United States · United States Congress · 20 October 2005
Keep the Promise of Medicare Act of 2006 - Amends part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to cap the Medicare part B premium for each month in 2006 at the same rate for each month in 2005, adjusted for inflation.
United States · United States Congress · 20 October 2005
Supports the goals and ideals of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Expresses the sense of the Senate that Congress should continue to raise awareness of domestic violence in the United States and its devastating impact on families.
United States · United States Congress · 19 October 2005
Military Family Support Act of 2005 - Directs the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to establish a program to authorize a caregiver (a federal employee at least 21 years of age capable of providing care to a child or other dependent family member of a member of the Armed Forces) to: (1) use any available sick leave for the provision of such care in the same manner as annual leave is used; and (2) use any federal leave available to that caregiver as though that period of caregiving is a medical emergency. Requires the service member: (1) for whom the caregiving is provided to be performing service in support of a contingency operation or in situations for which hostile fire or imminent danger pay is authorized; and (2) to designate the caregiver for his or her family. Terminates the program on December 31, 2007. Directs the Secretary of Labor to: (1) establish a program to authorize employees of private businesses to use sick or any other leave for caregiving in the same manner as above; and (2) solicit businesses to voluntarily participate in the program. Requires caregiver designation. Terminates the program on December 31, 2007.
United States · United States Congress · 18 October 2005
San Francisco Old Mint Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 100,000 $5 gold coins and 500,000 $1 silver coins emblematic of the San Francisco Old Mint Building, its importance to California and U.S. history, and its role in rebuilding San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake and fire. Requires that all surcharges received by the Secretary from such coin sales be promptly paid to the San Francisco Museum and Historical Society to rehabilitate the Historic Old Mint in San Francisco as a city museum and an American Coin and Gold Rush Museum.
United States · United States Congress · 18 October 2005
Amends federal transportation law with respect to certain standards prescribed by the Secretary of Transportation establishing a uniform quality grading system for motor vehicle tires to help consumers make an informed choice when purchasing them. Requires such grading system to include standards for rating the fuel efficiency of passenger car and light truck tires. Directs the Secretary to develop and carry out a national tire fuel efficiency program.
United States · United States Congress · 18 October 2005
Food Employment Empowerment and Development Program Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a food employment empowerment and development program of grants to eligible public agencies and private nonprofit institutions to encourage the use of community resources to combat hunger and the root causes of hunger by creating opportunity through food recovery and job training.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2005
United States-Israel Energy Cooperation Act - Instructs the Secretary of Energy, in implementing the Agreement between the Department of Energy of the United States of America and the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure of Israel Concerning Energy Cooperation, to establish a grant program to support research, development, and commercialization of alternative renewable energy sources. Authorizes grants to promote the following: (1) solar energy; (2) biomass energy; (3) energy efficiency; (4) wind energy; and (5) fossil energy. Directs the Secretary to establish an advisory board to: (1) monitor how such grants are awarded; and (2) provide periodic performance reviews of actions taken to carry out the grant program.
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2005
Commends the late Constance Baker Motley, the first African-American woman appointed and confirmed for a federal judgeship and the former chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, for her service on the court and her lifelong commitment to civil rights and social justice.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2005
Medicare Informed Choice Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: (1) provide for an extended period of open enrollment during all of 2006 without late enrollment penalty; (2) give Medicare beneficiaries the opportunity to make a one-time change in prescription drug plan enrollment at any point in 2006; and (3) provide protection from loss of employment-based retiree health coverage upon enrollment for Medicare prescription drug benefit, including a Medicare Advantage-Prescription Drug benefit, during 2006.
