United States · United States Congress · 17 December 2020
American Competitiveness Of a More Productive Emerging Tech Economy Act of 2020 or the American COMPETE Act of 2020 This bill requires the Department of Commerce and the Federal Trade Commission to study and submit reports on the state of specified technology industries (e.g., artificial intelligence, quantum computing, blockchain technology, and unmanned delivery services) and the impact of these industries on the U.S. economy.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2020
Retirement Annuity Supplement Clarity Act This bill specifies that an annuity supplement payment made under the Federal Employees Retirement System must be included when dividing an annuity pursuant to a court order in a divorce or similar proceeding, unless the court order expressly provides otherwise.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2020
This resolution mourns the death of former Senator Paul Spyros Sarbanes and requests that an enrolled copy of this resolution be transmitted to the family of the Senator.
United States · United States Congress · 2 December 2020
Supporting Best Practices for Healthy Moms Act This bill requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to publish guidance on ways to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity under Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and to report on the Medicaid payment methodologies that apply to facility transfers of pregnant women.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 2020
This bill nullifies the executive order titled Creating Schedule F in the Excepted Service , which was issued on October 21, 2020. The order places executive agency positions that are of a confidential, policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating character, and that are not normally subject to change as a result of a presidential transition, in the excepted service instead of the competitive service.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 2020
Military Domestic Violence Prevention Act This bill requires the Department of Defense to take various actions and implement programs related to the prevention of and response to domestic violence and child abuse and neglect among military families, including by ensuring information sharing among the Armed Forces about incidents reported to the Family Advocacy Programs of the Armed Forces.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2020
This resolution designates September 30, 2020, as Impact Aid Recognition Day to recognize the 70th anniversary of the Impact Aid Program. The program provides funding to local educational agencies that have lost property tax revenue due to the presence of tax-exempt federal property or to those that have experienced increased expenditures due to enrollment of federally connected children (e.g., children living on Indian lands or military bases).
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2020
This bill extends through September 30, 2021, the period during which states, Indian tribes, and local governments may incur costs that may be covered by Coronavirus Relief Fund payments.
United States · United States Congress · 12 November 2020
This resolution expresses the sorrow of the Senate upon the death of former Senator Mark Andrews and requests that an enrolled copy of this resolution be transmitted to the family of the Senator.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 2020
Railroad Employee Equity and Fairness Act or the REEF Act This bill provides that payments made from the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Account shall not be subject to reduction with respect to unemployment compensation programs for qualified railroad employees.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 2020
Accelerating Access to Critical Therapies for ALS Act This bill establishes grant programs to address neurodegenerative diseases, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease), and contains other related provisions. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) shall award grants to eligible entities to support research on and facilitate access to investigational drugs that diagnose or treat ALS. The Food and Drug Administration shall award grants to public and private entities to cover the costs of research and development of drugs that diagnose or treat ALS and other severely debilitating neurodegenerative diseases. HHS shall also establish the Collaborative for Neurodegenerative Diseases, which shall support the development and regulatory approval of drugs that address ALS and other rare neurodegenerative diseases.
United States · United States Congress · 19 October 2020
Protecting Employees from Surprise Taxes Act of 2020 This bill prohibits employers from deferring payment of payroll taxes unless affected employees provide written consent to a deferral. Employers must also provide notice to their employees of the right to provide or withhold written consent and the future tax liability resulting from providing consent to the deferral of such taxes.
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 2020
This resolution requires all individuals in a Senate building to (1) adhere to social distancing guidelines, and (2) wear a mask while in any public area. It also requires the Senate to develop and implement a COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) testing and contact tracing program for Senators and Senate workers.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2020
This resolution designates September 21-September 25, 2020, as National Falls Prevention Awareness Week, encourages raising public awareness about preventing falls among older adults, and recognizes the agencies and organizations that work to reduce the incidence of such falls.
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2020
This resolution designates September 2020 as National Kinship Care Month and encourages community stakeholders to work together to improve well-being for vulnerable children and families.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 2020
This resolution designates the week of October 5-October 9, 2020, as Malnutrition Awareness Week and recognizes the work of nutrition professionals and others in advancing awareness and prevention of malnutrition. It also recognizes the importance of federal nutrition programs and other efforts in preventing and treating malnutrition, particularly during the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic.
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 2020
Promoting Responsible and Effective Virtual Experiences through Novel Technology to Deliver Improved Access and Better Engagement with Tested and Evidence-based Strategies Act or the PREVENT DIABETES Act This bill requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to allow online or virtual diabetes prevention programs that meet standards set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to participate in the Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program Expanded Model. The model provides CDC-approved training on dietary changes, physical activity, and other behavioral strategies for beneficiaries who are at risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2020
Contact Lens Rule Modernization Act This bill (1) requires prescribers of contact lenses to conspicuously post notice that the prescriber is required to provide a copy of the contact lens prescription to the patient, (2) prohibits prescribers from requiring patients to acknowledge a contact lens prescription release in writing or electronically, and (3) prohibits automated telephone calls to verify a prescription.
