hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
Torture Victims Relief Reauthorization Act of 2014

Bill: 113-hr-4987
Sponsor: Rep. Smith, Christopher H. [R-NJ-4]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Congressional oversight
Crime victims
Department of Health and Human Services
Department of State
Executive Office of the President
Executive agency funding and structure
Foreign aid and international relief
Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management
Health personnel
Health programs administration and funding
Legal fees and court costs
Long-term, rehabilitative, and terminal care
Mental health
Refugees, asylum, displaced persons
War crimes, genocide, crimes against humanity

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
Torture Victims Relief Reauthorization Act of 2014 - Amends the Torture Victims Relief Act of 1998 to authorize FY2015-FY2016 appropriations for: (1) the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for grants to domestic treatment centers for the costs of services provided in the rehabilitation of victims of torture (including treatment of the physical and psychological effects of torture), social and legal services, and research and training of health care providers outside of treatment centers or programs; and (2) the President for grants to foreign treatment centers and programs for activities designed to treat victims for the physical and psychological effects of torture. 
 
Directs the Secretary of State to report to Congress annually regarding: (1) Foreign Service officer training about torture victims, and (2) the percentage and number of torture victims who are approved for refugee entry into the United States. 
 
Directs the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to provide support for indigenous foreign treatment centers and programs for torture victims in order to increase such centers' capacities to train other local health care providers.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, 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: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, 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: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
MAST Act

Bill: 113-hr-4988
Sponsor: Rep. Southerland, Steve II [R-FL-2]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Congressional oversight
Environmental assessment, monitoring, research
Historic sites and heritage areas
Historical and cultural resources
Intergovernmental relations
Marine and coastal resources, fisheries
Monuments and memorials
Presidents and presidential powers, Vice Presidents
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
Marine Access and State Transparency or the MAST Act - Amends the Antiquities Act of 1906 to bar the President from declaring any area of the exclusive economic zone to be a national monument unless:
 
 
such declaration is specifically authorized by an Act of Congress;
 
the President has submitted a proposal to make such declaration to the governor of each state, and of each territory, any part of which is located within 100 nautical miles of such area;
 
each such governor submits to the President a notice that the legislature of that state or territory has approved the proposal; and
 
the declaration is substantially the same as the proposal.
 
 
Prohibits the Department of the Interior and the Department of Commerce, with respect to any area of the exclusive economic zone that is designated as a national monument, from implementing any restrictions on the public use of such a national monument until the expiration of an appropriate review period providing for public input and congressional approval. 
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-07-07
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, Oceans, and Insular Affairs.
action_date: 2014-07-07
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
Justina's Law

Bill: 113-hr-4989
Sponsor: Rep. Bachmann, Michele [R-MN-6]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Child health
Government ethics and transparency, public corruption
Health programs administration and funding
Medical ethics
Medical research
Research administration and funding
Separation, divorce, custody, support

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
Justina's Law - Prohibits the use of federal funds to conduct or support treatment or research involving a ward of the state in which the individual's health is subjected to greater than minimal risk with no or minimal prospect of direct benefit.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
Justice for Children Now Act of 2014

Bill: 113-hr-4990
Sponsor: Rep. Jackson Lee, Sheila [D-TX-18]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Law
Subjects: Child safety and welfare
Department of Justice
Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management
Immigration status and procedures
Judges
Refugees, asylum, displaced persons

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
Justice for Children Now Act of 2014 - Authorizes the Attorney General (DOJ) to appoint 70 immigration judges in addition to the those serving as of the date of enactment of this Act.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-07-21
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR H5807)
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park Boundary Revision Act of 2014

Bill: 113-hr-4991
Sponsor: Rep. Bishop, Sanford D., Jr. [D-GA-2]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Georgia
Government studies and investigations
Historic sites and heritage areas
Land transfers
Monuments and memorials
Parks, recreation areas, trails

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park Boundary Revision Act of 2014 - Redesignates the Ocmulgee National Monument in Georgia as the Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park. 
 
Adjusts the boundary of the Historical Park to include approximately 2,100 acres.
 
