hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
Office of Rural Education Policy Act

Bill: 112-s-946
Sponsor: Sen. Baucus, Max [D-MT]
Introduced: 2011-05-11 in the Senate
Policy area: Education
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Department of Education
Elementary and secondary education
Executive agency funding and structure
Federal officials
Government information and archives
Rural conditions and development

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: 
Office of Rural Education Policy Act - Amends the Department of Education Organization Act to establish an Office of Rural Education Policy (Office) in the Department of Education's Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. 
 
Requires the Office to be headed by a Director who advises the Secretary of Education on the characteristics and needs of rural schools, and the effects current policies and proposed statutory, regulatory, administrative, and budgetary changes have on states and local educational agencies (LEAs) that serve such schools.
 
Requires the Director to: (1) establish and maintain a clearinghouse for collecting and disseminating certain information on rural education; (2) identify innovative research and demonstration projects on topics of importance to rural schools; (3) coordinate rural education activities within the Department; (4) inform the Department of other federal agency activities related to rural education; (5) coordinate its activities with Indian schools and the Department of the Interior's responsibilities regarding such schools; (6) provide technical assistance and other support for rural education improvement efforts; and (7) produce an annual report, for Congress and the public, on the condition of rural education.
 
Requires the Director to prepare regulatory impact analyses of the Secretary's proposed and final rules that may have a significant impact on states or LEAs that serve rural schools.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. (text of measure as introduced: CR S2879-2880)
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S2878-2879)
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to provide end user exemptions from certain provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and for other purposes.

Bill: 112-s-947
Sponsor: Sen. Johanns, Mike [R-NE]
Introduced: 2011-05-11 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Banking and financial institutions regulation
Commodities markets
Corporate finance and management
Financial services and investments
Securities

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: 
 Amends the Commodity Exchange Act and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to exempt from specified margin requirements: (1) swaps in which one of the counterparties is neither a swap dealer nor a major swap participant, (2) certain investment funds, (3) specified regulated entities, and (4) a commodity pool.
 
Exempts from such margin requirements, also, any swaps or security-based swaps entered into before the date on which final rules are required to be promulgated or published under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act or the Wall Street Transparency and Accountability Act of 2010, respectively.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Introduced in Senate
National Oilheat Reauthorization Act of 2011

Bill: 112-s-949
Sponsor: Sen. Shaheen, Jeanne [D-NH]
Introduced: 2011-05-11 in the Senate
Policy area: Energy
Subjects: Alternative and renewable resources
Congressional oversight
Consumer affairs
Energy efficiency and conservation
Energy prices
Energy research
Lighting, heating, cooling
Marketing and advertising
Oil and gas
Public participation and lobbying
Research and development

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: 
National Oilheat Research Alliance Reauthorization Act of 2011 - Renames the National Oilheat Research Alliance Act of 2000 the National Oilheat Research, Consumer Education, and Efficiency Act of 2011.
 
Revises criteria for membership in the National Oilheat Research Alliance.
 
Directs the Alliance to: (1) submit proposed biennial (currently, annual) budgets to the Secretary of Energy (DOE); and (2) maintain a data collection process to track equipment, service, and related safety issues. 
 
Authorizes the Secretary to recommend changes to budget programs and activities of the Alliance. 
 
Directs the Secretary to report biennially to Congress on certain Alliance activities.
 
Prohibits assessments collected under this Act from being passed through to or otherwise required to be paid by either retail purchasers or ultimate consumers of oilheat.
 
Requires a qualified state association to deposit in a separate account the funds received under this Act.
 
Directs the Alliance to ensure that specified percentages of assessments collected for each calendar year are used to: (1) conduct research, development, and demonstration activities relating to oilheat; (2) implement consumer assistance programs; and (3) conduct consumer education activities relating to oilheat.
 
Directs the Alliance to: (1) ensure that heating system conversion assistance is coordinated with administrators of a specified low-income home energy assistance program and with the Weatherization Assistance Program for Low-Income Persons; and (2) develop, with states, a coordinated heating oil efficiency and upgrade plan to implement cost-effective efficiency programs and activities. 
 