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2020
This resolution expresses the sense of the Senate that the establishment of full diplomatic relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and between Israel and Bahrain are historic achievements. Further, it encourages other Arab nations to establish full relations with Israel, and it reaffirms the Senate's support for a negotiated, two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2020
Caring for the Survivors and Families of Veterans Act of 2020 This bill adjusts the amount that the Department of Veterans Affairs pays to surviving spouses and children of veterans who were rated as totally disabled for a period of less than 10 years before their death. Additionally, the bill authorizes the furnishing of dependency and indemnity compensation for surviving spouses who remarry after the age of 55.
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2020
Access to Emergency Credit Facilities Act of 2020 This bill provides for the treatment under existing COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) economic aid programs of nationally recognized statistical rating organizations, retroactive to March 15, 2020. Specifically, the bill prohibits the requirement of a credit rating from a specific organization to qualify for these aid programs. Furthermore, a credit rating from an organization approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission must be accepted to qualify for these aid programs. Additionally, the Government Accountability Office must report on the quality of credit ratings issued by these organizations, their effect on access to capital markets, and the implementation of this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 2020
Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument Boundary Adjustment Act This bill modifies the boundary of the Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument in Arizona to include approximately 97.71 acres of identified Forest Service land. The bill transfers administrative jurisdiction over the Forest Service land from the Forest Service to the National Park Service (NPS). The NPS shall administer the added land as part of the monument.
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 2020
Bringing Enhanced Treatments and Therapies to ESRD Recipients (BETTER) Kidney Care Act This bill requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to establish a demonstration program for Medicare beneficiaries with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Under the program, renal dialysis facilities, kidney disease specialists, physician practices, and other health care practitioners may form an organization that partners with certain health care entities to provide integrated care to beneficiaries with ESRD. Such care must include all covered Medicare benefits as well as transition services for transplantations, palliative care, and hospice. Each organization must have a minimum number or percentage of participating beneficiaries (350 or 60% of beneficiaries served at the organization's facilities) and must also comply with certain fiscal, governance, and quality of care requirements. Additionally, the Government Accountability Office must study certain data that is reported to the CMS regarding pediatric dialysis care, as well as the effects of race-based corrections to a specified kidney function test on referrals of ESRD patients for transplant evaluations.
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 2020
Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2020 This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to increase, as of December 1, 2020, the rates of veterans' disability compensation, additional compensation for dependents, the clothing allowance for certain disabled veterans, and dependency and indemnity compensation for surviving spouses and children. The percentage increase in benefits shall be the same as the cost-of-living increase for Social Security recipients.
United States · United States Congress · 14 September 2020
Donna M. Doss Memorial Act of 2020 This bill designates the Rocksprings station of the U.S. Border Patrol located on West Main Street in Rocksprings, Texas, as the Donna M. Doss Border Patrol Station .
United States · United States Congress · 10 August 2020
Pandemic Federal Telework Act of 2020 This bill establishes several requirements for federal agencies with respect to telework. Specifically, the bill requires each federal agency (executive, legislative, and judicial) to allow eligible employees to telework full-time during the public health emergency declared on January 31, 2020, relating to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019). An employee is considered eligible if the employee has not received specified disciplinary action and is otherwise determined eligible by the agency. Additionally, the Office of Personnel Management must, in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services, develop an expansive telework policy for use in future outbreaks of infectious diseases. The bill also requires executive agencies to ensure that all new managers and supervisors receive certain training on specified aspects of telework, including the benefits of telework, the technology involved, and information security.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 2020
La Paz County Solar Energy and Job Creation Act This bill directs the Department of the Interior, after receiving a request from La Paz County, Arizona, to convey approximately 4,800 acres of identified land managed by the Bureau of Land Management to the county. Interior shall exclude from the conveyance any federal land that contains significant cultural, environmental, wildlife, or recreational resources. As a condition of the conveyance, La Paz County and any subsequent owner shall make good faith efforts to avoid disturbing tribal artifacts; minimize impacts on tribal artifacts if they are disturbed; coordinate with the Colorado River Indian Tribes Tribal Historic Preservation Office to identify artifacts of cultural and historic significance; and allow tribal representatives to rebury unearthed artifacts at, or near, where they were discovered. The federal land is withdrawn from the operation of U.S. mining and mineral leasing laws.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 2020
This resolution expresses support for the designation of September 2020 as Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) Awareness Month. PCOS is caused by a hormone imbalance. Symptoms can include infertility, weight gain, excess hair growth, and acne. It recognizes the need for further research, improved treatment and care options, and a cure for PCOS. It also acknowledges the struggles affecting all women and girls afflicted with PCOS.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 2020
This resolution congratulates the men and women of the Commercial Crew Program of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX) and astronauts Robert L. Behnken and Douglas G. Hurley on the successful completion of the Crew Dragon Demo-2 test flight.
