United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
Credit Union Regulatory Improvements Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal Credit Union Act to reduce the minimum net worth ratio requirements of well-capitalized, adequately capitalized, under capitalized, and significantly undercapitalized credit unions. Sets the minimum risk-based net ratio at 8%. Revises the requirement that the National Credit Union Administration Board design the risk-based net worth standard to take account of any material risks to insured credit unions. Requires the standard to be designed in relation to risk assets, and to be based on comparable standards for taking into account material risks to insured depository institutions under the Federal Deposit Insurance Act that are applicable to credit unions. Revises definitions relating to net worth of credit unions. Cites circumstances in which the Board may waive the requirement that an undercapitalized credit union submit an acceptable net worth restoration plan. Revamps guidelines governing limits and restrictions on member business loans. Authorizes credit unions to lease to any business enterprise separate and clearly distinct space in buildings in credit union offices in underserved areas. Permits a credit union to invest securities for its own account. Increases from 12 to 15 years the term of credit union loans. Increases from 1% to 3% the investment limit in credit union service organizations. Permits credit unions to offer check cashing and money transfer services to persons within the field of membership (instead of, as currently, to members only). Extends to voluntary mergers on or after August 7, 1998, involving multiple common-bond credit unions the exemption from the numerical limit (only a group with fewer than 3,000 members) for eligibility for inclusion in the field of membership category of such a credit union. Requires the Board to prescribe criteria for continued membership of certain member groups in the case of conversions of certain credit unions to a community charter. Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 to treat credit unions as banks which shall not be considered brokers or dealers because the credit unions engage in certain broker- or dealer-related activities.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
Imposes a six-month moratorium on terminations of certain pension plans, instituted under specified provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), in cases in which reorganization of contributing sponsors is sought in bankruptcy or insolvency proceedings.
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 · 11 May 2005
Montgomery GI Bill Improvements Act of 2005 - Amends the Montgomery GI Bill to authorize enhanced educational assistance to a member of the Armed Forces who, after September 30, 2005: (1) first enters on active duty; (2) reenlists or continues to serve on active duty; (3) serves a continuous period of active duty of four years; or (4) serves and is discharged or released for a service-connected disability, at the convenience of the Government (after serving at least 42 months of such duty), or due to a reduction in force. Limits to 36 months the period for such enhanced assistance. Requires the payment of educational expenses under such program. Provides a monthly stipend for approved programs of education. Increases the rates of basic educational assistance. Repeals, with respect to such assistance: (1) a required monthly reduction in pay for individuals who do not elect to participate in such assistance program; (2) a provision authorizing individuals to elect not to receive such assistance; and (3) the requirement that participants complete the requirements of a high school diploma or equivalency certificate prior to the end of their initial obligated period of service in order to be eligible to receive such assistance. Excludes educational assistance payments from income for purposes of eligibility for Federal educational loans. Repeals the ten-year delimiting date for use of entitlement to basic educational assistance for: (1) veterans; (2) Selected Reserve members; and (3) members of the reserve components called or ordered to active service in response to a war or national emergency. Eliminates: (1) with respect to transfer of basic educational assistance to a dependent by a member of the Armed Forces with critical skills the requirements that such skill or specialty be designated by the Secretary concerned as eligible for such transfer; and (2) with respect to accelerated payments of basic educational assistance the requirement that the individual is enrolled in a program leading to employment in a high technology occupation. Increases student loan program repayment amounts for active duty and Selected reserve members. Limits total repayment amounts for: (1) active duty members with specialties to $40,000; and (2) Selected Reserve members with specialties to $20,000.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2005
Indentured Servitude Abolition Act of 2005 - Requires foreign labor contractors (recruiters) and employers to inform foreign workers accurately of specified terms and conditions of their employment at the time they are recruited. Requires such information to be provided in written form in English or, as necessary and reasonable, in the language of the worker being recruited. Prohibits charging fees to workers for recruitment. Requires employers to pay such a worker's transportation costs, including subsistence costs during the period of travel: (1) from the place of recruitment to the place of employment; and (2) from the place of employment to the worker's place of permanent residence. Prohibits discrimination in employment by an employer or a recruiter against an individual because of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, religion, age, or disability. Requires employers to notify the Secretary of Labor of the identity of: (1) any recruiter involved in any foreign labor contractor activity for or on behalf of the employer; and (2) any such recruiter whose activities do not comply with this Act. Subjects employers to the civil remedies of this Act for violations committed by such recruiters to the same extent as if the employers had committed the violations. Prescribes civil and criminal penalties for violations of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2005
