United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2004
States that Congress: (1) urges The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) and Greece to honor the 1995 agreement under which both countries agreed to determine a mutually acceptable official name for the FYROM; (2) requests the Secretary of State to return to the long-standing U.S. policy to recognize and refer to the FYROM as such; and (3) supports United Nations (UN) efforts to determine a mutually acceptable official name for the FYROM.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2004
Consumer Checking Account Fairness Act - Amends the Expedited Funds Availability Act to direct the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System to prescribe regulations to: (1) reduce the expedited funds availability time periods to take into account the time within which any receiving institution can reasonably expect to learn of the nonpayment of most items for each category of checks under the Checking Clearing for the 21st Century Act (Check 21 Act) or its implementing regulations; or (2) eliminate distinctions between the time period schedules if the Board finds that they no longer have any significance for any category of checks under such Act or regulations. Extends the next business day availability requirement to funds deposited at a proprietary ATM. Sets a limit upon certain overdraft fees imposed during a check hold period. Requires a depository institution to credit all deposits to a consumer checking account before debiting any check drawn on the account and presented for payment. Requires that Saturday be treated as a business day in the calculation of any period within which funds deposited in an account are required to be made available if the depository institution debits accounts on Saturdays for checks received. Reduces from four business days to two business days the mandatory check hold period on funds deposited by nonlocal checks. Prohibits a depository institution from imposing a fee for paying any check drawn on an account which lacks sufficient funds (bounce protection) unless the accountholder has requested check protection service. Amends the Check 21 Act to provide that if a bank that holds the account of a consumer imposes any fee for producing a copy of a substitute check, the expedited recredit process shall be available for all charges against the account without regard to whether a substitute check was involved or not.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2004
Act to Save America's Forests - Amends the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 to revise eligibility criteria for members of the land and resource management scientific committee. Revises the committee termination date. Directs the Chief of the Forest Service, the Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Director of the Bureau of Land Management to each prepare a continuous inventory of forest land administered by each agency head and to document whole-system measures that will be taken as a result of the inventory. Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to provide for conservation and restoration of native biodiversity in forested areas. Prohibits clearcutting or other even-age logging operations on any stand or watershed on certain Federal land, National Forest System land, and National Wildlife Refuge System land. Provides for Federal enforcement and a private right of action. Designates special areas which shall be subject to restrictions on road construction and logging in Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas,Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Requires the Secretaries concerned to appoint a committee of independent scientists to recommend additional special areas. Restricts road construction and logging on Federal land in ancient forests, special areas, roadless areas, and watershed protection areas. Provides for Federal enforcement and a private right of action. States that this Act shall not apply to Federal wilderness areas designated under the Wilderness Act.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2004
Preventing Sexual Assaults in the Military Act of 2004 - Authorizes necessary appropriations to: (1) eliminate the backlog in processing DNA evidence at military DNA laboratories, including the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Laboratory; (2) ensure that DNA testing and analysis of samples from crimes, including sexual assault and other serious violent crimes, are carried out in a timely manner; (3) distribute a sufficient amount of DNA evidence kits to each military academy, domestic military base, overseas military base, and theater of operations; and (4) ensure that at least one military medical personnel member trained as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) or Sexual Assault Forensic Examiner (SAFE) is on duty at all times in the health care facility of each military academy, domestic military military base, overseas military base, and theater of operations, except where a memorandum of understanding ensures that a nonmilitary SANE or SAFE is on duty at all times.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2004
Disaster Area Health and Environmental Monitoring Act of 2004 - Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to authorize the President to carry out a program for the protection, assessment, monitoring, and study of the health and safety of individuals if chemicals or substances associated with potential acute or chronic human health effects (substances of concern) are being or have been released in a disaster area. Makes participation in any registry or study that is part of the program voluntary. Requires the President to take appropriate measures to protect the privacy of registry or study participants. Authorizes the President to carry out such a program through a cooperative agreement with a medical institution (including a local health department) or a consortium of medical institutions. Requires the President to carry out such a program in accordance with certain privacy regulations promulgated under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to enter jointly into a contract with the National Academy of Sciences to study and report on disaster area health and environmental protection and monitoring. Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to extend through September 30, 2006, the President's authority to establish a program to provide technical and financial assistance to State and local governments for the implementation of cost-effective predisaster hazard mitigation measures.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2004
