United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2005
Iran Freedom Support Act - States that: (1) U.S. sanctions, controls, and regulations relating to weapons of mass destruction with respect to Iran shall remain in effect until the President certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that Iran has permanently and verifiably dismantled its weapons of mass destruction programs and has committed to combating such weapons' proliferation; and (2) such certification shall have no effect on other sanctions relating to Iranian support of international terrorism. Amends the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act of 1996 to: (1) eliminate mandatory sanction provisions respecting Libya; (2) impose mandatory sanctions on a person or entity that aids Iran acquire or develop weapons of mass destruction or destabilizing types and numbers of conventional weapons; (3) revise multilateral regime reporting requirements, including provisions respecting sanctions on individuals aiding Iranian petroleum development; (4) enlarge the scope of sanctionable entities; and (5) eliminate the sunset provision. Authorizes the President to provide financial and political assistance to eligible foreign and domestic individuals and groups that support democracy in Iran and that are opposed to the Government of Iran. Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the President should appoint a special assistant on Iranian matters; (2) contacts should be expanded with democratic Iranian opposition groups; and (3) the President should designate at least one such eligible group within 90 days of enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2005
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 8200 South Vermont Avenue in Los Angeles, California, as the "Staff Sergeant First Class John Marshall Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2005
Bullying and Gang Prevention for School Safety and Crime Reduction Act of 2005 - Amends: (1) the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act to cover bullying and gang (as well as drug and violence) prevention; and (2) the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize (with respect to juvenile accountability block grants) accountability-based programs designed to enhance school safety, which may include research-based bullying and gang prevention programs.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
First Responders Funding Reform Act of 2005 - Amends the USA PATRIOT Act to require: (1) that each State be allocated in each fiscal year not less than .5 percent (currently, .75 percent) of the total amount appropriated for domestic preparedness grants; (2) such grants to be awarded based on a quantitative risk assessment for threat, vulnerability, and consequences; and (3) the Office for State and Local Domestic Preparedness Support of the Office of Justice Programs, by March 1 of each year, to submit that assessment to Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
NASA and JPL 50th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury, in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to mint and issue: (1) ten dollar gold coins; (2) five dollar gold coins; (3) one dollar silver coins; and (4) half-dollar silver coins emblematic of the 50 years of exemplary and unparalleled achievements of NASA and JPL. Directs each Federal agency and U.S. instrumentality that has in its possession any craft or any part of a craft that flew in space to: (1) retrieve any gold, silver, copper, and other precious metal that may be used in the production of any coins under this Act from such craft or part; and (2) deposit such metals with the Director of the United States Mint. Requires that all sales of coins minted under this Act include a surcharge of : (1) $75 per coin for the ten dollar coin; (2) $35 per coin for the five dollar coin; (3) $10 per coin for the one dollar coin; and (4) $3 for the half-dollar coin, which shall be paid by the Secretary to the NASA Family Assistance Fund for the purposes of providing financial assistance to the families of NASA personnel who die as a result of injuries suffered in the performance of their official duties.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 30777 Rancho California Road in Temecula, California, as the "Dalip Singh Saund Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Emergency Loan Abuse Prevention Act of 2005 - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to reduce certain special allowance payments to holders of student loans. Appropriates, for each fiscal year after enactment of this Act, an additional amount to increase the maximum Pell grant for that fiscal year. Makes such amount equal to the amount by which expenditures for such special allowances are reduced by this Act for that fiscal year, as determined by the Congressional Budget Office.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Shirley Chisholm Congressional Gold Medal Act - Authorizes the posthumous award of a congressional gold medal in commemoration of Shirley Chisholm, in recognition of her activism, independence, and ground-breaking achievements in politics, her election as the first African-American woman in Congress, and her campaign to be the first African-American to gain the nomination of a major political party for President of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to allow States to be compensated for incarcerating undocumented aliens who are charged with a felony or two or more misdemeanors (currently, conviction is required).
