United States · United States Congress · 10 October 2007
Expresses support and sympathy for the victims of the flooding that occurred across much of Ohio and the surrounding region in August 2007. Conveys gratitude to those who responded to this emergency and who continue working to restore normalcy. Commends the people of Ohio for their indomitable spirit and for the grace and magnanimity with which they have supported one another during the flooding and continuing recovery.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 2007
Wayne "Cotton" Morgan Bulletproof Vest Act of 2007 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to waive the grantee matching funds requirement applicable to the grant program for purchasing bulletproof armor vests to the extent that such vests are purchased for law enforcement officers who work in high security risk areas and correctional officers who transport prisoners.
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 2007
Commends Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre for establishing a National Football League record for most career touchdown passes. Recognizes Favre for his outstanding community service in Wisconsin and Mississippi and his 16 consecutive years of dedicated service with the Packers.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2007
Fair Medicaid Drug Payment Act of 2007 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to calculate the federal upper reimbursement limit as no less than 300% of the weighted average (based on utilization) of the most recent average manufacturer prices (AMPs) for pharmaceutically and therapeutically equivalent multiple source drug products available for purchase by retail community pharmacies on a nationwide basis. Directs the Secretary to implement a smoothing process for AMPs to ensure that federal upper reimbursement limits do not vary significantly from month to month as a result of rebates, discounts, and other pricing practices. Requires a state plan to subject to prior authorization all covered outpatient drug products that are innovator multiple source drugs, if such drug products are more expensive than other biologically and therapeutically equivalent drug products available for purchase in that state by retail community pharmacies. Revises requirements for monthly reports to the Secretary of price information by manufacturers subject to rebate agreements.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2007
Safety Assurance For Every Consumer Product Act or the SAFE Consumer Product Act - Amends the Consumer Product Safety Act to require (in current law, authorize) the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to prescribe consumer product testing programs. Requires nongovernmental, independent third party testing of children's products. Increases the actions the CPSC may take in ordering recalls of products presenting substantial hazards. Makes recalled product retail sale unlawful. Requires manufacturers to mark products or packaging to enable purchasers to determine the product's source, date, and production cohort. Removes the cap on Consumer Product Safety Act civil penalties. Removes a requirement that criminal penalties may only be imposed after noncompliance notice. Reduces the period after CPSC notification to manufacturers and private labelers before public disclosure of information obtained under the Act. Requires any person who must give public notice of a substantial product hazard to post a notice on the Internet. Declares any children's product containing more than a specified amount of lead to be a banned hazardous substance under the Federal Hazardous Substances Act, allowing a temporary exception for electronic devices. Requires certain actions to facilitate recalls of children's products and authorizes the CPSC to extend the requirements to consumer products other than children's products. Requires children's product's warning labels to be included in Internet advertisements. Removes provisions requiring a minimum number of CPSC members to transact business. Modifies rulemaking notice requirements. Declares the sense of Congress that the full complement of five CPSC members is necessary to conduct CPSC business and the President should fill vacancies expeditiously. Prohibits any consumer product safety standard or other CPSC action after enactment of this Act from containing a preemption provision which affects any action under state statutory or common law unless the provision is expressly authorized by statute.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2007
Urges the President to: (1) call upon associates and appointees who have asserted executive privilege to come forward and testify before Congress; and (2) use all legal means at his disposal to compel people to cooperate with a congressional investigation.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2007
Protecting Employees and Retirees in Business Bankruptcies Act of 2007 - Amends federal bankruptcy law to increase the maximum amount per individual or corporationof unsecured claims ranked in the fourth (wages, salaries, or commissions) and fifth (employee benefit plan contributions) order of priority. Includes within the scope of a claim in bankruptcy certain equity securities held in a defined contribution plan for the benefit of certain individuals. Ranks in sixth order of priority the diminished value of debtor's equity securities held in a defined contribution plan if the employer or plan sponsor committed fraud regarding the plan. Permits within administrative expenses certain severance pay for termination or layoffs. Prohibits certain senior executive compensation from being disproportionate in light of economic concessions by debtor's nonmanagement workforce. Disallows as an administrative expense