United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2015
STEM Support for Teachers in Education and Mentoring (STEM) Act or the STEM 2 Act Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to award competitive planning grants to states, Indian tribes or tribal organizations, nonprofit organizations, or institutions of higher education (IHEs) to develop effective state or tribal science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) networks that coordinate STEM education efforts by: (1) facilitating communication and collaboration among public and private STEM stakeholders, and (2) identifying STEM occupational skills needed in the future. Directs the Secretary to award competitive grants to states, Indian tribes or tribal organizations, local educational agencies (LEAs), IHEs, or nonprofit organizations to develop, implement, and evaluate STEM education training programs for teachers and administrators in elementary, middle, and secondary schools and for preservice teachers in postsecondary schools. Requires the Secretary to award competitive grants to states, Indian tribes or tribal organizations, LEAs, public charter schools, IHEs, or nonprofit organizations to support curriculum development, assessments, or related activities that enable states to adopt new mathematics and science academic standards. Requires the Secretary to establish a national panel to identify and recommend the most effective STEM curricula models for kindergarten through grade 12.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2015
IDEA MOE Adjustment Act Amends the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act to alter the formula for reallocating the federal special education funding that is denied to states that reduce their level of special education funding from one fiscal year to the next. Reallocates: 85% of those funds on the basis of each nonpenalized state's share of children aged 3 through 21 who are of the same age as children with disabilities for whom the state provides a free appropriate public education, and 15% of those funds on the basis of each nonpenalized state's share of those children who are impoverished. Prohibits the Secretary of Education from considering those penalties or redistributions when calculating the amount of special education funds a state received in a preceding fiscal year for purposes of determining the state's current share of federal special education funds. Limits the application of the penalty imposed on a state that reduces its special education funding from one fiscal year to the next to a reduction of federal special education funds (equal to the amount of the state shortfall) that is imposed: (1) the following fiscal year, or (2) over a multi-year period that is no more than five consecutive fiscal years. (Currently, that penalty may be imposed on a state for any fiscal year after the fiscal year the state reduces its special education funding.)
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2015
Bipartisan Sportsmen's Act of 2015 This bill revises a variety of existing programs to expand access to, and opportunities for, hunting, fishing, and recreational shooting. The Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act is reauthorized through FY2025. The North American Wetlands Conservation Act and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act are reauthorized through FY2020. Components of firearms and ammunition and sport fishing equipment and its components (such as lead sinkers) are exempted from regulations of chemical substances under the Toxic Substances Control Act. The proportion of funding from the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act that states may use for public target ranges is increased. Interior must issue permits for the importation of polar bear parts taken in sports hunts in Canada before May 15, 2008, which is the date the species was listed as threatened. The bill revises standards for determining what a baited area is for purposes of the prohibition on taking migratory game birds. Federal public land management officials must facilitate hunting, fishing, and recreational shooting on certain federal public land. Land under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management or the Forest Service must be open for hunting, fishing, and recreational shooting unless the managing agency acts to close the land. This bill provides special rules to expand access to federal land and waterways for film crews of five people or fewer. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers may not prohibit individuals from possessing a firearm in public areas of a water resources development project. The National Park Service may not prohibit individuals from transporting bows and crossbows if certain requirements are met. Funds from the Land and Water Conservation Fund are allocated for priority projects that secure public access to federal public lands for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2015
Mobile Workforce State Income Tax Simplification Act of 2015 Prohibits the wages or other remuneration earned by an employee who performs employment duties in more than one state from being subject to income tax in any state other than: (1) the state of the employee's residence, and (2) the state within which the employee is present and performing employment duties for more than 30 days during the calendar year. Exempts employers from withholding of tax and information reporting requirements for employees not subject to income tax under this Act. Allows an employer, for purposes of determining penalties related to employer withholding or reporting requirements, to rely on an employee's annual determination of the time such employee will spend working in a state in the absence of fraud or collusion by such employee. Exempts from the definition of "employee" for purposes of this Act professional athletes, professional entertainers, and public figures who are persons of prominence who perform services for wages or other remuneration on a per-event basis.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 2015
