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United States · Official source
6,152 records where Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT] is listed as a sponsor, author, or other actor. Search with topics and years
United States · United States Congress · 5 March 2018
This bill requires the Surgeon General to report annually to Congress on the effects of gun violence on public health and the status of actions taken to address those effects.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2018
Global Food Security Reauthorization Act of 2018 This bill amends the Global Food Security Act of 2016 to revise policy objectives and to: (1) extend through FY2021 the program to carry out those portions of the global food security strategy that relate to the Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development, and (2) expand requirements for reporting by the President regarding strategy implementation. The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 is amended to extend through FY2021 the assistance program for international disaster relief and rehabilitation, including the set-aside for the emergency food security program.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2018
This joint resolution nullifies the rule submitted by the Federal Communications Commission entitled "Restoring Internet Freedom." The rule published on February 22, 2018: (1) restores the classification of broadband Internet access service as a lightly-regulated "information service"; (2) reinstates private mobile service classification of mobile broadband Internet access service; (3) requires Internet service providers to disclose information about their network management practices, performance characteristics, and commercial terms of service; and (4) eliminates the Internet Conduct Standard and the bright-line rules.
United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2018
No Tax Breaks for Outsourcing Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the taxation of the foreign-source income of domestic corporations, to: eliminate an exemption for certain returns from tangible investments made overseas, eliminate deductions for a domestic corporation's foreign-derived intangible income and global intangible low-taxed income, repeal a provision that excludes foreign oil and gas extraction income from the tested income of a controlled foreign corporation, limit the tax deduction for the interest expenses of a U.S. corporation that is a member of a financial reporting group (i.e., a group that prepares consolidated financial statements according to generally accepted accounting principles or international financial reporting standards), modify the rules for the taxation of inverted corporations (U.S. corporations that acquire foreign companies to reincorporate in a foreign jurisdiction with income tax rates lower than the United States), and treat certain foreign corporations managed and controlled primarily in the United States as domestic corporations for tax purposes.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2018
Assault Weapons Ban of 2018 This bill amends the federal criminal code to make it a crime to knowingly import, sell, manufacture, transfer, or possess a semiautomatic assault weapon (SAW) or large capacity ammunition feeding device (LCAFD). The prohibition does not apply to a firearm that is: (1) manually operated by bolt, pump, lever, or slide action; (2) permanently inoperable; (3) an antique; or (4) a rifle or shotgun specifically identified by make and model. Additionally, the bill does not prohibit, with respect to a SAW or LCAFD: importation, sale, manufacture, transfer, or possession related to certain law enforcement efforts, or authorized tests or experiments; importation, sale, transfer, or possession related to securing nuclear materials; and possession by a retired law enforcement officer. The bill permits continued possession, sale, or transfer of a grandfathered SAW, which must be securely stored. A licensed gun dealer must conduct a background check prior to the sale or transfer of a grandfathered SAW between private parties. The bill permits continued possession of, but prohibits sale or transfer of, a grandfathered LCAFD. Newly manufactured LCAFDs must display serial number identification. Newly manufactured SAWs and LCAFDs must display the date of manufacture. The legislation amends the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 to require law enforcement agencies to be notified when a prohibited person attempts to purchase a grandfathered SAW. It also amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to allow a state or local government to use Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program funds to compensate individuals who surrender a SAW or LCAFD under a buy-back program.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2018
Calls for the designation of a Prisoners of Conscience Day.
