United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Tax Code Termination Act Terminates the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 after December 31, 2019, except for self-employment taxes, Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) taxes, and railroad retirement taxes. Requires a two-thirds majority vote in Congress to change such termination date. Declares that any new federal tax system should be a simple and fair system that: (1) applies a low rate to all Americans, (2) provides tax relief for working Americans, (3) protects the rights of taxpayers and reduces tax collection abuses, (4) eliminates the bias against savings and investment, (5) promotes economic growth and job creation, and (6) does not penalize marriage or families. Requires that the new federal tax system be approved by Congress in its final form by July 4, 2019.
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2014
Stop Militarizing Law Enforcement Act - Amends the program under which the Secretary of Defense is authorized to transfer excess personal property of the Department of Defense (DOD) to federal and state agencies for law enforcement activities. Excludes counter-drug activities from the categories of law enforcement activities for which DOD property may be transferred under such program. Requires recipients of DOD property to certify that they: (1) have personnel, technical capacity, and training to operate the property; and (2) will return to the DOD any property that is surplus to the recipient's needs. Requires recipients that are not federal agencies to certify that they have notified their local community of requests for DOD property with a notice on a publicly accessible Internet website and postings at prominent locations in the jurisdiction. Requires the Secretary to submit annually to Congress a description of property to be transferred along with a certification that the transfers are not prohibited by law. Prohibits transfers of: automatic weapons that are not suitable for law enforcement purposes; weapons of .50 caliber or greater; tactical vehicles, including highly mobile multi-wheeled vehicles, armored vehicles, and mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles; armored or weaponized drones; aircraft that are combat configured or combat coded, or that have no established commercial flight application; grenades and similar explosives; silencers; and long range acoustic devices. Prohibits transfers conditioned upon the agency demonstrating the use of any small arms or ammunitions. Requires the Secretary to ensure that certain items are not transferred from one federal or state agency to another such agency. Prohibits obligations or expenditures of appropriations to carry out the DOD's property transfer program unless specified conditions have been met, including requirements to verify: (1) that in-person inventories of transferred property have been conducted at each agency, and (2) that 100% of such property was accounted for during the inventories or that agencies unable to account for such property have been suspended from the program. Requires the Defense Logistics Agency to maintain an Internet website that makes available publicly a description of: (1) each transfer broken down by state, county, and recipient; and (2) during the 30-day period preceding the date on which any property is transferred, the property to be transferred and the recipient.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2014
Agrees with the President that there is a humanitarian crisis on the border that underscores the need to fix our immigration system. Calls upon the President to: use the resources already at his disposal to gain operational control of the border; send a clear message that those who are seeking to enter the United States illegally will be returned to their home countries, and that subjecting children to the perilous migration to our border will no longer be tolerated; cease using his prosecutorial discretion authority to shield unlawful immigrants from prosecution; cease releasing convicted criminal aliens from detention; crack down on fraudulent asylum claims; implement tougher standards for credible fear claims; restore agreements with local law enforcement agencies to enforce immigration laws; give Border Patrol agents access to federal lands where drug traffickers, human smugglers, and unlawful immigrants hide; and employ diplomatic resources with Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador to stop the border crisis. Stands ready to work with the President to realize such calls to action.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2014
Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument Correction Act - Prohibits construing either the national monument designation or any management plan in furtherance of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument, New Mexico (designated on May 21, 2014) as: (1) preventing the Secretary of Homeland Security from undertaking law enforcement and border security activities within the areas designated as the Monument, including the ability to use motorized vehicles within it; (2) limiting the 2006 Memorandum of Understanding among the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of the Interior, and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) regarding cooperative national security and counterterrorism efforts on federal land along U.S. borders; (3) preventing the DHS Secretary from conducting low-level overflights over the Monument for law enforcement and border security purposes; or (4) preventing the Secretary of the Interior from allowing within the Monument the installation and maintenance of communication or surveillance infrastructure necessary for law enforcement or border security activities. Makes the route excluded from the Potrillo Mountains, identified as "Restricted--Administrative Access" on the map entitled "Potrillo Mountains Complex," dated December 10, 2013, available for administrative and law enforcement uses, including border security activities. Specifies that nothing in the national monument designation or any management plan in furtherance of the Monument shall restrict or preclude low-level overflights of military aircraft, the designation of new units of special airspace, or the use or establishment of military flight training routes, over the Monument.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2014
Waters of the United States Regulatory Overreach Protection Act of 2014 - Prohibits the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from: developing, finalizing, adopting, implementing, applying, administering, or enforcing the proposed rule entitled, "Definition of 'Waters of the United States' Under the Clean Water Act," issued on April 21, 2014, or the proposed guidance entitled, "Guidance on Identifying Waters Protected By the Clean Water Act," dated February 17, 2012; or using the proposed rule or proposed guidance, any successor document, or any substantially similar proposed rule or guidance as the basis for any rulemaking or decision regarding the scope or enforcement of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act). Requires the Army Corps and the EPA to withdraw the interpretive rule entitled, "Notice of Availability Regarding the Exemption from Permitting Under Section 404(f)(1)(A) of the Clean Water Act to Certain Agricultural Conservation Practices," issued on April 21, 2014. Requires the Army Corps and the EPA to consult with relevant state and local officials to develop recommendations for a regulatory proposal that would identify the scope of waters covered under the Clean Water Act and the scope of waters not covered.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2014
Drone Reform Act - Prohibits operations involving the use of an armed unmanned aerial vehicle from being carried out under the authority of federal agency other than the Department of Defense (DOD). Defines "unmanned aerial vehicle" (UAV) as an aircraft operated without the possibility of direct human intervention from within or on the aircraft, including drones, unmanned aircraft or aerial systems, remotely piloted aircraft or vehicles, remotely operated aircraft, and unmanned aerial vehicle systems. Authorizes only uniformed members of the Armed Forces to: (1) operate, or order the operation of, an armed UAV; or (2) operate or fire, or order the operation or firing of, any weapon or other munition carried on an armed UAV. Subjects the operation and use of armed UAVs to the requirements of laws applicable to the Armed Forces. Prohibits this Act from being construed to: (1) limit or expand the authority of a component of the federal government to provide intelligence to the DOD, or (2) create or expand any authority for the federal government to kill any person.
