hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
Medicare Better Health Rewards Program Act of 2012

Bill: 112-hr-6232
Sponsor: Rep. Paulsen, Erik [R-MN-3]
Introduced: 2012-07-31 in the House
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Cardiovascular and respiratory health
Digestive and metabolic diseases
Drug, alcohol, tobacco use
Health information and medical records
Health promotion and preventive care
Income tax exclusion
Medicaid
Medical tests and diagnostic methods
Medicare
Nutrition and diet

Summary:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: 
Medicare Better Health Rewards Program Act of 2012 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a three-year Better Health Rewards Program under which incentives are provided to Medicare beneficiaries who voluntarily agree to participate in the Program.
 
Directs the Secretary to establish standards for measuring better health targets and points for achieving them for participating Medicare beneficiaries, including those for: (1) an annual wellness visit, (2) tobacco cessation, (3) Body Mass Index (BMI), (4) a diabetes screening test, (5) cardiovascular disease screening, (6) cholesterol level screening, and (7) screening tests and specified vaccinations.
 
Requires the Secretary to make specified incentive payments to each participating Medicare beneficiary who achieves at least 20 points during a year.
 
Authorizes Medicare Advantage Plans, "Section 1876" health maintenance organization and competitive medical cost plans, and programs of all-inclusive care for the elderly (PACE) to make incentives to their enrollees to participate in a Better Health Rewards Program.
 
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exclude from gross income any payment made under: (1) the Medicare Better Health Rewards Program; and (2) any other Better Health Rewards Program. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-08-06
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
action_date: 2012-08-03
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
To amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to provide for savings to the Federal Government by permitting pass-through funding for State authorized public entity health benefits pools.

Bill: 112-hr-6234
Sponsor: Rep. Hall, Ralph M. [R-TX-4]
Introduced: 2012-07-31 in the House
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Comprehensive health care
Department of Health and Human Services
Health care costs and insurance
Health care coverage and access
Intergovernmental relations
State and local finance
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: 
Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to allow a state-authorized public entity benefits pool to apply to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) for pass-through funding with respect to health care benefits provided through the pool for coverage years beginning on or after January 1, 2014. Requires the Secretary to approve such a pool if the pool will: (1) provide at least the essential health benefits; (2) provide coverage and cost-sharing protections against excessive out-of-pocket spending that are at least as affordable as the health insurance requirements of PPACA would provide; and (3) result in cost savings to the federal government because the cost of coverage through the pool is less than the cost of coverage through an exchange. 
 
Treats an individual covered under such a plan as having minimum essential coverage for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code.
 
Requires the Secretary to provide for an alternative means by which an aggregate amount shall be paid to the pool annually based on the premium tax credits, cost-sharing reductions, and small business credits that would have been provided to an exchange plan.
 
Gives the Secretary 180 days to make a determination on an application under this Act.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-08-03
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
Federal Lands Energy Regulatory Certainty Act of 2012

Bill: 112-hr-6235
Sponsor: Rep. Flores, Bill [R-TX-17]
Introduced: 2012-07-31 in the House
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Congressional oversight
Department of the Interior
Energy revenues and royalties
General public lands matters
Government studies and investigations
Indian lands and resources rights
Oil and gas

Summary:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: 
Federal Lands Energy Regulatory Certainty Act of 2012 - Bars the Secretary of the Interior, before submitting the final report on the study specified below, from taking any action to finalize or otherwise implement provisions contained in the proposed rule entitled "Oil and Gas; Well Stimulation, Including Hydraulic Fracturing, on Federal and Indian Lands". 
 
Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to study, for the 10-year period following enactment of this Act, as if such rule was applied: (1) the anticipated expenditure of resources by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM); (2) the anticipated rates of development and production of oil and natural gas resources in the United States; (3) the anticipated revenue to the Treasury resulting from the production of oil and natural gas resources; and (4) any potential conflicts that may exist between the proposed rule and existing federal and state regulations. 
 
Requires the Secretary to submit a preliminary and final report to Congress on the results of such study and to solicit public comments regarding the preliminary report. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-08-08
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
To direct the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Reclamation, to convey, by quitclaim deed, to the City of Fernley, Nevada, all right, title, and interest of the United States, to any Federal land within that city that is under the jurisdiction of either of those agencies.

Bill: 112-hr-6236
Sponsor: Rep. Amodei, Mark E. [R-NV-2]
Introduced: 2012-07-31 in the House
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Land transfers
Nevada
Small towns

Summary:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: 
Directs the Secretary of the Interior, if the Secretary receives an offer from the city of Fernley, Nevada, to purchase identified federal land within the city, acting through the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Bureau of Reclamation, to convey to the city all interest of the United States in such land in exchange for consideration in an amount equal to the fair market value of the land. 
 
