Taxation

Maritime Goods Movement Act for the 21st Century

United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2014

Maritime Goods Movement Act for the 21st Century - Directs the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to impose a Maritime Goods Movement User Fee of 0.125% on all commercial cargo (except a U.S. export) that: (1) is unloaded from or loaded on a commercial vessel at a U.S. port, or (2) enters a U.S. point of entry. Prescribes a special rule prohibiting the imposition of such fee on: (1) cargo (except crude oil with respect to Alaska) loaded on a vessel in a mainland U.S. port and transported for use or consumption in Alaska, Hawaii, or any U.S. possession; (2) cargo loaded on a vessel in Alaska, Hawaii, or any U.S. possession and transported for use or consumption in the U.S. mainland, Alaska, Hawaii, or U.S. possession; (3) the unloading of such cargo in Alaska, Hawaii, or U.S. possession, or U.S. mainland, respectively; or (4) cargo loaded on a vessel in Alaska, Hawaii, or U.S. possession and unloaded in the state or U.S. possession in which loaded, or passengers transported on U.S.-flag vessels operating solely within Alaskan or Hawaiian waters and adjacent international waters. Prohibits imposition of such fee on: (1) on the United States or any U.S. agency, or (2) a nonprofit organization or cooperative for cargo intended for use in humanitarian or development assistance overseas. Requires use of up to $10 million of fees collected during any fiscal year for administrative expenses of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Department of Transportation (DOT). Makes certain fee allocations for: (1) harbor maintenance programs; (2) low-use ports; and (3) super donor ports to carry out projects or activities under a competitive grant for maritime improvement projects for movement of goods, as well as for other specified maritime improvement projects for movement of international maritime cargo. Defines "super donor port" as a port for which average expenditures in the 5 previous fiscal years: (1) from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund, for fiscal years beginning before enactment of this Act, are less than 10% percent of the total average amount of harbor maintenance taxes collected through landings at the port in such fiscal years; or (2) from the amounts collected for the Maritime Goods Movement User Fee, for fiscal years starting after enactment of this Act, are less than 10% of the total average amount of such fees collected through landings at the port. Establishes a Competitive Grant Program for Goods Movement. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to repeal the harbor maintenance tax. Declares that nothing in this Act shall be construed to prevent application of requirements that locally prevailing wages (Davis-Bacon Act) be paid to various classes of laborers and mechanics working on harbor maintenance improvement projects.

EITC for Childless Workers Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2014

EITC for Childless Workers Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the earned income tax credit, to: (1) reduce from 25 to 21 the age at which a taxpayer first becomes eligible for such credit, and (2) increase the amount of such credit for taxpayers with no qualifying children. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury pay to U.S. possessions (including the Commonwealths of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands) that do not have a mirror code tax system with the United States amounts of the earned income credit which such possessions would have received if a mirror code tax system had been in effect.

Water Efficiency Improvement Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2014

Water Efficiency Improvement Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a tax credit for 30% of amounts paid for certified WaterSense program property (defined as any plumbing fixture or fitting that has been tested and certified in accordance with the WaterSense program of the Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], a voluntary partnership program for protecting the water supply by using less water with water-efficient products, new homes, and services, or an analogous successor program). Limits the lifetime dollar amount of such credit to $2,000. Terminates such credit after 2015.

Disability Insurance Protection and Fraud Prevention Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2014

Disability Insurance Protection and Fraud Prevention Act of 2014 - Requires the Inspector General of the Social Security Administration to increase the number of cooperative disability investigative (CDI) units to 54 and distribute them equally among the most densely populated areas. Prohibits the Commissioner of Social Security, in determining whether an individual is under a disability for insurance benefit payment purposes, from considering: (1) an individual as approaching advanced age unless he or she has attained age 58; (2) an individual as having attained advanced age unless he or she has attained age 61; and (3) the individual's inability to communicate in English as a vocational factor. Amends titles II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) and XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to eliminate consideration of the combined effect of impairments in disability determinations. Makes appropriations for continuing disability reviews for FY2014-FY2018. Directs the Commissioner to assess for Congress after FY2018 the amount of savings attained as a result of such appropriations in the federal disability program under SSA title II and the SSI program. Requires the Commissioner to describe for Congress the designs of: (1) a disability demonstration program, (2) a state demonstration program to revise specified existing funding streams for specific populations to improve outcomes and reduce participation in SSI or Social Security disability insurance, and (3) a demonstration program that encourages employers to reduce the incidence of disability among their employees by 20% through a voluntary program that provides the employers with a tax credit if their employees do not file for Social Security disability insurance.

REIN-IN Act

United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2014

Reduce Expenditures in Nuclear Infrastructure Now Act or the REIN-IN Act - Prohibits the obligation or expenditure of funds authorized to be appropriated to the Department of Defense (DOD) for FY2014-FY2023: (1) for the research, development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E) or procurement of a long-range penetrating bomber aircraft; (2) to procure an SSBN-X submarine (and prohibits the use of such funds for FY2024 and thereafter to procure more than eight such submarines); or (3) for the RDT&E or procurement of a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). Prohibits the obligation or expenditure of funds authorized to be appropriated for FY2014 or thereafter for DOD or the Department of Energy (DOE): (1) to make the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft capable of carrying nuclear weapons; (2) until the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Energy jointly certify that the total cost of the B61 life extension program has been reduced to not more than $5 billion; (3) for the W78 life extension program; (4) for the mixed oxide fuel fabrication facility project; (5) to replace the chemistry and metallurgy research building at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico; or (6) for the uranium processing facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex, Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Prohibits Navy forces, beginning in FY2020, from including more than eight operational ballistic-missile submarines available for deployment. Prohibits the use of DOD funds for FY2014 or thereafter: (1) to maintain more than 250 submarine-launched ballistic missiles; (2) to maintain more than 150 intercontiental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) on a 24-hour, high alert status; or (3) for the medium extended air defense system. Requires initial and annual reports from the Secretaries of Defense and Energy outlining their respective plans to carry out the requirements of this Act. Directs the President to submit to Congress an annual report containing a comprehensive accounting by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) of the amounts obligated or expended by the federal government for each nuclear weapon and related nuclear program during the fiscal year covered by the report for the life cycle of such weapon or program.

