hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
American Business for American Companies Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-975
Sponsor: Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Corporate finance and management
Department of the Treasury
Foreign and international corporations
Military procurement, research, weapons development
Public contracts and procurement

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 

American Business for American Companies Act of 2015

 
Prohibits an executive agency from awarding a contract for the procurement of property or services (including a defense contract) to: (1) any foreign incorporated entity determined to be an inverted domestic corporation or any subsidiary of such entity, or (2) any joint venture more than 10% of which is held by such an entity or subsidiary.
 
Directs each agency to include in each such contract awarded with a value in excess of $10 million, other than a contract for exclusively commercial items, a clause that prohibits the prime contractor from: (1) awarding a first-tier subcontract with a value greater than 10% of the total prime contract to such an entity or joint venture, or (2) structuring subcontract tiers enabling such entity or joint venture to perform more than 10% of the total value of the prime contract. 
 
Authorizes an agency to waive such requirements for a contract in the interest of national security or when necessary for the efficient or effective administration of federal or federally funded: (1) programs that provide health benefits to individuals, or (2) public health programs. Provides for termination of a contract or suspension or debarment of a contractor in violation of this Act. 
 
Requires a foreign incorporated entity to be treated as an inverted domestic corporation if: (1) the entity acquires, on or after May 8, 2014, substantially all of the properties held by a domestic corporation or substantially all of the assets of, or substantially all of the properties constituting a trade or business of, a domestic partnership; and (2) after the acquisition, either more than 50% of the stock of the entity is held by former shareholders of the domestic corporation or former partners of the domestic partnership, or the management and control of the expanded affiliated group which includes the entity occurs primarily within the United States and such expanded affiliated group has significant domestic business activities. Sets forth an exception for an entity within an expanded affiliated group with substantial business activities in the foreign country in which the entity is created. Requires the Department of the Treasury to prescribe regulations for determining cases in which the management and control of an expanded affiliated group is to be treated as occurring primarily within the United States. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Space Resource Exploration and Utilization Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-976
Sponsor: Sen. Murray, Patty [D-WA]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Civil actions and liability
Congressional oversight
Industrial policy and productivity
Mining
Property rights
Space flight and exploration
Spacecraft and satellites
Technology transfer and commercialization

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 

Space Resource Exploration and Utilization Act of 2015

 
Directs the President, acting through appropriate federal agencies, to:
 
 
 facilitate the commercial exploration and utilization of space resources to meet national needs; 
 
 discourage government barriers to the development of economically viable, safe, and stable industries for the exploration and utilization of space resources in manners consistent with the existing international obligations of the United States; and 
 
 promote the right of U.S. commercial entities to explore outer space and utilize space resources, in accordance with such obligations, free from harmful interference, and to transfer or sell such resources. 
 
 
 
Defines &quot;space resource&quot; as a natural resource of any kind found in place in outer space. 
 
Directs the President to report recommendations for: (1) allocating responsibilities relating to the exploration and utilization of space resources among federal agencies, and (2) any authorities necessary to meet U.S international obligations with respect to the exploration and utilization of space resources.
 
Declares that any asteroid resources obtained in outer space are the property of the entity that obtained them.
 
Requires a U.S. commercial space resource utilization entity to avoid causing harmful interference in outer space. Authorizes such an entity to bring a civil action for appropriate relief for any action by another entity subject to U.S. jurisdiction causing harmful interference to its operations with respect to an asteroid resource utilization activity in outer space.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate
American Royalties Too Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-977
Sponsor: Sen. Baldwin, Tammy [D-WI]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Commerce
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Art, artists, authorship
Congressional agencies
Congressional oversight
Government studies and investigations
Intellectual property
Library of Congress
User charges and fees

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 

American Royalties Too Act of 2015

 
Expands copyright owners' exclusive rights, in the case of a work of visual art, to include the right to collect or authorize the collection of a royalty if the work is sold by a person other than the author for at least $5,000 in an auction.
 
