United States · United States Congress · 3 January 2013
Military Surviving Spouses Equity Act - Repeals certain provisions which require the offset of amounts paid in dependency and indemnity compensation from Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) annuities for the surviving spouses of former military personnel who are entitled to military retired pay or who would be entitled to retired pay except for being under 60 years of age. Prohibits requiring repayment of certain amounts previously paid to SBP recipients in the form of a retired pay refund. Repeals the optional authority of (and instead requires) the Secretary of the military department concerned to pay an annuity to a member's dependent children when there is no eligible surviving spouse. Directs the Secretary concerned to restore annuity eligibility to a surviving spouse who earlier agreed to transfer such eligibility to a surviving child or children of a member.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 2013
Seniors' Tax Simplification Act of 2013 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to make available a new federal income tax Form 1040SR (similar to Form 1040EZ) to individuals who have turned 65 as of the close of the taxable year. Allows the form to be used even if income includes: (1) social security benefits; (2) distributions from qualified retirement plans, annuities, or other such deferred payment arrangements; (3) interest and dividends; or (4) capital gains and losses.
United States · United States Congress · 3 January 2013
Authorizes the use of Emancipation Hall in the Capitol Visitor Center on March 21, 2013, for an event to celebrate the Mississippi River and its status as a vital resource of the United States and an indelible component of the nation's environment, economy, cultural heritage, and history.
United States · United States Congress · 13 December 2012
Healthy Communities through Helping to Offer Incentives and Choices to Everyone in Society Act - Expands coverage of obesity treatment under titles XVIII (Medicare), including part D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program), and XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act. Sets forth requirements to expand training of health professionals and the community on treating and preventing obesity. Requires activities to encourage physical activity, including the development of assessment tools on barriers in communities to physical activity, planning and implementing model communities of play that increase physical activity, the development of state and national strategies to encourage Americans to be physically active outdoors, and dissemination of best practices to encourage physical activity outdoors. Sets forth requirements to address physical education in schools, including to: (1) issue guidelines for physical education in elementary and secondary schools; (2) revise the definition of “core academic subject” to include physical education; (3) issue physical activity guidelines for preschool children and recommend that each Head Start agency implement such guidelines; (4) promote healthy, active lifestyles by students within specified educational grant programs; and (5) revise the professional development program for teachers and principals to include training for physical and health education teachers and training on improving students' health habits and participation in physical activities. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from the gross income of employees: (1) the value of any on-premises employer-provided athletic facility; and (2) fees, dues, or membership expenses paid to an athletic or fitness facility by an employer for its employees. Allows employers a tax deduction for fees, dues, or membership expenses paid to an athletic or fitness facility. Allows a medical care tax deduction for qualified sports and fitness expenses. Revives a grant program for the administration of national or regional programs to provide instructional activities on a variety of sports for low-income youth. Expands activities to educate consumers about nutrition, physical activity, and healthy lifestyles and to improve eating and physical habits. Requires the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to award grants to expand, establish, or maintain urban community gardens. Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation (DOT) to make grants to assist local planning decisions and policies that increase the access of individuals to physical activity. Establishes a program to award grants for costs related to allowing the use of a school’s facilities and equipment by people other than the school’s students or staff. Authorizes the collection and analysis of data on fitness, activity levels and nutrition.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 2012