Requires the Secretary to determine the fair market value of the federal land based upon an appraisal conducted according to nationally recognized appraisal standards.
 
Permits the city and the Bureau of Reclamation to retain easements or rights-of-way on the federal land to be conveyed, including easements or rights-of-way that are necessary to carry out the operation and maintenance of the Truckee Canal Irrigation District Canal or the Newlands Project. 
 
Requires the city to pay or reimburse the Secretary, as appropriate, for reasonable transaction and administrative personnel costs associated with such conveyance, including the costs of appraisal, title searches, maps, and boundary and cadastral surveys. 
 
Releases the United States from all liabilities or claims of any kind or nature arising from the presence, release, or threat of release of any hazardous substance, pollutant, contaminant, petroleum product (or derivative of a petroleum product), solid waste, mine materials, or mining related features existing on the federal land.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-08-08
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
Main Street Stabilization Act of 2012

Bill: 112-hr-6237
Sponsor: Rep. Braley, Bruce L. [D-IA-1]
Introduced: 2012-07-31 in the House
Policy area: Commerce
Subjects: Business investment and capital
Internet and video services
Internet, web applications, social media
Small business

Summary:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: 
Main Street Stabilization Act of 2012 - Directs the Small Business Administration (SBA) to establish a grant program for small business development centers. 
 
 Requires program funding to be used for: (1) the development of business advisory capacity, (2) the development of online tools and resources for struggling small businesses, (3) the deployment of additional resources to help industry sectors with a high presence of small businesses, and (4) the development of a listing of financing options for small business capital access. 
 
Prohibits the SBA from awarding an entity under this Act more than $250,000 in grant funds. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the House Committee on Small Business.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
Community Post Office Relocation Act

Bill: 112-hr-6238
Sponsor: Rep. Davis, Susan A. [D-CA-53]
Introduced: 2012-07-31 in the House
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Government buildings, facilities, and property
Postal service
U.S. Postal Service

Summary:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: 
Community Post Office Relocation Act - Authorizes the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to sell, at fair market value, to certain tax-exempt private organizations fee simple title to USPS-owned post office buildings containing an office subject to relocation.
 
Requires such tax-exempt private organizations, in order to be considered an eligible buyer, to have operated primarily within the geographic area served by the relevant post office building for at least five years prior to a USPS announcement that the building will be available for sale.
 
Sets forth a procedure for the USPS to enter negotiations with eligible buyers in the order in which buyers submit their offers. Directs the USPS to sell such a building to the first organization submitting an offer for fair market value if all other relevant conditions are met within specified time periods.
 
Permits the USPS, after the sale of a building under this Act, to lease the building from the buyer at fair market value for purposes of operating a post office.
 
Requires the USPS, if a buyer under this Act makes the building available for sale, to maintain a right of first refusal to purchase the building back from the buyer at the lesser of fair market value or the purchase price plus any improvements.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
SNAP Fraud Prevention Act of 2012

Bill: 112-hr-6239
Sponsor: Rep. Graves, Sam [R-MO-6]
Introduced: 2012-07-31 in the House
Policy area: Agriculture and Food
Subjects: Food assistance and relief
Poverty and welfare assistance

Summary:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: 
SNAP Fraud Prevention Act of 2012 - Amends the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to prohibit the payment of a deposit fee in excess of any state fee reimbursement to recipients of supplemental nutrition assistance (SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program) for the return of empty bottles and cans used to contain food purchased with SNAP benefits.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-08-13
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Nutrition and Horticulture .
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
Stop Online Ammunition Sales Act of 2012

Bill: 112-hr-6241
Sponsor: Rep. McCarthy, Carolyn [D-NY-4]
Introduced: 2012-07-31 in the House
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Business records
Criminal justice information and records
Firearms and explosives
Licensing and registrations
Retail and wholesale trades

Summary:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: 
Stop Online Ammunition Sales Act of 2012 - Amends the federal criminal code to require the licensing of ammunition dealers.
 
Prohibits any person except a licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer from: (1) selling ammunition, with an exception for a sale of ammunition to a licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer; or (2) engaging in the business of importing or manufacturing ammunition, or in the course of such business, from shipping, transporting, or receiving ammunition. Prohibits a licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer from: (1) transferring ammunition to a person without verifying the person's identity by examining a valid identification document containing a photograph of such person; or (2) selling or delivering any ammunition (currently, any armor-piercing ammunition) to any person unless the licensee notes in his records the person's name, age, and place of residence, if the person is an individual, or the person's identity and principal and local places of business, if the person is a business entity.
 
Applies prohibitions applicable to the shipping or transport of firearms, and record-keeping requirements applicable to the importation, production, shipment, receipt, sale, or other disposition of firearms, to ammunition. 
 
