United States · United States Congress · 17 April 2012
Amends the Electronic Fund Transfer Act with respect to mandatory fee disclosures on automated teller machines (ATMs) operated by a person other than a financial institution holding a consumer's account. Repeals the requirement that such a fee disclosure appear in a prominent and conspicuous location on or at the ATM. Limits such requirement to appearance of a fee disclosure on the ATM screen.
United States · United States Congress · 17 April 2012
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) require individuals who claim a tax credit for qualified tuition and related expenses under the Hope Scholarship tax credit or the Lifetime Learning tax credit to include their social security numbers on their tax returns, (2) require the educational institutions of such individuals to provide their employer identification numbers, and (3) make permanent the authority of the Secretary of the Treasury to disclose tax return information relating to inmates in federal or state prisons whom the Secretary has determined may have filed or facilitated the filing of a false tax return.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2012
Energy Exploration and Production to Achieve National Demand Act or EXPAND Act - Title I: Development of Federal Energy Resources - Amends the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 to repeal the moratorium upon oil and gas leasing (or any related activity) in: (1) any area east of the Military Mission Line in the Gulf of Mexico; (2) any area in the Eastern Planning Area that is within 125 miles of the Florida coastline; or (3) specified areas within the Central Planning Area and within 100 miles of the Florida coastline. Amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) regarding the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) leasing program to direct Secretary of Defense (DOD) to review OCS areas that have been designated as restricted from exploration and operation to determine whether they should remain under restriction. Instructs the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary in this title) to offer for leasing: (1) the Destin Dome and Pensacola areas, even though they were omitted from a certain 5-year leasing program, (2) any other areas in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico Planning Area that are made available for leasing under this Act, and (3) include the aforementioned areas in any 5-year leasing program approved after the date of enactment of this Act. Extends, by 24 months, certain deepwater oil and gas leases in the Gulf of Mexico OCS region that were not producing as of April 30, 2010. Directs the Secretary to: (1) reinstate certain expired leases, and (2) conduct expanded OCS lease sales. Sets forth an allocation scheme for coastal states to receive funds from OCS leases that are inversely proportional to the respective distances between the point on the coastline of the adjacent state that is closest to the geographic center of the applicable leased tract and the geographic center of the leased tract. Directs the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), to establish and implement a competitive oil and gas leasing program for exploration, development, and production of the oil and gas resources of the Arctic Coastal Plain. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) designate special areas on such Coastal Plain to preserve fish, wildlife, and subsistence resource values, and (2) exclude leasing or surface occupancy from such areas. Authorizes, however, leasing all or a portion of a Special Area under terms permitting horizontal drilling technology from sites on leases located outside the Special Area. Prescribes: (1) lease sales procedures, (2) lease terms and conditions, and (3) Coastal Plain environmental protection. Sets forth requirements for: (1) distribution of federal and state revenues emanating from bonus, rental, and royalty revenues from oil and gas leasing and operations, (2) semiannual payments to the state of Alaska, (3) rights-of-way and easements across the Coastal Plain for oil and gas transportation, (4) conveyance of surface and subsurface estates to specified Corporations, and (5) local government aid and community service assistance. Establishes in the Treasury the Coastal Plain Local Government Impact Aid Assistance Fund. Expresses the sense of Congress regarding establishment of regional offices and regional permit coordinators to coordinate review of federal permits for oil and gas projects on federal lands onshore and on the OCS, including the appointment of a Regional Permit Coordinator. Prescribes federal agency schedules for permit decisionmaking. Designates the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to act as lead agency for any agency action regarding a Priority Energy Project pursuant to this Act. Amends federal law governing congressional review of agency rulemaking to add: (1) congressional approval procedures for major rules, and (2) congressional disapproval procedures for nonmajor rules. Requires the Secretary invite the governor of any state in which either an oil and gas operation may require a federal permit, or whose coastline is in immediate geographic proximity to OCS oil and gas operations, to be a signatory to a specified memorandum in order to fulfill any state responsibilities regarding federal oil and gas permitting decisions. Authorizes a federal agency with jurisdiction over a Priority Energy Project to delegate to the state in which the Project is located the agency's statutory responsibilities regarding the Project. Removes from further administrative review within the federal agency responsible for decisionmaking any oil and gas permitting decision for federal lands onshore or on the OCS. Subjects to congressional approval implemention, administration, or enforcment by the BLM of Secretarial Order No. 3310. Prescribes wilderness designation procedures subject to congressional approval. Subjects to congressional approval any future executive branch action that withdraws more than 100 acres in the aggregate of public lands within the United States. Grants FERC, in lieu of the Department of the Interior, exclusive jurisdiction and authority to implement and administer the leasing program for research and development of oil shale and tar sands and all other programs and requirements contained in the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Instructs the Secretary to take actions to ensure that by January 1, 2018, at least 10% of the federal OCS lands and at least 10% of onshore federal lands and interests in lands that are under the Secretary's jurisdiction, are being leased for the production of energy. Confers upon the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia exclusive jurisdiction over any final agency decision concerning covered oil and natural gas activity. Requires the Secretary to complete and finalize the Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for Solar Energy Development in Six Southwestern States to analyze the potential impacts of developing solar energy on land administered by the Secretary. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to publish in the Federal Register a notice of intent to prepare a programmatic environmental impact statement to analyze the potential impacts of a program to develop solar and wind energy on National Forest System land. Directs the Secretary of Defense to identify locations on land withdrawn from the public domain and reserved for military purposes that exhibit a high potential for solar, wind, geothermal, or other energy resources production. Instructs the Secretary to establish a wind and solar leasing pilot program on covered land. Instructs the Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture to: (1) make a joint determination on whether to establish a leasing program for wind or solar energy, or both, on land within their respective jurisdictions; and (2) establish a leasing program unless they determine that it is not in the public interest, and does not provide an effective means of developing wind or solar energy. Prescribes a revenue disposition format for such leasing program. Requires the Secretary to consult and work with the Secretary of Defense regarding military operations in OCS waters, including resolution of conflicts that might arise between such operations and leasing under this Act. Deems existing leases issued under the Final Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program, 2007-2012, including any lease issued pursuant to Lease Sale 193 or 213, to be in full compliance with the Final Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program, 2007-2012. Authorizes holders of certain previously approved permits to drill (or to sidetrack) to conduct all operations authorized under such permits: (1) without further review by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and (2) without further review or delay under specified federal environmental protection law. Requires the Secretary to act on oil and natural gas drilling permits within 30 days after an application's submission. Title II: Continental Pipeline Approval - Approves a certain permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline. Deems approved a specified route within the state of Nebraska submitted by the governor of Nebraska if the President does not approve such route within 10 days after its date of submission. Title III: Radiological Material Repository - Requires the federal government to site and permit at least one radiological material geologic repository for the disposal of radiological material. Retains the repository site at Yucca Mountain as the site for the nation's radiological material repository following full statutory review of the Department of Energy's (DOE's) license application to construct the Yucca Mountain repository. Directs the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to continue to review DOE's pending license application to construct the repository at Yucca Mountain until a determination is made on its merits. Instructs the NRC to approve such application within 180 days after enactment of this Act. Removes statutory limitations on the amount of radiological material that can be placed in Yucca Mountain. Requires the NRC to replace such limitations with new limits based on scientific and technical analysis of the full capacity of Yucca Mountain for the storage of radiological material. Title IV: Relief from Regulations and Prohibitions that Cause Artificial Price Increases - Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to: (1) require a decision to include a species on the list of threatened and endangered species to be based on the best scientific and economic (currently, commercial) data available at the time, including analysis of the costs and benefits of the matter under consideration; and (2) declare that nothing in such Act shall be construed to authorize the regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. Amends the Clean Air Act to exclude from the definition of "air pollutant" carbon dioxide, water vapor, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, or sulfur hexafluoride (greenhouse gases). Declares that nothing in the Clean Air Act, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act), the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, or the Solid Waste Disposal Act shall be treated as authorizing or requiring the regulation of climate change or global warming. Provides that such provisions shall not prohibit: (1) implementation and enforcement of the rule entitled "Light-Duty Vehicle Greenhouse Gas Emission Standards and Corporate Average Fuel Economy Standards" and finalization, implementation, enforcement, and revision of the proposed rule entitled "Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles"; (2) statutorily authorized federal research, development, and demonstration programs and voluntary programs addressing climate change; (3) implementation and enforcement of stratospheric ozone protection provisions of the Clean Air Act to the extent that such implementation or enforcement only involves class I or II substances; or (4) implementation and enforcement of requirements of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 for monitoring and reporting of carbon dioxide emissions. Amends the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 to repeal provisions prohibiting any federal agency from entering into a contract for procurement of an alternative or synthetic fuel for any mobility-related use, other than for research or testing, unless the contract specifies that the lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions associated with the production and combustion of the fuel must be less than or equal to such emissions from the equivalent conventional fuel. Amends the Clean Air Act to repeal the renewable fuel program. Title V: Refinery Reform - Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to enter into a refinery permitting agreement upon the request of a state or Indian tribe to streamline the process for obtaining all permits licenses, approvals, variances, or other forms of authorization that a refiner is required to obtain for the construction and operation of a facility that refines crude oil into transportation fuel or other petroleum products or a facility that processes coal into synthetic crude oil or any other fuel. Requires the Administrator to: (1) conduct a research and demonstration program to evaluate the air quality benefits of Fischer-Tropsch transportation fuel, (2) evaluate the use of such fuel as a mechanism for reducing engine exhaust emissions, and (3) recommend the most effective use and associated benefits of such fuels for reducing public exposure to exhaust emissions. Requires such program to consider: (1) the use of neat (100%) Fischer-Tropsch fuel and blends with conventional crude oil-derived fuel for heavy-duty and light-duty diesel engines and the aviation sector, and (2) the production costs associated with domestic production of fuel and prices for consumers. Prohibits applications for permits for existing refineries from being considered to be timely