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![Official portrait of Rep. Brown-Waite, Ginny [R-FL-5]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/b001247_200.jpg)
United States · Official source
1,421 records where Rep. Brown-Waite, Ginny [R-FL-5] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2007
Qualified Long-term Care Fairness Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax deduction from gross income for the cost of long-term care services and long-term care insurance contracts.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2007
Help Efficient, Accessible, Low Cost, Timely Healthcare (HEALTH) Act of 2007 - Sets conditions for lawsuits arising from health care liability claims regarding health care goods or services or any medical product affecting interstate commerce. Sets a statute of limitations of three years after the date of manifestation of injury or one year after the claimant discovers the injury, with certain exceptions. Provides that nothing in this Act limits recovery of the full amount of available economic damages. Limits noneconomic damages to $250,000. Makes each party liable only for the amount of damages directly proportional to such party's percentage of responsibility. Allows the court to restrict the payment of attorney contingency fees. Limits the fees to a decreasing percentage based on the increasing value of the amount awarded. Allows the introduction of collateral source benefits and the amount paid to secure such benefits as evidence. Prohibits a provider of such benefits from recovering any amount from an award in a health care lawsuit involving injury or wrongful death. Authorizes the award of punitive damages only where: (1) it is proven by clear and convincing evidence that a person acted with malicious intent to injure the claimant or deliberately failed to avoid unnecessary injury the claimant was substantially certain to suffer; and (2) compensatory damages are awarded. Limits punitive damages to the greater of two times the amount of economic damages or $250,000. Denies punitive damages in the case of products approved, cleared, or licensed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), or otherwise considered in compliance with FDA standards. Provides for periodic payments of future damages.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2007
Credit Agencies Identity Theft Responsibilities Act of 2007 - Amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to require a consumer reporting agency which has reason to suspect identity theft to: (1) report such suspicion to the U.S. Secret Service; and (2) inform the Attorney General for criminal prosecution. Requires the Secret Service to forward such information to either the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), respectively, if it has reason to believe that a suspected case of identity theft involves any suspicion of terrorism or immigration violations. Cites factors for suspicion of identity theft. Requires a consumer reporting agency to review, at regular intervals, all information on consumers it maintains or controls in order to determine whether there is any basis for suspicion of identity theft. Sets forth criminal penalties for agency failure to comply with this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2007
Boutique Fuel Reduction Act of 2007 - Amends the Clean Air Act to add as "extreme and unusual circumstances that prevent the distribution of an adequate supply of fuel or fuel additives to consumers" under which the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may temporarily waive a control or prohibition on the use of a fuel or fuel additive circumstances that are the result of unexpected problems with equipment necessary for transportation and delivery of fuel or fuel additives. States that EPA shall have no authority, when considering a state implementation plan (SIP) or SIP revision, to approve any fuel included in such plan or revision if the effect of such approval increases the total number of fuels set forth on the published list of approved fuels (currently EPA does not have the authority to approve a fuel if it increases the total number of fuels approved as of September 1, 2004, in all SIPs). Requires notice and opportunity for comment before the Administrator removes a fuel from the list. Requires EPA to remove a fuel from the list if such fuel has ceased to be included in an SIP or is identical to a federal fuel control or prohibition. Repeals provisions prohibiting EPA from reducing the total number of authorized fuels. Requires EPA to publish a revised list reflecting the reduction in the number of fuels. Deletes as a condition under which the Administrator's authority to approve a control or prohibition respecting any new fuel is limited that such new fuel will increase the total number of fuels on the list.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2007
Protecting Our Children Comes First Act of 2007 - Amends the Missing Children's Assistance Act to reauthorize through FY2013, and revise requirements for uses of, the annual grant to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children by the Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Deliquency Prevention.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2007
Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to: (1) conduct a pilot program for the mobile biometric identification in the maritime environment of aliens unlawfully attempting to enter the United States; (2) ensure such program's coordination with other Department of Homeland Security (DHS) biometric identification programs; and (3) evaluate the costs and feasibility of expanding the capability to all appropriate DHS maritime vessels.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2007