specified executive compensation enhancements. Revises requirements governing: (1) rejection of collective bargaining agreements; (2) insurance benefits for retired employees; and (3) the status of certain employee benefits in a sale of business assets. Allows defined benefit plan participants to file claims for certain shortfalls in pension benefits. Permits inclusion within the necessary costs and expenses of preserving property the mandatory recovery of unpaid obligations owed to employees. Directs the court to consider the extent to which alternative reorganization plans maintain: (1) jobs; (2) defined benefit plans; and (3) retiree health benefits. Prohibits assumption of deferred compensation for the benefit of insiders or senior management if an employee defined benefit plan has been terminated. Limits the recovery of executive compensation if the debtor has reduced its contractual obligations under either a collective bargaining agreement or retiree benefits plan. Excepts from an automatic stay: (1) a dispute resolution proceeding established by a collective bargaining agreement prior to commencement of bankruptcy; or (2) an award or settlement under such proceeding. Authorizes the bankruptcy trustee to avoid transfers made for the benefit of an insider or certain consultants in anticipation of bankruptcy. Revises prerequisites to court confirmation of a business reorganization plan which continues retiree benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 2007
Superfund Reinvestment Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code by reinstating until January 1, 2018, the Hazardous Substance Superfund financing rate and the corporate environmental income tax.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2007
Food and Drug Import Safety Act of 2007 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide for research on the development of tests and sampling methodologies for use on imported food. Requires the Secretary to assess and collect fees on imported food and drugs. Directs the Secretary to restrict the importation of all food to metropolitan ports of entry with a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) laboratory for testing such food. Deems a food, drug, or device to be misbranded it its labeling fails to identify its country of origin. Requires the Secretary to establish a program under which: (1) persons importing food voluntarily agree to abide by specified food and security guidelines; and (2) the Secretary agrees to expedite the movement of such food through the inspection process. Increases civil penalties for the manufacturer or importer of adulterated food. Sets forth provisions governing the reorganization of FDA field laboratories and district offices. Requires the Secretary to issue an order requiring an immediate cease in the distribution of food that may cause serious, adverse health consequences or death. Subjects all imported food to U.S. food safety standards. Sets forth a certification system for a foreign facility seeking to import food. Requires the Secretary to require, as good manufacturing practices, that processed food undergo testing to detect substances that may render the food adulterated. Defines the term "color additive" to include carbon monoxide that may affect the color of fresh meat, poultry products, or seafood, unless the label bears a specified statement.
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2007
Protecting Children from Indecent Programming Act - Amends the Public Telecommunications Act of 1992 to require the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in applying regulations prohibiting the broadcasting of indecent programming, to maintain a policy that a single word or image may constitute indecent programming.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2007
Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize appropriations for the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program through FY2012.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2007
Do-Not-Call Improvement Act of 2007 - Amends the "Do-Not-Call" Implementation Act to prohibit a specified Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rule from having an expiration date for telephone numbers on the "do-not-call" registry. Prohibits the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), in issuing regulations regarding the "do-not-call" registry of the Telemarketing Sales Rule, from having an expiration date for telephone numbers on that registry.
United States · United States Congress · 6 September 2007
Support for Injured Servicemembers Act - Amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to entitle an eligible employee who is the spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin of a covered servicemember to a total of 26 workweeks of leave during a single 12-month period to care for the servicemember. Defines covered servicemember as a member of the U.S. Armed Forces, including a member of the National Guard or a Reserve, who is undergoing medical treatment, recuperation, or therapy, is otherwise in medical hold or medical holdover status, or is otherwise on the temporary disability retired list, for a serious injury or illness incurred in the line of duty on active duty that may render the member medically unfit to perform his or her duties. Provides for the substitution of accrued paid vacation, personal, family leave, or medical or sick leave for any part of the 26-week period. Declares that nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit the availability of such leave during any other 12-month period. Amends federal civil service law to entitle civilian federal employees to the same leave allowance. Provides for the substitution of accrued paid annual or sick leave for any part of the 26-week period.