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2005
Gulf Coast Infrastructure Redevelopment and Recovery Act of 2005 - Federal Infrastructure Preparedness Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of the Army to establish a Federal Infrastructure Task Force to improve preparedness for the effects of extreme weather events on U.S infrastructure. Requires the Task Force to serve as the coordinating entity to distribute federal funding for infrastructure redevelopment required by Hurricane Katrina (Katrina). Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to obligate more than $100 million in a state for a fiscal year under the emergency relief program for projects for the repair or reconstruction of highways, roads, and trails in response to Katrina. Emergency Water Infrastructure Assistance Act of 2005 - Authorizes Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi to provide additional subsidization to projects that receive funds through a revolving loan under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to repair, replace or rebuild publicly-owned treatment works in Katrina-affected areas or water quality projects directly related to relief efforts. Amends: (1) the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 to authorize appropriations for post-disaster economic recovery; and (2) the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to authorize the Delta Regional Authority to designate as a disaster area a county or parish that is affected by the declaration of a major disaster in response to Katrina. Directs the Authority to establish the Delta Regional Authority Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund. Directs: (1) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to use specified funds for activities, including cleanup, reconstruction, and rehabilitation of drinking water supplies and wastewater treatment plants, and to report on hazardous materials releases; and (2) the Secretary, acting through the Chief of Engineers, to conduct an assessment of Corps infrastructure in the region to determine whether opportunities exist for project modifications that may reduce future hurricane impacts. National Levee Safety Program Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary to: (1) carry out a program under which the Secretary inspects U.S. levees every 10 years; (2) establish the Interagency Committee on Levee Safety; (3) establish the National Levee Safety Review Board; and (4) establish and maintain a national levee safety program. Emergency Water Infrastructure Assistance Act of 2005 - Authorizes the Administrator of General Services to enter into an emergency lease, for up to five years, during a major disaster declared by the President or the head of a federal agency. Habitability of Residential Homes, Schools, and Commercial Buildings Affected by Hurricane Katrina Act of 2005 - Directs the Administrator to establish a grant program to pay the federal share of the cost of abatement and inspection activities for residential homes, commercial buildings, and schools affected by Katrina. Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to provide reimbursement for the establishment of commuter assistance programs to improve worker access to assist in the rapid recovery of communities in response to a major disaster.
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 2005
Strengthen the Earned Income Tax Credit Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the reduction in the marriage penalty applicable to the earned income tax credit; (2) increase the percentage of such credit for families with three or more children; (3) reduce the phase-out of such credit for individuals without children; and (4) make permanent provisions treating combat pay as earned income for purposes of calculating such credit.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2005
Medicare Do Not Call Act - Prohibits a Prescription Drug Plan (PDP) sponsor offering a prescription drug plan from conducting outbound call telemarketing to solicit enrollment into such a plan. Amends title XI of the Social Security Act to provide for criminal penalties for fraudulent telemarketing acts or practices. Provides for increased funding for state health insurance counseling and assistance programs. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to inform individuals eligible for benefits under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act of the availability and confidentality of the hotline maintained by the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services for the reporting of fraud, waste, and abuse in the Medicare program.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2005
Downed Animal Protection Act - States that it is U.S. policy that all nonambulatory livestock in interstate and foreign commerce be immediately and humanely euthanized when such livestock become nonambulatory. Amends the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act of 1958 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to promulgate regulations providing for the humane treatment, handling, and disposition of nonambulatory livestock by a covered entity, including a requirement that nonambulatory livestock be humanely euthanized. Requires an entity to: (1) humanely euthanize nonambulatory livestock (while not limiting the Secretary's ability to test nonambulatory livestock for disease, such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy); and (2) not move nonambulatory livestock while such livestock is conscious, and ensure that such livestock remains unconscious until death. Prohibits an inspector at an establishment covered by the Federal Meat Inspection Act to pass nonambulatory livestock, carcass, or carcass parts through inspection. Requires an inspector or other employee at such establishment to label such material as "inspected and condemned." Defines "covered entity," "nonambulatory livestock," and "humanely euthanize."
