United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2009
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) modify the exemption from the 10% penalty for premature distributions from governmental employee benefit plans to qualified public safety employees to eliminate the restriction that such plans be defined benefit plans; and (2) exempt from tax penalties certain periodic payments made to qualified public safety employees before the enactment of the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (i.e., August 17, 2006).
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2009
National Urban Search and Rescue Response System Act of 2009 - Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to direct the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to: (1) continue to administer the National Urban Search and Rescue Response System; (2) provide for a national network of standardized search and rescue resources; (3) designate task forces to participate in the System and determine criteria for participation; and (4) enter into an agreement with the required sponsoring agency of each task force regarding participation. Sets forth provisions regarding the composition of task forces and reimbursement. Authorizes the Administrator to appoint a System member for a period of federal service to participate in sponsored or sanctioned exercises, pre-incident staging, major disaster and emergency response activities, and training events. Entitles a member who suffers personal injury, illness, disability, or death while acting in the scope of such appointment to be treated as an employee who sustained the injury in the performance of duty. Sets forth provisions regarding election of benefits, liability, employment and re-employment rights, and licenses and permits. Directs the Administrator to: (1) establish and maintain an advisory committee; (2) enter into an annual preparedness cooperative agreement with each agency; and (3) enter into response cooperative agreements under which the Administrator agrees to reimburse agencies for emergency response costs.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2009
Providing Resources Early for Kids Act of 2009 or the PRE-K Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to award matching grants to states to enhance or improve state-funded preschool programs. Sets forth a grant formula favoring states that: (1) have curricula aligned with state early learning standards; (2) use nationally-established, or better, best practices for class size and teacher-to-student ratios; (3) require each teacher to have at least an associate degree in early childhood education or a related field; (4) require such programs to operate for at least a full academic year; and (5) have a plan for meeting the requirement, within five years of receiving such grant, that teachers have at least a baccalaureate degree in early childhood education or have such degree in a related field, but have also completed specialized training in early childhood education. Directs the Secretary to establish a competitive process for awarding grants to other states that demonstrate that they will meet such requirements within two fiscal years. Prohibits state grantees from reducing their preschool or child care expenditures. Requires states to give priority, in using grant funds, to preschool programs in communities with high concentrations of impoverished children. Includes among grant uses: (1) increasing the qualifications of, and benefits provided to, teachers, teacher aides, and program directors; (2) decreasing class size and improving teacher-to-student ratios; (3) providing certain comprehensive services that support healthy child development; (4) extending program duration; and (5) improving program monitoring and learning environments. Reserves funds for competitive grants to Indians for their preschool programs.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2009
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of National Girls and Women in Sports Day. Encourages the people of the United States to observe that day with appropriate ceremonies and activities that promote awareness of: (1) the positive influence of sports participation in the lives and health of girls and women; and (2) the continuing struggle for equality and access for women in sports.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2009
Access to Postal Services Act - Modifies the procedures the U.S. Postal Service must follow in connection with the closing or consolidation of any postal facility, including: (1) requiring an assessment of the need for the closure or consolidation; (2) eliminating a requirement to consider the resulting Postal Service economic savings; (3) requiring a posting in each affected postal facility at least 90 days before the final decision is made; and (4) requiring (under current law, allowing) suspension of the determination pending an appeal to the Postal Regulatory Commission. Exempts emergency suspensions (as defined under Postal Service regulations) or lease termination or cancellation by a party other than the Postal Service. Defines "postal facility," for the provisions amended by this Act, to include an office, branch, station, or other facility operated by the Postal Service.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2009
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 369 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive in Jersey City, New Jersey, as the "Bishop Ralph E. Brower Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2009
Girl Scouts USA Centennial Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue up to 350,000 $1 coins in commemoration of the centennial of the founding of the Girl Scouts of the USA. Requires the coin design to be emblematic of the 100 years of the organization. Restricts issuance of such coins to calendar year 2011. Subjects coin sales to a surcharge of $10 per coin. Requires payment of such surcharges to the Girl Scouts of the United States of America for Girl Scout program development and delivery.
United States · United States Congress · 15 January 2009
Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the charitable tax deduction for contributions of qualified vehicles (i.e., highway motor vehicles, boats, or airplanes) to: (1) set forth revised acknowledgment requirements for vehicles valued at $2,500 or less and vehicles valued at more than $2,500; and (2) revise the penalty for submitting a fraudulent acknowledgment.
