United States · United States Congress · 28 January 2019
Transition-to-Success Mentoring Act This bill reauthorizes educational programs that assist at-risk middle school students. The bill establishes a transition-to-success mentoring program requiring the Department of Education to award grants to local educational agencies or certain community-based nonprofit organizations to provide school-based mentoring programs and assist at-risk students in transitioning from middle to high school. Grantees must assign each at-risk student in his or her middle school a success coach who creates a plan of success for the student and serves as the student's advocate between the student's parents and teachers and in exploring higher education and career opportunities.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2019
Middle Class Health Benefits Tax Repeal Act of 201 9 This bill repeals the excise tax on employer-sponsored health care coverage for which there is an excess benefit (high-cost plans). The repeal applies to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2019.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2019
Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act of 2019 This bill reauthorizes grants that support state and local efforts to process DNA evidence in rape kits. Specifically, it reauthorizes through FY2024 the following: grants under the Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program; grants to provide DNA training and education for law enforcement personnel, corrections personnel, and court officers; and grants under the Sexual Assault Forensic Exam Program.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2019
Streamlining Energy Efficiency for Schools Act of 2019 This bill directs the Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy to establish a clearinghouse for disseminating information regarding available programs and financing mechanisms that may be used to help initiate, develop, and finance energy efficiency, distributed generation, and energy retrofitting projects for schools.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2019
This resolution condemns the January 15, 2019, attack by the Al Qaeda-affiliated extremist group Al Shabaab in Nairobi, Kenya, that resulted in the loss of 21 lives. It honors the memory of Jason Spindler, a U.S. citizen killed in the attack, and expresses support for Kenya's efforts to combat terrorism and violent extremism.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2019
Open Book on Equal Access to Justice Act This bill requires the Administrative Conference of the United States to create and maintain a database of specified information about fees awarded in certain court cases and adversarial administrative proceedings in which the United States is a party.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2019
Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2019 This bill imposes a fee on the carbon content of fuels, including crude oil, natural gas, coal, or any other product derived from those fuels that will be used so as to emit greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The fee is imposed on the producers or importers of the fuels and is equal to the greenhouse gas content of the fuel multiplied by the carbon fee rate. The rate begins at $15 in 2019, increases by $10 each year, and is subject to further adjustments based on the progress in meeting specified emissions reduction targets. The bill also imposes a specified fee on fluorinated greenhouse gases. The bill includes exemptions for fuels used for agricultural or nonemitting purposes, exemptions for fuels used by the Armed Forces, rebates for facilities that capture and sequester carbon dioxide, and border adjustment provisions that require certain fees or refunds for carbon-intensive products that are exported or imported. The fees must be deposited into a Carbon Dividend Trust Fund and used for administrative expenses and dividend payments to U.S. citizens or lawful residents. The fees must be decommissioned when emissions levels and monthly dividend payments fall below specified levels. The bill also suspends certain regulations that limit greenhouse gas emissions. The suspensions expire if the emissions targets established by this bill are not reached after a specified time period.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2019
Federal Worker Childcare Protection Act of 2019 This bill provides for the reimbursement of childcare expenses of federal employees who are furloughed or working without pay during the lapse in appropriations that began on or about December 22, 2018. The reimbursements are provided (1) subject to appropriations, and (2) if the employee can provide documentation to the General Services Administration in the form of a receipt from a childcare provider.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2019
Creating Accountability Measures Protecting University Students Historically Abused, Threatened, and Exposed to Crimes Act or the CAMPUS HATE Crimes Act This bill establishes measures to hold institutions of higher education accountable for hate crimes that occur on their campuses, including by conditioning the receipt of certain federal funding on an institution's implementation of a program to prevent and respond to such crimes. The Department of Education may award grants to support such programs.
