hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
Veterans Education Relief and Reinstatement Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1489
Sponsor: Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
Subjects: Educational facilities and institutions
Higher education
Student aid and college costs
Veterans' education, employment, rehabilitation

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Education Relief and Reinstatement Act of 2017

 
This bill declares that, if a veteran is forced to discontinue a course as a result of a a permanent school closure and did not receive credit, could not transfer credit, or lost training time toward completion of the education program, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) educational assistance payments shall not, for a specified period of time, be: 
 
 
 charged against the individual's entitlement to educational assistance, or 
 
 counted against the aggregate period for which such assistance may be provided.
 
 
The bill applies to courses and programs of education discontinued in FY2015 or a following fiscal year.
 
The VA may continue to pay educational assistance and subsistence allowances to eligible veterans and eligible persons enrolled in specified courses for up to 4 weeks in any 12-month period when schools are temporarily closed under an established policy based on an executive order of the President or due to an emergency situation.
 
The VA may also continue to pay a monthly housing stipend following a permanent school closure, but only until the earlier of: (1) the date of the end of the term, quarter, or semester during which the school closure occurred; and (2) the date that is four months after the school closure.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
ANCSA Nagamut Group Land Conveyance Settlement Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1490
Sponsor: Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Native Americans
Subjects: Alaska
Alaska Natives and Hawaiians
Indian claims
Indian lands and resources rights
Land transfers

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

ANCSA Nagamut Group Land Conveyance Settlement Act of 2017

 
This bill amends the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to require the Department of Interior to pay Nagamut Limited, an Alaska Native group, the fair market value of the unconveyed surface estate of 6,080 acres of land Nagamut selected on September 18, 1975, and Calista Corporation, an Alaska Native regional corporation, the fair market value of the subsurface estate under Nagamut's selection. 
 
The bill provides funds to compensate Nagamut and Calista.
 
The compensation paid to Nagamut and Calista satisfies Nagamut's statutory land entitlement and Calista's rights to the subsurface estate under the Act.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
ANCSA Unrecognized Community Landless Natives Authorization Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1491
Sponsor: Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Native Americans
Subjects: Alaska
Alaska Natives and Hawaiians
Indian claims
Indian lands and resources rights
Land transfers

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

ANCSA Unrecognized Community Landless Natives Authorization Act of 2017

 
This bill amends the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to permit the Alaska Native residents of each of the Alaska Native villages of Haines, Ketchikan, Petersburg, Tenakee, and Wrangell, Alaska, to organize as Alaska Native urban corporations and to receive certain settlement land. 
 
These urban corporations may establish a settlement trust to promote the health, education, and welfare of the trust beneficiaries, and preserve the Alaska Native heritage and culture of their communities. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
ANCSA Thirteenth Regional Corporation Reincorporation Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1492
Sponsor: Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Native Americans
Subjects: Alaska
Alaska Natives and Hawaiians
Indian claims
Indian lands and resources rights

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

ANCSA Thirteenth Regional Corporation Reincorporation Act of 2017
 
 
This bill requires the Department of Interior to convene a meeting of the shareholders of the thirteenth Alaska Native regional corporation, which is for Alaska Natives who are not residents of Alaska, for the purpose of electing a board of directors.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
ANCSA Chugach Alaska Land Exchange Study Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1493
Sponsor: Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Native Americans
Subjects: Alaska
Alaska Natives and Hawaiians
Congressional oversight
Government studies and investigations
Indian claims
Indian lands and resources rights
Land transfers
Land use and conservation
Marine pollution
Oil and gas
Pollution liability
Wildlife conservation and habitat protection

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

ANCSA Chugach Alaska Land Exchange Study Act of 2017

 
This bill requires the Department of Agriculture, in coordination with the Department of the Interior, to conduct a study that identifies the impacts on the land of the Chugach Alaska Corporation (CAC), an Alaska Native regional corporation, that resulted from changes in federal law or federal or state land acquisitions in the Chugach region after the enactment of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. The study must include the impacts on land in which the subsurface estate was conveyed to the CAC and the surface estate or a conservation easement in the surface estate was acquired by Alaska or by the United States as part of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council Habitat Protection and Acquisition Program.
 
In addition, the study must: (1) include recommendations for a land exchange, including land exchange options that could be offered to the CAC as consideration for the conveyance of its existing property rights in exchange for other federal land or property available for exchange; and (2) identify at least 500,000 acres of economically viable federal land, in or outside of Alaska, that can be exchanged with the CAC. 
The land exchange described in the recommendations must be pursuant to mutual agreement of the CAC and the United States.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
ANCSA Dividend Exclusion Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1494
Sponsor: Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Native Americans
Subjects: Alaska
Alaska Natives and Hawaiians
Food assistance and relief
Indian claims
Interest, dividends, interest rates
Poverty and welfare assistance
Securities

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

ANCSA Dividend Exclusion Act of 2017 

 
This bill amends the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to modify the income limitations used for determining Alaska Natives' eligibility for need-based federal programs. Specifically, the bill increases the amount that Alaska Natives may receive in cash (including cash dividends) from regional, village, and urban corporations that is exempt from income limitations for purposes of determining eligibility for receiving assistance under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program), the Social Security Act, federal programs, or federally-assisted programs.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
ANCSA Fractional Shares Consolidation Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1495
Sponsor: Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Native Americans
Subjects: Alaska
Alaska Natives and Hawaiians
Corporate finance and management
Indian claims
Securities

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

ANCSA Fractional Shares Consolidation Act of 2017

 
This bill amends the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to allow Alaska Native regional corporations to issue a full share of any class of stock, for no consideration, in exchange for a fractional share of the same class of stock, held by any shareholder, as long as the corporation exchanges all fractional shares of a class of stock for full shares at the same time.
 
