United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2015
Expresses support for: (1) the designation of a Small Business Saturday, (2) efforts to encourage consumers to shop locally, and (3) efforts to increase awareness of the value of locally owned small businesses and their impact on the U.S. economy.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 2015
Child Protection Improvements Act of 2015 This bill amends the National Child Protection Act of 1993 to direct the Department of Justice to: (1) establish policies and procedures to streamline the process of obtaining national criminal history background checks on covered individuals, and (2) establish a criminal history review program to provide covered entities with reliable and accurate information on the criminal history of a covered individual. It defines "covered entity" as any business or organization that provides, or licenses, certifies, or coordinates individuals or organizations to provide care, care placement, supervision, treatment, education, training, instruction, or recreation to vulnerable populations including elderly persons, disabled persons, and children. It defines "covered individual" as an individual who: (1) has, seeks to have, or may have unsupervised access to vulnerable populations served by a covered entity; (2) is employed by or volunteers with, or seeks to be employed by or volunteer with, a covered entity; or (3) owns or operates, or seeks to own or operate, a covered entity.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2015
This bill amends the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) to require that at least 10% of the funds made available for federal-aid highways and highway safety construction programs, including highway safety research and development, and for the Federal Public Transportation Act of 2012 be expended through small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 2015
Military and Veterans Education Protection Act This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require proprietary institutions of higher education to derive at least 10% of their revenue from sources other than federal educational assistance, or risk becoming ineligible for title IV funding. Federal educational assistance includes title IV federal student aid and federal educational assistance for military personnel and veterans. Currently, this so-called 90/10 rule requires proprietary institutions to derive at least 10% of their revenue from sources other than title IV federal student aid, but it allows federal educational assistance for military personnel and veterans to count toward the 10%.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 2015
Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Education Relief and Restoration Act of 2015 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 · 5 November 2015
Supports the goals of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Honors those working domestically and internationally to eliminate violence against women and girls. Encourages the President to: address the needs of women and girls experiencing violence through funding for participatory survivor-led programs; prioritize protections for women and children in fragile and conflict zones; address increased rates of violence against marginalized women due to race, ethnicity, gender and sexual identity, and socioeconomic status; and increase opportunities for women and girls worldwide, including opportunities for education and economic participation.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 2015
Housing Our Heroes Act This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to begin a three-year pilot grant program to assess the feasibility of awarding grants to eligible entities to purchase and renovate abandoned homes for homeless veterans. Eligible entities are: (1) veterans service agencies and organizations, (2) homeless organizations, and (3) other nongovernmental organizations. The Veterans Homelessness Grant Fund is established in the Treasury. The VA shall give grant priority to communities with the greatest need of homeless services, and may give grant priority to achieve geographic grant distribution.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2015
Gun Violence Research Act This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to specifically include injuries from gun violence as a research subject for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Nothing in the CDC's research authorization may be construed to authorize support for advocacy or promotion of gun control. The CDC must improve the National Violent Death Reporting System, particularly through the voluntary participation of additional states. Nothing in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act may be construed to prohibit a health care provider from discussing guns or gun safety with a patient or reporting a patient's threat of violence.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2015
Office of Strategic Services Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill requires the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the presentation of a Congressional Gold Medal to the members of the Office of Strategic Services in recognition of their service and contributions during World War II.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 2015
Greater Grand Canyon Heritage National Monument Act This bill establishes the Greater Grand Canyon Heritage National Monument in Arizona. The Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture (USDA), with respect to lands under their respective jurisdictions, shall manage the Monument to conserve, protect, and enhance its natural resources and values. Interior and USDA shall collaborate with the Greater Grand Canyon Heritage National Monument Advisory Council (established by this Act) to develop a plan for the protection and management of the Monument.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 2015
