United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2003
National Security Language Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to establish programs to encourage early foreign language instruction, including grants to: (1) partnerships of institutions of higher education (IHEs) and local educational agencies (LEAs) for activities relating to foreign language instruction at elementary or secondary schools, with priorities for high-need LEAs and less-commonly taught foreign languages; and (2) IHEs that develop innovative programs for the teaching of foreign languages, with priorities for combining foreign languages with science and technology and for less-commonly taught foreign languages. Provides undergraduate student loan forgiveness of up to $10,000 for students who major in a critical need foreign language and are employed as teachers of such language in elementary or secondary schools or as using such language regularly in a Federal agency. Directs the Secretary of Education to: (1) establish a foreign language education marketing campaign to encourage students at secondary schools and IHEs to study foreign languages, particularly ones less commonly taught and critical to national security; and (2) conduct a study to identify foreign language heritage communities and recruit speakers of such critical languages. Amends the David L. Boren National Security Education Act of 1991 to establish an International Flagship Language Initiative with grants to IHEs.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2003
Space Preservation Act of 2003 - Reaffirms U.S. policy that activities in space should be devoted to peaceful purposes. Directs the President to: (1) ban U.S. space-based weapons and the use of U.S. weapons to destroy or damage objects in orbit in space; (2) terminate research and development, testing, manufacturing, production, and deployment of all U.S. space-based weapons; and (3) direct the U.S. representatives to the United Nations and other international organizations to work toward negotiating, adopting, and implementing an international treaty banning space-based weapons and the use of weapons to destroy or damage objects in space.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2003
Progressive Tax Act of 2003 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to replace the earned income credit, the child tax credit, and the deduction for dependents with a simplified family tax credit. Allows a limited credit for social security taxes. Sets forth provisions relating to corporate tax and provisions designed to curtail tax shelters, including provisions concerning penalties for: (1) failing to disclose reportable transactions; (2) accuracy; (3) understatements; (4) failing to register tax shelters; (5) failing to maintain lists of investors; (6) failing to report interests in foreign financial accounts; (7) frivolous tax submissions; and (8) promoters of tax shelters. Modifies individual income tax brackets and rates. Repeals the phaseout and termination provisions, enacted by the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001, PL 107-16, applicable to the overall limitation on itemized deductions and the personal exemption amount (thus, repealing the removal of limitations). Treats individual capital gains and dividends as ordinary income. Repeals the repeal of estate taxes enacted by the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001, PL 107-16. Modifies the estate tax. Increases the deduction for family-owned business interests. Extends superfund, oil spill liability, and leaking underground storage tank taxes. Revises provisions concerning the special depreciation allowance for certain property acquired after September 10, 2001, and before January 1, 2005, to change the January 1, 2005, limitation date to January 1, 2004. Repeals the exclusion for parking transportation fringe benefit. Repeals provisions concerning certain deductions for second homes.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2003
Applauds the courage and vision of Israelis and Palestinians who are working together to conceive plans for peace. Urges Israeli and Palestinian leaders to capitalize on the opportunity offered by these peace initiatives. Urges the President to encourage efforts to move away from violent military stalemate toward Israeli-Palestinian peace.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003
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 · 21 November 2003
Campus Care and Counseling Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to make competitive grants to campus mental and behavioral health service centers.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003
Every Child is Created Equal Act of 2003 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to require school improvement plans to include a statement that providers of supplemental educational services (SES), as recipients of Federal funds, are subject to certain ESEA civil rights provisions that prohibit discrimination. Requires SES providers, as recipients of Federal funds, to meet all applicable Federal, State, and local health, safety, and civil rights laws. Prohibits construing anything in ESEA provisions for SES as permitting discrimination based on religion with respect to employment or provision of services. Requires SES providers to serve all eligible students, including students with disabilities and limited English proficient students.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003
Cost of Living Measurement and Index Act of 2003 - Directs the Commissioner of Labor Statistics to develop a methodology for measuring the cost of living in each State. Directs the Comptroller General to conduct a study to determine how certain Federal benefits would be increased if such cost-of-living methodology were applied. Requires such study to include determination of increases in benefits under: (1) the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965; (2) earned income tax credit provisions of the Internal Revenue Code; (3) all Federal housing assistance programs; (4) the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families program; (5) the food stamp program; and (6) all other Federal nutrition assistance programs, to the extent they provide vouchers, coupons, cash grants, or cash reimbursements.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003
Requires the Secretary of State to submit to specified congressional committees an annual report on progress made to eradicate poppy cultivation and prevent illicit drug trafficking in Afghanistan
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003
Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to reimburse a member of the armed forces for the cost of protective body armor purchased by the member, or another person on behalf of the member, for the member's use while deployed in connection with Operations Noble Eagle, Enduring Freedom, or Iraqi Freedom if the member was so deployed and was not issued protective armor before such deployment.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003
Expresses: (1) condolences and deepest sympathy to the families of the young women killed in the State of Chihuahua, Mexico, since 1993, many of whom appear to be victims of one or more serial murders; and (2) the solidarity of the people of the United States with the people of Mexico in the face of these tragic and senseless acts. Recognizes the courageous struggle of the victims' families in seeking justice for them. Condemns: (1) the abductions and murders of such young women in Ciudad Juarez and the city of Chihuahua; (2) the use of torture as a means of investigation into these crimes; and (3) all senseless acts of violence in all parts of the world and violence against women in particular. Urges the President and Secretary of State to express: (1) concern over these abductions and murders to the Government of Mexico and to request that the investigative and preventative efforts of such Government become part of the bilateral agenda between the Governments of Mexico and the United States; and (2) support for the efforts of the victims' families to seek justice for the victims, to express concern relating to the continued harassment of these families and the human rights defenders with which they work, and to express concern with respect to impediments in the ability of the families to receive prompt and accurate information in their cases. Supports multilateral efforts to create a DNA database that would allow families to positively identify the remains of the victims and encourages the Secretary to facilitate U.S. participation in such database. Encourages the Secretary to: (1) include in the Department of State's annual Country Report on Human Rights all instances of improper investigatory methods, threats against human rights activists, and the use of torture with respect to cases involving the murder and abduction of young women in the State of Chihuahua; and (2) urge the Government of Mexico to ensure fair and proper judicial proceedings for the individuals accused of these abductions and murders and to impose appropriate punishment for those individuals subsequently determined to be guilty of such crimes. Recommends that the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico visit Ciudad Juarez and the city of Chihuahua to meet with the victims' families, women's rights organizations, and Mexican Federal and State officials responsible for investigating these crimes and preventing future such crimes.
