United States · United States Congress · 13 November 2014
Designates the community based outpatient clinic of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) located at 310 Home Boulevard in Galesburg, Illinois, as the "Lane A. Evans VA Community Based Outpatient Clinic."
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2014
Community Integration Act of 2014 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to require state Medicaid plans to give an individual with disabilities needing the level of care provided in an institutional setting the choice and opportunity to receive such care in a home and community-based setting, including rehabilitative services, assistance and support in accomplishing activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, and health-related tasks, and assistance in acquiring, maintaining, or enhancing skills necessary to accomplish such activities, tasks, or services. Prescribes requirements for providing in home and community-based settings those services such an individual would otherwise receive in an institutional setting, such as a nursing facility, intermediate care facility for the mentally retarded, institution for mental disease, or other similarly restrictive or institutional setting.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2014
RESPONSE Act of 2014 - Amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to direct the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to establish the Railroad Emergency Services Preparedness, Operational Needs, and Safety Evaluation Subcommittee of the National Advisory Council. Directs the Subcommittee to evaluate the following topics and develop recommendations for improving emergency responder training and resource allocation for hazardous materials incidents involving railroads: the quality and application of training for local emergency first responders related to rail hazardous materials incidents, with a particular focus on local emergency responders and small communities near railroads; the effectiveness of funding levels related to training local emergency responders for rail hazardous materials incidents, with a particular focus on local emergency responders and small communities; a strategy for integration of commodity flow studies, mapping, and access platforms for local emergency responders and how to increase the rate of access to the individual responder in existing or emerging communications technology; the need for emergency response plans for rail, similar to existing law related to maritime and stationary facility emergency response plans for hazardous materials; the need for a rail hazardous materials incident database; increasing access to relevant, useful, and timely information for the local emergency responder for training purposes and in the event of a rail hazardous materials incident; and determining the most appropriate agencies and offices for the implementation of the recommendations. Terminates the Subcommittee not later than four years after this Act's enactment, subject to one year extensions.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 2014
Border Health Security Act of 2014 - Amends the United States-Mexico Border Health Commission Act to revise the duties of the United States-Mexico Border Health Commission to include: (1) cooperating with the Canada-United States Pan Border Public Health Preparedness Council, and (2) serving as an independent and objective body to both recommend and implement initiatives that solve border health issues. Authorizes members of the Commission and the Council to provide advice or recommendations to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), Congress, or any Member of Congress concerning issues that are considered by the Commission or Council. Requires the Secretary to award grants: (1) to eligible entities to improve the health of individuals residing in the U.S.-Mexico and U.S.-Canada border areas, and (2) for Early Warning Infectious Disease Surveillance to eligible entities for infection disease surveillance activities in such areas. Requires the Commission and the Council to each: (1) prepare a binational strategic plan to guide the operations of the Commission and the Council, and (2) develop and approve an operational work plan and budget based on the strategic plan. Requires the Comptroller General (GAO) to conduct an evaluation of Commission and Counsel activities. Authorizes the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response to coordinate with the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) in establishing a health alert system that: (1) alerts clinicians and public health officials of emerging disease clusters and syndromes along the U.S.-Mexico and U.S.-Canada border areas; and (2) warns of health threats, extreme weather conditions, disasters of mass scale, bioterrorism, and other emerging threats along those border areas.
United States · United States Congress · 17 July 2014
Protecting Consumers from Unreasonable Credit Rates Act of 2014 - Amends the Truth in Lending Act to prohibit a creditor from extending credit to a consumer under an open end consumer credit plan (credit card) for which the fee and interest rate exceeds 36%. Sets forth criminal penalties for violations of this Act. Empowers state Attorneys General to enforce this Act. Revises requirements for a periodic statement for each billing cycle with respect to where the total finance charge exceeds 50 cents for a monthly or longer billing cycle, or the pro rata part of 50 cents for a billing cycle shorter than monthly. Requires inclusion of the fee and interest rate, displayed as "FAIR," instead of the total finance charge expressed as an annual percentage rate (APR).
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2014
Supports the goals and ideals of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, now in its 40th year of continuous service. Recognizes the benefits the CDBG program has provided to urban, suburban, and rural communities. Acknowledges the importance of this federal grant program to states and local communities throughout the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 10 July 2014
Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act or the Clay Hunt SAV Act - Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Secretary of Defense (DOD), at least annually, to each arrange for an independent third party evaluation of, respectively, the VA and DOD mental health care and suicide prevention programs. Requires a board reviewing the discharge or dismissal of a former member of the Armed Forces whose application for relief is based at least in part on post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injury related to military operations or sexual trauma, to: (1) review the medical evidence from the VA or a civilian health provider that is presented by the former member; and (2) review the case, with a presumption of administrative irregularity, and place the burden on the VA or DOD to prove, by a preponderance of the evidence, that no error or injustice occurred. Directs the VA Secretary to publish an Internet website that serves as a centralized source to provide veterans with regularly updated information regarding all of the VA's mental health care services. Requires the VA Secretary and the DOD Secretary to enter into certain strategic relationships to facilitate: the mental health referrals of members of the reserve components who have a service-connected disability and are being discharged or released from the Armed Forces, timely behavioral health services for such members, communication when such members are at risk for behavioral health reasons, and the transfer of documentation for line-of-duty and fitness-for-duty determinations. Requires the VA Secretary to carry out a three-year pilot program to repay the education loans relating to psychiatric medicine that are incurred by individuals who: are eligible to practice psychiatric medicine in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) or are enrolled in the final year of a residency program leading to a specialty qualification in psychiatric medicine, demonstrate a commitment to a long-term career as a psychiatrist in the VHA, and agree to a period of obligated service with the VHA in the field of psychiatric medicine. Directs the VA Secretary to carry out a program, as part of the Yellow Ribbon G.I. Education Enhancement Program, under which the VA Secretary and an institution of higher education (IHE) agree to cover the full cost of charges not covered by post-9/11 educational assistance that are incurred by veterans who: (1) are pursuing an advanced degree in mental health at the IHE, and (2) intend to seek employment as a mental health professional in the VA. Allows the VA Secretary to cover up to 64% of those charges, if the school covers the remainder. Requires the DOD Secretary to submit to Congress a zero-based review of the staffing requirements for individual State National Guard Commands with respect to Directors of Psychological Health. Directs the VA Secretary to establish a pilot program at not less than five Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs) to assist veterans transitioning from active duty and to improve the access of veterans to mental health services. Requires the pilot program at each VISN to include: (1) a community oriented veteran peer support network, and (2) a community outreach team for each medical center in such VISN.