Electronic Communications Privacy Act Amendments Act of 2015 Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit a provider of remote computing service or electronic communication service to the public from knowingly divulging to a governmental entity the contents of any communication that is in electronic storage or otherwise maintained by the provider, subject to exceptions. Revises provisions under which the government may require a provider to disclose the contents of such communications. Eliminates the different requirements applicable under current law depending on whether such communications were: (1) stored for fewer than, or more than, 180 days by an electronic communication service; or (2) held by an electronic communication service as opposed to a remote computing service. Requires the government to obtain a warrant from a court before requiring providers to disclose the content of such communications regardless of how long the communication has been held in electronic storage by an electronic communication service or whether the information is sought from an electronic communication service or a remote computing service. Requires a law enforcement agency, within 10 days after receiving the contents of a customer's communication, or a governmental entity, within 3 days, to provide a customer whose communications were disclosed by the provider a copy of the warrant and a notice that such information was requested by, and supplied to, the government entity. Allows the government to request delays of such notifications. Prohibits disclosure requirements that apply to providers from being construed to limit the government's authority to use an administrative or civil discovery subpoena to require: (1) an originator or recipient of an electronic communication to disclose the contents of such communication, or (2) an entity that provides electronic communication services to its employees or agents to disclose the contents of an electronic communication to or from such employee or agent if the communication is on an electronic communications system owned or operated by the entity. Allows the government to apply for an order directing a provider, for a specified period, to refrain from notifying any other person that the provider has been required to disclose communications or records. Requires a Government Accountability Office report regarding disclosures of customer communications and records under provisions: (1) as in effect before the enactment of this bill, and (2) as amended by this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 2015
Senate Campaign Disclosure Parity Act Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to require all election-related designations, statements, and reports required to be filed under the Act to be filed directly with the Federal Election Commission.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 2015
Access to Contraception for Women Servicemembers and Dependents Act of 2015 Expands the TRICARE health care program managed by the Department of Defense (DOD) to entitle additional female beneficiaries and dependents to care related to the prevention of pregnancy. (Currently, such care is limited to certain female members of the uniformed service or a reserve component performing active duty or certain servicewomen performing inactive-duty training.) Prohibits cost-sharing from being imposed or collected for such pregnancy prevention care, including for any method of contraception provided through a facility of the uniformed services, the TRICARE retail pharmacy program, or the national mail-order pharmacy program. Provides for such pregnancy prevention care to include all methods of contraception approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), sterilization procedures, and patient education and counseling. Directs the DOD Secretary to: (1) ensure that every military treatment facility has a sufficient stock of a broad range of FDA-approved methods of contraception to dispense to any women members of the Armed Forces and female covered beneficiaries who receive care through such facility, (2) disseminate clinical practice guidelines and decision support tools to DOD-employed health care providers, (3) ensure that women members of the Armed Forces have access to comprehensive counseling on contraception during health care visits, and (4) establish uniform curriculum to be used in family planning education programs for all men and women members of the Armed Forces. Requires questions regarding family planning services and counseling to be incorporated into DOD health surveys. Requires every military treatment facility, upon request, to provide emergency contraception, or information about FDA-approved methods of emergency contraception, to any woman who: (1) states to personnel that she is a victim of sexual assault or is accompanied by another individual who states that the woman is a victim of sexual assault, or (2) is reasonably believed to be a survivor of sexual assault.
United States · United States Congress · 4 February 2015
Small Brewer Reinvestment and Expanding Workforce Act or the Small BREW Act Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce the rate of the excise tax on beer produced within or imported into the United States for brewers who produce not more than 6 million barrels of beer a year.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2015
Amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to make permanent the authorization for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Requires not less than 1.5% of the annual authorized funding amount or $10 million, whichever is greater, to be used for projects that secure recreational public access to existing federal public land for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2015
Conservation Easement Incentive Act of 2015 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the tax deduction for charitable contributions by individuals and corporations of real property interests for conservation purposes, and (2) allow Native Corporations an increased tax deduction for donations of conservation easements related to lands conveyed under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2015
Radiation Exposure Compensation Act Amendments of 2015 Amends the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act to extend the Radiation Exposure Compensation Trust Fund until 19 years after enactment of this Act. Prescribes additional periods of required presence in an affected area during atmospheric nuclear testing for individuals filing leukemia or specified disease claims. Increases the amount of compensation an individual filing a claim may receive to $150,000. Expands "affected area" to include Colorado, Idaho, Montana, and New Mexico, as well as any county in Arizona, Nevada, or Utah. Extends to December 31, 1990, the period during which an individual employed at any time in a uranium mine or uranium mill is made eligible to receive compensation for a disease claim due to radiation exposure. Makes a core driller eligible to receive compensation upon filing of a disease claim. Makes miners, core drillers, and ore transporters who suffer renal cancer or any other chronic renal disease, including nephritis and kidney tubal tissue injury, eligible for compensation due to exposure to radiation while on the job. Requires the Attorney General to accept written affidavits meeting specified requirements regarding employment history, physical presence in an affected area, or participation at a nuclear testing site in determining the eligibility of claimants. Extends until 19 years after enactment of this Act the statute of limitations for the filing of such claims. Increases from 2% to 10% of the payment received by a claimant the maximum amount of attorneys fees that can be charged for the filing of an initial claim. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, through the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, to establish a program of grants to institutions of higher education to study the epidemiological impacts of uranium mining and milling among non-occupationally exposed individuals, including family members of uranium miners and millers. Amends the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000 to include as a member of the Special Exposure Cohort entitled to compensation with respect to chronic beryllium disease under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program any Department of Energy employee or contractor who contracted cancer after beginning employment between January 1, 1942, and December 31, 1990, in a uranium mine or mill located in Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Wyoming, South Dakota, Washington, Utah, Idaho, North Dakota, Oregon, Texas, or any other state the Attorney General includes.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2015
