Bill· SS. 2991 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 9 December 2014
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act of 2014 - Reauthorizes and revises the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA), the Anadromous Fish Conservation Act, the Interjurisdictional Fisheries Act of 1986, the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act, the Atlantic Striped Bass Conservation Act, the Yukon River Salmon Act of 2000, the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act of 1975, and the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium Protection Act through FY2021. Reauthorizes the South Pacific Tuna Act of 1988. Reauthorizes the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Convention Act of 1995 through FY2020. Extends permanently the authority of Washington, Oregon, and California to manage any Dungeness crab fishery that does not have a fishery management plan under the MSA and is in the exclusive economic zone adjacent to the state. Revises the MSA, including by: providing for the role of tribal governments in managing fish, adding subsistence fishing to the types of fishing managed under the Act, giving regional fishery management councils the authority to use alternative fishery management measures in a recreational fishery, providing for the management of depleted fisheries, increasing civil and criminal penalties, establishing a Fisheries Enforcement Fund, and revising requirements governing fishery management plans and regional fishery management councils.
Resolution· SRESS.Res. 590 (113th)passed
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2014
Recognizes November 2014 as National Native American Heritage Month and the Friday after Thanksgiving as Native American Heritage Day.
Bill· SS. 2961 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2014
Office of Planning for Future Intercity Transportation Act - Directs the Secretary of Transportation (DOT) to establish within the Office of the Secretary the Office of Planning for Future Intercity Transportation (Office), headed by the Assistant Secretary for Intercity Transportation Planning. Requires the Office to be composed of: the Office of High-Speed Rail Policy, the Office of High-Speed Planning, and the Office of High-Speed Rail Operations and Safety. Requires the Assistant Secretary to oversee the planning, development, construction, financing, funding, and operation of high-speed rail in selected corridors throughout the United States. Directs the Secretary to report to Congress the results of a feasibility study that identifies and prioritizes corridors that offer the best opportunity to provide point-to-point high-speed intercity passenger rail service.
Bill· SS. 2963 (113th)open
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2014
Makes permanent a prohibition exempting from National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit requirements under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) a vessel under 79 feet in length or a fishing vessel for any discharge: (1) of effluent from properly functioning marine engines, or of laundry, shower, and galley sink wastes; or (2) that is incidental to the normal operation of those vessels. (Currently, the prohibition is temporary, and the time period during which the Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] and any state with a state permit program are prohibited from requiring a NPDES permit ends on December 18, 2014. This prohibition does not apply, however, with respect to garbage discharged overboard, other discharges when the vessel is operating in a capacity other than as a means of transportation, discharges of ballast water held in ships to increase stability, or any discharge that contributes to a violation of a water quality standard or poses an unacceptable risk to human health or the environment.)
Bill· SS. 2957 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2014
Do Not Disturb Act of 2014 - Directs the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to expand the list of entities prohibited from making telephone calls to numbers on the FTC's "do-not-call" registry to include: (1) political committees that accept donations or contributions that do not comply with contribution limits or source prohibitions (commonly known as Super PACs), and (2) tax exempt non-profit social welfare organizations engaged in political activities. Requires the FTC to expand rules against abusive telemarking to prohibit: (1) computer-dialed telephone calls with prerecorded messages (robo-calls) to numbers on the registry, and (2) push-polling calls regarding a candidate for public office in which voters are asked certain questions about opposing candidates or are likely to construe the call as a survey for an independent organization. Provides exceptions to allow robo-calls for emergencies or with the consent of the called party.
Bill· SS. 2945 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2014
Amends the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 to repeal a provision prohibiting Alaska tribes other than the Metlakatla Indian Community from issuing and enforcing domestic violence protective orders against non-member Alaska Natives and non-Natives.
