United States · United States Congress · 2 September 2011
Joint Select Committee on Job Creation Act of 2011 - Establishes the Joint Select Committee on Job Creation, whose goal shall be to restore the nation's workforce to full employment over FY2012 and FY2013. Requires the joint committee to provide recommendations and legislative language that will significantly improve the short-term and long-term employment levels in the United States. Prescribes legislative procedures for consideration in both chambers of the Joint Committee's recommendations.
United States · United States Congress · 19 August 2011
National Jazz Preservation and Education Act of 2011 - Establishes a National Jazz Preservation Program, to be carried out by the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution through the National Museum of American History and in collaboration with other Smithsonian museums, to preserve knowledge and promote education about jazz. Requires the Secretary to: (1) record audio and video interviews with leading jazz artists; (2) acquire, preserve, and interpret jazz artifacts; (3) continue to recognize Jazz Appreciation Month; and (4) establish collaborative agreements with specified entities for the sharing of such artifacts. Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to allow certain funds to be made available under the Act for programs to promote jazz education, which may include: (1) a Jazz Artists in the Schools program; (2) a program for the development of lesson plans and other educational materials about jazz, the distribution of such materials, and teacher training on jazz education; and (3) an Ambassadors of Jazz program.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 2011
Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program Reauthorization of 2011 - Amends the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to reauthorize the Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program through FY2018 and to revise program requirements to: (1) provide for competitive grants to nonprofit organizations to assist in locating missing patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias; (2) expand such program to include locating other missing elderly individuals; (3) require the Attorney General to solicit grants for program applications in the Federal Register and on the Department of Justice (DOJ) website; and (4) establish a preference in awarding grants to national nonprofit organizations that have a direct link to patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias and their families (currently, grants may be awarded to only such organizations).
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 2011
Continuum of Learning Act of 2011 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to coordinate school improvement and professional development activities with early childhood development and education programs. Amends the school improvement program under part A of title I of the ESEA to require states to create or revise early learning guidelines for preschool age children and early learning standards for children in kindergarten through grade three. Requires the guidelines and standards to be developmentally appropriate and cover all domains of child development and learning. Requires states to encourage local educational agencies (LEAs) and elementary schools to use school improvement funds to offer early childhood education programs from birth to school entry. Requires LEAs to: (1) assist their elementary schools in conducting a ready school needs review, at least once every three years, that is used to create a school environment that supports children's transition to school and achievement of state and grade level expectations; (2) ensure, to the extent feasible, starting with the 2015-2016 school year, that teachers placed in the early elementary school grades have a specialized early childhood education teaching license, credential, or endorsement; and (3) work with early childhood education programs to establish a continuity of curricular objectives and developmental expectations that support children's transition to school. Limits the use of child assessments for children from birth through grade two. Amends part A (Teacher and Principal Training and Recruiting Fund) of title II of the ESEA to require states to incorporate knowledge regarding early childhood development and learning into teacher and principal certification or licensing requirements. Requires professional development activities to include: (1) training in early child development and learning, and (2) joint training for elementary school staff and early childhood education program staff.
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 2011
Alzheimer's Caregiver Support Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make grants to public and nonprofit private health care providers to expand training and support services for families and caregivers of patients with Alzheimer's disease.
United States · United States Congress · 2 August 2011
African Higher Education Advancement and Development Act of 2011 - Expresses the sense of Congress regarding the importance to transformational state and socio-economic development in sub-Saharan Africa of support for the improvement of primary, secondary, and tertiary education in that region. States that it is this country's policy to provide sub-Saharan Africa with long-term assistance to improve the capacity of its institutions of higher education (IHEs) through partnerships with our IHEs. Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize the President to provide long-term assistance to sub-Saharan Africa that improves higher education by: (1) building the capacity of IHEs in sub-Saharan Africa; (2) building linkages and partnerships between sub-Saharan IHEs and our IHEs; and (3) assisting efforts to recruit and retain women students, faculty, and administrators. Requires the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to designate a Director for Higher Education in sub-Saharan Africa, who is to carry out such activities. Establishes a Sub-Saharan African Higher Education Advisory Board within USAID, which is appointed by the Administrator and composed of individuals from the private sector who have the requisite experience with sub-Saharan Africa and higher education to assist the Director. Requires the Director and the Board, to the extent practicable, to use any federal funding appropriated for this Act's assistance program to leverage equal or greater sources of private sector funding for such assistance.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2011
