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![Official portrait of Sen. Donnelly, Joe [D-IN]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/d000607_200.jpg)
United States · Official source
1,313 records where Sen. Donnelly, Joe [D-IN] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2017
Thanks the teachers of the United States and promotes the teaching profession by encouraging students, parents, school administrators, and public officials to participate in National Teacher Appreciation Week.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2017
Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act of 2017 This bill establishes in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) the Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection, to be headed by the Assistant Secretary for Accountability and Whistleblower Protection. The VA shall develop criteria to promote supervisory protection of whistle-blowers and provide supervisors with related training. The bill revises VA authority to remove certain employees or senior executives for reasons of misconduct or performance, including by permitting such individuals to be demoted or suspended. The VA: (1) shall reduce the federal annuity of a removed individual who is convicted of a felony that influenced his or her performance while employed in such position, and (2) may reduce the federal annuity of a retired individual who was convicted of such a felony but who left the VA before final action was taken. The VA may recoup an award, a bonus, or relocation expenses paid to an employee under specified circumstances. The VA may directly appoint medical center directors and Veterans Integrated Service Network directors. The bill revises time periods for adverse action reviews with respect to physicians, dentists, podiatrists, chiropractors, optometrists, registered nurses, physician assistants, and expanded-function dental auxiliaries. The VA shall: (1) assess the effect of the enactment of this bill on the hiring, promotion, retention, and productivity of individuals in senior executive positions; and (2) collect information on the outcomes and effectiveness of disciplinary actions carried out during the three-year period ending on the date of enactment of this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2017
Miners Pension Protection Act This bill amends the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) to transfer certain funds to the 1974 United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) Pension Plan to provide pension benefits to retired coal miners and their families. The Department of the Treasury must transfer additional funds to the 1974 UMWA Pension Plan to pay pension benefits required under that plan if the amounts available for transfer under SMCRA's $490 million annual limit exceed the amounts required to be transferred for other purposes (including to the UMWA Health Plans). The bill also: (1) prohibits the pension plan from making certain changes to benefits during any year in which a transfer is received, and (2) establishes additional reporting requirements for the plan. As an offset, the bill amends the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 to extend the authority of Treasury to collect certain customs user fees.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2017
This bill directs the Department of Energy to update its report on the energy and environmental benefits of re-refining used lubricating oil and submit to Congress a strategic plan to increase the beneficial reuse of lubricating oil.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2017
Lieutenant Osvaldo Albarati Correctional Officer Self-Protection Act of 2017 This bill amends the federal criminal code to require the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to allow a correctional officer at a federal prison or correctional institution to: (1) store firearms on BOP premises in a secure storage area outside the security perimeter of the institution or in a vehicle lockbox, and (2) carry a concealed firearm on BOP premises outside the security perimeter of the institution.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2017
Supports the designation of the Department of Defense Laboratory Day.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2017
Risk-Based Classification of Accessories Act of 2017 This bill revises how accessories to medical devices are classified. Specifically, the Food and Drug Administration must classify accessories based on the risks when used as intended , notwithstanding the classification of any other device with which such accessory is intended to be used.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2017
Chinese-American World War II Veteran Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill directs the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives to make appropriate arrangements for the award of a single Congressional Gold Medal to the Chinese-American Veterans of World War II in recognition of their dedicated service during World War II. The medal shall be displayed at the Smithsonian Institution, which is urged to make the medal available for display at other locations associated with such veterans or with World War II.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2017
Save Women's Preventive Care Act This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to expand preventive care and screening coverage for women under a group health plan. Under current law, a group health plan must provide preventive care and screening coverage for women as prescribed for in the comprehensive guidelines by the Health Resources and Services Administration. The bill repeals that condition, and instead, specifies the following preventive care and screenings must be covered under a group health plan: comprehensive lactation support services; screening for adolescents and women for interpersonal and domestic violence; screening for gestational diabetes mellitus; screening for cervical cancer; directed behavioral counseling for sexually transmitted infections; prevention education, risk assessment, and screening for HIV; contraceptive care; screening for breast cancer; and well-woman preventive care visits. The bill authorizes states to require group health plans to provide more generous coverage.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2017
