United States · United States Congress · 9 April 2013
Working Families Flexibility Act of 2013 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to authorize private employers to provide compensatory time off to private employees at a rate of 1 1/2 hours per hour of employment for which overtime compensation is required. Authorizes an employer to provide compensatory time only if it is in accordance with an applicable collective bargaining agreement or, in the absence of such an agreement, an agreement between the employer and employee. Prohibits an employee from accruing more than 160 hours of compensatory time. Requires an employee's employer to provide monetary compensation, after the end of a calendar year, for any unused compensatory time off accrued during the preceding year. Requires an employer to give employees 30-day notice before discontinuing compensatory time off. Prohibits an employer from intimidating, threatening, or coercing an employee in order to: (1) interfere with the employee's right to request or not to request compensatory time off in lieu of payment of monetary overtime compensation, or (2) require an employee to use such compensatory time. Makes an employer who violates such requirements liable to the affected employee in the amount of the compensation rate for each hour of compensatory time accrued, plus an additional equal amount as liquidated damages, reduced for each hour of compensatory time used.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 2013
Air Traffic Control Tower Funding Restoration Act - Amends the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013 to increase funding to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for air traffic organization activities. Allocates certain appropriations for contract tower program for contract towers in operation as of February 1, 2013. Specifies offsetting rescissions from FY2013 FAA appropriations for facilities and equipment and for research, engineering, and development.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2013
Palestinian Accountability Act - Prohibits any U.S. government document from referring to the areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority (PA) as Palestine until the Secretary of State certifies to Congress that the PA: (1) does not inappropriately influence elections in PA-contolled areas; (2) is promoting human rights and ending government corruption; (3) has taken steps to dismantle terrorist infrastructures and arrest terrorists, control Palestinian security organizations, and end the incitement to violence and hatred in the Palestinian media, educational institutions, and mosques; (4) has ceased to participate in any boycott of Israel; (5) works with Israel to implement the Performance-Based Roadmap to a Permanent Two-State Solution to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict of 2003 (the Roadmap to Peace); (6) recognizes Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state; and (7) has excluded Hamas from participating in a unity government or has required Hamas to publicly support such requirements. Prohibits certain Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 funds from being made available to the PA unless: (1) a U.S. nongovernmental or private entity audits the PA budget and the Secretary submits the audit to Congress, and (2) the Secretary certifies to Congress that the PA meets specified requirements. Prohibits funds from being obligated or expended for U.S. contributions to the United Nations (U.N.) if a Palestinian state is recognized as a U.N. member state unless the Secretary certifies to Congress that the PA meets specified requirements. Prohibits funds from from being obligated or expended for U.S. contributions to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) unless: (1) a U.S. nongovernmental or private entity audits the UNRWA budget and the Secretary submits the audit to Congress, and (2) the Secretary certifies to Congress that UNRWA meets specified requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 18 March 2013
Prohibits the federal government from using a drone (unmanned aircraft) to kill a U.S. citizen located in the United States. Makes such prohibition inapplicable to an individual who poses an immediate threat of death or serious bodily injury to another. States that nothing in this Act shall be construed to allow the killing of a U.S. citizen located in the United States without due process of law.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 2013
Directs the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives to arrange for the award, on behalf of Congress, of a gold medal in honor of the members of the 17 Bombardment Group (Medium), who became known as the Doolittle Tokyo Raiders, in recognition of their military service during World War II. Requires the medal to be given to the National Museum of the United States Air Force for display. Expresses the sense of Congress that such Museum should make the medal available for display elsewhere, particularly at locations and events associated with the Doolittle Tokyo Raiders.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2013
Stopping Needless Additional Performance Bonuses (SNAP) Act of 2013 - Amends the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to repeal the authority to make performance-based bonus payments to states under the supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program).
