United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2014
Pathways Out of Poverty Act of 2014 - Division A: Education - Title I: Strong Start for America's Children - Subtitle A: Access to Voluntary Prekindergarten for Low- and Moderate-Income Families - Directs the Secretary of Education (Secretary) to allot matching grants to states and, through them, subgrants to local educational agencies (LEAs), childhood education program providers, or consortia of those entities to implement high-quality prekindergarten programs for children from low-income families. Allots grants to states based on each state's proportion of children who are age four and who are from families with incomes at or below 200% of the poverty level. Defines "high-quality prekindergarten programs." Conditions grant eligibility on a state demonstrating to the Secretary that it: (1) has established or will establish early learning and development standards, (2) has established or will develop the ability to link prekindergarten data with elementary and secondary school data, (3) offers state-funded kindergarten for children, and (4) has established a State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care. Directs the Secretary and the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop a process to provide Head Start program services to children who are younger than age four in states or regions that provide four-year-olds whose family income is at or below 200% of the poverty level with sustained access to high-quality prekindergarten programs. Subtitle B: Prekindergarten Development Grants - Directs the Secretary to award competitive, matching, capacity-building grants to states that assure that they will use their grant to become eligible, within three years of receiving the grant, for this Act's grants for high-quality prekindergarten programs. Title II: Restoring Summer Pell Grants - Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to allow the Secretary to award a student two Pell Grants during a single award year if the student is enrolled in an associate or baccalaureate degree program or a certificate program at an institution of higher education (IHE) on at least a half-time basis for the equivalent of more than one academic year during the Pell Grant award year. Title III: Restoring Title IV Ability-to-Benefit Eligibility - Allows students who are not high school graduates or have not met certain home schooling requirements to receive student assistance under title IV of the HEA if they demonstrate that they can benefit from the education or training being offered by an IHE through: (1) their performance on an independently administered examination, (2) a state prescribed process, or (3) their satisfactory completion of six credit hours or the equivalent coursework toward a degree or certificate offered by the IHE. Title IV: Youth Promise/Federal Coordination of Local and Tribal Juvenile Justice Information and Efforts - Amends the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 to establish a PROMISE Advisory Panel to assist the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention in assessing and developing standards and evidence-based practices to prevent juvenile delinquency and criminal street gang activity. Requires the Administrator of the Office to award grants to organizations to collect and use data in designated geographic areas to assess the needs and existing resources for juvenile delinquency and criminal street gang activity prevention and intervention. Title V: Promise Grants - Subtitle A: PROMISE Assessment and Planning Grants - Authorizes the Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to award grants to local governments and Indian tribes to assist local PROMISE Coordinating Councils (PCCs) with planning and assessing evidence-based and promising practices for juvenile delinquency and criminal street gang activity prevention and intervention, especially for at-risk youth. Subtitle B: PROMISE Implementation Grants - Directs the Administrator to award additional grants to assist PCCs to implement PROMISE plans for coordinating and supporting the delivery of juvenile delinquency and gang prevention and intervention programs in local communities. Subtitle C: General PROMISE Grant Provisions - Directs the Administrator, in conjunction with the PROMISE Advisory Panel, to establish and utilize a system for evaluating applications for PROMISE Assessment and Planning grants and for PROMISE Implementation grants. Division B: Housing - Title VI: Common Sense Housing Investment - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax deduction for mortgage interest, to: (1) allow, in lieu of such deduction, a tax credit for 15% of mortgage interest paid in a taxable year for the taxpayer's principal residence and one other residence; (2) provide for a phaseout of the tax deduction for mortgage interest between 2014 and 2018; (3) allow a deduction for interest and taxes relating to land for dwelling purposes owned or leased by cooperative housing corporations; and (4) increase the state housing credit ceiling for the low-income housing tax credit. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to apply the savings from the enactment of this Act to the Housing Trust Fund, for assistance under the Section 8 low-income housing program, and for the Public Housing Capital Fund. Title VII: Low-Income Housing Tax Credit for Homeless Youth - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to qualify low-income building units that provide housing for full-time students who were homeless youth or homeless veterans prior to occupying a low-income housing unit for the low-income housing tax credit. Title VIII: Renters Tax Credit - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a business-related tax credit for a portion of the rent paid by a qualified renter. Defines "qualified renter" as a family unit with income not greater than the higher of 60% of local median income or 150% of the federal poverty line. Establishes the amount of such credit as the rent reduction amount, which: (1) is the amount by which the fair market rent for a rental unit exceeds the rent charged to the qualified renter; and (2) shall not exceed the excess of the rent charged to the qualified renter (or, if lower, specified modest rent) over 30% of the qualified renter's income (prorated monthly). Division C: Nutrition - Title IX: Improving the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families Program - Amends part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Act) (TANF) of title IV of the Social Security Act to require state TANF plans to address whether and how states will give priority to providing assistance in areas with the greatest need. Extends the TANF program. Establishes matching grants to the states for subsidized employment. Sets a flat minimum participation rate of 50% with respect to all families residing in a state that include a work-eligible individual.. Gives TANF recipients the option to have trained personnel assess certain barriers to employment. Revises the contents of individual responsibility plans. Authorizes a state to develop a modified employability plan for a TANF recipient with, or caring for a family member with, a disability. Prohibits a state from imposing a lifetime sanction or full-family sanction on assistance to any individual or family on the basis of a family member's failure to comply with a program requirement. Prohibits sanctioning individuals for failure to engage in work if the failure results from the inability to secure child care or after-school arrangements for a child under age 13. Prohibits imposing a limit of less than 60 months on duration of TANF assistance. Makes the durational limit inapplicable during a recession. Requires that states establish personnel standards through a merit-based system in the administration of TANF programs. Requires TANF assistance to meet basic family economic needs. Makes reducing child poverty a purpose of the TANF program. Requires that states adopt standards and procedures to address domestic and sexual violence suffered by TANF recipients. Requires a state to guarantee child care services to TANF recipients employed or participating in a work activity. Eliminates the ban on providing assistance to families not assigning certain support rights to the state. Gives states the option to extend TANF eligibility to children through age 21. Prohibits considering financial aid tied to education of a child in determining eligibility for or the amount of TANF. Eliminates bars to TANF assistance for persons convicted of drug felonies, unwed teen parents not in school, and teens not in an adult-supervised living arrangement. Title X: Employment Advancement, Retention, and Navigation Act - Makes it a purpose of TANF to promote employment among needy families. Requires a state to use any funds received under a grant from the TANF Contingency Fund for State Welfare Programs solely to support training programs leading to a credential directly linked to the employment opportunities in the local area or region. Eliminates the maintenance of effort requirement, and related administrative penalty, for state use of amounts from the Contingency Fund. Revises the definition of vocational educational training as a work activity to include up to 24 months of such training for any individual participating in a training program leading to a credential directly linked to employment opportunities in the individual's local area or region. Removes from the limitation on the number of persons who may be treated as engaged in work by reason of participation in educational activities all single heads of household or married individuals under age 20 who maintain satisfactory school attendance. Title XI: Restoring Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs Funding Cuts Instituted in Farm Bill (Heat-and-Eat) - Amends the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to remove restrictions on providing standard utility allowances under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps) to certain households