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United States · Official source
3,901 records where Sen. Graham, Lindsey [R-SC] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
Acknowledges Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist's lifelong service to the United States. Commends his 33-year tenure on the U.S. Supreme Court and his many accomplishments as Chief Justice. Extends sympathy to his family and friends.
United States · United States Congress · 6 September 2005
Declares that the Senate: (1) expresses the condolences of the Nation to the victims of Hurricane Katrina; (2) commends the resiliency and courage of the people of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama; and (3) commits to provide the necessary resources and to stand by the people of such states in the relief, recovery, and rebuilding efforts.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2005
Law-Enforcement Officers' Protection Act of 2005 - Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit killing or attempting to kill a federally funded public safety officer (including a judicial officer). Establishes or increases penalties for: (1) assaulting such an officer, federal judge, and other federal official; (2) retaliating against such an officer, judge, or official by murdering or assaulting a family member; and (3) murder, manslaughter, and related crimes under federal jurisdiction. Dr. John B. Jamison Act - Amends the federal judicial code to deny a court, justice, or judge jurisdiction to consider any claim relating to the judgment or sentence in an application for a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of a person in custody pursuant to a state court judgment for killing a public safety officer, unless specified conditions apply. Requires the court to ensure that, in a federal habeas corpus proceeding arising out of a state conviction, a crime victim is afforded specified rights. Limits to out of pocket expenditures and other monetary loss the damages that may be recovered (and prohibits the recovery of attorney fees) by an individual seeking redress for a deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities incurred in or resulting from felony or criminally violent conduct by such individual, including any deprivation in the course of his or her arrest, apprehension, investigation, prosecution, or adjudication. Redefines "qualified retired law enforcement officer" for purposes of a provision allowing such an officer to carry a concealed firearm by lowering from 15 to 10 years the amount of time such officer must have been regularly employed as a law enforcement officer. Increases penalties for: (1) injuring or influencing a judicial officer or juror; and (2) tampering with, or retaliating against, a witness, victim, or informant. Prohibits: (1) filing in any public record or private record which is generally available to the public a false lien or encumbrance against the property of a federally funded public safety officer or other federal officer or employee; and (2) knowingly making restricted personal information about a federal officer or employee, juror, witness, officer of any court, or officer serving at any proceeding before a U.S. magistrate judge publicly available with the intent that it be used to threaten or intimidate such official or to kidnap, injure, or threaten such official or an immediate family member.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 2005
Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to create in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) the position of Chief Trade Prosecutor (CTP) to ensure that U.S. trading partners comply with trade agreements to which the United States is a party. Requires the CTP to assist the USTR in: (1) investigating and prosecuting disputes before the World Trade Organization (WTO) and pursuant to other trade agreements to which the United States is a party; and (2) carrying out USTR functions under the Act. Require the CTP to: (1) make recommendations with respect to administration of U.S. trade laws relating to foreign government barriers to U.S. goods, services, intellectual property, and other trade matters; and (4) perform such other functions as the USTR may direct.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 2005
Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) the President should direct U.S. government officials to convey to their Chinese counterparts the grave concern with which the U.S. government views the threat of force embodied in the anti-secession law enacted by the government of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in particular, and the growing Chinese military threat to Taiwan in general; and (2) the U.S. government should encourage dialogue between the PRC and Taiwan on an equal footing and without preconditions.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2005
Broadband Investment and Consumer Choice Act - Subjects any telecommunications conduct, activity, service, or service provider only to the requirements of this Act, and not to any other federal, state, or local common carrier law or regulation concerning telecommunications or information services. Prohibits any state or local government from regulating direct-to-home satellite services. Directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to forbear from regulating mobile services unless determined necessary because of lack of competition or for the protection of public health and safety. Requires each telecommunications carrier deemed to be an incumbent local exchange carrier (LEC) and each eligible telecommunications carrier (a carrier eligible for federal universal service support) to offer basic telephone service (BTS) to business and residential customers throughout the LEC's service territory. Directs the FCC to establish federal quality standards for BTS service relating to reasonable uptime, installation and repair intervals, and voice quality. Provides penalties for standards violations. Prohibits (with exceptions): (1) a consumer from being denied access to any content provided over facilities used to provide broadband communications service (the transmission of communications at a capacity greater than 64 kilobits per second); and (2) a broadband service provider from blocking subscriber access to such content. Prohibits a broadband service provider from preventing a customer from using voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) applications offered by a competitor. Requires the FCC, with respect to service providers, to develop rules and regulations regarding telecommunications services, including billing and access for persons with disabilities. Requires: (1) facilities-based providers to establish commercial arrangements regarding their ability to interconnect with other facilities-based providers; and (2) the FCC to govern interconnectivity between such providers and narrowband communications service providers. Requires an incumbent LEC to provide unbundled access to copper local loops at commercially reasonable rates, terms, and conditions. Allows an incumbent local exchange provider serving less than two percent of the access lines of the country to elect to continue to be subject to current federal and state statutory and regulatory requirements. Prohibits a video service provider (VSP) from being required to: (1) obtain a state or local video franchise; (2) build out its video distribution system in any particular manner; or (3) provide access to its distribution facilities and equipment to any other VSP. Authorizes state and local government charges against VSPs for the cost of managing public rights-of-way used by VSPs. Requires the FCC to prescribe regulations to promote: (1) competition and diversity in the multichannel video programming market; and (2) the continuing development of communications technologies. Sets forth requirements for state- or locally-owned networks seeking to provide communications service and requires such governments to have an open bidding process allowing non-governmental entities to compete for the provision of such service.