United States · United States Congress · 15 January 2009
Safe Prisons Communications Act of 2009 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to authorize the director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons or the chief executive officer of a state to petition the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to permit the installation of devices to prevent, jam, or interfere with wireless communications within the geographic boundaries of a specific prison, penitentiary, or correctional facility under his or her jurisdiction. Requires that the device be operated on a directional basis, using all other interference-limiting capabilities available to the device, or otherwise so that the device does not interfere with wireless communications that originate and terminate outside the area of the prison, penitentiary, or correctional facility. Requires the FCC to adopt a final rule establishing criteria for certification for the manufacture, sale, importation, and interstate shipment of such devices.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 2009
Prevention of Equine Cruelty Act of 2009 - Amends the federal criminal code to impose a fine and/or prison term of up to three years for possessing, shipping, transporting, purchasing, selling, delivering, or receiving any horse, horse flesh, or carcass with the intent that it be used for human consumption. Reduces the prison term to one year if the offense involves less than five horses or less than 2,000 pounds of horse flesh or carcass and the offender has no prior conviction for this offense.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 2009
Declares the importance of access to swimming lessons for all U.S. communities as an integral part of drowning prevention. Condemns the persistent high rates of drowning fatalities among children. Celebrates the passage of the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act and the work of initiatives to educate parents and caregivers on water safety and drowning prevention. Encourages funding to support initiatives that provide all children access to swimming education.
United States · United States Congress · 9 January 2009
Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act of 2009 - Provides collective bargaining rights for public safety officers employed by states or local governments. Directs the Federal Labor Relations Authority to determine whether state law provides specified rights and responsibilities for public safety officers, including: (1) granting public safety employees the right to form and join a labor organization which excludes management and supervisory employees, and which is, or seeks to be, recognized as the exclusive bargaining agent for such employees; and (2) requiring public safety employers to recognize and agree to bargain with the employees' labor organization. Requires the Authority to issue regulations establishing rights and responsibilities for public safety employers and employees in states that do not substantially provide for such public safety employee rights and responsibilities. Directs the Authority, in such cases, to: (1) determine the appropriateness of units for labor organization representation; (2) supervise or conduct elections to determine whether a labor organization has been selected as an exclusive representative by a voting majority of the employees in an appropriate unit; (3) resolve issues relating to the duty to bargain in good faith; (4) conduct hearings and resolve complaints of unfair labor practices; and (5) resolve exceptions to arbitrator's awards. Grants a public safety employer, employee, or labor organization the right to seek enforcement of Authority regulations and orders, as well as prohibitions against lockouts or strikes, through appropriate state courts. Prohibits public safety employers, employees, and labor organizations from engaging in lockouts or strikes. Provides that existing collective bargaining units and agreements shall not be invalidated by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 9 January 2009
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through 2010 the tax credit for increasing research activities and increase and make permanent the alternative simplified research tax credit.
United States · United States Congress · 9 January 2009
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the President should abandon the "One China Policy" in favor of a "One China, One Taiwan Policy" that recognizes Taiwan as a sovereign government; (2) the President should begin the process of resuming normal diplomatic relations with Taiwan; and (3) the President and other U.S. officials should support Taiwan's full participation in international organizations for which statehood is a membership requirement.
United States · United States Congress · 8 January 2009
Requires the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to make arrangements for the award of a congressional gold medal to the Army's 100th Infantry Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team, collectively, in recognition of their dedicated service during World War II.
