cheaptrix/billsum-US_congress_and_house huggingface dataset:
Student Loan Refinancing Act

To authorize borrowers of loans under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program to modify the interest rate of such loans to be equal to the interest rate for such loans at the time of modification. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Student Loan Refinancing Act 2. Borrower modification of interest rates under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program Section 455(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1087e(b) (11) Borrower modification of interest rate (A) Modification Notwithstanding the preceding paragraphs of this subsection, the borrower of a Federal Direct Stafford Loan, a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, a Federal Direct PLUS Loan, or a Federal Direct Consolidation Loan may elect to modify the interest rate of the loan to be equal to the interest rate that would be applicable to such loan if such loan were first disbursed (or in the case of a Federal Direct Consolidation Loan, first applied for) on the date on which such borrower elects to modify the interest rate of such loan. (B) Fixed rate Except as provided in subparagraph (C), an interest rate elected under subparagraph (A) for a loan shall be fixed for the life of the loan. (C) Continuing authority to modify A borrower may elect to modify the interest rate of a loan in accordance with subparagraph (A) at any time during the life of the loan. .

Summary: Student Loan Refinancing Act Amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to allow a borrower of a loan under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan program to modify the interest rate on such a loan so that its interest rate is equal to the interest rate it would bear if first disbursed at the time of modification. Fixes that interest rate for the life of the loan, unless the borrower elects to modify it again.
Tax Benefit for Homeownership Clarification Act

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to reduce the mortgage interest deduction relating to acquisition indebtedness for certain taxpayers. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Tax Benefit for Homeownership Clarification Act 2. Reduction in limitation on mortgage interest deduction relating to acquisition indebtedness for certain taxpayers (a) Acquisition indebtedness Clause (ii) of section 163(h)(3)(B) (ii) Limitation The aggregate amount treated as acquisition indebtedness for any period shall not exceed— (I) $1,000,000 in the case of a joint return ($500,000 in the case of a married individual filing a separate return), and (II) the applicable amount in any other case. (iii) Applicable amount For purposes of clause (ii)(II), the applicable amount is as follows: For taxable years— The applicable Beginning in calendar year 2017 $900,000 Beginning in calendar year 2018 $800,000 Beginning in calendar year 2019 $700,000 Beginning in calendar year 2020 $600,000 Beginning in or after calendar year 2021 $500,000. . (b) Effective date The amendment made by subsection (a) shall apply to amounts paid or incurred after December 31, 2016.

Summary: Tax Benefit for Homeownership Clarification Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce the limitation on the mortgage interest deduction for the acquisition indebtedness of certain taxpayers. (Acquisition indebtedness is indebtedness that: (1) is incurred in acquiring, constructing, or substantially improving any qualified residence of the taxpayer; and (2) is secured by such residence. It also includes refinancing of the debt in certain situations.)
Service Members Financial Planning Assistance Act of 2016

To ensure that members of the uniformed services will have access to information to make informed choices regarding the retirement options to be made available to members. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Service Members Financial Planning Assistance Act of 2016 2. Retirement planning assistance for members of the Armed Forces who will be eligible to make an election of lump sum payment of certain military retired pay (a) Availability of assistance Effective as of January 1, 2018, and as if included therein as enacted, subsection (b) of section 1415 of title 10, United States Code, to be added by section 633 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 ( Public Law 114–92 (7) Assistance in making election The Secretary concerned shall ensure that an eligible person has access to retirement planning assistance with a certified financial planner, at no cost to the eligible person, to help the eligible person weigh the potential benefits and drawbacks of making the election under paragraph (1) to receive a lump sum payment of certain retain pay and of selecting a particular payment percentage under clause (i) or (ii) of subparagraph (A) of such paragraph. . (b) Implementation Notwithstanding the delayed effective date in subsection (a), the Secretary concerned (as defined in section 101(5) of title 37, United States Code) shall take appropriate actions to ensure the availability of the retirement planning assistance required by paragraph (7) of section 1415(b) of title 10, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), to members of the uniformed services by December 30, 2017.