based on the receipt of nominal benefits under the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 1981 or similar energy assistance programs. Title XII: Helping Hungry Students Learn - Amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to expand the school lunch program, provide free breakfast to students, and establish a pilot program to provide commodities to state agencies to assist in providing food to at-risk children on weekends and during school holidays. Title XIII: Food Assistance to Improve Reintegration Act - Amends the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to repeal provisions making individuals convicted of certain drug-related offenses ineligible for SNAP benefits. Division D: Labor/Job Training - Title XV [ sic ]: Assistance for the Unemployed and Pathways Back to Work - Subtitle A: Supporting Unemployed Workers - Supporting Unemployed Workers Act of 2014 - Amends the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008 to extend emergency unemployment compensation (EUC) payments for eligible individuals to weeks of employment ending on or before January 1, 2016. Amends the Assistance for Unemployed Workers and Struggling Families Act to extend until December 31, 2015, requirements that federal payments to states cover 100% of EUC. Amends the Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2008 to exempt weeks of unemployment between enactment of this Act and June 30, 2016, from the prohibition in the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 (FSEUCA of 1970) against federal matching payments to a state for the first week in an individual's eligibility period for which extended compensation or sharable regular compensation is paid if the state law provides for payment of regular compensation to an individual for his or her first week of otherwise compensable unemployment. Amends FSEUCA of 1970 to postpone similarly from December 31, 2013, to December 31, 2015, termination of the period during which a state may determine its "on" and "off" indicators according to specified temporary substitutions in its formula. Amends the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act to extend through December 31, 2015, the temporary increase in extended unemployment benefits. Establishes the Reemployment NOW program to facilitate the reemployment of individuals receiving emergency unemployment compensation (EUC claimants). Requires a state to submit for approval by the Secretary of Labor a plan meeting certain minimum requirements in order to be eligible for an allotment of federal funds under such program. Authorizes a state to use its allotted funds to establish: (1) a Bridge to Work program to provide EUC claimants with short-term work experience placements with eligible employers; (2) a wage insurance program to pay, for up to two years, an EUC claimant who obtains reemployment up to 50% of the difference between the wages received at the time of work separation and the wages received for reemployment; and (3) a program of enhanced reemployment services to EUC claimants, including unemployed individuals who have exhausted their EUC rights. Prescribes requirements for federal financing of state short-time compensation programs. Subtitle B: Long-Term Unemployed Hiring Preferences - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an increased work opportunity tax credit for long-term unemployed individuals (individuals who are unemployed and receiving unemployment compensation for six months or more). Subtitle C: Pathways Back to Work - Pathways Back to Work Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Labor to make certain allocations of federal funds to states with approved plans, qualifying outlying areas (U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Republic of Palau), and Native American program grantees to provide: (1) subsidized employment to unemployed, low-income adults; and (2) summer and year-round employment opportunities to low-income youth. Requires the Secretary of Labor to award competitive grants to local entities for work-based training and other work-related and educational strategies and activities of demonstrated effectiveness to provide unemployed, low-income adults and low-income youths with skills that will lead to employment. Subjects activities funded under this Act to federal labor standards and nondiscrimination protections. Subtitle D: Prohibition of Discrimination in Employment on the Basis of an Individual's Status as Unemployed - Fair Employment Opportunity Act of 2014 - Makes it an unlawful practice for certain employers to: (1) publish a job advertisement or announcement that includes provisions indicating that an individual's status as unemployed disqualifies the individual for employment or that the employer will not consider or hire an individual for employment based on such status, (2) fail or refuse to consider or hire an individual because of such status, or (3) direct or request that an employment agency take an individual's status into account to disqualify an applicant for consideration for employment or when screening or referring employees. Makes it an unlawful practice for an employment agency to commit similar acts, including to: (1) screen, or fail or refuse to consider or refer, an individual for employment because of the individual's unemployed status; or (2) limit, segregate, or classify any such individual in any manner that would limit access to job information or consideration, screening, or referral for jobs. Makes it unlawful for any employer or employment agency to: (1) interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of any right provided under this Act; or (2) fail or refuse to hire, discharge, or otherwise discriminate against an employee because such individual opposed any practice made unlawful by this Act or asserted any right under it. Prescribes enforcement authorities and legal remedies for violations of this Act. Title XVI: Living American Wage - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to increase the federal minimum wage to at least the amount determined by the Secretary of Labor according to the formula prescribed by this Act beginning September 1, 2014. Requires the Secretary to determine such minimum wage rate by June 1, 2014, and once every four years thereafter. Prohibits any adjustment if the determination would result in a minimum wage lower than the current one. Requires the minimum wage so determined to be the minimum hourly wage sufficient for a person working for it 40 hours per week, 52 weeks per year, to earn an annual income 15% higher than the federal poverty threshold for a four-person household, with two children under age 18, and living in the 48 contiguous states, as published for each such year by the Census Bureau. Title XVII: Emergency Unemployment Compensation Extension - Amends the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008 (SSA, 2008) to extend emergency unemployment compensation (EUC) payments for eligible individuals to weeks of employment ending on or before January 1, 2015. Amends the Assistance for Unemployed Workers and Struggling Families Act to extend until December 31, 2014 requirements that federal payments to states cover 100% of EUC. Amends the Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2008 to exempt weeks of unemployment between enactment of this Act and June 30, 2015 from the prohibition in the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 (FSEUCA of 1970) against federal matching payments to a state for the first week in an individual's eligibility period for which extended compensation or sharable regular compensation is paid if the state law provides for payment of regular compensation to an individual for his or her first week of otherwise compensable unemployment. Amends the FSEUCA of 1970 to postpone similarly from December 31, 2013, to December 31, 2014 termination of the period during which a state may determine its "on" and "off" indicators according to specified temporary substitutions in its formula. Amends the SSA, 2008 to appropriate funds out of the employment security administration account through FY2015 to assist states in providing reemployment and eligibility assessment activities. Amends the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act to extend through December 31, 2014 the temporary increase in extended unemployment benefits. Makes a change in application of a certain requirement (nonreduction rule) to a state that has entered a federal-state EUC agreement, under which the federal government would reimburse the state's unemployment compensation agency making EUC payments to individuals who have exhausted all rights to regular unemployment compensation under state or federal law and meet specified other criteria. (Under the nonreduction rule such an agreement does not apply with respect to a state whose method for computing regular unemployment compensation under state law has been modified to make the average weekly unemployment compensation benefit paid on or after June 2, 2010, less than what would have been paid before June 2, 2010.) Declares that the nonreduction rule shall not apply to a state which has enacted a law before December 1, 2013, that, upon taking effect, would violate the nonreduction rule. Allows a state whose agreement was terminated, however, to enter into a subsequent federal-state EUC agreement on or after enactment of this Act if, taking into account this inapplicability of the nonreduction rule, it would otherwise meet the requirements for an EUC agreement. (Thus allows such a subsequent EUC agreement to permit payment of less than the average weekly unemployment compensation benefit paid on or after June 2, 2010.) Division E: Anti-Poverty Tax Provision - Title XVIII: Child Tax Credit Permanency - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the child tax credit, to: (1) make permanent the reduction (from $10,000 to $3,000) of the eligibility threshold for the refundable portion of such credit, and (2) require an annual inflation adjustment to the allowable amount of such credit (i.e., $1,000) after 2013. Title XIX: Earned Income Tax Credit - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the earned income tax credit, to: (1) increase the rate of such credit for individuals with no qualifying children; (2) allow an annual inflation adjustment to the increased phaseout amount of such credit for taxable years beginning after 2014; and (3) expand eligibility for such credit to individuals who have attained age 21 (currently, age 25) but have not attained the full retirement age under the Social Security Act. Title XX: Child Care Access and Refundability Expansion Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for dependent care expenses, to: (1) make such credit refundable, (2) deny such credit to nonresident aliens, and (3) allow an annual cost-of-living adjustment after 2013 to the amounts used to determine an income-based reduction in the amount of such credit. Division F: Miscellaneous - Title XXI: Poverty Impact Trigger - Amends Rule XXI (Restrictions on Certain Bills) of the Rules of the House of Representatives to make it out of order to consider a public bill or joint resolution authorizing an appropriation of $10 million or more, unless: (1) the accompanying committee report includes a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Poverty Impact Division impact statement, or (2) the chair of the committee reporting the legislation submits such statement for publication in the Congressional Record before consideration of the measure. Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to establish the CBO Poverty Impact Division to prepare and submit poverty impact statements to the chair of House committees. Title XXII: Half in Ten Act to Create a National Strategy to Reduce Poverty - Establishes within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) a Federal Interagency Working Group on Reducing Poverty, which shall develop a National Strategy to reduce the number of persons living in poverty in America in half within 10 years after release of the 2012 Census report on Income, Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2011.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2014
VA Appeals Backlog Relief Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to ensure that a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) regional office certifies a VA Form 9, Appeal to Board of Veterans' Appeals, submitted by a veteran to appeal a decision relating to a claim, by not later than one year after receiving such form.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2014
Condemns: (1) all forms of anti-Semitism and rejects attempts to justify anti-Jewish hatred or violent attacks as an acceptable expression of disapproval over political events, and (2) the comparison of Israel to Nazis perpetrating a Holocaust or genocide. Applauds those foreign leaders, especially in France, Italy, and Germany, who have condemned anti-Semitic acts, and calls on those who have yet to take firm action against anti-Semitism in their countries to do so. Reaffirms support for the mandate of the United States Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism. Supports Holocaust educational programs at home and abroad. Urges the Secretary of State to: maintain the fight against anti-Semitism as a U.S. foreign policy priority, urge governments to ensure that adequate laws are in place to punish anti-Semitic violence and hate crimes as well as establish mechanisms to investigate and punish perpetrators, continue U.S. reporting on anti-Semitism as a human rights and religious freedom issue, provide training for diplomatic and law enforcement personnel posted abroad to report on anti-Semitic incidents, deepen engagement with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and support its specialized efforts to monitor and address anti-Semitism, and oppose efforts to prevent any individual from exercising his or her religion without fear of prosecution or violence.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2014
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the current outbreak of Ebola in Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia is an international health crisis and is the largest and most widespread outbreak of the disease ever recorded. Calls on all nations to immediately provide additional resources to help affected nations address current and future public health crises. Requests development of a global health security plan to respond to disease outbreaks. Urges the prioritization of the elimination of Ebola as a public health threat.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2014
Welcomes: (1) African leaders to the first United States-Africa Leaders' Summit in Washington, DC, and (2) African trade ministers to the 13th African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Forum. Recognizes the progress and hope that modern Africa represents in global affairs and economic advancement. Acknowledges the opportunities to boost cultural, trade, and economic relations and partnerships between the United States and Africa. Recognizes the importance of renewing the AGOA program. Encourages implementation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Trade Facilitation Agreement as one important way to address supply-side barriers and encourage greater trade and investment in Africa.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 2014
Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2014 - Amends the Public Health Service Act and the Social Security Act to expand the collection and analysis of data in programs of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Sets forth provisions to improve cultural competence in federal health care programs and services, including by establishing the Robert T. Matsui Center for Cultural and Linguistic Competence in Health Care. Requires the Secretary of HHS (Secretary) to engage in activities to improve health workforce diversity, including by: (1) establishing a working group and a technical clearinghouse; (2) awarding grants to academic institutions; (3) establishing a health and health care disparities education program; and (4) providing for scholarships, student loan repayment and loan forgiveness, and research fellowships. Health Empowerment Zone Act of 2014 - Provides for the establishment of health empowerment zones in communities that experience disproportionate disparities in health status and health care. Requires the Secretary to engage in activities to improve the quality of and access to health care, including by expanding access to health care and health care insurance for immigrants, designating centers of excellence at public hospitals and other health systems serving minority patients, increasing Medicaid payments to territories and to Native Hawaiian health centers, and providing for border health grants. Sets forth programs to reduce health disparities affecting minorities and rural residents. Establishes an Office of Minority Health in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Sets forth provisions to improve health for women and children, including by expanding access to federal programs for immigrant women and children, creating public awareness campaigns, engaging in activities to eliminate disparities in maternal health outcomes, and establishing programs to reduce teenage pregnancies, including contraception education and information programs, programs to support healthy adolescent development, maintaining a database of systematic reviews of maternity care, designating maternity care health professional shortage areas, and establishing a research center on optimal maternity outcomes. Directs the Secretary to develop a multisite gestational diabetes research project within the diabetes program of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Requires pharmacies to provide in stock contraceptives to customers without delay. Expands Medicare coverage of marriage and family therapist services, mental health counselor services, and substance abuse counselor services. Lung Cancer Mortality Reduction Act of 2014 - Requires the Secretary to implement the Lung Cancer Mortality Reduction Program to achieve a reduction of at least 25% in the mortality rate of lung cancer by 2020. Prostate Research, Outreach, Screening, Testing, Access, and Treatment Effectiveness Act of 2014 or the PROSTATE Act - Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to take action to address prostate cancer, including by establishing the Interagency Prostate Cancer Coordination and Education Task Force. Viral Hepatitis and Liver Cancer Control and Prevention Act of 2014 - Requires the Secretary to implement programs to address hepatitis B and hepatitis C. Bone Marrow Failure Disease Research and Treatment Act of 2014 - Requires the Director of CDC to establish the National Acquired Bone Marrow Failure Disease Registry. Requires the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to develop guidelines to screen minority patient populations which have a higher than average risk for many chronic diseases and cancers. Expands Medicaid to cover a beneficiary's routine medical costs when they are in an approved clinical trial. Requires the Secretary to expand HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention activities, including: (1) identification of issues that impede disease status awareness and retention in appropriate care, (2) research into treatment adherence strategies, (3) grants to public health agencies and faith-based organizations, (4) the Minority HIV/AIDS Initiative, and (5) health workforce training for culturally competent care. Directs the Secretary to award grants for comprehensive sex education programs for adolescents. Eliminates a program that supports abstinence education. Permits community organizations to distribute sexual barrier protection devices (e.g., condoms) and to engage in sexually transmitted infection counseling and prevention education in federal correctional facilities. Stop AIDS in Prison Act - Requires the Bureau of Prisons to develop a comprehensive policy to provide HIV testing, treatment, and prevention for inmates. Requires the Secretary to conduct research and other activities with respect to diabetes in minority populations and the prevention of lung disease. Sleep and Circadian Rhythm Disorders Health Disparities Act - Requires the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to expand research addressing sleep health disparities. Requires the Director of CDC to expand activities regarding sleep disorders. Sets forth provisions regarding the use of health information technology to reduce health disparities, particularly in racial and ethnic minority communities. Prohibits discrimination in federal health care programs or research activities. Requires the Secretary to establish the Office of Health Disparities in the Office for Civil Rights and to establish civil rights compliance offices in each HHS agency that administers health programs. Directs the Secretary to establish a program at the National Center for Environmental Health on health impact assessment (the process of determining the potential effects of a policy, program, or project on health). Directs the Comptroller General (GAO) to study the type and scope of health care services provided to racial and ethnic minorities affected by the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling unit on April 20, 2010.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 2014