International Remittance Consumer Protection Act of 2004 - Amends the Electronic Fund Transfer Act to require a remittance transfer provider to: (1) clearly and conspicuously make specified disclosures in writing and in a form that the consumer may keep to each consumer requesting a remittance transfer; and (2) make such disclosures in English and in the same languages principally used by the remittance transfer provider, or its agents at that office, if other than English. Prescribes error resolution guidelines and remedies governing remittance transfer errors. Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to publish electronically on each business day the foreign currencies dollar exchange rate. Amends the Federal Credit Union Act to empower Federal Credit Unions to: (1) provide remittance transfers to persons in the field of membership; and (2) cash checks and money orders for such persons for a fee. Directs the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System to work with the Federal reserve banks to expand the use of the automated clearinghouse system for remittance transfers to foreign countries. Requires certain Federal banking agencies to provide guidelines to financial institutions offering low-cost remittance transfers and no-cost or low-cost basic consumer accounts, as well as agency services to remittance transfer providers. Requires such agencies and the Secretary to assist the Financial Literacy and Education Commission in improving the financial literacy and education of consumers who send remittances. Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to direct the President, acting through the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, to provide assistance to leverage personal remittances and reduce the cost of remittances sent to Latin America and the Caribbean. Amends the Inter-American Development Bank Act to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. Executive Director at the Inter-American Development Bank to use the U.S. voice, vote, and influence to urge the Bank, among other specified things, to provide assistance to increasing access to financial institutions for the poor and working with local financial institutions to reduce fees and other costs associated with sending or receiving remittances. Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to specified congressional committees on the remittance transfer system.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2004
Coordinated Environmental Health Network Act of 2004 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to establish and operate the Coordinated Environmental Health Network (the Network), including by: (1) identifying, expanding, and coordinating among existing Federal public health and environmental infrastructure; (2) providing for public access to an electronic national database on the incidence and prevalence of specified priority chronic conditions and relevant environmental and other factors; (3) operating a National Environmental Health Rapid Response Service to develop strategies to rapidly respond to, and conduct investigations of, higher than expected incidence and prevalence rates of priority chronic conditions and environmental exposures; (4) awarding grants to States, local governments, territories, and Indian tribes to establish, maintain, and operate State Environmental Health Networks; (5) developing minimum standards and procedures for data collection and reporting for State Networks, including mechanisms for allowing States to set priorities and allocate resources accordingly; (6) establishing an Advisory Committee for the Network; (7) awarding John H. Chafee Public Health Scholarships to eligible students who are enrolled in an accredited school of public health or medicine; and (8) entering into a cooperative agreement with the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists to train and place applied epidemiology fellows in State and local health departments. Allows the Secretary to award grants to accredited schools or programs of public health to establish, maintain, and operate Centers of Excellence for research and demonstration with respect to chronic conditions and relevant environmental factors, which may include investigating causal connections between chronic conditions and environmental factors.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2004
Crosby-Puller Combat Wounds Compensation Act - Continues hazardous duty pay, aviation career incentive pay, career enlisted flier incentive pay, hardship duty pay, imminent danger pay, the travel or transportation per diem for duty outside the United States or in Hawaii or Alaska, and the family separation allowance for members of the Armed Forces who are wounded or injured in combat zones and removed from the area for treatment until such time as the member: (1) is found physically fit to perform the duties of the member's office, grade, rank, or rating; (2) is discharged or separated; or (3) dies. Amends the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the time limitation on the income tax exclusion for combat zone compensation resulting from hospitalization due to wounds, disease, or injury incurred in such combat zone.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2004
Amends rule XI (Procedures of Committees and Unfinished Business) of the Rules of the House of Representatives to prohibit House Committees from sending: (1) more than 999 copies of any mass mailing to addresses within the same congressional district, unless authorized to do so by resolution of the House with respect to the specific mailing; (2) any mass mailing to an address within a congressional district if the mailing is postmarked fewer than 90 days immediately before the date of a House election held in such district; or (3) any mass mailing as franked mail which does not conform to the rules, regulations, and standards prescribed by the House Commission on Congressional Mailing Standards for franked mail sent by elected officers of the House.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Domestic Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2004 - Directs the Attorney General to award grants to States and political subdivisions to establish model law enforcement programs that promote the effective prosecution of purchasers, exploiters, and traffickers of commercial sex acts. Permits the use of grant funds for: (1) prosecutions against purchasers of unlawful commercial sex acts, including through the use of female decoys; (2) prosecutions against traffickers and exploiters of unlawful commercial sex acts, including through surveillance of places of business engaged in such acts; and (3) social service programs operated by non-governmental organizations with special expertise in assisting victims of unlawful commercial sex activities, whose programs offer protection, education, food, and shelter for victims. Amends the Federal criminal code to increase penalties for purchasers of unlawful commercial sex acts. Requires the Departments of Justice (DOJ), Labor, Health and Human Services, and any other Federal agency involved in combating unlawful domestic sex trafficking and providing services to the victims to coordinate their activities with the Senior Policy Operating Group to ensure that Federal programs directed at domestic trafficking are consistent with Federal enforcement of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000. Requires the Attorney General to: (1) disseminate best practices for training State and local law enforcement personnel at each annual conference conducted by DOJ; and (2) carry out a biennial comprehensive statistical review and analysis of unlawful commercial sex acts.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Captive Mammal Protection Act of 2004 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit knowingly transferring, transporting, or possessing a captive mammal for purposes of allowing the killing or injuring of that mammal for entertainment or for the collection of a trophy.