United States · United States Congress · 13 February 2009
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) Bosnia and Herzegovina work toward the creation of an effective state; (2) any agreement on constitutional reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina should advance the principles of democracy and human rights and be consistent with the goal of European Union (EU) membership; (3) continued efforts should be made domestically and at the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia to achieve justice for victims of war crimes and to promote ethnic reconciliation; and (4) the United States should work with the EU in the transition to a European Union Special Representative to manage post-Office of the High Representative Bosnia and Herzegovina.
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2009
Declares that Congress should not impose any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge relating to the public performance of sound recordings on a local radio station for broadcasting sound recordings over-the-air, or on any business for such public performance of sound recordings.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2009
Derivatives Markets Transparency and Accountability Act of 2009 - Amends the Commodity Exchange Act to prohibit the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) from permitting a foreign board of trade to provide its U.S-located members with access to the CFTC electronic trading system and order matching system with respect to an agreement, contract, or transaction that settles against any price (including the daily or final settlement price) of one or more contracts listed for trading on a registered entity, unless such board meets requirements similar to those imposed upon U.S. exchanges. Directs the CFTC to: (1) define and classify index traders and swap dealers for purposes of data reporting requirements; and (2) set routine detailed reporting requirements for any positions of such entities in contracts traded on designated contract markets, derivatives transaction execution facilities, foreign boards of trade, and electronic trading facilities with respect to significant price discovery contracts. Requires the CFTC, to the extent information is available, to disaggregate and make public monthly: (1) the number of positions and total notional value of index funds and other passive, long-only and short-only positions in all markets; and (2) data on speculative positions relative to bona fide physical hedgers in those markets. Subjects persons involved in derivative and swap transactions, as well as large traders in over-the-counter contracts, to reporting and recordkeeping requirements. Directs the CFTC to set position limits for any one person with respect to: (1) contracts of sale for future delivery; or (2) options on such contracts or commodities traded on or subject to the rules of a contract market or derivatives transaction execution facility or on an electronic trading facility as a significant price discovery contract. Directs the CFTC to: (1) appoint a sufficient number of new full-time employees; (2) review prior actions to ensure compliance with this Act; and (3) review over-the-counter markets. Directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study and report to specified congressional committees on the international regime for regulating the trading of energy commodity futures and derivatives. Directs the CFTC to assess whether certain derivative, swap, and similar agreements, contracts, or transactions that are fungible with agreements, contracts, or transactions traded on or subject to the rules of any board of trade or electronic trading facility with respect to a significant price discovery contract have the potential to: (1) disrupt the liquidity or price discovery function on a registered entity; (2) cause a severe market disturbance in the underlying cash or futures market; or (3) prevent or otherwise impair the price of a contract listed for trading on a registered entity from reflecting the forces of supply and demand in any market. Authorizes the CFTC, upon a positive finding, to impose position limits. Authorizes the CFTC to use expedited procedures to carry out this Act. Makes specified exclusions and exemptions from the Commodity Exchange Act available only for certain transactions settled and cleared through registered derivatives clearing organizations or other regulated entities, including national banks, state member banks, insured state nonmember banks, affiliates of any of these, or corporations chartered to do foreign banking. Treats as commodities exempt from Commodity Exchange Act coverage: (1) any allowance authorized under law to emit a greenhouse gas; and (2) any credit authorized under law toward the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions or an increase in carbon sequestration. Directs the CFTC to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Secretary of Agriculture which shall ensure that any procedures and protocols developed for a market-based greenhouse gas program are properly constructed and coordinated to maximize credits for carbon sequestration. Amends the Inspector General Act of 1978 with respect to the Office of Inspector General of the CFTC. Authorizes the CFTC to: (1) suspend trading of credit default swaps; and (2) initiate and conduct criminal litigation relating to a violation of the Commodity Exchange Act if the Attorney General has declined to do so.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2009
Physical Therapist Student Loan Repayment Eligibility Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to include physical therapy within the definition of "primary health services" for purposes of provisions concerning the National Health Service Corps. Makes physical therapists eligible for repayment of their educational loans in order to ensure an adequate supply of physical therapists.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2009
Repeals specified exceptions to rights of certain Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employees to engage in collective bargaining. Requires a final decision of the (VA) with respect to the review of an adverse personnel action against a (VA) employee to be issued not later than 60 days after such action has been appealed. Subjects such decision to judicial review in the appropriate U.S. District Court or, if the decision is made by a labor arbitrator, in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2009
Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis Research, Cure, and Care Act of 2009 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to continue to expand and intensify research and related NIH activities with respect to psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Requires the Directors of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to continue to conduct and support research to expand understanding of the causes of, and to find a cure for, psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to undertake psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis data collection and develop a psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis patient registry. Encourages the Secretary to convene a summit on federal efforts regarding psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis research, treatment, education, quality-of-life, and data collection. Directs the Secretary to enter into an agreement with the Institutes of Medicine to study insurance coverage of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 2009
Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act - Prohibits the President from regulating or prohibiting travel to or from Cuba by U.S. citizens or legal residents or any of the transactions ordinarily incident to such travel, except in time of war or armed hostilities between the United States and Cuba, or of imminent danger to the public health or the physical safety of U.S. travelers.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2009
Brewers Excise and Economic Relief Act of 2009 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) reduce from $18 to $9 ( the pre-1991 level) the per-barrel tax on beer; and (2) allow a further reduction in such tax for brewers who produce not more than 2 million barrels annually.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2009
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the authority of the Secretary of the Treasury to enter into contracts with private debt collection agencies for the collection of unpaid taxes.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 2009
Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act of 2009 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to study and report to Congress on the minimum level of sound that is necessary to be emitted from a motor vehicle, or some other method, to alert blind and other pedestrians of the presence of operating motor vehicles while traveling.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2009
Indian School Construction Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to establish a pilot program under which eligible Indian tribes have the authority to issue tribal school modernization bonds to provide funds for the construction, rehabilitation, and repair of tribal schools, including advance planning and design. Permits a tribe to use amounts received through a bond issue to enter contracts: (1) for the design and engineering of the school; and (2) with financial advisors, underwriters, attorneys, trustees, and other professionals to provide assistance to the tribe in issuing bonds. Makes any tribal school modernization bond issued by a tribe subject to a trust agreement. Authorizes the Secretary to deposit not more than $50 million into a tribal school modernization escrow account and to accept additional amounts from other federal agencies and nonfederal public or private sources. Declares that no bond shall be an obligation of, nor shall payment of the principal be guaranteed by, the United States, the tribes, or their schools. Exempts from federal income tax any earnings through the investment of funds under the control of a trustee. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit to individuals who hold such bonds.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2009
Modernize Our Bookkeeping In the Law for Employee's Cell Phone Act of 2009 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to remove certain limitations on the tax deduction for employee use of cellular telephones.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2009
Access to Postal Services Act - Modifies the procedures the U.S. Postal Service must follow in connection with the closing or consolidation of any postal facility, including: (1) requiring an assessment of the need for the closure or consolidation; (2) eliminating a requirement to consider the resulting Postal Service economic savings; (3) requiring a posting in each affected postal facility at least 90 days before the final decision is made; and (4) requiring (under current law, allowing) suspension of the determination pending an appeal to the Postal Regulatory Commission. Exempts emergency suspensions (as defined under Postal Service regulations) or lease termination or cancellation by a party other than the Postal Service. Defines "postal facility," for the provisions amended by this Act, to include an office, branch, station, or other facility operated by the Postal Service.
United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2009
Girl Scouts USA Centennial Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue up to 350,000 $1 coins in commemoration of the centennial of the founding of the Girl Scouts of the USA. Requires the coin design to be emblematic of the 100 years of the organization. Restricts issuance of such coins to calendar year 2011. Subjects coin sales to a surcharge of $10 per coin. Requires payment of such surcharges to the Girl Scouts of the United States of America for Girl Scout program development and delivery.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 2009
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require excise taxes on recreational equipment to be due and payable on the date for filing the return for such taxes.
United States · United States Congress · 14 January 2009
Commends the 39th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Team) of the Arkansas National Guard for their exemplary service to the United States and the completion of their second deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Recognizes the service and sacrifice of the Team members and their families.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 2009
Wakefield Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to: (1) extend by one year the length of time for which a grant may be awarded under the emergency medical services for children grant program, which allows the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to states or schools of medicine to support projects to expand and improve emergency medical services for children who need treatment for trauma or critical care; and (2) authorize appropriations for such grant program for FY2010-FY2014.
