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51 records in US in 2015
United States · United States Congress · 18 December 2015
Nuclear Worker Residual Contaminations Compensation Act This bill requires the Department of Labor to oversee an independent study on residual nuclear contamination of workers at certain facilities owned or operated by contractors of the Department of Energy and subsidiaries of those contractors.
United States · United States Congress · 18 December 2015
Ending Iran's Nuclear Weapon Program Before Sanctions Relief Act of 2015 This bill requires the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) to report to Congress on the military dimensions of of Iran's nuclear program. The U.S. government shall not provide any sanctions relief to Iran until 90 days after: (1) the report's submission; (2) the DNI, the Department of Energy, the Department of State, and the Department of Defense certify jointly to Congress that Iran has ended all military dimensions of its nuclear program; and (3) a joint resolution has been enacted into law approving such sanctions relief.
United States · United States Congress · 17 December 2015
Consumers Rebate to ban Emissions and Boost AlTernative Energy Act or the Consumers REBATE Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose as of January 1, 2017, an excise tax on the production or importation of a taxable carbon substance (i.e., coal, oil, and natural gas), payable by the producer, miner, or importer of such substance. The tax does not apply to exports of a taxable carbon substance. The bill requires the Department of the Treasury to: (1) impose carbon equivalency fees on imports of goods containing or produced using a taxable carbon substance; and (2) make quarterly payments, from the amounts deposited pursuant to imposition of the carbon excise tax, to lawful residents of the United States with a valid social security number.
United States · United States Congress · 17 December 2015
Establishes in the House of Representatives the Select Committee on Oversight of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action to conduct comprehensive oversight and investigate compliance of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and issue annual reports of its findings to the House regarding: all enrichment activities, including relevant limitations pertaining to uranium enrichment levels, centrifuge capacity, and related research and development; all international collaborative partnerships formed and the agreed upon research interests; all uranium stockpile levels, including enrichment levels as well as the amount and price of any excess uranium sold to international buyers; all International Atomic Energy Agency oversight activities relating to the JCPOA, including the effectiveness of relevant inspections into JCPOA tenants; compliance with all enacted international and domestic sanctions, including potential violations of relevant sanctions; all financial transactions including establishment of banking relationships, trade in gold and precious metals, and investment in Iran's oil, gas, and petrochemical sectors; all research and development of missile technology and the acquisition of relevant technology from international partners; and all acquisition of conventional weaponry by the Iranian regime.
United States · United States Congress · 11 December 2015
This bill amends: (1) the Department of Energy Organization Act to revise the definition of "minority" to mean any U.S. citizen who is an Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, African American, Hispanic, Puerto Rican, Native American, or Alaska Native; and (2) the Local Public Works Capital Development and Investment Act of 1976 to revise the definition of "minority group members" (who own minority group enterprises) to mean U.S. citizens who are Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islanders, African American, Hispanic, Native American, or Alaska Natives.
United States · United States Congress · 10 December 2015
Climate Protection and Justice Act of 2015 This bill amends the Clean Air Act to address greenhouse gas emissions. Specifically, the bill: states as U.S. policy greenhouse gas emission targets for 2020, 2030, 2040, and 2050 that will result in reducing the emissions 80% below 1990 levels by 2050; establishes a fee for manufacturing, producing, or importing certain carbon polluting substances (coal, petroleum, and natural gas) that increases over time; establishes the Interagency Climate Council to evaluate whether the targets are being met; requires the Environmental Protection Agency to issue regulations to ensure the targets are met if the council finds the targets are not being met; requires those fees to be deposited in the Carbon Fee Rebate Fund established by this bill; establishes the Carbon Fee Rebate Program, which will distribute proceeds from the fees to eligible U.S. residents; establishes a Climate Justice Resiliency Grant Program to fund projects that mitigate climate impacts on communities that are unable to afford the management or mitigation of those impacts; expands the definition of solid waste under the Clean Air Act and applies air pollution emission limits to those wastes; and establishes a fee on carbon pollution-intensive goods imported into the United States, requires the fees to be deposited in the Carbon Equivalency Fee Fund established by this bill, and requires the fund to be used for certain purposes, including improving industrial energy efficiency. The bill provides funding for the Weatherization Assistance Program, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, and the Rural Energy for America Program. The bill revises the Food Security Act of 1985 by providing incentives for farmers to use no-till cultivation practices and sustainable fertilizer application practices. The bill revises the Federal Power Act to enable access on the electric grid for demand response programs (programs that enable customers to reduce or shift their power use during peak demand periods).
United States · United States Congress · 10 December 2015
Ratepayer Fairness Act of 2015 This bill amends the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) to require a state regulatory authority and a nonregulated electric utility (entities), to the extent that they allow electric utility rates to include charges that subsidize customer-side technology, to consider whether that subsidy would: result in benefits predominately enjoyed by only the users of the customer-side technology; shift costs of a customer-side technology to electricity consumers that do not use it, particularly in cases in which disparate economic or resource conditions exist among the electricity consumers cross-subsidizing the customer-side technology; negatively affect resource utilization, fuel diversity, grid reliability, or grid security; give any unfair competitive advantage to market the customer-side technology, including an analysis of whether a state regulatory authority has uncovered fraudulent customer-side technology marketing practices; and be necessary to fulfill an obligation to serve electric consumers. The bill sets deadlines within which the entities must set a hearing date to consider and subsequently determine the subsidization of customer-side technology.
United States · United States Congress · 10 December 2015
CLEANER Act of 2015 or the Closing Loopholes and Ending Arbitrary and Needless Evasion of Regulations Act of 2015 This bill amends the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act to eliminate the exemption for waste derived from the exploration, development, or production of crude oil, natural gas, or geothermal energy from regulations governing the disposal of hazardous waste. Within a year of this bill's enactment, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must: determine whether waste associated with oil, gas, or geothermal energy activities meet the criteria promulgated for the identification or listing of hazardous waste; identify or list as hazardous waste any of those wastes if they meet the identification or listing criteria; and promulgate regulations regarding standards applicable to generators, transporters, and owners and operators of facilities for the treatment, storage, or disposal of those wastes. The EPA may modify the regulation of those standards to consider the special characteristics of those wastes so long as the modified regulations protect human health and the environment. Within a year of this bill's enactment, the EPA must promulgate revisions of certain criteria concerning landfills and waste management practices of open dumping for facilities that may receive wastes that are: (1) associated with those activities, and (2) not identified or listed as hazardous waste. Those revisions must: protect human health and the environment, while allowing consideration of the practicable capability of such facilities; and require groundwater monitoring as necessary to detect contamination; establish criteria for the acceptable location of new or existing facilities; and provide for corrective action and financial assurance as appropriate.
