United States · United States Congress · 14 December 2017
Declares that: (1) the United States should not tolerate the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK's) possession of nuclear weapons or continued development of nuclear weapon and ballistic missile capabilities; (2) the United States and the international community should develop and implement the strictest sanctions regime and exhaust every reasonable diplomatic option to achieve the dismantlement of the DPRK's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs; and (3) the U.S. government should plan for every military contingency necessary to defend the American people and ensure regional and global security. Acknowledges that the Republic of Korea and Japan would likely face immediate retaliation by the DPRK in response to any potential U.S. military action and, therefore, any such action should be coordinated with those governments. Asserts that Congress should be consulted prior to any use of military force, recognizes that Congress possesses the authority under Article I of the Constitution to declare war, and affirms that congressional authorization is needed prior to any pre-emptive or preventative ground war on the Korean Peninsula initiated by U.S. forces.
United States · United States Congress · 7 November 2017
Gold Star Family Support and Installation Access Act of 2017 This bill directs the appropriate military department to issue a standardized Gold Star Installation Access Card to the widow and dependent children of a deceased member of the Armed Forces to allow them to gain unescorted access to military installations to attend memorial events, visit gravesites, and obtain on-installation services and benefits. The Department of Defense shall prescribe regulations to provide that a surviving spouse of a deceased member, regardless of martial status, who has guardianship of dependent children of the deceased member, is entitled to use commissary stores and MWR retail facilities to the same extent and on the same basis as the unremarried spouse of a member of the uniformed services.
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 2017
Condemns the attack at the Route 91 Harvest festival in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 1, 2017, and honors the memory of the victims killed. Expresses hope for the recovery of those injured, and applauds the efforts of law-enforcement and counterterrorism officials and emergency-medical and healthcare professionals in response to the attack.
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 2017
Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act This bill amends the federal criminal code to make it a crime for any person to perform or attempt to perform an abortion if the probable post-fertilization age of the fetus is 20 weeks or more. A violator is subject to criminal penalties—a fine, up to five years in prison, or both. The bill provides exceptions for an abortion: (1) that is necessary to save the life of the pregnant woman, or (2) when the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest. A physician who performs or attempts to perform an abortion under an exception must comply with specified requirements. A woman who undergoes a prohibited abortion may not be prosecuted for violating or conspiring to violate the provisions of this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2017
Systemic Risk Designation Improvement Act of 2017 This bill amends the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to allow the Federal Reserve Board (FRB) to subject a bank holding company to enhanced supervision if: (1) the company has been identified as a global systemically important company; or (2) the risk of the company's financial distress, or the nature of the company's activities, could pose a threat to the financial stability of the United States. Currently, companies are subject to this type of oversight if they possess at least $50 billion in assets or are a nonbank financial company under the FRB's supervision. The Financial Stability Oversight Council must approve of any metrics used by the FRB in determining by regulation that a category of bank holding companies is subject to enhanced supervision. Under this bill, companies subject to enhanced supervision may be required to limit mergers and acquisitions, restrict products offered, or maintain a certain debt ratio. The FRB must publish the list of companies that have been identified as requiring enhanced supervision.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2017
Native Species Protection Act This bill prohibits an intrastate species from being: (1) considered to be in interstate commerce; and (2) subject to regulation under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, or any other provision of law under which regulatory authority is based on the power of Congress to regulate interstate commerce under the Commerce Clause. An intrastate species is any species of plant or fish or wildlife that is: (1) found entirely within the borders of a single state, and (2) not part of a national market for any commodity.
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2017
Federal Firearms Licensee Protection Act of 2017 This bill amends the federal criminal code to modify criminal penalties for an offense involving the theft of a firearm from a licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer, or from their business premises. Specifically, the bill: increases from 10 to 20 years the maximum prison term, and creates a 3- or 5-year mandatory minimum prison term for an offense that occurs during the commission of a burglary or robbery. An attempt to commit an offense is subject to the same penalties as a substantive offense.
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2017
Federal Disaster Assistance Nonprofit Fairness Act of 2017 This bill amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to include community centers, including tax-exempt houses of worship, as "private nonprofit facilities" for purposes of disaster relief and emergency assistance eligibility under such Act. A church, synagogue, mosque, temple, or other house of worship, and a private nonprofit facility operated by a religious organization, are eligible for federal contributions for the repair, restoration, and replacement of facilities damaged or destroyed by a major disaster, without regard to the religious character of the facility or the primary religious use of the facility. This bill is applicable to the provision of assistance in response to a major disaster or emergency declared on or after October 28, 2012.