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2005
Pulmonary Hypertension Research Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute to expand, intensify, and coordinate the activities of the Institute with respect to research on pulmonary hypertension and to coordinate the Director's activities with related activities of other national research institutes and National Institutes of Health (NIH) agencies. Requires the Director to make grants to, or enter into contracts with, public or nonprofit private entities for the development and operation of centers to conduct research and programs on pulmonary hypertension, including: (1) basic and clinical research into the cause, diagnosis, early detection, prevention, control, and treatment of the disease; (2) training programs for scientists and health professionals; (3) programs to provide information and continuing education to health professionals; and (4) programs for the dissemination of information to the public. Requires the Director to establish: (1) a data system for the collection, storage, analysis, retrieval, and dissemination of data derived from patient populations with pulmonary hypertension; and (2) an information clearinghouse to facilitate and enhance knowledge and understanding of pulmonary hypertension by health professionals, patients, industry, and the public.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2005
First Responders Interoperable Communications Act of 2005 - Authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security to make grants, on a competitive basis, to states, local governments, local law enforcement agencies, and local fire departments to assist in: (1) improving communication systems to allow for real-time, interoperable communication between state and local first responders; or (2) the purchase of communication systems that allow for such communication.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 2005
Disaster Area Health and Environmental Monitoring Act of 2005 - Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to authorize the President, if one or more chemicals or substances associated with potential acute or chronic human health effects are being or have been released in a disaster area, to carry out a program for the protection, assessment, monitoring, and study of the health and safety of workers or volunteers who respond to a major disaster or emergency, residents in a disaster area, or persons who are employed in, or who attend school, child care, or adult day care in, a disaster area.. Authorizes the President to carry out such a program through a cooperative agreement with a medical institution or a consortium of medical institutions, especially those located near the disaster area and any other area in which there reside groups of individuals that worked or volunteered in response to the disaster. Requires such an institution to have appropriate experience in the areas of environmental or occupational health, toxicology, and safety. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to enter jointly into a contract with the National Academy of Sciences to study and report on disaster area health and environmental protection and monitoring. Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to extend to September 30, 2007, the authority for the predisaster hazard mitigation program.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 2005
Establishes in the legislative branch a bipartisan Katrina Commission to report to the President and Congress on : (1) the federal, state, and local response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Region of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and other affected areas; (2) the circumstances surrounding the Hurricane's approach, and the extent of federal, state, and local government preparedness for and response to it; (3) planning necessary for future cataclysmic events that will require a significant marshaling of federal resources, mitigation, response, and recovery to avoid significant loss of life; (4) whether any decisions differed with respect to response and recovery for different communities, and what problems occurred as a result of a lack of a common plan, communication structure, and centralized command structure; and (5) immediate corrective measures that can be taken to prevent problems with federal response to future cataclysmic events.
United States · United States Congress · 21 September 2005
Fair Wages for Hurricane Katrina Recovery Workers Act - Reinstates the application of the wage requirements of the Davis-Bacon Act to all federal contracts in counties affected by Hurricane Katrina, notwithstanding the President's proclamation dated September 8, 2005, or any other provision of law.
United States · United States Congress · 20 September 2005
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) a requirement that U.S. citizens obtain photo identification cards before being able to vote has not been shown to ensure ballot integrity and places an undue burden on citizens' legitimate voting rights; (2) the Department of Justice should vigorously enforce the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and challenge any state law that limits a citizen's ability to vote based on discriminatory photo identification requirements; and (3) any effort to impose national photo identification requirements for voting should be rejected.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2005
Oversight of Vital Emergency Recovery Spending Enhancement and Enforcement Act of 2005 - Establishes within the Executive Office of the President the Office of Hurricane Katrina Recovery Chief Financial Officer (CFO), who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Makes the CFO responsible for the efficient and effective use of federal funds in all activities relating to the recovery from Hurricane Katrina. Requires the CFO to strive to ensure that priority in the distribution of federal: (1) relief funds is given to individuals and organizations most in need of financial assistance; and (2) reconstruction funds is given to business entities based in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, or Florida, or business entities that hire workers who resided in those States on August 24, 2005.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2005
