United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2005
Declares that the Senate: (1) apologizes to the victims and survivors of lynching for its failure to enact anti-lynching legislation; (2) expresses its deepest sympathies and most solemn regrets to the descendants of such victims whose ancestors were deprived of life, human dignity, and the constitutional protections accorded all other U.S. citizens; and (3) remembers the history of lynching, to ensure that these personal tragedies will be neither forgotten nor repeated.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2005
United Nations Oil-for-Food Accountability Act of 2005 - Requires the withholding of certain FY 2006 and 2007 U.S. contributions to the United Nations (UN) until the President certifies that the UN is cooperating in the investigation of the United Nations Oil-for-Food Program.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2005
Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area Act - Establishes the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area in Georgia. Designates the Arabia Mountain Heritage Area Alliance as the Area's management entity. Requires the Alliance to develop a management plan for the Heritage Area and to implement that plan following approval by the Secretary of the Interior.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2005
Honors the significance of the ten-year anniversary of the Reverend Lloyd Ogilvie (former Chaplain of the Senate elected on January 24, 1995) by declaring that his service to the Senate and this Country are remembered. Expresses gratitude to him for his ministry to the Senate family.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Constitutional Amendment - Marriage Protection Amendment - Declares that: (1) marriage in the United States shall consist only of the union of a man and a woman; and (2) neither the U.S. Constitution nor the constitution of any state shall be construed to require that marriage or the legal incidents of marriage be conferred upon any other union.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Tsunami Preparedness Act - Directs the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to operate regional tsunami detection and warning systems for the Pacific Ocean region and for the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean, and Gulf of Mexico region that will provide maximum detection capability for U.S. coastal tsunami. Requires the Administrator to establish tsunami warning centers to provide a link between the detection and warning system and the tsunami hazard mitigation program established under this Act in order to improve tsunami preparedness of at-risk areas. Directs the Administrator to establish a tsunami research program to develop detection, prediction, communication, and mitigation science and technology that supports tsunami forecasts and warnings. Directs the Administrator to take certain actions to upgrade and modernize the U.S. tsunami detection and warning system. Directs the Administrator to provide technical assistance and advice to certain international organizations as part of an international effort to develop a fully functional global tsunami warning system composed of regional tsunami warning networks.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require an abortion provider, before beginning any abortion of a pain-capable unborn child (defined as an unborn child who has reached a probable stage of development of 20 weeks after fertilization), to: (1) make a specified statement to the pregnant woman that Congress has determined that there is substantial evidence that the process will cause the unborn child pain, and that the mother has the option of having pain-reducing drugs administered directly to the child; (2) provide to the woman an Unborn Child Pain Awareness Brochure (unless she waives receipt) and an Unborn Child Pain Awareness Decision Form; and (3) obtain on the form the woman's signature and her explicit request for or refusal of the administration of drugs to the child. Creates an exception for certified medical emergencies. Establishes penalties for willfully failing to comply with this Act, including civil penalties, medical license suspension, or both. Authorizes: (1) specified officials to bring suit in federal court; and (2) private rights of action by a parent or guardian of a woman who is an unemancipated minor. Requires each state and state medical licensing authority to promulgate procedures for the revocation or suspension of a provider's license upon a court finding that the provider has violated this Act. Subjects a state that fails to implement such procedures to loss of Medicaid funding.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Community Choice in Real Estate Act - Amends the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, and the Revised Statutes of the United States, to prohibit the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Secretary of the Treasury, respectively, from determining that real estate brokerage activity or real estate management activity is financial in nature, is incidental to any financial activity, or is complementary to a financial activity. (In effect, prohibits financial holding companies and national banks from engaging, directly or indirectly, in real estate brokerage or real estate management activities.) Exempts from such prohibition activities of a bank holding company (or any affiliate) that directly relate to managing any real property owned by national banks or their affiliates. States that activities that were authorized for financial holding companies and national banks on December 6, 2001, are not affected by the prohibitions of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Permanent Marriage Penalty Relief Act of 2005 - Makes permanent provisions of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 which eliminate the marriage penalty in the standard deduction, the 15-percent tax bracket, and the earned income tax credit.