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
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
Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act - Requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to develop and implement a National Strategy for Border Security and other specified border security programs. Authorizes the Secretary to establish a Border Security Advisory Committee. Requires the Secretary of State to provide a framework for security coordination between the governments of North America. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to: (1) authorize appropriations through FY2011 for the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program; and (2) reimburse states for pre-conviction costs. Amends the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 to authorize additional funding through FY2011 to reimburse states for indirect costs of incarcerating undocumented aliens. Establishes: (1) an H-5A essential worker visa program for low-skilled workers; (2) a mechanism for subsequent adjustment of status; and (3) an Essential Worker Visa Program Task Force. Addresses document security. Requires the Commissioner of Social Security to create a new Employment Eligibility Confirmation System. Amends the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to address the collection of arrival and departure information. Broadens the Department of Labor's investigative authority under INA. Authorizes the Secretary of State to enter into an agreement with foreign governments whose citizens participate in the H-5A program to establish a labor migration facilitation program. Exempts immediate relatives of U.S. citizens from the annual cap on family-sponsored immigrant visas. Increases numerical limits for specified visas. Authorizes H-5B nonimmigrant status for undocumented aliens present in the United States on the date of this Act's introduction who meet specified requirements and pay a fine. Provides a mechanism for subsequent adjustment of status. Defines "authorized representative" for immigration purposes. Makes alien victims of fraud perpetrated by unauthorized representatives eligible for U (victims of certain crimes) nonimmigrant status. Authorizes the Secretary to establish the U.S. Citizenship Foundation. Requires the Secretary to establish a competitive grant program to address civic integration. Amends the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 to extend authorization of Federal reimbursement for hospitals that provide emergency care to undocumented immigrants.
United States · United States Congress · 12 May 2005
Supports the participants of the historic meeting of the Assembly to Promote the Civil Society in Cuba in May 2005 in Havana. Urges the international community to support the Assembly's mission to bring democracy and human rights to Cuba. Encourages the international community to oppose any attempts by the Cuban Government to repress Assembly organizers and participants. Shares the Assembly's pro-democracy ideals and believes that the Assembly and its mission will advance Cuba's freedom.
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 · 28 April 2005
National Trails System Willing Seller Act - Amends the National Trails System Act to: (1) prohibit the Government acquisition of lands outside the exterior boundaries of any federally administered area, except with the owner's consent, for the Oregon, Mormon Pioneer, Lewis and Clark, Iditarod, and Nez Perce National Historic Trails and the Continental Divide, North Country, Ice Age, and Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trails; and (2) provide that the Government's authority to acquire fee title shall be limited to an average of not more than one-quarter mile on either side of such national historic trails and the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail.
United States · United States Congress · 28 April 2005
Clean Energy Bonds Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow holders of clean energy bonds a nonrefundable tax credit of 25 percent of an annual credit amount as determined by the Secretary of the Treasury. Defines "clean energy bond" as any bond issued by a clean energy bond lender, a cooperative electric company, a governmental body, or the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) that is used for capital expenditures for specified projects for producing electricity from certain renewable resources, such as wind, biomass, solar energy, small irrigation power, and municipal solid waste. Sets forth rules for maturity limitations, arbitrage, and expenditures, including a requirement that 95 percent of proceeds from the sale of a bond issue be spent on a renewable resource project within five years from the date of a bond issuance. Terminates the authority to issue clean energy bonds after 2008.