United States · United States Congress · 10 December 2015
Clean Energy Worker Just Transition Act This bill prescribes eligibility requirements and procedures for the award of temporary adjustment assistance to a group of workers of adversely affected coal-related or coal-dependent or similar energy industries who are totally or partially separated, or threatened with total or partial separation, because of the low cost of competing alternative forms of energy. Such assistance shall include temporary additional unemployment compensation, health insurance premium subsidy tax credits, training and support for employment, as well as additional pension benefits. The bill establishes in the Treasury the Clean Energy Workers Trust Fund, appropriations to which shall include the increase in revenues resulting from certain revisions to the rules for taxation of inverted corporations (U.S. corporations that acquire foreign companies to reincorporate in a foreign jurisdiction with income tax rates lower than the U.S. rates). The Internal Revenue Code (IRC) is amended to revise such rules to treat as an inverted domestic corporation subject to U.S. taxation any foreign corporation that acquires the properties of a U.S. corporation or partnership after May 8, 2014, if, after the acquisition: (1) more than 50% (by vote or value) of the stock of the new entity (expanded affiliated group) is held by former shareholders or partners of the domestic corporation or partnership, or (2) the management or control of the expanded affiliated group occurs primarily within the United States and the group has significant domestic business activities. The bill creates a tax credit for hiring certified adversely affected energy industry workers. The Department of Labor shall provide full information to workers about the adjustment assistance available under this Act. The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 is amended to transfer specified excess funds derived from coal mine operator-paid reclamation fees to the trustees of the 1974 UMWA Pension Plan for use solely to pay pension benefits required under such Plan. Workplace Democracy for a Clean Energy Future This bill amends the National Labor Relations Act to require the National Labor Relations Board to certify without an election an individual or labor organization as the exclusive representative of the employees in a unit appropriate for bargaining if a majority of the employees has signed valid authorizations designating the individual or labor organization specified in a properly filed petition as their bargaining representative and no other individual or labor organization is currently certified or recognized as the exclusive representative of any of the employees in the unit. The Board shall develop guidelines and procedures for the designation by employees of a bargaining representative. The bill prescribes deadlines for critical turns in collective bargaining to establish an initial agreement upon the request of an individual or labor organization that has been newly organized or certified as a representative. The bill also creates a Community Need-Based Economic Transition Assistance Program, coordinated by the Department of Commerce, for counties or Indian tribes in which at least 35 certified adversely affected workers reside. The Appalachian Regional Commission shall award grants to such counties to support economic development planning and implementation activities in them. The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement shall award grants to eligible counties for reclamation of abandoned coal mine land sites and associated polluted waters. The Environmental Protection Agency shall: (1) award eligible counties capitalization grants to establish a drinking water treatment revolving loan fund; and (2) provide those counties long-term, low-interest loans for large water infrastructure projects not otherwise eligible for funding from a state revolving loan fund. The Department of Agriculture shall provide such counties loans and loan guarantees under the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 to expand access to, and the quality of, broadband service across the rural United States. Commerce shall award them grants under the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program. The Department of Energy shall award these counties grants for electricity delivery and energy reliability activities to modernize the electric grid.
United States · United States Congress · 10 December 2015
American Clean Energy Investment Act of 2015 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend and modify tax provisions relating to energy. TITLE I--REDUCING CARBON POLLUTION AND CREATING JOBS BY TRANSITIONING TO SUSTAINABLE ENERGY SOURCES This title makes permanent: (1) the tax credit for producing electricity from renewable resources, (2) the energy tax credit, and (3) the qualifying advanced energy project credit. The Department of the Treasury must provide grants to tax-exempt organizations for investment in specified energy property, including qualified fuel cell property, solar property, qualified small wind energy property, geothermal property, qualified microturbine property, combined heat and power system property, and geothermal heat pump property. The title expands the energy tax credit to allow a 30% credit for investment in offshore wind energy facilities. TITLE II--SAVING CONSUMERS AND BUSINESSES MONEY BY PROMOTING ENERGY EFFICIENCY This title makes permanent the tax deduction for energy efficient commercial buildings and updates the energy standard applicable to such buildings. Also made permanent are the tax credits for new energy efficient homes, for nonbusiness energy property, and for residential energy efficient property. TITLE III--HELPING AMERICANS MOVE BEYOND OIL This title: (1) eliminates the phaseout of the applicable percentage for the tax credit for investment in new qualified plug-in electric drive motor vehicles, (2) makes permanent the credit for two and three-wheeled plug-in electric vehicles, (3) increases the dollar limitation on the battery capacity for such vehicles from $5,000 to $7,500, and (4) makes the personal tax credit allowed for investment in such vehicles refundable. The title makes permanent: (1) the tax credit for investment in hybrid medium and heavy-duty trucks, and (2) the parity at $250 of the tax exclusion for employer-provided mass transit and parking benefits. The title extends through 2022: (1) the second generation biofuel producer credit, and (2) the income and excise tax credits for biodiesel and renewable diesel, (3) the special depreciation allowance for second generation biofuel plant property, and (4) the tax credit for alternative vehicle refueling property expenditures. New income and excise tax credits at $1.00 per gallon are allowed for the production of biodiesel and an increased credit is allowed for small biodiesel producers.
United States · United States Congress · 10 December 2015
Ratepayer Fairness Act of 2015 This bill amends the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) to require a state regulatory authority and a nonregulated electric utility (entities), to the extent that they allow electric utility rates to include charges that subsidize customer-side technology, to consider whether that subsidy would: result in benefits predominately enjoyed by only the users of the customer-side technology; shift costs of a customer-side technology to electricity consumers that do not use it, particularly in cases in which disparate economic or resource conditions exist among the electricity consumers cross-subsidizing the customer-side technology; negatively affect resource utilization, fuel diversity, grid reliability, or grid security; give any unfair competitive advantage to market the customer-side technology, including an analysis of whether a state regulatory authority has uncovered fraudulent customer-side technology marketing practices; and be necessary to fulfill an obligation to serve electric consumers. The bill sets deadlines within which the entities must set a hearing date to consider and subsequently determine the subsidization of customer-side technology.