Directs the Department of the Interior to conduct a special resource study of the Ocmulgee River corridor between the cities of Macon, Georgia, and Hawkinsville, Georgia, to determine: (1) the national significance of the study area; (2) the suitability and feasibility of adding lands in the study area to the National Park System; and (3) the methods and means for the protection and interpretation of the study area by the National Park Service, other federal, state, or local government entities, or private or nonprofit organizations. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-07-07
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulation.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
Refueling Assistance Act of 2014

Bill: 113-hr-4992
Sponsor: Rep. Bustos, Cheri [D-IL-17]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Civil actions and liability
Department of Transportation
Disability and paralysis
Disability assistance
Government studies and investigations
Motor fuels
Retail and wholesale trades

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
Refueling Assistance Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation (DOT) to study motor vehicle refueling assistance to qualified individuals with disabilities.
 
Requires the Secretary to report to Congress the study results and any recommendations for imposing feasible and cost-effective requirements on gas stations to improve motor vehicle refueling assistance for such individuals.
 
Authorizes the Secretary to impose a civil penalty on persons who knowingly violate any regulations issued under this Act.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-07-21
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
To clarify the effect of State statutes of repose on the required commencement date for actions under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980.

Bill: 113-hr-4993
Sponsor: Rep. Butterfield, G. K. [D-NC-1]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Environmental Protection
Subjects: Civil actions and liability
Federal preemption
Hazardous wastes and toxic substances
Pollution liability
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
Amends the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) to preempt a state statute of repose for actions brought under state law for personal injury or property damages caused from or contributed to by exposure to any hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant, if the state statute provides a commencement date that is earlier than the federally required commencement date. (Currently, CERCLA preempts state statutes of limitations, which limit the amount of time a lawsuit can commence from the time the contamination is discovered. The Supreme Court ruled in 
CTS Corp. v. Waldburger
 that North Carolina's statute of repose was not preempted by CERCLA. That statute of repose limits the amount of time a lawsuit can commence to 10 years from the defendant's last action, regardless of when the contamination is discovered.) 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-07-21
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice.
action_date: 2014-06-27
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, and the Judiciary, 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: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, and the Judiciary, 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: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and Infrastructure, and the Judiciary, 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: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 6531 Van Nuys Boulevard in Van Nuys, California, as the "Marilyn Monroe Post Office".

Bill: 113-hr-4995
Sponsor: Rep. Cárdenas, Tony [D-CA-29]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: California
Congressional tributes
Government buildings, facilities, and property
Postal service
Television and film

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 6531 Van Nuys Boulevard in Van Nuys, California, as the "Marilyn Monroe Post Office."

Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
Energy Markets Emergency Act

Bill: 113-hr-4996
Sponsor: Rep. DeLauro, Rosa L. [D-CT-3]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Commodities markets
Commodity Futures Trading Commission
Energy prices
Energy storage, supplies, demand
Oil and gas

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
 Energy Markets Emergency Act - Directs the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to use its authority (including emergency powers) to: (1) to curb immediately the role of excessive speculation in any contract market within its jurisdiction on or through which energy futures or swaps are traded; and (2) eliminate excessive speculation, price distortion, sudden or unreasonable fluctuations, or unwarranted changes in prices, or other unlawful activity that is causing major market disturbances that prevent the market from accurately reflecting the forces of supply and demand for energy commodities. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-08-11
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
United States Leadership to Eradicate Obstetric Fistula Act of 2014

Bill: 113-hr-4997
Sponsor: Rep. DeLauro, Rosa L. [D-CT-3]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Advisory bodies
Africa
Emergency medical services and trauma care
Foreign aid and international relief
Health facilities and institutions
Health personnel
Health programs administration and funding
Health promotion and preventive care
Medical education
Public-private cooperation
Sex and reproductive health
Social work, volunteer service, charitable organizations
Surgery and anesthesia
Women's health
World health

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
United States Leadership to Eradicate Obstetric Fistula Act of 2014 - Directs the President, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), to establish a 10-year strategy to combat obstetric fistula in sub-Saharan Africa that strengthens the capacity of the United States to be an effective leader in the movement for international women's health and empowerment.
 
Authorizes the President, through USAID, to make grants to, or enter into contracts with, a university-based medical center in the United States to carry out activities to prevent, treat, and monitor obstetric fistula in sub-Saharan African countries.
 
Provides for the establishment at the center of an International Obstetric Fistula Institute for Sub-Saharan Africa which shall: 
 
 
serve as the primary administrative and medical-training hub; 
 
initiate and oversee training and clinical activities of physicians, other health professionals, and educators serving at Centers of Clinical Excellence; 
 
ensure an increase in health system and workforce capacity to prevent, treat, and monitor obstetric fistula in each country in which a Center of Clinical Excellence is located; 
 
establish at least eight Centers of Clinical Excellence for Obstetric Fistula Care; and 
 
establish a United States Obstetric Fistula Treatment and Prevention Corps to provide volunteer medical services and train local surgeons and other health professionals in techniques of obstetric fistula repair and in other aspects of the care of women with obstetric fistula.
 