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 · 27 April 2005
Education for Retirement Security Act of 2005 - Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to eligible entities to provide financial education programs to mid-life and older individuals who reside in local communities in order to: (1) enhance their financial and retirement knowledge; and (2) reduce financial abuse and fraud, including telemarketing, mortgage, and pension fraud, among them. Authorizes the Secretary to award a grant to one or more eligible entities to: (1) create and make available instructional materials and information that promote financial education; and (2) provide training and other related assistance regarding the establishment of financial education programs.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2005
Veterinary Workforce Expansion Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to eligible entities to improve public health preparedness through increasing the number of veterinarians in the workforce. Defines "eligible entities" as accredited public or nonprofit schools of veterinary medicine, departments of comparative medicine, departments of veterinary science, schools of public health, or schools of medicine that offer training for veterinarians in a public health practice area. Requires the Secretary to give preference to applicants that demonstrate a comprehensive approach by involving more than one eligible entity. Allows grantees to use funds to: (1) pay the costs associated with construction, the acquisition of equipment, and other capital costs relating to the expansion of existing schools or departments; and (2) pay the capital costs associated with the expansion of academic programs that offer postgraduate training for veterinarians or concurrent training for veterinary students in specific areas of specialization.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2005
E-85 Fuel Utilization and Infrastructure Development Incentives Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow tax credits for: (1) 50 percent of the cost of installing residential or commercial alternative fuel vehicle refueling property to store or dispense E-85 fuel (alternative vehicle fuel consisting of at least 85 percent ethanol); and (2) the retail sale of E-85 fuel for use in an alternative fuel motor vehicle.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2005
Commonsense Consumption Act of 2005 - Prohibits new and dismisses pending civil actions by any person against a manufacturer, marketer, distributor, advertiser, or seller of food or a trade association for any injury related to a person's accumulated acts of consumption of food and weight gain, obesity, or any associated health condition, excluding actions alleging: (1) a breach of express contract or express warranty provided that the grounds of recovery are unrelated to a person's weight gain, obesity, or related health condition; (2) a knowing violation of a federal or state statute applicable to the marketing, advertisement, or labeling of food with intent for a person to rely on that violation, where such person relied on that violation, and where such reliance was the proximate cause of injury related to that person's weight gain, obesity, or related health condition; or (3) a violation brought by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) under the Federal Trade Commission Act or by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Requires in any excluded action: (1) a stay of discovery during the pendency of any motion to dismiss, unless necessary to preserve evidence or to prevent undue prejudice; and (2) evidence preservation during the stay. Requires the complaint in such an action to plead with particularity: (1) each element of the cause of action; (2) the Federal and State statutes that were allegedly violated; (3) the specific facts alleged to constitute the violation of law; and (4) the specific facts that are alleged to have caused the claimed injury.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2005
Rural Water Supply Act of 2005 - Reclamation Rural Water Supply Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to carry out a rural water supply program in reclamation states to: (1) investigate and identify opportunities to ensure safe and adequate rural water supply projects for municipal and industrial use in small communities and rural areas; and (2) plan the design and construction, through the conduct of appraisal investigations and feasibility studies, of such projects. Requires activities to be carried out in cooperation with a qualifying non-federal project entity. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop and publish in the Federal Register criteria for determining the eligibility of a rural community for assistance and prioritizing assistance requests under the program; and (2) develop an assessment of the status of all rural water supply projects under the Secretary's jurisdiction authorized but not completed prior to this Act's enactment. Sets forth provisions regarding feasibility studies and the financial capability of any non-federal entities participating in the project to pay the capital construction costs. Delineates cost-sharing requirements. Twenty-First Century Water Works Act - Directs the Secretary to develop and publish in the Federal Register criteria for determining the eligibility of a rural water supply project for financial assistance. Authorizes the Secretary to make available loan guarantees to lenders for a project meeting the eligibility criteria. Directs the Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture to enter into a memorandum of agreement providing for Department of Agriculture financial appraisal functions and loan guarantee administration for activities.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2005
Designates April 21, 2005, as National Kindergarten Recognition Day to raise public awareness about the impact of the kindergarten year on the development of our nation's children. Urges the people of the United States to recognize the historic tradition of kindergarten in the United States and its contribution to preparing children for their elementary and secondary educational achievement and experiences.