Savings on Medical Expenses for Seniors Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 27 February 2014

Savings on Medical Expenses for Seniors Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to make permanent the reduction in the threshold level (10% to 7.5% of adjusted gross income) for determining the amount of deductible medical expenses for individuals who have attained age 65.

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015 AND THE FUTURE YEARS DEFENSE PROGRAM

United States · United States Senate · 26 February 2014

Taxpayer Accountability Act

United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2014

Taxpayer Accountability Act - Requires the Internal Revenue Service (IRS): (1) to provide a substantive written response (not merely an acknowledgment letter) to any written correspondence from a taxpayer not later than 30 days after receiving such correspondence; (2) within 30 days after disclosing taxpayer information to any federal, state, or local governmental entity, to provide to the taxpayer a written notification describing the information, to whom it was disclosed, and when it was disclosed; and (3) to conclude any audit of an individual taxpayer not later than 1 year after the audit is initiated and to not assess any tax with respect to such audit after it is concluded.

Stop IRS Overreach Act

United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2014

Stop IRS Overreach Act - Prohibits the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from asking any taxpayer any question regarding religious, political, or social beliefs. Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) any exceptions to such prohibition should identify the specific questions authorized, the class of taxpayers to whom such questions may be asked, and the circumstances under which such questions may be asked; and (2) if the IRS Commissioner determines that asking such questions would aid in the efficient administration of the tax laws, the Commissioner should submit a report to Congress that includes such questions in verbatim form and describes such class of taxpayers and the circumstances under which such questions would be asked.

Greater Opportunities for Small Business Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2014

Greater Opportunities for Small Business Act of 2014 - Amends the Small Business Act to require subcontracting plans for certain contracts with federal agencies exceeding a specified amount to include a minimum percentage goal of at least 40% for the utilization of small businesses as subcontractors. Increases from 23% to 25% the minimum government-wide percentage goal for participation by small businesses in the total value of all procurement contracts awarded as prime contracts for each fiscal year. Repeals a requirement under which first tier subcontracts (contracts in which a subcontractor has a subcontract directly with the prime contractor) awarded to small businesses by management and operating contractors sponsored by the Department of Energy (DOE) are considered toward the annually established agency and government-wide goals for procurement contracts awarded. Delays the effective date of the 40% goal until the Small Business Administration (SBA) has promulgated any regulations necessary, and the Federal Acquisition Regulation has been revised, to implement specified provisions of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014 concerning the standards for determining whether a prime contractor has attained small business subcontracting percentage goals.

Social Security Fraud and Error Prevention Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2014

Social Security Fraud and Error Prevention Act of 2014 - Amends title II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to appropriate from the Social Security Trust Funds to the Social Security Administration for each fiscal year beginning FY2015 amounts for specified fraud and error prevention activities. Prescribes a formula for the calculation of such amounts, which include fines and civil monetary penalties recovered. Directs the Commissioner of Social Security to: (1) report to Congress and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a plan for conducting fraud and error prevention activities; (2) take any necessary actions to ensure that cooperative disability investigations (CDI) units have been established for each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the territories; (3) conduct quality reviews in certain cases with respect to decisions in connection with the application for benefits under this title and SSA title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI), in a sufficient number to ensure compliance with laws, regulations, and other guidance issued by the Commissioner; (4) report annually to Congress the total number of cases selected for such quality review, the number of such cases in which a decision is remanded, and the number of such cases in which a decision is modified or reversed; and (5) report annually to Congress on the number of work-related continuing disability reviews conducted. Allows the Commissioner to submit a combined annual report to specified congressional committees of certain information relating to disability benefits. Increases civil and criminal penalties for specified persons in positions of trust in certain cases of fraud, and requires inflation adjustments every four years for certain civil penalties. Prohibits the Commissioner, in making any determination with respect to whether an individual is or continues to be under a disability, from considering (except for good cause) any evidence furnished by a physician or other health care provider who has been barred from practice or has been assessed a penalty for the submission of false evidence. Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act) to repeal program integrity adjustments after FY2014 to budget authority for continuing disability reviews and redeterminations.

REASSESSING SOLITARY CONFINEMENT II: THE HUMAN RIGHTS, FISCAL, AND PUBLIC SAFETY CONSEQUENCES

United States · United States Senate · 25 February 2014

ITIN Reform Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2014

ITIN Reform Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to authorize the Secretary of the Treasury to issue an individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN) to an individual only if such individual: (1) submits an application for an ITIN in person at an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) taxpayer assistance center with required documentation, or (2) submits an application in person outside of the United States to an IRS employee or a designee of the Secretary at a U.S. diplomatic mission or consular post with required documentation. Exempts from this requirement military spouses or dependents, and nonresident aliens claiming tax treaty benefits. Requires the Inspector General of the Department of the Treasury for Tax Administration to audit, on a biennial basis, the IRS program for issuance of ITINs pursuant to this Act and report to Congress on such audit.