Andrew Carnegie Public Libraries Act - Amends the Library Services and Technology Act to authorize the Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services to make grants for the construction or modernization of public libraries. Sets forth application requirements for persons or entities desiring to receive such grants. Allows the non-federal share of project costs to be provided from state, local, or private sources, including for-profit and nonprofit organizations. Provides for recovery of funds if a grant recipient or successor ceases or fails to be a public or nonprofit institution, or if the facility ceases to be used as a library.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2005
Patients' Bill of Rights Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), and the Internal Revenue Code to set forth requirements for health plans or issuers of health insurance coverage, including requirements for: (1) utilization review activities; (2) procedures for claims benefits processing, prior authorization determinations, appeals, and internal reviews; and (3) access for an independent, external review. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish the Health Care Consumer Assistance Fund to award grants to States for consumer assistance activities designed to provide information, assistance, and referrals to consumers of health insurance products. Sets forth requirements for managed care programs and their access to care, including requiring such programs to: (1) offer coverage that allows for non-network coverage through another plan or issuer; (2) provide access to out-of-network emergency care without prior authorization; and (3) provide timely access to specialists. Requires certain annual disclosures from health plans or issuers, including disclosures of covered benefits, cost-sharing requirements, and participating providers. Prohibits a plan or issuer from: (1) restricting a health care professional's ability to advise a patient on the health of an individual or on medical care or treatment for the individual's condition or disease; and (2) operating any physician incentive plan. Establishes a cause of action against a plan or issuer that fails to exercise ordinary care in making a decision that results in a personal injury or death to a participant or beneficiary. Provides a tax credit to small businesses for expenses paid by the business for health insurance coverage of employees.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2005
Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to make grants to public or nonprofit private entities for the development and operation of not more than eight centers to conduct multidisciplinary and multi-institutional research on environmental factors that may be related to the etiology of breast cancer. Requires each such center to: (1) be known as a Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Center of Excellence; (2) establish ongoing collaborations with community organizations; (3) be formed from a consortium of cooperating institutions; (4) be supported under this Act for a period of not more than five years with additional periods allowed after review and recommendation; and (5) use innovative approaches to study unexplored areas of the environment and breast cancer. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Panel to make recommendations for and to review grants awarded under this Act.
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
Pension Fairness and Full Disclosure Act of 2005 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to establish a termination fairness standard that limits availability of benefits under an employer's nonqualified deferred compensation plans if such employer's defined benefit pension plan is subjected to: (1) a termination based on bankruptcy reorganization; or (2) a conversion to a cash balance plan. Prohibits funding nonqualified deferred compensation plans while maintaining underfunded defined benefit plans. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose excise taxes on funding nonqualified deferred compensation plans: (1) in the event of a pension plan termination based on bankruptcy reorganization or of a conversion to a cash balance plan; or (2) while maintaining underfunded defined benefit plans. Requires disclosure with respect to nonqualified deferred compensation plans.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2005
Commission to Study the Potential Creation of a National Museum of the American Latino Community Act of 2005 - Establishes the Commission to Study the Potential Creation of a National Museum of the American Latino Community to develop a plan of action for the establishment and maintenance of a National Museum of the American Latino Community in Washington, D.C.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2005
Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to furnish for placement a memorial headstone or marker in a national cemetery to commemorate veterans and their spouses whose remains are interred in an American Battle Monuments Commission cemetery.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2005
Amends the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-76) to extend through September 30, 2007, the waiver authority of the Secretary of Education with respect to student financial assistance during a war or other military operation or national emergency.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2005