United States · United States Congress · 22 April 2005
Transit in Parks Act (or the TRIP Act) - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to develop cooperative relationships with the Secretary of the Interior providing for: (1) technical assistance in alternative transportation; (2) interagency and multidisciplinary teams to develop Federal land management agency (the National Park Service, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, or the Bureau of Land Management) alternative transportation policy, procedures, and coordination; and (3) the development of procedures and criteria relating to the planning, selection, and funding of qualified planning or capital projects (carried out in or in the vicinity of any federally owned or managed park, refuge, or recreational area open to the general public), as well as implementation and oversight of the projects program. Sets forth requirements with respect to departmental cost sharing, financing, and selection of qualified projects. Requires projects of more than $25 million to be carried out through a full funding agreement. Requires the qualified participants of such projects to prepare a project management plan.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
Homeland Security Information Guidance and Training Act of 2005 - Requires the Under Secretary of Homeland Security for Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection to establish best practices for State and local governments in making determinations regarding the public disclosure and sharing among emergency management personnel of sensitive non-Federal homeland security information. Requires the Director of the Office for Domestic Preparedness to: (1) establish a training curriculum based on such best practices; and (2) provide training to State and local governments. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to publish detailed guidance for State and local governments on the management of information relating to homeland security grants.
United States · United States Congress · 21 April 2005
National Park Centennial Act - Establishes the National Park Centennial Fund in the Treasury. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individual taxpayers to designate overpayments and contributions for the benefit of the National Park System. Allocates such amounts to the Fund (along with necessary amounts from the General Fund to the extent that such amounts are inadequate in any fiscal year) for expenditure by the Secretary of the Interior. Authorizes appropriations for a public awareness campaign about the Fund and the ability of taxpayers to make tax-related contributions. Requires a specified percentage of Fund deposits to be used: (1) for the elimination of the backlog of unmet needs in the national parks as identified in the Facility Condition Index of the National Park Service (NPS); (2) to protect natural resources within the parks; and (3) to protect cultural resources within the parks. Requires a majority of such percentages to be distributed to those national parks that have completed comprehensive business plans under the Business Plan Initiative of the NPS. Directs the Government Accountability Office annually to submit a report on the National Park System to specified congressional committees. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to provide grants to elementary and secondary schools for cooperative agreements with the NPS providing distance learning and onsite education programs.
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 · 20 April 2005
Designates May 2005 as National Cystic Fibrosis Awareness Month. Expresses support for the goals of: (1) increasing the quality of life for individuals with cystic fibrosis by promoting public knowledge and understanding in a manner that will result in earlier diagnoses; (2) encouraging increased resources for research; and (3) increasing levels of support for people who have cystic fibrosis and their families.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2005
Fiscal Responsibility for a Sound Future Act - Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to extend through FY 2005 the spending caps for discretionary, highway, and mass transit categories in new budget authority and outlays. Declares that Congress should enact a limit on total discretionary spending for FY 2006. Retains (eliminates the expiration of) pay-as-you-go. Reenacts into law (effective for FY 2005) certain budget enforcement mechanisms through FY 2015. Makes it out of order in the Senate to consider under expedited procedures applicable to reconciliation in the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 any measure that increases the deficit in the: (1) first fiscal year covered by the most recently adopted concurrent resolution on the budget; (2) first five fiscal years covered by such adoption; or (3) first five fiscal years following such period. Amends H.Con.Res. 95 (108th Congress) to revise provisions concerning the Pay-As-You-Go point of order rule in the Senate to: (1) modify the formula used to estimate the baseline; and (2) extend the application of such rule through FY 2015.
United States · United States Congress · 19 April 2005
Employee Free Choice Act - Amends the National Labor Relations Act to require the National Labor Relations Board to certify a bargaining representative without directing an election if a majority of the bargaining unit employees have authorized designation of the representative and there is no other individual or labor organization currently certified or recognized as the exclusive representative of any of the employees in the unit. Sets forth special procedural requirements for reaching an initial collective bargaining agreement following certification or recognition. Revises enforcement requirements with respect to unfair labor practices during union organizing drives. Provides, under injunction provisions, for priority to be given to preliminary investigation of charges of violations by employers or other entities. Adds to remedies for such violations: (1) back pay plus liquidated damages; and (2) additional civil penalties.