Solutions to Long-Term Unemployment Act

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2014

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

Trauma Systems and Regionalization of Emergency Care Reauthorization Act

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2014

Trauma Systems and Regionalization of Emergency Care Reauthorization Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize appropriations for trauma care programs through FY2019. Requires that not more than 50% of amounts remaining for a fiscal year after FY2014 (after allocation for administrative purposes or for improvement of emergency medical services in rural areas) be allocated for competitive grants to support pilot projects for emergency care and trauma systems. Requires the inclusion of standards and requirements of the American Burn Association in trauma care modifications of a state plan for providing emergency medical services.

Multi-State Worker Tax Fairness Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2014

Multi-State Worker Tax Fairness Act of 2014 - Prohibits a state from imposing an income tax on the compensation of a nonresident individual for any period in which such individual is not physically present in or working in such state or from deeming such nonresident individual to be present in or working in such state on the grounds that: (1) such individual is present at or working at home for convenience, or (2) such individual's work at home fails any convenience of the employer test or any similar test.

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to exclude from gross income compensation received by employees consisting of qualified distributions of employer stock.

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2014

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from the gross income of an employee: (1) shares of employer securities received in a qualified employee stock distribution as compensation for services that do not exceed the lowest number of employer securities received by any employee in such distribution; (2) any gain on such securities if held by an employee for not less than 10 years; and (3) in the case of any qualified disposition of an employer security that meets such 10-year holding requirement, any gain on so much stock acquired during the 60-day period beginning on the date of such disposition as does not exceed the fair market value of the employer security so disposed. Allows employers a tax deduction for the fair market value of securities transferred in a stock distribution. Requires an employee to recapture in gross income the amount of employer securities excluded from gross income if such securities are disposed of within five years after receipt.

Distillery Excise Tax Reform Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2014

Distillery Excise Tax Reform Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce the rate of the excise tax on distilled spirits to $2.70 per proof gallon (currently, $13.50 per proof gallon) on the first 100,000 gallons produced by a distilled spirits producer during the calendar year.

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend the work opportunity tax credit and to provide such credit for hiring long-term unemployed individuals.

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2014

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend the work opportunity tax credit through 2015 and allow the credit for the hiring of a qualified long-term unemployed individual. Defines "qualified long-term unemployed individual" as any individual who: (1)  is certified as being in receipt of unemployment compensation during the entire 26-week period ending on the date such individual is hired, or (2) would have received unemployment compensation for such period but had exhausted the right to such compensation.

ITIN Reform Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2014

ITIN Reform Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to authorize the Secretary of the Treasury to issue an individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN) to an individual only if such individual: (1) submits an application for an ITIN in person at an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) taxpayer assistance center with required documentation, or (2) submits an application in person outside of the United States to an IRS employee or a designee of the Secretary at a U.S. diplomatic mission or consular post with required documentation. Exempts from such requirements: (1) the spouse, or the dependents, without a social security number of a taxpayer who is a member of the U.S. Armed Forces, and (2) nonresident aliens claiming tax treaty benefits. Requires the Inspector General of the Department of the Treasury for Tax Administration to audit, on a biennial basis, the IRS program for issuance of ITINs pursuant to this Act and report to Congress on such audit.

To prohibit the use of funds appropriated to any Federal department or agency to provide technical assistance to nongovernment entities for the production of motion pictures, television shows, and other audiovisual programs.

United States · United States Congress · 21 February 2014

Declares that no federal agency may obligate or expend funds appropriated to such agency for a fiscal year to provide technical assistance to any nongovernment entity for the production of any motion picture, television show, documentary, music video, commercial advertisement, CD-ROM game, or other audiovisual program.

FAIR Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2014

Freeing Americans from Inequitable Requirements Act of 2014 or the FAIR Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the individual mandate to purchase health care coverage, to delay such requirement from taking effect until the Secretary of the Treasury submits to Congress a certification that the employer mandate to provide health care coverage for employees is being applied and administered without any administratively created exceptions.

Homeowner Tax Fairness Act

United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2014

Homeowner Tax Fairness Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) extend through 2016 the exclusion from gross income of income attributable to the discharge of indebtedness on a principal residence, (2) extend through 2015 the tax deduction for mortgage insurance premiums, (3) exclude from gross income any National Mortgage Settlement amount, and (4) deny a tax deduction for any National Mortgage Settlement amount that was paid in exchange for a full release of the potential civil claims of the United States under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. . Defines "National Mortgage Settlement amount" as any amount received pursuant to the settlement in a legal action against Bank of America Corporation filed in U.S. District Court on March 12, 2012, which is: (1) a payment for transitional assistance; (2) a payment from the Borrower Payment Fund under the National Mortgage Settlement to a borrower whose home was finally sold or taken in foreclosure after December 31, 2007, and before January 1, 2014; or (3) a payment received as a result of a foreclosure or excess charge of interest that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has determined was not in compliance with the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.