United States · United States Congress · 10 July 2014
Agricultural Conservation Flexibility Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to require the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to withdraw the interpretive rule issued on March 25, 2014, entitled, "U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of the Army Interpretive Rule Regarding the Applicability of the Clean Water Act Section 404(f)(1)(A)." Prohibits the Corps and the EPA from using the interpretive rule, or any substantially similar rule or guidance, as the basis for any rulemaking, decision, or action regarding the scope or enforcement of the Clean Water Act. Provides that the use of rule or a substantially similar rule or guidance as the basis for any rule, decision, or action is grounds for vacating the rule, decision, or action. Requires soil and water conservation practices to be treated as normal farming, silviculture, and ranching activities under permits for non-prohibited discharges of dredged or fill material. Prohibits such practices from being treated as a new use of an area of navigable waters, an impairment of the flow or circulation of navigable waters, or a reduction in the reach of such waters under those permits. Applies this Act to activities occurring on or after March 25, 2014.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 2014
Protect Women's Health From Corporate Interference Act of 2014 - Affirms requirements, notwithstanding the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, that: (1) an employer that establishes or maintains a group health plan for its employees must provide coverage of a specific item or service for the employees or their dependents where the coverage is required under federal provisions or regulations pursuant to those provisions; and (2) group health plans sponsored by an employer or employee organization, and any health insurance coverage, must provide coverage required under the Public Health Service Act, including preventive health services. Authorizes the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Treasury to modify regulations concerning coverage of contraceptive services by group health plans of religious employers consistent with the purposes and findings (regarding coverage of birth control services and the Supreme Court decisions in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. and Conestoga Wood Specialties Corp. v. Burwell ) of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 8 July 2014
Fish Hatchery Protection Act - Prohibits the Secretary of the Interior from permanently closing, reprograming, repurposing, decommissioning, significantly altering, or moving to caretaker status any fish and other aquatic species propagation hatchery or propagation program within the National Fish Hatchery System unless such action is expressly authorized by an Act of Congress. Makes this Act effective from November 1, 2013, to 10 years after this Act's enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 8 July 2014
Reaffirms the support of the House of Representatives for Israel's right to defend itself and its citizens. Condemns the unprovoked rocket fire at Israel and calls on Hamas to cease all rocket and other attacks against Israel.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2014
Military Separation Pay Fairness Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to determine whether former members of the Armed Forces who were separated for a violation of the policy concerning homosexuality in the Armed Forces as in effect before the effective date of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 were paid: (1) the full amount of separation pay to which they should have been entitled under standard military separation pay laws, or (2) a reduced amount because of homosexuality pursuant to administrative instructions in place at the time of the separation. Requires the Secretary to pay such a former member who has not received the full military separation pay: (1) the amount of the difference between the full amount and the amount actually paid, and (2) interest on the amount of the difference. Excludes former members who joined the class-action settlement in Collins v. United States from receiving additional payments for the difference in amounts under such procedures, but provides for former members in such settlement to receive payment for interest on such amount.
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2014
Voices for Veterans Act - Expands the membership of the Advisory Committee on Minority Veterans to include veterans who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. Terminates the Commission on December 31, 2017 (currently, 2014).
United States · United States Congress · 26 June 2014
Stop Corporate Expatriation and Invest in America's Infrastructure Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise rules for the taxation of inverted corporations (i.e., U.S. corporations that acquire foreign companies to reincorporate in a foreign jurisdiction with income tax rates lower than the United States) to provide that a foreign corporation that acquires the properties of a U.S. corporation or partnership after May 8, 2014, shall be treated as an inverted corporation and thus subject to U.S. taxation if, after such acquisition: (1) it holds more than 50% of the stock of the new entity (expanded affiliated group), or (2) the management or control of the new entity occurs primarily within the United States and the new entity has significant domestic business activities. Authorizes additional appropriations to the Highway Account and Mass Transit Account in the Highway Trust Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2014
Ask Veterans Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to contract with an experienced non-government entity to conduct an annual survey, over a five-year period, of a statistically significant sample of veterans who reside in the geographic area served by each VA medical facility to determine the experiences of such veterans in obtaining hospital care and medical services at such facility. Requires those surveys to include questions relating to: the veteran's ability to obtain hospital care and medical services at the facility in a timely manner, the time that expires between the date the veteran requests an appointment and the date on which the appointment is scheduled, the frequency with which scheduled appointments are cancelled, and the quality of hospital care or medical services the veteran receives. Requires the non-government entity to consult with veterans service organizations in designing and conducting the surveys. Prohibits the non-government entity from conducting a survey before the Comptroller General (GAO) certifies the survey as scientifically valid and the proposed sample size of veterans as statistically significant. Directs the Secretary to make the results of the surveys publicly available on the VA's Internet website.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2014
Amateur Radio Parity Act of 2014 - Directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to amend regulations concerning the height and dimensions of station antenna structures to prohibit a private land use restriction from applying to amateur service communications if the restriction precludes such communications, fails to accommodate such communications, or does not constitute the minimum practicable restriction on such communications to accomplish the legitimate purpose of the private entity seeking to enforce such restriction.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2014
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of Vietnam Veterans Day. Encourages the President and the people of the United States to pay tribute to veterans of the Vietnam War.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2014
Protecting American Jobs and Exports Act - Amends the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank of the United States through FY2021. Extends through FY2021 and gradually increases (with a specified exception) the Bank's aggregate outstanding loan, guarantee, and insurance authority. Extends through FY2021 Bank authority to provide financing for the export of nonlethal defense articles or services whose primary end use will be for civilian purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2014
Coordinated Recovery Initiative for Babies Act of 2014 or the CRIB Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to study the treatment and surveillance of, and available information concerning, neonatal abstinence syndrome (a group of problems occurring in a newborn who was exposed to addictive drugs while in the mother's womb). Requires the Secretary to establish an advisory panel to identify and compile best practices and to disseminate the practices, including through the public HHS website. Requires a review of the best practices at least every two years.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2014
