United States · United States Congress · 17 February 2006
Louis Braille Bicentennial--Braille Literacy Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue $1 coins emblematic of the life and legacy of Louis Braille, whose design: (1) on the obverse shall bear a representation of the image of Louis Braille; and (2) on the reverse shall emphasize Braille literacy and include the word for Braille in Braille code. Authorizes the Secretary to issue such coins only during 2009. Subjects all coin sales to a surcharge of $10 per coin. Requires all surcharges to be promptly paid by the Secretary to the the National Federation of the Blind to further its programs to promote Braille literacy.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2006
Amends the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 to: (1) advance from FY2007 to FY2006 the fiscal year for which funds are appropriated for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP); and (2) repeal the limitation on such funds as a one-time only obligation and expenditure. Bars use of the funds for certain state planning and administration purposes. Accelerates the termination of such appropriation and related allocations and conditions from September 30, 2007, to September 30, 2006.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2006
Designates February 25, 2006, as National MPS Awareness Day (mucopolysaccharidosis is a genetically determined lysosomal storage disorder that renders the body incapable of producing certain enzymes needed to break down complex carbohydrates).
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2006
Calls on U.S. citizens to observe Black History Month. Acknowledges the tragedies of slavery, lynching, and segregation and condemns them as an infringement on human liberty and equal opportunity. Honors citizens who: (1) risked their lives in the Underground Railroad and in other efforts to assist fugitive slaves and other African Americans; and (2) stood beside African Americans in the fight for equal opportunity. Reaffirms the Senate's commitment to the founding principles that all men are created equal and are endowed with certain inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Commits the Senate to addressing situations in which the African American community struggles with disparities in education, health care, and other areas where the federal government can help improve conditions for all citizens.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2006
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) increase the expensing allowance for depreciable business property from $100,000 to $200,000; (2) make such allowance permanent; (3) increase to $800,000 the asset cost threshold for calculating reductions in such allowance; (4) allow an annual inflation adjustment to the expensing allowance and the threshold amount after 2007; and (5) allow a taxpayer to revoke an election to expense such business property without the prior consent of the Secretary of the Treasury.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2006
Save Our Small and Seasonal Businesses Act of 2006 - Amends the Save Our Small and Seasonal Businesses Act of 2005 to extend for three years the annual cap exemption for returning H-2B aliens (temporary nonagricultural worker).
United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2006
Amends the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 to: (1) advance from FY2007 to FY2006 the fiscal year for which funds are appropriated for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP); and (2) repeal the limitation on such funds as a one-time only obligation and expenditure. Accelerates the termination of such appropriation and related allocations and conditions from September 30, 2007, to September 30, 2006.
United States · United States Congress · 8 February 2006
Medicare Drug Formulary Protection Act - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to prohibit removal of covered part D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program) drugs from a prescription drug plan formulary, or imposition of a restriction or limitation on the coverage of such a drug, during the plan year: (1) except at the beginning; or (2) for an individual enrollee, from the date of enrollment until December 31 of the immediately succeeding plan year. Specifies exceptions to such prohibition. Requires an annual notice to enrollees of changes in formulary and other restrictions or limitations on coverage.