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Providing Reliable Officers, Technology, Education, Community Prosecutors, and Training In Our Neighborhoods Act of 2004 or PROTECTION Act - Modifies provisions of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 regarding public safety and community policing ("cops on the beat" program, COPS) to authorize the Attorney General to use COPS grants to: (1) increase prosecutor presence and to enhance law enforcement access to new technologies; (2) pay overtime to existing career law enforcement officers for community policing; and (3) promote higher education among in-service State and local law enforcement officers by reimbursing them for certain educational costs. Includes among permitted additional grant projects: (1) specialized integrity and ethics training; and (2) innovative proactive crime control and prevention programs involving school officials and religiously-affiliated organizations. Authorizes the Attorney General to use up to five percent of appropriated funds for technical assistance and training to States, local governments, Indian tribal governments, and other entities. Repeals provisions of the Act regarding termination of grants for hiring officers. Allows grants to be used to assist: (1) police departments in employing specified professional, scientific, and technological advancements; (2) State, local, or tribal prosecutors' offices in implementation of community-based prosecution programs that build on local community policing efforts; and (3) in paying overtime to existing career law enforcement officers. Reserves specified funds for local governmental units with a population of less than 50,000. Authorizes the Attorney General to use no more than 50 percent of grant renewal funds to award grants targeted for police officer retention.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Influenza Vaccine Emergency Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require influenza vaccine manufacturers to include a provision in any contract for the sale of the vaccine in interstate commerce expressing the policy that the Secretary of Health and Human Services has the authority to take title to necessary quantities of the vaccine if the Secretary declares that there is a public health emergency by reason of an influenza vaccine shortage, and that the manufacturer will reimburse the purchaser for any such quantity not received. Requires the Secretary to pay the manufacturer or distributor for any quantity taken at the price the manufacturer or distributor would have received for that quantity of vaccine. Requires the Secretary to determine the extent of compliance with guidelines for the distribution of influenza vaccine and, before using the authority to take title to the vaccine, to publish notice that such compliance has not been sufficient to constitute an adequate response to the emergency. Allows the Secretary, in lieu of taking title to a vaccine, to order any vaccine manufacturer or distributor to honor its contracts with States or political subdivisions. Requires the Secretary to provide any influenza vaccine to States, political subdivisions, and such other public or private entities as appropriate as a response to the emergency involved. Allows the Secretary to make an emergency declaration if the delivery waiting time for States or political subdivisions to receive the vaccine constitutes a significant threat to children, adolescents, or adults served by the immunization program.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Preservation of Federalism in Banking Act - Amends the Revised Statutes of the United States to set forth State law preemption standards for national banks and their subsidiaries. Declares that any State: (1) consumer law of general application (including any law relating to unfair or deceptive acts or practices and any consumer fraud law) shall also apply to any national bank; and (2) law applicable to State banks shall also apply to any national bank if it was enacted pursuant to, or consistent with, Federal law permitting the States to exceed or supplement Federal law requirements. Prohibits construction of Federal law governing visitorial powers, or otherwise limiting or restricting the supervisory, examination, or regulatory authority to which any national bank is subject, as limiting or restricting the authority of a State attorney general to enforce: (1) any applicable Federal or State law; or (2) on behalf of residents of such State, any applicable provision of any Federal or State law against a national bank, or seek relief and recover damages for such residents from any violation of any such law by any national bank. Prohibits construction of Federal law governing nondepository institution subsidiaries of national banks as preempting the applicability of State law to any State-chartered nondepository institution subsidiary of a national bank, except to the extent the preemption is explicitly provided by an Act of Congress. Directs the Comptroller of the Currency to record and monitor each complaint received from a consumer regarding a national bank or any subsidiary of a national bank as well as the resolution of the complaint.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Children's Development Commission Act (Kiddie Mac) - Amends the National Housing Act to authorize the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to insure mortgages for: (1) new or rehabilitated child care and development facilities, including mortgage insurance for fire safety equipment loans; and (2) purchase or refinance of existing child care and development facilities. Establishes the Children's Development Commission (Kiddie Mac) which shall: (1) issue facility standards and compliance certifications; and (2) make loans not in excess of $50,000 for facility rehabilitation or renovation. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to conduct a study of the availability of child care facility secondary mortgage markets.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Amends rule X (Organization of Committees) of the Rules of the House of Representatives to establish the House Committees on Homeland Security and on Intelligence. Grants jurisdiction to the House Committee on Homeland Security over matters regarding the Department of Homeland Security and homeland security, generally. Grants exclusive jurisdiction to the House Committee on Intelligence over: (1) the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Director of Central Intelligence, and the National Foreign Intelligence Program (NFIP); (2) intelligence and intelligence-related activities of all other Federal departments and agencies, including the tactical intelligence and intelligence-related activities of the Department of Defense (DOD); (3) the organization or reorganization of a Federal department or agency to the extent relating to a function or activity involving intelligence or intelligence-related activities; and (4) authorizations for appropriations, both direct and indirect, as well as appropriations, for the CIA and such other staff, programs, and activities. Specifies the composition of the Committee on Intelligence.
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 2004
Washington National Opera Commemorative Coin Act of 2004 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint, until December 31, 2010, coins in commemoration of the Washington National Opera. Provides for the issuance and sale of such coins.
