United States · United States Congress · 9 July 2004
Justice and Understanding By International Loan Elimination and Equity (JUBILEE) Act of 2004 - Amends the International Financial Institutions Act to require the Secretary of the Treasury to commence immediate efforts, within the Paris Club of Official Creditors, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank), and other international financial institutions (multilateral development institutions (MDI's)) to accomplish: (1) the cancellation of all debts owed to each institution by specified eligible poor countries, and the financing of such debt cancellation from the institution's ongoing operations, procedures, and accounts; (2) the limitation of any waiting period before receipt of debt cancellation to one month from the date of an eligible poor country's application for it; and (3) encouragement of the government of each eligible poor country to allocate at least 20 percent of its national budget, including the savings from such debt cancellation, for the provision of basic health care services, education services, and clean water services to individuals in the country. Sets forth requirements for: (1) establishment of a framework to ensure transparency regarding each international financial institution's activities; and (2) availability on the Treasury Department's website of U.S. Executive Directors' remarks at meetings of international financial institutions' Boards of Directors. Requires the Secretary to commence immediate efforts, within the Paris Club, the IMF, and other appropriate MDI's, to ensure that the provision of debt cancellation to such countries is not conditioned on any agreement by such a country to implement or comply with specified policies that deepen poverty or degrade the environment.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 2004
New United States Global HIV Prevention Strategy to Address the Needs of Women and Girls Act of 2004 - States that it shall be U.S. policy to: (1) pursue an HIV prevention strategy for each country for which the United States provides assistance to combat HIV/AIDS that emphasizes the needs of women and girls; and (2) support a variety of culturally appropriate HIV prevention programs for each country for which the United States provides HIV/AIDS assistance, and to ensure that unnecessary requirements on fund use are not imposed. Directs the President to establish a comprehensive and culturally appropriate HIV prevention strategy for each country for which the United States provides assistance to combat HIV/AIDS. Requires each strategy to encompass health and HIV prevention education beyond the ABC model "Abstain, Be faithful, use Condoms" as a means to reduce HIV infections, particularly among women and girls. Amends the United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003 to eliminate the "abstinence-until-marriage" reference with respect to the sense of Congress' HIV/AIDS funding allocation.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 2004
Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to revise provisions regarding Federal assistance for programs to reduce suicide among children and adolescents. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, to award grants or cooperative agreements to: (1) develop and implement State-sponsored statewide or tribal youth suicide early intervention and prevention strategies in schools, educational institutions, juvenile justice systems, substance abuse programs, mental health programs, foster care systems, and other child and youth support organizations; (2) support public organizations actively involved in State-sponsored statewide or tribal youth suicide early intervention and prevention strategies and in the development and continuation of such intervention and prevention strategies; (3) collect and analyze data on State-sponsored statewide or tribal youth suicide early intervention and prevention services that can be used to monitor the effectiveness of such services and for research, technical assistance, and policy development; and (4) assist eligible entities in achieving their targets for youth suicide reductions. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Administrator, to award a grant or contract to establish the Suicide Prevention Resource Center. Requires the Secretary to award grants to institutions of higher education to expand mental and behavior health services to students, to provide such services, and to develop best practices for the delivery of such services.
United States · United States Congress · 7 July 2004
Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Extension Act of 2004 - Amends the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002 to extend the terrorism risk insurance program through December 31, 2008. Restricts "insured loss" with respect to the Final Program Year to certain losses covered by property and casualty insurance issued before January 1, 2008, and expiring not later than December 31, 2008. Sets forth an insurer deductible that is the value of an insurer's direct earned premiums multiplied by 15 percent for Program Years 3, 4, and 5, and for the Final Program Year. Redefines "insured loss" to include group life insurance coverage.
