United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
Medicare Ambulance Payment Reform and Rural Equity Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) revise ambulance payment rates; and (2) provide additional payments for providers furnishing ambulance services in rural areas. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to review the system for adjusting payments for rural ambulance services to determine their adequacy and appropriateness. Amends SSA title XVIII with respect to a Secretary-specified uniform coding system identifying furnished ambulance services for purposes of a fee schedule. Directs the Secretary to establish a system or systems for the coding of claims for ambulance services for which payment is made, including a code set specifying the medical condition of the individual who is transported and the level of service that is appropriate for the transportation of an individual with that medical condition. Requires the code set to take into account the list of medical conditions developed in the course of the negotiated rulemaking process. (Current law authorizes the Secretary to require the claim for any ambulance services to include a code (or codes) under a uniform coding system specified by the Secretary, but does not require the establishment of such a coding system.)
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
San Francisco Old Mint Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 100,000 $5 gold coins and 500,000 $1 silver coins emblematic of the San Francisco Old Mint Building, its importance to California and U.S. history, and its role in rebuilding San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake and fire. Requires that all surcharges received by the Secretary from such coin sales be promptly paid to the San Francisco Museum and Historical Society for purposes of rehabilitating the Historic Old Mint in San Francisco as a city museum and an American Coin and Gold Rush Museum.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2005
Volunteer Pilot Organization Protection Act of 2005 - Amends the Volunteer Protection Act of 1997 to exempt from liability a nonprofit volunteer pilot organization that flies for public benefit, its staff members, and its volunteers for harm caused by a volunteer while flying, in furtherance of the purpose of the organization, an aircraft for which the volunteer was properly licensed and insured. Directs the Attorney General to study and report to Congress on the availability of insurance to nonprofit volunteer pilot organizations that fly for public benefit.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2005
Supports: (1) initiatives for recreational boating safety education and accident prevention to minimize the number of annual recreational boating fatalities; and (2) the goals of National Safe Boating Week. Recognizes the Coast Guard, the Coast Guard Auxiliary, and the National Safe Boating Council for their efforts each year during May to highlight the importance of safe recreational boating.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2005
Breast Cancer Patient Protect Action of 2005 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code to require a group health plan or a health issuer offering group health insurance coverage that provides medical and surgical benefits to ensure that inpatient (and in the case of a lumpectomy, outpatient) coverage and radiation therapy are provided for breast cancer treatment. Prohibits such a plan or issuer from: (1) restricting benefits for any hospital length of stay to less than 48 hours in connection with a mastectomy or breast conserving surgery or 24 hours in connection with a lymph node dissection; or (2) requiring that a provider obtain authorization from the plan or issuer for prescribing any such length of stay. Requires such a plan or issuer to: (1) provide notice to each participant and beneficiary regarding the coverage required under this Act; and (2) ensure that full coverage is provided for secondary consultations by specialists in the appropriate medical fields to confirm or refute a diagnosis of cancer. Applies such requirements to health insurance issuers offering coverage in the individual market.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
Pest Management and Fire Suppression Flexibility Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to state that the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) shall not require a permit under the national pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES), or require a State to mandate such a permit, for: (1) the proper use of a pesticide that is registered or otherwise approved for use under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act; and (2) the use by or in cooperation with the Federal or State government of a fire retardant, chemical, or water for fire suppression, control, or prevention in accordance with relevant Federal guidelines; (3) silvicultural activities except for specified point source activities; and (4) the use of biological control organisms for the prevention, control, or eradication of plant pests or noxious weeds pursuant to specified provisions of the Plant Protection Act. Redefines "point source" to exclude from the term those public health protection, pest management, and silvicultural activities excluded from NPDES permit requirements under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2005