National Suicide Hotline Improvement Act of 2017 This bill requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to coordinate with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and to consult with the Department of Veterans Affairs to examine: (1) the feasibility of designating a three-digit dialing code for a national suicide prevention and mental health crisis hotline system; and (2) the effectiveness of the current National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-TALK), including how well it addresses the needs of veterans. The FCC must submit to Congress a recommended dialing code, a cost-benefit analysis comparing the three-digit code to the current lifeline number, and cost estimates for service providers, states, and localities.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2017
Recognize, Assist, Include, Support, and Engage Family Caregivers Act of 2017' or the `RAISE Family Caregivers Act This bill directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop, maintain, and periodically update a National Family Caregiving Strategy. HHS shall convene a Family Caregiving Advisory Council to advise it on recognizing and supporting family caregivers.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2017
Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017 This bill revises the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability claims appeals system. The bill permits a veteran to appeal within one year by: (1) requesting a review of the agency of original jurisdiction's (AOJ) decision by a higher-level adjudicator within AOJ using the same evidentiary record; (2) filing a supplemental claim with a regional office that includes the opportunity to submit additional evidence and have a hearing; or (3) appealing directly to the Board of Veterans' Appeals, with the opportunity to select an expedited review to submit new evidence but without a hearing, or to select a review with the option to submit new evidence and request a hearing. A veteran may: (1) maintain the original effective date of a claim if he or she submits new and relevant evidence within one year of the most recent decision, and (2) retain the services of attorneys and accredited agents who charge a fee when the AOJ provides notice of the original decision. The VA's statutory duty to assist a veteran terminates after the original decision. The bill: (1) requires the VA to issue decision notification letters, (2) permits certain veterans who initiated an appeal prior to the bill's effective date to opt-in to the new appeals system, (3) authorizes the VA to conduct a pilot program to test such system, and (4) requires the VA, prior to full implementation, to certify to Congress that it has sufficient resources and personnel to carry out the legacy and new appeals systems.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2017
Community Lending Enhancement and Regulatory Relief Act of 2017 or the CLEAR Relief Act of 2017 This bill amends the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 to exempt from specified reporting and attestation requirements a community bank with assets of $1 billion or less. The bill amends the Truth in Lending Act to exempt from certain escrow requirements and residential mortgage loan standards a residential mortgage loan held by a depository institution with assets of $10 billion or less. The bill further amends that Act, as well as the Consumer Protection Act of 2010, to exempt certain creditors from specified disclosure requirements. In addition, the bill amends the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 to exempt from the Volcker Rule a depository institution with assets of $10 billion or less. (The Volcker Rule prohibits banking agencies from engaging in proprietary trading or entering into certain relationships with hedge funds and private-equity funds.)
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2017
Veteran Overmedication Prevention Act of 2017 This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to contract with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to review the deaths of all covered veterans who died by suicide during the last five years, regardless of whether information relating to such deaths has been reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A "covered veteran" is any veteran who received VA hospital care or medical services during the five-year period preceding the veteran's death. The review shall include: the total numbers of veterans who died by suicide, violent death, or accidental death; the percentage of such veterans with combat experience or related trauma; each veteran's age, gender, race, and ethnicity; a list of medications and substances prescribed to such veterans; a summary of medical diagnoses that led to such prescriptions in cases of anxiety and depressive disorders; the number of instances in which such a veteran was concurrently on multiple prescribed medications; the number of such veterans who were not taking any prescribed medication; the percentage of such veterans treated for anxiety or depressive disorders who received a non-medication first-line treatment compared to the percentage who received medication only; descriptions of how the VA determines and updates clinical practice guidelines for prescribing medications and of VA efforts to maintain appropriate staffing levels for mental health professionals; an analysis of VA's use of systematically measuring pain scores during clinical encounters and how that relates to the number of veterans concurrently on multiple prescribed medications; identification of VA medical facilities with markedly high prescription rates and suicide rates for treated veterans; an analysis of VA programs that collaborate with state Medicaid agencies and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; an analysis of VA medical center collaboration with medical examiners' offices or local jurisdictions to determine veteran mortality and cause of death; identification of a best practice model to collect and share veteran death certificate data; a description of how data relating to death certificates of veterans is collected, determined, and reported by the VA; an assessment of any apparent patterns based on the review; and recommendations to improve the safety and well-being of veterans. The VA shall ensure that such data is compiled in a manner that allows it to be analyzed across all data fields for purposes of informing and updating VA clinical practice guidelines.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2017