United States Cadet Nurse Corps Equity Act - Deems service of a person as a member of the United States Cadet Nurse Corps between July 1, 1943, and December 15, 1945 (qualified service), to be active military service for purposes of all laws administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Requires: (1) the Secretary of Defense to issue an honorable discharge to each person whose qualified service warrants one; and (2) the discharge to be issued before the end of the one-year period beginning on the enactment of this Act. Prohibits benefits from being paid to persons as a result of such enactment for any period before the enactment date.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2005
New GI Bill of Rights for the 21st Century Act - Revises, expands, or provides new rights and benefits for members of the Armed Forces, veterans, and their dependents and survivors, including, among others: (1) an FY 2006 increase in funding for veterans' medical care; (2) a prohibition until the end of FY2006 on medication copayments and on the imposition of a health care system enrollment fee; (3) an extension until 2010 of Vietnam veterans' eligibility for readjustment counseling services; (4) the collection of data from pre- and post-deployment health assessments, and preventive maintenance post-deployment intervention; (5) the prevention, early detection, and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for returning troops; (6) a Department of Defense/Department of Veterans Affairs Council on Post-Deployment Mental Health; (7) survivors' and dependents' eligibility for family and bereavement counseling; (8) certain educational initiatives; (9) a National Steering Committee on PTSD Education and a PTSD public awareness program; (10) certain benefits and outreach services for disabled veterans; (11) an increase in survivors' dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC); (12) certain pay increases and bonuses for active-duty members; (13) an expansion of benefits under under both the active-duty and reserve Montgomery GI Bill programs; (14) employment assistance for homeless veterans; (15) expanded reserve member eligibility under the TRICARE program (a Department of Defense managed health care program); (16) certain recruitment and retention incentives for Selected Reserve members; and (17) certain pay matters with respect to Federal employees performing active-duty reserve service. Repeals the: (1) DIC offset from Survivor Benefit Plan surviving spouse annuities; (2) pay reduction and high school graduation requirement for participation in the Montgomery GI Bill educational assistance program; (3) delimiting date for entitlement to basic educational assistance under such program; (4) time limitation on the exclusion of combat zone compensation by reason of hospitalization; (5) tax cut (implemented in 2001) for high-income taxpayers; (6) scheduled termination of the phaseout of personal exemptions; and (6) scheduled phaseout of the overall limitation on itemized deductions.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2005
Pregnancy Discrimination Act Amendments of 2005 - Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to include lactation (breastfeeding, including expression of milk) as protected conduct under such Act. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow employers a business tax credit for breast pumps and other equipment to assist employed mothers to breastfeed or express milk for their children and for consultation services relating to breastfeeding. Safe and Effective Breast Pumps Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) put into effect a performance standard for breast pumps irrespective of the class to which the breast pumps have been classified under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act; and (2) issue a compliance policy guide which will assure that women who want to breastfeed a child are given full and complete information respecting breast pumps. Expands the definition of medical care in the Internal Revenue Code to include qualified breastfeeding equipment and services.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2005
Steve Grissom Relief Fund Act of 2005 - Establishes the Steve Grissom Relief Fund in the Treasury. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make a single payment from the Fund to any individual infected with HIV or diagnosed with AIDS who: (1) was treated with HIV-contaminated blood, blood components, human tissue, or organs; (2) is the lawful spouse of an individual so treated; (3) is a former spouse of such an individual and can assert reasonable certainty of transmission of HIV from such individual; and (4) acquired HIV through perinatal transmission from such an individual or individual's spouse. Sets forth documentation, petition, determination, and payment procedures. States that such payments do not create or admit any claim, but do constitute full satisfaction of all claims by or on behalf of such an individual. Provides that such payments do not constitute income for tax, benefits, or other purposes. Prohibits the assignment or transfer of rights under this Act. Limits petitions to one per victim. Terminates the program after five years. Excludes payments from consideration as: (1) compensation or reimbursement in determining repayment for insurance or worker's compensation benefits; or (2) income or resources in determining eligibility for social security income benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2005