Weekend Voting Act This bill amends the Revised Statutes to establish the first Saturday and Sunday after the first Friday in November, in every even numbered year, as the days for the election, in each state and territory, of Delegates to, or Members of, Congress. The first Saturday and Sunday after the first Friday in November, in every fourth year, shall be the days for the election of the President and Vice President of the United States. The polling place hours in the United States for both congressional and presidential elections shall be from 10:00 a.m. EST on Saturday till 6:00 p.m. EST on Sunday, with polls allowed to close between the hours of 10:00 p.m. local time on Saturday and 6:00 a.m. local time on Sunday, as provided by the law of the state in which the polling place is located.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 2015
Atomic Veterans Healthcare Parity Act This bill includes veterans who participated in the cleanup of Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands during the period January 1, 1977-December 31, 1980, as radiation exposed veterans for purposes of the Department of Veterans Affairs presumption of service-connection for specified cancers.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 2015
Community College to Career Fund Act This bill amends the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to direct the Department of Labor to award competitive grants to eligible community colleges, four-year public institutions of higher education, tribal colleges or universities, private or nonprofit two-year institutions of higher education in specified U.S. territories, or a consortium of any of them, in partnership with employers or an employer or industry partnership representing multiple employers, in order to develop, offer, improve, and provide educational or career training programs for workers. The governor of the state in which at least one of these entities is located shall establish criteria for an educational or career training program leading to a recognized postsecondary credential for which an eligible entity submits a grant proposal.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 2015
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that a working families agenda is established to: raise the minimum wage, strengthen workers' right to organize, and protect workers from misclassification; provide workers with paid sick days, paid family leave, flexible and stable schedules, access to high-quality early learning opportunities, and affordable child care; and strengthen the law guaranteeing equal pay for equal work, ensure specified rights for pregnant workers, and ensure workers have explicit protections from discrimination based on their sexual orientation and gender identity. Declares the sense of the House furthermore that hearings and votes should be held on specified House bills, including H.R. 2150, the Raise the Wage Act, and H.R. 1439, the Family and Medical Insurance Leave Act (FAMILY Act).
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 2015
Honors the 50th anniversary of the Higher Education Act of 1965. Acknowledges those whose support and efforts led to passage of the Higher Education Act of 1965. Recognizes the significant investment the Higher Education Act of 1965 has made in the lives of American students, families, and this nation as a whole. Encourages all Americans to recognize and celebrate the important historical milestone represented by the passage of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and its ideals of improving educational access and affordability.
United States · United States Congress · 28 October 2015
This bill requires the Department of Energy to study and report on solar net energy metering, which allows electric consumers to offset their electricity bills for any excess electricity they do not use if that excess was: (1) generated from an eligible, on-site solar generating facility, and (2) delivered to local distribution facilities. The study must analyze the benefits of implementing solar net energy metering.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 2015
Reducing Gun Violence in our Neighborhoods Act of 2015 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose an additional tax of $100 on the sale of a firearm by a manufacturer, producer, or importer. Firearm purchases by federal, state, and local governments for law enforcement purposes are exempt from the additional tax. The bill establishes the Gun Violence Reduction and Mental Health Counseling Trust Fund at the Department of the Treasury. It transfers revenues from the additional tax into the trust fund to support the Community Mental Health Services Block Grant program and the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program. The Department of Justice (DOJ) must establish and newly manufactured firearms must meet a national standard for incorporating passive identification capability into all firearms sold in the United States. Passive identification capability means technology that: (1) enables identification by a mobile or fixed reading device, and (2) does not transmit an electronic monitoring or tracking signal. DOJ's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives must establish the National Database of Lost and Stolen Firearms. This bill amends the federal criminal code to require a gun owner to report a lost or stolen firearm to local law enforcement authorities within 48 hours of discovery. Local law enforcement authorities must transmit the report to the national database within seven days.
United States · United States Congress · 23 October 2015
Improving School Nutrition Training Act This bill amends the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to add requirements regarding the availability of training that the Department of Agriculture provides under current law for local food service personnel. The training must be scheduled primarily during paid working hours, offered in-person when appropriate, and incorporate hands-on training techniques. If the training is scheduled outside of working hours, food service personnel must be informed about the necessity of scheduling the program and compensated for attending the program. Personnel may not be penalized for failing to attend a program outside of working hours.
