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United States · Official source
1,798 records where Sen. Fischer, Deb [R-NE] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2015
Expresses appreciation to Kathie Alvarez Tritak and commends her for her lengthy, faithful, and outstanding service to the Senate.
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2015
Internet Tax Freedom Forever Act Amends the Internet Tax Freedom Act to make permanent the ban on state and local taxation of Internet access and on multiple or discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2015
Disapproves and nullifies the rule submitted by the National Labor Relations Board and published December 15, 2014, relating to representation case procedures.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2015
Rural Spectrum Accessibility Act of 2015 Directs the Federal Communications Commission to establish a program under which a wireless carrier receiving a license under specified provisions of the Communications Act of 1934 may partition or disaggregate the license in order to make unused spectrum available to small carriers or carriers serving certain rural areas. Defines "small carrier" as a carrier with not more than 1,500 employees as calculated under regulatory standards used by the Small Business Administration to determine the number of individuals employed by a business concern on a full-time, part-time, or other basis. Provides carriers receiving such licenses and participating in the program with a three-year extension of licenses granted under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2015
Bipartisan Sportsmen's Act of 2015 This bill revises a variety of existing programs to expand access to, and opportunities for, hunting, fishing, and recreational shooting. The Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act is reauthorized through FY2025. The North American Wetlands Conservation Act and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act are reauthorized through FY2020. Components of firearms and ammunition and sport fishing equipment and its components (such as lead sinkers) are exempted from regulations of chemical substances under the Toxic Substances Control Act. The proportion of funding from the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act that states may use for public target ranges is increased. Interior must issue permits for the importation of polar bear parts taken in sports hunts in Canada before May 15, 2008, which is the date the species was listed as threatened. The bill revises standards for determining what a baited area is for purposes of the prohibition on taking migratory game birds. Federal public land management officials must facilitate hunting, fishing, and recreational shooting on certain federal public land. Land under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management or the Forest Service must be open for hunting, fishing, and recreational shooting unless the managing agency acts to close the land. This bill provides special rules to expand access to federal land and waterways for film crews of five people or fewer. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers may not prohibit individuals from possessing a firearm in public areas of a water resources development project. The National Park Service may not prohibit individuals from transporting bows and crossbows if certain requirements are met. Funds from the Land and Water Conservation Fund are allocated for priority projects that secure public access to federal public lands for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2015
Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit transporting a minor child across a state line to obtain an abortion (deems such transporting to be a de facto abridgment of the right of a parent under any law in the minor’s state of residence that requires parental involvement in the minor’s abortion decision). Makes an exception for an abortion necessary to save the life of the minor. Makes it an affirmative defense to a prosecution or civil action under this Act that a defendant: (1) reasonably believed that before the minor obtained the abortion, the required parental consent or notification or judicial authorization took place; or (2) was presented with documentation showing that a court waived parental notification requirements or authorized the minor's abortion. Defines "abortion" to mean the use or prescription of any instrument, medicine, drug, or any other substance or device: (1) to intentionally kill the unborn child of a woman known to be pregnant; or (2) to intentionally prematurely terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant with an intention other than to increase the probability of a live birth or of preserving the life or health of the child after live birth, or to remove a dead unborn child. Imposes a fine and/or prison term of up to one year on a physician who performs or induces an abortion on an out-of-state minor in violation of parental notification requirements. Requires such physician to give 24-hour actual or constructive notice to a parent of the minor seeking an abortion, subject to certain exceptions.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2015
Military Sex Offender Reporting Act of 2015 Amends the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act to direct the Department of Defense to provide to the Attorney General information required under such Act to be provided by a sex offender or by the jurisdiction in which an offender registers for inclusion in the National Sex Offender Registry regarding persons who are: (1) released from military corrections facilities or convicted if the sentences adjudged by courts-martial under the Uniform Code of Military Justice do not include confinement, and (2) required to register under such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2015
Budget and Accounting Transparency Act of 2015 This bill amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to revise the budgetary treatment of federal loans and loan guarantees to account for them on a fair value basis. Under a fair value approach, costs are measured using market rates rather than the lower Treasury interest rates currently used. Estimates for loan guarantees and direct loans in the President's budget are required to include a risk component that reflects the impact of using a fair value estimate to account for market risk. The President's budget is also required to include agency-by-agency estimates without the risk component. A risk component must be included in estimates used for requirements under current law that appropriations be provided in advance for the costs of new direct loans, loan guarantees, or modifications that increase costs. The bill amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 to permit adjustments to discretionary spending limits for this Act. The bill also changes the budgetary treatment of the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac). Agency budget justification materials are required to be posted on the public website of the agency on the same day the materials are submitted to Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2015
Mobile Workforce State Income Tax Simplification Act of 2015 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. Exempts employers from withholding of tax and information reporting requirements for employees not subject to income tax under this Act. Allows an employer, for purposes of determining penalties related to employer withholding or reporting requirements, to rely on an employee's annual determination of the time such employee will spend working in a state in the absence of fraud or collusion by such employee. Exempts from the definition of "employee" for purposes of this Act professional athletes, professional entertainers, 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 · 4 February 2015
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 two-thirds vote of each chamber. The prohibition excludes outlays for repayment of debt principal and receipts derived from borrowing. The amendment prohibits total outlays for any fiscal year from exceeding 18% of the gross domestic product of the United States, unless two-thirds of each house of Congress provides for a specific increase above this amount. The amendment requires a two-thirds vote of each chamber of Congress to impose a new tax, increase the statutory rate of any tax, or increase the aggregate amount of revenue. It requires a three-fifths vote of each chamber to increase the limit on the debt of the United States. The President is required to submit an annual budget in which total outlays do not exceed total receipts and 18% of the gross domestic product of the United States. The amendment prohibits a court from ordering a revenue increase to enforce the requirements. Congress is authorized to waive specified requirements when a declaration of war is in effect or the United States is engaged in a military conflict which causes an imminent and serious military threat to national security.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 2015