Military and Veteran Caregiver Services Improvement Act of 2014 - Expands eligibility for the family caregiver program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to include members of the Armed Forces or veterans who are seriously injured or who became ill on active duty prior to September 11, 2001 (currently, limited to service after September 11, 2001). Expands services to caregivers of veterans under such program to include child care services, financial planning services, and legal services. Authorizes the transfer of entitlement to post 9/11 education assistance to family members by veterans who are retired for a physical disability or who are seriously injured veterans in need of family caregiver services, without regard to length-of-service requirements. Authorizes the VA Secretary to pay monthly special compensation to seriously injured or ill veterans in need of personal care services and to their caregivers. Excludes from gross income, for income tax purposes, such compensation paid to injured or ill veterans. Authorizes flexible work schedules or telework for federal employees who are caregivers of veterans. Amends the Public Health Service Act to designate a veteran participating in the program of comprehensive assistance for family caregivers as an adult with a special need for purposes of the lifespan respite care program. Establishes in the executive branch an interagency working group to review and report on policies relating to the caregivers of veterans and members of the Armed Forces. Directs the Secretary to provide for studies on members of the Armed Forces who commenced service after September 11, 2001, and veterans who have incurred a serious injury or illness, including a mental health injury, and their caregivers.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2014
Nicholas and Zachary Burt Memorial Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Act of 2014 - Directs the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to establish a grant program to provide assistance to states that require compliant carbon monoxide alarms to be installed in dwelling units. Defines "compliant carbon monoxide alarm" as an alarm that complies with the American National Standard for Single and Multiple Station Carbon Monoxide Alarms as well as the American National Standard for Gas and Vapor Detectors and Sensors. Permits states receiving grants to use such funds to: (1) purchase and install such alarms in dwelling units of low-income families or elderly persons, childcare facilities, public schools, senior centers, or student dwelling units owned by public universities; (2) train state or local fire code enforcement officials regarding compliance and installation; and (3) educate the public about the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2014
Veterans' Access to Care through Choice, Accountability, and Transparency Act of 2014 - Title I: Improvement of Scheduling System for Health Care Appointments - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to contract for an independent assessment of: the process at each VA medical facility for scheduling appointments for veterans; the staffing level and productivity of each VA medical facility; the organization, processes, and tools used by the VA to support clinical documentation and the subsequent coding of inpatient services; the VA's purchasing, distribution, and use of pharmaceuticals, medical and surgical supplies, and medical devices; and the VA's performance in paying amounts owed to third parties and collecting amounts it is owed. Directs the Secretary: (1) through a technology task force, to review the VA's needs regarding its system and software for scheduling veterans' medical appointments; and (2) to implement task force recommendations the Secretary considers feasible, advisable, and cost-effective. Title II: Training and Hiring of Health Care Staff - Requires the Inspector General of the VA to annually determine the five health care occupations for which there is the largest staffing shortage throughout the VA. Authorizes the Secretary, upon a determination by the Inspector General that there is such a staffing shortage regarding a particular health care occupation, to recruit and directly appoint highly qualified health care providers to serve in that particular occupation for the VA. Directs the Secretary, under the VA's Health Professionals Educational Assistance program, to give scholarship priority to applicants pursuing education or training towards a career in a health care occupation that represents one of the five largest staffing shortages in the VA. Requires the Secretary to submit a biennial report to Congress, until 2024, assessing the staffing of each VA medical facility. Directs the Secretary to establish a clinic management training program to provide in-person, standardized education on health care management to all managers of, and health care providers at, VA medical facilities. Terminates the program after two years. Requires the Secretary, thereafter, to provide health care management training materials to specified VA employees upon the commencement of their employment. Makes specified appropriations to the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) that remain unobligated at the end of FY2014 and FY2015 available to the Secretary to hire additional health care providers for the VHA, particularly in VA medical facilities and areas experiencing the greatest shortages. Title III: Improvement of Access to Care from Non-Department of Veterans Affairs Providers - Requires hospital care and medical services to be furnished to veterans through contracts with specified non-VA facilities if the veterans: have been unable to schedule an appointment at a VA medical facility within the VHA's wait-time goals for hospital care or medical services and such veterans opt for non-VA care or services; reside more than 40 miles from a VA medical facility; or reside in a state without a VA medical facility that provides hospital care, emergency medical services, and surgical care and such veterans reside more than 20 miles from such a facility. Provides for such care through contracts with any health care provider participating in the Medicare program, any federally-qualified health center, the Department of Defense (DOD), and the Indian Health Service (IHS). Directs the Secretary to provide veterans with information about the availability of care and services at non-VA facilities: (1) when they enroll in the VA patient enrollment system, and (2) when they attempt to schedule an appointment for VA hospital care or medical services but are unable to do so within the VHA's wait time goals. Terminates this Act's requirement that the Secretary furnish care and services through contracts with non-VA facilities two years after the Secretary publishes interim final regulations implementing the program. Requires the Secretary to transfer the authority to pay for health care through non-VA facilities from the VA's Veterans Integrated Service Networks and medical centers to the VHA's Chief Business Office. Directs the Secretary to conduct outreach to each Indian medical facility operated by an Indian tribe or tribal organization through a contract or compact with the IHS to raise awareness of the ability of such facilities, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations to enter into agreements with the VA for reimbursement for providing veterans with health care at such facilities. Requires the Secretary to establish performance metrics for assessing the performance of the VA and IHS under a memorandum of understanding to increase access to, and the quality and coordination of, health care services. Directs the Secretary to enter into agreements for the reimbursement of direct care services provided to veterans with Native Hawaiian health care systems that are in receipt of funds from grants awarded, or contracts entered into, under the Native Hawaiian Health Care Improvement Act. Expresses the sense of Congress that the Secretary must comply with the prompt payment rule or any similar regulation or ruling in paying for health care under contracts with non-VA providers. Title IV: Health Care Administrative Matters - Directs the Secretary to improve veterans' access to telemedicine and other health care through the use of VA mobile vet centers by establishing standardized requirements for the operation of such centers. Includes among those requirements: (1) the number of days each center is expected to travel each year, (2) the number of locations each center is expected to visit each year, (3) the number of appointments each center is expected to conduct each year, and (4) the method and timing of notification given by each center to individuals in the area to which such center is traveling. Requires each mobile vet center to have the capability to provide telemedicine services. Establishes