.S. citizen before the individual reached age 18, the individual was physically present in the United States in the citizen parent's legal custody pursuant to a lawful admission before the individual reached age 18, the individual never acquired U.S. citizenship before the enactment of this bill, and the individual was lawfully residing in the United States on the date of enactment of this bill. An individual who meets such criteria, except for lawfully residing in the United States on the date of enactment of this bill, shall automatically become a U.S. citizen on the date on which the individual is physically present in the United States pursuant to a lawful admission. A visa may not be issued to such an individual unless: the individual was subjected to a criminal background check, and the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of State coordinated with law enforcement agencies to ensure that appropriate action is taken regarding any unresolved criminal activity. Automatic citizenship may not be granted to an individual who was deported for an offense that involved the use of physical force against another person.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2018
Health Care Workplace Violence Prevention Act This bill requires the Department of Labor to address workplace violence in health care facilities pursuant to the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. Specifically, Labor must issue a rule that requires certain health care employers to adopt a comprehensive plan for protecting health care workers and other personnel from workplace violence.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2018
Directing Implementation of Sanctions and Accountability for Russian Mischief Act or the DISARM Act This bill directs the President to impose property-blocking and U.S. entry sanctions against certain senior Russian foreign political figures or oligarchs and parastatal entities (and associated individuals) not currently subject to sanctions.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 2018
Seeds for the Future Act This bill amends the Competitive, Special, and Facilities Research Grant Act to require the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to ensure that at least $50 million of USDA grant funding is used each year for competitive research grants that support the development of public cultivars. A "cultivar" is a variety of plant that has been intentionally selected for use in cultivation because of its improved characteristics. A "public cultivar" is the commercially available uniform end product of a publicly funded breeding program that has been sufficiently tested to demonstrate improved characteristics and stable performance. The bill also amends the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 to establish a public cultivar research activities coordinator within USDA to coordinate research activities relating to the breeding of public cultivars.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2018
Strengthening Our Investment in Land Stewardship Act or the SOIL Stewardship Act This bill amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to reauthorize and modify Department of Agriculture conservation programs, including the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and the Conservation Stewardship Program. The bill addresses requirements for the programs relating to: enrollment and funding levels, the length and renewal process for contracts, payment rates, payment limitations, coordinating the application and enrollment processes for the two programs, set-asides and the enrollment process for beginning and socially disadvantaged farmers, soil health and carbon storage, and wildlife conservation and organic production.
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 2018
Undo Sabotage and Expand Affordability of Health Insurance Act of 2018 This bill makes a series of changes relating to health insurance coverage, costs, and funding mechanisms. Among other things, the bill expands requirements relating to coverage of preexisting conditions to include short-term, limited-duration insurance and also establishes a national reinsurance program.
