United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2011
Fuel Cell Industrial Vehicle Jobs Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow a $4,000 new qualified fuel cell motor vehicle tax credit for motor vehicles weighing not more than 8,500 pounds that are manufactured primarily for use in carrying or towing loads or materials for commercial or industrial purposes (off-highway vehicles); (2) continue the maximum dollar amount of $8,000 for motor vehicles with at least 4 wheels weighing not more than 8,500 pounds that are manufactured primarily for use on public streets, roads and highways; (3) allow an enhanced credit for light (not more than 8,500 pounds) and heavy (more than 8,500 pounds) vehicles if such vehicles' fuel cell systems achieve a specified electricity generation efficiency rating; and (4) allow a new energy tax credit, through December 31, 2016, for qualified fuel cell property that is manufactured for use in powering qualified motive property. Defines "qualified motive property" as property which is manufactured primarily for carrying loads or materials for commercial or industrial purposes not on public streets, road, highways, or rails or operated primarily for recreational purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2011
Access to Birth Control Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require pharmacies to comply with certain rules related to contraceptives, including: (1) providing a customer a contraceptive without delay if it is in stock; (2) immediately informing a customer if the contraceptive is not in stock and either transferring the prescription to a pharmacy that has the contraceptive in stock or expediting the ordering of the contraceptive and notifying the customer when it arrives, based on customer preference, except for pharmacies that do not ordinarily stock contraceptives in the normal course of business; and (3) ensuring that pharmacy employees do not take certain actions relating to a request for contraception, including intimidating, threatening, or harassing customers, interfering with or obstructing the delivery of services, intentionally misrepresenting or deceiving customers about the availability of contraception or its mechanism of action, breaching or threatening to breach medical confidentiality, or refusing to return a valid, lawful prescription. Provides that a pharmacy is not prohibited from refusing to provide a contraceptive to a customer if: (1) it is unlawful to dispense the contraceptive to the customer without a valid, lawful prescription and no such prescription is presented; (2) the customer is unable to pay for the contraceptive; or (3) the employee of the pharmacy refuses to provide the contraceptive on the basis of a professional clinical judgment. Provides that this Act does not preempt state law or any professional obligation of a state board that provides greater protections for customers. Sets forth civil penalties and establishes a a private cause of action for violations of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2011
Community-Supported Agriculture Promotion Act - Amends the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to carry out a Community-Supported Agriculture Promotion program to promote community-supported agriculture. Provides Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) funding for the program through FY2018.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2011
Recognizes September 11, 2011, as a day of solemn commemoration of the events of September 11, 2001, and as a day to come together as a nation. Offers deepest and most sincere condolences to the families, friends, and loved ones of the innocent victims of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Honors the heroic service, actions, and sacrifices of first responders, law enforcement personnel, state and local officials, volunteers, and countless others who aided the innocent victims of those attacks and, in doing so, bravely risked and often gave their own lives. Recognizes the valiant service, actions, and sacrifices of U.S. personnel, including members of the Armed Forces and their families, to support the cause of freedom and defend the security of the United States. Reaffirms that the people of the United States will never forget the challenges our country endured on and since September 11, 2001, and will work tirelessly to defeat those who attacked the United States. Calls upon all people and institutions of the United States, on the 10th anniversary of this tragic day in U.S. history, to observe a moment of remembrance on September 11, 2011. Encourages the observance of the moment of remembrance or prayer to last for one minute beginning at 1:00 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT).
United States · United States Congress · 21 July 2011
Humane Enforcement and Legal Protections for Separated Children Act or the HELP Separated Children Act - Sets forth apprehension procedures for immigration enforcement-related activities engaged in by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and cooperating entities, including: (1) providing the governor, local child welfare agencies, and local law enforcement with advance notice of an enforcement activity, if possible; (2) providing child welfare agencies and community organizations access to detained individuals to help DHS identify detainees who have children; (3) permitting detainees with children to make free phone calls to arrange for such children's care; and (4) requiring that the interests of children be considered in decisions regarding detainee release, detention, or transfer. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to: (1) require DHS detention facilities to implement procedures to ensure that child custody and family interests can be considered in any immigration detention action, (2) develop memoranda of understanding with child welfare agencies and community organizations that protect the best interests of children of detained individuals, and (3) provide DHS personnel with appropriate training.
United States · United States Congress · 21 July 2011
Incentivizing Offshore Wind Power Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow a 30% tax credit for investment in a qualifying offshore wind facility (an offshore facility using wind to produce electricity), and (2) direct the Secretary of the Treasury to establish a qualifying credit for offshore wind facilities program to consider and award certifications for investments eligible for such a credit to qualifying offshore wind facility sponsors. Requires the Secretary to review credits allocated under this Act periodically and authorizes the Secretary to make additional allocations and reallocations of such credits upon determining that: (1) the limit on the total amount of megawatt capacity for offshore facilities with respect to which credits may be allocated under the program has not been attained, or (2) scheduled placed-in-service dates of previously certified facilities have been significantly delayed and the applicant will not meet the required timeline.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2011
Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to accept as proof of service-connection of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) alleged to have been incurred in or aggravated by active military service a diagnosis of PTSD by a mental health professional, together with written testimony by the veteran and a written determination by the professional that such disorder is related to the veteran's service, notwithstanding the fact that there is no official record of such incurrence or aggravation in such service, and to resolve every reasonable doubt in favor of the veteran. Allows such service-connection to be rebutted by clear and convincing evidence to the contrary. Provides the same conditions (with the same authorized rebuttal) with respect to acceptance of proof of service-connection of certain mental health conditions alleged to have been incurred or aggravated by military sexual trauma experienced during active military service.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2011
Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Prevention, Education, and Research Act of 2011 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish the Tick-Borne Diseases Advisory Committee. Requires the Committee to advise the Secretary and the Assistant Secretary for Health regarding the manner in which such officials can: (1) ensure interagency coordination and communication and minimize overlap regarding efforts to address tick-borne diseases; (2) identify opportunities to coordinate efforts with other federal agencies and private organizations addressing such diseases; (3) ensure interagency coordination and communication with constituency groups; (4) ensure that a broad spectrum of scientific viewpoints are represented in public heath policy decisions and that information disseminated to the public and physicians is balanced; and (5) advise relevant federal agencies on priorities related to Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. Directs the Committee to regularly review published public and private treatment guidelines and evaluate such guidelines for effective representation of a wide variety of views. Requires the Secretary, acting as appropriate through various federal officials, to provide for the coordination of all federal programs and activities related to Lyme and other tick-borne diseases and the conduct or support of specified activities, including: (1) developing sensitive and accurate diagnostic tools and tests, (2) improving the efficient utilization of diagnostic testing currently available; (3) surveillance and reporting of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases; (4) providing and promoting access to a clearinghouse of information on such diseases; (5) increasing public education related to such diseases; (6) creating a physician education program to educate health professionals on the latest research and diversity of treatment options for Lyme disease; (7) establishing epidemiological research objectives; and (8) determining the effectiveness of different treatment modalities.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2011