United States · United States Congress · 23 October 2015
Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act This bill amends the federal judicial code to narrow the scope of foreign sovereign immunity by authorizing U.S. courts to hear cases involving claims against a foreign state for injuries, death, or damages that occur inside the United States as a result of a tort, including an act of terrorism, committed anywhere by a foreign state or official. It amends the federal criminal code to permit civil claims against a foreign state or official for injuries, death, or damages from an act of international terrorism. Additionally, the bill authorizes federal courts to exercise personal jurisdiction over and impose liability on a person who commits, or aids, abets, or conspires to commit, an act of international terrorism against a U.S. national.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 2015
Community-Based Gang Intervention Act This bill expresses the sense of Congress that the United States should acknowledge and address social conditions such as poverty, homelessness, inadequate educational systems, and limited economic opportunities in developing a comprehensive gang violence reduction strategy. It amends the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 to: (1) require the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to award grants to nonprofit community-based gang intervention agencies to provide services for reducing and stopping gang-related and gang-motivated violence and crime, (2) include representatives of community-based gang intervention agencies in juvenile justice and delinquency prevention advisory groups established by state plans, and (3) include community-based gang intervention and prevention activities in state and local grant programs for delinquency prevention.
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 2015
Family Stability and Kinship Care Act of 2015 This bill amends part E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) (renamed by this Act Federal Payments for Foster Care and Permanency) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSAct) to give states the option of providing certain time-limited family services, including parenting and family skills training and counseling, to a child meeting certain criteria or the child's parents or kin caregivers. SSAct title IV part B is also amended to: eliminate the time-limit for family reunification services, increase the mandatory funding authorization for the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program, and extend funding for Family Connection Grants for one year.
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 2015
Seniors Deserve A Raise Act This bill requires cost-of-living increases in any benefit under title II (Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act as well as military retirement and survivor benefits by any increase in the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly. In addition to any such increase, each such benefit shall be further increased by 2.9% on January 1, 2016, and shall remain in effect every year thereafter.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2015
Sentencing Reform Act of 2015 This bill permits a court to reduce the mandatory minimum prison term imposed on certain non-violent defendants convicted of a high-level first-time or low-level repeat drug offense (including unlawful import, export, manufacture, or distribution of, or possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance). The legislation expands safety valve eligibility to permit a court to impose a sentence below the mandatory minimum for certain non-violent, cooperative drug defendants with a limited criminal history. It reduces the enhanced mandatory minimum prison term for certain defendants who commit a high-level repeat drug offense, use a firearm in a crime of violence or drug offense after a prior conviction for such offense, or unlawfully possess a firearm after three or more prior convictions. It permits retroactive application of such reductions for defendants without a prior serious violent felony conviction, after a court considers certain factors. It also establishes a consecutive mandatory prison term for a defendant who commits a drug offense involving a detectable amount of heroin or fentanyl. The bill makes the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 retroactive to permit resentencing of a convicted crack cocaine offender sentenced before August 3, 2010.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2015
Water Advanced Technologies for Efficient Resource Use Act of 2015 This bill codifies the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) WaterSense program, which identifies, labels, and promotes water efficient products, buildings, landscapes, and services. This bill also establishes a program to provide financial incentives for consumers to purchase and install residential water efficient products and services labeled under the WaterSense program. In order to meet procurement requirements for a water consuming product or service, federal agencies must purchase a WaterSense product or service, or a Federal Energy Management Program designated product. Agencies do not have to procure those products or services if they are not cost-effective, or not reasonably available. The bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from the gross income of individual taxpayers any amount received under an incentive program for the purchase and installation of residential water efficient products and services.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2015
Establishes the House Select Committee on Gun Violence Prevention to investigate and report on: the causes of mass shootings, methods to improve the federal firearms purchaser background check system, connections between access to firearms and dangerously mentally ill individuals, strengthening federal penalties for trafficking and straw purchasing of firearms, closing loopholes that allow some domestic abusers continued access to firearms, linkages between firearms and suicide, gun violence's effect on public health, the correlation between state gun violence prevention laws and the incidence of gun violence, the importance of having reliable and accurate information on gun violence and its toll on our nation, the implementation of effective gun violence prevention laws in accordance with the Second Amendment to the Constitution, and rates of gun violence in large metropolitan areas.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2015
Medicare Premium Fairness Act of 2015 This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: (1) prevent 2016 increases to Medicare Part B premiums and deductibles for enrollees, and (2) authorize federal funding to offset the corresponding reduction in aggregate monthly premiums. Under current law, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must annually determine the monthly actuarial rate upon which Part B premiums and deductibles are based. The bill temporarily freezes that rate at the 2015 level for enrollees, effectively preventing increases to premiums and deductibles for those enrollees in 2016. (Current law already protects Part B enrollees whose benefits are deducted from their Social Security benefits from premium increases that would result in a smaller Social Security check.)