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Child Custody Protection Act - Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit transporting a minor across a state line to obtain an abortion (deems such transporting to be a de facto abridgment of the right of a parent under any law in the minor’s state of residence that requires parental involvement in the minor’s abortion decision). Makes an exception for an abortion necessary to save the life of the minor. Protects from prosecution or civil liability the minor or the minor’s parents for violations of this Act. Makes it an affirmative defense to a prosecution or civil action under this Act that a defendant reasonably believed that before the minor obtained the abortion, the required parental consent or notification or judicial authorization took place. Authorizes any parent who suffers harm from a violation of this Act to seek relief in a civil action. Defines "parent" to include a guardian, legal custodian, or person standing in loco parentis.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Combat Meth Act of 2005 - Authorizes funds to provide training to State and local prosecutors and law enforcement agents for investigation and prosecution of methamphetamine offenses, including a set-aside for prosecutors and law enforcement agents for rural communities. Amends: (1) the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to expand the public safety and community policing grant program to authorize the use of grant funds to hire personnel and purchase equipment to assist in enforcing and prosecuting methamphetamine offenses and in cleaning up methamphetamine-affected areas; (2) the Controlled Substances Act to add pseudoephedrine to schedule V; and (3) the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants for the development of drug endangered children rapid response teams and grants to local governments, Indian tribes, and nonprofit private entities to provide treatment for methamphetamine abuse. Directs the Attorney General to allocate funds for the hiring and training of special assistant U.S. attorneys. Authorizes the Attorney General, acting through the Bureau of Justice Assistance, to award grants to States to establish methamphetamine precursor monitoring programs.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2005
Fair Tax Act of 2005 - Repeals the income tax, employment tax, and estate and gift tax. Redesignates the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 as the Internal Revenue Code of 2005. Imposes a national sales tax on the use or consumption in the United States of taxable property or services. Sets the sales tax rate at 23 percent in 2007, with adjustments to the rate in subsequent years. Allows exemptions from the tax for property or services purchased for business, export, or investment purposes and for State government functions. Sets forth rules relating to: (1) the collection and remittance of the sales tax; and (2) credits and refunds. Allows familes a sales tax rebate. Grants States the primary authority for the collection of sales tax revenues and the remittance of such revenues to the Treasury. Sets forth administrative provisions relating to: (1) the filing of monthly reports and payments of tax; (2) accounting methods; (3) registration of sellers of goods and services responsible for reporting sales; (4) penalties for noncompliance; and (5) collections, appeals, and taxpayer rights. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to allocate sales tax revenues among: (1) the general revenue; (2) the old-age and survivors insurance trust fund; (3) the disability insurance trust fund; (4) the hospital insurance trust fund; and (5) the Federal supplementary medical insurance trust fund. Prohibits the funding of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) after FY 2009. Establishes in the Department of the Treasury: (1) an Excise Tax Bureau to administer excise taxes not administered by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF); and (2) a Sales Tax Bureau to administer the national sales tax.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2005
Expresses: (1) sympathy for the victims and families of the earthquake and tsunami that struck communities throughout Southeast Asia, South Asia, and Eastern Africa on December 26, 2004; and (2) gratitude and respect for the work of all aid and relief personnel, including U.S. military personnel. Supports President George W. Bush's pledge of $350,000,000 in direct financial assistance, and additional indirect assistance, through the dispatch of U.S. military assets and personnel and through substantial voluntary and annual contributions to international organizations and bodies. Commends the ongoing international relief effort. Recognizes that U.S. Government assistance will be greatly supplemented by private U.S. donations and volunteers. Supports the long-term U.S. commitment to provide financial aid and other assistance to the impacted region.
United States · United States Congress · 10 October 2004
Supports the goals of Red Ribbon Week. Encourages: (1) children and teens to choose to live a drug-free life; and (2) all people of the United States to promote drug-free communities and to participate in drug prevention activities to show support for healthy, productive, drug-free lifestyles.