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2005
Senate Campaign Disclosure Parity Act - Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to require Senate candidates to file election-related designations, statements, and reports in electronic form. Requires the Secretary of the Senate to forward a copy of any electronically filed designation, statement, or report to the Federal Election Commission within one working day (instead of the current two working days) after receiving it.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2005
Family Asthma Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to award grants to eligible entities to conduct pilot projects to prevent and control asthma symptoms and to reduce asthma attacks in families. Requires the Secretary to give: (1) priority to entities that serve a medically underserved population; and (2) consideration to an adequate rural-urban distribution, so as to gain better information about asthma at the national level. Authorizes additional appropriations to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to develop a National Asthma Action Plan and to fund a report to Congress by the National Asthma Education and Prevention Program. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to: (1) collaborate with state and local health departments to conduct activities to inform and educate the public regarding asthma; (2) conduct asthma surveillance activities to collect data on the prevalence and severity of asthma, the effectiveness of public heath asthma intervention, and the quality of asthma management; and (3) compile and annually publish asthma data. Requires the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to establish Dr. Irving J. Selikoff individual and institutional training grants for education and training of health care providers on the role of environmental factors in the development and prevention of asthma and recurrent asthma attacks.
United States · United States Congress · 18 July 2005
Free Flow of Information Act of 2005 - Prohibits a federal entity from compelling a "covered person" (i.e., a newspaper, television broadcast station, wire service, or other media outlet, and specified employees and contractors) to testify or produce any document unless a court determines that: (1) the party seeking to compel has unsuccessfully attempted to obtain such testimony or document from all other non-covered persons; (2) in a criminal matter, there are reasonable grounds to believe a crime has occurred and the testimony or document sought is essential to the investigation, prosecution, or defense of the crime; (3) in a non-criminal matter, the testimony or document is essential to a dispositive issue of substantial importance; and (4) in any matter in which testimony or a document could reveal the source's identity, disclosure is necessary to prevent imminent and actual harm to national security and such harm outweighs the public interest in protecting the free flow of information. Requires the content of compelled testimony or documents to be limited and narrowly tailored. Exempts certain commercial or financial information. Makes this Act applicable to testimony or documents that a third party or federal entity seeks from a communications service provider relating to business transactions with a covered person. Sets forth notice requirements. Permits a court to delay notice to a covered person upon determining that such notice would pose a substantial threat to the integrity of a criminal investigation.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2005
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of the Honorable Gaylord A. Nelson, a former member of the United States Senate from Wisconsin. Declares that when the Senate adjourns on July 11, 2005, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of Senator Nelson.
United States · United States Congress · 11 July 2005
Declares that the Senate: (1) expresses deepest sympathies and condolences to the people of the United Kingdom and the victims and their families for the heinous terrorist attacks that occurred in London on July 7, 2005; (2) condemns these barbaric and unwarranted attacks on the innocent people of London; (3) expresses strong and continued solidarity with the people of the United Kingdom and pledges to remain shoulder-to-shoulder with them to bring the terrorists responsible for these brutal attacks to justice; and (4) calls upon the international community to renew and strengthen efforts to defeat terrorists by dismantling terrorist networks and exposing the violent and nihilistic ideology of terrorism, increase international cooperation to advance personal and religious freedoms, ethnic and racial tolerance, political liberty and pluralism, and economic prosperity, and combat the social injustice, oppression, poverty, and extremism that breeds terrorism.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 2005
Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act - Establishes an Unsolved Crimes Section in the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. Requires the Chief of the Section to be responsible for investigating and prosecuting violations of criminal civil rights statutes in which the complaint alleges that such a violation occurred not later than December 31, 1969, and resulted in a death. Requires the Chief to consult with state or local officials regarding the appropriate venue for a case where there has been a violation of a criminal civil rights statute that is also a violation of a state or local law. Directs the Chief to refer cases to the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division if the Chief determines that the subject of the complaint has violated a criminal civil rights statute but the violation does not meet the requirements for the Unsolved Crimes Section. Requires the Chief, annually, to determine the cases under his or her jurisdiction for which there is sufficient evidence to prosecute violations of criminal civil rights statutes.
