United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2017
Recognizing Achievement in Classified School Employees Act This bill directs the Department of Education (ED) to grant "Recognizing Inspiring School Employees" awards to classified public school employees, within certain occupational specialties, who provide exemplary service to students in prekindergarten through higher education. ED must annually select an awardee, out of nominations received from states, from any of the following occupational specialties: (1) paraeducator services, (2) clerical and administrative services, (3) transportation services, (4) food and nutrition services, (5) custodial and maintenance services, (6) security services, (7) health and student services, (8) technical services, and (9) skilled trades.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2017
Supports: (1) the goals and values of the 49th anniversary of the enactment of the Fair Housing Act and the 29th anniversary of the enactment of the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988, and (2) activities to celebrate the historical milestones represented by such anniversaries.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2017
Creating and Restoring Equal Access To Equivalent Samples Act of 2017 or the CREATES Act of 2017 This bill permits the developer of a drug or biological product to bring a civil action against the license holder of an approved drug or biological product if the holder has declined to make available sufficient quantities of the approved drug or product for the developer's testing.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2017
Veterans Crisis Line Improvement Act This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to ensure that the first message a person hears upon calling the main telephone number of any VA medical facility allows the caller to choose to be quickly redirected to the Veterans Crisis Line without ending the call.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2017
Veterans Treatment Court Improvement Act of 2017 This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to hire at least 50 Veterans Justice Outreach Specialists, place each one at an eligible VA medical center, and ensure that each one serves as part of a justice team in a veterans treatment court or other veteran-focused court. An eligible VA medical center is one that: complies with all VA guidelines and regulations for placement of a specialist; works with a veteran with active, ongoing, or recent contact with some component of a local criminal justice system; maintains an affiliation with one or more veterans treatment courts or other veteran-focused courts; and either routinely provides specialists, or establishes a VA-approved plan to provide specialists, to serve as part of a justice team in such a court. The VA shall prioritize the placement of specialists at eligible VA medical centers that have an affiliation with such a court that: (1) was established after the date of this bill's enactment, or (2) was established before such date and is not fully staffed with specialists.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2017
Atlantic Seismic Airgun Protection Act This bill amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to prohibit conducting geological or geophysical activities in support of oil, gas, or methane hydrate exploration and development on the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf. The geological and geophysical activities are described in a final programmatic environmental impact statement by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management entitled "Atlantic OCS Proposed Geological and Geophysical Activities, Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic Planning Areas."
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2017
Urges: (1) the President to issue a proclamation recognizing Earth Day, consistent with the practice of the previous administration; and (2) governments and people around the world to continue building upon the Paris Agreement and other efforts to ensure that future generations inherit a livable, sustainable, and ecologically rich planet. Encourages the American people to mark Earth Day by working to address environmental challenges, educate others about the need for year-round action, and honor the stewardship ethic for which Senator Gaylord Nelson stood.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2017
Flags of Convenience Don't Fly Here Act This bill bars the Department of Transportation (DOT) from issuing a foreign air carrier permit or an exemption from certain air carrier certificate requirements to a person to provide foreign air transportation under the United States-European Union Air Transport Agreement of April, 2007, in a proceeding in which the applicability of Article 17 bis of such Agreement has been raised by an interested person, unless DOT: finds that issuing the permit or exemption would be consistent with the intent set forth in Article 17 bis of the agreement, that opportunities created by the agreement do not undermine labor standards or the labor-related rights and principles contained in the laws of the respective parties to the agreement; and imposes conditions on the permit or exemption necessary to ensure that the person complies with the intent of Article 17 bis . In carrying out such air carrier certificate requirements, DOT shall consider preventing entry of flag of convenience carriers into U.S. markets as being in the public interest and consistent with public convenience and necessity for safety in air transportation and air commerce. In formulating U.S. international air transportation policy, the Department of State and DOT shall develop a negotiating policy emphasizing the greatest degree of competition for a well-functioning air transportation system that eliminates specified discriminatory and unfair competitive practices faced by U.S. airlines in foreign air transportation, to include erosion of labor standards associated with flag of convenience carriers. A "flag of convenience carrier" is defined as a foreign air carrier that is established in a country other than the home country of its majority owner or owners in order to avoid the home country's regulations.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2017
