United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2005
Free Flow of Information Act of 2005 - Prohibits a federal entity from compelling a "covered person" (i.e., a newspaper, television broadcast station, wire service, or other media outlet, and specified employees and contractors) to testify or produce any document unless a court determines that: (1) the party seeking to compel has unsuccessfully attempted to obtain such testimony or document from all other non-covered persons; (2) in a criminal matter, there are reasonable grounds to believe a crime has occurred and the testimony or document sought is essential to the investigation, prosecution, or defense of the crime; (3) in a non-criminal matter, the testimony or document is essential to a dispositive issue of substantial importance; and (4) in any matter in which testimony or a document could reveal the source's identity, disclosure is necessary to prevent imminent and actual harm to national security and such harm outweighs the public interest in protecting the free flow of information. Requires the content of compelled testimony or documents to be limited and narrowly tailored. Exempts certain commercial or financial information. Makes this Act applicable to testimony or documents that a third party or federal entity seeks from a communications service provider relating to business transactions with a covered person. Sets forth notice requirements. Permits a court to delay notice to a covered person upon determining that such notice would pose a substantial threat to the integrity of a criminal investigation.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2005
Television Viewer Consumer Protection Act of 2005 - Prohibits a television ratings service from selling or otherwise providing data from a television ratings measurement system that produces television ratings data to be used commercially as currency ratings unless that system has been accredited by the Media Ratings Council. Requires any dispute between a ratings service and the Council to be resolved according to the commercial rules of the American Arbitration Association.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2005
Constitutional Amendment - Prohibits outlays for a fiscal year (except those for repayment of debt principal) from exceeding total receipts for that fiscal year (except those derived from borrowing) unless Congress, by a three-fifths rollcall vote of each House, authorizes a specific excess of outlays over receipts. Requires a three-fifths rollcall vote of each House to increase the public debt limit. Directs the President to submit a balanced budget to Congress annually. Prohibits any bill to increase revenue from becoming law unless approved by a majority of each House by rollcall vote. Authorizes waivers of these provisions when a declaration of war is in effect or under other specified circumstances involving military conflict.
United States · United States Congress · 30 June 2005
Private Property Rights Protection Act of 2005 - Prohibits a state or political subdivision from using economic development as a reason for exercising its power of eminent domain if federal funds would contribute in any way to: (1) the project for which eminent domain is exercised; or (2) the exercise and enforcement of eminent domain over the project. Renders a state or political subdivision that violations this prohibition ineligible for any such federal funds and directs the federal agency involved to withhold those funds. Prohibits the federal government from using economic development as a reason for exercising eminent domain. Defines "economic development" to mean any activity other than making private property available in substantial part for use by the general public or by an entity that makes the property available for use by the general public, or as a public facility, or to remove harmful effects.
United States · United States Congress · 30 June 2005
Children's Safety Act of 2005 - Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act - Requires: (1) each state, territory, and federally recognized Indian tribe to maintain a sex offender registry; and (2) each sex offender to register in the jurisdictions where the offender resides, is an employee, and is a student. Requires the Attorney General to: (1) maintain a National Sex Offender Registry at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); (2) establish a Sex Offender Management Assistance program; and (3) authorize sex offender apprehension grants. DNA Fingerprinting Act of 2005 - Amends: (1) the DNA Identification Act of 1994 to expand the scope of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) samples to be included in the Combined DNA Index System; and (2) the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act of 2000 to authorize the Attorney General to collect DNA samples from individuals who are arrested or detained under U.S. authority. Prevention and Deterrence of Crimes Against Children Act of 2005 - Increases penalties for violent crimes against persons under age 18, including death or life imprisonment if the crime results in the death of a person under that age. Protection Against Sexual Exploitation of Children Act of 2005 - Increases penalties for sexual offenses against children. Foster Child Protection and Child Sexual Predator Sentencing Act of 2005 - Requires background checks and checks of national crime information databases and state child abuse registries before approval of foster or adoptive placements. Establishes: (1) procedures for the civil commitment of sexually dangerous persons; and (2) mandatory minimum penalties for child sex trafficking.