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Jane's Law - Amends Federal criminal law to provide penalties for failure to pay certain obligations to spouses and ex-spouses that are similar to the penalties imposed for failure to pay child support obligations.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Commission to Study Reparation Proposals for African-Americans Act - Establishes the Commission to Study Reparation Proposals for African-Americans to examine: (1) the institution of slavery which existed within the United States and the colonies that became the United States from 1619 through 1865; (2) the extent to which the Federal and State governments supported the institution of slavery in constitutional and statutory provisions; (3) Federal and State laws that discriminated against freed African slaves and their descendants; and (4) the lingering negative effects of the institution of slavery on living African-Americans and on society in the United States. Instructs the Commission to address the following issues when making its recommendations to Congress: (1) whether the Federal government should offer a formal apology for the perpetration of gross human rights violations on African slaves and their descendants; (2) whether African-Americans still suffer from the lingering effects of slavery; and (3) whether any form of compensation to the descendants of African slaves is warranted.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Community Choice in Real Estate Act - Amends the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, and the Revised Statutes of the United States, to prohibit the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Secretary of the Treasury, respectively, from determining that real estate brokerage activity or real estate management activity is financial in nature, is incidental to any financial activity, or is complementary to a financial activity. (In effect, prohibits financial holding companies and national banks from engaging, directly or indirectly, in real estate brokerage or real estate management activities.) Exempts from such prohibition: (1) activities of a bank holding company (or any affiliate) that directly relate to managing any real property owned by national banks or their affiliates; and (2) the right, power, or ability of any financial holding company to engage in any activity, or acquire or retain the shares of any company engaged in an activity authorized for financial holding companies on December 6, 2001 ("grandfather clause").
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Ensuring College Access for All Americans Act - Prohibits the application of the annual updates (prescribed in the Federal Register on December 23, 2004) to the allowance for State and other taxes in the tables used in the Federal Needs Analysis Methodology to determine a student's expected family contribution for the award year 2005-2006 under the Higher Education Act of 1965, to the extent such updates will reduce the amount of Federal student assistance for which the student is eligible.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
College Fire Prevention Act - Directs the Secretary of Education to make competitive demonstration grants to private or public colleges or universities, fraternities, or sororities for up to half the cost of installing fire sprinkler systems, or other fire suppression or prevention technologies, in student housing and dormitories owned or controlled by such entities. Requires grant priority to be given eligible entities that demonstrate the greatest financial need. Reserves the following portions of grant funds made available for each fiscal year: (1) at least ten percent for eligible entities that are historically Black colleges and universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, and tribally controlled colleges and universities; and (2) at least ten percent for eligible entities that are social fraternities and sororities. Provides that any application for assistance under this Act, any negative determination on the part of the Secretary with respect to such application, or any statement of reasons for the determination, shall not be admissible as evidence in any proceeding of any court, agency, board, or other entity (except a proceeding to enforce an agreement entered into between the Secretary and an eligible entity under this Act).
