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Bill· HRH.R. 3788 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 2015
Mobility, Opportunity, and Vocation Enabling Act or the MOVE Act This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to issue regulations necessary to establish performance measures relating to multimodal transportation connectivity and accessibility for states and metropolitan planning organizations to use to assess the connectivity and accessibility of roadways, public transit infrastructure, pedestrian and bikeway infrastructure, and other transportation infrastructure. Such performance measures must include ones to assess specified transportation accessibility factors with respect to the general population as well as disadvantaged populations (low-income or minority populations and people with disabilities). A metropolitan planning organization shall coordinate selection of multimodal transportation accessibility performance targets with the relevant state and public transportation providers to ensure consistency with the performance measures DOT shall require under this bill.
Bill· HRH.R. 3787 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 2015
The Metropolitan Planning Enhancement Act This bill requires that projects, especially the highest performing projects, included in an adopted metropolitan area transportation plan be selected through a publicly available transparent process using criteria that directly support specified factors, national transportation goals, and applicable state transportation goals. Projects included in the priority list for a metropolitan transportation improvement program (TIP) shall come from the highest performing category of projects identified in the transportation plan; and if a lower-categorized project is prioritized before a higher-categorized project, a public description explaining why must be included in the list. These same requirements shall apply to a long-range statewide transportation plan as well as a statewide TIP.
Bill· HRH.R. 3778 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 2015
Trees on the Interstate Means a Better Economy and Roads Act of 2015 or the TIMBER Act of 2015 This bill directs the Department of Transportation to waive certain Interstate Highway System vehicle weight limitations for covered logging vehicles. The bill defines "covered logging vehicle" to mean a vehicle that: is transporting raw or unfinished forest products, including logs, pulpwood, biomass, or wood chips; has a gross vehicle weight of not more than 98,000 pounds; has at least 6 axles; and is operating on a segment of Interstate Route 39 in Wisconsin from mile marker 175.8 to mile marker 189.
Resolution· SRESS.Res. 291 (114th)passed
United States · United States Congress · 21 October 2015
Recognizes and honors the lives of the 33 crew members aboard the El Faro who were lost after it departed on September 29, 2015.
Bill· HRH.R. 3763 (114th)open
United States · United States Congress · 20 October 2015
Surface Transportation Reauthorization and Reform Act of 2015 This bill authorizes appropriations out of the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) (other than the Mass Transit Account) for FY2016-FY2021 for certain core federal-aid highway and related programs, prescribing obligation ceilings for federal-aid highway and highway safety construction programs. The bill revises and prescribes requirements for: surface transportation programs; and minimum penalties for repeat offenders for driving while intoxicated or under the influence, including mandatory ignition interlock systems. The Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 1998 is amended to extend for the same period the state infrastructure bank program. Federal Public Transportation Act of 2015 The bill revises and prescribes requirements, as well as authorizes appropriations from the HTF Mass Transit Account, for certain public transportation grant programs, and reauthorizes: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration safety programs, (for FY2016) the motor carrier safety assistance grant program, and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Financial Assistance Programs. The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users is amended to reauthorize FMCSA grant programs for FY2016. Transportation for Tomorrow Act of 2015 The bill reauthorizes for FY2016-FY2021 the highway research and development program and certain innovative programs, and abolishes the Office of Intermodalism of the Department of Transportation (DOT). Hazardous Materials Transportation Safety Improvement Act of 2015 The bill reauthorizes for the same period hazardous materials (hazmat) transportation safety projects. DOT may make certain expenditures during the same period, including an amount for hazmat training grants, from the Hazardous Materials Emergency Preparedness Fund. Positive Train Control Enforcement and Implementation Act of 2015 The bill extends deadlines and modifies requirements for Class I, Class II, and Class III railroad carriers as well as providers of intercity or commuter rail passenger transportation to implement positive train control systems. The bill revises requirements for the National Multimodal Freight Network. DOT shall establish: a National Surface Transportation and Innovative Finance Bureau, and a Council on Credit and Finance. The Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act is amended to authorize appropriations from the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund for the same period for certain allocations of funds to states for: fish restoration and management projects, boating infrastructure improvement projects, Coast Guard (CG) administration, and CG administrative expenses for state recreational boating safety and national recreational boating programs.
Bill· HRH.R. 3773 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 20 October 2015
Protect Riders of Metrorail Public Transportation Act of 2015 This bill authorizes the Department of Transportation (DOT), in carrying out the public transportation safety program, to: conduct inspections, investigations, audits, examinations, and testing of the equipment, facilities, rolling stock, and operations of the public transportation system of a recipient of financial assistance; make reports and issue directives with respect to the safety of a recipient's system; subpoena and depose any employee of a recipient or of a state safety oversight agency, subject to certain administrative requirements, in conjunction with an accident investigation or an investigation into a pattern or practice of conduct negatively affecting public safety; and investigate public transportation accidents and incidents and provide guidance to recipients regarding their prevention. DOT may also administer state safety oversight activities for a rail fixed guideway system operating in more than two states, if the state safety oversight agency overseeing the system has become incapable of providing adequate safety oversight, until the states involved develop a state safety oversight program that DOT certifies as meeting specified criteria.
Resolution· SRESS.Res. 288 (114th)passed
United States · United States Congress · 19 October 2015
Recognizes the legacy and vision of President Lyndon B. Johnson and Lady Bird Johnson on the 50th anniversary of the enactment of the Highway Beautification Act of 1965.
Bill· HRH.R. 3756 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 2015
WIFIA Improvement Act This bill amends the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 to repeal provisions prohibiting any project receiving federal credit assistance under such Act from being financed from the proceeds of tax-exempt bonds.
Bill· HRH.R. 3759 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 16 October 2015
Drunk Driving Repeat Offender Prevention Act of 2015 Directs the Department of Transportation to withhold specified graduated percentages of a state's apportionment of certain federal-aid highway funds for FY2018-FY2020 if the state has not enacted and is not enforcing a law requiring the installation of an ignition interlock device for a minimum of 180 days on each motor vehicle operated by an individual convicted of driving while intoxicated or driving under the influence. Defines "driving while intoxicated" and "driving under the influence" as driving or being in actual physical control of a motor vehicle while having a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or greater. Requires an ignition interlock device to: require a driver to provide a breath sample before the motor vehicle starts, and prevent a motor vehicle from starting if the alcohol concentration of the driver is above the legal limit. Authorizes reduction of the 180-day period to 90 days if: the driver's license is suspended for a minimum of 180 days as a result of the conviction, and the period for installation of an ignition interlock device begins after the last day of the suspension.
Bill· HRH.R. 3739 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 9 October 2015
Veterans' Expanded Trucking Opportunities Act This bill authorizes a qualified Department of Veterans Affairs physician to perform a medical examination and provide a medical certificate for purposes of compliance with medical standards and guidelines for the physical qualifications of operators of commercial motor vehicles. Such an operator is a veteran who is enrolled in the veterans' health care system and had a valid medical certificate prior to May 21, 2014. The certification shall include a statement that the physical condition of the operator is adequate to enable such operator to operate a commercial motor vehicle safely.
Bill· HRH.R. 3740 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 9 October 2015
Integrated Transportation and Economic Development Act This bill: (1) adds as a new goal of the federal-aid highway program to improve road conditions in economically distressed urban communities and increase access to jobs, markets, and economic opportunities for people who live in such communities; (2) requires the Department of Transportation to establish measures for states to use to assess the conditions, accessibility, and reliability of roads in such communities; and (3) requires each state to set performance targets that reflect such measures.
Bill· HRH.R. 3726 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 8 October 2015
Highway Exceptions for Ranchers' Deliveries Act of 2015 This bill authorizes a state to allow, by special permit, the operation of vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of up to 95,000 pounds for the hauling of livestock. The cost of such permit may not exceed $200 per year for a livestock trailer.
