United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2019
Broadband Deployment Accuracy and Technological Availability Act or the Broadband DATA Act This bill requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to change the way broadband data is collected, verified, and reported. Specifically, the FCC must collect and disseminate granular broadband service availability data (broadband maps) from wired, fixed-wireless, satellite, and mobile broadband providers. To do this, the FCC is required to establish the Broadband Serviceable Location Fabric (a dataset of geocoded information for all broadband service locations, atop which broadband maps are overlaid) as the vehicle for reporting broadband service availability data. Additionally, the FCC must put forth specified requirements for service availability data collected from broadband providers, and it must create a challenge process to enable the submission of independent data challenging the accuracy of FCC broadband maps.
United States · United States Congress · 12 June 2019
Milk in Lunches for Kids Act of 2019 or the MILK Act of 2019 This bill revises requirements for the National School Lunch Program to allow schools to serve whole milk and milk with 2% fat. The bill directs the Department of Agriculture to revise its regulations to exclude milk fat from the calculation of the average saturated fat content of a meal.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2019
Academic Partnerships Lead Us to Success Act or the A PLUS Act This bill creates a framework under which states may receive federal elementary and secondary education funds on a consolidated basis and use such funds for any educational purpose permitted by state law.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2019
Codifying Useful Regulatory Definitions Act or the CURD Act This bill provides statutory authority for a definition of natural cheese. Under the bill, natural cheese is defined as cheese that is produced from animal milk or certain dairy ingredients and is produced in accordance with established cheese-making standards.
United States · United States Congress · 23 May 2019
Stop Dangerous Sanctuary Cities Act This bill prohibits a sanctuary jurisdiction from receiving grants under certain Economic Development Assistance Programs and the Community Development Block Grant Program. A sanctuary jurisdiction is a state or local government that has in effect a statute, policy, or practice that prohibits or restricts (1) information sharing about an individual's immigration status, or (2) compliance with a lawfully issued detainer request or notification of release request. The bill authorizes a state or local government to comply with a detainer and limits the liability of a state or local government for complying with the detainer.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 2019
Stopping Overdoses of Fentanyl Analogues Act This bill adds five fentanyl analogues and the entire category of fentanyl-related substances to schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. A schedule I controlled substance is a drug, substance, or chemical that has a high potential for abuse; has no currently accepted medical value; and is subject to regulatory controls and administrative, civil, and criminal penalties under the Controlled Substances Act.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2019
Protecting Faith-Based and Nonprofit Organizations From Terrorism Act of 2019 This bill establishes in the Department of Homeland Security a Nonprofit Security Grant Program, under which the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) shall make grants to eligible nonprofit organizations (tax-exempt organizations and those determined to be at risk of a terrorist attack) for target hardening and other security enhancements to protect against terrorist attacks.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2019
This resolution celebrates the 100th anniversary of the passage and ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution, providing for women's suffrage. The resolution also reaffirms the desire of Congress to continue strengthening democratic participation.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2019
Safe Routes Act of 2019 This bill directs the Department of Transportation to waive any vehicle weight limit for covered logging vehicles. The term "covered logging vehicle" means a vehicle that (1) is transporting raw or unfinished forest products, including logs, pulpwood, biomass, or wood chips; (2) is traveling a distance of not more than 150 air miles from the point of origin to a storage or processing facility; and (3) meets applicable state legal weight tolerances and vehicle configurations for transporting raw or unfinished forest products within the boundaries of each state in which the vehicle is operating.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2019
Thin Blue Line Act This bill expands the list of statutory aggravating factors in death penalty determinations to also include killing or targeting a law enforcement officer, firefighter, or other first responder.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2019
Protecting Europe's Energy Security Act of 2019 This bill establishes sanctions related to the provision of vessels for the construction of Russian energy export pipelines. The Department of State must report to Congress (1) a list of vessels engaged in below sea-level pipe laying for the construction of Russian energy export pipelines, and (2) a list of foreign individuals and entities that provided or facilitated the provision of the vessels for such pipeline construction. The State Department shall impose property- and visa-blocking sanctions on (1) the identified foreign individuals and entities, and (2) each corporate officer and principal shareholder with a controlling interest in the identified vessels. The President may impose various sanctions on foreign individuals and entities that knowingly provide underwriting, insurance, or reinsurance for the identified vessels. The sanctions may include prohibitions from (1) receiving Export-Import Bank export assistance, (2) being designated as a primary dealer of U.S. government debt instruments, or (3) receiving U.S. government procurement contracts. The State Department shall develop a strategy on improving the energy security of U.S. allies in Europe. The State Department shall also report to Congress (1) on the effects of Russia's Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline on U.S. national security; and (2) a periodically updated list of entities providing goods, services, or technology for the construction or repair of the pipeline and whether such transactions are prohibited under certain U.S. laws.