Military Families Leave Act of 2005 - Amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, and Federal law relating to the Armed Forces, to entitle eligible employees to certain leave because of any qualifying exigency arising out of the fact that their spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a member of the Armed Forces who is serving on active duty in support of a contingency operation or has been notified of an impending call or order to such active duty.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2005
Increases during FY 2006 through 2010 the minimum active-duty end strength levels for the Armed Forces. Directs the Secretary of Defense to manage the selection, training, and retention of Special Operations Forces so that the total number of such personnel is increased by 2,000 at the end of each of fiscal years 2006 through 2010, thus equaling a total increase of 10,000.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2005
Community Pharmacy Fairness Act of 2005 - Provides that antitrust laws shall apply to negotiations between groups of independent pharmacies and health plans and health insurance issuers in the same manner as such laws apply to collective bargaining by labor organizations under the National Labor Relations Act.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2005
Comprehensive Assistance for Veterans Exposed to Traumatic Stressors Act of 2005 - Extends eligibility for readjustment counseling services for Vietnam-era veterans. Requires implementation of a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)-Department of Defense (DOD) Health Care Sharing Incentive Fund. Requires: (1) the DOD to assist the VA with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health-related data collection; (2) substance use disorder questions in pre- and post-deployment screens and related treatment protocols; and (3) routine preventative maintenance intervention for returning members of the Armed Forces. Requires a study of factors that decrease the likelihood of developing combat-related chronic PTSD. Extends the enhanced eligibility period for VA health services for certain veterans. Provides for a joint demonstration project that stations VA psychologists and psychiatrists at major demobilization sites and military treatment facilities. Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to develop model programs to address mental health disorders prevalent among veterans of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. Requires: (1) performance measures that ensure appropriate deployment of resources to implement the Iraq war clinical practice guidelines; (2) establishment of the DOD/VA Council on Post-Deployment Mental Health; (3) a plan for expanded access to specialized PTSD care; and (4) additional mental health services personnel for certain VA programs and locations. Requires counseling for immediate family members of disabled veterans and Armed Forces personnel killed in action. Establishes a National Steering Committee on PTSD Education. Addresses deficiencies in compensation and pension examinations with regard to PTSD. Requires development of criteria for determining which medical conditions are likely associated with PTSD and when secondary service-connection should be granted for those conditions. Provides for an outreach program to enhance PTSD awareness.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2005
Joins the Secretary of Defense in honoring the children of members of the Armed Forces and recognizes that they share in the burden of protecting the Nation. Urges Americans to join the military community in observing April as "National Month of the Military Child." Recognizes with great appreciation the contributions of private sector organizations in providing resources and assistance to military families and their communities.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 2005
Drinking Water Standards Preservation Act of 2005 - Amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to establish liability standards for a public water system for damages arising from injury (including personal injury, death, or property damage) allegedly caused by delivery of contaminated water containing either regulated or unregulated contaminants. Requires for both regulated and unregulated contaminants that the plaintiff establish that there is substantial scientific evidence that the kind of injury alleged could be caused by such substance in the amounts present and that the substance did, in fact, cause the injury. Requires proof: (1) in the case of regulated contaminants, that the water system violated the regulation, was negligent and that the violation caused the injury; and (2) in the case of unregulated contaminants, that the water system knew or should have known that the substance at that level was likely to cause such injury and that it was feasible to remove the contaminant to a safe level. Directs the court to make determinations regarding proof requirements in a special pretrial proceeding and to give binding effect to any findings of fact, conclusions of law, or determinations of State agencies exercising primary enforcement authority.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2005