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2013
Centennial Monetary Commission Act of 2013 - Establishes the Centennial Monetary Commission to: (1) examine how U.S. monetary policy since the creation of the Federal Reserve Board in 1913 has affected the performance of the U.S. economy in terms of output, employment, prices, and financial stability over time; (2) evaluate various operational regimes under which the Board and the Federal Open Market Committee may conduct monetary policy in terms achieving the maximum sustainable level of output and employment and price stability over the long term; and (3) recommend a course for U.S. monetary policy going forward.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2013
Sound Dollar Act of 2013 - Amends the Federal Reserve Act (FRA) to direct the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) and the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) to: (1) pursue the goal of long-term price stability, and (2) establish metrics to evaluate whether long-term price stability is being achieved. Prescribes procedures for the establishment and evaluation of such metrics. Directs the Board and the FOMC to: (1) make such information available to the public on a website, and (2) report to Congress each time such metrics are set or revised. Directs the Board to include in its semiannual report to Congress: (1) the results of the evaluation process, (2) whether the goal of long-term price stability is being met, (3) the main monetary policy instruments and strategy used by the Board and the FOMC to achieve long-term price stability, and (4) an analysis of how the policies of the Board and the FOMC are affecting the foreign exchange rate value of the U.S. dollar. Directs the Board to clearly articulate its lender-of-last-resort policy. Revamps FOMC membership to consist of one representative from each of the Federal Reserve banks (in addition to members of the Board). Directs the FOMC to release meeting transcripts to the public within three years after each meeting. Redesignates the Department of the Treasury stabilization fund as the Special Drawing Rights Fund. Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to liquidate all property in the Fund (other than Special Drawing Rights) and to use all such amounts to reduce the public debt. Limits the availability of the Fund solely to stabilize exchange rates and arrangements. Repeals the authority of the Secretary to deal in U.S. instruments of credit and securities. Permits only Special Drawing Rights to be deposited into the Fund. Requires funds that would otherwise have been deposited into the Fund to be paid, instead, to the Secretary to reduce the public debt. Amends the FRA to authorize the FOMC, in unusual and exigent circumstances, by the affirmative vote of two-thirds of its members, to grant any Federal Reserve bank emergency authority to buy and sell U.S. debt obligations and revenue bonds in anticipation of the collection of taxes or the receipt of assured revenues by any state or local governmental entity, as well as obligations of, or guaranteed by, a foreign government or agency. Amends the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 to repeal: (1) funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and (2) the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2013
Express the sense of Congress that a carbon tax would be detrimental to American families and businesses and is not in the best interest of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 2013
Recognizes the Sabin Vaccine Institute on 20 years of success. Expresses support for the efforts of the Institute, Texas Children's Hospital, and Baylor College of Medicine to reduce the prevalence of neglected tropical diseases by developing new vaccines, advocating for increased use of existing vaccines, and expanding access to affordable medicine for the world's poorest people.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 2013
Life at Conception Act - Declares that the right to life guaranteed by the Constitution is vested in each human being beginning at the moment of fertilization, cloning, or other moment at which an individual comes into being. Prohibits construing this Act to authorize the prosecution of any woman for the death of her unborn child.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 2013
National Diabetes Clinical Care Commission Act - Establishes within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) the National Diabetes Clinical Care Commission to evaluate and make recommendations regarding better coordination and leveraging of federal programs that relate in any way to supporting appropriate clinical care for people with pre-diabetes and diabetes. Sets forth the duties of the Commission, which shall include: (1) evaluating HHS programs, (2) identifying current activities and critical gaps in federal efforts to support clinicians in providing care to people with pre-diabetes and diabetes, (3) recommending how an outcomes-based registry may be developed and then used to evaluate various care models and methods, (4) evaluating and expanding education and awareness to health care professionals regarding clinical practices for the prevention of diabetes and the precursor conditions of diabetes, and (5) reviewing and recommending appropriate methods for outreach and dissemination of educational resources related to diabetes prevention and treatments. Requires the Commission to submit an operating plan to the Secretary and Congress within 90 days of its first meeting.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 2013
Requires the Secretary of Commerce, in conducting any survey relating to the Census, to include in instructions for completing any such survey that participation in the survey is optional, except that survey respondents must provide their names, contract information, the date of response, and the number of people living or staying at the same addresses where the respondents reside. Prohibits any person participating in a survey from being fined or otherwise compelled to answer questions in connection with the survey (except for the basic questions permitted by this Act).