an Independent Commission on Department of Veterans Affairs Construction Projects to review the VA's current construction and maintenance projects and medical facility leasing program to identify any problems the VA experienced in carrying out such projects and program. Establishes the Commission on Access to Care to examine veterans' access to VA health care and strategically examine how best to organize the VHA, locate health care resources, and deliver health care to veterans over the next 10 to 20 years. Directs the President to require the Secretary and the heads of other relevant federal agencies to implement each recommendation that the President considers feasible and advisable and determines can be implemented without further legislative action. Requires the Secretary to ensure that scheduling and wait-time metrics or goals are not used as factors in determining the performance of: (1) directors, associate directors, assistant directors, deputy directors, chiefs of staff, and clinical leads of VA medical centers; and (2) directors, assistant directors, and quality management officers of the Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs). Directs the Secretary to modify the performance plans of the directors of the VA medical centers and VISNs to ensure that such plans are based on the quality of care received by veterans at the health care facilities under their jurisdictions. Prohibits the Secretary from including in the performance goals of any VISN or VA medical center employee any goal that might disincentivize the payment of VA amounts to provide health care through a non-VA provider. Requires the Secretary to publish: (1) within 90 days after this Act's enactment, the VA's wait time goals for the scheduling of a veterans' appointment for health care; and (2) within one year after this Act's enactment, the current wait times for an appointment for primary care and specialty care at each VA medical center. Directs the Secretary to develop, update, and make publicly available a comprehensive database containing all applicable patient safety, quality of care, and outcome measures for VA health care that are tracked by the Secretary. Requires the Secretary to enter into an agreement with the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to provide the HHS Secretary with the information needed to make VA medical center patient quality and outcome information publicly available through the HHS's Hospital Compare website. Requires: (1) the VA website to include a link to the VA's health care providers database that provides veterans with the location of each VA physician's residency training, and (2) each veteran who is to undergo a surgical procedure by or through the VA to be provided information on the credentials of the surgeon who is to perform the procedure. Directs the Comptroller General (GAO) to submit an assessment to Congress of: (1) the manner in which contractors under the VA's Patient-Centered Community Care initiative oversee the credentials of physicians within their networks, (2) the VA's oversight of the contracts under the Patient-Centered Community Care initiative, and (3) the VA's verification of the credentials and licenses of health care providers furnishing hospital care and medical services to veterans in non-VA facilities. Requires the Secretary to implement a plan to address the Comptroller General's findings and recommendations. Requires the annual budget that the President submits to Congress to include specified information regarding: (1) the cost of providing, and the number of veterans receiving, medical care through contracts with non-VA facilities; and (2) the number of VA employees on paid administrative leave during the preceding fiscal year. Directs the Secretary to establish policies penalizing VA employees who knowingly submit, or knowingly require another VA employee to submit, false data concerning health care wait times or quality measures to another VA employee. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) remove any individual from the VA Senior Executive Service if the Secretary determines that the individual's performance warrants such removal, and (2) remove such individual from the civil service or transfer the individual to a General Schedule position at any appropriate grade for which the individual is qualified. Gives an individual seven days to appeal such a removal or transfer to the Merit Systems Protection Board (Board). Requires the Board to conduct an expedited review process that results in a final decision on such an appeal within 21 days after it was submitted. Title V: Health Care Related to Sexual Trauma - Expands eligibility for counseling and treatment for sexual trauma to veterans who were on inactive duty training when they experienced sexual assault or harassment. Authorizes the Secretary to provide such counseling and treatment to active-duty members of the Armed Forces who experienced sexual assault or harassment while serving on active duty or active or inactive duty training. (Under current law, such services are provided only to veterans.) Prohibits such a member from being required to obtain a referral before receiving such services. Requires the Secretary to report to Congress on the treatment and services available from the VA for male veterans who experience military sexual trauma compared to such treatment and services available to female veterans who experience such trauma. Directs the Department of Veterans Affairs-Department of Defense Joint Executive Committee to submit reports to Congress on the transition of military sexual abuse treatment from the DOD to the VA. Title VI: Major Medical Facility Leases - Authorizes the Secretary to carry out certain major medical facility leases at specified locations for up to specified amounts. Directs the Secretary, in exercising the authority to enter into such leases, to record as the full cost of the contractual obligation at the time a contract is executed either: (1) the amount of total payments under the full lease term, or (2) the first-year payments plus the specified cancellation costs if the lease is terminated before its full term. Requires the funding prospectus of a proposed lease to include a detailed analysis of how the lease is expected to comply with Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-11 and the Anti-Deficiency Act, including an analysis of: (1) the classification of the lease as a lease-purchase, capital lease, or operating lease; (2) the obligation of budgetary resources associated with the lease; and (3) the methodology used in determining the asset cost, fair market value, and cancellation costs of the lease. Directs the Secretary, at least 30 days before entering into a lease, to submit to Congress: (1) notice of the intention to enter into, and a detailed summary of, such lease; (2) a description and analysis of any differences between the lease prospectus submitted and the proposed lease; and (3) a scoring analysis demonstrating that the proposed lease fully complies with OMB Circular A-11. Requires the Secretary, no more than 30 days after entering into a lease, to report any material differences between the proposed lease and the lease entered. Title VII: Veterans Benefits Matters - Expands the Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry Scholarship to include surviving spouses (currently, children) of service members who die in the line of duty on or after September 11, 2001. Requires a surviving spouse entitled to such assistance and also to veterans' educational assistance under the Montgomery GI Bill to elect a single coverage. Directs the Secretary to disapprove, for purposes of the All-Volunteer Force and the Post-9/11 Educational Assistance programs, courses of education provided by a public educational institution of higher education (IHE) that charges veterans living in the state higher tuition and fees than it charges in-state residents, regardless of the veteran's state of residence. Makes this provision applicable to: (1) veterans who were discharged or released from at least 90 days of active service less than three years before their date of enrollment in the applicable course, (2) family members eligible for such assistance due to their relationship to such veterans, and (3) courses that commence on or after July 1, 2015. Prohibits the Secretary from disapproving a public IHE's course on the grounds that the IHE conditions a veteran's receipt of in-state tuition rates on such veteran: (1) demonstrating an intent, by means other than physical presence, to establish residency in the state; or (2) satisfying other requirements not related to the establishment of residency. Title VIII: Appropriation and Emergency Designations - Authorizes and appropriates such sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act for FY2014-FY2016. Treats such funding as emergency funding that is not subject to pay-as-you-go spending constraints.
