Education

Stroke Treatment and Ongoing Prevention Act

United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2003

Stroke Treatment and Ongoing Prevention Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) carry out a national education and information campaign to promote stroke prevention and increase the number of stroke patients who seek immediate treatment; and (2) maintain the Paul Coverdell National Acute Stroke Registry and Clearinghouse by collecting specific data points and benchmarks for stroke care analysis, and compiling and disseminating information on State, local, and private care system achievements and problems. Defines "stroke" as an attack in which blood flow to the brain is interrupted, or in which a blood vessel or aneurysm in the brain breaks or ruptures. Includes stroke and traumatic injury prevention, diagnosis, and treatment within the grant program for emergency medicine residency training. Authorizes the Secretary, through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, to make grants to qualified entities for health care professionals education programs in the use of diagnostic approaches, technologies, and therapies for stroke and traumatic injury prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation. Gives preference to areas with a significant incidence of stroke or traumatic injuries. Authorizes the Secretary, through the Office for the Advancement of Telehealth, to make up to seven grants to States and to consortia of public and private entities in any non-grantee State to conduct a five-year pilot project (not to extend beyond FY 2009) to improve and coordinate stroke-related health care through telehealth networks.

Bullying Prevention for School Safety and Crime Reduction Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2003

Bullying Prevention for School Safety and Crime Reduction Act of 2003 - Amends: (1) the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act to cover bullying (as well as drug and violence) prevention; and (2) the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize (with respect to juvenile accountability block grants) establishing and maintaining accountability-based programs that are designed to enhance school safety, which may include research-based bullying prevention programs.

Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2003

Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2003 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to set forth food labeling requirements for a food that is not a raw agricultural commodity and that is, or contains, a major food allergen (as defined by this Act). States that: (1) any person may petition the Secretary of Health and Human Services to exempt a food ingredient from such requirements; and (2) the Secretary's determination of such a petition shall constitute final agency action. Directs the Secretary to: (1) conduct inspections to ensure compliance with practices to reduce or eliminate cross-contact with major food allergen residues, and ensure that major food allergens are properly labeled on foods; (2) issue a final rule to define, and permit use of, the term "gluten-free" on the labeling of foods; (3) improve food allergen data collection, including physician and health care provider education; (4) convene a panel of allergy and immunology experts to review food allergy research efforts; (5) pursue Food Code revisions in order to provide allergen-free food preparation guidelines for food establishments; and (6) include food allergy treatment in trauma and emergency care technical assistance.

VOICE Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2003

Vocational Opportunities and Instruction through Cooperative Education Act of 2003 - VOICE Act of 2003 - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to enter into a partnership with a qualified local educational agency to conduct a model school-to-work program. Requires such program to: (1) provide course credits to secondary school students who participate in work-based learning experiences in the public or private sector; and (2) ensure that such students are paid at least the minimum wage under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 for such work. Requires participating students to have: (1) no criminal background; (2) a grade point average of 2.0 or higher; and (3) a satisfactory record of school attendance.

National Security Language Act

United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2003

National Security Language Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to establish programs to encourage early foreign language instruction, including grants to: (1) partnerships of institutions of higher education (IHEs) and local educational agencies (LEAs) for activities relating to foreign language instruction at elementary or secondary schools, with priorities for high-need LEAs and less-commonly taught foreign languages; and (2) IHEs that develop innovative programs for the teaching of foreign languages, with priorities for combining foreign languages with science and technology and for less-commonly taught foreign languages. Provides undergraduate student loan forgiveness of up to $10,000 for students who major in a critical need foreign language and are employed as teachers of such language in elementary or secondary schools or as using such language regularly in a Federal agency. Directs the Secretary of Education to: (1) establish a foreign language education marketing campaign to encourage students at secondary schools and IHEs to study foreign languages, particularly ones less commonly taught and critical to national security; and (2) conduct a study to identify foreign language heritage communities and recruit speakers of such critical languages. Amends the David L. Boren National Security Education Act of 1991 to establish an International Flagship Language Initiative with grants to IHEs.

High-Quality Education Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2003

High-Quality Education Act of 2003 - Authorizes the Secretary of Education to make matching grants to reduce the size of core curriculum classes in public elementary and secondary schools.

Expressing the sense of the Congress that a commemorative postage stamp should be issued in honor of William C. Velasquez, the national Hispanic civic leader.