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 2004
American Bald Eagle Recovery and National Emblem Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury, in celebration of the recovery of the bald eagle, in commemoration of the 35th anniversary of the enactment of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and the placement of the bald eagle on the endangered species list under such Act, to mint and issue not more than: (1) 100,000 $5 gold coins; (2) 500,000 $1 silver coins; and (3) 750,000 half dollar coins. Directs that the design of the coins be emblematic of the bald eagle and its history, natural biology, and national symbolism. Requires that sales of the coins include a surcharge of $35 per coin for the $5 coin, $10 for the $1 coin, and $3 for the half dollar coin, which shall be promptly paid by the Secretary to the American Eagle Foundation of Tennessee to: (1) establish an interest-bearing endowment called the American Eagle Fund as a permanent source of support for the care, monitoring, maintenance, and recovery of the bald eagle and its habitat in the United States; (2) make annual grants to Federal, State, and private eagle restoration, protection, and enhancement projects; (3) administer the Fund in an annual amount not to exceed the lesser of ten percent of the annual income of the Fund or $250,000; and (4) provide financial support for capital projects and for continuation and expansion of the Foundation's efforts to educate the American people about the bald eagle.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2004
Combat Meth Act of 2004 - Directs the Attorney General to carry out a program to provide grants to qualified States (i.e., those which had more than 200 methamphetamine lab seizures in 2003 and that provide a specified mandatory minimum sentence for possession and/or distribution of five grams or more of methamphetamine or 50 grams or more of a substance containing methamphetamine) to combat methamphetamine abuse, focusing on the prosecution of repeat offenders. Authorizes funds to provide training to: (1) State and local prosecutors and law enforcement agents for investigation and prosecution of methamphetamine offenses; and (2) State law enforcement personnel at the Drug Enforcement Administration's Clandestine Laboratory Training Facility in Quantico, Virginia. Amends: (1) the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to expand the public safety and community policing grant program to authorize the use of grant funds to hire personnel and purchase equipment to assist in enforcing and prosecuting methamphetamine offenses and in cleaning up methamphetamine-affected areas; and (2) the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants to local governments and nonprofit private entities to provide treatment for methamphetamine abuse. Directs the Attorney General to allocate funds for the hiring and training of special assistant U.S. attorneys. Authorizes the Attorney General, acting through the Bureau of Justice Assistance, to award grants to States to establish methamphetamine precursor monitoring programs.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 2004
Requires the President, through the Secretary of Defense, to establish a unified combatant command for military intelligence (military intelligence command) to: (1) coordinate all military intelligence activities; (2) develop new military intelligence collection capabilities; and (3) represent the Department of Defense (DOD) in the intelligence community under the National Intelligence Director (NID). Requires the assignment of all active and reserve military intelligence forces of the Armed Forces within specified DOD elements, and civilian personnel of such elements, to the military intelligence command unless otherwise directed by the Secretary. Sets forth the duties and authority of the commander of the military intelligence command. Requires the staff of the commander to include an inspector general. Requires the Secretary and the NID to consult on the budget of the military intelligence command before submitting that budget to the President. Requires the budget proposal to include funding requests for development and acquisition of military intelligence collection systems and acquisition of other material, supplies, or services peculiar to military intelligence activities. Directs the Secretary to consult with the NID on recommendations made by the commander regarding heads of components of the military intelligence command before transmitting such recommendations to the President.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Terrorism Insurance Extension Act of 2004 - Amends the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002 (TRIA) to extend the terrorism risk insurance program from 2005 through 2007. Repeals the condition on the authority of the Secretary of the Treasury to pay or adjust compensation for insured losses after termination of the program that limits such losses to those arising from an act of terrorism occurring only during the period in which the program was in effect. Defines "Program Year 4" as calendar 2006 and "Program Year 5" as calendar 2007. Increases the insurance marketplace aggregate retention amount for Program Years 4 and 5. Directs the Secretary to apply TRIA to providers of group life insurance. Instructs the Presidential Working Group on Financial Markets to report to Congress its recommendations for legislation to address the long-term availability and affordability of insurance for terrorism risk.