United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2012
Disclosure of Information on Spending on Campaigns Leads to Open and Secure Elections Act of 2012 or DISCLOSE 2012 Act - Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 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 candidates, qualifications, or fitness for office. Expands the period during which certain communications are treated as electioneering communications. Prescribes: (1) disclosure requirements for corporations, labor organizations, and certain other entities; and (2) disclaimer requirements for campaign-related disbursements and for certain communications. Requires any communication transmitted through radio or television to include an individual or organizational disclosure statement, together with: (1) the Top Two Funders List of the persons providing the largest and second largest aggregate payments of $10,000 or more for a radio communication, and (2) the Top Five Funders List of the five persons providing the largest aggregate payments of $10,000 or more for a television communication. Repeals the prohibition against political contributions by individuals age 17 or younger. Requires a covered organization which submits regular, periodic reports to its shareholders, members, or donors on its finances or activities to include in each report, in a clear and conspicuous manner, the information included in the statements it has filed about campaign-related disbursements the organization has made during the period covered by the report. Amends the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 to require semiannual reports on certain election campaign contributions filed with the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the House of Representatives by registered lobbyists (or persons or organizations required to register as lobbyists) to contain: (1) the amount of any independent expenditure of $1,000 or more made by each such person or organization, along with the name of each candidate being supported or opposed and the amount spent supporting or opposing that candidate; and (2) the amount of any electioneering communication of $1,000 or more made by such person or organization, along with the name of the candidate referred to in the communication and whether the communication involved was in support of or in opposition to the candidate.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2012
Capital Access for Small Businesses and Jobs Act - Amends the Federal Credit Union Act to empower federal credit unions to receive payments, representing equity, on certain uninsured non-share capital accounts, subject to such terms, rates, and conditions as may be established by the board of directors, within limitations prescribed by the National Credit Union Administration Board (Board). Requires any Board-prescribed system of prompt corrective action to take into account that credit unions rely predominantly (under current law, must rely) upon retained earnings to build net worth. Redefines "net worth" with respect to any insured credit union (other than a low-income credit union) to include non-share capital accounts, as authorized by the Board, that: (1) do not alter the cooperative nature of the credit union; (2) are uninsured; (3) are subordinate to all other claims against the credit union, including the claims of creditors, shareholders, and the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund; (4) are available to be applied to cover operating losses of the credit union in excess of its retained earnings and, to the extent so applied, will not be replenished; (5) are subject to maturity limits as determined by the Board; and (6) are offered by a credit union that is sufficiently capitalized and well-managed.
United States · United States Congress · 9 February 2012
Cavernous Angioma CARE Center Act of 2012 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish the Cavernous Angioma Clinical Care, Awareness, Research, and Education Center of Excellence at a university health sciences research and clinical center in the southwest United States to: (1) provide basic, translational, and clinical research with respect to new diagnostic, prevention, and novel treatment methodology for individuals with cavernous angioma; and (2) serve as a model for, and provide support to, medical schools and research institutions. Requires the Director of the Center to: (1) ensure that the Center provides community-, family-, and patient-centered culturally sensitive care; (2) encourage and coordinate opportunities for individuals to participate in clinical research studies that will advance medical research and care; and (3) develop the Center as a model and training facility for other facilities throughout the United States that are engaged in research regarding, and care for individuals with, cavernous angioma.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2012
Drug Shortage Prevention Act of 2012 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to: (1) define the term "critical drug" based on the medical necessity and vulnerability to shortage of a drug or biological product; (2) establish, make publicly available, and update semiannually a list identifying each critical drug and its manufacturers; (3) promptly remove from such list any drug or biological product that no longer meets such definition; and (4) establish, make publicly available, and update monthly a list identifying each critical drug that is in a critical drug shortage in the United States, the severity of and reason for the shortage, alternate therapies and regions particularly affected, and an estimated date by which the necessary quantities of the drug will begin reaching providers. Allows manufacturers to request removal of a drug from such lists on the basis that it doesn't meet the definition of "critical drug" or is not in a critical drug shortage. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish a proactive system for giving notice to the public concerning modifications to the critical drug shortage list, (2) establish a system for giving notice of any imminent critical drug shortage to critical drug manufacturers and wholesale distributors and manufacturers of alternative therapies, (3) notify the Attorney General of any critical drug shortage, (4) study the feasibility of creating a national contingency plan addressing critical drug shortages, (5) expedite the review of applications for approval of critical drugs and requests by sponsors of such drugs to approve manufacturing process changes or alternate suppliers of active ingredients, and (6) improve the process for regulating critical drugs. Express the sense of Congress that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should increase the number of personnel responsible for identifying and addressing critical drug shortages. Amends the Controlled Substances Act to direct the Attorney General to increase a quota as appropriate for a drug listed in a critical drug shortage that is or contains a controlled substance.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2012
Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to make the 3.4% interest rate on Direct Stafford loans first disbursed to undergraduate students between July 1, 2011, and July 1, 2012, applicable to Direct Stafford loans first disbursed to undergraduate students on or after July 1, 2012.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2012
Egg Products Inspection Act Amendments of 2012 - Amends the Egg Products Inspection Act to revise housing and treatment of egg-laying hens and related enforcement provisions. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to delegate to the California Department of Food and Agriculture certain enforcement authority with respect to eggs produced, shipped, handled, transported or received in California prior to the date that is 18 years after the date of enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 20 December 2011
Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011 - Title I: Temporary Payroll Tax Relief - Amends the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 to: (1) extend through 2012 the 2% reduction in the self-employment tax rate for self-employment income not exceeding the excess of $18,350 over any wages and compensation paid to a self-employed taxpayer, and (2) extend through February 29, 2012, the 2% reduction in employment tax rates for employee wages and compensation not exceeding $18,350. Title II: Temporary Extension of Unemployment Compensation Provisions - Amends the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008 with respect to the state-established individual emergency unemployment compensation account (EUCA). Extends the final date for entering a federal-state agreement under the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) program through March 6, 2012. Postpones the termination of the program until August 15, 2012. Amends the Assistance for Unemployed Workers and Struggling Families Act to extend until March 7, 2012, requirements that federal payments to states cover 100% of EUC. Amends the Unemployment Compensation Extension Act of 2008 to exempt weeks of unemployment between enactment of this Act and August 15, 2012, from the prohibition in the Federal-State Extended Unemployment Compensation Act of 1970 (FSEUCA of 1970) against federal matching payments to a state for the first week in an individual's eligibility period for which extended compensation or sharable regular compensation is paid if the state law provides for payment of regular compensation to an individual for his or her first week of otherwise compensable unemployment. (Thus allows temporary federal matching for the first week of extended benefits for states with no waiting period.) Amends the FSEUCA of 1970 to postpone similarly from December 31, 2011, to February 29, 2012, termination of the period during which a state may determine its "on" and "off" indicators according to specified temporary substitutions in its formula. Amends the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act, as amended by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009, and the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010, to extend through February 29, 2012, the temporary increase in extended unemployment benefits for employees with 10 or more years of service as well as for those with less than 10 years. Title III: Temporary Extension of Health Provisions -Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to set the update to the single conversion factor in the formula for the physicians' fee schedules for the first two months of 2012 at zero (thus freezing the physician payment update for the first two months of 2012). Requires the conversion factor for the remaining portion of 2012 and subsequent years to be computed as if the zero update for the first two months of 2012 had never applied. Amends the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006, as modified by other federal law, to extend section 508 hospital reclassifications for two months through November 30, 2011. ("Section 508" refers to Section 508 of the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 [MMA], which allows the temporary reclassification of a hospital with a low Medicare area wage index, for reimbursement purposes, to a nearby location with a higher Medicare area wage index, so that the "Section 508 hospital" will receive the higher Medicare reimbursement rate.) Extends through February 29, 2012, the 1.0 floor on geographic indexing adjustments to the work portion of the physician fee schedule. Extends through February 29, 2012, the process allowing exceptions to limitations on medically necessary therapy caps. Amends the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Benefits Improvement and Protection Act of 2000 to extend until February 29, 2012, an exception to a payment rule that permits laboratories to receive direct Medicare reimbursement when providing the technical component of certain physician pathology services that had been outsourced by certain (rural) hospitals. Amends SSA title XVIII to extend the bonus and increased payments for ground ambulance services until March 1, 2012. Amends the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (MIPPA) to extend the payment of certain urban air ambulance services until February 29, 2012. Extends increased payments for super rural ambulance services until March 1, 2012. Amends MIPPA to extend the physician fee schedule mental health add-on payment provision through February 29, 2012. Extends through February 29, 2012, hold harmless provisions under the prospective payment system (PPS) for hospital outpatient department (OPD) services. Extends the minimum payment for bone mass measurement through the first two months of 2012. Amends SSA title XIX (Medicaid) to extend the Qualifying Individual (QI) Program through February 29, 2012, at specified allocations. xtends the Transitional Medical Assistance (TMA) Program through February 29, 2012. Amends part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of SSA title IV to extend the TANF program through February 29, 2012. Title IV: Mortgage Fees and Premiums - Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1992 to require the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to require each government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) (the Federal National Mortgage Association [Fannie Mae] and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation [Freddie Mac]) to charge a guarantee fee in connection with any guarantee of the timely payment of principal and interest on securities, notes, and other obligations based on or backed by mortgages on residential real properties designed principally for the occupancy of from one to four families. Requires the FHFA Director to prohibit a GSE from consummating any offer for a guarantee to a lender for mortgage-backed securities if: (1) the guarantee is inconsistent with the requirements of this Act; or (2) the risk of loss is allowed to increase, through the lowering of the underwriting standards or other means, for the primary purpose of meeting the requirements of this Act. Requires direct deposit into the Treasury of any amounts received from fee increases imposed by this Act that are necessary to comply with the minimum increase required by this Act. Requires the Director to require each GSE, as part of its annual report, to: (1) describe changes made to up-front fees and annual fees as part of the guarantee fees negotiated with lenders, changes to the riskiness of the new borrowers compared to previous origination years or book years, and any adjustments required to improve for future origination years or book years, in order to be in complete compliance with guarantee fee requirements; and (2) assess how the changes in such guarantee fees met the requirements of this title. Amends the National Housing Act with respect to requirements for each mortgage secured by a 1- to 4-family dwelling that is an obligation of the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund. Directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), in addition to other required or authorized premiums, to establish and collect through FY2021 annual premium payments of up to 10 basis points of the remaining insured principal balance for any mortgage for which the Secretary collects an annual premium on the remaining insured principal balance. Title V: Other Provisions - Subtitle A: Keystone XL Pipeline - Directs the President, acting through the Secretary of State, to grant a permit for the Keystone XL pipeline project application filed on September 19, 2008. Waives such requirement if the President determines that the Keystone XL pipeline would not serve the national interest. Requires the President, in that case, to report to certain congressional committees and officials a justification for his determination, including consideration of economic, employment, energy security, foreign policy, trade, and environmental factors. Declares that a permit for such pipeline shall take effect by operation of law if after 60 days following enactment of this Act the President fails to: (1) determine that the Keystone XL pipeline would not serve the national interest, or (2) grant the permit. Subtitle B: Budgetary Provisions - Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to make it out of order in the Senate to consider a bill, resolution, amendment, motion, or conference report that includes an emergency designation. Permits waiver or suspension of such prohibition, or successful appeals from a ruling of the Chair, only by an affirmative vote of three-fifths (60 votes) of the Senate. Prohibits the budgetary effects of this Act from being entered on either PAYGO scorecard maintained pursuant to the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010.