United States · United States Congress · 6 July 2004
United States-Australia Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act - Approves the United States-Australia Free Trade Agreement entered into with the Government of Australia, and the statement of administrative action proposed to implement the Agreement, both submitted to Congress. Authorizes the President to proclaim such actions, and other appropriate officers of the U.S. Government to issue such regulations, as may be necessary to ensure appropriate implementation of any provision of this Act that takes effect on the date the Agreement enters into force. Provides for: (1) administration of dispute settlement proceedings; (2) specified tariff modifications; (3) additional duties, under specified conditions, on certain horticulture and beef safeguard goods; (4) enforcement of textile and apparel rules of origin; (5) actions for relief from imports benefiting from the Agreement; (6) certain textile and apparel safeguard measures; and (7) U.S. International Trade Commission findings and presidential actions with regard to whether imports of articles from Australia are a substantial cause of serious injury or threat to U.S. articles and industries. Redefines "eligible products" to include, regarding any foreign country or instrumentality that is a party to a free trade agreement that entered into force with respect to the United States after December 31, 2003, and before January 2, 2005, a product or service of that country or instrumentality which is covered under the free trade agreement for U.S. procurement.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2004
Literacy, Education, and Rehabilitation Act - Amends the Federal criminal code to allow a prisoner serving a term of imprisonment of more than one year (other than life imprisonment) to receive credit beyond time already served of up to 60 days each year, in addition to any credit received for satisfactory behavior, for earning a certificate of completion in, or for participating in or teaching, a designated program which benefits prisoners or the Bureau. Includes specified educational and vocational, treatment, or work and developmental programs. Requires the Director of the Bureau of Prisons to establish the number of days of credit a prisoner may be awarded considering the difficulty, time required, responsibility expected, and rehabilitative benefits of the program. Makes any person sentenced to a term of imprisonment under the Attorney General's custody eligible for the credits, including prisoners transferred from foreign countries. Directs the Bureau to assure that a prisoner spends a reasonable part of the last portion (currently, the last ten percent) of the term of imprisonment to be served under conditions that will afford the prisoner a reasonable opportunity to prepare for reentry into the community.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2004
Independent Film Small Business Job Creation Act of 2004 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax deduction for expenditures relating to the production, promotion and distribution of U.S. independent motion picture films with budgets between $2 and $20 million (adjusted for inflation). Requires that not less than 95 percent of the wages or self-employment income paid for producing such films be for services provided within the United States or its possessions. Requires the recapture as income of amounts deducted if a production company ceases to qualify as an independent film production company.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2004
Directs the Secretary of State to transmit to the House of Representatives all documents in the possession of the Secretary, except those documents that have been found by a court to be protected by Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 6(e), relating to the treatment of prisoners or detainees in Iraq, Afghanistan, or Guantanamo Bay and any requisite instructions for handling such documents.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2004
Directs the Attorney General to transmit to the House of Representatives all documents in the possession of the Attorney General, except those documents that have been found by a court to be protected by Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 6(e) in a proceeding in which the Attorney General or the Department of Justice is a party, relating to the treatment of prisoners or detainees in Iraq, Afghanistan, or Guantanamo Bay and any requisite instructions for handling such documents.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2004 - 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 if: (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 will 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 · 24 June 2004
Geriatric and Chronic Care Management Act of 2004 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, to provide for Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) coverage of geriatric assessments and chronic care management services for eligible individuals. Directs the Secretary to study and report to Congress on: (1) the effectiveness of the different payment methodologies applicable with respect to chronic care management services developed and implemented under this Act; (2) the effectiveness of the pay for performance programs to serve Medicare beneficiaries with multiple chronic conditions, including dementia; (3) process measures and outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries with multiple chronic illnesses, including dementia; (4) the cost-effectiveness and quality associated with chronic care management under the Medicare program; and (5) the feasibility of broadening and incorporating the findings of the Assessing Care of Vulnerable Elders (ACOVE) study into the Medicare program.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Meaningful Expression of Democracy in America (MEDIA) Act - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to require broadcast licensees to afford reasonable opportunity for the discussion of conflicting views on issues of public importance.