hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
A bill to establish a procedure for the conveyance of certain Federal property around the Dickinson Reservoir in the State of North Dakota.

Bill: 114-s-3437
Sponsor: Sen. Hoeven, John [R-ND]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: Dams and canals
Land transfers
North Dakota
Water storage

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 
This bill directs the Commissioner of Reclamation to: (1) provide to the holder of a permit for a cabin site located on federal property around the Dickinson Reservoir in North Dakota the first option to purchase the site for fair market value; and (2) convey to a permittee who exercises such option all U.S. interest in the site, easements for access to the site, a dock for the site, and the improvements on it.
 
Beginning two years after enactment of this bill: (1) if a permittee has not exercised such option, the Commissioner shall transfer the site to Dickinson Parks & Recreation in Dickinson, North Dakota (the Department), without cost; and (2) the Commissioner shall transfer to the Department, without cost, land currently managed by the Department on which no cabin is located.
 
Each such conveyance and transfer shall be made subject to specified mineral rights and rights-of-way of third parties.
 
A permittee may not build any new permanent structure below an elevation of 2,430 feet. If a permittee builds such a structure, the permittee's site shall revert to the Department.
 
 Revenues from a sale of federal land pursuant to this bill shall be made available to the Commissioner for: (1) the costs of carrying out this bill, and (2) deferred maintenance activities relating to the operation of the dam in the Dickinson Reservoir.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a major medical facility project in Reno, Nevada.

Bill: 114-s-3438
Sponsor: Sen. Heller, Dean [R-NV]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 
This bill authorizes the Department of Veterans Affairs to carry out a major medical facility project that consists of seismic, life safety, and utilities upgrades and expansion of clinical services in Reno, Nevada.

action_date: 2016-11-29
text: 
This bill authorizes the Department of Veterans Affairs to carry out major medical facility projects that consist of:
 
 
 seismic, life safety, and utilities upgrades and expansion of clinical services in Reno, Nevada; and
 
seismic corrections to the mental health and community living center in Long Beach, California.
 
 
The bill authorizes appropriations for such projects, subject to specified fund limitations.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-11-30
text: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
action_date: 2016-11-30
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
action_date: 2016-11-30
text: Received in the House.
action_date: 2016-11-30
text: Message on Senate action sent to the House.
action_date: 2016-11-29
text: Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent.
action_date: 2016-11-29
text: Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent.
action_date: 2016-11-29
text: Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent. (consideration: CR S6576)
action_date: 2016-11-29
text: Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs discharged by Unanimous Consent.
action_date: 2016-11-29
text: Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs discharged by Unanimous Consent.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
Paperwork Reduction for Farmers Act

Bill: 114-s-3439
Sponsor: Sen. Paul, Rand [R-KY]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Immigration

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 

Paperwork Reduction for Farmers Act

 
This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to permit multiple employers to submit a joint petition to import nonimmigrant H-2A visa temporary agricultural workers. Upon approval of such petition, each joint employer shall be subject to the Act's H-2A provisions with respect to each alien listed in the petition. 
 
The period of authorized H-2A admission may not exceed the shorter of three years or the contract period.
 
An employer seeking to rehire H-2A workers who previously worked for the employer as H-2A workers at any time during the most recent 12-month period may submit a simplified petition, to be developed by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS), which shall include a certification that the employer maintains compliance with all applicable employment requirements. Such petitions shall be approved upon completion of applicable security screenings. 
 
An employer may apply for workers with staggered start and end dates in the same application. 
 
An employer that has received a request for evidence from the CIS may request that such evidence request be delivered in an online format. The CIS, within three days of the employer's submission of evidence, shall: (1) provide an online response indicating whether the evidence is sufficient; and (2) if the evidence is insufficient, shall provide evidence thereof and an opportunity for the employer to address the deficiencies.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
Electronic Signature Standards Act of 2016

Bill: 114-s-3440
Sponsor: Sen. Portman, Rob [R-OH]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Department of the Treasury
Government information and archives
Tax administration and collection, taxpayers

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 

Electronic Signature Standards Act of 2016 

 
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to require the Internal Revenue Service to publish guidance to establish uniform standards and procedures for the acceptance of signatures in digital or other electronic form for the purposes of: (1) disclosures of tax returns and return information to a designee of the taxpayer, and (2) any power of attorney executed by the taxpayer. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
Trafficking Survivors Relief Act of 2016

Bill: 114-s-3441
Sponsor: Sen. Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [D-NY]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Crime victims
Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation
Criminal justice information and records
Criminal procedure and sentencing
Evidence and witnesses
Human trafficking
Sex offenses

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 

Trafficking Survivors Relief Act of 2016

 
This bill amends the federal criminal code to establish a process to vacate convictions and expunge arrests for criminal offenses committed by trafficking victims that directly result from or relate to having been a trafficking victim.
 