Summary: Service Members Financial Planning Assistance Act of 2016 This bill amends the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016, effective as of January 1, 2018, to require the department concerned (Department of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Homeland Security, or Commerce) to ensure that certain members of the uniformed services who will be eligible to make an election of lump sum payment of certain military retired pay have access to retirement planning assistance with a certified financial planner, at no cost, by December 30, 2017, to help weigh the potential benefits and drawbacks of making such election and of selecting a particular payment percentage.
Postage Free Ballot Act

To amend title 39, United States Code, to provide that any absentee ballot may be mailed free of postage, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Postage Free Ballot Act 2. Absentee ballots carried free of postage (a) In general Chapter 34 3407. Absentee ballots carried free of postage (a) Any absentee ballot for any election shall be carried expeditiously and free of postage. (b) As used in this section, the term absentee ballot . (b) Clerical amendment The table of sections for chapter 34 of such title is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 3406 the following: 3407. Absentee ballots carried free of postage. . (c) Reimbursement Section 2401(c) of title 39, United States Code, is amended by striking 3406 3407 3. Use by States of requirements payments under Help America Vote Act of 2002 to reimburse Postal Service (a) Authorizing use of payments Section 251(b) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 ( 52 U.S.C. 21001(b) (1) in paragraph (1), by striking as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3) as otherwise provided in this subsection (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph: (4) Reimbursement of Postal Service for costs associated with absentee ballots A State shall use a requirements payment to reimburse the United States Postal Service for the revenue which the Postal Service would have obtained as the result of the mailing of absentee ballots in the State but for section 3407 of title 39, United States Code. . (b) Effective date The amendment made by subsection (a) shall apply with respect to the requirements payments made to a State under part 1 of subtitle D of title II of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 ( 52 U.S.C. 21001 et seq. (1) for fiscal year 2017 or any previous fiscal year, but only to the extent that any such payment remains unobligated or unexpended by the State as of the date of the enactment of this Act; and (2) for fiscal year 2018 and each succeeding fiscal year.

Summary: Postage Free Ballot Act Any absentee ballot for any election shall be carried through the mail expeditiously and free of charge. This bill amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to direct a state to use a requirements payment to reimburse the U.S. Postal Service for revenue it would have obtained from the mailing of absentee ballots but for the requirement that such ballots be mailed for free.
Ensure Access to DACA Act

To require the Secretary of Homeland Security, with respect to individuals who have timely filed a DACA renewal request, to provide a short-term, interim grant of deferred action and employment authorization when there is a delay in processing the renewal request because of a service disruption or other technical problem that causes adjudications to stop or stall. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Ensure Access to DACA Act 2. Effect of delays in DACA renewal process In the case of an alien who received a grant of deferred action under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ( DACA

Summary: Ensure Access to DACA Act This bill directs the Department of Homeland Security to provide an alien who received a grant of deferred action under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and who filed a DACA renewal request within a specified time frame with a short-term, interim grant of deferred action and employment authorization if there is a service disruption that causes a delay in reaching a final decision that lasts for at last one week. Such interim renewal shall be effective until a final decision is made.
Civilian Contractors Engaged in Intelligence Activities Reduction Act of 2015

To require the Director of National Intelligence to conduct a study on the use of contractors for intelligence activities, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Civilian Contractors Engaged in Intelligence Activities Reduction Act of 2015 2. Director of National Intelligence study on the use of contractors in the conduct of intelligence activities (a) Study The Director of National Intelligence shall conduct a study to ascertain the extent to which contractors are used in the conduct of intelligence activities and the type of information to which such contractors are exposed or have access. (b) Report Not later than December 31, 2015, the Director of Intelligence shall submit to Congress a report containing— (1) the results of the study conducted under subsection (a); and (2) a plan for reducing by 25 percent the number of contractors to the intelligence community with top secret security clearances that are engaged in intelligence activities (including intelligence analysis). (c) Reduction of contractors Not later than December 31, 2016, the Director of National Intelligence shall reduce the number of contractors to the intelligence community with top secret security clearances that are engaged in intelligence activities (including intelligence analysis) as of the date of the enactment of this Act by 25 percent. (d) Intelligence community defined In this section, the term intelligence community