Youth Prison Reduction through Opportunities, Mentoring, Intervention, Support, and Education Act or the Youth Promise Act - Amends the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 to establish a PROMISE Advisory Panel to assist the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention in: (1) assessing and developing standards and evidence-based practices to prevent juvenile delinquency and criminal street gang activity, and (2) collecting data in designated geographic areas to assess the needs and existing resources for juvenile delinquency and criminal street gang activity prevention and intervention. Authorizes the Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention to award grants to local governments and Indian tribes to: (1) plan and assess evidence-based and promising practices for juvenile delinquency and criminal street gang activity prevention and intervention, especially for at-risk youth; and (2) implement PROMISE plans, developed by local PROMISE Coordinating Councils (PCCs), for coordinating and supporting the delivery of juvenile delinquency and gang prevention and intervention programs in local communities. Establishes a National Research Center for Proven Juvenile Justice Practices to provide PCCs and the public with research and other information about evidence-based practices related to juvenile delinquency and criminal street gang prevention and intervention. Directs the Administrator to award grants to institutions of higher education to serve as regional research partners with PCCs that are located in the same geographic region as the educational institution.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2011
Corporate Politics Transparency Act - Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to require that quarterly and annual reports of an issuer, any proxy solicitation or consent or authorization in respect of any security, and the issuer's registration statement disclose total political expenditures in support of or in opposition to any candidate for federal, state, or local public office made by the issuer during the preceding six-year period. Requires such disclosures to include: (1) the name and political party affiliation of each candidate in support of whom or in opposition to whom a political expenditure was made; (2) the amount of each such expenditure; (3) the public office that such candidate was or is seeking; (4) the relevant state, city, or district; and (5) a statement of the issuer's interest in and reason for making such expenditure.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2011
Iraq Withdrawal Accountability Act of 2011 - Declares that it is the policy of the United States to withdraw all U.S. Armed Forces and military contractors from Iraq by December 31, 2011. Prohibits any agreement between the United States and Iraq amending the timeline for such withdrawal in a manner obligating the United States to a security commitment to respond to internal or external threats against Iraq after such date from being in force with respect to the United States unless the agreement is in the form of a treaty requiring advice and consent of the Senate (or is intended to take that form in the case of an agreement under negotiation) or is specifically authorized by an Act of Congress enacted after enactment of this Act. Prohibits, except for protection of the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, the use of funds to: (1) maintain U.S. Armed Forces or military contractors in Iraq after December 31, 2011; and (2) establish any military installation or base for the permanent stationing of such forces in Iraq. Prohibits the use of funds to exercise U.S. control over any oil resource of Iraq.
United States · United States Congress · 1 August 2011
Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) any deficit reduction plan put forward by the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction should not balance the budget by eroding America's hard-earned retirement plan and social safety net; (2) Medicare's ability to deliver high quality health care in a cost-efficient manner should be strengthened and its benefits should be preserved for current and future retirees; (3) appropriate reform to strengthen Social Security's long-term outlook should ensure that it remains a critical source of protection for the people of the United States and their families without further increasing the retirement age or otherwise decreasing benefits; and (4) federal funding for the Medicaid program should be maintained so that senior citizens, poor and disabled children, and others with disabilities are able to gain and retain access to affordable health care.
United States · United States Congress · 30 July 2011
Limiting Investor and Homeowner Loss in Foreclosure Act of 2011 - Authorizes a bankruptcy court to establish a loss mitigation program for the negotiation of consensual alternatives to avoid foreclosure between an individual debtor and the holder of a claim secured by a security interest in the debtor's principal residence.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2011
Main Street Fairness Act - Grants the consent of Congress to the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement (Agreement), the multistate agreement on sales and use tax collection and administration adopted on November 12, 2002. Authorizes each state that is a party to the Agreement (member state), after 10 states (comprising at least 20% of the total population of all states imposing a sales tax) have petitioned for and have become member states, to require all remote sellers not qualifying for the small seller exception to collect and remit sales and use taxes on remote sales owed to each such member state under the terms of the Agreement. Terminates such authority if the requirements of this Act cease to be satisfied or an amendment adopted to the Agreement after the enactment of this Act is inconsistent with the provisions of this Act. Allows any person affected by the Agreement to petition the Governing Board established by the Agreement for a determination of any issue arising under the Agreement. Provides for judicial review of Governing Board determinations by the United States Court of Federal Claims and grants such Court exclusive jurisdiction over actions for judicial review. Sets forth minimum requirements for simplifying the administration of multistate sales and use taxation under the Agreement. Provides for judicial review of any civil action challenging the constitutionality of this Act by a panel of three judges of a U.S. District Court. Expresses the sense of Congress that each member state under the Agreement should work with other member states to prevent double taxation where a foreign country has imposed a transaction tax on a digital good or service.