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Equal Access to Social Security Act of 2004 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to entitle unmarried gay and lesbian and heterosexual permanent partners to OASDI survivor and other benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Fisheries Management Reform Act of 2004 - Amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act to require the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) (currently, the Secretary of Commerce) to appoint members to the Regional Fishery Management Councils who, by reason of their occupational or other experience, are knowledgeable regarding the conservation and management, or the commercial or recreational harvest, of fishery resources. Revises requirements for the composition of such councils and the qualifications of voting Council members. Sets forth certain requirements with respect to: (1) training of appointed Council members; and (2) disclosure of financial interest and recusal of Council members. Directs the Secretary to establish regional science and technical teams to make recommendations on certain matters, on the basis of which the Secretary shall provide Councils conservation and management measures for incorporation into fishery management plans that establish: (1) catch and bycatch limits; (2) specific habitat and area protections to protect essential fish habitats; and (3) specific requirements necessary to protect endangered species.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow the nonrecognition of up to $50 million of gain (for capital gains tax purposes) from the sale of a telecommunications business to a qualified business. Defines "qualified business" to mean: (1) for a telecommunications sale including any interest in a broadcast station, any person that owns, directly or indirectly, a 50 percent or greater interest in ten or fewer broadcast stations; and (2) for any other telecommunications sale, any individual, partnership, or corporation with net assets not exceeding $30 million and average after-tax income for the two preceding taxable years of not more than $10 million. Restricts to three the number of telecommunications sales a qualified business may complete without forfeiting tax deferral. Requires the recapture of deferred gain if a qualified business resells a telecommunications business within five years, unless the resale is to another qualified business or the sales proceeds are reinvested in another telecommunications business within 60 days of the resale. Authorizes the Small Business Administration to guarantee loans made to a qualified business for the purchase of a telecommunications business. Requires security for such loans, including forfeiture of any Federal Communications Commission license of a borrower who defaults on a loan.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
States that Congress: (1) declares that the atrocities unfolding in Darfur, Sudan, are genocide; (2) reminds the international community, including the U.S. Government, of their international legal obligations, as affirmed in the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide; (3) calls on the Bush Administration to lead an international effort to prevent genocide in Darfur; (4) urges the Bush Administration to consider multilateral or even unilateral intervention to prevent genocide should the United Nations Security Council fail to act; (5) demands that the Bush Administration impose targeted sanctions, including visa bans and the freezing of assets of the National Congress and affiliated business and individuals directly responsible for the atrocities in Darfur; and (6) calls on the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to establish a Darfur Resettlement, Rehabilitation, and Reconstruction Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Second Chance Act of 2004: Community Safety Through Recidivism Prevention or Second Chance Act of 2004 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to reauthorize, rewrite, and expand provisions regarding adult and juvenile offender reentry demonstration projects, including by authorizing funds to: (1) provide structured post-release housing and transitional housing through which offenders are provided supervision and services immediately following reentry into the community; (2) facilitate specified collaboration to promote the employment of people released from prison and jail; and (3) establish or expand the use of reentry courts. Sets forth grant priorities and requirements, including that each State or local government recipient establish a Reentry Task Force or other relevant convening authority. Authorizes the Attorney General to make a grant to provide for the establishment of a National Adult and Juvenile Offender Reentry Resource Center. Directs the Attorney General to establish an interagency task force on Federal programs and activities relating to offender reentry. Authorizes the National Institute of Justice and the Bureau of Justice Statistics to conduct research on offender reentry. Directs: (1) the Secretary of Health and Human Services to review the role of State child protective services at the time of arrest and to establish services for the preservation of families impacted by the incarceration of a family member; and (2) the Secretary of Labor to implement a program to educate employers about existing incentives to the hiring of former prisoners and to make grants to community-based organizations to provide mentoring and other transitional services essential to reintegrating ex-offenders.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Requests that the President, and directs the Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, and Attorney General (AG) to transmit to the House of Representatives all documents in their possession (as more specifically identified in this Resolution) relating to the treatment of prisoners or detainees in Iraq, Afghanistan, or Guantanamo Bay and any instructions for handling such documents, with the exception of those documents in the AG's possession that are protected by Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 6(e) in proceedings in which the AG or the Department of Justice are parties.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Creates the Select Committee to Investigate Detainee Abuses to conduct a full and complete investigation of the abuses of detainees held in U.S. custody in connection with Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, or any operation within the Global War on Terrorism, in particular those documented abuses at Abu Ghraib prison, and to make appropriate findings and recommendations to the House of Representatives. Requires the Select Committee to assess, analyze, and evaluate relevant persons, policies, procedures, reports, and events during the course of its investigation, including but not limited to those specified in this Resolution. Sets forth procedures and authorities of the Select Committee. Requires the Select Committee to submit its final report to the House within six months of adoption of this Resolution and to cease to exist one month thereafter.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 2004
