United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2003
National Drought Preparedness Act of 2003 - Establishes in the Office of the Secretary of Agriculture the National Drought Council which shall develop a comprehensive National Drought Policy Action Plan. (Terminates the Council eight years after enactment of this Act.) Directs the Secretary to establish the National Office of Drought Preparedness to assist the Council. Establishes in the Treasury the Drought Assistance Fund, which shall provide financial assistance for drought preparedness plans and drought mitigation. Directs the Secretary to issue related implementing guidelines, including: special requirements applicable to interstate watersheds. Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to require the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to reimburse States for costs of prepositioning wildfire suppression resources.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 2003
United States Olympic Committee Reform Act - Amends the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act to designate the board of directors of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) as its governing body, to be responsible for establishing its policies and priorities and to have full authority to manage its affairs. Requires the board to: (1) consist of nine elected members (five independent directors, two directors elected from Athletes' Advisory Council nominees, and two directors elected from the National Governing Bodies' Council nominees) and, as ex officio members, the speaker of the assembly (established by this Act) and the U.S. members of the International Olympic Committee; and (2) establish audit, compensation, ethics, and nominating and governance committees. Establishes an assembly to be a forum for all USOC stakeholders. Grants the assembly the right to vote on, and to have ultimate authority to decide, matters relating to the Olympic Games. Requires the assembly to convene annually. Prohibits the chief executive officer of the USOC from being a member of the board. Requires such officer to: (1) be selected by, and to report to, the board; (2) manage all staff functions and day-to-day affairs and business operations of the USOC; and (3) implement the USOC's mission and policies. Instructs the USOC to establish specified whistleblower procedures and protections. Requires biennial (currently, quadrennial) reports to the President and Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 2003
District of Columbia Personal Protection Act - Amends the District of Columbia Code to provide that the D.C. Council's regulatory authority regarding firearms, explosives, and weapons in the District shall not 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 permitted to possess firearms under Federal law from acquiring, possessing in their homes or businesses, or using for sporting, self-protection or other lawful purposes, any firearm neither prohibited by Federal law nor regulated by 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. Repeals the definition of 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.) Repeals the District's: (1) registration requirement for possession of firearms; (2) prohibition on registration of pistols (handguns); (3) prohibition on possession of handgun ammunition; (4) requirement that, under certain conditions, firearms in the possession of certain individuals must be kept unloaded, disassembled, or with the trigger locked; (5) related firearm registration requirements such as applicant qualifications and filing deadline. Eliminates criminal penalties for: (1) possessing an unregistered firearm; or (2) carrying a pistol whether loaded or unloaded in one's dwelling house, place of business, or on land possessed by such person.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 2003
Rural Universal Service Equity Act of 2003 - Requires the Comptroller General to report to Congress on the need to reform the high cost support mechanism (with respect to universal telephone service) for rural, insular, and high cost areas. Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to require the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in calculating Federal universal service support for eligible telecommunications carriers that serve such areas, to revise its support mechanism for high cost areas to provide support to each wire center in which the incumbent local exchange carrier's average cost per line exceeds the national average by such amount as the FCC determines appropriate for the purpose of ensuring the equitable distribution of universal service support throughout the United States. Requires: (1) the FCC to ensure that no State receives less Federal support than it would have received, up to ten percent of the total support distributed, under the FCC's previous support mechanism; and (2) the total amount of support for all States to be equal to the total support calculated under the support mechanism in existence before enactment of this Act. States that nothing in this Act shall affect the support provided to rural telephone companies.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 2003
American Veterans Disabled for Life Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 500,000 one dollar silver coins in commemoration of disabled American veterans, which shall be emblematic of the design selected by the Disabled Veterans' LIFE Memorial Foundation for the American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial. Requires: (1) all sales of the coins to include a ten dollar per coin surcharge; and (2) the surcharges received to be paid to the Foundation to establish an endowment to support the construction of an American Veterans' Disabled for Life Memorial in Washington, D.C.