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 2013
Calls for the President to refrain from any further vacations at the taxpayers' expense until such sums have been saved that the White House can be reopened for public tours.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2013
English Language Unity Act of 2013 - Makes English the official language of the United States. Requires, subject to exceptions and rules of construction, that: (1) official functions of the U.S. government be conducted in English, and (2) all naturalization ceremonies be conducted in English. Establishes a uniform English language rule for naturalization. Makes English language requirements and workplace policies, whether in the public or private sector, presumptively consistent with the laws of the United States. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) to issue for public notice and comment a proposed rule for uniform testing of English language ability of candidates for naturalization based upon the principles that: (1) all citizens should be able to read and understand generally the English language text of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the laws of the United States; and (2) any exceptions to this standard should be limited to extraordinary circumstances, such as asylum.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2013
Low Value Shipment Regulatory Modernization Act of 2013 - Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States Trade Representative (USTR) should encourage other countries, through bilateral, regional, and multilateral fora, to establish commercially meaningful de minimis values for express and postal shipments of articles that are exempt from customs duties and certain entry documentation requirements, as appropriate. Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to increase from $200 to $800 for 2014, and to $800 adjusted annually for inflation after 2014, the aggregate retail value in the country of shipment of articles that may be imported duty-free into the United States by one person on one day.
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 2013
Medical Practice Freedom Act of 2013 - Prohibits the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) or any state from requiring any health care provider to participate in any health plan as a condition of the provider's licensure in any state.
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 2013
National Right-to-Work Act - Amends the National Labor Relations Act and the Railway Labor Act to repeal those provisions that permit employers, pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement that is a union security agreement, to require employees to join a union as a condition of employment (including provisions permitting railroad carriers to require, pursuant to such an agreement, payroll deduction of union dues or fees as a condition of employment).
United States · United States Congress · 4 March 2013
United States-Israel Strategic Partnership Act of 2013 - Declares that Israel is a major strategic partner of the United States. Amends the Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act of 2012 to extend authority to: (1) make additions to foreign-based defense stockpiles, and (2) transfer certain obsolete or surplus Department of Defense (DOD) items to Israel. Authorizes the President to carry out U.S.-Israel cooperative activities and to provide assistance for cooperation in the fields of energy, water, homeland security, agriculture, and alternative fuel technologies. Amends the the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 to extend the grant program for U.S.-Israeli cooperation on research, development, and commercialization of renewable energy or energy efficiency. Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States and Israel should increase cyber-security cooperation. Urges the President to provide assistance for enhancement of the David's Sling Weapon System, the joint United States-Israel Arrow Weapon System, and the Iron Dome short-range rocket defense system. States that it shall be U.S. policy to include Israel in the visa waiver program when Israel satisfies such program's inclusion requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 4 March 2013
Health Care Conscience Rights Act - Amends title I of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to declare that nothing in such title shall require an individual to purchase individual health insurance coverage that includes coverage of an abortion or other item or service to which the individual has a moral or religious objection, or prevent an issuer from offering or issuing, to that individual, individual coverage excluding such item or service. Makes similar denials about requiring a sponsor to sponsor, purchase, or provide such coverage, or a health insurance issuer or group health plan sponsor to cover an abortion or other item or service to which the sponsor or issuer has a moral or religious objection. Denies also that such title authorizes imposition of a tax, penalty, fee, fine, or other sanction, or imposition of coverage of such an item or service, in relation to health insurance coverage or a group health plan that excludes such an item or service. Amends the Public Health Service Act to codify the prohibition against any action by the federal government and any state or local government receiving federal financial assistance to subject a health professional, a hospital, a provider-sponsored organization, a health maintenance organization, an accountable care organization, a health insurance plan, or any other kind of health care facility, organization, or plan to discrimination on the basis that the entity refuses to participate in abortion-related activities. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to designate the Director of the Office for Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to receive and investigate complaints alleging a violation of abortion discrimination prohibition. Creates a cause of action for the Attorney General or any person or entity adversely affected to obtain equitable or legal relief for any violation of this abortion discrimination prohibition. Allows commencement of an action to be commenced and the granting of relief without a prerequisite pursuit of administrative remedies. Allows such an action against a federal or state governmental entity.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2013