Stewardship End Result Contracting Improvement Act Amends the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 to authorize the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to obligate funds to cover any potential cancellation or termination costs (cancellation ceiling) in stages that are economically or programmatically viable with respect to an agreement or contract for a stewardship end result contracting project. Requires the Forest Service and BLM to submit written notice to Congress and the Office of Management and Budget 30 days before entering into a multiyear agreement or contract that includes a cancellation ceiling exceeding $25 million if proposed funding for the costs of cancelling the agreement or contract up to the ceiling is not included. Allows the Forest Service and BLM, if the offset value of the forest products to be removed exceeds the value of the resource improvement treatments, to: (1) use the excess to satisfy any outstanding liabilities for cancelled agreements or contracts; or (2) if there are no such outstanding liabilities, apply the excess to other authorized stewardship projects.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2015
Boys Town Centennial Commemorative Coin Act Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue up to 50,000 $5 gold coins, 350,000 $1 silver coins, and 300,000 half-dollar clad coins to commemorate the centennial of the founding of Father Flanagan's Boys Town. Requires the design of the coins to be emblematic of the 100 years of Boys Town, one of the largest nonprofit child care agencies in the United States. Permits issuance of such coins only between January 1, 2017, and December 31, 2017. Subjects all coin sales to specified surcharges, which shall be paid to Boys Town to carry out its cause of caring for and assisting children and families in underserved communities across America. Directs the Secretary to ensure that: (1) minting and issuing such coins will not result in any net cost to the federal government; and (2) no funds, including surcharges, will be disbursed to Boys Town until the total cost of designing and issuing all authorized coins is recovered by the Treasury.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2015
Safe Schools Improvement Act of 2015 Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require states to direct their local educational agencies (LEAs) to establish policies that prevent and prohibit conduct, including bullying and harassment, that is sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive to: (1) limit students' ability to participate in, or benefit from, school programs; or (2) create a hostile or abusive educational environment that adversely affects their education. Requires LEAs to also provide: (1) students, parents, and educational professionals with annual notice of the conduct prohibited in their discipline policies; (2) students and parents with grievance procedures that target such conduct; and (3) the public with annual data on the incidence and frequency of that conduct at the school and LEA level. Requires: (1) the Secretary of Education to conduct, and report on, an independent biennial evaluation of programs and policies to combat bullying and harassment in elementary and secondary schools; and (2) the Commissioner for Education Statistics to collect state data, that are subject to independent review, to determine the incidence and frequency of the conduct prohibited by LEA discipline policies.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2015
Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act of 2015 This bill states that: the President may not prohibit or otherwise regulate travel to or from Cuba by U.S. citizens or legal residents, or any of the transactions incident to such travel, including banking transactions; any regulation in effect on the date of enactment of this Act prohibiting or otherwise regulating such travel or transactions incident to such travel shall cease to have any force or effective; but the prohibitions and requirements of this Act shall not apply if the United States is at war with Cuba, armed hostilities between the two countries are in progress, or there is imminent danger to the public health or the physical safety of U.S. travelers.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2015
Retired Pay Restoration Act of 2015 Allows the receipt of both military retired pay and veterans' disability compensation with respect to any service-connected disability (under current law, only a disability rated at 50% or more). Makes eligible for the full concurrent receipt of both veterans' disability compensation and either military retired pay or combat-related special pay those individuals who were retired or separated from military service due to a service-connected disability.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2015
Protecting Access to Rural Therapy Services (PARTS) Act Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to state that, except with respect to high-risk or complex medical services requiring direct levels of supervision, if the Secretary of Health and Human Services requires supervision by a physician or non-physician practitioner for Medicare payment for therapeutic hospital outpatient services, that requirement is met if such services are furnished under the physician's or non-physician practitioner's general supervision. Directs the Secretary to establish a process for designating therapeutic hospital outpatient services for which direct supervision may be required for the entire service or direct supervision during the initiation of the service followed by general supervision for the remainder of the service. Declares without force or effect in law regarding Medicare requirements for direct supervision by physicians for therapeutic hospital outpatient services a specified restatement and clarification under the final rulemaking changes to the Medicare hospital outpatient prospective payment system and calendar year 2009 payment rates, which was published in the Federal Register on November 18, 2008.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2015
Critical Access Hospital Relief Act of 2015 Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to repeal the 96-hour physician certification requirement for inpatient critical access hospital services under which a physician must certify that a patient may reasonably be expected to be discharged or transferred to a hospital within 96 hours after admission to the critical access hospital.