No Child Left Inside Act of 2011 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require states, as a prerequisite to receiving implementation grants, to develop environmental literacy plans, approved by the Secretary of Education, for pre-kindergarten through grade 12 that include environmental education standards and teacher training. Directs the Secretary to award Environmental Education Professional Development Grants to states and, through them, competitive subgrants to partnerships that include a local educational agency (LEA) and, permissibly, institutions of higher education (IHE), other educational entities, or federal, state, regional, or local natural resource or environmental agencies, for activities involving, among other things, teacher training and the development of more rigorous environmental education curricula that advance the teaching of interdisciplinary courses. Authorizes the Secretary to award competitive matching grants to partnerships that include an LEA and, permissibly, IHEs, other educational entities, federal, state, regional, or local natural resource or environmental agencies, or park and recreation departments, for activities to improve and support environmental education that include: (1) advancing content and achievement standards, and (2) developing or disseminating innovations or model programs.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2011
After School for America's Children Act - Amends the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program under part B of title IV of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). (21st Century Community Learning Centers provide students with before and afterschool programs to improve their academic performance.) Requires the Centers to provide: (1) students with activities that are targeted to their academic needs and aligned with the instruction they receive during the school day, and (2) students' families with opportunities for active and meaningful engagement in their children's education. Includes Indian tribes or organizations among the local public or private entities that are eligible for grants from states to establish the Centers. Requires states to use at least 93% (currently 95%) of their allotment from the Secretary of Education to provide grants to those entities. Allows states to use up to 5% (currently, 3%) of their allotment for certain state activities. Requires states to: (1) award grants to local entities that serve students who primarily attend schools that are eligible for schoolwide programs under part A of title I of the ESEA, and (2) favor applicants that propose to serve students that have not achieved proficiency in accordance with state academic achievement standards. Requires states to use a rigorous peer review process in reviewing grant applications. Allows states to renew a grant under part B based on the grantee's performance during the original grant period. Prohibits the Secretary or states from giving funding priority to applicants that propose to use the funds to extend the regular school day. Includes among the activities grants may fund: (1) core academic subject education activities, including those that allow students to recover or attain credits; (2) literacy education programs; (3) programs that support a healthy, active lifestyle; (4) services for the disabled; (5) cultural programs; and (6) programs that build science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) skills and support innovative STEM teaching methods. Reauthorizes the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program through FY2017.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2011
Healthy Media for Youth Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award grants to nonprofit organizations to provide for the establishment, operation, coordination, and evaluation of programs to: (1) increase the media literacy of girls and boys; and (2) support the empowerment of girls or boys, including through extracurricular activities and programs. Permits grants to nonprofit organizations only if the organization agrees to make nonfederal contributions available toward the costs of the program (at least $1 for every $5 of awarded federal funds). Directs the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and in coordination with the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, to review, synthesize, and conduct or support research on the role and impact of depictions of girls and women in the media on the psychological, sexual, physical, and interpersonal development of youth. Directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to convene a task force, to be known as the National Task Force on Girls and Women in the Media, to develop voluntary steps and goals for promoting healthy and positive depictions of girls and women in the media for the benefit of all youth.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2011
Amends the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) to make eligible for use of a state's apportionment of coordinated border infrastructure program funds certain improvements for the safe movement of freight and passenger rail at or across the borders between the United States and Canada and the United States and Mexico. Reauthorizes the program through FY2015, indexed for inflation.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2011
Expresses the sense of the Senate that any agreement to reduce the budget deficit should not include cuts to Social Security benefits or Medicare benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 7 July 2011
Recognizes September 11, 2011, as a day of solemn commemoration of the events of September 11, 2001, and as a day to come together as a nation. Offers deepest and most sincere condolences to the families, friends, and loved ones of the innocent victims of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Honors the heroic service, actions, and sacrifices of first responders, law enforcement personnel, state and local officials, volunteers, and countless others who aided the innocent victims of those attacks and, in doing so, bravely risked and often gave their own lives. Recognizes the valiant service, actions, and sacrifices of U.S. personnel, including members of the Armed Forces and their families, to support the cause of freedom and defend the security of the United States. Reaffirms that the people of the United States will never forget the challenges our country endured on and since September 11, 2001, and will work tirelessly to defeat those who attacked the United States. Calls upon all people and institutions of the United States, on the 10th anniversary of this tragic day in U.S. history, to observe a moment of remembrance on September 11, 2011. Encourages the observance of the moment of remembrance to last for one minute beginning at 1:00 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT).
United States · United States Congress · 6 July 2011
Pilot's Bill of Rights - Requires National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) proceedings for the review of decisions of the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to deny, amend, modify, suspend, or revoke an airman's certificate to be conducted, to the extent practicable, in accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Federal Rules of Evidence. Requires the Administrator to: (1) advise the subject of an investigation involving the approval, denial, suspension, modification, or revocation of an airman certificate of specified information pertinent to the investigation; and (2) provide him or her with access to relevant air traffic data. Allows an individual to elect to file an appeal of a certificate denial, a punitive civil action, or an emergency order of revocation in the U.S. district court in which individual resides, in which the action in question occurred, or the district court for the District of Columbia. Allows an adversely affected individual who elects not to file an appeal in a federal district court to file such appeal with the NTSB. Directs the Administrator to begin a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) Improvement Program to improve the system of providing airmen with pertinent and timely information before a flight in the national airspace system. Makes Flight Service Station briefings and other air traffic services performed by Lockheed Martin or any other government contractor available to airmen under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Requires the Administrator to review the FAA system for the medical certification of airmen in order to: (1) revise the medical application form, (2) align medical qualification policies with present-day qualified medical judgment and practices, and (3) publish objective medical standards to advise the public of the criteria determining an airman's medical certificate eligibility.
United States · United States Congress · 6 July 2011
Hudson River Valley Special Resource Study Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to complete a study of the Hudson River Valley in the state of New York to evaluate: (1) the national significance of the counties in New York that abut the Hudson River that flows from Rogers Island at Fort Edward to the southernmost boundary of Westchester County, New York (the study area); and (2) the suitability and feasibility of designating the study area as a unit of the National Park System.