Bill· SS. 2163 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 7 October 2015
Streamlining and Investing in Broadband Infrastructure Act This bill requires the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to issue best practices relating to broadband infrastructure and installation for state broadband coordination offices, with an emphasis on rural areas. The Department of Transportation (DOT) must require states to install broadband conduits, which support broadband or wireless facilities for broadband service, in certain highway construction projects. DOT must ensure that: (1) standards are established that apply to all areas, including rural and remote areas with low population density; and (2) any requesting broadband provider has access to such installed conduits on a competitively neutral and nondiscriminatory basis, for a charge not to exceed a cost-based rate. Federal easement and right-of-way procedures under the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 are revised to allow an executive agency, a state, a person, a firm, or an organization to apply for the grant of a real property interest (including a lease, license, easement, or right-of-way) to, in, over, or on a building or other property owned by the federal government for the right to install, construct, modify, and maintain a communications facility installation. An executive agency that owns the building or other property on behalf of the federal government must grant to the applicant, if technically feasible, a real property interest to perform such installation, construction, modification, and maintenance. Requirements are set forth concerning the fees and terms of years for the grant of such real property interests. The bill provides for the collection of: (1) a standard fee established by the General Services Administration (GSA), or (2) agency-specific fees established by executive agencies. The GSA must also consult with designated agencies regarding the master application forms and standard contracts that executive agencies are required to accept for the placement of such facilities. If the GSA determines that master forms or contracts are not adequate for a specific building or property, it must coordinate with the agencies to address the inadequacies and provide an adequate alternative application form or contract to the applicant.
Law· SS. 2143 (114th)enacted
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2015
This bill modifies the existing authority for the Starr-Camargo Bridge Company to maintain and operate a toll bridge across the Rio Grande River near Rio Grande City, Texas. The authority, which currently expires 66 years after completion of the bridge, is made permanent and expanded to include the successors or assigns of the company. The bridge must not consist of more than 14 lanes. The company and its successors and assigns may use eminent domain to acquire certain land needed for the bridge, subject to Texas laws and requirements for just compensation and public proceedings.
Bill· HRH.R. 3688 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 6 October 2015
This bill modifies the existing authority for the Starr-Camargo Bridge Company to maintain and operate a toll bridge across the Rio Grande River near Rio Grande City, Texas. The authority, which currently expires 66 years after completion of the bridge, is made permanent and expanded to include the successors or assigns of the company. The bridge must not consist of more than 14 lanes. The company and its successors and assigns may use eminent domain to acquire certain land needed for the bridge, subject to Texas laws and requirements for just compensation and public proceedings.
Bill· SS. 2129 (114th)open
United States · United States Congress · 5 October 2015
An Act Making Appropriations to Improve the Nation's Infrastructure and for Other Purposes, 2016 Provides FY2016 appropriations to the Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation, the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of Transportation (DOT), the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and several independent and related agencies. Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016 Provides appropriations to USDA for Agricultural Programs, including: the Office of the Secretary; the Economic Research Service; the National Agricultural Statistics Service; the Agricultural Research Service; the National Institute of Food and Agriculture; the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service; the Agricultural Marketing Service; the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration; the Food Safety and Inspection Service; the Farm Service Agency; the Risk Management Agency; the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation Fund; and the Commodity Credit Corporation Fund. Provides appropriations to USDA for Conservation Programs and Rural Development Programs. Provides appropriations to USDA for the Food and Nutrition Service, including: Child Nutrition Programs; the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program); the Commodity Assistance Program; and Nutrition Programs Administration. Provides appropriations to USDA for the Foreign Agricultural Service, including Food for Peace and McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program Grants. Provides appropriations for the Food and Drug Administration and the Farm Credit Administration. Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016 Provides appropriations for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers civil works projects, including for: Investigations, Construction, Mississippi River and Tributaries, Operation and Maintenance, the Regulatory Program, the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program, Flood Control and Coastal Emergencies, Expenses, and the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works. Provides appropriations to the Department of the Interior for the Central Utah Project and to the Bureau of Reclamation. Provides appropriations to DOE for Energy Programs, including Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability, Nuclear Energy, Fossil Energy Research and Development, Non-Defense Environmental Cleanup, and Science. Provides appropriations to DOE for: the Atomic Energy Defense Activities of the National Nuclear Security Administration, Environmental and Other Defense Activities, and the Power Marketing Administrations. Provides appropriations to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and other independent agencies. Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016 Provides FY2016 appropriations to the Department of Transportation (DOT), the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and several related agencies. Department of Transportation Appropriations Act, 2016 Provides appropriations to DOT for: the Office of the Secretary, the Federal Aviation Administration, the Federal Highway Administration, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Federal Railroad Administration, the Federal Transit Administration, the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, the Maritime Administration, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, the Office of Inspector General, and the Surface Transportation Board. Department of Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, 2016 Provides appropriations to HUD for: Management and Administration, Program Office Salaries and Expenses, Public and Indian Housing, Community Planning and Development, Housing Programs, the Federal Housing Administration, the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae), Policy Development and Research, Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, the Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes, the Information Technology Fund, and the Office of Inspector General. Provides appropriations to several related agencies, including the Access Board, the Federal Maritime Commission, the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) Office of Inspector General, the National Transportation Safety Board, the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation, and the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness. Sets forth permissible, restricted, and prohibited uses for funds provided by this and other appropriations Acts.
Bill· HRH.R. 3682 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 2 October 2015
Reducing Employer Burdens, Unleashing Innovation, and Labor Development Act of 2015 This bill expresses the sense of Congress that increasing the competitiveness of U.S. manufacturers will strengthen the national economy. Investing in America's Workforce Act The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 is amended to require state or local workforce investment systems to use youth activities funds allocated to a local area for programs that provide training. The Internal Revenue Code is amended to: (1) extend through 2016 the tax credit for increasing research activities, and (2) increase and make permanent the alternative simplified research tax credit. The Joint Committee on Taxation shall notify Congress of any introduced tax reform bill for: (1) a transition to a more globally competitive corporate tax code, (2) a reduction in the code's complexity, and (3) the elimination of special interest loopholes. The Department of Homeland Security shall establish within the Office of International Trade of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) a Trade Remedy Law Enforcement Division (including a National Targeting and Analysis Group) to prevent and counter evasion of antidumping (AD) duty or countervailing duty (CVD) orders with respect to covered merchandise entered into the United States. The Tariff Act of 1930 is amended to permit access to certain proprietary information to a CBP officer or employee investigating possible negligence or gross negligence with respect to covered merchandise entered into the United States. The Department of the Treasury shall negotiate and enter into bilateral agreements with customs authorities of foreign countries to prevent evasion of U.S. and foreign trade remedy laws. This bill prescribes procedures for the administering authority (the Department of Commerce, or any other U.S. officer responsible for such duties) to initiate an AD or CV duty investigation for merchandise imported into the United States upon its own initiation, or the filing of a petition by interested parties or referral by the CBP Commissioner. The weighted average dumping margin or individual CVD rate determined for a new exporter or producer of merchandise in a review by the administering authority as to whether an AD or CVD shall be imposed shall be based solely on the bona fide U.S. sales made by the exporter or producer during the period of review. It is the sense of Congress that the Export Administration Act of 1979 should be reformed and reauthorized. Federal Spectrum Incentive Act of 2015 The National Telecommunications and Information Administration Organization Act is amended to allow federal entities that utilize government station licenses to participate in the incentive auction program under which licensees of electromagnetic spectrum voluntarily relinquish their spectrum rights in order for the spectrum to be auctioned for a repurposed commercial use in exchange for a percentage of the auction proceeds. A Federal Spectrum Incentive Fund is established in the Treasury. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must, before promulgating a final rule that regulates any aspect of the production, supply, distribution, or use of energy (or that provides for regulation by state or local governments) and that is estimated by EPA or OMB to impose aggregate costs of more than $1 billion, to report: (1) an estimate of the rule's total costs and benefits, (2) an estimate of the increases in energy prices that may result, and (3) a detailed description of the employment effects that may result. Electricity Security and Affordability Act The EPA may not issue, implement, or enforce any proposed or final rule under the Clean Air Act that establishes a performance standard for greenhouse gas emissions from any new source that is a fossil fuel-fired electric utility generating unit unless the rule meets specified requirements of this Act. The force and effect of specified proposed rules (or similar successor proposed or final rules) are nullified for Standards of Performance for Greenhouse Gas Emissions for New Stationary Sources: Electric Utility Generating Units issued before enactment of this Act. LNG Permitting Certainty and Transparency Act For proposals that must also obtain authorization from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission or the U.S. Maritime Administration to site, construct, expand, or operate liquified natural gas (LNG) export facilities, the Department of Energy (DOE) shall issue a decision on an application for authorization to export natural gas within 30 days after the later of: (1) the conclusion of the review to site, construct, expand, or operate the LNG facilities required by the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA); or (2) the enactment of this Act. The Natural Gas Act is amended to set as a condition for approval of any authorization to export LNG that the DOE require the applicant to disclose publicly its specific destination or destinations. Preventing Government Waste and Protecting Coal Mining Jobs in America The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 is amended to require state programs for regulation of surface coal mining to incorporate the necessary rule concerning excess spoil, coal mine waste, and buffers for perennial and intermittent streams published by the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement on December 12, 2008. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the health care provisions of the Health Care and Education and Reconciliation Act of 2010 are repealed, effective as of their enactment. The provisions amended or repealed by such Acts are restored or revived. The Public Health Service Act (PHSA), as restored under this Act, is amended to prohibit a group health plan and a health insurance issuer offering group or individual health insurance coverage from establishing lifetime limits on the dollar value of benefits for any individual. Each state must mitigate the cost of high risk individuals in the state through: (1) a state reinsurance program, or (2) a state high risk pool. The PHSA is amended to require the laws of the state designated by a health insurance issuer (primary state) to apply to individual health insurance coverage offered by that issuer in the primary state and in any other state (secondary state), but only if the coverage and issuer comply with the conditions of this Act. Conditions are prescribed for lawsuits arising from health care liability claims. The PHSA is amended to deem a hospital or an emergency department and a physician or physician group to be a Public Health Service employee with federal liability protection for purposes of any civil action arising from emergency and post-stabilization services. Nothing in the McCarran-Ferguson Act (which exempts the insurance business generally from federal regulation) shall modify, impair, or supersede the operation of any of the antitrust laws with respect to the business of health insurance. No class action may be heard in a federal or state court on a claim against a person engaged in the business of health insurance for violation of any of the antitrust laws except for actions commenced by: the United States or any state; or a named claimant for an injury only to itself. A health care professional shall not be liable under federal or state law, with certain exceptions, for harm caused by any act or omission if: (1) the professional is serving as a volunteer in response to a disaster; and (2) the act or omission occurs during the period of the disaster, in the professional's capacity as such a volunteer, and in a good faith belief that the individual being treated is in need of health care services. The plaintiff in any civil action or proceeding against a health care professional bears the burden of proving by clear and convincing evidence that the limitation of liability under the Act does not apply. Lowering Gasoline Prices to Fuel an America That Works Act of 2015 The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) is amended to direct Interior to implement a lease sales program that includes at least 50% of the available unleased acreage within each outer Continental Shelf (OCS) planning area considered to have the largest undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources. Interior shall develop a five-year oil and gas leasing program with a domestic strategic production goal determined according to a specified formula. Interior shall conduct oil and gas Lease Sale 220 offshore Virginia, subject to a specified condition if the Department of Defense proposes a deferral from a lease offering due to irreconcilable defense-related activities. Interior shall conduct a lease sale within two years after enactment of this Act for certain areas off the coast of South Carolina with the most geologically promising hydrocarbon resources. Interior must: (1) offer for sale leases of tracts in the Santa Maria and Santa Barbara/Ventura Basins of the Southern California OCS Planning Area, and (2) prepare for all lease sales required under this Act a NEPA multisale environmental impact statement. 37.5% of the amount of new federal leasing revenues shall be allocated to affected coastal states within 200 miles of the leased tract. This bill establishes in Interior: (1) an Under Secretary for Energy, Lands, and Minerals; (2) an Assistant Secretary of Ocean Energy and Safety; (3) an Assistant Secretary of Land and Minerals Management; (4) a Bureau of Ocean Energy; (5) an Ocean Energy Safety Service; and (6) an Office of Natural Resources Revenue. Interior shall establish: (1) a National Offshore Energy Safety Academy, and (2) an OCS Energy Safety Advisory Board. Interior shall also: (1) certify annually that certain of its personnel comply fully with federal employee ethics laws and regulations; and (2) conduct random drug testing of such personnel. The Minerals Management Service is abolished. Interior shall collect non-refundable fees from the operators of facilities subject to inspection. An Ocean Energy Enforcement Fund is established in the Treasury for deposit of such fees. The Bureau of Ocean Energy and the Ocean Energy Safety Service may not implement any limitation on activities under their jurisdictions because of the coastal and marine spatial planning component of the National Ocean Policy developed under Executive Order No. 13547. The OCS is redefined to include all submerged lands lying within the U.S. exclusive economic zone and the Continental Shelf adjacent to any U.S. territory. Interior shall promulgate rules regarding the revenue streams contemplated by the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006, including the timing and methods of disbursements of certain funds under such Act. For FY2024-FY2055 the maximum amount of qualified OCS revenues distributed to Gulf producing states shall be increased. The South Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf Planning Area is defined. The OCSLA is amended to require the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to enter into partnerships to conduct oil- or gas-related geological and geophysical investigations on the OCS with institutions of higher education nominated by the governors of Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. Federal Lands Jobs and Energy Security Act Interior shall encourage the use of U.S. workers and equipment manufactured in the U.S. in all construction related to mineral resource development under this Act. Streamlining Permitting of American Energy Act of 2015 The Mineral Leasing Act (MLA) is amended to direct Interior to revise requirements for the processing of drill permit applications. A permit application shall be deemed approved if Interior has not made a decision by 60 days after its receipt. Interior shall collect specified fees for processing a drill permit application and for documentation to accompany each protest for an application, a lease, or a right of way. Interior shall: establish a Federal Permit Streamlining Project in every Bureau of Land Management (BLM) field office responsible for permitting energy projects on federal land, and provide 50% matching funds for joint projects with states to conduct oil and gas resource assessments on federal lands with significant oil and gas potential. Providing Leasing Certainty for American Energy Act of 201 5 Interior, in conducting lease sales under the MLA, must offer for sale at least 25% of the annual nominated acreage not previously made available for lease. This acreage shall be shielded from protest and eligible for categorical exclusions under NEPA. Interior shall not: withdraw any covered energy project without finding a violation of lease terms by the lessee; delay indefinitely issuance of project approvals, drilling and seismic permits, and rights of way for activities under a lease; or cancel or withdraw any lease parcel after a competitive lease sale has occurred and a winning bidder has made the last payment for the parcel. The BLM Instruction Memorandum 2010-117 (which establishes a process to ensure orderly, effective, timely, and environmentally responsible leasing of oil and gas resources on federal lands) shall have no force or effect. Protecting Investment in Oil Shale the Next Generation of Environmental, Energy, and Resource Security Act or the PIONEERS Act The final regulations regarding oil shale management published by the BLM on November 18, 2008, as well as a specified resource management plan, are deemed to satisfy all legal and procedural requirements under any law, and Interior shall implement them, including the oil shale leasing program they authorize, without any other administrative action necessary. Interior shall hold a lease sale that offers an additional ten parcels for lease for research, development, and demonstration of oil shale resources, including at least five separate commercial lease sales, in multiple lease blocs, in certain areas of at least 25,000 acres. Planning for American Energy Act of 2015 The MLA is amended to direct Interior to publish every four years a Quadrennial Federal Onshore Energy Production Strategy. National Petroleum Reserve Alaska Access Act The Naval Petroleum Reserves Production Act of 1976 is amended to require the competitive leasing of oil and gas in the National Petroleum Reserve (NPR) in Alaska to include at least one lease sale annually in those areas most likely to produce commercial quantities of oil and natural gas each year between 2017-2027. Interior must ensure permits according to a specified time line for all surface development activities, including pipelines and roads construction, to: (1) develop NPR areas subject to oil and gas leases, and (2) transport oil and gas from and through the NPR to existing infrastructure on the North Slope of Alaska. Interior must issue: (1) a new proposed integrated activity plan from among the non-adopted alternatives in the NPR Alaska Integrated Activity Plan Record of Decision dated February 21, 2013. The February 21, 2013, Record of Decision shall have no force or effect. The U.S. Geological Survey shall conduct and complete a resource assessment in cooperation with Alaska and the American Association of Petroleum Geologists. BLM Live Internet Auctions Act The MLA is amended to authorize Interior to conduct onshore oil and gas lease sales through Internet-based live bidding methods. Native American Energy Act The Energy Policy Act of 1992 is amended to allow Interior, an affected Indian tribe, or a certified third-party appraiser under contract with the Indian tribe to appraise Indian land or trust assets involved in a transaction requiring Interior approval. Tribes may, however, waive such appraisals. The Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 is amended to direct Interior to enter into agreements with Indian tribes to carry out demonstration projects involving woody biomass from federal lands to promote biomass energy production on Indian forest land and in nearby communities. The Long-Term Leasing Act is amended to authorize the Navajo Nation to enter into mineral resource leases on their restricted lands without Interior's approval. No Interior rule regarding hydraulic fracturing may have any effect on land held in trust or restricted status for Indians, except with the express consent of its specific beneficiaries. Protecting States' Rights to Promote American Energy Security Act Interior may not enforce any federal regulation, guidance, or permit requirement regarding hydraulic fracturing relating to oil, gas, or geothermal production activities on or under any land in any state that has regulations, guidance, or permit requirements for that activity. (Hydraulic fracturing is the process by which fracturing fluids, including a fracturing fluid system, are pumped into an underground geologic formation to generate fractures or cracks, thereby increasing rock permeability near the wellbore and improving production of natural gas or oil.) The GAO shall examine the economic benefits of domestic shale oil and gas production resulting from hydraulic fracturing. Interior shall not enforce any federal regulation, guidance, or permit requirement governing the hydraulic fracturing process, or any of its components, relating to oil, gas, or geothermal production activities on land held either in trust or restricted status for the benefit of Indians except with the express consent of the specific beneficiary. The President shall establish or designate a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education Advisory Panel. The National Science Foundation shall establish, within the Directorate for Education and Human Resources, a STEM Education Coordinating Office.
