Education

TEACH Act

United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2014

Technology, Equality and Accessibility in College and Higher Education Act or the TEACH Act - Directs the Access Board to develop accessibility guidelines for electronic instructional materials and related information technologies in institutions of higher education (IHEs). Requires those guidelines to: (1) include performance criteria to ensure that electronic instructional materials and related information technologies are accessible to the blind and disabled; (2) be consistent with the standards for technical and functional performance criteria issued pursuant to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; and (3) be, to the extent practicable, consistent with national and international accessibility standards for those materials and technologies. Directs the Access Board to review and, as appropriate, amend the guidelines every three years to reflect technological advances or changes in electronic instructional materials and related information technologies. Deems IHEs that use electronic instructional materials and related information technologies that comply with the guidelines to be in compliance with nondiscrimination provisions under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

A resolution designating March 3, 2014, as "Read Across America Day".

United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2014

Designates March 3, 2014, as Read Across America Day. Honors Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss) for his success in encouraging children to discover the joy of reading. Honors the 17th anniversary of Read Across America Day. Encourages parents to read with their children for at least 30 minutes on Read Across America Day.

A resolution expressing support for the goals and ideals of Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week.

United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2014

Expresses support for the goals and ideals of Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week. Reaffirms the U.S. commitment to ending multiple sclerosis by supporting multiple sclerosis research and education programs. Recognizes people living with multiple sclerosis and salutes the health care professionals and medical researchers who assist those so affected and continue to work towards finding ways to stop the progression of the disease, treat its symptoms, and end multiple sclerosis forever.

Breath of Fresh Air Act

United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2014

Breath of Fresh Air Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to award matching grants to local educational agencies (LEAs) to: (1) purchase nebulizers for use in their schools, and/or (2) train school personnel to use nebulizers. Requires LEA grant applicants to demonstrate that for each of their schools that are to use the nebulizers: (1) a full-time certified nurse is on staff, (2) trained personnel and other resources necessary for nebulizer use are in place, (3) emergency services personnel are notified of nebulizer locations, (4) nebulizers are integrated into the school's emergency response procedures, and (5) procedures are in place to notify parents of the availability of nebulizers and to inform them how to provide the school with their child's prescription asthma medication and authorization to use a nebulizer to assist their child. Gives grant priority to LEAs that: (1) serve areas where the prevalence of asthma is at least 10% higher than the national average; (2) do not already have at least one nebulizer in each of their schools; (3) serve schools that typically have a significant number of students, staff, and visitors present during the day; and (4) have not received funds under the Rural Access to Emergency Devices Act.

EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT AND EDUCATION IN INDIAN COUNTRY: BUILDING A FOUNDATION FOR ACADEMIC SUCCESS

United States · United States Senate · 26 February 2014

Transparency in Assertion of Patents Act

United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2014

Transparency in Assertion of Patents Act - Directs the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to promulgate rules prohibiting unfair or deceptive acts and practices in the sending of written communications (commonly referred to as "demand letters") stating that the intended recipient, or any person affiliated with the intended recipient: (1) is infringing, or may be infringing, the patent of another; and (2) bears liability or owes compensation. Requires such rules to establish disclosures that such written communications must contain, including: each claim of each patent allegedly infringed; each product, device, business method, service, or technology that allegedly infringes each claim; a notice that the intended recipient may have the right to have the product manufacturer defend against the infringement; contact information necessary to determine the identity of a person with the right to enforce the patent or with a direct financial interest in the patent, including each owner, co-owner, assignee, exclusive licensee, and entity with the authority to enforce the patent, as well as the ultimate parent entity with such authority; any licensing commitment or obligation (such as reasonable and non-discriminatory terms) that applies to the patent or claim; the method used to calculate any proposed compensation; and each current instance of reexamination or other post-grant review of the patent at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), any litigation involving the patent, and the status of such review and any determinations as to the invalidity of the patent or any of its claims. Directs the FTC to: (1) prohibit unfair or deceptive assertions in such written communications, and (2) provide education and awareness to the public regarding deceptive communications. Sets forth the enforcement authority of the FTC and authorizes civil actions by states. Establishes civil penalties applicable to state actions.

A resolution supporting the goals and ideals of "Career and Technical Education Month".

United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2014

Designates the month of February as Career and Technical Education Month.

Streamlining Energy Efficiency for Schools Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2014

Streamlining Energy Efficiency for Schools Act of 2014 - Amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to direct the Secretary of Energy (DOE), acting through the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, to act as the lead federal agency for coordinating and disseminating information on existing federal programs and assistance that may be used to help initiate, develop, and finance energy efficiency, renewable energy, and energy retrofitting projects for schools. Requires the Secretary to: (1) carry out a review of existing programs and financing mechanisms available in or from appropriate federal agencies with jurisdiction over energy financing and facilitation that are currently used or may be used for such purposes; (2) establish a federal cross-departmental collaborative coordination, education, and outreach effort to streamline communication and promote available federal opportunities and assistance for such projects that enables states, local educational agencies, and schools to use existing federal opportunities more effectively and to form partnerships with governors, state energy programs, local educational, financial, and energy officials, state and local officials, nonprofit organizations, and other appropriate entities to support project initiation; (3) provide technical assistance for states, local educational agencies, and schools to help develop and finance projects that meet specified requirements; (4) develop and maintain a single online resource website with contact information for relevant technical assistance and support staff in the Office for states, local educational agencies, and schools to effectively access and use federal opportunities and assistance to develop such projects; and (5) establish a process for recognition of schools that have successfully implemented such projects and are willing to serve as resources for other local educational agencies and schools to assist initiation of similar efforts.

Solutions to Long-Term Unemployment Act

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2014

Solutions to Long-Term Unemployment Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from the definition of full-time employee, for purposes of the employer mandate to provide minimum essential health care coverage, any individual who is a long-term unemployed individual. Defines "long-term unemployed individual" as an individual who: (1) begins employment after enactment of this Act, and (2) has been unemployed for 27 weeks or longer. Exempts from the payment of old-age, survivors, and disability insurance (OASDI), hospital insurance, and railroad retirement taxes any employers who employ long-term unemployed individuals for specified period. Makes appropriations to the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund in amounts equal to the reduction in revenues by reason of this exemption. Authorizes the Secretary to issue employment relocation loans of up to $10,000 to long-term unemployed individuals to enable them to relocate to a residence: (1) more than 50 miles away from their initial residence in order to allow them to begin a new job; or (2) in a state or metropolitan area that is not the location of their initial residence, and that has an unemployment rate two or more percentage points less than the unemployment rate of the state or metropolitan area of their initial residence. Authorizes the Secretary to forgive any remaining amount of interest and principal due on a loan in any case where the individual's new job is eliminated within the first year of employment through no fault of the individual. Supporting Knowledge and Investing in Lifelong Skills Act or SKILLS Act - Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) to revise requirements and reauthorize appropriations for: (1) WIA title I, workforce investment systems for job training and employment services; and (2) WIA title II, adult education and family literacy education programs. Revises requirements to: (1) eliminate representatives of labor organizations from state workforce investment boards, and (2) specify that representatives of business on a board represent large and small businesses each of which has immediate and long-term employment opportunities in an in-demand industry or other occupation important to the state economy. Requires a state board to assist the state governor by developing: (1) policies and programs that support a comprehensive statewide workforce development system, and (2) a statewide workforce and labor market information system. Revises requirements for: (1) a state workforce development plan; (2) local workforce investment areas, boards, and plans; (3) one-stop delivery systems; and (4) the allotment of federal funds among states for employment and training activities. Eliminates specific funding for adult and dislocated worker employment and training. Specifies state use of federal funds to set up a Workforce Investment Fund. Revises requirements for: (1) within state allocations of funds; and (2) the use of funds for state and local employment and training activities, including statewide rapid response, individuals with barriers to employment grants, and adults with barriers to employment grants. Converts the national emergency grants program into a national dislocated worker grants program. Authorizes the Secretary to award national dislocated worker grants to spouses of active duty members of the Armed Forces or full-time duty members of the National Guard (or members who recently separated from such duties) and are in need of employment and training assistance to obtain or retain employment. Requires the Employment and Training Administration of the Department of Labor to be the principal agency to administer WIA title I workforce investment systems for job training and employment services. Prohibits the use of funds for lobbying (with specified exceptions) and political activities (including voter registration activities). Adult Education and Family Literacy Education Act - Revises requirements for the state unified plan for adult education and literacy programs. Amends the Wagner-Peyser Act to eliminate the U.S. Employment Service. Replaces the nationwide employment statistics system, which the Secretary is required to oversee, with a nationwide workforce and labor market information system. Repeals the Youth Conservation Corps Act of 1970 and specified other laws. Amends the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to require employment and training services to eligible members of households participating in the supplemental nutrition assistance program be provided through the statewide workforce development system, including the one-stop delivery system. Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) with respect to employment and training services for refugees, and the Second Chance Act of 2007 as well as the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 with respect to such services through the statewide workforce investment system for federal, state, and local prisoner reentry programs. Amends the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (RA73) to: (1) redesignate the Commissioner of the Rehabilitation Services Administration the Director, and (2) require an eligible state to use a certain percentage of the federal share of the cost of vocational rehabilitation services to award grants to pay for the federal share of the cost of carrying out collaborative programs, create practical job and career readiness and training programs, and provide job placements and career advancement. Repeals the authority of the Commissioner of the Rehabilitation Services Administration in the Department of Education to make grants and contracts for: (1) vocational rehabilitation services to individuals with disabilities who are migrant or seasonal farmworkers; (2) recreational programs for such individuals; and (3) in-service training of vocational rehabilitation personnel. Repeals title VI (Employment Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities) of the RA73. Revises requirements and reauthorizes appropriations for vocational rehabilitation services under the RA73. Directs the Comptroller General (GAO) to report to Congress on whether, before receiving workforce investment system training services, adults and dislocated workers have first exhausted funds received through the Federal Pell Grant program under title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965. Directs the Comptroller General to report to Congress a determination of the amount of administrative costs savings at the federal and state levels as a result of workforce investment system programs repealed or consolidated under this Act. Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to decrease from $492.356 billion to $482.356 billion the nondefense discretionary spending limit for FY2014.

To prohibit funds made available to the Department of Education or the Department of Justice from being used to provide postsecondary courses in prisons.

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2014

Prohibits funds made available to the Department of Education or the Department of Justice (DOJ) from being used to provide postsecondary courses to inmates in federal or state prisons.

