United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2013
Disapproves the President's: (1) failure to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed," as required by the Constitution, and (2) usurpation of the legislative power of Congress through the rewriting of key provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Reaffirms that the preservation of the Constitution's separation of powers is essential for the protection of individual liberty and the maintenance of the rule of law.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2013
Transportation Empowerment Act - Declares the purposes of the Act, including returning maximum discretionary authority and fiscal responsibility to the states for all elements of the national surface transportation systems (excluding the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways). Prescribes a limitation on funding of transportation programs and projects carried out under this Act. Authorizes appropriations out of the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) (other than the Mass Transit Account) for FY2015-FY2019 for specified core programs under the federal-aid highway program, including: (1) metropolitan transportation planning, (2) emergency relief for highways and roads, (3) the federal lands transportation program, and (4) Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) administrative expenses. Authorizes a state to transfer and use excess federal-aid highway funds for any surface transportation project (including mass transit and rail). Limits federal assistance to states for highway bridge replacement and rehabilitation to bridges on the federal-aid highway system. Repeals the authorization of federal assistance to states for historic bridges. Repeals the transportation alternatives program. Declares that, beginning with FY2014, a highway construction or improvement project shall not be considered a federal project: (1) unless and until a state expends federal funds for the construction portion of such project, (2) solely by reason of the state expenditure of federal funds before the construction phase of the project (including for any environmental document or design work), or (3) upon state reimbursement to the federal government of the federal costs of such projects. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make amounts in the HTF available for expenditure for core highway programs through FY2020. Requires the Secretary of Treasury to transfer from the HTF amounts equivalent to motorboat and aviation fuel taxes collected before October 1, 2022, to: (1) the Land and Water Conservation Fund, (2) the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund, and (3) the Airport and Airway Trust Fund. Requires the Secretary to pay from the HTF into the general fund of the Treasury amounts equivalent to the floor stocks refunds made before July 1, 2023. Prescribes a motor fuel tax rate schedule for financing of core highway programs. Terminates, on September 30, 2014, the authority of the Secretary to make certain transfers to the Mass Transit Account. Directs the Secretary, on October 1, 2014, to transfer all amounts in the Mass Transit Account to the Highway Account. Authorizes appropriations out of the HTF (other than the Mass Transit Account) for FY2015-FY2019 for the highway research and development program. Directs the Secretary to allocate to the states for surface transportation projects (including mass transit and rail) any excess highway tax receipts appropriated to the HTF in FY2016-FY2019. Reduces the excise taxes imposed on: (1) gasoline from 18.3 cents to 3.7 cents, (2) diesel fuel or kerosene from 24.3 cents to 5.0 cents, and (3) diesel-water fuel emulsion from 19.7 cents to 4.1 cents. Requires credits or refunds of certain floor stocks taxes on liquids imposed before October 1, 2019. Declares that this Act shall become effective only if the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) certifies that it is deficit neutral.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2013
Impeaches Eric H. Holder, Jr., Attorney General of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors. Sets forth articles of impeachment stating that Holder: (1) engaged in a pattern of conduct incompatible with the trust and confidence placed in him in that position by refusing to comply with a subpoena issued by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on October 12, 2011, in connection with a congressional investigation into Operation Fast and Furious by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF); (2) failed to enforce multiple laws, including the Defense of Marriage Act, the Controlled Substances Act, and the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986; (3) failed his oath of office by refusing to prosecute individuals involved in the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) scandal of unauthorized disclosure of tax records belonging to political donors; and (4) testified under oath before Congress on May 15, 2013, that he was neither involved in nor had heard of a potential prosecution of the press but later confirmed to the House Judiciary Committee in a letter dated June 19, 2013, that he approved of a search warrant on journalist James Rosen.
United States · United States Congress · 13 November 2013
Naval Vessels Transfer and Arms Export Control Amendments of 2013 - Authorizes the President to transfer on a grant basis to: (1) Mexico, the OLIVER HAZARD PERRY class guided missile frigates CURTS and MCCLUSKY; and (2) Thailand, the OLIVER HAZARD PERRY class guided missile frigates RENTZ and VANDEGRIFT. Authorizes the President to transfer on a sale basis the OLIVER HAZARD PERRY class guided missile frigates TAYLOR, GARY, CARR, and ELROD to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office of the United States (which is the Taiwan instrumentality designated pursuant to the Taiwan Relations Act). Authorizes the President, when transferring any vessel named in this Act, to ensure that the total number of vessels transferred to a country named in this Act does not exceed the total number authorized for transfer to that country. States that: (1) the value of such vessels transferred on a grant basis shall not be counted against the aggregate value of excess defense articles transferred to countries in any fiscal year under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961; (2) transfer costs shall be charged to the recipient; and (3) the country to which a vessel is transferred shall have necessary vessel repair and refurbishment carried out at U.S. shipyards (including U.S. Navy shipyards) to the maximum extent practicable. Terminates transfer authority three years after enactment of this Act. Amends the Arms Control Act to increase congressional notification thresholds for certain foreign military and commercial sales. Declares that: (1) a defense-related license or other approval from the Department of State may also authorize the export of items subject to the Export Administration Regulations if such items are to be used in or with defense articles controlled on the United States Munitions List; and (2) separate Department of Commerce approval shall not be required, but such items shall remain under Department of Commerce jurisdiction with respect to any subsequent transactions.