United States · United States Congress · 24 January 2019
Constitutional Amendment This joint resolution proposes a Constitutional amendment denying as protected speech any financial expenditures, or in kind equivalents, with respect to a candidate for federal office, regardless of whether a communication expressly advocates the election or defeat of a specified candidate in the election. The amendment 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 · 23 January 2019
VA Medicinal Cannabis Research Act of 2019 This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to conduct a clinical trial of the effects of medical-grade cannabis on the health outcomes of covered veterans diagnosed with chronic pain, and also those diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. Covered veterans are those who are enrolled in the VA patient enrollment system for hospital care and medical services.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2019
Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act or the PACT Act This bill revises and expands criminal provisions with respect to animal crushing. It retains existing criminal offenses that prohibit knowingly creating or distributing an animal crush video using interstate commerce. The bill also adds a new provision to criminalize an intentional act of animal crushing. A violator is subject to criminal penalties—a fine, a prison term of up to seven years, or both. It provides additional exceptions for conduct, or a video of conduct, including conduct that is (1) medical or scientific research, (2) necessary to protect the life or property of a person, (3) performed as part of euthanizing an animal, or (4) unintentional.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2019
Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act of 2019 This bill makes it illegal to possess, buy, or sell shark fins or any product containing shark fins, except for certain dogfish fins. A person may possess a shark fin that was lawfully taken consistent with a license or permit under certain circumstances. Penalties are imposed for violations under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2019
Title VIII Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act of 2019 This bill expands and reauthorizes through FY2024 specified nursing workforce development programs. Specifically, the bill reauthorizes (1) loan repayment and scholarships for nurses; (2) loans for nursing faculty development; (3) advanced education nursing grants; (4) grants for increasing nursing workforce diversity; and (5) nurse education, practice, quality, and retention grants. Eligibility for nurse education, practice, quality, and retention grants is expanded to include nurse-managed health clinics that provide primary care to underserved communities. Further, grants for nursing career ladder programs are expanded to (1) promote career advancement for individuals to become registered nurses or advanced education nurses and (2) support internships and residency programs that encourage mentoring and the development of specialties. In addition, eligibility for advanced education nursing grants is expanded to include education of clinical nurse leaders in combined registered nurse graduate degree programs. Clinical nurse leaders are advanced generalist clinicians who apply research and coordinate care to improve outcomes for patients. Eligibility is also extended to clinical nurse specialist programs that provide registered nurses with full-time clinical nurse specialist education that qualifies participating nurses to provide a full range of care. The bill also revises specified grant reporting and program evaluation requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2019
Raise the Age Act This bill establishes new restrictions on the sale or transfer of certain semiautomatic firearms to individuals under 21 years of age. Specifically, this bill makes it unlawful for a licensed gun dealer, importer, manufacturer, or collector to sell or deliver a semiautomatic center-fire rifle that has the capacity to accept more than five rounds to an individual who the licensee knows or has reasonable cause to believe is under age 21. The prohibition does not apply if the individual under age 21 is a full-time law enforcement officer or active-duty member of the Armed Forces. The bill also requires the Federal Bureau of Investigation to report on the operation of its public access line, including a description of information sharing protocols and recommendations for improving such protocols.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2019
This bill states that with respect to the lapse in appropriations beginning on or around December 22, 2018, a federal employee who is excepted from furlough (i.e., who continues to work during the lapse in appropriations) and is not paid is eligible for unemployment compensation benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2019
2020 Census Improving Data and Enhanced Accuracy Act or the 2020 Census IDEA Act This bill prohibits the Department of Commerce, in the 2020 decennial census and each decennial census thereafter, from (1) implementing any major operational design feature that has not been researched, studied, and tested for at least three years before the date on which the applicable census occurs; or (2) including on the questionnaire for the census any subject, type of information, or question that was not submitted to Congress. The Government Accountability Office must certify to Congress that the subjects, types of information, and questions to be included in a decennial census have been adequately researched, studied, and tested to the same degree as in previous decennial censuses.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2019
Reducing Barriers for Veterans Education Act of 2019 This bill expands educational assistance under the Post-9/11 Educational Assistance program to include application fees for institutions of higher learning. The amount of such assistance payable to an individual shall be the lesser of the total application fees charged to the individual by the institutions, or $750.
United States · United States Congress · 23 January 2019
Ending Corporal Punishment in Schools Act of 2019 This bill prohibits the Department of Education (ED) from providing funding to any state or local educational agency (LEA) that allows its school personnel to inflict corporal punishment upon a student. ED may award three-year grants to states or LEAs to assist them with improving school climate and culture. Grants must be used to implement school-wide positive behavior programs.
United States · United States Congress · 22 January 2019
U.S. Senator Joseph D. Tydings Memorial Prevent All Soring Tactics Act of 2019 or the PAST Act This bill addresses the practice of soring horses. The soring of horses includes various actions taken on horses' limbs to produce higher gaits that may cause pain, distress, inflammation, or lameness. Specifically, the bill expands soring regulation and enforcement at horse shows, exhibitions, sales, and auctions, including by establishing a new system for inspecting horses for soring. In addition, the bill increases penalties for violations.