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Public Safety Officers' Defense Act - Amends the Federal judicial code to deny a court, justice, or judge jurisdiction to consider any claim relating to the judgment or sentence in an application for a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of a person in custody pursuant to the judgment of a State court for killing a public safety officer, unless the applicant shows constitutional error or that the claim qualifies for consideration based on a new rule of constitutional law or a factual predicate that could not have been previously discovered. Directs that any such application presented to a court, justice, or judge other than a district court be transferred to the appropriate district court for consideration or dismissal, with an exception. Sets forth requirements regarding time limits in: (1) district court (e.g., any motion by either party for an evidentiary hearing shall be filed and served not later than 90 days after the State files its answer); and (2) the court of appeals (e.g., the court shall decide the appeal from an order granting or denying a writ of habeas corpus not later than 120 days after the date on which the brief of the appellee is filed). Makes time limitations under this Act applicable to an initial application, a second or successive application, and any re-determination of an application or related appeal following a remand by the court of appeals or the Supreme Court for further proceedings.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
Interstate 3/3rd Infantry Division Highway Initiation Act - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) a new interstate highway designated as "United States Interstate Route 3" should be constructed between Savannah, Georgia, to Knoxville, Tennessee; and (2) such highway should be known and designated as the "3rd Infantry Division Highway", in honor of the professionalism, heroism, and sacrifice of the men and women of the U.S. Army 3rd Division in defending the freedom of the United States. Directs the Secretary of Transportation to study and report to the appropriate congressional committees on the steps and estimated funding necessary to designate and construct a new interstate route for the 3rd Infantry Division Highway, from Savannah, Georgia, and Knoxville, Tennessee (formerly the Savannah River Parkway in the State of Georgia).
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2004
14th Amendment Interstate Highway Initiation Act - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to complete a study and report to the appropriate congressional committees on the steps and estimated funding necessary to construct a new route to be designated as "Interstate Route I-14" and known as the 14th Amendment Highway, from Augusta, Georgia, to Natchez, Mississippi (formerly designated the Fall Line Freeway in the State of Georgia).
United States · United States Congress · 21 July 2004
First Amendment Restoration Act - Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to repeal: (1) a requirement that persons making disbursements for electioneering communications file reports on such disbursements with the Federal Election Commission; (2) a prohibition against the making of disbursements for electioneering communications by corporations and labor organizations; and (3) a provision treating coordinated communications as contributions.
United States · United States Congress · 21 July 2004
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Supreme Court should act expeditiously to resolve the current confusion and inconsistency in the Federal criminal justice system by promptly considering and ruling on the constitutionality of the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2004
States that the Senate recognizes Israel's right of self-defense against Palestinian terrorist attacks, and supports the construction of a security fence, the route of which, with the support of the Government of Israel, takes into account the need to minimize Palestinian land confiscation and the imposition of hardships on the Palestinian people. Condemns the decision of the International Court of Justice on the legality of the security fence. Urges the United States to vote against any further United Nations action that could delay or prevent the construction of the security fence and to engage in a diplomatic campaign to persuade other countries to do the same.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2004
Recognizes and supports the goals and ideals of Life Insurance Awareness Month. Requests the President to issue a proclamation calling on the Federal Government, States, localities, schools, nonprofit organizations, businesses, other entities, and the people of the United States to appropriately observe Life Insurance Awareness Month.
