United States · United States Congress · 16 June 2005
Health Technology to Enhance Quality Act of 2005 or the Health TEQ Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish the Office of the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology to carry out programs and activities to develop a nationwide interoperable health information technology infrastructure. Requires the Coordinator to establish a permanent Electronic Health Information Standards Development Working Group to review existing standards, identify deficiencies, and recommend modifications. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to review and provide for the adoption by the federal government of any recommended modification or standard. Requires the Secretary to develop criteria to: (1) ensure uniform and consistent implementation of any standards voluntarily adopted by private entities; and (2) ensure and certify hardware, software, and support services compliance with adopted standards. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Coordinator, to direct and coordinate federal spending related to the electronic exchange of health information and the adoption of recommendations of the Working Group. Prohibits any federal agency from expending federal funds to purchase hardware, software, or support services for implementation of a standard related to the electronic exchange of health information that is not an adopted standard. Allows the Secretary to award grants for the implementation of regional or local health information plans. Requires the Secretary to establish: (1) a safe harbor for group purchasing of hardware, software, and support services; and (2) guidelines that permit certain arrangements between health plans and issuers and health care providers. Requires the heads of relevant federal agencies to adopt and review uniform health care quality measures. Requires the Secretary to establish a Medicare value based purchasing pilot program and authorize waivers for states to establish value based purchasing programs for state Medicaid programs.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2005
Amends the Great Ape Conservation Act of 2000 to: (1) authorize the Secretary of the Interior to approve projects to address the root causes of threats to great apes in range states; (2) grant the Secretary discretion in convening the expert panel established under the Act to identify conservation needs for the great ape; (3) exempt such panel from requirements of the Federal Advisory Committee Act; (4) increase funding for administrative expenses from the Great Ape Conservation Fund; and (5) increase and extend through FY2010 the authorization of appropriations to such Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2005
Public Lands Corps Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Lands Corps Act of 1993 to: (1) allow the Secretary (the Secretary of Agriculture with respect to National Forest System land or the Secretary of the Interior with respect to Indian lands, Hawaiian home lands, or lands administered by the Department of the Interior) for purposes of entering into contracts and cooperative agreements under such Act, to give preference to qualified youth or conservation corps located in a specific area that have a substantial portion of members who are economically, physically, or educationally disadvantaged to carry out projects within the area; (2) require the Secretary, in carrying out priority projects (as defined by this Act) in a specific area, to give preference to qualified youth or conservation corps located in that specific area that have a substantial portion of such members; (3) allow the Secretary to authorize appropriate conservation projects and other appropriate projects to be carried out on federal, state, local, or private land as part of a federal disaster prevention or relief effort; (4) modify requirements for the establishment and use of conservation centers; (5) authorize the Secretary to provide any appropriate services, facilities, equipment, supplies, technical assistance, oversight, monitoring, or evaluations to carry out such Act; (6) require the Secretary to provide each participant in the Public Lands Corps and each resource assistant with a living allowance as established by the Secretary; and (7) permit the Secretary to grant members of the Public Lands Corps credit for time served with the Corps and to provide to a former member of the Corps noncompetitive hiring status for a specified period after the date on which such member's service with the Corps is complete.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2005
Medical Education Affordability Act - Directs the Secretary of Education to revise specified regulations regarding student loan repayment deferment under certain programs of the Higher Education Act of 1965 with respect to borrowers who are in postgraduate medical or dental internship, residency, or fellowship programs.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 2005
Renewable Energy Incentives Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the tax credit for the production of electricity from renewable resources; (2) increase the rate of such credit; (3) extend the 10 year credit period to all qualified energy facilities eligible for the credit; (4) include incremental geothermal energy production and incremental hydropower production as qualified energy resources for purposes of the credit; (5) increase the credit rate for co-production facilities and qualified facilities located within certain Indian and Alaskan Native Indian lands; (6) permit the transfer of tax credit amounts earned by certain tax-exempt entities to taxable entities; and (7) allow the credit to offset alternative minimum taxable income. Denies the tax credit for facilities which are not in compliance with applicable state and federal pollution prevention, control and permit requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 13 June 2005
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of the Honorable J. James Exon, former United States Senator for Nebraska. Declares that when the Senate adjourns on June 13, 2005, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of Senator Exon.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2005
Information Technology for Health Care Quality Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish the Office of Health Information Technology to: (1) improve the quality and efficiency of health care delivery through the use of health information technology; (2) provide national leadership relating to such technology; (3) direct all federal health information technology activities; (4) facilitate the interaction between the federal government and the private sector relating to the development and use of such technology; and (5) develop a national strategy for improving the quality and enhancing the efficiency of health care through the use of such technology and the creation of a National Health Information Infrastructure. Requires the Director of the Office to approve or disapprove the policies of federal departments or agencies that would significantly affect the use of such technology, and provide for the adoption and dissemination of government standards that promote the efficient exchange of data between health information technology systems. Prohibits the Secretary of Health and Human Services from purchasing any health care information technology system that is not in compliance with such standards. Requires the Director to guarantee payment of the principal and interest on loans made to eligible entities, and award competitive matching grants, to: (1) implement local health information infrastructure to facilitate the development of interoperability across health care settings; or (2) facilitate the purchase and adoption of health information technology. Requires the Secretary, the Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish uniform health care quality measures and public reporting requirements across all federally supported health delivery programs.