United States · United States Congress · 18 January 2019
Pet Safety and Protection Act of 2019 This bill revises requirements concerning the sources of dogs and cats used by research facilities. Specifically, the bill revises the list of permissible sources of dogs and cats used by research facilities to include dogs and cats obtained (1) from a licensed dealer, (2) from a publicly owned and operated pound or shelter that meets specified requirements, (3) by donation from a person who bred and raised the dog or cat or owned it for not less than one year, or (4) from a research facility licensed by the Department of Agriculture. The requirements pertaining to sources apply to dogs and cats obtained through sales, donations, or offers. Monetary penalties are established for violations.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Stop Online Ammunition Sales Act of 2019 This bill establishes new requirements and restrictions with respect to the sale, purchase, shipment, and transport of ammunition. Among other things, the bill does the following: requires an ammunition dealer to be licensed; requires ammunition sales to be conducted in person; and requires a licensed ammunition importer, manufacturer, or dealer to report on bulk sales of ammunition.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to take a series of actions relating to palliative-care training. Specifically, HHS must provide support for Palliative Care and Hospice Education Centers. The centers must improve the training of health professionals in palliative care and establish traineeships for individuals preparing for advanced-education nursing degrees, social-work degrees, or advanced degrees in physician-assistant studies in palliative care. HHS may provide support to medical schools, teaching hospitals, and graduate medical-education programs for training physicians who plan to teach palliative medicine. HHS must (1) provide Palliative Medicine and Hospice Academic Career Awards to individuals to promote their career development, (2) support entities that operate a Palliative Care and Hospice Education Center, (3) support individuals in specified fields who are pursuing an advanced degree in palliative care or related fields, and (4) award grants to nursing programs to train individuals in providing palliative care. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality must provide for a national education and awareness campaign to inform patients, families, and health professionals about the benefits of palliative care. The National Institutes of Health must expand national research programs in palliative care.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
DREAMers, Immigrants, and Refugees (DIRe) Legal Aid Act This bill directs the Department of Justice to make grants to nonprofit legal services providers to provide immigration law-related services to certain aliens facing removal or at risk of being denied entry into the United States. The services shall be available to an alien who (1) is lawfully admitted for permanent residence, (2) has received Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status, or (3) qualifies for admission as a refugee or whose spouse or parent so qualifies. The Department of Homeland Security shall report to Congress about the immigration outcomes of aliens who have legal representation compared to those who do not.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2019 This bill directs various U.S. government bodies to prepare reports on China's treatment of the Uyghurs, a predominantly Muslim Turkic ethnic group. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence shall report to Congress on issues including the security threats caused by the Chinese government's reported crackdown on the Uyghur population in Xinjiang province, the frequency with which other governments are forcibly returning Turkic Muslim refugees and asylum seekers to China, and the development or transfer of technology that facilitates mass internment and surveillance. The Federal Bureau of Investigation shall report on topics such as its efforts to protect ethnic Uyghurs and Chinese nationals in the United States from Chinese government intimidation. The U.S. Agency for Global Media shall report on media-related matters, including the reach of U.S. media into Xinjiang, assessments of Chinese propaganda strategies, and U.S. actions to counter such efforts to downplay the crackdown. The Department of State shall report on the scope of the reported crackdown in Xinjiang, including the number of detained individuals, the use of forced labor in the region, an assessment of government surveillance in the province, and U.S. diplomatic efforts to address the crackdown.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Agricultural Worker Program Act of 2019 This bill establishes a program for alien agricultural workers to obtain temporary resident status ("blue card status") and procedures to obtain permanent resident status. An alien shall qualify for the status if he or she performed the required amount of qualified agricultural work. The Department of Homeland Security may grant blue card status to qualified individuals who pass security checks and are not disqualified for various reasons, such as an aggravated felony conviction. DHS may waive certain disqualifications for humanitarian or public interest reasons. Blue card holders shall be authorized for employment in the United States and travel outside the United States. Such individuals shall be ineligible for various federal benefits, including the healthcare premium assistance tax credit. Individuals going through deportation or removal proceedings shall be given a chance to apply for blue card status if they qualify. Blue card holders may apply for permanent resident status, subject to various requirements, including work requirements over a specified time period and payment of federal taxes. Blue card status shall not last longer than eight years.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Student Loan Repayment Assistance Act of 2019 This bill allows a business-related tax credit for an employer's payments for employees under a student loan repayment program. The credit is equal to 10% of the amounts that an employer pays on behalf of any employee under a program and is refundable for certain small businesses and tax-exempt organizations. The payments for an employee may not exceed $500 per month.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Save Oak Flat Act This bill repeals the requirement for the Department of Agriculture to convey 2,422 acres of Forest Service land located in Pinal County, Arizona, to Resolution Copper Mining, LLC, in exchange for various parcels of land owned by Resolution Copper.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Burn Pits Accountability Act This bill requires the Department of Defense (DOD) and the military departments to evaluate whether each member of the Armed Forces has been (1) based or stationed where an open air burn pit was used to dispose of waste, or (2) exposed to toxic airborne chemicals. Members located where an open burn pit was used or exposed to toxic airborne chemicals must be enrolled in the Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry, unless the member elects not to enroll. The evaluations must be included in periodic health assessments, physical exams conducted immediately prior to separation from active duty, and deployment assessments. DOD must share the results of the evaluations with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