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 2020
Automatic Cash Assistance Act This bill allows recipients of Social Security, railroad retirement, and veterans disability benefits to automatically receive stimulus payments under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act or the CARES Act regardless of whether they filed income tax returns in 2018 or 2019. Recipients will also receive the $500 stimulus payment for each dependent child.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 2020
Prevent Government Shutdowns Act of 2020 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 both chambers of Congress have not passed the appropriations bills for the year.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2020
Butterfield Overland National Historic Trail Designation Act This bill designates the trail extending approximately 3,292 miles and following the route operated by the Butterfield Overland Mail Company, known as the Ox-Bow Route, to transport mail and passengers between the eastern end points of St. Louis, Missouri, and Memphis, Tennessee, and extending westward through the states of Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona, to the western end point of San Francisco, California, as the Butterfield Overland National Historic Trail. The United States shall not acquire for the trail any land or interest in land outside of the exterior boundary of any federally administered area without the consent of the owner of such land or interest in land.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 2020
Dependent Care Expense Relief Act of 2020 This bill allows the carryover of unused dependent care flexible spending arrangement benefits from plan year 2020 to plan year 2021. It also allows employees terminated from employment to be reimbursed for unused dependent care benefits during a specified period. The bill requires the Department of the Treasury to issue rules or guidance to expand the definition of dependent care expenses eligible to be reimbursed from a dependent care flexible spending arrangement to account for changes in the dependent care needs of taxpayers due to a COVID-19 (i.e., corornavirus disease 2019) emergency declaration.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 2020
Fair FSAs Act of 2020 This bill requires employers to allow employees who separate from employment to elect to receive a distribution from their health flexible spending arrangement. It also allows employees to roll over existing balances attributable to a reduction in expected elective health care expenses in the plan year due to the outbreak of COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019).
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 2020
Air America Act of 2020 This bill establishes the service of Air America employees as qualifying service for purposes of the Civil Service Retirement System. (Air America was a government-owned airline that provided air transport for certain covert operations in Southeast Asia, including Laos and Vietnam, between 1950 and 1976.) The bill applies to U.S. citizens who were employees of Air America or another affiliated company, as specified, between January 1, 1950 and December 31, 1976. Benefit applications must be filed within two years of the date of enactment of this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2020
Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act This bill establishes several grant programs and otherwise requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to take actions to improve mental and behavioral health and prevent burnout among health care providers. Specifically, HHS must award grants to (1) health professions schools, state or local governments, or nonprofits to provide training for health care providers on suicide prevention, other behavioral health issues, and strategies to improve well-being; and (2) health care providers, prioritizing those in COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) hot spots, to establish or expand programs to promote mental and behavioral health among health care providers involved with COVID-19 response efforts. HHS must also study issues related to, and develop policy recommendations on, preventing burnout and improving mental and behavioral health among health care providers, removing barriers to accessing care and treatment, and identifying strategies to promote resiliency. Additionally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention must conduct a campaign to encourage health care providers to seek support and treatment for mental and behavioral health concerns.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2020
This resolution recognizes the importance of, and encourages the people of the United States to wear, face masks to limit the transmission of COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019).
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 2020
Carbon Removal, Efficient Agencies, Technology Expertise Act of 2020 or the CREATE Act of 2020 This bill establishes the Committee on Large-Scale Carbon Management within the National Science and Technology Council, the duties of which shall include developing a strategic plan for federal research, development, and demonstration of technological carbon dioxide removal and storage.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 2020
National Child Abuse Help Hotline Act of 2020 This bill provides for a grant to establish and operate a National Child Abuse Hotline that makes available assistance and information services 24 hours a day to victims of child abuse or neglect, their families, caregivers, and individuals required by law to report suspected child abuse or neglect. The Department of Health and Human Services may award the grant to a nonprofit entity with experience operating a hotline and providing such assistance and support.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 2020
This resolution declares that (1) the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of the Honorable John Lewis, a late Member of the House of Representatives; and (2) when the Senate adjourns on July 28, 2020, it will stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of the Honorable John Lewis.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2020
Time to Rescue United States Trusts Act of 2020 or the TRUST Act of 2020 This bill establishes congressional rescue committees to develop recommendations and legislation to improve critical social contract programs. A critical social contract program is a federal program for which a federal trust fund is established (e.g., Social Security, Medicare, and federal highway programs), with outlays of at least $20 billion during the year preceding the year in which this bill is enacted, and for which the amount of dedicated federal funds and federal trust fund balances will be inadequate to meet the total amount of outlays of the program that would otherwise be made. Each rescue committee may develop recommendations and legislation to improve the program for which it was established, including by (1) increasing the duration of positive balances of the federal trust fund established for the program, and (2) providing for the solvency of the federal trust fund established for the program during a 75-year period. Congress must use specified expedited legislative procedures to consider legislation that is approved and submitted by the rescue committees.
