United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2011
Unfunded Mandates Accountability Act of 2011 - Amends the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 to: (1) require regulatory impact analyses for rules that do not involve a legislative mandate and for final rules that do not have a prior notice of proposed rulemaking; (2) require federal agencies to prepare and publish in the Federal Register an initial and final regulatory impact analysis prior to promulgating any proposed or final rule that may have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more or that may result in the expenditure of $100 million or more in any one year by state, local, and tribal governments; (3) require such agencies to identify and consider regulatory alternatives before promulgating any proposed or final rule and select the least costly, most cost-effective, or least burdensome alternative; (4) define "cost" as the cost of compliance and any reasonably foreseeable indirect cost resulting from agency rulemaking; (5) exempt rules concerning monetary policy proposed or implemented by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or the Federal Open Market Committee from provisions of such Act relating to regulatory accountability and reform, review of federal mandates, and judicial review; and (6) expand provisions relating to judicial review of regulatory impact analyses. Amends the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 to require independent regulatory agencies to conduct regulatory impact analyses.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 2011
National Future Farmers of America Commemorative Coin Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue gold and silver coins in commemoration of the National Future Farmers of America Organization and the 85th anniversary of such Organization. Authorizes the issuance of coins under this Act only for a one year period, beginning on January 1, 2014. Requires all sales of coins minted under this Act to include a surcharge of $25 per gold coin and $10 per silver coin. Requires all of the surcharges received from the sale of such coins to be paid to the National FFA Foundation in Indianapolis, Indiana, for the creation of an endowment to enhance and expand programs that encourage the development of leadership skills, personal growth, and career success through agricultural education and the Future Farmers of America.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2011
Rural America Preservation Act of 2011 - Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to cap maximum annual direct and counter-cyclical payments to an individual (for covered commodities and peanuts) at $20,000 and $30,000, respectively. Revises limitation provisions for marketing loan gains, loan deficiency payments, and commodity certificate transactions, and establishes an annual combined limitation of $75,000 for such payments. Doubles payment limitations for single farming operations. Limits an individual or a legal entity to a combined annual payment of $250,000. Revises provisions respecting limitation of benefits to active farmers. Makes foreign individuals and foreign entities ineligible for agricultural program benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2011
States that: (1) it is U.S. policy to support Israel in maintaining secure, recognized, and defensible borders; and (2) it is contrary to U.S. policy and our national security to have Israel's borders return to the armistice lines that existed on June 4, 1967.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2011
Soda Ash Competition Act - Amends the Soda Ash Royalty Reduction Act of 2006 to extend from October 12, 2011, through October 12, 2016, the reduced (2%) royalty rate for soda ash.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2011
Keeping Politics Out of Federal Contracting Act of 2011 - Prohibits the head of an executive agency from: (1) requiring a contractor to submit political information as part of a soliticitation, request for bid, request for proposal, or any other communiction in connection with the award of a contract for procurement of property or services or during the course of the contract performance until the completion of a contract; (2) using such political information as a factor or consideration in the source selection process used to award a competitive or non-competitive contract; or (3) including such political information in a contracting past performance database. Defines "political information" as information relating to political spending, including any payment for an electioneering communication, by a contractor or persons related to such contractor to a candidate for federal office, a political commitee, a political party, or to a third party entity for political purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2011
Grazing Improvement Act of 2011 - Amends the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (the Act) to double from 10 to 20 years the period of a term for grazing permits and leases for domestic livestock grazing on public lands or lands within national forests in 16 contiguous western states. Permits the issuance of permits and leases for a period shorter than 20 years (under current law, shorter than 10 years). Directs that grazing permits or leases issued by the Secretary of the Interior respecting lands under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior and grazing permits issued by the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) respecting National Forest System lands that expire, are transferred, or are waived after this Act's enactment be renewed or reissued, as appropriate, under the Act, Granger-Thye Act, Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act, or California Desert Protection Act of 1994. Excludes the renewal, reissuance, or transfer of a grazing permit or lease by the Secretary concerned from the requirement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) to prepare an environmental analysis if such decision continues current grazing management of the allotment. Makes provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act applicable to appeals made by grazing permittees regarding grazing permits or leases under the Act and the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2011
Combating Autism Reauthorization Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to extend and reauthorize appropriations through FY2014 for programs established under the Combating Autism Act of 2006, including: (1) the developmental disabilities surveillance and research program; (2) the autism education, early detection, and intervention program; and (3) the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to submit a progress report on: (1) activities related to autism spectrum disorders and other developmental disabilities, and (2) implementation of the Combating Autism Act of 2006. Reauthorizes appropriations for FY2012-FY2014 for National Institutes of Health (NIH) research on autism spectrum disorders and reviews of centers of excellence.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2011