United States · United States Congress · 30 June 2005
Clear Law Enforcement for Criminal Alien Removal Act of 2005 or CLEAR Act of 2005 - States that: (1) state and local law enforcement personnel are fully authorized to investigate, apprehend, or transfer to federal custody aliens in the United States (including interstate transportation of such aliens to detention centers) in order to assist in the enforcement of U.S. immigration laws; and (2) a state that does not have a statute permitting enforcement of federal immigration laws within two years of enactment of this Act shall not receive certain federal incarceration assistance. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect to illegal aliens to: (1) establish criminal penalties for aliens unlawfully present in the United States; (2) increase specified criminal penalties for illegal entry and failure to depart violations; and (3) expand the scope of, and increase, civil penalties for improper entry or failure to depart. Provides for the listing of immigration violators in the National Crime Information Center database. Encourages states and localities to provide the Department of Homeland Security with specified information about apprehended illegal aliens. Provides federal reimbursement for related State and local costs. (States that such provision shall not require state or local enforcement officials to provide the Department with information related to a victim of a crime or witness to a criminal offense.) Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to make grants to states and political subdivisions that enforce immigration laws in the course of their routine law enforcement duties for special equipment and facilities related to arresting, detaining, or transporting illegal aliens. Directs the Secretary to: (1) construct or acquire 20 additional detention facilities for aliens detained pending removal (or a decision on removal); and (2) consider the transfer of military installations under base closure laws for such purposes. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect to illegal aliens apprehended by state or local authorities to provide for: (1) federal custody upon state or local request; and (2) state or local compensation for related incarceration and transportation costs. States with respect to an alien subject to removal that the Attorney General or Secretary shall ensure such alien's detention in an adequate (as defined by this Act) state or local prison, detention center, or other comparable facility prior to his or her removal examination. Directs the Secretary to establish immigration-related training for state and local personnel. Provides: (1) personal liability immunity to the same extent as corresponding federal immunity for state or local personnel enforcing immigration laws within the scope of their duties under this Act; and (2) civil rights money damage immunity for state or local agencies enforcing immigration laws unless their personnel violated criminal law in such enforcement. States that the Department shall continue to operate the institutional removal program (IRP), which shall be expanded to all states. Authorizes state or local detention of an illegal alien after completion of such alien's prison sentence for: (1) up to 14 days to facilitate federal transfer; or (2) until transfer to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to permanently authorize appropriations for the state criminal alien assistance program (SCAAP).
United States · United States Congress · 30 June 2005
Assistant United States Attorney Retirement Benefit Equity Act of 2005 - Grants an assistant United States attorney the same civil service retirement benefits as a law enforcement officer, except as specified. Includes within the definition of "assistant United States attorney" any other attorney employed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) occupying a position designated by the Attorney General upon finding that the position: (1) involves routine employee responsibilities that are substantially similar to those of assistant U.S. attorneys; and (2) is critical to DOJ's successful accomplishment of an important mission. Sets forth provisions regarding the designation of attorneys as assistant U.S. attorneys. Requires DOJ to take measures reasonably designed to provide notice to incumbent assistant U.S. attorneys on their election rights and on the effects of making or not making a timely election. Allows an incumbent to elect, for all purposes, to be treated in accordance with this Act or to be treated as if this Act had never been enacted. Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) time limits for making an election; (2) retroactive effects; and (3) individual contributions for prior service.