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 2018
This bill requires the Surgeon General to report annually to Congress on the effects of gun violence on public health and the status of actions taken to address those effects.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2018
Buy America 2.0 Act This bill prohibits federal funding of a transportation or infrastructure project unless the steel, iron, and manufactured goods used for the project are produced in the United States, except where: (1) inconsistent with the public interest; (2) iron, steel, and the relevant manufactured goods are not produced in the United States in sufficient and reasonably available quantities and of a satisfactory quality; or (3) inclusion of iron, steel, and manufactured goods produced in the United States will increase the cost of the overall project by more than 25%. The bill revises and expands Buy America provisions pertaining to public transportation, rail loan and loan guarantees, and aviation. The bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to apply in all fiscal years (currently, FY2017) the prohibition on the use of funds for a public water system project that does not use iron and steel products produced in the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2018
Close Tax Loopholes That Outsource American Jobs Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the tax deduction for a portion of a domestic corporation's foreign-derived intangible income and global intangible low-taxed income.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2018
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of National Women's History Month. Recognizes and honors the women and organizations in the United States that have fought for and continue to promote the teaching of women's history.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2018
Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development Act of 2018 or the BUILD Act of 2018 This bill establishes the United States International Development Finance Corporation to facilitate the participation of private sector capital and skills in the economic development of countries with low- or lower-middle-income economies and countries transitioning from nonmarket to market economies in order to complement U.S. assistance and foreign policy objectives. The corporation may: (1) make loans or loan guarantees, (2) as a minority investor acquire equity or financial interests in entities, (3) provide insurance or reinsurance to private sector entities and qualifying sovereign entities, (4) provide technical assistance, (5) administer special projects, (6) establish enterprise funds, (7) issue obligations, and (8) charge service fees. The corporation shall terminate after seven years. The corporation shall not provide assistance to: (1) a country whose government has repeatedly supported acts of international terrorism, or (2) a private sector entity that is engaged in monopolistic practices. The bill prescribes transitional provisions, including transferring to the corporation the functions, personnel, assets, and liabilities of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (which is subsequently terminated) and specified elements of the U.S. Agency for International Development.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2018
Rare disease Advancement, Research, and Education Act of 2018 or the RARE Act of 2018 This bill reauthorizes through FY2023 the Office of Rare Diseases in the National Institutes of Health. The bill requires (1) the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to expand infrastructure and activities to track the epidemiology of rare diseases and conditions and to incorporate this information into a National Rare Disease or Condition Surveillance System, and (2) the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to expand its activities to increase providers' awareness of rare diseases and conditions.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2018
Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2018 This bill amends the Toxic Substances Control Act to require the Environmental Protection Agency to: (1) identify and assess the importation, sale, and uses of, and exposures to, asbestos; and (2) impose requirements that permanently eliminate the possibility of human or environmental exposure to asbestos. The bill allows the President to exempt any use of asbestos from the requirements if: (1) the use is necessary to protect national security interests, (2) no reasonable alternative to the asbestos use exists for the intended purpose, and (3) the use of asbestos will not result in an unreasonable risk to health or the environment.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2018
This joint resolution nullifies the rule submitted by the Federal Communications Commission entitled "Restoring Internet Freedom." The rule published on February 22, 2018: (1) restores the classification of broadband Internet access service as a lightly-regulated "information service"; (2) reinstates private mobile service classification of mobile broadband Internet access service; (3) requires Internet service providers to disclose information about their network management practices, performance characteristics, and commercial terms of service; and (4) eliminates the Internet Conduct Standard and the bright-line rules.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2018
This bill removes the prohibition on TRICARE Standard eligibility for members of the Selected Reserve of a reserve component of the Armed Forces who are enrolled or eligible to enroll in the federal health benefits program.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2018
Community Action Opioid Response Act of 2018 This bill requires the Office of Community Services within the Department of Health and Human Services to establish a grant program that helps low-income individuals, families, and communities affected by the national opioid epidemic. Grants must be awarded to Community Action Agencies (local organizations that work to reduce poverty in low-income communities) for specified activities relating to opioid misuse and abuse, including education, outreach, prevention, and treatment services.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2018