United States · United States Congress · 9 July 2003
Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2004 - Makes FY 2004 appropriations for the Senate for: (1) expense allowances; (2) representation allowances for the Majority and Minority Leaders; (3) salaries of specified officers, employees, and committees (including the Committee on Appropriations); (4) agency contributions for employee benefits; (5) inquiries and investigations; (6) the U.S. Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control; (7) the Offices of the Secretary and of the Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper of the Senate; (8) miscellaneous items; (9) the Senators' Official Personnel and Office Expense Account; and (10) official mail costs. Makes FY 2004 appropriations for salaries and/or expenses of: (1) the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies of 2005, and the Joint Economic and Taxation Committees; (2) the Office of the Attending Physician; (3) the Capitol Guide Service and Special Services Office; (4) the preparation of statements of appropriations; (5) the Capitol Police; (6) the Office of Compliance; (7) the Congressional Budget Office; (8) the Architect of the Capitol (AOC), including for the care and operation of Capitol buildings and grounds, the Senate office building, the Capitol power plant, the Library of Congress buildings and grounds, the Capitol Police buildings and grounds, the Botanic Garden; and (9) the Capitol Visitor Center. Appropriates funds for: (1) the Library of Congress for salaries and expenses, the Copyright Office, Congressional Research Service, and Books for the Blind and Physically Handicapped; (2) the Government Printing Office (GPO) for congressional printing and binding (including transfer of funds); (3) GPO for the Office of Superintendent of Documents (including transfer of funds); (4) the General Accounting Office for salaries and expenses; (5) a payment to the Government Printing Office Revolving Fund; and (6) a payment to the Open World Leadership Center Trust Fund. Makes emergency supplemental appropriations, under specified conditions, for FY 2003 for: (1) the Department of Homeland Security, Emergency Preparedness and Response, Disaster Relief Fund; (2) the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Human Space Flight; (3) the Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Wildland Fire Management; (4) the Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Wildland Fire Management; and (5) the Corporation for National and Community Service, National and Community Service Programs Operating Expenses (relating to activities including the AmeriCorps program) and for educational awards.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2003
Authorizes the President to present, on behalf of Congress, a gold medal to Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. (posthumously) and his widow Coretta Scott King in recognition of their service to the Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2003
Expresses the condolences of the Senate on the death of the Honorable J. Strom Thurmond, former Senator and President Pro Tempore Emeritus from South Carolina.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2003
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide that if a taxpayer is a member of an affiliated group of corporations which files a consolidated return, the tax attributes concerning reduction of tax attributes and exclusion from gross income by reason of discharge of indebtedness shall be the aggregate tax attributes of such group.
United States · United States Congress · 25 June 2003
Reaffirms the policies and principles of the McCarran Amendment (which waived the sovereign immunity of the United States so that it could be joined in comprehensive State general adjudications of the rights to use water) that have been recognized by Supreme Court decisions. Recognizes that, as a matter of practice, the United States should adhere and defer to State water law. Commends Western States that maintain comprehensive systems for the quantification of rights to use water for all beneficial purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 19 June 2003
Downed Animal Protection Act - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to promulgate regulations to provide for the humane treatment, handling, and disposition of nonambulatory livestock by a covered entity, including a requirement that nonambulatory livestock be humanely euthanized. Provides that an entity shall: (1) not move nonambulatory livestock while such livestock is conscious; and (2) humanely euthanize such livestock. Prohibits an establishment covered by the Federal Meat Inspection Act to pass nonambulatory livestock through inspection. Defines "covered entity," and "humanely euthanize."