United States · United States Congress · 1 July 2005
Recognizes and pays tribute to Sandra Day O'Connor, Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.
United States · United States Congress · 30 June 2005
ALS Registry Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to: (1) develop a system to collect data on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS); and (2) establish a national registry for the collection and storage of ALS data. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Director, to establish the Advisory Committee on the National ALS Registry to study and make recommendations to the Secretary concerning: (1) the development and maintenance of the registry; (2) the type of information to be included; (3) the manner in which data is to be collected; (4) the use and availability of such data; and (5) the collection of information about diseases and disorders that primarily affect motor neurons that are considered essential to furthering the study and cure of ALS. Allows the Secretary, acting through the Director, to award grants to, and enter into contracts and cooperative agreements with, public or private nonprofit entities for the collection, analysis, and reporting of data on ALS. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Director, to: (1) identify, build upon, expand, and coordinate among existing data and surveillance systems, surveys, registries, and other federal public health and environmental infrastructure wherever possible; and (2) provide for public access to an electronic national database that accepts data from state registries, health care professionals, and others as recommended by the Advisory Committee in a manner that protects personal privacy. Requires the Secretary to ensure that epidemiological and other types of information is made available to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2005
Calls for Congress to support: (1) efforts to promote awareness of cancer in children; (2) increased investment in childhood cancer research; (3) incentives to encourage medical trainees and investigators to enter the field of pediatric oncology; (4) incentives to encourage the development of drugs and biologics designed to treat pediatric cancers; (5) policies that encourage participation in clinical trials; (6) medical education curricula designed to improve pain management for cancer patients; and (7) enhanced education, services, and other resources related to late effects from treatment.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2005
Stop the Raid on Social Security Act of 2005 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to establish a Social Security Personal Retirement Accounts Program, to be administered by a Social Security Personal Savings Board established within the Social Security Administration. Authorizes any individual credited with wages paid after December 31, 2005, or self-employment income derived in any taxable year ending after such date, who is born on or after January 1, 1950, and who has not filed an election to renounce such individual's status as a participating individual, to participate in the Program. Directs the Board to establish a social security personal retirement account for each participating individual upon initial receipt of a transfer from amounts held in the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund. Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to make necessary transfers from the general fund of the Treasury to maintain a 100 percent ratio of assets of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund to the annual amount required to pay the full amount of benefits payable for each year up to 2041. Requires designation of a certified account manager by or on behalf of each participating individual to hold the individual's account assets for investment, including in broad-based index funds similar to the index fund investment options available within the Thrift Savings Fund. Prescribes requirements for withdrawal from such accounts, annuitization, and related matters. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make all social security personal retirement accounts exempt from income taxation; but (2) subject distributions from closed accounts to taxation as social security benefits. Exempts assets of Social Security Personal Retirement Accounts from the estate tax.
