hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
American Crude Oil Export Equality Act

Bill: 114-s-1372
Sponsor: Sen. Heitkamp, Heidi [D-ND]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Foreign Trade and International Finance
Subjects: Congressional oversight
Consumer affairs
Energy prices
Energy storage, supplies, demand
Government studies and investigations
Licensing and registrations
Marine and inland water transportation
Oil and gas
Presidents and presidential powers, Vice Presidents
Strategic materials and reserves
Trade restrictions
Unemployment
War and emergency powers

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 
 
 American Crude Oil Export Equality Act 

 
Amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to repeal the authority of the President to restrict exports of: 
 
 
 coal, petroleum products, natural gas, or petrochemical feedstocks; and 
 
 materials or equipment which he determines necessary for either exploration, production, refining, or transportation of energy supplies, or for construction or maintenance of energy facilities within the United States.
 
 
Amends the Mineral Leasing Act to repeal limitations on exports of oil. 
 
Amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to repeal limitations on export of Outer Continental Shelf oil or gas on the lands within its purview. 
 
Declares without force or effect: 
 
 
 the limitation placed upon crude oil exports by the Export Administration Act of 1979, and 
 
 a specified regulation relating to crude oil (but retains its full force and effect with respect to crude oil exports from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve [SPR]).
 
 
Requires a license from the Bureau of Industry and Security of the Department of Commerce for export to a country of crude oil only if:
 
 
 the country is subject to sanctions or trade restrictions imposed by the United States,
 
 the President or Congress has designated the country as subject to exclusion for reasons of national security, or
 
the export concerns the withdrawal of crude oil from the SPR. 
 
 
Authorizes the President to ban crude oil exports from the United States during a national emergency for a maximum period of one year (renewable for additional one-year periods) if certain circumstances exist.
 
Directs the Governmental Accountability Office to conduct annual reviews of:
 
 
energy production in the United States; and
 
the effects, if any, of crude oil exports from the United States on consumers, independent refiners, and shipbuilding and ship repair yards.
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S3062-3063)
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
College for All Act

Bill: 114-s-1373
Sponsor: Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Education
Subjects: Education programs funding
Educational guidance
Employment and training programs
Financial services and investments
Government information and archives
Higher education
Income tax credits
Interest, dividends, interest rates
Sales and excise taxes
Securities
Student aid and college costs
Tax administration and collection, taxpayers
Teaching, teachers, curricula

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

College for All Act

 
This bill directs the Department of Education (ED) to award grants to states to eliminate tuition and required fees at public institutions of higher education (IHEs).
 
It also amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to:
 
 
modify provisions related to interest rates on federal student loans to revise rates applicable to new loans disbursed on or after July 1, 2015; 
 
allow student loan borrowers to modify interest rates on outstanding federal student loans to current rates; 
 
reauthorize the Federal Work Study program for FY2016-FY2020;
 
eliminate existing base guarantees of Federal Work Study funds to IHEs and require funds to be allocated based solely on the aggregate need of the institution&rsquo;s students;
 
authorize ED to establish a pilot program to streamline the federal financial assistance application process and reduce the need for students to apply for financial assistance each year; and
 
require ED to use tax information from the second preceding tax year (the &ldquo;prior, prior year&rdquo;) to determine a student&rsquo;s financial aid eligibility.
 
 

Inclusive Prosperity Act of 2015

 
To offset the cost, this bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to impose a transaction tax on certain securities transfers. An individual taxpayer whose modified adjusted gross income does not exceed $50,000 ($75,000 for married taxpayers filing joint returns) is eligible for a tax credit for the amount of tax paid on covered transactions. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
Foreign Medical School Accountability Fairness Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-1374
Sponsor: Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Education
Subjects: Education programs funding
Government lending and loan guarantees
Medical education
Student aid and college costs

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

Foreign Medical School Accountability Fairness Act of 2015

 
This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require all foreign medical schools to meet minimum requirements for percentage of foreign students and for percentage of students passing exams administered by the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates in order for students to be eligible for William D. Ford Federal Direct Loans. (Currently, the Department of Education may establish alternative standards and certain clinical training programs are grandfathered.)
 