United States · United States Congress · 10 July 2014
Expedited Family Reunification Act of 2014 - Amends the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 to provide that any unaccompanied alien child (UAC) who has not been a victim of a severe form of trafficking in persons or does not have a credible fear of persecution on returning to his or her country of nationality or of last habitual residence shall be: (1) placed in removal proceedings, (2) eligible for voluntary departure at no cost to the child, and (3) provided with access to counsel. (Currently such expedited removal requirements apply to unaccompanied children from countries that are contiguous to the United States.) Directs the Secretary of State to negotiate agreements, in addition to countries contiguous to the United States, between the United States and Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, and any other appropriate country regarding the repatriation of children. Applies the requirements of this Act to any UAC apprehended on or after June 15, 2012.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 2014
Idaho County Shooting Range Land Conveyance Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to convey to Idaho County in Idaho approximately 31 acres of land managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for use as a shooting range.
United States · United States Congress · 7 July 2014
Federal Reserve Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Reserve Act (FRA) to direct the Chairman of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) to submit to the Comptroller General (GAO) and to certain congressional committees a Directive Policy Rule (DPR), including an identification of FOMC members who voted in its favor. Defines DPR as a policy rule developed by the FOMC that meets specified requirements and provides the basis for the Open Market Operations Directive. Directs GAO to study whether the DPR has materially changed, audit any materially changed DPR, and report to certain congressional committees on whether the ensuing DPR and the FOMC are in compliance with this Act. Requires the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve Board) to testify before certain congressional committees as to why non-compliance with this Act, if any, exists. Establishes a one-week blackout period during which permissible public communications by FOMC members and staff are restricted with respect to: (1) macroeconomic or financial developments; or (2) current, or prospective monetary policy issues. Amends the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank) to direct the Federal Reserve Board to issue regulations, after public notice and comment, that provide for the at least three different sets of conditions (baseline, adverse, and severely adverse) and related methodologies required under current law for the evaluation of nonbank financial companies and certain bank holding companies with over $50 billion in assets. Directs the Federal Reserve Board to disclose publicly the aggregate number of supervisory letters sent to such bank holding companies, including the aggregate number of such letters designated as either "Matters Requiring Attention" or "Matters Requiring Immediate Attention." Increases from semi-annual to quarterly the number of times the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board is required to give testimony to Congress. Amends the FRA to require the Vice Chairman for Supervision to give written testimony on the status of all pending and anticipated rulemakings made by the Board. Requires the Federal Reserve Board, before issuing any regulation, to assess the costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and choose the approach that maximizes net benefits and is tailored to impose the least impact on the availability of credit, economic growth, and the least burden on society. Prescribes the contents of a post-adoption impact assessment plan the Board must develop whenever it adopts or amends a major rule. Amends the FRA to prescribe ethics standards governing Federal Reserve Board members and employees, including requirements for disclosure of staff salaries and financial information. Prescribes requirements for Federal Reserve Board negotiations with any foreign or multinational entity. Amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act to prescribe requirements for negotiations by the Board of Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) with any foreign or multinational entity. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury, as a prerequisite to entering into negotiations with any foreign or multinational entity, to notify and consult with certain congressional committees regarding the nature of the agreement and its anticipated effects upon the economy.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2014
Charitable Automobile Red-Tape Simplification Act of 2014 or the CARS Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax deduction for charitable contributions, to modify the substantiation rules for donations of qualified vehicles (i.e., motor vehicles manufactured primarily for use on public streets, roads, and highways and boats or airplanes) to require: (1) a statement with respect to such qualified vehicles and a good faith estimate of their value at the time of donation; and (2) a contemporaneous written acknowledgement of the contribution by the donee organization, with information about the donor and the qualified vehicle.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2014
National Forest System Trails Stewardship Act of 2014 - Directs the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to publish a national strategy to significantly increase the role of volunteers and partners in trail maintenance. Requires the strategy to: (1) augment and support the capabilities of federal employees to carry out or contribute to trail maintenance; (2) provide opportunities for volunteers and partners to carry out trail maintenance in each region of the Forest Service; (3) address the barriers to increased volunteerism and partnerships; (4) prioritize increased volunteerism and partnerships in those regions with the most severe trail maintenance needs, and where backlogs are jeopardizing access to national forest lands; and (5) aim to increase trail maintenance by volunteers and partners by 100% within 5 years. Directs USDA to study opportunities to improve trail maintenance by addressing opportunities to use fire crews in trail maintenance activities. Deems a volunteer with a partner organization to be considered a federal employee for the purposes of civil claims relating to damage to, or loss of, personal property of a volunteer incident to volunteer services. Sets forth provisions for the selection of priority areas for increased trail maintenance accomplishments. Directs USDA to establish a pilot program to offset all or part of the land use fee for outfitting and guiding permits.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2014
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the government of Mexico should release U.S. Marine Sgt. Andrew Tahmooressi and provide for his return to the United States so he can receive appropriate medical assistance, and (2) the President should utilize the full powers and authorities of his office to secure Sgt. Tahmooressi's release.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 2014
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: students and families should maintain the right and responsibility of determining where to enroll for postsecondary education; the federal government, in conjunction with states and accreditors, has a responsibility and the tools to ensure that the significant taxpayer funds that are invested in student aid each year are appropriately spent; the federal government could play a positive role in making information regarding postsecondary education available to prospective students; the Administration should work collaboratively with the higher education community to make that information more consumer friendly and accessible to students and their families; and the Administration's proposal to rate postsecondary institutions through an oversimplified federal rating system will lead to less choice, diversity, and innovation and should be rejected.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2014
Veteran Access to Care Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to enter into contracts with such non-VA facilities as may be necessary to furnish hospital care and medical services to veterans who: have waited longer than the wait-time goals of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) (as of June 1, 2014) for an appointment for hospital care or medical services in a VA facility; have been notified by a VA facility that an appointment for hospital care or medical services is not available within such wait-time goals; or reside more than 40 miles from the VA medical facility, including a community-based outpatient clinic, that is closest to their residence. Allows eligible veterans who opt for hospital care or medical services in a non-VA facility to receive such care or services through the completion of the episode of care, but for no longer than 60 days. Directs the Secretary, to the extent that appropriations are available to the VHA for medical services, to reimburse non-VA facilities with which the VA does not have such a contract for providing hospital care and medical services to such veterans, if such care and services cannot be provided within the VHA's wait-time goals in a facility with which the VA has a contract. Sets the reimbursement rate for such care or services at the greatest of the VA, Medicare, or TRICARE (a Department of Defense [DOD] managed care program) payment rate for such care or services. Terminates the Secretary's authority to contract with or reimburse non-VA facilities for the provision of such care and services two years after this Act's enactment. Directs the Secretary to enter into a contract or contracts with a private entity or entities with experience in VHA and private delivery systems and in health care management to conduct an independent assessment of the hospital care and medical services furnished in VA facilities. Prohibits the Secretary from paying awards and bonuses to VA employees for FY2014-FY2016.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 2014