No Tax Breaks for Outsourcing Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the taxation of the foreign-source income of domestic corporations, to: eliminate an exemption for certain returns from tangible investments made overseas, eliminate deductions for a domestic corporation's foreign-derived intangible income and global intangible low-taxed income, repeal a provision that excludes foreign oil and gas extraction income from the tested income of a controlled foreign corporation, limit the tax deduction for the interest expenses of a U.S. corporation that is a member of a financial reporting group (i.e., a group that prepares consolidated financial statements according to generally accepted accounting principles or international financial reporting standards), modify the rules for the taxation of inverted corporations (U.S. corporations that acquire foreign companies to reincorporate in a foreign jurisdiction with income tax rates lower than the United States), and treat certain foreign corporations managed and controlled primarily in the United States as domestic corporations for tax purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2018
Assault Weapons Ban of 2018 This bill amends the federal criminal code to make it a crime to knowingly import, sell, manufacture, transfer, or possess a semiautomatic assault weapon (SAW) or large capacity ammunition feeding device (LCAFD). The prohibition does not apply to a firearm that is: (1) manually operated by bolt, pump, lever, or slide action; (2) permanently inoperable; (3) an antique; or (4) a rifle or shotgun specifically identified by make and model. Additionally, the bill does not prohibit, with respect to a SAW or LCAFD: importation, sale, manufacture, transfer, or possession related to certain law enforcement efforts, or authorized tests or experiments; importation, sale, transfer, or possession related to securing nuclear materials; and possession by a retired law enforcement officer. The bill permits continued possession, sale, or transfer of a grandfathered SAW, which must be securely stored. A licensed gun dealer must conduct a background check prior to the sale or transfer of a grandfathered SAW between private parties. The bill permits continued possession of, but prohibits sale or transfer of, a grandfathered LCAFD. Newly manufactured LCAFDs must display serial number identification. Newly manufactured SAWs and LCAFDs must display the date of manufacture. The legislation amends the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 to require law enforcement agencies to be notified when a prohibited person attempts to purchase a grandfathered SAW. It also amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to allow a state or local government to use Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program funds to compensate individuals who surrender a SAW or LCAFD under a buy-back program.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2018
Calls for the designation of a Prisoners of Conscience Day.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2018
Job Creation through Energy Efficient Manufacturing Act This bill requires the Department of Energy (DOE) to establish a Financing Energy Efficient Manufacturing Program that provides grants for projects that: (1) improve the energy efficiency of small- or medium-sized manufacturers that employ no more than 750 employees, and (2) develop technologies to reduce electricity or natural gas use by the manufacturers. The bill establishes labor requirements for projects that receive grant funding under this bill. In addition, the bill establishes a requirement that grant projects only use iron and steel products that are produced in the United States, unless DOE grants a waiver of the requirement.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2018
Confederate Commemorative Works Inventory and Joint Resource Study Act This bill directs the Departments of the Interior, Defense, and Veterans Affairs to each conduct a full inventory of specified Confederate commemorative works, including flags and other symbols or signage, on the public lands under their jurisdiction. Using such inventories, the National Park Service shall conduct a special resource study to examine the works commemorating and interpreting the Civil War and commemorating, with respect to such war, the soldiers, people on the home front and battle lines, and related locations in the United States from 1861-1865. Among contents required to be identified by the study are historical assessments of each work, the suitability and feasibility of retaining works, identification of properties that could meet the criteria for designation as national historic sites, and an evaluation of historical research.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2018
Reserve Component Benefits Parity Act of 2018 This bill makes reserve component members who are deployed to support pre-planned operations of a combatant command eligible for: (1) non-reduction in pay while serving in the uniformed services or National Guard, (2) consideration of active duty service to reduce the age for retired pay ; and (3) the high-deployment allowance for lengthy or numerous deployments and frequent mobilizations.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2018
International Violence Against Women Act of 2018 This bill provides for a U.S. global strategy to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls. The bill establishes in the Department of State an Office of Global Women's Issues which shall be headed by an Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues. The Ambassador-at-Large shall: (1) coordinate U.S. government efforts regarding gender equality and the advancement of women and girls in foreign policy, and (2) develop or update periodically a U.S. global strategy to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls. The bill establishes in the U.S. Agency for International Development the position of Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment who shall direct policies, programs, and funding regarding gender equality and women's empowerment. The bill requires that U.S. assistance made available for humanitarian relief, conflict mitigation, and post-conflict reconstruction prevents and responds to violence against women and girls. The Department of State shall also identify incidents that occur during armed conflict and implement emergency responses.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2018
Election Security Act This bill directs the Election Assistance Commission to establish grant programs to support (1) states' compliance with certain voting system security requirements, including the use of voting systems that require individual paper ballots marked by hand; (2) states' audits of federal election results (i.e., manual counts of paper ballots); and (3) research and development directed at improving the security and reliability of election infrastructure. The bill also (1) requires the President to develop a national strategy to protect against attacks on U.S. democratic institutions, and (2) establishes the National Commission to Protect U.S. Democratic Institutions.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2018
Expresses support for the designation of World Bonobo Day and encourages participation in activities that help to educate the public about the need to protect bonobos as endangered great apes.