Defines &quot;auction&quot; as a public sale of visual art to the highest bidder run by an entity that sold at least $1 million of works of visual art during the previous year.
 
Revises the term &quot;work of visual art&quot; to make requirements for photographs consistent with requirements for paintings, drawings, and prints. (Currently, a photograph must be a still photographic image produced for exhibition purposes only.)
 
Limits the amount of such a royalty to the lesser of: (1) 5% of the purchase price; or (2) $35,000, subject to cost-of-living adjustments.
 
Directs entities conducting such auctions to collect and pay the royalties to a visual artists' copyright collecting society. Requires the collecting society, at least four times each year, to distribute the appropriate royalties (minus administrative expenses) to authors or successor copyright owners.
 
Requires an author of a work of visual art, in order to be eligible to receive such a royalty, to: (1) be a citizen of, or domiciled in, the United States or a country that provides resale royalty rights; or (2) have first created the work in the United States or a country that provides such royalty rights.
 
Establishes a copyright infringement offense for the failure to pay such a royalty. Subjects infringers to: (1) statutory damages, and (2) liability for the full royalty. 
 
Prohibits the sale, assignment, or waiver of the right to collect such a royalty, subject to exceptions for works made for hire and transfers of copyright ownership. 
 
Directs the Register of Copyrights to issue regulations governing visual artists' copyright collecting societies.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate
HALOS Act

Bill: 114-s-978
Sponsor: Sen. Murphy, Christopher [D-CT]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Business investment and capital
Financial services and investments
Higher education
Marketing and advertising
Securities
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Social work, volunteer service, charitable organizations

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 

Helping Angels Lead Our Startups Act or the HALOS Act

 
 Directs the Securities and Exchange Commission to amend Regulation D (governing the limited offer and sale of securities without registration under the Securities Act of 1933) to make the prohibition against general solicitation or general advertising inapplicable to events with specified kinds of sponsors (including angel investor groups not connected to broker-dealers or investment advisers) where:
 
 
presentations or communications are made by or on behalf of an issuer,
 
the advertising does not refer to any specific offering of securities by the issuer,
 
the sponsor does not engage in certain activities (such as offering investment recommendations or advice to attendees), and
 
no specific information regarding a securities offering is communicated (other than that the issuer is in the process of offering or planning to offer securities, including the type and amount of securities being offered).
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to repeal the requirement for reduction of survivor annuities under the Survivor Benefit Plan by veterans' dependency and indemnity compensation, and for other purposes.

Bill: 114-s-979
Sponsor: Sen. Nelson, Bill [D-FL]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Military personnel and dependents
Veterans' pensions and compensation

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 
Repeals certain provisions which require the offset of amounts paid in dependency and indemnity compensation from Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) annuities for the surviving spouses of former military personnel who are entitled to military retired pay or would be entitled to such pay, except for being under 60 years of age.
 
Prohibits recoupment by the Secretary of Defense of certain amounts previously paid to SBP recipients in the form of a retired pay refund.
 
Repeals the optional authority of (and instead requires) the Secretary of the military department concerned to pay an annuity to a member's dependent children when there is no eligible surviving spouse. Directs the Secretary concerned to restore annuity eligibility to a surviving spouse who earlier agreed to transfer such eligibility to a surviving child or children of a member.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Defense of Environment and Property Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-980
Sponsor: Sen. Paul, Rand [R-KY]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Environmental Protection
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Administrative remedies
Army Corps of Engineers
Dams and canals
Department of Defense
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Environmental regulatory procedures
Government liability
Intergovernmental relations
Judicial review and appeals
Lakes and rivers
Land use and conservation
Navigation, waterways, harbors
Property rights
State and local government operations
Water quality
Water use and supply
Wetlands

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 

Defense of Environment and Property Act of 2015

 
This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to specify the types of water bodies that are &quot;navigable waters&quot; and therefore fall under the scope of the Act. Groundwater is considered to be state water.
 
Activities carried out by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers may not impinge upon states' power over land and water use.
 