Veteran Home Equity Conversation [ sic ] Mortgage Act of 2007 - Authorizes the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to guarantee any home equity conversion mortgage (mortgage) made to an elderly (62 or older) veteran homeowner, as long as the Secretary determines that the mortgage: (1) is likely to improve the financial situation or otherwise meet the special needs of the homeowner; (2) will include safeguards to offset special risks associated with such a mortgage; and (3) has appropriate terms to ensure its acceptance in the secondary mortgage market. Allows such mortgage to be guaranteed only if it is secured by a dwelling, farm residence, or manufactured home permanently affixed to a lot that is owned and occupied by the elderly veteran homeowner. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) guarantee any mortgage given to refinance an existing home equity conversion mortgage guaranteed by the Secretary; (2) establish a mortgage guarantee fee; and (3) waive the mortgage guarantee fee in certain circumstances.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2007
America's Better Classrooms Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit for investment in qualified public school modernization bonds, defined to include: (1) bonds for the construction, rehabilitation, or repair of a public school facility or for the acquisition of land for such facility (qualified school construction bonds); and (2) bonds to finance certain academic programs below the postsecondary level in empowerment zones or enterprise communities (qualified zone academy bonds). Establishes a national limitation on the issuance of such bonds and provides for the allocation of bond amounts among the states according to a specified formula. Terminates the authority for issuance of such bonds after 2009. Amends the General Education Provisions Act to apply certain labor standards to public school construction projects financed by this Act. Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to require states to establish employment and training programs relating to the construction or reconstruction of public school facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2007
Recreational Boating Act of 2007 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (popularly known as the Clean Water Act) to redefine the term "pollutant" to exclude any deck runoff from a recreational vessel, any engine cooling water, gray water, bilge water effluent from properly functioning recreational marine engine, laundry, shower, and galley sink wastes from a recreational vessel, or any other discharge incidental to the normal operation of a recreational vessel. Declares that such exclusion does not apply to rubbish, trash, garbage, or any other such materials discharged overboard by a recreational vessel. Defines "recreational vessel" to mean a vessel that is: (1) manufactured for operation, or operated primarily for recreational purposes; or (2) leased, rented, or chartered to an individual for recreational purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2007
Revises federal coin design requirements for $1 coins honoring each of the Presidents of the United States. Transfers from the edge of such a coin to either the obverse or the reverse face the inscription "In God We Trust."
United States · United States Congress · 21 May 2007
Proud to Be an American Citizen Act - Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to make funds available annually to the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services or to approved public or private nonprofit entities to support public ceremonies for administering oaths of allegiance to naturalizing legal immigrants. States that such ceremonies shall: (1) be held on a date that is on or near Independence Day; and (2) include appropriate outreach, ceremonial, and celebratory activities. Specifies: (1) ceremony fund limits ($5,000); and (2) permitted fund uses.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2007
SBA Veterans' Programs Act of 2007 - Amends the Small Business Act to direct the Associate Administrator for Veterans Business Development to: (1) increase veteran outreach by ensuring that Veteran Business Outreach Centers regularly participate, on a nationwide basis, in the workshops of the Transition Assistance Program of the Department of Labor; and (2) establish a Women Veterans Business Training Resource Program. Authorizes a small business development center to apply for a grant to carry out a veterans assistance and services program. Directs the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to: (1) increase the number of Veterans Business Outreach Centers throughout the United States; and (2) sponsor an independent study on gaps in the availability of such Centers across the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2007
Parental Consent Act of 2007 - Prohibits federal funds from being used to establish or implement any universal or mandatory mental health, psychiatric, or socioemotional screening program. Prohibits federal education funds from being used to pay any local educational agency or other instrument of government that uses the refusal of a parent or legal guardian to provide consent to mental health screening as the basis of a charge of child abuse, child neglect, medical neglect, or education neglect until the agency or instrument demonstrates that it is no longer using such refusal as a basis of such charge. Defines a screening program under this Act as any mental health screening program in which a set of individuals is automatically screened without regard to whether there was a prior indication of a need for mental health treatment, including: (1) any program of state incentive grants to implement recommendations in the July 2003 report of the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, the State Early Childhood Comprehensive System, grants for TeenScreen, and the Foundations for Learning Grants; and (2) any student mental health screening program that allows mental health screening of individuals under 18 years of age without the express, written, voluntary, informed consent of the parent or legal guardian of the individual involved.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2007
Establishes the Commission on Wounded Women Warriors to: (1) study the needs of women in the Armed Forces who are transitioning from the Department of Defense (DOD) health care system to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system; and (2) report recommendations and conclusions to Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2007
Death Tax Repeal Permanency Act of 2007 - Makes the repeal of the estate and generation-skipping transfer taxes under the Economic Growth and Tax Reconciliation Act of 2001 permanent (under the Act, those taxes would be reinstated after December 31, 2010).