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 2004
National Intelligence Reform Act of 2004 - Establishes as an independent executive entity the National Intelligence Authority (Authority), headed by a National Intelligence Director (Director), to, among other things: (1) unify and strengthen efforts of the intelligence community (IC); (2) operate the National Counterterrorism Center and national intelligence centers; and (3) establish clear responsibility and accountability for counterterrorism and other intelligence matters relating to U.S. national security. Requires the Director to: (1) serve as the head of the IC; (2) advise the President on intelligence related to national security; (3) direct and oversee the National Intelligence Program (formerly the National Foreign Intelligence Program); (4) determine the annual budget for intelligence and intelligence-related activities; and (5) establish standards for information technology and communications across the IC. Authorizes the Director to establish and train a National Intelligence Reserve Corps for the temporary reemployment on a voluntary basis of former IC employees during periods of emergency. Establishes within the Authority, with specified functions: (1) the Reserve for Contingencies of the National Intelligence Director; (2) an Office of the National Intelligence Director; (3) a principal Deputy National Intelligence Director (second in command); (3) a National Intelligence Council (Council) (to provide national intelligence estimates for the U.S. Government and evaluate the collection and production of intelligence by the IC); (4) a General Counsel; (5) a Comptroller General; (6) an Officer for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties; (7) a Privacy Officer; (8) a Chief Information Officer; (9) a Chief Human Capital Officer; (10) a Chief Financial Officer; (11) an Inspector General; and (12) an Ombudsman. Establishes a National Counterterrorism Center (Center) to: (1) unify strategy for U.S. civilian and military counterterrorism efforts; and (2) integrate counterterrorism intelligence and operations across agency boundaries, both inside and outside the United States. Establishes within the Center a Directorate of Planning with primary responsibility for developing interagency counterterrorism plans. Authorizes the Director to establish one or more national intelligence centers to address intelligence priorities established by the Council. Requires the Director to establish the Intelligence Community Scholarship Program for the award of scholarships designed to recruit and prepare students for civilian careers meeting critical IC needs. Directs the President to establish an information sharing network to promote the sharing of terrorist information among all relevant Federal departments and agencies, State, tribal, and local authorities, and private entities. Establishes an Advisory Council on Information Sharing. Prohibits the 108th Congress from adjourning until jurisdiction over proposed legislation and other matters relating to: (1) the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is consolidated into a single committee in each House with a nonpartisan staff; and (2) intelligence resides in a joint committee or a committee with combined authorization and appropriation authority, with a subcommittee devoted solely to oversight. Requires specified reports from the President to Congress concerning, among other things: (1) terrorist sanctuaries; (2) efforts to support Pakistan; (3) aid to Afghanistan; (4) the U.S.-Saudi Arabia relationship; (5) a strategy to help win the struggle of ideas within the Islamic world; (6) U.S. policy toward dictatorships; (7) the promotion of U.S. values through broadcast media; (8) proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; and (9) efforts to curtail the international financing of terrorism. Directs the President to establish an International Youth Opportunity Fund to provide financial assistance for the improvement of public education in the Middle East. States U.S. policy concerning the humane treatment of prisoners. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security (Secretary) to submit to Congress a: (1) strategy for combining terrorist travel intelligence, operations, and law enforcement into a cohesive effort to intercept terrorists, find terrorist travel facilitators, and constrain terrorist mobility both domestically and internationally; and (2) plan describing how DHS and the State Department can acquire and deploy, to all consulates, ports of entry, and immigration benefits offices, technologies that facilitate document authentication and the detection of potential terrorist indicators on travel documents. Directs the Secretary to develop plans: (1) for a comprehensive integrated screening system; (2) to accelerate the full implementation of an automated biometric entry and exit data system for preventing the entry of terrorists; (3) to expedite the processing of registered travelers who enter and exit the United States through a single registered traveler program; and (4) to require biometric passports and other secure identification for all travel into the United States by U.S. citizens and individuals for whom immigration and nationality documentation requirements have previously been waived. Directs the Secretary to develop, implement, and revise as necessary a National Strategy for Transportation Security for the protection from terrorist or other hostile acts of all transportation infrastructure assets. Requires the use of watchlists in connection with passenger air transportation screening. Directs the Secretary to allocate homeland security assistance grants to communities based on threat levels, presence of critical infrastructure, population density, and other criteria. Calls for adoption by all appropriate entities of the Incident Command System (a national, coordinated emergency response system developed by the National Incident Management System). Authorizes specified officials of the National Capital Region to enter into, provide, or request from other Region entities mutual aid assistance for emergency services related to an emergency or public service event. Directs the Secretary to: (1) encourage and support the establishment of consistent and effective communications capabilities in high risk urban areas; (2) establish a program to promote private sector preparedness; (3) undertake certain critical infrastructure readiness assessments; and (4) regularly assess the adequacy of the United States Northern Command to respond to all military and paramilitary threats within the United States. Establishes within the Executive Office of the President a Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2004
Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to extend through September 2005 Medicare cost-sharing for the Medicare part B premium for qualifying individuals for additional low-income medicare beneficiaries. Revises requirements for the total allocation amount for three specified periods between January 1, 2004, and September 30, 2005.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2004
Military Families Leave Act of 2004 - Amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, and Federal law relating to the Armed Forces, to entitle eligible employees to certain leave because of any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that their spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a member of the Armed Forces who is serving on active duty in support of a contingency operation or has been notified of an impending call or order to such active duty.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 2004
National Intelligence Reform Act of 2004 - Establishes as an independent executive entity the National Intelligence Authority (Authority), headed by a National Intelligence Director (Director), to, among other things: (1) unify and strengthen efforts of the intelligence community (IC); (2) operate the National Counterterrorism Center and national intelligence centers; and (3) establish clear responsibility and accountability for counterterrorism and other intelligence matters relating to U.S. national security. Requires the Director to: (1) serve as the head of the IC; (2) advise the President on intelligence related to national security; and (3) direct and oversee the National Intelligence Program (formerly the National Foreign Intelligence Program). Authorizes the Director to establish and train a National Intelligence Reserve Corps for the temporary reemployment of former IC employees during periods of emergency. Establishes in the Treasury the Reserve for Contingencies of the National Intelligence Director. Establishes a National Intelligence Council (Council) to produce national intelligence estimates for the U.S. Government and evaluate the collection and production of intelligence by the IC. Establishes a National Counterterrorism Center to, among other things: (1) unify strategy for U.S. civilian and military counterterrorism efforts; and (2) integrate counterterrorism intelligence and operations across agency boundaries, both inside and outside the United States. Authorizes the Director to establish within the Authority one or more national intelligence centers to address intelligence priorities established by the Council. Requires the Director to establish the Intelligence Community Scholarship Program to award scholarships designed to recruit and prepare students for civilian careers in the IC. Requires the President to publicly disclose certain intelligence funding information for fiscal years after 2005. Merges the Homeland Security Council into the Council. Establishes a Joint Intelligence Community Council to assist the Director in developing and implementing a joint, unified national intelligence effort to protect national security. Requires the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to develop and maintain within the FBI a national security workforce of agents, analysts, linguists, and surveillance specialists. Federal Bureau of Investigation Intelligence Career Service Authorization Act of 2005 - Authorizes the FBI Director to establish an FBI Intelligence Career Service for FBI intelligence analysts. Directs the President to establish an information sharing network to promote the sharing of intelligence and homeland security information among all relevant Federal departments and agencies, State, tribal, and local authorities, and private sector entities. Establishes an Executive Council on Information Sharing. Establishes within the Executive Office of the President a Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board. Requires the congressional intelligence committees to be provided all intelligence estimates and assessments other than those prepared exclusively for the President.