A trafficking victim may file a motion to: (1) vacate a conviction for a nonviolent offense that does not include a child victim (i.e., under age 18); (2) expunge records of an arrest for a nonviolent offense that does not include a child victim; or (3) expunge records of an arrest for an offense that is violent or that includes a child victim, if the charges are reduced, dismissed, or disposed of. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
Terrorism Victims Protection Act

Bill: 114-s-3442
Sponsor: Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Bank accounts, deposits, capital
Civil actions and liability
Crime victims
Foreign property
Government liability
Iran
Middle East
Securities
Terrorism

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 

Terrorism Victims Protection Act 

 
This bill amends the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act of 2002 to allow a person's judgment against a terrorist party or a state sponsor of terrorism to be satisfied with: (1) assets blocked by the U.S. government that pass through the U.S. financial system as a transfer of funds between non-state owned, non-U.S. financial institutions located outside the United States or as a mid-stream electronic fund transfer in possession of an intermediary bank; (2) assets located outside the United States that, if located in the United States, would be subject to seizure or freezing under the Trading with the Enemy Act or the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, if a U.S. court has jurisdiction over the person in possession; or (3) attempted transfers for the benefit of a terrorist party to accounts located outside the United States. 
 
 The bill protects the interests of non-terrorist third parties in the blocked assets, but these third-party protections do not apply to custodial interests of a foreign securities intermediary holding blocked assets outside the United States for the government of Iran. 
 
The bill nullifies attempted transfers outside the United States of assets of a state sponsor of terrorism liable for personal injury or death, unless the person who held the asset establishes that the transfer was not a willful violation of a court order or an enforcement process. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to prohibit the United States Government from making cash payments to state sponsors of terrorism, and for other purposes.

Bill: 114-s-3443
Sponsor: Sen. Perdue, David [R-GA]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 
This bill prohibits the U.S. government from providing monetary instruments or precious metals to a government of a state sponsor of terrorism or an agent acting on behalf of such government. 
 
The bill applies such prohibition to the government of North Korea or an agent acting on its behalf until the President certifies that North Korea has met the criteria for ending sanctions against it under the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
Education Support Professional Family Medical Leave Act

Bill: 114-s-3444
Sponsor: Sen. Kirk, Mark Steven [R-IL]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Labor and Employment

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 

Education Support Professional Family Medical Leave Act

 
This bill amends the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 to provide that employees who are education support professionals will be considered as meeting the hours of service requirement to become eligible for family or medical leave under the Act, if they have worked, during the previous 12-month period, at least an average of:
 
 
60 hours a month for the employer from whom the leave is requested, or
 
60% of the total monthly hours expected for the employee's job description and duties with regard to that employer. 
 
 
The bill defines an &quot;education support professional&quot; as an employee of a public elementary or secondary school or public institution of higher education that may include: (1) a paraeducator who provides instructional or noninstructional support; and (2) a member of the secretarial, clerical, or administrative support staff (e.g., bus drivers, janitors, kitchen workers, and security guards). 
 
The Department of Labor may provide a method for calculating leave under the Act for education support professionals.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Improvement Act of 2016

Bill: 114-s-3445
Sponsor: Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Civil actions and liability
Disability and paralysis
Employment discrimination and employee rights
Evidence and witnesses
Government liability
Government studies and investigations
Jurisdiction and venue
Military personnel and dependents
Veterans' education, employment, rehabilitation

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 

Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Improvement Act of 2016

 
This bill revises the enforcement of employment and reemployment rights of members of the Armed Forces with respect to state and private employers.
 
The Department of Justice (DOJ) may initiate an action for relief: (1) with respect to a private or a state employer, and (2) when a state or private employer is engaged in a pattern or practice to infringe upon such rights.
 
A person may bring an action against a state (as an employer), state instrumentality, or state officer or employee acting in his or her official capacity in U.S. district court or state court. The state, instrumentality, officer, or employee shall not be immune from such action under the Eleventh Amendment of the Constitution or under any doctrine of sovereign immunity. No such state, instrumentality, officer, or employee that receives or uses federal financial assistance for a program or activity shall be immune under the Eleventh Amendment or under any other doctrine of sovereign immunity from suit in federal or state court for any violation of such rights related to such program or activity. (Currently, a person may bring such an action against a state only in a state court.) 
 
The venue for an action against a private employer is expanded to include: (1) any district in which a substantial part of the events or omissions giving rise to the claim occurred; or (2) any district in which the employer is subject to the court's personal jurisdiction with respect to such action if there is no district in which an action may otherwise be brought.
 
DOJ may issue civil investigative demands.
 
Service-related disability coverage is extended to include a disability that is brought to the employer's attention within five years after the person resumes employment.
 
The bill provides that the employer has the burden of identifying the appropriate reemployment positions.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
ADA Education and Reform Act of 2016

Bill: 114-s-3446
Sponsor: Sen. Flake, Jeff [R-AZ]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
Subjects: Alternative dispute resolution, mediation, arbitration
Building construction
Civil actions and liability
Disability and health-based discrimination
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 

ADA Education and Reform Act of 2016

 
This bill requires the Disability Rights Section of the Department of Justice to develop a program to educate state and local governments and property owners on strategies for promoting access to public accommodations for persons with a disability. The program may include training for professionals to provide guidance about remediation for potential violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA).
 
