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United States · Official source
5,283 records where Rep. Pascrell, Bill, Jr. [D-NJ-9] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 3 March 2005
Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to classify automatic fire sprinkler systems as five-year depreciable property. .
United States · United States Congress · 3 March 2005
Act Commemorating the LITE, or Lifetime Innovations of Thomas Edison - Establishes the Thomas Edison National Historical Park in New Jersey as a unit of the National Park System.
United States · United States Congress · 3 March 2005
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the U.S. Government should continue to insist that the People's Republic of China (PRC) respect its citizens' fundamental human rights; and (2) the U.S. representative should introduce a resolution at the 61st Session of the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Commission in Geneva, Switzerland, detailing the human rights situation in the PRC and urging it to abide by internationally recognized human rights standards. Urges the PRC to: (1) stop the persecution of religious practitioners and to safeguard fundamental human rights; (2) stop the forced return of North Korean refugees; (3) end its coercive one-child per family policy; (4) investigate the 1989 Tiananmen Square event, release all prisoners held in connection with that event, and compensate the families who lost their loved ones; (5) release all prisoners of conscience, persons held because of their religious activities, and persons of humanitarian concern; (6) release the 11th Panchen Lama identified by Dalai Lama and allow him to undertake his rightful role; and (7) allow visits to China by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, the United Nations Special Rapporteurs on Religious Intolerance and Torture, and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 2005
Authorizes the President to extend nondiscriminatory treatment (normal trade relations treatment) to the products of the Ukraine.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 2005
Military Readiness Enhancement Act of 2005 - Repeals current Department of Defense (DOD) policy concerning homosexuality in the Armed Forces. Prohibits the Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of Homeland Security with respect to the Coast Guard when it is not operating as a service in the Navy, from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation against any member of the Armed Forces or any person seeking to become a member. Authorizes the re-accession into the Armed Forces of otherwise qualified individuals previously separated for homosexuality, bisexuality, or homosexual conduct. Requires such Secretaries to ensure that regulations governing the personal conduct of members of the Armed Forces are written and enforced without regard to sexual orientation.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 2005
Condemns the arrest of more than 75 journalists, labor union organizers, civic leaders, librarians, and human rights activists as political prisoners in March 2003, and the Cuban regime's continuing crackdown against the internal opposition and the independent press. Demands that the Cuban regime release all political prisoners, legalize all political parties, labor unions, and the press, and hold free elections. Declares that the acts of the Cuban regime, including its widespread and systematic violation of human rights, violate the United Nations (UN) Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and that the rule of law should replace the rule of force in Cuba. Calls for: (1) the European Union (EU), as well as other countries and international organizations, to pressure the Cuban regime to improve its human rights record; and (2) UN member countries to vote against the Cuban regime's membership in the UN Commission on Human Rights, and for passage of a Commission resolution that holds the Cuban regime accountable for its gross violations of human rights and civil liberties.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2005
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit: (1) Federal civilian and military retirees to pay Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) and TRICARE supplemental premiums on a pretax basis (i.e., exclude premiums from gross income); and (2) a tax deduction (available to itemizers and nonitemizers) for TRICARE supplemental premiums or enrollment fees. Directs the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the Secretary of Defense to ensure that the option of paying FEHBP and TRICARE supplemental premiums on a pretax basis is available to Federal civilian and military retirees for the first open enrollment period beginning not less than 90 days after the enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2005
Law Enforcement Officers Equity Act - Redefines the term "law enforcement officer" under provisions of the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) and the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) to include: (1) Federal employees not otherwise covered by such term whose duties include the investigation or apprehension of suspected or convicted individuals and who are authorized to carry a firearm; and (2) such employees of the Internal Revenue Service whose duties are primarily the collection of delinquent taxes and the securing of delinquent returns. Requires that such service which is performed by an incumbent law enforcement officer be treated: (1) on or after the enactment date of this Act, for all purposes, as service performed as a law enforcement officer, irrespective of how such service is treated under the following; and (2) before, on, or after such date, for purposes of CSRS and FERS, as service performed as such an officer, but only if an appropriate written election is submitted to the Office of Personnel Management five years after such date or before separation from Government service, whichever is earlier. Provides that nothing under current law respecting mandatory separation from Government service under CSRS or FERS shall cause the involuntary separation of an officer before the end of the three-year period beginning on such date.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2005
Amends rule XI (Procedures of Committees and Unfinished Business) of the Rules of the House of Representatives to revise the procedures of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. Repeals the requirement that a complaint be dismissed if an investigative subcommittee has not been established within 45 days after the complaint is filed (Automatic Dismissal Rule). Requires the committee to establish an investigative subcommittee if a complaint is not disposed of within the 45 days (or a 45-day extension). Subjects to such (automatic) subcommittee establishment rule the current related requirement that an investigative committee be established only by an affirmative of the majority of the committee members, if at any time during the applicable time period either the committee chairman or ranking member places on the agenda the issue of whether to establish such an investigative subcommittee. Requires the Committee to establish an "investigative" instead of "adjudicatory" subcommittee when requested by a Member, officer, or employee of the House, contesting the contents of a written complaint. (Thus repeals the right of a Member, officer, or employee to demand an immediate trial by an adjudicatory committee within the initial 45-day period, before a case has been adequately prepared.) Revises the right to counsel of a respondent or witness. Strikes provisions allowing a respondent or witness appearing before the investigative subcommittee or investigative hearing to obtain counsel of his or her choice, even if such counsel represents another respondent or witness. (Thus allows the committee to adopt a rule that prohibits a counsel from representing more than one respondent or witness.)