 
Establishes the United States Advisory Committee for the Eradication of Obstetric Fistula.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
Medicare Advantage Participant Bill of Rights Act of 2014

Bill: 113-hr-4998
Sponsor: Rep. DeLauro, Rosa L. [D-CT-3]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Administrative remedies
Business ethics
Business records
Consumer affairs
Department of Health and Human Services
Health care costs and insurance
Health care coverage and access
Health facilities and institutions
Health personnel
Medicare

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
Medicare Advantage Participant Bill of Rights Act of 2014 - Amends part C (Medicare+Choice) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to require a Medicare Advantage (MA) organization to remove a service provider or a supplier from a plan network only for cause, subject to completion of a fair notice and appeals process.
 
Lists as cause for removal: (1) medical negligence, (2) violation of any legal or contractual requirement for the provider or supplier acting within the lawful scope of practice, or (3) unfitness to furnish items and services in accordance with Medicare requirements. 
 
Requires an MA organization offering an MA plan to include information on the measures used to establish or modify the plan's provider network: (1) in the annual bid information submitted about the MA plan, and (2) on the plan's Internet Web.
 
Subjects to certain sanctions MA organizations with contracts which fail to meet these information requirements.
 
Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to: (1) seek input from patient advocacy groups and others in applying network access adequacy standards, and (2) take necessary measures to ensure that the Medicare Advantage Compare Tool takes into account the preferences and utilization needs of such individuals.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-06-26
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: 2014-06-26
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: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
Voices for Veterans Act

Bill: 113-hr-4999
Sponsor: Rep. DelBene, Suzan K. [D-WA-1]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Advisory bodies
Sex, gender, sexual orientation discrimination
Veterans' organizations and recognition

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
Voices for Veterans Act - Expands the membership of the Advisory Committee on Minority Veterans to include veterans who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. 
 
Terminates the Commission on December 31, 2017 (currently, 2014).


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
Working Families Child Care Act of 2014

Bill: 113-hr-5000
Sponsor: Rep. Frankel, Lois [D-FL-22]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Families
Subjects: Child care and development
Education of the disadvantaged
Education programs funding
Employment and training programs
Preschool education
Student aid and college costs
Teaching, teachers, curricula

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
Working Families Child Care Act of 2014 - Amends part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of title IV of the Social Security Act to create a supplemental state entitlement for child care assistance for families with infants or toddlers under age three.
 
Amends the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to make grants to enable eligible states (including Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands) to improve the quality of care for infants and toddlers, especially those from low-income families.
 
Authorizes the use of grant funds to: (1) make grants to organizations with expertise in providing child care and related technical assistance, to establish new staffed family child care networks or to operate existing staffed family child care networks or systems that offer, to eligible infant and toddler care providers, technical assistance, training, administrative support, or direct services including monitoring visits to providers; (2) support a statewide network of infant and toddler care specialists; and (3) support initiatives to improve the quality of the provider workforce.
 
Allows the use of such funds also to: (1) develop infant and toddler components for the state's Quality Rating and Improvement System or a similar rating system, child care licensing regulations, or voluntary early learning guidelines; (2) improve the ability of parents to obtain information about high-quality infant and toddler care; or (3) assist eligible infant and toddler care providers seeking to increase their ranking on the state's Quality Rating and Improvement System or similar rating system, meet performance standards applicable to an Early Head Start agency, or become accredited by a national accrediting body.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-11-17
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, 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: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, 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: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
Home Energy Savings Act of 2014

Bill: 113-hr-5002
Sponsor: Rep. Gerlach, Jim [R-PA-6]
Introduced: 2014-06-26 in the House
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Energy efficiency and conservation
Environmental technology
Income tax credits
Lighting, heating, cooling
Materials
Residential rehabilitation and home repair

Summary:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: 
Home Energy Savings Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for nonbusiness energy property expenditures, to: (1) make such tax credit permanent; (2) increase from $500 to $1,000 the dollar limitation on such credit; (3) allow the inclusion of labor costs in amounts eligible for such credit; (4) revise definitions and requirements relating to roofing products and for natural gas, propane, oil furnaces, or hot water boilers and heaters; and (5) set forth documentation requirements for claiming such credit.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2014-06-26
text: Introduced in House