Student Bill of Rights - Directs the Secretary of Education to make annual determinations as to whether each state's public school system provides all its students with educational resources to succeed academically and in life. Requires such education to enable students to: (1) acquire knowledge and skills necessary for responsible citizenship; (2) meet challenging academic achievement standards; and (3) compete and succeed in a global economy. Requires each system to do so through: (1) providing specified fundamentals of educational opportunity to students at each public elementary and secondary school; (2) providing educational services in school districts that receive funds for disadvantaged students that are, taken as a whole, at least comparable to educational services provided in school districts not receiving such funds; and (3) complying with any final federal or state court order in any matter concerning the adequacy or equitableness of the system. Requires withholding of specified portions of its federal funding for administrative expenses if a system: (1) fails to meet a yearly interim goal; (2) does not remedy, after two school years, a failure to provide comparable educational services to schools that receive funds for disadvantaged children; or (3) does not comply with a court order. Allows students or parents aggrieved by violations of this Act to bring civil actions for enforcement in federal district courts. Directs the Commissioner of Education Statistics to study the effects of educational disparities on economic growth and on national defense.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2005
Healthcare Enhancement for Local Public Safety Retirees Act of 2005 or the HELPS Retirees Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow retired public safety officers to elect an annual exclusion from gross income up to $5,000 for distributions from governmental retirement plans for the payment of accident or health insurance or long-term care insurance.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2005
Great Lakes Environmental Protection and Restoration Programs Reauthorization Act - Amends the Water Resources Development Acts of 2000, 1990, and 1996, respectively, to reauthorize appropriations for: (1) Great Lakes fishery and ecosystem restoration; (2) Great Lakes remedial action plans and sediment remediation projects; and (3) the development of a tributary sediment transport model for the Great Lakes. Reauthorizes appropriations under: (1) the Food Security Act of 1985 for the Great Lakes basin program for soil erosion and sediment control; (2) the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain Act of 2002 for research and development; and (3) the Federal Water Pollution Control Act for the Great Lakes National Program Office. Directs such Office and the Great Lakes Research Office to submit the joint research plan to the Executive Committee of the Regional Collaboration. Authorizes appropriations for: (1) the Great Lakes Coordination Office; (2) research on fisheries and ecosystems in the Lower Great Lakes; and (3) the Director of the U.S. Geological Survey, for use by the Great Lakes Science Center. Reauthorizes national programs for the prevention, reduction, and elimination of pollution and authorizes the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in carrying out such programs, to provide technical assistance to rural and small municipalities to help in planning, developing, and acquiring financing for wastewater infrastructure assistance. Extends the payment period for water pollution control revolving loan funds. Authorizes a State to provide additional subsidization to benefit a municipality that meets specified requirements. Codifies: (1) the Great Lakes Interagency Task Force within EPA (as originally established by Executive Order 13340); and (2) the Framework for the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2005
Expresses the sense of Congress in support of a national bike month and in appreciation of cyclists and others for promoting bicycle safety and the health, transportation, recreational, and environmental benefits of cycling.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2005
Gas Price Spike Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a windfall profit tax on crude oil, natural gas, or products of crude oil or natural gas. Defines "windfall profit" as so much of the profit on a sale of crude oil, natural gas, or related products as exceeds a reasonable profit. Establishes the Reasonable Profits Board to determine levels of reasonable profit from the sale of such products. Allows a tax credit for the purchase of certain fuel-efficient, American-made passenger vehicles. Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to make grants to operators of mass transit systems, including bus and commuter rail systems, to reduce passenger fares on such systems.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2005
FamilyCare Act of 2005 - Renames the State Children's Health Insurance program (SCHIP) under title XXI of the Social Security Act (SSA) as the FamilyCare program. Provides for: (1) FamilyCare coverage of parents and pregnant women under Medicaid (SSA title XIX) as well as under new SSA title XXI; (2) optional FamilyCare coverage of parents of targeted low-income children; (3) automatic eligibility for FamilyCare coverage of children born to a parent on FamilyCare assistance; (4) optional coverage of legal immigrants and of children through age 20 under Medicaid and FamilyCare; (5) authorization of a State to use simplified procedures under Medicaid for families under Family care; (6) revision of the transitional medical assistance program; (7) limitations on specified conflicts of interests under Medicaid and FamilyCare; (8) a limitation on cost-sharing to 2.5 percent for families with income below 150 percent of the poverty level; and (9) increased Federal reimbursement for language services under Medicaid and FamilyCare. Requires the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on funding under SSA title XXI. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award demonstration grants to up to seven States (or other qualified entities) to conduct innovative programs designed to improve outreach to enroll homeless individuals and families and provide them services under specified programs for the homeless (including Medicaid and FamilyCare).