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2011
Trisomy 21 Research Resource Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), acting through the Director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, to expand and intensify NIH programs with respect to research and related activities concerning Down syndrome. Requires the Director of NIH to publish a research plan on Down syndrome and update it every five years or as appropriate. Authorizes the Director of NIH to: (1) conduct basic, clinical, and translational research on Down syndrome; (2) award a grant or contract for a registry of individuals with Down syndrome; (3) establish a database including the names, contact information, and each medical condition of individuals with Down syndrome; and (4) expand one or more tissue banks maintained or supported by NIH to identify any tissue harvested from a tissue donor with Down syndrome. Requires consent before including an individual's information in the registry, the database, or the tissue bank. Authorizes the Director of NIH to provide for the participation of NIH agencies in a consortium to facilitate the exchange of information and to make the research effort on Down syndrome more efficient and effective by ensuring consistent communication, minimizing duplication of effort, and integrating the varied perspectives of partner agencies, organizations, and individuals. Authorizes the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to: (1) award grants and cooperative agreements for the collection, analysis, and reporting of data on Down syndrome; and (2) carry out epidemiological activities regarding Down syndrome.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 2011
Prematurity Research Expansion and Education for Mothers who deliver Infants Early Reauthorization Act or the PREEMIE Reauthorization Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), acting through the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to expand, intensify, and coordinate NIH activities with respect to research on the causes of preterm labor and delivery, tools to detect, prevent, or reduce prevalence of preterm labor and delivery, and the care and treatment of preterm infants. Establishes within NIH a multicenter clinical program to investigate problems in clinical obstetrics, improve the care and outcomes of neonates, and enhance the understanding of DNA and proteins as they relate to the underlying processes that lead to preterm birth. Requires the Director to award grants for planning, establishing, improving, and providing basic operating support for transdisciplinary research centers for prematurity. Requires the Secretary, acting through the Surgeon General, to establish and implement a national science-based provider and consumer education campaign on promoting healthy pregnancies and preventing preterm birth. Reauthorizes provisions related to research on prematurity and preterm births and sets forth specific areas for such research. Requires the Director of the Office for the Advancement of Telehealth to award grants to establish demonstration projects for: (1) obstetrical services for high risk women of child bearing age remotely using telehealth; and (2) educational activities regarding risk factors for preterm birth. Expands a demonstration project to inform health care providers and the public and improve treatment and outcome for babies born preterm. Requires the Secretary to establish the Advisory Committee on Infant Mortality. Requires a study on hospital readmissions of preterm births.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 2011
Communities of Color Teenage Pregnancy Prevention Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award grants for programs to provide youth in racial or ethnic minority or immigrant communities the information and skills needed to avoid teenage pregnancy and develop healthy relationships. Allows up to 10% of amounts made available for this Act to be allotted for a rigorous, independent evaluation of grant activities. Requires the Secretary to award grants for multimedia campaigns to provide public education and increase public awareness regarding teenage pregnancy and related social and emotional issues. Requires the Director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to make grants for research on teenage pregnancy, dating violence, and healthy relationships among racial or ethnic minority or immigrant communities. Requires the Secretary to direct the interagency adolescent health workgroup within the Office of Adolescent Health to include in the work of the group strategies for teenage dating violence prevention and healthy teenage relationships, with a particular focus among racial or ethnic minority or immigrant communities, in consultation with the Federal Interagency Workgroup on Teen Dating Violence in the Department of Justice (DOJ).
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 2011
Condemns: (1) the terrorist attacks that occurred in Norway on July 22, 2011, causing many deaths and injuries; and (2) all terrorist actions motivated by hatred and religious or cultural intolerance. Expresses sympathy to the victims of the atrocious acts, their families, and the people and government of Norway. Emphasizes the bonds of friendship and shared heritage between the United States and Norway. Calls on all nations to join together to denounce acts of hatred and fear and promote peace and tolerance around the world.
United States · United States Congress · 28 July 2011
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that it should give strong consideration to the role of science education in the educational accountability system as it works to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2011
Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Administration Improvement Act of 2011 - Amends federal bankruptcy law to: (1) increase the limits governing trustee compensation in a case under chapter 7; and (2) authorize the court, in determining the amount of reasonable compensation to be awarded to a trustee under chapter 7, to treat such compensation as a commission.