United States · United States Congress · 16 February 2018
Smart Building Acceleration Act of 2018 This bill requires the Department of Energy (DOE) to establish a Federal Smart Building Program to implement smart building technology in certain federal buildings and demonstrate the costs and benefits of smart buildings. Smart buildings are buildings with energy systems that: (1) are flexible and automated; (2) have extensive operational monitoring and communication connectivity, allowing remote monitoring and analysis of building functions; (3) take a systems-based approach in integrating the overall building operations for control of energy generation, consumption, and storage; (4) communicate with utilities and other third-party commercial entities, if appropriate; (5) protect the health and safety of occupants and workers; and (6) are cybersecure. DOE may expand awards made under the Federal Energy Management Program and the Better Building Challenge to recognize specific federal agency achievements in accelerating the adoption of smart building technologies. DOE must conduct a survey of privately owned smart buildings throughout the United States and evaluate their costs and benefits. As part of the Better Building Challenge, DOE must demonstrate policies and approaches that accelerate the transition to smart buildings. DOE must conduct research and development on barriers to the integration of advanced building technologies.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2018
Job Creation through Energy Efficient Manufacturing Act This bill requires the Department of Energy (DOE) to establish a Financing Energy Efficient Manufacturing Program that provides grants for projects that: (1) improve the energy efficiency of small- or medium-sized manufacturers that employ no more than 750 employees, and (2) develop technologies to reduce electricity or natural gas use by the manufacturers. The bill establishes labor requirements for projects that receive grant funding under this bill. In addition, the bill establishes a requirement that grant projects only use iron and steel products that are produced in the United States, unless DOE grants a waiver of the requirement.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2018
Reserve Component Benefits Parity Act of 2018 This bill makes reserve component members who are deployed to support pre-planned operations of a combatant command eligible for: (1) non-reduction in pay while serving in the uniformed services or National Guard, (2) consideration of active duty service to reduce the age for retired pay ; and (3) the high-deployment allowance for lengthy or numerous deployments and frequent mobilizations.
United States · United States Congress · 15 February 2018
International Violence Against Women Act of 2018 This bill provides for a U.S. global strategy to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls. The bill establishes in the Department of State an Office of Global Women's Issues which shall be headed by an Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues. The Ambassador-at-Large shall: (1) coordinate U.S. government efforts regarding gender equality and the advancement of women and girls in foreign policy, and (2) develop or update periodically a U.S. global strategy to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls. The bill establishes in the U.S. Agency for International Development the position of Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment who shall direct policies, programs, and funding regarding gender equality and women's empowerment. The bill requires that U.S. assistance made available for humanitarian relief, conflict mitigation, and post-conflict reconstruction prevents and responds to violence against women and girls. The Department of State shall also identify incidents that occur during armed conflict and implement emergency responses.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2018
Election Security Act This bill directs the Election Assistance Commission to establish grant programs to support (1) states' compliance with certain voting system security requirements, including the use of voting systems that require individual paper ballots marked by hand; (2) states' audits of federal election results (i.e., manual counts of paper ballots); and (3) research and development directed at improving the security and reliability of election infrastructure. The bill also (1) requires the President to develop a national strategy to protect against attacks on U.S. democratic institutions, and (2) establishes the National Commission to Protect U.S. Democratic Institutions.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2018
Commonsense Legislation Ensuring Accountability by Reporting Access of Non-Cleared Employees to Secrets Act or the CLEARANCES Act This bill requires the President to submit quarterly reports to Congress on security clearance information with respect to individuals working in the White House or in the Executive Office of the President.
United States · United States Congress · 13 February 2018
Advancing Cutting Edge Research Act or the ACE Research Act This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to expand the National Institutes of Health's unique research initiatives to include cutting-edge research that: (1) fosters scientific creativity and increases fundamental biological understanding leading to the prevention, diagnosis, or treatment of diseases and disorders; or (2) is urgently required to respond to a public health threat. (Unique research initiatives may be supported through transactions other than contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements.)