United States · United States Congress · 18 June 2003
Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to revise the definition of a Hispanic-serving institution (HSI) under title V (Developing Institutions). Eliminates the requirement that an HSI provide assurances that at least 50 percent of its Hispanic students are low-income students in order to be eligible for certain grants.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 2003
Authorizes the President to present to Dr. Dorothy Height (President of the National Council of Negro Women) a congressional gold medal in recognition of her many contributions to the Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 11 June 2003
Tamarisk Control and Riparian Restoration Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, through the Commissioner of Reclamation, to: (1) complete an assessment of the extent of tamarisk (an invasive plant species) invasion in the western United States and (2) establish the Tamarisk Assistance Program to provide cost-share grants to States for tamarisk control or eradication.
United States · United States Congress · 10 June 2003
Medicare Cost Contract Extension and Refinement Act of 2003 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) extend reasonable cost contracts under the Medicare program and the period during which cost contracts may expand service areas; (2) apply certain Medicare+Choice requirements under Medicare part C (Medicare+Choice) to cost contracts to allow beneficiaries to be informed about the option of cost contracts, apply quality assurance requirements, prevent plans from discriminating against certain patients by offering lower premiums, and prohibit States from taxing cost contract premiums; and (3) permit dedicated group practice health maintenance organizations to participate in the Medicare cost contract program.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2003
Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003 - Prohibits the importation into the United States of any article that is a product of Burma (Myanmar) until the President determines and certifies to Congress that Burma has taken certain democratic and counternarcotics actions. Authorizes the President to waive such requirements. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to direct any U.S. financial institution holding funds of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) of Burma or the assets of individuals who hold senior positions in the SPDC or its political arm, the Union Solidarity Development Association, to report those assets to the Office of Foreign Assets Control and take such action as may be necessary to secure them. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct the U.S. executive director to each appropriate international financial institution to oppose any extension of a loan or financial or technical assistance to Burma until the requirements of this Act are met. Authorizes the President to deny visas and entry into the United States to the former and present leadership of the SPDC or the Union Solidarity Development Association. Urges the Secretary of State to use all appropriate fora, including the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum and Asian Nations Regional Forum, to encourage other states to restrict financial resources to the SPDC and Burmese companies while offering support to Burma's democratic movement, including the National League for Democracy and Burma's ethnic groups. Authorizes the President to assist Burmese democracy activists dedicated to nonviolent opposition to the regime in their efforts to promote freedom, democracy, and human rights in Burma.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2003
Distance Education and Online Learning Act of 2003 - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to revise title IV student assistance requirements for distance education courses and programs with respect to student eligibility, eligible programs, and criteria for recognition of accrediting agencies that evaluate institutions of higher education offering such programs.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2003
Next Generation Hispanic Serving Institutions - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to revise provisions for Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs) under title V (Developing Institutions). Establishes a program of competitive grants to eligible HSIs that offer postbaccalaureate certifications or degrees (part B grants). Limits a part B grant award's duration to not more than five years. Prohibits the Secretary of Education from awarding more than one part B grant to an HSI in any one fiscal year. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2005 through FY 2009 for: (1) the current part A program of grants to HSIs that offer baccalaureate degrees or are junior or community colleges; and (2) the new part B program of grants to HSIs that offer postbaccalaureate certifications or degrees. Eliminates the requirement that an eligible HSI provide assurances that at least 50 percent of its Hispanic students be low-income students. Includes, among authorized activities under part A grants, articulation agreements and student support programs to help transfers from two-year to four-year institutions. Eliminates the two-year wait-out period between any two five-year part A grants to an HSI.