American Energy Manufacturing Technical Corrections Act - Amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to exempt a walk-in cooler or walk-in freezer component manufactured on or after January 1, 2009, from the requirement that it contain wall, ceiling, and door insulation of at least R-25 for coolers and R-32 for freezers, if the manufacturer has demonstrated to the Secretary of Energy (DOE) that such component reduces energy consumption at least as much as if such requirement were to apply. Requires the Secretary to publish a rule that establishes a uniform efficiency descriptor and accompanying test methods for covered water heaters (water heaters, storage water heaters, instantaneous water heaters, and unfired water storage tanks). Declares that the purpose of such rule is to replace with a uniform efficiency descriptor: (1) the energy factor descriptor for water heaters established under such Act; and (2) the thermal efficiency and standby loss descriptors for storage water heaters, instantaneous water heaters, and unfired water storage tanks established under such rule. Requires the efficiency standard for covered water heaters to be denominated according to the efficiency descriptor established by such rule. Requires the Secretary to develop a mathematical conversion factor for converting the measurement of efficiency for such heaters from the test procedures in effect on this Act's enactment to the new energy descriptor established under this Act. Considers a covered water heater to be in compliance with such rule and with any revised labeling requirements established by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to implement such rule if the covered water heater: (1) was manufactured prior to the effective date of the rule, and (2) complied with the efficiency standards and labeling requirements in effect prior to the rule. Establishes energy efficiency standards for: (1) daily energy consumption of service over the counter, self-contained, medium temperature commercial refrigerators; and (2) through-the-wall central air conditioners, through-the-wall central air conditioning heat pumps, and small duct, high velocity systems. Requires the Secretary to: (1) provide notice on whether energy efficiency standards for specified commercial heating and cooling equipment will be amended every six years, (2) evaluate each class of such equipment, (3) provide notice of a decision to grant or deny a petition to amend energy conservation standards, and (4) publish a rule that contains new or amended energy conservation standards every three years.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 2012
Stewart Lee Udall Congressional Gold Medal Act - Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to make appropriate arrangements for the posthumous presentation, on behalf of Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemoration of Stewart Lee Udall, in recognition of his contributions to the nation.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2012
Improving Diagnostic Innovations Act of 2012 - Sets forth additional factors for the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to consider in determining the payment amount for new clinical diagnostic laboratory tests under gap filling procedures which are used when no comparable existing test is available. Directs the Secretary to convene an independent advisory panel to inform and make recommendations to the Secretary regarding any new test. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish a process for application for the assignment of a temporary national HCPCS (Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System) code to uniquely identify a diagnostic test until a permanent national HCPCS code is available for assignment to that test, (2) analyze the process used for the gapfilling procedures used in determining payment amounts for new clinical diagnostic laboratory tests, and (3) implement improvements in the process after public notice and opportunity for comment.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2012
Savings for American Families' Future Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) increase the rate of the tax credit for retirement savings contributions, (2) make such credit refundable, and (3) direct the Secretary of the Treasury to pay matching credit amounts into taxpayer retirement accounts.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 2012
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Reauthorization Act of 2012 - Reauthorizes and revises the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act. Requires the Secretary of the Interior to appoint 28 directors (currently, 23) that are knowledgeable and experienced in matters relating to conservation of fish, wildlife, or other natural resources and represent a balance of expertise in ocean, coastal, freshwater, and terrestrial resource conservation. Removes limitations on the appointment of such Foundation's officers and employees. Requires the Foundation's Executive Director to be appointed by and serve at the direction of the Board as the chief executive officer and to be knowledgeable and experienced in matters relating to fish and wildlife conservation. Gives the Foundation the power to receive and administer restitution and community service payments, amounts for mitigation of impacts to natural resources, and other amounts arising from legal, regulatory, or administrative proceedings, subject to the condition that the amounts are received or administered for purposes that further the conservation and management of fish, wildlife, plants, and other natural resources. Repeals provisions authorizing the Foundation to establish a national whale conservation endowment fund. Authorizes appropriations for the Foundation for FY2012-FY2017. Authorizes the Foundation to: (1) assess and collect fees for the management of amounts received from federal agencies; and (2) use such federal funds for matching contributions made by private persons, state and local agencies, and other entities (current law requires such use).