Afterschool for America's Children Act

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2014

Afterschool for America's Children Act - Amends the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program under part B of title IV of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). (21st Century Community Learning Centers provide students with before school, after school, and summer learning programs to improve their academic performance.) Requires the Centers to provide students' families with opportunities for active and meaningful engagement in their children's education. Includes Indian tribes or organizations among the local public or private entities that are eligible for grants from states to establish the Centers. Allows states to use a portion of the part B funds allotted to them by the Secretary of Education to: (1) assist those Centers in aligning their before school, after school, and summer learning programs with the state's academic standards; and (2) ensure that those Centers partner with nonprofit organizations in the community that have had success in carrying out, or working with, those programs. Requires states to: (1) award grants only to local entities that propose to serve students who primarily attend schools that are eligible for schoolwide programs under part A of title I of the ESEA, and (2) give priority to applicants that propose to serve students that attend schools that have been identified as needing improvement. Requires states to use a rigorous peer review process in reviewing grant applications. Prohibits the Secretary or states from giving funding priority to applicants that propose to use the funds to extend the regular school day. Allows states to renew a grant under part B based on the grantee's performance during the original grant period. Includes among the activities grants may fund: (1) core academic subject education activities, including those that allow students to recover or attain credits; (2) services for the disabled; (3) activities and programs that support global education and competence; (4) programs that support a healthy, active lifestyle; (5) literacy education programs; and (6) programs that build science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) skills and support innovative STEM teaching methods. Requires students' academic performance and overall success to be taken into account in evaluating the performance of the Centers. Reauthorizes the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program through FY2020.

Keeping All Students Safe Act

United States · United States Congress · 24 February 2014

Keeping All Students Safe Act - Requires each state educational agency and local educational agency (LEA) that receives federal funds to prohibit school personnel, contractors, and resource officers from subjecting students to: (1) seclusion, (2) mechanical or chemical restraint, (3) aversive behavioral intervention that compromises student health and safety, or (4) physical restraint that is life-threatening or contraindicated based on the student's health or disability status. Excludes from the definition of "seclusion" time outs that involve the separation of a student from the group, in a non-locked setting, for the purpose of calming. Allows physical restraint only when: (1) the student's behavior poses an immediate danger of serious physical harm to the student or others; (2) the restraint does not interfere with the student's ability to communicate; and (3) the restraint occurs after less restrictive interventions have proven ineffective in stopping the danger, except in certain emergencies when immediate restraint is necessary. Requires school personnel imposing physical restraint to: (1) be trained and certified by a state-approved crisis intervention training program, though others may impose such restraint in certain instances when trained personnel are not immediately available; and (2) engage in continuous face-to-face monitoring of the restrained student. Requires: the parents of a physically restrained student to be notified on the day such restraint occurs; a debriefing session to be held as soon as practicable in which the person who imposed the restraint, the immediate adult witnesses, a school administrator, a school mental health professional, and at least one of the student's family members participate; the affected student to be given an opportunity to discuss the event with a trusted adult who will communicate the student's perspective to the debriefing session group; and the state educational agency, the LEA, local law enforcement, and any protection and advocacy system serving an affected student to be notified within 24 hours of any death or bodily injury that occurs in conjunction with efforts to control a student's behavior. Authorizes a student to file a civil action seeking relief from the use of seclusion or restraint on the student in violation of this Act. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award grants to states and, through them, competitive subgrants to LEAs to: (1) establish, implement, and enforce policies and procedures to meet this Act's requirements; (2) improve their capacity to collect and analyze data related to physical restraint; and (3) implement school-wide positive behavioral interventions and supports. Requires states to allow private school personnel to participate, on an equitable basis, in activities supported by such grants and subgrants.

Supporting the goals and ideals of International Mother Language Day in bringing attention to the importance of preserving linguistic and cultural heritage through education.

United States · United States Congress · 21 February 2014

Supports the goals and ideals of International Mother Language Day.

Growing Small Businesses Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2014

Growing Small Businesses Act of 2014 - Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to revise performance accountability system requirements for statewide and local workforce investment programs. Directs the Secretary of Labor to develop separate performance measures for individuals who receive entrepreneurial training under such programs. Requires providers of training services who offer entrepreneurial training services under a local workforce investment program for adults and dislocated workers to: (1) use intake tools that assess an individual's suitability for referral to entrepreneurial training services; (2) report to the local workforce investment board that includes the number of individuals who express interest in self-employment or starting a business and enroll entrepreneurial training services; and (3) develop partnerships with microbusiness development organizations that can provide education, training, counseling, and coaching focused on helping new and low and moderate income entrepreneurs succeed.

National Sea Grant College Program Amendments Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2014

National Sea Grant College Program Amendments Act of 2014 - Reauthorizes the National Sea Grant College Program Act with specified appropriations through FY2020. Removes a requirement that the Secretary of Commerce report annually to Congress regarding efforts and progress made by colleges, universities, institutions, associations, and alliances to become designated as sea grant colleges or institutes. Requires (currently, allows) the Secretary to award marine policy fellowships to support the placement of individuals at the graduate level of education (in fields related to ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes resources) in positions with the executive and legislative branches of the federal government. Repeals a requirement under the National Sea Grant College Program Act Amendments of 2002 that the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and the Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) submit an annual report to Congress regarding the coordination of research activities by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and NSF. Requires the National Sea Grant Advisory Board to report to Congress every three years (currently, every two years) on the progress made toward meeting priorities under the Secretary's strategic plan. Authorizes additional FY2015-FY2020 appropriations designated specifically for competitive grants relating to: (1) university research on aquatic non-native species, oyster diseases, algal blooms, and specified regional or national priority issues; and (2) fishery extension activities conducted by sea grant colleges or institutes to enhance existing core program funding. Requires the Director of the Program to use authority available for the temporary assignment of personnel between federal, state, and local governments and other organizations to meet any critical staffing requirement while implementing authorized activities. Exempts costs associated with the exercise of such authority from limitations on the amount that may be used for administration of programs in a fiscal year.

JOBS Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2014

Jumpstart Our Businesses by Supporting Students Act of 2014 or the JOBS Act of 2014 - Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education, for the award years beginning on July 1, 2014, and ending on June 30, 2020, to award job training Federal Pell Grants to students in job training programs. Makes students eligible for such Grants if they: (1) have not attained a baccalaureate or postbaccalaureate degree; (2) are attending an institution of higher education (IHE) that is eligible to participate in title IV programs; (3) are enrolled in, or accepted for enrollment in, a job training program at that IHE that does not lead to a baccalaureate degree; and (4) meet all the other eligibility requirements for a Federal Pell Grant. Establishes a maximum amount, but no minimum amount, for such a Grant. Defines an eligible "job training program" as a career and technical education program at an IHE that: provides at least 150 clock hours of instructional time over a period of at least 8 weeks, provides training that meets the needs of the local or regional workforce, provides students who complete the program with a recognized educational credential, and the IHE has determined is sufficient to meet the hiring requirements of multiple employers and allow students to apply for any licenses or certifications that may be required for employment in the field for which the job training is offered.

All Year School Study Act

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2014

All Year School Study Act - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to carry out a multi-year pilot program awarding four grants to states, local educational agencies, or other public entities to establish or expand year-round education programs at public elementary or secondary schools that focus on raising student achievement. Allows grantees to increase the salaries of teachers participating in the year-round education programs, but by no more than 100%. Requires the Secretary to give priority to grant applicants that: (1) propose to carry out year-round education activities that emphasize science, technology, engineering, and mathematics; and (2) target high-poverty areas and low-performing schools. Directs the Secretary to enter into a contract for an independent evaluation of the pilot program's effectiveness.

GI Education Benefit Fairness Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

GI Education Benefit Fairness Act of 2014 - Expands the definition of "children," for purposes of provisions allowing members or former members of the uniformed services who served on active duty for specified periods beginning on or after September 11, 2001, to transfer their entitlement to educational assistance, to mean an unmarried person who: (1) is placed in the legal custody of a member or former member by court order for at least 12 consecutive months, (2) has not attained the age of 21, (3) has not attained the age of 23 and is enrolled in a full-time course of study at an institution of higher learning, (4) is incapable of self support due to a mental or physical incapacity that occurred while such person was a dependent of the member or former member, (5) is dependent on the member or former member for over one-half of his or her support, (6) resides with the member or former member unless separated due to military service or institutionalization for a disability or incapacitation, and (7) is not a dependent of a member or former member under any other provision defining dependent.

Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act - Amends the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act to require states that classify children by disability to: (1) identify, locate, and evaluate children who have visual disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing, who are, or may be, classified in another disability category; and (2) provide special education and related services to such children, including the services provided to children classified as blind or deaf or hard of hearing. Requires states to file a written addendum to their special education plan that ensures that children in the state who have visual disabilities or who are deaf or hard of hearing are: (1) evaluated by qualified professionals, using valid and reliable assessments, regarding the special education and related services that meet their unique learning needs; and (2) provided the special education and related services that meet those needs. Specifies the minimum content of those evaluations. Requires states to ensure that they have enough qualified personnel to serve children who are visually disabled or who are deaf or hard of hearing. Allows parents and local educational agencies to include a representative of a state-operated, state-supported, or state-aided school for the deaf on a child's individualized education program (IEP) team. Requires the IEP team for each child that is blind or visually impaired or deaf or hard of hearing to provide the child with instruction that meets the child's unique learning needs and includes assistive technology proficiency, self sufficiency and interaction, and age appropriate career education. Requires states to ensure that a full continuum of alternative placements is available to meet the needs of disabled children for special education and related services. Treats states' closure of special schools serving children who are blind or deaf as a reduction of their financial support for special education and related services for purposes of the prohibition against reducing their level of financial support for such services from one fiscal year to the next. Directs the Secretary of Education, within one year of this Act's enactment and periodically thereafter, to review, update, and publish policy guidance concerning the provision of special education and related services to students who are visually disabled or who are deaf or hard of hearing. Includes teachers of infants and toddlers with sensory disabilities as qualified providers of early intervention services. Provides that the natural environments in which early intervention services are to be provided for infants and toddlers with sensory disabilities include any environment where services meeting their unique needs are available, including those where the child's language is the primary language and mode of communication. Requires the individualized family service plan for an infant or toddler who is deaf or hard of hearing to include: (1) an ongoing language and communication assessment, (2) language and communication development goals commensurate with the child's cognitive abilities, and (3) the language and communication access that will be provided to the child. Authorizes grants for training special education personnel to be used in preparing individuals to be qualified teachers and early intervention specialists for deaf and hard of hearing children. Establishes within the Department of Education a national program named the Anne Sullivan Macy Center on Visual Disability and Educational Excellence, which is to be administered by a consortium composed of nonprofit organizations and at least one institution of higher education (IHE) with specified experience in the education of the visually impaired. Authorizes the Center to: conduct or fund original quantitative and qualitative research and disseminate that research; conduct or fund in-person and on-line continuing education opportunities for teachers of the visually impaired and related services personnel and to prepare and disseminate supporting materials; conduct or fund in-person or online enrichment projects for students with visual disabilities; fund the establishment of programs within IHEs to prepare teachers of the visually impaired to provide expert instruction to visually impaired students who also have additional disabilities; and enter into agreements or grants with nonprofit organizations to carry out authorized activities that are not otherwise directly conducted by the Center.