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Stroke Treatment and Ongoing Prevention Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a national education campaign to promote stroke prevention and increase the number of stroke patients who seek immediate treatment. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), to maintain the Paul Coverdell National Acute Stroke Registry and Clearinghouse by collecting specific data points and benchmarks for stroke care analysis and by compiling and disseminating information on State, local, and private care system achievements and problems. Defines "stroke" as an attack in which blood flow to the brain is interrupted or in which a blood vessel or aneurysm in the brain breaks or ruptures. Includes stroke and traumatic injury prevention, diagnosis, and treatment within the grant program for emergency medicine residency training. Authorizes the Secretary, through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), to make grants to qualified entities for education programs for health care professionals in the use of diagnostic approaches, technologies, and therapies for stroke and traumatic injury prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation. Gives preference to qualified entities that will train professionals that serve areas with a significant incidence of stroke or traumatic injuries. Authorizes the Secretary, through the Director of the Office for the Advancement of Telehealth, to make up to seven grants to States and to consortia of public and private entities in any non-grantee State to conduct a five-year pilot project to improve stroke patient outcomes by coordinating health care through telehealth networks.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Bipartisan Commission on Medicaid Act of 2005 - Establishes the Bipartisan Commission on Medicaid to review: (1) each of Medicaid's major functional responsibilities; (2) issues that either threaten or improve the long-term financial condition of Medicaid; (3) Federal and State policies for Medicaid and Medicare enrollment (including enrollment sites), income eligibility, outreach, and documentation; (4) the operation and effectiveness of Medicaid premium assistance programs; and (5) Medicaid payment policies.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Medicaid Community-Based Attendant Services and Supports Act of 2005 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require State Medicaid plan coverage of community-based attendant services and supports for certain Medicaid-eligible individuals. Outlines requirements for: (1) an enhanced Federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) for ongoing activities of early coverage States that enhance and promote the use of community-based attendant services and supports; and (2) increased Federal financial participation for certain expenditures incurred by the State for the provision of such services and supports. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) award grants to eligible States which have established a Consumer Task Force to assist the State in its development of real choice systems change initiatives; and (2) conduct a demonstration project for the purpose of evaluating service coordination and cost-sharing approaches with respect to the provision of community-based services and supports to non-elderly dually eligible individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Medicare Access to Rehabilitation Services Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to repeal the outpatient therapy cap.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent provisions allowing the expensing of environmental remediation costs; (2) revise the definition of "qualified contaminated site" to include toxic as well as hazardous substances; (3) include within the definition of "hazardous or toxic substances" extremely hazardous substances, as defined by Federal law, and petroleum contaminants; and (4) eliminate the recapture of the expensing deduction upon the sale of environmental remediation property.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2005
Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct and support research that utilizes human embryonic stem cells, regardless of the date on which the stem cells were derived from a human embryo. Limits such research to stem cells that meet the following ethical requirements: (1) the stem cells were derived from human embryos donated from in vitro fertilization clinics for the purpose of fertility treatment and were in excess of the needs of the individuals seeking such treatment; (2) the embryos would never be implanted in a woman and would otherwise be discarded; and (3) such individuals donate the embryos with written informed consent and receive no financial or other inducements.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2005
Animal Fighting Prohibition Enforcement Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit: (1) sponsoring or exhibiting a bird in a fighting venture in a State where it would not otherwise be in violation of the law, only if the person knew that any bird in the venture was knowingly bought, sold, delivered, transported, or received in interstate or foreign commerce for such purpose; or (2) knowingly sponsoring or exhibiting in an animal fighting venture any other animal that was moved in interstate or foreign commerce. Prohibits knowingly: (1) selling, buying, transporting, delivering, or receiving, for purposes of transportation in interstate or foreign commerce, any dog or other animal to participate in an animal fighting venture; (2) using interstate mail service for commercial speech promoting an animal fighting venture except as performed outside the limits of the States (with an exception for bird fights in States whose laws allow them); or (3) selling, buying, transporting, or delivering in interstate or foreign commerce a knife, gaff, or other sharp instrument to be attached to the leg of a bird for use in an animal fighting venture. Increases the penalties to a fine and up to two years' imprisonment for violations.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2005