Requires each licensee to: (1) prepare a report of multiple sales or other dispositions whenever the licensee sells or otherwise disposes of more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition to an unlicensed person at one time or during any five consecutive business days; and (2) forward such report to the specified office and to the department of state police, the state law enforcement agency, or the local law enforcement agency of the jurisdiction in which the sale took place by the close of business on the day the multiple sale occurs.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-08-14
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
To direct the President to submit to Congress a report on actions the executive branch has taken relating to the resolution of the issue of Jewish refugees from Arab countries.

Bill: 112-hr-6242
Sponsor: Rep. Nadler, Jerrold [D-NY-8]
Introduced: 2012-07-31 in the House
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Arab-Israeli relations
Congressional oversight
Europe
European Union
International law and treaties
International organizations and cooperation
Israel
Middle East
Palestinians
Refugees, asylum, displaced persons
Religion
Russia
United Nations

Summary:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: 
Directs the President to report to Congress every two years regarding executive branch actions taken to ensure that the interests of all refugees displaced from Arab countries, including Jews, Christians, and other groups, are considered in any final settlement of the Middle East refugee question that is part of any comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
To exempt certain air taxi services from taxes on transportation by air.

Bill: 112-hr-6243
Sponsor: Rep. Young, Don [R-AK-At Large]
Introduced: 2012-07-31 in the House
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Aviation and airports
Sales and excise taxes
Travel and tourism

Summary:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: 
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt certain on-demand flights (flights for which the departure time, departure location, and arrival location are specifically negotiated with the customer) from the excise tax on transportation of persons and property by air.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-07-31
text: Introduced in House
Leave our Lakes Alone Act

Bill: 112-hr-6244
Sponsor: Rep. Hartzler, Vicky [R-MO-4]
Introduced: 2012-08-01 in the House
Policy area: Energy
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Dams and canals
Department of Energy
Electric power generation and transmission
Energy efficiency and conservation
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
Fishes
Floods and storm protection
Intergovernmental relations
Lakes and rivers
Licensing and registrations
Outdoor recreation
State and local government operations
Water use and supply
Wildlife conservation and habitat protection

Summary:
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: 
Leave our Lakes Alone Act - Amends the Federal Power Act to prohibit the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) from considering public use and environmental purposes in issuing a license, or enforcing any public use and environmental requirements of a license, for a project in a state whose law expressly authorizes such a prohibition.
 
Defines &quot;public use and environmental purposes&quot; to mean the purposes of energy conservation, the protection, mitigation of damage to, and enhancement of, fish and wildlife, the protection of recreational opportunities, the preservation of other aspects of environmental quality, and other beneficial public uses, including irrigation, flood control, and water supply, as such purposes apply to land within a project boundary above the highest target elevation for normal operations of the project.
 
Exempts projects on federal land from application of this Act.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-08-03
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Power.
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: Introduced in House
Saving High-Tech Innovators from Egregious Legal Disputes Act of 2012

Bill: 112-hr-6245
Sponsor: Rep. DeFazio, Peter A. [D-OR-4]
Introduced: 2012-08-01 in the House
Policy area: Commerce
Subjects: Civil actions and liability
Computers and information technology
Intellectual property
Legal fees and court costs

Summary:
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: 
Saving High-Tech Innovators from Egregious Legal Disputes Act of 2012 - Amends federal patent law to allow a court, upon finding that a party does not have a reasonable likelihood of succeeding in an action disputing the validity or alleging infringement of a computer hardware or software patent, to award the recovery of full litigation costs to the prevailing party, including reasonable attorney's fees, other than the United States.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-08-14
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet.
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: Introduced in House
Verifying Official Totals for Elections Act

Bill: 112-hr-6246
Sponsor: Rep. Johnson, Henry C. "Hank," Jr. [D-GA-4]
Introduced: 2012-08-01 in the House
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Business records
Civil actions and liability
Computers and information technology
Congressional elections
Elections, voting, political campaign regulation
Libraries and archives
Licensing and registrations
Technology assessment
Trade secrets and economic espionage

Summary:
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: 
Verifying Official Totals for Elections Act - Amends the Help America Vote Act of 2002 to prohibit a voting system used in a federal election from containing or using any election-dedicated voting system technology which is not deposited by the state (or at the state's option by the vendor of the technology) with the National Software Reference Library of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) before the election. 
 
Requires the Director of NIST to: (1) hold the technology in escrow; and (2) disclose it and information about it to a qualified person who has entered into a nondisclosure agreement with respect to it, or to whom the Director is permitted or required to disclose the technology under state law.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2012-08-02
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation.
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: Referred to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: Referred to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR H5530-5531)
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2012-08-01
text: Introduced in House