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2012
Attracting the Best and Brightest Act of 2012 - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to make up to 50,000 visas available to qualified immigrants who: (1) possess a graduate degree at the level of master's or higher in a field of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM degree) from a qualifying U.S. research institution of higher education; (2) have an employment offer from a U.S. employer in a field related to such degree; (3) are the subject of an approved labor certification; and (4) will receive a wage for such employment that is at least the actual wage paid by the employer to all other individuals with similar experience and qualifications. Makes unused STEM visas available for other employment-based visa categories. Requires: (1) employers of foreign STEM graduates to submit a job order for the position with the appropriate state workforce agency, (2) such agency to post the position on its website for at least 30 days, and (3) employers to demonstrate that the total amount of compensation to be paid to a foreign STEM graduate meets or exceeds the total amount of compensation paid by the employer to all other employees with similar experience and qualifications working in the same occupational classification. Requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to make available on its website specified information regarding foreign STEM employers, the number of aliens granted STEM status, and their occupations. Repeals such STEM and related provisions two years after enactment of this Act. Eliminates the foreign residency requirement for certain foreign students. States that a determination of whether an alien is a child for purposes of: (1) a petition for immigrant status or a petition for adjustment of refugee status to immigrant status shall be made using the alien's age on the date on which the petition is filed with DHS, and (2) a petition for nonimmigrant admission or an application for adjustment of status from nonimmigrant to conditional (fiance) immigrant shall be made using the alien's age on the date on which the petition is filed with DHS to classify such alien's parent as the fiance of a U.S. citizen. States that the permanent priority date for any family- or employment-based petition shall be the date on which the petition is filed with DHS (or the Secretary of State, if applicable), unless such filing was preceded by the filing of a labor certification with the Secretary of Labor, in which case that date shall constitute the priority date. States that an alien who is the beneficiary of a family- or employment-based petition that was approvable when filed shall retain such petition's priority date in the consideration of any subsequently filed family- or employment-based petition.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2012
Condemns: (1) the commission of hate crimes against all Americans, including Sikh-Americans; and (2) acts of violence, bigotry, and discrimination against Sikh-Americans. Urges: (1) educators, counselors, and others to support educational efforts to prevent the epidemic bullying of Sikh-American children and families; and (2) the Department of Justice (DOJ) to begin documenting and quantifying hate crimes and other acts of violence perpetrated against Sikh-Americans. Expresses support for: (1) outreach efforts by federal and local law enforcement leaders to prevent violence and hate crimes against Sikh-Americans; and (2) the right of the Sikh-American community to live in peace and free from discrimination, hate crimes, bullying, and all forms of violence.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2012
Home Energy Savings Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for nonbusiness energy property expenditures, to: (1) make such tax credit permanent; (2) increase from $500 to $1,000 the dollar limitation on such credit; (3) allow the inclusion of labor costs in amounts eligible for such credit; (4) revise definitions and requirements relating to roofing products and for natural gas, propane, oil furnaces, or hot water boilers and heaters; and (5) set forth documentation requirements for claiming such credit.
United States · United States Congress · 10 September 2012
Condemns the attack at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, on August 5, 2012. Offers condolences to the families, friends, and loved ones of those who were killed and expresses hope for the full recovery of those injured. Honors the service of the emergency response teams and law enforcement officials who responded to the attack. Expresses hope that U.S. citizens will be united in a shared desire for peace and justice while standing with the Sikh community to grieve the loss of life.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2012
Medicare Better Health Rewards Program Act of 2012 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a three-year Better Health Rewards Program under which incentives are provided to Medicare beneficiaries who voluntarily agree to participate in the Program. Directs the Secretary to establish standards for measuring better health targets and points for achieving them for participating Medicare beneficiaries, including those for: (1) an annual wellness visit, (2) tobacco cessation, (3) Body Mass Index (BMI), (4) a diabetes screening test, (5) cardiovascular disease screening, (6) cholesterol level screening, and (7) screening tests and specified vaccinations. Requires the Secretary to make specified incentive payments to each participating Medicare beneficiary who achieves at least 20 points during a year. Authorizes Medicare Advantage Plans, "Section 1876" health maintenance organization and competitive medical cost plans, and programs of all-inclusive care for the elderly (PACE) to make incentives to their enrollees to participate in a Better Health Rewards Program. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income any payment made under: (1) the Medicare Better Health Rewards Program; and (2) any other Better Health Rewards Program.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2012