United States · United States Congress · 30 June 2005
Community Restoration and Revitalization Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow an increased rehabilitation tax credit for certain low-income buildings; (2) allow a basis reduction adjustment for property eligible for the credit; (3) increase the credit for certain smaller buildings; (4) allow property eligible for the credit to be used for lodging purposes; (5) modify placed-in-service rules for credit property; (6) modify qualification rules for credit property that is tax-exempt use property; (7) increase the credit for buildings in high cost areas; and (8) exempt certain condominium transactions from rehabilitation tax credit recapture requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2005
Mortgage Insurance Fairness Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax deduction for mortgage insurance premiums. Reduces the amount of such deduction for taxpayers with adjusted gross incomes exeeding $100,000. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to require informational returns from any individual who receives payment of more than $600 in mortgage insurance premiums.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 2005
Recognizes the Forest Service of the Department of Agriculture for 100 years of dedicated service and caring for U.S. forest lands. Acknowledges the promise of the Forest Service to continue to care for the natural legacy of the United States. Encourages the Forest Service to efficiently deliver multiple-use benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 17 June 2005
Federal Prison Industries Competition in Contracting Act of 2005 - Amends the federal criminal code to replace provisions regarding the purchase of prison-made products by federal departments with provisions establishing a government-wide procurement policy relating to purchases from Federal Prison Industries (FPI), which shall generally require the use of competitive procedures. Authorizes a contract award to be made to FPI using other than competitive procedures: (1) if a product or service is only available from FPI; and (2) by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (the Bureau). Requires that an analysis of the probable impact of a proposed expansion of sales within the federal market by FPI on private sector firms and their non-inmate workers be made whenever FPI proposes to authorize the sale of a new specific product or service or to expand production of a current product or service. Prohibits the total dollar value of FPI sales to the government in FY 2007 through 2011 from exceeding specified percentages of FPI sales for the base period. Amends the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 to require an executive agency: (1) before purchasing a product listed in the latest edition of the FPI catalog, to determine whether the FPI product is comparable to products available from the private sector; and (2) if such product is not comparable, to use competitive procedures or make an individual purchase under a multiple award. Authorizes FPI to enter into a contract with a federal contractor to produce products as a subcontractor or supplier in the performance of a federal procurement contract. Includes services within the scope of a prohibition against transporting (in interstate commerce or from a foreign country) goods produced by prisoners. Establishes within the Bureau of Prisons: (1) the Enhanced In-Prison Educational and Vocational Assessment and Training Program; and (2) the Cognitive Abilities Assessment Demonstration Program. Directs: (1) the Chief Operating Officer of FPI to develop proposals to have FPI donate products and services to eligible entities that provide goods or services to low-income individuals who would likely otherwise have difficulty purchasing such products or services; (2) the Director of the Bureau to afford to inmates opportunities to participate in programs and activities designed to help prepare such inmates to obtain employment upon release; and (3) the Comptroller General to undertake to have an independent study conducted on the effects of eliminating FPI's mandatory source authority.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2005
Amends the International Air Transportation Competition Act of 1979 to add Tennessee to the number of States outside Texas between which and Love Field, Texas, flights are authorized, if the air carrier: (1) does not offer or provide any through service or ticketing with another air carrier or foreign air carrier; and (2) does not offer for sale transportation to or from, and the flight or aircraft does not serve, any point which is outside Tennessee.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2005
Prematurity Research Expansion and Education for Mothers who deliver Infants Early Act or PREEMIE Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to expand and coordinate NIH research on preterm labor and delivery, infant mortality, and low birthweight infants. Establishes the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units Network and the Neonatal Research Units Network within NIH. Requires the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to: (1) expand and coordinate CDC activities on preterm labor and delivery and infant mortality; (2) conduct a study on the relationship between prematurity, birth defects, and developmental disabilities; and (3) review the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring Survey. Requires the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development's national longitudinal study of environmental influences on children's health and development to consider the impact of assisted reproduction technologies. Requires the Director of NIH to contract with the Institute of Medicine to study the health and economic consequences of preterm birth. Directs the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to assess certain core performance and outcome measures utilized under the Social Security Act for purposes of expanding such measures to include known risk factors of low birthweight and prematurity. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) conduct a demonstration project to improve the provision of information on prematurity to health professionals and the public; (2) conduct projects to support the informational and emotional needs of families during the stay of an infant in a neonatal intensive care unit, during the transition of the infant to the home, and in the event of a newborn death; and (3) establish an Interagency Coordinating Council on Prematurity and Low Birthweight.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2005