Critical Minerals Policy Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the U.S. Geological Survey, to publish in the Federal Register a draft methodology for determining which minerals qualify as critical minerals, based on an assessment of whether they are subject to potential supply restrictions and important in use. Directs the Secretary to: (1) arrange with the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) to review the methodology, and (2) publish in the Federal Register minerals designated as critical. Directs the President to coordinate federal agency actions to facilitate the development and production of domestic resources to meet national critical minerals needs. Directs the Secretary to conduct a specified national assessment of critical minerals. Establishes within the Department of the Interior the Critical Minerals Working Group to facilitate federal agency: (1) efforts to optimize efficiencies associated with the permitting of activities that will increase exploration and development of domestic critical minerals; and (2) review of laws, regulations, and policies that discourage investment in domestic critical minerals. Requires the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to submit to certain congressional committees an assessment of federal agency compliance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act in promulgating regulations applicable to the critical minerals industry. Authorizes the President, upon state request, to enter into a cooperative agreement to process permits for critical mineral manufacturing facilities. Directs the Secretary of Energy (DOE) to conduct research and development to promote the efficient production, use, recycling of, and alternatives to critical minerals. Instructs the Secretary of the Interior to make an annual report that includes a comprehensive: (1) review of critical mineral production, consumption, and recycling patterns; and (2) forecast ("Annual Critical Minerals Outlook") of projected patterns. Instructs the Secretary of Labor to assess the domestic availability of technically trained personnel necessary for critical mineral enterprises, including skills in the shortest supply. Directs the Secretaries of the Interior and of Labor to arrange jointly with the NAS and the NAE to coordinate with the National Science Foundation (NSF) on a study to design an interdisciplinary program on critical minerals that will support the critical mineral supply chain. Directs the Secretary of the Interior and the NSF to conduct jointly a competitive program of four-year grants to institutions of higher education to take specified steps to implement integrated critical mineral education, training, innovation, and workforce development programs. Instructs the Secretary of State to promote international cooperation on critical mineral supply chain issues with U.S. allies. Directs the DOE Secretary to support research programs for: (1) novel uses for cobalt, including energy technologies and super-alloys; and (2) advanced lead manufacturing processes. Amends the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 to direct the DOE Secretary to provide grants for research, development, demonstration, and commercial application of domestic industrial processes designed to enhance domestic lithium production for use in advanced battery technologies. Directs the DOE Secretary to support programs regarding: (1) research, development, commercial application, and conservation to expand domestic production of low-Btu gas and helium resources; (2) advanced membrane technology used in the separation of gases from applications; (3) helium separation technology; and (4) an industrial helium program. Instructs the Secretary of the Interior to: (1) update existing resource information for phosphate, potash, and rare earth elements; and (2) study the issues associated with establishing a licensing pathway for the complete thorium nuclear fuel cycle. Repeals: (1) the National Materials and Minerals Policy, Research and Development Act of 1980; and (2) the National Critical Materials Act of 1984.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2011
Savings Enhancement by Alleviating Leakage in 401(k) Savings Act of 2011 or the SEAL 401(k) Savings Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to loans made from a qualified employer plan, to: (1) extend the period for repayment of loans if a plan terminates or a plan participant becomes unemployed, and (2) prohibit plans from allowing the use of credit cards or similar arrangements to access loan amounts. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to modify regulations governing hardship distributions from qualified employer plans to allow participants to make additional contributions to a plan during the six month period following a hardship distribution.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2011
FEMA Common Sense and Cost Effectiveness Act of 2011 - Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act and the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to authorize the construction and maintenance of levees on property acquired under the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA's) hazard mitigation grant programs, including: (1) a levee that is federally owned and operated; (2) a permanent levee that is federally constructed and nonfederally operated and maintained; (3) a levee that is federally constructed as a nonpermanent levee, that a nonfederal entity desires to operate and maintain as a permanent levee, and the owners of which are participating in, or, in a specified period after the date on which the levee is constructed, will begin participating in, the emergency response to natural disasters program; and (4) a nonfederal levee the owners of which are participating in the program. Authorizes an application to construct or maintain a levee on acquired lands to be denied if the levee poses a significant threat of harm to downstream communities.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2011
Small Business Fairness Act of 2011 - Amends the Small Business Act to permit a contract between a federal agency and a small business teaming arrangement entity to be deemed awarded for purposes of the small business procurement and services contracting goals established by the head of that agency if the obligations of such entity are performed by a qualified HUBZone (historically underutilized business zone) small business or a small business owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans, socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, or women. Defines "teaming arrangement entity" as a prime contractor under a contractor team arrangement as defined under specified provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, as in effect on October 1, 2009.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2011
Wilderness and Roadless Area Release Act of 2011 - Releases public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) pursuant to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 that have not been designated as wilderness and identified by BLM as not suitable for designation as wilderness from further study for wilderness designation. Makes such lands no longer subject to the Act's requirement pertaining to the management of wilderness study areas in a manner that does not impair suitability for preservation as wilderness. Releases inventoried roadless areas within the National Forest System that have not been designated as wilderness and were not recommended for designation as wilderness as a result of the second roadless area review and evaluation program (RARE II) or the subsequent revision of a land resource management plan, from further study for wilderness designation. Makes such System lands no longer subject to management to maintain roadless character and values and to comply with other land-use restrictions of the Roadless Area Conservation Rule, as amended by the Roadless Area Conservation Final Rule (2001) and the State Petitions for Inventoried Roadless Area Management Final Rule (2005).
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2011
Amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to direct the Secretary of the Interior to issue a permit for the importation of polar bear parts taken in a sport hunt in Canada, if legally harvested before: (1) February 18, 1997; or (2) May 15, 2008, from a bear population from which a sport-hunted trophy could be imported before such date. (Polar bears were listed as a threatened species by the Department of the Interior on May 14, 2008.)