if submitted after 120 days after this Act's enactment. Title VI: Repeal of Energy Tax Subsidies - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal: (1) the credit for alcohol fuel, biodiesel, and alternative fuel mixtures; (2) the credit for certain plug-in electric vehicles; (3) the credit for qualified fuel cell motor vehicles; (4) the alternative fuel vehicle refueling property credit; (5) the credit for alcohol used as fuel; (6) the credit for biodiesel and renewable diesel used as fuel; (7) the enhanced oil recovery credit; (8) the credit for electricity produced from certain renewable resources; (9) the credit for producing oil and gas from marginal wells; (10) the credit for production from advanced nuclear power facilities; (11) the credit for carbon dioxide sequestration; (12) the energy credit; (13) the qualifying advanced coal project; and (14) the qualifying gasification project credit. Amends the American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Act of 2009, Division B of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, to repeal the energy grant program under which the Secretary of the Treasury is required to make grants to persons who place in service in 2009 and 2010 certain energy property that is eligible for: (1) the tax credit for producing electricity from renewable resources (e.g., wind, biomass, or solar energy facilities), or (2) the energy tax credit (e.g., fuel cell, geothermal, or microturbine property). Title VII: Regulatory Relief - Provides that the following rules shall have no force or effect and shall be treated as though they had never taken effect: (1) the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Major Sources: Industrial, Commercial, and Institutional Boilers and Process Heaters; (2) the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Area Sources: Industrial, Commercial, and Institutional Boilers; (3) the Standards of Performance for New Stationary Sources and Emission Guidelines for Existing Sources: Commercial and Industrial Solid Waste Incineration Units; and (4) Identification of Non-Hazardous Secondary Materials That are Solid Waste. Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in place of such rules, to promulgate within 15 months regulations for industrial, commercial, and institutional boilers and process heaters and commercial and industrial solid waste incinerator units subject to such rules, that: (1) establish maximum achievable control technology standards, performance standards, and other requirements for hazardous air pollutants or solid waste combustion under the Clean Air Act; and (2) identify non-hazardous secondary materials that, when used as fuels or ingredients in combustion units of such boilers, heaters, or incinerator units, are solid waste under the Solid Waste Disposal Act for purposes of determining the extent to which such combustion units are required to meet emission standards for such pollutants under such Act. Requires the Administrator to establish compliance dates for such standards and requirements after considering compliance costs, non-air quality health and environmental impacts and energy requirements, the feasibility of implementation, the availability of equipment, suppliers, and labor, and potential net employment impacts. Sets forth guidelines for such rules and regulations, including requiring the Administrator to: (1) ensure that emissions standards for existing and new sources can be met under actual operating conditions consistently and concurrently with emission standards for all other air pollutants regulated by the rule for the source category, and (2) impose the least burdensome regulatory alternative for each regulation promulgated. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a taxpayer to elect to expense the cost of property used in the production of energy in the taxable year in which such property is placed in service. Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to authorize states to implement coal combustion residuals permit programs. Requires each state governor to notify the Administrator within six months about whether such state will implement such a program. Requires states that decide to implement such a program to: (1) submit to the Administrator within 36 months a certification that such program meets the specifications of this Act, and (2) maintain either an approved municipal solid waste program for the control of hazardous disposal or an authorized state hazardous waste program. Establishes minimum requirements for coal combustion residuals permit programs. Requires: (1) the revised criteria established by this Act to apply to such programs; (2) landfills, surface impoundments, or other land-based units that may receive coal combustion residuals (structures) to be designed, constructed, and maintained to provide for containment of the maximum volumes of coal combustion residuals appropriate for the structure; (3) such programs to apply such revised criteria to surface impoundments; and (4) new structures that first receive coal combustion residuals after this Act's enactment to be constructed with a base located a minimum of two feet above the upper limit of the natural water table. Authorizes: (1) state agency heads to require action to correct structural integrity deficiencies according to a schedule for structures that are classified as posing a high hazard potential pursuant to the guidelines published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) entitled "Federal Guidelines for Dam Safety: Hazard Potential Classification System for Dams," (2) state agency heads to require that such a structure close if such deficiency is not corrected according to such schedule, (3) states to inspect structures and implement and enforce such permit program, and (4) states to address wind dispersal of dust from coal combustion residuals by requiring dust control measures. Sets forth revised criteria for such programs with respect to: (1) design, groundwater monitoring, corrective action, and closure and post-closure for structures; (2) location restrictions for new structures in floodplains, wetlands, fault areas, seismic impact zones, and unstable areas; (3) air quality, financial assurance, surface water, and record keeping; (4) run-on and run-off control systems for landfills and other land-based units, other than surface impoundments that receive coal combustion residuals; and (5) run-off control systems for surface impoundments. Authorizes states to determine that such criteria is not needed for the management of their coal combustion residuals permit program. Authorizes the Administrator to treat such state determination as a deficiency if it does not accurately reflect the needs for the management of coal combustion residuals in the state. Requires the time period and method for a structure's closure to be set forth in a schedule in a closure plan that takes into account the site-specific characteristics of such structure. Directs the closure plan for a surface impoundment to require the removal of liquid and the stabilization of remaining waste as necessary to support the