Sage Grouse Protection and Conservation Act - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) or the Secretary of the Interior to give effect to a statewide conservation and management plan for the protection and recovery of the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) and the Gunnison sage-grouse (Centrocercus minimus) from either California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, or Wyoming. Requires the appropriate Secretary to: hold for at least 10 years actions to list the species as endangered or threatened, the enforcement of the listing, and the designation of critical habitat for the species in that state; withdraw any land use planning activities related to federal management of the species on National Forest System lands and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land within the state; and amend federal land use plans with respect to that state to comply with a state plan. Applies these requirements to states that submit a plan or have a plan previously endorsed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Requires the appropriate Secretary to: (1) review statewide plans to determine if they are likely to conserve the species to the point at which the measures provided pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973 are no longer necessary; (2) approve or endorse, or make comments on, statewide plans; and (3) provide states with information and make personnel available to help with plans. Prohibits any proposed action pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) that occurs within one of those states from being denied or restricted solely on the basis of such sage-grouse if the action is consistent with a state plan that has been submitted to the appropriate Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2014
Veterans TRICARE Choice Act - Allows an individual who is eligible to participate in the TRICARE program (a Department of Defense [DOD] managed health care program) to: (1) elect to be ineligible to enroll in such program, (2) make tax deductible contributions to a health savings account during the period such individual elects to be ineligible for TRICARE coverage, and (3) enroll in the TRICARE program at a later date during a special enrollment period.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2014
Higher Education Reform and Opportunity Act of 2014 - Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to make the following entities, programs, and courses eligible for funding under title IV if they are accredited by an authorized accreditation authority in a state that has an alternative accreditation agreement with the Secretary of Education: institutions that provide postsecondary courses; postsecondary apprenticeship programs; and postsecondary education courses or programs provided by institutions of postsecondary education, nonprofit organizations, or for-profit organizations or businesses. Lists the items to be included in a state's alternative accreditation agreement with the Secretary, including the standards those entities, programs, and courses must meet to receive and maintain their accreditation. Requires that agreement to include the state's assurance that only entities, programs, and courses that provide credits toward a postsecondary certification, credential, or degree (as defined by the state in the agreement) will be accredited. Establishes the formula for determining the administrative cost allowance for: (1) the entities, programs, and courses that are accredited through the alternative accreditation system and that administer the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Perkins Loan, Federal Work-Study, and Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant programs in accordance with the agreement; and (2) states that will administer those programs for such entities, programs, and courses in accordance with the agreement.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2014
Afghan Allies Protection Extension Act - Amends the Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009 to extend: (1) the Afghan special immigrant visa program through FY2015, and (2) unused visa carryover authority through December 31, 2016. Expands the scope of a principal alien's qualifying employment to include employment by or on behalf of: (1) an organization associated with the U.S. mission in Afghanistan that has received U.S. funding through an official and documented contract, grant, or cooperative agreement; or (2) a media or nongovernmental organization headquartered in the United States. Revises family member requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2014
Future Logging Careers Act - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to make the restrictions on oppressive child labor inapplicable to employment of an employee age 16 or 17 by a parent, or a person standing in place of a parent, in a logging or mechanized operation owned or operated by that parent or person.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 2014
Protecting the Sustainable Use of Spent Grains Act of 2014 - Amends the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act to permit the continued exemption from the Act, as an alcohol-related facility, of a facility that distributes, for use as food for animals, spent grains resulting from the production of alcoholic beverages.
United States · United States Congress · 7 April 2014
Hezbollah International Financing Prevention Act of 2014 - States that it shall be U.S. policy to: (1) prevent Hezbollah's global logistics and financial network from operating in order to curtail funding of its domestic and international activities; and (2) utilize diplomatic, legislative, and executive avenues to combat Hezbollah's criminal activities in order to block that organization's ability to fund its global terrorist activities. Directs the President to report to Congress: (1) a list of satellite, broadcast, or other providers that knowingly transmit the content of al-Manar TV; and (2) the identity of those providers that have or have not been sanctioned pursuant to Executive Order 13224. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to prohibit or impose strict conditions on the opening or maintaining in the United States of a correspondent account or a payable-through account by a foreign financial institution that knowingly: (1) facilitates the activities of Hezbollah or its agents, instrumentalities, affiliates, or successors; (2) facilitates the activities of a person acting on behalf of or owned or controlled by an agent, instrumentality, affiliate, or successor; (3) engages in money laundering to carry out such an activity; (4) facilitates a significant transaction or provides significant financial services to carry out such an activity, including services that involve a transaction of gold, silver, platinum, or other precious metals; or (5) facilitates any of these activities, conspires to facilitate or participate in such an activity, or is owned or controlled by a foreign financial institution that knowingly engages in such an activity. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to prescribe reporting, information sharing, and due diligence requirements for domestic financial institutions that maintain a correspondent account or payable-through account in the United States for a foreign financial institution. Authorizes the Secretary to waive such requirements if in the U.S. national security interests, and with congressional notification. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to identify to Congress every 180 days each foreign central bank that carries out an activity prohibited under this Act. Sets forth penalty requirements for specified violations under this Act. Directs the President to designate Hezbollah as: (1) a significant foreign narcotics trafficker if Hezbollah meets meets the criteria set forth under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act, and (2) a significant transnational criminal organization if Hezbollah meets the criteria set forth under specified executive orders and statutes. Requires the President to report to Congress which of these criteria the President determines that Hezbollah has not met, if it does not. Directs the Secretary of State to report to Congress regarding Hezbollah's involvement in the trade in rough diamonds outside of the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme. Declares that nothing in this Act shall apply to authorized U.S. intelligence activities. States that any requirement of this Act shall cease to be in effect 30 days after the President certifies to Congress that Hezbollah: (1) is no longer designated as a foreign terrorist organization; (2) is no longer listed in the Annex to Executive Order 13224 (blocking property and prohibiting transactions with persons who commit or support terrorism); and (3) poses no significant threat to U.S. national security, interests, or allies.