United States · United States Congress · 8 January 2009
Supports the designation of Gospel Music Heritage Month (September 2009), which would recognize the contributions to U.S. culture derived from the rich heritage of gospel music and gospel music artists.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 2009
Social Security Fairness Act of 2009 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to repeal: (1) government pension offset requirements applicable to husband's and wife's insurance benefits, widow's and widower's insurance benefits, and mother's and father's insurance benefits with respect to OASDI payments; and (2) windfall elimination requirements with respect to computation of an individual's primary insurance amount.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Calling for 2-1-1 Act of 2009 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award a grant to each state to carry out a program for making available throughout that state the 2-1-1 telephone service for information and referral on human services. Requires a participating state to ensure that at least 50% of the resources of the program funded by the grant will be derived from other sources. Requires a state seeking a grant to carry out its activities through a lead entity to be known as a 2-1-1 Collaborative. Requires grant amounts to be used solely to make available to a state 2-1-1 telephone service for community information and referral on human services to all citizens of that state with phone access, including telephone connections between families and individuals seeking services and the service providers. Requires grant recipients to: (1) abide by the Key Standards for 2-1-1 Centers; and (2) collaborate with human service organizations to provide an exhaustive database of services with which to provide information or referral to individuals utilizing the 2-1-1 service.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Redesignates: (1) the Department of the Navy as the Department of the Navy and Marine Corps; and (2) the Secretary of the Navy as the Secretary of the Navy and Marine Corps. Makes similar redesignations with respect to the Department Under Secretary, the Department Assistant Secretaries, and the General Counsel.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Establishes the National Commission on Presidential War Powers and Civil Liberties to investigate, and report to the President and Congress on, the broad range of policies of the Bush Administration that were undertaken under claims of unreviewable war powers, including: (1) detention by the Armed Forces and the intelligence community; (2) the use by such entities of enhanced interrogation techniques or techniques not authorized by the Uniform Code of Military Justice; (3) "ghosting" or other policies intended to conceal an individual's capture or detention; (4) extraordinary rendition; and (5) domestic warrantless electronic surveillance.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 - Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to declare that an unlawful employment practice occurs when: (1) a discriminatory compensation decision or other practice is adopted; (2) an individual becomes subject to the decision or practice; or (3) an individual is affected by application of the decision or practice, including each time wages, benefits, or other compensation is paid. Allows liability to accrue, and allows an aggrieved person to obtain relief, including recovery of back pay, for up to two years preceding the filing of the charge, where the unlawful employment practices that have occurred during the charge filing period are similar or related to practices that occurred outside the time for filing a charge. Applies the preceding provisions to claims of compensation discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Amends the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 to declare that an unlawful practice occurs when a discriminatory compensation decision or other practice is adopted, when a person becomes subject to the decision or other practice, or when a person is affected by the decision or practice, including each time wages, benefits, or other compensation is paid.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Guam World War II Loyalty Recognition Act - Recognizes the suffering and the loyalty of the people of Guam during the Japanese occupation of Guam in World War II. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to make specified payments to: (1) living Guam residents who were raped, injured, interned, or subjected to forced labor or marches resulting from, or incident to, such occupation and subsequent liberation; and (2) survivors of compensable residents who died in war or survivors of compensable injured residents (such payments to be made after payments have been made to surviving Guam residents). Defines "compensable Guam decedent" and "compensable Guam victim." Directs the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission to specify injuries that would constitute a severe personal injury or a personal injury. Authorizes the Commission to adjudicate claims and determine payment eligibility. Requires: (1) claims to be filed within one year after the Commission publishes public notice of the filing period in the Federal Register; and (2) the Commission to make filing period information available to the public through the media in Guam. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to establish a grant program for research, educational, and media activities that memorialize the events surrounding the occupation of Guam during World War II or honor the loyalty of the people of Guam during such occupation, or both.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Medicare Access to Rehabilitation Services Act of 2009 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to repeal the Medicare outpatient rehabilitation therapy caps.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Community Choice in Real Estate Act - Amends the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 and the Revised Statutes of the United States to prohibit the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Secretary of the Treasury, respectively, from determining that real estate brokerage activity or real estate management activity is financial in nature, is incidental to any financial activity, or is complementary to a financial activity. (In effect, prohibits financial holding companies and national banks from engaging, directly or indirectly, in real estate brokerage or real estate management activities.) Exempts from such prohibition: (1) activities of a bank holding company (or any affiliate) that directly relate to managing any real property owned by national banks or their affiliates; and (2) the right, power, or ability of any financial holding company to engage in any activity, or acquire or retain the shares of any company engaged in an activity authorized for financial holding companies on December 6, 2001 ("grandfather clause").
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Requires government contributions for health benefits for an individual who first becomes an annuitant by reason of retirement from employment with the United States Postal Service on or after July 1, 1971, or for a survivor of such an individual or of an individual who died on or after that date while employed by the Postal Service, to be paid first from the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund up to the amount contained in the Fund, with any remaining amount paid by the Postal Service (current law requires such contributions to be paid by the Postal Service through September 30, 2016).