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2015
Improving Treatment for Pregnant and Postpartum Women Act of 2015 This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to extend support for residential substance abuse treatment programs for pregnant and postpartum women through FY2020. The Center for Substance Abuse Treatment must carry out a pilot program to make grants to state substance abuse agencies to support services for pregnant and postpartum women who have a primary diagnosis of a substance use disorder.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2015
Preserving Teacher Loan Forgiveness for Military Spouses Act of 2015 This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to modify the qualifying service requirement of the teacher loan forgiveness program for certain military spouses. Under current law, an otherwise qualified full-time teacher must complete five consecutive years of service to be eligible for the teacher loan forgiveness program. This bill permits a teacher who completes five full-time years of non-consecutive service to be eligible for loan forgiveness if the teacher was a qualified military spouse during any break in teaching service. A qualified military spouse is an individual who: (1) is a highly-qualified teacher at a high-need school, (2) is the spouse of a servicemember, (3) experienced a break in teaching service to relocate with servicemember spouse pursuant to military orders, and (4) resumed teaching the next academic year. The Department of Education must report to Congress on the number of individuals impacted by this modification.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 2015
Promoting Good Cyber Hygiene Act of 2015 This bill requires the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to establish for the federal government, the private sector, and any individual or organization a list of voluntary best practices for effective and usable cyber hygiene to help protect information systems or devices against cybersecurity threats that include unauthorized access, alteration of information or code running on such systems or devices, and unauthorized denials of service. The Department of Homeland Security, in coordination with NIST and the Federal Trade Commission, must: (1) assess cybersecurity threats relating to mobile devices and the effect of such threats on the cybersecurity of the federal government's information systems and networks, and (2) submit recommendations for addressing such threats.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 2015
Student Borrower Fairness Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to permit student loan borrowers to refinance their loans at interest rates offered on loans to banks by the Federal Reserve System. The cost of this bill is offset by an amendment to the Internal Revenue Code that increases the corporate income rate on companies that pay their chief executive officers or highest paid employees more than 100 times the median compensation of all their employees.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 2015
Scleroderma and Fibrosis Research Enhancement Act of 2015 This bill requires the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) to establish the National Commission on Scleroderma and Fibrosis Research. (Scleroderma and fibrosis are connective tissue conditions that cause hardening or scarring of skin and organs.) The commission must develop a long-term, comprehensive plan for scleroderma and fibrosis research. The plan must: (1) prioritize research that has cross-cutting value and requires coordination across NIH, and (2) include specific steps for implementation of the research. The commission must establish working groups to make research recommendations for the various organs and systems impacted by fibrotic illness. The commission must be terminated not later than two years after establishment. The NIAMS must create the Scleroderma and Fibrosis Working Group to oversee and assist with implementation of the long-term plan.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 2015
Commends the Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for its work over the past 25 years to improve and save the lives of women worldwide. Expresses that the ORWH must remain intact for this and future generations. Recognizes that there remain striking sex and gender differences among many diseases and conditions on which the ORWH should continue to focus. Encourages the ORWH to continue to focus on ensuring that NIH supports biomedical research that considers sex as a biological variable. Encourages the NIH to continue to consult and involve the ORWH on all matters related to the influence of sex and gender on health.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2015
21st Century Women's Health Act of 2015 This bill amends the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) to allow the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award grants for family planning service projects, expansion of family planning preventive health services, and training of nurse practitioners specializing in women's health care. This bill amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to require state Medicaid programs to offer free preventive care, including contraceptives. A hospital cannot receive federal funds unless it promptly provides information about emergency contraception to any woman arriving at the hospital who is a victim of sexual assault. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Health Resources and Services Administration must develop and disseminate information on emergency contraception. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality must study sexual assault survivors' access to emergency contraception. The PHSA is amended to establish an Office of the Ombudsperson on Women's Health in HHS to handle complaints involving HHS regarding women's health services and to study the adequacy of health plan provider networks for women's health services. HHS must coordinate a national public education campaign regarding preventive health services for women and families. HHS must award states grants to establish maternal mortality review committees to investigate pregnancy-related deaths. The National Institutes of Health must organize a national workshop on severe maternal morbidity. To eliminate disparities in maternal health outcomes, HHS must conduct research, expand access to services that improve maternity care, and compare and implement interventions for reducing disparities.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2015
