United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2013
Sanctity of Life Act of 2013 - Declares that: (1) human life is deemed to exist from fertilization, without regard to race, sex, age, health, defect, or condition of dependency; and (2) "person" includes all such human life. Recognizes that each state has a compelling interest in protecting the lives of those within the state's jurisdiction whom the state rationally regards as human beings. Amends the federal judicial code to remove Supreme Court and district court jurisdiction to review cases arising out of any statute, ordinance, rule, regulation, or practice, or any act interpreting such a measure on the grounds that such measure: (1) protects the rights of human persons between conception and birth; or (2) prohibits, limits, or regulates the performance of abortions or the provision of public funds, facilities, personnel, or other assistance for abortions.
United States · United States Congress · 10 July 2013
Responsibly And Professionally Invigorating Development Act of 2013 or the RAPID Act - States that the purpose of this Act is to establish procedures to streamline, increase the efficiency of, and enhance coordination of agency administration of the regulatory review, environmental decision making, and permitting process for major actions that are construction activities undertaken, reviewed, or funded by federal agencies. Authorizes a project sponsor, upon the request of a lead agency (the agency responsible preparing the environmental document), to prepare any document for environmental review required in support of, or for approval of, such an activity if such agency furnishes oversight and independently evaluates, approves, and adopts such document prior to taking action or making any approval based on such document. Defines "environmental review" as federal agency procedures for preparing an environmental impact statement (EIS), environmental assessment (EA), categorical exclusion, or other document under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). Prohibits requiring more than one EIS and one EA for a project, except for supplemental environmental documents prepared under NEPA or environmental documents prepared pursuant to a court order. Requires the lead agency to prepare the EIS or EA, except as otherwise provided by law. Prohibits, after the lead agency issues a record of decision, any federal agency responsible for making any approval for a project from relying on a document other than the environmental document prepared by the lead agency. Allows the lead agency, upon the request of a project sponsor, to: (1) adopt, use, or rely upon secondary and cumulative impact analyses included in documents prepared under NEPA for projects in the same geographic area if such documents are pertinent to the NEPA decision for the project under review; and (2) adopt a document that has been prepared for a project under state laws as the EIS or EA for the project if such laws provide environmental protection and opportunities for public involvement that are substantially equivalent to NEPA. Requires the lead agency to publish a supplement to the state document if: (1) a significant change has been made to the project that is relevant for purposes of environmental review, or (2) there have been significant changes in circumstances or availability of information relevant to such review. Requires a lead agency to issue its record of decision or finding of no significant impact based upon such adopted document. Authorizes a lead agency to adopt for a project an environmental document for a similar project that is in geographical proximity and that was subject to environmental review or similar state procedures within the preceding five years if the agency determines that there is a reasonable likelihood that the projects will have similar environmental impacts. Requires the lead agency to invite and designate as a participating agency in the preparation of an environmental document for a project any federal agency that is required to adopt such document. Requires such an agency to collaborate on the preparation of such document unless it informs the lead agency that it has no jurisdiction, authority, expertise, or information with respect to, and does not intend to submit comments on, the project. Precludes any agency that declines to participate from submitting comments on such document or taking measures to oppose any permit, license, or approval related to that project based on the environmental review. Prohibits the lead agency from acting upon, responding to, or including in any document prepared under NEPA any comment submitted by a participating agency that concerns matters outside of such agency's authority and expertise. Requires federal agencies to carry out: (1) obligations under other applicable laws concurrently and in conjunction with the review required under NEPA; and (2) such rules, policies, and procedures as may be reasonably necessary to enable such agency to ensure the completion of the environmental review and environmental decision making process in a timely, coordinated, and environmentally responsible manner. Sets forth provisions concerning requirements for initiating and completing environmental review for a project, including requirements for: (1) determining the range of alternatives to be considered; (2) methodologies for analyzing such alternatives, including potential effects on employment; (3) a plan for coordinating public and agency participation in the review; (4) periods for public and agency comments on draft EISs; and (5) a schedule for completing the review. Requires all participating agencies to comply with such schedule. Establishes: (1) for projects requiring preparation of an EA, a one-year deadline for issuing a finding of no significant impact or a Notice of Intent to Prepare an EIS; and (2) for projects requiring preparation of an EIS, a two-year deadline for completing the EIS. Sets forth conditions for extensions. Sets forth deadlines for decisions required under any other federal law relating to the undertaking of a project being reviewed under NEPA. Deems: (1) a project to be approved in the event that a federal agency fails to approve or otherwise act upon a permit, license, or other similar application for approval related to a project within such deadlines, and (2) such approval to be final agency action that may not be reversed by an agency. Prescribes responsibilities of the lead agency and the participating agencies to work cooperatively to identify and resolve issues that could delay completion of the environmental review or could result in denial of any approvals required for the project under applicable laws. Requires the head of each federal agency to report annually on: (1) the projects for which the agency initiated preparation of an EIS or EA; (2) the projects for which the agency issued a record of decision or a finding of no significant impact and the length of time it took the agency to complete the environmental review for each such project; and (3) the filing and resolution of any lawsuits against the agency seeking judicial review of a permit, license, or approval issued by the agency for an action subject to NEPA. Sets forth limitations to claims arising under federal law seeking judicial review of a permit, license, or approval issued by a federal agency for an action subject to NEPA. Prohibits this Act from being construed to supersede, amend, or modify specified regulations concerning environmental review of transportation projects. Requires the Council on Environmental Quality and each federal agency to amend NEPA implementing regulations to implement the provisions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 2013
Hank Aaron Congressional Gold Medal Act - Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the presentation of a congressional gold medal to Hank Aaron in recognition of his contributions to baseball and his perseverance in overcoming discrimination and adversity to become a role model for all Americans. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell bronze duplicates at a price sufficient to cover the cost of the gold medal and such bronze duplicates.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2013
