United States · United States Congress · 3 March 2011
Condemns the Obama administration's direction that the Department of Justice (DOJ) should discontinue defending the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and demands that the DOJ continue to defend DOMA in all instances.
United States · United States Congress · 2 March 2011
United States Marshals Service 225th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury, in commemoration of the 225th anniversary of the establishment of the United States Marshals Service, to mint and issue $5 gold and $1 silver coins emblematic of the 225 years of exemplary and unparalleled achievements of the U.S. Marshals Service. Requires all such coin sales to include a surcharge of: (1) $35 per $5 coin; and (2) $10 per $1 coin. Requires distribution of the first $5 million to the U.S. Marshals Service National Museum for the preservation, maintenance, and display of artifacts and documents of the U.S. Marshals Service. Requires distribution of one-third of the remainder each to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund in support of the National Law Enforcement Museum and the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, and to the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association Foundation. Authorizes the Secretary to strike and sell bronze duplicates of the $5 gold coins.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2011
Veteran Employment Transition Act of 2011- Amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise the definition of "qualified veteran" for purposes of the work opportunity tax credit to mean recently discharged veterans and any veteran receiving specified benefits. Defines "recently discharged veteran" to mean: (1) any individual who has served on active duty (other than active duty for training) in the Armed Forces for more than 180 consecutive days, (2) any individual who has been discharged or released from active duty for a service-connected disability, and (3) any member of the National Guard who has served for more than 180 consecutive days in active duty, full-time National Guard duty, or duty in state status. Defines "veteran receiving specified benefits" as any veteran who is certified as being a member of a family receiving assistance under a supplemental nutrition assistance program and is entitled to compensation for a service-connected disability. Requires the Department of Defense (DOD) and the National Guard to inform military personnel who are discharged or released from active duty of the work opportunity tax credit and provide them with documentation relating to eligibility for and use of such credit.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2011
Amends the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the charitable tax deduction for contributions of qualified vehicles (i.e., highway motor vehicles, boats, or airplanes) to: (1) set forth revised acknowledgment requirements for vehicles valued at $2,500 or less and vehicles valued at more than $2,500; and (2) revise the penalty for submitting a fraudulent acknowledgment.
United States · United States Congress · 1 March 2011
Condemns the government of Iran for its state-sponsored persecution of its Baha'i minority and its continued violation of the International Covenants on Human Rights. Calls on the government of Iran to release seven specified imprisoned Baha'i leaders and all other prisoners held on account of their religion, including: Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet, Mr. Vahid Tizfahm, Ms. Raha Sabet, and Mr. Navid Khanjani. Calls on the President and Secretary of State, in cooperation with the international community, to condemn Iran's continued violation of human rights and demand the release of prisoners held on account of their religion, including the above-named individuals. Urges the President and Secretary to utilize all available measures, such as those available under the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 and Executive Order 13553, to sanction Iranian government officials and other individuals directly responsible for human rights violations in Iran, including against the Baha'i community.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2011
Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to treat as a physician, for Medicare purposes, a clinical psychologist acting within the scope of a psychologist's license (or other state law authorization), but only with respect to the furnishing of clinical psychologists services which the psychologist is legally authorized to perform by the state.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2011
Puppy Uniform Protection and Safety Act - Amends the Animal Welfare Act to define a "high volume retail breeder" as a person who, in commerce, for compensation or profit: (1) has an ownership interest in or custody of one or more breeding female dogs; and (2) sells, via any means of conveyance, more than 50 of the offspring of such dogs for use as pets in any one-year period. Considers such a breeder of dogs to be a dealer. Requires dealers to include on licensing applications and annual renewals the total number of dogs exempted from exercise on the premises of the dealer in the preceding year by a licensed veterinarian. Requires the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to promulgate requirements for the exercise of dogs at facilities owned or operated by a dealer, including requiring daily access to exercise that: (1) allows the dogs to move sufficiently in a way that is not forced, repetitive, or restrictive; and (2) is in an area that is spacious, cleaned at least once a day, free of infestation by pests or vermin, and designed to prevent the dogs from escaping. Allows an exemption if: (1) a licensed veterinarian determines that a dog should not exercise because of the health, condition, or well-being of the dog; and (2) such determination is reviewed and updated at least once every 30 days by the veterinarian, unless the basis for the determination is a permanent condition. Subjects such a determination to review and approval by the Secretary.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2011