United States · United States Congress · 9 January 2009
Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act of 2009 - Provides collective bargaining rights for public safety officers employed by states or local governments. Directs the Federal Labor Relations Authority to determine whether state law provides specified rights and responsibilities for public safety officers, including: (1) granting public safety employees the right to form and join a labor organization which excludes management and supervisory employees, and which is, or seeks to be, recognized as the exclusive bargaining agent for such employees; and (2) requiring public safety employers to recognize and agree to bargain with the employees' labor organization. Requires the Authority to issue regulations establishing rights and responsibilities for public safety employers and employees in states that do not substantially provide for such public safety employee rights and responsibilities. Directs the Authority, in such cases, to: (1) determine the appropriateness of units for labor organization representation; (2) supervise or conduct elections to determine whether a labor organization has been selected as an exclusive representative by a voting majority of the employees in an appropriate unit; (3) resolve issues relating to the duty to bargain in good faith; (4) conduct hearings and resolve complaints of unfair labor practices; and (5) resolve exceptions to arbitrator's awards. Grants a public safety employer, employee, or labor organization the right to seek enforcement of Authority regulations and orders, as well as prohibitions against lockouts or strikes, through appropriate state courts. Prohibits public safety employers, employees, and labor organizations from engaging in lockouts or strikes. Provides that existing collective bargaining units and agreements shall not be invalidated by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 9 January 2009
Renewable Energy Production Tax Credit Extension Act of 2009 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend for five years the tax credit for producing electricity from certain facilities using renewable resources.
United States · United States Congress · 9 January 2009
Certain Estate Tax Relief Act of 2009 - Repeals provisions of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA) eliminating the tax on estates and generation-skipping transfers and the step-up in basis provisions for property acquired from a decedent for estates of decedents dying after 2009. Declares that the sunset provision (general terminating date of December 10, 2010) of EGTRRA shall not apply to title V of such Act ( Estate, Gift, and Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax Provisions). Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) provide for an increase to $3.5 million of the estate tax exclusion (eliminating the phase-in period); (2) impose a maximum estate tax rate of 45% ; (3) restore the phaseout of graduated estate tax rates and the unified credit against the estate tax; (4) set forth estate valuation rules for certain transfers of nonbusiness assets; and (5) limit estate tax discounts for certain individuals with minority interests in a business acquired from a decedent.
United States · United States Congress · 9 January 2009
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through 2010 the tax credit for increasing research activities and increase and make permanent the alternative simplified research tax credit.
United States · United States Congress · 9 January 2009
Amends Rule XI (Procedures of Committees and Unfinished Business) of the Rules of the House of Representatives to require each standing committee or subcommittee to hold: (1) periodic hearings on the topic of waste, fraud, abuse, or mismanagement in government programs which that committee may authorize; (2) at least one hearing in any session regarding committee receipt of disclaimers of agency financial statements from auditors of any federal agency that the committe may authorize to hear testimony on such disclaimers from agency representatives; and (3) at least one hearing on issues raised by reports issued by the Comptroller General indicating that federal programs or operations that the committee may authorize are at high risk for waste, fraud, and mismanagement, known as the "high-risk list" or the "high-risk series."