Caroline Pryce Walker Conquer Childhood Cancer Reauthorization Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize through FY2018 cancer research programs under the Caroline Pryce Walker Conquer Childhood Cancer Act of 2008. Replaces the current pediatric cancer research and awareness grant program carried out by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) with a comprehensive children's cancer biorepositories program. Authorizes the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to make awards to eligible applicants to build upon existing initiatives to collect biospecimens and clinical and demographic information (including date of diagnosis, age at diagnosis, and patient's gender, race, and ethnicity) for at least 90% of all children, adolescents, and young adults with cancer in Comprehensive Children's Cancer Biorepositories for the purpose of achieving a better understanding of the cause of such cancers and the effects of treatments. Permits award amounts to be used to: (1) acquire, preserve, and store high quality, donated biospecimens and associated clinical and demographic information on children, adolescents, and young adults diagnosed with cancer in the United States; (2) maintain a secure searchable database for scientists and qualified health care professionals to research such biospecimens and data; and (3) make available and distribute such biospecimens and data to researchers and professionals for peer-reviewed research. Revises the national childhood cancer registry grant program to require the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to award grants to state cancer registries to enhance and expand infrastructure to track the epidemiology of cancer in children, adolescents, and young adults. Requires a Comptroller General (GAO) report regarding the barriers to conducting pediatric studies of oncologic therapies in applications for new drugs or biological products under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, including recommendations to improve development and access to new therapies as well as assessments of: (1) the feasibility of requiring studies for a pediatric oncologic indication if the therapeutic target of a drug or biologic product for an adult oncologic indication is highly relevant to any pediatric cancer to which it could apply, and (2) the impact of altering the current exemption for orphan drug designations relating to rare diseases or conditions.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 2013
Responsible Consumer Financial Protection Regulations Act of 2013 - Amends the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010, title X of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, to replace the position of Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) with a five-member Commission whose members are appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Prohibits the Chair of the Commission from making requests for estimates related to appropriations without the prior approval of the Commission.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2013
Treat and Reduce Obesity Act of 2013 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to include information on the coverage of intensive behavioral therapy for obesity in the "Medicare and You Handbook." Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to allow other physicians, registered dietitians, certified diabetes educators, and instructors trained and certified by the National Diabetes Prevention Lifestyle Coach Training program of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to provide, and be independently reimbursed for, intensive behavioral therapy for obesity furnished outside of the primary care setting, so long as any such nonphysician provider or instructor furnishing the therapy must communicate any recommendation or treatment plan for an individual to the individual's primary care physicians or practitioner. Authorizes the Secretary to cover under Medicare part D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program) medication for treatment of obesity or for weight loss management for an overweight individual with one or more comorbidities.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2013
Constitutional Amendment - States that the liberty of parents to direct the upbringing, education, and care of their children is a fundamental right. Declares further that the parental right to direct education includes the right to choose public, private, religious, or home schools, and the right to make reasonable choices within public schools for one's child. States that neither the United States nor any state shall infringe upon this right without demonstrating that its governmental interest, as applied to the person, is of the highest order and not otherwise served. Prohibits this article from being construed to apply to a parental action or decision that would end life. Declares that no treaty may be adopted nor shall any source of international law be employed to supersede, modify, interpret, or apply to the rights guaranteed by this amendment.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2013
Kids First Research Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to terminate: (1) the taxpayer election to designate $3 of income tax liability for financing of presidential election campaigns, (2) the Presidential Election Campaign Fund, and (3) the Presidential Primary Matching Payment Account. Redesignates the Presidential Election Campaign Fund as the 10-Year Pediatric Research Initiative Fund. Makes amounts in the Fund available only for allocation to national research institutes and national centers through the Common Fund for making grants for pediatric research under this Act. Requires deposit into the Treasury general fund of any amounts in the Pediatric Research Initiative Fund that remain unobligated on October 1, 2024. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), through the Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives, to allocate funds appropriated under this Act to the national research institutes and national centers for making grants for pediatric research representing important areas of emerging scientific opportunities, rising public health challenges, or knowledge gaps that deserve special emphasis and would benefit from conducting or supporting additional research that involves collaboration between two or more national research institutes or national centers, or would otherwise benefit from strategic coordination and planning. Authorizes $13 million out of the 10-Year Pediatric Research Initiative Fund for each of FY2014-FY2023 for pediatric research through the Common Fund. Requires such funds to supplement, not supplant, funds otherwise allocated by NIH for pediatric research. Prohibits the use of such amounts for any purpose other than making grants for pediatric research described in this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2013
Combating Military Sexual Assault Act of 2013 - Directs each military department Secretary to implement a program providing a Special Victims' Counsel (Counsel) to a victim of a sexual assault committed by a member of the Armed Forces (member). Outlines Counsel qualifications and duties, including providing legal representation and assistance in connection with criminal and civil legal matters related to the assault. Provides conditions for legal representation in court, and requires the Manual for Courts-Martial to be revised to allow for such representation. Allows a member or member dependent who is a victim of a sexual assault by another member to receive Counsel assistance. Requires such victim to be informed of the availability of such assistance at the time the victim originally seeks assistance from a sexual response coordinator or sexual assault victim advocate, a military criminal investigator, a victim/witness liaison, a trial counsel, health care providers, or any other personnel designated by the Secretary concerned. Makes such assistance available regardless of whether the victim elects unrestricted or restricted (confidential) reporting of the incident. Provides additional duties of the Director of the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office within the Department of Defense (DOD), including: (1) providing guidance and assistance for the military departments in addressing matters relating to sexual assault prevention and response, (2) acting as liaison between DOD and other federal and state agencies on sexual assault prevention and response programs, and (3) overseeing development of program guidance and joint planning objectives in support of such program. Requires the Director to also collect, maintain, and disseminate data of the military departments concerning sexual assault prevention and response. Amends the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) to provide for disposition and other requirements in connection with sex-related offenses, and to provide for victims' rights under such actions (including the right to a Counsel). Requires a convening authority (the official acting on the sentence of a court-martial), when taking any action other than approving a sentence, to prepare a written justification of such action which shall be made part of the record of the court-martial. Prohibits a convening authority from: (1) dismissing or setting aside a finding of guilty, or (2) reducing a finding of guilty to a finding of guilty to a lesser included offense. Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 to require the National Guard of each state and territory to ensure that a sexual assault response coordinator is available at all times to its members.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2013