Abraham Lincoln Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue $1 coins emblematic of the life and legacy of President Abraham Lincoln in commemoration of the bicentennial of his birth. Permits issuance of such coins only during 2009. Subjects the coin sales to a surcharge of $10 per coin.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2005
United States Patent and Trademark Fee Modernization Act of 2005 - Revises the schedule of fees for patents and trademarks. Specifies general fees (filing fees and basic national fees), excess claims fees, examination fees, issue fees, a disclaimer fee, appeal fees, revival fees, patent maintenance fees, search fees, and other fees for processing, services, or materials. Requires the Director to conduct a study on the effect of patent fees on the ability of small entity inventors to file patent applications. Establishes in the Treasury a Patent and Trademark Fee Reserve Fund for fees collected by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in excess of amounts appropriated to USPTO for that fiscal year. Amends the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005 to repeal provisions setting forth patent and trademark fees.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2005
Clean Energy Bonds Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow holders of clean energy bonds a nonrefundable tax credit of 25 percent of an annual credit amount as determined by the Secretary of the Treasury. Defines "clean energy bond" as any bond issued by a clean energy bond lender, a cooperative electric company, a governmental body, or the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) that is used for capital expenditures for specified projects for producing electricity from certain renewable resources, such as wind, biomass, solar energy, small irrigation power, and municipal solid waste. Sets forth rules for maturity limitations, arbitrage, and expenditures, including a requirement that 95 percent of proceeds from the sale of a bond issue be spent on a renewable resource project within five years from the date of a bond issuance. Terminates the authority to issue clean energy bonds after 2008.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2005
HIPAA Recreational Injury Technical Correction Act - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code to prohibit a group health plan or health insurance issuer offering group health coverage from denying benefits or coverage otherwise provided under the plan for the treatment of an injury solely because it was sustained while a person was engaged in any particular mode of transportation specified in the plan, consisting of the use of a motorcycle, snowmobile, all-terrain vehicle, or other similar recreational vehicle or horseback riding, unless such mode of transportation or its use was illegal.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2005
Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program Extension and Reform Act of 2005 - Amends the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to repeal the authorization to use certain funds in the Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Fund (Fund) by the Secretary of Agriculture for rural land reclamation. Revises guidelines governing: (1) the availability of moneys from the Fund: (2) the disposition of unappropriated Fund balances; (3) transfers to the United Mine Workers of America Combined Benefit Fund; and (4) submission of quarterly reports by operators of surface coal mining operations. Revises requirements governing allocation of funds and allocation of funds to states and Indian tribes. Prescribes guidelines for initial program sites and bond forfeiture sites with insolvent sureties. Revises requirements for the granting of funds to set forth guidelines governing: (1) the application processing deadline; (2) the disposition of unexpended funds; and (3) a state set-aside program. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to require that states assume responsibility for administering the emergency reclamation program in order to remain eligible to receive grants. Authorizes the Secretary to propose regulations prescribing conditions under which the Fund would be used to promote remining of eligible lands, including reclamation fee rebates or waivers and other incentives.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2005
Public Expression of Religion Act of 2005 - Amends the Revised Statutes of the United States to limit the remedy to injunctive relief and deny attorneys' fees in a civil action against a state or local official for deprivation of rights where the deprivation consists of a violation of a prohibition in the Constitution against the establishment of religion.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2005
Songwriters Capital Gains Tax Equity Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to define certain self-created musical works or copyrights in musical works as capital assets eligible for capital gains tax treatment.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2005
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through December 31, 2010, the income tax credit for biodiesel used as fuel and the excise credits for biodiesel mixtures and biodiesel used to produce biodiesel mixtures.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 2005