United States · United States Congress · 13 September 2017
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of Pete V. Domenici, former member of the U.S.Senate. Declares that when the Senate adjourns September 13, 2017, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of the late Senator Domenici.
United States · United States Congress · 7 September 2017
Employee Rights Act This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act to: (1) make it an unlawful labor practice for a labor organization to interfere (currently, restrain or coerce) with the rights of employees to organize and collectively bargain; (2) require union recertification after a turnover in the workforce exceeding 50% of the bargaining unit; (3) require the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to give 14 days advance notice before a hearing investigating an election petition; and (4) require an employer to provide the NLRB with a list consisting only of employee names and addresses of all eligible voters within seven days after an NLRB determination of the appropriate bargaining unit or an agreement on eligible voters. The bill: (1) grants union and nonunion employees the right to vote by secret ballot on whether to ratify a collective bargaining agreement or engage in a strike, (2) prohibits the use of union dues for any purpose not directly related to collective bargaining, (3) prohibits a strike without the consent of a majority of all represented employees determined by secret ballot, and (4) prohibits the use or threat of force or violence to obtain the right to represent employees.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2017
Rebuild America Now Act This bill amends the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 to expedite the environmental review and permitting process for projects undertaken or funded by the federal government that could have significant environmental consequences. The bill states as policy that when implementing a permitting law, including specified environmental laws, agencies should seek to issue permit decisions favorably to the maximum extent practicable. The bill includes provisions regarding: lawsuits involving challenges to agency actions concerning energy production, approval of gas pipeline projects, rights-of-way through national parks, assistance to areas where air pollution levels have not met national ambient air quality standards, and state authority to review certain transportation projects and agreements.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2017
CBO Show Your Work Act This bill amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to require the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to make available to Congress and the public each fiscal model, policy model, and data preparation routine that the CBO uses to estimate the costs and other fiscal, social, or economic effects of legislation. For each estimate of the costs and other fiscal effects of legislation, the CBO must also disclose, in a manner sufficient to permit replication by individuals not employed by the CBO, the data, programs, models, assumptions, and other details of the computations used to prepare the estimate. For data that may not be disclosed, the CBO must make available to Congress and the public: a complete list of all data variables for the data; descriptive statistics for all data variables for the data, to the extent that the descriptive statistics do not violate the rule against disclosure; a reference to the statute requiring that the data not be disclosed; and contact information for the individual or entity who has unrestricted access to the data.
United States · United States Congress · 3 August 2017
Capital for Farmers and Ranchers Act This bill amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to increase the amount of unpaid debt permitted per borrower under Department of Agriculture farm ownership and operating loans.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2017
Regionally Empowered Decision-making for Snapper, Noting the Angling Public and the Preservation of an Exceptional Resource Act or the RED SNAPPER Act This bill requires any fishery management plan or regulation for red snapper fisheries that is submitted by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council to contain conservation and management measures that establish separate catch limits. The bill gives Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas (Gulf states) exclusive authority through FY2024 to establish the timing and duration of the fishing season for private recreational fishing of red snapper in the Gulf of Mexico in the extended red snapper management zone of each Gulf state.
United States · United States Congress · 31 July 2017
This bill amends the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 to require the Department of Agriculture to make funding available for substance use disorder treatment services from appropriations made for facilities and systems to provide telemedicine and distance learning services in rural areas.
