hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
A bill to require the Inspector General of the Department of Veterans Affairs to submit a report on wait times for veterans seeking medical appointments and treatment from the Department of Veterans Affairs, to prohibit closure of medical facilities of the Department, and for other purposes.

Bill: 113-s-2316
Sponsor: Sen. Thune, John [R-SD]
Introduced: 2014-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Congressional oversight
Department of Veterans Affairs
Environmental assessment, monitoring, research
Government buildings, facilities, and property
Government ethics and transparency, public corruption
Government studies and investigations
Health care coverage and access
Health care quality
Health facilities and institutions
Indian social and development programs
Minority health
Veterans' medical care

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: 
Requires the Inspector General of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to submit to Congress within 180 days after enactment of this Act a report on wait times for veterans seeking medical appointments and treatment from the VA, which shall include: (1) information on wait times throughout the United States, and (2) a determination by the Inspector General as to whether such wait times have been prolonged by VA employees without a valid medical or administrative reason. 
 
Prohibits the VA Secretary from closing any VA medical facility, or from using any VA funds to prepare any environment impact statement related to such closure, before such report is submitted, or after the report is submitted if the Inspector General determines that wait times have been prolonged by VA employees without a valid reason, unless the Secretary certifies that such closure will not:
 
 
increase the wait times for veterans in the catchment area of such medical facility;
 
 decrease the quality of care provided to such veterans;
 
impede the access of such veterans to specialized health care services or to VA residential rehabilitation treatment programs and other inpatient care;
 
increase the distance required to be traveled by such veterans to receive care; or
 
impede the access to medical care for such veterans that are members of Indian tribes.
 
 
Terminates such prohibition when the Inspector General certifies that such wait times are not being prolonged by VA employees without a valid reason.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
Safety Over Secrecy Act of 2014

Bill: 113-s-2317
Sponsor: Sen. Whitehouse, Sheldon [D-RI]
Introduced: 2014-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Law
Subjects: Civil actions and liability
Evidence and witnesses
Hazardous wastes and toxic substances

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: 
Safety Over Secrecy Act of 2014 - Amends the federal judicial code to prohibit courts, except when balancing confidentiality interests against public awareness interests in response to a party's motion, from approving or ordering the enforcement of any provision of a settlement agreement in a civil suit if: (1) a pleading in the suit alleges facts relevant to protecting the public from a hazard to public safety or health; and (2) the provision prohibits a party from disclosing settlement terms (other than the amount of any money paid under the settlement) or from discussing the suit, evidence produced in the suit, or the hazard to public safety or health. 
 
Defines &quot;hazard to public safety or health&quot; as an activity, substance, or condition that has a potential to cause harm to the health or safety of the public. 
 
Authorizes a court, upon a motion by a party to the settlement agreement, to approve or order enforcement of such a provision if: (1) the public interest in disclosure of facts relevant to protecting the public is outweighed by a specific and substantial interest in maintaining the confidentiality of the information or records, and (2) the requested order is no broader than necessary to protect such confidentiality. 
 
Establishes a rebuttable presumption that the interest in protecting financial, medical, or other similar personal information relating to an identifiable individual outweighs the public interest in disclosure. Permits courts to redact language to accommodate personal privacy and public awareness.
 
Prohibits courts from approving or ordering the enforcement of a settlement agreement provision in a civil suit that includes allegations concerning public safety and health hazards if the provision restricts a party from disclosing such information to a federal or state agency with law enforcement or regulatory authority over related activity. Requires facts disclosed to a federal or state agency to be protected as confidential under any other laws, regulations, or agreements. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S2912-2913)
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to reauthorize the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor Act.

Bill: 113-s-2318
Sponsor: Sen. Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [D-NY]
Introduced: 2014-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Dams and canals
Department of the Interior
Executive agency funding and structure
Historic sites and heritage areas
New York State

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: 
Amends the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor Act to extend the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor Commission until 30 years (currently, 15 years) after December 21, 2000. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-07-23
text: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Senate Subcommittee on National Parks. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 113-493.
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
FACT Act

Bill: 113-s-2319
Sponsor: Sen. Flake, Jeff [R-AZ]
Introduced: 2014-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Bankruptcy
Civil actions and liability
Hazardous wastes and toxic substances

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: 
 Furthering Asbestos Claim Transparency Act of 2014 or FACT Act - Amends federal bankruptcy law concerning a trust formed under a reorganization plan following the discharge in bankruptcy of a debtor corporation in order to assume the debtor's liability with respect to claims seeking recovery for personal injury, wrongful death, or property damage allegedly caused by the presence of, or exposure to, asbestos or asbestos-containing products. 
 