Employee Empowerment Act - Amends the National Labor Relations Act to authorize a person alleging an unfair labor practice by an employer by discrimination regarding hiring or tenure of employment or any term or condition of employment to encourage or discourage membership in any labor organization, in addition to filing a charge alleging an unfair labor practice with the National Labor Relations Board, to bring a civil action against such employer in U.S. district court. Authorizes the court to grant relief (including injunctive and equitable relief, back pay, and compensatory and punitive damages) and allow the prevailing party a reasonable attorney's fee (including expert witness fees) as part of the costs.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2014
Securing the Assistance of Victims of Exploitation Act of 2014 (SAVE Act) - Prohibits funds made available to carry out the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 from being used in contravention of provisions of the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000 related to the eligibility of human trafficking victims to receive services and benefits under certain federal or state programs, such as the supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program) .
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2014
John P. Parker House Study Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study of the John P. Parker House in Ripley, Ohio, to determine the suitability and feasibility of establishing it as a unit of the National Park System.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2014
EARLY Act Reauthorization of 2014 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize through FY2019 the Young Women's Breast Health Education and Awareness Requires Learning Young Act of 2009, which supports: (1) campaigns to educate the public and health care professionals about young women's breast health, (2) research into prevention of breast cancer in young women, and (3) support for young women with breast cancer.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2014
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States Postal Service should issue a commemorative postage stamp honoring Maya Angelou.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2014
Advancing Girls in STEM Act of 2014 - Directs the Department of Education to award grants to states to carry out programs that promote the involvement of elementary and secondary female students in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields. Transfers $20 million of unobligated funds made available to the Office of Nuclear Warhead Protection in the National Nuclear Security Administration to the Department of Education to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2014
Schedules That Work Act - Grants an employee the right to request that his or her employer change the terms and conditions of employment relating to: the number of hours or times the employee is required to work or be on call; the location; the amount of notification he or she receives of work schedule assignments; and minimizing fluctuations in the number of hours the employee is scheduled to work on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. Requires the employer, if the request is made, to engage in a timely, good faith interactive process with the employee that includes a discussion of potential schedule changes that would meet his or her needs. Outlines the process for either granting or denying a change. Requires the employer to grant a request, unless there is a bona fide business reason for denying it, if the request is made because of the employee's serious health condition, his or her responsibilities as a caregiver, or enrollment in a career-related educational or training program, or if a part-time employee requests such a change for a reason related to a second job. Authorizes an employer, if an employee requests a change for any other reason, to deny it for any reason that is not unlawful. Requires the employer to give the employee the reason for the denial, including whether it was a bona fide business reason. Outlines employer requirements for paying reporting time and split shift pay and for giving advance notice of work schedules to retail, food service, or cleaning employees, except for those in bona fide executive, administrative, or professional capacities. Makes it unlawful for any employer or other person to: (1) interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise or the attempt to exercise any right of an employee specified in this Act; (2) retaliate against an individual for exercising his or her rights, or (3) interfere with proceedings or inquiries with respect to violation of an individual's rights. Sets forth administrative enforcement procedures and civil remedies for violation of these prohibitions. Directs the Secretary of Labor to give information and technical assistance to employers, labor organizations, and the general public concerning compliance with this Act. Requires the Comptroller General (GAO) to study the impact of certain difficult scheduling practices on employees and employers. Makes this Act inapplicable to any employee covered by a bona fide collective bargaining agreement if its terms govern work scheduling practices.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 2014
Breaking Addiction Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a five-year demonstration project under which payment may be made to each participating state for any medical assistance provided with respect to a qualified individual being treated for a substance use condition in a community-based institution for mental diseases.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 2014
Supports the designation of a National Get Vertical Day and encourages employers and employees to acknowledge its goals and ideals by incorporating physical movement and appropriate programming into daily work activity. Recognizes the serious long-term health effects of sedentary lifestyles. Urges promotion of physical movement and active lifestyles.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 2014
Recognizes the centennial of the founding of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. Honors the Fraternity for a century of fortitude and distinguished service to the people of the United States and the global community.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2014
National Freight Network Trust Fund Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish the National Freight Network Trust Fund, from which expenditures shall be made to fund awards under the National Freight Network Grant Program. Appropriates to the Fund amounts equivalent to 5% of the import duties imposed under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States. Establishes such Program in the Department of Transportation (DOT), under which the Secretary of Transportation shall make grants to states, regional or local transportation organizations, or port authorities to assist projects that improve the performance of the national freight network. Directs the Secretary to evaluate and select projects on a competitive basis by considering their potential to: generate national economic benefits, improve the performance of key corridors and gateways, reduce congestion, improve transportation safety, and enhance the network. Requires the Secretary to update the national freight network every five years.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2014
Constitutional Amendment - Authorizes Congress and the states to set reasonable limits on the raising and spending of money by candidates and others to influence elections. Grants Congress and the states the power to implement and enforce this amendment by appropriate legislation. Allows them to distinguish between natural persons and corporations or other artificial entities created by law, including by prohibiting such entities from spending money to influence elections. Declares that nothing in this amendment shall be construed to grant Congress or the states the power to abridge the freedom of the press.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2014
Supports the goals and ideals of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, now in its 40th year of continuous service. Recognizes the benefits the CDBG program has provided to urban, suburban, and rural communities. Acknowledges the importance of this federal grant program to states and local communities throughout the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2014