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 · 5 June 2014
Cold War Service Medal Act of 2014 - Authorizes the Secretary of the military department concerned to issue the Cold War Service Medal to members of the Armed Forces who were discharged or released under honorable conditions after having: (1) served on active duty for at least 24 consecutive months during the Cold War (September 2, 1945, through December 26, 1991), (2) deployed outside the continental United States for at least 30 days during such period, or (3) performed other Cold War service as the Secretary of Defense (DOD) may prescribe. Expresses the sense of Congress that the DOD Secretary should expedite the design of the Medal as well its issuance to eligible members.
United States · United States Congress · 2 June 2014
Recognizes Jeanne Sobelson Manford as a national hero who advanced the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in the United States. Commends her for helping to create a more perfect union based on the ideal that all men and women are created equal.
United States · United States Congress · 30 May 2014
Highways Bettering the Economy and Environment Pollinator Protection Act - Authorizes as an eligible project cost for the construction of a federal-aid highway the cost of improving habitat and forage for pollinators (i.e. bees, birds, bats, Monarch butterflies, and other butterflies) on rights-of-way adjacent to such highways. Directs the Secretary of Transportation (DOT), in conjunction with willing states, to carry out programs that encourage: (1) integrated vegetation management practices on roadsides and other transportation rights-of-ways, including reduced mowing; (2) the development of habitat and forage for pollinators through planting of native forbs and grasses, including noninvasive, native milkweed species; and (3) research and demonstration projects on economic and environmental benefits and best practices for integrated vegetation management, reduced mowing, and planting of native forbs and grasses for pollinator habitat, forage, and migratory way stations for Monarch butterflies and other migrating pollinators. Authorizes the use of federal funds for the provision of habitat, forage, and migratory way stations for Monarch butterflies, other native pollinators, and honey bees that is related to a federally-funded transportation project.
United States · United States Congress · 30 May 2014
Rural Community Hospital Demonstration Extension Act of 2014 - Amends the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, as amended by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, to extend the rural community hospital demonstration program from five through 10 years.
United States · United States Congress · 29 May 2014
Bullying Redress and Verified Enforcement Act or the BRAVE Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to require the employees of local educational agencies (LEAs) who become aware of bullying to report to an LEA-designated individual, within seven business days: (1) the acts that constituted bullying; (2) the protected characteristic of the victim if the bullying included a reference to or was motivated by such an actual or perceived protected characteristic; and (3) the response of the LEA's employees. Requires the LEA-designated individual, within 60 days after receiving such a report, to inform all the LEA's employees of the acts described and the response of the LEA's employees. Requires each LEA to annually review its policies on bullying. Directs each LEA to publish and make available to all of its students and their parents a quarterly report that: (1) summarizes the bullying reported since the previous quarterly report, (2) summarizes the responses to such bullying by the LEA's employees, (3) excludes any personally identifiable information of any student involved, and (4) informs the public of the right to file a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights for the Department of Education regarding the LEA's failure to comply with this Act's requirements. Directs the Assistant Secretary who heads the Office of Civil Rights to: (1) establish the complaint procedure and publish it on the Department's website; (2) investigate each complaint to determine if the LEA complied with this Act's requirements; (3) withhold ESEA funds from, issue a complaint against, or enter into a compliance agreement with a noncompliant LEA to bring it into compliance; and (4) make information about each complaint available on the Department's website. Conditions each LEA's receipt of ESEA funds on the LEA: (1) annually certifying to the Secretary of Education in writing that it is in compliance with this Act's requirements, and (2) submitting its four most recent quarterly reports on bullying.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 2014
Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the low-income housing tax credit, to make permanent the minimum 9% credit rate for new buildings that are not federally-subsidized and to establish a minimum 4% credit rate for existing buildings that are not federally-subsidized.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2014
Expresses support for: (1) the designation of National Small Business Week, (2) efforts to encourage consumers to shop locally, and (3) efforts to increase awareness of the value of locally owned small businesses and the impact of locally owned small business on the U.S. economy. Honors the vital role of small business and entrepreneurs in the United States during such week. Recognizes: (1) the important role of the Small Business Administration (SBA) as a valuable resource for the U.S. entrepreneur, (2) the importance of creating policies that promote a business friendly environment for small business owners free of unnecessary regulations, and (3) the National Small Business Person of the Year and the National Lender of the Year. Encourages young entrepreneurs to pursue their passions and create more start-up businesses.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2014
Manufacturing Jobs for Veterans Act - Directs the Secretary of Labor, as part of the Veteran's Workforce Investment Program, to carry out a five-year pilot program (to be known as the Veterans Manufacturing Employment Program) to award competitive grants to three states for the establishment and administration of a State Manufacturing Employment Program to make grants to manufacturing employers and labor-management organizations that provide training, on-job training, apprenticeships, and certification classes to eligible veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2014
Medicare Home Health Rebasing Relief and Reassessment Act - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, with respect to the system for prospective payments for home health services, to suspend for a 12-month period a specified adjustment to (rebasing of) Medicare home health prospective payment amounts. Revises the home health outlier adjustment to equal not to exceed 2.25% (currently, 2.5%) for 2015 through 2023. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to study alternative methods for determining the appropriate adjustment for 2014 and subsequent years to the prospective payment for home health services, including methods offered by stakeholders.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2014
Designates buildings occupied by the Department of Transportation (DOT) located at 1200 New Jersey Avenue, Southeast, in the District of Columbia as the James L. Oberstar United States Department of Transportation Building Complex for the period the buildings are occupied by the DOT.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2014
Increasing Small Business Lending Act - Amends the Small Business Act to suspend, until September 30, 2015, fees under the 7(a) program (SBA-guaranteed loans to small businesses) and the 504 program (financing to small businesses backed by SBA-guaranteed debentures issued by any qualified state or local development company). Authorizes the SBA to guarantee up to 90% of a loan made by a private lender to a small business eligible for a loan guarantee under the Small Business Act or the Small Business Investment Act of 1958. Prohibits such guarantees with respect to small businesses: (1) in which an unlawful alien has an ownership interest, or (2) in violation of immigration laws.