Requires such a trust to file with the bankruptcy court quarterly reports, available on the public docket, which describe each demand the trust has received from a claimant and the basis for any payment made to that claimant (excluding any confidential medical record or the claimant's full Social Security number).
 
Requires such reports, upon written request, and subject to payment (demanded at the option of the trust) for any reasonable cost incurred by it, to provide any information related to payment from, and demands for payment from, the trust to any party to any action in law or equity concerning liability for asbestos exposure.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to redesignate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 162 Northeast Avenue in Tallmadge, Ohio, as the "Lance Corporal Daniel Nathan Deyarmin, Jr., Post Office Building".

Bill: 113-s-2320
Sponsor: Sen. Brown, Sherrod [D-OH]
Introduced: 2014-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Congressional tributes
Government buildings, facilities, and property
Military personnel and dependents
Ohio
Postal service

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 162 Northeast Avenue in Tallmadge, Ohio, as the "Lance Corporal Daniel Nathan Deyarmin, Jr., Post Office Building."

Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
Songwriter Equity Act of 2014

Bill: 113-s-2321
Sponsor: Sen. Alexander, Lamar [R-TN]
Introduced: 2014-05-12 in the Senate
Policy area: Commerce
Subjects: Contracts and agency
Intellectual property
Judges
Music
Sound recording

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: 
Songwriter Equity Act of 2014 - Amends federal copyright law regarding the exclusive rights of sound recording copyright owners to remove a provision that prohibits license fees payable for the public performance of sound recordings, by means of a digital audio transmission, from being taken into account in any administrative, judicial, or other governmental proceeding to set or adjust the royalties payable to copyright owners of musical works for the public performance of their works.
 
Requires Copyright Royalty Judges (CRJs), when setting royalty rates under the compulsory license available for the reproduction and distribution of musical works (commonly referred to as a &quot;mechanical license&quot;), to establish rates and terms that most clearly represent the rates and terms that would have been negotiated in the marketplace between a willing buyer and seller.
 
Requires CRJs, in establishing such rates and terms, to base their decision on marketplace, economic, and use information presented by the participants. Allows consideration of comparable uses and circumstances under voluntary license agreements. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2014-05-12
text: Introduced in Senate
Safe and Secure Decommissioning Act of 2014

Bill: 113-s-2324
Sponsor: Sen. Boxer, Barbara [D-CA]
Introduced: 2014-05-13 in the Senate
Policy area: Energy
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Emergency planning and evacuation
Licensing and registrations
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
Nuclear power
Radioactive wastes and releases

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: 
Safe and Secure Decommissioning Act of 2014 - Amends the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to prohibit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) from approving the request of a licensee for a waiver of, or exemption from, a covered regulation applicable to a civilian nuclear power reactor that has permanently ceased to operate.
 
Specifies as a covered regulation: (1) an emergency preparedness or response regulation or requirement, or (2) a security regulation or requirement applicable to spent nuclear fuel.
 
Declares that this prohibition shall not apply to a civilian nuclear power reactor at which all spent nuclear fuel has been transferred to spent nuclear fuel dry casks.
 
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Introduced in Senate
Dry Cask Storage Act of 2014

Bill: 113-s-2325
Sponsor: Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA]
Introduced: 2014-05-13 in the Senate
Policy area: Energy
Subjects: Emergency planning and evacuation
Government trust funds
Licensing and registrations
Nuclear power
Radioactive wastes and releases

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: 
Dry Cask Storage Act of 2014 - Amends the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 to require each licensee of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to submit a plan for: (1) transfer (including on-going additional transfers) to spent nuclear fuel dry casks of any spent nuclear fuel stored by the licensee for at least seven years in spent nuclear fuel pools, and (2) configuration of the remaining spent nuclear fuel in the pool in a manner that minimizes the chance of a fire if there is a loss of water in the pool.
 
Requires the NRC to approve or disapprove the plan within 90 days after its submission.
 
Authorizes the NRC to make a grant to any licensee with an approved plan to assist in the cost of transferring spent nuclear fuel to dry casks under the plan.
 