United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2003

Calls for the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee of the U.S. Postal Service to recommend and the Postmaster General to issue a postage stamp in honor of William C. Velasquez (the national Hispanic civic leader and founder of the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project).

Financial Literacy in Higher Education Act

United States · United States Congress · 25 November 2003

Financial Literacy in Higher Education Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to direct the Secretary of Education, in carrying out HEA activities related to improving financial and economic literacy, education, and counseling, to emphasize, among other elements, basic personal income and household money management and financial planning skills, and basic economic decision making skills, including specified skills. Directs the Secretary to coordinate such financial and economic literacy activities with related efforts of a Federal commission composed of members from specified Federal agencies. Revises various HEA provisions relating to minority-serving institutions and to student assistance to include requirements for: (1) educational or counseling services to improve the financial and economic literacy of students and their parents; and (2) personal finance courses and skills. Directs the Secretary to establish a HEA pilot program to enable institutions of higher education (IHEs) to provide annual personal finance counseling for their students. Requires: (1) award of a total of five grants to five different IHEs located in geographically different parts of the United States; and (2) at least two of such grantees to be minority-serving IHEs. Directs the Comptroller General to evaluate and report to specified congressional committees on the range and effectiveness of financial and economic education and financial aid counseling activities of IHEs, lenders, servicers, and guaranty agencies as emphasized by the Secretary.

Rural Safety Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 25 November 2003

Rural Safety Act of 2003 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize: (1) the Attorney General to make grants to rural local and tribal governments for the retention for one additional year of police officers funded through the cops on the beat (COPS) Program; and (2) the use of COPS grants on a matching funds basis to improve police communications and access to crime-solving technologies. Directs the Office of Justice Programs of the Department of Justice to make grants to: (1) establish or improve 911 service in those communities; and (2) establish restorative justice programs for juveniles. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment to make grants to establish in rural areas substance abuse prevention and treatment pilot programs and methamphetamine prevention education programs. Directs the Attorney General to provide for the cleanup of methamphetamine laboratories and related hazardous waste and for the improvement of response time by providing additional contract personnel, equipment, and facilities in rural areas. Establishes a Rural Policing Institute as part of the Small Town and Rural Training Program. Secure Storage of Firearms Act of 2003 - Authorizes the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance to carry out a demonstration program to make grants to assist qualified law enforcement officers in the acquisition and installation of gun safes or gun storage racks in their residences. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide a tax credit for certain gun safe or storage rack acquisition expenses.

Native American Technical Corrections Act of 2004

United States · United States Congress · 25 November 2003

Native American Technical Corrections Act of 2004 - Makes technical amendments to the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, the Indian Financing Act of 1974, the Indian Tribal Justice Technical and Legal Assistance Act, the Crow Boundary Settlement Act of 1994, the Fallon Paiute Shoshone Indian Tribes Water Rights Settlement Act of 1990, the California Indian Land Transfer Act, and other specified Federal law with regard to: (1) replacing "American Indian Education Foundation" with "National Fund for Excellence in American Indian Education"; (2) loan guaranties and insurance with respect to eligible borrowers and loan approval; (3) Indian trust land; (4) Indian tribal justice technical and legal assistance; (5) tribal justice systems; (6) authorization of 99-year leases for the Prairie Band of Potawatomi; (7) certain Navajo Healthcare contracting; (8) distribution of capital gains and any other noninterest income received on funds in the Crow Tribal Trust Fund; (9) use of the Fallon Paiute-Shoshone Tribe Settlement Fund; (10) deeming of specified lands in Alaska under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to a Native Corporation; and (11) certain lands to be held in trust for the Utu Utu Gwaitu Paiute Tribe, Benton Paiute Reservation. Cowlitz Indian Tribe Distribution of Judgment Funds Act - Specifies the required distribution and use of funds awarded in Indian Claims Commission Docket No. 218 to the Cowlitz Indian Tribe of Washington. Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Reservation Judgment Fund Distribution Act of 2003 - Specifies the required distribution and use of funds awarded to the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Reservation in the case of Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Reservation v. United States of America, Docket No. 773-87-L.