United States · United States Congress · 6 July 2011
Small Business Job Creation Tax Act of 2011- Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow employers a credit against payroll tax liability for a payroll increase in a quarter over a corresponding quarter in the previous calendar year. Sets the amount of such credit at 20% of such increase for employers that employ fewer than 100 employees and 15% for employers that employ 100 or more employees in any quarter. Limits the total credit amount available for all quarters to $250,000. Directs the Commissioner of Internal Revenue to: (1) notify all employers required to withhold employment taxes of the enactment and applicability of this Act; and (2) report to Congress on enforcement measures taken to prevent and penalize fraud related to the payroll credit allowed by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 6 July 2011
High-Tech Job Opportunities Between our Shores Act or High-Tech JOBS Act - Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to direct the Secretary of Labor to make grants to or enter into contracts with eligible entities to carry out demonstration and pilot projects that provide education and training programs for jobs in advanced manufacturing. Prescribes requirements for project activities and performance goals and measures.
United States · United States Congress · 30 June 2011
Expresses the sense of the Senate that any agreement to reduce the budget deficit should require that those earning $1 million or more per year make a more meaningful contribution to the deficit reduction effort.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2011
Lions Clubs International Century of Service Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue as legal tender $1 coins in commemoration of the centennial of the founding of the Lions Clubs International. Requires the design of the coins to be emblematic of the centennial. Permits the Secretary to issue such coins only during calendar 2017. Requires sales of the coins to include a surcharge of $10 per coin, to be paid by the Secretary to the Lions Clubs International Foundation.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2011
Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2011 - Amends the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 to require each Department of State regional bureau to annually submit a list of goals for combating trafficking in persons (trafficking) for each country in its geographic area of responsibility. Authorizes the Secretary of State to appoint anti-trafficking officers at U.S. embassies who shall: (1) collaborate with other countries to eliminate human trafficking, (2) enhance Department of State anti-trafficking efforts, (3) monitor regional trafficking trends, and (4) assist U.S. embassies to prepare the annual Trafficking in Persons Reports. Directs the President to establish programs with foreign governments and civil society to enhance anti-trafficking capacity. Authorizes the Secretary of State, through the Ambassador-at-Large of the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, to: (1) establish a fund to assist foreign governments in meeting urgent needs in trafficking prevention, victim protection, and prosecution of trafficking offenders; and (2) provide assistance for each country with a high prevalence of trafficking that enters into a child protection compact with the United States. Amends the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 to require that a video about U.S. legal rights and resources be developed and shown in embassies and consulates with the greatest concentrations of aliens applying for employment- or education-based nonimmigrant visas. Amends the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) to include labor contract fraud under the scope of such Act. Amends the federal criminal code to subject a U.S. citizen or permanent resident alien who resides overseas and engages in illicit sexual conduct, including sex trafficking, with a person under 18 years old to fine and/or imprisonment. Subjects a person to fine and/or imprisonment for the knowing destruction, concealment, removal, confiscation, or possession of certain immigration documents. Increases the statute of limitations to 10 years for a person to bring a civil action for an injury received while a minor that was caused by specified sexual- or forced labor-related violations of federal criminal law. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to: (1) make certain alien trafficking victims who had been in the United States to cooperate with law enforcement but because of serious threats fled the United States eligible for a nonimmigrant T visa (trafficking victims cooperating with law enforcement), and (2) make an alien who was the victim of foreign labor contracting fraud eligible for a nonimmigrant U visa (victims of certain crimes). Revises certain trafficking-related reporting requirements for the Attorney General (DOJ) and the Secretary of Labor. Amends the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2005 to direct the Secretary of State to provide the Department of Labor with information relating to child labor and forced labor in the production of goods in violation of international standards. Requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to report to Congress regarding the use of foreign labor contractors. Authorizes the Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs to make renewable one-year block grants to four eligible state or local government entities in different regions of the United States to combat sex trafficking of minors. Authorizes FY2012-FY2015 appropriations. Terminates the program four years after enactment of this Act. Authorizes appropriations through FY2015 for grants for local law enforcement investigations and prosecutions of trafficking and commercial sex act violations. Includes in the model state criminal provisions protections for persons under 18 years old who have been arrested for engaging in commercial sex acts. Amends the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 to authorize appropriations through FY2015 for: (1) the Human Smuggling and Trafficking Center, (2) the Presidential Award for Extraordinary Efforts To Combat Trafficking in Persons, (3) the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking, (4) the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking, (5) the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) for trafficking victim assistance, (6) the Secretary of State to combat trafficking, (7) the Attorney General for trafficking victim assistance in the United States and for assistance to foreign countries to combat trafficking, (8) the President for foreign trafficking victims assistance and to foreign countries to meet minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, (9) the Secretary of Labor for trafficking victim assistance in the United States, (10) the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for trafficking investigations, and (11) the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) for trafficking investigations by the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Amends the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005 to authorize appropriations through FY2015 for studies and conferences addressing trafficking and sex trafficking in the United States. Amends INA to extend specified asylum and removal protections to aliens who are under the age of 18 as of a qualifying event. Amends the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 to direct: (1) the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish specified child advocate programs at immigration detention sites for trafficking victims and vulnerable unaccompanied alien children; and (2) the Secretary of Homeland Security, with respect to individuals who reach the age of 18 and are transferred to DHS, to consider placement in the least restrictive setting available, including alternative detention programs. Makes a child granted U visa status eligible for certain assistance for refugee children. Directs GAO to: (1) conduct a study of the effectiveness of the HHS child advocate program, and (2) conduct a study of the effectiveness of DHS border screening of unaccompanied alien children to determine whether they are trafficking victims.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2011
Congratulates Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., on 100 years of serving local communities and enriching the lives of collegiate men throughout the nation.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2011
Family and Medical Leave Inclusion Act - Amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to provide for employee leave to care for a domestic partner (including a same-sex spouse) or his or her child, parent-in-law, adult child, sibling, grandparent, grandchild, son-in-law, or daughter-in-law (as well as for a spouse, child, or parent), if such person has a serious health condition. Amends federal civil service law to apply the same leave allowance to federal employees.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2011
Kate Puzey Peace Corps Volunteer Protection Act of 2011 - Amends the Peace Corps Act to require the Director of the Peace Corps: (1) as part of the training provided to all volunteers, to develop and implement comprehensive sexual assault risk-reduction and response training that conforms to best practices in the sexual assault field; and (2) once a trainee has arrived in such trainee's country of service, to provide that individual with training tailored to such country, including cultural training relating to gender relations, risk-reduction strategies, a safety plan in the event of an assault, treatment available in such country, MedEvac procedures, and information regarding the legal process for pressing charges against an attacker. Requires the Director to provide each: (1) applicant for enrollment with a historical analysis of crimes against, and risks to, volunteers in the country in which the applicant has been invited to serve; and (2) trainee, before enrolling as a volunteer, with contact information of the Peace Corps' Inspector General for purposes of reporting violations of the sexual assault protocol or any other criminal or administrative wrongdoing by individuals who do business with the Peace Corps, and with clear, written guidelines regarding whom to contact and what steps to take in the event of a sexual assault. Requires the Director to: (1) develop, implement, and distribute comprehensive sexual assault protocol guidelines that conform to best practices in the sexual assault field that are applicable to all posts at which volunteers serve, and train all in-country staff regarding the protocol and guidelines; (2) expeditiously remove a volunteer who feels at risk of imminent bodily harm and requests removal from the site in which such volunteer is serving, and assess and evaluate the safety of the site; (3) establish sexual assault response teams; (4) conduct case reviews of a statistically significant number of cases on a quarterly basis; (5) establish a global tracking and recording system to track and record incidents of assault against volunteers; (6) establish an alternative reporting system and hotline access system through which volunteers who are assault victims can report and receive support anonymously; and (7) assign a certified victims advocate in Peace Corps headquarters who shall report directly to the Director. Establishes in the Peace Corps a Sexual Assault Advisory Council. Requires the Director to: (1) establish goals, metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans for all Peace Corps programs and Country Directors; (2) annually conduct a confidential survey of volunteers regarding the effectiveness of Peace Corps programs and staff and the safety of volunteers; (3) establish and maintain a process to protect confidentiality and safety of volunteers reporting incidents and the information reported and to ensure that such information is acted on appropriately; and (4) determine the level of access to communication, including cellular and Internet access, of each volunteer. Prohibits the Director from: (1) disclosing personally identifying information or personal information of a volunteer who is a victim of assault collected in connection with services requested, utilized, or denied through Peace Corps programs; or (2) revealing such information without the informed, purpose-limited, and reasonably time-limited consent of such volunteer about whom such information is sought.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2011
National Domestic Preparedness Consortium Enhancement Act of 2011 - Requires the National Domestic Preparedness Consortium to include the SUNY (State University of New York) National Center for Security and Preparedness.