United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003
Affirms congressional support for preserving President Franklin D. Roosevelt's profile on the dime because of his innumerable contributions to and lasting impact on the Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2003
Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users - Reauthorizes the Federal-aid surface transportation program through FY 2009. Reauthorizes appropriations from the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) for: (1) specified highway (including highway safety) programs; (2) research and technology; (3) motor carrier safety; and (4) transportation research. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to establish a National Commission on Future Revenue Sources to Support the HTF. Establishes: (1) a National Commission on the Future of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate Defense Highways; and (2) a Commission on Intelligent Transportation Systems Procurement Policy. Requires States with an urbanized area population of over 200,000 to obligate specified funds for congestion relief. Federal Public Transportation Act of 2004 - Sets forth revised provisions governing public transportation funding and the Secretary's authority to make specified grants, including grants for capital projects, planning, and transit and for commercial driver's license program improvements. Directs the Secretary to establish programs involving: (1) long-term bridge performance; (2) innovative highway safety technologies; (3) freight planning capacity building; (4) freight transportation research; (5) future strategic highway research; (6) surface transportation congestion solutions research; and (7) commercial remote sensing products and spatial information technologies. Intelligent Transportation Systems Act of 2004 - Directs the Secretary to conduct an ongoing intelligent system transportation program to research, develop, and operationally test and advance nationwide deployment of intelligent transportation systems as a component of the U.S. surface transportation systems. Incorporates Federal Highway Administration and Federal Transit Administration planning provisions. Reauthorizes the hazardous materials transportation program. Makes the guaranteed funding levels provided under this Act dependent on identifying additional budgetary resources.
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2003
Directs the Comptroller General to investigate and report to specified congressional committees on: (1) the cost of college textbooks in the United States; and (2) whether the same textbooks are being sold outside the United States at a substantially lower cost.
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2003
Congratulates the Ohio State University Buckeyes and the University of Michigan Wolverines on the 100th football game of their rivalry and recognizes the Buckeyes and Wolverines rivalry as the greatest sports rivalry in history.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2003
College Affordability and Accountability Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to require State maintenance of effort in providing funding to public institutions of higher education (IHEs). Requires all IHEs to plan, engage in, and report on cost containment strategies. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to conduct research on such strategies. Directs the Secretary to publish an annual report on college affordability and to disseminate certain data, including the net price tuition index (NTPI) for each IHE through a college price calculator on an enhanced college opportunities on line (COOL) website. Establishes a Pell Plus program to provide an increased award to each Pell Grant recipient at IHEs that maintain specified types of: (1) low tuition; (2) guaranteed tuition; or (3) affordable tuition. Establishes a program of grants for cooperative education for IHEs that restrain tuition increases. Authorizes grants and contracts for cooperative education demonstration and innovation projects, training and resource centers, and research. Directs the Secretary to commission the National Research Council to study the viability of developing and implementing standards in environmental, health, and safety areas to provide for differential regulation of: (1) industrial laboratories and facilities; and (2) research and teaching laboratories. Authorizes the Secretary to select IHEs, IHE systems, or IHE consortia for voluntary participation in an articulation agreement demonstration program to specify the acceptability of courses in transfer toward meeting specific degree requirements, as a means to lower tuition prices for students. Directs the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance to convene a task force of experts, representative of key constituents in higher education, to: (1) determine the best methods to finance higher education in the long-term; (2) help public institutions utilize long-term budgeting to plan for the future; (3) review the trends of financing of higher education; and (4) define the role played by the States, the Federal Government, families, and outside entities in financing higher education, and determine the best methods to strengthen this partnership.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2003
Labor Recruiter Accountability Act of 2003 - Requires foreign labor contractors (recruiters) and employers to accurately inform foreign workers 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. 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. Directs the Secretary to: (1) maintain a public list of recruiters whom the Secretary knows or believes have been involved in violations of this Act; and (2) provide a procedure for removal of a recruiter's name from the list upon demonstration that such recruiter has not been in violation in the previous five years. Provides for criminal fines and imprisonment for knowing violations. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) assess civil fines; and (2) seek injunctive relief and specific performance of contractual obligations to assure employer compliance. Provides that rights and remedies under this Act are in addition to any other contractual or statutory rights and remedies of workers who are subject to foreign labor contracting activity.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2003
International Human Rights Equality Resolution - Condemns all violations of internationally recognized human rights norms based on the real or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity of an individual. Recognizes that the protection of sexual orientation and gender identity is not a special category of human rights, but is fully embedded in the overall human rights norms set forth in international law, including the international conventions to which the United States is a party. Affirms that: (1) human rights abuses abroad based on sexual orientation and gender identity should be punished without discrimination and classified as crimes; and (2) such violations should be given the same consideration and concern as human rights abuses based on other grounds. Commends the United Nations and nongovernmental human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, for documenting the ongoing abuses of human rights on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Calls on the Department of State to: (1) continue to improve its documentation of human rights abuses on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity; (2) give such violations the same consideration and concern as all other human rights abuses; and (3) develop a comprehensive strategy to combat such abuses abroad.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 2003