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2005
Medicare Early Access Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to add a new part E (Purchase of Medicare Benefits by Certain Individuals 55 to 65 Years of Age). Provides access to Medicare benefits for individuals 55 to 64 years of age who do not have coverage under a Federal health insurance program or under a group plan. Requires enrollees to pay a premium to receive Medicare coverage. Requires the Secretary to base the premium on the Secretary's estimate of the average, national annual per capita amount of the cost of providing services to the population. Allows early retirees with access to retiree coverage to enroll under this part while keeping their Federal or State COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985) continuation coverage. Allows an employer that offers employment-based retiree health coverage to an individual who enrolls under this part to modify such coverage to provide for: (1) employer payment of items and services for which payment may not be made under Medicare; and (2) employer payment of 25 percent of the monthly premium applicable to the individual after enrollment. Creates in the Treasury the Medicare Early Access Trust Fund to hold the premiums collected under this Act and to support the new program. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow program enrollees to receive a 75 percent advance, refundable credit to offset Medicare early access premium costs (thus requiring program enrollees in the Medicare early access program to be responsible for 25 percent of the monthly premiums).
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2005
Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to prohibit any person from importing, transporting, or exporting municipal solid waste for final disposal or for incineration in violation of the Agreement Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of Canada Concerning the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Waste or any regulation implementing such agreement. Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to: (1) perform the functions of the Designated Authority of the United States with respect to such importation and exportation under the agreement; and (2) implement and enforce the notice and consent provisions of the agreement as well as its other provisions. Sets forth factors to consider in determining whether to consent to the importation of municipal solid waste. Requires that the views of States be given substantial weight. Authorizes the Administrator to issue orders assessing civil penalties, requiring compliance, or both, or to commence civil actions in U.S. district court to address violations of this Act. Limits civil penalties assessed pursuant to an administrative order to $25,000 per day of noncompliance. Authorizes persons subject to administrative orders to request a public hearing. Authorizes States to enact laws imposing limitations (including prohibitions) on the receipt and disposal of foreign municipal solid waste. States that no such action shall be considered to impose an undue burden on interstate or foreign commerce.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2005
Small Business Health Insurance Promotion Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow certain small employers (not more than 50 employees) a business tax credit equal to 50 percent of amounts paid by such employers for the health care coverage of their employees under a qualified health pooling arrangement. Limits the period during which the tax credit may be taken to four years from the date the employer begins participating in a qualified health pooling arrangement. Defines "qualified health pooling arrangement" as a national or state arrangement that provides health benefits coverage substantially similar to that of the four largest health benefit plans offered to Federal employees. Directs the Secretaries of Health and Human Services and Labor to provide for the offering and oversight of qualified State and national health pooling arrangements and to conduct a study, through the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, of the operation of such arrangements.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2005
Advance Directives Improvement and Education Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, to provide for Medicare coverage of end-of-life planning consultations. Requires a service provider, Medicare Advantage organization, or prepaid or eligible organization to give effect to an advance directive executed outside the State in which it is presented, even one that does not appear to meet the formalities of execution, form, or language required by the State in which it is presented, to the same extent as such provider or organization would give effect to an advanced directive that meets such requirements. Permits a provider or organization to decline to honor such a directive if it can be reasonably demonstrated that it is not an authentic expression of the individual's wishes. Makes such advance directive requirements applicable under Medicaid, title XIX of the Social Security Act. Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary to conduct a national public education campaign to raise public awareness of the importance of planning for care near the end of life, and specified related issues. Directs the Secretary to provide for the establishment of a national, toll-free, information clearinghouse as well as clearinghouses that the public may access to find out about State-specific information regarding advance directive and end-of-life decisions. Requires General Accounting Office studies and reports on end-of-life planning issues.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2005
Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Transplant Patients Act of 2005 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance)(OASDI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to eliminate the time limitations for coverage of immunosuppressive drugs for individuals who receive a kidney transplant or other organ transplant. Amends title XVIII (Medicare ) of SSA to apply special rules to individuals receiving additional coverage for immunosuppressive drugs, including: (1) that such individual is deemed to be enrolled under Medicare part B for purposes of receiving such coverage; (2) that such individual is responsible for the full amount of the applicable premiums; and (3) that deductible and coinsurance amounts apply. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish procedures for implementing such coverage. Extends Medicare secondary payer requirements for end stage renal disease beneficiaries. Amends the Public Health Service Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), and the Internal Revenue Code to require a group health plan or issuer to provide coverage of immunosuppressive drugs that is at least as comprehensive as coverage provided on the date of enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