United States · United States Congress · 27 June 2011
Reengaging Americans in Serious Education by Uniting Programs Act - Directs the Secretary of Labor to award competitive, renewable, five-year grants to eligible partnerships to assist them in providing disconnected youth with the support needed to: (1) attain a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent; (2) attain a postsecondary credential, including those offered by institutions of higher education, industry groups, or registered apprenticeship programs; and (3) secure and succeed in a family-supporting career. Requires each eligible partnership to consist of entities or individuals qualified to represent the community assisted, including: (1) the head of the local government, (2) a local educational agency, (3) a local workforce system, (4) a representative from certain state and local service agencies serving young people, (5) an institution of higher education, (6) a representative of a community-based organization, (7) a representative from business or industry, (8) a representative with expertise in labor management relations, and (9) a disconnected youth and his or her caregivers Requires grantees to award subgrants and contracts to community-based organizations and other entities for the provision of a comprehensive array of coordinated services to disconnected youth that include workforce preparation, education support, and youth support services. Directs the Secretary to award planning grants to eligible partnerships to enable them to submit competitive applications for grants to support disconnected youth. Establishes an accountability system for measuring the performance of each grantee against specified interim, transitional, and long-term indicators of success. Directs the Secretary to: (1) award a grant or contract to an entity outside the Department of Labor for an evaluation of grant-assisted activities; (2) disseminate best practices that emerge from the partnership grant program; and (3) provide training, technical assistance, and professional development for organizations serving disconnected youth, including organizations that do not receive funding under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2011
Delaware River Basin Conservation Act of 2011 - Requires the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to establish a Delaware River Basin restoration program, under which the Director shall: (1) draw on management plans for the four-state Delaware Basin region (defined as including all of Delaware Bay and portions of Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania located in the Delaware River watershed) and work in consultation with applicable management entities, including representatives of the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, the Delaware River Basin Commission, the federal government, other state and local governments, and regional and nonprofit organizations to identify, prioritize, and implement restoration and protection activities within the Basin; and (2) adopt an investment strategy that supports the implementation of such activities, targets cost-effective conservation projects, and supports measurable conservation efforts. Requires the Director to: (1) provide technical assistance to carry out the restoration program; and (2) establish the Delaware River Basin restoration grant program to provide competitive matching grants to carry out the restoration program. Requires the Director to develop criteria to ensure that funded activities: (1) restore or protect fish and wildlife species and their habitats; (2) improve or protect water quality by reducing nonpoint and point source pollutants; (3) reduce or improve management of water volume and flooding; (4) include priority needs or actions identified in the investment strategy; and/or (5) include restoration and protection activities with multiple benefits in the Basin, including habitat, water quality, and flood damage reduction. Limits the federal share of the total cost of a funded project to 75%. Authorizes the Director to contract with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation or another organization with applicable expertise to manage the grant program.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2011
Responsible Electronics Recycling Act - Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to: (1) prohibit the export of restricted electronic waste to countries that are not members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) or the European Union (EU), or Liechtenstein; (2) require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop and promulgate procedures for identifying certain electronic equipment as well as additional restricted toxic materials contained in such equipment which poses a potential hazard to human health or the environment; and (3) establish criminal penalties for knowingly exporting restricted electronic waste in violation of this Act. Allows certain exceptions to such export ban. Defines "restricted electronic waste" to include electronic equipment (excluding parts of a motor vehicle), such as computers, televisions, printers, copiers, video game systems, telephones, and similar used electronic products, that contain cathode ray tubes, batteries, switches, and other parts containing lead, cadmium, mercury, organic solvents, hexavalent chromium, beryllium, or other toxic ingredients. Amends the Solid Waste Disposal Act to require persons who handle restricted electronic wastes to permit appropriate EPA and state officials access to such wastes upon request. Directs the Secretary of Energy to establish the Rare Earth Materials Recycling Research Initiative to provide grants for research in the recycling of rare earth materials found in electronic devices.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2011
Social Security Number Protection Act of 2011 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish and begin to implement procedures to eliminate the unnecessary collection, use, and display of Social Security account numbers of Medicare beneficiaries on Medicare identification cards and communications. Prohibits a Social Security card also from storing a Social Security account number electronically. Allows the display of a Social Security number on written or electronic communications only if the Secretary determines that its inclusion on such communications is essential for the operation of the Medicare program.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2011
Direct Care Job Quality Improvement Act of 2011 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 with respect to the exemption from minimum wage and maximum hour requirements of any employee employed on a casual basis in domestic service employment to provide companionship services for individuals who because of age or infirmity are unable to care for themselves. Extends the same exemption to a casual employee in domestic service employment to provide companionship services for disabled individuals unable to care for themselves. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop a direct care workforce monitoring program. Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to require a state Medicaid plan to require the state to report annually to the Secretary on the adequacy of its direct care workforce to provide long-term care (LTC) services. Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to require the National Health Care Workforce Commission, as a high priority, to review, analyze, and report annually to Congress and the Health Resources and Services Administration on the current and projected direct care workforce supply and demand. Directs the Secretary to award grants to states, Indian tribes, and tribal organizations to develop data collection and monitoring systems to assess the adequacy of a state's or tribe's direct care workforce to meet current and future demand for LTC services. Directs the Secretary to award competitive three-year grants to states and other eligible entities to improve the recruitment, retention, and education of direct care workers.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2011
Land and Water Conservation Authorization and Funding Act of 2011 - Amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to make permanent the authorization for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Makes monies covered into the Fund available for expenditure to carry out the purposes of the Act without further appropriation. Requires not less than 1.5% of the annual authorized funding amount to be made available for projects that secure recreational public access to existing federal public land for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2011
Calls on the government of Saudi Arabia to allow women to participate, both as voters and candidates for elective office, in the September 2011 elections. Supports the women of Saudi Arabia as they endeavor to exercise their human rights.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 2011
Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2011 - Creates a lawful prospective immigrant status for a qualifying alien present in the United States, as well as for such alien's qualifying spouse and children who may be outside the United States. Provides for status adjustment to lawful permanent resident. Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act of 2011 or the DREAM Act of 2011 - Authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) to cancel the removal of, and adjust to the status of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence on a conditional basis, an alien who: (1) entered the United States on or before his or her 15th birthday and has been present in the United States for five years preceding this Act's enactment; (2) is a person of good moral character; (3) is not inadmissible under specified grounds of the Immigration and Nationality Act; (4) has not participated in the persecution of any person on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion; (5) has not been convicted of certain offenses under federal or state law; (6) has been admitted to an institution of higher education (IHE) in the United States or has earned a high school diploma or general education development certificate in the United States; and (7) was age 35 or younger on the date of this Act's enactment. Provides for status adjustment to lawful permanent resident. Directs the Attorney General (DOJ) to stay the removal proceedings of an alien who meets certain requirements and who is at least five years of age and enrolled full-time in a primary or secondary school. Limits the eligibility of an alien in conditional permanent resident status for higher education assistance. Amends the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to repeal the denial of an unlawful alien's eligibility for higher education benefits based on state residence unless a U.S. national is similarly eligible without regard to such state residence. Agricultural Job Opportunities, Benefits, and Security Act of 2011 or the AgJOBS Act of 2011 - Confers "blue card status" upon an alien who has fulfilled specified periods of agricultural employment in the United States, is otherwise admissible, and has not been convicted of specified crimes. Provides for adjustment to permanent resident status if the alien has fulfilled other specified periods of agricultural employment in the United States. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to revise H-2A visa (agricultural labor or temporary or seasonal services) provisions. Establishes the Commission on Agricultural Wage Standards under the H-2A program. Revises unlawful presence inadmissibility provisions, including family-unity based exceptions. Establishes in the Treasury: (1) the Department of Homeland Security Legalization Program Account, and (2) the Immigration Reform Penalty Account. Sets forth immigration-related worksite enforcement provisions, including provisions regarding: (1) unlawful employment of aliens, (2) document verification, (3) the employment verification system, and (4) responsibilities of the Social Security Administration (SSA). Permits the disclosure of certain taxpayer information to DHS. Requires the issuance of: (1) fraud-, tamper-, and wear-resistant Social Security cards; and (2) machine-readable, tamper-resistant employment authorization documents with biometric identifiers. Makes it an unfair immigration employment practice to discriminate based on national origin or citizenship status. Revises immigration-related activities of the SSA and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Authorizes appropriations for responsibilities under this Act for: (1) DHS, (2) SSA, (3) the DOJ, and (4) the Department of State. Prohibits the adjustment of an alien in lawful prospective immigrant status to the status of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence until specified border related enhancements in personnel and resources are established, funded, and operational. Provides for additional: (1) Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel; (2) Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) personnel; (3) DHS personnel assigned to investigate alien smuggling; (4) immigration litigation attorneys; (5) ports of entry along the northern and southern borders; and (6) equipment and assets along the borders, including unmanned aerial systems, cameras, sensors, satellites, and radar coverage. Directs the Secretary of State to report annually regarding the exchange of North American immigration, law enforcement, and security information among the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Provides for: (1) increased border-related cooperation with Mexico, and (2) expansion of Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism programs. Provides reimbursement for state and county prosecutors in border states for prosecuting federally initiated and referred drug cases. Authorizes border relief grants for tribal, state, or local law enforcement and related agencies in proximity to the border or in a designated High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. Establishes the Immigration and United States-Mexico Border Enforcement Commission. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to set out the scope of state and local immigration-related enforcement authority. Directs the Secretaries of Homeland Security, Interior, Agriculture, Defense, and Commerce to develop a border protection strategy. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish a Border Communities Liaison Office in every Border Patrol sector on the southern or northern border. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to: (1) establish a visa exit tracking system, and (2) equip all U.S. ports of entry with the United States-Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology system (US-VISIT). Increases: (1) civil penalties for illegal entry; (2) fines and penalties for the reentry of previously removed aliens; and (3) penalties concerning stowaways, vessels, and aircraft. Revises voluntary departure provisions. Authorizes appropriations for the state criminal alien assistance program (SCAAP). Sets forth provisions regarding issuance of detainers by DHS personnel for aliens apprehended by state or local law enforcement officials for controlled substance violations. Revises passport, visa, and immigration fraud provisions. Directs: (1) the United States Sentencing Commission to promulgate or amend passport fraud sentencing guidelines, and (2) the Attorney General to develop immigration fraud prosecution guidelines. Expands the definition of conveyances subject to forfeiture for smuggling. Requires commercial vehicles transporting passengers from outside the United States to a U.S. airport or seaport to provide arrival/departure manifests. Authorizes DHS to share manifest and passenger name information with other government authorities, including foreign governments. Subjects an operator of a vessel or motor vehicle to fine and/or imprisonment for evading a federal checkpoint. Authorizes grants for Indian tribes adversely affected by illegal immigration. Authorizes Department of State and Foreign Service special agents to investigate: (1) illegal passport or visa issuance or use, (2) Department-related identity theft and document fraud, and (3) federal offenses committed in the special maritime and territorial jurisdictions (nonmilitary) of the United States. Makes inadmissible and deportable convicted alien: (1) sex offenders who fail to register, and (2) street gang members. Sets forth, with respect to immigration-related enforcement activities: (1) protections for vulnerable populations, (2) apprehension procedures of more than 10 people involving children, and (3) detention procedures for families with children. Requires the creation of secure alternatives to detention (excluding alien terrorists). Enumerates humane detention conditions, including conditions for children and vulnerable populations. Requires the appointment of a detention commission. Authorizes access to counsel for aliens in removal proceedings. Directs the Attorney General to establish a National Legal Orientation Support and Training Center to ensure quality and consistent implementation of group legal orientation programs nationwide. Sets forth protections for: (1) refugees, including designation of refugee groups; and (2) stateless persons in the United States, including mechanisms for regularizing status. Establishes in DHS a position of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Ombudsman. Eliminates the one-year time limit for filing an asylum claim. Establishes the Standing Commission on Foreign Workers, Labor Markets, and the National Interest to establish employment-based immigration policies that promote economic growth while minimizing job displacement, wage depression, and unauthorized employment in the United States. Revises family and employment based immigrant visa provisions. Recaptures unused FY1992-FY2007 visas. Increases immigration visas for: (1) sons and daughters of U.S. citizens, and (2) brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens. Provides a specified visa allocation for the unmarried sons and unmarried daughters of permanent resident aliens. Exempts certain aliens with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics from numerical limits. Revises the definition of "immediate relative" to include the spouse and child of a lawful permanent resident. Establishes a status adjustment process for certain military family members. Redefines "child" to include a stepchild under 21 years old. Provides specified relief for orphans and widows/widowers. Authorizes the status adjustment of a fiance/fiancee or alien spouse and any minor children (K-visa) to conditional permanent resident status if such alien marries a petitioner within three months after U.S. admission. Exempts children of certain naturalized Filipino World War II veterans from worldwide or numerical immigrant limitations. Permits workers who are eligible for permanent resident status adjustment