Sunshine for Regulatory Decrees and Settlements Act of 2015 Defines a "covered civil action" as a civil action seeking to compel agency action and alleging that an agency is unlawfully withholding or unreasonably delaying an agency action relating to a regulatory action that would affect: (1) the rights of private persons other than the person bringing the action; or (2) a state, local, or tribal government. Defines a "covered consent decree" or a "covered settlement agreement" as: (1) a consent decree or settlement agreement entered into a covered civil action, and (2) any other consent decree or settlement agreement that requires agency action relating to such a regulatory action that affects the rights of such persons or governments. Requires an agency against which a covered civil action is brought to publish the notice of intent to sue and the complaint in a readily accessible manner, including by making such notice and complaint available online not later than 15 days after receiving service of such notice or complaint Requires an agency seeking to enter a covered consent decree or settlement agreement to publish such decree or agreement in the Federal Register and online not later than 60 days before it is filed with the court. Provides for public comment and public hearings on such decree or agreement. Requires the Attorney General or an agency head, if an agency is litigating a matter independently, to certify to the court that the Attorney General or the agency head approves of: (1) any proposed covered consent decree that includes terms that convert into a nondiscretionary duty a discretionary authority of an agency to propose, promulgate, revise, or amend regulations, commit an agency to expend funds that have not been appropriated and budgeted or to seek a particular appropriation or budget authorization, divest an agency of discretion committed to it by statute or the Constitution, or otherwise afford any relief that the court could not enter under its own authority; or (2) any proposed covered settlement agreement that includes terms that provide a remedy for a failure by the agency to comply with the terms of the agreement other than the revival of the civil action resolved by the agreement, interfere with the authority of an agency to revise, amend, or issue rules, or commit the agency to expend funds that have not been appropriated and budgeted or to exercise in a particular way discretion which was committed to the agency by statute or the Constitution. Requires a court to grant de novo review of a covered consent decree or settlement agreement if an agency files a motion to modify such decree or agreement on the basis that its terms are no longer fully in the public interest due to the agency's obligations to fulfill other duties or due to changed facts and circumstances.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2015
Freeing Americans from Inequitable Requirements Act of 2015 or the FAIR Act of 2015 Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the individual mandate to purchase health care coverage, to delay such requirement from taking effect until the Secretary of the Treasury submits to Congress a certification that the employer mandate to provide health care coverage for employees is being applied and administered without any administratively created exceptions.
United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2015
Judgment Fund Transparency Act of 2015 This bill requires the Department of the Treasury to disclose details after payments are made from the Judgment Fund. The Judgment Fund is a permanent and indefinite appropriation to pay judgments against the United States. Unless the disclosure is prohibited by law or a court order, Treasury is required to make available to the public on a website: the agency or entity whose actions gave rise to the claim or judgment, the plaintiff or claimant, the counsel for the plaintiff or claimant, the amount paid, a description of the facts that gave rise to the claim, and the agency that submitted the claim.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2015
FOIA Improvement Act of 2015 This bill makes changes to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to provide the public with greater access to information and records that are disclosable under FOIA. The bill requires agencies, in administering FOIA, to: (1) make information disclosable under such Act available for public inspection in an electronic format, and (2) make available to the public records that have been requested three or more times (frequently requested records). The bill establishes a presumption of openness by prohibiting an agency from withholding information requested under FOIA unless: (1) the agency reasonably foresees that disclosure would harm an interest protected by a FOIA exemption, or (2) disclosure is prohibited by law. Agencies are prohibited from assessing search or duplication fees if they have failed to comply with a deadline for complying with a FOIA request unless unusual circumstances apply and more than 50,000 pages are necessary to respond to the request. The bill expands the authority and duties of Chief FOIA Officers in each agency to require officers to serve as the primary agency liaison with the Office of Government Information Services and the Office of Information Policy. The bill establishes a Chief FOIA Officers Council to develop recommendations for: (1) increasing compliance and efficiency in responding to FOIA requests; (2) disseminating information about agency experiences; (3) identifying, developing, and coordinating initiatives to increase transparency and compliance; and (4) promoting performance measures to ensure agency compliance with FOIA requirements. The Office of Management and Budget is directed to ensure the operation of an online request portal that allows a member of the public to submit a FOIA request for records to any agency from a single website.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2015
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to qualified tuition programs (529 plans), to: (1) make permanent the allowance for payment of computer technology and equipment expenses from a 529 plan if such technology and equipment is to be used primarily by the plan beneficiary (currently, use is allowed by the beneficiary and the beneficiary's family); (2) eliminate the requirement that distributions to a 529 plan be aggregated for purposes of determining the amount includible in a taxpayer's income; and (3) allow a tax-free recontribution to a 529 plan of amounts refunded to a student who withdraws from an educational institution if the recontribution is made not later than 60 days after the date of such refund and does not exceed the refunded amount.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2015
ObamaCare Repeal Act This bill repeals the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 and restores provisions of law amended by those Acts, effective 180 days after this bill is enacted.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2015
End Government Shutdowns Act This bill provides specified continuing appropriations to prevent a government shutdown if any appropriations measure for a fiscal year has not been enacted before the beginning of the fiscal year or a joint resolution making continuing appropriations is not in effect. The appropriations are provided to continue to fund programs, projects, and activities for which funds were provided in the preceding fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2015
ObamaCare Repeal Act This bill repeals the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 and restores provisions of law amended by those Acts, effective 180 days after this bill is enacted.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2015
Eliminating Government-funded Oil-painting Act or the EGO Act Prohibits the use of funds appropriated or otherwise made available to the federal government to pay for an official portrait of an officer or employee of the federal government, including the President, the Vice President, a Member of Congress, the head of an executive agency, or the head of an office of the legislative branch.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2015