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2007
Financial Security Accounts for Individuals with Disabilities Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish tax-exempt financial security accounts for individuals with disabilities to pay certain expenses of such individuals, including expenses for education, medical care, and employment training.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2007
Recognizes the public service of Tony Blair during his tenure as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Expresses appreciation to Mr. Blair for his support for the United States and Britain's invaluable alliance to our nation.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2007
Court and Law Enforcement Officers Protection Act of 2007 - Amends the federal criminal code to: (1) impose mandatory minimum terms of imprisonment for homicide, manslaughter, and kidnapping crimes against federal judges and law enforcement officers; (2) allow federal judges, U.S. attorneys, and Justice Department employees to carry firearms; (3) increase penalties for assaults against U.S. employees and officers and impose mandatory minimum terms of imprisonment for assaults against federal judges or law enforcement officers; and (4) impose mandatory minimum penalties for retaliating against a federal judge or law enforcement officer on account of the performance of official duties by murdering, kidnapping, assaulting, or threatening a family member. Places limits on the award of civil damages and attorney's fees against judicial officers for injuries incurred by an individual during the commission of a felony or crime of violence. Police Officer Daniel Faulkner Act of 2007 - Amends the federal judicial code to place limits on habeas corpus petitions for review of a state conviction for the murder of a public safety officer or judge engaged in the performance of official duties. Requires the Director of the Bureau of Prisons to make rules allowing correctional officers of the Bureau to carry firearms to and from work and to store them at work.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2007
Syria Accountability and Liberation Act - States that U.S. sanctions, controls, and regulations relating to Syria shall remain in effect until the President certifies that Syria has ceased support for terrorism, has dismantled biological, chemical, or nuclear weapons programs and has committed to combat their proliferation, respects the boundaries and sovereignty of all neighboring countries, and upholds human rights and civil liberties. Imposes specified trade, assistance, and military sanctions, as appropriate, on persons or countries that transfer goods or technology so as to contribute to Syria's biological, chemical, nuclear, or advanced conventional weapons programs. Imposes specified sanctions aimed at Syria's energy sector. Sets forth diplomatic measures intended to isolate the government of Syria. Directs the President to provide assistance to support a democratic transition in Syria. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2007
Supports implementation of the July 8, 2006, U.N.-brokered agreement between President of the Republic of Cyprus Tassos Papadopoulos and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat relating to the reunification of Cyprus.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2007
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of National Hurricane Preparedness Week. Encourages the staff of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), especially at the National Weather Service and the National Hurricane Center, and other appropriate federal agencies to continue their outstanding work to educate people about hurricane preparedness. Urges the people of the United States to recognize such week as an opportunity to learn more about the Center's work and the risks associated with hurricanes.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2007
ALS Registry Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to: (1) develop a system to collect data on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other motor neuron disorders that can be confused with ALS, misdiagnosed as ALS, or progress to ALS; and (2) establish a national registry for the collection and storage of such data. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Director, to establish the Advisory Committee on the National ALS Registry to review information and make recommendations to the Secretary concerning: (1) the development and maintenance of the registry; (2) the type of information to be included; (3) the manner in which data is to be collected; (4) the use and availability of such data; and (5) the collection of information about diseases and disorders that primarily affect motor neurons that are considered essential to furthering the study and cure of ALS. Allows the Secretary, acting through the Director, to award grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative agreements with, public or private nonprofit entities for the collection, analysis, and reporting of data on ALS and other motor neuron disorders. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Director, to: (1) identify, build upon, expand, and coordinate among existing data and surveillance systems, surveys, registries, and other federal public health and environmental infrastructure wherever possible; and (2) provide for research access to ALS data as recommended by the Advisory Committee in a manner that protects personal privacy. Requires the Secretary to ensure that epidemiological and other types of information is made available to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2007
Enhanced Participation in Drug Courts Act of 2007 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to redefine "violent offender" for purposes of eligibility for participating in drug court programs to mean a person charged or convicted of an offense that is punishable by a prison term exceeding one year.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2007