United States · United States Congress · 23 June 2005
Community Broadband Act of 2005 - Amends the Telecommunications Act of 1996 to prohibit any state statute, regulation, or other legal requirement from prohibiting any public provider from providing, to any person or public or private entity, advanced telecommunications capability or any service that utilizes such capability. Defines as a "public provider" any State or political subdivision thereof, or Indian tribe, that provides telecommunications capability or any service that utilizes such capability.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2005
Rural Renaissance Act II of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow holders of rural renaissance bonds a nonrefundable tax credit of 25 percent of the annual credit amount as determined by the Secretary of the Treasury. Defines "rural renaissance bond" as any bond issued by a nonprofit cooperative lender that is used for capital expenditures for qualified projects in rural areas, including projects for water or waste treatment, affordable housing, community facilities (e.g., hospitals, fire and police stations, nursing facilities, etc.), rural utility infrastructure, broadband technology, and rural teleworks. Sets forth rules for maturity limitations, arbitrage, and expenditures, including a requirement that 95 percent of the proceeds from the sale of a bond issue be spent on qualified projects within five yeas from the date of a bond issuance.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 2005
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of the Honorable J. James Exon, former United States Senator for Nebraska. Declares that when the Senate adjourns on June 13, 2005, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of Senator Exon.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2005
Gynecologic Cancer Education and Awareness Act of 2005 or Johanna's Law - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a national campaign to increase the awareness and knowledge of women with respect to gynecologic cancers, which shall include: (1) maintaining a supply of written materials to provide information to the public on gynecologic cancers; and (2) developing and placing public service announcements to encourage women to discuss their risks of gynecologic cancers with their physicians. Requires the Secretary to award grants to nonprofit private entities to test different outreach and education strategies for increasing such awareness among women and health professionals.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2005
Commission on the Accountability and Review of Federal Agencies Act - Establishes the Commission on the Accountability and Review of Federal Agencies to: (1) evaluate executive agencies and their programs; and (2) submit to Congress a plan recommending agencies and programs that should be realigned or eliminated and proposing implementing legislation. Directs the President to: (1) establish a systematic method for assessing the effectiveness and accountability of agency programs; and (2) submit to the Commission assessments of not less than 50 percent of the programs that use such method. Prohibits the implementation of such method until it has been reviewed and accepted by the Commission. Requires the Commission to consider submitted assessments in evaluating programs. Requires the President to identify common performance measures for programs having similar functions and provide the Commission with data on such measures.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2005
Helping Our Patriotic Employers at Helping Our Military Employees Act of 2005 or the HOPE at HOME Act of 2005 - Entitles federal employees who are absent from their jobs for a period of more than 90 days for the purpose of performing active duty service in the uniformed services to receive the full amount of basic pay that they would have received if there had been no such interruption in their federal employment. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow employers a business tax credit for 50 percent of the actual compensation paid to Ready Reserve-National Guard employees while on active duty or hospitalized incident to such duty; (2) allow employers a tax credit for wages paid to temporary employees hired to replace Ready Reserve-National Guard employees while on active duty; (3) provide for withholding of tax on differential wage payments to active duty members of the uniformed services; and (4) treat such differential wage payments as employee compensation for retirement plan purposes, including for the deductibility of contributions to individual retirement accounts.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2005
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the President should designate the week beginning September 11, 2005, as National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2005
Southern Campaign of the Revolution Heritage Area Study Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to study the suitability and feasibility of designating specified South Carolina counties, including specified public sites, other sites maintained by the State, and National Park Service sites in the State, and, possibly, North Carolina sites, as the Southern Campaign of the Revolution Heritage Area.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2005
District of Columbia Personal Protection Act - Amends specified law prohibiting the killing of wild birds and wild animals in the District of Columbia to declare that nothing in it or any other provision of law shall authorize or be construed to permit the Council, the Mayor, or any governmental or regulatory authority of the District to prohibit, constructively prohibit, or unduly burden the ability of persons otherwise not prohibited from possessing firearms under Federal law from acquiring, possessing in their homes or businesses, or using for sporting, self-protection or other lawful purposes, any firearm neither prohibited by Federal law nor subject to the National Firearms Act. Denies the District any authority to enact laws or regulations that discourage or eliminate the private ownership or use of firearms. Amends the Firearms Control Regulations Act of 1975 to repeal the definition of a machine gun as any firearm which shoots, is designed to shoot, or can be readily converted or restored to shoot semiautomatically, more than 12 shots without manual reloading. (Thus repeals the ban on semiautomatic weapons.) Redefines "machine gun" to include the frame or receiver of any such weapon, any part designed and intended solely and exclusively, or combination of parts designed and intended, for use in converting a weapon into a machine gun, and any combination of parts from which a machine gun can be assembled if such parts are in the possession or under the control of a person. Repeals the District's: (1) registration requirement for possession of firearms; (2) prohibition on possession of handgun restricted pistol bullets; and (3) requirement that, under