United States · United States Congress · 16 July 2004
Tools to Fight Terrorism Act of 2004 - Anti-Terrorism Investigative Tools Improvement Act of 2004 - Amends: (1) the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 to treat individuals who engage in international terrorism as foreign agents; (2) the Federal criminal code to prohibit hoaxes relating to terrorist offenses; (3) the USA PATRIOT Act to allow the disclosure of counterintelligence information obtained as part of a national security investigation; (4) the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize deporting aliens who have received military training from terrorist organizations; and (5) the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 regarding nuclear threats. Prevention of Terrorist Access to Special Weapons Act of 2004 - Prohibits producing, acquiring, transferring, possessing, or using: (1) a missile system designed to destroy aircraft; (2) any weapon designed to release radiation at dangerous levels; and (3) the variola virus. Railroad Carriers and Mass Transportation Protection Act of 2004 - Rewrites Federal criminal code provisions prohibiting acts of destruction and violence against trains and mass transportation to add as an aggravated offense the commission of the prohibited act under circumstances in which the railroad on-track equipment or mass transportation vehicle was carrying high-level radioactive waste. Reducing Crime and Terrorism at America's Seaports Act of 2004 - Prohibits: (1) willfully disabling a passenger vehicle; and (2) bribery affecting port security. Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to increase penalties for noncompliance with manifest requirements. Combating Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Act of 2004 - Amends the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act to cover acts involving burglary, embezzlement, and fraud in the purchase of securities. Provides for civil forfeiture of the assets of those who plan or perpetrate terrorist acts against international organizations or foreign governments.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 2004
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to make the revocation of visas and of other documentation authorizing admission administratively and judicially unreviewable. Adds revocation of visas or of other documentation authorizing admission to those grounds of inadmissibility supporting deportation (thus making aliens subject to such revocation immediately removable).
United States · United States Congress · 8 July 2004
Calls for the President to designate the week of November 7-13, 2003, as National Veterans Awareness Week to emphasize educational programs for elementary and secondary school students regarding the contributions and sacrifices of veterans.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Sets forth rules regarding the status of certain retirement plans maintained by specified types of ecumenical organizations as church plans under the Internal Revenue Code. Exempts certain of such plans from prohibitions, under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, against commingling specified assets for investment purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 24 June 2004
Information Sharing Improvement Act of 2004 - Amends the Federal criminal code, the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Right to Financial Privacy Act, and the National Security Act of 1947 to authorize the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to disseminate information relevant to an authorized investigation to protect against international terrorism or clandestine intelligence activities only as provided in guidelines approved by the Attorney General (currently, only for foreign intelligence collection or foreign counterintelligence investigations and only if the information is clearly relevant to another agency's authorized responsibilities). Amends the USA PATRIOT Act to allow the disclosure of counterintelligence or foreign intelligence information obtained as part of a national security investigation (currently limited to a criminal investigation). Amends rule 6 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure to authorize the disclosure of certain grand-jury information to foreign government personnel. Authorizes: (1) a Government attorney to disclose any grand-jury matter involving specified activities, including a threat of attack, sabotage, terrorism, or clandestine intelligence-gathering, to any appropriate Federal, State, State subdivision, Indian tribal, or foreign government official for the purpose of preventing or responding to such a threat; (2) any State or other specified recipients of information under rule 6 to use the information in accordance with guidelines that the Attorney General and the Director of Central Intelligence jointly issue; and (3) the court to allow disclosure of any grand-jury matter at the request of the Government when sought by a foreign court or prosecutor for use in an official criminal investigation.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Benjamin Franklin Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue one dollar coins emblematic of the life and legacy of Benjamin Franklin (not more than 250,000 bearing his image as a young statesman and not more than 250,000 with his image as an older numismatist). Directs that all sales of coins minted under this Act include a $10 per coin surcharge, which shall be paid by the Secretary to the Franklin Institute for purposes of the celebration of the Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2004
Commends national and community organizations and health care providers for supplying information concerning the importance of screening for prostate cancer and the treatment options. Declares that the Federal Government and the States should ensure that health care providers supply patients with appropriate information and tools necessary to receive readily understandable information about all medically efficacious screening and treatments for prostate cancer.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2004
Recognizes Ray Charles as one of the greatest American musicians of all time and honors him for his contributions to music, culture, community, and the United States. Offers its appreciation to Ray Charles for sharing his musical gifts with the world. Extends deepest sympathy to the family and loved ones of Ray Charles.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2004
Iraqi Women and Children's Liberation Act of 2004 - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the United States should ensure that women and children in Iraq benefit from the liberation of Iraq; (2) women of all ethnic groups in Iraq should be included in the economic and political reconstruction of Iraq; and (3) the Government of Iraq should adhere to internationally accepted standards on human rights and rights of women and children. Authorizes the President to provide assistance for: (1) education and health care for Iraqi women and children living in Iraq or living as refugees in other countries; and (2) enhancement of political participation, economic empowerment, civil society, and personal security of women in Iraq. Expresses the sense of Congress that the President should ensure that such assistance is: (1) provided in a manner that protects and promotes the human rights of all people in Iraq, utilizing indigenous institutions and nongovernmental organizations, especially women's organizations; and (2) conditioned on the government of Iraq making continued progress toward internationally accepted standards of human rights and the rights of women.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2004
Recognizes the importance of fathers to a healthy society. Calls on all the people of the United States to observe Father's Day by considering how society can better respect and support fatherhood.