Perpetual Purple Heart Stamp Act - Directs the Postmaster General to provide for the issuance of a forever stamp (a stamp that meets first-class postage requirements even if postage rates increase) to honor the sacrifices of the men and women of the Armed Forces who have been awarded the Purple Heart.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2007
Mother's Day Centennial Commemorative Coin Act - Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 400,000 $1 coins emblematic of the 100th anniversary of President Wilson's proclamation designating the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day. Authorizes the Secretary to issue such coins beginning January 1, 2014, except that the Secretary may initiate sales of such coins, without issuance, before such date. Terminates such minting authority after December 31, 2014. Requires coin sales to include a $10 surcharge per coin, with distribution of such surcharges to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the National Osteoporosis Foundation for the purpose of furthering research.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2007
Requires the President to designate not less than three closed military installations or portions thereof that are appropriate for siting a refinery for gasoline or other fuel. Designates the Department of Energy as the lead agency for coordinating applicable federal refinery authorizations and related environmental reviews with respect to a designated refinery. Gives the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia exclusive jurisdiction over civil actions relating to federal refinery authorizations.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2007
Authorizes the Secretary of the Army to award the Army Combat Action Badge to any member of the Army who participated in combat during which the person actually engaged, or was personally engaged by, the enemy at any time between December 7, 1941, and September 18, 2001, as long as such person has not been previously recognized for such participation.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2007
Coal Liquid Fuel Act - Amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to authorize the Secretary of Energy to enter into: (1) standby loan agreements with up to six qualifying CTL projects, at least one of which shall be owned by two or more small coal producers; and (2) a profit-sharing agreement with the project at the time the standby loan agreement is executed. Defines "qualifying CTL project" as: (1) a commercial-scale project that converts coal to liquid or gaseous transportation fuels; or (2) not more than one project at a facility that converts petroleum refinery waste products, including petroleum coke, into liquids or gaseous transportation fuels, and demonstrates the capture, sequestration, or disposition of carbon dioxide produced in the conversion process.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2007
Retirement Security for Life Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an exclusion from gross income for 50 percent of the amount otherwise includible in gross income as guaranteed payments from certain annuity or life insurance contracts. Limits the amount of such exclusion to $20,000 in any taxable year. Provides for an inflation adjustment of the $20,000 limitation beginning in 2009.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2007
Kinship Caregiver Support Act - Authorizes the Assistant Secretary for Children and Families of the Department of Health and Human Services to make grants to eligible entities to pay for the federal share of the cost of carrying out kinship navigator programs. Amends part E (Federal Payments for Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of title IV of the Social Security Act to authorize all states to opt to enter agreements to provide kinship guardianship assistance payments on behalf of children to grandparents and other relatives who have assumed legal guardianship of children for whom they have cared as foster parents and have committed to care for on a permanent basis. Provides that adoptive parents of children with special needs remain eligible for adoption assistance, even if they receive kinship guardianship assistance. Authorizes the use of foster care independence program funds to provide independent living services and education and training vouchers for children who exit foster care to kinship guardianship or adoption after age 14. Directs the Secretary to enter into agreements with eligible entities to conduct demonstration kinship guardianship assistance projects. Requires states to: (1) notify all adult grandparents and other adult relatives (with exceptions due to family or domestic violence) when a child is removed from custody of a parent or parents; and (2) explain the options the relative has to participate in the child's care and placement. Allows state agencies to establish separate standards for foster family homes in which a foster parent is a relative of the foster child. Expands the definition of family support services to include assisting kinship caregivers or guardians in locating and accessing needed services. Requires that states inform case workers and families considering guardianship of all permanency options and service eligibility.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2007
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that judicial interpretations of the U.S. Constitution should not be based on judgments, laws, or pronouncements of foreign institutions unless such judgments, laws, or pronouncements inform an understanding of the original meaning of the Constitution.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2007
Expresses the sense of Congress that a National Pet Week should be established.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2007
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow bonds guaranteed by any federal home loan bank to be treated as tax-exempt state or local bonds (thus excluding interest on such bonds from gross income).