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 · 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 · 15 April 2005
National Parks Anniversaries-Great American Spaces Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue silver coins emblematic of certain National Parks that are observing historic anniversaries of their founding. Directs the Secretary to take action to ensure that minting and issuing coins under this Act will not result in any net cost to the United States Government. Prohibits coin issuance unless the Secretary has received: (1) full payment for the coin; (2) security satisfactory to the Secretary to indemnify the United States for full payment; or (3) a guarantee of full payment satisfactory to the Secretary from a depository institution whose deposits are insured by either the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or the National Credit Union Administration Board.
United States · United States Congress · 15 April 2005
Amends the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921 to prohibit livestock packers from owning, controlling, or feeding livestock to such an extent that the producer no longer materially participates in the management of the operation, with exceptions for: (1) animals held for not more than seven days before slaughter; (2) certain cooperatives that own, control or feed livestock and provide such livestock for slaughter; (3) packers that are not required to report price and quantity information on each reporting day; or (4) packers that own one livestock processing plant.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2005
Amends Federal veterans' benefits provisions to require that a member insured under the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI) program be automatically issued a traumatic injury protection rider that will provide a payment of up to $100,000 per event if the member, while so insured, sustains a traumatic injury that results in: (1) a loss of sight, limbs, movement, speech, or hearing; (2) certain burns; or (3) a coma or the inability to carry out certain daily living activities. Provides coverage exceptions, including attempted suicide or self-inflicted injury, committing or attempting to commit a felony, being legally intoxicated, or willful misconduct. Provides specific payment amounts with respect to each type of injury or loss. Requires the payment, while a member is serving on active or reserve duty, of premiums for such additional coverage. Terminates such coverage upon separation from the Armed Forces.
United States · United States Congress · 14 April 2005
Commuter Benefits Equity Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to equalize and increase to $200, with a modified cost-of-living adjustment, the tax exclusion for both transportation and parking fringe benefits. Extends such benefits to federal employees.
United States · United States Congress · 13 April 2005
Congratulates the University of Denver Pioneers men's hockey team, Coach George Gwozdecky, and Chancellor David Ritchie for an outstanding championship season.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 2005
People-to-People Engagement in World Affairs Resolution - Expresses the sense of the Senate encouraging the active engagement of Americans in world affairs and urging the Secretary of State to coordinate with implementing partners in creating an online database of international exchange programs and related opportunities.
United States · United States Congress · 12 April 2005
Designates April 15, 2005, as National Youth Service Day. Recognizes and commends the significant contributions of American youth. Encourages the cultivation of a common civic bond among young people dedicated to serving their neighbors, their communities, and the Nation.
United States · United States Congress · 11 April 2005
Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Act of 2005 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to make grants to public or nonprofit private entities for the development and operation of not more than eight centers to conduct multidisciplinary and multi-institutional research on environmental factors that may be related to the etiology of breast cancer. Requires each such center to: (1) be known as a Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Center of Excellence; (2) establish ongoing collaborations with community organizations; (3) be formed from a consortium of cooperating institutions; (4) be supported under this Act for a period of not more than five years with additional periods allowed after review and recommendation; and (5) use innovative approaches to study unexplored areas of the environment and breast cancer. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Panel to make recommendations for and to review grants awarded under this Act
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2005
No Child Left Behind Reform Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to allow states to include measures of individual or cohort growth over time in determining whether students are making adequate yearly progress (AYP) toward state academic performance standards. Eliminates the consideration of student attendance rates. Allows schools to be given credit for performing well on measures other than test scores when calculating student achievement. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award competitive: (1) grants to state educational agencies to develop or increase the capacity of data systems for accountability purposes; and (2) subgrants to increase the capacity of local educational agencies to upgrade, create, or manage information databases for the purpose of measuring AYP. Allows schools to target school choice and supplemental services to the students who are members of specified types of groups that fail to make AYP. Requires placement and service in the least restrictive environment for students who receive services under the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act who use an option to transfer under ESEA. Revises the definition of highly qualified teacher to authorize states to: (1) use a generalist exam for middle school teachers; and (2) issue certificates that qualify teachers to teach a number of subjects in social studies or in science.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2005
Vet Center Enhancement Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to employ up to 50 veterans of Operations Enduring Freedom or Iraqi Freedom to provide outreach to veterans on the availability of readjustment counseling and related mental health services at vet centers operated through the Department of Veterans Affairs. Revises provisions concerning the provision of bereavement counseling to the family of members of the Armed Forces who die while serving on active military duty to: (1) include the parents of such members within such authority; and (2) allow such counseling to be provided through vet centers.