Disapproves the adverse decision of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Appellate Body with respect to the March 5, 2002, imposition by the United States of safeguard measures on the importation of certain steel products as having added to U.S. obligations and diminished U.S. rights under the WTO agreements. Calls upon: (1) the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) immediately to request the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) to issue an advisory report with respect to the Appellate Body decision; (2) the ITC to issue its report expeditiously; (3) the USTR immediately to request the ITC under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act to make a determination rendering its actions not inconsistent with the Appellate Body decision; (4) the ITC to issue such a determination expeditiously; (5) the President immediately to repeal all exclusions to the safeguard measures which were given for the benefit of European Union (EU) steelmakers should the EU retaliate against the safeguard measures in the form of counter import restrictions; and (6) the USTR to pursue vigorously within the WTO negotiations to reform the WTO dispute settlement process to increase its transparency and to ensure that it does not act outside its authority to limit trade remedy laws, create new obligations, or undermine legitimate trade actions brought by the United States or other member countries of the WTO. Calls for the establishment of a commission of distinguished jurists to advise Congress on the reports issued through the WTO dispute settlement system and, in particular, on whether such reports are consistent with Articles 3.2 and 19.2 of the Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 2003
Condemns past and ongoing violations of human rights by all sides in the Indonesian province of Aceh. Calls on the Government and armed forces of Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) to declare a ceasefire and return to negotiations. Calls for an end to martial law and human rights violations. Calls for immediate access by international humanitarian and human rights organizations and journalists. Calls for the public release of any surveillance files on Jafar Siddiq Hamzah. Calls on the Government of Malaysia to refrain from the forcible return of Acehnese asylum seekers to Indonesia, allowing them full access to representatives of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Calls on the President and Secretary of State to: (1) press both sides to the conflict to suspend hostilities, return to negotiations, and cease all human rights violations; (2) increase efforts to assist in the rehabilitation and economic development of Aceh; (3) protest human rights violations and encourage their investigation, including pressing the Government of Indonesia to identify those individuals within the Indonesian armed forces, police, and others who should be prosecuted for human rights crimes; (4) review its bilateral relationship and military assistance to Indonesia; and (5) urge the Indonesian Government and armed forces to refrain from using U.S.-supplied weaponry in Aceh.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 2003
Puppy Protection Act of 2003 - Amends the Animal Welfare Act to modify the standards that govern the humane handling, care, treatment, and transportation of animals by dealers, research facilities, and exhibitors. Requires a standard for addressing the initiation and frequency of breeding of female dogs so that they are not bred before reaching at least one year of age, and whelped more frequently than three times in any 24-month period. Prescribes a process for immediate suspension and eventual revocation of the license of a dealer, exhibitor, or operator of an auction sale for three or more violations of such Act within 18 months.
United States · United States Congress · 6 November 2003
Keep Our Promise to America's Military Retirees Act - Directs the Secretary of Defense to enter into an agreement with the Office of Personnel Management to provide Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) coverage to the following eligible beneficiaries: (1) a member or former member entitled to military retired or retainer pay; (2) an unremarried former spouse who was married to a member for at least 20 years, during which such member performed at least 20 years of retirement-creditable military service; (3) a dependent of a deceased qualifying member or former member; (4) a dependent of a living member or former member; and (5) a family member. Directs the Secretary to reimburse such eligible persons for pharmacy benefits received from a pharmacy that is not a TRICARE (Department of Defense managed health care plan) network pharmacy in the same manner as the Secretary would reimburse such person for such benefits received from a TRICARE network pharmacy. Requires such persons, in order to receive such reimbursement, to submit a certification from their physician stating that the person does not have access to a TRICARE network pharmacy due to physical or medical constraints. Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to waive the monthly part B premium (Supplementary Medical Insurance Benefits for the Aged and Disabled) with respect to: (1) an individual who is entitled to military retired or retainer pay based upon service that began before December 7, 1956; and (2) the spouse, widow, or widower of such individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 6 November 2003
Healthcare Equality and Accountability Act - States that the purpose of this Act is to improve minority health and healthcare and to eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in health and healthcare. FamilyCare Act of 2003 - Amends the Social Security Act respecting: (1) family care; (2) Medicaid coverage for all residents with poverty level incomes; and (3) funding for the territories. Amends the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to provide for optional coverage of legal immigrants under Medicaid and SCHIP (State children's health insurance program). Amends the Indian Health Care Improvement Act to revise provisions respecting program operations and funding. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a demonstration project to strengthen Medicaid and SCHIP coverage for migrant workers and farmworkers. Establishes the National Commission for Expanded Access to Health Care. Amends the Public Service Health Act to improve limited English speakers' access to health care. Directs the Secretary to establish a Center for Cultural and Linguistic Competence in Healthcare. Provides for health workforce diversity, including provisions respecting: (1) career training and support; (2) data collection; (3) cultural training; (4) Hispanic-serving health professions schools; (5) student assistance, including online degree programs; (6) the Louis Stokes public health scholars program; (7) the Patsy Mink health and gender research fellowship program; (8) the Paul David Wellstone international health fellowship program; and (9) the Edward R. Roybal Healthcare scholar program. Environmental Justice Act of 2003 - Establishes: (1) the Interagency Working Group on Environmental Justice which shall provide guidance to Federal agencies for identifying disproportionately high and adverse health and environmental effects on minority, low-income, and Native American populations; and (2) the Federal Environmental Justice Advisory Committee which shall advise the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Working Group on areas environmental justice. Border Health Security Act of 2003 - Directs the Secretary, through the United States members of the United States-Mexico Border Health Commission, to award grants to eligible entities to improve the health of border area residents that are established by: (1) the United States members of the United States-Mexico Border Health Commission; (2) the State border health