United States · United States Congress · 31 January 2006
Expresses admiration for Mrs. Coretta Scott King's lifelong commitment to social justice and peace. Recognizes her role as a leading participant in the American civil rights movement and her support to democracy movements worldwide.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2006
Protecting America's Competitive Edge Through Tax Incentives Act of 2006 or the PACE-Finance Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the tax credit for increasing research activities; (2) increase the rate of such credit from 20 to 40%; (3) expand such credit to include expenses of a research consortia; and (4) allow a business tax credit for the cost of employee continuing education in science or engineering. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) study and make recommendations on methods to expand the scope of the tax credit for increasing research activities; (2) conduct an analysis of the U.S. tax system and its effect on innovation investment and related activities; and (3) report on such studies to the President and Congress.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2006
Protecting America's Competitive Edge Through Energy Act of 2006 or PACE-Energy Act - Amends the Department of Energy Science Education Enhancement Act to direct the Secretary of Energy to: (1) appoint a Director of Mathematics, Science, and Engineering Education with principal responsibility for administering mathematics, science, and engineering education programs of the Department of Energy (DOE); and (2) establish a Mathematics, Science, and Engineering Education Fund to carry out provisions under the Act relating to laboratory cooperative science centers and other authorized education activities and education partnerships. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish a summer internship program for middle and secondary school students that shall provide them with internships at the national laboratories and promote experiential, hands-on learning in mathematics or science; (2) establish at each of the national laboratories a program to support a Center of Excellence in Mathematics and Science at one public secondary school located in the region of the national laboratory to provide assistance in accordance with this Act; (3) establish or expand summer institute programs at the national laboratories to provide additional training to strengthen the mathematics and science teaching skills of teachers employed at public schools in kindergarten through grade 12; (4) establish a program to support the appointment of distinguished scientists by the national laboratories; and (5) award grants to outstanding eligible early-career researchers to support the work of such researchers in DOE. Establishes the Advanced Research Projects Authority--Energy (ARPA-E). Requires the use of the Acceleration Fund for Research and Development of Energy Technologies established by this Act to award grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts supporting specified advanced energy research activities.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2006
Protecting America's Competitive Edge Through Education and Research Act of 2006 - PACE-Education Act - Establishes programs to provide additional mathematics and science teachers in K-12 elementary and secondary education (teachers), including: (1) Department of Education (ED) grants to institutions of higher education (IHE's) for baccalaureate degree programs in mathematics, science, and engineering, with teacher certification, and for master's degree programs in mathematics and science education for teachers; (2) National Science Foundation (NSF) scholarships for recruiting and training new teachers, and fellowships for teachers; (3) ED grants to nonprofit entities to train additional teachers for Advanced Placement (AP), pre-AP, International Baccalaureate (IB), and pre-IB programs; (4) a National Clearinghouse on Mathematics and Science Teaching Materials; (5) Future American-Scientist Scholarships (ED); (6) Department of Energy graduate research fellowships in scientific areas of national need; and (7) NSF early-career research grants for scientists and engineers. Directs the Office of Science and Technology Policy Matters to: (1) coordinate science, mathematics, and engineering education programs; (2) establish a National Coordination Office for Advanced Research Instrumentation and Facilities; (3) establish guidelines for federal agencies to allocate funds for high-risk, high-payoff research; and (4) award a President's Innovation Award. Directs the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to award early-career research grants. Amends the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 to direct the Department of Commerce to award grants for feasibility studies and plans for science parks, and for revolving loan funds to develop science park infrastructure. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to: (1) create a new visa category for doctorate students in mathematics, engineering, technology, or the physical sciences; and (2) exempt from numerical limitations on employment-based immigrants certain aliens who have received such advanced degrees and are working in a related field. Directs the Department of Defense (DOD) to award early-career research grants. Expresses the sense of Senate on: (1) policies to accelerate deployment of access to broadband Internet; (2) the visa process for foreign students at U.S. IHE's and foreign researchers engaging in scientific research in the United States; (3) patent reform; and (4) exemption of certain uses of technology from treatment as exports.
United States · United States Congress · 26 January 2006
Expresses support for the federal and state missions of the Army National Guard and the Air National Guard. Recommends that the Department of Defense (DOD) propose to fully fund the National Guard's equipment needs. Urges DOD to consult with the states' chief executive officers and Congress on any proposed changes to the National Guard force structure. Requests that: (1) any DOD plan regarding force structure take into account the National Guard role in homeland defense and other state missions; (2) DOD prepare budget projections that detail cost savings from any changes in force structure, as well as projected costs in the event large personnel increases are necessary to respond to a national emergency; and (3) DOD assure Congress and the chief executive officers that potential changes in force structure will not impact the safety and security of the U.S. people.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2006
IDEA Full Funding Act - Amends the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to reauthorize part B programs of education of all children with disabilities. Authorizes appropriations for part B: (1) for FY2007-FY2011 in specified amounts; and (2) for FY2012 and each fiscal year thereafter in an amount equal to the sum of the maximum amounts of the grants all states may receive under certain IDEA provisions. (Provides phased-in increases of such authorized funding designed to reach a promised 40% federal share by FY2011.) Makes appropriations for part B for FY2007-FY2011, as well as for FY2012 and each fiscal year thereafter, in amounts less than those this Act authorizes to be appropriated.