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
National Security Language Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to establish programs to encourage early foreign language instruction, including grants to: (1) partnerships of institutions of higher education (IHEs) and local educational agencies (LEAs) for activities relating to foreign language instruction at elementary or secondary schools, with priorities for high-need LEAs and less-commonly taught foreign languages; and (2) IHEs that develop innovative programs for the teaching of foreign languages, with priorities for combining foreign languages with science and technology and for less-commonly taught foreign languages. Provides undergraduate student loan forgiveness of up to $10,000 for students who major in a critical foreign language and are employed as teachers of such language in elementary or secondary schools or as using such language regularly in a Federal agency. Directs the Secretary of Education to: (1) establish a foreign language education marketing campaign to encourage students at secondary schools and IHEs to study foreign languages, particularly ones less commonly taught and critical to national security; and (2) conduct a study to identify foreign language heritage communities and recruit speakers of such critical languages. Amends the David L. Boren National Security Education Act of 1991 to establish an International Flagship Language Initiative with grants to IHEs.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to authorize the Secretary of Education to carry out a demonstration program of student loan forgiveness for child welfare workers employed by child protection agencies.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Fairness to All Vietnam Veterans Act - Directs the Secretary of Defense to study and report to Congress: (1) to identify veterans who died after October 31, 1955, as a result of military operations in southeast Asia whose names are not eligible for inscription on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial; and (2) on the feasibility and equitability of revising the eligibility requirements to be more inclusive of such veterans or of creating an alternative means for recognizing them, including alternatives involving an education center at the Memorial.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Social Security Fairness Act of 2005 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to repeal: (1) pension offset provisions applicable to husband's and wife's insurance benefits, widow's and widower's insurance benefits, and mother's and father's insurance benefits with respect to OASDI payments; and (2) windfall elimination provisions with respect to computation of the primary insurance amount of an individual.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Belated Thank You to the Merchant Mariners of World War II Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to pay a monthly benefit of $1,000 to certain honorably-discharged veterans of the U.S. Merchant Marine who served between December 7, 1941, and December 31, 1946 (or to their survivors). Includes service in the Army Transport Service and the Naval Transport Service. Exempts benefits paid under this Act from taxation. Provides for benefits for World War II Merchant Mariners under title II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Stop Counterfeiting in Manufactured Goods Act - Modifies Federal criminal code provisions regarding trafficking in counterfeit goods or services to prohibit trafficking in counterfeit marks. Directs the court: (1) upon a determination by a preponderance of the evidence that any article in a defendant's possession bears or is a counterfeit mark, to order the forfeiture and destruction of such article, regardless of whether the defendant is convicted of an offense; and (2) in imposing sentence, to order a person convicted of, or who pleads guilty or nolo contendre to, a violation to forfeit any property derived from proceeds of, or used in the commission of, the violation. Modifies the definition of "counterfeit mark" to include a spurious mark that is applied to, or consists of, a label, patch or medallion. Provides that nothing in this Act shall entitle the United States to bring a criminal cause of action for the repackaging, without deception, of genuine goods or services.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act - Amends Federal postal service law to direct the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) (established by this Act) to establish a modern system for regulating rates and classes for market-dominant products (all first-class mail, special services, periodicals, standard mail, media mail, library mail, and bound printed matter). Directs the Board of Governors of the U.S. Postal Service to establish rates and classes for products in the competitive category of mail (priority mail, expedited mail, mailgrams, international mail, and parcel post). Authorizes the Postal Service to conduct market tests of experimental products. Directs the PRC to establish rules to ensure that workshare discounts (presorting, barcoding, etc.) do not exceed the cost that the Postal Service avoids as the result of private sector workshare activity. Establishes in the Treasury a revolving Postal Service Competitive Products Fund which shall be available to the Postal Service without fiscal year limitation for the payment of: (1) costs attributable to competitive products; and (2) all other costs incurred by the Postal Service, to the extent allocable to competitive products. Requires the Postal Service to: (1) compute its assumed Federal income tax (which would be the taxable income of a corporation) on competitive products income for such year; and (2) transfer from the Competitive Products Fund to the Postal Service Fund the amount of that assumed tax. Prohibits the Postal Service from: (1) establishing anti-competitive rules or regulations; (2) compelling the disclosure, transfer, or licensing of intellectual property to any third party; or (3) obtaining information from a person that provides any product, and then offering any product or service that uses or is based in whole or in part on such information, without the person's consent. Makes the Secretary of State responsible for foreign policy related to international postal services and other international delivery services. Replaces the Postal Rate Commission with the Postal Regulatory Commission. Directs the Postal Service to report to the President, Congress, and: (1) PRC on universal postal service in the United States; and (2) Postal Service Board of Governors on the postal processing and distribution network. Repeals the authority of the Postal Service to impose fines on air carriers transporting mail beyond U.S. borders for unreasonable or unnecessary delays and other delinquencies. Directs the Postal Service to prescribe regulations for the safe transportation of hazardous materials in the mail. Provides civil penalties, plus cleanup costs, for violations. Revises postal pension funding