United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2012
Sportsmen's Heritage Act of 2012 - Recreational Fishing and Hunting Heritage and Opportunities Act - Requires federal public land management officials to facilitate the use of, and access to, federal public lands and waters for fishing, sport hunting, and recreational shooting, except as restricted by specified limitations, including statutory authority that authorizes or withholds action for reasons of national security, public safety, or resource conservation. Requires that Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Forest Service lands, excluding lands on the Outer Continental Shelf, be open to recreational fishing, hunting, and shooting unless the managing agency acts to close lands to such activity for specified purposes, including resource conservation, public safety, energy production, water supply facilities, or national security. Allows federal agencies to: (1) lease their lands for shooting ranges, and (2) designate specific lands for recreational shooting activities. Sets forth requirements for a withdrawal, change of classification, or change of management status that effectively closes or significantly restricts 640 or more contiguous acres of federal public lands or waters for fishing or hunting or related activities. Recreational Shooting Protection Act - Requires National Monument land under BLM's jurisdiction to be open to access and use for recreational shooting, except as limited by the Director of BLM for reasons of national security and public safety and to comply with an applicable federal statute. Prohibits the issuance of closures or restrictions on such land that are substantially similar to those that were previously issued and not approved by federal law. Polar Bear Conservation and Fairness Act of 2012 - Amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to direct the Secretary of the Interior to issue a permit for the importation of any polar bear part (other than an internal organ) from a polar bear taken in a sport hunt in Canada to any person: (1) who submits proof that the polar bear was legally harvested before February 18, 1997; or (2) who has submitted, in support of an application submitted before May 15, 2008, proof that the bear was legally harvested before such date from a polar bear population from which a sport-hunted trophy could be imported before such date. Hunting, Fishing, and Recreational Shooting Protection Act - Amends the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to exclude from the definition of "chemical substance" for purposes of such Act: (1) any component of any pistol, revolver, firearm, shell, or cartridge the sale of which is subject to federal excise tax, including shot, bullets and other projectiles, propellants, and primers; and (2) any sport fishing equipment the sale of which is subject to federal excise tax and sport fishing equipment components.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2012
Contractor Opportunity Protection Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act to consolidate Small Business Administration (SBA) provisions relating to contract bundling (the consolidation of two or more procurement requirements into a solicitation for a single prime contract that is unlikely, because of its size or complexity, to be suitable for award to a small business). Requires the Procurement Activity (Activity) of a federal department or agency (agency), at least 45 days prior to the issuance of a solicitation, to provide to that Activity's procurement center representative a copy of the proposed procurement together with, among other things, the number of small businesses that could be excluded from bidding if the contract is a bundled contract. Requires the SBA Administrator, in the case of a previously bundled contract that is to be recompeted as a bundled contract, to determine, among other things, the amount of savings and benefits achieved under the bundling. Requires a procurement center representative who believes that a procurement as proposed will render small business prime contract participation unlikely to recommend to the Activity alternative procurement methods to increase small business contracting opportunities. Requires the head of an agency, before proceeding with an acquisition strategy that could lead to a bundling of contract requirements, to conduct market research to determine whether bundling is necessary and justified. Allows a small business, in the case of a bundled contract, to submit an offer that provides for the use of a team of subcontractors for contract performance. Directs the Administrator to develop and maintain a database of information on each bundled contract awarded by an agency and each small business displaced as a prime contractor as a result of such award. Requires annual reports from the Administrator to the congressional small business committees on federal contract bundling, including cost savings and impact on small businesses. Requires: (1) each federal agency to include in each solicitation for any multiple award contract above certain thresholds a provision soliciting bids from any responsible source, including small businesses and teams or joint ventures of small businesses; and (2) the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council to establish and publish a government-wide policy regarding contract bundling.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2012
Improving Transparency of Education Opportunities for Veterans Act of 2012 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to develop a comprehensive policy to improve outreach and transparency to veterans and members of the Armed Forces through the provision of information on institutions of higher learning. Requires the Secretary, in developing the policy, to conduct a market survey to determine the availability of a commercially available off-the-shelf online tool that: (1) allows veterans to determine whether they are academically ready to engage in postsecondary education and training opportunities, and (2) provides a list of providers of such opportunities. Directs the Secretary to report to the congressional veterans committees on: (1) the policy developed, (2) a plan to implement the policy, and (3) survey results.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2012
Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate to make arrangements for the presentation of a congressional gold medal to Jack Nicklaus in recognition of his service to the nation in promoting excellence and good sportsmanship. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to strike such gold medal and to strike and sell duplicate bronze medals at a price sufficient to cover the costs of the gold and bronze medals.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2012
Veterans' Telehealth and Telemedicine Improvement Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a program to increase the use of: (1) teleconsultation, telemedicine, telehealth, and home telehealth by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA); and (2) teleretinal imaging in each Veterans Integrated Services Network. Directs the Secretary to: (1) require each VA facility involved in the training of medical residents to work with each university concerned to develop an elective rotation in telemedicine for such residents, and (2) provide VA health care professionals with education and training in the use of telemedicine to provide care for veterans in rural areas. Requires the Secretary to modify the Veterans Equitable Resource Allocation system to: (1) provide incentives for the use of teleconsultation, teleretinal imaging, telemedicine, and telehealth coordination services; and (2) require the inclusion of all telemedicine visits in the calculation of facility workload. Authorizes the Secretary to waive the imposition or collection of copayments for teleconsultation, telemedicine, teleretinal imaging, telehealth, and home telehealth visits of veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2012
Capital Access for Small Businesses and Jobs Act - Amends the Federal Credit Union Act to empower federal credit unions to receive payments, representing equity, on certain uninsured non-share capital accounts, subject to such terms, rates, and conditions as may be established by the board of directors, within limitations prescribed by the National Credit Union Administration Board (Board). Requires any Board-prescribed system of prompt corrective action to take into account that credit unions rely predominantly (under current law, must rely) upon retained earnings to build net worth. Redefines "net worth" with respect to any insured credit union (other than a low-income credit union) to include non-share capital accounts, as authorized by the Board, that: (1) do not alter the cooperative nature of the credit union; (2) are uninsured; (3) are subordinate to all other claims against the credit union, including the claims of creditors, shareholders, and the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund; (4) are available to be applied to cover operating losses of the credit union in excess of its retained earnings and, to the extent so applied, will not be replenished; (5) are subject to maturity limits as determined by the Board; and (6) are offered by a credit union that is sufficiently capitalized and well-managed.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2012
Harriet Tubman National Historical Parks Act - Establishes in Caroline, Dorchester, and Talbot Counties, Maryland, the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park as a unit of the National Park System. Establishes in Auburn, New York, the Harriet Tubman National Historical Park also as a unit of the National Park System. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to enter into cooperative agreements with certain entities for the historic preservation, restoration, interpretation, and maintenance of such historical parks. Requires the Secretary to complete a general management plan for them.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2012
Small Business Protection Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act to authorize the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA), when establishing small business size standards, to establish or approve a single standard for a grouping of four-digit North American Industrial Classification codes only if the Administrator makes publicly available, no later than the date on which it is established or approved, a justification that such standard is appropriate for each individual industry classification in the grouping. Requires the Administrator, in conducting rulemaking to revise, modify, or establish size standards, to consider and address: (1) the industry for which the new standard is proposed, (2) the competitive environment for that industry, (3) the approach used to develop the proposed standard, and (4) the anticipated effect of the proposed rulemaking on the industry.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2012
Building Better Business Partnerships Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act to authorize the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to establish a mentor-protege program for all small businesses. (Under current law, the SBA mentor-protege program is limited to small businesses participating in the section 8(a) guaranteed loan program.) Prohibits a federal department or agency from carrying out a mentor-protege program for small businesses unless the head of such department or agency submits a program plan to the Administrator and the Administrator approves it. Requires the Administrator to approve or disapprove a plan based on whether the proposed program: (1) will assist proteges to compete for federal prime contracts and subcontracts, and (2) complies with program regulations as issued by the Administrator under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2012
Small Business Opportunity Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act to replace the position of breakout procurement representative within the Small Business Administration (SBA) with the position of procurement center representative. Requires such representatives to, among other things, review any acquisition plan with respect to a procurement requirement, and make recommendations regarding procurement method determinations and acquisition plans. Removes the requirement that such representatives review restrictions on competition, instead requiring them to review barriers to small business participation in federal contracting, as well as any bundled or consolidated solicitation or contract. Requires such representatives to: (1) have electronic access to any acquisition plan developed or in development with respect to a procurement activity, (2) be an advocate for the maximum practicable utilization of small businesses in federal contracting, and (3) be notified of and included in all applicable acquisition planning processes. Directs the Defense Acquisition University and the Federal Acquisition Institute to each provide a course on contracting requirements under the Small Business Act. Requires each federal department or agency having contracting authority to: (1) enumerate opportunities for participation by small businesses during all acquisition planning processes and in all acquisition plans, and (2) invite the participation of the appropriate Director of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization and procurement representative in such planning processes and provide Director and representative access to all acquisition plans in development.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2012