Boys Town Centennial Commemorative Coin Act Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue up to 50,000 $5 gold coins, 350,000 $1 silver coins, and 300,000 half-dollar clad coins to commemorate the centennial of the founding of Father Flanagan's Boys Town. Requires the design of the coins to be emblematic of the 100 years of Boys Town, one of the largest nonprofit child care agencies in the United States. Permits issuance of such coins only between January 1, 2017, and December 31, 2017. Subjects all coin sales to specified surcharges, which shall be paid to Boys Town to carry out its cause of caring for and assisting children and families in underserved communities across America. Directs the Secretary to ensure that: (1) minting and issuing such coins will not result in any net cost to the federal government; and (2) no funds, including surcharges, will be disbursed to Boys Town until the total cost of designing and issuing all authorized coins is recovered by the Treasury.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2015
American Job Protection Act Repeals provisions of the Internal Revenue Code, as added by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, that: (1) impose fines on large employers (employers with 50 or more full-time employees) who fail to offer their full-time employees the opportunity to enroll in minimum essential health insurance coverage, and (2) require large employers to file a report with the Department of the Treasury on health insurance coverage provided to their full-time employees. Applies the Internal Revenue Code as if those provisions had never been enacted.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 2015
Taxpayers Right-to-Know Act Requires that the website of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) include a program inventory that identifies each program of the federal government, which shall include: (1) any activity that is commonly referred to as a program; (2) any activity specifically created by law, or referenced in law, as a program; (3) each program that has an application process; (4) each program for which financial awards are made on a competitive basis; and (5) any activity identified as a program activity in a budget request. Requires, for each program identified in such program inventory: (1) an identification of the specific statute that authorizes the program and any program regulations; (2) an estimate of the number of individuals served by any program that provides grants or financial assistance and the beneficiaries who received financial assistance under the program; (3) an estimate of the number of full-time employees who administer the program and the number of such employees whose salary is paid, in full or part, by the federal government; (4) links to any evaluation, assessment, or program performance reviews by the agency, an Inspector General, or the Government Accountability Office, released during the preceding five years; and (5) financial information for each program required to be reported under the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006. Requires the OMB Director to issue guidance to assist agencies in identifying how the program activities used in budget or appropriations accounts correspond with programs identified in the program inventory required by this Act. Authorizes the Director to issue guidance to agencies on how to more closely align programs in the program inventory for purposes of the President's annual budget submission to Congress. Requires the OMB Director to: (1) publish on the OMB website the total amount of undisbursed grant funding remaining in grant accounts with expired availability, and (2) prescribe regulations or other guidance to implement this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 2015
This bill amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to revise provisions governing citizen suits against the Department of the Interior or the Department of Commerce, as appropriate, that allege a failure of the relevant department to perform an act or duty related to an endangered species or threatened species. Interior must publish the complaint in a citizen suit within 30 days of being served. Affected parties shall be given a reasonable opportunity to intervene in the suit. If affected parties intervene, the court must refer the action to a mediation program or magistrate judge to facilitate settlement discussions. The court is prohibited from: (1) awarding litigation costs in a citizen suit that is settled by a consent decree, or (2) awarding litigation costs to a plaintiff in a citizen suit that is settled. Interior must provide notice of a proposed settlement to each state or county in which an affected species occurs. A settlement can only be approved if states or counties approve the settlement or fail to respond.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 2015
21st Century Endangered Species Transparency Act This bill amends the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to require the Department of the Interior or the Department of Commerce, as appropriate, to make publicly available on the Internet the best scientific and commercial data available that are the basis for the determination of whether a species is an endangered species or a threatened species, including each proposed regulation for the listing of a species. The departments are prohibited from making the information publicly available when: (1) the public disclosure of the information is prohibited by state law relating to the protection of personal information, and (2) the state makes a request to a department to withhold the information.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 2015
Taxpayer Transparency Act of 2015 Requires each communication funded by a federal agency for advertising or educational purposes to clearly state: (1) in the case of a printed communication, including mass mailings, signs, and billboards, that the communication is printed and published at taxpayer expense; and (2) in the case of a communication transmitted through radio, television, or the Internet, that the communication is produced and disseminated at taxpayer expense. Requires any such printed communication, including e-mails, to be of sufficient size to be clearly readable, to be set apart from the other contents of the communication, and to be printed with a reasonable degree of color contrast between the background and the printed statement. Exempts from such requirements: (1) information in or relating to a solicitation for offers for a federal contract or applications or submissions of a bid or proposal for a federal grant or other means of funding under a federal program; and (2) advertisements for employment opportunities, not including advertising materials developed for use in recruiting and retaining personnel for the Armed Forces.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 2015
Advancing Care for Exceptional Kids Act of 2015 or the ACE Kids Act of 2015 Amends titles XIX (Medicaid) and XXI (Children's Health Insurance) (CHIP) of the Social Security Act to allow a state, at its option, to elect to provide medical assistance for items and services furnished to eligible children with medically complex conditions enrolled in a Medicaid Children's Care Coordination (MCCC) program. Requires an MCCC program, among other things, to coordinate, integrate, and provide for the furnishing of the full range of MCCC program services to enrolled children, as well as designate pediatric care management services and pediatric focused care coordination and health promotion. Requires a state to enroll eligible children prospectively in an MCCC program through an initial 90-day assignment to a nationally designated children's hospital network, unless the child opts not to participate in any MCCC program.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 2015
Stop Targeting of Political Beliefs by the IRS Act of 2015 Requires the Internal Revenue Service standards and definitions in effect on January 1, 2010, for determining whether an organization qualifies for tax-exempt status as an organization operated exclusively for social welfare to apply to such determinations after enactment of this Act. Prohibits the Secretary of the Treasury, or any delegate of the Secretary, from issuing, revising, or finalizing any regulation (including proposed regulations), revenue ruling, or other guidance not limited to a particular taxpayer relating to such standards and definitions. Terminates this Act after February 28, 2017.