United States · United States Congress · 4 September 2007
Atomic Veterans Medal Act of 2007 - Directs the Secretary of Defense to: (1) design and produce an Atomic Testing Service Medal to honor members of the Armed Forces who were exposed to ionizing radiation as a result of U.S. atomic weapons tests conducted between 1945 and 1963; and (2) issue the Medal to such individuals (or their next-of-kin).
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2007
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 202 East Michigan Avenue in Marshall, Michigan, as the "Michael W. Schragg Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2007
Hire a Hero Act - Expresses the sense of Congress that the federal government should support private sector employment initiatives for military personnel to help ensure that those who serve or have served in the Armed Forces have access to gainful employment. Authorizes the Chief of the National Guard Bureau (Chief) to award grants to nonprofit organizations to assist the following individuals in securing employment in the private sector: (1) a member of the National Guard or reserve; (2) a member of the Armed Forces who is nearing separation, discharge, or release; and (3) a former member of the Armed Forces. Expresses the sense of Congress that the Chief, in awarding such grants, should consider organizations that partner with private entities and associations involved in construction, energy, transportation, aerospace, domestic security, and other areas in which the employment of individuals having past military service would be of particular utility. Requires the Chief to establish fiscal control, accountability, and program performance measures for grantees.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2007
Pulmonary Hypertension Research and Education Act of 2007 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to expand, intensify, and coordinate the Institute's pulmonary hypertension research activities. Requires the Director to establish a Pulmonary Hypertension Clinical Research Network to conduct clinical trials to evaluate new treatment approaches for pulmonary hypertension and facilitate collaboration among investigators with expertise in pulmonary hypertension. Directs the network to include: (1) a steering committee; and (2) an Institute project scientist. Provides for the establishment of a national Pulmonary Hypertension Preceptorship and Training Program to facilitate the direct education and training of medical professionals by experienced pulmonary hypertension specialists in clinical settings. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to develop and disseminate to the public information regarding pulmonary hypertension. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the Director of CDC, to develop and disseminate to health care providers information on pulmonary hypertension to ensure that providers remain informed about the disease, its presenting symptoms, and current treatment options. Requires the Comptroller General to conduct a study on the coverage standards that apply to individuals with pulmonary hypertension under Medicare and Medicaid.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2007
Law Enforcement Officers Procedural Bill of Rights Act of 2007 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to set forth the due process rights, including procedures, that shall be afforded a law enforcement officer who is the subject of an investigation or disciplinary hearing. Requires law enforcement agencies to adopt and comply with a written complaint procedure that: (1) authorizes written complaints about a law enforcement officer from within and outside a law enforcement agency; (2) sets forth procedures for the investigation and disposition of such complaints; (3) provides for public access to required forms and information for submitting complaints; and (4) requires written notification to the complainant of the final disposition of the complaint and the reasons for such disposition. Sets forth requirements for the initiation of a investigation of a law enforcement officer, interrogations, disciplinary action, administrative appeals, and the confidentiality and protection of officer personnel files. Requires that an investigation based on a complaint against an officer begin not later than 15 days after the receipt of such complaint. Prohibits an officer from being compelled to submit to a lie detector test during an investigation..