United States · United States Congress · 13 November 2013
Knife Owners' Protection Act of 2013 - Entitles any person who is not otherwise prohibited by federal law from possessing, transporting, shipping, or receiving a knife to transport a knife from any place where such person may lawfully possess, carry, or transport such a knife to any other place where such person may lawfully do so: (1) by motor vehicle if the knife is not directly accessible from the passenger compartment or is in a locked container, glove compartment, or console; or (2) by other means over land or through water or the air if the knife is in a locked container. Allows any knife or tool designed for enabling escape in an emergency incorporating a blunt tipped safety blade, a guarded blade, or both for cutting safety belts to be carried in the passenger compartment without being secured in a locked container, glove compartment, or console, except in the passenger cabin of aircraft whose passengers are subject to airport screening procedures of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
United States · United States Congress · 13 November 2013
Second Chance Reauthorization Act of 2013 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to revise and expand requirements for the grant program for adult and juvenile offender state and local reentry demonstration projects and to extend the authorization for appropriations for such program through FY2018. Amends the Second Chance Act of 2007 to extend through FY2018 the authorization of appropriations for grants for: (1) family-based substance abuse treatment, (2) the technology careers training demonstration program, and (3) the offender reentry substance abuse and criminal justice collaboration program. Renames the program of mentoring grants to nonprofit organizations for offender reentry as the program of community-based mentoring and transitional service grants to nonprofit organizations. Provides for enhanced services under such program to assist in the reintegration of offenders into the community. Extends the authorization of appropriations for such program through FY2018. Requires the Inspector General of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to periodically conduct audits of not less than 5% of all recipients of specified offender reentry grants under the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 and the Second Chance Act of 2007. Amends the Second Chance Act of 2007 to: (1) modify and extend through FY2018 grant programs for reentry of federal prisoners into the community, including the program for placing elderly offenders in home detention; (2) repeal programs under such Act relating to responsible reintegration of offenders, the study of the effectiveness of Depot Naltrexone for heroin addiction, and the satellite tracking and reentry training program; and (3) establish a program for partnering faith-based or community-based nonprofit organizations with prisons to conduct recidivism reduction activities. Directs the Attorney General, in consultation with specified federal officials and in collaboration with interested persons and entities, to establish an interagency task force on federal programs and activities for the reentry of offenders into the community. Requires such task force to: (1) evaluate and identity methods for improving such programs and activities, and (2) report to Congress on barriers faced by offenders in reentering the community and update such report annually.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2013
Sabine National Forest Land Exchange Act of 2013 - Requires a land exchange between the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) and the Sabine River Authority of Texas involving the Sabine National Forest, the Indian Mounds Wilderness Area, and the Toledo Bend Project in Texas. Requires the costs of the land exchange to be shared equally by the Authority and the Secretary, and the land exchange to be conducted on an equal value basis.
United States · United States Congress · 30 October 2013
Veterans' Entry to Apprenticeship Act - Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to treat a pre-apprenticeship program as a program of apprenticeship, for purposes of providing educational assistance, if such pre-apprenticeship program: (1) is recognized under or compliant with relevant state standards for a postsecondary pre-apprenticeship program, or (2) is in a state that does not require such standards and the curriculum of the program is approved by a sponsor who certifies that the program will prepare an individual with skills and competencies needed to enroll in a registered apprenticeship program and the pre-apprenticeship program maintains conduct and attendance policies in accordance with such sponsor. Requires that a covered individual enrolled in a pre-apprenticeship program receive the same amount and kind of educational assistance the individual would receive if the individual were enrolled in a program of apprenticeship, with an exception of specified housing assistance if the individual is not paid as part of such pre-apprenticeship program. .
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 2013
Uniting and Strengthening America by Fulfilling Rights and Ending Eavesdropping, Dragnet-collection, and Online Monitoring Act or the USA FREEDOM Act - Amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to set forth additional requirements for obtaining orders for business records in counterterrorism investigations, including requiring that the records sought pertain to a foreign power, an agent of a foreign power, or an individual in contact with, or known to a suspected agent of, a foreign power. Requires additional information if the applicant is seeking a nondisclosure requirement in connection with such request. Allows the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to apply for renewals of nondisclosure requirements. Authorizes the Attorney General (AG) to require the production of call data records by the provider of a wire or electronic communication service. Amends the USA PATRIOT Improvements and Reauthorization Act of 2005 to require the Inspector General (IG) of the Department of Justice (DOJ), for 2010 through 2013, to report on an examination of the minimization procedures (procedures designed to minimize the acquisition and retention of information and to prohibit its unauthorized dissemination) used in relation to business records orders. Imposes additional requirements on the authorized use of pen registers and trap and trace devices (devices for recording incoming and outgoing telephone numbers), including that: (1) the information sought must pertain to a foreign power, agent thereof, or individual in contact with or known to such an agent; and (2) the application must contain a statement of proposed minimization procedures. Requires audits of the effectiveness and use of such devices. Prohibits the searching of collections of communications of U.S. persons, except: (1) under an order or authorization for electronic surveillance or physical search, (2) with the consent of such person, or (3) under a reasonable belief that the life or safety of the person is threatened and the information is sought to assist that person. Limits the collection of wholly domestic communications of a U.S. person to those communications: (1) to which any party is a target of the acquisition; or (2) that contain an identifier of a target of an acquisition, only if the communications are acquired to protect against international terrorism or the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Prohibits receiving into evidence any information obtained in an acquisition against any U.S. person for which a deficiency in the procedures for acquiring such information is identified by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA Court). Authorizes the FISA Court, if the government corrects any deficiencies so identified, to permit the use or disclosure of information acquired before the correction under such minimization procedures as the FISA Court shall establish. Repeals on June 1, 2015, FISA procedures regarding the targeting of non-U.S. persons located outside the United States in order to acquire foreign intelligence information. Requires reviews of surveillance targeting and minimization procedures by the IG of the Intelligence Community (IC), including mandatory review with respect to the privacy rights of U.S. persons. Establishes within the judicial branch an Office of the Special Advocate to participate in proceedings before the FISA Court and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review, request reconsiderations of FISA Court decisions, and participate in appeals and reviews. Requires the Special Advocate to vigorously advocate in support