United States · United States Congress · 20 January 2006
Medicare State Reimbursement Act of 2006 - Amends title XIX (Medicaid) of the Social Security Act with respect to required state reimbursements to the Secretary of Health and Human Services for federal assumption of Medicaid prescription drug costs for dual-eligible individuals (Medicaid clawback). Requires an offset from the Medicaid clawback for state prescription drug expenditures for covered part D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program) drugs for Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in a part D plan but unable to access on a timely basis benefits to which they were entitled. Requires the Secretary to provide for recovery of payment reductions owing to such offset from those part D or Medicare Advantage-Prescription Drug (MA-PD) plans that would otherwise be responsible for the expenditures made by the states.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2006
Consumer Telephone Records Protection Act of 2006 - Amends the federal criminal code to prohibit: (1) the obtaining by fraud or other unauthorized means of confidential phone records information from a telecommunications carrier or IP-enabled voice service provider (covered entity); and (2) the sale of such records by any person, including any employee of a covered entity. Exempts law enforcement agencies. Imposes a fine and/or imprisonment for up to five years. Doubles such penalties for violations occurring in a 12-month period involving more than $100,000 or more than 50 customers of a covered entity.
United States · United States Congress · 21 December 2005
Medicare Drug Benefit Protections Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for: (1) an extended period of open enrollment during all of 2006 without a late enrollment penalty; (2) extension throughout 2006 of the period for a one-time change of plan enrollment for the Medicare prescription drug benefit; (3) extension of the annual, coordinated election period under Medicare parts C (Medicare+Choice) and D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program); and (4) expansion of special election periods under such parts. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to states, nonprofit organizations, and other appropriate entities to conduct outreach and educational activities with respect to the prescription drug benefit under Medicare part D.
United States · United States Congress · 21 December 2005
Local Development Business Loan Program Act of 2005 - Amends the Small Business Act and the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 to, among other things: (1) state that the development company loan programs authorized under title V of the Small Business Act shall be known as the Local Development Business Loan Program (program); (2) authorize appropriations to the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) for financings under the program; (3) require qualified state or local development companies which do not apply to the SBA for foreclosure and liquidation of defaulted small business loans guaranteed by the SBA to contract with a qualified third party to perform such foreclosures and liquidations; (4) provide maximum loan eligibility and loan refinancing capacity for small businesses, including small businesses in low-income areas; (5) allow development companies to be designated as certified development companies and to issue debentures guaranteed by the SBA; and (6) provide development company operational authority, funding restrictions, and ethical requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 21 December 2005
Honor Our Fallen Prisoners of War Act - Requires the Secretary concerned, for purposes of awarding the Purple Heart, to treat members of the Armed Forces who die in captivity under circumstances establishing eligibility for the prisoner-of-war medal but not for the Purple Heart as a member who is killed or wounded in action. Applies this Act to members who died on or after December 7, 1941.
United States · United States Congress · 16 December 2005
Lobbying Transparency and Accountability Act of 2005 - Amends the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 to require: (1) quarterly instead of semiannual filing of lobbying disclosures reports; (2) electronic filing; (3) maintenance of certain lobbying disclosure information in an electronic database, available to the public free of charge over the Internet; (4) disclosure by registered lobbyists of all past executive and congressional employment; (5 ) disclosure of grassroots lobbying activities by paid lobbyists; (6) disclosure of registered lobbyists' contributions and payments; and (7) an increased penalty for failure to comply with lobbying disclosure requirements. Revises criteria, with regard to disclosure requirements, for determining a coalition or association of groups that retain a person to conduct lobbying or grassroots lobbying activities. Extends from one to two years the ban on lobbying contacts by former very senior executive personnel, former Members of Congress, and officers and employees of the legislative branch with any officer or employee of the entity in which such person served before his or her tenure terminated. Amends the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act to grant a current or former employee or officer assigned to an Indian tribe to perform services pursuant to self-governance contracts or compacts formerly performed by them for the United States to communicate with and appear before any department, agency, court, or commission on behalf of the Indian tribe with respect to any matter relating to the contract or compact. Requires public disclosure by Members of Congress of employment negotiations. Exempts from the restrictions on gifts to Members of Congress or Senators, officers, or employees the market value for a flight on an airplane not licensed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to operate for compensation or hire. Declares that such market value is the fair market value of a charter flight. Requires public disclosure of such flights. Requires increased disclosure of travel by Members of Congress. Requires the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct and the Senate Select Committee on Ethics to develop and revise guidelines on reasonable expenses or expenditures for official government travel. Declares that a gift to a covered executive branch official, or to an officer, employee, or Member of the House or of the Senate, of a ticket to a sporting or entertainment event shall be the face value of the ticket (or if there is no face value, then the highest cost of a ticket with a face value for the event). Calls for reviews and semiannual reports by the Comptroller General on activities carried out by the Clerk of the House and the Secretary of the Senate under the Act.