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, to the personal representative of Ray Charles, a gold medal in recognition of Ray Charles' many contributions to the Nation as one of America's greatest and most influential musical artists.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 2004
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 19504 Linden Boulevard in St. Albans, New York, as the "Archie Spigner Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 2004
Patient Bill of Rights Act of 2004 - Amends the Public Health Service Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, and the Internal Revenue Code to apply patient protection and quality care standards to group health plans and issuers of health insurance coverage. Applies such standards also to Federal health insurance programs. Requires such plans and issuers to have approved utilization review programs, claims procedures, and appeal procedures concerning claims denials. Requires patient access to health plan information and to care, including: (1) a consumer choice option and choice of health care professional; (2) emergency care; (3) timely access to specialists; (4) obstetrics, gynecology, and pediatrics; (5) care continuity; (6) prescription drugs; (7) participation in clinical trials; and (8) breast cancer treatment hospital stays and consultations. Restricts interference by a plan or insurer with the doctor-patient relationship. Prohibits discrimination against a licensed health care professional with respect to participation or indemnification. Sets forth requirements relating to payment of claims and protection of patient advocacy. Provides a tax credit for the health insurance expenses of small businesses. Treats qualified health benefit purchasing distributions by private foundations as distributions for a charitable purpose. Establishes demonstration grants programs to: (1) increase access to health insurance through alternative means; and (2) provide health insurance information to small employers.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2004
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 10 West Prospect Street in Nanuet, New York, as the "Anthony I. Lombardi Memorial Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2004
Veterans' Adjustable Rate Home Loan Extension Act of 2004 - Extends through FY 2009 the hybrid adjustable rate mortgage guarantee demonstration program for veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2004
Calls on the Department of Justice to investigate the murders of James Chaney, Michael Schwerner, and Andrew Goodman (volunteers for "Freedom Summer," a project dedicated to helping African Americans in Mississippi earn equal rights) in 1964. Calls on Attorney General John Ashcroft to: (1) formally offer the Attorney General of Mississippi the Department's services to review the case file and serve as special prosecutor in a new trial; and (2) report to Congress the findings of the Department's investigation.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2004
Friends of the Children National Demonstration Act - Directs the Attorney General to establish a national demonstration project regarding early and sustained intervention programs for disadvantaged children and youth, through a project grant to Friends of the Children, National Office, which shall make subgrants to its local chapters in specified cities.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2004
Full-Service Community Schools Act of 2004 - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award grants to: (1) eligible entities to assist public elementary or secondary schools to function as full-service community schools; and (2) State collaboratives to support development of full-service community school programs. Requires such schools to: (1) participate in community-based efforts to coordinate educational, developmental, family, health, and other comprehensive services through community-based organizations and public and private partnerships; and (2) provide access to such services to students, families, and the community. Gives local grant priority to entities that: (1) will serve at least one school eligible for schoolwide programs under specified provisions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, and more than one full-service community school as part of a community or districtwide strategy; and (2) demonstrate a record of effectiveness in integrating at least three of various qualified services. Establishes a Full-Service Community Schools Advisory Committee.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2004
Healthy Families Act - Requires certain employers with at least 15 or more employees to provide a minimum paid sick leave of: (1) seven days annually for those who work at least 30 hours per week; and (2) a prorated annual amount for those who work less than 30 but at least 20 hours a week, or less than 1,500 but at least 1,000 hours per year. Allows employees to use such leave to meet their own medical needs or to care for the medical needs of certain family members. Directs the Secretary of Labor to exercise certain investigative and enforcement authority with respect to this Act's provisions regarding employees covered by title I of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 or the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991. Provides that, for employees under their jurisdiction, such authority shall be exercised by the Librarian of Congress, the Comptroller General, the Board of Directors of the congressional Office of Compliance, or the Merit Systems Protection Board. Declares that the requirements under this Act are minimum requirements, and are not to be construed to discourage employers from adopting or retaining more generous leave policies.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2004
Recognizes the 40th anniversary of the day civil rights organizers Andrew Goodman, James Chaney, and Michael Schwerner gave their lives. Encourages all Americans to observe the anniversary of the deaths of the three men by committing themselves to the fundamental principles of freedom, equality, and democracy.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2004
Honors the life and legacy of George Eastman (an inventor in the field of photography). Recognizes his contributions on the anniversary of his birth (July 12, 1854).