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2011
Government Litigation Savings Act - Revises provisions of the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) and the federal judicial code relating to the fees and other expenses of parties in agency proceedings and court cases against the federal government to: (1) restrict awards of fees and other expenses under such Act to prevailing parties with a direct and personal monetary interest in an adjudication, including because of personal injury, property damage, or an unpaid agency disbursement; (2) require the reduction or denial of awards commensurate with pro bono hours and related fees and expenses to parties who have acted in an obdurate, dilatory, mendacious, or oppressive manner or in bad faith; (3) limit awards to not more than $200,000 in any single adversary adjudication or for more than three adversary adjudications in the same calendar year (unless the adjudicating officer or judge determines that a higher award is required to avoid severe and unjust harm to the prevailing party); and (4) expand the reporting requirements of the Chairman of the Administrative Conference of the United States with respect to fees and other expenses awarded to prevailing parties during the preceding fiscal year. Requires the Comptroller General to audit the implementation of EAJA for the years 1995 through the end of the calendar year in which this Act is enacted.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2011
Honors the entrepreneurial spirit of small businesses during National Small Business Week beginning May 15, 2011. Applauds the efforts and achievements of small business owners and their employees. Recognizes the work of the Small Business Administration (SBA) and its resource partners in providing assistance to entrepreneurs and small businesses. Recognizes the importance of ensuring that: (1) guaranteed loans, including microloans and venture capital, are made available to all qualified small businesses; (2) necessary federal resources are provided to management assistance programs delivered by SBA resource partners; (3) SBA small business disaster assistance is provided in a timely and efficient manner; (4) affordable Internet access is available to all people in the United States so that small businesses can utilize such access; (5) regulatory relief is provided to small businesses through the reduction of duplicative or unnecessary regulatory requirements; and (6) leveling the playing field for small business contracting opportunities remains a primary focus.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2011
Small Business Health Relief Act of 2011 - Repeals provisions of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC), as added by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), that: (1) impose fines on large employers (employers with more than 50 full-time employees) who fail to offer their full-time employees the opportunity to enroll in minimum essential health insurance coverage; and (2) require such large employers to file a report with the Secretary of the Treasury on health insurance coverage provided to their full-time employees. Repeals provision of PPACA that: (1) set limits on the annual deductible on health plans offered in the small group market, (2) allow catastrophic plans to be offered in the individual market to individuals under the age of 30, and (3) impose an annual fee on health insurance entities. Deems high deductible health plans to meet essential health benefits coverage requirements if the enrollee has established a health savings account. Amends the Public Health Service Act, as amended by PPACA, to repeal provision that allow a premium rate variance by age in the individual or small group market. Repeals restrictions on payments for medications from health savings accounts, medical savings accounts, and health flexible spending arrangements to prescription drugs or insulin. Repeals provisions limiting annual salary reduction contributions by an employee to a health flexible spending arrangement under a cafeteria plan to $2,500. Allows a health plan to maintain its status as a grandfathered health plan regardless of any modification to the cost-sharing levels, employer contribution rates, or covered benefits. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to promulgate regulations to clarify the application of such provision. Makes this provision effective as if included in PPACA. Voids any regulations promulgated related to such provisions before enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2011
Freedom from Restrictive Excessive Executive Demands and Onerous Mandates Act of 2011 - Amends the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) to revise the regulatory process (rulemaking) with respect to small entities (e.g., small businesses, small organizations, and small governmental jurisdictions). Defines "economic impact" with respect to a proposed or final rule to mean: (1) the economic effects on small entities directly regulated by the rule, and (2) the reasonably foreseeable economic effects of the rule on small entities resulting from their transactions with other businesses and entities directly regulated by the rule. Expands judicial review of agency rulemaking to permit small entities to seek judicial review of initial regulatory flexibility analyses and to obtain an injunction of a proposed rule that is noncompliant with RFA requirements. Requires each agency to establish a plan for the periodic review (every nine years) of: (1) its rules that have a significant adverse economic impact on small entities, and (2) any small entity compliance guide required to be published by an agency. Sets forth criteria for review of a rule, including the continued need for the rule, the complexity of the rule, and the impact of the rule on small entities. Expands to all agencies the procedures for gathering comments on rules that will have a significant economic impact on small entities. Extends RFA requirements to informal agency guidance documents. Amends the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 to require each agency to review on a periodic basis the civil penalties it imposes on small entities for violations of statutory or regulatory requirements. Imposes certain additional requirements on agencies prior to the issuance of a final rule, including requirements for: (1) publication of an initial regulatory flexibility analysis, (2) a determination of the average cost of a rule for affected small entities and the number of small entities affected or reasonably presumed to be affected, and (3) consultation with the Chief Counsel for Advocacy for the Small Business Administration (SBA) with respect to the accuracy of information relating to the cost and impact of a final rule. Authorizes appropriations to the Small Business Administration for FY2012-FY2014 to carry out this Act. Repeals certain provisions of the Small Business Act and the Energy Security and Efficiency Act of 2007 to offset the costs of carrying out this Act and to reduce the federal deficit.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2011
American Energy and Western Jobs Act - Rescinds and declares without force or effect: (1) Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Instruction Memoranda numbered 2010-117 (Oil and Gas Leasing Reform – Land Use Planning and Lease Parcel Reviews) and 2010-118 (Energy Policy Act Section 390 Categorical Exclusion Policy Revision), both issued on May 17, 2010; and (2) Secretarial Order No. 3310 (Wild Lands Policy) issued by the Secretary of the Interior on December 22, 2010. Amends the Mineral Leasing Act to: (1) repeal the requirement that leases be issued within 60 days following payment by the successful bidder of the remainder of the bonus bid and the annual rental for the first lease year, and (2) direct the Secretary to automatically issue a lease 60 days after the date of such payment, unless the Secretary is able to issue the lease before that date. Bars an action seeking judicial review of the adequacy of any program or site-specific environmental impact statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 concerning oil and gas leasing for onshore federal land unless the action is brought in federal district court within 60 days after publication in the Federal Register of notice of the availability of the environmental impact statement. Directs the Secretary, before modifying and implementing any onshore oil or natural gas preleasing or leasing and development policy, or a policy relating to protecting the wilderness characteristics of public land, to complete an economic impact assessment and determine that the proposed policy modification will not: (1) result in a detrimental impact on employment opportunities relating to oil- and natural gas-related development, (2) contribute to an increase in the domestic use of imported petroleum resources, or (3) contribute to an aggregate loss of oil and natural gas receipts. Directs the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Bureau of Land Management, and the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, to submit, as part of the annual agency budget, a report detailing, for each field office, the revenues generated by specified use of public land. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish a domestic strategic production goal for the development of oil and natural gas managed by the federal government; and (2) hold a lease sale offering an additional 10 parcels for lease for research, development, and demonstration of oil shale resources in accordance with terms offered in a specified solicitation of bids for the leases.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2011
Livestock Marketing Fairness Act - Amends the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921 to prohibit a livestock sale forward contract (with an exception for specified cooperatives) that: (1) does not contain a firm base price that may be equated to a fixed dollar amount on the contract day; (2) is not offered for open public bid; (3) is based on a formula price; or (4) provides for the sale of more than 40 cattle, 30 swine, or other livestock in a quantity as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA). Defines: (1) "firm base price" as a transaction using an external source reference price; (2) "formula price" as any price term that establishes a base from which a purchase price is calculated on the basis of a price that will not be determined or reported until a date after the forward price is established (with specified exclusions); and (3) "forward contract" as a livestock purchase contract that provides for livestock delivery to a packer at a date that is more than seven days after the date on which the contract is entered into, without regard to whether the contract is for a specified lot of livestock or a specified number of livestock over a certain period of time.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2011
National Guard Empowerment and State-National Defense Integration Act of 2011 - Reestablishes the position of Vice Chief of the National Guard Bureau (Vice Chief). Terminates the position of Director of the Joint Staff of the National Guard Bureau (Director) and transfers existing duties of the Director to the Vice Chief. Adds the Chief of the National Guard Bureau (Chief) to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Directs the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to continue the Task Force for Emergency Readiness (TFER) pilot program as a permanent FEMA program. Requires the Administrator to carry out the program in at least five states in addition to the five states in which the program is carried out as of the enactment of this Act. Requires the Chief to: (1) identify, using catastrophic disaster response plans for each state developed under the program, any gaps in state civilian and military response capabilities that federal military capabilities are unprepared to fill; (2) notify the Secretary of Defense and the respective Commanders of the U.S. Northern and Pacific Commands of any such gaps; and (3) assist, acting through the Adjutants General of the States, states in developing state plans on responses to catastrophic disaster emergencies. Directs the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security to enter into a memorandum of understanding on coordination between Department of Defense (DOD) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and between such departments and the states, in the use of military forces in response to domestic emergencies. Authorizes appropriations for the DOD for FY2012 for National Guard: (1) continuity of operations, continuity of government, and consequence management in connection with response to terrorist and other attacks and catastrophes; (2) emergency preparedness and response activities; and (3) staffing of joint operations coordination centers in response to terrorist and other attacks and catastrophes. States that the U.S. Northern and Pacific Commands shall be the combatant commands principally responsible for the military support of civil authorities in the United States. Requires the Commander of each Command and the Chief to enter into a memorandum of understanding setting forth the operational relationships, and individual roles and responsibilities, during responses to domestic emergencies among such Commands and the National Guard Bureau. Requires the officers serving as Commander of Army North Command and Commander of Air Force North Command to be officers in the Army National Guard and the Air National Guard, respectively. Directs the Secretary of Defense to modify specified regulations prescribed pursuant to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 to provide for the use of available appropriated State Partnership Program funds for contacts between members of the National Guard and civilian personnel of foreign governments outside the ministry of defense on matters within the core competencies of the National Guard.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 2011
Savings Enhancement by Alleviating Leakage in 401(k) Savings Act of 2011 or the SEAL 401(k) Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to loans made from a qualified employer plan, to: (1) extend the period for repayment of loans if a plan terminates or a plan participant becomes unemployed, (2) prohibit plans from allowing the use of credit cards or similar arrangements to access loan amounts, and (3) limit to three the number of loans which a plan participant or beneficiary may take at any time. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to modify regulations governing hardship distributions from qualified employer plans to allow participants to make additional contributions to a plan during the six month period following a hardship distribution.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2011
State Child Welfare Innovation Act - Amends title XI of the Social Security Act to renew through FY2014 the authority of the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to authorize states to conduct child welfare program demonstration projects likely to promote the objectives of part B (Child and Family Services) or E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of title IV of the Social Security Act (SSA). Repeals the requirement for state project applications to consider certain types of proposals. Replaces such requirement with specified conditions for state eligibility to conduct a new demonstration project. Sets forth child welfare improvement policies. Revises requirements for project applications, evaluations, and reports.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2011
Returned Exclusively For Unpaid National Debt Act or REFUND Act - Rescinds unwanted amounts, as identified by a state from a projected allocation, from any federal funds required to be allocated by formula among all states that agree to use them for a specified purpose. Prescribes a procedure by which a state legislature may identify a projected federal allocation as unwanted funds. Requires such rescinded amounts to: (1) be deposited by the Secretary of the Treasury in the special fund account entitled "Gifts to Reduce Debt Held by the Public, Bureau of the Public Debt, Treasury"; and (2) be used to reduce the federal debt.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2011