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 110 Mastic Road in Mastic Beach, New York, as the "Brigadier General Nathaniel Woodhull Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2012
Amends the Export Apple Act to permit apples to be exported to Canada in bulk bins (a quantity of apples weighing more than 100 pounds) without complying with certain inspection and certification requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2012
Protect VA Healthcare Act of 2012 - Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to exclude veterans' medical care accounts from the maximum 2% permissible reduction in budget authority pursuant to a sequestration order.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2012
Subcontracting Transparency and Reliability Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act to prohibit a small business receiving a guaranteed loan through the Small Business Administration (SBA) from expending more on subcontractors than: (1) 50% of the loan amount received, in case of a contract for services other than construction; (2) 85%, in the case of a contract for general construction; (3) 75%, in case of a contract for construction by a special trade contractor; and (4) 50%, in the case of a contract for supplies (other than from a regular dealer in such supplies). Requires the small business, in case of a contract for supplies from a regular dealer, to supply the product of a domestic small business manufacturer or processor, unless the SBA grants a waiver. Authorizes the SBA Administrator to: (1) modify the above percentage limits when necessary to reflect conventional industry practices; and (2) establish a subcontractor percentage limit for contracts not covered by (1) through (4), above. Provides penalties for violations of such limits. Requires each subcontracting plan submitted to federal agencies to contain assurances that the offeror or bidder will: (1) report on subcontracting activities throughout the life of the contract, and (2) cooperate with any study or survey required by the federal agency or SBA to determine the extent of compliance with the subcontracting plan. Directs the Administrator to ensure that the federal subcontracting reporting system to which such reports are submitted is modified to notify the Administrator, the appropriate contracting officer, and the appropriate Director of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization if an entity fails to submit a required report. Makes such failure a breach of contract for which appropriate action may be taken. Provides that if an agency procurement center or commercial market representative determines that a subcontracting plan fails to provide the maximum practicable opportunity for small businesses to participate, such representative may delay acceptance of the plan for a 30-day period for plan alteration. Allows a federal agency to convert a function from performance by a small business to performance by a federal employee only if: (1) the agency has made publicly available the procedures for such a decision, and (2) the procedures require such decisions to be reviewed by the appropriate Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization and procurement representative.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2012
Small Business Advocate Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act (the Act) to require the Director of the Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (established in each federal agency having procurement powers) to be compensated at least at the GS-15 rate and allows such position to be compensated at up to a Senior Executive Service level. Includes as additional duties of each Director: (1) reviewing and advising on decisions to convert an activity performed by a small business to an activity performed by a federal employee; (2) providing advice and comments on acquisition strategies, market research, and justifications related to small business; (3) providing training to small businesses and contract specialists; (4) carrying out exclusively the duties enumerated under the Act and, while Director, not holding any other title, position, or responsibility, except as necessary to carry out such duties; and (5) reporting annually to the congressional small business committees on the provision of small business and contract specialist training. Amends the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act of 1994 to require the Small Business Procurement Advisory Council to: (1) conduct reviews of each Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization to determine compliance with Small Business Administration (SBA) requirements, (2) identify best practices for maximizing small business utilization in federal contracting, and (3) report annually to the small business committees on such reviews and best practices.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2012
