United States · United States Congress · 7 November 2005
Directs the Secretary of State to: (1) take the necessary steps to encourage and support the establishment of a conference at which Iranian nationals who oppose the government of Iran's policies can meet and discuss governmental reforms and their implementation; and (2) report to Congress respecting such steps and which groups of Iranian nationals have expressed interest in such a conference.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2005
Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act - Rewrites federal criminal code provisions regarding animal enterprise terrorism to prohibit anyone from traveling in, or using the mail or any facility of, interstate or foreign commerce for the purpose of damaging or disrupting an animal enterprise and, in connection with such purpose: (1) intentionally damaging, disrupting, or causing the loss of property used by or owned in connection with such enterprise; (2) intentionally placing a person in reasonable fear of death or serious bodily injury to that person or a family member through threats, vandalism, property damage, trespass, harassment, or intimidation; or (3) conspiring or attempting to do so. Prescribes escalating penalties. Authorizes restitution for: (1) the reasonable cost of repeating any experimentation that was interrupted or invalidated as a result of such offense; (2) the loss of food production or farm income reasonably attributable to such offense; and (3) any other economic damage, including any losses or costs caused by economic disruption, resulting from such offense.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 2005
Medicaid Preservation Act of 2005 - Prohibits reductions in authorized federal funding under the Medicaid program under title XIX of the Social Security Act until full consideration has been given to the recommendations of the Bipartisan Commission on Medicaid. Establishes the Bipartisan Commission to review and make recommendations about: (1) each of Medicaid's major functional responsibilities; (2) issues that either threaten or could improve the long-term financial condition of Medicaid; (3) the way Medicare payment policies impact Medicaid, and ways to address specific payment problems that such policies may create in service delivery to populations typically not covered by Medicare, such as children and pregnant women; and (5) payments to safety net providers. Requires each recommendation to include an analysis of its effect under Medicaid and, if applicable, Medicare and other federal health programs, on: (1) federal and state expenditures; (2) provider payment rates; (3) beneficiary out-of-pocket expenditures; (4) beneficiary access to covered items and services; and (5) coverage of items and services.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 2005
Child Health Investment for Long-term Development (CHILD and Newborn) Act of 2005 - Amends the the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the President to furnish assistance to improve the health of newborns, children, and mothers in developing countries, including activities relating to: (1) health systems and medical and health personnel training; (2) health access; (3) pharmaceutical supplies; (4) health education; (5) HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis counseling and treatment; and (6) safe water and sanitation access. Directs the President to develop a comprehensive strategy to improve the health of newborns, children, and mothers, including reducing newborn, child, and maternal mortality, in developing countries. Establishes the Interagency Task Force on Child Survival and Maternal Health in Developing Countries.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 2005
Hurricane Katrina Recovery, Reclamation. Restoration, Reconstruction and Reunion Act of 2005 - Hurricane Katrina Victim Restoration Fund of 2005 - Provides for the determination of eligibility for compensation for any individual (or relatives of a deceased individual) who sustained economic or noneconomic losses as a result of Hurricane Katrina so that the individual (or relatives) are restored as nearly as possible to their condition before Hurricane Katrina. Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to develop a Comprehensive Environmental Sampling and Toxicity Assessment Plan. Provides for federal and state government to notify hurricane survivors of health risks they may face upon returning to their domiciles. Provides for the offer of alternative land and/or housing as compensation to residents whose homes or businesses have been destroyed or terminally compromised. Revises the TANF Emergency Response and Recovery Act of 2005 to provide for reimbursement of states for Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) benefits provided under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act to families from other states affected by Hurricane Katrina. Sets forth requirements relating to emergency extended unemployment compensation. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a program of emergency health coverage continuation relief. Sets forth housing and education requirements. Displaced Citizens Voter Protection Provisions of 2005 - Prescribes requirements for the protection of voting rights of Katrina evacuees. Prescribes requirements for: (1) regulatory relief for financial services; and (2) disaster loans and small business relief. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for: (1) a tax credit for an eligible homebuyer who purchases a principal residence in the Hurricane Katrina disaster area; (2) an increase in the housing credit dollar amount; and (3) tax-exempt bonds for qualified Gulf Coast recovery projects. Hurricane Katrina Bankruptcy Relief and Community Protection Act of 2005 - Amends the federal bankruptcy code to exempt victims of natural disasters, including small businesses, from certain requirements for debtors seeking relief. Directs the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to establish a temporary flood insurance buy-in program. Expresses the sense of Congress that the President should present, within six months, a plan to eradicate poverty in the United States by 2015.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 2005
Safe Drinking Water for All Act - Amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to: (1) revise requirements for drinking water studies relating to infants, children, women, and pregnant women to require an evaluation of the effect of contaminants on endocrine and other health functions; and (2) require such studies to be made available to the public.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 2005
Recognizes the 30th anniversary of the enactment of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 (Public Law 94-142). Acknowledges the many and varied contributions of children with disabilities and their parents, teachers, related services providers, and other educators. Reaffirms the support of Congress for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act so that all children with disabilities have access to a free appropriate public education.