Improving Veterans' Access to Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

Improving Veterans' Access to Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Act of 2014 - Requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA), when calculating the rate of veterans determined to be rehabilitated to the point of employability, to divide the number of veterans who participated in VA vocational rehabilitation programs whom the Secretary determines to have been so rehabilitated by the total number of veterans who: (1) participated in such programs during that fiscal year, and (2) were entitled to participate in such programs during such fiscal year but who did not complete a program. Allows a course of education and training to be pursued by a veteran as part of a rehabilitation program only if the course is approved under VA vocational rehabilitation requirements. Makes veterans enrolled in a VA vocational rehabilitation program eligible for VA specially adapted housing, when appropriate. Authorizes the Secretary to prioritize VA vocational rehabilitation services based on need upon consideration of disability ratings, the severity of employment handicaps, qualification for a program of independent living, income, and other factors determined appropriate.

WMD Prevention and Preparedness Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

WMD Prevention and Preparedness Act of 2014 - Title I: A National Biodefense Enterprise - Requires the President to assign a member of the National Security Council as Special Assistant to the President for Biodefense to: (1) serve as the President's principal advisor regarding coordination of federal biodefense policy; (2) identify inefficiencies in existing biodefense activities and the actions necessary to overcome them; (3) lead the development of a coordinated National Biodefense Plan, a coordinated National Biosurveillance Strategy, and a coordinated national research and development strategy and implementation plan for microbial forensics; (4) oversee, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the development of a comprehensive cross-cutting biodefense budget analysis to inform prioritization of resources and ensure that biodefense challenges are adequately addressed; and (5) conduct ongoing oversight and evaluation of implementation of federal biodefense activities by relevant government agencies. Directs the Special Assistant to submit to the President and update as necessary a National Biodefense Plan that: defines the scope and purpose of a national biodefense capability; identifies biological risks to the nation and activities and tasks to be performed to address them; defines organizational roles, responsibilities, and coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities with respect to such activities and tasks; defines research and development needs for improving the capacity for threat awareness and prevention, protection, response, and recovery; identifies biodefense assets, interdependencies, and capability gaps; provides goals and performance measures; identifies resource and investment needs; integrates and supports the strategies outlined in Presidential Policy Directives 2 and 8 and Homeland Security Presidential Directives 5, 9, 10, 18, and 21, the National Biosurveillance Strategy, and the National Medical Countermeasure Dispensing Strategy; is consistent with the National Response Framework; incorporates input from federal, state, local, and tribal stakeholders; and provides planning guidance to biosecurity and biodefense stakeholders. Directs the Special Assistant to publish and update every four years a National Biosurveillance Strategy that: identifies the purpose and scope of a nationally integrated biosurveillance capability; establishes objectives and performance measures to guide the development of such capability; defines and prioritizes costs, benefits, and resource and investment needs, with particular attention to leveraging existing resources; delineates federal, state, local, tribal, and private roles and responsibilities; and describes how the Strategy is integrated with related national strategies. Requires the Special Assistant to publish an implementation plan for such Strategy that includes a plan for: (1) advancing situational awareness of biological threats; (2) fostering information sharing among national biosecurity and biodefense stakeholders to identify potential threats, reduce vulnerabilities, and improve collective response to and investigations of suspected biological attacks; and (3) enhancing the capability of the federal government to rapidly identify, characterize, localize, and track a biological event of national concern by integrating and analyzing data relating to human health, animal, plant, food, and environmental monitoring systems. Requires the Special Assistant concurrent with the submission of the President's annual budget to Congress, a comprehensive cross-cutting biodefense budget analysis that delineates and integrates the biodefense expenditure requests for the Departments of Agriculture (USDA), Commerce, Defense (DOD), Energy (DOE), Health and Human Services (HHS), Homeland Security (DHS), Justice, State, and Veterans Affairs (VA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the National Science Foundation (NSF). Title II: Intelligence Matters - Requires the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) to develop and implement: (1) a National Intelligence Strategy for Countering the Threat from Weapons of Mass Destruction that is designed to improve U.S. capabilities to collect, analyze, and disseminate intelligence related to weapons of mass destruction (WMD); and (2) a plan to implement such Strategy. Requires such Strategy to: (1) identify and address core capabilities needed for successful intelligence collection on WMD; (2) include methods for the recruitment, training, and retention of a workforce with expertise in the collection, analysis, and dissemination of intelligence related to all types of WMD and science and technology related to WMD, as well as expertise in science and technology relating to risks posed by WMD; and (3) include methods for information sharing and collaboration with non-federal national biosecurity and biodefense stakeholders. Requires the implementation plan to include: (1) actions necessary to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the sharing of intelligence on WMD throughout the Intelligence Community and with other federal partners; (2) methods to disseminate intelligence products to national biosecurity and biodefense stakeholders in classified and unclassified formats to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of information sharing; and (3) actions necessary to provide open-source intelligence relating to WMD to appropriate governmental authorities and private entities. Requires the DNI to develop and implement: (1) a National Intelligence Strategy for Countering Biological Threats that is integrated into the National Intelligence Strategy for Countering the Threat from Weapons of Mass Destruction, and (2) a plan for implementing such Strategy. Requires such Strategy to: identify and address target capabilities needed for successful intelligence collection on biological threats; include a plan for establishing in the Intelligence Community a cadre of collectors and analysts that are familiar with biological threats, biological science, and biotechnology; include a plan for defining the functions, capabilities, and gaps in that Community's workforce with respect to assessing the biological threat; include methods for collaboration with non-Intelligence Community technical experts within and outside of the federal government, in particular with state and local biodefense stakeholders; include a plan for defining, integrating, focusing, and enhancing existing capabilities in the Intelligence Community dedicated to current and strategic biological threats; and include a plan for ensuring the prioritization and sustained commitment of intelligence personnel and resources to address biological threats. Requires the implementation plan to: (1) include actions necessary to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the sharing of intelligence through the Intelligence Community on biological weapons and organisms that could be used for biological terrorism; (2) address strategic and tactical human intelligence, measurement and signature intelligence, technical intelligence, medical intelligence, and open-source intelligence activities necessary to implement the Strategy; and (3) include a schedule for regularly evaluating the efforts of the Intelligence Community and progress on understanding and countering biological threats. Title III: Homeland Security Matters - Amends the HSA to require DHS's Office of Intelligence and Analysis to: conduct intelligence and information sharing activities consistent with the National Intelligence Strategy for Countering the Threat from Weapons of Mass Destruction under this Act and the National Intelligence Strategy for Countering Biological Threats; support homeland security-focused intelligence analysis of terrorist actors, their claims, and their plans to conduct attacks against the nation involving chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear materials; support homeland security-focused intelligence analysis of global infectious disease, public health, food, agricultural, and veterinary issues; support homeland security-focused risk analysis and risk assessments of such hazards by providing relevant quantitative and non-quantitative threat information; leverage existing and emerging homeland security capabilities and structures, including fusion centers, to enhance prevention, protection, response, and recovery efforts with respect to a terrorist attack; share information and provide tailored analytical support on such threats to state, local, and tribal authorities, as well as other national biosecurity and biodefense stakeholders; and coordinate with other relevant DHS components, others in the Intelligence Community, and federal, state, local, and tribal authorities on optimal information sharing mechanisms. Directs the Secretary to report to specified congressional committees on: (1) the intelligence and information sharing activities described above and of all relevant entities within DHS to counter the threat from WMD, and (2) DHS's activities in accordance with relevant intelligence strategies. Directs the Under Secretary for Science and Technology to produce and periodically update: (1) a terrorism risk assessment of chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear threats; and (2) an integrated terrorism risk assessment that assesses all of those threats and compares their relative risks. Directs the Secretary to: (1) convene an interagency task force of relevant subject matter experts to assess and provide recommendations on the adequacy of proposed methodology to be used for such assessments; (2) conduct sensitivity analysis on each assessment to identify and prioritize research activities to close knowledge gaps; (3) consider the evolving threat from an intelligent adversary; (4) share the risk assessments with federal, state, local, and tribal officials with appropriate security clearances and a need for the information in the classified version; and (5) make available an unclassified version for government officials involved in prevention and preparedness for chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear events. Requires the Export Enforcement Coordination Center to be maintained in DHS, with capability for coordinating the export enforcement activities. Directs the Center to: (1) enhance federal coordination for law enforcement counter proliferation investigations; (2) address licensing inquiries, reviews, requests, checks, and verifications; and (3) conduct outreach and provide training to the export trade community. Directs the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to: (1) develop a communications plan designed to provide information to the public related to preventing, preparing for, responding to, and recovering from chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear attacks; and (2) develop and disseminate, through an alerts and warnings system, pre-scripted messages and message templates for state, local, and tribal authorities to quickly disseminate critical information to the public in anticipation of, during, or in the immediate aftermath of such an attack, to be included in DHS's lessons learned information sharing system. Directs the Secretary to: (1) ensure that homeland security information concerning terrorist threats is provided to state, local, and tribal authorities and the public; and (2) establish a process to optimize opportunities for qualified heads of state, local, and tribal government entities to obtain security clearances so that they may receive classified threat information. Directs the Secretary to prepare unclassified threat bulletins that include guidance to the public for preventing and responding to acts of terrorism arising from chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear threats, which shall be made available on the Internet website of DHS and other publicly accessible Internet websites, communication systems, and information networks. Directs the Secretary, using information provided by the terrorism risk assessments and material threat assessments and determinations under the Project BioShield Act of 2004, to: (1) provide to state, local, and trial authorities written guidance on communicating terrorism-related threats and risks to the public; and (2) articulate the governmental rationale for identifying particular communities as being at heightened risk of exploitation. Directs the FEMA Administrator, to assist government authorities in improving and promoting individual and community preparedness and collective response to terrorist attacks by: (1) developing and disseminating guidance and checklists of recommended actions for individual and community prevention and preparedness efforts, (2) providing information and training materials in support of individual and community preparedness efforts, and (3) conducting individual and community preparedness outreach efforts. Directs the Secretary to carry out a program to detect a biological attack or event that poses a high risk to homeland security, including by: deploying detection capabilities to high risk areas to indicate the presence of biological agents; considering multiple deployment strategies, including surge capability; providing information to participating laboratories and programs for use in monitoring public health, and biological material or other data from those detectors to participating laboratories and programs for testing and evaluation; regularly communicating with, and providing information about the presence of biological agents to, federal, state, and local agencies responsible for public health, law enforcement, and emergency services in a manner that ensures transparency; providing advanced planning tools, concepts of operations, standard operating procedures, and training exercises for collective response to and recovery from biological attacks; and providing technical assistance to jurisdictions hosting the program to improve their ability to respond to a detected pathogen. Directs the Secretary: (1) to require the Under Secretary for Science and Technology to assess whether the development of technological screening capabilities for biological agents, pandemic influenza, and other infectious diseases should be undertaken by the Directorate of Science and Technology to support entry and exit screening at ports of entry and for other homeland security purposes; and (2) if the Under Secretary's determination is affirmative, to initiate development of safe and effective methods to rapidly screen incoming persons at ports of entry. Authorizes the Secretary, in coordination with the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), to carry out a program to: (1) establish near-term minimum performance metrics to support public safety actionable activities to evaluate the effectiveness of detection technology for high-priority biological agents and toxins and high-priority chemical agents; (2) establish a process for voluntary testing and evaluation of technology by an accredited laboratory to demonstrate conformance to consensus standards, or performance metrics if standards do not exist, for the effective detection of high-priority biological agents and toxins and high-priority chemical agents; and (3) make available to federal agencies, state, territorial, local, and tribal entities, and the private sector, with permission from the detection technology manufacturer, the results of detection system testing and evaluation. Requires the Director of the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office to: (1) establish and maintain a multilayered system of detection technologies, programs, and guidelines designed to enhance the nation's ability to detect and prevent a radiological or nuclear attack in high-risk U.S. cities; and (2) develop a surge capability for radiological and nuclear detection systems that can be deployed within the United States rapidly in response to actionable intelligence or warnings. Requires such programs to be integrated into the Global Nuclear Detection Architecture and inform architecture studies, technology gaps, and research activities of the Office. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop for police, fire, emergency medical services, emergency management, and medical and public health personnel voluntary guidance for responding to a release of chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear material; (2) make such guidance available to state, local, and tribal authorities, including primary and secondary schools and other educational institutions, nongovernmental organizations, the private sector, and the public; and (3) review the experiences of other countries and the expertise of academic institutions and nongovernmental organizations and to consider the unique needs of children and other vulnerable populations. Directs the Secretary to: (1) acquire, use, and disseminate the best available integrated plume models (i.e., assessments of the location and prediction of the spread of agents following a chemical, biological, nuclear, or radiological attack or event that integrate protective action guidance) to enable rapid response activities following such an attack or event; and (2) carry out a program for system assessment and validation of emergency response equipment at DHS, to be known as the SAVER Program. Authorizes federal agencies, in carrying out functions to counter biological terrorism, to enter into contracts with laboratories that comprise the Laboratory Response Network for Biological Terrorism and other federally networked laboratories for the provision of laboratory testing services. Authorizes in DHS a bioforensics analysis center to provide definitive bioforensics analysis in support of the executive agencies with primary responsibilities for preventing, deterring, responding to, attributing, and recovering from biological attacks. Directs the Secretary to conduct a Metropolitan Medical Response System Program that shall assist state and local governments in preparing for and responding to public health and mass casualty incidents resulting from acts of terrorism, natural disasters, and other man-made disasters. Allows a grant under such Program to be used to support the integration of emergency management, health, and medical systems into a coordinated response to mass casualty incidents caused by any hazard. Directs the Under Secretary for Science and Technology to conduct tailored risk assessments to inform prioritization of national recovery activities for chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear incidents, to be updated as necessary. Directs the Secretary to develop and issue guidance for clean-up and restoration of indoor and outdoor areas, including subways and other mass transportation facilities, that have been exposed to chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear materials. Directs the Secretary to: (1) develop exercises to facilitate recovery from a chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear incident and to foster collective response to terrorism; and (2) provide lessons learned reports to designated representatives of state, local, and tribal jurisdictions and private sector entities that participate in National Level Exercises of DHS. Directs the FEMA Administrator, the DHS Chief Medical Officer, and the National Metropolitan Medical Response System Working Group to conduct a review of the Metropolitan Medical Response System Program and report the results of the review to specified congressional committees. Directs the President to establish the Federal Experts Security Advisory Panel to make technical and substantive recommendations on biological agent and toxin security. Requires the Panel to deliver to the Secretaries of Agriculture, HHS, and DHS recommendations concerning: the designation as highest risk of that subset of biological agents and toxins that presents the greatest risk of deliberate misuse with significant potential for mass casualties or devastating effects to the economy; the development of a set of minimum risk-based prescriptive laboratory security performance standards based on the risk at the lowest level, allowing for enhancements as risk increases; the establishment of appropriate standards and practices to improve vetting and monitoring, and ensure reliability, of personnel with access to highest risk biological agents and toxins at facilities registered under the Public Health Service Act (PHSA); the establishment of appropriate practices for physical security and cyber security for facilities that possess highest risk biological agents or toxins; standards for training of laboratory personnel in security measures; other emerging policy issues relevant to the security of biological agents and toxins; and adequacy of information sharing protocols with biodefense and biosecurity stakeholders. Directs the Secretaries, after the date of receipt of such recommendations, to promulgate rules under the PHSA establishing security standards and procedures that are specific to highest risk biological agents and toxins. Requires the heads of specified government entities to: (1) develop and implement a plan for the coordination of biological agents and toxins security oversight for facilities in which the entity supports biological agent or toxin laboratory activities, that articulates a mechanism for coordinated inspections of and harmonized administrative practices for facilities registered under the PHSA and that ensures consistent and timely identification and resolution of biological agents and toxins security and compliance issues; and (2) coordinate or consolidate laboratory inspections and ensure that such inspections are conducted using a common set of inspection procedures across such entities to minimize the administrative burden on laboratories. Directs the Secretaries of HHS and Agriculture to: (1) develop a process for sharing information pertaining to biological agents and toxins with agencies that support biological agent or toxin laboratory activities; and (2) share relevant information pertaining to biological agents and toxins with each other and with appropriate state, local, and tribal government authorities. Expresses the sense of Congress that the field of synthetic biology has the potential to facilitate enormous gains in fundamental discovery, public health, and biotechnological applications, but it also presents inherent dual-use homeland security risks that must be managed. Directs the Under Secretary for Science and Technology: (1) every two years, to undertake a risk assessment of the dual-use and other risks associated with synthetic biology; and (2) to develop and provide to all agencies that fund life sciences research, guidance on compliance with U.S. laws, arms control agreement, and agency policies for research, development, or acquisition projects in the life sciences. Authorizes the Under Secretary to conduct research into the risks and ways to mitigate such risks of synthetic biology, including: (1) determining the current capability of synthetic nucleic acid providers to effectively differentiate a legitimate customer from a potential terrorist or other malicious actor, and to effectively screen orders for sequences of homeland security concern; and (2) making recommendations regarding screening, software, protocols, and other remaining capability gaps uncovered by such assessment. Amends HSA to require the dissemination of information analyzed by DHS to state, local, tribal, and private entities with responsibilities relating to homeland security to assist in preventing, deterring, or responding to acts of terrorism. Title IV: Public Health Matters - Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) coordination among federal agencies involved in activities relating to researching, developing, and acquiring medical countermeasures still needs improvement; and (2) aggressive action should be taken by HHS, DHS, and the DOD to foster greater coordination with respect to such activities. Amends the PHSA to direct the Secretary of HHS, in coordination with the Secretaries of DHS and Agriculture, and other appropriate federal agencies, to develop, implement, and periodically update a National Medical Countermeasure Dispensing Strategy to enhance preparedness and collective response to a terrorist attack on humans or animals with any chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear material, that delineates federal, state, and local responsibilities. Directs the HHS Secretary, in coordination with the Secretaries of DHS and Agriculture, to: (1) review the adequacy of domestic vaccination and antimicrobial dispensing policy, guidance, and information provided to the public in light of any known terrorist risk of a biological attack or other phenomena that may have serious health consequences for the United States, including wide-scale fatalities or infectious disease outbreaks including those associated with the avian flu; and (2) report to specified congressional committees on the review and any recommendations relating to the availability of domestic vaccine and antimicrobials for disbursing to the public and voluntary immunization by first responders. Directs the HHS Secretary to: (1) make available to state, local, and tribal first responders surplus vaccines and antimicrobials, and vaccines and antimicrobials with short shelf lives from the strategic national stockpile of drugs, vaccines and other biological products, medical devices, and other supplies; (2) establish any necessary logistical and tracking systems to facilitate making such vaccines and antimicrobials available; and (3) distribute disclosures regarding associated risks to end users. Amends the PHSA to require the HHS Secretary, on an ongoing basis, to: (1) establish criteria for the issuance of a material threat determination, and (2) review and reassess determinations of whether agents continue to present a material threat against the U.S. population sufficient to affect national security and homeland security. Amends the PHSA to direct the Attorney General, in identifying whether an individual is within a category of individuals reasonably suspected by any federal law enforcement or intelligence agency of knowing involvement with an organization that engages in domestic or international terrorism or with any other organization that engages in intentional crimes of violence, to consult with the Secretaries of DHS, Defense, and State. Title V: Foreign Relations Matters - Directs the Secretary of State to: (1) support efforts of other countries to effectively implement legislation criminalizing the development or use of biological weapons or acts of bioterrorism; (2) engage other countries and international nongovernmental entities to establish common standards for actions relevant to preventing acts of bioterrorism and the illicit use of life sciences; (3) support the efforts of other countries to enhance biosecurity and safety practices at laboratories and other facilities with materials that could be used in biological weapons or in an act of bioterrorism; (4) promote the development and adoption of international guidance for the safety and security of high-risk pathogens and toxins; and (5) promote information sharing relating to threats and best practices between the intelligence community, federal law enforcement, and international law enforcement and security officials. Directs the Secretary of State to: (1) support efforts in other countries and regions to develop mechanisms and capabilities for reporting to U.N. organizations validated data on biological attacks or other phenomena that may have serious health consequences for the United States; (2) engage other federal and nongovernmental entities and other countries to advance awareness and understanding of the risk posed by information derived from the life sciences that has the potential for misuse to cause harm; (3) advance recommendations on how best to address such risk; (4) engage such entities and countries to promote greater awareness and understanding of the global availability of and access to life science technologies and materials; and (5) promote the development and use of mechanisms for reporting, preserving, and sharing data on federal programs and investments in international scientific, agricultural, medical, and public health collaborations in support of efforts to enhance global biosecurity. Directs the Secretary of State to convene and lead an interagency task force to examine: (1) the state of global biopreparedness for a major biological event, (2) necessary components of a global biopreparedness architecture that would advance international health security, (3) best practices for preparedness based on lessons learned from domestic efforts to address such issues and that may be applicable internationally, (4) activities undertaken through the National Intelligence Strategy for Countering Biological Threats and the International Health Regulations 2005, and (5) the utility of working through existing international forums as a mechanism for distributing this information to the international community. Directs the Secretary of State to: (1) promote confidence in effective implementation of and compliance with the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on their Destruction by promoting transparency with respect to legitimate activities and pursuing compliance diplomatically to address concerns; (2) promote universal membership in the Convention; (3) develop an action plan for increasing international adherence to the Convention; and (4) ensure that U.S. participation in Convention meetings is broadly inclusive of representatives of relevant federal departments and agencies.