United States · United States Congress · 6 April 2005
Security and Freedom Enhancement Act of 2005 or the SAFE Act - Amends the USA PATRIOT Act to modify provisions regarding roving wiretaps to require that: (1) an order approving electronic surveillance specify either the identity of the target or the place to be wiretapped; and (2) surveillance be conducted only when the suspect is present at that place. Limits the authority to delay notice of the issuance of a search warrant to circumstances where providing immediate notice will endanger the life or physical safety of an individual or result in flight from prosecution, the destruction of or tampering with evidence, or the intimidation of potential witnesses. Requires delayed notification to be issued within seven days (currently, within a "reasonable period") after execution, with 21-day extensions, subject to specified limitations. Amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 to require that there be specific and articulable facts giving reason to believe that the person to whom records pertain is a foreign power or agent for Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) access to business records for foreign intelligence and international terrorism investigations. Prohibits an order from: (1) containing any requirement that would be held unreasonable if contained in a subpoena issued by a U.S. court in aid of a grand jury investigation of espionage or international terrorism; or (2) requiring the production of documentary evidence that would be privileged from disclosure if demanded by such a subpoena. Prohibits an electronic communication service provider from disclosing that the FBI has sought access to telephone records for 90 days after receipt of such request, with exceptions (current law places no limits on nondisclosure). Makes similar changes to the Right to Financial Privacy Act and Fair Credit Reporting Act. Amends the Federal criminal code to redefine "domestic terrorism" to mean activities that involve acts dangerous to human life that constitute a Federal crime of terrorism (currently, that violate criminal laws).
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2005
Joins the world in mourning the death of Pope John Paul II, and pays tribute to him by pledging to be ever faithful to our national calling to be "one Nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all,'' and to help our neighbors in immeasurable ways.
United States · United States Congress · 4 April 2005
New Shipper Review Amendment Act of 2005 - Amends the Tariff Act of 1930 with respect to reviews by the administering authority to establish an individual weighted average dumping margin or an individual countervailing duty rate (as the case may be) for a new exporter or producer that: (1) did not export the merchandise that was the subject of an antidumping duty or countervailing duty order to the United States during the period of investigation; and (2) was not affiliated with any exporter or producer who did. Suspends, until three years after enactment of this Act, the requirement that the administering authority direct the Customs Service to allow, at the option of the importer of such merchandise, the posting, until completion of the review, of a bond or security in lieu of a cash deposit for each entry of the subject merchandise (bonding privileges).