Chinese Currency Act of 2005 - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 regarding countervailing duty investigations to revise the definition of countervailable subsidy to include exchange-rate manipulation. Defines "exchange-rate manipulation" as protracted large-scale intervention by an authority to undervalue its currency in the exchange market that prevents effective balance-of-payments adjustment or that gains an unfair competitive advantage over any other country. Specifies factors for determining whether exchange-rate manipulation is occurring and a benefit thereby conferred. Applies the definition of "exchange-rate manipulation" to the Government of the People's Republic of China (PRC) or any other public entity within its territory. Specifies: (1) factors for determining whether exchange-rate manipulation is occurring in the PRC; (2) actions to be taken, if a petition for an investigation alleges and reasonably documents that it is occurring; and (3) the standard for presidential action to prevent or remedy the market disruption at issue (including import relief and its modification and extension). Directs the Secretary of Defense, upon proper request or resolution, to report to the U.S. International Trade Commission any determination as to whether or not the articles of the PRC that are the subject of the investigation are like or directly competitive with domestically produced articles critical to the U.S. defense industrial base. Prohibits the Secretary from procuring, directly or indirectly, such products if the Commission or the President or the U.S. Trade Representative makes an affirmative determination that the Secretary's determination is accurate. Provides for presidential waiver of the prohibition in the national security interests of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2005
Recognizes the 140th anniversary of the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution (prohibits slavery or involuntary servitude) on December 6, 1865. Encourages the American people to educate and instill pride and purpose into their communities about the history of liberation and the civil rights movement in the United States and to observe such anniversary each year.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2005
Consumer Assurance of Radiologic Excellence Act - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to prohibit certain payments to States for expenditures for medical imaging procedures or radiation therapy procedures, unless the State meets specified requirements for State medical radiation licenses, including minimum licensing standards the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall establish.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2005
TRICARE Mental Health Services Enhancement Act - Amends the TRICARE program (a Department of Defense (DOD) managed health care program) to authorize the provision of mental health counseling for TRICARE participants. Authorizes the provision of mental health services in DOD clinical trials. Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1995 to authorize the Secretary of Defense to enter into personal service contracts with mental health counselors. Includes mental health counselors within DOD licensure requirements for health-care professionals.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2005
Human Cloning Prohibition Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit any person or entity, in or affecting interstate commerce, from knowingly: (1) performing or attempting to perform human cloning; (2) participating in such an attempt; (3) shipping or receiving an embryo produced by human cloning or any product derived from such embryo; or (4) importing such an embryo or derived product. Sets forth criminal and civil penalties. Provides that nothing in this Act restricts areas of scientific research not specifically prohibited above, including research in the use of nuclear transfer or other cloning techniques to produce molecules, DNA, cells other than human embryos, tissues, organs, plants, or animals other than humans.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2005
Clean Water Authority Restoration Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to replace the term "navigable waters," throughout the Act, with the term "waters of the United States," defined to mean all waters subject to the ebb and flow of the tide, the territorial seas, and all interstate and intrastate waters and their tributaries, including lakes, rivers, streams (including intermittent streams), mudflats, sandflats, wetlands, sloughs, prairie potholes, wet meadows, playa lakes, natural ponds, and all impoundments of the foregoing, to the fullest extent that these waters, or activities affecting them, are subject to the legislative power of Congress under the Constitution.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2005
Constitutional Amendment - Declares that marriage in the United States shall consist only of a legal union of a man and a woman. Prohibits any Federal or State court from having jurisdiction to determine whether the Constitution or any State constitution requires the legal incidents of marriage to be conferred upon any union other than a legal union between one man and one woman. Provides that no State shall be required to give effect to any public act, record, or judicial proceeding of any other State concerning a union between persons of the same sex that is treated as a marriage, or as having the legal incidents of marriage, under the laws of such other State.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 2005