Mercury Health Advisory Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 24 November 2003

Mercury Health Advisory Act of 2003 - Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Commissioner of Food and Drugs jointly to develop fish consumption advisories for methyl-mercury in fish. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) prepare and distribute to health professionals (and others upon request) a consumer's mercury advisory notice regarding the health risks of fish consumption; and (2) establish a toll-free number for individuals who desire additional information. Requires the Administrator to prepare and distribute to specified State entities and applicants for fishing licenses (and others upon request) a consumer's guide to mercury, including a health advisory for the consumption of recreationally-caught fish. Requires the Secretary to work with States and other entities to: (1) develop and distribute standardized advisories, including consumption advisories and health warnings, regarding the presence of methyl-mercury in seafood; and (2) design and implement a related national public education program. Directs the Commissioner to resume the Food and Drug Administration's seafood methyl-mercury monitoring sampling program. Requires the Secretary, within one year of enactment of this Act, to finalize the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point assessment to determine whether methyl-mercury exposure through fish consumption is a public health hazard.

Head Start Improvements for School Readiness Act

United States · United States Congress · 24 November 2003

(NOTE - S.1940 & S.1483, unlike H.R.2210, do not provide for State demonstration programs that allow States to administer their allotment of Federal Head Start funds.) Head Start Improvements for School Readiness Act - Amends the Head Start Act (the Act) to reauthorize appropriations and revise Head Start programs. Includes educational instruction in prereading skills, premathematics skills, and language among the services to be provided through Head Start programs. Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services (the Secretary) to provide financial assistance to Head Start agencies for five-year periods. Changes from discretionary to mandatory the Secretary's authority to award grants to assist collaboration among State early childhood education activities under Head Start and other activities carried out in and by the State to benefit low-income children and families, and by Head Start agencies with other State and local planning, resource, and referral agencies. Directs the Secretary to issue regulations to require Head Start agencies to implement policies and procedures to ensure that eligible homeless children are identified and prioritized for enrollment. Requires all curricula and instructional materials funded under the Act to be: (1) scientifically based and age appropriate; and (2) available for parental inspection, upon request. Requires each Head Start agency to establish procedures for: (1) evaluating delegate agencies; (2) defunding delegate agencies; and (3) appeals of such defunding decisions. Establishes a program of Centers of Excellence in Early Childhood. Requires Head Start agencies to have a program meeting all quality standards, and other specified features. Requires (currently simply authorizes) Head Start agencies to coordinate activities with LEAs and schools in which participating children will enroll following the Head Start program. Requires each Head Start agency to: (1) enroll 100 percent of its funded enrollment; and (2) maintain an active waiting list at all times, with ongoing outreach to the community and activities to identify underserved populations. Changes the Head Start family income eligibility requirement from below the poverty line to below 130 percent of the poverty line. Requires certain minimum qualifications for teachers providing direct services to Early Head Start children and families in Early Head Start centers. Directs the Secretary to assist Head Start agencies and programs in: (1) assessing the needs of homeless children and their families; and (2) increasing their program participation. Requires each Head Start agency to ensure that all of its teachers receive ongoing training in language and emergent literacy. Requires individuals, if they receive financial assistance under the Act to pursue a degree to qualify as Head Start staff, to: (1) teach or work in a Head Start program for a minimum of three years after receiving the degree; or (2) repay the total or a prorated amount of the financial assistance received based on the length of service completed after receiving the degree. Requires every Head Start agency and center to create a professional development plan for employees who provide direct services to children. Establishes a Tribal Colleges and Universities Head Start Partnership program. Directs the Secretary to contract with specified entities to establish an independent panel of experts to review and synthesize research and theories in the social, behavioral, and biological sciences regarding early childhood. Repeals a prohibition against paying less than the Federal minimum wage rate to a person employed in carrying out programs under the Head Start Act. Requires Head Start agencies to obtain written parental consent before administering to a child, or referring the child for, a non-emergency intrusive physical examination.

Support Our Health Care Providers Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Support Our Health Care Providers Act of 2003 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) the Social Security Act (SSA) with respect to services in rural areas, inpatient hospital services, physician services, preventive services, certain demonstrations and studies, home health services, graduate medical education (GME), chronic care improvement, regulatory and contracting reform, education and outreach, appeals and recovery, as well as specified aspects of the Medicaid program under title XIX. (S. 1926 is identical, except with respect to any provider cuts or premium increases, to titles IV through VII of the conference report of H.R. 1, the Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization Act of 2003, which became Public Law 108-173 on December 8, 2003. It excludes titles I (Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit), II (Medicare Advantage), III (Combatting Waste, Fraud, and Abuse), XI (Access to Affordable Pharmaceuticals), and XII (Tax Incentives for Health and Retirement Security) of the conference report of H.R. 1.)

A resolution designating the week beginning November 16, 2003, as American Education Week.