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2007
Urges the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) to observe its obligations under the 1995 U.N.-brokered Interim Accord which directs the parties (FYROM and Greece) to prohibit hostile activities or propaganda by state-controlled agencies and to discourage acts by private entities likely to incite hatred or hostility and review the contents of textbooks, maps, and teaching aids to ensure that such tools are stating accurate information. Urges the FYROM to work, within the framework of the U.N. process, with Greece to reach a mutually-acceptable official name for the FYROM.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2007
Commemorates the 200th anniversary of the Archdiocese of New York.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2007
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of a Long-Term Care Awareness Week.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2007
Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers Act of 2007 - Directs the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor to prepare and publish a monthly Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers (CPI) that indicates changes over time in expenditures for consumption which are typical for individuals aged 62 years of age or older. Authorizes appropriations. Amends titles II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) and XVIII (Medicare) to provide for the use of such new CPI in the computation of cost-of-living increases for Social Security and Medicare benefits under such programs.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2007
Energy For Our Future Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) repeal the limitation on the number of new qualified hybrid and advanced lean-burn technology vehicles eligible for the credit; (2) provide tax credits for manufacturers of fuel efficient motor vehicles; and (3) subject sports utility vehicles (SUVs) to the limitation on the depreciation of certain luxury automobiles. Sets forth a grant program for development of transit-oriented development corridors in urban areas. Amends federal transportation law to: (1) revise phased increases in automobile fuel economy standards; (2) set forth a national passenger car and light truck tire efficiency program; and (3) prescribe heavy duty vehicle fuel economy requirements. Amends the Energy Conservation and Production Act to double the appropriations authorized for weatherization assistance. Authorizes appropriations for the Energy Star program. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend the tax credits for: (1) renewable electricity production; and (2) residential energy efficient property. Amends the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 regarding: (1) efficiency resource standards for retail electricity and natural gas suppliers; (2) federal renewable portfolio standards; and (3) a revised net metering standard. Amends the Internal Revenue Code regarding: (1) tax credits for qualified energy efficiency expenditures for non-business property and for residential property; (2) modified tax deductions for energy efficient commercial buildings and low-rise buildings; (3) the tax deduction for energy efficient residential property; and (4) an energy savings certification credit. Amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to repeal certain provisions related to oil and gas production, resources, and tax incentives. Amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to repeal the Alaska Offshore Royalty suspension. Amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to declare certain preemptions of state law inapplicable to state regulation of energy consumption or water use of specified products. Amends the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 to restore the former procedure for appeals from consistency determinations revised by the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Amends the Federal Power Act to repeal specified provisions governing the siting of interstate electric transmission facilities. Amends the Natural Gas Act to rescind the authority of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to coordinate federal permits and other authorizations and compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. Amends federal transportation law to repeal the preemption of state law relating to automobile fuel economy standards. Instructs the Secretary of Energy to implement a research and development program targeting advanced technologies, including: (1) biofuel; (2) hydrogen storage; (3) solar photovoltaic; and (4) wind energy. Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle Act of 2007 - Instructs the Secretary to establish: (1) a research and development program targeting technologies for the development of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles and electric drive transportation; and (2) establish a competitive grant pilot demonstration program for governmental and public entities to implement plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. Solar Utilization Now Demonstration Act of 2007, or the SUN Act of 2007 - Instructs the Secretary to establish a grants program for states to demonstrate advanced photovoltaic technology.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2007
Birthright Citizenship Act of 2007 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to consider a person born in the United States "subject to the jurisdiction" of the United States for citizenship at birth purposes if the person is born in the United States of parents, one of whom is: (1) a U.S. citizen or national; (2) a lawful permanent resident alien whose residence is in the United States; or (3) an alien performing active service in the armed forces.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 2007