Expressing support for designation of the week of March 16, 2014, through March 22, 2014, as National Young Audiences Arts for Learning Week.

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

Supports the designation of National Young Audiences Arts for Learning Week. (Young Audiences Arts for Learning is a nonprofit organization that presents arts-in-education programs to students and teachers.) Honors the contributions which Young Audiences Arts for Learning programs have made in enriching the lives of students, teachers, volunteers, families, and communities.

Supporting the goals and ideals of National Engineers Week.

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

Supports the goals and ideals of National Engineers Week to increase understanding of, and interest in, engineering and technology careers. Recognizes that engineering education is a critical component of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education.

Strongly supporting the restoration and protection of State authority and flexibility in establishing and defining challenging student academic standards and assessments, and strongly denouncing the President's coercion of States into adopting the Common Core State Standards by conferring preferences in Federal grants and flexibility waivers.

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: states and local educational agencies should maintain the right and responsibility of determining educational curricula, programs of instruction, and assessments for elementary and secondary education; the federal government should not incentivize the adoption of common education standards or the creation of a national assessment to align with such standards; and no application process for any federal grant funds or waivers issued by the Secretary of Education under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 should award any additional points, or provide any preference, for the adoption of the Common Core State Standards or any other national common education standards.

SUPPORTING CHILDREN AND FAMILIES THROUGH INVESTMENTS IN HIGH-QUALITY EARLY EDUCATION

United States · United States Senate · 6 February 2014

Native Adult Education and Literacy Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2014

Native Adult Education and Literacy Act of 2014 - Amends the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act to include Tribal Colleges or Universities as eligible providers of services under that Act. Directs the Secretary of Education to award competitive grants to Tribal Colleges or Universities and Native Hawaiian educational organizations to develop and implement innovative, effective, and replicable programs designed to enhance life skills and transition individuals to employability and postsecondary education. Requires grantees to have a multiyear strategy, including performance measures, for increasing the number of adult American Indians, Native Hawaiians, or Alaska Natives that attain a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent. Includes among the activities that may be funded by a grant: adult education and literacy services, including workplace literacy services; family literacy services; English literacy programs, including limited English proficiency programs; opportunities for American Indians, Native Hawaiians, and Alaska Natives to qualify for a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent; and demonstration and research projects and professional development activities designed to develop and identify the most successful means of addressing the educational needs of American Indian, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native adults.

A resolution strongly supporting the restoration and protection of State authority and flexibility in establishing and defining challenging student academic standards and assessments, and strongly denouncing the President's coercion of States into adopting the Common Core State Standards by conferring preferences in Federal grants and flexibility waivers.

United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2014

Expresses the sense of the Senate that: states and local educational agencies should maintain the right and responsibility of determining educational curricula, programs of instruction, and assessments for elementary and secondary education; the federal government should not incentivize the adoption of common education standards or the creation of a national assessment to align with such standards; and no application process for any federal grant funds or waivers issued by the Secretary of Education under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 should award any additional points, or provide any preference, for the adoption of the Common Core State Standards or any other national common education standards.

Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2014

Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014 - Authorizes FY2015-FY2016 appropriations for the Coast Guard and the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC). Authorizes, for each such fiscal year, an end-of-year strength for active duty personnel of 43,000 and specified average military training student loads. Reduces from 7,200 to 6,700 the number of commissioned officers on the active duty promotion list, subject to current exceptions. Sets forth the skills and qualifications necessary for an individual to be assigned as a waterways operations manager or a facility safety and security specialist. Revises authorities under which Coast Guard centers of expertise conduct education, training, and other mission activities. Authorizes such centers to conduct investigations and evaluate intelligence systems and capabilities. Authorizes the Commandant of the Coast Guard to enter into cooperative agreements with federal, public, and private entities, including academic entities. Prohibits the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating from making a determination that a waterway is navigable for purposes of the Coast Guard’s jurisdiction without conducting a rulemaking under appropriate administrative procedures. Modifies the membership and duties of the Board of Visitors to the Coast Guard Academy. Repeals a limitation that prohibits the issuance of more than one medal of honor to any one person. Requires the Commandant, at specified intervals through the President’s submittal of a budget for FY2019, and every four years thereafter, to submit to Congress an integrated major acquisition mission need statement that identifies current and projected gaps in Coast Guard capabilities using mission hour targets. Directs the Secretary to submit an authorization request to Congress for each fiscal year. Requires the Commandant to: (1) establish, and update on an ongoing basis, an inventory of real property, including submerged lands, under Coast Guard control; and (2) make divestiture and consolidation recommendations to Congress every five years. Modifies the limitation on the number of days within a specified period that an organized training unit or member of the Coast Guard Ready Reserve may be ordered, without consent, to serve in active duty for an emergency augmentation of regular forces. Extends through September 30, 2017, the Commandant’s acquisition workforce expedited hiring authority under which acquisition positions may be designated as positions for which there is a shortage of candidates or a critical hiring need. Authorizes the Commandant to decommission the icebreaker Polar Sea if the Secretary does not make a determination regarding whether it is cost-effective to reactivate such icebreaker. Requires the Commandant to submit to Congress: (1) a strategy to meet the Coast Guard's Arctic ice operations needs through September 30, 2050; and (2) unless the Secretary determines that it is cost-effective to reactivate the Polar Sea, a bridging strategy for maintaining the Coast Guard's polar icebreaking services until at least September 30, 2024 (currently, a bridging strategy for maintaining operations until at least September 30, 2022, is required only if the Secretary determines that it is not cost-effective to reactivate the Polar Sea). Allows the Secretary, each fiscal year beginning in FY2015, to enter into multiyear contracts for the procurement of Offshore Patrol Cutters and associated equipment. Directs the Secretary to report to Congress with schedules and plans for decommissioning, maintaining or extending, and commissioning specified categories of cutters. Revises, repeals, and consolidates various reporting requirements. Bars specified federal shipping laws related to maritime liability from: (1) establishing maritime liens on state or federal fishing permits, and (2) authorizing civil actions to enforce maritime liens on such permits. Specifies that a "fishing permit" is governed solely by the state or federal law under which it was issued and shall not be treated as part of a vessel, or as an appurtenance or intangible of a vessel, for any purpose under federal law. Prohibits the Coast Guard from carrying out international ice patrol agreements with other maritime countries unless a specified minimum reimbursement amount is received from such countries for their proportionate share of the expense of maintaining the service. Exempts from such prohibition the use of Coast Guard aircraft to carry out such agreements if the President determines it to be necessary for national security. Reauthorizes through FY2016 appropriations to the Maritime Administration for small shipyard grant programs. Prohibits a claim for damages or expenses relating to personal injury, illness, or death of a seaman who is a citizen of a foreign nation, arising during or from the engagement of the seaman by or for a passenger vessel duly registered under the laws of a foreign nation, from being brought under U.S. laws if: (1) such seaman was not a permanent resident alien of the United States when the claim arose; (2) the injury, illness, or death arose outside U.S territorial waters; and (3) the seaman, at the time the claim arose, had a right to seek compensation under the laws of either the nation in which the vessel was registered or in which the seaman maintained citizenship or residency. Applies the existing cap of 10 times unpaid wages as the maximum penalty payable to each seaman claiming delayed payment of wages on certain foreign, intercoastal, and coastwise passenger vessels. (Current law applies the cap to all claims in a class action suit by seamen.) Permits merchant mariner licenses for masters, mates, engineers, pilots, operators, and radio officers to be issued to applicants with at least three months of qualifying service on vessels of the uniformed services of appropriate tonnage or horsepower within the preceding seven-year period. Sets forth deadlines for the Coast Guard to provide sea service letters to members or former members. Requires the Secretary to maximize the extent to which armed forces service, training, and qualifications are creditable toward meeting merchant mariner licensing requirements and the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, 1978. Amends the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships to establish an Abandoned Seafarers Fund from which amounts may be appropriated to the Secretary to pay the necessary support of seafarers who: (1) enter, remain, or are paroled into the United States and are involved in an investigation, reporting, documentation, or adjudication of any matter relating to the administration or enforcement of such Act by the Coast Guard; and (2) were abandoned in the United States and have not applied for asylum under specified provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Provides for the reimbursement of vessel owners or operators who provide necessary support to seafarers paroled into the United States to facilitate such investigations, reporting, documentation, or adjudications. Defines “seafarer” as an alien crewman who is employed or engaged in any capacity on board a vessel subject to such Act. Redefines “high-risk waters,” for purposes of determining when owners or operators of U.S. vessels carrying government-impelled cargo are to be reimbursed for the cost of providing armed on-board safety personnel, as waters: (1) so designated by the Commandant in the appropriate maritime security directive, and (2) in which the Secretary of Transportation (DOT) determines an act of piracy is likely to occur based on documented acts of piracy that occurred in such waters during the 12-month period preceding the applicable voyage. Modifies existing requirements to provide for: (1) uninspected passenger vessels in the U.S. Virgin Islands to carry up to 12 passengers (currently, vessels under a certain weight may only carry up to 6 passengers), (2) classification societies to inspect offshore supply vessels, and (3) certain passenger vessels to be equipped with survival craft. Revises FMC Commissioners' terms of office and sets forth FMC conflict of interest requirements. Commercial Vessel Discharge Reform Act of 2014 - Makes permanent a provision prohibiting the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), or a state with an approved National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act), from requiring an NPDES permit for a covered vessel (a vessel that is less than 79 feet in length or a fishing vessel) for any discharge: (1) of effluent from properly functioning marine engines; (2) of laundry, shower, and galley sink wastes; or (3) that is incidental to the normal operation of a covered vessel. (Currently, such prohibition ends on December 18, 2014.) Revises licensing restrictions and credential requirements relating to foreign citizens who may be engaged to meet the manning requirement for U.S. purse seine fishing vessels: (1) fishing exclusively for highly migratory species in the treaty area under a fishing license issued pursuant to the 1987 Treaty on Fisheries Between the Governments of Certain Pacific Islands States and the Government of the United States of America, or (2) transiting to or from the treaty area exclusively for such purpose. Removes a provision that limits the vessels permitted to engage such foreign citizens to vessels operating in and out of American Samoa or Guam. Authorizes the Commandant to lease submerged lands and tidelands under the control of the Coast Guard for periods longer than five years. Directs DOT to submit to Congress a national maritime strategy. Directs the Secretary to report to Congress concerning negotiations at the International Maritime Organization regarding the establishment of a draft international code of safety for ships operating in polar waters.