Recognizes September 15-October 15, 2005, as Hispanic Heritage Month. Celebrates the vast contributions of Hispanic Americans to the strength and culture of our Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 12 September 2005
National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program Reauthorization Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to allow the Secretary of Health and Human Services to waive requirements for awarding breast and cervical cancer grants to states if certain conditions are met, including that the Secretary finds that granting such a waiver will not reduce the number of women in the state receiving examinations and screening for breast and cervical cancers nor the quality of such services. Provides that such waivers are for two-year periods. Requires the Secretary to review performance under the waiver and allows the Secretary to extend such waivers. Authorizes appropriations for such grants through FY2011.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 2005
Hurricane Katrina Reconstruction and Displaced Worker Assistance Act of 2005 - Directs the heads of federal executive agencies, in entering into contracts to procure services in connection with Hurricane Katrina reconstruction efforts, to give a preference in the source selection process to each offeror that employs workers who have been displaced by Hurricane Katrina as not less than 25 percent of the workforce that will perform such services.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 2005
Hurricane Katrina Emergency Health Workforce Act of 2005 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish the National Emergency Health Professionals Volunteer Corps to provide for an adequate supply of health professionals in the event of an emergency. Requires the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to establish a national database of health professionals to increase health preparedness for federal emergencies. Includes service by physicians and other health professionals who are providing treatment or services related to a declared major disaster as "service in the uniformed services" for purposes of employment and reemployment benefits. Amends the Public Health Service Act and title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to require hospitals that receive federal payments for graduate medical education costs to provide disaster preparedness training as part of any approved graduate medical residency training program provided by the hospital. Deems volunteer health professionals providing a qualifying health service related to a declared major disaster to be employees of the Public Health Service for purposes of liability protection. Authorizes the Secretary to suspend state health professional licensing and certification requirements for health professionals that are operating in such state during a declared major disaster. Authorizes the Secretary and the Secretary of Homeland Security to waive any federal requirements applicable to health professions that would limit the ability of health professionals to provide volunteer medical services related to a declared major disaster.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 2005
First Responders Interoperable Communications Act of 2005 - Authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security to make grants, on a competitive basis, to states, local governments, local law enforcement agencies, and local fire departments to assist in: (1) improving communication systems to allow for real-time, interoperable communication between state and local first responders; or (2) the purchase of communication systems that allow for such communication.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 2005
Bottom Trawl and Deep Sea Coral Habitat Act - Requires the Secretary of Commerce to direct the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere to explore, identify, research, and map the locations of deep sea corals and deep sea sponges. Directs the Secretary to develop a cooperative research program to identify: (1) the ideal areas for the use of bottom trawls; and (2) the locations of deep sea corals and deep sea sponges. Requires each Regional Fishery Management Council to submit to the Secretary a list of areas that were fished using bottom trawls during the seven-year period ending on December 31, 2004, including recommendations of which areas should be designated as Bottom Trawl Zones. Requires the Secretary to designate each area that does not contain a deep sea coral and sponge ecosystem as a Bottom Trawl Zone. Prohibits the use of bottom trawls in an area not designated as a Bottom Trawl Zone. Directs the Secretary to designate as a Coral Habitat Conservation Zone each area that a Council has designated as an area in which the use of bottom trawls is prohibited for the protection of seafloor habitat, or for which a map and best available data has detected the presence of deep sea corals or deep sea sponges. Sets forth both civil and criminal penalties for persons who violate the requirements under this Act. Authorizes the President to permit the Secretary to work with appropriate international organizations and foreign nations to develop data to identify areas in international waters that contain deep sea corals or deep sea sponges and to protect such deep sea corals or deep sea sponges.
United States · United States Congress · 8 September 2005
