United States · United States Congress · 19 March 2018
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week. Reaffirms the U.S. commitment to ending multiple sclerosis by promoting awareness about individuals affected by multiple sclerosis and supporting research and education programs. Recognizes people living with multiple sclerosis and salutes the health care professionals and medical researchers who assist those so affected and continue to work to find ways to stop the disease, restore what has been lost, and end multiple sclerosis forever.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 2018
Credentialing, Educating, and Relevant Training Initiative For Your Heroes Act or the CERTIFY Heroes Act This bill allows tuition assistance provided under the Department of Defense's educational assistance program to be used for licensing and certification programs offered by entities other than institutions of higher education.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 2018
School Safety and Mental Health Services Improvement Act of 2018 This bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to allow state and local educational agencies to use certain federal funds for activities related to school safety, including: (1) infrastructure improvements to prevent, mitigate, or respond to incidents of school violence; and (2) professional development for school personnel in mental-health awareness, crisis response, and other programs designed to reduce and prevent school violence. The bill also amends the Public Health Service Act to expand the programs for which the Department of Health and Human Services may provide financial support to assist local communities in helping children deal with violence. Such programs may include those designed to provide mental-health and substance-use disorder assessments, crisis-intervention training, counseling, treatment, and referral. The President must convene an interagency task force to address school safety.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 2018
Improving Choices in Health Care Coverage Act This bill requires a health insurance issuer that offers short-term, limited-duration insurance to renew the coverage at the option of the individual.
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 2018
United States-Israel Security Assistance Authorization Act of 2018 This bill extends security assistance to Israel. Specifically, it extends: foreign military financing assistance to Israel through FY2028, loan guarantees through FY2023, and authority for the war reserves stockpile through FY2023. The President may: enter into a cooperative agreement with Israel for research and joint production of anti-drone defense articles; conduct a joint assessment with Israel regarding which precision guided munitions Israel needs in a sustained armed confrontation with Hezbollah, Hamas, or other groups; and transfer precision guided munitions and defense articles to such stockpile. The bill directs the Department of Defense to provide for the rapid acquisition and deployment of precision guided munitions for U.S. counterterrorism missions or to assist an ally under missile threat from a terrorist organization or a country that supports international terrorism. The President shall report to Congress describing the steps taken to include Israel in the list of countries eligible for the strategic trade authorization exception. Such exception allows a controlled item to be exported without a transaction-specific license. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration shall continue to work with the Israel Space Agency to pursue peaceful space exploration and science initiatives. The bill also requires the periodic reports on Israel's qualitative military edge to include information about Israel's ability to defend itself from regional state and non-state actors and from drone, cyber, and asymmetric threats.
United States · United States Congress · 28 February 2018
This joint resolution extends the sympathies of Congress to the family of the Reverend William "Billy" F. Graham, Jr., and honors his life, his ministry, and his contributions to North Carolina, the United States, and the moral and religious life of millions of individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2018
Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development Act of 2018 or the BUILD Act of 2018 This bill establishes the United States International Development Finance Corporation to facilitate the participation of private sector capital and skills in the economic development of countries with low- or lower-middle-income economies and countries transitioning from nonmarket to market economies in order to complement U.S. assistance and foreign policy objectives. The corporation may: (1) make loans or loan guarantees, (2) as a minority investor acquire equity or financial interests in entities, (3) provide insurance or reinsurance to private sector entities and qualifying sovereign entities, (4) provide technical assistance, (5) administer special projects, (6) establish enterprise funds, (7) issue obligations, and (8) charge service fees. The corporation shall terminate on September 30, 2038. The corporation shall not provide assistance to: (1) a country whose government has repeatedly supported acts of international terrorism, or (2) a private sector entity that is engaged in monopolistic practices. The bill prescribes transitional provisions, including transferring to the corporation the functions, personnel, assets, and liabilities of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (which is subsequently terminated) and specified elements of the U.S. Agency for International Development.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2018