Tyler Clementi Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act of 2017 This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require each institution of higher education (IHE) to include in its annual security report a statement of policy regarding harassment that includes: (1) a prohibition of harassment of students by other students, faculty, and staff; (2) a description of its programs to prevent harassment; (3) a description of the procedures that students should follow if harassment occurs; and (4) a description of the procedures it will follow once an incident of harassment has been reported. In addition, the report must include a description of each occasion in which a pattern of harassment occurs and the actions taken by the IHE. Harassment includes certain conduct undertaken through technological means that limits a student's ability to benefit from the IHE's programs, or creates a hostile or abusive educational environment at the school. The Department of Education (ED) may award grants to IHEs to initiate, expand, or improve programs to: prevent the harassment of students; provide counseling or redress services to students who have been harassed or accused of subjecting other students to harassment; and train students, faculty, or staff to prevent harassment or address harassment if it occurs. ED must publish a report of best practices for combating harassment at IHEs.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2017
Condemns the government of Iran's state-sponsored persecution of its Baha'i minority and its continued violation of the International Covenants on Human Rights. Urges the President and the Department of State to: (1) condemn the Iranian government's continued violation of human rights and demand the immediate release of prisoners held solely on account of their religion, and (2) impose sanctions on Iranian officials and other individuals directly responsible for serious human rights abuses.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2017
Veterans E-Health and Telemedicine Support Act of 2017 or the VETS Act of 2017 This bill allows a licensed health care professional of the Department of Veterans Affairs to practice his or her profession using telemedicine at any location in any state, regardless of where the professional or patient is located.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2017
Therapeutic Fraud Prevention Act of 2017 This bill prohibits sexual orientation or gender identity conversion therapy from being provided in exchange for monetary compensation. It bars advertisements for such therapy that claim to: (1) change an individual's sexual orientation or gender identity, (2) eliminate or reduce sexual or romantic attractions or feelings toward individuals of the same gender, or (3) be harmless or without risk. Individuals or entities shall not assist or facilitate a conversion therapy if they receive monetary compensation from any source in connection with providing such therapies. These prohibitions are inapplicable to practices or treatments that do not seek to change sexual orientation or gender identity if they provide: (1) assistance to an individual undergoing a gender transition; or (2) acceptance, support, and understanding of clients or facilitation of clients' coping, social support, and identity exploration and development, including sexual orientation-neutral interventions to prevent or address unlawful conduct or unsafe sexual practices. The Federal Trade Commission and states are provided authority to enforce against violations.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2017
Fair Pay Act of 2017 This bill amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to prohibit discrimination in the payment of wages on account of sex, race, or national origin. (Payment of different wages is allowed under seniority systems, merit systems, systems that measure earnings by quantity or quality of production, or differentials based on bona fide factors that the employer demonstrates are job-related or further legitimate business interests.) The bill allows compensatory or punitive damages for violations of such prohibition. The bill prohibits an employer from discriminating against any individual who opposes any act or practice made illegal by this bill or for assisting in an investigation, or discharging or discriminating against any employee who inquires about or discusses another employee's wages. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission shall: (1) undertake studies and provide information and technical assistance to employers, labor organizations, and the general public for implementing this bill's wage discrimination prohibitions; and (2) carry on a continuing program of research, education, and technical assistance to correct wage disparities.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2017
Protecting the Rights of IndiViduals Against Technological Exploitation Act or the PRIVATE Act This bill amends the Uniform Code of Military Justice to prohibit a person from knowingly and wrongfully broadcasting or distributing an intimate visual image of a private area of another individual who is at least 18 years old, who is identifiable from the image or from information displayed in connection with the image, and who does not explicitly consent, if the person knows or reasonably should have known that: the image was made under circumstances in which the individual depicted retained a reasonable expectation of privacy regarding any broadcast or distribution of such image; and the broadcast or distribution of the intimate visual image is likely to cause harm, harassment, intimidation, emotional distress, or financial loss for the individual depicted or to harm substantially the depicted individual's health, safety, business, calling, career, financial condition, reputation, or personal relationships. The perpetrator of such offense is guilty of wrongful distribution of intimate visual images and shall by punished as a court-martial may direct.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2017