United States · United States Congress · 24 July 2017
Bob Dole Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the award of a Congressional Gold Medal to Bob Dole in recognition for his service to the nation as a soldier, legislator, and statesman.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2017
Harry W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2017 This bill revises education and related benefits provided to veterans, service members, dependents, and survivors. The bill amends the Post-9/11 veterans' educational assistance program to: remove certain time restrictions on program use; increase assistance for reservists, guardsmen, dependents, and surviving spouses and dependents; provide full eligibility for Post-9/11 Purple Heart recipients and certain reservists and guardsmen; provide an extra academic years' worth of benefits for STEM (science, technology, engineering, or mathematics) degree candidates; establish a five-year pilot program for high technology courses; restore eligibility for service members whose school closes in the middle of a semester; authorize funding to improve claims processing; permit assistance to be used at certain institutions that are not institutions of higher education; and pro-rate the housing stipend for reservists called to active duty. The bill authorizes the Edith Nurse Rogers STEM Scholarship to help veterans complete STEM degrees. The Yellow Ribbon program is extended to Fry Scholarship recipients (surviving dependents of service members who died on active duty) and certain Purple Heart recipients. (The Yellow Ribbon program helps veterans pay for higher education tuition and fee costs not covered by the Post-9/11 program.) The bill: (1) extends the Advisory Committee on Education, (2) increases survivors' and dependents' educational assistance, and (3) extends funding for state educational program approving agencies. The bill provides statutory authority for the veterans success of campus program which provides veterans with on-campus educational and vocational counseling. The Department of Veterans Affairs shall: (1) make a new determination regarding each denied veteran's claim for disability compensation in connection with full-body exposure to mustard gas or Lewisite at specified locations during World War II, and (2) presume such exposure unless there is affirmative evidence otherwise.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2017
Protecting American Jobs Act This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act, with respect to the authority of the National Labor Relations Board, to: repeal the authority of the General Counsel of the board, to issue, and prosecute before the board, complaints of unfair labor practices; limit the board's rulemaking authority to rules concerning the internal functions of the board; prohibit the board from promulgating regulations affecting the substantive or procedural rights of any person, employer, employee, or labor organization, including rules concerning unfair labor practices and representation elections; repeal the board's authority to prevent persons from engaging in unfair labor practices, limiting such authority to the investigation of allegations of such practices; and repeal the board's authority to petition courts for enforcement of its orders, seek injunctions, or hold hearings on jurisdictional strikes.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2017
Firearm Act of 2017 This bill prohibits the federal government from requiring an individual's race or ethnicity to be disclosed in connection with a firearm transfer to that individual.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2017
This joint resolution nullifies a rule submitted by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) regarding arbitration agreements. (The rule regulates the use of arbitration agreements in contracts for specific consumer financial products and services. It prohibits the use of a predispute arbitration agreement to prevent a consumer from filing or participating in certain class action suits. The rule also requires consumer financial product and service providers to furnish the CFPB with particular information regarding arbitrations.)
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2017
Legislative Performance Review Act of 2017 This bill limits the duration of authorizations of appropriations, requires programs with expired authorizations to be terminated, and establishes reporting requirements. The bill prohibits Congress from considering legislation that: (1) authorizes appropriations for more than four years, or (2) authorizes the enactment of an unlimited amount of appropriations for any purpose. If Congress determines that an authorization for more than four years is necessary to accomplish the purposes of an authorization, it may waive the time limit by considering a waiver resolution using expedited legislative procedures. Congressional committees that report legislation authorizing appropriations must include in committee reports: (1) an analysis, appraisal, and evaluation of existing programs for which appropriations are authorized; and (2) specified details regarding the purpose and need for new programs for which appropriations are authorized. Federal agencies must implement a two-year plan to terminate programs with expired authorizations. The bill establishes new points of order against legislation that provides appropriations that are either unauthorized or are pursuant to authorizations that violate the time limits and other requirements established by this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2017
Department of Veterans Affairs Quality Employment Act of 2017 This bill provides that the annual determination of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) staff shortages shall include shortages for five clinical and five non-clinical occupations for each network. (Such determination currently includes the five occupations for which there are the largest Department of Veterans Affairs [VA]-wide shortages.) The bill establishes in the VA an executive management fellowship program to provide eligible employees of: (1) the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) and the VHA with private sector training and experience, and (2) a private-sector entity with VA training and experience. The VA shall: conduct an annual performance plan for each political appointee that is similar to the plan conducted for VA career senior executive employees; establish a single database that lists each vacant VA position that is critical, difficult to fill, or both, and each vacant mental health position; prescribe regulations to allow for excepted service appointments of qualifying students and recent graduates; provide VHA human resources with training on employee recruitment and retention; establish a promotional track system for employees who are technical experts to advance without being required to transition to management positions; develop a program to transition military medical people into VHA employment; develop a plan to hire qualified directors for each medical center without a permanent director; develop a standardized VA exit survey; and ensure that a recruiter for each Veterans Integrated Service Network visits, at least annually, each allopathic and osteopathic teaching institution with a graduate medical education program within the network to recruit individuals to be appointed to VHA positions. The VA may non-competitively appoint a qualified former career or career conditional employee to any VA position within the competitive service that is one grade higher than the position most recently occupied by the employee.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2017
Transparency and Honesty in Energy Regulations Act of 2017 This bill prohibits the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of the Interior, the Department of Transportation, and the Council on Environmental Quality from considering the social cost of carbon, methane, nitrous oxide, or greenhouse gas as part of any cost benefit analysis in the rule making process, unless a federal law is enacted authorizing such consideration. They may also consider those social costs if they use an estimate that: (1) complies with the requirements of the "Circular A-4" document of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), (2) uses only the discount rates specified in that document, (3) considers only the domestic costs and benefits of the activity, and (4) has been reviewed by the OMB for compliance with the circular A-4 document and consistency across federal agencies. The EPA must report on the number of proposed and final rulemakings, guidance documents, and agency actions since January 2009 that use those social costs, including as part of any cost benefit analysis required under Executive Order 12866 or other relevant authority.