United States · United States Congress · 9 June 2005
Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2005 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) phase out the waiting period for disabled individuals to become eligible for Medicare benefits under SSA title XVIII (Medicare); and (2) eliminate the waiting period for individuals with life-threatening conditions to become eligible for such benefits. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to request the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences to study the range of disability conditions that can be delayed or prevented if individuals receive access to health care services and coverage before a condition reaches disability levels.
United States · United States Congress · 8 June 2005
Violence Against Women Act of 2005 - Reauthorizes and increases funding under the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 for grants to combat violence against women. Authorizes the Attorney General, through the Director of the Office on Violence Against Women, to award grants to improve court responses. Reauthorizes provisions of the Violence Against Women Acts of 2000 and 1994 concerning training and services for the elderly and the disabled and provisions of the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act regarding funding for the national domestic violence hotline. Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to prevent cyber-stalking. Provides increased penalties for repeat domestic violence offenses and protection order violations. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to: (1) fund programs serving domestic violence victims ages 12 to 24; (2) develop collaborative responses and services to families where there is both child maltreatment and domestic violence; (3) strengthen home visitation and health care system responses; and (4) develop long-term housing options for domestic violence victims who are homeless. Directs the Attorney General to award grants to reduce violence against women on college campuses. Authorizes limited emergency leave for a public employee who is a victim of domestic violence. Grants the Secretary of Homeland Security (currently, the Attorney General) authority to determine whether an alien is or has been a victim of a severe form of trafficking. Makes inapplicable a provision finding an alien inadmissible upon demonstrating a connection between the alien being a victim of a severe form of trafficking and that alien's unlawful presence in the United States. Directs the Attorney General to: (1) permit Indian law enforcement agencies to enter into, and obtain information from, federal criminal information databases, in cases of domestic violence; and (2) develop a national tribal sex offender registry and a tribal protection order registry. Establishes in the Office a Deputy Director for Tribal Affairs.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2005
VetsRide Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a grant program to provide innovative transportation options to veterans in remote rural areas in order to assist: (1) such veterans to travel to Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers; and (2) in providing medical care to such veterans. Limits grant amounts to $50,000.
United States · United States Congress · 7 June 2005
Calls on Congress, on the 40th anniversary of Griswold v. Connecticut in which the Supreme Court held that married people have a constitutional right to use contraceptives, to take steps to ensure that all women have universal access to affordable contraception.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2005
Gynecologic Cancer Education and Awareness Act of 2005 or Johanna's Law - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a national campaign to increase the awareness and knowledge of women with respect to gynecologic cancers, which shall include: (1) maintaining a supply of written materials to provide information to the public on gynecologic cancers; and (2) developing and placing public service announcements to encourage women to discuss their risks of gynecologic cancers with their physicians. Requires the Secretary to award grants to nonprofit private entities to test different outreach and education strategies for increasing such awareness among women and health professionals.