United States · United States Senate · 9 December 2015
United States · United States Congress · 9 December 2015
21st Century Power Grid Act This bill directs the Department of Energy (DOE) to establish a financial assistance program to carry out eligible projects related to the modernization of the electric grid, including the application of technologies to improve observability, advanced controls, and prediction of system performance on the distribution system and related transmission system inter-dependencies. To be eligible for financial assistance, a project shall: (1) be designed to improve the performance and efficiency of the future electric grid, while ensuring the continued provision of safe, secure, reliable, and affordable power, and provide new options for customer-owned resources; and (2) demonstrate secure integration and management of energy resources and secure integration and interoperability of communications and information technologies. An eligible project shall include the participation of a partnership consisting of two or more entities that: (1) may include any institution of higher education, a National Laboratory, a representative of a state or local government, a representative of an Indian tribe, or a federal power marketing administration; and (2) shall include an investor-owned electric utility, a publicly owned utility, a technology provider, a rural electric cooperative, a regional transmission organization, or an independent system operator. Each eligible project shall include: (1) the development of a cybersecurity plan written in accordance with guidelines developed by DOE; and (2) a privacy impact assessment that evaluates the project against the five core concepts in DOE's Voluntary Code of Conduct, commonly known as the DataGuard Energy Data Privacy Program, or the most recent revisions to DOE's privacy program.
United States · United States Congress · 9 December 2015
Waterway LNG Parity Act of 2015 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to modify the excise tax rate for the Inland Waterways Trust Fund to equal 29 cents per gallon or the per energy equivalent of a gallon of diesel in the case of liquefied natural gas, as defined by this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 9 December 2015
Defeat ISIS and Protect and Secure the United States Act of 2015 This bill directs the President to designate a person to coordinate federal government and international partner efforts to defeat the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The President may prohibit, or impose strict conditions on, the opening or maintaining in the United States of a correspondent account or a payable-through account by a foreign financial institution that knowingly facilitates a significant transaction for ISIS. The Director of National Intelligence shall review each intelligence sharing agreement between the United States and a foreign country experiencing a significant ISIS threat or participating in the anti-ISIS coalition. The President shall: (1) design programs to counter violent extremism abroad; and (2) develop as part of the National Strategy for Counterterrorism a comprehensive strategy to counter ISIS propaganda, including through online activities. The Department of State shall make counterterrorism funding available for programs that strengthen governance and security in fragile nation states that share a border with a country that ISIS or other violent extremists have threatened to destabilize or delegitimize. The President may give technical and operational assistance for the European Union and its member states to: (1) improve border management, including migrant screening; and (2) enhance intelligence sharing. The bill authorizes funds for emergency and life-saving assistance, including care of internally displaced persons in Syria and Iraq and mitigation of the outflow of refugees to Lebanon and Jordan. Visa Waiver Program Security Enhancement Act The Immigration and Nationality Act is amended to revise the visa waiver program, requiring use of machine-readable, electronic passports in order to participate in the program. Federal criminal law is amended to prohibit known or suspected terrorists from purchasing a gun. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shall: review training for transportation security officers who operate airport security checkpoints and conduct baggage screening, review airport security to identify insider threat vulnerabilities in aviation, convene a working group of private sector screening technology users to foster public-private partnerships, and encourage maximum coordination with international counterparts. The Federal Bureau of Investigation shall give TSA names and identifying information from the terrorist screening database to permit TSA to administer the credential vetting program for individuals with unescorted access to sensitive transportation environments. DHS shall create a grant program to assist airports in carrying out construction necessary to address attack scenarios and mitigate insider threats. The Atomic Energy Act of 1954 is amended to prohibit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission from granting a commercial license to any individual who is: (1) listed in the FBI terrorist screening database; or (2) convicted of any terrorism-related offense under any federal, state, or local law. The Administrator for Nuclear Security shall develop a strategy to enhance the security of all high activity radiological sources. The Homeland Security Act of 2002 is amended to establish an Office for Community Partnerships to lead DHS efforts to counter violent extremism. The Department of Justice (DOJ), through the Office of Justice Programs, may award grants to local governments, nonprofit organizations, and institutions of higher education to identify causes of violent extremism and related phenomena. The National Research Council shall study cryptographic technologies and national cryptography policy. DHS shall give technical assistance to state, local, tribal, territorial, private sector, and nongovernmental partners to develop response plans for active shooter incidents in publicly accessible spaces. DOJ may award grants to develop antiterrorism training and technical assistance programs for state, local, and tribal law enforcement.
United States · United States House of Representatives · 8 December 2015
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2015
This bill authorizes the licensee for the Terror Lake Hydroelectric Project (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [FERC] project number 2743) to occupy up to 20 acres of federal land to construct, operate, and maintain the Upper Hidden Basin Diversion Expansion without further authorization of the Department of the Interior or under the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. This is the expansion of the Terror Lake Hydroelectric Project described in the Upper Hidden Basin Grant Application dated July 2, 2014, as submitted by Kodiak Electric Association, Inc., to the Alaska Energy Authority Renewable Energy Fund Round VIII. The Expansion must meet the terms and conditions contained in any amendment to a license which may be issued by FERC subsequent to its environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.
United States · United States Congress · 7 December 2015
Food Recovery Act of 2015 This bill amends the following to provide funding, expand tax deductions, and establish requirements to reduce food waste: the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act; the Internal Revenue Code; the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act; the Solid Waste Disposal Act; and several agricultural laws. The bill expands and establishes federal grant and loan programs to: improve the nutritional health of children and raise awareness about food waste, improve cooperation between agricultural producers and emergency feeding organizations, assist schools in using food from farms that would otherwise go to waste and providing farms with compostable materials, and install facilities that include composting or anaerobic digesters that use food or crop waste to produce energy. Recipients of grants to install anaerobic digesters that use waste to produce energy must meet specified requirements regarding environmental laws and the distribution of certain food to hunger-serving organizations. USDA must: (1) establish an Office of Food Recovery to coordinate federal programs to measure and reduce food waste, and (2) study techniques for decreasing food waste and estimating the amount of food wasted by farms. The bill provides that composting is a conservation practice eligible for support under USDA's conservation programs. The bill extends and expands tax deductions for the donation of food to charitable organizations. "Sell-by" dates included on food labeling must indicate that the dates are only the manufacturer's suggestion and use uniform language. Companies that receive food service contracts with the federal government must donate surplus food to nonprofit organizations that assist food-insecure people.