Bill· SS. 2930 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2014
Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act or the Clay Hunt SAV Act - Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to each arrange for an independent third party evaluation of, respectively, the VA and DOD mental health care and suicide prevention programs. Directs the VA Secretary to publish an Internet website that serves as a centralized source to provide veterans with regularly updated information regarding all of the VA's mental health care services. Requires the VA Secretary and the DOD Secretary to enter into certain strategic relationships to facilitate: the mental health referrals of members of the reserve components who have a service-connected disability and are being discharged or released from the Armed Forces, timely behavioral health services for such members, communication when such members are at risk for behavioral health reasons, and the transfer of documentation for line-of-duty and fitness-for-duty determinations. Requires the VA Secretary to carry out a three-year pilot program to repay the education loans relating to psychiatric medicine that are incurred by individuals who: are eligible to practice psychiatric medicine in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) or are enrolled in the final year of a residency program leading to a specialty qualification in psychiatric medicine, demonstrate a commitment to a long-term career as a psychiatrist in the VHA, and agree to a period of obligated service with the VHA in the field of psychiatric medicine in exchange for the repayment of such loans. Requires the DOD Secretary to submit to Congress a review of the staffing requirements for individual State National Guard Commands with respect to Directors of Psychological Health. Authorizes the VA Secretary to collaborate with nonprofit mental health organizations to prevent suicide among veterans. Requires the collaborators to exchange training sessions, best practices, and other resources to enhance their suicide prevention efforts. Directs the Secretary to select a Director of Suicide Prevention Coordination within the VA to undertake any collaboration with nonprofit mental health organizations.
Resolution· SRESS.Res. 574 (113th)passed
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2014
Designates the week of September 20-September 27, 2014, as National Estuaries Week. Acknowledges the importance of estuaries to sustaining employment in the United States and the nation's economic well-being and prosperity. Expresses the intent of the Senate to continue working to understand, protect, and restore U.S. estuaries.
Bill· SS. 2865 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2014
Voter Registration Modernization Act - Amends the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA) to require each state to make available official public websites for online voter registration. Directs the appropriate state or local election official to ensure that information on the computerized statewide voter registration list may be updated through the official public website. Directs the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to study best practices for implementing the requirements for Internet registration and the online updating of voter registration information. Authorizes the provision of election information by electronic mail to individuals registered to vote who have requested to receive it. Directs the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) to make an implementation payment each year to enable each state to meet the requirements of this Act and to carry out activities to improve the administration of federal elections.
Bill· SS. 2891 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2014
Innovation in Surface Transportation Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation (DOT), in coordination with state transportation departments, to establish an innovation in surface transportation program. Requires states to make competitive grants for innovative surface transportation projects to eligible entities, including local governments, metropolitan planning organizations, regional transportation authorities, transit agencies, tribal governments, private providers of public transportation, nonprofit transportation organizations, port authorities, joint power authorities, freight rail providers, and local rail authorities. Requires each state (including the governor and state department of transportation) to establish an innovation in surface transportation selection panel to formulate criteria for selecting projects. Requires a state to reserve certain percentages of federal funds apportioned for the national highway performance, the highway safety improvement, the congestion mitigation and air quality improvement, surface transportation, and transportation alternatives programs in order to fund related projects under state innovative surface transportation grants. Authorizes a state to reserve a specified percentage of apportioned funds to meet rural local government requests to support development of project applications.
Bill· SS. 2875 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2014
National Guard Investigations Transparency and Improvement Act of 2014 - Codifies the establishment of the Office of Complex Administrative Investigations (the Office) in the Office of the Chief of the National Guard Bureau. Requires the Office to undertake complex administrative investigations of matters relating to members of the National Guard when in state status, including investigations of sexual assault, upon the request of: (1) the Chief; (2) an adjutant general of a state, a territory, or the District of Columbia; (3) a governor of a state or territory; or (4) the Commanding General of the National Guard of the District of Columbia. Defines "complex administrative investigation" as any investigation specified by the Chief involving factors giving rise to unusual complexity, including: (1) questions of jurisdiction between the United States and a state or territory, (2) matters requiring specialized training among investigating officers, or (3) matters raising the need for an independent investigation to ensure fairness and impartiality. Requires the Chief to treat any final report of the Office relating to such matters as if it were the report of an inspector general of the Department of Defense (DOD) or a military department. Directs the Chief to submit to Members of Congress from the state or territory concerned the final report adopted by the Office regarding such an investigation. Requires the Chief to submit to Congress an annual report regarding all investigations undertaken by the Office during the preceding year.
Bill· SS. 2890 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2014
Digital Coast Act of 2014 - Requires the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to establish a constituent-driven Digital Coast program. (This program currently exists under NOAA to provide data, tools, and training that communities use to manage their coastal resources.) Directs the program to: (1) provide an online resource that integrates geospatial data, decision-support tools, training, and best practices to address coastal management issues and needs and to enhance resilient communities, ecosystem values, and coastal economic growth and development; and (2) provide for the documentation, dissemination, and archiving of the data. Requires NOAA to focus on filling data needs and gaps for critical coastal management issues, support continued improvement in existing efforts to coordinate the acquisition and integration of key data sets needed for coastal management and other purposes, and enter into financial agreements to carry out the program.