certain conditions, firearms in the possession of certain individuals must be kept unloaded, disassembled, or with the trigger locked. Repeals the definition of restricted pistol bullet as any bullet designed for use in a pistol which, when fired from a pistol with a barrel of five inches or less in length, is capable of penetrating commercially available body armor with a penetration resistance equal to or greater than that of 18 layers of kevlar. Maintains the current ban on the possession and control of a sawed-off shotgun, machine gun, or short-barreled rifle. Eliminates criminal penalties for possessing an unregistered firearm. Amends Federal law to eliminate criminal penalties for carrying a pistol whether loaded or unloaded in one's dwelling house, place of business, or on land possessed by such person. Amends the District of Columbia Code to extend to firearms generally (currently, only to pistols) the prohibition against carrying such a weapon either openly or concealed within the District without a license issued pursuant to D.C. law. Specifies exceptions to the prohibition against carrying concealed weapons in the District.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2005
Preserving Patient Access to Physicians Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to payment for physicians' services to establish an update to the single conversion factor for 2006 of at least 2.7 %, and a formula for an update to the single conversion factor for 2007. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in calculating the formula for the single conversion factor, to establish an input price index and estimate a productivity adjustment factor for 2007.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2005
Jacob Wetterling, Megan Nicole Kanka, and Pam Lychner Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act or the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act - Repeals existing provisions governing state registration programs for persons convicted of a criminal offense against a minor or of a sexually violent offense. Directs the Attorney General to carry out a Jacob Wetterling, Megan Nicole Kanka, and Pam Lychner Sex Offender Registration and Notification program under which a "covered individual" (an individual convicted of a listed offense against a minor) shall, for that individual's life, provide to the Attorney General specified information, including any change of address and employer. Lists exceptions. Sets penalties for violations. Requires the Attorney General to prescribe regulations to ensure that every covered individual wears and maintains a device that transmits information about that person's whereabouts to the domicile state, subject to specified requirements. Sets penalties for violations. Lists the responsibilities of the Attorney General and State or tribal actors. Provides for specified community notification by law enforcement. Directs the Attorney General to: (1) maintain a National Sex Offender Registry database to track the whereabouts and movements of covered individuals; (2) develop a software application that can be used by state and tribal actors; (3) establish and maintain a database to manage DNA information regarding covered individuals; and (4) carry out a Sex Offender Management Assistance program for awarding grants to states or tribal actors to offset costs associated with implementing this Act. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to subject to deportation any alien who is a covered individual and who fails to provide registration information under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2005
Amends the Exchange Rates and International Economic Policy Coordination Act of 1988 with respect to bilateral negotiations with countries considered to manipulate the rate of exchange between their currency and the U.S. dollar for purposes of preventing effective balance of payments adjustments or gaining unfair competitive advantage in international trade. Reduces the preconditions for the initiation of negotiations by the Secretary of the Treasury to possession of significant bilateral trade surpluses with the United States (removing the other current condition of possession of material global current account surpluses). Declares that a country shall be considered to be manipulating the rate of exchange between its currency and the U.S. dollar if there is a protracted large-scale intervention in one direction in the exchange markets. Requires the Secretary's annual report to specified congressional committees on international economic policy to include a detailed explanation of the test the Secretary uses to determine whether or not a country is manipulating the rate of exchange.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2005
Expedited Remedy for Persistent Dumping Act of 2005 - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 to revise requirements for monitoring cases of suspected persistent dumping to: (1) provide for an expedited antidumping investigation of merchandise from an additional supplier country if the Department of Commerce discerns imports of merchandise from the additional supplier country have increased by 15 percent or more during a period of 90 days or longer; and (2) establish Department of Commerce and International Trade Commission procedures and deadlines for making determinations as to whether or not dumping and injury have occurred. Adds specific conditions for reducing the price used to establish export price or "constructed export price," meaning the amount at which the merchandise is first sold or agreed to be sold in the United States by or for the producer or exporter. Applies this Act to Canada and Mexico under the North American Free Trade Agreement and the North American Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2005
Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005 - Amends Federal monetary law to set forth requirements for the redesign and issuance of circulating $1 coins emblematic of each President of the United States. Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury (Secretary) to issue bullion coins emblematic of the spouse of each such President during the same period in which the $1 coins are issued. Expresses the sense of Congress about the issuance of such coins. Instructs the Secretary to strike and issue for sale $20 gold bullion coins initially bearing the original designs by James Earle Fraser, which appear on the 5-cent coin commonly referred to as the "Buffalo nickel" or the "1913 Type 1." Instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to issue 1-cent coins during the year 2009, whose obverse design continues to bear the Victor David Brenner likeness of President Abraham Lincoln, and whose reverse design bears four different designs each representing a different aspect of Lincoln's life.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2005