United States · United States Congress · 21 May 2004
Repeals the termination date for specified provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act (currently, various provisions of the Act, including wiretapping provisions, sunset on December 31, 2005).
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Tax Code Termination Act - Mandates the termination of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 after December 31, 2009, except for self-employment taxes, Federal Insurance Contributions Act taxes, and Railroad Retirement taxes. 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, 2009.
United States · United States Congress · 20 May 2004
Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2004 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require an abortion provider, before beginning any abortion of a pain-capable unborn child (defined as an unborn child who has reached a probable stage of development of 20 weeks after fertilization), to: (1) make a specified statement to the pregnant woman that Congress has determined that there is substantial evidence that the process will cause the unborn child pain, and that the mother has the option of having pain-reducing drugs administered directly to the child; (2) provide to the woman an Unborn Child Pain Awareness Brochure (unless she waives receipt) and an Unborn Child Pain Awareness Decision Form; and (3) obtain on the form the woman's signature and her explicit request for or refusal of the administration of drugs to the child. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop the brochure and form. Makes such provisions inapplicable to a provider in the case of a medical emergency. Requires the provider to certify that a medical emergency exists. Sets penalties for false statements. Establishes penalties for willfully failing to comply with this Act, including civil penalties, medical license suspension, or both. Authorizes: (1) specified officials to bring suit in Federal court; and (2) private rights of action by a parent or guardian of a woman who is an unemancipated minor. Requires each State and State medical licensing authority to promulgate procedures for the revocation or suspension of a provider's license upon a court finding that the provider has violated this Act. Subjects a State that fails to implement such procedures to loss of Medicaid funding.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2004
Fairness in Immigration Litigation Act - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to preclude aliens, including criminal aliens, from seeking judicial review of removal orders or the denial of specified discretionary relief through habeas corpus, mandamus, or other extraordinary petitions. Declares that this Act does not preclude circuit court review on appeal of constitutional claims or pure questions of law. Establishes the INA's judicial review provisions as the sole avenue for challenging removal orders and reviewing claims arising under the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. Limits judicial authority to grant stays of removal. Requires all petitions for review of removal orders to be filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Expands the list of alternative countries to which an alien may be removed in the event that the country otherwise designated is unwilling to accept the alien. Requires asylum applicants to: (1) show that one of five statutory bases was the central motive for persecution in order to establish refugee status; and (2) submit corroborating evidence where it is reasonable for the trier of fact to expect such evidence. Lists factors relevant to credibility determinations in asylum cases. Precludes the reversal of determinations concerning the availability of corroborating evidence unless the court finds that a reasonable adjudicator is compelled to conclude that such corroborating evidence is unavailable.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2004
Amends Federal law relating to the procurement protest system to modify the term "interested party" to mean, with respect to a public private competition conducted under Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76 regarding performance of an activity or function of a Federal agency, that such term includes: (1) any official who submitted the agency tender in such competition; and (2) any one person who, for the purpose of representing them in a protest that relates to such competition, has been designated as their agent by a majority of the employees of such agency who are engaged in the performance of such activity or function. Directs the Comptroller General, for protests in cases of public-private competitions under such Circular regarding performance of an activity or function of a Federal agency, to administer provisions relating to such system in a manner best suited for expediting final resolution of such protests and final action in such competitions. States that, if a private sector interested party commences an action objecting to a solicitation by a Federal agency for bids or proposals for a proposed contract or to a proposed award or the award of a contract or any alleged violation of statute or regulation in connection with a procurement or a proposed procurement, in a public-private competition conducted under such Circular regarding performance of an activity or function of a Federal agency, then an official or person described as an interested party under this Act shall be entitled to intervene in that action. Applies paragraphs one and three to: (1) protests and civil actions that challenge final selections of sources of performance of an activity or function of a Federal agency that are made pursuant to studies initiated under such Circular on or after January 2004; and (2) any other protests and civil actions that relate to public-private competitions initiated under such Circular on or after this Act's enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2004