United States · United States Congress · 2 June 2004
Amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to prohibit States from denying voter registration to or voting by certain veterans convicted of felonies who have completed their sentences.
United States · United States Congress · 2 June 2004
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, to repeal the reduction in Medicare payment for certain items of durable medical equipment.
United States · United States Congress · 1 June 2004
Rail Transit Security and Safety Act of 2004 - Directs the Under Secretary for Border and Transportation Security (Under Secretary) of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to complete a vulnerability assessment of freight and passenger rail transportation for identification of: (1) critical assets and infrastructures and threats to them; (2) vulnerabilities specific to the transportation of hazardous materials via railroad; and (3) security weaknesses in passenger and cargo security, transportation infrastructure, protection systems, procedural policies, communications systems, employee training, emergency response planning, and any other area identified by the assessment. Requires the Under Secretary, based on the assessment, to develop specific prioritized recommendations for improving rail security. Directs the Under Secretary to establish the position of Federal Rail Security Manager within each of at least eight regional areas to: (1) serve as regional coordinator of the Under Secretary's response to terrorist incidents and threats to rail assets; and (2) coordinate efforts related to rail security with State and local law enforcement. Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to specified congressional committees on the rail passenger transportation security programs in Japan, member nations of the European Union (EU), and other foreign countries in order to identify effective rail transportation security measures. Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to make grants to Amtrak for certain fire and life-safety improvements and infrastructure upgrades to tunnels on the Northeast Corridor. Directs the DHS Secretary to award grants directly to public transportation agencies for allowable capital and operational security improvements. Establishes a research and development (R&D) program to improve freight and intercity passenger rail security. Directs the Under Secretary to award grants to public or private entities to conduct research into, and demonstration of, technologies to reduce and deter terrorists threats or mitigate damages resulting from terrorist attacks against public transportation systems. Sets forth certain whistleblower protections for rail employees or other persons who have provided information or otherwise assisted in any investigation regarding certain conduct, or who have refused to violate or assist in the violation of any regulation related to public transportation security.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Customs Border Security Act of 2004 - Amends the Customs Procedural Reform and Simplification Act of 1978 to authorize appropriations to the Department of Homeland Security for the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (BCBP) and the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Authorizes appropriations for salaries and expenses of such Bureaus. (Currently distinguishes authorizations for noncommercial from those for commercial activities of the U.S. Customs Service). Amends the Customs and Border Security Act of 2002 to require establishment and implementation of a cost accounting system for the Bureaus (in lieu of the one currently required for the Customs Service). Directs the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress on the extent to which customs user fees imposed under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 approximate the costs of BCBP services. Declares that certain entries of merchandise shall not be liquidated if covered by an import activity summary statement; but subjects each reconfigured entry in such a statement to liquidation or reliquidation. Extends the designation of San Antonio International Airport for customs processing of certain private aircraft arriving in the United States. Directs the Commissioner of the Customs Service to seek to establish Integrated Border Inspection Areas at the United States-Canada border. Provides for the stationing of foreign customs and agriculture inspection officers in the United States, with all the privileges and immunities of U.S. Customs Service officers. Amends the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 to provide that if a charter air carrier specifically requests that customs services for passengers and their baggage be provided for a charter flight arriving after normal operating hours at a customs border patrol serviced airport, and overtime funds for those services are not available, the appropriate customs border patrol officer may assign sufficient customs employees (if available) to perform any such services. Requires the charter air carrier to pay any overtime fees incurred in connection with such service. Expresses the sense of Congress on interpretation of textile and apparel provisions of specified law. Authorizes appropriations for the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. International Trade Commission.