United States · United States Congress · 3 June 2003
Improved Nutrition and Physical Activity Act (or the IMPACT Act) - Amends the Public Health Service Act to address issues of overweight, obesity, and eating disorders. Expands an existing grant program for training for health profession students to include the treatment of overweight, obesity, and eating disorders. Creates a grant program for training for health professionals in such areas. Creates grant programs at the local level to promote increased physical activity and improved nutrition (in place of current law, which provides for grants to promote childhood nutrition and physical activity). Targets partnerships with businesses, schools, senior centers, day care facilities and other institutions. Allows the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the Secretary) to give priority in awarding grants to recipients who provide matching contributions. Permits the Director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention to provide technical assistance to grantees. Allows the Secretary, acting through the National Center for Health Statistics, to provide for the collection and analysis of certain data, including data collected as part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Permits the Secretary to: (1) make grants to States, public entities, and nonprofits to further the collection and analysis of such data; and (2) provide technical assistance to such grantees. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to request that the Institute of Medicine conduct a study or contract for a study on the food and nutrition programs run by the Department of Agriculture. Permits the use of preventive health and health services block grants for community education programs which promote healthy eating and exercise habits. Establishes reporting requirements with regard to: (1) obesity research; and (2) the national campaign to change children's health behaviors and reduce obesity.
United States · United States Congress · 2 June 2003
American Indian Reservation Transportation Improvement Program Act - Amends the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century to authorize appropriations for Indian reservation roads under the Federal Lands Highways Program through FY 2009. Authorizes appropriations to carry out the planning, design, engineering, preconstruction, construction, and inspection of certain projects concerning deficient Indian reservation road bridges through FY 2009. Directs the Secretary to issue grants to Indian tribes to establish rural transit programs on reservations or other land under the jurisdiction of the tribes. Directs the Secretary to establish and maintain: (1) intra-agency cooperation between the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) in administering tribal transit programs funded by the FHA, and exploring options for the transfer of funds from the FHA to the FTA for the direct funding of tribal transit programs; and (2) working relationships with representatives of regional tribal technical assistance programs to ensure proper administration of ongoing and future tribal transit programs carried out using Federal funds.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2003
National Museum of African American History and Culture Act - (Sec. 4) Establishes within the Smithsonian Institution (SI) the National Museum of African American History and Culture, to be operated as a center for scholarship and a location for museum training, public education, exhibits, and collection and study of items and materials relating to the life, art, history, and culture of African Americans that encompass the period of slavery, the era of reconstruction, the Harlem renaissance, the civil rights movement, and other periods of the African American diaspora. (Sec. 5) Establishes the National Museum of African American History and Culture Council to: (1) advise and assist the SI Board of Regents on Museum planning, design, construction, operation, and budgets; and (2) have responsibility and authority with respect to the Museum's collections and work, subject to the Board of Regents' general policies. (Sec. 6) Requires the Secretary of SI to appoint a Director to manage the Museum. (Sec. 7) Establishes the Office of Education and Liaison Programs within the Museum to work with educational institutions and museums throughout the Nation. Requires the Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services to establish specified grant, scholarship, internship, and fellowship programs relating to African American museums. (Sec. 8) Directs the Board of Regents to select the Museum's site from one of four specified sites on or adjacent to the national mall. Requires the Board of Regents to pay costs of planning, design, and construction of the Museum on the chosen site as follows: 50 percent from Federal funds and 50 percent from non-Federal sources. (Sec. 9) Provides for Congressional Budget Act compliance by declaring that authority under this Act to enter into contracts or to make payments shall be effective in any fiscal year only to the extent provided in advance in an appropriations Act, except that mounts made available under section 11 of this Act shall remain available until expended. (Sec. 10) Directs the Council and the Board of Regents, in carrying out their duties under this Act, to consider the reports and plans submitted by the National Museum of African American History and Culture Plan for Action Presidential Commission under the National Museum of African American History and Culture Plan for Action Presidential Commission Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-106). (Sec. 11) Authorizes appropriations in a specified amount for FY 2004, and in necessary amounts for subsequent fiscal years.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2003