Declares that Congress should not impose any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge relating to the public performance of sound recordings on a local radio station for broadcasting sound recordings over-the-air, or on any business for such public performance of sound recordings.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 2011
National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011 - Amends the federal criminal code to authorize a person who is carrying a government-issued photographic identification document and a valid permit to carry a concealed firearm in one state, and who is not prohibited from possessing, transporting, shipping, or receiving a firearm under federal law, to carry a concealed handgun (other than a machinegun or destructive device) in another state in accordance with the restrictions of that state.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 2011
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives: (1) that the Department of Defense (DOD) should not consider any bid for the procurement of the helicopter fleet used to transport the President of the United States, or any components, that involve, directly or indirectly, any entity controlled, directed, or influenced by the government of China; (2) funding should not be made available for such procurement, or any future defense system acquisition, that involve any such entity; (3) recognizing the importance and vital role of the U.S. aerospace industry and its workers in innovation, job creation, and long-term economic growth; and (4) urging DOD to limit its procurement of the new presidential helicopter (VXX) fleet and any other defense system acquisition to products manufactured in the United States with the maximum amount of parts made in the United States, or from allied nations as necessary.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2011
Thomasina E. Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal Recognition Act of 2011 - Extends federal recognition to the following Indian tribes of Virginia and establishes their relationship with the federal government as described below: (1) the Chickahominy Tribe, (2) the Chickahominy Indian Tribe--Eastern Division, (3) the Upper Mattaponi Tribe, (4) the Rappahannock Tribe, Inc., (5) the Monacan Indian Nation, and (6) the Nansemond Indian Tribe. Makes the tribes and their members eligible for all services and benefits provided by the federal government to federally recognized Indian tribes. Establishes the service area of each tribe and requirements for each tribe regarding its membership roll, governing documents, and governing body. Requires the Secretary of the Interior, on request of any of the tribes, to take specified lands into trust for the benefit of that tribe, to be considered part of that tribe's reservation. Prohibits the tribes from conducting gaming activities. Prohibits this Act from affecting the hunting, fishing, trapping, gathering, or water rights of the tribes and their members. Requires Virginia to exercise jurisdiction over all criminal offenses committed, and all civil actions arising, on lands in Virginia owned by, or held in trust by the United States for, the tribes. Authorizes the Secretary to accept all or any portion of Virginia's jurisdiction over such offenses and actions on verification by the Secretary of a tribe's certification that the tribe possesses the capacity to reassume such jurisdiction. Prohibits the use of eminent domain to acquire lands in fee or in trust for an Indian tribe recognized under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2011
No Social Security for Illegal Immigrants Act of 2011 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act to exclude from creditable wages and self-employment income any wages earned for services by aliens performed in the United States, and self-employment income derived from a trade or business conducted in the United States, while the alien was not authorized to be so employed or to perform a function or service in such a trade or business.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2011
Iran Transparency and Accountability Act of 2011 - Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to require securities issuers to disclose in their mandatory annual or quarterly reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) whether they or their affiliates have: (1) engaged in certain activities relating to Iran, terrorism, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; (2) knowingly engaged in specified activities, or knowingly violated certain regulations prescribed under the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010; (3) knowingly conducted any transaction or dealing with a person whose property and interests in property are blocked by certain Executive Orders; or (4) knowingly conducted a transaction or dealing with any person listed in the Iranian Transactions Regulations. Specifies the contents of mandatory disclosures. Requires the President to: (1) initiate an investigation into the possible imposition of sanctions when the SEC receives a report that an issuer or its affiliate has engaged in the cited activities; and (2) determine within 180 days of initiating an investigation whether sanctions should be imposed on the issuer or the affiliate concerned. Directs the SEC to make publicly available the information it has received, and to provide it to the President and to certain congressional committees. Requires promulgation within 90 days after enactment of this Act of regulations governing financial institutions maintaining accounts for foreign financial institutions.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2011