requirements under the Civil Service Retirement System. Establishes the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Securely Protect Yourself Against Cyber Trespass Act or SPY ACT - Makes it unlawful for any person who is not the owner or authorized user (user) of a protected computer (a computer exclusively for the use of a financial institution or the U.S. Government, or a computer used in interstate or foreign commerce or communication) to engage in deceptive acts or practices in connection with specified conduct, including: (1) taking unsolicited control of the computer; (2) modifying computer settings; (3) collecting personally identifiable information; (4) inducing the unsolicited installation of computer software; and (5) removing or disabling a security, anti-spyware, or anti-virus technology. Makes it unlawful for a person to: (1) transmit to a protected computer any information collection program (a program that collects personally identifiable information and uses the information to send advertising), unless such program provides notice required by this Act before execution of any of the program's collection functions; or (2) execute any collection information program installed on a protected computer unless, before execution, the user has consented to such execution under notice requirements of this Act. Provides for enforcement of violations as unfair or deceptive acts or practices. Makes this Act inapplicable with respect to: (1) law enforcement actions; (2) monitoring undertaken for network security; and (3) Good Samaritan actions (actions taken in good faith, and with the user's consent, by a computer software or service provider to remove or disable a program which violates this Act). Directs the Federal Trade Commission to report to Congress regarding the use of computer tracking cookies in the delivery or display of advertising to computer owners and users.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Servicemembers Anti-Predatory Lending Protection Act - Amends the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to set forth terms for consumer credit extended to a servicemember or servicemember's dependent, including terms of interest with respect to the extension of such credit. Prohibits a creditor from imposing an annual percentage rate greater than 36 percent with respect to the consumer credit extended. Sets forth mandatory loan disclosures, including: (1) a statement of the annual percentage rate applicable to the extension of credit; and (2) a clear description of the payment obligations. Prohibits a creditor from automatically renewing, repaying, refinancing, or consolidating any consumer credit with the proceeds of other credit extended to a servicemember or a servicemember's dependent by the same creditor without: (1) executing new loan documentation signed by the servicemember; and (2) providing the mandatory loan disclosures. Preempts any State or Federal law, rule, or regulation, including any State usury law, to the extent that it is inconsistent with this Act. States that this Act does not preempt any such law, rule, or regulation that provides additional protection. Prescribes criminal penalties for violation of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Health Empowerment Zone Act of 2005 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and the Director of the Office of Minority Health, to: (1) designate health empowerment zones and make grants in accordance with this Act; and (2) establish a health empowerment zone coordinating committee for each zone. Authorizes the Secretary to designate a community as a health empowerment zone if a participating community partnership requests such designation and demonstrates that the community is a community of color experiencing disproportionate disparities in health status and health care. Directs the Secretary to make grants to community partnerships to establish health empowerment zone programs to improve the health or environment of minority individuals and eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in health status and health care. Requires at least one such grant to be made to a health empowerment zone in a U.S. territory or possession. Gives preference in awarding grants to indigenous community entities with expertise in providing culturally appropriate and linguistically responsive services to communities of color. Directs the Secretary, the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Labor, and the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to: (1) provide assistance for such programs; (2) identify programs that may be used to further the purposes of such zones; and (3) give priority in administering identified programs to a designated community if doing so would further the purposes of the empowerment program.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Democracy Day Act of 2005 - Requires the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November in 2008 and in each even-number year thereafter (Election Day) to be treated in the same manner as November 11 (Veterans Day) for purposes of any laws relating to Federal employment. Urges private employers to give their employees that day off to enable them to vote. Directs the Comptroller General to conduct a study of the impact of such requirement on voter participation.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Declares that the House honors Shirley Chisholm (a former Representative from New York) for her service to the Nation, her work to improve the lives of women and minorities, her steadfast commitment to demonstrating the power of compassion, and her dedication to justice and equality. Expresses its deepest condolences upon her death to her family, friends, and supporters.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Amends rule X (Organization of Committees) of the Rules of the House of Representatives to establish the House Committees on Homeland Security and on Intelligence. Grants jurisdiction to the House Committee on Homeland Security over matters regarding the Department of Homeland Security and homeland security, generally. Grants exclusive jurisdiction to the House Committee on Intelligence over: (1) the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Director of Central Intelligence, and the National Foreign Intelligence Program (NFIP); (2) intelligence and intelligence-related activities of all other Federal departments and agencies, including the tactical intelligence and intelligence-related activities of the Department of Defense (DOD); (3) the organization or reorganization of a Federal department or agency to the extent relating to a function or activity involving intelligence or intelligence-related activities; and (4) authorizations for appropriations, both direct and indirect, as well as appropriations, for the CIA and such other staff, programs, and activities. Specifies the composition of the Committee on Intelligence. Increases from 13 to 14 the number of subcommittees of the House Appropriations Committee (of which one is a Subcommittee on Intelligence).