United States · United States Congress · 3 December 2015
Credit Access and Inclusion Act of 2015 This bill amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to authorize a person or the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to furnish to a consumer reporting agency information relating to the performance of a consumer in making payments: (1) under a lease agreement for a dwelling, including a lease in which HUD provides subsidized payments; or (2) pursuant to a contract for a utility or telecommunications service. Information about a consumer's usage of any utility or telecommunications services may be furnished to a consumer reporting agency only to the extent that such information relates to payment by the consumer for such services or other terms of the provision of such services, including any deposit, discount, or conditions for interruption or termination of service. An energy utility firm may not report payment information to a consumer reporting agency with respect to an outstanding balance of a consumer as late if the firm and the consumer have entered into a payment plan and the consumer is meeting the obligations of such plan. The bill amends the Consumer Credit Protection Act to make provisions regarding civil liability to consumers of persons for willful or negligent noncompliance with requirements imposed by such Act on credit reporting agencies inapplicable to any violation of this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 3 December 2015
Affirms that the U.S.-Israel economic partnership has benefitted both countries and is a foundational component of the strong alliance. Recognizes that science and technology innovation present new frontiers for U.S.-Israel economic cooperation, particularly in light of widespread drought, cybersecurity attacks, and other major challenges impacting the United States. Encourages the Administration to expand forums of economic dialogue with Israel. Supports the exploration of new agreements with Israel, including in the fields of energy, water, agriculture, medicine, neurotechnology and cybersecurity.
United States · United States Congress · 3 December 2015
Credit Access and Inclusion Act of 2015 This bill amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to authorize a person or the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to furnish to a consumer reporting agency information relating to the performance of a consumer in making payments: (1) under a lease agreement for a dwelling, including a lease in which HUD provides subsidized payments; or (2) pursuant to a contract for a utility or telecommunications service. Information about a consumer's usage of any utility or telecommunications services may be furnished to a consumer reporting agency only to the extent that the information relates to payment by the consumer for such services or other terms of the provision of such services, including any deposit, discount, or conditions for interruption or termination of service. An energy utility firm may not report payment information to a consumer reporting agency with respect to an outstanding balance of a consumer as late if the firm and the consumer have entered into a payment plan and the consumer is meeting the obligations of such plan.
United States · United States Congress · 3 December 2015
Mechanical Insulation Installation Incentive Act of 2015 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an additional tax deduction for the cost of installing mechanical insulation property. The bill: (1) limits the amount of such deduction to the lesser of 30% or the reduction in energy loss from the installed mechanical insulation property compared to property that meets the minimum requirements of American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) standard 90.1-2007; and (2) allows the cost of replacing mechanical insulation property to be treated as a deductible business expense in the current taxable year. The bill defines "mechanical insulation property" as insulation materials, facings, and accessory products: (1) placed in service in connection with a mechanical system which is located in the United States and of a character subject to an allowance for depreciation; and (2) utilized for thermal requirements for mechanical piping and equipment, hot and cold applications, and heating, venting and air conditioning applications which can be used in a variety of facilities. The bill also allows a tax deduction for capital expenditures related to mechanical insulation property.
United States · United States Congress · 3 December 2015
Urges the President and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), as a condition for approval of additional U.S. funding for the IAEA, to submit to Congress the text of all side agreements entered into between the IAEA and Iran with respect to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
United States · United States Congress · 2 December 2015
Clean Energy Victory Bond Act of 2015 This bill directs the Department of the Treasury to issue, and promote the purchase of, Clean Energy Victory Bonds to pay for the energy-related tax benefits established or extended by this Act. The bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to: extend through 2023 the tax credit for investment in solar energy property, geothermal heat pumps, fuel cell property, microturbine property, combined heat and power system property, and small wind energy property; allow an energy tax credit for investment in offshore wind facilities placed in service before January 1, 2022; extend through 2024 the tax credit for residential energy efficiency improvements; extend through 2023 the placed-in-service requirement for wind facilities and other renewable energy facilities for purposes of the tax credit for producing electricity from renewable resources; extend through 2023 the tax credit for nonbusiness residential energy property; allow a new tax credit, through 2024, for home energy efficiency improvements that increase energy efficiency by at least 20%; extend through 2023 the tax credit for new energy efficient homes; and increase, and extend through 2023, the tax deduction for energy efficient commercial buildings. The bill directs the Department of Energy to establish a voluntary voucher program, through 2018, for the purchase of plug-in electric vehicles.
United States · United States House of Representatives · 1 December 2015
United States · United States Congress · 1 December 2015
Saving the Earnings and Noting the Investment of Our Retired Seniors Act of 2015 or the SENIORS Act of 2015 This bill expresses the sense of Congress on a cost-of-living increase to Social Security benefits for seniors. The Department of the Treasury shall disburse a one-time payment to certain individuals who are entitled to a benefit under title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act (SSAct), an annuity under the Railroad Retirement Act of 1974, or a veterans benefit, or are eligible for a cash benefit under SSAct title XVI (Supplemental Security Income). The amount disbursed shall be 12% of the amount of such benefit payment or SSI cash benefit payable to the individual for November 2015. The Internal Revenue Code is amended to require a Social Security number to claim the refundable portion of the child tax credit. As offsets for these payments: all balances under the United States Enrichment Corporation Fund are hereby permanently rescinded; of the amounts obligated, but not expended, under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 for the Making Home Affordable Program, Treasury shall transfer $2.5 million to the general fund of the Treasury; and of the funds made available to the Department of Energy under the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009 for the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program Account for the cost of direct loans as authorized by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, the unobligated balance is hereby rescinded.
United States · United States Congress · 1 December 2015
Sets forth the rule for consideration of H.R. 8 (North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act of 2015) and S. 1177 (Every Student Succeeds Act).
United States · United States Congress · 1 December 2015
This bill amends the the Mineral Leasing Act (MLA) to direct the Department of the Interior to require that coal lease royalty payments from a new or renewed coal lease on federal land be at least 50% of the value of coal. The Energy Policy and Conservation Act is amended to direct the President to promulgate a rule prohibiting the export of coal produced in the U.S. on federal land. Interior shall not conduct a new lease sale, or enter into a new lease, for coal subject to the MLA until it certifies to Congress that this Act and its amendments have been implemented.