Ensuring Children’s Access to Specialty Care Act of 2017 This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to include pediatric subspecialties in primary health services for purposes of the National Health Service Corps (NHSC). Psychiatrists who are pediatric subspecialists are included in behavioral and mental health professionals. (These amendments make pediatric subspecialists, including psychiatrists, eligible for the NHSC fellowship program for the delivery of primary health services in health professional shortage areas, the NHSC Scholarship Program, and the NHSC Loan Repayment Program.) “Health professional shortage area” can mean an underserved population of children and adolescents.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2017
Marketplace Fairness Act of 201 7 This bill authorizes each member state under the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement (the multistate agreement for the administration and collection of sales and use taxes adopted on November 12, 2002) to require all sellers not qualifying for a small-seller exception (applicable to sellers with annual gross receipts in total U.S. remote sales not exceeding $1 million) to collect and remit sales and use taxes with respect to remote sales under provisions of the agreement, but only if such agreement includes minimum simplification requirements relating to the administration of the tax, audits, and streamlined filing. The bill defines "remote sale" as a sale of goods or services into a state in which the seller would not legally be required to pay, collect, or remit state or local sales and use taxes unless provided by this bill. The bill also prohibits states from beginning to exercise the authority granted by this bill for a specified period after enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2017
Rural Access to Hospice Act of 2017 This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to allow payment under Medicare for certain services furnished to hospice patients by rural health clinics and federally qualified health centers (FQHCs). With respect to a patient who elects to receive hospice care under Medicare, current law generally limits payment for services that are either duplicative of such care or related to the treatment of the individual's terminal illness. However, current law exempts from this limitation: (1) physicians' services furnished by an attending physician not employed by the hospice program; and (2) services provided or arranged by the hospice program. The bill expands this exemption with regard to rural health clinic and FQHC services. Specifically, the payment limitation shall not apply to such services that: (1) would otherwise be physicians' services if furnished by an individual unaffiliated with a rural health clinic or FQHC; and (2) are either arranged by the hospice program or furnished by an attending physician not employed by the hospice program.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2017
Designates April 2017 as Financial Literacy Month.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2017
Veterans Treatment Court Improvement Act of 2017 This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to hire at least 50 Veterans Justice Outreach Specialists, place each one at an eligible VA medical center, and ensure that each one serves as part of a justice team in a veterans treatment court or other veteran-focused court. An eligible VA medical center is one that: complies with all VA guidelines and regulations for placement of a specialist; works with a veteran with active, ongoing, or recent contact with some component of a local criminal justice system; maintains an affiliation with one or more veterans treatment courts or other veteran-focused courts; and either routinely provides specialists, or establishes a VA-approved plan to provide specialists, to serve as part of a justice team in such a court. The VA shall prioritize the placement of specialists at eligible VA medical centers that have an affiliation with such a court that: (1) was established after the date of this bill's enactment, or (2) was established before such date and is not fully staffed with specialists.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2017
American Renewable Fuel and Job Creation Act of 2017 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to modify and extend: (1) the income tax credit for biodiesel and renewable diesel used as fuel, and (2) the excise tax credit for biodiesel fuel mixtures. The bill: (1) makes the credits available to domestic producers of the fuels rather than the policy under current law of providing a mixture credit to the blender of the fuel, (2) increases the income tax credit for certain small biodiesel producers, and (3) extends the credits through 2020.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2017
Global War on Terrorism War Memorial Act This bill allows the Global War on Terror Memorial Foundation to establish the National Global War on Terrorism Memorial as a commemorative work on federal land in the District of Columbia to commemorate and honor the members of the Armed Forces who served on active duty in support of the Global War on Terrorism.