Government Efficiency through Small Business Contracting Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act to raise from 23% to 25% the governmentwide prime contract award goal for participation by small business concerns and to make the governmentwide subcontract participation award goal 40% for such businesses. Revises percentage goals for awards to small businesses owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans, qualified HUBZone (historically underutilized business zone) small businesses, small businesses owned by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, and small businesses owned by women (small business categories). Requires the small business procurement goals established by the head of each federal agency participating in federal procurement contracts to: (1) be in the same format as the goals established by the President; (2) address both prime contract and subcontract awards; and (3) meet or exceed the government-wide goals for each small business category. Requires each agency head to: (1) consult with the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) in establishing agency goals, and (2) develop a plan for achieving agency goals. Revises requirements concerning information required to be included in annual reports from: (1) agency heads to the Administrator concerning the extent of small business participation in that agency's procurement contracts; and (2) the Administrator to the President and Congress on whether individual agency goals were achieved, as well as reasons for any failure to achieve such goals. Requires, in the latter reports, information concerning the number and dollar amounts of prime contracts awarded to small businesses owned by an Alaska Native Corporation. Requires training programs established for the development of federal senior executives to include training with respect to federal procurement requirements, including those under the Small Business Act. Prohibits the granting of sabbaticals or incentive awards to a senior executive whose agency did not achieve its small business procurement contracting and subcontracting goals in the preceding fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2012
Drug Shortage Prevention Act of 2012 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to: (1) define the term "critical drug" based on the medical necessity and vulnerability to shortage of a drug or biological product; (2) establish, make publicly available, and update semiannually a list identifying each critical drug and its manufacturers; (3) promptly remove from such list any drug or biological product that no longer meets such definition; and (4) establish, make publicly available, and update monthly a list identifying each critical drug that is in a critical drug shortage in the United States, the severity of and reason for the shortage, alternate therapies and regions particularly affected, and an estimated date by which the necessary quantities of the drug will begin reaching providers. Allows manufacturers to request removal of a drug from such lists on the basis that it doesn't meet the definition of "critical drug" or is not in a critical drug shortage. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish a proactive system for giving notice to the public concerning modifications to the critical drug shortage list, (2) establish a system for giving notice of any imminent critical drug shortage to critical drug manufacturers and wholesale distributors and manufacturers of alternative therapies, (3) notify the Attorney General of any critical drug shortage, (4) study the feasibility of creating a national contingency plan addressing critical drug shortages, (5) expedite the review of applications for approval of critical drugs and requests by sponsors of such drugs to approve manufacturing process changes or alternate suppliers of active ingredients, and (6) improve the process for regulating critical drugs. Express the sense of Congress that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should increase the number of personnel responsible for identifying and addressing critical drug shortages. Amends the Controlled Substances Act to direct the Attorney General to increase a quota as appropriate for a drug listed in a critical drug shortage that is or contains a controlled substance.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2012
Pilot's Bill of Rights - Requires National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) proceedings for the review of decisions of the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to deny, amend, modify, suspend, or revoke an airman's certificate to be conducted, to the extent practicable, in accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Federal Rules of Evidence. Requires the Administrator to: (1) advise the subject of an investigation involving the approval, denial, suspension, modification, or revocation of an airman certificate of specified information pertinent to the investigation; and (2) provide him or her with access to relevant air traffic data. Allows an individual to elect to file an appeal of a certificate denial, a punitive civil action, or an emergency order of revocation in the U.S. district court in which individual resides, in which the action in question occurred, or the district court for the District of Columbia. Allows an adversely affected individual who elects not to file an appeal in a federal district court to file such appeal with the NTSB. Directs the Administrator to begin a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) Improvement Program to improve the system of providing airmen with pertinent and timely information before a flight in the national airspace system. Makes Flight Service Station briefings and other air traffic services performed by any government contractor available to airmen under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Requires the Administrator to review the FAA system for the medical certification of airmen in order to: (1) revise the medical application form, (2) align medical qualification policies with present-day qualified medical judgment and practices, and (3) publish objective medical standards to advise the public of the criteria determining an airman's medical certificate eligibility.
United States · United States Congress · 10 January 2012
Irene and Lee Tax Relief Storm Recovery Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an increase in 2012, 2013, and 2014 of the amount of the low-income housing tax credit that may be allocated in states containing counties covered by the natural disaster declaration of the Secretary of Agriculture in 2011 due to damage from Hurricane Irene or Tropical Storm Lee.
United States · United States Congress · 16 December 2011
Equitable Treatment for the Living Victims of Lockerbie Act - Directs the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission to: (1) determine the validity and amount of plaintiff claims for loss of wages and other property in the case Bruce D. Abbott et al. v. Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya , (2) publish notice in the Federal Register of the time within which such claims may be filed, and (3) consider such claims as soon as practicable after filing. Requires such claims to be paid from the appropriate Treasury fund before any corporate claims are paid from such fund.