Bill· SS. 2840 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2014
Billy's Law or the Help Find the Missing Act - Authorizes the Attorney General, through the Director of the National Institute of Justice, to maintain public databases containing missing persons records and unidentified remains cases, to be known as the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System or NamUs, for purposes of assisting in identifying missing people and solving cases of unidentified human remains. Transfers all functions, personnel, assets, liabilities, and actions applicable to such System before enactment of this Act to such System as authorized by this Act. Authorizes appropriations for such System for FY2015-FY2020. Directs the Comptroller General (GAO) to conduct a study on: (1) how to better integrate the national missing persons databases, including the NamUs databases and the NCIC database; (2) any technical challenges for integrating such databases; and (3) practices, procedures, or technologies that would assist states, local law enforcement agencies, medical examiners, and coroners in reporting missing persons and unidentified remains to the NamUs databases and the NCIC database. Requires the Attorney General to: (1) provide for information on missing persons and unidentified human remains contained in the NCIC database to be transmitted to, entered in, and shared with the NamUs databases and vice versa; (2) promulgate rules that specify the information the Attorney General may provide from the NCIC files to the NamUs databases while protecting confidential information; and (3) update the online data entry format for the NCIC database and the NamUs databases to provide state criminal justice agencies, medical examiners, and coroners with the option to authorize the submission of new data that is reported to and entered into the NCIC database to the NamUs databases. Amends the Crime Control Act of 1990 to require the updating and reporting of missing children information to the NamUs databases. Directs the Attorney General to: (1) establish a program to provide grants to qualifying law enforcement agencies, coroners, medical examiners, and other authorized agencies to facilitate reporting information regarding missing persons and unidentified remains to the NCIC database and the NamUs databases; and (2) issue a report to medical examiners, coroners, and law enforcement agencies describing the best practices for the collection, reporting, and analysis of such information.
Resolution· SRESS.Res. 547 (113th)passed
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2014
Recognizes the achievements and goals of Hispanic-serving institutions across the United States. Designates the week beginning September 14, 2014, as National Hispanic-Serving Institutions Week.
Resolution· SRESS.Res. 548 (113th)passed
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2014
Designates November 29, 2014, as Small Business Saturday. Expresses support for efforts to: (1) encourage consumers to shop locally, and (2) increase awareness of the value of locally owned small businesses and the impact of such businesses on the U.S. economy.
Bill· SS. 2830 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2014
Amends the Public Health Service Act to make permanent the special diabetes programs for Indians, which provide services for prevention and treatment of diabetes through the Indian Health Service and Indian health programs.
Resolution· SRESS.Res. 545 (113th)passed
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 2014
Recognizes the celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15-October 15, 2014. Esteems the integral role of Latinos and their manifold heritage in the economy, culture, and identity of the United States.
Bill· SS. 2800 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 2014
Patient Centered Quality Care for Life Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to convene a Patient-Centered Health Care and Quality of Life Stakeholder Strategic Summit to analyze health system barriers to patient-centered care and make recommendations to improve patient-centered care and address quality of life concerns for individuals with serious, complex, and chronic illness and their families. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to award grants to increase demand for and delivery of integrated, patient-centered care to improve the quality of life of seriously ill patients. Directs the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to award health care professional workforce training grants to promote quality of life focused clinical core competencies across clinical specialties that serve patients who are seriously ill or have complex chronic disease. Requires the Secretary to update and expand the September 2002 HRSA report "The Supply, Demand and Use of Palliative Care Physicians in the United States" and to establish a Quality of Life Cross-Agency Advisory Committee to disseminate findings on best practices and to assist the CDC and HRSA in conducting the grant programs established by this Act. Requires the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop and implement a strategy to expand national research programs in symptom management, palliative, psychosocial, and survivorship care in accordance with the Advisory Committee's recommendations.
Resolution· SRESS.Res. 539 (113th)passed
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2014
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of the Honorable James M. Jeffords, former member of the United States Senate. Declares that when the Senate adjourns September 9, 2014, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of Senator Jeffords.
Resolution· SRESS.Res. 536 (113th)passed
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2014
Designates September 2014 as National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month and expresses support for the goals and ideals of National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.