Health Insurance for Former Foster Youth Act This bill amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to make technical revisions indicating that medical assistance is available to former foster care children regardless of whether they move between states.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 2015
Higher Education Extension Act of 2015 This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to extend by one year, through FY2016, the term of the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity. The legislation extends the authority of institutions of higher education (IHEs) to make loans to new borrowers under the Federal Perkins Loan program through September 30, 2016. IHEs may continue to disburse Perkins Loans through March 31, 2018, to enable students to continue or complete an academic program if the student received a Perkins loan prior to October 1, 2016, and the student has exhausted Federal Direct Stafford Loans. The bill prohibits any further automatic extensions of the Perkins Loan program. It also prohibits authorization of additional appropriations for the Federal Perkins Loan program beyond FY2015. Beginning October 1, 2016, each participating IHE must pay to the Department of Education a certain portion of: (1) the federal share of the balance of its Perkins Loan funds; and (2) the Perkins student loan payments, including principal and interest, received by the institution. The bill extends by one year, through FY2016, the term of the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2015
Big Cat Public Safety Act This bill amends the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 to prohibit any person from breeding or possessing any live animal of any prohibited wildlife species (i.e., any live species of lion, tiger, leopard, cheetah, jaguar, or cougar or any hybrid of such species). Breeding means facilitating propagation or reproduction (whether intentionally or negligently), or failing to prevent propagation or reproduction. The bill extends forfeiture provisions to fish, wildlife, or plants that are bred or possessed. The bill revises the list of entities that are exempt from Lacey Act prohibitions to include: institutions accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums; certain facilities that have an active written contract with an Association of Zoos and Aquariums Species Survival Plan or Taxon Advisory Group for breeding prohibited wildlife species; persons who do not allow the transportation and display of prohibited wildlife species off-site; current owners of animals that were born before this bill's enactment if the animals are registered with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service within 180 days; and certain traveling circuses that hold Class C licenses under the Animal Welfare Act. Entities exempt from Lacey Act prohibitions must require that current owners and circuses not allow direct contact between the public and the prohibited wildlife species.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2015
Justice is Not For Sale Act of 2015 This bill requires federal, state, and local governments and their employees to directly operate and perform core services at adult prisons and detention centers. The bill reestablishes parole for eligible federal prisoners sentenced on or after January 1, 2017. (The Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 eliminated parole for offenders convicted of federal crimes committed after November 1, 1987.) It authorizes the United States Parole Commission to: (1) grant or deny a parole application or recommendation; (2) impose conditions on, modify, or revoke parole; and (3) maintain supervision of paroled offenders. Financial service providers at prisons and detention centers must impose reasonable and proportional fees and charges for money transfer services. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau must establish standards to assess such fees or charges. The bill directs the Federal Communications Commission to cap prison phone call rates and connection charges, require telecommunications providers to offer collect and debit account call services, restrict commission payments and ancillary service charges, and require correctional facility administrators to allow more than one telecommunications provider. It eliminates the provision that requires U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to maintain at least 34,000 detention beds. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) must establish nationwide alternatives to detention programs and determine detention bed capacity based solely on detention needs. DHS must conduct annual inspections and routine oversight of detention facilities. The bill prohibits family detention and requires DHS to establish alternatives to detention programs for detained family units. Also, it prohibits separation of a family to detain a family member, except DHS may detain an alien parent who is dangerous to the community and inadmissible on terrorism-related grounds.