Condemns the attack against the residents of Camp Hurriya in Iraq. Calls on the President to work with Iraq to ensure that the December 25, 2011, Memorandum of Understanding on the temporary relocation and eventual resettlement of the residents of Camp Ashraf is fully implemented and that humanitarian protections for such residents are upheld. Urges the President to work with Iraq and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to return the residents of Camp Hurriya to Camp Ashraf where they will have more protection from any future terrorist attacks.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2013
Nuclear Iran Prevention Act of 2013 - Directs the Secretary of State to determine if Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) meets the criteria for designation as a foreign terrorist organization and: (1) if so, designate the IRGC as a foreign terrorist organization; and (2) if not, report to Congress concerning those criteria which have not been met. Expresses the sense of Congress regarding the imposition of sanctions on certain Iranian government persons responsible for, or complicit in, human rights abuses, diversion of food and medicine, and censorship. Amends the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 to subject to mandatory sanctions a financial institution that facilitates a significant transaction or provides significant financial services for a person that: (1) is subject to human rights-related sanctions, or (2) exports sensitive technology to Iran and is subject to the prohibition on procurement contracts. Amends the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012 to authorize the President to impose sanctions on a foreign person that knowingly conducted or facilitated a significant financial transaction with the Central Bank of Iran or other Iranian financial institution subject to sanctions for the purchase of goods (other than petroleum or petroleum products) or services by or from a person in Iran, or on behalf of a person in Iran. Excludes from such sanctions a transaction for the sale of agricultural commodities, food, medicine or medical devices to Iran. Directs the President to impose specified sanctions on a foreign financial institution that knowingly facilitated a significant financial transaction on behalf of any person directly or indirectly owned or controlled by an Iranian person included on the list of specially designated nationals and blocked persons maintained by the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control. Revises the exception to the imposition of sanctions for purchases of Iranian petroleum or petroleum products. Expresses the sense of Congress that the President should coordinate with the European Union (EU) and its member states to restrict Iran's access to the euro currency. Directs the President to develop a National Strategy on Iran that provides strategic guidance for addressing threats posed by Iran. Directs the President to report to Congress every 60 days regarding the Iranian nuclear timetable and the projected economic effects of international sanctions on Iran. Requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to report to Congress regarding presidential implementation of specified sanctions on Iran.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2013
Diagnostic Imaging Services Access Protection Act of 2013 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, with respect to payments for physician services, to prohibit the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) from applying a multiple procedure payment reduction policy to the professional component of imaging services until the Secretary publishes in the Federal Register: (1) an analysis of the information used in the final rule to implement the physician fee schedule in 2013 to determine what, if any, efficiences exist within the professional component of imaging services when two or more studies are performed on the same patient on the same day; and (2) detailed information on which activities in the vignettes in such rule were assigned specified reduction percentages, how such percentage reductions for the pre-, intra-, and post-service work were determined and calculated, and the clinical aspects that went into those decisions.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2013
Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to eliminate the annual fee on health insurance providers set to be imposed beginning on January 1, 2013.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2013
Medicare Identity Theft Prevention Act of 2013 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish cost-effective procedures to ensure that: (1) a Social Security account number (or any derivative) is not displayed, coded, or embedded on the Medicare card issued to an individual entitled to benefits under part A (Hospital Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act or enrolled under Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance); and (2) any other identifier displayed on such card is not identifiable as a Social Security account number (or derivative thereof). Requires the Secretary, in implementing this Act, to: (1) establish a cost-effective process that involves the least amount of disruption to Medicare beneficiaries and health care providers; and (2) consider implementing a process similar to the one involving Railroad Retirement Board beneficiaries under which the Medicare beneficiary identifier used is not a Social Security account number (or derivative), is external to HHS, and is convertible over to a Social Security account number (or derivative) for use internal to HHS and the Social Security Administration.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2013
Directs the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives to arrange for the award of a single Congressional Gold Medal to honor collectively the World War II members of the Civil Air Patrol (CAP) in recognition of their military service and exemplary record during World War II. Requires the Medal's display at the Smithsonian Institution. Expresses the sense of Congress that the Medal should be made available for display elsewhere, particularly at locations associated with the CAP. Permits the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold medal, at a price sufficient to cover the costs of the medals.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2013