United States · United States Congress · 16 December 2005
Manufacturing Technology Competitiveness Act of 2005 - Amends the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act to require the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to establish a manufacturing research pilot grants program to make awards to partnerships consisting of at least one industry and one nonindustry partner to foster cost-shared collaborations among firms, educational and research institutions, state agencies, and nonprofit organizations in the development of innovative, multidisciplinary manufacturing technologies. Requires the Director to establish: (1) a manufacturing fellowship program for studies and research activities relating to manufacturing sciences; and (2) a program of competitive grants to manufacturing centers to develop projects to solve new or emerging manufacturing problems. Authorizes appropriations for: (1) manufacturing support programs; (2) the collaborative manufacturing research pilot grants program; (3) technical workforce education and development; (4) scientific and technical research and services; (5) the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Program; and (6) the advanced technology program. Requires the Director to carry out a Standards Education program to award grants to institutions of higher education to develop curricula on the role of standards in the fields of engineering, business, science, and economics.
United States · United States Congress · 16 December 2005
Earned Income Tax Credit Simplification Act of 2005 - Amends provisions of the Internal Revenue Code relating to the earned income tax credit to: (1) allow certain married taxpayers filing separate returns and residing with a dependent child to claim such credit; (2) allow certain taxpayers residing in a household with a qualifying child to claim the credit independently as a taxpayer without a qualifying child; (3) eliminate provisions denying the credit for individuals with excessive investment income; and (4) require aliens claiming the credit to have a social security number authorized for employment purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 16 December 2005
Honors the memory of, and identifies, 2398 members of the Armed Forces who died in service to the United States in Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom as of December 12, 2005.
United States · United States Congress · 15 December 2005
National Innovation Act of 2005 - Directs the President to establish the: (1) President's Council on Innovation; and (2) Innovation Acceleration Grants Program to support and promote innovation in the United States. Requires the National Science Foundation (NSF) to: (1) submit a multiyear plan that describes how the funds authorized by this Act for doubling research funding shall be used; (2) study how the federal government should support the new discipline of service science; (3) expand the Graduate Research Fellowship Program and the Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship Program; (4) establish a clearinghouse for sharing program elements used in successful professional science master's degree programs; (5) award grants for pilot programs to four-year institutions of higher education to facilitate the creation or improvement of such programs; and (6) award grants to local educational agencies to enable implementation of innovation-based experiential learning. Requires the Office of Science and Technology Policy to submit recommendations for an increase in funding for research and development in physical sciences and engineering. Requires the Department of Commerce to: (1) review federal programs that support local economic development and implement a strategy to fund initiatives that improve the ability of communities to participate successfully in the modern economy through innovation; (2) promote economic development opportunities for serving local communities as specified; and (3) coordinate activities focused on promoting innovation through development of regional innovation hot spots. Requires the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to support research and development for advanced manufacturing systems designed to increase productivity and efficiency and to create competitive advantages for U.S. businesses. Make permanent the research credit for qualified research expenses and provides for an alternative simplified credit for such expenses. Requires studies: (1) to explore methods for managing costs associated with catastrophic healthcare events and with chronic disease; and (2) for establishing lifelong learning accounts for educational or training purposes; and (3) of methods to mitigate new forms of risk for businesses that affect innovation. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to: (1) issue regulations relating to private foundation support of innovations in economic development; and (2) establish an advisory group to examine best practices for valuation of intangibles. Makes it the goal of the Department of Defense (DOD) to allocate: (1) at least 3% of the total DOD budget to science and technology; and (2) of such amount, at least 20% to basic research. Extends and expands the Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) Defense Scholarship Pilot Program. Expands the National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) fellowship program. Requires DOD to: (1) award institution-based traineeships in areas of importance to DOD in mathematics, science, or engineering; and (2) undertake specified actions with respect to defense manufacturing research and development.