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2007
Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2007 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require an abortion provider who knowingly performs an abortion of a pain-capable unborn child (defined as an unborn child who has reached a probable stage of development of 20 weeks or more after fertilization), to first: (1) inform the woman of the probable age of the child; (2) provide to the woman an Unborn Child Pain Awareness Brochure (unless she waives receipt); (3) provide information that pain medicine administered to the mother may not prevent pain in the child, but in some cases anesthesia or pain-reducing drugs can be administered directly to the child; (4) give the woman the provider's best medical judgment of the risks and costs of such anesthesia or analgesic; and (5) obtain the woman's signature on the Unborn Child Pain Awareness Decision Form and her explicit request for or refusal of the administration of drugs to the child. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop the Unborn Child Pain Awareness Brochure that includes a statement that there is substantial evidence that the process of being killed in an abortion will cause the unborn child pain and that the mother has the option of having pain-reducing drugs administered directly to the child. Creates an exception to save the life of the mother. Establishes civil penalties for willfully failing to comply with this Act. Authorizes: (1) the U.S. Attorney General to bring a civil action under this Act; and (2) private rights of action for violations of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2007
Mental Health in Schools Act of 2007 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to make changes to the program to apply a public health approach to mental health services, including by revising eligibility requirements for a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement. Makes only a consortium that includes at least one educational agency eligible for such funding. Allows such a consortium to: (1) include a community program, an agency that is involved in mental health, or a school; and (2) consist of a consortium in which the members select an agent (such as a local educational agency or community health care entity) to act on the consortium's behalf. Sets forth assurances required for eligibility, including assurances that: (1) the local education agency will enter into a memorandum of understanding with relevant community-based entities that clearly states the responsibilities of each consortium member; (2) the program will include comprehensive staff development for school and community service personnel working in the school and training for children with mental health disorders, for family members of such children, and for concerned members of the community; and (3) the program will demonstrate the measures to be taken to sustain the program after funding terminates. Requires the Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to develop a process for evaluating grant program activities, including: (1) the development of guidelines for the submission of program data by recipients; and (2) the development of measures of outcomes to be applied by recipients in evaluating programs, to include student and family measures and local educational measures.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2007
Great Lakes Pollution Prevention Act of 2007 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to prohibit either the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or any Great Lakes state from issuing a permit for the discharge of a pollutant into a body of water that is part of the Great Lakes, or that is within the boundaries of two or more of such states, without the concurrence of all such states. Authorizes a state to concur only after providing notice in the vicinity of the portion of the body of water within its boundaries and an opportunity for public comment.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2007
Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Transplant Patients Act of 2007 - Amends SSA title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) to: (1) continue entitlement to prescription drugs used in immunosuppressive therapy furnished to an individual who receives a kidney transplant for which payment is made under Medicare; and (2) extend Medicare secondary payer requirements for end stage renal disease (ESRD) beneficiaries. Amends title XVIII (Medicare ) of SSA to apply special rules to kidney transplant recipients receiving additional coverage for immunosuppressive drugs. Deems such individual to be enrolled under Medicare part B. Makes him or her responsible for the full amount of the applicable premiums. Applies deductible and coinsurance requirements to the provision of such drugs. Amends the Public Health Service Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), and the Internal Revenue Code to set forth requirements for group health plans to provide coverage of immunosuppressive drugs for kidney transplant patients.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2007
Travel Promotion Act of 2007 - Establishes the Corporation for Travel Promotion as a nonprofit corporation that is not an agency or establishment of the U.S. government. Makes the Corporation subject to the provisions of the District of Columbia Nonprofit Corporation Act. Requires the Corporation, among other things, to provide useful information to people interested in traveling to the United States, identify and address perceptions in other countries regarding U.S. entry policies, and promote U.S. travel. Establishes in the Treasury the Travel Promotion Fund. Requires the transfer of Treasury funds to the Corporation, requiring nonfederal matching funds. Authorizes the U.S. government, if a fully automated electronic system is implemented to determine, in advance of travel, the eligibility of an alien to travel to the United States, to charge an applicant a system use fee. Amends the International Travel Act of 1961 to replace references to the United States National Tourism Organization with references to the Corporation. Modifies various requirements applicable to the Tourism Policy Council. Amends the Department of Commerce and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2003 to remove provisions establishing the United States Travel and Tourism Promotion Advisory Board.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 2007
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that it should not consider legislative proposals to grant "fast track" or any other expedited trade negotiating authority during the 110th Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2007
Pregnant Women Support Act - Allows the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to make grants to states for collecting and reporting abortion surveillance data. Requires health facilities that perform abortions to obtained informed consent from a pregnant woman seeking an abortion. Amends title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance Program) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act to allow states to extend health care coverage to an unborn child. Amends the Public Health Service Act to prohibit a health insurance issuer offering individual coverage from imposing a preexisting condition exclusion or a waiting period or otherwise discriminating against a woman on the basis that she is pregnant. Allows the Secretary to make grants for the purchase of ultrasound equipment for examinations of pregnant women. Provides for the collection and dissemination of information on Down syndrome and other prenatally diagnosed conditions. Provides for services to pregnant women who are victims of domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking. Requires states to require a pregnancy determination for homicide victims. Requires the Secretary to make grants to increase public awareness of resources available to pregnant women and new parents. Allows the Secretary to make grants to public institutions of higher education to establish and operate pregnant and parenting student services offices. Requires the Secretary to provide for programs to work with pregnant or parenting teens to complete high school. Requires group homes for pregnant and parenting women to provide counseling on adoption and parenting skills. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase and make refundable the tax credit for adoption expenses. Amends the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to increase the eligibility threshold for food stamps.