United States · United States Congress · 1 November 2005
Requires the Consumer Product Safety Commission to: (1) revise certain regulations relating to the flammability of children's sleepwear; and (2) strengthen substantially the standards for tests used to determine the flammability of such clothing to ensure that such standards are grounded on a firm scientific basis.
United States · United States Congress · 1 November 2005
Recognizes the need for every child to be vaccinated against polio. Urges all appropriate federal departments and agencies to immediately educate: (1) Americans about the need for polio vaccination; and (2) U.S. polio survivors and medical professionals about the cause and treatment of post-polio sequelae. Expresses support for the goals and ideals of observing the Year of Polio Awareness (the year beginning November 1, 2005).
United States · United States Congress · 27 October 2005
National Uniformity for Food Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) to prohibit any state or political subdivision from establishing or continuing in effect for any food in interstate commerce: (1) any requirement that is not identical to specified FFDCA provisions (that would result in materially different requirements), including those related to adulterated foods, unsafe food additives, and new animal drugs; or (2) any notification requirement that provides for a warning concerning the food's safety that is not identical to FFDCA provisions. Allows a state to petition for an exemption or to establish a national standard regarding any requirement under FFDCA or the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act relating to food regulation. Allows the Secretary of Health and Human Service to provide such an exemption if the requirement: (1) protects an important public interest that would otherwise be unprotected; (2) would not cause any food to be in violation of any federal law; and (3) would not unduly burden interstate commerce. Allows a state to establish a requirement that would otherwise violate FFDCA provisions relating to national uniform nutrition labeling or this Act if the requirement is needed to address an imminent hazard to health that is likely to result in serious adverse health consequences and if other requirements are met. Declares that this Act does not preempt certain state and local laws relating to labeling or a consumer advisory relating to food sanitation imposed on a food establishment or recommended by the Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 27 October 2005
Urges: (1) the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) to observe its 1995 Interim Accord obligations and take steps to halt the proliferation of negative propaganda toward Greece and review textbooks, maps, and teaching aids to ensure their accuracy; and (2) FYROM to work within the U.N. process to reach a mutually acceptable permanent name.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 2005
Directs the Architect of the Capitol to enter into an agreement to obtain a statue of Rosa Parks and to place the statue in the Capitol in a suitable permanent location in National Statuary Hall.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 2005
Requests the President to provide to the House of Representatives certain federal agency documents in his possession on the effects of climate change on the coastal regions of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 25 October 2005
Sludge Disclosure Act of 2005 - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to require any person who sells or transfers sludge from a waste treatment plant for agricultural or related purposes to disclose to purchasers and the public information on the source and content of such sludge.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2005
ALS Registry Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to: (1) develop a system to collect data on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS); and (2) establish a national registry for the collection and storage of ALS data. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Director, to establish the Advisory Committee on the National ALS Registry to study and make recommendations to the Secretary concerning: (1) the development and maintenance of the registry; (2) the type of information to be included; (3) the manner in which data is to be collected; (4) the use and availability of such data; and (5) the collection of information about diseases and disorders that primarily affect motor neurons that are considered essential to furthering the study and cure of ALS. Allows the Secretary, acting through the Director, to award grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative agreements with, public or private nonprofit entities for the collection, analysis, and reporting of data on ALS. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Director, to: (1) identify, build upon, expand, and coordinate among existing data and surveillance systems, surveys, registries, and other federal public health and environmental infrastructure wherever possible; and (2) provide for public access to an electronic national database that accepts data from state registries, health care professionals, and others as recommended by the Advisory Committee in a manner that protects personal privacy. Requires the Secretary to ensure that epidemiological and other types of information is made available to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2005