Government Neutrality in Contracting Act - Directs the head of any federal agency that awards or obligates funds for any construction contract, or that awards grants, provides financial assistance, or enters into cooperative agreements for construction projects, to ensure that bid specifications, project agreements, or other controlling documents do not: (1) require or prohibit a bidder, offeror, contractor, or subcontractor from entering into, or adhering to, agreements with a labor organization, with respect to that construction project or another related construction project; or (2) otherwise discriminate against or give preference to such a party because it did or did not become a signatory or otherwise adhere to such an agreement. Allows exemptions to avert an imminent threat to public health or safety or to serve national security. Allows additional exemptions for certain projects. Directs the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation to implement this Act with respect to the applicable federal contracts.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2011
Hire A Hero Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow certain small business employers a work opportunity tax credit for hiring a member of the Ready Reserve or the National Guard.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2011
Urges Congress not to enact any legislation that would grant state governments the authority to impose any new burdensome or unfair tax collecting requirements on small online businesses and entrepreneurs.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2011
Security and Fairness Enhancement for America Act of 2011 or SAFE for America Act - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to eliminate the diversity immigrant program.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2011
Directs the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives to arrange for the award of a single Congressional Gold Medal to honor collectively the World War II members of the Civil Air Patrol (CAP) in recognition of their military service and exemplary record during World War II. Requires the Medal's display at the Smithsonian Institution. Expresses the sense of Congress that the Medal should be made available for display elsewhere, particularly at locations associated with the CAP. Permits the Secretary of the Treasury to strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold medal, at a price sufficient to cover the costs of the medals.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2011
Huntington's Disease Parity Act of 2011 - Directs the Commissioner of Social Security, for purposes of determining cognitive, behavioral, and physical disability under titles II (Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) and XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) of the Social Security Act (SSA), to amend specified Listings of Impairments by providing medical and evaluation criteria for Huntington's Disease. Amends SSA title II to waive the 24-month waiting period for coverage under the Medicare program for individuals diagnosed with Huntington's Disease.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2011
Short Line Railroad Rehabilitation and Investment Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for railroad track maintenance, to: (1) expand the types of maintenance expenditures eligible for such credit, and (2) extend such credit through 2017.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2011
Telework Tax Incentive Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an employer or an employee a tax credit, up to $1,000 per year, for teleworking expenses incurred by or on behalf of a teleworking employee under an arrangement whereby such employee teleworks not less than 75 days per year. Defines "telework" as performing work functions, using electronic information and communication technologies, thereby reducing or eliminating the physical commute to and from the traditional worksite.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2011
Teacher Tax Deduction Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase from $250 to $500 the dollar limit on the tax deduction for certain expenses of elementary and secondary school teachers and to extend such deduction through 2012.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2011
Military Spouses Employment Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to include spouses of members of the Armed Forces on extended active duty (more than 90 days or for an indefinite period) as members of a targeted group for purposes of the work opportunity tax credit (thus giving employers a tax incentive for hiring military spouses).
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2011
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the 3% withholding requirement on payments due to vendors providing services to federal, state, and local governmental entities.