United States · United States Congress · 28 January 2015
Citizen Empowerment Act Requires any executive agency employee who is conducting a covered interaction with an individual to allow the individual to make an audio recording of such interaction at the individual's expense and with the individual's equipment. Defines "covered interaction" as an in-person or telephonic official interaction relating to a possible violation of a federal statute or regulation that could result in the imposition of a fine or penalty against, the forfeiture of property by, or the collection of an unpaid tax, fine, or penalty from, the individual or a business owned or operated by the individual. Permits the employee conducting a covered interaction to record it if the employee: (1) informs the individual prior to or at the initiation of the interaction, and (2) provides the individual with a transcript or copy of the recording upon request and with the individual's reimbursement. Requires the employee, before or at an initial covered interaction, to provide to the individual a verbal or written notice of such individual's rights under this Act. Exempts any such interaction that is likely to include the discussion of: (1) classified material; or (2) information that, if released publicly, would endanger public safety or an ongoing criminal investigation. Subjects any executive agency employee who violates this Act to disciplinary action.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2015
Nuclear Weapon Free Iran Act of 2015 Expresses the sense of Congress that: it is U.S. policy that Iran not be allowed to develop or acquire nuclear weapon capabilities; Iran does not have an inherent right to enrichment and reprocessing capabilities under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons; the goal of international negotiations with Iran should be to conclude a long-term comprehensive solution that will reverse the development of Iran's illicit nuclear infrastructure; and the United States should continue to impose sanctions on Iran and its terrorist proxies, and on Iran and other governments and persons for the procurement, sale, or transfer of technology, services, or goods that support the development of weapons of mass destruction. Directs the President, within five days after entering into a long-term comprehensive solution or any agreement to extend the Joint Plan of Action (signed in 2013 by Iran and the P5-plus-1 countries), to transmit to Congress: (1) the text of the agreement, (2) a verification assessment report, and (3) an economic sanctions relief assessment report. Prohibits the President, except in certain circumstances, from exercising any waiver of sanctions on Iran or taking any other action to alter or limit the application of sanctions until the date that is 30 days of continuous session of Congress after the President transmits these comprehensive solution and assessment reports. Reinstates as of July 6, 2015, any sanctions imposed pursuant to statute or executive action that are deferred, waived, or otherwise suspended by the President if the President has not transmitted the comprehensive solution and reports to Congress by that date. Revises exceptions to certain sanctions with respect to financial transactions for purchases of Iranian-origin petroleum (currently, only crude oil). Declares that it is U.S. policy to seek to ensure that all countries reduce their purchases of crude oil, lease condensates, fuel oils, and other unfinished oils from Iran or of Iranian origin to a de minimis level by the end of the 240-day period beginning on September 7, 2015. Amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 to authorize a country that purchased petroleum from Iran or of Iranian origin during the one-year period preceding September 7, 2015, to continue to receive a sanction exception on or after the date that is 240 days after September 7, 2015, only if the country reduces its purchases of Iranian or Iranian origin petroleum: to a de minimis level by the end of that 240-day period; or during the one-year period beginning 240 days after September 7, 2015, reduces such purchases by at least 30% during that 240-day period, and is expected to reduce them to a de minimis level within 2 years after September 7, 2015. Amends the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012 to exclude from U.S. entry: any individual who engages in sanction evasion activities for or on behalf of the government of Iran, any individual acting on behalf of the government of Iran who is involved in corrupt activities of that government or the diversion of humanitarian goods, or any senior official who was involved in the activities of an entity designated for sanctions in connection with Iran's proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or Iran's support for international terrorism. Expands the list of designated senior officials of the government of Iran. Directs the President to block the U.S. or U.S.-controlled property and property transfers of specified senior officials and family members who received such property from a listed official. Directs the President to prohibit the opening, and prohibit or impose strict conditions on the maintaining in the United States, of any correspondent account or any payable-through account by a foreign financial institution that knowingly conducted or facilitated a significant currency transaction (including through another person) with or on behalf of the Central Bank of Iran or another Iranian sanctioned financial institution. Authorizes the President to impose sanctions pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act against any other person that knowingly conducts or facilitates such a currency transaction. Excludes from such sanctions any transactions for: (1) the sale of agricultural commodities, food, medicine or medical devices to Iran; or (2) humanitarian assistance to the people of Iran. Authorizes the President to waive such sanctions for 180 days, with additional 180-day waivers, if important to the U.S. national interest, and if notice is provided to Congress. Amends the Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act of 2012 to include the construction, engineering, automotive, and mining sectors of Iran within the scope of sanctions. Designates as entities of proliferation concern, in lieu of certain current entities, any that operate special economic zones, free economic zones, and entities in strategic sectors. Directs the President to block the property of: (1) entities in strategic sectors, and (2) entities that operate special economic zones or free economic zones. Defines "strategic sector" as: (1) the energy, shipping, shipbuilding, and mining sectors of