Sensible Estate Tax Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2014

Sensible Estate Tax Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) establish new estate tax rates of between 41% (for estates with a value in excess of $1,000,000) and 55% (for estates with a value in excess of $10 million), (2) allow a $1 million estate tax exclusion, and (3) provide for an inflation adjustment to such amounts for decedents dying after 2014. Restores the estate tax credit for any estate, inheritance, legacy, or succession taxes paid to a state (expired after 2004). Repeals the deduction currently allowed for such taxes. Sets forth estate valuation rules for certain transfers of nonbusiness assets and limits estate tax discounts for certain individuals with minority interests in a business acquired from a decedent. Requires that the value of the basis in any property acquired from a decedent or by gift be consistent with the basis as determined for estate and gift tax purposes. Requires executors of estates and donors of gifts required to file a gift tax return to disclose to the Secretary of the Treasury, and to recipients of any interest in an estate or a gift, information identifying the value of each interest received. Expands rules for valuing assets in grantor retained annuity trusts to require that: (1) the right to receive fixed amounts from an annuity last for a term of not less than 10 years and that such fixed amounts not decrease during the first 10 years of the annuity term, and (2) the remainder interest have a value greater than zero when transferred. Terminates the generation-skipping transfer exemption for certain long-term trusts (perpetual dynasty trusts) 90 years after the establishment of such trusts.

National Sea Grant College Program Amendments Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2014

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

A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to exclude from gross income any prizes or awards won in competition in the Olympic Games or the Paralympic Games.

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2014

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income, for income tax purposes, the value of any medal or prize money received on account of competition in the Olympic Games or Paralympic Games.

Fair Elections Now Act

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2014

Fair Elections Now Act - Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (FECA) with respect to: (1) eligibility and qualifying contribution requirements and benefits of fair elections financing of Senate election campaigns, (2) establishment of a Fair Elections Fund, (3) eligibility for Fund allocations, (4) contribution and expenditure requirements, (5) a public debate requirement, (6) certification of whether or not a federal election candidate is a participating candidate, (7) benefits for participating candidates, (8) 600% matching payments to candidates for certain small dollar contributions, (9) political advertising vouchers, (10) establishment of a Fair Elections Oversight Board, (11) civil penalties for violation of contribution and expenditure requirements, (12) prohibition of joint fundraising committees with any political committee other than a candidate's authorized committee, and (13) an exception to a specified limitation on coordinated expenditures by political party committees with participating candidates for any expenditure from a qualified political party-participating candidate coordinated expenditure fund. Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to: (1) prohibit the preemption of the use of a broadcasting station by a legally qualified Senate candidate who has purchased and paid for such use, (2) revise Federal Communications Commission (FCC) authority to revoke licenses for broadcasting stations who fail to provide access to Senate candidates, and (3) revise the formula for determining reduced broadcast rates for participating candidates in certain circumstances. Directs the FCC to initiate a rulemaking proceeding to establish a standardized form to be used by broadcasting stations to record and report the purchase of advertising time by or on behalf of a candidate for nomination for election, or for election, to federal elective office. Amends FECA to: (1) empower the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to petition the U.S. Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari to appeal a civil action; (2) require all designations, statements, and reports required to be filed under FECA to be filed directly with the FEC, and in computer-accessible electronic form; and (3) reduce from 48 to 24 hours after their receipt the deadline for the FEC to make designations, statements, reports, or notifications available to the public in the FEC office and on the Internet. Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a refundable tax credit in the amount of 50% of the qualified My Voice Federal Senate campaign contributions paid or incurred by the taxpayer during the taxable year. Limits such credit to a maximum $50 (twice such amount in the case of a joint return). Prohibits any such credit to any taxpayer who made aggregate contribuitons in excess of $300 during the taxable year to any single federal Senate candidate or to any political committee established and maintained by a national party. Imposes an excise tax on any payment made pursuant to a U.S. government contract to any person that is not a state or local government, a foreign nation, or a tax-exempt organization and that has contracts with the U.S. government in excess of $10 million. Sets the rate of such tax imposed on any payment to a qualified person under any such contract at 0.50% of the amount paid and limits the aggregate annual amount of tax so imposed for any calendar year to not more than $500,000. Expresses the sense of the Senate that the tax revenues raised by this Act should be used for the financing of a Fair Elections Fund and the public financing of Senate elections.

Biodiesel Tax Incentive Reform and Extension Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 12 February 2014

Biodiesel Tax Incentive Reform and Extension Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise the income and excise tax credits for biodiesel used as fuel to: (1) allow a $1.00 tax credit for each gallon of biodiesel produced, (2) provide for an increased income tax credit for small biodiesel producers, (3) revise the definitions of "biodiesel" and "small biodiesel producer," (4) treat renewable diesel in the same manner as biodiesel for income tax purposes, and (5) treat biodiesel as a taxable fuel for excise tax purposes. Extends the biodiesel income and excise tax credits through December 31, 2017.