Strengthening Child Welfare Response to Trafficking Act of 2014 - Amends the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act to condition eligibility to receive a state grant for child abuse or neglect prevention and treatment programs on inclusion in the state plan of a certification by the governor that the state has in effect and is enforcing a state law, or is operating a statewide program, that includes provisions and procedures to: (1) identify and assess reports involving children who are sex trafficking victims (and which may also involve children who are victims of severe forms of trafficking in persons), (2) train representatives of the state child protective services about identifying and assessing such children, and (3) identify services and procedures for appropriate referral to address the needs of such children. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to report to Congress on: (1) the specific type and prevalence of severe forms of trafficking in persons to which children have been subjected who are identified for services or intervention under the placement, care, or supervision of state, Indian tribe, or tribal organization child welfare agencies; (2) the practices and protocols utilized by states to identify and serve children who are, or are at-risk of becoming, victims of trafficking; and (3) any barriers in federal laws or regulations that may prevent identification and assessment of children who are such victims.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 2014
Protect Women's Health From Corporate Interference Act of 2014 - Affirms requirements, notwithstanding the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, that: (1) an employer that establishes or maintains a group health plan for its employees must provide coverage of a specific item or service for the employees or their dependents where the coverage is required under federal provisions or regulations pursuant to those provisions; and (2) group health plans sponsored by an employer or employee organization, and any health insurance coverage, must provide coverage required under the Public Health Service Act, including preventive health services. Authorizes the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Treasury to modify regulations concerning coverage of contraceptive services by group health plans of religious employers consistent with the purposes and findings (regarding coverage of birth control services and the Supreme Court decisions in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. and Conestoga Wood Specialties Corp. v. Burwell ) of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 8 July 2014
Reaffirms the support of the House of Representatives for Israel's right to defend itself and its citizens. Condemns the unprovoked rocket fire at Israel and calls on Hamas to cease all rocket and other attacks against Israel.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2014
Core Opportunity Resources for Equity and Excellence Act of 2014 - Amends the school improvement program under part A of title I of the the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to require states to adopt student achievement standards that lead to college and career readiness by high school graduation. Requires each state school improvement plan to ensure that the state's public school system enables students to meet those standards by providing them with fair and equitable access to the core resources for learning. Includes among the core resources for learning: high-quality instructional teams; rigorous academic standards and curricula that lead to college and career readiness by high school graduation; equitable and instructionally appropriate class sizes; up-to-date instructional materials, technology, and supplies; effective school library programs; school facilities and technology, including physically and environmentally sound school buildings and well-equipped instructional spaces; specialized instruction support teams providing assessment, diagnosis, counseling, educational, therapeutic, and other necessary services as part of a comprehensive program to meet student needs; and effective programs to engage families and the community in education. Prohibits states that fail to make progress toward eliminating inequities in access to the core resources for learning for two or more consecutive years from receiving funds under any competitive grant program authorized by the ESEA. Requires the annual report cards publicly disseminated by states and their local educational agencies (LEAs) to include information on the performance of LEAs and schools in providing students with fair and equitable access to the core resources for learning. Requires states to identify any of their LEAs as needing improvement if they: (1) fail for two consecutive years to make adequate yearly progress toward state academic content and achievement standards, or (2) have received a waiver of the ESEA's statutory or regulatory requirements from the Secretary of Education. Requires states to: (1) identify any inequities in access to the core resources of learning in schools served by an LEA that has been identified as needing improvement, and (2) work with the LEA to address those inequities. Prohibits the Secretary from waiving this Act's requirements for accountability in providing students with access to the core resources for learning.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2014
Working Families Child Care Act of 2014 - Amends part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of title IV of the Social Security Act to create a supplemental state entitlement for child care assistance for families with infants or toddlers under age three. Amends the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make grants to enable eligible states (including Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands) to improve the quality of care for infants and toddlers, especially those from low-income families. Authorizes the use of grant funds to: (1) make grants to organizations with expertise in providing child care and related technical assistance, to establish new staffed family child care networks or to operate existing staffed family child care networks or systems that offer, to eligible infant and toddler care providers, technical assistance, training, administrative support, or direct services including monitoring visits to providers; (2) support a statewide network of infant and toddler care specialists; and (3) support initiatives to improve the quality of the provider workforce. Allows the use of such funds also to: (1) develop infant and toddler components for the state's Quality Rating and Improvement System or a similar rating system, child care licensing regulations, or voluntary early learning guidelines; (2) improve the ability of parents to obtain information about high-quality infant and toddler care; or (3) assist eligible infant and toddler care providers seeking to increase their ranking on the state's Quality Rating and Improvement System or similar rating system, meet performance standards applicable to an Early Head Start agency, or become accredited by a national accrediting body.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2014
Amy and Vicky Child Pornography Victim Restitution Improvement Act of 2014 - Amends the federal criminal code to expand the definition of "full amount of the victim's losses" for purposes of provisions governing mandatory restitution of victims of offenses involving sexual exploitation and other abuse of children to include medical services, physical and occupational therapy or rehabilitation, and lost income for the victim's lifetime, as well as any losses suffered by the victim from any sexual act or conduct in preparation for or during the production of child pornography depicting the victim involved in the offense. Sets forth guidelines for determining restitution where the victim of of a specified child pornography offense was harmed by one defendant (requiring restitution for not less than the full amount of the victim's losses) or by more than one defendant (requiring restitution for not more than the full amount of the victim's losses and not less than specified minimum amounts for certain offenses). Requires joint and several liability where there are multiple defendants and allows each defendant who is ordered to pay restitution and who has made full payment to the victim equal to or exceeding the specified minimum amount to recover contribution from any other defendant ordered to pay. Sets forth contribution claim procedures. Requires the Attorney General to report to Congress within one year after enactment of this Act on any progress of the Department of Justice (DOJ) in obtaining restitution for victims of such offenses.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2014
Charitable Automobile Red-Tape Simplification Act of 2014 or the CARS Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax deduction for charitable contributions, to modify the substantiation rules for donations of qualified vehicles (i.e., motor vehicles manufactured primarily for use on public streets, roads, and highways and boats or airplanes) to require: (1) a statement with respect to such qualified vehicles and a good faith estimate of their value at the time of donation; and (2) a contemporaneous written acknowledgement of the contribution by the donee organization, with information about the donor and the qualified vehicle.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2014
Protecting American Jobs and Exports Act - Amends the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank of the United States through FY2021. Extends through FY2021 and gradually increases (with a specified exception) the Bank's aggregate outstanding loan, guarantee, and insurance authority. Extends through FY2021 Bank authority to provide financing for the export of nonlethal defense articles or services whose primary end use will be for civilian purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 2014
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 715 Shawan Falls Drive in Dublin, Ohio, as the "Lance Corporal Wesley G. Davids and Captain Nicholas J. Rozanski Memorial Post Office."