Constitutional Amendment - States that equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2005
District of Columbia Personal Protection Act - Amends specified law prohibiting the killing of wild birds and wild animals in the District of Columbia to declare that nothing in it or any other provision of law shall authorize or be construed to permit the Council, the Mayor, or any governmental or regulatory authority of the District to prohibit, constructively prohibit, or unduly burden the ability of persons otherwise not prohibited from possessing firearms under Federal law from acquiring, possessing in their homes or businesses, or using for sporting, self-protection or other lawful purposes, any firearm neither prohibited by Federal law nor subject to the National Firearms Act. Denies the District any authority to enact laws or regulations that discourage or eliminate the private ownership or use of firearms. Amends the Firearms Control Regulations Act of 1975 to repeal the definition of a machine gun as any firearm which shoots, is designed to shoot, or can be readily converted or restored to shoot semiautomatically, more than 12 shots without manual reloading. (Thus repeals the ban on semiautomatic weapons.) Redefines "machine gun" to include the frame or receiver of any such weapon, any part designed and intended solely and exclusively, or combination of parts designed and intended, for use in converting a weapon into a machine gun, and any combination of parts from which a machine gun can be assembled if such parts are in the possession or under the control of a person. Repeals the District's: (1) registration requirement for possession of firearms; (2) prohibition on possession of handgun restricted pistol bullets; and (3) requirement that, under certain conditions, firearms in the possession of certain individuals must be kept unloaded, disassembled, or with the trigger locked. Repeals the definition of restricted pistol bullet as any bullet designed for use in a pistol which, when fired from a pistol with a barrel of five inches or less in length, is capable of penetrating commercially available body armor with a penetration resistance equal to or greater than that of 18 layers of kevlar. Maintains the current ban on the possession and control of a sawed-off shotgun, machine gun, or short-barreled rifle. Eliminates criminal penalties for possessing an unregistered firearm. Amends Federal law to eliminate criminal penalties for carrying a pistol whether loaded or unloaded in one's dwelling house, place of business, or on land possessed by such person. Amends the District of Columbia Code to extend to firearms generally (currently, only to pistols) the prohibition against carrying such a weapon either openly or concealed within the District without a license issued pursuant to D.C. law. Specifies exceptions to the prohibition against carrying concealed weapons in the District.
United States · United States Congress · 10 March 2005
Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to make appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on behalf of Congress, of a gold medal collectively to the Tuskegee Airmen in recognition of their unique military record, which inspired revolutionary reform in the Armed Forces.
United States · United States Congress · 10 March 2005
Berry Amendment Notification Act - Provides that if the Secretary of Defense makes an exception to the requirement that certain items procured by the Department of Defense must be grown, reprocessed, reused, or produced in the United States, then the Secretary must post a notification of such exception on the Internet site maintained by the General Services Administration known as FedBizOps.gov (or any successor site). Adds clothing materials and components to the items for which such Buy American requirement will apply.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2005
Rockies Prosperity Act - Designates the following lands in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming as wilderness and components of the National Wilderness Preservation System (System): (1) Greater Glacier/Northern Continental Divide ecosystem; (2) Greater Yellowstone ecosystem; (3) Greater Salmon/Selway ecosystem; (4) Greater Cabinet/Yaak/Selkirk ecosystem; (5) Islands in the Sky Wilderness; and (6) Blackfeet Wilderness. Designates: (1) specified wild land areas as Biological Connecting Corridors to protect the life flow of the Northern Rockies Bioregion; (2) the inventoried roadless areas identified as part of the Corridors as components of the System; and (3) certain biological connecting corridors as special corridor management areas. Establishes the Hells Canyon/Chief Joseph National Park and Preserve as a National Park System unit. Repeals Federal law provisions that establish the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area. Requires the Secretary of the Interior to: (1) implement a program of ecosystem restoration in the Preserve; and (2) study the feasibility of creating a Flathead National Park and Preserve in the area generally known as the Glacier View Ranger District of the Flathead National Forest. Amends the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate segments of specified rivers and creeks in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming as components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. Establishes the National Wildland Restoration and Recovery System and the National Wildland Recovery Corps. Requires the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture to assure nonexclusive access to the specified areas and corridors designated by this Act by Native Americans for traditional cultural and religious purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2005