Repeals the mandate for an annual market survey and analysis of changes in the price of oilheat relative to other energy sources.
 
Prohibits the use of funds derived from assessments collected by the Alliance to lobby.
 
Authorizes the Secretary to impose a fine or take other action to ensure compliance with this Act (including referral to an appropriate law enforcement authority) if the Alliance, a qualified state association, or any other entity or person violates this Act.
 
Extends the sunset date for the National Oilheat Research Alliance program to 19 years after the date on which it was established.
 

 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to amend title 23, United States Code, to repeal a prohibition on allowing States to use toll revenues as State matching funds for Appalachian Development Highway projects.

Bill: 112-s-950
Sponsor: Sen. Cardin, Benjamin L. [D-MD]
Introduced: 2011-05-11 in the Senate
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works
Subjects: Intergovernmental relations
Roads and highways
Rural conditions and development
State and local finance
Transportation programs funding

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: 
Repeals the prohibition against state use of toll revenues as a credit toward the non-federal state matching share requirement for Appalachian development highway projects (thus allowing a state to use such revenues as a non-federal share match for such Appalachian highway projects).


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works. (text of measure as introduced: CR S2881)
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S2880-2881)
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Introduced in Senate
Protect Those Who Serve Act

Bill: 112-s-955
Sponsor: Sen. Kerry, John F. [D-MA]
Introduced: 2011-05-11 in the Senate
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Law enforcement administration and funding
Law enforcement officers

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: 
Protect Those Who Serve Act - Authorizes the Attorney General to make grants to states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealths of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Guam, the Virgin Islands, any U.S. territory or possession, and any Indian tribe for the renovation, modernization, and construction of law enforcement facilities. Sets forth matching requirements for receipt of a grant.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Introduced in Senate
Text a Tip Act of 2011

Bill: 112-s-956
Sponsor: Sen. Kerry, John F. [D-MA]
Introduced: 2011-05-11 in the Senate
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Crime prevention
Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation
Criminal justice information and records
Law enforcement administration and funding
Telephone and wireless communication

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: 
Text a Tip Act of 2011 - Authorizes the Attorney General to make grants to state or local police departments to implement an anonymous tip program using cell phone text messaging to assist police in preventing and solving crimes. Sets forth requirements for such program, including that: (1) state or local law police departments shall administer the program; (2) incoming text messages shall be stripped of any identifying information and the text tip shall not be traceable by any means; (3) police departments shall train sufficient personnel to intercept and respond to text tips; (4) the program shall be made compatible with most mobile phone providers; and (5) police departments shall promote the participation of citizens, especially youth, in the program.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Introduced in Senate
Veterans' Traumatic Brain Injury Rehabilitative Services' Improvements Act of 2011

Bill: 112-s-957
Sponsor: Sen. Boozman, John [R-AR]
Introduced: 2011-05-11 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Health facilities and institutions
Mental health
Neurological disorders
Veterans' education, employment, rehabilitation
Veterans' medical care

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: 
Veterans' Traumatic Brain Injury Rehabilitative Services' Improvements Act of 2011 - Includes within a program of individualized rehabilitation and reintegration plans for veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI): (1) the goal of maximizing the individual's independence and quality of life, and (2) improving such veterans' behavioral and mental health functioning.
 
Requires the inclusion of rehabilitative services in a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) comprehensive program of long-term care for veterans' TBI that has residential, community, and home-based components utilizing interdisciplinary treatment teams.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-06-08
text: Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 112-116.
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. (text of measure as introduced: CR S2889)
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S2889)
action_date: 2011-05-11
text: Introduced in Senate
Children's Hospital GME Support Reauthorization Act of 2011

Bill: 112-s-958
Sponsor: Sen. Casey, Robert P., Jr. [D-PA]
Introduced: 2011-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Child health
Congressional oversight
Education programs funding
Health facilities and institutions
Health programs administration and funding
Medical education