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Paycheck Fairness Act - Amends the portion of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) known as the Equal Pay Act to revise remedies for, enforcement of, and exceptions to prohibitions against sex discrimination in the payment of wages. Revises the exception to the prohibition for a wage rate differential based on any other factor other than sex. Limits such factors to bona fide factors, such as education, training, or experience. States that the bona fide factor defense shall apply only if the employer demonstrates that such factor: (1) is not based upon or derived from a sex-based differential in compensation; (2) is job-related with respect to the position in question; and (3) is consistent with business necessity. Avers that such defense shall not apply where the employee demonstrates that: (1) an alternative employment practice exists that would serve the same business purpose without producing such differential; and (2) the employer has refused to adopt such alternative practice. Revises the prohibition against employer retaliation for employee complaints. Prohibits retaliation for inquiring about, discussing, or disclosing the wages of the employee or another employee in response to a complaint or charge, or in furtherance of a sex discrimination investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, or an investigation conducted by the employer. Makes employers who violate sex discrimination prohibitions liable in a civil action for either compensatory or (except for the federal government) punitive damages. States that any action brought to enforce the prohibition against sex discrimination may be maintained as a class action in which individuals may be joined as party plaintiffs without their written consent. Authorizes the Secretary of Labor (Secretary) to seek additional compensatory or punitive damages in a sex discrimination action. Requires the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs to train EEOC employees and affected individuals and entities on matters involving wage discrimination. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to eligible entities for negotiation skills training programs for girls and women. Directs the Secretary and the Secretary of Education to issue regulations or policy guidance to integrate such training into certain programs under their Departments. Directs the Secretary to conduct studies and provide information to employers, labor organizations, and the general public regarding the means available to eliminate pay disparities between men and women. Establishes the Secretary of Labor's National Award for Pay Equity in the Workplace for an employer has made substantial effort to eliminate pay disparities between men and women. Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to require the EEOC to collect from employers pay information data regarding the sex, race, and national origin of employees for use in the enforcement of federal laws prohibiting pay discrimination. Directs: (1) the Commissioner of Labor Statistics to continue to collect data on woman workers in the Current Employment Statistics survey; (2) the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs to use specified types of methods in investigating compensation discrimination and in enforcing pay equity; and (3) the Secretary to make accurate information on compensation discrimination readily available to the public. Directs the Secretary and the Commissioner of the EEOC jointly to develop technical assistance material to assist small businesses to comply with the requirements of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
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 · 19 November 2008
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individual taxpayers a deduction from gross income for: (1) interest paid on indebtedness (up to $49,500) incurred after November 12, 2008, and before January 1, 2010, for the purchase of a motor vehicle (i.e., passenger automobile or light truck) with a gross vehicle weight rating of not more than 8,500 pounds; and (2) state and local sales and excise taxes imposed on the purchase of such a motor vehicle.
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 2008
Pension Protection Act IRC Amendments of 2008 - Makes technical corrections to various pension-related provisions of the Internal Revenue Code, including provisions relating to: (1) the interest rate assumption for applying pension plan benefit limitations; (2) minimum individual retirement account (IRA) distribution requirements; (3) employer-owned life insurance contracts; (4) the deductibility of contributions to defined benefit and contribution plans; (5) the treatment of distributions from governmental retirement plans for health and long-term care insurance for public safety officers; (6) safe harbor rules for combined pension plans; and (7) the inclusion of employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) in combined pension plans. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue guidance for allowing a nonspouse pension beneficiary to use a specified life expectancy rule.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2008