American Fighter Aces Congressional Gold Medal Act - Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the presentation of a single congressional gold medal in honor of the American Fighter Aces, collectively, in recognition of their heroic military service and defense of the nation's freedom.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2013
Fort Hood Victims and Families Benefits Protection Act - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) any member of the Armed Forces who was killed or wounded in the attack at Fort Hood, Texas, on November 5, 2009, and the family members of those victims, should receive the same treatment and benefits as the victims and families of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States; and (2) such members and families have made tremendous sacrifices, and the United States should provide them with the maximum level of benefits available, identical to that available to those killed or wounded in an overseas combat zone such as Iraq or Afghanistan. Treats members and DOD civilian employees killed or wounded in the shootings at Fort Hood, Texas, as members killed or wounded in a combat zone or civilian employees killed or wounded in a terrorist attack or while serving in a contingency operation, respectively, for purposes of specified laws, regulations, and policies concerning compensation, awards, and other benefits for which such members and employees are eligible.
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 2013
Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2013 or the ABLE Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish tax-exempt ABLE accounts to assist an individual with a disability in building an account to pay for qualified disability expenses. Defines "qualified disability expenses" to include expenses for education, including higher education expenses, a primary residence, transportation, obtaining and maintaining employment, health and wellness, and other personal support expenses. Treats a qualified ABLE program and an ABLE account in the same manner as a qualified tuition program for income tax purposes (i.e., allowing a tax exemption for such program and an exclusion from gross income of amounts attributable to a contributor to or a beneficiary of a program account). Defines "qualified ABLE program" as a program established and maintained by a state agency under which a person may make contributions to an ABLE account established to pay for qualified disability expenses. Requires amounts in ABLE accounts to be disregarded in determining eligibility for Medicaid and other means-tested federal programs. Suspends the payment of supplemental security income benefits under title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) of the Social Security Act to an individual during any period in which such individual has excess resources attributable to an ABLE account.
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 2013
National Park Service 100th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue gold, silver, and half-dollar clad coins in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the National Park Service (NPS). Authorizes the issuance of coins under this Act only for a one-year period, beginning on January 1, 2016. Requires all sales of coins minted under this Act to include a surcharge of $35 per gold coin, $10 per silver coin, and $5 per half-dollar clad coin. Requires all of the surcharges received from the sale of such coins to be paid to the National Park Foundation for projects and programs to help preserve and protect resources under the stewardship of the NPS and to promote public enjoyment and appreciation of those resources. Prohibits the surcharges paid to the Foundation from being used for land acquisition.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2013
Paul D. Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Community Assistance, Research and Education Amendments of 2013 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to revise the muscular dystrophy research program of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Expands the range of forms of muscular dystrophy included within the program. Requires the research conducted through Paul D. Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Cooperative Research Centers to include cardiac and pulmonary function research. Requires the Director of NIH to ensure the sharing of data between such centers. Revises the composition of the Muscular Dystrophy Coordinating Committee (MDCC) to include the Social Security Administration and the United States Administration for Community Living. Requires the MDCC to meet at least two times per year. Requires the MDCC Action Plan to provide for: (1) health economic studies to demonstrate the cost-effectiveness of providing independent living resources and support to patients with various forms of muscular dystrophy, (2) studies to determine optimal clinical care interventions for adults with various forms of muscular dystrophy, and (3) the development of clinical interventions to improve the health of adults with various forms of muscular dystrophy. Requires the MDCC to develop a plan to expedite the evaluation and approval of emerging therapies and personalized medicines that have the potential to decrease fatal disease progression across the various forms of muscular dystrophy. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), in carrying out epidemiological activities regarding Duchenne and other forms of muscular dystrophies, to ensure that data from different racial and ethnic populations is captured and made publicly available to investigators conducting public or private research on muscular dystrophy. Directs the Secretary to foster ongoing engagement and collaboration between the surveillance program and the research centers. Amends the Muscular Dystrophy Community Assistance, Research, and Education Amendments of 2001 to authorize the Secretary to: (1) update and disseminate widely existing Duchenne-Becker muscular dystrophy care considerations for pediatric patients, and (2) develop and disseminate widely Duchenne-Becker muscular dystrophy considerations for adult patients and acute care considerations for all muscular dystrophy populations. Directs that such care considerations should build upon existing efforts currently underway for specified forms of muscular dystrophy and incorporate strategies specifically responding to the findings of the national transitions survey of minority, young adult, and adult communities of muscular dystrophy patients.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2013
