United States · United States Congress · 21 March 2017
National Nurse Act of 2017 This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Department of Health and Human Services to designate the Chief Nurse Officer of the Public Health Service as the National Nurse for Public Health. The duties of this position include: (1) providing leadership and coordination of Public Health Service nursing professional affairs for the Office of the Surgeon General and other agencies of the Public Health Service, (2) conducting outreach and education, and (3) providing guidance and leadership for activities that will increase public safety and emergency preparedness. The National Nurse for Public Health must: (1) participate in identification of national health priorities, (2) encourage volunteerism of nurses and strengthen the relationship between government agencies and health-related national organizations, and (3) promote the dissemination of evidence-based practice in educating the public on health promotion and disease prevention activities.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 2017
Targeted Rewards for the Global Eradication of Human Trafficking or the TARGET Act This bill expresses the sense of Congress that the Department of State's rewards program is a powerful tool in combating sophisticated international crime and that the State Department and federal law enforcement should work in concert to offer rewards that target human traffickers who threaten U.S. national security and humanitarian interests by preying on the most vulnerable people. The State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 is amended to include severe forms of human trafficking in the definition of "transnational organized crime" for purposes of such program.
United States · United States Congress · 20 March 2017
Physical Therapist Workforce and Patient Access Act of 2017 This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to include physical therapy within the definition of "primary health services" for purposes of the National Health Service Corps. The bill makes physical therapists eligible for repayment of their educational loans in order to ensure an adequate supply of physical therapists.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2017
Wounded Veterans Recreation Act This bill amends the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act to require the National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass, which is made available for the lifetime of the passholder without charge to any U.S. citizen or person domiciled in the United States who has been medically determined to be permanently disabled, to be made available to any veteran with a service-connected disability.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2017
Gun Show Loophole Closing Act of 2017 This bill makes it unlawful for any person to operate a gun show unless such person: (1) has attained 21 years of age; (2) is not prohibited from transporting, shipping, or receiving firearms and has not violated any federal firearms requirements; (3) has registered with the Department of Justice (DOJ) as a gun show operator and has provided a photograph and fingerprints; (4) has not concealed material information nor made false statements in connection with a gun show operator registration; and (5) notifies DOJ of the date, time, and duration of a gun show not later than 30 days before the commencement of such show and verifies the identity of each vendor at the gun show. The bill makes it unlawful for a person not licensed under this bill to transfer possession of a firearm at a gun show to another person not licensed unless a licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer has, among other conditions, recorded the transfer with DOJ. Additionally, the licensed dealer must notify the prospective transferor and transferee of the firearm that the national instant criminal background check system has provided the dealer with a unique identification number indicating that the receipt of the firearm would not violate certain federal or state firearm laws. The bill grants DOJ authority to enter, without a showing of reasonable cause or a warrant, any place where a gun show is held or where a gun show operator is required to maintain records to examine records and inventory to determine compliance with this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2017
Get Foreign Money Out of U.S. Elections Act This bill amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (FECA) to ban campaign contributions and expenditures by corporations that are controlled, influenced, or owned by foreign nationals. Foreign nationals and such corporations may not make disbursements to political committees that accept donations or contributions that do not comply with the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting requirements of FECA. Corporate political action committees may make contributions and expenditures only if they comply with limitations on the involvement of foreign nationals and such corporations.