Biogas Investment Tax Credit Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow: (1) an energy tax credit through 2018 for investment in qualified biogas property, and (2) financing of qualified biogas property with new clean renewable energy bonds. Defines "qualified biogas property" as property comprising a system which uses anaerobic digesters or other processes to convert biomas into a gas which consists of not less than 52% methane and which captures such gas for use as a fuel. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to enter into an agreement with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to undertake a study of biogas and to submit a report to Congress on such study.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2012
Build America Bonds Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the issuance authority for Build America Bonds and the authority for payments to issuers of such bonds; (2) make phased reductions in the credit percentage to bondholders and the percentage of payments to issuers of such bonds; (3) allow refundings of currently issued bonds; (4) allow the use of Build America bonds to fund capital expenditures for levees and flood control projects; and (5) deny a tax deduction to major integrated oil companies for income attributable to the production, refining, processing, transportation, or distribution of oil, gas, or any primary product thereof.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2012
American Advanced Energy Manufacturing Jobs Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for the qualifying advanced energy project program, to: (1) allow, through December 31, 2016, an additional credit amount for the cost of manufacturing equipment that uses solar energy to generate electricity, fuel cell power plants, and systems for the electro-chemical storage of electricity; and (2) increase for 2012 the amount of credits that may be allocated under such program. Provides for an offset against such increased credit by denying to any major integrated oil company: (1) a foreign tax credit if such company receives a tax preference from a foreign jurisdiction that does not impose a generally applicable income tax, and (2) a tax deduction for intangible drilling and development costs.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2012
National Park Service Study Act of 2012 - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to conduct special resource studies of: (1) the Kau coast, on the island of Hawaii; (2) on request, the island of Rota in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; (3) sites in Alaska associated with the forced abandonment of the Aleut villages of Makushin, Kashega, and Biorka around Unalaska Island and Attu on Attu Island during World War II; (4) the five relocation sites in Alaska at Funter Bay, Burnett Inlet, Killisnoo, Ward Lake and the Wrangell Institute; (5) specified World War II Japanese American Relocation Center sites; (6) American Latino sites in the San Luis Valley and Central Sangre de Cristo Mountains in Colorado and New Mexico; (7) the town of Goldfield and outlying mining sites in Nevada; (8) the Hudson River Valley in New York; (9) the Norman Studios in Jacksonville, Florida, where African-American casts and crews were used in the production of silent films; (10) the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta in Alabama; and (11) Galveston Bay in Texas. Requires updates of: (1) the study authorized by the National Park Service Studies Act of 1999 relating to World War II sites, Republic of Palau; and (2) the 1979 study entitled "Vermejo Ranch, New Mexico/Colorado: Study of Management Options." Directs the Secretary to: (1) study alternatives for commemorating and interpreting the role of the Buffalo Soldiers in the early years of the National Parks, (2) conduct a national historic landmark theme study to identify sites and resources in the southern United States that are significant to the Reconstruction era, and (3) study the feasibility of including 45 miles of the Chattahoochee River and land along the river corridor within the boundary of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area located in Georgia.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2012
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through 2013: (1) the increase in the Hope Scholarship tax credit (American Opportunity Tax Credit), and (2) the disregard of tax refunds for purposes of determining eligibility for means tested federal programs.
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2012
Reauthorizes appropriations through FY2018 for the Votes for Women History Trail Route in the state of New York, the National Women's Rights History Project Registry, and the National Women's Rights History Project Partnership Network.
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2012
Bring Jobs Home Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) grant business taxpayers a tax credit for up to 20% of insourcing expenses incurred for eliminating a business located outside the United States and relocating it within the United States, and (2) deny a tax deduction for outsourcing expenses incurred in relocating a U.S. business outside the United States. Requires an increase in the taxpayer's employment of full-time employees in the United States in order to claim the tax credit for insourcing expenses. Allows nonrecognition of gain in a corporate reorganization for corporations that exchange property solely for stock other than nonqualified preferred stock.
United States · United States Congress · 12 July 2012
Investing in American Innovation Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) extend through 2012 the tax credit for increasing research activities; (2) prohibit a reduction under any treaty of the United States of tax withholding for a tax deductible payment made between persons who are members of the same foreign controlled group of entities unless there would be a similar reduction for payments made directly to the foreign parent corporation of such entities; and (3) classify general aviation aircraft as seven-year property for purposes of the depreciation tax deduction (currently, expenses for aircraft can be deducted or expensed in the current taxable year). Defines "general aviation aircraft" as any airplane or helicopter not used in commercial or contract carrying of passengers or freight, but which primarily engages in the carrying of passengers.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2012