United States · United States Congress · 29 June 2017
Silencers Help Us Save Hearing Act or the SHUSH Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code: (1) to remove silencers from the list of firearms subject to regulation under the National Firearms Act (NFA), and (2) to specify that a person who lawfully acquires or possesses a silencer under provisions of the federal criminal code meets the registration and licensing requirements of the NFA. Additionally, the bill amends the federal criminal code: to preempt state or local laws that tax or regulate firearm silencers, to exclude a muffler or silencer from the list of firearms subject to regulation, to eliminate mandatory minimum prison terms for a crime of violence or drug trafficking offense in which a defendant uses or carries a firearm equipped with a silencer, and to permit active and retired law enforcement officers to carry a concealed silencer.
United States · United States Congress · 28 June 2017
Sanctity of Human Life Act This bill declares that: (1) the right to life guaranteed by the Constitution is vested in each human and is a person's most fundamental right; (2) each human life begins with fertilization, cloning, or its equivalent, at which time every human has all the legal and constitutional attributes and privileges of personhood; and (3) Congress, each state, the District of Columbia, and each U.S. territory have the authority to protect all human lives.
United States · United States Congress · 22 June 2017
Securing the Homeland by Increasing our Power on the Seas Act or the SHIPS Act This bill declares that it shall be the policy of the United States to have available, as soon as practicable, at least 355 battle force ships, comprised of the optimal mix of platforms, with funding subject to the annual authorization and appropriation of funds.
United States · United States Congress · 21 June 2017
Protecting the Second Amendment Act This bill prohibits subjecting a licensed gun dealer to a reporting requirement based on the geographic location of the gun dealer's business or the sale of multiple rifles or shotguns to the same person.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2017
Recognizes: U.S. Capitol Police Special Agents David Bailey, Crystal Griner, and Henry Cabrera for responding to and ultimately ending the threat to Members of Congress, their staff, and others during the shooting at Eugene Simpson Stadium Park in Alexandria, Virginia, on June 14, 2017; the Police Department, the Office of the Sheriff, and the Fire Department of Alexandria, Virginia, and the first responders who reported to the scene; victims Steve Scalise, Zachary Barth, and Matthew Mika, who survived the shooting; and the U.S. Capitol Police for their professionalism, vigilance, and self-sacrifice in protecting Members of Congress and congressional employees, visitors, and facilities. Recognizes that threats to Members of Congress also threaten the foundations of our representative democracy.
United States · United States Congress · 15 June 2017
Designates June 20, 2017, as American Eagle Day. Applauds the issuance of bald eagle commemorative coins by the Department of the Treasury to generate funds for the protection of the bald eagle. Encourages entities with an interest in conserving endangered species to collaborate and develop educational tools for use in the public schools.
