United States · United States Congress · 14 January 2015
Rebalance for an Effective Defense Uniformed and Civilian Employees Act or the REDUCE Act Limits full-time positions in the Department of Defense (DOD), in each of FY2022-FY2026, subject to specified adjustments to be made by the DOD Secretary, to a number not greater than 85% of the number of such positions at DOD as of September 30, 2016. Permits not more than 1,000 of such positions to be career appointees within the Senior Executive Service. Authorizes the DOD Secretary to offer voluntary separation incentive payments and voluntary early retirement payments to achieve the reductions required by this Act, but requires the Secretary to use involuntary measures, including reductions in force, beginning on October 1, 2016, to achieve required reductions in personnel levels if voluntary measures are inadequate.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 2015
Human Trafficking Prevention, Intervention, and Recovery Act of 2015 Requires the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking to conduct a review that: (1) surveys federal and state activities to deter individuals from committing trafficking offenses and to prevent children from becoming trafficking victims; (2) surveys academic literature on deterring individuals from committing trafficking offenses, preventing children from becoming trafficking victims, and the commercial sexual exploitation of children; and (3) identifies best practices and strategies to deter such actions. Requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to report to Congress regarding: (1) federal and state law enforcement efforts to combat human trafficking in the United States, and (2) information on each relevant federal grant program. Amends the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 to authorize grants for programs that provide housing assistance to victims of trafficking.
United States · United States Congress · 9 January 2015
Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act Amends the Internet Tax Freedom Act to make permanent the ban on state and local taxation of Internet access and on multiple or discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce.
United States · United States Congress · 9 January 2015
ACCESS (ADA Compliance for Customer Entry to Stores and Services) Act of 2015 Amends the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to prohibit an aggrieved person from commencing a civil action for discrimination based on the failure to remove a structural barrier to entry into an existing public accommodation unless the owner or operator of such accommodation: (1) is provided a written notice specific enough to identify such barrier; and (2) has, within specified time periods, either failed to provide the aggrieved person with a written description outlining improvements that will be made to remove such barrier or provided such description and failed to remove such barrier.
United States · United States Congress · 8 January 2015
North Korea Sanctions and Diplomatic Nonrecognition Act of 2015 Continues diplomatic, economic, and military sanctions against the government of North Korea as a supporter of international terrorism until the President certifies to Congress that North Korea: is no longer engaged in the illegal transfer of missile or nuclear technology, particularly to Iran, Syria, or Burma; is not assisting foreign terrorist organizations, engaged in counterfeiting U.S. currency, or engaged in illicit narcotics traffic; has returned the last remains of Reverend Kim Dong-shik to the United States; has released abducted Japanese nationals and surviving Korean War prisoners of war; has undertaken specified actions regarding family reunification, penal reforms, refugee access, and religious organization communications; and is no longer engaged in cyber-attacks against the United States, its government, infrastructure, entities, or citizens, or those of its allies. Expresses the sense of Congress that the Secretary of State should redesignate North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism. Finds that the United States did not grant diplomatic recognition to North Korea upon its establishment as a client regime of the former Soviet Union in 1948. Continues diplomatic nonrecognition of North Korea until such benchmarks have been met. Directs the President, given North Korea's third nuclear weapons test on February 12, 2013, in violation of U.N. Security Council Resolutions 1695, 1718, 1874, and 2087 to instruct the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations to use U.S. influence to secure adoption of a Security Council resolution condemning North Korea's action as a violation of such Resolutions and requiring implementation of comprehensive sanctions and an inspection regime against North Korea.
United States · United States Congress · 8 January 2015
Small Brewer Reinvestment and Expanding Workforce Act or the Small BREW Act Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce the rate of the excise tax on beer produced within or imported into the United States for brewers who produce not more than 6 million barrels of beer a year.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1103 USPS Building 1103 in Camp Pendleton, California, as the "Camp Pendleton Medal of Honor Post Office."
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Protect Medical Innovation Act of 2015 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the excise tax on medical device manufacturers and importers.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Access to Insurance for All Americans Act Repeals the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the health care provisions of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, effective as of the enactment of such Act and provisions. Restores provisions of law amended by such Act and provisions. Directs the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to administer a health insurance program for non-federal employees and to apply to such program the provisions governing the federal employee health insurance program to the greatest extent practicable. Requires OPM, for each calendar year, to enter into a contract with one or more carriers to make health benefits plans available to eligible individuals. Allows any individual to enroll in such a plan unless the individual: (1) is enrolled or eligible to enroll for coverage under a public health insurance program (including Medicaid or Medicare) or under the federal employee health insurance program, or (2) is a member of the uniformed services. Allows rates and premiums for such a plan to differ among geographic regions. Makes such premiums tax deductible. Provides that no government contribution shall be made for any individual enrolled in such a plan. Directs OPM to ensure that covered individuals are in a risk pool separate from that maintained for federal employees. Requires the Director of OPM to submit a comprehensive plan to Congress that provides for the orderly implementation of the amendments made by this Act, including a schedule of actions to be taken to provide for that implementation.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Save American Workers Act of 2015 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to change the definition of "full-time employee" for purposes of the employer mandate to provide minimum essential health care coverage under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act from an employee who is employed on average at least 30 hours of service a week to an employee who is employed on average at least 40 hours of service a week.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Wildfire Disaster Funding Act This bill amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 to require specified adjustments to discretionary spending limits in FY2015-FY2022 to accommodate appropriations for wildfire suppression operations in the Wildland Fire Management accounts at the Department of Agriculture (USDA) or the Department of the Interior. If USDA or Interior determines that supplemental appropriations are necessary for wildfire suppression operations, the bill requires the relevant department to submit to Congress a request for the funding and a plan for obligating the funds. The bill also requires the President's budget to include the average costs for wildfire suppression over the previous 10 years.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Military Land and National Defense Act or the Military LAND Act Amends the National Historic Preservation Act to require the Secretary of the Interior to notify the House Committee on Natural Resources and the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources if a property owned by the federal government is being considered for inclusion on the National Register, for designation as a National Historic Landmark, or for nomination to the World Heritage List. Prohibits such inclusion or designation of federal property if the head of any federal agency managing such property objects to such inclusion or designation for national security reasons.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
This bill designates the U.S. exclusive economic zone (as established by Presidential Proclamation Numbered 5030, dated March 10, 1983) as the "Ronald Wilson Reagan Exclusive Economic Zone of the United States."