Taxpayer Nondiscrimination and Protection Act of 2013 - Amends the federal criminal code to establish penalties for misconduct against a taxpayer by an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) employee during the performance of official duties, specifically including a violation of the protections and guarantees afforded under the First Amendment of the Constitution to political speech and political expression.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2013
Brewers Excise and Economic Relief Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) reduce from $18 to $9 (the pre-1991 level) the per-barrel tax on beer; and (2) further reduce the rate of such tax on brewers who produce not more than 2 million barrels of beer during the calendar year.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2013
Oversight of Sensitive Military Operations Act - Directs the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to notify the congressional defense and appropriations committees of any sensitive military operation (a lethal or capture operation conducted by U.S. Armed Forces outside the United States) promptly following such operation. Requires: (1) the Secretary to submit to such committees procedures for complying with such requirement consistent with U.S. national security and the protection of operational integrity, and (2) such committees to ensure that committee procedures designed to protect the unauthorized disclosure of U.S. national security information are sufficient to protect the information submitted. Makes the notification requirement inapplicable to a sensitive military operation executed within Afghanistan pursuant to the Authorization for Use of Military Force. Requires the Secretary to submit to such committees an explanation of the legal and policy considerations and approval processes used in determining whether an individual or group could become the target of a sensitive military operation. Directs the Secretary to provide such committees quarterly briefings on DOD counterterrorism operations and related activities involving special operations forces.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2013
North Korea Sanctions Enforcement Act of 2013 - Directs the President to investigate credible information of sanctionable activities involving North Korea and to designate and apply sanctions with respect to any person (referred to as a "designated person" and includes business entities, nongovernmental organizations, and governmental entities operating as business enterprises) the President determines is knowingly: contributing, through the export to or import from North Korea of any goods or technology, to the use, development, production, stockpiling, or acquisition of nuclear, radiological, chemical, or biological weapons, or any device or system designed to deliver such weapons; exporting, or facilitating the export of, defense articles and services to North Korea, or from North Korea to any other country; exporting, or facilitating the export of, any luxury goods to North Korea; providing, selling, leasing, registering, or reflagging a vessel, aircraft, or other conveyance, or providing insurance or any other shipping or transportation service used to transport goods to or from North Korea, for purposes of facilitating a specified unlawful activity or evading a regulation established under this Act or the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA); transferring, paying, exporting, withdrawing, or otherwise dealing with any property or interest in property of the government of North Korea for purposes of facilitating such unlawful activity or evading such regulations; engaging in or facilitating censorship by North Korea; or committing or facilitating a serious human rights abuse by North Korea. Directs the President to designate and exercise IEEPA authorities with respect to the government of North Korea as well as any person or foreign government the President determines has been: listed or sanctioned under any regulation, specified executive order, or the IEEPA for illicit activities or activities concerning North Korea's proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; sanctioned under U.N. Security Council resolutions concerning North Korea's proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; or convicted of a criminal offense for engaging in sanctionable activities. Authorizes the President to exercise IEEPA authorities with respect to any foreign government or financial institution the President determines to be: engaging in sanctionable activities involving North Korea; failing to freeze funds, assets, or economic resources of a person designated pursuant to the requirements above or that could be used to facilitate sanctionable activities relating to imports or exports; failing to monitor import and export transactions appropriately; permitting any North Korean financial institution to open any new branches, offices, or joint ventures within its jurisdiction, or to take an ownership interest in, or establish or maintain a correspondent relationship with any bank in its jurisdiction, if it could be used to facilitate sanctionable import or export activities; failing to prohibit transfers of bulk cash to and from North Korea in facilitation of sanctionable import or export activities; providing public financial support for trade with North Korea to facilitate such import or export activities; or facilitating the use of any proceeds of the bribery of North Korean government officials, or the misappropriation, theft, or embezzlement of public funds by, or for the benefit of, such officials. Sets forth civil and criminal penalties under the IEEPA. Establishes the North Korea Enforcement and Humanitarian Fund in which assets subject to criminal, civil, or administrative forfeiture or penalties are to be deposited for the enforcement of this Act and to carry out humanitarian activities under the North Korea Human Rights Act of 2004. Expresses the sense of Congress that the government of North Korea should be treated as a primary money laundering concern that may be required to undertake special measures with respect to the recordkeeping and reporting of certain financial transactions as well as the identification of customers or retention of information relating to certain beneficial ownership, payable-through, or correspondent accounts. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to require domestic financial institutions to apply special measures to certain designated entities. Directs domestic financial institutions to terminate various accounts maintained for persons, foreign governments, or financial institutions required to be designated as engaging in sanctionable activity under this Act and for foreign financial institutions providing services to such designated entities. Prohibits a designated person that is a domestic financial institution from serving as a primary dealer in U.S. debt instruments or as a repository for U.S. funds. Sets forth authority for the President to prohibit certain foreign exchange and banking transactions, revoke transaction licenses, and direct the Secretary of State to deny visas to designated aliens. Permits the President to impose sanctions against persons providing specialized financial messaging services to designated North Korean financial institutions. Requires a validated license for exports to North Korea under the Export Administration Act of 1979. Prohibits munitions and defense articles from being provided to North Korea under the Arms Export Control Act regardless of whether it is designated as a state sponsor of terrorism. Bars U.S. government contracts from being provided to designated persons. Authorizes the seizure or forfeiture of vessels or aircraft used to facilitate sanctionable activities. Directs the President to withhold assistance to the governments of countries providing defense articles or services to North Korea or receiving such articles or services from North Korea. Sets forth exceptions to designations under this Act and authorizes the President to waive designations and sanctions, for a period of up to one year, upon the President's submission to Congress of a determination that the waiver: protects vital U.S. economic and national security interests, benefits entities cooperating with investigations, and addresses humanitarian aid considerations while meeting other specified standards. Permits the President to temporarily suspend sanctions with a certification to Congress under specified circumstances and to prescribe rules for removing sanctions. Directs issuers of financial securities regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to disclose activities relating to North Korea in annual and quarterly reports. Authorizes state and local governments to divest assets and prohibit investments in companies that invest in North Korea. Exempts North Korea from the jurisdictional immunity of foreign states, thereby enabling plaintiffs to seek certain damages against North Korea regardless of whether it is designated as a state sponsor of terrorism.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2013
Cancer Drug Coverage Parity Act of 2013 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code to require a group or individual health plan providing benefits with respect to anticancer medications administered by a health care provider to provide no less favorable coverage for prescribed, patient-administered anticancer medications used to kill, slow, or prevent the growth of cancerous cells and that have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Applies such requirement to medication that is prescribed based on a finding by the treating physician that the medication is: (1) medically necessary for the purpose of killing, slowing, or preventing the growth of cancerous cells in accordance with nationally accepted standards of medical practice; and (2) clinically appropriate in terms of type, frequency, extent site, and duration. Permits such coverage to be subject to the same cost-sharing applicable to anticancer medications administered by a health care provider under the plan. Prohibits a health plan from imposing an increase in out-of-pocket costs, reclassifying benefits with respect to anticancer medications, or applying more restrictive limitations on prescribed orally- or intravenously-administered or injected anticancer medications. Requires a plan to provide notice to each participant and beneficiary regarding the coverage required under this Act. Prohibits a health plan from taking specified actions to avoid the requirements of this Act. Requires the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission to assess how closing the Medicare part D donut hole affects Medicare coverage for orally-administered anticancer medications, with a particular focus on cost and accessibility.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2013
District of Columbia Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act - Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit any person from performing or attempting to perform an abortion within the District of Columbia except in conformity with this Act's requirements. Requires the physician to first make a determination of the probable post-fertilization age of the unborn child, or reasonably rely upon such a determination made by another physician, by making inquiries of the pregnant woman and performing such medical examinations and tests as a reasonably prudent physician would consider necessary. Prohibits the abortion from being performed if the probable post-fertilization age of the unborn child is 20 weeks or greater. Makes an exception where necessary to save the life of a pregnant woman whose life is endangered by a physical disorder, illness, or injury, excluding psychological or emotional conditions. Permits a physician to terminate a pregnancy under such exception only in the manner which provides the best opportunity for the unborn child to survive, unless termination of the pregnancy in that manner would pose a greater risk of the death or substantial and irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function, not including psychological or emotional conditions, of the pregnant woman than would other available methods. Prescribes penalties for violations. Bars prosecution of a woman upon whom an abortion is performed in violation of this Act, but authorizes such a woman or the father or maternal grandparent of the unborn child to obtain appropriate relief through a civil action. Provides for injunctive relief to prevent violations. Sets forth specified privacy protections in court proceedings for the woman upon whom an abortion has been performed. Requires any physician who performs an abortion within the District to report it to the Department of Health of the District of Columbia, which shall issue annual public reports.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2013
Medicare DMEPOS Market Pricing Program Act of 2013 - Amends part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to establish a market pricing program for durable medical equipment (DME), prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies (DMEPOS) as a replacement for the competitive acquisition program, which is terminated as of December 31, 2013. Terminates contracts awarded before enactment of this Act on July 1, 2013. Prescribes requirements for transitional payments for items and services, including payments for diabetic supplies and off-the-shelf orthotics, in areas designated for rounds 1 and 2 of the erstwhile phase-in of the competitive acquistion program, as well as during the initial two-year period of the market pricing program. Directs the Secretary to: (1) conduct market-priced auctions in eligible auction areas throughout the United States for the furnishing of market priced items and services, (2) establish an auction design through a specified process and meeting certain requirements, and (3) ensure that the first auction will be conducted for all eligible auction areas not later than 14 months after contracting with an auction expert. Directs the Secretary to: (1) select a combination of two categories of items and services for each auction, (2) establish a lead product for each product category, (3) establish for each market priced item and service a clearing price equal to the highest cost bid that will meet capacity targets in the market area, (4) award a contract to any entity in an auction's eligible market area whose bid is at or below the clearing price, and (5) monitor the performance of suppliers that are awarded a contract to ensure their compliance with certain requirements. Requires the Secretary, through the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, to contract with an auction expert and a market monitor to assist in the design, development, implementation, and functioning of the auction. Requires the market monitor, on an ongoing basis, also to monitor suppliers and the effects of the market pricing program. Rescinds unobligated balances of all discretionary appropriations for each fiscal year (except those for accounts, programs, projects and activities operated by the Department of Defense [DOD] or the Department of Veterans Affairs [VA]) in an amount necessary to make this Act budget neutral for such fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 24 April 2013
Cutting Costly Codes Act of 2013 - Prohibits the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) from implementing, administering, or enforcing specified regulations insofar as they would replace International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-9 with ICD-10 as a standard for code sets for appropriate data elements for financial and administrative transactions involving the electronic exchange of health information. (The ICD is a health care classification system of diagnostic codes for classifying diseases.)