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 2018
Air Carrier Access Amendments Act of 2018 This bill expands provisions prohibiting discrimination against disabled individuals by an air carrier. Specifically, it enumerates certain actions that an air carrier must take or may not take with respect to a disabled individual. It also requires the Department of Transportation (DOT) to ensure that disabled individuals traveling in air transportation are able to file complaints with DOT in response to disability-related discrimination and receive assistance from DOT through a hotline or comparable electronic means. The bill authorizes an aggrieved individual and the Department of Justice to bring a civil action for discrimination. The civil penalty for damage for discrimination involving damage to a wheelchair or other mobility aid of a disabled passenger may be increased up to three times the maximum penalty otherwise allowed. The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board shall prescribe regulations for aircraft with new or existing type certificates to ensure the accessibility of individuals with disabilities. The board shall: (1) conduct a study to determine the ways in which individuals with significant disabilities who use wheelchairs can be accommodated through in-cabin wheelchair restraint systems, and (2) issue minimum guidelines for such systems. DOT shall: (1) prescribe or revise regulations to ensure that individuals with disabilities who request assistance receive timely and effective assistance at airports and on aircraft from trained personnel, (2) develop an Airline Passengers with Disabilities Bill of Rights, and (3) establish an advisory committee for air travel needs of passengers with disabilities.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2018
Concentrating on High-Value Alzheimer's Needs to Get to an End (CHANGE) Act of 2018 This bill makes a series of changes to Medicare and the directives of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation in order to address Alzheimer's disease and related dementias, such as incorporating certain cognitive impairment detection tools and diagnostic service referrals into the Medicare annual wellness visit.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2018
Supports the designation of Career and Technical Education Month to celebrate career and technical education (CTE) and the goals and ideals of such month. Recognizes the importance of CTE in preparing a well-educated and skilled workforce. Encourages educators, school counselors, guidance and career development professionals, administrators, and parents to promote CTE as a respected option for students.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2018
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2018
Protecting Independent Contractors from Discrimination Act of 2018 This bill requires that independent contractors be treated as employees under title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2018
Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act This bill requires federal employees furloughed due to a lapse in appropriations that begins on or about February 8, 2018, to be compensated at their standard rate of compensation for the period of such lapse as soon as practicable after such lapse ends.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2018
Advancing Innovation and Reinvigorating Widespread Access to Viable Electromagnetic Spectrum Act or the AIRWAVES Act This bill requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to complete auctions by December 31, 2020, that will grant priority access broadcast licenses for specified frequency spectrum bands. The FCC and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration are directed to identify frequencies in specified spectrum bands that may be utilized for non-federal unlicensed use and commercial licensed use. The FCC must allocate 10% of proceeds from each of the spectrum band auctions specified in the bill to expand wireless infrastructure in rural areas that are underserved or unserved. The FCC shall conduct a study on how unlicensed frequency spectrum bands can be utilized for: (1) the provision of healthcare in rural areas, (2) distance learning, and (3) facilitating innovations in agriculture.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2018
Reuniting Families Act This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to recapture unused employment-based and family-sponsored visas from FY1992-FY2016; reclassify spouses, permanent partners, minor children, and stepchildren of permanent residents as immediate relatives; repeal the per-country immigration limits; repeal specified bars to reentry and allow waivers of inadmissibility to promote family unity; exempt children of naturalized Filipino veterans from immigration limitations; and allow relatives of a deceased alien to maintain visa eligibility. The bill defines "permanent partner" to purposes of applying the INA to LGBT families and individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2018