United States · United States Congress · 27 July 2011
340B Program Improvement Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to make revisions to the 340B drug discount program (a program limiting the cost of covered outpatient drugs to certain federal grantees). Includes drugs used in connection with an inpatient or outpatient service by enrolled hospitals as covered drugs under the program (currently, only outpatient drugs are covered under the program). Requires hospitals enrolled in the 340B program to provide to each state a credit on the estimated annual purchases by such hospitals of covered drugs provided to Medicaid recipients for inpatient use. Sets forth a formula for calculating the credit. Allows a hospital to avoid paying such credits under certain circumstances. Eliminates the requirement that hospitals enrolled in the 340B program report the National Drug Code numbers for drugs administered by a physician if the state is precluded from seeking a rebate on such drugs because they were purchased at a discount under the 340B program. Removes the exclusion that prohibited covered entities added to the 340B program under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act from purchasing drugs for a rare disease or condition as covered outpatient drugs. Treats a facility or organization that is eligible for the 340B program as satisfying any geographic location requirements in relation to a hospital or a critical access hospital for purposes of determining provider-based status under Medicare.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2011
Witness Security and Protection Grant Program Act of 2011 - Directs the Attorney General to: (1) make competitive grants to state, tribal, and local governments to establish or maintain programs to protect or assist witnesses in court proceedings involving homicide, a serious felony or drug offense, or gangs or organized crime; (2) evaluate grant applicants based on specified criteria, including the extent of witness intimidation and the number of serious crimes per capita with respect to such applicant; (3) provide technical assistance to grant applicants for establishing or maintaining a witness protection plan; and (4) develop and disseminate best practice models to assist states and other relevant entities in addressing witness safety, short-term and permanent witness relocation, financial and housing assistance, and other necessary services. Expresses the sense of Congress that states and relevant entities should use the best practice models developed by the Attorney General to evaluate, improve, and develop witness protection or witness assistance programs.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2011
Refuge from Cruel Trapping Act - Amends the National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of 1966 to prohibit the use or possession of body-gripping traps in the National Wildlife Refuge System. Imposes on persons who possess or use such traps in the System: (1) for a first offense, a civil fine of up to $500 for each body-gripping trap possessed or used; and (2) for subsequent offenses, a civil fine of up to $1,000 for each body-gripping trap possessed or used, imprisonment for up to 180 days, or both such a civil fine and imprisonment. Makes any body-gripping traps that are possessed or used in violation of this Act, and any wildlife captured by the use of such traps, including the pelts and raw fur, subject to civil forfeiture. Requires persons found to be in violation of such prohibition to pay all associated court costs.
United States · United States Congress · 26 July 2011
Aviation Jobs and Safety Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through September 30, 2011, increased excise taxes on aviation fuels, the excise tax on air transportation of persons and property, and the expenditure authority for the Airport and Airway Trust Fund. Extends through September 30, 2011: (1) the authorization of appropriations for airport planning and development and noise compatibility planning projects (known as airport improvement projects [AIPs]), and (2) the authority of the Secretary of Transportation to make new AIP grants. Extends until October 1, 2011: (1) the pilot program for passenger facility fee authorizations at non-hub airports, and (2) disclosure requirements for large and medium hub airports applying for AIP grants. Directs the Secretary to extend through September 30, 2011, the termination date of insurance coverage for domestic or foreign-flag aircraft. Grants the Secretary discretionary authority to further extend such coverage through December 31, 2011. Extends through December 31, 2011, the authority of the Secretary to limit air carrier liability for claims arising out of acts of terrorism. Extends through September 30, 2011: (1) grant eligibility for airports located in the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, and Palau; (2) grants to state and local governments for land use compatibility AIPs; and (3) authority for approving an application of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority for an airport development grant or for permission to impose a passenger facility fee. Amends the Vision 100 - Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act to extend through September 30, 2011: (1) the temporary increase to 95% of the federal government's share of certain AIP costs, and (2) funding for airport development at Midway Island Airport.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2011
Global Democracy Promotion Act - States that in determining eligibility for assistance under part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 foreign nongovernmental organizations shall not: (1) be ineligible for such assistance solely on the basis of health or medical services provided by such organizations with non-U.S. government funds if such services do not violate the laws of the country in which they are being provided and would not violate U.S. federal law if provided in the United States, and (2) be subject to requirements relating to the use of non-U.S. government funds for advocacy and lobbying activities other than those that apply to U.S. nongovernmental organizations receiving assistance under part I of such Act.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2011
Victims of Agent Orange Relief Act of 2011 - Directs the Secretary of State to provide assistance to address the health care needs of covered individuals. Defines a "covered individual" as an individual who is: (1) a resident of Vietnam, and (2) affected by health issues related to exposure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam era. Requires such assistance to include assistance to: (1) institutions in Vietnam that provide health care to such individuals, (2) repair and rebuild substandard homes in Vietnam, (3) remediate areas in Vietnam that continue to contain high levels of contaminants, and (4) support research relating to health issues of covered individuals. Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to: (1) establish at least two regional medical centers of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) designed to address the medical needs of descendants of Vietnam era veterans, (2) make grants to appropriate public health organizations and Vietnamese-American organizations to conduct a broad health assessment of Vietnamese-Americans who may have been exposed to Agent Orange and their children, and (3) ensure that the National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study is expanded to include a mortality and morbidity study examining the health outcomes of Vietnam veterans. Defines a "victim" as any individual who is a Vietnamese national, Vietnamese-American, or U.S. veteran who was exposed to Agent Orange, or the progeny of such an individual, and who has a disease or disability associated with this exposure.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2011
Appeal Time Clarification Act of 2011 - Amends federal judicial code requirements concerning the time limits for the filing of appeals to any judgment, order, or decree in a civil action, suit, or proceeding. Revises the requirement that an appeal in any such action, suit, or proceeding in which the United States or a U.S. officer or agency is a party be filed within 60 days after entry of judgment, order or decree. Extends application of the 60-day filing deadline to any civil action, suit, or proceeding in which one of the parties is: (1) a U.S. employee sued in an official capacity; or (2) a current or former U.S. officer or employee sued in an individual capacity for an act or omission occurring in connection with duties performed on behalf of the United States, including any instance in which the United States represents that person when the judgment, order, or decree is entered or files the appeal for that person.