The bill prohibits civil actions based on the failure to remove an architectural barrier to access into an existing public accommodation unless: (1) the aggrieved person has provided to the owners or operators a written notice specific enough to identify the barrier, and (2) the owners or operators fail to provide the person with a written description outlining improvements that will be made to improve the barrier or they fail to remove the barrier or make substantial progress after providing such a description. The aggrieved person's notice must specify: (1) the address of the property, (2) the specific ADA sections alleged to have been violated, (3) whether a request for assistance in removing an architectural barrier was made, and (4) whether the barrier was permanent or temporary. 
 
The Judicial Conference of the United States must develop a model program to promote alternative dispute resolution mechanisms to resolve such claims. The model program should include an expedited method for determining relevant facts related to such barriers and steps to resolve accessibility issues before litigation.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
Vietnam Helicopter Crew Memorial Act

Bill: 114-s-3447
Sponsor: Sen. Sullivan, Dan [R-AK]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Asia
Aviation and airports
Cemeteries and funerals
Conflicts and wars
Monuments and memorials
Veterans' organizations and recognition
Vietnam
Virginia

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 

Vietnam Helicopter Crew Memorial Act

 
This bill directs the Department of the Army to place in Arlington National Cemetery a memorial honoring helicopter pilots and crew members who served on active duty in the Armed Forces during the Vietnam era, subject to an agreement with the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association under which the association shall pay all costs to construct, install, and maintain the memorial.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
TAAR Act

Bill: 114-s-3449
Sponsor: Sen. Kirk, Mark Steven [R-IL]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Art, artists, authorship
Cemeteries and funerals
Crimes against property
Customs enforcement
Foreign property
Fraud offenses and financial crimes
Government information and archives
Historical and cultural resources
Iraq
Middle East
Monuments and memorials
Syria
Veterans' organizations and recognition

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 

Terrorism Art and Antiquity Revenue Prevention Act of 2016 or the TAAR Act

 
This bill amends the federal criminal code to prohibit the transportation, sale, or receipt of certain cultural property that has been removed or excavated in violation of local law. 
 
Department of Homeland Security must establish an inventory database system for cultural property of Iraq or Syria that legally enters the United States.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to include electric charging of certain vehicles as a qualified transportation fringe benefit excluded from gross income.

Bill: 114-s-3450
Sponsor: Sen. Brown, Sherrod [D-OH]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat the charging of an electric vehicle provided on or near the business premises of the employer as a qualified transportation fringe benefit that is excluded from an employee's gross income. The bill limits the benefit to $175 per month (adjusted for inflation) and specifies requirements for the electric vehicles. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
Young Child Tax Credit Act

Bill: 114-s-3451
Sponsor: Sen. Brown, Sherrod [D-OH]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Income tax credits
Tax treatment of families

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 

Young Child Tax Credit Act

 
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow individual taxpayers a new refundable tax credit based on the number of their qualifying children under the age of three and the taxpayer's adjusted gross income. Advance payments of credit amounts shall be made to taxpayers each month. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate
Post Office Discontinuance Accountability Act of 2016

Bill: 114-s-3452
Sponsor: Sen. McCaskill, Claire [D-MO]
Introduced: 2016-09-28 in the Senate
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Disaster relief and insurance
Government buildings, facilities, and property
Government information and archives
Natural disasters
Postal service
U.S. Postal Service

Summary:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: 

Post Office Discontinuance Accountability Act of 2016

 
This bill establishes procedures under which the United States Postal Service (USPS) may carry out emergency suspensions of post offices because of a natural disaster, damage to or destruction of a post office, or a lack of qualified personnel to operate it or adequate measures to safeguard it. 
 
A District Manager implementing an emergency suspension must: (1) provide immediate notice to the Headquarters Review Coordinator or the Field Performance office, local officials of the USPS, and customers; (2) establish alternate service as quickly as possible; (3) temporarily reassign each employee of the post office; and (4) form a suspension review team, which shall review the suspension and recommend that the suspension continue or that the post office reopen. 
 
If the team recommends that the suspension continue, the District Manager shall either initiate discontinuance procedures for the post office or publish a plan to restore service within 180 days. If restoration is delayed, the District Manager must publish notice and either host a public forum in the affected community or initiate discontinuance procedures.
 
The District Manager shall immediately notify the affected community when a post office is reopened or service is restored.
 
 The bill authorizes the USPS to establish an alternative process to suspend postal services to a community based on the expiration of a lease or rental agreement for a post office. The District Manager shall take specified steps to: (1) negotiate an extension of an expiring agreement, the sale of the post office to the USPS, or a new agreement for postal service; (2) provide for the disruption of service if the negotiations fail and for the restoration of service; or (3) initiate discontinuance procedures. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
action_date: 2016-09-28
text: Introduced in Senate