United States · United States Congress · 23 September 2004
Recognizes the importance of implementing any and all measures necessary to ensure that eligible citizens can vote and be assured of having their votes counted, including measures to ensure: (1) full transparency of election procedures before, during, and after the 2004 Presidential election; (2) free access for national and international election observers; (3) a transparent process for complaint and appeals; and (4) the vigorous prosecution of any individual or organization responsible for violations of election laws or regulations.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2004
Patients' Privacy Protection Act of 2004 - Amends the Federal Rules of Evidence to declare that a patient has a privilege with respect to any evidence consisting of a confidential communication or record made in the course of medical treatment by a duly licensed health care provider. Authorizes a court to order the disclosure of such a communication or record to the extent the court determines that the public interest in disclosure significantly outweighs the patient's privacy interests. Requires the court to ensure that personally identifiable information is redacted and that the patient's communications and records remain under seal.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2004
Amends the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003 to extend the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks on the United States (currently terminated as of August 21, 2004) until the earlier of: (1) the date on which the Commission chairman and vice chairman determine that the Commission has done all it can to assist Congress with respect to the recommendations contained in its final report; or (2) July 24, 2007. Adds as Commission functions: (1) serving as a resource to the President and Congress with respect to the findings and recommendations contained in its final report and monitoring the progress of the President and Congress in implementing such recommendations; and (2) investigating and issuing a supplemental improvements made, and still required, in Federal, State, and local emergency communication and coordination. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 2004
Airport Noise Curfew Act of 2004 - Establishes the Airport Noise Curfew Commission to study and make recommendations to Congress regarding the establishment of curfews on nonmilitary aircraft operations over populated areas of the United States during normal sleeping hours.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2004
Restore Open Government Act of 2004 - Revokes: (1) the " Memorandum for Heads of all Federal Departments and Agencies" on "The Freedom of Information Act" issued by Attorney General John Ashcroft on October 12, 2001; and (2) the "Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Department and Agencies" on "Action to Safeguard Information Regarding Weapons of Mass Destruction and Other Sensitive Documents Related to Homeland Security" issued by Andrew H. Card, Jr., Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff on March 19, 2002. Declares that the policy of the Federal Government is to release information to the public in response to a request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) if such release is: (1) required by law; or (2) allowed by law and the agency concerned does not reasonably foresee that disclosure would be harmful to an interest protected by an applicable exemption. Instructs that all guidance provided to Federal agencies shall be consistent with such policy. Prohibits a record pertaining to the vulnerability of and threats to critical infrastructure that is furnished voluntarily to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from being made available under the FOIA if: (1) the provider would not customarily make the record available to the public; and (2) the record is designated and certified by the provider as confidential and not customarily made available to the public. (Allows the provider of such a record at any time to to withdraw the confidential designation.) Requires a Federal agency in receipt of a record that was furnished voluntarily to DHS and subsequently shared with that agency, upon receipt of a FOIA request, to: (1) not make the record available; and (2) refer the request to DHS for processing and response in accordance with this Act. Revokes Executive Order 13233 (relating to further implementation of the Presidential Records Act), dated November 1, 2001 and makes effective Executive Order 12667 (relating to Presidential records), dated January 18, 1989. Directs the President to ensure that the names of Presidential interagency advisory committee members are published in the Federal Register. Mandates that such a committee must make public each substantive contact between the advisory committee, or individual committee members acting on the committee's behalf, and any person who is not a full-time or permanent part-time officer or employee of the Government. Directs the President to require Federal departments and agencies to promote a culture of information sharing by reducing disincentives to information sharing, including overclassification of information and unnecessary requirements for originator approval. Amends the FOIA to permit a U.S. district court to assess against the United States reasonable attorney fees and other litigation costs reasonably incurred in any case seeking information from a Federal agency or official under any other Federal law in which the complainant has substantially prevailed.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2004
American-Owned Property in Occupied Cyprus Claims Act - Amends the International Claims Settlement Act of 1949 to urge the President to authorize the Secretary of State to begin negotiations with Turkey to allow for certain claims by U.S. nationals respecting real property in the Turkish-held portions of Cyprus. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to establish in the Treasury a Claims Fund for the payment of unsatisfied claims of U.S. nationals against Turkey. Sets forth payment procedures. Amends Federal law to grant U.S. district court jurisdiction for civil actions against any private person (any natural person or legal entity other than Turkey) by a U.S. national who owns property in the Turkish-held portion of Cyprus.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2004
Victim Compensation Fund Extension Act - Amends the Air Transportation Safety and System Stabilization Act to extend the deadline (currently, December 22, 2003) for filing claims under the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 (Fund) for: (1) three years following enactment of this Act if the Special Master determines that the claimant was unaware that he or she had suffered physical harm as the result of the September 11, 2001, terrorist-related aircraft crashes until after the deadline and before enactment or was unaware of his or her eligibility to file a claim; and (2) three years after the claimant first knew that he or she had suffered physical harm as the result of such crashes if the Special Master determines that the claimant was unaware that he or she had suffered physical harm until on or after enactment of this Act. Defines "immediate aftermath" for purposes of provisions concerning the determination of eligibility for compensation under the Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2004