United States · United States Congress · 27 January 2015
Homeless Children and Youth Act of 2015 Amends the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act to redefine "homeless," "homeless individual," or "homeless person." Modifies requirements relating to an individual or family who will imminently lose their housing, including housing they own, rent, or live in without paying rent. Revises criteria for unaccompanied youth and homeless families with children and youth defined as homeless under other federal statutes to require that they: are certified as homeless by the director or designee of a program funded under any other federal statute; or have been certified by a director of a program funded under this Act or a director of a public housing agency (PHA) as lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, which shall include: (1) temporarily sharing the housing of another person due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or other similar reason; or (2) living in a room in a motel or hotel. Requires the information provided to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) from a collaborative applicant about project sponsors in a community-wide homeless management information system (HMIS) to be made publicly available on HUD's website in aggregate, non-personally identifying reports, and updated at least annually. Prohibits the Secretary, in awarding grants for continuum of care programs, from considering or prioritizing the specific homeless populations intended to be served by the applicant if the applicant demonstrates that the project: (1) would meet the priorities identified in the applicant's plan, and (2) is cost-effective in meeting the overall goals and objectives identified in that plan. Repeals certain requirements regarding collaborative applicants. Modifies requirements for selection criteria for the award of grants through a national competition between geographic areas. Requires annual reports to Congress on housing assistance for the homeless to include data: (1) required to be made publicly available in the HMIS report, and (2) on programs funded under other specified federal statutes.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2015
Fifth Amendment Integrity Restoration Act of 2015 or the FAIR Act This bill modifies general rules governing civil forfeiture proceedings to: (1) ensure that a person contesting a civil forfeiture has legal representation without regard to whether the property subject to forfeiture is being used by such person as a primary residence; (2) increase the federal government's burden of proof in civil forfeiture proceedings to clear and convincing evidence; (3) require the government, in addition to showing a substantial connection between the seized property and an offense, to establish by clear and convincing evidence that the owner of any interest in the seized property used the property with intent to facilitate the offense or knowingly consented or was willfully blind to the use of the property by another in connection with the offense; and (4) expand the proportionality criteria used by a court to determine whether a civil forfeiture was constitutionally excessive. To remove incentives for carrying out civil forfeitures, the bill requires proceeds from the disposition of seized property to be deposited into the General Fund of the Treasury, rather than to Department of Justice accounts for law enforcement activities. The bill adds a scienter requirement (i.e., a knowing violation) to the prohibition against structuring financial transactions to evade reporting requirements. The bill requires: (1) a court to conduct a probable cause hearing to determine if there is a violation of the prohibition against structuring transactions to evade reporting requirements involving a monetary instrument and to return such instrument if probable cause is not established, and (2) the Attorney General to specify in reports to Congress and the public on forfeitures the amounts received from criminal and civil forfeitures.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2015
Reaffirms that it is U.S. policy that Iran will not be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon and that all instruments of U.S. power and influence must remain on the table to prevent this outcome. Supports the diplomatic efforts of the United States and the members of the P5+1 countries to reach a comprehensive agreement with Iran that prevents Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. Affirms that Senate support for the reimposition of suspended sanctions as well as the imposition of additional sanctions against Iran would be strong if: (1) negotiations fail to achieve a comprehensive agreement, (2) Iran violates the Joint Plan of Action, or (3) Iran violates any final comprehensive agreement on its nuclear program. Agrees that future new sanctions against Iran may include measures further targeting Iran's energy, financial, and strategic economic sectors, and its foreign currency transactions, as well as the designation of additional government officials linked to its illicit nuclear program and sanctions evasion. Supports the universal rights and democratic aspirations of the people of Iran.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015
Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children Act Establishes the Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children in the Office of Tribal Justice of the Department of Justice. Requires the President and Congress to appoint to the Commission individuals who have significant experience and expertise in Indian affairs and matters to be studied by the Commission, including health care issues facing Native children, Indian education, juvenile justice programs, and social service programs used by Native children. Requires the Commission to establish a Native Advisory Committee consisting of representatives of Indian tribes from each region of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and a native Hawaiian. Requires members of the Committee to be experienced in matters to be studied by the Commission. Requires the Commission to conduct a comprehensive study of federal, state, local, and tribal programs that serve Native children, including an evaluation of: the impact of concurrent jurisdiction on child welfare systems; barriers Indian tribes and Native Hawaiians face in using public and private grant resources; obstacles to nongovernmental financial support for programs benefitting Native children; issues relating to the validity and statistical significance of data on Native children; barriers to the development of sustainable, multidisciplinary programs designed to assist high-risk Native children and their families; cultural or socioeconomic challenges in communities of Native children; examples of successful program models and use of best practices in programs that serve children and families; barriers to interagency coordination; and the use of