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 · 6 May 2014
Bank on Students Emergency Loan Refinancing Act - Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to establish a program to refinance the unpaid principal, accrued unpaid interest, and late charges on: (1) the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loans (DLs) of qualified borrowers if the DLs were first disbursed or (in the case of Direct Consolidation Loans) applied for before July 1, 2013, and (2) the Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL) of qualified borrowers as DLs. (FFELs were not disbursed after June 30, 2010.) Refinances the FFELs as Federal Direct Stafford, Unsubsidized Stafford, PLUS, or Consolidated Loans depending on the categorization of the FFEL as a Stafford, Unsubsidized Stafford, PLUS, or Consolidated Loan. Sets the interest rate on the refinanced loans, other than the Federal Direct Consolidation Loans, at the rate for the 12 months beginning on July 1, 2013, applicable to the DL's categorization and, in the case of Stafford Loans, applicable to a loan issued to an undergraduate student or a loan issued to a graduate student. Sets the interest on refinanced Consolidation Loans at the rate on Federal Direct PLUS Loans for the 12-month period beginning on July 1, 2013. Fixes the interest rate on such loans for the period of such loans. Directs the Secretary to establish eligibility requirements based on a borrower's income or debt-to-income ratio that take into consideration providing access to refinancing for borrowers with the greatest financial need. Imposes an administrative fee on the borrowers of such reissued loans that is based on the unpaid principal, and accrued unpaid interest and late charges, of their original loan. Requires the Secretary to establish a program to refinance the unpaid principal, accrued unpaid interest, and late charges on private education loans as Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loans if the private education loans were first disbursed to qualified borrowers before July 1, 2013, and were for their own postsecondary educational expenses. Sets the interest rate on Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loans at the rate applicable for the 12 months beginning on July 1, 2013, to: (1) Direct Stafford and Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued to undergraduates if the private education loan was issued for undergraduate expenses, (2) Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans issued to graduate or professional students if the private education loan was issued for graduate or professional studies, or (3) Direct PLUS Loans if the private education loan was issued for undergraduate and graduate or professional studies. Fixes the interest rate on such loans for the period of such loans. Directs the Secretary to establish eligibility requirements based on a borrower's income or debt-to-income ratio that take into consideration providing access to refinancing for borrowers with the greatest financial need. Requires qualified borrowers of such loans to undergo loan counseling before their private education loan is refinanced. Imposes an origination fee on the borrowers of Federal Direct Refinanced Private Loans. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require an individual taxpayer whose adjusted gross income exceeds $1 million to pay a minimum tax rate of 30% of the excess of the taxpayer's adjusted gross income over the taxpayer's modified charitable contribution deduction for the taxable year (tentative fair share tax). Establishes the amount of such tax as the excess (if any) of the tentative fair share tax over the excess of: (1) the sum of the taxpayer's regular tax liability, the alternative minimum tax (AMT) amount, and the payroll tax for the taxable year; over (2) certain tax credits. Provides for a phase-in of such tax. Requires an inflation adjustment to the $1 million income threshold for taxable years beginning after 2015. Requires the Secretary to terminate this Act's refinancing programs when the net cost of carrying out the programs is equal to the Secretary's estimate of the amount of additional revenue generated during the 10-year period beginning on the date of this Act's enactment due to the fair share tax.
United States · United States Congress · 6 May 2014
Peace Corps Equity Act of 2014 - Amends the Peace Corps Act to subject abortion service coverage by the Peace Corps for volunteers to the same limitations that apply to Peace Corps employees regarding coverage of abortion services. States that such restriction shall not be construed to limit medical evacuation coverage.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2014
Declares that specified lands in Acadia National Park in Maine, which were conveyed by the National Park Service to the town of Tremont, Maine, for school purposes, shall no longer be required to be used exclusively and perpetually for such purposes, and upon their discontinuance of such a use, shall no longer be required to revert to the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 2014
Insurance Capital Standards Clarification Act of 2014 - Amends the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act concerning establishment of minimum leverage and minimum risk-based capital requirements on a consolidated basis for a depository institution holding company or a nonbank financial company supervised by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board). States that federal banking agencies shall not be required to subject any person to such minimum capital requirements, to the extent that such person either: (1) acts in its capacity as a regulated insurance entity regulated by a state insurance regulator, or (2) is a regulated foreign subsidiary engaged in the business of insurance (including a regulated foreign affiliate of such subsidiary). Exempts from any requirement to prepare holding company financial statements in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles any Board-supervised depository institution holding company or nonbank financial company that is also a person regulated by a state insurance regulator or a regulated foreign subsidiary (or a regulated foreign affiliate) that files its holding company financial statements using only Statutory Accounting Principles in accordance with state law.