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Designates the week beginning November 16, 2003, as American Education Week.

Higher Education Affordability Resource Act

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Higher Education Affordability Resource Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to include coverage of other qualified higher education expenses under the HOPE scholarship tax credit. Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to establish a program of student loan forgiveness for the following qualified public service employees: (1) highly qualified teachers in low-income communities; (2) highly qualified teachers of mathematics, science, and bilingual and special education; (3) nurses who serve low-income or needy communities in a clinical setting or as members of the nursing faculty at an accredited school of nursing; (4) child welfare workers who have completed a degree in social work or a related field with a focus on serving children and families in public or private child welfare services; and (5) firefighters, police officers, or emergency medical technicians (first responders) who serve low-income communities. Directs the Secretary of Education to allow a student to receive two Pell grants during a single award year under certain conditions. (Currently only authorizes allowing this on a case-by-case basis under such conditions.) Excludes from consideration as student assets, for purposes of HEA student financial needs analysis, qualified education benefits from prepayment or savings plans that meet certain IRC requirements, namely: (1) program described under specified IRC provisions; (2) State tuition programs; or (3) Coverdell education savings accounts. Requires lenders to provide certain student loan borrowers with special transition assistance plans at specified interest rates. Establishes a program to support academic transfer credits, to help students complete bachelor's degrees, through developing and implementing articulation and guaranteed transfer agreements between institutions of higher education (IHEs). Directs the Secretary to award grants to a partnership that includes two or more IHEs, at least one of which offers a baccalaureate or postbaccalaureate degree, for: (1) policy development; (2) support services for participating students; (3) academic program enhancements at the community or technical college; and (4) identifying barriers that inhibit student transfers. Revises provisions relating to financial aid administrator discretion. Prohibits an eligible institution from refusing to certify, or reduce the amount certified for, a loan under the part B Federal Family Education Loan Program in order to require the student to borrow a loan under the part D Federal Perkins Loans program if the student has remaining loan eligibility under part B.

Campus Care and Counseling Act

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Campus Care and Counseling Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to make competitive grants to campus mental and behavioral health service centers.

To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to condition receipt of funds under part A of title V of such Act by a State on the State requiring successful completion of courses in American history and American government as a prerequisite to high school graduation, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to require, as a condition of eligibility to receive funds for innovative programs under ESEA title V part A, a State educational agency or an outlying area to make courses in American history and American government a prerequisite for regular public secondary school graduation.

Every Child is Created Equal Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Every Child is Created Equal Act of 2003 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to require school improvement plans to include a statement that providers of supplemental educational services (SES), as recipients of Federal funds, are subject to certain ESEA civil rights provisions that prohibit discrimination. Requires SES providers, as recipients of Federal funds, to meet all applicable Federal, State, and local health, safety, and civil rights laws. Prohibits construing anything in ESEA provisions for SES as permitting discrimination based on religion with respect to employment or provision of services. Requires SES providers to serve all eligible students, including students with disabilities and limited English proficient students.

Cost of Living Measurement and Index Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Cost of Living Measurement and Index Act of 2003 - Directs the Commissioner of Labor Statistics to develop a methodology for measuring the cost of living in each State. Directs the Comptroller General to conduct a study to determine how certain Federal benefits would be increased if such cost-of-living methodology were applied. Requires such study to include determination of increases in benefits under: (1) the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965; (2) earned income tax credit provisions of the Internal Revenue Code; (3) all Federal housing assistance programs; (4) the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families program; (5) the food stamp program; and (6) all other Federal nutrition assistance programs, to the extent they provide vouchers, coupons, cash grants, or cash reimbursements.