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Constitutional Amendment This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment prohibiting total outlays for a fiscal year from exceeding total receipts for that fiscal year unless Congress authorizes the excess by a three-fifths roll call vote of each chamber. The prohibition excludes outlays for repayment of debt principal and receipts derived from borrowing. The amendment prohibits total outlays for any fiscal year from exceeding one-fifth of the economic output of the United States, unless two-thirds of each house of Congress provides a specific increase in outlays above this amount. The amendment requires a three-fifths roll call vote of each chamber of Congress to increase the public debt limit or to increase revenue. It also requires the President to submit a balanced budget to Congress annually. Congress is authorized to waive these requirements when a declaration of war is in effect or if the United States is engaged in a military conflict which causes an imminent and serious military threat to national security.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Constitutional Amendment This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment prohibiting total outlays for a fiscal year from exceeding total receipts for that fiscal year unless Congress authorizes the excess by a three-fifths roll call vote of each chamber. The prohibition excludes outlays for repayment of debt principal and receipts derived from borrowing. The amendment requires a three-fifths roll call vote of each chamber of Congress to increase the public debt limit. It requires a majority roll vote of each chamber to increase revenue. It also requires the President to submit a balanced budget to Congress annually. Congress is authorized to waive these requirements when a declaration of war is in effect or if the United States is engaged in a military conflict which causes an imminent and serious military threat to national security.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Designating Requirements On Notification of Executive-ordered Strikes Act or the DRONES Act Prohibits a federal department or agency or the Armed Forces from deliberately targeting a citizen of the United States or of a strategic treaty ally in a pre-planned lethal operation unless such operation is planned and executed pursuant to a written determination signed personally by the President: (1) confirming the status of the targeted citizen as an enemy combatant, and (2) authorizing the deliberate lethal targeting based on an articulated need for the use of lethal force. Requires the President, within 30 days after making such a determination, to submit a report to specified congressional committees: (1) certifying that the timing and details of the operation were approved personally by the President, and (2) detailing the information used to determine that the targeted citizen is an enemy combatant and the reasons why lethal force was necessary. Prohibits this Act from being construed to authorize such lethal targeting of such a citizen inside any location under U.S. jurisdiction.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
FairTax Act of 2015 This bill is a tax reform proposal that imposes a national sales tax on the use or consumption in the United States of taxable property or services in lieu of the current income and corporate income tax, employment and self-employment taxes, and estate and gift taxes. The rate of the sales tax will be 23% in 2017, with adjustments to the rate in subsequent years. There are exemptions from the tax for used and intangible property, for property or services purchased for business, export, or investment purposes, and for state government functions. Under the bill, family members who are lawful U.S. residents receive a monthly sales tax rebate (Family Consumption Allowance) based upon criteria related to family size and poverty guidelines. The states have the responsibility for administering, collecting, and remitting the sales tax to the Treasury. Tax revenues are to be allocated among: (1) the general revenue, (2) the old-age and survivors insurance trust fund, (3) the disability insurance trust fund, (4) the hospital insurance trust fund, and (5) the federal supplementary medical insurance trust fund. No funding is allowed for the operations of the Internal Revenue Service after FY2019. Finally, the bill terminates the national sales tax if the Sixteenth Amendment to the Constitution (authorizing an income tax) is not repealed within seven years after the enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Tax Code Termination Act Terminates the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 after December 31, 2019, except for self-employment taxes, Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) taxes, and railroad retirement taxes. Requires a two-thirds majority vote in Congress to change such termination date. Declares that any new federal tax system should be a simple and fair system that: (1) applies a low rate to all Americans, (2) provides tax relief for working Americans, (3) protects the rights of taxpayers and reduces tax collection abuses, (4) eliminates the bias against savings and investment, (5) promotes economic growth and job creation, and (6) does not penalize marriage or families. Requires that the new federal tax system be approved by Congress in its final form by July 4, 2019.
United States · United States Congress · 12 November 2014
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 101 East Market Street in Long Beach, California, as the "Juanita Millender-McDonald Post Office."