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 2014
Recognizes the historical significance to the nation, and supports the continued celebration, of Juneteenth Independence Day. Declares the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) history should be regarded as a means for understanding the past and solving the challenges of the future, and (2) the celebration of the end of slavery is an important and enriching part of the history and heritage of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2014
Original Living Wage Act of 2014 - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the federal minimum wage should, as a minimum, be adjusted every four years so that a person working for it may earn an annual income at least 15% higher than the federal poverty threshold for a family of four; (2) it should be set at a level high enough to allow two full-time minimum wage workers to earn an income above the national housing wage; and (3) Congress, any of the several states, the District of Columbia, any U.S. territories or possessions, any Indian tribe, or local or state government may establish a higher minimum wage requirement than that established in this Act. Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to increase the federal minimum wage to at least the amount determined by the Secretary of Labor according to the formula prescribed by this Act beginning September 1, 2014. Requires the Secretary to determine such minimum wage rate by June 1, 2014, and once every four years thereafter. Prohibits any adjustment if the determination would result in a minimum wage lower than the current one. Requires the minimum wage so determined to be the minimum hourly wage sufficient for a person working for it 40 hours per week, 52 weeks per year, to earn an annual income 15% higher than the federal poverty threshold for a four-person household, with two children under age 18, and living in the 48 contiguous states, as published for each such year by the Census Bureau.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2014
States that the House of Representatives: (1) recognizes that heart disease remains the number one killer of women in the United States, that this is untenable, and that basic, preventive heart disease screenings should be a routine part of women's health care; (2) recognizes the importance of early screening wherever women seek primary care; and (3) commits to improving the heart health of all women, tearing down barriers that prevent women from getting screened for heart disease, ensuring women are provided with personalized lifestyle modification recommendations and support, and ensuring all women have a healthy heart.
United States · United States Congress · 29 May 2014
Fit for LIFE Act of 2014 - Requires the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to make grants to create or expand the offering of an innovative food distribution project that: serves a low-income area or one that is a food desert (an area without ready access to fresh, healthful, and affordable food) or food swamp (an area with an abundance of less healthful food options); is not supermarket-based; provides free or low-cost delivery of fresh fruits and vegetables; provides for the acquisition of produce trucks to distribute food without service or delivery charges; or provides for the establishment of a community food market at which fresh fruits and vegetables are sold at a low cost. Amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to: (1) expand the availability of free fruits and vegetables in elementary and secondary schools, child care centers, and family child care homes; (2) expand summer food service programs for children; and (3) establish a program providing nutritious food to at-risk school children on weekends and during extended school holidays during the school year. Directs the Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to study physical activity by juveniles in juvenile justice facilities and the nutritional quality of meals and snacks served in the facilities. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a grant program to enable local and tribal governments to conduct food security assessments. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of HHS to establish programs to reduce and prevent obesity in children. Requires the Secretaries of Education and HHS to award grants for health and fitness programs in secondary schools in low-income communities. Requires the Secretary of HHS to award grants to states for a community navigator program. Expands coverage of obesity treatment and prevention programs and services in federal programs. Establishes the National Commission on Child Obesity. Sets forth grant programs to increase physical activity in low-income communities and schools and prevent childhood obesity, including through the upgrading of educational facilities and child care centers and community use of elementary and secondary school buildings.
United States · United States Congress · 29 May 2014
Recognizes the significance of Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month (May) as an important time to celebrate the contributions of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to our nation's history. Recognizes that Asian American and Pacific Islander communities enhance the rich diversity of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 2014
Curbing Abusive Marketing Practices with University Student Debit Cards Act or the CAMPUS Debit Cards Act - Amends title IV (Student Assistance) the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require each institution of higher education (IHE) that enters into a preferred banking arrangement with a financial institution to: develop a code of conduct regarding the preferred banking arrangement with which the IHE's officers, employees, and agents must comply that prohibits conflicts of interest and requires those individuals to act in the best interests of the IHE's students; publish that code prominently on the IHE's website; annually inform its officers, employees, and agents who have responsibilities regarding the preferred banking arrangement of the code's provisions; and effectively enforce the code. Requires that code of conduct, at a minimum, to prohibit: the IHE from entering into a revenue-sharing arrangement with any financial institution; the IHE's officers, employees, or agents who have responsibilities regarding the preferred banking arrangement or a financial institution from soliciting or receiving a gift from the financial institution; the IHE from requesting or accepting from any financial institution assistance with any office or department of the IHE; the IHE's officers, employees, or agents who have responsibilities regarding the preferred banking arrangement or a financial institution from accepting financial compensation from any financial institution pursuant to a service contract; the IHE from denying or unnecessarily delaying the disbursement of a title IV loan or grant on the basis of a student's selection of a particular financial institution; and the IHE's officers, employees, or agents who have responsibilities regarding the preferred banking arrangement or a financial institution from receiving anything of value from the financial institution for serving on its advisory board, commission, or group. Allows specified exceptions to such prohibitions. Requires IHEs that enroll students who receive title IV grants or loans to establish a system to disburse credit balances to students through electronic payments to a deposit account or a general-use prepaid card with the protections afforded under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act. Directs the Secretary to conduct a pilot program giving students the option to receive credit balances through the Treasury Direct Express system or another low-cost alternative. Amends the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 to require: IHEs or their alumni organizations or foundations to publicly disclose any agreement made with a financial institution to market a financial product, financial institutions to submit an annual report to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) containing the terms and conditions of all agreements they make with IHEs or IHE alumni organizations or foundations relating to any financial product they offer to students at such IHEs, the CFPB to establish and maintain on its publicly available website a central repository of all agreements contained in such reports from financial institutions. Prohibits financial institutions from offering students any tangible or intangible item to induce them to apply, purchase, or obtain a financial product offered by the financial institution if the offer is made on or near the campus of an IHE or at an event sponsored by or related to an IHE. Directs the CFPB: (1) to conduct a study on the marketing of financial products to students enrolled in IHEs, and (2) if the study finds that financial products are not marketed to IHE students in a fair manner, to issue regulations to ensure that such products are marketed in a fair manner. Expresses the sense of Congress that financial products marketed to IHE students should be presented in a fair and neutral manner.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2014