Welfare Reform and Upward Mobility Act

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

Welfare Reform and Upward Mobility Act - Amends the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to declare that it should be the purpose of the supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP, formerly the food stamp program) to increase employment, encourage healthy marriage, and promote prosperous self-sufficiency, which means the ability of households to maintain an income above the poverty level without services and benefits from the federal government. Declares that food or a food product shall be considered a food under such Act only if it is a bare essential (as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture [USDA]). Defines "able-bodied, work capable adult" and "physically or mentally incapable of work." Prescribes additional conditions of participation, denying SNAP eligibility, for instance, to any able-bodied, work-capable adult who: (1) refuses to register for employment or without good cause accept an offer of employment at a certain wage, (2) refuses without good cause to give a state agency sufficient information of his or her employment status or job availability, (3) voluntarily quits a job or reduces work effort below 30 hours a week unless another adult in the same family unit increases employment to make up the difference, or (4) is on strike because of a labor dispute other than a lockout. Revises SNAP eligibility requirements for students with dependent children. Denies SNAP eligibility to members of a program-eligible family required by the state agency to participate in work activation unless the relevant one or more adults in such family comply with the work activation standards. Terminates benefits for all family members for failure to participate in work activation during a given month. Prescribes work activation standards for a family unit with adult members required to participate in work activation. Requires each state participating in SNAP to carry out a work activation program whose goals are to: (1) encourage and assist able-bodied, work-capable adult SNAP recipients to obtain paid employment; (2) reduce dependence on government assistance; and (3) ensure that able-bodied, work-capable adult SNAP recipients make a contribution to society and the taxpayers in exchange for assistance received. Sets forth mandatory state work activation participation rates. Prescribes requirements for: (1) funding reductions as a penalty for inadequate state performance, (2) restoration in funding resulting from improved state performance, and (3) rewards to states for reducing government dependence. Amends the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to terminate its temporary increase in SNAP benefits. Requires the President's budget to include the total level of means-tested welfare spending by the federal government as well as the total by all states, local governments, and the federal government for the most recent year for which such data is available, and estimated levels for the fiscal year during which the budget submission is made. Amends the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to define "means-tested welfare spending" and specifies the federal programs on which welfare spending shall be means-tested, and which federal programs shall not be. Requires reports to congressional budget committees and the concurrent resolution on the budget to include specified information with respect to means-tested welfare spending, and requires a point of order in both chambers of Congress if the means-tested welfare spending limit is to be exceeded. Amends the Social Security Act (SSA) to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make grants to states to reward reductions in poverty and government dependence and increases in self-sufficiency. Restricts funding for health benefits coverage that includes abortion.

Stop Targeting of Political Beliefs by the IRS Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

Stop Targeting of Political Beliefs by the IRS Act of 2014 - Requires the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) standards and definitions in effect on January 1, 2010, for determining whether an organization qualifies for tax-exempt status as an organization operated exclusively for social welfare to apply to such determinations after enactment of this Act. Prohibits the Secretary of the Treasury, or any delegate of the Secretary, from issuing, revising, or finalizing any regulation (including proposed regulations), revenue ruling, or other guidance not limited to a particular taxpayer relating to such standards and definitions. Terminates this Act one year after its enactment.

Ashland Breakwater Light Transfer Act

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

Ashland Breakwater Light Transfer Act - Adjusts the boundary of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore in Wisconsin to include the Ashland Harbor Breakwater Light Addition at the end of the breakwater on Chequamegon Bay, Wisconsin. Declares that Congress does not intend for the designation of that property to create a protective perimeter or buffer zone around its boundary. Permits retention of rights to use a portion of Lakeshore land and facilities by: (1) the Army Corps of Engineers for breakwater maintenance, and (2) the Coast Guard for federal aids to navigation. Directs the National Park Service (NPS), Coast Guard, and Army Corps of Engineers to cooperate in their operations so as to not lower the standards evolved for the operation of NPS units, federal aids to navigation, and harbor maintenance under federal law respecting the Lakeshore. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to enter into agreements with the city of Ashland, the county of Ashland, and the county of Bayfield, Wisconsin, for the purpose of cooperative law enforcement and emergency services within the boundaries of the Lakeshore. Declares that nothing in this Act or the amendments it makes shall be construed to increase the amount of appropriations authorized for any fiscal year.

Alice Cogswell and Anne Sullivan Macy Act

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

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

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

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

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

HOME Act

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

Helping Our Middle-Class Entrepreneurs Act or the HOME Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a taxpayer who uses a residence to conduct a trade or business a standard tax deduction equal to the lesser of $1,500 or the taxpayer's gross trade or business income derived from the business use of such residence.

Child Tax Credit Restoration Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

Child Tax Credit Restoration Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the child tax credit, to increase, in taxable years beginning in 2014 or 2015: (1) the maximum amount of such credit per child to $2,000, and (2) the rate of the refundable portion of such credit from 15% to 30% of earned income.

Getting Government to Work Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 11 February 2014

Getting Government to Work Act of 2014 - Suspends the public debt limit for the period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act and ending on February 2, 2015. Revises the special rule relating to obligations issued during the suspension period to provide for an increase in the debt limit, effective February 3, 2015, to the extent that: (1) the face amount of obligations issued and the face amount of obligations whose principal and interest are guaranteed by the federal government (except guaranteed obligations held by the Secretary of the Treasury) that are outstanding on February 3, 2015, exceeds (2) the face amount of such obligations outstanding on the date of enactment of this Act. Prohibits an obligation from being taken into account unless its issuance was necessary to fund a commitment incurred by the federal government that required payment before February 3, 2015. Requires the appropriate payroll administrator of each house of Congress to deposit in an escrow account all mandatory payments for compensation of Members of Congress serving in that house if by April 15 of any calendar year, beginning with 2015, that house has not agreed to a concurrent budget resolution for the fiscal year beginning on October 1 of that year. Requires release of such payments to those Members after April 16 of that calendar year only upon the earlier of: (1) the day on which that house agrees to a concurrent budget resolution for the fiscal year beginning on October 1 of that year, or (2) the last day of the Congress during which that calendar year occurs. Sets forth similar suspension of pay requirements if by July 31 of a calendar year, beginning with 2014, a house of Congress has not passed each of the regular appropriation bills for the fiscal year beginning on October 1 of that year. Requires release of salary payments to the appropriate Members after August 1 of the calendar year only upon the earlier of: (1) the day on which that house has passed each of the regular appropriation bills for the fiscal year beginning on October 1 of that year, or (2) the last day of the Congress during which that calendar year occurs. Requires the payroll administrator of a house of Congress, in order to ensure that this Act is carried out in a manner consistent with the Constitution, to release for payments to Members of that house any amounts remaining in any escrow account under this Act on the last day of the Congress during which the amounts were deposited in such account.