SGR Repeal and Medicare Provider Payment Modernization Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2014

SGR Repeal and Medicare Provider Payment Modernization Act of 2014 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to: (1) end and remove sustainable growth rate (SGR) methodology from the determination of annual conversion factors in the formula for payment for physicians' services, (2) establish an update to the single conversion factor for 2014 through 2018 of 0.5%, (3) freeze the update to the single conversion factor at 0.00% for 2019 through 2023, and (4) establish an update of 1% for health professionals participating in alternative payment models (APMs) and an update of 0.5% for all other health professionals after 2023. Directs the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC) to report to Congress on the relationship between: (1) physician and other health professional utilization and expenditures (and their rate of increase) of items and services for which Medicare payment is made; and (2) total utilization and expenditures (and their rate of increase) under Medicare parts A (Hospital Insurance), B (Supplementary Medical Insurance), and D (Voluntary Prescription Drug Benefit Program). Directs MEDPAC to report to Congress on: (1) the payment update for professional services applied under Medicare for 2014 through 2018; (2) the effect of such update on the efficiency, economy, and quality of care provided under such program; (3) the effect of such update on ensuring a sufficient number of providers to maintain access to care by Medicare beneficiaries; and (4) recommendations for any future payment updates for professional services under such program to ensure adequate access to care is maintained for Medicare beneficiaries Revises and consolidates components of the three specified existing performance incentive programs into a merit-based incentive payment system (MIPS) the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) is directed to establish, under which MIPS-eligible professionals (excluding most Alternative Payment Model [APM] participants) receive annual payment increases or decreases based on their performance. Applies the MIPS program to payments for items and services furnished on or after January 1, 2018. Requires specified incentive payments to be made to eligible partial qualifying APM participants. Directs the Secretary to make available on the Physician Compare website of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) certain information, including information regarding the performance of MIPS-eligible professionals. Requires the Comptroller General (GAO) to evaluate the MIPS program. Requires GAO to submit to Congress a report that: (1) compares the similarities and differences in the use of quality measures under the original Medicare fee-for-service programs, the Medicare Advantage (MA) program under Medicare part C (Medicare+Choice), selected state Medicaid programs, and private payer arrangements; and (2) make recommendations on how to reduce the administrative burden involved in applying such quality measures. Directs GAO to report to Congress on: (1) whether entities that pool financial risk for physician services can play a role in supporting physician practices in assuming financial risk for treatment of patients; and (2) the transition to an APM of professionals in rural areas, health professional shortage areas, or medically underserved areas. Establishes the Payment Model Technical Advisory Committee to make recommendations to the Secretary on physician-focused payment models. Requires the Secretary to study: (1) the application of federal fraud prevention laws related to APMs; (2) the effect of individuals' socioeconomic status on quality and resource use outcome measures for individuals under Medicare; and (3) the impact of risk factors, race, health literacy, limited English proficiency (LEP), and patient activation, on quality and resource use outcome measures under Medicare. Directs the Secretary to: (1) post on the CMS Internet website a draft plan for the development of quality measures to assess professionals, (2) establish new Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) codes for chronic care management services, and (3) conduct an education and outreach campaign to inform professionals who furnish items and services under Medicare part B and Medicare part B enrollees of the benefits of chronic care management services. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) collect and use information on the resources directly or indirectly related to physicians' services in the determination of relative values under the Medicare physician fee schedule; and (2) establish or adjust practice expense relative values using cost, charge, or other data from suppliers or service providers. Revises and expands factors for identification of potentially misvalued codes. Sets an annual target for relative value adjustments for misvalued services. Phases-in of significant relative value unit (RVU) reductions. Directs GAO to study the processes used by the Relative Value Scale Update Committee (RUC) to make recommendations to the Secretary regarding relative values for specific services under the Medicare physician fee schedule. Makes Metropolitan Statistical Areas in California fee schedule areas for Medicare payments. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish a program to promote the use of appropriate use criteria for certain imaging services furnished by ordering professionals and furnishing professionals, and (2) make publicly available on the CMS Physician Compare website specified information with respect to eligible professionals. Expands the kinds and uses of data available to qualified entities for quality improvement activities. Directs the Secretary to provide Medicare data to qualified clinical data registries to facilitate quality improvement or patient safety. Permits continuing automatic extensions of a Medicare physician and practitioner election to opt-out of the Medicare physician payment system into private contracts. Directs the Secretary to: (1) make publicly available through an appropriate publicly accessible website information on the number and characteristics of opt-out physicians and practitioners; and (2) report to Congress recommendations to amend existing fraud and abuse laws, through exceptions, safe harbors, or other narrowly targeted provisions, to permit gainsharing or similar arrangements between physicians and hospitals that improve care while reducing waste and increasing efficiency. Declares it a national objective to achieve widespread exchange of health information through interoperable certified electronic health record (EHR) technology nationwide by December 31, 2017, as a consequence of a significant federal investment in the implementation of health information technology through the Medicare and Medicaid EHR programs. Directs the Secretary to study the feasibility of establishing mechanisms that includes aggregated results of surveys of meaningful EHR users on the functionality of certified EHR products to enable such users to compare directly the functionality and other features of such products. Requires GAO studies on the use of telehealth under federal programs and on remote patient monitoring services.

Autism Services and Workforce Acceleration Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2014

Autism Services and Workforce Acceleration Act of 2014 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to establish a demonstration project for the implementation of an Autism Care Program to provide grants and other assistance to improve the effectiveness and efficiency in providing comprehensive care to individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders and their families. Sets forth eligibility requirements for the Program. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award grants to carry out the Program and facilitate coordination with local communities to be better prepared and positioned to understand and meet the needs of the communities served by autism care programs. Requires each grantee to establish an autism care program advisory council to advise the autism care program regarding policies, priorities, and services. Directs the Secretary to establish a grant program to provide appropriate services to youth with autism spectrum disorders who are transitioning from secondary education to careers or postsecondary education (transitioning youth) and to adults with autism spectrum disorders, including individuals who are typically underserved, to enable such individuals to be as independent as possible. Requires the Secretary to award: (1) grants for multimedia campaigns to increase public education and awareness and reduce stigma concerning developmental milestones for infants and children and autism spectrum disorders, and (2) multiyear national training initiative supplemental grants to entities for training and technical assistance and to disseminate information to address the unmet needs of individuals with autism spectrum disorders and their families. Provides that nothing in this Act shall be construed to modify the legal rights of parents or legal guardians under federal, state, or local law regarding the care of their children.

Protect Academic Freedom Act

United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2014

Protect Academic Freedom Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to prohibit institutions of higher education (IHEs) from being eligible to receive any form of financial assistance under such Act if the Secretary of Education determines that they are participating in a boycott of Israeli academic institutions or scholars. Directs the Secretary, no later than May 1 of each year, to: (1) identify and make publicly available a list of all IHEs participating in such boycott, and (2) notify each IHE that is so identified of its designation as a participant in such boycott. Gives IHEs 30 days after their identification as a boycott participant to request the Secretary to waive their ineligibility for financial assistance under the HEA. Makes the funding prohibition inapplicable to funds available for student financial aid.

Educational Freedom Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2014

Educational Freedom Act of 2014 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to prohibit any federal officer or employee from directly or indirectly mandating, directing, incentivizing, or controlling, through grants, contracts, or other cooperative agreements, a state's, local educational agency's (LEA's), or school's specific instructional content, academic standards and assessments, curriculum, or program of instruction. Prohibits any provision of the ESEA from being construed to authorize such an officer or employee to do so. Prohibits any federal officer or employee from directly or indirectly conditioning, through grants, contracts, or other cooperative agreements, the availability of financial support on a state's, LEA's, or school's adoption of any specific instructional content, academic standards and assessments, curriculum, or program of instruction, even if such conditions are specified under any other Act. Prohibits any provision of the ESEA from being construed to authorize such an officer or employee to do so. Includes, within these prohibitions, requirements and incentives to adopt the Common Core State Standards or any other academic standards common to a significant number of states.

THE FOUNDATION FOR SUCCESS: DISCUSSING EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND CARE IN AMERICA

United States · United States House of Representatives · 5 February 2014

Scholarships for Kids Act

United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2014

Scholarships for Kids Act - Amends part A of title I (Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to give states the option of using their part A allocation to carry out a Scholarships for Kids program. Requires participating states to use their part A allocation to provide a grant to the parents of eligible children for use, as allowed by state law, in: supplementing the budget of any public school their eligible child is able to attend without fees; paying for all or a portion of the fees required for their child to attend another public school in the state; paying for all or a portion of the tuition and fees required for their child to attend an accredited or otherwise state-approved private school; or paying for all or a portion of the fees required for their child to participate in a state-approved supplemental educational services program. Defines an "eligible child" as a child residing in the participating state who: (1) is under age 21, (2) is entitled to a free public education through grade 12, and (3) is from a family with an income below the poverty level. Allows participating states to: (1) treat a child as eligible if the child was an "eligible child" during the previous fiscal year and is from a family whose income is not greater than 200% of the poverty level; and (2) use up to 2% of their part A allocation to provide eligible children with transportation to their public school, private school, or supplemental educational services program. Requires participating states and their local educational agencies to continue to: (1) work toward state academic content and achievement standards; (2) conduct annual assessments of student progress toward those standards; and (3) issue annual report cards of student progress, disaggregated by specified student subgroups, toward those standards. Directs the Secretary of Education to conduct a national assessment of the activities carried out under this Act. Reauthorizes appropriations under part A of title I through FY2020. Repeals: the funding reserved for schools identified as needing improvement, corrective action, or restructuring under part A of title I; the programs under parts B (Student Reading Skills Improvement Grants), C (Education of Migratory Children), D (Prevention and Intervention Programs for Children and Youth Who are Neglected, Delinquent, or At-Risk), E (National Assessment of Subchapter I), F (Comprehensive School Reform), G (Advanced Placement Programs), and H (School Dropout Prevention) of title I; titles II (Preparing, Training, and Recruiting High Quality Teachers and Principals), III (Language Instruction for Limited English Proficient and Immigrant Students), IV (21st Century Schools), V (Promoting Informed Parental Choice and Innovative Programs), VI (Flexibility and Accountability), and VII (Indian, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native Education) of the ESEA; a program providing supplemental education grants to Micronesia and the Marshall Islands under the Compact of Free Association Amendments Act of 2003; the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006; a program providing grants to states for the education of homeless children and youths under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act; the Educational Technical Assistance Act of 2002; part A (Teacher Quality Partnership Grants) of title II of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA); the Talent Search and Upward Bound programs under title IV (Student Assistance) of the HEA; a program providing grants to youth organizations, under the Agricultural Research Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998, to establish pilot projects to expand the programs they carry out in rural areas and small towns; a grant program, under the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977, to promote and strengthen agriscience and agribusiness education in secondary and postsecondary schools; a grant program, under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, for the establishment of school-based health centers; a program providing grants, under the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002, to institutions of higher education and nonprofit organizations to improve elementary and secondary mathematics and science instruction; a grant program, under the Public Health Service Act, for the operation of school-based health centers; and programs, under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, that provide grants to states and educational entities that make significant progress in meeting specified elementary and secondary education goals.