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the U.S. Government and Congress should condemn acts of anti-Semitism and intolerance; (2) officials and elected leaders of all Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) participating states, including all OSCE Mediterranean Partner for Cooperation countries, should also condemn acts of anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia, and discrimination; (3) the participating OSCE states should be commended for supporting the Berlin Declaration and for bringing increased attention to incidents of anti-Semitism and intolerance; (4) the U.S. Government should work with other OSCE participating states to encourage compliance with OSCE commitments and, if necessary, urge the creation of legal mechanisms to combat and track acts of anti-Semitism and intolerance; (5) all participating states should forward their respective laws and data on incidents of anti-Semitism and other hate crimes to the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights; (6) the United States should encourage appointment of a high level "personal envoy" to ensure sustained attention to OSCE commitments on the reporting of anti-Semitic crimes; (7) the United States should urge OSCE participating states that have not already done so to join the Task Force for International Cooperation on Holocaust Education, Remembrance, and Research; and (8) all OSCE participating states should renew efforts to implement their existing commitments to fight anti-Semitism and intolerance.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2004
New Shipper Review Amendment Act of 2004 - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 with respect to reviews by the administering authority to establish an individual weighted average dumping margin or an individual countervailing duty rate (as the case may be) for a new exporter or producer that: (1) did not export the merchandise that was the subject of an antidumping duty or countervailing duty order to the United States during the period of investigation; and (2) was not affiliated with any exporter or producer who did. Repeals the requirement that the administering authority direct the Customs Service to allow, at the option of the importer of such merchandise, the posting, until completion of the review, of a bond or security in lieu of a cash deposit for each entry of the subject merchandise (bonding privileges).
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2004
Expresses the grateful thanks of the Nation to the more than 16 million individuals who served in the Army, Army Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Merchant Marine in World War II and to the millions of Americans on the home front who contributed to the war effort. Recognizes the dedication of the National World War II Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on May 29, 2004, as an occasion to acknowledge and pay tribute to those members of the Armed Forces who served in World War II, who are known collectively as the Greatest Generation.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2004
Declares that the Senate: (1) supports the goals of National Marina Day; and (2) urges U.S. marinas to continue to provide environmentally friendly gateways to boating for the U.S. people.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2004
States that Congress: (1) acknowledges and welcomes the strong relationship formed between the United States and Ukraine since the restoration of Ukraine's independence in 1991; (2) recognizes that a precondition for the full integration of Ukraine into the Western community of nations, including as an equal member in institutions such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), is its establishment of a democratic political system; (3) urges the Government of Ukraine to guarantee freedom of association and assembly, including the right of candidates, members of political parties, and others to freely assemble, to organize and conduct public events, and to exercise these and other rights free from intimidation or harassment; (4) urges the Government of Ukraine to meet its Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) commitments on democratic elections; (5) urges the Ukrainian authorities to ensure the full transparency of election procedures before, during, and after the 2004 presidential elections; and (6) pledges its support and assistance to the Ukrainian people's establishment of a free and open democratic system, creation of a free market economy, and their country's assumption of a full and equal membership in the Western community of democracies.
![Official portrait of Sen. Chambliss, Saxby [R-GA]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/c000286_200.jpg)