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the U.S. Trade Representative should immediately initiate a case (regarding violations of intellectual property rights) against the People's Republic of China through the World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement process.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
Colon Cancer Screen for Life Act of 2005 - Expresses the sense of the Congress with respect to the use of and reimbursement for colorectal cancer screening tests covered under the Medicare program under title XVIII of the Social Security Act (SSA). Amends SSA title XVIII to: (1) increase Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) reimbursement for colorectal cancer screening and diagnostic tests; (2) cover an outpatient office visit or consultation for the purpose of beneficiary education before a colorectal cancer screening test consisting of a colonoscopy, or in conjunction with the beneficiary's decision to obtain such a screening, regardless of whether the screening is medically indicated with respect to the beneficiary; and (3) waive the deductible for such tests.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act - Requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to develop and implement a National Strategy for Border Security and other specified border security programs. Authorizes the Secretary to establish a Border Security Advisory Committee. Requires the Secretary of State to provide a framework for security coordination between the governments of North America. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to: (1) authorize appropriations through FY2011 for the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program; and (2) reimburse states for pre-conviction costs. Amends the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 to authorize additional funding through FY2011 to reimburse states for indirect costs of incarcerating undocumented aliens. Establishes: (1) an H-5A essential worker visa program for low-skilled workers; (2) a mechanism for subsequent adjustment of status; and (3) an Essential Worker Visa Program Task Force. Addresses document security. Requires the Commissioner of Social Security to create a new Employment Eligibility Confirmation System. Amends the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to address the collection of arrival and departure information. Broadens the Department of Labor's investigative authority under INA. Authorizes the Secretary of State to enter into an agreement with foreign governments whose citizens participate in the H-5A program to establish a labor migration facilitation program. Exempts immediate relatives of U.S. citizens from the annual cap on family-sponsored immigrant visas. Increases numerical limits for specified visas. Authorizes H-5B nonimmigrant status for undocumented aliens present in the United States on the date of this Act's introduction who meet specified requirements and pay a fine. Provides a mechanism for subsequent adjustment of status. Defines "authorized representative" for immigration purposes. Makes alien victims of fraud perpetrated by unauthorized representatives eligible for U (victims of certain crimes) nonimmigrant status. Authorizes the Secretary to establish the U.S. Citizenship Foundation. Requires the Secretary to establish a competitive grant program to address civic integration. Amends the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 to extend authorization of Federal reimbursement for hospitals that provide emergency care to undocumented immigrants.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2005
Hospital Fair Competition Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to hospital payments. Provides for the use of estimated costs rather than average charges in establishing weighting factors for diagnosis-related groups under the inpatient hospital prospective payment system. Revises requirements for exceptions to the prohibition against certain physician self-referrals to specialty hospitals in which a physician has invested. Exempts from the limitation on such referrals, and any liability for criminal penalties, specified arrangements between hospitals and physicians.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2005
Jobs Protection and Estate Tax Reform Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to accelerate the repeal of the tax on estates and generation-skipping transfers to January 1, 2005, and to make such repeal permanent.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2005
Reservists Pay Security Act of 2005 - Entitles Federal employees who are absent from their positions while on active duty in the uniformed services or the National Guard to receive the amount of their basic pay which, when taken together with their military pay and allowances, is no less than the amount of pay that they would have earned if there had been no interruption in their civilian employment. Expands the reemployment rights of Federal employees on active duty in the uniformed services. Makes this Act retroactive to pay periods beginning on October 11, 2002, subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
Reform Health Care Now Act - Requires the chairs of specified congressional committees, within 30 calendar days after the commencement of the session of Congress following the enactment of this Act, each to introduce a bill to provide a significant increase in access to health care coverage for the people of the United States. Authorizes the ranking minority party member of a committee, if the chair fails to introduce the bill within the 30-day period, to introduce one that will qualify for the expedited procedure provided in this Act. Qualifies a bill if: (1) its title reads "to reform the health care system of the United States and to provide insurance coverage for Americans;" (2) it reaches the goal of providing health care coverage to 95 % of Americans within 10 years; and (3) it is deficit neutral. Sets forth procedures for expedited consideration of such legislation in both chambers.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2005
Commonsense Consumption Act of 2005 - Prohibits new and dismisses pending civil actions by any person against a manufacturer, marketer, distributor, advertiser, or seller of food or a trade association for any injury related to a person's accumulated acts of consumption of food and weight gain, obesity, or any associated health condition, excluding actions alleging: (1) a breach of express contract or express warranty provided that the grounds of recovery are unrelated to a person's weight gain, obesity, or related health condition; (2) a knowing violation of a federal or state statute applicable to the marketing, advertisement, or labeling of food with intent for a person to rely on that violation, where such person relied on that violation, and where such reliance was the proximate cause of injury related to that person's weight gain, obesity, or related health condition; or (3) a violation brought by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) under the Federal Trade Commission Act or by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Requires in any excluded action: (1) a stay of discovery during the pendency of any motion to dismiss, unless necessary to preserve evidence or to prevent undue prejudice; and (2) evidence preservation during the stay. Requires the complaint in such an action to plead with particularity: (1) each element of the cause of action; (2) the Federal and State statutes that were allegedly violated; (3) the specific facts alleged to constitute the violation of law; and (4) the specific facts that are alleged to have caused the claimed injury.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 2005