Katrina Emergency Relief Act of 2005 - Temporary Medicaid Disaster Relief Act of 2005 - Allows states to provide medical assistance to Hurricane Katrina survivors under a state Medicaid plan without regard to eligibility requirements. Provides for grants to local educational agencies and states with a large influx of displaced students due to Hurricane Katrina. Requires the Secretary of Education to: (1) authorize higher education institutions to waive federal financial aid requirements for students affected by Hurricane Katrina; and (2) make payments to institutions for financial aid for such students. Helping to House the Victims of Hurricane Katrina Act of 2005 - Amends the United States Housing Act of 1937 to require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to provide temporary rental assistance to individuals and families affected by Hurricane Katrina. Hurricane Emergency Limitation on Payments (HELP) Act of 2005 - Prohibits certain penalties against a person affected by Hurricane Katrina for failing to make timely payments on a federal financial obligation. Allows the President to provide mortgage or rental payments to people affected by Hurricane Katrina. Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to require the President to provide appropriate benefit assistance to any individual unemployed as a result of a major disaster. Provides tax relief to taxpayers affected by Hurricane Katrina, including disregarding a specified period in determining the tax liability of such taxpayers and excluding certain withdrawals from retirement plans from gross income. Hurricane Katrina Food Assistance Relief Act of 2005 - Amends the Food Stamp Act of 1977 to provide expedited and increased food stamp benefits for households in areas affected by Hurricane Katrina. Delays the changes to bankruptcy law for residents of a declared major disaster area in connection with Hurricane Katrina.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to suspend, through December 31, 2009, the duty on: (1) mixtures of zinc dialkyldithiophosphate with an elastomer binder of ethylene-propylene-diene monomer and ethyl vinyl acetate, dispersing agents and silica; (2) mixtures of dithiocarbamate, thiazole, thiuram and thiourea with an elastomer binder of ethylene-propylene-diene monomer and ethyl vinyl acetate, and dispersing agents; (3) mixtures of caprolactam disulfide with an elastomer binder of ethylene-propylene-diene monomer and ethyl vinyl acetate, and dispersing agents; (4) mixtures of N-(3,4-dichloro-phenyl)-N,N-dimethylurea; (5) mixtures of zinc dicyanato diammine with an elastomer binder of ethylene-propylene-diene monomer and ethyl vinyl acetate, and dispersing agents; (6) 4,8-Dicyclohexyl -6-2,10-dimethyl -12H-dibenzo [d,g][1,3,2]dioxaphosphocin; (7) mixtures of Benzenesulfonic acid, dodecyl-, with 2-aminoethanol and Poly (oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), a-[(9Z)-1-oxo-9- octadecenyl]-w-hydroxy-; and (8) 1,3-Dihydro-3,3-bis (4-hydroxy-m-tolyl)-2H-indol-2-one.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
National Emergency Family Locator Act - Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish within the Department of Homeland Security the National Family Locator System to enable: (1) individuals displaced by an emergency to provide to the Department their names and locations and any other relevant information using the telephone, the Internet, and other appropriate means; and (2) the Department to compile such information and provide it to the family members of such individuals and law enforcement officials.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
September 11 Family Humanitarian Relief and Patriotism Act - Provides permanent resident status adjustment for a requesting alien who was on September 10, 2001, the wife, child, or dependent son or daughter of a lawful nonimmigrant alien who died as a result of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks against the United States. Authorizes an alien who has been ordered excluded, deported, removed, or ordered to depart voluntarily from the United States to apply for such status adjustment. Provides for cancellation of removal and permanent resident status adjustment for a requesting alien who was: (1) on September 10, 2001, the wife, child, or dependent son or daughter of an alien who died as a result of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks against the United States; and (2) deemed to be a beneficiary of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001. Makes the provisions of this Act inapplicable to an alien who is: (1) inadmissible or deportable under criminal or security grounds, including September 11, 2001, terrorist activity; or (2) a family member of such an alien.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
Establishes in the legislative branch a bipartisan Katrina Commission to: (1) examine and report upon the federal, state, and local response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Region of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and other affected areas; (2) evaluate and report on the information developed by all relevant governmental agencies related to Hurricane Katrina before it struck the United States and in the days and weeks following; (3) make a complete accounting of the circumstances surrounding the approach of Hurricane Katrina to the Gulf states, and the extent of the Government's preparedness for and response to it; (4) examine planning necessary for future cataclysmic events that will require a significant marshaling of federal resources, mitigation, response, and recovery to avoid significant loss of life; (5) analyze whether any decisions differed with respect to response and recovery for different communities and what problems occurred as a result of a lack of a common plan, communication structure, and centralized command structure; and (6) investigate and report to the President and Congress on immediate corrective measures that can be taken to prevent problems with federal response to future cataclysmic events.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to extend the suspension, through December 31, 2008, of the duty on certain ion-exchange resins.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to suspend, through December 31, 2009, the duty on certain vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymers.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
Amends the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to suspend, through December 31, 2008, the duty on Ion-exchange resins (cationic H form), consisting of copolymers of acrylic acid and diethylene glycol divinyl ether (Lewatit).