offices; and (3) the Secretary. Amends the United States-Mexico Border Health Commission Act to make permanent authorizations of appropriations for activities under such Act. Patient Navigator, Outreach, and Chronic Disease Prevention Act of 2003 - Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to public and nonprofit private health centers (including Indian Health Service Centers, tribal governments, urban Indian organizations, tribal organizations, clinics serving Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and Alaska Natives, and rural health clinics) for model programs that provide health disparity populations with: (1) cancer and chronic disease prevention and treatment; (2) patient navigators to manage the care of individuals within such groups; and (3) outreach services. Authorizes similar grant programs through: (1) the National Cancer Institute; and (2) the Indian Health Service. Community Health Workers Act of 2003 - Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States or local or tribal units to promote positive health behaviors for women in target populations, especially racial and ethnic minority women in medically underserved communities. Extends funding for breast and cervical cancer preventive health measures. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to qualifying health centers, nonprofit organizations, and public institutions for cancer treatment and prevention programs for underserved minority and other populations, with consideration given to such population's language and cultural context. Provides for grants and activities respecting: (1) health empowerment zone programs in health disparity communities; (2) the Minority HIV/AIDS Initiative; (3) infant mortality and sudden infant death syndrome rates in minority communities; (4) fetal alcohol syndrome treatment and diagnosis; (5) diabetes prevention and treatment activities with Indian tribes, Pacific Islanders, and Native Hawaiians; (6) diabetes programs, including youth and children's programs; (7) heart disease; (8) a national stroke education campaign; and (9) obesity treatment and prevention in underserved minority populations; (10) tuberculosis control and prevention; (11) asthma; (12) sickle cell disease; (13) autoimmune disease in minority populations; (14) sexually transmitted diseases; (15) children's dental disease coverage under Medicaid or SCHIP, and dental health services in underserved areas; (16) demonstration projects to reduce violence; (17) uterine fibroid research and education; (18) disease screening; (19) community outreach; (20) immunizations; (21) chronic disease management; and (22) racial and ethnic approaches to community health. Requires HHS funded or operated programs to collect race, ethnicity, and language data to detect ethnic and racial health care disparities. Authorizes demonstration program grants for health plan, health center, and hospital data collection. Amends the Social Security Act to require the Social Security Administration to collect similar data. Directs the Secretary to fund epidemiology centers in Indian health areas lacking such centers. Extends funding for the National Center for Health Statistics. Minority Health and Genomics Act of 2003 - Establishes the Minority Health and Genomics Commission, which shall conduct a study of, and develop recommendations on, issues relating to genomic research as applied to minority groups. Directs the Secretary to establish: (1) civil rights compliance offices within each HHS agency that administers a health program; and (2) an Office of Minority Health within the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Establishes the Indian Health Service as an agency of the Public Health Service. Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to establish an Office of Minority Affairs within the Office of the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary to make grants for demonstration programs to improve minority healthcare access and quality. Directs the Secretary to: (1) designate centers of excellence at hospitals and other health systems serving large numbers of minority patients; (2) provide financial assistance to designated healthcare providers and community health centers for facility and service improvements in American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the United States Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Hawaii; and (3) provide grants and loan guarantees from the Health Safety Net Infrastructure Trust Fund (established by this Act) for capital financing assistance to eligible healthcare facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 2003
Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to establish a grants program to reduce class size through the use of fully-qualified teachers. Allots funds to States and local educational agencies to recruit, hire, and train additional teachers, in order to: (1) reduce class sizes nationally, in grades one through three, to an average of 18 students per classroom; and (2) improve teaching in those grades so that all students can learn to read independently and well by the end of the third grade.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 2003
School Nutrition Enhancement Act - Amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to phase out reduced price lunches and breakfasts by phasing in increases in income eligibility for free lunches and breakfasts by specified increments from 130 percent of the Office of Management and Budget nonfarm income poverty guidelines for July 1, 2003, to 185 percent of such guidelines for July 1, 2008, and every subsequent school year.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 2003
Yellowstone Buffalo Preservation Act - Prohibits an individual from killing, hazing, or capturing any buffalo on Federal lands or land held under Federal conservation easements or using any form of bait to lure buffalo from any Federal land onto private land until the Secretary of the Interior and other appropriate Federal agencies carry out specified duties. Establishes fines and criminal penalties for violations of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2003
Gynecologic Cancer Education and Awareness Act of 2003 or Johanna's Law - Directs The Secretary of Health and Human Services: (1) through the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and in collaboration with the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to carry out a national campaign to increase the awareness and knowledge of women with respect to gynecologic cancers; and (2) through NIH and the Director, to carry out a demonstration program with nonprofit private entities to test different outreach and education strategies to increase such awareness among women and health care providers.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2003
Post Office Community Partnership Act of 2003 - Modifies Federal postal law to revise requirements for the closing or consolidation of a post office and apply them, as well, to its proposed closing, consolidation, relocation, or construction. Requires a 60-day notice, under certain conditions, to persons (including local government officials) who are (or would be) served by the post office involved to allow such individuals an opportunity to present their views before such proposed action. Requires the notice: (1) by the deadline, to be hand delivered or delivered by mail and published once a week for at least four weeks in one or more newspapers regularly issued and of general circulation within the zip code areas which are (or would be) served by the post office involved; and (2) to include a description of the proposed action, a summary of the reasons for it, and the date on which the action is to be taken (or, in the case of the construction of a post office, the proposed timetable). Revises the factors to be considered in deciding whether or not to take such proposed actions. Requires the Postal Service to follow a community's public participation procedures to address the relocation, closing, consolidation, or construction of buildings in the community if such procedures are more stringent than those provided in this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2003