United States · United States Congress · 2 April 2014
Veterans Information Security Improvement Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to: (1) carry out certain information security activities, (2) ensure that officials and staff of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) possess specified qualifications in such areas, and (3) coordinate the staffing of related information technology and security offices. Requires the Secretary to ensure that: (1) the Assistant Secretary for Information and Technology, the head of the Office of Information Security (OIS), and relevant field staff possess certain levels of information technology education, certifications, and experience; (2) Office of Information and Technology (OIT) staff are assigned to the OIS; and (3) subordinate OIT offices maintain appropriate information security functions. Directs the Secretary to ensure that subordinate OIT offices maintain functions to: (1) integrate the VA's security architecture into the VA's overall enterprise architecture strategy, (2) restrict the development of new data warehouses and data marts holding sensitive personal information of veterans, and (3) reduce the number of data marts holding such personal information. Defines: (1) "data mart" as a subset of a data warehouse that contains information for a specific entity of an organization rather than the entire organization, and (2) "data warehouse" as a collection of data designed to support management decision making that contains a wide variety of data presenting a coherent picture of business conditions for an entire organization at a single point in time and whose development includes systems to extract data from operating systems plus installation of a warehouse database system that provides managers flexible access to the data. Requires the Secretary to safeguard VA network infrastructure, computers, and servers. Directs the Secretary to protect the confidentiality of sensitive personal information of veterans by: (1) providing upgrades or phaseouts of outdated or unsupported operating systems to protect against harmful viruses and malicious software, and (2) securing VA web applications and the Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture (commonly referred to as the "Vista system," which allows for an integrated inpatient and outpatient electronic health record for patients and provides administrative tools to VA employees). Directs the Secretary to submit certifications to Congress regarding the VA's compliance with information security requirements, including actions required by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Requires the Secretary to submit monthly reports to Congress regarding security vulnerabilities discovered after performing regular scans of VA computers and servers.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2014
Common Sense in Species Protection Act of 2014 - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to require the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Commerce to exclude an area from designation as a critical habitat to conserve an endangered or threatened species if the benefits of exclusion outweigh the benefits of including the area, unless the failure to designate the area as critical habitat will result in the extinction of the species. Requires the appropriate Secretary to make available for public comment with any proposed rule to designate a critical habitat a draft analysis that: (1) examines the incremental and cumulative economic effects of all actions to protect the species and its habitat upon each state and locality that is affected by the proposed designation; (2) includes consideration of economic effects on possible uses of land and property values, employment, revenues available for state and local governments, and the provision of water, power, or other public services; and (3) assesses those effects on a quantitative and qualitative basis.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2014
Interstate Milk Freedom Act of 2014 - Prohibits a federal department, agency, or court from taking any action that would prohibit, regulate, or otherwise restrict the interstate traffic of milk or a milk product that is unpasteurized and packaged for direct human consumption if: (1) such action is based solely upon a determination that because the milk or milk product is unpasteurized it is adulterated, misbranded, or otherwise in violation of federal law; (2) the milk or milk product's state of origin allows unpasteurized milk or unpasteurized milk products to be distributed for direct human consumption by any means; (3) the milk or milk product is produced, packaged, and moved in compliance with the laws of such state of origin; and (4) the milk or milk product is moved from the state of origin for transport to another state which allows the distribution of unpasteurized milk or unpasteurized milk products for direct human consumption.
United States · United States Congress · 4 March 2014
Executive Needs to Faithfully Observe and Respect Congressional Enactments of the Law Act of 2014 or the ENFORCE the Law Act of 2014 - Authorizes either chamber of Congress, upon adoption of a resolution declaring that the President or any officer or employee of the United States has established or implemented a policy, practice, or procedure to refrain from enforcing, applying, following, or administering any federal statute, rule, regulation, program, policy, or other law in violation of the constitutional requirement that the President faithfully execute the laws of the United States, to bring a civil action for a declaratory judgment to that effect. Grants jurisdiction to a three-judge panel of a U.S. district court to hear such civil action and provides for an expedited direct appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2014
Wildfire Disaster Funding Act of 2014 - Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act), with regard to sequestration adjustments, to require any adjustments in enacted appropriations for wildfire suppression operations in the Wildland Fire Management accounts at the Department of Agriculture (USDA) or the Department of the Interior for a fiscal year, to be the amount of additional new budget authority provided for wildfire suppression operations in the appropriations Act, but not to exceed $2.689 billion in such authority in each of FY2014-FY2021. Defines "additional new budget authority" as the amount specified in an appropriations Act for a fiscal year to pay for wildfire suppression operations, but only to the extent such authority exceeds 70% of the average costs for wildfire suppression operations over the previous 10 years. Prescribes requirements for any request by the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture for supplemental appropriations necessary for wildfire suppression operations.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2014
National Commission on the Structure of the Army Act of 2014 - Establishes the National Commission on the Structure of the Army to undertake a comprehensive study of the structure of the Army to determine: (1) the proper force mixture of the active component and reserve component, and (2) how the structure should be modified to best fulfill mission requirements in a manner consistent with available resources. Directs the Commission to give particular consideration to evaluating a structure that: (1) meets current and anticipated requirements of the combatant commands; (3) achieves a cost-efficiency balance between the regular and reserve components, with a focus on fully burdened and lifecycle cost of Army personnel; (3) ensures that the regular and reserve components have the capacity needed to support homeland defense and disaster assistance missions in the United States; (4) provides for sufficient numbers of regular members of the Army to provide a base of trained personnel from which the personnel of the reserve components could be recruited; (5) maintains a peacetime rotation force to support operational tempo goals of 1:2 for regular members and 1:5 for members of the reserve components; and (6) maximizes and appropriately balances affordability, efficiency, effectiveness, capability, and readiness. Prohibits the use of any funds made available for FY2015 for the Army to: (1) divest, retire, or transfer, or prepare to divest, retire, or transfer, any aircraft of the Army assigned to units of the Army National Guard as of January 15, 2014; or (2) reduce personnel below the authorized end strength levels of 350,000 for the Army National Guard as of September 30, 2014.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 2014
Intelligence Budget Transparency Act of 2014 - Requires the President's annual federal budget submission to include the total dollar amount proposed for intelligence or intelligence related activities of each element of the government engaged in such activities in the fiscal year for which the budget is submitted and the estimated appropriation required for each of the ensuing four fiscal years.
United States · United States Congress · 10 January 2014
No Bailouts for Insurance Industry Act of 2014 - Repeals requirements under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act for: (1) a transitional reinsurance program for the individual health insurance market in each state, and (2) a program of risk corridors for calendar years 2014-2016 under which a qualified health plan offered in the individual or small group market shall participate in a payment adjustment system based on the ratio of the allowable costs of the plan to the plan's aggregate premiums. Applies the repeal of the transitional reinsurance program to plan years beginning after enactment of this Act and provides rules for applying the provision before such date. Applies the repeal of the risk corridors program to calendar years beginning after enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 12 December 2013
Immigration Compliance Enforcement (ICE) Act - Prohibits the use of federal funds for: (1) the position of Public Advocate within U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE); (2) the position of Deputy Assistant Director of Custody Programs and Community Outreach within ICE; or (3) any other position within ICE whose functions are substantially the same as those which as of March 26, 2013, were assigned to the position of Public Advocate within ICE, or as of the date of the enactment of this Act were assigned to the position of Deputy Assistant Director of Custody Programs and Community Outreach within ICE.