United States · United States Congress · 7 April 2017
This bill amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to make permanent the authorization for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. The greater of 1.5% of the annual authorized funding amount or $10 million shall be used for projects that secure recreational public access to existing federal public land for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2017
Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act of 2017 This bill directs the Department of Justice (DOJ) to report on Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs mental health practices and services that could be adopted by law enforcement agencies. Additionally, DOJ's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services must report on programs to address the psychological health and well-being of law enforcement officers. The bill amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to expand the allowable use of grant funds under the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program to include establishing peer mentoring mental health and wellness pilot programs within state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies. DOJ must coordinate with the Department of Health and Human Services to develop educational resources for mental health providers regarding the culture of law enforcement agencies and therapies for mental health issues common to law enforcement officers. DOJ must also: (1) review existing crisis hotlines, recommend improvements, and research annual mental health checks; (2) examine the mental health and wellness needs of federal officers; and (3) ensure that recommendations, resources, or programs under this bill protect the privacy of participating officers.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
AFG and SAFER Program Reauthorization Act of 2017 This bill amends the the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 to: (1) repeal the expiration dates of, and to reauthorize through FY2023, the Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) Program, the Fire Prevention and Safety Grants Program, and the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Grant (SAFER) Program; and (2) authorize the use of AFG Program grants, instead of SAFER Program grants, to provide specialized training to first responders on how to recognize and properly intervene with individuals with mental illness.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
This bill amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act to require certain municipal obligations to be treated as level 2B liquid assets if they are investment grade, liquid, and readily marketable. Under current law, corporate debt securities and publicly traded common-equity shares, but not municipal obligations, may be treated as level 2B liquid assets (which are considered to be high-quality assets).
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2017
Paycheck Fairness Act This bill amends equal pay provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to: (1) restrict the use of the bona fide factor defense to wage discrimination claims, (2) enhance nonretaliation provisions, (3) make it unlawful to require an employee to sign a contract or waiver prohibiting the employee from disclosing information about the employee's wages, and (4) increase civil penalties for violations of equal pay provisions. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs shall train EEOC employees and other affected parties on wage discrimination matters. The bill directs the Department of Labor to: (1) establish and carry out a grant program for negotiation skills training for girls and women, (2) conduct studies to eliminate pay disparities between men and women, and (3) make available information on wage discrimination to assist the public in understanding and addressing such discrimination. The Secretary of Labor's National Award for Pay Equity in the Workplace is established for an employer who has made a substantial effort to eliminate pay disparities between men and women. This bill amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to require the EEOC to issue regulations for collecting from employers compensation and other employment data according to sex, race, and national origin of employees for use in enforcing laws prohibiting pay discrimination.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2017
Sports Medicine Licensure Clarity Act of 2017 This bill extends the liability insurance coverage of a state-licensed medical professional to another state when the professional provides medical services to an athlete, athletic team, or team staff member pursuant to a written agreement. Prior to providing such services, the medical professional must disclose to the insurer the nature and extent of the services. This extension of coverage does not apply at a health care facility or while a medical professional licensed in the state is transporting the injured individual to a health care facility.
United States · United States Congress · 3 April 2017
Larry Doby Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the presentation of a Congressional Gold Medal in honor of Larry Doby in recognition of his achievements and contributions to American major league athletics, civil rights, and the Armed Forces during World War II.