United States · United States Congress · 25 July 2011
Neighborhood Preservation Act of 2011 - Amends the Federal Deposit Insurance Act to authorize any depository institution (or affiliate) to lease, including lease with an option to purchase, to any individual for up to five years an interest in residential property which: (1) was or is security for an extension of credit by such depository institution (or affiliate), and (2) came under the institution's or affiliate's ownership or control through foreclosure (or a deed in lieu of foreclosure) on the extension of credit. Directs the federal banking agencies to jointly prescribe specified safety and soundness regulations, including minimum capital requirements for such institutions or affiliates. Permits extension of such a lease beyond five years if any federal or state law, including the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, so permits. Applies this Act only to leases entered into during the three-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act. Declares it is the intent of Congress that: (1) no permanent change in policy on leasing foreclosed property is being established with respect to depository institutions and depository institution holding companies, and (2) bank leasing of foreclosed property authorized under this Act should not apply to leases entered into after such three-year period. Authorizes a government-sponsored enterprise (the Federal National Mortgage Association [Fannie Mae] or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation [Freddie Mac]) to market for rental, before sale, any of its real estate owned properties and assets as the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) determines appropriate. Restricts lease agreements to five years.
United States · United States Congress · 21 July 2011
Enhancing Livability for All Americans Act of 2011 - Establishes within the Office of the Secretary of Transportation (DOT) an Office of Livability. Requires the Office Director to establish a program to award competitive grants to eligible entities to assist: (1) capital investments in surface transportation projects with a significant impact on enhancing the livability in a region, metropolitan area, community, or neighborhood; and (2) communities in developing strategic growth plans that provide a vision and goals for development over a minimum 20-year period and integrate long-term innovative transportation and land use planning. Requires priority be given to: (1) investment projects that increase the number of transportation options, improve access to housing, jobs, and services, and reduce greenhouse gas; and (2) innovative planning applicants who have proposed strategic growth plans for communities with transportation systems characterized by poor access to job centers and schools, limited transportation options for residents, and significant traffic congestion. Requires the Director to: (1) develop statistical and analytical capabilities to ascertain specified transportation data; and (2) collaborate with other federal agencies to carry out activities that promote the development of livable communities, increase transportation choices, and improve the environment, public health, and quality of life.
United States · United States Congress · 21 July 2011
Expresses support for the goals and ideals of the fourth annual National Clinicians HIV/AIDS Testing and Awareness Day. Encourages: (1) primary care physicians and other clinicians nationwide to become actively involved in HIV/AIDS awareness, testing, treatment, and referral services; and (2) individuals to get tested for HIV and educate themselves about the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS.
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2011
National Neurological Diseases Surveillance System Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to: (1) enhance and expand infrastructure and activities to track the epidemiology of neurological diseases, including multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease; and (2) incorporate information obtained through such activities into a National Neurological Diseases Surveillance System. Requires the Secretary to ensure that the System is designed in a manner that facilitates further research on neurological diseases. Requires the Secretary to provide for the collection and storage of information on the incidence and prevalence of neurological diseases in the United States and other information on neurological diseases, such as demographics information, risk factors, or diagnosis and progression markers. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) provide for the collection and storage of information relevant to analysis on neurological diseases, such as information concerning the epidemiology, natural history, prevention, detection, management, and treatment of the diseases and the development of outcomes measures; and (2) address issues identified through consultations with individuals with appropriate expertise. Authorizes the Secretary to award grants to, or enter into contracts or cooperative agreements with, public or private nonprofit entities to carry out activities under this Act. Requires the Secretary to: (1) make information and analysis in the System available to federal agencies and to the public, including researchers; and (2) ensure that privacy and security protections applicable to the System are at least as stringent as the protections under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
United States · United States Congress · 20 July 2011
Commends: (1) the Administration for providing assistance in response to the drought and famine-like conditions in the Horn of Africa, and (2) the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) for providing assistance in Somalia in order to mitigate conflict and promote stability. Encourages international humanitarian organizations to continue to provide food and humanitarian assistance to the regions in need, mindful of the need for relief workers' safety. Calls on: (1) the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia (TFG) and other local Somali authorities to make additional efforts to provide support and humanitarian relief to the people of Somalia; and (2) the U.S. government and the international community to remain focused on those most vulnerable to the current drought and famine-like conditions, especially women and children. Encourages increased water conservation. Reaffirms the commitment of the United States to promoting the safety, health, and well-being of refugees around the world.