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2018
Empowering State Forestry to Improve Forest Health Act of 2018 This bill amends the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 to direct the Forest Service to establish a landscape-scale restoration program to provide financial and technical assistance for landscape-scale restoration projects on state and private forest lands that maintain or improve benefits from trees and forests on such lands. The program shall: address the national private forest conservation priorities specified under the Act; and enhance public benefits from trees and forests, as identified in a state-wide assessment and a long-term state-wide forest resource strategy under the Act. The program shall also have one or more objectives, including to: protect or improve water quality or quantity; reduce wildfire risk, including through hazardous fuels treatment; protect or enhance wildlife habitat; improve forest health and forest ecosystems, including addressing native, nonnative, and invasive pests; or enhance opportunities for new and existing markets in which the production and use of wood products strengthens local and regional economies. The Forest Service shall allocate from the amounts made available under this bill: 50% for the competitive process for distributing funds for landscape-scale restoration projects; and 50% proportionally to states to maximize the achievement of the restoration program's objectives and to address the highest national priorities, as identified in state-wide assessments and long-term state-wide forest resource strategies. The bill amends the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 to allocate funds and use specified authorities of the Department of Agriculture or of the Department of the Interior, as appropriate, to assist cross-boundary hazardous fuel reduction and wildfire mitigation projects.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2018
Nuclear Plant Decommissioning Act of 2018 This bill amends the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to require a Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensee to submit to the NRC a post-shutdown decommissioning activities report (PSDAR) regarding the shutdown of a nuclear facility. Prior to submitting a PSDAR, a licensee must consult with affected states and localities. In the state where the nuclear facility is located, the NRC is required to: (1) solicit public comments on a proposed PSDAR; (2) conduct at least two public hearings; and (3) invite the state to file a statement of support, nonsupport, or conditional support for the proposed PSDAR with specific recommendations that could lead to support. The NRC must determine the adequacy or inadequacy of a proposed PSDAR and issue a decision document accordingly.
United States · United States Congress · 7 February 2018
Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act This bill requires federal employees furloughed due to a lapse in appropriations that begins on or about February 8, 2018, to be compensated at their standard rate of compensation for the period of such lapse as soon as practicable after such lapse ends.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2018
Rural Infrastructure Development and Partnerships Act This bill establishes within the Department of Agriculture a Rural Partnerships Office to be headed by a director appointed by the President. The duties of the office include: establishing and running a program to provide technical assistance to improve delivery, financing, operations, and maintenance of rural infrastructure; establishing an online clearinghouse of best practices; providing grants to assist rural communities in developing cost-effective infrastructure projects; and coordinating activities of rural liaisons to develop guidelines for rural funding or financing programs at federal agencies and identify opportunities to work across agencies. The bill also requires each federal agency that provides financial assistance to a rural community for an activity related to rural infrastructure to designate a rural liaison to: review and make recommendations regarding regulations, guidance, and procedures that present hardships to rural communities; participate in reviewing applications for technical assistance; serve as an ombudsperson for rural communities; and meet regularly with other rural liaisons to coordinate efforts and identify ways to work together to support rural infrastructure needs.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2018
Advancing Innovation and Reinvigorating Widespread Access to Viable Electromagnetic Spectrum Act or the AIRWAVES Act This bill requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to complete auctions by December 31, 2020, that will grant priority access broadcast licenses for specified frequency spectrum bands. The FCC and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration are directed to identify frequencies in specified spectrum bands that may be utilized for non-federal unlicensed use and commercial licensed use. The FCC must allocate 10% of proceeds from each of the spectrum band auctions specified in the bill to expand wireless infrastructure in rural areas that are underserved or unserved. The FCC shall conduct a study on how unlicensed frequency spectrum bands can be utilized for: (1) the provision of healthcare in rural areas, (2) distance learning, and (3) facilitating innovations in agriculture.
United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2018
Reuniting Families Act This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to recapture unused employment-based and family-sponsored visas from FY1992-FY2016; reclassify spouses, permanent partners, minor children, and stepchildren of permanent residents as immediate relatives; repeal the per-country immigration limits; repeal specified bars to reentry and allow waivers of inadmissibility to promote family unity; exempt children of naturalized Filipino veterans from immigration limitations; and allow relatives of a deceased alien to maintain visa eligibility. The bill defines "permanent partner" to purposes of applying the INA to LGBT families and individuals.