Reaffirms support for a negotiated solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict resulting in two states, a democratic Jewish state of Israel and a democratic Palestinian state living in peace and mutual recognition. States that any Palestinian unity government must forswear terrorism, accept Israel's right to exist, and reaffirm previous agreements made with Israel. Opposes any attempt to establish or seek recognition of a Palestinian state outside of an agreement negotiated between leaders in Israel and the Palestinians. Urges Palestinian leaders to cease efforts at circumventing the negotiation process, including through a unilateral declaration of statehood or by seeking recognition of a Palestinian state from other nations or the United Nations (U.N.). Supports the President's opposition to a unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state. States that the Senate will consider restrictions on aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA) should the PA persist in efforts to circumvent direct negotiations. Reaffirms the requirement under U.S. law precluding assistance to a PA that includes Hamas unless that PA and all its ministers accept Israel's right to exist and all prior agreements and understandings with the governments of the United States and Israel.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2011
Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act of 2011 or the PROTECT IP Act of 2011 - Authorizes the Attorney General (AG) or an intellectual property right owner harmed by an Internet site dedicated to infringing activities (ISDIA) to commence an action against: (1) a registrant of an ISDIA's domain name, or (2) an owner or operator of an ISDIA accessed through a domain name. Allows the AG to commence actions against such individuals associated with nondomestic domain names (NDN). Permits the AG, if the specified individuals are unable to be found or have no address within a U.S. judicial district, to commence in rem actions (against domain names themselves, in lieu of individuals) against such domain names. Defines ISDIA as a site that: (1) has no significant use other than engaging in or facilitating copyright infringement, circumventing technology controlling access to copyrighted works, or selling or promoting counterfeit goods or services; or (2) is designed, operated, or marketed and used to engage in such activities. Allows the court, upon application by the relevant plaintiff, to issue temporary restraining orders or injunctions against further ISDIA activity under specified circumstances. Sets forth the preventative measures to be taken, upon being served with a court order, by: (1) operators of nonauthoritative domain name system servers, financial transaction providers (FTPs), Internet advertising services (IASs), and information location tools (ILTs) with respect to NDNs; or (2) FTPs and IASs with respect to domain names other than NDNs. Provides immunity from liability for: (1) FTPs or IASs voluntarily taking certain preventative actions against ISDIAs, and (2) domain name registries, FTPs, ILTs, or IASs withholding services from infringing sites that endanger public health by distributing prescription medication that is counterfeit, adulterated, misbranded, or without a valid prescription.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2011
Job Protection Act - Amends the National Labor Relations Act to provide that an employer's expression or written dissemination of views, argument, or opinion regarding the costs associated with collective bargaining, work stoppages, or strikes shall not constitute antiunion animus or unlawful motive (an unfair labor practice), if such expression contains no threat of reprisal or force or promise of benefit. Denies the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), unless an employer has been adjudicated finally to have unlawfully undertaken certain actions, any power to: (1) order the employer to relocate, shut down, or transfer any existing or planned facility or work or employment opportunity; (2) prevent the employer from making such relocations, transfers, or expansions to new or existing facilities in the future; or (3) prevent the employer from closing or not developing a facility, or from eliminating an employment opportunity. Declares that, unless an employer has been so adjudicated, nothing under the Act shall: (1) prevent the employer from choosing where to locate, develop, or expand its business or facilities; (2) require the employer to move, transfer, or relocate any facility, production line, or employment opportunity, or require the employer to cease or refrain from doing so; or (3) prevent the employer from closing a facility or eliminating any employment opportunity.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2011
Constitutional Amendment - Authorizes the repeal of any federal law or regulation when the legislatures of two-thirds of the states approve resolutions for this purpose that particularly describe the provisions to be repealed.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2011
Offshore Production and Safety Act of 2011 - Amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to direct the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) to require an exploration plan to incorporate a third-party reviewed response plan which describes the means and timeline to contain and terminate an ongoing discharge of oil. Requires the Secretary to certify, as a prerequisite to plan approval, the technological feasibility of methods proposed to be used under a response plan, as demonstrated by the potential lessee through simulation, demonstration, or other means. Directs the Secretary of Energy (DOE), acting through the DOE Office of Science, to use specified funds to study, in collaboration with the DOE Office of Fossil Energy, means of improving prevention methodologies and technological responses to oil spills and mitigating the effects of oil spills on natural habitat. Requires the DOE Secretary, as part of the study, to convene a task force to assess: (1) such methodologies and technological response to the blowout and explosion of the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon on April 20, 2010, and the resulting hydrocarbon releases into the environment; as well as (2) the adequacy of existing technologies for prevention and responses to deep water oil spills. Directs the Comptroller General to study existing federal capabilities and legal authorities to prevent and respond to oil spills. Instructs the Secretary to conduct certain oil and gas lease sales within specified deadlines. States that such lease sales are considered to satisfy the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. Prohibits the Secretary from issuing a permit without ensuring that the proposed drilling operations meet all: (1) critical safety system requirements, including blowout prevention; and (2) oil spill response and containment requirements. Requires the Secretary to decide whether to issue a permit within 30 days after receiving an application. Allows up to two 15-day extensions of such deadline. Prescribes implementation procedures. Imposes a deadline for a final decision on certain permit applications under existing leases. Directs the Secretary to extend by one year the terms of certain oil and gas leases (covered leases) for the Gulf of Mexico outer Continental Shelf (OCS) region. Establishes any district court within the Fifth Circuit as the exclusive venue for civil actions relating to covered energy projects on leased federal land in the Gulf of Mexico unless there is no proper venue within that circuit. Bars such a civil action unless it is filed within 60 days after the final federal action to which it relates. Sets forth a standard of review under which: (1) the court is directed to hear and determine any covered civil action as expeditiously as possible; and (2) any judicial review of a covered civil action makes a presumption that the administrative findings and conclusions relating to the challenged federal action or decision are correct. Sets restrictions on prospective relief. Prohibits federal payment of attorneys' fees, expenses, and other court costs to any party in a covered civil action under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2011