Recognizes Black History Month as an opportunity to reflect on U.S. history and to commemorate the contributions of African Americans. Calls for the United States to: (1) honor the contribution of pioneers who helped to ensure its legacy; and (2) move forward as a nation "indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 2018
Fair Agricultural Reporting Method Act or the FARM Act This bill amends the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 to exempt air emissions from animal waste at a farm from specified release notification requirements, recordkeeping requirements, and associated penalties.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2018
Recognizes: (1) January 2018 as National Mentoring Month, and (2) the staff and volunteers at quality mentoring programs who help young people reach their full potential. Acknowledges that mentoring is beneficial in that it supports educational achievement and self-confidence, reduces juvenile delinquency, improves life outcomes, and strengthens communities. Expresses support for: (1) the creation and expansion of quality mentoring programs across the United States, and (2) initiatives to increase the percentage of young people who have a mentor.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2018
Supports: (1) the athletes of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Teams in competing at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games and Paralympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea; and (2) the goals and ideals of the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2018
Veterans Cemetery Benefit Correction Act This bill requires the Department of the Interior to provide outer burial receptacles for veterans' remains buried in open cemeteries administered by the National Park Service. The use of outer burial receptacles in such cemeteries shall be in accordance with regulations or procedures approved by Interior.
United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2018
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for producing electricity from renewable resources, to modify the definition of "municipal solid waste." The bill specifies that municipal solid waste does not include solid waste collected as part of a system which commingles commonly recycled paper with other solid waste which is not commonly recycled at any point from the time of collection through any materials recovery. The bill includes exceptions for incidental and residual waste. In the case of a facility that produces electricity both from municipal solid waste and other solid waste that is not a qualified energy resource: (1) the facility is a qualified facility if it otherwise meets the requirements for qualified facilities, and (2) the credit only applies to the portion of the electricity produced from municipal solid waste.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2018
Expresses concern that: (1) the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) failed to hold elections in 2016 or 2017; and (2) the growing security, humanitarian, and human rights crisis in the DRC is exacerbated by the lack of a duly elected leadership. Recognizes that impunity and lack of effective rule of law undermine democracy and that the arrest and detention of civil society activists and the harassment of political opponents close political space and repress peaceful dissent. Calls on: (1) such government to complete specified concrete steps towards holding elections by December 23, 2018; and (2) the opposition to take all steps possible within the DRC to support and promote immediate free, fair, and inclusive elections. Urges the President of the United States, in close coordination with regional and international partners, to: (1) provide appropriate electoral assistance to support the organization of credible elections as soon as possible, and (2) use appropriate means to deter further electoral calendar slippage and abuses against the Congolese people.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2018
Reaffirms the U.S. commitment to the Republic of Korea to support, participate in, and help ensure the security of the 23rd Olympic Winter Games. Recognizes the importance of such games as a leading international sporting event that can contribute to peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula, in Northeast Asia, and around the world. Reaffirms that the United States, the Republic of Korea, and other partners remain committed to pursuing the policy of maximum pressure and engagement toward the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). Expresses hope that the games will contribute to the decision by the DPRK to engage in negotiations that will result in complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Wishes the Republic of Korea success in preparing for and hosting such games.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2018
Designates the week of January 21-January 27, 2018, as National School Choice Week. Encourages all parents to learn more about the educational options available.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2018
Music Modernization Act of 2018 This bill amends the copyright law to create a statutory blanket license for making and distributing nondramatic musical sound recordings, including through digital delivery. The blanket license allows digital music services to distribute sound recordings covered by the license without negotiating for the rights for each individual recording, as long as the music service complies with the license's requirements, such as paying the required royalties.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2018