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Declares that the House of Representatives: (1) mourns the horrific loss of life caused by the earthquake and tsunamis that occurred on December 26, 2004, in South and Southeast Asia; (2) expresses its deep condolences to the families of the many earthquake and tsunami victims; (3) applauds the prompt humanitarian response to the tsunami tragedy by governments, the United Nations and other international organizations, and nongovernmental organizations; (4) recognizes the generous outpouring of support for relief efforts from private citizens around the world, including in the United States; (5) affirms its commitment to additional generous U.S. support for relief and long-term reconstruction efforts in areas affected by the earthquake and tsunamis; and (6) urges continued attention by donors and relief agencies to the needs of vulnerable populations in the stricken countries, particularly the thousands of children who have been left parentless and homeless by this disaster.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2004
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 30777 Rancho California Road in Temecula, California, as the "Dalip Singh Saund Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2004
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 5505 Stevens Way in San Diego, California, as the "Earl B. Gilliam/Imperial Avenue Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2004
Preventing Sexual Assaults in the Military Act of 2004 - Authorizes necessary appropriations to: (1) eliminate the backlog in processing DNA evidence at military DNA laboratories, including the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Laboratory; (2) ensure that DNA testing and analysis of samples from crimes, including sexual assault and other serious violent crimes, are carried out in a timely manner; (3) distribute a sufficient amount of DNA evidence kits to each military academy, domestic military base, overseas military base, and theater of operations; and (4) ensure that at least one military medical personnel member trained as a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) or Sexual Assault Forensic Examiner (SAFE) is on duty at all times in the health care facility of each military academy, domestic military military base, overseas military base, and theater of operations, except where a memorandum of understanding ensures that a nonmilitary SANE or SAFE is on duty at all times.
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2004
Office of Intellectual Property and Competition Policy Act of 2004 - Amends the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to establish an Office of Intellectual Property and Competition Policy in the Department of State. Transfers to the Office all functions of the Intellectual Property and Competition Policy (IPC) Division of the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs of the Department of State. Provides that the Office has primary responsibility within the Department of State to: (1) develop and implement policies to promote effective intellectual property rights protection worldwide; and (2) provide technical assistance to foreign countries to implement such policies.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Providing Reliable Officers, Technology, Education, Community Prosecutors, and Training In Our Neighborhoods Act of 2004 or PROTECTION Act - Modifies provisions of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 regarding public safety and community policing ("cops on the beat" program, COPS) to authorize the Attorney General to use COPS grants to: (1) increase prosecutor presence and to enhance law enforcement access to new technologies; (2) pay overtime to existing career law enforcement officers for community policing; and (3) promote higher education among in-service State and local law enforcement officers by reimbursing them for certain educational costs. Includes among permitted additional grant projects: (1) specialized integrity and ethics training; and (2) innovative proactive crime control and prevention programs involving school officials and religiously-affiliated organizations. Authorizes the Attorney General to use up to five percent of appropriated funds for technical assistance and training to States, local governments, Indian tribal governments, and other entities. Repeals provisions of the Act regarding termination of grants for hiring officers. Allows grants to be used to assist: (1) police departments in employing specified professional, scientific, and technological advancements; (2) State, local, or tribal prosecutors' offices in implementation of community-based prosecution programs that build on local community policing efforts; and (3) in paying overtime to existing career law enforcement officers. Reserves specified funds for local governmental units with a population of less than 50,000. Authorizes the Attorney General to use no more than 50 percent of grant renewal funds to award grants targeted for police officer retention.