National Infrastructure Development Bank Act of 2019 This bill establishes the National Infrastructure Development Bank as a government corporation to finance energy, environmental (e.g., drinking water or waste facilities), telecommunications, and transportation infrastructure projects. The National Infrastructure Development Bank Board, established by this bill, must oversee the projects. The board may make loans and loan guarantees to assist in financing infrastructure projects. In addition, the board must establish an American Infrastructure Bond program. Under the program, the board may subsidize interest payments by the issuers of state or local bonds. The bill establishes the National Infrastructure Development Bank Trust Fund and appropriates to the fund an amount equal to the tax receipts attributable to interest payable under the bonds. With the approval of the Department of the Treasury, the board may issue public benefit bonds to provide financing to infrastructure projects. The bill exempts bonds issued by the bank, and the interest on or credits with respect to the bonds, from state or local government taxation. Financial assistance for an infrastructure project must be repayable from dedicated revenue sources that also secure the infrastructure project obligations. The assistance may not exceed 50% of reasonably anticipated project costs.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Fair Compensation for Low-Wage Contractor Employees Act of 2019 This bill appropriates funding to provide compensation to certain employees of contractors who lost pay or leave due to the lapse in appropriations that began on December 22, 2018. Each agency subject to such lapse shall adjust the price of any contract for which the contractor was ordered to suspend, delay, or stop work as a result of the lapse. The agency shall compensate the contractor for reasonable costs incurred to (1) provide compensation, at an employee's standard rate of compensation, to any employee who was furloughed or laid off, or who was not working, who experienced a reduction of hours, or who experienced a reduction in compensation, as a result of the lapse, for the period of the lapse; or (2) restore paid leave taken by any employee during the lapse, if the contractor required employees to use paid leave as a result of the lapse. The maximum amount of weekly compensation of an employee for which an adjustment may be made may not exceed the lesser of the employee's actual weekly compensation or $965.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Safe Helicopters Now Act This bill allows a tax credit equal to 10% of the costs of making changes to a fuel system in an emergency medical rotorcraft to comply with certain requirements for fuel system crash resistance.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Restricting First Use of Nuclear Weapons Act of 2019 This bill prohibits the President from conducting a nuclear strike against an enemy that did not first launch a nuclear strike against the United States or a U.S. ally, unless Congress expressly authorizes such a strike.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Report and Educate About Campus Hazing Act or the REACH Act This bill addresses hazing incidents that involve students attending an institution of higher education (IHE). Hazing means an intentional, knowing, or reckless act committed by a student, or a former student, of an IHE against another student, that (1) is connected with an initiation into, an affiliation with, or the maintenance of membership in, an organization that is affiliated with the IHE; and (2) contributes to a substantial risk of physical injury, mental harm, or degradation or causes physical injury, mental harm or personal degradation. Specifically, an IHE must disclose hazing incidents that were reported to campus security authorities or local police agencies in its annual security report. In addition, each IHE must provide students with an educational program on hazing that includes information on hazing awareness, hazing prevention, and the IHE's policies on hazing.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Immediate Financial Relief for Federal Employees Act This bill directs the Department of the Treasury to provide interest-free loans to federal and District of Columbia government employees affected by a government shutdown and to notify the individual's employer.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Charitable Giving Tax Deduction Act This bill modifies the requirements for calculating taxable income to allow a deduction from gross income (above-the-line deduction) for charitable contributions that are allowed as an itemized deduction under current law.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