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2015
Workplace Action for a Growing Economy Act or the WAGE Act This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act to require the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to award back pay and additional liquidated damages equal to double the back pay, without any reduction, to any employee against whom an employer has discriminated with regard to hiring or because the employee has filed charges or given testimony or if the employer has committed an unfair labor practice resulting in the employee's discharge or other serious economic loss. Civil penalties are established for violations of posting requirements and any violations causing serious economic loss to employees. Whenever it is charged that an employer has engaged in an unfair labor practice that significantly interferes with, restrains, or coerces employees in the exercise of guaranteed rights and involves discharge or other serious harm to an employee, the preliminary investigation of the charge shall be made forthwith and given priority generally over all other cases. The U.S. district court shall: (1) have jurisdiction to grant injunctive relief or a temporary restraining order to protect the rights guaranteed, and (2) shall grant the relief requested unless the court concludes that there is no reasonable likelihood that the NLRB will succeed on the merits of the NLRB's claim. A person injured by an unfair labor practice may bring a civil action in the appropriate district court. Unauthorized aliens may be paid back pay under a court order directing reinstatement of an employee. In any case where the NLRB finds that an election to determine a collective bargaining representative should be set aside because the employer committed a violation or otherwise interfered with a fair election, it shall issue an order requiring the employer to collectively bargain with the labor organization. The NLRB shall dismiss any petition to represent a unit if in an election a majority of the valid votes cast in an appropriate unit have not been cast in favor of representation by the labor organization. The NLRB shall promulgate regulations requiring each employer to post and maintain, in conspicuous places, a notice setting forth the rights and protections afforded employees under such Act. Each order of the NLRB shall take effect 30 days after notice of an NLRB order is given, unless the NLRB directs otherwise. The NLRB shall apply to the district court in which an unfair labor practice or other subject of the order occurred for the enforcement of an order if any person or entity fails or neglects to obey it.
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2015
Pell Grant Restoration Act of 2015 This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to restore a student's Pell Grant eligibility for any period of time during which the student qualified for, or would have qualified for, federal student loan forgiveness due to school closure, assertion of a defense against repayment, or institutional fraud or misconduct. Specifically, this bill provides that Pell Grants received by a student during that period of time do not count toward the student's lifetime limit on Pell Grant eligibility (currently 12 full-time semesters).
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2015
Pulmonary Hypertension Research and Diagnosis Act of 2015 This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish the Interagency Pulmonary Hypertension Coordinating Committee. The committee must monitor research and annually summarize research and medical advances regarding pulmonary hypertension. The committee must develop a comprehensive strategic plan to improve health outcomes for individuals with pulmonary hypertension. The plan must include recommendations regarding pulmonary hypertension diagnosis, research, transplantation criteria, public awareness, and health care delivery. HHS must report on activities related to improving health outcomes for individuals with pulmonary hypertension. The report must include information regarding pulmonary hypertension epidemiology, treatment, support available to individuals, and research.
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2015
Prescription Drug Affordability Act of 2015 This bill amends titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to modify provisions related to the affordability of prescription drugs under the Medicare and Medicaid programs. Specifically, the bill: requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid to negotiate lower prices on behalf of beneficiaries for drugs covered under Medicare Part D; accelerates closure of the Medicare Part D coverage gap known as the "donut hole," under which beneficiaries who have reached a certain level of yearly drug costs become fully responsible for any additional drug costs up to a certain limit; requires drug manufacturers to issue rebates for prescription drugs dispensed to eligible low-income individuals under Medicare or Medicaid; and expands the application of certain prescription drug rebate requirements under Medicaid to include rebates for generic drugs. The bill also amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to: (1) allow the importation by individuals of prescription drugs from Canada and, potentially, other countries; and (2) establish certain conditions on the award of market exclusivity with respect to drugs. Specifically, a drug manufacturer's market exclusivity shall be terminated if the manufacturer commits, or fails to report, a drug-related violation such as misbranding, illegal marketing, or fraud. In addition, the bill amends the Federal Trade Commission Act to: (1) establish restrictions on certain anticompetitive patent settlements known as "pay-for-delay" agreements, which effectively block generic drug competition; and (2) allow the Federal Trade Commission to initiate proceedings to enforce these restrictions against any parties to such a settlement. The bill also requires drug manufacturers to produce and share annual reports containing specified information related to domestic and foreign sales.