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Preservation of Federalism in Banking Act - Amends the Revised Statutes of the United States to set forth State law preemption standards for national banks and their subsidiaries. Declares that any State: (1) consumer law of general application (including any law relating to unfair or deceptive acts or practices and any consumer fraud law) shall also apply to any national bank; and (2) law applicable to State banks shall also apply to any national bank if it was enacted pursuant to, or consistent with, Federal law permitting the States to exceed or supplement Federal law requirements. Prohibits construction of Federal law governing visitorial powers, or otherwise limiting or restricting the supervisory, examination, or regulatory authority to which any national bank is subject, as limiting or restricting the authority of a State attorney general to enforce: (1) any applicable Federal or State law; or (2) on behalf of residents of such State, any applicable provision of any Federal or State law against a national bank, or seek relief and recover damages for such residents from any violation of any such law by any national bank. Prohibits construction of Federal law governing nondepository institution subsidiaries of national banks as preempting the applicability of State law to any State-chartered nondepository institution subsidiary of a national bank, except to the extent the preemption is explicitly provided by an Act of Congress. Directs the Comptroller of the Currency to record and monitor each complaint received from a consumer regarding a national bank or any subsidiary of a national bank as well as the resolution of the complaint.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2004
Disabled Federal Employees Protection Act - Prohibits the termination of employment of a disabled Federal employee due to a conversion to contractor performance of any activity or function of an executive agency under Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76 or any other Federal policy, directive, or regulation. Exempts certain nonprofit agencies for the blind or severely handicapped from this prohibition if the terminated Federal employee is offered an equivalent position in the Federal Government or with the nonprofit agency.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2004
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the Secretary of Homeland Security should designate Haiti, Grenada, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, and the Bahamas under the Immigration and Nationality Act to make nationals of those countries eligible for temporary protected status.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2004
Commemorates the 60th anniversary of the Port Chicago (California) Naval Magazine tragedy. Calls upon all Americans to honor the memory of those who served and those who gave their lives at Port Chicago in defense of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 2004
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 23055 Sherman Way in West Hills, California, as the "Evan Asa Ashcraft Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 2004
National Intelligence Reform Act of 2004 - Establishes as an independent executive entity the National Intelligence Authority (Authority), headed by a National Intelligence Director (Director), to, among other things: (1) unify and strengthen efforts of the intelligence community (IC); (2) operate the National Counterterrorism Center and national intelligence centers; and (3) establish clear responsibility and accountability for counterterrorism and other intelligence matters relating to U.S. national security. Requires the Director to: (1) serve as the head of the IC; (2) advise the President on intelligence related to national security; and (3) direct and oversee the National Intelligence Program (formerly the National Foreign Intelligence Program). Authorizes the Director to establish and train a National Intelligence Reserve Corps for the temporary reemployment of former IC employees during periods of emergency. Establishes in the Treasury the Reserve for Contingencies of the National Intelligence Director. Establishes a National Intelligence Council (Council) to produce national intelligence estimates for the U.S. Government and evaluate the collection and production of intelligence by the IC. Establishes a National Counterterrorism Center to, among other things: (1) unify strategy for U.S. civilian and military counterterrorism efforts; and (2) integrate counterterrorism intelligence and operations across agency boundaries, both inside and outside the United States. Authorizes the Director to establish within the Authority one or more national intelligence centers to address intelligence priorities established by the Council. Requires the Director to establish the Intelligence Community Scholarship Program to award scholarships designed to recruit and prepare students for civilian careers in the IC. Requires the President to publicly disclose certain intelligence funding information for fiscal years after 2005. Merges the Homeland Security Council into the Council. Establishes a Joint Intelligence Community Council to assist the Director in developing and implementing a joint, unified national intelligence effort to protect national security. Requires the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to develop and maintain within the FBI a national security workforce of agents, analysts, linguists, and surveillance specialists. Federal Bureau of Investigation Intelligence Career Service Authorization Act of 2005 - Authorizes the FBI Director to establish an FBI Intelligence Career Service for FBI intelligence analysts. Directs the President to establish an information sharing network to promote the sharing of intelligence and homeland security information among all relevant Federal departments and agencies, State, tribal, and local authorities, and private sector entities. Establishes an Executive Council on Information Sharing. Establishes within the Executive Office of the President a Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board. Requires the congressional intelligence committees to be provided all intelligence estimates and assessments other than those prepared exclusively for the President.