Medicare Regulatory Fairness and Physician Fee Update Act

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Medicare Regulatory Fairness and Physician Fee Update Act - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to revise requirements with regard to Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) and updates for physicians' services and to add a definition of supplier. Includes a number of regulatory reduction, contracting, and administrative changes, such as adding requirements for information security for Medicare administrative contractors and increased flexibility in Medicare administration. Requires the Comptroller General to study and report to Congress with respect to advisory opinion authority. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) establish a small provider technical assistance demonstration program; (2) appoint within the Department of Health and Human Services a Medicare Beneficiary Ombudsman; (3) establish a beneficiary outreach demonstration program; (4) include additional information in notices of explanation of Medicare benefits; and (5) provide public information that enables hospital discharge planners, Medicare beneficiaries, and the public to identify skilled nursing facilities participating in the Medicare program. Requires the Commissioner of Social Security and the Secretary to develop and transmit to Congress and the Comptroller General a plan under which the functions of administrative law judges responsible for hearing cases under the Medicare program are transferred from the responsibility of the Commissioner to the Secretary and the Department. Requires the Commissioner of Social Security and the Secretary to implement the transition plan and transfer those administrative law judge functions from the Social Security Administration to the Secretary. Requires the Secretary to assure the independence of administrative law judges performing the administrative law judge functions transferred from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and its contractors. Directs the Secretary to establish a process for: (1) expedited access to judicial review and prompt determinations for providers, suppliers, or beneficiaries who have filed an appeal so that they may obtain access to judicial review when a review entity determines that the Departmental Appeals Board does not have the authority to decide the question of law or regulation relevant to the matters in controversy and there is no material issue of fact in dispute; and (2) expedited review of certain provider agreement determinations. Revises the Medicare appeals process. Provides for the recovery of overpayments through the use of repayment plans. Outlines an enrollment process for providers of services and suppliers. Requires the Secretary to develop a: (1) process for correction of minor errors and omissions without pursuing the appeals process; (2) prior determination process for certain items and services; and (3) program of outreach and education for beneficiaries and providers of services and other persons on the appropriate use of advance beneficiary notices and coverage policies under the Medicare program. Directs the Secretary to establish a mediation process for local coverage determinations.

National Food Safety Database Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

National Food Safety Database Act of 2003 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to provide for the establishment of an electronic food safety database which shall be made available, through State agreements, to hospitals, nursing homes, schools, child care facilities, and other eligible institutions. Authorizes related State grants. Requires such database to maintain information concerning: (1) enforcement actions; (2) recalls; (3) food-borne illness outbreaks; and (4) facility inspections. Provides for the establishment of a related interagency task force and advisory committee.

Protection for Participants in Research Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Protection for Participants in Research Act of 2003 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require all human subject research conducted, supported, or otherwise subject to Federal regulation, to be conducted in accordance with the Common Rule and the vulnerable-population rules, as set forth in the Code of Federal Regulations. Defines specified terms. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to review and harmonize such regulations. Requires informed consent before an individual may be a subject of human research. Requires an Institutional Review Board to approve all human subject research proposals. Directs the Secretary to establish criteria for identifying and monitoring high risk clinical trials. Prohibits grants or awards to a public entity or private academic institution that does not have a program to educate investigators and Board members on the protection of human research subjects. Prohibits the use of Federal funds for classified human subject research if: (1) the Board has waived the informed consent requirement; or (2) the research is exempt from Board review. Establishes an Office of Human Research Protections within the Office of the Secretary to make grants, conduct research and Institutional Review Board audits, and coordinate Federal efforts. Authorizes the Director of such Office to make grants for a model education program. Requires the Secretary to promulgate regulations addressing the participation of people with diminished decisionmaking capacity in human subject research.

Health Empowerment Zone Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Health Empowerment Zone Act of 2003 - Authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to designate a community as a health empowerment zone if a participating community partnership: (1) requests such designation; and (2) demonstrates that the community is a community of color experiencing disproportionate disparities in health status and health care. Directs the Secretary to make: (1) grants to community partnerships of private and public entities to establish health empowerment zone programs to assist individuals, businesses, schools, minority health associations, nonprofit organizations, community-based organizations, hospitals, health care clinics, and foundations in a health empowerment zone that are seeking to improve the health or environment of minority individuals and eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in health status and health care; (2) at least one grant in a health empowerment zone in a U.S. territory or possession; and (3) establish a health empowerment zone coordinating committee for each zone. Directs the Secretary, the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Labor, and the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to provide assistance for such programs.

Pharmacy Education Aid Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Pharmacy Education Aid Act of 2003 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to permit payments of up to $35,000 on behalf of a qualifying individual with a pharmacy degree for the repayment of pharmacy education loans for each year (two-year minimum) that such person serves in a health care facility with a critical shortage of pharmacists. Provides for: (1) additional tax liability payments; (2) financial need preference; and (3) Federal repayment for recipient breach of agreement unless otherwise waived. Directs the Secretary to make payments of up to $35,000 on behalf of a qualifying individual with a pharmacy degree or in the final year of such study for the repayment of pharmacy educational loans for each year (two-year minimum) that such person serves as a faculty member at a school of pharmacy which provides assistance to: (1) medically underserved areas; (2) prisons; (3) veterans or the armed forces; (4) the Indian Health Service; or (5) a disproportionate share hospital under the Social Security Act .