United States · United States Congress · 2 February 2018
Supporting the Teaching profession through Revitalizing Investments in Valuable Educators Act or the STRIVE Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide qualifying teachers with a new, incremental loan-cancellation program. Specifically, with respect to a 12-month period, the Department of Education (ED) must cancel a specified portion of a borrower's qualifying Federal Direct Loan Program loans if the borrower: (1) has made 12 consecutive on-time monthly payments, (2) is employed in a qualifying teaching position at the time of such cancellation, and (3) was employed in a qualifying teaching position during the period in which the borrower made the 12 payments. After a borrower has received such partial loan cancellation for a specified number of years, ED must cancel the borrower's eligible loans in full. The bill also: increases and extends funding for teacher training; makes changes to the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education grant program, including by increasing annual award amounts and making early childhood teachers eligible for such grants; requires ED to award grants to states to subsidize teacher certification and licensing fees for low-income individuals who have entered the teaching profession; expands the teacher quality partnership grant program to include early childhood educators; and increases the tax deduction for school expenses and extends the deduction to early childhood educators.
United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2018
Recognizes the 50th anniversary of the 1968 Memphis sanitation workers strike. Honors the perseverance of the members of Union Local 1733 and the contribution of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., in resolving the labor dispute.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2018
Dry Cask Storage Act of 2018 This bill amends the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 to require each licensee of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to submit a plan for: (1) transfer (including on-going additional transfers) to spent nuclear fuel dry casks of any spent nuclear fuel stored by the licensee for at least seven years in spent nuclear fuel pools, and (2) configuration of the remaining spent nuclear fuel in the pool in a manner that minimizes the chance of a fire if there is a loss of water in the pool. The NRC must approve or disapprove the plan within 90 days after its submission. The NRC may provide grants to any licensee with an approved plan to assist in the cost of transferring spent nuclear fuel to dry casks under the plan. The bill requires the emergency planning zone applicable to each civilian nuclear power reactor to be at least 10 miles in radius until all spent nuclear fuel at the reactor has been transferred to dry casks. The NRC must expand to 50 miles in radius the emergency planning zone applicable to each reactor not in compliance with an approved plan. The licensee is responsible for all costs associated with the expansion. The Department of the Treasury must transfer annually to the NRC, to pay the costs of the grants program, 10% of the interest generated during the preceding fiscal year from investments of the Nuclear Waste Fund.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2018
Healthy Climate and Family Security Act of 2018 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to require the Department of the Treasury to establish a carbon trading program that caps the emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) from crude oil, coal, and natural gas. Beginning in 2019, crude oil refineries, petroleum importers, coal mines, coal importers, and natural gas suppliers or processors must purchase carbon permits equivalent to the amount of CO2 that would be emitted by covered fuels. Treasury will auction these permits to those entities. This bill establishes a declining cap on the quantity of permits issued to reduce CO2 emissions until 2050 when the permits issued represent an amount 80% below 2005 CO2 emission levels. Treasury must issue permits for carbon capture and sequestration of CO2 from covered fuels. This bill provides for the trading or sale of permits between entities, the banking by entities of permits for future years, and the borrowing by Treasury of permits from future years to stabilize permit prices. Auction proceeds and penalties are returned to U.S. citizens lawfully present in the United States using the Healthy Climate Trust Fund established by this bill. Treasury must impose fees on the import and pay fees for the export of carbon-intensive goods when the export country does not have equivalent measures to regulate greenhouse gases. Carbon-intensive goods are goods with an increased cost due to the regulation of greenhouse gases. The Environmental Protection Agency must regulate within 10 years all sources of greenhouse gases that are anthropogenically emitted. This excludes gases attributable to the production of animals for food.
United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2018
Safe Coasts, Oceans, And Seaside Towns Act or the Safe COAST Act This bill provides statutory authority for specified safety regulations that govern offshore oil and gas production in the Outer Continental Shelf and provide protections for human, marine, and coastal environments. The Department of the Interior must contract with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to complete the study titled "Review and Update of Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement Offshore Oil and Gas Operations Inspection Program" within 21 months.