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to include a bicycle commuting allowance as a qualified transportation fringe benefit, excludable from gross income.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2005
Screening Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms Very Efficiently (SAAAVE) Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for Medicare coverage of ultrasound screening for abdominal aortic aneurysms. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a national education and information campaign to promote awareness among health care practitioners and the general public with respect to the importance of early detection and treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysms.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2005
Reduces from 60 to 55 the minimum age for the receipt of military retired pay for non-regular service.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2005
Withdraws the extension of nondiscriminatory treatment (normal trade relations) from the products of the People's Republic of China.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2005
Securing Transportation Energy Efficiency for Tomorrow Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 to authorize the Administrator of General Services to establish a program for the procurement and installation of photovoltaic solar electric systems for electric production in public buildings. Directs the Architect of the Capitol to evaluate the energy infrastructure of the Capitol Complex to determine how it could be augmented to become more energy efficient, using photovoltaic solar energy systems, district-heating, and other unconventional and renewable energy resources. Amends Federal transportation law to: (1) direct the Secretary of Transportation (Secretary) to establish a program of grants to State and local governments for fuel conservation projects; (2) authorize the Secretary to make grants for fuel cell bus technology projects; and (3) require environmental impact statements for Federal-aid highway and transit projects to consider energy impacts as an environmental project consequence. Directs the Secretary to establish: (1) a Conserve By Bicycling pilot program for projects to encourage the use of bicycles in place of motor vehicles; and (2) a specified public-private research partnership dedicated to advancement of railroad technology, efficiency, and safety owned by the Federal Railroad Administration and operated in the private sector. Directs: (1) the Secretary to establish a pilot clean airport bus replacement and fleet expansion grant program; and (2) the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration to establish a public-private research partnership to develop a clean ground demonstrator engine utilizing specified National Aeronautics and Space Administration-developed technologies. Directs the Secretary to establish a public-private research partnership to develop and demonstrate technologies that increase fuel economy, reduce emissions, and lower costs of marine transportation, as well as the efficiency of intermodal transfers. Directs the Secretary of the Army to study and report to Congress on the potential for reduced fossil fuel consumption through an increase in U.S. hydropower capabilities. Encourages specified adjacent States to continue to prohibit off-shore drilling in the Great Lakes for oil and gas, and other adjacent States to prohibit such drilling. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income as a qualifying transportation fringe benefit a commuting allowance of $75 per month for individuals who bicycle, carpool, or car-share to work.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2005
Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users - Reauthorizes the Federal-aid surface transportation program through FY 2009. Reauthorizes appropriations from the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) for: (1) specified highway (including highway safety) programs; (2) research and technology; (3) motor carrier transportation and safety; and (4) transportation research and education. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to establish a National Commission on Future Revenue Sources to Support the HTF. Establishes a National Commission on the Future of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate Defense Highways. Requires States with an urbanized area population of over 200,000 to obligate specified funds for congestion relief. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to States that have enacted laws that prohibit the use of racial profiling in the enforcement of State laws regulating the use of Federal-aid highways. Federal Public Transportation Act of 2005 - Revises requirements for public transportation funding and the Secretary's authority to make specified grants, including grants for capital projects, planning, and transit and for commercial driver's license program improvements. Directs the Secretary to establish programs involving: (1) long-term bridge performance; (2) innovative highway safety technologies; (3) freight planning capacity building; (4) freight transportation research; (5) future strategic highway research; (6) surface transportation congestion solutions research; and (7) commercial remote sensing products and spatial information technologies. Intelligent Transportation Systems Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary to conduct an ongoing intelligent system transportation research and development program. Requires: (1) metropolitan planning organizations to develop long-range transportation plans and transportation improvement programs for metropolitan planning areas; and (2) States to develop statewide transportation plans and statewide transportation improvement programs. Revises hazardous materials transportation requirements to provide uniformity in Federal standards regulating the transportation of hazardous materials in intrastate, interstate, and foreign commerce. States that this Act continues the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century provisions which guarantee that specified levels of authorized funding will be available for obligation each year by continuing the highway category and the mass transit category budgetary firewalls.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2005