United States · United States Congress · 17 March 2017
Student Loan Refinancing Act This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to allow a borrower of a Federal Direct Loan program loan to modify the interest rate on such a loan to the current applicable rate. That interest rate is fixed for the life of the loan, unless the borrower elects to modify it again.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act of 2017 This bill amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require an applicant for approval of a new animal drug that is a medically important antimicrobial to demonstrate that there is a reasonable certainty of no harm to human health from antimicrobial resistance attributable to the nontherapeutic use of the drug. Medically important antimicrobials are drugs intended for use in food-producing animals that contain: (1) specified antibiotics, or (2) certain drugs on the World Health Organization’s list of critically important antimicrobials. Two years after enactment of this bill, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) must withdraw approval of a drug's nontherapeutic use in food-producing animals unless the FDA makes a determination that, based on the application holder's demonstration or an FDA risk analysis, there is a reasonable certainty of no harm to human health from antimicrobial resistance attributable to nontherapeutic use. The FDA must rescind an exemption for investigational use of, or approval of a new drug application for, a medically important antimicrobial for its nontherapeutic use in food-producing animals two years after the exemption is granted or the application for approval is submitted unless there is a reasonable certainty of no harm to human health from antimicrobial resistance attributable to nontherapeutic use. A medically important antimicrobial cannot be administered (including through animal feed) to a food-producing animal for disease control unless there is a significant risk that a disease or infection present on the premises will be transmitted to the animal.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
Secure America's Future Elections Act or the SAFE Act This bill directs the National Protection and Programs Directorate of the Department of Homeland Security to designate the infrastructure used to administer elections as critical infrastructure. The bill amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 with respect to: funding for states to upgrade the security of the information technology and cybersecurity elements of voting systems, voter registration lists, and voter registration processes; voting systems and cybersecurity standards; paper ballot and manual counting requirements; accessibility to voting systems and ballot verification for individuals with disabilities; durability and readability requirements for ballots; and mandatory manual audits of results of elections. The National Science Foundation shall make grants to study, test, and develop accessible paper ballot voting mechanisms and best practices to enhance the accessibility of paper ballot voting for voters with disabilities, voters whose primary language is not English, and voters with difficulties in literacy. The National Institute for Standards and Technology shall establish guidance for states that wish to establish alternative audit mechanisms. The Election Assistance Commission is made permanent.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
Requests the President, and directs the Department of Justice, to transmit to the House of Representatives copies of any document, correspondence, or other communication in their possession that refers or relates to specified statements of President Donald J. Trump communicated via Twitter on March 4, 2017, regarding alleged wiretapping in Trump Tower by former President Barack Obama.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
Servicemember Intimate Privacy Protection Act This bill amends the Uniform Code of Military Justice to prohibit the nonconsensual distribution of private sexual images. To be guilty of such offense, a person must have: knowingly broadcast or distributed a visual image of another person who is at least 18 years of age, who is identifiable from the image itself or from information displayed in connection with the image, and who is engaged in a sexual act or exposes a private area; obtained the image under circumstances in which a reasonable person would know or understand that the image was to remain private; and known, or reasonably should have known, that the person depicted in the image has not consented to its broadcast or distribution.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
Stop Militarizing Law Enforcement Act This bill revises the authority of the Department of Defense (DOD) to transfer excess personal property to federal and state law enforcement agencies. DOD's authority to transfer property for counter-drug activities is eliminated. DOD property recipients must: (1) provide DOD with a description of intended use; and (2) certify that they have appropriate personnel, technical capacity, and training and will return any surplus DOD property. Non-federal recipients must certify that they have notified their local community of requests for DOD property. The following transfers are prohibited: controlled firearms, ammunition, grenades, and explosives; controlled vehicles, certain trucks, and other highly mobile or mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles; armored or weaponized drones; controlled aircraft that are combat configured or combat coded, or that have no established commercial flight application; silencers; long range acoustic devices; and items in the Federal Supply Class of banned items. Transfers conditioned upon the agency demonstrating the use of any small arms or ammunitions are prohibited. Transfers of previously transferred DOD property from one federal or state agency to another such agency are prohibited. DOD may waive transfer prohibitions for certain trucks and vehicles (other than mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles) if necessary for disasters, rescues, or other purposes where life and public safety are at risk. DOD shall require as a condition of any property transfer that the recipient agency shall return the property if the agency is: (1) investigated by the Department of Justice for any violation of civil liberties, or (2) otherwise found to have engaged in widespread abuses of civil liberties. Obligations or expenditures of appropriations to carry out DOD's property transfer program are prohibited unless specified conditions are met. Federal or state agencies that receive controlled property may not take ownership of such property.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