Summary: Civilian Contractors Engaged in Intelligence Activities Reduction Act of 2015 Requires the Director of National Intelligence: (1) to study the extent to which contractors are used in the conduct of intelligence activities and the type of information to which such contractors have access; (2) by December 31, 2015, to submit a report containing the results of the study and a plan for reducing the number of intelligence community contractors with top secret security clearances that are engaged in intelligence activities, including analysis, by 25%; and (3) by December 31, 2016, to make such reduction.
Seat Belts Save Lives Act of 2016

To direct the Secretary of Transportation to require new schoolbuses to be equipped with three-point safety belts at each designated seating position. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Seat Belts Save Lives Act of 2016 2. Motor vehicle safety standard requiring three-point safety belts in school­buses (a) In general Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall issue a rule prescribing or amending a motor vehicle safety standard under chapter 301 (b) Effective date The standard prescribed or amendment made under subsection (a) shall apply with respect to schoolbuses manufactured in, or imported into, the United States on or after the date that is 1 year after the date on which the Secretary of Transportation issues the rule prescribing the standard or making the amendment (as the case may be). 3. Definitions In this Act: (1) Schoolbus The term schoolbus (2) Three-point safety belt The term three-point safety belt (A) lap belt or similar device intended to restrain movement of the pelvis; and (B) shoulder belt or similar device intended to restrain movement of the chest and shoulder regions.

Summary: Seat Belts Save Lives Act of 2016 This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to prescribe a rule or amend a federal motor vehicle safety standard to require a schoolbus to be equipped with a three-point safety belt at each seat. The bill defines "three-point safety belt" to mean an occupant restraint system consisting of an integrated: lap belt or similar device intended to restrain movement of the pelvis, and shoulder belt or similar device intended to restrain movement of the chest and shoulder regions.
Andrew Joseph III Act of 2016

To require that jurisdictions receiving Byrne JAG funds have in place an independent civilian review board for the purpose of reviewing allegations of brutality and civil rights violations made against law enforcement officers of the law enforcement agency of that jurisdiction. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Andrew Joseph III Act of 2016 2. Findings Congress finds the following: (1) Andrew Joseph III, a 14-year-old boy, was killed as he tried to cross Interstate 4 after being ejected and transported from the Florida State Fair in Tampa on February 7, 2014. (2) Andrew Joseph III, of Riverview, Florida, was stopped by Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office deputies while attending the Tampa Fairgrounds during the Florida State Fair’s annual Student Day. (3) It is believed that law enforcement officials wrongfully identified Andrew Joseph III as a participant in an unruly and violent stampede. (4) Andrew Joseph III was detained by law enforcement officials, and eventually taken two miles from the fair by patrol car and left unattended, in an unknown area, surrounded by four major roads. (5) At no point during detainment, search, interrogation, ejection, or transportation, were Andrew Joseph III’s parents contacted by any law enforcement official. (6) Dropped from the patrol car in an unfamiliar neighborhood, Andrew was struck and killed by a car while trying to cross Interstate 4. (7) Tragic incidents, like the death of Andrew Joseph III, can be prevented if law enforcement knows that any acts of brutality or civil rights violations are being monitored by independent civilian review boards. (8) In the name of Andrew’s bereaved parents and a deeply saddened community, in the hope of avoiding any similar calamity, and in recognition of the fundamental precept that Black Lives Matter, independent civilian review boards will provide important oversight to ensure that a tragedy such as this never happens again. 3. Independent civilian review board requirement (a) In general Beginning in the first fiscal year that begins after the date that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, in order to be eligible to receive funds (in the form of a grant, subaward, or contract) under subpart 1 of part E of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control or Safe Streets Act of 1968 ( 42 U.S.C. 3750 et seq. (b) Reallocation Amounts not allocated under the program referred to in subsection (a) to a jurisdiction for failure to comply with subsection (a) shall be reallocated under that program to jurisdictions that have not failed to comply with such subsection.

Summary: Andrew Joseph III Act of 2016This bill requires a jurisdiction to have in place, as a condition of eligibility for funds under the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant program, an independent civilian review board to review allegations of brutality and civil rights violations against law enforcement officers.
To provide that the President shall be financially responsible for any additional security measures imposed on property in which the President holds an ownership interest, and for other purposes.