of legal interpretations that protect individual privacy and civil liberties. Requires the Attorney General to publicly disclose specified information in connection with FISA Court or FISA Court of Review decisions appealed by the Special Advocate. Requires the release of as much information regarding the facts and analysis in such decisions as is consistent with legitimate national security concerns. Authorizes the FBI Director to request from a communication service provider the name, address, length of service, and local and long distance billing records of a person as part of a national security investigation only if there are reasonable grounds to believe that the information sought pertains to a foreign power, an agent of a foreign power, or an individual in contact with, or known to a suspected agent of, a foreign power. Provides similar requirements with respect to an FBI request for information from financial institutions and consumer reporting agencies. Revises provisions prohibiting the disclosure of the receipt of a national security letter by such providers, institutions, and agencies to except disclosure to: (1) those persons to whom disclosure is necessary to comply with the request, (2) an attorney in order to obtain legal advice or assistance regarding the request, or (3) other persons as permitted by the FBI. Includes under such prohibition (with the same exceptions) national security letters issued in connection with the investigation of persons with access to classified information. Allows affected communications providers, financial institutions, and consumer reporting agencies to seek judicial review of requests for information. Requires the DOJ IG to report results of audits of national security letters issued during 2010 through 2013. Amends provisions of FISA, the Right to Financial Privacy Act of 1978, the National Security Act of 1947, and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) concerning national security letters to, effective June 1, 2015, make such provisions read as they read on October 25, 2001. Allows electronic service providers to publicly report on information provided under FISA orders and national security letters. Exempts such providers from liability with respect to such reports. Revises requirements concerning government reporting on the use of FISA orders and national security letters. Amends the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to remove the AG as a required intermediary for subpoenas in connection with authorized activities of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 2013
Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2013 - Prohibits the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) from: (1) increasing flood insurance risk premium rates to reflect the current risk of flood for certain property located in specified areas subject to a certain mandatory premium adjustment, or (2) reducing such subsidies for any property not insured by the flood insurance program as of July 6, 2012, or any policy that has lapsed in coverage as a result of the policyholder's deliberate choice (Pre-Flood Insurance Rate Map or pre-FIRM properties). Sets forth expiration dates for such prohibitions. Amends the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (NFIA) to prohibit the Administrator from providing flood insurance to prospective insureds at rates less than those estimated for any property purchased after the expiration of such six-month period (currently, any property purchased after July 6, 2012). Directs FEMA to: (1) restore during such six-month period specified estimated risk premium rate subsidies for flood insurance for pre-FIRM properties and properties purchased after such six-month period, and (2) submit to certain congressional committees a draft affordability framework addressing the affordability of flood insurance sold under the National Flood Insurance Program. Prescribes procedures for expedited congressional consideration of legislation on FEMA affordability authorities. Permits FEMA to enter into an agreement with another federal agency either to: (1) complete the affordability study, or (2) prepare the draft affordability framework. Directs FEMA submit to certain congressional committees the affordability study and report. Amends NFIA to authorize FEMA to reimburse homeowners for successful map appeals. Makes any community that has made adequate progress on the construction (as under current law) or reconstruction (new) of a flood protection system which will afford flood protection for the one-hundred year frequency flood eligible for flood insurance at premium rates not exceeding those which would apply if such flood protection system had been completed. Revises guidelines governing availability of flood insurance in communities restoring disaccredited flood protection systems to include riverine and coastal levees. Requires FEMA to: (1) rate a covered structure using the elevation difference between the floodproofed elevation of the covered structure and the adjusted base flood elevation of the covered structure; and (2) designate a Flood Insurance Advocate to advocate for the fair treatment of policy holders under the National Flood Insurance Program and property owners in the mapping of flood hazards, the identification of risks from flood, and the implementation of measures to minimize the risk of flood.
United States · United States Congress · 29 October 2013
Exchange Information Disclosure Act - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to expand reporting requirements related to health care exchanges. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to publish reports weekly through March 31, 2015, on: (1) consumer interactions with healthcare.gov or subsequent sites and any efforts undertaken to remedy problems that impact taxpayers and consumers, (2) calls to the federal customer service call center, including the number of calls received by the call center, problems identified by users, and referrals of those calls; (3) all navigators and certified application counselors that have been trained and certified by health care exchanges; and (4) all agents and brokers who have been trained and certified by the federal health care exchange.
United States · United States Congress · 28 October 2013
Keep Your Health Plan Act of 2013 - Permits a health insurance issuer that has in effect health insurance coverage in the individual market as of January 1, 2013, to continue offering such coverage for sale during 2014 outside of a health care exchange established under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Treats such coverage as a grandfathered health plan for purposes of an individual meeting the requirement to maintain minimum essential health coverage.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 2013
Taxpayer Transparency Act of 2013 - Requires each communication funded by a federal agency for advertising or educational purposes to clearly state: (1) in the case of a printed communication, including mass mailings, signs, and billboards, that the communication is printed and published at taxpayer expense; and (2) in the case of a communication transmitted through radio, television, or the Internet, that the communication is produced and disseminated at taxpayer expense. Requires any such printed communication, including e-mails, to be of sufficient size to be clearly readable, to be set apart from the other contents of the communication, and to be printed with a reasonable degree of color contrast between the background and the printed statement. Exempts from such requirements: (1) information in a solicitation for offers for a federal contract; and (2) advertisements for employment opportunities, not including advertising materials developed for use in recruiting and retaining personnel for the Armed Forces.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 2013
Authorizes and requests the President to award the Medal of Honor to Bennie G. Adkins and Donald P. Sloat of the U.S. Army for acts of valor during the Vietnam Conflict. Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2002 to authorize the award of the Medal of Honor to a veteran who, although not a Jewish- or Hispanic-American veteran who was previously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the Navy Cross, or the Air Force Cross, was identified during a review of service records and regarding whom the Secretary of Defense submitted, before January 1, 2014, a recommendation that the President award the Medal of Honor to that veteran.
United States · United States Congress · 22 October 2013
Designates the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical center in Bay Pines, Florida, as the "C.W. Bill Young Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center."