American Veterans Disabled for Life Commemorative Coin - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue $1 silver coins emblematic of the design selected by the Disabled Veterans' LIFE Memorial Foundation for the American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial, in commemoration of disabled American veterans. Expresses the sense of Congress that, to the greatest extent possible, the coins should be struck at the United States Mint at West Point, New York, Limits the period for coin issuance to the calendar year beginning on January 1, 2010. Imposes a $10 surcharge per coin, to be distributed to the Disabled Veterans' LIFE Memorial Foundation for the purpose of establishing an endowment to support the construction of American Veterans' Disabled for Life Memorial in Washington, D.C.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
Focus On Committed and Underpaid Staff for Children's Sake Act - FOCUS Act - Establishes: (1) the Child Care Provider Development and Retention Grant Program; and (2) the Child Care Provider Scholarship Program. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to allot funds to eligible states (and Indian tribes and tribal organizations) for distribution directly, or at state option through local governments, to pay the federal share of the cost of making grants to eligible child care providers under both such programs. Healthy Early Education Workforce Grant Program Act - Authorizes the Secretary to allot funds to eligible states (and Indian tribes and tribal organizations) to pay for the federal share of the cost of providing access to affordable health benefits coverage for: (1) eligible child care providers; and (2) at state option, the spouses, domestic partners, and dependents of such providers. Directs the Secretary to conduct an evaluation of several such funded state programs representing various approaches to increasing the rate of coverage for child care providers.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
Medicare Ambulance Payment Reform and Rural Equity Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) revise ambulance payment rates; and (2) provide additional payments for providers furnishing ambulance services in rural areas. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to review the system for adjusting payments for rural ambulance services to determine their adequacy and appropriateness. Amends SSA title XVIII with respect to a Secretary-specified uniform coding system identifying furnished ambulance services for purposes of a fee schedule. Directs the Secretary to establish a system or systems for the coding of claims for ambulance services for which payment is made, including a code set specifying the medical condition of the individual who is transported and the level of service that is appropriate for the transportation of an individual with that medical condition. Requires the code set to take into account the list of medical conditions developed in the course of the negotiated rulemaking process. (Current law authorizes the Secretary to require the claim for any ambulance services to include a code (or codes) under a uniform coding system specified by the Secretary, but does not require the establishment of such a coding system.)
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
Medicare Adult Day Care Services Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for Medicare coverage of substitute adult day care services.
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 · 28 April 2005
Welcome Home G.I. Bill Act of 2005 - Increases and extends the duration of basic educational assistance for individuals who serve at least six consecutive months (with exceptions from the six consecutive months requirement due to medical, hardship, or involuntary separation ) on active duty outside the United States as part of a combat or contingency operation (including a humanitarian or peacekeeping operation) beginning on September 11, 2001, and ending five years after enactment of this Act. Permits assistance use for student loan repayment. Provides for refund of educational contributions made under the Montgomery G.I. Bill program. Increases and extends the duration of educational assistance for reserve component members called or ordered to active service in response to a war or national emergency who perform active duty service for 180 consecutive days before the five-year period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act. Permits assistance use for student loan repayment. Provides $5,000 for a residential purchase downpayment for a veteran who: (1) performs active duty service outside the United States as part of a combat or contingency operation (including a humanitarian or peacekeeping operation) for at least six consecutive months (or a lesser time period for an individual with a service-connected disability) after September 11, 2001; and (2) has not previously obtained a veterans' guaranteed or insured housing loan. Makes such benefit available for five years from the date eligible service is completed. Amends the the Internal Revenue Code to exclude such housing benefit from gross income. Provides transitional health care benefits during the five-year period after separation from active duty for an individual who is not covered under an employer-provided or a spouse's employer-provided group health plan who: (1) serves in the active military, naval, or air service; (2) after September 11, 2001, is deployed outside the United States as part of a combat or contingency operation (including a humanitarian or peacekeeping operation) for at least six consecutive months (or a lesser time period for an individual with a service-connected disability); and (3) is discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable. Revises predeployment and postdeployment medical exam provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