United States · United States Congress · 14 May 2019
Voting System Cybersecurity Act of 2019 This bill adds to the Election Assistance Commission's Technical Guidelines Development Committee a representative of the Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency who has operational expertise in cybersecurity.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2019
Improve Data on Sexual Violence Act This bill directs the Office of Management and Budget to establish an interagency working group to study and make recommendations to harmonize federal efforts to collect data on sexual violence.
United States · United States Congress · 13 May 2019
This resolution congratulates the students, families, teachers, administrators, and staff of public charter schools across the United States for (1) making ongoing contributions to public education, (2) making impressive strides in closing the academic achievement gap in U.S. schools, and (3) improving and strengthening the public school system. The resolution supports the ideals and goals of the 20th annual National Charter Schools Week.
United States · United States Congress · 9 May 2019
Supply Chain Counterintelligence Training Act of 2019 This bill directs the Office of Management and Budget, in coordination with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Department of Homeland Security, and the General Services Administration, to establish and implement a counterintelligence training program for officials with supply chain risk management responsibilities at executive agencies. The program shall be designed to prepare such personnel to identify and mitigate counterintelligence threats that arise during the acquisition and use of information and communications technology.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2019
Repeal Insurance Plans of the Multi-State Program Act of 2019 or the RIP MSP Act This bill repeals the multi-state insurance plan program. (The multi-state plan program requires the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to contract with insurance issuers to provide a qualified health plan through the health insurance exchanges in multiple states.) The OPM must report about the process and timeline for ending the program within 60 days.
United States · United States Congress · 8 May 2019
Gold Star Family Tax Relief Act This bill treats certain military survivor benefits that are received by children as earned income of the child for the purposes of the kiddie tax (the tax on the unearned income of children). This has the effect of exempting the benefits from such tax.
United States · United States Congress · 2 May 2019
Repeal Insurance Plans of the Multi-State Program Act or the RIP MSP Act This bill repeals the multi-state insurance plan program. (The multi-state plan program requires the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to contract with insurance issuers to provide a qualified health plan through the health insurance exchanges in multiple states.) The OPM must report about the process and timeline for ending the program within 60 days.
United States · United States Congress · 30 April 2019
Women's Suffrage Centennial Commemorative Coin Act This bill directs the Department of the Treasury to mint and issue up to 400,000 $1 silver coins that are emblematic of the women who played a vital role in rallying support for the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Such coins may be issued during the period beginning on January 1, 2020, and ending on December 31, 2020. All surcharges received from the sales of such coins shall be paid to the American Women's History Initiative of the Smithsonian Institution.
United States · United States Congress · 29 April 2019
This resolution declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of the Honorable Richard G. Lugar, former Senator from Indiana.
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 2019
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1715 Linnerud Drive in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, as the "Fire Captain Cory Barr Post Office Building."
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2019
Advancing Critical Connectivity Expands Service, Small Business Resources, Opportunities, Access, and Data Based on Assessed Need and Demand Act or the ACCESS BROADBAND Act This bill requires the Department of Commerce to establish the Office of Internet Connectivity and Growth within the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. The office shall connect with communities that need access to high-speed internet and hold regional workshops to share best practices and effective strategies for promoting broadband access and adoption. The bill also requires the office to (1) develop targeted broadband training and presentations for various demographic communities through media, (2) develop and distribute publications providing guidance to communities for expanding broadband access and adoption, and (3) track construction and use of and access to any broadband infrastructure built using federal support. Under the bill, the office shall consult with any agency offering a federal broadband support program in order to streamline the application process for financial assistance or grants. The office, any agency that offers a federal broadband support program, and the Federal Communications Commission through the Universal Service Fund shall coordinate to ensure that broadband support is being distributed in an efficient, technology-neutral, and financially sustainable manner.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2019
Working Families Flexibility Act of 2019 This bill revises requirements for the receipt of compensatory time off for private sector employees. Specifically, the bill authorizes private employers to provide compensatory time off to their employees at a rate of one and one-half hours for each hour of employment for which overtime compensation is required, prohibits an employee from accruing more that 160 hours of compensatory time, requires an employer to give their employees a 30-day notice before discontinuing compensatory time, prohibits an employer from interfering with an employee's right to or not request compensatory time off in lieu of payment of overtime compensation or from requiring an employee to use such compensatory time, and imposes penalties on employers who violate the compensatory time requirements set forth by this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2019
Revitalizing Underdeveloped Rural Areas and Lands (RURAL) Act This bill modifies the definition of income used to determine the tax-exempt status of a mutual or cooperative telephone or electric company to exclude certain government grants, contributions, and assistance. Specifically, the bill excludes from income (1) grants, contributions, and assistance provided under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act or by local, state, or regional governmental entities for disasters or emergencies; and (2) certain grants or contributions provided by a government entity for electric, communications, broadband, internet, or other utility facilities or services.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2019
National Scenic Trails Parity Act This bill requires the North Country, Ice Age, and New England national scenic trails to be administered as units of the National Park System.