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2014
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 801 West Ocean Avenue in Lompoc, California, as the "Federal Correctional Officer Scott J. Williams Memorial Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2014
Inspector General Empowerment Act of 2014 - Amends the Inspector General Act of 1978 to: (1) grant inspectors general additional subpoena authority to compel the attendance and testimony of certain witnesses, including federal government contractors and former federal employees, necessary in the performance of functions assigned by such Act; (2) authorize appropriations for the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency through FY2021; (3) assign the Council additional responsibilities with respect to disputes involving the jurisdiction of more than one federal agency or entity; and (4) set forth procedures for considering allegations of wrongdoing against the Special Counsel and Deputy Special Counsel (officials appointed to investigate prohibited personal practices and government waste and abuse). Exempts from requirements relating to the authority of federal agencies to collect information for investigations: (1) information collected during any evaluation by the Federal Accountability and Spending Transparency Board; and (2) information collected during any audit, investigation, inspection, evaluation, or other review conducted by the Council or any Office of the Inspector General, including any Office of Special Inspector General. Requires: (1) the Comptroller General (GAO) to study and report on prolonged vacancies in the Offices of the Inspector General, and (2) the Council to conduct and report on an analysis of critical issues that involve the jurisdiction of more than one individual federal agency or entity.
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 2014
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1103 USPS Building 1103 in Camp Pendleton, California, as the "Camp Pendleton Medal of Honor Post Office."
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 2014
Jobs for America Act - Division I: Ways and Means - Title I: Save American Workers - Save American Workers Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to redefine "full-time employee," for purposes of the mandate requiring employers to provide health care coverage for their employees, as an employee who is employed on average at least 40 hours of service a week (currently, at least 30 hours of service a week). Title II: Hire More Heroes - Hire More Heroes Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit an employer, for purposes of determining whether such employer is an applicable large employer and thus required to provide health care coverage to its employees under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, to exclude employees who have coverage under a health care program administered by the Department of Defense (DOD), including TRICARE, or the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Title III: American Research and Competitiveness - American Research and Competitiveness Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for research expenses, to establish a 20% tax rate for such credit and make such credit permanent. Title IV: America's Small Business Tax Relief - America's Small Business Tax Relief Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the expensing allowance for depreciable business property, to make permanent: (1) the increased $500,000 expensing allowance for such property, (2) the increased $2,000,000 threshold amount for such property over which the amount of the expensing allowance is reduced, (3) expensing of computer software, and (4) rules for the expensing of qualified real property (i.e., leasehold improvement, restaurant, and retail improvement property). Allows an inflation adjustment to the dollar amounts of the expensing allowance for taxable years beginning after 2014. Makes air conditioning and heating units eligible for the expensing allowance. Title V: S Corporation Permanent Tax Relief - S Corporation Permanent Tax Relief Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the taxation of S corporations, to make permanent: (1) the reduction of the period (from 10 years to 5 years) during which the built-in gains of such corporations are subject to tax, and (2) the rule requiring an adjustment to the basis of a shareholder's stock in an S corporation that makes tax deductible contributions of appreciated property. Title VI: Bonus Depreciation Modified and Made Permanent - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the additional 50% depreciation allowance (bonus depreciation) for qualified property (i.e., property which has a recovery period of 20 years or less and is computer software, water utility property, or qualified leasehold or retail improvement property); (2) make permanent the election to increase the alternative minimum tax (AMT) credit limitation in lieu of bonus depreciation; and (3) allow an additional depreciation allowance for a tree or vine bearing fruits or nuts, in the taxable year in which the tree or vine is planted or grafted to a plant in the ordinary course of the taxpayer's farming business. Title VII: Repeal of Medical Device Excise Tax - Repeals the excise tax on medical devices. Division II: Financial Services - Title I: Small Business Capital Access And Job Preservation - Small Business Capital Access And Job Preservation Act - Amends the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 to exempt private equity fund investment advisers from its registration and reporting requirements, provided that each private equity fund has not borrowed and does not have outstanding a principal amount exceeding twice its invested capital commitments. Directs the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to promulgate final rules that: (1) require such investment advisers to maintain records the SEC may require, taking into account fund size, governance, investment strategy, and risk; and (2) define the term "private equity fund" for purposes of this Act. Title II: Small Business Mergers, Acquisitions, Sales, and Brokerage Simplification - Small Business Mergers, Acquisitions, Sales, and Brokerage Simplification Act of 2014 - Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to exempt from its registration requirements certain merger and acquisition brokers and associated persons. Denies such registration exemption, however, to brokers who: (1) receive, hold, transmit, or have custody of any funds or securities to be exchanged by parties to a transfer of ownership of an eligible privately held company; or (2) engage on behalf of an issuer in a public offering of securities that are either subject to mandatory registration, or with respect to which the issuer must file periodic information, documents, and reports. Prohibits this Act from being construed to limit any other authority of the SEC to exempt any person, or any class of persons, from any provision of this Act, including any related rule or regulation. Division III: Oversight - Subdivision A: Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency - Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency Act of 2014 -Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to require Congressional Budget Office (CBO) studies on the costs for state, local, or tribal governments to comply with changes to conditions of federal assistance. Expands the point of