Fair Day in Court for Kids Act of 2017 This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) authorize the Department of Justice (DOJ) to appoint or provide counsel at government expense to aliens in removal proceedings. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shall provide an alien in removal proceedings with all relevant documents in its possession, unless the alien has knowingly waived the right to such documents. In the absence of a waiver, a removal proceeding may not proceed until the alien has received and had time to review the documents. DOJ may appoint or provide counsel to aliens in any INA proceeding. DHS shall ensure that aliens have access to counsel inside all immigration detention and border facilities. DOJ shall appoint counsel, at government expense if necessary, for an unaccompanied alien child or a particularly vulnerable individual. If DOJ has consolidated any such alien's case with that of any other alien and that other alien does not have counsel, the appointed counsel shall be appointed to represent the other alien as well. DHS shall: (1) facilitate access to counsel for all aliens detained in facilities under the supervision of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP); and (2) establish procedures to ensure that legal orientation programs are available for all detained aliens, including aliens held in CBP facilities. DOJ shall develop and administer a two-year pilot program at not fewer than two immigration courts to grant access to legal information to non-detained aliens with pending asylum claims. DHS shall establish a pilot program to increase the court appearance rates of unaccompanied alien children and particularly vulnerable individuals by contracting with nongovernmental, community-based organizations to provide such aliens with case management services. The pilot program shall not be used to monitor individuals designated as unaccompanied alien children under the Homeland Security Act. If DOJ fails to appoint counsel for an unaccompanied alien child or vulnerable person: (1) no limitation pertaining to the filing of any motion to reopen the removal proceeding shall apply, and (2) the filing of such a motion shall stay the removal of the alien.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2017
Medicare You Can Opt Into Act of 2017 This bill allows an individual to buy into Medicare for hospital insurance if the individual is residing in the United States and is a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, or permanent resident. The Department of Health and Human Services must establish enrollment periods and coverage for individuals who buy the insurance.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2017
America's Red Rock Wilderness Act This bill designates specified lands in the following areas of Utah as components of the National Wilderness Preservation System: (1) Great Basin, (2) Grand Staircase-Escalante, (3) Moab-La Sal Canyons, (4) Henry Mountains, (5) Glen Canyon, (6) San Juan-Anasazi, (7) Canyonlands Basin, (8) San Rafael Swell, and (9) Book Cliffs and Uinta Basin. The bill sets forth administrative requirements for: (1) the exchange of state-owned lands within such areas, (2) federal reservation of water rights, (3) measurement of setbacks for roads with wilderness, (4) authorized livestock grazing, and (5) withdrawal of such lands from disposition under certain public land laws.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2017
Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Education Relief and Restoration Act of 2017 This bill declares that, if a veteran is forced to discontinue a course as a result of a a permanent school closure and did not receive credit or lost training time toward completion of the education program, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) educational assistance payments shall not, for a specified period of time, be: charged against the individual's entitlement to educational assistance, or counted against the aggregate period for which such assistance may be provided. The bill applies to courses and programs of education discontinued beginning with FY2015. The VA may continue to pay educational assistance and subsistence allowances to eligible veterans and eligible persons enrolled in specified courses for up to 4 weeks in any 12-month period when schools are temporarily closed under an established policy based on an executive order of the President or due to an emergency situation. The VA may also continue to pay a monthly housing stipend following a permanent school closure, but only until the earlier of: (1) the date of the end of the term, quarter, or semester during which the school closure occurred; and (2) the date that is four months after the school closure.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2017
Condemns: (1) any threat to the sovereignty, territorial integrity, freedom, and democracy of the Baltic States; and (2) the ongoing violation of the Helsinki principles by the Russian Federation with respect to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. Supports: (1) keeping in effect U.S. sanctions imposed against Russia relating to Crimea until Ukraine's sovereignty over Crimea has been restored and sanctions relating to the Donbas until the Minsk agreements are fully implemented; (2) keeping the door to North Atlantic Treaty Organization membership open to those countries that are eligible to join the alliance and that meet all the necessary requirements for membership; and (3) the democratic aspirations of the people of all countries concerned, including Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova. Declares that the House of Representatives: (1) considers it to be essential for the United States to maintain and increase political, economic, and security support for the countries of Central and Eastern Europe; and (2) appreciates the spirit of friendship of such countries, their commitment to collective security, and their contributions to peace operations around the globe. Calls for continued support to the United States European Reassurance Initiative.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2017