After converting fractional shares of stock to full shares, a corporation may adopt a policy that provides for the elimination of fractional shares.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
ANCSA Corporation Reinstatement Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1496
Sponsor: Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Native Americans
Subjects: Alaska
Alaska Natives and Hawaiians
Corporate finance and management
Indian claims
Securities

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

ANCSA Corporation Reinstatement Act of 2017

 
This bill amends the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to allow Alaska Native village corporations to reincorporate after they are involuntarily dissolved if the successor corporation has received all or substantially all of the assets of the original village corporation, the shareholders of the successor are comprised of all shareholders of record or heirs of the shareholders at the time of the dissolution, and the successor corporation is organized under the laws of Alaska. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
Fairness For Breastfeeding Mothers Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1497
Sponsor: Sen. Daines, Steve [R-MT]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Child health
Government buildings, facilities, and property
Museums, exhibitions, cultural centers
Nutrition and diet
Right of privacy
Smithsonian Institution
U.S. Capitol
Women's health

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

Fairness For Breastfeeding Mothers Act of 2017

 

This bill requires that certain public buildings that are open to the public and contain a public restroom provide a lactation room, other than a bathroom, that is hygienic and is available for use by members of the public to express milk. The lactation room must be shielded from view, be free from intrusion, and contain a chair, a working surface, and (if the building is supplied with electricity) an electrical outlet. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S3861; text of measure as introduced: CR S3861-3862)
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
Smithsonian American Women's History Museum Act

Bill: 115-s-1498
Sponsor: Sen. Collins, Susan M. [R-ME]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Arts, Culture, Religion
Subjects: District of Columbia
Executive agency funding and structure
Museums, exhibitions, cultural centers
Smithsonian Institution
U.S. history
Women's employment
Women's rights

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

Smithsonian American Women's History Museum Act

 
This bill establishes a comprehensive American women's history museum within the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, to provide for: (1) the collection, study, and establishment of programs related to women's contributions that have influenced the direction of the United States; (2) collaboration with other Smithsonian museums and facilities, outside museums, and educational institutions; and (3) the creation of exhibitions and programs that recognize diverse perspectives on women's history and contributions.
 
The bill establishes a council within the Smithsonian Institution to: (1) make recommendations to the Smithsonian's Board of Regents for the construction of the museum; (2) advise and assist the board on the administration and preservation of the museum; (3) recommend annual operating budgets for the museum; and (4) report annually to the board on the acquisition, disposition, and display of objects related to women's art, history, and culture. 
 
The council shall have sole authority to: (1) acquire artifacts for the museum's collections, (2) dispose of any part of the collections but only if funds generated are used for additions to the collections, (3) specify criteria for the use of the museum's collections and resources, and (4) preserve and maintain the collections. 
 
The museum's director may carry out educational and liaison programs in support of its goals.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S3862)
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Examination and Reporting Threshold Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1499
Sponsor: Sen. Toomey, Patrick [R-PA]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Banking and financial institutions regulation
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Government information and archives

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Examination and Reporting Threshold Act of 
 
2017

 
This bill amends the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 to raise the examination threshold that brings an insured depository institution or insured credit union within its supervisory purview from assets of $10 billion or more to assets of $50 billion or more.
 
The bill increases from assets of $10 billion or less to assets of $50 billion or less the size of an insured depository institution or insured credit union that is subject to the Act's reporting requirements.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
Keeping Capital Local for Underserved Communities Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1500
Sponsor: Sen. Warner, Mark R. [D-VA]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Bank accounts, deposits, capital
Banking and financial institutions regulation
Interest, dividends, interest rates

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

Keeping Capital Local for Underserved Communities Act of 2017

 
This bill specifies that certain reciprocal deposits shall not be considered to be brokered deposits. (Brokered deposits are subject to additional regulatory requirements, including those related to liquidity.)