United States · United States Congress · 30 March 2017
Local Coverage Determination Clarification Act of 2017 This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to revise the process by which Medicare administrative contractors (MACs) issue and reconsider local coverage determinations (LCDs) that: (1) are new, (2) restrict or substantively revise existing LCDs, or (3) are otherwise specified in regulation. (MACs are private insurers that process Medicare claims within specified geographic areas.) Before such an LCD may take effect, the MAC issuing the determination must, with respect to each geographic area to which the determination applies: publish online a proposed version of the determination and other specified, related information; convene one or more public meetings to review the draft determination, receive comments, and secure the advice of an expert panel; post online a record of the minutes from each such meeting; provide a period for submission of written public comments; and post online specified information related to the rationale for the final determination. Upon the filing of an applicable request by an interested party with regard to the reconsideration of a specified LCD, the MAC that issued the determination shall: provide specified information related to whether the determination failed to correctly apply qualifying relevant evidence, exceeds the scope of its intended purpose, fails to apply as intended, or is otherwise erroneous; preserve the determination, modify the determination, or rescind the determination in part; and make publicly available a written description of such action. An interested party may appeal a reconsideration decision to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The CMS shall appoint a Medicare Reviews and Appeals Ombudsman to carry out specified duties with regard to LCDs.
United States · United States Congress · 30 March 2017
Improving Access to Maternity Care Act This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to identify maternity care health professional target areas, which are areas within health professional shortage areas that have a shortage of maternity care health professionals, for purposes of assigning maternity care health professionals to those areas. HRSA must collect and publish data comparing the availability of and need for maternity care health services in health professional shortage areas and areas within those areas.
United States · United States Congress · 30 March 2017
Constitutional Amendment This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment prohibiting total outlays for a fiscal year from exceeding total receipts for that fiscal year unless Congress authorizes the excess by a three-fifths roll call vote of each chamber. The prohibition excludes: outlays for repayment of debt principal, receipts derived from borrowing, receipts or outlays of the Social Security and Medicare trust funds, and outlays relating to a natural disaster if the law providing the funds explicitly exempts the funds from the requirement and is agreed to by a majority of each chamber of Congress. The resolution requires the President to annually submit to Congress a budget in which total outlays do not exceed total receipts. The balanced budget requirement does not apply if: a declaration of war is in effect or if the United States is engaged in military conflict which causes an imminent and serious military threat to national security; or during the fiscal year or preceding fiscal year, the U.S. economy grew by less than 0% in real gross domestic product during two or more consecutive quarters or the unemployment rate was more than 7% during two or more consecutive months. The resolution prohibits a court from enforcing the requirements by ordering cuts to Social Security or Medicare payments unless the funds available to the trust fund for a program are not sufficient to cover the outlays that would occur during the year if the fund were fully solvent.
United States · United States Congress · 28 March 2017
Protecting Veterans Credit Act of 2017 This bill amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to exclude from consumer report information: (1) a veteran's medical debt if the hospital care or medical services relating to the debt antedates the credit report by less than one year; and (2) a fully paid or settled veteran's medical debt that had been characterized as delinquent, charged off, or in collection. The bill defines a "veteran's medical debt" as debt from health care provided in a non-Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facility under the laws administered by the VA, including medical debt that the VA has wrongfully charged a veteran. A dispute process for veterans medical debt is established whereby: a veteran may submit a notice along with proof of VA liability for the debt or documentation that the VA is in the process of paying for authorized medical services to a consumer reporting agency or a reseller in order to dispute such debt's inclusion in the consumer report; the VA shall submit to a veteran a notice it has assumed liability for part or all of the veteran's medical debt; and if such notice and proof of liability or documentation is received, the consumer reporting agency shall delete all information relating to the veteran's medical debt from the file of the consumer and notify the furnisher and the consumer of such deletion.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2017
Sportsmen's Act This bill declares that federal land must be open for hunting, fishing, and recreational shooting unless the managing agency acts to close the lands in accordance with this bill. The Forest Service or the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) may lease or permit the use of federal land for a shooting range, with specified exceptions. The National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the BLM, and the Forest Service must prepare a list that identifies land within their respective jurisdictions that is: (1) open to the public for hunting, fishing, or recreational uses; (2) not accessible to the public because the land does not have public entry or exit points or has significantly restricted public entry and exit points; and (3) at a minimum, 640 acres in size. Those federal entities must: (1) make this information available biennially for a 10-year period, and (2) report on options for providing public entry and exit points for the land. The bill provides special rules to expand access to federal land for film crews of three people or fewer. The bill establishes a Wildlife and Hunting Heritage Conservation Council Advisory Committee to advise the Departments of Agriculture and of the Interior on wildlife and habitat conservation, hunting, and recreational shooting. The NPS may not prohibit individuals from transporting bows and crossbows if certain requirements are met.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2017