Mortgage Cancellation Relief Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income amounts attributable to the discharge of certain residential mortgage obligations.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 2007
Community Banks Serving Their Communities First Act, or the Communities First Act - Revises regulatory requirements for community banks, including amendments to: (1) the Federal Deposit Insurance Act to permit certain insured depository institutions to submit a short form report of condition; (2) the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 to exempt certain small-sized depository institutions from annual management assessment of internal controls requirements; (3) the Securities Investor Protection Act of 1970 to exempt certain small-size community banks from its prohibition against advances for customers' net equity claims; (4) the Federal Reserve Act to increase the asset size of banks exempt from the limitation on extensions of credit to executive officers, directors, and principal shareholders; and (5) the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to increase the shareholder registration threshold. Amends the Truth in Lending Act to direct the Federal Reserve Board to prescribe regulations authorizing a consumer to waive the right of rescission as to certain transactions when the creditor is an insured depository institution. Seasoned Customer CTR Exemption Act of 2007 - Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to prescribe regulations to exempt a depository institution from filing a currency transaction report (CTR) in the case of certain qualified customers. Amends additional Acts, including: (1) the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act to exempt specified community banks from furnishing a mandatory privacy notice; (2) the Fair Credit Reporting Act to require a consumer's written consent before a consumer reporting agency may furnish a consumer report upon request from another creditor; and (3) the Federal Reserve Act to limit loans to executive officers. Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to specified tax provisions for long-term certificates of deposit, loans secured by agricultural real property, qualified small issue bonds, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation-insured limited liability companies, and young savers accounts. Repeals the individual alternative minimum tax for individuals and community banks. Reduces the tax rates for community banks. Revises certain Subchapter S requirements for tax treatment of small businesses. Amends the Small Business Act with respect to: (1) reduced fees for specified loans; and (2) a low documentation loan program.
United States · United States Congress · 16 April 2007
Commends the University of Florida Gators for their historic win in the 2007 National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. Recognizes the achievements of the players, coaches, students, and support staff who were instrumental in the Gators' victory.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2007
Designates the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center at 1 Freedom Way in Augusta, Georgia, as the "Charlie Norwood Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center."
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2007
Student Protection Act - Requires that by FY2010 states have in effect laws and policies requiring an individual educator who has reason to believe that another educator has committed an act of sexual misconduct against a student to report such act to the state as quickly as possible, within 48 hours whenever possible, or else face discipline. Requires each state to have a single, statewide commission for receiving such reports that: (1) establishes policies for investigating and reporting such allegations; and (2) has a toll-free number that can be used to make anonymous allegations. Directs states to report to the Secretary of Education the details of each act of sexual misconduct against a student for which an educator has been punished, including details regarding the educator and the punishment levied. Authorizes the Secretary to penalize noncompliant states by reducing their funding under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 by up to 5%. Directs the Secretary to maintain a national database that contains, at a minimum, the details this Act requires each state to report to the Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2007
Consumer Rental Purchase Agreement Act - Amends the Consumer Credit Protection Act to prescribe consumer protection guidelines for rental-purchase transactions, including: (1) the determination of rental-purchase cost; (2) disclosure requirements; (3) prohibitions against confessions of judgment, wage assignments, and waiver of consumer claims or defenses; (4) furnishing of statements of account; (5) point-of-rental disclosures; and (6) rental-purchase advertising disclosures. Declares that an action for civil liability may be brought against a merchant's assignee only if the violation is apparent on the face of a rental-purchase agreement to which it relates, including, but not limited to, a disclosure that can be determined to be incomplete or inaccurate from the face of the agreement. Authorizes the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System to promulgate implementing regulations. Grants enforcement powers to the Federal Trade Commission and to state attorneys general. Subjects to criminal penalties any willful and knowing violation of the information disclosure requirements of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2007