Over-the-Counter Drug Safety, Innovation, and Reform Act This bill amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to substantially revise how over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are approved.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2018
Defending Elections from Threats by Establishing Redlines Act of 2018 This bill requires the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), no more than 30 days after a U.S. election, to determine whether a foreign government interfered with the election and report on that determination. If the DNI reports that there was not interference and subsequently determines that there was interference, the DNI shall report on the subsequent determination. If the DNI determines that Russia interfered with an election, the President shall impose specified sanctions. The President shall brief Congress on any foreign government the President determines interfered with, or is likely to interfere with, an election.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2018
Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act This bill amends the federal criminal code to make it a crime for any person to perform or attempt to perform an abortion if the probable post-fertilization age of the fetus is 20 weeks or more. A violator is subject to criminal penalties—a fine, up to five years in prison, or both. The bill provides exceptions for an abortion: (1) that is necessary to save the life of the pregnant woman, or (2) when the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest. A physician who performs or attempts to perform an abortion under an exception must comply with specified requirements. A woman who undergoes a prohibited abortion may not be prosecuted for violating or conspiring to violate the provisions of this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 11 January 2018
Access to Independent Health Insurance Advisors Act of 2018 This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to exclude remuneration paid for licensed independent insurance producers from administrative costs for purposes of calculating the medical loss ratio of a health insurance plan. The bill defines "independent insurance producer" to mean an insurance agent or broker, insurance consultant, benefit specialist, limited insurance representative, and any other person required to be licensed under state law to sell, solicit, negotiate, service, effect, procure, renew, or bind policies of insurance coverage or offer advice, counsel, opinions, or services related to insurance.
United States · United States Congress · 4 January 2018
Condemns the government of Iran for: (1) funding terrorist organizations and activities; (2) oppression of its citizens; and (3) suppression of communication through interference with internet applications such as Instagram, Facebook, Telegram, and Twitter. Reaffirms: (1) the U.S. commitment to promoting the freedoms of speech and assembly as universal rights, and (2) U.S. support for the citizens of Iran to establish a freely elected democratic system.
United States · United States Congress · 21 December 2017
Global Food Security Reauthorization Act of 2017 This bill amends the Global Food Security Act of 2016 to: (1) extend through FY2023 the program to carry out those portions of the global food security strategy that relate to the Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development, and (2) expand requirements for reporting by the President regarding strategy implementation. The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 is amended to extend through FY2023 the assistance program for international disaster relief and rehabilitation, including the set-aside for the emergency food security program.
United States · United States Congress · 20 December 2017
Tax Extender Act of 2017 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend various expiring tax deductions, credits, and rules. The bill extends tax credits relating to: Indian employment, railroad track maintenance, mine rescue team training, qualified zone academy bonds, American Samoa economic development, nonbusiness energy property, new fuel cell motor vehicles, two-wheeled plug-in electric vehicles, alternative fuel vehicle refueling property, second generation biofuel producers, biodiesel and renewable diesel, Indian coal facilities, facilities producing energy from renewable resources, energy efficient new homes, and alternative fuels. The bill extends and modifies the tax credits for: residential energy property, investments in energy property, production from advanced nuclear power facilities, and carbon dioxide sequestration. The bill also extends provisions relating to: the tax exclusion for the discharge of principal residence indebtedness; the treatment of mortgage insurance premiums as qualified residence interest; deductions for tuition and related expenses, income attributable to domestic production activities in Puerto Rico, and energy efficient commercial buildings; depreciating or expensing various types of property; timber gains; empowerment zones; the cover over of rum excise taxes to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands; sales or dispositions to implement electric restructuring policies for electric utilities; and the oil spill liability trust fund.
United States · United States Congress · 12 December 2017
Designates December 3, 2017, as National Phenylketonuria Awareness Day. (Phenylketonuria or PKU is a rare, inherited metabolic disorder that can cause intellectual disability and other neurological problems.)