United States · United States Congress · 8 January 2009
Requires the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to make arrangements for the award of a congressional gold medal to the Army's 100th Infantry Battalion and 442nd Regimental Combat Team, collectively, in recognition of their dedicated service during World War II.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 2009
Railroad Antitrust Enforcement Act of 2009 - Amends the Clayton Act (the Act) to make federal antitrust laws applicable to all common carriers subject to the Surface Transportation Board (STB), regardless of whether the carrier filed a rail carrier rate or whether a complaint challenging a rate is filed. Subjects to antitrust review agreements among rail carriers to pool or divide traffic, services, or earnings. Authorizes the the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to enforce certain provisions of the Act against STB-approved agreements or combinations, including those related to rates. Removes the prohibition against a private party seeking injunctive relief against a rail carrier for a violation of the antitrust laws. Provides that, in any civil action against a rail common carrier, the U.S. district court shall not be required to defer to the primary jurisdiction of the STB. Amends the Federal Trade Commission Act to authorize FTC enforcement against rail carriers for unfair methods of competition. Amends federal transportation law to terminate the exemptions from antitrust laws for rail carriers, including mergers and acquisitions and ratemaking agreements. Requires the STB when reviewing a proposed rate agreement, to take into account its impact upon shippers, consumers, and affected communities, and to make findings regarding such impact, which shall be made part of the administrative record. Revises STB authority to provide that a rail carrier, corporation, or a person participating in an approved transaction is not exempt from specified antitrust laws.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Redesignates: (1) the Department of the Navy as the Department of the Navy and Marine Corps; and (2) the Secretary of the Navy as the Secretary of the Navy and Marine Corps. Makes similar redesignations with respect to the Department Under Secretary, the Department Assistant Secretaries, and the General Counsel.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Daniel Webster Congressional Clerkship Act of 2009 - Establishes the Daniel Webster Congressional Clerkship Program for the appointment of individuals who are graduates of accredited law schools to serve as Congressional Clerks in the Senate or House of Representatives. Requires the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration and the House Committee on House Administration to each select at least six individuals for a one-year term to serve as employees in their respective chambers. Specifies eligibility criteria for a Congressional Clerk, including that the selected candidate be a graduate of such a law school as of the starting date of his or her clerkship. Requires the committees to ensure that Congressional Clerks selected under this Act are apportioned equally between majority and minority party offices. Entitles each clerk selected to the same compensation as, and comparable benefits to, an individual who holds the position of a judicial clerkship for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia within three months of graduating from law school.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 - Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to declare that an unlawful employment practice occurs when: (1) a discriminatory compensation decision or other practice is adopted; (2) an individual becomes subject to the decision or practice; or (3) an individual is affected by application of the decision or practice, including each time wages, benefits, or other compensation is paid. Allows liability to accrue, and allows an aggrieved person to obtain relief, including recovery of back pay, for up to two years preceding the filing of the charge, where the unlawful employment practices that have occurred during the charge filing period are similar or related to practices that occurred outside the time for filing a charge. Applies the preceding provisions to claims of compensation discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Amends the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 to declare that an unlawful practice occurs when a discriminatory compensation decision or other practice is adopted, when a person becomes subject to the decision or other practice, or when a person is affected by the decision or practice, including each time wages, benefits, or other compensation is paid.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2009 - Amends the federal criminal code to establish a national standard for the carrying of concealed firearms (other than a machinegun or destructive device) by non-residents. Authorizes a person who has a valid permit to carry a concealed firearm in one state and who is not prohibited from carrying a firearm under federal law to carry a concealed firearm in another state in accordance with the restrictions of that state or as specified under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Medicare Access to Rehabilitation Services Act of 2009 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to repeal the Medicare outpatient rehabilitation therapy caps.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Adoption Tax Relief Guarantee Act of 2009 - Exempts provisions expanding the adoption tax credit and adoption assistance programs enacted by the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 from the general terminating (sunset) provisions of that Act.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Requires government contributions for health benefits for an individual who first becomes an annuitant by reason of retirement from employment with the United States Postal Service on or after July 1, 1971, or for a survivor of such an individual or of an individual who died on or after that date while employed by the Postal Service, to be paid first from the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund up to the amount contained in the Fund, with any remaining amount paid by the Postal Service (current law requires such contributions to be paid by the Postal Service through September 30, 2016).