States or individual property owners may obtain judicial review of jurisdictional determinations by the EPA or the Army Corps that would affect their ability to plan the development and use of land and water resources within 30 days after a determination.
 
The EPA may not use a significant nexus test to determine federal jurisdiction over navigable waters and waters of the United States.
 
The following rules are nullified: (1) the Army Corps' rule entitled &quot;Final Rule for Regulatory Programs of the Corps of Engineers,&quot; (2) the EPA's proposed rule entitled &quot;Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the Clean Water Act Regulatory Definition of 'Waters of the United States,'&quot; (3) the guidance document entitled &quot;Clean Water Act Jurisdiction Following the U.S. Supreme Court's Decision in 
Rapanos v. United States
 & 
Carabell v. United States
&quot; (relating to the definition of waters under the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act), and (4) any subsequent regulation or guidance issued by federal agencies that defines or interprets the term &quot;navigable waters.&quot;
 
The Army Corps and the EPA may not promulgate rules or issue guidance that expands or interprets the definition of navigable waters unless expressly authorized by Congress. 
 
Federal agencies must obtain the consent of private property owners prior to entering their land to collect information about navigable waters. Federal agencies that issue regulations that relate to the definition of navigable waters or waters of the United States and diminish the fair market value or economic viability of a property must pay the affected property owner an amount equal to twice the value of the loss. Until the landowners have been compensated, such a regulation will have no force or effect.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Invest In Transportation Act

Bill: 114-s-981
Sponsor: Sen. Paul, Rand [R-KY]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Corporate finance and management
Foreign and international corporations
Government trust funds
Income tax deductions
Interest, dividends, interest rates
Public transit
Roads and highways
Taxation of foreign income
Transportation programs funding

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 

Invest in Transportation Act 

 
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a domestic corporation to elect to repatriate its overseas income earned prior to 2015 at an effective tax rate of 6.5%. The corporation must complete the repatriation of such income during a specified five-year period and establish a domestic reinvestment plan under which not less than 25% of such income is used for investment in the United States, including for increased hiring, wages, pension contributions, energy efficiency, environmental and capital improvements, and research and development. No funds may be spent on increases in executive compensation. Additionally, a corporation which enters into a stock inversion to avoid U.S. taxation within 10 years after repatriating overseas income at a preferential tax rate must recapture a portion of the income taxed at the preferential rate. 
 
The bill requires the Department of the Treasury to make an initial estimate of the amount of tax revenue from repatriated income to be received by Treasury prior to October 1, 2019, and another estimate not later than October 1, 2023, and transfer such estimated amounts to the Highway and Mass Transit Accounts of the Highway Trust Fund. 
 
The bill authorizes appropriations from the Highway Trust Fund for the repair, replacement, or rehabilitation of deficient bridges. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Water Rights Protection Act

Bill: 114-s-982
Sponsor: Sen. Barrasso, John [R-WY]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Indian lands and resources rights
Intergovernmental relations
Land use and conservation
Licensing and registrations
State and local government operations
Water use and supply

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 

Water Rights Protection Act

 
 Prohibits the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture from:
 
 
conditioning or withholding the issuance, renewal, amendment, or extension of any permit, approval, license, lease, allotment, easement, right-of-way, or other land use or occupancy agreement (permit) on the limitation or encumbrance of any water right or the transfer of any water right to the United States or any other designee, or any other impairment of any water right under state law by federal or state action;
 
requiring any water user (including a federally recognized Indian tribe) to apply for or acquire a water right in the name of the United States under state law as a condition of such a permit;
 
asserting jurisdiction over groundwater withdrawals or impacts on groundwater resources, unless consistent with state groundwater resource laws, regulations, and policies; or
 
infringing on the rights and obligations of a state in evaluating, allocating, and adjudicating state waters originating on or under, or flowing from, land owned or managed by the federal government.
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-06-18
text: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Senate Subcommittee on Water and Power. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 114-399.
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Military Corridor Transportation Improvement Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-983
Sponsor: Sen. Tillis, Thomas [R-NC]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works
Subjects: North Carolina
Roads and highways
Transportation programs funding