National Opposition to Hate, Assault, and Threats to Equality Act of 2017 or the NO HATE Act This bill authorizes the Department of Justice (DOJ) to issue grants to states and local governments to assist in implementing the National Incident-Based Reporting System, including training employees in identifying hate crimes. A state or local government receiving such funding must provide DOJ, through the Uniform Crime Reporting system, information pertaining to hate crimes committed in that jurisdiction. A state or local government failing to provide the required data must repay the grants. The bill directs DOJ to issue grants to states to create hate crime reporting hotlines. The bill creates a cause of action for: (1) a victim of a crime motivated by actual or perceived race, color, religion, or national origin; and (2) a victim of a crime motivated by actual or perceived religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability, occurring in the special maritime or territorial jurisdiction of the United States or affecting interstate commerce. Under both civil actions, the victims must demonstrate by a preponderance of the evidence that the crime was based on one of the classifications listed. A criminal prosecution need not be brought before a civil action can be filed. A court imposing a penalty for a violation of the federal hate crime statute may order the defendant to participate in education classes or community service related to the community harmed by the defendant's offense as part of his or her supervised release.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
Protecting Our Widows and Widowers in Retirement (POWR) Act This bill increases Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance benefits for widows or widowers in two-income households by establishing an alternative benefit based on combined household benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
Donald Payne Sr. Colorectal Cancer Detection Act of 2017 This bill amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to provide for Medicare coverage and payment, subject to specified frequency limits, of certain colorectal cancer screening blood-based tests.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
Constitutional Amendment This joint resolution states that nothing in the U.S. Constitution shall prohibit Congress and the states from imposing content-neutral regulations and restrictions on the expenditure of funds for political activity by any corporation, limited liability company, or other corporate entity, including but not limited to contributions in support of, or in opposition to, a candidate for public office.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
Mary Jo Lawyer Spano Mesothelioma Patient Registry Act of 2017 This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry to develop a patient registry to collect data on mesothelioma. The agency must use the registry to: enhance and expand infrastructure and activities for tracking the epidemiology of mesothelioma patients; collect, consolidate, and report on health information on mesothelioma patients; describe the incidence and prevalence of mesothelioma in the United States; facilitate research on mesothelioma; examine factors that may be associated with mesothelioma; outline key demographic factors associated with mesothelioma; and make information available to the public to facilitate and enhance research on, and the prevention and treatment of, mesothelioma.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
African Descent Affairs Act of 2017 This bill amends the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to direct the Department of State to establish within an Office of Global African Descent Affairs, to be headed by the Director and Special Advisor to the Secretary on Global African Descent Affairs. Office functions shall include: advising the Secretary of State and directing policies, programs, and funding relating to the human rights and the advancement of people of African descent internationally; developing and managing the Fund for African Descent Affairs to invest in solutions to combat racial discrimination and create economic and other opportunities for people of African descent internationally; directing U.S. government resources to respond to needs for protection, integration, resettlement, and empowerment of people of African descent in U.S. policies and international programs; and compiling an annual report on U.S. government activities relating to people of African descent. The bill amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to include in the annual human rights report for countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East a description of the status and the people of African descent in each country. The U.S. Agency for International Development (AID) shall appoint a Senior Advisor to the Administrator on Global African Descent Affairs who shall: (1) advise the AID Administrator and direct policies, programs, and funding relating to the human rights and advancement of people of African descent internationally; and (2) develop a uniform set of indicators and standards for monitoring and evaluating foreign assistance for people of African descent. The Director and Special Advisor to the Secretary on Global African Descent Affairs shall develop or update annually (for 10 years after the initial report) a U.S. global strategy to empower, prevent, and respond to discrimination and violence against people of African descent.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
This bill exempts the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from any action by the President to prevent federal agencies from creating or filling civilian employee positions.
United States · United States Congress · 16 March 2017
Parental Bereavement Act of 2017 or the Sarah Grace-Farley-Kluger Act This bill amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to entitle an eligible employee to up to 12 workweeks of leave during any 12-month period because of the death of a son or daughter. Such an employee may substitute any available paid leave for any leave without pay. The bill applies the same leave entitlement to federal employees.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 2017
Fifth Amendment Integrity Restoration Act of 2017 or the FAIR Act This bill modifies general rules governing civil forfeiture proceedings to: (1) ensure that a person contesting a civil forfeiture has legal representation without regard to whether the property subject to forfeiture is being used by such person as a primary residence; (2) increase the federal government's burden of proof in civil forfeiture proceedings to clear and convincing evidence; (3) require the government, in addition to showing a substantial connection between the seized property and an offense, to establish by clear and convincing evidence that the owner of any interest in the seized property used the property with intent to facilitate the offense or knowingly consented or was willfully blind to the use of the property by another in connection with the offense; and (4) expand the proportionality criteria used by a court to determine whether a civil forfeiture was constitutionally excessive. To remove incentives for carrying out civil forfeitures, the bill requires proceeds from the disposition of seized property to be deposited into the General Fund of the Treasury, rather than to Department of Justice accounts for law enforcement activities. The bill adds a mens rea requirement (i.e., a knowing violation) to the prohibition against structuring financial transactions to evade reporting requirements. A court shall conduct a probable cause hearing to determine if there is a violation of the prohibition against structuring transactions to evade reporting requirements involving a monetary instrument and to return such instrument if probable cause is not established.