A bill to prohibit aliens who are not lawfully present in the United States from being eligible for postsecondary education benefits that are not available to all citizens and nationals of the United States.

United States · United States Congress · 4 February 2014

Amends the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to prohibit unlawful aliens from being eligible for any postsecondary education benefit unless every citizen and national of this country is eligible to receive that benefit in no less of an amount, duration, or scope. (This replaces a prohibition on states offering unlawful aliens postsecondary benefits on the basis of their residence in the state that are more generous than those offered citizens or naturals of this country without regard to their state residence.) Allows any citizen or national who is enrolled at a postsecondary educational institution that is alleged to have violated that prohibition to bring a civil action against any state official overseeing the institution to obtain appropriate relief, attorneys' fees, and court costs.

Comprehensive Veterans Health and Benefits and Military Retirement Pay Restoration Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2014

Comprehensive Veterans Health and Benefits and Military Retirement Pay Restoration Act of 2014 - Amends federal veterans provisions to revise or add provisions concerning medical services and other benefits provided to veterans and/or their dependents through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) relating to the following areas: survivor and dependent matters, including benefits for children of certain veterans born with spina bifida; education matters, including the approval of courses for purposes of the All-Volunteer Force and the Post-9/11 Educational Assistance programs; the expansion and extension of certain health care benefits, including immunizations, chiropractic care, treatment for traumatic brain injury, and wellness promotion; health care administration, including extension of the Department of Veterans Affairs Health Professional Scholarship Program, and complementary and alternative medicine; mental health care, including an education program and peer support program for family members and caregivers of veterans with mental health disorders; dental care eligibility and expansion, including a program of education to promote dental health in veterans; health care related to sexual trauma, including appropriate counseling and treatment and a screening mechanism to detect incidents of domestic abuse; reproductive treatment and services, including fertility counseling as well as adoption assistance for severely wounded veterans; major medical facility leases; veterans' employment training and related services; veterans' employment, including within the federal government and as first responders; career transition services; employment and reemployment rights of members of the Armed Forces after active duty service; small business matters, including contracting and subcontracting participation goals with federal departments and agencies; administrative matters, including regional support centers for Veterans Integrated Service Networks; the revision of claims based on military sexual trauma as well as claims for dependency and indemnity compensation; jurisdictional matters, including with respect to the Board of Veterans' Appeals and the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims; the revision of certain rights under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, including protections with respect to the expiration of professional licenses, a prohibition on the denial of credit or the termination of residential leases due to military service, and the temporary protection of surviving spouses under mortgage foreclosures; and outreach and miscellaneous matters, including: (1) repeal of the provision of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 that reduces the cost-of-living adjustment to the retirement pay of members of the Armed Forces under age 62, and (2) the accounting for discretionary accounts designated for overseas contingency operations/global war on terrorism.

Supporting Early Learning Act

United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2014

Supporting Early Learning Act - Directs the Secretary of Education to award competitive, matching Quality Pathways grants to states that demonstrate the greatest progress toward establishing a high-quality system of early learning that includes: state early learning standards; preservice and ongoing training for staff; the systematic review, rating, and monitoring of early learning programs for ameliorative purposes; parental involvement; health, disability, and family support services and referrals for participating children; an early learning data system; and a process for evaluating children's school readiness and ensuring their effective transition to the public school system. Requires the grant to be used to further such progress and move more disadvantaged children into higher quality programs. Permits grantees to apply to the Secretary to reserve up to 25% of their grant to expand disadvantaged children's access to the highest quality early learning programs offering full-day, full-year services. Authorizes the Secretary to award competitive Development grants to states that were not awarded a Pathways grant, but commit to developing a high-quality system of early learning that includes the components listed above. Directs the Secretary to establish indicators to measure state progress in meeting grant objectives, and states to establish Secretary-approved benchmarks for success that are based on those indicators. Requires the Secretary to use certain reserved funds to: (1) establish a competitive grant demonstration program for Native American school readiness programs; (2) provide technical assistance to states to help them qualify for, apply for, and maintain this Act's grants; and (3) support the Institute of Education Sciences' research into, and evaluation of, this Act's grant-related activities.

Total Learning Act

United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2014

Total Learning Act - Directs the Secretary of Education to award competitive grants to full-service community schools or partnerships between local educational agencies and public or nonprofit social service providers or full-service community schools to implement innovative early learning curricula in preschool and elementary school programs in high-need communities for children from birth through age nine. Defines "full-service community schools" as public schools which: (1) coordinate educational, developmental, family, health, and other comprehensive services through community-based organizations and public and private partnerships; and (2) provide students, families, and the community with access to such services. Includes as grant-covered costs, those incurred for: (1) extended school hours and days; (2) staff development, compensation, and retention; (3) comprehensive child and family support services; and (4) other activities the Secretary deems appropriate to promote academic success for impoverished children. Directs the Secretary to: (1) award funds to a public or nonprofit organization experienced in an innovative early learning curriculum to provide training and technical assistance to grantees on implementing that curriculum, and (2) disseminate information concerning the grant program to potential grant applicants.

Expressing support for designation of the week of February 3, 2014, through February 7, 2014, as "National School Counseling Week".

United States · United States Congress · 3 February 2014

Honors the contributions of school counselors to the success of students in our elementary and secondary schools. Encourages the observation of National School Counseling Week with ceremonies and activities that promote awareness of the crucial role school counselors play in preparing students for fulfilling lives as contributing members of society.

DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, AND EDUCATION, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2014

United States · United States Senate · 31 January 2014

Increasing Primary Care Access Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2014

Increasing Primary Care Access Act of 2014 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make grants to, and enter contracts with, schools of medicine and osteopathic medicine to assist the schools in supporting programs of excellence in primary care. Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to require the Secretary to establish and implement procedures under which the amount of payments that a subsection (d) hospital would otherwise receive for indirect medical education costs for discharges occurring during an applicable period is adjusted based on the performance of the hospital on measures specified by the Secretary. (Generally, a subsection [d] hospital is an acute care hospital, particularly one that receives payments under Medicare's inpatient prospective payment system [IPPS] when providing covered inpatient services to eligible beneficiaries.) Prohibits the Secretary from consulting with an organization representing physicians on adjustments to the fee schedule for physicians' services if the organization uses a group to formulate recommendations regarding such adjustments unless at least 40% of the group are board certified and practicing physicians in specified primary care fields. Directs the Secretary to establish a pilot program to provide funding for graduate medical residency training programs in primary care. Requires the Secretary to award grants or enter into contracts for the establishment of six to eight Regional Centers for Health Workforce Analysis to allocate funds to in-need primary care residency programs. Increases the federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) for amounts expended on targeted graduate medical education in certain areas in need of primary care health professionals for a state which expanded Medicaid under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Reauthorizes a program of payments to teaching health centers.

LOCAL Level Act

United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2014

Learning Opportunities Created At Local Level Act or the LOCAL Level Act - Expresses the sense of Congress that state and local prerogatives over elementary and secondary education need to be preserved. Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to prohibit any federal officer or employee from directly or indirectly, through grants, contracts, or other cooperative agreements under the ESEA: mandating, directing, or controlling a state's, local educational agency's (LEA's), or school's specific instructional content, academic standards, assessments, curriculum, or program of instruction; incentivizing such an entity's adoption of any specific instructional content, academic standards, assessments, curriculum, or program of instruction; mandating a state or any subdivision thereof to spend any funds or incur any costs not paid for under the ESEA; or conditioning the availability of financial support on a state's, LEA's, or school's adoption of any specific instructional content, academic standards, assessments, curriculum, or program of instruction, even if such conditions are specified under any other Act. Prohibits any funds provided to the Department of Education under the ESEA from being used by the Department directly or indirectly, through grants, contracts, or other cooperative agreements, to endorse, approve, develop, require, or sanction any elementary or secondary school curriculum. Prohibits conditioning any state's receipt of ESEA assistance on the approval or certification of its academic standards by the federal government. Includes in the prohibition against the use of ESEA funds on federally sponsored testing and testing materials such use on any assessment or testing materials aligned to the Common Core State Standards or any other academic standards common to a significant number of states. Prohibits the use of Race to the Top funds, provided under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, on such aligned assessment or testing materials.

A resolution designating February 3 through 7, 2014, as "National School Counseling Week".

United States · United States Congress · 30 January 2014

Designates February 3-February 7, 2014, as National School Counseling Week.

College Affordability and Innovation Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2014

College Affordability and Innovation Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Education to award 5-year grants to up to 15 institutions of higher education (IHEs) to carry out new or existing high-quality programs designed to graduate students with certificates or degrees at significantly lower student costs and within shorter time periods than traditional programs. Includes among those programs, those that: use online instruction; use direct assessments rather than credit hours or clock hours as the measure of student learning; integrate experiential learning and customized curricula to promote completion or alignment with medium- and long-term employment needs; allow students to be dually or concurrently enrolled in the postsecondary program and a secondary school, or a postsecondary program and a graduate program; or use any other innovative, evidence-based method of providing students with a cost-effective, high-quality, postsecondary education. Authorizes the Secretary to waive the application to grantees of specified provisions of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) that would inhibit their operation of innovative education programs. Directs the Secretary to: establish and annually administer an evaluation and accountability process for the programs; review policies and identify those that impede the development and use of innovative methods of expanding access to, and success in, education; establish measures to assess the quality of the programs, including a minimum standard of quality that they must meet; and direct an independent third-party evaluator to conduct a final evaluation of the effectiveness of each program in providing students with a quality education at lower costs and within shorter time periods than traditional programs. Requires the establishment of a Commission on Higher Education Accountability Standards, composed of higher education stakeholders, to make recommendations to the Secretary on a set of minimum accountability standards IHEs' undergraduate programs must meet with respect to affordability, accessibility, and value in order to participate in the programs under title IV (Student Assistance) of the HEA. Directs the Secretary, after considering those recommendations, to establish IHE affordablity, accessibility, and value accountability standards that, at a minimum, take into account each IHE's: (1) average or mean cost of attendance, minus grant aid; (2) percentage of enrolled students who are recipients of a Federal Pell Grant; and (3) student loan repayment rates. Requires the Secretary to conduct an annual assessment of schools' compliance with those standards. Deems noncompliant schools to be on probation and requires them to work with the Secretary on a plan to achieve compliance within five years. Requires schools that do not make continuous improvement toward the accountability standards 2 years, 3 years, and 4 years after being placed on probation to pay the Secretary an amount equal to 10%, 20%, and 30%, respectively, of the title IV funds they make available to undergraduate students. Makes schools that fail to achieve compliance within five years of being placed on probation ineligible for title IV funds. Directs the Secretary to place the amounts collected from noncompliant schools in a special fund that is to be used to award competitive grants to IHEs that meet or exceed the accountability standards. Requires grantees to use the funds to provide need-based aid to students who are eligible for Federal Pell Grants.