United States · United States Congress · 6 June 2005
Federal Agency Data-Mining Reporting Act of 2005 - Requires the head of each federal department or agency that is engaged in any activity to use or develop data-mining technology to report annually to Congress on all such activities. Requires that such report be made available to the public. Defines "data-mining" as a query, search, or other analysis of one or more electronic databases, where: (1) at least one of the databases was obtained from or remains under the control of a non-federal entity, or the information was acquired initially by another federal department or agency for purposes other than intelligence or law enforcement; (2) a federal department or agency or a non-federal entity acting on behalf of the federal government is conducting the query, search, or other analysis to find a predictive pattern indicating terrorist or criminal activity; and (3) the search does not use a specific individual's personal identifiers to acquire information concerning that individual. Mandates annual updates, including any new uses or development of data-mining technology.
United States · United States Congress · 26 May 2005
Local Law Enforcement Enhancement Act of 2005 - Authorizes the Attorney General to provide technical, forensic, prosecutorial, or other assistance in the criminal investigation or prosecution of any crime that: (1) constitutes a crime of violence under federal law or a felony under state or Indian tribal law; and (2) is motivated by prejudice based on the race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or disability of the victim or is a violation of the hate crime laws of the state or tribe. Directs the Attorney General to give priority for assistance to crimes committed by offenders who have committed crimes in more than one state and to rural jurisdictions that have difficulty covering the extraordinary investigation or prosecution expenses. Authorizes the Attorney General to award grants to assist state, local, and Indian law enforcement officials with such extraordinary expenses. Directs the Office of Justice Programs to: (1) work closely with funded jurisdictions to ensure that the concerns and needs of all affected parties are addressed; and (2) award grants to state and local programs designed to combat hate crimes committed by juveniles. Prohibits specified offenses involving actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or disability. Directs the U.S. Sentencing Commission to study and provide sentencing enhancements for adult recruitment of juveniles to commit hate crimes. Amends the Hate Crimes Statistics Act to require the crime data to be collected and published by the Attorney General to include data about crimes that manifest evidence of prejudice based on gender.
United States · United States Congress · 25 May 2005
Hunger-Free Communities Act of 2005 - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) Congress is committed to achieving domestic hunger goals and ending hunger by 2015; (2) federal food and nutrition programs should receive adequate funding; and (3) the entitlement nature of the child and adult care food program, the food stamp program, the school breakfast and lunch programs, and the summer food service program should be preserved. Directs: (1) the American Communities Survey to collect and submit food security information to the Secretary of Agriculture; and (2) the Secretary to conduct an annual study of hunger in the United States and develop recommendations on reducing domestic hunger. Directs the Secretary to make: (1) hunger-free communities collaborative grants to eligible public food program service providers or nonprofit organizations; (2) hunger-free communities infrastructure grants to eligible emergency feeding organizations; and (3) hunger-free communities training and technical assistance grants to eligible national or regional nonprofit organizations. (States that such grants' federal share shall not exceed 80 %.) Sets forth grant priorities.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2005
College 529 InvEST Act of 2005 - Makes permanent the provision relating to qualified tuition programs enacted by the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA).
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2005
Medicare Ambulance Payment Reform and Rural Equity Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) revise ambulance payment rates; and (2) provide additional payments for providers furnishing ambulance services in rural areas. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to review the system for adjusting payments for rural ambulance services to determine their adequacy and appropriateness. Amends SSA title XVIII with respect to a Secretary-specified uniform coding system identifying furnished ambulance services for purposes of a fee schedule. Directs the Secretary to establish a system or systems for the coding of claims for ambulance services for which payment is made, including a code set specifying the medical condition of the individual who is transported and the level of service that is appropriate for the transportation of an individual with that medical condition. Requires the code set to take into account the list of medical conditions developed in the course of the negotiated rulemaking process. (Current law authorizes the Secretary to require the claim for any ambulance services to include a code (or codes) under a uniform coding system specified by the Secretary, but does not require the establishment of such a coding system.)
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2005
Preserving Patient Access to Physicians Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to payment for physicians' services to establish an update to the single conversion factor for 2006 of at least 2.7 %, and a formula for an update to the single conversion factor for 2007. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in calculating the formula for the single conversion factor, to establish an input price index and estimate a productivity adjustment factor for 2007.