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2007
Public Safety Interoperability Implementation Act - Amends the National Telecommunications and Information Administration Organization Act to establish the Public Safety Communications Trust Fund to make grants to implement interoperability and modernization for the communications needs of public safety, fire, emergency, law enforcement, and crisis management by state and local government agencies and instrumentalities and nonprofit organizations. Requires that the Fund be a separate Fund in the Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Fund and that it consist of certain amounts from the Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Fund, appropriations under this Act, and proceeds from the sale of certain bands of government-owned broadcast spectrum.
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2007
National Guard and Reserve Higher Education Fairness Act - Allows educational assistance to continue to be provided to a member of the Selected Reserve of the Ready Reserve who incurs a break in service from the Selected Reserve of any period of time (current law prohibits such break from being more than 90 days) if the member continues to serve in the Ready Reserve during and after such break in service.
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2007
Dental Health Promotion Act of 2007 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow reimbursement from flexible spending accounts for products used to diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent the onset of tooth decay (caries), periodontal diseases, and conditions ailing the teeth, gums, and mouth, or affecting their functioning.
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2007
Carbon Monoxide Treated Meat, Poultry, and Seafood Safe Handling, Labeling, and Consumer Protection Act - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to make changes to the definition of "color additive" to include carbon monoxide that may impart, maintain, preserve, stabilize, fix, or otherwise affect the color of fresh meat, poultry products, or seafood, unless the label of such food bears, prominently and conspicuously, a specified statement that advises consumers: (1) that carbon monoxide has been used to preserve the color of the product; (2) not to rely on the color or the "use or freeze by" date alone to judge the freshness or safety of the product; and (3) to discard any product with an unpleasant odor, slime, or a bulging package. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish alternative labeling requirements, not earlier than five years after the effective date of this Act, if: (1) such statement is no longer required to prevent consumer deception and other harms; and (2) such alternative requirements are shown to be adequate and effective in preventing consumer deception and other harms related to the conditions of use of carbon monoxide.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2007
Patient and Pharmacy Protection Act of 2007 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act, as amended by the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act, 2007, to limit to Controlled Substances Act schedule II narcotics the use of tamper-resistant prescription pads required under the Medicaid program for payment of amounts expended for covered outpatient drugs.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2007
Expresses disapproval of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management's issuance of a permit allowing BP to increase their daily dumping of ammonia and total suspended solids into Lake Michigan. Urges Indiana to reconsider issuance of such permit. Calls for Congress to take action to protect and restore the Great Lakes. Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) actions in the Great Lakes basin should be consistent with the goal of preserving and restoring the Great Lakes; and (2) EPA should not allow increased dumping of chemicals and pollutants into the Great Lakes.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 2007
Veterans Claims Processing Innovation Act of 2007 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a work credit system for evaluating regional offices of the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) with respect to veterans' claims processing. Requires the Secretary to: (1) develop and maintain a system for processing veterans' disability compensation claims using artificial intelligence that utilizes medical and military service data to generate disability rating recommendations; and (2) maintain a regional office at which all such claims are processed exclusively electronically. Provides that if a veteran who is a claimant dies before completing the submission of a claim for benefits, the person who would receive any accrued benefit(s) due to such veteran shall be treated as the claimant for purposes of completing submission of the claim. Directs the Secretary to contract with a private entity to evaluate the training and assessment programs for VBA employees.