Freedom to Read Protection Act of 2005 - Amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to provide that no application by the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to a U.S. court for an order requiring the production of tangible things for an investigation to obtain foreign intelligence information from a U.S. person or to protect against international terrorism may be made for the sole purpose of searching for, or seizing from, a bookseller or library documentary materials that contain personally identifiable information concerning a patron. Provides that nothing in this Act shall be construed to preclude a physical search for documentary materials (including books, records, papers, documents, and other items) under other provisions of law. Defines "personally identifiable information" as information that identifies a person as having used, requested, or obtained specific reading materials or services from a bookseller or library. Revises congressional reporting requirements under FISA to require the Attorney General, in informing Congress with respect to applications for orders approving requests for the production of tangible things, to: (1) describe the specific purpose of each order application; (2) analyze the effectiveness of each application that was granted or modified in protecting U.S. citizens against terrorism; and (3) make public such information provided in a manner consistent with the national security of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2005
Reserves Pay and Benefits Modernization Act - Requires the Secretary of Defense to limit the length of assignment of reservists during U.S. Central Command deployments of not less than one year. Requires the Secretary to submit to specified congressional committees a report on Department of Defense policies and communications regarding the length of deployments for reservists in connection with Operation Iraqi Freedom. Directs the Secretary of the Army to designate a senior level official of the Department of the Army to implement recommendations for executive action to address military pay problems. Removes conditions on Ready Reserve members' eligibility for TRICARE enrollment. Makes such eligibility permanent. Requires the Secretary concerned to pay applicable premiums to continue qualified health benefit plan coverage for family members of eligible reservists serving on active duty for the benefits coverage continuation period. Authorizes the Secretary of Defense to fund child care for members of the Armed Forces on active duty for Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom. Reduces from 60 to 55 the age at which members of Reserve components may receive military retirement pay. Establishes the position of Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (Reserve Affairs). Eliminates the position of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs. Reduces the number of Assistant Secretaries of Defense. Requires recruiters to fully define and disclose exactly what an individual's commitment to military service will entail, including an explanation of "Stop Loss" orders and their effect on the duration of such service.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2005
Incapacitated Persons Legal Protection Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal judicial code to extend habeas corpus protections to persons who are subject to a court order authorizing or directing the withholding or withdrawal of food, fluids, or medical treatment necessary to sustain the person's life. Deems persons having custody in such cases to encompass parties so authorized or directed. States that there shall be no requirement to produce the body of the incapacitated person at the hearing. Exempts from this Act those cases in which the incapacitated person indisputably executed a written advance directive while having capacity that clearly authorized the withholding or withdrawal of food, fluids, or necessary medical treatment. Defines "incapacitated person" to mean an individual presently incapable of making relevant decisions concerning the provision, withholding, or withdrawal of food, fluids, or medical treatment under applicable State law.
United States · United States Congress · 3 March 2005
RU-486 Suspension and Review Act of 2005 - Deems the approved application for the drug mifepristone (marketed as Mifeprex, commonly known as RU-486, and used for the chemically induced termination of intrauterine pregnancy) to have been withdrawn. Deems the drug misoprostol to be misbranded under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) if it bears labeling providing that the drug may be used for the medical termination of intrauterine pregnancy. Directs the Comptroller General to review and report on the process by which the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved mifepristone. Provides for the reinstatement of the approved application for such drug if the report determines the approval to have been in accordance with FFDCA.