United States · United States Congress · 14 June 2017
Workforce Democracy and Fairness Act This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act to require a waiting period of at least 14 days after a petition is filed by an employer or employee relating to collective bargaining rights before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) may begin an investigative hearing into questions of representation affecting commerce. A hearing must be non-adversarial and the hearing officer must identify any relevant and material pre-election issues and create a full record. The bill requires the NLRB, in cases where it finds that a question of representation affecting commerce exists, to: (1) direct an election by secret ballot as soon as practicable but not before 35 calendar days after the filing of an election petition, and (2) certify election results after it has ruled on each pre-election issue not resolved before the election and any additional issue pertaining to the conduct or results of that election. The bill also requires the NLRB, not earlier than seven days after a final determination of the appropriate bargaining unit, to acquire from the employer a list of all employees eligible to vote in the election, which shall: (1) be made available to all parties; and (2) include the employees' names and one additional form of personal contact information (e.g., telephone number, email address, or mailing address) chosen by the employee in writing.
United States · United States Congress · 5 June 2017
Declares that the Senate has heard with profound sorrow and deep regret the announcement of the death of the Honorable Jim Bunning, former member of the U.S. Senate. Declares that when the Senate adjourns on June 5, 2017, it stand adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of Senator Bunning.
United States · United States Congress · 24 May 2017
Recognizes the 50th anniversary of Jerusalem's reunification and extends the Senate's friendship and hopes for peace to Jerusalem's residents and Israel's people. Reaffirms support for Israel's commitment to religious freedom and administration of holy sites in Jerusalem. Supports strengthening the mutually beneficial American-Israeli relationship. Commends Egypt and Jordan, former combatant states of the Six Day War, for embracing a vision of peace and coexistence with Israel and continuing to uphold their respective peace agreements. Reaffirms: (1) that it is long-standing U.S. bipartisan policy that the permanent status of Jerusalem remains a matter to be decided between the parties through final status negotiations towards a two-state solution; and (2) the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 as U.S. law, and calls upon the President and all U.S. officials to abide by its provisions.
United States · United States Congress · 22 May 2017
Advancing America's Missile Defense Act of 2017 This bill directs the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) to use Department of Defense (DOD) policies to accelerate the development, testing, and fielding of the redesigned kill vehicle, the multi-object kill vehicle, the C3 booster, a space-based sensor layer, an airborne laser on unmanned aerial vehicles, and an additional missile defense site, including the completion of any outstanding environmental impact statements for an additional missile defense site on the east coast or in the midwest regions of the United States. DOD shall, subject to National Missile Defense funding, increase the number of U.S. ground-based interceptors by 28. The MDA shall report to Congress on: (1) infrastructure requirements to increase the number of ground-based interceptors at Missile Field 1 and Missile Field 2 at Fort Greely to 20 ground-based interceptors each, (2) increasing the capacity of the ground-based mid-course defense element of the ballistic missile defense system, (3) the status of the integrated layers of missile defense radars, and (4) a revised missile defense testing campaign plan that accelerates the development and deployment of new missile defense technologies. DOD, by December 31, 2021, shall: (1) execute any requisite construction to ensure that such missile fields or alternative fields at Fort Greely are capable of supporting and sustaining additional ground-based interceptors, (2) deploy 14 additional ground-based interceptors to field 1 or an alternative field at as soon as technically feasible, and (3) identify a ground-based interceptor stockpile storage site for a minimum of 14 ground-based interceptors. The MDA shall develop, test, and deploy a highly reliable space-based missile defense sensor architecture for the ground-based midcourse defense system that provides specified functions and capabilities.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 2017
American Legion 100th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act This bill requires the Department of the Treasury to mint and issue commemorative coins in recognition and celebration of the 100th anniversary of the American Legion. Surcharges received from the sale of these coins shall be paid to the American Legion for costs related to promoting the importance of: (1) caring for those who have served, and those who are still serving, in the Armed Forces; and (2) maintaining patriotic values, strong families, and assistance for at-risk children.
United States · United States Congress · 18 May 2017
Designates the week of May 15-May 21, 2017, as National Police Week. Expresses support for law enforcement officers across the United States for their efforts to build safer and more secure communities. Recognizes: (1) the need to ensure that law enforcement officers have the equipment, training, and resources necessary to protect their health and safety; and (2) the members of the law enforcement community for their selfless acts of bravery. Honors and remembers law enforcement officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice. Expresses condolences to the loved ones of each law enforcement officer who has made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.