United States · United States Congress · 19 May 2005
Hydraulic Fracturing Safety Act of 2005 - Amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to: (1) include hydraulic fracturing within the definition of underground injection for purposes of such Act; (2) define hydraulic fracturing as the process of creating a fracture in a reservoir rock, through the injection of fluids and propping agents, for the purpose of reservoir stimulation during oil and gas production activities; (3) prohibit, during the hydraulic fracturing process, the use of diesel fuel or any other material that the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has listed as a priority pollutant under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act; and (4) require the Administrator to regulate hydraulic fracturing and ensure that state programs under the Safe Drinking Water Act regulate hydraulic fracturing in accordance with this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 2005
Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2005 - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to increase the federal minimum wage to: (1) $5.85 an hour, beginning on the 60th day after enactment of this Act; (2) $6.55 an hour, beginning 12 months after that 60th day; and (3) $7.25 an hour, beginning 24 months after that 60th day. Makes federal minimum wage requirements applicable to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Sets forth a transition period during which a specified minimum wage there shall be gradually increased to equal the federal minimum wage.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 2005
Community Options for Rural Elders Act of 2005 or the CORE Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to provide for the Administrator of Health Resources and Services to work with the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to establish Programs for All-Inclusive Care for Elderly (PACE) providers in rural areas. Directs the Secretary to permit a rural PACE provider applicant to adapt its PACE program to the unique requirements of eligible participants residing in rural areas and the challenges of providing services to them. Requires the Secretary to waive certain requirements of titles XI, XVIII (Medicare), and XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act as necessary to support the delivery of PACE services in rural areas. Directs the Secretary to award site development grants to rural PACE providers. Directs the Secretary, through the Office of Rural Health Policy, to make awards to tax-exempt organizations for the purpose of establishing a technical assistance outreach and education program. Requires the Secretary to establish a fund to reimburse rural PACE providers awarded a site development grant for outlier costs with respect to eligible enrollees in rural areas. Directs the Secretary to establish an advisory group.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2005
No Child Left Behind Improvement Act of 2005 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, to subject to school facility capacity requirements the obligation of a local educational agency (LEA) to provide a public school choice option for students to transfer under certain conditions. Authorizes school construction and renovation grants to LEAs experiencing school overcrowding, with priority to LEAs having difficulty in meeting public school choice requirements. Revises requirements for: (1) supplemental educational services personnel qualifications, and nondiscrimination in such services; and (2) state qualifications for teachers and paraprofessionals. Directs the Secretary of Education to improve coordination among teacher quality programs authorized under ESEA, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the Higher Education Act of 1965, and the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act of 1998. Directs the Secretary to require LEAs and state educational agencies (SEAs) to give schools and LEAs, respectively, an opportunity to request a review of a determination that they did not make adequate yearly progress (AYP) for the 2002-2003 school year. Prohibits the Secretary, an SEA, or an LEA, with respect to subsequent determinations of whether a school is subject to school improvement, corrective action, or restructuring as a result of not making AYP, from taking into account a 2002-2003 non-AYP determination that was revised under this Act, if the school received a final determination of AYP for such school year. Authorizes competitive grants to SEAs for increasing state and local data system capacity for assessment and accountability. Requires competitive grants to SEAs or SEA consortia to collaborate with institutions of higher education and research organizations in designing, improving, and ensuring accurate assessments of academic content and achievement standards for students who are limited English proficient and students with disabilities.