Theodore Roosevelt Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue $1 silver coins: (1) emblematic of the life and legacy of President Theodore Roosevelt, bearing his image as a Rough Rider on one side and an eagle design on the other side; and (2) bearing his image on horseback on one side and depicting a flaming sword of righteousness on the other side. Expresses the sense of Congress that the coins should be struck at the U.S. Mint at West Point, New York. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) issue such coins beginning on January 1, 2006; and (2) initiate coin sales before such date. (2006 will mark the 100th anniversary of Roosevelt's award of the Nobel Peace Prize.) Requires payment of $10 surcharges from the coin sales to the Theodore Roosevelt Association, to be used exclusively for educational programs at Sagamore Hill National Historic Site, including a visitor's center.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2005
Fairness in Asbestos Injury Resolution Act of 2005 or the FAIR Act of 2005 - Establishes within the Department of Labor the Office of Asbestos Disease Compensation, to be headed by an Administrator responsible for processing claims for compensation for asbestos-related injuries and managing the Asbestos Injury Claims Resolution Fund (Fund) (established within such Office). Requires the Administrator to: (1) establish an Advisory Committee on Asbestos Disease Compensation; (2) establish a Medical Advisory Committee; (3) establish a comprehensive asbestos claimant assistance program that includes legal assistance; and (4) appoint physicians to claim-specific Physicians Panels. Stays all asbestos claims pending on the date of enactment of this Act (except for specified civil actions already at trial). Sets forth special procedures for the settlement of exigent health claims. Allows non-exigent claims to proceed in Federal or State court if the Fund is not certified as operational within 24 months of enactment. Establishes: (1) procedures for handling claims of asbestos-related disease and injury; (2) occupational exposure presumptions; (3) medical evidence auditing and review procedures and applicable medical criteria; and (4) award amounts and payment methods. Imposes a general five-year statute of limitations for filing claims, with special provisions for pending claims and multiple injuries. Specifies the funding allocation for asbestos defendants required to pay into the Fund. Establishes the Asbestos Insurers Commission to determine Fund payment obligations. Authorizes the Administrator to impose a pro rata surcharge on Fund participants if certain bankruptcy trust assets are unavailable to the Fund and borrowing is insufficient to ensure liquidity. Directs the Administrator to establish a program for the education, consultation, medical screening, and medical monitoring of persons with asbestos exposure. Vests exclusive jurisdiction to review, under expedited consideration: (1) final determinations regarding fund obligations and actions for declaratory and injunctive relief under this Act in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia; and (2) award decisions in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the circuit in which the claimant resides. Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit and establish penalties for fraud and false information in connection with Fund claims. Amends the bankruptcy code to state that Fund contribution obligations are not subject to an automatic stay or dischargeable in bankruptcy. States that nothing in this Act shall be construed to preclude personal injury claims attributable to silica exposure where certain pleading and evidentiary requirements are met. Requires remedies provided by this Act to be the exclusive remedy for asbestos claims except with regard to specified civil actions already at trial. Addresses the effect of this Act on insurance and reinsurance contracts. Requires the sunset of specified provisions of this Act if the Administrator determines that the Fund has insufficient resources. Requires the Administrator to refer possible violations of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the Clean Air Act, and the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSHA) to listed officials for possible civil or criminal penalties. Amends OSHA to enhance criminal penalties for willful violations of occupational standards for asbestos. Directs the Administrator to assess Fund contributions from individuals who have violated asbestos laws administered by the Department of Labor, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and their State counterparts. Requires the U.S. Sentencing Commission to review Federal sentencing guidelines to ensure that environmental crimes relating to asbestos are sufficiently punished. Prohibits discrimination in health insurance coverage against persons who participate in medical monitoring programs under this Act. Amends TSCA to require the Administrator of EPA to promulgate regulations prohibiting the manufacture, processing, or distribution in commerce of asbestos containing products, subject to specified exemptions.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 2005
Christopher Reeve Paralysis Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to permit the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH): (1) acting through the Director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, to expand and coordinate NIH activities on paralysis research; (2) to award grants to plan, establish, improve, and provide basic operating support for Christopher Reeve Paralysis Research Consortia; (3) to educate and disseminate information and receive public comment on NIH programs and research regarding paralysis; (4) acting through the Director of the National Institute on Child Health and Human Development and the National Center for Rehabilitation Research, to expand and coordinate NIH research with implications for enhancing daily function for persons with paralysis; and (5) to make grants to plan, establish, improve, and provide basic operating support for multicenter clinical trial networks to design clinical rehabilitation intervention protocols and measures of outcomes on paralysis. Permits the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to study the health challenges associated with paralysis and other physical disabilities and carry out projects and interventions to improve the quality of life and long-term health status of individuals with such conditions. Permits the Secretary to award grants for activities related to paralysis, including to: (1) establish paralysis registries; and (2) disseminate information to the public. Allows the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to: (1) establish Paralysis Research, Education and Clinical Care Centers; and (2) award grants to medical centers of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to translate clinical findings and recommendations on paralysis into evidence-based best practices.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 2005