United States · United States Congress · 14 December 2011
Down Payment to Protect National Security Act of 2011 - Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to determine the number of full-time employees employed in each federal agency. Prohibits a federal agency head from hiring more than 1 employee for every 3 full-time employees who leave employment in such agency until the OMB Director makes a determination that the number of full-time federal employees is 10% less than the initial level as determined by OMB. Allows a waiver of such workforce limitation by the President for national security reasons or in the case of an extraordinary emergency. Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act), as amended by the Budget Control Act of 2011, to offset mandatory sequestration in security and nonsecurity categories in FY2013 with revenues resulting from reductions in the federal workforce under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 14 December 2011
Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2012 - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to direct: (1) the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to designate a Global Water Coordinator to coordinate and oversee water, sanitation, and hygiene assistance, and (2) the Secretary of State to designate a Special Advisor for Water Resources to coordinate and oversee policy relating to water and sanitation assistance. Sets forth principles to ensure that water, sanitation, and hygiene projects carried out under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 achieve maximum impact. Amends the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 regarding the strategy to further the U.S. foreign assistance objective to provide access to safe water and sanitation in developing countries to: (1) transfer primary authority from the Secretary to USAID, (2) include hygiene, and (3) include designation of high priority countries. Directs the Administrator to maintain a webpage for information on U.S. water, sanitation, and hygiene foreign assistance programs.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2011
School Access to Emergency Epinephrine Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), in awarding grants to states under the children's asthma treatment grants program, to favor states that require their public elementary and secondary schools to: (1) permit authorized personnel to administer epinephrine to any student believed to be having an anaphylactic reaction, and (2) maintain a supply of epinephrine that is prescribed by a licensed physician and is stored in a secure and easily accessible location. (States given this preference are also required by current law to require those schools to authorize students, under certain conditions, to self-administer medication to treat their asthma or anaphylaxis.) Requires such states to also have a Good Samaritan law protecting school employees and agents from liability related to the administration of epinephrine to students believed, in good faith, to be having an anaphylactic reaction.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2011
Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2011- Includes as part of the Republic of Vietnam its territorial seas for purposes of the presumption of service connection for diseases associated with exposure by veterans to certain herbicide agents while in Vietnam.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2011
Local Job Opportunities and Business Success Act of 2011 - Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to limit the required composition of local workforce investment boards (local boards) to business representatives. Requires two-thirds of the members of a local board to be business owners or officers. Requires local boards to conduct and regularly update analyses of: (1) local economic conditions, (2) immediate and long-term skilled workforce needs in the area, (3) the knowledge and skills of the local workforce, and (4) local workforce development activities. Requires local boards to lead efforts to engage employers in the area to ensure that workforce investment activities meet their needs and support local economic growth. Includes as part of those efforts the development or implementation of industry or sector partnerships that lead to collaborative planning, resource alignment, and training efforts across multiple firms to address the immediate and long-term skilled workforce needs of the local economy. Requires local boards to develop strategies for using technological improvements to facilitate access to workforce development services. Eliminates the requirement that each local board appoint a youth council as a subgroup of the board and select providers of youth activities on the basis of its recommendations.
United States · United States Congress · 7 December 2011
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 787 State Route 17M in Monroe, New York, as the "National Clandestine Service of the Central Intelligence Agency NCS Officer Gregg David Wenzel Memorial Post Office."
United States · United States Congress · 7 December 2011
Pro-Growth Budgeting Act of 2011 - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to require the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to prepare for each major bill or resolution reported by any congressional committee (except the congressional appropriations committees), as a supplement to CBO cost estimates, a macroeconomic impact analysis of the costs of such legislation for: (1) the period for which the cost estimate is prepared, and (2) the 10-fiscal year period beginning with the first fiscal year after the last fiscal year for which such estimate was prepared and each of the 2 next 10-fiscal year periods. Defines "major bill or resolution" as any bill or resolution whose budgetary effects, for any fiscal year in the period for which a CBO cost estimate is prepared, is estimated to be greater than .25% of the current projected U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) for that fiscal year. Requires the analysis to describe: (1) the potential economic impact of the bill or resolution on major economic variables, including real GDP, business investment, the capital stock, employment, and labor supply; and (2) the potential fiscal effects of the measure, including any estimates of revenue increases or decreases resulting from changes in GDP.