United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2011
Motorsports Fairness and Permanency Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent the classification, for depreciation purposes, of any motorsports entertainment complex as seven-year property.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2011
Broadcaster Freedom Act of 2011 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from having the authority to require broadcasters to present opposing viewpoints on controversial issues of public importance, commonly referred to as the Fairness Doctrine.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2011
Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to include as a "countervailable subsidy" requiring action under a countervailing duty or antidumping duty proceeding the benefit conferred on merchandise imported into the United States from foreign countries with fundamentally undervalued currency. Defines "benefit conferred," in cases where the currency of a foreign country is exchanged for foreign currency (i.e., U.S. dollars) obtained from export transactions, as the difference between: (1) the amount of currency provided by a foreign country in which the subject merchandise is produced; and (2) the amount of currency such country would have provided if the real effective exchange rate of its currency were not fundamentally undervalued. Declares that the fact that such a subsidy is also provided in circumstances not involving export shall not, for that reason alone, mean it cannot be considered export contingent and actionable under a countervailing duty and antidumping duty proceeding. Requires the administering authority to determine that the currency of a foreign country is fundamentally undervalued if for an 18-month period: (1) the government of the country engages in protracted, large-scale intervention in one or more foreign exchange markets; (2) the country's real effective exchange rate is undervalued by at least 5%; (3) the country has experienced significant and persistent global current account surpluses; and (4) the country's government has foreign asset reserves exceeding the amount necessary to repay all its debt obligations falling due within the coming 12 months, 20% percent of the country's money supply, and the value of the country's imports during the previous 4 months. Requires the use, for calculating a country's "real effective exchange rate undervaluation," of certain guidelines of the Consultative Group on Exchange Rate Issues of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) or, if those guidelines are not available, generally accepted economic and econometric techniques and methodologies. Requires the use, also, of inflation-adjusted, trade-weighted exchange rates. Applies the amendments made by this Act to goods from Canada and Mexico.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2011
Second Amendment Enforcement Act - Amends specified law prohibiting the killing of wild birds and wild animals in the District of Columbia to declare that nothing in it or any other provision of law shall authorize or be construed to permit the Council, the Mayor, or any governmental or regulatory authority of the District to prohibit, constructively prohibit, or unduly burden the ability of persons otherwise not prohibited from possessing firearms under federal law from acquiring, possessing in their homes or businesses, transporting for legitimate purposes, or using for sporting, self-protection or other lawful purposes, any firearm neither prohibited by federal law nor subject to the National Firearms Act. Denies the District any authority to enact laws or regulations that discourage or eliminate the private ownership or use of firearms. Declares that nothing in such prohibitions shall be construed to prohibit the District from regulating the carrying of firearms by a person, either concealed or openly, other than at the person's dwelling place, place of business, or on other land possessed by the person. Amends the Firearms Control Regulations Act of 1975 (FCRA) to repeal the definition of a machine gun as any firearm which shoots, is designed to shoot, or can be readily converted or restored to shoot semiautomatically, more than 12 shots without manual reloading. (Thus repeals the ban on semiautomatic weapons.) Redefines "machine gun" as any firearm which shoots, is designed to shoot, or can be readily restored to shoot automatically, more than one shot without manual reloading by a single function of the trigger. Includes also the frame or receiver of any such firearm, any part designed and intended solely and exclusively, or combination of parts designed and intended, for use in converting a firearm into a machine gun, and any combination of parts from which a machine gun can be assembled if such parts are in the possession or under the control of a person. Repeals the District's: (1) registration requirement for possession of firearms; and (2) requirement that licensed firearms dealers keep records of ammunition received into inventory and ammunition sold or transferred. Maintains the current ban on the possession and control of a sawed-off shotgun, machine gun, or short-barreled rifle. Permits a licensed firearms dealer to sell or transfer ammunition, excluding restricted pistol bullets, to persons not otherwise prohibited from possessing or receiving ammunition. Declares that, in the case of a sale or transfer of a handgun to a District resident, a federally licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer of firearms in Maryland or Virginia shall be treated as a dealer licensed under this Act if: (1) the transferee meets in person with the transferor to accomplish the transfer; and (2) the sale, delivery, and receipt fully comply with the legal conditions of sale in both the District and the jurisdiction in which the transfer occurs. Amends FCRA to allow an individual to possess ammunition in the District if the individual owns (currently, holds the valid registration certificate for) a firearm of the same gauge or caliber as such ammunition. (In effect, repeals the handgun ammunition ban.) Repeals the requirement that firearms in the possession of individuals (other than law enforcement personnel) must be kept unloaded, disassembled, or with the trigger locked, unless the firearm is kept at an individual's place of business, or while