United States · United States Congress · 15 October 2013
United States-Iran Nuclear Negotiations Act - States that it is the policy of Congress that it is in the national security interest of the United States and its allies and partners to ensure that Iran: (1) halts all uranium enrichment and identifies all enrichment sites, (2) removes and transfers to a third party under the auspices of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) all uranium enriched to a 20% and higher threshold, (3) closes the Fordow uranium enrichment facility, and (4) ceases developing reactors capable of producing plutonium and the importation and domestic manufacturing of all centrifuges for enriching uranium. Expresses the sense of Congress that if these objectives are met it shall be U.S. policy to enter into a negotiated settlement regarding nuclear activities in Iran. Declares that the United States is capable, willing, and ready to use military force to prevent Iran from obtaining or developing a nuclear weapons capability. Acknowledges that this Act constitutes current consultation with the President on Iran in order to provide for application of all options to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapons capability and provides consent to the appropriate use of force against legitimate targets in Iran to: (1) uphold and implement all relevant United Nations (U.N.) Security Council resolutions regarding Iran's nuclear program, (2) deter Iran's development of nuclear weapons in order to protect the national security interests of the United States and its allies and partners, and (3) degrade Iran's capacity to develop such weapons in the future. States that, if any business, firm, or entity has not terminated the provision of goods, services, or technology in Iran or with any Iranian-controlled entity, the President may: (1) prohibit that business, firm, or entity from receiving any U.S. government contract or accessing U.S. capital markets; and (2) in the case of a business, firm, or entity that is a foreign financial institution, prohibit or impose strict conditions on the opening or maintaining in the United States of a correspondent account or payable-through account.
United States · United States Congress · 15 October 2013
Makes appropriations, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, and out of applicable corporate or other revenues, receipts, and funds, for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for FY2014, and for other purposes, such amounts as may be necessary, at a rate for operations as provided for FY2013 under the Science Appropriations Act, 2013 (division B of P.L. 113-6), for continuing projects or activities (including the costs of direct loans and loan guarantees) that are not otherwise specifically provided for in this joint resolution, that were conducted in FY2013, and for which appropriations, funds, or other authority were made available by such Act under the heading "National Aeronautics and Space Administration." Requires the rate of operations to be calculated to reflect the full amount of any reduction required in FY2013 pursuant to: (1) the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013 (P.L. 113-6), and (2) the presidential sequestration order dated March 1, 2013, except as attributable to budget authority made available by the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2013 (P.L. 113-2). Makes appropriations and funds made available and authority granted under this joint resolution available until whichever of the following first occurs: (1) enactment into law of an appropriation for any project or activity provided for in this joint resolution, (2) enactment into law of the applicable appropriations Act for FY2014 without any provision for such project or activity, or (3) September 30, 2014. Requires implementation of this joint resolution so that only the most limited funding action be taken in order to provide for continuation of projects and activities. Authorizes amounts made available for civilian personnel compensation and benefits to be apportioned up to the rate for operations necessary to avoid furloughs, consistent with the applicable appropriations Act for FY2013, except that such authority shall not be used until after the agency has taken all necessary actions to reduce or defer non-personnel-related administrative expenses.
United States · United States Congress · 9 October 2013
Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2013 - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, with respect to abortion coverage in qualified plans offered through a Health Benefit Exchange, to modify the notice rules to require that: in the case of services regarding abortions both for which public funding is prohibited and allowed, the extent of coverage shall be prominently displayed in any marketing or advertising materials, comparison tools, or summary of benefits and coverage explanation made available by the issuer of the plan, by an Exchange, or by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), including information made available through an Internet portal or Exchange; and in the case of abortions for which public funding is prohibited and where the premium for the plan is disclosed, the surcharge attributable to such services, consisting of an amount equal to the actuarial value of the coverage, shall be disclosed and identified separately.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2013
Flood Insurance Fairness Act of 2013 - Prohibits the taking effect of specified flood insurance premium changes under the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012 and the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 (which prohibit the estimating of flood insurance premium rates for severe repetitive loss and other specified properties or extending premium subsidies to new or lapsed flood insurance policies, and which also require certain flood insurance risk premium rate adjustments) until 180 days after both chambers of Congress have completed consideration of a qualified joint resolution providing for legislative changes to ensure that risk premium rates for flood insurance coverage under the national flood insurance program are substantially affordable for all homeowners. Directs the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to submit to Congress and make publicly available a determination of whether the risk premium rates for flood insurance coverage under the national flood insurance program resulting from such legislative changes are substantially affordable for all homeowners. Sets forth procedures for expedited congressional consideration of the proposed joint resolution.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2013
Safe Military Bases Act - Repeals: (1) Army Regulation 190-14, entitled "Carrying of Firearms and Use of Force for Law Enforcement and Security Duties"; and (2) Department of Defense Directive Number 5210.56, entitled "Use of Deadly Force and the Carrying of Firearms by DOD Personnel Engaged in Law Enforcement and Security Duties." Nullifies any provision in any other law, rule, regulation, or executive order that prohibits military personnel trained in firearms from carrying officially issued or personally owned firearms on military bases. Prohibits: (1) the Secretary of Defense (DOD) and the Secretaries of the military departments from reinstating the firearm bans repealed in this Act or enacting similar restrictions; and (2) the President from taking any executive action, promulgating any rule, or issuing any executive order or regulation to prohibit military personnel from carrying firearms.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2013
Buffalo Bayou National Heritage Area Act - Establishes the Buffalo Bayou National Heritage Area in Texas. Designates the Buffalo Bayou National Heritage Area Corporation as the management entity for the Heritage Area. Requires the Corporation to submit a management plan for the Heritage Area. Sets forth requirements for the approval or disapproval of such plan. Specifies this Act's effect on private property protections and water rights with regard to the Heritage Area. Bars anything in this Act from being meant as modifying the Rio Grande Natural Area Act.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2013
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that Congress should retain its authority vested in the U.S. Constitution to borrow money on the credit of the United States and not surrender its authority to establish the debt limit of the United States to the executive branch or allow the President to raise the debt ceiling unilaterally.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2013