Intelligent Transportation Systems Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Authorizes appropriations for FY 2004 through 2009 for: (1) surface transportation research, development, and deployment; (2) training and education; (3) the Bureau of Transportation Statistics; (4) university transportation research; and (5) intellligent transportation systems research. Revises requirements for transportation: (1) research strategic planning to include development priorities; and (2) deployment grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts. Directs the Secretary to establish a program to demonstrate the application of innovative technology in surface transportation infrsstructure construction and safety. Directs the Secretary to arrange with the National Academy of Sciences for establishment of a Future Strategic Highway Research Program. Amends the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century to revise the Intelligent Transportation Systems Act of 1998 and rename it the Intelligent Transportation Systems Act of 2003. Directs the Secretary to establish a National Multimodal Trends Policy Research Program that systematically addresses critical short-term, medium-term, and long-term social science issues affecting and affected by the transportation system. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2004 through 2009 for transit research and development. Amends Federal highway law to direct the Secretary to establish an Innovative Practices and Technologies Demonstration and Deployment Program. Directs the Secretary to establish: (1) a multimodal energy and climate change program to study the relationship of transportation, energy, and climate change as part of the National Climate Change Technology Initiative and the Climate Change Research Initiative; and (2) a national cooperative freight transportation research program.

Student Aid Streamlined Disclosure Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Student Aid Streamlined Disclosure Act of 2003 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to authorize, through September 30, 2008, the disclosure of certain tax return information to the Department of Education with respect to students seeking federal student aid.

Technology Education Incentive Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Technology Education Incentive Act of 2003 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish a volunteer education services credit for qualified employee services. Defines such services as any service furnished by an employee of the taxpayer if: (1) the services are performed at a qualified K-12 school; (2) the services are related to science, mathematics, or engineering education at grades K-12 at a qualified K-12 school; (3) the employee receives no additional compensation for performing such services and the employer receives no compensation for such services; and (4) the services are determined by the qualified K-12 school to be valuable to the school in providing education in grades K-12 in the areas of science, mathematics, or engineering. Requires a study concerning such credit.

Medicare Chronic Kidney Disease Management Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 21 November 2003

Medicare Chronic Kidney Disease Management Act of 2003 - Entitles qualified chronic kidney disease patients to benefits under part A (Hospital Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act. Prohibits enrollment of chronic kidney disease patients in part C (Medicare+Choice) of the Social Security Act. Provides for pre-end stage renal disease (pre-ESRD) professional nutritional and other counseling and related services and items for individuals diagnosed with chronic kidney disease. Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish demonstration projects to evaluate methods through which kidney patient peer education may: (1) slow down or prevent the progress of kidney disease to end-stage renal disease in Medicare beneficiaries; (2) improve the management of co-morbid conditions associated with kidney disease; (3) improve choice in selection of renal replacement therapies (including home dialysis); and (4) improve other outcomes (such as employment).

Elizabeth Ann Bryan, of Texas, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of four years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

Jonathan Baron, of Maryland, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of three years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

James R. Davis, of Mississippi, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of two years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

Frank Philip Handy, of Florida, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of three years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

Robert C. Granger, of New Jersey, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of four years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

Gerald Lee, of Pennsylvania, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of four years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

Caroline M. Hoxby, of Massachusetts, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of four years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

Eric Alan Hanushek, of California, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of two years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

Richard James Milgram, of New Mexico, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of three years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

Roberto Ibarra Lopez, of Texas, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of two years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

Sally Epstein Shaywitz, of Connecticut, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of three years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

Herbert John Walberg, of Illinois, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of three years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

Joseph K. Torgesen, of Florida, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences for a term of four years. (New Position)

United States · United States Senate · 20 November 2003

National Cancer Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2003

National Cancer Act of 2003 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop an information-sharing plan for State cancer registries. Modifies provisions concerning preventive health measures with respect to breast and cervical cancers to permit priority to be given to certain projects involving: (1) colorectal cancer screening and outreach; and (2) treating uninsured women diagnosed with cancer during such screening. Authorizes specified waivers of the direct services requirement for breast and cervical cancer screening grants. Authorizes the Secretary to award grants to eligible entities to educate cancer patients and their families about medical techniques to reduce and prevent pain, survivorship care and support programs, and related community resources. Requires a national cancer research center to have a practitioner education program that includes pain and symptom management and survivorship care. Amends various provisions of the Act to emphasize the importance of pain and symptom management throughout the nation's cancer programs. Establishes within the National Cancer Institute (the NCI) an Office on Cancer Survivorship. Authorizes the Director of NCI to co-fund grant projects for various cancer programs. Expresses the sense of the Senate with respect to: (1) cancer survivorship; and (2) institutional review board procedures.