Federal Student Loan Refinancing Act - Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to allow borrowers that received loans under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (DL) or Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program on or after July 1, 2006, to consolidate those loans as Federal Direct Consolidation Loans. Directs the Secretary of Education to consolidate DLs, and send a completed loan consolidation application to FFEL borrowers, within 90 days of this Act's enactment. Gives FFEL borrowers six months after their receipt of such application to endorse it and submit it to the Secretary if they wish to consolidate their loans. Sets the interest rate on Federal Direct Consolidation Loans at 4% or, if the weighted average of the interest rates of the loans being consolidated is less than 4%, the lesser of: (1) that weighted average, or (2) an interest rate equal to 0.4% of the principal balance of the consolidation loan at the time of consolidation. Adds an origination fee equal to 0.4% of the principal balance of the consolidation loan at the time of consolidation if an FFEL is being consolidated. Reduces the interest rate on a Federal Direct Consolidation Loan by 0.25% if one or more of the loans being consolidated is an FFEL held by an eligible lender. Prohibits any benefit a borrower is receiving or earning when issued a Federal Direct Consolidation Loan from being affected by the consolidation.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2014
Solitary Confinement Study and Reform Act of 2014 - Establishes the National Solitary Confinement Study and Reform Commission, which shall carry out a comprehensive legal and factual study of the penological, physical, mental, medical, social, fiscal, and economic impacts of solitary confinement in the United States on: (1) federal, state, and local governments; and (2) communities and social institutions. Directs the Commission to report report its findings within two years after its initial meeting, including recommended national standards for significantly reducing the use of solitary confinement in the nation's prisons, jails, and juvenile detention facilities. Prohibits the Commission from proposing a standard that would impose substantial additional costs. Directs the Attorney General, within two years after receiving the Commission's report, to: (1) publish a final rule adopting national standards for the reduction of solitary confinement; and (2) transmit the standards adopted to the appropriate state and local authorities who oversee operations in prisons, jails, or juvenile detention facilities. Makes the standards applicable to the Federal Bureau of Prisons immediately upon adoption of the final rule. Provides for a 15% reduction in the funds a state would otherwise receive in a fiscal year under a criminal justice or juvenile justice grant program administered by the Attorney General unless the chief executive of the state or pertinent local government official: (1) certifies adoption of and compliance with such national standards, or (2) assures that not less than 5% of such amount shall be used only to enable the adoption of and compliance with such standards. Directs the Attorney General to publish an annual report listing each grantee that is not in compliance with the standards.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2014
Recognizes National Foster Care Month as an opportunity to raise awareness about the challenges that children in the foster care system face. Encourages Congress to implement policy to minimize the number of children entering the foster care system, to improve the lives of children in the foster care system, and to maximize the number of children exiting foster care to the protection of safe, loving, and permanent families. Supports the designation of National Foster Care Month.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 2014
Bank on Students Emergency Loan Refinancing Act - Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to establish a program to refinance the unpaid principal, accrued unpaid interest, and late charges on: (1) the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loans (DLs) of qualified borrowers if the DLs were first disbursed or (in the case of Direct Consolidation Loans) applied for before July 1, 2013, and (2) the Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL) of qualified borrowers as DLs. (FFELs were not disbursed after June 30, 2010.) Refinances the FFELs as Federal Direct Stafford, Unsubsidized Stafford, PLUS, or Consolidated Loans depending on the categorization of the FFEL as a Stafford, Unsubsidized Stafford, PLUS, or Consolidated Loan. Sets the interest rate on the refinanced loans, other than the Federal Direct Consolidation Loans, at the rate for the 12 months beginning on July 1, 2013, applicable to the DL's categorization and, in the case of Stafford Loans, applicable to a loan issued to an undergraduate student or a loan issued to a graduate student. Sets the interest on refinanced Consolidation Loans at the rate on Federal Direct PLUS Loans for the 12-month period beginning on July 1, 2013. Fixes the interest rate on such loans for the period of such loans. Directs the Secretary to establish eligibility requirements based on a borrower's income or debt-to-income ratio that take into consideration providing access to refinancing for borrowers with the greatest financial need. Imposes an administrative fee on the borrowers of such reissued loans that is based on the unpaid principal, and accrued unpaid interest and late charges, of their original loan. Requires the Secretary to establish a program to refinance the unpaid principal, accrued unpaid interest, and late charges on private education loans as Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loans if the private education loans were first disbursed to qualified borrowers before July 1, 2013, and were for their own postsecondary educational expenses. Sets the interest rate on Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loans at the rate applicable for the 12 months beginning on July 1, 2013, to: (1) Direct Stafford and Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued to undergraduates if the private education loan was issued for undergraduate expenses, (2) Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued to graduate or professional students if the private education loan was issued for graduate or professional studies, or (3) Direct PLUS Loans if the private education loan was issued for undergraduate and graduate or professional studies. Fixes the interest rate on such loans for the period of such loans. Directs the Secretary to establish eligibility requirements based on a borrower's income or debt-to-income ratio that take into consideration providing access to refinancing for borrowers with the greatest financial need. Requires qualified borrowers of such loans to undergo loan counseling before their private education loan is refinanced. Imposes an origination fee on the borrowers of Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loans. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require an individual taxpayer whose adjusted gross income exceeds $1 million to pay a minimum tax rate of 30% of the excess of the taxpayer's adjusted gross income over the taxpayer's modified charitable contribution deduction for the taxable year (tentative fair share tax). Establishes the amount of such tax as the excess (if any) of the tentative fair share tax over the excess of: (1) the sum of the taxpayer's regular tax liability, the alternative minimum tax (AMT) amount, and the payroll tax for the taxable year; over (2) certain tax credits. Provides for a phase-in of such tax. Requires an inflation adjustment to the $1 million income threshold for taxable years beginning after 2015. Requires the Secretary to terminate this Act's refinancing programs when the net cost of carrying out the programs is equal to the Secretary's estimate of the amount of additional revenue generated during the 10-year period beginning on the date of this Act's enactment due to the fair share tax.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 2014
Supports the people of Nigeria, especially the parents and families of the girls abducted by Boko Haram in Borno state. Condemns Boko Haram for its attacks on civilian targets, including schools, mosques, churches, villages, and agricultural centers. Encourages the government of Nigeria to strengthen efforts to protect children seeking an education and to hold those who conduct such attacks accountable. Commends U.S. efforts to hold terrorist organizations such as Boko Haram accountable, and supports U.S. offers to assist in the search for the abducted girls. Encourages the Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USDA) to continue supporting initiatives that promote the human rights of women and girls in Nigeria.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2014
Expresses support for the designation of Health and Fitness Month and for efforts to educate Americans on the importance of a healthy and nutritious lifestyle.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2014
21st Century Energy Workforce Development Jobs Initiative Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Energy (DOE) to establish a comprehensive program to improve the education and training of workers for energy-related jobs, with emphasis on increasing the number of skilled minorities and women trained to work in such jobs.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2014
Marks the 60th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education , which signaled the end of state-sanctioned segregation of schools in the United States, so that it is unlawful to deny access to public facilities on the basis of race.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 2014