Medicare Established Provider Act of 2013 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop a system to designate service providers and suppliers who meet specified criteria representing a low risk for submitting fraudulent Medicare claims as established providers afforded certain special treatment in the claim review process.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 2013
Rewarding Achievement and Incentivizing Successful Employees Act or RAISE Act - Amends the National Labor Relations Act to declare that neither its prohibition against interference by an employer with employees' right to bargain collectively, nor the terms of a collective bargaining agreement entered into between employees and an employer after enactment of this Act, shall prohibit an employer from paying an employee higher wages, pay, or other compensation than the agreement provides for.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 2013
Responsible Implementation of Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2013 - Amends the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to limit the requirements for flood insurance premium rate adjustments to reflect the current risk of flood only to property located in an area participating in the national flood insurance program for which the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has published in the Federal Register projected base flood elevations and designations of areas having specified flood hazards on or after December 31, 2013. Increases by 20% annually the flood insurance risk premium rates for certain properties sold on or after enactment of the Biggert-Waters Flood Insurance Reform Act of 2012 (July 6, 2012), and which are not subject to a specified 25% per year phase-in, until the average risk premium rate for such properties is equal to the average of the risk premium rates for properties within a specified single risk classification. Directs FEMA to establish a means by which a state or local government may submit to FEMA payments to fully cover the cost of any premium for property within its jurisdiction. Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to direct FEMA, in providing hazard mitigation assistance in connection with flooding, to ensure that not less than 25% of the estimated aggregate amount of such assistance is used by a grant recipient to elevate, acquire, or relocate eligible properties within the recipient's jurisdiction. Prohibits FEMA, in determining whether a community has made adequate progress on the construction, reconstruction, or improvement of a flood protection system, from considering the level of federal funding or participation in such efforts. Revises requirements for the availability of flood insurance in a community which FEMA has determined to be in the process of restoring flood protection afforded by a system previously accredited on a Flood Insurance Rate Map as providing 100-year frequency flood protection but no longer does so. Declares that such requirements shall apply without regard to the level of federal funding of or participation in the construction, reconstruction, or improvement of the flood protection system. Prohibits FEMA from issuing a flood insurance rate map, or an update to one, unless: (1) the map or update adequately reflects the protection provided by any levee system in the area against the base flood, regardless of the system's accreditation status; or (2) the community in which any levee system is located elects not to provide the data necessary for FEMA to issue either a map or an update that adequately reflects the protection the system provides against the base flood.
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2013
American Health Care Reform Act of 2013 - Repeals the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the health care provisions of the Health Care and Education and Reconciliation Act of 2010, effective as of their enactment. Restores or revives provisions amended or repealed by such Act or such health care provisions. Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to allow an income tax standard deduction for a specified percentage of an individual's health insurance costs, regardless of whether or not the taxpayer itemizes other deductions. Excludes the amount of such a deduction from employment taxes. Allows a taxpayer, for earned income credit purposes, to exclude from earned income any employer contributions to a qualified accident or health plan. Allows double additional contributions to a health savings account (HSA) if both spouses are age 55 or older and one spouse is not an account beneficiary. Prescribes special rules for HSA coverage eligibility for certain individuals: (1) participating in a Medicare Advantage Medical Savings Account (MSA), (2) receiving periodic hospital care or medical services for a service-connected disability, (3) eligible for Indian Health Service assistance, or (4) eligible for TRICARE coverage. Prescribes requirements for interaction of health flexible spending arrangements (FSAs) and health reimbursement arrangements with HSAs. Prohibits the payment of health insurance premiums from HSAs, with certain exceptions. Prescribes circumstances in which certain medical expenses incurred before establishment of an HSA may still be qualified expenses. Prescribes requirements for protection of any HSA in a bankruptcy proceeding. Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to authorize additional health opportunity account demonstration programs. Treats membership in a health care sharing ministry as coverage under a high deductible health plan. Renames high deductible health plans as HSA qualified plans. Allows payments from an HSA for: (1) direct primary care service arrangements, (2) certain exercise equipment and physical fitness programs, (3) certain nutritional and dietary supplements, and (4) periodic fees paid to a primary care physician for the right to receive medical services on an as-needed basis. Increases the maximum limit on contributions to an HSA to match deductible and out-of-pocket expenses limitations. Prescribes requirements for establishment of child health savings accounts, for which an income tax deduction shall be allowed a taxpayer equal to the aggregate cash amount paid into the account during the taxable year. Amends the IRC to include in gross income any distributions from an HSA for an abortion. Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act (PHSA), and the IRC to authorize premium and cost-sharing variances in group health plans based on certain financial incentives for participation (or lack of it) in a standards-based wellness program. Amends the PHSA to direct the Secretary to provide a grant of up to $5 million to each state for the costs of creation and initial operation of a qualified high risk pool if it has not created such a pool as of September 1, 2013. Limits participation in such a pool to U.S. citizens and nationals. Declares that the laws of the state designated by a health insurance issuer (primary state) shall apply to individual health insurance coverage offered by that issuer in the primary state and in any other state (secondary state), but only if the coverage and issuer comply with conditions of this Act. Prohibits a health insurance issuer from offering, selling, or issuing individual health insurance coverage in a secondary state if its insurance commissioner does not use a risk-based capital formula for determining capital and surplus requirements for all health insurance issuers. Amends the McCarran-Ferguson Act to declare that nothing in it shall modify, impair, or supersede the operation of any of the antitrust laws with respect to the business of health insurance (including the business of dental insurance). Amends SSA title XI (General Provisions) to require the Secretary to make available to the public Medicare claims and payment data, including data on payments made to any provider of services or supplier. Authorizes a state to establish a Health Plan and Provider Portal website to standardize information on: (1) health insurance plans available in the state, and (2) price and quality information on health care providers (including physicians, hospitals, and other health care institutions). Declares that nothing in this Act shall be construed to interfere with the doctor-patient relationship or the practice of medicine. Amends the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to eliminate the Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research. Amends ERISA to prescribe requirements for establishment and governance of association health plans, which are group health plans meeting certain ERISA certification criteria whose sponsors are trade, industry, professional, chamber of commerce, or similar business associations. Limits the commencement of a health care lawsuit, except in certain cases including fraud or intentional concealment, to three years after the date of manifestation of