United States · United States Congress · 30 November 2015
Declares that the House of Representatives shall: support the achievement of near zero greenhouse gas emissions nationally by January 1, 2050, through policies that shift the U.S. energy supply strategy from fossil fuels to 100% renewable energy, increase energy efficiency, and implement zero waste practices to end dependence on fossil fuels and to promote climate security, jobs, universal access to clean energy, national economic competitiveness, and national security; establish a national goal of deriving 50% of electricity from renewable sources by January 1, 2030; establish policies and programs to modernize the national infrastructure, transition toward full employment with new green jobs, and build a sustainable economy, focusing on historically unemployed or underemployed communities; provide educational and job training programs, transitional financial assistance, and job opportunities for displaced fossil fuel industry workers; provide retraining and re-employment opportunities in green jobs for military veterans; provide increased funding for educational, training, and job assistance programs for rural residents and for increased emergency preparation and assistance to rural communities damaged by the adverse impacts of climate change; help the people of the United States to establish resiliency to withstand the significant impacts of climate change; establish policies that capture and store carbon currently in the atmosphere by protecting forests and improving land and agricultural practices; support trade policies that maintain American labor and environmental standards; support tax incentives that promote the growth of green jobs; ensure universal access to clean energy for moderate- and low-income families; create policies or programs that result in net positive environmental and economic benefits in impacted communities, which shall receive at least 25% of revenues committed to or generated by the implementation of carbon reducing programs; phase out subsidies for fossil fuels; establish a national goal of doubling efficiency of existing buildings from 2015 levels by January 1, 2030; and support a policy to work with international organizations and other nations to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to set a goal to achieve near zero greenhouse gas emissions by January 1, 2050, through replacing fossil fuels with 100% renewable energy, conservation, and energy efficiency.
United States · United States Congress · 30 November 2015
Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 TITLE I--INTELLIGENCE ACTIVITIES This bill authorizes FY2016 appropriations for the conduct of intelligence and intelligence-related activities of: the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI); the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); the Department of Defense (DOD); the Defense Intelligence Agency; the National Security Agency; the Departments of the Army, Navy, and Air Force; the Coast Guard; the Departments of State, the Treasury, Energy (DOE), and Justice; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the National Reconnaissance Office; the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency; and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The DNI, if it provides prior notification to Congress, may authorize employment of civilian personnel in excess of the number authorized for FY2016 when necessary for the performance of important intelligence functions. The bill authorizes FY2016 appropriations for the Intelligence Community Management Account. It provides for funds identified in the classified schedule for advanced research and development to remain available until September 30, 2017. The National Security Act of 1947 is amended to allow DOE, DHS, the State Department, or Treasury to appoint individuals to certain excepted service positions that the DNI determines are necessary to carry out intelligence functions. TITLE II--CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY RETIREMENT AND DISABILITY SYSTEM The bill authorizes FY2016 appropriations for the Central Intelligence Agency Retirement and Disability Fund. TITLE III--GENERAL PROVISIONS The bill authorizes inspectors general of the CIA and the intelligence community, subject to the concurrence of the DNI, to request information or assistance from state or local governmental agencies . The Inspector General of the Intelligence Community is included within the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency. The bill prohibits the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 from being construed to authorize the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board to gain access to information regarding activities that the President determines may be authorized as covert actions to support identifiable U.S. foreign policy objectives that are important to national security. The DNI must direct specified executive agencies, military departments, and elements of the intelligence community to implement a program to provide enhanced security review of agency employees or contractors who have been determined eligible to access classified information or hold a sensitive position. Automated record checks under the enhanced program must be conducted at least twice every five years to ensure continued eligibility of agency employees and contractors. The DNI must implement a plan to eliminate the backlog of overdue periodic reinvestigations of such individuals under the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. The DNI must: (1) notify Congress within 15 days after learning that an electronic communication service provider that generates call detail records in the ordinary course of business has changed its retention policy to a period of less than 18 months, and (2) identify each electronic communication service provider that has a policy to retain such records for 18 months or less. The DNI must: issue a directive containing a written policy for the timely notification to Congress of the identities of individuals occupying senior level positions within the intelligence community, designate an official to manage intelligence regarding the tactical use of tunnels by state and nonstate actors, establish a formal internal reporting process for tracking requests for country clearance submitted to overseas DNI representatives by U.S. agencies, evaluate duplication in finished intelligence analysis products and submit a plan for revising standards to ensure customers are able to identify differences among intelligence products on similar topics that are produced contemporaneously, and carry out a study and report findings regarding appropriate standards to measure the damage of cyber incidents. The DNI must collaborate with DOD and the Joint Chiefs of Staff to develop and report on a strategy for a comprehensive interagency review of policies for planning and acquiring national security satellite systems and architectures, consistent with the National Space Policy issued on June 28, 2010. TITLE IV--MATTERS RELATING TO ELEMENTS OF THE INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY The bill requires the National Counterintelligence Executive to be appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate. (Currently, the DNI appoints such executive.) The DNI must: (1) assign the Chief of the Analytic Integrity and Standards Group to review finished CIA-produced intelligence products to assess whether the CIA's reorganization has resulted in any loss of analytic objectivity, and (2) submit review results to Congress. The bill prohibits funds authorized to be appropriated by this Act or made available for the intelligence community for FY2016 from being used to initiate a transfer of funds from the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Fund or the Counterterrorism Partnerships Fund for intelligence activities unless the DNI or DOD: (1) notifies Congress at least 30 days in advance, or (2) waives such prohibition in an emergency situation and notifies Congress. TITLE V--MATTERS RELATING TO FOREIGN COUNTRIES The DNI must: (1) notify Congress if the intelligence community receives intelligence that the Russian Federation has deployed, or is about to deploy, the Club-K container missile system through the Russian military or has transferred or sold, or intends to transfer or sell, such system to another state or nonstate actor.; and (2) update Congress regarding any intelligence community engagement with a foreign partner on such a deployment and the impacts of a deployment to any potentially impacted nation. The DNI must submit to Congress assessments of: the funding of political parties and nongovernmental organizations in former Soviet states and countries in Europe by the Russian Security Services since January 1, 2006; the use of political assassinations as a form of statecraft by the Russian Federation since January 1, 2000; and the resources used for intelligence collection efforts with regard to the South and East China Seas. The State Department must ensure that: (1) key supervisory positions at U.S. diplomatic facilities in Cuba are occupied by U.S. citizens, and (2) U.S. diplomatic facilities in Cuba that are constructed or upgraded after the enactment of this Act include a sensitive compartmented information facility. The DNI must report regarding: (1) the monetary value of any sanctions relief that Iran has received since the Joint Plan of Action first entered into effect; (2) Iran's use of such funds, including to support international terrorism or the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria, to advance nuclear weapons or ballistic missile efforts, or to commit any violation of the human rights of the people of Iran; and (3) the extent to which senior Iranian officials have diverted sanctions relief funds for their personal use. TITLE VI--MATTERS RELATING TO UNITED STATES NAVAL STATION, GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA The bill prohibits funds authorized to be appropriated or otherwise made available to an element of the intelligence community from being used through December 31, 2016, to: transfer or release to or within the United States, its territories, or possessions Khalid Sheikh Mohammed or any other detainee who is not a U.S. citizen or a member of the U.S. Armed Forces and is or was held on or after January 20, 2009, at the U.S. Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, by DOD; construct or modify any facility in the United States, its territories, or possessions (except at the U.S. Naval Station in Guantanamo) to house an individual located at Guantanamo, as of October 1, 2009, who is not a U.S. citizen or member of the U.S. Armed Forces and is in DOD custody or control or is otherwise detained at Guantanamo, unless authorized by Congress; or transfer or release a Guantanamo detainee in DOD custody or control to the custody or control of Libya, Somalia, Syria, or Yemen. TITLE VII--REPORTS AND OTHER MATTERS The DNI must report: (1) in coordination with the National Science Foundation, regarding the employment by the intelligence community of graduates of the Cyber Corps Scholarship Program; and (2) regarding the representation of certain minority-owned, women-owned, small disadvantaged, service-disabled veteran-owned, or veteran-owned businesses among the contractors awarded contracts by elements of the intelligence community. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) must permit grant recipients under the Urban Area Security Initiative or the State Homeland Security Grant Program to work in conjunction with DOE's national laboratories when grant funds are used to achieve target preparedness capabilities for federal, state, local, and tribal governments to respond to acts of terrorism under guidelines required by the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006. The bill also includes certain Hispanic-serving and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institutions of higher education among the minority-serving institutions eligible for DNI grants to provide programs of study for individuals to learn advanced foreign languages, to study abroad, or to develop other skills that meet the needs of the intelligence community.