memoranda of agreement or interagency agreements to facilitate or improve agency coordination. Directs the Commission to use the results of the study and analyses of existing federal data to: develop recommendations for goals, and plans for achieving them, for federal policy relating to Native children in the short-, mid-, and long-term informed by the development of accurate child well-being measures, except as specified; recommend modifications and improvements to programs that serve Native children (on the condition that such recommendations recognize the diversity in cultural values) that integrate the cultural strengths of Native communities and result in improvements to the child welfare system, the mental and physical health of Native children, educational and vocational opportunities, and tribal juvenile detention programs; recommend improvements to the collection of data regarding Native children and the programs that serve them; and identify models of successful federal, state, and tribal programs in the areas studied by the Commission. Prohibits the Commission, when developing recommendations and plans for federal policy on Native children, from considering or recommending recognition or establishment of a government-to-government relationship with: (1) any entity not recognized on or before the date of enactment of this Act by the Federal Government through an Act of Congress, Executive action, judicial decree, or any other action; or (2) any entity not included in the authorized list under the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994. Requires the Commission to report to the President, Congress, and the White House Council on Native American Affairs on its findings, conclusions, and recommendations for legislative and administrative action. Terminates the Commission 90 days after the report is submitted.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of Wendell H. Ford, former member of the U.S. Senate. Declares that when the Senate adjourns on January 22, 2015, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of the late Senator Ford.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015
Small Airport Regulation Relief Act of 2015 Prescribes a special rule to require the Secretary of Transportation for FY2015-FY2017 to apportion amounts for airport planning and development and noise compatibility planning and programs to sponsors of primary airports based on the number of passenger boardings at the airport during calendar year 2012 if it had: (1) fewer than 10,000 passenger boardings during the calendar year used to calculate the apportionment for FY2015-FY2017, and (2) 10,000 or more passenger boardings during calendar year 2012.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015
Wildfire Disaster Funding Act of 2015 This bill amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 to require specified adjustments to discretionary spending limits in FY2016-FY2025 to accommodate appropriations for wildfire suppression operations in the Wildland Fire Management accounts at the Department of Agriculture (USDA) or the Department of the Interior. If USDA or Interior determines that supplemental appropriations are necessary for wildfire suppression operations, the bill requires the relevant department to submit to Congress a request for the funding and a plan for obligating the funds. The bill also requires the President's budget to include the average costs for wildfire suppression over the previous 10 years.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2015
Expresses support for efforts to: ensure that women have access to the best available health care and information, including comprehensive, affordable insurance coverage and health care that fosters safe childbearing; ensure that women can make their own health care decisions; prohibit employers or government entities from interfering with reproductive health care services guaranteed by law; and guarantee the constitutionally protected right to safe, legal abortions.
United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015
Democracy Is Strengthened by Casting Light On Spending in Elections Act of 2015 or the DISCLOSE Act of 2015 Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (FECA) to redefine the term "independent expenditure" as an expenditure by a person that, when taken as a whole, expressly advocates the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate, or is the functional equivalent of express advocacy because it can be interpreted by a reasonable person only as advocating the election or defeat of a candidate, taking into account whether the communication involved mentions a candidacy, a political party, or a challenger to a candidate, or takes a position on a candidate's character, qualifications, or fitness for office. Expands the period during which certain communications are treated as electioneering communications. Prescribes disclosure requirements for corporations, labor organizations, and certain other entities, including a political committee with an account established for the purpose of accepting donations or contributions that do not comply with the contribution limits or source prohibitions under FECA (but only with respect to such accounts). Repeals the prohibition against political contributions by individuals age 17 or younger.
United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015
Women's Health Protection Act of 2015 This bill prohibits any government from imposing on abortion services: a requirement that a medical professional perform specific tests or medical procedures; a requirement that the same clinician who performs a patient's abortion also perform additional tests, services or procedures; a limitation on an abortion provider's ability to prescribe or dispense drugs or provide services via telemedicine; a requirement or limitation concerning the physical plant, equipment, staffing, or hospital transfer arrangements of facilities where abortions are performed, or the credentials, hospital privileges, or status of personnel at those facilities; a requirement that, prior to obtaining an abortion, a patient make medically unnecessary in-person visits to any individual or entity; a limitation on medical training for abortion procedures; a prohibition prior to fetal viability; a prohibition after fetal viability when continuation of the pregnancy would pose a risk to the woman's life or health; a restriction on a woman's ability to obtain an immediate abortion when a delay would pose a risk to the woman's health; or a restriction on obtaining an abortion prior to fetal viability based on a woman's reasons or perceived reasons or that requires her to state her reasons before obtaining an abortion. A measure or action that is similar to a requirement or limitation listed above is prohibited if it singles out abortion services or makes abortion services more difficult to access and does not significantly advance women's health or the safety of abortion services.