United States · United States Congress · 10 December 2013
Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency Responders Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that a qualified emergency services volunteer shall not be counted in determining the number of full-time employees of an employer for the purpose of shared responsibility requirements for employers with respect to health coverage under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Defines "qualified emergency services volunteer" as a bona fide volunteer performing fire fighting and prevention services, emergency medical services, or ambulance services.
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2013
Disapproves the President's: (1) failure to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed," as required by the Constitution, and (2) usurpation of the legislative power of Congress through the rewriting of key provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Reaffirms that the preservation of the Constitution's separation of powers is essential for the protection of individual liberty and the maintenance of the rule of law.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2013
Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2013 - Amends the federal criminal code to impose an additional penalty of $5,000 on any person or entity convicted of crimes relating to: (1) peonage, slavery, and trafficking in persons; (2) sexual abuse; (3) sexual exploitation and other abuse of children; (4) transportation for illegal sexual activity; or (5) human smuggling in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Establishes in the Treasury the Domestic Trafficking Victims' Fund into which such penalties shall be deposited and which shall be used in FY2015-FY2019 to award grants or enhance victims' programming under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005, and the Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990. Allots funds to provide services for child pornography victims. Amends the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make a determination, based on credible evidence, that a covered individual (i.e., a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident) has been a victim of a severe form of trafficking. Amends the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005 to authorize the Attorney General to award block grants to develop, improve, or expand comprehensive domestic child trafficking deterrence programs to rescue and restore the lives of trafficking victims, while investigating and prosecuting offenses involving child trafficking. Amends the Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990 to include human trafficking and the production of child pornography within the definition of child abuse for purposes of such Act. Amends the federal criminal code to: (1) increase restitution for victims of human trafficking; (2) set forth provisions for combating aggravated human trafficking racketeering; (3) allow state and local prosecutors to obtain wiretap warrants in state courts for investigations into human trafficking, child sexual exploitation, and child pornography production; (4) increase penalties for offenses involving enticement into slavery, sex trafficking of children, child exploitation, and repeat sex offenders; and (5) revise the definition of the crime of travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct to facilitate prosecutions of such crime. Directs the Attorney General to ensure that all task forces and working groups within the Innocence Lost National Initiative engage in activities, programs, or operations to increase the investigative capabilities of law enforcement personnel in the detection, investigation, and prosecution of persons who patronize or solicit children for sex. Requires the Attorney General to audit grants awarded under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005. Imposes limits on the use of Department of Justice (DOJ) funds for DOJ conferences involving more than $20,000.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2013
Obamacare Taxpayer Bailout Prevention Act - Repeals the provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish and administer a program of risk corridors for calendar years 2014, 2015, and 2016 under which a qualified health plan offered in the individual or small group market is required to participate in a payment adjustment system based on the ratio of the allowable costs of the plan to the plan's aggregate premiums.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2013
Adoption Promotion Act of 2013 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to ensure that any pregnancy options counseling funded through training grants for personnel to carry out family planning service programs under such Act: (1) includes adoption counseling, and (2) is provided by individuals who are licensed social workers or counselors in the states in which they practice and who have knowledge and experience in adoption practice. Requires that any training provided to an individual with respect to family planning include training on the adoption process. Requires research in the biomedical, contraceptive development, behavioral, and program implementation fields related to family planning and population funded under such Act to include: (1) the collection of data on the number of pregnancy tests administered to individuals served by family planning service programs and the results of those tests; and (2) the evaluation of the quality, consistency, and outcomes of pregnancy options counseling.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2013
Employee Rights Act - Amends the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) to make it an unlawful labor practice for a labor organization or its agents to interfere with the rights of employees to organize and select representation to collectively bargain. Adds a requirement that representatives be selected by secret ballot in an election conducted by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) by a majority of the employees in a unit. Defines "majority" for purposes of determining the majority of employees in an election to mean the majority of all employees in the unit, and not the majority of employees voting in the election. Requires the NLRB, in cases where an existing certified or voluntarily recognized bargaining unit experiences turnover, expansion, or alteration by merger of more than 50% of the unit's employees, to conduct a secret paper ballot among the unit employees: (1) between the 120th day and 110th day before the collective bargaining agreement's expiration or before the end of three years, if there is an agreement between the labor organization and the employer; or (2) within 30 days, if there is no agreement between such parties. Requires the NLRB to decide, before the election of a labor organization as the exclusive collective bargaining representative of all employees of an appropriate unit, whether such unit shall be the employer unit, craft unit, plant unit, or subdivision unit. Requires the NLRB to give 14 days advance notice before a hearing when it is investigating an election petition if it has reasonable cause to believe that a question of representation affecting commerce exists. Revises the requirement that the NLRB direct an election by secret ballot, and certify its results, whenever it finds upon the record of such a hearing that a question of representation exists. Adds a requirement that the NLRB also review all post-hearing appeals before finding that such a question exists. Requires an employer to provide the NLRB a list consisting only of employee names and home addresses of all eligible voters within 7 days after an NLRB determination of the appropriate unit or following any agreement between the employer and the labor organization regarding eligible voters. Prohibits an election after the filing of a petition unless and until: (1) a hearing is conducted before a qualified hearing officer on any and all material, factual issues regarding jurisdiction, statutory coverage, appropriate unit, unit inclusion or exclusion, or eligibility of individuals; and (2) the issues are resolved by a regional Director, subject to appeal and review, or by the NLRB. Declares that election results shall not be final nor any labor organization be certified as a bargaining representative unless the NLRB has ruled on: (1) each pre-election issue not resolved before the election; and (2) the NLRB conducts a hearing and resolves each issue pertaining to the conduct or results of the election. Makes any labor organization found to have interfered with, restrained, or coerced employees in the exercise of their rights to form or join a labor organization or to refrain from forming or joining (including the filing of a decertification petition) liable for lost wages and unlawfully collected union dues and fees, if any, and an additional amount as liquated damages. Amends the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (Landrum-Griffin Act) to permit an election by secret ballot to be conducted through votes cast by electronic ballot cast in the privacy of a voting booth. Requires every employee in a bargaining unit represented by a labor organization, regardless of membership status, to have the same right as members to vote by secret ballot to ratify a collective bargaining agreement with, or to engage in, a strike or refusal to work of any kind against their employer. Prohibits the use of an employee's union dues for any purpose not directly related to the labor organization's collective bargaining, unless that employee authorizes such expenditure in writing. Prohibits a strike without the consent of a majority of all unit employees affected, determined by a secret ballot vote conducted by a neutral, private organization chosen by agreement between the employer and the labor organization. Requires each labor organization to make the independently verified annual audit report of its financial condition and operations available to all of its members and represented nonmembers. Makes it unlawful for a person to use force or violence, or threaten the use of force or violence, to restrain, coerce, or intimidate a person, or attempt to, in order to obtain from any person any right to represent employees, compensation, or other term or condition of employment. Subjects persons who willfully violate such prohibitions to both civil and criminal penalties.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2013
Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to eliminate the funding mechanism for the three-year transitional reinsurance program, under which group health plans are required to pay a fee to reinsurance entities for plan years beginning January 1, 2014. (The fees are distributed to individual health plans that cover high-risk individuals.) Authorizes appropriations for such reinsurance program instead.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2013
Transportation Empowerment Act - Declares the purposes of the Act, including returning maximum discretionary authority and fiscal responsibility to the states for all elements of the national surface transportation systems (excluding the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways). Prescribes a limitation on funding of transportation programs and projects carried out under this Act. Authorizes appropriations out of the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) (other than the Mass Transit Account) for FY2015-FY2019 for specified core programs under the federal-aid highway program, including: (1) metropolitan transportation planning, (2) emergency relief for highways and roads, (3) the federal lands transportation program, and (4) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) administrative expenses. Authorizes a state to transfer and use excess federal-aid highway funds for any surface transportation project (including mass transit and rail). Limits federal assistance to states for highway bridge replacement and rehabilitation to bridges on the federal-aid highway system. Repeals the authorization of federal assistance to states for historic bridges. Repeals the transportation alternatives program. Declares that, beginning with FY2014, a highway construction or improvement project shall not be considered a federal project: (1) unless and until a state expends federal funds for the construction portion of such project, (2) solely by reason of the state expenditure of federal funds before the construction phase of the project (including for any environmental document or design work), or (3) upon state reimbursement to the federal government of the federal costs of such projects. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make amounts in the HTF available for expenditure for core highway programs through FY2020. Requires the Secretary of Treasury to transfer from the HTF amounts equivalent to motorboat and aviation fuel taxes collected before October 1, 2022, to: (1) the Land and Water Conservation Fund, (2) the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund, and (3) the Airport and Airway Trust Fund. Requires the Secretary to pay from the HTF into the general fund of the Treasury amounts equivalent to the floor stocks refunds made before July 1, 2023. Prescribes a motor fuel tax rate schedule for financing of core highway programs. Terminates, on September 30, 2014, the authority of the Secretary to make certain transfers to the Mass Transit Account. Directs the Secretary, on October 1, 2014, to transfer all amounts in the Mass Transit Account to the Highway Account. Authorizes appropriations out of the HTF (other than the Mass Transit Account) for FY2015-FY2019 for the highway research and development program. Directs the Secretary to allocate to the states for surface transportation projects (including mass transit and rail) any excess highway tax receipts appropriated to the HTF in FY2016-FY2019. Reduces the excise taxes imposed on: (1) gasoline from 18.3 cents to 3.7 cents, (2) diesel fuel or kerosene from 24.3 cents to 5.0 cents, and (3) diesel-water fuel emulsion from 19.7 cents to 4.1 cents. Requires credits or refunds of certain floor stocks taxes on liquids imposed before October 1, 2019. Declares that this Act shall become effective only if the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) certifies that it is deficit neutral.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2013
Smarter Sentencing Act of 2013 - Amends the federal criminal code to direct the court to impose a sentence for specified controlled substance offenses without regard to any statutory minimum sentence if the court finds that the criminal history category for the defendant is not higher than category two. (Currently, the court may disregard the statutory minimum if the defendant does not have more than one criminal history point.) Authorizes a court that imposed a sentence for a crack cocaine possession or trafficking offense committed before August 3, 2010, on motion of the defendant, the Director of the Bureau of Prisons, the attorney for the government, or the court, to impose a reduced sentence as if provisions of the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 were in effect at the time such offense was committed. Amends the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) and the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act (CSIEA) to reduce mandatory minimum sentences for manufacturing, distributing, dispensing, possessing, importing, or exporting specified controlled substances. Directs the Commission to review and amend its guidelines and policy statements applicable to persons convicted of such an offense under the CSA and CSIEA to ensure consistency with this Act and to consider specified factors, including: (1) its mandate to formulate guidelines to minimize the likelihood that the federal prison population will exceed federal prison capacity, (2) fiscal implications of changes, (3) relevant public safety concerns, (4) the intent of Congress that penalties for violent and serious drug traffickers who present public safety risks remain appropriately severe, and (5) the need to reduce and prevent racial disparities in sentencing. Requires the Attorney General to report on how the reduced expenditures on federal corrections and cost savings resulting from this Act will be used to help reduce overcrowding, increase investment in law enforcement and crime prevention, and reduce recidivism.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2013
If You Like Your Health Plan, You Can Keep it Act - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to prohibit anything in the Act from being construed to require an individual to terminate coverage under a group health plan or health insurance coverage in which the individual was enrolled during any part of the period beginning on the date of enactment of PPACA (March 23, 2010) and ending on December 31, 2013. Allows: (1) continuation of coverage under a group health plan or health insurance in which an individual was enrolled during any part of such period, regardless of whether the individual renews such coverage; (2) family members of the individual to join coverage under such a plan that is renewed; (3) new employees to join a group health plan that provides coverage during any part of such period; and (4) continuation of coverage maintained pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement that was ratified before the end of such period.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 2013
Uniting and Strengthening America by Fulfilling Rights and Ending Eavesdropping, Dragnet-collection, and Online Monitoring Act or the USA FREEDOM Act - Amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to set forth additional requirements for obtaining orders for business records in counterterrorism investigations, including requiring that the records sought pertain to a foreign power, an agent of a foreign power, or an individual in contact with, or known to a suspected agent of, a foreign power. Requires additional information if the applicant is seeking a nondisclosure requirement in connection with such request. Allows the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to apply for renewals of nondisclosure requirements. Authorizes the Attorney General (AG) to require the production of call data records by the provider of a wire or electronic communication service. Amends the USA PATRIOT Improvements and Reauthorization Act of 2005 to require the Inspector General (IG) of the Department of Justice (DOJ), for 2010 through 2013, to report on an examination of the minimization procedures (procedures designed to minimize the acquisition and retention of information and to prohibit its unauthorized dissemination) used in relation to business records orders. Imposes additional requirements on the authorized use of pen registers and trap and trace devices (devices for recording incoming and outgoing telephone numbers), including that: (1) the information sought must pertain to a foreign power, agent thereof, or individual in