Living Organ Donor Job Security Act of 2005 - Amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) to entitle employees covered by FMLA to leave to provide a living organ donation, including for time spent for: (1) tests to determine medical suitability of the employee for donation; (2) physical, psychological, and social evaluations of the donor; (3) pretransplant outpatient services; (4) postoperative inpatient and outpatient transplantation services; (5) travel in connection with such tests, evaluations, and services; and (6) recuperation.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
9/11 Commission Full Funding Act - Requires the President to submit to Congress a report explaining each homeland security funding shortfall included in the budget submitted for FY 2006 and for every fiscal year thereafter, including the rationale for requesting less than the authorized funding level. Defines "homeland security funding shortfall" as a program authorized by the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 for which: (1) the maximum specified authorization of appropriations is not requested in the President's budget; or (2) no amount of authorized appropriations is specified and the amount requested by the President is insufficient to operate the program.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2005
Melanie Blocker-Stokes Postpartum Depression Research and Care Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), to expand and intensify research and related activities on postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis. Requires the Director of NIMH to conduct or support research to expand the understanding of the causes of, and to find a cure for, such conditions. Directs the Secretary to make grants to establish, operate, and coordinate effective and cost-efficient systems for the delivery of essential services to individuals with such conditions and their families. Allows the Secretary to provide technical assistance to grant recipients.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2005
Healthy Families Act - Requires certain employers, who employ 15 or more employees for each working day during 20 or more workweeks a year, to provide a minimum paid sick leave of: (1) seven days annually for those who work at least 30 hours per week; and (2) a prorated annual amount for those who work less than 30 but at least 20 hours a week, or less than 1,500 but at least 1,000 hours per year. Allows employees to use such leave to meet their own medical needs or to care for the medical needs of certain family members. Directs the Secretary of Labor to exercise certain investigative and enforcement authority with respect to this Act's provisions regarding employees covered by title I of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 or the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991. Provides that, for employees under their jurisdiction, such authority shall be exercised by the Librarian of Congress, the Comptroller General, the Board of Directors of the congressional Office of Compliance, or the Merit Systems Protection Board. Declares that the requirements under this Act are minimum requirements, and are not to be construed to discourage employers from adopting or retaining more generous leave policies.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2005
Medicare Mental Health Modernization Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to provide for: (1) elimination of the lifetime limit on inpatient mental health services; (2) parity in treatment for outpatient mental health services; (3) coverage of intensive residential services under Medicare part A (Hospital Insurance) and of intensive outpatient services under Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance); (4) exclusion of clinical social worker services from coverage under the Medicare skilled nursing facility prospective payment system; and (5) coverage of marriage and family therapist services and mental health counselor services under Medicare. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to study and report to Congress on whether the criteria for coverage of any therapy service or any oupatient mental health care service under Medicare unduly restricts the access to such a service of any Medicare beneficiary with Alzheimer's disease or a related mental illness because the coverage criteria requires the Medicare beneficiary to display continuing clinicial improvement to continue to receive the service.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2005
Breast Cancer Patient Protect Action of 2005 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code to require a group health plan or a health issuer offering group health insurance coverage that provides medical and surgical benefits to ensure that inpatient (and in the case of a lumpectomy, outpatient) coverage and radiation therapy are provided for breast cancer treatment. Prohibits such a plan or issuer from: (1) restricting benefits for any hospital length of stay to less than 48 hours in connection with a mastectomy or breast conserving surgery or 24 hours in connection with a lymph node dissection; or (2) requiring that a provider obtain authorization from the plan or issuer for prescribing any such length of stay. Requires such a plan or issuer to: (1) provide notice to each participant and beneficiary regarding the coverage required under this Act; and (2) ensure that full coverage is provided for secondary consultations by specialists in the appropriate medical fields to confirm or refute a diagnosis of cancer. Applies such requirements to health insurance issuers offering coverage in the individual market.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
America's Red Rock Wilderness Act of 2005 - Designates specified lands in the following areas of Utah as components of the National Wilderness Preservation System: (1) Great Basin; (2) Zion and Mojave Desert; (3) the Grand Staircase and the Escalante Canyons; (4) Moab-LaSal Canyons; (5) Henry Mountains; (6) Glen Canyon; (7) San Juan-Anasazi; (8) Canyonlands Basin; (9) San Rafael Swell; and (10) Book Cliffs and Uinta Basin. Sets forth administrative provisions regarding: (1) filing by the Secretary of the Interior of a map and a legal description of each designated wilderness area with appropriate congressional committees; (2) the exchange of State-owned lands within such areas; (3) Federal reservation of water rights; (4) measurement of setbacks for roads with wilderness; (5) authorized livestock grazing; and (6) withdrawal of such lands from disposition under certain public land laws.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