Medicare Durable Medical Equipment Access Act of 2007 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to prohibit the Secretary of Health and Human Services from awarding any contracts under the competitive durable medical equipment items and services acquisition program unless: (1) the quality standards have been implemented; and (2) the Secretary has received advice from the program oversight committee. Requires the Secretary (who currently is authorized), in carrying out competitive acquisition programs, to exempt: (1) rural areas and areas with low population density within urban areas that are not competitive, unless there is a significant national market through mail order for a particular item or service; and (2) items and services for which the application of competitive acquisition is not likely to result in significant savings. Exempts smaller metropolitan statistical areas as well. Modifies requirements for the protection of small suppliers in bidding and contracting. Requires the Secretary to permit all suppliers to continue to participate as suppliers at the selected award price so long as they submit bids at less than the fee schedule amount otherwise applicable and otherwise comply with program requirements. Provides for appeal rights (currently denied). Requires the Secretary to exempt from competitive acquisition requirements items and services for which the application of competitive acquisition is not likely to result in significant savings of at least 10%. Prohibits the Secretary from implementing a program with respect to an item or service unless inclusion of the item or service will make significant savings of at least 10% probable, compared to the fee schedule in effect on January 1, 2007. Prohibits the Secretary from implementing certain payment rate basis requirements for covered items furnished after January 1, 2009, with respect to an area that is not a competitive acquisition area, unless a comparability analysis has been completed and published. Directs the Secretary, after fully implementing the initial 10 competitive acquisition areas, to analyze and report to Congress on the impact of competitive bidding in those areas. Prohibits expanding the coverage of competitive acquisition programs, or applying bid rates to non-bid areas, beyond the 10 competitive acquisition areas, unless specifically authorized by Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2007
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent the tax deduction for mortgage insurance premiums.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2007
Catastrophe Savings Accounts Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to create tax-exempt catastrophe savings accounts (CSAs). Allows tax-free distributions from CSAs to pay expenses resulting from a presidentially declared major disaster. Limits CSA balances to: (1) $2,000 (for individuals with homeowner insurance deductibles of not more than $1,000); and (2) the lesser of $15,000 or twice a homeowner's insurance deductible (for individuals with deductibles of more than $1,000).
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2007
Crane Conservation Act of 2007 - Requires the Secretary of the Interior to provide financial assistance for approved projects relating to the conservation of cranes, using amounts in the Crane Conservation Fund established by this Act. Allows a project proposal to be submitted by: (1) any wildlife management authority of a country located in the African, Asian, European, or North American range of a species of crane that carries out at least one activity that affects crane populations; (2) the Secretariat of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora; and (3) any person or organization with demonstrated expertise in the conservation of cranes. Establishes the Crane Conservation Fund in the Multinational Species Conservation Fund. Authorizes the Secretary to convene an advisory group representing public and private organizations actively involved in the conservation of cranes to assist in carrying out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2007
Expanding American Homeownership Act of 2007 - Amends the National Housing Act to: (1) modify guidelines governing the maximum principal loan obligation; (2) extend the mortgage term; and (3) revise requirements for cash payment by the mortgagor in the eligibility criteria for mortgage insurance. Directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to reinstate the current downpayment requirement in the event of increased defaults. Authorizes the Secretary to establish a mortgage insurance premium structure involving a single premium payment collected prior to the insurance of the mortgage that may vary during the mortgage term as long as the basis for determining the variable rate is established before the execution of the mortgage. Sets forth maximum up-front premium amounts. Permits the Secretary to insure any mortgage covering a one-family unit in a condominium project if the project has a certain HUD-insured blanket mortgage. Revises requirements for the Mutual Mortgage Insurance (MMI) Fund. Limits the authority of the Secretary to enter into commitments for loan guarantees. Makes insurance of a Native Hawaiian or Indian reservation mortgage the obligation of the MMI Fund (instead of the General Insurance Fund). Eliminates the limitation placed upon the aggregate number of home equity conversion mortgages insured under the Act. Authorizes the Secretary to insure a home equity conversion mortgage when its primary purpose is to enable an elderly mortgagor to purchase a one- to four-family dwelling in which the mortgagor will occupy one of the units. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into agreements to insure temporarily certain mortgages for a single family residence located within a presidentially declared major disaster area. Redefines mortgagee to allow participation in the federal mortgage insurance program by state-licensed mortgage brokers and correspondent lenders who make, underwrite, or service mortgage loans.