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
SHOP CLASS Act

Bill: 115-s-1501
Sponsor: Sen. Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [D-NY]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Education
Subjects: Education programs funding
Manufacturing
Product development and innovation
Teaching, teachers, curricula
Vocational and technical education

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

21st Century Strengthening Hands On Programs that Cultivate Learning Approaches for Successful Students Act or the SHOP CLASS Act

 
This bill amends the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 to require state leadership activities funded under such Act to include: (1) professional development programs to ensure that public school teachers of career and technical education develop a higher level of academic and industry knowledge and skills in maker education (a hands-on-learning approach that encourages students to imagine, create, innovate, tinker, and collaborate through the process of manufacturing, testing, and demonstrating their ideas); and (2) support for maker education and makerspaces (a community space that provides access to tools, technology, and knowledge for learners and entrepreneurs, that result in the prototyping or creation of physical goods, and that supports the development of educational opportunities for personal growth, workforce training, and early stage business ventures).
 
The bill requires local educational agencies' use of funds under such Act to include support for career and technical education programs designed to train teachers in the effective use and application of maker education and makerspaces.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
Cruise Passenger Protection Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1502
Sponsor: Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works
Subjects: Accidents
Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Advisory bodies
Assault and harassment offenses
Business records
Cardiovascular and respiratory health
Civil actions and liability
Coast guard
Congressional oversight
Consumer affairs
Contracts and agency
Crime prevention
Crime victims
Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation
Department of Homeland Security
Department of Transportation
Emergency medical services and trauma care
Evidence and witnesses
Federal preemption
Government information and archives
Government studies and investigations
Health personnel
Health technology, devices, supplies
Law enforcement officers
Marine and inland water transportation
Marketing and advertising
Photography and imaging
Sex offenses
Sexually transmitted diseases
Telephone and wireless communication
Transportation costs
Transportation employees
Transportation safety and security
Travel and tourism

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

Cruise Passenger Protection Act of 2017

 
 This bill amends federal shipping law to direct the Department of Transportation (DOT) to develop standards for cruise ship owners to provide passengers with a conspicuous and unambiguous summary of key terms of passage contracts before they are binding. Vessel owners must provide each passenger with a summary meeting those standards and include the summary in promotional literature. The bill prescribes civil and criminal penalties for violations.
 
DOT must: (1) establish a hotline for passenger complaints, (2) determine whether any of the enumerated rights in the international cruise line passenger bill of rights are enforceable under federal law, and (3) establish an advisory committee for passenger vessel consumer protection.
 
Vessel owners must ensure that a vessel is staffed with sea marshals and medical staff.
 
DOT must: 
 
 
 designate a director of victim support services,
 
 establish a 24-hour telephone number for crime victims,
 
 develop a written summary of rights for crime victims,
 
maintain a statistical compilation of reported incidents, and
 
study the feasibility of having an individual on board each vessel to provide victim support and related services. 
 
 
The Department of Homeland Security must withhold or revoke the clearance of, and the Coast Guard may deny entry into the United States to, any vessel owner who commits an act or omission for which a penalty is imposed under this bill or fails to pay the penalty.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Commemorative Coin Act

Bill: 115-s-1503
Sponsor: Sen. Warren, Elizabeth [D-MA]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Athletes
Commemorative events and holidays
Currency
Museums, exhibitions, cultural centers
Professional sports

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Commemorative Coin Act

 
This bill directs the Department of the Treasury to mint and issue not more than 50,000 $5 coins, 400,000 $1 coins, and 750,000 half-dollar coins emblematic of the game of basketball. 
 
The bill requires all sales of such coins to include specified surcharges, which shall be paid by Treasury to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to fund an endowment for increased operations and educational programming.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate
Put Trafficking Victims First Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1504
Sponsor: Sen. Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [D-NY]
Introduced: 2017-06-29 in the Senate
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Child health
Child safety and welfare
Congressional oversight
Crime victims
Crimes against children
Crimes against women
Criminal investigation, prosecution, interrogation
Criminal procedure and sentencing
Emergency medical services and trauma care
Government information and archives
Government studies and investigations
Human trafficking
Juvenile crime and gang violence
Labor standards
Law enforcement administration and funding
Sex offenses
State and local government operations
Women's health

Summary:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: 

Put Trafficking Victims First Act of 2017

 
This bill directs the Office for Victims of Crime within the Department of Justice (DOJ) to publish a report on state safe harbor laws, including: (1) the impact of state safe harbor laws on victims of trafficking, and (2) best practices and recommendations on the development and implementation of effective state safe harbor laws.
 
The bill amends the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000 to modify requirements with respect to the allocation of trafficking victim services grant funds for training and technical assistance. Specifically, it requires training and technical assistance to be provided in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services. Additionally, it broadens the areas of training and technical assistance to include, among others, investigating, prosecuting, and preventing human trafficking through a trauma-informed and victim-centered approach.
 
The National Institute of Justice must:
 
 
 establish a working group to identify and recommend best practices for collecting data on human trafficking;
 
report on efforts to develop methodologies to determine the prevalence of human trafficking in the United States; and 
 
coordinate with federal, state, local, and tribal governments, and private organizations, to survey survivors to estimate the prevalence of human trafficking in the United States. 
 
 
DOJ must report on efforts to increase mandatory restitution orders and asset forfeiture to provide restitution to victims of trafficking.
 
The bill encourages states to implement certain protections for victims of trafficking. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2017-06-29
text: Introduced in Senate