United States · United States Congress · 15 December 2005
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of the Honorable William Proxmire, a former member of the United States Senate. Declares that when the Senate adjourns on December 15, 2005, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of Senator Proxmire.
United States · United States Congress · 14 December 2005
Expresses the sense of the Senate that cancer-related infertility is a serious quality of life issue for cancer patients. Urges the medical community to increase its efforts to ensure that discussions about the risk of infertility and fertility preservation options are an integral part of pretreatment planning and consent for treatment for all reproductive-age patients. Calls for the federal government, acting through the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to: (1) encourage research to strengthen fertility preservation technologies; (2) consider ways to improve access to fertility preservation options; and (3) raise awareness about the fertility side effects and preservation options.
United States · United States Congress · 12 December 2005
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of the Honorable Eugene J. McCarthy, a former member of the United States Senate. Declares that when the Senate adjourns on December 12, 2005, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of Senator McCarthy.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 2005
Community and Rural Medical Residency Preservation Act of 2005 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to the counting of time spent in outpatient settings by full-time-equivalent residents in approved medical residency training programs, for purposes of indirect medical education and direct graduate medical education payments. Defines all, or substantially all, of the costs for the training program in that nonhospital setting as the residents' stipends and benefits and other costs, if any, as determined by the training hospital and the entity (wholly owned or operated by the hospital) operating the nonhospital setting. Declares that the hospital is not required to pay the entity any amounts other than those determined by the hospital and the entity in order for the hospital to be considered to have incurred all, or substantially all, of the costs for the training program in that setting.
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 2005
Calls on the President: (1) to ensure that U.S. foreign policy reflects appropriate understanding and sensitivity related to human rights, ethnic cleansing, and genocide documented in the U.S. record relating to the Armenian Genocide and the consequences of the failure to realize a just resolution; and (2) in the President's annual message commemorating the Armenian Genocide to accurately characterize the systematic annihilation of 1,500,000 Armenians as genocide and to recall the history of U.S. intervention in opposition to the Armenian Genocide.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2005
National Inland Waters Policy Commission Act of 2005 - Establishes the Commission on Inland Waters Policy to: (1) make recommendations for a coordinated national inland waters policy; and (2) study and report to specified congressional committees on all matters relating to inland waters.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2005
Expresses the sense of Congress that the Medicaid prospective payment system for the federally-qualified health center program is critical to ensuring that both Medicaid recipients and the nation's uninsured population have access to quality affordable primary and preventive care services. Recognizes the critical role of such health centers as an essential source of care for millions of Medicaid recipients and uninsured Americans, and supports continuation of the prospective payment system in helping to maintain this system of care.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2005
Equal Access to Justice Reform Act of 2005 - Includes within the functions and duties of the Small Business Administration's (SBA's) Office of Advocacy ensuring that the justice system remains accessible to small businesses for the resolution of disputes with the federal government. Directs the Office to advise, cooperate with, and consult with the President and Attorney General regarding provisions concerning the awarding of federal contracts to small businesses and minority-, female-, and veteran-owned businesses. Requires the Attorney General to report to specified congressional committees on: (1) the effectiveness of the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) in achieving its purpose of easing the burden upon small businesses of engaging in dispute resolution with the federal government; (2) variations in the frequency and amounts of fee awards paid by specified federal entities; and (3) recommendations for congressional oversight or legislative changes. Eliminates the EAJA's: (1) substantial justification standard whereby the government can deny attorney's fees to prevailing parties if the agency's position was substantially justified; and (2) rate cap on expert witness and attorney's fees. Sets forth provisions regarding settlement offers, declarations of intent to seek a fee award, payments from agency appropriations, and taxpayer eligibility for fee awards. Defines "prevailing party" in EAJA cases to include a party whose pursuit of a non-frivolous claim or defense was a catalyst for a voluntary or unilateral change in position by the opposing party that provides any significant part of the relief sought.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 2005