United States · United States Congress · 12 July 2007
Medicaid Prescription Drug Rebate Equalization Act of 2007 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to reduce the costs of prescription drugs for enrollees of Medicaid managed care organizations by extending to such organizations the discounts offered under fee-for-service Medicaid plans. Requires the state contract with a Medicaid managed care organization to provide that: (1) payment for covered outpatient drugs dispensed to Medicaid-eligible individuals enrolled with the organization shall be subject to the same rebate as the state is subject to; and (2) the state shall allow the organization to collect such rebates from manufacturers. Requires also that capitation rates paid to the organization be: (1) based on actual cost experience related to rebates; and (2) subject to the federal regulations requiring actuarially sound rates.
United States · United States Congress · 12 July 2007
Arbitration Fairness Act of 2007 - Declares that no predispute arbitration agreement shall be valid or enforceable if it requires arbitration of: (1) an employment, consumer, or franchise dispute, or (2) a dispute arising under any statute intended to protect civil rights or to regulate contracts or transactions between parties of unequal bargaining power. Declares, further, that the validity or enforceability of an agreement to arbitrate shall be determined by a court, under federal law, rather than an arbitrator, irrespective of whether the party resisting arbitration challenges the arbitration agreement specifically or in conjunction with other terms of the contract containing such agreement. Exempts arbitration provisions in collective bargaining agreements from this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 12 July 2007
Recognizes the need to pursue research into the causes of, and a treatment and an eventual cure for, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Expresses support for: (1) the work of advocates and organizations in educating, supporting, and providing hope for individuals who suffer from the disease; and (2) designation of National Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Week. Congratulates advocates and organizations for their efforts to educate the public about the disease.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2007
National Pain Care Policy Act of 2007 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to enter an agreement with the Institute of Medicine to convene a Conference on Pain to: (1) increase the recognition of pain as a significant public health problem; (2) evaluate the adequacy of assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and management of acute and chronic pain; (3) identify barriers to appropriate pain care; and (4) establish an agenda for action that will reduce such barriers and improve pain care research, education, and clinical care. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to establish the Pain Consortium to: (1) establish a national agenda for research on the causes and effective treatments for pain; and (2) convene an annual conference of experts in pain research, treatment, and management to assess and make recommendations on NIH pain research activities and programs. Requires the Director of NIH to establish the National Pain Care Research Advisory Committee. Requires the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to: (1) collect protocols and evidence-based practices regarding pain care at all stages of life; and (2) disseminate such information to regulatory and enforcement agencies, health care programs, payor and providers, health professions schools, hospices, and the general public. Allows the Secretary to provide for the development and implementation of programs to educate and train health care professionals in pain care. Requires the Secretary to establish a national pain care education outreach and awareness campaign.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2007
Rural Aviation Improvement Act - Repeals the Essential Air Service Local Participation Program. Prohibits the Secretary of Transportation from compensating an air carrier for providing essential air service to an eligible community in the 48 contiguous states if such community: (1) is located fewer than 70 miles from the nearest large or medium hub airport; or (2) is fewer than 210 miles from the nearest large or medium hub airport and requires a per passenger subsidy for such service in excess of $200 for calendar year 2008, including any increase for each ensuing calendar year. Authorizes a state or local government to submit a proposal to the Secretary to: (1) compensate an air carrier for essential air service to an eligible community above the $200 per passenger subsidy cap; (2) compensate a preferred air carrier for providing such service (i.e., an air carrier preferred by the affected community although it is not the lowest bidder); and (3) restore the eligibility of a community to receive subsidized essential air service. Requires the Secretary, in determining compensation (or eligibility for it) for essential air service based on highway mileage, to use the highway mileage of the most commonly used route between the eligible community and the nearest medium hub airport or large hub airport. Establishes within the Office of the Secretary the Office of Rural Aviation. Extends through FY2011 the Secretary's authority under the essential air service program to make agreements to provide assistance to underserved airports. Requires adjustment of compensation to air carriers for providing essential air service in order to take into account significant increases in fuel costs. Directs the Secretary to treat passenger boardings on aircraft operated by charter air carriers at airports receiving essential air service as passenger boardings for purposes of making apportionments of airport improvement grant funds.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2007