United States · United States Congress · 3 March 2005
Calls on the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee to recommend to the Postmaster General that a commemorative stamp should be issued by the United States Postal Service honoring law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 2005
Sportfishing and Boating Equity Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to require the transfer of all motor fuel excise taxes attributable to motorboat and small engine fuels into the Aquatic Resources Trust Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2005
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit: (1) Federal civilian and military retirees to pay Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) and TRICARE supplemental premiums on a pretax basis (i.e., exclude premiums from gross income); and (2) a tax deduction (available to itemizers and nonitemizers) for TRICARE supplemental premiums or enrollment fees. Directs the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the Secretary of Defense to ensure that the option of paying FEHBP and TRICARE supplemental premiums on a pretax basis is available to Federal civilian and military retirees for the first open enrollment period beginning not less than 90 days after the enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2005
English Language Unity Act of 2005 - Declares English to be the official language of the United States. Establishes the affirmative obligation of the representatives of the Federal Government to preserve and enhance the role of the English language as the Government's official language. Requires the official functions of the Government to be conducted in English. Requires: (1) a uniform English language testing standard for U.S. naturalization; and (2) all naturalization ceremonies to be conducted in English. Sets forth exceptions to, and rules of construction for, such requirements. Authorizes persons injured by violations of this Act to obtain appropriate relief in civil actions. Declares, as a general rule of construction, that English language requirements and workplace policies, whether in the public or private sector, shall be presumptively consistent with the laws of the United States. Requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to issue for public notice and comment a proposed rule for uniform testing of the English language ability of candidates for naturalization based upon the principles that: (1) all citizens should be able to read and understand generally the English language text of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Laws of the United States; and (2) any exceptions to this standard should be limited to extraordinary circumstances, such as asylum.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2005
Student Loan Fairness Act of 2005 - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to revise student aid requirements for consolidation loans. Repeals a prohibition against refinancing consolidation loans. Allows borrowers to select lenders of consolidation loans. Requires lenders and institutions to provide certain information on consolidation loans to applicants. Revises interest rates on consolidated and reconsolidated loans.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2005
Amends rule XI (Procedures of Committees and Unfinished Business) of the Rules of the House of Representatives to revise the procedures of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. Repeals the requirement that a complaint be dismissed if an investigative subcommittee has not been established within 45 days after the complaint is filed (Automatic Dismissal Rule). Requires the committee to establish an investigative subcommittee if a complaint is not disposed of within the 45 days (or a 45-day extension). Subjects to such (automatic) subcommittee establishment rule the current related requirement that an investigative committee be established only by an affirmative of the majority of the committee members, if at any time during the applicable time period either the committee chairman or ranking member places on the agenda the issue of whether to establish such an investigative subcommittee. Requires the Committee to establish an "investigative" instead of "adjudicatory" subcommittee when requested by a Member, officer, or employee of the House, contesting the contents of a written complaint. (Thus repeals the right of a Member, officer, or employee to demand an immediate trial by an adjudicatory committee within the initial 45-day period, before a case has been adequately prepared.) Revises the right to counsel of a respondent or witness. Strikes provisions allowing a respondent or witness appearing before the investigative subcommittee or investigative hearing to obtain counsel of his or her choice, even if such counsel represents another respondent or witness. (Thus allows the committee to adopt a rule that prohibits a counsel from representing more than one respondent or witness.)
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Amends Federal provisions relating to the military Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) to change from October 1, 2008, to October 1, 2005, the effective date on or after which no reduction may be made in the retired pay of an SBP participant for any month after the later of: (1) the 360th month for which such pay was so reduced; and (2) the month during which the participant attains 70 years of age.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Stroke Treatment and Ongoing Prevention Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a national education campaign to promote stroke prevention and increase the number of stroke patients who seek immediate treatment. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), to maintain the Paul Coverdell National Acute Stroke Registry and Clearinghouse by collecting specific data points and benchmarks for stroke care analysis and by compiling and disseminating information on State, local, and private care system achievements and problems. Defines "stroke" as an attack in which blood flow to the brain is interrupted or in which a blood vessel or aneurysm in the brain breaks or ruptures. Includes stroke and traumatic injury prevention, diagnosis, and treatment within the grant program for emergency medicine residency training. Authorizes the Secretary, through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), to make grants to qualified entities for education programs for health care professionals in the use of diagnostic approaches, technologies, and therapies for stroke and traumatic injury prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation. Gives preference to qualified entities that will train professionals that serve areas with a significant incidence of stroke or traumatic injuries. Authorizes the Secretary, through the Director of the Office for the Advancement of Telehealth, to make up to seven grants to States and to consortia of public and private entities in any non-grantee State to conduct a five-year pilot project to improve stroke patient outcomes by coordinating health care through telehealth networks.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Recreational Marine Employment Act of 2005 - Amends the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act to revise certain exclusions from coverage by the Act. Excludes from the definition of covered employees any individuals employed by or at, or engaged in the construction or maintenance of, a recreational marine facility or structure, if the employer is in compliance with a state workers' compensation law. Defines recreational marine facility or structure as a place used primarily to build, repair, test, maintain, accommodate, buy, sell, store, restore, or dismantle recreational vessels (vessels manufactured primarily for pleasure use). Excludes from coverage individuals employed primarily to build, repair, test, maintain, accommodate, buy, sell, store, restore, transport by land, or dismantle a recreational vessel (regardless of length), if the employer is in compliance with a state workers' compensation law. Limits to a person in maritime employment who does not qualify as a seaman (currently, to any person covered by the Act), or anyone otherwise entitled to recover damages (as under current law), the entitlement to recover damages and bring an action against a vessel as a third party in the event of injury caused by the vessel's negligence. (Continues to protect the employer from liability to the vessel for such damages directly or indirectly, voiding any agreements or warranties to the contrary.)