Bill· HRH.R. 3665 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 1 October 2015
This bill authorizes FY2016-FY2021 appropriations from the Highway Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Account) for the University Transportation Centers Program and requires the Federal Highway Administration to administer the program. The program provides grants to nonprofit institutions of higher education to establish and operate university transportation centers to advance transportation expertise and technology, provide a transportation knowledge base outside of the Department of Transportation, address critical workforce needs, and educate the next generation of transportation leaders.
Bill· HRH.R. 3651 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2015
Positive Train Control Enforcement and Implementation Act of 2015 This bill extends deadlines and modifies requirements for railroad carriers and providers of intercity or commuter rail passenger transportation to implement positive train control (PTC) systems. (A PTC system is a communications and signaling system designed to prevent train-to-train collisions, over-speed derailments, incursions into established work zone limits, and the movement of a train through a switch left in the wrong position. Railroads which carry passengers or have high-volume freight traffic with certain hazardous materials are required to implement a PTC system.) Within 60 days of enactment of this bill, each Class I railroad carrier (the largest operators by revenue) and provider of intercity or commuter rail passenger transportation must submit to the Department of Transportation (DOT) a plan for implementing PTC by December 31, 2018, instead of the December 31, 2015, deadline required under current law. DOT may extend the deadline if specified requirements are met. The revised plan must include a detailed schedule and sequence for fully implementing PTC in a manner that complies with specified regulations, and railroads must implement PTC in accordance with the plan. DOT may authorize a railroad carrier or other entity to begin the provisional operation of a PTC system without the required certification if it is necessary to enable the safe implementation of PTC in phases.
Bill· SS. 2103 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 30 September 2015
This bill modifies the formula that the Department of Transportation uses to apportion federal highway funds among the states for the national highway performance program, the surface transportation program, the highway safety improvement program, the congestion mitigation and air quality improvement program, and metropolitan transportation planning.
Bill· SS. 2093 (114th)open
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2015
This bill grants the Department of Transportation sole authority to appoint Federal Directors to the Board of Directors of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA). The signatory parties to the WMATA Compact shall amend it to reflect such authority.
Bill· SS. 2089 (114th)open
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2015
American Energy Innovation Act This bill encourages and establishes requirements concerning: energy efficiency in the electricity grid, the manufacturing sector, certain vehicles and trucks, buildings, homes, and the federal government; protection of the bulk-power system from cybersecurity threats; the security and resiliency of the energy network and applications, including electric, natural gas, and oil exploration, transmission, and delivery; the modernization of energy infrastructure at the federal and state level; the development or deployment of alternative energies; and water conservation measures. The bill establishes: (1) a nonbinding goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 2% per year on average through 2025, and (2) a federal energy efficiency resource standard for retail electricity and natural gas suppliers. The bill repeals royalty relief for leases in the Outer Continental Shelf with respect to the production of oil or gas from deep water production or ultra deep wells in shallow waters. The Department of Interior must: (1) prevent venting and flaring of gases in oil and natural gas production operations on federal land, and (2) promote the capture of beneficial use or reinjection of gas in those operations. Interior must establish an annual production incentive fee with respect to public land that is subject to a lease for production of oil or natural gas under which production is not occurring. The bill reauthorizes through FY2020 the Department of Energy's: (1) Weatherization Assistance Program, (2) State Energy Program, (3) basic research, and (4) the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy. The bill also revises and reauthorizes the Water Desalination Act of 1996. The bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) provide tax incentives for producing clean energy and for reducing energy use in homes or commercial buildings, (2) extend through 2017 energy-related tax credits, (3) subject oil derived from tar sands to an excise tax, and (4) repeal certain oil and gas tax subsidies for major integrated oil companies. The bill: (1) establishes the National Park Service Centennial Fund, and (2) permanently reauthorizes the Land and Water Conservation Fund and the Historic Preservation Fund.
Law· HRH.R. 3614 (114th)enacted
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2015
Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2015 This bill reauthorizes for the period October 1, 2015, through March 31, 2016, the airport improvement program and specified related authorities, including: the competition disclosure requirement under a development project grant for a large hub airport or a medium hub airport; the eligibility for small airport grants of sponsors of airports in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, and Republic of Palau; the air traffic control contract program; state and local government compatible land use planning and projects; Department of Transportation authority to appropriate funds to acquire, establish, and improve air navigation facilities; civil aviation research and development; Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) operations; essential air service; and the starting date of authority to propose regulations restricting or prohibiting design features or operating practices for the commercial space flight industry. The Vision 100--Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act is amended to extend through the same period: the authorization for airport development at Midway Island Airport, and the authority of any final order with respect to the eligibility for essential air service compensation. The FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 is amended to extend through: FY2016 the requirement for an Inspector General report on participation in FAA programs by disadvantaged small business concerns, March 31, 2016, the pilot program under which operators of up to four public-use airports may receive grants for activities related to the redevelopment of airport properties, and the same date the advisory committee for aviation consumer protection. The Internal Revenue Code is amended to extend through the same period expenditure authority from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund, fuel and ticket taxes, as well as the exemption from ticket taxes for aircraft in fractional ownership aircraft programs.
Bill· HRH.R. 3613 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 25 September 2015
Transit Bus Procurement Act This bill directs the General Services Administration (GSA) to provide access to GSA sources of supply (schedules) for buses to recipients or subrecipients of federal public transportation grant assistance to purchase buses for public transportation. The Department of Transportation shall restrict schedule access to recipients or subrecipients in areas with a population of: less than 200,000, and 200,000 or more with 100 or fewer buses in fixed route service during peak service hours.
Bill· HRH.R. 3606 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 2015
Child Trafficking Victims Protection Act Directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to: (1) require the appropriate training of all personnel who come into contact with unaccompanied alien children, and (2) hire child welfare professionals. Sets forth related protections for such children regarding: (1) prompt placement with the Office of Refugee Resettlement, (2) qualified resources and child welfare professionals at appropriate ports of entry and stations, (3) confidentiality of information, (4) notice of rights and access to counsel, (5) separation from non-family member adults, and (6) the presence of female officers during the transfer and transport of female detainees. Directs the U.S. Agency for International Development to ensure that programs in the United States and within the country of return support the safe and sustainable repatriation and reintegration of unaccompanied alien children into their country of nationality or of last habitual residence.
Bill· SS. 2080 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 24 September 2015
Pipeline Improvement and Preventing Spills Act of 2015 This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to prescribe minimum standards to require the owner or operator of a pipeline facility to notify all owners and residents of property located within 2,000 feet of a transmission line of: the property's proximity to the line, and the line's specific location if it is on private residential property. DOT shall ensure that industry standards and procedures adopted as part of the federal pipeline safety regulatory program are easily available to the public free of charge. In identifying high-consequence areas, DOT shall consider specified features of a pipe, including its age, whether it can be inspected using the most modern instrumented internal inspection devices, whether it crosses open waters of the Great Lakes, and the type of commodity it transports. The Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil Pollution Research shall: identify measures to respond to spills or leaks of oil in the Great Lakes; and assess their effectiveness in preventing significant or substantial harm to the public health or welfare. DOT shall: conduct a comprehensive water crossing survey of all intrastate and interstate hazardous liquid pipeline facilities that cross U.S. waterways in the Great Lakes Basin; and enter into a joint agreement with the National Research Council of the National Academies of Sciences to identify gaps in data and information in the Basin pipeline network, and make recommendations to prevent future leaks, ruptures, and failures that could result in damage to Basin waterways and natural resources. The Federal Water Pollution Control Act is amended to: prohibit vessel transportation of crude oil and crude oil derived from oil sands on the Great Lakes; and include in the meaning of "worst-case discharge," in the case of an offshore or onshore facility, the largest foreseeable discharge in adverse weather conditions (as in current law) in which waters that may receive a discharge are covered by ice.
