hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
Wireless Device Independence Act of 2013

Bill: 113-s-467
Sponsor: Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR]
Introduced: 2013-03-05 in the Senate
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Intellectual property
Internet and video services
Internet, web applications, social media
Telephone and wireless communication

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-05
text: 
Wireless Device Independence Act of 2013 - Amends the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) with respect the prohibition on the circumvention of technological measures that control access to a copyright-protected work. Expands the exceptions to such prohibition to allow the user of a computer program (in the form of firmware or software) that enables a wireless telephone handset or other wireless device that can connect to the Internet, and that is originally acquired from the operator of a wireless telecommunications network or retailer, to connect to a different wireless telecommunications network (a practice commonly referred to as "unlocking" the underlying device) if: (1) the user legally owns a copy of the computer program, (2) the use of the program is solely for connecting to such wireless telecommunications network, and (3) the access to such network is authorized by the network operator. (The Librarian of Congress had previously provided an administrative exemption from the DMCA prohibition to permit the unlocking of mobile wireless devices but the exemption was not renewed after a rulemaking the DMCA requires to be conducted every three years.) 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-05
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2013-03-05
text: Introduced in Senate
CARE Act

Bill: 113-s-468
Sponsor: Sen. Rockefeller, John D., IV [D-WV]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Energy
Subjects: Coal
Employee benefits and pensions
Employment taxes
Health care costs and insurance
Land use and conservation
Mining
Tax administration and collection, taxpayers
Unemployment
User charges and fees
Wages and earnings

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Coal Accountability and Retired Employee Act of 2013 or CARE Act - Amends the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to transfer specified excess funds derived from coal mine operator-paid reclamation fees to the trustees of the 1974 United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) Pension Plan for use solely to pay pension benefits required under such Plan.
 
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise 1992 UMWA Benefit Plan eligibility requirements.
 
Makes eligible for health benefits from the 1992 UMWA Benefit Plan an individual who would be eligible to receive benefits from the 1974 UMWA Benefit Plan (with a specified exception) following a bankruptcy or other insolvency proceeding of a coal mine operator, but who does not receive from that operator or any related person health benefits at least equal to those received under the Multiemployer Health Benefit Plan of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977.
 
Prescribes a special rule to state that employer contributions to an employees' trust or annuity benefit plan providing supplemental benefits solely to participants in a pension plan are neither deductible nor nondeductible as such from the employer's gross income. Subjects such contributions, on the other hand, to the requirements for deduction as an allowable trade or business expense.
 
Treats a trust holding the assets of such a pension benefit plan as a tax-exempt organization.
 
Excludes from wages any payments made to, or on behalf of, an employee or his or her beneficiary under such a plan.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S1230)
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to assist the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in stabilizing the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program.

Bill: 113-s-469
Sponsor: Sen. Menendez, Robert [D-NJ]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Housing and Community Development
Subjects: Housing finance and home ownership
Housing for the elderly and disabled
Residential rehabilitation and home repair

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Amends the National Housing Act to require that, to be eligible for insurance under the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program for elderly homeowners, a mortgage contain terms and provisions with respect to property maintenance as well as for establishing escrow accounts, performing financial assessments, or limiting the amount of any payment made available under the mortgage.
 
Authorizes the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to establish any additional or alternative requirements necessary to more effectively carry out such Act.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-06-18
text: Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 113-61.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to require that the Purple Heart occupy a position of precedence above the new Distinguished Warfare Medal.

Bill: 113-s-470
Sponsor: Sen. Tester, Jon [D-MT]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Conflicts and wars
Department of Defense
Military personnel and dependents

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Requires the Purple Heart to be placed in precedence above the Distinguished Warfare Medal.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
Fair Access to Credit Scores Act of 2013

Bill: 113-s-471
Sponsor: Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Consumer credit

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Fair Access to Credit Scores Act of 2013 - Amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act to require certain consumer reporting agencies to disclose, without charge, as part of a consumer's free annual disclosure upon request, a current credit score generated using the scoring methodology most frequently used to generate scores sold to creditors, including information regarding other risk scores or predictors in the consumer's file. 
 
Requires the agencies also to furnish such other consumer information as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) considers appropriate with respect to consumer financial education, including where the consumer's credit score falls with respect to a range of possible credit scores, and the general factors contributing to the credit scores of consumers.
 
Requires such agencies, upon consumer request for either a credit score or a risk score, to supply any such score in the consumer's file at the agency.
 
Requires the agencies to maintain credit scores or other risk scores or predictors in the consumer's file for at least one year after the data is generated.
 
Directs the CFPB to develop regulations establishing a mandatory format for consumer file disclosures.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to prohibit the further extension or establishment of national monuments in the State of Nevada except by express authorization of Congress, and for other purposes.

Bill: 113-s-472
Sponsor: Sen. Heller, Dean [R-NV]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Congressional oversight
Monuments and memorials
Nevada
Parks, recreation areas, trails
Wilderness and natural areas, wildlife refuges, wild rivers, habitats

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Prohibits any further extension or establishment of national parks and monuments in Nevada from being undertaken, except by express authorization of Congress. 
 