United States · United States Congress · 25 January 2018
Federal Labor-Management Partnership Act of 2018 This bill establishes the Federal Labor-Management Partnership Council to: (1) advise the President on matters involving labor-management relations in the executive branch; (2) collect and disseminate information about and provide guidance on partnership efforts in the executive branch, including the results of those efforts; and (3) use the expertise of individuals, both inside and outside the federal government, to foster partnership arrangements in the executive branch. The head of each agency that is subject to authority permitting employees of the agency to select an exclusive representative shall take the following actions: (1) create labor-management partnerships by forming labor-management committees or councils at appropriate levels, or adapting existing committees or councils if such groups exist; (2) involve employees and employee representatives as full partners with management representatives to improve the civil service to better serve the public and carry out the mission of the agency; (3) provide systemic training of appropriate agency employees (including line managers, first-line supervisors, and labor organization representatives) in consensual methods of dispute resolution; (4) allow employees and employee representatives to have pre-decisional involvement in all workplace matters to the fullest extent practicable, without regard to whether those matters are negotiable subjects of bargaining; and (5) evaluate progress and improvements in organizational performance resulting from labor-management partnerships.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2018
End The Shutdown Act of 2018 This bill amends the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2018 to extend the expiration date of the FY2018 Continuing Resolution (CR) from January 19, 2018, to January 26, 2018. The bill provides continuing appropriations for federal agencies through the earlier of January 26, 2018, or the enactment of the applicable appropriations legislation. It ends the government shutdown that began when the existing CR expired because none of the 12 FY2018 regular appropriations bills that fund the federal government have been enacted. The bill also provides funding flexibility or additional funding for specified accounts within the Department of Defense, the Department of Agriculture, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Department of Energy, the Small Business Administration, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
United States · United States Congress · 19 January 2018
Public Service Loan Forgiveness Inclusion Act of 2017 This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to revise the public service loan forgiveness program by expanding the types of payments made by public service employees for Federal Direct Loans that qualify as repayment plans under the program.
United States · United States Congress · 19 January 2018
Constitutional Amendment This joint resolution denies as protected speech any financial expenditures, or in kind equivalents, with respect to a candidate for federal office, without regard to whether or not a communication expressly advocates the election or defeat of a specified candidate in the election. The resolution gives Congress the power to enact a mandatory public financing system to provide funds to qualified candidates in federal elections, which shall be the sole source of funds raised or spent with respect to federal elections.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2018
Advancing Seniors and Kids Act or the ASK Act This bill extends, and otherwise revises, various public health and social welfare programs. Specifically, the bill: permanently extends the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP); extends by one year, but reduces by half, additional federal financial participation for CHIP; extends CHIP's qualifying-states option, express-lane eligibility option, and outreach and enrollment program; extends the Child Enrollment Contingency Fund, the Childhood Obesity Demonstration Project, and the Pediatric Quality Measures Program; modifies Medicare payment rules and reporting requirements with respect to ground-ambulance services; permanently extends specialized Medicare Advantage (MA) plans for certain special-needs individuals; expands certain supplemental benefits under MA for chronically ill enrollees; extends the Medicare payment adjustment known as the "home-health rural add-on"; makes permanent or extends other specified programs and payment rules under Medicare; under Medicaid, extends certain health workforce demonstration projects as well as specified programs related to community health centers, diabetes, graduate medical education, family-to-family health-information centers, abstinence education, and personal-responsibility education; delays certain changes, under Medicaid, to disproportionate-share hospital allotments and to third-party liability provisions; extends the Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program and requires, under the program, continued demonstration of improvements in certain benchmark areas; establishes a grant program for the monitoring of representative payees under the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program and the Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) program; otherwise revises provisions related to representative payment under SSI and OASDI; and with respect to the child-welfare system, modifies provisions related to information sharing and to overpayment liability.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2018
No Unconstitutional Strike against North Korea Act This bill expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) a conflict on the Korean peninsula would have catastrophic consequences; (2) actions and statements that increase tensions between the United States and North Korea should be avoided; and (3) the President should engage in talks with North Korea to reduce tensions and improve communication, initiate negotiations to achieve a diplomatic agreement to halt and eventually reverse North Korea's nuclear pursuits, and move toward denuclearization and a permanent peace in the Korean peninsula. Funds available to the Department of Defense or to any other federal department or agency may not be used to launch a military strike against North Korea or otherwise introduce U.S. Armed Forces into hostilities in North Korea before the earlier of: (1) the date on which Congress declares war on North Korea, or (2) the date of an authorization that meets the requirements of the War Powers Resolution and that is enacted after the enactment of this bill. Such prohibition shall not apply to military force used to: (1) repel a sudden attack on the United States, its territories or possessions, its Armed Forces, or its allies; or (2) rescue or remove U. S. personnel.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2018
Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act This bill requires federal employees furloughed due to a lapse in appropriations that begins on or about January 19, 2018, to be compensated at their standard rate of compensation for the period of such lapse as soon as practicable after such lapse ends.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2018
Transition Team Ethics Improvement Act This bill expands ethics and disclosure requirements for presidential transition teams. Among other changes, the bill requires presidential candidates to develop and publicly release ethics plans for their transition teams, requires team members to sign an ethical code of conduct, requires teams to report to Congress regarding security clearances, and expands disclosure requirements for team members who are assigned to federal departments or agencies.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2018
Expresses support and respect for Haiti, El Salvador, and African nations. Censures and condemns President Trump for his derogatory statements about Haiti and other countries at the January 11, 2018, White House meeting and calls on him to retract and apologize for such remarks.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2018
Uniting and Securing America Act of 2018 or the USA Act of 2018 This bill provides conditional permanent resident status for an alien meeting specified requirements, including having entered the United States when younger than 18 years old and residing in the United States since December 31, 2013. An individual may apply to have such conditional basis removed after meeting specified eligibility requirements. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shall cancel the removal of, and adjust to the status of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence on a conditional basis, an individual who was granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status, unless such individual has engaged in disqualifying conduct. The bill repeals provisions that deny an unlawful alien eligibility for higher education benefits on the basis of residence within a state unless a U.S. citizen or national is eligible for such benefits without regard to whether such citizen or national is such a resident. DHS shall: (1) deploy the most practical and effective technology available in order to achieve situational awareness and operational control along the U.S. border; (2) submit to Congress a comprehensive southern border strategy to achieve border control; and (3) begin eradicating the carrizo cane plant and salt cedar along the Rio Grande River. DHS may construct new ports of entry along the northern and southern borders. The bill establishes Operation Stonegarden in DHS to provide border security grants to law enforcement agencies in border or maritime border states that are involved in U.S. Customs and Border Protection operations DHS shall establish a two-year grant program to improve emergency communications in the southern border region for individuals who are at risk of violence and lack cellular and LTE network service. The number of immigration judges is increased. The President shall designate a senior official to coordinate federal and international efforts to strengthen citizen security, the rule of law, and economic prosperity in Central America.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2018
Broadband Conduit Deployment Act of 2018 This bill directs the Department of Transportation to require states to evaluate the need to install broadband conduit in any project to construct a new highway or additional lane or paved shoulder for an existing highway that is begun after the enactment of this bill and that receives funding under the federal-aid highway program.
United States · United States Congress · 11 January 2018
Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands Equitable Rebuild Act of 2018 This bill provides for additional disaster-recovery assistance and other assistance to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands with respect to infrastructure, health care, agriculture, education, economic development, and environmental remediation, among other sectors. Specifically, regarding both territories, the bill: provides for the use of certain emergency assistance to rebuild electric grids; establishes grant programs to promote energy efficiency and renewable energy; subject to oversight requirements, increases funding for transportation infrastructure, telecommunications systems, housing, and community development; increases funding for Medicaid and Medicare; temporarily increases social-services block-grant allotments; increases funding for, and otherwise revises, rural and agricultural programs; increases funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs; provides for aid to the Head Start program, elementary and secondary education programs, and higher education programs; increases funding for training and employment services; modifies provisions concerning unemployment assistance, taxation, and federal permitting; increases funding for economic and community development programs; increases funding for environmental remediation; requires the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to submit to Congress a disaster-relief plan; and otherwise modifies provisions related to emergency funding and disaster-recovery assistance. In addition, the bill: extends Medicaid waiver authority to all territories, provides for Medicaid disproportionate share hospital allotments to the territories, and otherwise revises the Medicaid and Medicare programs with respect to the territories; provides for health-insurance coverage for individuals residing in territories without health exchanges; extends participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and the Supplemental Security Income Program to all territories; modifies provisions concerning the earned-income tax credit and the child tax credit with respect to the territories; and modifies provisions concerning the application of certain workers' protections in Puerto Rico.