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Montgomery GI Bill Second Chance Act of 2004 - Authorizes certain members of the Armed Forces to make an irrevocable election during October of any year beginning in 2004 to become entitled to basic educational assistance under the Montgomery GI Bill. Requires a reduction in basic pay of those members electing such educational assistance or, if the member is discharged or released from active duty prior to such reduction, the collection of specified amounts from the member or an equivalent reduction in retired or retainer pay. States that members who are enrolled in the post-Vietnam era veterans' educational assistance program shall be disenrolled from that program upon electing the educational assistance described in this Act. Requires the Secretary concerned, in conjunction with the Secretary of Defense, to provide notice of the opportunity created by this Act to elect educational assistance under the Montgomery GI Bill.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Medicare Trust Fund Reimbursement Act of 2004 - Provides that if the Comptroller General of the United States determines that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services have violated the restriction on using appropriated funds for publicity or propaganda purposes contained in the Consolidated Appropriations Resolution, 2003 or any other provision of law, the principal campaign committee of the President shall reimburse the Federal Government for the amount used in committing such violation as appropriate. Requires the amount reimbursed to be credited to the appropriate Medicare trust fund to the extent that it was initially appropriated to such trust fund.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Depleted Uranium Screening and Testing Act of 2004 - Directs the Secretary of Defense to: (1) establish procedures for the predeployment notification to members of the Armed Forces of any known or likely use of depleted uranium in the theater of operation and any health risks associated with exposure to depleted uranium; (2) provide predeployment training on how to handle depleted uranium before deploying individuals to a theater in which it will be used; (3) carry out a program to identify individuals exposed to depleted uranium during active service in the Armed Forces; (4) provide such individuals with bioassay testing and notification of test results; and (5) identify specified depleted uranium exposure events. Requires the Secretary of each military department to establish procedures for collecting, tracking, and maintaining information on the health status of individuals tested under this Act to assess long-term health consequences of exposure to depleted uranium. Requires the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to conduct an independent review of bioassay types and contamination thresholds for purposes of required testing. Requires the Secretary of the military department concerned to provide appropriate treatment for any illness of an individual resulting from depleted uranium contamination or exposure. Directs the Comptroller General to conduct a survey of radioisotope identification equipment used by the Department of Defense (DOD) to assess the capability of DOD facilities to identify concentrations of different radioisotopes in naturally occurring levels of uranium and to report survey findings to Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the addition of India as a country for which the Coordinator of United States Government Activities to Combat HIV/AIDS Globally has responsibilities should not decrease funding to any other country; (2) the United States should continue to increase the number of countries eligible to receive U.S. assistance to combat HIV and AIDS; and (3) the United States should increase assistance to combat HIV and AIDS. Amends the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to include India among those countries for which the Coordinator of United States Government Activities to Combat HIV/AIDS Globally has program responsibilities.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 73 South Euclid Avenue in Montauk, New York, as the "Perry B. Duryea, Jr. Post Office."