Debt Limit Reform and Congressional Pay for Performance Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 10 February 2014

Debt Limit Reform and Congressional Pay for Performance Act of 2014 - Suspends the public debt limit for the period beginning on February 8, 2014, and ending on April 15, 2024. Revises the special rule relating to obligations issued during the suspension period to provide for an increase in the debt limit, effective April 16, 2024, to the extent that: (1) the face amount of obligations issued and the face amount of obligations whose principal and interest are guaranteed by the federal government (except guaranteed obligations held by the Secretary of the Treasury) outstanding on April 16, 2024, exceeds (2) the face amount of such obligations outstanding on the date of enactment of this Act. Prohibits an obligation from being taken into account unless its issuance was necessary to fund a commitment incurred by the federal government that required payment before April 16, 2024. Requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on December 31 of each of calendar years 2015 through 2023 to determine: the sum of the face amount of obligations issued and the face amount of obligations whose principal and interest are guaranteed by the federal government (except guaranteed obligations held by the Secretary of the Treasury), outstanding at any time, for the most recent fiscal year which ended before the calendar year; the amount equal to a specified applicable percentage of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), as determined by the Secretary of Commerce, for such fiscal year; and the percentage by which the sum of outstanding obligations for the most recent fiscal year exceeds, if it does, the applicable percentage of the GDP for that fiscal year. Amends the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 to require the Director of OMB to reduce each annual rate of pay for Members of Congress by the percentage by which such sum of outstanding obligations for the most recent fiscal year exceeds the applicable percentage of the GDP for that fiscal year for all pay periods occurring during the calendar year beginning after that fiscal year. Prohibits any cost of living adjustment to the rate of pay for any Member of Congress during the next calendar year.

Renewable Energy Parity Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2014

Renewable Energy Parity Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to 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.

Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2014

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

Student Loan Forgiveness Tax Repayment Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2014

Student Loan Forgiveness Tax Repayment Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow taxpayers to include their imputed income from the discharge of student loan indebtedness due to death or disability in gross income, for income tax purposes, ratably over a 15-year period beginning with the taxable year of the discharge. Provides that any imputed income from the discharge of student loan indebtedness by reason of death or disability shall be disregarded for purposes of determining eligibility for any federal means-tested program.

Small Business Investment Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 6 February 2014

Small Business Investment Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through 2015 the increased expensing allowance for depreciable business property, including computer software, and qualified real property (i.e., leasehold and retail improvement property and restaurant property).

Wildfire Disaster Funding Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2014

Wildfire Disaster Funding Act of 2014 - Amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act), with regard to sequestration adjustments, to require any adjustments in enacted appropriations for wildfire suppression operations in the Wildland Fire Management accounts at the Department of Agriculture (USDA) or the Department of the Interior for a fiscal year, to be the amount of additional new budget authority provided for wildfire suppression operations in the appropriations Act, but not to exceed $2.689 billion in such authority in each of FY2014-FY2021. Defines "additional new budget authority" as the amount specified in an appropriations Act for a fiscal year to pay for wildfire suppression operations, but only to the extent such authority exceeds 70% of the average costs for wildfire suppression operations over the previous 10 years. Prescribes requirements for any request by the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture for supplemental appropriations necessary for wildfire suppression operations.

Federal Lands Invasive Species Control, Prevention, and Management Act

United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2014

Federal Lands Invasive Species Control, Prevention, and Management Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior (respecting federal lands administered through the Bureau of Indian Affairs [BIA], Bureau of Land Management [BLM], Bureau of Reclamation, National Park Service, or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) and the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) (respecting federal lands administered through the U.S. Forest Service) to plan and carry out activities on lands directly managed by the Secretary concerned to control and manage invasive species in order to inhibit or reduce their populations and to effectuate restoration or reclamation efforts. Requires the Secretary concerned to develop a strategic plan for the implementation of an invasive species program that endeavors to achieve an annual 5% net reduction of invasive species populations on lands managed by that Secretary. Requires the Secretary concerned to use: (1) no less than 75% of funds each fiscal year for on-the-ground control and management of invasive species; (2) no more than 15% of such funds for investigations, development activities, and outreach and public awareness efforts to address invasive species control and management needs; and (3) no more than 10% for administrative costs. Requires the Secretaries, in selecting the method or methods to control or manage an invasive species as part of a specific control or management project, to require the use of the least costly options necessary to perform effectively, based on sound scientific data and other commonly used cost-effective benchmarks in the area.

Scholarships for Kids Act

United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2014

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

Mortgage Tax Cut Extension Act

United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2014

Mortgage Tax Cut Extension Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through 2015 the tax deduction for mortgage insurance premiums.

Spending Accountability Act

United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2014

Spending Accountability Act - Amends the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 to provide that if the total outlays of the government during a fiscal year exceed its total revenues for that fiscal year (federal budget deficit), as determined by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO): each annual rate of pay for each Member of Congress shall be reduced by 15% for all pay periods during the next calendar year which begins after that fiscal year, and no adjustment may be made under the Act in any such rate of pay during such calendar year.