United States · United States Congress · 23 July 2020
Sustaining Tourism Enterprises During the COVID-19 Pandemic Act or the STEP Act This bill requires the Department of Commerce to provide grants to certain tourism promotion entities and event venues to address the economic impacts of COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019). Eligible recipients are entities that (1) perform tourism promotion responsibilities; (2) host, organize, own, operate, or staff an event venue, a convention, or a trade show; or (3) provide certain services to events and tourism locations. Grant funds may be used for specified costs associated with tourism marketing and promotion activities designed to assist economic recovery in communities impacted by a decline in travel, tourism, and events due to COVID-19.
United States · United States Congress · 23 July 2020
Special Districts Provide Essential Services Act This bill makes special districts eligible for the Coronavirus Relief Fund and the Municipal Liquidity Facility program. Specifically, the bill makes special districts eligible for payments from amounts paid to states from any new appropriations to the fund. A special district must submit a request for payment to the state with information demonstrating that the special district has experienced or is likely to experience during the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) emergency reduced revenue or operational funding derived from provided services, taxes, fees, or other sources of revenue; reduced indirect funding from the federal government, the state, or a unit of general government below the state level; or as a result of the COVID-19 emergency, increased expenditures necessary to continue operations. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System shall include special districts as eligible issuers in the Municipal Liquidity Facility program, which was created in response to the COVID-19 emergency to buy municipal securities.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2020
Save our Stages Act or the SOS Act This bill authorizes the Small Business Administration (SBA) to make grants to eligible live venue operators, producers, promoters, or talent representatives to address the economic effects of the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic on certain live venues. Specifically, the SBA may make (1) an initial grant of up to $12 million dollars to an eligible operator, promoter, producer, or talent representative; and (2) a supplemental grant that is equal to 50% of the initial grant. An initial grant must be used for costs incurred between March 1, 2020, and December 31, 2020, but a supplemental grant may be used for expenses incurred through June 30, 2021. Such grants shall be used for specified expenses such as payroll costs, rent, utilities, and personal protective equipment.
United States · United States Congress · 22 July 2020
John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act This bill establishes new criteria for determining which states and political subdivisions must obtain preclearance before changes to voting practices may take effect. (Preclearance is the process of receiving federal preapproval before making legal changes that would affect voting rights.) In addition, the bill expands voting access on tribal lands.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2020
Southwest Border Security Technology Improvement Act of 2020 This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to report to Congress an analysis of border security technology along the Southwest border. The report shall address the technology DHS needs to (1) prevent terrorists from entering the United States, (2) reduce cross-border criminal activity such as drug smuggling, and (3) facilitate legal trade flow. The report shall also address recent technological advancements and assess whether such advancements can help achieve these goals. DHS shall submit the report within a year of this bill's enactment and provide annual updates for five more years.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2020
Ensuring Increased Disaster Loans for Small Businesses Act or the EIDL for Small Businesses Act This bill authorizes and provides funding for additional Small Business Administration (SBA) disaster loans and advances on such loans, and it modifies the requirements for providing such advances. Specifically, the bill authorizes an additional disaster loan to a prior recipient that received such a loan during the period between January 31, 2020, and December 31, 2020, up to an aggregate amount of $2 million. Further, the bill prohibits the SBA from imposing a maximum loan amount limit that is lower than $2 million for an initial disaster loan. The bill also requires the SBA to provide a disaster loan applicant with an advance no later than three days after the applicant submits a loan application, regardless of whether such application has been approved by that date. Further, the SBA shall provide a recipient of an additional disaster loan an additional advance such that the total advance amount received by the applicant is $10,000.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2020
Knowing the Efficiency and Efficacy of Permanent Telehealth Options Act of 2020 or the KEEP Telehealth Options Act of 2020 This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to report on the availability and effects of expanded telehealth services under Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) during the public health emergency relating to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019). Among other information, HHS must detail its actions during the emergency to expand access to telehealth services and must analyze telehealth usage by certain demographic groups. The GAO must report on the efficiency and management of the telehealth expansion and related risks of fraudulent activity.
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