Economic Development Act of 2005 - Authorizes any State to provide to any person for economic development purposes tax incentives that otherwise would be the cause of discrimination against interstate commerce under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution. Makes exceptions for any incentive that: (1) is dependent upon State or country of incorporation, commercial domicile, or residence of an individual; (2) requires the recipient to acquire, lease, license, use, or provide services to property created in the State; (3) is reduced or eliminated as a result of an increase in out-of-State activity by the recipient or other person or as a result of such other person not having a taxable presence in the State; (4) results in loss of a compensating tax system, because the tax on interstate commerce exceeds the tax on intrastate commerce; (5) requires that other taxing jurisdictions offer reciprocal tax benefits; or (6) requires that a tax incentive earned with respect to one tax can only be used to reduce a tax burden for, or provide a tax benefit against any other tax that is not imposed on, apportioned interstate activities.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2005
Pledge Protection Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal judicial code to deny jurisdiction to any Federal court, and appellate jurisdiction to the Supreme Court, to hear or decide any question pertaining to the interpretation of the Pledge of Allegiance or its validity under the Constitution. Makes this limitation inapplicable to: (1) any court established by Congress under its power to make needful rules and regulations respecting the territory of the United States; or (2) the Superior Court of the District of Columbia or the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2005
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt from tax interest on federally-guaranteed bonds for the financing of water, wastewater, and essential community facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2005
Honor Our Fallen Prisoners of War Act - Requires the Secretary concerned to award the Purple Heart to members of the Armed Forces who die in captivity under circumstances not otherwise establishing eligibility for the Purple Heart. Makes this Act effective as to members of the Armed Forces who die on or after December 7, 1941, including those who die prior to enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 614 West Old County Road in Belhaven, North Carolina, as the "Floyd Lupton Post Office."
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
Preserving Patient Access to Physicians Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to payment for physicians' services to: (1) eliminate the sustainable growth rate payment update system; and (2) establish in its place an update to the single conversion factor for 2006 of at least 2.7 percent, and a formula for an update to the single conversion factor for years beginning with 2007. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in calculating the formula for the single conversion factor, to establish an input price index and estimate annually a productivity adjustment factor.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2005
Children's Vision Improvement and Learning Readiness Act of 2005 - Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to make grants to states for providing: (1) comprehensive eye examinations for children, with priority given to children under nine years old; (2) subsequent vision treatment or services to correct vision problems; and (3) educational materials to parents, teachers, and health care practitioners on recognizing signs of visual impairment in children. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop criteria to collect data related to vision assessment and the utilization of follow-up services; and (2) coordinate the grant program with appropriate federal and state child services programs. Requires states to annually submit to the Secretary a program evaluation.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2005
Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to report annually on the number of required permanent and temporary non-Federal employees for Farm Service Agency (FSA) local offices and the funding levels necessary to support such workforce. Limits temporary workers to not more than ten percent of all such non-Federal workers in any fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2005
Veterinary Workforce Expansion Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to eligible entities to improve public health preparedness through increasing the number of veterinarians in the workforce. Defines "eligible entities" as accredited public or nonprofit schools of veterinary medicine, departments of comparative medicine, departments of veterinary science, schools of public health, or schools of medicine that offer training for veterinarians in a public health practice area. Requires the Secretary to give preference to applicants that demonstrate a comprehensive approach by involving more than one eligible entity. Allows grantees to use funds to: (1) pay the costs associated with construction, the acquisition of equipment, and other capital costs relating to the expansion of existing schools or departments; and (2) pay the capital costs associated with the expansion of academic programs that offer postgraduate training for veterinarians or concurrent training for veterinary students in specific areas of specialization
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2005