United States · United States Congress · 7 December 2011
Honors the service of Air Raid Wardens and all other Americans who volunteered for service for the United States Office of Civilian Defense during World War II. Recognizes the important contributions of such Wardens and volunteers to public safety, morale, and victory. Encourages surviving Wardens and volunteers to record and permanently preserve stories of their service for future generations.
United States · United States Congress · 6 December 2011
Amends the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 1981 to revise the formula for a state's allotment percentage for low-income home energy assistance to make it the percentage the state would have received under such Act as originally enacted in the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981.
United States · United States Congress · 1 December 2011
Security in Bonding Act of 2011 - Revises requirements related to assets pledged by a surety. Reverses the current prohibition to authorize the government official who approves or accepts the surety bond to require that it be given through a guaranty corporation, including a particular guaranty corporation. Declares that if another applicable law or regulation permits the acceptance of a bond from a surety that is not subject to specified federal law, and is based on a pledge of assets by the surety, the assets pledged by such surety shall: (1) consist of eligible obligations given as security instead of surety bonds; and (2) be submitted to the government official required to approve or accept the bond, who shall deposit the assets with a depository (the Secretary of the Treasury, a federal reserve bank, or a depository designated by the Secretary).
United States · United States Congress · 1 December 2011
Amends the Railway Labor Act to require the National Mediation Board to apply the same procedures, including voting standards, to the direct decertification of a labor organization as are applied to elections to certify a representative.
United States · United States Congress · 29 November 2011
Multinational Species Conservation Funds Semipostal Stamp Reauthorization Act - Amends the Multinational Species Conservation Funds Semipostal Stamp Act of 2010 to require such stamp to be: (1) made available to the public for an additional four years; and (2) offered in a a choice of five versions depicting an African or Asian elephant, a rhinoceros, a tiger, a marine turtle, or a great ape.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 2011
Hospice Evaluation and Legitimate Payment Act - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to the face-to-face encounter framework in hospice care. Allows a clinical nurse specialist, physician assistant, or other health professional (in addition to a hospice physician or a nurse practitioner, as under current law) to conduct the face-to-face encounter with an individual to determine continued eligibility for hospice care before the first 60-day (currently, 180-day) recertification period and each subsequent recertification period. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a Medicare Hospice Payment Reform demonstration program to test any revisions to the methodology for determining payment rates for routine home care and other hospice care services. Sets at every three years the frequency of surveys of certified hospice program entities.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 2011
American Growth, Recovery, Empowerment, and Entrepreneurship Act or the AGREE Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend certain tax expenditure provisions for business taxpayers, including: (1) bonus depreciation and expensing of business and investment assets, (2) the 100% exclusion from gross income of gain from the sale or exchange of qualified small business stock, and (3) the tax credit for increasing research expenses. Increases to 20% the rate of the alternative simplified research tax credit and makes such credit permanent. Increases the research tax credit for the research expenses of manufacturers whose domestic production gross receipts exceed 50% of their total production gross receipts. Allows a business-related tax credit of up to $100,000 for 25% of the franchise fees paid or incurred by a veteran for the purchase of a franchise. Amends the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 to exempt certain small issuers of securities from the internal control reporting and assessment requirements of such Act. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to: (1) eliminate the per country numerical limitation for employment-based immigrants, and (2) increase the per country numerical limitation for family based immigrants from 7% to 15% of the total number of family-sponsored visas. Amends the Chinese Student Protection Act of 1992 to eliminate the provision requiring the reduction of annual People's Republic of China immigrant visas to offset status adjustments under such Act. Sets forth a transition period for employment-based immigrant visas and per country distribution rules for reserved and unreserved visas. Authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) to share information and provide: (1) unredacted samples of the products, packaging, and labels, or related photos with trademark right holders if United States Customs and Border Protection suspects an import or export violation under specified provisions of the Lanham Act relating to copied or simulated marks or names; and (2) samples to affected parties upon the seizure of material imported in violation of specified federal copyright laws prohibiting the circumvention of technological measures that control access to or protect a copyrighted work.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2011