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2015
Preserving American Homeownership Act of 2015 Requires the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the Federal Housing Commissioner each to establish a pilot program to encourage, through assistance provided under the Home Affordable Modification Program under the Secretary of the Treasury's Making Home Affordable initiative, the use of shared appreciation mortgage modifications that: (1) are designed to return greater cash flow to investors than other loss-mitigation activities, including foreclosure; and (2) result in positive net present value for the investor. Requires a shared appreciation mortgage modification to: (1) reduce by specified action the loan-to-value ratio of a covered mortgage to 115% immediately upon modification and to 95% within 3 years; (2) reduce the interest rate if such a principal reduction would not result in an affordable reduced monthly payment; (3) reduce to a specified amount any periodic payment the homeowner is required to make; (4) require the homeowner to pay the investor, after refinancing or selling the real property securing a covered mortgage, up to 50% of the amount of any increase in the value of the real property during a specified period; and (5) result in a positive net present value for the investor after taking into account the principal reduction and, if necessary, any interest rate reduction. Requires the Director to: (1) provide that an enterprise may negotiate regarding a shared appreciation mortgage modification of a covered mortgage with any mortgage insurance provider for a mortgage on the subject property, and (2) allow advanced claim agreements with respect to such mortgage insurance policies.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2015
Declares that: the atrocities committed against Christians and other ethnic and religious minorities targeted specifically for religious reasons are crimes against humanity and genocide; each of the Contracting Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and other international agreements forbidding war crimes and crimes against humanity, particularly the governments of countries and their nationals who are in any way supporting these crimes, are reminded of their legal obligations under the Convention and these international agreements; the United Nations (U.N.) and the Secretary-General are called upon to assert leadership by calling the atrocities war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide; the member states of the U.N., with an appeal to the Arab States that wish to uphold religious freedom and justice, should collaborate on measures to prevent further war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, and collaborate on the establishment of tribunals to punish those responsible for the ongoing crimes; the governments of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Lebanese Republic, and other countries are commended for having undertaken to shelter and protect those fleeing extremist violence; and those who force the migration of religious communities from their ancestral homelands, including specifically the Nineveh Plain and Mount Sinjar, should be prosecuted in accordance with the laws of the place where their crimes were committed and under applicable international criminal statutes and conventions.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2015
Gun Trafficking Prevention Act of 2015 This bill amends the federal criminal code to make trafficking in firearms a crime. Specifically, it prohibits: purchasing or transferring a firearm with the intent to deliver it to a prohibited person; providing false or misleading material information in connection with a firearm purchase or transfer; and directing, promoting, or facilitating such prohibited conduct. The prohibition does not apply to a firearm lawfully acquired to give as a gift or lawfully received as a gift. A person who commits a gun trafficking offense is subject to a prison term of up to 20 years (or 25 years if such person also acted as an organizer). A person who conspires to commit a gun trafficking offense is subject to a prison term of up to 10 years. The U.S. Sentencing Commission must review and, if appropriate, amend the sentencing guidelines and policy statements that apply to persons convicted of trafficking in firearms.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2015
Childhood Cancer Survivorship, Treatment, Access, and Research Act of 2015 or the Childhood Cancer STAR Act This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to permit the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to provide support to collect the medical specimens and information of children, adolescents, and young adults with cancer to improve the understanding of these cancers and of the effects of treatment. The national childhood cancer registry is reauthorized through FY2020 and revised to require the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to award grants to states to improve tracking of childhood cancers. This bill amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require manufacturers and distributors of investigational drugs to publish policies for compassionate use of the drugs. The Department of Health and Human Services must: (1) support pilot programs to develop or study models for monitoring and caring for childhood cancer survivors throughout their lives, (2) convene a Workforce Development Collaborative on Medical and Psychosocial Care for Pediatric Cancer Survivors, (3) establish a task force on standards for high-quality childhood cancer survivorship care, and (4) carry out a demonstration project to improve care coordination as childhood cancer survivors transition to adult care. The NIH must support research on: (1) outcomes for, and barriers faced by, pediatric cancer survivors within minority or medically underserved populations; and (2) follow-up care for pediatric cancer survivors, including research on the late effects of cancer treatment and long-term complications. The Government Accountability Office must make recommendations to address barriers to childhood cancer survivors obtaining and paying for adequate medical care.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2015