Ukraine Cybersecurity Cooperation Act of 2017 This bill expresses the sense of Congress that the Department of State should take the following actions, commensurate with U.S. interests, to help Ukraine improve its cybersecurity: (1) provide Ukraine necessary support to increase most advanced security protection on government computers, particularly systems that defend Ukraine's critical infrastructure; (2) provide Ukraine support to reduce reliance on Russian technology; and (3) help Ukraine to build capacity, expand cyber security information sharing, and cooperate in international response efforts. The State Department shall: (1) report to Congress on the status of U.S.-Ukraine cybersecurity cooperation, and (2) pursue regional cooperation to address shared cyber challenges.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2017
Oversight Commission on Presidential Capacity Act This bill establishes in the legislative branch an Oversight Commission on Presidential Capacity to determine whether the President is mentally or physically unable to discharge the powers and duties of office. The commission: (1) within 72 hours after Congress adopts a concurrent resolution directing it to do so, shall conduct a medical examination to determine if the President is temporarily or permanently impaired by physical illness or disability, mental illness, mental deficiency, or alcohol or drug use to the extent that he or she lacks sufficient understanding or capacity to execute the powers and duties of the office of President; and (2) within 72 hours after completing the examination, shall report its findings and conclusions to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate. Any refusal by the President to undergo such examination shall be taken into consideration by the commission in reaching a conclusion.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2017
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week. Recognizes the importance and contributions of the nation's public safety communications professionals.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2017
Equitable Student Aid Access Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to revise requirements governing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The bill increases the adjusted gross income threshold used to determine whether a student qualifies for an automatic zero expected family contribution (EFC) in the calculation of the student's financial need. A dependent student is eligible for an automatic zero EFC if the student's parents have adjusted gross income up to $30,000. An independent student with non-spouse dependents is eligible for a zero EFC if the student and spouse have adjusted gross income up to $30,000. The bill requires the Department of Education (ED) to allow students to use tax information from the year before the previous one in determining their financial aid eligibility. The Internal Revenue Service and ED must share available data pursuant to taxpayer consent. The bill requires the FAFSA application to be available to students by October 1, which is three months earlier than is currently required.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Supreme Court Ethics Act of 2017 The bill requires the Supreme Court to promulgate a code of ethics for the Justices of the Supreme Court that shall include the five canons of the Code of Conduct for United States Judges adopted by the Judicial Conference of the United States, with any amendments or modifications that the Supreme Court determines appropriate.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Campus Accountability and Safety Act This bill addresses sexual harassment, sexual assault, and other violence and harassment on the campuses of colleges and universities. The bill amends provisions of the Higher Education Act of 1965 known as the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act to expand reporting requirements included in the annual campus security report provided to current and prospective students and employees. Specifically, the report must include information about: (1) the institutions coordination with local law enforcement about domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking occurring against its students or against other individuals on its campus; (2) statistics about certain criminal offenses reported to campus security authorities or local police, including rape, fondling, incest, and statutory rape; and (3) information about how the institution is addressing domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. The Department of Education (ED) must administer and publish the campus-level results of a biannual survey of students regarding their experiences with domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Each institution must establish a campus security policy that meets certain requirements with respect to: (1) assisting survivors; (2) training individuals who are involved in implementing the student grievance procedures or who are responsible for interviewing survivors; and (3) establishing a uniform process for student disciplinary proceedings relating to any claims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking or a sexual misconduct policy violation against a student. ED and the Department of Justice may impose civil penalties for failure to meet certain requirements under this bill. The bill also authorizes grants to address these issues.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Rural Hospital Access Act of 2017 This bill permanently extends the Medicare-Dependent Hospital program (which provides increased payments to certain smaller, rural hospitals that serve a proportionally high number of Medicare patients) and the program for increased payments under Medicare for low-volume hospitals.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Treat and Reduce Obesity Act of 2017 This bill allows coverage, under Medicare, of intensive behavioral therapy for obesity furnished by providers other than primary care physicians and practitioners. Additionally, it allows coverage under Medicare's prescription drug benefit of drugs used for the treatment of obesity or for weight loss management for individuals who are overweight.