Elder Justice Act - Amends the Social Security Act (SSA) to add a new title XXII (Elder Justice) to establish: (1) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) an Office of Elder Justice (OEJ); (2) within the Office of the Secretary the Elder Justice Coordinating Council to make recommendations to the Secretary and the Attorney General for the coordination of activities of HHS, the Department of Justice, and other relevant federal, state, local, and private agencies and entities, relating to elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation and other crimes against elders; and (3) the Advisory Board on Elder Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation. Prescribes requirements for uniform collection, maintenance, and dissemination of national data relating to elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation, including an Elder Justice Resource Center in OEJ. Authorizes the HHS Secretary to award grants for: (1) prevention of elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation; (2) five Centers of Excellence nationwide specializing in research, clinical practice, and training relating to elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation; (3) six diverse communities to examine various types of elder shelters and test various models for establishing safe havens; (4) nonprofit organizations and faith-based organizations to establish or continue volunteer programs focusing on the issues of elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation, or providing related services; and (5) various multidisciplinary elder justice activities. Provides for: (1) reporting to law enforcement of crimes occurring in federally-funded long-term care facilities; (2) revising the quality of long-term care; and (3) increasing consumer information about long-term care, including an HHS long-term care consumer clearinghouse. Amends: (1) the Older Americans Act of 1965 with respect to the long-term care ombudsman program; (2) part A (General Provisions) of SSA title XI to establish an adult protective services grant program; (3) SSA titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid) to assure safety of residents when nursing facilities close; and (4) part E (Miscellaneous) to apply skilled nursing facility preventive abuse requirements to long-term care facilities and providers. Establishes within the Department of Justice an Office of Elder Justice. Authorizes the Attorney General to award: (1) victim advocacy grants; and (2) grants for specified support to local and state prosecutors handling elder justice-related cases. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for a long-term care facility worker employment tax credit.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 2005
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Reauthorization Act of 2005 - Amends the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (the Act) to authorize appropriations for the national fishery management program through FY2012. Revises provisions under the Act with respect to: (1) regional fishery management councils; (2) fishery management plan requirements; and (3) environmental review of fishery management plans; and (4) collection and confidentiality of certain information submitted for development of fishery management plans. Establishes: (1) limited access privilege programs to harvest fish; (2) Western Pacific regional marine education and training programs; (3) a regional economic transition program for fishermen affected by a catastrophic fishery disaster; (4) a bycatch reduction engineering program to minimize bycatch mortality; (5) a regionally based registry program for recreational fishermen; (6) an information program generated by the Marine Recreational Fishery Statistics Survey; (7) a cooperative research and management program; and (8) a Fisheries Conservation and Management Fund. Amends the Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982 to increase the civil penalties for violations of the Convention between the United States of America and Canada for the Preservation of the Halibut Fishery of the Northern Pacific Ocean and Bearing Sea and such Act. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to deny, revoke or suspend a permit issued to a vessel owner under marine resource law for such violations. Reauthorizes certain fisheries Acts through FY2010. Requires the Secretary to identify a nation's vessels that have engaged in illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing (including relevant international fishery management organizations that have failed to implement effective measures to end such activities), or that have engaged in fishing practices beyond the exclusive economic zone that result in bycatch of a protected living marine resource, and to encourage them to take appropriate corrective actions or to enter into bilateral treaties to end such offending activities. Reauthorizes the the Atlantic Tunas Convention Act of 1975 through FY2012. Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention Implementation Act - Directs the President to appoint U.S. Commissioners to the Commission for the Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPFC Convention). Directs the Secretary to promulgate regulations to carry out U.S. obligations under the WCPFC Convention with respect to the conservation and management of highly migratory fish stocks. Makes it unlawful for any person to violate such regulations. Authorizes appropriations. Pacific Whiting Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary to appoint U.S. individuals to specified committees established by the Agreement between the Government of the United States and the Government of Canada on Pacific Hake/Whiting. Requires the Secretary to establish the U.S. catch level for Pacific whiting according to the standards of the Agreement. Authorizes appropriations.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 2005
GreenLane Maritime Cargo Security Act - Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to submit to Congress a comprehensive strategic plan to enhance international supply chain security for all modes of transportation by which containers arrive in, depart from, or move through U.S. seaports. Directs the Secretary to develop and implement a plan for improving the Automated Targeting System for identifying high-risk containers moving through the international supply chain. Amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) an Office of Cargo Security Policy to coordinate all Department policies and programs relating to cargo security. Establishes minimum standards for securing containers in transit to an importer in the United States, including international standards for the security of containers moving through the international supply chain. Requires all containers entering the United States to be examined for radiation. Establishes the Container Security Initiative (CSI) to identify and examine maritime containers that pose a risk for terrorism at foreign ports before they are shipped to the United States. Establishes: (1) the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) to strengthen and improve the overall security of the international supply chain and U.S. border security; and (2) a third tier of C-TPAT (Greenlane) that offers additional benefits to validated C-TPAT participants that demonstrate a sustained commitment beyond the minimum requirements for participation in C-TPAT. Establishes a port security grant program to correct port security vulnerabilities.