United States · United States Congress · 30 November 2015
Sets forth the rule for consideration of the bill (H.R. 8) to modernize energy infrastructure, build a 21st century energy and manufacturing workforce, bolster America's energy security and diplomacy, and promote energy efficiency and government accountability, and for other purposes; providing for consideration of the joint resolution (S.J. Res. 23) providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of a rule submitted by the Environmental Protection Agency relating to "Standards of Performance for Greenhouse Gas Emissions from New, Modified, and Reconstructed Stationary Sources: Electric Utility Generating Units"; and providing for consideration of the joint resolution (S.J. Res. 24) providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of a rule submitted by the Environmental Protection Agency relating to "Carbon Pollution Emission Guidelines for Existing Stationary Sources: Electric Utility Generating Units".
United States · United States Senate · 24 November 2015
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2015
Vehicle Innovation Act of 2015 This bill authorizes appropriations to the Department of Energy (DOE) for research, development, engineering, demonstration, and commercial application of vehicles and related technologies for FY2016-FY2020. The bill requires DOE to: conduct a program of research, development, engineering, demonstration, and commercial application activities (R&D activities) on materials, technologies, and processes with the potential to substantially reduce or eliminate petroleum use and the emissions of the nation's passenger and commercial vehicles; ensure that it continues to support R&D activities and maintains competency in mid- to long-term transformational vehicle technologies with potential to achieve deep reductions in petroleum use and emissions; conduct research, development, engineering, demonstration, and deployment activities on connectivity of vehicle roadway, vulnerable road users, traffic control systems, and transportation data systems, including technologies that allow for improved safety, reduced energy and fuel use, optimized traffic flow, and vehicle electrification; carry out a program of R&D activities on advanced vehicle manufacturing technologies and practices; carry out a program of cooperative research, development, demonstration, and commercial application activities on advanced technologies for medium- to heavy-duty commercial, vocational, recreational, and transit vehicles; conduct a competitive grant program to demonstrate the integration of multiple advanced technologies on Class 8 (heavy duty) truck and trailer platforms; develop standard testing procedures and technologies for evaluating the performance of advanced heavy vehicle technologies under a range of representative duty cycles and operating conditions and evaluate heavy vehicle performance using work performance-based metrics other than those based on miles per gallon and appropriate metrics based on the work performed by nonroad systems; and undertake a pilot program of research, development, demonstration, and commercial applications of technologies to improve total machine or system efficiency for nonroad mobile equipment and to seek opportunities to transfer relevant research findings and technologies between the nonroad and on-highway equipment and vehicle sectors. DOE may construct heavy duty truck and bus testing facilities.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2015
Nuclear Energy Innovation Capabilities Act This bill amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to revise the objectives of the civilian nuclear energy research, development, demonstration, and commercial application programs of the Department of Energy (DOE) to emphasize: providing research infrastructure to promote scientific progress and enable users from academia, the National Laboratories, and the private sector to make scientific discoveries relevant for nuclear, chemical, and materials science engineering; and enabling the private sector to partner with the National Laboratories to demonstrate novel reactor concepts for the purpose of resolving technical uncertainty associated with the aforementioned objectives. This bill directs DOE to carry out a program for enhancing the U.S. capability to develop new reactor technologies through high-performance computation modeling and simulation techniques. Such program shall coordinate with relevant federal agencies through the National Strategic Computing Initiative while taking into account specified objectives. By December 31, 2016, DOE shall determine the mission need for a versatile reactor-based fast neutron source, which shall operate as a national user facility and, upon determining such a mission need, give Congress a plan to establish such a facility. DOE shall also carry out a program to: enable the testing and demonstration of reactor concepts proposed and funded by the private sector, and leverage the technical expertise of relevant federal agencies and national laboratories to minimize the time required to enable construction and operation of privately funded experimental reactors at national laboratories or other DOE-owned sites. These reactors shall operate to: enable physical validation of novel reactor concepts; resolve technical uncertainty and increase practical knowledge relevant to safety, resilience, security, and functionality of first-of-a-kind reactor concepts; and generate research and development to improve nascent technologies. Within 12 months of this Act's enactment, DOE must submit to Congress 3 specified alternative 10-year budget plans for civilian nuclear energy research and development by the DOE.
United States · United States Congress · 19 November 2015
Promoting Offshore Wind Power Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) allow a 30% tax credit for investment in a qualifying offshore wind facility (an offshore facility using wind to produce electricity), and (2) direct the Department of the Treasury to establish a qualifying credit for offshore wind facilities program to consider and award certifications for investments eligible for such a credit to qualifying offshore wind facility sponsors. The bill requires Treasury to review credits allocated under this Act periodically and authorizes Treasury to make additional allocations and reallocations of such credits upon determining that: (1) the limit on the total amount of megawatt capacity for offshore facilities with respect to which credits may be allocated under the program has not been attained, or (2) scheduled placed-in-service dates of previously certified facilities have been significantly delayed and the applicant for certification will not meet the required timeline.