Hepatitis C Epidemic Control and Prevention Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop and implement a plan for the prevention, control, and management of hepatitis C virus (HCV), which shall include strategies for education and training, surveillance and early detection, and research. Requires the Secretary to conduct a biennial assessment of the plan. Directs the Secretary to support the development of voluntary State, local, and tribal HCV testing programs and counseling. Provides for the vaccination of individuals infected with HCV against hepatitis A and B and other infectious diseases. Directs the Secretary to support the establishment and maintenance of HCV surveillance databases and to establish and support a Hepatitis C Clinical Research Network. Allows the Secretary to award grants to States, political subdivisions of States, Indian tribes, or non-profit entities that have special expertise relating to HCV, to carry out activities under this Act. Directs the Director of the National Institutes of Health to establish a Liver Disease Research Advisory Board.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2003
Three Affiliated Tribes Health Facility Compensation Act - Amends the Three Affiliated Tribes and Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Equitable Compensation Act to reauthorize appropriations for each of the Tribes' economic recovery fund. Authorizes appropriations to the Secretary of Health and Human Services for the construction of a rural health care facility on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation of the Three Affiliated Tribes, North Dakota.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 2003
Build America Bonds Act of 2003 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an income tax credit to a taxpayer holding a Build America bond on a credit allowance date of such bond. Defines a Build America bond as any bond issued by the Build America Corporation as part of an issue if 95 percent or more of the proceeds from the sale of such issue are to be used for expenditures incurred for any qualified project, or for deposit in the Build America Trust Account for repayment of Build America bonds at maturity. Defines qualified project as the financing of capital improvements for any transportation infrastructure project of any governmental unit or other person, including highways, transit systems, railroads, airports, ports, and inland waterways, proposed by a State and approved by the Build America Corporation. Establishes the non-profit Build America Corporation to: (1) issue Build America bonds for the financing of qualified projects; (2) establish and operate the Build America Trust Account; and (3) perform any other function the sole purpose of which is to carry out the financing of qualified projects through Build America bonds.
United States · United States Congress · 21 May 2003
National War Permanent Tribute Historical Database Act - Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to establish and maintain the National War Permanent Tribute Historical Database for identifying and cataloging the many thousands of permanent tributes that commemorate U.S. military conflicts and the service and sacrifice of U.S. armed forces. Requires the Database to be publicly accessible through the Internet or other means in a format that permits the public to submit information for the purpose of updating and expanding the Database. Directs the Secretary to report to Congress assessing the efficacy and desirability of establishing a permanent fund within the Treasury for the repair, restoration, and maintenance of the memorials identified and cataloged.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2003
Iran Democracy Act - Declares that it is the policy of the United States to support full democracy in Iran. Directs the Broadcasting Board of Governors to: (1) require the head of Radio Farda to develop programming for Radio Farda after consulting with certain groups; and (2) ensure that a significant percentage of that programming is devoted to discussing democratic change in Iran, including a certain internationally-monitored democratic referendum in Iran. Requires the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) at the Department of State and the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) at the Department of State to provide grants to appropriate entities to create and maintain websites, translate and distribute books, videos, documents, and other materials on democracy, rule of law, and free market economics. Authorizes the MEPI and the ECA to award grants to certain eligible entities to fund programs and activities to promote a democratic referendum in Iran.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2003
Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to eliminate a two-year wait-out period between grants under a program for Hispanic-serving institutions (thus permitting an eligible institution to apply for a subsequent five-year grant award immediately after the expiration of its most recent five-year award).