Supporting Entrepreneurial Economic Development Act of 2012 or the SEED Act of 2012 - Amends the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 to prohibit a recipient of an economic adjustment grant from making, but permits a venture development organization to make, a grant, equity investment, or convertible loan to a private for-profit entity. Requires such an organization that assists a private for-profit entity with funds made available from an economic adjustment grant and that receives funds from such entity at any time as a result of such assistance to use such funds only to assist other private for-profit entities. Defines a "venture development organization" as a public entity or private, nonprofit entity that provides to an early-stage technology business, to promote the growth of that business: (1) financial investment or assistance acquiring financial investment, (2) expert mentoring, and (3) assistance to speed the commercialization of technology.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2012
America's Small Business Tax Relief Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent: (1) the 100% exclusion from gross income of gain from the sale of certain small business stock, (2) carrybacks and alternative minimum tax rules relating to small business tax credits, (3) the reduction in the recognition period for the built-in gains from the sale of S corporation stock, (4) the increased limitation for the expensing of depreciable business assets, (5) the use of the percentage of completion accounting method for long-term contracts, (6) the increased tax deduction for business start-up expenditures, and (7) the allowance of a deduction for health insurance premiums in computing net earnings from self-employment income.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2012
WIPA and PABSS Continuation of Services Act of 2012 - Amends title XI of the Social Security Act to repeal the expired authorization of appropriations for (and thus continue services under) the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) program and the Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS) program.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2012
Wind Powering American Jobs Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) extend through 2013 the tax credit for the production of electricity from wind facilities and the energy tax credit for investment in wind facilities, and (2) limit the foreign tax credit and tax deferrals for amounts paid or accrued by a major integrated oil company that is a dual capacity taxpayer. Defines "dual capacity taxpayer" as a person who is subject to a levy of a foreign country or U.S. possession and receives (or will receive) directly or indirectly a specific economic benefit from such county or possession.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2012
Hire Now Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow certain employers a tax credit for 10% of the excess (if any) of the wages and compensation paid to their employees in 2012 over the amount of such wages paid in 2011, up to a maximum amount of $5 million; (2) prohibit major integrated oil companies from using the last-in, first-out (LIFO) accounting method; and (3) deny major integrated oil companies a tax deduction for intangible drilling and development costs.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 2012
Amends the African Growth and Opportunity Act to extend through FY2015 the third-country fabric rule granting duty-free treatment of apparel articles wholly assembled, or knit-to-shape and wholly assembled, or both, in one or more lesser developed beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries, regardless of the country of origin of the fabric or the yarn used to make such articles. Revises the term "sub-Saharan African country" to include the Republic of South Sudan (South Sudan) under such Act. Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to modify textile and apparel rules of origin for the Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR). Amends the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003 to renew, for three years, the President's authority to ban the import of Burmese products. Approves the renewal of certain import restrictions contained in the Act. Deems this resolution a renewal resolution which shall take effect upon its enactment or July 26, 2012, whichever occurs first. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require estimated tax payments which are otherwise due in the third quarter of 2017 for corporations with assets of at least $1 billion to be 100.25% of such amount. Requires the next required installment to be appropriately reduced to reflect the amount of this increase. Amends the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 to extend certain customs users fees for the processing of merchandise entered into the United States from August 2, 2021, to October 22, 2021, and other specified customs users fees from December 8, 2020, to October 29, 2021.
United States · United States Congress · 20 June 2012
Invest in America Now Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) extend through 2012 the 100% bonus depreciation allowance for business assets; (2) increase the amount of alternative minimum tax (AMT) credits that corporate taxpayers may elect to accelerate in a taxable year in lieu of claiming bonus depreciation; and (3) deny major integrated oil companies a tax deduction for income attributable to the domestic production, transportation, or distribution of oil, natural gas, and primary products thereof.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 2012
Amends the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 to require all persons, including producers, handlers, and certifying agents, required to report information to the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) under such Act to maintain all contracts, agreements, receipts, and other records associated with the organic certification program for 5 years (10 years for a certifying agent). Authorizes investigative and enforcement actions for violations of such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2012