order against legislation increasing the costs of federal intergovernmental mandates above the statutory threshold to include private sector mandates. Amends the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 to establish principles for agencies to use in assessing the effects of federal regulatory actions. Expands the scope of agency statements accompanying significant regulatory actions to require a more detailed analysis of the effect on state, local, tribal governments, or the private sector. Revises the process for consulting state, local, and tribal governments about proposed regulations to include private sector input. Requires the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs to provide guidance and oversight so that each agency's regulations are consistent with this title, other laws, and policies of other agencies. Expands judicial review to include agency assessments of regulations and selection of the least costly or least burdensome regulatory alternative. Subdivision B: Achieving Less Excess in Regulation and Requiring Transparency - Achieving Less Excess in Regulation and Requiring Transparency Act of 2014 or the ALERRT Act of 2014 - Title I: All Economic Regulations Are Transparent Act - All Economic Regulations are Transparent Act of 2014 or the ALERT Act of 2014 - Requires the head of each federal agency to submit a monthly report to the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for each rule such agency expects to propose or finalize during the following year. Requires the Administrator to publish in the Federal Register, by October 1 of each year, information that the Administrator receives from each agency under this Act and statistics on each rule proposed by an agency. Requires the Administrator to make publicly available on the Internet, by October 1 of each year, the analysis of the costs or benefits of each proposed or final rule issued by an agency for the previous year and other information pertaining to each such rule. Prohibits a rule from taking effect until the information required by this Act is posted on the Internet for not less than six months, with exceptions. Title II: Regulatory Accountability Act - Regulatory Accountability Act of 2014 - Revises procedures for rulemaking under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) to require a federal agency to make all preliminary and final factual determinations based on evidence and to consider other criteria in evaluating a rule. Revises rulemaking notice requirements. Imposes new requirements for issuing any major guidance or guidance that involves a novel legal or policy issue arising out of statutory mandates. Provides for electronic access to transcripts of testimony and exhibits and other papers filed in a rulemaking proceeding. Requires the record of decision in a rulemaking proceeding to include information from a hearing under the Information Quality Act or information on a high-impact rule. Requires an agency to grant a petition for a hearing in the case of a major rule, unless the agency reasonably determines that a hearing would not advance consideration of the rule or would unreasonably delay completion of the rulemaking. Provides that an agency's denial of an Information Quality Act petition, or a failure to grant or deny such petition within 90 days, is reviewable by a court as a final action. Allows immediate judicial review of interim rules issued without compliance with the notice requirements of this Act, other than in cases involving national security interests. Revises standards for the scope of judicial review of agency rulemaking. Defines "substantial evidence" for purposes of evaluating agency adjudications and for rulemaking under APA. Title III: Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act - Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act of 2014 - Amends the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (RFA) to revise the definitions of "rule" and "economic impact" under such Act. Requires initial and final regulatory flexibility analyses to: (1) describe alternatives to a proposed rule that minimize any adverse significant economic impact or that maximize the beneficial significant economic impact on small entities, and (2) include revisions or amendments to a land management plan developed by the Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior under specified Acts. Requires each federal agency to include in its regulatory flexibility agenda a brief description of the sector of the North American Industrial Classification System that is affected by a proposed agency rule that is likely to have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. Requires an agency's detailed statement in an initial regulatory flexibility analysis to include an estimate of the additional cumulative economic impact of the proposed rule on small entities and a description of any disproportionate economic impact on small entities or a specific class of such entities. Requires an agency, in developing an initial and final regulatory flexibility analysis, to provide: (1) a quantifiable or numerical description of the effects of a proposed or final rule and alternatives to such rule, or (2) a more general descriptive statement and a detailed statement explaining why quantification is not practicable or reliable. Repeals provisions allowing a waiver or delay of the completion of an initial regulatory flexibility analysis. Revises requirements for agency notification of the SBA Chief Counsel for Advocacy prior to the publication of any proposed rule. Provides for judicial review of an agency final rule for compliance with RFA requirements after publication of such rule. Amends the Small Business Act to authorize the Small Business Administration's (SBA's) Chief Counsel for Advocacy to specify detailed definitions or standards by which a business may be determined to be a small business (size standard). Amends the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 to require federal agencies, in developing small entity compliance guides, to solicit input from affected small entities or associations of small entities. Requires the Comptroller General to complete and publish a study that examines whether the SBA Chief Counsel for Advocacy has the capacity and resources to carry out the duties of Chief Counsel under this Act. Title IV: Sunshine for Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act - Sunshine for Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act of 2014 - Defines a "covered civil action" as a civil action seeking to compel agency action and alleging that an agency is unlawfully withholding or unreasonably delaying an agency action relating to a regulatory action that would affect the rights of: (1) private persons other than the person bringing the action; or (2) a state, local, or tribal government. Defines a "covered consent decree" and a "covered settlement agreement" as: (1) a consent decree or settlement agreement entered into in a covered civil action; and (2) any other consent decree or settlement agreement that requires agency action relating to a regulatory action affecting the rights of private persons other than the person bringing the action or a state, local, or tribal government. Requires an agency against which a covered civil action is brought to publish the notice of intent to sue and the complaint in a readily accessible manner and to provide interested parties an opportunity to intervene and to conduct