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 2013
Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to convey to Tuskegee University (Alabama) specified real property at 2400 Hospital Road in Tuskegee, for the purpose of permitting the University to use the property to further the educational and general welfare of its students.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2013
Concrete Masonry Products Research, Education, and Promotion Act of 2013 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to issue orders applicable to manufacturers of concrete masonry products (concrete). Requires any such order to provide for the establishment of a Concrete Masonry Products Board, which shall carry out a program of promotion, research, and information regarding concrete products. Requires manufacturers and importers to maintain, and make available, specified records. Requires any such order to provide that assessments shall be paid by concrete manufacturers with respect to concrete manufactured and marketed in the United States. Provides assessment rates. Requires at least 50% of the assessments paid by a manufacturer to be used to support research, education, and promotion plans and projects in support of the geographic region of the manufacturer. Directs the Secretary, during the 60-day period preceding the proposed effective date of an order, to conduct a referendum for order approval among the manufacturers required to pay assessments under the order. Outlines referendum procedures. Provides for petition and review of an order, and order enforcement through U.S. district courts. Authorizes the Secretary to conduct appropriate investigations in order to administer this Act (with power of subpoena). Directs the Secretary to suspend or terminate any order or provision that obstructs or does not tend to effectuate the purposes of this Act, or that is not favored by persons voting in a referendum.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 2013
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2009: (1) was a "bill for raising revenue" as those words were intended to be understood in article I, section 7, clause 1 of the Constitution; and (2) did not originate in the House of Representatives.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 2013
Working Families Flexibility Act of 2013 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to authorize private employers to provide compensatory time off to private employees at a rate of 1 1/2 hours per hour of employment for which overtime compensation is required. Authorizes an employer to provide compensatory time only if it is in accordance with an applicable collective bargaining agreement or, in the absence of such an agreement, an agreement between the employer and employee. Prohibits an employee from accruing more than 160 hours of compensatory time. Requires an employee's employer to provide monetary compensation, after the end of a calendar year, for any unused compensatory time off accrued during the preceding year. Requires an employer to give employees 30-day notice before discontinuing compensatory time off. Prohibits an employer from intimidating, threatening, or coercing an employee in order to: (1) interfere with the employee's right to request or not to request compensatory time off in lieu of payment of monetary overtime compensation, or (2) require an employee to use such compensatory time. Makes an employer who violates such requirements liable to the affected employee in the amount of the compensation rate for each hour of compensatory time accrued, plus an additional equal amount as liquidated damages, reduced for each hour of compensatory time used.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 2013
Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Transplant Patients Act of 2013 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Benefits) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to extend the months of coverage of immunosuppressive drugs for kidney transplant patients. Amends SSA title XVIII (Medicare) to make eligible for enrollment in Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance), solely for the purpose of such drug coverage, every individual whose insurance benefits under Medicare part A (Hospital Insurance) have ended by reason of a kidney transplant or the end of any requirement for a regular course of dialysis. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to determine a monthly premium rate for such individuals equal to 35% of the monthly actuarial rate for enrollees age 65 and over. Prescribes a formula for detemination of a government contribution to such a premium.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2013
Local School Board Governance and Flexibility Act - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the responsibility for education resides with the states and the local educational agencies (LEAs) to which they have delegated authority; and (2) the Secretary of Education should only issue those regulations, rules, guidance materials, grant conditions, or other requirements that are specifically needed to implement federal legislation and are within LEAs' educational, operational, and financial capacity. Prohibits the Secretary, unless specifically authorized by federal law, from issuing regulations, rules, guidance materials, grant conditions, or other requirements pertaining to states or LEAs that: conflict with the authority of LEAs delegated to them by their state; result in additional costs to LEAs for reporting, grant administration, and general operations that are not fully covered by the federal government; conflict with the authority of LEAs to determine how to engage or act upon community participation and advice; impose requirements on LEAs that would adversely affect their authority to function as legislative, executive, or quasi-judicial agencies; conflict with states' authority to determine the appropriate governance structure of their LEAs, or their LEAs' authority to determine how schools are governed or managed; establish LEA reporting requirements that duplicate existing federal requirements or are issued without first conducting a fiscal impact statement; or place conditions or requirements on grants to states or LEAs that do not directly relate to, or support the intent of, the grants or legislation authorizing the grants. Directs the Secretary during each fiscal year to provide LEAs and the major national education organizations at least 60 days to provide written comments regarding the local impact of implementing federal regulations, rules, guidance materials, grant conditions, or other requirements for any applicable program or activity of the Secretary. Directs the Secretary to review existing LEA reporting requirements to identify and eliminate those that are duplicative. Prohibits the Secretary from promulgating federal regulations, rules, guidance materials, grant conditions, or other requirements pertaining to states or LEAs without first: requesting data and recommendations from LEAs and the major national education organizations regarding the educational, financial, and operational costs involved in implementing them; verifying that LEAs will have the financial resources and technical assistance they may need to successfully implement the requirements; giving LEAs and national educational organizations at least 60 days' notice to respond to such requirements before they are issued, except in certain emergencies; and giving LEAs maximum flexibility in implementing the requirements. Provides that if an LEA or major national education organization provides the Secretary with a written statement demonstrating that a regulation, rule, guidance material, grant condition, or other requirement does not meet the substantive or procedural requirements of this Act, the Secretary must review the merits of the statement, issue a written response within 60 days, and post that response on the Department of Education's website.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2013
Jobs Originated through Launching Travel Act of 2013 or JOLT Act of 2013 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to direct the Secretary of State (Secretary) to establish a pilot fee-based premium processing service to expedite visa interview appointments. Authorizes the Secretary to collect and set fee amounts. Authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) to admit into the United States a qualifying Canadian citizen over 50 years old and spouse for a period not to exceed 240 days if the person maintains a Canadian residence and owns a U.S. residence or has rented a U.S. accommodation for the duration of such stay. Directs the Secretary to require overseas visa processing posts to make public the availability of visa appointments during periods of low demand to encourage visa applicants to apply when interview wait times are lowest. Revises the visa waiver program to: (1) authorize the Secretary of Homeland Security to designate any country as a program country; (2) adjust visa refusal rate criteria, including addition of a 3% maximum overstay rate; and (3) revise probationary and termination provisions. Directs the Secretary to require U.S. diplomatic and consular missions to: (1) conduct nonimmigrant visa application interviews expeditiously, consistent with national security requirements and in recognition of resource allocation considerations; and (2) set a goal of interviewing 90% of all nonimmigrant visa applicants, worldwide, within 10 days of application receipt. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop and conduct a pilot program for processing visas using secure remote videoconferencing technology, and (2) seek to coordinate enrollment and interview processes for individuals eligible for both a U.S. visa and enrollment in the Global Entry program.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2013