United States · United States Congress · 17 May 2005
Covering Kids Act of 2005 - Amends title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to eligible entities to: (1) conduct innovative outreach and enrollment efforts that are designed to increase the enrollment and participation of eligible children under SCHIP; and (2) promote understanding of the importance of health insurance coverage for prenatal care and children. Amends SSA title XIX (Medicaid) to grant a state the option to provide for simplified determinations of a child's financial eligibility for medical assistance under Medicaid or child health assistance under SCHIP.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2005
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) at the 57th Annual Meeting of the International Whaling Commission the United States should remain firmly opposed to commercial whaling (including any linking of a Revised Management Scheme (RMS) to the lifting of the commercial whaling moratorium), and take other specified related steps; and (2) the United States should make full use of all appropriate diplomatic mechanisms, federal law, relevant international laws and agreements, and other appropriate mechanisms to implement these goals.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2005
Code Talkers Recognition Act - Requires the President Pro Tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives to make appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on behalf of Congress, of commemorative medals of appropriate design to Sioux, Comanche, Choctaw, Sac and Fox, and any other Native American Code Talkers during World War I, World War II, and any other foreign conflict in which the United States was involved during the 20th Century in recognition of their contributions to the United States. Allows the posthumous award of a medal authorized by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
Electric Reliability Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal Power Act to extend Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) jurisdiction for purposes of approving reliability standards and enforcing compliance with this Act over a FERC-certified electric reliability organization (ERO), a regional entity, and users, owners, and operators of a bulk-power system. Prescribes procedural guidelines for: (1) certification as an ERO; (2) filing of reliability standards; and (3) imposition of penalties by either an ERO or FERC for noncompliance with this Act. Requires an ERO to file with FERC for approval of any proposed rule or rule change. Urges the President to negotiate international agreements with the governments of Canada and Mexico to provide for effective compliance with reliability standards and the efficacy of the ERO in the United States, Canada or Mexico. Requires an ERO to assess periodically the reliability and adequacy of the interconnected bulk-power system in North America. Directs FERC to establish a regional advisory body upon the petition of at least two-thirds of the States within a region that have more than one-half of their electric loads served within the region. Exempts Alaska or Hawaii from the coverage of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
National Historic Country Store Preservation Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish a historic country store preservation program to: (1) collect and disseminate information on country stores; (2) promote State and regional partnerships among proprietors of historic country stores; and (3) sponsor and conduct research on the economic impact of historic country stores, best practices to improve profitability and protect such stores from foreclosure or seizure, and best practices for developing cooperative organizations that address economic and historic preservation needs of historic country stores. Allows the Secretary to make grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative agreements with, eligible applicants to carry out a project to: (1) rehabilitate or repair a historic country store; (2) identify, document, and conduct research on historic country stores; and (3) develop and evaluate appropriate techniques or best practices for protecting historic country stores. Directs the Secretary to carry out a pilot project in Vermont under which the Secretary shall conduct demonstration activities to preserve historic country stores. Establishes in the Treasury the Historic Revolving Loan Fund. Provides for certain transfers to, and expenditures from, the Fund. Sets forth requirements for investment of amounts in the Fund. Authorizes the Secretary, using amounts in the Fund, to make loans to historic store proprietors and eligible applicants for projects to purchase, rehabilitate, or repair historic country stores.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
Water Resources Research Act Amendments of 2005 - Amends the Water Resources Research Act of 1984 to reauthorize appropriations for water resources research and technology institutes and for research focused on water problems of a regional or interstate nature.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
Colon Cancer Screen for Life Act of 2005 - Expresses the sense of the Congress with respect to the use of and reimbursement for colorectal cancer screening tests covered under the Medicare program under title XVIII of the Social Security Act (SSA). Amends SSA title XVIII to: (1) increase Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) reimbursement for colorectal cancer screening and diagnostic tests; (2) cover an outpatient office visit or consultation for the purpose of beneficiary education before a colorectal cancer screening test consisting of a colonoscopy, or in conjunction with the beneficiary's decision to obtain such a screening, regardless of whether the screening is medically indicated with respect to the beneficiary; and (3) waive the deductible for such tests.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