settlement negotiations through mediation. Requires an agency seeking to enter a covered consent decree or settlement agreement to publish such decree or agreement in the Federal Register and online. Requires a court to grant de novo review to any motion filed by an agency to modify a previously-entered consent decree if the basis of such motion is that the terms of the decree are no longer fully in the public interest due to the agency's obligations to fulfill other duties or due to changed facts and circumstances. Division IV: Judiciary - Title I: Regulations From The Executive In Need Of Scrutiny - Regulations From the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2014 - States that the purpose of this Act is to increase accountability for and transparency in the federal regulatory process by requiring Congress to approve all new major regulations. Revises provisions relating to congressional review of agency rulemaking to require a federal agency promulgating a rule to include in its report to Congress and to the Comptroller General a classification of the rule as a major or nonmajor rule. Requires a joint resolution of approval of major rules to be enacted before such rules may take effect. Provides that if a joint resolution of approval is not enacted by the end of 70 session days or legislative days, as applicable, after the agency proposing the rule submits its report on such rule to Congress, the major rule shall be deemed not to be approved and shall not take effect. Permits a major rule to take effect for one 90-calendar-day period without such approval if the President determines it is necessary because of an imminent threat to health or safety or other emergency, for the enforcement of criminal laws, for national security, or to implement an international trade agreement. Sets forth the congressional approval procedure for major rules and the congressional disapproval procedure for nonmajor rules. Requires the introduction of a joint resolution addressing a report classifying a rule as a major rule within three legislative days in the House of Representative and three session days in the Senate. Prohibits any amendments to such a joint resolution at any stage of the legislative process. Provides for expedited consideration of a joint resolution of approval and requires a vote on such resolution in the Senate within 15 session days after it is reported by the committee to which it was referred, or after such committee has been discharged from further consideration of the resolution. Allows a court to review whether an agency has completed the necessary requirements under this Act for a rule to take effect. Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 to provide that any congressional approval procedure set forth in this Act affecting budget authority, outlays, or receipts shall be assumed to be effective unless it is not approved in accordance with this Act. Directs the Comptroller General (GAO) to conduct and report on a study to determine how many rules and major rules were in effect as of the date of enactment of this Act and the total estimated economic cost imposed by all such rules. Title II: Permanent Internet Tax Freedom - Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act - Amends the Internet Tax Freedom Act to make permanent the ban on state and local taxation of Internet access and on multiple or discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce. Division V: Natural Resources - Subdivision A: Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities - Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities Act - Title I: Restoring the Commitment to Rural Counties and Schools - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to establish at least one Forest Reserve Revenue Area within each unit of the National Forest System (NFS) designated for sustainable forest management for the production of national forest materials (the sale of trees, portions of trees, or forest products from NFS lands) and forest reserve revenues (to be derived from the sale of such materials in such an Area). Title II: Healthy Forest Management and Catastrophic Wildfire Prevention - Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture, with respect to NFS land, and the Secretary of the Interior, with respect to public lands, to implement a hazardous fuel reduction project or forest health project in at-risk forests in a manner that focuses on surface, ladder, and canopy fuels reduction activities. Allows a state governor to designate high-risk areas of federal land in the state for purposes of addressing: (1) deteriorating forest health conditions due to the bark beetle epidemic or drought, with the resulting imminent risk of devastating wildfires; and (2) the future risk of insect infestations or disease outbreaks through preventative treatments to improve forest health conditions. Title III: Oregon and California Railroad Grant Lands Trust, Conservation, and Jobs - O&C Trust, Conservation, and Jobs Act - Establishes the Oregon and California Railroad Grant Lands Trust to produce annual maximum sustained revenues in perpetuity for Trust counties by managing the timber resources on Trust lands. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to transfer administrative jurisdiction over all Oregon and California Railroad Grant lands and O&C Region Public Domain lands not designated as O&C Trust lands, except for certain tribal lands, to the Secretary of Agriculture for inclusion in the NFS. Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to appoint an Old Growth Review Panel to define old growth as it applies to the ecologically, geographically, and climatologically unique Oregon and California Railroad Grant lands and O&C Region Public Domain lands managed by the O&C Trust or the Forest Service only (but not to tribal lands). Directs the Secretary of the Interior to transfer management authority over the reconveyed Coos Bay Wagon Road Grant lands, with certain exceptions, and their surface resources to the Coos County government in Oregon. Designates certain federal land in Oregon as the Devil's Staircase Wilderness for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System. Amends the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate specified segments of the Molalla River and the Rogue River in Oregon as components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. Holds in trust for the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians all interest of the United States in and to the Council Creek specified land composed of approximately 17,519 acres. Makes that land part of the Tribe's reservation. Holds in trust for the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians all interest of the United States in and to approximately 14,804 acres of specified federal land. Makes that land part of the Tribes' reservation. Title IV: Community Forest Management Demonstration - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish the community forest demonstration area of a state. Conditions establishment of an area upon: (1) inclusion of at least 200,000 acres of NFS land; (2) a state forest practices law applicable to state or privately owned forest land, or established silvicultural best management practices or other regulations for forest management practices related to clean water, soil quality, wildlife, or forest health; and (3) a revenue-sharing agreement between a county and the state governor requiring the county, in using certain