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2009
Paycheck Fairness Act - Amends the portion of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) known as the Equal Pay Act to revise remedies for, enforcement of, and exceptions to prohibitions against sex discrimination in the payment of wages. Revises the exception to the prohibition for a wage rate differential based on any other factor other than sex. Limits such factors to bona fide factors, such as education, training, or experience. States that the bona fide factor defense shall apply only if the employer demonstrates that such factor: (1) is not based upon or derived from a sex-based differential in compensation; (2) is job-related with respect to the position in question; and (3) is consistent with business necessity. Avers that such defense shall not apply where the employee demonstrates that: (1) an alternative employment practice exists that would serve the same business purpose without producing such differential; and (2) the employer has refused to adopt such alternative practice. Revises the prohibition against employer retaliation for employee complaints. Prohibits retaliation for inquiring about, discussing, or disclosing the wages of the employee or another employee in response to a complaint or charge, or in furtherance of a sex discrimination investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, or an investigation conducted by the employer. Makes employers who violate sex discrimination prohibitions liable in a civil action for either compensatory or (except for the federal government) punitive damages. States that any action brought to enforce the prohibition against sex discrimination may be maintained as a class action in which individuals may be joined as party plaintiffs without their written consent. Authorizes the Secretary of Labor (Secretary) to seek additional compensatory or punitive damages in a sex discrimination action. Requires the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs to train EEOC employees and affected individuals and entities on matters involving wage discrimination. Authorizes the Secretary to make grants to eligible entities for negotiation skills training programs for girls and women. Directs the Secretary and the Secretary of Education to issue regulations or policy guidance to integrate such training into certain programs under their Departments. Directs the Secretary to conduct studies and provide information to employers, labor organizations, and the general public regarding the means available to eliminate pay disparities between men and women. Establishes the Secretary of Labor's National Award for Pay Equity in the Workplace for an employer has made substantial effort to eliminate pay disparities between men and women. Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to require the EEOC to collect from employers pay information data regarding the sex, race, and national origin of employees for use in the enforcement of federal laws prohibiting pay discrimination. Directs: (1) the Commissioner of Labor Statistics to continue to collect data on woman workers in the Current Employment Statistics survey; (2) the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs to use specified types of methods in investigating compensation discrimination and in enforcing pay equity; and (3) the Secretary to make accurate information on compensation discrimination readily available to the public. Directs the Secretary and the Commissioner of the EEOC jointly to develop technical assistance material to assist small businesses to comply with the requirements of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2008
Charity Enhancement Act of 2008 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) modify rules and definitions relating to the tax on distributions from donor advised funds (a charitable fund in which a donor has, or reasonably expects to have, advisory privileges with respect to the distribution or investment of amounts held in such fund by reason of his or her status as a donor); (2) treat contributions by Indian tribal governments to tax-exempt organizations in the same manner as contributions by states for purposes of determining the classification of an organization as a public charity or private foundation; (3) require certain tax-exempt organizations that file at least five tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) annually to use electronic filing; and (4) expand the bad check penalty to all tax payments by commercially acceptable means (e.g., electronic payments).
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2008
Small Business Efficiency Act of 2008- Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat professional employer organizations (PEOs), certified by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), as employers for employment tax purposes (thus allowing such PEOs to pay wages and collect and remit payroll taxes on behalf of an employer). Sets forth IRS certification requirements for PEOs, including financial review and reporting requirements. Requires a PEO to post a bond (the greater of $50,000 or 5% of the organization's tax liability for the preceding calendar year not to exceed $1,000,000) to guarantee payment of employment taxes.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2008
Recognizes the importance of the U.S. wine, winegrape, and grape products industry to the American economy. Directs the Secretary of the Senate to transmit a copy of this resolution to the Commissioner of the Texas Department of Agriculture and the Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association in Grapevine, Texas.
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2008
Stephanie Tubbs Jones Gift of Life Medal Act of 2008 - Makes any organ donor, or the family of any organ donor, eligible for a Stephanie Tubbs Jones Gift of Life Medal. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to direct the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network to establish an application procedure, determine eligibility, and arrange for the presentation of medals. Allows only one medal per family. Requires that such medal be presented to the donor or, in the case of a deceased donor, the family member who signed the consent form authorizing the organ donation. Authorizes the Network to collect funds to offset expenditures relating to the issuance of medals. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to design and strike the Stephanie Tubbs Jones Gift of Life Medals using certain specifications. Provides that a medal under this Act shall not be treated as valuable consideration for purposes of prohibiting transferring human organs for valuable consideration.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2008
Amends the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 to exempt from the prohibition on receiving direct payments, counter-cyclical payments, or average crop revenue election payments when the sum of a farm's base acres is 10 acres or less: (1) a farm owned by a socially disadvantaged or limited resource farmer or rancher; or (2) a producer whose aggregate total base acres of all farms are greater than 10 acres, including farms owned by a producer or operated by a producer with the owner's concurrence, including farms operated under a crop-share lease arrangement. Permits a producer to reconstitute any farms to exceed the 10 base acre minimum through consolidation of the farms' base acreage.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2008