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the United Nations Security Council should consider and take appropriate action to respond to the growing threat that the ruling State Peace and Development Council in Burma poses to the Southeast Asia region and to the people of Burma.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2004
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.) Thanks, pays tribute to, and expresses gratitude to all of those who assisted in the significant hospitality, logistical, and security efforts to successfully execute the 2004 national political conventions in Boston, Massachusetts, and New York City, New York.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2004
9/11 Commission Report Implementation Act of 2004 - National Intelligence Authority Act of 2004 - Establishes as an independent executive entity the National Intelligence Authority (Authority), headed by a National Intelligence Director (Director), to, among other things: (1) unify and strengthen efforts of the intelligence community (IC); (2) operate the National Counterterrorism Center and national intelligence centers; and (3) establish clear responsibility and accountability for counterterrorism and other intelligence matters relating to U.S. national security. Requires the Director to: (1) serve as the head of the IC; (2) advise the President on intelligence related to national security; and (3) direct, manage, and oversee the execution of the National Intelligence Program (formerly the National Foreign Intelligence Program). Establishes a National Intelligence Council (Council) to produce national intelligence estimates for the U.S. Government and evaluate the collection and production of intelligence by the IC. Establishes a National Counterterrorism Center (Center) to: (1) unify strategy for U.S. civilian and military counterterrorism efforts; and (2) integrate counterterrorism intelligence and operations across agency boundaries, both inside and outside the United States. Requires the President to publicly disclose certain intelligence funding information for fiscal years after 2005. Merges the Homeland Security Council into the Council. Maintains within the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) the direction and execution of clandestine and covert operations. Makes the Secretary of Defense responsible for directing and executing paramilitary operations, whether clandestine or covert. Requires the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to develop and maintain within the FBI a national security workforce of agents, analysts, linguists, and surveillance specialists. Directs the President to: (1) establish an information sharing network to promote the sharing of terrorism information among all relevant Federal departments and agencies, State, tribal, and local authorities, and private sector entities in a manner consistent with national security and the protection of privacy and civil liberties; and (2) submit to Congress a network system design and implementation plan. Establishes an Advisory Council on Information Sharing. Prohibits the 108th Congress from adjourning until jurisdiction over proposed legislation and other matters relating to: (1) the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is consolidated into a single committee in each House with a nonpartisan staff; and (2) intelligence resides in a joint committee or a committee with combined authorization and appropriations authority, with a subcommittee devoted solely to oversight. Requires the President-elect to be provided detailed, classified summaries by relevant outgoing executive officials of specific operational threats to national security, major military or covert operations, and pending decisions on possible use of military force. Outlines procedures for the President-elect to designate, the FBI to investigate, and the Senate to expeditiously consider nominees for high-level national security positions. Requires specified reports from the President to Congress concerning, among other things: (1) terrorist sanctuaries; (2) efforts to support Pakistan; (3) aid to Afghanistan; (4) the U.S.-Saudi Arabia relationship; (5) a strategy to help win the struggle of ideas within the Islamic world; (6) proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; and (7) efforts to curtail the international financing of terrorism. Provides, through specified activities of the Secretary of State, for the expansion of international educational and cultural exchange programs between the United States and countries with sizable Muslim populations. Directs the President to establish an International Youth Opportunity Fund to provide financial assistance for the improvement of public education in the Middle East. Authorizes the President to establish an international counterterrorism policy contact group with leaders of governments of other countries to develop a comprehensive coalition strategy to fight Islamist terrorism. States U.S. policy concerning the humane treatment of prisoners. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security (Secretary) to submit to Congress a: (1) strategy for combining terrorist travel intelligence, operations, and law enforcement into a cohesive effort to intercept terrorists, find terrorist travel facilitators, and constrain terrorist mobility domestically and internationally; and (2) plan describing how DHS and the State Department can acquire and deploy, to all consulates, ports of entry, and immigration benefits offices, technologies that facilitate document authentication and the detection of potential terrorist indicators on travel documents. Directs the Secretary to develop plans: (1) for a comprehensive integrated screening system; (2) to accelerate the full implementation of an automated biometric entry and exit data system for preventing the entry of terrorists; (3) to expedite the processing of registered travelers who enter and exit the United States through a single registered traveler program; and (4) to require biometric passports and other secure identification for all travel into the United States by U.S. citizens and individuals for whom immigration and nationality documentation requirements have previously been waived. Directs the Secretary to develop, implement, and revise as necessary a National Strategy for Transportation Security for the protection from terrorist or other hostile acts of all transportation infrastructure assets. Directs the Secretary to allocate homeland security assistance grants to communities based on threat levels, presence of critical infrastructure, population density, and other criteria. Calls for adoption by all appropriate entities of the Incident Command System (a national, coordinated emergency response system developed by the National Incident Management System). Authorizes specified officials of the National Capital Region to enter into, provide, or request from other Region entities mutual aid assistance for emergency services related to a terrorist or other hostile act. Directs the Secretary to: (1) encourage and support the establishment of consistent and effective communications capabilities in high risk urban areas; (2) establish a program to promote private sector preparedness; (3) undertake certain critical infrastructure readiness assessments; and (4) regularly assess the adequacy of the United States Northern Command to respond to all military and paramilitary threats within the United States. Establishes within the Executive Office of the President a Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2004
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1475 Western Avenue, Suite 45, in Albany, New York, as the "Lieutenant John F. Finn Post Office."