final cover. Prohibits the Administrator from applying such programs to the utilization, placement, and storage of coal combustion residuals at surface mining and reclamation operations. Prohibits this Act from being construed to alter the EPA's regulatory determination, entitled "Notice of Regulatory Determination on Wastes from the Combustion of Fossil Fuels," that the fossil fuel combustion wastes addressed in that determination do not warrant regulation under such Act. Title VIII: Attainment of National Ambient Air Quality Standards - Amends the Clean Air Act to require any designation or redesignation of an area within a state or an interstate area as a nonattainment area for the national primary or secondary ambient air quality standard for a pollutant to be based on monitoring data and not on modeling data. Requires the Administrator to set forth the air quality modeling methodologies required to be used in state implementation plans for purposes of predicting the effect on ambient air quality of emissions of air pollutants for which the Administrator has established national ambient air quality standards. Authorizes a downwind area that is not in attainment with the national ambient air quality standard for ozone within 18 months of the attainment deadline to petition the Administrator for an extension of the time to come into attainment. Authorizes the Administrator, in lieu of reclassifying an area as nonattainment for ozone, to extend such date if the Administrator: (1) determines that the area is a downwind area with respect to such standard, (2) approves a plan revision for such area prior to a reclassification, (3) determines that the petitioning downwind area has demonstrated that it is affected by transport from an upwind area to a degree that affects the area's ability to attain such standard, and (4) provides measures to ensure that no area downwind of the area receiving the extended attainment date will be affected by transport to a degree that affects the other area's ability to attain such standard. Provides for the withdrawal of a reclassification determination. Requires such extended attainment date to provide for attainment of such ozone standard in the downwind area as expeditiously as practicable but no later than the new date that the area would have been subject to had it been reclassified. Title IX: Sub-basin Reporting of Greenhouse Gas Emissions - Requires the Administrator, in requiring any owner or operator of any facility in the petroleum and natural gas system source category to report greenhouse gas emissions from facilities in such category, to allow such owner or operator to: (1) designate sub-basins consisting of similar fields within a larger basin, and (2) report such emissions from such sub-basins instead of reporting such emissions from the larger basin. Title X: Implementation of National Ocean Policy - Prohibits federal departments and agencies from performing activities to implement Executive Order 13547, entitled "Stewardship of the Ocean, Our Coasts, and the Great Lakes." Title XI: Other Provisions - Requires: (1) the administrative record compiled by an agency regarding an application for a permit, authorization, or other agency action involving a Priority Energy Project to be the sole and exclusive record for any appeal or review of such action, and (2) such record to be closed upon final agency action and prohibits such record from being subject to any further evidentiary proceedings or requirements unless requested by the applicant. Requires an agency to: (1) prepare and submit a Statement of Energy Effects to the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), for each proposed significant energy action; and (2) publish such Statement, or a summary of it, in each related notice of proposed rulemaking and in any resulting final rule. Requires the approval to construct or operate a Priority Energy Project pursuant to any federal permit to remain valid and authorized for the later of: (1) 18 months following the date on which the last permit needed by such Project to commence construction or operation is final and no longer subject to judicial review, (2) three years, or (3) five years in the case of a nationwide permit issued by the Army Corps of Engineers for activities that impact the aquatic environment. Amends the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to reduce the cap on the maximumpenalty for violations of such Act from $15,000 to $1,000.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2012
Fracturing Regulations are Effective in State Hands Act - Grants any state sole authority to promulgate or enforce any regulation, guidance, or permit requirement with regard to the underground injection of fluids or propping agents pursuant to the hydraulic fracturing process, or any component of such process, relating to oil, gas, or geothermal production activities on or under land within the boundaries of that state. Makes the underground injection of fluids or propping agents pursuant to such process, or any components of such process, relating to oil, gas, or geothermal production activities on federal land subject to the law of the state in which that land is located.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2012
Repeals a provision of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 establishing an inspection and grading program for catfish and other species of farm-raised fish shellfish effective on the date of enactment of such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2012
Constitutional Amendment - States that the liberty of parents to direct the education of their children is a fundamental right. States that neither the United States nor any state shall infringe upon this right without demonstrating that its governmental interest as applied to the person is of the highest order and not otherwise served. Declares that no treaty may be adopted nor shall any source of international law be employed to supersede, modify, interpret, or apply to the rights guaranteed by this amendment.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2012
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the President exercised the recess appointment power despite the fact that neither the House nor the Senate have been adjourned for a period in excess of three days during the Second Session of the 112th Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2012
Recognizes Israel's independence as a significant event in providing refuge and a national homeland for the Jewish people and congratulates Israel's people as they celebrate the 64th anniversary of Israel's independence. Commends the bipartisan commitment of all U.S. administrations and congresses since 1948 to stand by Israel and work for its security and well-being. Supports Israel's right to confront and eliminate nuclear threats posed by Iran, including the use of military force if no other peaceful solution can be found within a reasonable time. Congratulates the United States and Israel for the strengthening of bilateral relations in the fields of defense, diplomacy, and homeland security.