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Amends part C (Medicare+Choice) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to require Medicare Advantage organizations to provide for a payment rate for critical access hospital services and rural health clinic services at least 101 percent of the payment rate otherwise applicable under the Medicare Program.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Transit System Flexibility Protection Act of 2005 - Permits the Secretary of Transportation to make mass transportation formula grants for an urbanized area with a population of more than 200,000 if the transit system operates fewer than 100 buses on fixed route service during peak hours.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Fiscal Honesty and Accountability Act of 2005 - Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to extend pay-as-you-go requirements through FY 2010. Extends through FY 2009 the spending limits (spending caps) for the discretionary categories in new budget authority and outlays. Amends the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to address issues of emergency spending by requiring: (1) Committee on the Budget guidelines; (2) a separate House vote on an emergency designation; and (3) detailed reserve funds for emergencies in the President's budget request to Congress. Prescribes a procedure for adjustments in committee allocations resulting from such spending in joint budget resolutions. Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to prohibit floor amendments to amendments reported by the Committee on the Budget (or from the consideration of which the Committee has been discharged) with respect to legislation for emergency reserve funds for certain military operations. Prohibits consideration of an amendment to a joint budget resolution which changes the amount of budget authority and outlays set forth in the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 for the emergency reserve fund. Requires reports on legislation which provide new budget, spending, or credit authority, or otherwise provide an increase or decrease in revenues or tax expenditures, to include a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projection of the cost of debt servicing (interest). Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 concerning: (1) CBO cost analysis (scoring) for conference reports; (2) legislation which evades specified budget enforcement mechanisms; and (3) legislation which is unreported by committee (for purposes of budget point of order rules). Amends the Rules of the House of Representatives concerning: (1) budget compliance statements (permitting inclusion of budgetary implications); (2) requirements for budget act waivers (inclusion mandatory for bill consideration); and (3) a separate vote to waive a major budget act point of order.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Constitutional Amendment - Prohibits outlays for a fiscal year (except those for repayment of debt principal) from exceeding total receipts for that fiscal year (except those derived from borrowing) unless Congress, by a three-fifths rollcall vote of each House, authorizes a specific excess of outlays over receipts. Requires a three-fifths rollcall vote of each House to increase the public debt limit. Directs the President to submit a balanced budget to Congress annually. Prohibits any bill to increase revenue from becoming law unless approved by a majority of each House by rollcall vote. Authorizes waivers of these provisions when a declaration of war is in effect or under other specified circumstances involving military conflict. Requires the appropriate congressional committees to report implementing legislation to achieve a balanced budget without increasing the receipts or reducing the disbursements of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund to achieve that goal.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Disapproves the rule submitted by the Department of Agriculture relating to the establishment of minimal-risk regions for introduction of bovine spongiform encephalopathy into the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Recognizes the 60th anniversary of the Battle of Iwo Jima. Recognizes and commends the members of the U.S. Marine Corps and other U.S. Armed Forces who participated in such Battle, especially those who gave their lives there.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2005