Recognizes Archbishop Patrick Flores for: (1) his leadership in improving the opportunities of Hispanics in the United States; (2) his 34 years of service as bishop serving the diverse and growing needs of the Archdiocese of San Antonio; and (3) his life of public service in the causes of civil rights, health, and education for all Americans.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2005
Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to require projects receiving sewer overflow control grant assistance to be carried out subject to the requirements applicable to projects receiving assistance from State water pollution control revolving funds, except to the extent that the Governor of the State in which the project is located determines that a revolving fund requirement is inconsistent with the purposes of the sewer overflow control grant program. Reauthorizes appropriations for sewer overflow control grants through FY 2011. Modifies grant funding allocation provisions to reflect new dates of authorization and reauthorized amounts. Eliminates the set-aside for the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to make direct grants to municipalities and municipal entities during the second year of authorization. Establishes a December 31, 2008, deadline for the Administrator's report to Congress on recommended funding levels for sewer overflow control grants.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2005
Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate to arrange for the presentation, on behalf of Congress, of a gold medal to the family of Thurgood Marshall (the first African-American Justice to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court) in recognition of Marshall's contributions to the Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2005
Amends Federal provisions concerning the National Guard Youth Challenge Program (a civilian youth opportunities program conducted by the Secretary of Defense) to provide a maximum Federal matching funds level of 60 percent of the costs of operating the State program during FY 2005, 65 percent during FY 2006, 70 percent during FY 2007, and 75 percent during FY 2008 and beyond.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2005
Social Security Truth in Budgeting Act of 2005 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to prohibit the receipts and disbursements of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund (Social Security trust funds) from being included in the Federal budget baseline for any fiscal year and from being counted as new budget authority, outlays, receipts, or deficit or surplus for purposes of offsetting any tax decrease or spending increase. Excludes Social Security trust fund receipts and disbursements totals from official Office of Management and Budget and Congressional Budget Office budget pronouncements.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2005
Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act of 2005 - Amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 with respect to: (1) voter verification and mandatory paper record audit capacity; and (2) accessibility and voter verification of results for individuals with disabilities. Requires the Election Assistance Commission to study, test, and develop best practices to enhance the accessibility of voter-verification mechanisms for individuals with disabilities and for voters whose primary language is not English, including best practices for the mechanisms themselves and the process through which the mechanisms are used. Outlines additional voting system requirements. Requires laboratories to meet standards prohibiting conflicts of interest as a condition of accreditation for the testing of voting system hardware and software. Provides for the filing of complaints by aggrieved persons with the Attorney General. Extends the authorization of Election Assistance Commission permanently. Makes available additional funding to enable States to meet the costs of the requirements imposed by this Act. Directs the Election Assistance Commission to conduct random, unannounced, hand counts of the voter-verified records for each Federal general election in at least two percent of the precincts in each State. Requires Federal certification of the technological security of voter registration lists.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2005
Student Privacy Protection Act of 2005 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to revise provisions for military recruiter access to secondary school student information. Requires ESEA-assisted local educational agencies (LEAs) to notify each secondary school student's parent of the option to consent to a release of the student's name, address, and telephone listing to military recruiters, and to give the parent the opportunity to provide such consent in writing. Requires such LEAs to provide military recruiters, upon their request, with access to such information on a student only if the student's parent has given such written consent.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2005
Guard and Reserve Readiness and Retention Act of 2005 - Makes an individual eligible for retired pay for non-regular (reserve) military service if such individual: (1) satisfies one of specified combinations of minimum age (between 53 and 60) and years of service (between 20 and 34); (2) performed the last six years of qualifying service in currently authorized categories of military service, but not while a member of a regular component, the Fleet Reserve, or the Fleet Marine Corps Reserve; and (3) is not entitled to any other retirement pay from an armed force or as a member of the Fleet Reserve or Fleet Marine Corps Reserve. Authorizes a member of the Selected Reserve to enroll for self or self and family coverage under the TRICARE program (a Department of Defense managed health care program).