Requires the emergency planning zone applicable to each civilian nuclear power reactor to be at least 10 miles in radius until all spent nuclear fuel at the reactor has been transferred to dry casks.
 
Directs the NRC to expand to 50 miles in radius the emergency planning zone applicable to each reactor not in compliance with an approved plan. Makes the licensee responsible for all coasts associated with expansion.
 
Requires the Secretary of the Treasury to transfer annually to the NRC, to pay the costs of the grants program, 10% of the interest generated during the preceding fiscal year from investments of the Nuclear Waste Fund.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Introduced in Senate
Nuclear Plant Decommissioning Act of 2014

Bill: 113-s-2326
Sponsor: Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT]
Introduced: 2014-05-13 in the Senate
Policy area: Energy
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Environmental assessment, monitoring, research
Government information and archives
Licensing and registrations
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)
Nuclear power
Public participation and lobbying
Radioactive wastes and releases
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: 
Nuclear Plant Decommissioning Act of 2014 - Amends the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to require a Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) licensee, after consulting each affected state and local governments, to develop and submit to the NRC a post-shutdown decommissioning activities report (PSDAR) for any of the licensee's shutdown facilities for which a PSDAR is required.
 
Requires the NRC to: (1) solicit written comments on the proposed PSDAR from the public and conduct at least two public hearings in the facility's host state; and (2) invite the host state to file a statement of support, of conditional support with specific recommendations for changes, or of nonsupport for the proposed PSDAR.
 
Directs the NRC, after receiving the state's statement of support or nonsupport, to determine whether the proposed PSDAR is adequate or inadequate on the basis of specified considerations, and issue a decision of approval or disapproval, as appropriate.
 
Prescribes requirements for determining whether a proposed PSDAR is permissible if the host state files a statement of conditional support.
 
Requires a licensee to develop and submit a new proposed PSDAR if the first one is rejected.
 
Prohibits the NRC from approving a proposed PSDAR unless it includes a requirement that the licensee comply with state law relating to air, water, or soil quality or radiological standards if they are more restrictive than federal law.
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Introduced in Senate
Keeping Public Lands Open Act

Bill: 113-s-2327
Sponsor: Sen. Walsh, John E. [D-MT]
Introduced: 2014-05-13 in the Senate
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Appropriations
Birds
Department of Agriculture
Department of the Interior
Executive agency funding and structure
Forests, forestry, trees
Government trust funds
Land transfers
Land use and conservation
Law enforcement administration and funding
Parks, recreation areas, trails
Wetlands
Wilderness and natural areas, wildlife refuges, wild rivers, habitats
Wildlife conservation and habitat protection

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: 
Keeping Public Lands Open Act - Provides that if an appropriations measure for a covered account for a fiscal year is not enacted before the beginning of that fiscal year and a joint resolution making continuing appropriations for such account is not in effect, such sums as necessary shall be made available without further appropriation to continue any activity for which funds were provided from such account in the preceding fiscal year.
 
Defines &quot;covered account&quot; to mean specified appropriation accounts of: (1) the Department of the Interior for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, including amounts for activities of the National Wildlife Refuge System, habitat conservation, the Migratory Bird Conservation Account, the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and land acquisition; (2) the Department of the Interior for the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), including amounts for the National Landscape Conservation System, land acquisition, and the activities of recreation management, resource protection, and maintenance; (3) the Department of the Interior for the National Park Service, including amounts for land acquisition and state assistance; and (3) the Department of Agriculture (USDA) for the Forest Service, including amounts for land acquisition, law enforcement operations, and the activities of recreation, heritage, and wilderness.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Appropriations.
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Introduced in Senate
Fair Debt Collection Practices Technical Clarification Act of 2014

Bill: 113-s-2328
Sponsor: Sen. Toomey, Patrick [R-PA]
Introduced: 2014-05-13 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Civil actions and liability
Consumer credit
Debt collection
Financial services and investments
Judicial procedure and administration
Lawyers and legal services

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: 
 Fair Debt Collection Practices Technical Clarification Act of 2014 - Amends the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to exclude from the definition of &quot;debt collector&quot; any law firm or licensed attorney: (1) serving, filing, or conveying formal legal pleadings, discovery requests, or other documents pursuant to the applicable rules of civil procedure; or (2) communicating in, or at the direction of, a court of law or in depositions or settlement conferences, in connection with a pending legal action to collect a debt on behalf of a client. 
 