United States · United States House of Representatives · 18 November 2015
United States · United States Congress · 18 November 2015
Nuclear Innovation Act This bill directs the Department of Energy (DOE) to carry out a program for enhancing the U.S. capability to develop new reactor technologies through high-performance computation modeling and simulation techniques. Such program shall coordinate with relevant federal agencies through the National Strategic Computing Initiative while taking into account specified objectives. DOE shall also carry out a program to: enable the testing and demonstration of reactor concepts proposed and funded by the private sector, and leverage the technical expertise of relevant federal agencies and national laboratories to minimize the time required to enable construction and operation of privately funded experimental reactors at national laboratories or other DOE-owned sites. These reactors shall operate to: enable physical validation of novel reactor concepts; resolve technical uncertainty and increase practical knowledge relevant to safety, resilience, security, and functionality of first-of-a-kind reactor concepts; and generate research and development to improve nascent technologies.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2015
This bill prohibits the head of any federal agency from implementing or enforcing any regulations, proposals, or actions establishing any carbon dioxide or greenhouse gas emissions reductions until the Environmental Protection Agency, the Energy Information Administration, and Department of Commerce certify in writing that China, India, and Russian have proposed, implemented, and enforced measures requiring substantially similar reductions. Any regulation, proposal, or action that requires those emission reductions and that is in effect before this certification is made is nullified.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2015
Energy Consumers Relief Act of 2015 This bill requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to submit a report to Congress and the Department of Energy (DOE) before promulgating a final rule that regulates any aspect of the production, supply, distribution, or use of energy and that is estimated by the EPA or the Office of Management and Budget to impose aggregate costs of more than $100 million. The report must contain: (1) an estimate of the total costs and benefits of the rule, (2) an estimate of the increases in energy prices that may result from implementation or enforcement of the rule, and (3) a detailed description of the employment effects that may result from implementation or enforcement of the rule. DOE must: (1) prepare an independent analysis to determine whether the rule will cause any increase in energy prices for consumers, any impact on fuel diversity of the nation's electricity generation portfolio or on electric reliability, or any adverse effect on energy supply, distribution, or use; and (2) determine whether the rule will cause significant adverse effects to the economy and publish the determination. The EPA may not promulgate the final rule if DOE determines that the rule will cause significant adverse effects to the economy. The EPA may not use the social cost of carbon in any cost-benefit analysis relating to an energy-related rule estimated to cost more than $100 million unless a federal law is enacted authorizing such use. The social cost of carbon is an estimate of the monetized damages associated with an incremental increase in carbon dioxide emissions in a given year.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2015
Accelerating Technology Transfer to Advance Innovation for the Nation Act of 2015 or the ATTAIN Act of 2015 This bill amends the Department of Energy Organization Act to establish the Office of Technology Transitions, directed by a Technology Transfer Coordinator, to improve Department of Energy (DOE) coordination and use of technology transfer resources, including increased coordination and use of small business innovation research. DOE shall establish a Lab-Corps, modeled after the I-Corps of the National Science Foundation, to support investments in entrepreneurs, mentors, and principal investigators. DOE may also establish and participate in technology commercialization challenges. The Office shall: (1) work with each Office of Research and Technology Application at the National Laboratories, and (2) partner with foundations and nonprofit entities with similar technology transfer and entrepreneurship priorities and goals. DOE and the Small Business Administration shall jointly establish a Technology Transfer Investment Initiative following prescribed guidelines. The Office, in coordination with Lab-Corps, shall also establish and coordinate regional geographic areas to implement the Initiative. DOE shall establish a pilot program, administered through the Office, to award grants to post-graduate researchers for the purpose of spinning off and licensing technology. DOE may include, in a management and operating contract for a National Laboratory, partnership agreements with institutions of higher education. The Government Accountability Office shall report to Congress on the results of the projects developed under this Act.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2015
Bridge to a Clean Energy Future Act of 2015 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend various tax credits and deductions relating to energy and to repeal certain tax preferences for oil and gas activities. TITLE I--EXTENSION AND MODIFICATION OF ENERGY TAX PROVISIONS This title extends through 2016: the tax credit for nonbusiness energy property; the tax credit for new qualified fuel cell motor vehicles; the tax credit for alternative fuel vehicle refueling property expenditures; the tax credit for second generation biofuel production; the tax credits for biodiesel and renewable diesel used as fuel; excise tax credits for alcohol used as fuel and biodiesel mixtures; the tax credit for the production of electricity from renewable resources; the tax credit for energy-efficient new homes; the special depreciation allowance for second generation biofuel plant property; the tax deduction for energy-efficient commercial buildings; tax deferral rules for sales or dispositions of qualified electric facilities; and excise tax credits for alternative fuels and alternative fuel mixtures. The title also revises the income and excise tax credits for biodiesel fuels to allow an increased credit for small biodiesel producers. TITLE II--ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS This title amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) extend the energy tax credit to solar energy, fuel cell, microturbine, combined heat and power system, small wind energy, and thermal energy properties the construction of which begins before January 1, 2017; (2) modify capacity limitations for combined heat and power system property; (3) allow an energy tax credit for waste heat to power property; (4) define "qualified small wind energy property" for purposes of the energy tax credit; (5) allow renewable and alternative fuel projects to operate as publicly-traded partnerships; and (6) permit additional allocations of qualifying advanced energy project tax credits. TITLE III--ENDING OIL AND GAS TAX SUBSIDIES The title modifies or eliminates oil and gas tax subsidies by: increasing to seven years the amortization period for geological and geophysical expenditures; repealing after 2015 the tax credits for producing oil and gas from marginal wells and for enhanced oil recovery; repealing after 2015 the tax deduction for the intangible drilling and development costs of oil and gas wells; repealing percentage depletion for oil and gas wells and the tax deduction for tertiary injectants; repealing the exception to passive loss rules for interests in oil and gas properties; repealing the tax deduction for income attributable to domestic production activities involving oil and gas; prohibiting the use of the last-in, first-out (LIFO) accounting method for major integrated oil companies; and limiting the foreign tax credit for dual capacity taxpayers (i.e., taxpayers who are subject to a levy of a foreign country or U.S. possession and who receive specific economic benefits from such country or possession).