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2004
States that the House of Representatives: (1) condemns in the strongest terms all efforts to suppress and intimidate voters in the United States; (2) reaffirms that voting is a fundamental right of all eligible U.S. citizens; (3) urges States to replace decades-old election machinery with less error-prone equipment before the November 2004 national elections; (4) calls upon all States to institute a moratorium on the erection of roadblocks or identity checkpoints designed to racially profile or intimidate voters on Election Day; and (5) calls upon the Attorney General to monitor vigorously and investigate all credible allegations of voter intimidation and suppression, and to prosecute expeditiously all offenders to the full extent of the law.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2004
Declares that the House of Representatives recognizes the United Negro College Fund, on the occasion of its 60th anniversary, for its outstanding commitment towards providing a quality education for minority and low-income students and towards strengthening our communities.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2004
States that Congress: (1) commends the Caribbean governments for their efforts after the devastation caused by Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne from August to September, 2004; (2) commends the efforts of the Caribbean-American community to provide relief to family and friends; (3) supports U.S. efforts to assist in coordinating international relief efforts, particularly in Grenada, Jamaica, Haiti, and the Bahamas; and (4) urges the international community to take all necessary steps to provide emergency relief and reconstruction efforts.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2004
Expresses the sense of Congress that Congress should fully fund the design and construction of a visitor center at the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site in Arkansas to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the desegregation of Little Rock Central High School.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2004
Expresses the sense of Congress that it: (1) sends its most heartfelt wishes for a full, speedy, and healthy recovery to William Jefferson Clinton; (2) acknowledges the danger that undiagnosed heart ailments pose and the importance of heart disease prevention; and (3) supports heart disease education and prevention programs, and funding for research into new and improved treatments.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2004
Comprehensive Peace in Sudan Act - Expresses the sense of Congress regarding: (1) the relevance of the Sudan Peace Act and its extension to the Darfur region of Sudan; (2) the genocide unfolding in Darfur and the Government of Sudan's violation of the Convention of the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide; and (3) actions to address the conflict in Sudan. Requires an annual report on the identities of entities doing business in Sudan. Prohibits an entity doing business in Sudan from raising capital or trading its securities in the United States. Provides for: (1) sanctions in support of peace in Darfur; and (2) actions to secure multilateral efforts against the Government of Sudan. Amends the Sudan Peace Act to authorize the President to assist Sudan to support the implementation of a comprehensive peace agreement that applies to all regions of Sudan, including the Darfur region, and to address the humanitarian and human rights crisis in the Darfur region and its impact on eastern Chad, contingent upon a continuing certification to the appropriate congressional committees that the Government of Sudan is taking specified actions. States that certain export prohibitions shall not apply to any export or related transaction from an area in Sudan outside of the Government of Sudan's control if the President determines that the export or related transaction would directly benefit the economic development of that area and its people.
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2004
Increases the death gratuity payable with respect to members of the Armed Forces from $12,000 to $50,000. Makes this increase applicable to deaths occurring on or after September 11, 2001. Requires the Secretary of Defense to derive funds for payments under this Act in FY 2005 from travel funds for personnel of the Office of the Secretary.
![Official portrait of Rep. Watson, Diane E. [D-CA-33]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/w000794_200.jpg)