but for whom a visa number is unavailable to apply for adjustment. Uniting American Families Act of 2011 - Includes a "permanent partner" within the scope of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Defines a "permanent partner" as an individual 18 or older who: (1) is in a committed, intimate relationship with another individual 18 or older in which both individuals intend a lifelong commitment; (2) is financially interdependent with the other individual; (3) is not married to, or in a permanent partnership with, anyone other than the individual; (4) is unable to contract with the other individual a marriage cognizable under this Act; and (5) is not a first, second, or third degree blood relation of the other individual. Creating American Jobs Through Foreign Capital Investment Act - Amends the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1993 to make the EB-5 visa (alien investor) regional center program permanent. Eliminates sunset provisions for: (1) the J-1 visa waiver (Conrad state 30/medical services in underserved areas) program, and (2) the special immigrant nonminister religious worker program. Extends the H-1C visa program providing nonimmigrant nurses in health professional shortage areas. Revises entry provisions for H-1B visa foreign medical graduates and provides for an increase under specified conditions in the annual per-state cap of 30 foreign doctors. Exempts from worldwide immigration numerical limitations alien physicians who have completed state waiver or exemption service requirements, including alien physicians who completed such service before the date of enactment of this Act. Includes nationals of Ireland coming to the United States under a treaty of commerce to perform specialty occupation services in the nonimmigrant E-3 visa category. Authorizes: (1) temporary workers (E, H, I, L O, or P visas) who have not violated their status to renew their same category visa from within the United States; and (2) alien spouses of nonimmigrant H-visa aliens to work in the United States. Gives an alien who ceases to be employed by his or her petitioning employer 60 days to leave the United States or apply for a change of status. Protect Our Workers from Exploitation and Retaliation Act or the POWER Act - Excludes from the definition of "immigrant" a nonimmigrant alien who files a petition for status if the Secretary of Homeland Security determines that the alien: (1) has suffered abuse or harm as a result of having been a victim of criminal activity, (2) has suffered substantial abuse or harm related to specified labor or employment violations related to a workplace claim (workplace violation), (3) is a victim of specified criminal activity and would suffer extreme hardship upon removal, (4) has suffered a workplace violation and would suffer extreme hardship upon removal, (5) has been helpful to specified authorities investigating a workplace violation, or (6) is a material witness or is likely to be helpful in the investigation of a workplace claim and fears retaliatory activities by the employer. Sets forth provisions governing procedural requirements and protections in an enforcement action leading to a removal proceeding taken against an alien: (1) as a result of information provided to DHS in retaliation against an individual for exercising employment or other legal rights, (2) at a facility about which a workplace claim has been filed, or (3) who has filed a workplace claim or who is a material witness in any proceeding involving a workplace claim. Amends the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act to allow state leadership activity grants to be used to provide technical assistance to faith and community-based organizations. Directs the National Institute for Literacy to disseminate information regarding integrated English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education programs. Provides grants to states for integrated English literacy, U.S. history, and civics education programs. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide: (1) tax credits to teachers of English language learners, (2) tax deductions for the expenses of becoming certified as such teachers, and (3) tax credits for employers' expenses in making adult education and literacy services available to their employees. Requires the Commissioner for Education Research of the National Center for Education Research to establish a national research and development center for adult education and literacy. Establishes the Presidential Award for Business Leadership in Promoting United States Citizenship to be awarded to companies and other organizations that make extraordinary efforts in assisting their employees and members to learn English and increase their understanding of U.S. history and civics. Renames the Office of Citizenship of DHS as the Office of Citizenship and New Americans. Authorizes the Office to make grants to states and subgrants to local governments to assist them in integrating immigrants. Establishes the New Citizens Award program. Provides for the status adjustment to lawful permanent resident of certain: (1) Haitian orphans, and (2) Liberian nationals. Provides grants to state courts for programs to assist individuals with limited English proficiency to access and understand state court proceedings. Provides permanent resident status adjustment for a qualifying alien who was, on September 10, 2001, the spouse, child, or unmarried son or daughter of an alien who died as a direct result of the September 11, 2001, terrorist activity against the United States. Makes such provisions inapplicable to an alien who is inadmissible or deportable under criminal or security grounds, including September 11, 2001, terrorist activity. Directs the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to expand programming that prioritizes alternatives to emigration from countries with the highest rates of irregular migration to the United States. Expresses the sense of Congress that the Secretary of State should review U.S. policy toward Latin America in order to strengthen hemispheric security through the reduction of poverty, expansion of equitable trade, and support for democratic institutions, citizen security, and the rule of law.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 2011
Women and Workforce Investment for Nontraditional Jobs or Women WIN Jobs - Requires the Secretary of Labor, in any fiscal year in which the total authorization of appropriations to carry out this Act exceeds $50 million, to allocate grants to states with approved state plans to provide funding to eligible entities (partnerships) to increase low-income women's participation in high-wage, high-demand occupations in which women make up less than 25% of the current workforce. Authorizes states to use grants for statewide activities, including to: (1) provide technical assistance to eligible entities and to state registered apprenticeship programs and sponsors and joint apprenticeship training councils in meeting their enrollment goal for low-income women in nontraditional occupations, (2) develop policies and protocols that set goals for hiring specific percentages of women into registered apprenticeships and permanent employment openings in publicly assisted projects, and (3) engage in outreach activities and provide training to overcome stereotypes about women in nontraditional occupations as well as gender inequity among employers. Authorizes the allocation of grant funds to eligible entities to support the recruitment, training, placement, and retention of low-income women in nontraditional occupations. Directs the Secretary to convene a national commission to examine and make recommendations for improving the status of women in high-demand, high-wage nontraditional occupations. Directs the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to collect data on the status of women's participation in underrepresented sectors of the economy, and examine the status of women in relation to that of men. Directs the Secretary to establish a national clearinghouse to collect and distribute best practices.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 2011
Fallen Heroes of 9/11 Act - Authorizes the President to award a Fallen Heroes of 9/11 Congressional Medal to: (1) the Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania, (2) the National September 11 Memorial and Museum in New York, and (3) the Pentagon Memorial. Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to strike three designs of such gold medal to honor, respectively: (1) those who lost their lives in the the attack at the World Trade Center, (2) the passengers and crew aboard United Airlines Flight 93 that was brought down in rural Pennsylvania, and (3) those who lost their lives at the Pentagon. Authorizes the Secretary to strike and sell bronze duplicates of such medals and to distribute any funds from such sales exceeding costs equally between the three memorial sites.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2011
Military Access to Reproductive Care and Health for Military Women Act or the MARCH for Military Women Act - Amends the prohibition on using funds available to the Department of Defense (DOD) to perform abortions by adding an exception for cases where the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest. (Current law provides an exception only where the life of the mother would be endangered if the fetus were carried to term.) Repeals a statutory restriction on using a medical treatment facility or other DOD facility to perform an abortion.