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Social Security 2100 Act This bill increases various Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) benefits and related taxes. The bill increases the primary insurance amount (e.g., the amount a Social Security beneficiary receives if the beneficiary begins receiving benefits at normal retirement age) by increasing the percentage of the beneficiary's average indexed monthly earnings used to calculate the amount. The Bureau of Labor Statistics shall publish a Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers, which the Social Security Administration (SSA) shall use to calculate cost-of-living adjustments to benefits. Currently, the SSA uses a price index for wage earners to make such adjustments. The bill increases the minimum benefit amount for individuals who worked for more than 10 years by creating an alternative minimum benefit. A qualifying beneficiary shall receive that alternative minimum if it is higher than the standard calculated benefit amount. The bill increases the income threshold that a beneficiary must reach before Social Security benefits are taxable. Increased benefits from this bill shall not count as income when determining an individual's eligibility or benefit amounts for (1) Medicaid, (2) the Children's Health Insurance Program, or (3) the Supplemental Security Income program. Income above $400,000 shall be included when calculating Social Security benefits and taxes. The bill also increases rates for the payroll and self-employment taxes that fund OASDI. The bill establishes the Social Security Trust Fund, which replaces the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Safe Schools Improvement Act of 2017 This bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require states to direct their local educational agencies (LEAs) to establish policies that prevent and prohibit conduct, including bullying and harassment, that is sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive to: (1) limit students' ability to participate in, or benefit from, school programs; or (2) create a hostile or abusive educational environment that adversely affects students' education. LEAs shall also provide: (1) students, parents, and educational professionals with annual notice of the conduct prohibited in their disciplinary policies; (2) students and parents with grievance procedures that target such conduct; and (3) the public with annual data on the incidence and frequency of that conduct at the school and LEA level. The Department of Education must conduct, and report on, an independent biennial evaluation of programs and policies to combat bullying and harassment in elementary and secondary schools. The National Center for Education Statistics shall collect state data to determine the incidence and frequency of the conduct prohibited by LEA disciplinary policies.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act This bill authorizes the Department of the Treasury to impose restrictions on foreign jurisdictions or financial institutions to counter money laundering and efforts to significantly impede U.S. tax enforcement. The bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to: expand reporting requirements for certain foreign investments and accounts held by U.S. persons, establish a rebuttable presumption against the validity of transactions by institutions that do not comply with reporting requirements under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, treat certain foreign corporations managed and controlled primarily in the United States as domestic corporations for tax purposes, treat swap payments sent offshore as taxable U.S. source income, impose additional requirements for third party summonses used to obtain information in tax investigations that do not identify the person with respect to whose liability the summons is issued (i.e., John Doe summons), and modify the rules for the taxation of inverted corporations (U.S. corporations that acquire foreign companies to reincorporate in a foreign jurisdiction with income tax rates lower than the United States). The bill amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to: (1) require corporations to disclose certain financial information on a country-by-country basis, and (2) impose penalties for failing to disclose offshore holdings. The bill makes investment advisers and persons engaged in forming new business entities subject to anti-money laundering requirements. The bill imposes new restrictions on U.S. corporations and other entities with foreign income with respect to: (1) tax deductions allocable to deferred foreign income, (2) the recalculation of foreign income taxes, (3) intangible property transferred overseas, (4) tax evasion activities by U.S. corporations reincorporating in a foreign country, and (5) the interest expense tax deduction of certain subsidiaries of foreign corporations.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Corporate EXpatriates and Inverters Tax Fairness Act or the Corporate EXIT Fairness Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to set forth rules governing corporate inversions (i.e., the practice of relocating a domestic corporation's legal domicile to a lower-tax nation while retaining its business activities in the higher-tax country of origin) and corporate expatriations. Specifically, the bill requires payment of tax on the deferred overseas profits of U.S. multinational corporations or partnerships before they reincorporate or organize in a foreign country. Additionally, any stock of a controlled foreign corporation in connection with a corporate expatriation would be treated as sold for its fair market value as of the date of expatriation and be subject to U.S. taxation. The bill expands the definitions of "corporate inversion" and "corporate expatriation" and revises rules relating to the taxation of inverted corporations. A foreign corporation that acquires the assets of a U.S. corporation or partnership after January 4, 2017, shall be treated as an inverted corporation and thus subject to U.S. taxation if, after such acquisition: (1) the expanded affiliated group which includes the foreign corporation does not have substantial business activities in the foreign country in which the corporation is created or organized, when compared to the total business activities of such expanded affiliated group; and (2) more than 50% of the foreign corporation is held by former shareholders or partners of the domestic corporation or partnership, or the management or control of the expanded affiliated group occurs primarily within the United States, and such expanded affiliated group has significant domestic business activities.