United States · United States Congress · 6 December 2017
Access, Success, and Persistence in Reshaping Education Act of 2017 or the ASPIRE Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 by requiring the Department of Education (ED) to rank institutions of higher education (IHEs) based on the percentage of first-time, full-time students who receive Pell Grants and are enrolled at the IHEs. The IHEs in the bottom 5% must improve the enrollment of those students by specific deadlines or pay a fee-per-student penalty. Additionally, ED must rank IHEs based on the percentage of first-time, full-time students who enroll at the school and graduate within 6 years. The bill gives IHEs in the bottom 5% the option of receiving funding to improve student graduation rates. Those IHEs must improve those rates by specific deadlines or pay a penalty. The bill establishes consumer warning requirements for IHEs with low enrollment or graduation rates. ED must establish: (1) grant programs for improving graduation rates, and (2) a bonus program for providing nonfinancial rewards to IHEs that make college more affordable and increase college access and success for low-income or working class students and moderate-income students. ED must collect the penalty fees and use them to fund the grant and award program.
United States · United States Congress · 5 December 2017
Caring for our Veterans Act of 2017 This bill establishes a Veterans Community Care Program to furnish hospital care, medical services, and extended care services to covered veterans through non-Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care providers under specified circumstances. This program replaces the Veterans Choice Program. The VA shall develop: (1) an education program for veterans about their VA health care options, (2) processes to ensure safe opioid prescribing practices by non-VA health care providers; and (3) criteria to designate VA medical centers, ambulatory care facilities, and community based outpatient clinics as underserved facilities. The bill: (1) modifies the definitions of medical facility, major medical facility project, and major medical facility lease; and (2) establishes specified pilot programs. The VA family caregiver program is expanded. The VA shall implement a new information technology system.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2017
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) Awareness Month. (PCOS is caused by a hormone imbalance. Symptoms can include infertility, weight gain, excess hair growth, and acne.) Recognizes the need for further research, improved treatment and care options, and a cure for PCOS. Acknowledges the struggles affecting all women and girls afflicted with PCOS.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2017
Commemorates the 100th anniversary of the 3d Infantry Division on November 21, 2017, and reveres its century of service to the military of the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 2017
Fix NICS Act of 2017 This bill amends the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act to require each federal agency and department, including a federal court, to: certify whether it has provided to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) disqualifying records of persons prohibited from receiving or possessing a firearm, and establish and substantially comply with an implementation plan to maximize record submissions and verify their accuracy. The bill amends the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 to: direct the Department of Justice (DOJ) to establish a state implementation plan, including benchmarks, to maximize the automation and submission of mental health and criminal history records to the NICS; waive the grant match requirement under the National Criminal History Improvement Program (NCHIP) for a state that complies with its implementation plan; reauthorize through FY2022 the NICS Act Record Improvement Program (NARIP); establish, as a priority area for NARIP grant funding, a domestic abuse and violence prevention initiative; and create a funding preference under the NARIP program for states that establish an implementation plan and use grant funds to upload felony conviction and domestic violence records. It amends the Crime Identification Technology Act of 1998 to reauthorize through FY2022 the NCHIP program. If a state complies with its implementation plan, then the federal share of an NCHIP grant may exceed 90% of program costs.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 2017
Authorizes a Senator, officer, or employee of the Senate to: (1) collect from another such individual, within Senate buildings, nonmonetary donations of clothing, toys, food, and housewares for charitable purposes related to serving persons in need or members of the Armed Forces and the families of those members during the holiday season, if the charitable purposes do not otherwise violate any rule or regulation of the Senate or of federal law; and (2) work with a nonprofit organization with respect to the delivery of such donations.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2017
International Violence Against Women Act of 2017 This bill establishes in the Department of State an Office of Global Women's Issues which shall be headed by an Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues. The Ambassador-at-Large shall: (1) coordinate U.S. government efforts regarding gender equality and the advancement of women and girls in foreign policy, and (2) develop or update periodically a U.S. global strategy to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls. The bill establishes in the U.S. Agency for International Development the position of Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment who shall direct policies, programs, and funding regarding gender equality and women's empowerment. The Ambassador-at-Large and the Senior Coordinator shall: (1) identify at least four low-income and lower-middle income countries that have significant levels of violence against women and girls, and (2) develop comprehensive individual country plans to respond to such violence.