Iran; (2) the construction and engineering sectors of Iran (except for projects to construct or engineer schools or hospitals); and (3) any other sector the President determines to be of strategic importance to Iran. Authorizes the President to suspend the application of sanctions under this Act for 30 days, with additional 30-day waivers, if the President reports to Congress: that the waiver or renewal is in the U.S. national security interest and is necessary to achieving a long-term solution with Iran; that Iran is not making further progress on its nuclear weapons program and is in compliance with all interim agreements; and on the status of the negotiations toward a long-term comprehensive solution. Authorizes the President to make an exception from the imposition of sanctions for reconstruction assistance or economic development for Afghanistan if in the U.S. national interest and if notice is provided to Congress. Expresses the sense of Congress concerning budgetary resources for the enforcement of sanctions against Iran.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2015
Protecting Access to Rural Therapy Services (PARTS) Act Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to state that, except with respect to high-risk or complex medical services requiring direct levels of supervision, if the Secretary of Health and Human Services requires supervision by a physician or non-physician practitioner for Medicare payment for therapeutic hospital outpatient services, that requirement is met if such services are furnished under the physician's or non-physician practitioner's general supervision. Directs the Secretary to establish a process for designating therapeutic hospital outpatient services for which direct supervision may be required for the entire service or direct supervision during the initiation of the service followed by general supervision for the remainder of the service. Declares without force or effect in law regarding Medicare requirements for direct supervision by physicians for therapeutic hospital outpatient services a specified restatement and clarification under the final rulemaking changes to the Medicare hospital outpatient prospective payment system and calendar year 2009 payment rates, which was published in the Federal Register on November 18, 2008.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2015
Critical Access Hospital Relief Act of 2015 Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to repeal the 96-hour physician certification requirement for inpatient critical access hospital services under which a physician must certify that a patient may reasonably be expected to be discharged or transferred to a hospital within 96 hours after admission to the critical access hospital.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015
Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children Act Establishes the Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children in the Office of Tribal Justice of the Department of Justice. Requires the President and Congress to appoint to the Commission individuals who have significant experience and expertise in Indian affairs and matters to be studied by the Commission, including health care issues facing Native children, Indian education, juvenile justice programs, and social service programs used by Native children. Requires the Commission to establish a Native Advisory Committee consisting of representatives of Indian tribes from each region of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and a native Hawaiian. Requires members of the Committee to be experienced in matters to be studied by the Commission. Requires the Commission to conduct a comprehensive study of federal, state, local, and tribal programs that serve Native children, including an evaluation of: the impact of concurrent jurisdiction on child welfare systems; barriers Indian tribes and Native Hawaiians face in using public and private grant resources; obstacles to nongovernmental financial support for programs benefitting Native children; issues relating to the validity and statistical significance of data on Native children; barriers to the development of sustainable, multidisciplinary programs designed to assist high-risk Native children and their families; cultural or socioeconomic challenges in communities of Native children; examples of successful program models and use of best practices in programs that serve children and families; barriers to interagency coordination; and the use of memoranda of agreement or interagency agreements to facilitate or improve agency coordination. Directs the Commission to use the results of the study and analyses of existing federal data to: develop recommendations for goals, and plans for achieving them, for federal policy relating to Native children in the short-, mid-, and long-term informed by the development of accurate child well-being measures, except as specified; recommend modifications and improvements to programs that serve Native children (on the condition that such recommendations recognize the diversity in cultural values) that integrate the cultural strengths of Native communities and result in improvements to the child welfare system, the mental and physical health of Native children, educational and vocational opportunities, and tribal juvenile detention programs; recommend improvements to the collection of data regarding Native children and the programs that serve them; and identify models of successful federal, state, and tribal programs in the areas studied by the Commission. Prohibits the Commission, when developing recommendations and plans for federal policy on Native children, from considering or recommending recognition or establishment of a government-to-government relationship with: (1) any entity not recognized on or before the date of enactment of this Act by the Federal Government through an Act of Congress, Executive action, judicial decree, or any other action; or (2) any entity not included in the authorized list under the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994. Requires the Commission to report to the President, Congress, and the White House Council on Native American Affairs on its findings, conclusions, and recommendations for legislative and administrative action. Terminates the Commission 90 days after the report is submitted.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015
Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act of 2015 Amends the National Labor Relations Act to provide that any enterprise or institution owned and operated by an Indian tribe and located on its lands is not considered an employer (thus excluding such enterprises or institutions from coverage by such Act).