United States · United States Congress · 15 March 2017
American Patriots of WWII through Service with the Canadian and British Armed Forces Gold Medal Act of 2017 This bill directs the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives to arrange for the award of a Congressional Gold Medal to all U.S. nationals who voluntarily joined the Canadian and British armed forces and their supporting entities during World War II, in recognition of their dedicated service.
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 2017
Status of the Sixth Amendment Act of 2017 This bill requires a state that receives a Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Justice Programs grant to report annually certain information with respect to the following categories of offenses: (1) criminal offenses punishable by a prison term of more than one year; (2) criminal offenses punishable by a prison term of one year or less, including misdemeanors, traffic, and municipal violations; and (3) acts of juvenile delinquency punishable by a term of detention. A state must report, for each offense category, the number of charges for which: (1) an individual was prosecuted, (2) a defendant waived the right to counsel, (3) a defendant was represented by publicly appointed counsel, and (4) a defendant was represented by counsel who was not publicly appointed. DOJ must publish the reports on its website.
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 2017
Juror Non-Discrimination Act of 2017 This bill amends the federal judicial code to prohibit the exclusion of citizens from service as a grand or petit juror in U.S. district courts or the Court of International Trade on account of sexual orientation or gender identity (thereby expanding the current prohibition against exclusion on account of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or economic status).
United States · United States Congress · 13 March 2017
Healthy Families Act This bill requires certain employers, who employ 15 or more employees for each working day during 20 or more workweeks a year, to permit each employee to earn at least 1 hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked. The bill authorizes small employers with fewer than 15 employees to provide the same paid sick time, but allows them to opt out. Any small employer that opts out shall provide at least 56 hours of unpaid sick time to each employee per calendar year. The bill declares that an employer shall not be required to permit an employee to earn more than 56 hours of paid sick time in a calendar year, unless the employer chooses to set a higher limit. Employees may use such time to: (1) meet their own medical needs; (2) care for the medical needs of certain family members (including a domestic partner or the domestic partner's parent or child); or (3) seek medical attention, assist a related person, take legal action, or engage in other specified activities relating to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking. The bill prohibits an employer from interfering with an employee's exercise of such rights. The Commissioner of Labor Statistics must compile information annually on paid sick time and the Comptroller General shall study related matters. The bill declares that nothing in this bill shall be construed to discourage employers from adopting or retaining more generous leave policies. The Department of Labor shall exercise certain investigative and enforcement authority for employees covered by this bill, the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, or the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991. The same authority is granted to the Library of Congress, the Government Accountability Office, the Office of Compliance, and the Merit Systems Protection Board for employees under their jurisdictions. The bill authorizes civil actions by employees, individuals, or their representatives for damages or equitable relief against employers who violate this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 10 March 2017
Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 4040 West Washington Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, as the "Marvin Gaye Post Office."
United States · United States Congress · 10 March 2017
End Racial Profiling Act of 2017 This bill prohibits racial profiling by a federal, state, local, or tribal law enforcement agency or agent. The term "racial profiling" includes the practice of relying on actual or perceived race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, gender identify, or sexual orientation in making a routine or spontaneous law enforcement decision. The Department of Justice (DOJ), or an individual injured by racial profiling, may bring a civil action to enforce the prohibition. The bill requires federal law enforcement agencies to maintain policies and procedures to eliminate racial profiling, including training on racial profiling issues, the collection of data, and procedures for handling complaints. Additionally, a state or unit of local government that receives grant funds under the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program or Community Oriented Policing Services program must maintain policies and procedures to eliminate racial profiling, including training on racial profiling issues, the collection of data, and participation in an administrative complaint procedure or independent audit program. DOJ must withhold or reduce grant funds from a state or unit of local government that fails to comply. The bill authorizes grants to develop and implement: (1) programs to collect data on the percentage of stops and searches in which a law enforcement officer finds drugs, a gun, or something else that leads to an arrest; and (2) best practice devices and systems to eliminate racial profiling. DOJ must report annually on racial profiling by law enforcement agencies.