Collegiate Housing and Infrastructure Act of 201 7 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow tax-exempt charitable or educational organizations to make collegiate housing and infrastructure grants to certain tax-exempt social clubs (e.g., college fraternities and sororities) which apply such grants to their collegiate housing property. A "collegiate housing and infrastructure grant" is a grant to provide, improve, operate, or maintain collegiate housing property that may involve more than incidental social, recreational, or private purposes. The grant must be for purposes that would be permissible for a dormitory or other residential facility of the college or university with which the collegiate housing property is associated. The grant may not be used to provide physical fitness facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2017
Pro bono Work to Empower and Represent Act of 2017 or the POWER Act This bill requires each U.S. Attorney for each judicial district to lead at least one public event that promotes pro bono legal services as a critical way to: (1) empower survivors of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking; and (2) engage citizens in assisting those survivors. A similar requirement applies to districts containing Indian tribes and tribal organizations. Each U.S. Attorney shall: (1) have discretion on the design, organization, and implementation of such public events; and (2) seek to maximize an event's local impact and the access of such survivors to high-quality pro bono legal services.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2017
Countering Iran's Destabilizing Activities Act of 2017 This bill directs the Departments of State, Defense, and Treasury and the Director of National Intelligence to submit a strategy every two years for deterring conventional and asymmetric Iranian activities that threaten the United States and key allies in the Middle East, North Africa, and beyond. The President shall impose asset blocking and U.S. exclusion sanctions against any person that materially contributes to: (1) Iran's ballistic missile or weapons of mass destruction programs, or (2) the sale or transfer to Iran of specified military equipment or the provision of related technical or financial assistance. The President shall impose against Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and affiliated foreign persons sanctions with respect to blocking property of, and prohibiting transactions with, foreign persons who commit or support terrorism. The President may impose asset blocking sanctions against any person identified by the State Department as responsible for extrajudicial killings, torture, or other gross violations of internationally recognized human rights committed against certain individuals in Iran. The bill requires specified existing sanctions against persons for materially contributing to Iran's ballistic missile program or for supporting Iran's acts of international terrorism to continue until 90 days after the President certifies that such activities ceased during the immediately preceding three-month period. The bill exempts certain humanitarian and national security activities from sanctions. The President may temporarily waive the imposition or continuation of sanctions under specified circumstances. The bill sets forth reporting requirements with respect to: (1) persons contributing to Iran's ballistic missile program, (2) U.S.-European Union sanctions coordination, (3) U.S. citizens detained by Iran, and (4) each use of the waiver authority.
United States · United States Congress · 23 March 2017
Israel Anti-Boycott Act This bill declares that Congress: (1) opposes the United Nations Human Rights Council resolution of March 24, 2016, which urges countries to pressure companies to divest from, or break contracts with, Israel; and (2) encourages full implementation of the United States-Israel Strategic Partnership Act of 2014 through enhanced, governmentwide, coordinated U.S.-Israel scientific and technological cooperation in civilian areas. The bill amends the Export Administration Act of 1979 to declare that it shall be U.S. policy to oppose: requests by foreign countries to impose restrictive practices or boycotts against other countries friendly to the United States or against U.S. persons; and restrictive trade practices or boycotts fostered or imposed by an international governmental organization, or requests to impose such practices or boycotts, against Israel. The bill prohibits any U.S. person engaged interstate or foreign commerce from supporting: any request by a foreign country to impose any boycott against a country that is friendly to the United States and that is not itself the object of any form of boycott pursuant to United States law or regulation, or any boycott fostered or imposed by any international governmental organization against Israel or any request by any international governmental organization to impose such a boycott. The bill amends the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 to include as a reason for the Export-Import Bank to deny credit applications for the export of goods and services between the United States and foreign countries, opposition to policies and actions that are politically motivated and are intended to penalize or otherwise limit commercial relations specifically with citizens or residents of Israel, entities organized under the laws of Israel, or the government of Israel.