Women and Climate Change Act of 2018 This bill establishes a Federal Interagency Working Group on Women and Climate Change within the Department of State. The duties of the working group include: (1) coordinating the development of policies and activities of the federal government relating to addressing the effects of climate change on women, and (2) identifying and disseminating best practices for improved data collection relevant to the disparate impact of climate change on women. The working group and the State Department's Office of Global Women's Issues must develop a strategy to prevent and respond to the effects of climate change on women. The office must designate a Senior Coordinator for Women and Climate Change.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2018
Honors the contributions of school counselors to the success of students in elementary and secondary schools. Encourages the observation of National School Counseling Week with ceremonies and activities that promote awareness of the crucial role school counselors play in preparing students for fulfilling lives as contributing members of society.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2018
Women and Lung Cancer Research and Preventive Services Act of 2018 This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to conduct an interagency study regarding research on lung cancer in women, access to lung cancer preventive services, and public awareness and education campaigns on lung cancer. The study must include a comprehensive report on research and knowledge gaps related to lung cancer in women in the federal government and recommendations for: (1) a research program that would encourage innovative approaches to eliminate knowledge gaps, (2) the development of a national lung cancer screening strategy with sufficient resources to expand access to screening, and (3) the development of a national public education and awareness campaign on lung cancer in women and the importance of early detection of lung cancer.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2018
Healthy Climate and Family Security Act of 2018 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to require the Department of the Treasury to establish a carbon trading program that caps the emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) from crude oil, coal, and natural gas. Beginning in 2019, crude oil refineries, petroleum importers, coal mines, coal importers, and natural gas suppliers or processors must purchase carbon permits equivalent to the amount of CO2 that would be emitted by covered fuels. Treasury will auction these permits to those entities. This bill establishes a declining cap on the quantity of permits issued to reduce CO2 emissions until 2050 when the permits issued represent an amount 80% below 2005 CO2 emission levels. Treasury must issue permits for carbon capture and sequestration of CO2 from covered fuels. This bill provides for the trading or sale of permits between entities, the banking by entities of permits for future years, and the borrowing by Treasury of permits from future years to stabilize permit prices. Auction proceeds and penalties are returned to U.S. citizens lawfully present in the United States using the Healthy Climate Trust Fund established by this bill. Treasury must impose fees on the import and pay fees for the export of carbon-intensive goods when the export country does not have equivalent measures to regulate greenhouse gases. Carbon-intensive goods are goods with an increased cost due to the regulation of greenhouse gases. The Environmental Protection Agency must regulate within 10 years all sources of greenhouse gases that are anthropogenically emitted. This excludes gases attributable to the production of animals for food.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2018
Supports: (1) the goals of the International Decade for People of African Descent, (2) the establishment of a global affairs strategy and assistance for such people, and (3) the expansion of efforts by international organizations to address the human rights situation of such people. Calls upon the United States, in cooperation with African descent communities, academics, activists, businesses, and philanthropic organizations, to develop strategies to execute the goals and ideals of such decade and to combat racism. Reaffirms the commitment of Congress to combat racism, discrimination, and intolerance in the United States and around the globe.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2018
Connecting Broadband Deserts Act of 2018 This bill amends the Communications Act of 1934 to require the Federal Communications Commission to conduct an annual inquiry on the availability of advanced telecommunications capability in broadband deserts, including whether such capability is being deployed in a reasonable and timely fashion and, if not, take immediate action to accelerate deployment of such capability by removing barriers to infrastructure investment and promoting competition. The term "broadband desert" means a census block in an urban area in which fewer than 33% of end-user premises do not have access to advanced telecommunications capability.