Students continue to be eligible for a loan if, on the date of enactment of this Act, they are enrolled in a foreign medical school that loses eligibility as a result of this Act. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S3301-3302; text of measure as introduced: CR S3063-3064)
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
America's Red Rock Wilderness Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-1375
Sponsor: Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Land transfers
Utah
Water use and supply
Wilderness and natural areas, wildlife refuges, wild rivers, habitats

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

America's Red Rock Wilderness Act
 
of 2015

 
Designates specified lands in the following areas of Utah as components of the National Wilderness Preservation System: (1) Great Basin, (2) Grand Staircase-Escalante, (3) Moab-La Sal Canyons, (4) Henry Mountains, (5) Glen Canyon, (6) San Juan-Anasazi, (7) Canyonlands Basin, (8) San Rafael Swell, and (9) Book Cliffs and Uinta Basin. 
 
Sets forth administrative requirements for: (1) the exchange of state-owned lands within such areas, (2) federal reservation of water rights, (3) measurement of setbacks for roads with wilderness, (4) authorized livestock grazing, and (5) withdrawal of such lands from disposition under certain public land laws.

Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. (text of measure as introduced: CR S3064-3067)
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
Civilian Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-1377
Sponsor: Sen. Leahy, Patrick J. [D-VT]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Border security and unlawful immigration
Congressional oversight
Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation
Department of Justice
Detention of persons
Diplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroad
Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management
Jurisdiction and venue
Law enforcement officers
Public contracts and procurement

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

Civilian Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act of 2015 or the CEJA

 
 Amends the federal criminal code to grant jurisdiction over and impose penalties on federal contractors and employees who commit certain crimes outside of the United States while employed by or accompanying any agency of the United States other than the Department of Defense or while so employed and stationed or deployed in a country outside of the United States pursuant to a treaty or executive agreement in furtherance of a border security initiative with that country. Sets forth the crimes under federal law that are covered by this Act. 
 
Provides for an optional venue for offenses under this Act involving federal employees and contractors overseas in the district in which is headquartered the U.S. agency that: (1) employs the offender, or any one or two or more joint offenders; or (2) the offender is accompanying, or that any one or two or more joint offenders is accompanying.
 
Requires the statute of limitations for an offense under this Act to be suspended for the period during which the alleged offender is outside the United States or is a fugitive from justice.
 
Directs the Attorney General to: (1) assign personnel and resources through task forces to investigate allegations of criminal offenses by federal contractors and employees overseas, and (2) report to Congress annually on the number of prosecutions and actions taken. Grants the Attorney General principal authority for the enforcement of this Act.
 
Makes this Act inapplicable to the authorized intelligence activities of the U.S. government.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S3067-3068; text of measure as introduced: CR S3068-3070)
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
African Free Trade Initiative Act

Bill: 114-s-1379
Sponsor: Sen. Inhofe, James M. [R-OK]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Foreign Trade and International Finance
Subjects: Africa
Congressional oversight
Foreign aid and international relief
Free trade and trade barriers
Trade agreements and negotiations

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

African Free Trade Initiative Act

 
This bill amends the African Growth and Opportunity Act to revise certain plan and reporting requirements relating to the President's negotiating and entering into free trade agreements with interested beneficiary sub-Saharan African countries.
 
The President shall develop a plan for negotiating and entering into one or more free trade agreements with 15 of the sub-Saharan African countries that are most ready for a free trade agreement with the United States.
 
The United States Trade Representative and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) shall coordinate with the Millennium Challenge Corporation regarding countries with shared development objectives that have entered into a Millennium Challenge Compact in order to develop and carry out such plans.
 