Bill· HRH.R. 3584 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2015
Transportation Security Administration Reform and Improvement Act of 2015 This bill directs the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to operate a trusted passenger screening TSA PreCheck program that provides expedited screening for low-risk passengers and their accessible property. The TSA must: publish PreCheck application enrollment standards, partner with the private sector to collect biographic and biometric identification information via secure mobile enrollment platforms, and ensure that any enrollment expansion using a private sector risk assessment instead of a fingerprint-based criminal history records check is equivalent to the fingerprint-based check conducted through the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The TSA must also: develop and implement a process for approving private sector marketing of the program, coordinate with the heads of appropriate Department of Homeland Security (DHS) components to leverage DHS-held data and technologies to verify the citizenship of individuals enrolling in the program, ensure that TSA PreCheck screening lanes are available to enrolled individuals during peak and high-volume travel times at airports, and initiate an assessment of security vulnerabilities in the vetting process for the program. The TSA shall: conduct a pilot project to establish a secure, automated, biometric-based system at airports to verify the identity of TSA PreCheck passengers; and establish a secure, automated system at all large hub airports for verifying travel and identity documents of non-PreCheck passengers. The TSA shall permit access to expedited airport security screening at airport security checkpoints only to a passenger who: submits voluntarily his or her biographic and biometric information for a security risk assessment and has an approved PreCheck program application, or who is a participant in another DHS-trusted or -registered traveler program; is traveling as air transportation security or a member of the Armed Forces, including any accompanying family member; and is a member of a population designated by the TSA as known and low-risk and who may be issued a unique, known traveler number. This bill amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to direct TSA to develop and implement a preventive maintenance validation process for security-related technology deployed at airports. The TSA shall request from the Director of National Intelligence access to additional data from the Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment data and any or other terrorism-related information to improve the credential vetting program for individuals with unescorted access to sensitive areas of airports. The TSA shall: issue guidance for Transportation Security Inspectors to review annually airport badging office procedures for applicants seeking access to sensitive airport areas, and review the denial of credentials because of issues associated with determining an applicants's lawful status in order to identify airports with specific weaknesses and coordinate with them to address those weaknesses. The TSA may coordinate with the FBI Director to conduct a pilot program of the Rap Back Service to determine if a similar service can be implemented fully. (The FBI Rap Back Service provides authorized agencies with notification of criminal, and, in limited cases, civil activity of individuals that occurs after the initial processing and retention of criminal or civil transactions.) The TSA shall establish a pilot program to evaluate the effectiveness of privately-operated explosives detection canine teams. The Government Accountability Office shall report to Congress on the efficiency and effectiveness of TSA's Surface Transportation Security Inspectors Program. The DHS Inspector General shall analyze the data and methods DHS uses to identify law enforcement officers and criminal investigators among DHS Office of Inspection employees. The TSA shall: certify to Congress those employees who are classified as criminal investigators and receiving premium pay and other related benefits, and reclassify criminal investigator positions as noncriminal investigator or non-law enforcement positions if the individuals in them do not spend on average at least 50% of their time performing criminal investigative duties.
Bill· HRH.R. 3593 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2015
Aviation Cost and Expenses Sharing Act of 2015 This bill directs the Federal Aviation Administration to issue or revise regulations to ensure that persons who hold a private pilot certificate may communicate with the public in cases where operating expenses of the flight are shared between the pilot and passengers.
Bill· HRH.R. 3585 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2015
Surface Transportation Research and Development Act of 2015 This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to develop a five-year transportation research and development strategic plan for FY2018-FY2022. The head of each DOT modal administration and joint program office shall submit comprehensive annual research plans, consistent with the strategic plan. The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology (ORT) shall: publish annually on a public website a comprehensive database of all DOT research projects, including research funded through University Transportation Centers; and examine the impact of pavement durability and sustainability on vehicle fuel consumption, vehicle wear and tear, road conditions, and road repairs. DOT shall establish a working group to design and develop a research program to reduce traffic congestion. The ORT shall: seek to identify new, innovative, and emerging vehicle technologies and advanced communications and sensing techniques; assess wireless technologies' capabilities to achieve a deployable system in which vehicles of all types, traffic signals, other infrastructure systems, pedestrians, motorcyclists, bicyclists, and mobile devices can interact with each other through secure communications; and assist in the development of cybersecurity standards. The ORT shall also: analyze the state of rail safety technologies and whether passenger, commuter, and transit rail transportation industries are keeping up with technological innovations to make rail cars safer; determine how much additional time and resources are needed for railroad carriers to meet positive train control system implementation requirements; and identify technologies that achieve the safety goals of those requirements that could be implemented sooner than positive train control systems. Neither an individual nor an entity shall be ineligible to receive a cash prize to stimulate innovation in basic and applied surface transportation research and technology development just for using a federal facility or consulting with a federal employee in relation to the prize competition if the same facility or employee is made available equitably to all competition participants. DOT may not require a prize competition participant to waive claims against DOT arising out of the unauthorized DOT use or disclosure of the participant's intellectual property, trade secrets, or confidential business information. But the federal government may not gain an interest in intellectual property developed by a prize competition participant without the participant's written consent. The ORT shall reach an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences to study the most effective means of preventing motorcycle crashes. DOT highway and rail bridge infrastructure research and development activities shall include corrosion prevention measures for structural integrity. The hazardous material (hazmat) technical assessment, research, development, and analysis program may include cooperative research on hazmat transport. The DOT curriculum of courses necessary to train public sector emergency response and preparedness teams in hazmat transportation may be online.
Bill· HRH.R. 3564 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 18 September 2015
Interstate Milk Freedom Act of 2015 This bill provides that federal departments, agencies, or courts must not prohibit, interfere with, regulate, or otherwise restrict the interstate traffic of unpasteurized milk or milk products packaged for direct human consumption if: the action is based on a determination that, solely because the product is unpasteurized, it is adulterated, misbranded, or otherwise in violation of federal law; the state of origin allows unpasteurized milk or milk products to be distributed for direct human consumption by any means; the product is produced, packaged, and moved in compliance with the laws of the state of origin; and the product is moved from the state of origin with the intent to transport it to another state which allows the distribution of unpasteurized milk or milk products for direct human consumption. The bill does not preempt any state laws.