United States · United States Congress · 10 March 2017
Statue of Liberty Values Act 2.0 of 2017 or the SOLVE Act 2.0 of 2017 This bill states that: (1) beginning on March 6, 2017, Executive Order 13780, entitled "Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States," is null and void, shall have no force and effect, and may not be implemented or enforced; and (2) no federal funds may be used to implement or enforce any of the policy changes set forth in such order. Among the order's major provisions are restrictions on the entry of nationals from sixcountries (Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen) and additional limitations on refugee admissions to the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 10 March 2017
Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act or the PACT Act This bill amends the federal criminal code to revise and expand 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 · 10 March 2017
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that any replacement for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act must keep costs to health care consumers at or below their current rates and keep the uninsured rate at or below its current level.
United States · United States Congress · 10 March 2017
Expresses sympathy and condolences to the families of Srinivas Kuchibhotla, as well as to Alok Madasani, Ian Grillot, and all victims of hate crime throughout the United States. (Kuchibhotla, Madasani, and Grillot were shot in Olathe, Kansas, on February 22, 2017. Kuchibhotla was killed; Madasani and Grillot were injured.) Urges the Department of Justice to carry out a full hate crime investigation into these attacks and ensure that adequate funding and resources are available to carry out other hate crimes investigations, including additional funding for Civil Rights Division prosecutors and Community Relations Service professionals. Calls on the President to end his inflammatory rhetoric and policies.
United States · United States Congress · 10 March 2017
Constitutional Amendment This joint resolution proposes a constitutional amendment declaring that: (1) the rights protected by the Constitution are intended to be the rights of natural persons; (2) the words "people," "person," or "citizen" as used in the Constitution do not include corporations, limited liability companies, or other corporate entities established by the laws of any state, the United States, or any foreign state; and (3) such corporate entities are subject to such regulation as the people, through their elected state and federal representatives, deem reasonable and are otherwise consistent with the powers of Congress and the states. Nothing in the amendment shall be construed to limit the rights of freedom of speech, the press, exercise of religion, association, and all such other unalienable rights of the people.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act of 2017 This bill makes it illegal to possess, buy, or sell shark fins or any product containing shark 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 · 9 March 2017
Condemns the government of Iran for the 1988 massacre of political prisoners and for denying the evidence of crimes against humanity. Urges: (1) the Administration and U.S. allies to condemn the massacre and pressure the Iranian government to provide detailed information to the victims' families about their loved ones and their final resting places; and (2) the United Nations (U.N.) Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Iran and the U.N. Human Rights Council to create a Commission of Inquiry to investigate the massacre, gather evidence, identify the perpetrators, and bring them to justice.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
National Institute of Standards and Technology Surviving Unprecedented Climate Change Effects with Standard Setting (NIST SUCCESS) Act of 2017 This bill requires the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to: (1) identify consistent and authoritative climate information to assist organizations that develop standards, building codes, and voluntary certifications to appropriately anticipate extreme weather and other climate change challenges; (2) identify efforts to set standards, building codes, and voluntary certifications relating to infrastructure and systems that may depend on accurate climate information and projections; and (3) take steps to make the information available to the entities setting those standards, codes, and certifications. NIST must also coordinate federal agencies efforts to set those standards, codes, and certifications.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that the U.S. Agency for International Development should: (1) increase emergency funding in March 2017 to respond to the famine in South Sudan by providing food and other essential resources and to collaborate with international relief organizations to reach vulnerable populations, and (2) provide emergency food assistance under the Food for Peace Act. Calls upon the government of South Sudan to: (1) declare and observe a cessation of hostilities to allow food and essential supplies to reach affected civilians; and (2) allow immediate and unrestricted humanitarian access to southern Unity, where the famine is underway. Condemns all threats and violence against civilian populations and aid workers. Supports efforts of the U.S. government, working with partners in the international community, to facilitate humanitarian access to affected areas and encourages greater diplomatic pressure on the parties to return to the negotiation table to stop the violence and allow full humanitarian access.