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Families of Fallen Servicemembers First Act This bill provides a permanent appropriation for the payment of death gratuities and related benefits to survivors of deceased members of the uniformed services during a period of lapsed appropriations. The bill provides the appropriations at the rate and under the conditions provided for the most recent fiscal year for which an Act making appropriations for the uniformed services has been enacted. The appropriations are provided during a period of lapsed appropriations, in which appropriations are unavailable due to the absence of the timely enactment of an Act or joint resolution providing appropriations or continuing appropriations for the death gratuity and related benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Community-Based Gang Intervention Act This bill amends the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 to authorize grants to nonprofit community-based organizations for community-based gang intervention. It adds a definition for the term "community-based gang intervention." Additionally, the bill modifies the qualifications of State Advisory Group members to include representatives of community-based gang intervention agencies and to specify that a representative of a nonprofit organization includes a person with a special focus on community-based gang intervention. Finally, the bill adds, as a purpose area under the Incentive Grants for Local Delinquency Prevention Programs, providing community-based gang intervention and gang prevention activities to juveniles and their families.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Robert C. Byrd Mine Safety Protection Act of 2017 This bill amends the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 to revise requirements governing: (1) investigations of mine accidents; (2) miners' rights and protections (e.g., whistle-blower rights and protections); (3) mine health and safety standards; (4) underground coal mines; and (5) health and safety training for miners. The Department of Labor, when investigating coal or other mines, must: (1) determine why an accident occurred and whether there were violations of law, mandatory health and safety standards, or other requirements; (2) refer to the Department of Justice cases involving violations of federal criminal law; and (3) make recommendations to avoid a recurrence of an accident. The bill requires independent investigation of a mine accident under certain circumstances. The bill expands Labor's enforcement authority, including by requiring Labor to: (1) revoke the approval of mine operators' plans or programs based on certain criteria, and (2) order mine operators to withdraw all persons from a mine until Labor approves a new plan. The bill revises civil and criminal penalties, including by subjecting a mine operator who knowingly violates health or safety standards to a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $1 million fine. The bill also expands whistle-blower rights and protections, including by: (1) giving miners' rights and protections to all employees of a mine, and (2) prohibiting discrimination against those employees for refusing to perform duties if they have a good-faith and reasonable belief that their duties pose a safety or health hazard. Underground coal mines operators must: (1) implement a communication program to brief miners of current mine conditions, and (2) install atmospheric monitoring systems.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Expresses the sense of Congress that: President Trump, his family, his business associates, his campaign associates, and members of his Administration should cooperate fully with all investigations examining the Russian Federation's attack during the 2016 U.S. elections, ties between President Trump's campaign officials and the Russian Federation, and possible coordination between these officials and the Russian Federation as part of its attack; until the conclusion of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's criminal and counterintelligence investigation, the Trump Administration is acting under the appearance of a conflict of interest and should refrain from taking any actions or making any changes to U.S. policy that could be seen as benefitting President Putin or his inner circle; and the appearance of any conflict of interest concerning a foreign adversary and U.S. government institutions primarily responsible for national defense and the conduct of foreign policy weakens U.S. national security and erodes confidence between the United States and its allies.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2017
This bill specifies that certain Medicare payment rules applicable to imaging services shall apply to dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry services used in bone mass scans beginning in 2017. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must establish national minimum payment amounts for such services.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2017