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: 
Children's Hospital GME Support Reauthorization Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to extend and reauthorize appropriations for payments associated with operating approved graduate medical residency training programs.

action_date: 2011-09-12
text: 

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

 
Children's Hospital GME Support Reauthorization Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to extend and reauthorize appropriations for payments associated with operating approved graduate medical residency training programs.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-09-12
text: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 162.
action_date: 2011-09-12
text: Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Reported by Senator Harkin without amendment. Without written report.
action_date: 2011-09-12
text: Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Reported by Senator Harkin without amendment. Without written report.
action_date: 2011-09-07
text: Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S2932-2933)
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
STAR Act of 2011

Bill: 112-s-959
Sponsor: Sen. Hagan, Kay R. [D-NC]
Introduced: 2011-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Education
Subjects: Academic performance and assessments
Education of the disadvantaged
Education programs funding
Elementary and secondary education
School administration
Teaching, teachers, curricula

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: 
School Turnaround and Rewards Act of 2011 or STAR Act of 2011 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to require states to identify public elementary or secondary schools as Reward Schools if they are making significant progress in closing the achievement gap and increasing student academic achievement, growth, and high school graduation rates for students in the aggregate and for one or more of the poor, minority, disabled, or limited English proficient student subgroups. 
 
Allows Reward Schools to use ESEA funds, except those related to serving special populations, in a comprehensive and coordinated manner for innovative programs.
 
Directs the Secretary of Education to award formula grants to states and, through them, subgrants to local educational agencies (LEAs) to make financial rewards to Reward Schools and their staff. Authorizes LEAs to provide Reward Schools with increased budgeting and staffing flexibility. 
 
 Requires states to identify public schools as Persistently Low-Performing Schools if they are not making progress in improving the academic performance of their students and are performing in the bottom 5% of the state's elementary and secondary schools or have secondary school graduation rates below 60%.
 
Requires the Secretary to make formula grants to states and, through them, competitive subgrants to LEAs to implement one of four intervention models at each Persistently Low-Performing School. Sets forth the intervention actions required under the transformational, restart, school closure, and turnaround models. Makes LEAs eligible for a subgrant extension if they make significant progress on certain core academic indicators and leading indicators.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
Medicare IVIG Access Act

Bill: 112-s-960
Sponsor: Sen. Kerry, John F. [D-MA]
Introduced: 2011-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Cancer
Drug therapy
Government studies and investigations
Health technology, devices, supplies
Hereditary and development disorders
Home and outpatient care
Immunology and vaccination
Medicare

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: 
Medicare IVIG Access Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a demonstration project under title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to evaluate the benefits of providing payment for items and services needed for the administration, within the homes of Medicare beneficiaries, of intravenous immune globin (IVIG) for the treatment of primary immune deficiency diseases.
 
Amends SSA title XVIII to treat as durable medical equipment (DME) any disposable drug delivery systems, including elastomeric infusion pumps, for the treatment of colorectal cancer.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S2933)
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
Job Protection Act

Bill: 112-s-964
Sponsor: Sen. Alexander, Lamar [R-TN]
Introduced: 2011-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Labor and Employment
Subjects: Industrial facilities
Labor-management relations

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: 
Job Protection Act - Amends the National Labor Relations Act to provide that an employer's expression or written dissemination of views, argument, or opinion regarding the costs associated with collective bargaining, work stoppages, or strikes shall not constitute antiunion animus or unlawful motive (an unfair labor practice), if such expression contains no threat of reprisal or force or promise of benefit.
 
Denies the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), unless an employer has been adjudicated finally to have unlawfully undertaken certain actions, any power to: (1) order the employer to relocate, shut down, or transfer any existing or planned facility or work or employment opportunity; (2) prevent the employer from making such relocations, transfers, or expansions to new or existing facilities in the future; or (3) prevent the employer from closing or not developing a facility, or from eliminating an employment opportunity.
 