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Military and Veteran Caregiver Services Improvement Act of 2017 This bill expands eligibility for the family caregiver program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to include members of the Armed Forces or veterans who are seriously injured or who became ill on active duty prior to September 11, 2001 (currently, limited to service after September 11, 2001). Services to caregivers of veterans under such program are expanded to include child care services, financial planning services, and legal services. The bill terminates the support program for caregivers of covered veterans on October 1, 2022, except that any caregiver activities carried out on September 30, 2022, shall be continued on and after October 1, 2022. The bill authorizes the transfer of entitlement to post 9/11 education assistance to family members by veterans who are retired for a physical disability or who are seriously injured veterans in need of family caregiver services, without regard to length-of-service requirements. The VA is authorized to pay monthly special compensation to seriously injured or ill veterans in need of personal care services and to their caregivers. Flexible work schedules or telework are authorized for federal employees who are caregivers of veterans. The Public Health Service Act is amended to designate a veteran participating in the program of comprehensive assistance for family caregivers as an adult with a special need for purposes of the lifespan respite care program. An interagency working group is established in the executive branch to review and report on policies relating to the caregivers of veterans and members of the Armed Forces. The VA shall provide for studies on members of the Armed Forces who commenced service after September 11, 2001, and veterans who have incurred a serious injury or illness, including a mental health injury, and their caregivers.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Requests the President, and directs the Attorney General, to transmit to the House of Representatives within 14 days after adoption of this resolution copies of any document or other communication in their possession that refers or relates to: any meeting or communication between Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III and any representative of the Russian government; the Attorney General's testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee on January 10, 2017, his written response to Senator Patrick Leahy's letter of January 17, 2017, his letter of March 6, 2017, to such committee, his preparation for confirmation hearings before such committee with respect to contact between President Trump's campaign and any Russian government representative, and his recusal from any investigation related to the 2016 presidential election and the implementation of that recusal; the application of provisions regarding grounds for appointing a Special Counsel to any case involving the 2016 presidential election or any related matter; and any meeting between any employee of President Trump's campaign or transition team and any Russian government representative, including any meeting that involved Donald J. Trump, Michael Flynn, Jared Kushner, Carter Page, J.D. Gordon, Richard Burt, Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, or Michael Cohen.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Directs the Department of the Treasury to provide to the House of Representatives the full tax returns of President Donald J. Trump for tax years 2006-2015, financial documentation, and any information in its possession that specifies President Trump's: debts held by foreign governments and foreign companies; investments in foreign countries and foreign enterprises; and use of any tax shelters, corporate structures, tax avoidance maneuvers, abatements, or other loopholes to reduce or eliminate tax liability.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Reaffirming DHS Commitment to Countering All Forms of Extremism This bill prohibits the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from changing the name of its Countering Violent Extremism Task Force. DHS may not make grants to counter Islamist extremism in an aggregate amount of more than $4 million in any fiscal year and shall ensure that any such grants made for a fiscal year are closely matched in aggregate dollar amounts in grants made to counter other forms of extremism for such fiscal year.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Gun Trafficking Prevention Act of 2017 This bill amends the federal criminal code to make trafficking in firearms a crime. Specifically, it prohibits: purchasing or transferring a firearm with the intent to deliver it to a prohibited person; providing false or misleading material information in connection with a firearm purchase or transfer; and directing, promoting, or facilitating such prohibited conduct. The prohibition does not apply to a firearm lawfully acquired to give as a gift or lawfully received as a gift. A person who commits a gun trafficking offense is subject to a prison term of up to 20 years (or 25 years if such person also acted as an organizer). A person who conspires to commit a gun trafficking offense is subject to a prison term of up to 10 years. The U.S. Sentencing Commission must review and, if appropriate, amend the sentencing guidelines and policy statements that apply to persons convicted of trafficking in firearms.