revenues received from the area, to continue to meet obligations for the use of such revenues for the benefit of public schools and roads. Limits to a total of 4 million acres the amount of NFS land that may be established as community forest demonstration areas. Title V: Reauthorization and Amendment of Existing Authorities and Other Matters - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture, during February 2015, to distribute to each beneficiary county a payment equal to the amount distributed to the county for FY2010 under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000. Directs the Secretary of the Interior, during February 2015, to distribute to all counties that received a payment for FY2010new payments totalling the difference between: (1) the total amount distributed to all such counties for FY2010, and (2) $27 million. Subdivision B: National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production - National Strategic and Critical Minerals Production Act of 2014 - Title I: Development Of Domestic Sources Of Strategic And Critical Minerals - Deems a domestic mine that will provide strategic and critical minerals to be an "infrastructure project" as described in Presidential Order "Improving Performance of Federal Permitting and Review of Infrastructure Projects" dated March 22, 2012. Sets forth the responsibilities of the lead agency (federal, state, local, tribal, or Alaska Native Corporation) with responsibility for issuing a mineral exploration or mine permit with respect to project coordination, agency consultation, project proponents, contractors, and the status and scope of any environmental impact statement. Requires the lead agency to determine that any such action does not constitute a major federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 if the procedural and substantive safeguards of the lead agency's permitting process alone, any applicable state permitting process alone, or a combination of the two processes together, provide an adequate mechanism to ensure that environmental factors are taken into account. Requires the lead agency's project lead, at a project proponent's request, to enter into an agreement with the project proponent and other cooperating agencies that sets time limits for each part of the permitting process. Applies this Act to a mineral exploration or mine permit for which an application was submitted before enactment of this Act if the applicant so requests in writing. Requires the lead agency, with respect to strategic and critical minerals within a federally administered unit of the NFS, to: (1) exempt from federal regulations governing Special Areas all areas of identified mineral resources in Land Use Designations (other than Non-Development Land Use Designations); (2) apply such exemption to all additional routes and areas that the agency finds necessary to facilitate the construction, operation, maintenance, and restoration of the areas of the identified mineral resources; and (3) continue to apply such exemptions after approval of the Minerals Plan of Operations for the unit. Title II: Judicial Review of Agency Actions Relating to Exploration and Mine Permits - Authorizes the holder of a mineral exploration or mine permit to intervene as of right in any covered civil action by a person affecting rights or obligations of the permit holder under the permit. Bars a civil action claiming legal wrong caused by an agency action unless it is filed within the end of the 60-day period beginning on the date of the final federal agency action to which it relates. Requires the court to hear and determine any covered civil action as expeditiously as possible. Prohibits the court, in a covered civil action, from granting or approving prospective relief unless it finds that it is narrowly drawn, extends no further than necessary to correct the violation of a legal requirement, and is the least intrusive means necessary to correct such violation. Prohibits payment from the federal government for court costs of a party in such a civil action, including attorneys' fees and expenses. Title III: Miscellaneous Provisions - Prohibits the construction of this subdivision to affect any aspect of Secretarial Order 3324, issued by the Secretary of the Interior on December 3, 2012, with respect to potash and oil and gas operators.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 2014
Authorization for Use of Military Force Against the Organization Called the Islamic State - Authorizes the President to use appropriate force against the threat posed by the organization called the Islamic State (IS), formally known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), as well as any successor organization. States that this resolution is intended to constitute specific statutory authorization pursuant to section 5(b) of the War Powers Resolution. Directs the President to report to Congress setting forth: (1) U.S. strategy to defeat IS or any successor organization; and (2) every 90 days thereafter, a description and assessment of such strategy's implementation.
United States · United States Congress · 23 July 2014
Federal Records Accountability Act of 2014 - Creates a process for the suspension and removal (subject to specified due process requirements) of an employee whom the Inspector General of a federal agency determines has: (1) willfully and unlawfully concealed, removed, mutilated, obliterated, falsified, or destroyed any record, book, or other thing in the custody of such employee; or (2) violated the following disclosure prohibitions. Prohibits the President, Vice President, or specified staff members or advisers from creating or sending a presidential or vice presidential record using a non-official electronic messaging account unless such individual: (1) includes an official electronic messaging account of the President, Vice President, staff member, or adviser as a recipient in the original creation or transmission of the electronic message and identifies all recipients in such message; and (2) submits the message for appropriate archival storage by the Executive Office of the President. Prohibits a federal agency official or employee from creating or sending a record using a non-official electronic messaging account unless such officer or employee: (1) includes an official electronic messaging account of the officer or employee as a recipient in the original creation or transmission of the electronic message and identifies all recipients in such message; and (2) submits the message for appropriate archival storage by the agency. Requires a federal agency head: (1) whenever the unlawful concealment, removal, mutilation, obliteration, falsification, or destruction of any record, book, or other thing in the agency's custody comes to his or her attention, to notify the Archivist and publish a general description of the records on the agency's website; and (2) to initiate action through the Attorney General for the recovery of records that have been unlawfully removed from the agency. Requires the Archivist to initiate action to recover such records if the agency head fails to do so within a reasonable period. Requires each agency head to designate a Senior Agency Official for Records Management by November 15, 2014 (and to reaffirm or designate a new such Official by November 15 of each year thereafter), who shall ensure compliance with all applicable records management statutes, regulations, and any guidance issued by the Archivist.