United States · United States Congress · 11 January 2018
New England Coastal Protection Act This bill amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to prohibit the Department of the Interior from issuing a lease for the exploration, development, or production of oil or natural gas off the coast of: (1) Maine, (2) New Hampshire, (3) Massachusetts, (4) Rhode Island, or (5) Connecticut.
United States · United States Congress · 10 January 2018
Recognizes: (1) National Mentoring Month, and (2) the staff and volunteers at quality mentoring programs who help young people reach their full potential. Acknowledges that mentoring is beneficial in that it supports educational achievement, encourages self-confidence, reduces juvenile delinquency, improves life outcomes, and strengthens communities. Expresses support for: (1) the creation and expansion of quality mentoring programs across the United States, and (2) initiatives to increase the percentage of young people who have a mentor.
United States · United States Congress · 21 December 2017
Opioids and STOP Pain Initiative Act This bill establishes and provides funds for the Opioids and STOP Pain Initiative at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to support pain-related research, including: understanding pain, therapies for chronic pain, and alternatives to opioids for pain treatment as directed in the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016; improving options and evidence for medication-assisted treatment and opioid overdose reversal treatments; and supporting the Federal Pain Research Strategy. NIH must establish the Pain Therapy Screening Program to award grants to support the development of new pre-clinical models for pain disorders, and the application of these models in drug, device, or other therapy screening.
United States · United States Congress · 21 December 2017
National Law Enforcement Museum Commemorative Coin Act This bill directs the Department of the Treasury to mint and issue up to 50,000 $5 gold coins, 400,000 $1 silver coins, and 750,000 half-dollar clad coins that are emblematic of the National Law Enforcement Museum in Washington, DC, and the service and sacrifice of law enforcement officers throughout the history of the United States. All sales of such coins shall include specified surcharges, which shall be distributed to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, Inc., for educational and outreach programs and exhibits.
United States · United States Congress · 20 December 2017
Welfare of Our Friends Act of 2017 or the WOOF! Act This bill amends the Animal Welfare Act to prohibit the Department of Agriculture (USDA) from licensing a dealer of dogs whose previous licenses have been suspended or revoked in the last 10 years if the license is for operating a facility that the dealer previously used. Further, USDA may not issue or renew a license to: (1) the dog dealer's immediate family members, (2) a person who resides at the same address as the dog dealer, or (3) certain legal entities if such dealer holds an ownership interest in the entity.
United States · United States Congress · 20 December 2017
Bipartisan Market Stabilization and Innovation Act of 2017 This bill makes a series of changes relating to health insurance coverage and costs. Among other things, the bill establishes a specific fund to support state initiatives that reduce costs and terminates the medical device excise tax.
United States · United States Congress · 18 December 2017
Organic Farmers Access Act This bill amends the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act and the Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000 to expand the eligibility of organic farmers for assistance under Department of Agriculture (USDA) rural development grant and loan programs. The bill authorizes additional assistance for certified organic farms and certified organic handling operations under USDA programs that provide: (1) rural business development grants, (2) loans and loan guarantees for locally or regionally produced agricultural food products, and (3) value-added agricultural product market development grants.
United States · United States Congress · 14 December 2017
Recovering America's Wildlife Act This bill amends the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act to direct the Department of the Treasury to transfer, beginning in FY2018, revenues from energy and mineral development on federal lands totaling $1.3 billion to the Wildlife Conservation and Restoration Subaccount of the Federal Aid to Wildlife Restoration Fund, to be available without further appropriation. The bill revises the requirements governing how the funds from the subaccount may be used, including by requiring funds to be used to develop, revise, and implement state wildlife conservation strategies. The bill expands the allowable uses of the subaccount, including by allowing funds to be used for managing invasive and nuisance species and for law enforcement activities that are directly related to the conservation of species of the greatest conservation need. Funds apportioned from the subaccount may not be conditioned upon the provision of public access to private lands, waters, or holdings. The bill specifies what types of funds and donations states may use to meet matching fund requirements. The bill revises the formula used to determine how funds are distributed to states.