United States · United States Congress · 2 April 2019
Federal Advance Contracts Enhancement Act or the FACE Act This bill directs the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to report to Congress on advance contracts. Advance contracts are established prior to disasters to provide life-sustaining goods and services in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. The report must include (1) information required in the initial report on recurring disaster response requirements; and (2) an updated strategy that defines the objectives of advance contracts, how such contracts contribute to FEMA disaster response operations, and whether and how such contracts should be prioritized in relation to new post-disaster contract awards. The bill sets forth additional duties of FEMA with respect to advance contracts, including requiring FEMA to (1) update and implement guidance for its program office and acquisition personnel to identify acquisition planning time frames and considerations across the entire acquisition planning process, and (2) communicate the purpose and use of a master acquisition planning schedule.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2019
This resolution lauds the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) for its contributions to the safety, security, and democratic systems of its member states, and reaffirms U.S. commitment to NATO's mission. It also calls on NATO members to fulfill their pledges to fully share the security burden by increasing their defense spending, and expresses the Senate's readiness to consider North Macedonia's application to join NATO.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2019
Family Farmer Relief Act of 2019 This bill increases the aggregate debt limit for a family farmer who files for bankruptcy under chapter 12 (family farmer or family fisherman reorganization).
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2019
This concurrent resolution expresses the sense of Congress regarding the benefits that tax-exempt fraternal benefit societies provide to the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 26 March 2019
Independent Agency Regulatory Analysis Act This bill authorizes the President to require an independent regulatory agency to (1) comply with regulatory analysis requirements applicable to other federal agencies, (2) provide the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs with an assessment of the costs and benefits of a proposed or final economically significant rule and an assessment of costs and benefits of potentially effective and reasonably feasible alternatives to the rule, (3) publish the assessments with the rules, and (4) submit to the office for review any proposed or final economically significant rule. An economically significant rule is a rule that is likely to (1) have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more; or (2) adversely affect in a material way the economy, a sector of the economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the environment, public health or safety, or state, local, or tribal governments or communities. In addition, it prohibits judicial review of an independent regulatory agency's compliance with the requirements of this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2019
Transit Infrastructure Vehicle Security Act This bill prohibits the awarding of a contract to an entity for the procurement of rolling stock for use in public transportation if the manufacturer of the rolling stock is (1) incorporated or has manufacturing facilities in the United States; and (2) is owed or controlled by an entity based in a country that is identified as a nonmarket economy country, was identified by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) as a priority foreign country (e.g., a country that does not protect intellectual property rights), and is subject to monitoring by the USTR. This includes the People's Republic of China. Any recipient of financial assistance for public transportation that operates a rail fixed guideway service must certify that it will not award any contract for the procurement of rail rolling stock for use in public transportation to a manufacturer of rolling stock that is described by this bill. A recipient that operates a rail fixed guideway public transportation system must certify that it has a written plan for identifying and reducing cybersecurity risks.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2019
This bill addresses the removal of federal protections for the gray wolf ( Canis lupus ). Specifically, the Department of the Interior must reinstate a rule that removed the gray wolf in the Western Great Lakes region from the endangered and threatened species list. The bill exempts the reinstated rule from judicial review. In addition, it exempts from judicial review a reinstated rule that removes the gray wolf in Wyoming from the list.
United States · United States Congress · 14 March 2019
Restoring Investment in Improvements Act This bill confirms that the applicable recovery period for qualified improvement property (nonresidential real estate) for depreciation purposes is 15 years under the modified accelerated cost recovery system (MACRS) and 20 years under the alternative depreciation system (ADS).