Insurance Capital Standards Clarification Act of 2014 - Amends the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act concerning establishment of minimum leverage and minimum risk-based capital requirements on a consolidated basis for a depository institution holding company or a nonbank financial company supervised by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board). States that federal banking agencies shall not be required to subject any person to such minimum capital requirements, to the extent that such person either: (1) acts in its capacity as a regulated insurance entity regulated by a state insurance regulator, or (2) is a regulated foreign subsidiary engaged in the business of insurance (including a regulated foreign affiliate of such subsidiary). Exempts from any requirement to prepare holding company financial statements in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles any Board-supervised depository institution holding company or nonbank financial company that is also a person regulated by a state insurance regulator or a regulated foreign subsidiary (or a regulated foreign affiliate) that files its holding company financial statements using only Statutory Accounting Principles in accordance with state law.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2014
World War I Memorial Act of 2014 - Designates the Liberty Memorial of Kansas City at America's National World War I Museum in Kansas City, Missouri, as the National World War I Museum and Memorial. Redesignates Pershing Park in the District of Columbia as the National World War I Memorial (Memorial). Authorizes the World War I Centennial Commission (Commission) to plan, develop, and execute ceremonies to recognize the above designation and redesignation and to enhance the General Pershing Commemorative Work by constructing appropriate sculptural and other elements on the Memorial. Amends the World War I Centennial Commission Act to: (1) allow for completion of construction at the Memorial after termination of the Commission, and (2) revise provisions concerning Commission members and pay rates. Prohibits any federal funds from being obligated or expended for the designation, establishment, or enhancement of a memorial or commemorative work by the Commission.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2014
Protecting Educational Loans for Underserved Students Act - Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to establish criteria for the Secretary of Education to use in determining whether the credit history of applicants for William D. Ford Federal Direct PLUS loans renders them ineligible for such loans. (Federal Direct PLUS loans are provided to graduate or professional degree students and the parents of dependent undergraduate students.) Directs the Secretary to consider an applicant to have an adverse credit history on the basis of his or her credit report, absent a determination that the applicant has extenuating circumstances, if : (1) the applicant is 90 or more days delinquent on the repayment of a debt exceeding $2,000; or (2) during the three years before the credit report date, the applicant has been subject to a default determination, bankruptcy discharge, foreclosure, repossession, tax lien, wage garnishment, or write-off of a title IV debt. Requires applicants that have been subject to such actions to participate in loan counseling provided by the applicable institution of higher education before becoming eligible for Federal Direct PLUS loans. Prohibits the Secretary from: (1) denying a Federal Direct PLUS loan to an applicant for having debt that is unrelated to title IV loans and is in collection or has been charged off, provided the applicant participates in such loan counseling; or (2) using the applicant's lack of a credit history as a reason to deny a Federal Direct PLUS loan to such applicant. Requires the Secretary to retain a record of the Secretary's basis for determining that an applicant has extenuating circumstances that make the applicant eligible for a Federal Direct PLUS loan despite having an adverse credit history. Makes the Secretary's determination that an applicant does not have an adverse credit history effective for the two years following such determination.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2014
Democracy Restoration Act of 2014 - Declares that the right of a U.S. citizen to vote in any election for federal office shall not be denied or abridged because that individual has been convicted of a criminal offense unless, at the time of the election, such individual is serving a felony sentence in a correctional institution or facility. Provides for enforcement of, and remedies for violations of, this Act. Sets forth requirements for state and federal notification of individuals of the restoration of their voting rights pursuant to this Act. Prohibits any state, local government, or other person from receiving or using any federal grant amounts to construct or improve a place of incarceration unless that person has in effect a program to notify each U.S. citizen incarcerated in that person's jurisdiction, upon release from such incarceration, of that individual's rights under this Act. Prohibits this Act from being construed to prohibit a state from enacting any state law that affords the right to vote in any election for federal office on terms less restrictive than those terms established by this Act. Declares that the rights and remedies established by this Act shall be in addition to all other rights and remedies provided by law and shall not supersede, restrict, or limit the application of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 or the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2014
Housing Financial Literacy Act of 2014 - Amends the National Housing Act to revise the single insurance premium payment for a mortgage (secured by a one- to four-family dwelling that is an obligation of the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund) of a first-time homebuyer who completes a program of counseling on the responsibilities and financial management involved in homeownership that is approved by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Repeals the current maximum premium payment of 2.75% of the amount of the mortgage's original insured principal obligation. Sets the single mortgage insurance premium payment at 25 basis points lower than the premium payment amount otherwise established.
United States · United States Congress · 7 April 2014
Hezbollah International Financing Prevention Act of 2014 - States that it shall be U.S. policy to: (1) prevent Hezbollah's global logistics and financial network from operating in order to curtail funding of its domestic and international activities; and (2) utilize diplomatic, legislative, and executive avenues to combat Hezbollah's criminal activities in order to block that organization's ability to fund its global terrorist activities. Directs the President to report to Congress: (1) a list of satellite, broadcast, or other providers that knowingly transmit the content of al-Manar TV; and (2) the identity of those providers that have or have not been sanctioned pursuant to Executive Order 13224. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to prohibit or impose strict conditions on the opening or maintaining in the United States of a correspondent account or a payable-through account by a foreign financial institution that knowingly: (1) facilitates the activities of Hezbollah or its agents, instrumentalities, affiliates, or successors; (2) facilitates the activities of a person acting on behalf of or owned or controlled by an agent, instrumentality, affiliate, or successor; (3) engages in money laundering to carry out such an activity; (4) facilitates a significant transaction or provides significant financial services to carry out such an activity, including services that involve a transaction of gold, silver, platinum, or other precious metals; or (5) facilitates any of these activities, conspires to facilitate or participate in such an activity, or is owned or controlled by a foreign financial institution that knowingly engages in such an activity. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to prescribe reporting, information sharing, and due diligence requirements for domestic financial institutions that maintain a correspondent account or payable-through account in the United States for a foreign financial institution. Authorizes the Secretary to waive such requirements if in the U.S. national security interests, and with congressional notification. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to identify to Congress every 180 days each foreign central bank that carries out an activity prohibited under this Act. Sets forth penalty requirements for specified violations under this Act. Directs the President to designate Hezbollah as: (1) a significant foreign narcotics trafficker if Hezbollah meets meets the criteria set forth under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act, and (2) a significant transnational criminal organization if Hezbollah meets the criteria set forth under specified executive orders and statutes. Requires the President to report to Congress which of these criteria the President determines that Hezbollah has not met, if it does not. Directs the Secretary of State to report to Congress regarding Hezbollah's involvement in the trade in rough diamonds outside of the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme. Declares that nothing in this Act shall apply to authorized U.S. intelligence activities. States that any requirement of this Act shall cease to be in effect 30 days after the President certifies to Congress that Hezbollah: (1) is no longer designated as a foreign terrorist organization; (2) is no longer listed in the Annex to Executive Order 13224 (blocking property and prohibiting transactions with persons who commit or support terrorism); and (3) poses no significant threat to U.S. national security, interests, or allies.
![Official portrait of Rep. Fudge, Marcia L. [D-OH-11]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/f000455_200.jpg)