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2004
Disabled Veterans Transition Assistance Act of 2004 - Requires the Secretary of Defense to carry out a program to provide a support system for members of the Armed Forces who incur severe disabilities on or after September 11, 2001, including a system of advocacy and follow-up to assist those members to transition from military service to the civilian community. Requires the Secretary to designate an executive agent to carry out the program throughout the Department of Defense and, in cooperation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, for members of the Coast Guard with severe disabilities.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2004
Increases the death gratuity payable with respect to members of the Armed Forces from $12,000 to $50,000. Makes this increase applicable to deaths occurring on or after September 11, 2001. Requires the Secretary of Defense to derive funds for payments under this Act in FY 2005 from travel funds for personnel of the Office of the Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 2004
9/11 Commission Recommendations Implementation Act of 2004 - Establishes a National Intelligence Director to manage the National Intelligence Program. Empowers the Secretary of Defense with lead responsibility for directing and executing paramilitary operations, whether clandestine or covert. Establishes a National Counterterrorism Center for strategic analysis concerning transnational terrorist organizations with global reach. Requires the President to direct the head of each appropriate Federal department or agency to identify and prioritize actual or potential terrorist sanctuaries throughout the world. Requires a national strategy to destabilize identified sanctuaries. Authorizes the President to support the Government of: (1) Pakistan in its efforts against extremists; and (2) Afghanistan to extend its authority over such country. Directs the Secretary of State to establish programs to promote greater familiarity with American society and values among the general public and select audiences in Muslim countries. Directs the President to: (1) strengthen counterproliferation efforts against weapons of mass destruction; and (2) track the financing of terrorist organizations and prevent money laundering for their benefit. Requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to: (1) integrate U.S. border screening systems with Federal security sites within the U.S. transportation system and sites containing vital national facilities; (2) complete a biometric entry and exit screening system for persons entering and departing the United States; (3) develop a plan for the allocation of limited transportation security resources; and (4) improve aviation screening. Requires: (1) the sharing of information for purposes of protecting the national security; (2) the establishment of a board to oversee Federal adherence to civil liberties; (3) that all U.S. emergency response agencies adopt the Incident Command System and unified command procedures; (4) the promotion of private sector emergency preparedness; (5) both Houses of Congress to pass separate intelligence appropriations bills; (6) a specialized and integrated national security workforce at the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and (7) regular adequacy assessments of the strategies and planning of the United States Northern Command to defend the United States against military threats.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
High School Athletics Accountability Act of 2004 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to direct coeducational elementary and secondary schools, if they participate in any ESEA program, to: (1) report certain information on equality in their school athletic programs to the Commissioner for Educational Statistics; and (2) make such information available to their students and potential students, upon request, and to the public.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Requires the annual poverty estimate and the National Assessment of Educational Progress to be treated as if they were principal economic indicators and subject to the Statistical Policy Directive on Compilation, Release, and Evaluation of Principal Federal Economic Indicators of the Office of Management and Budget (including its guidance on the release of information to the public).
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Stealth Lobbyist Disclosure Act of 2004 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat as a tax-exempt political organization for purposes of the disclosure and other requirements applicable to such organizations (with certain modifications) any coalition or association that is identified as a client on any registration filed under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 and that is not a political organization. Requires any such coalition or association to notify the Secretary of the Treasury of: (1) its existence within 72 hours after one of its lobbyists makes an initial contact; and (2) any change in membership within 72 hours. Requires such notice to include a general description of the business or activities of each member of the coalition or association and the amount reasonably expected to be contributed by each member toward coalition or association activities of influencing legislation. Imposes a penalty tax for failure to give required notices. Exempts from the disclosure requirements imposed by this Act: (1) public charities and other tax-exempt organizations which have substantial exempt activities other than lobbying; and (2) members of a coalition or association who contribute less than $2,000 per year for lobbying activities.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Restoring Democracy to the U.S. Congress Act of 2004 - Amends the Rules of the House of Representatives to address: (1) the time limit on roll call votes; (2) actual voting required in conference committee meetings; (3) waiver of the germaneness requirement for conference reports; (4) removal of Members from committee meetings; (5) a limit on redistricting after an apportionment of Representatives; (6) availability of legislation on the Internet; (7) bribery on the House floor; (8) hacking into other Members' computer files; (9) capping committee mailing expenses; and (10) a requirement that at least one-third of committee budget be provided to the minority ranking member.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Email Privacy Protection Act of 2004 - Amends the Federal criminal code to include within the definition of "electronic communication" (and thus within the scope of provisions regarding the interception of communications) any temporary, intermediate storage of a communication incidental to the electronic transmission thereof. Prohibits a provider of an electronic communication service from acquiring or using the contents of a stored electronic communication of which that provider is not an intended recipient, other than for the purposes of providing that service.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Stealth Lobbyist Disclosure Act of 2004 - Amends the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 to redefine the term "client" with respect to coalitions and associations on whose behalf a lobbyist must file a registration. Provides that, in the case of a coalition or association that employs or retains other persons to conduct lobbying activities, each of the individual members of the coalition or association, and not the coalition or association itself as under current law, is the client for whom a registration must be filed. Makes an exception for certain tax-exempt associations and for certain members of a coalition or association if the amount reasonably expected to be contributed by such member toward specific legislation-influencing activities of the coalition or association is less than $1,000 per any semiannual period.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Deep Sea Coral Protection Act - Requires the Secretary of Commerce to direct the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere to research and map deep sea corals and sponges. Directs the Secretary to appoint an advisory panel. Prohibits the use of mobile bottom-tending fishing gear in any Coral Management Area (CMA) and Coral Study Area (CSA). Requires the Secretary to designate: (1) as a CSA any area that is located within the exclusive economic zone which has not been fished using mobile bottom-tending gear for a three-year period, is determined beyond the reasonable depth limits of such gear, or where certain data indicate the actual or potential presence of a deep sea coral and sponge ecosystem; (2) CMAs according to specified coordinates; and (3) all or a part of a CSA as a CMA if there is a deep sea coral and sponge ecosystem in such area, and the use of mobile bottom-tending fishing gear in the area would cause more than minimal and temporary damage to deep sea corals or sponges. Applies the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act's civil penalty and forfeiture requirements to persons who violate this Act's prohibition against the use of mobile bottom-tending gear. Urges the President to identify, with foreign entities, areas in international waters that would benefit from additional protection.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Passenger Security Act of 2004 - Amends Federal transportation law to repeal the security screening opt-out program (under which an airport operator may apply to the Under Secretary of Transportation for Security of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to have the screening of passengers and property at the airport be carried out by the screening personnel of a qualified private screening company).