Government By the People Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 5 February 2014

Government By the People Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to allow a refundable credit of 50% of qualified congressional House campaign contributions paid or incurred during the taxable year (contributions of cash by an individual to a House candidate or a political committee established and maintained by a national political party if the contribution is not prohibited under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 [FECA], to be known as "My Voice Federal" contributions). Directs the Government by the People Oversight Commission, established by this Act, to launch a pilot program under which it shall select three eligible states to operate a voucher pilot program. Requires a state under a voucher pilot program to provide each qualified individual during the election cycle, upon his or her request, with a "My Voice Voucher" worth $50 (in either paper or electronic form), which will be assigned a routing number. Authorizes the individual, using the assigned routing number, to submit the My Voice Voucher, in either electronic or paper form, to qualified federal election candidates, allocating a portion of its value in $5 increments. Requires the Commission to pay any candidate who transmits a My Voice Voucher that portion of its value which the individual allocated to the candidate. Considers this transaction a contribution by the individual to the candidate for purposes of FECA. Requires a state operating a voucher pilot program also to permit an individual to revoke a My Voice Voucher within two days after submitting it to a candidate. Requires such a state to establish a commission or designate an existing entity to oversee and implement the program in the state, except that no such commission or entity may be composed of elected officials. Amends FECA with respect to: benefits for participating House of Representatives candidates; Federal Election Commission (FEC) payments to such candidates; candidate use of payments; qualified small dollar contributions, expenditures, and fundraising requirements; certification of participating candidates; campaign administration; prevention of the unnecessary spending of public funds; establishment of the Freedom From Influence Fund in the Treasury and of a Government by the People Oversight Commission in the FEC; remittal of unspent funds to the Freedom From Influence Fund after an election; eligibility of participating candidates for additional payments; civil penalties for violation of contribution and expenditure requirements; a Commission action appeals process; and contributions and expenditures by multicandidate and political party political committees on behalf of participating candidates. Prohibits a certified participating candidate's authorized committee from establishing a joint fundraising committee with any political committee other than another authorized committee of the candidate. Prohibits a certified participating candidate from establishing, financing, maintaining, or controlling a leadership PAC (political action committee). Prohibits use of contributions by a participating candidate for any purposes other than an election campaign. Revises bundler disclosure requirements to repeal a specified exception and so require disclosure of persons who provided bundled contributions to the reporting committee. Amends FECA to empower the FEC to petition the U.S. Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari to appeal a civil action to enforce the Act. Requires all political committee designations, statements, and reports required to be filed under FECA to be filed: (1) directly with the FEC; and (2) in electronic form accessible by computers. Reduces from 48 hours to 24 hours after their receipt the deadline for the FEC to make designations, statements, reports, or notifications available to the public in the FEC office and on the Internet. Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to set a station's lowest unit price for preemptible use as the charge for a broadcast by the national committee of a political party for an affiliated candidate. Authorizes the FEC to revoke a broadcast station license or construction permit only for at least three willful failures to allow reasonable access to, or to permit purchase of reasonable amounts of time for the use of, a broadcasting station or cable system by a legally qualified candidate for federal office. Amends the IRC to allow tax payers to designate that a specified portion of any overpayment of tax be contributed to the Freedom From Influence Fund.

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION ON THE BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015

United States · United States Senate · 4 February 2014

Bipartisan Sportsmen's Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 4 February 2014

