hyperdemocracy/usc-billstatus huggingface dataset:
Smithsonian National Zoological Park Central Parking Facility Authorization Act

Bill: 115-s-1954
Sponsor: Sen. Perdue, David [R-GA]
Introduced: 2017-10-05 in the Senate
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: District of Columbia
Motor vehicles
Museums, exhibitions, cultural centers
Parks, recreation areas, trails
Pedestrians and bicycling
Smithsonian Institution
Wildlife conservation and habitat protection

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: 

Smithsonian National Zoological Park Central Parking Facility Authorization Act

 
This bill authorizes the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution to plan, design, and construct a central parking facility on National Zoological Park property in Washington, DC, using funds from nonappropriated sources. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: Introduced in Senate
Preserving Liu Xiaobo Legacy of Freedom & Gold Medal Act

Bill: 115-s-1955
Sponsor: Sen. Rubio, Marco [R-FL]
Introduced: 2017-10-05 in the Senate
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Asia
China
Congressional tributes
Detention of persons
Diplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroad
Human rights
Lawyers and legal services
Museums, exhibitions, cultural centers
News media and reporting
Protest and dissent
Sanctions
Smithsonian Institution
Student aid and college costs

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: 

Preserving Liu Xiaobo Legacy of Freedom & Gold Medal Act

 
This bill directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to award a Congressional Gold Medal to Liu Xiaobo and collectively to all those who have peacefully advocated for democracy and human rights in China in recognition of their achievements and contributions to freedom, human rights, and peace in China and globally. 
 
 The bill expresses the sense of Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should make the medal available for display, particularly at locations: (1) associated with the research of the Tiananmen Protests of 1989 and their violent suppression, and (2) dedicated to preserving the history of the Chinese pro-democracy movement. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to authorize the Mayor of the District of Columbia and the Director of the National Park Service to enter into cooperative management agreements for the operation, maintenance, and management of units of the National Park System in the District of Columbia, and for other purposes.

Bill: 115-s-1956
Sponsor: Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK]
Introduced: 2017-10-05 in the Senate
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: District of Columbia
Intergovernmental relations
Parks, recreation areas, trails
State and local government operations

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: 
This bill authorizes the District of Columbia and the National Park Service (NPS) to enter into cooperative management agreements for the operation, maintenance, and management of National Park System units in DC, including the design and construction of improvements.
 
Such agreements may include terms and conditions relating to the allocation of responsibility between DC and the NPS and the payment of funds by the NPS and DC in support of such agreement. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-02-14
text: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 115-504.
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: Introduced in Senate
Florida Gasoline Supply Reserve Act

Bill: 115-s-1957
Sponsor: Sen. Nelson, Bill [D-FL]
Introduced: 2017-10-05 in the Senate
Policy area: Energy
Subjects: Congressional oversight
Energy storage, supplies, demand
Florida
Oil and gas

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: 

Florida Gasoline Supply Reserve Act

 
This bill requires the Department of Energy (DOE) to establish, maintain, and operate a Florida Gasoline Supply Reserve as part of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The reserve must contain a minimum of 1 million barrels of refined petroleum products. 
 
The bill authorizes DOE to sell refined petroleum products from the reserve in the event of a regional gasoline supply interruption.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2017-10-05
text: Introduced in Senate
IRS Data Verification Modernization Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1958
Sponsor: Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ]
Introduced: 2017-10-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation
Subjects: Internet and video services
Internet, web applications, social media
Tax administration and collection, taxpayers
User charges and fees

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: 

IRS Data Verification Modernization Act of 2017

 
 This bill requires the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to implement a program to ensure that disclosures of tax returns or return information by the IRS to a person verifying the income of a taxpayer for a legitimate business purpose are: (1) fully automated and accomplished through the Internet, and (2) accomplished in as close to real-time as is practicable. 
 