Digital Opportunity Investment Trust Act - Establishes the Digital Opportunity Investment Trust, which shall receive 30 percent of the proceeds received by the Federal Government each fiscal year quarter through FY 2028 from any use of the publicly owned electromagnetic spectrum after September 30, 2007. Establishes: (1) a Board to oversee administration of the Trust; and (2) a Director of the Trust. Sets forth authorized Trust uses. Obligates specified amounts for public television stations.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2005
Hospital Fair Competition Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to hospital payments. Provides for the use of estimated costs rather than average charges in establishing weighting factors for diagnosis-related groups under the inpatient hospital prospective payment system. Revises requirements for exceptions to the prohibition against certain physician self-referrals to specialty hospitals in which a physician has invested. Exempts from the limitation on such referrals, and any liability for criminal penalties, specified arrangements between hospitals and physicians.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2005
Medicaid Formula Fairness Act of 2005 - Prohibits the Federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) for a State for FY2006 from being less than the greater of: (1) the FMAP determined for the State for FY2005, decreased by 0.5 percentage points; or (2) the FMAP that would have been determined for the State for FY2006 if the per capita incomes for 2001 and 2002 that were used to determine the FMAP for the State for FY2005 were used. Provides that the FMAP applicable to a State for FY2006 after the application of the above limitation on reduction shall apply only for purposes of titles XIX (Medicaid) and XXI (State Children's Health Insurance (SCHIP)) of the Social Security Act and payments under such titles that are based on a certain enhanced FMAP, and shall not apply with respect to payments under title IV (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)) of the Social Security Act. Repeals this Act effective as of October 1, 2006, and provides that it shall not apply to any fiscal year after FY2006.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2005
Kinship Caregiver Support Act - Authorizes the Assistant Secretary for Children and Families of the Department of Health and Human Services to make grants for kinship navigator programs to state agencies, metropolitan agencies, or tribal organizations with experience in addressing needs of kinship caregivers or children and connecting them with services and assistance. Amends part E (Federal Payments for Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of title IV of the Social Security Act to authorize all states to opt to enter agreements to provide kinship guardianship assistance payments on behalf of children to grandparents and other relatives who have assumed legal guardianship of children for whom they have cared as foster parents and have committed to care for on a permanent basis. Allows states to use part E funds to make such payments under specified conditions. Provides that adoptive parents of children with special needs remain eligible for adoption assistance, even if they receive kinship guardianship assistance. Authorizes kinship guardianship demonstration projects. Requires states to: (1) notify all adult grandparents and other adult relatives (with exceptions due to family or domestic violence) when a child is removed from custody of a parent or parents; and (2) explain the options the relative has to participate in the child's care and placement. Allows state agencies to establish separate standards for foster family homes in which a foster parent is a relative of the foster child.
United States · United States Congress · 10 May 2005
Congratulates the National Asphalt Pavement Association on its 50th anniversary. Recognizes and celebrates the achievements of National Asphalt Pavement Association members for their contributions to the economic well-being of U.S. citizens.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
Clean Efficient Automobiles Resulting From Advanced Car Technologies (CLEAR ACT) Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit for investment in alternative motor vehicles, including qualified fuel cell, hybrid, and alternative fuel vehicles. Bases the amount of such credit on criteria relating to vehicle weight and fuel efficiency. Modifies the tax credit for qualified electric vehicles to remove the ten percent limitation and base the credit amount on criteria relating to vehicle weight, mileage, and payload. Makes leased vehicles eligible for such credit. Extends such credit through 2010. Allows a tax credit for: (1) 50 percent of expenditures for the installation of qualified clean-fuel vehicle refueling property; and (2) retail sales of alternative fuels as motor vehicle fuels. Directs the Comptroller General to undertake an ongoing analysis of: the effectiveness of the alternative motor vehicle and fuel incentives provided by this Act and to report to Congress on such study by December 31, 2006, and annually thereafter.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
Providing Reliable Officers, Technology, Education, Community Prosecutors, and Training In Our Neighborhoods Act of 2005 or the PROTECTION Act - Modifies provisions of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 regarding public safety and community policing ("cops on the beat" program, COPS) to authorize the Attorney General to use COPS grants to: (1) increase prosecutor presence and to enhance law enforcement access to new technologies; (2) pay overtime to existing career law enforcement officers to the extent that such overtime is devoted to community-oriented policing; and (3) promote higher education among in-service State and local law enforcement officers by reimbursing them for certain educational costs. Includes among permitted additional grant projects: (1) specialized integrity and ethics training; and (2) innovative proactive crime control and prevention programs involving school officials and religiously-affiliated organizations. Authorizes the Attorney General to use up to five percent of funds available for technical assistance and training grants in any fiscal year to States, local governments, Indian tribal governments, and other entities. Allows grants to be used to assist: (1) police departments in employing specified professional, scientific, and technological advancements; and (2) State, local, or tribal prosecutors' offices in implementation of community-based prosecution programs that build on local community-oriented policing efforts. Reserves specified funds for local governmental units with a population of less than 50,000. Authorizes the Attorney General to use no more than 50 percent of grant renewal funds to award grants targeted for police officer retention.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