USAID long-term development assistance funds for sub-Saharan Africa may be used to:
 
 
carry out plans, including deployment of resources in individual eligible sub-Saharan African countries to assist them in the development of institutional capacities to carry out those plans; and 
 
coordinate U.S. efforts to establish free trade agreements in order to increase trade between the United States and sub-Saharan African countries, as well as investment in those countries.
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
Trade Transparency Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-1381
Sponsor: Sen. Warren, Elizabeth [D-MA]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Foreign Trade and International Finance
Subjects: Congressional oversight
Government information and archives
Legislative rules and procedure
Presidents and presidential powers, Vice Presidents
Trade agreements and negotiations

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

Trade Transparency Act of 2015

 
This bill declares that expedited congressional procedures for consideration (fast track for approval) of implementing bills for trade agreements shall not apply to such bills unless the President makes available to the public the scrubbed bracketed text of the trade agreement at least 60 days before enactment of an Act giving the President trade promotion authority.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
Every Child Deserves a Family Act

Bill: 114-s-1382
Sponsor: Sen. Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [D-NY]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Families
Subjects: Adoption and foster care
Congressional oversight
Marriage and family status
Sex, gender, sexual orientation discrimination
Social work, volunteer service, charitable organizations
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

Every Child Deserves a Family Act

 
Prohibits adoption or foster care placement service entities that receive federal assistance (or that contract with entities receiving such assistance) from using the sexual orientation, gender identity, or marital status of a prospective adoptive or foster parent, or from using the sexual orientation or gender identity of the child, to: (1) deny a person the opportunity to become an adoptive or foster parent; (2) delay or deny the placement of a child for adoption or into foster care; or (3) require different or additional screenings or procedures for adoptive or foster placement decisions, including whether to seek the termination of birth parent rights or to make a child legally available for adoptive placement.
 
Allows individuals aggrieved by a violation of this Act to bring an action seeking relief in federal court. 
 
Directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to publish guidance on legal compliance and to assist entities with casework practices, recruitment efforts, and cultural competency training.
 
Allows HHS to withhold payments under part B (Child and Family Services) or part E (Foster Care and Adoption Assistance) of title IV of the Social Security Act to states that fail to comply with this Act.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Accountability Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-1383
Sponsor: Sen. Perdue, David [R-GA]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Appropriations
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Executive agency funding and structure
Federal Reserve System

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Accountability Act of 2015
 
 
This bill amends the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 to change the source of funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) from Federal Reserve System transfers to annual appropriations. Under current law, the transfers from the Federal Reserve System permit the CFPB to be funded outside of the annual congressional appropriations process. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
Andrew's Law

Bill: 114-s-1384
Sponsor: Sen. Schumer, Charles E. [D-NY]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Consumer credit
Student aid and college costs

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

Andrew Prior Act or Andrew's Law

 
This bill amends the Truth in Lending Act to discharge the repayment obligations of the estate of a borrower and any cosigner of a private educational loan if the borrower dies.
 
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) must develop necessary and appropriate safeguards to prevent fraud and abuse in the discharge of those obligations. 
 
The CFPB may promulgate regulations to reinstate those obligations in any case in which it determines that doing so is necessary to protect the public interest.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
Firearm Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-1385
Sponsor: Sen. Blunt, Roy [R-MO]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Criminal justice information and records
Firearms and explosives
Racial and ethnic relations

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

Firearm Act of 2015

 
 Prohibits the federal government from requiring disclosure of the race or ethnicity of a person to whom a firearm is transferred.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
Icebreaker Recapitalization Act

Bill: 114-s-1386
Sponsor: Sen. Cantwell, Maria [D-WA]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Arctic and polar regions
Coast guard
Marine and inland water transportation
Military procurement, research, weapons development

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

Icebreaker Recapitalization Act

 
This bill directs the Department of the Navy to enter into multiyear contracts for the procurement of up to six heavy duty polar icebreakers and any associated systems and equipment.
 
The Department may enter into one or more contracts, beginning in FY 2016, for advance procurement associated with such vessels, systems, and equipment. 
 
The Department and the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall enter into a memorandum of agreement under which the Coast Guard shall: 
 
 
identify the vessel specifications, capabilities, systems, equipment, and other details required for the design of heavy polar icebreakers, with the Coast Guard retaining final decision authority; 
 
oversee the construction of authorized heavy polar icebreakers; and 
 
to the extent not adequately addressed in the 1965 Revised Memorandum of Agreement between the Department of the Navy and the Department of the Treasury on the Operation of Icebreakers, transfer heavy polar icebreakers from the Navy to the Coast Guard to be maintained and operated by the Coast Guard.



Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
Supplemental Security Income Restoration Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-1387
Sponsor: Sen. Brown, Sherrod [D-OH]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: Social Welfare
Subjects: Government information and archives
Inflation and prices
Medicaid
Poverty and welfare assistance

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

Supplemental Security Income Restoration Act of 2015 

 
 Amends title XVI (Supplemental Security Income) (SSI) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to increase from $240 to $1,344 (increased for inflation each calendar year after 2016) the first amount of general income per year excluded in determining SSI program eligibility.
 
Increases from $780 to $4,368 (similarly increased) the first amount of earned income similarly excluded (including for a blind or disabled individual or spouse under age 65).
 
Sets at: (1) $15,000 in calendar year 2016 (increased for inflation) the resource limit for couples, and (2) $10,000 in calendar year 2016 (similarly increased) the resource limit for individuals without a spouse.
 
Prescribes an inflation adjustment in benefits in any calendar year after 2016.
 
Removes support and maintenance furnished in kind from determination of unearned income.
 
Repeals the administrative penalty which renders individuals (and spouses) ineligible for SSI for a certain period of time if after the look-back date (usually 36 months preceding their application for SSI) they dispose of their resources for less than market value.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
Cuba Normalization Accountability Act of 2015

Bill: 114-s-1388
Sponsor: Sen. Vitter, David [R-LA]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Caribbean area
Congressional oversight
Cuba
Foreign property
Government liability
Human rights
Latin America
Sanctions
Trade restrictions
Travel and tourism

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

Cuba Normalization Accountability Act of 2015

 
This bill expresses the sense of Congress that the United States should not pursue efforts to ease restrictions on travel to or trade with Cuba, or otherwise normalize relations with Cuba further, until: (1) the President submits to Congress the plan for resolving confiscated property claims, (2) all property taken by the Cuban government from U.S. nationals on or after January 1, 1959, has been returned or full compensation for that property has been provided to them, and (3) the government of Cuba provides secure protection for the internationally recognized human rights of the people of Cuba.
 
The President may not take any action to ease restrictions on travel to or trade with Cuba under the Cuban Assets Control Regulations, the Export Administration Regulations, or any other regulations relating to the economic embargo of Cuba before submitting to Congress the plan for resolving outstanding claims for confiscated property to ensure that: 
 
 
all property taken by the government of Cuba from U.S. nationals on or after January 1, 1959, has been returned to them; or 
 
full compensation for such property has been provided to them. 
 
 
 The President shall include in the plan an assessment of the effect of planned actions to ease the restrictions on claims relating to confiscated property considered by the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission of the United States before the date of the enactment of this Act.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate
Cuba DATA Act

Bill: 114-s-1389
Sponsor: Sen. Udall, Tom [D-NM]
Introduced: 2015-05-19 in the Senate
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Caribbean area
Congressional oversight
Cuba
Economic development
Human rights
Internet and video services
Internet, web applications, social media
Latin America
Sanctions
Telephone and wireless communication
Trade restrictions
Travel and tourism

Summary:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: 

Cuba Digital and Telecommunications Advancement Act of 2015 or the Cuba DATA Act

 
This bill authorizes the President to permit any person subject to U.S. jurisdiction to: 
 
 
export consumer communication devices and other telecommunications equipment to Cuba; 
 
provide telecommunications services involving Cuba or persons in Cuba; 
 
establish facilities to provide telecommunications services connecting Cuba with another country, or to provide telecommunications services in Cuba; 
 
conduct any transaction incident to carrying out such activities; and 
 
enter into, perform, and make and receive payments under a contract with any individual or entity in Cuba regarding the provision of telecommunications services involving Cuba or persons in Cuba.
 
 
Repeals or amends specified requirements and prohibitions of: (1) the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992, and (2) the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
action_date: 2015-05-19
text: Introduced in Senate