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Fair and Equal Housing Act of 2017 This bill amends the Fair Housing Act (FHA) under the Civil Rights Act of 1968 to add sexual orientation and gender identity as classes protected against discrimination in the sale, rental, or financing of housing. (Currently, the FHA prohibits housing discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.) The bill defines: (1) "gender identity" as gender-related identity, appearance, or mannerisms or other gender-related characteristics of an individual, without regard to the individual's designated sex at birth; and (2) "sexual orientation" as homosexuality, heterosexuality, or bisexuality. The bill also extends prohibitions against housing discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, handicap, familial status, or national origin to include discrimination based on: (1) an individual's association with another person who is a member of such a protected class; and (2) a perception or belief, even if inaccurate, that an individual is a member of such a protected class.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Safe and Affordable Drugs from Canada Act of 2017 This bill amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) to require the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to promulgate regulations within 180 days permitting individuals to import a prescription drug purchased from an approved Canadian pharmacy that: is dispensed by a pharmacist licensed in Canada; is purchased for personal use in quantities not greater than a 90-day supply; is filled using a valid prescription issued by a physician licensed to practice in the United States; and has the same active ingredients, route of administration, dosage form, and strength as a prescription drug approved under the FFDCA. Certain medications may not be imported, including controlled substances and biological products. The bill establishes a certification process for approving Canadian pharmacies. HHS must publish a list of approved Canadian pharmacies.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Gun Violence Research Act This bill amends the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 to eliminate the prohibition on the Department of Health and Human Services using federal funds to advocate or promote gun control.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Seat Egress in Air Travel Act of 2017 or the SEAT Act of 2017 This bill directs the Federal Aviation Administration to prescribe regulations: establishing minimum standards for space on passenger aircraft, including the size, width, and pitch of seats, the amount of leg room, and the width of aisles on such aircraft for the safety and health of passengers; and requiring each air carrier to prominently display on its website the amount of space available for each passenger on aircraft it operates.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Simon Wiesenthal Holocaust Education Assistance Act This bill amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to authorize the Department of Education (ED) to award competitive grants to educational organizations to carry out proposed or existing Holocaust education programs. ED may contract with a nonprofit organization to encourage, accept, and administer private donations and gifts for funding the education programs. Grants may not be used to supplant nonfederal funds the grantees would otherwise have used for Holocaust education programs.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Raise And Index to Sustainably and Efficiently Invest in Transportation Act of 2017 or the RAISE IT Act This bill expresses the sense of Congress that by 2027 the gas tax should be repealed and replaced with a more sustainable, stable funding source. The bill amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the excise tax on motor fuels, to increase the rate of tax on: gasoline other than aviation gasoline to 26.3 cents per gallon in 2018, 30.3 cents per gallon in 2019, and 33.3 cents per gallon after 2019 and before 2030; diesel fuel or kerosene to 32.3 cents per gallon in 2018, 36.3 cents per gallon in 2019, and 39.3 cents per gallon after 2019 and before 2029; and diesel-water fuel emulsion. The bill delays the termination of such increased rates from the end of FY2022 to December 31, 2028, and requires an adjustment for inflation to such increased rates beginning after 2019. It also: (1) increases allocations in the Mass Transit Account of the Highway Trust Fund in 2018, 2019, and after 2019; and (2) imposes a floor stocks tax on rate increases for gasoline, diesel fuel, and kerosene (other than aviation-grade kerosene), subject to specified exemptions for exempt uses and low-volume producers.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
No Taxpayer Revenue Used to Monetize the Presidency Act of 2017 or the No TRUMP Act of 2017 This bill prohibits direct payments from the Treasury or reimbursements for any amounts expended in a hotel or other establishment providing daily-rate accommodation that is owned or operated by the President or a relative of the President.
United States · United States Congress · 9 March 2017
Voluntary Protection Program Act This bill provides statutory authority for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA's) voluntary protection program, under which management, labor, and OSHA establish cooperative relationships at workplaces that have implemented a comprehensive safety and health management system.
United States · United States Congress · 8 March 2017
American Law Enforcement Heroes Act of 2017 This bill amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to include as an allowable use of grant funds under the Community Oriented Policing Services program prioritizing the hiring and training of veterans as career law enforcement officers.
![Official portrait of Rep. Cohen, Steve [D-TN-9]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/c001068_200.jpg)