American Alternative Fuels Act of 2011 - Amends the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 to repeal the requirement that any federal agency procurement contract for an alternative or synthetic fuel, including those from nonconventional petroleum sources, for any mobility-related use (except research or testing) specify that lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions associated with the fuel must, on an ongoing basis, be less than or equal to such emissions from equivalent conventional fuel produced from conventional petroleum sources. Amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to: (1) require the Secretary of Energy to report to certain congressional committees the reasons for any delayed approval of an application for a loan guarantee for a substitute natural gas, chemical feedstock, or liquid transportation fuel project; and (2) make certain substitute natural gas production facilities eligible for loan guarantees. Amends the Clean Air Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as an algae-based fuel incentive when calculating the applicable volume of renewable fuel for each calendar year, to consider each gallon of renewable biomass produced from algae to be equal to three gallons of renewable fuel if the algae-based fuel was produced using carbon dioxide captured in a manner that prevented its uncontrolled release into the atmosphere during a separate energy production process. Authorizes the Secretary of Defense (DOD), the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of the Navy, the Secretary of the Air Force, the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to enter into multiyear procurement contracts for alternative fuels, subject to certain requirements. Amends the Clean Air Act to direct the permitting authority, when establishing the best available control technology for a major emitting facility that is an electric generating facility located in a region in which demand for electricity has increased significantly due to the volume of electric vehicles, to take into account the extent to which emissions of a pollutant have been reduced as a result of the increased use of such vehicles.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2011
No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act - Prohibits the expenditure of funds authorized or appropriated by federal law or funds in any trust fund to which funds are authorized or appropriated by federal law (federal funds) for any abortion. (Currently, federal funds cannot be used for abortion services, except in cases involving rape, incest, or life endangerment.) Prohibits federal funds from being used for any health benefits coverage that includes coverage of abortion. (Thus making permanent existing federal policies.) Prohibits the inclusion of abortion in any health care service furnished by a federal or District of Columbia health care facility or by any physician or other individual employed by the federal government or the District. Excludes from such prohibitions an abortion if: (1) the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest; or (2) the woman suffers from a physical disorder, injury, or illness, including a life-endangering physical condition caused by or arising from the pregnancy itself, that would place her in danger of death unless an abortion is performed, as certified by a physician. Makes such prohibitions applicable to District of Columbia funds. Codifies the prohibition against a federal agency or program or any state or local government that receives federal financial assistance from subjecting any individual or health care entity to discrimination on the basis that the health care entity does not provide, pay for, provide coverage of, or refer for abortions. Creates a cause of action for any violations of such provisions. Gives federal courts jurisdiction to prevent and redress actual or threatened violations of such provisions by issuing any form of legal or equitable relief, including an injunction or order preventing the disbursement of all or a portion of federal financial assistance until the prohibited conduct has ceased. Gives standing to institute an action to affected health care entities and the Attorney General. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to designate the Director of the Office for Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to receive, investigate, and refer to the appropriate federal agency complaints alleging a violation of such provisions. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to disqualify, for purposes of the tax deduction for medical expenses, any amounts paid for an abortion. Excludes from the definition of "qualified health plan" after December 31, 2013, for purposes of the refundable tax credit for premium assistance for such plans, any plan that includes coverage for abortion. Excludes from the definitions of "qualified health plan" and "health insurance coverage," for purposes of the tax credit for small employer health insurance expenses, any health plan or benefit that includes coverage for abortions. Includes any reimbursements or distributions to pay for an abortion in the gross income of participants in flexible spending arrangements under a tax-exempt cafeteria plan, Archer Medical Savings Accounts (MSAs), and health savings accounts (HSAs). Exempts from the application of such tax provisions: (1) abortions for pregnancies resulting from rape or incest or in cases where a woman suffers from a physical disorder, injury, or illness that would, as certified by a physician, endanger her life if an abortion were not performed; and (2) the treatment of any infection, injury, disease, or disorder that was caused by or exacerbated by the performance of an abortion.
United States · United States Congress · 5 May 2011
Consolidation of Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency Act of 2011 - Consolidates the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish the Department of Energy and the Environment (DEE), with the primary mission of ensuring U.S. security and prosperity by: (1) protecting human health; (2) safeguarding the natural environment; and (3) addressing U.S. energy, environmental, and nuclear challenges through transformative science and technology solutions. Transfers to the DEE Secretary all of the functions of the EPA Administrator and the Secretary of Energy. Establishes within the Department: (1) an Energy and Environmental Information Administration; (2) an Office of Science; (3) an Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence; (4) an Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs; and (5) the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission as an independent regulatory commission. Transfers to the Commission specified functions of the Federal Power Commission (FPC). Preserves the Southeastern Power Administration, the Southwestern Power Administration, and the Bonneville Power Administration as distinct organizational entities within DEE, each headed by an Administrator. Requires the Secretary to: (1) establish policy for the National Nuclear Security Administration; (2) assess annually the vulnerability of Department's facilities to terrorist attack; and (3) establish an enterprise-wide strategic sourcing program to improve efficiencies and economies in EPA's acquisition programs. Requires the President to: (1) submit a proposed National Energy Policy Plan to Congress by April 1, 2012, and biennially thereafter; and (2) issue an executive order that provides for administrative cost savings across the federal government. Repeals provisions providing for the weatherization assistance program, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, sustainable energy resources for consumers grants, the low income community energy efficiency pilot program, the Ultra-Deepwater and Unconventional Natural Gas and Other Petroleum Resources Research and Development Program, the fossil energy research and development program, state energy conservation plans, and diesel emissions reduction grants. Rescinds specified unobligated balances of the amounts made available for energy efficiency and renewable energy. Terminates the state water pollution control revolving funds program, grants for water pollution control programs, nonpoint source management programs, the state drinking water revolving loan funds program, public water system supervision programs, and the state underground injection control program. Terminates EPA's targeted watershed grants program, performance partnership grants program, U.S. Mexico border water infrastructure program, and tribal assistance grants programs. Prohibits the Secretary from providing in FY2012-FY2016: (1) grants to communities to develop plans and implement projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions; (2) targeted airshed grants to California; and (3) grants for the construction of drinking water, wastewater, or storm water infrastructure or for water quality protection. Limits the amount that the Secretary may transfer to the Great Lakes Initiative.