Bill· HRH.R. 3555 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2015
Jobs! Jobs! Jobs! Act of 2015 This bill: (1) prohibits the use of funds made available by this Act, with specified exceptions, for a project for the construction, alteration, maintenance, or repair of a public building or public work unless all of the iron, steel, and manufactured goods used in such project are produced in the United States; and (2) requires all laborers and mechanics employed by contractors and subcontractors on federally-assisted projects to be paid wages at locally-prevailing rates. TITLE I--RELIEF FOR WORKERS AND BUSINESSES This title amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) restore the making work pay tax credit in 2015, and (2) allow 100% bonus depreciation for certain property acquired and placed in service before January 1, 2015. The title amends the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 to increase to $7.5 million the limit on the guarantee for contract surety bonds and on the liability for bonds obtained by fraud or misrepresentation. This increase expires on September 30, 2016. TITLE II--PUTTING WORKERS BACK ON THE JOB WHILE REBUILDING AND MODERNIZING AMERICA This title directs the Departments of Education and the Interior (for schools operated by the Bureau of Indian Education) to reserve through FY2016 appropriated amounts to provide educational assistance to outlying areas based on their respective needs. The Department of Justice must carry out a competitive grant program for the hiring, rehiring, or retention of career law enforcement officers The Department of Education must award grants to states to modernize, renovate, or repair early learning or elementary or secondary education facilities and existing facilities at community colleges. This title makes funds available to the Department of Transportation for: (1) grants-in-aid for airport planning and development and noise compatibility planning projects under the airport improvement program; (2) Federal Aviation Administration Next Generation air traffic control system advancements; (3) highway and bridge restoration, repair, and construction projects and for passenger and freight rail transportation and port infrastructure projects; (4) grants for high-speed rail projects, capital investment grants for intercity passenger rail service, and grants to reduce congestion on intercity rail passenger transportation; (5) capital grants to the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (AMTRAK); (6) transit capital assistance grants; (7) capital projects for existing fixed guideway system modernization, replacement and repair of buses and bus-related equipment, and construction of bus-related facilities; and (8) discretionary capital investment grants for surface transportation infrastructure. Building and Upgrading Infrastructure for Long-Term Development Act This bill establishes the American Infrastructure Financing Authority (AIFA) as a wholly-owned government corporation to make direct loans and loan guarantees to facilitate transportation, water, or energy infrastructure projects. This title: (1) requires infrastructure projects assisted under this Act to have costs that are reasonably anticipated to equal or exceed $100 million ($25 million for rural infrastructure projects), (2) requires the AIFA Chief Lending Officer to establish an Office of Rural Assistance to provide technical assistance in the development and financing of rural infrastructure projects and a Center for Excellence to provide such assistance to public sector borrowers in the development and financing of infrastructure projects, and (3) establishes an Office of Special Inspector General to audit and investigate the business activities of AIFA. This title amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through 2018 the exemption from the alternative minimum tax for certain tax-exempt private activity bonds. This title appropriates funds for assistance to eligible entities, including state and local governments, qualified nonprofit organizations, businesses, or eligible consortia, for the redevelopment of abandoned and foreclosed-upon properties and for stabilization of affected neighborhoods (Project Rebuild). TITLE III--ASSISTANCE FOR THE UNEMPLOYED AND PATHWAYS BACK TO WORK Supporting Unemployed Workers Act of 2015 This title amends: (1) the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008 to extend the emergency unemployment compensation (EUC) program until January 1, 2016; (2) the Assistance for Unemployed Workers and Struggling Families Act to extend through December 31, 2015, requirements that federal payments to states cover 100% of EUC; and (3) the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act to extend through December 31, 2015, the temporary increase in extended unemployment benefits for employees with 10 or more years of service and for employees with less than 10 years of service. The title establishes the Reemployment NOW program to facilitate the reemployment of individuals receiving emergency unemployment compensation (EUC claimants). A state may use its allotted funds to: (1) establish a Bridge to Work program to provide EUC claimants with short-term work experience placements with eligible employers; (2) provide a wage insurance program to pay, for up to two years, an EUC claimant who obtains reemployment up to 50% of the difference between the wages received at the time of work separation and the wages received for reemployment; and (3) provide a program of enhanced reemployment services to EUC claimants, including unemployed individuals who have exhausted their EUC rights. The Department of Labor must award grants to states for short-time compensation programs and develop model legislative language for use by states in developing, enacting, and implementing such programs. The work opportunity tax credit is expanded to include the hiring of long-term unemployed individuals (individuals who are unemployed and receiving unemployment compensation for six months or more). Pathways Back to Work Act of 2015 This bill establishes programs to subsidize employment for unemployed, low-income adults, to provide summer and year-round employment opportunities to low-income youth, and for work-based training. Fair Employment Opportunity Act of 2015 This bill makes it an unlawful practice for certain employers to: (1) publish a job advertisement or announcement that includes provisions indicating that an individual's status as unemployed disqualifies the individual for employment or that the employer will not consider or hire an individual for employment based on such status, (2) fail or refuse to consider or hire an individual because of such status, or (3) direct or request that an employment agency take an individual's status into account to disqualify an applicant for consideration for employment or when screening or referring employees. The bill makes it an unlawful practice for an employment agency to commit similar acts, including to: (1) screen, or fail or refuse to consider or refer, an individual for employment because of the individual's unemployed status; or (2) limit, segregate, or classify any such individual in any manner that would limit access to job information or consideration, screening, or referral for jobs. The bill makes it unlawful for any employer or employment agency to: (1) interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of any right provided under this Act; or (2) fail or refuse to hire, discharge, or otherwise discriminate against an employee because such individual opposed any practice made unlawful by this Act or asserted any right under it. TITLE IV--OFFSETS This title amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide for offsets against decreases in revenue by: (1) limiting tax deductions and other tax exclusions for taxpayers whose adjusted gross income exceeds $200,000 ($250,000 for married taxpayers filing a joint return), (2) treating income received by a partner from an investment services partnership interest as ordinary income for income tax purposes, (3) treating all general aviation aircraft (including corporate jets) as seven-year property for depreciation purposes; (4) denying the foreign tax credit to dual capacity taxpayers; and (5) increasing the period for amortizing geological and geophysical expenditures. The title repeals, after 2015, certain tax expenditures for the oil and gas industry, including: (1) the tax deduction for intangible drilling and development costs for oil and gas wells; (2) the tax deduction for tertiary injectant expenditures; (3) percentage depletion for oil and gas wells; (4) the tax deduction for income from activities relating to oil, natural gas, or any primary product thereof; (5) the exemption from limitations on passive activity losses; and (6) the tax credits for enhanced oil recovery and for producing oil and gas from marginal wells. The title amends the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act), as amended by the Budget Control Act of 2011, to repeal its budget goal enforcement requirements (sequestration mandate).
Bill· HRH.R. 3536 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 17 September 2015
Safe Roads Act of 2015 This bill directs the Department of Transportation to prescribe minimum motor vehicle safety standards requiring commercial motor vehicles to be equipped with a forward collision avoidance and mitigation braking system. The term "forward collision avoidance and mitigation braking system" means a system on a motor vehicle that: alerts the driver of an obstacle; and if necessary to avoid or mitigate a collision with the obstacle, automatically applies the vehicle's brakes.
Bill· HRH.R. 3529 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2015
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) shall study the feasibility of constructing an aqueduct using aramid synthetic fiber for the purpose of transporting water from Oregon to California.
Bill· HRH.R. 3523 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2015
Honoring Our Fallen TSA Officers Act This bill amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to extend public safety officers' death benefits to Transportation Security Administration employees who are responsible for protecting the nation's transportation systems.
Bill· HRH.R. 3516 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2015
Social Security Beneficiary 2nd Amendment Rights Protection Act This bill amends titles II (Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance) (OASDI) and XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) of the Social Security Act to prohibit any determination by the Commissioner of Social Security with respect to an individual, including one that OASDI and SSI benefits to which that individual is entitled shall be paid to a representative payee, from being considered to be a determination that the individual has been adjudicated as a mental defective to make it unlawful for the individual to engage in the shipment or transport of firearms or ammunition or receive any firearm or ammunition which has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce.