Expedited LNG for American Allies Act of 2013 - Amends the Natural Gas Act to deem consistent with the public interest an expedited application and approval process without modification or delay for the exportation of natural gas to a foreign country that is: (1) a nation with which there is in effect a free trade agreement requiring national treatment for trade in natural gas (as under existing law); (2) a member country of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO); (3) Japan, as long as the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between the United States and Japan remains in effect; and (4) any other foreign country if the Secretary of State determines that such exportation promotes U.S. national security interests.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2013
Refundable Child Tax Credit Eligibility Verification Reform Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the child tax credit, to require taxpayers claiming such credit to provide their social security numbers on their tax returns. Prohibits taxpayers who improperly claimed such credit in a previous year from claiming such credit during a disallowance period of: (1) 2 years for claims made with reckless or intentional disregard of rules governing such credit, or (2) 10 years for fraudulent claims. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to prescribe a form for completion by paid income tax preparers in connection with claims for the refundable portion of the child tax credit. Imposes a penalty on preparers who fail to comply with due diligence requirements for claiming the refundable portion of the credit.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2013
Free File Program Act of 2013 - Authorizes and directs the Secretary of the Treasury to continue to implement and operate the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Free File program (free online individual income tax preparation and electronic filing services provided by the private sector technology industry to lower income taxpayers).
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2013
Require Presidential Leadership and No Deficit Act or Require a PLAN Act - Directs the President, if his budget for FY2014, as submitted to Congress, results in a projected deficit in every fiscal year for which estimates are provided in it, to submit by April 1, 2013, a supplemental unified budget that includes: the information required by law for the President's budget, an estimate of the earliest fiscal year in which the supplemental budget is not projected to result in a deficit, a detailed description of additional policies to be implemented in order to achieve such result, and an explanation of the differences between the President's original FY2014 budget and the supplemental unified budget.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2013
Protecting Seniors' Access to Medicare Act of 2013 - Repeals sections of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care (PPACA) (and restores provisions of law amended by such sections) related to the establishment of an Independent Payment Advisory Board to develop and submit detailed proposals to reduce the per capita rate of growth in Medicare spending to the President for Congress to consider.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2013
Keystone For a Secure Tomorrow Act - Approves a specified permit regarding certain energy-related facilities and land transportation crossings on the international boundaries of the United States for the Keystone XL pipeline project. Includes within such permit the Nebraska reroute evaluated in the Final Evaluation Report issued the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality in January 2013. Prescribes permit requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2013
Authorizes a Wall of Remembrance as part of the previously authorized Korean War Veterans Memorial to include, in regards to the Korean War: (1) a list by name of members of the U.S. Armed Forces who were killed in such action; (2) the number of members who were wounded, missing, or prisoners; and (3) the number of members of the Korean Augmentation to the U.S. Army, the Republic of Korea Armed Forces, and the other nations of the United Nations (U.N.) Command who were killed, wounded, missing, or prisoners. Prohibits using any federal funds to construct the memorial.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2013
Requires the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to make appropriate arrangements for the award, on behalf of Congress, of two gold medals to the First Special Service Force (a joint American-Canadian volunteer unit), collectively, in recognition of their World War II service. Directs one such gold medal to be given to the Smithsonian Institution and the other to the First Special Service Force Association in Helena, Montana. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell bronze duplicates with proceeds deposited in the U.S. Mint Public Enterprise Fund. Declares that medals struck under this Act are national medals for purposes of specified coins and currency provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2013
Hunting, Fishing, and Recreational Shooting Protection Act - Amends the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to exclude from the definition of "chemical substance" for purposes of such Act: (1) any component of any pistol, revolver, firearm, shell, or cartridge the sale of which is subject to federal excise tax, including shot, bullets and other projectiles, propellants, and primers; and (2) any sport fishing equipment the sale of which is subject to federal excise tax and sport fishing equipment components.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2013
Establishes in the House of Representatives a select Committee to investigate and report to the House on: any intelligence known to the United States relating to the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, on September 11, 2012; any requests for additional security, or actions taken by federal agencies to improve security at the consulate before the attack; a definitive timeline of it; how the relevant agencies and the executive branch responded to it and whether appropriate congressional notifications were made; any improper conduct by officials relating to the attack; recommendations on what steps Congress and the President should take to prevent future attacks; and any other relevant issues relating to the attack or the response to it.