Rural Safety Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2003

Rural Safety Act of 2003 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to: (1) authorize the Attorney General to make grants to rural local and tribal governments for the retention for one additional year of police officers funded through the cops on the beat (or COPS) Program; and (2) authorize the use of COPS grants on a matching funds basis to assist the police departments of such units in improving police communications, and in developing and improving access to crime-solving technologies. Directs the Office of Justice Programs of the Department of Justice to make grants to such units to: (1) establish or improve 911 service in those communities; and (2) establish restorative justice programs for juveniles, such as victim/offender mediation and family and community conferences. Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, to make grants to establish in rural areas substance abuse (particularly methamphetamine) prevention and treatment pilot programs and methamphetamine prevention education programs. Directs the Attorney General to provide for the cleanup of methamphetamine laboratories and related hazardous waste, and for the improvement of contract-related response time for cleanup of methamphetamine laboratories and related hazardous waste by providing additional contract personnel, equipment, and facilities, in rural areas. Establishes a Rural Policing Institute as part of the Small Town and Rural Training Program.

Medicare Education Payment Clarification Act of 2003

United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2003

Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to the counting of residents in approved allopathic and osteopathic medical residency training programs for purposes of indirect medical education and direct graduate medical education payments. Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to reimburse teaching hospitals for residents in nonprovider settings, when the hospital incurs all, or substantially all, the costs of training in that setting, starting from the effective date of a written agreement between the hospital and the entity owning or operating the nonprovider setting. Requires the effective date to be determined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Defines all, or substantially all, of the costs for the training program in that setting as the residents' stipends and benefits and other costs, if any, as determined by the parties.

Surface Transportation Research and Development Act of 2004

United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2003

Surface Transportation Research and Development Act of 2003 - Authorizes appropriations for FY 2004 through 2009 for: (1) surface transportation research, development, and deployment; (2) training and education; (3) the Bureau of Transportation Statistics; (4) university transportation research; and (5) intellligent transportation systems research. Revises requirements for transportation: (1) research strategic planning to include development priorities; and (2) deployment grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts. Directs the Secretary to establish a program to demonstrate the application of innovative technology in surface transportation infrsstructure construction and safety. Requires the Director of the Bureau of Transportation Statistics to: (1) develop an integrated, multimodal data strategic plan and revise it triennially; and (2) establish an Advisory Council on Transportation Statistics. Directs the Secretary to arrange with the National Academy of Sciences for establishment of a Future Strategic Highway Research Program. Amends the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century to revise the Intelligent Transportation Systems Act of 1998 and rename it the Intelligent Transportation Systems Act of 2003. Directs the Secretary to establish a National Multimodal Trends Policy Research Program that systematically addresses critical short-term, medium-term, and long-term social science issues affecting and affected by the transportation system. Authorizes appropriations for FY 2004 through 2009 for: (1) transit research and development; (2) highway safety research and development; and (3) motor carrier research and development. Amends Federal highway law to direct the Secretary to establish an Innovative Practices and Technologies Demonstration and Deployment Program. Authorizes the Secretary (or the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development when required for urban transportation planning) to make grants to nonprofit institutions of higher learning to: (1) conduct competent research and investigations into the theoretical or practical problems of urban transportation; and (2) train individuals to conduct further research or obtain employment in an organization that plans, builds, operates, or manages an urban transportation system. Directs the Secretary to establish: (1) a motor carrier research and technology program; (2) a multimodal energy and climate change program to study the relationship of transportation, energy, and climate change as part of the National Climate Change Technology Initiative and the Climate Change Research Initiative; (3) a national cooperative freight transportation research program; (4) data exchange formats to ensure that highway and transit monitoring systems data, including statewide incident reporting systems, can readily be exchanged across jurisdictional boundaries; and (5) a planning capacity building initiative to support enhancements in transportation planning. Directs the President shall establish a Next Generation National Transportation Policy Study Commission.

To require the General Accounting Office to conduct an investigation of the high price of college textbooks.