Carbon Reduction Technology Bridge Act of 2008 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow: (1) seven-year amortization of mechanical or electronic systems that are installed on a coal-fired electric generation unit after 2007 and that reduce carbon dioxide emissions; (2) a tax credit for the production of electricity using closed-loop biomass co-fired with coal; (3) a tax credit for investment in qualified clean coal electric generation units; (4) a tax credit for investment in carbon dioxide capture, transport, and storage property which is part of a qualified coal-fired electric generation unit; and (5) a tax credit for investment in clean energy coal bonds.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2008
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) prohibit tax-exempt employer pension or benefit plans from making a loan to any plan beneficiary through a revolving credit arrangement; and (2) limit to three the number of loans a plan can make to a plan participant or beneficiary without tax consequences.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2008
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to expand the eligibility of certain small insurance companies (other than life insurance companies) for the alternative corporate income tax by increasing the premium limitation used to determine such eligibility to $1.971 million (from $1.2 million), with an annual inflation adjustment to that increased amount after 2008.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2008
Civil Rights Quarter Dollar Coin Act of 2008 - Requires quarter dollars to have designs on the reverse emblematic of prominent civil rights leaders and important events that have advanced civil rights in America. Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to select such leaders and events. Requires five coin designs in each year of the period of issuance. Instructs the Secretary to strike and make available for sale silver bullion coins that are exact duplicates of such quarter dollars.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2008
Recognizes: (1) the important contributions of African-American doctors on the event of the apology of American Medical Association (AMA) to the National Medical Association (NMA) for over a century of racial prejudices and wrongdoings; (2) the efforts of Dr. W. Montague Cobb, former president of the NMA, to break down the racial prejudices at the AMA that led to its full integration; and (3) Shaw University's Leonard Medical School and other historically black colleges and universities for their role in training African-American doctors. Encourages more African-Americans to work in medicine and become doctors, nurses, and researchers.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 2008
Northern Plains Heritage Area Act - Establishes the Northern Plains National Heritage Area in North Dakota. Designates the Northern Plains Heritage Foundation as the local coordinating entity for the Area. Directs the Foundation to submit a management plan for the Area.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2008
Recognizes that it is imperative that this nation strengthen its public health system to provide all persons with the resources they need to make healthier choices and live healthier lives and to protect people from health threats beyond their control. Commits to creating public health strategies to eliminate health disparities and improve the health of all people in the United States. Expresses support for prioritizing public policies focusing on the prevention of disease and injury and calls for community-based programs to support healthy lifestyles. Urges the expansion of the prevention strategies of daily aspirin therapy, smoking cessation, colorectal cancer screening, annual flu immunizations, and breast cancer screening. Declares that the congressional budget process should reflect the savings associated with investments in the prevention of disease and injury. Encourages the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to consider the savings associated with a reduced chronic disease burden due to preventive services and programs when formulating its health care cost estimates. Pledges support for increasing the investment in federal public health programs to at least 1% of total federal spending within five years.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2008
Commodity Markets Transparency and Accountability Act of 2008 - Amends the Commodity Exchange Act to define "energy commodity." Prohibits the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) from permitting a foreign board of trade to provide its U.S-located members with access to the CFTC electronic trading system and order matching system for energy or agricultural commodities unless such board meets requirements similar to those imposed upon U.S. exchanges. Subjects swap transactions, transactions for agricultural and energy commodities, and large traders in over-the-counter contracts to reporting and recordkeeping requirements. Directs the Commission to: (1) set position limits for any one person with respect to designated contract markets, derivative transaction execution facilities, and electronic trading facilities; (2) convene a Position Limit Agricultural Advisory Group and a Position Limit Energy Group; (3) appoint at least 100 new full-time employees; (4) review prior actions to ensure compliance with this Act; and (5) review over-the-counter markets. Revises the core principles applicable to position limits for contracts in agricultural and energy commodities to require position limits for speculators. Directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to conduct a study of: (1) the international regime for regulating the trading of energy commodity futures and derivatives; and (2) speculators' effects on agriculture and energy futures markets and prices. Directs the Commission to: (1) require regular reporting of fungible over-the-counter agricultural and energy transactions; and (2) determine if such transactions have the potential to disrupt market liquidity or cause market or price disturbances, and if so, to use its discretion to impose position limits. Authorizes the Commission to use expedited procedures to carry out this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2008
Local Officials Tax Relief Act of 2008 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code and Title II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act to exempt from social security taxes remuneration paid to any elected or appointed member of any general governing board, commission, or committee of any political subdivision of a state if such remuneration is not more than $1,300 and is paid for service performed on or after January 1, 2008.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2008
Medicare Identity Theft Prevention Act of 2008 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish cost-effective procedures to ensure that Social Security account numbers are not included on Medicare cards.
![Official portrait of Rep. Pomeroy, Earl [D-ND-At Large]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/p000422_200.jpg)