being used for lawful recreational purposes within the District . Continues current criminal penalties for allowing access of a minor (under age 16) to loaded firearms, except in specified circumstances. Repeals increased penalties for violations of the prohibition against allowing access of a minor to loaded firearms if injury or death results to the minor or another person. Requires the U.S. attorney, however, to consider both the extent of the minor's injuries and the effect of the minor's injury or death on both of the minor's parents when deciding whether to file charges. Prohibits any prosecution in such circumstances unless the person who committed the violation behaved in a grossly negligent manner, or unless similarly egregious circumstances exist. Eliminates criminal penalties for possessing an unregistered firearm. Amends the District of Columbia Code to: (1) allow private persons or entities owning property in the District to prohibit or restrict the possession of firearms on their property (other than authorized law enforcement personnel or lessees occupying residential or business premises); (2) prohibit unauthorized carrying of rifles or shotguns in the District; (3) authorize certain individuals to carry firearms in certain places and for certain purposes; (4) prescribe requirements for lawful transportation of firearms; and (5) prohibit the use of toy and antique pistols to commit a violent or dangerous crime. Authorizes the District of Columbia to prohibit or restrict the possession of firearms (except to lessees occupying residential or business premises) within any building or structure under its control, or in any area of it, which has implemented security measures to identify and exclude unauthorized or hazardous persons or articles. Amends the Office of Administrative Hearings Establishment Act of 2001 to grant jurisdiction to the Office of Administrative Hearings to hear cases pertaining to denial or revocation of firearm dealer licenses. Repeals the Firearms Registration Amendment Act of 2008 and the Inoperable Pistol Amendment Act of 2008. Restores and revives any provision of law amended or repealed by such Acts as if such Acts had not been enacted into law.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2011
Broadband for First Responders Act of 2011 - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to increase the electromagnetic spectrum allocation for public safety services by 10 megahertz and reduce such allocation for commercial use by the same amount. Directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to: (1) allocate the paired electromagnetic spectrum bands of 758-763 megahertz and 788-793 megahertz (referred to as D Block) for public safety broadband communications and license such paired bands to public safety; (2) establish rules to permit a public safety broadband licensee to authorize public safety service providers to construct and operate a wireless public safety broadband network in the licensee's spectrum if such authorization would expedite public safety broadband communications; (3) require that any wireless public safety broadband network be fully interoperable, provide for user roaming, be disaster survivable, have the appropriate level of cyber security, and be consistent with the Statewide Interoperable Communications Plans and the National Emergency Communications Plan; (4) establish regulations to authorize the shared use of the public safety broadband spectrum and network infrastructure by entities that are not defined as public safety services; (5) establish regulations to allow use of the public safety broadband spectrum by emergency response providers; and (6) develop a public safety agency statement of requirements that enables nationwide interoperability and roaming across any communications system using public safety broadband spectrum. Specifies organizations that shall be included in the Board of Directors of the Public Safety Broadband Licensee. Establishes in the Treasury: (1) the Public Safety Interoperable Broadband Network Construction Fund, and (2) the Public Safety Interoperable Broadband Network Maintenance and Operation Fund. Directs the Secretary of Commerce to: (1) establish a grant program to assist public safety entities to establish a nationwide public safety interoperable broadband network in the 700 megahertz band, and (2) administer a program through which not more than 50% of maintenance and operational expenses associated with the public safety interoperable broadband network may be reimbursed from the Maintenance and Operation Fund. Directs: (1) the Assistant Secretary of Commerce to reallocate for commercial use electromagnetic spectrum at 1755-1780 megahertz, and (2) the FCC, within 18 months after enactment of this Act, to establish rules for pairing electromagnetic spectrum bands at 1755-1780 megahertz and 2155-2180 megahertz, inclusive, and auction the licenses for such paired spectrum. Requires each public safety entity, within 8 years, to migrate from a specified range of radio spectrum to an alternative radio spectrum that is licensed to public safety services in the 700 and 800 megahertz bands. Directs each federal law enforcement agency, within 10 years, to move all noncommercial network communications to spectrum in such bands. Directs the FCC to auction, through an appropriate competitive bidding system, certain paired electromagnetic spectrum bands recovered from public safety entities under a specified FCC migration plan. Extends the FCC's authority to grant a license or permit under applicable competitive bidding provisions to September 30, 2020.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2011
Patients' Freedom to Choose Act - Repeals provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 that: (1) restrict payments from health savings accounts, medical savings accounts, and health flexible spending arrangements for medications to prescription drugs and insulin only; and (2) impose a $2,500 limitation on salary reduction contributions to a health flexible spending arrangement under a cafeteria plan.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2011