United States · United States Congress · 16 May 2017
Back the Blue Act of 2017 This bill amends the federal criminal code: to establish new criminal offenses for killing, assaulting, and fleeing to avoid prosecution for killing a judge, law enforcement officer, or public safety officer; to expand the list of statutory aggravating factors in death penalty determinations to also include the killing or attempted killing of a law enforcement officer, judge, prosecutor, or firefighter or other first responder; and to broaden the authority of federal law enforcement officers to carry firearms. The bill amends the federal judicial code to limit federal court review of challenges to state court convictions for killing a public safety officer or judge. It amends the Revised Statutes of the United States to limit the recovery of compensatory damages and prohibit the recovery of attorney's fees by an individual for a violation of rights that occurs as a result of (or in the course of) conduct that constitutes a felony or crime of violence. Finally, it directs the Department of Justice to make grants to law enforcement agencies and nongovernmental organizations to promote trust and improve relations between law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve.
United States · United States Congress · 15 May 2017
Securing the Border and Protecting Our Communities Act This bill prohibits any sanctuary jurisdiction from receiving any federal infrastructure or transportation funds authorized under: (1) the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) discretionary grant program, (2) the Fostering Advancements in Shipping and Transportation for the Long-Term Achievement of National Efficiencies (FASTLANE) grant program, or (3) the surface transportation block grant program. Funds that are not allocated to a sanctuary jurisdiction because of such prohibition shall be available for activities carried out under the Secure Fence Act of 2006. "Sanctuary jurisdiction" is defined as a state or state political subdivision that the Department of Justice determines has in effect a statute, ordinance, policy, or practice that: (1) prohibits or interferes with a government entity or official or a person sharing information with federal immigration authorities regarding an individual's immigration status; (2) prohibits any government entity or official from complying with a lawfully-issued Department of Homeland security detainer or notification request concerning the release of an alien; or (3) restricts a person's ability to bid for or be awarded a contract or otherwise retaliates against a person that assists in construction activity pursuant to the Secure Fence Act of 2006.
United States · United States Congress · 11 May 2017
Reaffirms the U.S. commitment to promoting religious freedom as a fundamental human right. Calls for the President to: (1) strengthen U.S. foreign policy on behalf of individuals persecuted in foreign countries on account of religion; (2) develop an action plan on international religious freedom and integrate that plan into U.S. diplomatic, development, and national security strategies; and (3) develop a strategic plan to direct grants for implementing innovative programs in key countries to train and work with local religious leaders on the importance of pluralistic societies, rights guaranteed under international law, and reporting mechanisms available within international institutions. Urges the State Department to: (1) implement Frank Wolf International Religious Freedom Act provisions that direct the George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center to conduct training on religious freedom for all Foreign Service officers and all outgoing deputy chiefs of mission and ambassadors, and (2) develop a training curriculum for American diplomats in international religious freedom policy. Urges: (1) the President, the State Department, and relevant agencies to develop a comprehensive response to protect victims of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes and to provide humanitarian, stabilization, and recovery assistance to affected individuals from religious and ethnic groups in Iraq and Syria; (2) the President and the State Department to reestablish the Religion and Foreign Policy Working Group; and (3) the President, State Department, and U.S. Trade Representative to ensure that trade negotiations include religious freedom conditions mandated by the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2017
Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective Care Technologies (CONNECT) for Health Act of 2017 or the CONNECT for Health Act of 2017 This bill makes a series of changes to expand coverage of telehealth services under Medicare, including by exempting certain telehealth services (e.g., specified renal dialysis and stroke evaluation services) from originating site requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 3 May 2017
Puppies Assisting Wounded Servicemembers Act of 2017 or the PAWS Act of 2017 This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to carry out a five-year pilot program under which it awards grants to eligible nonprofit organizations to provide service dogs to veterans who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder after completing other evidence-based treatment. An organization that receives a grant shall provide for each participating service dog and veteran: coverage by a commercially available veterinary health insurance policy, hardware clinically determined to be required by the dog to perform the tasks necessary to assist the veteran, payments for travel expenses to obtain the dog, and travel expenses required to obtain a replacement service dog. To be eligible for a grant, an organization must: (1) agree to cover all costs in excess of the grant amount to guarantee such benefits, (2) be certified by Assistance Dogs International, (3) provide one-on-one training for each service dog and recipient for 30 hours or more during a period of 90 days or more, and (4) provide an in-house residential facility or other accommodations nearby in which service dog recipients stay for a minimum of 10 days while receiving at least 30 hours of training. The VA shall develop metrics to measure the improvement in psychosocial function and therapeutic compliance and changes independence on prescription narcotics and psychotropic medication of veterans participating in the program. The Government Accountability Office must provide to Congress a briefing on the methodology established for, and a report on, the pilot program.