United States · United States Congress · 19 December 2011
Sandia Pueblo Settlement Technical Amendment Act - Amends the T'uf Shur Bien Preservation Trust Area Act to require the Secretary of Agriculture, upon the receipt of certain consideration and at the request of the Sandia Pueblo of New Mexico and the Secretary of the Interior, to transfer certain National Forest land to the Secretary of the Interior to be held in trust for the Pueblo, provided a land exchange with the Pueblo required by that Act is not completed within 90 days of this Act's enactment. Requires that National Forest land to be preserved in its natural state. Requires the Pueblo to transfer to the Secretary, in exchange for such land, the Pueblo's La Luz tract and an amount equal to the difference between the value of: (1) the National Forest land in its natural state, and (2) the La Luz tract and the compensation owed to the Pueblo by the Secretary for the right-of-way and conservation easement on its Piedra Lisa tract.
United States · United States Congress · 16 December 2011
Authorizes the award of a single Congressional Gold Medal to collectively honor the troops from the United States and the Philippines who defended Bataan, Philippines, and were subsequently prisoners of war, in recognition of their personal sacrifice and service to their country during World War II. Provides for the Medal's display at the Smithsonian Institution. Expresses the sense of Congress that the Medal should be made available for display elsewhere, particularly at locations associated with the prisoners of war at Bataan.
United States · United States Congress · 16 December 2011
Due Process Guarantee Act of 2011 - Amends the federal criminal code to specify that an authorization to use military force, a declaration of war, or any similar authority shall not authorize the detention without charge or trial of a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident apprehended in the United States, unless an Act of Congress expressly authorizes such detention. Applies this Act to any such authorizations or declarations enacted before, on, or after the enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 14 December 2011
Primary Care Workforce Access Improvement Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to conduct a pilot project under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to test models for providing payment for direct graduate medical education (GME) and indirect medical education (IME) to medical education entities (MEEs), not otherwise eligible to receive such payments, for the costs of training primary care residents. Requires testing of two of the following model MEEs: (1) a community-based independent corporate entity collaborating with two or more hospitals to operate one or more primary care graduate medical residency training programs (training hospitals); (2) a MEE, with at least one community representative on its board, which is established by two or more training hospitals which may be the sole corporate members of the MEE; (3) a hospital subsidiary or independent corporation, with community participation in its governance, that operates one or more training programs for a hospital; or (4) a MEE (including a university or school of medicine) independent of any hospital but collaborating with one in operating one or more primary care graduate medical residency training programs.
United States · United States Congress · 13 December 2011
No Budget, No Pay Act - Prohibits the payment of any pay to any Member of Congress (excluding the Vice President): (1) if both houses of Congress have not approved a concurrent resolution on the budget for a fiscal year before October 1 of that fiscal year and have not passed all the regular appropriations bills for the next fiscal year by such date, or (2) until both houses of Congress approve such a budget resolution and pass all such appropriations bills. Prohibits any retroactive pay for such a period.
United States · United States Congress · 7 December 2011
County Payments Reauthorization Act of 2011 - Amends the Secure Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 to establish, for FY2012 and each following fiscal year, an amount that is equal to 95% of the full funding amount used for the previous fiscal year to make secure payments to eligible states and counties that contain certain lands. Permits a resource advisory committee under the Act to propose using up to 10% of certain project funds of an eligible county for administrative expenses associated with that committee's operations. Keeps the annual percentage for FY2010-FY2011 in place under the merchantable timber contracting pilot program for the implementation of approved projects in participating counties involving the sale of merchantable timber using separate contracts through FY2016. Extends the Act's provisions through FY2016. Entitles counties or other eligible units of local government in which U.S.-owned entitlement land is located to certain payments under the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) Program through FY2017.