United States · United States Congress · 28 March 2012
Preserving Rural Resources Act of 2012 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to replace a requirement that a permit be obtained for any discharge of dredged or fill material into the navigable waters incidental to any activity having as its purpose bringing an area of such waters into a use to which it was not previously subject and where the flow or circulation of such waters may be impaired or the reach of such waters may be reduced with a requirement that a permit be obtained for any such discharge that is not currently exempted from permit requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2012
Amends provisions of the federal criminal code governing interstate transportation of firearms or ammunition to require that whenever transported by any means other than a motor vehicle: (1) a firearm shall be in a locked container or secured by a secure gun storage or safety device, and (2) ammunition shall be in a locked container. Excludes from permitted transport of a firearm or ammunition any transportation: (1) with the intent to commit a crime punishable by imprisonment for more than one year that involves the use or threatened use of force against another; or (2) with knowledge or reasonable cause to believe that such a crime is to be committed in the course of, or arising from, the transportation. Prohibits the arrest or detention of a person for a violation of any state or local law or regulation related to the possession, transportation, or carrying of firearms unless there is probable cause to believe that the person is doing so in a manner not provided for under federal law. Provides that when a person asserts this as a defense in a criminal proceeding: (1) the prosecution shall bear the burden of proving, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the person's conduct did not satisfy federal conditions; and (2) the court shall award the prevailing defendant a reasonable attorney's fee. Authorizes a private right of action (and attorney fees) for deprivation of any right, privilege or immunity secured by federal firearms provisions under color of any state or local law or regulation.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2012
Pool Safety and Accessibility for Everyone (Pool SAFE) Act - Prohibits any suit brought for violations of the revised regulations of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 concerning the requirements to provide an accessible means of entry to pools for places of public accommodation and commercial facilities that occurred on or after March 15, 2012, and before the date that is one year after enactment of this Act. Bars the Attorney General (AG) from investigating or initiating a compliance review of an alleged violation occurring during such period. Requires dismissal of any suit brought against a place of public accommodation or commercial facility for such a violation brought on or after March 15, 2012, and before the date of enactment of this Act. Directs the AG to revise accessibility regulations to provide that a place of public accommodation or a commercial facility is in compliance with the requirement to have an accessible means of entry to a pool when such a place or facility uses a portable pool lift on request, even if: (1) installation of a permanent lift is readily achievable, and (2) a single portable pool lift is used for multiple pools.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 2012
Accountability in Grants Act of 2012 - Amends the Clean Air Act to prohibit the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from awarding grants, contracts, cooperative agreements, or other financial assistance under the national research and development program for the prevention and control of air pollution for any program, project, or activity to occur outside the United States and its territories and possessions.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 2012
Expresses the sense of Congress that the President should not interpret or construe the Defense Production Act of 1950 to authorize the President or any federal department or agency to confiscate personal or private property, to force conscription into the Armed Forces on the American people, to force civilians to engage in labor against their will or without compensation, or to force private businesses to relinquish goods or services without compensation.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2012
Directs the Secretary of State to: (1) designate Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a foreign terrorist organization, and (2) report to Congress on IRGC terrorist activities.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2012
Small Business Tax Cut Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow domestic businesses a tax deduction for 20% of the lesser of their qualified domestic business income (income effectively connected with a trade or business in the United States) or their taxable income for the taxable year. Limits the amount of such deduction to 50% of the the greater of the W-2 wages (payroll) paid to business non-owners or the sum of the W-2 wages paid to non-owner family members of direct owners (i.e., stockholders), plus any W-2 wages paid to direct owners who have a 10% or less interest in a business.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 2012
Medicare Pharmacy Transparency and Fair Auditing Act - Amends part D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to require each contract entered into with a prescription drug plan (PDP) sponsor for the offering of a prescription drug plan to prohibit the PDP sponsor from contracting with any pharmacy benefits manager (PBM) to manage the prescription drug coverage under such plan, or to control the costs of such coverage, unless the manager satisfies specified PBM audit and disclosure requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2012
Freedom from Over-Criminalization and Unjust Seizures Act of 2012 - Amends the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 to repeal the prohibition on importing, exporting, transporting, selling, receiving, acquiring, or purchasing in interstate or foreign commerce: (1) fish or wildlife taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of foreign law; or (2) plants taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of foreign law, without the payment of appropriate royalties, taxes, or stumpage fees required by foreign law, or in violation of any limitation under foreign law that governs the export or transshipment of plants. Repeals the prohibition on possessing such fish, wildlife, or plants within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States. Establishes a $200,000 maximum limit on a civil penalty for a knowing violation of such Act that involves fish, wildlife, or plants with a market value of $350 or more. Repeals: (1) criminal penalties under such Act, and (2) the authorization to suspend, modify, or cancel specified licenses or permits issued to any person who is convicted of a criminal violation of such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 2012
State Health Flexibility Act of 2012 - Amends the Social Security Act (SSA) to replace the Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program with a program of block grants to states for health care services to indigent individuals. Requires states receiving such block grants to pay for health-care-related items and services provided to a citizen, legal resident, or an alien not lawfully admitted for permanent residence or otherwise permanently residing in the United States under color of law, if: (1) such health-care-related items and services are necessary for the treatment of an emergency medical condition; (2) the individual meets all necessary eligibility requirements for health-care-related items and services under the block grant program except for any immigration status requirement; and (3) such items and services are not related to an organ transplant procedure. Repeals the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the Health Care and Educational Reconciliation Act of 2010, SSA title XIX (Medicaid), and SSA title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance Program) (CHIP).