United States · United States Congress · 1 May 2017
Veteran Overmedication Prevention Act of 2017 This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to contract with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to review the deaths of all covered veterans who died by suicide during the last five years, regardless of whether information relating to such deaths has been reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A "covered veteran" is any veteran who received VA hospital care or medical services during the five-year period preceding the veteran's death. The review shall include: the total numbers of veterans who died by suicide, violent death, or accidental death; the percentage of such veterans with combat experience or related trauma; each veteran's age, gender, race, and ethnicity; a list of medications and substances prescribed to such veterans; a summary of medical diagnoses that led to such prescriptions in cases of anxiety and depressive disorders; the number of instances in which such a veteran was concurrently on multiple prescribed medications; the number of such veterans who were not taking any prescribed medication; the percentage of such veterans treated for anxiety or depressive disorders who received a non-medication first-line treatment compared to the percentage who received medication only; descriptions of how the VA determines and updates clinical practice guidelines for prescribing medications and of VA efforts to maintain appropriate staffing levels for mental health professionals; an analysis of VA's use of systematically measuring pain scores during clinical encounters and how that relates to the number of veterans concurrently on multiple prescribed medications; identification of VA medical facilities with markedly high prescription rates and suicide rates for treated veterans; an analysis of VA programs that collaborate with state Medicaid agencies and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; an analysis of VA medical center collaboration with medical examiners' offices or local jurisdictions to determine veteran mortality and cause of death; identification of a best practice model to collect and share veteran death certificate data; a description of how data relating to death certificates of veterans is collected, determined, and reported by the VA; an assessment of any apparent patterns based on the review; and recommendations to improve the safety and well-being of veterans. The VA shall ensure that such data is compiled in a manner that allows it to be analyzed across all data fields for purposes of informing and updating VA clinical practice guidelines.
United States · United States Congress · 27 April 2017
Outer Continental Shelf Energy Access Now Act or the OCEAN Act This bill amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to limit the President's authority to prohibit oil and gas leasing on the outer Continental Shelf. The President may prohibit, through a rule making, oil and gas leasing on areas of the outer Continental Shelf located in a national marine sanctuary. Any suspension of operations under a lease arising from a state of war or declaration of national emergency shall be for 90 days and may be renewed. The bill rescinds existing moratoriums on oil and gas leasing on areas of the outer Continental Shelf other than marine sanctuaries and national monuments. The President may not declare or reserve any ocean waters or lands beneath ocean waters as a national monument.
United States · United States Congress · 26 April 2017
Regulatory Accountability Act of 2017 This bill codifies and revises notice-and-comment rulemaking procedures to require federal agencies to consider: (1) whether a rulemaking is required by statute or is within the discretion of the agency, (2) whether existing federal laws or rules could be amended or rescinded to address the problem, and (3) reasonable alternatives for a new rule. For major or high-impact rules, an agency must: publish a notice of initiation of rulemaking to invite interested parties to propose alternatives and ideas that accomplish the agency's objectives and benefit the public; allow persons interested in high-impact or certain major rules to petition for a public hearing with oral presentation, cross-examination, and the burden of proof on the proponent of the rule; adopt the most cost-effective rule among reasonable alternatives that meet statutory objectives, unless additional benefits justify additional costs; and publish a framework and metrics for measuring the effectiveness of the rule on an ongoing basis. The bill defines: a "high-impact rule" as a rule likely to cause an annual effect on the economy of $1 billion or more; and a "major rule" as a rule likely to cause an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more, a major increase in costs or prices, or significant adverse effects on competition, employment, investment, productivity, innovation, public health and safety, or the ability of U.S.-based enterprises to compete with foreign-based enterprises. Agencies proposing a rule must notify the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) and publish a notice of proposed rulemaking that includes: (1) a text of the proposed rule; (2) rulemaking considerations; and (3) for any major rule or high-impact rule, a discussion of alternatives and a preliminary explanation of how the rules meets statutory objectives and how benefits justify costs. When adopting a rule, an agency must publish a notice of final rulemaking that explains its determinations and responds to comments. To obtain public comment on whether rules adopted at the end of a presidential administration should be amended or rescinded, agencies may delay rules that have not yet become effective before the inauguration of a new President. OIRA must establish rulemaking guidelines for: (1) assessing costs and benefits, economic issues, and risk assessments; and (2) avoiding inconsistency or duplication with other agency rules. The bill revises the scope of judicial review to: (1) establish a substantial evidence standard for high-impact rules, (2) allow courts to remand a matter to an agency without setting aside the agency's action, and (3) prohibit review of a determination of whether a rule is a major rule based on an increase in costs or adverse effects. Agencies issuing guidance are: (1) prohibited from foreclosing consideration of issues, (2) required to state that guidance is not legally binding, and (3) required to confer with OIRA on major guidance.