The IRS must assess and collect a fee for the disclosures described above at rates that are sufficient to recover the costs related to implementing the program not later than five years after the costs are paid or incurred. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Central Coast Heritage Protection Act

Bill: 115-s-1959
Sponsor: Sen. Harris, Kamala D. [D-CA]
Introduced: 2017-10-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
Subjects: California
Electric power generation and transmission
Federal-Indian relations
Forests, forestry, trees
Government studies and investigations
Historical and cultural resources
Lakes and rivers
Motor vehicles
Parks, recreation areas, trails
Pedestrians and bicycling
Religion
Right of privacy
Wilderness and natural areas, wildlife refuges, wild rivers, habitats

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: 

Central Coast Heritage Protection Act

 
 This bill designates specified lands in the Bakersfield Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and in the Lost Padres National Forest in California as wilderness areas and as components of the National Wilderness Preservation System. 
 
It also designates certain land in Los Padres National Forest as the Machesna Mountain Potential Wilderness Area, which shall be incorporated into the Machesna Mountain Wilderness Area. 
 
Specified segments of the Indian, Mono, Matilija, Sespe, and Piru Creeks and Sisquoc River in California are designated as components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. 
 
Certain land in the Los Padres National Forest in California is designated as the Fox Mountain Potential Wilderness Area, which shall be incorporated into the San Rafael Wilderness. 
 
This bill designates specified land: (1) in Los Padres National Forest as the Condor Ridge Scenic Area; and (2) in Los Padres National Forest and in the BLM Bakersfield Field Office as the Black Mountain Scenic Area. 
 
The Department of Agriculture shall: (1) study connecting the northern and southern parts of the Los Padres National Forest using a trail corridor across parts of the Northern and Southern Santa Lucia Mountains of the Southern California Coastal Range; (2) designate the Condor National Recreation Trail, extending from Lake Piru to the Botchers Gap Campground in the Monterey County corridor in California; and (3) conduct a study to improve nonmotorized recreation trail opportunities (including mountain bicycling) on land not designated as wilderness within the Santa Barbara, Ojai, and Mt. Pinos ranger districts.
 
The Forest Service shall study the feasibility of opening a new trail, for vehicles measuring 50 inches or less, connecting Forest Service Highway 95 to the existing off-highway vehicle trail system in the Ballinger Canyon off-highway vehicle area. 
 
Indian tribes shall be assured access to the wilderness areas, scenic areas, and potential wilderness areas designated by this bill for traditional cultural and religious purposes. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-08-22
text: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 115-528.
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Introduced in Senate
A bill to repeal the amendments made to the Controlled Substances Act by the Ensuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act of 2016.

Bill: 115-s-1960
Sponsor: Sen. McCaskill, Claire [D-MO]
Introduced: 2017-10-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Drug trafficking and controlled substances
Licensing and registrations
Prescription drugs
Retail and wholesale trades

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: 
This bill repeals two sections of the Ensuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act of 2016 and the amendments made by such sections to the Controlled Substances Act. The repealed sections modified registration and enforcement authorities of the Drug Enforcement Administration with respect to manufacturers, distributors, and dispensers of controlled substances. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Introduced in Senate
SBIR and STTR Oversight and Pilot Program Extension Act of 2018

Bill: 115-s-1961
Sponsor: Sen. Risch, James E. [R-ID]
Introduced: 2017-10-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Commerce
Subjects: Congressional oversight
Public contracts and procurement
Research and development
Small business
Technology transfer and commercialization

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: 

SBIR and STTR Oversight and Pilot Program Extension Act of 2018

 
This bill amends the Small Business Act to extend through FY2018 pilot programs under the Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer Program (STTR), specifically:
 
 
phase flexibility that allows, under specified conditions, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Department of Defense, and the Department of Education to each provide a small business award under Phase II (research and development) of the SBIR program for a project whether or not the business was provided an award under Phase I (proof of concept);
 
awards for technology development, testing, evaluation, and commercialization assistance for SBIR and STTR Phase II technologies or to support the progress of research, research and development, and commercialization conducted under SBIR or STTR programs to Phase III (commercialization);
 
the NIH Phase 0 Proof of Concept Partnership to accelerate the creation of small businesses and the commercialization of research innovations from qualifying institutions; and
 
 the authority of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to allow federal agencies to use up to 3% of SBIR program funds for administrative, oversight, and contract processing costs.
 