Domestic Violence Courts Assistance Act - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (relating to grants to combat violent crimes against women) to allow such grants to be used to provide the resources to establish and maintain a court system dedicated to the adjudication of domestic violence cases. Requires a State to certify that at least five percent of grant funds shall be allocated for specialized domestic violence courts. Amends the State Justice Institute Act of 1984 to allow funds available pursuant to grants, cooperative agreements, or contracts awarded under the Act to be used to: (1) implement and evaluate court-based approaches to adjudicating domestic violence cases in State courts; and (2) provide technical assistance to State courts to facilitate the development and adoption of improved practices in such adjudication.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2003
Bridges to the Cuban People Act of 2003 - Exempts from the embargo on trade with Cuba (including prohibitions under the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 against the unloading at a U.S. port of vessels that previously entered a Cuban port to engage in trade) the export of any agricultural commodity, farm machinery or equipment, medicine, medical device, assistive technology device, personal care products, or products intended for the exclusive use by children, or any travel incident to the sale or delivery of such items. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to study and report on export promotion and credit programs for Cuba. Prohibits the President from prohibiting or regulating travel to or from or within Cuba by U.S. nationals or lawful resident aliens, including specified transactions ordinarily incident to such travel, financial or otherwise. Authorizes the President to provide scholarships, with funds under the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961 for Cuban nationals who seek to undertake graduate study in public health, public policy, economics, law, or other field of social science. Authorizes the President to waive certain sanctions against, and restrictions on assistance to, Cuba, including the exclusion from the United States of certain aliens who have confiscated property in Cuba of U.S. nationals or who traffic in such property, if he determines that it will promote the peaceful transition to democracy in Cuba or will further U.S. national economic interests. Prohibits the Secretary of the Treasury from limiting the amount of remittances to Cuba that any U.S. person may make. Authorizes the import into the United States of a Cuban-originated medical article if the Secretary of Health and Human Services determines that there is a medical need in the United States for such article that is not being met by any medicine or medical device in commercial distribution in the United States. Repeals a prohibition, under the Department of Commerce and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999, on certain transactions or payments with respect to U.S. intellectual property. Requires the U.S. Postal Service to provide direct mail service to and from Cuba. Amends the Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act of 2002 to provide for expedited security checks for certain visiting Cubans. Prohibits the President from regulating or prohibiting travel to, from, or within Cuba by U.S. persons for the purpose of engaging in or financing motion picture or television projects, or engaging in music recording projects, or any transactions incidental to such travel. Removes certain restrictions under specified Federal laws in order to allow Cuban nationals to come to the United States to play organized professional sports.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2003
College and Job Opportunities for the Future Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to establish a title VIII, Cooperative Education programs. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to make grants to institutions of higher education (IHEs) or combinations of IHEs to develop and make available work experiences for students to help them in future careers and in supporting themselves while in school. Requires such cooperative education to provide alternating or parallel periods of academic study and public or private employment. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants and contracts for demonstration and innovation projects, training and resource centers, and research relating to cooperative education.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2003
Juvenile Gun Crime Reporting Act - Amends the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act to prohibit: (1) the sale or other disposition of a firearm or ammunition to any person who has been found by a court to be guilty of an act committed as a juvenile, which, if committed by an adult, would have been a crime of violence; and (2) the shipment or receipt in interstate or foreign commerce, or the possession in or affecting commerce, of a firearm or ammunition by such a person. Amends the Crime Identification Technology Act of 1988 to require a State, to be eligible for a grant under that Act, to provide assurances to the Attorney General that it has the capability and does contribute to a system for criminal justice identification, information, and communication, which identifies each such person.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2003
Domestic Violence Prevention, Education, and Awareness Act - Requires the Attorney General, acting through the Violence Against Women Office, to make grants to public or private nonprofit entities, States, and Indian tribes and tribal organizations to carry out public information campaigns to educate racial and ethnic minority communities and immigrant communities about domestic violence, including its effects, methods of preventing or reducing it, and available services to such victims.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2003
Security and Financial Empowerment Act - Sets forth entitlement standards and implementation guidelines for employee use of emergency leave to address domestic or sexual violence. Permits victims of domestic or sexual violence to substitute existing leave in lieu of emergency leave. Authorizes State use of funds under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) to provide nonrecurrent short-term emergency benefits for emergency leave precipitated by domestic or sexual violence . Amends the Internal Revenue Code relating to approval of State unemployment compensation laws to prohibit denial of compensation where an individual is separated from employment due to circumstances resulting from the individual's experience of domestic or sexual violence. Amends the Social Security Act to include training under this Act for unemployment compensation and TANF personnel. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award a grant to a national victim services organization to develop and disseminate a model program for domestic and sexual violence training. Victims' Employment Sustainability Act - Prohibits certain discriminatory employer practices relating to terms or conditions of employment in connection with victims of domestic or sexual violence. Victims of Abuse Insurance Protection Act - Prohibits denial or restriction of insurance coverage based on the status of the applicant or insured regarding abuse or abuse-related claims. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a business related credit for 40 percent of an employer's costs for implementing workplace safety and education programs relating to domestic and sexual violence. Authorizes the Attorney General to provide a grant for a clearinghouse and resource center to provide information and assistance to employers, labor organizations, and advocates on behalf of victims of domestic or sexual violence.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2003