Medicare Patient Empowerment Act of 2013 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to allow any Medicare beneficiary to enter into a contract with an eligible professional for any item or service covered by Medicare. Allows such beneficiaries to submit a claim for Medicare payment in the amount that would otherwise apply if the claim had been filed by a participating physician or supplier in the payment area where the eligible professional covered by the contract resides. Requires a Medicare beneficiary to agree in writing in such a contract to: (1) pay the physician or practitioner for a Medicare-covered item or service; and (2) submit (in lieu of the physician or practitioner) a claim for Medicare payment. Allows a beneficiary, however, to negotiate, as a term of the contract, for the eligible professional to file such claims on the beneficiary's behalf. Preempts state laws from limiting the amount of charges for physician and practitioner services for which Medicare payment is made.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2013
Workforce Development Tax Credit Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a business-related tax credit for: (1) 50% of wages (up to $2,000) paid to an apprenticeship employee during an apprenticeship period, and (2) 40% of wages (up to $6,000) paid to such an employee during a post-apprenticeship period. Defines "apprenticeship employee" as any employee employed by an employer pursuant to an apprentice agreement registered with the Office of Apprenticeship of the Employment and Training Administration of the Department of Labor.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 2013
Gulf Fisheries Fairness Act - Amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to provide each of the states of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida with exclusive fishery management authority over reef fish: (1) within the exclusive economic zone in the Gulf of Mexico in waters of a specified average depth on a continuous line within a minimum distance of nine nautical miles from the baseline from which the territorial sea of the United States is measured, and (2) between projected jurisdictional lines determined by the President under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to publish a description and map of the applicable line along the coasts of such states. Prohibits the Secretary from suspending, revoking, terminating, or otherwise limiting the authority of any person under federal law to engage in fishing based on the person fishing for Gulf reef fish in waters subject to the exclusive authority of such states. Exempts such waters from specified federal regulatory requirements addressing fishery permits.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 2013
Northern Route Approval Act - Declares that a presidential permit shall not be required for the pipeline described in the application filed on May 4, 2012, by TransCanada Keystone Pipeline, L.P. to the Department of State for the Keystone XL pipeline, including the Nebraska reroute evaluated in the Final Evaluation Report issued by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality in January 2013 and approved by the Nebraska governor. Deems the final environmental impact statement issued by the Secretary of State on August 26, 2011, coupled with such Final Evaluation Report, to satisfy all requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and of the National Historic Preservation Act. Grants original and exclusive jurisdiction to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to determine specified issues (except for review by the Supreme Court on writ of certiorari). Deems the Secretary of the Interior to have issued a written statement setting forth the Secretary's opinion that the Keystone XL pipeline project will not jeopardize the continued existence of the American burying beetle or destroy or adversely modify American burying beetle critical habitat. States that any taking of the American burying beetle that is incidental to the construction or operation and maintenance of the Keystone XL pipeline shall not be considered a prohibited taking of such species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Deems the Secretary to have issued: (1) a grant of right-of-way and temporary use permit pursuant to the Mineral Leasing Act and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, and (2) a special purpose permit under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (described in a certain application filed with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service for the Keystone XL pipeline). Directs the Secretary of the Army to issue permits pursuant the Rivers and Harbors Appropriations Act of 1899 for the construction, operation, and maintenance of the Keystone XL pipeline. Authorizes such Secretary to waive any procedural requirement that the Secretary considers desirable in order to accomplish the purposes of this Act. Prohibits the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from prohibiting or restricting an activity or use of an area that is authorized under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2013
Waterways Are Vital for the Economy, Energy, Efficiency, and Environment Act of 2013 or WAVE4 Act - Directs the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Chief of Engineers, to require certain delivery process reforms for qualifying construction and major rehabilitation projects for navigation infrastructure of inland and intracoastal waterways. Directs the Secretary, working in conjunction with the Inland Waterways Users Board, to submit to Congress a 20-year program for making capital investments on inland and intracoastal waterways. Authorizes such program to be based on the 20-year capital investment strategy contained in the Inland Marine Transportation System (IMTS) Capital Projects Business Model, Final Report published on April 13, 2010, as approved by the Board. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to limit expenditures from the Inland Waterways Trust Fund to 50% of the total cost of the construction or rehabilitation project. Makes Fund amounts unavailable for: (1) construction or rehabilitation of dams, or (2) rehabilitation expenditures that do not equal or exceed $100 million.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2013
Sound Dollar Act of 2013 - Amends the Federal Reserve Act (FRA) to direct the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) and the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) to: (1) pursue the goal of long-term price stability, and (2) establish metrics to evaluate whether long-term price stability is being achieved. Prescribes procedures for the establishment and evaluation of such metrics. Directs the Board and the FOMC to: (1) make such information available to the public on a website, and (2) report to Congress each time such metrics are set or revised. Directs the Board to include in its semiannual report to Congress: (1) the results of the evaluation process, (2) whether the goal of long-term price stability is being met, (3) the main monetary policy instruments and strategy used by the Board and the FOMC to achieve long-term price stability, and (4) an analysis of how the policies of the Board and the FOMC are affecting the foreign exchange rate value of the U.S. dollar. Directs the Board to clearly articulate its lender-of-last-resort policy. Revamps FOMC membership to consist of one representative from each of the Federal Reserve banks (in addition to members of the Board). Directs the FOMC to release meeting transcripts to the public within three years after each meeting. Redesignates the Department of the Treasury stabilization fund as the Special Drawing Rights Fund. Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to liquidate all property in the Fund (other than Special Drawing Rights) and to use all such amounts to reduce the public debt. Limits the availability of the Fund solely to stabilize exchange rates and arrangements. Repeals the authority of the Secretary to deal in U.S. instruments of credit and securities. Permits only Special Drawing Rights to be deposited into the Fund. Requires funds that would otherwise have been deposited into the Fund to be paid, instead, to the Secretary to reduce the public debt. Amends the FRA to authorize the FOMC, in unusual and exigent circumstances, by the affirmative vote of two-thirds of its members, to grant any Federal Reserve bank emergency authority to buy and sell U.S. debt obligations and revenue bonds in anticipation of the collection of taxes or the receipt of assured revenues by any state or local governmental entity, as well as obligations of, or guaranteed by, a foreign government or agency. Amends the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 to repeal: (1) funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and (2) the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 2013