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of Wendell H. Ford, former member of the U.S. Senate. Declares that when the Senate adjourns on January 22, 2015, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of the late Senator Ford.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015
Allocating for Children's Education Act or the ACE Act Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to Coverdale education savings accounts, to: (1) increase from $2,000 to $5,000 the maximum allowable contribution to such accounts in a taxable year, and (2) allow distributions from such accounts for the purchase of athletic equipment at elementary and secondary schools.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015
Small Airport Regulation Relief Act of 2015 Prescribes a special rule to require the Secretary of Transportation for FY2015-FY2017 to apportion amounts for airport planning and development and noise compatibility planning and programs to sponsors of primary airports based on the number of passenger boardings at the airport during calendar year 2012 if it had: (1) fewer than 10,000 passenger boardings during the calendar year used to calculate the apportionment for FY2015-FY2017, and (2) 10,000 or more passenger boardings during calendar year 2012.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015
Working Families Flexibility Act of 2015 Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to authorize private employers to provide compensatory time off to private employees at a rate of 1 1/2 hours per hour of employment for which overtime compensation is required. Authorizes an employer to provide compensatory time only if it is in accordance with an applicable collective bargaining agreement or, in the absence of such an agreement, an agreement between the employer and employee. Prohibits an employee from accruing more than 160 hours of compensatory time. Requires an employee's employer to provide monetary compensation, after the end of a calendar year, for any unused compensatory time off accrued during the preceding year. Requires an employer to give employees 30-day notice before discontinuing compensatory time off. Prohibits an employer from intimidating, threatening, or coercing an employee in order to: (1) interfere with the employee's right to request or not to request compensatory time off in lieu of payment of monetary overtime compensation, or (2) require an employee to use such compensatory time. Makes an employer who violates such requirements liable to the affected employee in the amount of the compensation rate for each hour of compensatory time accrued, plus an additional equal amount as liquidated damages, reduced for each hour of compensatory time used. Directs the Comptroller General to report to Congress every three years on: (1) the extent to which employers provide compensatory time off and employees opt to receive it; (2) the number of complaints filed by an employee with the Secretary of Labor alleging a violation of the requirements as well as enforcement actions commenced by the Secretary on behalf of an aggrieved employee; (3) the disposition of such complaints and actions; and (4) any unpaid wages, damages, penalties, injunctive relief, or other remedies sought by the Secretary in connection with such actions.
United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015
Indian Tribal Energy Development and Self-Determination Act Amendments of 2015 Amends the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to direct the Department of the Interior to provide Indian tribes with technical assistance in planning their energy resource development programs. Makes intertribal organizations eligible for Department of Energy (DOE) Indian energy education planning and management assistance program grants. Makes tribal energy development organizations eligible for DOE energy development loan guarantees. Allows leases and business agreements that pool, unitize, or communitize a tribe's energy resources with other energy resources. Requires an energy-related tribal lease, business agreement, or grant of a right-of-way made without Interior's approval to comply with a tribal energy resource agreement between the tribe and Interior, unless it is a lease with a tribal energy development organization that Interior has certified. Alters the process and conditions for Interior's approval of tribal energy resource agreements. Alters the process for determining whether an interested party has a valid claim to be suffering an adverse environmental impact due to a tribe's noncompliance with such agreement. Directs DOE to collaborate with the Directors of the National Laboratories in making the full array of DOE technical and scientific resources available for tribal energy activities and projects. Amends the Federal Power Act to include Indian tribes, along with states and municipalities, as having preference for the receipt of preliminary hydroelectric licenses. Amends the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 to direct Interior, for land under Bureau of Land Management jurisdiction, or the Department of Agriculture, for land under Forest Service jurisdiction, to enter into agreements with Indian tribes and Alaska Native corporations for the conduct of demonstration projects to promote biomass energy production on Indian forest land and in nearby communities by providing them with reliable supplies of woody biomass from federal lands. Amends the Energy Conservation and Production Act to prescribe requirements for direct home weatherization grants to Indian tribes upon request when low-income Indian beneficiaries would not be better served if the grant went to their state. Amends the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to allow Interior, an affected Indian tribe, or a certified third-party appraiser under contract with the Indian tribe to appraise Indian mineral or energy resources involved in a transaction requiring Interior's approval. Amends the Long-Term Leasing Act to authorize the Navajo Nation to enter into commercial or agricultural leases of up to 99 years on their restricted lands without Interior approval. Allows the Navajo Nation to enter into 25-year (renewable) mineral resource leases on its restricted lands without Interior's approval if they are executed under approved tribal regulations. Limits oil and gas leases to terms of up to 10 years if oil or gas is being produced in a paying quantity. Allows the Crow Tribe of Montana to enter into leases on its restricted land for a term of up to 99 years. Requires that any advance payments, bid deposits, or other earnest money received by Interior, subject to a certain restriction, in connection with the review and approval of a sale, lease, permit, or any other conveyance of any interest in any trust or restricted land of any Indian tribe or individual Indian, upon request by the tribe or individual Indian, to be held in the trust fund system, upon receipt and before contract or instrument approval, for the benefit of the Indian tribe and individual Indian from whose land the funds were generated.
United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015
American Liberty Restoration Act Repeals provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that require individuals to maintain minimum essential health care coverage. Applies the Internal Revenue Code as if such provisions had never been enacted.