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2005
Cesar Estrada Chavez Study Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to complete a special resource study to determine: (1) appropriate methods for preserving and interpreting certain sites in Arizona, California, and other States that are significant to the life of Cesar Estrada Chavez and the farm labor movement in the western United States; and (2) whether any of the sites meets the criteria for listing on the National Register of Historic Places or designation as a national historic landmark.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2005
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation Pilots Equitable Treatment Act - Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), with regard to both single-employer and multiemployer plan guaranteed benefits, to require the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, in the case of commercial airline pilots required by Federal Aviation Administration regulation to retire before age 65, to compute the actuarial value of monthly benefits in the form of a life annuity commencing at the required retirement age.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2005
Fuels Security Act of 2005 - Amends the Clean Air Act to require that motor vehicle fuel contain a specified volume of renewable fuel. Establishes a system of: (1) tradeable credits for motor vehicle fuel containing more renewable fuel than required; and (2) waivers for States and small refineries. Amends the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to require Federal agency heads to ensure that ethanol-blended gasoline and biodiesel-blended diesel fuel is purchased for agency vehicles in areas where such fuel is available at competitive prices. Amends the Clean Air Act to eliminate the oxygen content requirement for reformulated gasoline. Requires the Administrator to: (1) establish standards for toxic air pollutants from the use of reformulated gasoline; and (2) within 30 days of enactment of this Act, determine the adequacy of any petition from a State Governor to exempt gasoline sold in the State from certain requirements for reformulated gasoline. Permits States additional opt-in areas under the reformulated gasoline program. Requires Federal enforcement of State fuels requirements. Sets forth various data collection and reporting requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2005
New Homestead Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of Education to repay a specified percentage (up to $2,000 per year) of certain education loans to an individual who completes a degree and both resides and is employed for at least five years in an area outside a metropolitan statistical area which for 20 years has a net out-migration of inhabitants of at least ten percent of the county population (qualifying county). Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a: (1) tax credit for the lesser of $5,000 or ten percent of the purchase price of a principal residence in a qualifying county; and (2) capital loss deduction with respect to a sale or exchange of a principal residence in a qualifying county. Provides for the creation of tax-exempt individual homestead accounts, funded by individual cash contributions and matching Federal contributions according to a specified formula, whose tax-free distributions after five years are used by residents of qualifying counties for qualified higher education or medical expenses, first-time homebuyer or business capitalization costs, or rollovers. Establishes a rural investment tax credit of 70 percent of the present value of new buildings (including rehabilitation projects) or 30 percent of the present value of existing buildings. Establishes a qualified rural small business investment credit of 30 percent of expenditures for starting or expanding a business, including costs for capital, plant and equipment, inventory expenses, and wages, but not including interest costs. Provides for accelerated depreciation of business property in rural investment projects. New Homestead Venture Capital Fund Act - Amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to establish the New Homestead Venture Capital Fund (Fund), owned by private investors, to generate and provide equity capital to rural businesses in qualifying counties. Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to provide funding and guarantees for private investors in the Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2005
American Veterans Disabled for Life Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 500,000 $1 coins emblematic of the design selected by the Disabled Veterans' LIFE Memorial Foundation for the American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial, in commemoration of disabled American veterans. Restricts such coin issuance period to the calendar year beginning on January 1, 2010. Requires a $10 dollar surcharge from such coin sales to be paid to the Disabled Veterans' LIFE Memorial Foundation in order to establish an endowment to support the construction of the American Veterans' Disabled for Life Memorial in Washington, D.C.
United States · United States Congress · 11 March 2005
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise the tax credit for biodiesel used as fuel to include a credit for the production of agri-biodiesel fuel equal to 10 cents for each gallon produced. Limits: (1) the amount of qualified agri-biodiesel production of a producer to 15 million gallons for any taxable year; and (2) eligible producers to those with a productive capacity not exceeding 60 million gallons. Revises the small ethanol producer tax credit to: (1) expand the eligibility of small ethanol producers for the credit; (2) exclude the credit from the definition of passive activity credit; and (3) exclude credit amounts from inclusion in gross income.
United States · United States Congress · 10 March 2005
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to include combat zone compensation (otherwise excludable from gross income) as earned income for purposes of calculating the tax deduction for contributions to retirement savings plans.
![Official portrait of Sen. Salazar, Ken [D-CO]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s001163_200.jpg)