United States · United States Congress · 19 July 2011
Wasteful Presidential Coin Act of 2011 - Terminates the program for redesign and issuance of circulating $1 coins honoring each of the Presidents of the United States (Presidential $1 Coin Program). Prohibits the minting or issuance of any $1 coin during any period in which the number of $1 coins issued, but not in circulation, is more than 10% of the number in circulation.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 2011
Clean Up Government Act of 2011 - Amends the federal criminal code to revise and expand prohibitions against bribery, theft of public money, and other public corruption offenses. Expands mail and wire fraud statutes to cover offenses involving any other thing of value (e.g., intangible rights and licenses). Modifies general venue rules for criminal prosecutions to allow prosecutions in any district in which an act in furtherance of an offense is committed. Reduces from $5,000 to $1,000 the threshold amount for theft or bribery involving federally assisted programs. Increases the maximum term of imprisonment for: (1) theft or bribery involving federally-assisted programs from 10 to 20 years; (2) theft and embezzlement of federal money, property, or records from 10 to 20 years; (3) bribery of public officials and witnesses from 15 to 20 years; and (4) seeking or accepting anything of value personally for testimony as a witness or for such person's absence from 2 to 5 years. Applies the prohibition against embezzlement or theft of federal money or property to government officials and employees of the District of Columbia. Modifies elements relating to the crime of bribery of public officials and witnesses to prohibit public officials from accepting anything of value, other than what is permitted by rule or regulation of the House of Representatives or the Senate, including those governing the acceptance of campaign contributions, for or because of the official's or person's official position. Expands the definition of "official act." Directs the United States Sentencing Commission to review and amend its guidelines and policy statements relating to public corruption offenses to reflect the intent of Congress that penalties for such offenses be increased. Establishes a statute of limitations of six years for specified public corruption offenses, including extortion, bribery, and racketeering activity that involves bribery chargeable under state law. Increases to 10 years the maximum term of imprisonment for: (1) solicitation by federal officers and employees of political contributions from other federal officers and employees, (2) promise of employment made possible by an act of Congress for political activity, (3) deprivation of such employment for political activity, (4) intimidation to secure political contributions, (5) solicitation and acceptance of contributions in federal offices, and (6) coercion of political activity by federal employees. Includes embezzlement or theft of government money or property, and specified activity relating to major fraud against the United States, as predicates for racketeering prosecutions and wiretaps. Expands the types of perjury and obstruction of justice offenses for which venue lies in the district in which the official proceeding was intended to be affected or in which the conduct constituting the alleged offense occurred. Prohibits undisclosed self-dealing by public officials. Amends the federal: (1) judicial code to permit the disclosure of information regarding a potential criminal offense by a judge to the Department of Justice (DOJ), a federal, state, or local grand jury, or federal, state, or local law enforcement agents; and (2) criminal code to permit certain certifications regarding appeals by the United States to be made by the Deputy Attorney General, Assistant Attorney General, or the Attorney General.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 2011
Federal First Offender Improvement Act of 2011 - Amends the federal criminal code to extend the pre-judgment probation and expungement procedures for simple possession of a controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act to individuals who are convicted under such Act of drug trafficking or of attempting or conspiring to commit a drug offense. Sets forth requirements for granting pre-judgment probation for drug trafficking or of attempting or conspiring to commit a drug offense, including that: (1) the offender did not use violence or credible threats of violence or possess a firearm or other dangerous weapon (or induce another participant to do so) while committing the offense; (2) the offense did not result in death or serious injury to any person; (3) the offender was not an organizer, leader, manager, or supervisor of others in the offense and was not engaged in a continuing criminal enterprise; and (4) the offender has not been previously convicted of a crime of violence or other offense punishable by a prison term of more than one year. Provides for a period of such probation of up to two years. Revises the requirement for pre-judgment probation for simple possession to having not been previously convicted of a crime of violence or other offense punishable by a term of imprisonment for more than one year. Eliminates the requirement that an offender seeking expungement of a record of a disposition be less than 21 years old at the time of the offense.
United States · United States Congress · 15 July 2011
Historic Homeownership Revitalization Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow a new tax credit for 20% of rehabilitation expenditures for a historic home used as a principal residence, up to $60,000; and (2) increase the rehabilitation tax credit for residential rental property located in economically distressed areas with high construction costs.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2011
National Baseball Hall of Fame Commemorative Coin Act - Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 50,000 $5 gold coins, 400,000 $1 silver coins, and 750,000 half-dollar coins in recognition of the National Baseball Hall of Fame during the one-year period beginning on January 1, 2015. Directs the Secretary to hold a competition to design the obverse of the coins. Requires the design on the reverse side to depict a baseball similar to those used by Major League Baseball. Requires all sales of such coins to include specified surcharges, which shall be paid by the Secretary to the National Baseball Hall of Fame to help finance its operations.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2011
Jobs for Urban Sustainability and Training in America Act of 2011 - Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to make additional grants to: (1) cities with high unemployment (with a population of at least 600,000 and an unemployment rate greater than the national unemployment rate) for public works, training, and economic development projects, as well as for economic adjustment; and (2) firms adversely affected by import competition which are assisted under the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Firms (TAAF) Program. Directs the Secretary of Labor to make grants to carry out adult and dislocated worker employment and training activities under the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 in cities with high unemployment. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to deny a tax deduction for income attributable to the domestic production, refining, processing, transportation, or distribution of oil, gas, or any primary products thereof by a major integrated oil company (an oil company which has an average daily worldwide production of crude oil of at least 500,000 barrels for the taxable year, and which had gross receipts in excess of $1 billion for its last taxable year ending during calendar year 2005).