United States · United States Congress · 7 December 2011
United States Call Center Worker and Consumer Protection Act - Requires a business enterprise that employs 50 or more employees, excluding part-time employees, or 50 or more employees who in the aggregate work at least 1,500 hours per week, exclusive of overtime, in a call center to notify the Secretary of Labor at least 120 days before relocating such center outside of the United States. Subjects violators to a civil penalty of up to $10,000 a day. Directs the Secretary to maintain and make publicly available a list of all such employers that relocate a call center. Requires such an employer to remain on the list for up to three years after each relocation. Makes such an employer ineligible for federal grants or federal guaranteed loans for five years after being added to the list, except where the employer demonstrates that a lack of such loan or grant would threaten national security, result in substantial job loss in the United States, or harm the environment. Requires the head of federal or state executive agency or military department, when awarding a civilian or defense-related contract, to give preference to a U.S. employer that does not appear on the list. Requires a business entity that initiates or receives a customer service communication to require each of its employees or agents participating in the communication to disclose their physical location at the beginning of each such communication unless all involved employees or agents are located in the United States. Exempts any communication: (1) initiated by a consumer if the consumer knows or reasonably should know that the employee or agent is located outside the United States, or (2) related to the provision of emergency services. Requires such a business entity, upon request, to transfer a customer to a customer service agent who is physically located in the United States. Authorizes the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to exclude certain classes or types of business entities or customer services communications from the requirements of this Act under exceptionally compelling circumstances. Sets forth enforcement provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 2011
Domestic Partnership Benefits and Obligations Act of 2011 - Amends provisions of federal civil service law to extend employment-related and retirement benefits to domestic partners of federal employees and to set forth requirements for establishing a domestic partnership, including the filing of an affidavit attesting to the existence and legitimacy of the partnership. Modifies provisions relating to the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and the Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS) to extend eligibility for annuity and survivor benefits to domestic partners of federal employees on the same basis as married employees. Requires the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to prescribe regulations to provide that domestic partners and former domestic partners shall be considered as spouses or former spouses for purposes of creditable service determinations under CSRS and FERS. Makes domestic partners of federal employees eligible for: (1) the federal employee group life insurance (FEGLI) program, (2) federal employees health benefits (FEHB), (3) dental and vision benefit plans, and (4) long-term care insurance coverage. Grants the head of an federal agency authority to reimburse an employee for taxes incurred the domestic partner of such employee for travel or transportation reimbursements. Modifies provisions of the Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA) to make domestic partners of federal employees eligible for worker compensation benefits under such Act. Adds "domestic partner" to the list of relatives subject to restrictions on federal employment of relatives and related prohibitions. Includes a biological, adopted, or foster child of a domestic partner as a "son or daughter" for purposes of federal employee family and medical leave provisions. Allows a federal employee family and medical leave to care for a domestic partner. Requires the President to prescribe regulations necessary to ensure that specified provisions relating to the following are administered in a manner consistent with the purposes of this Act: (1) the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993; (2) travel, transportation, and related payments and benefits under the Foreign Service Act of 1980 and for civilian employees of the Department of Defense (DOD); (3) certain benefits for members of the commissioned officer corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); and (4) benefits related to federal employees or annuitants and benefits necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act. Amends the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 to make provisions of that Act applicable to domestic partners of federal employees to the same extent as married employees, including provisions relating to financial disclosure, government-wide limitations on outside earned income and employment, gifts to superiors and to federal employees, bribery, acceptance of travel expenses from nonfederal sources, taxes on self-dealing, and disqualification of a justice, judge, or magistrate judge. Requires reporting by: (1) the President on the implementation of this Act, and (2) the Government Accountability Office (GAO) on the effect of this Act on premiums or other periodic charges under FEHB and the impact of extending benefits to domestic partners on federal employee retention and recruitment efforts.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2011
National Forest Roadless Area Conservation Act - Identifies roadless areas within the National Forest System set forth in specified maps as National Forest Inventoried Roadless Areas, and directs the Secretary of Agriculture to manage such Areas to maintain their roadless character. Authorizes the Forest Service to modify such maps for the sole purpose of improving their accuracy or inclusiveness. Requires any substantial modification of those maps to be made through the national forest management planning process and documented in an environmental impact statement.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2011
Taxpayers' Cancer Research Funding Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow taxpayers to designate on their tax returns a $5 contribution to the Breast and Prostate Cancer Research Fund ($10 for joint returns). Establishes in the Treasury the Breast and Prostate Cancer Research Fund to award grants for breast or prostate cancer research.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2011
Sexual Assault Training Oversight and Prevention Act or STOP Act - Establishes a Sexual Assault Oversight and Response Council, composed mainly of civilians, as an independent entity from the chain of command of the Department of Defense (DOD). Directs the Council to: (1) appoint personnel to the Sexual Assault Oversight and Response Office, and advise such Office; (2) appoint the Director of Military Prosecutions (Director); (3) review each request of the Director with respect to a case stemming from a sexual-related offense that has been referred to a military appellate court or to the Department of Justice (DOJ); and (4) submit to the Secretary of Defense, Congress, and the Attorney General a report on each Director request for referral to a higher court. Requires the Council to advise on the development of sexual assault reporting protocols, risk-reduction and response training, and policy. Establishes within DOD the Sexual Assault Oversight and Response Office, headed by an Executive Director, to undertake specified duties and responsibilities relating to the investigation, prevention, and reduction of sexual assault incidents within the Armed Forces. Requires the Office to establish protocols to ensure that all reports of sexual assault are taken out of the chain of command and reported directly to the Office. Establishes the position of Director of Military Prosecutions, appointed by the Council, to have independent and final authority to oversee the prosecution of all sexual-related offenses committed by a member of the Armed Forces, and to refer such cases to trial by courts-martial. Amends the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 to require the Secretary to implement a centralized database, known as the Military Sexual Registry, for the collection of information regarding sexual assaults within the military, including the nature of the assault, the victim, the offender, and the outcome of associated legal proceedings. Requires the Registry to be housed and maintained within the Office.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 2011