Several Approaches to Reduce the Uninsured Act of 2008 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to provide for state comprehensive programs under which: (1) state residents are required to obtain qualified health insurance coverage; and (2) employers are required to establish a group health plan offering such coverage. Sets forth provisions governing health coverage buy-in arrangements between states and individuals and between large and small employers for the purchase of health insurance coverage. Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to establish a qualified coverage buy-in arrangement credit. Health Partnership Through Creative Federalism Act - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a State Health Coverage Innovation Commission to facilitate state health care expansion and improvement programs. Amends title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance Program) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act to require the Secretary to establish demonstration projects to provide coverage under SCHIP for children who would be targeted low-income children but for coverage as beneficiaries under a group health plan as the children of participants by virtue of a qualifying employer's contribution. Requires the Secretary to facilitate the establishment of regional state arrangements under which states band together in order to increase their purchasing pooling power and offer affordable health coverage to their citizens. Provides for automatic enrollment of uninsured individuals. Preexisting Condition Exclusion Patient Protection Act of 2008 - Amends ERISA, the Public Health Service Act, and the IRC to allow a health plan to impose a preexisting condition exclusion only for: (1) a condition for which medical advice, diagnosis, care, or treatment was recommended or received within 30 days of the enrollment date; and (2) three months, or nine months for a late enrollee, after the enrollment date.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2008
Act to Save America's Forests - Amends the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 to revise eligibility criteria for members of the land and resource management scientific committee. Revises the committee termination date. Directs the Chief of the Forest Service, the Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Director of the Bureau of Land Management to each prepare a continuous inventory of forest land administered by each agency head and to document whole-system measures that will be taken as a result of the inventory. Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to provide for conservation and restoration of native biodiversity in forested areas. Prohibits clearcutting or other even-age logging operations on any stand or watershed on certain federal land, National Forest System land, and National Wildlife Refuge System land. Provides for federal enforcement and a private right of action. Designates special areas which shall be subject to restrictions on road construction and logging in Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Requires the Secretaries concerned to appoint a committee of independent scientists to recommend additional special areas. Restricts road construction and logging on federal land in ancient forests, special areas, roadless areas, and watershed protection areas. Provides for federal enforcement and a private right of action. States that this Act and the amendments made by this Act shall not apply to federal wilderness areas designated under the Wilderness Act. Adds specified land to the Giant Sequoia National Monument. Transfers administrative jurisdiction over the Monument from the Secretary to the Secretary of the Interior. Establishes the Giant Sequoia National Monument Advisory Board. Adds specified parts of Sequoia National Forest that are not included in the Monument to: (1) Sierra National Forest; and (2) Inyo National Forest. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to conduct reconnaissance surveys of areas classified as Level III ecoregions of the continental United States by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to determine if there are resources that possess national significance and to evaluate their suitability for inclusion as units of the National Park System. Requires the appointment of a committee of scientists to provide the Secretary and Congress with advice and counsel on such surveys.
United States · United States Congress · 23 September 2008
Expresses support for: (1) the goals and ideals of Fire Prevention Week; and (2) the work of firefighters to educate and protect the nation's communities.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2008
Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 - 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 that provides both medical and surgical benefits and mental health or substance use disorder benefits to ensure that: (1) the financial requirements, such as deductibles and copayments, applicable to such mental health or substance use disorder benefits are no more restrictive than the predominant financial requirements applied to substantially all medical and surgical benefits covered by the plan; (2) there are no separate cost sharing requirements that are applicable only with respect to mental health or substance use disorder benefits; (3) the treatment limitations applicable to such mental health or substance use disorder benefits are no more restrictive than the predominant treatment limitations applied to substantially all medical and surgical benefits covered by the plan; and (4) there are no separate treatment limitations that are applicable only with respect to mental health or substance use disorder benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2008
Directs the Secretary of Transportation to develop procedures to permit car rental companies to have limited access to information in the National Driver Register in order for them to determine whether an individual possesses a valid driver's license.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2008