Protecting Data at the Border Act This bill prohibits a governmental entity from: (1) accessing the digital contents of electronic equipment belonging to, or in the possession of, a U.S. person (person) at the border without a valid warrant; or (2) denying a person's U.S. entry or exit based on the person's refusal to disclose an access credential or in order to determine whether such person will consensually provide an access credential, access, or online account information. A border officer may access the digital contents of electronic equipment without a warrant if the officer determines that an emergency situation exists. The officer must subsequently apply for a warrant within seven days, and if such warrant is not granted: (1) digital content copies must be destroyed, (2) digital contents or information may not be disclosed, and (3) the person shall be notified of such destruction. A governmental entity may not make or retain a copy of the digital contents of electronic equipment, an online account, or online account information without probable cause to believe that such information contains evidence of, or constitutes the fruits of, a crime. Unlawfully accessed information: (1) must be destroyed and the person notified of its destruction; (2) may not be disclosed; and (3) may not be received in evidence in any trial, hearing, or other proceeding. A governmental entity shall keep a record of each instance in which it obtains access to an individual's digital information. A governmental entity may not seize electronic equipment belonging to, or in the possession of, a person at the border without probable cause to believe that such equipment contains information relevant to a felony.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2017
Udall-Eisenhower Arctic Wilderness Act This bill designates approximately 1,559,538 acres of land within Alaska in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) as a component of the National Wilderness Preservation System.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2017
Homeless Veterans Assistance Fund Act of 201 7 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) establish in the Treasury the Homeless Veterans Assistance Fund to provide services to homeless veterans; (2) allow individual taxpayers to designate on their tax returns a portion of any overpayment of tax or an additional contribution for the fund; and (3) require the Departments of Veterans Affairs, Labor, and Housing and Urban Development, to include in the President's budget, beginning with FY2019, a description of the uses of the fund during the previous fiscal year and the proposed uses for the next fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2017
Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 2017 This bill provides that: (1) heart disease, lung disease, and specified cancers of federal employees employed in fire protection activities for a minimum of 5 years shall be presumed to be proximately caused by such employment if an employee is diagnosed with any such disease within 10 years of the last active date of employment in fire protection activities; (2) the disability or death of such an employee due to any such disease shall be presumed to result from personal injury sustained while in the performance of duty; and (3) such presumptions may be rebutted by a preponderance of the evidence. These presumptions shall also apply to fire protection employees who contract any uncommon infectious disease, including but not limited to tuberculosis, hepatitis A, B, or C, or the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), regardless of length of employment. The bill defines an "employee in fire protection activities" as a firefighter, paramedic, emergency medical technician, rescue worker, ambulance personnel, or hazardous material worker, who: (1) is trained in fire suppression; (2) has the legal authority and responsibility to engage in fire suppression; (3) is engaged in the prevention, control, and extinguishment of fires or response to emergency situations where life, property, or the environment is at risk; and (4) performs such activities as a primary responsibility. The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention must examine the implementation of this bill and appropriate scientific and medical data related to the health risks associated with firefighting.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2017
Paycheck Fairness Act This bill amends equal pay provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to: (1) restrict the use of the bona fide factor defense to wage discrimination claims, (2) enhance nonretaliation prohibitions, (3) make it unlawful to require an employee to sign a contract or waiver prohibiting the employee from disclosing information about the employee's wages, and (4) increase civil penalties for violations of equal pay provisions. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs shall train EEOC employees and other affected parties on wage discrimination. The bill directs the Department of Labor to: (1) establish and carry out a grant program for negotiation skills training for girls and women, (2) conduct studies to eliminate pay disparities between men and women, and (3) make available information on wage discrimination to assist the public in understanding and addressing such discrimination. The Secretary of Labor's National Award for Pay Equity in the Workplace is established for an employer who has made a substantial effort to eliminate pay disparities between men and women. The bill amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to require the EEOC to issue regulations for collecting from employers compensation and other employment data according to the sex, race, and national origin of employees for use in enforcing laws prohibiting pay discrimination.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2017
Recognizes that the intent of the Agent Orange Act of 1991 included the presumption that veterans who served in the Armed Forces in the bays, harbors, and territorial seas of the Republic of Vietnam between January 9, 1962, and May 7, 1975, served in Vietnam for all purposes under the Agent Orange Act of 1991. Expresses the intent that such veterans who served in those areas and other areas exposed to Agent Orange who have been diagnosed with connected medical conditions should be equally recognized for such exposure through equitable benefits and coverage as those who served in the inland rivers and on the Vietnamese land mass. Calls on the Department of Veterans Affairs to review its policy that excludes presumptive coverage for Agent Orange exposure for such veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2017
Recognizes the significance of Equal Pay Day to illustrate the disparity between wages paid to men and women, and its impact on women, families, and the nation.