United States · United States Congress · 4 May 2011
Protect Life Act - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to prohibit federal funds from being to used to cover any part of the costs of any health plan that includes coverage of abortion services. (Currently, federal funds cannot be used for abortion services and plans receiving federal funds must keep federal funds segregated from any funds for abortion services.) Requires any qualified health benefit plan offered through an Exchange that includes coverage for abortions to also offer a qualified health benefit plan through the Exchange that is identical in every respect except that it does not cover abortions. Prohibits a federal agency or program and any state or local government that receives federal financial assistance under PPACA from requiring any health plan created or regulated under PPACA to discriminate against any institutional or individual health care entity based on the entity's refusal to undergo training in the performance of induced abortions, require or provide such training, or refer for such training. Creates a cause of action for any violations of the abortion provisions of PPACA. Gives federal courts jurisdiction to prevent and redress actual or threatened violations of such provisions by issuing any form of legal or equitable relief, including injunctions and orders preventing the disbursement of all or a portion of federal financial assistance until the prohibited conduct has ceased. Gives standing to institute an action to affected health care entities and the Attorney General. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to designate the Director of the Office for Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to receive and investigate complaints alleging a violation of PPACA abortion provisions. Requires the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to ensure that no multistate qualified health plan offered in an Exchange provides coverage of abortion services.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2011
H-2A Improvement Act - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to include within the H-2A nonimmigrant visa category (temporary agricultural workers) an alien coming temporarily to the United States to work as a sheepherder, goat herder, or dairy worker. Exempts an employer filing a petition to employ such a worker from the requirement to show that the position is of a seasonal or temporary nature. Provides for a three-year initial period of admission with additional three-year extensions. Authorizes such alien to petition to become a lawful permanent resident after having worked as a sheepherder, goat herder, or dairy worker in the United States for not fewer than 33 of the preceding 36 months.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2011
Tax Return Due Date Simplification and Modernization Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to change tax return due dates for partnerships (from April 15 to March 15, with extensions until September 15), S corporations (from March 15 to March 31, with extensions until September 30), and C corporations (from March 15 to April 15, with extensions until October 15). Requires the Secretary of the Treasury, for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2011, to modify by regulation the due dates for extensions of tax returns for partnerships, estates, employee benefit plans, and tax-exempt organizations. Sets a due date of April 15 for the annual information return of a foreign trust with a U.S. owner and for the report of foreign bank and financial accounts (with extensions until October 15). Extends the automatic extension for corporation income tax returns from three to six months.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2011
Honors the members of the U.S. Armed Forces who are serving or have served in Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, and New Dawn. Calls on the people of the United States to reflect on the service of those members and veterans and to hold them in a special place of honor, both now and in the future.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2011
Sanctity of Eternal Rest for Veterans Act of 2011 or SERVE Act of 2011 - Amends the federal criminal code concerning the prohibition on disruptions of funerals of members or former members of the Armed Forces to increase the period covered under such prohibition from one to two hours before and after a military funeral. Includes within such unlawful conduct any disturbance or disruption occurring within 500 feet of the residence of a surviving member of a deceased's immediate family. Provides civil remedies, including actual and statutory damages. Makes identical changes under federal veterans' provisions concerning the prohibition on certain demonstrations and disruptions at national cemeteries, including Arlington National Cemetery.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2011
Voluntary Protection Program Act - Directs the Secretary of Labor to enter into cooperative agreements with employers to: (1) encourage establishment of comprehensive safety and health management systems to protect employees from occupational hazards, and (2) establish a voluntary protection program to encourage excellence and recognize its achievement in both the technical and managerial protection of employees from occupational hazards. Requires the Secretary to take necessary steps for the orderly transition from Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cooperative agreements and voluntary protection programs existing before enactment of this Act to agreements and programs authorized under this Act. Directs the Secretary to establish a program to increase small business participation in the voluntary protection program.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 2011
Veterans' Heritage Firearms Act of 2011 - Provides a 90-day amnesty period during which veterans and their family members can register in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record any firearm acquired before October 31, 1968, by a veteran while a member of the Armed Forces stationed outside the continental United States. Grants such an individual limited immunity under the federal criminal code and the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the acquisition, possession, transportation, or alteration of such qualifying firearm at or before the time at which the individual registered the qualifying firearm. Extends such immunity to a veteran who attempts to register a qualifying firearm outside of the amnesty period if the veteran surrenders the firearm within 30 days after being notified of potential criminal liability for continued possession. Requires the Attorney General to: (1) transfer each curio or relic firearm that is forfeited to the United States to the first qualified museum that requests it, and (2) publish information identifying each such firearm which is available to be transferred to a museum. Requires that any firearm transferred to a qualified museum be registered to the transferee. Makes a prohibition against transfer or possession of a machine-gun inapplicable to a transfer to or by, or possession by, a museum which is open to the public and incorporated as a nonprofit corporation under applicable state law.
United States · United States Congress · 7 April 2011
Amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to: (1) direct the Secretary of Energy (DOE) to establish and award competitive technology financial awards for the development and implementation of technology to capture carbon dioxide from dilute sources, and (2) establish the Carbon Dioxide Capture Technology Advisory Board to advise the Secretary in carrying out duties under this Act. Terminates the Board and all authorities under this Act on December 31, 2020.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2011
Ensuring Pay for Our Military Act of 2011 - Requires the Secretary of the Treasury, during a federal funding gap impacting the Armed Forces, to transfer to the Secretary of Defense (DHS), and the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) in the case of the Coast Guard, amounts necessary to continue to provide pay and allowances to members of the Armed Forces, including the reserves, who perform active service during the funding gap. Allows for the provision of such pay and allowances, at the discretion of the Secretary of Defense, for: (1) civilian DOD personnel providing support to such members; and (2) DOD contractor personnel providing direct support to such members. Prohibits any such transfer after December 31, 2011.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2011
Repeal the CLASS Entitlement Act - Repeals provisions of the Public Health Service Act enacted under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (entitled the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act or the CLASS Act) which establish a national, voluntary insurance program for purchasing community living assistance services and supports in order to provide individuals with functional limitations with tools that will allow them to maintain their personal and financial independence and live in the community. Amends the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 to repeal provisions providing appropriations for the National Clearinghouse for Long-Term Care Information through FY2015.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2011
Amends the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act to provide that no permit shall be required for: (1) the use of a pesticide that is registered or otherwise authorized for use under such Act; (2) the use of a biological control organism for the prevention, control, or eradication of a plant pest or noxious weed that is in accordance with the Plant Protection Act; or (3) the conduct of any other plant pest, noxious weed, or pest control activity conducted in accordance with the Plant Protection Act.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2011
Honors the coal miners who lost their lives in the explosion at the Upper Big Branch Mine in Montcoal, West Virginia, on April 5, 2010. Extends the continued heartfelt condolences of the Senate to the families of the deceased, who are still looking for answers to the tragedy. Recognizes the hardships faced by survivors of the tragedy and fellow miners who worked side-by-side with the deceased. Acknowledges the risks faced by all miners, as well as the important and often overlooked contributions that miners make to the United States. Expresses the appreciation of the Senate for the volunteers, first responders, and mine rescue teams who fearlessly risk their lives to save miners after tragedies. Reaffirms the Senate's commitment to keep miners safe and healthy on the job.