Constitutional Amendment - Declares that: (1) the rights protected by the Constitution are intended to be the rights of natural persons; and (2) the words "people," "person," or "citizen" as used in the Constitution do not include corporations, limited liability companies, or other corporate entities established by the laws of any state, the United States, or any foreign state, and that such corporate entities are subject to such regulation as the people, through their elected state and federal representatives, deem reasonable and are otherwise consistent with the powers of Congress and the states. Prohibits this Amendment from limiting the rights of freedom of speech, the press, exercise of religion, association, and all such other inalienable rights of the people.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2011
Constitutional Amendment - Grants Congress and the states the power to regulate the raising and spending of money and in kind equivalents with respect to federal and state elections, respectively.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2011
Southern New Mexico and El Paso, Texas, Veterans Traumatic Brain Injury Care Improvement Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to report to Congress on the feasibility and advisability of establishing a polytrauma rehabilitation center or polytrauma network site of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in Fort Bayard, New Mexico.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2011
Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act Reauthorization of 2011 - Amends the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act (FLTFA) to reauthorize, until July 25, 2018, the program for the completion of appraisals and satisfaction of other legal requirements for the sale or exchange of public land identified for disposal under approved land use plans under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976. Makes the FLTFA inapplicable to land eligible for sale under specified public land laws.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2011
Wounded Warriors Employment Opportunity Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to increase from $12,000 to $24,000 in taxable years ending before January 1, 2017, the amount of wages which may be taken into account in determining the allowable work opportunity tax credit for the hiring of certain disabled veterans who have been unemployed for six months or more during the one-year period ending on the hiring date.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 2011
Open Burn Pit Registry Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to: (1) establish and maintain an open pit burn registry for members of the Armed Forces deployed in a contingency operation in Iraq or Afghanistan who may have been exposed to toxic chemicals and fumes caused by open burn pits used for disposing solid waste, (2) include in such registry information necessary to ascertain and monitor the health effects of such exposure, (3) develop a public information campaign to inform eligible individuals about the registry, and (4) periodically notify such individuals of significant developments in the study and treatment of conditions associated with such exposure. Requires the Secretary to: (1) contract with an independent scientific organization to develop a report assessing the effectiveness of actions taken to collect and maintain information on the health effects of such exposure, and (2) submit the completed report to Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 2011
Heroes Hiring Heroes Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish a program to award grants to states to assist the employment of veterans. Allows the Secretary to award more than one grant per state. Limits grant amounts to $100,000. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through 2016 the work opportunity tax credit for employers hiring previously unemployed veterans after 2011 and before 2017. Increases such credit with respect to such veterans. Provides a special tax credit for veteran-owned employers who hire previously unemployed veterans through a state job fair or forum after 2016.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 2011
Real Education for Healthy Youth Act of 2011 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award competitive grants to enable eligible entities to carry out programs to provide adolescents with comprehensive sex education that: (1) replicate evidence-based sex education programs, (2) substantially incorporate elements of evidence-based sex education programs, or (3) create a demonstration project based on generally accepted characteristics of effective sex education programs. Sets forth provisions regarding evaluation of such programs. Requires the Secretary to establish a common set of performance measures to assess the implementation and impact of grant programs funded under this Act. Requires the Secretary to award competitive grants to: (1) enable institutions of higher education to provide young people with comprehensive sex education with an emphasis on reducing HIV, other sexually transmitted infections, and unintended pregnancy; and (2) eligible entities to train targeted faculty and staff in order to increase effective teaching of comprehensive sex education for elementary and secondary school students. Prohibits programs funded under this Act from discriminating on the basis of actual or perceived sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, or religion. Prohibits federal funds provided under this Act from being used for health education programs that: (1) deliberately withhold life-saving information about HIV; (2) are medically inaccurate or have been scientifically shown to be ineffective; (3) promote gender stereotypes; (4) are insensitive and unresponsive to the needs of sexually active youth or lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender youth; or (5) are inconsistent with the ethical imperatives of medicine and public health. Amends the Public Health Service Act to repeal a provision that prohibits the use of funds appropriated for the prevention of AIDS to provide education or information designed to promote or encourage, directly, homosexual or heterosexual activity or intravenous substance abuse. Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to repeal a provision that prohibits the use of funds authorized under such Act to operate a program of contraceptive distribution in schools.
United States · United States Congress · 2 November 2011
American Renewable Energy Production Tax Credit Extension Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through 2016 the date by which specified alternative or renewable energy facilities (i.e., wind, biomass, geothermal or solar energy, landfill gas, trash, qualified hydropower, and marine and hydrokinetic renewable energy facilities) must be placed in service to qualify for the electricity production tax credit.
United States · United States Congress · 1 November 2011
Safeguarding United States Satellite Leadership and Security Act of 2011 - Authorizes the President to remove commercial satellites and related components from the United States Munitions List. Prohibits any satellite or related component from being transferred, directly or indirectly, to: (1) the government of China (PRC) or any PRC entity or person; or (2) the government of Cuba, Iran, Sudan, Syria, or North Korea or any entity or person of Cuba, Iran, Sudan, Syria, or North Korea.