Prohibits such amendments from being construed to exempt any law firm or licensed attorney engaged in any activity other than those activities specifically described in the amendments from being subject to any other applicable provision of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
 

 
 
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Introduced in Senate
Historically Black Colleges and Universities Innovation Fund Act of 2014

Bill: 113-s-2331
Sponsor: Sen. Hagan, Kay R. [D-NC]
Introduced: 2014-05-13 in the Senate
Policy area: Education
Subjects: Academic performance and assessments
Business education
Business investment and capital
Economic development
Education of the disadvantaged
Education programs funding
Educational technology and distance education
Higher education
Minority education
Science and engineering education
Student aid and college costs
Teaching, teachers, curricula
Technology transfer and commercialization

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: 
Historically Black Colleges and Universities Innovation Fund Act of 2014 - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to direct the Secretary of Education to award competitive one-year planning grants and five-year implementation grants to historically black colleges or universities to plan, develop, and implement educational innovations.
 
Allows an historically black college or university to apply for such grants by itself or in a consortium with one or more other institutions of higher education, private nonprofit organizations, or local educational agencies (LEAs).
 
Requires implementation grant recipients to use the grant to further develop, pilot, field-test, implement, document, validate, and, as applicable, scale up and replicate educational innovations, including those designed to:
 
 
improve student achievement, such as through activities designed to increase the number or percentage of students who successfully complete developmental or remedial coursework and successfully pursue postsecondary studies;
 
improve and expand institutional recruitment, postsecondary school awareness, and postsecondary school preparation efforts targeting students from low-income families, such as through activities undertaken in partnership with LEAs and nonprofit organizations;
 
increase the number or percentage of students who enroll in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses, graduate with STEM degrees, and pursue advanced STEM studies;
 
increase the number or percentage of students who graduate from postsecondary school on time;
 
implement evidence-based improvements to courses to improve student outcomes and reduce students' costs;
 
enhance the quality of teacher preparation programs at historically black colleges or universities; and
 
expand the effective use of technology in higher education.
 
 
Makes the five-year duration of each implementation grant conditional after the third year of such grant on the Secretary determining that the grantee is achieving satisfactory progress in carrying out its educational innovations.
 
Limits the federal share to not more than 85% of the total cost of carrying out a project funded by an implementation grant.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2014-05-13
text: Introduced in Senate
Fairness for Fallen Officers Act of 2014

Bill: 113-s-2332
Sponsor: Sen. Coons, Christopher A. [D-DE]
Introduced: 2014-05-14 in the Senate
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Atmospheric science and weather
Employee benefits and pensions
Law enforcement officers
Worker safety and health

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-14
text: 
Fairness for Fallen Officers Act of 2014 - Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to include a fatal climate-related injury (including hypothermia, heatstroke, and hyperthermia) sustained by a public safety officer who engaged in a situation involving exposure to extreme environmental conditions while on duty as a personal injury for which death benefits shall be provided.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-14
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2014-05-14
text: Introduced in Senate
Caring for Military Children with Developmental Disabilities Act of 2014

Bill: 113-s-2333
Sponsor: Sen. Murray, Patty [D-WA]
Introduced: 2014-05-14 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Child health
Defense spending
Department of Defense
Disability and paralysis
Executive agency funding and structure
Health care costs and insurance
Health programs administration and funding
Hereditary and development disorders
Mental health
Military medicine
Military personnel and dependents

Summary:
action_date: 2014-05-14
text: 
Caring for Military Children with Developmental Disabilities Act of 2014 - Includes in the treatment of military dependents' developmental disabilities under the Department of Defense (DOD) TRICARE program behavioral health treatment, including applied behavior analysis, that is prescribed by a physician or psychologist.
 
Allows such behavioral health treatment to be provided only to the extent that amounts are appropriated in advance for such treatment to a Defense Dependents Developmental Disabilities Account.
 
Establishes in the Treasury the Defense Dependents Developmental Disabilities Account, which is to be separate from the DOD's Defense Health Program Account.
 
Authorizes appropriations for, and transfers funds to, the Defense Dependents Developmental Disabilities Account.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2014-05-14
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.
action_date: 2014-05-14
text: Introduced in Senate