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 

Military Corridor Transportation Improvement Act of 2015

 
 Amends the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991, as amended, to declare as high priority corridors on the National Highway System as well as segments of the Interstate System: (1) U.S. Route 117/Interstate Route 795 from U.S. Route 70 in Goldsboro, Wayne County, North Carolina, to Interstate Route 40 west of Faison, Sampson County, North Carolina; and (2) U.S. Route 70 from its intersection with Interstate Route 40 in Garner, Wake County, North Carolina, to the Port at Morehead City, Carteret County, North Carolina.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure:CR S2249)
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate
United States Coast Guard Commemorative Coin Act

Bill: 114-s-985
Sponsor: Sen. Murphy, Christopher [D-CT]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Coast guard
Currency
Department of Homeland Security
Military history
Military personnel and dependents
Museums, exhibitions, cultural centers
Transportation employees

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 

United States Coast Guard Commemorative Coin Act

 
 Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint and issue in commemoration of the United States Coast Guard: (1) $5 gold coins, (2) $1 silver coins, and (3) half-dollar clad coins. 
 
Requires the design of such coins to be emblematic of the traditions, history, and heritage of the Coast Guard, and its role in securing our nation since 1790. 
 
Prescribes design requirements. 
 
Restricts the issuance of such coins to the one-year period beginning on January 1, 2018.
 
Prescribes the sale price of the coins and coin surcharges. Requires such surcharges to be paid by the Secretary to the National Coast Guard Museum Association to help finance the design and construction of the National Coast Guard Museum.
 
Directs the Secretary to ensure that minting and issuing coins under this Act will not result in any net cost to the federal government.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Small Business Tax Equity Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-987
Sponsor: Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Alternative treatments
Business investment and capital
Drug trafficking and controlled substances
Income tax credits
Income tax deductions
Retail and wholesale trades

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 

Small Business Tax Equity Act of 2015

 
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt a trade or business that conducts marijuana sales in compliance with state law from the prohibition against allowing business-related tax credits or deductions for expenditures in connection with trafficking in controlled substances. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure:CR S2249; text of measure as introduced: CR S2249)
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Protecting Student Athletes from Concussions Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-988
Sponsor: Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]
Introduced: 2015-04-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Education
Subjects: Child health
Education programs funding
Elementary and secondary education
Government information and archives
Health
Health information and medical records
Health promotion and preventive care
Neurological disorders
School administration
School athletics
Teaching, teachers, curricula

Summary:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: 

Protecting Student Athletes from Concussions Act of 2015

 
 Requires each state that receives funds under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) and that does not meet the requirements for the prevention and treatment of concussions set forth in this Act as of the date of enactment of this Act to enact legislation or issue regulations establishing such requirements by the last day of the fifth full fiscal year after such date.
 
Requires each local educational agency in the state to develop and implement a standard plan for concussion safety and management that: (1) educates students, parents, and school personnel about concussions through specified activities; (2) encourages specified supports for a student recovering from a concussion; and (3) encourages the use of specified best practices designed to ensure the uniformity of safety standards, treatment, and management. 
 
Requires each public elementary and secondary school to post on school grounds and make publicly available on the school website specified information on concussions. 
 
Requires that if an individual designated from among school personnel for purposes of this Act suspects that a student has sustained a concussion: (1) the student shall be immediately removed from participation in a school-sponsored athletic activity and prohibited from returning to such activity until the student submits a written release from a health care professional; and (2) such designated individual shall report to the student's parent or guardian information regarding the date, time, and type of the injury suffered by the student and any actions taken to treat the student. 
 
Directs the Department of Education to: (1) reduce by specified percentages the amount a state receives under ESEA if it fails to comply with this Act within a specified time frame, and (2) provide prior written notification of such intended reduction to the state and to the appropriate congressional committees.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S2249-2250; text of measure as introduced: CR S2250-2251)
action_date: 2015-04-16
text: Introduced in Senate