United States · United States Congress · 31 March 2011
Helping Expedite and Advance Responsible Tribal Homeownership Act of 2011 or HEARTH Act of 2011 - Extends to any Indian tribe the discretion granted under current law only to the Navajo Nation to lease restricted lands for business, agricultural, public, religious, educational, recreational, or residential purposes without the approval of the Secretary of the Interior. (The Secretary must still approve the tribal regulations under which those leases are executed and mining leases still require the Secretary's approval.) Sets forth the environmental review process required under tribal lease regulations before those regulations obtain the Secretary's approval. Requires the process to identify and evaluate any significant effects a proposed lease may have on the environment and allow public comment on those effects. Allows tribes to rely on a federal environmental review process rather than the tribal environmental review process if the project under review is federally funded. Directs the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to report to Congress on the history and experience of Indian tribes that have chosen to assume the BIA's responsibility for operating the Indian Land Title and Records Office.
United States · United States Congress · 31 March 2011
3-D, Domestic Jobs, Domestic Energy, and Deficit Reduction Act of 2011 - Considers that the Secretary of the Interior has approved the Draft Proposed Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program 2010-2015 as a final oil and gas leasing program under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. Deems the Secretary to have issued a final environmental impact statement for such Program under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). Directs the Secretary to: (1) conduct a lease sale in each outer Continental Shelf planning area for which there is a commercial interest in purchasing federal oil and gas production leases, (2) approve or disapprove a drill permit application within 20 days after submission, and (3) hold lease sales for specified areas in the Central Gulf of Mexico, Western Gulf of Mexico, and the state of Virginia. Grants the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit exclusive jurisdiction over challenges to offshore energy projects and permits to drill carried out in the Gulf of Mexico. Directs the Secretary to implement an oil and gas leasing program in land within the 1002 Coastal Plain Area of Alaska. Authorizes the Secretary to designate up to 45,000 acres of the Coastal Plain as a special area for preservation of its unique and diverse character. Directs the Secretary to: (1) administer the leasing program with respect to Coastal Plain environmental protection according to the no significant adverse effect standard, (2) issue rights-of-way and easements across the Coastal Plain for the transportation of oil and gas, and (3) convey specified surface estates to the Kaktovik Inupiat Corporation and to the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation. Establishes the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) Alternative Energy Trust Fund. Amends the Oil Shale, Tar Sands, and Other Strategic Unconventional Fuels Act of 2005 to require the Secretary to conduct related lease sales in any state during any period when there is sufficient state support and interest in the development of tar sands and oil shale resources. Grants the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia exclusive jurisdiction to hear all causes and claims arising from any covered project of federal land leasing for exploitation of oil, natural gas, or any other source or form of energy. Amends NEPA to require completion and review of environmental impact statements within 270 days after their commencement or the action concerned shall be considered a final agency action with no significant environmental impact. Amends the Clean Air Act to: (1) declare that carbon dioxide, methane from agriculture or livestock, and water vapor are not air pollutants; and (2) require an economic analysis of any requirement of the Act that results in an adverse effect on employment. Requires the Secretary of commerce to establish an economic review board to assess such an analysis. Amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA) to require the the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Commerce, as appropriate, upon a state governor's declaration of an emergency, to exempt from the prohibition against taking, and against adverse modification of critical habitat, any action reasonably necessary to avoid or ameliorate the impact of the emergency, including the operation of any water supply or flood control project by a federal agency. Prohibits consideration of the impact of greenhouse gas on any species of fish or wildlife or plant for any purpose in the implementation of the ESA. Instructs the Administrator of the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) to approve the specification of the areas described in the notice entitled "Final Determination of the Assistant Administrator for Water Pursuant to Section 404(c) of the Clean Water Act Concerning the Spruce No. 1 Mine, Logan County, WV." Instructs the Secretary of the Interior to issue or reissue each lease for the production of oil or gas in the state of Utah that was canceled during calendar years 2009 through 2011. Prohibits the Bureau of Reclamation of the Department of the Interior and any California state agency operating a water project in connection with the Central Valley Project from restricting operations of an applicable project pursuant to any biological opinion issued under ESA if it would result in a level of allocation of water less than the historical maximum allocation under the project. Directs the Secretary of State to expedite the permit request for the Keystone XL pipeline without considering greenhouse gas impacts during the permit review process. Instructs the EPA Administrator to issue without further review or analysis a permit to Shell Oil Company to drill for oil in the Beaufort Sea. Prohibits the award or federal payment of legal fees to an environmental nongovernmental organization in connection with any action: (1) preventing, terminating, or reducing access to production of energy, mineral resources, water by agricultural producers, a resource by commercial or recreational fishermen, or grazing or timber production on federal land; (2) diminishing a property owner's private property value; or (3) eliminating or preventing one or more jobs.
United States · United States Congress · 31 March 2011
Collegiate Housing and Infrastructure Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow tax-exempt charitable or educational organizations to make collegiate housing and infrastructure improvement grants to certain tax-exempt social clubs (e.g., college fraternities and sororities) which apply such grants to their collegiate housing property.
United States · United States Congress · 31 March 2011
United States Optimal Use of Trade to Develop Outerwear and Outdoor Recreation Act or U.S. OUTDOOR Act - Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to provide for the duty-free treatment of certain recreational performance outerwear. Establishes the Sustainable Textile and Apparel Research Fund (STAR Fund). Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to impose and collect, with specified exceptions, a fee of 1.5% of the appraised value of imported recreational performance outerwear and to deposit amounts collected into the STAR Fund. Requires the Secretary of Commerce to make quarterly distributions from the STAR Fund to one or more appropriate organizations to conduct applied research, development, and education activities to enhance the competitiveness of U.S. businesses in clean, eco-friendly apparel, other textile and apparel products, and sewn-product design and manufacturing.
![Official portrait of Sen. Enzi, Michael B. [R-WY]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/e000285_200.jpg)