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of National Night Out. Requests that the President: (1) focus appropriate attention on neighborhood crime prevention, community policing, and reduction of school crime by delivering speeches, convening meetings, and directing the Administration to make crime reduction an important priority; and (2) coordinate the efforts of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the USA Freedom Corps, the Citizen Corps, the National Senior Service Corps, and AmeriCorps to participate by supporting local efforts, neighborhood watches, and local officials, including law enforcement personnel, to provide homeland security and combat terrorism in the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 10 July 2007
Allows, subject to the provisions of this Act, the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan to transfer, lease, encumber, or otherwise convey, without further authorization or approval, fee simple land owned by the Tribe.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2007
Directs the Secretary of Defense to make a grant to the National D-Day Museum Foundation for facilities and programs of America's National World War II Museum in New Orleans, LA.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2007
Benefit Rating Acceleration for Veteran Entitlements Act of 2007 - Amends titles II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) and XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) of the Social Security Act to treat as a disability for OASDI and SSI disability payment purposes any service-connected total disability, as rated and certified by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Applies the same treatment to related child's insurance and widow's and widower's insurance benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2007
Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act of 2007 - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to expand the authority of the administering authority or the International Trade Commission (ITC) to impose countervailing duties on products from a nonmarket economy country that have been provided a countervailable subsidy. Requires, when measuring subsidy benefits, the use of benchmarks outside of a nonmarket economy country when benchmarks in such a country are not available or are inappropriate. Includes fundamental and actionable misalignment of a currency (undervaluation of a foreign currency) by a foreign country as a countervailable subsidy. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury (Secretary) to: (1) report annually to Congress on international monetary policy and currency exchange rates (including fundamentally misaligned currencies); (2) analyze semiannually the prevailing real exchange rates between the U.S. dollar and foreign currencies and to designate fundamentally misaligned foreign currencies for priority action; and (3) seek bilateral consultations with fundamentally misaligned currency countries designated for priority action to eliminate such misalignment. Requires the United States to inform the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) of countries that fail to eliminate fundamentally misaligned currencies designated for priority action and to request the IMF Managing Director to consult with such countries regarding their observance of the IMF Articles of Agreement and to report the results of such consultations to the IMF Executive Board. Prohibits the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) from, and instructs multilateral banks to oppose, financing projects in countries that issue fundamentally misaligned currencies designated for priority action. Requires: (1) the Secretary to take certain actions with respect to countries that fail to eliminate fundamentally misaligned currencies designated for priority action; and (2) the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to request consultations in the World Trade Organization (WTO) with such countries regarding the consistency of their actions with regard the WTO Agreement. Establishes an Advisory Committee on International Exchange Rate Policy. Repeals the Exchange Rates and International Economic Policy Coordination Act of 1988.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2007
Revises corporate average fuel economy standards (CAFE standards) provisions for non-passenger and passenger automobiles to: (1) provide for increased average fuel economy standards for non-passenger and passenger automobiles; (2) permit separate average fuel economy standards for non-passenger and passenger automobiles based on vehicle attributes related to fuel economy; (3) establish a a corporate average fuel economy credit transferring program within a manufacturer's fleet; (4) establish an account to fund domestic commercialization and production of advanced technology vehicles and vehicle components; and (5) extend for 10 years provisions providing manufacturing incentives for alternative fuel automobiles. Establishes a national tire fuel efficiency consumer information program. Provides for the establishment of a public education campaign to provide information to U.S. drivers about immediate measures that may be taken to conserve transportation fuel.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2007
Family Building Act of 2007 - Amends the Public Health Service Act and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to require a group health plan that provides coverage for obstetrical services to include coverage for non-experimental treatment of infertility that is deemed appropriate by a participant or beneficiary and the treating physician. Requires coverage for assisted reproductive technology only if certain conditions are met. Prohibits a group health plan from taking specified actions to avoid the requirements of this Act. Applies such requirements to health insurance coverage offered in the individual market and coverage offered through Federal Employees Health Benefit (FEHB) plans and Department of Defense health care plans.
![Official portrait of Rep. Stupak, Bart [D-MI-1]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s001045_200.jpg)