 Prohibits the Secretary of the Interior from implementing, administering, or enforcing Secretarial Order No. 3310, issued on December 22, 2010, relating to the protection of wilderness characteristics on public lands under the management of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), except by express authorization of Congress. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to ensure that Federal Register notices submitted to the Bureau of Land Management are reviewed in a timely manner.

Bill: 113-s-473
Sponsor: Sen. Heller, Dean [R-NV]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Department of the Interior
Intergovernmental relations
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
 Declares that if, by 45 days after a state Bureau of Land Management (BLM) office has submitted a Federal Register notice to the Washington, DC, office of the BLM for review by the Department of the Interior, the review has not been completed: (1) the notice shall consider to be approved, and (2) the state BLM office shall immediately forward the notice to the Federal Register for publication. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
Eunice Kennedy Shriver Act

Bill: 113-s-475
Sponsor: Sen. Harkin, Tom [D-IA]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Social Welfare
Subjects: Athletes
Disability and paralysis
Education programs funding
Olympic games
Social work, volunteer service, charitable organizations

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Eunice Kennedy Shriver Act - Reauthorizes the Special Olympics Sport and Empowerment Act of 2004 for FY2014-FY2018.
 
Directs the Secretary of State to act through the Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs in awarding grants or entering agreements with Special Olympics for activities outside the United States. Includes community-based prevention among the activities for which the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) may award grants or enter into agreements with Special Olympics. Requires grant or agreement applications to include a description of specific measurable annual benchmarks, as well as long-term goals and objectives, to be achieved through specified activities, which must include: (1) activities to increase the full participation of people with intellectual disabilities in inclusive school and community activities with people without disabilities, (2) education programs that dispel negative stereotypes about people with intellectual disabilities, and (3) activities to increase the participation of people with intellectual disabilities in Special Olympics outside of the United States and to promote volunteerism on behalf of such activities. Requires annual reports by Special Olympics to describe demographic data about Special Olympics participants.

Authorizes the Secretary of Education to award grants or enter into contracts or cooperative agreements to promote the expansion of Best Buddies, including activities to increase the participation of people with intellectual disabilities in social relationships and other aspects of community life, including education and employment, within the United States. 
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. (text of measure as introduced: CR S1230-1232)
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
Tribal Gaming Eligibility Act

Bill: 113-s-477
Sponsor: Sen. Feinstein, Dianne [D-CA]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Native Americans
Subjects: Federal-Indian relations
Gambling
Indian lands and resources rights
Land transfers

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Tribal Gaming Eligibility Act - Amends the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act to place restrictions on the conduct of gaming on lands taken into trust for an Indian tribe after October 17, 1988, as part of the settlement of a land claim, initial reservation of a newly recognized tribe, or restoration of lands for a tribe that has its federal recognition restored.
 
Prohibits gaming on such lands, with specified exceptions, unless the Secretary of the Interior determines that the land is eligible for gaming and the tribe demonstrates: (1) a substantial, direct, modern connection to the land as of October 17, 1988; and (2) a substantial, direct, aboriginal connection to the land. (The Secretary and the state in which the gaming is proposed can still allow gaming on lands acquired for a tribe after October 17, 1988, if they concur that it is in the best interest of the tribe and its members.)


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S1233)
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to clarify that the revocation of an alien's visa or other documentation is not subject to judicial review.

Bill: 113-s-478
Sponsor: Sen. Grassley, Chuck [R-IA]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Immigration
Subjects: Immigration status and procedures
Judicial review and appeals
Jurisdiction and venue
Visas and passports

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to prohibit judicial review of, or the hearing of any claim arising from, visa or document revocation. (Judicial review is currently permitted in a deportation proceeding if such revocation is the sole ground for deportation.) 
 
 States that this Act shall: (1) take effect on the date of its enactment; (2) apply to all visas issued before, on, or after such date; and (3) apply to any claim pending on, or filed after, such date.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S1233-1234)
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
Small Business Efficiency Act

Bill: 113-s-479
Sponsor: Sen. Grassley, Chuck [R-IA]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Accounting and auditing
Contracts and agency
Employment taxes
Licensing and registrations
Social security and elderly assistance
Tax administration and collection, taxpayers
User charges and fees
Wages and earnings

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Small Business Efficiency Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat professional employer organizations (PEOs), certified by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), as employers for employment tax purposes (thus allowing such PEOs to pay wages and collect and remit payroll taxes on behalf of an employer). 
 