Rural Energy Investment Act of 2012 - Amends the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 regarding the biobased markets program to: (1) extend program funding through FY2017, (2) increase the number of categories of biobased products designated and individual biobased products eligible for preferred purchasing, and (3) provide for a program of biobased product education and promotion activities. Amends the Rural Energy for America Program to: (1) extend Program funding through FY2017; (2) make nonprofit organizations eligible for assistance; (3) provide loan guarantees and grants to agricultural producers and rural small businesses for renewable energy system purchases, with a tiered loan and grant application process that reflects project size; and (4) permit the combined amount of a grant and a loan guarantee to cover all eligible activity costs. Extends funding through FY2017 for: (1) biorefinery assistance, (2) the biodiesel fuel education program, (3) biomass research and development, (4) the Rural Energy Self-Sufficiency Initiative, (5) the biomass crop assistance program, (6) the forest biomass for energy program, and (7) the community wood energy program.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2012
Recognizes and commends the nation's Catholic sisters, whose inspiring legacy of service continues to enrich our nation. Honors the contributions of Catholic sisters to this country. Stands in solidarity with Catholic sisters' mission to work toward a more just society for all of God's people.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2012
Rural Hospital Access Act of 2012 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to extend through FY2013: (1) the current methodology for payment to subsection (d) hospitals for inpatient hospital services furnished to individuals under the Medicare-dependent, small rural hospital (MDH) program, and (2) increased payments under the Medicare program for low-volume hospitals (with under 1,600 annual discharges). (Generally, a subsection [d] hospital is an acute hospital, particularly one that receives payments under Medicare's inpatient prospective payment system [IPPS] when providing covered inpatient services to eligible beneficiaries.) Directs the Comptroller General to study such programs.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2012
Quality Improvement Organization Program Restoration Act - Amends the Trade Adjustment Assistance Extension Act of 2011 to repeal its revisions to requirements for contracts with Medicare Quality Improvement Organizations (QIOs). Amends title XI of the Social Security Act to specify expenditures or funding for: (1) 3-year QIO contracts for contract periods beginning on or after August 1, 2014, and ending on or before July 31, 2021, but with a certain reduction in aggregate funds payable after October 1, 2014; and (2) contracts with utilization and quality control peer review organizations for any contract period beginning on or after August 1, 2014.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2012
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) repeal the excise tax on medical devices; (2) exclude from the gross receipts of major integrated oil companies (defined as companies with an average daily worldwide production of crude oil of at least 500,000 barrels and gross receipts in excess of $1 billion), for purposes of the tax deduction for income attributable to domestic production activities, receipts from the production, transportation, or distribution of oil, natural gas, or any primary product thereof; and (3) prohibit the use of the last-in, first-out (LIFO) accounting method by major integrated oil companies.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 2012
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 · 17 May 2012
Eliminate Privacy Notice Confusion Act - Amends the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act to exempt from its annual privacy policy notice requirement any financial institution which: (1) provides nonpublic personal information only in accordance with specified requirements, (2) does not share information with affiliates under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and (3) has not changed its policies and practices with regard to disclosing nonpublic personal information from those disclosed in the most recent disclosure sent to consumers. Relieves a financial institution from being required to provide any disclosure if it is licensed by a state and is either subject, or becomes subject in the future, to existing regulation of consumer confidentiality that prohibits disclosure of nonpublic personal information without knowing and express consent of the consumer in the form of laws, rules, or regulation of professional conduct or ethics promulgated either by the court of highest appellate authority or by the principal legislative body or regulatory entity of any state.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2012
Voter Empowerment Act of 2012 - Voter Registration Modernization Act of 2012 - Amends the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA) to require each state to make available official public websites for online voter registration. Authorizes automated voter registration of certain individuals and establishes other initiatives to promote voter registration, such as same day registration and voter registration of individuals under 18 years of age. Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit hindering, interfering with, or preventing voter registration. Amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) to establish requirements for states to promote access to voter registration and voting for individuals with disabilities, including a single office for providing related information. Directs the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to make grants to eligible states to conduct pilot programs enabling individuals with disabilities to register to vote and vote privately and independently at their own residences (including by telephone). Amends HAVA to reauthorize the program of grants to state and local governments to assure voting access for individuals with disabilities. Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit state or local election officials from preventing an individual from registering or voting in any federal election (voter caging), or from permitting a formal challenge under state law to an individual's registration status or eligibility to vote, if the basis for such decision is evidence consisting of: (1) a voter caging document or voter caging list, (2) an unverified match list, (3) an error or omission on voter application or registration documents that is not material to an individual's eligibility to vote, or (4) any other evidence so designated by the Commission. Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit a person, including an election official, from knowingly and willfully attempting to or depriving or defrauding the residents of a state of their free and fair exercise of the right to vote by the communication of election-related information that is known by the person to be materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent. Increases the penalty for voter intimidation. Declares that the right of an individual U.S. citizen to vote in any federal election shall not be denied or abridged because that individual has been convicted of a criminal offense unless he or she is serving a felony sentence in a correctional institution at the time of the election. Prescribes enforcement of this right by public or private civil action. Requires each state to notify in writing any individual convicted of a criminal offense under state law, upon release from state custody or upon sentence to probation, that he or she has the right to vote in a federal election and so may register to vote. Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act of 2012 - Amends HAVA to revise requirements for the audit capacity of voting systems, particularly those for a permanent paper record. Requires the voting system to require the use of an individual, durable, voter-verified paper ballot of the voter's vote that shall be marked and made available for inspection by the voter before the voter's vote is cast and counted, and which shall be counted by hand or read by an optical character recognition device or other counting device. Requires the voting system to provide the voter with an opportunity to correct any system-made error in the voter-verified paper ballot before it is permanently preserved. Requires the Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) to make grants to eligible entities to study, test, and develop accessible ballot voting, verification, and casting mechanisms and devices and best practices to enhance the accessibility of paper ballot voting and verification mechanisms for individuals with disabilities, for voters whose primary language is not English, and for voters with difficulties in literacy. Prescribes requirements for: (1) publication of poll tapes, (2) treatment of ballots cast at early voting sites and of absentee ballots, and (3) the counting of provisional ballots that will be treated as votes. Prescribes laboratory conflict-of-interest requirements and prohibitions. Requires the NSF Director to make grants to eligible entities to conduct research on the development of election-dedicated voting system software. Requires each state, except when the winning candidate had no opponent or received 80% or more of the votes, to administer audits of federal election results, without advance notice to the precincts selected, consisting of random hand counts of the voter-verified paper ballots. Requires the Election Auditor of a state, as soon as practicable after the completion of an audit, to submit the results to EAC for publication. Prohibits certification of the results of any election until completion of audits. Amends HAVA to: (1) add requirements for counting provisional ballots, (2) require each state to allow early voting and facilitate the ability of voters to vote by mail. Amends the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to extend the guarantee of voting residency to family members of absent military personnel. Amends the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) with respect to pre-election reports on availability and transmission of absentee ballots. Revises the 45-day absentee ballot transmission rule. Permits: (1) use of a single absentee ballot application for subsequent elections, and (2) application of the UOCAVA to Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands. Entitles to leave a federal employee who serves as a poll worker. Directs the EAC to: (1) make a grant to each eligible state for poll-worker recruitment and training, and (2) develop materials for a model state poll worker training program. Amends HAVA to make available to any person aggrieved by a violation of uniform and nondiscriminatory election technology and administration requirements the option to file a complaint with the Attorney General or pursue a private right of action to enforce such requirements. Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to make it unlawful for a chief state election administration official, unless he or she or a family member is a candidate, to take an active part in political management or in a political campaign for federal office over which such official has supervisory authority. Amends the NVRA to treat universities as voter registration agencies. Amends the HAVA to establish minimum notification requirements on behalf of voters affected by polling place changes. Directs the Attorney General to: (1) coordinate the establishment of a state-based response system for responding to questions and complaints from individuals voting or seeking to vote, or registering to vote or seeking to, in federal elections; (2) establish and operate a toll-free telephone service to connect directly to such response system; and (3) appoint a Voter Hotline Task Force. Amends HAVA to: (1) reauthorize and extend the EAC, and (2) repeal its exemption from certain government contracting requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2012
Rebuilding American Manufacturing Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow taxpayers engaged in domestic manufacturing in the United States a tax deduction equal to 43% of the lesser of their domestic manufacturing income or their taxable income for the taxable year (thus effectively reducing their income tax rate from 35% to approximately 20%). Limits the amount of such deduction to 25% of such taxpayer's qualifying domestic investment (defined as the sum of the taxpayer's W-2 wages and certain allowable tax deductions, excluding any amounts not properly allocable to the taxpayer's domestic manufacturing gross receipts).