Financial Institutions Examination Fairness and Reform Act - Amends the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council Act of 1978 to require a federal financial institutions regulatory agency to make a final examination report to a financial institution within 60 days of the later of: (1) the exit interview for an examination of the institution, or (2) the provision of additional information by the institution relating to the examination. Sets a deadline for the exit interview if a financial institution is not subject to a resident examiner program. Sets forth examination standards for financial institutions. Prohibits federal financial institutions regulatory agencies from requiring a well capitalized financial institution to raise additional capital in lieu of an action prohibited by the examination standards. Establishes in the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council an Office of Examination Ombudsman. Grants a financial institution the right to appeal a material supervisory determination contained in a final report of examination. Requires the Ombudsman to determine the merits of the appeal on the record, after an opportunity for a hearing before an independent administrative law judge. Declares the decision by the Ombudsman on an appeal to: (1) be the final agency action, and (2) bind the agency whose supervisory determination was the subject of the appeal and the financial institution making the appeal. Amends the Riegle Community Development and Regulatory Improvement Act of 1994 to require: (1) the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to establish an independent intra-agency appellate process in connection with the regulatory appeals process; and (2) appropriate safeguards to protect an insured depository institution or insured credit union from retaliation by the CFPB, the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) Board, or any other federal banking agency for exercising its rights.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2011
Taxpayers' Cancer Research Funding Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow taxpayers to designate on their tax returns a $5 contribution to the Breast and Prostate Cancer Research Fund ($10 for joint returns). Establishes in the Treasury the Breast and Prostate Cancer Research Fund to award grants for breast or prostate cancer research.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2011
Supports the designation of a Small Business Saturday. Supports efforts to: (1) encourage consumers to shop locally, and (2) increase awareness of the value of locally owned small businesses and their impact on the U.S. economy.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 2011
Send Equipment for National Defense Act or SEND Act - Directs the Secretary of Defense, within one year after eligible equipment returns to the United States from Iraq, to transfer at least 10% of such equipment to federal and state agencies, with a preference to agencies that will use the equipment primarily for U.S. southern border security purposes. Defines as "eligible equipment" that equipment determined to be suitable for use in law enforcement activities, including surveillance unmanned aerial vehicles, night-vision goggles, and high mobility multi-purpose wheeled vehicles (humvees). Authorizes the Secretary to waive the transfer requirement in the case of equipment needed for immediate use, after certification to Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 2011
Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2011 or the ABLE Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish tax-exempt ABLE accounts to assist an individual with a disability in building an account to pay for qualified disability expenses. Defines "qualified disability expenses" to include expenses for education, a primary residence, transportation, obtaining and maintaining employment, health and wellness, and other personal support expenses. Treats a qualified ABLE program and an ABLE account in the same manner as a qualified tuition program for income tax purposes (i.e., allowing a tax exemption for such program and an exclusion from gross income of amounts attributable to a contributor to or a beneficiary of a program account). Defines "qualified ABLE program" as a program established and maintained by a state agency under which a person may make contributions to an ABLE account established to pay for qualified disability expenses. Requires amounts in ABLE accounts to be disregarded in determining eligibility for Medicaid and other means-tested federal programs. Suspends the payment of supplemental security income benefits under title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) of the Social Security Act to an individual during any period in which such individual has excess resources attributable to an ABLE account.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2011
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1449 West Avenue in Bronx, New York, as the "Private Isaac T. Cortes Post Office."