United States · United States Congress · 10 November 2015
Securing America's Future Energy: Protecting our Infrastructure of Pipelines and Enhancing Safety Act or the SAFE PIPES Act This bill reauthorizes through FY2019 the gas and hazardous liquid pipeline and related programs of the Department of Transportation (DOT). DOT shall make periodic reports to Congress on the status of a final rule for required pipeline safety regulations for which no interim final rule or direct final rule has been issued, and any other significant rulemaking. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) shall report on the natural gas integrity management and hazardous liquid integrity management programs. After completion of any pipeline safety inspection, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), or the head of the agency leading the inspection, shall: conduct a post-inspection briefing with the operator outlining concerns; or issue the operator a final report, notice of amendment of plans or procedures, safety order, or corrective action order. DOT shall study improving damage prevention through technological improvements in location and communications practices to prevent accidental excavation damage to a pipe or its coating. The PHMSA shall review its staff resource management, and may certify the existence of any severe shortage of qualified candidates or a critical hiring need for a PHMSA position or group of positions. In developing a research and development program plan for pipeline facility integrity, the PHMSA shall: (1) create opportunities for joint research ventures with non-federal entities, and (2) permit collaborative research and development projects with appropriate non-federal organizations. DOT shall convene a working group to consider development of a voluntary no-fault information sharing system to encourage collaborative efforts to improve inspection information feedback and information sharing regarding natural gas transmission and hazardous liquid pipeline integrity risk analysis. DOT shall: report on the feasibility of a national integrated pipeline safety regulatory inspection database to improve communication and collaboration between the PHMSA and state pipeline regulators; and issue minimum uniform safety standards for the operation, environmental protection, and integrity management of underground natural gas storage facilities. The PHMSA and an operator shall each consider the impact of a worst-case discharge of hazardous liquid, or the substantial threat of one, into or on any navigable waters or adjoining shorelines that may be covered by ice. DOT shall revise certain regulations to state explicitly that the Great Lakes are a U.S.A. ecological resource for purposes of determining whether a pipeline is in a high consequence area. The GAO shall report on the staffing, resource allocation, oversight strategy, and management of the Transportation Security Administration's pipeline security program and other surface transportation programs.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 2015
National Park Service Centennial Act This bill establishes the National Park Centennial Challenge Fund in the Treasury to finance signature projects and programs to enhance the National Park System (NPS) as it approaches its centennial in 2016. There is also established in the Treasury a Public Lands Centennial Fund. The Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture shall jointly establish a program under which funds from the Centennial Fund are made available to federal land or water management agencies to support projects that: enhance visitor services and outdoor recreational opportunities, restore lands and waters, repair facilities or trails, or increase energy and water efficiency. National Park Foundation Endowment Act The National Park Foundation shall establish the Second Century Endowment for the National Park Service. The National Park Service Second Century Fund is established in the Treasury. Interior shall undertake a broad program of the highest quality interpretation and education. This bill makes permanent the Volunteers in the Parks Program. Interior may establish a Visitor Services Management Authority (VSMA) to administer commercial visitor services programs and activities of the NPS, including the award and administration of commercial visitor facilities and services management contracts pursuant to this Act. A VSMA revolving fund is established for expenses necessary for the management, improvement, enhancement, operation, construction, and maintenance of commercial visitor services and facilities and payment of possessory interest and leasehold surrender interest.
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 2015
Directs the Secretary of the Senate to make a correction in the enrollment of S. 1356 to change the title to read "An Act to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2016 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes."
United States · United States Congress · 5 November 2015
The Department of Energy (DOE) shall adopt procedures to: improve communication and coordination between DOE's energy response team, federal partners, and industry; leverage the Energy Information Administration's subject matter expertise within DOE's energy response team to improve supply chain situation assessments; establish company liaisons and direct communication with DOE's energy response team to improve situation assessments; streamline and enhance processes for obtaining temporary regulatory relief to speed up emergency response and recovery; facilitate and increase engagement among states, the oil and natural gas industry, and DOE in developing state and local energy assurance plans; establish routine education and training programs for key government emergency response positions with DOE and states; and involve states and the oil and natural gas industry in comprehensive drill and exercise programs. These activities shall include collaborative efforts with state and local government officials and the private sector.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2015
West Coast Ocean Protection Act of 2015 This bill amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to prohibit the Department of the Interior from issuing a lease for the exploration, development, or production of oil or natural gas in any area of the outer Continental Shelf off the coast of California, Oregon, or Washington.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2015
This bill directs the Department of Energy to develop and report to specified congressional committees, after public notice and comment, recommended U.S. energy security valuation methods. The report shall: evaluate and define U.S. energy security to reflect modern domestic and global energy markets and the collective needs of the United States and its allies and partners; identify procedures and criteria to ensure that energy-related actions that significantly affect the supply, distribution, or use of energy are evaluated with respect to their potential impact on energy security, consumers and the economy, energy supply diversity and resiliency, well-functioning and competitive energy markets, the U.S. trade balance, and national security objectives; and recommend an implementation strategy meeting specified requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 4 November 2015
Keep It in the Ground Act of 2015 This bill states as U.S. policy that: (1) federal land and waters should be managed for the benefit of the people of the United States to avoid the most dangerous impacts of climate change and to promote a rapid transition to a clean energy economy; and (2) the government should pursue management of federal land and waters for the benefit of the people of the United States by not issuing any new lease or renewing any nonproducing lease for coal, oil, or natural gas in any such land or waters. The bill amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to prohibit the Department of the Interior from issuing a new lease, renewing, reinstating, or extending any nonproducing lease under such Act, or issuing any other authorization for the exploration, development, or production of oil, natural gas, or any other fossil fuel in the Arctic Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, or any other area of the outer Continental Shelf. Interior shall: (1) cancel any lease issued under such Act before the date of enactment of this Act in the Beaufort Sea, Cook Inlet, or Chukchi Sea; and (2) not conduct any lease sale, enter into any new lease, reoffer for lease any land covered by an expiring lease, or renew, reinstate, or extend any nonproducing lease in existence before such date for onshore fossil fuels, including coal, oil, tar sands, oil shale, and gas on land subject to the Mineral Leasing Act. Interior may exempt any provision of this Act if it determines that there is an imminent national security threat and that issuing an exemption would significantly reduce such threat, but only for as long as the threat persists. Interior may allow a nonproducing lease to be renewed or extended if: (1) the nonproducing lease contract was signed before enactment of this Act, and (2) Interior determines that giving effect to any provision of this Act is likely to lead to a court ruling that there was a material breach of the contract. Such a renewal or extension shall be for the shortest time practicable under the terms of the contract.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 2015
Cooperative Management of Mineral Rights Act of 2015 This bill repeals requirements of the Mineral Leasing Act and the Energy Policy Act of 1992 regarding the development of oil and gas deposits on certain lands within the Allegheny National Forest in Pennsylvania.
United States · United States Congress · 3 November 2015
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through 2017 the energy tax credit for investment in thermal energy property.