America Votes Act of 2019 This bill permits an individual required to present identification as a condition of voting in a federal election to meet the requirement by presenting a sworn written statement attesting to the individual's identification and that he or she is registered to vote in the election. An individual desiring to vote by mail may submit such a statement with the ballot. States with an identification requirement shall (1) prepare a preprinted version of the statement which includes a blank space for an individual to provide a name and signature, (2) make copies of the preprinted version available at polling places, (3) include a copy of the preprinted version with each ballot transmitted to an individual who desires to vote by mail, and (4) include the use of a sworn written statement in voting information posted at polling places. A state is prohibited from requiring an individual who presents or submits such a sworn written statement to cast a provisional ballot in the election. The bill does not apply to first-time voters registering by mail.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Automatic Voter Registration Act This bill requires state motor vehicle authorities, upon receiving specified identifying information regarding an individual requesting services, to transmit the information to the state election office. The state election office shall then notify the individual that the individual shall be automatically registered to vote in federal elections in the state unless the individual declines to be registered to vote, does not meet voter registration eligibility requirements, or is already registered to vote. A state may only use such information regarding an individual's citizenship status for determining whether the individual is eligible to vote in federal elections.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Muhammad Ali Commemorative Coin Act This bill requires the Department of the Treasury to mint and issue commemorative coins that emblemize the life and legacy of Muhammad Ali. Surcharges received from the sale of these coins shall be paid to (1) the Muhammad Ali Center in Louisville, Kentucky; (2) the Muhammad Ali Institute for Peace and Justice at the University of Louisville; and (3) the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center and Movement Disorder Clinic.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
Muhammad Ali Legacy Act This bill directs the Department of State to award grants to one or more organizations that (1) are established to promote global respect, understanding, and communication and to encourage character and leadership development worldwide; and (2) demonstrate a commitment to preserving the legacy of Muhammad Ali.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
This resolution expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the U.S. Postal Service should restore mail delivery service standards to those of July 1, 2012.
United States · United States Congress · 17 January 2019
This resolution expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that compensation of public school teachers should be comparable to that of other college graduates with years in the workforce where the teachers are employed.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2019
Georgia Support Act This bill directs the Department of State to report to Congress on various topics related to Georgia. The reports shall cover (1) U.S. security assistance to Georgia and an assessment of threats to the country's independence and its ability to defend itself, (2) cybersecurity cooperation between the United States and Georgia, and (3) a strategy to help Georgia expand its capabilities to combat Russian disinformation and propaganda. The President shall impose entry and property-blocking sanctions against foreign persons responsible for or complicit in serious human rights abuses in the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali Region/South Ossetia that are occupied by Russia. The President shall also report to Congress every 180 days on such foreign persons.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2019
Protect Veterans from Financial Fraud Act of 2019 This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to pay a beneficiary (or beneficiary's successor fiduciary) the amount of the misused benefit when any fiduciary has misused all or part of an individual's benefit. Specifically, the bill requires this payment in any case not involving negligent failure by the VA to investigate or monitor a fiduciary but where a fiduciary misuses all or part of an individual's benefit. The bill removes the stipulation that the fiduciary (1) not be an individual, or (2) serve at least 10 beneficiaries for the VA to repay misused benefits. An adverse determination by the VA of a veteran's mental capacity to manage VA monetary benefits may be appealed in accordance with provisions governing the Board of Veterans' Appeals and the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2019
Raise the Wage Act This bill amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to increase the federal minimum wage for regular employees over a 7-year period, for tipped employees, and for newly hired employees who are less than 20 years old. The bill sets forth a schedule of annual increases in the federal minimum wage for individuals with disabilities. The Department of Labor shall no longer issue special certificates for the payment of subminimum wages to such individuals after the final wage increase under this bill for such individuals takes effect. Labor shall provide, upon request, technical assistance and information to employers to: (1) help them transition their practices to comply with wage increases and other requirements under this bill for individuals with disabilities, and (2) ensure continuing employment opportunities for such individuals. The bill eliminates the separate minimum wage requirements for tipped, newly hired, and disabled employees. After a specified period, these employees shall be paid the same minimum wage as regular employees. Labor must publish any increase in the minimum wage in the Federal Register and on its website 60 days before it takes effect.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2019
Refugee Sanitation Facility Safety Act of 2019 This bill directs the Department of State, when providing overseas assistance for refugees, to ensure the provision of safe and secure access to sanitation facilities, with a special emphasis on women, girls, and vulnerable populations.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2019
This concurrent resolution expresses support for peace and democracy in Nigeria, and calls on Nigeria's government and political parties to take all actions to ensure that elections are credible, transparent, and peaceful in order to support the will of the people. It also calls on the government to respect the impartiality of the Independent National Electoral Commission and to expeditiously finalize the proposed reformed legal framework for the 2019 elections.
United States · United States Congress · 16 January 2019
Crimea Annexation Non-recognition Ac t The bill prohibits any federal agency from taking any action or extending any assistance that recognizes or implies recognition of Russia's sovereignty over Crimea, its airspace, or its territorial waters. The President may waive such prohibitions if such a waiver is vital to U.S. national security interests.