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2011
Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Venue Reform Act of 2011 - Amends the federal judicial code to require chapter 11 (Reorganization) bankruptcy cases filed by corporations to be commenced in the district court for the district in which: (1) the corporation's principal place of business or principal assets in the United States have been located for one year immediately preceding such commencement, or for a longer portion of such one-year period than such corporation's U.S. principal place of business or principal assets were located in any other district; or (2) an affiliate of such corporation has a liquidation case pending, if the affiliate owns, controls, or holds with power to vote over 50% of the outstanding voting securities of such corporation. Applies such venue requirements only to cases commenced on or after enactment of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2011
Voter Protection Hotline Act of 2011 - Directs the Attorney General (AG) to establish and operate a toll-free telephone service, using a telephone number accessible throughout the United States using easily identifiable numerals, through which individuals may: (1) obtain information on voting in elections for federal office, including how to register to vote, the hours of operation of polling places, and how to obtain absentee ballots; and (2) report problems encountered in registering to vote or voting, including incidences of voter intimidation or suppression. Requires the AG to: (1) appoint individuals to a Voter Hotline Task Force, giving special consideration to individuals representing civil rights organizations, for ongoing analysis and assessment of the telephone service's operation; and (2) submit a report to Congress each odd-numbered year concerning voter intimidation or suppression reports made to the hotline and assessing the availability of the service to all U.S. households with telephone service.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2011
Stop Deceptive Advertising for Women's Services Act - Requires the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to promulgate rules to prohibit, as an unfair and deceptive act or practice, a person from advertising with the intent to deceptively create the impression that: (1) such person is a provider of abortion services if such person does not provide such services, or (2) such person is not a provider of abortion services if such person does provide such services.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2011
Don't Default on America's Debts and Destroy American Jobs Act of 2011 - Increases the statutory limit on the public debt from $14.294 trillion to $16.7 trillion. Declares the sense of Congress that the congressional recess scheduled for August 2011 should be cancelled and that Congress should remain in official session until legislation is passed to: (1) increase job creation and reduce unemployment, and (2) reduce projected medium- and long-term federal budget deficits and debt.
United States · United States Congress · 14 July 2011
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States Postal Service (USPS) should: (1) issue a semipostal stamp to support medical research relating to Alzheimer's disease, and (2) transfer to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for that purpose any amounts becoming available from the sale of that stamp.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2011
Shareholder Protection Act of 2011 - Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to require that any solicitation of a proxy, consent, or authorization with respect to any security of an issuer: (1) describe the specific nature (to the extent known) and total amount of expenditures proposed for political activities for the forthcoming fiscal year but not yet authorized by a vote of the issuer's shareholders, and (2) provide for a separate shareholder vote to authorize such proposed expenditures. Prohibits an issuer from making an expenditure for political activities in any fiscal year unless: (1) such expenditure is of the nature of those proposed by the issuer according to the requirements of this Act; and (2) authorization for such expenditure has been granted by votes representing a majority of outstanding shares. Deems a violation of this requirement to be a breach of the fiduciary duty of the officers and directors who authorized such expenditure. Subjects officers and directors who authorize the expenditure without prior shareholder authorization to joint and several liability to any shareholder or class of shareholders for the amount of such expenditure. Requires certain institutional investment managers to disclose annually in mandatory reports how they voted (proxies) in certain shareholder votes. Prohibits any person from bringing any civil, criminal, or administrative action against an institutional investment manager, or any of its employees, officers, or directors, based solely upon the investment manager's decision to divest from, or not to invest in, securities of an issuer because of expenditures for political activities made by that issuer. Requires the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to direct the national securities exchanges and national securities associations to prohibit the listing of any equity security of an issuer whose corporate bylaws do not expressly provide for a vote of the issuer's directors on any individual expenditure for political activities in excess of $50,000. Requires an issuer to make public, within 48 hours, the individual votes of the directors regarding any such expenditure. Directs the SEC to: (1) require issuers to disclose expenditures for political activities made during the preceding quarter and the individual votes by board members authorizing such expenditures; and (2) make such reports publicly available through the SEC website. Requires the SEC to make annual assessments of the compliance by public corporations and their management with the reporting and disclosure requirements of this Act, and the Comptroller General (GAO) to evaluate periodically the effectiveness of SEC oversight of these requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2011