Federal Mineral Development and Land Protection Equity Act of 2005 - Sets forth guidelines for: (1) mineral exploration and development on public domain lands; and (2) exclusive right of possession and use of the claimed land for mineral activities by holders of mining claims executed under this Act. Subjects unpatented mining claims, mill sites, and tunnel sites to an annual claim maintenance fee payable to the Secretary of the Interior in lieu of assessment work requirements contained in the general mining laws and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976. Exempts from such fee any claimants holding ten or fewer mining claims who elect to perform the assessment work. Requires locators of unpatented mining claims, mill sites, and tunnel sites located after enactment of this Act to pay a location fee. Establishes forfeiture penalties against holders of mining claims for noncompliance with this Act. Prescribes guidelines for royalty payments applicable to production of locatable minerals, including mineral concentrates or products derived from locatable minerals. Cites federal lands which are not open to location of mining claims. Requires the Secretaries of the Interior and of Agriculture, respectively, to review the suitability of lands for mineral activities. Requires: (1) a permit to engage in mineral activities on federal land that may cause a disturbance of surface resources; (2) an operations permit to carry out any activity greater than casual use; (3) financial assurance to cover lands and affected waters that may require restoration or treatment of effluent as a result of mineral activities; and (4) operation and reclamation standards. Permits state or local law or regulation more stringent than the requirements of this Act. Establishes the Abandoned Locatable Minerals Mine Reclamation Fund in the Treasury. Amends the Mining and Minerals Policy Act of 1970 and the National Materials and Minerals Policy, Research and Development Act of 1980, to modify the responsibilities of the Secretary of Agriculture. Requires the Secretaries of the Interior and of Agriculture to: (1) establish and collect user fees; and (2) inspect and monitor mineral activities for compliance with certain environmental protection requirements. Authorizes citizens' civil action suits for noncompliance with this Act. Repeals the Building Stone Act and the Saline Placer Act.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2005
Bioterror and Pandemic Preparedness Protection Act - Amends the federal judicial code to establish an exclusive federal cause of action for all claims relating to a qualified pandemic or epidemic product or a security countermeasure. Restricts all causes of action for such claims against a manufacturer, distributor, or health care provider and instead provides for sole and exclusive action against the United States. Gives jurisdiction over such an action to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Establishes a rebuttable presumption of immunity for the federal government in any such action concerning: (1) a security countermeasure that has been procured for or donated to the National Strategic Stockpile; (2) a qualified pandemic or epidemic product that has been procured by or donated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services; or (3) a designated security countermeasure or qualified pandemic or epidemic product in an actual or potential public health emergency. Allows a party to petition the Attorney General to investigate claims against a manufacturer, distributor, administrator, or heath care provider. Disallows judicial review of the Attorney General's decision as to whether to undertake such an investigation. Declares that the immunity presumption shall be overcome by a determination by the Attorney General, by finding clear and convincing evidence, that the manufacturer, distributor, administrator, or health care provider intentionally or with willful disregard violated the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act or the Public Health Service Act and that such violation: (1) caused the product to present a significant or unreasonable human health risk; and (2) proximately caused the injury alleged by the party.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2005
National Private Well Protection Act of 2005 - Requires any private property owner whose property includes a well that has fewer than 15 service connections and does not regularly serve at least 25 individuals for at least 60 days each year to: (1) conduct tests on such wells to determine the level of contaminants in the well water; (2) disclose the results of such tests to any prospective buyer or lessee of the property; and (3) provide the results of such tests to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Allows civil remedies and penalties for nondisclosure of test results to prospective buyers or lessees or to the EPA. Requires the EPA Administrator to collect, compile, and maintain the results of such tests and make them available to the public.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2005
National Forests Rehabilitation and Recovery Act of 2005 - Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior to each, from applications submitted by federal land forest communities (communities), establish up to five post-disturbance pilot projects involving federal land near such communities. Requires that, once an area is designated as a pilot project site, the community that applied for such designation shall develop and submit to the Secretary concerned a plan to address post-disturbance rehabilitation of the project site, whether the uncharacteristic disturbance of the federal land is caused by a wildfire or a nonfire-related event. Authorizes the Secretary concerned to provide technical and financial assistance to communities to assist their efforts to develop a rehabilitation plan or to amend a community wildfire protection plan to include a rehabilitation plan. Provides for expedited rehabilitation activities following uncharacteristic disturbances at project sites. Directs the Secretary concerned to establish a national oversight committee to provide independent scientific and socioeconomic monitoring of the pilot projects and activities carried out at project sites.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2005
Volunteer Firefighter and EMS Personnel Job Protection Act - Prohibits any person from being terminated, demoted, or discriminated against in the terms or conditions of employment because the employee is absent or late as a result of responding as a volunteer firefighter or performing volunteer emergency medical services. Limits applicable absences to 14 days per calendar year. Allows employers to: (1) withhold the employee's regular pay for such time as the employee is absent; and (2) request the employee to provide written verification from the supervising Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), state, or local official that such employee responded in an official capacity at a specified time and date. Requires such an employee to make a reasonable effort to notify his or her employer that he or she may be absent or late. Gives such an employee a private cause of action for discrimination which violates this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2005
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) Hurricane Katrina and other such disasters should not be used to weaken, waive, or roll back federal public health, environmental, and environmental justice laws and regulations; (2) state, local, and regional authorities must retain their authority for compliance and permitting of industrial and other facilities and their role in monitoring and cleanup; (3) testing, monitoring, cleanup, and recovery in areas of national emergency should be completed in a manner designed to protect public health and the environment, ensure habitability, and mitigate against the effects of future storms and in compliance with Executive Order 12898 (requires federal actions to address environmental justice in minority and low-income populations); and (4) the federal rebuilding of the Gulf Region communities and economy should be a model of an integrated, diverse, and sustainable society.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2005
Federal Response to Energy Emergencies Act of 2005 - Declares unlawful: (1) unconscionable pricing of gasoline, oil, natural gas, and petroleum distillates during emergencies; (2) intentional reporting of false price information concerning wholesale prices of such products; and (3) market manipulation regarding the purchase or sale at wholesale of such products. Authorizes the President to declare a federal energy emergency upon finding that the national health, safety, welfare, or economic well-being is at risk because of an actual or imminent shortage of such products due to a disruption of the national distribution system, or significant pricing anomalies in national or regional energy markets for the products. Empowers the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and State Attorneys General to enforce this Act. Sets forth civil and criminal penalties for violations of this Act. Requires fines and penalties collected under this Act to be deposited in a separate fund in the treasury to be known as the Consumer Relief Trust Fund to provide assistance under the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program. Directs the FTC to facilitate price transparency in wholesale markets for the sale of crude oil and essential petroleum products. Instructs the FTC to transmit a confidential report to Congress on the potential impact on domestic prices of crude oil, residual fuel oil, and refined petroleum products that would result from the disruption for periods of one week, one year, and five years, respectively. Directs the Secretary of Energy and the Energy Information Administration to review and report to Congress on expenditures and activities undertaken by certain size companies to protect the energy supply system from terrorist attacks, international supply disruptions, and natural disasters, and ensure a stable and reasonably priced supply of such products to consumers in the United States. Requires such report to assess the companies' preparations for the forecasted period of more frequent and more intense hurricane activity in the Gulf of Mexico and other vulnerable coastal areas.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2005
Suburban and Community Forestry and Open Space Program Act of 2005 - Amends the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 to establish in the Forest Service the Suburban and Community Forestry and Open Space Program, which shall provide cost-share grants to preserve private forest land, contain suburban sprawl, and support value-added forest product industries in States in which less than 25 percent of the land is owned by the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2005
Small Employer Defined Benefit Expansion Act - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and the Internal Revenue Code to set forth special rules for treating the combination in a single pension plan of: (1) a defined benefit plan (a traditional benefit plan, or else a cash-balance plan for which additional special rules are required); and (2) a defined contribution plan (an individual account plan which includes a cash or deferred arrangement).
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2005
International U.S. Seniors Act of 2005 - Provides for a Medicare part B (Supplementary Medicare Insurance) special enrollment period, waiver of the late enrollment penalty, and a Medigap special open enrollment period for certain individuals 65 years or older who live abroad. Expresses the sense of the Congress that the United States should enter into an international convention with respect to individuals 65 or older who live abroad under which the nation of which the individual is a citizen agrees to reimburse another nation in which the individual lawfully resides for the costs of health care furnished to the individual while residing in that nation.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2005
Requests the President to transmit to the House of Representatives information in his possession regarding federal contracts for services or construction related to Hurricane Katrina recovery or rebuilding and compliance with standards for wages and benefits to be paid to workers pursuant to the Davis-Bacon Act, the Service Contract Act of 1965, or the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. Includes in such request: (1) copies of relevant portions of such contracts awarded or requested by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) or by the Departments of Labor, of Education, of Homeland Security, of Health and Human Services, or of Defense, or the Army Corps of Engineers; and (2) communications made or received by such agencies related to compliance with such Acts in the geographic areas specified in the President's Proclamation 7924 of September 8, 2005.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2005
Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act of 2005 - Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to require the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to ensure that state and local emergency preparedness operational plans address the needs of individuals with household pets and service animals following a major disaster or emergency.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2005
Medicare Informed Choice Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: (1) provide for an extended period of open enrollment during all of 2006 without late enrollment penalty; (2) give Medicare beneficiaries the opportunity to make a one-time change in prescription drug plan enrollment at any point in 2006; and (3) provide protection from loss of employment-based retiree health coverage upon enrollment for Medicare prescription drug benefit, including a Medicare Advantage-Prescription Drug benefit, during 2006.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2005
Medical Malpractice Insurance Corporation Act - Authorizes the establishment of corporations to provide medical malpractice insurance to health care professionals and providers based on customary coverage terms and liability amounts. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to certify corporations as medical malpractice insurance corporations if they meet the requirements of this Act, which include that excess earnings of such corporations are used to reduce premiums paid by the insured. Allows such corporations to operate and function without hindrance or impedance in all states. Prohibits any medical malpractice liability action from being brought against a health care professional or provider without an affidavit from a qualified specialist or medical expert that there is a reasonable and meritorious cause for filing the action. Requires the Secretary to establish medical malpractice arbitration panels to hear and render decisions on all medical malpractice claims. Mandates participation in such panels. Allows participants dissatisfied with the results to bring a federal civil action. Requires the Attorney General to proscribe regulations to ensure that such arbitration: (1) is affordable; (2) encourages timely resolution of medical malpractice claims; (3) encourages the consistent and fair resolution of such claims; and (4) provides for reasonable convenient access to dispute resolution.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2005
Meeting the Housing and Service Needs of Seniors Act of 2005 - Establishes in the executive branch the independent Interagency Council on Meeting the Housing and Service Needs of Seniors, which shall identify and promote coordination of senior citizen housing, health care, and service needs.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2005
Remembers and commemorates the lives and work of Sisters Maura Clarke, Ita Ford, and Dorothy Kazel and lay missionary Jean Donovan, and extends sympathy and support for the families, friends, and religious communities of the four U.S. churchwomen. Calls upon the people of the United States and religious congregations to participate in local, national, and international events commemorating the 25th anniversary of their martyrdom. Calls upon the President, the Secretary of State, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the heads of other U.S. agencies to support the government of El Salvador and private sector, nongovernmental, and religious organizations in their efforts to reduce poverty and to promote educational opportunity, health care, and social equity for the people of El Salvador.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 2005
Constitutional Amendment - Authorizes the President, in the case of any bill, order, resolution, or vote presented to the President by the House of Representatives and the Senate, to decline to approve in whole any dollar amount of discretionary budget authority, any item of new direct spending, or any tax benefit.
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 2005
Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to exempt from ERISA preemption state tort actions to recover damages arising from an employee welfare benefit plan's failure to provide in a timely manner the disability benefits it offers.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2005
Department of Peace and Nonviolence Act - Establishes a Department of Peace and Nonviolence, which shall be headed by a Secretary of Peace and Nonviolence appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate. Sets forth the mission of the Department, including to: (1) hold peace as an organizing principle; (2) endeavor to promote justice and democratic principles to expand human rights; and (3) develop policies that promote national and international conflict prevention, nonviolent intervention, mediation, peaceful resolution of conflict, and structured mediation of conflict. Establishes in the Department the Intergovernmental Advisory Council on Peace and Nonviolence, which shall provide assistance and make recommendations to the Secretary and the President concerning intergovernmental policies relating to peace and nonviolent conflict resolution. Transfers to the Department the functions, assets, and personnel of various federal agencies. Establishes a Federal Interagency Committee on Peace and Nonviolence. Establishes Peace Day. Urges all citizens to observe and celebrate the blessings of peace and endeavor to create peace on such day.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2005
Establishes in the legislative branch a bipartisan Katrina Commission to: (1) examine and report upon the federal, state, and local response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Region of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and other affected areas; (2) evaluate and report on the information developed by all relevant governmental agencies related to Hurricane Katrina before it struck the United States and in the days and weeks following; (3) make a complete accounting of the circumstances surrounding the approach of Hurricane Katrina to the Gulf states, and the extent of the Government's preparedness for and response to it; (4) examine planning necessary for future cataclysmic events that will require a significant marshaling of federal resources, mitigation, response, and recovery to avoid significant loss of life; (5) analyze whether any decisions differed with respect to response and recovery for different communities and what problems occurred as a result of a lack of a common plan, communication structure, and centralized command structure; and (6) investigate and report to the President and Congress on immediate corrective measures that can be taken to prevent problems with federal response to future cataclysmic events.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2005
Fair Wages for Hurricane Victims Act - Reinstates the application of the wage requirements of the Davis-Bacon Act to all federal contracts in counties affected by Hurricane Katrina, notwithstanding the President's proclamation dated September 8, 2005, or any other provision of law.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2005
Amends federal transportation law to direct the Secretary of Transportation by regulation to prescribe (corporate) average fuel economy (CAFE) standards for automobiles manufactured after 2008 that ensure that the CAFE achieved by automobiles manufactured after 2015 is at least 33 miles per gallon, and meets other specified criteria. Authorizes the Secretary to establish separate standards for different classes of automobiles according to size. Authorizes the Secretary to establish a CAFE credit trading program to allow a manufacturer that exceeds fuel economy standards to sell credits to another manufacturer.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2005
Urges U.N. member states to: (1) stop supporting resolutions that unfairly castigate Israel; and (2) promote within the United Nations General Assembly more balanced and constructive approaches to resolving Middle East conflict.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2005
Requires the Consumer Product Safety Commission to promulgate a rule declaring the Yo-Yo Waterball toy a banned hazardous product under the Consumer Product Safety Act.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 2005
Ecosystem Protection Act of 2005 - Establishes a National Forest Ecosystem Protection Program composed of lands within existing units of the National Forest System that contain large wilderness areas as a core area and a Primitive Area extending outward from them, hereby designated Ecosystem Protection Areas. Requires the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Forest Service, to manage the wilderness areas. Requires the Secretary to promote the reestablishment or protection of animal and plant species native to the designated Ecosystem Protection Areas. Requires the Secretary to strive to acquire private lands and mineral rights located within wilderness designated areas. Provides a voluntary grazing permit buyout program for the extinguishment of existing grazing permits on such lands. Requires the Secretary to provide forest plan revision assessments in specified areas. Specifies original Ecosystem Protection Areas and Primitive Areas. Requires the Secretary to provide technical and financial assistance to enable States to acquire Ecosystem Protection Areas on State-owned lands.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 2005
Hurricane Katrina Bankruptcy Relief and Community Protection Act of 2005 - Amends federal bankruptcy law governing cases commenced as of October 17, 2005 (the effective date of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005). Excludes from the accounting of current monthly incomepayments to victims of a natural disaster on account of their status as victims of a natural disaster. Defines victim of a natural disaster as one: (1) whose financial condition is materially adversely affected by a natural disaster; and (2) whose domicile, residence, or principal place of business (including principal assets) in the United States is located in a natural disaster zone immediately preceding the event that caused the natural disaster. Permits debtor status for a debtor unable to complete credit counseling because of a natural disaster. Retains automatic stay protections for a debtor who is a victim of a natural disaster. Modifies requirements governing the statutory deadline for completion of debtor's duties. Authorizes the court to extend any such time period if: (1) the debtor is a victim of a natural disaster; and (2) the debtor's status as a victim of a natural disaster necessitates such extension of time. Includes within the permissible monthly expenses of a chapter 7 debtor the actual reasonably necessary expenses incurred as a result of being a victim of a natural disaster. Modifies requirements governing conversion or dismissal of either a Chapter 7 case, a Chapter 11 Reorganization case, or Chapter 13 case if the debtor is a victim of a natural disaster. Authorizes the court to grant an extension of time for filing small business bankruptcy documentation if the debtor is unable to meet the deadline because of a natural disaster.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
Railway Safety Act of 2005 - Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to make grants to the operators of rail fixed guideway mass transportation systems subject to regulation by the Federal Transit Administration or the Federal Railroad Administration for projects to construct fences or other barriers to prevent public access to tracks and other facilities of the system that may present a hazard in a residential area. Limits the federal share to 50% of the project cost.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
Katrina College Student Relief Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to authorize the Secretary of Education to waive certain requirements for repayment of federal student grant assistance by students if: (1) they were residing in, employed in, or attending an institution of higher education located in a major disaster area; (2) their attendance was interrupted because of the disaster's impact on them or the institution; and (3) their withdrawal ended within the academic year during which the major disaster designation occurred or during the next succeeding academic year. Provides such students with deferments for certain student loan obligations for up to six months. Directs the Secretary to recalculate the expected family contribution for such students.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
Marine Debris Research, Prevention, and Reduction Act - Establishes within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) a Marine Debris Prevention and Removal Program of project grants to reduce and prevent the occurrence and adverse impacts of marine debris on the marine environment and navigation safety. Requires the Administrator of NOAA to: (1) undertake marine debris mapping, impact assessment, prevention, and removal efforts, with a focus on marine debris posing a threat to living marine resources (particularly endangered or protected species) and navigation safety; (2) improve efforts and actively seek to prevent and reduce fishing gear losses, as well as their adverse impacts on living marine resources and navigation safety; and (3) undertake outreach and education of the public and other stakeholders in the fishing, fishing gear manufacturers, and other marine-dependent industries on sources of and threats associated with marine debris and approaches to identify, determine sources of, reduce, and prevent such debris and its adverse impacts on the marine environment and navigational safety. Directs the Commandant of the Coast Guard to undertake measures to reduce violations of MARPOL Annex V (Annex V of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973) and the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships with respect to the discard of plastics and other garbage from vessels. Establishes an Interagency Committee on Marine Debris to: (1) coordinate a comprehensive program of marine debris research and activities among federal agencies, in cooperation with nongovernmental organizations, industry, universities, state governments, Indian tribes, and other nations; and (2) foster cost-effective mechanisms to identify, determine sources of, reduce, and prevent marine debris and its adverse impact on the marine environment and navigational safety, including the joint funding of research and mitigation and prevention strategies.
United States · United States Congress · 6 September 2005
International U.S. Seniors Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide certain Medicare beneficiaries living abroad: (1) a special Medicare part B enrollment period during which the late enrollment penalty is waived; and (2) a special Medigap open enrollment period during which certain anti-discriminatory prohibitions apply. Expresses the sense of the Congress on the need for an international convention for reimbursement of the costs of health care coverage for foreign senior citizens.
United States · United States Congress · 6 September 2005
National Emergency Management Restoration and Improvement Act - Establishes the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as an independent establishment in the executive branch. Requires the FEMA Director to be appointed, by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, from among persons who have significant expertise in the area of emergency preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation as related to natural disasters and other national cataclysmic events.
United States · United States Congress · 6 September 2005
Authorizes the use of arbitration to settle a dispute, notwithstanding an employment contract that provides for the use of arbitration to resolve a controversy arising out of or relating to the employment relationship, only if: (1) the employer or employee submits a written request after the dispute arises to the other party to use arbitration; and (2) the other party consents in writing within 60 days after receipt of the request. Prohibits an employer subject to federal arbitration provisions from requiring an employee to arbitrate a dispute as a condition of employment.
United States · United States Congress · 6 September 2005
Driver Protection Act - Prohibits the demotion or firing of any employee on the basis of a vision impairment if the employee is granted a vision waiver by the Secretary of Transportation and has: (1) only one valid driver's license at any time; (2) never had a license suspended, revoked, or canceled as a result of a conviction for a moving violation; (3) never been convicted of a serious traffic violation; (4) never been convicted of more than one moving violation and such violation did not involve personal injury or significant damage to property; and (5) no record of an accident in which the driver was at fault.
![Official portrait of Rep. Andrews, Robert E. [D-NJ-1]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/a000210_200.jpg)