United States · United States Congress · 9 November 2017
Merrill's Marauders Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the award of a Congressional Gold Medal to the 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), commonly known as Merrill's Marauders, in recognition of their bravery and outstanding service in the jungles of Burma (now Myanmar) during World War II. Following its award, the gold medal shall be given to the Smithsonian Institution where it will be displayed and made available for research. It is the sense of Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should make the gold medal available for display elsewhere, particularly at other locations and events associated with Merrill's Marauders.
United States · United States Congress · 9 November 2017
Declares that the Senate joins the Small Business Administration in recognizing and encouraging the observance of Small Business Saturday on November 25, 2017. Supports efforts to: (1) encourage consumers to shop locally, and (2) increase awareness of the value of locally owned small businesses and the impact of such businesses on the U.S. economy.
United States · United States Congress · 8 November 2017
USS Indianapolis Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill requires the House of Representatives and the Senate to make appropriate arrangements for the award, on behalf of Congress, of a single gold medal of appropriate design to the crew of the USS Indianapolis , in recognition of their perseverance, bravery, and service to the United States. Following the award of the gold medal, it shall be given to the Indiana War Memorial Museum in Indianapolis, Indiana, where it will be displayed and made available for research. It is the sense of Congress that the Indiana War Memorial Museum should make the gold medal available for display elsewhere, particularly at other locations and events associated with the USS Indianapolis.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 2017
Recognizes that prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV is critical to stopping the spread of HIV worldwide, and that the fight to eliminate pediatric HIV worldwide has been a priority for more than 13 years. Supports providing women with HIV counseling and testing services and expanding pediatric treatment of HIV.
United States · United States Congress · 18 October 2017
Seniors Tax Hike Prevention Act of 2017 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to extend, through 2019, the rule that permits individuals who are 65 and older to deduct certain medical expenses that exceed 7.5% of adjusted gross income. (A provision that reduced the 10% threshold for the medical expense deduction to 7.5% if a taxpayer or a taxpayer's spouse is 65 or older expired at the end of 2016.) The bill also expresses the sense of the Senate that the reduction in revenues resulting from this bill should be offset by an appropriate amendment to the IRC.
United States · United States Congress · 17 October 2017
Mandate Relief Act of 2017 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to allow additional exemptions from the requirement under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to maintain minimum essential health coverage (commonly referred to as the individual mandate). The bill exempts individuals who: (1) have household incomes below the national median, (2) reside in a state in which the average premium for self-only or family coverage under the second lowest cost silver plan within the state has increased by more than 10% from the prior year, or (3) reside in a county with fewer than two health insurance issuers offering qualified plans on an exchange. The bill also repeals provisions added to the IRC by PPACA that: (1) restrict payments from health savings accounts (HSAs), Archer medical savings accounts (MSAs), and health flexible spending and reimbursement arrangements for medications to prescription drugs and insulin (thus allowing payments for over-the-counter medications); (2) impose a $2,500 limitation on salary reduction contributions to a health flexible spending arrangement under a cafeteria plan; and (3) impose an additional tax on HSA and Archer MSA distributions not used for qualified medical expenses.
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 2017
Condemns the attack at the Route 91 Harvest festival in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 1, 2017, and honors the memory of the victims killed. Expresses hope for the recovery of those injured, and applauds the efforts of law-enforcement and counterterrorism officials and emergency-medical and healthcare professionals in response to the attack.
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 2017
Multilateral Aid Review Act of 2017 This bill establishes a United States Multilateral Aid Review to assess the value of U.S. government investments in multilateral entities. The President shall establish an interagency Multilateral Review Task Force to review U.S. participation in multilateral entities and report to Congress. The bill establishes the United States Multilateral Aid Review Peer Review Group to assist the task force.
![Official portrait of Sen. Isakson, Johnny [R-GA]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/i000055_200.jpg)