Bill· SS. 2716 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2014
Aleut Confinement and Relocation Sites Study Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study to determine whether the following sites are suitable for inclusion in the National Park System: (1) the World War II Aleut relocation sites at Funter Bay, Burnett Inlet, Killisnoo, Ward Lake, and the Wrangell Institute in Alaska; and (2) the villages of Makushin, Kashega, and Biorka around Unalaska Island and Attu on Attu Island in Alaska, from which the Aleut people were forcibly removed. Requires the Secretary to: evaluate the national significance of the sites; determine the suitability and feasibility of designating those sites as units of the National Park System; consider alternatives for preservation, protection, and interpretation of the land comprising those sites; and identify cost estimates for any federal acquisition, development, interpretation, operation, and maintenance associated with carrying out such alternatives.
Bill· SS. 2758 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2014
Authorizes the Secretary of the Air Force, for purposes of modernizing the C-130 aircraft fleet, to install alternative communication, navigation, surveillance, and air traffic management program kits in lieu of C-130 aircraft avionics modernization program kits if the Secretary determines, on a case-by-case basis, that such alternative program is appropriate and notifies Congress of such determination. Requires the Secretary to ensure that all C-130 aircraft are capable of meeting applicable regulations of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) by January 1, 2020. Authorizes the Secretary to use amounts made available for FY2013 or FY2014 for the Air Force for the C-130 aircraft avionics modernization program that remain available for obligation to carry out this Act.
Bill· SS. 2738 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2014
Toxic Exposure Research Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to select a medical center in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to serve as the national center for research on the diagnosis and treatment of health conditions of descendants (i.e., a biological child, grandchild, or great-grandchild) of individuals exposed to toxic substances while serving as members of the Armed Forces that are related to that exposure. Requires the national research center to employ at least one licensed clinical social worker to coordinate the access of individuals to appropriate federal, state, and local social and health care programs and to handle case management. Directs the Secretary to establish an advisory board to: (1) advise the national research center, (2) determine which health conditions in the descendants of individuals who were exposed to toxic substances while serving in the Armed Forces result from such exposure for purposes of determining those descendants' eligibility for VA medical care, and (3) study and evaluate claims of service-related exposure to toxic substances by current and former members of the Armed Forces. Authorizes the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to declassify documents (other than documents that would materially and immediately threaten national security) related to any known incident in which not less than 100 members of the Armed Forces were exposed to a toxic substance that resulted in at least one case of disability. Directs the Secretary, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the DOD Secretary to jointly conduct a national outreach and education campaign directed at members of the Armed Forces, veterans, and their family members to communicate information on: (1) incidents of exposure to toxic substances, health conditions resulting form such exposure, and the potential long-term effects of such exposure; and (2) the national research center.
Bill· SS. 2742 (113th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2014
Improving Access to Social Security Services Act - Amends title VII (Administration) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to prohibit the Commissioner of Social Security from imposing any reduction in public access on a Social Security Administration field or hearing office without a public comment period meeting specified deadlines, including at least one public hearing. Requires each field office to provide services necessary for: (1) Social Security number printout services until August 1, 2015, and (2) benefit verification letter services until October 1, 2015. Directs the Commissioner to conduct an outreach campaign to notify Social Security beneficiaries and other interested parties of plans to phase out such services and their online availability. Requires each office that ceases to offer, or reduces the availability of, such services to give notice to key local organizations whose members or patrons may be affected by such cessation or reduction. Requires the Commissioner to establish a system providing live-chat assistance for online users of the Administration website. Directs the Commissioner to establish: (1) a process whereby an eligible individual may apply for a reduction or waiver of Administration service fees, and (2) an automated notification system to alert Social Security beneficiaries of changes made to their information for direct deposit to a financial institution of their Social Security benefits. Prohibits any person from displaying another individual's Social Security number to the general public without the individual's affirmatively expressed consent, or selling or purchasing that number without such consent. Directs the Attorney General to study all uses of Social Security numbers permitted, required, authorized, or excepted under any federal law. Prohibits any person from obtaining an individual's Social Security number for purposes of locating or identifying the individual with the intent to physically injure, harm, or use the identity of the individual for any illegal purpose. Amends SSA title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) to prescribe criminal sanctions for the knowing and willful display, sale, or purchase of a Social Security number without meeting the prerequisites for consent. Extends to any electronic communication the prohibitions, subject to criminal penalties, relating to references to Social Security or Medicare. Authorizes a private cause of action in state court for injunctive relief or up to $500 in actual damages by any individual aggrieved by a violation of this Act or any of its amendments. Subjects any person the Attorney General determines has violated any provisions of this Act to a civil penalty of up to: (1) $5,000 for each violation, and (2) $50,000 if the violation has occurred with such frequency as to constitute a general business practice.
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