Declares that, for mortgages originated during FY2012 and FY2013, if the dollar amount limit on the maximum original principal obligation of a mortgage that may be purchased by the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) for any size residence for any area is less than the limit in effect for 2008 under the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008, the maximum dollar amount limit on the principal obligation of such a mortgage shall be such maximum limit in effect for 2008 (in effect, an increase in the limit on the maximum original mortgage principal obligation from the FY2012 or FY2013 level to the 2008 level). Makes a similar declaration (and mortgage principal limit increase), for mortgages for which the mortgagee issues credit approval during FY2012 and FY2013, about the dollar amount limit on the maximum original principal obligation of a mortgage that may be insured by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2011
Healthy Media for Youth Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award grants to nonprofit organizations to provide for the establishment, operation, coordination, and evaluation of programs to: (1) increase the media literacy of girls and boys; and (2) support the empowerment of girls or boys, including through extracurricular activities and programs. Permits grants to nonprofit organizations only if the organization agrees to make nonfederal contributions available toward the costs of the program (at least $1 for every $5 of awarded federal funds). Directs the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and in coordination with the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, to review, synthesize, and conduct or support research on the role and impact of depictions of girls and women in the media on the psychological, sexual, physical, and interpersonal development of youth. Directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to convene a task force, to be known as the National Task Force on Girls and Women in the Media, to develop voluntary steps and goals for promoting healthy and positive depictions of girls and women in the media for the benefit of all youth.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2011
Microenterprise Empowerment and Job Creation Act of 2011 - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to authorize appropriations through FY2016 for: (1) assistance for programs in developing countries to increase the availability of credit, savings, and other services to microfinance and microenterprise clients lacking full access to capital, training, technical assistance, and business development services; and (2) microenterprise development credits. Expands targeted assistance services for such microfinance and microenterprise clients. Reduces the annual fiscal year amount available for the office of microenterprise development's central funding program. Revises targeted assistance requirements for sustainable poverty-focused programs. Sets forth microfinance programs procurement policies.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2011
Constitutional Amendment - Gives Congress the power to prohibit, limit, and otherwise regulate the contribution of funds or donation of in-kind equivalents: (1) to candidates standing for election to a federal office in the United States, and (2) used to support or purchase media advertisements intended to influence the outcome of any such election. Gives each of the several states the power to prohibit, limit, and otherwise regulate the contribution of funds or donation of in-kind equivalents: (1) to candidates standing for election to public office in the state, and (2) used to support or purchase media advertisements intended to influence the outcome of any such election or plebiscite in the state. Prohibits any person who is not a U.S. citizen or is a foreign government, or acts as an agent of one, from: (1) contributing funds or donating in-kind equivalents to candidates standing for election to public office in the United States, or (2) otherwise expending funds or donating in-kind equivalents in a manner intended to influence the outcome of an election for public office or plebiscite in the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 13 July 2011
Calls for Congress to consider and pass critical jobs legislation to address: (1) the crisis facing communities of color disproportionately, and (2) the nationwide economic crisis.
United States · United States Congress · 12 July 2011
Fair Employment Opportunity Act of 2011 - Declares it an unlawful practice for certain employers with at least 15 employees for each working day in each of at least 20 calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year to: (1) refuse to consider or offer employment to an individual based on present or past unemployment regardless of the length of time such individual was unemployed; (2) publish an advertisement or announcement for any job with provisions indicating that such an unemployed status disqualifies an individual and that an employer will not consider an applicant based on such status; and (3) direct or request that an employment agency account for such status when screening or referring applicants. Prohibits an employment agency (including agents and persons maintaining a website publishing job advertisements or announcements), based on such an individual's status as unemployed, from: (1) refusing to consider or refer an individual for employment; (2) limiting, segregating, or classifying individuals in any manner limiting access to job information; or (3) publishing an advertisement or announcement for any job vacancy that includes provisions indicating that such an individual is disqualified and that an employer will not consider such individuals. Allows consideration of an individual's status as unemployed where an individual's employment in a similar or related job for a period of time reasonably proximate to the hiring of such individual is a bona fide occupational qualification reasonably necessary to successful performance of the job being filled. Authorizes, subject to termination upon the filing of certain complaints by the Secretary of Labor, one or more persons for and in behalf of the affected individual, or the affected individual and other individuals similarly situated, to bring actions in federal or state court for specified actual damages and equitable relief including employment and compensatory and punitive damages. Directs the Secretary to: (1) receive, investigate, and attempt to resolve complaints according to specified provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938; and (2) pay directly to each affected individual applicable sums recovered in any civil actions brought by the Secretary under this Act. Sets forth a two-year statute of limitations period (three years for willful violations) for specified civil actions under this Act, subject to tolling when the Secretary is considering certain complaints.
![Official portrait of Rep. Cohen, Steve [D-TN-9]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/c001068_200.jpg)