contact with or known to such an agent; and (2) the application must contain a statement of proposed minimization procedures. Requires audits of the effectiveness and use of such devices. Prohibits the searching of collections of communications of U.S. persons, except: (1) under an order or authorization for electronic surveillance or physical search, (2) with the consent of such person, or (3) under a reasonable belief that the life or safety of the person is threatened and the information is sought to assist that person. Limits the collection of wholly domestic communications of a U.S. person to those communications: (1) to which any party is a target of the acquisition; or (2) that contain an identifier of a target of an acquisition, only if the communications are acquired to protect against international terrorism or the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Prohibits receiving into evidence any information obtained in an acquisition against any U.S. person for which a deficiency in the procedures for acquiring such information is identified by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA Court). Authorizes the FISA Court, if the government corrects any deficiencies so identified, to permit the use or disclosure of information acquired before the correction under such minimization procedures as the FISA Court shall establish. Repeals on June 1, 2015, FISA procedures regarding the targeting of non-U.S. persons located outside the United States in order to acquire foreign intelligence information. Requires reviews of surveillance targeting and minimization procedures by the IG of the Intelligence Community (IC), including mandatory review with respect to the privacy rights of U.S. persons. Establishes within the judicial branch an Office of the Special Advocate to participate in proceedings before the FISA Court and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review, request reconsiderations of FISA Court decisions, and participate in appeals and reviews. Requires the Special Advocate to vigorously advocate in support of legal interpretations that protect individual privacy and civil liberties. Requires the Attorney General to publicly disclose specified information in connection with FISA Court or FISA Court of Review decisions appealed by the Special Advocate. Requires the release of as much information regarding the facts and analysis in such decisions as is consistent with legitimate national security concerns. Authorizes the FBI Director to request from a communication service provider the name, address, length of service, and local and long distance billing records of a person as part of a national security investigation only if there are reasonable grounds to believe that the information sought pertains to a foreign power, an agent of a foreign power, or an individual in contact with, or known to a suspected agent of, a foreign power. Provides similar requirements with respect to an FBI request for information from financial institutions and consumer reporting agencies. Revises provisions prohibiting the disclosure of the receipt of a national security letter by such providers, institutions, and agencies to except disclosure to: (1) those persons to whom disclosure is necessary to comply with the request, (2) an attorney in order to obtain legal advice or assistance regarding the request, or (3) other persons as permitted by the FBI. Includes under such prohibition (with the same exceptions) national security letters issued in connection with the investigation of persons with access to classified information. Allows affected communications providers, financial institutions, and consumer reporting agencies to seek judicial review of requests for information. Requires the DOJ IG to report results of audits of national security letters issued during 2010 through 2013. Amends provisions of FISA, the Right to Financial Privacy Act of 1978, the National Security Act of 1947, and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) concerning national security letters to, effective June 1, 2015, make such provisions read as they read on October 25, 2001. Allows electronic service providers to publicly report on information provided under FISA orders and national security letters. Exempts such providers from liability with respect to such reports. Revises requirements concerning government reporting on the use of FISA orders and national security letters. Amends the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to remove the AG as a required intermediary for subpoenas in connection with authorized activities of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 2013
Defense of Environment and Property Act of 2013 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to redefine "navigable waters" to specify that included territorial seas are those that are: (1) navigable-in-fact; or (2) permanent or continuously flowing bodies of water that form geographical features commonly known as streams, oceans, rivers, and lakes that are connected to waters that are navigable-in-fact. Excludes from such term: (1) waters that do not physically abut navigable waters and lack a continuous surface water connection to navigable waters; (2) man-made or natural structures or channels through which water flows intermittently or ephemerally, or that periodically provide drainage for rainfall; or (3) wetlands without a continuous surface connection to bodies of water that are waters of the United States. Prohibits activities carried out by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or the Army Corps of Engineers from impinging upon states' power over land and water use. Prohibits: (1) aggregation of such excluded wetlands or waters from being used to determine or assert federal jurisdiction, and (2) wetlands without a continuous surface connection to bodies of water that are waters of the United States from being considered to be under federal jurisdiction. Authorizes states or individual property owners to obtain judicial review of jurisdictional determinations by the Administrator or the Secretary of the Army that would affect their ability to plan the development and use of land and water resources within 30 days after such a determination. Considers groundwater to be state water. Prohibits groundwater from being considered in determining or asserting federal jurisdiction over isolated or other waters. Prohibits the Administrator from using a significant nexus test to determine federal jurisdiction over navigable waters and waters of the United States. Nullifies: (1) the Corps' rule entitled "Final Rule for Regulatory Programs of the Corps of Engineers," (2) EPA's proposed rule entitled "Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the Clean Water Act Regulatory Definition of 'Waters of the United States,'" (3) the guidance document entitled "Clean Water Act Jurisdiction Following the U.S. Supreme Court's Decision in Rapanos v. United States & Carabell v. United States (relating to the definition of waters under the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act), and (4) any subsequent regulation or guidance issued by federal agencies that defines or interprets the term "navigable waters." Prohibits the Corps and EPA from promulgating rules or issuing guidance that expands or interprets the definition of navigable waters unless expressly authorized by Congress. Sets forth provisions requiring federal agencies to obtain consent of private property owners prior to entering their land to collect information about navigable waters. Requires federal agencies that issue regulations that relate to the definition of navigable waters or waters of the United States and diminish the fair market value or economic viability of a property to pay the affected property owner an amount equal to twice the value of the loss. Gives no force or effect to such regulation until landowners with such claims have been compensated.
United States · United States Congress · 28 October 2013
Keep Your Health Plan Act of 2013 - Permits a health insurance issuer that has in effect health insurance coverage in the individual market as of January 1, 2013, to continue offering such coverage for sale during 2014 outside of a health care exchange established under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Treats such coverage as a grandfathered health plan for purposes of an individual meeting the requirement to maintain minimum essential health coverage.
United States · United States Congress · 28 October 2013
Delay Until Fully Functional Act of 2013 - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to require the Comptroller General (GAO) to: (1) determine whether health care exchanges and all other point of enrollment options are fully functional and operating in a manner consistent with the role envisioned under the Act and report study results to Congress, and (2) conduct subsequent studies every 60 days until the Comptroller General determines that exchanges are fully functional and operating in such manner. Delays the effective date of the penalty for failure to maintain minimum essential coverage to apply the requirements to taxable years beginning six months after the date on which the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) certifies to Congress the results of the GAO determination that exchanges are operating successfully. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt from the penalty an individual who is unable to enroll in a qualified health plan because of the technical or customer service issues of an exchange.