Protecting U.S. Missile Defense Information Act of 2013 - Directs the President to report semiannually to the congressional defense and appropriations committees on: (1) any discussions on missile defense between the U.S. government and the Russian Federation during the preceding six months, and (2) meetings held by the National Disclosure Policy Committee with respect to declassifying documents containing information on U.S. missile defense systems. Requires briefings to such committees in connection with the latter reports. Prohibits Department of Defense (DOD) funds for FY2014 or thereafter from being used to provide the Russian Federation with access to: (1) U.S. missile defense hit-to-kill technology, or (2) telemetry data with respect to missile defense interceptors or target vehicles. Declares that the United States shall not be bound by the terms of any executive agreement relating to U.S. missile defense capabilities, including basing, locations, and numbers of missiles. Prohibits DOD funds for FY2014 or thereafter from being used to: (1) negotiate or implement any executive agreement relating to such capabilities, or (2) implement rules of engagement or guidance for employment of forces relating to such an agreement. Provides an exception with respect to any country with which the United States has entered into a treaty of alliance or a security guarantee. Directs the President to: (1) seek to encourage the Russian Federation to disclose any support provided for the ballistic missile programs of China, Syria, Iran, or North Korea; and (2) submit to the above committees a semiannual report on any such support.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 2013
Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to repeal the establishment of, and appropriation of funds to, the Prevention and Public Health Fund (a Fund to provide for expanded and sustained national investment in prevention and public health programs to improve health and help restrain the rate of growth in private and public sector health care costs). Rescinds any unobligated balances appropriated to such Fund. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to post a notice of such rescission and the amounts of funds rescinded on the public HHS website within 10 days of enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2013
Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to exempt from maximum hours requirements any employee who: (1) adjusts or evaluates claims resulting from or relating to a major disaster for at least $591 per week (or any minimum weekly amount established by the Secretary of Labor, whichever is greater) during the 2-year period after the disaster; and (2) is employed as an adjuster or evaluator by an employer not itself engaged, directly or through an affiliate, in underwriting, selling, or marketing property, casualty, or liability insurance policies or contracts.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2013
Safety And Fraud Enforcement for Seafood Act - Requires the Secretaries of Commerce and Health and Human Services (HHS) to execute a memorandum of understanding to improve interagency cooperation on seafood safety and fraud prevention, building upon any prior agreement, including those under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Includes in such a memorandum processes concerning efficient use of inspection personnel, intergovernmental cooperation, use of data, and utilization of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Seafood Inspection Program as a third-party auditor to inspect imported seafood. Establishes coordination requirements for: (1) the use of the national sea grant college program for outreach activities, and (2) the collection of information to prevent seafood fraud. Defines "seafood fraud" as the mislabeling or misrepresentation of seafood information required under this Act or other applicable federal laws and regulations. Requires, of the fishery management plan data required to be submitted in the course of fish processing, certain minimum information, in addition to catch locations, to accompany seafood through final sale (on the packaging display or otherwise) including market and species names, harvest method, catch date, and product weight or number. Directs additional information to be provided for seafood that was: (1) previously frozen, treated with substances affecting weight, or processed in a country other than that in which it was landed or harvested; or (2) farm-raised, with details regarding the country and method of cultivation as well as the location of the aquaculture production area. Exempts importers, processors, distributors, or retailers from violations for unknowingly selling a product that was already mislabeled upon receipt, provided that such entities can produce the appropriate product traceability documentation. Provides standards for refusal of admission of imported seafood based upon findings that any shipment appears to be in violation of such seafood traceability requirements or other applicable federal laws or regulations. Provides procedures for import certifications and allowance of individual shipments in certain cases. Requires a public website to list exporters of seafood to the United States and track violations. Requires the Secretary of Commerce to increase the number of shipments inspected for seafood fraud by NOAA inspectors and authorized officers, prevent the percentage of seafood shipments inspected from declining in a subsequent year, and ensure that inspections for fraud prevention also collect seafood safety information. Allows civil actions by states for seafood fraud violations. Requires the Secretaries to report to Congress biennially on seafood safety and seafood fraud prevention measures.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2013
Forest Products Fairness Act of 2013 - Amends the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to include in the definition of "biobased product" forest products that meet biobased content requirements, notwithstanding the market share the product holds, the product's age, or whether the market for the product is new or emerging. Defines "forest product" as a product made from materials derived from the practice of forestry or the management of growing timber, including: (1) pulp, paper, paperboard, pellets, and wood products; and (2) any recycled products derived from forest materials.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2013
Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to include military technicians (dual status) in military personnel accounts for purposes of any sequestration order issued by the President after January 1, 2013.
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 2013
National Right-to-Work Act - Amends the National Labor Relations Act and the Railway Labor Act to repeal those provisions that permit employers, pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement that is a union security agreement, to require employees to join a union as a condition of employment (including provisions permitting railroad carriers to require, pursuant to such an agreement, payroll deduction of union dues or fees as a condition of employment).
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 2013
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the federal government should ensure that citizens continue to be provided with paper-based information, products, services, and public notices while providing citizens the ability to opt-in to electronic delivery; and (2) decisions by federal agencies regarding the elimination of paper-based information, products, or services should be subject to congressional oversight.
United States · United States Congress · 4 March 2013
Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act of 2013 - Amends the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act [CWA]) to prohibit the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or a state from requiring a permit under the CWA for a discharge from a point source into navigable waters of a pesticide authorized for sale, distribution, or use under FIFRA, or the residue of such a pesticide, resulting from the application of such pesticide. Exempts from such prohibition the following discharges containing a pesticide or pesticide residue: (1) a discharge resulting from the application of a pesticide in violation of FIFRA that is relevant to protecting water quality, if the discharge would not have occurred but for the violation or the amount of pesticide or pesticide residue contained in the discharge is greater than would have occurred without the violation; (2) stormwater discharges regulated under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES); and (3) discharges regulated under NPDES of manufacturing or industrial effluent or treatment works effluent and discharges incidental to the normal operation of a vessel, including a discharge resulting from ballasting operations or vessel biofouling prevention.