Healthy Children Through Better Nutrition Act of 2003 - Amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (NSLA) and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (CNA) to reauthorize various programs, including the national school lunch and breakfast, child and adult care food, after-school snack, summer food service, and special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants, and children (WIC). Revises requirements relating to eligibility for and access to such programs. Establishes programs for: (1) year-round community child nutrition; (2) school meals improvements grants; and (3) free fruit and vegetables at schools. Expands eligibility for free meals. Makes homeless children and youth automatically eligible for free lunches and breakfasts. Lowers area eligibility thresholds under the child and adult care food programs and the summer food service program. Provides for direct certification of children as eligible for free meals, without further application, based on their being in households receiving assistance under the food stamp program or the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program under title IV part A of the Social Security Act, and through other means-tested programs. Provides for categorical eligibility for recipients of other means-tested benefits. Revises the summer food service program to make it a permanent rather than a pilot program, and to provide startup and expansion grants. Revises school breakfast programs to provide: (1) startup and expansion grants; and (2) universal secondary school breakfast pilot projects. Provides commodity assistance for school breakfast, as well as school lunch, programs. Revises the child and adult care food program to provide for nutrition education pilot programs. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary) to establish a year-round community child nutrition program. Requires local educational agencies (LEAs) participating in school meals programs to establish school nutrition policies that at a minimum ensure that operational responsibility for school food services includes approval of all foods sold on campus, excluding occasional sales. Revises prohibitions and restrictions on competitive foods sold within food service areas. Revises requirements for nutritional reviews. Authorizes the Secretary to make school meals improvement grants to State educational agencies. Directs the Secretary to carry out an expanded pilot program for availability of free fruits and vegetables throughout the schoolday. Revises the system of nutrition education grants to SEAs to provide Team Nutrition Network (TNN) program grants to States for various State and local community activities, including subgrants to schools and school food authorities to carry out nutrition education activities at the local level. Requires schools to serve milk in a variety of fat contents. Permits soy milk to be included as a fluid milk option if the Secretary determines it to be nutritionally equivalent and to meet nutritional standards. Revises certification requirements for WIC program participation to: (1) allow a State to certify breastfeeding women for up to one year or until they stop breastfeeding, whichever is earlier; and (2) modify physical presence requirements. Expands the definition of nutrition education under WIC to include not only dietary habits but related matters such as physical activity, parenting, and child development. Directs the Secretary to engage the National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine every ten years to reevaluate the supplemental foods available in the WIC program and recommend changes. Extends through FY 2009 the authorization of appropriations for: (1) the WIC program; (2) WIC nutrition services and administrative funds; and (3) WIC farmers' market nutrition program. Directs the Secretary to make competitive grants to private nonprofit entities and educational institutions to establish and carry out Farm-to-Cafeteria projects to improve access to local foods in schools and institutions receiving funds under NSLA and CNA (except the WIC program, which already has a WIC Farmers Market Nutrition program). Requires States to amend their plans to describe how funds for State administrative expenses will be used for technology and information management systems (TIMS), and how they will use such systems to improve program integrity in certain ways. Directs the Secretary to make funds available, on a competitive basis, to provide for grants to schools and school food authorities to purchase or upgrade TIMS for use in NSLA or CNA programs. Directs the Secretary to develop policy and establish procedures regarding the purchase, distribution, notice of consumption, and provision of information regarding irradiated foods in Federal school meals programs. Extends through FY 2009 the authorization of appropriations for: (1) State administrative expenses (CNA); (2) the commodity distribution program; (3) training, technical assistance, and food service management institute (NSLA); and (4) accommodation of the special dietary needs of individuals with disabilities (NSLA). Reauthorizes through FY 2009 the exclusion of military housing allowances from consideration as income in determining eligibility for free or reduced price lunches.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2003
Truthfulness, Responsibility, and Accountability in Contracting Act of 2003 - Requires the head of each Federal agency to submit to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget a certification that a contracting function decision was based on a public-private competition and that the agency: (1) has established a centralized reporting system; (2) is not managing Federal employees by any arbitrary limitations; and (3) is reviewing work performed by contractors, recompeting or contracting in work when appropriate, and subjecting to public-private competition a certain number of Federal employee and contractor positions. Prohibits the head of an agency from entering into any contract for the performance of services until the Director, after reviewing the certification required, determines that the agency is making substantial progress toward meeting requirements under this Act. Allows the Director to waive the applicability of this Act for national security and other specified reasons. Requires that any decision by an agency to either transfer the performance of a function from Federal employees to a contractor or to assign to a contractor the performance of a function not currently performed by Federal employees to be based on the results of a public-private competition process that formally compares the costs of Federal employee versus contractor performance. Directs the Comptroller General to monitor agency compliance with this Act. Authorizes: (1) the Secretaries of Defense and of Homeland Security to waive the application of the public-private competition requirements under specified circumstances; and (2) the Director to carry out a limited pilot program regarding the use of alternative public-private competition processes.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 2003