Amends the Rules of the House of Representatives to: (1) require conference reports to include Congressional Budget Office cost estimates in their accompanying joint statements if such legislation provides for new budget, spending, or credit authority or otherwise provides an increase or decrease in revenues or tax expenditures; (2) prohibit consideration of such conference reports if the cost estimates are not included; (3) require roll call votes on legislation authorizing or providing new budget authority of at least $50 million; (4) repeal rule XXVII (the Gephardt Rule, relating to mandatory adjustment of the statutory limit on the public debt to conform to a budget resolution); and (5) revise rule XIII (prohibiting same-day consideration of Rules Committee reports) to extend the prohibition to the same calendar day or less than 17 hours after that. Prohibits the Rules Committee from reporting a rule or order without two-thirds of the Members voting, a quorum being present to waive the layover requirement concerning the availability of reports, the three-day layover requirement, the three-day Internet availability requirement, or the scope requirement. Prohibits consideration by the House of: (1) reported legislation until the third calendar day on which the underlying measure or matter has been made available by the Rules Committee on its Internet site; or (2) a conference report until the third calendar day on which such conference report and its joint explanatory statement have been made available on its Internet site by the standing committee of the House with subject matter jurisdiction over the underlying legislation. Requires: (1) the report that accompanies any general appropriation bill to contain a separate written justification for each earmark contained in such bill or report; and (2) each committee to report at six-month intervals to the Speaker and the minority leader on its compliance with its oversight plan. Requires such biannual reports to be made available to the public.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2005
Taxpayer Protection Against Wasteful Energy Credits Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal: (1) the inflation adjustment to the phaseout amount for the tax credit for producing fuel from a nonconventional source; and (2) the extension of the tax credit for facilities producing synthetic fuels from coal.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2005
Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act - Prohibits a qualified civil liability action from being brought in any state or federal court against a manufacturer or seller of a firearm, ammunition, or a component of a firearm that has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce (or against a trade association of such manufacturers or sellers) for damages, punitive damages, injunctive or declaratory relief, abatement, restitution, fines, or penalties, or other relief, resulting from the criminal or unlawful misuse of a firearm. Requires pending actions to be dismissed. Excludes actions: (1) brought against a person who has been convicted of transferring a firearm knowing that it would be used to commit a crime of violence or a drug trafficking crime, by a party directly harmed by such crime; (2) brought against a seller for negligent entrustment or negligence per se; (3) in which a manufacturer or seller of a firearm knowingly violated a state or federal statute applicable to the sale or marketing of the firearm, if the violation was a proximate cause of the harm for which relief is sought; (4) for breach of contract or warranty in connection with the purchase of the firearm; or (5) for death, physical injuries, or property damage resulting directly from a defect in design or manufacture of the firearm when used as intended or in a reasonably foreseeable manner, except that if the discharge was caused by a volitional act that constituted a criminal offense, such act shall be considered the sole proximate cause of any resulting death, personal injury, or property damage.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2005
Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act - Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit transporting a minor across a state line to obtain an abortion (deems such transporting to be a de facto abridgment of the right of a parent under any law in the minor’s state of residence that requires parental involvement in the minor’s abortion decision). Makes an exception for an abortion necessary to save the life of the minor. Protects from prosecution or civil liability the minor or the minor’s parents for violations of this Act. Makes it an affirmative defense to a prosecution or civil action under this Act that a defendant reasonably believed that before the minor obtained the abortion, the required parental consent or notification or judicial authorization took place. Authorizes any parent who suffers harm from a violation of this Act to seek relief in a civil action. Defines "parent" to include a guardian, legal custodian, or person standing in loco parentis. Imposes a fine and/or prison term of up to one year on an physician who performs or induces an abortion on an out-of-state minor without complying with parental notification requirements. Allows certain exceptions, including abortions necessary to save the life of the minor.
![Official portrait of Rep. Taylor, Gene [D-MS-4]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/t000074_200.jpg)