United States · United States Congress · 3 April 2017
Commends: the Department of State's and the U.S. Agency for International Development's (USAID's) timely response to early warning signals of drought in the Horn of Africa and for providing substantial assistance for the humanitarian response in FY2016 and FY2017; USAID's quick deployment of a Disaster Assistance Response Team in response to the previous drought in northeastern and central Ethiopia; the Somali diaspora for spearheading the response to humanitarian needs in Somalia; the work of United Nations and nongovernmental organizations in providing sustained life-saving assistance to vulnerable populations across the Horn of Africa; and USAID for its work to mitigate the impact of environmental shocks to pastoralist communities across the Horn of Africa. Calls on: the State Department and USAID to continue providing long-term development supporting programs that build resilience, protect livelihoods, strengthen global food security, and provide drought relief and emergency food assistance; the President to appoint high-level officials to engage the international community in responding to this crisis; the government of Kenya to publicly declare that the Dadaab refugee complex will remain open and to respect prima facie status for new arrivals from Somalia; and the U.S. government and the international community to continue life-saving assistance and development activities to alleviate drought and food insecurity in the region.
United States · United States Congress · 30 March 2017
Chemical Poisons Reduction Act of 2017 This bill prohibits the use of sodium fluoroacetate (i.e., Compound 1080) and sodium cyanide in a predator control device. It imposes criminal penalties—a fine, a prison term of up to two years, or both—on a violator. A predator control device is a dispenser, livestock collar, or gas cartridge that propels, releases, or emits sodium fluoroacetate or sodium cyanide for wildlife management or animal control purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 30 March 2017
Rural Access to Hospice Act of 2017 This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to allow payment under Medicare for certain services furnished to hospice patients by rural health clinics and federally qualified health centers (FQHCs). With respect to a patient who elects to receive hospice care under Medicare, current law generally limits payment for services that are either duplicative of such care or related to the treatment of the individual's terminal illness. However, current law exempts from this limitation: (1) physicians' services furnished by an attending physician not employed by the hospice program; and (2) services provided or arranged by the hospice program. The bill expands this exemption with regard to rural health clinic and FQHC services. Specifically, the payment limitation shall not apply to such services that: (1) would otherwise be physicians' services if furnished by an individual unaffiliated with a rural health clinic or FQHC; and (2) are either arranged by the hospice program or furnished by an attending physician not employed by the hospice program.
United States · United States Congress · 30 March 2017
Home Health Care Planning Improvement Act of 2017 This bill allows Medicare payment for home health services ordered by a nurse practitioner, a clinical nurse specialist, a certified nurse-midwife, or a physician assistant.
United States · United States Congress · 30 March 2017
Congressional Leadership In Mitigating Administration Threats to the Earth Act or the CLIMATE Act This bill nullifies the Executive Order entitled "Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth" that was released on March 28, 2017. No federal funds may be used to implement or enforce the order. The bill takes effect on March 28, 2017.
United States · United States Congress · 30 March 2017
Homeland Production Security Act or the HOPS Act This bill amends the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to prohibit the use of funds appropriated to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for the procurement of DHS uniforms not manufactured in the United States.
![Official portrait of Rep. Shea-Porter, Carol [D-NH-1]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s001170_200.jpg)