Fifty Caliber Sniper Weapons Regulation Act of 2005 - Amends the National Firearms Act to include a 50 caliber sniper weapon (defined as a rifle capable of firing a center-fire 50 caliber cartridge) within the definition of a "firearm" regulated under that Act. Modifies the definition of "rifle" under the Act to include a weapon intended to be fired from a bipod or other support.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2005
Clean Water Authority Restoration Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to replace the term "navigable waters," throughout the Act, with the term "waters of the United States," defined to mean all waters subject to the ebb and flow of the tide, the territorial seas, and all interstate and intrastate waters and their tributaries, including lakes, rivers, streams (including intermittent streams), mudflats, sandflats, wetlands, sloughs, prairie potholes, wet meadows, playa lakes, natural ponds, and all impoundments of the foregoing, to the fullest extent that these waters, or activities affecting them, are subject to the legislative power of Congress under the Constitution.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2005
Breast Cancer Patient Protect Action of 2005 - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code to require a group health plan or a health issuer offering group health insurance coverage that provides medical and surgical benefits to ensure that inpatient (and in the case of a lumpectomy, outpatient) coverage and radiation therapy are provided for breast cancer treatment. Prohibits such a plan or issuer from: (1) restricting benefits for any hospital length of stay to less than 48 hours in connection with a mastectomy or breast conserving surgery or 24 hours in connection with a lymph node dissection; or (2) requiring that a provider obtain authorization from the plan or issuer for prescribing any such length of stay. Requires such a plan or issuer to: (1) provide notice to each participant and beneficiary regarding the coverage required under this Act; and (2) ensure that full coverage is provided for secondary consultations by specialists in the appropriate medical fields to confirm or refute a diagnosis of cancer. Applies such requirements to health insurance issuers offering coverage in the individual market.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2005
Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act of 2005 - Prohibits the President from regulating or prohibiting travel to or from Cuba by U.S. citizens or legal residents, or any of the transactions ordinarily incident to such travel relating to: (1) accompanied personal baggage; (2) payment of living expenses and the acquisition of personal-use goods or services; (3) travel arrangements; (4) nonscheduled air, sea, or land voyage transactions (such provision does not permit the carriage of articles other than accompanied baggage into Cuba or the United States); and (5) normal banking transactions. States that such provision does not: (1) restrict presidential authority in time of war or armed hostilities between the United States and Cuba, or of imminent danger to the public health or the physical safety of U.S. travelers; and (2) authorize U.S. importation of personal consumption goods acquired in Cuba.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
Human Cloning Ban and Stem Cell Research Protection Act of 2005 - Prohibits: (1) conducting or attempting to conduct human cloning; (2) shipping the product of nuclear transplantation in interstate or foreign commerce for the purpose of human cloning in the United States or elsewhere; or (3) exporting to a foreign country an unfertilized blastocyst if such country does not prohibit human cloning. Sets forth criminal and civil penalties for violations. Requires the Comptroller General to report to the relevant congressional committees on: (1) actions taken to enforce such prohibitions; (2) actions of State attorneys general to enforce similar State laws; (3) coordination of Federal, State, and local enforcement; and (4) international laws relating to human cloning. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require research involving nuclear transplantation to be conducted in accordance with applicable Federal regulations regarding the protection of human subjects and Institutional Review Boards. Prohibits: (1) a somatic cell nucleus from being transplanted into a human oocyte (egg) that has undergone or will undergo fertilization; (2) an unfertilized blastocyst from being maintained after more than 14 days from its first cell division, not counting storage times at temperatures less than zero degrees centigrade; (3) an oocyte from being used in nuclear transplantation research unless donated voluntarily with the donor's informed consent; (4) a human oocyte or unfertilized blastocyst from being acquired, received, or transferred for valuable consideration in interstate commerce; and (5) nuclear transplantation in a laboratory in which human oocytes are subject to assisted reproductive technology treatments or procedures. Sets forth civil penalties for violations.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
Automobile Fuel Economy Act of 2005 - Specifies increased average fuel economy standards for certain light trucks, automobiles (up to 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight), and certain classes of vehicles in the Federal fleet that are manufactured or purchased after specified dates.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
Recognizes June 2 through June 5, 2005, as the "Vermont Dairy Festival" in honor of Harold Howrigan for his service to his community and the Vermont dairy industry.