United States · United States Congress · 1 November 2011
Local Farms, Food, and Jobs Act of 2011 - Provides for the inclusion of locally or regionally produced agricultural food products under specified agricultural, rural development, agricultural research, crop insurance, and nutrition programs. Directs the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation to offer a whole farm adjusted revenue risk management insurance plan that allows a producer to qualify for an indemnity if actual gross farm revenue is below 85% of the producer's average gross farm revenue. Prohibits the Corporation from requiring organic crop insurance premium surcharges. Directs the Corporation to offer organic crop producers price elections that reflect actual retail or wholesale prices. Amends the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (formerly known as the Food Stamp Act of 1977) to require state agencies to treat wireless retailers in the same manner as wired program retail food stores for purposes of supplemental nutrition assistance (SNAP, formerly food stamp) benefits. Defines "wireless retailer" to include: (1) a farmers market, (2) a farm stand, (3) a green cart, (4) a route vendor, (5) an entity operating a community-supported agriculture or fishery program, (6) a buying club, and (7) a farmer affiliated with such entities. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to establish a wireless retailer electronic benefit transfer pilot program for smartphone technology. Extends: (1) the program of fresh fruit and vegetable purchases for distribution to schools and service institutions; (2) the special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants, and children (WIC) farmers' market nutrition program; (3) the seniors farmers' market nutrition program; (4) the rural business opportunity grant program; (5) the value-added agricultural product market development grant program; (6) the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative; (7) the specialty block grant program; and (8) the national organic certification cost-share program. Amends the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act to permit schools to use an amount equal to 15% of their commodity dollars for purchases of locally grown food. Increases the annual fiscal year limit for community food project grants. Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to direct the Secretary to make and guarantee loans for the production of locally or regionally produced agricultural food products. Directs the Comptroller General (GAO) to evaluate how the credit needs of young, beginning, and small farmers and local and regional farm and food systems are being met by the Farm Credit System, USDA, the Department of the Treasury, and any other federal agencies. Amends the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 to direct: (1) the Secretary to distribute price reporting of locally or regionally produced agricultural food products, and (2) the Under Secretary to establish a special initiative to coordinate USDA research relating to classical plant and animal breeding. Amends the Rural Development Act of 1972 to direct the Secretary to increase technical assistance for sustainable local and regional food systems. Amends the the Farmer-to-Consumer Direct Marketing Act of 1976 to establish the local marketing promotion program (in lieu of the farmers market promotion program) to promote producer-to-consumer marketing, including farmers markets and other local and regional food markets. Directs the Secretary to establish in the Food Safety and Inspection Service technical assistance divisions to provide directly or through grants outreach, education, and training to very small or certain small meat and poultry processing plants. Directs the Secretary to establish an electronic option for meat and poultry label preapproval. Amends the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 to provide funding for the national food safety training, education, outreach, and technical assistance program.
United States · United States Congress · 27 October 2011
Diagnostic Imaging Services Access Protection Act of 2011 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to prohibit the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) from applying a multiple procedure payment reduction policy to the professional component of imaging services furnished: (1) in 2012; or (2) in 2013 or a subsequent year unless the reduction is based on the data, analysis, and conclusions of a study completed by an expert panel of physician members from a national medical speciality society expert in the field of diagnostic imaging services.
United States · United States Congress · 18 October 2011
Incentivizing Offshore Wind Power Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow a 30% tax credit for investment in a qualifying offshore wind facility (an offshore facility using wind to produce electricity), and (2) direct the Secretary of the Treasury to establish a qualifying credit for offshore wind facilities program to consider and award certifications for investments eligible for such a credit to qualifying offshore wind facility sponsors. Requires the Secretary to review credits allocated under this Act and authorizes the Secretary to reallocate such credits upon determining that: (1) there is an insufficient quantity of qualifying applications for certification pending at the time of the review, or (2) scheduled placed-in-service dates of previously certified facilities have been significantly delayed and the applicant will not meet the required timeline.
United States · United States Congress · 14 October 2011
VHA Ophthalmologic Service Establishment Act of 2011 - Establishes an ophthalmologic service in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Adds a Director of Ophthalmologic Service to the VA's Office of the Under Secretary for Health.
United States · United States Congress · 14 October 2011
Beginning Farmer and Rancher Opportunity Act of 2011 - Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to extend: (1) the conservation reserve and related programs, (2) the pilot program for enrollment of wetland and buffer acreage in the conservation reserve program, (3) the environmental quality incentives program, (4) activities to address air quality concerns from agricultural operations, and (5) the conservation access program. Permits conservation reserve contract modification to facilitate transfers from retiring owners to limited resource farmers or ranchers. Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to: (1) reduce the number of operating years required for a beginning farmer or rancher to qualify for a direct real estate loan, (2) authorize micro loans for beginning farmers or ranchers who are between 19 and 35 years old, (3) extend real estate and operating loan authority at increased levels, (4) revise private source transition provisions, (5) make the direct operating loan set-aside for beginning farmers and ranchers permanent, (6) permit loans and grants for entrepreneurial farm and farm-related enterprises, and (7) extend the beginning farmer and rancher individual development accounts pilot program. Amends the Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000 to extend the value-added agricultural product market development grant program. Amends the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to extend the beginning farmer and rancher development program. Provides assistance for agricultural rehabilitation and vocational training for veterans. Amends the Competitive, Special, and Facilities Research Grant Act to extend the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative. Provides priority assistance for new farming opportunities, including young, beginning, socially disadvantaged, and immigrant issues, as well as farm entry, transition, and transfer issues. Amends the Federal Crop Insurance Act to express the sense of Congress that the Department of Agriculture (USDA) should remove barriers and ensure effective access to crop and revenue insurance by beginning farmers and ranchers. Extends authority for reimbursement of research, development, and maintenance costs. Provides for risk management programs targeted at beginning, socially disadvantaged, transitioning, or legal immigrant farmers and ranchers. Amends the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 to direct the Small Farms and Beginning Farmers and Ranchers Group (within the Office of Advocacy and Outreach) to designate a state small and beginning farmer and rancher coordinator from among the state office employees of the Farm Service Agency, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Risk Management Agency, the Rural Business-Cooperative Service, and the Rural Utilities Service. Amends the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 to establish in USDA the position of Military Veterans Agricultural Liaison.