Bill· HRH.R. 8 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 16 September 2015
North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act of 2015 This bill amends the Natural Gas Act to revise procedures for consideration by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) of applications for federal authorization of the exportation or importation of natural gas, including a deadline for a final decision on a federal authorization within 90 days after FERC issues its final environmental document. The Federal Power Act (FPA) is amended to require FERC, in resolving environmental and grid reliability conflicts, to ensure that any emergency order which may result in conflict with federal, state, or local environmental law or regulations: requires electric energy generation, delivery, interchange, or transmission only during hours necessary to meet the emergency; is consistent with environmental law or regulation; and minimizes adverse environmental impacts. The Department of Energy (DOE) shall: adopt procedures, among other things, to improve communication and coordination between DOE's energy response team, federal partners, and the oil and natural gas industry regarding enhanced emergency preparedness for natural disasters; and order emergency measures to protect the reliability of either the bulk-power system or the defense critical electric infrastructure in the event of an imminent grid security emergency. DOE shall submit to Congress a plan to establish a Strategic Transformer Reserve for the storage of spare large power transformers in numbers sufficient to temporarily replace critically damaged large power transformers. DOE may also establish a Strategic Transformer Reserve in accordance with the Plan. DOE shall establish a voluntary Cyber Sense program to identify and promote cyber-secure products intended for use in the bulk-power system. The bill amends the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA) to require each electric utility to: develop a plan to use resiliency-related technologies and other approaches designed to improve the resilience of electric infrastructure, mitigate power outages, continue delivery of vital services, and maintain the flow of power to critical facilities; develop and implement a plan for deploying advanced energy analytics technologies; and adopt or modify policies to ensure that such electric utility incorporates reliable generation into its integrated resource plan. DOE shall implement a comprehensive education and training program for underrepresented groups to increase the number of skilled workers in energy and manufacturing-related jobs. DOE must report to Congress on: (1) recommended U.S. energy security valuation methods; and (2) a recommended framework and implementation strategy for a North American energy security plan to improve planning and coordination with Canada, Mexico, and Caribbean and Central American partners. DOE shall convene at least two energy security forums to promote the collective energy security of the United States, its allies, and its trading partners. DOE must conduct a long-range strategic review of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) and transmit to Congress an implementation schedule specifying near-term and long-term roles of the SPR relative to U.S energy security and economic goals and objectives. The bill amends the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 to require federal agency coordination with the Office of Management and Budget, DOE, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop an implementation strategy for federal maintenance, purchase, and use of energy-efficient and energy-saving information technologies. DOE shall: involve information technology industry and other key stakeholders in the voluntary national information program for energy efficient data centers, maintain a data center energy practitioner program that leads to certification of energy practitioners qualified to evaluate energy usage and efficiency opportunities in federal data centers, establish an open data initiative for federal data center energy usage, participate in efforts to harmonize global specifications and metrics for data center energy and water efficiency, and report to Congress on the impact of thermal insulation on energy and water use systems for potable hot and chilled water in federal buildings. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 is amended to treat certain thermal energy projects as renewable energy with respect to the federal electric energy purchase requirement. The Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) is amended to require: FERC to initiate a rulemaking to consider making prominent a special note on the Energy Guide label for any product that includes Smart Grid capability, DOE and EPA to rely upon testing conducted by recognized voluntary verification programs to verify compliance with energy conservation standards and Energy Star specifications, and DOE to publish a final rule on whether the standards for non-weatherized natural gas furnaces and mobile home gas furnaces should be amended. The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 is amended to require institution of higher education-based industrial research and assessment centers to: (1) assess sustainable manufacturing goals and information technology advancements for supply chain analysis, logistics, system monitoring, and industrial and manufacturing processes; and (2) engage in outreach activities to inform small- and medium-sized manufacturers of available information, technologies, and services. The National Energy Conservation Policy Act (NECPA) is amended with respect to the use of energy and water efficiency measures in federal buildings. DOE shall report to the President and Congress on the status of: (1) each agency's energy savings performance contracts, (2) utility energy service contracts, (3) the investment value of such contracts, (4) the guaranteed energy savings for the previous year as compared to the actual energy savings for the previous year, (5) the plan for entering into such contracts in the coming year, and (6) an explanation why any previously submitted plans for such contracts were not implemented. Under NECPA, furthermore, a federal agency, in entering energy savings performance contracts, may not limit the recognition of operation and maintenance savings associated with implementation of energy and water conservation measures, but it may sell or transfer energy savings and apply the proceeds to fund such a contract. The EPCA is amended to direct DOE to establish a clearinghouse to disseminate information regarding available federal programs and financing mechanisms that may be used to help initiate, develop, and finance energy efficiency, distributed generation, and energy retrofitting projects for schools. The FPA is further amended to to rename the FERC Office of Public Participation as the Office of Compliance Assistance and Public Participation. The Government Accountability Office shall study whether and how current market rules, practices, and structures of each regional transmission entity produce rates that are just and reasonable by performing certain activities.
Resolution· SRESS.Res. 256 (114th)passed
United States · United States Congress · 15 September 2015
Designates September 2015 as School Bus Safety Month.
Bill· HRH.R. 3501 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 11 September 2015
Alisa's Law of 2015 Directs the Department of Transportation to withhold specified graduated percentages of a state's apportionment of certain federal-aid highway funds for FY2017-FY2019 if the state has not enacted and is not enforcing a law requiring the installation of an ignition interlock device for a minimum of 180 days on each motor vehicle operated by an individual convicted of driving while intoxicated or driving under the influence. Defines "driving while intoxicated" and "driving under the influence" as driving or being in actual physical control of a motor vehicle while having a blood alcohol concentration greater than or equal to the lesser of: the blood alcohol concentration limit of the state in which the individual is driving, or 0.08%. Requires an ignition interlock device to: require a driver to provide a breath sample before the motor vehicle starts, and prevent a motor vehicle from starting if the alcohol concentration of the driver is above the legal limit.
Bill· HRH.R. 3488 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 September 2015
Safe, Flexible, and Efficient Trucking Act of 2015 This bill allows a state to authorize a vehicle with a maximum gross weight (including enforcement tolerances) exceeding certain federal weight limitations to operate on Interstate Highway System routes in the state if: the vehicle is equipped with at least six axles, the weight of any single axle does not exceed 20,000 pounds, the weight of any tandem axle does not exceed 34,000 pounds, the weight of any group of 3 or more axles does not exceed 51,000 pounds, the gross weight of the vehicle does not exceed 91,000 pounds, and the vehicle complies with a specified bridge formula. The Department of Transportation may issue regulations necessary to require such a vehicle to include one item of additional equipment not otherwise required by law, but only if the equipment item is available at the time the rule is proposed.
Bill· HRH.R. 3473 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 September 2015
Local Farm Vehicle Flexibility Act This bill prohibits the Department of Transportation from terminating, reducing, limitoing, or otherwise interfering with the amount or timing of grants a state is otherwise eligible to receive as a result of any minimum standard or exemption the state gives a covered farm vehicle or the driver of such vehicle less stringent than federal requirements for commercial motor vehicles and drivers. A covered farm vehicle means any motor vehicle meeting certain gross weight requirements and: registered or otherwise designated by a state for use in, or transportation activities related to, the operation of farms; operated by a farm or ranch owner or operator, or an employee or family member; transporting to or from a farm or ranch agricultural commodities, livestock, agricultural supplies, or machinery; and not used in the operations of a for-hire motor carrier, nor transporting materials requiring a placard. A covered farm vehicle may also be one meeting these requirements but operated pursuant to a crop share farm lease agreement, owned by a tenant under that agreement, and transporting the landlord's portion of the crops.
Bill· SS. 2025 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 10 September 2015
National Oceans and Coastal Security Act This bill authorizes the Department of Commerce and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to establish the National Oceans and Coastal Security Fund as a tax exempt fund for supporting programs and activities to protect, conserve, and restore ocean and coastal resources and coastal infrastructure. Donations from a foreign government may not be deposited into the fund. Commerce must prioritize projects that have non-federal partners sharing the project costs. According to a specified allocation formula, the Foundation must award a minimum percentage of funds as grants to eligible coastal states while awarding a lesser percentage of funds to entities including states, Indian tribes, regional bodies, associations, non-governmental organizations, and academic institutions. The bill amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to require the President to ensure that a certain percent of offshore energy revenues are deposited into the fund.
Bill· HRH.R. 3458 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2015
Connected Transportation Research and Innovation Act of 2015 This bill reauthorizes through FY2021 highway research and development, including highway safety, technology and innovation deployment, training and education, and intelligent transportation systems. After receiving a 5.9 GHz Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure device, the Department of Transportation (DOT) shall test it to examine the possibility of interference with safety-related vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure applications. DOT shall: research, develop, and test automated vehicle systems; promote the research, development, and demonstration of user-based alternative revenue mechanisms that preserve a user fee structure to maintain the long-term solvency of the Highway Trust Fund; and establish and lead a Surface Transportation Revenue Alternatives Advisory Council to inform the selection and evaluation of such mechanisms. The bill reauthorizes through FY2021 the university transportation centers program, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, the National Cooperative Rail Research Program, hazardous materials research and development, the advanced transportation research and innovation program, the National Cooperative Freight Transportation Research Program, and the rail cooperative research program. The bill also increases the amount of grants for national, regional university, and tier 1 university transportation centers. DOT shall: examine opportunities for federal and state participation and investment in international transportation research collaborations, and establish the Advanced Transportation Research and Innovation Program. The bill cites eligible public transportation workforce development programs. DOT shall establish: a hazardous materials transport cooperative research program, and a multimodal national cooperative freight transportation research program. The Office of the Assistant Secretary of Transportation for Research and Technology shall study digital technologies and information technologies (smart cities transportation planning), including shared mobility, data, transportation network companies, and on-demand transportation services.
Bill· HRH.R. 3462 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2015
Sport Fish Restoration and Recreational Boating Safety Act of 2015 This bill amends the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration Act to reauthorize through FY2020 appropriations from the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund for various fish, boating, and coastal wetlands restoration programs. The bill also revises amounts allocated from the Fund to various programs, including amounts for programs concerning: (1) coastal wetlands, (2) boating safety, and (3) boating infrastructure. A separate amount is set aside each fiscal year through FY2020 for the Coast Guard's administration of the national recreational boating safety program. When the President submits a budget for FY2017 and each fiscal year thereafter, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service must submit an assessment of the administrative services it provides under the Act to states and the sportfishing community.