Collectible Firearms Protection Act - Amends the Arms Export Control Act to allow the importation of certain firearms listed as curios or relics into the United States by a licensed importer without the requirement of an authorization from or payment to the Department of State or the Department of Defense (DOD) upon certification to the Attorney General that such firearms are lawfully possessed under the laws of the exporting country.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2011
Taxpayer Conscience Protection Act of 2011 - Directs each state that makes a Medicaid payment from federal funds during the fiscal year for any items or services furnished by an abortion provider to: (1) report to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) on all such payments, and (2) publish the report on a public Internet website of the state. Requires an annual report to specified congressional committees on such reports, which shall also be published on a public Internet HHS website.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2011
Honor and Remember Flag Recognition Act - Designates the Honor and Remember Flag, created by Honor and Remember, Inc., as the official symbol of our country's concern and commitment to honoring and remembering all members of the Armed Forces who lost their lives in the line of duty. Provides days of the year, and memorials and other locations, on or at which the Flag shall be displayed.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2011
Savings Enhancement for Education in College Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the allowance for payment of expenses for computer technology and equipment from qualified tuition programs, (2) allow a tax credit for contributions to such programs, (3) allow limited direction of investment of contributions or earnings in a qualified tuition program, and (4) allow an exclusion, up to $600, from the gross income of an employee for employer contributions to a qualified tuition program.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2011
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that federal courts should expedite, to the extent practicable, the disposition of actions challenging the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
Federal Reserve Transparency Act of 2011 - Directs the Comptroller General to complete, before the end of 2012, an audit of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and of the federal reserve banks, followed by a detailed report to Congress. Repeals specified limitations on such an audit.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
Medicare Decisions Accountability Act of 2011 - Repeals sections of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) (and restores provisions of law amended by such sections) related to the establishment of an Independent Payment Advisory Board to develop and submit detailed proposals to reduce the per capita rate of growth in Medicare spending to the President for Congress to consider.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
Bring Jobs Back to America Act - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to create a comprehensive national manufacturing strategy to increase overall domestic manufacturing, create private sector jobs, identify emerging technologies, and identify a strategy for repatriating jobs to the United States. Requires the Secretary to: (1) establish targets for manufacturing growth; (2) conduct biennial surveys of U.S. businesses that maintain manufacturing facilities or customer service centers outside the United States; and (3) report on survey results. Directs the Secretary to establish multiple repatriation task forces to promote repatriation (return of a job or facility from a foreign country location to a U.S. location). Establishes the American Economic Security Commission to establish and carry out a program to improve U.S. competitiveness in the global economy through technology-based planning. Amends the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 to make eligible for assistance under such Act projects to facilitate: (1) the relocation to the United States of a foreign source of employment; and (2) the growth of the U.S. manufacturing or customer service sector. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to study the feasibility and potential impact of new tax provisions to encourage U.S. companies to return jobs to the United States. Amends federal patent law to revise requirements regarding the publication of patent applications. Requires abstracts (short summaries of inventions) included with patent applications (instead of the patent applications themselves, as under current law) to be published 18 months after the earliest filing date of the application. Repeals certain requirements relating to: (1) submission of a redacted copy of an application; and (2) procedures to prevent protest and pre-issuance opposition to the grant of a patent. Requires the Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to give priority to the examination of a patent application by an institution of higher education or a patent holding company affiliated with such an institution.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
State and Local Law Enforcement Hatch Act Reform Act of 2011 - Amends the Hatch Act to: (1) allow state and local law enforcement officers to be candidates for the office of sheriff; and (2) allow sheriffs to engage in campaign activities by attending or speaking at political campaign rallies or events, holding or sponsoring political fundraisers, or appearing on political advertisements. Establishes a limitation period of six months after the later of the date of the alleged violation or the date of enactment of this Act for presenting charges against a law enforcement officer for Hatch Act violations.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
Complete America's Great Trails Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit for the fair market value of any National Scenic Trail conservation contribution. Requires the Secretary of the Interior to study the efficacy of such tax credit in completing, extending, and increasing the number of National Scenic Trails.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
Prohibits the use of federal funds to transfer to the United States any individual who is: (1) detained by the United States at Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; or (2) a foreign national who is captured or detained outside the United States as an enemy belligerent, and in the custody or control of the Department of Defense (DOD).