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2011
Fallen Heroes of 9/11 Act - Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the award of congressional gold medals in honor of the men and women who perished as a result of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States to the Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania, the National September 11 Memorial and Museum in New York, and the Pentagon Memorial at the Pentagon. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell bronze duplicates of such medals, with amounts received from the sale to be deposited in the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 2011
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Secretary of the Navy should provide an appropriate site at the former Navy Dive School at the Washington Navy Yard (District of Columbia) for a memorial to honor members of the Armed Forces who have served as divers and whose service in defense of the United States has been carried out beneath the waters of the world.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2011
Concrete Masonry Products Research, Education, and Promotion Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to issue orders applicable to manufacturers of concrete masonry products (concrete) and to concrete importers, if such imports are subject assessment under the orders. Requires any such order to provide for the establishment of a Concrete Masonry Products Board, which shall carry out a program of promotion, research, and information regarding concrete products. Requires any such order to provide that assessments shall be paid by concrete manufacturers with respect to concrete manufactured and marketed in the United States. Allows any such order to provide that assessments shall be paid by concrete products importers. Provides assessment rates. Requires at least 50% of the assessments paid by a manufacturer to be used to support research, education, and promotion plans and projects in support of the geographic region of the manufacturer. Directs the Secretary, during the 60-day period preceding the proposed effective date of an order, to conduct a referendum for order approval among the manufacturers and importers required to pay assessments under the order. Outlines referendum procedures. Provides for petition and review of an order, and order enforcement through U.S. district courts. Authorizes the Secretary to conduct appropriate investigations in order to administer this Act (with power of subpoena). Directs the Secretary to suspend or terminate any order or provision that obstructs or does not tend to effectuate the purposes of this Act, or that is not favored by persons voting in a referendum.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 2011
Open Burn Pit Registry Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to: (1) establish and maintain an open pit burn registry for members of the Armed Forces deployed in a contingency operation in Iraq or Afghanistan who may have been exposed to toxic chemicals and fumes caused by open burn pits used for disposing solid waste, (2) include in such registry information necessary to ascertain and monitor the health effects of such exposure, (3) develop a public information campaign to inform eligible individuals about the registry, and (4) periodically notify such individuals of significant developments in the study and treatment of conditions associated with such exposure. Requires the Secretary to: (1) contract with an independent scientific organization to develop a report assessing the effectiveness of actions taken to collect and maintain information on the health effects of such exposure, and (2) submit the completed report to Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 2011
Beneficial Upgrades for Investment and Local Development of Bridges Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation (DOT) to issue categorical exclusions (that do not involve significant environmental impact) from the environmental assessment or environmental impact statement requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) for certain highway construction activities, including: (1) bridge preventative maintenance, rehabilitation, or replacement; (2) highway modernization; and (3) public and private utilities rehabilitation, reconstruction, and replacement.
United States · United States Congress · 27 October 2011
Diagnostic Imaging Services Access Protection Act of 2011 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to prohibit the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) from applying a multiple procedure payment reduction policy to the professional component of imaging services furnished: (1) in 2012; or (2) in 2013 or a subsequent year unless the reduction is based on the data, analysis, and conclusions of a study completed by an expert panel of physician members from a national medical speciality society expert in the field of diagnostic imaging services.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 2011
Amends the Motor Carrier Safety Improvement Act of 1999 to revise exemptions from federal maximum driving and on-duty time motor carrier regulations for drivers transporting agricultural commodities and farm supplies during planting and harvest periods. Extends the exemptions to drivers transporting agricultural farm supplies: (1) from a wholesale or retail distribution point of the farm supplies to a farm or other location where such supplies are intended to be used within a 100 air-mile radius from the distribution point, or (2) from a wholesale distribution point of the farm supplies to a retail distribution point of the farm supplies within a 100 air-mile radius from the wholesale distribution point.
United States · United States Congress · 25 October 2011
Regulatory Time-Out Act of 2011 - Prohibits covered regulations from being in effect or from taking effect during the period beginning on the enactment of this Act and ending on January 21, 2013 (time-out period). Prohibits publication of any general notice of a proposed rulemaking for what would be a covered regulation, and nullifies a rulemaking that was published but for which the comment period did not expire before enactment of this Act, during such period. Defines a "covered regulation" as a final regulation that did not take effect before September 1, 2011, that increases costs on businesses in a manner that will have an adverse effect on job creation, job retention, productivity, competitiveness, or the efficient functioning of the economy and that is likely to: (1) have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more; (2) adversely affect in a material way the economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the environment, public health or safety, or state, local, or tribal governments or communities; (3) create a serious inconsistency or otherwise interfere with an action by another agency; (4) materially alter the budgetary impact of entitlements, grants, user fees, or loan programs or the rights and obligations of recipients; or (5) raise novel legal or policy issues. Exempts regulations that are required by law. Allows agency heads to exempt covered regulations that: (1) are necessary due to an imminent threat to human health or safety or any other emergency; (2) are necessary to enforce criminal laws, (3) foster private sector job creation; (4) encourage economic growth; (5) reduce regulatory burdens; (6) pertain to a military or foreign affairs function; or (7) are limited to interpreting, implementing, or administering the Internal Revenue Code.
![Official portrait of Rep. Hanna, Richard L. [R-NY-22]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/h001051_200.jpg)