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 2017
Tax Relief for Guard and Reserve Training Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax deductions for expenses in connection with the performance of services as a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces, to: (1) reduce from 100 miles to 50 miles (without regard to whether such period includes an overnight stay) the distance from home requirement for the above-the-line deduction; and (2) exempt from the 2% floor on miscellaneous itemized deductions the deductions allowed that consist of expenses paid or incurred in connection with the performance of such services for any period (without regard to whether such period includes an overnight stay) during which the individual is more than 50 miles away from home in connection with the services. (Above-the-line deductions are subtracted from gross income to arrive at adjusted gross income. Under current law, miscellaneous itemized deductions are only allowed if the aggregate of the deductions exceeds 2% of the taxpayer's adjusted gross income.)
United States · United States Congress · 22 March 2017
Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to provide support for Palliative Care and Hospice Education Centers. These centers must improve the training of health professionals in palliative care and establish traineeships for individuals preparing for advanced education nursing degrees, social work degrees, or advanced degrees in physician assistant studies in palliative care. HHS may provide support to schools of medicine, schools of osteopathic medicine, teaching hospitals, and graduate medical education programs for training physicians who plan to teach palliative medicine. HHS must: (1) provide Palliative Medicine and Hospice Academic Career Awards to individuals to promote their career development; (2) support entities that operate a Palliative Care and Hospice Education Center; (3) support advanced practice nurses, social workers, physician assistants, pharmacists, chaplains, or students of psychology pursuing an advanced degree in palliative care or related fields; and (4) award grants to schools of nursing, health care facilities, or programs leading to certification as a nurse assistant to train individuals in providing palliative care. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality must provide for a national education and awareness campaign to inform patients, families, and health professionals about the benefits of palliative care. The National Institutes of Health must expand national research programs in palliative care.
United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2017
Water Infrastructure Flexibility Act This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to allow municipalities to develop a plan that integrates wastewater and stormwater management. A permit for a municipal discharge under the national pollutant discharge elimination system that incorporates an integrated plan may integrate all requirements under the Act addressed in the plan. Those permits may include a schedule of compliance that allows actions for meeting water quality-based effluent limitations to be implemented over more than one permit term if the compliance schedules are authorized by state water quality standards. Those actions may include implementing green infrastructure as part of a water quality-based effluent limitation. (Green infrastructure includes measures that mimic natural processes to store, reuse, or reduce stormwater.) The bill establishes an Office of the Municipal Ombudsman in the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to provide: (1) technical assistance to municipalities seeking to comply with the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act, and (2) information to the EPA to ensure that agency policies are implemented by all EPA offices. The EPA must ensure that specified EPA offices promote the integration of green infrastructure into permitting programs, planning efforts, research, technical assistance, and funding guidance. The bill establishes requirements for revising the EPA's 1997 guidance about combined sewer overflows, including by setting forth criteria for determining the ability of households to pay utility bills. (Combined sewer systems collect rainwater, sewage, and industrial wastewater into one pipe. During storms, the combined wastewater sometimes exceeds the capacity of the treatment plant. When this occurs, combined sewer overflows discharge directly into water bodies.)