Spokane Tribe of Indians of the Spokane Reservation Grand Coulee Dam Equitable Compensation Settlement Act - Establishes in the Treasury the Spokane Tribe of Indians Settlement Fund. Requires the payment of compensation to the Spokane Business Council for the use of tribal lands for the generation of hydropower from the Grand Coulee Dam. Requires the use of such funds, in part, for a Cultural Resource Repository and Interpretive Center concerning the culture and history of the Spokane Tribe. Directs the Administrator of the Bonneville Power Administration to make specified settlement payments to the Spokane Tribe over a 25 year period. Allows payments made to the Spokane Business Council or Spokane Tribe to be used or invested by the Business Council in the same manner and for the same purposes as other Spokane Tribal governmental funds. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to transfer administrative jurisdiction from the Bureau of Reclamation to the Bureau of Indian Affairs over certain land located within the exterior boundaries of the Spokane Indian Reservation and certain other land located on the south bank of the Spokane River. Provides that payments by the Secretary and the Administrator and restoration of ownership of land in trust constitute full satisfaction of the claim of the Spokane Tribe to a fair share of the annual hydropower revenues generated by the Grand Coulee Dam project for the past and continued use of land of the Spokane Tribe for the production of hydropower at Grand Coulee Dam.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
Private Prison Information Act of 2005 - Provides that each nongovernmental entity contracting with the Federal Government to provide a prison or other correctional facility shall have the same duty to release information about its operation as a Government owned and run facility has under the Freedom of Information Act. Authorizes any party aggrieved by a violation of that duty to obtain relief in a civil action.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 2005
End Institutionalized Abuse Against Children Act of 2005 - Sets forth protections for the safety and welfare of children in foreign-based or domestic residential treatment facilities or institutions. Directs the Attorney General to: (1) seek the cooperation of appropriate foreign authorities periodically to investigate such institutions in a foreign country operated or managed by U.S. citizens or other private entities organized under U.S. laws (foreign-based institutions); and (2) make rules to protect children who are U.S. citizens or nationals and who are kept in foreign-based institutions for behavior modification. Sets forth civil penalties for U.S. citizens or such private entities who violate such rules. Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to require country reports on human rights practices to include descriptions of child abuse or human rights violations against any children at foreign-based institutions. Amends the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to States to support inspections of child residential treatment facilities. Conditions such grants on State adoption and enforcement of laws with licensing requirements for such institutions, including certain criminal and civil penalties, set forth in this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 2005
Investment in America Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the tax credit for increasing research activities; (2) increase the rates of the alternative incremental tax credit for research expenses; and (3) permit a taxpayer election of an alternative simplified tax credit for research expenses.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2005
Employee Free Choice Act - Amends the National Labor Relations Act to require the National Labor Relations Board to certify a bargaining representative without directing an election if a majority of the bargaining unit employees have authorized designation of the representative and there is no other individual or labor organization currently certified or recognized as the exclusive representative of any of the employees in the unit. Sets forth special procedural requirements for reaching an initial collective bargaining agreement following certification or recognition. Revises enforcement requirements with respect to unfair labor practices during union organizing drives. Provides, under injunction provisions, for priority to be given to preliminary investigation of charges of violations by employers or other entities. Adds to remedies for such violations: (1) back pay plus liquidated damages; and (2) additional civil penalties.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2005
Paycheck Fairness Act - Amends the portion of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) known as the Equal Pay Act to revise remedies for and enforcement of prohibitions against sex discrimination in the payment of wages to: (1) add nonretaliation requirements; (2) increase penalties; and (3) authorize the Secretary of Labor (the Secretary) to seek additional compensatory or punitive damages. Requires the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs to train EEOC employees and affected individuals and entities on matters involving wage discrimination. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to eligible entities for negotiation skills training programs for girls and women. Directs the Secretaries of Labor and Education to issue regulations or policy guidance to integrate such training into certain programs under their Departments. Directs the Secretary to provide for certain studies, information, national summit, and guidelines, awards, and assistance for employer evaluations of job categories based on objective criteria. Establishes the Secretary of Labor's National Award for Pay Equity in the Workplace. Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to require the EEOC to collect certain pay information. Directs: (1) the Commissioner of Labor Statistics to collect data on woman workers in the Current Employment Statistics survey; (2) the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs to use specified types of methods in investigating compensation discrimination and in enforcing pay equity; and (3) the Secretary to make accurate information on compensation discrimination readily available to the public.
![Official portrait of Rep. Kildee, Dale E. [D-MI-5]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/k000172_200.jpg)