New Partnership for Haiti Act of 2003 - Directs the President to work with the Government of Haiti and international organizations to establish a comprehensive and integrated strategy to combat infectious diseases in Haiti, including HIV/AIDS, and to establish a comprehensive health infrastructure in Haiti. Authorizes the President: (1) acting through the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to provide assistance to Haiti to develop its health sector, including by supporting infrastructure and education and prevention activities; and (2) acting through the Secretary of State and the Corps of Engineers, to provide assistance to develop Haiti's basic sanitation and transportation infrastructure. Directs the President to establish a program to recruit U.S. health care professionals and engineers to rebuild the health care and physical infrastructures of Haiti. Authorizes the President to provide financial incentives to encourage such individuals to participate in the program.
United States · United States Congress · 28 October 2003
Declares that the House of Representatives: (1) condemns bigotry and intolerance against any religious group, including people of the Islamic faith; and (2) calls on the President to clearly censure Lieutenant General William Boykin, United States Army, for his religiously intolerant remarks against people of the Islamic faith and to reassign him to a new position in which his views will not impact U.S. Government policy decisions toward Muslims.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 2003
Security and Freedom Ensured Act of 2003 (SAFE Act) - Amends the USA PATRIOT Act to modify provisions regarding roving wiretaps under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to require that: (1) an order approving an electronic surveillance specify either the identity of the target or the place to be wiretapped; and (2) surveillance be conducted only when the suspect is present at the place to be wiretapped. Revises provisions governing search warrants authorized under the USA PATRIOT ACT to: (1) limit the authority to delay notice of the issuance of such a search warrant to circumstances where providing immediate notice of the warrant will endanger the life or physical safety of an individual, result in flight from prosecution, or result in the destruction of or tampering with the evidence sought under the warrant; and (2) require such delayed notification to be issued within seven days (currently, within a "reasonable period") after execution, with extensions by the court for additional periods of up to seven calendar days each time that the court finds reasonable cause to believe that notice of the execution of the warrant would have such consequences. Requires the Attorney General, on a semiannual basis, to transmit to Congress and make public a report concerning all requests for delays of notice and for extensions of such delays. Amends FISA to require, with respect to access by the Federal Bureau of Investigation to business records for foreign intelligence and international terrorism investigations, that there be specific and articulable facts giving reason to believe that the person to whom the records pertain is a foreign power or agent. Provides that libraries shall not be treated as wire or electronic communication service providers under provisions granting counterintelligence access to provider subscriber information, toll billing records information, or electronic communication transactional records. Redefines "domestic terrorism" to mean activities that involve acts dangerous to human life that constitute a Federal crime of terrorism (currently, that violate criminal laws).
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 2003
Unaccompanied Alien Child Protection Act of 2003 - Establishes procedures for immigration officers who find an unaccompanied alien child at a U.S. land border or point of entry who is a national or habitual resident of a contiguous country. Establishes that other unaccompanied alien children, including trafficking victims, shall be in the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, except that such children who threaten U.S. security or who are charged with or have been convicted of a felony shall be in the care of the Directorate of Border and Transportation Security. Sets forth a family reunification preference order. Prohibits, with an exception for violent children, detention in adult or delinquent children facilities. Directs the Office to develop procedures for detention and prohibited detention practices. Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States Government should ensure that it does not repatriate children in its custody into life- and safety-threatening settings. Directs the Secretary of State to include in the annual State Department Country Report on Human Rights an assessment of the degree to which each country protects children from smugglers and traffickers. Directs the Office, with respect to unaccompanied alien children in the custody of the Office or the Department of Homeland Security, to: (1) develop age determination procedures; and (2) provide immigration counsel. Directs the Executive Office for Immigration Review to develop model guidelines for legal representation of children. Authorizes the Office to provide that each unaccompanied child have a guardian ad litem. Requires the Office to implement a pilot program for the appointment of guardians ad litem. Amends special immigrant juvenile provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Expresses congressional commendation of the Immigration and Naturalization Service' s issuance of its "Guidelines for Children's Asylum Claims." Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to provide immigration officers with related training. Exempts unaccompanied alien children from certain removal and asylum provisions. Amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to set forth additional responsibilities and authorities of the Office with respect to unaccompanied alien children.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 2003
Infant Crib Safety Act - Amends the Federal Hazardous Substances Act to make it unlawful for any commercial user to: (1) manufacture, sell, or contract to sell any full-size or nonfull-size crib which is unsafe for any infant; or (2) sell, contract to sell or resell, lease, sublet, or otherwise place in the stream of commerce any such crib which is not new and is unsafe for any infant. Makes it unlawful for any lodging facility to offer or provide an unsafe crib. Presumes a crib to be unsafe which does not conform to the Code of Federal Regulations and the American Society for Testing Materials Voluntary Standards, unless labeled as dangerous for an infant and not intended to be used for one.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 2003
Nursing Home Staffing Act of 2003 - Amends titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to promulgate standards for minimum nurse staffing levels in nursing facilities receiving Medicare or Medicaid payments. Reinstitutes (Boren amendment) payment methodology, providing for payment of Medicaid services through the use of rates determined pursuant to the criteria under State Medicaid plan requirements as in effect on August 1, 1997. Establishes safe harbor rates. Provides a permanent 1.50 percent increase of the Medicaid Federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) for a State beginning with FY 2004. Authorizes inclusion of: (1) financial accountability requirements in the survey and certification process with respect to facilities receiving Medicare or Medicaid payments; and (2) professionals trained in financial accounting and auditing in the multidisciplinary survey teams of professionals under Medicare and Medicaid.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 2003
Calls for the House of Representatives, prior to the conclusion of the first session of the 108th Congress, to pass legislation that would create an independent commission or select House committee to investigate U.S. intelligence relating to Operation Iraqi Freedom.