United States · United States Congress · 20 April 2005
Theodore Roosevelt Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue $1 silver coins: (1) emblematic of the life and legacy of President Theodore Roosevelt, bearing his image as a Rough Rider on one side and an eagle design on the other side; and (2) bearing his image on horseback on one side and depicting a flaming sword of righteousness on the other side. Expresses the sense of Congress that the coins should be struck at the U.S. Mint at West Point, New York. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) issue such coins beginning on January 1, 2006; and (2) initiate coin sales before such date. (2006 will mark the 100th anniversary of Roosevelt's award of the Nobel Peace Prize.) Requires payment of $10 surcharges from the coin sales to the Theodore Roosevelt Association, to be used exclusively for educational programs at Sagamore Hill National Historic Site, including a visitor's center.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2005
Combating Autism Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH): (1) to develop a scientifically justified budget for research on autism spectrum disorders; (2) acting through the Director of the National Institute of Mental Health, to provide for centers of excellence regarding research on autism; and (3) acting through the Director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the Director of the National Institute on Deafness and Other Disorders, to provide for Collaborative Programs of Excellence in Autism. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to establish: (1) regional centers of excellence in autism and pervasive developmental disabilities epidemiology; and (2) a clearinghouse for the collecting and storage of data generated. Requires the Secretary to establish: (1) a program to provide information and education on autism and its risk factors to health professionals and the general public; and (2) the Autism Coordinating Committee to coordinate autism related activities within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Requires the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), to award grants or cooperative agreements to develop statewide autism screening, diagnosis, and intervention programs and systems. Requires the Director of NIH, acting through the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, to provide for centers of excellence regarding environmental health and autism.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 2005
Christopher Reeve Paralysis Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to permit the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH): (1) acting through the Director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, to expand and coordinate NIH activities on paralysis research; (2) to award grants to plan, establish, improve, and provide basic operating support for Christopher Reeve Paralysis Research Consortia; (3) to educate and disseminate information and receive public comment on NIH programs and research regarding paralysis; (4) acting through the Director of the National Institute on Child Health and Human Development and the National Center for Rehabilitation Research, to expand and coordinate NIH research with implications for enhancing daily function for persons with paralysis; and (5) to make grants to plan, establish, improve, and provide basic operating support for multicenter clinical trial networks to design clinical rehabilitation intervention protocols and measures of outcomes on paralysis. Permits the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to study the health challenges associated with paralysis and other physical disabilities and carry out projects and interventions to improve the quality of life and long-term health status of individuals with such conditions. Permits the Secretary to award grants for activities related to paralysis, including to: (1) establish paralysis registries; and (2) disseminate information to the public. Allows the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to: (1) establish Paralysis Research, Education and Clinical Care Centers; and (2) award grants to medical centers of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to translate clinical findings and recommendations on paralysis into evidence-based best practices.
United States · United States Congress · 18 April 2005
Quality Cheese Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to prohibit the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) from using Federal funds to amend specified regulations to include dry ultra-filtered milk or casein in the definition of "milk" or "nonfat milk" as specified in the domestic natural standards for cheese and cheese products.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2005
Abraham Lincoln Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue $1 coins emblematic of the life and legacy of President Abraham Lincoln in commemoration of the bicentennial of his birth. Permits issuance of such coins only during the one-year period beginning on January 1, 2009. Subjects the coin sales to a surcharge of $10 per coin.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2005
Seniors Mental Health Access Improvement Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for coverage under Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of marriage and family therapist services and mental health counselor services generally, and particularly such services provided in rural health clinics and in hospice programs. Amends Medicare part C (Miscellaneous) to exclude such services from the skilled nursing facility prospective payment system. Authorizes marriage and family therapists to develop discharge plans for post-hospital services.
![Official portrait of Sen. Jeffords, James M. [I-VT]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/j000072_200.jpg)