injury or one year after the claimant discovers, or through the use of reasonable diligence should have discovered, the injury, whichever occurs first. Limits to $250,000 the amount of noneconomic damages in such a lawsuit, but allows a claim for the full amount of any economic damages. Requires the court, in any health care lawsuit, to supervise the arrangements for payment of damages to protect against conflicts of interest that may have the effect of reducing the amount of damages awarded that are actually paid to claimants. Specifies criteria for the award of punitive damages, limited to the greater of $250,000 or double the amount of economic damages. Preempts state law with respect to health care lawsuits. Declares that nothing in this Act shall be construed to: (1) require any health plan to provide coverage of or access to abortion services; or (2) allow the Secretary, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Labor, or any other federal or non-federal person or entity in implementing this Act to require coverage of, or access to, abortion services. Prohibits the use of funds authorized or appropriated by this Act to pay for any abortion or to cover any part of the costs of any health plan that includes abortion coverage, except: (1) if the pregnancy is the result of an act of rape or incest; or (2) in the case where a pregnant female suffers from a physical disorder, physical injury, or physical illness that would, as certified by a physician, place the female in danger of death unless an abortion is performed, including a life-endangering physical condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2013
Honoring the Fort Hood Heroes Act - Directs: (1) the Secretary of the military department concerned to award the Purple Heart to members of the Armed Forces (members) who were killed or wounded in the attack at Fort Hood, Texas, on November 5, 2009; and (2) the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to award the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Defense of Freedom to civilian employees and contractors of DOD who were killed or wounded in such attack. Deems, for purposes of all applicable federal benefit laws, regulations, and policies: (1) such members to have been killed or wounded in a combat zone as the result of an enemy act; and (2) such employees to have been killed or wounded by hostile action while serving with the Armed Forces in a contingency operation and to have been killed or wounded in a terrorist attack. Excludes any member whose death or wound was the result of willful misconduct. Applies such provisions to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or other psychological injuries that were a a result of such attack.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 2013
Qualifying Renewable Chemical Production Tax Credit Act of 2013 - Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States should encourage the domestic production of renewable chemicals. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a business-related tax credit for the production of renewable chemicals. Defines "renewable chemical" as any chemical that is: (1) produced in the United States from renewable biomass; (2) sold or used by the taxpayer for the production of chemical products, polymers, plastics, or as chemicals, polymers, plastics, or formulated products; and (3) not sold or used for the production of any food, feed, or fuel. Exempts certain chemicals, including those with a biobased content of less than 25%. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a five-year program to allocate credit amounts. Limits the total amount of allocable credits under such program to $500 million, with a limit of $25 million to any taxpayer in any taxable year.
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 2013
Ansar al-Sharia Terrorist Designation Act of 2013 - Directs the Secretary of State to report to Congress on whether the Libyan faction of Ansar al-Sharia meets the criteria for designation as a foreign terrorist organization, and if not, a detailed justification as to which criteria have not been met. Expresses the sense of Congress that the Libyan faction of Ansar al-Sharia should be designated as a foreign terrorist organization.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2013
Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation Act of 2013 - Amends the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act to direct the Secretary of Commerce to establish within the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) a Network for Manufacturing Innovation Program. Includes among Program purposes to: (1) improve the competitiveness of U.S. manufacturing and increase domestic production; (2) stimulate U.S. leadership in advanced manufacturing research, innovation, and technology; and (3) accelerate the development of an advanced manufacturing workforce. Requires the Secretary to: (1) establish a network of centers for manufacturing innovation, to be known as the Network for Manufacturing Innovation; and (2) award financial assistance to assist in planning, establishing, or supporting such centers. Directs the Secretary to establish within NIST the National Office of the Network for Manufacturing Innovation Program to: (1) oversee the Program, (2) develop and periodically update a strategic plan for the Program, (3) establish a clearinghouse of public information related to Program activities, and (4) act as a convener of the Network. Requires the Secretary to ensure that the Office incorporates the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership into Program planning to ensure that the results of the Program reach small- and medium-sized entities. Establishes in the Treasury a Network for Manufacturing Innovation Fund for carrying out the Program.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2013
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 232 Southwest Johnson Avenue in Burleson, Texas, as the "Sergeant William Moody Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2013
Armed Services Always Paid Act or ASAP Act - Provides for funding the pay and allowances, without interruption, of members of the Armed Forces, including reserve personnel, during any period of lapsed appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2013
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that any immigration reform proposal adopted by Congress should not legalize, grant amnesty for, or confer any other legal status condoning the otherwise unlawful U.S. entry or presence of any individual.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2013
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that no bill or resolution shall pass that continues appropriations in the event of a lapse in appropriations or increases the borrowing authority relating to the public debt limit unless it contains a provision prohibiting the expenditure of any federal funds to implement or enforce any provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act or the health care provisions of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2013
Prohibits the House of Representatives from bringing any legislation including any conference report regarding immigration to the House floor for a vote until the U.S. southern border is secured, as confirmed by the governors and the legislatures jointly of the four southern border states.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2013
Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2013 - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the initial U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Water and Development Strategy is a significant accomplishment and improves USAID's capacity to provide sustainable and effective water, sanitation, and hygiene assistance; and (2) the Secretary of State, through the Special Advisor for Water Resources, should develop a Global Water Resources Strategy relating to U.S. foreign policy water objectives. Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to direct: (1) the Administrator to designate a Global Water Coordinator to coordinate and oversee water, sanitation, and hygiene assistance; and (2) the Secretary of State to designate a Special Advisor for Water Resources to coordinate and oversee policy relating to water, hygiene, and sanitation assistance. Sets forth principles to ensure that water, sanitation, and hygiene projects carried out under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 achieve maximum impact. Amends the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 to direct: (1) the President, through the Secretary, to develop a strategy every five years to further the U.S. foreign policy objective to provide affordable and equitable access to safe water and sanitation in developing countries; and (2) the Administrator, through the Global Water Coordinator, to develop a complementary strategy to further the U.S. foreign assistance objective to provide affordable and equitable drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene in developing countries.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2013