To provide that the President shall be financially responsible for any additional security measures imposed on property in which the President holds an ownership interest, and for other purposes. 1. President’s responsibility to pay for additional security costs on property owned by the President (a) In general Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the President shall be personally responsible for paying for any additional security measures, including protection from the United States Secret Service, with respect to property that the President holds a direct or indirect ownership interest. In this subsection, the term property (b) Limitation on appropriations No amounts may be appropriated to pay for such measures, except for amounts appropriated to pay the compensation of the President under section 102 of title 3, United States Code.

Summary: This bill makes the President personally responsible for paying for any additional security measures, including protection from the U.S. Secret Service, with respect to property in which the President holds an ownership interest. "Property" is defined to include any property from which the President receives revenue. No amounts may be appropriated to pay for such measures.
To amend section 552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the Freedom of Information Act), to require an agency to release the Federal income tax returns of the President upon request, and for other purposes.

To amend section 552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the Freedom of Information Act), to require an agency to release the Federal income tax returns of the President upon request, and for other purposes. 1. Release of Federal income tax returns of the President upon request Section 552 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: (n) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, at any time while an individual serves as President, the Secretary of the Treasury shall make available each Federal income tax return filed by the individual upon request. . 2. Disclosure permitted (a) In general Section 6103(i) (9) Disclosure of tax returns of the President The Secretary may disclose returns of the President pursuant to section 552(n) of title 5, United States Code. . (b) Effective date The amendment made by this section shall apply to disclosures made after the date of the enactment of this Act.

Summary: This bill amends: (1) the Freedom of Information Act to require the Department of the Treasury to make available each federal income tax return filed by an individual serving as President upon request, and (2) the Internal Revenue Code to authorize Treasury to disclose such returns.
Preventing Preventable Earthquakes Act

To amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to require that underground injection control programs prevent seismicity induced by underground injection activities, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Preventing Preventable Earthquakes Act 2. Seismicity induced by hydraulic fracturing (a) Prevention of seismicity induced by underground injection activities (1) Regulations for State programs Section 1421(b) of the Safe Drinking Water Act ( 42 U.S.C. 300h(b) (A) in paragraph (1)— (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking and (ii) in subparagraph (D), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and (iii) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: (E) shall include provisions designed to prevent the occurrence of seismicity induced by underground injection activities. ; and (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting or are designed to prevent the occurrence of seismicity induced by such injection endangered by such injection (2) State primary enforcement responsibility Section 1422 of the Safe Drinking Water Act ( 42 U.S.C. 300h–1 (A) in subsection (a), by inserting or result in the occurrence of seismicity induced by such injection endanger drinking water sources (B) in subsection (b)(3)— (i) by inserting (A) If the Administrator (ii) by adding at the end the following: (B) The Administrator shall, at least once every 5 years, review each State underground injection control program approved under paragraph (2) to determine if such State program meets the requirements of clauses (i) and (ii) of paragraph (1)(A) of this subsection. ; and (C) in subsection (c), by inserting or seismicity will not be induced by such injection endangered by such injection (b) Repeal of exemption for hydraulic fracturing Section 1421(d)(1) of the Safe Drinking Water Act ( 42 U.S.C. 300h(d)(1) (B) includes the subsurface emplacement of fluids or propping agents pursuant to hydraulic fracturing operations related to oil, gas, or geothermal production activities. . (c) Optional demonstration by States relating to oil or natural gas Section 1425 of the Safe Drinking Water Act ( 42 U.S.C. 300h–4 (1) in subsection (a), by striking (A) through (D) (A) through (E) (2) in subsection (b), by striking (A) through (D) (A) through (E)

Summary: Preventing Preventable Earthquakes Act This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act by requiring regulations for state underground injection programs to include provisions designed to prevent the occurrence of seismicity induced by underground injection activities. The bill redefines "underground injection" to include the subsurface emplacement of fluids or propping agents pursuant to hydraulic fracturing operations. Hydraulic fracturing (or fracking) is a process to extract underground resources such as oil or gas from a geologic formation by injecting water, a propping agent (e.g., sand), and chemical additives into a well under enough pressure to fracture the geological formation. The Environmental Protection Agency must review approved state underground injection programs at least once every five years.