Second Chance Reauthorization Act of 2015 This bill amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to: revise and reauthorize grant programs for offender reentry demonstration projects; family-based substance abuse treatment; and evaluating and improving educational methods at prisons, jails, and juvenile facilities; and repeal grant programs for offender reentry courts and drug treatment alternatives to incarceration. Additionally, the legislation amends the Second Chance Act of 2007 to: rename, revise, and reauthorize grant programs for technology career training demonstration projects and reentry mentoring services, reauthorize offender reentry research and the grant program for offender reentry substance abuse and criminal justice collaboration, reauthorize and modify eligibility for an elderly offender early release pilot program, and repeal grant programs for the responsible reintegration of offenders and the study of Depot Naltrexone to treat heroin addiction. It amends the federal criminal code to establish partnerships between prisons and faith- or community-based nonprofit organizations to conduct activities to reduce recidivism. The Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Inspector General must conduct annual audits of selected grant recipients to prevent waste, fraud, and abuse of funds. The bill prohibits grants to nonprofit organizations that hold money in an offshore account to avoid tax liability. It also prohibits a grantee from using grant funds to lobby DOJ or a state, local, or tribal government regarding the award of grant funding. DOJ, in collaboration with interested persons, providers, and organizations, and state, local, and tribal governments, must coordinate and report to Congress on federal reentry programs, policies, and practices. The bill limits the use of grants for conferences that use more than $20,000 in DOJ funds.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2015
CPI-E Act of 2015 This bill bases cost-of -living increases in benefits under the Civil Service Retirement System, the Federal Employees Retirement System, military retirement and survivor benefit programs, old-age, survivors, or disability insurance benefit program, and specified veterans benefits programs on increases in the Consumer Price Index for the elderly.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2015
Teach Our Teachers Act This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to modify provisions of the teacher loan forgiveness program. Specifically, the legislation reduces from five to three years the period of service a full-time teacher must complete consecutively to be eligible for forgiveness under the Federal Family Education Loan or Direct Loan program. It also increases from $5,000 to $17,500 the amount of available loan forgiveness for an elementary or secondary school teacher in any subject. (Currently, forgiveness up to $17,500 is only available for a full-time secondary school math or science teacher or for a special education teacher.) The bill eliminates the prohibition on counting the same qualifying service for both the teacher and the public service loan forgiveness programs.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2015
Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2015 This bill amends the federal criminal code to create a private civil cause of action for trade secret misappropriation. Specifically, the bill authorizes a trade secret owner to file a civil action in a U.S. district court seeking relief for trade secret misappropriation related to a product or service in interstate or foreign commerce. It establishes remedies, such as an injunction and damages. The statute of limitation is set at five years from the date of discovery of the misappropriation. A trade secret owner may apply for and a court may grant a seizure order to prevent dissemination of the trade secret if the court makes specific findings, including that an immediate and irreparable injury will occur if seizure is not ordered. A court must take custody of the seized materials and hold a seizure hearing within seven days. Any party harmed by the order may move to dissolve or modify the order and may also seek relief against the applicant of the seizure order for wrongful or excessive seizure. The Department of Justice must submit to Congress and publish a biannual report on trade secret theft outside the United States. The bill expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) trade secret theft occurs in the United States and around the world, (2) trade secret theft harms owner companies and their employees, and (3) the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 applies broadly to protect trade secrets from theft.
![Official portrait of Rep. Slaughter, Louise McIntosh [D-NY-25]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s000480_200.jpg)