United States · United States Congress · 13 October 2011
March of Dimes Commemorative Coin Act of 2011- Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue up to 500,000 $1 coins emblematic of the mission and programs of the March of Dimes. Permits issuance of such coins only during the one-year period beginning on January 1, 2014. Requires all surcharges received by the Secretary from the sale of such coins to be promptly paid to the March of Dimes to help finance research, education, and services aimed at improving the health of women, infants, and children. Subjects the March of Dimes to federal audit requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 12 October 2011
Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2012 - Directs the President to establish: (1) goals, performance, and evaluation guidelines for U.S. foreign assistance programs, country assistance plans, and international and multilateral assistance programs; and (2) a website to make publicly available information on U.S. foreign assistance programs.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2011
Field EMS Quality, Innovation, and Cost Effectiveness Improvements Act of 2011 - Designates the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as the primary federal agency for emergency medical services and trauma care. Establishes the Office of Emergency Medical Services and Trauma within HHS. Gives the Office responsibilities related to emergency medical services (EMS) and authorizes the Secretary of HHS to delegate additional responsibilities related to EMS. Requires the Director of the Office to: (1) implement a national EMS strategy; (2) establish the EQUIP grant program to promote excellence, quality, universal access, innovation, and preparedness in field EMS; and (3) the SPIA grant program to improve EMS system performance, integration, and accountability, to ensure preparedness, to enhance oversight and data collection, and to promote standardization of certifications. Requires the Secretary to improve medical oversight of field EMS, including by: (1) promoting the development and adoption of national guidelines for medical oversight, and (2) convening a Field EMS Medical Oversight Advisory Committee. Directs the Comptroller General to study issues related to emergency medical care in the field of EMS. Authorizes the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to maintain, improve, and expand the National EMS Information System. Sets forth reporting requirements relating to data collection and electronic health records. Declares that the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) shall not be construed to prohibit certain exchanges of information between field EMS practitioners, hospital personnel, state EMS offices, and the National EMS Database. Requires the Secretary to establish guidelines for the exchange of information between field EMS practitioners and hospital personnel. Authorizes the Director of the Office to make grants for the development, availability, and dissemination of field EMS education programs and courses that improve the quality and capability of field EMS personnel. Requires the Director to conduct or support demonstrations projects relating to alternative dispositions of field EMS patients. Amends title XI (General Provisions, Peer Review, and Administrative Simplification) of the Social Security Act to include field EMS as a model for testing by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary to conduct research and evaluation relating to field EMS through the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation. Requires the Director of AHRQ to establish a Field EMS Evidence-Based Practice Center. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) establish the Emergency Medical Services Trust Fund, and (2) allow taxpayers to designate a portion of any income tax overpayment and make additional contributions to finance such Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2011
American Innovation in Manufacturing Act - Amends the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act to prohibit the Secretary of Commerce, for each of FY2012-FY2013, from: (1) providing a Hollings Manufacturing Extension Center under the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership Program with more than 50% of the costs incurred by the Center under the Program, and (2) requiring a Center's cost share to exceed 50%. Directs the Secretary to report to Congress on such cost share requirements, including: (1) a discussion of various cost share structures, and (2) a recommendation on how best to structure the cost-share requirement after FY2013 to provide for long-term sustainability of the Program.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2011
Ready-to-Compete Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to authorize the Secretary of Education to award grants to public telecommunications entities to coordinate the development, production, and distribution of innovative multiplatform educational programming and services for young children and youth and their parents, educators, and caregivers. Requires grantees to award subcontracts or enter into agreements with public television stations and producers or distributors of educational programming for the operation of Ready to Learn programs. Requires Ready to Learn programs to: (1) include programming that is aligned with state academic content and achievement standards; (2) include training and materials for educators and caregivers to facilitate their use of the programming and services; (3) address specific community and school needs, ascertained via ongoing community outreach programs; and (4) include programming in reading, social and emotional development, and at least one other topic in an academic or developmentally appropriate area. Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to authorize the Secretary to award competitive grants to public television stations that partner with states, state workforce investment boards, or institutions of higher education to develop, disseminate, and provide on-line and on-air education and training services for adults.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 2011
Raoul Wallenberg Centennial Celebration Act - Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the presentation on behalf of Congress of a gold medal of appropriate design to the next of kin or personal representative of Raoul Wallenberg in recognition of his achievements and heroic actions during the Holocaust.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2011
Comprehensive Immunosuppressive Drug Coverage for Kidney Transplant Patients Act of 2011 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Benefits) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to extend the months of coverage of immunosuppressive drugs for kidney transplant patients. Amends SSA title XVIII (Medicare) to make eligible for enrollment in Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance), solely for the purpose of such drug coverage, every individual whose insurance benefits under Medicare part A (Hospital Insurance) have ended by reason of a kidney transplant or the end of any requirement for a regular course of dialysis. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to determine a monthly premium rate for such individuals equal to 35% of the monthly actuarial rate for enrollees age 65 and over. Prescribes a formula for detemination of a government contribution to such a premium.