United States · United States Congress · 4 March 2013
United States-Israel Strategic Partnership Act of 2013 - Declares that Israel is a major strategic partner of the United States. Amends the Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act of 2012 to extend authority to: (1) make additions to foreign-based defense stockpiles, and (2) transfer certain obsolete or surplus Department of Defense (DOD) items to Israel. Authorizes the President to carry out U.S.-Israel cooperative activities and to provide assistance for cooperation in the fields of energy, water, homeland security, agriculture, and alternative fuel technologies. Amends the the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 to extend the grant program for U.S.-Israeli cooperation on research, development, and commercialization of renewable energy or energy efficiency. Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States and Israel should increase cyber-security cooperation. Urges the President to provide assistance for enhancement of the David's Sling Weapon System, the joint United States-Israel Arrow Weapon System, and the Iron Dome short-range rocket defense system. States that it shall be U.S. policy to include Israel in the visa waiver program when Israel satisfies such program's inclusion requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 4 March 2013
Health Care Conscience Rights Act - Amends title I of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to declare that nothing in such title shall require an individual to purchase individual health insurance coverage that includes coverage of an abortion or other item or service to which the individual has a moral or religious objection, or prevent an issuer from offering or issuing, to that individual, individual coverage excluding such item or service. Makes similar denials about requiring a sponsor to sponsor, purchase, or provide such coverage, or a health insurance issuer or group health plan sponsor to cover an abortion or other item or service to which the sponsor or issuer has a moral or religious objection. Denies also that such title authorizes imposition of a tax, penalty, fee, fine, or other sanction, or imposition of coverage of such an item or service, in relation to health insurance coverage or a group health plan that excludes such an item or service. Amends the Public Health Service Act to codify the prohibition against any action by the federal government and any state or local government receiving federal financial assistance to subject a health professional, a hospital, a provider-sponsored organization, a health maintenance organization, an accountable care organization, a health insurance plan, or any other kind of health care facility, organization, or plan to discrimination on the basis that the entity refuses to participate in abortion-related activities. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to designate the Director of the Office for Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to receive and investigate complaints alleging a violation of abortion discrimination prohibition. Creates a cause of action for the Attorney General or any person or entity adversely affected to obtain equitable or legal relief for any violation of this abortion discrimination prohibition. Allows commencement of an action to be commenced and the granting of relief without a prerequisite pursuit of administrative remedies. Allows such an action against a federal or state governmental entity.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2013
Nuclear Iran Prevention Act of 2013 - Directs the Secretary of State to determine if Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) meets the criteria for designation as a foreign terrorist organization and: (1) if so, designate the IRGC as a foreign terrorist organization; and (2) if not, report to Congress concerning those criteria which have not been met. Expresses the sense of Congress regarding the imposition of sanctions on certain Iranian government persons responsible for, or complicit in, human rights abuses, diversion of food and medicine, and censorship. Amends the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 to subject to mandatory sanctions a financial institution that facilitates a significant transaction or provides significant financial services for a person that: (1) is subject to human rights-related sanctions, or (2) exports sensitive technology to Iran and is subject to the prohibition on procurement contracts. Amends the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012 to authorize the President to impose sanctions on a foreign person that knowingly conducted or facilitated a significant financial transaction with the Central Bank of Iran or other Iranian financial institution subject to sanctions for the purchase of goods (other than petroleum or petroleum products) or services by or from a person in Iran, or on behalf of a person in Iran. Excludes from such sanctions a transaction for the sale of agricultural commodities, food, medicine or medical devices to Iran. Directs the President to impose specified sanctions on a foreign financial institution that knowingly facilitated a significant financial transaction on behalf of any person directly or indirectly owned or controlled by an Iranian person included on the list of specially designated nationals and blocked persons maintained by the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control. Revises the exception to the imposition of sanctions for purchases of Iranian petroleum or petroleum products. Expresses the sense of Congress that the President should coordinate with the European Union (EU) and its member states to restrict Iran's access to the euro currency. Directs the President to develop a National Strategy on Iran that provides strategic guidance for addressing threats posed by Iran. Directs the President to report to Congress every 60 days regarding the Iranian nuclear timetable and the projected economic effects of international sanctions on Iran. Requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to report to Congress regarding presidential implementation of specified sanctions on Iran.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2013
Diagnostic Imaging Services Access Protection Act of 2013 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, with respect to payments for physician services, to prohibit the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) from applying a multiple procedure payment reduction policy to the professional component of imaging services until the Secretary publishes in the Federal Register: (1) an analysis of the information used in the final rule to implement the physician fee schedule in 2013 to determine what, if any, efficiences exist within the professional component of imaging services when two or more studies are performed on the same patient on the same day; and (2) detailed information on which activities in the vignettes in such rule were assigned specified reduction percentages, how such percentage reductions for the pre-, intra-, and post-service work were determined and calculated, and the clinical aspects that went into those decisions.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2013
Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to eliminate the annual fee on health insurance providers set to be imposed beginning on January 1, 2013.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2013
Declares that Congress should not impose any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge relating to the public performance of sound recordings on a local radio station for broadcasting sound recordings over-the-air, or on any business for such public performance of sound recordings.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2013
Short Line Railroad Rehabilitation and Investment Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for railroad track maintenance, to: (1) expand the types of maintenance expenditures eligible for such credit, and (2) extend such credit through 2016.
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 2013
Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2013 or the ABLE Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish tax-exempt ABLE accounts to assist an individual with a disability in building an account to pay for qualified disability expenses. Defines "qualified disability expenses" to include expenses for education, including higher education expenses, a primary residence, transportation, obtaining and maintaining employment, health and wellness, and other personal support expenses. Treats a qualified ABLE program and an ABLE account in the same manner as a qualified tuition program for income tax purposes (i.e., allowing a tax exemption for such program and an exclusion from gross income of amounts attributable to a contributor to or a beneficiary of a program account). Defines "qualified ABLE program" as a program established and maintained by a state agency under which a person may make contributions to an ABLE account established to pay for qualified disability expenses. Requires amounts in ABLE accounts to be disregarded in determining eligibility for Medicaid and other means-tested federal programs. Suspends the payment of supplemental security income benefits under title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) of the Social Security Act to an individual during any period in which such individual has excess resources attributable to an ABLE account.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2013
Healthcare Tax Relief and Mandate Repeal Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) terminate the requirement, added by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), that individuals maintain minimum essential health insurance coverage for themselves and dependents; and (2) repeal provisions added by PPACA requiring certain employers who have a workforce of 50 or more full-time employees to provide health insurance coverage for their employees.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2013
Recognizes the 100th birthday of civil rights icon Rosa Parks. Commemorates the legacy of Rosa Parks to inspire all people of the United States to stand up for freedom and the principles of the Constitution.
![Official portrait of Rep. Bonner, Jo [R-AL-1]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/69abe85cc31de0c8e1549fd2a0bcd3f8_200.jpg)