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2003
Amends Federal provisions relating to the construction, operation, and maintenance of the Fryingpan-Arkansas project, Colorado, to: (1) authorize appropriations for the nonreimbursable Federal share of costs of constructing the Arkansas Valley Conduit; (2) limit the non-federal share of such costs to 25 percent; and (3) allow up to 100 percent of the non-federal share to be in the form of in-kind contributions.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2003
Stolen Gun Penalty Enhancement Act of 2003 - Amends the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act to increase the maximum penalties for knowingly transporting or shipping in interstate or foreign commerce, receiving, possessing, concealing, storing, bartering, selling, or disposing of stolen firearms or ammunition. Directs the United States Sentencing Commission to amend the Federal sentencing guidelines to reflect the amendments made by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2003
Officer Dale Claxton Bulletproof Police Protective Equipment Act of 2003 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance to make grants to States, local governments, and Indian tribes to purchase bullet resistant equipment for use by law enforcement officers. Sets forth provisions regarding permissible uses of grant funds, preferential consideration, minimum and maximum allocations, matching funds, awards to local governmental units with fewer than 100,000 residents, and application requirements. Expresses the sense of Congress that entities receiving assistance under this Act should purchase only American-made equipment and products. Authorizes the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) to: (1) conduct research and otherwise work to develop new bullet resistant technologies for use in police equipment; (2) inventory bullet resistant technologies used in the private sector, in surplus military property, and by foreign countries; and (3) promulgate relevant standards for, and conduct technical and operational testing and evaluation of, bullet resistant technology and equipment, and otherwise facilitate the use of that technology in police equipment. Directs NIJ to give priority in testing and engineering surveys to law enforcement partnerships developed in coordination with high intensity drug trafficking areas.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2003
Access to Cancer Therapies Act of 2003 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to extend Medicare coverage to all oral drugs prescribed for use as an anticancer agent for a medically accepted indication.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2003
Chronic Wasting Disease support Act of 2003 - Defines "chronic wasting disease" as a transmissible disease of the nervous system afflicting deer and elk. Requires the Secretary of the Interior to develop a grant program to allocate funds to the State agency responsible for wildlife management to develop and implement long-term management strategies to address such disease. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to establish a computer modeling program to predict the spread of chronic wasting disease in deer and elk. Directs the Secretary of the Interior (through the U.S. Geological Survey) and the Secretary of Agriculture (through the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) to conduct surveillance and monitoring programs on Federal lands to identify: (1) the rate of infection in wild herds of deer and elk; (2) the cause and extent of the spread of the disease; and (3) areas promoting the disease. Directs the Secretary of Interior to develop and maintain a web site that displays surveillance and monitoring program data and modeling information. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to: (1) develop guidelines for the collection of animal tissue samples, and a protocol for assessing samples in the laboratory; (2) develop a program for the inspection of laboratories conducting chronic wasting disease tests; (3) provide for the upgrading of Federal laboratories approved to process such samples; and (4) expand and accelerate research on the disease through the Agricultural Research Service and Cooperative State Research grant program. Requires the Secretaries of Agriculture and of the Interior to enter a cooperative agreement for the purpose of coordinating actions and disbursing funds authorized under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2003
Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Bureau of Health Professions of the Health Resources and Services Administration, to award up to five grants to higher education institutions to establish summer health career introductory programs for middle and high school students.
United States · United States Congress · 7 May 2003
Christopher Reeve Paralysis Act - Permits the Director of the National Institutes of Health (the "Director" of NIH), acting through the Director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, to expand and coordinate the activities of NIH with respect to research on paralysis. Allows the Director to award grants to public or nonprofit entities to fund Christopher Reeve Paralysis Research Consortia for paralysis research. Permits the Director to solicit public input regarding paralysis research programs. Allows the Director, acting through the Director of the National Institute on Child Health and Human Development and the National Center for Rehabilitation Research and in collaboration with other agencies, to expand and coordinate the activities of NIH with respect to research with implications for enhancing daily function for persons with paralysis. Permits the Director to make grants to multicenter networks of clinical sites that will collaborate on rehabilitation intervention protocols. Permits the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to study the unique health challenges associated with paralysis and other physical disabilities to improve the quality of life and long-term health status of individuals with such conditions. Allows the Secretary to undertake direct research and to make grants. Provides for the formation of a national paralysis and physical disability quality of life plan and a hospital-based paralysis registry. Permits the Secretary to award grants to: (1) State and local health and disability agencies, including for the purpose of establishing paralysis registries; and (2) nonprofit private health and disability organizations, including for the purpose of disseminating information to the public. Allows the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to: (1) establish within the Department of Veterans Affairs centers for paralysis research, education, and clinical activities; and (2) carry out initiatives, through the award of grants, for quality enhancement of research on paralysis.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2003
Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Act of 2003 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to make grants to public or nonprofit private entities for the development and operation of not more than eight consortium centers (each such center shall be known as a Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Center of Excellence). States that the centers shall conduct multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional research on environmental factors that may be related to the etiology of breast cancer.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2003
Syria Accountability Act of 2003 - Declares the sense of Congress that: (1) Syria should halt support for terrorism, withdraw armed forces from Lebanon, stop develpment of ballistic missiles and biological and chemical weapons, and halt imports and transshipments of Iraqi oil; (2) Lebanon and Syria should enter into bilateral negotiations for peace with Israel; and (3) the United States should continue to provide humanitarian assistance to Lebanon only through private and international organizations until the Government of Lebanon asserts sovereignty over its borders. Declares U.S. policy that Syria: (1) will be listed as a state sponsor of terrorism until it stops supporting terrorism; (2) is in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 520 through its continued occupation of Lebanese territory; and (3) has violated Resolution 661 by purchasing oil from Iraq. Declares that restoration of Lebanon's sovereignty is in the U.S. national interest. Requires the President, unless the President certifies that Syria does not support international terrorist groups or allow them to maintain facilities in Syria, has withdrawn all security personnel from Lebanon, has ceased the development of ballistic missiles and biological and chemical weapons, and is no longer violating Resolution 661, to: (1) prohibit the export to Syria of specified defense articles or services and items on the Commerce Control List; and (2) impose two or more of specified sanctions (including prohibiting U.S. exports to, or U.S. businesses investments or operations in, Syria). Authorizes the President to provide development assistance to Syria and Lebanon if the President: (1) makes that certification; (2) determines that progress has been made toward negotiating peace agreements between Israel, Syria, and Lebanon; and (3) determines that Syria is strictly respecting Lebanon's sovereignty.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2003
Jamestown 400th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act of 2003 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 100,000 $5 gold coins and 500,000 $1 silver coins, which shall be emblematic of the settlement of Jamestown, Virginia (the first permanent English settlement in America). Provides for a $35 per coin surcharge for the $5 dollar coins and $10 per coin for the $1 dollar coins. Directs the Secretary to distribute: (1) 50 percent of the surcharges to the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation of Virginia to support programs to promote the understanding of the legacies of Jamestown; and (2) 50 percent to sustain the ongoing mission of preserving Jamestown, to enhance national and international educational programs, to improve infrastructure and archeological research activities, and to conduct other programs to support the commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the settlement of Jamestown. States that entities specified for such purposes are the Secretary of the Department of the Interior, the President of the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities, and the Chairman of the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 2003
Federal Land Recreational Visitor Protection Act of 2003 - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to establish an avalanche protection program to: (1) provide early identification of the potential for avalanches that could endanger the safety of visitors to units of the National Park System (NPS) and recreational users of public land; and (2) reduce the risks and mitigate the effects of avalanches on visitors, recreational users, neighboring communities, and transportation corridors. Requires the Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture to: (1) use the resources of the National Avalanche Center of the Forest Service to carry out this Act; and (2) establish an advisory committee to assist in the development and implementation of the program. Directs such Secretaries and the Secretary of the Army to establish a central depository for weapons, ammunition, and parts for avalanche control purposes, including an inventory that can be made available to Federal and non-Federal entities. Authorizes the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture to make grants to carry out projects and activities under the program to: (1) assist in the prevention, forecasting, detection, and mitigation of avalanches; (2) maintain essential transportation and communications; (3) assist avalanche artillery users to ensure the availability of adequate supplies of artillery and other explosives required for avalanche control in or affecting NPS units, other Federal land used for recreation, and adjacent communities, and essential transportation corridors; and (4) assist research and development activities for alternatives to minimize reliance on military weapons for avalanche control.