United States · United States Congress · 21 January 2015
Constitutional Amendment Authorizes Congress and the states to set reasonable limits on the raising and spending of money by candidates and others to influence elections. Grants Congress and the states the power to implement and enforce this amendment by appropriate legislation. Allows them to distinguish between natural persons and corporations or other artificial entities created by law, including by prohibiting such entities from spending money to influence elections. Declares that nothing in this amendment shall be construed to grant Congress or the states the power to abridge the freedom of the press.
United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2015
Support Making Assessments Reliable and Timely Act or the SMART Act Amends subpart 1 (Accountability) of part A of title VI of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to revise the program allotting grants to states to develop and administer state academic content and achievement standards and assessments of student progress toward those standards. Requires each state to use such grant to: develop and administer such assessments and further align them with the state's academic content standards, ensure that students with limited English proficiency and disabled students are provided with appropriate accommodations to improve their inclusion in the assessments, develop state assessment systems aligned to content standards that support systems of continuous improvement, support local educational agencies (LEAs) in identifying uses of assessment data, and carry out certain other activities to improve the quality and use of state assessments. Revises the program awarding competitive grants to states to enhance assessment instruments. Requires each grantee that has not yet received a grant under such program to use the grant to: carry out audits of the state assessment system and ensure that LEAs carry out audits of local assessments; prepare and carry out a state plan, in coordination with LEAs, to improve and streamline state and local assessment systems; and award subgrants to LEAs to improve the quality and use of local assessments and their alignment with state academic content standards. Requires a state that has previously received such a grant to use a new grant to: carry out a state plan, in coordination with LEAs, to improve and streamline state and local assessment systems; and award subgrants to LEAs to improve the quality and use of local assessments and their alignment with state academic content standards. Directs the Secretary to provide technical assistance to states to improve their understanding of existing flexibility in the design and implementation of high-quality, streamlined state assessment systems to measure student progress toward state academic achievement standards. Reauthorizes appropriations for the National Assessment of Educational Progress and the revised subpart 1 grant programs.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 2015
Biennial Budgeting and Appropriations Act Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to require biennial (currently, annual) budget resolutions, biennial appropriations Acts, and biennial government strategic and performance plans. States that budget biennium is the two consecutive fiscal years beginning on October 1 of any odd-numbered year. Requires the Office of Management and Budget to report to Congress on the impact and feasibility of changing the definition of a fiscal year and the budget process based on that definition to a two-year fiscal period.
United States · United States Congress · 13 January 2015
Mineral Materials Contracts Termination Act Amends the Materials Act of 1947 to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to terminate a mineral materials contract and to return to the contract holder any bid deposit and performance bond paid to the Bureau of Land Management if the contract holder submits a request to terminate the contract before production is initiated and before any surface disturbance has occurred. States that the contract holder's acceptance of the amount returned by the Secretary to terminate the contract constitutes: (1) full and final settlement of the contract, and (2) an agreement not to bring a civil action against the United States with respect to it.
United States · United States Congress · 12 January 2015
National Park Access Act Requires the Director of the National Park Service to refund to each state all of the funds that it used to reopen and temporarily operate a unit of the National Park System during the period in October 2013 in which there was a lapse in appropriations for that unit.
United States · United States Congress · 8 January 2015
Expresses the sense of the Senate that: all efforts to improve Medicare and Medicaid under titles XVIII and XIX of the Social Security Act must support and build upon President Johnson's vision "to assure the availability of and accessibility to the best health care to all Americans, regardless of age or geography or economic status"; Medicare should not be transformed into a voucher program, leaving seniors and people with disabilities vulnerable to higher out-of-pocket costs; and Medicaid should not be dismantled by policies that slash funding, shift costs to states, reduce benefits, and erode the safety net relied on by millions of individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 7 January 2015
Online Competition and Consumer Choice Act of 2015 Directs the Federal Communications Commission to promulgate regulations that prohibit broadband providers, in transmitting network traffic over the broadband Internet access service of an end user, from: (1) entering an agreement with an edge provider (a provider of Internet content, applications, services, or access devices) to give preferential treatment or priority to the traffic of such edge provider in exchange for consideration (commonly referred to as "paid prioritization"); and (2) giving preferential treatment or priority to content, applications, services, or devices that are provided or operated by such broadband provider or an affiliate of such broadband provider. Prohibits this Act from superseding any obligation or authorization of a broadband provider to address the needs of emergency communications, law enforcement, public safety, or national security authorities. Sets forth enforcement authority under the Communications Act of 1934, with modified forfeiture standards.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