United States · United States Congress · 23 July 2014
Senior Executive Service Accountability Act - Requires each federal agency to include in its biennial request to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) for a specific number of Senior Executive Service (SES) positions a justification for each position and the specific result expected from each such position. Extends from one year to two years the probationary period for SES employees. Makes SES employees subject to suspensions for cause for 14 days or less without duties and pay. Expands the grounds for suspension or termination of an SES employee to include such cause as would promote the efficiency of the Senior Executive Service. Reduces from 30 days to 15 days the notice required to employees of an adverse personnel action. Requires a written description of employee performance requirements to be provided to an SES employee not later than 30 calendar days before each rating period. Requires SES employees who receive written notice of removal from the civil service to take mandatory annual leave.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 2014
Wi-Fi Innovation Act - Requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to provide additional unlicensed spectrum in the 5850-5925 megahertz band under technical rules suitable for the widespread commercial development of unlicensed operations. Provides for such technical rules to permit outdoor unlicensed operations without requiring devices to dynamically detect signals from other systems. Directs the FCC's Office of Engineering and Technology to seek public comments on proposals for interference-mitigation techniques and potential rechannelization that would accommodate both incumbent licensees and widespread commercial unlicensed operations in such band. Sets forth a process for the FCC to test mitigation measures and methods of sharing spectrum with unlicensed devices within such band in a manner that would not cause harmful interference to incumbent licensees. Directs the FCC, if it determines that existing licensees would not be harmed by interference, to modify regulations to adopt technical rules for widespread commercial deployment of unlicensed operations for such band. Prohibits modification of such regulations if the FCC determines that mitigation, rechannelization, or sharing would not prevent harmful interference. Requires the FCC to notify Congress, the Department of Transportation (DOT), and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) of a harmful interference determination. Requires the FCC to modify regulations relating to Intelligent Transportation Systems radio service and dedicated short-range communications service on-board units if such modification would maximize utility of such band while protecting existing licensees. Directs the FCC to make recommendations to Congress regarding the availability of broadband Internet access using unlicensed spectrum and wireless networks in low income neighborhoods.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 2014
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1048 West Robinhood Drive in Stockton, California, as the "W. Ronald Coale Memorial Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2014
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 100 Admiral Callaghan Lane in Vallejo, California, as the "Philmore Graham Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2014
Amends the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 to declare that any unaccompanied alien child who has not been a victim of a severe form of trafficking in persons or does not have a credible fear of persecution on returning to his or her country of nationality or of last habitual residence shall be: (1) placed in removal proceedings, (2) eligible for voluntary departure at no cost to the child, and (3) provided with access to counsel. (Currently such expedited removal requirements apply only to unaccompanied children from countries that are contiguous to the United States.) Directs the Secretary of State to negotiate agreements with any appropriate country regarding the repatriation of children.
United States · United States Congress · 7 July 2014
Declares that the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) has failed to meet the specified requirement of the U.S. Constitution to take care that a law be faithfully executed, with respect to the departmental policy to exercise prosecutorial discretion with respect to individuals who came to the United States as children, as announced by DHS on June 15, 2012. Requires the House of Representatives to bring a civil action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia for declaratory or injunctive relief to challenge the DHS policy.
United States · United States Congress · 7 July 2014
Declares that the Secretary of the Treasury has failed to meet the specified requirement of the U.S. Constitution to take care that a law be faithfully executed, with respect to the departmental policy provided under the Department of the Treasury Notice 2013-45, as announced by the Department on July 2, 2013, pertaining to the one-year delay in the application of the Internal Revenue Code with respect to reporting requirements by providers of health insurance coverage, certain employers required to report on health insurance coverage, and related requirements under the Code concerning shared responsibility for employers regarding health coverage. Requires the House of Representatives to bring a civil action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia for declaratory or injunctive relief to challenge the Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 7 July 2014
Declares that the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) has failed to meet the specified requirement of the U.S. Constitution to take care that a law be faithfully executed, with respect to the departmental policy providing for the authorization, approval, renewal, modification, or extension of any experimental, pilot, or demonstration project under the Social Security Act (SSA) that waives compliance with a mandatory work requirement by eligible states and state plans for participation in block grants under SSA title IV part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF). Requires the House of Representatives to bring a civil action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia for declaratory or injunctive relief to challenge the Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2014
Justina's Law - Prohibits the use of federal funds to conduct or support treatment or research involving a ward of the state in which the individual's health is subjected to greater than minimal risk with no or minimal prospect of direct benefit.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2014
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 2551 Galena Avenue in Simi Valley, California, as the "Neil Havens Post Office."
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2014
Native Contract and Rate Expenditure Act of 2014 or the Native CARE Act of 2014 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to remove the restriction to hospitals furnishing inpatient Medicare services and allow all service providers to participate under: (1) the Purchased/Referred Care program (formerly called the contract health services program) funded and operated by the Indian Health Service (IHS), and (2) any program funded by IHS and operated by an urban Indian organization. Prohibits Medicare payment for an item or service furnished by a supplier unless the supplier agrees to participate under both such programs. Prohibits any reduction, offset, or limitation to any appropriations made to IHS under the Indian Health Care Improvement Act, the Snyder Act, or any other provision of law as a result of this Act. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), acting through the Director of IHS, to study the impact of this Act on access to care under the IHS Purchased/Referred Care program.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2014
Public Interest Declassification Board Reauthorization Act of 2014 - Amends the Public Interest Declassification Act of 2000 to extend through December 31, 2015, the authority of the Public Interest Declassification Board (advises the President, the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, the Office of Management and Budget [OMB], and other executive branch officials on the identification, collection, review for declassification, and release to Congress, interested agencies, and the public of declassified records and materials that are of archival value).