United States · United States Congress · 15 January 2013
Amends the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011, as amended by the Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2013 (P.L. 112-175), to extend through December 31, 2013: (1) the freeze on statutory pay adjustments for federal employees and officials, and (2) the prohibition against any member of the Senior Executive Service or any senior level employee in the executive branch from receiving an increase in his or her rate of basic pay absent a change of position that results in a substantial increase in responsibility or a promotion. Eliminates the delayed statutory pay adjustment contained in the Resolution that was permitted to take effect with the first applicable pay period beginning after March 27, 2013.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2013
Title X Abortion Provider Prohibition Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to prohibit the Secretary of Health and Human Service (HHS) from providing any federal family planning assistance to an entity unless the entity certifies that, during the period of such assistance, the entity will not perform, and will not provide any funds to any other entity that performs, an abortion. Excludes an abortion where: (1) the pregnancy is the result of an act of rape or an act of incest; or (2) a physician certifies that the woman suffered from a physical disorder, injury, or illness that would place the woman in danger of death unless an abortion is performed, including a condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy. Excludes hospitals from such requirement so long as the hospital does not provide funds to any non-hospital entity that performs an abortion. Requires the Secretary to annually provide Congress: (1) information on grantees who performed abortions under the exceptions, and (2) a list of entities to which grant funds are made available.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 2013
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 4110 Almeda Road in Houston, Texas, as the "George Thomas 'Mickey' Leland Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 2013
Federal Reserve Transparency Act of 2013 - Directs the Comptroller General (GAO) to: (1) complete, within 12 months of enactment of this Act, the required audit of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) and of the Federal Reserve Banks; and (2) submit to Congress, within 90 days of audit completion, a detailed report of audit findings and conclusions. Repeals certain limitations placed upon such audit. Instructs the Comptroller General to audit and report on the review of loan files of homeowners in foreclosure in 2009 or 2010, required as part of the enforcement actions taken by the Board against supervised financial institutions. Prescribes audit contents, including: (1) the guidance given by the Board to independent consultants retained by the supervised financial institutions regarding procedures to be followed in conducting the file reviews, (2) the factors considered by independent consultants when evaluating loan files and the results obtained pursuant to those reviews, and (3) the determinations made by such consultants regarding the nature and extent of financial injury sustained by each homeowner as well as the level and type of remediation offered.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 2013
Repeals the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, effective as of its enactment. Restores provisions of law amended by such Act. Repeals the health care provisions of the Health Care and Education and Reconciliation Act of 2010, effective as of the Act's enactment. Restores provisions of law amended by the Act's health care provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 2013
Federal Employee Accountability Act of 2013 - Repeals provisions: (1) authorizing a federal employee representing an exclusive representative in the negotiation of a collective bargaining agreement official time for such purpose during the time such employee otherwise would be in a duty status; and (2) requiring the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) to determine whether any employee participating for, or on behalf of, a labor organization in any phase of proceedings before it shall be authorized official time for that purpose.
![Official portrait of Rep. Johnson, Sam [R-TX-3]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/j000174_200.jpg)