Sunshine in the Courtroom Act of 2005 - Authorizes the presiding judge of a U.S. appellate court or U.S. district court to permit the photographing, electronic recording, broadcasting, or televising to the public of court proceedings over which that judge presides. Directs: (1) a district court, upon the request of any witness in a trial proceeding other than a party, to order the face and voice of the witness to be disguised or otherwise obscured to render the witness unrecognizable to the broadcast audience of the trial proceeding; and (2) the presiding judge in a trial proceeding to inform each witness who is not a party of his or her right to make such request. Authorizes the Judicial Conference of the United States to promulgate advisory guidelines to which a presiding judge may refer in making decisions regarding the management and administration of photographing, recording, broadcasting, or televising described in this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2005
Abraham Lincoln Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue $1 coins emblematic of the life and legacy of President Abraham Lincoln in commemoration of the bicentennial of his birth. Permits issuance of such coins only during the one-year period beginning on January 1, 2009. Subjects the coin sales to a surcharge of $10 per coin.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2005
Amends the Trade Act of 1974 to establish a position of Special Trade Prosecutor in the Office of the United States Trade Representative to ensure compliance with trade agreements relating to U.S. manufactured goods and services.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2005
Constitutional Amendment - Grants Congress power to prohibit the physical desecration of the U.S. flag.
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 2005
Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to make grants to public or nonprofit private entities for the development and operation of not more than eight centers to conduct multidisciplinary and multi-institutional research on environmental factors that may be related to the etiology of breast cancer. Requires each such center to: (1) be known as a Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Center of Excellence; (2) establish ongoing collaborations with community organizations; (3) be formed from a consortium of cooperating institutions; (4) be supported under this Act for a period of not more than five years with additional periods allowed after review and recommendation; and (5) use innovative approaches to study unexplored areas of the environment and breast cancer. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Panel to make recommendations for and to review grants awarded under this Act
United States · United States Congress · 7 April 2005
Declares that: (1) European governments should reject Airbus' pending application for launch aid for the A350 and any future applications for launch aid; (2) the European Union, acting for itself and on behalf of its Member States, should renew its commitment to the terms agreed to on January 11, 2005; (3) the U.S. Trade Representative should request the formation of a World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute resolution panel at the earliest possible opportunity if there is no immediate agreement to eliminate launch aid for the A350 and all future models and no concrete progress toward a comprehensive bilateral agreement covering all government supports in the large aircraft sector; and (4) the President should take any additional action the President considers appropriate to protect the U.S. interests in fair competition in the large commercial aircraft market.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2005
Collegiate Housing and Infrastructure Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit organizations organized and operated exclusively for charitable or educational purposes and which make collegiate housing and infrastructure improvement grants to continue to be treated as tax-exempt organizations so long as all of the active members of the recipient organization are full-time students at the college or university with which the recipient organization is associated.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2005
Prematurity Research Expansion and Education for Mothers who deliver Infants Early Act or PREEMIE Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to expand and coordinate NIH research on preterm labor and delivery, infant mortality, and low birthweight infants. Establishes the Maternal-Fetal Medicine Units Network and the Neonatal Research Units Network within NIH. Requires the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to: (1) expand and coordinate CDC activities on preterm labor and delivery and infant mortality; (2) conduct a study on the relationship between prematurity, birth defects, and developmental disabilities; and (3) review the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring Survey. Requires the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development's national longitudinal study of environmental influences on children's health and development to consider the impact of assisted reproduction technologies. Requires the Director of NIH to contract with the Institute of Medicine to study the health and economic consequences of preterm birth. Directs the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to assess certain core performance and outcome measures utilized under the Social Security Act for purposes of expanding such measures to include known risk factors of low birthweight and prematurity. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) conduct a demonstration project to improve the provision of information on prematurity to health professionals and the public; (2) conduct projects to support the informational and emotional needs of families during the stay of an infant in a neonatal intensive care unit, during the transition of the infant to the home, and in the event of a newborn death; and (3) establish an Interagency Coordinating Council on Prematurity and Low Birthweight.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2005
Joins the world in mourning the death of Pope John Paul II, and pays tribute to him by pledging to be ever faithful to our national calling to be "one Nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all,'' and to help our neighbors in immeasurable ways.