Veterans' Heritage Firearms Act of 2005 - Provides a 90-day amnesty period during which veterans and their family members can register in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record any firearm acquired before October 31, 1968, by a veteran while a member of the armed forces stationed outside the continental United States. Grants such an individual limited immunity under the Federal criminal code and the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the acquisition, possession, transportation, or alteration of such firearm before or concurrent with such registration. Extends such immunity to a veteran who attempts to register a qualifying firearm outside of the amnesty period if the veteran surrenders the firearm within 30 days after being notified of potential criminal liability for continued possession. Requires the Attorney General to: (1) transfer each firearm qualifying as a curio or relic which has been forfeited to the United States to the first qualified museum that requests it; and (2) publish information identifying each such firearm which is available to be transferred to a museum. Prohibits the Attorney General from destroying any such firearm which has been forfeited until five years after the forfeiture. Requires that any firearm transferred to a qualified museum be registered to the transferee. Makes a prohibition against transfer or possession of a machine-gun inapplicable to a transfer to or by, or possession by, a museum which is open to the public and incorporated as a not-for-profit corporation under applicable State law.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
Business Activity Tax Simplification Act of 2005 - Expands the federal prohibition against state taxation of interstate commerce to: (1) include taxation of out-of-state transactions involving all forms of property, including intangible personal property and services (currently, only sales of tangible personal property are protected); and (2) prohibit state taxation of an out-of-state entity unless such entity has a physical presence in the taxing state. Sets forth criteria for determining that a person has a physical presence in a state.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
San Francisco Old Mint Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 100,000 $5 gold coins and 500,000 $1 silver coins emblematic of the San Francisco Old Mint Building, its importance to California and U.S. history, and its role in rebuilding San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake and fire. Requires that all surcharges received by the Secretary from such coin sales be promptly paid to the San Francisco Museum and Historical Society for purposes of rehabilitating the Historic Old Mint in San Francisco as a city museum and an American Coin and Gold Rush Museum.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2005
Telephone Excise Tax Repeal Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the excise tax on communication services (i.e., local telephone service, toll telephone service, and teletypewriter exchange service).
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to suspend, through December 31, 2008, the duty on Tetrakis (2,4-di-tert-butylphenyl) 4,4'-biphenyldiphosphinate.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to suspend, through December 31, 2008, the duty on Benzoic acid 3,4,5-trihydroxy-, propyl ester (propyl gallate).
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
Pest Management and Fire Suppression Flexibility Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to state that the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) shall not require a permit under the national pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES), or require a State to mandate such a permit, for: (1) the proper use of a pesticide that is registered or otherwise approved for use under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act; and (2) the use by or in cooperation with the Federal or State government of a fire retardant, chemical, or water for fire suppression, control, or prevention in accordance with relevant Federal guidelines; (3) silvicultural activities except for specified point source activities; and (4) the use of biological control organisms for the prevention, control, or eradication of plant pests or noxious weeds pursuant to specified provisions of the Plant Protection Act. Redefines "point source" to exclude from the term those public health protection, pest management, and silvicultural activities excluded from NPDES permit requirements under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2005
Second Chance Act of 2005: Community Safety Through Recidivism Prevention or the Second Chance Act of 2005 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to reauthorize, rewrite, and expand provisions regarding adult and juvenile offender reentry demonstration projects, including by authorizing funds to: (1) provide structured post-release housing and transitional housing; (2) facilitate specified collaboration to promote the employment of people released from prison and jail; (3) carry out programs that support children of incarcerated parents; and (4) establish or expand the use of reentry courts. Sets forth grant priorities and requirements, including that each state, territory, tribe, or local government recipient establish a Reentry Task Force or other authority. Authorizes the Attorney General to make a grant to provide for the establishment of a National Adult and Juvenile Offender Reentry Resource Center. Directs the Attorney General to establish an interagency task force on federal programs regarding offender reentry. Authorizes the National Institute of Justice and the Bureau of Justice Statistics to conduct research on offender reentry. Directs: (1) the Secretary of Health and Human Services to review the role of state child protective services at the time of arrest and establish services for the preservation of families impacted by the incarceration of a family member; and (2) the Secretary of Labor to implement a program to educate employers about one-stop centers, existing incentives for the hiring of former prisoners, and tax credits, and to make grants to nonprofit organizations to provide transitional services. Amends the federal criminal code to direct a court to revoke a term of supervised release or a sentence of probation for a defendant who commits a crime of violence against, or an offense of unlawful sexual contact with, a person who has not attained the age of 16 years.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2005
Amends the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 to require the Director of the Office for Victims of Crime to ensure that all sums in the Victims of Crime Fund in a fiscal year are in fact obligated in the subsequent fiscal year.