Sets forth IRS certification requirements for PEOs, including financial review and reporting requirements. Requires a PEO to post a bond each year, up to $1 million, to guarantee payment of employment taxes. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S1234)
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
NICS Reporting Improvement Act of 2013

Bill: 113-s-480
Sponsor: Sen. Graham, Lindsey [R-SC]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Criminal justice information and records
Firearms and explosives
Mental health

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
NICS Reporting Improvement Act of 2013 - Amends federal firearms provisions to define a person who has been adjudicated mentally incompetent or who has been committed to a psychiatric hospital as a person who is the subject of an order or finding issued by a court, board, commission, or other adjudicative body (after a hearing of which the person received actual notice and at which the person had an opportunity to participate with counsel) that found that the person, as a result of marked subnormal intelligence, mental impairment, or mental illness: (1) was an imminent danger to himself or others, (2) was guilty but mentally ill in a criminal case, (3) was not guilty in a criminal case by reason of insanity or mental disease or defect, (4) was incompetent to stand trial in a criminal case, (5) was not guilty only by reason of lack of mental responsibility under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, (6) required involuntary inpatient treatment by a psychiatric hospital, (7) required involuntary outpatient treatment by a psychiatric hospital based on a finding that the person was an imminent danger to himself or others, or (8) required involuntary commitment to a psychiatric hospital for any reason, including drug use. Excludes: (1) a person who is in a psychiatric hospital for observation or due to a voluntary admission, and (2) an order or finding that has expired, that has been set aside or expunged, or that is no longer applicable.
 
Defines &quot;psychiatric hospital&quot; to include a mental health facility, mental hospital, sanitarium, psychiatric facility, and any other facility that provides diagnoses by licensed professionals of mental retardation or mental illness, including a psychiatric ward in a general hospital.
 
Prohibits: (1) the sale or other disposition of a firearm or ammunition to any person knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that such person has been adjudicated mentally incompetent (currently, mental defective) or has been committed to a psychiatric hospital (currently, to any mental institution); and (2) the shipment, transport, or possession in interstate or foreign commerce of a firearm or ammunition by, or the receipt of a firearm or ammunition which has been shipped or transported in such commerce by, any such person. 
 
Makes conforming amendments to the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
Wireless Consumer Choice Act

Bill: 113-s-481
Sponsor: Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
Internet and video services
Internet, web applications, social media
Telephone and wireless communication

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Wireless Consumer Choice Act - Requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to direct providers of commercial mobile services and commercial mobile data services to permit their subscribers to unlock any type of wireless device used to access such services. (The &quot;unlocking&quot; of a mobile device enables the device to connect to different networks for the purpose of switching service providers.)
 
Prohibits this Act from being construed to alter the terms of any valid contract between a provider and a subscriber. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
Health Insurance Rate Review Act

Bill: 113-s-482
Sponsor: Sen. Feinstein, Dianne [D-CA]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Consumer affairs
Disability and health-based discrimination
Health care costs and insurance
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Health Insurance Rate Review Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to declare that federal requirements that the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) review unreasonable premium increases in health care coverage shall not be construed to prohibit a state from imposing additional rate requirements on health insurance issuers that are more protective of consumers. Expands such review to include all rate increases, not only premium increases.
 
Directs the Secretary or the relevant state insurance commissioner (or state regulator) to take corrective actions to ensure that any excessive, unjustified, or unfairly discriminatory rates are corrected before, or as soon as possible after, implementation, including through mechanisms such as denying rates, modifying rates, or requiring rebates to consumers. Authorizes civil monetary penalties and ineligibility as a qualified health plan for failing to comply with any corrective action taken by the Secretary.
 
Requires the Secretary to determine whether the state insurance commissioner or regulator or the Secretary will undertake such corrective actions based on whether the state can adequately undertake such actions.
 
 Applies this Act to health plans grandfathered under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S1234-1235)
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate
Berryessa Snow Mountain National Conservation Area Act

Bill: 113-s-483
Sponsor: Sen. Boxer, Barbara [D-CA]
Introduced: 2013-03-06 in the Senate
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Advisory bodies
California
Land use and conservation
Wilderness and natural areas, wildlife refuges, wild rivers, habitats

Summary:
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: 
Berryessa Snow Mountain National Conservation Area Act - Establishes the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Conservation Area, to comprise approximately 349,850 acres of federal land within Napa, Lake, Mendocino, Solano, and Yolo Counties in California. 
 
 States that the purpose of the Conservation Area is the conservation, protection, and enhancement of the ecological, scenic, wildlife, recreational, cultural, historical, natural, educational, and scientific resources of the lands included in the Area for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations. 
 
Continues to provide historical and adequate access to private inholdings in the Conservation Area. 
 
Allows only those uses of the Conservation Area that would further the purposes for which it is established. 
 
Requires a comprehensive plan for the protection and management of the federal lands included within the Conservation Area. Requires such plan to: (1) assess the impacts of climate change, (2) include a comprehensive weed management strategy, and (3) include a plan to address the public safety and environmental clean-up issues associated with illegal marijuana production. 
 
Permits grazing in the Conservation Area: (1) to continue, if established before this Act's enactment; (2) if not established before enactment, only to the extent that it is consistent with the purposes of the conservation area; or (3) through issuing annual targeted permits for the control of noxious weeds, fire suppression, or to provide other ecological benefits. 
 
Establishes the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Conservation Area Advisory Council to advise with respect to the preparation and implementation of the management plan. Requires the appointment of one Council member to represent Native American Tribes. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2013-11-20
text: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 113-342.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S1235)
action_date: 2013-03-06
text: Introduced in Senate