United States · United States Congress · 19 September 2011
American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act of 2011 - Amends the Horse Protection Act to prohibit the shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling, or donation of horses and other equines to be slaughtered for human consumption. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to detain for examination, testing, or the taking of evidence: (1) any horse at any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction that is sore or which the Secretary has probable cause to believe is sore; and (2) any horse or other equine that the Secretary has probable cause to believe is being shipped, transported, moved, delivered, received, possessed, purchased, sold, or donated in violation of such prohibition. Increases the cap on the amount of appropriations that may be used to carry out such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 2011
Constitutional Amendment - States that nothing in the U.S. Constitution shall prohibit Congress and the states from imposing content-neutral regulations and restrictions on the expenditure of funds for political activity by any corporation, limited liability company, or other corporate entity, including but not limited to contributions in support of, or in opposition to, a candidate for public office.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2011
Medicare Diabetes Self-Management Training Act of 2011 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to recognize state-licensed or -registered health care professionals who are certified diabetes educators in an outpatient setting as authorized providers of Medicare diabetes outpatient self-management training services, including as part of telehealth services, under Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance). Directs the Comptroller General to study the barriers that exist for Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes in accessing diabetes self-management training services under the Medicare program. Directs the Director of the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop a series of recommendations on effective outreach methods to educate primary care physicians and the public about the benefits of diabetes self-management training.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2011
Honors the service and sacrifice of Sergeant First Class Leroy Arthur Petry of the U.S. Army (a native of Santa Fe, New Mexico and the second living recipient of the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War) and his family. Encourages the people of the United States to recognize the valor, heroism, and dedication to the United States exhibited by Sergeant First Class Petry.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2011
Billfish Conservation Act of 2011 - Prohibits any person from offering billfish or billfish products for sale, selling them, or having custody, control, or possession of them for purposes of offering them for sale or selling them. Treats a violation of this Act as an act prohibited by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Subjects a person to a maximum civil penalty of $100,000 for each violation, with each day of a continuing violation constituting a separate offense. Exempts the state of Hawaii and the Pacific Insular Area, except that billfish may be sold under such exemption only in Hawaii and the Pacific Insular Area. Defines "billfish" as any of the following: (1) blue marlin, (2) striped marlin, (3) black marlin, (4) sailfish, (5) shortbill spearfish, (6) white marlin, (7) roundscale spearfish, (8) Mediterranean spearfish, or (9) longbill spearfish. Excludes swordfish from such definition.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2011
Education for All Act of 2011 - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to state that it is U.S. policy to work with foreign countries and international and civil society organizations to achieve universal basic education by: (1) assisting developing countries and nongovernmental and multilateral organizations to provide all children with a quality basic education, and (2) promoting education as the foundation for communities' development. Directs the President to develop a comprehensive U.S. strategy to promote quality universal basic education. Authorizes the President to provide funds and other assistance to qualifying foreign countries to create the policies, processes, and infrastructure to develop national basic quality education plans. Directs the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to designate a Coordinator of United States Government Actions to Provide Basic Education Assistance who shall have primary responsibility for the oversight and coordination of all U.S. government resources and international activities to promote quality universal basic education.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 2011
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that it should give strong consideration to the role of science education in the educational accountability system as it works to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2011
340B Program Improvement Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to make revisions to the 340B drug discount program (a program limiting the cost of covered outpatient drugs to certain federal grantees). Includes drugs used in connection with an inpatient or outpatient service by enrolled hospitals as covered drugs under the program (currently, only outpatient drugs are covered under the program). Requires hospitals enrolled in the 340B program to provide to each state a credit on the estimated annual purchases by such hospitals of covered drugs provided to Medicaid recipients for inpatient use. Sets forth a formula for calculating the credit. Allows a hospital to avoid paying such credits under certain circumstances. Eliminates the requirement that hospitals enrolled in the 340B program report the National Drug Code numbers for drugs administered by a physician if the state is precluded from seeking a rebate on such drugs because they were purchased at a discount under the 340B program. Removes the exclusion that prohibited covered entities added to the 340B program under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act from purchasing drugs for a rare disease or condition as covered outpatient drugs. Treats a facility or organization that is eligible for the 340B program as satisfying any geographic location requirements in relation to a hospital or a critical access hospital for purposes of determining provider-based status under Medicare.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2011
Preserving Access to Orphan Drugs Act of 2011 - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to exclude any drug or biological product which is approved or licensed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for marketing solely for one or more rare diseases or conditions from the annual fee on manufacturers or importers with branded prescription drug sales exceeding $5 million. Makes this Act effective as if included in PPACA.
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