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 2012
United States-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act of 2012 - States that it is U.S. policy to: (1) reaffirm the commitment to Israel's security as a Jewish state, (2) provide Israel with the military capabilities to defend itself and help preserve its qualitative military edge, (3) expand military and civilian cooperation, (4) assist in a negotiated settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that results in two states living side by side in peace and security, and (5) encourage Israel's neighbors to recognize Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state. Expresses the sense of Congress that the United States should take specified actions to assist in Israel's defense.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2012
Affirms that it is a vital national interest of the United States to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capability and warns that time is limited to prevent that from happening. Urges increasing economic and diplomatic pressure on Iran to secure an agreement that includes: (1) suspension of all uranium enrichment-related and reprocessing activities, (2) complete cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regarding Iran's nuclear activities, and (3) a permanent agreement that verifiably assures that Iran's nuclear program is entirely peaceful. Supports: (1) the universal rights and democratic aspirations of the Iranian people, and (2) U.S. policy to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons capability. Rejects any U.S. policy that would rely on efforts to contain a nuclear weapons-capable Iran. Urges the President to reaffirm the unacceptability of an Iran with nuclear-weapons capability and oppose any policy that would rely on containment as an option in response to the Iranian nuclear threat.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2012
Pro Football Hall of Fame Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 50,000 $5-gold coins, 400,000 $1-silver coins, and 750,000 half-dollar coins emblematic of the game of professional football. Requires all sales of such coins to include specified surcharges, which shall be paid by the Secretary to the Pro Football Hall of Fame to help finance the construction of a new building and the renovation of existing Pro Football Hall of Fame facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2012
Condemns Iran for its state-sponsored persecution of religious minorities and its continued violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Calls for Iran to release Youcef Nadarkhani and all other individuals held or charged on account of their religion. Recognizes that religious freedom is a universal human right and a fundamental individual freedom.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2012
Health Information Technology Reform Act - Amends titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act to exclude pathologists from Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments and, in particular, penalties relating to the meaningful use of electronic health records.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2012
Keeping Promises to Taxpayers Act of 2012 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to repeal certain health care-related taxes and other provisions, including: (1) the requirement that certain employers provide their employees with health insurance coverage and report on such coverage, (2) the excise tax on excess benefits from employer-sponsored health care coverage, (3) the requirement that distributions from a health savings account be used to pay for prescription drugs and insulin only (thus allowing for payment of over-the-counter medications), (4) the increase (from 7.5% to 10%) in the income threshold for the medical expense tax deduction, (5) the $2,500 limitation on contributions to health flexible spending arrangements, (6) the annual fees required for businesses providing health insurance and manufacturers or importers of branded prescription drugs, (7) the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Trust Fund, (8) the fee imposed on insured and self-insured health plans, (9) the excise taxes on medical device manufacturers and importers and on indoor tanning services, (10) the increase (from 10% to 20%) in the penalty for distributions from health savings accounts and Archer medical savings accounts not used for qualified medical expenses, and (11) the increase in the tobacco production excise tax.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2012
Disapproves and nullifies the rule submitted by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and published December 22, 2011, relating to representation election procedures.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2012
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) tax incentives for retirement savings plans play an important role in encouraging employers and employees to participate in such plans, (2) existing incentives have increased the number of Americans covered by a retirement plan, and (3) a reformed and simplified tax code should include incentives to maintain and contribute to such plans and to strengthen retirement security for all Americans.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2012
Provides that, as of October 1, 2011, changes made to the program guidance relating to the award of Post-Deployment/Mobilization Respite Absence administrative absence days to members of the reserves under a specified Department of Defense (DOD) instruction shall not apply to reservists whose qualified mobilization commenced before October 1, 2011, and continued until the termination of the mobilization.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2012
Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate to make arrangements for the presentation of a congressional gold medal to Jack Nicklaus in recognition of his service to the nation in promoting excellence and good sportsmanship. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to strike such gold medal and to strike and sell duplicate bronze medals at a price sufficient to cover the costs of the gold and bronze medals.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2012