United States · United States Congress · 15 November 2005
Expresses the sense of the Senate that the United States should act to reduce risks posed by global climate change and to foster economic growth by: (1) participating in negotiations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and leading efforts in other international fora with the objective of securing U.S. participation in agreements that advance and protect U.S. interests, that establish mitigation commitments by all countries that are major emitters of greenhouse gases, that establish flexible international mechanisms to minimize the cost of efforts by participating countries, and that achieve a significant long-term reduction in global greenhouse gas emissions; and (2) establishing a bipartisan Senate observer group to monitor international negotiations on climate change and to ensure that the advice and consent function of the Senate is exercised to facilitate timely consideration of any applicable treaty.
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 2005
Expresses the sense of the Senate that Veterans Day 2005 shall be commemorated with appropriate tributes to all veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces, especially to those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
United States · United States Congress · 9 November 2005
Home Energy Assistance Act of 2005 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit for residential heating costs paid in 2006. Allows a maximum credit of $500, but reduces or eliminates such credit for taxpayers at higher income levels. Requires integrated oil companies with gross receipts in excess of $1 billion to use the first-in, first-out (FIFO) inventory accounting method for purposes of determining their current federal income tax liabilities.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2005
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to set forth provisions governing the determination of interest amounts on education loans made after December 31, 2004, and treat such interest, with certain adjustments and restrictions, as tax deductible.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 2005
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of Henry Giugni, former Sergeant-at-Arms of the United States Senate. Declares that when the Senate adjourns on November 3, 2005, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of Henry Giugni.
United States · United States Congress · 1 November 2005
Cameron Gulbransen Kids and Cars Safety Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation to issue regulations for all passenger motor vehicles to require: (1) automatic reversal of direction by power windows and panels when they detect an obstruction, to prevent children from being trapped, injured, or killed; (2) a rearward visibility performance standard to prevent backing incidents; and (3) engagement of the vehicle service brake in all key positions while the key is out of the ignition before the engine is started or the transmission is engaged, to prevent accidents resulting from vehicles accidentally rolling away. Requires the Secretary to: (1) establish a database of injuries and deaths in nontraffic, noncrash events involving passenger motor vehicles; and (2) supplement a consumer information program on child safety or create a new program with information about hazards to children in nontraffic, noncrash incident situations.
United States · United States Congress · 26 October 2005
Small Business Investment and Growth Act of 2005 - Amends the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 to authorize the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to guarantee the: (1) payment of the redemption price and interest on a participating debenture issued by a small business investment company (SBIC), or a trust certificate issued with respect to such a debenture; and (2) repayment of funds advanced by an interim funding provider in the event of a default by an SBIC. Authorizes the SBA to charge a guarantee fee in each of the above cases. Prohibits the Administrator from guaranteeing such a debenture if the aggregate unpaid principal balance of the participating debentures would exceed 200% of the leverageable capital of the SBIC. Requires participating debentures to be redeemed within ten years after issuance. Outlines requirements of SBIC participants, including after default on debenture payment. Allows an SBIC which has no unpaid interest and no past due principal outstanding on any issued participating debenture the right of special distribution to private investors without a corresponding distribution to the SBA, under specified conditions.
United States · United States Congress · 25 October 2005
Virgie S. Arden American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act - Amends the Horse Protection Act to prohibit the shipping, transporting, moving, delivering, receiving, possessing, purchasing, selling, or donation of horses and other equines to be slaughtered for human consumption. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to detain for examination, testing, or the taking of evidence: (1) any horse at any horse show, horse exhibition, or horse sale or auction which is sore or which the Secretary has probable cause to believe is sore; and (2) any horse or other equine which the Secretary has probable cause to believe is being shipped, transported, moved, delivered, received, possessed, purchased, sold, or donated in violation of such prohibition.
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.
![Official portrait of Sen. Snowe, Olympia J. [R-ME]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s000663_200.jpg)