Declares that, unless an employer has been so adjudicated, nothing under the Act shall: (1) prevent the employer from choosing where to locate, develop, or expand its business or facilities; (2) require the employer to move, transfer, or relocate any facility, production line, or employment opportunity, or require the employer to cease or refrain from doing so; or (3) prevent the employer from closing a facility or eliminating any employment opportunity.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. (text of measure as introduced in Senate: CR S2936)
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S2934-2936)
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
Family Act of 2011

Bill: 112-s-965
Sponsor: Sen. Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [D-NY]
Introduced: 2011-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Income tax credits
Sex and reproductive health
Women's health

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: 
Family Act of 2011 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow an income-based tax credit for 50% of qualified infertility treatment expenses. Allows $13,360 of such expenses to be taken into account for purposes of such credit for all taxable years. Defines &quot;qualified infertility treatment expenses&quot; as amounts paid for the treatment of infertility via in vitro fertilization if such treatment is provided by a licensed physician, surgeon, or other medical practitioner and is administered with respect to a diagnosis of infertility by a physician licensed in the United States. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
Bone Health Promotion and Research Act of 2011

Bill: 112-s-966
Sponsor: Sen. Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [D-NY]
Introduced: 2011-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Advisory bodies
Health information and medical records
Health programs administration and funding
Health promotion and preventive care
Medical research
Musculoskeletal and skin diseases
Research administration and funding

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: 
Bone Health Promotion and Research Act of 2011 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop and implement a National Bone Health Program under which: (1) the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) may conduct, support, and promote the coordination of research, investigations, demonstrations, training, and studies relating to the control, prevention, and surveillance of osteoporosis and related bone diseases; (2) the Secretary may coordinate and carry out national education and outreach activities to support, develop, and implement education initiatives and outreach strategies appropriate for osteoporosis and related bone diseases; and (3) the Secretary may award grants to states and Indian tribes for comprehensive osteoporosis and related bone disease control and prevention programs. 
 
Requires the Director of CDC to establish the Osteoporosis and Related Bone Disease Advisory Committee to advise the Secretary and the Assistant Secretary for Health on activities addressing such diseases.
 
Directs the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to expand and intensify NIH research programs for osteoporosis and related bone diseases, including by awarding planning grants or contracts for the establishment or enhancement of research programs for such diseases. 
 
Authorizes the Director of CDC to award grants or enter into cooperative agreements for the collection, analysis, and reporting of data on such diseases.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
Regulation of Mortgage Servicing Act of 2011

Bill: 112-s-967
Sponsor: Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR]
Introduced: 2011-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Housing and Community Development
Subjects: Civil actions and liability
Housing finance and home ownership

Summary:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: 
Regulation of Mortgage Servicing Act of 2011 - Requires a mortgage servicer to assign one case manager to each borrower that seeks a mortgage loan modification or an alternative to foreclosure.
 
Requires the case manager to: (1) manage the communication between the servicer and the borrower, and (2) make decisions about the borrower's eligibility for a loan modification or an alternative to foreclosure.
 
Prohibits a servicer from initiating a foreclosure action against a borrower unless the servicer has performed specified tasks related to offering the borrower, if eligible, a loan modification or an alternative to foreclosure.
 
Requires a servicer to suspend a foreclosure action initiated before the enactment of this Act until such tasks have been performed.
 
Prohibits a servicer, during the suspension period, from: (1) sending the borrower a notice of foreclosure, (2) conducting or scheduling a sale of the real property securing the mortgage, or (3) causing final judgment to be entered against the borrower. 
 
Prescribes requirements a servicer must meet in order to be deemed to have made a reasonable effort to obtain necessary information to determine a borrower's eligibility for a loan modification or an alternative to foreclosure. 
 
Requires a servicer, before notifying a borrower of his or her ineligibility for a loan modification or an alternative to foreclosure, to obtain the services of an independent reviewer to review the borrower's file and determine whether or not the borrower is eligible.
 
Makes a violation of this Act a bar to a foreclosure action. Allows a servicer in compliance with this Act, however, to bring or proceed with a foreclosure action, regardless of any prior violation. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2011-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate