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![Official portrait of Rep. Berman, Howard L. [D-CA-28]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/b000410_200.jpg)
United States · Official source
7,230 records where Rep. Berman, Howard L. [D-CA-28] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Equal Access to Social Security Act of 2004 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to entitle unmarried gay and lesbian and heterosexual permanent partners to OASDI survivor and other benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Fisheries Management Reform Act of 2004 - Amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to require the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) (currently, the Secretary of Commerce) to appoint members to the Regional Fishery Management Councils who, by reason of their occupational or other experience, are knowledgeable regarding the conservation and management, or the commercial or recreational harvest, of fishery resources. Revises requirements for the composition of such councils and the qualifications of voting Council members. Sets forth certain requirements with respect to: (1) training of appointed Council members; and (2) disclosure of financial interest and recusal of Council members. Directs the Secretary to establish regional science and technical teams to make recommendations on certain matters, on the basis of which the Secretary shall provide Councils conservation and management measures for incorporation into fishery management plans that establish: (1) catch and bycatch limits; (2) specific habitat and area protections to protect essential fish habitats; and (3) specific requirements necessary to protect endangered species.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
States that Congress: (1) declares that the atrocities unfolding in Darfur, Sudan, are genocide; (2) reminds the international community, including the U.S. Government, of their international legal obligations, as affirmed in the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide; (3) calls on the Bush Administration to lead an international effort to prevent genocide in Darfur; (4) urges the Bush Administration to consider multilateral or even unilateral intervention to prevent genocide should the United Nations Security Council fail to act; (5) demands that the Bush Administration impose targeted sanctions, including visa bans and the freezing of assets of the National Congress and affiliated business and individuals directly responsible for the atrocities in Darfur; and (6) calls on the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to establish a Darfur Resettlement, Rehabilitation, and Reconstruction Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Designates the third floor of the Ellis Island Immigration Museum, located on Ellis Island in New York Harbor, as the Bob Hope Memorial Library.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Ronald Reagan Commemorative Coin Act of 2004 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue five-dollar gold coins, one-dollar silver coins, and ten-dollar bimetallic coins emblematic of the presidency and life of former President Ronald Wilson Reagan.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Establishes: (1) a Center for Scientific and Technical Assessment to provide timely advice to Congress on scientific and technical aspects of public policy issues, administered by a Director; and (2) a Technical Assessment Board to provide guidance to the Director to ensure that the Center provides timely and useful responses to congressional requests. Authorizes the Director to appoint, with the approval of the Comptroller General, a Deputy Director. Prohibits the Director and Deputy Director from engaging in any other business, vocation, or employment, or (except with the Comptroller General's approval) holding any office in, or acting in any capacity for, any organization, agency, or institution with which the Center makes any contract or other arrangement under this Act. Permits: (1) any Member of Congress to make requests to the Board that the Center conduct an investigation and report to the requester, within a specified time period, on any matter relating to scientific and technical assessment (and sets priorities for requests); and (2) the Director to establish an advisory panel as necessary to support each technical assessment report. Requires each report to be subject to peer review before delivery to the committee or Member requesting it. Provides for public release of unclassified reports, subject to a delay of up to two weeks at the request of the Board or a Member.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Amends the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 to repeal the FY 2004 funding limitation for the "threshold program" which assists a candidate low-income country to become eligible to enter into an economic development Millennium Challenge Compact with the United States. (Matches "threshold program" duration with the Compact program.)
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Second Chance Act of 2004: Community Safety Through Recidivism Prevention or Second Chance Act of 2004 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to reauthorize, rewrite, and expand provisions regarding adult and juvenile offender reentry demonstration projects, including by authorizing funds to: (1) provide structured post-release housing and transitional housing through which offenders are provided supervision and services immediately following reentry into the community; (2) facilitate specified collaboration to promote the employment of people released from prison and jail; and (3) establish or expand the use of reentry courts. Sets forth grant priorities and requirements, including that each State or local government recipient establish a Reentry Task Force or other relevant convening authority. Authorizes the Attorney General to make a grant to provide for the establishment of a National Adult and Juvenile Offender Reentry Resource Center. Directs the Attorney General to establish an interagency task force on Federal programs and activities relating to offender reentry. Authorizes the National Institute of Justice and the Bureau of Justice Statistics to conduct research on offender reentry. Directs: (1) the Secretary of Health and Human Services to review the role of State child protective services at the time of arrest and to establish services for the preservation of families impacted by the incarceration of a family member; and (2) the Secretary of Labor to implement a program to educate employers about existing incentives to the hiring of former prisoners and to make grants to community-based organizations to provide mentoring and other transitional services essential to reintegrating ex-offenders.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Requests that the President, and directs the Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, and Attorney General (AG) to transmit to the House of Representatives all documents in their possession (as more specifically identified in this Resolution) relating to the treatment of prisoners or detainees in Iraq, Afghanistan, or Guantanamo Bay and any instructions for handling such documents, with the exception of those documents in the AG's possession that are protected by Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 6(e) in proceedings in which the AG or the Department of Justice are parties.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Creates the Select Committee to Investigate Detainee Abuses to conduct a full and complete investigation of the abuses of detainees held in U.S. custody in connection with Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, or any operation within the Global War on Terrorism, in particular those documented abuses at Abu Ghraib prison, and to make appropriate findings and recommendations to the House of Representatives. Requires the Select Committee to assess, analyze, and evaluate relevant persons, policies, procedures, reports, and events during the course of its investigation, including but not limited to those specified in this Resolution. Sets forth procedures and authorities of the Select Committee. Requires the Select Committee to submit its final report to the House within six months of adoption of this Resolution and to cease to exist one month thereafter.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
States that: (1) Congress reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the Taiwan Relations Act as the cornerstone of United States-Taiwan relations; (2) the military modernization and weapons procurement program of the People's Republic of China (PRC) is a matter of grave concern, particularly the missile deployment directed toward Taiwan; (3) the President should direct U.S. officials to raise these military concerns with PRC officials; (4) the President and Congress should determine whether the escalating arms buildup, including deployment of offensive weaponry and missiles in areas adjacent to the Taiwan Strait, requires that additional defense articles and services be made available to Taiwan, and the United States should encourage Taiwan to devote sufficient financial resources to its defense; (5) as recommended by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, the Department of Defense should provide the appropriate congressional committees with a comprehensive report on Russian military sales to the PRC; (6) the President should encourage further dialogue between Taiwan and the PRC; and (7) the United States should not discourage Taiwan officials from visiting the United States on the basis that doing so would violate the "one China policy."
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 2004
Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate to arrange for the presentation, on behalf of Congress, to the personal representative of Ray Charles, a gold medal in recognition of Ray Charles' many contributions to the Nation as one of America's greatest and most influential musical artists.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2004
Civil Liberties Restoration Act of 2004 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to require removal proceedings to be open to the public subject to specified exceptions. Requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to: (1) serve notice to appear within 48 hours on aliens arrested or detained under the INA and bring them before an immigration judge within 72 hours, with exceptions for aliens certified as engaging in espionage or terrorism; and (2) conduct individualized bond determinations reviewable by an immigration judge. Limits the authority of the Board of Immigration Review (created by this Act) to stay release orders. Abolishes the Executive Office of Immigration Review and replaces it with the Immigration Review Commission. Terminates the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS) and most NSEERS-related removal proceedings. Requires the Secretary to use prosecutorial discretion in immigration enforcement. Eliminates criminal penalties and deportation, and establishes civil penalties, for an alien's violation of registration and change of address requirements. Requires data entered into the National Crime Information Center database to meet Privacy Act accuracy requirements. Amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to authorize (currently, require) courts to review in camera and ex parte materials relating to, or information derived from, electronic surveillance, physical searches, business records, and pen registers or trap and trace devices under FISA where the Attorney General asserts that disclosure implicates national security. Requires disclosure of such materials to comport with the Classified Information Procedures Act. Requires Federal agencies to report data-mining activities to Congress. Prohibits orders requiring the production of certain business records in the course of foreign intelligence or international terrorism investigations absent a finding that specific and articulable facts support the belief that the person to whom the records pertain is a foreign power.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2004
Children's Hospitals Education Equity and Research (CHEER) Act of 2004 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make payments through FY 2010 (currently, through FY 2005) to children's hospitals for costs associated with operating approved graduate medical resident training programs.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2004
Healthy Families Act - Requires certain employers with at least 15 or more employees to provide a minimum paid sick leave of: (1) seven days annually for those who work at least 30 hours per week; and (2) a prorated annual amount for those who work less than 30 but at least 20 hours a week, or less than 1,500 but at least 1,000 hours per year. Allows employees to use such leave to meet their own medical needs or to care for the medical needs of certain family members. Directs the Secretary of Labor to exercise certain investigative and enforcement authority with respect to this Act's provisions regarding employees covered by title I of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 or the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991. Provides that, for employees under their jurisdiction, such authority shall be exercised by the Librarian of Congress, the Comptroller General, the Board of Directors of the congressional Office of Compliance, or the Merit Systems Protection Board. Declares that the requirements under this Act are minimum requirements, and are not to be construed to discourage employers from adopting or retaining more generous leave policies.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2004
Recognizes the 40th anniversary of the day civil rights organizers Andrew Goodman, James Chaney, and Michael Schwerner gave their lives. Encourages all Americans to observe the anniversary of the deaths of the three men by committing themselves to the fundamental principles of freedom, equality, and democracy.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2004
Safe, Efficient, Coordinated, Unified, Revitalized, Enhanced Visa Waiver Act - Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish an electronic system that requires aliens seeking entry to the United States under the visa waiver program (VWP) to submit biographical information prior to embarkation. Requires such system to: (1) make electronic determinations of eligibility for admission within 30 minutes; (2) require carriers and other corporations providing transportation to inquire electronically, prior to embarkation, whether the alien has been determined eligible for admission and to respond to such inquiries within 90 seconds; and (3) be deployed as soon as possible. Requires the Secretary: (1) to charge a fee to VWP aliens that ensures the recovery of the full costs of establishing and operating the system; and (2) in developing the system, to consult with and allow for review by a private sector group consisting of experts in travel, tourism, privacy, national security, or computer security issues. Amends the Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act to extend by one year: (1) the deadline for installing equipment and software at U.S. ports of entry to allow biometric comparison and authentication of machine-readable passports issued by VWP countries; and (2) the deadline for VWP aliens to present such passports. Authorizes the Secretary to grant up to two extensions of the new deadlines where the VWP country is making substantial progress toward issuing machine-readable, tamper-resistant passports that incorporate biometric and document authentication identifiers.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2004
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to allow foreign children adopted while under age 18 for whom adoption proceedings were initiated while they were under the age of 16 (currently, children adopted while under age 16) to be treated as children for immigration and naturalization purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2004
States that House of Representatives: (1) declares that the people of Hong Kong should be free to determine the pace and scope of constitutional developments; and (2) calls upon the President to call upon the People's Republic of China to guarantee that all revisions of Hong Kong law are made according to the wishes of the people of Hong Kong as expressed through a fully democratically elected legislature and chief executive, declare that the continued lack of a fully democratically elected legislature in Hong Kong constitutes a violation of the Agreement between the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the Government of the People's Republic of China on the Question of Hong Kong (the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984), and call upon the People's Republic of China to honor its obligations under such Declaration.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2004
Expresses the House of Representatives deepest appreciation for the profound public service of President Ronald Reagan and its condolences to his wife, Nancy, and to his surviving children, Patti, Michael, and Ron, and the entire Reagan family. Calls on the people of the United States to reflect on President Reagan's record as President of the United States during this national period of remembrance.
United States · United States Congress · 4 June 2004
Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of 2004 - Amends the Satellite Home Viewer Act of 1994 to extend authority for the satellite distant network signal compulsory license and the copyright compulsory license. Requires satellite carriers making secondary transmissions of network station primary transmissions to submit to the network a subscriber list relating to significantly viewed stations. Permits retransmission, in States with a single licensed full-power station that was a network station on January 1, 1995, of the signals of such stations by satellite carriers in certain circumstances. Allows satellite carriers to secondarily transmit network station or superstation signals to communities where such signals are significantly viewed. Requires certain subscribers eligible for distant network signals to choose between distant and local signals if local signals are available. Strikes provisions concerning the voluntary negotiation of royalty fees for certain satellite carriers. Makes cost-of-living adjustments to copyright royalty rates. Requires the Register of Copyrights to report to the Committees on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and Senate the Register's findings and recommendations on the operation and revision of specified statutory licenses for secondary transmissions.
United States · United States Congress · 3 June 2004
Approves the renewal of import restrictions contained in the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003.
United States · United States Congress · 1 June 2004
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 5505 Stevens Way in San Diego, California, as the "Earl B. Gilliam Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Angel Island Immigration Station Restoration and Preservation Act - Authorizes appropriations to the Secretary of the Interior for restoring the Angel Island Immigration Station in San Francisco Bay, in coordination with the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation and the California Department of Parks and Recreation. Requires funds appropriated by this Act to be used first for restoration of the Immigration Station Hospital on Angel Island.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Cuba Sanctions Reform Act of 2004 - Provides for the expiration of certain trade and travel restrictions with respect to Cuba unless such restrictions are renewed annually by a specified renewal resolution of the two Houses of Congress. Authorizes the President with respect to Cuba to: (1) impose certain export controls; and (2) exercise certain emergency economic powers.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Authorizes the Government of Ukraine to establish a memorial on Federal land in the District of Columbia to honor the victims of the Ukrainian famine-genocide of 1932-1933. Prohibits the U.S. Government from paying any expense for the establishment of the memorial or its maintenance.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
States that the House of Representatives: (1) looks forward to the development of cordial relations between the United States and the Republic of Belarus; (2) emphasizes that a precondition for the integration of Belarus into the Western community of nations is its establishment of a democratic political system; (3) expresses its support for the efforts of the Belarusian people to establish a full democracy, the rule of law, and respect for human rights in Belarus; and (4) urges the Government of Belarus to ensure a democratic, transparent, and fair election process for its 2004 parliamentary elections.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
States that Congress: (1) commends the people of the Republic of India, the largest democracy in the world, for their achievements in establishing a successful democratic country which serves as an example for emerging democracies throughout the world; (2) recognizes the historical ties and shared interests and reaffirms the friendship between India and the United States; and (3) expresses its best wishes for the future success of the new government of India.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2004
Public Servant Retirement Protection Act - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to repeal the current windfall elimination provisions (which reduce Social Security benefits of retirees who paid into the Social Security system for part of their careers and who also receive a government pension from work in the public sector not covered by Social Security) and to replace them with a formula that treats non-Social Security earnings as if they were Social Security earnings for the purpose of calculating lifetime earnings for certain individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2004
Urges the Citizen's Stamp Advisory Committee to recommend to the Postmaster General that a commemorative postage stamp be issued by the United States Postal Service honoring Charles Hamilton Houston, the first African American to earn a Doctor of Juridical Science degree from Harvard University and to serve as editor of the Harvard Law Review.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2004
Taxpayer Protection Against Wasteful Energy Credits Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal: (1) the inflation adjustment to the phaseout amount for the tax credit for producing fuel from a nonconventional source; and (2) the extension of the tax credit for facilities producing synthetic fuels from coal.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2004
Medicare Early Access Act of 2004 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, to add a new part E (Purchase of Medicare Benefits by Certain Individuals 55 to 65 Years of Age). Provides access to Medicare benefits for individuals 55 to 64 years of age who do not have coverage under a Federal health insurance program or under a group plan. Requires enrollees to pay a premium to receive Medicare coverage. Requires the Secretary to base the premium on the Secretary's estimate of the average, national annual per capita amount of the cost of providing services to the population. Allows early retirees with access to retiree coverage to enroll under this part while keeping their Federal or State COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985) continuation coverage. Allows an employer that offers employment-based retiree health coverage to an individual who enrolls under this part to modify such coverage to provide for: (1) employer payment of items and services for which payment may not be made under Medicare; and (2) employer payment of 25 percent of the monthly premium applicable to the individual after enrollment. Creates in the Treasury the Medicare Early Access Trust Fund to hold the premiums collected under this Act and to support the new program. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow program enrollees to receive a 75 percent advance, refundable credit to offset premium costs (thus requiring program enrollees in the Medicare buy-in to be responsible for 25 percent of the monthly premiums).
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2004
Women's Health Office Act of 2004 - Amends the Public Health Service Act, the Social Security Act, and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the establishment of separate Offices on Women's Health within the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Office of the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Office of the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, and the Office of the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration to carry out specified activities relating to the health of women. Directs the lead officers of each Office of Women's Health to establish goals, provide information, serve as a consultant, and establish a Coordinating Committee on Women's Health within their respective agencies. Requires the Director of the Agency of Healthcare Research and Quality to designate an official of the Office of Priority Populations to carry out similar responsibilities relating to women's health. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Office of Women's Health, to establish a National Women's Health Information Center to facilitate the exchange of information, access to such information, and the analysis of issues and problems relating to women's health. Transfers the functions of the Office on Women's Health of the Public Health Service to the Office of Women's Health within the Department of Health and Human Services.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2004
International Assistance to Missing and Exploited Children Act of 2004 - Amends the International Child Abduction Remedies Act (ICARA) to make Federal Tort Claims Act provisions applicable to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (Center) and other entities to which responsibilities are delegated under ICARA by the U.S. Central Authority under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. Amends the Federal judicial code to authorize actions in U.S. district court to resolve conflicting child custody determinations. Directs the Attorney General to establish a registry of custody and visitation orders and proceedings. Provides guidelines for disclosing registry information. Authorizes law enforcement officials to detain children listed as missing or accompanying an adult arrested for suspected child abduction in violation of a custody order. Requires officials to surrender such children to the appropriate State agency as soon as practicable. Requires the Central Authority to: (1) fund legal services to persons seeking remedies in parental kidnapping cases; (2) provide related training and technical assistance; and (3) encourage the designation of courts to hear Convention-related cases. Requires the Federal Judicial Center to provide continuing education on the Convention and related laws. Requires annual reports to Congress on: (1) progress in negotiating international child abduction agreements with countries that are not parties to the Convention; and (2) cases involving extradition requests of individuals alleged to have violated international parental kidnapping provisions. Requires the Attorney General to support State adoption and implementation of the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act. Amends the Violence Against Women Act of 2000 to include children at risk of parental kidnapping in the Safe Havens for Children Pilot Program. Amends the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to authorize disclosure of taxpayer identity information to the Center. Calls for increasing the U.S. contribution to the Permanent Bureau at The Hague.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2004
Small Business Health Insurance Promotion Act of 2004 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow certain small employers (not more than 50 employees) a business tax credit equal to 50 percent of amounts paid by such employers for the health care coverage of their employees under a qualified health pooling arrangement. Limits the period during which the tax credit may be taken to four years from the date the employer begins participating in a qualified health pooling arrangement. Defines "qualified health pooling arrangement" as a national or state arrangement that provides health benefits coverage substantially similar to that of the four largest health benefit plans offered to Federal employees. Directs the Secretaries of Health and Human Services and Labor to provide for the offering and oversight of qualified State and national health pooling arrangements and to conduct a study, through the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, of the operation of such arrangements.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2004
Requests that the Secretary of Defense transmit to the House of Representatives any picture, photograph, video, communication, or report produced in conjunction with any completed Department of Defense (DOD) investigation: (1) conducted by Major General Antonio M. Taguba and relating to allegations of torture or allegations of violations of the Geneva Convention at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq; or (2) relating to the abuse or alleged abuse of prisoners of war or detainees by civilian contractors employed in Iraq on behalf of the DOD.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 2004
American Schools Abroad Support Act - Expresses the sense of Congress that additional funds should be made available to American-sponsored schools in Arab and other predominantly Muslim countries to provide full or partial merit-based scholarships to students from lower- and middle-income families of such countries to attend such schools. Authorizes the Secretary of State, acting through the Director of the Office of Overseas Schools of the Department of State, to make grants to such schools to provide scholarships to such students.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 2004
Medicare Preservation and Anti-Privatization Act - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA), as added by the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, to eliminate the MA Regional Plan Stabilization Fund. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide, beginning with 2005, for adjustment of payment rates to Medicare+Choice organizations so that they reflect only the payment at 100 percent of the fee-for-service rate. Provides that, in applying risk adjustment factors to payment to Medicare+Choice organizations in a budget neutral manner, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall assure that such factors, in the aggregate, take into account the actual characteristics of the entire Medicare population, and not merely the population of individuals enrolled under a Medicare+Choice plan under part C (Medicare+Choice) of SSA title XVIII.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 2004
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize both handwritten and electronic signatures on attestation forms required by the employment verification system. Authorizes the retention of paper or electronic versions of such forms.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 2004
Recognizes the importance in history of the 150th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the United States and Japan. Calls for expanded political, economic, strategic, and cultural ties between the Japanese and American people and their respective governments.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2004
States that Congress: (1) acknowledges and welcomes the strong relationship formed between the United States and Ukraine since the restoration of Ukraine's independence in 1991; (2) recognizes that a precondition for the full integration of Ukraine into the Western community of nations, including as an equal member in institutions such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), is its establishment of a democratic political system; (3) urges the Government of Ukraine to guarantee freedom of association and assembly, including the right of candidates, members of political parties, and others to freely assemble, to organize and conduct public events, and to exercise these and other rights free from intimidation or harassment; (4) urges the Government of Ukraine to meet its Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) commitments on democratic elections; (5) urges the Ukrainian authorities to ensure the full transparency of election procedures before, during, and after the 2004 presidential elections; and (6) pledges its support and assistance to the Ukrainian people's establishment of a free and open democratic system, creation of a free market economy, and their country's assumption of a full and equal membership in the Western community of democracies.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2004
Safe, Orderly, Legal Visas and Enforcement Act (or SOLVE Act) of 2004 - Creates an earned adjustment program for undocumented aliens (and their spouses and children) who meet specified requirements. Excludes aliens granted earned adjustment from numerical visa limitations. Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to allow such aliens to correct social security records. Creates transitional status for certain aliens who do not satisfy earned adjustment requirements. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to exempt immediate relatives from the family-sponsored immigrant cap. Redefines "immediate relatives" to include spouses and minor children of lawful permanent residents. Recaptures certain unused visa numbers. Reduces the minimum income level for affidavits of support. Increases to 21 the eligibility age for derivative citizenship. Repeals, retroactively, barriers to reentry for unlawful presence. Redefines the H-2B nonimmigrant worker category to include aliens coming temporarily to perform short-term service or labor for nine months or less. Adds an H-1D category for aliens coming temporarily to perform service or labor other than that performed by specified nonimmigrants. Requires employers seeking H-1D or H-2B workers to undertake recruitment efforts for U.S. workers and to submit labor attestations. Provides for derivative status for spouses and children of H-1D and H-2B workers. Makes such workers eligible for employment-based immigrant visas and adjustment of status. Authorizes stays of removal for aliens involved in workplace claims. Addresses backpay remedies and unfair immigration-related employment practices. Creates a Temporary Worker Programs Commission.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2004
Amends the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 2004 to revise the per-unit cost calculation for expiring tenant-based rental assistance contracts under section 8 of the United States Housing Act of 1937.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2004
Honors the extraordinary contributions of the women whose dedicated service on the home front during World War II was instrumental in achieving an Allied victory. Recognizes the lasting legacy of equal employment opportunity and support for child care and health care that developed during the "Rosie the Riveter" era. Calls on the people of the United States to study, reflect on, and celebrate the stories and accomplishments of women who served the Nation as "Rosies" during that war.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2004
Declares that the Congress: (1) recognizes and celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision; (2) encourages all Americans to recognize and celebrate the anniversary; and (3) renews its commitment to continuing and building on the legacy of Brown with a pledge to acknowledge and address the modern day disparities that remain.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2004
Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2004 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to increase the Federal minimum wage to: (1) $5.85 an hour, beginning on the 60th day after enactment of this Act; (2) $6.45 an hour, beginning 12 months after that 60th day; and (3) $7.00 an hour, beginning 24 months after that 60th day. Makes Federal minimum wage requirements applicable to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Sets forth a transition period during which a specified minimum wage there shall be gradually increased to equal the Federal minimum wage.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2004
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) Israel shares the commitment to democratic government and the market economy that is the foundation of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); (2) Israel meets the OECD's membership requirements and has been an active participant as a non-member country in various OECD activities; (3) the United States should support and advocate the accession of Israel to the OECD, including through coordination of efforts with Mexico, Great Britain, and other countries supportive of Israel's OECD membership; and (4) given the discriminatory policies against Israel in other international fora, Israel, upon accession to the OECD, should be afforded all the rights and privileges granted to all other member countries.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2004
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) all countries should recognize the seriousness of anti-Semitic acts and should take action against those individuals and entities that incite hatred and perpetrate criminal acts against Jewish populations; (2) member countries of the European Union (EU) should continue to officially and publicly repudiate those individuals and entities that carry out such acts and should undertake tougher and more unified measures to combat the growth of anti-Semitic violence and intimidation throughout the European continent; (3) the EU should protect the safety of their Jewish communities through the establishment of the position of a director to monitor and combat anti-Semitism within the EU through education, media analysis, and coordination with responsible partners in each EU member country; (4) the delegates from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Conference on Anti-Semitism should call on their governments to make anti-Semitism a criminal offense and should establish within the OSCE a framework to monitor anti-Semitic activities, to monitor legislation to combat anti-Semitism, to coordinate between law enforcement organizations in such countries, and to implement relevant educational programs for the next generation of Europeans; (5) the President should direct the United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations to work with EU member countries to secure passage of a resolution condemning anti-Semitism at the upcoming session of the United Nations General Assembly; and (6) combating acts of anti-Semitism worldwide through diplomatic efforts should be a U.S. foreign policy priority.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2004
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the President should direct the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations to seek an immediate end to the inequality experienced by Israel in the United Nations; (2) U.S. interests would be well served if Israel were afforded the benefits of full membership in the Western European and Others Group (WEOG) at the United Nations; (3) the Secretary of State and other appropriate U.S. officials should pursue diplomatic efforts and should take all necessary steps to ensure the extension and upgrade of Israel's WEOG membership; and (4) the Secretary should report to Congress on a regular basis respecting actions taken to effect Israel's full WEOG membership.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 2004
San Francisco Old Mint Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 100,000 $5 coins and 500,000 $1 coins emblematic of the San Francisco Old Mint Building, its importance to California and U.S. history, and its role in rebuilding San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake and fire. Requires that all surcharges received by the Secretary from the sale of coins issued under this Act be promptly paid to the San Francisco Museum and Historical Society for use for the purposes of rehabilitating the Historic Old Mint in San Francisco as a city museum and an American Coin and Gold Rush Museum.