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2011
Tax Code Termination Act - Terminates the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 after December 31, 2015, except for self-employment taxes, Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) taxes, and railroad retirement taxes. Requires a two-thirds majority vote in Congress to change such termination date. Declares that any new federal tax system should be a simple and fair system that: (1) applies a low rate to all Americans; (2) provides tax relief for working Americans; (3) protects the rights of taxpayers and reduces tax collection abuses; (4) eliminates the bias against savings and investment; (5) promotes economic growth and job creation; and (6) does not penalize marriage or families. Requires that the new federal tax system be approved by Congress in its final form by July 4, 2015.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2011
Veterans' Heritage Firearms Act of 2011 - Provides a 90-day amnesty period during which veterans and their family members can register in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record any firearm acquired before October 31, 1968, by a veteran while a member of the Armed Forces stationed outside the continental United States. Grants such an individual limited immunity under the federal criminal code and the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the acquisition, possession, transportation, or alteration of such firearm before or concurrent with such registration. Extends such immunity to a veteran who attempts to register a qualifying firearm outside of the amnesty period if the veteran surrenders the firearm within 30 days after being notified of potential criminal liability for continued possession. Requires the Attorney General to: (1) transfer each firearm qualifying as a curio or relic which has been forfeited to the United States to the first qualified museum that requests it, and (2) publish information identifying each such firearm which is available to be transferred to a museum. Prohibits the Attorney General from destroying any such firearm which has been forfeited until five years after the forfeiture. Requires that any firearm transferred to a qualified museum be registered to the transferee. Makes a prohibition against transfer or possession of a machine-gun inapplicable to a transfer to or by, or possession by, a museum which is open to the public and incorporated as a not-for-profit corporation under applicable state law.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2011
Help Efficient, Accessible, Low Cost, Timely Healthcare (HEALTH) Act of 2011 - Sets conditions for lawsuits arising from health care liability claims regarding health care goods or services or any medical product affecting interstate commerce. Sets a statute of limitations of three years after the date of manifestation of injury or one year after the claimant discovers the injury, with certain exceptions. Limits noneconomic damages to $250,000. Makes each party liable only for the amount of damages directly proportional to such party's percentage of responsibility. Allows the court to restrict the payment of attorney contingency fees. Limits the fees to a decreasing percentage based on the increasing value of the amount awarded. Allows the introduction of collateral source benefits and the amount paid to secure such benefits as evidence. Prohibits a provider of such benefits from recovering any amount from an award in a health care lawsuit involving injury or wrongful death. Authorizes the award of punitive damages only where: (1) it is proven by clear and convincing evidence that a person acted with malicious intent to injure the claimant or deliberately failed to avoid unnecessary injury the claimant was substantially certain to suffer; and (2) compensatory damages are awarded. Limits punitive damages to the greater of two times the amount of economic damages or $250,000. Denies punitive damages in the case of products approved, cleared, or licensed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), or otherwise considered in compliance with FDA standards. Provides for periodic payments of future damages.