America INNOVATES Act

United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2014

America Implementing New National Opportunities To Vigorously Accelerate Technology, Energy, and Science Act or America INNOVATES Act - Amends the Department of Energy Organization Act to: (1) rename the position of the Under Secretary for Science the Under Secretary for Science and Energy, and (2) require the Under Secretary to establish appropriate linkages between offices under his or her jurisdiction and perform functions and duties prescribed by the Secretary of Energy (DOE). Directs the Secretary to ensure that the following duties and responsibilities are carried out through one or more appropriate statutory or administrative entities: (1) evaluation, coordination, and promotion of the transfer of National Laboratory research and development (R&D) results to the market in collaboration with the Technology Transfer Coordinator; (2) recommendations to the Secretary of best practices for the National Laboratories; and (3) implementation of other appropriate duties to improve National Laboratory operations and performance. Expresses the sense of the Senate regarding the development of a coordinated strategy for the national laboratories in the 21st century. Directs the Secretary to carry out the three-year DOE pilot program under the Agreements for Commercializing Technology. Requires each agreement entered into under the pilot program to increase the authority of the contractor of the applicable National Laboratory to negotiate contract terms, such as intellectual property rights, indemnification, payment structures, performance guarantees, and multiparty collaborations. Directs the Secretary to delegate to the directors of the National Laboratories signature authority with respect to any cooperative R&D agreement, non-federal work-for-others agreement, or any other appropriate agreement, the total cost of which (including National Laboratory contributions and project recipient cost share) is less than $1 million. Amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to permit the directors of the National Laboratories to use funds allocated for technology transfer within DOE to carry out early-stage and pre-commercial technology demonstration activities to remove technology barriers that limit private sector interest and demonstrate potential commercial applications of any research and technologies arising from National Laboratory activities intended to meet the federal government's research needs. Amends the Small Business Act to direct the Secretary to inform small business concerns seeking funding under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs about resources available to them at National Laboratories and federally funded R&D centers. Amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to exempt any activity performed by an institution of higher education or nonprofit institution from the requirement that at least 20% of the cost of a research or development activity be provided by a non-federal source. Requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to report to Congress on the results of projects developed under this Act.

On-the-Job Training Act of 2013

United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2014

On-the-Job Training Act of 2013 - Amends the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to authorize the Secretary of Labor to: (1) make discretionary grants to states, local governments and boards, Indian tribes, institutions of higher education, business trade associations, and local educational agencies for adult on-the-job training or dislocated worker on-the-job training programs; and (2) use up to 10% of funds authorized under this Act to make grants to such entities for developing on-the-job training programs, including providing capacity building activities for local staff.

School Choice Education Savings Account Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2014

School Choice Education Savings Account Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow tax-exempt qualified tuition programs (529 tuition programs) to pay qualified elementary and secondary education expenses. Defines "qualified elementary and secondary education expenses" to include expenses for: (1) tuition, fees, academic tutoring, special need services, books, and supplies and equipment used by an elementary or secondary school student; (2) room and board, uniforms, transportation, and other supplementary items; and (3) the purchase of any computer technology or equipment or Internet access and related services (excluding computer software designed for sports, games, or hobbies not educational in nature).

Pay It Forward College Affordability Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 29 January 2014

Pay It Forward College Affordability Act of 2014 - Direct the Secretary of Education to conduct studies regarding the feasibility of, and options for, implementing the Pay It Forward model for funding postsecondary education. Directs the Secretary, unless the studies determine that the funding model is not feasible or beneficial, to award competitive matching grants to states to establish and carry out Pay It Forward model state pilot programs. Limits the number of states and students that may participate in the programs. Describes the "Pay It Forward model" as a system in which the Secretary, a state, or an institution of higher education (IHE) replaces students' need to borrow under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan program by covering all or part of their cost of attending an IHE in exchange for their agreement to contribute a certain percentage (not to exceed 5%) of their annual income for a specified number of years (not to exceed 25 years) after graduating or ceasing to be enrolled at the IHE. Requires that model to cover at least a student's cost of tuition and mandatory fees, but only to the extent they do not exceed the cost of tuition and mandatory fees at the most expensive public IHE in the state that is the same type of IHE the student attends. Requires states to give program priority to IHEs that have a plan, or a history of making an effort, to reduce or hold constant students' cost of attendance. Requires states to ensure that variations in the time that a student's tuition and mandatory fees are covered by the state are reflected in the length of the student's contribution period and the percentage of the student's annual income to be contributed. Continues students' eligibility for grants, scholarships, or funds that do not have to be repaid and for student loans that are not Direct loans, but requires the deduction of those amounts from the tuition and mandatory fees that the state would otherwise cover under the Pay It Forward program. Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish a technical advisory council to make recommendations to the Secretary regarding the implementation and evaluation of the Pay It Forward model, and (2) evaluate the model five years and ten years after its implementation. Authorizes the Secretary to expand the Pay It Forward model if doing so: (1) will not increase the federal cost of carrying out federal loan programs under title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, (2) may be accomplished using amounts available for title IV programs, and (3) is in the best interests of students and the United States. Establishes a Pay It Forward Fund in the Treasury into which Pay It Forward contributions are to be deposited. Prohibits an IHE program designed to prepare students for a recognized occupation or profession requiring licensing or other entry pre-conditions from participating in a Pay It Forward program, unless it: fully prepares students to satisfy those entry pre-conditions in the state in which the program is operated and in any state in which the program claims a successful program graduate will be prepared to work in the particular occupation or profession involved; provides timely placement of students in required pre-licensure positions, such as internships or apprenticeships; and meets specialized state accreditation requirements or notifies students if the program has not yet been fully accredited.

Scholarships for Kids Act

United States · United States Congress · 28 January 2014

Scholarships for Kids Act - Amends part A of title I (Improving the Academic Achievement of the Disadvantaged) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to give states the option of using their part A allocation to carry out a Scholarships for Kids program. Requires participating states to use their part A allocation to provide a grant to the parents of eligible children for use, as allowed by state law, in: supplementing the budget of any public school their eligible child is able to attend without fees; paying for all or a portion of the fees required for their child to attend another public school in the state; paying for all or a portion of the tuition and fees required for their child to attend an accredited or otherwise state-approved private school; or paying for all or a portion of the fees required for their child to participate in a state-approved supplemental educational services program. Defines an "eligible child" as a child residing in the participating state who: (1) is under age 21, (2) is entitled to a free public education through grade 12, and (3) is from a family with an income below the poverty level. Allows participating states to: (1) treat a child as eligible if the child was an "eligible child" during the previous fiscal year and is from a family whose income is not greater than 200% of the poverty level; and (2) use up to 2% of their part A allocation to provide eligible children with transportation to their public school, private school, or supplemental educational services program. Requires participating states and their local educational agencies to continue to: (1) work toward state academic content and achievement standards; (2) conduct annual assessments of student progress toward those standards; and (3) issue annual report cards of student progress, disaggregated by specified student subgroups, toward those standards. Directs the Secretary of Education to conduct a national assessment of the activities carried out under this Act. Reauthorizes appropriations under part A of title I through FY2020. Repeals: the funding reserved for schools identified as needing improvement, corrective action, or restructuring under part A of title I; the programs under parts B (Student Reading Skills Improvement Grants), C (Education of Migratory Children), D (Prevention and Intervention Programs for Children and Youth Who are Neglected, Delinquent, or At-Risk), E (National Assessment of Subchapter I), F (Comprehensive School Reform), G (Advanced Placement Programs), and H (School Dropout Prevention) of title I; titles II (Preparing, Training, and Recruiting High Quality Teachers and Principals), III (Language Instruction for Limited English Proficient and Immigrant Students), IV (21st Century Schools), V (Promoting Informed Parental Choice and Innovative Programs), VI (Flexibility and Accountability), and VII (Indian, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native Education) of the ESEA; a program providing supplemental education grants to Micronesia and the Marshall Islands under the Compact of Free Association Amendments Act of 2003; the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006; a program providing grants to states for the education of homeless children and youths under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act; the Educational Technical Assistance Act of 2002; part A (Teacher Quality Partnership Grants) of title II of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA); the Talent Search and Upward Bound programs under title IV (Student Assistance) of the HEA; a program providing grants to youth organizations, under the Agricultural Research Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998, to establish pilot projects to expand the programs they carry out in rural areas and small towns; a grant program, under the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977, to promote and strengthen agriscience and agribusiness education in secondary and postsecondary schools; a grant program, under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, for the establishment of school-based health centers; a program providing grants, under the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002, to institutions of higher education and nonprofit organizations to improve elementary and secondary mathematics and science instruction; a grant program, under the Public Health Service Act, for the operation of school-based health centers; and programs, under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, that provide grants to states and educational entities that make significant progress in meeting specified elementary and secondary education goals.

Concussion Awareness and Education Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 28 January 2014

Concussion Awareness and Education Act of 2014 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to: (1) establish and oversee a national system to accurately determine the incidence of sports-related concussions, and (2) begin implementation of such system within one year of this Act's enactment. Requires the data collected to include: the incidence of sports related concussions in individuals 5 through 21 years of age; demographic information of the injured individuals; pre-existing conditions of the injured individuals; the concussion history of the injured individuals; the use of protective equipment and impact monitoring devices; the qualifications of personnel diagnosing the concussions; and the cause, nature, and extent of the concussive injury. Requires the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Secretary of Defense (DOD), acting in coordination, to conduct or support: (1) research designed to establish metrics and markers of concussion diagnosis, prognosis, and recovery in youth and to inform the creation of guidelines for the management of short- and long-term sequelae of concussion in youth; (2) studies to assess short- and long-term cognitive, emotional, behavioral, neurobiological, and neuropathological consequences of concussions and repetitive head impacts over a life span; and (3) research on age- and sex-related biomechanical determinants of injury risk for concussion in youth. Directs the Secretary of Defense to conduct a scientific evaluation of the effectiveness of techniques, rules, and playing, practice, and training standards in reducing concussions and sequelae for sports and physical training at military service academies and for military personnel. Calls for the National Collegiate Athletic Association to undertake a scientific evaluation of the effectiveness of age-appropriate techniques, rules, and playing and practice standards in reducing sports-related concussions and sequelae. Requires: (1) the Director of NIH to maintain a national brain tissue and biological sample repository to collect, archive, and distribute material for research on concussions; (2) such Director and the Secretary of Defense to develop standards, best practices, and guidelines for the rules of play and training, respectively, for sports, athletic, and military training and engagement that are designed to prevent or reduce the incidence of concussions and that include standards for effective protective equipment and recommendations on impact-monitoring systems; and (3) the Director of CDC to develop and disseminate to the public information regarding concussions. Establishes a Concussion Research Commission, which shall study the programs and activities conducted pursuant to this Act and formulate systemic recommendations to increase knowledge about, and change the culture surrounding, concussions.