United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2011
Recognizes the historical significance to the nation, and supports the continued celebration, of Juneteenth Independence Day (June 19, 1865, the day Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, with news that the Civil War had ended and that the enslaved African Americans were free). Declares the sense of the Senate that: (1) history should be regarded as a means for understanding the past and solving the challenges of the future, and (2) the celebration of the end of slavery is an important and enriching part of the history and heritage of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 2011
Jason's Law - Amends the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) to direct the Secretary of Transportation (DOT), with respect to the pilot program to allocate funds to states, metropolitan planning organizations, and local governments, to establish long-term parking facilities for commercial motor vehicles (trucks) on the National Highway System. Requires applications to incorporate one or more specified factors, such as: (1) addressing a safety need through development of additional truck parking capacity for use in hours-of-service compliance, and (2) reducing congestion and improving air quality mitigation. Directs the Secretary to conduct a survey annually: (1) regarding the capacity of each state to provide adequate parking and rest facilities for trucks, and (2) assessing the volume of truck traffic through the state and developing a metrics system to measure the adequacy of the state's parking facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2011
American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act of 2011 - Amends the Horse Protection Act to prohibit the shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling, or donation of horses and other equines to be slaughtered for human consumption. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to detain for examination, testing, or the taking of evidence: (1) any horse at any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction that is sore or which the Secretary has probable cause to believe is sore; and (2) any horse or other equine that the Secretary has probable cause to believe is being shipped, transported, moved, delivered, received, possessed, purchased, sold, or donated in violation of such prohibition. Increases the cap on the amount of appropriations that may be used to carry out such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2011
Tax Parity for Health Plan Beneficiaries Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) exclude from an employee's gross income employer-provided accident and health plan benefits extended to a domestic partner or non-dependent, non-spouse beneficiary eligible to receive such benefits under an employer plan (i.e., "eligible beneficiary"); (2) exempt such benefits paid to eligible beneficiaries from otherwise applicable employment and unemployment taxes; (3) allow self-employed individuals a tax deduction for the health insurance costs of their eligible beneficiaries; (4) allow tax-exempt voluntary employees' beneficiary associations to provide sick and accident benefits to the domestic partners and non-dependent, non-spouse beneficiaries of their members; (5) allow reimbursement of the medical expenses of an eligible beneficiary from a health savings account (HSA); and (6) extend tax-exempt medical benefits to the eligible beneficiaries of retired employees Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to provide guidance relating to reimbursements from a flexible spending arrangement and a health reimbursement arrangement attributable to an eligible beneficiary as defined by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2011
On-the-Job Training Act of 2011 - Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to authorize the Secretary of Labor to: (1) make discretionary grants to states, local boards, and federally-recognized tribal organizations for adult on-the-job training or dislocated worker on-the-job training programs; and (2) use up to 10% of funds authorized under this Act to make grants to such entities for developing on-the-job training programs, including providing capacity building activities for local staff.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2011
Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia Diagnosis and Treatment Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish and implement a hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT, a vascular genetic bleeding disorder that causes abnormalities of the blood vessels) initiative to assist in coordinating activities to improve early detection, screening, and treatment of people who suffer from HHT, focusing on advancing research on the causes, diagnosis, and treatment of HHT and increasing physician and public awareness of HHT. Directs the Secretary to establish the HHT Coordinating Committee to develop and coordinate implementation of a plan to advance research and understanding of HHT, including by: (1) conducting or supporting research across relevant National Institutes of Health (NIH) institutes, and (2) conducting evaluations and making recommendations regarding the prioritization and award of NIH research grants relating to HHT. Requires the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to carry out activities with respect to HHT, including conducting population screening and establishing an HHT resource center to provide comprehensive education on, and disseminate information about, HHT to health professionals, patients, industry, and the public. Sets forth requirements for HHT population screening, including requiring the Director of CDC to designate and provide funding for HHT Treatment Centers of Excellence. Requires the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to award grants for: (1) an analysis of the Medicare Provider Analysis and Review (MEDPAR) file to develop preliminary estimates on the totals costs to Medicare for items, services, and treatments for HHT; and (2) recommendations regarding an enhanced data collection protocol to permit a more precise determination of such costs.