United States · United States Congress · 7 April 2014
Emergency Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2014 - Amends the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008 (SAA, 2008) to extend emergency unemployment compensation (EUC) payments for eligible individuals to weeks of employment ending on or before June 1, 2014. Amends the Assistance for Unemployed Workers and Struggling Families Act to extend until May 31, 2014, requirements that federal payments to states cover 100% of EUC. Amends the Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2008 to exempt weeks of unemployment between enactment of this Act and November 30, 2014, from the prohibition in the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 (FSEUCA of 1970) against federal matching payments to a state for the first week in an individual's eligibility period for which extended compensation or sharable regular compensation is paid if the state law provides for payment of regular compensation to an individual for his or her first week of otherwise compensable unemployment. (Thus allows temporary federal matching for the first week of extended benefits for states with no waiting period.) Amends the FSEUCA of 1970 to postpone similarly from December 31, 2013, to May 31, 2014, termination of the period during which a state may determine its "on" and "off" indicators according to specified temporary substitutions in its formula. Amends the SAA, 2008 to appropriate funds out of the employment security administration account through the first five months of FY2015 to assist states in providing reemployment and eligibility assessment activities. Requires the provision of such activities to an individual, at a minimum, within a time period after he or she begins to receive Tier-1 EUC benefits, and if applicable, again within a time period after he or she begins to receive Tier-3 EUC benefits. Requires the Secretary of Labor to determine appropriate time periods. Specifies the purposes of the activities, namely to: better link the unemployed with the overall workforce system by bringing individuals receiving unemployment insurance benefits in for personalized assessments and referrals to reemployment services; and provide them with early access to specific strategies that can help get them back into the workforce faster, including through: (1) the development of a reemployment plan, (2) provision of access to relevant labor market information, (3) provision of access to information about industry-recognized credentials that are regionally relevant or nationally portable, (4) provision of referrals to reemployment services and training, and (5) an assessment of the individual's on-going eligibility for unemployment insurance benefits. Amends the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act to extend through May 31, 2014, the temporary increase in extended unemployment benefits. Makes a change in application of a certain requirement (nonreduction rule) to a state that has entered a federal-state EUC agreement, under which the federal government would reimburse the state's unemployment compensation agency making EUC payments to individuals who have exhausted all rights to regular unemployment compensation under state or federal law and meet specified other criteria. (Under the nonreduction rule such an agreement does not apply with respect to a state whose method for computing regular unemployment compensation under state law has been modified to make the average weekly unemployment compensation benefit paid on or after June 2, 2010, less than what would have been paid before June 2, 2010.) Declares that the nonreduction rule shall not apply to a state which has enacted a law before December 1, 2013, that, upon taking effect, would violate the nonreduction rule. Allows a state whose agreement was terminated, however, to enter into a subsequent federal-state EUC agreement on or after enactment of this Act if, taking into account this inapplicability of the nonreduction rule, it would otherwise meet the requirements for an EUC agreement. (Thus allows such a subsequent EUC agreement to permit payment of less than the average weekly unemployment compensation benefit paid on or after June 2, 2010.) Prohibits the use of federal funds to: (1) make payments of unemployment compensation to any individual whose adjusted gross income in the preceding year was at least $1 million, or (2) determine whether or not this prohibition applies to an individual. Requires the Comptroller General (GAO) to: study the use of work suitability requirements to strengthen them to ensure that unemployment insurance benefits are being provided to individuals who are actively looking for work and truly want to return to the labor force; and brief Congress on the ongoing study, including preliminary recommendations for appropriate legislation and administrative action. Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and the Internal Revenue Code to revise the applicable percentages for determining minimum funding standards for single-employer defined benefit pension plans (funding stabilization). Exempts plans providing accelerated benefit distributions from the application of such standards. Amends ERISA, with respect to pension insurance premiums paid by a designated payor (i.e., the contributing sponsor or plan administrator for a single employer pension plan and the plan administrator for the multiemployer plan) to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC). Allows a designated payor to elect to prepay, during any plan year, the applicable PBGC flat dollar insurance premium due for up to five consecutive subsequent plan years specified in the election. Amends the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 to extend through FY2024 the authority of the Secretary of the Treasury to collect customs user fees for the processing of certain merchandise. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that a bona fide volunteer providing firefighting and prevention services, emergency medical services, or ambulance services to a state or local government or tax-exempt organization shall not be counted in determining the number of full-time employees of an employer for purposes of the employer mandate to provide minimum essential health care coverage under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Excludes services rendered as a bona fide volunteer to any governmental entity and any tax-exempt organization (specified employer) from the determination of the number of full-time employees of an employer for purposes of such mandate. Defines "bona fide volunteer" as an employee whose only compensation from a specified employer is in the form of: (1) reimbursement for (or reasonable allowance for) reasonable expenses incurred in the performances of volunteer services; or (2) reasonable benefits and nominal fees, customarily paid in connection with the performance of volunteer services.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2014
Comprehensive Department of Veterans Affairs Performance Management and Accountability Reform Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in implementing the federal performance appraisal system for senior executives of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), to annually issue the organizational performance requirements to be achieved by each executive. Requires at least half of the annual rating of each executive to be based on such requirements. Directs the Secretary to certify to the congressional veterans committees, annually, that such requirements are being utilized and that each executive's rating accurately reflects use of such requirements. Provides additional implementation requirements. Directs the Secretary to provide a detailed explanation to any executive who receives an annual rating lower than fully successful. Requires each executive who receives: (1) two annual ratings of less than fully successful to be removed from the Senior Executive Service; or (2) three consecutive ratings of the highest performance level to be given an opportunity to obtain a different position within the VA with more responsibility, if such a position is available. Requires the Secretary to report annually on the VA's senior executive performance appraisal system. Allows VA physician and dentist performance pay only to those who received a fully successful level of performance in their most recent appraisal. Directs the Secretary to report semiannually on health care trends to be used in determining VA physician and dentist recruitment and retention needs. Requires: (1) the establishment of a performance appraisal system for VA physicians and dentists; and (2) their performance to be evaluated based on goals and objectives specifically linked to improved health care outcomes and quality, as well as overall effectiveness in providing quality health care services. Requires each VA physician or dentist be provided a copy of his or her annual rating under the system, as well as an opportunity to respond and have the rating reviewed by the VA's Under Secretary for Health. Prohibits a VA physician or dentist who has not maintained an appropriate professional license from being paid. Directs the Secretary to report on the VA training program for senior executives.