Common Sense Economic Recovery Act of 2012 - Cites circumstances under which, for purposes of determining capital requirements or measuring an insured depository institution's capital, such an institution may treat a non-accrual loan as an accrual loan. (Non-accrual [also known as non-performing or doubtful] loans are those on which interest is overdue and full collection of principal is uncertain, and so interest, if it has not been paid in over 90 days, cannot be credited to the bank's revenue account until it has actually been received.) Permits an insured depository institution to treat a non-accrual loan as an accrual loan if: (1) the loan is current, (2) no monthly payment has been more than 30 days delinquent during the previous 6-month period, and (3) loan payments are being made pursuant to the contract terms and all parties agree to any refinances and modifications. Prohibits a modified or restructured loan from being treated as a non-accrual loan if the borrower demonstrates the ability to perform on such a loan: (1) over a period of 6 months; or (2) over a period of 3 consecutive payments in the case of a quarterly, semi-annual, or longer repayment schedule. Prohibits the appropriate federal banking agency from: (1) imposing any additional accounting requirements upon an insured depository institution with respect to a loan treated as an accrual loan under this Act if the result of such requirement would adversely impact measurement of the institution's capital, or (2) requiring an insured depository institution to treat a loan as a non-accrual loan solely because the loan collateral has reduced in value. Excludes from the accounting requirements and prohibitions of this Act any issuer of a security registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Directs the Financial Stability Oversight Council to study how best to prevent the issuance of contradictory guidance to such institutions by federal banking agencies with respect to loan classifications and capital requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2012
Keep Employees' Emails and Phones Secure Act or KEEP Secure Act - Amends the National Labor Relations Act to prohibit the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) from requiring an employer to provide the NLRB or a labor organization with employee telephone numbers or email addresses.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2012
Grant Return for Deficit Reduction Act - Requires any state or locality which will not use any funds remaining under a federal grant to deobligate, rescind, and return them to the Treasury General Fund for deficit reduction. Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to report to Congress on the amount of all such funds returned.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2012
Honoring Our Nation's Outstanding Rifle Squads Act or HONOR Act - Authorizes the Secretary of the Army, if determined appropriate to meet the needs of an eligible organization with respect to performing funeral and other ceremonies, to: (1) loan or donate excess small arms; (2) authorize the organization to retain small arms other than M-1 rifles; or (3) if excess small arms stock is insufficient to meet organizational requirements, prescribe policies and procedures to establish a rotational loan program based on the organization's needs.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2012
Travel Transparency Act - Makes it an unfair or deceptive practice for an air carrier (including an indirect air carrier), foreign air carrier, a carrier agent, or a ticket agent to advertise or solicit air passenger transportation without disclosing the base airfare ticket costs and user taxes imposed for it. Requires the disclosure of any other government imposed taxes and fees paid on a per passenger basis to be clear and separate from the base airfare ticket cost in any such advertisement or solicitation.
United States · United States Congress · 1 February 2012
Calls for the President to appoint a special counsel to investigate Operation Fast and Furious and the Attorney General's knowledge and management of that Operation.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2012
Prohibits federal funds from being used by a federal agency or instrumentality to participate in a lawsuit to overturn, enjoin, or otherwise invalidate specified immigration-related laws in Oklahoma, Missouri, Arizona, Utah, Indiana, Alabama, South Carolina, or Georgia.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2012
Military Religious Freedom Protection Act - Requires the sincerely held religious or moral beliefs of a member of the Armed Forces concerning the appropriate and inappropriate expression of human sexuality to be accommodated and not the basis of any adverse personnel action, discrimination, or denial of promotion, schooling, training, or assignment (adverse actions). Prohibits a military chaplain from being directed, ordered, or required to perform any duty, rite, ritual, ceremony, service, or function (ceremony) that is contrary to the conscience, moral principles, or religious beliefs (beliefs) of the chaplain or the chaplain's faith group. Prohibits the refusal of a chaplain to perform a ceremony that is contrary to such beliefs from being the basis of any adverse actions. Requires the Secretary of Defense to issue regulations setting forth guidance to implement such requirements and prohibitions. Prohibits a military installation or other property owned, rented, or otherwise under the jurisdiction or control of the Department of Defense (DOD) from being used to officiate, solemnize, or perform a marriage or marriage-like ceremony involving anything other than the union of one man with one woman.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2012
Extends gratitude to the more than 1.5 million members of the U.S. Armed Forces, from both the regular and reserve components of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Merchant Marine, who served in Operations Iraqi Freedom and New Dawn. Recognizes their success in operations against a dangerous and determined enemy. Recognizes the tremendous personal sacrifice of those who served in such Operations, many of whom were committed to multiple deployments, and the contributions of military families on the home front. Pays tribute to the 4,486 members who lost their lives in such Operations, and commits to honoring their memory for their courage and sacrifice.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2012
Prohibits the use of federal funds to require a person licensed to deal in firearms to report information to the Department of Justice (DOJ) regarding the sale of multiple rifles or shotguns to the same person.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2012
Keystone For a Secure Tomorrow Act - Approves a specified permit regarding certain energy-related facilities and land transportation crossings on the international boundaries of the United States for the Keystone XL pipeline project. Prescribes permit requirements, including: (1) reconsideration of routing of the Keystone XL pipeline within Nebraska; (2) a review period during which routing within Nebraska may be reconsidered and the route of the Keystone XL pipeline through the state altered with any accompanying modification to a specified Plan; and (3) the obligation of the President to coordinate review with the state of Nebraska, provide necessary data and reasonable technical assistance material to the review process, and approve the route within Nebraska submitted by its governor to the Secretary of State. Deems approved, within 10 days after its date of submission, the route submitted by the governor of Nebraska pursuant to the permit approved under this Act if the President does not approve that route.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2012