United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015
Regulations From the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2015 States that the purpose of this Act is to increase accountability for and transparency in the federal regulatory process by requiring Congress to approve all new major regulations. Revises provisions relating to congressional review of agency rulemaking to require a federal agency promulgating a rule to include in its report to Congress and to the Comptroller General a classification of the rule as a major or nonmajor rule. Requires a joint resolution of approval of major rules to be enacted before such rules may take effect. Provides that if a joint resolution of approval is not enacted by the end of 70 session days or legislative days, as applicable, after the agency proposing the rule submits its report on such rule to Congress, the major rule shall be deemed not to be approved and shall not take effect. Permits a major rule to take effect for one 90-calendar day period without such approval if the President determines it is necessary because of an imminent threat to health or safety or other emergency, for the enforcement of criminal laws, for national security, or to implement an international trade agreement. Sets forth the congressional approval procedure for major rules and the congressional disapproval procedure for nonmajor rules. Requires the introduction of a joint resolution addressing a report classifying a rule as a major rule within three legislative days in the House of Representative and three session days in the Senate. Prohibits any amendments to such a joint resolution at any stage of the legislative process. Provides for expedited consideration of a joint resolution of approval and requires a vote on such resolution in the Senate within 15 session days after it is reported by the committee to which it was referred, or after such committee has been discharged from further consideration of the resolution. Allows a court to review whether an agency has completed the necessary requirements under this Act for a rule to take effect. Limits the effect of a joint resolution of approval of a major rule. Prohibits an agency from allowing a major rule to take effect without the congressional review procedures set forth in this Act. Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 to provide that any congressional approval procedure set forth in this Act affecting budget authority, outlays, or receipts shall be assumed to be effective unless it is not approved in accordance with this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015
Accurate Budgeting Act This bill amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to require the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) to prepare a macroeconomic impact analysis for major revenue legislation. The estimates are required for revenue legislation considered on the floor of the House or Senate or reported by the House Ways and Means Committee or the Senate Finance Committee. The macroeconomic impact analysis, commonly referred to as dynamic scoring, includes: the changes in economic output, employment, interest rates, capital stock, and tax revenues expected to result from the proposal; revenue feedback (changes in revenue resulting from changes in economic growth as a result of the proposal); and the assumptions and data used for the estimate. The bill requires JCT to prepare the analysis as a supplement to the revenue estimates currently required by the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2015
Unfunded Mandates Information and Transparency Act of 2015 States as the purposes of this Act to: (1) improve the quality of the deliberations of Congress with respect to proposed federal mandates by providing Congress and the public with more complete information about the effects of such mandates and by ensuring that Congress acts on such mandates only after focused deliberation on their effects; and (2) enhance the ability of Congress and the public to identify federal mandates that may impose undue harm on consumers, workers, employers, small businesses, and state, local, and tribal governments. Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to: (1) require the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), at the request of the chairman or ranking member of a congressional committee, to conduct an assessment comparing the authorized level of funding in legislation to the prospective costs of carrying out any changes to a condition of federal assistance being imposed on state, local, or tribal governments participating in the federal assistance program; (2) modify the definition of "direct costs" to require CBO to consider, in accounting for the costs of federal mandates, forgone business profits, costs passed onto consumers and other entities, and behavioral changes; (3) eliminate the exemption of independent regulatory agencies (except the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or the Federal Open Market Committee) from reporting requirements under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA); and (4) make the raising of points of order in the consideration of congressional legislation applicable to legislation that would increase the direct cost of private sector mandates beyond limits established by UMRA. Amends UMRA to: (1) transfer certain responsibilities under such Act from the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs; (2) set forth detailed criteria to guide agencies in assessing the effects of federal regulatory actions on state, local, and tribal governments and the private sector; (3) revise requirements for agency statements accompanying significant regulatory actions to require an analysis of the annual effect of a proposed final rule on state, local, or tribal governments or the private sector and to require all statements and summaries under UMRA to be detailed; and (4) extend to the the private sector (including small business) the requirement for consultation with agencies in the development of regulatory proposals containing significant federal mandates and set forth detailed guidelines for such consultation. Revises UMRA reporting requirements to require: (1) the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs to provide guidance and oversight so that agency regulations are consistent with the principles and policies of UMRA and do not conflict with the policies or actions of another agency; and (2) agencies to include in their annual compliance statements an appendix detailing consultation activities with state, local, and tribal governments and the private sector. Amends UMRA to require an agency, at the request of the chairman or ranking member of a standing or select House or Senate Committee, to conduct a retrospective analysis of an existing regulation promulgated by such agency and submit to the chairman of the relevant committee, Congress, and the Comptroller General a report on such regulation. Expands judicial review under UMRA to include review of provisions of such Act relating to agency assessment of the effects of the regulatory process and agency selection of the least costly or least burdensome alternative to a regulatory mandate. Grants courts expanded powers to compel agencies to comply with UMRA reporting requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2015
Jobs and Premium Protection Act This bill repeals a provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that imposes an annual fee on a health insurance provider based on its net premium income.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2015
Taxpayer Accountability Act Requires the Internal Revenue Service: (1) to provide a substantive written response (not merely an acknowledgment letter) to any written correspondence from a taxpayer not later than 30 days after receiving such correspondence; (2) within 30 days after disclosing taxpayer information to any federal, state, or local governmental entity, to provide to the taxpayer a written notification describing the information, to whom it was disclosed, and when it was disclosed; and (3) to conclude any audit of an individual taxpayer not later than 1 year after the audit is initiated and to not assess any tax with respect to such audit after it is concluded.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 2015
Biennial Budgeting and Appropriations Act Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to require biennial (currently, annual) budget resolutions, biennial appropriations Acts, and biennial government strategic and performance plans. States that budget biennium is the two consecutive fiscal years beginning on October 1 of any odd-numbered year. Requires the Office of Management and Budget to report to Congress on the impact and feasibility of changing the definition of a fiscal year and the budget process based on that definition to a two-year fiscal period.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 2015
Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015 This bill amends the federal criminal code, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005, the Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990, and the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to enhance protections and increase restitution for victims of human trafficking. The bill imposes an additional penalty of $5,000 on any non-indigent person or entity convicted of a crime involving: (1) peonage, slavery, or trafficking in persons; (2) sexual abuse; (3) sexual exploitation and other abuse of children; (4) transportation for illegal sexual activity; or (5) human smuggling in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The bill also establishes the Domestic Trafficking Victims' Fund and directs that revenues from the penalty be deposited into such Fund and used in FY2016-FY2020 to award grants or enhance victims' programming and provide services for victims of child pornography. The bill adds a prohibition against the use of amounts in the Fund, with specified exceptions, for any abortion or health benefits coverage that includes coverage of abortion. The Department of Health and Human Services is directed to issue a determination, based on credible evidence, that a U.S. citizen or permanent resident is a victim of a severe form of trafficking. The Department of Justice (DOJ) is authorized to award block grants to develop, improve, or expand domestic child human trafficking deterrence programs that assist law enforcement and other entities in rescuing and restoring the lives of trafficking victims, while investigating and prosecuting offenses involving child human trafficking. The bill expands the definition of "child abuse" under the Victims of Child Abuse Act of 1990 to include human trafficking and the production of child pornography and expands criminal sanctions to include persons who patronize or solicit children for commercial sex acts (buyers). The bill increases compensation and restitution under the federal criminal code for victims of human trafficking and classifies producers of child pornography as engaged in illicit sexual conduct involving human trafficking. Combat Human Trafficking Act of 2015 Under this Act, DOJ is required to ensure that each DOJ anti-human trafficking program includes technical training on investigating and prosecuting persons who obtain, patronize, or solicit commercial sex acts involving a person subject to severe forms of trafficking in persons. The Act also requires the Bureau of Justice Statistics of DOJ to prepare and submit annual reports on state enforcement of human trafficking prohibitions. The bill directs DOJ to: (1) ensure that all task forces and working groups within the Innocence Lost National Initiative engage in activities, programs, or operations to increase the investigative capabilities of law enforcement personnel in investigating and prosecuting persons who patronize or solicit children for sex; and (2) audit grants awarded under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005. Finally, the bill imposes restrictions and reporting requirements on DOJ conferences that use more than $20,000 in DOJ funds and prohibits grant recipients under this Act from lobbying any representative of DOJ or a state, local, or tribal government regarding the award of grant funding.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 2015
Detaining Terrorists to Protect America Act of 2015 Revises and extends (until two years after enactment of this Act) prohibitions on the use of funds available to any U.S. agency (currently, to the Department of Defense [DOD]) to: construct or modify any facility in the United States, its territories, or possessions to house individuals detained in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as of October 1, 2009, who are not U.S. citizens or members of the U.S. Armed Forces and who are in the custody or control of DOD or otherwise under detention in the U.S. Naval Station in Guantanamo for the detention or imprisonment in the custody or control of the U.S. government, unless authorized by Congress; or transfer or release to or within the United States, its territories, or possessions Khalid Sheikh Mohammed or any other detainee who is not a U.S. citizen or a member of the U.S. Armed Forces and who was held on (currently, on or after) January 20, 2009, in Guantanamo Bay by DOD. Supersedes and repeals existing prohibitions under National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 (NDAA) concerning such construction and U.S. transfers that are scheduled to expire on December 31, 2015. Prohibits until two years after enactment of this Act the transfer or release of any Guantanamo detainee in DOD custody or control to: (1) the Republic of Yemen or any entity within Yemen; or (2) any other foreign country or foreign entity if the individual has ever been determined or assessed by Joint Task Force Guantanamo to be a high-risk or medium-risk to the United States, its interests, or its allies. Makes the prohibition on the transfer or release of high-risk or medium-risk individuals inapplicable to a U.S. agency head's actions to effectuate an order affecting the disposition of the individual that is issued by a U.S. court or tribunal. Repeals provisions under the NDAA concerning DOD transfers of Guantanamo detainees to foreign countries. Replaces the repealed provisions with previous authority from the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 that prohibits use of DOD funds to transfer Guantanamo detainees to foreign countries or entities unless DOD certifies that the government of the country or the recognized leadership of the entity: is not a designated state sponsor of terrorism or foreign terrorist organization, maintains control over detention facilities and is not facing threats likely to affect its control over the individual, agrees to take actions to ensure that the individual cannot engage in terrorist activities or threaten U.S. citizens or allies, and agrees to share with the United States information regarding the individual or the individual's associates that could affect security of the United States or its allies. Prohibits transfers to a country or entity if any Guantanamo detainee transferred to that country or entity subsequently engaged in any terrorist activity. Authorizes DOD to waive certain certification requirements or prohibitions in the interest of national security. Delays DOD transfer procedures from applying to high-risk or medium-risk Guantanamo detainees until after the two-year prohibition on such transfers. Prohibits terrorist activity recidivism exceptions and national security waivers from authorizing transfers to Yemen during the two-year prohibition on Yemen transfers. Directs DOD to submit a list of Guantanamo detainees determined by the Task Force to be high-risk or medium-risk.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 2015
Regulatory Responsibility for our Economy Act of 2015 Sets forth general requirements for the federal regulatory system, including the protection of public health, welfare, safety, and the environment, the promotion of predictability in the regulatory process, and the consideration of benefits and costs of regulations. Requires federal agencies to: (1) propose or adopt regulations only upon a reasoned determination that the benefits of such regulations justify their costs; (2) tailor regulations to impose the least burden on society and to maximize economic and other benefits; (3) involve the public and parties affected by regulations in the regulatory process; (4) develop regulatory actions that promote innovation, flexibility, and objectivity; and (5) consider methods to promote retrospective analysis of rules that may be outmoded, ineffective, insufficient, or excessively burdensome, and develop plans for reviewing on a periodic basis significant regulation actions (i.e., those having an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more or otherwise adversely affecting the economy). Provides for judicial review of any agency action required under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 8 January 2015
Protecting Seniors' Access to Medicare Act of 2015 Repeals sections of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (and restores provisions of law amended by those sections) related to the establishment of an Independent Payment Advisory Board to develop proposals to reduce the per capita rate of growth in spending under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act.
United States · United States Congress · 8 January 2015
Obamacare Taxpayer Bailout Prevention Act Repeals the provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish and administer a program of risk corridors for calendar years 2014, 2015, and 2016 under which a qualified health plan offered in the individual or small group market is required to participate in a payment adjustment system based on the ratio of the allowable costs of the plan to the plan's aggregate premiums.