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2014
Secure Delivery for America Act of 2014 - Declares that it is the policy of the United States Postal Service (USPS) to: (1) provide access to secure, convenient package delivery receptacles to the greatest number of postal patrons feasible; and (2) use the most cost-effective primary mode of mail delivery feasible. Directs USPS to: (1) provide a primary mode of mail delivery other than door delivery, with a preference for secure, centralized delivery, for new addresses established after September 30, 2014; and (2) implement a program to convert existing business addresses with door delivery to centralized delivery. Requires: (1) each USPS district office to identify residential addresses within its service area that are appropriate candidates for conversion to centralized, curbside, or sidewalk delivery; and (2) USPS to seek to voluntarily make such conversion. Requires the USPS, in making conversion determinations, to consider: (1) the impact of weather conditions, physical barriers, or any other factor on the feasibility of providing a primary mode of mail delivery other than door delivery; (2) whether the address is of historic value; and (3) population density and the concentration of poverty. Directs USPS to establish and maintain a waiver program for cases in which door delivery is necessary to avoid causing significant physical hardship or physical safety risks to a postal patron. Requires USPS to: (1) convert at least 1.5 million of the door delivery points extant on December 31, 2013, to centralized, curbside, or sidewalk delivery during each of FY2015-FY2024, with priority to voluntary conversions; (2) convert delivery points to centralized delivery to the greatest extent feasible and include secure package lockers co-located with mail receptacles at the centralized delivery point; (3) establish procedures to place centralized delivery points in locations that maximize delivery efficiency, ease of use for postal patrons, and respect for private property rights; and (4) provide for a voucher program under which USPS may defray costs associated with conversion that would otherwise be borne by postal patrons. Authorizes USPS to continue to provide door delivery for a fee to an address that received such delivery as of January 1, 2014, but was converted or scheduled to be converted to a different primary mode of mail delivery as a result of this Act's requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2014
Tax Free Health Insurance Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an individual taxpayer a deduction from gross income of insurance premiums paid for the health care coverage of the taxpayer and the taxpayer's spouse and dependents. Makes such deduction available to taxpayers who do not otherwise itemize their deductions.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2014
Resolves that Lois G. Lerner, former Director, Exempt Organizations, Internal Revenue Service (IRS), be found in contempt of Congress for failure to testify before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform as required by a congressional subpoena. Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives to certify the Committee's report detailing the refusal of Ms. Lerner to testify before the Committee as directed by the subpoena to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia to the end that Ms. Lerner be proceeded against in the manner and form provided by law, and to otherwise take all appropriate action to enforce the subpoena.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2014
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr. should appoint a special counsel, without further delay, to investigate the targeting of conservative nonprofit advocacy groups by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 2014
Africa Counter Terrorism Initiative Act - Directs the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to develop, submit to Congress, and implement within one year after enactment of this Act a plan to transfer the headquarters of AFRICOM from Stuttgart, Germany, to a location in the continental United States. Requires the plan to provide for: (1) the 65th Air Base Wing to be an AFRICOM asset; (2) AFRICOM permanent assets to be located at Lajes Field, Azores, Portugal; (3) the transfer of U.S. assets at Lajes Field from United States European Command to AFRICOM for purposes of being the forward operating location, logistical hub, and location of AFRICOM assets; and (4) the relocation of the Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Crisis Response (SP-MAGTF CR) from Moron Air Base, Spain, to Lajes Field. Directs the Secretary to conduct a review of the Agreement on Cooperation and Defense Between the United States and Portugal, signed at Lisbon on June 1, 1995, to ensure that such Agreement accurately reflects and accounts for such plan. Requires Lajes Field to continue operating 24 hours a day, at or above its 2012 levels of readiness, effective until at least the date of completion of the 2018 quadrennial defense review.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2014
Rebalance for an Effective Defense Uniform and Civilian Employees Act (REDUCE Act) - Limits full-time positions in the Department of Defense (DOD), in each of FY2021-FY2025, subject to specified adjustments to be made by the DOD Secretary, to a number not greater than 85% of the number of such positions at DOD as of September 30, 2015. Permits not more than 1,000 of such positions to be career appointees within the Senior Executive Service. Authorizes the DOD Secretary to offer voluntary separation incentive payments and voluntary early retirement payments to achieve the reductions required by this Act, but requires the Secretary to use involuntary measures, including reductions in force, beginning on October 1, 2015, to achieve required reductions in personnel levels if voluntary measures are inadequate.
United States · United States Congress · 11 March 2014
Smart Savings Act - Makes the default investment in the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) an age-appropriate target date asset allocation investment fund (L Fund), instead of the Government Securities Investment Fund (G Fund), if no election has been made for the investment of available funds. Retains the Government Securities Investment Fund as the default fund for members of the uniformed services. Requires TSP participants whose default fund is an age-appropriate L Fund to sign a risk acknowledgement prior to enrollment.
United States · United States Congress · 11 March 2014
Government Reports Elimination Act of 2014 - Eliminates or modifies reporting requirements for the: (1) Department of Agriculture, (2) Department of Commerce, (3) Corporation for National and Community Service, (4) Department of Defense (DOD), (5) Department of Education, (6) Department of Energy (DOE), (7) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), (8) Executive Office of the President, (9) Government Accountability Office (GAO), (10) Department of Homeland Security (DHS), (11) Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), (12) Department of the Interior, (13) Department of Labor, (14) National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), (15) Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), (16) Department of State, (17) Department of Transportation (DOT), (18) Department of the Treasury, and (19) Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
United States · United States Congress · 11 March 2014
All Circuit Review Extension Act - Extends from two to five years after the effective date of the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012 (i.e., December 27, 2012), the period allowed for: (1) filing a petition for judicial review of Merit Systems Protection Board decisions in whistleblower cases, and (2) any review of such a decision by the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).
United States · United States Congress · 11 March 2014
Federal Register Modernization Act - Requires the Federal Register to be published (e.g., by electronic means), rather than printed, and that documents in the Federal Register be made available for sale or distribution to the public in published form. Revises requirements for the filing of documents with the Office of the Federal Register for inclusion in the Federal Register and for the publication of the Code of Federal Regulations to reflect the publication requirement.
![Official portrait of Rep. Issa, Darrell [R-CA-48]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/i000056_200.jpg)