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Medicare Prescription Drug Low-Income Assistance Act of 2004 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to provide for the automatic enrollment of beneficiaries under SSA title XIX (Medicaid) in the interim prescription drug discount program and the transitional assistance program, making them eligible for the $600 per year in low-income discount card assistance without requiring a separate enrollment process. Provides for automatic enrollment for MSP beneficiaries under the permanent Medicare part D prescription drug coverage program.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Authorizes the Government of Ukraine to establish a memorial on Federal land in the District of Columbia to honor the victims of the Ukrainian famine-genocide of 1932-1933. Prohibits the U.S. Government from paying any expense for the establishment of the memorial or its maintenance.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Waives certain time limitations with respect to the posthumous award of the Medal of Honor to Doris Miller for acts of heroism during World War II as a member of the United States Navy.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
States that the House of Representatives recognizes the 38th anniversary of the independence of Guyana and extends best wishes to Guyana for peace and further progress, development, and prosperity.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Commends the millions of persons who were inducted into the U.S. Armed Forces during World War II and served with great courage and valor to advance the frontiers of freedom.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
States that Congress: (1) applauds the Republic of South Africa for the remarkable transition to a democratic government and the tremendous progress achieved during ten years of majority rule; (2) looks forward to a continued partnership with South Africa focused on a sustained commitment to the health of South Africans; and (3) anticipates continued social development and economic growth in South Africa.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 2004
9/11 Can You Hear Me Now Act - Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to procure development and provision of a communications system for the New York City Fire Department, including appropriate radios and upgrades to the Department's critical information dispatch system that allow communication in all locations and under all conditions in which firefighters can reasonably be expected to work. Directs that any communications system procured include provision to each firefighter of a supplemental radio communication device that: (1) allows the firefighter to transmit emergency notification warning signals to other firefighters; and (2) has the capability to operate automatically by transmitting messages that will relay an incapacitated firefighter's identification and location. Requires that upgrades procured: (1) provide useful, detailed data concerning all likely terrorist target locations in the city; and (2) be capable of providing to responding firefighters, instantaneously, details about particular buildings and other locations to assist in making decisions about how to mitigate a terrorist attack. Requires that: (1) radios, any dispatch system upgrades, and supplemental communication devices procured be tested; and (2) the Secretary coordinate with the city to ensure that the communications system procured is compatible with city plans to upgrade its 911 system and interoperable with other public safety communications systems.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2004
Urges the Citizen's Stamp Advisory Committee to recommend to the Postmaster General that a commemorative postage stamp be issued by the United States Postal Service honoring Charles Hamilton Houston, the first African American to earn a Doctor of Juridical Science degree from Harvard University and to serve as editor of the Harvard Law Review.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2004
Resuming Education After Defense Service Act of 2004 - Makes eligible for basic educational assistance under the Montgomery GI Bill a member of the Selected Reserve who (among other qualifications), during the period beginning on September 11, 2001, and ending on December 31, 2006, serves on active duty in the Armed Forces for one or more periods aggregating not less than two years. Entitles such individuals to one month of educational assistance for each month served on active duty. Makes the amount of such assistance equivalent to that provided for active-duty personnel who have served a minimum of two years of active duty. Requires the Secretaries of the military departments concerned to inform eligible Selected Reserve personnel of such entitlement.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2004
Medicare Early Access Act of 2004 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, to add a new part E (Purchase of Medicare Benefits by Certain Individuals 55 to 65 Years of Age). Provides access to Medicare benefits for individuals 55 to 64 years of age who do not have coverage under a Federal health insurance program or under a group plan. Requires enrollees to pay a premium to receive Medicare coverage. Requires the Secretary to base the premium on the Secretary's estimate of the average, national annual per capita amount of the cost of providing services to the population. Allows early retirees with access to retiree coverage to enroll under this part while keeping their Federal or State COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985) continuation coverage. Allows an employer that offers employment-based retiree health coverage to an individual who enrolls under this part to modify such coverage to provide for: (1) employer payment of items and services for which payment may not be made under Medicare; and (2) employer payment of 25 percent of the monthly premium applicable to the individual after enrollment. Creates in the Treasury the Medicare Early Access Trust Fund to hold the premiums collected under this Act and to support the new program. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow program enrollees to receive a 75 percent advance, refundable credit to offset premium costs (thus requiring program enrollees in the Medicare buy-in to be responsible for 25 percent of the monthly premiums).
![Official portrait of Rep. Rangel, Charles B. [D-NY-15]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/r000053_200.jpg)