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
School Environment Protection Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to: (1) establish a National School Integrated Pest Management Advisory System to develop and update uniform standards and criteria for implementing integrated pest management systems in schools; (2) establish a National School Integrated Pest Management Advisory Board; (3) provide grants to local educational agencies to develop such systems. Prohibits: (1) the application of a pesticide when a school or school ground is occupied or in use; or (2) the use of an area or room treated by a pesticide, other than a least toxic pesticide, during the 24-hour period beginning at the end of the treatment. Requires each local educational agency or school to provide notice of the integrated pest management system of the school district at the beginning of each school year and to give prior notice of any use of a pesticide (other than a least toxic pesticide) to parents, guardians, and school staff members. Prescribes procedures to be followed if a pest cannot be controlled after having used an integrated pest management system and least toxic pesticides. Prescribes civil penalties for violations of this Act. Establishes the Integrated Pest Management Trust Fund to carry out education, training, propagation, and development activities under school integrated pest management systems. Prohibits, no later than six years after this Act's enactment, the use of any pesticide other than a least toxic pesticide in schools unless the Administrator has met the requirements of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
Acknowledges Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist's lifelong service to the United States. Commends his 33-year tenure on the U.S. Supreme Court and his many accomplishments as Chief Justice. Extends sympathy to his family and friends.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2005
Permits a Senator or employee of the Senate to: (1) solicit another Senator or employee of the Senate within Senate buildings for nonmonetary donations for the relief of victims of Hurricane Katrina; and (2) work with a nonprofit organization with respect to the delivery of such donations.
United States · United States Congress · 6 September 2005
Federal Emergency Management Agency Restoration Act of 2005 - Reestablishes the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as an independent establishment in the executive branch. Requires FEMA to be headed by a Director appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Requires FEMA to: (1) include all functions and authorities prescribed by the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act; and (2) carry out its mission to reduce the loss of life and property and protect the Nation from all hazards with a comprehensive, risk-based emergency management program. Requires FEMA to remain the lead agency for the Federal Response Plan.
United States · United States Congress · 6 September 2005
Declares that the Senate: (1) expresses the condolences of the Nation to the victims of Hurricane Katrina; (2) commends the resiliency and courage of the people of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama; and (3) commits to provide the necessary resources and to stand by the people of such states in the relief, recovery, and rebuilding efforts.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2005
Healthcare Equality and Accountability Act - FamilyCare Act of 2005 - Renames title XXI (State Children's Health Insurance Program) (SCHIP) of the Social Security Act as the FamilyCare Program and extends coverage to certain low-income adults. Establishes the National Commission for Expanded Access to Health Care. Amends the Public Health Service Act to provide limited English proficient individuals with improved access to health care, including by establishing the Center for Cultural and Linguistic Competence in Healthcare. Provides for activities regarding: (1) health workforce diversity; (2) disparities in health and health care experienced by indigenous, racial, and ethnic minorities; and (3) data collection, analysis, and reporting by race, ethnicity, and primary language. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish: (1) the Office of Health Disparities within the Office of Civil Rights to prevent discrimination in federal programs; and (2) the Office of Minority Affairs within the Office of the Commissioner of Food and Drugs. Restablishes the Indian Health Service as an agency of the Public Health Service to be administered by an Assistant Secretary of Indian Health. Minority Health and Genomics Act of 2005 - Establishes the Minority Health and Genomics Commission to study issues relating to genomics research as applied to minority groups. Establishes the Interagency Working Group on Environmental Justice and the Federal Environmental Justice Advisory Committee. Sets forth programs designed to improve the quality of and access to health care for minorities, including by establishing the Health Safety Net Infrastructure Trust Fund. Requires the Secretary to establish: (1) the Annie Dodge Wauneka and Susan Laflesche-Picotte Native American Health and Wellness Foundation; and (2) a Joint Working Group on Telehealth. Authorizes integrative eldercare, American Indian and Alaska Native, and oral health telehealth demonstration projects.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2005
Veterans Comprehensive Hepatitis C Health Care Act - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, during the first year after the enactment of this Act, to provide a blood test for the Hepatitis C virus to: (1) each veteran who served on active military duty during the Vietnam era, or who is considered to be "at risk," and who is enrolled to receive veterans' medical care and requests such test or is otherwise receiving a physical examination or any other care or treatment from the Secretary; and (2) any other veteran who requests such test. Requires the Secretary, after such period, to provide such test to any veteran who requests it. Requires the Secretary to provide followup tests and appropriate treatment for any veteran who tests positive. Prohibits a copayment from being charged for such treatment. Provides funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs for Hepatitis C detection and treatment programs, beginning with FY2006. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop and implement a standardized Department policy with respect to such virus; and (2) annually take appropriate outreach actions to notify untested veterans. Directs the Secretary to establish at least one, and no more than three, additional Hepatitis C centers of excellence within the Department health care network. Provides funding.