Bipartisan Sportsmen's Act of 2014 - Title I: Regulatory Reforms - Grants the Secretary of the Interior permanent authority to authorize any state to issue electronic duck stamps. Sets forth state electronic duck stamp application requirements. Allows the Secretary to determine the number of new states permitted per year to participate in the electronic duck stamp program. Instructs the Secretary to require electronic stamp revenue and customer information collected by each state to be transmitted in accordance with a written agreement between the Secretary and the state. Amends the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to exclude from the definition of "chemical substance" for purposes of such Act: (1) any component of any pistol, revolver, firearm, shell, or cartridge the sale of which is subject to federal excise tax, including shot, bullets and other projectiles, propellants, and primers; and (2) any sport fishing equipment the sale of which is subject to federal excise tax and sport fishing equipment components. Amends the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act to: (1) authorize a state to pay up to 90% of the costs of acquiring land for, expanding, or constructing a public target range; (2) authorize a state to elect to allocate 10% of a specified amount apportioned to it from the federal aid to wildlife restoration fund for such costs; (3) limit the federal share of such costs under such Act to 90%; and (4) require amounts provided for such costs under such Act to remain available for expenditure and obligation for five fiscal years. Shields the United States from any civil action or claim for money damages for injury to or loss of property, personal injury, or death caused by an activity occurring at a public target range that is funded by the federal government pursuant to such Act or located on federal land, except to the extent provided under the Federal Tort Claims Act with respect to the exercise or performance of a discretionary function. Urges the Chief of the Forest Service and the Director of BLM to cooperate with state and local authorities and other entities to carry out waste removal and other activities on any federal land used as a public target range to encourage its continued use for target practice or marksmanship training. Amends the Fish and Wildlife Improvement Act of 1978 to exempt an authorized taking of migratory birds and collection of their eggs by indigenous inhabitants of Alaska from the prohibition on taking under the Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp Act. Amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to direct the Secretary of the Interior to issue a permit for the importation of any polar bear part (other than an internal organ) from a polar bear taken in a sport hunt in Canada to any person who submits proof that the polar bear was legally harvested before May 15, 2008 (currently by February 18, 1997), when polar bears were listed as a threatened species by the Department of the Interior. Amends the Migratory Bird Treaty Act to permit the taking of any migratory game bird, including waterfowl, coots, and cranes, on or over land that: (1) is not a baited area; and (2) contains a standing crop (including an aquatic crop), standing, flooded, or manipulated natural vegetation, flooded harvested cropland, or an area on which seed or grain has been scattered solely as the result of a normal agricultural practice or is land on which a crop during the current or immediately preceding crop year was not harvestable due to a natural disaster that is declared a major disaster by the President in accordance with the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. Requires a federal public land management official, in cooperation with the respective state and fish and wildlife agency, to exercise the authority of the official under law, including regarding land use planning, to facilitate the use of, and access to, federal public land for hunting, recreational fishing, and recreational shooting, except as described in this Act. Requires the heads of federal public land management agencies to exercise their discretion in a manner that supports and facilitates hunting, recreational fishing, and recreational shooting opportunities, to the extent authorized under applicable law. Requires that Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Forest Service land, excluding land on the Outer Continental Shelf, be open to hunting, recreational fishing, or recreational shooting unless the managing agency acts to close lands to such activity. Permits closures or restrictions on such land for purposes including resource conservation, public safety, energy or mineral production, energy generation or transmission infrastructure, water supply facilities, national security, or compliance with other law. Allows agencies to: (1) lease or permit use of federal public land for recreational shooting ranges, and (2) designate specific land for recreational shooting activities. Excepts from such use or designation land including a component of the National Wilderness Preservation System, land designated as a wilderness study area or administratively classified as wilderness eligible or suitable, and primitive or semiprimitive areas. Requires annual reports on closures of federal public lands to hunting, recreational fishing, or recreational shooting. Sets forth requirements for specified closures or significant restrictions involving 1280 or more contiguous acres of federal public land or water to hunting or recreational fishing or related activities. Instructs federal public land agencies to consult with the advisory councils specified in Executive Orders 12962 (relating to recreational fisheries) and 13443 (relating to the facilitation of hunting heritage and wildlife conservation) in carrying out this Act. Requires the Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA), for any film crew of five persons or fewer, to require a permit and assess an annual fee of $200 for commercial filming activities or similar projects on federal land and waterways administered by the Secretary. Makes such a permit valid for such activities or projects that occur in areas designated for public use during public hours on all federal land and waterways administered by the Secretary for a one-year period. Allows an applicable land management agency to deny access to a film crew if: (1) there is a likelihood of resource damage that cannot be mitigated, (2) there would be an unreasonable disruption of the public use and enjoyment of the site, (3) the activity poses public health or safety risks, and (4) the filming includes the use of models or props that are not part of the land's natural or cultural resources or administrative facilities. Title II: Habitat Conservation - Amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary and the Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) to ensure, from amounts requested for the Land and Water Conservation Fund per fiscal year, that not less than the greater of 1.5% of the requested amounts or $10 million be made available for certain projects identified on an annual priority list to be developed pursuant to this Act. Requires projects identified on such a list to secure, through rights-of-way or the acquisition of lands or interests from willing sellers, recreational public access to existing federal public lands that have significantly restricted access to hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes. Amends the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act (FLTFA) to revoke provisions that terminate: (1) the authority provided under such Act, and (2) the Federal Land Disposal Account. Makes the FLTFA inapplicable to land eligible for sale under specified public land laws. Transfers to the Treasury for budget deficit reduction, for each of FY2014-FY2023, $1 million of the amounts deposited in the Federal Land Disposal Account. Amends the North American Wetlands Conservation Act to extend through FY2019 the authorization of appropriations for allocations to carry out approved wetlands conservation projects. Reauthorizes and revises the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act. Requires the Secretary of the Interior to appoint 28 directors (currently, 23) who are knowledgeable and experienced in matters relating to conservation of fish, wildlife, or other natural resources and represent a balance of expertise in ocean, coastal, freshwater, and terrestrial resource conservation. Removes limitations on the appointment of such Foundation's officers and employees. Requires the Foundation's Executive Director to be appointed by and serve at the direction of the Board as the chief executive officer and to be knowledgeable and experienced in matters relating to fish and wildlife conservation. Gives the Foundation the power to receive and administer restitution and community service payments, amounts for mitigation of impacts to natural resources, and other amounts arising from legal, regulatory, or administrative proceedings, subject to the condition that the amounts are received or administered for purposes that further the conservation and management of fish, wildlife, plants, and other natural resources. Repeals provisions authorizing the Foundation to establish a national whale conservation endowment fund. Authorizes appropriations for the Foundation for FY2014-FY2019. Authorizes the Foundation to: (1) assess and collect fees for the management of amounts received from federal agencies; and (2) use such federal funds for matching contributions made by private persons, state and local agencies, and other entities (current law requires such use).

Disaster Savings Accounts Act of 2014

United States · United States Congress · 4 February 2014

Disaster Savings Accounts Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) establish tax-exempt disaster savings accounts to pay the expenses of homeowners for disaster mitigation and recovery expenses, (2) allow a deduction from gross income (above-the-line deduction) up to $5,000 (adjusted annually for inflation) in a taxable year for cash contributions to such accounts, (3) exclude from gross income distributions from such accounts to pay disaster mitigation and recovery expenses; and (4) set forth tax rules and penalties for excess contributions to disaster savings accounts and for failure to file required reports on such accounts.