LNG Permitting Certainty and Transparency Act Directs the Secretary of Energy (DOE), for proposals that must also obtain authorization from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission or the United States Maritime Administration to site, construct, expand, or operate liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facilities, to issue a decision on an application for authorization to export natural gas within 45 days after the later of: (1) the conclusion of the review to site, construct, expand, or operate the LNG facilities required by the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA); or (2) the date of enactment of this Act. Deems a NEPA review to be concluded when the lead agency: (1) publishes an Environmental Impact Statement if the project requires one; (2) publishes a Finding of No Significant Impact if the project needs an Environmental Assessment; or (3) determines that an application is eligible for a categorical exclusion pursuant to NEPA regulations. (A "categorical exclusion" under NEPA is a category of actions which do not individually or cumulatively have a significant effect on the human environment and which have been found to have no such effect in procedures adopted by a federal agency in implementing environmental regulations and for which, therefore, neither an Environmental Assessment nor an Environmental Impact Statement is required.) Confers upon either the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit or the circuit in which the export facility will be located original and exclusive jurisdiction over any civil action for the review of: (1) a DOE order regarding the application; or (2) DOE failure to issue a final decision on the application. Requires the Court, if it finds in a civil action that DOE has failed to issue a final decision on an application, to order DOE to issue a decision within 30 days. Requires the Court to set any civil action brought under this Act on the docket, for expedited consideration, as soon as practical after the filing date of the initial pleading. Amends the Natural Gas Act to direct the Secretary, in the case of any LNG export authorization, to require the applicant to report to DOE, according to specified timelines, the names of the one or more countries of destination to which the exported LNG is delivered.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Respect for Marriage Act Amends the Defense of Marriage Act to repeal a provision that prohibited a state, territory, possession, or Indian tribe from being required to recognize any public act, record, or judicial proceeding of any other state, territory, possession, or tribe respecting a same sex marriage. Amends the federal rules of construction added by such Act concerning the definitions of "marriage" and "spouse" to provide that, for purposes of any federal law in which marital status is a factor, an individual shall be considered married if that individual's marriage is valid in the state where the marriage was entered into or, in the case of a marriage entered into outside any state, if the marriage is valid in the place where entered into and the marriage could have been entered into in a state. Removes the definition of "spouse" (currently, a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife).
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of Edward W. Brooke, III, former member of the U.S. Senate. Declares that when the Senate adjourns on January 6, 2015, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of Senator Brooke.
United States · United States Congress · 6 January 2015
Amends Rule XXII (Precedence of Motions) of the Standing Rules of the Senate to limit, with exceptions, consideration of a motion to proceed to the consideration of any debatable matter to not more than two hours, equally divided between, and controlled by, the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader or their designees. Considers cloture of debate to have been invoked upon affirmative vote on the question of closing debate by three-fifths of Senators (two-thirds of those present and voting on a measure or motion to amend the Senate rules). Makes it in order for the Majority Leader (or his or her designee), if the question on closing debate is decided in the affirmative by a majority of Senators voting but less than three-fifths of the Senators duly chosen and sworn (or less than two-thirds of the Senators voting, a quorum being present, in the case of a measure or motion to amend the Senate rules), to initiate a period of extended debate, to begin one hour later, upon the measure, motion, or other matter pending before the Senate, or the unfinished business, in relation to which the motion to close debate was offered. Prescribes procedures applicable during such extended debate concerning: (1) the consideration of the measure, motion, or other pending matter, or the unfinished business, as the unfinished business to the exclusion of all other business; (2) the raising of a question about the presence of a quorum; (3) motions to adjourn or recess during such debate; (4) the number of times a Senator may speak; (5) postponement of a vote by the Majority Leader; and (6) the effects upon cloture if at any time no Senator seeks recognition. Limits to two hours post-cloture debate on the question of advice and consent to a nomination other than one to a position as Justice of the Supreme Court. Amends Rule XXVIII (Conference Committees; Reports; Open Meetings) to make in order and limit to two hours consideration of a nondivisible motion to: (1) disagree to a House amendment or insist upon a Senate amendment, (2) request a committee of conference with the House or to agree to a House request for a committee of conference, and (3) authorize the Presiding Officer to appoint conferees. Amends Rule XXII (Precedence of Motions) to authorize either Leader, after debate has concluded but before final disposition of the pending matter, to offer up to three leadership amendments if they have been timely filed and are germane to the matter being amended. Limits debate on such an amendment to one hour equally divided. Prohibits a leadership amendment from being divided.
United States · United States Congress · 12 December 2014
Mineral Materials Contracts Termination Act - Amends the Materials Act of 1947 to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to terminate a mineral materials contract and to return to the contract holder any bid deposit and performance bond paid to the Bureau of Land Management if the contract holder submits a request to terminate the contract before production is initiated and before any surface disturbance has occurred. States that the contract holder's acceptance of the amount returned by the Secretary to terminate the contract constitutes: (1) full and final settlement of the contract, and (2) an agreement not to bring a civil action against the United States with respect to it.