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2005
Keep Our Promise to America's Military Retirees Act - Directs the Secretary of Defense to enter into an agreement with the Office of Personnel Management to provide Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) coverage to the following eligible beneficiaries: (1) a member or former member of the Armed Forces entitled to military retired or retainer pay; (2) an unremarried former spouse who was married to a member for at least 20 years, during which such member performed at least 20 years of retirement-creditable military service; (3) a dependent of a deceased qualifying member or former member; (4) a dependent of a living member or former member; and (5) a family member. Directs the Secretary to reimburse such eligible persons for pharmacy benefits received from a pharmacy that is not a TRICARE (Department of Defense managed health care plan) network pharmacy in the same manner as the Secretary would reimburse such person for such benefits received from a TRICARE network pharmacy. Requires such persons, in order to receive such reimbursement, to submit a certification from their physician stating that the person does not have access to a TRICARE network pharmacy due to physical or medical constraints. Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to waive the monthly part B premium (Supplementary Medical Insurance Benefits for the Aged and Disabled) with respect to: (1) an individual who is entitled to military retired or retainer pay based upon service that began before December 7, 1956; and (2) the spouse, widow, or widower of such individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2005
Assured Funding for Veterans Health Care Act of 2005 - Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to make available to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for programs, functions, and activities of the Veterans Health Administration for FY 2007 130 percent of the amount obligated during FY 2005. Adjusts the amount provided for fiscal years after FY 2007 based on the number of enrolled veterans and the number of other persons eligible but not enrolled who are provided care, multiplied by the per capital baseline amount for FY 2005, as increased by the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index. Prohibits the availability of such funds for: (1) construction, acquisition, or alteration of veterans' medical facilities (other than for repairs provided for before the date of enactment of this Act); or (2) grants for the construction of State home facilities for the furnishing of veterans' domiciliary, nursing home, and hospital care.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2005
Graduation for All Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to establish a program that will provide grants to State educational agencies (SEAs) and, through them, subgrants to local educational agencies (LEAs) to establish reading and writing programs to improve overall reading and writing performance among middle and high school students. Limits eligibility for subgrants to LEAs in a State that are among those that have the lowest graduation rates for public secondary school students. Includes among required uses of LEA subgrant funds: (1) hiring and inservice training of literacy coaches; (2) counseling for at-risk students; and (3) professional development for educators that addresses literacy needs of certain student groups. Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to include public secondary school graduation rates for all students under requirements for: (1) accountability for adequate yearly progress; and (2) annual State report cards. Amends the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act to require annual reports on the number participants who are 16, 17, or 18 years of age in certain programs and services, disaggregated by certain attributes.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2005
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow employers a business tax credit of $1,000 for each of their employees who teaches a course at an accredited community college for which the employee receives no compensation.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2005
Amends the Federal Law Enforcement Pay Reform Act of 1990 to revise the special pay adjustments for (percentage differentials payable to) Federal law enforcement officers in specified consolidated metropolitan statistical areas. Includes Capitol Police as law enforcement officers under such Act. Eliminates the limitation on the aggregate of basic pay and premium pay with respect to availability pay for Federal criminal investigators.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2005
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) the full realization of the rights of women is vital to the development and well-being of people of all nations; and (2) the Senate should, therefore, give its advice and consent to the ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2005
United States Seaport Multiyear Security Enhancement Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security to make grants to seaports to enhance security if the grant will improve security at the seaport or improve its efficiency without lessening security.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2005
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 4960 West Washington Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, as the "Ray Charles Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2005
Probation and Parole Officer Safety Task Force Act of 2005 - Establishes within the Department of Justice the Probation and Parole Officer Safety Task Force to study and report to Congress and the Attorney General on: (1) Federal and State policies and practices as they affect the personal safety of probation and parole officers during the execution of their duties; and (2) guidelines for the safety training of, the use of force by, and equipment standards for such officers, including regarding whether to arm such officers. Requires the Director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics (after the Task Force terminates) to carry out and report to the Attorney General on an annual, comprehensive statistical review of the incidence and effects of violence perpetrated against Federal and State probation and parole officers.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2005