United States · United States Congress · 14 December 2017
Customs Business Fairness Act of 2017 This bill modifies the treatment of claims by customs brokers for unpaid customs duties in chapter 11 (reorganization) bankruptcy proceedings.
United States · United States Congress · 14 December 2017
Energy Storage Tax Incentive and Deployment Act of 201 7 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow tax credits for: (1) energy storage technologies, and (2) battery storage technology. The bill expands the tax credit for investments in energy property to include equipment that: (1) receives, stores, and delivers energy using batteries, compressed air, pumped hydropower, hydrogen storage (including hydrolysis), thermal energy storage, regenerative fuel cells, flywheels, capacitors, superconducting magnets, or other technologies identified by the Internal Revenue Service; and (2) has a capacity of at least five kilowatt hours. The bill also expands the tax credit for residential energy efficient property to include expenditures for battery storage technology that: (1) is installed on or in connection with a dwelling unit located in the United States and used as a residence by the taxpayer, and (2) has a capacity of at least three kilowatt hours.
United States · United States Congress · 6 December 2017
ACO Improvement Act of 2017 This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to allow an accountable care organization (ACO) to: (1) reduce or eliminate certain cost-sharing for primary care services provided within the ACO's network; (2) develop incentives to encourage patient engagement; (3) elect prospective assignment of Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries; and (4) if specified requirements are met, distribute internal cost savings. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) shall waive specified regulatory requirements for ACOs that have elected to share in both savings and losses under a "two-sided risk model." In addition, the bill: (1) requires the CMS to waive, with respect to certain ACOs, specified limitations regarding telehealth services; (2) allows certain ACOs to depart slightly from specified minimum enrollment requirements; (3) requires the CMS to establish a demonstration project for allowing growth of certain prospective risk scores; (4) and allows the CMS to make permanent certain ACO-related pilot programs that have been successful.
United States · United States Congress · 6 December 2017
Creating High-Quality Results and Outcomes Necessary to Improve Chronic (CHRONIC) Care Act of 2017 This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to: extend the Independence at Home demonstration program; modify provisions regarding access to home dialysis therapy under Medicare and special needs plans under Medicare Advantage (MA); expand testing of the MA Value-Based Insurance Design test model; allow an MA plan to provide additional telehealth benefits to enrollees and, to chronically ill enrollees, certain supplemental health care benefits; modify other provisions regarding the use of telehealth services; allow prospective, voluntary assignment of Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries to accountable care organizations (ACOs); allow ACOs to operate beneficiary incentive programs; require the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to establish a process for Medicare prescription-drug plan sponsors to request certain claims data from the CMS; require the CMS to study and report to Congress on long-term risk factors for chronic conditions among Medicare beneficiaries; and eliminate annual funding available to the Medicare Improvement Fund and the Medicaid Improvement Fund beginning in FY2021. The Government Accountability Office shall conduct studies on: the establishment of a payment code for a visit for longitudinal comprehensive care planning services, the extent to which Medicare prescription drug plans and private payors use programs that synchronize pharmacy dispensing to facilitate comprehensive counseling and promote medication adherence, and the use of prescription drugs to manage the weight of obese patients and the impact of such drug coverage on patient health and health care spending.
United States · United States Congress · 5 December 2017
This bill makes all veterans enrolled in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system eligible for VA-provided dental services by removing certain dental service restrictions. The bill phases in eligibility over four years based upon existing eligibility, degree of service-connected disability or other disability, prisoner of war status, award of a Purple Heart, financial need, or VA health care eligibility.
United States · United States Congress · 4 December 2017
Continuing Community Health and Medical Professional Programs to Improve Our Nation and Keep Insurance Delivery Stable Act of 2017 or the CHAMPION KIDS Act of 2017 This bill extends funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), community health centers, and other specified public health programs, and otherwise modifies provisions related to Medicaid, CHIP, and public health.