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Protecting Railroad Operators, Travelers, Employees, and Communities with Transportation Security Act of 2004 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to complete a vulnerability assessment of railroad transportation that includes identification of vulnerabilities specific to the transportation of hazardous materials by railroads and of security weaknesses in passenger and cargo security. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to develop prioritized recommendations for improving rail security. Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to specified congressional committees on the rail passenger transportation security programs carried out for rail transportation systems in Japan, member nations of the European Union, and other foreign countries. Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to make grants to railroad carriers, nonprofit employee organizations that represent railroad workers or emergency responders, hazardous materials shippers, owners of rail cars used in the transportation of hazardous materials, universities, colleges, and research centers, and State and local governments for reimbursement of costs incurred to prevent or respond to acts of terrorism, sabotage, or other railroad security threats. Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to make grants to Amtrak for: (1) fire and life-safety improvements to the tunnels on the Northeast Corridor in New York, New York, Baltimore, Maryland, and Washington, D.C.; and (2) certain systemwide Amtrak security upgrades. Establishes a research and development (R&D) program to improve railroad security. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to develop and issue detailed guidance for a rail worker security training program to prepare front-line workers for potential threat conditions. Sets forth certain railroad employee whistleblower protection requirements. Amends Federal transportation law to require the Secretary of Transportation to develop and update a curriculum necessary to train public sector emergency response and preparedness teams, including standards for the training of persons responsible for responding to emergency situations during the removal and transportation of hazardous materials and high hazard materials. Prohibits a rail tank car containing hazardous materials from being transported or stored on rail tracks unless information identifying the tank car, the hazardous materials within such tank car, and response guidance is immediately available through Operation Respond Institute's technology or similar technology to local first responders in each location where the tank car may be located.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Stand By Your Internet Ad Act of 2004 - Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to: (1) apply to campaign communications transmitted through the Internet the same presentation requirements currently applicable to their counterpart authorized printed campaign communications, including communications expressly advocating the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate; (2) require communications paid for and authorized by a candidate, and communications paid for by other persons but authorized by a candidate, to include a clearly readable statement identifying the candidate and stating that he or she has approved the communication; (3) require such communications transmitted through the Internet to meet applicable requirements with respect to any audio and video portions; (4) subject to disclosure requirements campaign communications made through prerecorded telephone calls; and (5) provide for the treatment as audio communications of prerecorded telephone calls, thereby subjecting them to applicable requirements pertaining to communications transmitted through radio.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Children's Health Protection and Improvement Act of 2004 - Amends title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance Program) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to revise the extended availability through FY 2004 of SCHIP allotments for FY 1998 through 2001. Specifies formulae for amounts to be used in computing redistributions for FY 2003, 2003, and 2004. Provides for reallocation of 70 percent of the expiring FY 1998, 1999, and 2000 funds to States that have fully expended their annual allotments. Extends the availability of the remaining 30 percent of such expiring funds with the States that currently have them. Permits 50 percent of the total amount of a State's unexpended FY 2002 SCHIP allotments to remain available through FY 2006. Permits 50 percent of the total amount of a State's unexpended FY 2003 and 2004 SCHIP allotments to remain available through the end of FY 2007. Requires redistribution of the other 50 percent of such funds to States that have fully spent their allotments during the three-year period they were available. Requires a second redistribution according to the same 70-30 formula of any retained or redistributed funds still unexpended at the end of the two-year extention or redistribution. Provides for continued authority for qualifying States to use certain funds for Medicaid expenditures.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Amends rule XX (Voting and Quorum Calls) of the Rules of the House of Representatives to limit the maximum voting time to 17 minutes, except by unanimous consent or mutual agreement of the majority and minority leaders.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2004
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the actions of terrorists will never cause the date of any Presidential election to be postponed; and (2) no single individual or agency should be given the authority to postpone the date of such an election.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2004
Encourages the International Olympic Committee to choose New York City as the site of the 2012 Olympic Games. Hopes that the United States will be selected as the host country of such Games and pledges cooperation and support for their successful fulfillment in the highest Olympic tradition.
![Official portrait of Rep. Maloney, Carolyn B. [D-NY-12]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/116_rp_ny_12_maloney_carolyn_200.jpg)