Bill· HRH.R. 3465 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 9 September 2015
Public-Private Partnership Infrastructure Investment Act This bill requires the senior procurement executive of the Department of Transportation to enhance the services of the Office of Contracts and Procurement by: (1) working with modal agencies, states, and other grant recipients on implementing design-bid-build, design-build, and public-private partnerships (P3) procurement best practices, including model contracts; and (2) developing suggested best practices to encourage standardizing state P3 authorities and practices, including fair and balanced assumptions made in the calculations, consistency on unsolicited bids, non-compete clauses, and other major elements.
Bill· SS. 2008 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 6 August 2015
Transportation, Access, and Opportunity Act of 2015 This bill modifies transportation programs to establish a goal of achieving an interconnected transportation system that connects people to jobs, schools, and essential services; and to require more data and public input during the planning process. States and metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) must permit the public to provide input during the development and implementation of transportation plans. (MPOs are federally required and funded organizations responsible for the regional transportation planning process in certain urban areas.) The bill revises the goals of the federal highway program to include achieving an interconnected transportation system which connects people to jobs, schools, and other essential services through a multimodal network. The Department of Transportation (DOT) may establish a performance measure for MPOs to measure transportation connectivity. DOT must establish the Connection to Opportunity Pilot Program for up to 10 MPOs to develop and implement projects to improve multimodal connectivity and increase connections for transportation-disadvantaged individuals and neighborhoods with limited transportation options. The participating MPOs must submit performance data to DOT, and DOT must use the data to evaluate the programs and consider developing a national indicator to measure multimodal connections to opportunities. DOT must create and maintain data sets and analysis tools to assist MPOs, states, and entities within DOT in carrying out performance management analyses. The bill permanently extends the authorization for the Transportation Alternatives Program, revises federal share requirements, and permits nonprofit organizations and certain MPOs to receive funding under the program.
Bill· SS. 1994 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 2015
Tax Relief And #FixTheTrustFund For Infrastructure Certainty Act of 2015 or the TRAFFIC Relief Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to phase in: (1) an increase of the excise tax rate on gasoline beginning in 2016 until such rate is 34.3 cents per gallon in calendar years beginning after 2018, and (2) a similar increase to 40.3 cents per gallon for diesel fuel and kerosene. The rates are to be adjusted for inflation for calendar years after 2019. The bill phases in increases in allocations of fuel excise tax amounts to the Mass Transit Account of the Highway Trust Fund for calendar years beginning in 2015. Such increased allocations are to be adjusted for inflation for calendar years beginning after 2019. The bill makes permanent the increase in the refundable portion of the child tax credit and the increase in the earned income tax credit for families with three or more qualifying children. The earned income tax credit is also modified to: (1) allow an increase in such credit for individuals with no qualifying children, (2) revise tax credit eligibility rules for married individuals living apart and qualifying children claimed by another family member, and (3) repeal the denial of such credit for taxpayers with excess investment income.
Bill· SS. 1972 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 5 August 2015
Airline Access to Emergency Epinephrine Act of 2015 This bill directs the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to clarify, and to require air carriers (including foreign carriers) to clarify, that 1:1,000 epinephrine ampules included in emergency medical kits carried on aircraft are to be used for the treatment of anaphylaxis. The FAA shall require an air carrier to: carry on each aircraft at least two packs of epinephrine auto-injectors for use as the initial treatment for anaphylaxis, replace them upon expiration or use, and train air crewmembers on how to recognize the symptoms of an acute allergic reaction and administer auto-injectable epinephrine. The Government Accountability Office shall report to Congress on air carrier policies relating to passengers with food allergies.
Bill· SS. 1936 (114th)open
United States · United States Congress · 4 August 2015
New Mexico Drought Preparedness Act of 2015 Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Commissioner of Reclamation (Secretary), to carry out a water acquisition program in specified basins in New Mexico, under which the Secretary shall: (1) make acquisitions of water by lease or purchase of water rights or contractual entitlements from willing lessors or sellers; and (2) take other actions to enhance stream flow to benefit fish and wildlife, water quality, and river ecosystem restoration and to enhance stewardship and conservation of working land, water, and watersheds. Authorizes the Secretary, in cooperation with the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District, to provide funding and technical assistance for the installation of metering and measurement devices and the construction of check structures on irrigation diversions, canals, laterals, ditches, and drains to: (1) ensure the conservation and efficient use of water within the District by reducing actual consumptive use or by not increasing the use of water, and (2) improve the measurement and allocation of water acquired through such water acquisition program. Requires the Secretary to provide for development of a comprehensive plan for the San Acacia and Isleta reaches to plan, design, construct, and prioritize projects that balance river maintenance, water availability, use, and delivery, and ecosystem benefits. Requires the Secretary of the Army to continue, for five years after enactment of this Act, the temporary deviation in the operation of Cochiti Lake and Jemez Canyon Dam that was initiated in 2009 and terminated in 2013, to evaluate the benefits of the deviation while a permanent reauthorization of the reservoirs is pursued. Requires the Secretaries to: (1) conduct a feasibility study to address Cochiti Dam operation limitations on the timing, magnitude, and duration of flows that support federally listed species in the Middle Rio Grande; (2) submit a feasibility report on the reauthorization of the purposes of Cochiti Dam; and (3) enter into an arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences to study water and reservoir management and operation issues along the Rio Grande. Authorizes financial assistance to be made available for eligible water projects to help New Mexico and other Western states address drought-related impacts to water supplies or any other immediate water-related crisis or conflict. Amends the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (OPLMA) to: (1) authorize the use of water management improvement grants to assist applicants in planning for or addressing the impacts of drought, (2) authorize the Commissioner of Reclamation to waive any cost-share requirements to address emergency drought situations and to prioritize projects based on drought relief benefits, and (3) authorize appropriations for such grants. Reauthorizes appropriations for: (1) the Reclamation States Emergency Drought Relief Act of 1991, and (2) Rio Grande Pueblos infrastructure grants under OPLMA. Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to allocate certain financial assistance made available under the Food Security Act of 1985 (FSA) to establish special conservation initiatives to assist producers in implementing eligible activities on agricultural land in the western states for: (1) mitigating the effects of drought; (2) improving water quality and quantity; (3) restoring, enhancing, and preserving fish and wildlife habitat; and (4) promoting innovative and collaborative conservation tools and approaches. Amends the FSA to provide that areas eligible for designation as conservation priority areas shall include areas with actual and significant water quantity impacts related to agricultural production activities.
Bill· SS. 1882 (114th)open
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2015
Nepal Recovery Act This bill urges the Department of the Treasury to direct the U.S. Executive Director of each international financial institution to advocate in such institution: cancellation of remaining debt obligations of Nepal, including debt obligations incurred after enactment of this Act; provision of debt service relief for all remaining payments of Nepal until the debt can be cancelled; and extension of any new assistance to Nepal primarily as grants rather than loans. Treasury and the Department of State are urged to use all appropriate diplomatic influence to secure the cancellation of Nepal's remaining bilateral debt. Treasury is also urged to support the creation of a World Bank trust fund for Nepal that would leverage potential U.S. contributions and promote bilateral donations to promote transparency, donor coordination, and Nepalese ownership. The U.S. government may establish a Nepal Recovery Private Investment Fund to provide loans, equity investments, and other forms of support to small- and medium-sized private enterprises to: promote Nepal's private sector, particularly small- and medium-sized enterprises; promote and test innovative policies and practices to strengthen Nepal's private sector; enhance domestic engineering, construction, and accounting capacity; advance good governance and transparency in Nepal, particularly within the private sector; create jobs; and foster greater adherence to Nepal's tax code. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) may provide a seed investment to capitalize the funds to be matched or exceeded by investments from private equity firms, as well as private funds raised from other limited investors. The Fund should liquidate its assets and dissolve by April 25, 2030, unless the Department of State determines that it should be extended. USAID may provide accelerated response in Nepal for: project identification and investment analyses; trade capacity building and sector development activities, including technical assistance and feasibility studies that support investments in infrastructure that contribute to overseas development; and trade capacity building and sector development assistance supporting the establishment of industry standards, rules, and market liberalization.
Bill· HRH.R. 3350 (114th)referred
United States · United States Congress · 29 July 2015
Know the CBRN Terrorism Threats to Transportation Act This bill directs the Department of Homeland Security, acting through the Under Secretary of Intelligence and Analysis, to conduct a terrorism threat assessment of the transportation of chemical, biological, nuclear, and radiological materials through U.S. land borders and within the United States. The Under Secretary shall disseminate such assessment to federal partners, including the Department of Transportation and the Department of Energy, and state and local partners, including the National Network of Fusion Centers.