United States · United States Congress · 20 October 2003
Adequate Yearly Federal Funding Report Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to require the Comptroller General to report annually to Congress on whether amounts appropriated for the preceding fiscal year to carry out each ESEA grant program are adequate to permit grant recipients to meet conditions imposed by receipt of the grant.
United States · United States Congress · 17 October 2003
Debt Counseling, Debt Consolidation, and Debt Settlement Practices Improvement Act of 2003 - Prohibits an organization that engages in debt counseling, debt consolidation, or debt settlement from engaging in specified unfair and deceptive practices including: (1) unreasonable disclosure of information to third parties regarding amounts owed by any consumer; (2) undisclosed relationship between a debt counseling organization and a debt consolidation or debt settlement organization; (3) diversion of periodic payments from creditor to debt settlement organization; and (4) payment in advance of full performance of service. Requires a written, dated contract signed by the consumer as a prerequisite to services provided by any organization offering debt counseling, debt consolidation, or debt settlement. Prescribes contract terms. Establishes the consumer right to cancel such contract. Declares void and unenforceable any waiver by the consumer of the protections of this Act. Requires registration with the Secretary of the Treasury of any debt counseling, debt consolidation, or debt settlement organization. Establishes civil liability for non-compliance with this Act. Grants the Federal Trade Commission and the States enforcement powers to implement this Act. Prohibits any requirement or prohibition from being imposed under the laws of any State with respect to any subject matter regulated under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 17 October 2003
Arizona Voluntary Grazing Permit Buyout Act of 2003 - Authorizes a permittee or lessee to waive to the Secretary of Agriculture, Secretary of the Interior, Secretary of Energy, or Secretary of Defense, as appropriate, a valid existing grazing permit or lease authorizing livestock grazing on Federal land in Arizona. Directs the Secretary concerned to cancel and permanently retire from grazing such waived allotments. Sets forth compensation provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 2003
Voluntary Grazing Permit Buyout Act - Establishes a voluntary grazing permit and lease buyout program for commercial livestock operators on Federal land. Sets forth land priorities if funds are insufficient to meet all buyouts. Provides for the permanent retirement of grazing allotments which have no valid grazing permits or allotment leases. States that a permittee or lessee shall maintain the permit or lease for the remainder of its term in instances of nonuse or reduced use.
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 2003
Save Our Homes Act - Amends the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975 to: (1) require itemization and disclosure of the annual percentage rate of mortgage loans and other loans secured by residential real property originated by the lending institution, including the amount of fees and points imposed in connection with loan origination, grouped according to census tract, income level, racial characteristics, age, and gender; and (2) prohibit regulatory exemptions of depository institutions from such reporting requirements. Amends the Truth in Lending Act to: (1) set forth annual percentage rates that define a high-cost mortgage and related points and fees in order to apply high-cost loan protections to home purchase loans; (2) treat certain mortgage broker intermediaries as creditors covered by the Act; (3) subject a creditor to liability for mortgage broker violations of the Act; and (4) prohibit specified provisions and clauses in a high-cost mortgage. Declares unenforceable under both Federal and State law a high-cost mortgage document in which blanks are left to be filled in after the contract is signed. Prescribes requirements for conforming home loans. Prohibits creditors and mortgage brokers from directly or indirectly coercing, intimidating, or withholding compensation from an appraiser in order to influence the appraiser's independent judgment with respect to the value of real estate to be covered by a conforming home loan. Establishes criminal and civil penalties for violation of such prohibition. Excludes from participation in mortgage-backed security pools high-cost or conforming home loans in violation of this Act. Prescribes a formula for determining an alternative maximum amount of civil liability for credit or mortgage broker violations involving high-cost mortgages and conforming loans.
![Official portrait of Rep. Kucinich, Dennis J. [D-OH-10]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/k000336_200.jpg)