United States · United States Congress · 25 April 2017
Global War on Terrorism War Memorial Act This bill allows the Global War on Terror Memorial Foundation to establish the National Global War on Terrorism Memorial as a commemorative work on federal land in the District of Columbia to commemorate and honor the members of the Armed Forces who served on active duty in support of the Global War on Terrorism.
United States · United States Congress · 7 April 2017
Designates April 2017 as National Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia Awareness Month. (Congenital diaphragmatic hernia is a birth defect that occurs when the diaphragm fails to fully form, allowing abdominal organs to migrate into the chest cavity and preventing lung growth.) Encourages that steps should be taken to: raise awareness of and increase public knowledge about congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH); inform all Americans about the dangers of CDH; disseminate information on the importance of quality neonatal care for CDH patients; promote quality prenatal care and the use of ultrasounds to detect CDH in utero; and support research funding of CDH to improve screening and treatment, discover its causes, and develop a cure.
United States · United States Congress · 7 April 2017
Strengthening State and Local Cyber Crime Fighting Act of 2017 This bill amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) a National Computer Forensics Institute, to be operated by the U.S. Secret Service. The institute: shall disseminate homeland security information related to the investigation and prevention of cyber and electronic crime and related threats; shall educate, train, and equip state, local, tribal, and territorial law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and judges; shall ensure that timely, actionable, and relevant expertise and homeland security information related to cyber and electronic crime and related threats is shared with such officers and prosecutors; may provide such officers with computer equipment, hardware, software, manuals, and tools necessary to conduct cyber and electronic crime and related threat investigations and computer and mobile device forensic examinations; and shall facilitate the expansion of the network of Electronic Crime Task Forces of the Secret Service through the addition of such officers educated and trained at the institute.
United States · United States Congress · 5 April 2017
Blocking Regulatory Interference from Closing Kilns Act of 2017 This bill prohibits the Environmental Protection Agency from requiring compliance with Clean Air Act rules concerning national emission standards for hazardous air pollutants with respect to brick and structural clay products manufacturing or clay ceramics manufacturing until judicial reviews of the rules are complete.
United States · United States Congress · 29 March 2017
Private Corrado Piccoli Purple Heart Preservation Act This bill provides that regulations restricting the purchase, production, sale, or exchange of military medals or decorations may not authorize the sale of a Purple Heart awarded to a member of the Armed Forces, unless the sale is conducted by the member to whom the Purple Heart was awarded.
United States · United States Congress · 27 March 2017
Sportsmen's Act This bill declares that federal land must be open for hunting, fishing, and recreational shooting unless the managing agency acts to close the lands in accordance with this bill. The Forest Service or the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) may lease or permit the use of federal land for a shooting range, with specified exceptions. The National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the BLM, and the Forest Service must prepare a list that identifies land within their respective jurisdictions that is: (1) open to the public for hunting, fishing, or recreational uses; (2) not accessible to the public because the land does not have public entry or exit points or has significantly restricted public entry and exit points; and (3) at a minimum, 640 acres in size. Those federal entities must: (1) make this information available biennially for a 10-year period, and (2) report on options for providing public entry and exit points for the land. The bill provides special rules to expand access to federal land for film crews of three people or fewer. The bill establishes a Wildlife and Hunting Heritage Conservation Council Advisory Committee to advise the Departments of Agriculture and of the Interior on wildlife and habitat conservation, hunting, and recreational shooting. The NPS may not prohibit individuals from transporting bows and crossbows if certain requirements are met.
![Official portrait of Sen. Strange, Luther [R-AL]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/s001202_200.jpg)