Directs 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 in honor of President Shimon Peres of Israel.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2013
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President should award the Presidential Medal of Freedom posthumously to Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods for their dedication, courage, and sacrifice during the battle in Benghazi, Libya, during the night of September 11-12, 2012.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2013
Fairness for America's Heroes Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, as amended by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, to exempt veterans, until January 1, 2015, from the penalty for failure to maintain minimum essential health care coverage. Defines a "veteran," for purposes of this Act, as an individual who served on active duty (other than active duty for training) and who has been discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2013
Medicare Patient Access and Quality Improvement Act of 2013 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) repeal sustainable growth rate (SGR) methodology from the determination of annual conversion factors in the formula for payment for physicians' services; and (2) prescribe an update to the single conversion factor for 2014 through 2018, as well as 2019 all subsequent years, of 0.5%. Requires the update for a year beginning with 2019 to be adjusted by the applicable determined quality adjustment for any eligible professional who does not have a payment arrangement (eligible professional quality update incentive program). Prescribes requirements for core measure sets as well as quality measures for them. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish: (1) an eligible professional quality update incentive program meeting specified criteria, and (2) one or more methods to assess an eligible professional's performance with respect to quality measures and clinical practice improvement activities. Amends SSA title XVIII part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) to require payment for covered professional services furnished by an eligible professional under a specified Alternative Payment Model (APM) to be made under Medicare in accordance with the payment arrangement under such model. Directs the Secretary to establish a process to implement eligible APMs. Sets forth requirements for: (1) expanding uses of Medicare data by qualified entities; (2) promoting care coordination and Medicare homes; (3) soliciting recommendations on non-acute episodes of care definitions; and (4) establishing a physician reporting system to improve the accuracy of relative values, such as data relating to service volume and time.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2013
End Sex Trafficking Act of 2013 - Amends: (1) the federal criminal code to expand the scope of prohibitions against sex trafficking to include patronizing or soliciting a commercial sex act with a victim of sex trafficking, and (2) the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 to expand the definition of "sex trafficking" to include patronizing or soliciting a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act. Directs the Attorney General to ensure that all task forces and working groups within the Innocence Lost National Initiative engage in activities, programs, or operations to increase the investigative capabilities of state and local law enforcement officers in the detection, investigation, and prosecution of persons who patronize or solicit children for sex.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2013
Delays for one year the effective date of any provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act or of any health care provisions of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2011 that were scheduled to take effect on or after January 1, 2014. Suspends for one year, beginning January 1, 2014, any tax or tax increase imposed by such provisions if the tax or increase takes effect before that date.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2013
Protecting American Taxpayers and Homeowners Act of 2013 - GSE Bailout Elimination and Taxpayer Protection Act - Directs the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), five years after enactment of this Act, to appoint FHFA as receiver of the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) (government sponsored enterprises or (GSEs) under the Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992, to carry out mandatory receivership (thus terminating the current conservatorship for such GSEs). Repeals the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac charters effective five years after enactment of this Act. Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1992, the Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992, the Federal National Mortgage Association Charter Act, and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation Act to prescribe specified requirements, limitations, and prohibitions on GSE activities until their charters are repealed and authorities terminated. FHA Reform and Modernization Act of 2013 - Establishes the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) as a wholly owned government corporation to: (1) provide residential mortgage insurance and other credit enhancement and related activities; (2) supplement private sector activity by serving hard-to-serve markets, developing new mortgage products, and filling gaps in the provision and delivery of mortgage credit; and (3) deliver housing mortgage insurance and credit enhancement and provide other services in a non-discriminatory manner. Prescribes FHA requirements concerning: (1) budget and business plans; (2) examinations, reports, and cost estimates; (3) the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund and capital ratios, reserves, and restoration plans; (4) borrower suspension, ineligibility, and foreclosure; (5) mortgage repurchase; (6) mortgagee indemnification; (7) eminent domain; and (8) residual income. Transfers to FHA, at the end of a five-year transition period, the functions of, authority provided to, and the responsibilities of the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and HUD personnel. Amends the National Housing Act to repeal the home equity conversion mortgage (reverse mortgage) program and mortgage insurance for hospitals. National Mortgage Market Utility Act of 2013 - Requires the Director of FHFA to provide for the organization, incorporation, examination, operation, and regulation of a not-for-profit national mortgage market Utility to: (1) enhance efficiency, liquidity, and security in the secondary market for residual mortgages; (2) establish standards for originating and servicing eligible collateral and for issuers and trustees of qualified securities, which would be exempt from the Securities Act of 1933; and (3) operate a common securitization platform that could be available to issues of residential mortgage-backed securities. Prohibits the Utility from: (1) originating, servicing, insuring, or guaranteeing any residential mortgage or other associated financial instrument; or (2) guaranteeing timely payment of principal or interest on any mortgage-related security. Requires the Director to: (1) issue a charter for the Utility; and (2) oversee the transfer to the Utility of the securitization infrastructure announced by the FHFA on October 4, 2012, and as developed by an enterprise or the enterprises in conservatorship (the Platform). Sets forth standards for qualified securities. Directs the utility to organize and operate a national mortgage data repository. United States Covered Bond Act of 2013 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to establish a covered bond regulatory oversight program for the evaluation and maintenance of programs of eligible issuers under which, on the security of a single cover pool, one or more series of covered bonds may be issued. Defines covered bonds as any recourse debt obligation of an eligible issuer that: (1) has an original term to maturity of not less than one year, (2) is secured by a perfected security interest in or other perfected lien on a cover pool owned directly or indirectly by the obligation's issuer, (3) is issued under a covered bond program approved by the applicable covered bond regulator, (4) is identified in a register of covered bonds maintained by the Secretary, and (5) is not a deposit subject to the Federal Deposit Insurance Act. Amends the Secondary Mortgage Market Enhancement Act of 1984 to authorize any person, trust, corporation, partnership, association, business trust, or business entity created under federal or state law to purchase, hold, and invest in covered bonds. Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the tax treatment of estates created under covered bond programs and certain transfers under covered bond programs. Imposes a tax on certain estates created under covered bond programs. Directs the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and the Comptroller of the Currency to study the impact of the Regulatory Capital Rules finalized by the Board on July 2, 2013 (pursuant to the Third Basel Accord on capital adequacy, stress testing, and market liquidity risk, or Basel III). Prohibits the Board, the FDIC, and the Comptroller of the Currency, in implementing the Basel III Liquidity Coverage Ratio amendments, from requiring, as a condition for status as a high quality liquid asset, that residential mortgage-backed securities be collateralized only by (or be collateralized by a certain percentage of) full recourse mortgage loans. Amends the Truth in Lending Act to modify the items, compensation, and charges included in points and fees with respect to a high-cost mortgage. Amends the Bank Holding Company Act to exclude from hedge funds and private equity funds certain issuers of asset-backed securities. Amends the Securities Act of 1933 with respect to exemptions from specified prohibitions relating to interstate commerce and the mails for transactions by any person other than an issuer, underwriter, or dealer or transactions by an issuer not involving any public offering. Prohibits the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from conditioning the availability of such exemptions upon an issuer's undertaking to provide to investors, in connection with initial offers or sales or on an ongoing basis after an initial offer or sale, the same or substantially similar information as would be required in a transaction to which such prohibitions apply. (Thus suspends Regulation AB II rulemaking.) Amends the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to repeal the requirement that federal banking agencies and the SEC jointly prescribe credit risk regulations for securitizers to retain an economic interest in a portion of the credit risk for any asset the securitizer, through the issuance of an asset-backed security, transfers, sells, or conveys to a third party. Amends the Truth in Lending Act, the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975, the Truth in Lending Act, and the Dodd-Frank Act to make exemptions from specified requirements, or repeal related requirements, for certain residential mortgages, particularly those serving as collateral for a qualified security. Amends the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council Act of 1978 with respect to: (1) timeliness of examination reports, (2) examination standards, (3) establishment of an Office of Examination Ombudsman, and (4) the right to appeal before an independent administrative law judge. Common Sense Economic Recovery Act of 2013 - Cites circumstances under which, for purposes of determining capital requirements or measuring an insured depository institution's capital, such an institution may treat a non-accrual loan as an accrual loan. (Non-accrual [also known as non-performing or doubtful] loans are those on which interest is overdue and full collection of principal is uncertain, and so interest, if it has not been paid in over 90 days, cannot be credited to the bank's revenue account until it has actually been received.)
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2013
Sanctity of Life Act of 2013 - Declares that: (1) human life is deemed to exist from fertilization, without regard to race, sex, age, health, defect, or condition of dependency; and (2) "person" includes all such human life. Recognizes that each state has a compelling interest in protecting the lives of those within the state's jurisdiction whom the state rationally regards as human beings. Amends the federal judicial code to remove Supreme Court and district court jurisdiction to review cases arising out of any statute, ordinance, rule, regulation, or practice, or any act interpreting such a measure on the grounds that such measure: (1) protects the rights of human persons between conception and birth; or (2) prohibits, limits, or regulates the performance of abortions or the provision of public funds, facilities, personnel, or other assistance for abortions.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2013
No Social Security for Illegal Immigrants Act of 2013 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to exclude from creditable wages and self-employment income any wages earned for services by aliens performed in the United States, and self-employment income derived from a trade or business conducted in the United States, while the alien was not authorized to be so employed or to perform a function or service in such a trade or business.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2013
Sets forth the rule for consideration of H.Res. 36 (establishes a select committee to investigate and report on the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya).
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 2013
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2013 - Authorizes appropriations for FY2014-FY2015 for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Authorizes programs, activities and reports respecting NASA, including those with regard to human exploration, the Space Launch System, the Orion multipurpose crew vehicle, the International Space Station (ISS), radioisotope thermoelectric generators, extrasolar planet research and exploration, the James Webb Space Telescope, the Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope, near-Earth objects, space weather, the Deep Space Climate Observatory, land imaging remote sensing data, aeronautics research, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, project and program reserves, and orbital debris mitigation. Establishes a space technology program.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2013
Defund Obamacare Act of 2013 - Prohibits any federal funds from being made available to carry out the provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act or the health care provisions of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. Prohibits any entitlement to benefits under such provisions from remaining in effect on and after the date of the enactment of this Act. Prohibits any payments from being awarded, owed, or made to any state, district, or territory under any such provision. Rescinds any unobligated balances available under such provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 10 July 2013
Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2013 - Directs the President to establish guidelines for the establishment of measurable goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans for U.S. foreign assistance. Requires such guidelines to provide direction to federal departments and agencies that administer U.S. foreign assistance relating to: (1) resource monitoring, (2) project and program evaluation, and (3) analysis of findings and generalizations and their applicability to proposed project and program design. Requires: (1) each appropriate federal department or agency to begin using such guidelines within one year after their establishment, and (2) the President to submit a related report to Congress within 18 months. Directs the President to require the Secretary of State to establish and maintain an Internet website to make publicly available comprehensive and accessible information on U.S. foreign assistance programs on a country-by-country and program-by program basis. Requires the head of a federal department or agency to brief Congress if specified information requirements are not met. Authorizes a department or agency to use up to 5% of its foreign development assistance funds for activities under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 10 July 2013
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the President has violated Section 3 of Article II of the Constitution by refusing to enforce the employer mandate provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA); (2) republican government depends upon the rule of law; (3) the executive branch, which has no constitutional authority to write or rewrite law at whim, has invaded upon the exclusive legislative power of Congress; and (4) PPACA has proven to be unworkable and should be repealed by Congress immediately.
![Official portrait of Rep. Stockman, Steve [R-TX-36]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s000937_200.jpg)