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 2017
Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act or the PACT Act This bill amends the federal criminal code to revise and expand provisions with respect to animal crushing. It retains existing criminal offenses that prohibit knowingly creating or distributing an animal crush video using interstate commerce. The bill also adds a new provision to criminalize an intentional act of animal crushing. A violator is subject to criminal penalties—a fine, a prison term of up to seven years, or both. It provides additional exceptions for conduct, or a video of conduct, including conduct that is: (1) medical or scientific research, (2) necessary to protect the life or property of a person, (3) performed as part of euthanizing an animal, or (4) unintentional.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 2017
Housing Opportunities Made Easier Act or the HOME Act This bill amends the Truth in Lending Act to deem mortgage appraisal services donated by a fee appraiser to an organization that is eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions to be customary and reasonable.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Indiana Dunes National Park Designation Act This bill renames the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore as the Indiana Dunes National Park.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Children of Fallen Heroes Scholarship Act This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to eliminate the expected family contribution (EFC) used to determine financial need in the case of a Pell Grant-eligible student whose parent or guardian died in the line of duty as a police officer, firefighter, or other public safety officer. Such student is eligible to receive an automatic zero EFC and qualify for the maximum Pell Grant award if the student was less than 24 years old or enrolled at an institution of higher education at the time of the parent or guardian's death.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2017
Land and Water Conservation Authorization and Funding Act This bill amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to make permanent the authorization for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). Funds deposited into the LWCF may be spent without being subject to the appropriations process. These funds are in addition to amounts made available by the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 or otherwise appropriated from the LWCF. The President shall submit to Congress specified details regarding the allocation of funds provided by this bill. Congress may provide for alternate allocations using specified procedures. At least 1.5% of the annual authorized funds shall be used for projects that secure recreational public access to existing federal public land for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2017
American Law Enforcement Heroes Act of 2017 This bill amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to include as an allowable use of grant funds under the Community Oriented Policing Services program prioritizing the hiring and training of veterans as career law enforcement officers.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2017
Flood Insurance Market Parity and Modernization Act This bill amends the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 to revise requirements for federal and private flood insurance. This bill revises the financial requirements that apply to flood insurance for home loans or loan guarantees by the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac). Private flood insurance must meet any financial strength requirements set forth by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Private flood insurance may include nonadmitted insurers (including surplus lines insurance) as long as the insurer is eligible to provide insurance in the home state of the insured and complies with the laws and regulations of that state. The National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 is amended to direct the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to consider any period during which a property was continuously covered by private flood insurance to be a period of continuous insurance coverage, including for the purposes of National Flood Insurance Program subsidies.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 2017
Mobile Workforce State Income Tax Simplification Act of 201 7 This bill prohibits the wages or other remuneration earned by an employee who performs employment duties in more than one state from being subject to income tax in any state other than: (1) the state of the employee's residence, and (2) the state within which the employee is present and performing employment duties for more than 30 days during the calendar year. The bill exempts employers from state income tax withholding and information reporting requirements for employees not subject to income tax in the state under this bill. For the purposes of determining penalties related to an employer's state income tax withholding or reporting requirements, an employer may rely on an employee's annual determination of the time expected to be spent working in a state in the absence of fraud or collusion by such employee. For the purposes of this bill, the term "employee" excludes: professional athletes; professional entertainers; production employees who perform services in connection with certain film, television, or other commercial video productions; and public figures who are persons of prominence who perform services for wages or other remuneration on a per-event basis.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2017
Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse Act of 2017 This bill amends the Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990 to extend the duty to report suspected child abuse, including sexual abuse, to certain adults who are authorized to interact with minor or amateur athletes at a facility under the jurisdiction of a national governing body. A national governing body is an amateur sports organization that is recognized by the International Olympic Committee. An individual who is required, but fails, to report suspected child sex abuse is subject to criminal penalties. Additionally, the bill amends the federal criminal code to revise civil remedy provisions for a victim of a human trafficking offense or federal sex offense. Among other things, it changes the civil statute of limitations to 10 years from the date the victim discovers the violation or injury (currently, 10 years from the date the cause of action arose). The bill also extends the statute of limitations for a minor victim of a federal sex offense to file a civil action to 10 years (currently, 3 years) from the date such individual reaches age 18. Finally, the bill amends the Amateur Sports Act of 1978: (1) to authorize national governing bodies to develop training, practices, policies, and procedures to prevent the abuse of minor or amateur athletes; and (2) to require national governing bodies to develop and enforce policies, mechanisms, and procedures to prevent, report, and respond to the abuse of minor or amateur athletes.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2017
Congratulates the people of Greece as they celebrate the 196th anniversary of the independence of Greece. Supports the principles of democratic governance to which the people of Greece are committed. Notes Greece's important role in the wider European region and in the community of nations since gaining its independence 196 years ago.