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 · 8 June 2011
Cyberspace Warriors Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of Defense to contract with an independent entity to study the availability of personnel for Department of Defense (DOD) defensive and offensive cyberspace operations, identifying any gaps in meeting personnel needs, and recommending available mechanisms to fill such gaps, including permanent and temporary positions. Requires the Secretary to submit a report to Congress on the results of the study including: (1) a statement of capabilities and number of cyberspace operations personnel required to meet DOD defensive and offensive cyberspace operation requirements; (2) an assessment of the sufficiency of the numbers and types of personnel available for cyberspace operations, including the balance of military personnel, DOD civilian employees, contractor positions, and non-DOD personnel with cyberspace operations expertise; (3) an exploration of recruitment and retention obstacles and mechanisms and a description of incentives encouraging individuals from outside the DOD to affiliate with the Armed Forces and civilian DOD employees; and (4) identification of legal, policy, or administrative impediments including recommendations for legislative or policy changes. Defines "cyberspace operations personnel" as members of the Armed Forces and civilian DOD employees involved with the operations and maintenance of a computer network connected to the global information grid, as well as offensive, defensive, and exploitation functions of such a network.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2011
Foodborne Illness Reduction Act of 2011 - Amends the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA), In the case of any Class I recall, to distribute to each retail grocery or other establishment that sells food directly to customers in the United States a summary notice containing product information about each food or food product subject to such recall. Defines "Class I recall' as a food recall classification that covers a health-hazard situation in which there is a reasonable probability that the use of the food or food product being recalled will cause a serious, adverse health consequence or death. Amends the Poultry Products Inspection Act to consider a poultry product adulterated if it is contaminated with Salmonella or Campylobacter. Amends the the Federal Meat Inspection Act to consider any carcass, part thereof, meat, or meat food product adulterated if it is contaminated with Salmonella, Toxoplasma gondii, or enterohemorrhagic (EHEC) Shiga toxin-producing serotypes of Escherichia coli (E. coli) Requires that specified slaughterhouses, processing establishments, and grinding facilities perform specified tests for the presence of E. coli in ground beef. Subjects imported trim, bench trim, and ground beef to the same testing requirements as domestic trim, bench trim, and ground beef. Requires domestic facilities to conduct secondary testing of such meat before processing into a final ground beef product. Requires the Secretary, through the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), to redesign FSIS E. coli sampling and verification programs.
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
USA PATRIOT Act Improvements Act of 2011 - Amends provisions of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA), the Right to Financial Privacy Act of 1978, the National Security Act of 1947, and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) concerning national security letters to, effective December 31, 2013, make such provisions read as they read on October 25, 2001. Repeals a separate related FCRA provision. Amends FISA to revise requirements for applications for access to business records and other tangible things in counterterrorism investigations to require an applicant to present a statement of facts and circumstances relied upon to justify the applicant's belief that the records sought are relevant to an investigation. Repeals the presumption in favor of the government that an application for records is relevant to an investigation. Imposes similar requirements for access to bookseller records or library records containing personally identifiable information, and for orders for pen registers and trap and trace devices. Defines and requires "minimization procedures" for minimizing the retention and dissemination of information obtained from such records and devices. Revises requirements for obtaining orders to prohibit disclosure of the receipt of a national security letter. Requires the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or other appropriate agency to notify persons challenging a nondisclosure order if facts supporting such order no longer exist. Amends FISA to eliminate: (1) the requirement that recipients of any order to produce records wait one year before challenging such order or a nondisclosure requirement in court, and (2) the conclusive presumption that disclosure of an order for tangible things would endanger national security or a person's life or safety or would interfere with a criminal or terrorist investigation or with diplomatic relations. Revises procedures for obtaining judicial review of national security letter nondisclosure orders. Allows the recipient of a nondisclosure order to request judicial review of the order and requires the government to respond by setting forth specific facts in a certification that justify the need for nondisclosure based upon national security and other concerns. Requires courts, in considering whether to grant a nondisclosure order, to give substantial weight to the facts alleged by the government in its certification. Modifies the standard for obtaining a national security letter to require the FBI or other agency issuing a national security letter to provide a written statement of specific facts showing that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the information sought is relevant to an authorized investigation. Modifies reporting requirements for national security letters to require a breakdown of the types of persons targeted (e.g., U.S. persons and non-U.S. persons) and whether such persons are subjects of authorized national security investigations. Amends FISA to require the Attorney General to submit an annual unclassified report summarizing how the authorities under such Act are used, including the impact of such use on the privacy of U.S. persons. Extends through 2013 provisions requiring the Inspector General of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to conduct audits on investigative authority provided to the FBI under FISA and on the effectiveness and use of national security letters. Repeals a requirement for such audits to include information on bureaucratic or procedural impediments to the use of such letters. Directs the Inspector General to report to Congress on the results of such audits: (1) by March 31, 2012, for audits conducted for 2007, 2008, and 2009; (2) by March 31, 2013, for audits conducted for 2010 and 2011; and (3) by March 31, 2015, for audits conducted for 2012 and 2013. Requires reports by the inspectors general of each element of DOJ assessing the use and value of information obtained through such investigative authority and national security letters. Sets forth similar audit and reporting requirements regarding the use of pen registers and trap and trace devices and requires submission to the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence as well as Congress. Amends the federal criminal code to reduce from 30 to 7 days the period for giving delayed notice of the execution of a search warrant in a criminal investigation when the warrant permits the giving of such delayed notice. Directs the Attorney General to periodically review and revise the procedures adopted by the Attorney General on October 1, 2010, for the collection, use, and storage of information obtained in response to a national security letter, with due consideration to the privacy interests of individuals and the need to protect national security. Rescinds specified unobligated balances available in the DOJ Assets Forfeiture Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2011
Military Families Act - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to direct the Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) to adjust the status of an eligible alien to that of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence if the alien: (1) applies for adjustment (with a time limit for an alien applying as a family member of a deceased Armed Forces member), (2) is admissible to the United States as an immigrant, and (3) is physically present in the United States. Applies such provision to an alien who is: (1) a parent, spouse, child, son, daughter, or the legal guardian of a child of a living Armed Forces member or of a deceased Armed Forces member who died as a result of service-incurred injury or disease; or (2) the spouse, child, son, or daughter of an alien described in clause (1). Defines "Armed Forces member" as a person who: (1) is, or was at the time of the person's death, a U.S. national or lawfully admitted permanent resident; (2) served honorably on or after October 7, 2001, as a member of the National Guard or the Selected Reserve of the Ready Reserve, or in an active-duty status in the U.S. military; and (3) if separated from service was separated under honorable conditions. Waives specified grounds of inadmissibility and authorizes the waiver of additional grounds of inadmissibility. Filipino Veterans Family Reunification Act - Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to exempt from worldwide or numerical limitations on immigrant visas the sons and daughters of Filipino World War II veterans who were naturalized under the Immigration Act of 1990 or other specified federal law.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2011
Justice for Troops Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Defense (DOD) to provide support to public or private programs designed to connect attorneys who provide pro bono legal assistance with members of the Armed Forces who are in need of such assistance. Limits the total amount of financial support in any fiscal year to $500,000. Directs such financial support to be derived from amounts authorized to be appropriated for DOD operation and maintenance.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2011
Caring for an Aging America Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to include geriatrics and gerontology within the definition of "primary health services" for purposes of the National Health Service Corps.
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