United States · United States Congress · 3 April 2014
Action for Dental Health Act 2014 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award grants to or enter into contracts with eligible entities to obtain portable or mobile dental equipment and to pay for appropriate operational costs for the provision of free dental services to underserved populations that are delivered in a manner consistent with state licensing laws. Directs the Secretary to award grants to or enter into contracts with eligible entities to collaborate with state, county, or local public officials and other stakeholders in order to develop and implement initiatives to: (1) improve oral health education and dental disease prevention; (2) reduce barriers in a manner that increases dental provider participation in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP); (3) make the health care delivery system providing dental services under Medicaid or CHIP more accessible and efficient by taking actions necessary to facilitate the establishment of dental homes; (4) address geographic, language, cultural, and similar barriers in the provision of dental services; and (5) reduce the use of emergency departments for dental services more appropriately delivered in a dental primary care setting.
United States · United States Congress · 2 April 2014
New Markets Tax Credit Extension Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the new markets tax credit, (2) provide for an inflation adjustment to the limitation amount for such credit after 2013, and (3) allow an offset against the alternative minimum tax (AMT) for such credit (determined with respect to qualified equity investments initially made after the enactment of this Act).
United States · United States Congress · 1 April 2014
Department of Veterans Affairs Information Security Protection Act - Requires the Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Information and Technology to submit to the congressional veterans committees (under current law, only to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs) quarterly reports on Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) compliance with federally-required information security improvements. Directs the Assistant Secretary to submit to such committees: (1) quarterly, a plan of action to address critical known VA information security vulnerabilities; and (2) annually, a plan for identifying and replacing VA operating systems that are out-of-date or unsupported. Requires the Assistant Secretary to ensure that any software or Internet applications used on VA operating systems are secure from vulnerabilities that could affect the confidentiality of sensitive personal information on veterans. Directs the Secretary to report, quarterly, to such committees on any incidents of failure to comply with established information security policies, any actions taken in response to such incidents, and certain related information. Requires the Secretary to submit a strategic plan for improving VA information security and to update such plan at least every two years. Requires VA contractors with access to sensitive personal information to provide protective measures to safeguard from possible information security threats any information provided by the VA that will be resident on, or transiting through, information systems controlled by that contractor.
United States · United States Congress · 1 April 2014
Alzheimer's Accountability Act of 2014 - Amends the National Alzheimer's Project Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), for each fiscal year through FY2025, to submit to the President for review and transmittal to Congress, after reasonable opportunity for comment (but without change) by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Advisory Council on Alzheimer's Research, Care, and Services, an annual budget estimate (including regarding personnel needs) for the NIH initiatives under the Act.
United States · United States Congress · 1 April 2014
Expresses support for the designation of Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day. Honors and recognizes the contributions of veterans who served in Vietnam. Encourages the people of the United States to observe such Day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2014
Local Road Safety Act of 2014 - Revises requirements for a state strategic highway safety plan. Requires a state transportation department to develop a plan after consultation with, among other things, private sector experts in the field of roadway safety infrastructure. Requires the department, in developing such plan, also to consider, among other things, the results of any strategic highway safety plan developed by a county or local government entity or regional transportation planning organization. Prescribes a special rule requiring states to provide each fiscal year, from their apportionment of highway safety improvement program funds, an amount to county and local transportation agencies necessary to assist them to address significant safety needs, and high fatality segments, of non-state-owned public roads and roads on tribal lands identified in a state strategic highway safety plan.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2014
Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to tax-exempt qualified tuition programs (529 plans), to: (1) make permanent the allowance for computer technology and equipment expenses and require that such technology and equipment be used primarily by the plan beneficiary (formerly, beneficiary and beneficiary's family); (2) allow contributors to a 529 plan or a plan beneficiary to direct plan investments, but not more frequently than four times per calendar year; (3) permit a recontribution to a 529 plan of amounts refunded to a student who withdraws from an educational institution if the recontribution is made not later than 60 days after the date of such refund and does not exceed the refunded amount; and (4) allow tax-free rollovers to a Roth individual retirement account (Roth IRA) of distributions from a qualified tuition program which has been maintained by the account holder for a 10-year period.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2014
Eliminates the time limit for ratification of the equal rights amendment (prohibits discrimination on account of sex) proposed to the states in House Joint Resolution 208 of the 92nd Congress, as agreed to in the Senate on March 22, 1972. Declares that such amendment shall be part of the Constitution whenever ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several states.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2014
Recognizes the important work of the Meals On Wheels Association of America and its member programs in addressing senior hunger, increasing awareness of the need for senior nutrition programs, and in raising non-federal funds and soliciting volunteers to support these programs. Honors the Meals On Wheels Association of America and senior nutrition programs around the country. Encourages Members of Congress to support their local senior nutrition programs by participating in their local March For Meals events and delivering meals to home bound seniors in a community within their district or state.
![Official portrait of Rep. Michaud, Michael H. [D-ME-2]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/m001149_200.jpg)