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2012
Update and Streamline REIT Act of 2012 or US REIT Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax treatment of real estate investment trusts (REITs), to: (1) modify safe harbor rules for avoiding penalties for prohibited sales of rental and timber properties by REITs by allowing three-year averaging of sales proceeds for such properties, (2) repeal the preferential dividend rule for dividend payments to shareholders of publicly-offered REITs, (3) revise REIT income and assets tests to allow treatment of publicly-offered REIT debt instruments and personal property leased or mortgaged in connection with REIT real property as real estate assets, (4) make permanent the treatment of gain from sales of timber property and mineral royalties as qualifying REIT income, and (5) revise the calculation of REIT earnings and profits to avoid duplicate taxation of REIT shareholders.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2012
Municipal Bond Market Support Act of 2012 - Amends Internal Revenue Code provisions relating to the small issuer exemption from interest expense allocation rules for financial institutions to: (1) permanently increase from $10 million to $30 million the annual limit on the amount of tax-exempt obligations that a small issuer may issue, and (2) allow an inflation adjustment to such increased limit amount after 2012.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2012
Authorizes the Secretary of Defense (DOD), with respect to the training of National Guard units and federal agencies performing homeland defense activities, to provide funding assistance through a special military cooperative agreement for the operation and maintenance of any state training center certified by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as capable of providing emergency response training. Requires merit-based or competitive selection procedures to be used in the use of funds for such purpose.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2012
Bring Jobs Home Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) grant business taxpayers a tax credit for up to 20% of insourcing expenses incurred for eliminating a business located outside the United States and relocating it within the United States, and (2) deny a tax deduction for outsourcing expenses incurred in relocating a U.S. business outside the United States. Requires an increase in the taxpayer's employment of full-time employees in the United States in order to claim the tax credit for insourcing expenses.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2012
Prohibits the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) from making payments, either directly or through the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC), to the Brazilian Cotton Institute.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2012
Stop the Rate Hike Act of 2012 - Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to make the 3.4% interest rate on Direct Stafford loans first disbursed to undergraduate students between July 1, 2011, and July 1, 2012, applicable to Direct Stafford loans first disbursed to undergraduate students between July 1, 2011, and July 1, 2013. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to deny the major integrated oil companies the tax deduction for income attributable to the domestic production of oil and gas.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2012
Upper Mississippi River Basin Protection Act - Requires federal investments in the Upper Mississippi River Basin to be guided by accepted and documented scientific methods and to take into account the results of studies using such methods to identify and quantify the sources, transport, and fate of nutrients and sediment and to quantify the effect of treatment methods or conservation measures on nutrient and sediment management. Directs the Secretary of the Interior, as part of an Upper Mississippi River Stewardship Initiative and acting through the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), to establish a nutrient and sediment monitoring network for the Basin. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish guidelines for related data collection and storage activities; (2) inventory the sediment and monitoring efforts of governmental, tribal, and nongovernmental entities for the purpose of creating a baseline understanding of overlap, data gaps, and redundancies; (3) integrate such monitoring efforts into the sediment and nutrient monitoring network; and (4) collaborate with other public, tribal, and private monitoring and assessment programs in establishing the monitoring network. Directs the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a water resources assessment of the Basin. Requires the Director of the USGS: (1) as part of the Initiative, to develop and implement a plan to improve existing water-quality models to identify and quantify significant sources of sediment and nutrients in the Basin at the subwatershed scale; (2) to establish a communication plan that includes use of the Internet to provide information on accomplishments of public and private programs designed to manage sediment and nutrients in the Basin and on seasonal and annual concentrations and loads of sediment and nutrients in the Upper Mississippi River and its tributaries; and (3) provide an annual report that includes information on concentrations and loads of nutrients and sediment derived from monitoring activities conducted in the Basin.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 2012
Expresses the sense of Congress that the tax exemption of fraternal benefit societies continues to generate significant returns to society and the work of fraternals should continue to be promoted.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2012
Waterways Are Vital for the Economy, Energy, Efficiency, and Environment Act of 2012 or WAVE4 Act - Directs the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Chief of Engineers, to require certain delivery process reforms for qualifying construction and major rehabilitation projects for navigation infrastructure of inland and intracoastal waterways. Directs the Secretary, working in conjunction with the Inland Waterways Users Board, to submit to Congress a 20-year program for making capital investments on inland and intracoastal waterways. Authorizes such program to be based on the 20-year capital investment strategy contained in the Inland Marine Transportation System (IMTS) Capital Projects Business Model, Final Report published on April 13, 2010, as approved by the Board. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to limit expenditures from the Inland Waterways Trust Fund to 50% of the total cost of the construction or rehabilitation project. Prohibits expenditures from the Fund for: (1) construction or rehabilitation of dams, or (2) rehabilitation expenditures equal to or exceeding $100 million.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2012
Small Business Employee Health Insurance Credit Expansion Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for the health insurance expenses of small employers, to: (1) expand the eligibility of such employers for the credit by allowing them to have up to 50 full-time employees (currently, limited to no more than 25 full-time employees); (2) modify the phaseout of such credit based upon increases in the number of eligible employees and the employer's average annual wages as specified in a formula provided by this Act; (3) repeal the requirement that employers make uniform contributions of at least 50% of each employee's premium to qualify for the tax credit; (4) repeal the limitation on such credit based on the average premium in the small group market in the rating area in which an employee enrolls for coverage; and (5) repeal the 2-year limitation on such credit..
![Official portrait of Rep. Kind, Ron [D-WI-3]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/116_rp_wi_3_kind_ron_200.jpg)