Fairness and Accountability in Broadcasting Act - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from issuing or renewing any license for a broadcasting station based upon a finding that the issuance or renewal serves the public interest, convenience, and necessity unless such station: (1) covers issues of importance to the local community in a fair manner, taking into account diverse interests and viewpoints of the local community; (2) holds two public hearings each year in the local community to ascertain the needs and interests of the local communities that they serve; and (3) documents and reports in writing, on a biannual basis to the FCC, the programming that is broadcast to cover the issues of public importance as ascertained through the hearings process, and how such coverage reflects the diverse interests and viewpoints in the local community. Allows any interested person to file a petition with the FCC to deny a license renewal for a broadcast station's failure to follow the above requirements. Reduces from eight to four years the term of a broadcast license.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2005
Family and Medical Leave Inclusion Act - Amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to provide for employee leave to care for a same-sex spouse as determined under applicable State law, domestic partner, parent-in-law, adult child, sibling, or grandparent (as well as for a spouse, child, or parent), if such person has a serious health condition. Amends Federal civil service law to apply the same leave allowance to Federal employees.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2005
Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 with respect to the requirement that every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the United States be marked conspicuously, legibly, indelibly, and permanently in a manner to indicate to an ultimate purchaser in the United States the English name of the article's country of origin. Prohibits any exception to such marking requirement for imported home furniture.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2005
Amends Federal law concerning the Coastal Heritage Trail Route in New Jersey to reauthorize appropriations for the route. Requires the Secretary of the Interior to prepare a strategic plan that describes opportunities to increase participation in the planning, development, and administration of the route and organizational options for sustaining the route.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2005
Pay to Play Reform Protection Act - Amends Federal highway law regarding requirements for the letting of a contract for the construction of Federal-aid highway project by or under the supervision of a State transportation department. Declares that nothing in such requirements prohibits a State from enacting a law or issuing an order that limits the amount of money an individual doing business with a State agency for a Federal-aid project may contribute to a political campaign.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2005
Expresses the sense of Congress that, for fiscal year 2006, rates of compensation for all U.S. civilian employees should be adjusted at the same time, and in the same proportion, as are such rates for members of the uniformed services.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2005
No Taxation Without Representation Act of 2005 - Provides for full voting representation in Congress for the residents of the District of Columbia, including two Senators and as many Representatives as a similarly populous State would be entitled to under the law. Treats the District of Columbia as a State. Prescribes a procedure for the first elections under this Act. Entitles the District to one Representative until the taking effect of the next reapportionment.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2005
National Computer Recycling Act - Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), after submitting to Congress the results of a study of waste materials in used computers that may be hazardous to human health or the environment along with related management recommendations, to require assessment of a fee on the sale to an end-user of any computer, monitor, or other designated electronic devices. Exempts nonprofit organizations from the fee requirement. Authorizes the Administrator to create additional fee exemptions for sales that will likely result in maximum reuse of significant components and the disposal of remaining components in an environmentally sound and lawful manner. Requires fees collected to be used for administration of this Act and for making grants to eligible individuals or organizations for: (1) collecting or processing used computers, monitors, or other devices for recycling; (2) reusing or reselling such devices; and (3) extracting and using, or selling for reuse, raw materials from such devices. Requires reports to Congress on the status of computer recycling, which shall include descriptions of fee collection and use.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2005
Medicare's Equitable Drugs for Seniors Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to repeal provisions prohibiting the Secretary of Health and Human Services from: (1) interfering with the negotiations between drug manufacturers and pharmacies and prescription drug plan sponsors; and (2) requiring a particular formulary to institute a price structure for the reimbursement of covered Medicare part D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program) drugs. Grants the Secretary instead, in order to ensure that beneficiaries enrolled under prescription drug plans and Medicare Advantage prescription drug plans pay the lowest possible price, authority similar to that of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Secretary of Defense, and the heads of other Federal agencies and departments that purchase prescription drugs in bulk to negotiate contracts with manufacturers of covered Medicare part D drugs, consistent with the requirements and in furtherance of the goals of providing quality care and containing costs under such part.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2005
Federal Propaganda Prohibition Act of 2005 - Requires an Executive agency, not later than 30 days after entering into a contract for public relations, media relations, advertising, or public opinion research services, to submit in writing to specified congressional committees the contractor's name, the amount and the purpose of the contract, a summary of the contract, other relevant information, and, upon request: (1) a copy of the covered contract; (2) any contract modifications; and (3) any materials produced under the contract. Prohibits an officer or employee of the U.S. Government from making or authorizing an expenditure or obligation of funds for publicity or propaganda within the United States unless authorized by law. Imposes penalties. Requires each advertisement or other communication paid for by an Executive agency to include a prominent notice that the advertisement or other communication is paid for by that agency.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2005
Honors Cesar E. Chavez for his commitment to improving the plight of farm workers and the poor and for inspiring Americans to work nonviolently for justice. Encourages all Americans to commit to working for justice through nonviolence and to remind themselves of the work of the people who put food on the tables of America.