United States · United States Congress · 11 December 2014
Ensuring Enhanced Access to Primary Care Act - Extends through calendar 2016 the requirement that state plans under title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act provide for payment of 100% of the payment rate for primary care services. Adds physicians with primary specialties in neurology, psychiatry, obstetrics and gynecology to the types of those eligible for reimbursement for providing such services.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2014
Promoting Regional Energy Partnerships for Advancing Resilient Energy Systems Act or the PREPARE Act - Directs the Secretary of Energy (DOE) and the Secretary of the Interior (acting through specified Assistant Secretaries) to provide technical assistance to governmental entities, Indian tribes, and regional and nonprofit organizations to develop energy strategies that harmonize and promote national, regional, and state energy goals. Sets forth an awards program addressing the uniqueness of the energy challenges facing states and Indian tribes.
United States · United States Congress · 4 December 2014
National Laboratory Technology Maturation Act of 2014 - Requires the Secretary of Energy (DOE) to establish the National Laboratory technology maturation program to make grants of up to $5 million per fiscal year to National Laboratories to increase the successful transfer of technologies licensed from National Laboratories to small businesses by providing a link between an innovative process or technology and a practical application with potential to be successful in commercial markets. Requires grant recipients to use the funds to provide vouchers of up to $250,000 each to small businesses that hold a technology license from a National Laboratory to pay the cost of providing assistance from its scientists and engineers to assist in the development of the licensed technology and further develop related products and services until they are market-ready or sufficiently developed to attract private investment. Requires a National Laboratory that awards a voucher to carry out such a project to: (1) establish a procedure to monitor interim progress of the project toward commercialization milestones, and (2) discontinue providing such funding or assistance if it determines that a project is not making adequate progress toward such milestones under the procedure.
United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2014
Amends the Federal Power Act to authorize the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to prescribe just, reasonable, and not unduly discriminatory or preferential terms, conditions, and compensation applicable to wholesale demand response resource participation in organized wholesale energy, capacity, and ancillary service markets. Defines "demand response" as a reduction in customer consumption of electric energy from the expected consumption in response to either increased electric energy prices or to incentive payments designed to induce lower electric energy consumption.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2014
Microlab Technology Commercialization Act of 2014 - Authorizes the Secretary of Energy (DOE), in collaboration with the directors of national laboratories, to establish a program meeting specified criteria under which DOE sets up microlabs located in close proximity to national laboratories and accessible to the public in order to: (1) enhance collaboration with regional research groups, such as institutions of higher education and industry groups; and (2) accelerate technology transfer from national laboratories to the marketplace.
United States · United States Congress · 12 November 2014
Adding Ebola to the FDA Priority Review Voucher Program Act - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to add filoviruses, a family of viruses that includes the Ebola virus, to the list of tropical diseases under the priority review voucher program, which awards vouchers to sponsors of human drug applications that are approved to prevent or treat tropical diseases. (A voucher entitles the holder to have a future human drug application acted upon by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) within six months.) Changes the process by which infectious diseases that do not significantly impact developed nations and disproportionately affect poor and marginalized populations can be designated as tropical diseases from rulemaking to order of the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). Allows priority review vouchers to be transferred between sponsors of human drug applications any number of times. Reduces from 365 days to 90 days the advance notice required before submitting a human drug application subject to a priority review voucher.
United States · United States Congress · 12 November 2014
Restoring America's Watersheds Act of 2014 - Directs the Forest Service to establish a Water Source Protection Program within the region of the National Forest System west of the 100th Meridian. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to enter into water source investment partnerships with specified end water users to protect and restore the condition of National Forest watersheds that provide water to non-federal partners. Allows the Secretary to produce a water source management plan. Directs the Secretary to establish a Forest Service Legacy Roads and Trails Remediation Program within such region to: carry out critical maintenance and urgent repairs and improvements on National Forest System roads, trails, and bridges; restore fish and other aquatic organism passage by removing or replacing unnatural barriers to the passage of fish and other aquatic organisms; decommission unneeded roads and trails; and carry out associated activities. Requires the Chief of the Forest Service to develop a national strategy to implement the Remediation Program. Directs the Forest Service to establish a Watershed Condition Framework within such region to: evaluate and classify the condition of watersheds, identify for restoration up to five priority watersheds in each National Forest and up to two priority watersheds in each national grassland, develop a watershed restoration action plan for each priority watershed, prioritize restoration activities for each watershed restoration action plan, implement each watershed restoration action plan, and monitor the effectiveness of restoration actions and indicators of watershed health. Reauthorizes the Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Fund for FY2015-FY2024.
![Official portrait of Sen. Heinrich, Martin [D-NM]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/h001046_200.jpg)