United States · United States Congress · 9 October 2013
Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2013 - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, with respect to abortion coverage in qualified plans offered through a Health Benefit Exchange, to modify the notice rules to require that: in the case of services regarding abortions both for which public funding is prohibited and allowed, the extent of coverage shall be prominently displayed in any marketing or advertising materials, comparison tools, or summary of benefits and coverage explanation made available by the issuer of the plan, by an Exchange, or by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), including information made available through an Internet portal or Exchange; and in the case of abortions for which public funding is prohibited and where the premium for the plan is disclosed, the surcharge attributable to such services, consisting of an amount equal to the actuarial value of the coverage, shall be disclosed and identified separately.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 2013
Appropriates for FY2014, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for any period during which interim or full-year appropriations for FY2014 are not in effect, such sums as are necessary, at a rate for operations as provided in the applicable appropriations Acts for FY2013 and under the authority and conditions provided in such Acts, to administer and furnish the compensation, pension benefits, readjustment benefits, insurance and indemnities, housing benefits, and vocational rehabilitation benefits provided for under federal veterans' benefits laws. Requires the appropriations and funds made available and authority granted pursuant to this Act to remain available until whichever of the following first occurs: (1) enactment of an appropriation (including a continuing appropriation) for any purpose for which amounts are made available in this Act, (2) enactment of the applicable regular or continuing appropriations resolution or other Act without any appropriation for such purpose, or (3) January 1, 2015.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 2013
Marriage and Religious Freedom Act - Prohibits the federal government from taking an adverse action against a person on the basis that such person acts in accordance with a religious belief that: (1) marriage is or should be recognized as the union of one man and one woman, or (2) sexual relations are properly reserved to such a marriage. Defines "adverse action" as any federal government action to discriminate against such person, including: (1) denying or revoking certain tax exemptions or disallowing a deduction of any charitable contribution made to or by such person; (2) denying or excluding such person from receiving any federal grant, contract, cooperative agreement, loan, license, certification, accreditation, employment, or similar position or status; or (3) denying or withholding any benefit under a federal benefit program. Permits a person to assert an actual or threatened violation of this Act as a claim or defense in a judicial proceeding and to obtain compensatory damages or other appropriate relief against the federal government. Authorizes the Attorney General (DOJ) to bring actions to enforce this Act. Specifies that the term "person" includes any person regardless of religious affiliation, as well as corporations and other entities regardless of for-profit or nonprofit status.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2013
Honoring the Fort Hood Heroes Act - Directs: (1) the Secretary of the military department concerned to award the Purple Heart to members of the Armed Forces (members) who were killed or wounded in the attack at Fort Hood, Texas, on November 5, 2009; and (2) the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to award the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Defense of Freedom to civilian employees and contractors of DOD who were killed or wounded in such attack. Deems, for purposes of all applicable federal benefit laws, regulations, and policies: (1) such members to have been killed or wounded in a combat zone as the result of an enemy act; and (2) such employees to have been killed or wounded by hostile action while serving with the Armed Forces in a contingency operation and to have been killed or wounded in a terrorist attack. Excludes any member whose death or wound was the result of willful misconduct. Applies such provisions to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or other psychological injuries that were a a result of such attack.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 2013
Stability, Security, and Fairness Resolution of 2013 - Makes continuing appropriations for FY2014. Appropriates amounts for continuing operations, projects, or activities which were conducted in FY2013 and for which appropriations, funds, or other authority were made available in: the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2013 (division A of P.L. 113-6); the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2013 (division B of P.L. 113-6); and The Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013 (division F of P.L. 113-6). Requires the rate for operations for each account to be calculated to reflect the full amount of any reduction required in FY2013 pursuant to: section 3004 of division G of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013 (P.L. 113-6), if any; and the sequestration order issued to enforce a specified budget goal pursuant to the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act). (The Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act was amended by the Budget Control Act of 2011 to revise the discretionary spending limits and reduce the discretionary appropriations and direct spending specified in the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act unless a joint committee bill achieving an amount greater than $1.2 trillion in deficit reduction would be enacted by January 15, 2012.) Provides funding under this joint resolution through FY2014, unless otherwise provided for in this division or in the applicable appropriations Act. Authorizes continuation of other specified activities (including those for entitlements and other mandatory payments) through such fiscal year. Enacts the following bills into law: H.R. 2216 (Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2014), as engrossed by the House of Representatives on June 4, 2013; H.R. 2217 (Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2014), as engrossed by the House on June 6, 2013; and H.R. 2397 (Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2014), as engrossed by the House on July 24, 2013. Amends the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act to reduce the discretionary category in new budget authority for FY2014 from $1.066 trillion to $967.473 million. Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), if for FY2014 the amount of new budget authority provided by this joint resolution exceeds such discretionary spending limits, to increase the applicable percentage of 0% by the amount necessary to eliminate the excess of the limit. Rescinds the applicable 0%, subject to such requirement, of: the budget authority provided (or obligation limit imposed) for FY2014 for any discretionary account in section 101 of this joint resolution, the budget authority provided in any advance appropriation for FY2014 for any discretionary account (excluding any account funded under section 111 of this joint resolution) in any prior fiscal year appropriation Act, and the contract authority provided in FY2014 for any program subject to limitation incorporated or otherwise contained in section 101 of this joint resolution. Exempts: amounts designated by the Congress for Overseas Contingency Operations/Global War on Terrorism (OCO/GWOT) or for disaster relief; or the amount made available by this joint resolution for "Social Security Administration, Limitation on Administrative Expenses" for continuing disability reviews under titles II (Federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance [OASDI] Benefits) and XVI (Grants to States for Aid to the Aged, Blind, or Disabled) of the Social Security Act (SSA), and for the cost associated with conducting redeterminations of eligibility under SSA title XVI. Prohibits, during any fiscal year, the use of federal funds to carryout: (1) the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA); or (2) certain PPACA related requirements in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. Rescinds any funds provided by PPACA, its title, or subtitle for FY2014. Delays: the obligation of any PPACA funds for FY2015 until January 1, 2015; and implementation of PPACA, its related requirements in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, or amendments made by either Act until December 31, 2014.
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 2013
Idaho Safe and Efficient Vehicle Act of 2013 - Prohibits application of federal weight limitations to a longer combination vehicle operating on a segment of the Interstate System in Idaho if it: (1) has a gross vehicle weight of 129,000 pounds or less; (2) complies with certain single axle, tandem axle, and bridge formula weight limits; and (3) is authorized to operate on that segment under Idaho law.
![Official portrait of Rep. Labrador, Raul R. [R-ID-1]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/l000573_200.jpg)