National Cancer Fund Act of 2008 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) establish in the Treasury the National Cancer Fund for programs to fight cancer, including for expenditures for cancer research, early detection and treatment, and tobacco cessation; (2) increase the excise tax rate on tobacco products and dedicate increased tax revenues to the Fund; and (3) impose permit, reporting, and recordkeeping requirements on manufacturers of processed tobacco. Amends the Public Health Service Act to: (1) revise the membership and duties of the President's Cancer Panel; and (2) require the Panel to study the feasibility of additional funding sources for the National Cancer Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2008
Congratulates Mr. Riki Ellison for his leadership and vision in founding the Youth Impact Program (which provides at-risk young men in the inner cities with football training and mentoring designed to improve their academic performance and character). Recognizes the contributions of the National Football League, the University of Southern California, and Tulane University to the Youth Impact program. Encourages the expansion of the Youth Impact Program to inner cities across the nation.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2008
Administrative Law Judges Retirement Act of 2008 - Sets forth separate provisions governing Government and employee contributions, annuity eligibility requirements (ten years of service and age 60), early retirement, and annuity computation (2.5% and 1.7%, respectively, of average pay for each year of service) for administrative law judges under the Civil Service Retirement System and the Federal Employees' Retirement System.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2008
Civil Rights Quarter Dollar Coin Act of 2008 - Requires quarter dollars to have designs on the reverse emblematic of prominent civil rights leaders and important events that have advanced civil rights in America. Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to select such leaders and events. Requires five coin designs in each year of the period of issuance. Instructs the Secretary to strike and make available for sale silver bullion coins that are exact duplicates of such quarter dollars.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 2008
Prohibiting the Department of Labor's Secret Rule Act of 2008 - Prohibits the Secretary of Labor from issuing, administering, or enforcing any rule, regulation, or requirement derived from the proposal submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) entitled Requirements for DOL Agencies' Assessment of Occupational Health Risks.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2008
Directs the Secretary of State to provide detailed briefings to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations respecting: (1) any discussions conducted between any executive branch agency and the government of Taiwan during a covered period (as defined by this Act); and (2) any potential transfer of defense articles or defense services to Taiwan.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2008
Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security (Secretary), acting through the Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security (Transportation Security Administration), to require category X or category 1 airport operators to modify their airport security programs to provide for the installation of airport security camera and video surveillance systems. Requires airport operators to submit their modifications to the Secretary for approval. Prohibits the use of images from such cameras and surveillance systems against an airport employee involved in an employment disciplinary matter, except in a criminal investigation or prosecution of criminal acts.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2008
Social Security Uninsured Children's Entitlement Act of 2008 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to entitle certain uninsured children to new monthly benefits treated as monthly insurance benefits payable under the OASDI benefit program.
United States · United States Congress · 10 July 2008
Access to America's Orthopedic Services Act of 2008 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish criteria for accounting and reporting the effort expended by researchers on musculoskeletal research funded with certain grants. Sets forth reporting requirements related to musculoskeletal health, including on: (1) research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH); (2) federal programs and activities relating to musculoskeletal trauma care; (3) a standard unit for the measurement of bone mass under the Medicare program; (4) access to orthopedic services by certain federal health program beneficiaries; and (5) childhood musculoskeletal diseases, conditions, and injuries in the United States. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network to establish the Transplantation Transmission Sentinel Network to track disease transmission from organ, tissue, or eye transplants. Requires the Secretary to issue regulations relating to the accreditation of: (1) establishments engaged in the manufacture of human cells, tissues, and cellular and tissue-based products; and (2) personnel who participate in related activities. Requires the Secretary to conduct studies related to: (1) a national registry of artificial joint replacements in Medicare beneficiaries; (2) severe trauma to extremities resulting from motor vehicle crashes; (3) workplace-related musculoskeletal injuries and conditions; (4) funding available for graduate medical education in orthopedics; (5) methods for measuring bone mass in Medicare beneficiaries; and (6) aging in the United States. Requires the Secretary to: (1) conduct a national public awareness program on musculoskeletal health; and (2) award grants for certain health and aging activities for seniors. Provides for musculoskeletal diseases and conditions to be treated as a priority within the Office of Minority Health.