 
The SBA shall establish the Regional SBIR State Collaborative Initiative Pilot Program to provide awards to specified regional collaboratives to address the needs of small businesses in order to:
 
 
be more competitive in the proposal and selection process for SBIR and STTR program awards, and
 
increase technology transfer and commercialization.



Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-12-20
text: By Senator Risch from Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship filed written report. Report No. 115-450.
action_date: 2018-12-20
text: By Senator Risch from Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship filed written report. Report No. 115-450.
action_date: 2018-03-19
text: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 349.
action_date: 2018-03-19
text: Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Reported by Senator Risch with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.
action_date: 2018-03-19
text: Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Reported by Senator Risch with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.
action_date: 2018-03-14
text: Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Community Bank Access to Capital Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1962
Sponsor: Sen. Rounds, Mike [R-SD]
Introduced: 2017-10-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Accounting and auditing
Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Bank accounts, deposits, capital
Banking and financial institutions regulation
Securities
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: 

Community Bank Access to Capital Act of 2017

 
This bill directs the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve Board (FRB), and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to exempt banks with assets not greater than $50 billion from certain international financial standards.
 
The bill amends the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 to create an exemption from internal control report attestation requirements for depository institutions with assets not greater than $1 billion.
 
The Securities and Exchange Commission must revise Regulation D (which exempts certain offerings from securities registration requirements) to: (1) include a person's primary residence as an asset for purposes of calculating net worth, and (2) raise the limit on the number of purchasers of securities.
 
The FRB is directed to increase, from $1 billion to $5 billion, the consolidated asset threshold (i.e., permissible debt level) for a bank holding company or savings and loan holding company that: (1) is not engaged in significant nonbanking activities; (2) does not conduct significant off-balance-sheet activities; and (3) does not have a material amount of debt or equity securities, other than trust-preferred securities, outstanding. If warranted for supervisory purposes, the FRB may exclude a company from this threshold increase. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Prioritizing Our Workers Act

Bill: 115-s-1963
Sponsor: Sen. Manchin, Joe, III [D-WV]
Introduced: 2017-10-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector
Subjects: Bankruptcy
Employee benefits and pensions

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: 

Prioritizing Our Workers Act

 
This bill amends the federal bankruptcy code to include as allowable administrative expenses in bankruptcy the unfunded vested benefits in a defined pension plan and certain pension obligations under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). Claims for administrative expenses are entitled to priority in bankruptcy proceedings.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Child Welfare Oversight and Accountability Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1964
Sponsor: Sen. Hatch, Orrin G. [R-UT]
Introduced: 2017-10-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Families

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: 

Child Welfare Oversight and Accountability Act of 2017

 
This bill address foster care services in state child welfare programs, including the use of private, for-profit foster care services.
 
Specifically, the bill:
 
 
supports states placing children with family members, including by providing financial support to states for all children placed with family members, not just children removed from poor families; 
 
expands oversight of state child welfare systems, including by requiring states to annually review child fatalities from maltreatment;
 
establishes workload and training standards for child welfare workers; 
 
requires states to assess and report to the Department of Health and Human Services on the performance of foster care providers; and
 
gives an individual who is or was a child in foster care the right to seek relief in civil court if a state fails to meet certain case plan and case review requirements.
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2017-10-16
text: Introduced in Senate
Allowing Alaska IVORY Act

Bill: 115-s-1965
Sponsor: Sen. Sullivan, Dan [R-AK]
Introduced: 2017-10-17 in the Senate
Policy area: Animals
Subjects: Alaska Natives and Hawaiians
Food supply, safety, and labeling
Historical and cultural resources
Mammals
Trade restrictions

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-17
text: 

Allowing Alaska to Improve Vital Opportunities in the Rural Economy Act or the Allowing Alaska IVORY Act

 
This bill amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 to revise an exemption for Alaskan natives from a moratorium on taking and importing marine mammals and marine mammal products with respect to ivory from walruses, whales, or mammoths. Under current law, the term "take" means to harass, hunt, capture, or kill, or attempt to harass, hunt, capture, or kill a marine mammal.
 