District of Columbia Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act - Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit any person from performing or attempting to perform an abortion within the District of Columbia except in conformity with this Act's requirements. Requires the physician to first make a determination of the probable post-fertilization age of the unborn child, or reasonably rely upon such a determination made by another physician, by making inquiries of the pregnant woman and performing such medical examinations and tests as a reasonably prudent physician would consider necessary. Prohibits the abortion from being performed if the probable post-fertilization age of the unborn child is 20 weeks or greater. Makes an exception where necessary to save the life of a pregnant woman whose life is endangered by a physical disorder, illness, or injury, excluding psychological or emotional conditions or any claim or diagnosis that the woman will engage in conduct intended to result in her death. Permits a physician to terminate a pregnancy under such exception only in the manner which provides the best opportunity for the unborn child to survive, unless termination of the pregnancy in that manner would pose a greater risk of the death or substantial and irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function, not including psychological or emotional conditions, of the pregnant woman than would other available methods. Prescribes penalties for violations. Bars prosecution of a woman upon whom an abortion is performed in violation of this Act, but authorizes such a woman or the father or maternal grandparent of the unborn child to obtain appropriate relief through a civil action. Provides for injunctive relief to prevent violations. Sets forth specified privacy protections in court proceedings for the woman upon whom an abortion has been performed. Requires any physician who performs an abortion within the District to report it to the Department of Health of the District of Columbia, which shall issue annual public reports.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2012
Ultrasound Informed Consent Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require abortion providers, before a woman gives informed consent to any part of an abortion, to perform an obstetric ultrasound on the pregnant woman, provide a simultaneous explanation of what the ultrasound is depicting, display the ultrasound images so the woman may view them, and provide a complete medical description of the images, including the dimensions of the embryo or fetus, cardiac activity if present and visible, and the presence of external members and internal organs if present and viewable. Prohibits construing this Act to require a woman to view the images or penalizing the provider or the woman if she declines to look at the images. Exempts an abortion provider if the abortion is necessary to save the life of a mother whose life is endangered by a physical disorder, physical illness, or physical injury, including a life-endangering physical condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself. Requires the provider to include in the woman's medical file a truthful and accurate certification of the specific medical circumstances that support such determination. Authorizes the Attorney General to commence a civil action in federal court against any abortion provider who knowingly violates this Act. Prescribes penalties. Directs the Attorney General to notify the appropriate state medical licensing authority of penalties assessed. Authorizes a woman upon whom an abortion has been performed in violation of this Act to commence a civil action against the provider for actual and punitive damages.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2012
Countering Iran in the Western Hemisphere Act of 2012 - States that it shall be U.S. policy to use all elements of national power to counter Iran's growing presence and hostile activity in the Western Hemisphere. Directs the Secretary of State to submit to Congress a strategy to address Iran's growing presence and activity in the Western Hemisphere.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2012
Budget Before Borrowing Act of 2012 - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to make it out of order in both chambers to consider any bill or joint resolution, amendment, or conference report to extend the public debt limit unless a concurrent resolution on the budget has been agreed to and is in effect for the fiscal year during which such measure is being considered. Permits: (1) waiver or suspension of this prohibition in either chamber only by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of its Members, and (2) its successful appeal from the ruling of the Chair in the Senate only by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of its Members.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 2012
Executive Appointments Reform Act - Eliminates exceptions to the prohibition against payment for services to an individual appointed to a federal position requiring confirmation by the U.S. Senate (advice and consent) during a recess of the Senate. Prohibits any federal officer or employee serving in a position that requires Senate confirmation from providing voluntary or gratuitous services. Amends the National Labor Relations Act to provide that a quorum required by the National Labor Relations Board to conduct its business shall not include any member of such Board who has not been confirmed by the Senate. Amends the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to: (1) provide that no rule, order, or other administrative action of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection shall be considered final if the Director of the Bureau was appointed during a recess of the Senate and the position of Director was vacant while the Senate was in session, until the Director has been confirmed by the Senate; (2) prohibit payment for services to any person appointed to the Bureau during a recess of the Senate to fill a vacancy in the Bureau requiring Senate confirmation, if the vacancy existed while the Senate was in session, until such appointee is confirmed by the Senate; and (3) prohibit an employee or officer of the Bureau serving in a position that requires Senate confirmation from providing voluntary or gratuitous services.
United States · United States Congress · 10 January 2012
Disapproves of the President's appointment of four federal officers or employees during a period when no congressional recess of more than three days was authorized by concurrent resolution. Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that those appointments were made in violation of the U.S. Constitution.
United States · United States Congress · 19 December 2011
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat membership in a tax-exempt health care sharing ministry as coverage under a high deductible health plan for purposes of the tax deduction for contributions to a health savings account.
United States · United States Congress · 16 December 2011
Directs the Secretary of State to: (1) designate Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a foreign terrorist organization, and (2) report to Congress on IRGC terrorist activities.
![Official portrait of Rep. Westmoreland, Lynn A. [R-GA-3]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/w000796_200.jpg)