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 2019
Assuring that Robust, Thorough, and Informed Congressional Leadership is Exercised Over National Emergencies Act or the ARTICLE ONE Act This bill terminates a declaration of national emergency made by the President after 30 days unless Congress votes to extend the declaration. (Currently, Congress can cancel an emergency declaration only by passing a resolution that can withstand a presidential veto.) The bill establishes procedures for congressional review of declarations of national emergencies. The President shall (1) transmit specified information to Congress with any proclamation declaring or renewing a national emergency, including a description of the circumstances necessitating the declaration or renewal of a national emergency declaration and its estimated duration; and (2) report periodically on the status of the emergency.
United States · United States Congress · 12 March 2019
Protecting Children Through Eliminating Visa Loopholes Act This bill requires an alien who seeks to qualify for a nonimmigrant visa as the fiance or spouse of a U.S. citizen to be at least 18 years old, and the sponsoring U.S. citizen must also be at least 18 years old. The bill also establishes that the terms "spouse," "wife," and "husband" shall not apply to any individual less than 18 years old for the purposes of the immigration and nationality laws.
United States · United States Congress · 7 March 2019
European Energy Security and Diversification Act of 2019 This bill directs the Department of State to prioritize assistance to develop energy infrastructure in Central and Eastern Europe, in particular for projects involving the European Commission and governments in the region. Assistance shall include political and diplomatic support and funding assistance. Projects eligible for such assistance include infrastructure for natural gas, electricity transmission, and renewable energy. The State Department shall give preference to projects that (1) link the energy systems of two or more countries in the region, (2) have been identified by the European Commission as integral for regional energy security, (3) are expected to enhance energy market integration, (4) can attract other sources of funding, and (5) can potentially use U.S. goods and services. The President shall report to Congress annually about U.S. assistance provided under this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 6 March 2019
This resolution commends Canada for upholding the rule of law and complying with its obligations under its extradition treaty with the United States, in connection with Canada's arrest Meng Wanzhou, chief financial officer of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. It also expresses the Senate's concern over China's arbitrary and abusive treatment of Canadian nationals in response to Meng's detention, and calls for the immediate release of those individuals. (The United States requested the arrest of Meng, who stands accused of various crimes under U.S. law.)
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 2019
This resolution congratulates the people of Greece as they celebrate the 198th anniversary of their country's independence. The resolution recognizes Greece's commitment to democratic principles and the important role that Greece has played both regionally and internationally.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2019
This resolution commemorates the life of Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov and his work promoting democracy and human rights, and condemns Russian President Vladimir Putin and his regime for targeting political opponents and attempting to cover up Nemtsov's assassination. It also calls on the Department of State to impose sanctions on those involved and to report to Congress on the assassination.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2019
Prevent Government Shutdowns Act of 2019 This bill provides continuing appropriations to prevent a government shutdown if any of the appropriations bills for a fiscal year have not been enacted before the fiscal year begins and continuing appropriations are not in effect. The bill also limits official travel, congressional recesses or adjournments, and the consideration of legislation that is unrelated to appropriations after the beginning of a fiscal year if all of the regular appropriations bills for the year have not been enacted.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2019
This bill establishes that it is U.S. policy to recognize Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights. References to "Israel" in future acts of Congress relating to appropriations or foreign commerce shall be interpreted to include the Golan Heights.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2019
This resolution affirms the U.S. government's support of Ukraine's democratic reforms, territorial integrity, and autocephaly for an independent Orthodox Church of Ukraine; honors the Ukrainians who fought in the 2014 Ukrainian Revolution; condemns Russia's military incursions and ongoing malicious activities toward Ukraine; asserts that the Nord Stream 2 pipeline presents a threat to European security and Ukraine's economy; and calls upon the U.S. government and its allies to maintain sanctions against Russia until it ceases to violate its international obligations towards Ukraine.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2019
Lymphedema Treatment Act This bill includes certain lymphedema compression treatment items as covered durable medical equipment under Medicare. (Lymphedema is a condition of localized fluid retention and tissue swelling that is caused when the lymphatic system is damaged or blocked.)
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2019
This concurrent resolution declares that Congress should not impose any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge relating to the public performance of sound recordings on a local radio station for broadcasting sound recordings over the air, or on any business for such public performance of sound recordings.
United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2019
President George H. W. Bush and Barbara Bush Coin Act This bill requires the issuance of $1 coins bearing the image of President George H.W. Bush for a one-year period beginning on January 1, 2019, and bullion coins bearing the image of Barbara Bush during that same period.