States may not prohibit: (1) the importation, sale, transfer, trade, barter, or possession of ivory from walruses or whales if the ivory is legally produced by Alaskan natives as an authentic native article of handicrafts and clothing; or (2) the importation, sale, transfer, trade, or possession of mammoth ivory or mammoth ivory products.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-12-05
text: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 718.
action_date: 2018-12-05
text: Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Thune with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 115-415. Supplemental views filed.
action_date: 2018-12-05
text: Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Reported by Senator Thune with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 115-415. Supplemental views filed.
action_date: 2018-09-05
text: Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
action_date: 2017-10-17
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
action_date: 2017-10-17
text: Introduced in Senate
Regional Conservation Partnership Program Improvement Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1966
Sponsor: Sen. Stabenow, Debbie [D-MI]
Introduced: 2017-10-17 in the Senate
Policy area: Agriculture and Food
Subjects: Agricultural conservation and pollution
Infrastructure development
Intergovernmental relations
Rural conditions and development
State and local government operations
Water quality
Watersheds
Wildlife conservation and habitat protection

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-17
text: 

Regional Conservation Partnership Program Improvement Act of 2017 

 
This bill amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to make several modifications to the Department of Agriculture (USDA) Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). 
 
(The RCPP currently operates through several USDA conservation programs to provide funding for partners to join in efforts with producers to increase the restoration and sustainable use of soil, water, wildlife, and related natural resources on regional or watershed scales.) 
 
The bill modifies the program to: 
 
 
 require the RCPP to be operated as a separate program rather than through several existing USDA conservation programs;
 
expand the authority of project partners to define the scope of the activities that will help achieve conservation benefits;
 
 require USDA to set timelines for entering into contracts and providing funding; 
 
 require USDA to establish program coordinators in each state;
 
 increase the portion of funding that is allocated to the RCPP from USDA conservation programs; 
 
 modify the application process and requirements for program contracts; 
 
 authorize USDA to award grants to partners to directly operate conservation projects;
 
 authorize USDA to provide funding to partners for project development and outreach activities; and 
 
 establish reporting requirements for partners regarding the progress made toward addressing natural resource concerns and related outcomes of the projects. 
 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-10-17
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
action_date: 2017-10-17
text: Introduced in Senate
Mandate Relief Act of 2017

Bill: 115-s-1967
Sponsor: Sen. Cotton, Tom [R-AR]
Introduced: 2017-10-17 in the Senate
Policy area: Taxation

Summary:
action_date: 2017-10-17
text: 

 Mandate Relief Act of 2017

 
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to allow additional exemptions from the requirement under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to maintain minimum essential health coverage (commonly referred to as the individual mandate). The bill exempts individuals who: (1) have household incomes below the national median, (2) reside in a state in which the average premium for self-only or family coverage under the second lowest cost silver plan within the state has increased by more than 10% from the prior year, or (3) reside in a county with fewer than two health insurance issuers offering qualified plans on an exchange. 
 
The bill also repeals provisions added to the IRC by PPACA that: (1) restrict payments from health savings accounts (HSAs), Archer medical savings accounts (MSAs), and health flexible spending and reimbursement arrangements for medications to prescription drugs and insulin (thus allowing payments for over-the-counter medications); (2) impose a $2,500 limitation on salary reduction contributions to a health flexible spending arrangement under a cafeteria plan; and (3) impose an additional tax on HSA and Archer MSA distributions not used for qualified medical expenses. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2017-10-17
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
action_date: 2017-10-17
text: Introduced in Senate