United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2003

Directs the Comptroller General to investigate and report to specified congressional committees on: (1) the cost of college textbooks in the United States; and (2) whether the same textbooks are being sold outside the United States at a substantially lower cost.

To amend title 10, United States Code, to allow faculty members at Department of Defense service academies and schools of professional military education to secure copyrights for certain scholarly works that they produce as part of their official duties in order to submit such works for publication, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 20 November 2003

Authorizes a faculty member of a military service academy (including the Coast Guard Academy and Merchant Marine Academy) or Department of Defense professional school (including the National Defense University) to secure Federal copyright protection for a scholarly work prepared as part of that person's official duties, but only for purposes of submitting such work for publication in a scholarly journal, publication, or other edited work for which such a copyright is required. Requires the faculty member to transfer such copyright to the owner or publisher of the medium for which the work will be published. Prohibits the acceptance of royalties or other compensation by reason of such copyright protection.

A bill to provide information and advice to pension plan participants to assist them in making decisions regarding the investment of their pension plan assets, and for other purposes.

United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2003

Amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to provide for information and advice to assist pension plan participants in making decisions regarding the investment of their pension plan assets under defined contribution plans that are individual account plans (IAPs) (401(k) and similar plans) which hold regularly tradable employment securities and permit participants or beneficiaries to exercise control over assets in the account. Requires the plan administrator to include in the account statement a notice that the account may be overinvested in employer securities and real property, whenever assets consisting of employer securities and real property exceed 50 percent of total IAP assets. Excludes from such notice requirement: (1) assets held through pooled investment vehicles; and (2) employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) that have no contributions subject to section 401 (k) or (m) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). Amends IRC to limit to $1,500 the aggregate amount which may be excluded from gross income with respect to qualified retirement planning services (QRPS) provided to any individual during a taxable year. Prohibits exclusion of any such amount if the modified adjusted gross income of the taxpayer exceeds $100,000 ($200,000 for married individuals filing a joint return). Provides that no amount (constructive receipt) shall be included in the gross income of any employee solely because the employee may choose between any QRPS provided by a qualified investment advisor and compensation which would otherwise be includable in the employee's gross income. Applies such provision to highly compensated employees only if such choice is available on substantially the same terms to each member of the group of employees normally provided education and information regarding the employer's qualified employer plan.

College Affordability and Accountability Act

United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2003

College Affordability and Accountability Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to require State maintenance of effort in providing funding to public institutions of higher education (IHEs). Requires all IHEs to plan, engage in, and report on cost containment strategies. Authorizes the Secretary of Education to conduct research on such strategies. Directs the Secretary to publish an annual report on college affordability and to disseminate certain data, including the net price tuition index (NTPI) for each IHE through a college price calculator on an enhanced college opportunities on line (COOL) website. Establishes a Pell Plus program to provide an increased award to each Pell Grant recipient at IHEs that maintain specified types of: (1) low tuition; (2) guaranteed tuition; or (3) affordable tuition. Establishes a program of grants for cooperative education for IHEs that restrain tuition increases. Authorizes grants and contracts for cooperative education demonstration and innovation projects, training and resource centers, and research. Directs the Secretary to commission the National Research Council to study the viability of developing and implementing standards in environmental, health, and safety areas to provide for differential regulation of: (1) industrial laboratories and facilities; and (2) research and teaching laboratories. Authorizes the Secretary to select IHEs, IHE systems, or IHE consortia for voluntary participation in an articulation agreement demonstration program to specify the acceptability of courses in transfer toward meeting specific degree requirements, as a means to lower tuition prices for students. Directs the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance to convene a task force of experts, representative of key constituents in higher education, to: (1) determine the best methods to finance higher education in the long-term; (2) help public institutions utilize long-term budgeting to plan for the future; (3) review the trends of financing of higher education; and (4) define the role played by the States, the Federal Government, families, and outside entities in financing higher education, and determine the best methods to strengthen this partnership.

Equity in Law Enforcement Act

United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2003

Equity in Law Enforcement Act - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to include within the definition of "public safety officer" (thus qualifying for line-of-duty death and disability benefits) individuals serving private institutions of higher education in an official capacity as law enforcement officers, or employed by a rail carrier as police officers, who are sworn, licensed, or certified under State law for purposes of law enforcement and trained to meet training standards for law enforcement officers established by the relevant governmental appointing authority. Qualifies such officers serving private institutions of higher education and rail carriers under that Act's programs of matching grants for law enforcement armor vests and technical assistance to States and local governments.