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 2003
Marine Corps 230th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 500,000 one dollar coins which shall be emblematic of the warrior ethos of the United States Marine Corps. Requires all surcharges from the sale of the coins to be paid to the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation for construction of the Marine Corps Heritage Center.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2003
Sickle Cell Treatment Act of 2003 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to include primary and secondary preventative medical strategies, treatment, and services, including genetic counseling and testing, for individuals who have Sickle Cell Disease as medical assistance under the Medicaid program. Directs the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration to conduct a demonstration program for the development and establishment of systemic mechanisms, including a National Coordinating Center, to improve the prevention and treatment of Sickle Cell Disease.
United States · United States Congress · 10 April 2003
Community Development Homeownership Tax Credit Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit a community homeownership tax credit based upon an applicable percentage of each qualified residence's eligible basis. Makes such credit available to residences (including factory built homes) located: (1) in a census tract with a median gross income not exceeding 80 percent of the greater area or statewide median gross income; (2) in a rural area; (3) on an Indian reservation; or (4) in an area of chronic economic distress. Prohibits a buyer's income from exceeding 80 percent (70 percent for families of less than three) of the area gross median income and requires owner occupancy. Specifies that the aggregate homeownership credit dollar amount which a homeownership credit agency (an "agency") may disburse is the portion of the "State homeownership credit ceiling" (the "ceiling") allocated to such agency. Allows "unused homeownership credit carryovers" to be allocated among qualified States. Sets aside up to 90 percent of a State's ceiling for certain housing projects in which a qualified nonprofit organization owns an interest and materially participates in the given project's development and operation throughout the credit period. Requires allocation of credit to residences to be in accordance with a "qualified allocation plan" of the agency issuing credit. Lists certain specified criteria such a plan must include and specifies that the plan must be approved by the governmental unit of which such agency is a part.
United States · United States Congress · 9 April 2003
Requests the President to designate April 11, 2003, as National Youth Service Day. Commends the contributions of American youth and encourages the cultivation of a common civic bond among young people dedicated to serving their neighbors, their communities, and the Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 2003
Law Enforcement Officers Retirement Equity Act - Redefines the term "law enforcement officer" under provisions of the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) and the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) to include: (1) Federal employees not otherwise covered by such term whose duties include the investigation or apprehension of suspected or convicted individuals and who are authorized to carry a firearm; and (2) such employees of the Internal Revenue Service whose duties are primarily the collection of delinquent taxes and the securing of delinquent returns. Requires that such service which is performed by an incumbent law enforcement officer be treated: (1) on or after the enactment date of this Act, for all purposes, as service performed as a law enforcement officer, irrespective of how such service is treated under the following; and (2) before, on, or after such date, for purposes of CSRS and FERS, as service performed as such an officer, but only if an appropriate written election is submitted to the Office of Personnel Management five years after such date or before separation from Government service, whichever is earlier. Provides that nothing under current law respecting mandatory separation from Government service under CSRS or FERS shall cause the involuntary separation of an officer before the end of the three-year period beginning on such date.
United States · United States Congress · 8 April 2003
American Dream Downpayment Act - Amends the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act to: (1) authorize the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to make grants to participating jurisdictions for downpayment assistance to low-income, first-time home buyers; and (2) make the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 inapplicable to such assistance.
United States · United States Congress · 3 April 2003
Amends Federal law concerning the Civil Service Retirement System and the Federal Employees Retirement System to allow a payment due a minor or an individual mentally incompetent or under other legal disability to be made to the person who is a trustee under a trust under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act that contains the assets of an individual who is disabled. Provides for the assignability of payments under such Systems to such a trust.
![Official portrait of Sen. Campbell, Ben Nighthorse [R-CO]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/c000077_200.jpg)