United States · United States Congress · 8 July 2008
Clean Cruise Ship Act of 2008 - Prohibits cruise vessels calling on U.S. ports from discharging sewage, graywater, or bilge water into U.S. waters unless: (1) the treated effluent meets specified effluent limits and management standards; (2) the vessel is proceeding at not less than six knots; (3) the vessel is not less than 12 nautical miles from shore; and (4) the vessel is not in a no discharge zone. Prohibits the discharge of sewage sludge, incinerator ash, or hazardous waste into U.S. waters and requires it to be off-loaded at appropriate land-based facilities. Prescribes exceptions for: (1) discharges solely to secure the safety of a vessel or to save a life at sea; and (2) Alaskan vessels until 10 years after enactment. Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to promulgate such effluent limits that: (1) are consistent with the capability of the best available technology to treat effluent; (2) require compliance with state and federal water quality standards; (3) take into account the best available scientific information on environmental effects; and (4) require treated discharges to meet specified standards for minimum effluent quality, fecal coliform, and residual chlorine. Requires the EPA Administrator to implement a sampling and testing program, and requires the Commandant of the Coast Guard to implement an inspection program, sufficient to verify that such vessels are in compliance with this Act, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, and other applicable federal laws and international agreements. Requires the Commandant to establish a program for the placement of trained independent observers on vessels to monitor and inspect vessel operations, equipment, and discharges. Requires the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to carry out a pilot program to develop and promote commercialization of technologies to provide federal agencies data regarding discharges from vessels and functioning of vessel components relating to fuel consumption and air and water pollution control. Calls for enactment of standards for: (1) ballast water; and (2) air quality regarding incineration and engine activities of vessels. Establishes the Cruise Vessel Pollution Control Fund. Requires the Commandant to collect fees from vessels for paying passengers to be deposited in such Fund for use in carrying out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2008
Remembers the 75th anniversary of the 1932-1933 Ukrainian Famine-Genocide and: (1) extends sympathies to the victims, survivors, and families of this tragedy; and (2) encourages dissemination of information regarding the Ukrainian Famine-Genocide. Condemns the Soviet government's systematic violations of the Ukrainian people's human rights. Supports Ukraine's continuing efforts toward ensuring democratic principles, a free-market economy, and full respect for human rights.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 2008
Climate Market, Auction, Trust & Trade Emissions Reduction System Act of 2008, or the Climate MATTERS Act of 2008 - Declares the purpose of this Act to establish a federal program to reduce US greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions substantially enough by 2050 to avert the catastrophic impacts of global climate change. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to establish an international reserve GHG emission allowance program, whose allowance sales proceeds shall be used to mitigate the negative impacts of global climate change on disadvantaged communities in World Trade Organization (WTO) participant countries. Establishes the International Climate Change Commission to determine annually whether a WTO participant country has taken certain action to limit its GHG emissions. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) establish a system for issuing, auctioning, recording, and tracking GHG emission allowances; and (2) impose an excess emissions penalty on owners or operators of covered facilities that fail to submit one or more emission allowances to the Secretary for any year. Establishes a Carbon Market Efficiency Board to: (1) analyze information on the GHG emission allowance market; and (2) authorize the Secretary to carry out cost relief measures if the market poses a substantial harm to the U.S. economy. Provides for the distribution of emission allowances to owners and operators of fossil fuel-fired electric power generating facilities and of energy intensive manufacturing facilities. Establishes: (1) the Deficit Reduction Trust Fund; and (2) the Citizen Protection Trust Fund (CPTF). Directs the Secretary to administer a Climate Change Rebate Program. Provides for a healthy families fund. Sets forth allocations of specified CPTF account funds for: (1) investment in natural resource adaptation to impacts of climate change and ocean acidification; (2) owners and operators of covered facilities who take actions that result in verified GHG emission reductions; (3) states that comply with certain federal building energy standards; (4) states with GHG emission reduction programs exceeding federal GHG emission reduction targets; (5) reductions in GHG emissions from the agriculture and forestry sectors, including those from deforestation activities in foreign countries; and (6) states and load-serving entities that implement energy-efficiency programs. Requires distribution of certain funds for grants for fixed guideway transit and other specified alternative transportation projects. Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to: (1) develop a federal greenhouse gas registry; (2) make certain GHG emission determinations for covered facilities; and (3) promulgate regulations that require that U.S. GHG emissions in uncovered sectors do not grow.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2008
Medicare DMEPOS Competitive Acquisition Reform Act of 2008 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to delay generally until after 2011 full implementation of the Medicare competitive acquisition program for the purchase of durable medical equipment (DME), prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies (DMEPOS). Revises such program, dividing its implementation into two rounds, and specifying covered item updates for 2009-2014. Prescribes requirements for application of accreditation in implementing quality standards. Requires suppliers to disclose subcontractors. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide for a competitive acquisition ombudsman within the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to respond to complaints and inquiries by suppliers and individuals. Specifies topics for the Comptroller General's required study and report to Congress on the impact of competitive acquisition of DME on suppliers, manufacturers, and patients. Sets forth a special rule for the competitive acquisition program for diabetic testing strips.
![Official portrait of Rep. Andrews, Robert E. [D-NJ-1]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/a000210_200.jpg)