United States · United States Congress · 19 January 2018
Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act This bill requires the Federal Labor Relations Authority to determine whether a state substantially provides public safety officers or employees: the right to form and join a labor organization; recognition by public safety employers of the employees' labor organization, agreement to bargain with the organization, and reduction of any agreements to writing in a contract or memorandum of understanding; the right to bargain over hours, wages, and terms and conditions of employment; and binding interest arbitration to resolve an impasse in collective bargaining negotiations. The bill makes the authority responsible for: (1) determining the appropriateness of units for labor representation; (2) supervising elections; (3) conducting hearings and resolving complaints of unfair labor practices; and (4) protecting the right of employees to form, join, or assist any labor organization, or to refrain from doing so. An employer, public safety officer, or labor organization may not engage in a lockout, sickout, work slowdown, strike, or any other organized job action that will measurably disrupt the delivery of emergency services and is designed to compel an employer, public safety officer, or labor organization to agree to the terms of a proposed contract.
United States · United States Congress · 19 January 2018
SNAP Healthy Incentives Act of 201 8 This bill amends the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to provide a financial incentive for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program) participants to purchase fruits and vegetables.
United States · United States Congress · 19 January 2018
This bill requires the Joint Committee on the Library to enter into an agreement to obtain a statue of Shirley Chisholm. The committee may authorize the Architect of the Capitol to enter into the agreement as well as related contracts. The committee shall place the statue in a suitable permanent location in the U.S. Capitol.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2018
Supports the designation of Darwin Day. Recognizes Charles Darwin as a worthy symbol on which to celebrate the achievements of reason, science, and the advancement of human knowledge.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2018
Advancing Seniors and Kids Act or the ASK Act This bill extends, and otherwise revises, various public health and social welfare programs. Specifically, the bill: permanently extends the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP); extends by one year, but reduces by half, additional federal financial participation for CHIP; extends CHIP's qualifying-states option, express-lane eligibility option, and outreach and enrollment program; extends the Child Enrollment Contingency Fund, the Childhood Obesity Demonstration Project, and the Pediatric Quality Measures Program; modifies Medicare payment rules and reporting requirements with respect to ground-ambulance services; permanently extends specialized Medicare Advantage (MA) plans for certain special-needs individuals; expands certain supplemental benefits under MA for chronically ill enrollees; extends the Medicare payment adjustment known as the "home-health rural add-on"; makes permanent or extends other specified programs and payment rules under Medicare; under Medicaid, extends certain health workforce demonstration projects as well as specified programs related to community health centers, diabetes, graduate medical education, family-to-family health-information centers, abstinence education, and personal-responsibility education; delays certain changes, under Medicaid, to disproportionate-share hospital allotments and to third-party liability provisions; extends the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program and requires, under the program, continued demonstration of improvements in certain benchmark areas; establishes a grant program for the monitoring of representative payees under the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program and the Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) program; otherwise revises provisions related to representative payment under SSI and OASDI; and with respect to the child-welfare system, modifies provisions related to information sharing and to overpayment liability.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2018
No Unconstitutional Strike against North Korea Act This bill expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) a conflict on the Korean peninsula would have catastrophic consequences; (2) actions and statements that increase tensions between the United States and North Korea should be avoided; and (3) the President should engage in talks with North Korea to reduce tensions and improve communication, initiate negotiations to achieve a diplomatic agreement to halt and eventually reverse North Korea's nuclear pursuits, and move toward denuclearization and a permanent peace in the Korean peninsula. Funds available to the Department of Defense or to any other federal department or agency may not be used to launch a military strike against North Korea or otherwise introduce U.S. Armed Forces into hostilities in North Korea before the earlier of: (1) the date on which Congress declares war on North Korea, or (2) the date of an authorization that meets the requirements of the War Powers Resolution and that is enacted after the enactment of this bill. Such prohibition shall not apply to military force used to: (1) repel a sudden attack on the United States, its territories or possessions, its Armed Forces, or its allies; or (2) rescue or remove U. S. personnel.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2018
Codifying Useful Regulatory Definitions Act or the CURD Act This bills amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to establish a definition for natural cheese.